B’z Continue Recording for New Album in Tokyo
News 
Another update on the official B’z instagram has shown the band is now working at their usual studio in Tokyo. As surmised upon hearing of their recent work in Hawaii, the band typically return to Tokyo to round out albums and involve more of their core personnel. Longtime support member and keyboardist Takanobu Masuda also posted on Twitter that he is now in the studio contributing as well:
Takanobu Masuda’s gear for recording his part of the 2017 B’z project
The band have a busy summer ahead, with two announced festival appearances and a month-long SHOWCASE tour that will follow the June release of their 53rd single “Seimei/Still Alive“. As previously postulated in the aforementioned Hawaii write-up, it would be reasonable to expect the band to follow their activities in 2007 for 2017. Already we have our SHOWCASE single just as we did with “Eien no Tsubasa”, along with said SHOWCASE 2017 running concurrent with that of 2007’s which also began in June. That year, B’z would release a second single in October—”SUPER LOVE SONG“—before ending the year with the release of their massive seventeen-track effort ACTION.
B’z Performing at ROCK IN JAPAN FESTIVAL 2017
News 
The third wave of artists to perform at this year’s ROCK IN JAPAN FESTIVAL has just been announced. Among them is B’z, who will perform on August 5th. For the band, this marks the second festival appearance of the year, followed by the appearance at the RISING SUN ROCK FESTIVAL in EZO on August 11th. B’z is making an appearance at both festivals for the first time—possibly with the goal to expand their fanbase.
In the past, B’z has performed at festivals like SUMMER SONIC in 2007 and 2009. These two festivals gave fans pre-release glimpses at “SUPER LOVE SONG” and “MY LONELY TOWN” respectively, before they later became singles. In more recent years, the band has performed at the TV Asahi Dream Festival in 2011 and 2015. A special festival was also conducted together with American rock band Aerosmith in 2013, called AEROSONIC.
“Seimei/Still Alive” Cover & SHOWCASE 2017 Logo Revealed
News We now have the official cover to “Seimei/Still Alive” a few weeks ahead of its release, which is available for pre-order on CD Japan, YesAsia, and Amazon.co.jp in any of its three editions. The sleek black and purple cover plays up the motif of the second A-side:
Additionally, the logo for B’z SHOWCASE 2017 -B’z In Your Town- has been made available on the official website ahead of its July start:
Long-term fans may recognize that the logo shares elements with the 2009 SHOWCASE of the same moniker. This year’s SHOWCASE is the first of its kind not associated with an album or Pleasure tour in eight whole years. In the past, such SHOWCASES have led to the inclusion of numerous long-requested B-sides and fan-favorites in their setlists. The only full show of its kind released on home video is B’z SHOWCASE 2007 -19- which included performances of: “HOT FASHION -Ryuukoukata-“, “Naite Naite Nakiyandara“, “Gin no Tsubasa de Tobe“, “Haru“, “Nagai Ai“, “Out Of Control“, “ARIGATO” in its only live showing, and “Odekake Shimasho“.
The same year’s SHOWCASE 2007 -B’z In Your Town- tour that sadly was not similarly released also included “The Loose“, “ROCK man“, “HOME“, “Aikawarazu na Bokura“, “Magnolia“, and “GO★FIGHT★WIN“. The 2009 B’z In Your Town SHOWCASE even included “Crazy Rendezvous“, “VAMPIRE WOMAN“, “MY SAD LOVE“, “THE GAMBLER“, and “Kirei na Ai Jyanakutemo“.
“Still Alive” Music Video Preview on Music Station, Commercial On-Air
News With only a few weeks until the launch of the 52nd B’z single, promotions for “Seimei/Still Alive” are now underway. Foremost, Music Station aired our first glimpse at the music video to “Still Alive” that will be included in the CD & DVD packages of the release. According to the segment, the band’s concept for the video was “Beginnings”. We’ve preserved the brief clip below:
Next, the commercial for the single hit television Saturday evening with even more footage:
B’z New Double A-Side Single “Seimei/Still Alive” OUT 6.14!!
