, is a Japanese metal idol group that was founded in 2013.

History

Passcode was formed in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

in 2013 and consists of the four vocalists Nao Minami, Kaede Takashima, Emily Arima and Hinako Ōgami. Passcode is supported by a

backup band A backup band or backing band is a musical ensemble that typically accompanies a single artist who is the featured performer. The situation may be a live performance or in a recording session, and the group may or may not have its own name, such ...

. After releasing several singles and albums on smaller labels, the group signed to

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 ...

and released their second full-length album ''Zenith'' in 2017. In 2018 the band signed with British record label

JPU Records JPU Records is a British record label formed in 2012, which specializes in handling international releases by Japanese artists. Notable acts on JPU's roster include The Gazette, Band-Maid, Lovebites, and Nemophila. History The label was est ...

and released a best-of record called ''Ex Libris Passcode'' in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

. Their song "Ichika Bachika" became the opening song for the second season of the live-action film adaption of ''Kakegurui''. In June 2020, their ninth single "Starry Sky" debuted at number 1 on the Japanese ''

Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan and Western music. It started as, which was founded by Sōkō Koike in N ...

'' weekly singles chart and the ''

Billboard Japan ''Billboard Japan'' is a sister organization of the U.S.-based music magazine '' Billboard''. It is operated by the Japanese Osaka-based company Hanshin Contents Link (a subsidiary of Hanshin Electric Railway is a Japanese private railway compa ...

'' Top Singles Sales chart, selling over 7,000 units in its first week after release.

Musical style

The musical style of Passcode can be described as

kawaii metal Kawaii metal (also known as idol metal, cute metal, J-pop metal or kawaiicore) is a musical genre that blends elements of heavy metal and J-pop that was pioneered in Japan in the early 2010s. The genre combines both Eastern and Western influence ...

. Some vocalists use harsh vocals next to cleans. Yuna Imada contributed the harsh vocals before her retirement in 2021, with the job now handled by former

Ladybaby Ladybaby is a Japanese kawaii metal musical group, which originally consisted of aspiring photographic models Rie Kaneko (the only original member still in the group) and Rei Kuromiya, as well as Ladybeard, the bearded crossdressing persona of ...

member Emily Arima. Kaede Takashima uses the harsh vocals in some tracks like "Taking You Out" and "Club Kids Never Die". The band uses

Auto-Tune Auto-Tune (or autotune) is an audio processor introduced in 1996 by American company Antares Audio Technologies. Auto-Tune uses a proprietary device to measure and alter pitch in vocal and instrumental music recording and performances. Auto-T ...

while singing. The band mixes

metalcore Metalcore (also known as metallic hardcore) is a fusion music genre that combines elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. As with other styles blending metal and hardcore, such as crust punk and grindcore, metalcore is noted for its use ...

with

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstra ...

and

J-pop J-pop ( ja, ジェイポップ, ''jeipoppu''; often stylized as J-POP; an abbreviated form of "Japanese popular music"), natively also known simply as , is the name for a form of popular music that entered the musical mainstream of Japan in the ...

. The songs are written in Japanese language and contain English-language parts as well.

Members

*Nao Minami – vocals, and dancer (2013–present) *Kaede Takashima – vocals, and dancer (2014–present) *Hinako Ōgami – vocals, and dancer (2015–present) * Emily Arima - vocals, and dancer (2021–present) 2023-02-Menber-Timeline

Past members *Reika Kanzaki – vocals, and dancer (2013) *Saki Sakurai – vocals, and dancer (2013) *Kyōko Kazuki – vocals, and dancer (2013) *Yūri Kurohara – vocals, and dancer (2013–2015) *Yuna Imada - vocals, and dancer (2014–2021)

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Compilations

Live albums

Singles

DVD / Blu-ray

Music videos

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control Japanese idol groups Japanese girl groups Japanese women in electronic music Japanese metalcore musical groups Kawaii metal musical groups Electronicore musical groups Screamo musical groups Musical groups established in 2013 Musical groups from Osaka Vocal quartets 2013 establishments in Japan Universal Music Japan artists