\n<\/p>\n
Since they first swept the world with their electric collaboration in 2019, <\/span>YOASOBI has consistently conspired with genius. Each song by the duo takes inspiration from a short story, creating their mantra of \u201cnovels into music,\u201d and fuses producer <\/span>Ayase\u2019s masterful electro-pop productions with vocalist <\/span>ikura\u2019s powerful intonations. Now an undeniable influence in amplifying J-pop in the global music scene, YOASOBI returns with <\/span>THE BOOK for,<\/span> the final volume of <\/span>THE BOOK <\/span>series. The album teems with the various worlds they\u2019ve explored over the past three years, featuring several anime OSTs, a track inspired by the stories of 1,000 teenagers in Japan, and their latest collaboration with Overwatch on the single \u201cOrion.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Ahead of their Never Ending Stories tour, Anime Trending had the honor of speaking to YOASOBI about their newest album, the emotional beats behind their recent creative endeavors, and their ever-evolving musical journey.<\/span><\/p>\n Seven years into YOASOBI, how would you say the way you work together has evolved?<\/span><\/p>\n ikura: The overall shape of it, the structure, hasn\u2019t really changed. There\u2019s a story or a novel that Ayase turns into music, writing the lyrics, composing, and arranging, all of that. Then I receive that song, and we record my vocals together to complete it. That process itself hasn\u2019t really changed.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: The process is always the same, but at the same time, ikura is 25 years old now, and it\u2019s been a while since we\u2019ve met each other. That kind of personal growth is something that we\u2019re experiencing. So in various ways, outside of just making music too \u2014 maybe in work settings as well \u2014 I think we\u2019ve both grown.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n YOASOBI\u2019s concept is turning \u201cnovels into music.\u201d Would you consider these songs an adaptation of the novel or an emotional interpretation of how the novel makes you feel? Both? Neither?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: It\u2019s both, really. We always get inspiration from the worlds of the original stories, and we want to convey that world, the characters, and the emotions of the story properly. Of course, we also want to convey the content of the novel.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n But say there\u2019s a huge twist at the end of the story. If we were to give it away in the song, that wouldn\u2019t be as fun, right? In that case, maybe we wouldn\u2019t include everything. So it\u2019s like dissecting a story: absorbing it into myself and then rebuilding it through my music. That\u2019s probably the closest way I can describe how I approach making music.<\/span><\/p>\n I noticed that for the various anime OSTs you\u2019ve done, even if an anime is based on a manga, you create songs inspired by a short story and not necessarily just the manga itself. What is the reason behind sticking to prose as your main musical inspiration?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: Actually, in terms of the framework of YOASOBI, we\u2019ve never used anime or manga itself as the source material. Everything has been based on novels, on text. Sometimes it\u2019s letters or feelings we\u2019ve received from fans. We\u2019ve had stories written for us too, and sometimes that story has a manga or anime behind it. But still, the source material for us has always been the text, the words.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Music is, of course, sound, so the information comes in through your ears. A novel, meanwhile, is something you see with your eyes and read as words, with no pictures or other visual elements. Both are art forms you take in through a limited number of senses, and I think that\u2019s exactly why they stir your imagination so much, and why imagining things can become such an interesting experience when translating words into music. I think that\u2019s one of the reasons our music has such a strong affinity with novels.<\/span><\/p>\n Courtesy of YOASOBI<\/p>\n ikura, the way you play with your vocals when performing with YOASOBI is different from when you perform your personal music under \u201cLilas,\u201d which feels more languid and flowy. What kind of headspace do you enter when recording for YOASOBI compared to when you tackle your personal ventures?<\/span><\/p>\n ikura: When I put vocals on a YOASOBI song, there\u2019s always the concept of turning an original story into music. As the vocalist ikura, I\u2019m singing to express the world of that source material, so I sing based on the background of the original work, or the feelings of the protagonist within that song. I\u2019m always trying to search for the best vocal approach to express the world of that particular song.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n On the other hand, as the solo singer-songwriter Lilas Ikuta, my life is the source material \u2014 my own everyday life, my own experiences, things like that. I make songs and sing from those places. So the mindset of what I\u2019m basing the vocals on is completely different. From there, when I\u2019m singing solo, I search for the best vocal tone and nuance for the world that each song has become. And with YOASOBI too, after staying close to that world, I search for the best vocal color and nuance.