Tower Records
We want to become band heroes
-We’ve finally come to the long anticipated first album of your story as a major band but what nature did you intend to give the image of the work? Because I don’t think it was for it to be a ‘’first compilation’’.
Sono ‘’Right. Because our previous full album was a Best Of album rather, with this work we wanted it to be so that the music of Matenrou Opera became the genre. I think we’ve been able to make what this band is pierce through more than before.’’
Anzi ‘’Even though considering the timing, because it’s not wrong to change our business cards up to new ones, I have a strong feeling of wanting to show off the music of our unchanging selves. Honestly, right now, in the music scene I think bands are declining. I don’t want to blame this on the times and such because I think it’s simply because there are no strong band heroes around. There are no bands that give the incentive of ‘’I want to start playing an instrument’’. But because I myself grew up with such artists I wanted to become like that myself. While the band members each with their individuality quarrel over the sound with good intentions a miracle is born and that’s the one biggest allure of a band in my opinion. This time as well whilst thinking ‘’wouldn’t it be nice if I were able to do this in this work’’ I’ve had to struggle all during production.’’
Ayame ‘’It’s the same here with me. Also, looking around me there are few keyboardists limitless in their abilities in visual kei but I’ve shown how with a keyboard you can provide colors to whichever band sound and spread open whichever world view. I’m thinking, aren’t you able to do such a thing?’’
The clash of these five people
-When you thought you wanted to show off ‘’what the hell are we actually?’’, there was no reason for you to change the music based on that, right?
Sono ‘’That’s right. For instance during our indies time, it was clear to us what kind of music was ours. Because we planned to make a song where you could understand if you listened to only the intro before the hearing the vocals that it’s Matenrou Opera. In reality, one should be able to tell from just the things around it.’’
Anzi ‘’If we did make it with a focus on that, it’s only been ‘’let’s make it darker than before’’. Let’s make it doing away with shallowness.’’
Sono ‘’One more thing that was made really important was the ‘’flavor of humanity’’. Having said that since where a band with an aggressive sound although we have a tendency toward being serious especially with the drums having a machine-like cold sound, I thought I wanted to have a more fresh sound. Precisely because of that it’s like the flavors of different people are overflowing.’’
Anzi ‘’There’s things like that coming through as well but thinking it through I think the number one selling point of this band is ‘’the way we make our songs’’. Since desktop music is becoming popular now, whichever band’s story you’re listening to the general situation seems often to be ‘’other players tracing the work of the songwriters.’’ However as for our situation, contrary to popular believe often times Sono brings a song but in reality he only brings the melody or chord progression. Together with everyone we work it out in the studio whilst jamming.’’
- You mean you’re practicing what the musicians from long ago used to say a lot in their interviews, ‘’we made this song whilst jamming’’?
Anzi ‘’For sure (laughs). Really when this band is in the studio for an hour, we’ll finish about one song. It’s like that. I think exactly because that’s how we work there’s a special kind of tension and because of that this human flavor comes out.’’
Ayame ‘’That kind of influence appears in our song writing style too, right. Because of that, within that one hour the shape of the song steadily comes to change. Moreover ideas overflow from all five members into the song, not just those of one person. There’s an exceptionally creative mood, at that place.’’
Sono ‘’Also if at the start the songwriters determine the image too much it becomes dull, right. Because the insistence of our members each is very strong, it becomes more fun to be up front about exchanging ideas instead. However since everyone is so strong-willed, it’s important for me to sing so that I’m not defeated by it. (laughs)’’
- It’s a style that won’t work if even one member wasn’t strong-willed, right. A relationship of trust is a must.
Anzi ‘’Yep. The same as before, there’s some members who have assert themselves strongly during the songwriting process but there’s also some who find it hard to put their opinions into words. However since we’re a kind (band) we make it so that everyone gets to do their thing, right. I think we all crash into each other. I’ve become especially strongly aware of this since we’ve gone major.’’
