BAND-MAID

BAND-MAID are a five-piece Japanese hard rock band formed in 2013. The idea came from guitarist-vocalist Miku Kobato, who had worked at an Akihabara maid café and wanted to combine that visual world with a full rock band. The current line-up was in place by August 2013: Kobato (guitar/vocals), SAIKI (vocals), KANAMI (guitar), MISA (bass), and AKANE (drums). The group call their concerts ‘okyuji’ (servings) and their fans ‘masters’ and ‘princesses’, but the maid presentation sits against a much heavier musical core built around twin guitars, hard rock riffing, and the contrasting vocals of SAIKI and Kobato.

After the indie mini-album ‘Maid in Japan’ in January 2014 and ‘New Beginning’ in 2015, BAND-MAID’s breakthrough accelerated when the video for ‘Thrill’ found an overseas audience online. ‘Brand New MAID’ arrived in May 2016 as their major-label mini-album, the same year they played their first overseas ‘okyuji’ at Sakura-Con in Seattle, appeared at MCM Comic Con in London, and began touring internationally. ‘Just Bring It’ followed in 2017, while 2018’s ‘WORLD DOMINATION’ put the band’s long-running goal directly into an album title as their touring expanded across Japan, Europe, and North America.

By 2019, BAND-MAID had entered a touring partnership with Live Nation. That year’s ‘CONQUEROR’ included ‘The Dragon Cries’, produced by Tony Visconti, and the band also announced an alliance with United Talent Agency. They moved from Nippon Crown to Pony Canyon for 2021 album ‘Unseen World’ and appeared in the Netflix action film Kate. Their 2022 US tour sold out across the route and drew more than 20,000 people, followed by an appearance on Guns N’ Roses’ Japan dates. BAND-MAID’s 10th anniversary in 2023 brought a world tour, four major international festival appearances including Lollapalooza Chicago, and a Yokohama Arena tour finale.

In 2024, ‘Epic Narratives’ combined tracks including ‘Shambles’ and ‘Protect You’ with collaborations such as ‘Bestie’, co-written with Incubus guitarist Mike Einziger, and ‘SHOW THEM’ with Mexican rock trio The Warning. The following year brought three anime themes: ‘Zen’ for ZENSHU., ‘Ready to Rock’ for Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, and ‘What is justice?’ for Tougen Anki, all later included on the ‘SCOOOOOP’ EP. For Rock Is a Lady’s Modesty, KANAMI, AKANE, SAIKI, and MISA also performed motion capture used for the anime’s instrumental scenes.

In 2026, BAND-MAID returned to a full world-tour schedule across Asia, Europe, North America, and Japan, released the single ‘ENERGETIC’ in June, and announced ‘SPIN’ for 28 October as a new ending theme for BEYBLADE X. The BAND-MAID WORLD TOUR 2026 concludes with two nights at Nippon Budokan on 13 and 14 November. After those shows, the band will pause live activity throughout 2027 while continuing production work, with all five members due to return to performing in 2028 for BAND-MAID’s 15th anniversary.