Aside from the spelling error, the short snippet shows how the last leg of Perfume’s ⊿ tour at Yokohama Arena went. Yes, it’s very much like the one I went at Sapporo, although the only difference was the size.

Here’s an excerpt from the latest post:

Their next live performance announced will be for the Act Against AIDS 2009 benefit concert at the Nippon Budokan on December 1st. This will be their 2nd time joining the AAA “The Variety” concert.

As for releases, their just finished 2009 Tour will be released on DVD will be out on January 13th, 2010! If it seems a bit too long of a wait, don’t fret for the 10/15 Yokohama Arena venue of the tour will be broadcasted on MUSIC ON! TV after X’mas (12/26 ).

I can’t wait for both the broadcast version and the actual DVD. Mmmm more Perfume goodness. That said, I’m still a sucker and pre-ordered my Perfume Livefolio at the local Kinokuniya a week back. D’oh.

For more information, do visit Perfume City’s post.

For everyone else playing Love Plus, check the event schedule! A girl techno unit called Parfume will be playing at the event hall, starting on the second week of November.

Wait, girl techno? Parfume? Wait, what?

Will Love Plus emulate reality to the extent of there not being seats at all (And thus potentially make Rinko angry at me for dragging her to a crowded mosh pit of crazed fans?)? Will there be a PTA?

I… I don’t really understand anymore. I’ll go! I’ll go to this Parfume live!

And sign me up for PTA.

In other news, Fujita Saki (Voice of Hatsune Miku) has gone from voicing bananas to voicing pudding. I am gripped by a sudden urge to get one of those.

The girls’ management are robbing my bank account! Dammit. Well, I’ve been wanting to join the fanclub anyway, perhaps this will further sweeten the deal? XD

Here’s an excerpt from Perfume City, blogged by Meirin:

“Announced prior at their Osaka leg of the 2009 Tour (image above), Perfume officially announced a special “live house tour” exclusively for their fanclub, PTA. It will take place in Spring of 2010, entitled 『パッと楽しく遊ぼうの会』/”Pa- to Tanoshiku Asobou no Kai”. No specific dates or venues have been announced as of yet, but I’d imagine the venues to be small and intimate, just like the good ol’ days. I’d say, if you have a chance to join PTA, you should do so as soon as possible.”

As I was contemplating on the possibility on attending a Perfume Tour in Spring (adequate time to save up, etc), I felt that a possibility of a Spring Perfume Tour is next to impossible. I do not wish to attend large venues, it brings down the ‘homeliness’ of the ‘live’ event. As such, I was both surprised and delighted that my wish kind of came true. But I got to wonder, if it’s going to be small, how on earth are they going to accommodate all the fans in that particular region? Hmmmm…. we shall see.

Their official website announced publicly today (25/9) that Perfume will be releasing a second Photobook:

｢Perfume Livefolio｣

価格 3,000円（税込）
ISBN 978-4-334-90161-5

December 17th, huh. Nice Xmas present for me, anyone? =DDD *flees*

From the title, you can predict that photos from Perfume’s current and past live performances will be featured. The girls have been known to express that one of their favorite times of the year is when they’re on stage in front of their fans. This allows them to be their selves and really let loose.

You can pre-order the book only on ASMART for now.

From this list, it looks like you can order the large concert shirts as well! They even have their shirts kids sized! Perfect for budding lolis and shotas to become the next Perfume. Okay, maybe not the shotas.

But as for performances on TV, the girls had one recently on a MUSIC STATION 3-hour special! Once again, Mステ had the stage done with special CG effects much like their previous performance with OneRoom Disco. But this time, the girls take the stage with NIGHT FLIGHT.

Mステ(NF)
Uploaded by pino0001. – Watch more music videos, in HD!

Well, nocchi having Toshiko hair is… well, quite pretty actually. XD I love all their outfits; really feels like Autumn now.
.

…

…..

……………..

Alright, alright there’s absolutely nothing here in Singapore, at least it’s in Japan, okay? >_>

As of 30 minutes ago, Nocchi is officially 1 year into her adulthood, aka 21 years old!! I wonder if she had her first taste of alcohol over the past year…. XD

And a few more days to the next phase of Perfume’s Triangle Tour!! All the best to Nocchi as well as Perfume on a whole!

Once again “tannoy5″ from the Perfume City Forums has provided a translation of an interview from the music magazine, “Ongaku to Hito”. Credits to him and his translator Yosuke Yamamoto!

(Editor: sentinel011)

Perfume Interview from –Ongaku to Hito-

*NOCCHI
*A-CHAN
*KASHIYUKA

-So, when did you guys record your new single, One Room Disco?

A: When was it? In January, maybe??
N: Yeah, it was in this year.
A: Oh, no no no. It was last year.
K: Last year??
A: Yup, it was last year. We were too busy to remember things (lol).

-How did you feel about this song when you listened to first time?

N: I thought the main melody was pretty sound. It sounds like capsule back in the old days. Nakata-influenced song.
A: I really liked it! Sounds cool!!
K: My first impression was that this song is very simple. There was no intro at first, actually. It was very peaceful and calm sound like in spring. This song, however, had changed a lot when Nakata-san finished up this song.

-How do you feel when you hear the word, One Room?

N: I could easily relate to this song because I felt exactly like this song’s lyrics when I moved to Tokyo. We each had individual bedrooms, but it was so small. I feel that it’s my strongest image in this song.
A: My neighbors called this dormitory a jail, but our earthquake survival system was perfect (lol).

-W-Why?

A: That dormitory was practically a dump (lol). We thought we gonna die if big earthquake hits here. There were some cracks on the wall outside, but we thought that was design of the dormitory (lol). So, we were always making ready for disasters.
N: Yeah, we collected every single item for that.
A: (lol), yeah. Water, flashlights…
K: A crazily noisy alarm too (lol).
A: We wrote how to escape from this dormitory on the board (lol).
N: I may chicken out at the last moment and I may not even be able to scream, so I put a flute, to be on the safe side (lol).

