Atsushi Sakurai, we lost one of the great ones with you. We have lost an incredible artist with a captivating voice and an exceptional presence, a mesmerizing storyteller who, time and again, brought his personal experiences into his art. You have been an inspiration to your fans all around the globe, an elegant, gloomy light in the darkness, and an influence on countless musicians following in your footsteps.
You left us too young. You left us too suddenly. We still find ourselves bargaining with the universe that this terrible loss has been nothing but a bad dream. Yet, we can’t even begin imagining what a horrible loss it must be to your family and friends. We are sending out our warmest condolences to all those closest to you.
In all this, we remain grateful to you and your bandmates for the large body of work you leave behind. Your voice will live on, and your memory will be cherished. Atsushi Sakurai, rest in music, rest in peace.
Atsushi Sakurai [櫻井敦司], born on the 7th of March, 1966, unexpectedly died from a brain stem hemorrhage at the age of 57 on the 19th of October, 2023. The vocalist and frontman of the band BUCK-TICK [バクチク] felt weak from the very first songs of the fan club only BUCK-TICK FISH TANKer’s ONLY 2023 event at KT Zepp Yokohama the same evening. The concert was discontinued after the third song, with Atsushi Sakurai being rushed to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead a few hours later at 11:09 PM JST. His death was announced on the 24th of October after a private funeral was held with only close relatives attending according to his family’s wishes. A public remembrance ceremony will be held at a later date, yet to be announced.
Together with our community, we have created a playlist containing some of our most adored songs of Atsushi Sakurai and his band, BUCK-TICK. You can find it here on Spotify—with a few tracks missing, unavailable on the streaming platform. As EN.CORE ROCKS, we would like to thank all of you for your messages, which make us feel connected in these sad times. This is for you!
