After two successful editions, the third edition of the event WACK in the UK is coming to London’s The Underworld at the end of August, specifically on Wednesday 28th of August. The line-up this time is notable, with the international debut of iconic group BiS, quirky idol group MAMESHiBA NO TAiGUN TONAi BOUSHO a.k.a. MONSTER IDOL and once again notorious idol group ASP will be returning to London (for the third time).
Ticket sales started earlier today and consist of regular tickets and VIP tickets. Although the latter always goes fast in the case of WACK in the UK with their fascinating line-ups and is already sold out – but you can be put on the waiting list, just in case. But the regular ticket buyers get a chance on the day to buy tickets at the merch stand for the cheki event, where you can get a Polaroid photo with a group member of your choice.
The agency WACK, founded by Junnosuke Watanabe in 2014, is known for shaking up the Japanese music industry and rose to notoriety with BiS (also known as Brand-new idol Society), labelled “the most disliked girl group in Japan” by VICE in an article in 2014. They broke up in 2014, after almost four years of activity, ending with a show complete with an unlimited McDonald’s buffet, but they left a lasting impression with their sharp music videos and bold magazine shoots.
But it did not stop there for the ingenious idol group BiS in 2014, as the group returned in 2016, two years after the disbandment of the group, which was the start of the second generation and in 2019, the third generation of BiS was launched and is still currently still running, overall producing an extensive discography with dozens of singles, (compilation) albums and EPs and a host of musicians who have moved on to other groups or gone solo.
Over the years, WACK continued fostering unconventional talents that have made waves in pop and rock genres and everything in between, defying music genres. For example, BiSH (Brand-new idol SHIT), which at the start was seen as a successor to BiS, gained recognition with their “punk band without musical instruments”, even collaborating with prominent figures like Taka (ONE OK ROCK), MEG (MEGMETAL), and KENTA (WANIMA) for their music before disbanding last June of last year.
At the moment WACK manage more than 10 artists and groups, such as ExWHYZ, GANG PARADE, AiNA THE END and many more. It seems like an inexhaustible well of innovative acts, so it will be interesting to see who will grace the stage in London after this coming edition.
Interesting to note is that MAMESHiBA NO TAiGUN TONAi BOUSHO a.k.a. MONSTER IDOL started activities only this year and released their first single Wonderland in April, but the origins of the name come from two separate groups, MAMESHiBA NO TAiGUN and TONAi BOUSHO, which were active for several years but after big line-up changes it was decided at the end of 2023 to merge and create one group with a very long but unforgettable name. Apart from their new work, they also perform songs from the former groups.
