It's an origin story that sounds like something out of a coming-of-age film: On a whim, four friends decide to enter a battle of the bands-style competition; not necessarily to get signed or to "make it," but to have something fun to do together in their last year of high school. Except they do get signed, and they do make it.

Originally a high school band covering songs by acts such as Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Fratellis and Number Girl, Negoto (Japanese for "sleep-talking") consists of vocalist/keyboardist Sachiko Aoyama, guitarist Mizuki Masuda, bassist Yu Fujisaki and drummer Sayako Sawamura. They were one of the winners of the first Senko Riot Festival, an annual competition limited to teenage acts that ran from 2008 to 2014.

"We were never a band that set out to go pro," says a soft-spoken Aoyama. "We didn't know what it meant to be professional musicians, and after we debuted there were times we lost confidence and learned a lot. With this new album, we feel like we can confidently say, 'This is the real Negoto.' "