Sometimes the best stories come from spontaneous moments — and this one began with a simple question.
Tom, my creative partner in Shugorei, prompted me to ask my daughter — who has a natural gift for imagining mystical creatures — to come up with a short story about a magical being. Without hesitation, she began weaving a tale that instantly captured our imaginations.
She introduced us to Twilight, a majestic Cat Dragon who lives in the shimmering Diamond Forest. In this enchanted land, the diamond isn’t just a beautiful gem — it’s the lifeforce of Twilight’s family and community. But peace is shattered when an alien invader steals the precious diamond, threatening the very essence of their world.
The alien leaves behind their spaceship, and Twilight, determined and brave, decides to use it to chase them across the stars. Thus begins an epic battle — not just for the diamond, but for the survival of her homeland.
After the story was made, I got a task: to create a short melody. I ended up singing it into a voice recorder during a very short lunch break. I didn’t sing well — it was rough and rushed — but Tom heard something special in it. He took what I thought was a mistake and turned it into a cool key change. Lucky!
And then came the launch party. Metro Arts helped us celebrate in style by creating a special cocktail named after our magical creature: “Cat Dragon.” It was shiny, sparkly, and delicious — a perfect tribute to Twilight and the mystical world she came from. Thank you, Metro Arts, for adding that extra shimmer to the night.
This story, born from a moment of shared creativity, became the inspiration for a new Shugorei song. It’s a tale of courage, magic, and the power of imagination — and it reminds me how storytelling can connect generations and spark new artistic journeys.
Actually, the title of another track, Twilight refraction, was originally chosen to mean “sunset” or “dusk.” It was only later that I realized—by a curious coincidence—that it shares the same name as the Cat Dragon, Twilight.
Indeed, there is a a secret hidden just under the surface of Memories of Magic—魔法の記憶—Mahō no Kioku: all its tracks are bonded, in a kind of shared universe. Forest Between Worlds is the magical place that Twilight lives. Alchemy is the kind of magic that happens. But this story is something we discovered, rather than planned, so we can’t tell you all its elements, and you need to discover them for yourself. Perhaps Three Pathways is the magical way in which people from our world can travel to the Diamond Forest. The album is the world we would love you to explore.
Both of my kids’ voices actually made it into the track! A few days before the album launch party, my son told me, “I said ‘squished banana,’ but I can’t hear the banana bits—only me saying ‘squished.’”
You can hear it towards the end of Cat Dragon. When we found it, it was pretty funny.
My daughter’s voice is in there too—so it really feels like a little family moment hidden in the music. Thanks Tom.
Written by Noz
ダイヤモンドの森には猫ドラゴンが住んでいます
Daiyamondo no mori ni wa neko doragon ga sundeimasu
宝物をなくした
Takaramono wo nakushita
She lost her treasure
エイリアンがそれを持って行った
Eirian ga sore wo motte itta
An alien took it away
さあ一緒に探しに行こう
Saa issho ni sagashi ni ikou
Come on, let’s go search together!
宝物のありかはどこ？
Takaramono no arika wa doko?
Where is the treasure hidden?
これからバトルが始まる
Kore kara batoru ga hajimaru
The battle begins now!
Shugorei 