X JAPAN - EXPERIENCE

X JAPANのYOSHIKIが初の北米公演を終えた翌11日（日本時間12日）、ニューヨーク市内のレストランでインタビューに応じた。16日間でシアトル、トロントなど7ヵ所を巡ったツアーについて「完走できたことは奇跡」と一言。地元メディアなどに「X JAPANの音楽は異種で、（ロック、ポップスなど）表現のしようがない。これはX JAPANというジャンルだ！」と絶賛され「やっとスタート地点に立てた」と気合いを入れ直す。ツアー、来春発売する15年ぶりのアルバム、次回公演などについて聞く。

◆YOSHIKI画像

9月25日（日本時間26日）、約2万人を動員した北米公演は、YOSHIKIが拠点を置くロサンゼルスで幕を開けた。うなるギターと激しいドラム音が絡み合う「Silent Jealousy」、穏やかなピアノの音が心を打つ「ENDLESS RAIN」など、バンドは静と動が共存する部分が魅力。だが米国人のスタッフに「アメリカでは激しい音楽をやる人はバラードはやらない。バラードはやめた方がいい」と理解されなかった。

しかしファンが合唱し会場が一つになる「ENDLESS RAIN」は外せない。「これで嫌われたら仕方がない」とこれまでのスタイルを貫き臨んだステージ。YOSHIKIのピアノに合わせ歌ったり、そろってXジャンプをする客を見たスタッフや記者は、アメリカに挑みながら、型にはまらない姿に魅了された。YOSHIKIは「ピアノ、バイオリン、ロックもある新しいジャンルのバンドと言われています」と手ごたえをつかんだ。

「紅」「Rusty Nail」など日本語詞の楽曲は、歌詞に込めたメッセージは残し、すべての歌詞を英語に書き直した。英語詞に合わせ曲のアレンジを変えた。新たな息吹が加えられた曲のため、リハーサルでは綿密な打ち合わせを繰り返した。

わずか39人のスタッフで運営したライブは、メンバー同士の関係を密にした。ともに鞄を持ち、同じ飛行機で移動する中で「あそこ間違ったでしょう。あんまり飛ばさないで」などデビュー前のような会話を重ねた。YOSHIKIは「X JAPANってライブバンドだと自分たちも思い知った。たたき上げてきたバンドだから、これが出来た」としみじみ。過酷な日程の中、甲状腺ホルモンの分泌が過剰になる「甲状腺機能亢進症」から滞在先のホテルで気絶するトラブルも。「疲れやすいのは確か。でも引退するほどじゃない。疲れなんて結局気合いと思う」と笑った。

新曲「Born To Be Free」のレコーディングも終え、9割完成したというアルバムで「世界を獲る」と宣言。延期になっていたフランス、新たにドイツでの公演がアルバム発売時期に決まったことも明かした。国内は5月までに、韓国、台湾、タイ、第2弾北米コンサートも検討。チリ、ペルー、ブラジルなど南米からもオファーが届いたと言い、本格的な世界展開が始まることを示唆。「X JAPANって“JAPAN”を背負ってますから。日本のバンドとして行こうと思っています」と意気込んだ。

◆YOSHIKIがヒーローに

ニューヨーク市内で行われたアニメイベント「コミコン（コミックコンベンション）」で「スパイダーマン」「アイアンマン」などを出版するマーベルコミック創立者、スタン・リー（88）との共同でYOSHIKIがヒーロー役の「ミュージックマン」というマンガの企画があることを発表。YOSHIKIは「僕はピアノを飛び越え、ドラムに飛び込むスーパーヒーローさ」とコメント。キャラクターは2011年にお目見えする予定だ。

◆SUGIZOの加入

「HIDEを継ぐギタリストは人間としてもギタリストとしてもSUGIZOしか考えていなかった」。加入前は、SUGIZOのバイオリンと自身のピアノの共演は頭になかったが、根底にクラシックを持っているため「本当に素晴らしいマッチだった」と音楽の幅が広がったことを喜んでいた。

取材・文：西村綾乃

写真提供：（C）JMA

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サンスポ

● ＹＯＳＨＩＫＩ熱く宣言「世界を獲る！」

　【ニューヨーク１１日＝納村悦子】初北米ツアーを大成功のうちに終えたＸ　ＪＡＰＡＮが来春の欧州ツアーを皮切りに、北米＆南米、アジアと、世界各国でライブを計画していることが分かった。リーダーのＹＯＳＨＩＫＩがインタビューに応じ、明かした。１９８９年のデビュー以来、常に夢見てきた本格的な世界展開。１５年ぶりのアルバムが来春、世界発売されることも決まり、「ここまできたら世界を獲る！！」と熱く宣言した。

　北米ツアーで一区切りつけ、次の展開について聞いたときだった。ＹＯＳＨＩＫＩは「来春にヨーロッパツアーをやることになって。フランス、ドイツは決定。イギリスとか、その他の国も回りたい」と明かした。

　さらに、北米ツアー第２弾と日本公演を来年５月までに、以降はアジア各国や南米ツアーも計画中といい、「北米はもう１回細かくやる。アジアは日本のほか韓国、台湾、タイ。南米はチリ、ペルー、ブラジルからオファーが来ています。Ｘってやっぱりライブバンドだと思う。やっとスタート地点に立てたなと思います」と力を込めた。

　また、制作中のアルバムも着々と進んでおり、最終調整に入った。来春発売予定で、９６年の「ＤＡＨＬＩＡ」以来、実に１５年ぶりの新アルバムとなるだけに、「このアルバムで本当に世界を獲ると思ってる」とＹＯＳＨＩＫＩ。制作は９０％終わっており、全米で１１日からラジオプロモーションがスタートした「Ｊａｄｅ」や、新曲「Ｂｏｒｎ　Ｔｏ　Ｂｅ　Ｆｒｅｅ」が収録される。

　また、疲労から甲状腺疾患が悪化し、シカゴのホテルで倒れるなど体調が心配されたが、「３カ月に１回、検査を受けて医師の正しい指導を受けてるから大丈夫です。疲れなんて結局、気合ですよ。僕は命がけでやります」と気力をみなぎらせた。

　北米ツアーではメンバー各自が楽器をチューニングし、団体行動を重視。ライブ前にはステージ上でそろってミーティングするなど、初心に戻り一致団結したことで、より一層絆が深まった。

　ＹＯＳＨＩＫＩは「アメリカでは激しい音楽をやるバンドはバラードはやらない。両方やる僕らは、新しいバンドが現れたと見られている。僕はＸというジャンルだって言ってます」と笑顔を見せ、「Ｘ　ＪＡＰＡＮってジャパンを背負ってますから、日本のバンドとしてぶつかっていきます」と、日の丸ロックを世界中に見せつけることを力強く宣言した。

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サンスポ

● ＹＯＳＨＩＫＩ、米国でマンガキャラに！

　【ニューヨーク１１日】初北米ツアーを大成功のうちに終えたＸ　ＪＡＰＡＮが来春の欧州ツアーを皮切りに、北米＆南米、アジアと、世界各国でライブを計画していることが分かった。リーダーのＹＯＳＨＩＫＩがインタビューに応じ、明かした。

　９日にはＮＹ市内で行われたアニメフェスティバル「コミコン」に、スパイダーマン、アイアンマン、Ｘ－ＭＥＮなどを誕生させた北米最大のコミック出版社、マーベルコミック創立者、スタン・リー氏（８８）と共同会見し、ＹＯＳＨＩＫＩがヒーロー役のコミック「ミュージックマン」の制作を発表。来年キャラクターがお披露目される予定で、「ピアノを飛び越え、ドラムに飛び込んじゃうスーパーヒーロー」と明かした。

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烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(14)

X JAPAN × iPhone

2010/10/01 (Fri)

J Rock Revolution

iTunes

iPhoneアプリにX JAPANコンテンツが登場したそうです！

今のところは、公式サイトの劣化版という感じですが、

後々はここでしかないサービスとかも出てくるのでしょうかね？

という…大きな期待は禁物です（笑）

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(2)

FEVER X JAPAN 更新

2010/09/28 (Tue)

http://legend-x.jp/

色々更新されてます（笑）

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

BLUE BLOOD限定 come party X JAPAN in L.A.

