Hiroyuki Chisaki

Hiroyuki Chisaki was born on April 25, 1960, and came from Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. He later said that until junior high school he had few friends to talk about rock with. As a teenager he became fascinated by the warm, sustaining electric guitar sound he heard when his older brother practised songs with his band, and when a friend showed him Jeff Beck's album Blow by Blow, the Les Paul on the cover matched the sound in his head. On entering high school he formed a band called Seventeen, which later became MODERN DOLLZ, one of the groups of the Hakata rock scene alongside The Rockers.

Chisaki was a university student when he joined THE MODS. In his own account the band rehearsed five days a week, and he practised so much that he was held back a year at university. After rehearsals the members went almost every night to the Koganechan food stall in Fukuoka, even when they had no money. The name of his university has not been confirmed in the sources used for this page.

In 1979 THE MODS leader Tatsuya Moriyama and bassist Koichi Kitazato were looking for a guitarist and drummer to record the soundtrack of Sogo Ishii's film Crazy Thunder Road (Kuruizaki Thunder Road). Chisaki joined together with MODERN DOLLZ drummer Masahiro Kajiura, forming the third line-up of THE MODS. The manager of the 80's FACTORY live house on Oyafuko-dori lent them the keys so they could rehearse there when the club was closed, and in 1980 the band set the venue's all-time attendance record over two nights. They moved to Tokyo, became regulars on TV Kanagawa's music show Fighting 80's, and sold out their first Tokyo headline show at Shinjuku LOFT.

On June 21, 1981 THE MODS debuted on Epic Sony with the single "Kuzureochiru Mae ni" and the album FIGHT OR FLIGHT, recorded in London. In 1981 they supported The Jam in Japan and played three nights at the Marquee in London as NEWS BEAT. The single "Hageshii Ame ga" (1983), used for a Maxell UD I cassette commercial, became a hit, followed by "Ballad o Omae ni" (1984), the ending theme of the TBS drama Mou Koukou wa Iranai!. The band later recorded for Tokuma Japan's SCARFACE label, Antinos Records and from 2003 their own company Rockaholic. Chisaki played lead guitar, sang and played blues harp on more than thirty original albums, including NEWS BEAT, LOOK OUT, HANDS UP, NAPALM ROCK, KILBURN BRATS, CLOUD 9, COMPADRE, ROCKTIONARY, HAIL MARY and REVOLVER 45 (2026), and on the 2026 career box SMOKIN' GUN.

In 2010 he launched the solo project DUDE TONE, initially as a band with musicians introduced by Hiroyuki Hanada of The Roosters. He released the album AFTERGLOW (2010), the album Juujiro no Guitar (2014), the single VOICE (2021) and the mini album VOICE II (2024). From 2017 he toured alone with an acoustic guitar on the annual DUDE TONE "Walkin' Blues" tours, with Moriyama and Kitazato guesting at some shows.

Chisaki kept his private life largely out of public view. He spoke publicly about his older brother, whose band practice first drew him to the electric guitar. Details of a spouse or children have not been made public. In July 2025 he underwent surgery for proliferative vitreoretinopathy, a serious eye condition, which forced the postponement of a DUDE TONE show, and on August 6, 2025 he told fans on THE MODS' Instagram that he had been discharged as planned and apologised for worrying them.

Chisaki described the Fukuoka nightlife street Oyafuko-dori, the 80's FACTORY live house and the Koganechan food stall as the origin of THE MODS and the reason the band could never quit. He said he had not joined the band intending to turn professional, and that his solo work began partly for the practical reason of supporting the band's own company during gaps in touring, because what he really wanted was to keep THE MODS going. His 2021 release VOICE grew out of the anxiety of the pandemic lockdowns, which he described as days that felt like a tunnel with no end.

With THE MODS, Chisaki was part of one of the defining bands of mentai rock, the wave of hard edged Kyushu rock bands of the late 1970s and 1980s, and of the Japanese punk scene. The band inspired two tribute albums, THE MODS TRIBUTE SO WHAT!! (2001) and Vol. 2 (2006), and Masaharu Fukuyama has repeatedly cited them as a major influence. Guitar players singled out his warm front pickup Les Paul tone on songs like "TWO PUNKS" and his lead lines on "Hageshii Ame ga" and "Ballad o Omae ni". He remained in the band from 1979 until his death, through 45 years since their major label debut.

No individual awards for Chisaki are recorded in the sources used for this page. THE MODS' 1980 shows at 80's FACTORY set the venue's attendance record, and the band's 45 year career was marked in 2026 with the box set SMOKIN' GUN, the album REVOLVER 45 and a national anniversary tour.

Chisaki appeared on the soundtrack of the 1980 film Crazy Thunder Road, on TV Kanagawa's Fighting 80's, and briefly with the band in an episode of the TBS drama Mou Koukou wa Iranai!. Key recordings include FIGHT OR FLIGHT (1981), NEWS BEAT (1981), HANDS UP (1983), the singles "Hageshii Ame ga" and "Ballad o Omae ni", the live releases RODEO LIVE (1997) and LIVE GEAR (2013), and the DUDE TONE releases AFTERGLOW, Juujiro no Guitar, VOICE and VOICE II. In a 2021 interview for the SHINOS AMPLIFIER COMPANY YouTube channel he talked about THE MODS' 40th anniversary show at Hibiya, how he came to the Les Paul and his DUDE TONE project.

Hiroyuki Chisaki died suddenly on November 8, 2026, aged 66. THE MODS and their company Rockaholic announced his death on November 10, 2026, writing that members and staff could not yet accept the reality of such sudden news and thanking fans and colleagues for their support. The cause of death and place of death have not been made public. The funeral was to be held privately with close relatives only, after consultation with the family, and the band asked fans to refrain from condolence visits, offerings, flowers and telegrams. All remaining dates of the 45th anniversary tour REVOLVER 45, due to resume at Sendai PIT on November 14, 2026, were cancelled. Tributes came from fans, fellow musicians including Gyuzo of Dengeki Network, and outlets such as Natalie, Nikkan Sports, Sponichi, Hochi, Nishinippon Shimbun and NTV News.