TK from Ling tosite sigure announced two new singles featuring guest vocalist Koshi Inaba from B’z, and it was featured in the animated trailer for the card game Magic: The Gathering. It will be released as a double A-side single “As long as I love / Scratch (with Koshi Inaba)” on March 16. They describe “As long as I love (with Koshi Inaba)” as a rock number with lyrics written by Inaba and music composed by TK. This song with Inaba’s powerful vocals along with TK’s intense guitars and his typical roller coaster-like composition will make everyone explode with excitement. Meanwhile, “Scratch (with Koshi Inaba)” is a stunning ballad with a sad, solemn piano and strings, and the powerful voices of the two singers will touch all hearts.
“Scratch (with Koshi Inaba)” was the song used in the animated trailer for the latest Magic: The Gathering set Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty, which will be released on February 18. The song is already available on YouTube and other sites since February 16 and is now also available for pre-order on music distribution sites. You can watch the video on YouTube:
The collaboration came about from TK’s strong respect for B’z, which impacted him since he started playing the guitar during his schooldays. To close off the 10th anniversary of TK’s solo project, he sent Koshi Inaba a demo and the project became reality. Both of them left comments for the collaboration:
I’d always stay in my room, constantly playing B’z on my guitar. Their sound fascinated everybody and of course I was also blown away by their sound too. In this dream-like collaboration, Inaba-san listened and paid close attention to all my detailed requests. It was surreal and every single moment that he was involved in has been engraved in my new musical DNA. The voice that could be heard right next to me, sounded even more radiant than ever before, and it felt like an essential element was being poured from an unreachable place. The person that opened the doors to music for me, continues to be an overwhelming existence that still shook my heart, and it was a collaboration filled with joy. I hope that this song will leave a lasting impression for many people.
TK (Ling tosite sigure)
When I was approached about this project, I had no idea what TK and I would be able to create together. So, we started on the premise that if we create something interesting and we’re both satisfied, then we would release it. And the moment I listened to the first demo he sent me, all my hesitations disappeared, and I let the momentum of TK’s creativity take over and ran with it until the end.
Koshi Inaba (B’z)
TK is a musician with great ears, open-minded with lots of ideas and above all has the ability to hold stimulating conversations. I am grateful for the wonderful musical experience. And, of course, the finished song is amazing.
Sony Music Labels Inc. will release the CD on March 16, and its price will be ¥1,430 (~$12.4). It will include the following tracks:
- 01. As long as I love (with Koshi Inaba)
- 02. Scratch (with Koshi Inaba)
- 03. As long as I love (with Koshi Inaba) Instrumental
- 04. Scratch (with Koshi Inaba) Instrumental
About TK from Ling Tosite Sigure
TK is the frontman, vocalist, and guitarist of the band Ling tosite sigure. He is in charge of all the music, lyrics and engineering and expresses his music with a sharp and original perspective. Some the bands most famous songs were “abnormalize” and “Enigmatic Feeling” from the Psycho-Pass anime. In his solo project “TK from Ling tosite sigure”, he has taken on a wider range of forms of expression, from band style with piano and violin to solo acoustic. Some of his works were the iconic “unravel” from Tokyo Ghoul, as well as the opening for the show’s 2nd season “Katharsis”.
Among the various rankings released during Spotify Japan’s fifth anniversary in November 2021, “unravel” ranked first in the “most played Japanese songs overseas” ranking and will soon reach a total of 200 million streams.
In 2019, his song was chosen as the theme song for the Japanese release of the animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and has been highly acclaimed in Japan and abroad.
In 2021, he released a best album “egomaniac feedback” to commemorate the 10th year of his solo project. He also collaborated with milet and Kosuke Saito (UNISON SQUARE GARDEN/XIIX). He has provided music for the popular Japanese idol SMAP, Aimer and Yuko Ando, and is active in a wide range of fields.
Official Site: http://tkofficial.jp/
Official Twitter: @sigure_official
Official Facebook: @sigure.official
Official Instagram: @tk_snsfakeshow
About Koshi Inaba
He debuted as part of B’z in 1988. He is the vocalist and writes all the lyrics. In 1997, he released his first solo artist album “Magma”, for which he wrote, composed, and arranged all the music. With the diverse sound, lyrics projecting his personal side, and the overwhelming yet delicate vocals, he established his identity as Koshi Inaba the musician. In parallel with all of B’z creative and concert activities, since 2004 Inaba has been holding solo tours titled “en”, a word that he cherishes in his solo project. Since 2017, he has also teamed up with guitarist Stevie Salas to release two albums as INABA / SALAS.
About Magic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering was created in 1993 in the United States. It was developed by mathematician Richard Garfield and is published in 11 different languages in over 70 different countries, with over 40 million fans and players. The goal of Magic is to win by meeting the victory conditions such as summoning powerful creatures and drawing powerful spells that can lower your opponent’s life to zero. With new card sets being released throughout the year, the game’s environment constantly changes.
The newest set is a tribute set depicting the story 2,000 years after the “Kamigawa” block of “Champions of Kamigawa”, “Betrayers of Kamigawa” and “Saviors of Kamigawa” released in 2004 and 2005. This set features characters from the past such as samurai and ninja with the abilities such as Bushido and Ninjutsu are popular amongst the Japanese fans too.
Official Japanese Site: http://mtg-jp.com/
Official Japanese twitter account: https://twitter.com/mtgjp
There are also showcase version cards, which were newly drawn by manga artist Tetsuo Hara, art director Yoji Shinkawa and illustrator Katsuya Terada. In addition, this Set Booster pack includes Side Loaders (34 variations), and if you win the special one, you will receive a foil-spec card autographed by the artist himself in a specially designed, serial-numbered acrylic frame (with the autograph data printed).
The details for the ”Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty” card set:
Release date (for Japan) : February 11, 2022 (Friday)
Suggested retail price : Set Boosters …… 550 Yen (tax incl.)
Draft Boosters – 440 Yen (tax incl.)
Collector Boosters – 2,420 Yen (tax incl.)
Commander Deck (5 variations) – 4,400 Yen (tax incl.)
Bundle Box (English ver. Only) – 4,400 Yen (tax incl.)
Source: Press Release
©2022 Wizards of the Coast LLC.
