Delivering a brutalizing mixture of punked out, dirty garage rock and dominatrix theatrics, 54 Nude Honeys was one of the underground scene's most beloved bands, in Japan as well as the US and Europe.  The band was founded by bassist Vivi and guitarist Kotome in 1992. Vocalist Yuri joined shortly thereafter, completing the core trio that was constant throughout the life of the band.  Like the legendary fictional band Spinal Tap, 54 Nude Honeys had a hard time keeping drummers, going...

Delivering a brutalizing mixture of punked out, dirty garage rock and dominatrix theatrics, 54 Nude Honeys was one of the underground scene's most beloved bands, in Japan as well as the US and Europe.  The band was founded by bassist Vivi and guitarist Kotome in 1992. Vocalist Yuri joined shortly thereafter, completing the core trio that was constant throughout the life of the band.  Like the legendary fictional band Spinal Tap, 54 Nude Honeys had a hard time keeping drummers, going through at least ten during their run.  The band's distinctive name came from a deck of playing cards popular with American forces in WW II, which featured nude girls on the backs.  Check out  the band's stage attire - black latex hotpants, leather boots and not much else - and you will start to get the picture.  54 Nude Honeys gigged hard for their first three years after forming, and shortly after their first release, the single Happy Honey Pretty Go, they signed with major label Epic Sony. Their first major mini-album, Crazy Honey Bunny, came out in October 1995. They released four more CDs on the label, the last being their first full length album, Go Cabaret (Around the World), in December 1996. A few months later, they left the label.  In 1998, 54 Nude Honeys released their album Drop the Gun, performed alongside bands such as Guitar Wolf, the bassist of which, Billy, has also been a love interest of Kotome. In 2000, the band extended their range outside of Japan and toured in the UK, also releasing Hot Generation / I'm a Rubber Man on the UK label Mademoiselle Records. In the following two years, they performed steadily in Japan, also contributing to a tribute album for the popular anime Beck. 54 Nude Honeys left Japan to set up camp in New York in 2003, performing and recording there. In 2006 they launched an extensive tour of France, as well as playing a few shows in Switzerland. A European album was also released, and the girls returned to France again in May 2007. Unfortunately, a few months later the band announced that they would disband. Although the band no longer exists, they left a massive footprint behind in the form of fansites, vidoes, and a lot of happy (and lovestruck) concertgoers.