2010/09/26 (Sun)

http://www.xjapanmusic.com/contest/

FC「BLUE BLOOD」より２名様。

来年初旬のリリース記念パーティーにご招待！

だそうです！

サイン付ライブ使用したドラムスティック

iPodの限定カスタム

YOSHIKIビデオメッセージDVD

などなどももらえるらしいです。

が…。

一応アメリカの住所が必要なのかな？？

うーん。ちょい出かけるので調べられないのですが、

詳細はなかなか日本人には難しいのかも…？

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(4)

JaME WORLD

2010/09/24 (Fri)

こちらもアメリカニュース。

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JaME WORLD

● Exclusive Interview with YOSHIKI

Before the start of X JAPAN's North American tour, JaME was able to hold an interview and received a video message from band leader YOSHIKI.

On September 25th, X JAPAN will kick off their North American tour, which will take them to seven cities in the USA and Canada. JaME was lucky to be one of the few media to be granted an intimate interview with YOSHIKI, the mastermind behind X JAPAN, for a little warm up for the tour.

We recently heard that you were having some health problems. How are you feeling today? Are you better?

YOSHIKI: I don't think I have health problems, I think I'm just exhausted. (laughs)

X JAPAN has finally performed in the USA with Lollapalooza. How do you feel about finally being able to tour the country?

YOSHIKI: It was a very special moment because it has been our dream to perform outside of Japan. Performing at the Lollapalooza festival gave us more confidence because while we were performing, the audience grew to a few thousand people. So finally touring the US, this is part of our dream, so everyone is excited. And a little bit nervous!

How do you feel about playing in smaller venues here in the US?

YOSHIKI: Actually, we like that. (laughs) When we perform in Japan, it's such a big venue, but we feel like we have to go back to the basics. Although we are having a fresh start in the US, we don't have to start from the very bottom and perform at small clubs. For a few thousand people, that's great. We won't have that much lighting or such, but we can go back to the basics.

The American audience would definitely appreciate the smaller venue because it will be a more intimate show for them.

YOSHIKI: Yes, we'll be able to see the audience's faces. (laughs)

Besides the fans reactions and concert etiquette, is playing in the US very different from Japan?

YOSHIKI: In the US, we only performed at Lollapalooza. It was great, they were very passionate and supportive. So we're going to find out more as the tour progresses. However, in the US, we won't really have the luxury we have in Japan. In Japan, we have so many people working for us that every single detail is taken care of. Of course we do as much as we can, but maybe this will be rougher. Also, come to think of it, we haven't toured in a very long time. Not even in Japan; we usually only do stadium shows in Tokyo. Yeah, it's very exciting. Since we'll be going back to the basics, we'll really be able to rock easily.

The X JAPAN tour is covering all the major cities, but you're mainly staying to the west and east coasts. Why weren't there any scheduled in between, such as in Texas?

YOSHIKI: I would love to go to Texas! You see this is our first step. If this tour is successful then we're going to go to more venues next year. It's more experimenting, like how it'll happen then we'll tour more next year.

X JAPAN is a very popular band. Considering that artists such as MIYAVI and Dir en grey have toured the USA, does that give you more confidence that this tour will be more successful?

YOSHIKI: Yes and no. MIYAVI and Dir en grey are great bands, great artists. X JAPAN may be much bigger in Japan, but that doesn't mean we'll be much bigger here in the US. In the US, we have to start from zero. Well, no, we don't have to start from zero, we do have supporters, but we do have to start from the basics again. But at the same time, we'll be performing in the US, which is great!

Something we noticed is that in interviews you mostly mention ToshI, SUGIZO and HIDE. But what about PATA and HEATH? How are they doing? How are they coping with the upcoming tour?

YOSHIKI: They're very excited. I just got back from Tokyo yesterday, but I was recording with HEATH and PATA last week in Japan. They're very excited. (laughs) They have very calm personalities so... (laughs)

We know that you're going to release a new studio album. Are there any new updates about it? How will it differ from older X JAPAN releases that we all know so well?

YOSHIKI: We're still recording it, but I would say we're about 90% done. We're still finishing it. Well, 50% of it will be older X JAPAN songs, and the other 50% will be newer songs. I don't know; it might be edgier. I would say edgier.

The older X JAPAN songs, are you re-recording them?

YOSHIKI: Yes, but we're just re-recording the vocals for some of the songs.

Other than the member changes, what are some of the main differences between X JAPAN now and twenty years ago?

YOSHIKI: Hmm. We are older. (laughs) That doesn't mean we act more calm or anything like that though. We may be older, but we're still kids at heart.

X JAPAN has been regarded in a negative way by some people due to cancellations and changes of plans. How do you deal with the negative feedback?

YOSHIKI: Well, we did have a lot of problems. We had a problem with our management. Also we had problems with our health. Unfortunately, what's done is done. For some people, especially those in France, I sincerely apologize that we had to cancel our performances so many times. Also countries like South Korea. But we're going to start all over again; we hired new management. I can't guarantee our health, but we're going to try to take as much care of our health as we can. We're not going to disappoint you this time. We are looking forward to seeing our fans.

You are practically a household name to fans in Japan as well as many other various parts of the world. How will you approach the mainstream US market?

YOSHIKI: I guess there isn't a shortcut. So we're just going to do what we did in Japan. We're just going to rock hard. (laughs)

There are so many new, successful bands in Japan who also have many overseas fans. How do you compete with them?

YOSHIKI: Well... we're just going to have to compete with them. (laughs) Yeah, there are a lot of great bands.

There is a photo of you meeting with the late Michael Jackson and you were also recently compared to U2's Bono. Among such artists you've worked with or met, who has been the most influential to you?

YOSHIKI: Well, I don't know. Those are very big names. Like Michael Jackson was very inspirational. I've met a lot of great bands in Japan. It doesn't have to be a very huge name. A lot of artists I've met were very inspirational to me, not just huge names.

Looking back at X JAPAN's extensive career, do you have any regrets?

YOSHIKI: Interesting question. (thinks) I don't know. I don't actually know if I have any. I may have, but I cannot go back or I can't remember. I don't know. I wanted to come to come here, to tour outside of Japan with hide. So it's not a regret, but just sad. But at the same time I feel like we're doing this together. Actually a few weeks ago, I visited his grave to tell him that we were doing this together.

Considering you have an eclectic repertoire, here's a fun question: You were involved with the 2008 American film "Repo: The Genetic Opera." How was it working on a musical?

YOSHIKI: It was very interesting and at the same time was very hard. I had to produce every single song and some of the songs were coming from singers who didn't have a singing background. It was very hard work, but at the same time it was very interesting. The movie itself was very different. A very fun kind of movie.

Lastly, will you please give a final message to your waiting audience?

YOSHIKI: We are very excited to start touring the US. Hopefully, it will go well. To those who are in the places we can't tour this time and those in Europe and Asia, we are going to start all over again. So I'm really looking forward to performing and meeting you guys.

