Livetune
Encyclopedia
Livetune is a Japanese music group which formed in 2007 as a dōjin music
group. The band originally consisted of two members, Kz and Kajuki P, but Kajuki P left the group in March 2009. Livetune started out by making use of the Hatsune Miku
singing synthesizer to produce vocals for songs submitted to the Nico Nico Douga
video sharing
website. The popularity of the songs led the group to release the independent album Re:package at Comiket 73
in December 2007. Livetune made its major debut with Victor Entertainment
with the professional release of their Re:package album in August 2008, which was updated with more songs. A remix album
followed in March 2009 titled Re:Mikus, containing remix
ed songs from Re:package. Livetune released its first single "Kotchi Muite Baby/Yellow" in July 2010 as a split single
with fellow dōjin musician Ryo of Supercell
. Kz composed the song "Irony" sung by ClariS
, which was used as the opening theme song to the anime series Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai
.
singing synthesizer software Hatsune Miku
on August 31, 2007, Kz submitted a short version of the song "Packaged" to the Nico Nico Douga
video sharing
website on September 21, 2007 using Miku for the vocals. The full version was submitted on September 24, 2007 and has since been viewed over 1 million times. The song was also posted on the Muzie music sharing website. Kajuki P released the song on September 23, 2007. Kz and Kajuki P continued to release songs online, leading to the release of their album Re:package at Comiket 73 in December 2007. Re:package contained their previously released songs in addition to several previously unreleased songs. The album was so popular that it was reported to sell out in a flash.
Livetune made their major debut with Victor Entertainment
with the professional release of their Re:package album on August 27, 2008. The updated release contained three more songs than the original, as well as the full version of "Over16bit!" and an updated version of "Packaged (piano ver.)". he album obtained a No. 5 ranking on Oricon
's weekly albums chart after selling over 20,000 copies in its first week. Livetune released the remix album
Re:Mikus on March 25, 2009 under Victor Entertainment, which contained remix
ed song from R:package, as well as four additional songs. Kajuki P left Livetune in March 2009. Kz collaborated with manga artist
Masami Yuki
to produce the concept album
Crosslight released on August 26, 2009 containing tracks sung by Hatsune Miku and Vocaloid 2 Gumi.
Livetune's first single is a split single
with fellow dōjin musician Ryo of Supercell
; both songs are theme songs to the video game Hatsune Miku: Project Diva 2nd
. The single was released by Sony Music Direct
on July 14, 2010 in Japan. Kz composed the song "Irony" sung by ClariS
, which was used as the opening theme song to the anime series Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai
; the single for "Irony" was released on October 20, 2010.
In late 2010, Shibuya, Tokyo
-based company INCS toenter established the major record label
TamStar Records for musicians and artists who originally made their debut as dōjin music artists online. Livetune joined the label as one of the inaugural members, including others such as Supercell, Gom, Rapbit, and Nagi Yanagi. Livetune collaborated on a compilation album
titled TamStar Records Collection Vol. 0 released as a limited edition at Comiket 79 in December 2010. Kz again collaborated with ClariS by composing their third single "Nexus", which was released on September 14, 2011. Kz composed the song for Kotoko, which appeared on her 2011 album Hiraku Uchuu Pocket.
Remix albums
Dojin music
, also called in Japan, is a sub-category of dōjin activity. Dōjin are basically non-official self-published Japanese works which can be based on official products or completely original creations...
group. The band originally consisted of two members, Kz and Kajuki P, but Kajuki P left the group in March 2009. Livetune started out by making use of the Hatsune Miku
Hatsune Miku
is a singing synthesizer application with a female persona, developed by Crypton Future Media. It uses Yamaha Corporation's Vocaloid 2 synthesizing technology. The name of the character comes from a fusion of the Japanese for , and future , referring to her position as the first of Crypton's...
singing synthesizer to produce vocals for songs submitted to the Nico Nico Douga
Nico Nico Douga
is a popular video sharing website in Japan managed by Niwango, a subsidiary of Dwango. Its nickname is "Niconico" or "Nico-dō", where "nikoniko" is the Japanese ideophone for smiling. Nico Nico Douga is the thirteenth most visited website in Japan...
video sharing
Video sharing
Video hosting services refers to websites or software where users can distribute their video clips. Other sites such as file hosting services image hosting services and social network services might support video sharing as an enhancement to their primary mission, but in general, they are not...
website. The popularity of the songs led the group to release the independent album Re:package at Comiket 73
Comiket
, otherwise known as the , is the world's largest self-published comic book fair, held twice a year in Tokyo, Japan. The first Comiket was held on December 21, 1975, with only about 32 participating circles and an estimated 600 attendees. Attendance has since swelled to over a half million people....
in December 2007. Livetune made its major debut with Victor Entertainment
Victor Entertainment
is a subsidiary of Japan Victor Company that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It was formerly known as...
