Kaisoku Tokyo pride themselves on blazing through their setlist so fast that you can almost see smoke rising off their instruments when they're done. Combining the terse punk power of Melt-Banana with the bounciness of Polysics, their supercharged performances last around 15 minutes (with most songs clocking in at just over the one-minute mark) but pack such a punch that they leave audiences sprawling in a sweaty mess on the floor. This may sound like your typical hardcore act, but the band says the reality is different.
"I don't think we're hardcore," says vocalist Tetsumaru Fukuda. "To the bitter end we're a rock and pop band. It's just that we're fast and noisy. If you listen to fast and loud music for a long time you get tired, if you play it you get tired too. So I wanted to try making short songs."
Part of the freshness of Kaisoku Tokyo's sound comes from the fact that the band is not mimicking any particular artist. "All our members like different artists, so we aren't influenced by anyone in particular. I'm really the only one who loves Rage Against the Machine and Michael Jackson."