Interview with Suika

JaME was able to interview the members of Suika during their first visit to France. ATOM and Takatsuki spoke openly with us about Suika and their travel to France.

Hello! We'll start with a well-worn question: can you introduce yourselves to our readers who don't know you?

ATOM: I'm ATOM. I started to rap while I was in America. I had been arrested because I was driving without a licence in Las Vegas. After that, I became interested in the hip hop movement. About four years ago, I met the other members of Suika and now, my main activity is to sing with them.

Takatsuki: I started to sing with a microphone at home. I performed on stage for the first time in 1994, during a festival organized by my college, but I began to create my own sound in 1998. It's only since 2000 that I've been considered as an artist. Since then, I've been working on my solo career and on my different projects: I'm a member of Samurai Troops, and now I also sing in Suika.

You met at the Flying Books in Shibuya, right? How did that happen?

ATOM: Actually, I was the host of an event, Shinjuku Spoken Words Slam, and we met there. Takatsuki was a regular participant and he even won the contest each time for a year and a half. Toto participated too, and the owner of the Flying Books also came to see the event. As the Flying Books was in Shibuya, and was a convenient place to gather, we went there to talk and we ended up becoming friends.

Takatsuki: The Flying Books is a secondhand bookshop but there's also a small counter where you can buy coffee, so it's a place where a lot of very creative and positive artists meet up.

By the way, this counter is in your video Attack my life, Voyage my life, right?

ATOM: Yes, it's this one. Going back to Suika and the name of the band, during summers, we all gathered on the roof of a building which was not very high (about 4 or 5 floors), and we ate watermelon, spitting the seeds down in the street. That's why we decided to call our band Suika. Moreover, Takatsuki loves eating watermelons, and everytime he asked "When are we going to have another watermelon-meeting?" (laughs)

Takatsuki: Anyone in the world who likes eating watermelon can say they are a member of Suika (laughs).

In your album Ripe Stripes, you did some self-covers from Harvest for the stripes but you changed the arrangements or the lyrics. How did you decide on this?

Takatsuki: When we made Harvest for the stripes, the music was digital, made with samples, and rather classical in the end. Kaztake suggested re-recording some songs for this album, but this time using real instruments. What also helped us decide is that we wanted to know if the c´jon (percussion instrument) would sound good with hip hop rhythms, and if it would fit our music.

ATOM: And when we released Harvest for the stripes, we didn't give a lot of concerts, that's why we chose digital music when we started the recording. Later, we really focused on live performances and then we had to transcribe the samples for the instruments. For some songs, when we created them, we wondered : "How are we going to play that on stage without turntables? It's impossible!". But we tried and succeeded in adapting those songs, and the result was beyond our expectations, so we decided to re-record them for Ripe Stripes.

Sae (translator): When you listen to Mushroom Mathematics on both albums, you can hear the difference between the two versions and what they wanted to bring to their music.

Let's talk about your performances in France. What did you think of your showcase at the Azian and at the Hip Hop Jazz festival?

ATOM: I was very nervous during the Azian live because it was the first time we performed in another country and because of the language barrier, I was afraid the audience wouldn't react. I was very anxious, but they were very enthusiastic and it reassured me. Even if they didn't understand the lyrics, they were wonderful! It was a very good experience.

Takatsuki: I was nervous too, but I noticed that the French audience, instead of keeping their distance to look at what is happening, were very spontaneous and reacted as soon as they liked something. I think it's cultural, the French audience is like that and it is very interesting.

How does the Japanese audience react compared to the French one?

ATOM: In Japan, people usually keep some distance, they look at what is happening, they slowly come closer and closer and they arrive just in front of the stage at the end of the concert (laughs). Whereas in France, from the very beginning, the audience was at the front of the stage, and it was very stimulating because we could feel their enthusiasm.

Takatsuki: In Japan, when the media say that an artist is good and when they are well-known, people will go to the concerts and say it was good, even if it wasn't. On the contrary, if the band is not represented in the media, people will wonder what to think about them : "Are they good or not?". It's difficult for the Japanese audience to have their own opinion.

Since you're talking about differences, I guess you have already listened to French rap (ATOM freestyled with Réel Carter and Triptik on the That's Nip-Hop DVD.), what are the most obvious differences concerning the flow or the lyrics between French and Japanese artists?

ATOM: We haven't listened to a lot of bands so we don't have an opinion on that. (ATOM is lost in his thoughts which makes everyone laugh)

Takatsuki: Like French bands, our music is based on American hip hop, so we have the same references. When we look at a French rapper, his clothes, his musical influences, we can say: "Hey, he's a DMX fan!". The most surprising thing is that some people who don't dress themselves in hip hop style are rappers, I find this type of person very interesting, because it's original.

ATOM: I have the impression that the hip hop culture is more deeply-rooted in France than in Japan. The first time I rapped with French MCs was when Triptik came to Japan. It was awesome to rap with them because it was a new experience, and it was the first time I heard Franch rappers. What I felt we had in common is that since the hip hop culture is something imported from America, French artists, like Japanese, want to stand out from American rappers. We're alike in the way that they want to create something new, something that would be their own, and even if we have different codes and we speak a different language, we have the same way of thinking.

