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Photoshoot from ‘Mahiru no Tsuki’

Artist: Hitomi Shimatani Product Code: AVCD-30805 Release Date: 2005.08.31 Debut Ranking: #12 Label: avex trax

Approximately six years have passed since Hitomi Shimatani’s debut in the J-Pop Industry back then in 1999 with her debut enka single ‘Osaka no Onna’. Since then her music has undergone through multiple genres. She has released twenty singles, 4 studio albums, a best compliation album, a mini album and a concept album. Apart from her impressive singing career, Hitomi also has an acting and seiyuu career. In August, Hitomi was proud to release ‘Mahiru no Tsuki’ to commemorate the release of her 20th single.

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hyde vocals Birthday: January 29, 1968* Height: 158 cm* Misc: colorblind, married, artist

ken guitar Birthday: November 28, 1969 Height: 178 cm

tetsu bass, leader Birthday: October 3, 1968 Height: SHORT Misc: Gundam freak

yukihiro drums Birthday: November 24, 1969 Height: 165 cm Misc: Chocolate freak

L’Arc~en~Ciel (French for Rainbow) is very different than the everyday rock bands you hear today. There is something about them that sets them apart. They, along with the band GLAY, are the last of what some people refer to as the “Early 90’s Greats”. The band currently consists of hyde on vocals, ken on guitar, tetsu on bass, and yukihiro on drums. Yes, all their names are lowercase.

L’Arc~en~Ciel (Laruku for short) have been around a long time, 12 years on a major label (since 1994), and almost sixteen if their indie days are included. Since the beginning they were different from most bands, dressing with a Mediterranean gypsy fashion rather than the black and gloomy clothes that was so prevalent in the indie rock scene at the time. They don’t like to play by the rules; they like to make them up. L’Arc~en~Ciel is one of those bands that go beyond a rigid genre of rock, just as their name suggests, they explore every color of the rainbow, from punk to metal to pop. They can be dark and haunting at times (finale), light and fun (Driver’s High), or slow and beautiful (Pieces). This may be cause for their large fan base in and outside of Japan: the visual rocker and the pop listener will both find something they enjoy. Their music transcends the language barrier. And there is no doubt that L’Arc~en~Ciel has left a big mark on, not only the Japanese music scene, but also Japanese culture, from video games to manga to fashion.

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Mari Yaguchi Birthday: 1983-01-20 Birthplace: Kanagawa Blood type: A

Megumi Murakami Birthday: 1992-06-06 Blood type: A

Momoko Tsugunaga Birthday: 1992-03-06 Birthplace: Tokyo Blood type: O

Maimi Yajima Birthday: 1992-02-07 Blood type: O

Saki Shimizu Birthday: 1991-11-22 Birthplace: Tokyo Blood type: O

Erika Umeda Birthday: 1991-05-24 Blood type: A

I’d like to bring your attention to another Hello! Project group: ZYX. Or should I say former Hello! Project, as the group hasn’t released anything since winter, 2003.

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Hitomi Shimatani posing in CDData 2006

Name: Hitomi Shimatani Birthday: September 4th 1980 Hometown: Hiroshima Star Sign: Virgo Height: 161 cm Blood Type: O type Hobbies: Karaoke, shopping, movies Record Label: avex trax Talent Agency: PROCEED

Hitomi Shimatani is a relatively popular singer in the J-Pop scene, who has made her debut back then in 1999. Apart from being a singer, Hitomi is a popular television personality and is an actress. She has a reputation of having powerful vocals and her beauty has labelled her as being one of the most beautiful personalities in Japan. Her trademark is her long hair.

Despite the fact that she is not extremely popular and is not one of avex’s biggest source of revenue, Hitomi still manages to attract a fair amount of attention. She has her personal fanclub called Eye-Land. Hitomi’s personality is rather well mannered and she is a compliant woman to work with, according to those who have done so. Hitomi frequents many music and radio programmes, just because she an interesting person. For these reasons she has made a lot of friendships and connections with various personalities, most notably the illustrious actress Yukie Nakama and Ryoko Kuninaka.

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MIYU Guitar and Vocals DoB: 20/05/1988 Blood Type: B Height: 156cm

MIZUHO Drums and Vocals DoB: 12/12/1986 Blood Type: A Height: 153cm

MAIKO Bass and Vocals DoB: 24/07/1986 Blood Type: O Height: 154cm

TOMOKA Guitar and Vocals DoB: 19/09/1986 Blood Type: O Height: 160cm

TAKAYO Ex-Guitar and Ex-Vocals DoB: 13/06/1985 Blood Type: A Height: 154cm

In 1999, Studio Runtime held an audition in Sapporo for a new type of group that they called a “bandoru” (band+idol, a group that could both dance and play instruments). Initially, 8 members were picked, but that was later shortened to 4: TAKAYO, MIYU, MIZUHO and MAIKO. This became ZONE. The name “ZONE” refers to the group’s goal, starting from the bottom, or “Z” (the last letter in the alphabet), all the way to number one (“ONE”).

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