Brian May: Enlightened Monarch

Author: Sacha Reins (Best, №118, May 1978)

It’s no secret I’m a Queen fan. So I volunteered for an interview. Now, after a few weeks, when the interview took place, I admit the obvious: these young people have their own cockroaches.

[Sacha Reins, 70s]

It was a series of last-minute and appointed interviews that were cancelled under strange pretexts.

The sirs took a star. On the Sunday before the concert in Paris, their press agent told me to stay at home on the phone, and as soon as one of these gentlemen is ready for an interview, I will call, and I will immediately have to come. What was I supposed to do, send them away?

Then there’s this ridiculous party. On the night of the second concert in the hall of a chic restaurant in their honor was a party where they were handed gold discs.

The group arrived … and locked in a private office, so they wouldn’t be disturbed.

Queen is constantly surrounded by a team of security guards-bodyguards-managers who systematically block the group.

As soon as you manage to overcome this dam, you come across charming guys who pretend to be surprised to see you furious at being treated like pigs. They know nothing! I don’t believe that.

Queen, in fact, suffer from a complex of Rolling Stones. Like the Stones, they want to be chased by hordes of crazy fans. Alas, this is not so, they are part of a well-known group, but individually do not cause delight in the crowd. And so to create an illusion … they surround themselves with a whole retinue and security service, as useless as grotesque.

An interview with Brian May took place one day in Zurich. In the evening I had to attend their concert and then have dinner with them. The interview ended, I took my things, called a taxi and went to the airport to go home. I’m tired of their antics. Brian May was very courteous, but his entourage certainly sucks.

Monarchy

– Are you satisfied with your Paris concerts?

Yes, very. For us, these shows were held in a very special way. We were beginning to think we were banned from France. None of our recordings were sold here until We Are The Champions. And as soon as this single was a success, we said, well, it’s time to go. The first night we were very nervous. We have been told so many times that the Paris audience is one of the most difficult in the world! We were very careful the first night, almost closed, and I think the audience felt it. The second night was completely different: contact had already been established.

– I attended this concert, and several times you made me think of Led Zeppelin because of the music and the peculiar interaction between you and Mercury.

– This is not the first time when we are compared with LZ in one or another plane. In fact, I think there was a lot more common ground between Queen and LZ a few years ago when we started. But now we have moved away from this form of hard rock, we have developed our own harmonies, a style that belongs only to us. However, LZ and we follow similar routes because, forming as musicians, we were influenced by the same people.

– Is there any stage rivalry between you and Mercury?

– No, we are too close, we know each other too well, we had too many common problems. Freddie is the natural point of attraction of the group, and it’s good that he realizes his charisma in this way.

The first person the viewer watches will always be the lead singer and then the guitarist. Therefore, it would be foolish to try to fight with Freddie for power on stage. Especially since he’s a fantastic showman.

– No leader in the group?

– No. Whenever we make a decision, whether it’s our business or music, we meet all four of us together, have a long conversation, and then decide what we’re going to do.

We complement each other. Specifically, John Deacon deals with money. Roger Taylor is responsible for our communications with the outside world, I mean the outside world in relation to Queen.

– In this sense, I found that your behavior in Paris was a little strange. All of these appointed and revoked by the miserable occasions interview. This ultra-twitch security that has built a wall around you. This ridiculous party, when you took a private office with a thug at the door, which blocked access to other guests. As if journalists or promoters were going to attack you! It was all very strange.

– For our image well, that we look as excessively guarded and hard-to-reach group. So even more people will be interested in us. As for the party, I don’t remember it very well.

Equipment

– Keep going. Who gave you the idea of this light installation?

– Nobody, we developed it a year ago with the help of our engineer Jerry Stickels.

– So she came before «Close encounters of the third degree»?

– Long time. So this similarity between the spaceship from the movie and our glowing crown is very strange. Americans were struck by this similarity. We receive many letters on this subject.

– You have a lot of stage equipment. This is a device that endlessly reproduces the sound of the guitar, have you been using it for a long time?

– Since 1972. It was necessary for us from the very beginning, but we had no money, we were able to buy it only in 72-m. This is a rather complex device. It took me a long time to learn how to handle it properly, and I also changed it so that it could play two different sounds indefinitely. Now I know it perfectly and can use it to play harmonies, counterpoints, chords.

[Vintage 1970’s Maestro Echoplex EP-4 Solid State Tape Delay]

The trickiest thing is to perfectly tune the scene so I can hear exactly how the sound goes and comes back. If for some reason it is hard to hear what is happening, it is a disaster because I do not know how often to put a refund. But this has not happened for a long time, because now we have everything we need on stage.

We are sometimes criticized for the fortune we have invested in our equipment. This kind of criticism is quite inappropriate, because if we spend so much money on equipment, it’s all for the audience to be satisfied, both visually and musically.

You see, we’re interested in being able to play back what we’re doing on the record. Complex harmonies and all that. But there are only four of us. We need the help of electronics, so Freddie and I are using these devices with endless echoes. We don’t want to play pre-recorded tracks like some bands do. We don’t think it’s fair.

– But you use the entry in Bohemian Rhapsody…

– Yeah, but that’s different. The BR passage you are referring to is a complete reproduction of a studio recording. We recorded this song as an Opera. Each of us sang about twenty different parts to reproduce exactly one big classical choir. It is absolutely impossible to perform on stage. We tried it a few times, but it sounded really bad compared to the album version, so we decided to play a pre-recorded Opera passage. But to avoid any doubts or misunderstandings, we give these recordings in complete darkness and do not appear until the hard rock part, which we play live. It’s more honest.

