is a 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 ...

rock band. Formed in 2003 in

Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nar ...

, the group centers its work around the concept of "madness inside a human" (人間の内面における狂気 '). 12012 is also the

penal code A criminal code (or penal code) is a document that compiles all, or a significant amount of a particular jurisdiction's criminal law. Typically a criminal code will contain offences that are recognised in the jurisdiction, penalties that might ...

for the possession of a dangerous weapon in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The group sometimes performs as , which is a translation of that offense.

Musical styles

The band's musical style has changed over the years. Starting out as a

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 ...

band — and later an

alternative metal Alternative metal (also known as alt-metal) is a genre of heavy metal music that combines heavy metal with influences from alternative rock and other genres not normally associated with metal. Alternative metal bands are often characterized by ...

band with some punk elements — after its first two albums '' Not Obtain+1'' and '' Play Dolls'' the band's music shifted to a more radio-friendly sound which could be described as a mix of

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

and

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest ha ...

. After guitarist Suga left, the band slowly drifted back to heavier terrain. The band's current style could be described as heavy metal with

alternative Alternative or alternate may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki'' * ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film * ''The Alternative ...

and

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. I ...

influences.

History

In 2007, the band performed the ending theme, "Cyclone", to the

Gonzo Gonzo may refer to: People * Gonzo (nickname), a list of people with the nickname * Radislav Jovanov Gonzo (born 1964), Croatian music video director Radislav Jovanov, also known as Gonzo * Matthias Röhr (born 1962), German musician whose sta ...

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

television series ''

Romeo x Juliet Romeo Montague () is the male protagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. The son of Lord Montague and his wife, Lady Montague, he secretly loves and marries Juliet, a member of the rival House of Capulet, through a pries ...

'', its single being released by

Universal Music Japan , often referred to as just Universal Music Japan or UMJ, is a Japanese subsidiary of the Universal Music Group founded in 1990. It is the largest subsidiary for a foreign company in the country regarding music distribution. The company is resp ...

on June 13, 2007. The group has also toured Japan on many occasions as well as performing at concerts in numerous international locations. In September 2007, vocalist Miyawaki Wataru was arrested for assault on a woman. After a night of heavy drinking, it was reported he had tried to strangle a female acquaintance. It was resolved out of court, and the charges were later dropped. On October 17, 2007, Wataru posted an apology in his blog. It was announced on their official website that guitarist Yūsuke Suga would be leaving the band on December 12, 2010, after the final concert of their "The Fangs of Killer「Seven」Sadness" tour. The band continued with the four remaining members. In 2013, former support guitarist Shinichirou Saitou officially joined the band, and the year saw the release of two mini-albums: ''Deicida of Silence'' and ''The Swan''. On February 10, 2014, the band announced an indefinite hiatus which would take place the same year on December 12. Later that year they also announced a mini-album ''XII'', which would be their last release before the indefinite hiatus. On June 24, 2020, a livestream was played by Sakai where he announced 12012 would return from hiatus. The new lineup will also include former guitarist Yūsuke Suga, making the band a six-piece.

Members

* Wataru Miyawaki (宮脇渉 ''Miyawaki Wataru'') –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

(2003–2014, 2020–present) * Hiroaki Sakai (酒井洋明 ''Sakai Hiroaki'') –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the fe ...

(2003–2014, 2020–present) * Shinichirou Saitou (齋藤紳一郎 ''Saitou Shinichirou'') –

rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...

(2013–2014),

(2020–present) * Yūsuke Suga (須賀勇介 ''Suga Yūsuke'') –

(2003–2010, 2020–present) * Tomoyuki Enya (塩谷朋之 ''Enya Tomoyuki'') –

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

(2003–2014, 2020–present) * Tōru Kawauchi (川内亨 ''Kawauchi Tōru'') –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...

(2003–2014, 2020-present)

Discography

;Studio albums * '' Not Obtain+1'' (February 1, 2006) 111 * '' Play Dolls'' (February 1, 2006) 62 * ''

Diamond Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, b ...

'' (December 12, 2007) 70 * '' Mar Maroon'' (March 11, 2009) 50 * '' Seven'' (July 14, 2010) 48 * '' 12012'' (March 14, 2012) ;Compilation albums * ''Pupa'' (December 11, 2013) * ''Larva'' (December 11, 2013) ;EPs * '' Increasingly'' (April 28, 2004) ** ''

Increasingly -Kanzen Ban- ''Increasingly'' is the first EP by the band 12012 is a Japanese visual kei rock band. Formed in 2003 in Osaka Prefecture, the group centers its work around the concept of "madness inside a human" (人間の内面における狂気 '). 1201 ...

