I wish I could write music like this. この曲、最初はprettyなJ-POPみたいな感じで始まって、それがプレコーラスに行くと、もう、全然prettyなJ-POPじゃなくなるんだ。初めて聴いたのは東京の電車の中だった。昼休みが終わって、仕事や用事のある人たちが乗る、まあまあ混んでて静かな電車を想像して。そして、俺が今まで静かに座ったまま、ヘッドフォンをしてて。でも、この曲のあるポイントに差し掛かった瞬間、予想外すぎて、俺、完全におかしな奴みたいに笑っちゃった。そしたら、絶対電車の中のみんな、俺がまさにそれだと思ったに違いない。ありがとう、ガチャピン。これは新しい経験だったな。
I wish I could write music like this. The song starts like a pretty j-pop number right up to the pre-chorus where it becomes something decidedly not pretty j-pop. I was on a train in Tokyo when I first heard it. Imagine a somewhat crowded, and near silent train of folks on their way back to work after lunch, or doing daytime errands. And me sitting down, headphones on, heretofore minding my own business. I get to a certain point in this song and it’s unexpected enough to make me laugh like a complete fucking mental patient. Which is precisely what I’m sure the entire train thought I was. Thanks Gacharic Spin. That was a new experience for me.
MVはめっちゃ格好いいと思う。いろいろな要素が詰まってて、全部説明するのはちょっと…（たぶん君がそれを求めてることじゃないでしょう）、でもとても賢く作られてるんだ。この映像を作った人、きっと漆黒の空に輝く月についての歌詞から何かインスピレーションを受けたんじゃないかなと感じるよ。
The MV is very cool. There’s a bunch going on and I won’t break it all down (that’s probably not what you’re here for), but it is quite cleverly done. I feel like whoever put this together took at least some inspiration from the lyric about the moon in a black sky.
バンドメンバーはみな空間的に孤立しており、それぞれを照らす柔らかなスポットライト以外は暗闇の中にいる。カメラは彼らの周りを、音楽的才能はあるが孤独な惑星のように周回している
The band are all spatially isolated and in darkness other than a soft spot on each. The camera orbits around them like musically talented, but lonely planets.
I wish I could steer the world
To harmony人の心がもし透けて見えたのなら
人の心 — hito no kokoro — a person’s heart/mind/spirit
もし — moshi — supposing
透けて見えた — sukete mieta — transparently see
の — ‘no’ — the ‘no’ here turns a verb phrase into a noun. Essentially ‘if being able to see into someone’s heart was thing…’
なら — nara — if
Supposing you could see into a person’s heart
覗いてみる勇気は持ってるの？
覗いてみる — nozoite miru— ‘nozoite’ means to peek or look through (a window). Adding ‘miru’ at the ends means ‘try to’ — try to peek through
勇気 — yuuki — courage
持ってるの？ — motteru no? — literally ‘would you carry’, but the verb 持つ motsu does a lot of heavy lifting and in this case, it means ‘would you possess’
If you could see into a person’s heart, would you possess the courage to look?
君から見えるもの、僕から見えるものを確かめてよ
君 — kimi — you
から — kara — from
見える — mieru — see
もの — mono — thing
kimi kara mieru mono —the things you can see from your perspective
僕 — boku — me. Usually this is used by guys (frequently boys trying to assert their masculinity). Women using ‘boku’ is quite uncommon in spoken Japanese. In music the connotation can be different. In this case, the tone is introspective.
boku kara mieru mono — the things I can see from my perspective
確かめてよ — tashikamete yo — to confirm
(To) confirm the things you can see from your perspective and what I can see from mine.
この時点で俺は、この曲はB’zの「今夜月の見える丘に」にテーマ的に似ているのだろうと思っていた。それは大きな間違いだった。まだ実際に曲を聴いていない人は、読むのをやめて聴きに行こう。俺は待つ。
At this point I was thinking the song was going to be thematically similar to B’z 今夜月の見える丘に (konya tsuki no mieru oka ni). I was very wrong. If you haven’t actually heard the song yet, stop reading and go listen to it. I’ll wait.
