Base Ball Bear's Early Discography Gets Vinyl Treatment for 25th Anniversary
Japanese rock band Base Ball Bear is celebrating 25 years as a group with a special vinyl reissue project. Five albums from their 2006 debut year will be pressed to analog for the first time, arriving August 5.
Base Ball Bear is marking a major milestone with a back-to-basics release. The Japanese rock trio is pressing five of their earliest albums to vinyl for the first time, a fitting move for a band hitting both their 25th anniversary as a group and 20 years since their major label debut.
The five albumsβ"γγ³γBγ«γ€γγ¦" (Band B About), "GIRL FRIEND," "ELECTRIC SUMMER," "STAND BY ME," and "C"βall came out in 2006 during their breakthrough year. Each vinyl will include all original tracks plus live recordings, packaged in 7-inch sleeves that faithfully recreate the original album artwork with inserts.
Base Ball Bear formed in 2001 when high school classmates Yusuke Koide (vocals, guitar), Shiori Sekine (bass, vocals), and Daisuke Horinouchi (drums, vocals) got together for a school festival. They went professional in 2006 with "GIRL FRIEND," and have been a steady presence in Japan's alternative rock scene ever since. The band's been prolificβbeyond their studio albums, they've collaborated with other artists, founded their own label DGP RECORDS in 2018, and continue to tour regularly.
This vinyl project comes as part of broader anniversary celebrations. The band held a 25th-anniversary live show earlier this year and has kept releasing new material, including a mini-album last year followed by a national tour.
For longtime fans, this vinyl reissue offers a chance to revisit Base Ball Bear's scrappy early days in a format that's become trendy again. For newcomers curious about the band's origins, the comprehensive track listingsβwhich pull together everything from the original albums plus live materialβmake these solid entry points into their catalog.
The five vinyl releases drop August 5.