Their first single for 2011 is a double A-side: the thrilling electric sound of “Laser Beam” and the gentle piano tone of “Kasuka na Kaori.” These contrasting compositions will make you realize the range in Perfume’s expressive abilities all over again. As their charm continues to grow more and more, we talked to the girls about the new release.
―― “Laser Beam” is a great song. Nocchi: Thank you very much. It was written to be used as the CM song for Kirin’s Hyouketsu chu-hi drinks, so in the lyrics, there are phrases like “straight” and “ripe fruit gathering droplets of water.”
―― The line “my heart is struck and feels bubbly” is really impressive. Kashiyuka: It has the nuance of fine carbonic acid (laughs).
―― (laughs) The song feels futuristic, but I found the sense of reality depicted in lines like “your figure standing upon the ground” interesting. Nocchi: It’s definitely mysterious. When it comes to our songs, hearing many different people’s interpretations of them often creates a fuller picture for us, like, “I see, so there’s that side of it, too.” Kashiyuka: Why does “ground” [as it refers to a sports ground or sports oval in Japanese] show up in “Laser Beam,” anyway? Nocchi: When we were learning the choreography, MIKIKO-sensei told us that the baseball player [Suzuki] Ichiro’s precise return throw to home plate is called a laser beam. So there’s a move like we’re throwing a ball in our choreography this time. I wonder if Nakata [Yasutaka]-san was thinking of Ichiro’s “laser beam” when he wrote that into the lyrics? A~chan: I haven’t heard that Nakata-san likes baseball before (laughs). But if he wrote these lyrics without knowing about Ichiro, that would be a perfect miracle. And if he wrote them with that knowledge, then he put a lot of thought into them for us. Kashiyuka: Though we haven’t asked about the real story behind it. Nocchi: It remains a mystery (laughs).
―― (laughs) With its piano sound, “Kasuka na Kaori” was very fresh. Nocchi: It’s not a feeling we often have in our singles.
―― Lines like “so that I’ll see your messages right away, I’ve gotten into the habit of clutching my cell phone as I sleep” in particular really seem to grab you. A~chan: I always sleep while holding my cell phone, too. Nocchi: Seriously? A~chan: I’m afraid of not being able to wake up in the morning, and I want to see the messages I get during the night, so I always hold on to it while I sleep (laughs). Nocchi: Is your phone still in your hand by the time you wake up in the morning? A~chan: Yeah. Kashiyuka: That’s amazing! For about six hours straight? A~chan: Sometimes I wake up in the morning all tangled up in the cord to my phone charger, though (laughs). Kashiyuka: What!? So you toss and turn in your sleep as you’re holding it!? Nocchi: How scary (laughs).
―― For such a romantic song, this conversation has taken a turn for the realistic, hasn’t it? (laughs) A~chan: It’s my serious view of the actual situation (laughs). That’s why, if it were me, it’d go “I’ve gotten into that habit, but I roll over as I’m sleeping and hit the keys — it’s dangerous” (laughs). Kashiyuka: (laughs) The picture used for the regular edition cover represents this song. We shot it on the rooftop of a building. A~chan: [Tokyo Bay’s man-made island] Odaiba was behind us. It was really cold, though. Nocchi: The costumes were light cotton fabric, after all. A~chan: But the photoshoot itself was very peaceful. It captured us in our natural, relaxed state. Kashiyuka: We’re only out at sundown during festivals, so it was unusual for us. Seeing the two types of covers for this single lined up, it struck me how much range we have as Perfume.
―― Your fans must enjoy that range as well. Including how cool you look while you’re singing and dancing, and then as soon as the talk segment begins, you become very simple young women (laughs). A~chan: I think that’s the essence of Perfume (laughs). I accept that there are opinions like, “When they start talking, their concept falls apart,” but rather than only looking showy, I want to tell everyone how I felt singing our songs and share that with them in a way that’s easy to understand. That’ll never change.
―― This is your first single release of the year, but it’s certainly gotten you off to a good start. A~chan: Last year we reached the huge milestone of performing at Tokyo Dome, but this year we want to challenge a lot of different things, not only concerts. We’ve gotten the courage to take our next step. We want to give the Perfume in everyone’s hearts an update.
―― On that note… Kashiyuka, you have a part in your bangs for the cover of the “Laser Beam” single. Is there any reason for that? Kashiyuka: There’s no real reason behind it, but I thought it might be nice to show a different image from before. I wanted to have fun with it (laughs).
<aside> 📎 Tanaka Dai for Oricon Style (May 18, 2011)
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