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PE'Z

PE'Z

PE'Z (ペズ, Pezu) is a Japanese jazz instrumental band consisting of five men, dubbed "The Samurai Jazz Band." They have been signed onto Sony Music Japan since 2008.

Members

Information

PE'Z began their music careers playing live on the streets of Shibuya in the center of Tokyo during the summer of 2000. Word of mouth spread quickly and they began pulling in large crowds which sometimes totaled up to 600 people.

In the following years, they played in many large, outdoor music festivals all over Japan including Newport Jazz Festival '02 in Madaro, Mt. Fuji Jazz Festival 2002 in Shizuoka, and Rising Sun Rock Festival in Hokkaido. September 2002 saw the release of their first full album, Kugatsu no Sora| (September Sky). The album went on to rank at No.10 on the billboard charts which was an outstanding result for an instrumental band.

In March 2003, they received the New Artist Of The Year award at the 17th annual Japan Gold Disc Awards. The following August they participated in the remix of famous Japanese duo CHEMISTRY's 8th single Ashita e Kaeru / Us (Returning to Tomorrow). Hiizumi Masayuki also played keyboard as part of Shiina Ringo's backing band during her nationwide tour.

In 2004, Hiizumi Masayuki joined Shiina Ringo's new band "Tokyo Jihen" while also remaining a member of PE'Z. He eventually left Tokyo Jihen to refocus his attention on PE'Z the following year.

In October 2005, PE'Z performed in the UK's In The City festival along with fellow Japanese artists DMBQ and The Rodeo Carburettor. The festival was then followed with numerous performances around Europe including a street-live performance in Amsterdam.

2006 was a busy year for the band as they participated at both Canadian Music Week (CMW) and South by Southwest (SXSW), while also managing to drop a live performance in Korea in between. Their gig at SXSW was followed with their first-ever US tour, during which they performed in New York, Cambridge, Philadelphia, Chicago, Denver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

In September 2006, Pe'z released a 3 track single with British soul singer Nate James, featuring an original track, "Live for the Groove," a reworked Nate James track, "Universal," and a cover of "Hard to Handle" by the Black Crowes. They also released a new album, a 32-track double cd entitled "Funny Day & Hard Night," on 3/25/2007. This was followed by a second live DVD which featured the band performing two sets, the first being held at sundown and the second being held at night, mirroring the title of their newest album.

In 2007, they collaborated with suzumoku and founded pe'zmoku.

Discography

Albums

Mini-Albums

Singles

External Links

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