Lc5

Miku, frontman of the prominent oshare-kei act An Cafe, assembled LC5 as a side project after the group signed with Sony Music in 2010 and then immediately entered indefinite hiatus without laying down any tracks for the imprint. Seeking fresh material from the vocalist, the label encouraged him to form the new band using former members of Mello, Guy’s Family, and Ninjaman Japan.

LC5 adopted a restrained monochrome visual style and performed sleek, heavily ’80s-influenced pop/rock that sometimes turned melancholic, a marked contrast to An Cafe’s bright, saccharine pop-punk. Their debut single “Loveless” showcased Miku stretching his vocal range, arrived with an extravagantly theatrical video, and proved highly successful. While his established pretty-boy image and sex-symbol appeal among An Cafe followers helped, the band’s proficient and engaging sound also drew visual fans who had never followed An Cafe.

In the ensuing year the group released three more singles that sold steadily, then delivered their first album LChronicle in March 2012. Gan-Shin, the German label already handling An Cafe, picked up LC5 as well and issued the singles and album digitally throughout Europe.

An Cafe’s mid-2012 announcement of a reunion, complete with a new mini-album on Sony and a short world tour, cast doubt on LC5’s future, yet the band still made occasional live appearances through the remainder of 2012 and into the following year.