Llama

two artists! 1) Llama is an alternative rock band hailing from Nashville, TN. (Llama is also the name of a band featuring Rusty Willoughby, former frontman and guitarist of Flop and Pure Joy.) It was formed in 1998 by three sixteen-year-old friends, Ben Morton, Neil Mason, and Ben Brown, who then called themselves the Dahlia Llamas. They began playing regular gigs at Guido's, a local pizzeria (being underage, there were few other places they could perform). There they were discovered by MCA, and went on to tour with artists such as Bela Fleck and O.A.R. During their time together, Llama recorded one CD, Close to the Silence, and one EP, The World From Here; yet most fans agree that Llama's strength was their live performances. Llama broke up in 2003, but several former members are still active in the Nashville music scene; Ben Brown and Neil Mason are both members of the current band Bang Bang Bang. 2)LLama was born in Kyoto in September, 2004. It is a musical project conceived of and pushed forward by Satoshi Yoshioka and Totoku Fujii who are the chief architects of the band. LLama presents its live shows in various venues in the Kansai area. In addition to Yoshioka and Fujii, the band members include Hironori Ochi, Takeshi Yashiro, Ricky Senou, Shouta Iguchi, Keisuke Sano, and Akiko Igaki, all of whom are talented musicians currently active in the region. Depending on the circumstances, LLama organizes itself in a variety of membership formations, resulting in unique and artful performances, which is one of the charms that captures the audience’s hearts.