About

Family Name: Amano (heaven + field)
Given Name: Tsukiko (moon + child/person)
Birthdate: November 18 (?)

Amano Tsukiko is a Japanese solo alternative artist who plays in a variety of styles. While her past is rather mysterious, she has said that she started taking piano lessons when she was 5 and music continued to be a big part of her life into high school, when she bought her first guitar. The guitar is now her preferred instrument. Amano writes all of her own music and lyrics, and also designs her own outfits, some of which are very elaborate. It is said that her big break came when she recorded a tape for a friend, who then managed to get it into the hands of Otokura Records' producers.

She released her first indies single under the label Otokura Records on April 4th, 2001 entitled Hakoniwa. The single was later re-released with a different distributor on June 1st of the same year. She went on to release one 8cm single and two more indies singles before releasing what is considered her first "major" single, Bodaijuu, on November 7th, 2001. While Otokura Records continued to assist with the production of her singles, the company Pony Canyon became her new distributor, and she released four more singles into 2002 until her debut album, Sharon Stones, was released on June 5th, 2002.

Amano released another single, and on December 4th released a second album, MEG & LiON. However, she was not experiencing much success in Japan in terms of getting her name known to the Japanese people. And, she was a virtual unknown to anyone interested in Japanese music in the West.

Her "break" came when she released her seventh major single, Chou, which was also used as the theme song for the popular survival horror video game Zero/Rei ~Akaichou~ (Fatal Frame/Project Zero II: Crimson Butterfly to those outside of Japan). Though she didn't really gain much more exposure in Japan (although her single did reached her highest Oricon Chart position yet, #49), she did catch the attention of many fans of the game elsewhere. The Chou single allowed the name Amano Tsukiko to become a known artist among the Japanese music lovers in the West.

Her third album, Tenryuu, was released on January 21st, 2004. Shortly after that, she released a B-side* album entitled Winona Riders ~Tsuki no Urugawa~. The album featured new versions of most of Amano single B-side's.

In 2005, Amano was again associated with the Rei/Zero games when she released the theme song for the third game (Shisei no Koe, or The Tormented), entitled Koe. This single remains her highest-selling single, and reached #39 on the Oricon Charts. Amano's fourth album, A MOON CHILD IN THE SKY, was released on September 21st, 2005, and is her most recent album (that is not a compilation).

The year 2006 marked Amano's fifth year of being a signed artist, and to commemorate this she released five singles simultaneously on May 31st, 2006. Karasu, Utakata, Konton -chaos-, Fukurou, and Fuusen all experienced a moderate level of success, especially considering they were not associated with either a commercial or popular media. In November of the same year, Amano released a best album, Catalog, which featured her best songs all the way back to Hakoniwa. The limited edition of Catalog, entitled Deluxe Catalog, featured another CD which had some of Amano's best non-single songs (including the unreleased track Ongaku), as well as a DVD containing the previously unreleased PV for Love Dealer -2006- and a preview for the 5th Anniversary Singles' PVs.

Following this, Amano experienced problems with the Pony Canyon company, and eventually went back to her indies distributor, Otokura Records. What would have been her 17th major single became one of her indies singles, and was called Howling. The original version of Howling was a limited edition featuring a DVD that was available through the Otokura Store. Some feared this meant her singles wouldn't be available for import anymore, but a regular edition was released only a month later.

On July 23rd, 2007, Amano released a second B-side album called Uma Saamon (Uma Salmon). This was limited to 3,000 copies and only available through the Otokura store.

In the year 2008, Amano released a brand new and eagerly anticipated single called HEAVEN'S GATE. It is unknown when her next single release will be, or if she will release a new album soon under her indies distributor.

While many things are unknown about Amano, including her age, her unique sound and powerful voice have captured the attention of many fans. It is hoped that with continued support and a little luck Amano will be able become a mainstream artist in Japan.

Foot Notes:
* - A "B-side" is a song that comes with a single, but is not the title track. The title track is called the "A-side", and usually a "B-side" is included as a song exclusive to that single and not available on any album. This comes from back when vinyl records would have an "A"-side and a "B"-side - the title track on on side, and the extra track on the other. With the invention of CDs, however, some artist have begun releasing many-A-sided singles, usually about two. Amano used to release three track singles, including the A-side, a B-side and then a remix of the A-side, but as she settled into her music career, she has been just releasing singles with an A-side and a B-side.