[The Days Fade Away] Day 11 PART 2 ~ Jon EXTRA insert

[k_no_uta]

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The Days Fade Away
Day 11 PART 2  ~ Jon EXTRA insert
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Since our schedule is FULL of interesting fade facts and also very hidden and maybe not yet seen information,
we decided to not hide this from you any longer and make an EXTRA insert along with Jon's regular post.

There is another reason for posting this today.
It's the anniversary of  the tsunami disaster in Japan.
It's a matter that STILL is causing many people a very hard time.
Fitting to this, this interview is done by a man who has seen very hard times, too, as you'll learn
and he has overcome them all.
For this day I personally want to take him a example for how walking on against all odds leads to good times.

Dear shamezmerizer, moderator of the USA ST, who kindly joined our project and offered her help,
made a translation of a highly interesting Jon interview for us.
She asked me to give out a warning ahead, so here we go:

WARNING:
Miss shamezmerizer wants to let you know,
that she's still in her middle of her Japanese studies and due to that an amateur translator.
There were parts she found hard to translate.
Please keep this in mind!!!

Also: If you can read the original, feel free to comment if you don't agree with the translation.
We can just learn from it.
(^_~)
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[>>>>INTERVIEW UNDER THE CUT<<<<]
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Blue-eyed Samurai

“Because I’ve overcome fear and pain, I’m here now. Even if it’s painful now, if I just wait 6 months, or a year, it will all be in the past. I’ve come to believe this, no matter what happens.”

He has blue eyes [The kanji they use for "blue" can also mean "blue/green" apparently. It makes sense, since his eyes change colors. I just stuck with 'blue' because that's what the official site says and it's too awkward to say bluegreen] and an easygoing air. This handsome man’s name is Jon Underdown. He is the frontman of a Japanese rock band called fade. Even though all of the other members besides Jon are Japanese, some of them were also raised in America. They are a uniquely international collection of individuals. Their heavy rock sound and emotional melodies aren’t appealing just on a national level, but also on an international level. Their potential is just starting to attract attention. They made an appearance at August’s BOOM BOOM SATELLITES, and South Korea’s biggest rock festival “ETPFEST 2009.” They also performed in Osaka’s “RUSH BALL 09.” Now they are releasing their new album, “Age of Innocence.” Their sound and appearance is distinctly Western and “cool,” but their live performances are the exact opposite. They are passionate and earnest, particularly Jon. Since their songs are all sung in their native English tongue, you could say they have the handicap of not being able to send their messages and thoughts as well as other Japanese bands. But, they use words that are easy to understand and sing slowly, making heavy use of call and response with the audience at their lives. Because of this, they’ve crafted an indescribable soul in their performances that strikes the hearts of their fans. We had the opportunity to sit down with Jon and ask him about his life and how he came to join the band in his first-ever personal interview.

-Well, first off… where are you from? (laugh)

J: I’m American. (laughs) I was raised in Seattle.

-Seattle makes me think of things like Starbucks and grunge.

J: Seattle is definitely known for those things all around the world, but to me, Seattle means “outdoors.” Things like skiing and kayaking. There’s a lot of nature there and a lot of places you can go for that. But really, Seattle isn’t that big of a place. It’s probably as big as…Shinagawa?

-Hahaha, that’s hard to picture.

J: Where I went to college had a lot of nature. When people think of Seattle, they’re usually thinking of the southern part, where there are a lot of buildings. I was in the northern Seattle.

-So, how did you go from there to being in a Japanese band?

J: Oh, that’s a long story… Well, I’ve been interested in Asian culture since I was a kid. It all started with… “Karate Kid.” (laughs)

-Oh, right, the hit karate movie.

J: Yeah, that’s right. When I first saw it, I thought, “Wow, Mr. Miyagi is awesome!” I was also into martial arts like Tai Chi and Kung Fu. There were a lot of Asian people around where I lived, too. Then, when I was in high school, we had to pick a foreign language to study. I picked Japanese. After that, I got more interested specifically in Japanese culture.

-So, that’s how you came here.

J: I attended Washington University, but they had a Japanese exchange program, so that’s how I came here. Honestly, I didn’t want to come to Tokyo; I wanted to go to Sapporo or Kyoto, because I like nature more than cities. But I didn’t go because all of the classes you had to take besides the Japanese language classes were taught in English. It sucked.

-Why?

