Porno Graffitti

Porno Graffitti, devoted followers of 1980s rock and named after an Extreme album, achieved greater commercial traction in their home country of Japan than a comparable Western act might have, owing to the enduring appeal that hair metal continued to hold for Japanese audiences well into the 2000s. Three students from Osaka—Akihito Okano, Haruichi Shindo, and Masami Shiratama—established the group in 1994, though several years passed before they attracted wider notice. An early demo reached a Sony executive, who turned it down while urging the musicians to gain more stage time; they followed that advice by performing regularly in clubs around Osaka and Kobe. Their persistence paid off in 1998 when they earned an invitation to a talent showcase in Tokyo, captured first place, and secured a recording deal.

The band’s first major-label single, “Apollo,” arrived in September 1999. That release opened the door to further opportunities, including the chance to contribute “Hitori No Yoru” as the theme for the hit anime Great Teacher Onizuka; the 2000 track eventually surpassed one million copies sold. From that point forward, Porno Graffitti maintained a consistent release pace, issuing one successful album annually through 2004, beginning with their debut Romantist Egoist in 2000. They also maintained ties to major anime properties, supplying the 2003 track “Melissa” for Fullmetal Alchemist. Bassist Shiratama’s departure for a solo career in 2004 reduced the lineup to a duo and caused them to skip one year of new studio albums, yet they offset the gap by issuing two career retrospectives, Best Red’s and Best Blue’s, both on July 28, 2004. The latter collection became their first release to reach the top of the Oricon chart. Their fifth studio album, Thump, followed in 2005, while M-Cabi (2006) and the self-titled set (2007) each peaked one position short of number one. In 2006 the band again contributed to anime, offering “Winding Road” for the Ayakashi Ayashi series.