-What a crazy memory (lol).

K: But I was very happy that I could have my own room. I remember I took pictures of my empty room and sent them to my mom via e-mail.

-What kind of image do you have in the word “Disco”?

A: Oh, I actually didn’t know what the word means and I asked them. It’s like “ Jingle, Jingle, Jingle, Jingle, Jingle, OOOHH♪.

-That sounds like Juliana (90’s Japanese Club Music)

A: It’s more like a “ You can dance~♪” chime.

-You mean ABBA…

A: I think everyone has their own images of “Disco”. So, I hope this song can bring about many images.

- Did Nakata-san say anything during the recording?

N: He was bragging his lyrics.
A: He told us you can forget about music a little bit but not musc.

-The B-side song, “23:30”. This song contains very reality lyrics for you guys like the other song, “Negai”.

K: Nakata-san…. What were you thinking? (lol)
N: I know. Why does he make us sing this kind of songs?
A: It’s kinda embarrassing, isn’t it?
K: It’s like “we feel so sentimental”
N: I know. Because we say “Love me”. It’s “Love me” not “I love you”. It’s too sexy.
A: But I’m not singing the song while thinking so.

-Ahahahaha

A: Because we have to memorize the lyrics and sing it ASAP. So, we always don’t have the time to look at it. If I try to read and understand the lyrics deeply, I always want to make it mine, and its not the way Perfume usually sings. But when I read the lyrics once more, they are kinda deep.

-They are deep indeed. The song, “Negai”(Wish), is not like “Dream” or “Longing”, and it seems very close to your life.

N: Yes, we are not 9th graders. We are 20.
A: I am not 20 yet. I can’t imagine.
K: Your birthday is the day after tomorrow. (lol)

-About the lyrics, do you feel that it is actually revolving around you (girls)?

K: Yes, I do. I was able to understand and express the lyrics more. For instance, when I was in actor’s school, I was singing about love, but I can express love more now. I didn’t know what really love is back in the days. I do express not only happiness in love, but also some sadness, or pain in it.

-You are growing up then.

A: If we were younger, we might not be able to express the song as compared to now.

-Do you having fun with changing like that?

K: Yes, we widen our styles. For instance, we are singing about hopeful song like “Dream Fighter,” and we are singing about very little things which everybody has experienced in life, like song called “One Room Disco,” “23:30.” That is because we are able to sing more than one genre now.
N: Yes. Not only singing, but also dance.
A: Thanks to the staff, we are growing up and changing positively.
N: Yet sometimes I feel that some songs don’t sound like Perfume still, like “Negai.”
A: I love that song!
N: Me too!

-(lol). You guys sound like it’s due to somebody’s fault. Well, your live performance in Yoyogi is coming. How you feel about that?

N: We are so excited about it. During a meeting, we are giving a lot of suggestions on what we want to do. I wanna surprise the audience! Not only performance-wise but also staging, including light!
K: You’ll be amazed once you see us at Yoyogi (lol).

-A lot of stage effects too, I guess.

K: Maybe (lol). And I want this concert to make the audience feel that they don’t wanna go home.
A: You’ll see only us on stage this time too. The stage is huge, but only us. So, I don’t wanna the stage look empty.
N: I wanna enjoy concert with 25,000 people as a big family.

-You guys have specific visions and things you want to do as Perfume now.

A: Yes. We were hesitant to say our opinions in the past. But it’s different now. Saying and trying new things make Perfume’s level up.
K: We are learning and growing positively, slowly but surely.

NOCCHI

-Do you think that the concert at the Budoukan and Kouhaku last year were one of the most important events to mark the start of a new phase in your career?

N: Yes, Budoukan and Kouhaku were our amongst our goals. We; however, are ready to go to the next level.

-How do you feel about those concerts?

N: It was very successful. Especially after Budoukan, I felt a bit lost, but gradually I got my motivation back. Next concert is at Yoyogi. Our staff always set specific goals for us, so that we don’t have to get lost.

-How do you think you have changed after going through those experiences?

N: Hmm… I just noticed I do not think too much about these things. I get easily nervous when I start thinking.

-Is that meaning you sometimes doubting yourself that you are actually in the entertainment world?

N: Yes. I sometimes feel weird when I am working with one of my favorite comedians, Daisuke Miyagawa. Before I start being happy about it, I tend to analyze myself with calm-attitude. When I see A-CHAN and KASHIYUKA are happy for my work, I am pleased about myself obediently.

-I think that means you start feeling a stronger sense of responsibility than before.

N: I guess so. I sometimes wonder why I am dressed in disguise during private time.

-What is your opinion of “23:30,” or “Negai”?

N: I thought these songs don’t sound like Perfume. I love the song “Macaroni,” I was so happy when I listened to this song. I also thought that Nakata-san tried to make us to express more grown-up Perfume.

-How did you feel when you actually performed those songs?

N: I empathized with the lyrics. “23:30” is the time right before the new day is coming… It is the last minute we can take the last train in that day…

-Do you see yourself in those songs?

N: Well, I do not feel that exactly yet, but I think that I am getting older slowly but surely. But my image is that we are always on the same ship. We are on Nakata-san’s ship now, so I don’t think we are changing. I just hope we are not stopping or changing. I wanna keep feeling how I feel right now.

-How do you think of Perfume’s “right now”?

N: The most important thing for us is to keep having fun with three of us . I do not want to do concerts that is sad or hollow. It is not about how many people attend, but the intensity of the fans’ emotions and ours. I wanna keep singing as long as I feel that ‘intensity’ and response.

