Plastic Tree are a Japanese

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band. Formed in December 1993 in

Chiba Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Chiba Prefecture has a population of 6,278,060 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of . Chiba Prefecture borders Ibaraki Prefecture to the north, Saitama Prefecture to the ...

, they released their first mini-album in December 1995, and in 1997, they released their first single on a major label.

History

Biography

Plastic Tree, also known as or to fans, was formed in December 1993 originally under the name of CAM-FLAGE. The band was renamed to NTT FUCKS then later decided on Plastic Tree, aiming for "something abstract and natural at the same time", as Ryutaro puts it. In 1995, they released their first mini-album Kimyou na Kajitsu: Strange Fruits after changing drummers twice. Two years later, they released their first single, "Wareta Mado", with Warner Music Japan, their first release on a major label. Plastic Tree made their first overseas tour in 2006, named the ''Chandelier Tour'', and performed concerts in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. On February 23, 2009, Hiroshi Sasabuchi announced his resignation as the band's drummer after having been with the band for seven years. On July 3, 2009, Kenken Sato was announced as the band's new drummer. Since forming, the band has had four drummers.

Sound and style

Early in their career, their music had heavy

visual kei is a movement among Japanese musicians that is characterized by the use of varying levels of make-up, elaborate hair styles and flamboyant costumes, often, but not always, coupled with androgynous aesthetics, similar to Western glam rock. Som ...

influences. As time went on, their sound seemed to change and evolve with every album. Plastic Tree combine

with

art rock Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an art ...

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

, and heavy metal. Their sound is a blend of raw melody, with the occasional orchestral backing track. However, the band does not think that they should be placed into any specific genre. Plastic Tree claim that their sound has been considerably influenced by British bands such as

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) ...

and

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...

. The most easily recognizable signature of Plastic Tree's music is the melodic, childlike voice of Ryūtarō Arimura. Their sound is also aided by Arimura's abstract lyrics. All four band members collaborate to write songs and lyrics, with Arimura writing most of the lyrics.

Band members

Plastic Tree 20071104 Chibi Japan Expo 5

Current members

Former members

Discography

Singles

Albums

Mini albums

"Best of" albums

Other albums

DVD

In popular culture

* "Sink" was used as the eighth ending song for the anime ''

Kindaichi Case Files is a Japanese detective fiction, mystery manga series based on the crime solving adventures of a high school student, Hajime Kindaichi, the supposed grandson of the famous (fictional) private detective Kosuke Kindaichi. Written ...

''. * "Namida Drop" was used as the first ending song for the anime '' Garasu no Kantai''. * "Mirai Iro" was used as the fifth ending song for the anime ''

Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's is the second main spin-off of the ''Yu-Gi-Oh!'' franchise, succeeding ''Yu-Gi-Oh! GX'', in celebration of the 40th anniversary of Weekly Shonen Jump and the 15th anniversary of V Jump. The series aired in Japan from April 2, 2008 to Mar ...

''. * "Silent Noise" was used as the opening song for the Visual novel Collar_×_Malice.https://www.play-asia.com/silent-noise-collar-x-malice-edition-limited-edition/13/70aavf References

External links

Official website

Official blog
{{Authority control Japanese alternative rock groups Visual kei musical groups Musical groups from Chiba Prefecture Tokuma Japan Communications artists CJ Victor Entertainment artists