WOWOW 30th Anniversary Anime "Eien no 831" Special Edition Part 3] Interview with angela, singer of the theme song "Hitohira no Mirai" for the anime "Eien no 831" - Aiming for a song that takes the seasons of the work world one step further.

WOWOWOW's original new feature-length anime "Eternal 831" directed by Kenji Kamiyama will be broadcast on WOWOW on January 30, 2022.

The film is a commemorative work for the 30th anniversary of the opening of WOWOW, and is a completely original new work with a script by Kamiyama himself. It is a work based on a certain supernatural ability, and its content directly reflects the stagnant times and real social conditions.

Akiba Research Institute is featuring "Eternal 831" in this issue! We will be presenting a series of interviews with the cast and theme song artists.

In the third installment of the interview series, angela, who sings the theme song "Hitohira no Mirai," appears. In the film, 30 years of stagnation in Japan is depicted as one of the motifs, and angela started his music career in 1993. However, angela started their music career in 1993. They are artists who are still living in the present day, in the era that is the theme of the film.

What messages did they receive from this work and how did they reflect them in their music?

angela looks back on the past 30 years

───How did you feel about being in charge of the theme song for "Eternal 831"?

atsuko: This time, I was approached by a different director from the one who is usually in charge at King Record. The previous work I had done with him was the theme song for a super gag anime, so I was surprised that he would ask us to do the song for such a hardcore work like "Eternal 831". I was surprised that he remembered the existence of angela through this work (laugh).

KATSU: I was also surprised that the title "Eternal 831" was not a gag anime and that it was not likely to be reincarnated in another world (laughs). (Laughs.) So I started by finding out what kind of work it was. I had an image of "Ghost in the Shell" when I thought of Kenji Kamiyama's (director/scriptwriter) work, so at first I thought it would be a hard science fiction work, but it turned out to be a crime suspense.

───What was your impression when you read the script?

KATSU I read it while thinking about what kind of message Mr. Kenji Kamiyama was trying to convey, and I thought it was an amazing work because it had a lot of links to the current social situation and the situation Japan is in now. I thought it was an amazing piece of work, so "interesting" is not the only word I would use to describe it. The story was highly polished, and the entertainment was so exciting that I couldn't help but sympathize with the work. I also had a chance to see a preliminary video, and I felt that the way Suzushiro's feelings were carefully portrayed in the film was very thoughtful.

atsuko: I think that people close to the protagonist's age can relate to this film, but from my perspective as an adult, I felt that the theme of this film is the problems that have been stagnating the Japanese economy and society for the past 20 or 30 years. From the perspective of an adult, I sympathize with the theme, and I strongly felt that it is a problem that cannot be solved in this way.

Atsuko

─ What kind of image did you have of director Kenji Kamiyama's work?

atsuko: "Eternal 831" was my first Kamiyama film. I was able to enter the work in a flat way, and I think that may have been a good thing. This work made me realize that he has a very strong message. I got the impression that he did not force his message on us, but rather raised an issue and gave us an opportunity to think about it.

KATSU For me, the "Ghost in the Shell" series was a big part of my life, and I started watching the series because I was fascinated by the music created by Ms. Yoko Kanno. I am very much looking forward to seeing what director Kenji Kamiyama, who worked on such a work, will express in a different work.

─ One of the themes of the film is the stagnation of the times over the past 30 years. Having experienced it in real time, what is your impression of the post-Heisei era?

atsuko: I graduated from high school about 30 years ago and moved to Tokyo. Just like Suzushiro-kun. I have been working with KATSU and angela for about 29 years since then, so I have been working with angela since before Suzushiro and Kanoerana, who is in charge of the opening theme, were born (laughs). But even I had a time when I came to Tokyo to become a singer, and of course I couldn't become a singer right away, so I had to work part-time. What amazes me is that the hourly wage I made working part-time when I was about 20 years old and the hourly wage at family restaurants and izakayas today are almost the same. Japan is a country where the cost of living is low, but things that are in demand worldwide are expensive, and I really think that this makes it hard for today's young people to enjoy their lives.

KATSU atsuko, are you going to run for office?

atsuko I think they can't dream.

KATSU When I was a child, I couldn't imagine a future where I would carry around a phone. There was a story in "Kochikame" about a future where people would come out of train stations making phone calls, but I didn't believe that at all. I really enjoy this time when new tools come out, and new cultures come and go, such as 2chan, Nico Nico Douga, and so on, as the Internet becomes more and more widespread. So when a new culture emerges, it is also a time to think about what comes next.

KATSU

How to move the season from summer to spring with the theme song

───Please tell us about the creation of the music for "Hitohirara no Mirai" and the inspiration you received from the work.

