Monoral
Encyclopedia
Monoral is a Japanese
rock
band signed to Sony Music Japan. The band consists of Anis Shimada on lead vocals and guitar
and Ali Morizumi on bass and guitar.
, English
, French
, and Arabic
. Born in London
and raised in France
. Anis was first discovered by Tetsuya Komuro
, with whom he released a debut single in 1994 under the name of Aniss. He used to be a fashion model, as well as a MTV show host. He also used to support some famous musicians performing on TV as a guitarist
. He is often involved with the creation of TV commercial songs, singing backup for other famous musicians, writing English lyrics and helping other artists as an English supervisor.
Ali, born in 1973, is a Japanese-American who grew up in Tokyo
. He can speak both Japanese and English fluently. He was a VJ on MTV Japan
, where he eventually met Anis. Ali is also a professional radio DJ and hosts a show on InterFM
as well.
Indie Charts in Japan
, remained in the Top 50 for 7 months. In 2005 they released their first major debut with the single Visions In My Head, under the label Haunted Records (a subsidiary of Sony Music Japan), which was created by the Japanese rock musician, HYDE, lead vocalist of L'Arc-en-Ciel.
They are now signed on HYDE's label VAMPROSE.
The songs "Pocketful of joy" and "Visions in my Head" were used for a TV commercial for IXY digital camera by Canon.
In 2006, the band performed "Kiri", the opening theme to the anime series Ergo Proxy
. The song was also released via the iTunes Store
on May 25, 2006. Monoral also released their second major album, Turbulence, on July 4, 2007and Via, on October 29, 2008 After the release of Via, they toured in Latin America, Europe and China.
, another former guitarist Tomoya Tsusui has his own band called Tobyas. MONORAL have collaborated with various other artists such as Fumiya Fujii
Lisa from M-flo
and Mondo Grosso
, either through songwriting or performances.
.
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band signed to Sony Music Japan. The band consists of Anis Shimada on lead vocals and guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
and Ali Morizumi on bass and guitar.
Members
Anis, the band's lead singer, born on February 23, 1975, is a Japanese-Moroccan who speaks JapaneseJapanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
. Born in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and raised in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Anis was first discovered by Tetsuya Komuro
Tetsuya Komuro
, also known as TK, is a Japanese keyboardist, guitarist, singer, songwriter and music producer born on November 27, 1958 in Fuchu, Tokyo, Japan. He is recognized as being the most successful producer in Japanese music history and introduced dance music to the Japanese mainstream...
, with whom he released a debut single in 1994 under the name of Aniss. He used to be a fashion model, as well as a MTV show host. He also used to support some famous musicians performing on TV as a guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
. He is often involved with the creation of TV commercial songs, singing backup for other famous musicians, writing English lyrics and helping other artists as an English supervisor.
Ali, born in 1973, is a Japanese-American who grew up in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. He can speak both Japanese and English fluently. He was a VJ on MTV Japan
MTV Japan
MTV Japan is the Japanese version of the cable television network based in Japan. It is a subsidiary of MTV Networks, and was launched on December 24, 1992. It can be viewed on cable television, SKY PerfecTV!, SKY PerfecTV! e2 and IPTV.-History:MTV originally was a music block on JORX-TV from 1989...
, where he eventually met Anis. Ali is also a professional radio DJ and hosts a show on InterFM
InterFM
-See also:*The Japan Times* *TV Tokyo...
as well.
History
Their debut was in July 2001. Only 2 days after the release of their first mini album in stereo, they performed at the Fuji Rock Festival 2001. The band's second minor debut album ammonite, which rose as high as #3 on the Tower RecordsTower Records
Tower Records was a retail music chain that was based in Sacramento, California. It currently exists as an international franchise and an online music store....
Indie Charts in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, remained in the Top 50 for 7 months. In 2005 they released their first major debut with the single Visions In My Head, under the label Haunted Records (a subsidiary of Sony Music Japan), which was created by the Japanese rock musician, HYDE, lead vocalist of L'Arc-en-Ciel.
They are now signed on HYDE's label VAMPROSE.
The songs "Pocketful of joy" and "Visions in my Head" were used for a TV commercial for IXY digital camera by Canon.
In 2006, the band performed "Kiri", the opening theme to the anime series Ergo Proxy
Ergo Proxy
is a science fiction suspense anime television series, produced by Manglobe, which premiered across Japan on 25 February 2006 on the WOWOW satellite network. It is directed by Shukō Murase, with screenplay by Dai Satō et al.. Ergo Proxy has been described as dark science fiction mystery with...
. The song was also released via the iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
on May 25, 2006. Monoral also released their second major album, Turbulence, on July 4, 2007and Via, on October 29, 2008 After the release of Via, they toured in Latin America, Europe and China.
Collaborations
Monoral's support members are the guitarists Akira Yasue and Hirama Mikio (former member of Tokyo Incidents) and Daigo Kakijima on the Drums. Former support guitarist Eric Zay played for rock group FAKE?Fake?
Fake? is a Japanese rock band formed in 2001 by Ken Lloyd and Inoran. Their music has been described as alternative mixed with electronic sounds...
, another former guitarist Tomoya Tsusui has his own band called Tobyas. MONORAL have collaborated with various other artists such as Fumiya Fujii
Fumiya Fujii
is a male Japanese popular music artist. He is a part of Sony Music Japan.After leaving his job in Japanese National Railways, he started his music career in the 1980s as the vocalist of the immensely popular group The Checkers and started on his solo project after they split up.Naoyuki Fujii, his...
Lisa from M-flo
M-flo
is a Japanese hip hop group consisting of producer and DJ Taku Takahashi and emcee Verbal.Former member Lisa left the group in 2002 to pursue a solo career, and the remaining members then started the M-Flo Loves... project working different vocalists for each song over three albums, including the...
and Mondo Grosso
Mondo Grosso
Shinichi Osawa , also known as Mondo Grosso, is an artist currently signed onto Avex Trax's "Rhythm Zone" label. Previously he was signed to Sony Music Japan's FEARLESS RECORDS division and released albums under the title of 'Mondo Grosso', which is Italian for "big world". He was born on February...
, either through songwriting or performances.
In Popular Culture
Monoral's hit single, "Kiri", was used as opening theme for the anime series Ergo ProxyErgo Proxy
is a science fiction suspense anime television series, produced by Manglobe, which premiered across Japan on 25 February 2006 on the WOWOW satellite network. It is directed by Shukō Murase, with screenplay by Dai Satō et al.. Ergo Proxy has been described as dark science fiction mystery with...
.
Discography
| Singles | Release date |
| "Visions In My Head" - 1st Major Single | November 2, 2005 |
| "Kiri" - 2nd Major Single | May 25, 2006 |
| "Tuesday" - 3rd Major Single | May 9, 2007 |
| "Casbah" - 4th Major Single | July 30, 2008 |
| "70 Hours" - 5th Major Single | November 25, 2009 |
| Albums | Release date |
| "In Stereo" - Debut Album EP | July 25, 2001 |
| "Ammonite" - 2nd Album EP | March 24, 2004 |
| "Petrol" - 1st Major Album | July 13, 2005 |
| "Turbulence" - 2nd Major Album | July 4, 2007 |
| "Via" - 3rd Major Album | October 29, 2008 |