X Japan’s Legendary Drummer and Pianist Yoshiki
Yoshiki Takes on the World with X Japan and his Solo Career
TJ: Tell me about the difference between performing in your YoshikiClassical World Tour and in an X Japan concert.YOSHIKI: Mentally and spiritually it’s the same. I give everything I have for both. With X Japan, the production is so big and I have three faces: drummer, pianist and producer. When I’m playing classical, I’m producing myself and I concentrate more as an artist.Classical music is kind of like a hobby for me that helps to keep me balanced. I have both a soft side and an aggressive side and I like doing both. The thing I like about classical concerts is they are very intimate. I can actually have a conversation with the audience during the show. I can tell my personal story, talk about how I’m feeling and even ask them questions like what song they want to hear. It’s almost like we’re sitting in a living room together. But during an X Japan show, all I can do is scream things like, “I can’t f**king hear you! Scream!”
TJ: When you tour several countries like this, do you choose one particular restaurant or place you want to visit while you’re in town?
YOSHIKI: I spent all my free time during the classical tour practicing, getting ready and composing. I’m always happy to see the airport, the fans, and the concert hall. But I’m pretty focused and devoted to putting everything into the concert. I did a little sightseeing but I’ll do more next time.
TJ: I understand during your classical tour you had only a day or two in each town, so it gives very little time for rehearsal.
YOSHIKI: Sometimes a day and sometimes just several hours. You have to be able to adapt to the situation. With X Japan at Tokyo Dome we had a huge resting area and a lot of space to get ready in. But sometimes on the world tour our luggage was larger than the dressing rooms and we wound up having to get changed in the hallway, but it was fine. We still did our best show.
TJ: I saw a video of you coming out of the airport in Mexico. There was a lobby filled with fans and police escorts for your cars. It was quite a welcome. How did it feel?
YOSHIKI: It was so nice. Last time when I went to Mexico with X Japan a lot of people came to the airport. So many people came that it got kind of crazy. The police wouldn’t let us exit through the main lobby and they took us out an emergency exit, so we didn’t have a chance to meet our fans. This time the fans must have spread the word through social networking to stay calm because they did a great job of remaining quiet until I arrived and I got to see them. So that was nice because last time with X Japan we missed the chance.
TJ: What do you miss the most when there are long periods between X Japan performances?YOSHIKI: Drama. Because X Japan has so much good and bad drama. My classical tour went pretty smoothly compared to the X Japan tour. There was some chaotic moments but nothing compared to X Japan. X Japan’s drama is not like normal drama. The best way to describe it is… you know when you’re in a car and you’re accelerating so fast so quickly that you’re in the red zone? Well, X Japan’s drama is beyond the red zone. Everything is always dramatic.
TJ: What was the most challenging part about performing at Madison Square Garden?YOSHIKI: Trying to finish everything in three hours because overtime is a big deal. We calculated the time. I had to look at a stopwatch.
TJ: I’ve never seen so many trucks for one band at a concert. There must have been about a dozen huge X Japan tractor-trailers carrying your equipment to Madison Square Garden. Why were there so many trucks?YOSHIKI: That’s because we brought a lot of equipment with an entire stage, a drum riser and everything.
TJ: What has been the most challenging part about keeping X Japan together?
YOSHIKI: Although each member is very different, they are very nice people. They’re not difficult so I don’t think it’s been such a challenge. They are the sweetest people in the world.
TJ: Tell me about the personalities of the members of X Japan.YOSHIKI: OK. Let me start with Toshi. We grew up together so I’ve known him since we were like four years old. He is very smart. Even though he did have to go through all those problems, he is one of the smartest people I’ve ever known. He’s an amazing vocalist. Originally, he was a guitar player in the band and then one time I asked him to sing and he had an amazing voice so he became the vocalist. It’s such a wonderful coincidence that we met the way we did in kindergarten. We were the first two to start the band. He’s warm-hearted, knowledgeable, outgoing but quiet (laughs) …an interesting combination! And he’s diligent.
TJ: What do you like the best about Toshi?
YOSHIKI: He’s smart. Also, he knows music. We can talk about the music score. How about this note? How about that note? That is rare in a rock band. If I say change that to A-flat instead of B-flat or add 13th on that or C or something, he just does it. He’s a dream vocalist for the producer.
TJ: What about PATA?
YOSHIKI: PATA… He’s one of the coolest rock and roll guitar players around. His lifestyle is very rock and roll. He doesn’t care about anything except his guitar. He drinks all the time. I’m a little bit worried about him, but he’s one of the sweetest people you will ever meet. He’s kind of like the mood maker. When HIDE and TAIJI were with us, we were very intense people. But PATA helped make everything smooth between us.
TJ: But he doesn’t talk very much in public?
YOSHIKI: Yeah, let him get drunk. He speaks more (laughs).
TJ: That’s the secret, huh? What about HEATH?
YOSHIKI: HEATH is also quiet. He’s smart as well. Very disciplined and also has a great style. He’s a great bass player.
TJ: How about SUGIZO?
