We have already decided on the best metal band, but this does not mean that there are no other worthy bands in Japan. On the contrary, the metal scene in Japan is very diverse and is not inferior in quality to the West. Our selection of ten groups will prove this. But we don’t have a goal to remember all the cool Japanese bands in general - we can devote a separate website to this. So be sure to share your favorite metal bands from Japan in the comments!
X Japan (エックス・ジャパン)
In Japan, everything is great not only with avant-garde music, but also with classical metal. The Chiba-based band X Japan is one of the pioneers of heavy, power, symphonic and speed metal in the country. True revolutionaries of their time. Many people also classify X Japan as glam, calling the group the forerunners of the visual kei movement. The term itself, by the way, was coined by Yoshiki, the band’s drummer and keyboard player.
Despite the fact that the group was founded in 1982, it released only five full-length albums. But everyone is great! The songs of X Japan are the ultimate metal anthems and ballads, to which even the last battle will bring tears to your eyes. Even the language barrier does not interfere with their perception. It’s just a pity that the band hasn’t released any new records since 1996.
X Japan is a must-listen for all classic metal fans, of course. In 2021, a documentary film We Are X was released dedicated to the history of the group - you can watch it too. Respects there include, among others, Marilyn Manson, Gene Simons from Kiss and Richard Fortus from Guns'n'Roses.
Website about Japanese music
What comes to your mind when you hear the phrase “ Japanese music ”? Something ethnic and traditional, like playing the shamisen or shakuhachi? Or maybe you remember enka or Buddhist mantras? Of course, this music is good, but perhaps only the most ardent fans will be able to listen to this style constantly. Meanwhile, the Japanese have an excellent selection of performers for absolutely every taste.
You might be surprised, but the Japanese music industry is second only to the American music industry in terms of sales. All styles are widely represented here, from pop, r'n'b, rock to electronic music, and even hip-hop. And if Japanese rap sounds specific to the Russian ear and its possible popularity among our listeners is doubtful, then Japanese rock is winning more and more new listeners. What is the secret of the popularity of Japanese rock? In my purely subjective opinion, several factors play a role here: - Novelty. No matter how they say that all Japanese rock (or j-rock , English-language sites prefer to use the abbreviation jrock ) is brazenly stolen from their American counterparts, the Japanese, with their characteristic industriousness, reworked the “source material” and added their own. - Tough competition. I sometimes get the feeling that Japan has the highest density of rock performers per square meter in the world. Under the pressure of fierce competition, poor musicians are forced to work tirelessly for years without a break. This only works to our advantage: we end up with high-quality music. And while Western musicians sometimes allow themselves to release a clearly “crappy” product, their Japanese colleagues are much more demanding of their own creativity. — The release system itself. This point follows from the previous one. Western musicians pay much more attention to albums. That is, before the release of an album, we may have a single or an EP waiting for us, but still we usually do not know what we are taking or what awaits us immediately before the release. For the Japanese, releasing singles is much more important. For example, over the course of a year, an artist releases 3-4 singles, which then smoothly turn into an album. When buying an album by a Japanese rock or pop musician, we can be sure that there will be hits. — The show must not stop. Agree, concerts of foreign stars are not always interesting to watch. While pop performers are still trying to create a show, rock musicians often just stand (or shake their heads) and play like that for almost the entire concert. Of course, there are exceptions, but not many of them. “Everything in a musician should be perfect” is the motto of Japanese rockers. And makeup, sometimes crazy hairstyles, painted nails or flashy costumes are exactly the same attributes of the show, designed to entertain the viewer. This also includes fan service (musicians pestering each other, simulating kisses, hugging, etc.). I dare to assure you that Japanese rockers are not gay at all. — Taking care of the fans. Yes, yes, that's caring. Personally, I have never seen such an attitude of musicians towards their fans anywhere else. In j-rock, you are not just a listener to whom a great musician has condescended, but a desired and beloved viewer. Japanese musicians are constantly photographed for magazines, leave video and audio comments, update their blogs - in general, they do everything so that fans do not forget them. The latter usually respond to them with mutual love.