-So, you need to feel fans’ response during concert.

N: Yes. Our stage is getting bigger, and it keeps increasing the distance with us and the audience. I feel sad about it; however, I always feel that hype and intensity from the audience every time. I love when I taste a sense of unity with audience during the concerts.

-Do you feel you are learning from every single experience?

N: Yes I do. 9 years have passed since Perfume was born. …Wow, if I was not in Perfume, how was I going to be? …Japanese gang maybe (lol)

- lol

N: Yeah… But I love how I am right now. I; however, am trying not to forget the common sense… I mean, I am trying not to become a diva or to be excited too much. I just wanna concentrate on “right now.” I don’t want to regret anything. I don’t want to look myself back, and also I do not want to guess or see my future. Now is the most important and best time for me.

-Have A-CHAN and KASHIYUKA changed since 8 years ago?

N: I guess so… Do I sound like an adult (lol)? Well, since we are always together, I don’t know honestly, but they have grown up.

-When do you feel like that?

N: They are very responsible; they can say their opinions. They are very caring towards their family and people around them.

-I think you have changed in that way too.

N: Not really, because I haven’t sent the birthday e-mail to my dad. But I will.

-So you don’t feel that you’ve changed?

N: I am gaining responsibility and confidence little by little. I feel more comfortable to communicate with people. I’m not scared anymore. I wonder if it’s coming from confidence.

-I see. I remember you once told me that you don’t like to talk to people that much.

N: Yes, but I don’t feel like that anymore.

-Why did you wanna sing in front of people even though you were afraid?

N: I didn’t have confidence, so I couldn’t make decision or anything. Now; however, I realize these opportunities get me out of my shell.

-So you think Perfume gives you the chance to break out of your shell?

N: I think so. It is encouraging that I have 2 great friends with me, especially with A-CHAN helping me so much.

-How did she help you?

N: She is the person who can find others’ charming points and bring them out. Also she understands me very well. I didn’t have courage and I didn’t think I have talent before I met A-CHAN. Now, I feel relieved on stage.

-So, you mean you can see yourself more because someone needs you?

N: I think it’s very important to be conscious about that for anything.

*A-CHAN

-How do you feel about the turn of events last year?

A: It was very high-flying year for us. We achieved several of our goals, and I think more people got to know about us. Some people who don’t know member’s name, call us as a position when we are singing, like “middle, right and left (lol).”

-(lol). How did you feel right now after you achieved your goals?

A: I was just happy, but also I couldn’t believe it. It’s so surreal. We have been spending a difficult and challenging time for the past 8 years. During that time, it was very difficult to gather 100 audience. Now 10,000 people attended our concert. It’s just a big step for us, and I was just touched by every single success we have experienced over the past year. I cried a lot (lol). I just realized that some people just cry when they cannot express a big happiness.

-Have you gotten confused or anxious because of that big success?

A: Well, we usually do not see our plans very clearly. If we saw our future too clearly, we might get anxious or pessimistic, but this system worked well to us for now. I didn’t get any negative feelings like that. That is why we just enjoy ourselves during concerts, even if it is in Budoukan.

-Wow. So, do you think it is actually events or environment which is changing, but not you guys.

A: Yes. I started feeling this since “love the world,” Our basic style about music is not changing, but people around us are changing positively, like magic.

-I guess I am one of them who had been enchanted (lol).

A: (lol). Yeah, the same team who has been performing the same music. The only thing which had changed for us is heavy make-up (lol). It’s been 8 years… The way of seeing things might have changed individually, but not as a team. I am very glad when people said that they like our old tunes, simple because it means that our activities and music has get recognition.

-Do you feel heavier responsibilities and increasing confidence when you receive recognition?

A: You are absolutely right. Our staff however, are trying to be calm about it because they do not want us to feel burdened by that responsibility. We are just being very careful about the things we cannot say on TV (lol).

-(lol).

A: We sometimes do make a slip of the tongue… scary…(lol).

-But don’t you just realize your situation or positions now, because of those experiences?

A: Yes, we do. We, however, are very scared to break our style or routine

-Scared?

A: Yes. We are constantly doing new things though, including costumes and dances. We tried to express more a feminine dance on the song called, “Take me, take me,” during the live. We were too young to do that in the past, but now, we look pretty okay. So, this change is scary for us, but I guess we are trying new things little by little.

-So you are saying that you want to accept some change, yet age-appropriate.

A: Yeah, but not too much. We always wanna be just Perfume the way people or fans want us to be. If people like our style now, we just gonna keep it at that. If people come to dislike our style, I guess that is the time for us to review our actions. We just wanna keep doing our best every single time.

-Do you feel that you are needed by people?

A: Yes, that is my style now. If we were doing music for just for our own ego, we wouldn’t get as many audiences as now. For example, if I wrote the lyrics, some my fans would like it, but I don’t think I can write good lyrics like Nakata-san does, and not many people will like it. Hardcore fans, maybe. So, I would like to do my best for everything that is needed by others, and I wanna bring an end to the expectations. We have experienced before that we weren’t needed for a long time. So, if people are interested in us, I wanna do anything for them. I feel very strongly about it in my heart.

-Well, I think you have been doing a great job on that.

A: I’m glad to hear that. I’m on the front page today too. I’m very happy but I don’t know what to do. I was thinking too much last night, and I finally went to bed at 3 a.m. and woke up at 6 a.m. in the morning…

-Lack of sleep(lol).

A: I was so nervous. I would like to do my best for people who need us. I feel appreciated to anything and anyone more than before, because we’ve been through so many tough situations. I believe that I have much more different experiences compared to other girls my age.

-Again, I’m proud of you because you didn’t go wrong.

A: Yeah (lol). I was either stupid to know or I was just so happy to be with Nocchi and Kashiyuka. I was not that greedy to become famous.

