Thanks so much to Taku and Miki for the interview! The two of them form the Japanese duo Smokebees! I’ve been a fan of their music since I discovered them a year or two ago! A bit late I admit! But I really like their tunes and it was with sadness that I hear they are calling a day. Because of that I wanted to talk to them about this band and other things too!
++ Hi Taku and Miki! Thanks so much for being up for this interview! How are you? Still making music?
Taku: Hi there. Thank you for having us! I’m doing ok, still trying to stay musical. Right now, I’m preparing for a show with my solo project called desksnail.
Miki: I recorded some music after nights of not sleeping for a new project called “h-shallows“. (It’s named after Heavenly + Shallow (a tune from Heavenly)). I’m releasing a new work with h-shallows soon. Please look forward!
++ Let’s go back in time. What are your first music memories? Do you remember what was your first instrument? How did you learn to play it? What sort of music did you listen at home while growing up?
Taku: I first picked up my guitar at the age of 15, I think. I’m from a musical family so everyone at home could play one or more instruments, and it was just natural for me to play something.
Miki: I listened to ’80s, funk, soul and Yumi Matsutoya as I grew up since my parents liked them a lot. My first experience with music instruments is from elementary school; I played the drum in a marching band. I first picked up the guitar when I entered university.
++ Had you been in other bands before Smokebees? What about the rest of the members? If so, how did all of these bands sound like? Are there any recordings?
Taku: The first band that I ever joined was called “traffic light”. It sounded like the La’s, Teenage Fanclub, and other bands from Glasgow. It’s about 7,8 years ago now but I still like the songs and listen to their songs sometimes. After that, I started my own project called desksnail. It’s more minimal but I try to put a lot of ambiance in the tunes. You can find my soundcloud if you are interested!
Miki: I had already belonged to Girl President and with me! before we started Smokebees. Girl President is a lofi alternative pop band led by the wife of Katsyuya from CAUCUS. With me! is led by my friend aota, a musician/illustrator. I first joined her as a supporting guitarist, but I ended up as an official member of the band. With me!’s genre would be neo-acoustic, anorak, and guitar pop. Currently, I am involved in a crazy number of bands, such as Red Go-Cart (indie pop, dream pop), Minor Toast(post-punk, hardcore), Broccolies (garage rock, punk), and three berry icecream (soft rock, indie pop). Please check out my bands’ bandcamps and soundclouds for release info and so on!
++ Where were you from originally?
Taku: I’m from Tokyo. I’ve lived in other cities like Melbourne, Akita, and Aarhus after graduating from university.
Miki: I was born and raised in Yokohama. I studied in London for a few months two years ago.
++ Are there any bands in town that you like? Were there your feavourite record stores? What about the pubs or venues to go check out up and coming bands?
Miki: Boys Age is a musician we respect so much and he is a great friend of ours. Whenever we organized our own concerts, Boys Age always played, and Kaz (the main person from Boys Age) helped us on bass for one of our live shows.
I have many favorite record shops, but I especially recommend “disque blue very” in Tokyo, and “FILE-UNDER” in Nagoya. The pubs I’d recommend are “NONSUCH” in Tokyo named after XTC, and “Donzoko”, a pub loved by famous Japanese writers.
++ When and how did the band start? How did you all meet? How was the recruiting process?
Taku: Miki and I got to know each other through our music projects. I think the first time we met was when I played the guitar with a project called “with me!”. In 2014, desksnail used “It’s a Wonderful Life” by Sparklehorse for background music when entering the stage. This surprised Miki apparently because she had never found anyone who liked Sparklehorse. This was the trigger for starting Smokebees. In two years we decided to form a band respecting the experimental spirit of Sparklehorse.
++ Has there been any lineup changes?
Taku: So Smokebees started as a two-person band, and no one else has been involved in the core of the band. We do invite people to play gigs with us, though. Kohey, the guitarist, a friend of mine from college, Sakurai, the bassist from with me!, and the drummer, Yuki Kawasaki, who is in several bands in Tokyo including Boyish.
Without their support, we couldn’t have survived the album recording and the release tour!
++ What are the future plans for the band? Are you playing in other bands simultaneously?
Taku: Well, this might sound surprising, but we’ve decided to stop the band as of September 9th. We know this is not the best timing to stop the band right after the full-length album, but it’s the conclusion we both agreed on. Part of the reason is that we’ve done so much more than what we thought we could on the album, and we are satisfied and a bit overwhelmed by the process. Another reason is that there is so much else going on in our lives and the amount of dedication we can put into music feels different than what we had 3 years ago. On the bright side, we both are so satisfied with our album and we are very proud of that. Also, we both will keep playing music with other music projects, so please follow our activities!
