Golden Bomber on Nico Nico

Golden Bomber has been the featured artist for December 2011 on V-Rock Station, and featured on Nico Nico Live. The band's latest show is currently avialable to subscribers of the Nico Nico website. All members are present for the 23:30 minute show.

Golden Bomber Nico Nico Live show here

BORN "Spiral Lie" Music Clip

BORN has made a short music clip of the new song "Spiral Lie" available from the band's homepage. "Spiral Lie" appears as a track on the band's upcoming "Vigour" album, to be released February 1, 2012. The clip is available as a link on the left side of the new album's promotion page, under the tracklist for the limited edition version.

"Spiral Lie" preview and "Vigour" information here

Street Team: Versailles Philharmonic Quintet USA

American fans of Versailles Philharmonic Quintet take heart--there is a street team available for you! The Versailles Philharmonic Quintet USA Street Team formed as a means to promote the band in the U.S. and to bring fans together. There is no registration to join the team, and there are multiple ways to follow and support member activities. The Street Team has just released the following YouTube video comment here telling fans how they can support Versailles in the U.S.

Versailles Philharmonic Quintet USA Street Team here
On Twitter here
On Facebook here
On Ustream here

Hana Shounen Baddies to Release New Album

Hana Shounen Baddies will release a new full album on Wednesday, January 18. The new album will be called "Breed," an album of cover songs from their previous activities as Billy. The band's OHP features a short take of some behind-the-scenes footage to promote the new release.

Hana Shounen Baddies OHP here
"Breed" Limited Edition (w/DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Breed" Limited Edition pre-order at CD Japan here

Viju☆Love☆Cafe Guests Announced

Visu-a-Land.TV has updated their website with the artist guest list for the next Viju☆Love☆Cafe #7, hosted by Akemi Oshima. Guests will include:  DaizyStripper; BORN; Chirolyn, Hayato, Yuya & Baru of DuelJewel; Sizna & Soan of Moran; HERO; FIXER; Kairu; and I&Crow. The show will air on Monday, January 9 at 14:00 JST (convert time here).

Viju☆Love☆Cafe #7 airs here

SuG to Appear on Nico Nico

SuG will be appearing in a Nico Nico Live show on Monday, January 16 at 21:00 JST (convert time here). The tentative title of the show is 『生でSuGでShow』.

SuG Show to air here

SCREW OHP Update & Comment

SCREW has updated their OHP with a new look and more information about their upcoming album, 『糜爛-BIRAN-』, to be released on February 15. They have also posted a comment about the new album, and a PV preview should be coming soon.

SCREW OHP here
SCREW comment here

Buck-Tick Show to Air on Nico Nico

A special Buck-Tick airing of "The Day in Question" at Nippon Budokan will be broadcast on Nico Nico Live on Thursday, December 29 at 18:30 JST (convert time here). The program will begin with a selection of Buck-Tick music videos before the concert begins at 19:00 JST.

Buck-Tick special airs here

L'Arc~en~Ciel to Release New Album

L'Arc~en~Ciel will be releasing a new full-length album on Wednesday, February 8. The new album will be called "Butterfly," and will be released in limited and regular editions. The tracklist is available from the band's OHP.

L'Arc~en~Ciel (English) OHP here
"Butterfly" Limited Edition (2 CD+DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Butterfly" Regular Edition pre-order at CD Japan here

Birthday Comment from JUN of SPIV STATES

musicJAPANplus uploaded a new video on their official YouTube--a birthday comment from JUN of SPIV STATES. SPIV STATES helped band member JUN celebrate his birthday with a special live on November 17. His comment includes English subtitles.

JUN comment here

R-Shitei to Release New Album

R-Shitei will release their second full-length album on Wednesday, January 18. The new album will be called "日本沈没" (Nihon Chinbotsu, or, Japan Sinks) and will be released in two types.

