Free Time Beside the Music in Fujisawa. THE REF.（Fujisawa, Kanagawa）#21

What first drew you deeply into music and records?

Arase

Originally, I was into vintage clothing. From around high school, I always thought I wanted to open a vintage clothing shop someday.

My parents had traveled around the world, so I had a longing for life overseas. When I was in university, I went abroad and encountered rave culture and party culture there. That was how I gradually slipped into the world of dance music.

As for records themselves, a big moment was when my parents bought me a record player when I entered university. I first got into hip-hop and R&B.

But for me, the biggest thing was not a particular song. It was an experience.

The most shocking moment was when I heard Underworld for the first time. I think it was at Electraglide, held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba.

A friend invited me, and at the time I was not yet that deeply interested in electronic music. But when I actually went, it was just incredible.

The space itself was a “What is this?” kind of experience. I think that became a major turning point for me. At that moment, I strongly felt that music has the power to transform people’s consciousness.

After that, you started your own outdoor event, didn’t you?

Yes. Around the time I came back from spending a year traveling overseas, a friend of mine had also returned from Canada. We wanted to try creating the kind of atmosphere we had experienced at outdoor events abroad, along with musical directions that were not very common in Japan at the time. That was how we started rural in 2009.

We started completely from zero, with no network and no experience running an event. In 2010, we invited our first overseas artist.

But at the time, we did not yet have enough experience, and the result was tough.

That experience made us realize that we could not continue as we were. From there, we began learning one by one what was necessary to run an outdoor event, while gradually building a community of people around us.

Listening to your story, it feels like you were drawn not only to songs themselves, but to creating places where people could experience music.

Yes. Beyond organizing events, I also thought it would be better to be involved in music spaces and work with artists on a daily basis, so I joined a place in Sangenjaya called space orbit. I did bookings, learned about sound, and helped out at various sites.

After that, I worked as the person in charge of technical aspects such as sound and lighting at a club, and later worked for GENELEC, a speaker manufacturer.

Looking back, I think I have always worked on the side of “supporting music.” Rather than being out front as an artist or DJ, I was interested in how to create a place where sound happens, where people gather, and where that energy is formed.

It is impressive how intentionally you built up the experience needed to create those kinds of places. What led you to start THE REF.?

I moved to Fujisawa about six years ago. I had always wanted to open my own shop someday. The atmosphere of the record shops I had seen overseas stayed in my mind.

In Japan, I felt that record shops were generally places with a clear purpose: to look for records, listen to them, and buy them. But the record shops I saw overseas, especially in places like Germany, had a more relaxed feeling. You could have a drink there, and people would gather to talk about music even if they were not necessarily there to buy records.

I really liked that kind of place and the way time flowed there. After moving to Fujisawa, I noticed there were not many record shops nearby. I thought that maybe I could do something using the things I had seen, the things I had experienced, and the skills I had built up.

This space was originally a cafe, and just as it was about to close, someone I knew who worked there reached out to me. So I decided to take the chance and give it a try.

The term “record salon” seems to fit THE REF. very well.

Yes. Rather than being only a place to buy records, I want it to be a place where people who like music can gather, talk, listen, drink, and spend time.

Some people come by after work, and some come from overseas. We also have many young customers and women visiting the shop. Recently, I feel that more people are interested in records not only as something to listen to, but also as visual objects.

So, to make it easier for beginners to come in, we have sections with records that include familiar songs, as well as records that are good for setting a mood. Some people look for lounge-style music that is easy to play in a cafe or at home, and older customers sometimes come in to listen to records almost like they would at a jazz cafe.

When it comes to the records, Andy, who is in charge of buying, plays a very important role. He originally ran a record shop in London. I have known him since the days when I worked at space orbit in Sangenjaya. When I told him about the idea for this shop, he said, “Let’s do it,” and he ended up taking charge of the record selection.

The selection includes many genres, such as techno, exotic sounds, Latin, world music, and easy listening. But rather than simply sorting records by genre, the selection is shaped by how the music works in a space or as background music, and by what makes it interesting from a DJ’s perspective.

Are those Genelec speakers? That is unusual for a record shop.

I think that reflects what I have done up to now.

Many record shops use vintage audio systems. That has its own appeal, of course. But for this shop, I wanted to use a system close to the kind of environment where sound is actually created in a studio.

It may offer an experience where you can hear everything the artist put into the sound.

I am also particular about the headphones used for listening. I want people to choose records while listening with good sound. I want them to take their time, with a coffee or beer in hand.

I also pay attention to how each person wants to spend their time. For example, whether they want to listen quietly alone, talk with someone, or look for something specific. I watch the movements and atmosphere of the customers and sometimes change the music playing in the shop accordingly.

Rather than just playing songs I like, I think about whether the music will create a comfortable time for that person. That is something I am conscious of.

What kind of place do you want THE REF. to become from here?

First, I want to keep doing what we already value. I do not want to set too many rules for customers. They can look at records, drink beer, talk about music, or just spend time however they like. I want this to be a place where people can feel free. Rather than making the shop bigger, I want more people to come here and for conversations about music to arise naturally.

It is a record shop, but it is also a cafe, a bar, and a place to listen to music. Because it is a little ambiguous like that, I think many different kinds of people can come here.

I would like to create that relaxed atmosphere I felt in record shops overseas, where people casually talk about music, here in Fujisawa. Even if you do not come with the purpose of buying records, you can just drop by. Something interesting is playing. You can talk with someone. That is the kind of place I want THE REF. to be.