Sheena & The Rokkets were formed in 1978 by guitarist Makoto Ayukawa and vocalist Etsuko Ayukawa, who adopted the stage name Sheena, in Fukuoka, Japan. The duo debuted as the opening act for Elvis Costello’s Japan Tour on 23 November 1978, and their first single, "Namida no Highway", released in 1978, marked their entry into the Mentai Rock scene, followed in 1979 by "You May Dream". The band’s early releases, including the albums Vacuum Pack (1979) and Channel Good (1980), showcased a blend of hard-rock riffs and melodic hooks that resonated with a growing Japanese audience. Throughout the 1980s, they released a succession of albums such as Pinup Baby Blues (1981), New Hippies(1984), and Main Songs (1985), while singles like "Sweet Inspiration" (1984) and "Poison" (1988) achieved chart recognition. International exposure came with a 1981 re-recording of English-language material for A&M Records in Los Angeles and a collaboration with British guitarist Wilko Johnson in 1993. In 2007, Vacuum Pack was ranked 44th on Rolling Stone Japan’s list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time". The group continued to release material into the 2000s, and the band’s activities ceased following the deaths of Etsuko Ayukawa in 2015 and Makoto Ayukawa in 2023.
