Chatmonchy

Overview

Chatmonchy (チャットモンチー) was a Japanese rock band from Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. Formed in 2000 and disbanded in 2018, the group was best known as an all-female trio of Eriko Hashimoto (guitar, vocals), Akiko Fukuoka (bass, chorus) and, until 2011, Kumiko Takahashi (drums, chorus). They were signed to Sony Music Japan's Ki/oon label from 2005.

Career

Formation and indie days (2000–2004)

Hashimoto formed the band in 2000 while at high school in the city of Tokushima. It began as a six-piece with two vocalists and two guitarists plus bass and drums. The name combines "monchi," from the monkey doll Monchhichi of the animated series Futago no Monchhichi, with "chat," a word picked at random from a dictionary. In 2002 every member except Hashimoto left over career plans, and her high school classmate Fukuoka joined, forming an acoustic duo. A male drummer joined in 2003 but left the same year.

In April 2004 the band won the grand prix at the Tokushima Hana Haru Band Contest. On April 4 of that year Takahashi, a senior from Fukuoka's university Light Music Club who had been supporting the band, officially joined, completing the trio. They independently produced the mini album Chatmonchy ni Naritai (now out of print), selling it by hand mainly around Tokushima. It reached about 1,500 copies and drew interest from record labels.

Major debut and rise (2005–2008)

On November 23, 2005, Chatmonchy made their major debut on Ki/oon with the mini album chatmonchy has come, produced by Junji Ishiwatari of Supercar. It sold over 20,000 copies, and the band moved permanently to Tokyo. In 2006 they released the singles "Koi no Kemuri" and "Renai Spirits" and the album Miminari, which debuted at No. 10 on the Oricon chart. The November single "Shangri-La" debuted at No. 6 and served as the ending theme of the anime Hataraki Man.

In 2007 came "Joshi-tachi ni Asu wa Nai," "Tobiuo no Butterfly / Sekai ga Owaru Yoru ni" (No. 9) and "Daidai" (No. 12), the last used as an ending theme for Bleach. The album Seimeiryoku debuted at No. 2, and their first DVD, Chatmonchy Restaurant Appetizer, followed in November.

In 2008 they held a secret show at their alma mater Jotoh High School in January, released "Hira Hira Hiraku Himitsu no Tobira" (No. 11) in February, and played their first Nippon Budokan concerts on March 31 and April 1. "Kaze Fukeba Koi" (No. 8) arrived in June and "Somaru Yo" (No. 10) in November.

2009–2018

In February 2009 the band released "Last Love Letter" (No. 7), followed in March by the album Kokuhaku, which debuted at No. 2, and the video release Chatmonchy Restaurant Main Dish. On March 19, 2010, they played SXSW in Austin, Texas as part of the Japan Nite tour and did a mini-tour of New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles. That year "Koko Dake no Hanashi" opened the anime Kuragehime, and on July 30 they appeared at Fuji Rock Festival under the alias unit "Hashimoto F. Takahashi," performing acoustic guitar and percussion. The mini album Awa Come followed in October.

Takahashi announced her friendly departure on July 29, 2011 and left on September 29; the band continued as a duo from October. Albums You More (2011) and Henshin (2012) followed, along with the 2012 best-of Chatmonchy Best 2005-2011. In May 2013 Hashimoto announced her marriage to Shoichi Igari of Tacica and her pregnancy, and gave birth to a son on October 17, 2013. On May 13, 2015 the band released their sixth full album Kyōmei, the first to feature new support members.

On November 24, 2017 they announced they would disband in July 2018. The final album, Tanjō, was released on June 27, 2018; its track "Satetsu" features lyrics by former drummer Takahashi. The band played its last solo concert at the Nippon Budokan on July 4, 2018, and held the final "Konason Fest" on July 21 and 22. Afterward, Hashimoto pursued solo work, releasing a demo CD, while Fukuoka produced the band Yonige.

Ties to Tokushima

The band valued activity in their home prefecture, with particularly strong ties to FM Tokushima, appearing on its programs and events. In March 2017 they collaborated on the illustrated cover of FM Tokushima's annual schedule notebook.

Musical style

Chatmonchy played J-rock and J-pop built on a guitar, bass and drums band sound. They also supplied the 2013 commercial song for Kirin Beverage's Fire Café Deli.