Full History

1993~ | The Early Days

BELLFAST was formed in Nagoya in 1993 by Shuji Matsumoto, a bassist from Gifu Prefecture, Japan.
The band's name is a reference to Belfast, the capital city of Northern Ireland, which has produced many unique artists, including Gary Moore, guitarist for THIN LIZZY. The name of the band is differentiated from the name of the city by the two "L's" in the name.

The original members of the band were Makoto Kano (g), Yasuo Iida (vo/ ex-Rev.), and Takahiro Ishikawa (dr), in addition to Shuji. As the band's name suggests, the four members began playing hard rock music with elements of Irish and Celtic music.
The band started playing live mainly in their hometown of Nagoya, but the drummer position was not stable, and the band employed several drummers, including Mikio Ogawa (dr/ REGULUS, ex-RACHEL MOTHER GOOSE).

In 1998, original member Makoto (g) left the band, and in 1999, all members left the band, except for bandleader Shuji (b). However, Shuji did not give up despite this crisis and focused on revitalizing the band, bringing in Hiroshi Sakakima (dr/ CROCODILE BAMBI, ex-DEADCLAW) and Arata Niwa (g). At the same time, Shuji succeeded in bringing back original member Makoto (g), and began work on their debut album.

2001~ | Debuted with Faraway Prayers

In 2001, the band released its debut six-song EP, "Faraway Prayers," on Mustang Records, featuring four singers and many guest musicians. The album's original progressive hard rock with an Irish/Celtic flavor was described as "art rock for the 21st century" and was well received. The album includes a cover of RUSH's classic "Limelight. This fact also reveals the band's progressive roots.

In 2002, an old friend and hometown friend, Koh Nishino (ex-Rev., NAUTILLUS, ROSERICH), joined the band as a regular singer, resumed live performances, and began planning the production of a full-length album.

In early 2003, BELLFAST produced a demo of two songs, "Winter of Death" and "Restless Kind of Feeling", as part of pre-production. However, immediately after the completion of the demos, BELLFAST suddenly fell silent due to the circumstances surrounding each member.

2006~ | Evolution to a Folk Metal Band

In 2006, about three years later, the situation suddenly took off. Shuji (b), Makoto (g), and Koh (vo) began discussions about restarting the band as a natural progression. At the same time, they received an offer to contribute a song to "Samurai Metal Vol. 2," a compilation album organized by the Samurai Sound Association.
The band's rebuilding accelerated rapidly, and the trio gave their signature song "Celtic Drum" a bold folk arrangement and recorded it in Nagoya and Tokyo with a large supporting musicians for the album.
The work on "Celtic Drum," which boldly featured ethnic instruments such as violin, flute, bauron, harp, etc., led BELLFAST decided to focus on "Folk Metal".

The band recruited Izumi Takeuchi (rush!), who played violin with NEW TROLLS in Japan tour, and Haruna Fukazawa (ex-CICHLA TEMENSIS, TUK TUK SKIP), who has a deep knowledge of Irish music as well as jazz/fusion, as flute players. Nishino(vo)'s old friend from ROSERICH, Taro Arai(g), and former member of BELLFAST from 1999 to 2003, Hiroshi Sakakima(dr), complete the lineup.

With their unique composition featuring a full-time female violinist/flute player and impressive live performances in Tokyo and Sapporo, BELLFAST gradually but surely made a name for themselves as "the best Viking/folk metal band in the East," while keeping the expectations of enthusiasts at heart.

2009~ | Discover Insula Sacra

In May 2009, the band fully embarked on the production of their first full-length album.
Rhythm tracks were recorded at NEWS90 in the suburbs of Nagoya, which is also used by OUTRAGE, one of Japan's leading metal bands, and all other parts were recorded at Sound Koala Studio owned by Taro (g) in Saitama Prefecture.
In March 2010, the album was mixed and mastered by Andy La Rocque (g/KING DIAMOND), who has worked on numerous masterpieces, at Sonic Train Studios in Varberg, Sweden, completing the production process.
After approaching several major labels in Japan, BELLFAST signed a licensing agreement with King Records.