++ Also you are involved with a project called the Smokebirds, right? Tell me a bit about it? Is it just a live project or are there releases? How did it come about?
Miki: Smokebirds was a one-night live performance project by Yoko Satori(Penny Arcade, Daffodil-19, Marble Hammock) and Smokebees. I asked Yoko to perform with us for Smokebees’ album release party. We played songs by Daffodil-19, Smokebees, and desksnail as well as covers of The Velvet Underground and Pervenche. The band had a set of minimal instruments respecting Young Marble Giants.
++ How is the creative process for you? Where did you usually practice?
Taku: We exchange data on the Internet. One of us may create a demo, and the other adds stuff. Or one of us almost finishes the tracks and the other gives opinions and feedback. When we started the band I lived in Akita (550km away from Tokyo) so this has been our process of making music. After my settling in Tokyo in 2018, we sometimes went to a studio together for recording, but we kept this process for song-writing.
When we practice for live shows, we go to some rehearsal studios in Tokyo. They have everything we need for a band practice including drum sets and guitar amps. So you just have to carry your guitar. It’s very convenient.
++ What’s the story behind the band’s name?
Taku: Since we started as Sparklehorse fans, we named our band after their lyrics. I’ll give you a clue: it’s from their third album, and you have to omit a few words to find “smoke bees”.
++ And who would you say were influences in the sound of the band?
Taku: We cannot talk about our music without naming Sparklehorse. Sparklehorse was the start of us and has always been the guide. There are of course other bands which influenced both of us. For example, some music Miki recommended to me, like Yurayura Teikoku and Grandaddy, have influenced our songwriting, I suppose. Especially when it comes to mixing, I learned from them a lot.
Miki: The majority of the inspiration for the band comes from Sparklehorse, as Taku mentions. Other than that, I got a lot of inspiration from Misophone, Taku’s recommendation, and Mice parade and Sakana. We both like Mice Parade and Sakana from when we were at university.
++ Your first release was a CD EP called “Swimming Souls”. Was this record self-released or how did you put it out?
Taku: It was a self-release. Our good friend Katsuya Yanagawa from CAUCUS helped us master the CD. It was right before I went to Denmark for my job, so we had to finish the EP within the summer. I remember staying at Miki’s place to finalize the tracks until the last train.
++ I notice that there are few copies remaining, how many did you press? And also tell me a bit about the artwork, where was this photo taken?
Taku: Haha, yes, we made 500 copies! I suggested the number because I was confident that it was a great EP! Now that the band is stopping, we have quite a few remaining copies haha.
The photo is taken in Myanmar by a friend of mine. I thought the reflection of the house and the dark sky represented what we wanted to express.
++ Then in 2017 the fine Galaxy Train label released the “Sunstroke EP”. Something that caught my attention is that you included a cover of the song “Jesus’ Blood Has Never Failed Me Yet” by Gavin Bryars. Later on you’d cover the band Pervenche on the following tape you released. What other covers did you record? Or maybe covers that you played live?
Taku: Thank you! We got to know Gavin Bryars through Sparklehorse, and we really wanted to try our version of the song. Kaz from Boys Age sings the repeating vocals, and it brought us attention, too.
We like doing covers from time to time. We’ve performed “Wandering Ones” by CAUCUS, “Summer Feeling” by Jonathan Richman, “Season of the Shark” by Yo La Tengo live and recorded Either/Or by Elliott Smith. Oh, and of course, “We Surely Become Happy” by Pervenche. It’s a hit from “Tonal Memory”!
++ How did you end up working with Galaxy Train? How was your relationship with them?
Miki: We got to know Galaxy Train through red go-cart. If I remember it right, the owner of Galaxy Train came to “New Moon”, a party red go-cart held with us in January 2017, and this resulted in the release of Sunstroke EP.
We released the full-album from Sauna Cool because they offered us first, but we have been really good friends with Galaxy Train and we appreciate them a lot.
++ Then the 2nd tape I was talking about, “Tonal Memory”, was released early in 2019 on the label Sauna Cool. I don’t know this label at all. Care telling me a bit about who are they?
Miki: Sauna Cool is run by Shota Kaneko, the leader of a three-piece band called Teen Runnings. Teen Runnings has worked with Jon Greece, who produced Dum Dum Girls and Crocodiles, on an album release, released a split 7’ with the Lemons, and performed at SXSW2013. Sauna Cool itself has received positive reviews, too. Their first release “Sauna Cool 1” was valued for its uniqueness. The compilation album involved shorter-than-thirty-second songs by 51 Japanese indie bands. Recently they’ve had a few new releases, and they’ve invited TOPS to perform in Japan.