-Is the reason you concentrate on the live concerts more than TV because you wanted to feel that you are needed?

A: Perhaps so. I’ve been looking up to SPEED (a Japanese Singer Group), because they were top of idols. But I just noticed that music is a way to communicate to people strongly by having more experiences. Then I was really happy that people loved me through music.

-So you actually felt a stronger relationship between you and people.

A: Yes. They keep supporting me and I never felt like this. It wasn’t a fake, but real. So, today’s Perfume are made of all the people who appreciated and continue to support us.

*KASHIYUKA

-Did you have enough rest during New Year’s?

K: Yes, But now I feel I want to work more (lol). We were very busy at the end of the last year but we had more time to take a rest and working was slow during January and February. I was happy that I could relax but was worried at same time. I got nervous thinking what if we couldn’t get busy anymore (lol).

-So, you are still worried.

K: Of Course! I think I’m thinking that way recently because I just don’t want to have a big head. So, this feeling makes me keep working hard, I guess. I should have that kind of alarm.

-So that’s how you are controlling yourself.

K: Yes. My mom always says “You are always hanging from the cliff”. She said, “ You have to work harder because you guys are about to fall off!” So, I think I cannot forget to have that drive (to keep working hard).

-So, it was a good lesson when you are not famous.

K: Yes, having confidence always is one of my biggest goals always. I learned that I cannot be afraid to make mistakes because we’ve done a lot of big things.

-Are you more confident and feel more responsible than worried?

K: I think so, because we cannot go forward if we are worry too much. We’re not writing lyrics or composing music, so we have to do what we can with faith. We became stronger; we’ve changed for the past year. We gained stronger awareness on making fans happy and we are serious. As I want to do things without regrets, we’ll have to do our best.

-So, people around you actually have big influence to you.

K: Yes. There are so much more talented people than me out there, but everyone is confident, and they have their own unique character. I, however, was asking myself “in what way am I unique’, and the answer didn’t come up easily. So that is why I just wanna do my best for everything to be confident. That is my responsibility to stand on stage as a member of Perfume.

-More than before.

K: I was still doing my best before, but it wasn’t enough, I guess. Since people love themselves a lot, I was making a lot of excuses back then, but not now.

-You are strict towards yourself.

K: Things have to be changing, and I don’t wanna be caught off guard when it comes. I can move fans by doing live performances, but I don’t have enough strength to make changes and improvements by myself. So at least I would like to have more knowledge and be able to have my own ideas.

-Is that your goal now?

K: Yes, I would like to have creative ideas with good reasons.

-I think you became more…

K: Matured…

-(lol). Do you think A-Chan and Nocchi have become more matured too?

K: I think so. We can think on what we should do and what we need to do as Perfume.
One of our most important things as Perfume is that we should feel and know Nakata-san’s compositions and express them perfectly. We, however, can express our individual unique characters in music videos, make-up, costumes, and live performances.

-Those things bring you greater responsibility.

K: You are absolutely right. So, it is almost impossible to kill our anxieties completely (lol), and it is very difficult to be confident. I sometimes still go crazy like what should I dooooooooo (lol).

-(lol).

K: I am always doing reflections by myself at home…alone…(lol).

-But at least you are thinking about your past, future and the present.

K: Back in those days, I was just think too much and stuck with it for a long time, but I am trying to be more active on it these days. After I turned into 20 years old, I’m trying to go out more often and talk to people. Oh, yeah! Did I tell you I am a big fan of Fuji-kun, the vocalist in the Japanese band “Bump of Chicken”?

-Yeah, I heard that 100 times (lol).

K: I met him!! At my friend’s birthday party! I was soooooo happy!!!

-What did you talk about?

K: I asked him, what’s on your mind when you are writing music? A serious and deep topic, even though we are just met (lol).

-(lol). Talking to new people broadens your horizon.

K: Yes. Everybody has their unique view towards life, and I became aware on people affecting positively to others via conversations.

-I see.

K: I was thinking about my strengths, which cannot be taken or stolen from me , yet I couldn’t think of a use of it. But I have very strong feelings that I wanna part of Perfume. That is my strength in life.

-Your strong love for Perfume is what makes you likable, I suppose.

K: I hope so. That is why I am concentrating on work harder after Budoukan. Now are getting recognised, and I do not wanna lose myself or progress due to any reason. I want to see and acknowledge myself as KASHIYUKA in Perfume, as Yuka Kashino in person, just a twenty-year-old woman. That is very important to me right now,to understand myself better.

-And you continue to do so.

K: Yup! I’m getting better at that now(lol).

====

Translation notes:
The -san prefix refers to ’sir’ or ‘MR’.

Back in the days of their Vitamin Drop single, Perfume performed Inryoku, but none of which managed to be known to the world, since they weren’t that famous at that time….

Until recently. Not only that, they were singing without vocoders at that time, so that’s an additional bonus.

“tannoy5″ from the Perfume City Forums has recently finished translating the whole chunk text found in Perfume’s first photobook, Perfume Portfolio. Credits to him and his translator Yosuke Yamamoto!

(General editing done by sentinel011)

A-CHAN

A-CHAN’s 10 Key Words

Name: A-CHAN (Ayaka Nishiwaki)
Birthday: 2/15/1989
Hometown: Hiroshima, Japan
Blood Type: A
Height: 160cm

1. Good Points: Well…Let’s see…I find a lot of good points about people around me.
2. Bad Points: Talking is good, but I talk too much.
3. Hobby: Geek out about Japanese idols.
4. Special Skills: Being a mood maker.
5. Treasure: Fan letter box. A letter from Aiko (Famous Japanese Singer). SPEED (Famous Japanese girl’s group)’s Tour T-shirts.
6. Who do you admire?: Ms. Mikiko (Dance Teacher)
7. If you were an animal, what you would be?: Pomeranian
8. Favorite word: You’ll be happy after the storm.
9. Lucky Color: Pink, White
10. Things you always carry: Perfume, lipbalm, the bracelet, which is made by the power stones.

