Hiroshi ヒロシ

Hideto Matsumoto (a.k.a. hide)? Who's that? Everyone's always reminiscing on the day John Lennon died, and Kurt Cobain, and other rockstars. What about the day hide died? He affected millions of people, just like them. The obvious problem is many people's (perhaps unwilling) ignorance of his existence. The general superiority complex is `oh, it's just the Japanese people with their thing, but my bands are REAL bands.' Aside from educating people about hide, I hope to make it clear that there are musicians from other cultures, that they MORE than hold a candle to our own, and that hide was not just a Japanese musician - he was a musician.


The X Japan Legend
hide had graduated beauty school and was on his way to becoming a beautician for a living when he got a phone call from someone named Yoshiki. Yoshiki said something like this: "Hey, Toshi and I are forming a band, and we need a really good guitarist; would you like to play?" The band was X, later called X Japan, who became the country's most legendary rock band. Lucky for the whole world, hide accepted, and joined four other members in a group that was assembled specifically for their musical prowess.

X had an incredibly successful career that lasted for more than a decade throughout the 80s and 90s. They pioneered current trends in Japanese rock, and were the first Japanese artist to sell out the Tokyo Dome, which is about the size of a baseball stadium. Yoshiki and hide were great friends as well as bandmates. Yoshiki played drums, piano, and wrote most of X's songs, and anything he didn't compose, hide did. It was very Beatles-esque, and led to some of the most memorable songs and melodies ever. Americans may even recognize some of the motifs used in classics like Forever Love, Endless Rain, and the thirty minute rock symphony Art of Life. Songs like Dahlia are both epic and accessible, both hard-rocking and beautiful.

hide played guitar for X for most of his life as a musician. He often emerged as the star, being constantly a standout in dress, musicianship, and attitude. He was often given the opportunity to perform his own solo work and sing intros to songs he had written at X shows.


Solo career (1993–1998)

In early 1993, Matsumoto was featured on the sampler Dance 2 Noise 004, with the song "Frozen Bug", which he recorded with Inoran and J of Luna Sea. He also starred in an art film titled Seth et Holth, along with Tusk of Zi:Kill. In 1994, Matsumoto oversaw the production of the first release on his own label Lemoned (founded in 1989), an EP from the band Zeppet Store. In the same year, Hide recorded and released his first solo album, Hide Your Face. In addition to songwriting, he played all the guitars (including bass) and provided all the vocals. The cover art was based on a mask designed by Swiss artist H. R. Giger. The album's musical style differed significantly from the speed metal anthems and power ballads of X Japan, leaning more towards alternative rock. Matsumoto then went on the Hide our Psychommunity Tour, for which the live band was hired that would later become part of his primary project, Hide with Spread Beaver.

A second album, Psyence, was released in 1996, also followed by a tour, Psyence a Go Go. After X Japan disbanded in 1997, Hide formally titled his solo project "Hide with Spread Beaver". He also formed a second band, named Zilch, which, apart from himself and Spread Beaver percussionist I.N.A. was comprised of American and British artists, such as Joey Castillo (formerly in Danzig) and Paul Raven of Killing Joke. As with his solo project, Matsumoto acted as primary songwriter, singer and guitarist. In 1998, work on first albums of both, Spread Beaver and Zilch began, which Matsumoto never finished himself, due to his death in the same year.


hide's death
Hide 02.05.98 - Committed Suicide

On the 2nd around 7:30 am, a former member of the popular rock group that broke up at the end of last year, guitarist hide-san (age 33), real name Matsumoto Hideto, was discovered by the woman he lived with in his Tokyo Metropolitan area Koukunanasanuno house hung. She called 119 [same as 911 in USA; emergency number]. He was confirmed dead before 9 am while being transported to the hospital. There was no posthumous writings (suicide note?); a police headquarter officer said it looked like suicide.
As to the investigation, on the same day around 6 am, Matsumoto-san was sent home with his younger brother (age 30). As they had been considerably drunk, the woman he had lived with put him to bed on his 12 tatami mats in his room; at 7:30 am when she went to check on him, Matsumoto had wreathed a towel on the side of the door knob, it appeared like he was hung with shirimochi and this is how she found him hung. He was in his underwear. The towel was cut into two, both ends being tied together into a cord.

(1998.05.02)
Hide's news was announced 12:00, at noon and after every news times no drug, no case by the inquest, hide was backed home in Yokosuka soon.

