Early career Mass of the Fermenting Dregs was formed in 2002 in
Kobe,
Hyogo Prefecture, with the original all-female lineup of Natsuko Miyamoto, Chiemi Ishimoto and Reiko Gotoh. The name of the band was conceived by simply lining up words the members liked. Following Reiko's departure from the band in October 2007, the band toured with the official lineup of Natsuko and Chiemi, with various musicians serving as a "support drummer". Their breakthrough came at the 2007 "Road to Tarbox Audition" competition held by
EMI Japan, which put the band in contact with noted American record producer
Dave Fridmann (
The Flaming Lips,
OK Go) of
Tarbox Road Studios. With Fridmann producing, they recorded two tracks, I F A Surfer and Bears (ベアーズ), which appeared on their 2008 self-titled E.P. In 2010, support drummer Isao Yoshino became an official member of the band, prior to the release of their major label debut album.
Departure of Chiemi Ishimoto In October 2010, it was announced that the band's guitarist of six years, Chiemi Ishimoto, would be leaving the group after completing the band's national tour on 11 December 2010. Her leaving was due to a medical panic disorder.
Departure of Isao Yoshino In December 2011, Isao Yoshino announced that he would be leaving the group for undisclosed reasons. This left Miyamoto as the sole founding and active member of the band.
Dissolution Though Natsuko Miyamoto, with the help of supporting members, continued to perform as Mass of the Fermenting Dregs through the spring of 2012, on September the 1st of the same year, she officially announced that Mass of the Fermenting Dregs would cease to exist as of that day. As a parting present, Miyamoto shared what was, at that moment, the last of the works recorded with Yoshino. A song titled "たんたんたん" (tantantan) was made available for download through a direct link placed within the page containing the departing letter to the fans on the official M.o.F.D. website.
Reformation (2015–present) In December the M.o.F.D website started to update, deleting the departing letter on the website. Natsuko Miyamoto sent hints on Twitter about M.o.F.D, and the band was later confirmed to play on the New Year's Q2 Concert, thus confirming the reunion of the band. In May 2016, the band played in three Canadian cities on the "Next Music From Tokyo" concert tour. On 1 August 2022, the M.o.F.D. website was updated, announcing a new album titled "Awakening:Sleeping." Similar announcements were made on the same day on the band's Instagram account as well as Natsuko Miyamoto's account with a digital release marked for 17 August 2022, as well as a CD release on 7 October. The band also announced that they would be planning to do a European Tour the following year. On 9 September, the band had opened up for
HARU NEMURI at the WWW X Shibuya before heading out on their second U.S. Tour. ==Style and influences==