Danica Davidson
July 12, 2024 
It’s time to get into the Naruto nostalgia with the re-recording of ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION’s opening theme song “Haruka Kanata.” That track is out now, and it’s part of the band’s upcoming Single Collection album, which comes out July 31. ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION spoke to Otaku USA about writing “Haruka Kanata,” re-recording it, their new collection, and thinking about their international fans. In some cases Masafumi Gotoh or Takahiro Yamada answered a question by themselves, and in others the whole band responded.
What was your process for writing “Haruka Kanata”?
GOTOH: We started this song with the bass intro. We were inspired by the British band The Stone Roses, but it turned out completely different. The song became a fast-paced song.
At the time, ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION did not have many fast-paced, emotional songs, so there was a theme that we had to make fast-paced songs and loud songs.
It does not mean that we went out of our way to make an emotional song, but I remember that we made it to survive in the intense Japanese rock scene, even though it was not our standard style at the time. We all worked on it together in a small studio in Yokohama, exchanging various ideas.
What was it like re-recording “Haruka Kanata” all these years later?
YAMADA: The first thing you hear is the bass intro, and since you have heard the old version so many times, I wondered what I should do for the intro. I brought out some of the old instruments and equipment and recorded the sound with them because I thought that if I played it now, it would sound different from the old version, and some of the old goodness would come together. It’s pretty cool. I worked hard on the intro of course, but we all sounded great. I think we were able to record the new “Haruka Kanata” that the current ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION performs.
Can you tell us about your new collection of music?
GOTOH: Our band is approaching its 30th anniversary, and in Japan, our fans are changing from generation to generation. We have already released 10 albums, and I think it is a common concern for artists all over the world, that from which album to get new listeners to listen to our music. By collecting singles on a single collection album, we can follow the chronology of our activities, and people may be able to notice our interests in each period of time. We thought that the 20th anniversary [of our major label debut] would be a good time to review our activities and present our music to the new generation, so this is why we decided to release this single collection.
You mentioned having international fans in mind to some extent when writing anime songs. What does that mean?
ALL: Just like Yellow Magic Orchestra (Y.M.O.) did, we are trying to deform our oriental part, that we are from Asia, a kind of Asian style, seen from the West, or something like that. Especially in the melodies and guitar riffs, I try to create music with Asian and Japanese melodies in mind.
Is there anything else you’d like your Western fans to know about you?
ALL: We really felt people’s love and appreciation for our music when we played overseas. We truly feel your love, and we are very grateful for that. We will continue to make works with our sincerity, so please listen to our music again.
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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.
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