Sono ‘’Yeh. There’s no holding back with five people.’’
The genre called Matenrou Opera
-As for the nature of the music the shape is often made out to be [a fusion of symphonic metal and visual kei] however, as for the people concerned, how would you explain your style?
Sono ‘’We’ve recently been having a lot of discussions about that within the band about that as well but putting it simply we don’t want to close ourselves off into an established genre. We certainly love heavy metal and it’s definitely become one of the foundations of this band however I don’t think we’re necessarily a band with songs that fit in a metal shape. And for visual kei as well, I’d have to say it’s not just putting on make-up, strictly, musically speaking it’s really ambiguous.’’
Anzi ‘’Summarized like that if the listeners are gonna make connections to it with their own preconceptions and prejudices, it’s a wasteful story, right. Each member definitely has their roots however we don’t narrow ourselves down to it with our music. I listen to pop as well and not just rock, and Ayame loves dance as well so we’re members who listen to all music. It seems like metal and visual kei have become the key words right now but I think there’s somehow people who listen to music outside of that whose interest we’ll definitely catch. That’s why in the end like Sono said it from the start if it becomes ‘’a genre called Matenrou Opera’’ I think it’s fine.’’
Ayame ‘’Especially from the point of our major debut the chances where we’ve had to explain our music in words have increased. However our music style from long ago hasn’t changed. So when I think back upon those interviews wondering why I wasn’t really aware of it (laughs). That’s why ultimately from the start I’ve been made to feel like we’ve only able to make ‘’music in the shape of Matenrou Opera’’.
(Justice); the large container
-Well then, about the title ‘’Justice’’. This is simply the title of one of the recorded songs as well however everywhere with the songs individually there are words laid in associated with ‘’justice’’ and ‘’one’s own way of life’’, right? I thought this cannot be unrelated.
Sono ‘’It’s like that. These are my completely honest thoughts. About the lyrics this time I wasn’t thinking of a story or anything like that at all. Trying to take another good look into the bottom of my own heart there were a great amount of things I wrote down. So it may be that’s why it turned out there’s lots of words like ‘’what is justice?’’ and ‘’being alive’’. Actually, after all the other songs on the album were complete, we created ‘’Justice’’ at the end. Furthermore, the premise was that it would be made into the title song. It would be made to be the big container to summarize all the other songs into one. Because at the time such words were already laid in here and there we concluded it would be best to summarize it with the word ‘’justice’’.’’
-So basically what it comes down to is that this song is the expression of the whole album whilst condensing it into one song?
Sono ‘’Yes, it’s a song to represent Matenrou Opera in an easy to understand manner. That’s how you could describe this song.’’
Anzi ‘’Looking at the title I think you’d have a tendency to imagine something like the allies of justice beating the bad guys (laughs). However it’s not like that at all. In the end, looking at the value of people each, are we not that different by nature? We differ in what we think is right too. And yet I think we live in a world were many people have a tendency to obey and be swept away by belonging to some nation or the words of another person. However since I live only once, wouldn’t it be fun to stick to what I believe is the right thing? We made this album with such a stance and wanted to raise such a message to the listener. Assuming that we’re performing at the same time, so that we can let you hear our persuasiveness there’s nothing that will pierce through us. In being trendy, wasteful and being dominated I don’t think there’s a way you can express ‘’justice’’. That’s exactly why we devotedly made what we wanted to make ourselves right now, what we truly believed is cool. That’s what this work is.’’
Ayame ‘’To put it simply, we made it the way we wanted to make it. With such an intention I think it’s become an album that’s just like its title. It’s something you can’t make if you’re not strong, right, it’s sticking to something. That’s why we ourselves want to live becoming stronger and stronger.’’
Devoted to our roots
-On the one hand there’s such a theme but you’ve also made some song that has, how do you call it, somewhat transcended the boundaries of a love song and drawn out this syrupy world (laughs).
Anzi ‘’That’s where Sono’s fetishes came out, right (laughs). I definitely think so.’’
