Interview with A (ACE)

In August A (ACE) visited Moscow with an exclusive gig. The band played at cosplay-festival Luch 7. JaME had a chance to meet the musicians and ask them about life of pirates, their impressions of Russia and their attitude towards cosplay.


Please introduce yourselves.

Nimo: My name is Nimo. I am on vocals.
Toshi: I'm Toshi, on bass-guitar.
Rookie Fiddler: And I play the violin. My name is Rookie. Nice to meet you. As for the entire band, we are the pirates!

And how is the pirate life?

Nimo: Our life is full of exciting events. We feel totally free!

So how did you meet?

Toshi: I was having moments of doubt travelling great lengths of the Sea of Japan when I met Rookie. Then in the Pacific Ocean, just by Kamchatka, we came across Nimo.

And how is the fourth member of the band, Mucho Gracias, doing?

Rookie Fiddler: He is travelling solo now. Destiny had different paths in mind for us. I believe he is somewhere by the shores of South America.
Toshi: But maybe one day he will return... and we will be together again.

You spend a lot of time together. Please tell us something interesting about each other.

Rookie Fiddler: Nimo is a "rain-man'. You see today that it is cloudy already….

Nimo, do you like such weather?

Nimo: No, not at all! It’s just that during our gigs it rains all the time… But as it’s always like this, we got used to it.
Rookie Fiddler: As for Toshi, he likes to play with fire. He really is a “fire-man”. All the pictures in his blog show him with a flame blazing out of his hands.
Toshi: Rookie is bitten by mosquitoes all the time. Luckily, there are not too many of them in Russia.

Since you look so perfect, could you please tell us if you have any faults or human weaknesses?

Rookie Fiddler: I forget things. It happens everywhere and all the time. Once I forgot my violin on a train and realized it after a couple of days!
Nimo: If there is no gig you don't even notice!
Rookie Fiddler: And it happened several times!
Nimo: And I am unlucky. (laughs) For example, yesterday there wasn’t any food left for me on the plane.
Toshi: They noticed it after everyone had already eaten!
Nimo: Also, for about five minutes something was dripping on me!

Currently you have chosen a ‘snowy’ look. Do you like winter?

Nimo: I love winter! We even have a song – Shiroi Akuma («White Devil»). I happened to travel through snowy mountains once and we became friends with the snow.
Rookie Fiddler: I was born in winter. That’s why I like it. Actually, we were all born in the winter. I was born in January, Toshi in December, and Nimo in March, which is technically still winter. Besides, I am from the north of Japan where it snows a lot, unlike in the south. I adore the snow!
Toshi: I can’t say that I hate winter, but I don’t really like it that much. Besides, I am the Lord of Fire, so snow is my enemy.

Tell us about how the name of the band came to be.

Rookie Fiddler: Our name is an abbreviation for Anonymous Confederate Ensemble. It also can be read as a separate word - ‘ace’. This is a completely visual concept that suits our music.

How would you describe your sound?

Rookie Fiddler: We are the pirates. We sail the seas and go to different countries where we get inspired. But the heart of our sound is a combination of classical music and rock.

Who writes the songs?

Nimo: Most of the time Rookie writes both the lyrics and the music.
Rookie Fiddler: Yes, that’s right!

You have a lot of songs that reflect a feel of different countries. May we expect a song inspired by Russia?

Nimo: (to Rookie Fiddler): Will you write one?
Rookie Fiddler: I think some of our songs are very similar to Russian ones. Say, Russian folk songs are very energetic and engaging. For example, Korobochka. Our song Shangri-la has a very similar vibe, too.

Some people think that there’s an influence of such bands as Black Sabbath and Deep Purple in your music. Do you agree?

Rookie Fiddler: Black Butterfly maybe…but it is more likely that our songs are influenced by Metallica and Mr. Big.

And which song would you recommend to people who haven’t heard your music yet?

Rookie Fiddler: I’d say ELEMENTA ALCHEMICA. It is 40 minutes long!
Toshi: I’d recommend Shangri-la. It makes you feel excited, you can’t sit still to it!
Nimo: And I really like Haiiro no Tenshi.

How do you feel when you are on stage?

Nimo: It’s just amazing! It’s a special feeling!

How do you select songs for encores?

Rookie Fiddler: We decided a while ago that our final song should be Shangri-la. It is as pirate-like as it can get!
Nimo: Besides, everyone likes to dance to it! It’s really danceable!

Last year you were in Russia. What were your impressions?

Rookie Fiddler: We visited Russia as part of our world tour. I must say that at the time it was really hot here unlike in other places we visited. We then thought that Russia was a very warm country. The weather was just great!

Didn’t it rain?!

Rookie Fiddler: No, it didn’t…. Though it rained in other countries!! (laughs)
Nimo: And I really liked the food! Everything I tried was so tasty.

And what did you like most about the European tour?

Rookie Fiddler: We were impressed by the way we were welcomed.

So does the way Japanese audiences welcome a band differ from the way European audiences do?

Nimo: Absolutely! In Japan everyone moves in a similar way. In Europe everyone is doing their own thing. It is unusual but so exciting!

You gig is a part of cosplay festival. Does this format differ from one-man shows?

Rookie Fiddler: I don’t think there is much difference. Maybe solo gigs are slightly longer, that’s all.

Which character cosplay would you like to see?

Rookie Fiddler: We have a cover of a song from “Evangelion”. So I’d like to see cosplay on characters from this anime.

Like who?

Rookie Fiddler: Asuka, Rei Ayanami, Shinji Ikari… Wait, not Shinji Ikari! He is too straight. A cosplay on him is not going to be fun. I think female characters are a perfect choice.
Toshi: I would like to see cosplay on Super Mario! Toad and Luigi!
Nimo: And I'd like to see a character from Dragon Ball – Frieza! There is a guitarist in Japan, his name is YO - he cosplays Frieza. It would be fun if someone did better than him. (laughs)

If you were to take part in a cosplay-event, what character would you like to cosplay?

Rookie Fiddler: I’d like to be Rei Ayanami. (laughs)
Toshi: I would like to cosplay the enemies of Evangelions. Yes, I’d be an Angel!
Nimo: And I’d be a character from “Attack on Titan”. Actually, I wouldn’t mind cosplaying the huge Titan himself! (laughs)

Except for the opening theme from “Evangelion”, are you going to do covers of other anime songs?

Rookie Fiddler: Yes. Actually, today we are going to perform another cover of a theme from “Evangelion”. I wonder if the audience recognizes it. It would be cool if they did!

What are your plans for the future?

Rookie Fiddler: We are eternally searching for a perfect place on Earth. That is why we travel so much. Next time we are going to Avalon (a mythical island) .
Nimo: And of course we want to record a new album. It’s a work in progress.

And finally, what would you like to say to our readers?

Nimo: It's wonderful in Russia. We look forward to seeing our Russian and European fans again. I would like to travel all over Europe!
Toshi: I love Europe. I’ll be waiting for a chance to come back!
Rookie Fiddler: We have a lot of new songs and look forward to sharing them with our fans. As we travel so often, hopefully we’ll be in Europe again soon.


JaME would like to thank A (ACE) and J-Concert Agency for making this interview possible.