Interview with Kei

Guitarist Kei is probably best known for his work in Kannivalism, but now he has gone solo. Such a move is a big transition, and JaME chats with Kei about his new solo career and how the process of creating music has become different for him.

Unfortunately for the Kannivalism fans eager to learn about the band's future, we were not given the opportunity to ask any questions about Kannivalism.


First of all, thank you very much for granting us this interview and we would like to congratulate you with the release of your first solo album. For our readers that aren't familiar with you yet, could you please introduce yourself?

Kei: I'm Kei. I debuted as a solo artist in November 2008, and have released two singles and one album so far.

Compared to working as a band, are there many differences for you when composing and producing songs?

Kei: It is quite different as I do almost everything by myself.

Within six months you have released two singles and an album. How did you come up with all the songs in such a short period of time? Have you been working on them for longer?

Kei: I made songs to some extent around the summer of 2008, and there are songs which I created while I was recording.

Do you have any special message to transmit through your songs? Do you focus your songs on certain themes?

Kei: If I dare to say it, it's love. My theme is electronica, but I try to make my original music by using the method of sound collage.

A number of your songs evolve in a dreamy, ambient sound, full of electronic elements. How do you come up with these kinds of sounds?

Kei: I've wanted to do this for some time, and I might be influenced because I listen to music a lot.

Next to a dreamy sound, we find many various styles in your music. How do you determine what sort of song you will compose, and how do the lyrics relate feeling of the music?

Kei: It's my inspiration.

Your first album Silk Tree was released on March 4. Can you tell us a little about how it was created?

Kei: Basically, I made it together with the engineer.

Did you have a specific concept in mind before you started on the album?

Kei: I intended to make the kind of music that no one has made before.

The limited contents of Silk Tree also have an interview with its producer, a bonus remix CD and a lot more. Why did you decide to include these in the whole package?

Kei: About the remixes, there were some people I have worked with before and I wanted to work with them again, so I asked them. As for the DVD, I wanted people to understand my work.

You participated in the Over the Edge 2008 live event on New Year's Eve, in which you performed covers with a session band. How did you experience this unusual live performance?

Kei: It felt fresh to me, seeing as it's been a while since I've played live.

Do you have any plans to play solo lives as well?

Kei: Right now I have no plans, but I would really like to do so.

Your promotional videos are very unique and very entertaining to view. Can you tell us something about the creation of these and do you also take part in the designing process?

Kei: I explained my images to the video director, and we arranged again and again and worked it out. About the design, I asked the designer whom I work with for artwork on things such as my CD jackets, to join in.

The CD artwork is also very impressive and exotic, how did you come up with those? Why did you decide to put them free for download on your official website?

Kei: It's based on the image of the songs. Because we could make a good design, I thought it would be nice if it would be possible to download it.

You've been in various bands and have started a solo career already. When you just started your music career, did you expect yourself to be where you stand now?

Kei: I had never imagined to be singing by myself.

What plans do you have for the near future? Can we perhaps expect more releases from you?

Kei: I haven't determined anything yet, but I want to challenge a variety of things.

Lastly, please give a message for our readers.

Kei: I made an effort on everything, including artwork and of course music, so I'm happy if many people get my CD and listen to it.

Thank you very much for the interview!


JaME would like to thank Kei, his management and Avex Entertainment Inc. for this interview.