We will begin with hyde. This is not because hyde is the frontman, but rather because we feel he was the ‘front songwriter’ for this album. His are the singles ‘Killing Me’ as well as ‘New World’ which he did with yukihiro. Furthermore, hyde has three new songs planned for release with the album (for a total of five). As for the song lyrics, ken and yukihiro wrote one song each, but the remaining ten were done by hyde. No matter how it is approached, the album ‘AWAKE’ is very ‘hyde-like’.
– It’s finally complete. It seems you worked very hard this time.
[Fufufufu.]
-Though they are all quality songs, you have the most with five of the twelve. Let’s start by getting your honest feelings about this album.
[Well, I used my best judgement during the recording (laughs) this time around. We even kept working on it over the New Year’s holidays. That’s why I have more of a “Finally! We’re done!” feeling right now (laughs), but it still doesn’t feel like it’s over.]
– Does it still feel unfinished?
[No no no, that’s not what I meant at all (laughs). We’ve worked enough (laughs). But even when we took breaks, I kept working on my own solo project, so it felt a bit like a never-ending process (laughs).]
– Do you have any remarks on the musical aspect of this album?
[Hmm, what to say…… It feels skillfully made. Our age and experience has added depth to the playing, but it’s still youthful. It’s a bit experimental too. I think this album couldn’t have been made if we didn’t have our current skills. I don’t know much about other bands, so I can’t say for sure, but it’s like “Does anyone else usually pull this off?” (laughs). What am I saying…… We’ve matured, but we still do impulsive things that aren’t easy to accomplish. That’s why I think we’re a mysterious band, the current L’Arc. As we gain experience, it feels like the impulsiveness of our early days is fading, but we’ve gained a polish we couldn’t have had without those early experiences. There’s a painter I know who still has a strange novelty to his work even though he’s over 60. I think that’s what it means to have talent. It’s not just knowing the techniques or writing a good song; I think talent means using your youthful impulses to showcase your skill.]
– About the music, is there anything on this album you would have preferred to discard?
[There was. In the end, we discuss everything, and we decided from the beginning that we wanted music that would excite the audience for the live shows. That’s why two of the songs (that he submitted for the album) had to be completely re-made (laughs). You can say what you like, but what they want to see in lives are major, up-tempo songs, and so we’re better off playing that. There are songs on this album I very much want to see come to life that way. When I listen to the other members’ songs, I get a feeling of “Yeah, they all feel the same” from it.]
– While making this album, did you learn something new about the other members?
[It’s hard to see, but I got a whole new sense of just how good the others have become. For the guitar, even when he’s improvising, it threatens to overwhelm me. The same goes for the bass and drums. I wonder if there are any other bands this good. They keep showing me things I’d never heard before and never knew about before.]
– The songs ‘Ophelia’ and ‘My Dear’ were, after all, written during your ‘ROENTGEN’ period, but now they’re being used for L’Arc. Could it be that the band’s chemistry overwhelmed what you had originally set out to do with those songs?
[Well, yes, that’s fairly obvious. I really don’t have a good sense for arrangements (laughs). There’s no way I could have come with those arrangements for ‘My Dear’ on my own. If it was just me, it would sound much more ordinary (laughs). That’s why I say they’re so skilled. I don’t have that talent at all, I approach the songs much more superficially. I’m a vocalist, so it’s like “Well, at least I’m a good person?” (laughs) This time, I want to make it to “At least I’m a good vocalist” level (laughs).]
– Then, hyde-san, I have one last thing to ask you. Throughout this album, the word ‘sky’ has been a reccuring theme. I thought you might want to explain that. When you talk about the sky, what is it you want to express?
[Hmm….. Well, I apply the word sky a lot, to imply things about a fullfilling existence, or my image of the future, or lots of meanings like that. Let’s see…… It’s where I send my prayers when I’m troubled. If they get solved, I always wonder if the solution came from the sky. It means many different things to me. I don’t know if I can answer the question without leaving something out, but I do want to answer. It’s complex though, so all I can do is ask you to interpret my feelings about the sky from the words I write.]
