GARNET CROW “LOCKS” Interview

March 2008music freak magazineAdded on July 9, 2026

About a year after their previous album, *THE TWILIGHT VALLEY*, GARNET CROW will release their new album *LOCKS* on March 12. Their sixth album, and also their first release of 2008, contains many numbers that differ from the previous work, leaving the listener with a calmer, gentler feeling. The care they place on unity across a whole work extends even to arranging some of the singles as album versions. The result is an album filled with their wish for listeners to hear and enjoy GARNET CROW's music in the best possible form at every moment. We spoke with the members about this new album, which they say they made with renewed spirits. (INTERVIEWED BY EMI MORI)

-- The album title itself made me wonder what kind of work it would be. How did you decide on this title? You had not really used a single-word album title before, had you?

Yuri Nakamura:Our album titles have gradually been getting shorter with each release (laughs). This title was decided once the shape of the album had started to come together. Last year was the seventh anniversary of our debut, so outside of production we had many chances to meet everyone, and at the end we were even able to hold a live concert at Ninna-ji. We had many opportunities to be in contact with everyone, so we put into it the thought that everyone's hearts and our music could stay connected forever... that they were "locked" together. It also plays on "roku," six, since this is our sixth album (laughs).

-- Through last year's events and live performances, did you feel that connection with the fans more strongly?

Hirohito Furui: Through the concerts and events, I did feel that people welcomed us warmly, and that there were more moments where they opened their hearts to us. Whether that came from my having spoken in front of everyone at fan-club events, or from something in my own awareness, or because the audience's feelings toward us had become stronger, I cannot say which was the direct reason. But even when we went to a live venue, I felt more strongly than before that they were welcoming us warmly.

Hitoshi Okamoto:Now that you mention it, that may be true. It may sound a little exaggerated, but there is something like a family feeling... Even during a concert, once a few songs have gone by, I sometimes feel, "This is our usual atmosphere." I think that is something to be very grateful for.

AZUKI Nana: When we are actually playing in front of the audience, and I can see that they are listening carefully, I can really feel, "They truly are listening to us." I was also happy to realize how wide the age range is among the people who listen to our music. I had thought the age range for J-pop listeners would be more limited. But at last year's events, from children in the lower grades of elementary school to older people, I could sense that they were all savoring GARNET CROW's music carefully. I think it was a valuable experience.

-- I feel that with each release, the distance between GARNET CROW and your listeners becomes closer. Ms. Nakamura, do you feel that as well?

Yuri Nakamura:Every time we play live, I feel that we are connected through song. Last year, in particular, I felt a strong sense of unity at the Ninna-ji concert. That concert felt like something created not only by us, but together with everyone.

-- Was this album made with the thought of making that connection even stronger?

Yuri Nakamura:Having had that experience, I myself enjoyed it very much, and I felt more strongly that I wanted to move everyone, that I wanted them to listen deeply. So this album was made with the thought that everyone's hearts and our music could remain connected forever.

-- Are some of the songs included ones you had been making for a while?

Yuri Nakamura:Yes. The songs are selected from among those made between the release of the previous album, *THE TWILIGHT VALLEY*, and now. The theme for this album was something "evergreen," "pure," and "full of life force," so the selection was based on that. Since the album is being released in spring, that seasonal feeling linked with our own desire to put energy into production this year. We consciously chose songs that feel like taking a new step forward, songs that make you feel positive when you listen to them. The previous album created a very dark and deep world, so this time we wanted people to hear a different style of ours, and that is how we arrived at this lineup.

-- By the way, what kind of image does the season of spring have for each of you?

Yuri Nakamura:Spring is warm and easy to live in as a season, but in truth I think it is a cruel season, because there are also partings. There are encounters, and there are farewells. So it feels like a mysterious season where happiness and sadness coexist. Personally, there is also hay fever (laughs), so it is a difficult time for me, but even when taking a new first step, it may be a season when you feel tense about many things.

AZUKI Nana: When I think of spring, perhaps I think of a warm, humid climate. There are only so many places with four distinct seasons, so in that sense, it makes you realize that you are in a place where spring can be felt.

Hitoshi Okamoto:I like spring. Actually, my hay fever went away. I did not do anything in particular, but my constitution changed and I became fine. Also, when I hear "spring," I think of class reshuffling. I am the positive type who enjoys the nervous excitement of wondering whether that one year will be fun or not.

Hirohito Furui: Spring used to be a season that made me excited, but as I got older, I started liking the good things about autumn more (laughs). Then recently, by chance, I heard a song I used to listen to a lot in junior high, and it made me remember the time of my high-school entrance exams. In junior high, the school districts are fixed, so you live in a relatively narrow world. But when you go on to high school, students come from all kinds of places, and your world suddenly expands. In that sense too, I was really excited back then... I remembered the feeling of smelling flowers on a warm, pleasant day, and I thought, I really do need to feel excited. So my theme this year is "excitement" (laughs). I want to feel excited about everything... and that is the same with music. I hope I can work while thinking, "This is fun," or "A good song might come out of this." That feeling of excitement comes from spring, so I want not to forget it.

-- The "excitement" Mr. Furui just spoke of is present in GARNET CROW's new album too. I felt there were many songs that give the sense that something is about to begin. How did you proceed with choosing the songs?

Yuri Nakamura:When "Saigo no Ritō" and "Mō Ichido Waratte" were finished last year, I had a vague idea that maybe the next album could be built around those songs. Then, after the new year, when we decided to make music as GARNET CROW with a fresh feeling, I thought that state of mind linked very strongly with the tone of "Saigo no Ritō." That is one reason it became the first track. Actually, this song was made in 2006, but I feel it finally became a song that matched the image.

-- Ms. AZUKI, what impression did you have when you heard this song?

AZUKI Nana: The lyrics were also written two years ago, but I remember writing them forward in this form without much hesitation. It feels as though the impression of the song became the lyrics just as it was.

-- Were there any parts of the arrangement you were especially particular about?

Hirohito Furui: I remember thinking it was a very catchy song when I first heard it. With this song, the work came together smoothly while I was enjoying it. But actually, this song had the wrong management number, and at first it was being treated as a song that had already been used. I said that could not be right and had them check properly, and in the end it turned out to be a song we had not used yet... So if we had not noticed that the number was wrong, it might never have seen the light of day (laughs).

-- "Namida no Yesterday" is included as an album version.

Yuri Nakamura:This is the version we performed at last year's Ninna-ji concert. It was very fun, and it had been imprinted in my memory as a good memory, so we decided to record it in this version. At Ninna-ji it was also a song we performed toward the end, so to build the excitement even more, we thought it would be better to begin with the chorus... Originally, it is based on the TV-size version that was used in *Detective Conan*. If the first track, "Saigo no Ritō," is the album's introduction, I hope people will feel the next track, "Namida no Yesterday," as something that accelerates from there.

-- Did the track order come together smoothly?

Yuri Nakamura:From the beginning, we had decided that the first track would be "Saigo no Ritō" and the last would be "Love is a Bird," so I think the outer frame of the album was already set. After that, we tried various ways of arranging the songs inside, but there was not a great deal of hesitation. For example, we knew we wanted to pair "Futari" with "Mr. Holiday," and "doubt" with "Kaze to RAINBOW." Those kinds of blocks were decided, so we tried moving them around and determined the flow that way.