– Where do you get all these classical and Baroque allusions that your music is filled with?

– I don’t know, because none of us have any real classical foundations. I think that all this comes from the depths of our childhood memories, when our parents listened to waltzes on the radio, brass bands in parks on dundays. It must have come from there.

– Your latest album, News Of The World, doesn’t have enough references to Baroque.

– Yeah. We went back to pure hard rock. Without excesses. We’ve come a long way in the Baroque style, a cross between Opera and rock, and I don’t think we could have been more successful than with A Night At The Opera. That’s why we came back to more unpretentious music.

– A Night At The Opera sold best, so don’t you think you’ve disappointed a large audience who liked these musical tricks?

– We always disappoint someone, no matter what we do. When we started working with the Baroque style, we disappointed our first fans who loved us for our pure hard rock.

– They say you don’t take vacations.…

– Yes, we work hard. Every year we lock ourselves in the studio for two or three months, then we go on a two-month American tour, then we spend two months in Europe, two months in Japan and Australia, and when it’s over, it’s time to go back to the studio for the next album. We have been living in this rhythm for five years.

– Bands like Queen and all the major British bands we’ve seen in recent years have been getting more and more stage equipment. Now everyone has lasers, bizarre scenes, smoke generators, etc. When will this arms race end?

– Never. Show business will always follow with interest the development of technology in all that relates to audiovisual information, and use it to create even more pompous, beautiful and impressive shows. However, there is a very clear reaction from part of the public (I’m talking about the rock audience), especially in the UK, where most young people want the bands to return to the adequate stage art as it was ten years ago.

I don’t mind, but here we are faced with a mathematical impossibility. To play without assistive devices, you will have to work in small halls, even in clubs where your creative energy is in direct contact with your audience. There really is no need for a rotating stage and smoke, everyone is in direct contact with the music. But the famous band will no longer be able to play in small halls.

[News Of The World Tour]

Look at Paris, in two days we performed in front of 18,000 people. In a hall with two thousand seats we would have to play for everyone nine days in a row and eighteen days – in the club. At this rate, it will take us ten years to travel around the world, it is unthinkable. That is the only way to have time everywhere – to play in the huge halls (and believe me, Pavillon de Paris – not the biggest).

[Pavillon de Paris (aka Les Abattoirs de la Villette – “Slaughterhouse in La Villette”); as a concert hall for about 10,000 spectators, the building was used from 1975 to 1980.]

Now, about the question you asked me. I don’t know how or when it will end, but I know what the next step is: holography. A hologram is a three - dimensional photo projection in space. It will be possible to create incredible scenery, in a second to project the Grand Canyon of Colorado or skyscrapers of New York in 3D, creating the illusion of full presence. The basic principles are developed, but everything else is still in the process of testing for wide application.

Fantasia

– What about Sex Pistols?

– It’s a band that we really like (“we” means Queen) and I’m really sorry that they broke up. But it was almost inevitable.

– Why?

– They were under too much pressure. The British music press (the worst in the world) has made the lives of these guys unbearable, making them both heroes and scapegoats. The British press, to keep circulation, so needs in stars, that fabricates new names for couple of months. And an ordinary boy is not easy to survive the rapid transformation from a young nerd to a star. Most young talents don’t know how to handle it. If by a Fluke they stay on the horse and become really popular stars, then the same press that inflated the whole story, smears them on the wall, because it feels that they are out of control and will be able to do without her support.

The British press is destructive, and Sex Pistols is not the first victim. We had a chance to succeed without the press. When we started, we were not written about, and when it did happen, the whole thing was limited to three contemptuous lines. As a result, we were able to gradually and without their help to gain the trust of the public.

– How long will you stay together?

– Hard to say. At the moment, everything is fine, we get along well, we are famous all over the world. Why run away?

– Do you see yourself on the rock scene in forty years?

– Perhaps by that time our music will develop in another direction. Maybe we’ll have other ambitions. Personally, I am always guided by some achievable goal, to conquer France, for example. Or something like that. Make a full house in Madison Square Garden or Earl’s Court.

If one day we reach the point where all desires are fulfilled, because we have already achieved everything, it will become a serious problem. That’s what happens to Elton John.

Everything he could wish for, he had already received. He was not destined to become more famous or rich. He can only go down, because already at the top. He is unhappy because life cannot give him anything new. I don’t want to be in this position.

– You wanted to conquer the French public, and you did it. Got a new target?

To lose the French public, so that there is a goal to return it. No, I’m kidding, to compose music so beautiful that animators could create on its basis at least the same beautiful cartoon as Fantasia. And finally take a vacation. Long vacation.

Source:http://queenfrance.online.fr/htm/presse/article3.htm

Translated from French: @gefuhl-des-zweifels

Harry Styles for L’Officiel Homme — Coloured

“ ’ .“ –

Regret is another thing that is a common human trait for all of us. The sense of living with loss and the mistakes that we’ve made in our lives. Sometimes they feel insurmountable. That’s the heroism that I wanted to capture… being so broken, so robbed of any sense of joy because of your past.

ADRIEN BRODY - Inteview

[TRANS] IU Documentary ‘Pieces: Winter of a 29 Year Old’ - Interview excerpts (Q30-37)

All the interview translations collated

Q1-29:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/679708931196649472

Q30-37:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/680648208596205568

From the moment I gained popularity, there isn’t a moment that I haven’t thought about this. In some ways, I think I haven’t come to terms that I am a popular celebrity yet. Since it hasn’t hit me yet, I think it probably never will. Being loved is also just one piece of me (T/L note: one part of who I am) and I don’t think that’s entirely me either…

I’m not being humble. I sincerely do feel this way.

