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SCANDAL's Best Album Interview
SCANDAL's best album 『SCANDAL』 is now out!
For these girls who kicked off to a peculiar start by forming a band at a dance school, they have not given in to the negative opinions and views of them, and have become a band that sets the entire band scene abuzz. We had them talk about their best album, of course, about how each of them lives, and what their dreams for the future are. A must-read for fans!_______________________________________________________
「That's why SCANDAL was able to continue on for ten years」 - The quartet talks about each member's appeal
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－－What kind of band do you all feel SCANDAL is?
RINA: That's a question we've never been asked.
All: (laughs)
RINA: It makes me happy! For me, I think this band has been very fair and square from the start. We've been thinking that a band that must be like that, but we're a band that can truly be viewed in many ways--we've made music in many different ways, played lives in many different styles, and initially did activities wearing costumes that were easy-to-understand school uniforms. We've gone on without ever breaking from our fair-and-square core. By doing that, I think we've become a band that you can understand more and more. We'll always play music feeling like we're taking on a challenge.
HARUNA: It's been very tough to continue on for ten years. We had a peculiar start, forming a band at a dance school, but from the start we've centered our activities around lives. We toured around the world during our indie days. These past ten years we were able to continue to challenge ourselves to many things without being held back just by being girls, so we've got plenty of guts--rather, we're a band that's very tough.
－－There probably were many people at first who viewed you as being manufactured, but it's wonderful that, with your own strength, you were able to be recognized as an authentic band. What type of people are the four of you? Everyone, please talk about one person at a time.
All: Everyone (laughs)?
－－All right, let's start from MAMI.
MAMI: All right, I'll have everyone talk about me (laughs).
TOMOMI: She's the member that has evolved the most the past ten years. She completely changed her appearance one day by going blonde, but she was also awakened mentally--it's more like she's become a very enriched person. She used to never go with us when we'd talk about going out to eat. Although she's an indoor person, she's truly become an enriched person while having more opportunities to come into contact with all kinds of people. That's directly connected to doing musical activities. MAMI currently is focusing on writing songs, but a while ago she didn't . That's why, in that sense, she's the member who has changed the most.
RINA: Also, she's always been individualistic. Her fashion, the things she likes......even the foods she likes! I don't know if it's good or bad, but she's very particular about everything; she's a biased person (laughs). But that adds a good spice to SCANDAL as a band, and I think that she's someone who's creating a musical entrance. It's really fun to talk to her. I think she's an interesting person.
－－Why didn't you go to eat with the members?
MAMI: Looking back, I get that they invited me because there were things that they wanted the four of us to discuss, but back then I had no idea (laughs). It was all down to my mood.
HARUNA: It's not good to judge someone based on their blood type, but......she is a very AB-ish person (laughs).
－－I see. But you've changed, right?
MAMI: I dyed my hair, and both my appearance and mindset changed......I wasn't quite aware of that, but after the members and staff came to be able to tell me, 「You've changed since then, haven't you」, I realized, 「Ah, that might be true!」. I had the simple motive of 「I want to dye my hair. If I dye it, it'll have to be blonde」, but it might be that my mind turned flashy just by making my appearance flashy. After that, I've often been told that my playing style has also changed.
RINA: You learned to step forward.
－－Next, TOMOMI.
MAMI: TOMO has always been skillful ever since I met her. It's like that for the bass, as well as in her private life. She can do anything, so there are many times where I think, 「That's awesome!」
RINA: I think she's someone who makes the most of her private time. I understand this about TOMO, of course, but among the four of us she's the member who seems the most mysterious. She's someone who is the most different from her musician side. I feel that she has a ton of friends. It's the same with her musician friends from other genres, but she often hangs out with her hometown friends too. She meets many people and is someone who has all kinds of relationships.
－－What's it actually like?
TOMOMI: I have many friends from my hometown who show up in Tokyo, and those who seem to come to Tokyo once a month for work. It's comfortable because we locals have grown up in the same way together. I hang out with those friends and meet up at places, and thus I become friends with the shop's staff (laughs). That's why I also have many friends in the food industry. So, I've always had connections aside from those that I've made from being in SCANDAL.
HARUNA: She gives off an image of being a very active person on her days off.
MAMI: She enjoys her private life.
RINA: She's satisfied with her real life!
－－Out of the SCANDAL members, she's the most satisfied with her real life (laughs).
MAMI: She doesn't really move as much until her days off.
RINA: I think that's awesome! She was also the first of us to buy a car.
MAMI: Her range of activities expanded after buying a car.