<\/span><\/p>\n THE BOOK 3 features several songs like \u201cIDOL\u201d and \u201cYusha\u201d that have a lot of firm, chanting background vocals, while THE BOOK for, has songs with more harmonious, even gospel-like, ensembles, like in \u201cHEART BEAT\u201d and \u201cPLAYERS.\u201d Could you speak to this evolution of your production and what the surrounding vocals represent for you?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: We have an early song called \u201cGunjo,\u201d and that also uses a chorus approach that\u2019s quite close to something like \u201cHEART BEAT\u201d or \u201cPLAYERS.\u201d So it\u2019s not exactly something we\u2019re trying for the first time. But it\u2019s true that lately, I do tend to want to put in choir parts more often. I can\u2019t really say what drives that fondness. Maybe I\u2019m feeling lonely [<\/span>laughs<\/span>], or maybe I want to feel moved by my own production.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n At the end of the day, I want to be the person who\u2019s most moved by my own songs. When I think, \u201cI want to be moved,\u201d and I want to put the energy of a lot of people into the song, I often end up arriving at a choir. It feels very natural.<\/span><\/p>\n Does it feel different when you are singing with or hearing that many people, ikura?<\/span><\/p>\n ikura: Yes. The human voice is unique among all these different musical sounds in that it\u2019s an instrument attached to the body. The voice is something that makes you feel its life force, so when human voices overlap to become a big choir, I really feel the power that they have. I think it\u2019s very natural for your heart to be moved, for your heart to tremble during those sections. I feel it in the choir parts of those songs, and also of course at live shows. When we become one with the audience in the venue, and everyone sings together in these big voices, like a huge chorus \u2014 the energy is really incredible. That\u2019s something I always feel as I experience more live performances.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n I also believe that the choir is a strong element of music culture. There have been so many different traditional forms of music passed down since long ago, with the choir being one of them. The fact that it still remains a key part of our musical tradition after all this time shows that people believe in the power that humans themselves have. Whenever we perform with a big choir, I feel empowered to sing with it.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOrion\u201d English Version cover<\/p>\n \u201cOrion,\u201d your collaboration song with Overwatch and the newest track off your album, has just been released! Could you introduce the song and the process behind making and recording it?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: The story [\u201c<\/span>The Fall of a Sparrow<\/span><\/a>\u201d by <\/span>E.C. Myers] was exclusively written for this collaboration, so I read it over and over again, along with other related Overwatch materials. This song is about the relationship between the characters Genji, Hanzo, and Kiriko, so I really thought deeply about their relationship and tried to absorb it all to find the best and coolest way to represent their bond sonically.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s really great! I love the star-sparkling effect of the instrumentals in the song.<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: That\u2019s what I was going for in that part, what I wanted the listener to feel. So it\u2019s great that you felt that from listening to the music, thank you!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n For Ayase, are there any lines from the short stories that inspired THE BOOK for, that have stuck with you over the past three years? And for ikura, is there a particular lyric that really resonates with you from this album?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: I can\u2019t give you an exact line because there are so many of them. But one short story I can think of is the one for the song \u201cUNDEAD.\u201d I mean, the fact that the original short story was written for us by <\/span>NISIOISIN-sensei, author of the <\/span>Monogatari<\/span> series, already makes it a treasure to me. But there are just too many golden lines in that one. Like, how could I ever choose just one phrase?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n I also felt like that collaboration was destiny, to be involved with NISIOISIN-sensei\u2019s work through the form of music. At the time of that collaboration, I was at that point in my life where YOASOBI had just had a big hit with \u201cIDOL,\u201d and I was feeling a little stagnant. There were goals I\u2019d wanted to achieve with the band as well as with myself, and once those had been achieved to a certain extent, I felt burnt out in a lot of ways. I was starting to ask myself questions like, \u201cWhat is happiness, really?\u201d or \u201cAm I actually happy right now?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n With questions like what happiness is, what it means for people to live, what life is, what it means to be alive \u2014 the person who could state those things so directly, so powerfully, was NISIOISIN-sensei. So I\u2019m really glad that I was able to write \u201cUNDEAD\u201d at that time. I found so many words in the story that I needed at that moment in my life.