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烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

AMP MAGAZIN

2010/09/24 (Fri)

さて…このインタビューにて…。

「１０月１日に " Jade " 配信」と書かれていますが…。

どうなんでしょうね？

でも、ラジオプロモが始まるということは…？

もちろん何かを売らずにはプロモーションにはなりませんので、

そろそろ配信されてもいいとは思うのですが。

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AMP MAGAZIN

● X JAPAN invades America

After so many years of just focusing on your native Japan, what brings the States to your sites?

It was always our dream to come here, it wasn’t like one day we just decided to come here, we’ve always been thinking about this. We lived in Japan, but we were always thinking about the world. And, I’ve been living here [in Los Angeles] for more than 10 years.

A long time ago, people from Sony came to us – at that time we were just called ‘X’ – they wanted to have us debut in the U.S. but we felt we weren’t ready. Then a few years later, Atlantic Records came to us, and said we should debut in America, and we said ‘sure.’ We were going to start recording here, but we didn’t speak English, so we thought we weren’t ready, so we didn’t release anything. Then, we were about to debut here, but we broke up [this was in 1997], then reunited 10 years later, we are now ready.

Being in such a huge band in Japan, is there an element that you can appreciate about revisiting breaking into a new market, or playing to fans that are unfamiliar with your music?

It’s a challenge, but we feel really luck to be doing this all over again – it’s not exactly the same as when we first started in Japan, but it is kind of like doing it all over again. We love breaking into a new market, it’s so exciting. It’s kind of like … it’s not so easy to maintain who you are, then where you are, in Japan, you always have to keep moving forward. Now we have America, Europe, Southeast Asia to break into – we are so lucky to have this kind of opportunity and we will enjoy every single moment, every single success or happiness or failure – everything we will enjoy.

When we first started in Japan, people asked “who are they, what are they?” So, we say, “we are musicians, I play drums, I play piano,” – what are you talking about, you play drums and piano, what do you mean? So, it’s the same thing again here in America. Of course now in Japan, you say ‘Yoshiki’ or “X Japan,” and even if you’re 18 or 80, people say, ‘oh, yes, I know who they are, I saw you play for the Emperor of Japan, or whatever. But, a long time ago when we were first starting, people had no idea who we were, so we are doing the same thing again.

Had you guys written a lot in English before, or was this mostly for an American push?

Personally, I have been writing a lot of songs in English the past 7 or 8 years, so it comes naturally. I dream in English, when I had anesthesia [for neck surgery] I was talking in English, when I talk in my sleep, I talk in English, so it’s natural for me now.

30,000.000 albums sold, and being able to regularly sell-out your local 55,000 capacity venue. What is there left to prove or accomplish? What is your biggest driving force now?

You can’t measure your happiness or your satisfaction by numbers, so 50,000 audience or 10,000 or even 100,000, either you’re happy or you’re unhappy. We’re very happy with our success in Japan, but we want to go outside. Our driving force is to try and break down the boundary with our music. There is still an invisible boundary, an invisible wall between East and West, so I would like to break down that wall.

What have you noticed about playing in the States that’s different from Japan? I know set times are usually shorter here. Are you guys having to modify your usual set, and stage show for a US tour?

Well, we are headlining this U.S. tour, but as we are not doing a huge, stadium show – yet – we have a limited time to perform. But it’s going to be a little harder, the set, than the Japanese version I guess. Our U.S. show will be more about back to basics, more music driven, not a lighting or production driven concert.

X Japan took a break(-up) in ’97. What changed in the years between then and when you guys decided to regroup? Was X Japan missed by you a lot?

Yes, yes, we just took everything for granted, we didn’t know how…I realized after this reunion just how good our vocalist, Toshi, sounds. We grew up together, we were always together, so I just took him for granted, not only Toshi, but all of the members of X Japan. I missed X Japan a lot, but during those almost ten years, I didn’t want to say the name of the band. Also, we lost Hide [X Japan's guitarist who died in 1998] after the band broke up, so I couldn’t even want to think about the X Japan, every time I thought about X Japan, it made me so sad. So, I buried X Japan six feet into the ground, even deeper than that, I put the thought of X Japan into the grave, and tried not to even visit that cemetery. But, for some reason, my mind always stayed in that cemetery, and finally, we resurrected X Japan from the fucking ground.

I heard there was a studio you wanted to track some drums in, but it was booked, so you bought it. If so, that totally rules. How did this all come about?

I was in Los Angeles and everybody was talking about this studio, that it had the best drum-sounding room and I tried to book it. Metallica had booked this studio for almost a year straight [for their "Black" album], so I asked, ‘how about after Metallica,’ but I was told there was a list of bands already who had already booked the studio. So I asked ‘how can I get in?’ and I was told ‘buy the studio’ and I said, ‘OK, I’ll buy it’ and I bought it.

When does the new album come out? Is there a title yet, and who is releasing it?

The band’s new album will be out in 2011, no title yet, haven’t announced the North American label yet. The first single, “Jade” will be available starting October 1.

You also went back and converted some of your back-catalogue to English as well, correct? How was this process? Were there some parts that just had to be re-structured, lyrically?

Yes, for some reason, I could not just translate Japanese to English. It depended on the songs, but I had to almost rewrite the lyrics entirely, but keep the same message. English have more words than Japanese, for some reason.

What are you most excited to see on your first American tour?

I don’t know…we feel like we are going to into something unknown, something we’ve never experienced. We are just confident that we can nail you, in a good way.

I know you are a classically trained musician as well. Besides drums, what instrument do you find most lends itself to creating the paths you hear for songs, and why?

Ninety percent of the time when I write songs, I don’t use anything, just a pen to write the music notes. I use very old-style methods. I create everything in my head, and just write, that’s what I do. Every single drum I play, it’s written out note for note. Sometimes I’ll use the piano or the guitar, but 90% of the time, I just write, the drums, the guitars, the bass.

Do you structure a lot of your songs this way first, and then just crank up the drive and volume on them?

So, these days, I use the computers as well, so then I come to the studio and start programming everything and do my changes there. Usually, my imagination is a much better place, recording is a process of compromising.

You also recorded a solo album of classical music with Beatles producer George Martin. Were you a big Beatles fan? Were you prodding him for stories for the whole session?

I’m a pretty big Beatles fan, but I tried to concentrate on what we were doing during the recording, so I didn’t ask him anything.

How has the aggressive music scene in Japan changed over the last 20+ years you have been making music?

It’s like a circle, rock’s been gone then coming back. I always feel that good music survives, regardless of genre. Seems like there is less excitement these days. People might be being too realistic, including artists, they should be more ambitious. I run a business as well, but people think too much about business these days. People and labels have become too tame.

So, is X Japan your retirement band, or do you see yourself in a post X Japan life someday? I know you dabble with a vineyard that you own, and have composed several “less rock” pieces, even for members of your own Government. What do you still have to do and see that inspires you?

Everything inspires me every day, every single moment. We are doing this North American tour, we will release our new album, we have plans for next year, but I don’t think about that far ahead, so I don’t know if X Japan will be our last band.

Any final thoughts to the kids of America before you come rock their faces off?

Be ready.