「世界はとても美しい」
世界 — sekai — world
とても — very, exceedingly
美しい — utsukushii — beautiful
The world is very beautiful.
shout it out
This is the bit where I did my impromptu train audition for full on basket case. Couldn’t help it. It was right up there with Pisces by Jinjer. I thought the scream was initially Hana’s (given she has form for it), but it seems to be Angie. My first impression was it is the sound of someone who is not okay. Very primal. Great stuff.
ねぇ、人と違って恥ずかしくないの？
ねぇ — hey!
人と違って — hito to chigatte — different from other people
恥ずかしくないの？ — hazukashiku nai no? — aren’t you embarrassed?
Hey, aren’t you embarrassed to be different from other people?
西洋文化で育った人々にとって、これは奇妙な質問のように思えるかもしれないが、日本文化では個人よりも集団が優先される。社会的圧力とは、期待に合わせることを意味し、そこから逸脱することは他人に迷惑（めいわく）をかけることになる。自分自身の個性も含めて、そして特にそうかもしれないが、どんな犠牲を払っても避けるべきものなのだ。
For people who have grown up in a western culture, this probably seems like a weird question, but in Japanese culture, the group is put before the individual. Social pressures mean conforming to expectations and deviating from that causes bother (meiwaku) for others. Something to be avoided at all costs, including and perhaps particularly one’s own individuality.
あーしろこーしろ、こうあるべきだ！
あーしろこーしろ、 — aa shiro, ko shiro — do this, do that. ‘shiro’ is the imperative form ‘to do’.
こうあるべきだ！ — kou aru beki da — It should be this way.
Do this. Do that. It should be this way.
【多いもん勝ちで決める世の中】
多い — ooi — many, large amount
もん — mon — short for mono — things
勝ち — kachi — win
決める — kimeru — decide
世の中 — yo no naka — world, society
A world where the (s)he who owns the most wins
本当に言いたいことは何？
本当 — hontou — real, true
言いた — iitai — want to say
いこ — koto — thing
何？ — nani — what?
The thing you really want to say is WHAT?
The phrasing is direct and abrupt and demanding, as are all the questions that follow.
本当の自分はどこ？
自分 — jibun — self
どこ？ — doko — where?
The real you is WHERE?
本当になりたいものは何？
なりたいもの — naritai mono — thing you want to become
The thing you really want to become is WHAT?
自分の人生だろ！！
人生 — jinsei — life
だろ — daro —A rough way of asserting ‘don’t you think?’
This is your life, right!!
とても “面と向かって “聞こえる。最初の質問（恥ずかしくないの？）は、あなたを現状にとどまらせようとする「カニバケツ」から受けるものだと思われます。本当の自分を知ることを求める質問は、あなたを目覚めさせ、刺激し、流れに逆らうためのものだ。不協和音のメロディックな伴奏は完璧だ。あなたは目覚めた。わざと不快にしているのだ。また眠らないで。
It sounds very ‘in your face’. The initial questions are what you might expect to get from the bucket of crabs that wants to keep you in the status quo. The questions that demand to know about the real you are to wake you the fuck up; to inspire, to buck the trend. The dissonant melodic accompaniment is perfect. You’ve been woken up. It’s uncomfortable on purpose. Don’t go back to sleep.
Don’t give up!
No!! No one can hold me back!いつだって失った本音
かと違う僕は愛されないのか？
いつだって — itsu datte — all the time
失った — ushinatta — lost, missed
本音 — honne — this is a good word to know. It means one’s true intention. It is often contrasted with tatemae (建前), which is one’s conformity to expected societal norms; the face we show the world. ‘honne’ then, is the true face behind the mask.
誰か — dareka — someone
違う — chigau — be different, be other than expected
僕 — boku — me
愛されない — ai sarenai — to not be loved. ‘sareru’ is the passive form of ‘suru’ (to do). ‘sarenai’ is the negative passive (to not be done).
