Toe (band)

The band has its origins in 2000 when guitar player Yamazaki Hirokazu decided to quit an old band which he described as having a "scream-o emo sound", inviting the other guitarist Mino Takaaki, who played in another band. They were later joined by drummer Kashikura Takashi and bassist Yamane Satoshi.[2] In July 2001, toe began performing live,[3] and the next year, they released the EP songs, ideas we forgot, being actively touring ever since.[4]

In 2005, they released their first studio album The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety through the label CATUNE.[5] Soon after, they founded their own indie label Machu Picchu Industrias, alongside the bands Mouse on the Keys, Enemies, and Tangled Hair.[2][6] In 2006 they released their first DVD (RGBDVD), followed by the EP New Sentimentality the following year.[3]

In 2009, toe released a split EP with the band Collections of Colonies of Bees,[3] and in December 9 of the same year, they released their second studio album, For Long Tomorrow, which saw the band expand their sound using new elements like a Rhodes piano, acoustic guitars, and minor vocals. After the album tour, they released their second live DVD Cut_DVD in 2010.[7]

In 2012, toe released the EP the future is now, published by Topshelf Records in the US and Big Scary Monsters in the EU and UK.[8] Subsequently, Topshelf Records re-released most of the band's catalog on vinyl.[9] The group also released the DVD 8 Days EU Tour in 2012.[3]

In 2015, the band released their third studio album Hear You, which was met with positive critical acclaim. It was characterized by its more minimal and vocally-focused sound in comparison with past records, having some hip-hop influences as well.[10][11]

In 2018, toe released a compilation of non-album tracks and remixes titled That's Another Story, in January 24, and the studio EP Our Latest Number, in August 22. Their most recent album, 独演会 "DOKU-EN-KAI" was live recorded in the round at le Poisson Rouge in New York City in 2019, and it was released in March 6, 2021.[3][12][13]

In 2021, they contributed an original song to the soundtrack for the anime series Sonny Boy.[14]

• Yamazaki Hirokazu (山嵜廣和) – guitar (2000–present)
• Yamane Satoshi (山根さとし) – bass (2000–present)
• Mino Takaaki (美濃隆章) – guitar (2000–present)
• Kashikura Takashi (柏倉隆史) – drums (2000–present)

The vast majority of toe's music is instrumental, featuring a very dynamic drumming blended in with melodic, clean guitars.[15] Takashi's drumming has been specially revered among math-rock circles,[16] considered to be the main attractive of the band from their first releases.[7] The AllMusic review for The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety calls the drums "the star of the sound".[5] Lars Gotrich from NPR praises Takashi, deeming him "capable of Questlove-level precision and soul one moment, and a cyclone of controlled chaos the next", and explains that what makes toe different from other bands within the genre is their "ability to tell short, concise stories — ecstatic, noodly, complex pop songs that unfold in less than five minutes"[17] The group changed their sound in later records incorporating acoustic guitars, Rhodes piano, vibraphones and vocals.[7][15]

Studio albums

• The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety (2005)
• For Long Tomorrow (2009)
• Hear You (2015)
• 独演会 "DOKU-EN-KAI" (2021)

EPs

• Songs, Ideas We Forgot (2003)
• New Sentimentality (2006)
• New Sentimentality "Tour Edition" (2008) Enhanced CDEP Limited to 1000
• Toe/Collection of Colonies of Bees (2009)
• The Future Is Now (2012)
• Our Latest Number (2018)

Splits

• Pele / toe (2002)

Remix albums

• Re:designed (2003)

Compilation albums

• That's Another Story (2018)

• Official website
• Toe at Discogs