The past melds with the future in this vividly experimental band’s elision of traditional Japanese instruments with classic rock rhythms. The octet formed through mutual friends and a shared intrigue in artistic exploration, dropping their first album of Vocaloid covers in 2014 before their debut LP hit number one on the Oricon Newcomer Weekly Ranking. Since then, WagakkiBand have toured the US and played Tokyo’s Budokan. Between the lilting refrain of “Starlight” and the propulsive rush of “Valkyrie”, their songs share a sense of creative daring.