We seldom hear from them outside of their music, so the inner workings of Japanese post-meets-math-rock outfit toe are a bit of a mystery. And main guitarist Yama does us no favors when asked to choose a key moment from their latest album Now I See the Light.
“I’m not sure I really have one!” he tells Guitar World. But he’s not being deliberately evasive. “This might sound odd,” he explains, “but I’ve never really thought of myself as a guitarist.
“Out of all the instruments, the guitar just happened to be the one I could sort of play. If a song needs a guitar, I’ll do it. If a song doesn’t need guitar, I’m totally fine doing nothing.”
Given that mindset, it’s unsurprising that Yama – full name Yamazaki Hirokazu – takes a fluid approach to his work. “I don’t make a conscious change on how I play. It’s been a natural evolution.”
What led you to the guitar?
“I bought my first electric guitar in the first year of middle school because I was really into a band called BOØWY. I don’t think the environment around me had much of an influence. My parents weren’t involved in music. Maybe it’s because I didn’t have any musical influences that I ended up like this…
“The guitar was a cheap Telecaster by Fernandes — a budget version of the Hotei model. It cost around 30,000 yen [approx $200 currently]. After that I got an Ibanez Strat, a metal Floyd Rose guitar. With some influence from Slash, when I got to high school I bought a Gibson Les Paul Standard in Tobacco Burst with no pickguard.
“After that I played around with a bunch of things. I modded a cheap Fender Strat and played this Tokai SG-style. I think I used an Epiphone Casino for a while – a cheap one, of course. I’ve pretty much only ever used inexpensive guitars. Later on I played a Rickenbacker 480. That one cost me about 50,000 yen [approx $340].”
What were your goals for toe when you started?
“Before toe, I was playing a hardcore punk, emo, screamo type of music, so my guitar was always distorted. The concept of toe from the beginning was to make music with cleaner tones. None of the bands around us were doing that, so I thought it might be interesting and fresh.”
What was your approach to guitar sound on 2005 debut album The Book About My Idle Plot on a Vague Anxiety?
“It was a long time ago – I don’t really remember! But I think our songwriting and sound production were still rooted in the original concept of the band, driven by the creative energy we had early on.”
What do you remember about putting 2009’s For Long Tomorrow together?
“I do recall wanting to make things a bit more elaborate. So we invited some guest musicians and tried out some different approaches. I think that was the album where we started experimenting more.”
Using Now I See the Light, as an example, who are you as players today?
“For me, it’s never about the band’s lineup or what a musician should do. My top priority is simply to create and play good music, regardless of the roles or expectations. When I’m writing, I never think about the listener. The only thing that matters is whether I feel the song is right – whether I’m satisfied with it or not.”
I don’t think how we’re remembered is something we get to decide
Is it a challenge for the band to find space in the music to shine?
“When we’re writing songs we’re not really thinking about it. But every now and then we’ll stumble onto these moments where a guitar combination just comes together really nicely.”
What’s your current touring rig like now?
“For overseas tours I bring one electric guitar and one acoustic guitar, along with my pedalboard, cables, and a small backup travel head amp, just in case. I normally use a Fender Supersonic amp and an AER Bingo for acoustic. I don’t really use many effects, so I could probably do without them. As long as I have a tuner, I’m good!”
You don’t do a lot of press, so fans often wonder about your process. How do you hope to be remembered, and what are you most proud of?
“I don’t think how we’re remembered, or whether we’re remembered at all, is something we get to decide – so I’m not really sure. But if you include the bands I’ve been in before toe, I’ve been playing for over 30 years.
“I don’t know if that’s something to be proud of; but I do know that I’ve always had something I’ve wanted to express. I’m grateful that I’ve been able to keep doing that, and that there are people all over the world who listen.”
- Now I See the Light is out now.
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