Aya (Japanese Singer)
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is a female Japanese rock artist from Beach Nine Records. AYA's song " Over Night" (2006) is used as the ending theme to the
anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
''
Le Chevalier D'Eon is a Japanese anime television series produced by Production I.G based on an original story by Tow Ubukata. The anime originally aired in Japan on WOWOW from August 19, 2006, to February 2, 2007. The story has also been adapted into a manga ...
''. Currently, she is associated with the project band, CruelShe.


Early life

Aya was born in
Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...
, the northernmost island of Japan, in a small town with a population of 2000. Most of her childhood was spent doodling while listening to her parents' oldies. In elementary school, Aya heard electric guitars for the first time at a Ventures' concert, and in junior high she henceforth devoted herself to
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...
and
punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
. She joined a girl band right after getting her first electric guitar, doing covers of bands like the
Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
. Bored with school and with few friends, she missed half of the term and dropped out of school at 15. She was introduced to
grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...
when she heard
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
's 1991 album ''
Nevermind ''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a major label and the first to feature drummer Dave Grohl. Produced by Butch Vig, ''Neve ...
'', which would have huge stylistic influence on her own musical career. Leaving home, she wandered around various cities in Hokkaido before ending up in Tokyo. While making a living by singing in bars, she was invited to audition for a band at a pop vocal contest. She won, only to have the band's songwriter die just moments before their debut. She considered giving up on becoming a professional musician, but soon immersed herself in song writing when she discovered it came easily to her. The first song she wrote became her debut song, "
Hands A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each " ...
". Making demo tracks took up a great part of her time, but she also sharpened her skills by performing on American army bases and the streets of
Shibuya Shibuya ( 渋谷 区 ''Shibuya-ku'') is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. As a major commercial and finance center, it houses two of the busiest railway stations in the world, Shinjuku Station (southern half) and Shibuya Station. As of April 1 ...
. By the time she signed with
BMG Japan Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG) was a division of a German media company Bertelsmann before its completion of sale of the majority of its assets to Sony Corporation of America on 1 October 2008. Although it was established in 1987, the music com ...
, she had 30 well-crafted songs ready for production. Aya arranged the songs and used an 8-track multi-tape recorder to create all the various effects and harmonies, playing guitar, bass, and drums (machine) herself.


The Seattle Recordings

American producer
Adam Kasper Adam Kasper is an American, Seattle area record producer and engineer, with platinum and gold awards, working with such bands as Aerosmith, Mudhoney, Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Queens of the Stone Age, The Tragically Hip, R.E.M., Soundgarden and ...
(of
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...
and
Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...
fame) heard Aya's demo tape and was greatly impressed; he immediately agreed to produce her. In December 2000, Aya traveled to
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
to record 3 singles at "Studio X", which was well known for its association with '90s grunge bands
Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, guita ...
,
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...
,
Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AIC) is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1987 by guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell and drummer Sean Kinney, who later recruited bassist Mike Starr and lead vocalist Layne ...
and
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
. Adam Kasper invited top Seattle musicians to create the "ideal" sound for Aya. Included in this all-star line-up were drummer
Matt Cameron Matthew David Cameron (born November 28, 1962) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Pearl Jam. He first gained fame as the drummer for Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he joined in 1986. He appeared on each of ...
(formerly of Soundgarden and currently of Pearl Jam), guitarist
Kim Thayil Kim Anand Thayil (born September 4, 1960) is an American musician best known as the lead guitarist of the Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he co-founded with singer Chris Cornell and bassist Hiro Yamamoto in 1984. Cornell and Thayil rem ...
(formerly of Soundgarden), guitarist John McBain (formerly of
Monster Magnet Monster Magnet is an American rock band. Hailing from Red Bank, New Jersey, the group was founded in 1989 by Dave Wyndorf (vocals and guitar), John McBain (guitar) and Tim Cronin (vocals and drums); they have since gone through several lineup c ...
), and keyboardist Glenn Slater (formerly of Walkabouts). In June 2001, they reunited in Seattle to finish the debut album, but this time they were joined by
Krist Novoselic Krist Anthony Novoselic (; ; born May 16, 1965) is an American musician and activist. He was the bassist and co-founder of the rock band Nirvana. Novoselic and Kurt Cobain formed the band Nirvana in 1987 along with drummer Aaron Burckhard, wh ...
, the bass player from
Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
, whom Aya had long admired. The album was titled " A Flower in the Battlefield" (Japanese title "Senjyo-No Hana"), and debuted in 2002 to glowing praise in Japanese rock circles and the German press. To promote the album Aya consequently spent the best part of the year concentrating on live performances, doing little press. Soon after her debut she was invited to play at "
Summer Sonic Festival The , also known as Supersonic, is an annual two- or three-day rock festival held at the same time in Osaka and Chiba, Japan. The majority of the bands playing in Osaka the first day go to Chiba the following day and vice versa. The line-up cont ...
," one of Japan's biggest rock festivals, and her wild and aggressive performance was one of the highlights of the 2-day festival. When she opened for grizzled Japanese rocker
Eikichi Yazawa is a Japanese singer-songwriter, and a prominent figure in Japanese popular music. Yoko Yazawa of The Generous is his daughter. He has been nicknamed as Ei-chan (永ちゃん), Boss or The King of Rock. Biography Sources: 1949-1967: Early Lif ...
's 30th anniversary stadium gigs, she proved she could work a crowd of over 50,000 people with exceptional confidence.


