CROSSFAITH

PHOTOGRAPHY BY MAXILLA
WEBSITE: www.myspace.com/thecrossfaith
COUNTRY: Japan STYLE: Metal / Hardcore / Other

Interview Answered by Kenta Koie (Vocal)

I HAVE NEVER HEARD A BAND MIX ELECTRONIC AND HEAVY SOUNDS TOGETHER IN SUCH A UNIQUE WAY AS YOU DO; WHEN DID YOU REALISE THAT “HEY! WE REALLY HAVE SOMETHING THAT WORKS HERE”?

We came up to this music style about 2 years ago when we got together as Crossfaith and idea of adding something new to the basic band was already there from the very beginning.

WHEN WRITING SONGS, DO MOST OF THEM ORIGINATE OUT OF THE ELECTRONIC OR HEAVY GUITAR DRIVEN PARTS OF YOUR MUSIC?

In most of the cases, we start form guitars. A song called Mirror was exception though. The song was improvised from the intro of the song which Teru (Vision) made.

YOUR FIRST ALBUM TITLED “THE ARTIFICIAL THEORY FOR THE DRAMATIC BEAUTY” WAS RELEASED ON THE 29TH OF APRIL. WHO PRODUCED THE ALBUM AND HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO COMPLETE?

This album was completely produced by ourselves and it took about a year since we started to think about this album.

THE TRAILER THAT GREETS YOU WHEN YOU VIEW YOUR MYSPACE REALLY GOT ME INTERESTED TO BUY YOUR ALBUM. WHAT IS THE ONE THING THAT USUALLY CONVINCES YOU TO BUY ANOTHER ARTISTS MUSIC?

Thank you very much for your kind words. This PV was produced by a movie production team called "Escape Into Verse" and they are still very young as us. There might be some other reasons from other members but personally I choose what is good or bad from quality of songs at most.

WHAT TYPE OF REACTION HAVE YOU RECEIVED SO FAR ABOUT THE ALBUM AND DO YOU HAVE AN IDEA NOW IN WHAT DIRECTION TO TAKE THE BAND MUSICALLY?

We are getting some good reactions from not only Japan but all over the world day by day. We won't change our music by what people say about our music. Writing a song that makes kids enjoy will be always our main thing.

HOW WOULD YOU COMPARE THE SONGS ON “THE ARTIFICIAL THEORY FOR THE DRAMATIC BEAUTY” WITH THE MATERIAL YOU WROTE FOR THE "BLUEPRINT OF RECONSTRUCTION" EP?

The EP was not distributed properly and basically handed to fans who came to our shows or some CD stores. This our new album is different from the last EP at the point that it is now distributed though our label and it is available at any stores in Japan so it will be heard by much bigger number of people. To compare those 2 CDs, the EP only contained 3 tracks but the album contains 8 tracks and obviously the album would let people know what we really want to express and our concept of music with interlude and everything.

THE "BLUEPRINT OF RECONSTRUCTION" EP WAS LIMITED TO A PRINT RUN OF A THOUSAND COPIES WHICH SOLD OUT IN THE SPACE OF TWO MONTHS. ARE YOU PLANNING TO GO THE SAME ROUTE WITH YOUR NEW ALBUM AND IN WHAT WAYS WOULD YOU LIKE TO PROMOTE YOUR MUSIC TO A WIDER AUDIENCE IN THE FUTURE?

The EP was sold out in only 2 months. We are about to promote our music abroad because we want more people from all over the world to have a listen to our music. And we are looking for labels in other countries as well.

A LIVE VIDEO FOR THE SONG “BLUE” WAS RELEASED ONLINE A SHORT WHILE BACK. WHAT MADE THE SONG “BLUE” THE BEST CHOICE FOR THE VIDEO AND WHAT IS THE SONG ABOUT?

The reason why we chose "Blue" was we thought the song is that make people exciting at live shows. The song is about how an ego and thoughtless act that one person has created can mess our lives and I am screaming that it is too late to fix them.

WATCHING THE VIDEO FOR “BLUE” ONE CAN SEE THAT YOU HAVE A VERY STRONG ENERGY AND STAGE PRESENCE, WHERE DO YOU FIND THE ENERGY TO KEEP UP THE PACE OF A LIVE SET WHEN HEADBANGING AND JUMPING AROUND ALL THE TIME?

Thank you. Although music is something you listen to, we believe that the view and how we perform should come at first especially at live shows. I am not saying that not playing the instruments is good thing of course. I am not sure how we keep up the energy but we all focus how we should perform more than anyone else and that is what makes us running crazy during the show all the time.

HOW MUCH REHEARSAL TIME DO YOU PUT IN BEFORE A LIVE SHOW, AND DO THINGS ALWAYS GO AS PLANNED EVEN IF YOU DO REHEARSE ALLOT BEFORE A SHOW?

It depends. We sometimes have 30 mins but sometime we don't have any time to do it. In our case, we only check the sound before the show so we can't tell how we can perform until the show actually starts. Sometimes, the sound is not the same as what we asked to P.A guy at rehearsal and it makes us really annoyed.

HOW MANY LIVE SHOWS AND TOURS ARE YOU PLANNING TO PLAY THIS YEAR, AND WHERE WOULD YOU LIKE TO PERFORM THE MOST IF YOU HAD THE OPPORTUNITY?

From this point, we have about 20 shows coming up to October. If possible, we would like to play anywhere outside of Japan and especially U.S.A.

HOW POPULAR IS HEAVY MUSIC IN JAPAN AT THE MOMENT AND WHAT CAN BE DONE TO MAKE THE “HEAVY MUSIC” SCENE GROW MORE IN YOUR OPINION?

The scene of heavy music in Japan is still very small compared to anywhere else. Young bands like us should lead the way and then the level of this scene will be much better but now it is not very good. As I have said before, to be known by young kids is a way to make this scene bigger in Japan and it would be very exciting.

ANY LAST COMMENTS / ADVICE OR PEOPLE YOU WOULD LIKE TO THANK?

Thank you very much for the interview. And thank you very much for reading this! And the best wishes and thanks to every one of you who would support us. We really hope from our deepest heart to perform our show in front of you someday!!!