The Old Days

-I started working in the entertainment world as a model ever since I was in kindergarten, and I was also singing at the some festivals, held in the neighborhood. I was the kid who loved the spotlight. I loved and got influenced by SPEED, and I went to an actor’s school when I was a 5th grade in an elementary school.-

It was that period of time when one of most famous Japanese singer group, SPEED, got very popular, and I was very interested in the Acting school where SPEED went. There was a radio show I was always listened to. It is called “B.B.Wave,” and since it was airing at 2 in the morning, I asked my mom to record the show, and I listened to it after school. I was very interested in an Actor’s school. I started to learning how to act at the actor’s school when I was in 5th grade in my elementary school year, so I wrote specific goals for future on the class book. I wrote, “I will make everybody to know my name, Ayaka Nishiwaki as a star.” …Big mouth dreamer (lol). I, however, needed this aggressive style at the actor’s school, because every kid at the school already have big goals.

-It was very difficult and challenging when I started out as an entertainer. Lessons were so hard, but thanks to my family, I could face the problems.-

From 5th grade in elementary school to 8th grade in junior high school, I spent the whole time at the school. A regular school finished at 3pm and after school, I directly went to the actor’s school. I usually got home at around 1 or 2 in the morning, and I did homework and I went to school at 7am I just slept for 3 hours. What a crazy schedule (lol), I cannot do that right now. I, however, was that serious and having fun with it. My mom really supported me. She was the one who took me to the school, and came to pick me up, even the distance between my home to the school was very far. Yes, my family supported me so much. The tuition for the actor’s school was very very expensive. My family just let me do anything I wanna try, and cheer me up. I deeply appreciated my father, mother, sister and brother, and my grandmother’s support. If I was not in the entertainment world, I would be a kindergarten teacher (lol).

-It happened so suddenly as to how I met the other Perfume members.

At first, I met KASHIYUKA at the actor’s school. Her first impression was …kinda gloomy actually (lol). She was always wearing in all black (lol). Long t-shirts, pants, and shoes…everything was in black! Since my mom actually bought a lot of colorful outfit for me, and I was always wearing that, I was very shocked by her appearance. KASHIYUKA didn’t talk anything…(lol). Her aura was so dark. It was just shocking for me (lol).
How did I talk to her? Oh, maybe my mom and KASHIYUKA’s mom talked first time, and I introduced myself and I said “Nice to meet you” and asked her handshaking. KASHIYUKA told me later that the handshaking was a shocking happening for her that time. Yeah, she was more like a boy.
At the 2nd recital in the actor’s school, I met NOCCHI. KASHIYUKA and me were in the same class, but NOCCHI was not. In the actor’s school, there were classes from A through F. A class was for around first or second graders, B class was for fourth or sixth graders, C class was for high school kids, and D class was for anybody who do not have enough skills to get in to those classes. KASHIYUKA and me were in that class (lol), but NOCCHI was in B class already. In that recital, B class and D class performed SPEED’s medley together, and NOCCHI was singing solo in that recital. It is very hard thing to get solo in the school, but NOCCHI did it. KASHIYUKA and me were so amazed by her performance.

-We were in a different group, but since there were some member changes, A-CHAN asked NOCCHI to join her, and that is how we got together as Perfume.

One of the members in the group I was in that time broke away, and NOCCHI joined. KASHIYUKA and I were always together, and also, NOCCHI and I were good friends… But KASHIYUKA and NOCCHI didn’t have much interaction. They came my house to spend night one time, and I think that is the first time they actually talked.

Now

-Ever since we moved to Tokyo, our bond became stronger. We became to be able to talk everything from the bottom of our hearts.

We didn’t know what moving to Tokyo really meant that time. We were just too excited about the fact were gonna move to Tokyo.
I, however, actually learned that traditional belief in the power of words exists. We were just saying that we gonna debut by Spring, and then we released some indie label CD, and we were just saying that we want to release another CD, and it came true also. One year later since we moved to Tokyo, we were saying let go to same high school exam and hopefully everybody got in. It came true again. So, I just realized that if I say my goal or hope, I tend to keep working hard on it to come it true.

-Yes, the power of a word does exist, but we also went through many challenging times in Tokyo, and we handled those problems individually.

There were many unforgettable experiences. One of them is the work at Sanrio Puroland. We were working with many characters from Sanrio that time. Sun Street of Kamedo is also good memory. Mr. Kamedo taught us about the live performance, we also learned how difficult it is to get fame, and we realized how small we were in the entertainment world in Japan. Moreover, we were trained as singers.
The event at Loft in Shinjuku was a new style event for us that time. It was the first time to sing with bands. This experience taught us how to enjoy music, and we felt so happy in that event as musicians. We cooked in the live performance too (lol), including a cake, and ramen.

-We constantly think on how we can improve further.

We were always thinking about Perfume. One time, our ex-manager said to us, “You guys do not have individual needs or ego. You guys always say your needs or hopes as a group, Perfume. It was not how I become famous, or how I can improve. It is always how Perfume can step next level. That is why our staff supports us so much because they believe we have serious visions as a performer for the group. We actually always acted as professionals since we were in the actor’s school. We learned and knew how idols should be in this country, so we didn’t even get close to people who smoke, drink, and even for Mr. Nakata’s DJ event, we didn’t show up, simply because we didn’t want people to misunderstand us. We were not even famous, but we were that serious. We always make a move with strong ambition. We also learned the right attitude for everything from the artists who belongs to same agency, and staff.

-We were changing little by little, but very positively.

