Post by hisui on Sept 4, 2006 12:13:34 GMT -5
part 1:
--First off, congratulations on completing your fan club only tour "Kacho Fugetsu Vol. 1."
Everyone: Thank you!
--How was it playing for the first time in front of your fan club members?
Sho (Vo.): It was our first time in front of only the fan club so we got a chance to do something different from our normal shows, to show the audience more of what we're really like. Despite playing at the rather large Shibuya O-East, overall I felt like we were able to get closer to the hearts of our fans. Everyone in the band got a chance to talk or MC. It might have been a little tedious to the crowd, but we felt really at home (laughs). I don't know how I should put this, but I'm just glad we got a chance to play catch with the crowd.
Nao (Dr.): I'd say that it was an easy show for all sorts of reasons. I think we were able to try a bunch of things because we were playing in front of our fan club. I was glad to see that everyone welcomed us more warmly than I thought they would.
Saga (Ba.): It always feels like it's us one-on-one with the audience, but with the fan club show it felt more like the members were working with each other, member-against-member (laughs). From the band's point of view, we were able to show the audience the same everyday selves that we show each other. It was fun.
Tora (Gt.): We thought a lot about the show since it was our first time in front of our fan club. It felt like we were trying to grope for something. It was like; this time let's give them everything, a show, a talk, a hand-shaking party. I think it turned out great. I'd like to plan more events like this in the future.
Hiroto (Gt.): Lately we've gone from expanding our base to releasing an album, and then finally a show. I feel both the crowd and the band were able to grow closer since our first show in a while was in front of our fan club. I think it was a great opportunity.
--You released your first full-length album as alice nine. on April 26. Did you play any new songs from the album at your fan club only show?
Sho: The only song we played was the lead-in track "Velvet" at our Tokyo tour finale. I think our fan club members compose the core group of people that come to our shows. We decided to try "Velvet" because I wanted our fan club to hear what we were thinking as soon as possible. I wanted them to understand what we were doing and respond accordingly.
Nao: (Whispering) "And now it's up to you!"
Sho: Yeah, yeah (laughs). We want our fans to continue developing. We're throwing the question out now, and we're looking forward to seeing the answer at our second solo tour "Kimi no Hitomi ni Utsuru wa Zekkeishoku."
--How did the crowd respond after hearing the new song, "Velvet"?
Sho: How, indeed. We were still feeling the high from releasing our first album, so I think we thought the song sounded cooler than it actually was. We were a little drunk on ourselves (laughs). The crowd, of course, was full of the people who have been following us the most, so they still got into it. But more so, I'd say we it was more about us feeling good about playing the song.
--How was it for you, Nao?
Nao: "Velvet" is the lead-in track to the album, so we wanted everyone to hear the song as soon as possible. We played it live with the hope that people would quickly come to like it. With our second solo tour "Kimi no Hitomi ni Utsuru wa Zekkeishoku" we want to play more songs that show off how we've improved like "Velvet." We want the crowd to get into the new songs.
--Saga-san . . . or would you prefer to be called Saga-SAMA?
Everybody: (Laughs)
--It seems like everywhere one goes people are calling you by that name. (Laughs).
Saga: Nope, you don't have to use "Sama" (Laughs).
[ This interview was conducted directly after the members had returned from another event. Each of the members seemed pretty tired with the exception of Saga who seemed down right exhausted ]
--Saga, you look really tired. Are you all right?
Saga: Uh, I'm OK. I'm OK! (Laughs)
--How was "Velvet" live?
Saga: Personally I felt like we were overflowing with power, spewing out energy. However, I think we had too much energy and ended up whiffing. I couldn't get enough of the rush. Instead of playing the song for the crowd, I think we were having fun. We came at it more like a beginning band would. (Laughs)
--How was it playing bass on "Velvet"?
Saga: Well, instead of playing it normally, how should I put this . . . it was like I could see myself performing live while I was still in the studio recording. I felt like I had jumped out there and started playing.
[You can't tell from this transcript, but Saga was unusually tired on the day of the interview. It took him at least a minute to say the previous line]
Sho: (Whispering to Saga) You're taking forever! (Laughs)
Saga: I know (laughs)! Next time I'd like to do more rock staging. (Laughs)
--Thank you (laughs). How about you Tora?
