Japanese rock

[6] By the late 1960s, Group Sounds bands such as The Tempters, the Tigers, the Golden Cups, the Ox, the Village Singers, the Carnabeats, the Mops,[7] the Jaguars, the Wild Ones and the Spiders had big hits.

[13] Japanese heavy metal bands started emerging in the late 1970s, pioneered by Bow Wow (1975), 44 Magnum (1977) and Earthshaker (1978).

In a 1985 deal with Atco Records, Loudness became the first Japanese metal act signed to a major label in the United States.

[17][18] Loudness replaced singer Minoru Niihara with American vocalist Michael Vescera in 1988,[19] in an unsuccessful attempt to further their international popularity.

[22] This album marked an important turning point in Japanese music history, as it sparked what would be known as the "Japanese-language Rock Controversy [ja]" (日本語ロック論争, Nihongo Rokku Ronsō).

The success of Happy End's debut album and their second, Kazemachi Roman released in November 1971, proved the sustainability of Japanese-language rock music in Japan.

[23] Carol (led by Eikichi Yazawa), RC Succession and Funny Company were especially famous and helped define the sound.

[27] Early examples of Japanese punk rock include SS, the Star Club, the Stalin, Inu, Gaseneta, Bomb Factory, Lizard (who were produced by the Stranglers) and Friction (whose guitarist Reck had previously played with Teenage Jesus and the Jerks before returning to Tokyo) and the Blue Hearts.

The independent scene also included a diverse number of alternative/post-punk/new wave artists such as Aburadako, P-Model, Uchoten, Auto-Mod, Buck-Tick, Guernica and Yapoos (both of which featured Jun Togawa), G-Schmitt, Totsuzen Danball, and Jagatara, along with noise/industrial bands such as Hijokaidan and Hanatarashi.

In the 1980s, acts such as Boøwy inspired what is called the "Band Boom" (バンドブーム, Bando Būmu), popularizing the formation of rock groups.

[28] In 1980, Huruoma and Ry Cooder, an American musician, collaborated on a rock album with Shoukichi Kina, driving force behind the aforementioned Okinawan band Champloose.

Buck-Tick's 1988 album Seventh Heaven reached number 3 on the Oricon chart, and its follow-ups Taboo (1989) and Aku no Hana (1990) both topped it.

[33] In the 1990s, Luna Sea, Glay, and L'Arc-en-Ciel sold millions of records, while Malice Mizer, La'cryma Christi, and Siam Shade also found success.

In the 1990s, Japanese rock musicians such as B'z, Mr. Children, Glay, L'Arc-en-Ciel, Southern All Stars, Malice Mizer, Dir En Grey, Shazna, Janne Da Arc, Tube, Spitz, Wands, T-Bolan, Judy and Mary, Deen, Lindberg, Sharam Q, the Yellow Monkey, the Brilliant Green and Dragon Ash[34] achieved commercial success.

New bands such as Bump of Chicken, Radwimps, Asian Kung-Fu Generation, ONE OK ROCK, Orange Range, Uverworld, Remioromen, Sambomaster, and Aqua Timez[41] have achieved success.

[48] During the late 2000s there was an increasing number of bands that had built up a strong fan base prior to their main break-through in the music industry.

Sakanaction performed their first live concert at Nippon Budokan while enjoying major success with their singles "Aruku Around" and "Rookie".

Since these bands don't rely in a very heavy sound but take a softer, catchier approach, they proved to be more appealing to pop fans that are not familiar with rock.

[50][51][52] Veteran rock bands like L'Arc-en-Ciel and X Japan sold out concerts at Madison Square Garden in 2012 and 2014, respectively, among other large arenas through the United States.

[58][59][60] Another notable girls metal band is Cyntia, who are believed to be the first of the movement to sign to a major record label when they joined Victor Entertainment in 2013.

[61] The year 2014 brought the international success of self-described "kawaii metal" idol act Babymetal, through the viral YouTube hit "Gimme Chocolate!!".