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Don Dio wrote:Either my speakers at work are garbage, or this is a new radio rip copy than what we heard last week
01. Koisuru Universe (恋するユニバース; A Universe In Love)
02. Futari (ふたり; The Two of Us)
SCANDAL - Love songs to keep up with their first joint band tour
SCANDAL will be releasing their first ever digital-only single 「Koisuru Universe」 on 10/22.
The new songs 「Koisuru Universe」 (A Universe In Love) and 「Futari」 (The Two of Us) are songs written to match their first joint band tour starting on 10/6 and that will be held in Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka. The three bands joining them will be UNISON SQUARE GARDEN, 04 Limited Sazabys, and BLUE ENCOUNT, and it is a satisfying work that strikes in spirit and proficiency as an all-girl band with a career spanning 11 years.
SCANDAL, who completed their first 47 prefecture tour held between March and July, continue to maintain an offensive stance. We asked the quartet about their digital single that had been a challenge as well as their thoughts on their highly anticipated joint band tour.A 47 prefecture tour filled only with great things while going through 53 set lists
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──SCANDAL held its first 47 prefecture tour from March to July. Please tell us your thoughts about completing it.
HARUNA: It ended in no time at all, but it really felt like a success. We felt so moved when we came back to Tokyo's Toyosu PIT. It was the first time we had feelings we couldn't voice.
RINA: The smallest venue we played at has a capacity of about 200, and Toyosu PIT has a capacity of 3,000. The fluctuations in venues was about that much, so we again felt grateful that we get to play in large venues. There were also merits in small venues too.
MAMI: Each of them had their own merits. We also played a new live houses as well as live houses that have been around for many years, and the sounds differ at all of them. We really thought that we wouldn't understand things like that unless we actually went around each place with our own feet.
TOMOMI: We were also happy we got to go to the areas we hadn't played a solo live in before, which were Kochi, Saga, Gifu, and Miyazaki. What we were grateful for were that all of the shows were sold out, and that enthuastic audiences were waiting for us at each stop. It was great being able to confirm that spectacle with our own eyes.
──It sounds like you found new confidence as a band.
MAMI: It gave us confidence, and it was also tough for all of us. We did all 53 performances at a pace of one performance every two days, two every three days.
TOMOMI: Moreover, we would change every set list by looking at that day's mood and atmosphere of the audience who came to the venues in each area, meaning that we had 53 different set lists. That's why we were able to tour always feeling fresh, and I think we were able grow properly because of that.
MAMI: It was a 47 prefecture tour filled only with great things.Something that can be delivered to all quicker than a CD
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──After that you appeared at all kinds of summer festivals as well as celebrated your 11th anniversary on 8/21.
MAMI: It feels like we just celebrated our 10th anniversary the other day. Our 11th anniversary came in no time (laughs).
──That just means that you've continued to energetically do dense activities.
RINA: SCANDAL currently has quite a system of attack as a band. Just like when we had our sharp debut with plenty of spirit, and now that 11 years has passed, we strongly feel that we want to go on the offensive again. We believe that it's time to try things we couldn't do until now, and things that we now can do.
MAMI: We've had all kinds of modes during these 11 years, but we've come full circle and it's made us happy that we're used to these kinds of feelings. We're also grateful that we're able to be in an environment where we can actually do all kinds of things.
──I'm sure it's the same for your 47 prefecture tour, but I get the impression that you're boldly trying out new things. You'll soon be releasing 「Koisuru Universe」, your first digital-only single, in October and also holding your first joint band tour.
RINA: In regards to the single distribution, it doesn't mean that we absolutely had to do it that way. We love taking the time to make CDs, which I'm sure our fans understand. That's why, when we announced that it's a digital-only release, we got so many people saying, 「Ahー, I wanted a CD!」. Those responses made us really happy.
──In spite of that, what was the reason why you decided to go with a digital-only release?
RINA: We wanted our new song to be heard before our joint band tour. That's the biggest reason. Although the single will be out after the tour ends, the title track is sent out in advance. Since it's a song that we carefully made and put quite a bit of time into, we thought that something that can be delivered to all quicker than a CD would be best.
──I'm sure the fans will be happy with the members' decision. However, that must mean that you were working on production at the same time you were playing lives.
HARUNA: We were working throughout the entire tour.
MAMI: Yes. So, by saying that we're recording from what we recorded, we've been recording a bit recently.
RINA: Because we want to hurry and release our next album.
──When did you complete the two new songs 「Koisuru Universe」 and 「Futari」?
RINA: The rough draft of lyrics for 「Futari」 were done around summer of last year.
