Billboard Japan

LMYK is a singer-songwriter who debuted in November 2020, and her music has touched listeners around the world via anime works after being featured as the ending themes of Vinland Saga, The Case Study of Vanitas and other series. Two years and four months after her debut, the enigmatic artist — LMYK are the initials of her real name, but that’s about all we know of her profile — has finally completed her first album, a collection of 12 tracks that expresses her thoughts on life and death, joy and pain and other concepts that she has contemplated in the years since she was a child, given shape as if guided by sounds.

This project, called DESSERTS, was produced by Jam & Lewis, the producer team famous for their collaborations with numerous superstars including Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey and Hikaru Utada. Although the tracks included on the set are pop songs, they’re distinctive in that they were created using methods different from those commonly used in commercial music, and are precious musical works that carry listeners out to the sea of the mind and thoughts that people aren’t usually aware of. In this interview, writer Yukako Yajima spoke with LMYK on behalf of Billboard Japan about the inspirations and themes of her debut project.

Now that you’ve completed your first album, what do you think underlies these twelve tracks? In other words, what is fundamentally important to you in making music, or what’s the essence of LMYK that naturally overflows into the music you make?

Being alive. Questioning that. I think I’m always aware of the transience of time. Questioning being alive, and transience. Those things naturally go into my music. I also like humor. Maybe it’s because I’m originally from the Kansai area (where there is a long-standing culture of stand-up and other forms of comedy). [Laughs]

Your sense of fun can be felt throughout the album in a balanced way. I see what you mean about “questioning being alive.” We look within ourselves and at others, and by observing others, we understand ourselves again. I thought that kind of cycle was being depicted in each of the twelve songs. That sense of understanding oneself because others exist, is it something you’re strongly aware of? 

There is a dual relationship  between “you” and “I”. There are aspects that we share that are exactly the same, and those that are unique to each individual. “Separated” and “connected,” I feel both. Even if we’re physically separated, we are fundamentally the same and feel connected. We can’t see it, we can’t imagine it, we don’t know it… It’s a mystery.

I get the impression that your music uses sounds to delicately express things like emotions and the natural order of the world that we humans don’t understand, things that we haven’t yet been able to put into words or that science hasn’t yet been able to prove. Is expressing such things important to you?

I think the sounds probably take me there naturally. When you play sounds, it’s a different world, isn’t it? The sounds take you to places that you can’t put into words, or to places that exist at the root of existence. Maybe it’s a place where thought can’t catch up. Language “solidifies” things. So it’s like being in between thoughts. When you play sounds, you naturally go there.

The sense of being able to connect through sounds to feelings, phenomena, something like the root of existence, before it becomes thought or language. How about what you said before about the transience of time, why do you think that’s one of your central themes?

It makes me think about life and death. The fragility of human beings. It’s hard to tell if humans are strong or weak. They have both sides. They’re fragile, but also powerful and resilient. The passage of time also feels different depending on what you’re doing, doesn’t it?

It sure does. Is there a reason why you began thinking about the passage of time and life and death in this way?

I lost my mother when I was 18. It was a huge shock at the time. Death is perceived differently depending on how important a person is to you, but when you lose something absolutely irreplaceable, you lose a part of yourself as well. That’s how big the impact is and it really shakes us up.

So that was one of your major motivators in making music.

Yes. I started making more music a few years after that, so I think maybe it’s related. It could be all the stuff that I had pent up inside.

Your music also feels like it brings down something from another world that’s not our reality. For example, in “Sorakara” you sing about something “falling from the sky (sora kara furu).”

That’s the earliest song on the album, from around 2017. The title means “from the sky,” and it’s about a region on the far side of the sky that we don’t understand or the other side of life. The feeling of being connected to those things but also not understanding them. I don’t understand exactly what I meant by “sora kara furu” either, but it felt right. When I create a piece of music, it’s a combination of parts that clearly make sense to me and parts that are more abstract.

Do you remember what you were thinking five or six years ago　when writing “Sorakara”?

Looking back objectively now, I think I was acting tough. There are lyrics in the song where I say “I know,” “I don’t need it” and “I have no complaints.” The words came naturally from me at the time, but when I read them later, I think I was trying to be strong. But that’s also typical of me.

Chronologically, “Weak” is also an earlier song, but would you say it expresses something exactly the opposite?

Yes, “Weak” is really honest. It admits my own weakness without any hesitation. But there’s also the question, “Is it OK to be weak and to need your love?”

The philosophy expressed in your songs often feels like it hits the truth. “Sorakara” is one and the bridge of “Little bit lonely” is another.

