黒曜日(KUROYOUBI) – Self-liner-notes 

Last month, JROCKNROLL published an interview with KUROYOUBI(黒曜日), in which we introduced you to what kind of band they are. This time we would like to introduce KUROYOUBI’s 1st mini-album “黒ノ断片(Kuro NO Danpen)”, which is available digitally from today, September 30th. 

■ Congratulations on the release of your first mini-album “黒ノ断片(Kuro NO Danpen)”. Could you please introduce this release to everyone?

Hazuki: Thank you very much.
This 1st mini-album is a collection of songs I created before forming KUROYOUBI, just before the pandemic. Around that time, various lyrics and melodies came to my mind one after another and so, a bunch of those songs received their final shape. How I imagined my worldview back then with writing those songs, we also formed KUROYOUBI. Because there was already a base to create a mini-album, this release also could be released much faster than usual.

CRAY: A “Fragment“ is our primary focus. When you have one fragment, it means that there are other fragments around as well. Among those fragments, we selected different types of songs. Every song has their own type and is different, but I would like to emphasize on “especially“. Any song has a different type of “tune“, so it’s like you can listen to them without getting tired of hearing the same tunes repeatedly. I will talk about this in more detail later on…
I also have to mention this; in our previous band “VI“, we played mostly songs I wrote. This time it’s mainly Hazuki’s. So this mini-album focuses on the “lyrics“.

■ Could you tell us more about the production and recording?

Hazuki: In chronological order, “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)” and “ACID” were produced and recorded after the other songs. 
When I create a song, I usually roughly create a melody with a piano and a synthesizer. After that I add depth to it with a guitar, bass and drums. 
Regarding our song “detoxicant“, except for the chorus, the melody was mostly just drums and piano arpeggios. The version I gave to CRAY felt more like a tentative version, however CRAY added some amazing guitar riffs to it which totally matched the sound and made the feeling very much like a “band sound“. I really felt surprised how amazing it turned out. 
For the song “Gravity“ it was originally written by me alone, but CRAY loved it so much that we went ahead with the production together.
In terms of the whole arrangement, we discussed a lot together about what we thought was missing and how something could be rearranged. 

CRAY: The recording was done in my private studio as usual. We finished recording the other songs last year. The songs have a different aspect than “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)” . I don’t think what you feel will change over time, because if it felt good back then it will stay feeling good even now. However, quality and recording techniques and equipment are constantly improving. So, I have kept that in my mind while recording and editing our songs back then, because it still should sound good as well, quality wise. The final mix and mastering was done by a professional entrusted engineer, who also has a third-party perspective, who can help us fit our music to the musical taste of many people around the world.

■ How was the reaction to the music video for “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)”? How did you feel about it? Were you surprised by the global reaction?

Hazuki: I felt thrilled to see that so many people around the world watched our MV. When we released our MV I felt confident that we received so many positive reactions, so I didn’t feel that surprised. 

■ The MV of “ACID” was released on September 16th. Could you please tell us more details about this song and the shooting?

Songwise:
Hazuki: The original song was composed by CRAY, however the chorus and melody were lacking something, so we reworked those parts together various times. After all, we decided to include two choruses and a different melody for each of them.

CRAY: Until now, we didn’t have a song with a sense of speed before. However, since “speedy“ songs are popular nowadays, you shouldn’t forget to add your own color as well, otherwise you would be drowned away. We also added two types of choruses, which are new for us as well. Also, I haven’t heard many songs having this.
Besides that, it was also hard to choose only one of them, so why not? We chose both. After all, it really fits the song and works out.
Doesn’t the song feel so uplifting? It’s good to listen to when you want to feel refreshed, isn’t it?!

Shooting:
Hazuki: We had a very tight shooting schedule. But our shooting producer and cameraman organized everything well, so we could shoot everything smoothly. I really enjoyed it.

CRAY: To shoot this video we didn’t have more time than “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)“, but we recorded a nice-looking video. It was really cool, because the shooting location was so huge. “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)” was mainly focused on Hazuki, but this time I’m also more in the picture. On this day we also recorded the “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)“ bloody scene, which was very exhausting. “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)“ was also more easy because there were only a few scenes. (lol). I didn’t stand on the stage for a long time, so my intuition on how to look cool was dulled, but that was a break and in some ways also a good thing. After all, I gained lots of experience, which leads me to our next steps.