のか？ — no ka? — this is a sort of plea or lament as a question.
Putting it together you get ‘itsu datte ushinatta honne’ — always losing myself, ‘dareka to chigau boku’ — the me who is different to others, ‘wa ai sarenai no ka?’ am not loved?
Always losing myself. Am I, who is so different to others, not loved?
声なき言葉に消されるな
声なき — koe naki — voiceless. Had to double-check this one, as it seems counterintuitive to me at first glance. I’m used to ‘naki’ being 泣き or 鳴き which in their own way mean ‘to make noise’. In this case it’s 無き which means ‘lacking’. Japanese is fun, isn’t it?
言葉 — kotoba — words
消されるな — kesareru na — don’t be erased. kesu means to switch off, or delete. Putting out a flame, switching off a light, deleting a sentence. ‘sareru’ as we saw earlier is the passive form of suru. Adding ‘na’ to the end of a root verb makes it a command to not do that thing.
Don’t be silenced by voiceless words
流れ落ちる涙乾く前に
流れ落ちる — nagare ochiru — flowing down
涙 — namida — tears
乾く — kawaku — dry
前に — mae ni — before, ahead of
Before my flowing tears dry…
こうやって息をして歌って伝えたい想い届いて どこまでも
こうやって — kou yatte — in this way
息をして — iki wo shite — I breathe
歌って — utatte — I sing
伝えたい想い — tsutaetai omoi — the thoughts/feelings I want to express
届いて — todoite — deliver, get through to, reach
どこまでも — doko made mo — anywhere/everywhere/no matter how far. To the ends of the earth.
Before my tears try, I breathe and sing this way. The feelings I want to express will get through, no matter how far.
世界は、どうなっていくのか？
世界 — sekai — world
どうなっていく — what will become (of the preceding thing)
のか？ (we’ve seen this earlier)
What will become of the world?
深呼吸して。第二のヴァースでまた穏やかになる。ベースとピアノがちょっと散歩して、それから再び盛り上がる。
Take a breath. Tranquility returns with the second verse. We take a short walk with the bass and piano before things kick off again.
君にはどう映る？
君には — kimi niwa — ‘kimi’ means ‘you’. niwa is a particle that puts emphasis on the thing. In this case it’s ‘for you’ or ‘to you’
どう映る？ — dou utsuru? — how is (something) portrayed?
How does it look to you?
真っ暗な空の月
真っ暗な空 — makkura na sora — a completely black sky
月 — tsuki — moon
The moon in a pitch black sky
綺麗に見えるかな？
綺麗 — kirei — beautiful, lovely
見える —mieru — appears, seems
かな？ — kana — I guess, I suppose, I wonder
How does the moon in a pitch black sky look to you? Beautiful, I suppose?
僕にはね…
僕にはね… — boku niwa ne~ — As for how it looks to me…
これからが本番だ。ここでのアンジーの声の表現力が大好きだ。絶対に釘付けになる。
Now we’re getting into it. I love how expressive Angie’s voice is here. She absolutely nails it.
「キミはいつも楽しそうだね」
キミ — kimi — you
いつも — itsumo — always
楽しそう — tanoshisou — look like one is having fun
“You look like you’re always having fun, don’t you?”
楽しいから笑ってると思う？
楽しい — tanoshii — fun, enjoyable
から — kara — because, from
笑ってる — waratteru — smiling, laughing
と思う？ — to omou? — do you think?
Do you think I’m smiling because this is fun for me?
悲しいから笑ってる時もあるし
悲しい — kanashii — sad, sorrowful
時 — toki — time
もあるし — mo aru shi — ‘mo aru’ there is this as well, I have this as well. Using ‘shi’ as a connector is a way of listing multiple things that are relevant.
