CUUSHE : Breaking Away from All the "This Is How it Should Be”
Diaphanous and indefinable, Cuushe’s music has often been connected to the more experimental branches of dream pop. Yet, her album WAKEN finds Mayuko Hitotsuyanagi in a new state of mind, one that could be compared to this period in the early hours of the day when things are still dark, uncertain, hopeful. Of course, this is reflected in the mille-feuille synth work and uplifting beats present throughout her new collection of songs. They provide the perfect jumping-off point for a voice that is stronger and more self-assured than ever. We had a chat with Cuushe to learn more about the circumstances surrounding the creation of her new opus.
The album has a sound that's sometimes sweet and sometimes edgier. I'm curious to know more about the reasons why you chose that aesthetic. What does it represent for you?
Since I was involved in a terrible incident three years ago, I've become more aware of the unreasonableness of society, women's rights, and political distortions, and I feel like the music I make has changed along with that. I wanted to be a person with more of a will, rather than a person who considered ambiguous things to be a good thing as if they were in a haze.
Maybe that's what came out in my music.
What were some of your favorite instruments and production tools you used to achieve that sound? How did you use them?
This time everything was made with guitars, field recordings, and a MIDI synthesizer. I used the Arturia CZ V a lot. This time, rather than creating each sound individually, I tried to create a lot of sounds by layering them together. I also used many layers of voices.
How do you typically get inspired for a new song? How do you get started?
When I’m feeling depressed or sad, songwriting may be like an escape or a cleansing (catharsis is more right in English??) for me. Of course, I also like to write songs when I'm moved by movies, cartoons, art, or live performances. It's a bit far away from my normal life. Mostly I start by playing the piano or the synthesizer and humming a tune.
What are the lyrical themes of your new album WAKEN?
Awakening, awareness, self-affirmation, and breaking away from all the "this is how it should be”.
Is there anything in particular that influenced you while you were making this album?
During production, I was reading Mike Lightwood’s El fuego en el que ardo. For music, I listened to Acemo, Parris, Sarah Davachi, and DJ Sprinkles. In Japan, since last spring, I've been participating in monthly flower-wearing demonstrations across Japan to eradicate sexual violence. I became interested in feminism after experiencing online harassment myself, and this had a huge influence on the making of this album.
Can you take us through the creation of your music video for the track Magic? What was your creative process with the other artists who participated?
Magic was inspired by a friend's relationship, but we all have things we're trapped in, like the relationship with a partner, or the place we live, or our custom. I wrote this song about the hope that we can break or escape from those things by speaking out.
When the director Tao Tajima was in Tibet for a filming trip, he came across a snowstorm and he imagined a girl coming out of the snowstorm. Yoko Kuno came up with a story from the lyric and Tibetan folktales.
In a previous interview, you said that manga was one of the most important things to you, besides music. What does manga and/or anime represent for you? How does it inspire you?
It's like a parallel world to escape from when I’m helplessly stuck with what's in front of you. It's also therapeutic because I can lose track of time and get into it.
What's next for Cuushe?
A collection of WAKEN remixes is due out next year. Then there's FEM, which I released this spring, and collaborations with other artists coming up.
Cuushe’s new album WAKEN will be released this Friday. You can pre-order it right now on Bandcamp.
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