Translated from Pakila Music, 2008.02.20
Original Text: Tomonori Nakazawa.
On February 20, Acid Black Cherry releases what could be called their highly anticipated first album. It also contains recordings of their four singles, "SPELL MAGIC", "Black Cherry", "Aishitenai", and "Fuyu no Maboroshi". The release is in three styles. By gathering the two CD+DVD versions in particular, the activity and progress of Acid Black Cherry should become very clear. Beginning in March, their live house tour will start. Undoubtedly, Acid Black Cherry will continue infecting us with their fascinating poison this year!
Finally, you've finished your first album, "BLACK LIST". Can you say the finished work has quite a presence in its sound, or it's a work that brims with intensity?
The mixdown took me quite a long time. Of course, that's always been a hitch for me, even since I've been in Janne Da Arc. After all, when you're working as a band, the thing you aim for most of all is to include the thoughts and feelings of all your members in your work, right? However, with Acid Black Cherry, I was in a situation where the only limit to that goal was myself. So, in some way, I was following through to be able to thoroughly define the features of the musical compositions inside of myself that I wanted to show. Thanks to that, I don't know how many hours were spent from not-even-morning-yet to noon, doing mixing work. But, it is, without a doubt, a work that I've poured all my energy into.
As a title, you decided on "BLACK LIST". That has a lot of sentiment in it, doesn't it?
Of course. Actually, the "BLACK LIST" title was floating in my mind, and from that I wrote these pieces to expand upon that world view.
In what way did you expand upon those feelings?
Personally, it's not that I really hate glossing things over, but it was more that I didn't want to have an entire work consisting of songs that just gloss over things. The world is really overflowing with things like that, isn't it? "Giving up our dreams", those songs that go "I'll give it my best starting tomorrow". I know what that feeling's like, and I've written songs to that effect before as well. If I were to say what the limit on this album was, it was that "I don't want to sing those songs that just whitewash everything." Due to that, when I was composing the album, I had this feeling that said, "We can't help the poisons and efficacious things that exist within us."
All those feelings expressed in the words "BLACK LIST". That's also on my mind.
In the song that begins the album, "sins", I expressed that "from the time we're born, we've already got our names on the black list". Using the theme of the Seven Deadly Sins, everyone on the album sings as loudly as they can, "There's no human who lives without committing sins, and even the Seven Deadly Sins are something that have to exist in the hearts of anyone out there." But, in the final song, "Prologue End", I closed the curtain on the album itself while saying, "Perhaps those sins, or being burdened by them, are not mistakes, if you can be rescued from those sins by loving someone", and "If you can genuinely love another person, you can be saved from even these sins, even if the faults you have are many."
Actually, when I gave the album the title "BLACK LIST", at the beginning and the end sat "themes I wished to convey", and then in the middle of that, I decided, were going to be the songs in which the many forms of love were buried.
As expected, that's so deep...in "sins", you enumerate six of the seven deadly sins: "Pride", "Gluttony", "Envy", "Greed", "Sloth", and "Lust".
In that, I dared to say that these "sins" are also "emotions that anyone has in their own heart". However, since one has these feelings, I think it's also true that human kindness itself comes from that. So, I've tied them together by saying, "How do these negative emotions oppose one another?" but at the same time, they're also things that people can't live full lives without. Since I do feel this way, that's what made me do this album under the theme of the Seven Deadly Sins. Moreso than just mentioning six of them, I left them incomplete somewhat because I'm also saying, "Those of you who are listening, experience each of these separately, and say those words that surround those feelings."
yasu-san, you've shown six of the sins in "sins". Was that a result of your asking questions of yourself, and then having those words appear?
Surely, those are warnings to myself as well. When I'm writing songs in the first place, when it becomes "the work of facing myself", I sometimes have things happen that make me see parts of myself that I don't want to see.
In "sins", you took the approach, from a sound aspect, of making it sound "cool".
Well, I really like that sort of occult-ish, gothic-heavy-horror-like sound. That sort of "goth" styled, extremely serious, horribly violent presence is still really cool, isn't it?
Really, I thought it was. Previously, you said that between "sins" and "Prologue End", you mentioned the idea of "songs in which the many forms of love are buried". Really, you did show us many kinds of love. The one that really showed in a man's perspective that "Yeah, I did it, but I have sympathy for you, even though it's just a man..thing" kind of infidelity where a guy brings a woman he knows back to his place, keeps in contact with another woman, then ushers the first one out and comes back to his real girlfriend was "Bit Stupid". But, it seems that if you were to look at it from the woman's perspective, you'd get them saying "God, those are the worst men ever!" (Laughs.)
