OWN INTERVIEW CONTENTS Vol.5 HAYATO (45 REVOLUTION / CROCODILE COX AND THE DISASTER)
OWN (hereinafter O): It's been a while! First, please introduce yourself, HAYATO !
HAYATO (hereafter referred to as H): Hello, I'm HAYATO . I run a punk shop called 45 REVOLUTION in Shimokitazawa. I also play guitar in a hardcore punk band called CROCODILE COX AND THE DISASTER . That's about it.
O 45 What year did REVOLUTION start?
This year marks the 16th year, so I guess it started in 2005 or 2006 .
OWhat kind of work did you do before opening your shop, HAYATO ?
I started working on-site right after graduating from junior high school. I think I started out as an electrician. From then on, I worked on-site until I was 31. I've never even had a part-time job at a clothing store.
OSo why did you decide to start a punk shop?
H: I have a friend who's the same age as me, and he asked me if I wanted to open a shop. I guess he asked me because I'd been into punk fashion since we met. At first I wanted to open a record store, but I didn't have much expertise, and CD sales had been declining since then, so I felt a bit unsure and decided to open a punk shop. I was already in the band SCUM BANDITZ at the time.
O Weren't the people around you surprised when you suddenly started running a punk shop?
H: Actually, I wasn't confident at first, so I didn't really tell anyone around me. Like I said before, I'd never worked in a clothing store, and I didn't have any knowledge of purchasing. It was tough at first. But everyone supported me, and I've managed to get this far.
Why did you decide to open a punk shop instead of a typical clothing store?
Even back then, I loved band T -shirts and wore them often. But it was hard to find exactly the kind of bands I loved in Japan. There was a little bit in Koenji, I think. Of course, there was merchandise for classic bands like Sex Pistols , Bad Religion , and Nofx , but there was nothing for Gang Green , who I loved listening to at the time. There was absolutely no merchandise for American hardcore bands. But I looked online and found some overseas, so I contacted a friend overseas and asked him to buy me this and that. That's how I got started. I'm sure you know, Ochiai-san, but our original location before we moved was really small, about 6 tatami mats in size, so we didn't have any space to store our inventory. It was only about a third of what we have now. Eventually, it got too cramped, and no matter how hard we sold, our sales were limited because we didn't have enough inventory. So I wanted a slightly larger store, and that's why we looked for a new property and ended up in our current location. That was the spot we had been eyeing, so I was really happy. There's a Disk Union on Chazawa-dori and the live music venue Shimokitazawa SHELTER is nearby, so the location is perfect.
Why did you decide to open your shop in Shimokitazawa?
Hmm , I guess it's because it's the town where I'm most used to hanging out. I never even considered opening a shop in Harajuku or Shibuya. I'm originally from Shimokitazawa, and later moved to Kawasaki. But even after I moved, I continued to hang out with my friends from the area. I dropped out of high school soon after, and since this is where I've always hung out, I always thought that if I were to open my own shop, it would be in Shimokitazawa.
O Is there anything you pay particular attention to when running 45 REVOLUTION?
I want to be a hardcore fanatic. I try to carry bands that no one knows about. I also put more effort into American bands than European bands. Maybe it's because of my own interests, but many of our customers have been buying merchandise from American hardcore bands for a long time. I guess that's about it.
Apparently , there weren't many American hardcore band T-shirts in Japan at the time, so I guess there were people in Japan who were looking for them.
H: That's probably true. There were really very few. I think there were a few at Shizuru's ( SAIGAN TERROR ) Violendo. I'm lucky that such a niche business has been going for 15 years (laughs).
So , how old were you when you started playing in a band?
H- bands came quite late, and he didn't start a proper band until he was 28. That band was SCUM BANDITZ .
Oh , so your first band was SCUM BANDITZ ! I just assumed you were a band member from way back when.
H: I get that a lot (laughs). The bassist for SCUM BANDITZ is an old friend of mine, and I got serious about it when I invited Oshiba (Yusuke). Minoru from NOALL was planning a cover competition called PUNK ROCK LOCAL WARABI , and I really wanted to participate, so I formed an impromptu band. That's how it all ended up becoming SCUM BANDITZ .
O I went to see them too, and SCUM BANDITZ was really popular back then.
