Miyavi - This iz The Japanese Kabuki Rock (19 March 2008)
In 1999 I was a fan of the visual-kei band Dué le Quartz, who completed their line-up that year when Miyavi replaced the existing guitarist. The band did not last long. Dué le Quartz broke up in 2002. The reason seemed to be internal conflict over the band’s musical direction, which lead to bassist Kikasa leaving, and that was the end of Dué le Quartz. Miyavi—under the name Miyabi at the time—was beginning to create solo work in 2002 prior to the break up. He quickly signed with a record label and released his debut album, Gagaku, a mere forty-one days after Dué le Quartz’s final concert.
Miyavi has proven himself to be a top-quality talent in the decade since his solo debut. His early music was reminiscent of his work with Dué le Quartz, but he soon began incorporating elements of pop, electronic, and aucoustic guitar into his songs. He maintained the visual-kei look for years but showed more musical variety than his contemporary visual-kei peers.
You can find some of his other albums here on NyaaTorrents. I strongly recommend Live in London 2011 and Samurai Sessions Vol. 1. I decided to upload This iz The Japanese Kabuki Rock because it showcases the variety in Miyavi’s talents as both a song-writter, guitarist, and vocalist. And yeah, that is the spelling of the album on the title, heh.
As always, enjoy the music!
(Note: I am going to be offline for a couple of hours soon after uploading this, traveling out of town for business. So my apologies to the initial leechers for any delay that may cause.)