An Interview with MOSAIC.WAV

MOSAIC.WAV is a duo known for combining electronic sounds with high-pitched vocals reminiscent of anime theme songs. When they were invited to perform at the French event Japan Expo earlier this year, JaME got the opportunity to speak with MOSAIC.WAV briefly before their performance. We spoke to them about their beginnings, passions and the "Akiba-Pop" movement.


Can you please introduce yourselves to our readers who don’t know you yet?

Miiko: Hello, we are MOSAIC.WAV. I am Miiko, I sing and sometimes write the lyrics to our songs.
Susumu Kayamori: I am Susumu Kayamori and I am in charge of the keyboard and the compositions.

How did you meet?

Miiko: At the start I was doing voice acting for anime. My agency decided to create a group to sing the theme songs for this anime series, and because I already knew Susumu Kayamori, I asked him to start that group with me.

Tell us about the name of your group. How did you choose it and what is its significance?

Miiko: We chose this name in connection with church windows. It really represents colour and different passions.
Susumu Kayamori: It was rather by chance, we found it and no one objected.

Your music is often used for video games and anime. Do you know that when you're composing it or is that decided after the title is released?

Miiko: We already know about the series in advance. They send us pictures and after looking at them we compose the music while being inspired by the world of the work.
Susumu Kayamori: In fact, we compose a 30-minute piece and then we deal with the production that consists of taking the photos to go with our piece.

Why did you choose Akiba-Pop instead of another genre?

Miiko: We really like anime and video games. We were also fans of the theme songs of the anime series from our childhoods and also of Akihabara (a famous shopping area in Tokyo for anime and computer goods) which is a little like a sacred place that symbolises this passion.
Susumu Kayamori: We would like to express the world of Akihabara through our songs. For us, the world of anime and Akihabara are very much connected, it is the same for our compositions. It’s very natural for us.

Please tell us about your on-stage costumes.

Miiko: For our costumes, we try to think of anime characters to achieve something with eccentricity and movement.

What did you imagine Europe to be like? What do you think of it?

Miiko: When we first discussed Europe, we thought especially of castles and historical heritage. When we decided to come to France, I immediately thought of novels from my childhood like "Les Misérable" and "Notre-Dame-de-Paris."

Your first concert in France will take place in a few hours. How do you feel?

Miiko: It’s already difficult for Japanese people to understand us, so we can’t imagine what it's like for the French. (laughs) All the same, I hope that they will have a lot of fun with our music!

What are your plans for the future?

Miiko: We would like to take part in Comic Market, an event in Japan. We will of course continue to write songs, but we also wish to release a more personal album.

Do you have a message for our readers?

Miiko: This time we are in Paris. We have already met many anime and video game fans, and we were delighted to see that the trend is going well. It’s all a new thing for us to come to Europe and we hope to come back. Thank you!


JaME would like to thank the Japan Expo and MOSAIC.WAV for their kindness and the time they gave us despite the imminence of their concert.