Because of that, I’m able to stay healthy and be free and also have a healthy relationship with my fans. Being able to last this long in my career, I thought it was how I objectively viewed myself and I would suddenly hear, ‘This was a hidden camera! Actually, IU being popular was a hidden camera!’ Like the Truman show… ‘So from tomorrow onwards, you will no longer be popular!’ I have imagined that sort of thing a lot.

I think about that a lot… During times like these, I would also always warn myself, ‘I have to leave something behind in my life.’

If I didn’t come into this world as myself, but came into this world as IU and left as IU, wouldn’t it be really sad?

IU is just one of the things that Lee Jieun did.

She is just one piece of Lee Jieun. I’m not someone who can be fully explained with only IU. Just because you call it self-love, is it self-love? I’ve always wondered about that.

I might feel really sad. (whisper) But then I think I wouldn’t feel that sad. (ahhahhahaha) I don’t think I would be so sad to that extent.

I would just be like, ‘Ah, I’ve been doing this for over 10 years, I had fun… I’ll have fun and take my leave~’ I think that’s the closest to how I truly feel.

Because it’s not like I was happy every single day. Living as IU.

There would be this much of a sense of freedom? And this much of sadness? I think there would be all of this coexisting.

Sadness would not be the dominant feeling and neither would a sense of relief be the dominant feeling.

I would be like, ‘Then what shall I do now?’

‘What shall I do with my spare time now?’ I think that’s what I would be concerned about.

Q31. What does being an adult mean to Lee Jieun?

(thinking carefully) I’m not sure. I recall answering this at some point in my life before, but from my current perspective, I’m not sure what being an adult means. Although it can be simply defined based on age and that once you are no longer a minor, you are considered to be an adult, but even though when I was young I vaguely imagined what an adult would be like, now that I have become one, I’m still unsure and I don’t know if I match up to that. Also, I wonder, ‘Is there such an adult around me?’ Of course, some people might find it too fake that I keep talking about age…

In terms of age, I’m all grown up, year by year as I mature, I find that I’m able to be more understanding and tolerant towards the world and people around me. I think I’m able to understand people in a more multi-dimensional way and sometimes, I discover an inner child in someone… ‘Ah, that person is still..!’ I don’t just mean it in a negative sense, but even as an adult, there could still be a child hidden inside the person, so would that part need to become an adult too for that person to be considered an adult?

But does such a person even exist in this world? Even in my grandmother, I discovered a child in her.

Could this just be a figment of our imagination? A fantasy? A fantasy that all the adults in this world have?

I wonder if it’s just a fantasy like, ‘At some point, I will be a much more adult-like adult than I am now!’ but if I were to just sum up my answer now, it would be to not behave in a more childish manner than those younger than me? (haha) That’s probably how I feel right now.

Q32. Is Lee Jieun considered an ‘adult’?

Yes, I would be, based on this criteria. In front of those younger than me, I try hard to pretend to be an adult, I’m that type of person and I hope to continue doing that.

Q33. The reason you want to become 30 soon

There was no ‘magic of 20-year-old’ when I became of age, but is there one at 30?

I’ll have the same expectation at the age of 40, but of course, I don’t have high hopes for it either.

Still, when I turn 30, I really won’t be (considered) young physically in age, so (although the wordings may sound harsh) I always have this sort of victim mentality towards this subject…

I debuted at such a young age that I think I used to have a tad bit of a victim mentality towards the fact that people often see me as a young (immature) person.

‘Yes I’m young, but I’m not handling or doing my stuff immaturely.’

‘If so, shouldn’t they treat me as a professional?’

‘I’m only physically young in age, but that doesn’t mean that I’m dealing with my career/ social life in a childish manner…’

‘Wouldn’t I finally be able to get closer to the age that matches my experience when I turn 30?’

‘I’m no longer in my 20s, so I bet no one will (continue to) see me as a young girl right?’

I have a bit of those expectations.

Q34. Tell us about your plan on your first day of being 30

None. I don’t have that sort of plan, it will probably be just~~~ the same. (laughs)

I bet I will really just be sleeping in, waking up and lolling around if I don’t have any work, then falling asleep (again) after having my dinner as per usual?

Q35. What kind of 30s do you want to spend?

Perhaps a 30s without much trouble? (LOL) I hope there won’t be much trouble.

I hope whatever circumstances won’t drag or take me to somewhere (that I detest)

and that it will be a peaceful 30s for me. I hope it will be a solid 30s for me as an artist,

and no less, a diligent 30s for me as a diligent artist too.

Q36. Your thoughts on failure

I do have some thoughts on this. It makes me sound a little annoying (smiles gently) sharing this makes me sound a little annoying …

butI have never done things that I think I might fail at. Ahaha. I guess I make decisions that I have a plan for and some degree of confidence in. ‘Ah, I’m not so sure about this though? I’m not that confident though?’ For ‘me’ as a person, I’m always indecisive and feeling unsure, but as a producer I’ll just say it. If it’s something that people might not give attention to, I wouldn’t even release it in the first place.

Uhhurhurhurhur.

I think I have trusted my intuition so far.

Q37. Does ‘Pieces’ feel like (a baby) you carried inside you and gave birth to this time as well?

I’m not that noble, in fact… (laughs)

I think these songs might actually be the opposite of that concept?

(T/L note: IU always treats her albums like babies she kept to herself that are finally born into this world, but Pieces is a collection of unreleased songs over the years that didn’t make it into IU’s albums.)

