Thee Michelle Gun Elephant

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Thee Michelle Gun Elephant
Thee Michelle Gun Elephant: L>R: Abe Futoshi, Chiba Yusuke, Kazuyuki Kuhara, Ueno Koji
Thee Michelle Gun Elephant: L>R: Abe Futoshi, Chiba Yusuke, Kazuyuki Kuhara, Ueno Koji
Background information
Origin Japan
Genre(s) Garage rock
Blues rock
Punk rock
Garage Punk
Japanese Monster R&B
Years active 1991-2003
Label(s) Universal Music Group
Alive Records
Associated
acts		 Rosso
Radio Caroline
The Birthday
Midnight Bankrobbers
Website http://www.rockin-blues.com
Former members
Chiba Yusuke
Abe Futoshi
Ueno Koji
Kazuyuki Kuhara

Thee Michelle Gun Elephant (also known as TMGE) was a Japanese Garage band of notable popularity in its country of origin. Its music is known for the loud guitars of Abe Futoshi and lead singer Chiba Yusuke's loud, gravelly yet melodious vocals. Other members of the band include Kuhara Kazuyuki (drums) and Ueno Koji (bass). The band was formed while the band members were students at Tokyo's Meiji Gakuin University, and their name came from a combination of the name of Billy Childish's offbeat band Thee Headcoats and a former bassist's mispronunciation of the name of The Damned's album, Machine Gun Etiquette.

Their first major label release, Wonder Style, was released in 1995, and produced in London, United Kingdom, by Chris Brown, who previously engineered albums and tracks for Radiohead and Pink Floyd. Their breakthrough album, however, was 1998's Gear Blues which sold more than 4 million copies worldwide. Gear Blues was released in the United States in 2000 by Alive Records.

The band announced that they would break up on October 11, 2003, after their Last Heaven tour of Japan.

They are often mistakenly referred to as "Thee Machine Gun Elephant" and "Three Machine Gun Elephant".

[edit] Discography

Albums

  • Cult Grass Stars (1996) Triad
  • High Time (1996) Triad
  • Chicken Zombies (1997) Triad
  • Gear Blues (1998) Triad
  • Casanova Snake (2000) Triad
  • Rodeo Tandem Beat Specter (2001) Triad
  • Sabrina Heaven (2003) Island
  • Sabrina No Heaven (2003) Island

Live Albums

  • Casanova Said "Live or Die" (2000) Triad
  • Last Heaven's Bootleg (2003) Island

Singles

  • Sekaino-Owari (1996) Triad
  • Candy House (1996) Triad
  • Lily (1996) Triad
  • Culture (1997) Triad
  • Get Up Lucy (1997) Triad
  • The Birdmen (1997) Triad
  • G.W.D (1998) Triad
  • Out Blues (1998) Triad
  • Smokin' Billy (1998) Triad
  • GT400 (2000) Triad
  • Baby Stardust (2000) Triad
  • Abakareta-Sekai (2001) Triad
  • Taiyou wo Tsukande Shimatta (2002) Island
  • Girl Friend (2003) Trippin' Elephant
  • Electric Circus (2003) Island

B-Sides Collection

  • Rumble (1999) Triad

Best-of Collection

  • TMGE 106 (2000) Triad
  • Collection (2001) Alive Records (US release)
  • Grateful Triad Years (2002) Triad


Other releases

  • Maximum! Maximum!! Maximum!!! (1993) Self-Released
  • Wonder Style (1995) Trippin' Elephant
  • Wonder Style (reissue) (1997) Triad
  • Vibe On! (1998) Trippin' Elephant
  • Kwacker (with Mick Green) (2001) Trippin' Elephant

[edit] External links

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