Left to right: Hide-Zou, Tsunehito, Asagi, Ruiza, Hiroki.
D is a Visual Kei melodic metalcore/gothic rock band formed in 2003 by former members of the band Syndromenote . They're most known for vocalist Asagi's distinctive singing style, making equal use of regular clean vocals, Harsh Vocals, and his strong falsetto (to the point where some people forget that there are four other band members).They started off as an indie band on their own record label, GOD CHILD RECORDS, before getting signed to major label avex trax in 2008—but then severed their contract in 2011 and returning to their old indie label.
The band has announced that they will go on an indefinite hiatus following their last live show at the end of December 2014, citing Asagi's health as the reason for the break. Fans have been more or less assured that this doesn't mean the band is breaking up — merely that Asagi has been struggling with jaw trouble and needs to take time to heal.
Current Lineup:
- Asagi - Vocals (2003-present)
- Ruiza - Guitar (2003-present)
- Hide-Zou - Guitar (2003-present)
- Tsunehito - Bass (2005-present)
- Hiroki - Drums (2003-present)
Former Members:
- Sin - Guitar (2003)
- Rena - Bass (2003-2005)
Discography:
- NEW BLOOD (EP, 2003, reissued in 2004 as NEW BLOOD~second impact~)
- Paradox (EP, 2004, reissued in 2006)
- The name of the ROSE (2005, reissued in 2006)
- Tafel Anatomie (2006)
- Neo culture~Beyond the World~ (2007)
- Genetic World (2009)
- 7th Rose (2010)
- VAMPIRE SAGA (2011)
- Huángdì ~Yami ni Umareta Mukui~ (EP, 2011)
- Nyanto-Shippo de (Single, 2012)
- Ultimate Lover (Single, 2012)
- Dying Message (Single, 2012)
- Danzai no Gunner (Single, 2012)
- Namonaki Mori No Yumegatari (EP, 2012)
- Treasure Box (2013)
- Bon Voyage! (Single, 2013)
- Bloody Rose (Best Collection) (2013)
- Rosenstrauss (Single, 2013)
- Dark Wings (Single, 2013)
- D Vampire Chronicle ~ V Best Selection (2013)
- Tsuki no Sakazuki (EP, 2014)
- KINGDOM (2014)
- Wonderland Savior (2016)
- Orokashii Ryuu no Yume (EP, 2017)
- Vampire Chronicle ~V-Best Selection Vol.2~ (2018)
- "Doukoku no Catharsis" (Single, 2019)
- "UNCROWNED KINGD" (Single, 2019)
- "Hard Koala" (Single, 2020)
- "ACACIA ~Pray For Australia~" (Single, 2020)
- "Hang in there ~Stay Home Ver.~" (Single, 2020)
Tropes applying to D and their music
- Alice Allusion: "Yami no kuni no Alice", as made especially obvious by the music video
, as well as "Mad tea party" and the "Alice in Dark Edge" tour. - Audience Participation Song: As well as the normal sing-along types, there's also a variation with 'Night-ship "D"''s "flag dance", where the audience is given miniature flags to wave around while Asagi leads them on with his own giant flag.
- Badass Cape: Usually Asagi when dressed as either Dreizehn or Justice from the band's vampire saga. Also briefly flashed in the PV for "Dark Wings" with Tsunehito, Ruiza, Hide-Zou, and Hiroki dressed as their own vampire counterparts.
- Black Cloak: Asagi as the character Dreizehn in "Der Konig Der Dunkelheit".
- Book Ends: The "In the name of justice" PV begins and ends with a wolf's howl.
- Chess Motifs: In the music video for "In the name of justice"; the chess board and pieces are supposed to represent a battle plan.
- Chronological Album Title: 7th Rose, although the title was chosen to refer to the band's 7th anniversary; the fact that it was also their seventh album (including EPs, but not reissues) was a bonus.
