Source: http://nipponproject.com/en/article.php?id=250 INTERVIEW WITH STEREOPONY AT ANIME BOSTON; [ENGLISH] NIPPON PROJECT; 2011-05-13 At Anime Boston we had some time to sit with Stereopony for a chat. They are really upbeat and fun, just like their music. Nippon Project: First let’s start by introducing each other from the left. With the introduction add a funny fact about that person fans may not know. Nohana: This is Aimi, the vocalist and guitarist. She is 148 cm, which is quite short. She is tiny in height, but she is very powerful in everything else. Aimi: This is the Drummer, Shiho. On her own time she reads books. When she’s feeling down, she drinks Red bull to get high. She was wearing heels earlier but she had to give up, and now she’s wearing regular shoes. Shiho: This is Nohana, the bassist and she has a messy room. (They burst into laughter) So, this is your third year to perform in the US, correct? (They agree) The first time you came was for the South by Southwest (SXSW) musical festival. Could you tell us a little bit about that? Aimi: For me and Shiho, it was our first time traveling abroad, so it was the first time we actually got a passport. As for performing, it was the first time we were going somewhere else to perform, which was fantastic. We actually enjoyed the restrictions and the roughness that America had. We had a very little amount of time to rehearse or to sound check, it was really good as an experience and the audience was really warm so we felt a really positive vibe. What do you think are the differences between performing at music festivals like SXSW and performing at anime conventions? Aimi: The one thing I felt here (Anime Boston) today was, the amount of security was great, very protective. Speaking of anime conventions, you have already been to two conventions here in the US. How do you feel about the fans and the audience here? Nohana: The American audience remembering our lyrics even in Japanese, that’s something special and we really appreciate that, it’s a lot of fun. Have you ever attended an anime convention? Aimi: Not outside, no. What has been your favorite anime you have been able to work on a theme song for? Shiho: Ahh. It’s tough. We really do like all our related anime series, but for one of our more recent singles Chiisana Mahou, the Letter Bee anime series, we really enjoy the colorfulness that the anime has. Speaking of Chiisana Mahou, could you please describe the concept of the single? Aimi: The song was written when we had a certain break in our career. We were kind of frustrated not being able to play at that time, but that’s when our fans gave us comments on our website, lots of positive comments from our fans. We were very moved by it, so we really wanted to give back to our fans, and obviously through music. It’s a song about appreciation to our fans. It means little magic. We know that you have already performed in the US, but are there any other countries you’d like to perform? Aimi: England Are there any places you’d like to tour or visit? Aimi: I want to go somewhere chill. LA is definitely some place I want to check out. Nohana: I would like to go somewhere warm. Shiho: I would like to just go wherever. Anywhere that’s outside. As much as possible, I would like to see. Are you all surprised to find out you have so many fans outside of Japan? Aimi: it’s unbelievable, to this day. It’s really an amazing thing. How did you guys feel about the show last night? Did anything unexpected happen? All three described: At the end of the concert, we wanted to take a group photo and we yelled, “come on!” And a lot of fans ended up coming up to the stage which never happens in Japan. So it was really surprising. What do you do to relax in your free time? Nohana: Twitter. Shiho: I read books. Aimi: sleep. When people hear Stereopony, what is the first thing you want them to think? Aimi: It would be nice if the people here could experience the difference between our visual images on photos and our actual live music performance. In March, a terrible earthquake hit Japan. It was very devastating for so many people. As artist how do you keep your strength and spirits up, even while travel to another country while things are still going on in Japan? Aimi: It’s obviously not an easy situation right now but what we are trying to do is to keep smiling. At least that one smile will help bring a more positive vibe and bring peace together and we hope that through our music some people would feel that way. We try to bring smiles to the music as much as possible. Music has been said to be international with no barriers our not boundaries. What do you hope people will understand about Japan and Stereopony through your music? Aimi: Just like when we listen to American music it’s a cool image that we look up to. So vice versa, I hope the American fans could project that cool image towards Japanese music in general for them to look up to. That would be wonderful. What’s next for Stereopony? Aimi: We are actually still in the middle of our Japan tour. As soon as we get back to Japan we will be playing again. We will finish up our tour in Tokyo in May. So hopefully that will be a success. We are also working on a new single that will tie in with the main theme song in a film. So hopefully everyone will get a chance to listen to that as well. Lastly, do you have a final message for the fans? Nohana: Thanks for all the positive energy that the American fans have given us. We hope to come back and thanks for all the support. Nippon Project would like to thank Stereopony and Sony Music for making this interview possible.
