Oreskaband are a very "genki" (lively and full of spirit) six piece girl ska band from Osaka who have gathered a substantial following with their rambunctious performances and pop punk ska sound. The nucleus of the band came together in 2003 while the members were still in junior high school. By high school, the line-up of Tomi (bass & vocal), Moriko (tenor sax), Saki (trumpet), LEADER (trombone), TAE-san (drums) and IKASU (guitar and vocal) had set, and the group started playing...

Oreskaband are a very "genki" (lively and full of spirit) six piece girl ska band from Osaka who have gathered a substantial following with their rambunctious performances and pop punk ska sound. The nucleus of the band came together in 2003 while the members were still in junior high school. By high school, the line-up of Tomi (bass & vocal), Moriko (tenor sax), Saki (trumpet), LEADER (trombone), TAE-san (drums) and IKASU (guitar and vocal) had set, and the group started playing club shows. They put together a self-produced EP called Penpal (now out of print), which helped them gather major label attention, and in 2006 they signed with Sony. Despite the major label affiliation, the band are far from slick, and they have gathered much of their following with sweaty, low production shows in small clubs. The band's solid playing and youthful exuberance makes their performances contagious fun, and helped draw the attention of snack maker Pocky, who featured the band performing on a moving train in a TV commercial. In July 2006 the band released their debut EP Ore, and a month later performed at Fuji Rock's Rookie-A-Go-Go stage, where they managed to draw over 1,000 people. The band also recorded a track for a tribute album for ska trombone legend Rico Rodriquez, and appeared together with him on stage during his visit to Japan. The band members graduate from high school in March 2007, and will ramp up activity from then, including the release of the Double sided single+DVD Wasuremono/Chuck. Most of Oreska's lyrics are in Japanese, but Chuck features English lyrics written by the band's top English speaker, saxophonist Moriko. Underlining the band's youth, the video for the release was shot in a high school. Oreska will appear at SXSW in Austin, Texas, and will also play shows in San Francisco and LA.