And that would be the Goddess we know as Kaya. I should be telling you all of his history, but honestly, what could I tell you that all the fansites couldn't? I'll list them below for you. Instead, I'd figured I'd tell you how I found and fell for Kaya.

I suppose it started the way most musical love affairs start. I was a huge fan of something big, and that led me to something small. I loved Malice Mizer at the time. And any fan of Malice Mizer knows that Mana, one of the band's members, is always a busy little bee. He's got a BUNCH of side projects. They also know that Mana makes a very convincing girl when dressed properly. XD

One of Mana's side projects was Schwarz Stein. They were an industrial techno kinda group. And I say 'were' because the duo is no longer together. Schwarz Stein consisted of Kaya [vocals, lyricist] and Hora [keyboardist, composer]. They had some pretty amazing songs. And Kaya seemed very much like Mana in the sense that Kaya wears dresses and most, at first glance, would think Kaya is a woman.

So when they broke up they both went and did their own thing. Hora sticks to mostly dark techno instrumentals, while Kaya began to make songs that sounded like half Malice and Half Schwarz. Most of Kaya's songs have a way of sounding timelessly elegant. So...elegant dark industrial, to give you a basic idea.

So far Kaya's got like two albums and a bunch of singles. Most are very addictive if you like japanese music and I'd be more than happy to share what I have, just pm me.


- - -Recommendations
Here are some songs of Kaya that are really amazing, at least to me anyway.

Paradise Lost - The third track on Kaya's 'Glitter' album. At first this song sounds like something out of a Tim Burton claymation. Or one of the songs the Oompa Loompas sang in the original Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. But then about a minute and a half into it, it gets very seductive and a little dancey and from there on it's like crack, so damned addictive. This song really showcases Kaya's full voice range. He hits some really amazing high notes that aren't annoying at all. Definitely a must hear.

Psycho Butterfly - Also on Kaya's 'Glitter' album. This one starts off like a music box, then just goes straight into this very techno dancey thing. When you hear Kaya's voice at first it sounds pretty ominous, but then goes really well with the beat. It's not the chorus itself that's so amazing, but rather the very end of the chorus, that would probably be the best part of the song.

Silvery Dark - If you're like me, with most J-artist that I listen to, I'd like them to have some slow songs for when my mood is particularly low. Silvery Dark is probably Kaya's perfect slow song. His voice compliments the sad piano melody very well. And again, his range of voice in this one is amazing.



- - -Links

Kaya's Official Site

Hannya [Very well put together Fansite]

Kaya LJ Community

I don't forgive the users of Mene for letting this thread go completely unloved for so long! Kaya is completely brilliant.

I've never been a big fan of Malice Mizer, and it was Mana that turned me off the most. Mainly because you never see any canny photos of him, which leads me to believe that he's just not a human being.

A couple years ago I got a hold of Schwarz Stein and I basically fell in love, even though it was a completely useless and obscure band to love, as no one was really into the gothy side of japanese rock anymore. After I heard that Kaya had moved on I had to get Glitter at all costs. After all, I do love Hora, but Kaya is much more interesting to look at. :3

Ahh, I do enjoy Kaya. I can't think of any of the names to the songs I have, as I'm just a casual fan, but his stuff is good.