Well, are you ready to plunge into the world of Japanese rock music? Then go ahead. Below is a list of artists who, in my humble opinion, are worthy of your attention. Please note that the distribution of places is random and does not imply an attempt to rate someone higher and someone lower.
1.
Gackt ( Gackt ). You may like Gackt, you may not like Gackt, but you have to know who Gackt is. Many people began their acquaintance with Japanese rock with this undoubtedly talented musician. Gackt , who is now in his thirties (he hides his real date of birth), has managed to release an incredible number of releases. His, I’m not afraid to say, outstanding vocal abilities fascinate the listener, and the surprise is even greater that “live” he sings no worse. I especially want to recommend his concert DVDs - this is the highest degree of professionalism. 2. X JAPAN . Perhaps I should start my review with this team, because X JAPAN (popularly called X) are the patriarchs of Japanese rock and largely thanks to the efforts of the leader and drummer of the group - Yoshiki (Yoshiki) we have the opportunity to see the Japanese rock scene as it is There is. Of course, I'm not belittling the influence of the rest of the team. From the very moment of its creation until its farewell concert at Tokyo Dome in 1997, the group enjoyed phenomenal success. Perhaps with the following words I will incur the wrath of many fans of Japanese rock, but if you are a beginner, then I recommend putting this team aside for a better time and not starting your acquaintance with it. Listen to someone younger, someone who is active today, and then come back to X JAPAN. 3. L'Arc~en~Ciel . The group began its career back in the early 90s, it is one of the long-lived Japanese scene, and its members - HYDE (Hyde), Ken (Ken), Tetsu (Tetsu) and Yukihiro (Yukihiro) - have long become popular favorites. By the way, the name of the group itself reads as “lark en ciel”; the group is popularly known as “larky” or in Japanese, “laruku”. For more than 15 years, L'Arc~en~Ciel has captured the hearts of millions of fans around the world. It is perhaps difficult to find another team that would occupy the top of the Oricon , receive all kinds of prizes and awards, and whose releases would be included in such circulations. And it's all about the amazing music, Hyde's powerful vocals and the coordinated work of the rest of the team. 4. Malice Mizer . This name has long become sacred for many fans, and the founder and guitarist of this team, Mana , is a cult person among tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of fans around the world and the creator of the now popular “gothic lolita” style . It was Mana who wrote the vast majority of the songs and created the image of the team. The style of Malice Mizer's music is quite difficult to define; somewhere around their music can be defined as j-gothic (Japanese gothic). Although the group began its activity in 1992, the musicians became truly popular in 1995, when Gackt . The group managed to record several albums that became classics of the genre, and in 1999 Gackt left the group and began a solo career. A little later, the band's drummer, Kami, dies, but the band's story does not end there. Gackt is replaced by a new vocalist - Klaha (I love Malisov with Klaha more than with Gackt). Unfortunately, the group did not last long with this composition and in 2001 Malice Mizer ceased to exist. By the way, in addition to albums, the group released several small films, I advise you to watch them - they are very beautiful. 5. Dir en gray (Dir en gray). One of the most famous and respected bands on the Japanese rock scene. The team has existed since 1997 and is produced by Yoshiki (X JAPAN). The group plays fairly hard rock and is distinguished by shocking videos and aggressive behavior on stage. The lead singer of the group, Kyo , who, by the way, has powerful vocals and sings and “growls” equally well, in order to follow the image of the team at concerts, he scratches his face and chest, allegedly spits blood, throws objects, and pours water on himself from a bucket. The group tours extensively and successfully throughout the USA and Europe. They are distinguished by heavy music, the effect of which is even worse if you read the lyrics. 6. Miyavi (Miyavi). This musician, despite his young age (Miyavi is 27 years old), is far from a newcomer to the stage. Having run away from home at the age of 17 to conquer Tokyo and the musical Olympus, he achieved, it would seem, everything he could dream of. Fame, which has long crossed the borders of Japan (let me remind you, Miyavi is the first Japanese musician to go on a full-scale world tour and visit Latin America), crowds of screaming fans and universal recognition have long been conquered by Miyavi, but the young man is not going to stop there. Miyavi's music is as bright and exuberant as he is. In each album, Miyavi tries a new style and never ceases to amaze her listeners. Among other things, he is also a virtuoso guitarist, whose skills in playing the acoustic