First attempt at translating a mucc song..

This is my maiden attempt at translating a mucc song into English... took quite some time with it, tossing between appropriate words and phrasings and such, but I'm quite happy with the end product..*shy* Please be kind to me if you spot any major mistakes! Yeah.. let me know though because I'd like to correct them if they are critical mistakes.
m(_ _)m

I've included the original lyrics below as well. A sample of the song and others from the album [Kuchiki no Tou] may be found here.

A home where nobody lives
Lyrics/Tatsurou
Music/Miya

heavy footsteps
the dark path home
lamps standing in a row
the smell of dinner
the key to the heart hangs heavily on his neck
a child has learnt that the world is flat

a home where nobody lives calls to the child
the sun has set but he does not want to go back
he wears a masked smile
pretends he's not alone
opens the door
a ghost called loneliness has consumed him

come, let's play in the dark and empty room
it has become habit
soon numb from feeling
even the tears have dried up

just a little
just a little will do
please give me some memory that somebody needs me
even if for a moment
just a little
tell me the fact that somebody loves me

heavy futon
let's sleep
everyone is alone when the eyes are closed
i feel the warmth of the kitten in my arms
in my dreams, where should I go?
let us go there together

(comments: if you haven't figured out by now, the story's about a latch-key child.."key to the heart".. and the loneliness he faces when he is at home. Contrary to how one might read the verse starting with "just a little..", this part has Tatsurou pleading in a desperate, close-to-shouting, singing style.)

誰も居ない家
詞／逹瑯
曲／ミヤ

重たい足取り 暗い帰り道
立ち並ぶ灯りと 夕食のにおい
首から重たくぶら下がつた心の鍵
子供は世界を平坦に憶えた

誰も居ない家は子供を手招くが
夕日が沈んでも帰りたくはなかった
笑顔の仮面で 子供は寂しさを騙して
ドアの鍵を開け 孤独という化ケ物に喰われた

真っ暗な部屋 虚しさと さぁ遊びましょう
いつか慣れるさ やがて 麻痺して
涙も乾く

ほんの少しだけ ほんの少しでいい
必要とされた記憶を下さい
一瞬でもいい ほんの僅かだけ
愛されたという事実が欲しい

重たい布団 うずくまり さぁ眠りましょう
誰だって目を閉じたなら 独りになるんだ
唯一 ぬくもりを感じられた子猫を抱いて
夢の中で どこへ行こうか？
みんな一緒に

Said pics from previous post, re Pop Jam (4 June 04)

mucc members jump for joy when the voting results are announced!! :D


wavewavewavewavewave...

[Kuchiki no Tou]~ continued

Actually I had wanted to edit the previous post because I had ended it so abruptly. My head was hurting then so I had to end my comments at Track 6 of the album even though every one and single song in the album deserves mention because the album is SO KICK-ASS!!! *hoowaaahh!!*

Yes...I'm so glad I decided to go watch the autumn concerts this time...judging from the setlists so far, it's centred around the new album and a few of the older 'live favourites'. Thank goodness this album's good. I do hope I get to hear [Nukegara] live though.

Anyway, getting back to why I didn't edit the previous post (i digress too much yeah). Well, I guess this being a journal, I've always tried to resist editing cos it feels a bit like i'm playing cheat. The most I regret something I post and delete that post altogether. Good or bad, I suppose everything I 'utter' on these blog pages is a reflection of what I was thinking or feeling at that point in time. Be it in a sober or drug-induced (& by that I mean strictly of the medicinal kind) or spelling-error-prone (-_-;) state of mind.

So...back to the album~~~
Track 7 [Akatsuki Yami] has a v haunting melody. I'm not sure why, but when I found out that it's Yukke's melody, the next time I listened to it, I did so through what I understand Yukke to be (does that make sense to you? it does to me..hard to explain what I mean, but.. it's just listening to it from Yukke's point of view, thinking about how he might have come up with it). Well, listening to it in this way is now the only way I know how to listen to it, because it become very, very.. touching. Just from the melody itself, I do believe that I've gotten to know Yukke a bit more.