KATSU atsuko read the script first and suggested this kind of song to me. My first idea was to make it simpler, like a country or blues song, with just one guitar, and I thought it would fit the world. I was thinking of a specific singer's name, like Suzanne Vega. I read the script in one sitting and wondered how I could complete the story with a song. I thought that "Eternal 831," or August 31st, would require a change of seasons. I was always thinking about how to bring the song to the point where the season changes and Suzushirou-kun takes a step forward. I also wanted to put the atmosphere of Suzushirou doing newspaper delivery around Waseda in the music.

atsuko: I have a habit of writing all the lyrics when I read the script (laughs). (Laughs.) So this time, too, I repeatedly corrected the parts that Mr. KATSU said I was explaining too much. When I read the scenario, the scenery that came to mind was very beautiful, so I wanted the lyrics to evoke that kind of scene. I worked with KATSU to create an arrangement that would make the audience feel as if the scene had changed through the music.

KATSU──Did you communicate with director Kamiyama?

KATSU: The current lyrics are different from the first ones. At first, they were a bit darker, with a hazy feeling of adolescence. The director asked me to rewrite the lyrics in a way that showed a bright future, so I rewrote them. Considering that image and the fact that 831 is a change of season from the end of summer, I wanted the chorus to have a spring feeling.

atsuko: I was asked to write positive lyrics, so I decided to write the lyrics as far as taking a step forward in the song, so I decided to write it! I decided to write it down.

───What was the thought or image behind the title "Hitohira no Mirai"?

atsuko: I don't think a bright future will come one day out of the blue. I think the future will change by taking a step forward and changing the present. In the chorus of the song, I used the phrase "dancing cherry blossoms." Cherry blossom petals are fluttering in the air, and there are many of them. There are as many futures as there are petals, and I wanted the song to convey the feeling of a single petal of the future, so I chose that part of the song as the title.

KATSU I leave the title to atsuko, and I have seen her genius inspiration many times. I have seen her genius inspiration many times, so I have full confidence in the title.

KATSU──There is an ability to stop time in your work, but is there a time when you wish to stop time, or what you would like to do if you could stop time?

atsuko When you have a big tub of sushi at a dinner party with some important people, isn't it difficult to get the expensive-looking ingredients?

KATSU What are you talking about (laughs)? (laughs). It is hard to get the expensive items, isn't it?

atsuko It is difficult to take the sea urchin, salmon roe, and toro, but I am told to eat what I like. You might think it would be better to eat the kappamaki first. At those times, I would like to stop time and quickly eat what I want to eat!　Oh, the otoro is gone before I know it, or was it two pieces from the beginning? I wonder if there were two pieces in the beginning.

KATSU The ability to stop time is something that should not be given to men!　I'm not good at being rushed. I may look like a tardy character, but in my own way, I am in a hurry. That's why I think it would be useful when I feel like I'm going to be late.

─ ─ angela is also preparing for its 30th anniversary. Please tell us about your current state of mind and future prospects.

KATSU angela calls ourselves ani-son-ya, but when we debuted, there was not such an ani-son boom, and I don't think there were as many people who were attracted to it as there are now. So I think the environment surrounding ani-song today is an asset and a treasure. It is difficult to travel to and from the world with Corona now, but I think there are many people overseas who are looking forward to Kamiyama's new work, "Eternal 831," and as angela, we would like to create something like that for the next 10 to 20 years to send out to the world. I think the future of angela is to pass on the world of anime songs created by Ichiro Mizuki and Miyako Horie to the new generation.

atsuko Even after 18 or 19 years, I still don't know what the right answer is, and every time I write a song, I struggle and fight. But even in such a situation, times change, and what is required and what trends are changing. Do we follow the trends or do we change? We are always thinking about this. We are grateful to know that they are still offering us the opportunity to create new entertainment, and we cannot betray them. I am more prepared for this, and to be honest, I am scared, but I would like to evolve and change in my own way as an angela.

─ ─ Finally, do you have a message for the fans who are looking forward to "Eternal 831"?

atsuko I think this is a work that makes you think about many things from an adult's point of view. I think that no matter how old you are, you can have dreams and start something new. It is not about living in the moment, but about the power to question the present and take action to grab hold of what you believe in. I hope that people will feel that when they see this work.

KATSU: I believe that the music helps the world that Mr. Kamiyama expresses in the work "Eternal 831". I think the real theme of this work is how people who see it feel about it, so I would like people to see it without any preconceptions. I think the charm of this work is that there is something that will surely stick with people living in this country called Japan today. I would be happy if you could share what you feel after watching it. It is a work with that much message.