In skateboarding and snowboarding, “goofy” is the stance with the right foot forward. The band says it chose the name to signal that it would not take the usual route.
GOOFY STYLE formed in May 1997. It has its own name for what it plays: Asian Soul Heavy Groove.
The Sound, in the Band’s Words
The profile on TuneCore says the music is rooted in rock and blends heavy metal, nu metal and Asian folk music. The lyrics deal with life, nature and the universe. A Taiwanese government page about a festival appearance put it as a fusion of rock, hardcore and folk styles, and gave the band’s birthplace as Hachioji, in western Tokyo.
The song titles are in Japanese: 樹 (“Tree”), 空 (“Sky,” read kuu), 金色の空間 (“Golden Space”).
The Lineup
- KOUMEI, vocals and lyrics
- Iwata Yushi, guitar
- Abe Yukiya, bass
- MASATO, drums
The second album, in 2020, was described by the record shop diskunion as the first recording by this lineup.
Taiwan
By the band’s own account, GOOFY STYLE toured Taiwan in 2005, and Taiwan and the United States in 2006, and played Spring Scream in 2005. In 2006 it played the Ho-hai-yan Gongliao Rock Festival, on the festival’s 黃沙大舞台 (Yellow Sand Stage).
It went back to Ho-hai-yan for the festival’s 21st edition, on 21 July 2024. The band says it is the first foreign band to have played the festival more than once.
The Records
- 幻実現想, 6 tracks, June 2004
- 音、其の瞬間と共鳴に因る永劫, the second album, 9 tracks, 15 July 2020
- 無限の想像と魂の創造, the third album, 7 tracks, 9 December 2020
The second album came sixteen years after the first. The third followed five months later, and went on sale first at a show at Shinjuku Wild Side Tokyo on 7 November 2020.
In the gap after the first record the band went quiet, and came back in 2010.
Why It Matters
Most of the overseas stories on this site run through Europe and North America. GOOFY STYLE’s runs through Taiwan, from 2005 to 2024.
Start with “空 -kuu-,” then 樹.
