Interview with FAKE? at AnimeNEXT
interview - 20.06.2009 11:26
author: Jess
JaME met up with the man behind FAKE?, KEN, for an insightful interview before the concert.
© FAKE? - Kathy Chee
Having been nearly a year since their last live, FAKE? not only dazzled Japanese audiences with an intense concert earlier this June but also stepped outside of Japan for their American debut at the convention AnimeNEXT 2009 held in New Jersey. Before the concert, JaME received the opportunity to talk to the man behind FAKE?, KEN.
Thank you for meeting with us. Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
KEN: No problem! I'm KEN from FAKE?, vocals.
Have you got to see anything interesting yet at the convention?
KEN: We saw the stalls a little bit, that's about it. Tomorrow, I think we'll be able to walk around and see a few more things. I've been able to see all the costumes, though.
What do you think about them?
KEN: It's really cool! I like it! There are a bunch of people in the hotel too that are all dressed up. I've always liked that, even in Tokyo and everywhere. I really like people watching.
Are you yourself into anime at all?
KEN: I don't really know much about it, to be honest. (laughs) But to everyone else in the band, it's the culture, you know. I was raised in England until I was eighteen, so I don't know much about it. I used to have all these different robots and stuff like that. Some relatives would send them to me and all my friends would think they were cool, so they'd get stolen. (laughs) But that's about it. If you were to ask me what my favorite manga was, I'd probably say something really like... not cool. (laughs) Something really too popular or something.
What would you say?
KEN: I don't know. What would I say...? (thinks) No... I don't know. (laughs)
The song Pulse was featured as the opening theme for the anime "Onmyou Taisenki." How did that come about?
KEN: That was just offered to us. Apparently, the anime company that gave us the offer had heard our stuff. A lot of it is really speedy and pretty catchy, so some of it is really good for that kind of tie-in thing, so they offered and I was like: 'Okay, how about this one?' and they said: 'Yeah, perfect!'
How do you feel about Japanese music and culture gaining popularity overseas? Did you know about the growing interest?
KEN: I think it's great. I think it's not just Japanese culture that's becoming really border-less. I guess it's mostly because of the internet, but also I guess maybe it's a generation thing as well. I think it's just really cool because until recently, it was just really Europe and America that were really dominating everything. Like I said, when I was young, I would have all these little toys and everyone would think they were really cool, or I'd have a couple of shows on video and my friends would come over and be like: 'What the hell is this? This is so cool!' I always thought: 'Wow, everyone thinks this is really cool, it's not just me!' so it's really great to see Japanese culture getting what it deserves. Not just Japan, though. I think that everywhere is becoming really border-less, and that's how it should be, you know?
Your show on June 2nd seemed pretty crazy!
KEN: Yeah!
Were things really falling off the racks in the store under the venue?
KEN: Yeah! They'd never seen that before! I thought that probably happens every week but no, it was the first time!
Did any other crazy things happen?
KEN: Well, in the store underneath, the racks were banging against the windows and all the noodles and magazines were falling off the shelves! I got told to tell the crowd to chill out, which I've NEVER done before (laughs) and never want to do again! The more I told them to chill out, the more they went crazy, so...it didn't do any good anyway. It was a pretty crazy show! We were kind of only doing it as a warm up, so to get that reaction and selling out, it was great.
Could you tell us about the demo track you handed out there? Does it have a title that you could share with us?
KEN: Yeah, the song was called BUZZ, but that was just because it was a demo, I didn't really think about it, you know. (laughs) It was just a level one in terms of being a really basic demo. I just wanted to give something because I've been away from FAKE?. I haven't really been away because I have OBLIVION DUST, but because I've been away from FAKE?. I just wanted to do something special. Handing out demos is not really...unless you really worked on your demos, it's not something an artist really usually wants to do, but you know, I thought it would be kind of nice to just show them how it might change. Because we're about to do the album, the song might be on it and we know it's going to change in terms of style. So I wanted to show them this is how it usually starts off, and when it becomes an album, this is the way it'll turns out. Kind of that and also just having our own label, we can get away with doing things like that.
Could you tell us about the new album that's coming up?