About costumes:
Hazuki: As I mentioned before, most of the songs were created before the pandemic, so I wanted to express my worldview, which I felt during that time. And the costumes we are wearing now are the shape I wanted to convey. However, it was my first time creating such a costume, so there were some things I didn’t know how to convey my message the best.
Anyway, a thing I really wanted to be particular about was about using a fabric which has a strong “black“ colour. Because of creating our costumes, I have gained lots of experiences and I hope to continue our unique world together with all those experiences.

CRAY: The same as “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)”. But this time my hairstyle was cooler.

About guitar composition: (By CRAY)
As for the guitar, I used a “Stratocaster” for the first time. It’s a modern Stratocaster which I bought at the end of last year. It’s a single coil, so the sound doesn’t last as long as a humbucker.
Where I wanted more sustenance, I increased distortion. There is a lot of distortion here, and there is a little distortion here. Until now, I’ve used humbuckers with both 6 and 7 strings, so it was quite difficult to do it with a single coil. I haven’t been able to show the true value of a Stratocaster yet, but I could create a wonderful sound which feels like ACID. That might stay an issue for the future songs as well.
Anyway, for solos I always use a pedal from the brand Crybaby. When it comes to playing, the key point is to not match the score exactly. These days songs match perfectly, but for a solo it’s better to play it as natural as possible, which gives a nuance to the song that it is way more satisfying to listen to. It’s good to never fix the feeling of the bends of the vibrato-feeling.
Keeping myself to those points, I was able to record a satisfying solo. Also, this solo feels cool and is easy to play, so I hope other guitarists will copy it. For those who are interested and if there are enough requests, I am even willing to create an explanation video. 

■ Could you tell us more about the lyric videos?

CRAY: I’m in charge of the sound so I leave lyric videos and MV to Hazuki’s own wishes.
Among all the videos,” Scarlet dystopia” is my favourite.
“Gravity” is created by a different creator, so it’s okay if you don’t like it, but I like the end of the video a lot.
“Detoxicant” is also great because it matches the song.
They are our first original song lyric videos, so we are curious about what people think of those lyric videos.  

■ Please explain each song of 黒ノ断片(Kuro NO Danpen)
About the lyrics: (by Hazuki)
My experience leading up to “KUROYOUBI” was by no means half-hearted.
However, even in the midst of my hardships,  I always lived with the thought that all my experiences of life can be of tremendous value if they are “shaped into expressions” and become the material of creating a song.
There was also lots of darkness in my heart and I also had the frustration and irritation of not being accepted because of prejudice for a long time. 
The lyrics of this mini-album mainly reflect that background.
I want people to take a step forward by singing and putting all their feelings of depression directly into the songs. That’s how I feel about it. Although I was confident in receiving lots of positive response to our “深紅アクアリウム(Shinku Aquarium)” MV video, I received more comments than I even had imagined and that gives me the feeling of being happy that I’m doing music. It really makes me grateful for such environment in which I am able to deliver my songs to people who are touched and happy with such songs.

『Scarlet dystopia』 While you are alive, there are traps such as betrayal, hatred and jealousy. I wrote these lyrics because there are many sensitive and gentle people passively, without realizing it, closing their own feelings and getting hurt, feeling totally broken and are unable to move forward. 

『深紅アクアリウム』(Shinku Aquarium) If you watch the MV you know it’s impossible to describe it in words, because the lyrics are mainly expressed in unison with the video.

『detoxicant』As the name suggests, it is an antidote. It is an expression to detoxify a poisoned heart.

『ACID』Who decides what is “correct” and “where” you can go? It’s only you, who “should” and “can” can choose for yourself.

『Gravity』The point of the lyrics is “several selves inside of me”.

About the song: (by Hazuki)
『VINe』VINe is an instrumental track. Usually I am the chief writer of instrumental songs.
Instrumental tracks are the glue that holds the whole mini-album together.
I want you to listen to it with good quality headphones/set.
If you do, then you will be able to give attention to every detail which I’ve put into this track.
With our instrumental tracks, I want to transport you to another world. This track is just a fragment of that, and we plan to create more such songs in the future. We already have a few ready to be released someday. 

『Scarlet dystopia』This song was created by CRAY. When I listened to the track and after I added my lyrics to it, the song felt “very good“. There is a part in the middle of the song where the song changes drastically. That part was hard to record. 

『深紅アクアリウム』The beginning of the chorus, “誰にも(Darenimo),” was recorded with so much care, that I will be able to sing it for the rest of my life with the same feelings.
I was also particular about the piano dissonance in the first half of the song. The “unusual voice” of the lyrical line “覚めない夢(Samenai Yume)” was sung with a whistle voice feeling.

