Oshare kei

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Oshare kei　（おしゃれ系） is a sub-set of visual kei that began to appear in Japan around 2001. Oshare means "stylish" or "fashionable". (the literal translation is "fashion conscious")

Visual kei is a music genre that began in the late 1980s and was popular during the Japanese "Band Boom" of 1988 - 1998. When Oshare began, the majority of the Visual scene was normally considered to be "dark" in style and lyrical content, with music similar to alternative, metal, and similar rock genres.

Oshare bands incorporate a sound that is influenced by modern pop punk while retaining Visual sounds such as rhythmic shouting, guitar solos and songs that are around 5 minutes in length. The lyrics, in general, tend to focus on subject matter that is positive, often about love and relationships. The clothing style is usually bright and colorful and incorporates Japanese street fashion.

Since the introduction of oshare kei, many visual bands have begun to include brighter colors and more cheerful content into the repertoire, blurring the lines between visual kei sub-genres.

It should be noted, however, that oshare and visual kei refer to a genre of band, rather than a genre of music.

Bands include: Milphinne (みるふぃね), Panic Channel (パニックちゃんねる), Antic Cafe (アンティック-珈琲店-), Clavier (Clavier～クラビア～), Heart, Vinett, HenzeL, Lolita23q (少女-ロリヰタ-23区), Ichigo69 (苺69。), Shelly Trip Realize, Ayabie (彩冷える), Charlotte（シャーロット）, Bis.