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The interviewer: Mr. Tetushi Ichikawa (the writer of the book "Art of
Life"). They know each other for a long time so his way of speaking is
rather rude.
T: At last, Yoshiki told about Toshi's withdrawal, X's breakup, hide's
death, and his new band "Violet UK" -What's the meaning of X Japan's
last work, The Last Live Video?- Yoshiki himself produced The Last
Live Video. From that point of view, it is the meaningful work
although several CD's like compilation album or Live version were
released according to the contract with the recording company till now.
It's valuable as a data and memories, but before everything, it's
important for Yoshiki's new turn after X. Do you remember the 7-11's
TVCF in which Yoshiki appeared 2 years ago? That BGM was the sound of
Violet UK. To my impression, those sounds were "high-tech & hard core
dance music". They undergo a complete transfiguration and will be
released within this year. What did awake Yoshiki, "a sleeping giant"?
I asked every poosible things to him on this occasion. You must read.
The trouble on the stage of the Last Live.
T: I think it was tough job to edit The Last Live as usual. When did
you start editing?
Y: Since last January.
T: Hahaha, so you took 15 months.
Y: Terrible, isn't it? There are 3 reasons; first, there were more
than 30 cameras taking the video (laugh), second, I couldn't replace
sounds because the band doesn't exist now, so no one could do that,
and this is the biggest reason that I was scared to watch the film. I
had been avoiding to watch film since X Japan broke up . So I couldn't
make a good start of editing.
T: To begin with, why did you decide to edit the Last Live?
Y: The president of Universal came to LA and said "We'd like to
release the Last Live video. Lots of fans are surely waiting". And
then we went out for dinner and drink... After that I found that I
accepted their offer (laugh).
T: Oh, that's enough.
Y: (laugh) I started editing by their offer first, but I came to
decide that this would be the last work as "X". I have been spending
many years without putting an end to X Japan in my mind after X
Japan's break up and hide's death. So I think it is the good chance to
put an end to X Japan in my mind and I'd like to go forward.
T: You "haven't" put an end to X Japan in your mind, or I might say
you "couldn't"?
Y: I think I needed the time of 4 years. I still shed tears even if I
watched the film more than 1000 times during the work. During the
final work, I asked the staff to prepare tissue papers (laugh).
T: I went to the Last Live. It's a wonder that I couldn't realize that
this is the really last concert of X Japan.
Y: To say the truth, it was just a temporary disbandment. Although
Toshi left X Japan, we still had contracts with the recording company
to release some CD of Live version etc. So we should work anyway. But
I couldn't endure those situation anymore so I proposed to the member
that we would disband temporarily and then re-start sometime in the
near future. They assented my proposal and we decided to re-start new
X in 2000. hide and I were looking for a new vocalist. We would
prepare for our solo work and make songs for X Japan during that
period.
T: Why did you decide it in 2000?
Y: "2000" is easy to remember for everyone.
T: (laugh) Your conception is still like a child as usual!
Y: Yah, yah, yah (laugh). I got tired of recording of "Dahlia". It was
a tough decision. I was worried that it was ok to re-start as X Japan
even if vocalist would be changed.
T: When you were recording "Dahlia", you worked so precisely by
yourself for a long time, and you complained of the members in public.
Moreover, you were forced to release single CD before the album by the
recording company according to the contract, then album "Dahlia"
became just like a compilation album.
Y: Yah, I remember I said in the interview of the magazine "I don't
like this album" (laugh). I thought X was not a band anymore. I should
take a responsibility of X's recording. Other members worked for their
own solo works while I did the recording of "Dahlia" by myself. I felt
lonely. So I thought we needed some stimulation to find a way out of
this situation. I said about that in the interview. Then Toshi...
T: How did you feel that Toshi left X?
Y: I couldn't do anything at that time. We have been friends for a
long time so I could understand everything by just seeing Toshi's eyes.
I recognized he had become quite a different man. I talked about that
to hide at the meeting. hide said, "Toshi has been doing his own way
and yet he wants to do such a thing!". hide was mad. I couldn't endure
to listen their conversation.
T: X was the most important and precious band for hide. I assure it.
Y: Yah. He always helped and supported me... I always broke things I
had heaped up, and hide always gathered them. Though hide sometimes
broke them again (laugh longingly).
T: hide always said, "X is Yoshiki's band and I will support Yoshiki
at the risk of my life".
Y: ... Yah.
T: I watched The Last Live video yesterday. I feel that Toshi was
quite another man at that time. I know Toshi tried to be "X's Toshi"
but...
Y: At the Last Live, hide and I made an arrangements like --Switch off
the microphone immediately if Toshi said something strange. At the
last half of The Last Live, I stood besides Toshi. That's because I
wanted to take care of him, but at the same time, I watched him
intently. And hide took care of me, who watched Toshi.
