Video: LOUDNESS Performs At Germany's BANG YOUR HEAD!!! Festival

July 21, 2015

Fan-filmed video footage of Japanese metallers LOUDNESS performing on July 17 at the Bang Your Head!!! festival in Balingen, Germany can be seen below.

LOUDNESS released its latest studio album, "The Sun Will Rise Again", in June 2014.

In a 2012 interview with Examiner.com, LOUDNESS singer Minoru Niihara stated about the band's songwriting process: "First we have basic concepts and ideas for songs in Japanese and translate them into English. After that, we work with English-speaking songwriters. Then the songwriters will read lyrics and record them for us for pronunciation and intonation. We listen to them over and over to master them. It takes time to master them all, but in the studio I sing them so many times, recording, that I can sing them by heart by the time the recording is done. Memorizing songs for live performances is the same both in English and Japanese."

He added: "The hardest thing is pronunciation. My English has a heavy accent and not that great, but that is sort of my signature, I think. To make it easier, I just have to practice. Performing on the stage over the years has given me poise and self-confidence."

Asked about LOUDNESS' current drummer Masayuki Suzuki, who replaced the late Munetaka Higuchi in 2008, Niihara said: "His nickname is Ampan. Akira [Takasaki, guitar] jammed with Ampan in Sapporo and felt that he is 'our guy' and brought him to Tokyo to do an audition. [Bassist] Masayoshi [Yamashita] and I had never heard of him or seen him perform before he came to Tokyo with Akira. I loved his powerful playing style once I saw him in the audition and also loved the fact that it was very different from Munetaka's. Because Munetaka was such a great drummer, I understand that Ampan is constantly under pressure from being compared to him, but I believe he's the best at what he does and is a wonderful drummer."

He added: "Before he joined LOUDNESS, [Ampan] was working as a music producer and has written lots of songs in many different styles. He’s already written various songs from thrash metal to beautiful ballads for the band. Also, as a drummer he's brought the band a new groove. After Munetaka's passing, his playing has breathed new life into LOUDNESS. His twin bass drums have such a destructive power. We are extremely lucky to have found him."

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