Full member interview for the
Single „Pledge“
On the 26th
of December in Tokyo Dome, the incredibly gripping love ballad was
born.
In this dramatic issue,
they're talking about their thoughts about the new single.
„I'm grateful that we're
able to spend such a great time with all of you. When we're doing a
live, when all of you are well, I think that I can give my best from
now on too. The tour continues as long as we're standing on a stage,
I think, and because I can feel all of your happiness, The GazettE
will never cease to exist”
The live report on the
next page will be the final stage. Ruki spoke these words at the
encore of the live at Yokosuka Arts Theater. While there were many
incidents, they came to see the end of the long tour and that is why
he was able to say this.
“Thank you for tagging
along until now. Let's take this awesome power with us to Tokyo Dome
and I think we'll be able to destroy that venue. Let's do that with
everyone! 'Thank you', see you, thanks”
At the time this issue is
published, Tokyo Dome will be the only show left. And they will also
probably play the new Single 'Pledge' that will paint this venue into
an even more touching event. Because this is an interview where all 5
of them talk about the full aspects of the new single that includes
'Pledge', I think it will increase your expectations for the Single
and Tokyo Dome. (Words by editorial staff)
I: The new single 'Pledge'
is quite a suitable ballad for winter isn't it?
Ruki: To be honest, until
we finished 'Pledge', there were a few meanderings. In the beginning
we chose a different song. At the song selection meeting for 'RED',
we also had a song that carried the draft title 'Again'. For the
Single in December we actually wanted to go with this song, and even
started the preparations, but as the days passed, it didn't quite
proceed well, so we decided to redo it.
Aoi: Because if you adjust
it afterwards... We just decided for another song as we brought the
redone version with us (lol)
Kai: We really didn't use
parts of 'Again' until the very last moment (lol)
Everyone: Yeah (lol)
Uruha: But with the
reconstruction it certainly got better, right? It became a song with
more charm than 'Again'
Reita: I also had no
resistance against redoing it and the outcome wasn't bad either. By
redoing 'Pledge' it became the best ballad of the ones the GazettE
made until now, I think. Even though we didn't had any time this time
(lol)
I: As always I tip my hat
to you for your ambitious attitude regarding music.
Aoi: Well, in this kind of
situation you can't say 'This isn't good tho?' right? (lol)
Ruki: Oi! (lol)
Aoi: Just joking (lol).
But sure enough, there isn't one irresponsible person in producing
music in theGazette is there?
Ruki: In our case, words
of compromises arise fights, so something like 'This will be enough,
because we don't have time' won't be said by any member.
I: What about the lyrics?
Ruki: Because I like
winter ballads, I included the seasonal feeling. For that ballad it
was the first time without a bed end. I was aiming for phrases that
surpass words like “eternity” or “I love you”. Such words are
already heard too often, and therefore no longer have the value they
used to. Without using these words easily, I became aware of my own
expressions and wrote them down. “Lyrics that are easy to
understand, but not cheap”, that was my motto.
I: You're entrusting your
listeners with these thoughts, right? As you where recording this
song, what were the single things you were striving for?
Uruha: As we reconstructed
the song, the making of the guitar parts were difficult. For “Again”
the A melody was quiet and therefore easy and clean… With such a
feeling the development was easy. But for “Pledge” Ruki had the
image of a rock ballad stuck in his head, and wanted the flow to keep
a certain power. With the alteration of the sound I guess the change
of pace was kind of difficult? First a clean A melody, then a
distorted tune… I wasn’t able to do such an comfortable thing
(lol). That’s why we decided to add expression to the phrases, but
that was difficult.
Aoi: Also because we had
the concept of a Rock Ballad, we didn’t want to approach the song
like we did for “Guren” or “Cassis”… Especially for the
sound we aimed for a typical The GazettE rock feeling.
I: The long guitar solo is
also worth hearing it.
Uruha: In the beginning
the song was much shorter. That’s why Aoi and I included a guitar
solo. It wasn’t “who will play the solo?”, both of us just
didn’t say anything (lol).
Aoi: The moment we
included the solo both of us stayed in silence (lol)
Uruha: Yeah (lol). After
that it came up. Such a atmosphere as if you entered a maze (lol).