++ On this second tape some songs from the first EP appear. Are they the same versions of the songs? Or are they reworked versions? Why did you decide to include them?
Taku: The second tape “Tonal Memory” is released from SAUNA COOL as an introduction for the album. We put songs from the first EP and two new recordings to introduce ourselves to the fans of the label. We remixed remastered the songs from the first EP.
++ Lastly, last March you released your first album, “Imaginary Lights Never Fade”. The artwork is very curious to me. What does it mean?
Miki: I have been a huge fan of the artist Sakura Fantasma, and I asked her to do the artwork. She is based in Yamanashi and Europe, and she is known for the exotic and yet comical tone of her artwork. The artwork for our album is a collage from an old photo album she bought in Northern Europe and was created after she heard a few demos from our album.
++ This album has 11 songs! Some of the songs were recorded by a good friend of mine, Katsuya Yanagawa from Caucus. How was that? And were was the album recorded? Any anecdotes from the recording session?
Miki: Katsuya helped us record “Begin Again” and ”Miyoko”. He’s been a friend of mine for about 10 years now because of Girl President. The drums were recorded at a recording studio in Tokyo, but we recorded the bass and the guitars at a recording room in his place. The process was very smooth thanks to Katsuya’s expertise, but when I was playing the guitar for Miyoko, I got too loud so Katsuya was worried about getting complaints from his neighbors.
++ There’s a song on it called “Miyoko”, was wondering if it is inspired on a real person called “Miyoko” or perhaps not?
Miki: “Miyoko” is the name of a friend of mine. This song was originally a birthday present for her 10 years ago. Back then, I was into songs with Japanese names such as “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots” by Flaming Lips and “Yuriko” by Monoland. I rearranged and recorded it to put in the album.
++For this album I notice that Disk Union got involved. That must have helped distributing and getting attention to the album, right?
Since Sauna Cool is supported by Disk Union, we were able to distribute our album on their sales network. We’re grateful to them because without their nation-wide distribution network we couldn’t have reached as many listeners. It was amazing to see our album displayed at Disk Union shops.
++ Are there more recordings by the band? Unreleased songs?
Taku: There are no unreleased recordings. We’re not very efficient songwriters, so we basically put all the recordings into releases. There is one recording you can only find on Soundcloud, though. It’s “I’ll Be Home For Christmas”, a Christmas tune we covered only on Soundcloud.
++ I think my favourite song of yours might as well be “Made for Faking Strong”, wondering if you could tell me what inspired this song? What’s the story behind it?
Miki: It’s such an honor to have “Made for Faking Strong” as your favorite! It is a song I made after struggling for half a year. Whenever I find myself in a slump I go out to the sea, and this song was also made at the sea in the end of summer.
The hidden theme of this song was “Smokebees’ version of ‘Sensitive’ by the Field Mice,” so you can find the essence of Sarah Records. Also, parts of the song, like guitar combinations, are inspired by new and old indie-pop like Beach Fossils, Real Estate, and Felt. The lyrics are by Taku, and my favorite phrase is as follows:
450 tons of reality
Through that, you swim your days|
(With) looming fear of a whale
++ If you were to choose your favorite Smokebees song, which one would that be and why?
Taku: I’d choose ”Begin Again”. I like both the EP version and the album version. I didn’t know I was able to make that kind of large scale song with over 50 tracks. Writing this song made me believe in myself a little bit more. With help from the great players, we can sound like Slowdive!
Miki: It’s hard to decide on one song since all of the songs mean a lot to me. I’d choose “Ancient Lies” if I were to choose one. This is the very first song I wrote for Smokebees, and without this song, we would not have had the three years of Smokebees. Even though it is from the first era of Smokebees, it never gets old and still sounds fresh.
++ What about gigs? Have you played many?
Taku: We’ve performed 19 gigs in total in these three years. We had only been performing with the two of us until the album recording started. While recording, we started to perform with the band. We thought that it was easier to create the sound we wanted with a full band.
We’ve played many shows in Tokyo, a few in Nagoya, and one in Denmark.
++ And what are the best gigs you remember? Any anecdotes you can share?
Taku: For me, the last one at Shibuya 7th Floor was an epic. The floor was packed, the band worked so well, and DJs and other bands’ performances were great.
