Shortly before their concert at AVO J-rock Festival, the young rock band VANIRU talked with JaME about their beginnings, aspirations and Salvador Dalí.
Only several months after their formation rock band VANIRU got the chance to perform in Germany and the Netherlands. In this get-together with JaME in Utrecht, the Netherlands, the two – accompanied by their manager – talked about their aspirations and the secret behind LEONEIL’s luscious long hair.
Could you please introduce yourselves?
LEONEIL: LEONEIL, vocals.
YUTO: Guitar, YUTO.
How did the band form?
YUTO: Our formation…it started when we met. He had been thinking about it before we met though. We started our activities only two months ago.
Where does the name VANIRU come from?
LEONEIL: From a legend. It’s the name of a Norwegian group of gods.
Did you know each other before you started working together?
YUTO: No, we didn’t.
When did you first meet then, if you started making music just two months ago?
LEONEIL: About two years ago…?
YUTO: I haven’t thought about that actually. I don’t really remember!
Have you played in other bands before VANIRU?
YUTO: No, just VANIRU.
So This is your very first band?
YUTO: Yes, it is.
How would you describe your music?
YUTO: In words? To provoke, to attack. Attacking freely, feeling freely.
LEONEIL: Imagination. If you are able to let it in, it can be anything.
What do you want to achieve with your music?
YUTO: To pass the comfort zone, that security level.
Manager: He (LEONEIL) always thinks about philosophy and such. He’s a bit strange.
YUTO: (laughs) Strange!
LEONEIL: We want to give an impulse, to provoke.
What made you decide to go into the music business?
YUTO: We don’t really think about the business side of it.
You have always been artists?
YUTO: Always. (Laughs) I think we have always been artists.
LEONEIL: Music is my goal in life.
Did you ever want to be anything else besides musicians?
LEONEIL: I never thought about anything else. It has always been music for me.
YUTO: Same for me. It has been that way since I was little.
Always (with the) guitar, too?
YUTO: Well, not just (with the) guitar; rather music as a whole.
Where do you find inspiration for writing music?
YUTO: Where do we get that from…it’s something that comes to you in a moment.
LEONEIL: Suddenly. For example, something you felt at a certain moment. If you expect inspiration, there is no stimulus or excitement in life.
Who are your influences when it comes to making music?
LEONEIL: (Salvador) Dalí. His way of thinking, and also his paintings.
Manager: He always answers (with) that. Because Dalí devoted his life to art, he is special to LEONEIL. He wants to be like him, to have that persistence.
YUTO: There is so much art I like and so many things I like. I can’t really name something in particular, but what I respect the most are animals, so much that I would like to become an animal myself. I really love nature. I speak with animals. Also with flowers.
Manager: And food, sometimes. (Laughs)
YUTO: I think everything is alive.
What is your favourite animal, then?
YUTO: Dogs are my favourite.
Does your guitar have a name?
YUTO: It doesn’t have a name, but it talks to me. It says, “Be nice to me today”.
Do you also get inspiration from other bands?
YUTO: Actually I can’t really say that we do. When I hear of a new band who I think is interesting, I listen to it, but I often forget about them again. I don’t think “this is it!” afterwards.
What was your favourite band when you were in high school and why?
YUTO: I did have a favourite band when I was in high school, but…it’s a secret. It’s a secret, right?
LEONEIL: A dark one.
By the way, did you have time to go sightseeing in the Netherlands?
YUTO: Well, we just arrived here, so the view we have of the Netherlands is only this (points at window).
Not very interesting, is it….
YUTO: (Laughs) No, no! It’s nice. What do you recommend?
Did you see any windmills yet?
YUTO: No, we haven’t….
LEONEIL: Yes, we have. When we came here there were a lot of them, so we did see them.
How long will you stay in the Netherlands?
YUTO: Until tomorrow. But we would like to come again. It would be nice to see some windmills again.
About the concert, you’re going to perform shortly after this interview. What are your expectations about the show and the fans?
LEONEIL: We’ll find out from now. It’s the first time we perform here.
What about European audiences?
YUTO: Yes, they are different….
LEONEIL: They listen while they are freely feeling the music physically.
YUTO: They retreat into their inner selves, in a good way. They are not led by prejudices.
Manager: What we hope is that the audience just feels.
YUTO: We want to make a connection with their innermost feelings.
Lastly, I want to know something very important: what is the secret of your hair?
LEONEIL: I feed it well.
YUTO: (Laughs) It’s alive.
LEONEIL: Moonlight is good for the hair.
Do you have a message for JaME’s readers?
LEONEIL: Dramatic, romantic imagination.
YUTO: Let’s meet. We want to come back to the Netherlands. We would like to have friends all over the world.
JaME would like to thank Francisca of AVO Forum and VANIRU for making this interview possible, as well as Lara Oude Alink for her interpretation and translation.
