niku

i like that saito is a very intelligent man (he is degree educated in literature at waseda and did a 4 year course [1] which i think is either a bachelor's or a master's i do not live in japan please tell me) and i especially like that he is not afraid to make references to other literary works in his own.

saito's song 'uzumibi' draws from cormac mccarthy's 'the road' [2] — it's about a father and son and their graphic journey through a post-apocalyptic world. the lyrics of 'uzumibi' seem reminiscent of these ideas, but i think i need to read it before i can make sufficient judgement or publish my translation and interpretation.

one day i plan on translating one of saito's entire literary works. and i don't think i'll ever fully release that translation, i think it'll be entirely self-indulgent. ^_^

speaking of musicians and literary references, a name that's apparently newsworthy these days is one miss taylor swift. the two references that come to mind are 'love story' and 'the fate of ophelia'. but i dislike her portrayal of the plays, as it's clear the main messages haven't been understood. i will talk about this in future probably. but not today.

comparing this to saito's interpretations of literature in his own work, i think he draws from themes and context rather than storylines. saito's poetry tends not to have concrete narratives to it.

i've noticed that i am rambling and nobody actually cares? is this true. Please ask me about soma saito's work i will write essays

FOOTNOTES

[1] Soma Saito's Wikipedia page

この毒は すこしぬるいから

kono doku wa sukoshi nurui kara

this poison, it’s slightly lukewarm

ぼやけていく わからなくなっていく

boyaketeiku wakaranakunatteiku

it’s getting bleary, it’s getting confusing

ごらん カナリア

goran kanaria

look, a canary [1]

だんまりかい[2]？

danmari kai

is it silent?

笑ったような からかっているような

waratta you na karakatteiru you na

like smiling, like teasing

水はいいな いずれさよなら

mizu wa ii na izure sayonara

the water’s fine, but someday, it’ll be goodbye

ごらん カナリア

goran kanaria

look, a canary,

囀った

saezutta

chirping,

つまりは

tsumari wa

in other words,

あんまりだ

anmari da

it’s too much.

砂を噛んだ ちかちか 眩しいな

suna wo kanda chikachika mabushii na

biting the sand [3], shimmering, dazzling

ロボトミーが 昨日を失くした

robotomii ga kino wo nakushita

the lobotomy has stolen yesterday

ごらん カナリア

goran kanaria

look, a canary?

かなしいかい？

kanashii kai

is it sad?

うつろな

utsuro na

or empty,

人形の眼だね

ningyou no me da ne

the eyes of a doll,

きれいなもんさ

kirei na mon sa

a beautiful thing,

燐光の中

rinkou no naka

in the phosphorescence [4],

くすぐったいよ ああ

kusuguttai yo aa

it tickles,

もう息も

mou iki mo

i can’t breathe anymore.

この毒は すこしぬるいから

kono doku wa sukoshi nurui kara

this poison, it’s slightly lukewarm

ぼやけていく わからなくなっていく

boyaketeiku wakaranakunatteiku

it’s getting bleary, it’s getting confusing.

--

bye i love this song SO MUCH. actually, it was the song that sort of made me fall in love for the first time… how embarrassing. it’s a long story, but this song stirs up lots of emotion in me, so i wanted to share my translation of it with you all T_T i will love in bloom forever. this song is so peak, acoustic guitar and cello (or maybe viola?) work so well together which i didnt expect!

as for my interpretation, i think this song is about death — the lyrics are so simple, as if the speaker is a child, or in a similar mindset to one, and it’s reminiscent of the idea that a person is completely calm in their last moments before drowning. here are some footnotes so you can see my thought process a little clearer:

[1] so i hadn’t seen a canary before googling this today. you guys need to see how cute this bird is.

[2] かい (kai) particle is sort of like an informal way to ask questions. common in younger boys.

[3] in Japanese, “(feeling like) biting the sand” basically refers to feeling that something is dull and unpleasant. it’s not euphemistic for dying as I originally thought.

この毒は すこしぬるいから

kono doku wa sukoshi nurui kara

this poison, it’s slightly lukewarm

ぼやけていく わからなくなっていく

boyaketeiku wakaranakunatteiku

it’s getting bleary, it’s getting confusing

ごらん カナリア

goran kanaria

look, a canary [1]

だんまりかい[2]？

danmari kai

is it silent?

