As they build their way towards their next musical milestone, sophomore LP ‘Hazama’, we got chatting to the masterminds behind Japanese folk-fusion band Mitsune! While their music certainly speaks for itself, we couldn’t wait to get down to the nitty gritty to find out more…
UR: How did you get into music in the first place?
Tina: Dancing to street musicians when I was still a kid and I always had to move when I heard music. Later on when learning guitar – my first instrument – I wanted to compose my own songs early on. This desire to express myself in music never stopped, only grew stronger.
Shiomi: From my kindergarten I was staying from 0 years old, they had toys but also many instruments such as drums, keyboard, bells, accordion, pianica, harmonica, etc. I was more curious about the function of making sounds at the time.
Youka: My Dad has great music taste, so growing up I was exposed to artists like Prince, Joy Division, Talking Heads, David Bowie, Bob Marley to name a few. Then I remember a specific moment, when I was around 8 years old – my family went to a local theatre show where they sang “Roll out the Barrel”, and the next day I pulled out this little toy piano and started to play the melody by ear. It felt like easy mathematics to me. Shortly thereafter I started learning violin and basically never put it down.
UR: Did you have other goals/dreams if it wasn’t going to be music?
Tina: I wanted to be a marine biologist as a kid and considered becoming an interpreter as well.
Youka: Omg Tina and I shared the same dream of being a marine biologist! That’s so funny, I didn’t know that! These days I honestly can’t even consider a career outside of music, I have no other skills.
Shiomi: I still haven’t given up on being a sculptor! But it’s really similar to creating music, like how much space you give to the sounds/object.
UR: How do you spend most of your spare time outside of music?
Tina: What is that? Outside of music? 😉 I guess at some point everything shows its rhythm, which can relate to music. But if I’d consider music the dynamics in life then I’d say outside of music I like to hike through nature.
Shiomi: That’s true, my passion is travelling all over the word but during travelling I’m focussed on the sounds of nature and music, any sounds people create, in there I could see what they think for living life.
Youka: I am a pretty social person – before the pandemic I liked to go clubbing/dancing, it’s an excellent form of release. At the moment I’m enjoying chill hangs with friends, doing karaoke in the living room, and yoga.
UR: If you could share the stage with a deceased music star who would it be and why?
Youka: I have to say Prince because he is the GOAT and my favourite artist ever. He had quite the penchant for girl bands so perhaps we’ll manage it in the afterlife hahah!
UR: What’s your method for discovering new music?
Tina: I love recommendations from friends because that usually turns out to be something good as well as something I wouldn’t have found on my own. Impulses from others are more enriching.
Youka: Totally agree with Tina, I always ask friends what they’re listening to.
UR: For starters, your new album ‘Hazama’ – which roughly translates to ‘in between’ in English – is releasing on February 18th. How do you all feel about finally getting the material heard in the world?
Tina: This is really a big day for us. We are excited to share this beloved album we worked on for two years with everyone. It feels almost like a family gathering, us getting together with an audience – be it live or online. After these pandemic years we really missed the dialogue with our audience and there is so much we wanna tell them with this new album.
Youka: This new album also marks a huge evolution in the sound of Mitsune. We’re super curious to see what people think of it, from all cultures and walks of life – who it resonates with, how it makes them feel, and why.
UR: For many artists, the genre of ‘World Music’ has been argued to be a marketing rubric and it has become a derogatory term of sorts that places a lot of different sounds from across the globe into one bucket although they may not have that much to do with each other. How do you perceive the name of ‘World Music’ and how do you like to convey your own music with a sense of authenticity?
Tina: Well, there might be people using exoticism for marketing and selling. Our approach is an artistic one. I think the term “world music” makes it (too) easy to pigeonhole as many styles as possible. Of course it would be more authentic to represent a diverse music culture with more terms. On the other hand music itself is so permeable in the most wonderful way. Instruments and styles can merge and make something bigger and interesting, something that communicates beyond the barrier of languages. In the end a smaller term than “world” might not encompass that.
Youka: The term ‘world music’ only really exists through a western lens, so it should be taken with a grain of salt. I personally don’t find it a harmful term – just a little basic. In my own experience, growing up in Australia, I’d attend festivals or listen to compilations labelled broadly as ‘world music’, and through that, I eventually did find my niches. I totally agree that we should be expanding the vocabulary and getting more specific, if only to challenge the existing gaze. Anyways, naming music genres is always a bit of a drag, and can still feel reductive no matter how specific you try to be. For Mitsune, I really don’t care if we’re labelled as ‘world music’ or whatever anyone comes up with – all you have to do is watch, listen and feel if you like it or not.
UR: With diversity and representation of different cultural groups becoming a huge talking point across the entertainment and arts industry in the West, bands like Blackpink, BTS and CHAI have gained more popularity and commercial success with mainstream Western audiences across the last few years. Are you aiming to achieve a similar level of crossover appeal or are you happy/comfortable with just making the music that you’re making even if it hits a bit of a niche?
Tina: I’d say feeling true to the music needs to be the priority. But of course we need to be successful at some level with music as our profession. But I’d always prefer success over fame 😉
Youka: Weirdly, the only crossover appeal I’m thinking about is how we might be received in Japan. Mitsune is a multicultural band from Berlin – not a Japanese band – playing the shamisen, an instrument that is barely recognised outside of Japan. We are creating a type of shamisen music that I don’t think other shamisen artists have touched on before, so I wonder how people in Japan will respond. Ultimately, I hope the music speaks for itself and I trust that the magic of the instrument transcends all borders.
UR: I read that you specialise in using the ‘Tsugaru Shamisen’, a three-string instrument that is said to be favoured by the blind monks of olden Japan. What draws you to the instrument? Do you feel the equipment conveys different emotions in comparison to instruments more widely used in the West, such as a bass guitar, synths or a traditional drum kit, for instance?
Tina: The Tsugaru Shamisen has a very unique dynamic quality. With its clear notes and percussive slaps it can propel melodies as well as rhythm. It can really cast a spell over you not only to listen to this kind of music but for me especially playing this instrument. I started and couldn’t stop ever since. I enjoyed playing many other instruments as well but none ever was as mesmerising as the Tsugaru Shamisen.
Shiomi: For me, Shamisen sounds is same like my home. Something comfortable in my deep side and makes me feel melancholic.
Youka: The sound of the shamisen stirs up something in me – the resonance of strings combined with the striking of a drum, it has the elements of sound I love the most. The instrument is full of life, it is made with wood and animal skin and the strings are traditionally made from silk. Perhaps that has something to do with it, life and nature embodied in an instrument.
UR: Finally, a lot of your music feels visually influenced and the mellow soul style reminds me of the Houston trio Khruangbin. If you could perform a live show in any place at any time of day with any setting surrounding you. What type of location would you choose and how would it suit your music?
Youka: I love Khruangbin so that’s a big compliment! Our music is definitely very visual – it’s all about folklore, storytelling, and a bit of magic. The best setting for our music is outside in nature, so our ideal live show would be staged somewhere like a forest, valley, or the foot of a mountain. It would take place at dusk, the music beginning in daylight and ending in darkness. We would be surrounded by hundreds of lanterns that glow brighter and brighter as the evening darkens, with the sweet scent of tree blossoms, wood fire and food cooking in the distance.
Hazama is unleashed on the 18th of February 2022!
Connect with Mitsune down below: