Tsuchi's "Taiko Strange Story" 24th episode | About text and convenience

Dear readers of the JPC newsletter, the time has come for the familiar Taiko story.

By the time this newsletter reaches you, it will be July.
How are you all doing?
Is it hot? (Please read in Yosui Inoue's voice)

It's still mid-May, so I'm busy with [Alexandros] and Sakanaction's simultaneous arena tour, attending Taeko Onuki and Yukihiro Takahashi's spring festivals, and [Alexandros]'s Asian tour. After this, the days will continue to be hectic with the usual Fuji Rock, Summer Sonic, and various summer festivals.

The word ``busy'' means ``to lose one's heart,'' but for now I'm managing to have fun without losing my heart.
The contents of my wallet are still full as usual lol

Meanwhile, I'm sure some of you have already noticed, but the drum magazine tuning department is slowly making a comeback. From this time onwards, we will be sending more information to Texto than ever before with the ``Tuning Department β''.
Why Tekito? In other words, it might be called desperation, but as a result of a casual discussion with Editor-in-Chief Yokoo, we came up with a project that was completely open to the readers: ``Let's just do it in earnest and leave the rest up to you to think about.''

Let's talk about text for a moment lol

In this day and age, you can get any convenient information you want by searching for it on a glass plate in the palm of your hand. Such an era.
So we decided to release it to the world in a way that was ``full of tsukkomi, at worst sloppy, and at best sloppy,'' and that's how it turned out.
Tone is one of the most important elements when playing music. Moreover, the ears of the people who can hear these tones are different from person to person, and the sounds that are physically captured by the organ called the ear and the tones that are processed in the brain are really different from person to person. Simply put, does this mean that the way you hear is different?

Naturally, if the same snare sound is played by the same person and ten people listen to it, there will be ten different impressions.
For example, at a concert, the first person is the drummer. There's the player himself. I'm listening inside the drum set.
Next are the band members. Outside the drum set. So, a drum tech like me. Someone who can listen both inside and outside. So, I'm a sound engineer. This person mainly listens to the amplified and processed sound that is input into the microphone in the audience seats. The same goes for customers here.
Among the customers, there were people in various places, such as the front row, the back row, the second floor seat, and the side seat. In addition, many crew members accompany the tour. At most times there are about 100 people. Well, if I were to listen to the impressions of everyone there, it would be too late, so I won't do that, but when I'm working, I always wonder, ``I wonder what kind of sound everyone is hearing.'' If the drummer says, ``It's great! It's easy to do! It feels good!'' then maybe 80% of our work is a success. But since there are other people involved, I want everyone to be satisfied and have fun. And I'm really interested in how everyone sounds. It's not about good or bad, but how does it sound? What kind of sound is reaching your head?
So after I finish tuning, when the drummers are playing the sound during soundchecks and rehearsals, I walk around and ask as many people as possible what they think.
It's a very analog time.

“The drummer said it was good, so it’s good enough.”

That may certainly be the case. But I want everyone there to feel comfortable. It's not just the sound make-up of the drums, but the people who create the stage, the lighting people, the props, the stage manager, and many other people all work together in a ``super analog'' style. You could call it ``comfort''.

When we set up the stage for the arena tour, the stage was almost complete by the time we put the instruments on it. However, the floor was still covered with wood shavings and fine dust due to various work being done, so it was not in a good condition. By the time the musicians arrive, the place is so clean that it's safe to lie on the floor. Before we knew it, the stage manager and other construction teams were meticulously cleaning the place.
Using a handheld vacuum cleaner or a carpet cleaner that rolls around, the stage will be thoroughly cleaned from every corner to the areas that customers cannot see.
I also try to clean the top of the drum stand, which is my workplace, as much as possible.
Sometimes people say, ``I'll let a young guy do that!'' but that young guy has been up all night preparing, so it's only a matter of time before he has time to set up his instrument and take a breather. If that's the case, I'll just have to do it myself. There is no top or bottom. I feel like please take a break.

Well, to get back to the topic, I wrote it in text and katakana at the beginning, but originally it would be written as ``random''. If you look it up in the dictionary,

[noun/adjective] (sur)
1.Applying well to certain conditions, purposes, demands, etc. That's true. Tassel
Something strange. Also, that. "Suitable land for factory construction" "Suitable human resources for this job"
A rating of 2 is appropriate. Also, that. ``Add seasonings appropriately'' ``One day
Appropriate amount of work
3. The way you do things is sloppy. Also, that. used in a bad way
Ru. ``Treat customers appropriately'' ``Deceive customers with appropriate replies''

It says. It's a double meaning, with both good and bad meanings.
It's strange to say that. It fits well, it's just right, and it's just right.
This is affectionately written as tekito among us.
It's a very fuzzy and loose line, but it gets the point across.
I can't seem to get the nuances across there very well.