After that, after each played a solo, Ruki expressed his opinion that
we would harmonize together.
Aoi: Wasn’t it more
like: Ruki was troubled (by the situation), so he said: “Play it
together!” (lol)
Ruki: hahaha (lol). No, it
wasn’t like that! You two played a great solo together, so I wanted
to use it.
Uruha: And then, I first
recorded it alone, Aoi heard it, thought about his own solo and
recorded it too. At this point, we didn’t decide for a twin lead
for the second half yet, but every solo of the first half felt kind
of light-fingered, so we thought that we had to go for the melody for
the second half. We constructed the melody from start to end.
Aoi: This Guitar solo gave
us some troubles, didn’t it? For the part I played alone, the scale
of measurements was too short for playing something like a ballad
solo. To finish it in this scale was difficult. Even if I thought
that I produced something great, there where cases it didn’t
harmonize with Uruhas solo.
Kai: That was done at the
recording place. It’s been a while since I saw something like that…
the shape of everyone sitting in front of their computer, exchanging
data, while working at a recording place (lol). In regards to the
drums, there was a big notation this time. For me I’m basically
hitting the drums unemotionally. For ballads you include strings and
piano and the guitars are adding different shades too, that’s why I
prefer to not add another shape to the song with the drums . While I
embraced such an approach for “Pledge” too, I thought about
cleverly adding phrases, which had an open interval/ gap. I worked
with such an attitude, but as we did the Prepro it just didn’t feel
right. That’s where we had one notation. That was the way to
release the sound (sound reflection). Especially the snare. Until now
we released the tone with Anbi (sorry I don’t know the eng word) or
Conpu (same…), but regulating the snare and releasing the tone
brought a really great gap. That was a really big discovery, wasn’t
it? As a result we were able to build a frame with the drums and the
bass for the song and that satisfied us.
Reita: For Ballads, first
of all it’s essential to not disturb the vocalist. That’s why the
root notes are the most comfortable for the bass. But because we’re
a band, it would be pointless if it were the same as a J-Pop ballad,
so we made the B melody and the refrain pretty active. For this part,
even if it just the bass is playing, the song would be good in some
way, right? ... Something like that (lol). Even if the bass is
simple, it pointed out such outstanding phrases.
Also, for Prepro I’m
always playing 8 minutes, but because of the place I decided to
interweave 18 minutes. That was something where I also felt the image
of a band I think.
Ruki: The way I sing never
changes, but I was particular about the quality of my voice. I
recorded it in anticipation of the mastering, I guess? As I did the
mastering, I put strong conp (sorry no idea) in it, so that it ended
up in a nasal voice. That’s why, for the steps of recording I did
it with a voice quality almost too thick. That went well and for the
3 songs of the current single and the voice quality came near to my
raw voice.
I: For the next one, “THE
TRUE MUDEROUS INTENT”, you included a girl’s voice. It’s a song
combined out of aggressiveness and style.
Aoi: You could say that
this song was inspired by “Filth in the beauty”. Because “Filth
in the beauty” exists, “Agony” that was kind of similar to it
exists too. We haven't done such a song with a hybrid kind of touch
to it since then. We wanted such a type, a song that we could use
live, I think.
Uruha: As for the
idea, there are some common parts to “Filth in the beauty”, but
we had the sense that we could still go further, right? “Filth in
the beauty” also has a female vocalist, but that one was closer to
a band! You could say that this song is really undecided (lol). You
get the feeling that it doesn’t fit to a band, with a soulful woman
standing in a row with a band, right?
Aoi: It doesn’t have an
approach like “Filth in the beauty”, we thought that a twin
vocal-like touch would be great. In the beginning there was even more
female singing parts, but Ruki said that was a little too much and
adjusted it (lol).
Reita: This song might not
be something you hear for the first time. But we aimed for a song
that no one could copy and we’re confident that we managed to do
so.
