Japanese metallers HANABIE release new single celebrating gaming culture

HANABIE
RELEASE NEW SINGLE ‘OTAKU LOVELY DENSETSU‘

STREAMING NOW VIA SONY MUSIC

Tokyo metallers HANABIE have released their new single and music video for ‘OTAKU Lovely Densetsu’. This single comes after their first major label debut Reborn Superstar! in August of 2023, via Sony Music. After gaining stratospheric popularity on TikTok and YouTube, the quartet combine metalcore, hardcore, and Akihabara culture to create their own original genre, Harajuku-core.

Watch the music video to ‘OTAKU Lovely Densetsu’ here.

HANABIE bulldozed into the UK’s line of sight in 2023 with their debut UK headline sold-out show at London’s Underworld, and will be heading out on a European tour in 2024 that includes an appearance at Download Festival in June.

Do not let HANABIE‘s cute bubblegum appearance fool you, as the screams that come out of Yukina’s small frame could easily be mistaken for a demon’s. Evilly screamed vocals and anime-styled choruses makes HANABIE‘s song structures unpredictable and relentlessly fun, a formula honed and perfected since they were high school students together.

The hit single and music video for ‘我甘党- (WE LOVE SWEETS)’ gained them notoriety in the US and EU before their home country of Japan, and has racked up 2M views on YouTube and 3M streams on Spotify. Influenced by an amalgamation of anime soundtracks, vocaloids, and idols, the band’s aesthetic is also designed by Hettsu, who initially wanted to pursue a career in the fashion industry before turning to the bass.

Despite the girl group’s polished and clean visuals, there’s no mistaking that the quartet originated from the streets, resulting in their undeniable variety and musical diversity. Whilst some may argue rock is dead and that there are no new ways of musical expression, HANABIE blow that notion up and prove that invention is an always evolving beast.