A strong Japanese rock band that stands out from the usual, LOKA, have firmly left their mark not only in Japan but also in many European countries. Not long ago, their two new singles, SENSE OF CRISIS and LET IT DIE-20XX-, were released and the band is now preparing for their new tour. Let's see what they said to Greek Otaku Radio for their career so far in the music scene. 

 

Hello LOKA and welcome to Greek Otaku Radio! We would like to begin this interview by thanking you so much for granting some of your time to answer our questions. Please, introduce yourselves for our listeners.

What’s up Greece!! We are LOKA from Tokyo, Japan.

Vocalist : Kihiro, I’m a big soccer fan and PS4 Game Call of Duty OTAKU lol. So if you play COD online we may have met through the internet

Drummer : KEN’ICHI, I’m the heaviest drinker in the band, and I’m TAMIYA’s MINI 4WD OTAKU. I sometimes participate on local race competitions, too. I want to be the fastest MINI 4WD band man lol.

Bassist : MIRO, I’m the game OTAKU in the band, I play various games FPS, RPG, etc.

 

This this the first time you’ve talked to your Greek audience and the second time you’re collaborating with us. Could you tell us a few things about your band? How would you describe your music, your style, your mindset in general?

We are a LOUD ROCK band, our sound is composed with elements of Western-Hard Rock style combined with EDM style synthesis. Kihiro’s lyrics send a positive message about walking through life with his spiritual beliefs. He also writes party tunes and rock ballads as well.

LOKA’s mind is set to the world, the will to challenge, to communicate, upgrade their musical skills and also grow as a human being.

 

How did you guys start this band?

Kihiro and KEN’ICHI started the band, it was only the two of them first. Along the way, they added members and now MIRO is on bass. LOKA now have several supporting musicians when they work, such as PABLO a.k.a. WTF!? from Pay money To my Pain. 

 

Is there anything else you do besides music?

KEN’ICHI and MIRO actually do works for other artists. They do supporting shows and also recording jobs. Kihiro is not only in music industry, but he also works as an actor. In 2016, he filmed a Hollywood movie called “She’s just a shadow”, which is planned to be distributed through USA and EU soon. 

 

If someone were to listen to you for the first time, which songs do you think they should start with? Which ones of your works do you see as more special?

Hmm… well we love all of our songs so it’s the audience that should choose… but if we were to recommend a song, it would be SLICK from our first album EnFLAME, EDEN from our second album QUATTRO, and Perfect Enemy from our third album EVO:ERA. These are the featured songs for each album. However, we feel the new single SENSE OF CRISIS describes the LOKA today.

 

After having listened to your music, it appears that you’re certainly not the typical Japanese rock band. What are your musical influences?

What divides us from other Japanese bands is probably kihiro’s voice character and singing style. Since he spent most of his life time in USA, he understands both elements of Western music and Japanese music, which makes the song creative when every sound is emerged. KEN’ICHI and MIRO are very high skilled in their instruments, they can play fast, irregular meters and they can perform any technical style which gives no limit to the band’s music.

We’ve heard that you’re starting 2017 in a very energetic manner, by releasing two singles on the 20th of January! How would you describe the songs included in these releases? What’s the story behind them?

SENSE OF CRISIS was made for a SNOWBOARD event called PARK AIR in Sapporo, Japan. The song is about “any second we can die, so make sure you prove that you lived”.

I love X-SPORTS (Skate, Snowboard, MotorCross, Surf, etc.), which requires a lot of discipline and concentration, because one mistake and your life is at risk. I believe having “sense of crisis” will always keep you sharp in life, cause there is always something out there that can just mess you up. Stay sharp and we can avoid that. That’s how I wanna live, share and care. We are all walking towards death anyway, so why not prove each second that we are alive.

LET IT DIE-20XX- was actually released as a bonus track for our previous album EVO:ERA. It is used as one of the sound tracks for PS4 game LET IT DIE by gunho Inc., which is already released in the USA and EU.

