Interview with ANIPUNK

As their name already suggests, ANIPUNK are a group who takes anime songs and make them punk. While in Paris for an appearance at the Japan Expo, JaME caught up with the five ANIPUNK members to chat. We took this opportunity to get to know the band and their concept a little better.


Hello! Can you introduce yourselves to our readers?

GERU-C Kakka: Hi, I’m GERU-C Kakka, the vocalist. In the Sentai rangers group, I’m the one in red. (laughs)
higo-vicious: I’m higo-vicious, the bassist. I’m usually the one who plans our concerts, right down to the merchandising.
卍Ryo卍: I’m 卍Ryo卍, on drums. Out of everyone, I’m the calm one.
ALL (except 卍Ryo卍): What a lie!
卍Ryo卍: Amongst the bombs, I’m the least explosive. (laughs)
ADACHI: Hello, I’m the guitarist, ADACHI. I’m the one who responds to ‘shit’.
JIRO: I’m JIRO, the guitarist. I’m very green (note: JIRO often dresses inspired by a kappa, a green mythological sea creature).

How did you come up with the idea of combining the punk and mainstream worlds?

GERU-C Kakka: In the 90s, there was a certain way to change generic, mainstream music or children's music into other music for adults, metal, punk reggae and hip-hop—and that’s the way it happened.

卍Ryo卍: We’ve got the spirits of kids! (laughs)

ANIPUNK’s style of music has the same feeling as some other groups in the Japanese music scene. How do you differentiate between these styles and stand out?

higo-vicious: We have common points with several groups; We all like punk rock and anime. We understand each other very well, and really we're all friends. We’re also pretty cool, especially when drinking at the opening nights of our concerts. (laughs)

How long do you think that the punk world will be appropriate for anime?

卍Ryo卍: Forever!

Some have compared you to ANIMETAL as your concepts share similarities. What are your thoughts on ANIMETAL and have you thought about touring with them?

GERU-C Kakka: No. Those who created ANIMETAL (with aid from a major influence) contacted me after a disagreement with the production and helped us to move to the next stage.

Despite more than ten years of existence, you have very few releases. Why is that?

GERU-C Kakka: ANIPUNK has been around for fifteen years but with the current members, we’ve only played for about five years.

Still, there's no shortage of anime songs out there.

GERU-C Kakka: I was basically the pillar of the group and there were plenty of musicians around me. When it came time to make a CD, the other members returned to their groups and it wasn't really possible to record a CD while I was alone. So it was when we created the band as a unit, five years ago, that recording became possible.

How do you choose songs and arrange them so that they're transformed into a punk style?

GERU-C Kakka: Members of the group will like a part of a song that we might cover. Then we have to get permission and see if it can be arranged. Then it can be transformed into punk; arrangements are either made by one of our members or the producer.

Are there any anime songs you would like to transform into punk?

JIRO: Probably something from "GUNDAM Z".
卍Ryo卍: A "Kamen Rider" medley, definitely.
GERU-C Kakka: "Yamato".
higo-vicious : "Lupin the IIIrd".
ADACHI: "Albator".

Have you ever thought of composing original material for anime?

higo-vicious: Sure, the desire to do it is there…
GERU-C Kakka: But doing that would contradict the concept of our group: covering anime songs and turning them punk.

Is it necessary to be a fan of a certain anime in order to cover a song from it?

higo-vicious: It must be something like that (laughs).

Which groups have left the strongest impression on you?

JIRO: Metallica.
卍Ryo卍: THE STALIN.
GERU-C Kakka: Public Enemy. I’m an old rapper!
higo-vicious: Sex Pistols.
ADACHI: THE BLUE HEARTS.

Your version of a theme from "Evangelion" has a very garage sound. How was the recording?

higo-vicious: For that album, we worked with a guest guitarist, we all thought "Oh he's good", and that was that.

What do you enjoy more: being in the studio with all the work or on stage facing the audience?

higo-vicious: I prefer to be on stage because we have a connection with our fans and have a drink with them afterwards. We exist to party.

What are your thoughts about Japan Expo? Were you able to attend any of the concerts?

GERU-C Kakka: This is the first time we’ve been to Paris, and Japan Expo. So, the cultural point of view impacted us more than we thought it would. And for the live show, we hope people who didn’t see us here will end up coming to see us later. Since we also love anime, we hope that anyone who likes anime will come to see us.

GERU-C Kakka, you mentioned that you were a rapper; how did you adapt your voice to punk?

GERU-C Kakka: Sake, Tobacco, “Gaaa” (cries).

Any additional messages for your fans?

GERU-C Kakka: Something we have in common is a love for anime shows and movies, and it'd be great if our fans can see them differently because of our music.


JaME would like to thank Japan Expo, ANIPUNK, and the translator for making this interview possible.