Takatsuki: A while ago, we walked by the stage where we will perform this afternoon, there was a beatbox band playing, one of the performers was a man in his fifties and he was singing with his shirt tucked in (laughs). It was very surprising for us and I think it is a good example of how deep-rooted hip hop is in the French culture, because even people like this man are a part of the movement.

ATOM, during the Azian showcase you said that you respect the political and social commitment of French people, contrary to the Japanese society who mainly follows American directives. It is true that most of the French rappers have strong beliefs and I would like to know if Japanese rappers have difficulties expressing their opinions and beliefs through their music.

ATOM: There are a lot of different artists. Some rebellious rappers express their political opinions but, if the "happy-vibes" hip hop is more successful, it is because the first band which became famous was Scha Dara Parr and their lyrics were very positive. Their best-ranking song was a song talking about summer with very simple lyrics according to their critics, and it is the kind of hip hop which still sells best. But there are a lot of different styles inside the Japanese hip hop movement.

Getting back to Suika, how do you create your songs? Do you start with the lyrics and then work on the music?

Takatsuki: It's the contrary (laughs). We start with the music. Either me or Kaztake compose a song and play it to the others. Once we have the melody, we write the lyrics. Usually, I write the fastest, then it's Toto and... ATOM is a perfectionist who writes and re-writes, again and again. He spends a lot of time writing his lyrics, he's always the last one to finish.

ATOM: Actually, depending on the song, we say what we want to do and we lay a claim on them, for example, Toto did Garam Massala by herself. Since I'm aways the slowest, Takatsuki often beats me and it upsets me (laugh). But the members of the band know that the more I rewrite, the better the texts are, so in the end, the time I take to write is necessary and everyone accepts my delays.

It is strange because you like freestyle and at the same time, you're slow and a perfectionist. Is it normal?

ATOM: (laughs) Hmmm.... Recently I've been writing a little bit faster but I don't know why I like freestyle and slow writing.

Takatsuki, you're a member of Samurai Troops, what is it and what are your influences?

Takatsuki: We're a band of five MCs and one DJ and I don't play bass when I sing with them. To make a comparison, our sound is rather close to Jurassic Five.

While I was listening to your solo works and the music you compose for Suika, I wondered if you were influenced by The Roots.

Takatsuki: I love The Roots and they have a great influence on my compositions. Their blue album Do You Want More?!!!??! is my favourite and it's the base of my work. ATOM and Kaztake like this band too, and even if our music is different, The Roots have a great influence on our music.

What about you ATOM? Your main influences are...

ATOM: I am influenced by a lot of different music styles, from rock to hip hop. I love Beastie Boys and Public Enemy, as well as more underground artists, so, I'd say that I'm influenced by everything. But the artists who influence me the most are Notorious BIG and Lauren Hill.

ATOM, where does you name came from?

ATOM: Do you know Astro-boy (an anime & manga series)? In the Japanese version, his name is ATOM. I also teach yoga and when we practice, we always start with the sound "A" and we finish with the sound "M", it goes from "A-to-M".

Now that you've seen Paris, what are your thoughts on the city?

ATOM: When we arrived, the weather was great, and I saw a lot of graffiti and immediatly I thought: "Wow! The hip hop culture is deeply rooted in France." So now, I have the image of Paris with a lot of sun, graffiti and hip hop.

You came during the right week,

Sae: And when they'll return to Japan, maybe we'll have to call them back because it will be -2°C here! (everyone is laughing)

Come back!

Takatsuki: To get back to the question, the fact that the buildings, the momuments, and so on... are so well preserved and that there are new buildings in construction is something we like very much. It matches Suika's spirit.

Talking about Suika's spirit, your lyrics have a very good feeling and a very positive message. Did you create the band to deliver this kind of message or did it come naturally?

Takatsuki: actually, it's neither a will nor something we did unconsciously. We all had things to overcome in our lifes, like ATOM who ended up in an American police station, and experienced the fact that violent lyrics, and violence in general never bring anything good nor make your voice or message heard. Because of those experiences and of our evolutions, we could write positive lyrics. What we're trying to do with Suika is to change people without being too abrupt, we're doing it slowly and in a positive way. We're not doing gratuitous positivism.

We're reaching the end of our time for this interview. Do you have a message for your French fans?

ATOM: I think that if we went to a country like the US, people would say to us "What are you doing? Rap in English!" and I was sure it would be the same in Europe. But after doing a showcase and playing at a festivel, I realized that here, people are very open-minded, they accept us as artists and they prefer that we rap in Japanese. I think it's really wonderful! I am very impressed by France's strong but welcoming character, it would be a good thing if Japan could realize it and do the same. And you're so open-minded that you should buy our CDs! (laughs)

Takatsuki: I encourage you to listen to Suika's and all the Japanese artists' music and to buy our CDs, and the simpliest way to do it is to visit the Soundlicious website! (laughs)

Thank you very much and good luck with your next concert!

Both: Merci! 


---

JaME would like to thank Takatsuki and ATOM, Sae and Soundlicious.