MINI Interview with Shoko it
A reissue of "TOP PLAY," which revolutionized the 1980s with its colorful coloring that had never been seen before. The retro look matches the current trend.
First of all, please introduce yourself to HOUYHNHNM's readers.
Zhuangzi it:Nice to meet you , I'm Shoko it, the leader of the hip-hop group Dos Monos. I am the leader of Dos Monos, a hip-hop group. I rap to the beats I make with my crew, TAITAN MAN and Immersion. All three of us went to junior high and high school together.
The first album was released on March 20, 2012, about six months before the band signed with Deathbomb Arc, a prestigious label in Los Angeles. Have there been any changes in the band?
Zhuangzi it:. This album is the culmination of all the work I have done with my friends from the same school. I was confident that I had a good response to the album, and while I feel that it has been listened to by many people, I personally am not too excited about it. However, I have been able to work with many great artists, and I think I have created a good environment for my growth as a musician. Up until now, I was really isolated from my family and friends, and I was very anxious about whether or not I would be okay doing this kind of weird music (laughs). In that sense, I am glad that I released the album properly.
I feel that Dos Monos is an artist who does things "his own way" and has no connection with other artists in Japan. How do you see Dos Monos' position objectively in the Japanese hip-hop scene?
Zhuangzi it:I think we are pretty isolated in the Japanese hip-hop scene, but I think we are doing something very straight forward as a contemporary music with influences from jazz, progressive rock, and avant-pop.
. Your solo activities, such as providing songs and remixes for Rain Parade and Taichi Mukai, also catch our attention. So, you do not have an aversion to the Japanese music scene?
Zhuangzi it:Not at all. I just don't like music that I think is lame , not pop music. . In that sense, maybe I don't have much of a social attitude. I think everything that I find beautiful, or at least interesting, is precious.
In the case of "in 20XX," which was also the band's first music video, where did the band's unsettling atmosphere come from? Is there a motif?
Zhuangzi it:Without deciding on a motif, I first focused on the sound and created a beat, and then wrote a rap song freely associating it with the beat. Then, I wrote a rap song freely associative of the beat. . I try not to self-analyze my work too much, but I try to create music that feels different and unsettling. I try not to self-analyze my work too much, but I believe that the discomfort and disturbing atmosphere is a direct result of the image I have of existing music. Dos Monos is the one who lets me take the helm without having to explain myself, and I was able to create this music video because we have been friends for so many years.
When did you first meet Sergio Tacchini? . I heard that you wore the hat in a music video and that you personally like it.
Zhuangzi it:When I first saw the collaboration with Gosha Rabchinsky, I thought the logo with the initial "ST" of "Tacchini" looked really cute, like a face. From there, I thought it would be interesting to try wearing Tacchini's clothes in everyday life, since the brand has a strong impression as a sports brand, especially for tennis. Sports brands are commonplace in street fashion, but I wanted to follow the trend and give it a subtle alternative feel, which fits my temperament.
. This time, we asked you to wear the brand's signature sneakers, "TOP PLAY". What are your impressions?
Zhuangzi it:I have an image that colorful shoes are hard to match with clothes, but when I tried them on, I thought, "They look totally great," so I want to wear them more and more. I felt a sense of fit that I couldn't get from just looking at the shoes and coordinating them in my mind, so I thought it was important to try them on first.
You also collaborated with Sergio Tacchini on Dos Monos apparel. How did it turn out?
Zhuangzi it:The short-sleeved shirt is based on an original item featuring a Dos Monos album cover with a monkey wearing a hoodie. For this collaboration, the illustration was replaced with the Sergio Tacchini logo in a pop illustration style, which was printed in a special material to make it stand out from the embroidery. . Like embroidery, I really like the raw feel of clothes with raised letters and illustrations. The other item is a long T-shirt. I combined the Dos Monos futuristic logo, which is separate from the short-sleeved logo, with a back print, giving this one a slightly mechanical feel. . I was given the opportunity to suggest the designs for both of these items, and I really like each one.
Lastly, please tell us about Dos Monos and your personal vision for it.
Zhuangzi it:Dos Monos plans to release new music this year, but right now he is mainly concentrating on his solo album, which will be released on Deathbomb Arc in the U.S. The release of his first album has given him the opportunity to gain recognition from international listeners and artists, and he hopes to expand his musical activities even further in the future. In the future, I would like to continue my musical activities in a way that will spark a new fire in the underground scene around the world. My greatest motivation is to create something different from a big hit, something that will give the world a real stimulus in a guerrilla-like, bug-like way, and that will ultimately last for generations to come.
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