"L'Arc-en-Ciel is all about the musicianship. But Vamps are obsessed with rock music, and that's basically our watchword: 'rock.' "
Japanese megastar Hyde is weighing up the differences between his two bands. L'Arc-en-Ciel, the multimillion-selling extrovert outfit with whom he rose to fame as the singer, have for 19 years been one of visual-kei's hottest acts, even if the band themselves reject the genre label. Vamps, on the other hand, are a newer and more straightforward concern. Formed in 2008 to make music designed for the stage rather than the studio, they draw from a palette of hard rock, grunge, glam and emo.
"I guess there's some overlap," he says of the two bands' fans. "L'Arc-en-Ciel are more like an 'idol' band — I think the fans like the fact that we look pretty. But in Vamps we don't care so much about looks. Of course we want to look good, but it's not the top priority, so I think L'Arc's core fans probably don't like Vamps that much. We're not beautiful."