One of the leading Japanese alternative rock band, GEZAN’s leader, MahitoThePeople’s director debut film, i ai was released in March 2024, and it is an atypical coming-of-age film decorated with tinge of red.

The film takes place in Akashi and Kobe, Hyogo prefecture. This film’s main characters are Ko (Kentaro Tomita), a rookie member of a band and a brother-like figure of his, Hee (Mirai Moriyama) who Ko idolizes and the story of this movie is based on their struggles with life and death. The story is also based on Mahito's real-life experiences and while reality and fiction are duplicated, the boundary between them slowly melts away. The film co-stars Honami Satoh, Kazuki Horike, Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Eita Nagayama, Kyoko Koizumi, K-BOMB, Ichi Omiya and many other unique personalities. It should also be noted that the transparent images filmed by photographer, Masafumi Sanai gives the film, a special emotional quality.

The film is not bound by any film theory but it poses a theme common to GEZAN's recent works and Mahito's writing activities: How can we live in a crumbling society while interacting with others? We can never live alone but living with others is also never easy. How can we overcome this time of extreme division of the world?

What left quite a strong impression in this film that not only Mahito personally directed but also wrote the script and composed the soundtrack as well was the main theme song, entitled “i ai”. This new piece of GEZAN is an extension of the work that this band has continued doing over the last few years. This 12" single, contains the song, “i ai” and it will be the first time released on vinyl.

Led by soft guitar arpeggios, the song gradually builds to a fever pitch, condensing the mood of the film which encompasses both tranquillity and intensity. The chorus of ineffable, multiple voices united together sounds like a lament that has spilled out of society or a cry of joy. GEZAN's collaboration with the 15-member chorus group, Million Wish Collective has been in development of late and the cultivated sensibilities through their activities are put to use in this song.

The song can also be considered a slow, relaxed dance track that lasts 9 minutes and 8 seconds. It has something in common with organic dance tracks from South America and other regions, and it is significant that GLOCAL RECORDS which represents glocal music from around the world in Japan are releasing it as a DJ-friendly 12-inch single.

The B-side features a remix by COMPUMA who is also closely associated with GEZAN. The song starts with an African styled percussion, with a thumb piano in the middle of the song and then returns to that memorable chorus. This song feels like a 18 minutes and 18 seconds long short movie like suite, with some dizzying changes from the beginning to the end. It is remix filled with enormous drama!

The cutting and mastering of this 12” was done by TOREI who is also active as a DJ and the artwork was created by jvnpey, a visual artist and graphic designer based in Tokyo. Their loving work also makes this 12" very special.

When I asked AI to find a synonym for the word, “division,” it displayed in succession, a series of words: “integration,” “consolidation,” “unification,” “unity”, and “reconciliation". All of these phrases are somewhat whitewashed and embarrassing but the mirage-like chorus echoing in the song, “i ai” seems to be trying to find a new word, that is a synonym for the word, "division. In this film, “i ai”, the message, “Let's live together after the end roll” was thrown out but included in this 12-inch, the message, “Let's live together after the music stops”, emerges.

Text: Hajime Ohishi (writer)



GEZAN profile

https://linktr.ee/gezan_official

Formed in Osaka in 2009. Since 2012, this Japanese alternative rock band has been based in Tokyo, crafting a sound that fuses noise, punk, hardcore, and psychedelic rock at breakneck speed. Their music defies traditional genres, embodying a philosophy of “radical fluidity” that approaches art on its own terms. Whether in live venues across Japan or on festival stages, they deliver a commanding presence that is impossible to ignore. Their performances burn with the intensity of a power plant—an unrelenting energy that refuses to let the body remain still, sparking impulses to jump, run, and scream. The engine is always redlining, roaring at the edge of its limits.

While continuing to push creative boundaries with a unique perspective and style, the band also runs their own independent label, Jusangatsu(???) and organizes the music festival, Zenkankakusai (????) on an irregular basis.

In February 2021, they released their full-length album Anochi, created in collaboration with Million Wish Collective.

In 2023, they performed on the GREEN STAGE at FUJI ROCK FESTIVAL, marking their fourth appearance at the festival after previously playing on the ROOKIE A GO-GO, WHITE STAGE and RED MARQUEE.

In 2024, they embarked on their first tour of five cities in China along with a show in Taiwan. In November, they were invited to perform at Uganda’s globally renowned Nyege Nyege Festival, known for its one-of-a-kind lineup. In June 2025, they appeared at Fusion Festival in north-eastern Germany, and in September 2025, they were invited to perform at Pestapora in Jakarta, Indonesia. Drawing inspiration from the music and atmosphere of every region they visit, they continue to communicate through music on a global scale.

Currently, they are on their most ambitious tour yet—“47+TOUR: Shuen”—with 50 shows spanning all 47 prefectures of Japan plus a stop in Shanghai, China. The tour will culminate in their first-ever solo performance at Japan’s legendary venue, Nippon Budokan on Saturday, March 14, 2026, under the title “Dokuen”.

NO WAR.

Members : MahiToThePeople (Vo./Gt./Electronics) / Eagle Taka (Gt./Cho./Bagpipe) / Ishihara Loscal (Dr./Cho.) / Yakumoor (Ba./Cho.)



Compuma

https://linktr.ee/compum

Compuma is a long-serving, Tokyo-based DJ whose extensive knowledge of obscure and left-field music across so many genres and different regions of the world has established him as one of the most respected record buyers in Japan, a country well known as a record collectors’ paradise. While he built his career in the record business over decades, he has also been sharing his expertise in music as a DJ just as long. Not only the breath and the depth of where his selection derives from are hard to compete, the way he blends them all together is also a state of art. Often intricately layered and collaged, Compuma is capable of sculpting something entirely new with bits and pieces of existing tracks in various forms such as ambient soundscapes to dubbed out, club sets. In 2017, his unique ability caught the attention of Berlin Atonal directors and he was invited to play at the festival in Berlin. Later in 2018, he performed at the Meakusma Festival.

He extends his skills into remixing which can be heard on the EM Records released - “Compuma meets Haku” (2015) and “Bangkok Nights” (2017). Recent remix/works of his includes OGRE YOU ASSHOLE “Morning (Devil's Swamp remix)”, YPY “Cool Do! (COMPUMA remix)”, MAJOR FORCE PRODUCTIONS "Family (COMPUMA Mix)”, Pepe California “Grennland (Compuma Remix)”, Summer Eye “Hakugei (White Whale) (Compuma Remix)”. In 2022, he released his first solo album, “A View” and in 2024, released his second solo album, “horizons” on his own label, SOMETHING ABOUT.

He is also an active member of a DJ trio called Akuma No Numa (which translates to “devil’s swamp”) in which he explores darker and more psychedelic periphery of dance music.

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