Kero Kero Bonito (also known as KKB) are a British three-piece band from London made up of vocalist Sarah Midori Perry and producers Gus Lobban and Jamie Bulled.
They’re an Indie Pop and Electropop band who use a delightfully crazy mix of snyth, English and Japanese lyrics and catchy tunes.
Oh, and lots of bright colors – especially pink.
If I had to describe them as a food I’d say they were Cotton Candy, because you will eat so much they make you sick, but in a good way!
Having been around since 2014 they’ve got some great hits out there.
And if you’re looking for a good song of theirs I’d recommend Flamingo, it’s a great tune that will get lodged in your head on repeat.
Their name is purposefully ambiguous.
The name Kero Kero Bonito means lots of different things, from the onomatopoeic word for a frog’s croak in Japanese, as well as ‘a type of culinary useful fish’.
Other meanings also come from the Brazilian Quero-Quero bird, and the Portuguese translation of ‘I want, I want, Beautiful’.
The band’s music has lots of different influences.
From Electropop, Dancehall music, J-pop and Video Game music, with many of their songs being written on a Casio SA-45 mini-keyboard.
Frontwoman Sarah Midori Perry is a Japanese expat.
She is fluent in both Japanese and English, often rapping and singing in Japanese.
She also featured on Electronic musician Spazzkid’s song Truly from his 2014 Promise.
The band was formed by Producers Jamie Bulled & Gus Lobban.
They went to school together in the south London suburbs.
They wanted to work with someone who could speak Japanese so they put out an advert on MixB, an online bulletin board for Japanese expatriates.
Sarah was one of the first people to reply and they chose her due to her background and interest in art.
They made their debut with their mixtape Intro Bonito.
Released through Double Denim Records in August of 2014.
Since then they’ve released two full albums, three EPs, and a handful of singles, including my new favorite song Flamingo in 2016.
Later on in 2018 they will be undertaking a tour across Europe and the US, including some dates within the UK.
So there’s five fast facts for you about the coolest and most neon J-pop band from Britain.
Go give them a listen and get on iTunes to buy yourself some of their music, there’s something for everyone with this brilliant band!