We set this one off since the game will finally be released in Japan this February. Unlike the other tunes of LOKA, this is the heaviest and most metalic song. Once you hear it you can’t stop mashing! lol

 

Speaking of music, what process do you follow while writing songs? What’s your source of inspiration?

Sometimes the music will come first and kihiro would write the melodies. Sometimes, kihiro would write a song with just acoustic guitar and the other members will arrange it.

We get especially inspired lately by production offers. Like “SENSE  OF CRISIS”, we were asked to make it for a snowboard event. Also, we wrote a song for the American movie “She’s just a shadow” that kihiro filmed last winter. The movie is directed by Adam Sherman and we are waiting for the release. We are also now working for a Japanese drama theme song. These kinds of things are what we basically work on, but other than that, we get inspired from anime and daily life most.

 

You are also planning to release a full album in 2017. What kind of album is it? What should we be expecting out of it?

Well… if I could tell you anything right now, it would be that it;s gonna be our best album. Not because it’s new and all that, but it’s because LOKA is finally finding our true music form. We challenged so many things from the beginning, and after EVO:ERA we kinda noticed where true art form is. Who we are, what we are best at. These are the most important elements for us in creating music.

So it’s gonna be the best, we went to many directions, tried different things, and now our road is solid. That is what you are gonna hear.

 

Certainly, we couldn’t possibly not mention the tour you’re planning! Which countries are you visiting this time?

We are looking forward for South America, USA and everywhere in EU. We have not got the chance to go to Greece yet… So we hope anyone who is reading this interview will be motivated to create a fanbase so we can play there. Band life is simple, we get to go and play if we have a fanbase there, it’s the only way to survive lol. Please connect with us through the SNS sites below and become a LOKA family!

 

How do you feel about visiting new places?

It’s awesome to see the world and touch other cultures. It drives us to write more music and deliver our positive message. The greatest feeling is when we get on stage and see many people waiting for our performance. The important thing for us is communicating with the people there, cause it always inspires our mind and our way of life. And we also hope that our way of life will inspire many people in a positive way. 

 

What countries do you wish to visit in the future?

Greek is one of course!! We definitely want to see Athens because kihiro and MIRO are boys that grew up watching the Anime Saint Seiya!

What’s the most memorable incident that you’ve faced while touring overseas?

Hmmm… there are so many, but the toughest one was our last EU tour when KEN’ICHI broke his leg in Germany by accident. Still, he played 11 shows with a cast on his leg! Lol It was tough, but built a strong bond to the band and we were proud to get through it. Many things happen, but it reminds us how important it is to stay together and work hard helping each other.

 

Seeing that we’re a Japanese-culture radio, we would absolutely ask this: do you like anime? If so, which ones are your favourite?

Ah, just like we wrote above of course we do. KINGDOM, HUNTERxHUNTER, GANTZ, PCYCHO-PASS, GHOST IN SHELL, AKIRA, TENJO-TENGE, GAKU, ATTACK on TITANS etc… We watch a lot of anime and read manga.

 

What can your fans be looking forward to? What are your future plans?

Other than our new album and world tour plan, we are starting an internet video program. It’s an entertainment program we create to relate and have fun with our fans.

We are also constantly creating an event on our Official Facebook page that fans can join. We are very focused on our way of communication with the world now, so we hope everyone watching will come to visit the site and join us. Not just with LOKA but we want LOKA fans to connect as well. We’re very glad when fans from all over the world connect and become friends. It not only opens many possibilities for the band, but for the fans also. 

 

Last but not least, is there a message you’d like to say to your fans in Greece and Europe?

Greece! Make some noise for us and help us get to your country! Please create a team to support our band through the various SNS sites below. We’d love to visit your country. 

Together to enjoy a live!

 

Questions by Dionisia Lampadariou and Linda Antonopoulou 

Special Thanks to LOKA