――But don’t you think that things like lyrics have a greater tendency to change?
I: It’s not about writing because I want to write, but instead, I write because something took shape in my mind. Like a landscape or an event; whatever comes to mind, wins.
――Are there instances where you listen to an old song and feel that you probably wouldn’t be able to do the same thing in the present?
I: I think I was attuned to whatever was specific to each era, so I probably chose whatever fit best. But given the way my lyrics are, they won’t really give the impression that they’re dated, so I think they’re relatable even now. I don’t think it’s weird even if we take them out to play in this manner, right?
H: With titles like, Matsu Uta (待つ歌 / Waiting), Shizumitai (沈みたい / I Wish To Sink). Amazing. huh?
I: Matsu Uta just happened to turn out like that, though. It’s a waiting song, so it’s an alias, like, “Let’s do a song about waiting”. When I said that, Chikada Haruo-san said, Matsu Uta as a title is good. So, then, I decided we’ll name it Matsu Uta.
H: And because that’s our debut single, right? It only gets even more messed up from there. Shizumitai was a peculiar one too, wasn’t it? People would ask what’s Shizumitai supposed to mean? But now it’s intriguing. Back then, the only thought I had was, “Are there no cooler-sounding song names?”
I: Because all of us were rebellious, weren’t we? Sticking to what defined rock to us and all that. That’s why things were difficult, back then. We’d butt heads over that, you know? But I also think if we didn’t have those conflicts, then we wouldn’t be here now, anyway. I think it was very important that we fought right there and then while in the midst of production.
H: Production is fun now, isn’t it?
I: We still have conflicts on occasion but those are good conflicts, you know? This album is the product of conflicts but these days, we are capable of taking it normally so it’s good, isn’t it?
H: We’re all really thankful that we can release this at this time.
I: We’re thankful, and we’re just glad. In this album, we arranged the songs as if we were putting together a setlist for a live performance. Like, it’ll sound so good if this song came after this one. And I think that’s the most impressive thing about this album.
H: Arranging them, it felt like we could put on about three whole shows just like that.
――And who came up with the album name?
I: When we were having drinks, I suggested, “What about 20 Seiki?”
H: He likes T-REX and all, so he initially proposed titles like 20th Century Boy. Saying, “20 Seiki Shounen (20世紀少年 / 20th Century Boy) is a great name, isn’t it?” “Don’t you think it’s a good idea to have 20 Seiki come after Bessekai?”
――It sounds really odd when I hear it like this. We’ve already been in the 21st century for quite some time now, haven’t we? And yet it doesn’t feel dated.
I: Exactly. It’s like saying what you’re currently hearing is what we did in the 20th Century (20 Seiki). And it’d be great if that’s the impression it gives people. Because I think that’s the way we meant for it to be.
――It’s a wonder why it doesn’t feel old though, isn’t it?
I: Because we don’t pander to trends (wry smile). We couldn’t keep up to whatever was trendy. And that turned out to be our fortune (lol).
H: These songs were angled for the band, so simply put, we weren’t sellable (wry smile), but now, that’s a good thing, isn’t it? If any one [of our works] turned out to rake in the cash, then I think everything would start revolving around it, or we’d never remove ourselves from it. After all this time, I think that’s good for us.
――I believe there are a lot of people who would be happy to hear it.
I: Because the album itself is interesting, isn’t it?
――Have you been called unorthodox¹ since your reunion?
H: These days, the world is filled with unorthodox things, so. What we do is legitimate, isn’t it?
I: Basically saying, in the end, we were right (lol).
――I’m sure you’d like for everyone to listen to this best-of collection and enjoy your live performances even more than ever.
H: And we’ve got a pretty tight schedule for the rest of this year, don’t we?
I: We’ll start producing our next album soon.
――Very ambitious! We’ll look forward to it.