Ér was a 3-member band formed in 1992, that played synthesized music ranging from energetic techno to graceful, ethereal melodies. The band was started by Yukino (keyboard/programming) and Shona (guitar) in November of 1992; they played their first live at the Kyoto Muse Hall on 2/17/1993 with this lineup. The band would not be complete, however, until the addition of vocalist Hinao, who joined Ér in November of that year. From there on, Ér's fortunes rose steadily as they released demos, participated in omnibus CDs, and played various live events, culminating in a oneman live on 10/27/1995 at the Esaka Boomin Hall.
The band's activities after this point are somewhat unclear; Ér performed several lives in 1996 with Kuroneko, later of Onmyo-za, on vocals rather than Hinao. No official releases were made during this time; records survive only in the form of videos taken at the live house, which have leaked onto Youtube in the intervening years.
Hinao seems to have started solo activities in 1996 as well and released at least one demo tape, though no copies of this have surfaced. In May of 1996, Ér also contributed two tracks (with Hinao on vocals) to the omnibus "DISEASE VERY CONTAGIOUSE", produced by Vintage Bar.
In any event, the official Ér website terms 2/17/1998 as the date on which activities officially stopped. After this, the band went into seclusion for several years. In August 2002, they resurfaced under their original lineup with a new website, and announced the release of two CDs, "e:rg" (4 tracks, 1995-1996 era) and "Ex Orient Lux" (pre-1995 era). After the release of "e:rg" on 3/3/2003, there was another period of silence lasting until February 2005, when the official site was moved and relaunched. A final disc, "The Third" - an expanded re-release of Ér's third demotape "sefira" - was released on 5/5/2005.
The history of Ér per se comes to a close approximately a year later; after another period of silence the official website was closed and activities ceased on 4/18/2006. Hinako (as she now calls herself) has written several songs for online distribution, mostly instrumental, since then, but has not performed in any more bands; the other two members have retired altogether from public life. And here our story must end -- for now.