Sophia (stylized as SOPHIA) is a Japanese rock band formed in 1994 by vocalist Mitsuru Matsuoka, guitarist Kazutaka Toyota, bassist Yoshio Kuroyanagi, drummer Yoshitomo Akamatsu and keyboardist Keiichi Miyako. Currently signed to
Avex Trax
is a record label owned by Japanese entertainment conglomerate Avex Inc. The label was launched in September 1990, and was the first label by the Group.
History
Two years after Max Matsuura began a career distributing studio albums from othe ...
since 2011, they made their major debut in 1995 on
Toy's Factory
is a Japanese record label founded in the late 1980s as a subsidiary of the entertainment company VAP, based in Japan. On May 30, 1990, it was established as an independent company. It is an associate member of the Recording Industry Assoc ...
. They changed over to
Toshiba EMI in 2004, and
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 Japan regarding music distribution. The company is responsible ...
in 2009.
Their album ''Alive'' was named one of the top albums from 1989 to 1998 in a 2004 issue of the music magazine ''Band Yarouze''. Their single "Boku wa Koko ni Iru" was used as the 2nd ending theme for the anime ''
Kaleido Star
is a Japanese anime television series produced by Gonzo. The series was created by Junichi Sato, who also directed the first season, and written by Reiko Yoshida. ''Kaleido Star: New Wings'' was directed by Yoshimasa Hiraike. Three orig ...
''. Keyboardist Miyako announced on March 21, 2010, that he was diagnosed with
lymphoma
Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). The name typically refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlarged lymph node ...
, and on April 10 the band went on a hiatus. Sophia, as a quartet, was a guest of honor at
Anime Expo
Anime Expo, abbreviated AX, is an American anime convention held in Los Angeles, California and organized by the non-profit Society for the Promotion of Japanese Animation (SPJA). The convention is traditionally held annually on the first we ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
from July 1–4, 2010, having their first concert in the US on the 3rd. The group ended the hiatus on August 13, 2011, after a live show at the
Nippon Budokan
The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. The Budokan was a popular venue for Japanese professional wres ...
, but eventually ended up disbanding for good on August 12, 2013, following one more live show at the Nippon Budokan. On March 27, 2022, Sophia announced their reformation, and played their comeback live on October 11 of that year at the Nippon Budokan.
Sophia is often considered a
visual kei
, abbreviated , is a category of Japanese musicians that have a strong focus on extravagant stage costumes that originated in Japan during the early 1980s. Koji Dejima of '' Bounce'' wrote that visual kei is not a specific sound, but rather it " ...
band, despite the fact that for nearly their entire career their appearance was tame compared to most others in the movement. On October 23, 2011, the band performed at V-Rock Festival 2011. Their song "Machi" was covered by
Doremidan on the compilation ''Crush! (90's V-Rock Best Hit Cover Songs)'', which was released on January 26, 2011, and features current visual kei bands covering songs from bands that were important to the '90s visual kei movement.
[
] "Gokigen Tori (Crawler Is Crazy)" was covered by Annie's Black on its sequel, ''Crush! 2 (90's V-Rock Best Hit Cover Songs)'', that was released on November 23, 2011.
[
] "Eternal Flame" was covered by Makoto for ''Crash! 3 (90's V-Rock Best Hit Cover Love Songs)'', which was released on June 27, 2012, and featured then-current visual kei bands covering love songs by visual kei bands of the '90s.
