YOSHIKI & SUGIZO INTERVIEW PART.2

PRESS: How did you become involved with Repo! The Genetic Opera?

- 貴方はどのように " Repo! The Genetic Opera " に関わるようになったのですか？

 

YOSHIKI: Ok, umm... How did I get involved with that? I was working on the movie called Catacombs, I composed the end title. Then, the same director was working on Saw and Repo. Actually Darren Bousman, the director of Saw IV was also directed Repo. So then somehow, because of that connection, he asked me to produce the music for that movie.

YOSHIKI：OK。え～と…。カタコンベという映画のエンディングテーマを作っていてました。SAW IVなどとも同じディレクターであるダーレンバウズマンを通じ依頼を受けました。

 

PRESS: Would you like to work on more film projects in the future?

- 貴方は将来多くの映画に関わりたいですか？

 

YOSHIKI: Sure...Working on a film project is very interesting because I'm not completely in charge. It's an interesting thing, when I was working on that project, Repo, Darren Bousman and I got into a nice argument. I said "You're fired." Right? He said, "You can't fire me, I can fire you." Because he's the movie director, I'm just the music director. So, what I'm trying to say is, in the music world I'm usually completely in charge, I'm not really...I just keep going on and on and on, but working on a movie project, there's somebody to stop me doing music forever. At the same time, when I'm composing I think about pictures and scenes, in my head. So working on the movie projects is very, very interesting and very inspiring.

YOSHIKI：もちろん。（映画は）僕はすべてを担当しているわけではないので映画に取り組むのは非情に楽しいです。おもしろい話があります。Repo!に取り組んでいたとき、ダーレンバウズマンと討論になったことがあります。その時に「首にしてやる。」と言ったのですが「僕は君を首には出来るけど君は僕を首には出来ないよ。」と言われました。彼は映画監督ですが、僕はただの音楽監督ですからね。僕は音楽担当だということです。映画音楽は頭の中に映像を思い浮かべて作るので楽しいです。

 

PRESS: You mentioned something about seeing scenes and pictures when you compose music. Do you every experience synesthesia?

- 貴方は作曲するときに映像などを見る感覚だと言ってますが。それは毎回シナスタジア（共感覚）を感じるの？

 

YOSHIKI: What?

YOSHIKI：なんですか？

 

PRESS: Synesthesia...when you hear musical notes you see things like colors in your head.

- シナスタジア（共感覚）っていうのは…音を聴いた時に色を見るようなことです。

 

YOSHIKI: Sure.

YOSHIKI：そうですね。

 

PRESS: Are they more colors or are the definitely scenes?

- それらはいろんな色が見えるの？はっきりと映像として？

 

YOSHIKI: Hmm...interesting...sometimes very specific, sometimes very ambiguous. Umm...but, for some reason, if it's color, I don't see pink or something. I only see very dark red or something bloody *laughs* I don't know why. Something dark and beautiful. If it's a scene, it always has, in a good way though, some kind of death involved. Kind of like, as I said, in a positive way, to see the moment we are living, right this moment. Because this is death, right next to you. When I compose I usually think about that: living, death and life, and...

YOSHIKI：うーん。おもしろい質問だね…。はっきり見えるときもあれば、曖昧なときも。うーん。でも理由はわからないけど色で見えるときはピンクみたいな色は見えないんだよね。いつも暗い血のような赤が見えたりするんだよね（笑）なんでだろうな…。何か暗くて美しい感じ。映像だったときはいい意味で「死」を連想させるようなもの。私たちはこの瞬間、瞬間を生きています。それはいつも「死」と隣り合わせだから。作曲するときはそんなことを考えています…生…死…人生……。

 

PRESS: You've worked with various visual kei fashion labels before, behind the scenes just wearing their clothes. But how did it come forward to actually be presenting with h.Naoto, with their presence on stage?

- 貴方は以前様々なファッションを着てきたのに、何故今はh.NAOTOと組むようになったの？

 

YOSHIKI: h.Naoto, right? Well, one day I was reading some Japanese magazine, then I saw his clothes and said "This is cool." Then my management talked to them and then, "Sure, lets do something together." So...that's it then.

