~Toshi’s Life in LA - 14 Secrets Untold~

Driver's License
I was so busy in the last month that I have no idea what happened (laughs). Even if I try to remember, there's nothing. The last month, the last two weeks were extreme. It was much more extreme that anyone can imagine, and I wasn't in a state to remember much. But if there's one thing I can tell you, it is about getting a driving license. I don't have a lot of free time to do that in Japan, and I heard the test was much simpler in LA. Basically, you can't do anything if you don't have a car in LA, so I decided to get a license. I went in with the feeling that I'd be lucky if I could pass, but I actually passed both the practical and written examinations in the first attempt. It's also super cheap. About a hundred dollars for everything. The short lessons go for about $20, the exams are $10, so if you have 200 to 300 Yen to spare, you can get it. It's so cheap. Japanese exams are available too, but it's of dubious quality. It was more difficult for me to understand the Japanese test (laughs). After getting my license, I could drive anywhere by myself.

Tourism
I usually love to go sightseeing, but I didn't really do anything special this time. I really wasn't in the mood. Once the recording process started, the last thing on my mind for those six months was going sightseeing (laughs).

LA
I went there for about 2 weeks of voice training. Personally, I didn't want to record in LA. But I've grown fond of it. I'd like to go there again. Not to record, of course. I just want to go there and have a good time (laughs). It's the perfect place to just have fun. I just want to go to LA to relax and forget about everything…

Recording
For me, the location doesn’t matter. LA was chosen for its studio engineers and for the guitar, drum sounds. However, the vocals don't change much whether they're recorded in Tokyo or LA. But I thought that it'd be nice to get away from Japan for a while. I wanted to isolate myself so I could focus on recording. In LA, no one cares if you go outside wearing pajamas or a tracksuit. That's not the case in Japan. You have to put in a little more effort to record, you can't go in your pajamas, obviously (laughs). But in that sense, I think it was the right decision to record in LA.

Concerts
I've been to a few, but the best was Suicidal Tendencies'. They were incredible. Amazing. I saw them at a small venue called Cat House, but it was great. I also saw Ozzy Osbourne at a KNAC festival. Gene Simmons joined them at the end, and they had an interesting jam session. I guess that's about it. Oh, I also saw Mr. Big. Not a lot for the six months I spent there.

Singers
I went to some small clubs a few times. I saw many unknown bands playing, nothing too crazy. Many of them were great. There were many layers to them. Still, while each band was talented, I didn't really like them. But there were many amazing singers. Maybe because every voice is unique. These singers inspired me to do my best.

English
It's a struggle. There were a lot of songs in English. And it's not even that I had to meet the standards to have an English good enough for an international audience, but for a Japanese audience, and that's still difficult. Roger Love was always around while I was recording, but I still had a hard time explaining the meaning of the Japanese lyrics. There are a lot of minute nuances that don't translate well. That discrepancy in emotions is a pain. I feel like I still have to learn a lot of English. I did get English lessons over there, I tried to communicate in English as much as possible, but I'm still only touching the surface. Sometimes I feel like I'd have to even change my mouth shape, or grow a longer tongue (laughs).

Diet
I mostly cooked my own food. I also often ate at the studio. Sometimes all of us would go out to a restaurant. The meals were tasty. All the restaurants I went to had great food. No matter what I ordered, it was all delicious. Before the trip, I thought I'd struggle with the food, but that wasn't the case at all.

Physical Condition
My body acted really strange in the first month. I had a constant low fever, and after a week, my nose and throat started acting up. The jet lag lasted for about two weeks. I was waking up at 5 or 6 in the morning. I was in very bad shape... I was in and out of the doctor that first month. All of us were. Our coordinator was in shock, asking: "What's wrong with you people?"

Homesickness
I felt like escaping from the recording process, a lot. But I had to be patient, as there was nowhere to run. I've always hated recording. My desire to run away was much stronger than the desire to get it over with quickly. Still, I was there for six months, and looking back now, I don't feel like it went by too slowly. It was over in the blink of an eye.

Problems
There was a lot of time wasted while recording. We were on standby a lot due to problems with the equipment, or scheduling problems. Those things were hard on me, too. But everything was incredibly problematic. When we only had days, hours left, all the equipment broke down, the piano refused to work. The MIDI piano made us cry. Yoshiki couldn't record anything. My tapes stopped working, even the Synclavier broke. The American engineers were speechless, they had never seen something like that happen before. The same happened during the making of Blue Blood, I guess one of us is cursed when it comes to electronics. I do have a suspicion about who it could be (laughs).