R-Shitei OHP here
"Japan Sinks" Limited Ed. (w/DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Japan Sinks" Regular Ed. pre-order at CD Japan here

exist†trace Adds Videos to YouTube

exist†trace has added content to their official YouTube account. The new uploads include a live performance of "Daybreak ~13月の色彩〜" and "リトル・メアリーと美しき憎しみのドナウ " (Little Mary to Utsukushiki Nikushimi no Donau).

Official exist†trace YouTube here

MUCC Nurturing Twitter Pet

MUCC Official is now nurturing a Twitter pet. The pet will grow as the number of followers increases on the Twitter account. What's it going to be? Follow to find out!

Nurture Mucc_pet on Twitter here

Golden Bomber 3rd Appearance on V-Rock Station

Golden Bomber is the featured artist for the V-Rock Station radio program. Each member of Golden Bomber will be participating in a show by himself. The third program to air featured Darvish Kenji. His radio program is now available on Nico Nico for listening. Last up will be Kiryuuin Sho.

V-Rock Station Website here
Darvish Kenji program here

Alice Nine to Release New Album 2/22

Alice Nine updated their OHP with a special Christmas/New Year's message for fans--information about a new album release. The band will release a full album called "9" on Wednesday, February 22. The complete tracklist is included in the news announcement. The update also includes dates for the 2012 album live tour, called "Court of '9'," to be conducted in (as of now) four legs.

Alice Nine OHP here

Follow THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S for Christmas Message

THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S have issued a special Christmas comment available only for followers of their mail magazine or social media sites. Follow them to see what they have to say!

Official OHP here
Official Facebook here
Official Twitter here
Official YouTube here
Official MySpace here

Angelo to Release New Single

Angelo has updated their look on their OHP in conjunction with the announcement that they will be releasing a new single on Wednesday, February 22. The new single, the band's eighth, will be called "Calvary." It will be released in two types, a two-song single with a DVD clip of "Calvary" or a three-song single. The planned tracklist is available on the band's OHP. Check out upcoming appearances from band members in Rock and Read 039 and the next issue of Fool's Mate (12/28). Check your favorite seller for listings.

Angelo OHP here

Alice Nine Interview on vif music Web

The online music website vif now has an interview with Alice Nine. The interview contains 17 questions for each band member to answer. The interview is in Japanese.

vif Alice Nine interview here

Black Gene for the Next Scene to Release First Maxi Single

Black Gene for the Next Scene will be releasing their first maxi single on Wednesday, January 11. The new single will be called "Doom" and will be released in three types. A PV preview is available from the band's OHP. Black Gene for the Next Scene recently appeared on Viju☆Love☆Cafe with Akemi Oshima to promote the new release, and they will appear in the latest issues of Shoxx Vol. 228 and Cure Vol. 101,  both on sale now.

Black Gene for the Next Scene OHP here
"Doom" Type A (w/DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Doom" Type B pre-order at CD Japan here
"Doom" Type C pre-order at CD Japan here

Ayabie New Single 1/25 and More

Ayabie has a new look, and they will be releasing a new single on Wednesday, January 25. The new single will be called "Merry-go-round" and will be released in three types. Ayabie also has download links available for band podcasts on their OHP. There are currently six podcasts from past shows. Links to other Ayabie podcasts should be available on iTunes. The band will make an appearance in the latest edition of Shoxx magazine, on sale now.

Ayabie OHP here
"Merry-go-round" Type A (w/DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Merry-go-round" Type B (w/DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Merry-go-round" Regular pre-order at CD Japan here
Ayabie podcasts from OHP here
Ayabie podcasts from iTunes here

cali≠gari New Album 1/11

cali≠gari will release a new full-length album on Wednesday, January 11. The new album will be called "11" and will be released in two types.

cali≠gari OHP here
"11" Limited Ed. (w/DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"11" Regular Ed. pre-order at CD Japan here

BORN OHP Offers Audio Preview of "Vigour"

BORN's OHP has been updated. The OHP now includes the band's new look for the upcoming February 1 release of the new album, "Vigour," as well as audio previews for each track on the CD.

