I Love Punk Rock

I wasn't a kid who was particularly into music.

But I liked watching HEY! HEY! HEY!. Then, this group called ↑THE HIGH-LOWS↓ appeared.
I thought they had a strange way of talking, but then the song started, and with that harmonica, the guitar, and their incredible energy!
(What is this!? What!? Whoa!!! Seriously!) It was like being struck by lightning!

The egg of rock cracked wide open.

But I was in my first year of junior high and had no money, so I just kept remembering that shock I felt when I first saw them.

In my first year of high school, my dad told me, "If you like ↑THE HIGH-LOWS↓, you should listen to THE BLUE HEARTS."
When I listened to them, the lyrics were insane and I was shaking. All I could say was, "This is crazy."

In my second year of high school, a friend lent me a CD and said, "If you like THE BLUE HEARTS, try listening to GOING STEADY!"

I was surprised, thinking, "Wait, aren't the same CDs sold everywhere in the country?"

I heard, "They're sold at places like Tower Records," and from then on, I was always looking for cool punk rock bands at the listening stations in Tower Records.

When I reached my 20s, that was when I discovered 'Taiyozoku'.

I had gone to see bands like Going Steady live a few times when I was in high school and had a blast, but in my 20s, going to live houses to see Taiyozoku, Mass Missile, OverTheDogs, Highway 61, Stance Punks, and others was just so much fun I couldn't get enough of it.

It became my place to belong.

Even if I went to the live house alone, there were friends there once I arrived!

I wonder how many people I connected with there, and how many people I talked about life with.

I couldn't see THE BLUE HEARTS, Yutaka Ozaki, BOØWY, or Unicorn, but it was so much fun. I'm glad I got to live in this era!

I'm over 40 now, but I still love punk rock.

My eternal friends!
A lighthouse that brings me back to where I belong whenever I'm about to lose my way.

If I hadn't had my live music friends from that era, I wouldn't have been able to make my independent films, and I'm so glad I fell in love with punk rock!