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X Japan is a Japanese rock band from Chiba, formed in 1982 by drummer and pianist Yoshiki and lead vocalist Toshi. Starting as a predominantly power/speed metal band with heavy symphonic elements, they later gravitated towards a progressive sound with an emphasis on ballads. Besides being one of the first Japanese acts to achieve mainstream success while on an independent label, the group is widely credited as one of the pioneers of visual kei, a movement among Japanese musicians comparable to Western glam.
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.
DuelJewel (デュエルジュエル) is a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in January 1997.
Tadashi Matsuura, known exclusively by his stage name Kisaki (きさき), is a Japanese musician, record producer and businessman, whose career in the visual kei scene spans more than 30 years. He is best known for having been the bassist of several bands, including La:Sadie's, Mirage, Syndrome, Kisaki Project, and Phantasmagoria. When Phantasmagoria disbanded in 2007, Kisaki announced his retirement as an active musician. However, in 2010, he ended his retirement and formed the band Lin -The End of Corruption World-.
Satsuki (砂月) is a Japanese musician and singer, best known as vocalist of the visual kei rock band Rentrer en Soi. He was a member of the band from its creation in 2001 until its disbandment in 2008, before launching a solo career in 2009. In 2011, Satsuki formed the duo Moon Stream and joined Kisaki Project. He counts Dir En Grey, Nirvana, and U2 among his musical influences.
Sebastiano Serafini is an Italian singer, songwriter, actor, and model. Serafini has worked in different countries including Hong Kong, Japan, Italy, Germany, and Thailand – where he made an appearance as the final MC at the 2013 You2Play Awards. He played a recurring role as the otaku Luca in the Japanese TV drama series Nihonjin no Shiranai Nihongo, and was in the drama Pompei as the son of Girolamo Panzetta. Serafini first began modeling at the age of 15. He is also the co-founder of Unlisted Community, the founder of a video game studio in Tokyo called Serafini Productions and the author of several digital manga, including UNSUBSCRIBERS and YTHS,
Heidi. is a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in Tokyo in February 2006. They gained popularity after performing at the memorial concert on the 10th anniversary of the death of the musician hide on May 4, 2008, to tens of thousands of people. Their third album was released in Europe by Gan-Shin records in 2009 and the following year Heidi. signed to major label Geneon Universal Entertainment.
DaizyStripper is a five-member Japanese visual kei rock band that formed in March 2007, and is signed onto the indie label Beyond-Max. DaizyStripper also has an alter-ego band called Frantic Emiry.
Diaura is a four-member Japanese visual kei rock band, currently signed to their own record label, called NDG, they were formerly under Galaxy Inc. and then Ains. The band formed in December 2009 by yo-ka, Kei (ex-Valluna), Yuu (ex-Valluna), and later recruited Shoya. Their current fourth member and then-support drummer, Tatsuya, was later on added to the group as an official member after ex-drummer Yuu's departure from the group due to tendinitis. Their debut single "Shitsuyoku no Seiiki" was released on January 19, 2011. Diaura released their first full studio album Genesis on March 21, 2012 and their second full studio album Focus on December 4, 2013.
Mejibray was a Japanese visual kei rock band which came together on June 18, 2011, founded by their vocalist, Tsuzuku, and signed on to White Side Group. Their musical style is heavy metal and hard rock, while also taking elements from genres such as djent or nu metal. The band currently consists of the members MiA (guitar), and Meto (drums). Previously, Ippu had been the guitarist of Mejibray, but left in October 2011. It was revealed on December 31, 2017, by MEJIBRAY's management that bassist Koichi and vocalist Tsuzuku had terminated their contracts with the company, leaving the future of the band uncertain.
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yo-ka is a Japanese songwriter, lyricist and the vocalist of visual kei band Diaura. He is the main lyricist of the band, but also composes music, along with guitarist Kei. He also works as a radio DJ. His birth name is not publicly known.
Royz is a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in 2009 in Osaka. Currently, Subaru is on vocals, Kuina is on guitar, Koudai is on bass and Tomoya is on drums and they are on the label B.P Records.
Arlequin are a five-piece Japanese visual kei rock band, formed in 2013 in Tokyo.
"Genderless" is a fashion subculture that emerged in Japan in the mid-2010s. Aiming to break societal gender norms in fashion, the genderless subculture is centered on gender non-conforming androgynous fashion. The subculture is mostly dominated by men, who are known as "genderless men".
Jiluka is a Japanese visual kei metal band initially formed in May 2013 but restarted in February 2015. The group are an independent band on the label DPR Japan, consisting of members Ricko, Sena, the main songwriter of the songs, Boogie and Zyean. They have released 7 albums and 6 singles so far. It was ranked at the 12 position on the JRock News's top 15 visual kei and Japanese rock artists of 2019. Jiluka is described as "Modern metal visual kei".
Dezert is a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in 2011. Their current line-up features Chiaki on vocals, Sacchan on bass, Miyako on guitar and Sora on drums and they have released 7 studio albums to date.
Kiryū (己龍) is a Japanese visual kei metal band founded in 2007 with the concept of "Japanese terror" and "painful nostalgia". Formed by vocalist Mahiro Kurosaki, guitarists Takemasa Kujō and Mitsuki Sakai, bassist Hiyori Isshiki and drummer Junji Tokai, each member is represented by a color. They have been part of the independent label B.P Records since 2009.
Acme are a metalcore and Japanese visual kei rock band formed in 2017 with the concept of "delinquent boys from another world." The band consists of four members: CHISA (vocals), SHOGO (guitar), RIKITO (bass), and HAL (drums). Known for their post-hardcore musical style and colorful visuals, ACME has gained attention for their high-energy live performances. ACME have toured in the United States and Canada, and were the only visual kei band to complete a U.S. tour in 2021. JRock News ranked ACME as the second best visual kei artist of 2022. Currently ACME are self-managed and operate as an independent band, not signed to a label.
References
- ↑ "Cure — японский музыкальный журнал, посвященный менее известным вижуал кей группам. Сейчас их основные статьи также переводятся и на английский язык" (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2012-03-18. Retrieved 2010-09-02.
- 1 2 "ROCKERS & IDOLS: JAPANESE MAGAZINE CURE'S ANIME EXPO AFTERPARTY". Los Angeles Times . 2009-07-06. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
- ↑ "Cure magazine relaunches". vk.gy. 2018-04-19. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
- ↑ "Kei jōhōshi "Cure" onrain purojekuto shidō" ヴィジュアル系情報誌「Cure」（キュア）、オンライン・プロジェクト始動 [Visual kei magazine "Cure" launches online project] (in Japanese). 2022-07-13. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
- ↑ "Visual kei magazine Cure suspends publication". 2022-04-17. Retrieved 2022-09-09.
- ↑ "Cure magazine invites foreign bands to "World Visual Festival"". Jrocknews. 2016-01-30. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