(1998.05.03)
01:15am NHK special program X-Japan discography this program was a rebroadcasting scheduled over 1 month before. Many fans gathered around hide's condo, Lemonade building someone gathered in front of hide's parent's home.
05:15pm Yoshiki returned alone! ( he used to go everywhere with many staffs ) from L.A. He went straight to Tsukiji Honganji Temple by his Rolls- Royce. Adding to say, Honganji Temple is the most celebrated Temple in Tokyo, only prestigious people's funeral can be performed there,
6:30pm Yoshiki made a statement in front of the Temple's gate. About 50 fans was able to hear him. You can read it on some web site. He stayed there with hide and hide's parents till after 11pm. ( It was said they sat calmly in sad, talk with little...Yoshiki promised hide's mother to do "Suteki na" funeral. X-Japan songs and hide's songs were heard as BGM ) Heath, Pata, Ryuichi visited there too.

(1998.05.04)
There are a lot of fans gathered with flowers at Honganji. They surrounded the temple, mostly crying with hugging each other... They say
"hide is still alive in my heart......"
"He was the first man to stop another's death....."
"I love hide forever........"
"hide didn't suicide, it was an accident caused by hide like joke..."


(1998.05.05)
The funeral held exclusively by the family and closed friends. 1:00 p.m. to 3:50 ( very longer than ordinary ) 300 people attended, X-Japan members were the front row. Toshi appeared. Yoshiki came alone in the back of his RR.
hide's photo is 2.5x1.5 meters from "Psyence" and his 13 guitars is on the altar. Over 200 fans stayed up all night surrounding Honganji. Many fans went back home leaving flowers behind because schools start again on 5/06. The fans remaining ( do they skip classes? )gathered those flowers and soaked them in the buckets water for the next day's flower offering. They are very kind like hide! "-" hide's office decided accepting the flowers, they has been offered the altar! "-" The fans sometimes gather trash and sweep the street, they are staying neatly. The signature collecting campaign of the hide memorial hall has broke out among the fans.

(1998.05.06)
The flower offering from 10:00am to 7:00pm. Over 10 girls fell down in a faint soon after the offering and brought to a hospital. The inside of the Honganji funeral hall is opened to the press at 4:00pm for the first time. The wake will be held from 6:00pm this evening.....
20,000 fans offered flowers. TK appeared in the wake. Many young rock musicians gathered like as Extasy Summit. News said to hide fan girls are critical by attempted suicide. X-Japan members held a press conference to appeal to fans not do what makes hide sad, don't follow hide...

(1998.05.07)
The flower offering scheduled from 10:00am today, but it was put forward from 8:30 by YOSHIKI's advice "-" The line of the fans reached 3 km... Yoshiki is playing the black piano, Toshi is singing "Forever Love". Ex-prime minister's wife gives a testimonial to hide.
50000 fans are surrounding the Honganji Temple.
Streets in Tokyo were closed off, and police sent boats, helicopters, 100 officers, and 170 security guards to the temple to deal with the emotional crowd.


By the end of the first day, twenty-six people had been hospitalised. CNN did a piece on hide's funeral. Apparently, hide's music didn't reach America, but his heartbroken fans made enough noise to get across the ocean.

The New York Times ran the following obituary on May 18, 1998: DIED. HIDETO MATSUMOTO, 33, idolized, ultra-punk former lead guitarist of the defunct group X Japan, after hanging himself; in Tokyo. Following a decade of eclat with the rockers, who broke up in December, "hide" pursed a solo career to the rapture of fans, 25,000 of whom thronged to his funeral. The grieving swarm formed a line more than 2 km long to lay flowers. Though former band members pleaded with fans not to copy the suicide, by week's end at least three had decided they could not live without him.

(1998.07.08) The memorial concert of Hide will be hold on 26 Sep.
Luna Sea, Glay, B'z, globe and the guitarist of American band Kiss and Guns N'Roses was invited for the concert.


hide's death did not only affect his fans. Even after X Japan stopped making music, hide and Yoshiki had been planning to work together again, some time around 2000.
hide had many other friends and projects in the industry, with J of Luna Sea, Hisashi of GLAY, Marilyn Manson... his Zilch album was remixed by well-known artists such as Lords of Acid, Ministry, Beck, and Nine Inch Nails. He had unfinished projects with Zilch and Spread Beaver, and planned tours with both Spread Beaver and Manson. In short, his death left the musical world in complete shock. Many rockers (including Manson) dyed their hair pink in hide's honour. The band Oblivion Dust's song Future Womb was dedicated to hide.

A Hide museum opened in Yokosuka on July 20, 2000. It remained open, past it's original three year plan, for five years before closing it's doors on September 25, 2005.