What is expressed in the lyrics of my music is something I think about all the time. Where does human suffering come from? Why do we suffer? What’s the difference between “suffering” and “having a hard time” and “feeling exhausted”? Human suffering can lead to one choosing to take its own life — the emotions behind behavior and where those emotions come from are things that interest me.

Which is closest to the sense you have when you make music: do you write songs from your own conclusions, or do you use sounds to express what’s going through your mind, or is it about wanting to affirm someone?

Now that you mention those three… I feel all of them while I’m working. Because when you affirm yourself, you’re also affirming others. I often write while thinking about people who are important to me, and I write music about things that I think I’ll never come to a conclusion about, and things that I feel but can’t put into words. I also write about things that I think I’ve come to a conclusion about, but it might not really be a conclusion. I guess I do what I do because I think maybe someone else will feel the same way as me when I find an answer to something that doesn’t need an answer.

So the thoughts and feelings you have are expressed not only in the lyrics but also in the music itself. As you mentioned at the beginning, that’s probably because sounds connect to your unconscious and you select the notes that inspire you. Do you usually start writing your songs sound first?

I have a notebook where I write down lyrics, and usually start from a lyrical idea or concept. 

When I make a track, I often look for sounds or create from sounds I like. I get inspired by what resonates with me and what I like, by using plug-ins and changing effects.

After making the track, I go, “Those lyrics I wrote before fits this track” and combine them.

You took your demos for this album to L.A. to complete them, right?

I went to L.A. for two weeks in April and two in June last year. I have fond memories of working with Jimmy (Jam) and Terry (Lewis) to finish up the demos I brought with me. The songs were brought close to completion all at once there.

For example in “Smiley” and “Tendency,” you combine Japanese and English and even Korean to make rhymes. What was your inspiration for this?

I think there’s music I listened to as a child that’s become embedded in me with rhymes that feel good. I can’t give specific examples, but I used to listen to Hikaru Utada a lot, so I guess it’s the music she created as a bilingual singer that influenced me.

Why do you call this album DESSERTS?

DESSERTS represents the pleasures in life that alleviate the burden that comes with living as a finite being in spacetime. Alleviating that burden is what surviving means. In that process, emotions are born, like feelings of joy and sadness that we all share. I thought those emotions were honestly expressed on this album. And also, the questioning the root of those emotions that arise. So the emotions on the surface and the fundamental root of our existence that causes those emotions are expressed in all the songs on this project. When you read DESSERTS backwards, it’s “STRESSED,” so I wanted to communicate the relationship between pleasure and pain and how they are inextricably linked.

Your music feels to me like it overflows with zest for life. Could it be that this is because your desire to live comes across naturally in the music from the thought process you shared with us today?

I’m always overwhelmed by how beautiful the physical life is through my five sense despite the pain that comes with it, so that probably comes across. I feel both pain and beauty very strongly. I also feel beauty in the transience of finite things.

The things you can feel with your five senses are so fleeting. And if you don’t recognize them fully, they slip away.

Thoughts can go forward and backward. That’s also why humans can survive. We can write songs and create art with our imagination, and thinking ahead can prevent the risk of dying. For humans, it’s what’s called “a gift and a curse” in English. Both a strength and a weakness.

The album DESSERTS that expresses what you shared with us today will probably be an important and tangible part of your life going forward. I’m sure listeners will also find it valuable, and the more I hear you talk about it, the more I feel glad that you’re making music.

I also feel glad that I came across the act of making music. This album is filled with what I honestly wanted to express at various moments in the past five years. It contains parts of me that probably won’t change in the future, and also things that I could only feel at that moment in time. Everything that I felt at the time is valuable to me. There are lots of songs that I wrote over the past five years that aren’t included in this album, so I’d like to finish those, too. I’m looking forward to releasing more music.

–This interview by Yukako Yajima first appeared on Billboard Japan

The animated film THE FIRST SLAM DUNK has become a smashing success in Japan, bringing in over 12.2 billion yen in box office revenue (as of March 21, 2023). Fueled by its success, the ending theme of the film, “Dai Zero Kan” by 10-FEET has remained in the top 10 on the Billboard JAPAN’s Hot 100 song chart for 12 consecutive weeks. 
Billboard Japan spoke with TAKUMA, vocalist and guitarist of 10-FEET, about the thought he put into creating the film’s theme song and incidental music, his experience working with director Takehiko Inoue, his music co-writer Satoshi Takebe, and more, as part of its Monthly Feature series, focusing on today’s standout artists and works.

Your “10-FEET ‘Collins’ TOUR 2023” began on January 16. How excited are the fans, and how motivated is the band feeling?