[2.07], which is Track 8, is an instrumental piece that I'm growing to like more than Track 1. I'm starting to share yuj's view that Track 1 seems to sound more and more like a gong-fu movie track!! XD Y'know, the track that plays in the background when the gongfu hero and baddie are circling each other doing the 'psychological scaring tactic' before striking...*chuckle*

It didn't quite strike me as hard as say Tracks 2-4 before, but now it seems quite evident to me that Tracks 9 and 10 flow into each other very well. I like [Garo]'s intro! Pouncing track (like its lyrics!) with some bluesy bits (though not as much as [Zekuu]'s numbers). This was a track that took some time before it stuck on me, but now I see what role it plays in the overall album, and now it's stuck on me as surely as..er..the nasal gooey mucus when I was sick a couple days ago!! As for Track 10 [Kanashimi no Hate], I've mentioned it somewhat in the last post. I kinda envision myself watching this played live with my mouth slightly open and feet rooted to the ground, hahaha.. Think I'll be too busy watching Miya's guitars. ^^

I still like [Rojiura Boku to Kimi e] a lot.. it has not lessened with repeated hearing since its first release as a single on 25 Feb. Guess it's still more on the hardcore side, although its tempo is relatively slower. Tatsurou's rendering of it is really powerful.

Speaking of which, of late I have been taking more notice of Tatsurou's voice. Erm.. not that I haven't before, but mucc's music..it's so colourful you listen to many things all at one time. Tatsurou, in this album, shines through not only in the vocals but also in his lyrics & composition. So perhaps at this point it's rather apt to move on to the next track, [Oboreru Sakana]. One of the shockers of this album, cos I'm sure many would agree one wouldn't expect mucc to come up with almost a folk-rock number like this one. With lyrics and melody both from Tatsurou, it brings another flavour to mucc's repertoire so far. I'm glad they recorded this. Erm..i think I might have mentioned before that although I like both Tatsurou and Miya's lyrics, I had felt more drawn towards and deeply affected by Miya's. I guess it's time to reconsider that statement. Looking at Tatsurou's contributions to this album, and after flipping back to his previous works and re-understanding them, I have to admit I have been mistaken! Mucc really isn't mucc without Tatsurou's voice, & his lyrics too.

[Namonamuki Yume]'s next! Lively number that's sure to prompt a dancing frenzy during lives ^^ I like the melody during the bridge portion. & when Tatsurou does the low rendition at the start of the chorus repeats at the end (Tatsurou's low growly voice is sexy ne!). Live, live, live~~~ I DARE you to sit absolutely still when you hear this live!! XD

[Monochro no Keshiki] held little additional surprise for me in this album.. It is, I guess, one of the songs with more mass audience appeal than usual mucc numbers (brings to mind how the mucc members were jumping for joy when the song was voted tops during PopJam. Everytime I watch the vid or see a screencapture of that scene, I can't help smiling :) ). I don't mind them doing more of such songs, but gosh I hope they don't just do one TYPE of songs in future. I trust they won't.

The last track, [Kuchiki no Tou], grew on me gradually. See, I didn't want them to do something like a reprise of [Kugatsu Mikka no Kokuin], because this finale track certainly has the same kind of intensity. At this point, I think it has the same intensity but conveys a different intent. So, I think I'll reserve comments on this one until I see it live.

So...that's the album... My comments about the album won't really end, won't ever end I think...but actually I do apologize if what I've written so far seems far-fetching for people who read this and who are not acquainted with mucc. Even for people acquainted with them, all I've just written is just a pouring of my thoughts towards this album.. not meant to be a critique of it in anyway. This is a journal after all.. I'm a lousy reviewer so I won't even attempt :).. the words so far are just necessary outpourings on my part :)