Big Bang to release new Japan album May 11

Main page to Big Bang's official Japanese website [YG Entertainment]

Boy band Big Bang will release a new album in Japan next month, the boys' official Japanese website indicated on Tuesday.

The main page of the boys' webpage read, "BIGBANG New Album『BIGBANG 2』2011.5.11 On Sale," pointing to the release date for their second Japanese album.

News of the new record does not come as a complete surprise -- their agency YG Entertainment had said the boys would focus on their singing careers in Japan through activities including a nationwide tour and other promotional events starting May.

The tour, titled "Love & Pain Tour," will kick off at the Osaka Castle Hall located in Osaka on May 10 and 11, followed by a series of shows at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba city from May 13 till 15, and at the Nippon Gaishi Hall in Nagoya on May 17 and 18.

Composed of members G-Dragon, T.O.P, Seungri, Taeyang and Daesung, Big Bang has released several albums and hit songs such as "Lies" and "Haru Haru" since their debut in the K-pop scene in 2006.

The group then crossed over into the Japanese music market in June 2009 with their debut single "My Heaven" which reached No. 3 on the prestigious Oricon daily singles chart and they toured three cities in the country which attracted a total of 60,000 fans.

The quintet have released other singles in Japan such as "Tell Me Goodbye" and "Beautiful Hangover" and performed on the main stage at the Summer Sonic Festival August last year.

Currently promoting a special edition album in Korea, the boys made their return to the local music scene for the first time in over two years with their fourth mini-album which topped various online and offline charts and scored wins on televised music programs.

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Jessica Kim jesskim@