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How did the two of you end up working together?
(Hyde) K.A.Z came to a L'Arc en Ciel concert and that's how we met.
What's the whole VAMPS project about? I notice that this is a theme you keep coming back to...
(Hyde) I always liked horror movies, so I picked the band's name based on that, but I'm not fixated on the idea of playing a vampire. At the beginning of the VAMPS project I wanted to play with the image of the vampire and have fun with it. We're not a horror band and I don't want to be one. I don't intend for us to be scary. What I wanted to do was play with the word "vampire" and have fun with it. In other words, I don't want my band to come across like Death Metal characters.
So you want it to be fun scary instead of seriously scary?
(Hyde laughs) Yeah, fun scary
I saw in one of your videos that you were wearing fangs. Are you going to wear those during the concerts too? Can you sing with those on?
(Hyde laughs again) No, I can't sing.
Are you intending VAMPS to be a permanent project or is this just a one-off?
(Hyde) If I don't get into a fight with my family about it I will continue doing it.
How is this tour going compared to your first solo tour in the US? Is it the same kind of people showing up?
(Hyde) Last time it was a lot shorter, we did the West Coast only, this time we went to the East Coast too. This time it seems like crazier fans are showing up than on the last tour so I'm happy.
Actually I was going to ask about that. It seems like in Japan usually audiences are a lot calmer and more polite, and also not quite so close to the stage. Is it weird for you when you're here having them right in your face or is it fun?
(Hyde) No, I like the crazy fans. They're so loud that if we play at the same volume as we play in Japan sometimes they can't hear very well, so sometimes we have to play louder.
I noticed that you played a couple of dates on the Warped tour. How did you get involved with that and is it something you might try to do again?
(Hyde) I don't know! (Laughs) (In English, pointing) My manager...
What have you been doing with yourselves between shows? Have you had time to sightsee?
(K.A.Z.) Shopping!
Are you comfortable enough in America now to be able to wander around by yourselves or do you still feel like you need a staff person or a translator with you all the time?
(Hyde) He goes off by himself a lot
When you go shopping, what are you shopping for?
(K.A.Z) Clothes.
Are there any plans for a European tour?
(Hyde) I'm planning to do a big European tour next year, if possible. I'm thinking about it but we're still planning.
So I found your cover of the song "Trouble" on YouTube, the old 80s girl band song. How did you end up doing that? It's so fun and cute and different from everything else you're doing.
I was offered a project in which this company wanted to use a song for a commercial. When we were thinking of the promotional strategy, that song is very popular in Japan, and we thought if we rearrange the song to more of a rock version it would be very effective for the commercial.
The stuff that you're doing now, it doesn't really sound like what either of you were doing with your old bands. What kind of music are you both into, and what were you into when you were growing up?
(English) British New Wave and LA Metal
And K.A.Z.?
(English) The same
How are you handling the songwriting for VAMPS? Are you both writing music and you (Hyde) are writing the lyrics?
(Hyde) I write the lyrics but both of us write music
When you (Hyde) first came here with you said that you had no idea you had so many fans here. Are you starting to get a sense now of who your audience is in the USA and how many of them there are? Is it starting to seem more concrete to you in your own mind that there really is an audience for you here?
As I go to each place, including tonight's show, I notice a lot of fans lined up long before the show starts, sometime even from the night before, so I feel so secure and I'm so thankful for them. With this tour I've truly understood the importance of knowing that fans are waiting for me, in that it makes me feel more secure and comfortable when I play.
So you're starting to feel more at home here.
Yeah. Sometimes I worry about how many people will show up, and if they'll have fun listening to my songs, but this time I could see that the fans were already hyped up for the shows before they even started. That makes me feel confident that I can really grab the audience during the show, too.
Are you getting a chance to meet any of your fans? Are you doing signings or anything like that?
Two days ago we had a signing at Kinokuniya bookstore.
Are you going to do that in LA too?
(Manager) We're working on it, maybe.
As far as the future direction of VAMPS, what do you have in mind over the next few years?
We both have our own bands, so with VAMPS we want to do something fun that we can't do with our other bands. I want VAMPS to be a unit within which we can create things that are different to what we do with our other bands. Even three years from now, I can see us doing something that we think is fun. I want to keep on finding projects that make me feel excited, I want to always be doing something inspiring and challenging.