Maybe it was because there was a bit of a band boom going on, but whenever they did a live show it would just fill up and be super exciting. But I sometimes wondered if there was something different about it. I think Oshiba probably thought the same. Maybe it was because of the boom, but for some reason a lot of kids who didn't seem to like it at all would come.
O How long has SCUM BANDITZ been active?
About 10 years ago , I joined JOHNS TOWN ALOHA without permission.
Did you join when Matsu left JOHNS TOWN ALOHA ?
H : That's right. After EXCLAIM broke up, Matsu was in JOHNS TOWN ALOHA with Japanese Encephalitis. JOHNS TOWN ALOHA had almost made their major label debut, so I think he decided to focus on just one band. And that JOHNS TOWN ALOHA became the basis for what we know today as CROCODILE COX AND THE DISASTER .
OHow is CROCODILE COX AND THE DISASTER doing now?
H : We're having a really good time. We don't have that "me-me" mentality like we used to, and we get along well. I think back when I was young, I had some weird thoughts like, "I want to be famous!" That's why I wanted to do lots of live shows at big venues. But Oshiba is the kind of guy who'll say without a second thought that he doesn't want to take part in an event if the organizer is unpleasant (laughs).
O (laughs) So, please tell us about your musical roots.
H: It started with Japanese punk, of course. Star Club, Willard, Atomic Bomb Onanies, Stalin. From there, I got into psychobilly. I got into psychobilly after seeing an omnibus video featuring three Japanese bands. I bought it because I liked The Magnets and The Strummers, but it included a three- piece band called The Struts, who played double bass. They were a rockabilly, pompadour-style band, and it was through them that I discovered that style of music existed. After that, I saw a feature on Shimokitazawa in a magazine called Takarajima or something, featuring a bunch of scary psychobilly guys. From there, I heard through word of mouth that a record store in Shinjuku called Vinyl had a huge selection of psychobilly records, and I guess I started buying them regularly. I was always drawn to overseas bands like Batmobile . In Japan, there were bands like Tokyo Skunks.
What was it about Psychobilly that attracted you?
H: Anyway, I thought the sound was amazing! The punk sound with the booming wood bass was amazing. I thought punk was a tough genre of music, but now I think psychobilly is even more awesome. I was too scared to go to a Japanese psychobilly band's concert (laughs).
While you were into psychobilly, were you also into American hardcore punk?
H: That's right. When I was young, VIOLENT GRIND was really popular. Maybe it was because of that influence, but there was an unprecedented SUICIDAL TENDENCIES boom among psychobilly people. Psychobilly people hadn't had the psycho cut for a long time, but they started to have long hair, bandanas, and Dickies pants. I think it was 1991 or 1992. I thought that trend was really cool too. There were bands playing hardcore with double bass, and Kiichi and his friends, who were the same age as me, were influenced by those bands and formed CHARM . They were a hardcore band, but they used double bass.
O : I see! What other genres of bands were popular at the time?
Melodic hardcore was around the same time, but I thought it was weak (laughs). Shortly after that, bands like HOUSE OF PAIN , CYPRESS HILL , and BODY COUNT also became popular in Japan.
It's an era in which a variety of genres are increasing.
H: That's right. I had punk friends, psychobilly people, skaters, etc. Also, Shibuya Casual was at its peak, so we had to compete with those guys (laughs).
O (laughs). Speaking of OWN , thank you for your column! What did you think of the launch of OWN ?
Honestly, I thought it was amazing that they started in this day and age (laughs). But if I kept saying things like that, they'd never get anything started, so I decided to support them.
Thank you (laughs). I'm happy. So, please let me know if there are any future developments. Or rather, I hope CROCODILE COX AND THE DISASTER will release new music soon.
H : That's true (laughs). Actually, there are several new songs, some with only the orchestra recorded, and some new songs that Oshiba hasn't sung at all. He writes the lyrics while he's recording.
O (laughs). Your last release was a cover of MADBALL , which was included on the compilation album " ...OUT OF THIS WORLD 6 "? It was HAYATO who chose that song, right?
H : Yes, that was my idea. You're right, I think it's about time for the band to get moving! Also, even though it's the current situation, if you come to Shimokitazawa, please stop by our shop. I'd be sad if you ignored me (laughs).
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45REVOLUTION