guitar cannot but amaze (he also plays the electric guitar, bless you ). Miyavi leads an active online life and, to the delight of her fans, constantly posts on her blogs. From my own experience I can say that Miyavi is the best remedy for depression and bad mood. 7. The Gazette . Perhaps the most popular team among young j-rock listeners. Although the team only formed in 2002, it is incredibly popular both in Japan and abroad. By the way, the group routinely ranks highest on the Oricon among all young Japanese rock artists, and their fan club is so large that it allows the group to hold concerts only for members of the fan club in halls like Shibuya AX, where many Japanese artists consider it lucky to perform in as part of the tour. By the way, despite the fact that the group consists entirely of handsome guys, The Gazette is equally liked by both boys and girls. Ruki come into play . The group tries to go against the established foundations (which is already quite reactionary for a country like Japan, where traditions are so respected) and in their songs ridicules society and its vices. I would say the Gazette is a great band to introduce to Japanese rock. If you liked their music, then be sure to watch the team's live performances - they are simply beyond praise. 8. Hide (Hide). Hide is a legendary figure. A good half of modern musicians call him their idol and, in some way, their teacher. Hide was the guitarist of the legendary group X Japan , and although I have already talked about this group, I want to highlight Hide separately, because his solo career was more than successful. Hide released his first single back in 1993. The debut turned out to be more than successful and this talented musician confirmed his success with more than one single and album. He was quickly liked in the USA, where Hide met and became friends with Marilyn Manson. A brilliant career awaited him, a tour of the United States with Marilyn Manson , he was idolized by millions of fans, but on May 2, 1998, Hide tragically died. It is still unknown whether it was an accident or suicide in a drunken stupor (Hide was an alcoholic). His death was a real tragedy for all of Japan. Despite the fact that more than 10 years have passed since Hide’s death, he is still remembered and loved all over the world, re-releases of his singles and albums are constantly being released, and all sorts of events are held in memory of Hide. On my own behalf, I can add that even though Hide wrote his songs more than 10 years ago, they are unusually fresh and modern to listen to today. 9. MUCC . Personally, I started my acquaintance with j-rock with this team. They are also not new to the Japanese scene, because the group was founded back in 1997 and its discography is unusually extensive. MUCC's music is different from other bands, and not least of all, Tatsuro's vocals are simply incredible in their beauty and power . Mukk are not beautiful, pomaded boys, but serious musicians who play serious music. The team has been performing successfully in Europe and America for a long time and releases not only Japanese releases of their albums, but also European ones. In our country this group is somehow often forgotten, and meanwhile their army of fans around the world is only expanding. I would advise you to listen to this group to understand whether this is your music or not. 10. Kiyoharu (Kyoharu). In the end, I’ll take a few liberties and add Kehara here, because he certainly deserves it. Keharu is even less popular among us than MUCC, although it is one of the patriarchs of Japanese rock. This incredibly talented man created such famous groups as Kuroyume , Sads , and since 2001 he has been busy with a solo career. Starting with gothic rock in Kuroyume and continuing with hardcore punk in Sads, Keharu found himself in elegant, erotic and very sensual music. The key word here is melancholy. Endowed with absolute taste, Keharu does everything with complete dedication and, at the age of 40, continues to actively create. In addition, he produces his own clothing line. In my practice, Keharu is usually liked by people over 20 years old. Usually people either love him or can't stomach Kiyoharu's .
If you like high-quality, leisurely music with a slight touch of sadness, then Keharu is definitely recommended for listening. All.
How is everything, you ask? Where are D'espairs Ray, Alice Nine, Versailles, Penicillin, An Caf?, Acid Black Cherry, D, Buck-Tick, Luna Sea, Nightmare, Sadie, Glay, Sid, TM Revolution, Girugamesh and many others? The Japanese rock scene is truly full of interesting bands and it is simply not possible to describe them all in one article. You are sure to find quality music according to your taste among the variety of styles and groups. Tweet
Boris (ボリス)
Tokyo's kings of drone, constantly reinventing their sound. Since 1992, Boris have released more than twenty albums and tried themselves in almost all genres of music in general. The group is so experimental that it is difficult to say what exactly it can be recommended to fans of.