KEN: Well... I don't know how it's going to turn out, but it's going to be good. I've written twenty-five new songs. If someone told me to make two albums, I'd feel comfortable doing it with the twenty-five that I have, so from there, we have to kind of bring it down to ten, which means I know it's going to be a good album. I don't know how it's going to turn out, like in terms of style or genre, because we're going to be messing around in the studio, but it should be good!
Do you have any expectations for the concert tonight?
KEN: No, I'm just looking forward to it!
When did you start writing music and what got you interested in it?
KEN: I just really liked music from when I was young. What got me interested in it?
Yeah!
KEN: "The Muppet Show."
Really?
KEN: Yeah! That kind of stuff. I loved all that stuff, "The Muppet Show" and just listening to music from that. That's probably it, yeah, my inspiration - "The Muppet Show," The Muppets, Animal the drummer (mimics Animal's drumming and laughs) stuff like that. I really liked music from when I was younger and then I turned into a rock musician. I don't know if that's the way it's supposed to be but...
(laughs) Did you ever see yourself becoming a rock musician?
KEN: I didn't even think I was going to become a musician when I was eighteen! (laughs) I just go with the flow, so...
What did you think you were going to be?
KEN: I don't know. (laughs) I had no idea, I didn't really have any goals. I went to Japan just to see what's it was like because I'm half Japanese, but I never knew that culture, so I just went to Japan and then I realized I was in a band, signed. I've been doing it ever since!
When you write song lyrics, do you decide before hand what language they'll be in, or does it just come as you write?
KEN: No, it goes with the music and the flow. It's about language and the language flow. Each language has a flow, Japanese and English are completely different. If the music isn't asking for it, I don't try to fit whatever language it's not asking for. Most of my stuff that I write, it asks for English. That's just the way it is, it just fits better. I've tried to force it before when I'm writing but it doesn't work. But when a song is asking for Japanese, I have no problem with it. It's not like I go out of my way to write in English, though it's easier.
Is it easier because of the sound?
KEN: It's easier because I have a bigger range of vocabulary with English because Japanese is my second language.
What quality does FAKE? have that other bands don't?
KEN: Ooh... (thinks) Well, we're unique. I don't know why we are, but everyone says we're unique. I don't really follow the rules, so maybe that's why. It's like a solo band, but it's not, it's a band. I treat it like a band but when it comes down to it, yeah it is me, it's just me, I'm the leader. But I don't know, it's really weird, it's unique. It's more of a band than other bands sometimes, you know?
In your blog, you mentioned the movie "Zeitgeist" that centers around the human value system. What made you want to watch something like that?
KEN: Because I just like reading into all these weird things. I like alien stories, I like conspiracies, I like occult things. I don't necessarily believe everything, but I just like it because it gives me perspective and gives me tools for lyrics and ideas. It's just lots of people out there and lots of weird people out there with great imaginations. Some are true. I like to try to believe everything. I try to be open minded. I don't necessarily say no just because I don't think it's true; I try to keep an open mind. It helps my lyrics, like almost 'studying' to write. Also, with all the alien stuff, yeah some of it can be really hard to sell but the overall message that they have is like: 'Yeah man, we should all love each other,' which is a really positive message. It's not really about governments covering this up or whatever, it's like: 'Hey, we've got to come together as the world.' It's not about race, religion or whatever, it's not about that. I just think that's really special and cool and that's why I like listening to and watching lectures. I just like that stuff, you know, especially if it's positive.
Now that you have freedom in your own label, is there any direction in particular you wanted to take FAKE??
KEN: No direction is the direction I want to take!
Reflecting back on the changes FAKE? have gone through since formation, how would you say you've grown?
KEN: As FAKE?
Or even personally.
KEN: I don't know... I guess I've changed, I don't know if I've grown. (laughs) Just changed. Just followed along, gone up stream or down stream or whatever stream that I've been on. I've kept moving. I don't know if it's sometimes good or bad, maybe, I don't know. We'll find out! It's like, as long as when I'm seventy, I can look back and be proud of what I did, I'm happy.
Since you're still doing work with OBLIVION DUST, what kind of future plans do you have with FAKE??
KEN: Basically to do the album. Hopefully, this will be the first in a bunch of international stuff. We want to get this thing out!
Where else would you want to go?
KEN: Everywhere. Not just Japan, not just the States either; Europe, Asia; if they invite us anywhere, I'll go anywhere!
Lastly, please give a message to your fans.