There are times when I smile because I’m sad
悔しいのを隠すためでもある
悔しい — kuyashii — frustration, humiliation, disappointment
隠す — kakusu — hide
ため — for the benefit of
でもある — de mo aru — is also the case
Also to hide my frustration/disappointment
何でも決めつけないでよ
何でも — nandemo — everything/anything
決めつけないでよ — kimetsukenaide yo — kimetsuku means to decide or assume something is a certain way (regardless of the opinion of others). ~naide is a caution to not do something.
Don’t make assumptions about everything.
知ってるふりしないでよ
知ってる — shitteru — know
ふり —furi — pretend
しないでよ — shinaide yo — don’t do
Don’t pretend you know.
わかってるふりしないでよ
わかってる — wakatteru — understand
Don’t pretend you understand!
The backing vocals:
(こんなんじゃないんだ僕は 耐えられないよ もう1人の自分が叫んでいた)
konnan janainda boku wa — This isn’t how I am
taerarenai yo — I can’t endure it (it cannot be endured)
mou hitori no jibun ga sakendeita — another me was screaming
Do you think I’m smiling because this is fun for me?
(This isn’t me)
There are times when I smile because I’m sad too,
(I can’t endure it)
Also to hide my disappointment.
Don’t make assumptions about everything.
Don’t pretend you know!
(Another me was screaming)
Don’t pretend you understand!
こう語った、漆黒の空に輝く月。
頭の中今日も心が
頭の中 — atama no naka — inside my head/mind
今日 — kyou — today
心 — kokoro — heart/spirit/(mind)
In my head, and today in my heart,
身体と離れたいって声をあげた
身体 — karada — body
離れたいって — hanaretai tte — want to be separate from
声をあげた — koe wo ageta — raised my voice
My mind and today even my heart raised their voice to say ‘I want to be separate from this body’.
誰かの感情をコピーして生きることはいらない 僕は僕だ
誰かの感情 — dareka no kanjou — somebody’s emotions
コピーして — kopi- shite — to copy
生きること — ikiru koto— living
いらない — iranai — don’t need
僕は僕だ — boku ha boku da — I am me.
I don’t want to copy other people’s emotions; to live like that. I am me.
やめないよ息をして歌って
やめないよ — yamenai yo — I won’t quit
息をして —iki wo shite — (I’ll) breathe
歌って —utatte — (I’ll) sing
くだらないって今誰かに言われても
くだらないって — kudaranai tte — kudaranai means insignificant, trifling or worthless. ‘tte’ indicates it is something that has been said
今 — ima — now
誰か — dareka — someone
言われても — iwarete mo — even if it is said/even if (someone) says
I won’t quit. I’ll breathe. I’ll sing. Even if someone says to me it’s insignificant.
世界は…
sekai wa — the world is…
I don’t know, what do you mean?
Live the life you love.正義語り散らかした盲目的信者たちよ
正義 — seigi — righteousness
語り — katari — narrate, recital
散らかした — chirakashita — scattered, spread around
盲目的 — moumokuteki — blind (faith)
信者たち — shinjatachi — devotees, followers
You blind disciples, blindly spreading your righteousness
正しい間違い他ない
正しい — tadashii — right
間違い — machigai — wrong
他ない — hoka nai — nothing but, can’t help but
言わない手はない
言わない手はない — iwanai te wa nai — idiomatic expression that means “there is no choice but to say/speak”. ‘~nai te wa nai’ means no choice but to ~.
I struggled to translate this bit, to be honest. (ガチャピン助けて！本当の言いたいことは何？). I think this is something like:
You blind disciples, blindly spreading your righteousness.
There is nought but right and wrong (for you)
There is no reason not to call it out.
EDIT: I took a look at the live version of the song. The translation provided there is better than my effort, I reckon.