with the professional release of their Re:package album in August 2008, which was updated with more songs. A remix album
Remix album
A remix album is an album consisting mostly of remixes or re-recorded versions of a music artists' earlier released material.One of the earliest remix albums was 1971's Aerial Pandemonium Ballet by Harry Nilsson, which was released by Nilsson after the successes of Everybody's Talkin and The Point!...
followed in March 2009 titled Re:Mikus, containing remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
ed songs from Re:package. Livetune released its first single "Kotchi Muite Baby/Yellow" in July 2010 as a split single
Split album
A split album is a music album which includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There have been singles and EPs released in the same nature, which can be referred to as split singles and split EPs respectively...
with fellow dōjin musician Ryo of Supercell
Supercell (band)
Supercell is a Japanese 11-member music group led by composer and lyricist Ryo which formed in 2007 as a dōjin music group. Supercell started out by making use of the Hatsune Miku singing synthesizer to produce vocals for songs submitted to the Nico Nico Douga video sharing website...
. Kz composed the song "Irony" sung by ClariS
ClariS
ClariS is a Japanese pop music duo consisting of junior high school girls Clara and Alice. Originally known as "Alice Clara", ClariS began singing covers of mainly songs featured in anime and songs originally sung by Vocaloids, and submitting them to the Nico Nico Douga video sharing website...
, which was used as the opening theme song to the anime series Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai
Ore no Imoto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai
, also known as or for short, is a Japanese light novel series written by Tsukasa Fushimi, with illustrations provided by Hiro Kanzaki. Nine volumes have been published since August 2008. A manga adaptation drawn by Sakura Ikeda was serialized in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki G's Magazine. A...
.
History
Following the release of the Vocaloid 2Vocaloid
is a singing synthesizer application, with its signal processing part developed through a joint research project between the Pompeu Fabra University in Spain and Japan's Yamaha Corporation, who backed the development financially—and later developed the software into the commercial product...
singing synthesizer software Hatsune Miku
Hatsune Miku
is a singing synthesizer application with a female persona, developed by Crypton Future Media. It uses Yamaha Corporation's Vocaloid 2 synthesizing technology. The name of the character comes from a fusion of the Japanese for , and future , referring to her position as the first of Crypton's...
on August 31, 2007, Kz submitted a short version of the song "Packaged" to the Nico Nico Douga
Nico Nico Douga
is a popular video sharing website in Japan managed by Niwango, a subsidiary of Dwango. Its nickname is "Niconico" or "Nico-dō", where "nikoniko" is the Japanese ideophone for smiling. Nico Nico Douga is the thirteenth most visited website in Japan...
video sharing
Video sharing
Video hosting services refers to websites or software where users can distribute their video clips. Other sites such as file hosting services image hosting services and social network services might support video sharing as an enhancement to their primary mission, but in general, they are not...
website on September 21, 2007 using Miku for the vocals. The full version was submitted on September 24, 2007 and has since been viewed over 1 million times. The song was also posted on the Muzie music sharing website. Kajuki P released the song on September 23, 2007. Kz and Kajuki P continued to release songs online, leading to the release of their album Re:package at Comiket 73 in December 2007. Re:package contained their previously released songs in addition to several previously unreleased songs. The album was so popular that it was reported to sell out in a flash.
Livetune made their major debut with Victor Entertainment
Victor Entertainment
is a subsidiary of Japan Victor Company that produces and distributes music, movies and other entertainment products such as anime and television shows in Japan. It was formerly known as...
with the professional release of their Re:package album on August 27, 2008. The updated release contained three more songs than the original, as well as the full version of "Over16bit!" and an updated version of "Packaged (piano ver.)". he album obtained a No. 5 ranking on Oricon
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. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
's weekly albums chart after selling over 20,000 copies in its first week. Livetune released the remix album
Remix album
A remix album is an album consisting mostly of remixes or re-recorded versions of a music artists' earlier released material.One of the earliest remix albums was 1971's Aerial Pandemonium Ballet by Harry Nilsson, which was released by Nilsson after the successes of Everybody's Talkin and The Point!...
Re:Mikus on March 25, 2009 under Victor Entertainment, which contained remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
ed song from R:package, as well as four additional songs. Kajuki P left Livetune in March 2009. Kz collaborated with manga artist
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
Masami Yuki
Masami Yuki
, real name Shūji Satō , is a manga artist.Yuki graduated from Kutchan High School. He is a member of the artist group known as Headgear...
to produce the concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
Crosslight released on August 26, 2009 containing tracks sung by Hatsune Miku and Vocaloid 2 Gumi.
Livetune's first single is a split single
Split album
A split album is a music album which includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There have been singles and EPs released in the same nature, which can be referred to as split singles and split EPs respectively...
with fellow dōjin musician Ryo of Supercell
Supercell (band)
Supercell is a Japanese 11-member music group led by composer and lyricist Ryo which formed in 2007 as a dōjin music group. Supercell started out by making use of the Hatsune Miku singing synthesizer to produce vocals for songs submitted to the Nico Nico Douga video sharing website...
