[Arashi] Aiba - H - 12/2013 (2/3)
Here is the next part! He talks about his initial impressions of the other members and also goes into depth about the sand sketches he did for the background footage that played during the Subarashiki Sekai perf in Arafes.
Just one more part to go. Enjoy!
H - 12/2013
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Aiba - H - 12/2013 (2/3)
---(laugh) What was your very first impression of Ninomiya-kun like?
Out of all the members, he's the one I've hung out with the most ever since a long time ago. I have my own sandlot baseball team and even now he still participates in it for me; he comes over to my place too. I guess he has that sort of presence in my life where I don't even take particular notice of it anymore. Once we're done with work, I go back to feeling like he's someone I've known for a long time, ever since we were teens.
---Who did you grow close to next?
The Jrs. were kind of split into groups at the time, and the person I was together with was MatsuJun.
---What was your very first impression of Matsumoto-kun like?
He's really nice. Back in the very beginning when I first went to the place for lessons, it was hard for me to go in there because I didn't have anyone else who joined at the same time that I did. I remember that the first person who talked to me was MatsuJun. It was like, "Just stand near the back over there and watch the person in front of you while you're dancing and you'll be fine". "Ah, thank you!". I still remember that clearly. Image-wise, he may have aspects to him that would make people think he's sadistic or something, but from my perspective he's definitely nice.
---What were Sakurai (Sho)-kun and Ohno (Satoshi)-kun like?
It was after Arashi was formed when it came to the both of them. Sho-chan would come straight to the studio from school with his uniform still on and stuff. I thought it was so amazing that he would ask for a break whenever tests were coming up. "What school does he go to anyway?" I thought to myself and asked him only to hear it was Keio. I was like, "Seriously!?" (laugh). I got to the point of going over to Sho-chan's parents' home to hang out and whatnot after Arashi was formed, but we weren't that close before then. As for Leader, he was definitely a daisenpai. Even one year's difference is a lot in Johnny's, so in the beginning it felt more like, "Wow, so we can actually do things together". But as the five of us held lives and did things together, I feel like that passing of time and experience really brought us together as a group.
---But even though it can be said for both Sakurai-kun and Ohno-kun that they each have their amazing qualities, they still have aspects to them that open them up for teasing, right? And since you also have your own points, there is now equal footing where you're able to tease one another, yes? But when did things turn out that way?
(laugh) I wonder when that started? For sure, our late night programs played a huge part. I think the director we had at the time might have even helped us shape the feel that Arashi currently has.
---You might have been at an age where you wanted to look cool, but you've grown out of that, haven't you?
Yeah. When you think about it, we don't have anyone who likes to act cool in Arashi, huh? (laugh)
---That's true. That plays a big part, doesn't it?
We do talk amongst ourselves about how we want to be flashy, though (laugh). "But it's impossible for us now, huh," we'd go. (laugh)
---(laugh) What do you think of the splendid balance that has been struck within the group, Aiba-kun?
Personality-wise, it's kind of hard to look at it in an objective way. I'm told pretty often that we seem really close, but it's like a "Oh, really?" sort of feeling (laugh). "But this is normal for us," I would think.
---During the part which you had produced during Arafes recently, footage was played in the background of "Subarashiki Sekai" of you drawing sand sketches.
Yes.
---Those sand sketches left a very deep impression on me. Furthermore, I get the feeling that "Subarashiki Sekai" is a song that came from a period when Arashi was still struggling, yet there was a pervading sense of determination as you faced the future. Personally speaking, do you have strong emotional attachments to this song, Aiba-kun?
I do, for sure, and it's one of the songs that we do all the time at concerts too, you see. I first wanted to do this song during the song selection process, and then I wanted to present it in a way that was different from before. Then, I decided to actually do sand sketches, but it's really fleeting-- once you've finished drawing one sketch, it's ruined right away. That aspect of it matched up with the image I had of the song so I decided, "Ah, let's go with this". I totally lost track of the time as I did it. We figured we'd wrap up around 9 in the evening, but it was the middle of the night when we were done (laugh). The staff and the instructor were really accommodating, and that process in itself was fun too.
---In the footage, you truly did keep drawing and erasing, drawing and erasing in a looping cycle. Did you have a heavy hand in coming up with the sketches, Aiba-kun?
I did. The instructor came up with the finer details, but I did as much of it as I could on my own. That was why we went 6 hours over schedule (laugh). And then I did a birthday surprise just for the second day of Arafes.
---For Ninomiya-kun and Matsumoto-kun, right?
Right. I wanted to start that off with a sand sketch too. Along with Leader and Sho-chan, we decided to celebrate their birthdays but we hadn't decided on anything beyond that. So I suggested doing a sand sketch of a birthday cake and was like, "This will definitely be a hit at the venue!". The fleeting instant of a sand sketch really leaves an impact too.
---I was extremely surprised that you were able to express depth and passage of time so well through sand sketches. Was the fleeting aspect of it a defining feature for you, Aiba-kun?
