Shortly after the lively pop-punk trio arrived in the UK, Naoko spoke with JaME before the band's concert in Brighton, England.
Shortly before Shonen Knife’s European tour finale, we spoke with Naoko in English about the band's new drummer, their favourite things about Europe and their adventurous beginnings.
As you have almost reached your tour finale, do you have any special memories about your time on tour?
Naoko: We have a very interesting story. We flew from London to Valencia to start our travels in Spain, and a Spanish driver came to the airport and tried to take us to the hotel, but he got lost and it took two hours to arrive at the hotel! But the actual distance was supposed to be 30 minutes by car. So, then at the show he drank beer and he became dangerous, and we didn’t want to go back in his car, so we fired him.
What is your favourite thing about touring overseas?
Naoko: Of course, food. We like to eat delicious food and everything in Europe is very delicious.
Are there any other countries that you want to perform in?
Naoko: France. Last year we played in Paris, France, but this time we didn’t have a chance to play there. We would like to play in France!
A new drummer has joined Shonen Knife since the last time we interviewed you; how did you decide Emi should join the band?
Naoko: Well, our former drummer wanted to retire and take a rest, so we asked Emi, our new drummer, to join. She liked Shonen Knife and she knew a lot about Shonen Knife, so she’s doing very well.
You have said on a number of occasions that you write lyrics about every day events. Why do you think this is an important thing to write about?
Naoko: Many musicians are singing about love, but I’m too ashamed to sing about love, and that’s why I picked everyday events and food.
What are you most proud of out of your time in Shonen Knife?
Naoko: I’m just really proud when our audience looks happy. I feel very happy and I’m proud.
Where do you see yourselves in five years time? Would you like to try different styles of music?
Naoko: We hope to keep playing, touring and making very interesting CDs. I hope many people are having fun with Shonen Knife.
Japanese music has gained a lot of popularity since you started. How do you feel knowing you were at the very beginning of this movement?
Naoko: Nowadays it’s very easy to go outside of Japan because there is the Internet, and the price of flights is not as expensive as before. When Shonen Knife started to play outside of Japan, we only had snail mail, regular mail, and so it was very difficult to go abroad, but we had many good supporters. They helped us so we could play overseas, and it was a bit of an adventure, but I think it was good that we started to play overseas from the beginning.
What do you think of the current generation of Japanese music fans?
Naoko: Basically I don’t listen to Japanese bands, I am influenced by American or British rock music, so I don’t know much about that.
Naoko - you have a daughter, does she also like music?
Naoko: Yes, but she doesn’t like rock music. Her favourite rock band is always Shonen Knife and she usually likes to listen to classical music.
If you weren't involved in music, what other profession would you consider?
Naoko: If I had enough ability, I would like to be a professional tennis player.
Finally, could you please give a message to our readers?
Naoko: Please enjoy our European album release Super Group. We would like to go to play in France soon and we already have an English version of our latest album Free Time. It will be coming soon, maybe this autumn, and I hope you enjoy Shonen Knife.
JaME would like to thank George Gargan and Janice Li from Damnably for making this interview possible
