X Japan is a Japanese band founded in 1982 by Toshimitsu “Toshi” Deyama and Yoshiki Hayashi. Originally named X, the group achieved its breakthrough success in 1989 with the release of their second album Blue Blood. They started out as a power/speed metal band and later gravitated towards a progressive sound, at all times retaining an emphasis on ballads. After three more albums, X Japan disbanded in 1997.
BeForU is an all female J-Pop group who performed music primarily for the Bemani series of rhythm games. BeForU debuted in 2000 with their song DIVE, which was notable as being the first J-POP song in the Dance Dance Revolution series. BeForU was produced by Naoki Maeda, one of the lead Konami musical producers. In 2006, the group made their major label debut under Avex tracks.
B’z is a Japanese hard rock duo, comprising Tak Matsumoto (composition, guitar) and Koshi Inaba (lyrics, vocals). They have released 41 consecutive #1 singles, 23 #1 albums, and sold more than 77 million records in Japan alone. B’z were the first artists from Asia to have their handprints and signatures put up in the Hollywood’s RockWalk.
Crazy Ken Band (クレイジーケンバンド) is a popular Japanese musical group formed in 1997. HMV Japan ranked them at #98 in their Top 100 Japanese Pop Artists.
℃-ute is an all-female Japanese pop group within Hello! Project. The character “℃” (degree Celsius) is substituted for C in notation for the purpose of expressing ardor—the hyphen does not have any meaning in particular. The proper pronunciation for this group in Japanese is kyūto (キュート?) with pitch accents on both “ū” and “o”.
Coaltar of the Deepers are an Alternative rock band from Japan. They formed in May 1991. Although primarily influenced by shoegaze sound, they sound incorporates musical elements as diverse as thrash metal, electronica, and bossa nova. Possessing a devoted fanbase, they are also known for their Prince, The Cure, The Primitives, and My Bloody Valentine covers.
Funky Monkey Babys is a Japanese hip-hop band grouped in 2004 under the record company Dreamusic Inc. All members in the group are from Hachiôji, Japan. They are known for featuring celebrities in their promotion videos and singles jackets. Clearly, “Babys” is an spelling error for “Babies.
Coconuts Musume is a group from Hello! Project that was formed and promoted as the girls from Hawaii. After nine years, the group officially disbanded when Ayaka Kimura graduated from Hello! Project.
Garnet Crow is a four-piece Japanese band consisting of a vocalist, two keyboardists and a guitarist. The unique composition of the band contemporaries, makes this band stand out from other Japanese bands. What also makes this band unique, is that each member is successful in their own right. Although it is Nakamura and Azuki who are usually in the limelight, Furui is a well sought after music arranger (one of the highest paid in Japan) and Okamoto has a successful solo career.
Flipper’s Guitar were a Tokyo-based Japanese pop duo Keigo Oyamada and Kenji Ozawa. The band were influenced by the chirpy sound of British 80s pop groups as well as the fashionably eclectic sounds of early 90s Britain, from indie dance to acid jazz.