coldrain have joined forces with The Used frontman Bert McCracken for new single ‘POISON’, a singer Masato has named as one of his own formative influences.
Released on August 28th, ‘POISON’ is the newest song from coldrain’s eighth album, ‘OPTIMIZE = OPTDEMISE’, out September 25th through Century Media Records.
Masato has been naming McCracken as an influence for over a decade. During a February 2014 interview with Journal du Japon, he put McCracken alongside Linkin Park’s Chester Bennington while discussing his musical mentors, describing him as potentially his primary influence.
The two bands shared stages in Australia in 2023, when coldrain joined The Used and Papa Roach’s Cut My Heart Into Pieces co-headline tour as special guests, taking in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, and Sydney. Three years later, Masato and McCracken have recorded together for the first time.
Masato said of the track:
“‘POISON’ is a song about love and desire—about how something, or someone, you love can become so addictive that it’s easy to lose yourself in it. Trying to find the right dosage of that love—enough to satisfy you without letting it consume you—feels like one of the most human struggles there is.
The song also features killer vocals from the one and only Bert McCracken of The Used, one of our all-time favourite singers. His signature voice brings a rawness and emotional intensity to the track that makes ‘POISON’ feel like a timeless emo masterpiece.”
coldrain’s own roots reach into many of the same 2000s sounds. Emerging from Nagoya with music heavily influenced by nu-metal, emo, and post-hardcore, the band have since developed into one of Japan’s most internationally established loud-rock acts.
‘POISON’ is the final song to be released ahead of ‘OPTIMIZE = OPTDEMISE’. The album is structured in two halves, with all five tracks from coldrain’s 2025 EP ‘OPTIMIZE’ forming its opening section before seven songs make up the second half, ‘OPTDEMISE’.
‘EX-HUMANITY’ opens that second half, having been released in July, followed by ‘REST OF ME’ and ‘POISON’. ‘G.I.A.I.G’, ‘SING’, and ‘PICTURE PERFECT HELL’ stay under wraps until September 25th, alongside closing track ‘SAVIOR’, which features a second guest in Crossfaith and AFTERVOID vocalist Kenta Koie.
It will be coldrain’s first studio album since ‘Nonnegative’ in 2022. The band have described the record as a response to a world in which people increasingly surrender their own thought and individuality, while stressing that its message is not a straightforward argument against AI or technology.
Ahead of the album’s release, coldrain head back to Australia in September as special guests on Electric Callboy’s TANZNEID WORLD TOUR with Ice Nine Kills.
coldrain will then take ‘OPTIMIZE = OPTDEMISE’ across Japan from October through December, with AFTERVOID opening every show. An extra Toyosu PIT date has been added on December 8th after the following night’s Tokyo show sold out.
Dates and tickets
| Date | Location | Tickets |
|---|---|---|
| 6 Oct 2026 | CLUB CITTA', Kawasaki, Japan | |
| 10 Oct 2026 | BLUE LIVE HIROSHIMA, Hiroshima, Japan | |
| 17 Oct 2026 | UNITED LAB, Fukuoka, Japan | |
| 21 Oct 2026 | PENNY LANE24, Sapporo, Japan | |
| 22 Oct 2026 | PENNY LANE24, Sapporo, Japan | |
| 1 Nov 2026 | EIGHT HALL, Kanazawa, Japan | |
| 3 Nov 2026 | NIIGATA LOTS, Niigata, Japan | |
| 29 Nov 2026 | SENDAI GIGS, Sendai, Japan | |
| 1 Dec 2026 | Namba Hatch, Osaka, Japan | |
| 2 Dec 2026 | COMTEC PORTBASE, Nagoya, Japan | |
| 8 Dec 2026 | Toyosu PIT, Tokyo, Japan | |
| 9 Dec 2026 | Toyosu PIT, Tokyo, Japan |
coldrain
OPTIMIZE = OPTDEMISE
Release Date: September 25th, 2026
Label: Century Media Records
Pre-order: Regular | DVD Edition | Blu-ray Edition
About coldrain
coldrain are a five-piece loud rock band formed in Nagoya in 2007 by Masato (vocals), Y.K.C (guitar), Sugi (guitar), RxYxO (bass), and Katsuma (drums). Writing predominantly in English, they pair melodic vocals and screams with metalcore and post-hardcore heaviness, alternative-rock hooks, and technical twin-guitar work. Debut single 'Fiction' arrived in 2008, with first album 'Final Destination' following in 2009. coldrain built their reputation through intensive touring in Japan before beginning their international expansion in 2014, with albums including 'The Revelation' (2013), 'VENA' (2015), 'FATELESS' (2017), 'THE SIDE EFFECTS' (2019), and 'Nonnegative' (2022) extending their reach overseas. International tours and festival appearances have seen them share stages with acts including Bullet For My Valentine, Papa Roach, and The Used. At home, coldrain rank among the most prominent acts in Japan's loud-rock scene. They also host BLARE FEST. in Nagoya, bringing together leading Japanese rock and heavy acts alongside international guests. After a long run with Warner Music Japan, coldrain announced a global deal with Century Media Records in March 2025, releasing 'INCOMPLETE' as their first single following the move. Five-track EP 'OPTIMIZE' followed in October 2025. Eighth album 'OPTIMIZE = OPTDEMISE' is due for release on September 25th, 2026. The 12-track record includes 'POISON', a collaboration with The Used frontman Bert McCracken, before closing with 'SAVIOR' featuring Crossfaith and AFTERVOID vocalist Kenta Koie.