Everything Boris does within the framework of drone, sludge and stoner is especially good. But they also have ambient, and post-metal, and the wildest noise, and punk-heavy, and J-pop. And nowhere does the group openly fail. Today we write dream pop, tomorrow we will collaborate with Merzbow and Sunn O))) - this is Boris. The group is definitely worth recommending to fans of “atmospheric” music, fans of viscous half-hour (or even hour-long) opuses. In general, you can shuffle the entire discography of Boris and simply discover new directions of heavy (and not so heavy) music.
Dir En Gray (ディル・アン・グレイ)
One of the most famous Japanese groups that you definitely know. But it would be unfair not to include them in the selection. Dir En Gray was formed in Osaka in 1997 and since then the composition of the gang has not changed. As in the case of Boris, it is impossible to clearly determine the genre of the group. There are too many absolutely polar experiments - from J-pop to barely listenable grindcore (within the framework of the genre this is a compliment). Somewhere in the middle, nu-metal also crept in - the band even went on the Family Values tour with Korn. Most often, Dir En Gray is labeled as avant-garde metal, or recorded as progressive.
The group took off largely thanks to Yoshiki from X Japan. He produced and mentored Dir En Gray back in the '90s. There are a million reasons to love the band's music, but the most noticeable feature is Kyo's vocals. He has an impressive range of five octaves, plus absolutely crazy extreme techniques. Kyo can not only do screams and growls, but also extremely low guttorals, from which he can easily transition even to pig-squill. And overlaid on all this is an easily readable Japanese flavor and even ethnicity. Well, Dir En Gray's videos are explosive.
Top 80 rock artists from Japan
The next top is dedicated to Japanese performers who create rock and metal genres. The TOP-80 included both groups and single performers. The list is compiled according to the ratings of the website Ranker.com.
1. Nightmare (Rock music, Heavy metal, Jazz fusion) 2. X Japan (Glam metal, Thrash metal, Progressive metal) 3. the GazettE (Nu metal, Rock music, Heavy metal) 4. Luna Sea (Rock music, Heavy metal, Pop rock) 5. Asian Kung-Fu Generation (Pop punk, Rock music, Emo) 6. UVERworld (Hip hop music, Noise rock, Pop music) 7. Jinn (Rock music, Alternative rock, Indie rock) 8. THE RODEO CARBURETTOR (Rock music) 9. Dir En Gray (Doom metal, Nu metal, Rock music) 10. Malice Mizer (Neoclassical Dark Wave, Synthpop, Gothic rock) 11. Gackt (Neo-progressive rock, Pop punk, Synthpop) 12. Miyavi (Hip hop music, Pop music, Rock music) 13. Cloud 14. D'espairsRay (Nu metal, Industrial metal, Industrial rock) 15. Galneryus (Progressive metal, Power metal, Heavy metal) 16. girugämesh (Post -metal, Nu metal, Shoegazing) 17. Back-On (Nu metal, Synthpop, Rap rock) 18. Beat Crusaders (Pop punk, Rock music, Pop rock) 19. High and Mighty Color (Rock music, J-pop, Metalcore) 20. Flow (Pop punk, Rock music, Alternative rock) 21. 摩天楼オペラ (Thrash metal, Progressive metal, Rock music) 22. Mucc (Rock music, Dance-rock, Experimental rock) 23. Onmyo-Za (Power metal, Heavy metal, Visual kei) 24. Versailles (Progressive metal, Melodic death metal, Power metal) 25. Kagrra, (Fusion, Rock music, Pop rock) 26. Jikuu Kaizoku Seven Seas 27. Abingdon Boys School (Rock music, Alternative rock) 28. ACID (Rock music, Emo, Alternative rock) 29. Alice Nine (Pop music, Rock music, Pop rock) 30. Aqua Timez (Pop music, Rock music, J-pop) 31. Antic Cafe (Pop punk, Pop music, Rock music) 32. The Brilliant Green (Pop music, J-pop, Pop rock) 33. Buck-Tick (New Wave, Gothic rock, Rock music) 34. Bump of Chicken (Rock music, J- pop, Alternative rock) 35. DOES (Rock music, Garage rock, Alternative rock) 36. Ellegarden (Pop punk, Rock music, Emo) 