TOMOMI: After buying a car I thought, 「The places you can go to easily by train and the places you can go to easily by car are completely different」, but it really does broaden your horizon. It feels like I've learned about a world I didn't know about.
－－Next, RINA.
HARUNA: She's very stoic. I've felt that way since we first started. She had always been playing sports before SCANDAL formed, and she can work hard towards anything. I feel that that's truly awesome.
MAMI: We started SCANDAL, and she's been the one who, amidst us growing up, found out what she likes and breaks open many doors until she's able to say she likes something with her head held high. She's someone who has a very inquiring mind, so she can talk at length about anything. She makes sure she knows she can say 「I know about that」, and she pours a massive amount of heat into everything she does. I really respect those things about her.
－－What makes you so sure that she's become an awesome person who's stoic and has an inquiring mind?
RINA: Yeah......since starting the band I consciously thought, 「I want to add to the things I like」. Precisely why it's not perfectly complete is why it's perfect. I've always thought, 「This isn't enough」, so I want to learn about, see, and hear all kinds of things. I'm always thinking that. I've always had a feeling of 「I want to change!」.
－－What kind of person do you imagine you'll ultimately become by going through that?
RINA: Ah～, that's what I had always felt. I feel that I won't be satisfied (laughs). I really do love SCANDAL! My train of thought has been 「I want to become even better so that this band will become even better」.
TOMOMI: That hasn't changed since the time I first met her. She's always searching for something. She's extremely passionate since she's someone who had been wanting a career in this industry since she was 3 years old. So, if RINA hadn't have joined SCANDAL, it might have changed into a hobby for her right after we formed.
－－She's a key person in the band.
RINA: (Embarrassed smile)
－－Next, HARUNA.
TOMOMI: HARUNA is very awkward. But, that awkwardness is very appealing. She always bumps into walls and always tries desperately to climb over them. She's probably the member for which these past 10 years have been the hardest, most difficult, and troublesome. But, if HARUNA wasn't someone who can skillfully get over those walls, SCANDAL may not have been doing music that can last for 10 years. So, she definitely is someone who must stand in the center and be our vocalist._______________________________________________________
「That's exactly what an "all-girl band" is」 - Refining not only their music but everything else as well
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－－What do you think, hearing this now?
HARUNA: Being troubled was exactly what it was like. It's different from the life that I was imagining at the time we formed the band, so ever since then I'd been continuing to think, 「Okay, how should I live from this point on?」 for the past ten years. But, there are also things that have changed due to meeting the members. I've come so far because I chose the band at that time.
－－Incidentally, what has been the hardest wall that you've come up against so far?
HARUNA: The time when I couldn't sing like I had thought I could was the hardest. Until that point I hadn't really worried over something like that...... But while we were repeatedly playing lives, I was worrying and thought, 「How should I do this?」...... It took a little while to be able to get over that wall, but I think I was able to get over it precisely because I continued to sing, so I'm glad that I didn't give up.
－－What do you think is the reason why a band with members with such strong personalities was able to have such a career that they were able to release a best album for their tenth anniversary?
RINA: Our personalities and......our compatibility! I think those are basic things to have.
MAMI: The biggest reason is because the four of us are together. We respect and understand each other, so that's why we can speak about the members together and say 「She does this like that」. If we didn't have affection or trust, we wouldn't think about each other that deeply.
－－That tie has gradually deepened, but what was it like in the beginning?
RINA: We didn't think about that that much in the beginning (laughs). We were struggling every day. School would end and we'd have band practice, school would end and we'd have band practice......our lives were way too hectic, but we had the same complexes and setbacks after all...... We had our start while holding on to something that felt like a dream, so we were strong in that aspect. Since we all began from the same line, we always had a motivation of 「Let's do it with our combined strength!」. It wasn't that one person started alone, and it wasn't that only one person had charisma. We've done things with a 「We'll all look for something we can do; we'll all cut through it together」 feeling, so it's always felt like we've been in the same boat together.
－－Originally you were beginners with instruments and being in band; it's natural that you had no abilities, skills, or experiences. What did it feel like being in the media and heading out on stage like that?
RINA: We didn't know anything at all, and didn't think of embarrassment or fear!
HARUNA: We just didn't know about being scared.
All: (laughs)
MAMI: It felt like, 「Okay, let's do itー!」 and, 「We'll force ourselves!」
RINA: Even in regards to sound production, we were like, 「We won't pay attention to sounds!」 (laughs). It really was like, 「There's something we need to do, so we'll do it with all our strength」.
－－During that time I saw SCANDAL on the sub-stage at HotStuff's 30th anniversary performance.
MAMI: Ehh～!
RINA: That was at Yokohama Arena, wasn't it?
