USGKZ Interview Chapter2. Starting with his first band in Onomichi

▶ You started playing the guitar in your first year of junior high, how did you form your first band?

USGKZ: Until around my second year of junior high, I was only playing guitar. When I reached the third year, two friends from school expressed interest in forming a band. One wanted to play drums, and the other wanted to play guitar. I could play guitar, but since they wanted to do it, I thought, "Sure, go ahead." I wasn't very particular about my role in the band, so I said, "I'll play bass. I haven't played it before though." That's how the band started, with me on bass.

▶ So, it was a three-piece band?

USGKZ: Yeah, a three-piece. We were a Unicorn and Jun Sky Walkers cover band.

▶ How did you practice during that time?

USGKZ: There was only one practice studio in Onomichi, but it was expensive, and we couldn't afford it. Here's a funny story though (laughs). There was a drum set in the school's brass band room, so I asked the teacher if we could practice there. He rejected the idea. However, there was another friendly teacher I talked to, and he said, "Come to the school on Sundays from this time to that time. I'll open up the place for you during the vacant hours so you can practice." So, we practiced once a week at school.

▶ That's really cool! What a great story.

USGKZ: Thanks to Mr. Murakami at that time, even junior high students like us could have a place to practice for our band.

▶ Where did you get your bass guitar?

USGKZ: I think I found a cheap one at a thrift shop and somehow managed to get it. We practiced every Sunday, and as graduation approached, we decided to have a live show. We went to the community center in Mukojima-cho, Onomichi, and applied to perform there. After our graduation ceremony, we had a graduation live show.

▶ Sounds like quite a youthful experience.

USGKZ: We announced it to our school friends, and about 50 to 60 people showed up. That was my first live performance in life, even though it was a cover band.

▶ Did you cover songs by Jun Sky Walkers and Unicorn?

USGKZ: I think we also did Ramones.

▶ Were Jun Sky Walkers, Unicorn, and LÄ-PPISCH your main influences during your junior high years?

USGKZ: Also SCANCH and SONY stuff (laughs).

▶ Were there any other bands at your school?

USGKZ: Not among students my age, but there was a senior who was a year ahead. He was the student council president and an amazing drummer. Later, he was in a soft visual band called D-SHADE, which gained some popularity.

▶ What happened to your band after junior high graduation?

USGKZ: All three of us went to the same high school, so we continued playing together. We started performing at a local live house called "Lupin" during our first year of high school.

▶ Were you performing at what's commonly referred to as booking live shows?

USGKZ: Yeah, that's right. The booking manager at the live house was also an employee at a music store, so we'd ask him to arrange our gigs. Even then, we were still a cover band. However, during my second year of high school, the band disbanded. I think the drummer and guitarist had a fight. I and the guitarist formed a new four-member band with musicians from other high schools. During our second year of high school, we even performed at the Teen's Rock Festival. We were around 17 years old at the time, and despite some older participants, I managed to win the Best Bassist award. It's probably the highlight of my high school days (laughs).

▶ Did your repertoire change with the new four-member band?

USGKZ: We played songs by Mötley Crüe and Skid Row.

▶ Were those bands collectively liked by all four members?

USGKZ: I liked them too. Then, in my third year of high school, we decided to perform a live show as we approached graduation. In my high school, we only had a school festival once every three years. Unfortunately, mine was in my first year, so I couldn't have one at my own school. But the drummer and guitarist were from different schools, so we managed to perform at the school festival of their schools. Nostalgic times.

▶ What happened to the band after the school festival?

USGKZ: After the live performance at the school festival, I think the band disbanded. After that, I joined a punk band that a senior who was four years older than me. These senior members were interesting. We created original songs together.

▶ Is this when you started listening to punk?

USGKZ: I think around my second year of junior high, I got to know about Ramones from somewhere and started listening to them a lot. Also, I remember around my third year of junior high or first year of high school, there was a program on BS TV that was like "Let's revive Woodstock." I think everyone who saw it remembers it. There was a shocking footage of Green Day being pelted with mud by the audience. I was like, "Who is this band?" After that, even though I was playing hard rock in my own band, I started listening to bands like Ramones, Green Day, NOFX, and RANCID – melodic punk stuff. I borrowed all these from "Reikodo."

▶ I watched that program too, it was quite a shock. During that time, there was the so-called AIR JAM movement, and there were tons of melodic hardcore bands in Japan. Were you also listening to Japanese punk?

USGKZ: I didn't really know much about it. But one of the older members from my band made a mixtape that was about 90 minutes long, so I knew about their existence. The tape had bands like Blow One's Cool, Slime Fisher, and Nukey Pikes on it. It was pretty cool.

▶ After the school festival, you joined your senior's band. Did you leave the band after graduating?

USGKZ: Even after coming to Osaka, I continued traveling back to Onomichi for about a year whenever there was a live performance. But when I started a band in Osaka, I left that punk band.

▶ By the way, what were the names of these three bands?

USGKZ: Uh, let me think.

▶ Band names from your youth days can sometimes be embarrassing, right? (laughs)

USGKZ: Yeah, the band name from junior high was "The CL," which was short for "The Cool."

▶ That's a pretty cool name, especially for junior high.

USGKZ: Looking back, it seems cool now. Like three guys in leather jackets playing (laughs).

▶ What was the name of your second hard rock band?

USGKZ: At that time, I had learned the word "asshole." But I wondered why it wasn't "Hip Hole" instead, since it referred to the same thing. So, we thought "Hip Hole" sounded more direct and went with that. For the third band I played, we wanted a name with a biker gang(暴走族) vibe, so we chose "Onomichi Specter."

▶ That's a really biker gang-like name, isn't it? (laughs)

USGKZ: By the way, "Onomichi Specter" was one of the few punk bands in that town. Snuffy Smile's band came to Fukuyama for a live performance, and we performed together because "Onomichi Specter" was one of the few punk bands there.

▶ When you mention Snuffy Smile's band from that time, which bands are you referring to?

USGKZ: It was "Just One Day" and "Sawpit" that were on tour. The drummer from "Just One Day" had a Blew patch on his bag. I asked him for it because I really liked Blew. He was like, "Well, I can't refuse that," and gave it to me.

▶ Another great story! (laughs)