Their first full-length album, "Insula Sacra," bearing the mysterious title in Old Latin, which describes Ireland as a "holy island," was released in October 2010.
The artwork was wonderfully painted by Thomas Ewerhard, a talented German artist known for his work with AMON AMARTH, THERION, and others.
The 11 songs on the album, carefully selected from the band's long history, are filled with various elements: the aggression of traditional heavy metal as represented by IRON MAIDEN, the deep folkloric progress that exudes the influence of THIN LIZZY and KANSAS, and the heroic breath of melodic Viking metal as heard on TURISAS and ENSIFERUM.

In 2011-2012, BELLFAST toured with ARGUMENT SOUL and VIGILANTE on the "HERITAGE OF IRON Tour" and toured with MAVERICK for their "Natural Born Steel" release, and performed at the OWARI METAL FEST. in Nagoya, as well as the SOUND OF DEATH event in Sendai, Japan, for the first time.

Haruna Fukazawa (Flute) and Izumi Takeuchi (Violin) left the band during this period, but they continued their activities with live support from sasuke (Violin/Yonaga Orchestra), Akiko Kawada (violin), and Lisa Forest Nagaya (Flute, Whistle).

During this period, each member actively promoted individual activities outside of BELLFAST.
Koh (vo) formed the IRON MAIDEN cover band EDDIE THE GREAT with his old friends from his hometown, the members of OUTRAGE. Koh also participated as a guest on the album "Breathe Life Into The Essence" and live tour of the Japanese melancholic gothic band: eleanor.
Hiroshi (dr) is active in CROCODILE BAMBIE, ANIMALS and IB89.
Shuji (b) played as a guest on the debut album of the British melodic hard band SEVEN, and various "extracurricular activities" led to the improvement of each member's quality as a musician/artist.

2015~ | Raise the Sigil of Triquedraco

In 2014, the current flutist: Yumiko joined the team, which was also a major driving force, and the movement towards the production of the second album accelerated rapidly. Two demo recordings, "Sign of Paganheart" and "Ancient Celtic Fire," were produced.
They also performed at important events such as “Pure Metal Spirits” and “Tokyo Dark Fest 2015”, where they continued to steadily showcase their unique presence on the scene. Then, in the summer of 2016, the recording process began in the studio. The drum tracks were recorded at Studio NEWS90, and the bass tracks were recorded at Studio Perspective (Shuzenji, Izu).

Midway through the recording process, violinist sasuke announced her departure from the band. However, the band quickly responded to this crisis and succeeded in quickly scouting a violinist: Saori Hoshino (ex-Makai - now LIV MOON, soLi, Tonerico), who was a friend of Yumiko.
Solidified as a powerful new formation, the band proceeded to record the remaining parts in 2017 at Sound Koala Studios, owned by Taro (g).

In May of the same year, the band resumed live performances for the first time in 18 months, starting with an appearance at the nonLinear Metal DynamiX EXTRA Vol. 4 festival held at Club Città in Kawasaki.
Recording work has been steadily progressing in parallel, and Andy La Rocque (g/KING DIAMOND), who created a superb sound on the previous album, has once again mixed and mastered the album at his own Sonic Train Studios, resulting in the long-awaited second album, finally completed after 7 years since the last album.

The ancient emblem on the artwork is a design by Koh (vo) that combines the Celtic symbol "Triquetra", which represents the idea of the Trinity, and the legendary flying dragon (“Draco” in Latin).
The second album, titled Triquedraco, a term coined to describe them, was released by King Records on October 11, 2017.

All 11 songs on "Triquedraco" were written after the previous album was released in 2010.
The album forges a modern contemporary heavy metal sound, while at the same time greatly increasing the number of moments that echo the classic dynamics reminiscent of '80s hard rock/heavy metal, as represented by NWOBHM.
While many other folk/viking metal bands have adopted the extreme methods of death/black metal, BELLFAST's unique identity as a heavy metal band that tries to be a royal heavy metal band is highlighted on this album.