T: So we can see those relationships among the members by watching The
Last Live Video. It's like Beatles' "Let it Be". I think it's worthy
for us to understand your honesty.
Y: Yah, yah, yah (a wry smile). So hide and I made a tacit
understanding and conversation every time Toshi said something on the
stage. I intended to change the program if needed. If you watch the
video with those intention, you will be able to know about that.
T: You had a tough time at that concert.
Y: I didn't understand at all. I said we would reunite X in 2000. But
there exists the fact that we had broken up. And I also considered
about Toshi and so on.
T: And 50,000 people cried in front of you.
Y: Now that I can say... we had the plan to do The Last Live without
vocalist.
T: Ha ha ha. That's reckless !
Y: I said, "Let's have our fans sung songs instead of Toshi". But...
at last I held Toshi when he sang "Forever Love". I didn't imagine I
could do that. After all there standing Toshi as a childhood friend
just in front of me.
The future is on the extension of X.
T: Then the Last Live was over "in peace".
Y: I was utterly absentminded that night. I went back to LA the next
day. I was eager to do my solo work and prepare for the next "X". So
did hide. We had tough time until The Last Live so we wanted to
explode ourselves by doing our own work. Especially I couldn't do
anything about my solo work because I had been very busy for "X" works.
So I really wanted to do my solo work. I tried to do recording with
great force. Then I took a rest.
T: Don't take a rest.
Y: Because I was so tired (laugh). After I took a rest for a while, I
started my recording. Soon after that...
T: How did you feel when you heard about hide's death?
Y: I couldn't understand at all... But I knew many fans grieved and
depressed. I got letters from hide's fans stating that they wanted to
die. Actually there were an attempted suicide. So I thought I should
support them during my stay in Japan. Then I was back to LA and made a
song. At that time I was asked to help having memorial concert for
hide. I was so nervous that I was not sure I could do that. But anyway
I tried to do my best. I made that song for the theme song of the
memorial concert reflecting my feeling. But I was knocked down by that
song.
T: We can confirm our feeling once we formed it.
Y: That's right. I haven't showed it in public nor released it. Then I
couldn't appear in the public for several years.
T: You haven't recovered from hide's death for a long time.
Y: I still miss him. It's painful for me to see his phone number on my
address book. I wish I will get phone call from him sometime in the
future.
T: I haven't deleted his phone number on my cellular phone.
Y: We can't do that. When I was in difficulty, I usually talked with
hide to break the deadlock. But he's gone. I don't know to whom I
should talk with.
T: But you had to work again.
Y: I couldn't work for myself. I recollect "X" when I worked for
myself. I couldn't make songs after I made a song for hide. So I did
only produce works for new artists. Since I was with young, hopeful
artists, I gradually came to recognize that I really love a band.
T: You got recovering little by little by concerning with other people.
Y: At that time I got an offer to make a song for the Emperor. Then I
was on the stage. I got a cheer by so many people, then I remember how
wonderful the stage was. I met fans there and they said they would
wait indefinitely. In that moment I really thought I should try hard
again. Then I started to make songs for my own. I had 30 to 40 songs
already (laugh). But I always remember "X" so I couldn't go forward,
and I couldn't write ballad. I could write the dance music because
they were different from X's songs. Then I got an offer to make and
release The Last Live video.
T: You wouldn't write rock which is your favorite subject because X
was your trauma.
Y: I had intended to go forward without thinking of X.
T: Then you thought you could go forward when you would finish editing
The Last Live.
Y: Yes, I thought I should not go forward until I finish editing it
for our fans.
T: Now that you finish the work for The Last Live. What do you think
now?
Y: I can't still watch them objectively. But if there still exists
life, I would like to go forward. I can't change my past, but I can
make my past better or on the contrary, make it worse by the future.
In order to make my past better, shining one, I want to go forward and
make the future wonderful. Therefore, I will exert myself to leave the
locus of X the best. In that meaning, I think VUK is on the extension
of X.
T: It depends on you that X will shine brightly or X will become just
a sepia memories. You have to go forward with your past.
Y: Yes, I think so. And one more thing that I couldn't do as "X" is to
go into the world stage.
T: You contracted with the record company and made a press conference
at Rockefeller Center (laugh).
Y: I didn't make a debut worldwide although everything was prepared.
That didn't mean I failed. I just did not do.
T: It was a shame.
Y: I thought it won't be able to go well if I released CD worldwide at
that time. I calculate everything though I seem not to calculate (laugh).
T: Correctly speaking, I think it's better to say you don't calculate
though you seem to calculate.
Y: (laugh) I didn't release CD worldwide at that time because we had
pronunciation problem of vocalist and that was not the time when X's
music was paid attention in the USA. Seattle grunge like Nirvana was
very popular.
