Interview with Do As Infinity & Hiroyuki Sawano, where they talk about their work on the single "Alive / Iron Hornet".

Q: First of all, please tell us how Do As Infinity and Hiroyuki Sawano started their co-operation.

Ryo Owatari: For Do As Infinity, we needed something that was different from our previos works. From our staff, I learned about the wonderful man Hiroyuki Sawano, who was very known in the anime world. Honestly at that time, I did not know about Sawano-san. That's why when listening to his work, with the similarities in style, I felt that we could co-operate with this person in the future when we needed something new. But since I was a busy person, I thought that it'd not be easy. I knew that the wife of the Legendoor company and one of our employees were friends, so I asked the employee to introduce us to Sawano.

Tomiko Van: Our staff talked about this during the New Year. At the time I still didn't know of Sawano.

Q: So what were your thoughts about working with Do As Infinity?

Hiroyuki Sawano: When I first received the invitation to work with htem, I thought it'd be amazing. Of course, I knew about Do As Infinity, as I had bought their single "Yesterday & Today" when I was still a student. So I thought it would be a very interesting co-operation.

Q: How did you start working on the songs?

Ryo Owatari: Before we spoke with Sawano-san, we created a story, and started building the songs with it as a basis.

Q: What's the story like?

Ryo Owatari: It'll be released in the future. So until then, please think of the story while listening.

Hiroyuki Sawano: Although "Alive" is a Do As Infinity song, I added my own style to it. I hope I created a song that is fitting for the band itself.

Q: What were your impressions when you listened to the finished song?

Ryo Owatari: First of all, I was very impressed that Sawano-san could make such a song in a very short time (laughs). It's amazing that a Japanese composer and his musicians can recreate the core of Western music in such a song.

Tomiko Van: It was the first time that we worked with this type of music. So it took a ***while for me to understand it. I was also worried about the mixture of Japanese and English in the song. But when the song was finished, It was really cool. I was relieved (laughs).

Q: How did you write the lyrics to the song?

Ryo Owatari: I wrote the lyrics for the song after understanding the story.

Q: What about vocals?

Tomiko Van: Oh, yes. It was something new. I didn't do much, and I had detailed instructions on how to sing the chorus of the song, which was very interesting. It was a revelation for me that my voice could be like that.

Hiroyuki Sawano: The harmony of the chorus is very complicated. The main melody is also very complicated (laughs).

Q: What kind of imagery is in the song "Iron Hornet"?

Ryo Owatari: It's something that compliments the song "Alive". Anyways, it's quite a dark worldview with an attempt to see this darker side.

Hiroyuki Sawano: "Alive" is a song with a fast tempo, a song in which electronic sounds are included. In addition, it has Japanese lyrics. The song "Iron Hornet" describes the story that I wanted to do entirely in English, so I asked mpi and Benjamin for the lyrics, both of which I work with all the time.

Tomiko Van: I like Iron Hornet. Because of the English lyrics, the song has a completely different rhythm.

Q: After these two songs, how do you feel about Sawano-san?

Ryo Owatari: It was very pleasant to work with Sawano-san.

Tomiko Van: I think he has a unique worldview and sound. I hope that he will be the Japanese version of John Williams (laughs).

Hiroyuki Sawano: Thanks for the comparison with the classic.

Q: Sawano-san, what are your thoughts about co-operating with Do As Infinity?

Hiroyuki Sawano: The songs are made by me. But Tomiko's voice and Owatari's guitar made them sound like Do As Infinity. I feel that they have their entirely own sound. They can change it up depending on the song. I feel that I've been influenced by their strength.

Q: Do you have any thoughts you would like to convey to listeners through this work?

Ryo Owatari: "Alive / Iron Hornet" will be our first single this year. I would like the listeners to feel our new flow, combined with the sound of Sawano-san.

Tomiko Van: I hope you enjoy the new sound of Do As Infinity.

Hiroyuki Sawano: I want the fans of Do As Infinity to enjoy these songs that have a sense of freedom.

Q: Are you going to continue your co-operation in the future?

Ryo Owatari: Actually, I would like to ask Sawano-san to work with us in the future. He's pretty busy, so I do not know when or in what form our next collaboration would be in.

Also during the interview, Do As Infinity & Hiroyuki Sawano asked each other five questions.

Sawano's five questions for Do As Infinity:

Q1: What CD was the first one you bought?

Van: TRF / WORLD GROOVE.

Ryo: I didn't buy a CD, but two singles. They were Barbapapa - "Christmas" and Godiego - "Gandhara".

Q2: What's your favorite movie?

Van: Little Miss Happiness.

Ryo: Pulp Fiction and Big Jackpot.

Q3: What do you do on the weekend?

Van: I'm fighting with my child!

Ryo: I'm taking my dog out for a walk, drinking beer in the evening.. the days end very quickly.

Q4: Please tell me what you did recently.

Van: I listened to the radio with an app.

Ryo: I played the guitar, as usual.

Q5: What's your favorite food?

Van: Meat and noodles.

Ryo: Lotus root.

Do As Infinity's five questions for Sawano-san:

Q1: Please tell us about your hobby/hobbies.

Sawano: I collect figures from Western movies, such as Terminator.

Q2: What's your favorite dish?

Sawano: Potatoes

Q3: What do you do when you get stuck at work and want to change your mood?

Sawano: I don't really have issues with that. Basically I finish my work without my mood changing.

Q4: What do you do on the weekends?

Sawano: I watch movies and eat rice. I apologize for the monotony (laughs).

Q5: What is most important when you feel alive? Sawano: Seeing yourself objectively. I recall that I had two traffic accidents in the past.