Tora: To tell the truth, we wrote "Velvet" with the original intention of performing it live. Frankly, we wanted to play the song. If you were to ask me the essence of the song, I'd have to say that the song is our flesh and blood. Just playing it live I could feel it.
--Tell me an interesting story from the fan club only tour.
Sho: Did anything happen?
Tora: This wasn't really much of a tour. We didn't move around much and didn't stay anywhere. I guess we could start with Nao . . .
Nao: Did I do something!?
Tora: Well, uh (Laughs). Someone got left behind at the rest stop on the freeway.
Nao and Sho: Ha ha ha ha (Laughs).
--The most interesting things seem to happen to Nao.
Tora: Yes (Laughs).
Nao: I was plotted against . . . probably (Laughs).
Tora: I kept thinking, "He'll be back any minute, He'll be back any minute," but he just wouldn't come back.
Sho: Nao always has to use the bathroom at the most important times.
--Now that you mention it, Nao was the only person to go the bathroom right before this interview.
Nao: Yeah (Laughs).
Sho: Everyone got antsy thinking, "He'll come out now . . . now!" but he just wouldn't come out.
Nao: So I'm a couple of meters from making it back to the car and they start leaving! I was like, "What?" I think they knew all along.
Everybody: (Laughs)
Nao: I've actually been left behind before (Laughs).
Tora: Yeah.
Sho: When we went on tour with other bands on our label . . . no one even noticed. They even took roll call. But we said, "Don't worry about it!" (Laughs)
Nao: Saga even sat right next to me on the bus. I felt like, "Hey, watch out! Didn't you see I wasn't sitting next to you?" (Laughs)
Saga: After we left I thought, "Hey! Nao's not here!"
--You didn't notice even though you're part of the same rhythm section? (Laugh)
Saga: Yeah . . . I do wonder why I didn't notice that time. (Laughs)
--OK, now I'd like to ask you a few questions about your new album "Zekkeishoku." When did you first start talking about releasing a full-length?
Sho: Just after the middle of last year, I think. We showed off our heavy side with "Kowloon -NINE HEADS RODEO SHOW-" and showed off our pop side with "FANTASY," so we had this vision of releasing a full-length album where people could easily get a feel for the alice nine. sound. That was in fall of last year.
--How did you feel when you decided to release a full-length?
Tora: To tell the truth, once we decided to put it out I was a little nervous. We'd never written a full-length in one sitting before, and it wasn't like we had a lot of songs sitting around that we played live. We thought up everything right up to the deadline and then went straight into recording. But we were able to see where we wanted to go explicitly because we worked this way. It was like, "Oh, that's the type of album we wanted to make." When we finally got around to making the album we didn't rut about at all. It just popped right out.
--So you were nervous at the start.
Tora: Well, this was our first time making a full-length album. Of course, we were also really happy to have the chance to make a full-length. We've always wanted to make a full album, and now we were finally starting. So, nervousness and hope flitted about our eyes. (Laughs)
Sho: I guess we were nervous because it was this unknown world, an unknown number of songs and we couldn't see what to do. I think that actually making a full-length album is one of the steps in becoming an artist. It was finally time for us to express what we are as artists through a full-length. Like Tora said, we were most certainly nervous at first, but once we were able to express what we wanted to do, what we thought felt good, we were able to increase the magic that happens between band members and really proceed with the album. Personally, I really think we made something great.
Hiroto: When we decided to record the album I thought, "It looks like the time has finally come for our band." I think of a full-length as the sort of thing to be released once I've found the appeal of the band, once I've found a band I'm ready to wage my life on, and I've spent enough time together. I was irrepressibly happy once we started creating. alice nine. isn't the sort of band that keeps a bunch of songs in stock, we make each song at the right time with a hundred percent of our energy. When we first created our double singles "Kowloon -NINE HEADS RODEO SHOW" and "FANTASY," we had a solid idea of what we wanted to do, so when we started writing songs after that, we already had a foundation of two songs to work off of, and were able to create more freely. Our latest album has let me feel like we've reached the best point so far in our music-making career.
Nao: First of all, I thought, "at last." I was a little nervous since this was my first time recording this many of songs. But I was excited once we finally started recording. Songs started changing from their demos, and I was excited about what the songs would turn into. Likely, everyone felt the same. I think we were able to create an album everyone could agree with and at the same time expand our hopes for the future. I was surprised how little nervousness Hiroto showed, he was always like "Leave it to me!" Very reliable.
