Hal (group)
Encyclopedia
Hal is a Japanese pop band formed in 1996. They have worked with several Japanese pop and rock stars and also have won two Japan Record Awards for their musical arrangements for singer Ayumi Hamasaki
(with "Free & Easy" in 2002 and "No way to say" in 2003).
They habitually write their name as HΛL, replacing the Latin
"A" with the Greek "Λ" or Lambda
.
Hal went from music arrangers into a music band and then back to music arrangers, arranging songs for many Japanese artists. Toshiharu Umezaki (sometimes written as Toshiyasu Umezaki) is known as the main member and leader of the band, which had gone through some deformations in their structure.
The sound of Hal is mainly a lively digital beat at the edge where the electric guitars are used a lot, as a special feature and typic in their arrangements.
Hal started out as music arrangers in 1999, and became known especially for the work that they did (and are still doing) with Ayumi Hamasaki
. "Appears", "Fly High", "M", "Evolution" and "No Way to Say" are some of their most famous tunes with her. They also have worked with some other artists like Ami Suzuki
, the KinKi Kids
, Every Little Thing, and Dream
.
In 2000 the group of men did a casting to choose a female vocalist for forming the musical group Hal, which was an idea of Toshiharu Umesaki and Atsushi Sato's. Finally the singer Halna was chosen to be a part of Hal and they signed a deal with record label Avex Trax
. They temporarily stopped their group as arrangers after the work with "Grip!" from Every Little Thing.
After the release of seven singles and two studio albums as Hal, the band got separated in 2003 because Halna decided to leave the group and get away from the spotlight, with the release of their final album, called "Singles", a compilation album with all the singles released by the band, and they started to work again as arrangers with Ayumi Hamasaki
and Tackey & Tsubasa. Atsushi Sato also left the band that year to arrange music on his own, under the nickname of ats-. He has recently worked with Ami Suzuki
under Avex
, and Yuta Nakano, who left the band in early 2001 is currently working as remixer and also arranger.
Currently Umezaki and Shimizu keep their name Hal active, arranging songs for Japanese singers and music groups.
. The Angelic Layer OST also featured another song by HAL, "Justice" including a few remixes of both. HAL's 6th single, "I'll be the One", is the second opening of Hikaru No Go
.
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...
(with "Free & Easy" in 2002 and "No way to say" in 2003).
They habitually write their name as HΛL, replacing the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
"A" with the Greek "Λ" or Lambda
Lambda
Lambda is the 11th letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals lambda has a value of 30. Lambda is related to the Phoenician letter Lamed . Letters in other alphabets that stemmed from lambda include the Roman L and the Cyrillic letter El...
.
Hal went from music arrangers into a music band and then back to music arrangers, arranging songs for many Japanese artists. Toshiharu Umezaki (sometimes written as Toshiyasu Umezaki) is known as the main member and leader of the band, which had gone through some deformations in their structure.
The sound of Hal is mainly a lively digital beat at the edge where the electric guitars are used a lot, as a special feature and typic in their arrangements.
Hal started out as music arrangers in 1999, and became known especially for the work that they did (and are still doing) with Ayumi Hamasaki
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...
. "Appears", "Fly High", "M", "Evolution" and "No Way to Say" are some of their most famous tunes with her. They also have worked with some other artists like Ami Suzuki
Ami Suzuki
is a female singer, songwriter, actress and DJ from Zama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.Having been discovered at the talent TV show Asayan, Suzuki was one of the most popular female singers as an idol in the late 1990s....
, the KinKi Kids
KinKi Kids
is a Japanese duo consisting of Koichi Domoto and Tsuyoshi Domoto under the talent agency Johnny & Associates. Although the members share the same surname, the only relation they have to each other is that they both hail from the Kinki region, hence the duo's name....
, Every Little Thing, and Dream
Dream (Japanese band)
Dream is a Japanese pop girl group signed to the Avex Trax since 2000 and Rhythm Zone since 2009.In 1999 Avex Trax organized a huge talent contest, called "Avex Dream 2000", with the aim of finding the right and talented girls for a new group. The result was dream, a three-piece group consisting of...
.
In 2000 the group of men did a casting to choose a female vocalist for forming the musical group Hal, which was an idea of Toshiharu Umesaki and Atsushi Sato's. Finally the singer Halna was chosen to be a part of Hal and they signed a deal with record label Avex Trax
Avex Trax
, listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
. They temporarily stopped their group as arrangers after the work with "Grip!" from Every Little Thing.
After the release of seven singles and two studio albums as Hal, the band got separated in 2003 because Halna decided to leave the group and get away from the spotlight, with the release of their final album, called "Singles", a compilation album with all the singles released by the band, and they started to work again as arrangers with Ayumi Hamasaki
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...
and Tackey & Tsubasa. Atsushi Sato also left the band that year to arrange music on his own, under the nickname of ats-. He has recently worked with Ami Suzuki
Ami Suzuki
is a female singer, songwriter, actress and DJ from Zama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.Having been discovered at the talent TV show Asayan, Suzuki was one of the most popular female singers as an idol in the late 1990s....
under Avex
Avex Trax
, listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
, and Yuta Nakano, who left the band in early 2001 is currently working as remixer and also arranger.
Currently Umezaki and Shimizu keep their name Hal active, arranging songs for Japanese singers and music groups.
Discography
HAL's single "The Starry Sky" was the ending theme for the anime Angelic LayerAngelic Layer
is a manga series released by Clamp. The manga is published in Japan by Kadokawa Shoten, and in English originally by Tokyopop, but has since been re-licensed by Dark Horse Comics. It is the group's first work to use a quite different art style unseen in any other CLAMP series, which uses a more...
. The Angelic Layer OST also featured another song by HAL, "Justice" including a few remixes of both. HAL's 6th single, "I'll be the One", is the second opening of Hikaru No Go
Hikaru no Go
is a manga series, a coming of age story based on the board game Go written by Yumi Hotta and illustrated by Takeshi Obata with an anime adaptation. The production of the series' Go games was supervised by Go professional Yukari Umezawa...
.
Singles
- Decide, October 25, 2000
- Save Me, January 11, 2001
- Split Up, March 28, 2001
- The Starry Sky May 23, 2001
- Al Di La, April 17, 2002
- I'll Be the One, July 19, 2002
- One Love / A Long Journey, August 16, 2002
Albums
- Violation of the Rules, August 29, 2001
- As Long As You Love Me, August 28, 2002
- Singles, February 26, 2003
External links
- Hal (Music Group) Official Website at Avex TraxAvex Trax, listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
- 蜃気楼２ – Hal's Fan Site A comprehensive list of songs composed and arranged by Hal