Minoru Niihara (??? ?, 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 and sang. His vocal style was influenced by blues singers, but he adapted quickly his voice to the high pitch tones requested in a heavy metal act. He was selected after an audition to become the lead singer of Loudness in 1981 and his voice, together with the flashy guitar work of guitarist Akira Takasaki were recognized as a trademark of the band. Although the first three albums were sung using mostly Japanese lyrics, he started singing in English only on their 1984 album, Disillusion.After Loudness released Jealousy, he left the band in 1988 and was replaced by the American singer Mike Vescera. After working with several bands (including Ded Chaplin, Sly and X.Y.Z.?A), as well as his solo career, he returned to Loudness in 2001. He released two solo albums: One in 1989 and Ashes To Glory in 2006, in addition to recording many albums with Sly and X.Y.Z.?A. In 2008 he formed a parallel band called Nishidera Minoru, with Show-Ya's singer Keiko Terada and Earthshaker's singer Masafumi ”Marcy” Nishida. This new band released an album and produced and organized the HARD NA YAON 2009 festival.
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