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In spite of how lengthy our career has been—Japan or overseas—there are still people who don’t know DIR EN GREY. As such, there are always new goals and dreams to chase.
To get all those people who still have no idea who we are, we definitely have to continue chasing new goals and we would be happy to see these people come to our live shows.
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I took this photo the other day before a meeting. Maybe it’s because I was born in the cherry blossoms season, but it’s like I’m being flooded with a peaceful feeling each time I look at these flowers that bloom for us every year around this time.
I’m looking forward to seeing them blooming gracefully next year too.
And then, Sakamoto Ryuichi… The professor has passed away… It happened when cherry blossoms are scattering their petals, and this makes me feel like he has been surrounded by beauty until the very last.
I still clearly remember that, a long time ago on the day before our first headliner show in NY, I was reading a magazine alone in a bookstore I entered by chance, when the professor suddenly came, and we read magazines side by side.
I was too nervous and hesitant to talk to him, but I was shivering because I’d never thought I would have the chance to read something in a book store in NY standing side by side to a person I admired so much.
Still now, I’m wondering if I should have talked to him back then.
But if I’d have a chance to go back to that day, there is something I want to tell him:
“I love your music.”
I wish that, somehow, you’ll keep on performing your magnificent music in the heavenly kingdom too, all surrounded by its beautiful sounds.
Rest in peace.
Toshiya
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First impressions of the members:
scan credit to @deg-conce-blog
Kyo 💛
Both Die and Kaoru first met him in the Restroom of some live house. Die said the first time he met Kyo, he had his hair straight up and looked like a little devil, and Kyo spoke to Die first. The second time they met, Die thought Kyo looked very cute as he didn’t have make up on, and he was very quiet among his old bandmates, Die was surprised with the gap.
Kaoru first impression of Kyo was when he was putting make up on at some restroom, Kyo and his bandmates came in with full make up (they also rode the train with full make up and costumes), but when Kaoru was going to greet Kyo’s band after the live show, he found out that Kyo already went home because he felt cold lol.
Shinya 🩷
Die: Die and Shinya actually encounter each other during the event between their previous previous bands, but they didn’t notice each other’s existence. However, in their first conversation, Shinya would only say “uhm” or “yes” lol (Kao: he’s talked a lot during train rides etc though…)
Kaoru: I first met Shinya and Kyo when they were in their previous band and they invited me to join in lol. Shinya had short hair at the time (Die: Ah, when he was still a teenager, he often wore school uniform to practice…). After practice, we would ride the train together (for about 4 stations), he didn’t speak a single word and had a reserved manner, Kaoru wondered if he was even in the same band with the other bandmates lol. When they were waiting for the train, he was being polite and asked things like “should we sit on the bench while waiting?” (Die: Feels like the first Date!)
Toshiya 💙
Die: he first saw Toshiya when he was performing with his previous band, Die’s impression of him is a bassist with blue hair, tall and slender.
Kaoru: and when I greeted him, he didn’t have make up on so he looked really young (like a child), we didn’t talk much but I thought he is the kind of bandman who performs (gave a lot of fanservices). After their liveshow in Nagano, his band and ours gather together for fireworks, but me and Kyo didn’t want to do it so we just sat there and zoned out (Die: I slept in the car at the time). Then Toshiya came to us and asked many questions, such as “is your band doing well?”, I understood that he was interested in our band but he even asked more personal questions like “are the members getting along well?”. He kept his ponytail from the live performance so he looked quite cute, but I thought “this dude is remarkable”.
Die: I didn’t remember anything from that event, the first time I spoke to him was when he went to see our live show in Tokyo, he was quiet but he seemed normal when he spoke.
Kaoru: Yeah he’s quite normal when he started speaking. But since he’s very tall, he often stands out.
The time he came to Osaka to see us, we were planning to form Dir en Grey, so I told him to be careful and maintain a low profile. But because of his height, whenever I looked at the crowd I saw his head sticking out (lol). Everyone was wondering why does Toshiya from Nagano’s band came all the way to see us, rumors about him joining us started spreading within our fandom. I also heard that people often mistaken me and Toshiya since we both had blue and long hair lol.
Kaoru 💜 & Die ❤️
Kaoru thought Die was very intimidating at first.
