LOUDNESS

Loudness is a Japanese heavy metal band formed in 1981 by guitarist Akira Takasaki and drummer Munetaka Higuchi. They were the first Japanese heavy metal act signed to a major label in the United States, releasing twenty-three studio albums (five in America) by the end of 2009 and reaching the Billboard Top 100 in their moment of maximum international popularity. Despite numerous changes in their roster, the band continued their activities during the 90's, finally reuniting the original line-up in 2000. On November 30, 2008 original drummer Munetaka Higuchi died from liver cancer at a hospital in Osaka at age 49. Loudness replaced him with Masayuki Suzuki and are still active to this day.

Back in the '70's, drummer Munetaka Higuchi and guitarist Akira Takasaki played together in a pop-rock band called Lazy. In an effort to pursue their musical aspiration even farther, they split from the successful group and launched Loudness in May 1981. The duo was joined by former Earthshaker vocalist Minoru Niihara, who was devoted to soul music at the time, and Takasaki's childhood friend Masayoshi Yamashita as the bassist.