BORN OHP here
"Vigour" audio samples here

Viju☆Love☆Cafe #7 Will Air 1/9

Viju☆Love☆Cafe, hosted by Akemi Oshima and Biju the cat, will air episode number seven on Monday, January 9, 2012. The program airs online at Visu-a-land.TV and starts at 14:00 JST (convert time here). The episode will also be rebroadcast at 24:00 JST on the same day, and an on-demand digest version will be available on Saturday, January 14 at 21:00 JST. Guests have not yet been announced.

Viju☆Love☆Cafe will air here

BARKS Features Rock and Read 039 Hitsugi Cover

BARKS online news page currently has a two-page article featuring the newly released Rock and Read 039 magazine cover of Nightmare's guitarist Hitsugi. The article describes the magazine interview, which promises to cover in-depth discussions of the earthquake in the band's hometown of Sendai, their return afterward, and how the photographer envisioned the striking images included in the photo shoot.  The second page of the article includes two high quality images--the new magazine cover and another image from the photo shoot.

BARKS article here
Rock and Read 039 at CD Japan here
Rock and Read 039 at Yes Asia here
Rock and Read 039 at JPtoYOU here

Golden Bomber 2nd Appearance on V-Rock Station

Golden Bomber is the featured artist for the V-Rock Station radio program. Each member of Golden Bomber will be participating in a show by himself. The second program to air featured Kyan Yutaka. His radio program is now available on Nico Nico for listening.

V-Rock Station Website here
Kyan Yutaka program here

Megaromania to Release New Single

Megaromania will release a new single on Wednesday, December 21. The new single will be called "Blessing Myth" and will be released in two types.

Megaromania album news here
"Blessing Myth" Type A (CD+DVD) pre-order at CD Japan here
"Blessing Myth" Type B pre-order at CD Japan here

PIKO to Release First Live DVD

PIKO will release his first live DVD on Wednesday, December 21. The DVD will feature his first concert "PIKO LIVE TOUR 2011 - 1 PIKO - PIKO no Matsuri." The DVD comes in two versions--a limited edition with extra footage and bonus goods, and a regular edition with extra footage.

PIKO OHP here
Limited Edition DVD pre-order at CD Japan here
Regular Edition DVD pre-order at CD Japan here

musicJAPANplus Gig Vol. 2 Broadcast on 12/20

MusicJAPANplus will be holding its "musicJAPANplus GIG vol.2" live at SHIBUYA O-EAST on Tuesday, December 20, with scheduled performers to include Kra, vistlip, Lc5, Kiriyu and GUILD. The event will be broadcast over the Internet via NicoNico NamaHousou and USTREAM at 18:00 JST (convert time here).

Live broadcast news release here
Nico Nico gate here
USTREAM link here

DecoLa Hopping Will Release Mini Album 12/21

DecoLa Hopping will release their first mini album on Wednesday, December 21. The album will be called "Pirates' Logbook" and will feature six tracks. The CD also includes one of five randomly selected trading cards.

DecoLa Hopping OHP here
"Pirates' Logbook" pre-order on CD Japan here

Signal to Release 2nd Maxi Single

Signal will release their second maxi single on Wednesday, December 21. The new single will be called "Glow Back Over Scars" and will include three songs plus extras. The album does include a parental advisory for explicit content.

Signal OHP here 
"Glow Back Over Scars" pre-order on CD Japan here

Shoxx Begins Revealing Vol. 229 Artists

Shoxx just recently began revealing hints about which artists will be covered in its upcoming Vol. 229. According to their Twitter updates, SuG just completed a cover photoshoot, and D=Out will have a photo and interview spread discussing their new album. Vol. 229 will be on sale January 21, 2012. Check out other updates on their official Twitter.

