[Translation] 2008 Summer Tour pamphlet "Messages to the Members"

-MESSAGES TO SUBARU

Ryo: Subaru-kun, as always, stays healthy during a tour. He seems to be going to bed early at nights so he never oversleeps. Backstage, he never forgets to stretch after taking a bath, puts on a lot of lotion and drinks a lot of vitamin and nutritional supplements… he’s like an OL (female office worker) to me, haha. I think he has a complete opposite part from me, different from that of Yokoyama-kun’s.

Maru: I’ve listened to his singing voice for a long time so I thought I was used to it by now, but during the last tour, I realized again how awesome it is. On the surface, the voice could be quiet, but on the inside there seems to be a huge wave or something; a storm, maybe. He sings as if the things he wants to say come pouring out. I think that me noticing that side of Subaru-kun means that I myself was able to change a bit, too.

Shota: During the last tour, every time we finished the song we sang together, we went back to the dressing room and drank to an energy drink together. We put a straw in the bottle, said “cheeeers” and drank it in one gulp… and then we’d scream “kuwaaaaa!” and then say “Alright, let’s go!!” …This was one big routine, haha. It was the first time I did something together just with Shibuyan, so it was a lot of fun.

Ohkura: Subaru-kun seems to be getting along really well with the kohais. He always seems to be in touch with the Kansai Juniors. It must make the juniors very happy as well. When I go back to Kansai, I try to ask the juniors out for dinner or something, but they’re always already taken by Subaru-kun or Yokoyama-kun, haha.

Hina: Shibuyan used to sleep a lot during the spring tour. There were many occasions when, after our concert, we would say “Let’s go out to eat!” but he’d say “I’m going back to the hotel and going to bed.” He must be getting older and older, haha. Well, jokes aside, he really is steadfast during tours. He doesn’t drink alcohol, takes many healthy looking pills and controls his health really well.

Yoko: During the last tour, we took turns dancing behind each other’s solo songs. Hina and I danced behind Subaru’s “Aishiteru, Aishitenai.” We got the idea and decided to do that after I used an old VTR at my solo concert and thought, “Wow, we were so young.” I don’t remember much from back then, so I was able to have a fresh feeling for it and it was a lot of fun.

-MESSAGES TO RYO

Subaru: I’m sure Ryo is very busy being in two groups. But he never shows that in front of us. I’m only in one group but I always have my hands full with things to think and do, haha. Also, I feel like we can go get something to eat together alone now… I think I’ll casually ask him when he’s really hyper or something, haha.

Maru: He has many faces: NEWS, K8, dramas… and he seems very busy. Whenever I look at him, I think “I have to work harder, too.” Whenever I look at Ryo-chan, it boosts my morale. His appearances also have that wistful manliness and even from a guy, he is very good-looking.

Shota: If I were to describe Ryo in a pie chart, it’ll consist of “tough” and “shy.” These days he’s really into the monster game that Yokocho’s into, so I think he’s even busier now despite being so busy to begin with, haha. But I think Ryo likes to live busily… or should I say that’s something he lives for. That’s why I really want him to watch out for his health!

Ohkura: We kept on saying that it’d be nice if we could do something together, so I was happy that we were able to do a song together in the spring tour. At the end of the song, we really get close to each other. Ryo-chan always touches weird things, haha. He always does something unnecessary, just like Murakami-kun. So whenever I’m laughing meaninglessly or have this confused look on my face during concerts, just think that it’s probably either of the two teasing me, haha.

Hina: Ryo originally started that monster hunting game. It’s actually Ryo’s fault that Ohkura betrayed me! Haha. When it comes to preparing before concerts, Ryo’s a slow starter. I always start getting ready with 45 minutes to go, but Ryo starts with 10 minutes to go. I once started getting ready with about 10 minutes to go, but it didn’t feel right. This is just something that varies among people. For Ryo, it’s 10 minutes that works best for him. Also, he really ate UFO a lot in the dressing room.

Yoko: He does NEWS, K8 and also dramas. I bet he’s really busy. I can feel how hard Dokkun’s working when I look at him. If I were him, I think I’ll lose to the busyness. He’s basically really energetic. In the dressing room, he’s more talkative than the any of us and he’s really hyper. I’d really be thankful if he’d show that side of himself at concert MCs, haha.


MESSAGES TO MARU

Subaru: I think this might come as a surprise, but I feel like Maru and I have some things in common. Of course there are many different things, but sensuously… for example, how you feel about things. I think we’re kinda similar in that sense. Because we are so similar, we don’t really intersect in that sense, but I can really understand how Maru feels things.

Ryo: I think the best way to explain Maru to people is that he is an “unpredictable person,” haha. If I put that into different words, he’ll be an “always irregular person,” haha. Even though we’ve known each other for this long, I don’t know where the ball is going to fly to at all. That’s why I get “errors” (as in baseball) when I try to catch Maru’s ball, haha. I think all the guys are weird in one way or another, but Maru’s really up there.