37. GRANRODEO 38. Heidi 39. Hyde (Pop music, Pop rock, Alternative rock) 40 L'Arc-en-Ciel (Neo-progressive rock, Rock music, New Prog) 41. Joe Inoue (Rock music, Alternative rock) 42. JAM Project (Pop music, Music in Japanese animation, Rock music) 43. Janne Da Arc (Rock music, Heavy metal, Pop rock) 44. Judy and Mary (Pop music, Rock music, J-pop) 45. The Kaleidoscope 46. Kelun (Rock music) 47. Kishidan (Rock music) 48. Last Alliance (Rock music, Emo, Melodic hardcore) 49. LM.C (Pop punk, Synthpop, Pop music) 50. Long Shot Party (Ska, Rock music) 51. Nami Tamaki (Disco, Pop music) 52. Nico Touches the Walls (Rock music, Alternative rock) 53. Orange Range (Hip hop music, Noise rock) 54. The Pillows (Pop punk, Power pop) 55. Plastic Tree (Japanese rock, Alternative rock) 56. redballoon 57. Lost Eden (Thrash metal, Deathcore) 58. RICKEN's 59. Riyu Kosaka (Eurobeat, Pop music) 60. Sambomaster (Rock music, Power pop) 61. School Food Punishment (Electronic music, Electronic dance music) 62. Shocking Lemon 63. SIAM SHADE (Progressive metal, Rock music) 64. Sid (Ska punk, Ska) 65. Snowkel (Rock music, Music of Japan) 66. Splay (Pop music, Rock music) 67. STANCE PUNKS (Punk rock, Hardcore punk) 68. Stereopony ( Rock music, Garage rock) 69. Sug (Pop punk, Rock music) 70. Tommy heavenly6 71. Vistlip (Rock music) 72. 12012 (Nu metal, Progressive metal) 73. 9mm Parabellum Bullet (Heavy metal, Alternative rock) 74 Aikaryu 75. Blood Stain Child (Electro-industrial, Symphonic black metal) 76. deathgaze (Progressive metal, Groove metal) 77. exist†trace (Melodic death metal, Gothic metal) 78. LOUDNESS (Glam metal, Progressive metal) 79 . Lynch (Rock music, Metalcore) 80. Maximum the Hormone (Pop punk, Nu metal)
Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu (兀突骨)
Almost unknown outside of Japan are the samurai metal adepts from Kawagoe. The band was founded in 2000 and has been playing very upbeat death metal with pounding slap bass ever since. The lyrics (who will understand them?) are mainly dedicated to samurai honor and valor - that’s why the band defines itself as samurai metal. How serious all this is is the question.
There is nothing directly in the sound that gives away the Japanese in Gotsu-Totsu-Kotsu. There are no wild experiments in their music either. This is just very cool death metal, which, thanks to the funky base, pumps especially strongly.
The Gazette
This team is incredibly popular both in Japan and abroad. It invariably takes first place in the charts, and the group's army of fans is so large that closed concerts for the fan club have to be held at the largest venues in Japan. Powerful vocals, elements of punk rock and nu metal in the music will not leave fans of rock music indifferent.
Maximum the Hormone (マキシマムザホルモン)
Classics of Japanese nu metal from Hachioji. The group was founded in 1998 and is well known in the West. Nu metal is a very general description of the sound of Maximum the Hormone, if you break it down into its components, then there is heavy, hardcore, post-hardcore, pop-punk and, of course, pop. Melodic pop inserts interrupting very fast hard riffs and aggressive growl recitative are the main feature of the group. At the same time, the mood of the songs floats from blacker-like gloomy to completely sunny and humorous, sometimes within the same track.
Most often, Maximum the Hormone is compared to System of a Down - and in some places (very often) their songs really sound like Japanese covers of unreleased System tracks. The vocals and arrangements are similar. Even tunes similar to Armenian suddenly slip through. This, of course, is good, considering that Tankian and his friends will not release anything new.
Maximum the Hormone is a commercially successful band, not least thanks to their soundtrack to the anime Death Note.
Top 10 Japanese rock bands worth listening to.
