interviews + 06 hyde interview from UV vol.51
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- Lets first talk about 1999 then we'll talk about the new single?
h: 99.. the most memorable thing was the tour in summer. To be able 
to have such a great live outdoors, I can even die satisfied ^^
(noo~ hyde don't die yet! )

-wow so happy that its ok to die?
h: Yeap.  If in 10 years later, someone asks me what i did in 1999,
I will not even hesitate and say " 1999 Grand Cross Tour " ( kandou..... >_<
I'm a part of your memory even 10 years from now!
hyde so so breaks into tears of joy. I LOVE YOU hyde!!!! haha sorry ^^;)

-Oh it was your dream to have live outdoors?
h: Yeap. I never tried performing outdoors before, It was my dream for many years.
So happy that my dream came true~! No matter how many indoor locations
we have, still can't compare to outdoors, because indoors there will be echoes.
There are no echoes outdoors, the difference is quite big! And there are no walls
around the audience, there seem to be nothing blocking us.  The atmosphere is very good
and it's much easier for me to sing with feelings.

-Ah~I thought it's easier sing with feelings indoors?
h: That's what i used to think too ^^ but after i've tried outdoors, i realized
the difference is a lot! Besides..these days, in my lyrics..hmm
lots of them are talking about.. a very wide view.. its' more like an abstract
feeling than an object. So singing the songs in open areas can reflect the original
meaning better and it's easier for me to express too

-Performing to such a massive crowd, were you kind of blank or you were thinking 
of different things as you sing?
h: Yeap, i have to enter the world of my lyrics, but if it is between reality and
imagination ( shinjitsu to gensou? ^^;) then maybe it's a blank world

-During Dec, the tour video was released, when you saw it, does it feel different?
h: Not really, because i watched it calmly ^^;

-^^ so in 99, as a vocalist, have you grown up a lot?
h: only a little bit, about 10% ~?

-Is this as a result of the tour?
h: yeap! emotionally, I feel that this tour, it's like flowers blooming. ( T__T
kandou~~~ hugs hyde tight~ Yes!! all the years of hard work, its finally blooming ne!
ganbatte kudasai! )

-flowers blooming?
h: Un, if i'm too calm or practical, then it will become cold, then it won't be able
to release the emotions. Last year's tour it allowed me to understand that.

-This is your theme?
h: Un, During rehersal, I can release my emotions, yet i can calm down,
the practicing can go smoothly and so can the real live.

-99 is a year of a lot of spiritual gain ne?
h: Un! it's a year of growing up

-Why is the new single in the form of a double song maxi single?
h: Uhmm..that was just coincidence.  Just like after the tour we wrote Love Flies,
that was just coincidence too.

-Does this coincidence got anything to do with work?
h: Yeah, Shiseido and Ring 0.  Because at that time we feel that both offers are
quite interesting so we accepted it.

-first lets talk about ken's NEO UNIVERSE.  It's a very light song
h: It's a good song ne

-It has the feeling of spring too
h: that's right.

-how do you feel when you wrote the lyrics?
h: ken didn't specifically tell me anything about it, I just followed my own feelings.
The Shiseido CM will be out around new years, and 2000 is also an important year,
so i thought of such lyrics.

-does 2000 have any special meaning for you?
h: Un..sou

-such as?
h: Like everyone else, ever since i was young i dreamt that year 2000 would be like a
futuristic place, like inside the cartoon Atomu ( or Astro Boy!?..i dunno..wutever u like to call it )

-Do you think year 2000 is more important than 2001?
h: Although the start of 21st century is very important, but I sorta had more
hopes in the year 2000

-So you used " NEO UNIVERSE" as the song name?
h: Yeah my views towards year 2000 is in NEO UNIVERSE.

-the other song " finale" is by tetsu, it's so dark..really surprised
that it's by tetsu!
h: Actaully tetsu wrote this song a long time ago.  When we know we have to
write a song for Ring 0 we thought of this song immediately

-so from the start already feel that this song is very suitable for the movie?
h: in the studio practices, tetsu added keyboard so the song's more vivid

-tetsu kept the song's image?
h: no almost not at all

-then...you wrote the lyrics after you heard the song?
h: un, after listening to the song and reading the script of the movie

-the lyrics are really good ne! it's very suitable for the movie Ring 0
h: yeah, just like the song and the movie's in one 

-are you very satisfied with the outcomes?
h: yes

-when you were writing lyrics what were you thinking about? will you place yourself in the 
story?
h: case by case, supposedly something like that

-finale too?
h: i read the script, and thought about sad words, listening to the song..and images will
start to appear in my mind.  I'll try to fall into different perspectives like
from sadako herself, from sadako's lover..the people around them..etc.  I'll think,
if sadako is the person i love, what would i think? 

-how about the skills involved in performing this song?
h: very difficult.  it's got a very high key, it's got a very sharp melody,
that's why it's very difficult to sing.

-since it's so difficult, before recording did you practice?
h: no..because i only finished the lyrics one day before recording. don't have time
to practice at all i already have to record it (eh..haido.. -_-")

-then in the real recording, did you have to have many takes?
h: i'm used to it already. but if i'm too used to it, my voice will sound very bad
like it's dead, not lively at all.

-but some ppl, the more they sing the better their voice get?
h: it depends i guess, but i'm sure it will be very painful to sing this song live.

-because the key's too high?
h: yeah, some places are really too high, if i sing this song in the 2nd half of LIVE
it will be very very difficult.  So i want to sing it in the beginning

-that's why finale was first song of reset live ne

-how about the name "finale"?
h: it's a word that sorta came across my mind when i was writing the lyrics.

-the coupling " hole " is yukkie's song.  and trick is remixed by him too. it's quite
different from the original song, what do you think?>
h: I feel so hazukashii ne, because at the real recording, the bass was all done
by singing.  most of it is done without any other background music.  it feels so shy,
just like running naked on the street (laughs)

-(laughs) this single is the start of 2000, and there was count down live. so what
kind of live do you want now?
h: elegant (!?)

-what do you mean?
h: emotionally

-hyde how about yourself?
h: as long as i can enjoy it then it's enough

-count down live is from 1999 to 2000, will your feelings change as the time changes?
h: this i don't know (laughs)

-crossing year into 2000 in live, what do you feel?
h: like a lifetime

-being able to countdown with fans it must be very nice
h: a band that's got a long history usually will have count down live, or festive
lives etc, but somehow we never had a chance to do that. ( hey wasn't Reincarnation
during christmas -_-") actaully a few years ago we already wish to have a 2000 countdown live,
our dream finally came true, of course very happy.

-this single, is it showing us that this is L'Arc~en~Ciel in year 2000?
h: just wish that we can enjoy making our music more and be more mature with it.

-ehm can you elaborate on it?
h: like making a photo album.  What we want to do now is to finish up things
we couldn't complete last year.

-how about Live?
h: i don't want to do any concerts yet, i just want to write songs. I haven't thought about
things about Live at the moment.

-what do you care about the most recently?
h: him...AIBO that a friend gave me

-what name did you give him?
h: AIBO ... ( hey hyde..so unoriginal? hah)

-you wanted an electronic dog ?
h: yeah. isn't it kind of cool to have an electronic dog during year 2000?

(end)