There was a short interview of Rides In ReVellion in July's Cure V-splash magazine.
Q: Rides In ReVellion will soon be celebrating its 1st anniversary. Looking back, could you tell us more about the things that have left a deep impression on you?
Nagisa: Wow that felt really quick! But that suggests we’ve been really productive in that time.
KuRo: Besides Nagisa the 3 of us have been together since our previous band. Nagisa joined us later and although we had just met him then, we went on tour together and got on really well. We agreed that there would now be one more person joining us in doing what the 3 of us had been doing up till then. So this has been “a year of promises.”
TaJI: At first there were only 3 of us at our karishidou live [*a “demo” event where new bands perform prior to the live at which they formally begin activities]. To be frank at that point in time we were still unsure which direction this band would be going in. In spite of that we were determined to do our best, and do better than other bands. When Nagisa joined us everything became clear. For me this has been a year that has really taught me plenty of things. We filmed our first PV, pressed our first CD, made our first costumes—there were lots of first times. So this has also been a year where we were able to get through all of these as one.
Ame: Before this I haven’t formally been in a band, so this was the first time I really put my heart and soul into a band. I’ve always wondered why I've become a musician, and it wasn’t until I began playing in this band that I finally realized what I wanted to aim for. It feels like I’ve finally found my own dream.
Q: So there were only 3 of you when you began activities. What was the reason you started without a bassist?
TaJI: Actually before formally starting activities we had played with some other bandmen, however we eventually decided that owing to musical differences etc. it wouldn’t be the best idea to form a band together. Then we tried searching for other potential members, but in the end we began with just the 3 of us. We thought, let’s just try doing this first and become a band that others would want to join!
KuRo: And that happened. After 2 or 3 lives, Nagisa came.
TaJI: When we met up in the studio afterwards, I was surprised. He was such a great fit for us!
KuRo: Indeed it felt like he fits right in.
Q: Alright! Would all of you take turns to describe the person next to you?
Ame: TaJI is our leader. I’ve known him for a long time and he really does things at his own pace. Of course that can be both a good and a bad thing. To begin with, he’s always slow when eating. For a steak that the we can finish in 15 minutes, he takes an hour.
TaJI: When I've realized it’s always already too late (lol).
Ame: He will be like “I’m still only halfway through!” (lol). And by the way this was exactly what happened at our meal just now. But on the other hand when it comes to music he manages things really well. He’s a leader who knows when to move up a gear and when to slow down.
TaJI: I believe Kuro is someone who works extremely hard. Ok at least that’s what I think (lol), although I don’t have any evidence for it. So I'll say he’s probably someone who works hard, and he’s really sincere. When people give him suggestions like “I think it’s better if you sing in this way” or “I think the stage will look better if you do it this way,” he will reply “oh that’s right” and take their feedback seriously. If he can absorb everything that's beneficial for him and discard what's unnecessary, he will surely grow and become an even better vocalist in the shortest time.
KuRo: I will work hard on that. As for Nagisa, I’ve only known him for a year, but he’s extremely easy to get along with. When he first met us, we realized that we’re actually quite similar and we were even able to open our hearts to one another. He also always takes the initiative to become closer to us—he’s just really sweet.
Nagisa: That makes me so happy. And for Ame-chan, his drumming is really precise, so much so that when I first heard it I thought it was listening to programmed drumming. As a bassist, I know that it’s easy to pick up drums if you set your mind to it. But even though he’s really accurate and detailed with his drumming, he’s a scatterbrain and he'll be like “hmm where did this thing of mine go?” at least once a day. You always find him wondering where he had left his handphone, or his wallet, etc.
Ame: Yup I did drop my wallet. And that was right after I'd lost my watch...
Q: Did you leave them behind somewhere?
Ame: I always remove my watch when I’m drumming, so I probably left it at the livehouse.
Nagisa: I think he expended all his "ability points" to focus on his drumming.
Ame: I’m not sure if that’s supposed to be a compliment...
Nagisa: As a drummer he’s amazing, but as a person he needs some work! *everyone laughs*
Q: Turning to the topic of your 3rd single “Seirios” which will be released on 7/28—who wrote the song?
TaJI: I composed the song and Kuro wrote the lyrics.
Q: What kind of song is it?
TaJI: When I left my hometown and came to Osaka I started living alone for the very first time. The first melody that came to mind then was the one I used for the chorus of “Seirios.” I’ve incorporated that melody into my songwriting a few times before, but I wanted to use it once more at a time that’s a turning point for Rides In ReVellion.
KuRo: Lyrics-wise, “Seirios” refers to the star Sirius. It’s a unique and mysterious star—one that’s thought to possess the power to control the world. With that in mind I imagined that the star is looking down at me, but it’s also the object I want to grasp one day. So the star symbolizes a goal that I ultimately want to reach.
Ame: I’ve been working with TaJI for a long time so I’m familiar with that melody. To use it at a point that’s the band’s first anniversary—I find that really meaningful. As for our music, the concept of our band is “harmonized time paradox,” so...
KuRo: that means, to resolve the contradictions in time. In other words we want to become a band that write songs which fuse the good old melodies of the past with a modern sound.
Ame: For this single I personally think we've put out really striking tracks, so I hope fans can listen to it without being held back by their prejudices against the digital sound, etc.
Q: On the same day as the release date of “Seirios” you will also be holding your first one-man live at OSAKA MUSE?
Ame: This will be our first one-man. We don’t know how many people will be coming to see us—but we’re only interested in giving a great performance to those who do. So please come!
TaJI: I want to put on lives that can move people. I'm confident that we’ll be able to give an energetic performance of all the songs we have at our one-man, and hopefully everyone will be fully absorbed by our last song.
KuRo: As a 1st anniversary one-man, this live will be the culmination of everything we've done for this entire year. And because it’s marks the juncture between the Rides In ReVellion from our 1st year and the Rides and ReVellion that will be moving into a new year, we want to demonstrate both what we’ve been doing hitherto and what we'll be doing henceforth.
Nagisa: I think this will be the biggest live up till now for all of us because it’s important for so many reasons, and not to mention we’re all motivated to do well. Just now TaJI mentioned lives that move people—I actually cry really easily so I’m wondering if I’ll end up crying halfway through the live...
KuRo: Please come to our one-man live if you want to see Nagisa’s tears!
Nagisa: That will increase the number of people by 100 (lol) We definitely want to make it a success.
Q: Any final message to our readers?
Nagisa: I’m not too good with words, but please continue to support me as well as Rides In ReVellion.
KuRo: Soon we’ll be holding our 1st anniversary one-man at Osaka MUSE. Following that, please look forward to the Rides In ReVellion that will be waiting for you in future.
TaJI: If you’ve read all the way until this point it means that you’re at least interested enough in us to read our entire interview. So I hope you can listen to our music and come to our lives. Do continue to support us.
Ame: There’s our 1st anniversary one-man but I think there will also be different avenues to get into us. You might have become interested because you saw us on Youtube, or because you happened to catch us on Twitter—it doesn’t really matter. Please just come have fun at our live if that's the case.
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