Date: 1 November 2026
A Yokohama death metal band that sings in Japanese
CRY's official website introduces the band in one line of Japanese: a death metal band from Yokohama. Music in Japan, which lists them under death metal and technical death metal, says the members come from Chigasaki, Fujisawa, Yokohama, and Sendai, and that drummer Yuichi Ishiguro formed the current band in 2016. [2] [1]
The roots go back further. According to the Music in Japan profile, Ishiguro started a band called Breeding Corpse in Yokohama in 2000, which went on hiatus, re-formed in 2006 as Cry with Inhumanity, and later shortened its name to CRY. MetalSucks, which put CRY on a November 2021 list of 15 newer brutal bands from Japan, also mentions the earlier name and says the band features members of the death metal act Inhuman Devotion. [1] [5]
The first thing an international listener should know is the language. The band's release copy for its second album says that CRY once again held to Japanese lyrics on every song, and the lyrics printed on the Bandcamp page for the debut are in Japanese as well. If you want to follow the words, you will be working from the original text. [3] [6] [4]
壱: a debut built around a memorial
The debut album 壱 (Ichi, "One") came out on January 19, 2021, according to its Bandcamp page. The digital edition has ten tracks and runs just under half an hour. It was recorded, mixed, and mastered at Void)))Lab with engineer Ryuhi Inari, and the credits list four members: Yuichi Ishiguro on drums, Tomoyasu Yamaguchi on guitar, Shinichirou Go on bass, and Kyosuke Kohira on vocals. [4]
The release date was not arbitrary. The band's discography page explains that Hironori "Hee chung" Suzuki, a drummer from Yokkaichi in Mie Prefecture who played in ANAAL VIBLATOR, naqro, SHADY GLIMPSE, and UNHOLY GRAVE, died on January 19, 2015, and that CRY released the album on the date of his seventh memorial service. The CD is a two-disc set. The first disc holds CRY's own songs, and the second holds two naqro songs, "gross pain" and "四日市殺戮BLAST GENOCIDE", each in naqro's original version and in CRY's cover, with naqro vocalist Chris among the guests. [3]
The band's own copy says 壱 reached No. 2 on a weekly sales chart and that CRY followed it with more than 30 shows around Japan. The copy does not name the chart, so read that figure as the band's claim rather than an independently checked ranking. [2] [6]
What it sounds like
MetalSucks described CRY as "a fine example of modern death/grind with a focus on the technical without diluting any of the brutality along the way." The band's own copy for the second album promises playing with a "high coefficient of friction" and melodies of madness that are "ugly yet flowing". On 壱, most songs sit between about two and a half and four minutes, and the longest, 疑心, runs 4:10. [5] [6] [4]
The lyrics on the debut's Bandcamp page deal less with gore than with grief and guilt. 告別 (Farewell) describes a dying person in a coma, connected to tubes, and a prognosis that cannot be spoken aloud. 独生 is about outliving friends and family and speaking to a memorial photograph out of loneliness. 悔悟 (Remorse) moves from a dark, closed room shared with someone who cannot communicate, through a killing, to regret in front of the body. That focus carries into the second album, which the band says is built around the theme of lamentation. [4] [3]
弐 and the current lineup
The second album, 弐 (Ni, "Two"), was released on June 16, 2024. It has nine tracks and came out as a self-released CD priced at ¥3,300 including tax, catalogue number CRYCD002 in Disk Union's listing. Yamaguchi recorded the guitars and bass himself, Inari recorded vocals and drums and handled the mix and master at Void)))Lab, and Bahrull Marta made the cover artwork. By then the band was a five-piece, with Akira Nishimoto credited as a second guitarist. [2] [6]
Between the two albums, the band says it opened Japanese tour dates for AMORPHIA, BONEHUNTER, CAN OF WORMS, and DEATH FROM ABOVE. Its own event series, INSANE, held in Yokohama and Tokyo, drew its largest crowd at the 13th edition: 160 people, according to the band. [2]
The lineup has since changed. The latest news item on the official site says Yu Sato, formerly of GxSxD, has replaced bassist Shinichiro Go as a full member, starting with a Saturday, June 20 show at Kashiwa 616. Music in Japan's profile still lists Go, so treat the official site as the current record. The site's show list also includes dates in Malaysia, at AKA Rockin Hall on February 13, 2026, and in Singapore, at ROOM526 the next night. [2] [1]
Where to start and where to follow
Start with 壱, because it is the easiest record to reach. It is on Bandcamp for ¥3,000 or more, and the band's TuneCore link page sends listeners to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and other streaming services. When the band put 壱 on streaming services ahead of the second album, the official site said it had no current plans to stream 弐. Try 疑心 or 告別 first, then play the album straight through. [4] [8] [2]
Buying 弐 from outside Japan takes one email. The official site asks overseas buyers to send their order and address to the band's overseas address, and the band replies with stock, price, shipping, and a PayPal account. It also offers WAV or MP3 files for ¥2,500 by PayPal. In Tokyo, Disk Union's Shinjuku heavy metal store announced the CD for release day. [2] [6]
The next show in Music in Japan's listings is INSANE 22 at Wild Side Tokyo on November 21, 2026, with doors at 12:30 and music from 13:00. CRY share the bill with CUDOA, GATE, UNFAIRE GOD, and 猿轡, and the venue lists tickets at ¥1,000 plus a ¥600 drink. Music in Japan's listings show the band playing Tokyo Brutal Fest 2026 at Wild Side Tokyo in July and Koiwa Death Fest vol. 95 at Bushbash in September. Check the band's official site and social accounts before you plan a trip around a date, because small-venue bills can change. [7] [1] [2]
Sources
[1] Music in Japan: CRY band profile
[3] CRY official website: Discography
[5] MetalSucks: 15 of the Most Brutal New Bands from Japan (2021)
[6] Disk Union Shinjuku Heavy Metal: CRY 弐 release notice (2024)