It may have been around spring when I suddenly thought about this. It was on social media, which nowadays everyone seems to be participating in in some way. It wasn't like something had flared up again, I might have just been staring at it blankly.
I don't even remember what kind of post it was, but something about it stuck with me. "Hmm? Is there something wrong with this?"
"I'm missing something important about this."
Maybe it was Twitter, maybe Facebook.
Perhaps it's because of restrictions on the number of characters or the link destination, but there are times when you can't post unless you edit the post itself and summarize it concisely. I don't think there's anything wrong with the work itself, but I definitely felt like the important essence was missing.
Maybe people don't care about that at all.
I think the post itself continued as normal with various responses.
Maybe I was the only one who had doubts.
What is that essence? Well, you could call it realism, but I couldn't feel anything like the heart of a person conveying something to others.
Nowadays, you can ride a train or drink coffee just by holding up your smartphone. Even if you go to a bar, you can pay with your smartphone, which has become very convenient.

The other day, I went to a "mysterious coffee shop" near my house. Ah, sorry for the sudden change of topic again. There are several reasons why it is called a "mysterious coffee shop."
"The shops are open irregularly, and sometimes they have signs up and sometimes they don't, so it's pretty hard to tell when they're open."
``It is still difficult to pinpoint the location as it is located in a corner of a row of similar buildings.
I can't."
It is a shop that is like a fantasy. The other day, on my day off, I went out of the house by myself with a paperback book to read while drinking coffee. The first coffee shop is closed, and the second coffee shop is full.
"Hmm, I'm in trouble. What should I do?" I thought as I was walking aimlessly...I suddenly noticed something at the back of the first floor of the building I passed...so I took a peek...and there it was! A mysterious coffee shop! lol
I was excited, but calm and opened the door to the store.
Karan koron koron… That’s right, this is the sound of a coffee shop.
From inside there was a master who seemed a little grumpy.
The music that is played is light music. It's called easy listening.
The interior of the store has an old-fashioned, heavy European feel. However, it is not very old and has been kept neatly. Suddenly, I looked towards the entrance where I came in.
"We do not accept credit card or mobile payments. Please pay in cash only, and pay by table."
A sign says, ``We do not have separate smoking areas. You can enjoy smoking at either table.''
I decided this was fine, so I took a seat, took out a cigarette, and took a drag.

Looking at the menu, it seems like a normal coffee shop with light meals available.
I was a little hungry, so I ordered toast and cafe au lait.
Time passed in silence and my reading progressed, and when I went to the cash register with my slip, thinking it was time to go home, the master smiled and said something to me.

“We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for the inconvenience.”

He said. I was confused for a moment. (What's so inconvenient about this quiet and rich time?) I didn't understand why Master said that, as I was having a very rich time. "No, it was very comfortable for me and I had a great time. I've been curious about this coffee shop for a long time, but I didn't know where it was or it wasn't open, so I'm happy that my long-cherished wish finally came true."
When I said this, the shy master said, ``Thank you. Please come again when you have time.'' I nodded and left the shop.

I thought about it on the way home.
“What is convenient?” “Is it really that sinful to not be convenient?”
It's true that in modern society we use a lot of useful things.
Smartphones, convenience stores, Uber EATS, Amazon, NETFLIX... there are so many more.
The same goes for Twitter and Facebook. For the past few years, I've only been talking to friends I haven't seen in years through Messenger.
You can have real-time conversations without having to meet or speak.
And it's free. If you think about it, it's a little scary.
Thanks to its convenience, some important essence may have been stripped away... no, it's definitely been stripped away.

I've been thinking about that for the past few months, and I've been staying away from social media a little. At home, I read books and listen to music on a turntable, tube amp, and small old speakers that I recently brought from my parents' house. (Don't tell me to practice! lol) The TV isn't on. At first, my wife said, ``I don't want to touch this troublesome audio system,'' but lately she's started having drinks while listening to music on the audio system when I'm not around.
It seems to be a favorite.
Apparently, ``It's nice to take the time to listen to music.''
This time, the writing is even more off-track and chaotic than usual, but perhaps what I've been thinking lately is, ``Let's take some extra effort in our daily lives, accept inconveniences, and make convenience work for us.'' I have no intention of denying convenience. I'm just trying to include the inconvenience in there.
``I don't have the luxury of saying such leisurely things, my hands are full just with daily life.'' That may be true.
However, I think you can do something as simple as looking up at the night sky for a minute from your front door before going home after work, or not using your smartphone for an hour before going to bed.
It's a very luxurious moment. But I think we must not forget. The world is progressing at an incredible speed. I can't really keep up. It's a complete white flag.
I'm running at 40 km/h while the car is running at 300 km/h. You can see the surrounding scenery better that way.
I will step away from social media and keep walking while keeping an eye on the current state of society.
I hope that the Reiwa era will be like that.
I pray that your new era will be calm and uneventful. This summer is sure to be very hot, so please take care of yourself. See you somewhere else then.