YOSHIKI：h.NAOTOね？ある日、日本の雑誌を読んでいたら彼の服が載ってて「かっこいい！」と思ったんです。マネージメントに話したら「一緒にやろうか」ということになって…。

 

PRESS: Alice Cooper, KISS, Twisted Sister. They all pioneered extreme levels of fashion to improve their noteraity in spite of being excellent musicians. X Japan obviously did the same thing to get a big foothold in the Japanese market with visual kei. What I have to ask you is as you tone down the visual kei, how do you plan to continue differentiating yourselves from other great artists in America as you attempt to release an album in English?

- Alice CooperやKISS、Twisted Sister。彼らは悪評を改善するために素晴らしいミュージシャンにあるにもかかわらず奇抜なファッション路線を開拓しました。X JAPANも日本市場で同じ状況でしたね。今はヴィジュアル的に主張していないようですが。英語でのアルバムを発売しようとしていますが、アメリカでの偉大なアーティストたちとはどう差別化していくの？

 

SUGIZO: I think just music's good. It's real music skill and sense. Every great band has very great player, a great composer.

SUGIZO：音楽の良さがあればいいと思います。本物の音楽技術やセンス。大きなバンドには偉大なプレイヤーと作曲家がいます。

 

YOSHIKI: Yeah. Same thing. The fashion is very important for us as well, of course it is Visual Kei. But at the same time, we think the music is the core, the main part. We're pretty confident our music is pretty strong. Well, I wouldn't say strong. We are very different. Well, I wouldn't say different...Unique. Because of our background, both Sugizo and I, and Toshi, three of us have Classical music background, besides rock. Then, of course, I do respect a lot of the bands you mentioned. We're not trying to differentiate with somebody, of course, we're going to get compared with a lot of bands, but what we are trying to do is just be ourselves, not trying to be somebody. Just, being ourselves. Then we're just gonna go for it.

YOSHIKI：ええ、そうですね。ファッションはもちろん僕たちにとっても重要です。でも同時に僕たちは音楽こそが一番重要な部分だと思っています。僕たちの音楽には自信があります。独特で、他とは違う。それはSUGIZOも自分もTOSHIも、クラシック音楽がバックグラウンドにあり、さらにあなたの言ったような偉大なバンドも尊敬しているからだと思います。私たちは他のバンドと違ったことをしようとは思っていません。もちろん比較されるとは思いますが、私たちはただ「自分たち自身」になろうと思っているだけです。ただ自分たち自身に。そうやって行こうと思います。

 

PRESS: Good.

- いいね～。

 

YOSHIKI: Yeah?

YOSHIKI：でしょ？

 

PRESS: For Lollapalooza, what kind of message would you want to send to your fans for your US debut?

- ロラパルーザについてですが。ファンにはアメリカデビューに対してどのようなメッセージを伝えたいですか？

 

YOSHIKI: Something new is coming to America. I hope it's gonna be some kind of like historical moment.

YOSHIKI：アメリカで新しいことが起こりそう。歴史的な瞬間にしたいですね。

 

SUGIZO: I think...my message is very simple. Music has no borders.

SUGIZO：メッセージはシンプルです。音楽に国境はありません。

 

YOSHIKI: Interesting... But...there have been the invisible walls between east and west. Hopefully we can put a hole into that wall and then smash it totally. Eventually.

YOSHIKI：おもしろいですね…しかし…東西には見えない壁があります。成功すればそれに壁に穴を空けることが出来るし、完全に破ることも出来る。いずれはね。

 

PRESS: How exactly did it come about that your American debut is at Lollapalooza? It's a pretty big thing to have your first show be at a huge festival like that.

