Ayabie

Biography

Ayabie came together in early 2004, formed by Ryōhei, Takehito, and Intetsu, who had all been in Hinawana, along with Aoi, who had previously played in MASK and Cynical Biscuit. Their very first concert was on May 8, 2004 at Takadanobaba AREA, where they handed out their debut single, Heien No Ato, Ame. A second single, Romancer, followed and was pressed in a run of just 1000 copies. On March 21, 2005, they put out their first album, Ayabie Sokukan Ongenshū, which came with a bonus DVD of their earlier music videos.

For a while, the band relied on support drummers, but later that year Kenzo joined as their permanent drummer. In June 2006, Ayabie made their first trip to Europe for a tour. That August, Ryōhei left for good because he disagreed with where the band was heading, and he went on to start his own group, Megamasso. Three months later, Yumehito joined Ayabie, and the band split up songwriting duties among themselves, with Yumehito handling most of the music.

In 2007, they toured Europe again and released the mini-album Ecumenical, along with several singles. Their first US tour happened in June 2008 as part of a world tour. After finishing their "Mikazuki no Kiseki" tour on September 27, 2008, they announced they would go major in spring 2009. Their first major-label single, Aitakute, came out on May 27, 2009.

To close out their indies era, they released a DVD called The 7th colour ~Indies last tour FINAL~. Their first major album, 彩- irodori, arrived on January 27, 2010. On August 7, 2010, it was revealed that Takehito, Intetsu, Kenzo, and Yumehito had all left Ayabie to form a new band called AYABIE, signing with TOY'S FACTORY. Aoi stayed with Tokuma Japan Communications as a solo artist under the name Aoi from ayabie, and also teamed up with Ryohei from Megamasso as Aoi & Ryohei.

AYABIE played at A-Kon in 2011. On May 21, 2012, Aoi launched a new project called 168 -one sixty eight-, with his debut single Setsugekka.

Members

Members of AYABIE include Takehito (born August 24, 1982, in Setagaya, Tokyo), guitarist of Ayabie and currently playing guitar in AYABIE; Aoi (born April 1, 1980), vocalist of Ayabie, currently working solo under the alias 168-Aoi; Intetsu (born February 1, 1983, in Taiwan), bassist for both Ayabie and AYABIE; Kenzo (born December 9, 1982, in Setagaya, Tokyo), drummer for both bands, currently vocalist for his solo project BVCCI HAYNES and drummer for Hitsugi of Nightmare's solo project Gremlins; and Yumehito (born September 22, 1985, in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture), guitarist of Ayabie and vocalist of AYABIE, also participating as vocalist in session band Robin, guitarist for the limited comeback of Soroban, and guitarist of BELLE.

Former members include Ryōhei (born March 27, 1983), guitarist who left in 2006 to form Megamasso and is currently a member of Migimimi Sleep Tight; and Taito, keyboardist for AYABIE.