News
12 October 2026 – HANABIE. Announce UMAMI and Release Bari Bari Buddy as Harajuku-Core Gets Even More Explosive
By Editorial Team - October 12, 2026
Summary
Tokyo alternative metal sensation HANABIE. announce upcoming album UMAMI for December 2 and unleash single Bari Bari Buddy, featured in Reincarnated as a Sword Season 2.
Key Facts
- HANABIE. announce new album UMAMI scheduled for December 2.
- New single Bari Bari Buddy chosen as ending theme for Reincarnated as a Sword Season 2.
- Band continues pioneering their hybrid Harajuku-core aesthetic blending metalcore and J-pop.
- Entities: HANABIE., UMAMI, Bari Bari Buddy, Yukina, Matsuri, Reincarnated as a Sword, Tokyo
- Tags: hanabie, umami, bari-bari-buddy, harajuku-core, metalcore, metal, japanese-metal, anime-theme
Tokyo-based alternative metal band HANABIE. have announced a new studio album titled UMAMI, scheduled for December 2, alongside a blistering new single called "Bari Bari Buddy." The all-female group have become internationally recognised for their energetic combination of metalcore, J-pop melodies and brightly coloured Japanese street-fashion influences.
Their self-described Harajuku-core sound thrives on exhilarating contrast. Cheerful vocals and playful electronic textures suddenly give way to crushing guitars, aggressive blast beats and screaming powerful enough to make the average karaoke machine reconsider its life choices. "Bari Bari Buddy" continues that approach while introducing another prominent connection with Japanese popular culture.
The track serves as the ending theme for the forthcoming second season of the anime series Reincarnated as a Sword. Vocalist Yukina and guitarist-vocalist Matsuri wrote the song, developing an arrangement intended to capture the adventurous spirit of the series and encourage audiences worldwide to sing along.
Japanese alternative music has increasingly demonstrated that international audiences are eager to embrace artists who fuse heavy musical structures with distinctive visual and cultural identities. UMAMI arrives December 2, while "Bari Bari Buddy" is available now across all digital platforms.