livetune is a semi-professional Vocaloid-based music unit consisting of kz, Hatsune Miku, and previously, かじゅきP (kajyukiP), who left the group in February 2009. They started as an amateur group who uploaded ther songs onto niconico and provided free MP3 downloads, but after releasing two commercial albums, livetune has not uploaded any non-commercial songs onto niconico. livetune is the first Vocaloid group ever to go mainstream. Also, I’d like to note that although livetune is synonymous with kz in almost all cases, kz has also done work outside of the group.

livetune’s representative works include Packaged (their debut song), Light Song, ストロボナイツ (Strobonights), and Last Night, Good Night, and is very popular on niconico, with Packaged being 43rd on the all-time Music rankings in terms of views. Due to livetune’s popularity, they have released two commercial albums, Re:package and Re:MIKUS, under Victor Entertainment.

Re:MIKUS album cover artwork. Click for full size. (Illust: redjuice)

Re:package is a commercial distribution version of their C73 album, and is notable as it consists of entirely original songs, was 5th on the Oricon Weekly rankings and 21st on the Monthly rankings, and was even praised by well-known mangaka ゆうきまさみ (Yuuki Masami) on his blog. livetune’s second album, Re:MIKUS, is a compilation of remixes by livetune of other artists’ songs and by other artists of livetune’s songs. Notable guest artists include baker, Hiroyuki ODA, and ryo (from supercell). Re:MIKUS got 18th on the Weekly Oricon rankings at the time. In addition, livetune’s music has been included in other compilation albums such as EXIT TUNES PRESENTS Vocarythm, and also in the PSP game Hatsune Miku -Project DIVA-. Two original songs, Far Away and Star Story, were written specially for the latter.

livetune’s music style is strongly of the electropop genre, more specifically house music and electro music, with a lot of vocoded vocals, upbeat tempos, strong bass beats, and highly synthesized sounds. Unlike most other Vocaloid groups, livetune also doesn’t create a new image of Miku for every song, and it is only in Last Night, Good Night that a distinct character design is created. In terms of art direction, livetune works closely with redjuice, who provided illustrations for livetune’s two albums, and also made the video and drew the artwork for Last Night, Good Night.

kz (also sometimes known as ダイソンP (DAISONP), derived from the misheard phrase “Light Song” in that song) is a DJ as well as a composer, which might be part of a reason why livetune’s music is so synth-based. Some details that you probably don’t care about are that kz uses Auto-Tune to edit Hatsune Miku’s vocals and uses a sequencer software called Ableton Live to manage and make his sound files, and due to this, livetune’s earlier videos always included the Ableton Live logo in them.

Outside of livetune, kz has also released another Vocaloid album, called Crosslight, in collaboration with the previously mentioned mangaka Yuuki Masami. kz wrote the music for the album while Yuuki provided original character designs associated with each song in the album. Crosslight also marks the first time that kz used a Vocaloid other than Hatsune Miku, as he used Megpoid/GUMI to do the vocals in COSMiCA, a track he also uploaded to niconico to promote the album.

Essential Works:
1. Packaged (niconico link)
2. Last Night, Good Night (niconico link)
3. Light Song (niconico link)

Website: http://livetune.syncl.jp/ (Japanese)
Old blog: http://livetune.dtiblog.com/ (Japanese)
Twitter: http://twitter.com/kz_lt (Japanese)
MP3 downloads: http://www.muzie.co.jp/artist/a058429/ (Provided by kz)
kz’s Mylist: http://www.nicovideo.jp/mylist/3091300
kz playlist at Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=7A9F61871444552B
Yuuki Masami’s blog entry on livetune: http://bit.ly/vLs8T (Japanese)

Illustrators

• redjuice posted a new sketch on Deviantart.
• huke shares another awesome gasmask picture. Who needs moe when you have this..?!
• CHANXCO posted the cover ilustration of his upcoming MIKUBON2 book, to be released at Comiket76.
• peachi posts a hilariously hilarious comic about Persona 4.

Music

Illustration by 三輪士郎

• 君の知らない物語 (Kimi no Shiranai Monogatari), the Bakemonogatari ED, has its full version leaked. On nicovideo it has received an overwhelming response, giving it the daily #4 ranking of all videos. I guess ryo and nagi are awesome like that.
• 恋は戦争 (Koi wa Sensou), the popular song by ryo, is being remixed by notable composers like bakerm kz, and ゆうゆ (yuuyu), and being compiled into a CD as an omake for 三輪士郎 (Miwa Shirow)’s Comiket76 Vocaloid Visual Works release.
• よっぺい (yoppei)’s new song is 七色のニコニコ動画 (Nanairo no Niconico Douga). It is #2 on the daily rankings, but I think Cagayake!GIRLS and Meltdown were better.
• shu-tP‘s new song is a very good rock song featuring MEIKO as usual. (Nicovideo link)
• REDALiCE‘s Comiket76 album will be a Touhou Project Arrange album. It has a song guest composed by kz and the album illustration was done by 晩杯あきら (Banpai Akira).

Game

• 光の四戦士－ファイナルファンタジー外伝 (Hikari no 4 Senshi – Final Fantasy Gaiden) has its characters page up. For some reason Unita reminds me of Sailor Jupiter, which is a good thing. Yoshida Akihiko is seriously the best. Profile translations available at Mognet Central.