－－That's right. There was a collaboration between Kimura Kaela∞ and Perfume. While THE CRO-MAGNONS, Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, Magokoro Brothers, and Ling tosite sigure were putting on lively performances, there was a reckless all-female band who was getting through it with youth alone......
All: (Roar of laughter)
HARUNA: That's exactly what it was.
－－You were suddenly thrown out to a great location.
MAMI: But we didn't think about being nervous or scared (laughs). It was like, 「There are so many people! We're so happy!」. Feelings of 「Being in a band is fun」 took priority as we played our live.
－－At that point, did you reach a level that made it seem like 「Being in a band is fun!」 and 「Lives are the best!」?
RINA: Yes, although it was a different kind of fun than what it is right now. We didn't think that much about our audiences and hadn't yet played lives thinking, 「How should we play so that we can grab a hold of people's hearts?」, so we really did only have a theme of 「The four of us will perform feeling good and go home」. But when you hit the stage in that way, you don't live up to everyone's expectations. So, if you give it your all, everyone will be surprised and enjoy it. That's why I'm glad we were like that in the beginning. We got to do a solo tour, and while being told 「Don't be buried by this CLUB QUATTRO tour」, we did it and it sold out. By having people come to see us started building up our confidence little by little, but at the same time we were wondering, 「We're a band, but why haven't we been invited to rock festivals?」. For the first time we began to think about the differences between us and the bands being invited to festivals. We then felt that we had to work on filling up on what we were missing.
－－SCANDAL didn't start from your own volitions, nor did you play instruments; your origin differs from so-called regular bands. Consequently, when you first formed, you only had a 「band-like」 appearance on the outside. How did you react to the negative voices and opinions back then?
RINA: I think we understood those kinds of opinions, of course. There were things that we wouldn't like if we were to be true musicians that were doing it for rock, things we didn't want to admit, things we couldn't deliver to audiences. For example, there were people who were like, 「Even though they're a band, why don't they write their own songs?」. We wanted people to understand our hearts and wanted to be understood by more rock fans. We then began to think, 「Let's do our best to create songs」 , and, 「What can we do to be able to play even better lives?」. How we create music has changed completely.
－－So, you were inspired by the negative voices and views--rather, it was a necessary fuel in order for you to awaken.
RINA: I think it was necessary.
HARUNA: We're the type that burns in adversity. There are also parts that we're not satisfied with, and we hear those kinds of voices from people. We're a band that always changed anything into heat, and we've brought ourselves in a good direction.
MAMI: Whatever form, whatever opinion, we think, 「You mean that you're interested in us?」. Even if there are opinions that tick us off, we make sure we're living for the band, so we'll just prove ourselves. That's why we still think, 「Are you watching what we're doing?」
TOMOMI: We're the ones who understand the things we say the best, so there was a time when we also thought of it as a bottleneck. But as the band continued on, we wondered, were we being misunderstood by people just as much as we've continued on? We've also had reactions that have changed that. That's why we feel that, at any rate, we must continue on. If we can't continue on for a long time, then we can't prove what kind of band we are.
RINA: So, that's why we've felt like we've been continuing to fight on all this time. We now feel that we've already made ourselves an ideal band, and we would like to polish ourselves up even more. We want our music to be listened to more; we want our characters to be known. There are many types of bands in this world, but we think SCANDAL is a band that doesn't only have music. We value the way we speak, our actions, our attitudes, our hair + makeup, our fashion, and music on the same level; all of those elements make up the band. For example, we ask ourselves what kind of expressions and words we should use to express our feelings. It's different from singing, so we want to improve upon everything. It's also good to have fun, and I think that we'll keep refining all the parts that we want to cherish.
－－That story is remarkable, but there are no other bands like SCANDAL. For 10 years you pushed through on your own route the entire time.
TOMOMI: We didn't have any comrades (laughs). For example, we couldn't make friends since we couldn't find any similar bands that we'd want to play a joint live with.
MAMI: It is quite difficult to decide how genres should be split up.
TOMOMI: We thought, "Even if we say we're a rock band, aren't we different from other so-called rock bands?", and we differed from dance groups; we didn't fit into a category. We don't think of that as bad, though (laughs).
RINA: But, that's exactly why we think of ourselves as an "all-girl band." It's better to play music while enjoying being a girl. I personally think of us an "all-girl band."
－－That's why, as the impression of SCANDAL changes, the image of all-girl bands changes. That's now taking shape. The more SCANDAL's performances and expressiveness improve, the more junior all-girl bands will realize, 「Ah, we can't just be cute」, and the number of robust and interesting bands will increase. How do you feel about that?
RINA: ......That's a serious responsibility (laughs).
