MALICE MIZER is a legendary Japanese visual-kei rock band that existed from August 1992 to December 2001.
On this website, you can find a full release database of MALICE MIZER and the bands related to them.
On these specific pages, you’ll find a discography listing the main audio releases.
MALICE MIZER’s third single, which is also their major debut single, containing two songs. Two presses exist.
The first press was limited to 50000 copies, and reached the 20th place on the Oricon charts, which is the music sales charts of Japan. This first press contains a CD and a VHS in a cardboard box. The CD contains just the main song, without an instrumental version or B-side (extra song), and the VHS is called “ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～de l’image la selection”, and contains a trailer for the “ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～de l’image” movie. This trailer is about 5 minutes long, and has Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Étude Op. 10 No. 12 “Revolutionary” as background music, played by Yoshihiro Kondo.
Two weeks and a half later, a second press of the single released, in a more typical long cardboard case made for 8cm CD singles in Japan. This second press contains the main song, but also a B-side, “COLOR ME BLOOD RED”, and an instrumental version of the main song. It doesn’t contain a video. This second press reached the 42nd place in the Oricon charts.
After the huge succes of their final single as an independent band, MALICE MIZER got signed to a major record label. Many labels were interested, but they decided to go with Nippon Columbia (Columbia Music Entertainment), as they could have the most creative freedom with them.
They decided to go to France to create and shoot a short film of about one half hour long, which ended with a music video of this song set in the locations of the film.
The full film, called ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～de l’image, released as a standalone VHS in september of 1997, one month after this single.
The official name of the song and release are in Japanese, more specifically, in katakana characters: “ヴェル・エール”. Katakana characters are only used to adapt foreign words to Japanese. The romanisation of these charaters has been long-debated. Some say it’s Verte Aile, others say it stands for the words Vers Elle in French (Meaning: Towards her), but generally, people have come to the conclusion that the official translation “Bel Air”.
Title: ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～
Romanised: Bel Air ~Kuuhaku no toki no naka de~
Type: Single+VHS
Release Date: 1997/07/19
Catalog Number: COZA-31 & COZA-32
Label: Nippon Columbia / Maitrize
CD is placed in a jewel case inside a box together with a VHS tape. Only one song.
Title: ヴェル・エール～空白の瞬間の中で～
Romanised: Bel Air ~Kuuhaku no toki no naka de~
Type: Single
Release Date: 1997/08/06
Catalog Number: CODA-1276
Label: Nippon Columbia / Maitrize
2nd press in long, cardboard 8cm single CD case. Contains three tracks.
