Earthshaker

Formed in 1978 in Osaka, Japan, Earthshaker helped pioneer the sound of Japanese heavy metal before morphing into a pop/rock act during the late '80s. The band's original vocalist, Minoru Niihara, left the lineup after two years in order to form a different act, Loudness. Niihara's replacement, Masafumi Nishida, joined Earthshaker in time for the band's 1983 debut, Earthshaker, which also featured contributions from guitarist Shinichiro Ishihara, bassist Takayuki Kai, and drummer Yoshihiro Kud. The follow-up albums Fugitive and Midnight Flight both appeared in 1984, along with radio singles like "More" and "Radio Magic." Despite enjoying moderate popularity in western countries with these three albums, Earthshaker opted to focus on the Japanese market for the remainder of the 1980s, during which time the group released Over Run (1986), Aftershock (1987), Smash (1988), and Treachery (1989). Meanwhile, the group became a quintet with the addition of keyboardist Toshio "Toshi" Egawa, who joined the lineup during the late 1980s. Following 1993's Yeasterday and Tomorrow, Earthshaker split up for several years, then reunited without Egawa in 1999. More studio albums followed, including 2001's Birthday, 2009's The Course of Life, and 2011's Pray For the Earth. Egawa rejoined the lineup in 2018, the same year that Earthshaker released The Story Goes On. Five years later, Earthshaker celebrated its four decades of existence with the studio album 40, which debuted at number 63 on Japan's Top 100 Albums chart.

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