MAMI: The music was finished around the beginning of this year. 「Koisuru Universe」 was actively made during our 47 prefecture tour.
──Although they're two different types of songs, they both seem like they'll be great live.
TOMOMI: That's right. While we were playing a bunch of lives, we often talked about how 「It'd be great if we had a song that's a little faster and has explosiveness」. 「Koisuru Universe」 in particular was influenced by those feelings. Also, we really wanted to play both songs on our joint band tour, so they ended up having sounds that are likely to be great live.How should we keep up with UNISON SQUARE GARDEN, 04 Limited Sazabys, and BLUE ENCOUNT as an all-girl band
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──Both lyrics were written by RINA with music by MAMI.
MAMI: Songs from this combination have continued on recently (laughs). Both of them first started with the lyrics, and the music was added after that. Simple sounds were done by the four of us while centering on the image of songs that would be good live, but we made them while focusing on being able to properly feel the glitzinesses of them as songs.
──「Koisuru Universe」 certainly does have a glitziness to it.
MAMI: That's right. We did it to swiftly change the development, and we thought that expressing the "introduction, development, turn, and conclusion of love" in the lyrics with the melody and sound would be great. The image of it was born by being called out by the lyrics.
RINA: As for the lyrics, the words "a universe in love" were stowed away in my head, so it feels like the world expanded from there. It was like, 「What does "a universe in love" mean?」 (laughs).
──The lyrics and sound both brilliantly express the erupting inner thoughts of a girl in love.
RINA: We focused on lyrics and a melody that can only be expressed by a girl; we wanted to make a love song and a killer tune. For that too we had our joint band tour in October on our minds. We're playing shows together with UNISON SQUARE GARDEN, 04 Limited Sazabys, and BLUE ENCOUNT, three bands that focus on playing all sorts of festivals; we really thought about how we, as an all-girl band, should keep up with them.
──I see. That's why you're competing with a women's unique perspective and approach.
RINA: Yes. Is there no meaning to being an all-girl band if you're playing similar songs and similar rock as guy bands? That's why we again really thought about what kind of songs we as an all-girl band should be playing. Even if you take a look at the scene it seems that the correct answer hasn't found yet, so we also thought that we had to find it for ourselves. It took us quite a long time to make it because we had that type of challenge.
──It seems that that challenge was a success. It turned out to be a song that only the all-girl band SCANDAL could write.
RINA: I'm happy you say so, since we tried incorporating a number of challenges into it. It feels that the first and second verses are hard to remember and sing (laughs).
──The singing's so fast.
HARUNA: That's right (laughs).
RINA: However, the chorus is really catchy. That combination was another challenge for us.
TOMOMI: Soundwise, it's a big thing for us to use syncronization. Since the sounds are really only made by the four of us, it's possible to generate instantaneous power at our own timings during lives. We were able to achieve what we can do and must do while challenging ourselves to all sorts of things.
MAMI: I thoroughly played around on the guitar by supposing what we can properly reproduce live. We're taking full advantage of the equipment we have and are likely to produce a bunch of weird sounds (laughs).We thought that we should use the way that HARUNA sings 「kiss」 someday
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──Among rock expressions, a song with sweet nuances unique to women is also very good. It surprised me when I first listened to it, like, 「Who's singing this?」.
MAMI: Yes, that's true.
HARUNA: The enjoyment of singing lyrics I myself didn't write has really sprouted for me for past one or two years. I'm drawing out more and more new things by singing about and emotionally becoming all sorts of protagonists. I really felt that I could play around with my voice as this is a love song and song that has an interesting expansion. I'm also testing out how many people I can get to say 「Who's singing on this?」, so that kind of impression makes me happy (laughs).
──That 「kisu shite (kiss you)」 part is pretty great. That'll definitely make boys' hearts skip a beat.
MAMI: Because it's sly (laughs).
HARUNA: Ahahaha (laughs). RINA wrote it aiming for it to be received like that, so I responded properly with my singing.
RINA: Actually, before we recorded this song, I had HARUNA sing another song that had 「kiss」 in the provisional lyrics. The three of us took notice of the way HARUNA sung 「kiss」 at that time. That's why we thought that we should use 「kiss」 someday. That "someday" came along this time. So, 「kiss」 is included in both songs (laughs).
HARUNA: I didn't know everyone thought that. I'm hearing about it for the first time during this interview (laughs). But I'm glad I didn't know.
RINA: That's right (laughs). If you had known, you'd have been aware of it when singing 「kiss」.
HARUNA: Yeah. But since I know now, I'll be embarrassed singing it next time.
MAMI: Okay, then we can't use 「kiss」 anymore (laughs).