News 
The two year wait for the return of B’z will soon be over: Today, with the third countdown ending on the official website, the band have announced the first of their new releases and it’s a big one! The single will be a double A-side (their third and first since 2009’s mega hit “Ichibu to Zenbu/DIVE“) coupling an all-new song entitled “Seimei” with the previously sampled “Still Alive” from the hit TBS Drama A LIFE that aired from January to March. “Seimei” (声明, Declaration) will serve as a tie-in to a promotional campaign for UCC Black’s line of canned coffees beginning with a commercial set to air starting June 12th: just two days prior to the single’s release on the 14th.
B’z Coaster Set included in the “B’z x UCC Black” special edition
What’s more, the single contains four-tracks, making it the band’s biggest standard single to date! The third beat is last year’s digital single “Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru” (世界はあなたの色になる) that served as the theme song to Detective Conan: The Darkest Nightmare for its theatrical run and later appeared as the opening theme to the corresponding anime series. The release is rounded out by the physical debut of “Fukiarenasai” (フキアレナサイ) which was previously made available for digital purchase last November to correspond with it serving as the theme song to the film Shippu Rondo.
The single will be available in three editions: CD, CD+DVD with all-new music video for “Still Alive“, and a “B’z x UCC Black” CD package including a decorative coaster set and a lottery card that offers the chance to be one of 10,000 to win a set of B’z-themed cans of UCC Black. More can be seen on the special campaign site simultaneously opened to commemorate the announcement.
Preview of the “Still Alive” music video included in the CD+DVD edition
You can expect all four songs to be performed during B’z SHOWCASE 2017 -B’z In Your Town- when it kicks off in Kumamoto on July 13th. A fourth countdown is currently ticking on the official website with no determinate end date as of yet, so stay tuned for the next big update and our first glimpse of “Seimei“!
B’z New Single
「Seimei/Still Alive」
Tracklisting
1. Seimei
2. Still Alive
3. Sekai wa Anata no Iro ni Naru
4. Fukiarenasai
Bonus DVD: 「Still Alive」 Music Video
Price: 1,620 Yen (CD Only), 1,998 Yen (CD+DVD), 2,160 Yen (“B’z x UCC Black” Edition, CD+Goods)
Pre-order CD-Only Edition:
Pre-order CD+DVD Edition:
Pre-order “B’z x UCC” CD Package Edition:
B’z Now Recording in Hawaii: Will 2017 Follow 2007?
News 
B’z have recently posted confirmation on their social media channels that they are currently underway recording their next release. This is further evidenced by the latest issue of the Be With! fanclub magazine in which Tak revealed that he will get together with Koshi to start pre-production in April. As has been the case in the past, the duo are working at their studio in Hawaii for the time being. If the past is any indication, further recording at their studios in Los Angeles and Tokyo should be imminent. There are currently no details on their upcoming releases other than they will presumably be performing some of their new output at B’z SHOWCASE 2017 -B’z In Your Town- which is scheduled to begin in July.
Interestingly, the year has thus far resembled their activities in 2007. In May, B’z released “Eien no Tsubasa” with notable B-side “Lonely Stars“. Just prior, they announced SHOWCASE 2007 -19- which began in late June. This was followed immediately thereafter by SHOWCASE 2007 -B’z In Your Town- which ran from July to August, just as its 2017 counterpart will. Both tracks from the single were performed during the pair of summer SHOWCASES. The band also made a festival appearance at SUMMER SONIC 07 in mid August, just as they will with the RISING SUN ROCK FESTIVAL this year. In October, “SUPER LOVE SONG” was released with ACTION following in December as their 16th studio album. This led to the year-long tour of LIVE-GYM 2008 “ACTION” that began in January and culminated in the unforgettable twentieth anniversary stand LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2008 -GLORY DAYS-.
Other than the early start for SHOWCASE -19- in 2007, the years appear at least somewhat similar thus far. It would make sense for B’z to hold their new album until fall and release a comeback single here in the spring that can be included in their summer showings. Time will tell, keep checking back for the latest updates!