HARUNA: But we're showing that we're constantly challenging ourselves to new things. I think that's important.
－－Since I'm interviewing you for the first time, I'm someone who has watched SCANDAL from relatively far away, but when I truly realized it, I began listening to the praises that SCANDAL has been amazing recently. I went to see your performance at Zepp DiverCity Tokyo in 2013. When I did, I remember feeling that you've become a band that creates enthusiasm as a genuine band. I was so moved that 「The female high schoolers that only had recklessness have become this awesome」 and felt like an uncle of yours (laughs).
All: (laughs)
RINA: That makes me happy._______________________________________________________
「We were able to complete our tenth anniversary on our own」 - Each member talks about their recommended song～planning for something!?
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－－As you were showing that growth, SCANDAL became a band that has drawn in many fans domestically and abroad. What does that feel like?
HARUNA: We've been going overseas since our indie days, so we try not to draw a borderline between Japan and overseas. We also get reactions from fans overseas as well every time we release a new song, and we're able to tour overseas as well. Those things make us very happy as artists. I'm so happy that we're gaining more and more friends around the world this way.
－－It's unusual for a band to be accepted abroad this naturally from the time of their debut until today, isn't it?
HARUNA: That's what makes us glad to be an all-girl band. There aren't too many all-girl bands in the world, so I think [all-girl bands] have already become a part of Japanese culture. I think there are many people who have come to like us by way of Japanese culture, so I'm glad that we're a Japanese all-girl band.
MAMI: I truly think that SCANDAL is a band that has bonds with foreign countries. Every time we get to tour overseas becomes a turning point for SCANDAL. We remembered the live style we did when we went on our first US tour during our indie days; we were influenced by our world tour in 2015; and we were able to release 『YELLOW』, an album with lyrics and music written by ourselves. Overseas work definitely comes in at the timing when we really change as a band. It's not that we distinctly think, 「Let's change with this!」; it naturally changes into a good direction. We want to cherish our activities overseas in that sense as well.
TOMOMI: The diffusion of the internet during our ten years has been amazing. It's the same for social media and video sharing sites, but naturally comments come in from people overseas. There are hardly any country borders. As people who play music, we were able to debut in such a great era.
RINA: Going overseas makes our minds and bodies tougher. Although we went on a European tour in 2016, we had gone to Europe in our second year of being an indie band. So, because it's been eight years since we debuted in Japan, having a career in Japan and being able to tour as rookies was a pretty great situation for us. We wanted to have our rookie years in Japan, but it feels like we were really able to do things that we couldn't have done. Our mood improves going overseas, and we're able to come back to Japan to create new songs. We want to tour in Japan without forgetting the feelings we have when we're abroad, so overseas really is very important for SCANDAL.
－－How is SCANDAL evaluated in Europe, where you had gone during your second year of your indie days?
RINA: We're welcomed with an awesome enthusiasm. It's so moving! Before we hit the stage, there was a girl amidst the enthusiasm crying even though no one had come out yet......When you see the sight of 「There are this many people who are living together with our music across the ocean?」, you want to continue to search for and do more things you can do.
TOMOMI: We think that's amazing because that sort of thing is going on in countries we haven't yet been to.
－－So, you feel strongly about doing musical activities worldwide in the future?
RINA: That's right. It seems to be important, and we come to love Japan every time we go overseas. That's why we want to tour in Japan as well even more, have even more people know about us, and have them like us even more. That's why I think were touring around during a time when we're like, 「We'll make sure do our 47 prefecture tour properly」.
－－Your best album 『SCANDAL』 was released in commemoration of your tenth anniversary. It was created with votes from the fans; what were your thoughts or impressions when you saw the results?
HARUNA: It was just as we thought it'd be (laughs).
MAMI: We thought, 「Of course!」. Since our activities revolve around playing lives, popular songs at lives really did make it into the top ranks. It simply made us happy.
TOMOMI: Since it's full of songs we've continued to perform live, and almost all of them are popular live songs, we now showcase songs at lives that we've done live arrangements for. So, when I listen to the original recordings that I haven't heard in a while, I have a bit of a weird feeling, like, 「Did the intro have this bar?」 or, 「Hm, was this song like this?」 (laughs).
－－All of them are songs you have emotional attachments to them, but if you were to each individually list your favorite songs, which would they be?
MAMI: 「Departure」. I wrote the lyrics and music for it, and during our world tour in 2015 we learned about how wildly popular this song is with our overseas fans. This song contains the four seasons of Japan and depicts the changing of the seasons together with peoples' hearts and scenes. The melody is somewhat Japanese-like. People overseas have said that it's very catchy.
