BiS

BiS
Also known as	Brand-new idol Society
Origin	Japan
Genres	punk rock, alternative rock
Years active	2010 - present
Labels	Tsubasa Records (2010 - 2012), Avex Trax (2012 - present)
Associated acts	BiS Kaidan
Website	Official website
Members	Pour Lui Nozomi Hirano Ten Tenko First Summer Uika Saki Kamiya Megumi Koshouji Junko Koshino
Past members	Rina Yokoyama Yukiko Nakayama Yurika Wakisaka Yufu Terashima Rio Michibayashi

BiS, also known as Brand-new idol Society (Shinsei Idol Kenkyuukai, 新生アイドル研究会), is a Japanese idol group that was founded in 2010 by leader Pour Lui following a brief solo career. With music, performances and videos that are extremely different to the typical idol group, BiS have come to be known as "alternative" idols. They will be soon disbanding.

History

2010-2011: Brand-new idol Society, Formation and debut

The formation of BiS came about in late 2010. Pour Lui, a solo artist known as the "new-age rock icon", announced her intention to retire as a singer and instead form an idol group, for which she would personally audition members.^[1] The new four-member group BiS made its debut on the indie record label Tsubasa Records with a free digital single called "Taiyou no Jumon" (太陽のじゅもん). Then, in April 2011, they released the album "Brand-new idol Society", which included "Taiyou no Jumon" and a cover of "One day", a song originally by Pour Lui.

2011: My Ixxx, nerve, primal. and increasing controversy

After the release of "Brand-new idol Society", the member Rina Yokoyama left the group. As a three-member unit, they released the single "My Ixxx", which gained notoriety due to its music video in which the members appear to be completely naked. To date, the video on YouTube has been viewed almost two million times. After this, Yufu Terashima joined the group as a new fourth member. The single "nerve" (a song originally featured on the Brand-new idol Society album) followed in October. The design of the "nerve" packaging is censored due to copyright issues, incorporating what is implied to be a spin on the logo of "NERV" as featured in the anime franchise Evangelion. Their third CD single, "primal.", an emotional rock song, was released on the 21st of December. That month, at BiS' solo concert "IDOL is DEAD", Yukiko Nakayama announced her intention to graduate from the group.

2012: The IDOL stunt

2012 saw BiS, a three-member group for the second time, announce a new single, to be titled "Idol" (アイドル, aidoru) and featuring a change in image. It was advertised with the tagline "Let's buy the same CD over and over again", referring to the marketing technique used by the management of idol groups to encourage fans to purchase several copies of a CD single. Before the single's release, the music video for "Idol" was uploaded to BiS' official YouTube channel and was met with criticism; the once shocking, punk rock BiS were singing a very typical cute idol song, wearing maid outfits and simpering. However, this video (with its deliberate parody of idol groups) was revealed to be a joke at the expense of their fans. It was then made private and a new video for a different song, titled "IDOL", was released.^[2] "IDOL"'s black metal-inspired sound was strongly different to the exaggerated cuteness of "Idol". Both songs were eventually released on the HMV-exclusive CD single in April, the group's last release on an indie label.

2012: The Avex era begins, IDOL is DEAD

BiS were signed to the major label Avex Trax in mid-2012, and auditioned for new members to join the group. This led to the initiation of Yurika Wakisaka and Rio Michibayashi, giving BiS a total of five members. Their first release with Avex was the July single "PPCC" (an acronym standing for the onomatopoeic phrase "pero-pero chu-cchu"), and a horror film about and starring the group, titled "IDOL is DEAD", was released in the same year. The film did not feature Wakisaka or Michibayashi, having been filmed before their debuts. October 2012 saw the release of their first major album, "IDOL is DEAD", which featured seven new songs, "PPCC", a cover of Shinichi Osawa's "Our Song" in a shoegaze style, and re-recordings of several of their tracks as an indie group. It charted at #30 on the Oricon weekly charts, and was their highest-ranking release so far in their career. Around the same time, a short anime series about BiS titled "Backstage idol Story" aired on Space Shower TV.

BiS members Pour Lui and Yurika Wakisaka also announced an intention to run a 100-kilometre supermarathon over the course of 24 hours, before participating in a 24-hour concert after that. Neither member completed the challenge, with Pour Lui dropping out after some 60 kilometres and Wakisaka, who injured her leg during the run, dropping out at 86. This event, documented in the music video for "hitoribochi", led to Yurika Wakisaka participating in less BiS events due to her injury.

2013: Major lineup changes, the intention to disband

2013's first release by BiS was "Get You", a collaborative effort released with the idol group Dorothy Little Happy. In March came "BiSimulation" and the intention of Yurika Wakisaka to graduate from the group due to health issues. Yurika was the center for the single, with a limited edition version of its CD including a photobook of her and the music video for its B-side "Hide out cut" devoted to documenting her time in the group. Yufu Terashima graduated soon after, although her split from the group was a less amicable one: Pour Lui openly writes in "BiStory: Who Killed Idol?", her autobiographical account of BiS, that she strongly dislikes Terashima.

