Esprit D'Air

Esprit D'Air (エスプリ デア) was a Japanese rock and heavy metal band based in London.^[1]

History

Deai, The Hunter and Shizuku (2010–12)

The band met at a concert in London and made their debut in May 2010.^[2] At the time, the band had five members – Yosh (lead vocals), Kai (lead guitar and backing vocals), Ellis (bass), Yuki (rhythm guitar) and Daishi (drums).^[3] Esprit D'Air first released an EP entitled 'Deai' in October 2010, which loosely translates to 'encounter'. Kai described the name as a 'sort of like the first hello from the band'.^[4] They recorded the 3-track EP at Sarm East Studios in Brick Lane, London.

Since forming in 2010, the band performed at numerous shows in the UK and Spain^[5] and have been interviewed by Japanese video sharing website, Nico Nico Douga.^[6]

In early 2011, rhythm guitarist Yuki left the band due to personal reasons, leaving the band as a four-piece, whilst Yosh organised and performed at charity events in aid of Japan’s 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami. The band also announced news about their second release.^[7]

In February 2012, Esprit D'Air released The Hunter and performed two headline shows at Nambucca (London, UK) and La Farga (Barcelona, Spain) as part of their single launch.^[8][9] Tom Smith, the director of European-based independent record label JPU Records (the GazettE, POLYSICS, Ling Tosite Sigure), described the single as a release that 'excites them much more than any recent visual kei or J-rock from Japan'.^[10]

In June 2012, Esprit D'Air released Shizuku and offered the track free for a limited time.^[11]

Rock Band 3, Hiatus and Yosh's Departure (2012-13)

In early 2013, the band rose in popularity as Shizuku became the first playable Japanese-language track on the Xbox 360 video game, Rock Band 3 and the only track to be featured in the 'J-rock' category.^[12]

In late 2013, the band announced that they were on indefinite hiatus due to a number of personal commitments.^[13]

Due to personal reasons, Yosh was no longer a part of the band in early 2013 and returned to Tokyo, six months after the band announced their indefinite hiatus.^[14]

Coma, Hakuren and Disbandment (2013)

Coma and Hakuren joined as the new lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist respectively, in April 2013 making the band a five-piece once again. However, the band performed their last show with this line-up at Brighton Japan Festival in September 2013. A month later, Coma flew back to Tokyo, Japan without a definite plan to return. With the singer in another country, the band could not see a future together and decided to disband, despite having record label interest for their upcoming album.^[15]

Current Activity (2015-present)

In July 2015, Kai performed a solo set of Esprit D'Air songs at Hyper Japan^[16] and The Pipeline in London.^[17][18]

In March 2016, Esprit D'Air reunited for a one-off show to perform at a charity event in London, where all proceeds went to Aoba-gakuen, an orphanage in Fukushima, Japan.^[19][20] Through ticket, merchandise, food sales and donations, the event raised over £1,100 for the orphanage.^[21]

Members

Past members

• Kai – lead guitar (2010–13)
• Daishi – drums (2010–13)
• Ellis – bass (2010–13)
• Coma – lead vocals (2013)
• Hakuren – rhythm guitar (2013)
• Yosh – lead vocals (2010–13)
• Yuki – rhythm guitar (2010–11)

Discography

• Deai (2010)
• The Hunter (2012)
• Shizuku (2012)

Awards

• 2012: Electric Bloom Webzine's Top 5 Singles – "The Hunter"^[22]
• 2012: JpopAsia Music Awards (Nominee) – "Shizuku"^[23]

See also

• Complete list of Rock Band Network songs
• Sarm East Studios

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Esprit D'Air.

• Official website