I have to mention the one in Denmark as well. I wanted to perform in Denmark while I lived there so badly that I asked my friends to let us use their rehearsal studio. It was a small concert with only a handful of people watching, but It was so nice to perform in front of people who helped me settle in a new environment.
Miki: I’d say the last show at Shibuya 7th Floor, too.
The groove of the band was at the highest at this point since we all knew this was gonna be the last performance. Also with help from Mayumi Ikemizu(three berry icecream, ex Bridge) and Daremo Shiranai Tokoro, we were able to play the songs how they should sound almost perfectly. The other performers did a perfect job, and it was an unforgettable night.
By the way, our first show in 2016 was at Chigasaki, where we brought a crazy amount of gear into a cafe-like venue and tried a very experimental performance. This was very tiring and we’ve decided not to do this again. This might have cast a huge influence on how we ran the band. haha.
++ And has there been any bad ones?
Miki: When we were invited to play an in-store show right after finishing the making of the album, we had to stop playing the encore song in the middle because we didn’t remember how to play the song. We didn’t think about an encore at all but we tried “Lights Of Home”, and we couldn’t remember the chords and we had to stop…haha.
Taku: Hmm… I agree with Miki. We totally forgot to prepare any extra songs for the in-store event. It was embarrassing but funny.
++ Did you get much attention from the radio? TV?
Miki: We haven’t got on TV, but we got on the radio once. Disque blue very introduced us to a program called ”Hickory Sound Excursion” by FM Matsumoto. It was our first time being on the radio, so it was a great experience. We played “Ontario Gothic” by Foxes in Fiction which is our favorite tune for traveling.
++ What about the press? Did they give you any attention?
Taku: No we haven’t got anything from the press.
++ What about from fanzines?
Miki: When we were invited to Mito, where aota of with me! lives, she made a special zine featuring us. It included introductions and interviews with all the performers for the night. I was so happy that I still keep it as my treasure.
++ Looking back in retrospective, what would you say was the biggest highlight for the band?
Taku: It’s a tough question. These three years have been amazing. I could never have achieved this much only by myself. I’ve experienced a lot of things that I wouldn’t have without Smokebees. We did have some bad times, but the experience itself is radiant and spectacular. I’d say these three years have been one of the highlights in my life!
Miki: I can say the three years has been a highlight of my life, but maybe releasing a full album is the greatest highlight. Although there were challenges, we managed to make a piece of work which I am confident to say is the best I can do for now. I wanna take it with me to my grave when I die.
++ Aside from music, what other hobbies do you have?
Taku: I like reading and cooking. I don’t make anything special now but I like the process of cooking. It’s a small project you can work on in your kitchen. I think it’s similar to songwriting in that it requires subtle adjustment and inspiration, and when it’s done, you can enjoy the result on the spot.
Miki: I have so many hobbies like movies, modern ballet, handcraft, architecture viewing and so on. I go out to see architecture whenever I get long holidays. It’s interesting because it is a physical, large-scale work of art, and because it influences the lives of citizens by being a part of the scenery.
++ Never been to Japan. So I will ask for some recommendations. If I was to visit your city what shouldn’t I miss? What are your favourite sights? And any particular food or drinks that you think one shouldn’t miss?
Taku: Tokyo has countless touristy places. Asakusa, Tokyo Tower, Yoyogi park, to name a few. I think Asakusa is good because you can enjoy the traditional and modern scenery at the same time. Food is a great attraction of Tokyo! Try Yakitori (Japanese chicken sticks) with beer at izakayas (Japanese bar).
Miki: I recommend Asakusa, too. You can experience the combination of Japanese tradition and modern culture. I also recommend the islands in the Seto Inland Sea. They hold the International Triennale and all the islands are filled with art. The Teshima Museum in Teshima is my museum and piece of architecture, so please consider visiting there if you have a chance.
Any Japanese food will be good, but my recommendation is soba and sushi!
++ Anything else you’d like to add?
Taku: Well, thank you Roque for having us on your blog! It’s an honor. This was a great chance to dig deep into our history and the whole band activity right after we stopped the band. It’s a little bit sad, I have to admit, but the music remains and you can always revisit Smokebees. Please follow our music projects as well; we both will keep on playing music!
Miki: I got to know Cloudberry through CAUCUS and Boyish, and I have been listening to many releases by Cloudberry records, and have been reading your blog. So it is amazing to think we’re finally being interviewed.
It is an honor to talk about our activities with this opportunity even though Smokebees has stopped. It’d be great if you, the readers, keep enjoying our music. Please follow our new music activities, too!
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Listen
Smokebees – Made for Faking Strong