Sho: Hiroto isn't a negative type of guy. Whatever mess the band was standing in, Hiroto was there in full fervor. Always moving, he put positive energy into the band. As a result, everyone really gave it their all, and we've become a great band.
Hiroto: You're embarrassing me. (Laughs) Well, I knew someone like Nao was there to cool us down if I got a little to feverish, so I was able to push everyone further with ease.
[ Saga has now reached the peak of exhaustion ]
--I'm sorry to trouble you when you're tired, but could you wake up, Saga?
Everybody: (Laughs)
Saga: Hey, I'm awake! (Laughs)
--Well then, sorry to trouble you but, would you be kind enough to mention when you were first of the persuasion to release an album.
Saga: Yes, when we . . .
Everybody: The royal "we"! (Laughs)
Saga: Ha ha, (laughs). So I had sort of thought that you just have these songs you put on an album, and then you take a couple of songs and put them out as singles. So, to put out two singles and then a full album, it felt like we had squeezed out these two singles and now we had to squeeze out even more. So I went at it like my last stand thinking, "There's nothing to lose!" "There's nothing left!" (Laughs) I didn't have anything built up in side of me, so I had to work on what I had seen, what had influenced me. I went in rough, without forcing it. But once we'd finished the album, I came to think, "Wow, we still have it in us. I could keep going. We could probably still make another album."
Sho: Once we'd finished the album Saga grabbed an acoustic guitar in bliss and started singing, "Heeeeey, We finished, the aaaaaaaaalbum." (Laughs)
Saga: We'll be exposing that footage on the net soon. (Laughs)
Everybody: "Exposing?" (Laughs)
--I see, I'll be looking forward to it. (Laughs) Now that you've released a full-length album, you could say people have something to judge the band with. What concept did you use to direct the album?
Sho: We've never been a concept band, so we emphasized whether people would become more excited after hearing each new song on the album. Not every song is a single, of course, but we wanted each song to have that type of energy. The only thing we did decide on was to try to give each and every song character.
--I heard like this time you were going back to your roots.
Sho: At first we wanted to make an album that was visual, that was a blend of the West and the East in the best sense of the phrase. Albums are like business cards for bands, so we put out "Zekkeishoku" as an answer to the question, "what is alice nine?" We wanted to express that concept. You certainly won't feel the East-West blend just by listening to the songs, but with the art design, our costumes, lyrics, and compositions, everything combines into an overall East-meets-West style. We wanted people to feel the beauty of viewing Japanese culture through the eyes of a foreigner. However, we also want to expand our repertoire. We don't want to stop here either.
--How did you illustrate this "return to your roots" through this album?
Hiroto: I'd say through feeling. I wanted to go back and express the excitement of when we first decided on the five members of the band, the shock of first forming a band, and the confidence at the start that we could absolutely put out something interesting. Being our first album, I could also say this was a compilation of everything we've done up to this point, but I also think there are things that begin only after this point. We wanted the people who are hearing us for the first time through this album to think, "alice nine's a really fun-sounding band." We also wanted the people who've been with us the whole time, the fans who know us, to feel excited listening to this album.
Sho: I could say the overall theme for this album was "going back to our roots," but I could also say it was "rich color." We set out to get people excited with color and when someone asked whether we were going back to our roots, we were sort of like "sure."
Tora: Instead of saying that we made this album to go back to our roots, I'd say, and this is standard I guess, but our main thoughts were "In order to create tomorrow, we can't forget what we've done up to this point." If you only keep your eye on tomorrow and do whatever you want, you're bound to fail. You have to reflect on your experiences up to this point and then head forward. That's what this album is about.
Nao: When we first formed the band we made the concept of "East-meets-West" a pillar of our style. Up to this point we've expressed a lot of styles of music, a lot of styles of visuals. For our first album, we wanted to make "Zekkeishoku" a combination of our original intentions for the band, to create a work founded on the progress alice nine. has made together.
Saga: More than a return to our roots, "Zekkeishoku" was us looking back on all we've done to this point and ultimately defining what we want to do as a band. (Laughs) Now that I think about it, I guess our main concept for the album was to have people think "alice nine." once they'd heard the album.