KEN: Look forward to the album! I hope it's going to be good. Hopefully, we'll be back again! Thank you!
JaME would like to thank Harry Lo, JhouseRock Ent., AnimeNEXT, and FAKE? for making this interview possible. Photos by Kathy Chee from Fundy Photographics.
Thank you for meeting with us. Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
KEN: No problem! I'm KEN from FAKE?, vocals.
Have you got to see anything interesting yet at the convention?
KEN: We saw the stalls a little bit, that's about it. Tomorrow, I think we'll be able to walk around and see a few more things. I've been able to see all the costumes, though.
What do you think about them?
KEN: It's really cool! I like it! There are a bunch of people in the hotel too that are all dressed up. I've always liked that, even in Tokyo and everywhere. I really like people watching.
Are you yourself into anime at all?
KEN: I don't really know much about it, to be honest. (laughs) But to everyone else in the band, it's the culture, you know. I was raised in England until I was eighteen, so I don't know much about it. I used to have all these different robots and stuff like that. Some relatives would send them to me and all my friends would think they were cool, so they'd get stolen. (laughs) But that's about it. If you were to ask me what my favorite manga was, I'd probably say something really like... not cool. (laughs) Something really too popular or something.
What would you say?
KEN: I don't know. What would I say...? (thinks) No... I don't know. (laughs)
The song Pulse was featured as the opening theme for the anime "Onmyou Taisenki." How did that come about?
KEN: That was just offered to us. Apparently, the anime company that gave us the offer had heard our stuff. A lot of it is really speedy and pretty catchy, so some of it is really good for that kind of tie-in thing, so they offered and I was like: 'Okay, how about this one?' and they said: 'Yeah, perfect!'
How do you feel about Japanese music and culture gaining popularity overseas? Did you know about the growing interest?
KEN: I think it's great. I think it's not just Japanese culture that's becoming really border-less. I guess it's mostly because of the internet, but also I guess maybe it's a generation thing as well. I think it's just really cool because until recently, it was just really Europe and America that were really dominating everything. Like I said, when I was young, I would have all these little toys and everyone would think they were really cool, or I'd have a couple of shows on video and my friends would come over and be like: 'What the hell is this? This is so cool!' I always thought: 'Wow, everyone thinks this is really cool, it's not just me!' so it's really great to see Japanese culture getting what it deserves. Not just Japan, though. I think that everywhere is becoming really border-less, and that's how it should be, you know?
Your show on June 2nd seemed pretty crazy!
KEN: Yeah!
Were things really falling off the racks in the store under the venue?
KEN: Yeah! They'd never seen that before! I thought that probably happens every week but no, it was the first time!
Did any other crazy things happen?
KEN: Well, in the store underneath, the racks were banging against the windows and all the noodles and magazines were falling off the shelves! I got told to tell the crowd to chill out, which I've NEVER done before (laughs) and never want to do again! The more I told them to chill out, the more they went crazy, so...it didn't do any good anyway. It was a pretty crazy show! We were kind of only doing it as a warm up, so to get that reaction and selling out, it was great.
Could you tell us about the demo track you handed out there? Does it have a title that you could share with us?
KEN: Yeah, the song was called BUZZ, but that was just because it was a demo, I didn't really think about it, you know. (laughs) It was just a level one in terms of being a really basic demo. I just wanted to give something because I've been away from FAKE?. I haven't really been away because I have OBLIVION DUST, but because I've been away from FAKE?. I just wanted to do something special. Handing out demos is not really...unless you really worked on your demos, it's not something an artist really usually wants to do, but you know, I thought it would be kind of nice to just show them how it might change. Because we're about to do the album, the song might be on it and we know it's going to change in terms of style. So I wanted to show them this is how it usually starts off, and when it becomes an album, this is the way it'll turns out. Kind of that and also just having our own label, we can get away with doing things like that.
Could you tell us about the new album that's coming up?
KEN: Well... I don't know how it's going to turn out, but it's going to be good. I've written twenty-five new songs. If someone told me to make two albums, I'd feel comfortable doing it with the twenty-five that I have, so from there, we have to kind of bring it down to ten, which means I know it's going to be a good album. I don't know how it's going to turn out, like in terms of style or genre, because we're going to be messing around in the studio, but it should be good!
Do you have any expectations for the concert tonight?