Japanese rock bands are very original, although it all started by imitating European bands. Many groups are famous not only in Japan, but also abroad. We present the top 10 J-rock bands that are definitely worth listening to.
One ok rock
A quartet whose name comes from the English one o'clock, the time of night rehearsals. The group is the winner of various awards, such as MTV EMA 2021 in the category “Best Japanese Act”. The musicians give about a hundred concerts a year, including several concerts in Russia. The group plays various styles of rock music with its own original sound.
ONE OK ROCK - The Beginning
My first story
The band is the younger brother of One Ok Rock vocalist Tak, Hiro, formed in 2011. The group writes energetic alternative and melodic ballads in English and Japanese, which reveal Hiro's beautiful voice.
MY FIRST STORY -ALONE-【Official Video】
Babymetal
Female dance heavy metal trio. The participants are idols (young media personalities who are positioned as a bright and pure ideal and an unattainable object of love for fans). The trio's music is often defined as a fusion of metal and idol music. The record company defines it as Kawaii metal - a mixture of metal, j-pop and other genres.
BABYMETAL - Distortion (OFFICIAL)
Dir en gray
One of the most famous groups outside of Japan, which during its existence has radically changed its musical style and appearance three times. The musicians managed to play pop rock, alternative rock, various styles of metal, jazz rock, and progressive rock. The current style can be defined as avant-garde metal using elements of electronic, noise and orchestral sound.
DIR EN GRAY – Ningen wo Kaburu PV (Restricted ver.)
X japan (originally X)
One of the most famous groups outside of Japan, during its existence the group radically changed its musical style and appearance three times. The musicians managed to play pop rock, alternative rock, various styles of metal, jazz rock, and progressive rock. The current style can be defined as avant-garde metal using elements of electronic, noise and orchestral sound.
X JAPAN Born to be free -2015ver- 高音質 HD New song Next single High-Quality Sound Subtitles
The Gazette
One of the popular visual kei groups, formed in 2002. The team was twice awarded the “The Most Requested Artist” award. The participants are not afraid to experiment with their creativity: they add a little hip-hop and punk to it, and write deep ballads.
The GazettE - Falling
Dadaroma
Created in 2014, the band combines metalcore with the visual kei sound of the 2000s. A distinctive feature is the very deep lyrics of the songs.
DADAROMA「いいくすり」MV Spot.
Acid Black Cherry
The solo project of former Janne Da Arc vocalist Yasu, formed in 2007 and quickly gained popularity. The style combines elements of hard rock, jazz and even pop music. Yasu's melodic voice sounds great in the band's heaviest songs.
蝶/Acid Black Cherry
Maximum the Hormone
A band from Hachioji, famous for the Death Note (anime) soundtrack. Recognition in their homeland came to the participants after the release of the album Kusoban in 2004. The music can be classified as hardcore punk, nu metal and alternative metal.
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Miyavi
One of the most important visual kei musicians who is also an actor, songwriter and producer. His music combines classical Japanese music with elements of modern Japanese pop culture and a spanking style of playing. Miyavi's concerts are assisted by dancers, DJs and session musicians
MIYAVI - Horizon
Her Name in Blood (ハー・ネーム・イン・ブラッド)
A Tokyo-based English-speaking band straight out of 2007 with very textured vocals. In the West, the group is little known and only released a metalcore cover of Pretty Fly from the Offspring. In the selection, the gang takes the rap for modern metal and metalcore.
The early work of Her Name in Blood is the most classic melodic metalcore in the spirit of As I Lay Dying. Not very well recorded, but soulful. You can listen to re-recorded songs from that era on the latest Bloodline collection. Since 2021, the group has modernized itself, moved away from the naive romance of 2007, and diluted its sound with post-grunge, heavy metal and pop rock. But the spirit of the underground, along with raw vocals, splashes of gentuha and grindcore, remained in place.
Crossfaith (クロスフェイス)
English-language transcore band from Osaka. They have been playing since 2006, but in the West they became noticeable only closer to the middle of the tenth. Crossfaith is not only one of the few bands that still makes transcore (in a very general sense - a mixture of metalcore and electronics), but they also don’t sound like it. Not like hello from 2007.
