What's IN? December 2008
Sorry, I decided to post the What's IN article first after all. >.>; Still not done with the second part of the Pati Pati interview where he talked about the concert, but I hope I can get that up soon. In the meantime, please enjoy this article~
I: Is Jesus the beginning of the story that you’re starting next?
G: As a single, yes, but this is not where the story starts. I hope listening to this song will give you an idea of how intense (hageshii: violent, furious) the story is. The way I do things is, first I tell the story and then I express that in concerts.
I: Life and death, and rebirth have always been fundamental themes within you. Of course that (theme) exists in Jesus too, but I feel a strong power towards death even more (in this song).
G: That’s right. This song is the opening of the concert, but in a sense also the ending. If you watch the concert, I think you’ll understand the meaning of this song. The story itself I plan to release on my website portion by portion.
I: Oh, that’s quite a different approach from your usual method of keeping everyone in the dark.
G: Before this I’ve always asked the fans to create their own story, but the way I see (lit. think) it, since the internet is so widely used now, why don’t we make use of it in this way? That’s the world we live in so there’s no use trying to be secretive. (laughs) In that case, it’s better to provide the proper information myself so that (the fans) can enjoy the concert more. Also, I want them to discuss the concert like, “What’s this story about?” and to share the information after they’ve watched it. This is a world where we are supposed to be able to communicate (with others), but that’s not happening and so I really hope that they can create such places (for discussion).
I: So that’s what you wish to see happen. Still, I was surprised when I turned on the CD. What an intense, sudden approach! It’s a short song of only 3.5 minutes and fades away quietly at the end.
G: More intense and fleeting [1]. Part of it is because I want to bring out the sadness you feel the minute something disappears. Most of my songs are basically sad [1]. From that, I chose a song that is even more intense and fleeting. That is what I meant when I said earlier that Jesus can be the opening song or the ending song for the concert.
[1] hakanai: fleeting, fragile, frail, temporary, transient, short-lived, empty, sad.
I: Your voice has also become more intense.
G: It has become so strong that it can hit the strong notes [1], right? (laughs) That’s because I want to show my voice in its simplest form [2].
[1]イケイケな感じにいけるようになってきた。 Ikeike shows… lots of enery. Something that’s active, outgoing, aggressive, etc. There could be two reasons why he laughed here. One is because ikeike isn’t used in formal situations, but he suddenly used that during an interview so he’s laughing. Or it could be the double use of “ike” in “ikeike na kanji ni ike ru”, which was my personal interpretation and that’s why I used the word “strong” twice.
[2] ストレートに見せていきたい Literally, show it straightly. I think in this case he’s trying to say that he wants to show his real/original voice, without any effects added to it like the way he’s been doing recently.
I: It’s more revealed (lit. naked) now. The rap in the middle of the song was so intense that it didn’t sound like your voice. Felt like the “God of Death” himself.
G: That’s (the voice of) a spirit (亡霊: ghost). I trained for a long time before I could finally do it. In that sense, though I’m trying to standardize the expression used (in this concert), I’m also increasing my vocal range.
I: Since it’s released in December and based on the image I have of you, I thought that Jesus will be a song praising God, but it’s the complete opposite isn’t it?
G: It’s like the voices of the spirits who are challenging God himself. Their questions.
I: You do feel the shouts of “Why?” in the song. Is that what you yourself want to ask too?
G: That’s right. Like, “Why do humans keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again? Why?”
I: Humans are repeating (the same mistakes made in) history.
G: Right? Destruction, and creation, and massacres. Why do we exist? What is God? You really think about that, don’t you?
I: The PV is also connected to that, isn’t it? When you and the band members stand around the man in the military uniform who is holding a gun to his head and are practically shouting to him, “Hurry up and pull the trigger!”
G: In that scene I’m portraying the moment when the crime a man commits comes back to haunt him in the end. If you watch the concert, you will go, “Ah, so that’s what it’s all about!” I’m sure. (smiles)
Own comments:
Hmmm... Gackt's articles are such that... you think you get it but you actually don't. XD When you just read it through briefly, you nod and think you get it but when you start translating, you realize that you actually have no idea what he's talking about. That's what me and my friend agreed on when I asked her stuff from this article. And each individual part makes sense, but put together, you realize that some things contradict what he said earlier.
For example, when the interviewer said, "What an intense, sudden approach!" What the hell does that mean??? XD This was a literal translation (approach was written in katakana), so I actually have no idea what he meant.
Anyways, I thought that was interesting what he said about the "spirits/ghosts/souls" of the dead. The way I interpret it is that Gackt and the band members are playing the "ghosts from his past", so that makes sense why he was trying to persuade him to pull the trigger. They're like asking him to make up for his past crimes and redeem himself. I think I'm beginning to see the concept or theme of Rebirth.
You know, I think it's a constant theme of Gackt's. Human's greed (or whatever motive they originally had) caused them to make irreparable mistakes. In the case of Rebirth, it's turning humans into machines, or robots. In the story of Moon, it's the breeding or creation of a new species for battle. And it's almost always stories of how the victims of these experiments try to fight their destiny and find some meaning to their lives. We might born with our destiny laid out before us but it's also our choice to follow it or not. What you get most from his stories is that some things are worth fighting for, dying for. Friendship. Love. Family. Dreams. Freedom.
