I Barely slept last night... Just as my band mates. We couldn't help but to think about what just happened while filming the next YFE TV.  We wanted to give some news and show more of the new studio...We spoke nicely about what we are doing, trying to portrait our daily struggles to touch the essence of our art and the real bottom of our essence with nice words, nice smiles and trying to make it seem as if nothing is too overwhelming. Then a spark ruined everything and gave life to something so much truer, so much more liberating and so much more than pretty words.

That spark came from a sudden nausea of making up excuses for being who we are and trying to be what we think others expect. It burned our attractive speeches and inflamed a passion for expressing the true feelings that are waking us after a short night of dreaming. It drives our days with an aggressive determination; not letting go of any occasion to make a difference in our own life first and for anyone who would let us touch gently their hand...

"We have challenges in the studio... but it’s great and amazing."

"We are doing music that we hope you'll like."

 "We are doing things our way, but for sure, we wouldn't want to offend the agonizing music industry.”

You've heard these words over and over from our mouths and we were honestly saying them, because we thought we had to be that way, we had to adapt ourselves to our environment, our industry, to not be so different from people in our music world...But as we were talking about the inspiration in the studio, the challenges, the way we were working and our vision through the making of the album; we suddenly felt these words weren't honest anymore. Our challenges aren't pretty and easy; they are rising between us and our full accomplishment every single day and every minute. Each one of us is continuously challenged artistically and personally; compelling us to get our heads out of our little belly buttons and fix our sight on the greater vision and purpose. We'll fight the desire we have to find our security in your support, our dear family and our encouraging friends; knowing you'll love the songs and would not let us down... We won't find rest until the sound we create is pure, completely bare of any superficiality, completely true and meaningful... 

Following my last diary about human rights, I found the comment of Bob Thatcher from California, very interesting:

"Growing up in the 1950’s, what you said is what I heard was the goal from everybody: relatives, church, school, politicians, TV "news", everybody.  When the Hippies started to happen in the mid to late '60s; people started to care about Planet Earth, lived on little, shared, and ignored a persons color. All that mattered was if they were cool or not, I figured this was what everybody said they were seeking.  So I was shocked like a puppy getting slapped for the first time--What!?!  We were shunned, couldn't get jobs or served in restaurants, disinformation abounded about us, and I couldn't believe it.  Now I see that EVERYBODY in power worships THE ECONOMY."

The economy is the ruler of the freedom, right? 

We need to fit with the industry to make money, to survive, to have a chance to BE?  What is the point of being an artist or a band, if you never get a chance to be heard and have "success"?  To which extent do we have to prostitute?  And who decides if you are "cool" or not?  Is it "cool" to voluntarily show ourselves as not having all the answers; struggling with finding the strength of being completely true and finding it hard to always be whole in our passion?  Is it "economically productive" to take the time to film a condolences video for the family of a young Japanese fan?  Is it insane to declare that we won't obey the rules of the market we evolve in if it slightly gets us away from our vision?  Well, insane or not, productive or not, cool or not; that is Your Favorite Enemies and we won't apologize anymore.

More than ever, we want to be just like Nobuko with her boldness when she says “I am speaking my thoughts, opinions …did not mean to, but I am a bull in the China shop.” We won't be shameful of being bulls anymore... stopping to be sorry for making noise and breaking useless, but nicely made and arranged rules; just like the China that no one would use, because it is so pretty.

Our Japanese brother who had passed away last week, was involved with the Amnesty International group of his region; he was standing for human rights. There was nothing pretty about filming a video to encourage his friends of Amnesty...young people devastated by a human tragedy. We felt like bulls in a china shop... such a fragile situation and what about talking to his parents…people we never met...people already so hurt. We felt like bulls, so unfit, but our hearts had to speak out, our hands had to reach out to offer the best we could; to give them what we have received; compassion, love, understanding, openness, friendship….and if THAT was to make a difference? What if THAT was our last chance to be heard or THIS diary was my last chance to talk to you? 

I would want to make sure no words would be useless and I would want to pour everything I have and everything I am one last time…To tell you that there is no better life than when we go to the deepest and beyond... when we are true and real to the extreme... when we let down all the armour to feel the brisk breeze on our bare skin, whistling through the hair of our arms that are lifted high; ready to embrace the moment...when we scream our rage, when we cast our darkness away, or when we break our chains to actively open and see what is behind the curtain. There are small words we have to grasp on with two hands and never let go of them: Life and Hope.

We are a band with a vision.  We are people with tons of struggles and paradox.  We are following our dreams and pushing our passion to the extreme.  We love you more than you can imagine. We are Your Favorite Enemies and won't be sorry about who we are.

Miss Isabel