#misc tl

Underneath this very funny Polaroid of Atsushi, the blurb is equally funny. Here is a translation of what it says:

"The shooting session for next issue's cover story takes place in the middle of Tokyo. The one that emerges from the makeup room is none other than the Demon King, descending from the world of goth. He stands wordlessly in the middle of the smoky studio. About an hour after the completion of the photoshoot he departs, again without uttering a word. This figure is not the usual Acchan; indeed, he is the Demon King. It is only here in this studio that time stops and warps.

About ten days later, the interview takes place at a skyscraper in Roppongi, in the conference room of a recording company. On this day, the editor Hirabayashi is present, not the editor-in-chief Kanemitsu. As we enter the conference room, the great sprawl of Tokyo lies beyond the windows from which Mr. Sakurai sits in front of. In response to a question from writer Ishii, Mr. Sakurai replies with a smirk, 'I'm not such an over-the-top goth.' That laugh--oh yes, he is the Demon King.

"The cover and lead photoshoot for this issue took place on the same day as the PHY Vol. 15 special shoot. All five members [of Buck-Tick] had their shoots for PHY go without a hitch. However, the shoot for this issue proved to be quite challenging.

Editor-in-chief Kanemitsu proposed an idea: 'They're fallen angels so they should have wings.' The art director, photographer, and everyone else was on board. But portraying Sakurai and Imai as fallen angels and creating their winged silhouettes was quite difficult. We hung plastic wing objects behind Sakurai and Imai. We adjusted the light source to suit them, and then adjusted the position and brightness of the strobes, but it was difficult to get a good shadow. After much trial and error, we got the shots on pages 14 and 17. We really wanted to capture the wings in long shadows, but we were pressed for time and had to give up. Lastly, the staff threw the black feathers we bought into the air from the side and Sakurai and Imai stood amongst the falling feathers. This shot also took a lot of effort to get the timing just right. But the photos were worth all that effort.

"The photoshoot took place at a cheddar-style, Western-styled house on the outskirts of Setagaya. Antique sofas, pianos, dolls... The owner lives alone in this house that is anything but ordinary. The atmosphere is mysterious, but Jake [Cloudchair] is brimming with curiosity. Camera in hand, he took pictures of all sorts of things. He seemed to get along well with the owner, who brought something out of the attic that he 'normally never shows to anyone.' We can't reveal what it was, but everyone was amazed. Oh, but as soon as we arrived, Demon Lord Sakurai, perhaps tired, went to sleep on an antique bed. Even in his sleep, he was as beautiful as an antique ornament."