HALLEY: Delving into the Philosophy of Loving Each and Every Individual

Embracing Affection: Recognizing Love for Each Individual Audience (Taehyun)

-Please tell us about some of the lyrics. “Who is He?” is a song about the main concept of the album from a different angle than “Time” that you have talked about. How would you describe this song?

Shimizu: Apart from the main concept of time in the first place, it is also an album that sings about “love” as the consistency of the lyrics as a whole.

Taehyun: Yes, it is love for “He”. I am singing as time as well as the object of what I am singing about and what I believe in.

People keep asking who I sang for, who I lived for, who I prayed for, who I love, and in the midst of it all, I sometimes think, “I’m the one who didn’t go in the direction I wanted to go. And yet it’s me, and that’s who I am. It’s a song that makes you question the purpose of what this song exists for, what this album is for. Is it for “He,” or is it for me singing it, or is it for the people listening to it–I wanted to leave that up to the listener. I wanted to convey the point that it doesn’t matter what you think, so I chose a questioning title.

-“The band is not a band, but a group of people who are in love with each other.

Taehyun: There was a time when I forgot what I was doing music for and just played music, as I was being told that “bands are a popular business” and so on. I was just clinging on, just trying to survive. At those times, I went back to, “What is the reason I was born with this voice?” And I went back to it.

I was given this voice, and I have band members who can write songs. I live in Japan, and I am able to make good music. I have an environment in which I can produce. Amidst all this, was it just to survive?This is my own answer to that question. In the end, I wonder if I am crying for someone else, or if I am crying for my own purpose. That is the meaning of the lyrics.

-I was told earlier about the specific aspects of the sound production that make this work so wonderful as music, but now I would like to hear about the abstract aspects as well. I think that the five of us are all looking at the same thing in terms of “why we do music” and “what is the appeal of music,” as you just said, although of course we may not be in 100% agreement. I think that’s why the music itself and the atmosphere that surrounds it are born.

Toyama： We are very fortunate to be able to make music. I believe in the ripple effect of making and offering music, and if the people who listen to it think something, even just a little, then society will change a little bit. We are doing this with the mindset that it will lead to world peace, albeit indirectly. Since we have gathered people who can make music, we want to make good things, and I think that is where we are headed.

Takahashi： Before starting HALLEY, I had little to put into it. Now, there are times when I feel pain through music, and there are times when I listen to music and try my best. I want to do music while being thankful to everyone, including everyone in HALLEY, and I want to return the favor.

Taehyun: Every time we perform, we form a circle and pray before starting to play. I think it is the job of those who play to play and those who sing to sing to speak, and I believe that communicating is a kind of mission or duty to those who have been given the gift. We have these wonderful tools, so we need to use them to communicate. I am grateful to have been given that gift, but I also feel a sense of responsibility, so in order to fulfill it, I have to give 100% when I am performing, and I try to give more than just the meaning of the lyrics in my voice and performance, as well as in my words.

When I think about what I am feeling now, it is love. When I think about what this feeling is that I have for everyone who performs, I think it is love for each and every one of them. I guess it is the feeling that I am living for love. I want to bring peace and healing to people, but why is that?　When people ask me, “Because I love you,” I say, “Because I love you.

Toyama: That’s the kind of mindset I have, so I don’t want to make music that “only those who understand can understand. I don’t want it to end with “those who don’t understand don’t understand. We want our thoughts to be conveyed to all kinds of people, and we hope that it will lead us in a better direction.

HALLEY From Dusk Till Dawn

March 8, 2024
CD, ¥2,750 including tax YLLH-1001 (PPTF-8160)

＜CD available at the following stores＞
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