──How long have you two known each other?
CHISATO: When was the first time we met? I don’t remember much, the details.
KAMIJO: I have seen PENICILLIN live several times with my cameraman. Also, the university the members attended is near my hometown, so I spontaneously felt a sense of familiarity with them. In this way, Chisato-san has been my senpai whom I have been watching one-sidedly.
CHISATO: But we’ve played against each other together a few times. So did was WOW WOW the last time。
KAMIJO: Yes, I played against PENICILLIN at the WOW WOW event. You play in both Crack6 and PENICILLIN, don’t you? I’m always interested in CHISATO-san’s mental balance and motivation when you are active in both bands. I’m also constantly involved in the band Versailles and my solo activities as KAMIJO, so I’d like to know more about that
CHISATO: Yes, that’s right. I started my solo career under a unique name, Chisato, before Crack6, but PENICILLIN debuted in March ’96. And I made my solo debut on Tokuma Japan in September of the same year.
KAMIJO: Oh, really?
CHISATO: Yes, six months after my debut. So there were pros and cons, and I was told by the press and fans at the time that they didn’t understand the point of me doing a solo career. “What does it mean to start a solo career at a time when PENICILLIN is still not well known?” They observed. At the time, it was common for bands to break up and then start a solo career, so the theory was a bit of a mess (laughs).
And if someone who was a singer in the first place does a solo, I can still understand. And it is understandable if you had that kind of singing career before PENICILLIN and you want to do it again in parallel with PENICILLIN. That’s not what happened, a lot of things were decided without my knowledge, I was told by everyone at the record company that “I should have sung”, and I had no choice but to sing (laughs).
KAMIJO: So that’s how it went
CHISATO: Yes. As for my personal musical history, it started getting harder and harder from about my first year of high school. When I was in junior high school or something, I loved US pop music, UK pop music …… to put it simply, I loved Duran Duran, Culture Club, Prince and so on. So I decided to do my solo work closer to my original roots. Plus a bit of hard stuff mixed in…Something like that. My guitar style was that way. Keyboards and chorus members in the live show are also included to make it a bigger group and the costumes were purposely made sporty. That’s how PENICILLIN and solo completely differentiated their styles, so there was a balance to be struck. KAMIJO how are you doing in that area?
KAMIJO: When I started my solo career, Versailles went on hiatus in 2012. Before Versailles, I was in a band called LAREINE, and I thought it wouldn’t do to have any more titles, so I decided to go on under the name KAMIJO. So it was from my name that I started my solo career.
CHISATO: What year did you start your solo career?
KAMIJO: So this year marks the 10th anniversary. When Versailles was revived, I had been working mainly as a solo artist and the members suggested that we should do it, and we said it would be fine if we were prepared to do the Budokan, and we all worked hard together to make it happen. That’s how I started doing my solo work and Versailles at the same time, and I think I’ve naturally been able to differentiate them. In my solo work, I produce exactly what I imagine, that’s why in Versailles I can give my all to what is required for Versailles. That’s how I keep a good balance in my mind.
CHISATO: As for me being in a band and solo at the same time, the simple physical thing that everyone understands is that I’m a vocalist in solo, but I’m a guitarist in PENICILLIN. The different parts change considerably. Of course, it’s the same up to the songwriting stage, because PENICILLIN also sing all the demos themselves. The process is the same up to the demo stage, but from there onwards the process changes. I have to write lyrics and I have to sing. So there is a physical difference between PENICILLIN and solo. So, unlike “Chisato”, Crack6 was set up with the aim of doing music activities with a minimum number of people. In that sense, it’s close to PENICILLIN, but it’s still very different because I also sing in Crack6. So I have a strong sense of self-division.
──I really respect the fact that both of you are equally enthusiastic about both your band and your solo work. Can you talk about your respective recent activities?
CHISATO: PENICILLIN celebrated their 30-year anniversary last year, and it’s already been 31 years since February this year, but we were on our anniversary tour until April (laughs). A best-of album called “30 -thirty- Universe” was released just in time on 1 February, just before the 30th anniversary ends on 14 February (laughs). In short, the 30th anniversary didn’t go as planned due to the coronavirus, so in the end we had to go on tour from here… I hadn’t been to the region at all because of the pandemic, so I went to a lot of places to take revenge for that. There were quite a few places I hadn’t been to in 10 years, and I saw a lot of good sights. The music industry has been in a lot of trouble since the coronavirus pandemic outbreak, but I felt that the atmosphere was finally getting somewhat better on this tour.
Also, this year, a new Crack6 album called “カナリア最終楽章:CODA” was released on June 6 (Tue). I mean, it’s been seven years since we’ve had a full album (smile bitterly). This is a concept album, so there’s a story to tell, so I’d love you to listen to it.
KAMIJO: For me, first of all, the Versailles tour starts on 13 May, but YUKI, the drummer, suffering from dystonia and has decided to take a break from his activities as a drummer by the end of the year. So the members had a big debate about whether we should move forward now as a band, but we decided that we should also move forward to repay the love we received from the fans in various ways during the Coronavirus pandemic and to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Versailles. I think moving forward means writing new songs and showing what you want to do now. The future may not change but it is there, and we want to inspire ourselves to do the best we can now and go on tour in May.
──I think fans are most relieved when you show them that you are moving forward.