KEN: No, I'm just looking forward to it!
When did you start writing music and what got you interested in it?
KEN: I just really liked music from when I was young. What got me interested in it?
Yeah!
KEN: "The Muppet Show."
Really?
KEN: Yeah! That kind of stuff. I loved all that stuff, "The Muppet Show" and just listening to music from that. That's probably it, yeah, my inspiration - "The Muppet Show," The Muppets, Animal the drummer (mimics Animal's drumming and laughs) stuff like that. I really liked music from when I was younger and then I turned into a rock musician. I don't know if that's the way it's supposed to be but...
(laughs) Did you ever see yourself becoming a rock musician?
KEN: I didn't even think I was going to become a musician when I was eighteen! (laughs) I just go with the flow, so...
What did you think you were going to be?
KEN: I don't know. (laughs) I had no idea, I didn't really have any goals. I went to Japan just to see what's it was like because I'm half Japanese, but I never knew that culture, so I just went to Japan and then I realized I was in a band, signed. I've been doing it ever since!
When you write song lyrics, do you decide before hand what language they'll be in, or does it just come as you write?
KEN: No, it goes with the music and the flow. It's about language and the language flow. Each language has a flow, Japanese and English are completely different. If the music isn't asking for it, I don't try to fit whatever language it's not asking for. Most of my stuff that I write, it asks for English. That's just the way it is, it just fits better. I've tried to force it before when I'm writing but it doesn't work. But when a song is asking for Japanese, I have no problem with it. It's not like I go out of my way to write in English, though it's easier.
Is it easier because of the sound?
KEN: It's easier because I have a bigger range of vocabulary with English because Japanese is my second language.
What quality does FAKE? have that other bands don't?
KEN: Ooh... (thinks) Well, we're unique. I don't know why we are, but everyone says we're unique. I don't really follow the rules, so maybe that's why. It's like a solo band, but it's not, it's a band. I treat it like a band but when it comes down to it, yeah it is me, it's just me, I'm the leader. But I don't know, it's really weird, it's unique. It's more of a band than other bands sometimes, you know?
In your blog, you mentioned the movie "Zeitgeist" that centers around the human value system. What made you want to watch something like that?
KEN: Because I just like reading into all these weird things. I like alien stories, I like conspiracies, I like occult things. I don't necessarily believe everything, but I just like it because it gives me perspective and gives me tools for lyrics and ideas. It's just lots of people out there and lots of weird people out there with great imaginations. Some are true. I like to try to believe everything. I try to be open minded. I don't necessarily say no just because I don't think it's true; I try to keep an open mind. It helps my lyrics, like almost 'studying' to write. Also, with all the alien stuff, yeah some of it can be really hard to sell but the overall message that they have is like: 'Yeah man, we should all love each other,' which is a really positive message. It's not really about governments covering this up or whatever, it's like: 'Hey, we've got to come together as the world.' It's not about race, religion or whatever, it's not about that. I just think that's really special and cool and that's why I like listening to and watching lectures. I just like that stuff, you know, especially if it's positive.
Now that you have freedom in your own label, is there any direction in particular you wanted to take FAKE??
KEN: No direction is the direction I want to take!
Reflecting back on the changes FAKE? have gone through since formation, how would you say you've grown?
KEN: As FAKE?
Or even personally.
KEN: I don't know... I guess I've changed, I don't know if I've grown. (laughs) Just changed. Just followed along, gone up stream or down stream or whatever stream that I've been on. I've kept moving. I don't know if it's sometimes good or bad, maybe, I don't know. We'll find out! It's like, as long as when I'm seventy, I can look back and be proud of what I did, I'm happy.
Since you're still doing work with OBLIVION DUST, what kind of future plans do you have with FAKE??
KEN: Basically to do the album. Hopefully, this will be the first in a bunch of international stuff. We want to get this thing out!
Where else would you want to go?
KEN: Everywhere. Not just Japan, not just the States either; Europe, Asia; if they invite us anywhere, I'll go anywhere!
Lastly, please give a message to your fans.
KEN: Look forward to the album! I hope it's going to be good. Hopefully, we'll be back again! Thank you!
JaME would like to thank Harry Lo, JhouseRock Ent., AnimeNEXT, and FAKE? for making this interview possible. Photos by Kathy Chee from Fundy Photographics.
