Livetune (stylized as livetune) is a Japanese electro band which formed in 2007 as a

dōjin music , also called in Japan, is a sub-category of ''doujin'' activity. ''Doujin'' are non-official self-published Japanese works which can be based on official products or completely original creations. Such products are sold online on specialized ...

circle A circle is a shape consisting of all points in a plane that are at a given distance from a given point, the centre. Equivalently, it is the curve traced out by a point that moves in a plane so that its distance from a given point is const ...

signed to

Toy's Factory is a Japanese record label founded in the late 1980s as a subsidiary of the entertainment company VAP, based in Japan. On May 30, 1990, it was established as an independent company. Toy's Factory, as of the first half of 2012, is the four ...

. The band originally consisted of two members, Kz and Kajuki P, but Kajuki P left the band in March 2009. Livetune started out by making use of the

Hatsune Miku , also called Miku Hatsune, and officially code-named CV01, is a Vocaloid software voicebank developed by Crypton Future Media and its official moe anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic mascot character, a 16-year-old girl with long, turquoise bu ...

singing synthesizer to produce vocals for songs submitted to the Nico Nico Douga

video sharing An online video platform (OVP), provided by a video hosting service, enables users to upload, convert, store and play back video content on the Internet, often via a structured, large-scale system that may generate revenue. Users will generally u ...

website. The popularity of the songs led the band to release the independent album ''Re:package'' at Comiket 73 in December 2007. Livetune made its major debut with

Victor Entertainment , also known as in Japan, is a subsidiary of JVCKenwood that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It is known as JVC Entertainment in countries where Sony Music Ent ...

with the professional release of their ''Re:package'' album in August 2008, which was updated with more songs. Livetune began collaborating with other artists in 2009, and has since composed music for such artists as Kotoko,

ClariS Claris International Inc., formerly FileMaker Inc., is a computer software development company formed as a subsidiary company of Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.) in 1987. It was given the source code and copyrights to several programs that were ...

Maon Kurosaki is a Japanese singer and songwriter signed to NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan. After being discovered while working as a performer in Akihabara, Tokyo, she made her major debut in 2010, performing ending themes to the anime television series ...

, and fellow dōjin musician Ryo of

Supercell A supercell is a thunderstorm characterized by the presence of a mesocyclone: a deep, persistently rotating updraft. Due to this, these storms are sometimes referred to as rotating thunderstorms. Of the four classifications of thunderstorms (s ...

Members

*Kz (pronounced "K-Zet") (music, lyrics) ;Former member *Kajuki P (music, lyrics) (2007-2009)

History

2007–2011

Following the release of the

Vocaloid 2 Vocaloid 2 is a singing voice synthesizer and the successor to the Vocaloid voice synthesizer application by Yamaha. Unlike the first engine, Vocaloid 2 based its output on vocal samples, rather than voice analysis. The synthesis engine and the u ...

singing synthesizer software

on August 31, 2007, Kz submitted a short version of the song "Packaged" to the Nico Nico Douga

website on September 21, 2007 using Miku for the vocals. The full version was submitted on September 24, 2007 and has since been viewed over 1 million times. The song was also posted on the Muzie music sharing website. Kajuki P released the song on September 23, 2007. Kz and Kajuki P continued to release songs online, leading to the release of their album ''Re:package'' at Comiket 73 in December 2007. ''Re:package'' contained their previously released songs in addition to several previously unreleased songs. The album was so popular that it was reported to sell out in a flash. Livetune made their major debut with

with the professional release of their ''Re:package'' album on August 27, 2008. The updated release contained three more songs than the original, as well as the full version of "Over16bit!" and an updated version of "Packaged (piano ver.)". The album obtained a No. 5 ranking on

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 and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in Nov ...

's weekly albums chart after selling over 20,000 copies in its first week. Livetune released the

remix album A remix album is an album consisting of remixes or rerecorded versions of an artist's earlier released material. The first act who employed the format was American singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson (''Aerial Pandemonium Ballet'', 1971). As of 2007 ...

''Re:Mikus'' on March 25, 2009 under Victor Entertainment, which contained

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

ed song from ''R:package'', as well as four additional songs. Kajuki P left Livetune in March 2009. Kz collaborated with

manga artist A is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. As of 2006, about 3,000 professional manga artists were working in Japan. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist be ...

Masami Yuki , real name Shūji Satō (佐藤修司 ''Satō Shūji'', born December 19, 1957, in Kutchan, Abuta District, Hokkaidō), is a Japanese manga artist. Yuki graduated from Kutchan High School. He is a member of the artist group known as Headgear. In ...

to produce the

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

''Crosslight'' released on August 26, 2009 containing tracks sung by Hatsune Miku and Vocaloid 2

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. Livetune's first single is a split single with fellow dōjin musician Ryo of

; both songs are theme songs to the video game '' Hatsune Miku: Project Diva 2nd''. The single was released by Sony Music Direct on July 14, 2010 in Japan. Kz composed the song "

Irony Irony (), in its broadest sense, is the juxtaposition of what on the surface appears to be the case and what is actually the case or to be expected; it is an important rhetorical device and literary technique. Irony can be categorized into ...