For about three years, entertainment wasn’t really what it should have been, so now it feels like all that pent-up excitement has really come to the fore. I think there are fans out there who are having fun, wrapping their heads around the fact that live shows are possible again, and there are others who are coming to the shows with more of a passionate spirit — more impulsively. It feels like the live show scene is making a comeback.

Have there been any changes in how you feel about live shows, or how you approach them, because of the pandemic?

It’s been three years since people could really be packed shoulder to shoulder at a show. I’m sure there are some people out there who are like, “Is this really okay?” So we need to play music and put on really powerful shows that sweep away those fears and tension. I think if we succeed in doing that, we can turn those fears and tension into drive and excitement.

It’s been about three months since the film THE FIRST SLAM DUNK came out. What’s the reaction around you been like?

Some friends from way back got in touch with me again, which was great.

Looking at the comments on the music video, it seems like there are listeners all around the world. What do you think about the fact that your music has extended beyond Japan’s borders and is reaching people worldwide?

The lyrics are almost entirely in Japanese, so it seems strange to me that people are listening to it outside Japan.

It’s been in the top 10 in the Billboard JAPAN charts for several weeks. I think that shows that it’s brought you a lot of new listeners.

I’ve been hearing a lot of people saying they’d never heard of us before, or that it was the first time they’d heard one of our songs, which is a real honor. We’ve been playing music all this time in the hope that lots of people would hear and enjoy our music.

You had a few other potential theme songs, like “SLAM,” “Blind Man,” and “Shinkaigyo.” What made you feel that “Dai Zero Kan” was the best fit for the theme song?

Personally, I think they’d all have been great. We presented like eight or ten songs to the movie production team as potential theme songs. However, each time, the director and the music director said that the song didn’t fit their image for the movie. Then, one day the music staff asked us for music for one of Rukawa’s scenes. So we renamed “Odanshi” (the song that later became “Dai Zero Kan”) as “Rukawa Odanshi” and sent it in. (laughs) The director, Inoue, said that “Rukawa Odanshi” was like a bolt from the blue. It seems like both the music director and the music producer were also both like, “This is it.” We made some additional changes to the arrangement of “Rukawa Odanshi,” and that’s how it became the “Dai Zero Kan” we have now. Initially, I hadn’t planned for “Dai Zero Kan” to be performed by 10-FEET or as a solo song, so I just wrote it how I felt, without giving it any additional thought. I wrote it just after the pandemic started, and I just wanted something really danceable and hard.

For a while, it was in the Billboard JAPAN “TikTok Weekly Top 20” top 20 for weeks on end. Looking back, what do you think about how it was received?

We were lucky that, thanks to the film, the catchy melody got popular on TikTok. I think the key part of the chorus’s melody is its rhythm. For example, in “Scatman,” the melody and rhythm of the “ski-ba-bop-ba-dop-bop” part are really unique, right? Since I first started playing in a band, I’ve always liked those rhythms and melodies where, if you hear them all day, you’ll remember them for the rest of your life. That’s why I was able to take those kinds of rhythmic sensibilities from Western music, write lyrics in Japanese, and create more original-feeling music with 10-FEET. I think the rhythm, together with the pacing of the lyrics, make up like 90%, and melodic elements make up the other 10%.

I see. I’d also like to ask you a little bit about the incidental music. When you wrote the music, did you intend it to express the feelings of the members of the Shohoku and Sannoh teams, or to convey the feel of the game itself from a more objective perspective?

For the incidental music, I thought about how I would express Inoue’s film concepts in the form of music. For example, when Inoue asked me to write music for use when Kohoku was on the ropes, I wrote what I envisioned as music that embodied being in the middle of a crisis. Then, when I played it for Inoue, he’d expand on his concept for the scene, saying, “The feeling of Kohoku being in a crisis really comes across well, but this scene is also one where Sannoh is going on the offensive. Sannoh aren’t just villains, they’re a really powerful, cool team. So this scene is also an exciting scene in which Sannoh has gotten into the zone in their offense, going all out.” So then I’d come back later with new music and be like, “I think this has the feel you’re going for. What do you think?”

In “Slash Snake,” the snare sound felt reminiscent of dribbling.

The sound designer, Koji Kasamatsu, edited the incidental music I provided. For example, drum snares often occupy the same frequencies as people’s voices — the lines characters are saying. I think he paid a lot of attention to where the snares would be heard and to adjusting their volume, levels, equalization, range, and the like. In rock and music like ours, you’ll often hear the snares going the whole time, but he did a great job on making adjustments and editing elements like that. If there were scenes where it felt like the snare was synching with the dribbling, that would have to be Kasamatsu working his magic.