どうせこんな世界だなんて
Anyway, just because the world is like this
全て投げ出さないで
Don’t throw it all away
この瞬間苦しくても終わりじゃない
Even if it hurts right now, this isn’t the end
誰かと違う自分を僕が愛せばいい
It’s okay to love the you that is different from others
そこから始めよう
そこ — soko — there
から — kara — from
始めよう — hajimeyou — let’s start
Let’s start from there
君にはこの歌どんな風に聴こえる？
君には — kimi niwa — to you
この — kono — this
歌 — uta — song
どんな風に — don-na fuu ni — in what way/manner
聴こえる？ — kikoeru — do you/can you hear
How does this song sound to you?
こんな世界だからこそ此処に立ち続けて歌おう
こんな —konna — ‘such as this’
世界 — sekai — world
だからこそ — dakara koso — for this specific reason. ‘koso’ adds emphasis to a reason, singling it out specifically.
此処 — koko — here. Usually this is just written as hiragana (ここ). I suppose they’re usking kanji here again for emphasis.
立ち続けて — tachi tsuzukete — keep standing
歌おう — utaou — let’s sing
Because this world is the way it is, let’s stand our ground here and sing.
Then we’re back for a final chorus that begins the same as the first one, but changes it up a bit
いつだって失った本音
誰かと違う僕は愛されないのか？
声なき言葉に消されるな
流れ落ちる涙乾く前に
Always losing myself.
Am I, who is so different to others, not loved?
Don’t be silenced by voiceless words
Before your falling tears dry,
こうやって辛くたって僕ら生きていくんだ 信じてこの時を
こうやって — kou yatte — in this way
辛くたって — tsuraku tatte — no matter how / even if it it’s hard
僕ら — bokura — we
生きていくんだ — ikite iku-nda — we’ll go on living
信じてこの時 — I believe in this time/age
In this way, no matter how hard it is, we’ll carry on living. I believe in this time.
世界はとても美しい
sekai wa totemo utsukushii — the world is very beautiful
この曲はヴォーカルのショーケースだね。ま、最低、MVでは楽器が故意にヴォーカルの後ろに配置されてる感じだよ。ライブバージョンではそこまででもないけど。特にアンジーは（どうやっていえばいいかな）束縛から解放されて、本当に素直な演技をしてるように感じられる。でも、他の女の子たちも飾り立ててるだけじゃない強力なヴォーカルパートを担当していて。カラオケで一人で歌うには向いてない曲だよ。
This song is a vocal showcase. At least in the the MV, the mix sets the instruments well behind the vocals, on purpose I think. Less so in the live version. Angie in particular seems to have been let off the leash a bit and puts in a performance that feels very authentically vulnerable, but all of the girls have strong vocal parts to play in a way that isn’t merely decorative. It’s not a song you could do solo at karaoke.
歌詞の元気でポジティブなトーンは、音楽のヘビーな不協和音と対立しているように見えるかもしれないけど、静かでメロディアスな部分とメタルな部分を行き来することと、MVの黒と赤のライティングと共に、本音と建前の対比をサポートしていると思う、そして（これは単なる自分の投影かもしれないけど）、それがどれだけ疲れるかを示している。『W』アルバムにおいて「I wish I」は完璧だったでしょう。一方で、彼らは両方のアルバムを特別な「ダブル」アルバムとして一緒にリリースできたのではないかと、ふと思います。それは言ってみれば、GSアルバムの前触れとして、私はそれが大好きです。
The uplifting and positive tone of the lyrics might seem at odds with the heavy dissonance of the music, but along with the switch between tranquilly melodic and metal, and the black/red lighting in the MV, I think it supports the juxtaposition of honne and tatemae and (this could just be me projecting) how debilitatingly tiring that can be. ‘I wish I’ would have been perfect on the ‘W’ album. I idly wonder if they could have done a special release of both albums together as a ‘double’ album. That said, I love it as a precursor to Mindset on the GS album.
Gacharic Spinは歌を書くたびに、いつも小説を書くようなものだよ。いつもたくさんのことをカバーしないといけない。ここまで読んでくれたら、お疲れ様だし、ありがとう。
Gacharic Spin seem to write a novel every time they write a song. There’s always a lot to cover. If you’ve read this far, well done and thank you.