- Color-Coded Characters: In the band's rather epic and expansive vampire saga storyline, each individual character has a colour code. (Notable places this can be seen are the videos for "Danzai no Gunner", "Der Konig Der Dunkelheit", "In The Name of Justice", "Akaki Hitsuji Ni Yoru Bansankai", "Rosenstrauss", and "Schwarzchild")
- Asagi (as Dreizehn) - Black (Seen most notably in "Der Konig Der Dunkelheit")
- Asagi (as Justice) - White (Seen most notably in "In The Name of Justice" and "Danzai no Gunner")
- Asagi (as Dahlie) - Red (Seen most notably in "Akaki Hitsuji Ni Yoru Bansankai" and "Tsuki no Sakazuki", if only for a moment in the latter)
- Ruiza (as Kircheis) - Blue (any time the character is seen at all — notably in "Der Konig Der Dunkelheit" and "Danzai no Gunner")
- Hide-Zou (as Rafaga) - Purple/Green (seems to change depending on the video — though his rose in "Rosenstrauss" is green, which signifies his main color)
- Tsunehito (as Carbuncle) - Red (any time the character is seen at all — notably in "Der Konig Der Dunkelheit" and "Danzai no Gunner")
- Hiroki (as Wilderness) - Brown (any time the character is seen at all — notably in "Der Konig Der Dunkelheit" and "Danzai no Gunner")
- Costume Porn: To the point where, generally, the "making of" extras for their music videos (which come with
one of the limited special editions of their singles) consist largely of the band members showing off details of their costumes that can't easily be seen in the PVs themselves. - Cover Version: Of "Gekka no yasoukyoku" by Malice Mizer.
- Asagi has also done a vocal cover of Diaura's Shitsuyoku no Seiiki.
- Asagi has also done a vocal cover of Diaura's Shitsuyoku no Seiiki
- Damsel in Distress: As portrayed by Tsunehito in the "Danzai no Gunner" video. (There's a reason for using this trope specifically instead of Distressed Dude.)
- Dress Rehearsal Video: All of their music videos except "Dearest you"; "Day by Day" is a more literal example than most, with the video actually supposed to be portraying a rehearsal (sans costumes—or, rather, far more subdued costumes than usual).
- Epic Rocking: "Akumu kurai" (6:06); "Tsukiyo no renka" (6:18); "Torikago goten~L'Oiseau bleu~ (6:19); "Solitude ~saigo no tegami~" (6:20); "Schwarzschild" (6:25); the album version of "Der König der Dunkelheit" (6:40). The studio version of "Guardian" is only 4:46, but live versions tend to range from 8 to 12 minutes long.
- Eyepatch of Power: Asagi and Hide-Zou in 'Night-ship "D"'.
- Flower Motif: See Something about a Rose.
- Fluffy Fashion Feathers: Asagi as his character Dreizehn in the "Der König der Dunkelheit" and "Torikago goten~L'Oiseau bleu~" videos.
- Gratuitous Chinese: "Huang di ~yami ni yumareta mukui~". "Huang di" translates to "emperor".
- Gratuitous English
- Gratuitous French: "Torikagogoten~L'Oiseau bleu~", "Akaki Hitsuji Ni Yoru Bansankai"
- Gratuitous German: "Der König der Dunkelheit" ("The King of Darkness"); "Die letzte nacht" ("The Last Night"note ); "Schwarzschild"; "Tsuki no Sakazuki"
- Guns Akimbo: Asagi in the "Danzai no Gunner" music video.
- Guyliner
- Harsh Vocals: Surprisingly often; "7th Rose" is probably the most noticable example.
- Impractically Fancy Outfit: The band members occasionally get accused of dressing like Final Fantasy characters, and not without reason.
- Also played rather impressively in the vampire story. Notably Tsunehito's character Carbuncle wearing the frilliest thing in her closet specifically to go on a rescue mission, of all things. It's so impractical it edges into Frills of Justice territory.
- Also basically any time Asagi is dressed as Justice — though most obvious in the PV for "In The Name Of Justice".
- Leg Focus: Asagi likes to wear dresses with the front of the skirt missing just so he can show off his legs. Even when he's not crossdressing, he can usually find a way to show his legs somehow. The others have all done this as well, though, except for possibly Tsunehito, not nearly as often.