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烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

女性自身 × FCBB

2010/09/24 (Fri)

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女性自身

● X JAPAN　 HIDEも一緒に“6人”で悲願の初北米ツアー９.25スタート！

「もうすぐ北米ツアーが始まります。アメリカに拠点を移し、マネージメントも一新し、新体制で動いています。メンバー全員で話し合った結果、少しでもＨＩＤＥの映像を使用し、ＨＩＤＥと一緒に初の北米ツアーを回ります。ニューシングル『ＪＡＤＥ』は発射準備完了！ぜひみんなに聞いてほしい･･･」

と、YOSHIKI率いるＸ JAPANのメンバーから、ファンに向けたメッセージが届いた。

いよいよ今週末９月２５日から、悲願だった“６人”のＸ JAPANのアメリカツアーがロスアンゼルス「Wiltern Theatre」からスタート。全米で７ヶ所の７公演をおこない10月10日ニューヨークで幕を閉じる。コメントにあるように、ツアー直前にメンバーが話し合いを行った結果、98年に亡くなったＨＩＤＥの映像の一部をライブで使用できるように、遺族に通達した上で、ライブでＨＩＤＥの映像が流れる模様！

一時は訴訟問題が心配されていたが、これでYOSHIKI、ToshI, SUGIZO　,PATA, HEATH,そしてHIDEの6人で念願だった世界進出を実現させることとなった。

また先日、ＮＥＷオフィシャルＷＥＢサイトがオープンし、話題を呼んでいる。

http://www.xjapanmusic.com/

このサイトは、FacebookやTwitter、Myspace、Youtube、Podcastとも連動しており、YOSHIKI自らがカメラに向かい、はにかんだ笑顔でライブ映像とともに、北米ツアースケジュールをコメントする映像や、新曲『Born To Be Free』の日産ライブ、ほかにもYOSHIKIがアメリカのABCニュースで紹介されている画像なども見ることができて、ファンには嬉しい限り！サイトは英語がメインだが、日本語を含めて、各国の言語にも順次対応していくという。また北米ツアーチケットも購入できる。

そして、本誌WEBではそのYOSHIKIの画像を特別にお見せします！

また近日中には、「Blue Blood/ブルーブラッド」という、オフィシャルファンクラブサイトが全世界共通で発足。

10月１日からは全米でのラジオプロモーションもスタートし、ファーストシングル「JADE」がiTuneを通じて全世界に配信されるもようだ。今回の北米ツアーに合わせて、またX JAPANのマネジメントもアメリカを拠点においた新体制となった。

元ワーナーブラザーズ社長のPhil Quartararoがマネージャーに就任、さらにエージェントは、世界最大のタレントエージェンシー「ウィリアムモリス」となり、世界を視野に入れた活動のX JAPAN準備万端整った！

北米ツアーまでいよいよカウントダウンがスタート！

YOSHIKIはじめ“６人”のX JAPANメンバーがアメリカでいよいよ攻撃開始！！

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烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

FEVER X JAPANサイト更新

2010/09/21 (Tue)

FEVER X JAPAN

SANKYOパワフルワールド（mobile）

「Machine Info」

「FLASHゲーム第２弾携帯きせかえ」

が、更新されています。

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

X JAPAN podcast

2010/09/19 (Sun)

X JAPAN podcast

うーん。

とりあえずX JAPAN OFFICIAL YouTubeってとこですかね？

北米ツアー宣伝用という感じだとは思いますけど。

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

X JAPAN & YOSHIKI facebook

2010/09/17 (Fri)

なんだかよくわかりませんが、

YOSHIKIがここのサイトをつぶやいたので、

それなりの公式サイトということなのでしょうかね？

リンク先にはアメリカの公式サイトが張られています。

http://www.facebook.com/pages/X-Japan/124298817619313

これによると…。

北米ツアーはL.A.以外は２時間枠？？

これは前座を合わせて…ということではないよね？（汗）

そして

レコード会社 X JAPAN PROJECT, LLC

と書かれていますが…？

これは…？

LLC…Limited Liability Company…合同会社

ということらしいですが…。

http://www.ekaisha.jp/llc.htm

もう１つ。

YOSHIKIのほうもfacebookを立ち上げたそうです。

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yoshiki/148183251887331

Twitterもそうですが、

これらはどちらかというと宣伝的なものなのかな？

インディーズでやってるようなもんと言ってましたしね。

加えて「好きな曲は？」なんて聞いていますが…。

ライブ前の定番質問ですね？（笑）

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(8)

FEVER X JAPAN フルムービー公開＋ α

2010/09/17 (Fri)

FEVER X JAPAN SITE

以前公開された " Jade " のフルバージョンに加え

" 紅 " " Rusty Nail " のフルバージョンも追加されています。

ってか、これをフルバージョンと呼ぶのか？（笑）

パチンコの大当たりムービーということかな。

それと、上記のムービーなどを含め、

ブログパーツも公開となっています。

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(1)

X JAPAN & YOSHIKI facebook

2010/09/17 (Fri)

なんだかよくわかりませんが、

YOSHIKIがここのサイトをつぶやいたので、

それなりの公式サイトということなのでしょうかね？

リンク先にはアメリカの公式サイトが張られています。

http://www.facebook.com/pages/X-Japan/124298817619313

これによると…。

北米ツアーはL.A.以外は２時間枠？？

これは前座を合わせて…ということではないよね？（汗）

そして

レコード会社 X JAPAN PROJECT, LLC

と書かれていますが…？

これは…？

もう１つ。

YOSHIKIのほうもfacebookを立ち上げたそうです。

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yoshiki/148183251887331

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

海外ニュース

2010/09/17 (Fri)

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DETAILS

● Yoshiki: The Biggest Rock Star You've Never Heard Of Invades America

Yoshiki Hayashi, drummer and creative mastermind behind Japan's biggest rock band, X Japan, is calm amid the chaos in the VIP Room at L.A.'s Club Nokia, where he is both directing and starring in the video for his band's upcoming single, "Born to Be Free." He floats past a horde of extras dressed in Hot Topic Goth and stops to examine a skyscraping woman in black vinyl leggings, her face pancaked in white foundation. He says, "The corset on the vampire needs to be tighter." No sooner does a P.A. give the corset's three belts a good yank, prompting its wearer to gasp for air, than another one approaches Yoshiki with two pairs of fangs, and offers, "This one's more jagged, this one's a little sexier." The story line calls for the vampire-cum-dominatrix to track down Yoshiki in a crowded nightclub and to sink one of these into his neck. Yoshiki studies the fangs intently. "I'll take the sexy ones," he says.

Since the 1980s, X Japan has sold more than 30 million records and packed out the Tokyo Dome 18 times, comfortably eclipsing Bon Jovi. (And you know Bon Jovi is Big in Japan.) Now, with their first-ever U.S. tour kicking off this month, to be followed by an English-language album due early next year, X Japan's legendary frontman—who endorses a plethora of products, from energy drinks to a credit card bearing his likeness; who even has his very own Hello Kitty doll, the Yoshikitty—is plotting his American rawk offensive. "Born to Be Free," which blends operatic Freddie Mercury-like vocals with the propulsive force of Metallica circa ... And Justice for All, is his opening salvo.

And yet the song still needed tweaking as recently as 4 a.m. this morning, and after 18 hours of shooting at Club Nokia, Yoshiki's lack of sleep is starting to show. Wearing tight black pants, a white wife-beater, and oversized aviators, Yoshiki settles into the director's chair and calls "Action!" The vampire, seething with anger and lust, strides purposefully through the packed club, pushing people out of the way; she's bearing sexy fangs, she's looking for Yoshiki... who, though he isn't supposed to be in this shot, suddenly bounds out of his chair without saying cut, quickly getting the rapt attention of the DP. "The shove at the end needs to be more dramatic and forceful," he says. The shot is restaged. Then, when the song starts up again over the set's sound system, Yoshiki's face looks stricken. "It's the fucking wrong version!" he screams. The sound man looks on helplessly as Yoshiki cues up the right one. "This is it," he says, punctuating his words with a jab at the button.

