And just like that, it’s already the end of December. On one end the year has flown by, and on the other end there have been times where time couldn’t move forward fast enough. At least, for me.
This is actually the first time in the 15 years that Arlequin exists that we’re doing an “end of the year”-message, so let me introduce myself first.
Hello, hi. You’ve probably already guessed, but I am the one who you usually see as the one behind the articles here. I’m 雪 (Yuki). And it is because of me being a private person – both in the positive and negative sense – why we’ve never done something like this before. I’ve left the decision for each staff member personally if they wanted to participate or not, so let me introduce you to at least a part of our team. Starting with Dutch translator and photographer-in-training Misaki:
As the year comes to a close, I can’t help but feel thankful for everything we’ve experienced. This year gave us the chance to see incredible bands live, moments that will stay with us forever. I also had the privilege of diving into the stories behind these amazing artists, translating and sharing their music with you. Thank you for being part of this adventure and for supporting what we love. Here’s to an even more inspiring 2025! 💖
Next, we have Spanish translator and English proof-reader Margaret:
You might not see me on the English version very often (if at all), but I do want to thank you all for being with us this year. Now 2024 is coming to a close, I can only say that I’ve learned a lot this year. Aside from proofreading and translating for the Spanish version of Arlequin, I’ve also been helping out behind the scenes a lot by testing some of the new features that have been added this year. Not to mention I’ve discovered several new artists and music through V and 雪 (Yuki)’s articles as well. I hope you all have a very nice end of the year, and I hope to see you all in 2025 (on the Spanish version, of course)!
And finally, V, who is in charge of her very own column “V Reviews”:
Looking ahead to the new year, I can’t help but feel so thankful for all of you. For you my dear readers, my friends and family, online and in person. When 雪 (Yuki) gave me the chance to write for you, I took a step outside my comfort zone and just ran with it. And to be honest I’m so grateful. Grateful to all of you for reading my articles and enjoying them. It makes me want to keep it up and try my darnedest to get them out more often. Life permitting of course. Going into this next year I am going to continue to explore and delve into all manner of bands and share with you all about these fantastic artists we love as well as new favorites yet to be discovered. So let’s all raise a glass of your choice of libation to 2025 and kick this off right!
In the years Arlequin has existed I’ve never told you much about myself, and I am not ready to make that change yet. But I do want to tell you a bit about this year:
There have been ups and downs, various projects that you never heard of have been pushed forward again and again due to physical health reasons from my end. A few projects you have seen this year were done while I felt like I was at some of the worst moments of my life, but thanks to Misaki in particular some of these projects did get to see the light of day. Perhaps you’ve noticed, but most photos taken of the shows of Esprit D’Air in Heerlen and Electric Eel Shock in Ede have been taken by Misaki for this reason. Both shows of JILUKA (in Cologne and Bochum) have been photographed by me, and it really renewed my love for concert photography – which initially started Arlequin all those years ago! – but also my love for ヴィジュアル系 (Visual Kei) itself.
That being said, there are some things on the agenda for next year already but I unfortunately can’t drop you any hints on what these things are yet…
What I can tell you is that next week Sunday, December 29 at 13:00 GMT+2, we’ll publish our last post of the year. This will be about RAZOR’s エアレンデル (Earendel) single, since the title song is quite fitting for this time of year, I think.
A little look behind the scenes
There also have been some changes to Arlequin Magazine and Arlequin Photography, some more visible than others. Not only can you find artists listed by their name or by their genre on Magazine here now, you can also find an easier overview of artists on Photography.
Something you might not have seen at all is that every single artist has a short description as well as what genres their music goes in, where they’re from and if they’re still active or not (and when in that last case) added to their tag. (This currently isn’t finished in the Japanese version yet, but we’re working on it!) Some older articles have also been translated to Spanish and Japanese, but this too is still a work in progress.
One thing that I want to thank all of you for specifically is how you received the “Behind the Mask”-series. I started this project as a one off promotion for KAMIJO’s “The Anthem” Europe tour that took place in spring of this year, not thinking too much would come of it. But you’ve all not only proven me wrong, you’ve also inspired a now ongoing original series that both V and myself can add on to whenever we want now. While V will continue to do this under her own series “V Reviews”, you might have noticed that the recent articles from RAZOR and ゼラ (Zera) each had a unique category attached to them too. Starting in 2025, this will be an ongoing series unique to Arlequin, so please look forward to more artists being added to it as well!
To make a long story short… Thank you!
Not just for 2024, but for all the years up until now. This year has had ups and downs, but above all you’ve shown not just me, but all of us, the power that you as readers have. And thank you to all staff too, regardless of them identifying themselves for the first time here or not. None of this would be possible without you or your help!
I’d like to wish you all some very Happy Holidays, and I’m looking forward to seeing you in 2025! 💖
(Regarding the header photo: this is an artwork near my home. A few years ago during a snowstorm it turned into this, and I thought it was a fun idea to use it for this post.)