By CASSANDRA YEOH
brats@thestar.com.my

“WE want more nasi goreng and satay! Malaysian food tastes delicious,” Atsuko and Katsu from Angela proudly exclaimed.

In its first ever performance in Malaysia, J-pop duo Angela sang for thousands of screaming and cheering fans at the Animax Carnival two weeks ago at the Mid Valley Exhibition Centre Hall. The event attracted over 22,000 people over just two days, many of whom were there for Angela.

Fans of anime, manga, cosplay and all things Japanese, dressed-up in their best cosplay outfits, participated in stage activities and tried their hands at Japanese carnival games. A wide variety of anime and manga-related merchandise was available for purchase, too.

Dynamic duo: Angela posing with their Malaysian fans after an electrifying performance at the Animax Carnival.

The secret to Angela’s success is that for everything it does, especially music, making it Angela-style is their top priority. “That’s why our music is unlike anything out there,” said vocalist Atsuko Yamashita, 39.

Atsuko and her bandmate Katsunori Hirasato (guitarist/keyboardist), 40, made their big break in 2003, when they found the perfect niche for their unique sound – anime theme songs.

Since then, they have released eight albums, two of which made it to the top of the Japanese Oricon charts.

Now the two are big names in otaku circles, but they started out in fairly humble circumstances.

Angela was founded in 1993, after Atsuko and Katsunori met at a music school in Tokyo. They performed initially as street musicians.

Over the years, they have come to perfect not only their own style, but also their own creative process.

Both of them are involved in every stage of production. They compose their own music and produce their own tracks.

In fact, for each theme song they are commissioned to produce, they write up to 20 songs, before deciding on the perfect one. “A four-minute song might take us four years to produce,” said Katsunori.

And during challenging times, Atsuko and Katsu abide by the mantra that they can achieve anything they want as long as they are willing to go the extra mile.

There was plenty of amazing cosplay going on at the Animax Carnival as well.

Whenever a song is rejected, it motivates them to come up with new ideas and to continue working harder.

“Like anyone else, we learn from our mistakes,” said Atsuko.

The duo also said the support of their family has been crucial to their success. In fact, their parents even attend most of their concerts – though not the one in Malaysia.

The interview ended on a high with them professing their appreciation for our country: “We love Malaysians. They are warm and friendly. We want to visit Malaysia again!”

For the time being, though, you can look up Angela’s hit song Angel, the opening theme song of anime series Coppelion, which airs every Sunday on Animax (Astro Channel 715).