Berlin, Germany

With a sound that mixes glam, goth, and new wave -- plus the haircuts to match -- Germany's Cinema Bizarre came on the scene in 2007 with the plaintive hit "Lovesongs (They Kill Me)." Bandmembers Kiro, Strify, and Yu originally met in 2005 at the anime convention Animagic, held annually in Berlin. They were all musicians, so forming a band seemed the natural thing to do. They became Cinema Bizarre by adding members Luminor and Shin and adopting an edgy, gothic look that was inspired by the flamboyant Visual Kei scene in Japan. Their debut album, Final Attraction, was released in October of 2007 on the Island label. ~ David Jeffries