Every Little Thing generally walks the right side of the fine line between forgettable fluff and well-crafted pop. Presently a collaborative effort between vocalist Kaori Mochida and producer/programmer/keyboardist Mitsuru Igarashi, ELT was founded in 1996 when Igarashi, then a producer at the Avex Trax imprint, stumbled across a demo tape by Mochida, who was still in high school at the time. Already involved in the industry, Mochida was a member of an all-girl group called The Kuro Buta All Stars, a
Morning Musume type outfit. Impressed by her style, Igarashi waited for Mochida's graduation, then signed her to the label with the intention of forming a band with her. Guitarist Ichiro Ito, a friend of Igarashi, shortly joined the band, initially as a supporting member, but after their debut single "Feel My Heart" shot immediately to the top of the charts in 1996, he elected to stay on as a permanent member. Their first full-length,
Everlasting, went on to sell over two million units, immediately bestowing superstar status on the band, including high visibility placements of their music in television shows and advertisements and numerous model/spokesperson gigs for Mochida. A remix of the album followed shortly, selling exceptionally well for a remix album and keeping the band in the public eye. Their 1998 follow up,
Time to Destination, sold a whopping four million copies, again followed by a strong remix album. . ELT's music at this stage was still keyb...
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Every Little Thing generally walks the right side of the fine line between forgettable fluff and well-crafted pop. Presently a collaborative effort between vocalist Kaori Mochida and producer/programmer/keyboardist Mitsuru Igarashi, ELT was founded in 1996 when Igarashi, then a producer at the Avex Trax imprint, stumbled across a demo tape by Mochida, who was still in high school at the time. Already involved in the industry, Mochida was a member of an all-girl group called The Kuro Buta All Stars, a
Morning Musume type outfit. Impressed by her style, Igarashi waited for Mochida's graduation, then signed her to the label with the intention of forming a band with her. Guitarist Ichiro Ito, a friend of Igarashi, shortly joined the band, initially as a supporting member, but after their debut single "Feel My Heart" shot immediately to the top of the charts in 1996, he elected to stay on as a permanent member. Their first full-length,
Everlasting, went on to sell over two million units, immediately bestowing superstar status on the band, including high visibility placements of their music in television shows and advertisements and numerous model/spokesperson gigs for Mochida. A remix of the album followed shortly, selling exceptionally well for a remix album and keeping the band in the public eye. Their 1998 follow up,
Time to Destination, sold a whopping four million copies, again followed by a strong remix album. . ELT's music at this stage was still keyboard driven dance music, but Mochida was beginning to emerge as more than a cute face, with an honest, direct vocal style that led the band to start moving toward a more personal, songwriterly style. Igarashi left the group in the spring of 2000 to focus on producing, right around the release of ELT's third album,
Eternity, and the group continued on essentially as a duo. Another long-player,
4 Force, followed in the spring of the following year, and the band continued a busy touring and promotion schedule. 2003 saw the release of the album
Many Pieces, with
Commonplace being released in the spring of 2004. Although their popularity has wanted slightly since their heady debut days in the mid-nineties, the band remains a fixture on NHK's long-running Kohaku Uta Gassen, at Avex events like the yearly a-nation concert, and is still a frequent guest on most of the popular televised music shows. As a solo personality, Mochida has appeared on the cover of numerous fashion and music magazines, including Nonno, Seventeen, Hot Dog, Spa, and more. In addition, she has pitched products for Sea Breeze, Toyota, and others.
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