Ruki: I too like this
song. For the lyrics: it’s connected to “VERMIN” with the
“angry style”. That’s to say, the “angry style” songs from
“LEECH” onward are all following a story that happened in our
surroundings. After declaring the anger in “LEECH”, another
person is appearing. In “HEADACHEMAN” yet another person has its
appearance. Then in ”VERMIN” I sing about “in the end the black
curtain was this guy”. But after completing “VERMIN” there was
a new detection. It was like a film with shocking turn of events
(lol)! That’s why “THE TRUE MURDEROUS INTENT” was really the
last, and I sing about the intention to kill
Kai: For the drums, the
melody is different, but has a similar touch to “Filth in the
beauty” and that’s why we thought it would be great if we could
produce something new again… That’s why I wanted to change the
drums a little too and without using the high hat except for the
refrain, and also the Crash Cymbals.
I: eh, really? No ride,
but Crash?
Kai: Yes (lol). While
hitting on 2 crashs, sometimes I also hit China (lol). If it’s for
this, even if it’s getting rougher, it probably won’t be noisy I
thought. Instead I prepared all kind of crash cymbals and selected
the best carefully.
Reita: If I say that I
didn’t do anything with the bass, it’s the truth (lol).But that’s
because it’s in unison with the guitars for the most part. I do
think it would have worked for older songs but as I included phrases
I got the feeling that it sounded cheap. In this song I go deep to
support the bottom. That’s why I really like the tone of the bass.
Deeper deeper… I aimed for such a tone, but going deeper can easily
end up in becoming faint. It’s as if you end up spreading just
deeper tones. That’s pointless. Above the core being in place,
there is necessity to be able to go deeper. I wonder if I did a good
job, realizing that.
Uruha: For me the A melody
left an impression. In the beginning I played it with clean tones and
hadn’t included the heavy feeling of the arpeggio yet. But in the
end Aoi let out that he wanted to make it rougher. We added
distorted tones and tapping and such. As we listened to it, it seemed
totally different! That’s what we thought (lol). To suit that, I
changed to a gross feeling, right?
Aoi: Well, for that
song, the melody of Rukis singing totally didn’t come (lol). If the
vocals aren’t decided, there’s no way the guitars can, right?
Right before the recording we finally did the melody, and found the
right approach. But with this situation that it was just in time, we
somehow did a great one, I think. We're the type of people who
wouldn't do anything if not a gun is held to our heads (lol).
Everyone: You could say
that (lol)
Ruki: I thought it seemed
quite difficult to come up with a melody for this song, so I
postponed it. As soon as I approached it, though, I did it. For such
songs I always progress slowly, but that one I did in one day. That’
why I told me to just do it earlier! (lol). I really like the A
melody of this song. The guitarists created a strange world together.
This wickedness is really great, isn’t it? (lol).
I: The third song
“VOICELES FEAR” moves from a soft introduction part to an
aggressive hard tune, right?
Uruha: This song
already existed since the selection meeting for “SHIVER”. It was
put aside after the Prepro, but as it was decided that we should use
it this time, we were already tired of it (lol). So we changed the A
melody completely and did major changes for the way we start that
song too. As the song started I thought: “Ah, it’s that kind of
song” and wanted to betray the (old version of the) song instantly.
I wonder if I managed to give it a good form.
Reita: After we
arranged and revised the intro it really became cool, right? You
could say I had the feeling that just with this intro the rest would
already work out. For this song Uruha tried to add some bass, but so
to say, the play became pretty undulated. That’s why I said that
it’s such a nuance, but not really like this. To sum it up I didn’t
want to do it that tasteless. Based on that, I made chords with a
high position, discussed it with Uruha and modified them. Next to us
Kai was recording the drums (lol).
Uruha: Yeah. In the
beginning, the A melody was vulgar. We didn’t want that, but we
wanted a pretty and hard taste. We wanted to use the space cleverly,
I guess…. Therefore we thought about guitar phrases, which have a
delay and take turns in flying past each other
I: That means that the A
melody is played completely by Uruha-san?
Uruha: No, I wouldn’t
want that at all. I told Aoi, that I wanted him to play it and that’s
why he played for me.
I: You wouldn’t have
been able to produce such a taste, if it came down to: “If Uruha is
doing this, I can add other things!” I think.
Uruha: Yeah. We talked a
lot about it so we could prevent something like this.
Aoi: It’s not limited to
this time only. With this it won’t become a mess, right? If you
properly think about the song, the answer comes naturally.
Kai: This song was…
really difficult (lol). The drums of Uruhas demo had strange places
where the set accent to the beats was 32 parts off-point and such. We
started the work with “Are you sure it shouldn’t be like this…?”
