Formed in 1980 by guitarist Akira Takasaki and drummer Munetaka Higuchi; Atlantic Records signed Loudness in 1984 for an international record deal a first in Japanese music history; Thunder In The East, released in January of '85 reached #4 on Japan's domestic charts; Loudness opened for Motley Crue in the US and became the first Japanese act in history to play Madison Square Garden in New York; released twenty-three studio albums (five in the US) by the end of 2009 and reaching the Billboard Top 100 on the strength of the single Crazy Nights. After numerous line-up changes Loudness finally reunited the original line-up in 2001; on 30 November 2008 original drummer Munetaka Higuchi died from liver cancer at a hospital in Osaka at age 49 and was replaced with Masayuki Suzuki.