We talk about the memories in the university, and TV we watched last night (lol). We talk about fashion and cool guys (lol). Since we moved to Tokyo, we opened our heart each other. When we were in actor’s school, we tend to be overly nice to each other. Well, I was the one who was always with high energy and noisy (lol). We are growing up mentally. NOCCHI and KASHIYUKA too. NOCCHI became more sociable, and KASHIYUKA has changed a lot. I don’t know how to explain, but we love each other and we are also best friends.

-We were sophomores in a college. Private life was also very productive.

Since I started my life as a artiste, there was almost no time to be able to relax or enjoy life as Ayaka Nishiwaki, not as A-CHAN. But now, I got back some of my moment or time that I become just 19 years old girl. There are many nice people around me. Since I went to college, the chance to talk to friends who doesn’t belong to entertainment world increased, and it was very fun. I don’t put my make-up on to go to college (lol). I am that open and enjoying my college life.

-My views on love?

Well, I don’t think the first impression does tell almost everything about that person (lol). But I like person who didn’t give me strong first impression. I also like person who doesn’t make me feel anxious, and I prefer dry person, because usually those people are very nice to people who are special for him. Even if he doesn’t talk much, he is caring and has responsibility, I like that. There are some people who don’t say anything, but do things for others. And even he did it, he didn’t need tell us. I think it’s very nice and there are few people who can do this. When I notice that, I feel so happy and become liking that person.
I do have marriage plans. Well, one of the fortune-teller told me I’ll find somebody who is rich in 2 years (lol).

The future

-I wanna be charming person.

I want to become a woman who is loved by not only guys, but also girls too. I wanna be the person who always give positive aura to other people.

-Perfume’s Future.

I actually cannot think about the future. I am just doing my best and keep concentrating on right now. One of our biggest dreams came true, live at Budoukan. My first order is always being with Perfume members. Again, as we are still growing up, and I want to keep learning many things from people around me. Also, we now have some young artists who follow us, so I want to give right and nice attitude to them just like we were given in the past. I will do anything our staff, and our fans want us to do with NOCCHI and KASHIYUKA forever.

KASHIYUKA

KASHIYUKA’s 10 Key Words

Name: KASHIYUKA (Yuka Kashino)
Birthday: 12/23/1988
Hometown: Hiroshima, Japan
Blood Type: A
Height: 160cm

1. Good Points: Always calm.
2. Bad Points: High pride.
3. Hobby: Taking pictures, listening to music.
4. Special Skills: I am good at letting cell phone strap into it (lol).
5. Treasure: Everything. So that I cannot throw anything away…
6. Who do you admire?: Ms. Mikiko (Dance teacher)
7. If you were an animal, what you would be?: Cat
8. Favorite word: Secret.
9. Lucky Color: Black, Red, and Purple
10. Things you always carry: Cell phone. I cannot live without cellphone.

The Old Days

-I had never worn a skirt before, I just wear only black. That was my trademark at that time.

I actually don’t like to be in front of people in the beginning (lol). Black costumes or wearing black makes me feel relaxed. I do not like raffishness and girlish outfits.
My mom wanted me to wear cute girly outfits, but I always brushed off (lol). I didn’t think that I wanna show myself as a cutie, and I didn’t dislike girls but I just didn’t wanna be a girl. Going actor’s school was not my decision actually. It was my mom. So, that is why I hated to go to the acting school in the beginning.
At the elementary school, I was not the kind of student who raise their hands and answer the questions. Again, I didn’t dislike it, but I guess I was too shy to do everything.

-Yet now I am one of the members of Perfume who will be performing at Budoukan for 2 days in front of 20,000 people.

It’s funny, isn’t it? (lol). Everybody says I am confused. The reason why I was keep going to actor’s school was dance. I loved dance class. I’d never thought I would be a singer (lol). So, that is why I didn’t have any hero or heroine musicians in that time. I, of course had favorite songs and music, but I thought music was the thing I listen to, not to sing (lol). In school, I was always thinking, “Why do I have to sing in front of these scary people?” (lol). I, however, was so into dance. Dance kept me to go to the school.

-I’m still accepting the fact that I sing for a living

I am not good at singing still… I am getting used to listen to my voice, but still uncomfortable. So that is why I’ve never had experience that I did sing perfectly with full of confidence. Of course, I loved our songs once recording and mixing was finished, but I just do not like myself when I am singing. So, that is why I hate Karaoke (lol). I love music, but I don’t like singing… Oh, but I like humming (lol).

-My first impressions about the members.

A-CHAN was just like A-CHAN right now (lol). When we had an orientation in the actor’s school, I didn’t see any people who were around my age, and I was so ready to go home. After lesson, I went to my mom and my mom was talking to other person. That was A-CHAN’s mom. I was thinking about A-CHAN as a high-energy girl, and then she said “Nice to meet you!!” and gave a handshake. I was like, “What is this girl?” (lol). I was never seen the girl like A-CHAN and I was like “N…Nice to meet you too…” From then, A-CHAN and me has been best friends.
As we were still young, there were some change in character as time goes by, but A-CHAN doesn’t change much. She is always very aggressive, outgoing, she wanna do something new and try anything she interested in. She, however, became more girly these days (lol).
At the actor’s school, NOCCHI was not Perfume member. At that time, NOCCHI was singing with other 4 people as a different group. So, at the beginning, I didn’t know about NOCCHI or anything. I actually talked to her through A-CHAN. When I went to A-CHAN’s house to hang out, I talked to her. It was very awkward at that time (lol). To get know about each other, we talked about our future, but A-CHAN went to take a bath (lol). I couldn’t talk to NOCCHI without A-CHAN (lol). A-CHAN asked us to solve some quizzes on cell phone, and NOCCHI and me just playing with cell phone (lol). Our conversations were just like, “Did you solve?” “Hmmm…No…” (lol). I do not remember how we became such a great friends like now (lol).