Shoxx Twitter here

LM.C on Club Zy 'Card Talk'

LM.C was featured on another Club Zy "Card Talk" video.The video shows maya and Aiji drawing a card and talking about New Year's. The page also shows a listing of the band's upcoming live appearances.

LM.C Club Zy video here

THE MICROHEAD 4N'S on Club Zy 'Card Talk'

Club Zy has posted a video featuring THE MICROHEAD 4N'S. The video shows Ricky (vo) drawing a card question, and each member relating a Christmas memory. Along with the video, the page includes a listing of the band's upcoming live appearances.

Club Zy video here

SEX-ANDROID New DVD Release

SEX-ANDROID will be releasing a 2-hour long live DVD which includes their July 23, 2011 performance at Shibuya O-EAST. The DVD, titled "Live At The Isha Rock - Nakano Ishikai - Natsu no Omatsuri Killer '11," will be released on Wednesday, December 21. The DVD track listing can be found from the band's OHP.

SEX-ANDROID OHP here
DVD pre-order at CD Japan here

AURORA SANNIN MUSUME Clip on Visu-a-Land.TV

Emiru and Sarino, collaborating as オーロラ三人娘 (AURORA SANNIN MUSUME), are featured in a variety show challenge-style video clip from Viju☆Love☆Night. Watch as the two both try to balance on a paper that keeps getting smaller and smaller.

Watch clip here

Golden Bomber December Feature Artist for V-Rock Station

Golden Bomber is the featured artist for the V-Rock Station radio program. Each member of Golden Bomber will be participating in a show by himself. The first program featured Utahiroba Jun. His radio program is now available on Nico Nico for listening.

V-Rock Station Website here
Utahiroba Jun program here

CD Japan Issues Top 100 Chart

CD Japan has issued their Top 100 list for 2011. The list includes many visual kei bands that were popular sellers for the year, including Versailles and the GazettE. The list hyperlinks all selections to the product pages where shoppers can purchase them.

CD Japan 2011 Top 100 Chart here

GLAY on BARKS and New Release Preview

GLAY appears in a BARKS article featuring their new Christmas mini album, "Hope and the Silver Sunrise." The article also includes a link to a YouTube music clip featuring the band, track listings for the album, and a listing of live appearances.

GLAY on BARKS here

MUCC on BARKS

BARKS posted a short article featuring MUCC. The entry covers their recent activities, including the new "Arcadia" and upcoming "Nirvana" singles, as well as their upcoming December live appearances.

MUCC article on BARKS here

YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz Announce 1st Album

YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz announced that their first full album will be released on Wednesday, February 29, 2012. The new album does not yet have a title, but will be released in two editions--one with DVD and one without.

YELLOW FRIED CHICKENz OHP here
[CD+DVD] CD Japan pre-order here
[CD] CD Japan pre-order here

THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S Special Interview

The Visulog website has a special interview with new band, THE MICROHEAD 4N'S. The interview discusses the story behind the band's formation.

Visulog interview in English here
Visulog interview in Japanese here

SID to Release New Single 12/28

SID will release a new single on Wednesday, December 28. The new single will be called 「冬のベンチ」(Fuyu no Benchi) and will be released in three types.

SID OHP here
"Fuyu no Benchi" Limited Edition Type A (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Fuyu no Benchi" Limited Edition Type B (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Fuyu no Benchi" Regular Edition CD Japan pre-order here

Ayabie and OZ to Appear at A-Kon 2012

Ayabie and OZ are scheduled to appear at A-Kon 2012 in Dallas, TX. A-Kon, an anime-based convention, takes place June 1 - 3, 2012. Ayabie and OZ will perform on that Friday, June 1.

A-Kon 2012 info here

The Sound Bee HD to Release New Mini Album

The Sound Bee HD will be releasing a new mini album on Wednesday, December 14. The new mini album will be called "Tsuya" and will feature six tracks.