It seems like everywhere you look on set, there's a rock cliché being used without irony: leather-clad band members; women dancing in elevated cages; cannons shooting off pyrotechnics. Later, while reclining in a makeup chair in his dressing room, Yoshiki acknowledges that X Japan may become critical laughingstocks. "If they want to nail us to the ground, nail us," he says with a shrug. "We were always the black sheep in Japan. No one thought we could go mainstream. But we did. And now we're ready to rock the world."

From left: Guitarist Tomoaki "Pata" Ishizuka, bass guitarist Hiroshi "Heath" Morie, and vocalist Toshimitsu "Toshi" Deyama, playing at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. Yoshiki is not pictured.

Yoshiki turns 45 in November, and if he wants to become a worldly rock god, it had better happen soon. "I feel like I'm a time bomb," he says. "Besides, I've always wanted to conquer the U.S. Why not now?"

It probably can't go any worse than his first attempt. In the early nineties, after rising to the top of the charts in their homeland with hit songs like "Stab Me in the Back," "Endless Rain" and "Sadistic Desire," X Japan set their sights on the United States—first by changing their name from "X" (they didn't want to get mixed up with the L.A. punk band), then by signing a multi-million-dollar deal with Atlantic Records and holding an elaborate press conference at the Rainbow Room in Rockefeller Center. But the high-concept album that followed, Art of Life—comprising a single track inspired by Schubert's unfinished Symphony #8—held no appeal for an American teenaged public that had just been punched in the face (and liked it) by Nirvana's Nevermind. Then there was X Japan's wild, androgynous look, which, despite having spawned the popular, equal parts cute and threatening Visual Kei movement (which in turn would help launch the anime craze), only made them seem more out of touch. "None of us spoke the language then," Yoshiki recalls. "It's one thing to cultivate mystery, but it's completely different when you're mysterious only because you can't communicate properly."

Today the barriers to translation may not be as great, as social-networking tools have made it easier for bands to communicate directly with their fanbase. (While he professes no interest in Facebook or MySpace, Yoshiki finally opened a Twitter account during the run-up to X Japan's U.S. concert debut at Lollapalooza in early August—and garnered more than 12,000 followers in less than 12 hours.) Another reason for optimism lies in a larger cultural shift, wherein Japanese artists have proved ever-more adept at appropriating bits and pieces of American culture and returning them in new and exciting forms. "We're in an age of mashups, fan sites, bit torrents and YouTube," says Roland Kelts, author of Japanamerica: How Japanese Pop Culture Has Invaded the U.S. "A culture that mastered the art of imitating and copying original ideas is right in tune with the 21st century."

The Gap begets Uniqlo, Disney begets anime. And now the cycle of appropriation is starting to go in the other direction. "Japan has always been a source of great inspiration to me, and X Japan is a big part of that," says My Chemical Romance frontman and award-winning comic book writer Gerard Way. "Because of my love for manga and Japanese animation as a boy, I was able to connect with the music, the emotion, and the visual intent." And that's precisely the recipe that Marc Geiger, the band's booking agent, hopes to duplicate with fanboys across the country. The bet is that X Japan can find greater success than their J-Rock predecessors—Dir En Gray, Boredoms, the Kurt Cobain-endorsed Shonen Knife—by catapulting Yoshiki into becoming an anime superhero with the help of D.C. Comics legend Stan Lee. (The project was slated to be announced at New York Comic Con in early October, but it has since been delayed.) "For any kid under the age of 14," Geiger says, "anime is huge. It makes sense for them to come over now."

Yoshiki and his childhood friend, Toshi, were 17 years old when—covered in blood-spattered makeup with fuck-you attitudes to match—they arrived in Tokyo as self-described "cartoon monsters." But the initial seed of their rebellion—and ultimately of X Japan—was planted seven years earlier when Yoshiki came home from a music lesson to find his father, a kimono-shop owner, dead from suicide. Up to that point, he'd been listening exclusively to classical music. But in the wake of his father's death, Yoshiki's tastes took a sharp, screeching turn toward heavy metal. He wore out the grooves on Kiss' Alive! and was able to convince his mother, who'd been teaching him classical piano since he was 4, to take him to one of their concerts at Tokyo's Budokan arena. "It was shocking to me," he says, "but I loved every minute of it. My mother, however, was a little worried." Soon he'd moved on to Led Zeppelin, then the Sex Pistols, proving that rebellion through rock and roll works pretty much the same in Japan as it does in the States. "I went to a very conservative junior high school, and I started dying my hair," he remembers. "One time a teacher held me down and shaved my head. The next day I came back with a different color."

X Japan's garish looks and rebel ways struck a chord with Japanese youth. Yoshiki and Toshi didn't just trash hotel rooms, but entire hotels. Eventually, various restaurants and bars in Tokyo started posting "No Yoshiki" signs outside. The music propelled them to superstardom, but if you've ever seen "Behind the Music," you already have some idea of what led to their late-nineties flameout. In this version, Toshi leaves the band to join a cult, and the guitarist, Hide, is found hanging from a towel tied to a doorknob. And that's when Yoshiki's career really takes off.

The former rebel morphed into something more palatable—and marketable—releasing several classical solo albums to great acclaim, collaborating with Sir George Martin, and catching the ear of Emperor Akihito, who commissioned Yoshiki to write and perform a song to celebrate the 10th anniversary of his reign. "I knew there would be some controversy, and maybe years ago I wouldn't have done it—but to rebel against the rebellious was appealing," he says. It wasn't long before the endorsements started flowing, but he's adamant that they do little to dilute the Yoshiki brand. "I cut myself onstage, yet I have Hello Kitty. I like the contradiction," he says matter-of-factly. "I don't worry about it. I'm still mysterious. I don't even know who I am anyway."

"I'm very scared of myself," he continues. "Suicide has crossed my mind. I can't sleep and I can't relax. I'm very fragile when I'm alone. But when I leave my house, I feel stronger and nothing can stop me."

For the last twelve years, Yoshiki has lived in Encino—the pinnacle of L.A. suburbia—on the street where Michael Jackson once resided. When he's in Japan, he has a 24-hour bodyguard detail, but here he's remarkably lax about security. He moved to L.A. to escape the incessant hounding. "I enjoy going to the grocery store and buying ice cream," he tells me while relaxing on a hotel-room couch the day after the video shoot. Dressed in a white linen shirt with black pants and winklepicker boots, his wavy hair tickling his shoulders, Yoshiki's still working the androgynous angle pretty hard. Yet if he's incredibly thin, almost to the point of being frail, it isn't entirely a matter of style: Yoshiki suffers from chronic tendonitis, and last July he had to have major neck surgery to relieve bulging discs—the result of too much head banging. Afterwards he spent two weeks in the hospital undergoing a battery of tests, and his doctor warned him that his neck "may only hold out for two years. He told me not to play the drums. Fuck that. I may become paralyzed—so what?" Yoshiki has always been the screaming, stick-twirling sort who likes to bash out his demons on the kit—but these days he has to gut out shows in a neck brace.

Yoshiki spends most of his time either at home in the company of the 20 people he employs, or in the studio he bought in 1993—the one where Metallica recorded their eponymous album, popularly known as Black Album. (Metallica producer Bob Rock had the space booked for his next project, but Yoshiki dropped a few million, renamed it Extasy Recording Studio, and kicked Rock out.) He says when he drinks, he drinks, though he's careful not to make a public display of it like he did during the glory years. Now he ventures out only once a week for business dinners at, say, Matsuhisa, before unwinding at clubs like Bar Sinister, a Hollywood Goth nightspot, with one of his four assistants. "One of us is always with him," says primary assistant Lauren, a skinny doe-eyed beauty dressed in short shorts and black thigh-high socks. "He doesn't talk to too many people." He used to have a girlfriend, Julia Voth, an up-and-coming Canadian model/actress, but he broke up with her in June after six years together. "I was too busy," he says without emotion, waving his hand dismissively like a petulant teenager. "I mean, I want to get married. I think. I guess. I don't know."

