Misa: Her artisanal attention to detail and love for the band
Misa, the bassist of Band-Maid, is loved also for her performance of drinking alcohol on stage. Contrary to her taciturn appearance, she plays technical and passionate bass lines on her 5-string bass. With her heavy sound, she makes Band-Maid songs even more solid. She thoughtfully talked with us about the challenge she took on in their latest album and about what Band-Maid means to her.
― In which song on Epic Narratives did you personally challenge yourself most?
Misa: It’s Track 13 TAMAYA!. When I received the first demo, I thought it would be fun to play with slap, so I wrote such a bass line on the spot, but that increased the difficulty level. It has a lot of precise switches, like I pick for a bar and then slap just for another bar, and I slap again just for a bar or two quarters. I made it so myself, though (laughs).
― You Band-Maid have a tendency to pursue unusual difficulties, don’t you?
Misa: If I pursue coolness, it always gets difficult. I usually play slap to have tight sound or sound that a pick can’t make, but this time I play slap to be cool.
― Usually, you also have a point of view as a sound engineer, not only as a player, don’t you?
Misa: That’s a stronger point of view. I wouldn’t exactly say it’s an objective point of view, but I think about how it sounds to audience. In the past, I was like “I will make it harder and harder!”, but now, I often compose with subtraction to have dynamics. I’m conscious of making phrases easy for audience to understand, catch, and remember, and ones you can hum even though they are on the bass.
― Which song do you feel particularly attached to on this album?
Misa: It’s Track 12 Toi et moi. When I listened to the first demo, I immediately pictured myself playing it at a serving. As for the bass line, I made it very simple because I thought it’s a song centered around the guitar riff. I was conscious of things like precise picking and giving accents. It’s the song that gave me the strongest feeling about servings when I listened to it for the first time. I was insantly like “Oh, this song is so cool! I love it!”
― Looking back, which song do you think was the turning point for you personally?
Misa: I used to play a 4-string, not a 5-string, in the beginning. I suppose the turning point was when I switched to a 5-string. I’ve been using a 5-string since WORLD DOMINATION (2018), and among the songs on it, DOMINATION comes to mind in particular. [Note: she actually started using a 5-string in Just Bring It.]
― Why did you switch to a 5-string bass at that time?
Misa: We decided to have a lower key than before, like “We need lower tones”. In order to produce a sound that a 4-string can’t make, I ended up trying a 5-string, and now I use it a lot. I also paid attention to glissand, like having a 5-string glissand rather than a 4-string glissand. I began to pay more attention to it like intentionally having glissand to move to the next note.
― What difference does it make most, for example?
Misa: You can deal with lower keys, and of course you can get lower tones, so it kind of gives more heaviness. In hard rock music and the like, just having a 5-string can work in a lot of songs. If the bass is higher-pitched, it feels a little lacking in intense songs. I think it’s easier to get heaviness with a 5-string.
― Misa-san, once again, what does Band-Maid mean to you?
Misa: It’s my everything. Actually, in the early days of our activities, there was a moment when I stumbled or rather thought about quitting, but I’m glad I kept going. It’s really nice we’ve been able to continue with these members. I feel I’ve changed as a bassist and as a person. When I was young, I was gloomy, or more precisely, I lived in a totally different world mentally than now. But I became brighter after joining Band-Maid. As a person, and as a bassist, I think I’ve grown in the positive direction. It’s literally my everything.
― Even though you had some doubts in the early days, you have been playing in Band-Maid for more than 10 years. Why do you think that is?
Misa: I think it’s because of our team spirit. We’re good friends like no other. I think that’s very important. Also, I just love Band-Maid songs, and I have nothing to hate about them at all. They are part of my life.
― Please tell us what you want to do and your ambitions with Band-Maid in the future.
Misa: I don’t think this will happen very soon, but I’d like to play the upright bass. We Band-Maid sometimes do acoustic concerts, so I’d like to try it there or at regular servings someday.
― An upright bass will be great. I would really like to see you play it, as one of your listeners.
Misa: It’s one of my dreams I’ve had for a long time. I guess it’s starting to suit me thanks to my age.
― With your trademark that is alcohol.
Misa: Ha ha ha. The range of Band-Maid songs has been widening more and more, so I’ll be probably able to have an upright bass with some good alcohol. ■
#bandmaid #misa
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