--Of the twelve songs on the album ten songs are new. Can you tell me the whole story about how you chose the songs on the album, including the new songs?
Sho: First of all, we always start with a meeting to choose the songs. There we decided on the basics, "Velvet," "Haru, Sakura no Koro," and "jelly fish." The first time we met we wanted to start with all of the good songs. Once we had that axis, we tried to spread out the feel of the album. We gave bonus points to slower tracks or songs with interesting tricks to them, and then we met again and confirmed the twelve songs you hear on the album.
--How did you decide on the order--starting with "Corona" and ending with "ARMOR RING"?
Tora: Sho primarily decided the song order. When I saw the order though, I thought it was great. Or, more succinctly, "this is how it has to be." Additionally, when Hiroto recorded the sound effects he intended for them to come in around the fourth track. In that regard as well, I think the track order turned out quite well.
Saga: The album turned out just how we imagined it. I did feel like the sound effects used for the fourth track could only have been placed right there. It felt like the track list came together in exactly the way we had wanted.
Nao: Since Sho's the guy who writes the lyrics we figure that he is also the most suitable person to arrange the songs in order to reflect their lyrical meaning. Personally, I wanted to have a single come within the first three songs of the disc, to have a lively new song for the second track, and to have a contemplative final track. And all my preferences were granted. Otherwise we went with whatever Sho had.
Hiroto: We originally wanted to use the sound effects for the first track. After we started working on the album, however, we started making a lot of great songs and it became difficult to justify using the first song for sound effects.
[ Suddenly Sho, who is sitting next to Hiroto, begins caressing Hiroto's hair with his finger ]
Hiroto: Wha!? What!? (Laughs)
Sho: Nah, nothing. (Laughs)
Hiroto: Ha hmm. (Laughs) Yeah, so we felt that the first song needed to bring in the start of the album. From there we had to bring the album to the final track, the grand "ARMOR RING." We were able to realize a song order that we thought was really cool. Even the fact that the sound effects came in on the fourth track was very alice nine. I think we have the songs in a good order.
Sho: Basically, I tried putting the songs in the order I thought they should go. Alice nine. doesn't really thoroughly discuss things, but we do understand a lot through feeling. We aren't strict with the sounds on our songs; we mostly work off of feeling until we're like "that's good."(Laughs) I think the same holds true for the song order. I've honestly never thought, "this just won't work" with something alice nine. has done. In that respect, I put the songs in the order each song was calling for, and I'm glad we were all able to agree with what I made. I also felt that the album should begin with a cool song, not sound effects.
--Your credits list the composer for every song as alice nine. Is there a reason why you don't list the original composer's name?
Sho: I wouldn't say we don't list the composer's name. We all tend to contribute to the songwriting. If one person did create a song from start to finish, we'd, of course, list that person's name in the credits. But we do all contribute to each of the tracks. That's alice nine's style.
--I see. However, I imagine there are fans out there that wonder which band member came up with the original idea for particular songs. I'd be very happy if you could tell me who was responsible for each song.
Sho: (Looking at the tracklist as printed on a piece of paper before him) Ummmm, Hiroto, Hiroto, Hiroto (Laughs). "FANTASY," "3.2.1. REAL-SE-" are also Hiroto's.
Tora: Hiroto also did "Haru, Sakura no Koro."
Sho: Saga wrote "DEAD SCHOOL SCREAMING." Then, "Kokkai no Kurage -Instrumental-" was also Hiroto. "jelly fish" is Saga. And then Tora, Tora, Tora. "Tora Tora Toraaaaaa."
Hiroto: Tora Tora Tora.
Sho: "Tora Tora Toraaaaaa" for three songs. Then the last song is Saga.
[Complete Songwriter List]
Corona: Hiroto
Velvet: Hiroto
FANTASY: Hiroto
3. 2. 1. REAL -SE-: Hiroto
Haru, Sakura no Koro: Hiroto
DEAD SCHOOL SCREAMING: Saga
Kokkai no Kurage -Instrumental-: Hiroto
jelly fish: Saga
World End Anthology: Tora
Q.: Tora
Kowloon -Nine Heads Rodeo Show-: Tora
ARMOR RING: Saga
--Now that I've had a chance to look at the list, it seems like Tora writes a lot of the harder songs.