YOSHIKI: Again, he’s very smart and I can talk to him musically as well. He was classically trained so I can talk with him in the language of music, which I love. “So this is a new song I want to arrange. Can you provide the voicing ? The music score?” And he can give me a music score. Although he’s the newest member to join the band, he joined us several years ago and I’ve known him for over 20 years. It feels like we’ve been playing together forever. SUGIZO is the only one who can replace… well, not replace, but play HIDE’s part. We never call it replacing HIDE because HIDE is still with us. He is in our heart. He is an amazing person. I’m so lucky to know Toshi, PATA, HEATH and, last but not least, SUGIZO. Without SUGIZO we couldn’t make X Japan happen.
TJ: So he was the right one to step in for HIDE?
YOSHIKI: I knew from the very beginning when X Japan reunited in 2008 that SUGIZO was the one. At the time he was a support member. Several friends of mine including Richard Fortus from Guns N’ Roses and Wes Borland from Limp Bizkit also supported us by coming to Japan and helping us with the show. SUGIZO was the main support member but I always knew he was going to join the band. After several shows I told him, “You should join the band.” But he didn’t say yes in the beginning. He kept saying, “I have to think.” It was hard for him to take HIDE’s position and there was a lot of pressure because he really cares about the fans’ feelings. He said, “What are the fans going to think? HIDE will always be X Japan’s guitarist. “And I said, “Yes, but you can be the sixth member of X Japan.”
TJ: What do you like the most about being in X Japan?
YOSHIKI: I don’t know. It’s hard to say. I feel like my body is made of X Japan. X Japan is not just a band. It’s a lifestyle or more like a spirit. It’s not just a musical group. People always talk about the relationship between the fans and the band. It’s something beyond just a relationship. My heart is made of X Japan.
TJ: What makes X Japan special for the fans? Why do they keep coming back?
YOSHIKI: I think we created X Japan together with our fans. When I started what we called X, we didn’t think it was going to be this big or that it was going to go in this direction. We started what we thought was a normal band but our fans joined us and we made X Japan together. That’s why we say, “We are X” We are still growing. Toshi and I started X Japan and then we just gave everything to it. We didn’t think, “If X Japan fails, we’re going to do something else.” It’s because of our dedication to the fans and their dedication to us that X Japan became something very special.
TJ: Can you tell us about Blood Red Dragon and your newest project with Stan Lee?YOSHIKI: Blood Red Dragon is an American comic book. Now we are creating an interactive digital format with new images. The direction has changed several times because although Stan Lee and I usually agree on a lot of things, there are several more production people involved. We showed several new images at New York Comic and Comikaze in Los Angeles. It’s such an honor for me to be working with Stan Lee. He’s such a cool person. We were recently on a panel together. He’s so smart, so sweet and so alert and everything. Unbelievable. A very good person. A legend. Icon! Whenever I go to lunch or dinner with him or when I’m just talking with him at his office, I’m thinking “I’m talking to Stan Lee!” It’s so cool to even be with him. So then, creating something with him? I’m one of the luckiest people in the world. I have the most amazing fans throughout the world and wonderful friends. When I’m talking with my fans, I have that same kind of feeling as when I’m with Stan Lee. I feel lucky and proud to know them.
TJ: How was playing against a hologram of yourself at the SXSW Festival?YOSHIKI: It was interesting but playing against Yoshiki is really a pain in the ass. I had to calculate every single second and remember how the hologram was going to perform as I played.
TJ: With your Violet UK project, Katie Fitzgerald’s voice blended beautifully with the pop and classical tunes. Did you write the lyrics?
YOSHIKI: Yes, I did.
TJ: Can you tell us about the new song, “Hero” and how that came about?
YOSHIKI: Well, I’ve known the people at Toei Animation for a long time. I think they let a composer go or something at the last minute, so they asked me if I could help create a song in a real short period of time. But at the time I was in the middle of preparing for the Yoshiki Classical World Tour and all I could think about was classical, classical, classical. I asked if it would be OK for me to compose a classical vibe ballad song for animation that has so much action. They thought it was an amazing idea, so I said, “OK, let me see if I can finish it before your deadline.” I did it within about a week. We even squeezed in a video shoot. I just didn’t sleep. I did it because not only Toei Animation has been a great friend of mine, but I’m also a big fan of Saint Seiya. It’s great animation, so it was an honor for me to be a part of it.
TJ: What other anime do you like?
YOSHIKI: I like NARUTO, BLEACH, ONE PIECE, DEATH NOTE and Attack on Titan.
TJ: Would you like to do a movie soundtrack in the future?
YOSHIKI: Yeah, I’d love to.
TJ: Can you tell us about the documentary they were filming at Madison Square Garden?
YOSHIKI: When people ask me about how X Japan happened and when I say a few things about X Japan, they say, “I can’t believe it.” It’s almost like it’s too sad or crazy to be true. You know our story-every single aspect of X Japan is like that. So, they are the ones who suggested we create our own film. It’s going to blow everyone away. It’s painful to go back and remember every single situation, but I think it’s worth it. We are working on it and hopefully we can show something late-2015. The producer of Searching for Sugar Man is producing it. Also, Stephen Kijak, who recently directed the Rolling Stones film joined. So, it’s going to be amazing. I would like all of our fans to watch and feel that they are part of our history. They’re the ones who supported us to spread the word throughout the world. “Nothing is impossible” so let’s keep on spreading the word. I, or should I saw we, exist, because of you, X Japan fans.
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