The brilliant green
Encyclopedia
The Brilliant Green is a Japanese pop rock
band formed in 1997 who were signed to Sony Music Entertainment Japan
. On December 1, 2009, The Brilliant Green announced that they had signed with Warner Music Group
Japan.
, with over half their songs including English lyrics. Their break came in 1998 when their third single, "There Will Be Love There," was chosen as the theme song for the popular Japanese Drama Love Again and, as a result, went straight to the top of the charts. After another number one hit with "Tsumetai Hana" they released their self-titled debut album which sold over one million copies in just two days. On the back of this success their first national tour, titled "There Will Be Love There," sold out across Japan in only three minutes.
In 2001, Time magazine chose The Brilliant Green as one of the top ten contemporary acts outside the U.S. for their "Los Angeles" album. In 2001, Tomoko Kawase started a solo project under the name Tommy February6.
After the release of The Winter Album in 2002, the band members moved on to solo projects, but the group never officially broke up. Kawase continued as a solo artist under the names Tommy February6 and Tommy Heavenly6. Matsui also started a new project called Meister. On November 22, 2003, Kawase and Okuda announced their marriage.
On June 1, 2007, it was announced that after five years of inactivity, The Brilliant Green would be returning with a new single to celebrate their 10th anniversary. The song, titled "Stand By Me," was selected as the ending theme for the new series of TV drama, Detective School Q
, which began on July 3, 2007. The comeback began in earnest on August 22, 2007, as the new single hit the stores.
The band appeared in their first proper live show since their comeback by playing at the Iwafune Mountain Cliff Stage on October 21, 2007. This performance was part of the Iwafune Cliff Stage Special 2007 with The Brilliant Green appearing alongside other musical acts including DxD, Sowelu
, and Viagrade.
The second single release of their comeback, "Enemy," was released on December 12, 2007. The following single, titled "Ash Like Snow
" appears as an opening theme in the anime
series, Mobile Suit Gundam 00
. On February 20, 2008 a compilation album titled Complete Singles Collection '97-'08
was released. The band has also mentioned in an online interview that a new studio album is currently in the works, consisting of previously unrecorded songs that were written over the previous ten years.
Following the release of their compilation album in February 2008, the group's 18th single, "Like Yesterday" was released on February 2, 2010. It featured a rearrangement of a previous single, "Sono Speed de" that was re-written in English, titled "At Light Speed". It was their first single since 2008's "Ash Like Snow". It was their second-lowest selling single since 2007's "Enemy".
On May 5, 2010, it was announced that guitarist and original member Ryo Matsui had left The Brilliant Green. His reasons for leaving were not stated, but Kawase and Okuda are to continue the group as a duo.
The Brilliant Green's fifth album, "Blackout", was released on September 15, 2010.
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
band formed in 1997 who were signed to Sony Music Entertainment Japan
Sony Music Entertainment Japan
is Sony's music arm in Japan. SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Corporation and independent from the United States-based Sony Music Entertainment due to its strength in the Japanese music industry....
. On December 1, 2009, The Brilliant Green announced that they had signed with Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
Japan.
Overview
The Brilliant Green take much of their influence from Western music, most predominantly The BeatlesThe Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, with over half their songs including English lyrics. Their break came in 1998 when their third single, "There Will Be Love There," was chosen as the theme song for the popular Japanese Drama Love Again and, as a result, went straight to the top of the charts. After another number one hit with "Tsumetai Hana" they released their self-titled debut album which sold over one million copies in just two days. On the back of this success their first national tour, titled "There Will Be Love There," sold out across Japan in only three minutes.
In 2001, Time magazine chose The Brilliant Green as one of the top ten contemporary acts outside the U.S. for their "Los Angeles" album. In 2001, Tomoko Kawase started a solo project under the name Tommy February6.
After the release of The Winter Album in 2002, the band members moved on to solo projects, but the group never officially broke up. Kawase continued as a solo artist under the names Tommy February6 and Tommy Heavenly6. Matsui also started a new project called Meister. On November 22, 2003, Kawase and Okuda announced their marriage.