Tora: Yeah, I'm sort of responsible for the harder songs. If we're going to put out a song like that, it'll probably be by me. (Laughs)
--First off, congratulations on completing your fan club only tour "Kacho Fugetsu Vol. 1."
Everyone: Thank you!
--How was it playing for the first time in front of your fan club members?
Sho (Vo.): It was our first time in front of only the fan club so we got a chance to do something different from our normal shows, to show the audience more of what we're really like. Despite playing at the rather large Shibuya O-East, overall I felt like we were able to get closer to the hearts of our fans. Everyone in the band got a chance to talk or MC. It might have been a little tedious to the crowd, but we felt really at home (laughs). I don't know how I should put this, but I'm just glad we got a chance to play catch with the crowd.
Nao (Dr.): I'd say that it was an easy show for all sorts of reasons. I think we were able to try a bunch of things because we were playing in front of our fan club. I was glad to see that everyone welcomed us more warmly than I thought they would.
Saga (Ba.): It always feels like it's us one-on-one with the audience, but with the fan club show it felt more like the members were working with each other, member-against-member (laughs). From the band's point of view, we were able to show the audience the same everyday selves that we show each other. It was fun.
Tora (Gt.): We thought a lot about the show since it was our first time in front of our fan club. It felt like we were trying to grope for something. It was like; this time let's give them everything, a show, a talk, a hand-shaking party. I think it turned out great. I'd like to plan more events like this in the future.
Hiroto (Gt.): Lately we've gone from expanding our base to releasing an album, and then finally a show. I feel both the crowd and the band were able to grow closer since our first show in a while was in front of our fan club. I think it was a great opportunity.
--You released your first full-length album as alice nine. on April 26. Did you play any new songs from the album at your fan club only show?
Sho: The only song we played was the lead-in track "Velvet" at our Tokyo tour finale. I think our fan club members compose the core group of people that come to our shows. We decided to try "Velvet" because I wanted our fan club to hear what we were thinking as soon as possible. I wanted them to understand what we were doing and respond accordingly.
Nao: (Whispering) "And now it's up to you!"
Sho: Yeah, yeah (laughs). We want our fans to continue developing. We're throwing the question out now, and we're looking forward to seeing the answer at our second solo tour "Kimi no Hitomi ni Utsuru wa Zekkeishoku."
--How did the crowd respond after hearing the new song, "Velvet"?
Sho: How, indeed. We were still feeling the high from releasing our first album, so I think we thought the song sounded cooler than it actually was. We were a little drunk on ourselves (laughs). The crowd, of course, was full of the people who have been following us the most, so they still got into it. But more so, I'd say we it was more about us feeling good about playing the song.
--How was it for you, Nao?
Nao: "Velvet" is the lead-in track to the album, so we wanted everyone to hear the song as soon as possible. We played it live with the hope that people would quickly come to like it. With our second solo tour "Kimi no Hitomi ni Utsuru wa Zekkeishoku" we want to play more songs that show off how we've improved like "Velvet." We want the crowd to get into the new songs.
--Saga-san . . . or would you prefer to be called Saga-SAMA?
Everybody: (Laughs)
--It seems like everywhere one goes people are calling you by that name. (Laughs).
Saga: Nope, you don't have to use "Sama" (Laughs).
[ This interview was conducted directly after the members had returned from another event. Each of the members seemed pretty tired with the exception of Saga who seemed down right exhausted ]
--Saga, you look really tired. Are you all right?
Saga: Uh, I'm OK. I'm OK! (Laughs)
--How was "Velvet" live?
Saga: Personally I felt like we were overflowing with power, spewing out energy. However, I think we had too much energy and ended up whiffing. I couldn't get enough of the rush. Instead of playing the song for the crowd, I think we were having fun. We came at it more like a beginning band would. (Laughs)
--How was it playing bass on "Velvet"?
Saga: Well, instead of playing it normally, how should I put this . . . it was like I could see myself performing live while I was still in the studio recording. I felt like I had jumped out there and started playing.
[You can't tell from this transcript, but Saga was unusually tired on the day of the interview. It took him at least a minute to say the previous line]
Sho: (Whispering to Saga) You're taking forever! (Laughs)
Saga: I know (laughs)! Next time I'd like to do more rock staging. (Laughs)
--Thank you (laughs). How about you Tora?
