is a subgenre of the Japanese

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. Some ...

movement that developed in the early 1990s music scene of

Nagoya is the largest city in the Chūbu region, the fourth-most populous city and third most populous urban area in Japan, with a population of 2.3million in 2020. Located on the Pacific coast in central Honshu, it is the capital and the most po ...

, Japan. The term actually developed before visual kei was coined, and gradually died out as the latter gained more popularity. Often considered darker and gloomier than visual kei both musically and lyrically, Nagoya kei takes its influences more so from

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

(specifically

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

) punk rock and

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 mainstream or commerci ...

bands. The focus of the bands tends to be much less on

costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people. The term also was tradition ...

and

makeup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , ''asteriskos'', "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often voc ...

in favor of more complex musical compositions and concentration on the music itself.

History

Early notable Nagoya kei acts include Silver~Rose (formed 1989),

Kuroyume is a Japanese rock band formed in Nagoya in May 1991, initially with the vocalist Kiyoharu, bassist Hitoki and guitarist Shin. The group had a definite influence on the visual kei scene, being credited as inspiration to many bands of the late ...

, and Merry Go Round (both formed 1991). According to

Fanatic Crisis Fanatic Crisis (Japanese: ''ファナティック・クライシス'', often stylized as FANATIC◇CRISIS, and simply called FtC by fans) was a Japanese rock band active from 1992–2005. They were called "the big four of visual kei bands" alon ...

guitarist Shun, Silver~Rose and Kuroyume were the "big two" of the early scene. Shun cites Laputa,

Rouage Rouage (stylized as ROUAGE) was a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in Nagoya in 1993, active until 2001. They were an important band to the visual kei scene of the 90s, being credited as one of the founders of the subgenre Nagoya kei. Histor ...

, and his own band Fanatic Crisis as being part of the second generation of Nagoya kei in the mid-1990s. In the late 1990s, many of the bands moved to Tokyo and signed to major record labels. When doing so, most also adopted a more commercial sound, like Fanatic Crisis, who went on to be considered one of the "big four" visual kei bands of the time. Keito Ozaki of Japanese pop culture website ''Real Sound'' wrote that many Nagoya kei bands eventually diverge into different directions; Kuroyume turned to punk rock and

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...

, Laputa turned to a digital sound, Fanatic Crisis went pop, and Merry Go Round went in a "maniacal, ero guro and underground direction." Later notable bands include Kein, deadman, Blast, and Gullet. The scene has a history of bands frequently collaborating, swapping members, and forming new acts together following disbandments. There is often much debate on whether or not an act is considered Nagoya kei. Since the term visual kei has become mainstream, newer bands are generally not considered Nagoya kei. For example, members of

Lynch. Lynch (stylized as lynch.) is a Japanese visual-kei metal band formed in 2004. The band's concept is "uniting heavy music with beautiful melodies." As of 2021, the group has released three EPs, eleven albums, and 25 singles. History Lynch was ...

(formed in 2004) disagree with being labeled as such, with vocalist Hazuki claiming that Nagoya kei's sound does not include "modern heaviness" like they do. However, Ozaki wrote that Lynch. has more than a few traits in common with Nagoya kei. Particularly noting how, due to the popularity of

Dir en Grey Dir En Grey (stylized as DIR EN GREY and previously as Dir en grey) is a Japanese Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in February 1997 and currently signed to Firewall Div., a sub-division of Free-Will. With a consistent lineup of guitari ...

, many contemporary bands have heavier sounds with low-tuned guitars, including those in Nagoya. Despite not being from Nagoya, Arlequin (formed 2013) were influenced by its bands and have labeled themselves the "next generation of Nagoya kei."

References

{{punk Visual kei Japanese fashion Japanese subcultures Japanese styles of music Punk rock genres Heavy metal genres Rock music genres 20th-century music genres Culture in Nagoya