RINA: It's enjoyable because you can feel Japan in it.
MAMI: It's probably that it's a sensation they don't normally feel. They examine this song's lyrics and settings and understand the lyrics while actually looking at the scenes in it. It starts off with a music box, and the moment that tone starts, the audience goes, "Ohー!" and gets excited......It truly makes us happy that 「It's this popular?」, and it's a song that gave me confidence as a songwriter. We create songs in Japan and bring them overseas......I again thought of how doing work like that is very important.
－－How about TOMOMI?
TOMOMI: The one I'm most attached to is 「SCANDAL BABY」. It was voted ＃1, despite it never being a single song; it's the opening track to our debut album. People know about this song by buying our first album or attending our lives. Even so, it made it to ＃1. I think it's proof that SCANDAL's activities revolve around lives. Although it's a song that was originally made with us expressing ourselves during that time, it's now transcended beyond that. Seeing the scene from the stage is amazing. A big chorus breaks out, and it shows us enough of an excitement that, if SCANDAL was a country, this would be our national anthem. It's a song that we cultivated with our audience, it was voted ＃1 by our audience, and it's been made into a special song......In that sense, it's the song I'm most attached to.
－－How about RINA?
RINA: We have an album-only song called 「Bitter Chocolate」, and since it's a song that we wanted many people to hear, I'm very happy that it was chosen for the album. We had lived in a house with communal living. That's why the four of us would stay at a hotel before we'd start touring, and it felt like we were living together even when we'd return home. During that time I tried creating a melody with a keyboard in my room and thought, 「I might have come up with something!」. Since, at that time, TOMOMI was at the center of creating lyrics, I brought the demo to TOMOMI's room, had her listen to it, and asked her to write lyrics for it. It was completed with the style of the two of us working on one song. Doing it that way was fun, so even now we make songs with a pattern of the lyrics and music being written separately. I still remember the joy of putting lyrics that I couldn't have imagined [onto my music]. Immediately after that we all started living on our own, but we would go to an individual's room and talk all night long while focusing on demos......I remember that when I listen to this song.
－－What about HARUNA?
HARUNA: 「Awanai Tsumori no, Genki de ne」. We released this song right after we played a solo live at Osaka-Jo Hall, the venue we had dreamed about since forming. So, it became a song that kicked off a new start for us, and it has lyrics that we can pen because we're this age. It has a ton of content where we were able to lock away our feelings at that time. This song is a genuine love song, and because we can sing in more of an adult's perspective, we've felt from the start that we made a song that we can continue to keep singing. It's a memorable song that includes the confidence that makes us to be able to sing this kind of song.
－－On the best album are new songs 「FREEDOM FIGHTERS」and「HELLO」. Can you tell us from what kinds of thoughts or images did these songs take form from?
RINA: 「HELLO」 started as a demo from about a year ago. [The best album] would be released in the winter, and we put it in wanting it to be heard as a love song. It has a standard pop sound with very straightforward lyrics. It's story-like, so we thought of how we can properly write songs that'd be easy to reach all kinds of people. We debuted it once on Christmas, but we're very happy that we were finally able to officially release it. As for 「FREEDOM FIGHTERS」, we thought about wanting to write a flashy, killer tune that would shine during our upcoming 47 prefecture tour. The musical style took shape with that kind of image, but we wanted to write lyrics with the theme of freedom with easy-to-understand words. It took quite a while to reach those marks. That's why this song made us suffer quite a bit during production, but we're glad that we were particular about it. Putting this song on this best album makes it feel that we were able to complete our tenth anniversary on our own. It's a song that made us feel like we did it to completion.
－－Does it feel like you can kick off to a new start again?
RINA: Yes. We can finally head to a new stage--rather, it was when we it felt like we could reset our minds once.
－－What kind of future is SCANDAL aiming for?
HARUNA: We'll be starting our 47 prefecture tour soon, but we really do want to stay as a band that continues to cherish lives. Though we've centered on solo lives, we'd also like to play lives with more people involved. We have been pushing our own way through so far, so we want to take in all kinds of things by playing with other people or bands.
MAMI: Our 47 prefecture tour ends as summer festival season has passed by. We have many plans, so it'd be great if we could do something with people we'd like to work with. So, please look forward to them!
RINA: So far we've only done joint lives with TRICERATOPS, Kishidan, and THE CRO-MAGNONS.
－－But those are 3 awesome bands (laughs).
RINA: We really look up to those three groups; we were very motivated by them. That's why we think it's necessary to pay more joint lives, build confidence, and get hurt sometimes. It'll fire us up, so we'd like to keep doing more of them.
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