The bilingual melodic punk band Nicotine was formed in 1993 just across the bay from Tokyo in the city of Chiba. Nicotine’s lineup consists of Howie on vocals, Yasu on guitar, Full on bass and Naoki on drums - four like-minded members who embody the “do it yourself” ideology.
Soon after their formation, Nicotine’s DIY spirit aided them in quickly establishing their reputation in both the States and Japan. In 1997 the band further illustrated their belief in the DIY ideology by creating their own indie record label called Sky Records. Nicotine tested the limits of ordinary independent record label expectations by garnering sales of more than 10,000 units on many of their releases. They took their independence as far as they possibly could. As a result, their popularity prompted a move to a larger label in 1999 which allowed them to focus on larger visions.
That same year, Nicotine was included on a high-profile compilation released by Fat Wreck Chords. Since Fat Wreck Chords is truly one of the most influential punk labels in the States, the band was honored by their inclusion. This compilation was entitled “Short Music for Short People” and featured Green Day, The Offspring, Blink-182, Bad Religion, NOFX, Rancid, and many other well-known artists. Shortly after, Nicotine collaborated with yet another punk act, New Found Glory, to record tracks for a compilation entitled Movie Addiction. There they covered and rearranged movie themes and twisted them into memorable punk nuggets.
With successive performances in both 2001 and 2002 as part of the Vans Warped Tour (the largest punk rock festival in the world), Nicotine continues to expand on their popularity as an international punk rock icons. With their self-coined battle cry of “Enjoy punk rock!” Nicotine are making certain that their brand of hard, catchy, positive punk rock is enjoyed by a growing legion of fans.
In 2002, Nicotine signed with Warner Music in Japan, bringing the band to even a larger audience. This past September, Nicotine recorded a version of the baseball classic “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” updating it with their signature punk edge. Renaming the song to “Take Me Out to the Ball Game 2003,” it was aired as part of a live Major League Baseball broadcast on the TBS Network (which is a major television station in Japan).
With the amazing Samurai Shot album as well as their latest album School of Liberty both having been successfully released in the United States by Asian Man Records, the band has added to their fan base and profile in the States. Currently Nicotine is working on a mini-album entitled “Punk Rock Xmas,” which finds the band bringing their incredible style to a variety of Christmas songs such as “Last Christmas” by Wham and “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey.
Since 2004 will be Nicotine’s 10th anniversary as a band, they will celebrate all year long and are currently planning a massive US Anniversary Tour. Look for them next year, shredding it up in a city near you!