Crossfaith's international fan base expanded, wisely mingling with bands like Bring me the Horizon, Of Mice and Men and Enter Shikari. The group traveled around the world, supported iconic hardcore bands, and eventually became part of the “party.” However, they also have their place among fans of nu-metal - its influence in the music of Crossfaith is also clearly heard. And this is logical, because the band’s vocalist Kenta Koye started with covers of Linkin Park and Limp Bizkit. There is even a gorgeous cover version of Faint on the latest album of the EX_MACHINA gang. And we have to give Crossfaith credit – their live performances are very cool.
Nightmare
Nightmare is a Japanese group of guys who consider themselves to be in the visual key genre. This team is one of the most popular representatives of this genre, participating in the recordings of skeletons for popular anime such as Death Note, Claymore and Neuro Nogami.
The team arose thanks to the activities of two musicians - Sakito and Hitsugi - in 2000. They were subsequently joined by Yuji Baba (bassist), Yemi (vocalist) and Zennin (drummer). However, the latter soon left, and Karino Satoru (Hand) arrived in his place.
The band's debut demo sounded like Zange. In 2003, the musicians released their first album with the interesting title no ore wa mono ~Omae. In the same year, the Japanese label Nippon Crown already agreed to sign a contract with the still very young group (at that time). A couple of months later, the Believe record goes on sale, which takes 24th place in the Oricon top.
In 2004, the musicians released their debut work in DVD format, which featured 3 singles: Varuna, Cyan and Tokio Shounen.
A special feature of the group is its diversity in both sound and genres.
The deep voice of lead singer Yomi can sound heavy, bold, gentle, and melodious. As for directions, the group is trying itself:
- in alternative metal;
- blues rock;
- hard rock.
Crystal Lake
Another English speaking group from Tokyo. Crystal Lake formed in 2002 - now they play fashionable metalcore in the spirit of Architects. This trend is also in order on the Japanese stage. Perfect English, perfect mixing, perfect balance between djent heaviness, melodic solos and poppy vocals on the choruses. It's no surprise that the band is well known in the metalcore and progressive scenes.
If you suddenly want something in the spirit, but with a more noticeable bias towards pop, you can listen to Coldrain. They are also Japanese and are friends with Crystal Lake and Crossfaith.
Ladybaby (レディベイビー)
Babymetal actually founded the kawaii metal genre, but today they are not the only band performing in it. Very often, all-female bands like Doll$Boxx are classified as kawaii metal, even if there is nothing from idol culture in their music. In this regard, Ladybaby is much closer to the canon. There are four girls singing and dancing in the group, pop and metal are mixed in the sound correctly - this is real kawaii metal.
The group has existed since 2013, but it went viral in 2015 with the video Nippon manju. Then, as part of Ladybaby, Australian wrestler and stuntwoman Ladybeard, dressed in a dress, growled along with two schoolgirls. This, of course, was a golden time for the gang. In 2016, he left the group and since then four girls have already sung as part of Ladybaby - one of them, by the way, had the task of growling.
It’s better to get acquainted with Ladybaby’s work through the clips, but they also sound great. It’s a pity, the group doesn’t have much material, and in January 2020 it will disband.
WagakkiBand (和楽器バンド)
Tokyo band founded in 2013. The band plays rather soft rock with female vocals, leaning towards classic heavy metal. The main feature of the group is reflected in its name - the musicians use traditional Japanese instruments. Vocal parts are also often based on ethnic melodies. Among all the gangs in the selection, this is the most authentic. Often she completely abandons metal, completely immersing herself in Japanese folk. At such moments, WagakkiBand perhaps sounds best.
The group’s fame is also fine - their videos go viral on YouTube and deservedly collect tens of millions of views. Thanks to this, WagakkiBand is well known in the west.
WHO ARE BABYMETAL
My first story
My first story was founded by the younger brother of the lead singer of One Ok Rock (Taka) - Hiro.
Founded in 2011. The band performs alternative rock and melodic ballads in English and Japanese. The band plays in the alternative rock genre, one could say that Hiro follows closely in the footsteps of his older brother Hiro, since My First Story also does not hesitate to experiment in genre directions. Most often the group performs compositions in the genre of post-hardcore and alternative metal and rock.