RINA: We'll hold off for a while (laughs).We studied instrumental songs and live performances for 「Futari」
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──「Futari」 is another love song. The lyrics that depict the excitement of being love is also linked to 「Koisuru Universe」, isn't it?
RINA: That's right. I too thought that the stories were linked after it was completed. They were made at different times, and I wasn't thinking of making two songs like that, but it seems that the love songs I wanted to release as a single unconsciously ended up as this one story. I was just thinking about making both of them happy and awesome love songs.
TOMOMI: We've done several love songs so far, but we also felt that we wanted to increase our range and increase our number of songs at this point in time. As a result, the two songs we made this time are different from what we've done so far; we really think that they're love songs that we needed to do right now. We think that all-girl bands should show multifacetality from the start, and should change steadily in line with the times while having a solid standard as their axis. So, we feel that there are also unique themes that emerge during various experiences as you age.
──It has a straight rock sound with a sense of speed. The guitar in the intro is very impressive.
RINA: We had always talked about wanting to have a song that starts from that sort of guitar intro.
MAMI: Yes. I had a rough image of it not being a cheerful song and tried out a slightly dubious atmosphere. I wanted to do things like play a melody as if a guitar was singing, and I also studied by listening to instrumental band songs and watching live performances. Of course, since we have vocals, I made it with particular attention while fine-tuning it keep its balance.
TOMOMI: This song has a fast tempo, so finger picking was pretty tough (laughs). I'm kind of unsure whether or not to use a pick to play it live.
MAMI: It's because it has a very grinding sound.
TOMOMI: You're right. We haven't done a grinding, stoic rock tune in a while. Now I'm looking forward to playing it live.
──The singing also has a stoic feel to it.
HARUNA: That's right. Rather than playing with notations, I thought it was better use my own straightforward singing voice. That's why recording went really fast (laughs).
──What about the 「kiss」 part?
HARUNA: How was it, I wonder? (laughs)
MAMI: Ah, it's really great too!
RINA: Thanks for the meal (laughs).SCANDAL's isolation is over
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──We need to ask about your joint band tour.
RINA: Right! We're really happy, since we're finally able to play joint band lives we had been wanting to do with three cool bands. Even though we had appeared at the same festivals, we had an inferiority complex, like, 「How are they different from us?」. We were tormented by feelings of loneliness, but when we asked them, everyone pleasantly jumped at the chance, saying 「I listen to SCANDAL's songs!」 and 「That seems really interesting!」.
MAMI: They're three bands that make really cool music, so we want our fans to see them. We got the OK from everyone most likely because we've been doing this for 11 years.
TOMOMI: Although we had always wanted to do joint band events, we had absolutely zero friends back in the day. We weren't invited to festivals either, nor were we featured in rock magazines or radio stations. So, we had only been playing solo lives that were as if we were building up our own "country."
──The gates of the country called SCANDAL are finally opening to the outside now.
RINA: Our isolation is over (laughs). No, but the gate's lock has been open all this time.
MAMI: That's right. It's like we thought that no one would knock on the gate, and we had been waiting forever about 1 cm next to the gate (laughs).
RINA: Well, looking back now, there were hardly any all-girl bands when we had our major label debut and it was hard to call out to others. We arbitrarily thought that we couldn't mingle with other bands. In that sense, it was very hard to enter through our gates (laughs).
HARUNA: We found this out by talking to the three bands, but it seems that everyone viewed us as a presence in a different scene from theirs in a good way. Knowing that, we had mutual respect for each other and were able to put together this joint band tour, so I can't wait for it. As we're all very close in age, these lives will turn out great!
By pre-ordering the entire single (1,000 yen), you get to download the title track "Koisuru Universe" right away, and will be able to download the other 3 songs when the single officially releases on October 22nd. Or, you can just buy "Koisuru Universe" for 250 yen. In order to do so:
■You're going to need an iTunes Japan account first of all, which is the most difficult part.
If you have an Apple device (iPhone, iPad, Mac), the easiest way to do so is to follow these directions (if you don't have an Apple device, this unfortunately will not work for you, as you need to be able to access Apple's App Store). If you don't have an Apple device or it's not working for you, the easiest way might be to have a shopping service such as FromJapan set up an account + buy the single for you.
■Once you have your iTunes Japan account, you'll need an iTunes Japan gift card to buy the single. Although some stores are sold out of 1,000 yen cards right now, some options include:
-SEA Gamer
-Japan Code Supply
-Japan Codes
■Once your gift card is purchased and you're e-mailed the code, redeem your code on your iTunes account and simply buy the single.
Also: It's possible that the single will be added to international iTunes stores after the release date and you can just buy it how you normally would on your own iTunes store.