-Two different cool girls in one group.

I think it was the time our debut for indie label was approved; we practiced until late of the night everyday. NOCCHI’s house was very far away from the studio, so she had to take a bus or express train. So, I offered a ride for her to the train station because my mom always picked me up after practice. My mom and me gave a ride to NOCCHI everyday since then, and we became close friends. It was fun at that time. Even as we went to the convenience store to buy some snack, we always yelped with delight (lol). Since NOCCHI has fear of strangers also, it was perfect time to get know each other.

Now

-I love my college life!

When we are hanging out, we talk about the time when we were not together. It is so fun to share stories with them. I am really enjoying my college life now. It is good break time for me. I do eat lunch with friends at the cafeteria, and I do not have to hide from anything. I do not change myself as a student and as a performer. I am always just Yuka Kashino, so when I am on stage, I enjoy live concert very much, and when I am in college, I enjoy hanging out with people. Everybody says that I know how to swim with the tide.

-My view on love?

I am actually the person who always has to be the mood for love (lol). So, I always am trying to find somebody cool (lol). It is not like “I wanna date with him.” But more of, “If he is falling love with me, what am I going to do?” It’s fun (lol). I enjoy the process on love. Some people get me wrong way (lol).
My type is skinny guy. I see some beauty in slenderness. And I also feel some beauty in some voice. I like husky voice (lol). I, however, do not want to do kissy-kissy relationships. A lot of girls feel happiness when they feel be loved, but I am opposite. If I feel love too much, it becomes pressure to me. Am I dangerous? Yes, I am a dangerous girl (lol).

The future

-My goal as a woman is to be stronger, and to be sweet.

I wanna pull myself together always, but being nice to people. I am still learning on it. Sometimes my pride bothers me.

-I am not good to take advantage of people’s kindness.

I cannot take advantage of people’s kindness. It is my biggest challenge right now. I love A-CHAN and NOCCHI, of course, and I trust them, but I cannot even ask favors from them sometimes. It is part of personality, but especially for girls, I get scared of asking something. I guess I have fear for breaking up good relationships . I have been spending time with A-CHAN and NOCCHI for 9 years, and we are the best friends, but at the same time, I sometimes have fear like “What if they come to dislike me?” Hmm…I don’t know myself either (lol).

-I need to know what my position in Perfume is.

It’s one of the reasons why I sometimes lose my mind. A-CHAN and NOCCHI have strong characteristics. A-CHAN is cute and girly. NOCCHI is cool, and boyish. What am I?? So, if I can find my character, I think I can be more stable mentally.

-Perfume is the proof that I exist.

I sometimes totally lose my confidence and become very negative. I am trying to find my position very hard as a member of Perfume. I used to cry whenever concerts were over back in the days, because I didn’t have confidence. One of the staff said to me, “Think of just one thing you can trust.” That word saved me, and I realized the things that are precious and I can put my trust on are fans, staff, and the members. I will keep working hard to improve myself as a person, as part of Perfume.

NOCCHI

NOCCHI’s 10 Key Words

Name: NOCCHI (Ayano Otomo)
Birthday: 9/20/1988
Hometown: Hiroshima, Japan
Blood Type: A
Height: 164cm

1. Good Points: I do not get mad.
2. Bad Points: Sometimes irresponsible
3. Hobby: Being relax in my room.
4. Special Skills: Cut food into strips.
5. Treasure: Letters
6. Who do you admire?: Everybody who works hard.
7. If you were an animal, what you would be?: Dog
8. Favorite word: What one likes, one will do best.
9. Lucky Color: Purple
10. Things you always carry: Make-up kit.

The old days

-When I was a little kid…

I was the kid who fears strangers, but I didn’t dislike anybody in particular. I was the kid who loves people. I was also forgetful. I’m still like that(lol). I always forget something to bring to school. One day I forgot to bring my school bag (lol). It was when I was 4th grade. After I arrived to the school, I was like, “…Where is my school bag…???” (lol). I forgot to bring some of the paper works for this interview today also… I need to fix that (lol).

-First love…

When I was 5 years old during preschool. I fell in love with one boy (lol). It was during winter, and there are a lot of snow. The boy was playing with at a slide, I went to him, and a photographer came to us and asked us to take our picture. I was so happy (lol). I do not remember about him much, but my mom told me about him later. My mom said that the boy was a typical boisterous boy (lol).

-My dream when I was a kid.

I wanted to be a singer. When I was a 3rd grade, I admire SPEED. I was singing and doing recital with my friends in the classroom. I get scared when I talk to people by myself, but sometimes I get confidence whenever I perform. I believed, perhaps almost knew I’ll be a singer someday.

-When I was a 4th grade, I start going actor’s school, and I met them.

Lesson was basically twice a week, but I went to school everyday. Lessons for acting, correct methods to talk to people, and how to walk nicely. I was in another dance school also, so I didn’t have any Saturday and Sunday, but it was not hard and it didn’t trouble me at all. I thought it was part of my commitment.

-That was my main part in my elementary school.

I was hanging out with my friends during school. So, I didn’t know what I should do when I hang out outside of school with my friends (lol). I saw A-CHAN and KASHIYUKA at the recital in my actor’s school. Their group was consisted of 3 people and named, Perfume. I really enjoyed their performance. They were the idols in my school.

-I joined Perfume when I was 6th grade.

A-CHAN and me were already good friends at that time; we were hang out many times. KASHIYUKA and me however, had not met each other yet. We both are kind of people who need some time to get to know each other. At first, we couldn’t talk to each other without A-CHAN around.
Once we became friends, however, we did hang out a lot. We went to shopping malls to take a picture at the print club before lessons.

Now

-I moved to Tokyo when I was 14 years old.