[
]
Members
* – vocals
* – guitar
* – bass guitar
* – drums
* – keyboards
Discography
Albums
Studio albums
*(1997.04.23) ''Little Circus''
*(1998.05.20) ''Alive''
*(1999.04.14) ''Material'' ()
*(2001.03.07) ''Shinkaron'' ( / ''Theory of Evolution'')
*(2003.09.25) ''Yume'' ( / ''Dream'')
*(2004.09.15) ''Everblue''
*(2006.03.23) ''We''
*(2007.10.10) ''2007''
*(2009.06.24) ''Band Age''
*(2013.03.06) ''Mirai Otona Sengen'' ()
Live
*(2000.01.01) ''1999''
Compilations
*(2001.12.19) ''The Short Hand: Singles Collection'' (singles)
*(2001.12.19) ''The Long Hand: Members' Selection'' (album tracks + B-sides)
*(2005.11.02) ''10th Anniversary Best'' (fan-selected singles collection)
*(2010.01.20) ''15'' (15th anniversary song remake album)
*(2011.01.19) ''All Singles (A)'' (Complete singles)
*(2011.01.19) ''All B-Side (B)'' (complete B-sides)
*(2011.01.19) ''All: 1995–2010'' (complete singles and B-side tracks)
EPs
*(1995.03.21) ''Sophia'' (independent demo)
*(1995.10.02) ''Boys''
*(1995.11.01) ''Girls''
*(1996.07.01) ''Kiss the Future''
Singles
*(1996.04.22) "Himawari" ( / "Sunflower")
*(1996.05.21) "Early Summer Rain"
*(1996.11.11) "Believe"
*(1997.02.19) "Little Cloud"
*(1997.07.09) "Machi" ( / Town)
*(1997.11.27) "Kimi to Yurete Itai" ( / "I Want to be Swaying with You")
*(1998.04.22) "Gokigen Tori (Crawler Is Crazy)" ( / "High-spirited Bird")
*(1998.11.26) "Kuroi Boots (Oh My Friend)" ( / "Black Boots")
*(1999.03.25) "Beautiful" ()
*(1999.08.04) "Place"
*(1999.12.15) "Oar"
*(2000.02.02) "Missile" ()
*(2000.10.18) "Walk"
*(2001.01.17) "Shinkaron (Good Morning! – Hello! 21st-Century)" ( / "Theory of Evolution")
*(2001.06.13) "Kuru Kuru"
*(2001.09.05) "Strawberry & Lion"
*(2001.11.21) "Thank You"
*(2002.02.27) "Hard Worker"
*(2002.06.19) "Rock Star"
*(2002.10.09) "Mada Minu Keshiki" ( / "As Yet Unseen Landscape")
*(2003.01.01) "Wake Naki New Days" ( / "No Reason New Days"; +separate limited edition version)
*(2003.07.30) "Boku wa Koko ni Iru" ( / "I'm Here")
*(2004.05.12) "Tabi no Tochū" ( / "On a Trip"; limited)
*(2004.05.19) "Please, Please" (limited)
*(2004.05.26) "Hana wa Karete Mata Saku" ( / "A Flower Withers Then Later Blooms"; limited)
*(2004.08.04) "Aoi Kisetsu" ( / "Blue Season")
*(2005.04.27) "Answer (Ichiban Tadashii Kotae)" ( / "Answer (Most Correct Answer)")
*(2005.07.06) "One Summer Day"
*(2006.02.22) "Endroll" () / "Brother & Sister" (+separate limited edition version)
*(2006.10.18) "Stain"
*(2007.03.21) "Kimi to Tsuki no Hikari" ( / "You and the Moonlight"; +separate limited edition version)
*(2007.07.18) "Hoshi" ( / "Star")
*(2007.09.12) "Aozora no Kakera" ( / "Piece of Blue Sky")
*(2009.05.06) "Baby Smile"
*(2011.07.27) "Cod-E: E no Angō" ( / "Cod-E: The Code of E")
*(2012.01.11) "Rainbow Rain/Sayonara Itoshi no Peter Pan Syndrome" (rainbow rain／)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sophia
Avex Group artists
Universal Music Japan artists
Toy's Factory artists
Visual kei musical groups
Japanese alternative rock groups
Japanese pop rock music groups
Japanese power pop groups
Japanese art rock groups
Japanese musical quintets
Musical groups established in 1994
Musical groups from Osaka