Shota: During the Fukuoka show in the spring tour, I was outside of the venue playing my guitar by myself. Then Maru came over and started eating his lunch. “What’s up?” he started, and we talked about what we’ve been up to these days. I felt “Wow, this feeling… it’s been a while!” There was a nice sunset and… yeah, it was a really nice moment.

Ohkura: During the last tour, Maru and I promised that if we couldn’t lose weight by concert time, we had to do an ippatsugei on stage. The day before the deadline, I still had 300g to lose. I didn’t eat anything that whole day and I was down to 100g to go. I thought, “I’ll be able to clear the goal if I just went to bed now!” and so I went to bed. The next morning, I was excited to see my weight, but… I had gained 200g! What in the world happened inside my body, haha. So I went over to Maru and said “Please help me come up with an ippatsugei!!” and then he happily thought about it with me. It was a big hit! To me, Maru looked like God, haha.

Hina: I go out to eat with Maru the most out of all the guys. Maru off-camera is the same as the Maru everyone knows about. He’s annoying every day, haha. We always have conversations such as “Your upper lip is so annoying!” Because I spend so much time with him, I really don’t have much to say about him, haha.

Yoko: Maru has lost weight recently. I don’t know the specific number of kilograms that he lost, but he looks a lot skinnier. We were saying that if he didn’t lose weight, we’ll have a punishment for him, but I can see that people can really do things if they really tried. I want him to keep his weight during the next tour as well.


MESSAGES TO SHOTA
Subaru: Yasu… is the kind of guy who, though we take completely different paths, somehow ends up in the same place. We did a song together for the first time during the last tour, and I felt that we have caused some chemical changes and I thought, “Wow, Yasu really is awesome.” I have a few music genres that I hold dear: music as K8 the group, music as Shibutani Subaru, music as the band… and a genre called “music with Yasuda” is something that I want to cherish as well.

Ryo: Yasu doesn’t eat. Even if he does, it’s always a little of the salad or something like that. I eat a lot, so whenever I see Yasu I want to say “Eat more!” But not eating before the concert is Yasu’s policy and he moves around a lot during the concert and eats afterwards as well, so I guess that’s just his pace. Also, whenever I go up to him and ask him, “Hey Yasu, can you change this and that?” for the band, he’s always quick to respond and adapt to the change.

Maru: To me, Yasu is the most “classic Yasu” when he’s dancing. I felt that way when I went to watch Yasu’s “818,” too. I saw him going over the dance movements frequently with Yara-kun during the last tour, and it made me remember the old days. I think we can see a lot of the unchanging Yasus in this tour as well.

Ohkura: He told me that he doesn’t have many friends in Tokyo, so I introduced him to one of mine. Then, all of a sudden, Yasu’s been hanging out with my friend more than I was, haha. Yasu really has the ability to become friends with anyone. In addition, everyone tells me “Yasu’s such a good kid!” Even if it’s not about me, it makes me really happy.

Hina: Yasu has definitely changed compared to long time ago. I don’t know since when, though. I think he’s changed ever since he started wearing skirts. These days he’s been drawing all the time and I really have no clue what he’s up to, haha. I ask him out to meals but the timing is never right so he can never make it. In my head, he is in a category called “the store that always has a huge waiting line,” haha.

Yoko: I have the most difficulty trying to figure out Yasu’s private time. He doesn’t really talk about himself. Usually you’d say things like “Yesterday I went to XXX” naturally, but Yasu doesn’t. He’s mysterious in that sense. Oh, the other day he tried to send me an email for my birthday, but I had forgotten to tell Yasu that I had changed my email address. There was a very panicky voicemail left, haha. Sorry, Yasu. But I got your feelings!


MESSAGES TO OHKURA
Subaru: He’s like a totally different creature that has many things that I don’t have. The way he thinks, the way he goes about… I think he brings forth a lot of things that I would never think about. I think he adapts to things well. He probably has a switch that he could click on and adapt to things as they come. I always have to take my time when I do things. I probably can never become him, but I admire that part of Ohkura.
Ryo: He’s always so lazy in the dressing room. He always gets ready after me… and that says a lot, haha. There are times when he’s missing from our huddles before concerts (because he’s not ready in time). He’s “big” both inside and out, I guess? Also, I usually watch the other guys during concerts and stuff but I notice that Ohkura’s always enjoying himself and is looking good. His movements are always big so I think he’s a good stage performer.
Maru: The first time we met, I thought he was a younger boy who is quiet and who I can’t see the core of. But as I started working with him, I realized that he has a lot of thoughts of his own and that I am the one who was always thinking as I went… and I kinda felt embarrassed about it. These days, I feel like Ohkura’s like the older brother, haha.
Shota: I go out to eat with Ohkura often and he’s put me into his circle of friends, so I hang out with him a lot during our times off. We don’t talk about work at all and our facial expressions are probably a lot different from work as well. I think we have childlike expressions on because we sing songs and play games together. The people Ohkura’s introduced me to are all really great people, and I want to thank Ohkura for that.
Hina: Tatsu… he’s changed. I’m very disappointed. Him and I have been playing this game where we are the mayors of a city, but he’s moved on to the monster hunting one! Then on, he’s the same as Yoko. He’s using all sorts of buzz phrases and I have no clue what he’s talking about. Just a while ago we were giving each other advices like “If you do this, it’ll become a good city!” I guess this is his recent change, haha.
Yoko: Ohkura really does things at his own pace and he gets ready for concerts really slowly. There are times when we say “Alright, shall we get going?” and he would head for the bath. I tell him, “Why are you taking a bath now!” but he’s not in a hurry and he doesn’t budge. I’m definitely not a person who gets ready quickly, but even I can admire him, haha.


