Pizzicato Five actually started as far back as 1979. At a local music society meeting, two university students - Yasuharu Konishi and Keitaro Takanami, met and agreed to form a band. They recruited fellow member Ryo Kamimiya, but would not find a suitable lead vocalist until 1984, when the band settled on Mamiko Sasaki.
(Sorry, no official video.) Their first single, "Audrey Hepburn Complex" set the tone for their impending popularity, and after their 1990 single "Lover's Rock", they became one of the most popular acts in Japan.
Unfortunately, after establishing a legacy, the band announced their separation in 2001. They are known throughout Japan as the "Godfathers of the Shibuya-kei scene, Tokyo kitsch-pop deconstructionists."