- Limited Special Ultimate Collector's Edition: Their later single releases (pretty much beginning when they became a major-label band, then continuing through to their returning to their indie label), for the most part, each have three versions (a regular edition and two limited editions)—in general, they follow a pattern; the regular edition and one of the limited editions contain a single bonus track, while the two limited editions contain, respectively, a DVD with the music video and a DVD with the making of the music video.
If you want it all, you'd better be loaded. (Or willing to violate copyright law.) - Lyrical Cold Open: "7th Rose", "Denshou sa reshi sora no monogatari", and "Yami yori kurai doukoku no acapella to bara yori akai jounetsu no aria".
- Miniscule Rocking: "Taiko no kiba" (2:13). Understandable, since it's a drum solo. Also "Yume narashi kuuchuu teien" (2:20) and "Mikazuki youranka" (2:07).
- Non-Appearing Title: Most of their songs.
- Of Corsets Sexy: Asagi as the character Dahlie in the "Akaki Hitsuji Ni Yoru Bansankai" video.
- One-Letter Title
- One Name Only
- Our Vampires Are Different: The main vampire characters, played by the band members, are vampires of a "different" variety. This is mostly thanks to their commitment to surviving without drinking human blood.
- Performance Video: All of their music videos. "Dearest you", however, is the only one where they perform in front of an audience.
- Power Ballad: "Snow White"; "Mahiru no koe"; "Torikago goten~L'Oiseau bleu~"
- Rearrange the Song:
- In a rather extreme example, D rerecorded their entire discography after Tsunehito joined the band.
- One of the b-sides on the "Snow White" single is 'Snow White "Another gift"', which is essentially the song taken up to D's normal hardness.
- In 2012, the band released a rerecorded version of their 2006 single "Ultimate Lover".
- Re-release the Song: The International Version of the Huang di ~yami ni yumareta mukui~ mini-album includes four older songs ('Night-ship "D"', "Yami yori kurai doukoku no acapella to bara yori akai jounetsu no aria", "Dearest you", and "Sleeper").
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: Asagi.
- Short Titles
- Snow Means Death: The music video for "Snow White".
- Something about a Rose: One of their signature motifs. Asagi's microphone is covered in roses, and he is literally dressed as a rose in the "7th Rose" video. (If you look closely, you can see that his left hand is painted green and has thorns on it.) In their music videos, they usually manage to stick at least one rose or five somewhere, even if only by the roses tattooed on Asagi's left arm. Often, if you suspect there isn't a rose somewhere, it's hidden in the embroidery or accents in their costumes. There's always a rose SOMEWHERE.
- Soprano and Gravel: One of the identifying features of their music is Asagi's ability to play both of these roles himself.
- Spell My Name With An S: People are generally divided as to whether the first bassist's stage name should be romanized as "Rena" or "Lena" (the former is more common). Since he isn't in the band anymore, though, it isn't considered a huge deal.
- Spoken Word in Music: The ending of the album version of "Der König der Dunkelheit".
- Stab the Sky: Asagi in the music video for "In The Name Of Justice".
- Stage Names
- Stupid Sexy Flanders: Asagi tends to get this reaction whenever he crossdresses (which is quite often). And occasionally when he doesn't.
- Song Style Shift: "Luminous Flame". Don't be fooled by the violin intro.
- Surprisingly Gentle Song: "Snow White" and "Torikago goten~L'Oiseau bleu". "Luminous flame" initially starts off sounding like it's one of these, but suddenly transitions into being one of the band's harder songs.
- Title Drop: Not particularly often, but still present in a few songs.
- Title Track: "7th Rose"
- Too Many Belts: The "Tightrope" video in particular has all of the members wearing useless belts, with Asagi wearing more than the other four combined.
- Wholesome Crossdresser: All of the members have tried their hand at this at a couple of points (see especially the skirt-fest that is the "Dying message" video), but Tsunehito and Asagi are the most well-known/successful at it.
- Word Salad Title: "Silver Acorn Bullet"