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n ikura: For me, if I focus on what I felt most recently, I think it would be a lyric from the newest song, \u201cOrion.\u201d There\u2019s a line in the bridge that says:\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve carried this weight alone, all by yourself, I can tell \/ And through every path \/ Hey, don\u2019t you ever forget \/ That wherever you are \/ There\u2019s gonna be somebody who is always wishing you well.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n I received the demo for that song, and when I listened to it, the words, the lyrics, and the melody were just so gentle that they sank into my heart so deeply, to the point where I found myself crying alone to it in the early morning. When I first heard it, I really felt that when I eventually sang it, I absolutely couldn\u2019t let that warmth I felt slip away. I remember practicing the song while aiming for one of the gentlest, warmest voices I\u2019ve ever used for a YOASOBI song.<\/span><\/p>\n The song follows the story of the original novel that became the basis for \u201cOrion,\u201d and it includes words born from the relationship between Genji, Hanzo, and Kiriko, told from Kiriko\u2019s point of view. In choosing those words to weave the story into our music, I felt that Ayase captured not only Kiriko\u2019s feelings but also the feelings that each of the three has for one another. I sang it with the hope that the inspiration we received from this work, the words Ayase wove, and what I delivered as the singer would all reach people\u2019s ears, and that listeners might think, \u201cOh, I can receive words like that too.\u201d I wanted those words to become a message of encouragement, something that can gently push someone forward.<\/span><\/p>\n YOASOBI\u2019s North America tour dates<\/p>\n Your songs take inspiration from novels, but you\u2019ve also discussed in the past how visual expression also inspires you, including fashion. If you could choose a fashion garment or accessory to represent this album, what would you choose?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: My first instinct is to say earrings, because of the sparkling shooting stars on the album cover. Hmm, what else? Since <\/span>THE BOOK<\/span> series is coming to a close, this is a milestone work in a way, but it doesn\u2019t mean our activities as a duo are ending \u2014 it\u2019s actually almost like we\u2019re standing at the starting line all over again, getting ready to evolve even more. So I\u2019ll choose shoes to represent where we are right now. Shoes that look like you could run fast in them. Purple shoes.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n ikura: I\u2019ll choose a ring, in the sense that this album represents a circle, a loop. Across all the different original stories and all the different worlds in this album, there are several that touch on the bonds between people. So in the spirit of that everlasting connection, yes, I think it feels like a ring.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n You\u2019re about to perform at two music festivals and then go straight into your Never Ending Stories tour. What are you most looking forward to showing your fans during this tour?<\/span><\/p>\n Ayase: \u201cOrion\u201d is something we\u2019ve never performed live before, so we\u2019re really looking forward to that. There are also so many songs we\u2019ve never performed in the U.S. before, so we\u2019re definitely excited for people to see those.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n For our solo shows, we\u2019re planning and creating a pretty elaborate stage. There are a lot of elements of the production that will be first-time challenges for us too, so we\u2019re really looking forward to that. I think the people who come to the shows will get to experience a lot of surprises and excitement.<\/span><\/p>\n This is the last installation of THE BOOK albums. What message do you hope to leave with your listeners as you graduate from this series?<\/span><\/p>\n ikura: Though <\/span>THE BOOK<\/span> series is coming to a close, this is just a chapter of our continued journey; we\u2019ll continue to turn stories into music as we always have. But by naming this album \u201cfor,\u201d we not only wanted to include that concept of \u201cnovels into music\u201d but also hoped that the music would overlap with different moments in your own everyday life, and that it could become the story of your own life. Our lives are embedded here too. So with this fourth work, I hope people can feel that idea of the \u201cstory\u201d even more deeply.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Moving forward, we also want to take a fresh look at what \u201cstory\u201d means to us and examine the kind of framework YOASOBI has built up till now, to continue expressing ourselves in all different ways and push beyond the expectations people have of us. We hope you look forward to it.<\/span><\/p>\n Special thanks to Sacks & Co. for facilitating this interview and to Miyuki Watanabe for translation and interpretation. <\/span>THE BOOK for<\/span>, is available to listen to now <\/span>on streaming platforms<\/span><\/a>. Tickets for YOASOBI\u2019s Never Ending Stories tour are available <\/span>here<\/span><\/a>. You can follow YOASOBI on <\/span>Instagram<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n