Visual Kei is a Japanese music movement and subculture that has been popular since the 1980’ s. The artists wear makeup, have elaborate hairstyles and costumes, usually coupled with androgynous aesthetics. Visual Kei began in the mid-1980’ s, with bands such as X JAPAN, D’ ERLANGER and COLOR. Inspired by the punk, glam metal, and gothic rock movements, the first wave of bands put emphasis on shocking visuals, often done through elaborate stage performances, eccentric hairstyles, and flamboyant attire, traits that would become staples of the entire movement. Visual Kei artists are easily identified by their outward appearance, consisting of shaggy or spiky anime-esque hair, gothic or punk-inspired attire, makeup, and accessories, traits that form the basis of the archetypal VK look. However, like the music, the style has no limits. Visual kei fashion draws influence from a wide variety of well-established fashion styles and can range from the subtle to the extreme. Visual kei fashion is characterized by individuality, aesthetic appeal and different clothing combinations. Visual kei fashion is based around an ecletic fusion of rock, punk, metal, and contemporary fashion, however, there are very few, if no rules or limits at all, as to what visual kei artists can wear, and it is very common among the subculture for artists to experiment with different fashion styles. Common outfit choices include vests, formal suits, skinny jeans, jackets, capes, and coats. Bondage gear and leather clothes are popular choices as well. Some bands, wear anime-inspired attire, even going as far as wearing costumes. Visual kei puts a huge empasis on artistic freedom, shock value, and metrosexual aesthetics. It is a unisex style, and as such, many artists opt for an androgynous look, which adds shock value and fan appeal. Male artists in visual kei
often have lean, slender figures to fit the demands of the style, and it is not uncommon for male artists to adopt a semi-feminine appearance, complete with long, stylish hair and feminine-looking attire. It is quite popular among visual kei artists to cross-dress or take an entirely feminine appearance, with examples like HIZAKI and the late Jasmine You of Versailles, Mana of Moi Dix Mois( ex-MALICE MIZER), Isshiki Hiyori of Kiryu and, formerly, Toshiya and Shinya of Dir en grey. On the other end of the spectrum, VK bands such as The GazettE opt for more aggressive stylings, characterized by dark, BDSM-inspired clothing, spiky hair, pale / natural-looking makeup and a more punk / metal image.
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