School of Rock
Random article All articles A–Z
2 languages

Perfume

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Perfume is a Japanese girl group made up of Nocchi, Kashiyuka and A-chan. They began in 2000 in Hiroshima, where they found each other as pupils at a talent school. Three years later they moved to Tokyo and joined the management agency Amuse. There they worked with the producer Yasutaka Nakata, who devised a technopop identity for the group. The name Perfume, Japanese for fragrance, refers to a character that appeared in the names of the first members. The idea behind it is that a scent can calm feelings or make people happy, and that the group wants to do the same.

Music and breakthrough

After a series of indie singles, Perfume made its major-label debut in 2005 with Linear Motor Girl. The first records sold modestly, but in 2007 the breakthrough followed with the single Polyrhythm. The 2008 debut album Game was the start of a run of nine consecutive number-one albums. Then came, among others, Triangle (2009), JPN (2011) and Level3 (2013). In 2012 the group signed with Universal Music Group to reach a larger audience abroad as well.

Influence

The early music has a sound that derives from Shibuya-kei. Later the group moved towards contemporary electronic dance music, with elements of bitpop, techno and house. The voices are heavily processed with Auto-Tune and vocoders. Their performances stand out for the choreography and the futuristic imagery. For pop history, Perfume shows how Japanese technopop, with dance steps and electronics, could win a large audience. In 2024 and 2025 the two-part album Nebula Romance was released, for the group's twenty-fifth anniversary.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Polyrhythm. Notice the processed, almost robotic voices and how the electronic rhythms interlock beneath the vocals.

Discography

Studio albums

See also

Categories: ArtistsJ-pop