The Sound Bee HD OHP here
"Tsuya" CD Japan pre-order here

POPCORE to Release New Single

POPCORE will be releasing their third single on Wednesday, December 14. The new single will be called "Fresh!!" The band has included a sample PV preview on their OHP.

POPCORE OHP here
"Fresh!!" CD Japan pre-order here

DEAD END to Release New Maxi Single

DEAD END will be releasing a new maxi single on Wednesday, December 14. The new single will be called "Final Feast." There are sample clips for the title song on the band's official YouTube.

DEAD END OHP here
"Final Feast" single information here
Official YouTube channel here
"Final Feast" Limited Edition (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Final Feast" Regular Edition CD Japan pre-order here

Babel Entertainment Live Radio Plays Hard Rock & Visual Kei

Babel Entertainment's website includes a live radio station that plays both hard rock and visual kei. The play list feature shows what songs and bands are currently and have recently been played.

Babel Entertainment website here
Babel Radio here
About Babel Entertainment here

ViViD Updates OHP

ViViD has updated their OHP. The updated site shows their new look and promotes their upcoming fourth single, "message," which will be released on Wednesday, January 11, 2012. Information for their upcoming "ViViD LIVE 2012 「TAKE OFF ~Birth to the NEW WORLD」is also included.

ViViD OHP here
Complete listing of ViViD releases at CD Japan here

Viju☆Love☆Cafe Digest On Demand Now

Viju☆Love☆Cafe #6, which originally aired on December 4, is now available in digest form on demand from Visu-a-Land.TV. Guests included members of vistlip, DaizyStripper, Black Gene for the Next Scene, Nightmare, Alice Nine, D, and defspiral (among others).

Watch episode here

MusicJAPANplus to Air new Kra Online Program

MusicJAPANplus has just announced that it will be hosting a new online program featuring Kra in January. The new program will be called "Cheer-UP with Kra TV!" and will air for the first time on Tuesday, January 10, 2012 at 20:00 JST (convert time here). They are currently accepting messages and questions for the band.

MusicJAPANplus announcement here
"Cheer-UP with Kra TV!" will air here
Submit questions for the program here (registration required)

Alice Nine Channel Airs 12/30

The next air date for Alice Nine's Nico Nico program (Alice Nine Channel) is December 30, 2011. The program airs at 23:00 JST (convert time zones). Registered Nico Nico members may timeshift for later viewing.

Alice Nine Channel gate here

vistlip New Album on 12/14 & Song Previews

vistlip will be releasing their 2nd full album on Wednesday, December 14. The new album, called "Order Made," will include sixteen tracks. Track titles and song preview samples are available on the band's OHP.

vistlip OHP album news here
"Order Made" Limited Ed. (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Order Made" Limited Ed. CD Japan pre-order here
"Order Made" Regular Ed. here

MUCC Will Release New Single in 2012

MUCC announced on their OHP that they will be releasing a new single early in 2012. The new single will be called "Nirvana," and it will be the opening theme song for the anime "Inu X Boku Secret Service." It seems the anime will begin airing in Japan in January 2012.

MUCC "Nirvana" news here
"Inuboku Secret Service" news here

CD Releases for Wednesday, 12/7

Three new CDs will be released on Wednesday, December 7 that have not previously been covered here. They include:

"Reply-tribute to hide-" (defspiral) mini album @CD Japan here
"Luminous" (DuelJewel) full album Ltd. Ed @CD Japan here or Reg. Ed here
"Amaryllis/Cosmos" (Para:noir) single Type A @CD Japan here or Type B here

Find more on the bands' OHPs
defspiral OHP here
DuelJewel OHP here
Para:noir OHP here

Plastic Tree DVD on Sale 12/14

Plastic Tree will be releasing a live DVD on Wednesday, December 14. The DVD will include performances from the final day of their "Ammonite (Dai)" show at Ryogoku Kokugikan and  "Ammonite (Sho)" at  Nico Nico Namahoso.