On June 1, 2007, it was announced that after five years of inactivity, The Brilliant Green would be returning with a new single to celebrate their 10th anniversary. The song, titled "Stand By Me," was selected as the ending theme for the new series of TV drama, Detective School Q
Detective School Q
is a manga series, written by Tadashi Agi and illustrated by Fumiya Satō, originally serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine between 2001 and 2005, spanning 22-tankōbon volumes...
, which began on July 3, 2007. The comeback began in earnest on August 22, 2007, as the new single hit the stores.
The band appeared in their first proper live show since their comeback by playing at the Iwafune Mountain Cliff Stage on October 21, 2007. This performance was part of the Iwafune Cliff Stage Special 2007 with The Brilliant Green appearing alongside other musical acts including DxD, Sowelu
Sowelu
better known by her stage name, Sowelu, is a Japanese pop/R&B singer signed onto Avex Group's label Rhythm Zone.- History :Her career started in 2002 with the release of her first single Beautiful Dreamer, a soft love ballad which did very well in the charts, and was later featured on the Relaxin’...
, and Viagrade.
The second single release of their comeback, "Enemy," was released on December 12, 2007. The following single, titled "Ash Like Snow
Ash Like Snow
"Ash Like Snow" is the 17th single from the Japanese rock band, The Brilliant Green.This song serves as the second opening theme for the Japanese anime, Mobile Suit Gundam 00. The first press contains a Gundam 00 sticker, which differs between limited edition and regular edition, along with...
" appears as an opening theme in the anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
series, Mobile Suit Gundam 00
Mobile Suit Gundam 00
is an anime TV series, the eleventh incarnation of Sunrise's long-running Gundam franchise consisting of two seasons. It is directed by Seiji Mizushima and written by Yōsuke Kuroda, and features character designs by Yun Kōga. The twenty-five episode season was officially announced by Sunrise...
. On February 20, 2008 a compilation album titled Complete Singles Collection '97-'08
Complete Singles Collection '97-'08
The Complete Singles Collection '97-'08 is a compilation album released by The Brilliant Green on February 20, 2008. It collects all of the group's previous singles.-Track listing:# "Bye Bye Mr.Mug"# "Goodbye and Good Luck"...
was released. The band has also mentioned in an online interview that a new studio album is currently in the works, consisting of previously unrecorded songs that were written over the previous ten years.
Following the release of their compilation album in February 2008, the group's 18th single, "Like Yesterday" was released on February 2, 2010. It featured a rearrangement of a previous single, "Sono Speed de" that was re-written in English, titled "At Light Speed". It was their first single since 2008's "Ash Like Snow". It was their second-lowest selling single since 2007's "Enemy".
On May 5, 2010, it was announced that guitarist and original member Ryo Matsui had left The Brilliant Green. His reasons for leaving were not stated, but Kawase and Okuda are to continue the group as a duo.
The Brilliant Green's fifth album, "Blackout", was released on September 15, 2010.
Members
- Tomoko KawaseTomoko KawaseTomoko Kawase is a Japanese female singer. Tomoko is the lead vocalist of the rock/pop group The Brilliant Green, and as a solo artist she has released music under the alter-ego pseudonyms Tommy february6 and later as Tommy heavenly6.-1995-2002: The Brilliant Green:In 1995, after bassist Shunsaku...
– vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Shunsaku OkudaShunsaku Okudais a Japanese musician and member of the rock/pop band, the brilliant green, where he plays bass guitar, rhythm guitar as well as composed the vast majority of the band's music...
– acoustic/rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
, bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
Studio albums
- The Brilliant GreenThe brilliant green (album)The Brilliant Green is the self-titled first album by the band of the same name. It was originally released on September 19, 1998 and reissued in 2004.-Track listing:...
(1998) - Terra 2001TERRA 2001Terra 2001 is the second album of The Brilliant Green released on September 8, 1999.-Track listing:...