That's right. Destroying something only to create yet another different drawing out of it-- I figured that the sense of flow you get from it would make for a different presentation than if the drawings were done on paper.
Just one more part to go. Enjoy!
H - 12/2013
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
Aiba - H - 12/2013 (2/3)
---(laugh) What was your very first impression of Ninomiya-kun like?
Out of all the members, he's the one I've hung out with the most ever since a long time ago. I have my own sandlot baseball team and even now he still participates in it for me; he comes over to my place too. I guess he has that sort of presence in my life where I don't even take particular notice of it anymore. Once we're done with work, I go back to feeling like he's someone I've known for a long time, ever since we were teens.
---Who did you grow close to next?
The Jrs. were kind of split into groups at the time, and the person I was together with was MatsuJun.
---What was your very first impression of Matsumoto-kun like?
He's really nice. Back in the very beginning when I first went to the place for lessons, it was hard for me to go in there because I didn't have anyone else who joined at the same time that I did. I remember that the first person who talked to me was MatsuJun. It was like, "Just stand near the back over there and watch the person in front of you while you're dancing and you'll be fine". "Ah, thank you!". I still remember that clearly. Image-wise, he may have aspects to him that would make people think he's sadistic or something, but from my perspective he's definitely nice.
---What were Sakurai (Sho)-kun and Ohno (Satoshi)-kun like?
It was after Arashi was formed when it came to the both of them. Sho-chan would come straight to the studio from school with his uniform still on and stuff. I thought it was so amazing that he would ask for a break whenever tests were coming up. "What school does he go to anyway?" I thought to myself and asked him only to hear it was Keio. I was like, "Seriously!?" (laugh). I got to the point of going over to Sho-chan's parents' home to hang out and whatnot after Arashi was formed, but we weren't that close before then. As for Leader, he was definitely a daisenpai. Even one year's difference is a lot in Johnny's, so in the beginning it felt more like, "Wow, so we can actually do things together". But as the five of us held lives and did things together, I feel like that passing of time and experience really brought us together as a group.
---But even though it can be said for both Sakurai-kun and Ohno-kun that they each have their amazing qualities, they still have aspects to them that open them up for teasing, right? And since you also have your own points, there is now equal footing where you're able to tease one another, yes? But when did things turn out that way?
(laugh) I wonder when that started? For sure, our late night programs played a huge part. I think the director we had at the time might have even helped us shape the feel that Arashi currently has.
---You might have been at an age where you wanted to look cool, but you've grown out of that, haven't you?
Yeah. When you think about it, we don't have anyone who likes to act cool in Arashi, huh? (laugh)
---That's true. That plays a big part, doesn't it?
We do talk amongst ourselves about how we want to be flashy, though (laugh). "But it's impossible for us now, huh," we'd go. (laugh)
---(laugh) What do you think of the splendid balance that has been struck within the group, Aiba-kun?
Personality-wise, it's kind of hard to look at it in an objective way. I'm told pretty often that we seem really close, but it's like a "Oh, really?" sort of feeling (laugh). "But this is normal for us," I would think.
---During the part which you had produced during Arafes recently, footage was played in the background of "Subarashiki Sekai" of you drawing sand sketches.
Yes.
---Those sand sketches left a very deep impression on me. Furthermore, I get the feeling that "Subarashiki Sekai" is a song that came from a period when Arashi was still struggling, yet there was a pervading sense of determination as you faced the future. Personally speaking, do you have strong emotional attachments to this song, Aiba-kun?
I do, for sure, and it's one of the songs that we do all the time at concerts too, you see. I first wanted to do this song during the song selection process, and then I wanted to present it in a way that was different from before. Then, I decided to actually do sand sketches, but it's really fleeting-- once you've finished drawing one sketch, it's ruined right away. That aspect of it matched up with the image I had of the song so I decided, "Ah, let's go with this". I totally lost track of the time as I did it. We figured we'd wrap up around 9 in the evening, but it was the middle of the night when we were done (laugh). The staff and the instructor were really accommodating, and that process in itself was fun too.
---In the footage, you truly did keep drawing and erasing, drawing and erasing in a looping cycle. Did you have a heavy hand in coming up with the sketches, Aiba-kun?
I did. The instructor came up with the finer details, but I did as much of it as I could on my own. That was why we went 6 hours over schedule (laugh). And then I did a birthday surprise just for the second day of Arafes.
---For Ninomiya-kun and Matsumoto-kun, right?
Right. I wanted to start that off with a sand sketch too. Along with Leader and Sho-chan, we decided to celebrate their birthdays but we hadn't decided on anything beyond that. So I suggested doing a sand sketch of a birthday cake and was like, "This will definitely be a hit at the venue!". The fleeting instant of a sand sketch really leaves an impact too.
---I was extremely surprised that you were able to express depth and passage of time so well through sand sketches. Was the fleeting aspect of it a defining feature for you, Aiba-kun?
That's right. Destroying something only to create yet another different drawing out of it-- I figured that the sense of flow you get from it would make for a different presentation than if the drawings were done on paper.