Stylish, sophisticated, and very very smooth, Paris Match's mix of bossa, jazz, and blue-eyed soul is a favorite with Japan's cafe set. Founded by Yosuke Sugiyama, and including Tai Furusawa and Mari Mizuno, Paris Match debuted on Aosis Records in 2000 with their full-length Volume One. Far from bright-eyed amateurs, however, Sugiyama and Furusawa were already experienced veterans of the music scene. Sugiyama started his first band, Sally, at age 19 when he was still in high school....

Stylish, sophisticated, and very very smooth, Paris Match's mix of bossa, jazz, and blue-eyed soul is a favorite with Japan's cafe set. Founded by Yosuke Sugiyama, and including Tai Furusawa and Mari Mizuno, Paris Match debuted on Aosis Records in 2000 with their full-length Volume One. Far from bright-eyed amateurs, however, Sugiyama and Furusawa were already experienced veterans of the music scene. Sugiyama started his first band, Sally, at age 19 when he was still in high school. The band went on to release five records, and scored a minor hit with the tune "Virgin Blue" in 1984 when Sugiyama was 20 years old. After the band broke up, Sugiyama headed for London, where he undertook a year of formal music study. Returning to Japan, he was active in the industry in various capacities, releasing under various names including Jazoulster and Systeme-D, penning songs for other artists, and deejaying and remixing. Furusawa left college to deejay and organize events, and has written lyrics for the likes of Misia, also remixing numerous artists. Sugiyama and Furusawa originally met at one of the latter's events, at which time they decided to collaborate on a new unit. The unit was rounded out after Mizuno, a student of music since age three, slipped a demo tape to Sugiyama, who was impressed by her voice and style. Their bossa-tinged cover of The Carpenters tune "Close to You" on their debut immediately won them a following in Carpenters-crazy Japan, and after several singles, they followed up in 2001 with the strong PM2. Another cover, this time Roberta Flack's "Feel Like Makin' Love", became an instant fan favorite, and sophisticated, bass-heavy cuts like "FM" won the band radio and club airtime. Type III (2002), the Christmas-themed Song for You (2002), Quattro (2003), and Flat Five (2004) followed, interspersed with several singles, and the band continues to release consistently, maintaining a strong base of fans. The name Paris Match, often assumed to come from the French language publication of the same name, is actually taken from a cut, also by the same name, from Introducing the Style Council, the debut album from Paul Weller's Style Council.