Epilogue

As I was doing this interview and as we filmed this documentary over the past 2 months that can be considered short or long depending on your perspective…

Through this documentary, I really wanted to show every~~thing, I wanted to show who I am much more clearly, but I thought to myself, ‘Eventually, this will be a piece of me too.’

In a good way, a meaningful way.

It’s really difficult to define who I am by just putting all of me into one spot and saying, ‘This is me!!!’ and I thought that in future too, ‘That’s going to be tough.’

As I was preparing the ‘Pieces’ album and giving pieces of myself like hints about me, even though I have given my fans the bigger pieces so far, without these pieces, it (T/L note: the full picture) would not be complete, which I am trying to convey through my music and this documentary, so I thought, ‘In many ways, doing this really suits the meaning of ‘Pieces’’. That’s why I wanted to say that, even if it’s not today, someday…

All the interview translations collated

Q1-29:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/679708931196649472

Q30-37:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/680648208596205568

Translated by squishy_blob, ChoMin80, yule, jjanghimi, wellstrong_, jieunspoetry, 4seasonswithIU, and forenexiaoseo

Edited by IUteamstarcandy

Please take out full and proper credits, thank you!

[TRANS] IU Documentary ‘Pieces: Winter of a 29 Year Old’ - Interview excerpts (Q1-29)

All the interview translations collated

Q1-29:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/679708931196649472

Q30-37:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/680648208596205568

Q1. Reason you decided to release this album

This was planned since the beginning of the year and these are songs that all my fans know.

My fans know them whether as one phrase or as the whole song and have always requested for the songs to be released.

It has been 10 years since I kept a song like ‘Drama’ to myself without releasing it.

So at age 30, before I move on to my 30s, would this be considered as brushing off all my experimental songs from my 20s?

I have decided to release this album as a gift for the fans and a new beginning of my musical endeavours.

Q2. ‘Pieces’ Album Introduction

Pieces between my images that I continuously portrayed through my music and revealed publicly?

It was made of pieces that were not released nor bothered to be released and that was why it was named ‘Pieces’.

Q3. ‘Pieces’ Song Introduction

The initial songs are ‘Drama’ and ‘You’, which I wrote around the age of 20 and 24, respectively, and ‘Next Stop’ is a song that started at 25 and finished at 26.

‘Winter Sleep’ and ‘Love Letter’ were also in my late twenties, around 27~28. There are many songs that I would start and take up to a year to finish.

Take ‘Next Stop’ from my mid-20s and ‘Winter Sleep’ and ‘Love Letter’ from my late 20s as songs that I have never planned to release because as I said, they are experimental and thus, took a long time to finish too.

Q4. What was different from the previous album preparation process?

I was a little less pressured… because they have already been released to the fans little by little.

In fact, I usually feel so much pressure about ‘how will fans react to this song?’.

However,there wasn’t much uncertainty since ‘Pieces’ was solely composed with only the fans in mind and these songs are already well-liked by the fans.

I can’t help but be mindful of chart performance while making albums.

I can’t help but think about album sales or what kind of response it will get from music sites as a producer, but since this album was composed that way (with only the fans in mind) from the start, it was definitely different from other albums.

Q5. The meaning behind the tracklist order in Pieces’?

The tracklist order is decided under the presumption that people will listen to the album as a whole. The structure (introduction, development, turn and conclusion) of the album is decided with the feeling of ‘as a listener, I am listening to an entire book’, but first and foremost the beginning is really important.

Deciding what song to place as track no. 1 is an important point both strategy-wise and in terms of how I want to tell my story, but this way or that way, we started off with ‘Drama’ which many fans were waiting for the most.

The song itself has a really nice feel and I believe that it is the song that holds the theme of what I wanted to show through this album the most.

I had always shared with fans the story behind why this song was not being released for such a long time and with the thought that simply including ‘Drama’ alone would be meaningful enough for fans to have this album, I thought that it should be placed as the first track. Subsequently, track no. 2 would be the stories that would be most emphasized and the songs that I believe people would listen to the most would usually be placed as track no. 2 and no. 3. That’s why ‘Next Stop’ and ‘Winter Sleep’ were placed in that order, then the order of the following songs, ‘Love Letter’ and ‘You’, was decided more comfortably and that is the basis upon which the tracklist order of the album was decided.

Q6. How did the word ‘Pieces’ come about?

It was just an idea that came to me suddenly, but I thought, “Why don’t we just go with ‘소품집’ (Etudes - musical term for a small collection of pieces)?” However, this title felt a little too simple? It’s a commonly used expression, so ‘조각집’ (Pieces) came about as we were thinking “Isn’t there anything a little different?”. (T/L note: Inside the ‘Pieces’ documentary, the song introductions clipped inside is titled “IU’s 소품집” which is the original working title for this album.)

Of course, these songs are all very precious, hold good memories and are very dear to me, however, there were reasons why I couldn’t put them in official albums and so I thought instead of a complete picture, it felt more right to me that they were small pieces of that picture.

So when you put these pieces together, and gather these five songs together, it becomes a rather (complete) picture?

Meaning-wise, these songs are a bit different from the songs I would put on an album.

So I felt that if it was called ‘Pieces’ then what I wanted to say would become clearer, and that was how it was decided.

Q7. The reason why ‘Drama’ release was delayed

I don’t think there was an album that ‘Drama’ could fit in. I always tried to do so, but it was a song I made at the age of 20, kind of a song I made for fun and even compared to the other self-composed songs in this album, the emotions and vibe are a little different.