Tora: To tell the truth, we wrote "Velvet" with the original intention of performing it live. Frankly, we wanted to play the song. If you were to ask me the essence of the song, I'd have to say that the song is our flesh and blood. Just playing it live I could feel it.
--Tell me an interesting story from the fan club only tour.
Sho: Did anything happen?
Tora: This wasn't really much of a tour. We didn't move around much and didn't stay anywhere. I guess we could start with Nao . . .
Nao: Did I do something!?
Tora: Well, uh (Laughs). Someone got left behind at the rest stop on the freeway.
Nao and Sho: Ha ha ha ha (Laughs).
--The most interesting things seem to happen to Nao.
Tora: Yes (Laughs).
Nao: I was plotted against . . . probably (Laughs).
Tora: I kept thinking, "He'll be back any minute, He'll be back any minute," but he just wouldn't come back.
Sho: Nao always has to use the bathroom at the most important times.
--Now that you mention it, Nao was the only person to go the bathroom right before this interview.
Nao: Yeah (Laughs).
Sho: Everyone got antsy thinking, "He'll come out now . . . now!" but he just wouldn't come out.
Nao: So I'm a couple of meters from making it back to the car and they start leaving! I was like, "What?" I think they knew all along.
Everybody: (Laughs)
Nao: I've actually been left behind before (Laughs).
Tora: Yeah.
Sho: When we went on tour with other bands on our label . . . no one even noticed. They even took roll call. But we said, "Don't worry about it!" (Laughs)
Nao: Saga even sat right next to me on the bus. I felt like, "Hey, watch out! Didn't you see I wasn't sitting next to you?" (Laughs)
Saga: After we left I thought, "Hey! Nao's not here!"
--You didn't notice even though you're part of the same rhythm section? (Laugh)
Saga: Yeah . . . I do wonder why I didn't notice that time. (Laughs)
--OK, now I'd like to ask you a few questions about your new album "Zekkeishoku." When did you first start talking about releasing a full-length?
Sho: Just after the middle of last year, I think. We showed off our heavy side with "Kowloon -NINE HEADS RODEO SHOW-" and showed off our pop side with "FANTASY," so we had this vision of releasing a full-length album where people could easily get a feel for the alice nine. sound. That was in fall of last year.
--How did you feel when you decided to release a full-length?
Tora: To tell the truth, once we decided to put it out I was a little nervous. We'd never written a full-length in one sitting before, and it wasn't like we had a lot of songs sitting around that we played live. We thought up everything right up to the deadline and then went straight into recording. But we were able to see where we wanted to go explicitly because we worked this way. It was like, "Oh, that's the type of album we wanted to make." When we finally got around to making the album we didn't rut about at all. It just popped right out.
--So you were nervous at the start.
Tora: Well, this was our first time making a full-length album. Of course, we were also really happy to have the chance to make a full-length. We've always wanted to make a full album, and now we were finally starting. So, nervousness and hope flitted about our eyes. (Laughs)
Sho: I guess we were nervous because it was this unknown world, an unknown number of songs and we couldn't see what to do. I think that actually making a full-length album is one of the steps in becoming an artist. It was finally time for us to express what we are as artists through a full-length. Like Tora said, we were most certainly nervous at first, but once we were able to express what we wanted to do, what we thought felt good, we were able to increase the magic that happens between band members and really proceed with the album. Personally, I really think we made something great.
Hiroto: When we decided to record the album I thought, "It looks like the time has finally come for our band." I think of a full-length as the sort of thing to be released once I've found the appeal of the band, once I've found a band I'm ready to wage my life on, and I've spent enough time together. I was irrepressibly happy once we started creating. alice nine. isn't the sort of band that keeps a bunch of songs in stock, we make each song at the right time with a hundred percent of our energy. When we first created our double singles "Kowloon -NINE HEADS RODEO SHOW" and "FANTASY," we had a solid idea of what we wanted to do, so when we started writing songs after that, we already had a foundation of two songs to work off of, and were able to create more freely. Our latest album has let me feel like we've reached the best point so far in our music-making career.
Nao: First of all, I thought, "at last." I was a little nervous since this was my first time recording this many of songs. But I was excited once we finally started recording. Songs started changing from their demos, and I was excited about what the songs would turn into. Likely, everyone felt the same. I think we were able to create an album everyone could agree with and at the same time expand our hopes for the future. I was surprised how little nervousness Hiroto showed, he was always like "Leave it to me!" Very reliable.