(lol). Even though we organized it, it took a lot of time, right?
(lol) As a result we ended up understanding the song. But this time
Uruha lost the understanding of the song. We changed the opening and
the ending drastically. The result was good, but we were twisted
around someone’s finger (lol). At the main recording too, Uruha
said something like “Actually, the kick-of the song would be
better like this…” (lol). But because we’re doing this trial
and error method, we were able to create a really god song I think.
Ruki: As the title says,
the lyric of this song is about the time I destroyed my throat,
right? It’s because I just wrote it at that time. I had polyp, so
you could say I carried a high explosive bomb.
It’s always there,
in the so called gear… that’s what I was writing about. I
concentrated on the feelings I had as I was knocked down with an
infusion in the hospital. Because I took really strong medicine my
head started getting dizzy.
But even then it didn’t get any
better. It really made me melancholy! Because it was the first time
I instantly felt like this, I thought about using it (for a song).
But, if you read it without knowing about my throat, the lyrics leave
space for many different imaginations I think. It’s okay to
interpret it like you want it.
I: I see. Starting with
“SHIVER” the 3 singles and the coupling songs made the content
complete. I felt the powerful energy of the GazettE, who produced
top-quality works on such a tight schedule.
Aoi: For the members that
was the thing we had to endure I think. If we make compromises
because there isn’t enough time, we will betray the people who’ll
listen to us. On the other hand, if there’s enough time for the
recording, we might be soft on every part of the songs. You could say
that we can concentrate because there is no time. With this schedule
there’s no choice as to produce convincing things right from the
start, that’s why the motivation for the band is great too, I
think. With this effect we produced a series of 3 singles we’re
proud of.
Uruha: Yeah. Because it is
mortifying to produce unconvincing things. It’s just, I believe
Ruki is also thinking like that, but it doesn't feel like you have to
make an effort for rearranging your own songs. Because it's fun you
don't get tired of it. Therefore the single producing was done in a
real tight schedule, but it wasn't troublesome. Including the
coupling songs we got a hold of a work we can be proud of, that's why
I really want you to listen to these 3 songs.
Kai: I had my worries
about the time we decided for production, but now that we finished
it, I'm happy with these 3 songs...I can't of something else other
than this. Each of these songs isn't divided by title or coupling
song. It tool nearly half a year and feels similar to an album... It
was difficult, but there's a huge sense of accomplishment, right?
Reita: yeah, these 3 were
really produces in busy times. But, especially because there was no
time, to abandon our own music to external persons, producer or
organizer is a no-go. We know that we'll regret it afterwards.
Therefor I don't want to produce music as it fits best. If music is
done with such an attitude, something like failing at Tokyo Dome
could happen and nothing would be left for us. They're not something
like commercials for our way to Tokyo Dome, but every song has its
own meaning,and even after this I'm glad we made these 3 songs.
Ruki: It definitely was
difficult, but it was great too to have lives and recordings at the
same time. Because there are things we can't ignore at lives, but we
don't have to bother about while recording. For lives you express
with your whole mind and because it's like a trial of strength, we
were able to have a balance (between concentrating on just the songs
& expressing everything on stage). In the past we got really
tired when we had recordings and lives at the time, but this time it
wasn't like that. If you think about as: 'there's no other way as to
do it', you're able to unexpectedly work hard, right? It was a pretty
tight though (lol).
For these 3 songs this
time, we first wanted to change something and made 'SHIVER'. After
completing 'SHIVER', we thought we wanted something heavy after all
and so 'Red' was born. The time we worked on the ballad, at the same
time as Red, we had the feeling that we could make something even
better and redid it. If I look back to it once again, time-wise it
was pretty strict, but because it came quite naturally there was no
feeling of stress, right? Therefore, previously we were thinking
about a general direction of the band and made music in this
spectrum. But since 'SHIVER' came out this spectrum got wider, and
for things we didn't like until now, we got to like them. In the past
we wanted to create something within 'greatness of the GazettE', but
now we came to work more freely. That's why making music is becoming
even more fun right now. In this sense it was a satisfying production
and I have the feeling that it's the result of many things we
learned.
Edited by golden_kimono (twitter) thank you honey ;;