However, fans liked the song a lot and there were a lot of people who would request the song during en-encore at every concert. That is why even though I promised that I would release it someday, ultimately from the standpoint of a producer I would feel that putting this song into an album would be kind of forcing it too much, when considering the big picture I was trying to create and due to this reason, I would keep saying ‘next time, next time’ and the release eventually kept getting delayed.

Q8. Looking only at the lyrics of ‘Drama’ , I feel it would be believable if you said that the current IU at the brink of turning 30 wrote them.

I do think that is possible. The lyrics don’t quite have the vibe of a twenty year old.

The vibe of the song is like a children’s song, bright and sung cheerfully without too much technique. Although the vibe itself is like this, the lyrics show a bit more maturity. I borrowed the concept of a drama, but because I personally wrote the lyrics as if an old-aged actor were painting a picture, the content of the song does seem more fitting for a 30 year old than a 20 year old and yet even more so for a 40 year old than a 30 year old.

Q9. Your thoughts on singing ‘Drama’ as you wrapped up your twenties?

My voice was a bit different. Back then, I was actually younger; the concept of singing it like a children’s song was not awkward, and I remember singing it without that much effort. Of course, though I did sing this song at every concert as I got older year by year, because recordings and live performances are completely different fields, grasping the feeling to sing the song with detail and move forward with the directing was harder compared to the other songs. The thought that “I’ve reached the point where expressing the simplicity that only comes from the innocent-like times of the younger self now requires some thinking” made it a bit difficult, and because my voice itself has aged since then, I thought, “Is it a little awkward to sing it like a children’s song?” Though these may be my own thoughts… That’s why I sang less cheerfully compared to then.

Q10. The atmosphere during the recording was so nice

I often vibe with the atmosphere of the song I’m singing at the moment. When I sing a sad song, I tend to completely turn off the lights and focus quietly. When singing a fun song, I also tend to express (the song) by dancing and making myself feel good. Isn’t this the only bright song out of the five songs I participated in this time? I purposely did it more excitedly, and I actually felt a lot better.

Q11. You played the recorder (musical instrument) yourself

I was very satisfied with (how the sound turned out with) the recorder. (laughs)

“Ah~ If I learnt the recorder professionally, I could probably do it? I’m so satisfied with the sound?” I had such thoughts.

Q12. When you were recording ‘Next Stop,’ did you think of Jian as you sang?

I did not do that this time. Back then, I had thought about singing it that way if this theme, this song, actually were to be used in the drama, but as (those plans) unfortunately fell through, I thought about the 25, 26-year-old me at the time as I sang.

Of course, although there is also Jian in that piece, to say that this is only the theme of Jian is a bit different; it’s just my sentiments. From there, the song was concluded through Jian.

Q13. Your emotions back then when working on ‘Next Stop’

Actually, I can’t really remember clearly. Most of the songs on this album are like that. Since they are not songs that I wrote recently, but songs that I wrote as long as 10 years ago, I don’t recall exactly what kind of feelings I had when I wrote it, but for ‘Next Stop’, I remember that the melody probably came before the lyrics.

I think it was like “Ah!!”

Back then, I enjoyed taking the bus and travelling around alone.

I simply enjoyed taking the bus by myself to the Gwanghwamun area for a walk before returning home.

But I didn’t have a specific destination in mind when I boarded the bus back then.

I just felt stuffy and wanted to go for a walk, so I left my house, but it was like a tour without deciding in advance where I would be alighting.

As I thought to myself, “Where shall I alight? Where shall I alight?” I ended up not getting off the bus.

“Would there be a better destination that I prefer?”

“Rather than this place, would there be another place that suits me better?”

It’s a song that contains these emotions in a one-dimensional manner.

However, figuratively speaking, ‘Next Station’ is not just about a bus stop or train station, as it also refers to my feelings about my own life of ‘when will I get used to and accept the fact that right now where I am is where I should be in my life?’

I recall that the key to the lyrics is that I started writing upon receiving inspiration on a day when my twenty-five-year-old self took a bus and couldn’t decide where to alight.

Q14. What does ‘Next Station’ mean?

Destination, I guess? About what I should decide as my direction in life.

Actually, I think it’s not something that you come to realise with age, but that you keep thinking about over and over again. It’s a song about how lost and troubled I feel, because even though it’s been 4-5 years, I think I still haven’t decided on my destination and wonder about ‘the place I want to alight’, ‘the place I want to end up eventually’ and ‘the place I want to settle down in my life’.

Q15. Are you still as troubled as ever about where to alight?

That’s right. I’m not sure where that would be. I wonder, ‘Would I really find a clear answer to that in my lifetime?’

Q16. ‘Winter Sleep’ is an undisclosed song?

This is probably the song that fans have the least information about. As far as I can remember, I do recall singing a verse from the song when my fans asked me to sing one of my self-compositions on the spot at a fanmeeting after Hotel Del Luna ended in 2018. (T/L note: It should be IU’s 11th Debut Anniversary in 2019 instead.)

That was the first and last piece of information to them, but there was actually another hint for this song in an IU merchandise that came out this year (2021).

The first page (of the merch) reads, ‘a stalk of spring, a cup of summer, a page of autumn, a breath of winter.’ They would be using the diary (merch) throughout the year, so I thought this would be a crucial mediator between the people who received the diary and the year that they’d be spending. So I jotted down and revealed what the four seasons mean to me, and what a year means to me through the merchandise, and that was the hint for ‘Winter Sleep’ and the expressions used in the lyrics.

But fortunately, (my fans) liked it a lot, though they obviously wouldn’t be able to link it to ‘Winter Sleep’…

Perhaps they will find out when the song is released?

Q17. Introducing the song ‘Winter Sleep’

When I first started writing, the song was about death. And it still was when I finished.