I was so happy when I moved to Tokyo. I didn’t miss my hometown.

-BEE-HIVE.

Our first job as Perfume was alive concert sponsored by the agency, BEE-HIVE. We did rehearsals so many times for this show. After this show was over, we didn’t get any other jobs, so I was very anxious about our future. I, however, had never thought to give up, and I’d never thought we gonna get this busy like now.

-Our bond.

A-CHAN is the specialist of affecting moods. If A-CHAN is happy, everybody become happy, and if A-CHAN is sad, everybody become sad. She is always caring for people and very kind. KASHIYUKA hides her real feelings even if she is going through some difficulties. And she is easily moved to tears. Our bond is very strong. We do not change our personalities at work and private. We are always the same. That fact brings us strong and great friendship, teamwork, and trust.

-Our fashion changed a lot.

I was sophomore of a high school when I did debut with major label. I was always wearing boyish style outfits. Lately I am trying to wear more girly style also. I couldn’t wear skirts before because it was too girly for me (lol). But since we are trying to wear a lot of styles costumes these days, and there are some girly styles, so I guess I am just getting used to it.

-I liked Hip-Hop music when I started to listen to music.

I like listening to Hip-Hop music, including Rip Slyme, Kick the Can Crew, and Rhymester. Also I liked to listen to J-Pop. One day, I tried to listen to techno music at a CD shop, and it became one of my favorite genres. I bought a lot of Nakata’s CDs. I listen to Rock music also these days. One of my favorites is Asian Kung-fu Generation. Now, I am trying to listen to many different music genres.

-I like the time when I spend at my room, just doing nothing.

When I have a day off, I just sleep until evening, and go to shopping at night. That’s it (lol). It is very simple (lol). I do cook also. I am trying to learn more recipes right now.

-My view on love?

Hmm, I like black hair guys, and I like gentle attitude guy. I also like fashionable guys, but not too complicated. Simplicity is best.

-My college life.

I was little bit nervous when I was a freshman, but I am comfortable right now. When I was a freshman, I didn’t know how to spend time with friends…I was always like “What should I talk about???”

The future

-I want to be like Ringo Shiina.

I admire Ringo Shiina. She is very cute, but also very stylish and cool. I want to be a performer who has a lots of female fans. One day, a girl came to me and said, “I cut my hair short because I wanna be like you!” I was so happy when I hear that. Again, I wanna try to be a good cook. Since I do have marriage plans, learning how to cook is important to me (lol). I want to find the person who gonna be a good daddy for my kids, someday, somehow (lol).

-We will never break up.

I love our strong relationship between us. I wanna be 20 years old ASAP, and go to the bar with A-CHAN and KASHIYUKA. I’m just wondering how we gonna be when we get drunk (lol). I do have several friends around me, but A-CHAN and KASHIYUKA are really special to me we’re the best of friends. (During the point of the interview, NOCCHI, as well as A-CHAN and KASHIYUKA are still 19.)

Organized by me at Perfume City Forums, Perfume fans will have their first meet-up at Orchard MRT, 2pm on NOCCHI’S BIRTHDAYYYYY. In other words, 20th September.

Despite it being in Singapore, this gathering does not restrict to only Singaporeans; any Perfume fan can join us!

Interested? Please e-mail your name and contact number, with the Topic “Perfume Gathering on Nocchi’s birthday” to Bonkurasu____gmail____com. Deadline ends on Friday, 18th September @ 11pm GMT+8.

Programs listed at the forum page here. For more enquiries , do e-mail Bonkurasu! Or if you’re a forum member there, do PM me your contact number =D

I sourced Yahoo Japan Auctions, and with some help from a friend who resides in Japan, I get to own out-of-print editions of their CDs and limited merchandise. And no, I’ve yet to own any of the following posters/CDs.

As one can see, I’m looking towards their posters to add on into my collection. This particular one is from their first breakthrough single, Polyrhythm. I enjoy this song, but it’s not one of my top favourites.

Here’s a bit of some background information: Perfume’s posters are not for sale anywhere, and the only way to obtain one is to buy their limited first press release singles, mostly at Tower Records. At prices ranging from 2500 yen to 5000 yen, they are still -quite- affordable to the crazed Perfume fan. Well, as far as I know, I’m not touching their ‘Akihabalove’ Single that was produced during their Bee-Hive days with Momoi Halko; that CD went for 80,000 yen and more!

Okay, we’re now back with more Perfume’s posters that I’m eying on.

Normal Edition

Limited Edition

Perfume’s latest CD release and 2nd official album, ⊿ , or also known as Triangle, appealed to me as much as a tech geek with the fastest i7 gaming rig available in stores. In any case, those posters… they are calling out to me.

So, which CDs have I left to purchase (other than Akihabalove, which I’m never gonna get) ? I have left 3 backlog CDs which basically dig back to Perfume’s roots. At least, those songs were quite good and I like their ‘Jenny wa gokigen naname’ song cover best)

Told you this doesn’t come cheap.

Okay okay, below is the one I’m aiming for, anyway.

Fanservice -Sweet-

Chocolate Disco is a song that is very popular amongst many Perfume fans for its catchy tune, and for its live concerts, very rave-worthy.

Price-wise… you can look at this link yourself. Cheapest would be around 10,000 yen, and 50,000 yen for the craziest buyer.

Next up,

Fanservice -Bitter-

Limited Edition version

Since there’s a normal and LE version of this DVD, there’s less price fluctuations, as most people would opt for the normal edition, yet both editions are pretty rare in CD shops in Japan.

Prima Box

Perfume’s first single compilation of their earliest releases, the price wars for this set, despite having the most number of CDs, is cheaper than the other two mentioned above. They go for as cheap as 1000 yen!

Alright, enough of self-temptation. Not very good for health.