Jupiter for 激ロックマガジン

Jupiter: Hizaki, Teru, Zin
Interview: Arakane Ryōsuke of 激ロック
Interview: Ariane de Bourberon

- Soon after the single you are releasing the full album. I have a feeling that you moved to the new band quite fast after the hiatus of Versailles. Did you feel a strong need to not take a break?

HIZAKI: Yes. We announced the hiatus a year ago, so we had plenty of time to think about the current situation. We planned to start immediately, but the audience had to wait for another half a year. We thought about releasing (the music), so we decided to record earlier prepared works.

- So the initiative to start a new band worked out?

HIZAKI: If we play together, me and TERU, it is inevitable that our tunes will be consistent with our previous flow. That’s why we haven’t been speaking a lot about musical style with members. Because we understand what do fans need.

- But there are many bands, who completely change their music style, you are not one of them?

TERU: No, because there are also people, who walk away because of these changes. Till now, we were handing over everything that we believed in and what we’ve created, and we want to continue doing so.

HIZAKI: It also has its disadvantages (laughs). For example, when in next release digital elements will appear in large quantities, bands think “it’s our evolution!”, but there are many fans, who are disappointed by that, and we don’t want this to happen.

- You don’t want to disappoint fans, who liked you?

HIZAKI: Exactly. Well, we make music, which people loved, but this time vocal has changed, so I think that also the way of perceiving has changed. People, who are focused only on vocal have changed places with new ones completely, but the set of people, who are focused on the backing has not changed at all…… Opinions of different people are different, but I wonder if isn’t that interesting?

- Vocal is the showcase of the band, weren’t you afraid?

HIZAKI: In the early stages of exploration, we were worried of what we will find. But when we walked into the studio with ZIN, we noticed, that it has gone well.

- Why did you choose Zin-san’s vocal?

HIZAKI: I knew it from when we met for the first time, I felt that this person is singing with passion. It’s someone, who doesn’t consider only vocals in common tracks and I felt that he has predispositions to grow up as a rock singer. It’s a small digression, but we often attended metal bands’ LIVEs together (laughs).

ZIN: Because I love them! As HIZAKI-san said, vocalist can be a person, who listens only to the vocal’s track, but for me all the instruments are attractive…… because isn’t it so?

HIZAKI: He understood it well, so during mix recording he was saying only things like “this drum part is good, I want it louder!”. That’s why I’m glad, we have such a vocalist (laughs).

- It’s a bit like a producer, isn’t it?

ZIN: Hahahaha. I respect every member, because I love the music they make.

- How is it, to join that kind of band?

ZIN: I knew right from the start that it’s a technically amazing group, but in reality, their sounds are perfectly matched, they live together and their approach to music is very serious, they face it with their full impact. I think it’s beautiful and it inspires me.

- Did you see the direction of your current work from the moment you’ve moved  sound matching to the studio?

HIZAKI: We saw, in which direction should melody go, but as ZIN’s voice can take many hits, we were wondering , what character should it take. At this stage we were checking it by trials and errors.

- What does that mean?

HIZAKI: He can sing different types of vocals and level of each of them is really high. It’s the first time for ZIN on major scene, so we played seeking answers to the question of what character should take his voice?

ZIN: Inside I felt as if someone was always telling me, how exactly that song should be sung. And generally I obeyed it and obediently challenged it. On the album there are different types of “me”, but it’s because I wanted to answer the demands of music.

- So instead of showing your ego, your goal is to create vocal, which highlights the atmosphere of the song.

HIZAKI: Our goal was to make our instrumentals remind western compositions. Mine and rhythm section’s goal, and the basis for our story was DREAM THEATER and we wanted to get an effect, which musically express this basis. And it’s ZIN’s specialty to sing on the basis of this story.

ZIN: This music contains all the elements of the story (introduction, development, twist and ending), so when I sing in a way, which refers to the lyrics, the story is being born. I sing to fully revive both lyrics and melody.

- And TERU-san, what do you think?

TERU: Even if doing what we do best, we’re piercing styles, it makes me wonder whether or not we were able to include a fresh feeling in these songs? The variety of tracks on the album is great and I think that you will be able to enjoy different types of “us”. My guitar not only keeps its earlier skills, but I was also able to improve myself.

- Especially the Track.4 「RHYTHMOS」 stands out from songs based on classical metal, but nevertheless, it’s easy to get used to it.

HIZAKI: I like dance music, so I wanted to create a piece that moves bodies to the rhythm other than on four (4/4 beat), but that was a challenge. Well, being aware of the rhythm of the entire album, I thought about the approach, which Japanese couldn’t have created.

- And you’ve put the emphasis on its LIVE appearing?

HIZAKI: And moreover also on the feeling that we are celebrities out of Japan (laughs). It is sung in Japanese, so together it gives an absolutely insane performance.

- Positive aspects of Japanese and Western music has been fine combined. However,  the vocal’s part seems to be difficult.

ZIN: To be able to easily soak up this “catchy” way of singing, during recordings I was practicing also by singing western songs. As you have said, we mixed Japanese and Western music in good way.

HIZAKI: You can’t say that we originally come from the metal scene, because we play on the Visual Kei scene. We are filled with good aspects of Japan, but many members like Western music very much, but it means that this kind of sound can be created only by us. We’ve added synths, but we thought also about balance, in which you have more strings and guitars are softer. Violins and guitars are fighting.

- To mix heavy and beautiful sound in a way that none stands out?

HIZAKI: That’s right. We wanted to include both sounds, so it was difficult. We want to face mixing playful guitars with symphonic part of synths in future.

The end of part 1(/2)...