At that time, I wanted to depict myself not being able to accept that someone precious to me passed away, that they were gone from this world – I wanted to describe myself trying hard to remember them, imagining as if they were by my side.

In that one year after their death – the spring, summer, autumn, winter… As if I were telling a story to this friend, the one who passed…

“You can’t see them, but I’ve left in front of your room a bouquet of spring that hasn’t bloomed yet, a cup of summer that I’ve poured, a page of autumn that I’ve torn out, and a breath of winter infused with my true desire to see you.” It could be seen as me rambling endlessly about how much I miss them, yet sending them a message, “I’m okay,” and it could also be a story letting them know, “I miss you.”

It’s not about someone’s absence, that someone is no longer here - it’s more like what someone would feel if their pet crossed the Rainbow Bridge.

And I wrote with the thought, “Wouldn’t the family and friends of the deceased, who left so abruptly, accept their death in this way?”

They could be sad endlessly and be completely broken (by their death), but the song is imbued with the idea, “I’ve lived the 1 year, the 12 months, without you…with you.” as I thought, “Isn’t it possible for them to spend (the one year after the death) like that?”

Q18. The reason behind the title of the song ‘You’

Because I hadn’t planned on releasing this song either (laughing), I don’t think I put much effort into coming up with a title.

But the fans also showed so much affection for the song during fanmeetings that it deserved a title.

It’s a song with a lot of fortune.

And it gained fame as well.

Q19. When do you come up with song titles or album names?

There are songs like ‘Next Stop’ that I tend to think, “Can another title even exist for this song?” and thus decide on the title right away. But there are also songs like ‘Through the Night’ that I came up with the title extremely late. ‘Love Letter’ is also one of those songs, having come up with the title late after agonizing over it. It’s different from song to song.

Q20. The reason behind using friends as motifs when writing songs

It just comes naturally to me. I think if there’s something or someone that I have affection for, I can come up with a story about it naturally as well. Of course, I’ve also realized that when preparing a full-length album with dozens of songs, ‘it would be impossible to work as a lyricist if I wrote the lyrics based on only themes that came to me naturally’.

So I do use lines that didn’t find me naturally but are still good lines - the lines that I instead had to (actively) find in advance. That being said, it’s much better to write a song for someone I love, since it finds me so easily.

It’s easy to be written, it’s easy to be sung, and it’s easy to be attached to it.

Love has always been an inspiration for me.

Q21. What is the difference between words that find you and words that you find?

By “words that find me,” I mean something like, “I never used these words but they came to me?” There really are cases of this happening from time to time.

The time that I really felt, “It’s really fascinating. This moment.” was from the lyrics of ‘Through the Night’, when I wondered if these words were really inside me the entire time. They came to me on their own in one sudden moment, and even found a spot inside me. And I thought, “I finished writing a verse, just like that?”

After those were words that had trouble finding me, but these were the words that came in bulk. It was a moment where I thought, “How could these many lines come to me in such a short span of time…” There are also a lot of times when a sentence or a few words, not as long as full lines, suddenly find me. Most of the songs in this album were created this way.

On the other hand, I have to (actively) find words half of the time. This usually takes an extremely long time. I make space for the lyrics before the words come to me. I then bring the words that can roughly fit into these spaces and try placing them here and there.

Q22. The meaning behind “Love Letter”, the song you initially gave to another singer?

It’s not my story, but I have written the song rather like a drama or fictional novel. At the time (of writing the lyrics), it was a story of an old couple, I guess. (The song) is about telling one side to not be sad when the other side leaves this world. That’s why I wrote it in 하오 style (T/L Note: The lyrics are written in an older form of speech with word-endings that are not often used colloquially, e.g., 다오 Da-o and 하오 ha-o). It’s about an old couple, so I purposely made it a little obvious (through the form of speech used). Along with talking about the most dazzling moments in life that are prominent enough (for one) to put a bookmark in between, I wrote the song thinking, ‘I hope you won’t be sad thinking about me just because I left, for you have these memories (with me). Instead, I ask you to smile as you recall the memories, and remember me that way.’

Q23. You sang “Love Letter” again.

It is a song I am very attached to. Although all five of them are songs that I feel particularly (attached to), this song is very dear to me, it’s also like a child still not all grown up (and thus I can’t help but care for more).

Seunghwan sang it really well. But it was presented in a totally different mood with a different arrangement and bpm (beats per min). Not to mention I think Seunghwan’s interpretation (of how the song should be delivered) itself is very different from my version. (His version is) way more modern and sophisticated. I liked (the song) because it sounded very different from the guide version that I sent to him, so I thought, ‘Ah, this is interesting.’ It was the first time I gave my (self-composed) song to another singer, to a vocalist I have faith in, and it was nice coming to realize how much a vocalist’s interpretation adds to the color/ style of a song.

From there, it crossed my mind that perhaps if I release my version, ‘it could also come across as completely different even though they’re the same song?’. I thought perhaps if you listen to ‘Love Letter’ from Seunghwan’s perspective and another version from my perspective like a set, you’ll somehow find them identical, yet different (at the same time) even though they’re conveying the same story. I sang (Love Letter) thinking, ‘I hope that my version would be accounted for the completion of this song too.’

Q24. IU’s 20 years old

Truthfully, it was such an age that made me upset because it was utterly meaningless.

I mean, isn’t there something special about (being or becoming) 20 when you’re still in your 10s? It is a symbolic age (marking adulthood), too.

So I was looking forward to being 20, but nothing in particular happened as expected.