" sung by

, which was used as the opening theme song to the anime series ''

Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 April ...

''; the single for "Irony" was released on October 20, 2010. In late 2010,

Shibuya, Tokyo 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, ...

-based company INCS toenter established the major

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

TamStar Records for musicians and artists who originally made their debut as dōjin music artists online. Livetune joined the label as one of the inaugural members, including others such as Supercell, Gom, Rapbit, and Nagi Yanagi. Livetune collaborated on a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

titled ''TamStar Records Collection Vol. 0'' released as a limited edition at Comiket 79 in December 2010. Kz again collaborated with ClariS by composing their third single "

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", which was released on September 14, 2011. Kz composed the song for Kotoko, which appeared on her 2011 album ''Hiraku Uchuu Pocket''. Kz later collaborated with Kotoko on the song "Love 0 Jetcoaster" on

's 2011 album ''Butterfly Effect''; Kz composed the song, and Kotoko wrote the lyrics. Kz composed the songs "New World" and "Stand Up" sung by

Twill Twill is a type of textile weave with a pattern of diagonal parallel ribs. It is one of three fundamental types of textile weaves along with plain weave and satin. It is made by passing the weft thread over one or more warp threads then under ...

; both songs are used as opening themes to the anime ''

Digimon Xros Wars ''Digimon Fusion'', known in Japan as , is the sixth anime television series in the ''Digimon'' franchise, produced by Toei Animation. The series was broadcast on TV Asahi and Asahi Broadcasting Corporation between July 2010 and March 2012. I ...

''.

2012–present

In 2012, Livetune left Victor Entertainment and transferred to the record label

. Livetune released the single "Tell Your World" on January 18, 2012 as a digital release online in the

iTunes Store The iTunes Store is a digital media store operated by Apple Inc. It opened on April 28, 2003, as a result of Steve Jobs' push to open a digital marketplace for music. As of April 2020, iTunes offered 60 million songs, 2.2 million apps, 25,00 ...

available in 217 countries. An EP titled ''Tell Your World EP'' was released on March 14, 2012; it reached No. 4 on Oricon's weekly albums chart. On June 21,

Kodansha is a Japanese privately-held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha is the largest Japanese publishing company, and it produces the manga magazines ''Nakayoshi'', ''Afternoon'', ''Evening'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' an ...

began streaming a 12-minute animated short adaptation of Sai Sumimori's fantasy light novel series ''Mahō Tsukai Nara Miso o Kue!'' for which Livetune composed the music. Livetune released the split single "Weekender Girl / Fake Doll" with dōjin musician Hachiōji P on August 29, 2012. Kz and Hachiōji P composed "Weekender Girl", and HachiōjiP composed "Fake Doll"; both songs are sung by Hatsune Miku. "Weekender Girl" is featured in '' Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F''. Livetune released the single "Transfer" on September 26, 2012. "Transfer" is sung by

Megumi Nakajima is a Japanese voice actress and singer, who is affiliated with Stay Luck. Her involvement in the entertainment industry began in 2003 when she participated in an audition held by the talent agency Stardust Promotion, becoming affiliated with th ...

, and the single's

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

"Sign" is sung by Yun*chi, which was the ending theme to ''Mahō Tsukai Nara Miso o Kue!''. Livetune contributed a new arrangement of the song "Invoke" on T.M.Revolution's second self-cover album ''Under:Cover 2'' (2013). Livetune released a compilation album titled ''Re:Dial'' on March 20, 2013, along with a music video directed by

Takashi Murakami is a Japanese contemporary artist. He works in fine arts media (such as painting and sculpture) as well as commercial (such as fashion, merchandise, and animation) and is known for blurring the line between high and low arts as well as co ae ...

. A remix of Zedd's single "Spectrum" by Livetune was featured on the Japanese release of Zedd's album ''

Clarity Clarity may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Clarity, a magic spell in the online game ''EverQuest'' * Clarity, a fictional drug from the film ''Minority Report'' Music Albums * ''Clarity'' (Jimmy Eat World album) * ...

''. Livetune had originally remixed the song as a fan of Zedd's music and Zedd was impressed with the result of the remix, which features English vocals by

, tuned by CircusP. Kz again collaborated with ClariS by composing their seventh single "

Reunion Reunion may refer to: * Class reunion * Family reunion Reunion, Réunion, Re-union, Reunions or The Reunion may also refer to: Places * Réunion, a French overseas department and island in the Indian Ocean * Reunion, Commerce City, Colorado, U ...

", which is used as the opening theme to the 2013 anime television series ''

.'', the series' second season. Livetune's single "Take Your Way" was released on June 5, 2013; the title song is used as the opening theme to the 2013 anime '' Devil Survivor 2: The Animation''. The single "Pink or Black" was released on November 6, 2013 and was used for the promotion of the 6▼Princess by Takashi Murakami for Shu Uemura cosmetics line.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Various artist compilation albums

References

External links

Official website

Livetune's personal website
{{Authority control Ableton Live users Doujin music Japanese pop music groups Musical groups established in 2007 Vocaloid musicians