In the climax of the movie, the scene where “Double crutch ZERO” is used stands out for how it uses “stillness” and “movement” to different effects.

I guess there needs to be a lot of switching between times when the instrumentation is really packed and when it’s sparse, where the sound really pushes down on you and when it’s more open, when it’s quiet and when it creates a dramatic, soaring impression. It was my first time making this kind of music, but no matter how much time it took, it never felt like a chore. It was time-intensive, but also extremely rewarding, so I created and submitted a lot of music.

So, it was your first time writing incidental music.

This time, I was writing incidental music for SLAM DUNK, which is a manga that I really loved. If I got an offer to create incidental music for an adaptation of a work that I wasn’t already familiar with, I’d want to check out the original it was based on, movie adaptations, TV adaptations, anime adaptations, and the like. I’d want to really internalize that story — make it part of myself — before writing music for it. I don’t have any experience yet with starting from ground zero along with the production team and creating output using my own sensibilities. If any opportunities to do that present themselves, I’d love to give it a shot.

When you wrote music with Satoshi Takebe, was there any direction or were there any discussions that stick in your memory?

He was truly a wonderful teacher. I was a bit nervous going in, thinking that if I got too excited and passionate in answering, I could come across as rude, and I’d annoy or upset him. But Takebe took the lead, saying “You’ve got to speak up more.” He started out by creating this environment where I felt free to speak, and from then on we were able to really exchange ideas.

In closing, what kind of year do you hope to make 2023?

In 2023, I want to go back to the basics and study music from the ground up again, retraining myself musically. If you’re always working with music, you can lose sight of that passion and impulsiveness. I want to really bring those feelings to the fore again.

—This interview by Tatsuya Tanami first appeared on Billboard Japan

BABYMETAL recently returned to music after a two-year hiatus and is set to release its much-anticipated new album THE OTHER ONE on Friday (March 24). The duo’s first new project since METAL GALAXY from 2019 revolves around the concept of “restored BABYMETAL music that was previously unknown.” The overall tone of their comeback is entirely dark and serious, and the project may be remembered as the most unconventional and mysterious in BABYMETAL’s history.

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But while SU-METAL and MOAMETAL elaborate on the album’s enigmatic concept in this brand-new interview, they also offer different perspectives on this project. SU-METAL’s deep reflection that includes a synesthetic sensitivity and MOAMETAL’s interpretation filled with physicality and tenderness will surely provide a number of hints and insights for those who are perplexed by this work and serve as a companion piece to THE OTHER ONE.

In your BABYMETAL RETURNS – THE OTHER ONE – comeback concert back in January and this new album, there are two major keywords: “METALVERSE” and “previously unknown BABYMETAL.” Could you explain to us how you two interpret these concepts?

SU-METAL: BABYMETAL is fiction, but it’s also something that’s happening simultaneously in reality. The two of us were growing in the world of BABYMETAL and the audience enjoyed that. But as times changed and we have access to a variety of information, I think everyone now has their own reality or way of looking at the world. So the phrase “previously unknown BABYMETAL” raises a certain question: “Is the BABYMETAL you know really BABYMETAL?”

And since our last album METAL GALAXY in 2019, we’ve been working to destroy the “stereotype of BABYMETAL” in order to continue taking on new challenges as the group. So I think that also leads to the “different universe” that is THE OTHER ONE.

MOAMETAL: When I first heard the words “METALVERSE” and “previously unknown BABYMETAL,” I was like, “Seriously, what are they talking about?” [Laughs] But I really love Disney and after sensing something similar to the movie Doctor Strange, I got more and more excited while working on the project. So I’d like everyone to think about BABYMETAL by connecting what they’ve gained from various other works of art.

Since this album is based on concepts depicting other possibilities for BABYMETAL, it’s an album that expands the way we think about the group, including where it’ll be headed in the future. How do you want your fans to enjoy this work?

SU-METAL: I consider this album to be a BABYMETAL spin-off while also being like an art museum. There’s a phrase in the lyrics of “Mirror Mirror” that means, “The real me / doesn’t exist.” I think the songs on this album are like that in a way and it’s also what art is all about. Of course, I’m sure there will be those who want to pinpoint what each song is about, and that’s fine, but there’s no real right answer and discussing it is also part of the fun. THE OTHER ONE has lots of songs that have strong messages even for BABYMETAL, so I’d be happy if people could feel them out and use these songs as an opportunity to take another look at themselves.