"When he says he doesn't have any good friends, I honestly believe him," says Phil Quartararo, Yoshiki and X Japan's manager, who, as then president of Warner Bros. Records, signed Yoshiki to a solo deal in 2000. "He lives for the mystery and cultivating that myth." Yoshiki might like to walk the aisles of Ralph's in anonymity, but when the ego needs a shot, he likes to make an appearance where he's sure to get recognized, including the occasional movie premiere. (This is It, most recently). But when X Japan goes out on the road, will Yoshiki be able to keep the adoration at arms length? (Will he even want to?) Either way, the prospect of widespread success in the U.S. remains an iffy proposition. Anime might have a massive following among 12 year-olds and the downtown hipster class, but that doesn't necessarily translate into fondness for an unironic brand of bombastic arena rock that can sometimes sound about 20 years behind the curve. For every Rush (Canada) and Phoenix (France) there are hundreds of Tragically Hips and Noir Désirs—bands you've never heard of for a reason.

Yoshiki is well aware of the obstacles that face any foreign rock outfit trying to make it in rock's birthplace. Still, X Japan's 50-minute, five-song blast at Lollapalooza was lauded as one of the weekend highlights by both fans and critics, and Yoshiki plans to keep that momentum going. "We played heavy songs—I didn't want to lose people with the ballads," he tells me on the phone a couple weeks later, following two enormous stadium shows outside of Tokyo. "I know what I'm doing. And now, after Lollapalooza, I want success in the U.S. more than I ever did. It's a long, winding road. But we're going to run, not walk."

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烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

BARKS × FEVER X JAPAN

2010/09/16 (Thu)

あれ？あれ？

DVD巻末のメッセージ…ネタバレしちゃってますが…（苦笑）

というか…本当に出るのか…！？

パチンコ屋では出ていますけどね…。

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BARKS

● X JAPAN、DVD『X JAPAN Showcase in L.A.』発売決定

2010年1月、ミュージックビデオ撮影のため、リーダーYOSHIKIが拠点を置く米ロサンゼルスにX JAPANメンバーが集まった。2010年夏、野外音楽フェスティバル＜ロラパルーザ＞（シカゴ）に出演し、米国でのライブデビューを飾ったが、悲願の米国進出はここが始まりだった。

始まり。しかし約8カ月ぶりの再会の裏には、2009年10月に精神不安定で倒れたボーカルTOSHIの声が出ないというショッキングな事実があった。YOSHIKI自身も2009年7月に頸椎（けいつい）を手術。「身体は破滅に向かっている。（活動の）目標は2年」と限界を見据える。振り返れば1992年8月、ニューヨークの「ロックフェラーセンター」で世界進出会見を開いてから約18年の間、TOSHIの脱退（現在は復帰）、バンド解散、HIDEの死、再結成、訴訟など取り巻く環境は穏やかではなかった。「どうしてトラブルばかりなんだろう」。でもその逆境が“6人”を最強へと導いた。

世界進出のため「名刺代わり」と制作したミュージックビデオの撮影は100年以上の歴史を持つ「ロサンゼルス・シアター」、ハリウッドにある複合施設「ハリウッド＆ハイランド」に設置した特設ステージなどで約5億円をかけ実施。ドラムセットの後方で2本の巨大な火柱が吹き上がったり、300発の花火が打ち上がるド派手な演出で集まった8000人の客を圧倒した。

さらに仮面舞踏会をモチーフに、吸血鬼となったYOSHIKIが登場する未発表の新曲「Jade」、白塗りのYOSHIKIが炎上する城の中から姫君を救出する設定の「紅」、「X」の文字に導かれたメンバーがステージに集結する「Rusty Nail」など全11曲が完成。ミュージックビデオは、9月6日から全国の主要パチンコ店で設置が始まったパチンコ台「FEVER X JAPAN」に収録され、当たり目によって、ミュージックビデオのほか、過去のライブ映像、さらにメンバーのアニメーションなどを見ることができる。

このパチンコ機に収録した映像の中から「I.V.」「Rusty Nail」「Jade」「ENDLESS RAIN」のライブ映像、メイキング映像、インタビューなどを60分にまとめたDVD『X JAPAN Showcase in L.A.』（6825円）が全国主要CD&DVD店で10月1日に発売される。これはX JAPANが再結成してから初めてのDVD作品で、パチンコ台が設置されたホールでは先行で購入することが可能だ。

同パチンコ機に収めた映像をめぐって8月、HIDEの親族が経営する「有限会社H&P」が肖像権侵害の訴訟を起こしたこともあり（9月上旬に裁判所に取り下げ書を提出）DVDにはHIDEの映像はない。しかし「Tears」が流れるエンディングには、「Special Thanks to HIDE」の文字が。負からは何も生まれない。文字を見て、HIDEが今もなお、メンバーの、ファンの中に生きていることを感じた。

取材・文●西村綾乃

（C）JMA

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烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

PHOENIX NEW TIME

2010/09/11 (Sat)

海外の記事です。

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PHOENIX NEW TIME

● X Japan Is the Biggest Rock Band in Their Homeland -- Can They Finally Break Through in the States?

"Who are these guys, anyway?" a photographer standing next to me asks, firing his camera like a machine gun. In front of us, assembled on a small platform, is a five-piece band, glammed-out with feathered hair, studded collars, ornate crosses and skulls, and cloaks of faux fur.

LollapaloozaYellow Magic OrchestraTokyo DomeMusic FestivalsCelebrity NewsI could tell this guy that he's looking at Japan's biggest rock band. I could explain how the show they are minutes away from playing is probably the most significant show ever played by a Japanese rock band. I could mention that only three years ago, even their most diehard fans wouldn't have dreamed of this performance. There isn't time, though. It's Sunday afternoon in Chicago's Grant Park and thousands of Lollapalooza 2010 attendees are clamoring for X Japan.

We rush to the main stage and arrive just ahead of the band. Thousands of fans press against the security barricade and squeal every time they catch a glimpse of one of the members. When all five take the stage, the crowd's roar is deafening. Many of these fans know the X Japan story. They're aware that despite the band's breakup 12 years ago and suicide of its former lead guitarist, X Japan has fought back to play its first show on U.S. soil. They're aware that they're watching a watershed moment.

A harpsichord melody introduces the opener, "Rusty Nail." A crashing cymbal ends the intro, awakening twin-guitar speed metal. Then, just as quickly, the vocalist switches from screeching rock to tearful ballad and the song freefalls into a quiet piano interlude. This blend of driving metal and raw, emotional pop — often within the same song — is what earned X Japan its status as Japan's biggest rock band. It's also won an intensely devoted worldwide legion of fans — fans willing to make necessary sacrifices to witness the band's hour-long set in Chicago.

Who knows? It also might be what wins X Japan mainstream status in the States.

The band is going after America with everything it's got, following up the Lollapalooza gig with a North American tour and a new album — the band's first in 12 years — with lyrics almost entirely in English.

And it may represent the best chance a Japanese act has ever had to make it in the United States.

But will it be enough?

Breaking into the American mainstream is a battle that Japanese bands have been losing for decades. In 1980, Yellow Magic Orchestra appeared in a segment of Soul Train that ended with host Don Cornelius telling the audience that, though the band members had just introduced themselves, he couldn't repeat one of their names if you paid him "a million dollars." That was the same year Yellow Magic Orchestra's Solid State Survivor won the Japan Recording Award for best album.

