GPKism
Encyclopedia
GPKism is a gothic
/industrial unit formed in 2007. It was originally the solo project of GPK (Gothique Prince Ken), while Kiwamu (of Blood
) joined later that year. Both GPK and Kiwamu compose music for this project. They have been featured in several publications including Cure Magazine and they have toured in Australia
, Japan
, the United States
, Europe
and Central America
.
n musician GPK, and in September, guitar
ist Kiwamu of the Japan
ese goth band Blood
joined the project, which was announced on the Internet Radio Show Tainted Reality
. In January 2008, the same month that they released their first EP
Sublimis, they were featured in Cure Magazine
.
The band played their first live show on April 13, 2008 in Japan. In June they went on to play three shows in Australia, that were accompanied by in-store events.
Their first single, "Illuminatum," was released in September, 2008. This was followed a month later by their "Lament of the Fallen Star Tour" which included shows in Japan, Mexico
, Costa Rica
and in the United States at Nekocon
. In December of that year, they played two live shows, one in the beginning of the month and one at the end of the month, opening for Suicide Ali.GPKism returned to Mexico and the United States to accompany Blood
on their final tour.
GPKism's first full-length album, Atheos, was released on March 4, 2009 with the concept "Lament of a Fallen Angel". This was followed in March and April by a multi-city tour of Japan and Australia; their Australian tour also had Aural Vampire and DJ SiSeN performing. GPKism also toured Europe for the first time for their "Holy Blood" tour which included dates in Germany
, Austria
, Italy
& Poland
in May 2009.
On July 12 GPKism contributed a cover of RINK for the Blam Honey
album Providence of Decadence and also performed alongside them at the Live Inn Rosa, Kiwamu and ex-BLOOD keyboardist RYO also helped arrange several tracks on the album.
The band released their EP Barathrum in August and a released a PV for it, gaining over 10,000 hits on Youtube under a month. This was the first release using the theme Countess Elizabeth Bathory. In September they toured South America and several of the Conventions there. After returning they released the EP 'Iudicium' under the same theme.
In 2010 GPKism returned to the United States on tour with Seileen.
Support members
EPs
Singles
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
/industrial unit formed in 2007. It was originally the solo project of GPK (Gothique Prince Ken), while Kiwamu (of Blood
Blood (band)
Blood is a Japanese band that has been active from 2002 to 2009, returning in 2011. Blood's aim is to create music that expresses the meaning of human emotion that breaks the musical frame...
) joined later that year. Both GPK and Kiwamu compose music for this project. They have been featured in several publications including Cure Magazine and they have toured in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
History
GPKism was formed in January 2007 as the solo project of AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n musician GPK, and in September, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
ist Kiwamu of the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese goth band Blood
Blood (band)
Blood is a Japanese band that has been active from 2002 to 2009, returning in 2011. Blood's aim is to create music that expresses the meaning of human emotion that breaks the musical frame...
joined the project, which was announced on the Internet Radio Show Tainted Reality
Tainted Reality
Tainted Reality is an organization run by Roger Schackelford to create "opportunities for people to experience J-Rock in the US." Tainted Reality began as a college radio show on the station WIXQ, but now the organization has an internet radio website and organizes tours for Japanese...
. In January 2008, the same month that they released their first EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
Sublimis, they were featured in Cure Magazine
Cure (Magazine)
Cure Magazine is a Japanese rock and fashion magazine. It features the latest visual kei bands as well as fashion and styling tips. It also has the latest news and trends on the visual kei music scene....
.
The band played their first live show on April 13, 2008 in Japan. In June they went on to play three shows in Australia, that were accompanied by in-store events.
Their first single, "Illuminatum," was released in September, 2008. This was followed a month later by their "Lament of the Fallen Star Tour" which included shows in Japan, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
and in the United States at Nekocon
Nekocon
Nekocon is an anime convention held annually in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, traditionally on the first weekend in November. The word 'Nekocon' comes from a combination of the Japanese word 'neko' meaning cat and 'con' as an abbreviation of 'convention', and was chosen for the common...
. In December of that year, they played two live shows, one in the beginning of the month and one at the end of the month, opening for Suicide Ali.GPKism returned to Mexico and the United States to accompany Blood
Blood (band)
Blood is a Japanese band that has been active from 2002 to 2009, returning in 2011. Blood's aim is to create music that expresses the meaning of human emotion that breaks the musical frame...
on their final tour.
GPKism's first full-length album, Atheos, was released on March 4, 2009 with the concept "Lament of a Fallen Angel". This was followed in March and April by a multi-city tour of Japan and Australia; their Australian tour also had Aural Vampire and DJ SiSeN performing. GPKism also toured Europe for the first time for their "Holy Blood" tour which included dates in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
& Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in May 2009.
On July 12 GPKism contributed a cover of RINK for the Blam Honey
Blam Honey
Blam Honey is a Japanese visual kei rock band, formed in 1995 with two members: Tatsuya and Ryonai . Their sound is described as "Industrial with a Gothic Sense". They list NIN, Marilyn Manson and Skinny Puppy as influences.Blam Honey released two albums: Grandiose Delusion and Typical...
album Providence of Decadence and also performed alongside them at the Live Inn Rosa, Kiwamu and ex-BLOOD keyboardist RYO also helped arrange several tracks on the album.
The band released their EP Barathrum in August and a released a PV for it, gaining over 10,000 hits on Youtube under a month. This was the first release using the theme Countess Elizabeth Bathory. In September they toured South America and several of the Conventions there. After returning they released the EP 'Iudicium' under the same theme.
In 2010 GPKism returned to the United States on tour with Seileen.
Members
- Gothique Prince Ken (GPK) – vocals
- Kiwamu – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
(formerly of BloodBlood (band)Blood is a Japanese band that has been active from 2002 to 2009, returning in 2011. Blood's aim is to create music that expresses the meaning of human emotion that breaks the musical frame...
)
Support members
- Ryonai – keyboardMusical keyboardA musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument, particularly the piano. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, shorter keys that repeats at the...
(of Blam HoneyBlam HoneyBlam Honey is a Japanese visual kei rock band, formed in 1995 with two members: Tatsuya and Ryonai . Their sound is described as "Industrial with a Gothic Sense". They list NIN, Marilyn Manson and Skinny Puppy as influences.Blam Honey released two albums: Grandiose Delusion and Typical...
)
Discography
Albums- Atheos (March 4, 2009)
- Atheos 2nd Press (October 28, 2009)
- Reliquia (June 15, 2011)
EPs
- Sublimis (January 9, 2008)
- Barathrum (August 26, 2009)
- Iudicium (November 25, 2009)
- Sanguis Rosa (September 22, 2010)
Singles
- "Illuminatum" (September 17, 2008)