- アメリカデビューがロラパルーザでやることになったのは何故ですか？初めてのライブにしては大きなフェスですよね。

 

YOSHIKI: Well, I live in Los Angeles. I'd been talked to several managers or agents about how X Japan should debut in America. We thought about doing a club tour; we thought about doing a small hall tour. But then some of my people who I work with said, "How about Coachella, how about Lollapalooza..." and then I was like "Hmm...that's very interesting." Then recently my agent, his name is Marc Geiger said, "Let's do it. If X Japan is ready we can have a very good spot for X Japan." So, that's it, I've known those people.

YOSHIKI：僕はロスに住んでいて、いくつかのマネージメントやエージェントとアメリカデビューのことを話し合ってきました。僕はクラブツアーや小ホールツアーをすることを考えていました。一緒に働いている人が「コーチェラ（フェス）はどう？」「ロラパルーザはどう？」と言ってくれて。おもしろいと思ったんです。最近、僕のエージェントのマークガイガーが「出てみない？もし準備が出来ているなら良いポジションを用意してあげるよ？」と。みんな顔馴染みでしたし。

 

PRESS: In Tokyo you have really large productions when you play concerts. On your US tour what kind of production are you kind of anticipating?

- 東京でライブをやる時は大きなプロダクションで行いますよね。北米ツアーではどのくらいの規模のプロダクションで行いますか？

 

YOSHIKI: Well, obviously we are just starting in the US. Now we are gonna do whatever we can have. It doesn't have to be a huge production. We can play in clubs and everything. So, we cannot bring that huge drum riser or the production to the US until the day we can perform in a big arena. Bu the lighting, and all of those things are part of our show as well. So we're gonna try as much as we can. But at the same time we are ready to perform anywhere. Without even lighting. Yeah...without even anything. As long as we can play. So we do have kind of the same mentality, like when we debuted in Japan a long time ago. We didn't have that kind of production when we first started in Japan. So we have the same mindset. We're just starting again. Which is very exciting, to be born again.

（話が難しすぎて…訳すことが出来ません…）

 

MC: Thank you very much for your time. And I'd like to ask, what is your message for the fans who are looking forward to seeing your live shows in the United States.

MC：今日は貴重なお時間を頂きありがとうございました。最後にアメリカでライブを楽しみに待っているファンにメッセージを。

 

SUGIZO: This is really big honor for me. I really respected X Japan from a very long time ago and X Japan's musical skill and sense is very great. When I joined them I thought, "I need more practice!" It is very, very important for me and just now I am part of X Japan, it is very exciting. This time is our American debut, too exciting. How can I say? I'm just excited, and I really love Americans, all Americans.

SUGIZO：これは僕にとって本当に名誉なことです。僕は長い間、音楽の技術とセンス高いX JAPANを尊敬してきました。加入したときには「もっと練習が必要だ」と思いました。僕にとってはそれが重要でした。X JAPANの一部として非情にエキサイティングです。なんて言ったらいいんだろう？本当に興奮しています。アメリカの皆。愛してます。

 

YOSHIKI: I'm very excited to finally, we can perform in the US. And because of our fans, because of you guys, we could reunite the band. So, without you, basically we are nothing. Nothing and nobody. I want to say thank you so much for supporting us, and I would like you to support X Japan for the future as well. And we will do anything to make it up, to live up to your expectation. Yeah, we're ready to rock the world. Thank you and I love you.

YOSHIKI：やっとアメリカでライブが出来ることとなり興奮しています。ファンがいたからこそ再結成もすることが出来ました。みんながいなければ、僕たちは存在していなかったでしょう。ずっと応援してくれていたことに感謝していますし、これからもずっと応援し続けてください。みんなの期待に応えるために何でも行えます。世界でロックをするために準備は整いました。ありがとう。愛してます。

 

MC: Thank you very much.

MC：どうもありがとうございました。

 

Special thanks to Yoshiki and Sugizo of X Japan, Otakon, and all of the press in attendance who provided questions.

 

Photography and transcript by Jerusha Burnett.

 

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ふぅ～。疲れました…。

だいぶ強引な約や意訳も含まれていますし、

間違いも多くありますので、

その辺を頭に入れてお読みください…（汗）