Today, the innovative music and technology company, KLKTN and Japanese cult indie band Gesu no Kiwami Otome, announced their collaborative first ever OpenSea NFT collection, Maru, along with Warner Music Japan. Celebrating the 10th anniversary of the band, Maru is a generative art project consisting of 1,203 NFTs of varying rarity, including unique music stems.

Created for superfans of the band, Gesu no Kiwami Otome, ownership of these collectibles will grant exclusive access to giveaways and a live musical session, among other perks, NFT holders are able to participate in the creation of a music video. This will be the company’s first ethereum-based (ETH) project and the first project presented by KLKTN Studio, which is an arm of KLKTN and business unit focusing on bespoke Web3 projects with artists and their fans. KLKTN originated as a music tech company that focuses on cultivating unique, artistic experiences between fans and their favorite artists.

Gesu no Kiwami Otome (ゲスの極み乙女。“Lowest Girl”) formed in Tokyo in 2012, and paved the way for progressive indie music in Japan, going beyond the bounds of J-pop to bring together musical influences from hip hop to jazz to classic rock. In the process, they’ve created a sound uniquely their own, amassing critical praise and millions of devoted fans who love them as much for their musicianship as for their charisma.

Maru, a multi-purpose generative art project, captures the personality of all four Gesu No Kiwami Otome members and is inspired by the band’s art. Every one of the 1,203 NFTs of the Maru project are designed to be bright, eccentric and simply put, round. The multi-color pop feel gives off energy aligned with the band’s colorful nature and will engage fans to be able to envision Maru’s story journeying through a decade of the band’s greatness. As an added utility, token holders will be able to participate in the creative process as co-creator of the new music video, which will be announced within the project website at a later time.

Fans will be able to attend the presale on June 28th and join the allowlist for giveaways from social media until June 27th, 2022. All eligible winners will have a 24-hour window to mint starting at 6pm PT (10am JST) on June 28th. There will be a roll over of any NFTs that are not minted from the allowlist sale into the public sale that goes live on June 30th. Maru will be distributed as a presale to allowlist winners that will have 740 NFTs available, and a public sale that will have 360 NFTs.

The reveal will be hosted on Discord on July 7th by connecting the users’ wallets to enter the NFT-gated channels inside the Maru Discord. All users must hold a Maru to enter. These channels will include details on upcoming community events, upcoming drops from KLTKN and more. Fans will be able to participate in exciting giveaways early in August, as merchandise raffles and KLKTN NFT Project Whitelists will be part of the prizes. In mid-August, a Holders Live Session will be live for NFT holders.

Jesse Rivest is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and self-producing artist. An observant, introspective, yet adventurous soul, his songs aren’t written seeking to effect change. However, the fact that he’s been writing and performing them for about 20 years, all the while living around the world leaving light footprints, has had an unintentional consequence. 

With his new single “Nostargic,” he draws a parallel, allured by the idea that perhaps memories are like starlight, still reaching us long after their sources have burned out. A dose of nostalgia can stone us as much as a starry sky; both are intoxicating encounters with something that once was.

The fire pit in the music video ties in with the penultimate lyric, “if I could I’d find the old spark… blow it back to life,” born out of his childhood fascination with blowing the nighttime campfire back to life in the early morning.

His next EP—and various singles after that—were produced in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil, where he has lived since 2013. Before that, Rivest held a home base in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Argentina.

Residing on the fringe of the Ottawa/Gatineau region, Pedal Generic is a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and songwriter who likes to make sounds that make him feel bigger than himself. His upcoming 9-track LP, Pedagogy, is his 6th project.

The possibility of finding “the one” is such a beautiful thought. Unfortunately, to love is easier said than done and the past proves this to be true. Do you open up at the possibility of love or stay closed off at the risk of hate?   

The reminiscent and intimate single, “Longing,” is Pedal Generic’s call for love. With this song, he’s opening up his heart to the possibility of romance and using music as a way to attract a potential lover. 

You can listen in here:

The album, Pedagogy, was entirely produced, written and recorded by Pedal Generic at his home studio in Ottawa, ON. It was mixed by Mike Dubue (HILOTRONS) at Studio Cimetière in Quyon, QC, and mastered by Phil Bova at Bova Lab Studios in Ottawa, ON. 

Emotionally, it was a tough project for Pedal Generic to take on, as it has been his most honest and vulnerable work to date. Pedagogy’s theme is of an individual trying to live, love and grow in a cold world of adversity. 

Parks N’ Rec is the new project from Canadian singer Marco DiFelice (Supergarage), 

songwriter, music supervisor (Orphan Black, Lost Girl). In collaboration with several producers at Self Titled Studios, Parks N’ Rec deals with lost love, polarizing societies, and self-renewal. 

His new song, “Deep Sea Diver,” was created while DiFelice was staying in Belize, though lyrically it had been brewing in his mind for over two years. It explores themes of loneliness and courage; it’s a song about DiFelice’s attempt at ego death. 

Belize is a place where the sea is dotted with cayes and a history of courageous and adventurous divers exploring there. DiFelice was specifically interested in how a lot of those people are breaking through barriers of their own mind and body. He felt lucky to be around that culture and to have an opportunity to understand the obsession with “what’s underneath.” Through these experiences, DiFelice was trying to walk himself through his fear of the deep sea. He then created a magical place where fear and beauty collided as he daydreamed under the sea. 

Casey Møøn is a genre-defying multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and half of the production duo Zookids. Having handled production for Young Thug, Gunna, and A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, written for independent artists in the indie-pop world, and played in a slough of rock bands over the years, his style has absorbed an eclectic array of influences. 

Over the course of 2022, Casey plans to release his trilogy of EPs: Fountains, Mirrors and Ashes. Each project varies in genre and draws thematic influence from a different film or TV series. Listened to sequentially, the projects tell a story about growing up, love, and loss.

Boasting a strong voice with an ear for pop melody, modern production and a dazzling live show, Casey shines on “home,” crooning “if we can’t talk about what it is we can’t talk about, all that shit’s got to come out somehow.”

“home” is taken from the first in the series, Fountains, which evokes childhood feelings of wonder and alienation. Unable to express anything and having that emotion built up with nowhere to go. Alone in a sea of people pushing him to do things he didn’t understand yet.