Future society based on electric power and energy issues.

Nobuhiko Kitamura ( , )When we talk about energy, it is difficult to say energy like electricity, but something like human energy is absolutely necessary. I think Jonio uses tremendous energy for things like the Paris Collection, and even I cannot think about making clothes without music that I like, not directly, but indirectly. It's like I've always loved music, and that's why I make clothes. I always get a lot of energy from watching live performances, but since the music is loud in terms of genre, I think they must be using a lot of power behind the scenes (laughs).

Shield Takahashi ( , Takahashi)Fashion is, after all, entertainment, so it is a bit distant from energy and power. Therefore, even if you try to use natural energy or solar power in your clothes, for example by carrying a panel on your back, you will feel uncomfortable if you try to mix it directly into fashion. But then there was the nuclear power plant accident, and I started thinking, "No, this is really bad," and I switched the power supply to my company. In the first place, as Mr. Nobu just said, we are using natural energy for music and fashion, and in that sense, it is "now" that we can choose our own power source. In that sense, it is "now" that we are able to choose our own power source, and we have to think about it.

Takahashi.I am not talking about anarchy only as so-called anarchism, but if you ask me whether I would choose nuclear or natural energy, I would definitely choose natural, wouldn't I? Thinking about that for ourselves and gaining freedom to do so is something we learned from punk, as well as insisting that we are different from what is wrong. The "A" is a symbol of such things. The "A" is also a symbol of peace, and the "heart" is a symbol of peace. It is not about destroying the government or anything radical, but about being free and peaceful.

Takahashi.Yes . . it's not just about wind power.

northern villageIt's like the root of the next generation of power, and it's about thinking more about energy from nature.

Takahashi.In Japan, there was an accident like that, and while there are various people's responses, we are not going to delve deeply into that, but as for being wrong, we completely understand.

northern villageI feel that the bill has been paid. There was no electricity in the Edo period or so. Then, from the end of the Edo period to the Meiji period, the first thing they did during the Industrial Revolution was spinning. They built railroads, drew electricity, and began textile production. They began to produce fabrics, bought a lot of machinery from England, and experienced a period of mass production, mass consumption, and rapid economic growth, but after the accident, I think there are many people who are wondering, "Is it okay to continue like this? I think there are a lot of people who are wondering, "Is this really the right thing to do?" I think that's where solar power and wind power come in, and I feel that there is a little bit of a Buddhist idea there. It's not an industrial thing or a technique, but the power of the sun and the wind is becoming stronger in our thought.

northern villageThis is not limited to punk, but Patti Smith is involved in social issues in some way, even if it is not necessarily about the environment. Some people may express themselves through clothing or artwork, but that is not my way. But I think it is an important concept for me to think about when I am making clothes or working.

Takahashi.There are a lot of punk, hardcore, crust, and so on who are becoming like that. But we are different. We are not like that, but I can see why they are becoming like that.

northern villageI talk about this with my wife, but since we don't have children, we honestly don't have that much space to worry about what the country will look like in the future and how the natural environment will change. . So I wonder what we can do in our own lifetime, and how we can do it. In my case, I am certainly more concerned about my roots, ancestors, memorial services for my deceased grandparents, and visiting graves than I am about the future. The temple I go to happens to be an esoteric Shingon temple, and my studies there have made me think about our existence in nature and in the universe. But that doesn't mean that I am a buddhist (laughs).

I think that smartphones will continue to evolve and people will rely on AI and other technologies, and things will become more convenient, but on the other hand, I learned that this way of thinking existed about 2,000 years ago. On the other hand, I learned that there was such a way of thinking about 2,000 years ago. This is the esoteric Buddhism that Kukai brought from China, and when I read it, I found it more mysterious and interesting. I don't know if it is because I am getting older (laughs).

Takahashi.Yes, I guess it's age, too (laughs). (laughs) . But when I hear such stories, I find them more interesting. If I had to choose between the future of smartphones and the past, I think I would choose the past. Coexisting with nature is definitely more interesting.

northern villageMandalas and Buddhist statues are expressions of how to explain invisible things to people who do not understand the language, cannot study, and cannot attend school. I have added a lot of spiritualism and wisdom to them, and I think that is more interesting.

Takahashi.Communication between human beings, "I thought this" and "I feel that", all the things that the five senses have, are taken away by the cell phone and are no longer necessary. But is that really human? (laughs).

Takahashi.But what I am doing in Paris and what I am doing here today have the same feeling. I am not interested in the commercial aspects of what I did in Paris, what I am doing today, or what I am doing with Nobu-san, but only in having fun and creating something together.

northern villageIn the nuclear power business, people are the key to success, and there are leaders who want to be the best in the industry, with the goal of global domination in mind. Then, they start to expand the market to a larger scale and to sell more and more products at a lower price, even though they really only need this much. I think it takes talent to do such things, and I admire them for going that far, but I wonder if they really needed to go that far. I think it is amazing that they went that far, but I wonder if they really needed to go that far.

