Pop-rockers BACK-ON prove once again they are ones to keep an ion as new single ‘CHEMY×STORY’ (pronounced like ‘Chemistry’) causes a big reaction in Japan.

When news broke that ‘CHEMY×STORY’ would feature as the official opening theme to KAMEN RIDER GOTCHARD, the latest series of Japan’s pop-culture phenomenon KAMEN RIDER, the hashtag #BACKONtrended across their home country as fans took to social media to share the big announcement. The band also became the number one trending topic on Yahoo! News, and a tweet about the track from KAMEN RIDER’s music manager received almost one million views. The TV cut of the track is available to download and stream this week, as KAMEN RIDER GOTCHARD’s first episode airs.

BACK-ON are no strangers to catchy opening theme songs. In a career spanning nearly two decades, they’ve handled songs for some of Japan’s most loved anime franchises, including GUNDAM, Initial D and Fairy Tail. It’s no surprise that music and TV lovers alike are making a big deal about BACK-ON making the leap from the world of anime into the explosive realms of Japanese live-action superhero TV shows (tokusatsu), not least because of the amount of effort and energy they put into each song, making sure the music and lyrics hit the mark with the core audience of each show, while also keeping BACK-ON’s distinctive sound and style.

Previously BACK-ON’s high-energy single ‘Chair’ secured the pair’s debut to the KAMEN RIDER universe when it featured as an insert song in last season’s KAMEN RIDER GEATS. ‘Chair’’s lyrics, composition and cover art all referencing parts of the show. New single ‘CHEMY×STORY’ follows suit by including elements of KAMEN RIDER GOTCHARD within the release, from the series protagonist featuring on the single’s cover art, to his catchphrase “Gotcha!” appearing within the lyrics, plus clever wordplay that incorporates themes from the story within the lyrics. The song title ‘CHEMY×STORY’ itself being a play on words, sounding like the English word ‘chemistry’ while referencing the KAMEN RIDER GOTCHARD’s plot, a “STORY” which revolves around the “CHEMY”, an artificial lifeform that has been unleashed and must be recaptured. Perhaps this word play goes much deeper than it first seems? Fans will have to watch the series to see if the mystery is revealed.

KENJI03, BACK-ON’s guitarist and writer for the track comments, “We finally got to do a theme song for KAMEN RIDER!”. Bandmate and rapper TEEDA adds, “I’m honoured to sing the theme song of KAMEN RIDER, which I have loved since I was a child. We hope you like it and we’re looking forward to play ‘CHEMY×STORY’ in front of you guys soon!”

‘CHEMY×STORY’ by BACK-ON is available to download and stream now!