I think it's beautiful. ^^ I hope you guys can find your own stories within Rebirth or Moon. Or just plain enjoy the awesome music if you want. XD
Thanks for reading and please comment with your thoughts on the article~~~ :D
I: Is Jesus the beginning of the story that you’re starting next?
G: As a single, yes, but this is not where the story starts. I hope listening to this song will give you an idea of how intense (hageshii: violent, furious) the story is. The way I do things is, first I tell the story and then I express that in concerts.
I: Life and death, and rebirth have always been fundamental themes within you. Of course that (theme) exists in Jesus too, but I feel a strong power towards death even more (in this song).
G: That’s right. This song is the opening of the concert, but in a sense also the ending. If you watch the concert, I think you’ll understand the meaning of this song. The story itself I plan to release on my website portion by portion.
I: Oh, that’s quite a different approach from your usual method of keeping everyone in the dark.
G: Before this I’ve always asked the fans to create their own story, but the way I see (lit. think) it, since the internet is so widely used now, why don’t we make use of it in this way? That’s the world we live in so there’s no use trying to be secretive. (laughs) In that case, it’s better to provide the proper information myself so that (the fans) can enjoy the concert more. Also, I want them to discuss the concert like, “What’s this story about?” and to share the information after they’ve watched it. This is a world where we are supposed to be able to communicate (with others), but that’s not happening and so I really hope that they can create such places (for discussion).
I: So that’s what you wish to see happen. Still, I was surprised when I turned on the CD. What an intense, sudden approach! It’s a short song of only 3.5 minutes and fades away quietly at the end.
G: More intense and fleeting [1]. Part of it is because I want to bring out the sadness you feel the minute something disappears. Most of my songs are basically sad [1]. From that, I chose a song that is even more intense and fleeting. That is what I meant when I said earlier that Jesus can be the opening song or the ending song for the concert.
[1] hakanai: fleeting, fragile, frail, temporary, transient, short-lived, empty, sad.
I: Your voice has also become more intense.
G: It has become so strong that it can hit the strong notes [1], right? (laughs) That’s because I want to show my voice in its simplest form [2].
[1]イケイケな感じにいけるようになってきた。 Ikeike shows… lots of enery. Something that’s active, outgoing, aggressive, etc. There could be two reasons why he laughed here. One is because ikeike isn’t used in formal situations, but he suddenly used that during an interview so he’s laughing. Or it could be the double use of “ike” in “ikeike na kanji ni ike ru”, which was my personal interpretation and that’s why I used the word “strong” twice.
[2] ストレートに見せていきたい Literally, show it straightly. I think in this case he’s trying to say that he wants to show his real/original voice, without any effects added to it like the way he’s been doing recently.
I: It’s more revealed (lit. naked) now. The rap in the middle of the song was so intense that it didn’t sound like your voice. Felt like the “God of Death” himself.
G: That’s (the voice of) a spirit (亡霊: ghost). I trained for a long time before I could finally do it. In that sense, though I’m trying to standardize the expression used (in this concert), I’m also increasing my vocal range.
I: Since it’s released in December and based on the image I have of you, I thought that Jesus will be a song praising God, but it’s the complete opposite isn’t it?
G: It’s like the voices of the spirits who are challenging God himself. Their questions.
I: You do feel the shouts of “Why?” in the song. Is that what you yourself want to ask too?
G: That’s right. Like, “Why do humans keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again? Why?”
I: Humans are repeating (the same mistakes made in) history.
G: Right? Destruction, and creation, and massacres. Why do we exist? What is God? You really think about that, don’t you?
I: The PV is also connected to that, isn’t it? When you and the band members stand around the man in the military uniform who is holding a gun to his head and are practically shouting to him, “Hurry up and pull the trigger!”
G: In that scene I’m portraying the moment when the crime a man commits comes back to haunt him in the end. If you watch the concert, you will go, “Ah, so that’s what it’s all about!” I’m sure. (smiles)
Own comments:
Hmmm... Gackt's articles are such that... you think you get it but you actually don't. XD When you just read it through briefly, you nod and think you get it but when you start translating, you realize that you actually have no idea what he's talking about. That's what me and my friend agreed on when I asked her stuff from this article. And each individual part makes sense, but put together, you realize that some things contradict what he said earlier.
For example, when the interviewer said, "What an intense, sudden approach!" What the hell does that mean??? XD This was a literal translation (approach was written in katakana), so I actually have no idea what he meant.
Anyways, I thought that was interesting what he said about the "spirits/ghosts/souls" of the dead. The way I interpret it is that Gackt and the band members are playing the "ghosts from his past", so that makes sense why he was trying to persuade him to pull the trigger. They're like asking him to make up for his past crimes and redeem himself. I think I'm beginning to see the concept or theme of Rebirth.
You know, I think it's a constant theme of Gackt's. Human's greed (or whatever motive they originally had) caused them to make irreparable mistakes. In the case of Rebirth, it's turning humans into machines, or robots. In the story of Moon, it's the breeding or creation of a new species for battle. And it's almost always stories of how the victims of these experiments try to fight their destiny and find some meaning to their lives. We might born with our destiny laid out before us but it's also our choice to follow it or not. What you get most from his stories is that some things are worth fighting for, dying for. Friendship. Love. Family. Dreams. Freedom.
I think it's beautiful. ^^ I hope you guys can find your own stories within Rebirth or Moon. Or just plain enjoy the awesome music if you want. XD
Thanks for reading and please comment with your thoughts on the article~~~ :D