Takahashi.No (laughs).

northern villageI wonder if there isn't a way to get more enrichment just in this? I think there is a way to make money only within this community. We are getting paid by selling our products to those who follow us in our own country, but sometimes I wonder, "What about expanding our business to that level? I sometimes wonder, "What is the point of expanding that far? I think there are probably victims of doing so.

Takahashi.I don't know why they want to do that, but all I can see is a desire to make things infinitely bigger. In our case, we are more like a group that makes interesting things based on the music we listen to and other such things, and then uses the money from the sale of those things to do the next interesting thing. It may still seem large, but I think this is about right for what we are doing. If we go beyond that, it would be too much, and the purpose would change somewhere along the line.

northern villageIn the Showa period (1926-1989), Japan's economy developed because TOYOTA, Nissan, Toshiba, etc. were able to compete with the world's leading companies, but now, in terms of fashion, the production sites are overseas. . Now, life per capita is extremely hard. What does that mean? When I think about Japan 10 to 20 years from now, I think that there will no longer be companies that can compete with the rest of the world.

Takahashi.The purpose of the project changed in the middle of the project. and went too fast.

Takahashi.And yet, no one knows how it will be finally done. So, rather than linking energy and fashion, it is more like making and sharing clothes in a way that is just right for us, as we want to express ourselves, and if we can do that with energy, then we can actually choose. If we can do that with energy as well, it's a good thing, isn't it? If you go to the ultimate level, like Straight Edge, that would be fine, but we also have things we want to do, and perhaps with that sense of value, even that might become something we don't want (laughs).

But if we can choose the power we use there when we produce something, then "that's what we do". . Until now, we didn't even have that, and we didn't even know about it. That is why today's gathering is no different from what I used to think about when I was a child, like when my friends and I would get together and create something. . That kind of thing has been undermined in today's society, or perhaps it's not good enough at that point, since the mainstream today would not have the slightest idea of such a thing in the first place.

Takahashi.. it's natural.

northern villagePeople come there and spend the same amount of time .

Takahashi.Next year, Nobu-san will have been running HIS for 35 years, and I will have been running mine for 30 years. I have made many mistakes, and I don't know how to run a business, but I think the reason I am able to keep doing what I do is because I am doing it naturally. Of course, there is greed, but it is not about money in the end.

northern villageYesterday I had a party for my photo book "CUTS" at a store in Harajuku, and all my friends from England, whom I have known for over 30 years, are now in their late 50s or 60s. Their children are also in their 30s or so and have become active photographers in London. When we were young, we used to give the older generation the finger and say, "It's our generation," but after visiting London several times, I feel that the sense of our parents' generation is being passed on to the younger generation very successfully.

Takahashi.. Tokyo is the same way. When I meet young people, I sometimes think, "Oh, don't worry. We are connected.

northern villageMany people in the industry think that "books are not selling anymore" and "magazines are no longer viable," but the Internet is certainly convenient and will continue to develop, but "books are different, aren't they? But the Internet is certainly convenient and will continue to develop, but there is a difference between a book and a book.

Takahashi.Now, the younger generation, like people in their 20s, are going back to analog things. I like that kind of thing, and while seeing and touching them, I think, "Wow, that's great.

northern villageIt may not be the same as saying, "We used to sell tens of thousands of copies," but if a book is really good, even if it is made in 500 copies and costs 10,000 yen or so per copy, it will be well received. In fact, the book sold out in a few days.

Takahashi.It's always the same that good things are always good, and the people who notice and like good things are always in the minority at first.

northern villageThe book will walk alone as a resource for something or as an element of an idea, and it will also be an introduction to an artist who lived in that era, even if he is unknown, and then I feel like that's where it's going around.

northern villageLike today, I came to Kiryu from Tokyo and spent the night with my old friends from Jonio's past, and we didn't just play together, but we all made sounds together, and that kind of creation was there.

Takahashi.. today, we have a team of 20-somethings coming all the way from Tokyo. They seemed to enjoy the fact that something like this was happening in such a rural area, and that it was fresh and fun. Even in our elementary and junior high school days, there were very few people who reacted to such things, weren't there? . Most of them just stopped thinking and went with the flow. . Now, I feel that this is increasing on a national level. Sensitive people have always been a minority, but they are certainly there. I feel like we're in a period of excess right now, don't you?

northern villageNowadays, tens of thousands of likes on social networking sites! but what kind of quality are those tens of thousands of "likes"? But what is the quality of those tens of thousands of "likes"? On the other hand, I have only 500 followers, but those 500 followers are actually very rich, and I wonder if that is actually the core information. .

Takahashi.. That's how we have been influenced, isn't it? We have been influenced by various movies, Yuya (Uchida) Uchida, Yusaku (Matsuda) Matsuda, etc. since elementary school, and we were a very small number of people at that time, but it is interesting to smell that when I grew up and went to Paris (laughs).

northern village. It's always good to feel like, "You don't know this information, do you?

Takahashi.There are a few who always think about what they want to do and how they want to live their lives. . But in the end, they are the ones who are running things. So, choosing electricity is a part of that.

northern villageCompared to a while ago, possibilities are being created. . It will be interesting to see how the next generation of young people will get involved in this.