It's a big deal when you play in a rock band and you conquer Japan. You know, it's a big deal.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I really didn't intend to be a musician when I left Japan.
Japan has really great fans for all kinds of music. I think they're keeping metal alive.
I might have played a little bit more in Europe than I have in Japan.
The level on which Japan seems to have picked up on my music seems to be on a more abstract level.
It makes sense for Japan to pursue a more independent role in the world, following Latin America and others in freeing itself from U.S. domination.
However in countries outside of Japan I think game music is still a potential growth market that has not yet developed to the extent that we are seeing in Japan.
I have a lot of Japanese fans, but in Korea they seem to go crazy for me. I don't know what it is, but they seem to like my style.
Well, in Japan, I have got a group of musicians that I have worked with a lot, that concentrate just on the hardcore stuff, say, that Naked City has been working on. We have like a repertoire of sixty songs now.
After a foreign invasion, there has to be a sort of feeling of musical inadequacy in the country.
First off, I don't want anyone to think I'm this huge thing in Japan. Every group from here that's made any records over any length of time - even indie bands - have a Cheap Trick effect in Japan.