HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR in the USA

HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR visited the USA for their first performance on Friday night at Shiokazecon in Houston, Texas. Saturday afternoon, there was a press conference where we had a chance to interview the band.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Most crowds in Japan are normally quiet. On last night's concert, when you came on stage and the audience really reacted, what were your thoughts when that happened?
YUSUKE: Before the show, everybody was yelling "HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR! HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR!" They were expecting us to come on stage and really, you guys, got us into an excited emotion. That was really great!
SASSY: I was really astonished and surprised! I knew that our record was out here, but we didn't realize how popular we were. But when we actually came on stage, I thought "Oh my god, we really have to enjoy this."
Maki: At first we were nervous since this is our first time abroad, so we didn't know what to expect. But seeing everybody being so excited and welcomed us so warmly, I felt really comfortable and wanted to play in front of everybody.
KAZUTO: Seeing the stage and then seeing the audience, I thought about living here actually. (Everyone laughs)
mACKAz: Everybody was going so crazy, we thought they were our relatives. (Everyone laughs)
MEG: In the place where we grew up, we played in military bases and we played in front of American people. And playing here was a reminiscent of where I grew up, in a place where I have been playing in the past. And it felt a bit easy.

What were your main musical influences and Western influences?
MEG: (He spoke English) I love Incubus and Korn, Deftones, Ill Niño. I love loud American music.
mACKAz: (He spoke English) I love Limp Bizkit.
KAZUTO: I actually like everything these two have mentioned, but also I like hard rock music. For instance, Mr. Big and what else, what else... Extreme! (Everyone laughs)
Maki: I wasn't listening to a lot of rock music until I met the other members. In fact, the first ever rock concert that I saw was them, in their former band called ANTI-NOBUNAGA. And since I met them, I've been listening to rock music since I got influences from the other members. But other than that, personally, I like female singers like Rachel Yamagata and Onitsuka Chihiro, who are Japanese singers.
SASSY: (SASSY's wearing a Metallica shirt. He points to it and everyone laughs.) It's Metallica. You can tell. I only have Metallica t-shirts. I brought 6 t-shirts this time on this trip and about 5 of them are Metallica t-shirts.
YUSUKE: Actually, I like what the other members said, but also if I were to add some other bands: Linkin Park, Lost Prophets, The Used, and Sum 41.

What makes you guys different from other bands and how do you want to stay different and on top of everybody else in the industry?
YUSUKE: We have realized that this trip is not just about being able to play in Japan, but maybe being accepted and playing here in the US. Meaning, that we're not necessarily a Japanese band, just for Japan, but could be played outside of Japan. It's like we're being a connection between cultures and it's what we are capable of doing. Our music is a mix of genres and has a variety from hip hop music to heavy stuff.

What part of last night's concert will stick out in your mind as the most memorable; being a particular song or a crowd reaction that you saw while playing? What will you take away and remember from this concert the most?
YUSUKE: It would be "PRIDE" since it was first used for Gundam Seed Destiny, opening theme, and then people began to know our songs. Then having played yesterday, I thought "this was the whole beginning of how we've been accepted here."
SASSY: It was "ichirin no hana", a song which is also used for an anime, but it hasn't been broadcasted here yet. But when we saw the audience we noticed that they were all going crazy with the introduction by KAZUTO (guitarist) and everybody already knew the song and I was so surprised.
Maki: It would be "PRIDE" since this is our debut song and it reminded us how we were when we debuted as a band. And also, we thought, what we've been doing has proven that it was the right thing to do. When we wrote the song, we wrote our feelings only. But now that people have accepted our feelings and understand the song, we thought "oh, we've come up a long way". But it was really nice and was right of what we were doing, that we want to continue on in a similar style and write our feelings, but not only for us, but to reach everybody.
KAZUTO: On the track "Naked" from the first album "GOOVER", when we played last night as you may have heard, YUSUKE was saying "OI OI!" and it's not Japanese or even English, but everybody was singing along. We thought we were really connected with the audience and we understood how good it was to be connected with pure music.
mACKAz: It would be "Ichirin no Hana". I'm not saying because I'm a sales person promoting the new track. Actually, this is the song that I enjoy the most when it's played during a concert whether it's played the third, seventh or the tenth song. If this song comes on I feel most comfortable playing, performance and technique-wise.
MEG: It's not actually a track, but when we ended with the last note we thought "Ok, we did it!". This is what I felt really good about and that was the most impressive part of the night.

