First of all, here is our little message (movie) we posted on our pages.
We filmed it to say thank you!!! For all your support and listening to our music😀
この投稿をInstagramで見る
Update & Long text💕
Hello from Imari Tones, Japan😀
It’s almost been two months since we returned to Japan from that blessed USA tour.
(and 3 weeks since we played one last show in Tokyo)
A lot has happened around the world during this time. I hope you are all doing well.
We’ve been struggling here in Japan, day by day. Not only because life is tough but because we are “out of gas” emotionally and spiritually.
This is something we expected.
When we return from an overseas tour, we experience cultural and spiritual shock. (mainly because of spiritual situation in Japan). At the same time we experience “burnout” to a certain degree. This is something we have experienced many times after our previous tours.
Because we knew this was coming, we were very careful about how we would spend our time after returning from the tour.
However, even though we tried to make sure we got enough rest, we ended up experiencing severe depression once again. That’s why we are struggling just getting through each day right now.
Looking back, we’ve worked incredibly hard this year.
The production and release of our album “Diary Of A Godman,” which had been in the works since last year.
Several important live performances, including not only full-band shows but also performances by Tak and Marie as a duo.
The biggest Heavy Metal Church event we’ve ever organized.
And, of course, the USA tour, which we made happen despite an almost impossible itinerary and schedule. (So much work to plan and prepare)
On top of all that, we practiced hard as a band, so we could deliver top-notch performance for all the shows.
We were under an enormous amount of pressure, so perhaps it’s no surprise that we ended up exhausted and broken after the tour.
As artists, we are naturally introverted people, and we need time away from the outside world. That’s one of the reasons why we decided to take a break from live performances for a while.
Nevertheless, we feel that all the effort was worth it.
Our faith in God remains unshaken.
Our trust in God has grown even stronger, and we’ve become less inclined to let the events of the world around us dictate our emotions.
Politics, economics, trends, technology.
All these things have only secondary importance to us.
What truly matters to us is exploring the essence of life, faith, love, art, rock and roll, and heavy metal, and fulfilling our role in the course of history.
This is about trusting God, but it’s also about believing in traditional values, rock and roll, and the freedom of human artistic expression.
We are not afraid of new things, because we have faith in God and His plan.
We pray for the world, for our friends, and for Japan.
We are still hopeful about the future of mankind, because we trust in God’s plan.
I want you to know that we are not perfect.
I think we’re far from being ideal Christians.
As human beings, we’re probably much more broken than you might imagine.
But even so, we want you to know that at the very center of our lives are our faith in God, our love for art, and rock and roll.
We are still eager to create more art.
We have several new projects in the works.
One of the first things we’d like to do is record some cover songs.
For a long time, we’ve wanted to take some well-known Christian rock songs, translate their lyrics into natural-sounding Japanese, and perform them in Japanese.
It may take some time, but we’d like to work on them one by one and share them with you.
We hope you’ll look forward to hearing them!
Thank you very much for your prayer.
God bless you all.
Tak&Marie (Imari Tones, Japan)