Sono ‘’I pretty much never make dirty jokes in MC’s and such. I don’t really like to say any in character either. However the lyrics are this way and so fans may think of me as someone with a slightly dirty character (laughs).’’
Ayame ‘’You may be revealing something of what’s inside you.’’
Sono ‘’It’s embarrassing to be analyzed like that so cool headedly (laughs)’’
Ayame ‘’But he really doesn’t usually say dirty jokes and such. You absolutely shouldn’t mistake him for that (laughs).’’
-There’s one instrumental song on the album and although it’s titled ‘’Just Be Myself’’ it has a deep meaning to it too. But it doesn’t seem to be a title where the singer wanted to add his own song at all.
Sono ‘’I think it’s probably because Anzi understood the ‘’justice’’ part we discussed before.’’
Anzi ‘’It’s like that (laughs). I’d already made the skeleton of this song before we started working on the album but, toward the end when we’d decided on this one large container called ‘’Justice’’ I spent some good thinking on the meaning this instrumental song was supposed to have. Actually since it’s a song where characteristic to myself I stick to the things I think are cool I gave it a title with such an implication too. I really played with earnest devotion to my roots. That is, I made it without any restraint.’’
The songs are quickly growing bigger
-Because the word ‘roots’ has come up I’d like to ask about each member’s musical background more specifically.
Ayame ‘’As for me there was the keyboard and of course I have a background in metal but actually it was video game music and Tetsuya Komuro’s music etc. where it started. So not just the tone of the strings but also the, what do you call it, inclusion of the synthesizer sound I took in. Saying that there’s my own characteristics I think. And likewise I think especially with the bonus track ‘’Designer Baby’’ where I made an orchestra with just the keyboard my own colors show through.’’
Anzi ‘’As for me, the number one person responsible for my roots is Ingwie Malmsteen. Maybe about 80 per cent. The start of hard rock and heavy metal for me was Iron Maiden however, but at that point I’d fallen for the guitar because of him. Actually I’d learnt the violin a long time ago and so I’d become used to the classical melodies so that it’s natural to me. During my high school years I’d quit that and so for a while I’d held no interest in music but at the time there was a lot of complaining about neoclassical music and, charmed by it, I bought an Ingwie album because I liked the cover. That was ‘’Alchemy’’ but at the time it was something completely unknown to me. After that I’d fallen completely for it.’’
Sono ‘’As for me, my roots are in X-JAPAN and B’z, as well as Helloween. It’s been said a lot but my vibrato came from Inaba (Koshi) and Michael Kiske I think.’’
-Yeah, I can definitely see that.
Sono ‘’My sister listened to B’z a lot and around the time I was 10 I started listening to them as well. Furthermore my dad injected me with Deep Purple.’’
Anzi ‘’What an unlikely family (laughs).’’
-Isn’t that fantastic (laughs). However, listening to the stories of today I feel like I’ve started seeing why the music of this band doesn’t fall into any categories. So, lastly. If I were to say the ideals Matenrou Opera wants to seek next time, what would you say those are?
Anzi ‘’I don’t really have any practical goals but I nonetheless think if the number of people starting a band because of us were to become big I think we’d have to be connected in immense joy. Lastly, I want to live in a world where music is connected with the next generation and if we become a band that leaves a mark of its name and gets handed down through all time, that would be great.‘’
Ayame ‘’I feel the same way about that. Moreover I’d be happy if when people listen to Matenrou Opera in their daily lives they receive positive vibes from it. On the surface there are many dark songs but if you listen to them you’ve got to not mistake them for having no uplifting parts.’’
Sono ‘’Indeed. At the same time, talking about my own songs, I feel like they’re quickly growing bigger. I feel like ‘’we’re actually making this’’. I get this feeling we haven’t yet started grasping this accomplishment. Right now we’re still, when we perform at a live house, only able to be allowed to taste the delusion of a big space. So in order to make that a reality, I hope to quickly get even with (the size of) our songs.’’