MOAMETAL: When I first heard the songs, I thought there weren’t any elements that made them typically like our previous numbers, so I think many of our fans may initially feel the same way. But after seeing these songs live with our dance choreography and discussing them with other people, I think you’ll find things about them that remind you of past BABYMETAL songs and find parts you like. So, if you find a song (on the new album) that you like, I’d be glad if you listen to it multiple times and think about the things you value, and also about that feeling of valuing something itself.

Since your new album is based on the concept of “another BABYMETAL,” the question a lot of fans will probably have is, “Where did the original BABYMETAL go?”

SU-METAL: First of all, THE OTHER ONE isn’t the main story of BABYMETAL. It was made during the time we took a break from doing concerts after our ten-year METAL RESISTANCE saga, so the album is about “an alternate BABYMETAL.” At the same time, we’re sometimes called “Kawaii Metal” but don’t think that’s the only thing we’re about. We want to make new music, so we don’t want to be tied down by that image. We want to show another side like this and hope people will enjoy this, too. On top of that, BABYMETAL’s new main story will begin again, so please look forward to that as well.

Can you tell us anything about what you have planned for your fans outside of Japan?

MOAMETAL: For now, we’ve announced plans to tour Europe from April to May with the Swedish band Sabaton. We think 2023 has only just begun and have no intention of stopping. We hope to create opportunities to visit not only Europe but also various countries to meet people we haven’t been able to see recently. So please look forward to seeing us.

SU-METAL: BABYMETAL has a ten-year history, and speaking for myself, I gave that decade everything I had and crossed the finish line once. I actually stepped away from music for a while during our hiatus.

But I came back because I still genuinely felt that I love BABYMETAL and that I love music. I feel like I’m in a new band right now, and my current mode is, “I want to purely enjoy the music.” So while I do want to bring back the kind of concerts that we did up until our break with our overseas fans, I also want to create new BABYMETAL shows.

You stepped away from music? I’d imagined you were forced to delay the start of your next phase after your tenth anniversary because the pandemic began around that time.

SU-METAL: Actually, we’d already decided about five years ago that we would make the tenth anniversary our goal. When we became a two-member group in 2018, we weren’t sure how to proceed, and even wondered if it was right to keep going but decided to carry on until the tenth anniversary. We received some tough feedback from fans at the time, which I’m sure came from a place of love for our group. I think it made us stronger, and we gained a lot of confidence knowing that most people appreciated our music even though our appearance had changed. We took a break because we felt we’d reached our goal, including going through such experiences.

That’s interesting to know.

SU-METAL: So during my time away from music, at first I was like, “Nope, not gonna listen to metal anymore.” But before I knew it, I was back and singing again. [Laughs] Probably like how a teenager takes up playing guitar, I found myself singing, and before we realized it, MOAMETAL and I were getting together and dancing again.

So I really enjoyed our first lesson in a while. Before then, I used to think things like, “I’m a little off pitch here,” or “I should have done this rhythm better” whenever I sang, and when I listened to other artists’ music, I’d study the way people sang from a professional perspective. But now, music really feels like a hobby to me.

Like a teenager, as you mentioned earlier. So that must be why you feel like you’re in a new band.

SU-METAL: Right. Of course, a part of us wants to expand on what we’ve accumulated over the decade as BABYMETAL, but at the same time, we also just want to have fun again. BABYMETAL started off as a group that did interesting stuff that made people go, “What the heck is this?” We’re trying to get back to that basic feeling.

It must have been important for you to take that break to recover those feelings.

MOAMETAL: SU-METAL and I always had each other’s backs, but in some vague way we also felt that something was missing. So there were times when things were pretty tough, and we had to force ourselves to be like, “We got this!” But now, we’re still a duo but we want to deliver our music because we love what we do. We needed to take some time off to reaffirm that feeling.

When you returned to music, did you discuss it and decide to come back, or did it happen naturally?

MOAMETAL: We did discuss it, but my feeling was that if SU-METAL was going to be there, then I’d be willing to give it a shot again, so for me it was like I came back without much thought.

SU-METAL: It wasn’t like we’d promised each other that we’d definitely get back together when we said our goodbyes. We sort of came back before we knew it. It feels strange even to us. [Laughs]

That shows how strong you two connected over the ten years you worked together.

SU-METAL: Especially since we spent our important teenage years together. During our tours, we’re together for two to three months, so we feel like a family. It’s natural for us to be together. So even when we were apart, it wasn’t like I wanted to see her every day, but I still wondered what she was doing in the corner of my mind. It’s a strange feeling like that.

—This interview by Kenta Terunuma first appeared on Billboard Japan