– You talk with the sky often?
[ No, but I talk to a lot of people up there (laughs).]
Translated by Natalie Arnold
– It’s finally complete. It seems you worked very hard this time.
[Fufufufu.]
-Though they are all quality songs, you have the most with five of the twelve. Let’s start by getting your honest feelings about this album.
[Well, I used my best judgement during the recording (laughs) this time around. We even kept working on it over the New Year’s holidays. That’s why I have more of a “Finally! We’re done!” feeling right now (laughs), but it still doesn’t feel like it’s over.]
– Does it still feel unfinished?
[No no no, that’s not what I meant at all (laughs). We’ve worked enough (laughs). But even when we took breaks, I kept working on my own solo project, so it felt a bit like a never-ending process (laughs).]
– Do you have any remarks on the musical aspect of this album?
[Hmm, what to say…… It feels skillfully made. Our age and experience has added depth to the playing, but it’s still youthful. It’s a bit experimental too. I think this album couldn’t have been made if we didn’t have our current skills. I don’t know much about other bands, so I can’t say for sure, but it’s like “Does anyone else usually pull this off?” (laughs). What am I saying…… We’ve matured, but we still do impulsive things that aren’t easy to accomplish. That’s why I think we’re a mysterious band, the current L’Arc. As we gain experience, it feels like the impulsiveness of our early days is fading, but we’ve gained a polish we couldn’t have had without those early experiences. There’s a painter I know who still has a strange novelty to his work even though he’s over 60. I think that’s what it means to have talent. It’s not just knowing the techniques or writing a good song; I think talent means using your youthful impulses to showcase your skill.]
– About the music, is there anything on this album you would have preferred to discard?
[There was. In the end, we discuss everything, and we decided from the beginning that we wanted music that would excite the audience for the live shows. That’s why two of the songs (that he submitted for the album) had to be completely re-made (laughs). You can say what you like, but what they want to see in lives are major, up-tempo songs, and so we’re better off playing that. There are songs on this album I very much want to see come to life that way. When I listen to the other members’ songs, I get a feeling of “Yeah, they all feel the same” from it.]
– While making this album, did you learn something new about the other members?
[It’s hard to see, but I got a whole new sense of just how good the others have become. For the guitar, even when he’s improvising, it threatens to overwhelm me. The same goes for the bass and drums. I wonder if there are any other bands this good. They keep showing me things I’d never heard before and never knew about before.]
– The songs ‘Ophelia’ and ‘My Dear’ were, after all, written during your ‘ROENTGEN’ period, but now they’re being used for L’Arc. Could it be that the band’s chemistry overwhelmed what you had originally set out to do with those songs?
[Well, yes, that’s fairly obvious. I really don’t have a good sense for arrangements (laughs). There’s no way I could have come with those arrangements for ‘My Dear’ on my own. If it was just me, it would sound much more ordinary (laughs). That’s why I say they’re so skilled. I don’t have that talent at all, I approach the songs much more superficially. I’m a vocalist, so it’s like “Well, at least I’m a good person?” (laughs) This time, I want to make it to “At least I’m a good vocalist” level (laughs).]
– Then, hyde-san, I have one last thing to ask you. Throughout this album, the word ‘sky’ has been a reccuring theme. I thought you might want to explain that. When you talk about the sky, what is it you want to express?
[Hmm….. Well, I apply the word sky a lot, to imply things about a fullfilling existence, or my image of the future, or lots of meanings like that. Let’s see…… It’s where I send my prayers when I’m troubled. If they get solved, I always wonder if the solution came from the sky. It means many different things to me. I don’t know if I can answer the question without leaving something out, but I do want to answer. It’s complex though, so all I can do is ask you to interpret my feelings about the sky from the words I write.]
– You talk with the sky often?
[ No, but I talk to a lot of people up there (laughs).]
Translated by Natalie Arnold
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