Shonen Knife, a trio of pop-punk princesses who sing sugar-coated songs about banana chips and giant kitties, played Lollapalooza in 1994 and even opened for Nirvana on the Nevermind UK tour. Shonen Knife continues to tour the States and release English-language albums, but after two decades, they have little more than cult following.

Arguably the most successful Japanese band in the States is Dir en Grey, whose album Uroboros peaked at 114 on Billboard. The same record made it to number 4 on Japan's charts. Polysics? Loudness? The list goes on, each act generating smoking embers of success that never quite catch fire.

Then again, none of those bands had the hype that X Japan and the band's leader, Yoshiki, have enjoyed in the weeks leading up to and following their Lollapalooza performance.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's the day before X Japan's U.S. debut and Yoshiki is in a suite at the Ritz-Carlton, doing phone interviews and filming segments for an ABC World News piece. A couple of hours earlier, what was intended to be a panning shot of Yoshiki talking to a TV reporter while strolling down a Chicago sidewalk erupted into a frenzy as screaming X Japan fans mobbed him with cardboard signs and autograph requests. Yoshiki also appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times, and other outlets that fawned over the band's accomplishments, which include 30 million albums sold worldwide and 18 sold-out shows at the 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome. Time Out Chicago claimed that "the only act threatening to out-spectacle Lady Gaga [at Lollapalooza] is hair-metal über-group X Japan."

Outshining the queen of American pop? Hey, who knows?

"We were going to debut in America before the breakup," Yoshiki says with a faint Japanese accent. "But I dunno if we were ready at that time."

The idea of putting their Japanese superstar status on hold to "start over" in the States did not appeal to some of the band members, he says without naming names. A growing rift between him and X Japan vocalist Toshi ultimately caused the band to split after a sold-out 1997 New Year's Eve show — called "The Last Live" — at the Tokyo Dome. Five months later, the suicide of former lead guitarist Hideto "Hide" Matsumoto seemingly destroyed any hope for a reunion.

"When we broke up, I thought everything was over. Then, especially right after we broke up, Hide died, so, I didn't even think twice that we can reunite."

Solo careers by X Japan's surviving members followed. Toshi started a band. Yoshiki furthered his musical pedigree by composing Japan's best-selling classical album, Eternal Melody, with Beatles producer George Martin and teaming up with fellow Japanese rock stars Gackt, Miyavi, and Sugizo (who would later become X Japan's new guitarist) in the super-group S.K.I.N.

But X Japan wasn't over.

Photos by Jonathan McNamara

X Japan, moments before taking the stage at Lollapalooza 2010, their first-ever U.S. show.

For years, Japanophiles and anime fans have been trading J-rock albums at conventions and online. Some fans are music pirates who stumbled upon the band on Napster. At least that's my story. More than a decade ago, I was attempting to "acquire" a soundtrack for an anime flick called X/1999 when I downloaded the song "X" — in all its speed-metal glory — by mistake. I had to have more. I battled eBay bidders for imported copies of Art of Life; I watched Region 2 DVDs of live performances on a Japanese PlayStation 2, and I plunked down more than I could afford to get to Lollapalooza.

I wasn't alone.

In January, more than 8,000 screaming, banner-waving American fans descended on Hollywood Boulevard to witness X Japan lip-synch shots for four upcoming music videos filmed on the rooftop of Hollywood's Kodak Theatre.

The mayhem was no different at Lollapalooza 2010. Countless posters were held aloft and thousands of X Japan T-shirts covered sweat-drenched American and Japanese fans who'd waited hours in the hot August sun just to get the best view of X Japan's show. From the band's first note to its last, the fans screamed the lyrics in unison.

"When I told [my friends] I was coming to Lollapalooza and X Japan was here, they shat their pants," says Paul, a fan from Seattle. Paul was with Raquel, who journeyed from Portugal, and Lisa from California, who sported an X Japan tattoo. These X acolytes had waited years to see the band play. Now that they have, they believe mainstream American success is inevitable — even if X Japan doesn't get radio play.

"Good metal never gets on the radio," Paul says. "Fuck the radio. We have the Internet. This shit is going to spread like crazy."

In the days following the Lollapalooza show, X Japan continued to receive press. On August 9, Time Out Chicago thanked Perry Farrell for including X Japan in this year's Lollapalooza. "Thank you most of all for X Japan. Engineering the first stateside import of Japan's (mostly) quadragenarian metal monsters was the coup of the festival, and as expected, faces were in fact melted," wrote Doyle Armbrust. On August 10, ABC aired the segment it shot in Chicago. Then, on August 16, X Japan announced their North American tour dates.

The story of whether or not X Japan will be able to rebuild their Japanese superstardom on American shores will play out at those shows, in those venues. All we can do is wait.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(0)

X JAPAN Showcase in L.A. Premium Prototype

2010/09/10 (Fri)

■ 2010年09月06日

X JAPAN Showcase in L.A. Premium Prototype

発売元：株式会社ジャパンミュージックエージェンシー

JMAD-0001 税込 6,825円

01.Opening

02.KODAK THEATER LIVE（Making）

03.I.V.（LIVE）

04.Rusty Nail（Making）

05.Rusty Nail（LIVE）

06.JADE（Making）

07.JADE（LIVE）

08.ENDLESS RAIN（LIVE）

09.Ending（Interview）

全国パチンコ店にて先行発売

■ 2010年10月01日

X JAPAN Showcase in L.A.Premium Prototype

というわけで…ざっと感想ですが。

最初、手に入れたときにはちょっと驚きがありました。

パッケージなどには「SANKYO」の文字もなく、

発売元がジャパンミュージックエージェンシー。

要するに…公式発売ものなのか！？と。

その後、通常発売もあるとのことなので、

これは完全に公式発売のもとの公式アイテムとなるわけですね。

過去のDVDなども調べてみたのですが、

やはりJMAから発売されたものはこれが初。

まあそうですよね…型番が0001番ですから（笑）

「JMA」「DVD」「0001」・・・JMAD-0001

今後はここから出していくのでしょうかね？

で…。

パッケージは本当に手作りな感じ。

市販のケースに表紙と、

１枚のポストカードのようなものを付けた感じ。

何かインディーズ色丸出しのような（笑）

まあそこに関しては特に不満はないのですが、

１０月に発売されるものもこれなのでしょうかね？

一応、このDVDには発売日が９月６日になっていますが。

さて…中身ですが…。

中身はさすがのボリュームと充実感と自分は感じました。

１月９日前後に行われた、PV撮影のメイキングと、

その日に行われたコダックシアターでのライブ映像。

ん？これをライブと呼ぶかは少し疑問ではありますけど（笑）

パッケージにはなかったのですが、

Openingにはしっかりと「FEVER X JAPAN」の文字が（笑）

やはりスポンサーだから入れないと…なのかな？

製品版には消して欲しいけど…そうもいかないんだろうなぁ…。

各メイキングはそのPVに対応したもの。

基本的にパチンコのリーチ映像ということになってるのかな？

ただ " Jade " に関しては、

パチンコで使われていない映像も多数存在している様子です。

ってことは…編集によってはちゃんとPVが出来上がるのですね？

いや… " Rusty Nail " もありそうだなぁ…。

ただ " 紅 " はYOSHIKIのみの撮影ということと、

本当に数カットしか撮っていなそうなので、

もしかしたら… " Silent Jealousy " 的なPVになるかも？

メイキングなどには表記以外の楽曲も使われていますが、

（ " Forever Love " " Longing " など）

特に目新しいものはなく。

ただやはり、このDVDの目玉は…。

" Jade " のスタジオレコーディングバージョン

が入っていることでしょう！

ヘリの効果音や歓声が少し混じり、

完全なCD音源というわけではないですけど、

現在、もっとも完成形に近い音源ではあると思います。

これが聞けるだけでも個人的には価値のあるDVDかもしれません。

ただ…通常のDVDならば、

メイキングは特典映像ということで挿入されていたりするわけで、

本編のほぼ半分以上がメイキングのDVDというのも…。

まあXらしいっちゃ…らしくていいのですが（笑）

そして気になるのが「Premium Prototype」という表記。

これがなにを意味するものなのか…。

最初は「試作品」としてパチンコ景品にしたのかと思いましたが、

通常でも販売するということは…？

通常販売のものは違う編集となっているのか。

それとも、他にもまだ完全版としてDVDを出すのか。

自分は後者であると思ってはいるのですが。

もし後者であるのならば、

" Jade " PVの完成形とかが入っているのかもしれないですね。

ってことで…。

取り急ぎの感想でございました。

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(1)