; both songs are theme songs to the video game Hatsune Miku: Project Diva 2nd
Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA
is a rhythm game created by Sega and Crypton Future Media for the PlayStation Portable featuring the virtual-diva vocaloid Hatsune Miku.-Gameplay:...
. The single was released by Sony Music Direct
Sony Music Entertainment Japan
is Sony's music arm in Japan. SMEJ is directly owned by Sony Corporation and independent from the United States-based Sony Music Entertainment due to its strength in the Japanese music industry....
on July 14, 2010 in Japan. Kz composed the song "Irony" sung by ClariS
ClariS
ClariS is a Japanese pop music duo consisting of junior high school girls Clara and Alice. Originally known as "Alice Clara", ClariS began singing covers of mainly songs featured in anime and songs originally sung by Vocaloids, and submitting them to the Nico Nico Douga video sharing website...
, which was used as the opening theme song to the anime series Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai
Ore no Imoto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai
, also known as or for short, is a Japanese light novel series written by Tsukasa Fushimi, with illustrations provided by Hiro Kanzaki. Nine volumes have been published since August 2008. A manga adaptation drawn by Sakura Ikeda was serialized in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki G's Magazine. A...
; the single for "Irony" was released on October 20, 2010.
In late 2010, Shibuya, Tokyo
Shibuya, Tokyo
is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. As of 2008, it has an estimated population of 208,371 and a population density of 13,540 persons per km². The total area is 15.11 km²....
-based company INCS toenter established the major record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
TamStar Records for musicians and artists who originally made their debut as dōjin music artists online. Livetune joined the label as one of the inaugural members, including others such as Supercell, Gom, Rapbit, and Nagi Yanagi. Livetune collaborated on a compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
titled TamStar Records Collection Vol. 0 released as a limited edition at Comiket 79 in December 2010. Kz again collaborated with ClariS by composing their third single "Nexus", which was released on September 14, 2011. Kz composed the song for Kotoko, which appeared on her 2011 album Hiraku Uchuu Pocket.
Albums
Studio albums| Year | Album details | Peak Oricon 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. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Re:package
|
5 |
Remix albums
| Year | Album details | Peak Oricon chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Re:Mikus
|
18 |
Singles
Collaborations| Year | Song | Peak Oricon chart positions |
Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | "Kotchi Muite Baby/Yellow" (with Ryo of Supercell) | 9 |
Various artist compilation albums
| Year | Song(s) | Album | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | "Packaged" | Exit Tunes Presents Vocarhythm feat. Hatsune Miku | An album containing original songs sung by Hatsune Miku. | |
| "Far Away" "Star Story" |
Hatsune Miku: Project Diva Original Song Collection | Original soundtrack to the video game Hatsune Miku: Project Diva Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA is a rhythm game created by Sega and Crypton Future Media for the PlayStation Portable featuring the virtual-diva vocaloid Hatsune Miku.-Gameplay:... . |
||
| "Packaged" | Hatsune Miku Best: Memories | Two best of Greatest hits A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band... albums sold in commemoration of Hatsune Miku's second-year anniversary. |
||
| "Last Night, Good Night" | Hatsune Miku Best: Impacts | |||
| "Meari Hito" | Hen Janai, Tada no Shitsuren no Yō da | Kz composed the song for Haruko Momoi Haruko Momoi is a Japanese voice actress and singer/songwriter. She was born in Tokyo, Japan and is affectionately referred to as 'Halko' by her fans, a nickname she gave herself which is inspired by HAL 9000, the onboard computer of the Discovery in 2001: A Space Odyssey.... 's album. |
||
| "Finder" | Exit Tunes Presents Shinkyoku o Utattemita | An album containing Vocaloid songs sung by popular Internet singers. "Finder" is sung by Ritsuka. | ||
| "Haruka Naru Toki no Kanata e" | Love SQ | A remix album with songs related to Square Enix Square Enix is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series... video games. "Haruka Naru Toki no Kanata e" is from Chrono Trigger Chrono Trigger is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1995. Chrono Triggers development team included three designers that Square dubbed the "Dream Team": Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Square's Final Fantasy series; Yuji Horii, a... . |
||
| 2010 | "Hen Janai, Tada no Shitsuren no Yō da" | Momo-i Reixes Akihaba Love | A remix album for Haruko Momoi Haruko Momoi is a Japanese voice actress and singer/songwriter. She was born in Tokyo, Japan and is affectionately referred to as 'Halko' by her fans, a nickname she gave herself which is inspired by HAL 9000, the onboard computer of the Discovery in 2001: A Space Odyssey.... . |
|
| "Finder" "Yellow" |
Hatsune Miku: Project Diva 2nd Nonstop Mix Collection | A compilation album for the video game Hatsune Miku: Project Diva 2nd Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA is a rhythm game created by Sega and Crypton Future Media for the PlayStation Portable featuring the virtual-diva vocaloid Hatsune Miku.-Gameplay:... . |