Within the past year,
HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR has undergone several changes resulting in a new beginning. Despite the many changes, they have stayed strong and continued to push forward. In this interview, the band discusses their origins, the introduction of their new female vocalist, along with their new sound on their latest album,
swamp man.
How was the band name decided? Why "HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR"?
YUSUKE: "HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR" -- that came from us looking up English words in a dictionary. We thought it sounded good. In Japan, our fans call us "Haikara." It sounds the same as an old Japanese word that means "westernized" or "cool," so please try it.
How has the band's style changed since you began?
YUSUKE: Initially we really liked the heavy sound, and that's changed to a faster sound, but still heavy. We didn't start with twin vocals, but once we started doing that, we figured out how to make it our own.
KAZUTO: Before we formed
HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR, we -- the five guys -- had a hard rock band. We did
Metallica and
System of a Down covers.
Would you ever play those songs in a live show?
SASSY: One time, we played
Enter Sandman for a fan-only event, and
Kazuto sang it. The fans got really excited!
HALCA, what did you think about HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR before your audition?
HALCA: I really didn't know the band so much before I joined, but I heard about the audition, so I listened to their music to prepare.
Was it a hard audition?
HALCA: I was so nervous at the audition that I kept forgetting the lyrics! But they helped me through it.
HALCA is the band's newest member. What drew the guys of HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR to HALCA?
MEG: She has a really good rock voice, and a rock'n'roll personality. That's a good fit for us.
Please tell us more about your newest album, swamp man
. What song was the most challenging to complete?
MEG:
7.2 was the most challenging on this album; it was the hardest to nail down the exact feeling. It was originally written for our prior vocalist, and the groove was different. We changed it to fit our new sound and
HALCA's voice, and
HALCA's style really fits it perfectly. I think it turned out even better.
Even though HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR has already shown a heavier side, why did you choose to focus on that style with the new album?
mACKAz: This album is definitely heavy. As we said before,
HALCA's voice is very strong, dark, and powerful -- and when she joined the band, that influenced the direction.
How does that new sound connect to the images on the jacket art, like the large skull for instance?
SASSY: For
swamp man's album jacket, we chose an artist and then the artist listened to all the songs on the album. Based on his feeling about the music, he came up with this design. He felt the album had a strong, hard rock feeling, so that's what led him to this image.
Now with a new HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR (new band member and new style), what are your hopes for this tour?
YUSUKE: This is the first time for
HALCA to be with us in a one-man show. It's a new feeling for the group, and we're excited to see the fan reaction. We're also looking forward to the delicious food at the after-parties!
mACKAz: We've been rehearsing constantly. We've had two weeks of rehearsal just for this tour, but even before that we've been keeping regular rehearsals. Now that
HALCA is part of the group, we want to keep things strong.
MEG: The one-man tour is five shows, then after that we're going to team up with some other bands and do about 20 more dates this year.
Please give a message to our JaME readers.
YUSUKE: I think that the fans who have been listening to us for a long time, they'll be thinking of their past experiences with
HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR while they're listening to
swamp man. And maybe the new fans are only imagining this as a first album… But since we made both the old and new music, we think either way is fine. I would like this album to be a connection between us and our fans whether it's the first time or a return to our music. I want them to know the new
HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR and not just the old. Expect more from
HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR in the future!
JaME would like to thank HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR and JapanFiles for making this interview possible.
Interview translated by JapanFiles. Support the artist! HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR’s new album swamp man
is available at JapanFiles.com.