Memories
To be honest, I don't really want to talk about them, since they're mostly negative memories. I was prepared for a tough period of recording, but I didn't imagine it was going to be as difficult as it ended up being. I learned many lessons. If I didn't get my act together, it would all come back to bite me eventually. That's why I felt like I had to devote myself completely.

Strong Emotions
I was extremely moved when this album was finished, due to the immense effort involved in it. When I listened to the final mastering of "Say Anything", I was overcome with emotion, it made me shed a few tears. Until the final mastering, I had a lot of doubts about it, to be honest. I think the moment when it finally hit me was when I went on All Night Nippon. Hearing our song play on the radio was the first time I felt closure. Up until then, I didn't truly feel like it was over, so I was overcome with intense emotions when I heard it playing on the radio. I was so happy.

Pressure
Of course, at first, I felt pressured to make an album that surpassed Blue Blood. It didn't take long for that to become irrelevant. Honestly, I was in no state of mind to do so. The pressure I put on myself to be better, to match the music’s quality was greater. I was satisfied with how Blue Blood came out, but there were times when I felt like I couldn't match the music's quality. I didn't want to feel that way this time. I wanted to make an album I could listen to and feel confident, where the singing led the music along. I am very sure that Jealousy became that album.

1. What's your earliest memory?
Me going on a walk

2. What can you remember of a dream you've had recently?
Leaping from a 100m tall stage.

3. The way you spend your day off.
Silence

4. What did you want to be when you grew up?
An adult

5. Your chosen stress relief method
Silence

6. Physical attributes you like and dislike about yourself.
N/A

7. What are you thankful for, being born a man?
Obviously...

8. Who would you like to be if you had to be born again as a woman?
Marilyn Monroe

9. A drug you partake in often?
Sex

10. The best concert you have seen so far?
U2

11. Who comes to mind when you see the word "artist"?
Nakahara Chuya

12. How long was the last long phone call you've had?
I haven't.

13. The place that calms you down the most?
A warm place

14. What past jobs have you had?
Retour
*We're not sure what this means, maybe the name of a store that's since shut down?*

15. What do you consider sexy in a woman?
A tranquil smile

16. What do you think you'd be doing if you weren't a musician?
A dad

17. What was the most expensive thing you have ever bought?
N/A

18. What animal would you compare yourself to?
Water dragon

19. Which is your favorite out of the five senses?
Smell

20. A habit you have?
Touching my ears

21. What puts you in a better mood?
Silence

22. Who's stronger, men or women?
Women

23. What would you do if you won a billion yen in the lottery?
I'd be in shock

24. If you had to co-star with a foreign talent, who would it be?
A young Audrey Hepburn

25. If you became invisible, what would you want to do the most?
Play to my heart's content at Tokyo Disneyland

26. A sport you're good at?
Weight lifting

27. Your favorite author and book
The Silent Service [Kaiji Kawaguchi]

28. What movie soundtrack would you like to make?
Hayao Miyazaki's

29. Do people change when they wear makeup?
No

30. The first album you ever bought?
Momoe Yamaguchi

31. Type of person you would never forgive
N/A

32. Where do you start reading the newspaper from?
The Tokyo Sports' headline

33. Do you have any special abilities? If so, which?
N/A

34. What do you like and dislike about your personality?
N/A

35. The person you would like to meet the most? What would you do?
Kenji Miyazawa. I'd be in shock.

36. Your favorite drink?
White wine

37. What are you like when you're drunk?
Talkative

38. What's your biggest regret so far?
Silence

39. What do you think about just before going on stage?
Respect for fundamental human rights

40. Favorite food?
Sushi

41. What has bothered you since becoming a musician?
N/A

42. A superstition you believe in?
N/A

43. When was your first kiss?
At 16

44. Something that recently made you emotional
My voice

45. A must-wear accessory?
N/A

46. A concert you always wanted to see?
Momoe Yamaguchi

47. Someone you admire
N/A

48. What do humans need the most?
Love

49. Who do you feel jealous of?
You...

50. Please draw us a shape representing Jealousy below. Your signature, too.
(pictured above)