(1999) - Los Angeles (2001)
- The Winter Album (2002)
- BlackoutBlackout (The Brilliant Green album)Blackout is an album released by The Brilliant Green on September 9, 2010. The album is the band's fifth studio album and their first studio album released under Warner Music Japan.-Track listing:...
(2010)
Singles
| Release | Title | Oricon Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... charts |
Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | First week sales | Total sales | |||
| 1997 | "Bye Bye Mr. Mug Bye Bye Mr. Mug Bye Bye Mr. Mug is the debut single released by The Brilliant Green on September 21, 1997.-Track listing:... " |
69 | 2,350 | 15,780 | — |
| "Goodbye and Good Luck" | 71 | 2,360 | 15,180 | ||
| 1998 | "There Will Be Love There (Ai no Aru Basho)" | 1 | 42,650 | 875,980 | The Brilliant Green The brilliant green (album) The Brilliant Green is the self-titled first album by the band of the same name. It was originally released on September 19, 1998 and reissued in 2004.-Track listing:... |
| "Tsumetai Hana Tsumetai Hana is The Brilliant Green's fourth single, released on August 26, 1998. It reached number 1 on the Oricon weekly single charts.-Track listing:... " |
1 | 108,330 | 393,150 | ||
| 1999 | 1 | 217,520 | 459,000 | Terra 2001 TERRA 2001 Terra 2001 is the second album of The Brilliant Green released on September 8, 1999.-Track listing:... |
|
| 4 | 75,970 | 141,250 | |||
| 9 | 58,510 | 114,340 | |||
| "Call My Name" | 12 | 21,890 | 35,480 | ||
| "Bye! My Boy!" | 29 | 12,650 | 16,520 | ||
| 2000 | 8 | 47,860 | 148,210 | Los Angeles | |
| 3 | 100,480 | 289,740 | |||
| 2002 | 10 | 27,020 | 48,770 | The Winter Album | |
| "Rainy Days Never Stays" | 14 | 15,420 | 24,170 | ||
| "I'm So Sorry Baby" | 15 | 7,350 | 11,700 | ||
| 2007 | "Stand by Me" | 10 | 18,355 | 31,910 | Complete Singles Collection '97–'08 |
| "Enemy" | 21 | 5,804 | 9,479 | ||
| 2008 | "Ash Like Snow Ash Like Snow "Ash Like Snow" is the 17th single from the Japanese rock band, The Brilliant Green.This song serves as the second opening theme for the Japanese anime, Mobile Suit Gundam 00. The first press contains a Gundam 00 sticker, which differs between limited edition and regular edition, along with... " |
8 | 29,127 | 50,868 | |
| 2010 | "Like Yesterday Like Yesterday "Like Yesterday" is Japanese band The Brilliant Green's 18th single, released on February 24, 2010. It was the band's first release with Warner after 11 years with DefStar Records, and their first since their greatest hits collection Complete Singles Collection '97–'08.-Track listing:-Chart... " |
17 | 6,049 | 8,591 | Blackout Blackout (The Brilliant Green album) Blackout is an album released by The Brilliant Green on September 9, 2010. The album is the band's fifth studio album and their first studio album released under Warner Music Japan.-Track listing:... |
| "Blue Daisy" | 20 | 3,881 | 5,232 | ||
| "I Just Can't Breathe..." | 33 | 3,000 | 3,763 | ||
See also
- Tomoko KawaseTomoko KawaseTomoko Kawase is a Japanese female singer. Tomoko is the lead vocalist of the rock/pop group The Brilliant Green, and as a solo artist she has released music under the alter-ego pseudonyms Tommy february6 and later as Tommy heavenly6.-1995-2002: The Brilliant Green:In 1995, after bassist Shunsaku...
, for her solo career as "Tommy February6" and "Tommy Heavenly6" during The Brilliant Green's hiatus.
External links
- Official website at Warner Music Japan
- Official Sony Music Entertainment Japan (user name:TOMMY_ARMY)