Pour Lui revealed that her intention is to have BiS perform a sell-out concert at the Budokan, where they will disband. This is for them to "go out as legends".

Three new members entered the group after this: First Summer Uika, Ten Tenko, and Saki Kamiya. In June, this lineup of BiS released the single "DiE" (featuring a B-side produced by Noriaki Tsuda of Kemuri). It reached number 6 in Oricon's weekly charts, marking BiS' first time in the top ten. As BiS Kaidan, they also released a harsh noise album. The group also appeared in Dempagumi.inc's music video for their song W.W.D II. Rio Michibayashi announced her graduation from the group. A double A-side single titled "Fly / Hi" was released to commemorate her departure, it charted at #8 and became BiS' second top-ten release.

2013: A "JK" joins the group, a nationwide tour begins

In October, with the nationwide tour "BiS after all" approaching and faced with the departure of Mitchel, BiS announced that a "JK" would be joining the group as a new member. "JK" is understood in Japanese as a shorthand slang term for "joshi kousei", meaning a female high school student. But instead, the new member turned out to be one Junko Koshino, a famous fashion designer who is 74 years old. She was an active member of the group for just one week, and was appointed an honorary life-long member on the 5th of November. On the 10th, Megumi Koshouji made her debut as the new 6th member of BiS. The group then set out on the first dates of their tour and worked towards their goal of disbanding at Budokan.

2014: STUPiG, WHO KiLLED IDOL?, the goal approaches

January 2014 saw BiS release the single "STUPiG", a digital hardcore track produced by Takeshi Ueda of AA= and The Mad Capsule Markets. A sequel to their film "IDOL is DEAD", titled "IDOL is DEAD: Non-chan's Great Propaganda War" was released. Pour Lui formed a band called Lui FRONTiC Matsukuma Japan with BiS' main musical producer Kenta Matsukuma, which will release its debut album "JAPONiCA!" in February. The release of BiS' album "WHO KiLLED IDOL?", advertised as their last as a group, will take place on the 5th of March. The album includes a sequel to their classic song "primal." called "primal.2" and will also feature a cover of "Primal." by The Yellow Monkey.

Members

Present

Past

Image

BiS adopt an image very different to the traditional idol group.^[3] Their music videos touch on themes such as point-of-view pornography and sexual violence, attracting both positive and negative attitudes from viewers. Pour Lui notes that many are difficult to watch, and Avex staff member Ryuta Ochi explains "They [BiS] wanted to make a deliberate uglification of idol events." ^[4] The image of a typical idol is generally accepted as being pure and good-natured, which BiS reject. A recent photoshoot in Weekly Playboy saw them fully nude and covered in fake semen. In December 2013, they posed nude for the magazine Quick Japan.

Their debut was rather down to earth musically, though since their switch to a major label they have explored genres such as digital hardcore, noise music,^[5] black metal, and ska punk.

Discography

Indie Singles

• My Ixxx, released 3 August 2011. Reached #83 on Oricon weekly charts.
• nerve, released 19 October 2011. A single exclusive to Tower Records.
• primal., released 21 December 2011. Reached #64 on Oricon weekly charts.
• IDOL, released 11 April 2012. A single exclusive to HMV. Reached #41 on Oricon weekly charts.

Major Singles

• PPCC, released 18 July 2012. Reached #31 on Oricon weekly charts.
• BiSimulation, released 13 March 2013. Reached #14 on Oricon weekly charts.
• DiE, released 26 June 2013. Reached #6 on Oricon weekly charts.
• Fly / Hi, released 18 September 2013. Reached #8 on Oricon weekly charts.
• STUPiG, released 22 January 2014. Reached #7 on Oricon weekly charts.

Collabration Singles

• Get You, released 9 January 2013 as a collaboration with Dorothy Little Happy. Reached #11 on Oricon weekly charts.
• Denden Passion / IDOL, released 12 October 2013 as a collaboration with Dempagumi.inc. Only released at live venues and concerts.

Digital Singles

• Taiyou no Jumon (太陽のじゅもん), released 15 January 2011 as a free digital download.
• Interaction (いんたああくしょん), released 11 May 2011 as a free digital download in collaboration with tengal6.
• Tofu, released 31 January 2012 as a free digital download.

Studio Albums

• Brand-new idol Society, released 23 March 2011.
• IDOL is DEAD, released 24 October 2012. Reached #30 on Oricon weekly charts.
• WHO KiLLED IDOL?, to be released 5 March 2014.

Mini Albums / Other Albums

• ABiSCDiS, released 14 May 2012. A split 12-inch vinyl release featuring songs from BiS' hip-hop side project DiS.
• Bisukete (びすけて), released 26 September 2012. A mini-album exclusive to Village Vanguard.
• Otameshi BEST!! (お試しBEST!!). A rental-exclusive best-of album.

References