Sho: Hiroto isn't a negative type of guy. Whatever mess the band was standing in, Hiroto was there in full fervor. Always moving, he put positive energy into the band. As a result, everyone really gave it their all, and we've become a great band.
Hiroto: You're embarrassing me. (Laughs) Well, I knew someone like Nao was there to cool us down if I got a little to feverish, so I was able to push everyone further with ease.
[ Saga has now reached the peak of exhaustion ]
--I'm sorry to trouble you when you're tired, but could you wake up, Saga?
Everybody: (Laughs)
Saga: Hey, I'm awake! (Laughs)
--Well then, sorry to trouble you but, would you be kind enough to mention when you were first of the persuasion to release an album.
Saga: Yes, when we . . .
Everybody: The royal "we"! (Laughs)
Saga: Ha ha, (laughs). So I had sort of thought that you just have these songs you put on an album, and then you take a couple of songs and put them out as singles. So, to put out two singles and then a full album, it felt like we had squeezed out these two singles and now we had to squeeze out even more. So I went at it like my last stand thinking, "There's nothing to lose!" "There's nothing left!" (Laughs) I didn't have anything built up in side of me, so I had to work on what I had seen, what had influenced me. I went in rough, without forcing it. But once we'd finished the album, I came to think, "Wow, we still have it in us. I could keep going. We could probably still make another album."
Sho: Once we'd finished the album Saga grabbed an acoustic guitar in bliss and started singing, "Heeeeey, We finished, the aaaaaaaaalbum." (Laughs)
Saga: We'll be exposing that footage on the net soon. (Laughs)
Everybody: "Exposing?" (Laughs)
--I see, I'll be looking forward to it. (Laughs) Now that you've released a full-length album, you could say people have something to judge the band with. What concept did you use to direct the album?
Sho: We've never been a concept band, so we emphasized whether people would become more excited after hearing each new song on the album. Not every song is a single, of course, but we wanted each song to have that type of energy. The only thing we did decide on was to try to give each and every song character.
--I heard like this time you were going back to your roots.
Sho: At first we wanted to make an album that was visual, that was a blend of the West and the East in the best sense of the phrase. Albums are like business cards for bands, so we put out "Zekkeishoku" as an answer to the question, "what is alice nine?" We wanted to express that concept. You certainly won't feel the East-West blend just by listening to the songs, but with the art design, our costumes, lyrics, and compositions, everything combines into an overall East-meets-West style. We wanted people to feel the beauty of viewing Japanese culture through the eyes of a foreigner. However, we also want to expand our repertoire. We don't want to stop here either.
--How did you illustrate this "return to your roots" through this album?
Hiroto: I'd say through feeling. I wanted to go back and express the excitement of when we first decided on the five members of the band, the shock of first forming a band, and the confidence at the start that we could absolutely put out something interesting. Being our first album, I could also say this was a compilation of everything we've done up to this point, but I also think there are things that begin only after this point. We wanted the people who are hearing us for the first time through this album to think, "alice nine's a really fun-sounding band." We also wanted the people who've been with us the whole time, the fans who know us, to feel excited listening to this album.
Sho: I could say the overall theme for this album was "going back to our roots," but I could also say it was "rich color." We set out to get people excited with color and when someone asked whether we were going back to our roots, we were sort of like "sure."
Tora: Instead of saying that we made this album to go back to our roots, I'd say, and this is standard I guess, but our main thoughts were "In order to create tomorrow, we can't forget what we've done up to this point." If you only keep your eye on tomorrow and do whatever you want, you're bound to fail. You have to reflect on your experiences up to this point and then head forward. That's what this album is about.
Nao: When we first formed the band we made the concept of "East-meets-West" a pillar of our style. Up to this point we've expressed a lot of styles of music, a lot of styles of visuals. For our first album, we wanted to make "Zekkeishoku" a combination of our original intentions for the band, to create a work founded on the progress alice nine. has made together.
Saga: More than a return to our roots, "Zekkeishoku" was us looking back on all we've done to this point and ultimately defining what we want to do as a band. (Laughs) Now that I think about it, I guess our main concept for the album was to have people think "alice nine." once they'd heard the album.
--Of the twelve songs on the album ten songs are new. Can you tell me the whole story about how you chose the songs on the album, including the new songs?