T: You make a plan with strategy so precisely. Moreover, you make an
endeavor to realize your dream. But you pursue the perfection in the
short view of things, then you upset your plan.
Y: Yah, I think so (a wry smile).
T: You always train so hard but you seldom have a game.
Y: Yah. It's like I practice for the batting but I don't stand at the
batter's box (laugh). But I'm sure it will be a hit once I stand at
the batter's box.
T: So I think you'd better to lessen your practice and stand at the
batter's box.
Y: But I like to practice hard. That's my nature.
A plan of Violet UK for 11 years.
T: Well, let's talk about Violet UK, your next project. I think it was
started long time ago.
Y: You came to LA for the interview about "Jealousy" and we drunk
together. I remember we talked about my project at that time.
T: Yah. It might be the spring in 1991. Wow! 11 years!
Y: That's true (laugh).
T: Your sound suddenly came to my ears as 7-11 CM on TV 2 years ago. I
thought your project would realize at last. But it disappeared again.
Y: (laugh) You are severe to say so. When you listen Violet UK sound,
you understand that the every sound is made very precisely. In X, I
beat the drum, then the drum sound comes. But in Violet UK, for
example, I select only one snare sound among a few thousand sounds.
T: That means you're willing to go into the infinite hell.
Y: Yah, I agree (laugh). But I think it's ok, isn't it? Anyway, it
will be finished soon.
T: So you devote yourself to Violet UK from now on, right?
Y: Yes, I will! I have been doing X for more than 10 years and then I
got an end like this. At an interval of 4 years, I decide to do the
second X. I'm doing now with the same sense as when I started X.
T: Then what is Violet UK?
Y: I don't know exactly (laugh).
T: What?
Y: It's a band for the time being. I will play guitar, then piano and
then the drums, too.
T: Are you a guitarist?
Y: Yah. When I was X, I sat on the chair during the concert and I
couldn't rush about on the stage as the other members did (laugh).
T: But you used to flied with your chair.
Y: (laugh) I could only watch them rushing playfully. I couldn't
resist that Toshi poured the water on me, or hide threw the cymbals.
So I'd like to act violently, playing the guitar on the stage in
Violet UK.
T: (he disregards what Yoshiki said). Have you decided the member
already?
Y: I will decide during the tour. In early days of X, the member also
changed many times during the tour. I will fix the best members after
trial and error.
T: You have been having a plan of female vocalist from the beginning.
Isn't it changed?
Y: Now there are 4 vocalists, and there is a possibility that someone
will be a main vocalist or there will be plural main vocalists. I've
not decided yet. It's better to grasp Violet UK as X rather than my
solo project.
T: How are you getting along with your work now?
Y: 80%?
T: You take a long time from here to 100%.
Y: I can deliver my work to the factory which are already finished
mastering if I want to. I have now 33 songs,
T: Don't you know a degree?
Y: I plan to release the album with 3 CDs as a debut album... oh, I'm
just kidding. The problem is that the average time of the song is 8 to
10 minutes.
T: (laughing).
Y: So it's impossible that all songs will be in one album. In old days,
the classical composer wrote a score and the audience listened its
play by orchestra. Then a phonograph was invented and now we are
making songs for CD. Everyone complains and says like, "I want to make
songs on my own way", or "I want to express sounds as an art...",
things like those. If so, why does everyone makes only 3 to 4 minutes
songs? Everyone is still too much swayed by the standard of single CD
or MTV. Now we became much interactive by the internet, and DVD has
invented --CD is 16 bit, 44.1K at most, but DVD is 24 bit, 96K, and
super audio CD is 192K. Why do I take so long time for Violet UK? It's
because I made recording with 24 bit from the beginning. It's not for
CD, it must be for DVD audio. I thought DVD or super audio CD must
take the initiative in the future, so that I made recording for that.
If so, it doesn't matter even if the songs are long!
T: However...
Y: The time has not come yet. On the contrary, The poor workmanship
like MP3 becomes main now. And I also thought broadband was much more
diffused, so I made truck in order to correspond interaction. But the
broadband has not diffused yet as I expected. So I have to downgrade
the material from now. It will take about 6 months, I guess.
T: You have been developing software.
Y: I did the most exciting things as X at that time, and Violet UK is
the most exciting and new project now.
T: You want to change the conventional frame or value of the
expression fundamentally. I think you are too far ahead.
Y: First I had the idea, and then I completed my first stage as X, and
then I thought "I will do rock" and "I will play the drum". Then I
want to do rock and drum. Then punk rock, then start to think about
tour, then I want to make a band. My idea has been developing like
this.
T: That's a good plan!
Y: Yah, I think so. It's a nice plan (laugh).
T: Don't say that by yourself.
Y: But do you remember what hide said? "Yoshiki piles bricks then
suddenly breaks them. That's Yoshiki..." (laugh).
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