Minoru Niihara
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Minoru Niihara | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Born | March 12, 1960 |
| Origin | Osaka, Japan |
| Genre(s) | Rock, heavy metal |
| Occupation(s) | Vocalist |
| Associated acts | Loudness |
Minoru Niihara (二井原 実 Niihara Minoru?) (born March 12, 1960 in Osaka, Japan) is the original and current lead singer of the Japanese heavy metal band, Loudness.
His first band was Earthshaker, in which he played bass as he sung. He was influenced by blues music and became a member of the band in 1981. Although the first three albums was sung in Japanese, he started singing in English on their 1984 album, Disillusion.
After Loudness released Jealousy, he left the band around late-1988/early-1989 and was replaced by Mike Vescera. After working with several bands (including Ded Chaplin, Sly and XYZ-A), as well as his solo career, he returned to Loudness in 2001. He released a solo album in 2006 in addition to recording an album with XYZ-A.