After the release of the album, BELLFAST has been active in the live stage following the album, supporting KORPIKLAANI, FIDDLER'S GREEN, WALTARI and others on their Japan tour, as well as sharing the stage with OUTRAGE, VIGILANTE, HELLHOUND, RAZOR HIGHWAY, RACHEL, MOTHER GOOSE, RAZOR HIGHWAY, RACHEL, RACHEL, RACHEL'S BLIND FAITH and many more. MOTHER GOOSE, SEVENTH SON, and Kelly SIMONZ's BLIND FAITH. BELLFAST made a strong impression on many metalheads.

2020~ | Into the Pandemic Death Cult

However, in 2020, the world was engulfed in a pandemic of a new coronavirus infection (COVID-19). All scheduled BELLFAST live shows were canceled or postponed to prevent infection, and a period of inactivity ensued.
In the latter half of 2021, limited performances began to be permitted as a precautionary measure, and BELLFAST resumed its live activities. Despite being at the mercy of the repeated aftermath, BELLFAST performed enthusiastically in Tokyo and Nagoya with metalheads who were trying to release the resentment that had built up during the long period of self-restraint.

2023~ | We are the Warrior Celt

In early 2023, the year of the 30th anniversary of BELLFAST, the biggest turning point in the band's history occurred. Shuji (b), the founder of the band, and Hiroshi (dr), a member since the beginning, both left the band for various reasons. The remaining members discussed various options, including whether or not to keep the band together, and agreed to further activate the band with new members.
The new BELLFAST resumed its live activities with two friends, Ikeda Toshiki (VelmentiA, RAZOR HIGHWAY) as the regular bassist and Yamazaki Ryuta (AFTERZERO, HELLHOUND) as the live support drummer. The great response to the fresh performances brought by the new lineup made the band determined to work on a new studio album.

The selection of a drummer for the new album, which was being done in parallel with the creation of the music for the new album, was extremely difficult, but in January 2024, among many candidates, the band succeeded in hiring Shingo Uchida, one of the most skilled drummers in the scene, who has played in a some bands including a dark rock band from Kyoto RIKUGO. He has been a friend of the band members for 20 years.

At the same time, Saori Hoshino, a violinist who has contributed greatly to the band for 6 years since 2017, is unable to continue her activities with BELLFAST due to her schedule and other reasons. Izumi Takeuchi, who was a member of BELLFAST from 2007 to 2012, has returned to the group after a 12-year absence.

With a powerful new lineup and renewed awareness, the band began recording in February of the same year.
The recording was done mainly at Sound Koala Studio, where Taro (g) is the owner-engineer, as in the previous two albums, but also at several studios in Japan.
Mastering was done by Svante Forsbäck, a Grammy-nominated engineer who has worked with AMORPHIS, ENSIFERUM, FINNTROLL, KORPIKLAANI, TURISAS, and many other masterpieces, then BELLFAST's third album "The Warrior Celt" has been completed.

The album title comes from a British pub in Ueno, Tokyo. The name of the pub is "The Warrior Celt”. Koh, who has been going to the pub for about 20 years, had hoped to incorporate the name into a BELLFAST album someday, and with the owner's willing consent, this finally became a reality.

The folky melodic metal featuring violin and flute has matured even more dramatically, thanks in part to the high skills and fresh expressiveness of the new members. The songs, with more variety, are as true to their roots as the previous album, while at the same time showing evolution through the challenge of a new approach. Another major feature of the new BELLFAST is the contribution of Masaki (b), a newcomer to the band, who has already proven his high level of songwriting ability in RAZOR HIGHWAY, and has made a significant contribution to the songwriting side of the band.

The new album, "The Warrior Celt," will be released on October 23, 2024 on King Records. A tour in Japan will follow the release of the new album in early November.