Die said when he first saw Kaoru’s (previous) band name, it was a cute name so he thought they’re an all-female band. But when they arrived, they were all dudes that had their hair straight up. They also came out of a Red sport car (Kaoru: we just occasionally rode on that car…).
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[X Japan] Rockn'f - June 1988 Translation // Part 1
I decided to break the interview in pieces. In this interview, they talk about their first album, ‘Vanishing Vision’. In Part 1, they talk about the A track side. Part 2 will be the B track side and Part 3 will be the interview portion. Enjoy~
Rockin’f – 1988, June Issue
Photographer: Norio Suzuki
Interviewer: Hirotake Kawamoto
They aren’t only about outrageous make up and eccentric hair, but to the common people that existence is X, who have released their first and last indies full album, ‘Vanishing Vision’. With a colorful performance that contradicts the sound heard on TV, their melody line is heavy and constructs a world of beautiful and sophisticated slash music.
Side A – Track 1 – Dear Loser
TAIJI: It has the feeling of an opening number that introduces the radical sound of the album from here on out. It’s an instrumental that has a feeling of grandeur. It’s as if it gradually attacks you.
YOSHIKI: It has the feeling similar to if you imagined a wind blowing violently over a magnificent field. Perhaps I should say that we were born from that place?
TAIJI: When we went to Madarao for lodging, the scenery that I saw there gave me the same impression.
YOSHIKI: According to the sampling, the human voice increases a threat to it, so the way it is has a good feeling to it.
Side A – Track 2 – Vanishing Love
YOSHIKI: Though I have jealousy, I pretend to be tough without showing it. But even so, in the end, my true intentions bursts out, and it’s a song that represents something similar to the weakness of humans. As for the composition, the beginning is a power metal type of sound, then from halfway of the song, you can hear very nice and clear twin guitars, the melody also suddenly becomes magnificent. It has this kind of development. I think it’s a pretty catchy song.
TOSHI: The lyrics are split about half Japanese and half English, but when you look at the translated English part, the content is quite interesting. So, it’s not only merely just charming singing.
HIDE: The guitar solo also begins with twin guitars, then it’s the solo, and then goes back to twin guitars again. It’s this kind of composition but it’s not just playing with speed, there’s an important stress on the melody.
PATA: More than speed, the melody is given importance. It’s a rather pretty twin lead isn’t it?
TAIJI: So far, the song has a lot of fast playing, but as for this song, the twin guitars two part melody and the midway of the vocals melody, I was able to put in a back sound phrase. It kind of has that feeling in it.
YOSHIKI: Though I may not have understood in recording, since the song is packed with complicated exceptionally fast parts, I was really pleasantly surprised when I listened carefully afterwards.
Side A – Track 3 – Phantom Of Guilt
TAIJI: This song has a danceable mood. A 16 beat rhythm was put in, so it has a fusion like feeling.
TOSHI: The lyric contents are about a world of conflict of the human spirit.
TAIJI: As for people who don’t know anything about X, if you listen to this song, I think you will probably blink in confusion.
HIDE: It seems that as much as possible we try not to play stereotypical heavy metal.
TAIJI: But after all, that is the sound of X.
YOSHIKI: As for this song, in the end, we can say with confidence that it’s recognizable as X without even trying (laugh).
Side A – Track 4 – Sadistic Desire
HIDE: This song was based on a song that I had written during the time I was in Yokosuka Saver Tiger. At that time, I didn’t really have a clear idea of the lyrics or melody but at the time when we were deciding what songs to put in the album, I had an idea for a song so it was expected that I try it out.
PATA: You can hear a pop feeling, but it’s quite complicated to play.
YOSHIKI: I wrote the words under the influence of a movie called “Blue Velvet”. To explain in a phrase, you can call it “cruel sex”. You can’t be satisfied with just normal sex, while loving the wounds inflicted on their body. It’s a love like this. And then, in the end, after killing your lover, as expected, as much as tears come forth, you try to hide the sadness.
TAIJI: For this song, it was really unusual to play bass using my fingers. Something resembling a bass solo was put in, and the bass tones sound cool without being defeated by the son’s melody.
TOSHI: I became the main character in the song’s lyrics, so I tried to sing with a charismatic feeling.
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