MESSAGES TO HINA
Subaru: I feel like I’m linked by fate with all of our guys, but Hina I think is one of the strongest. Maybe it’s just within me, but whenever I have a big event in my life, like “Mitei Ichi” or the drama “Arigato Okan” coming up, it’s been with Hina. He’s a person that pops up in those situations. As a result, he helps me out a lot.
Ryo: I think Murakami-kun is someone that’s very steady. During the Eight Ranger skit in the spring tour, there was this part where Nasu Ranger says “Hey guys!” after he comes back alive, and that sounded like a tape recording because it sounded the same every time. I thought it was cool though that he can do things the same way all the time. Also, during the Fukuoka shows, I went out to eat with Yara-kun, Yasu, Maru and Murakami-kun. We were at a different table, but he was laughing so loud and having a lot of fun.
Maru: The time we spend together is really long. Once, we went to the same yakiniku place for two straight days and ordered the same things, haha. I always see him so I haven’t noticed the small changes, but looking at him from a bigger perspective… yeah, I think he’s changed dramatically. I think he’s relaxed a bit in a good way, and the word “flexibility without extra strength” fits him very well now.
Shota: Hina-chan is really into this mayor game and he’s always concerned about his approval ratings. He is usually yelling “Oh man, another earthquake! Why does another earthquake have to come!” into the game. I think it’s cute when he’s all into it and stuff. But if you were to ask me if I wanted to be like that, I’d say “No, thanks.” Haha.
Ohkura: During the spring tour, there was this time when I had to give the microphone to Murakami-kun, and every time he did something unnecessary. I thought, “You didn’t need to do that!” and it was so annoying, haha. I don’t think any fans noticed it either, haha.
Yoko: I bought Hina the game I’m into these days. He’s completely into it now. He gets immersed into things, so I’m looking forward to it. During the last tour, he was working hard at everything as well. Rumor says that Nasu Ranger was only sleeping, though… But I think Hina’s flying has perfectly expressed the “stupidity” I intended for!


MESSAGES TO YOKO
Subaru: I feel like Yoko’s a “friend from back home.” He’s a member of the group and a co-worker, but I think he’s more of a friend to me than the others. When we hang out during our off-time, we never talk about work. I think Yoko’s more relaxed outside of work. That said, I don’t really hang out with him THAT often.
Ryo: Yokoyama-kun is a guy who eats sweet things and makes them look delicious. He always enjoys eating the things people give us. Also, the Yokoyama-kun in the dressing room is so quiet that he’s like a completely different person from on-stage. On the contrary, the guy who’s quiet during MCs but noisy in the dressing room is me, haha. I’m not making up characters or anything, though. I still get nervous on stage, haha.
Maru: He’s never been proactive when it came to “singing,” but these days I think it has changed a bit. During the spring tour, I said to him, “During the band song, I’m going to go to you and fan the flame,” and he said “Sure.” But, he did warn me and said, “Make it low-key though,” haha. I’m honestly happy that we’re being able to communicate this way, though.
Shota: These days he’s been playing games so much that I think the only things that he can see are monsters, haha. The other day, I was surprised to hear that he went to eat something and started playing games with an ossan he doesn’t know at all saying “Onegai shimasu,” haha. Also, this is just between you and me, but Yokocho’s hand movements during Osaka Rainy Blues is always different from us. He says “It’ll make it harder for me to dance to it so don’t say it!” but I’ll secretly tell you here.
Ohkura: During the spring tour, his hair got all curly by the MC. During the MC for Yokoyama-kun’s birthday, we were all like “Please sing your specialty ‘Paaman’!” but he refused. In my head, I was like “Well, your hair is now a paaman…” haha.
Hina: Yoko these days are all about the monster hunting game. Seriously, that’s the only thing I can come up with (when I try to talk about him), haha. He said that he even forgets to eat. The MC during the spring tour, the talk during our radio show… it’s all about the game. I think it’s more that he just loves playing games rather than him getting into things. Yoko’s face while playing games is the exact same as his childhood days. Seriously, that’s a bad 27-year old, haha.

FROM:: http://paaaaan.livejournal.com/66703.html

I really like to read their interviews, it's really intresting so thanx 4 sharing mimi-chan!!

yeah me too!! your welcome nishiki-chan!! ..