烈のパチンコ奮闘気 FEVER X JAPAN編

2010/09/10 (Fri)

■ 2010年09月06日

というわけで…。

景品DVD目的のために街を彷徨ってきました（笑）

朝８時には家を出る用事がありましたので、

近所のパチンコ屋の前を車で…。

噂では聞いていましたが、本当に新台が入る日には

徹夜組も現れると…。

本当に徹夜かどうかはわかりませんが、

もうすでに行列は出来ていましたね…。

自分はもちろんパチンコ自体には興味がなかったので、

そこはそのままスルー。

１回自宅に帰り、朝風呂を浴びて…。

１０時開店に合わせてパチンコ屋へと…。

ああ…すでにFEVER X JAPANは満席状態！

チラチラと台を眺めていると…。

店員が冊子とうちわを持って来てくれて…（笑）

いやいや…本当にありがとうございます。

でも残念ながら目的のDVDはなく…。

それから電車に乗り…隣市へと移動。

暑い中、歩けど歩けど、DVDは見つからず！

FEVER X JAPANを置いてあるお店は５割ほどでしたかね？

打っている人もどちらかというとパチンコファン？

新台は出る設定になっているのでしょうか？

この辺はわからないですが、どこも満席でしたね～。

そして更に隣市…更に隣市…。

ああ…自分はいったい何をやっているのだ？（笑）

どこに聞いても「入荷未定」か「入荷検討中」。

ひとり寂しくトボトボと帰ることに…。

帰って涼しいエアコンの効いた部屋で映画でも見るか…。

と、思っていたのですが、ここまで来ると諦めきれず！！

今度は検索攻撃で探してみる！

すると…あった！あった！なにやら怪しい広告が！

FEVER X JAPAN導入！同時にDVDも入荷！

なんて文字が…！

わかってらっしゃる！このお店！！

そのまま夕方…店舗に問い合わせをしてみると、

DVDは残り３枚とのこと！

行くしかないじゃん？？

でも家から約１時間もかかる場所…。

行くしかないじゃん？？

暑い中、汗もかいたし、お風呂にも入りたかったのですが、

もういいよ。汗臭くても！とりあえずダッシュで電車に乗る。

やっと駅に着き、お店のカウンターまで行くと…。

あるある！！XのDVDが！！

電話の通り、まだ３枚ほど残っている！！

聞いてみると、朝からボチボチなくなり始めているので、

必要でしたらお急ぎのほうがよいと…。

あんた…急いだところで玉だしてくれるんかい！？

とりあえずFEVER X JAPANの台へと。

どこもやはり満席でしたが…。

粘りに粘って待っていると…席が空く！

席が空く…ということは…出ないのか！？（笑）

いやいや…そんなことはどうだっていいか…。

どうだってよくないがっ！！

もう景品もらう気満々だったので、

とりあえず１万円を投入！

（もちろん全部買わなければお金は戻ります。）

頼む…頼む…と祈りながら台を睨みつける。

たぶん…周囲の人たち…怖かったと思う…。

そんなこんな。

いきなりPATAが３人そろう！！

ということは…１回の大当たりで景品DVDがもらえるので、

もう目的は達成したということ！！

残念ながら連チャンはしなかったので、

そのままドル箱を持って…行ったら…！

何故か店員に止められ…不信がられる！？

店員「どこで打ってましたか？」

烈「あ…あそこですが…？まずかったですか…？」

店員「いえいえ…玉を盗む人もいますので…（汗）」

烈「あれ…？もしかして、自分で玉を持ち歩いたらダメなんですか！？」

店員「はい…次回からは店員をお呼びください（笑）」

えぇ～！？なにそれ！？

パチンコ未経験ではないけど…。

ブランクが１０年以上もあったしなぁ…。

なんというローカルルール！？

こういうローカルルールがあるから、

パチンコは難しいんだよなぁ…。

と…まあそんなすったもんだもありましたが、

無事にDVDもゲット！

さて…。

続きを打つか！？（笑）

まあ…やらしい気分になり、

ちょっと明日は豪勢に焼肉でも食うか！？

的に打ち続けてしまいました（笑）

パチンコの感想。

正直言って…おもしろい！！（笑）

基本的には自分パチンコ嫌いではないんだよなぁ…。

ただ熱中しすぎてしまうからやらないだけで。

昔と違い、色々なリーチとかあるんですね。

本当に昔は絵柄や数字を３つ並べれば終わりだったのですが（笑）

まあ…その基本は同じなのですがね…。

で、両隣のパチンコ台も含めて、

色々なリーチや当たりを見ることが出来ました。

自分は " Jade " の当たりを見ましたね。

YOSHIKIが…YOSHIKIが…KISSをするシーンのやつ（笑）

その後は連続で「紅モード」というのかな？

４連続ほど？大当たりが続いていました。

HEATHリーチが多かったかな～。

DARK HEATHをベースで殴り倒すのです！

ハズレると…ベースが折れてしまったり（笑）

" 紅 " " Rusty Nail " も見ました。

BIG X エンブレムは熱いですね（笑）

「シャキーーーーン！！」とデカイXマークが…！

完成しないとハズレです…（苦笑）

完成すると…「無敵モード」になり、

大当たりしやすくなったりと…。

ああ…全然意味はわかっていないのですけどね（汗）

でも本当に楽しく遊んで帰ることが出来ました。

残念ながら…贅沢な焼肉はお預けとなりましたけど…。

結局のところ…DVD代ぐらい負けたかな？

って感じだったので、まあ…遊べたということでよかったかな。

と…ここまで書いておいてあれですけど…。

パチンコ初心者ははまらないようにね（笑）

１万円持っていっても１時間も遊べないですから…。

そんな自分も、もう遊ぶことはないだろうなぁ…。

DVD第二弾とか出ない限りは。

って…期待してないですからね…出さないでくださいね！（苦笑）

烈｜2010 Trackback() Comment(9)

X JAPAN DVD報道

2010/09/07 (Tue)

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

ナタリー

● X JAPAN、伝説のハリウッドライブ映像をDVD化

X JAPANが今年1月にロサンゼルス・ハリウッドで行ったシューティングライブの模様を収めたDVD「X JAPAN Showcase in L.A.」が、10月1日にリリースされる。

このシューティングライブは総制作費約5億円、総スタッフ数800人を費やして行われた大規模な企画。今回リリースが決定したDVDにはコダックシアターでのライブの模様や、ビデオクリップ撮影時のメイキング映像などを約60分にわたり収録。「Rusty Nail」「ENDLESS RAIN」といった名曲のほか、まだ音源化されていない新曲「JADE」も楽しめる。