Independent albums

In Spring 2004, Aya decided to release a 7-track EP album, " The Forbidden Song" ("Kinjirareta Uta"), a release that expressed her worldview in a more direct and straightforward manner. Instead of using grunge legends to back her, she decided to record with the three musicians who had been with her on stage since her debut. This was partly to prove that she could do an "Aya" sound by herself, but also stemmed from her discomfort with the idea of using two 'bands' (one for recordings and one for live performances). The result was a tighter album than the first, with a more standard rock feel in general. This mini-album helped Aya secure a more rabid fan base in Japan, and Japanese rock critics hailed the work, stating "Aya reveals her true feelings and intentions with tremendous strength and purity in this landmark album". Following a sold-out Japanese club tour, Aya went to work on her second full album, " Baghdad Sky" in 2003 and 2004. "BAGHDAD SKY" was the album that Aya had been seeking throughout her career. A "meaty" feel exemplifies the album's harder, more genuine rock tracks ("NOBODY" "1999" "SINGIN' IN THE RAIN" "BETTY" "DEAD END"), while songs like "WE" and "MISS ROCK & ROLL" are essentially pop songs with strong hooks. "SHADOWS ON THE ROAD" and "BAGHDAD SKY" are ballads with a brazen acoustic feel, while "BLUE BUTTERFLY" is an over six-minute epic that showcases the breadth and depth of scale of Aya's talents, with a montage of
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
and
Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...
set against a majestic soundscape. The album overall has a grander sound than her previous work, and is considered the first to represent her own musical vision.


2015: Project band with CruelShe

After her long hiatus since 2006, Aya announced her new project band, CruelShe (クルーエルシー), on her Google+ account in April 2015. The band is signed with Beach Nine Records, but no new music releases as of yet. Currently, her YouTube channel contains behind the scenes of her older material, practicing songs, and recent performances at clubs with CruelShe.


Discography


Albums

* ''
Senjou no Hana Senjou no Hana is the debut album by J-Rock artist AYA. The English title of the album is ''A Flower in the Battlefield''. Matt Cameron of Soundgarden and Pearl Jam fame plays drums on the album. It also features contributions from several othe ...
'' (''A Flower in the Battlefield'') (2002) * ''Kinjirareta Uta'' (''The Forbidden Song'') (2003) * '' Baghdad Sky'' (2004)


Singles

* "
Hands A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each " ...
" (2001) * " Crazy Mermaid" (2001) * " Sentaku no Asa" ("The Morning That I Choose My Own Way") (2002) * " Aya Bitch Project" (2003) – Special Live CD * " Over Night" (Le Chevalier D'Eon ED) (2006)


References


External links


Official YouTube

Beach Nine Records profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aya Musicians from Hokkaido Japanese women rock singers Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century Japanese singers 21st-century Japanese women singers