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Cymbals (シンバルズ) was a Japanese rock band active from 1997–2003. The trio was composed of vocalist Asako Toki (土岐麻子), bassist/guitarist Reiji Okii (沖井礼二), and drummer Hiroyasu Yano (矢野博康). Like other Japanese bands which emerged in the late 1990s, Cymbals were strongly influenced by the British pop-rock sounds of the 1960s. Due to their eclectic blend of styles, the band is often linked to Shibuya-kei. Despite solid songwriting and album production, they never scored a true "hit", which eventually resulted in the band's breakup in September 2003. They played a final 90-minute farewell concert at Shibuya O-East on January 20, 2004. The group's members remain musically active – Toki as a solo artist, Okii as a producer, and Yano as a session drummer and producer.
Pizzicato Five was a Japanese pop band formed in Tokyo in 1979 by multi-instrumentalists Yasuharu Konishi and Keitarō Takanami. After some personnel changes in the late 1980s, the band gained international fame as a duo consisting of Konishi and vocalist Maki Nomiya. With their music blending together 1960s pop, jazz and synth-pop, the group were a prominent component in the Shibuya-kei movement of the 1990s.
Martin Denny was an American pianist, composer, and arranger. Known as the "father of exotica," he was a multi-instrumentalist and could play a number of percussion instruments. In a long career that saw him performing up to 3 weeks prior to his death, he toured the world popularizing his brand of lounge music which included exotic percussion, imaginative rearrangements of popular songs, and original songs that celebrated Tiki culture.
Visual kei, abbreviated v-kei, is a category of Japanese musicians that have a strong focus on extravagant stage costumes that originated in Japan during the early 1980s. Koji Dejima of Bounce wrote that visual kei is not a specific sound, but rather it "revolves around the creation of a band's unique worldview and/or stylistic beauty through visual expressions in the form of makeup and fashion". While visual kei bands can be of any music genre, it is generally associated with glam rock, punk rock, and heavy metal.
Lounge music is a type of easy listening music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It may be meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place, usually with a tranquil theme, such as a jungle, an island paradise or outer space. The range of lounge music encompasses beautiful music–influenced instrumentals, modern electronica, while remaining thematically focused on its retro–space age cultural elements. The earliest type of lounge music appeared during the 1920s and 1930s, and was known as light music.
Shibuya-kei is a microgenre of pop music or a general aesthetic that flourished in Japan in the mid-to-late 1990s. The music genre is distinguished by a "cut-and-paste" approach that was inspired by the kitsch, fusion, and artifice from certain music styles of the past. The most common reference points were 1960s culture and Western pop music, especially the work of Burt Bacharach, Brian Wilson, Phil Spector, and Serge Gainsbourg.
Indie pop is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and subsequently generated a thriving fanzine, label, and club and gig circuit. Compared to its counterpart, indie rock, the genre is more melodic, less abrasive, and relatively angst-free. In later years, the definition of indie pop has bifurcated to also mean bands from unrelated DIY scenes/movements with pop leanings. Subgenres include chamber pop and twee pop.
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Fishmans are a Japanese band formed in 1987 in Minato, Tokyo. They are known for their unique psychedelic sound and the distinctive vocals of the late lead singer Shinji Sato, as well as the drum playing of Kin-Ichi Motegi and rocksteady basslines of Yuzuru Kashiwabara. Fishmans remained relatively underground and disbanded with the sudden death of Shinji Sato in 1999, but later accumulated an international cult following largely driven by their popular acclaim on internet discussion boards. In a 2019 article for The Japan Times, James Hadfield wrote that their albums Aerial Camp and Long Season "are now undisputed landmarks in the Japanese rock canon."
Modern Dog is a Thai rock band, formed in 1992. They issued their first album in 1994, selling 500,000 copies. The band has issued five studio albums, selling a total of 2 million copies.
Chamber pop is a music genre that combines rock music with the intricate use of strings, horns, piano, and vocal harmonies, and other components drawn from the orchestral and lounge pop of the 1960s, with an emphasis on melody and texture.
Fun 9 is the fourth studio album by Japanese musician Takako Minekawa. It was released on July 7, 1999 by Polystar. The album was released on November 16, 1999 in the United States by Emperor Norton Records.
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Fantasma is the third studio album by Japanese musician Cornelius, released on August 6, 1997, on his label Trattoria. Cornelius envisioned the album as "a one-on-one experience between the music and the listener. ... It starts with you entering into the journey and ends with you returning to reality." It peaked at number six on the Oricon Albums Chart and number 37 on the UK Independent Albums Chart. Three singles were issued from the album: "Star Fruits Surf Rider", "Free Fall", and "Chapter 8 – Seashore and Horizon –".
Tetsu Takano is a Japanese rock musician and singer-songwriter. He first became known as vocalist of the visual kei rock band Malice Mizer from 1992 to 1994. After leaving them, Tetsu formed and performed with Mega8Ball from 1995 to 1997. From 1999 to 2002 he was part of the supergroup Zigzo, who became quite popular despite being an independent band and reunited in 2012. In addition to Zigzo, Tetsu is currently active in the bands Nil, The JuneJulyAugust, The Black Comet Club Band, and Disco Volante, all of which are on his record label Afro Skull Records.
Luminous Orange is an alternative rock band formed 1992 in Yokohama, Japan. The band has evolved from an all female group to a solo project headed by composer, singer & guitarist Rie Takeuchi.
Vivid was a five-member Japanese visual kei rock band from Tokyo. The band was formed in March 2009 and is currently signed with Sony Music Japan's Epic Records Japan label. Vivid had announced on Jan 28, 2015, that they will be disbanding after the last stop of their final tour in April.
Yann Tomita is a Japanese musician, composer, record producer, writer, and steelpan player based in Tokyo. In Japan during the 1980s and 1990s, he pioneered various music genres, including hip hop, dub, acid jazz, exotica, and electronic music. He is the first professional Japanese steelpan player, first Japanese hip hop producer, and the president of the Audio Science Laboratory record label, which he founded.
References
- ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 9 October 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - 1 2 Kikuchi, Daisuke (22 July 2014). "Buffalo Daughter calls on some 'konjac-tions' for its newest album". The Japan Times . Retrieved 9 April 2015.
- ↑ "Buffalo Daughter interview (Audio, mp3) by Toazted.com". Archived from the original on 21 April 2005. Retrieved 18 November 2005.