『Gravity』The original song was written by me.
I created the song with an eye toward creating a dramatic composition. The song itself leaps off at the beginning, and the flow of the song is that you gradually get into the song. The main-point of the lyrics is “several selves inside of me“.
CRAY’s arrangement of the song expanded the song even more.

『detoxicant』The original song was written by me.
The lyrics and melody of this song came to me at the same time after the rough background music was completed, and I recorded a tentative song as it was. I was very particular about the way the song ends.

About the Guitar part: (By CRAY)
『VINe』 It’s an instrumental track. This instrumental track has a mystical atmosphere, so I played distorted guitars in unison where I wanted them to appear. The guitar is heavy, as Hazuki requested. That is the juicy distortion inside, which is the key point.

『Scarlet dystopia』The loud sound of my unison guitar gives it a cool feeling. In addition, there are also some colourful guitar sound effects, just right before the chorus starts, etc.
I use “Crybaby” and “WHAMMY” pedals at key points. I almost never use pedals other than these two. Both brands are my favourite. Basically, CRAY sounds are processed with plug-ins for reverb, delay, and modulation.
Talking about playing… It was difficult for me to down-pick the notes for the A melody.
Also, it feels good to be able to play while muting the B melody. The hardest part is in the middle of the song. It would be easier if I simply chopped on a sixteen-tone beat, but then it would be even harder because then I also had to down-pick notes.

『深紅アクアリウム』The unison guitar gives the song a weighty and dark feeling, and the chorus is heavy with a low note on one side and a little delicate with a high note on the other side. After intertwining the chorus with the guitar notes, I achieved subtlety and heaviness.
This doesn’t work well for many songs, so I had to pay attention to it well, but I had been able to create a unique feeling by mixing it together.
The falsetto part of the chorus is a crunchy clean guitar, which adds colour to the atmosphere.
The transition back to the heavy guitar is dramatic and never gets old-fashioned.
As for the solo, this is actually a solo that Hazuki came up with.
This is a good example of what happens when a guitarist plays a solo that was created originally as a MIDI track. I harmonized it by giving it a rough, not too tightly feeling.
I used a rear pickup to create the squeal at the end of the solo, which made it difficult to play that part the same way.
I’m happy with the way the chokes match the atmosphere, or rather, they create the atmosphere.

『detoxicant』 The guitar part is added to enhance the song. I applied a tremolo to the clean tones to express the wavering effect. I put a tremolo on it and connect it to the next part of the song. In the B melody, the L note is played first, then the R note is played next. I kept it simple and did not unnecessarily pile up notes. The key to the A melody and B melody is the tremolo.
In the chorus, I use distortion to bring out the emotion.
The solo is played with a tasteful and mature, clean tone. It feels great when I play it.
It’s an easy song to play, so it’s all about how you play it with genuine feelings.
When playing the solo guitar part, you can make the typical “guitar solo face-expression” easy.
Backing is played with the “delay” method.

『Gravity』I didn’t want to disturb the singing part. So, I play the song by cutting and delaying, but it is also to enhance the song. The first half of the solo is the same as the solo that Hazuki made, but I felt it was half-hearted, so I added the second half. The last part of the solo is the hard part. It’s the famous Paul Gilbert style phrase. I wanted to add a picking noise effect to express the high emotion. So, I’m doing it in full picking, but I think it’s beautiful even in legato. The tone comprises a crunch and a pleasant distorted sound.

■ Is there anything you are proud of 黒ノ断片(Kuro NO Danpen)?

Hazuki: That we created such amazing quality of sound, which made it possible to enjoy listening to it with various tools.

CRAY: First of all, each song on the mini-album is great.
What I’m most proud of is, when I am creating music, recording and editing, that I always push myself to my limits and that I exceed my limits each time again.
So I will keep doing that in the future as well. 

■ Lastly, could you tell our readers the final point and reason why they should listen to the 黒ノ断片(Kuro NO Danpen)  right now?

Hazuki: Please listen to this album with your headphones or speakers that can spread the sound quality well. I’ve put a lot of details in my songs, so I want you to hear them. Before you going to bed at night, I want you to inject “KUROYOUBI” into your ears as well.

CRAY: If possible, I would also be happy if you could listen to it with good headphones or speakers. Emotions are expressed into details such as with consonants, which can be found in each song, so if you listen carefully to those parts, you will enjoy our songs even more.