That song's a story of experience. (Laughs.) Or, rather, I've written a lot based on the feelings that derived from my own experiences. Since I don't really have a girlfriend or anything right now, those sort of selfish, unconcerned feelings of male lust just came out. That is to say, let's just say I had a girlfriend right now. If that girl heard this song, she'd get the crazy idea in her head that I was actually messing around on her, and then I'd have to explain over and over that it's just a man thing, right? If it was something that I was really worried about in my private life, if it was actually true, I couldn't write about it. But, maybe I can say it was a result of "hollowing out my own heart" and writing those very honest lyrics. But, I was still able to gloss over it a bit by how I was writing. In spite of this, I thought, "Even though you're bringing out your real feelings, you can't hesitate in expressing them". So, doing it this way, it was necessary to bring out the concept of "sin". Eh, I
don't know if I've made people able to sympathize with a man who's had that kind of experience, but I'm glad if I can make people say that they understand. (Laughs.)
Among these songs, there's also the songs that deal with unrequited love, like "Shoujo no Inori"-- which depicts "the lament of a heart of a young girl who ended up being hurt deeply as the result of the awakening of her own pure love and passion at a young age". If a woman is listening, she can say with these songs that she knows what that experience is like, or that she experienced that too.
I don't really think that every woman has experienced something like that, though. But, if I can make people feel the emotion that arises from that experience of having your own heart betray you, I'm happy.
That image is strongly depicted in "sins", as well. Though if you perceive it as being from personal experience, there are a lot of misunderstandings that can be made.
That's one representation that occurs depending upon the person listening. In my case, I honestly just want all those people who feel alone in this world to listen to this album that I've put my whole self into in this way. Moreover, if this person has a girlfriend, I want even them to listen, as well. After all, anyone has that feeling that they just want to show the important people in their life that part of themselves that they've put the most effort into, so they can appreciate it, right? Even the women present in the lyrics I've written are still hanging on for dear life in order to live their own way. So, through that, you should be able to see that you, too, have done these things in some way. That's what I'm saying.
yasu-san, your motive was, then, to "bring reality through personal experience" and "embrace those feelings that exist in the very hollows of the heart". For example, "a man corrupted by his lust", "the kindness to understand a woman's feelings"...within those words, I can remember some things, too, after all.
Well, saying it like that, I wrote the lyrics to give the impression that it's not just someone being defeated by his lust, but also that he's constantly thinking of his partner's feelings. That's extremely important to him. Though...from time to time, there are those times when they are utterly defeated by it. (Laughs.)
Well, when you put it like that, no matter what you say, it turns out okay. (Laughs.)
I feel that, really, glossing over things is even more like a lie than actually lying. Those negative feelings that everyone has, those are in no way false. Therefore, through those feelings, people can experience so many different emotions. Just...in my case, for me to expose my own inner feelings in this way gives me the feeling that I'm just exposing myself as a horrible man...(Laughs.)
But, I think these lyrics are dealing with subject matter you can write about because of the experience of your years, on the good side of things. Surely, if it were ten years ago, you couldn't write things like this, could you??
Surely, I think that if nothing else, the persuasive power of my words has increased since then. Surely, even if I would have had the same feelings ten years ago, I don't think I would have thought about them as deeply, nor would have my technique of expressing these feelings been sufficient.
Really, all of this has a basis in the experience I've had writing songs in Janne Da Arc, and there are words that I can use now, and that expresses itself in the songs that I write.
In the word "poison" you mentioned in the beginning, there's also the meaning of "efficacious chemicals" that you've put forth as well, after all.
That's it. I've said that I want to write songs that feel as if they're giving off poison, though. But, while it's poisonous, there's nothing to be mistaken about it, and in this album, I have told no lies. So, while this album is giving out its poison, at the same time, it seeks salvation—that's what I was looking for. If I were to write songs where no one could be saved, then perhaps I could say that life has no meaning either, something like that. Isn't that just far too desolate? Though I said I'm not glossing over anything, if you have nothing you can even do that to, then that's really grim too, isn't it? So, looking toward the end of it all, I offered songs that carry salvation and hope, as well.
"BLACK LIST" is being released in 3 different styles. Among them are a CD+DVD set that compiles all of the PVs for your singles, and then a second CD+DVD set that contains the Free Live and Secret Live Documentary footage. By watching them, is it possible that we could get a grasp on how Acid Black Cherry has advanced so far??
I think so.
Then, beginning in March, you'll be doing your live house tour, and then continuing on to a nationwide Hall Tour, "Black List".
I really look forward to the live shows. The live house tour in particular—I'm really close to everyone, right? I really had the intention of reviving that sort of familiar feeling with those shows. As for the Hall Tour, maybe it's that how things will go hasn't really been decided yet, but I think that I'd really like to frame up my staging with those shows.
I'm looking forward to it. Lastly, please leave a short message.
I can't say that I can have confidence in this being a "good" work if it can't move its listeners emotionally. So, if I think of it that way, this work becomes "a product of my confidence". Also, even though I've recorded four singles previously, I think that there's an aspect where this will meet the expectations of those basing this album off of those singles, but not only that, this "BLACK LIST" will exceed your expectations. Since this is one album that will really stick in the hearts of people who love rock with its sound showing overwhelming presence, I really want people to listen closely.