Plastic Tree OHP here
"Jitsuen Ban Ammonite" CD Japan pre-order here

Golden Bomber Nico Nico on 12/19

Golden Bomber's monthly Nico Nico program will be broadcast on Monday, December 19. The program will air at 23:00 JST (convert time here). To watch, viewers must have a Nico Nico account login and password.

Golden Bomber airs here

Miya & Satoshi Contribute to New ROACH Release

Indie band ROACH will be releasing a new mini album on February 8, 2012. The new album, called "No Reason in the Pit," will feature guest musicians Satoshi (girugamesh, vocals) and Miya (MUCC, guitar) on the title track. The CD release will also include a five-song live DVD. The track list is available from the band's OHP.

ROACH OHP here
MUCC news here

v[NEU] to Release 2nd Single & PV Previews

v[NEU] will be releaseing their second single on Wednesday, December 21. The new single, called 「カレイドスコープ/cube」 (Kaleidoscope/cube), will be released in three editions. Check out their official YouTube channel for short clips of the "Kaleidoscope" and "cube" PVs.

v[NEU] OHP here
Official YouTube channel here
"Kaleidoscope" Type A Limited Ed. (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Kaleidoscope" Type B Limited Ed. (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Kaleidoscope" Regular Ed. CD Japan pre-order here

MEJIBRAY to Release 1st Mini Album

MEJIBRAY will be releasing their first mini album on Wednesday, December 7. The album, called "Slivers.exe," will included five songs. The band will also be making several live appearances in December.

MIJIBRAY OHP here
"Slivers.exe" CD Japan pre-order here
"Slivers.exe" track list here
Live schedule here

Dog in the PWO New Release 12/21

Dog in the PWO (Parallel World Orchestra) will be releasing a new mini album on Wednesday, December 21. The new album, called "Doggy Style,"will have a Limited and Regular Edition release.

Dog in the PWO OHP here
"Doggy Style" Limited Edition (w/DVD) CD Japan pre-order here
"Doggy Style" Regular Edition CD Japan pre-order here

Gab Vol. 54 Club Zy Music Publication

Gab Vol. 54, a Club Zy publication, will feature a variety of visual kei artists, including: UNITE, MASATO (defspiral), Saran (Aicle.), DaizyStripper+maya, THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S, Kaya, LAYZis, Billy, Lycaon, Virgil, Akira Nakayama (Plastic Tree), v(NEU), Zukki (OZ), heidi., and more.

Gab Vol. 54 details here

THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S Open New OHP

THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S have finally opened their official homepage. The website offers links to all the band's activities and shows the new tour goods. They also have an official YouTube Channel. They have uploaded a short video that introduces all the band members with a backing preview track of the band's music.

THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S OHP here
Official YouTube Channel here

Tsukasa Starts Twitter

Tsukasa, currently drummer for THE MICRO HEAD 4N'S, formerly drummer for D'espairsRay, has started a Twitter account. He's still new to Twitter, and bandmate Zero (ba) had mentioned via Twitter that Tsukasa had already forgotten his password.

Follow Tsukasa on Twitter here

Shoxx Vol. 228 on Sale 12/21

Shoxx is slowly releasing details for its next issue, Vol. 228 on sale December 21. Alice Nine will be the featured cover artist with an interview. Other bands included in the issue will be:  vistlip, Chemical Pictures, Megaromania, Matatabi of Onmyoza, ViViD, the GazettE's Mie show, HERO, DuelJewel, Moran, and Doremidan.

Shoxx Official Twitter here

AND TV Airs on 12/28

musicJAPANplus will air a special "AND TV" show on Wednesday, December 28 at 21:00 JST (convert time here). The band will be talking about their upcoming "Liberate" release and will be accepting fan questions.

AND TV airs here

Alice Nine Comment & PV Preview on club DAM

All members of Alice Nine are present for a new "Niji no Yuki" comment on clubDAM.com. There is a preview of the new single's PV along with the comment.

clubDAM.com "Niji no Yuki" comment here