It's region-locked to be streamed in Japan only, so in order to listen it you'll need to connect to a Japan VPN (here's a good one), sign up for a Spotify Japan account, log in to Spotify on the app or desktop program, and search for "SCANDAL 恋するユニバース".
"Koisuru Universe" is up on Amazon Japan to purchase as an mp3 download. This might or might not work, but if you decide to attempt it, make sure you read this first.
If you're willing to wait until release day, the single will then most likely be up for people to purchase worldwide. It is confirmed to at least be available on Amazon UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain on 10/22. Watch this page and/or sign up for e-mail alerts for new releases.
If all else fails, you can ask a shopping service such as FromJapan or Rinkya to buy it for you. Sign up for an account, go to their custom order page, explain what you want, and they should be able to get it for you.
Also: "Koisuru Universe" is also available to buy on other sites such as mysound, mora, or Recochoku (they're higher quality as well at 320kbps, compared to 256kbps on iTunes or Amazon). A shopping service will be able to get them for you. FLAC may also be available on Recochoku when the single is out.
The single is now up for pre-order on European iTunes stores. Not sure if the same thing applies for how to get it via iTunes Japan; you might only be able to get it if you can establish a European iTunes account.
Digital Single 「Koisuru Universe」
Out on 10/22 (Wed.) on various digital music distribution sites!
《Tracklisting》
1. Koisuru Universe (恋するユニバース; "A Universe In Love")
2. Futari (ふたり; "The Two of Us")
3. Kimi to Yoru to Namida (Billboard Live OSAKA 2017.08.21)
4. Koe (Billboard Live OSAKA 2017.08.21)
The song "Koisuru Universe" will be aired for the first time today, 9/21(Thu.) 21:00〜on FM802「ROCK KIDS 802 OCHIKEN Goes ON!!」!
On 10/22 (Sun.) we will be releasing our first digital-only single Koisuru Universe!!
The tracklisting will be announced at a later date, but in addition to the title song, one more new song + several live songs from yesterday's show at Billboard Live OSAKA are scheduled to be included! Look forward to it!
By the way, "Koisuru Universe" is a hard live number that you couldn't guess from the title. Coming soon!
On 10/22 (Sun.) we will be releasing our first digital-only single Koisuru Universe!!
The tracklisting will be announced at a later date, but in addition to the title song, one more new song + several live songs from yesterday's show at Billboard Live OSAKA are scheduled to be included! Look forward to it!
By the way, "Koisuru Universe" is a hard live number that you couldn't guess from the title. Coming soon!
By pre-ordering the entire single (1,000 yen), you get to download the title track "Koisuru Universe" right away, and will be able to download the other 3 songs when the single officially releases on October 22nd. Or, you can just buy "Koisuru Universe" for 250 yen. In order to do so:
■You're going to need an iTunes Japan account first of all, which is the most difficult part.
If you have an Apple device (iPhone, iPad, Mac), the easiest way to do so is to follow these directions (if you don't have an Apple device, this unfortunately will not work for you, as you need to be able to access Apple's App Store). If you don't have an Apple device or it's not working for you, the easiest way might be to have a shopping service such as FromJapan set up an account + buy the single for you.
■Once you have your iTunes Japan account, you'll need an iTunes Japan gift card to buy the single. Although some stores are sold out of 1,000 yen cards right now, some options include:
-SEA Gamer
-Japan Code Supply
-Japan Codes
■Once your gift card is purchased and you're e-mailed the code, redeem your code on your iTunes account and simply buy the single.
Also: It's possible that the single will be added to international iTunes stores after the release date and you can just buy it how you normally would on your own iTunes store.
It's region-locked to be streamed in Japan only, so in order to listen it you'll need to connect to a Japan VPN (here's a good one), sign up for a Spotify Japan account, log in to Spotify on the app or desktop program, and search for "SCANDAL 恋するユニバース".
"Koisuru Universe" is up on Amazon Japan to purchase as an mp3 download. This might or might not work, but if you decide to attempt it, make sure you read this first.
If you're willing to wait until release day, the single will then most likely be up for people to purchase worldwide. Watch this page and/or sign up for e-mail alerts for new releases.
If all else fails, you can ask a shopping service such as FromJapan or Rinkya to buy it for you. Sign up for an account, go to their custom order page, explain what you want, and they should be able to get it for you.
Also: "Koisuru Universe" is also available to buy on other sites such as mysound, mora, or Recochoku (they're higher quality as well at 320kbps, compared to 256kbps on iTunes or Amazon). A shopping service will be able to get them for you. FLAC may also be available on Recochoku when the single is out.
