TMG has made two albums. They came out twenty years apart, and both went into the top three of the Japanese chart. Very few bands can say either of those things.
The Group
The letters stand for Tak Matsumoto Group. Tak Matsumoto is the guitarist of B’z, one of the best-selling acts in the history of Japanese music. In 2004 he put together a band with two Americans: Eric Martin, the singer of Mr. Big, and Jack Blades, the bassist and singer of Night Ranger.
It is a Japanese band in the sense that matters. It was formed in Japan, by a Japanese guitarist, and its tours have been Japanese tours.
2004
The first album, TMG I, was released on 23 June 2004. It went to number one on the Oricon chart. The single “Oh Japan Our Time Is Now” reached number three, and the band toured Japan from July to September on what it called the Dodge the Bullet Tour.
Then it stopped. For years afterwards Eric Martin said in interviews that he asked Matsumoto about a reunion every year, and every year got the same answer: let me think about it.
2024
The thinking took two decades. On 8 March 2024 the band announced that it was back, with a second album and a national tour. There was a new drummer as well: Matt Sorum, formerly of Guns N’ Roses and Velvet Revolver.
TMG II came out on 18 September 2024 and reached number three. One of its songs, “Eternal Flames,” features BABYMETAL, which put two very different generations of Japanese heavy music on the same track.
The tour took its title from the first one: Still Dodging The Bullet.
2026
A third run of activity was announced for the autumn of 2026: a new release and a tour of nine shows, opening on 5 October at Zepp Haneda in Tokyo and closing on 23 October at Tokyo Garden Theater.
The tour is called SAYONARA. The band has not said that it is the last one, but the word is not a subtle choice.
Why It Matters
Supergroups usually burn out fast or never get past the first record. This one took a twenty-year break and came back to the top three.
Start with TMG I, then “Eternal Flames.”