Back then, I was also much gloomier, and much socially inept compared to now. So I remember being a little disappointed over the fact that ‘my life won’t magically become more interesting or different all of a sudden just because I’ve turned twenty.’

But then again, I also remember getting this type of question a lot at that time.

Since I couldn’t answer it (honestly) like this, I made up answers like ‘I’m so happy, so excited (about being 20)’, and which I think kind of made me feel guilty back then.

Q25. Your twenties were occupied with work, any regrets?

Honestly, there aren’t many. It does occur to me that I should have hung around more often when I was younger, but again, I always (shut down this kind of thoughts) and come to conclusions like ‘but you hate hanging around though’ / ‘right, yeah’. I bet even if I had the opportunity, I wouldn’t have been excited about it too.

Cause I don’t really like to hang around.. both then and now.

If I didn’t (occupy myself with) work, I would just be lolling around at home all the time, so I’m happy that I did well and spent my time more productively compared to that. Cause it’s always good to work hard. That is why I would say rather than regrets, I thought, ‘ah, I guess I’ll be able to live more comfortably in my 30s given how hard I’ve worked in my 20s’ and I feel grateful too. To me, who has led a diligent life in my 20s.

I find working most fun. Among all the stuff I could do. I’ve been told by my acquaintances who have observed me that I’m the type of person who can’t stand sitting still and not working. ‘You really can’t stay still when you’re not working, and when you’re told to rest, you just sit there and start thinking about work, making plans and sorts’, I got these kinds of comments a lot. I don’t think it would be any different even if I were to go back to being 20 years old (now).

Even though 10 years have passed, the components (pieces) that make up the 20-year-old me and 30-year-old me haven’t changed much. I still dislike going out, so do I dislike being in crowded places. Eventually, if I’m given all that time again, wouldn’t I just end up working again?

Q26. A song that represents IU’s 20s?

If I were to pick a song that represents my 20s (trying hard to decide)

This again depends on what the criteria is, but a song that I definitely would have to be included would be ‘Friday’.

‘Through the Night’… would 10 songs be too many?

Later on, I might be like, ‘I need to include this song too!’ and the list would get longer,

but right now the songs that come to my mind would be ‘Friday’, ‘Through the Night’, ‘Palette’, ‘Twenty-three’, umm… then ‘Full Stop’.

‘Knees’and‘Heart’ can make it too, right?

‘Celebrity’, ‘Epilogue’, ‘Dear Name’ would make 10 songs in total.

Q27. The reason you control everything?

It’s because I know player IU best (T/L note: ‘player’ refers to IU as someone being controlled in the ‘game’ of the entertainment industry), since I decided that I’m the best person to control her moves, I’m also the best at making use of myself in multiple ways, that’s why I have continued to take on the role of producer.

In my 30s, I’m thinking of letting someone else do the producing for me.

I feel that I’ve sufficiently done what I want to do in my 20s.

It would be refreshing to receive directing for an interesting project for a change.

Q28. Don’t you worry that you will lose your objectivity?

I’m not sure what I’ll be like right away next year, but for almost 15 years of my career, that’s something I am confident about. I’m good at being objective about myself. I don’t get excited about useless words, I don’t get hurt by useless words either and I think I’ve done a fine job with that so far. In this world, right now among the people in my life, I feel, ‘I know myself best’ and that ‘I know myself well career-wise’. And eventually it worked on me (laughs) so I think I made the right decision

(T/L note: IU means the mindset that she knows herself best worked on her because it kept her objective).

Q29. What is the reason behind you being thoroughly objective about yourself?

I think I have always been like that from a young age.

When I was young and even before I started this career…

It just seemed to be accurate all the time.

I tend to be accurate about my judgement of myself.

Just that when I was young, I was stricter (T/L note: in judging myself) and now less so.

I think my parents gave it to me.

All the interview translations collated

Q1-29:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/679708931196649472

Q30-37:https://iu-jjang.tumblr.com/post/680648208596205568

Translated by squishy_blob, ChoMin80, yule, jjanghimi, wellstrong_, jieunspoetry, 4seasonswithIU, and forenexiaoseo

Edited by IUteamstarcandy

Please take out full and proper credits, thank you!

[TRANSLATION] 220224 IU MARIE CLAIRE KOREA INTERVIEW

“I, yes, like it now for sure, No, frankly speaking, I want to give up” (Twenty-three) the twenty-three-year-old said. “I think I know myself a little bit now” (Palette) emphasised in 25, “Our ivory-coloured spring climax” (LILAC) in 29. IU has turned 30 after recording how she wandered, hurt and loved herself fiercely during her 20s.

“The instant I turned 30, I felt more excited than I had in a long time.” As soon as I heard those words, I decided not to dwell on and ask questions about her past any further. Her gaze, as expected, reflects one who is in her 30s. I heard her speak about her 30s as musician IU, actress Lee Jieun and as a member of society.

Would you say you are inspired by your age? You turned 30 this year.

Musically so. I think, in terms of music, age is a good subject matter that follows the way you tend to think and feel as it changes. Last year, my full-length album “LILAC” delivered the final send-off to my 20s and to commemorate me being 29 years old. Even before that, a lot of my music has reflected my age, such as “Twenty-three”, “Palette” and “Eight”.

How did you feel as you turned 30? You seem to be constantly aware of yourself, so you must clearly remember how you felt then.

I was watching a year-end ceremony at home. As I was watching absentmindedly, they started the New Year countdown and I felt a sense of excitement well up in me. In the latter half of my 20s, I felt a little weak and weary. It has been a long time since I have felt this excited. I felt so good that it suddenly gave me confidence that I am capable of anything. It could just be because it’s the beginning of the year, but I still seem to have that same feeling.