J: Well, if you wanted to study abroad and speak Japanese, but all of your classes were in English, wouldn’t you be upset? But at the university in Tokyo, you could choose whatever classes you wanted. That’s how I decided on Tokyo.

-So how was Tokyo, even though you didn’t want to come in the first place?

J: It was awesome!

-I guess we could call that your “college debut.” (laugh)

J: Hahahaha. In my case, it was my “Tokyo debut.” At first, I took classes that I thought were really interesting, but they got boring really fast. Unlike American professors, Japanese professors don’t really interact with their students. Nobody really pays attention to what the professor is saying. You’d get kicked out of class for that in America. It was disappointing. “I came here to learn Japanese, but this is so boring!” I thought. So, I started hardly going to class at all and made a bunch of Japanese friends. That’s how I improved my speaking ability and joined a band.

-I see. And, after that?

J: After that, I had to go back to America. I had no choice. But about a month before I went back, I got an offer from a record company. I always loved music, but I never pictured myself doing it for a living. When I got that offer, I thought for the first time that maybe we [the band he was in] had what it takes to make it big in music. With that in mind, I went back to America and told my family, “I’m going to be a musician.” Then we had a big fight. (laugh)

-Oh my!

J: It was really bad. But I couldn’t just go back and be a musician the way I was back then. So, while working part-time as a model in Japan, I worked on my skills as a musician. After about a year passed, I found out my father had cancer and I decided that I had to go back to America. After that, well… about a week before I was supposed to leave, I was contacted by rui (drums), the leader of the band I’m in now. He brought me a demo and said they needed a new vocalist. He wanted to know if I was interested. I wasn’t really interested at all, but when I listened to the CD, something clicked.

-The demo was that good?

J: It was amazing. I thought it was something I could fit into. We had a session right away and I decided then and there that I couldn’t be in any other band but this one. That’s when I became a member of fade.

-It was perfect timing for you to meet them, huh?

J: Yeah. I think it was fate.

-But even though you didn’t plan on being in the band from the start, what made you decide to stay with them?

J: Because the demo was amazing.

-Just that?

J: Yeah, just that. I was always searching, you know. How do I put it…I felt like it was worth it to stay. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I went through a lot of trial and error before I met them. I tried to stay with the other band I was in, but we weren’t very good and I wasn’t enjoying it. It wasn’t worth it. There wasn’t ever a time when I thought “Wow, this is perfect!” So, I was always searching for something better. And that’s when I found fade.

-So you’re saying the impact made by rui’s demo was all that it took?

J: You know that saying “Live for now?” I’ve always wanted to live like that. When I was around 25, I had friends who had gotten sick, or gotten into accidents and died. They’re not a part of this world anymore. That’s the sort of thing I thought about. We think that tomorrow will always come, but maybe it won’t. We don’t know when we’re going to die. I want to live without any regrets. That’s why I thought this band was it for me. “What perfect timing!” I thought.

-So that’s how dead-set you were on joining. But your parents must have been against it, right?

J: Yeah. They told me, “Aren’t you just going to fail anyways?” But I don’t think failure is always bad. Failure hurts, but it allows you make choices you wouldn’t have been able to make before and start something completely new. So, I think it’s okay.

-So, from then on, you started your life full-scale as a member of the band…

J: It was really, really difficult. There were times when I felt like giving up or going home. Being in a band is a lot like being in love. No matter how much you love the band, there are things that bother you, times when you feel like complaining, and times when you have pointless arguments.

-I think everyone has times like that.

J: I agree. At those times, the band supported me and we worked together. I was really happy to be in the band in those moments.

-But didn’t you think those were hard times? Even though there are members who returned to Japan, fade is essentially a Japanese band. So, isn’t there a big gap between your way of thinking and the band’s?

J: When I first entered fade, it was definitely hard. My band members are really strict, you know. (laughs) At first, it was like I was being beaten down by my own ignorance. But it wasn’t just with the band; Americans and Japanese have different approaches to a lot of things. [There was a word in this sentence I couldn’t translate, but it had to do with the difference between growing up in America and Japan]. If I had to say it, growing (as a person) in Japan was harsh and insecure. It was hard until I finally realized that.

-Because we Japanese think endurance and effort is beautiful.

J: That’s right. That’s how in those troubled times, I realized that suffering was helping me grow as a person. It helped me learn how to cut off those feelings. But since I’m doing this in Japan, I think it’s important for me to communicate on the band’s level and pay attention to the rules here.

