Japanese metal quintet NEMOPHILA have grown significantly since debuting its heavier-than-hell take on heavy rock in 2019. Third full-length album EVOLVE, out on Wednesday, January 17 on all streaming platforms, captures the band’s sonic journey — from the throat-ripping intensity developed while coming up in Tokyo’s live community to more recent explorations of balladry touching on sweet subjects such as love. The all-women group offer a shout-along set showing how far they’ve come…and pointing to new musical directions in front of them.
Featuring ten songs highlighting NEMOPHILA’s varied approach to heavy music, EVOLVE captures the five-piece group’s musical story within its riffs. Its early days playing gigs across Tokyo and ascent to metal attention comes through on blistering cuts like “RISE,” capturing the raw force that drew listeners in Japan and abroad to NEMOPHILA. Yet the group has also expanded its songwriting chops, captured on slow-burning ballads such as “ODYSSEY,” which serves as the theme to the upcoming animated film Oshiri Tantei The Movie: Farewell My Beloved Partner.
To celebrate the release of the album, NEMOPHILA shared a new live music video for EVOLVE cut “AMA-TE-RAS.”
EVOLVE arrives weeks before NEMOPHILA adds its name to Japanese metal history. The band plays its first-ever show at the historic Nippon Budokan — a venue hosting heavy rock heroes the outfit looked up to as it developed its own style — on Saturday, February 17. It’s a fitting accomplishment coming in the wake of an album capturing the group’s musical story in all its glory, while also reminding that the era of NEMOPHILA has just begun.
