BAND-MAID has attracted a fanbase of devout hard rock fans by playing heavy music while wearing maid uniforms. On Sept. 21, they released a new EP, Unleash, and this month, they’re launching their U.S. tour.
They took some time out of their busy schedule for an interview with Hideyuki Mori for Billboard Japan.
It seems things have been looking really good for the band lately. Your new UP, Unleash, really embodies BAND-AID’s mood. The eight songs on the EP are just bursting with your new resolve, right?
MIKU Kobato: That’s right, po. You might even say it just spilled out.
KANAMI, as the main songwriter, what kind of emotion did you pour into these new songs?
KANAMI: ……the pent-up anger that’s always building up in me?
Kobato: Haha!
SAIKI: The pent-up frustration that came from not being able to perform because of COVID, right?
KANAMI: Yeah, exactly. I always try to take advantage of the frustration and annoyance I feel. When I’m frustrated or annoyed, the songs I write have an extra edge. I think you can hear that in the guitar lines of our songs.
SAIKI: We also wanted a song with the feel of past BAND-MAID songs, like “DOMINATION,” “Choose me,” and “Moratorium,” so she wrote one. The fifth song, “I’ll,” was written to feel like the kind of music we played a lot when we debuted, and there’s some interplay between me and Kobato. But, that said, our sound has evolved, and it’s definitely a modern BAND-MAID song.
KANAMI: Right. Even if I try to make a song like our older songs, the finished song doesn’t come out the same. I think that’s proof that our music is constantly moving forward.
MISA, what approach did you try to use when you created your bass lines?
MISA: Whenever I got a demo from KANAMI, I would immediately start thinking about the bass line, and usually I’d have written it by the end of the day. Sometimes when I played it for KANAMI, she’d come back with some requests. When that happened, I needed some time to think about it, but generally speaking it wasn’t a difficult process.
AKANE, what’s your approach when it comes to drumming?
AKANE: During COVID, when we weren’t able to perform, I practiced really hard every day, focusing on the basics. We recorded the songs on the EP after this period of intense practice, and listening to the new EP, I can really hear how my hard work paid off. For example, in songs with tempo changes, like the second song, “Balance,” I can hear the progress I’ve made in my drumming.
Another big change is that SAIKI is now also credited as a lyricist. So, SAIKI, you’ve discovered how fun writing lyrics can be?
SAIKI: Eh, it’s OK. [Laughs] When I wrote the words to “Corallium,” I was happy to get all that feedback from fans, and I think the gap between my own lyrics and Kobato’s has had a good influence on the band, so I plan to keep writing lyrics. I guess it’ll depend on the song.
The lyrics to “HATE?” which is just seething with anger, are wonderful. I think you’re the only one who could have written them.
SAIKI: When I wrote the words to that song, I was really pissed off at the kind of person who cheats on their partner. [Laughs] That was the emotional state that I used when I wrote “HATE?”
Kobato: You wanted to use the expression “I hate you,” po.
SAIKI: Yeah. It feels good rolling off the tongue, so I wanted to have it repeated through the song. When I write lyrics, I focus on how the words feel to sing. [Laughs]
MISA: Kobato’s lyrics are intellectual, or a little philosophical, but SAIKI’s lyrics are emotional and really direct, which is great.
I think the power in the new EP is really embodied by the first single, which you’ve already released, titled “Unleash!!!!!” Just from the title alone, you can feel how much of the BAND-MAID spirit has been poured into it.
Kobato: That’s right, po. When we made the EP, the last song we recorded was “Unleash!!!!!” When I heard the demo, I knew that this was perfect as the title track. It was like the last part had clicked into place.
MISA: When we were recording the song, we heard that an anime music video would be created for it. That’s why we used a bit of a different sound than normal, so it would linger on in your head when accompanied by the video. We changed our approach a bit and went with a more aggressive sound. I used a lot of glissandos in the bass line, too.
You mentioned the music video for the song, and I have to say, it’s amazing. It’s an anime that tells the story of BAND-MAID saving the world.
SAIKI: It came out really beautifully. I think if you watch it, you’ll get a good idea of who we are.
Kobato: It’s kind of like a self-introduction music video, po. We all love it, po.
AKANE: I’ve always been an anime fan, so my dream has been to make an anime music video for BAND-MAID. I wanted to see us depicted as 2D characters. I’m just so happy to see that dream come true.
Following this release, you’ve got your long-awaited U.S. tour in October, right?
AKANE: We’re finally going!
Kobato: Our plans were dashed over and over by COVID. This will be our first U.S. tour in about three years!
KANAMI: We’ll be holding three OKYU-JI a week, and sometimes even as much as five times a week. It’s going to be hectic. I’d been wanting to put on a lot of OKYU-JIs, so I’m really amped.
SAIKI: And we’re going to be kicking off the tour with California’s AFTERSHOCK FES, which is incredible. This tour is going to be such a positive for our band.
Kobato: I can’t even imagine what we’ll be like by the end of the tour, po. Whenever we tour overseas, we come back stronger — we grow as a band. So I’m really looking forward to it.
KANAMI: We’re going to come back to Japan all macho. [Laughs]
A lot of the shows immediately sold out, right? Your overseas fans are really dying to see you.
KANAMI: Apparently, our Chicago OKYU-JI sold out in just ten minutes. Thanks, masters and princesses!
SAIKI: There was also one city where the venue was suddenly upgraded, and additional OKYU-JIs have been added.
Kobato: Right. There’s just been so much that we never expected, po. When they say that we’re looking at a total combined attendance of 20,000 masters and princesses…it’s just impossible to imagine, po.
The audiences over there are free to cheer and shout, too.
Kobato: That’s right-po. So I think the OKYU-JI are going to have a different feel than the ones in Japan.
MISA: We plan to take good care of our health, including avoiding COVID, so we can play every OKYU-JI on the tour.
AKANE: You said it. Playing through the whole tour is another major goal.
MISA: With a tour schedule this packed, if we drink too much one day we could find ourselves with hangovers during the next OKYU-JI, so we’ll have to watch out for that. I’ll make sure only to drink during the OKYU-JI. [Laughs]
This interview by Hideyuki Mori first appeared on Billboard Japan.
