“Seimei/Still Alive” Now On Sale!
Plus UCC Black “Seimei” Commercial & UCC Creation Video Feature
News 
The fifty-third B’z single “Seimei/Still Alive” is now officially on sale! It has debuted at the top of the Weekly Oricon Singles chart with pre-orders sales in excess of 61,000 physical copies already moved. If you still don’t have a copy on the way, you can obtain one via CDJapan, YesAsia, or Amazon Japan.
As is always the case, the band have chimed in with their release message to mark the occasion which we have translated for you below:
In addition, the UCC Black x B’z commercial featuring “Seimei” is now on air:
What’s more, a making-of video for the special B’z-branded cans of UCC Black that will be available to winners of the 10,000-draw lottery was also made available on YouTube. The tongue-in-cheek video features the beans used to create the coffees being exposed to “Seimei” before being packaged and serves as a solid preview of the song as well:
INABA / SALAS Return for Limited Japan Shows This Fall;
Showings in Second Country Teased?
Koshi Inaba News 
Koshi Inaba and Stevie Salas will reform their CHUBBY GROOVE band for a few limited engagements this fall amidst Koshi’s B’z commitments. First, they will appear at SUMMER SONIC 2017 on August 19th and August 20th, performing with the Foo Fighters, All Time Low, Man with a Mission, and Royal Blood on both dates in Osaka and Tokyo, respectively.
Days later, the band will team with visual kei artist Miyavi and rock outfit Made in Asia for a special event at Toyosu PIT in Tokyo. Made in Asia is a band whose roster includes Duran, who has appeared with Koshi on his solo tours in 2014 and 2016.
The return of INABA/SALAS has been teased by Salas on numerous occasions on social media, and if recent posts are any indication, there could be something more on the horizon as well:
“Tonight we announced 4 HUGE rock concerts coming in August INABA SALAS on stage with some bands like the Black Eye Peas and The Foo Fighters will rock in August in Japan AND…????? Stay tuned! I live for the big shows…100 thousand plus suites me fine.”
The fourth show mentioned by Salas has not been officially confirmed but, if occurring, would be expected to take place in August or September as well.
UPDATE: Stevie Salas has clarified his post and confirmed that another date is coming soon, and that it will be in a country outside of Japan:
3 concerts in Japan in August plus another country added sooooon??!!BUT I can’t say where just yet
“Seimei” Short Music Video Now Available!
News The short music video for “Seimei” previewed in its recent commercial has now been uploaded to YouTube! Its single “Seimei/Still Alive” is now under one week away.
The animation contained within is almost certainly provided by the same studio that produced the vignette for Koshi Inaba’s solo music video “Hane” back in 2016, which can be viewed subtitled here.
B’z New Single
「Seimei/Still Alive」
Tracklisting
1. Seimei
2. Still Alive
3. Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru
4. Fukiarenasai
Bonus DVD: 「Still Alive」 Music Video
Pre-order CD-Only Edition:
Pre-order CD+DVD Edition:
Pre-order “B’z x UCC” CD Package Edition:
NOTE: CDJapan offers release-day delivery, YesAsia offers free international shipping, and Amazon.jp typically offers lower price with later delivery
B’z LIVE-GYM 2017-2018 Announced!
News 
Nearly two full years since the close of their last tour, B’z will soon embark on the as-yet untitled B’z LIVE-GYM 2017-2018! The tour will serve to promote the band’s upcoming twentieth studio album which is expected to be announced and released in late fall or early winter. The title for the 18-stop tour will likewise be announced alongside the album, and may come around August when the band are playing their currently scheduled music festival showings.
This is the third time the band have staged a cross-year tour, following LIVE-GYM ’90~’91 “RISKY” and LIVE-GYM ’91~’92 “IN THE LIFE”. It is also not unlikely the band will revive “Itsuka no Merry Christmas” for the first time since LIVE-GYM 2011 -C’mon- for the December showings.
The dates announced today are as follows:
Dec. 14/16/17 — Hokkaido Prefectural Sports Center
Dec. 23/24 — Fukuoka Yahoo! JAPAN Dome
Dec. 30/31 — Nagoya Dome
Jan. 7/8 — Tokyo Dome
Jan. 13/14 — Saitama Super Arena (※Performed as a Dome showing)
Jan. 20/21 — Sun Dome Fukui
Jan. 27/28 — Sekisui Heim Super Arena
Feb. 1/3/4 — Kyocera Dome Osaka
The duration of LIVE-GYM 2017-2018 may not appear in line with comparatively massive undertakings like LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2013 -ENDLESS SUMMER- and LIVE-GYM 2015 -EPIC NIGHT- that toured smaller and larger venues alike. While there will certainly be a LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2018 that picks up where this leaves off next year, it’s worth noting that 2002’s “GREEN ~GO★FIGHT★WIN~” also spanned 18 shows, LIVE-GYM 2003 “BIG MACHINE” was just 12, “MONSTER’S GARAGE” in 2006 was only 17, and “Ain’t No Magic” from 2010 was played over 19 dates.
The Origin of the Name “B’z”
Feature 
One of the more curious oddities in B’z lore and its accompanying fandom is the origin of the name “B’z“. A great many explanations have been proffered over the years (including both competing and supporting explanations by Tak and Koshi themselves in various interviews after being asked the question innumerable times). As many now no doubt know, “B’z” is pronounced the same as “bees” and occasionally as “bi-zu” (ビーズ) as a phonetic replacement by fans in Japan though the band use the former.
In 2012, as part of the B’z LIVE-GYM 2012 -Into Free- tour that saw the band play both coasts of the U.S. and Canada, a camera crew from WOWOW followed the action and recounted it in the documentary Only Two. The title of which originates from Tak, who stated when asked about the founding of the band:
“In the beginning, I wanted to found a band with four members, but… [after meeting Koshi] I thought, ‘Only two is enough.'”
Later, when asked if he had a clear vision of the path B’z would follow, he added:
“I had a clear vision from the start: I wanted to form a band that could succeed in making hit songs, you know. That’s why I started a band with just two. In general, every member of a band is egotistic. I didn’t think it’d be well organized with so many opinions.”
As for the name they later took as their own, the most prominent explanation over the years became that B’z wanted to be an “A to Z” sort of band, a band from which you could expect any sort of music. This was shortened to “A~Z” and then “A’z“, but the poor connotations quickly made it an unfavorable candidate, which led to “B’z”. Tak also mentioned in a 1989 interview that the idea of having a “Z” at the end was the result of a casual remark by a staff member whilst they were recording their earliest demos. Another article quoted Tak as saying he liked the idea of using a “Z” in the name and thought having a “B” would be appropriately masculine, with the number of associated B” rock artists out there. Thus, adding the two together formed “B’z“. Another related rationale that emerged in the press was that the band wanted to be inclusive of their favorite rock artists, and thus the name “B’z” included “B” for The Beatles and “Z” for Led Zeppelin.
As it turns out, there’s an element of truth to most of the popular explanations out there. From the aforementioned documentary, in their own words, here is an English-subtitled account of the band explaining the way the name came about:
“Seimei” Commercial Now Airing
News The first “Seimei”-themed version of the “Seimei/Still Alive” single hit airwaves today during Detective Conan and has been preserved below for those that wish to see it. The single will be released on June 14th and also includes the Detective Conan theme “Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru“.