-Even though you made that decision yourself and had those thoughts in mind, there must have been a lot of times when you couldn’t see the band’s future and even your own future clearly, right? Were there ever times you regret the path you chose?

J: Unfortunately, yeah (laugh). One time, I had polyps on my throat and had to get surgery. I was really anxious when I was that sick. I always worried, “Did I choose the right path?”

-Well, it’s obvious that you’d be worried.

J: But I think I’m where I’m at now because I overcame that. The person I am now will always believe that. Even if it’s painful now, if I just wait 6 months, or even a year, it will all be in the past. It’s not just me, but all of my band members believe that too, I think.

-I think it’s safe to say that the band (including you) isn’t young by any means. What I mean is that you’ve endured a lot to get to where you are now. How should I put it… it’s like even though I’ve gone to your lives and seen you as this cool, talented, handsome foreigner on stage, something seems fishy. Or maybe I should say, it makes me wonder how much of your eagerness is just part of the show.

J: Hahahaha.

-But that makes sense, doesn’t it?

J: Well, since I got past 25, I’ve started noticing a difference between my lifestyle and those around me. Other people drive nice cars, go traveling, and have big houses/apartments. But my lifestyle doesn’t allow me to be like that. Since I’ve become aware of that difference, it makes me feel a bit resentful. When I’m with the band, I can take all of those bad feelings and let loose, especially at lives. If I led a normal life, I wouldn’t be able to have moments like that. When I’m standing on the stage, we become one. Then there are also moments when we become one with the audience. It’s really moving.

-So what you’re saying is that since you always play with those feelings in mind, you’re really that passionate about communicating that with the fans?

J: Exactly. Especially at the Korean festival we just played at. It was really, really awesome to perform at such a big festival. It was the first time we played at an event that big. We played in front of over 10,000 people and it rocked! The energy between us and the audience was perfect. In moments like that, I’m glad I chose this path. Even though there are bad times, there are also good times to reflect on, because we have tried. I understand that now. Tomorrow, it will be a thing of the past. It’s kind of cliché, but it’s hard to express it in words - that happiness, that deep impression. You feel successful now because those bad things are in your past.

-I see. After listening to your stories, I feel like you’re more Japanese than most Japanese people.

J: Ahh, that might be true. It’s something you hear a lot, but don’t you think foreigners see more of the good in Japan than those who have always lived here? Maybe it’s the same for me.

-Americans are more epicurean, right? Like they enjoy whatever they have as much as they can. But, like you said before, you feel happiness when you look back at the suffering and hardship you went through to get here now. That’s a really Japanese way of thinking.

J: Ahh, yeah, you’re right.

-I feel like you show that even during lives.

J: If there’s a cool way to show that, we want to do it. It would be cool if we could find a way to express that like rock stars. That’ll be our next goal. But if that’s the case, I wouldn’t say that’s the kind of message we’re sending right now. We’re not playing like that right now, so we can’t send that message. There’s no correlation.

-fade seems cool when you just listen to them, but when you think about the lyrics, it seems like you really have been through some hard times. (laughs)

J: Because we have! (laughs) But since now it’s more easy-going, we want to put in more effort.

-The release of your new album will probably bring some big changes, right? Since you’ve also started branching out overseas, too. With that in mind, what kind of band do you think you’ll become here in the future?

J: We’re not a band that’s satisfied with just doing what we want and then leaving. We’re always trying to get closer to our fans. We try to express that in our songs as best as we can. What else… because we consider ourselves an international band, we want to find more ways to define ourselves as “fade.” Since it makes more sense for me to sing in English, you could say that’s what really sets us apart? That means we’re not trying to perform just for Japanese fans or just for foreign fans; we’re trying to send our message of who we are to everyone as fade.

-You really are Japanese at heart. (laughs)

J: Hahahaha.
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Out of the "Ongaku to Hito" Issue of 2009/11
>>>ORIGINAL HERE<<<
kindly provided by ryuik
(please make sure to leave a "thank you" for her and shamezmerizer 's awesome work!)
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Another note regarding Mr. Underdown:
I want to quote this directly from KingOfDawn.com.
Jon fearing to lose his voice wasn't the only surgery related tragedy shaking his life...

"[...] But even being into music, Jon dreamed of being a professional skier, until in 1999,
in the age of 19, he had an accident at Lake Tahoe injuring his knee so badly, that he had to burry this dream. [...]"

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