Izumi

The members of IZUMI are Ema (vocals), Dario (bass), Hernani (guitar and programming) and Ricardo (drums). The band was formed in April 2001 by Hernani and Ricardo, who had worked together on previous projects. As soon as Dario and Ema agreed to participate in the project, the band began rehearsals, which led to a debut concert beside Moonspell during Castelo Branco Academic Week, on 25 th May 2002. After resuming rehearsals, the band was soon after invited to take part in a competition organized by the JCP (Portuguese Communist Youth) on 20 th July 2002 , in which there would be bands from the districts of Covilha and Castelo Branco; the winner would later play on the "New Values" stage at the Avante festival. At the end of the concert the juri decided in favour of IZUMI. On 6 th September 2002 , at 8 p.m. , IZUMI went on stage at the Avante festival. This is how IZUMI ended up in the recording studio in October to record 4 of the 15 tracks that make up their current repertoire, and are now seeking to promote their work. After the distribution of a number of copies to the press, reviews of this first recording are truly positive, and provide a veritable boost of confidence in this project.