Sho: First of all, we always start with a meeting to choose the songs. There we decided on the basics, "Velvet," "Haru, Sakura no Koro," and "jelly fish." The first time we met we wanted to start with all of the good songs. Once we had that axis, we tried to spread out the feel of the album. We gave bonus points to slower tracks or songs with interesting tricks to them, and then we met again and confirmed the twelve songs you hear on the album.
--How did you decide on the order--starting with "Corona" and ending with "ARMOR RING"?
Tora: Sho primarily decided the song order. When I saw the order though, I thought it was great. Or, more succinctly, "this is how it has to be." Additionally, when Hiroto recorded the sound effects he intended for them to come in around the fourth track. In that regard as well, I think the track order turned out quite well.
Saga: The album turned out just how we imagined it. I did feel like the sound effects used for the fourth track could only have been placed right there. It felt like the track list came together in exactly the way we had wanted.
Nao: Since Sho's the guy who writes the lyrics we figure that he is also the most suitable person to arrange the songs in order to reflect their lyrical meaning. Personally, I wanted to have a single come within the first three songs of the disc, to have a lively new song for the second track, and to have a contemplative final track. And all my preferences were granted. Otherwise we went with whatever Sho had.
Hiroto: We originally wanted to use the sound effects for the first track. After we started working on the album, however, we started making a lot of great songs and it became difficult to justify using the first song for sound effects.
[ Suddenly Sho, who is sitting next to Hiroto, begins caressing Hiroto's hair with his finger ]
Hiroto: Wha!? What!? (Laughs)
Sho: Nah, nothing. (Laughs)
Hiroto: Ha hmm. (Laughs) Yeah, so we felt that the first song needed to bring in the start of the album. From there we had to bring the album to the final track, the grand "ARMOR RING." We were able to realize a song order that we thought was really cool. Even the fact that the sound effects came in on the fourth track was very alice nine. I think we have the songs in a good order.
Sho: Basically, I tried putting the songs in the order I thought they should go. Alice nine. doesn't really thoroughly discuss things, but we do understand a lot through feeling. We aren't strict with the sounds on our songs; we mostly work off of feeling until we're like "that's good."(Laughs) I think the same holds true for the song order. I've honestly never thought, "this just won't work" with something alice nine. has done. In that respect, I put the songs in the order each song was calling for, and I'm glad we were all able to agree with what I made. I also felt that the album should begin with a cool song, not sound effects.
--Your credits list the composer for every song as alice nine. Is there a reason why you don't list the original composer's name?
Sho: I wouldn't say we don't list the composer's name. We all tend to contribute to the songwriting. If one person did create a song from start to finish, we'd, of course, list that person's name in the credits. But we do all contribute to each of the tracks. That's alice nine's style.
--I see. However, I imagine there are fans out there that wonder which band member came up with the original idea for particular songs. I'd be very happy if you could tell me who was responsible for each song.
Sho: (Looking at the tracklist as printed on a piece of paper before him) Ummmm, Hiroto, Hiroto, Hiroto (Laughs). "FANTASY," "3.2.1. REAL-SE-" are also Hiroto's.
Tora: Hiroto also did "Haru, Sakura no Koro."
Sho: Saga wrote "DEAD SCHOOL SCREAMING." Then, "Kokkai no Kurage -Instrumental-" was also Hiroto. "jelly fish" is Saga. And then Tora, Tora, Tora. "Tora Tora Toraaaaaa."
Hiroto: Tora Tora Tora.
Sho: "Tora Tora Toraaaaaa" for three songs. Then the last song is Saga.
[Complete Songwriter List]
Corona: Hiroto
Velvet: Hiroto
FANTASY: Hiroto
3. 2. 1. REAL -SE-: Hiroto
Haru, Sakura no Koro: Hiroto
DEAD SCHOOL SCREAMING: Saga
Kokkai no Kurage -Instrumental-: Hiroto
jelly fish: Saga
World End Anthology: Tora
Q.: Tora
Kowloon -Nine Heads Rodeo Show-: Tora
ARMOR RING: Saga
--Now that I've had a chance to look at the list, it seems like Tora writes a lot of the harder songs.
Tora: Yeah, I'm sort of responsible for the harder songs. If we're going to put out a song like that, it'll probably be by me. (Laughs)