Raphael

Raphael were a visual kei band from Japan. Forming in 1997, the members were only 15 when the band was formed. They were signed to a major label in 1999, and their major debut single, "Hanasaku Inochi Aru Kagiri", was a moderate success, reaching number 25 on the Oricon charts. They were known for their impressive style, which had an aggressive, progressive tone, with angelic melodies by frontman Yuki. By the summer of 2000, they were at their career peak, and their albums were selling pretty well for such a young band. However, on Halloween 2000, the guitarist and main songwriter of the band, Kazuki, died at the young age of 19. Soon after that, the band decided it was time to split. The vocalist (Yuki) and the drummer (Kazuhiro) formed Rice later that year, while the bassist (Yukito) embarked on a solo project. The band was resurrected for a short time in 2012 with all remaining members to celebrate Kazuki's 13th memorial. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.