KAMIJO: We, too, believe that. Recently, we have only been able to work on anniversary occasions, so we decided to release the single “VOGUE” for the first time in 11 years to show the new Versailles. It’s a story about how much it hasn’t been released (laughs). So I hope you can look forward to the single!
──I’m looking forward to both Crack6’s album and the Versailles single. The two will be performing together at the Crack6-organised “Crazy Monsters Halloween Party 2023” event at Shinjuku ReNY on 28 and 29 October this year.
CHISATO: “Crazy Monsters Halloween Party 2023” was originally organised for Halloween. The question of why visual-kei don’t have fancy dress parties was the catalyst for this. Halloween gradually came to Japan around the beginning of the 2000s, and before that, it was almost non-existent. I thought it was strange that Visual-kei didn’t do anything when the culture of Halloween had come all the way to Japan. So, in 2012, I organised “Chisato Produce! Halloween Event Live” in 2012 and started “Crazy Monsters Halloween Party” in 2013. Also, it was Visual Kei that laid the foundations for PENICILLIN and Chisato, so I wanted to give back that scene. Also, at that time, bands younger than us were organising events only with bands of the same generation, and there were hardly any events where we could participate in. So I wanted to make one myself. If we don’t create a space for ourselves and the older generation to compete, we will become a one-man show, and each of us will be isolated from the others. So it was like Halloween was originally combined with the work in terms of expanding the community.
KAMIJO: I think it’s because “Crazy Monsters Halloween Party” has a solid concept, every time there are very attractive people performing and I’ve always wanted to be a part of it. I’m really happy to have been given the opportunity this time, and I’m looking forward to it.
CHISATO: KAMIJO-kun, I’m sorry because every day is Halloween for you, but I wanted you to come out (laughs).
──”Every day is Halloween” (laughs).
CHISATO: No, because there is no one who usually wears that kind of clothes (laughs)
KAMIJO: But for Halloween, there are costumes for Halloween.
CHISATO: Is that so? No, I approached them with the selfish thought that they would think of something in a different direction than usual (laughs). When a band like Sambomaster does Halloween, it’s very easy to see the changes, but I’m really looking forward to seeing what KAMIJO-kun will look like when he does Halloween.
KAMIJO: Really? That’s a problem (laughs). But yes, Halloween is all about costumes, isn’t it?
CHISATO: Yes, KAMIJO-kun has a strong European image, so I think he could be dressed up as an American, which is the complete opposite of what he is (laughs). Also, Japanese-style costumes.
KAMIJO: Yes, KAMIJO-kun has a strong European image, so I think he could be dressed up as an American, which is the complete opposite of what he is (laughs). Also, Japanese-style costumes.
CHISATO: For example, I’ve dressed up as JoJo, or all the members have tried on Police-like uniforms, or I’ve been a character in a film. As for the bands that appear, I look at the enthusiasm of the artists in terms of how they dress. If I feel that these people have a lot of energy, I may invite them back. UCHUSENTAI:NOIZ did an interesting cosplay where they all dressed up as “Chisato” (Laughs). They all seem to have an image of me, but they were all different and it was interesting (laughs). I had Ricky (vo/DASINE) who appeared every year, but in 2019 it was Roland, the host (laughs).
KAMIJO: You guys are amazing (laughs). If I were to cosplay, what would it be, like …… Char Aznable?
CHISATO: That’s good!
KAMIJO: If it was for my hair, I would be a “Quattro Vageena” version (laughs). However, I regularly want to wear red, but red doesn’t suit me at all (laughs).
CHISATO: Eh? I don’t think so, do you?
KAMIJO: No, no. I’ve worn red quite a bit in my representative songs, but it didn’t feel it right colour on me. I think it’s because I know Char, but I feel it doesn’t suit me.
──But I definitely want to see KAMIJO’s Char Aznable.
CHISATO: I think it’s good. Char is from France (laughs).
KAMIJO: You know a lot about this (laughs)
CHISATO: You could be Char or, in extreme cases, you could appear in a Gundam (mobile suit) (laughs). “Huh? You’re not Char, you’re that one?” (laughs).
“Crazy Monsters Halloween Party” is an event that can be enjoyed from many different angles, so I want people to see the whole event, not just the bands they are interested in. If KAMIJO-kun appeared in Gundam, our fans would definitely look at him (laughs).
KAMIJO: That’s reassuring (laughs). I’d like to put on hold whether I will cosplayer Gundam or not, but a lot of the artists performing at “Crazy Monsters Halloween Party” have been active since the ’90s, haven’t they? I was also in a band called LAREINE from the ’90s, and we debuted in ’99, so I was really a newcomer back then. That is why Kneuklid Romance, YUKIYA (Kain/D≒SIRE/JILS) and the two guitarists of THE MICRO HEAD 4N’S are a bit older than us.
Also, Nicori Light Tours is the band of You (Gt) and Kiyo (Key) from Janne Da Arc, and Shuji from Janne Da Arc who played the drums for me in the latter’s backing, so it’s a strange combination. I love the smell of the ’90s, so I’m really looking forward to the “Crazy Monsters Halloween Party 2023”!
Source: DIGAONLINE.JP
Translation: KAMIJO Italia
Translation © KAMIJO Italia
KAMIJO Italia 