What makes each band member different from each other, so as kind of related to what's your favorite band, but more in the sense of what's your favorite album that you like listening to? It can be a Japanese album as well.
KAZUTO: "G∞VER"!? (Jokingly)
mACKAz: "Gouon"* !? (Jokingly) (* "Gouon Progressive": their second album that just came out in Japan)
SASSY: Metallica - Master of Puppets
MEG: Incubus - Make Yourself
Maki: Shiina Ringo, Japanese singer, (Muzai) Moratorium. But I might come up with something I like better.
YUSUKE: System of a Down - Toxicity
KAZUTO: (in English to mACKAz) Go ahead (Everybody laughs).
mACKAz: (in English) Lady first (Everybody laugh).
KAZUTO: I'm not a lady! Look at me (laugh)! Mr. Big - Big, Bigger, Biggest
mACKAz: Limp Bizkit - Significant Other

(At this time YUSUKE, SASSY, and Maki leave because they are feeling sick.)

What do you think about coming from Okinawa and what significance that has that it seems that so many top musicians come from that island.
mACKAz: Really for us, the fact that Okinawa has an American military base, meaning there are many American people living there who we played for, had an influence on our music.

Who is the main song writer of the band? On your CD it says all songs written by HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR, but who is the main song writer?
MEG: Everyone.
KAZUTO: It's actually everybody. When we made G∞VER it was made in sessions with all of us, but the current style is that someone brings an idea and everybody works on it and it could be coming from anybody.

How do you guys feel after getting to this point in your music career? Becoming worldwide known? How much more of a drive does that give you?
KAZUTO: We feel like we've been slapped in the back and being asked to make more good songs. Maybe knowing that people not just in Japan, but elsewhere are listening to our songs so we can make our music more genuinely.
MEG: I'm just enjoying it. (Everyone laughs)

This is more of just a general impressions of Texas and impressions of America question. Did you think that when you came here that you would see any cowboys and have you since coming to Houston?
mACKAz: Not yet, but we saw a white horse. (Everyone laughs) Where should we go to meet cowboys? (Everyone laughs again)

Interviewer: I think it was more of a, when a lot of people come to Texas they assume they're going to see cowboys all over the place. It was more, I think, of a general question, such as did they hear that stereotype of Texas?
MEG: Well, we weren't expecting to see them all over the place, but we thought maybe 2 out of 10 people might be a cowboy. (Everyone laughs)


LIVE REPORT

Before the opening act for HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR, Jesse Wood, head of the convention, came on stage and announced that band members wanted to say "hello." The concert hall had seating arrangements for everyone and when the band came out, everyone rose to their feet clapping and cheering. YUSUKE was the only member to speak to the crowd and to my surprise spoke in perfect English. He thanked everyone for coming, quick introduction saying 'We're HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR', and hoped everyone would enjoy Kumiko Kato"s performance. With that, they waved good-bye and the opening act began.

When the opening act was done, there was a small break while the stage was prepared one last time for the band. The crowd then began yelling and chanting 'HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR! HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR!' It was absolutely amazing seeing and hearing the reaction of the crowd when the music started and the concert began. Everyone was on their feet; there wasn"t a single person was sitting.

The music sounded perfect; in my opinion, they sounded better live than in the recording of their albums. The guitars and bass were tuned to perfection, drums on perfect beat, and vocalists clearly understandable. When the second song 'PRIDE' started, it was so impressed with the audience, it seemed as if everyone in the concert hall was singing the lyrics to the song. And what was more surprising, is after that song, the audience continued to sing along to most of the songs!

In the middle of the concert, the band stopped for introductions. Again, YUSUKE spoke to the crowd in English, introducing the members of the band. When it came time for him to be introduced, Maki took over and spoke to the crowd in English. Because HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR is a Japanese band, hearing them speak English was a pleasant surprise, but what astonished me more was their English sounded perfect. I, being part of the audience, felt a definite connection with the band during their performance, which only intensified my experience.

This was an amazing crowd and an amazing band! I definitely hope this makes HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR return to the USA in the future.


Setlist

1. OVER
2. NOTICE
3. PRIDE
4. Naked
5. STYLE ~get glory in this hand~
6. energy
7. Ichirin no Hana

Encore
8. PRIDE


A big 'thank you' goes to Yuriko from Tofu Records and Jack Thielepape for the photos.