Did that feeling somewhat influence your plans?

I had this abstract idea since I was in my 20s. I want to open a small studio or concert hall where people can perform and work. Instead of a private work area, I want to create a space to showcase their work to the public. It had always just been a dream, but now that I’ve turned 30, I’ve decided to work on it and am in the process of making it a reality. I think it seems fun.

I expected to hear plans like, “I’m going to start exercising”… I was surprised to hear about this big project! (laughs)

It’s not so special (laughs) As I’m working, many opportunities to perform outside the studio, collaborate with other artists and film video content have fallen through due to (the inability to find a) location. Moreover, due to COVID-19, it has become difficult to rent out a studio space or concert hall, which is why I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be useful if I had this space?” It isn’t as if I’m going to stop working anytime soon.

The first music you released after you turned 30 is “Mother Nature (H2O)” with music director Kang Seung-won.

I have been admiring him since I was younger and he’s such a good senior musician that I was eager to work with him someday. However, I didn’t think it would come out as the first completed project of my 30s. It was originally planned to be announced last year. Looking back, I think, in many ways, it was a good thing that this was the first song released this year. It’s different from the music you’ve heard from me so far. I think it will come across as new and fresh.

I think this must have been a meaningful and special song. Especially for IU who has been admiring that musician from the beginning until now.

I want to do well. I kept repeating that to myself. It was my first time working with this director and I wanted to be praised, so I was delighted when I was given as many praises as I had desired.

Even though you have been consistently talking about your age through music, as an actor, you have taken on diverse roles regardless of your age.

When it comes to making music, I am a producer, and it becomes a good source for me to express and leave behind thoughts I had at those moments of my life. However, acting is not a creation of my own. Therefore, in order to be an actor who can play any role, it would be best if I didn’t restrict myself. However, as I have turned 30, I feel it has become a little more challenging.

What kind of character do you think would be the result if you projected “the current me” in its entirety as an actor, just like you do when making music?

When I receive a suggestion like that, the same character with strong tendencies would usually come to mind. Don’t you think it would be a different character if I were to project myself? Basically, (the character) would feign indifference, but try hard to show affection. That’s how people are by nature. There are times here and there when I want to try creating and acting as a character with that kind of image.

This reminds me of your character in director Hirokazu Koreeda’s movie.

I’ve had those thoughts a lot while filming director Koreeda’s “Broker”. I think I acted freely without limiting myself to how “this character should make this expression, or should react this way.” It was really a lot of fun. Rather than suggesting a fixed way (of acting), the director accepted my suggestions and said, “That part hadn’t crossed my mind, but it’s good that you did that”, which is why I had fun acting it out.

There must be as many people looking forward to the future of musician IU and actress Lee Jieun as there are enjoying looking back at your past works. I’m curious as to what perspective you use to look at yourself.

In the past, I definitely lived putting more of an emphasis on my future. At some point, I realised that planning my distant future would restrict my work instead. I think the present is the most important. We will resume the filming of the movie “Dream” soon. We haven’t finished shooting because of Covid-19, but since we are continuing now, I have to find and connect to the point we left off well. That is the biggest worry I have now.

What kind of image do you hope to portray for the next 10 years, in your 30s? Are there any desires that you don’t want to miss out on?

Thanks to my mother’s influence, I do my best to donate to a variety of causes. Recently I’ve been thinking that although it is essential to support the children and the elderly, the blind spot in providing welfare is the youth. As someone who has experienced that age, I have been working with my mother on how to help people in that stage of life in a more specific way. I think just finding out a way to accomplish that would be enough for me to achieve in my 30s and it would be something fun to do. Also, in terms of being an actor, I want to be an actor that the public is willing to invest their time into. It would be good, as an actor, if they take the time to watch every project of mine as soon as it is released. Simultaneously, I’d like to be a musician who makes you as curious as ever. Anyhow, I don’t have any big dreams. When I was in my 20s I worked much harder than I wanted, and achieved a lot. Now, it would be great if my activities appear comfortable to my fans.

Even though you said you didn’t have a big dream, hearing what you want to do, it sounds like you’ll be very busy.

That’s right. Basically, I am the type of person who can’t rest well. Work is the biggest part of my life. Although it would be great if it doesn’t devour me like it did in my 20s.

Have you ever asked yourself the question, “How long will I be able to make music and act?”

I have. Last year I realized my ears won’t always be the same as they usually are and thought, “What if I won’t be able to make the sounds that I want to make?” which is a concern I had. I’m looking for methods now, but I truthfully felt afraid that I won’t always be able to perform in the condition that I am in now. When I think about it, I am not particularly in good shape and am underweight compared to others, but after working as busily as I had, I thought it was inevitable that I strained my body. I realized that in order to work for a long time, I had to take care of my health. No matter what happens, health is the most important. They said I would think like this when I turned 30 and I’m having these thoughts too. I think this must be science. Haha.

You must take your nutritional supplements well. You must eat well too.

That’s what I mean. I don’t eat well because I can’t be bothered. I’ve decided I just have to do it.

Translated by jieunspoetry for IUteamstarcandy

parmandil:

“One of Connolly’s memories of [George Christie] was his rich enjoyment at the sight of many in the audience bending down to the floor at the first entrance of Julius Caesar, something which happened every night. He liked to leave his box because—and she giggles at the recollection—‘he wanted to see how many people were picking up their programme books to check whether it was a man or a woman who was singing.’”

— James Naughtie interview with Sarah Connolly in the March 2015 issue of BBC Music Magazine(viaverdiprati)