'' (, June 15, 2005) 128 * ''

Bell Salem {{Infobox album , name = Bell Salem(ベルサレム) , type = EP , artist = 12012 , cover = 12012 - Bell Salem.jpg , alt = , released = October 10, 2004December 13, 2006 (Reissue) , recorded = , venue = ...

'' (ベルサレム, October 6, 2004) Oricon Weekly Album Position: 189www.oricon.co.jp
12012 Album Rankings ''retrieved Nov 4 2010'' * ''

Knight Mare ''Knight Mare'' is the third EP by the band 12012, released on November 3, 2004, being the second release of a three-month release campaign. Track listing # "Nightmare" - 00:43 # "Shinsoku" (浸色) - 4:23 # "Aren't you Dead Yet?" - 4:36 # "Sh ...

'' (November 3, 2004) 166 * ''

Shin -Deep- {{Infobox album , name = Shin -Deep- (深～deep～) , type = EP , artist = 12012 , cover = 12012 - Shin Deep.jpg , alt = , released = December 1, 2004December 13, 2006 (Reissue) , recorded = , venue = , ...

'' (, December, 2004) 179 * '' Doku'' (June 1, 2005) * ''Deicida of Silence'' (April 24, 2013) * ''The Swan'' (September 11, 2013) * ''XII'' (October 1, 2014) ;Singles * "Depression Sign" (July 23, 2003) * "Shudder" (March 31, 2004) * "Shuu" (襲, December 12, 2004) * "Hitori" (独, February 11, 2005) * "Swallow" (March 16, 2005) Oricon Weekly Single Position: 69www.oricon.co.jp
12012 Single Rankings ''retrieved Nov 4 2010'' * "Sick" (March 16, 2005) 71 * "Depression Sign -Kanzen Ban-" (, June 15, 2005) 105 * " Shudder -Kanzen Ban-" (, June 15, 2005) 101 * "Icy -Cold City-" (12 December 2005) * "Orion" (February 17, 2006) * "Heart" (May 10, 2006) 86 * "Pistol" (September 20, 2006) 90 * "Wana" (罠, October 18, 2006) 58 * "Over..." (November 15, 2006) 66 * "Cyclone" (サイクロン, June 13, 2007) 20 * "Shine" (October 17, 2007) 23 * "Merry Go World" (April 16, 2008) 20 * "Taiyou" (太陽, August 20, 2008) 28 * "Aitai Kara...." (逢いたいから...., October 29, 2008) 33 * "As" (January 21, 2009) 29 * "Hallelujah" (February 18, 2009) 37 * "Usubeni to Ame"(薄紅と雨, October 7, 2009) * "Tattoo" (February 24, 2010) 38 * "The Pain of Catastrophe" (May 26, 2010) 49 ;Video * ''Heart: the Clip'' (May 31, 2006) * ''Just The Way You Are'' ;DVD * ''Crom'' (April 20, 2005) * ''Created Movie 1 ~Kakuu Toshi Taihai Byōsha~'' (, July 27, 2005) * ''Macrograph'' (September 28, 2005) * ''Shock Wave CD the Select imited Release' (2005/10/26) * ''Hide & Seek ~Tour 2006~'' (August 30, 2006) * ''Jappanesque Rock Collectionz Cure DVD 02'' (October 25, 2006) * ''Created Movie 2 - modern films '' (December 13, 2006) * ''Bands Shock DVD Vol.2 '' (December 24, 2006) * ''XII Party'' (February 21, 2007) * ''Chikasen Shingen Nagashima Kichi '' (March 28, 2007) * ''Shinki – Graduation & Deperture 2007.2.14 Shibuya Kokaido'' (May 30, 2007) * ''5th Anniversary Special Live Arashi'' (5th Anniversary Special Live 「嵐」, September 24, 2008) * ''Extra-territorial 2010.05.05 at Shibuya-AX '' (August 25, 2010) * ''Muhouchitai''「無法地帯」, March 31, 2010) ;Various Artist compilation * ''Crush! -90's V-Rock Best hit Cover Songs-'' (January 26, 2011, cover of Glay's "Winter, Again") ;Books * ''Croon After the Bed'' (January 25, 2006) * ''Deracine'' (May 25, 2006) * ''Garnet Star'' (May 25, 2006) * ''Shoxx Tokubetsu Henshu – Over the Edge 2008 Edition.1'' (February 2009) * ''Eztra-Territorial 2010 Official Book''(June 2010)

References

External links

Official blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:12012 Gan-Shin artists Universal Music Japan artists Visual kei musical groups Japanese alternative metal musical groups Japanese hard rock musical groups Japanese alternative rock groups Japanese metalcore musical groups Japanese hardcore punk groups Musical groups from Osaka Prefecture