笑ったような からかっているような

waratta you na karakatteiru you na

like smiling, like teasing

水はいいな いずれさよなら

mizu wa ii na izure sayonara

the water’s fine, but someday, it’ll be goodbye

ごらん カナリア

goran kanaria

look, a canary,

囀った

saezutta

chirping,

つまりは

tsumari wa

in other words,

あんまりだ

anmari da

it’s too much.

砂を噛んだ ちかちか 眩しいな

suna wo kanda chikachika mabushii na

biting the sand [3], shimmering, dazzling

ロボトミーが 昨日を失くした

robotomii ga kino wo nakushita

the lobotomy has stolen yesterday

ごらん カナリア

goran kanaria

look, a canary?

かなしいかい？

kanashii kai

is it sad?

うつろな

utsuro na

or empty,

人形の眼だね

ningyou no me da ne

the eyes of a doll,

きれいなもんさ

kirei na mon sa

a beautiful thing,

燐光の中

rinkou no naka

in the phosphorescence [4],

くすぐったいよ ああ

kusuguttai yo aa

it tickles,

もう息も

mou iki mo

i can’t breathe anymore.

この毒は すこしぬるいから

kono doku wa sukoshi nurui kara

this poison, it’s slightly lukewarm

ぼやけていく わからなくなっていく

boyaketeiku wakaranakunatteiku

it’s getting bleary, it’s getting confusing.

--

bye i love this song SO MUCH. actually, it was the song that sort of made me fall in love for the first time… how embarrassing. it’s a long story, but this song stirs up lots of emotion in me, so i wanted to share my translation of it with you all T_T i will love in bloom forever. this song is so peak, acoustic guitar and cello (or maybe viola?) work so well together which i didnt expect!

as for my interpretation, i think this song is about death — the lyrics are so simple, as if the speaker is a child, or in a similar mindset to one, and it’s reminiscent of the idea that a person is completely calm in their last moments before drowning. here are some footnotes so you can see my thought process a little clearer:

[1] so i hadn’t seen a canary before googling this today. you guys need to see how cute this bird is.

[2] かい (kai) particle is sort of like an informal way to ask questions. common in younger boys.

[3] in Japanese, “(feeling like) biting the sand” basically refers to feeling that something is dull and unpleasant. it’s not euphemistic for dying as I originally thought.

随分長い愛だ

zuibun nagai ai da

it’s been a long time

強烈で歩いている

kyouretsu de aruiteiru

walking with such intensity

放課後の世界では

houkago no sekai de wa

in the world of ‘afterschool’

ダモクレの曖昧で任せる気がしたの

damokure no aimai de makaseru kigashita no

worrying about losing to damocles’[1] ambiguity

光に騙されて

hikari ni damasarete

fooled in the light

みだりに薬掻いていた

midari ni kaiteita

and carelessly swallowed[2]

悲哀に染まるだけ

hiai ni somaru dake

stained in only sorrow

なんて意味ない 分かるよ

nante imi nai wakaru yo

it means nothing, that's understood

光に眼を焼かれ

hikari ni me wo yakare

the light, burning back into the retina

飽きずに求めていた

akizu ni motometeita

and lethargically making a wish

浸りきてなんてぬるま湯

hitari kite nurumayu

soaked in lukewarm water,

なんて意味ない場所だろう

nante imi nai basho darou

this place has no meaning

随分遠い所に

zuibun tooi toko ni

such a faraway place

気づけば来ていたんな

kizukeba kiteitandana, aa

having arrived before noticing

放課後の世界では

houkago no sekai de wa

in the world of ‘afterschool’

眩しさに慣れきて

mabushisa ni nare kite

becoming accustomed to the light

やれている気がしたの

yareteiru kigashita no

it felt like i was doing it

光に受かられて

hikari ni ukasarete

received by the light,

日帰り止まったふれ

higaeri* tomatta fure

the day trip came to a halt,

それなり凝らすのなんて意味ない

sorenari* korasu* no nante imi nai

it’s meaningless to try too hard

分かるよ

wakaru yo

i know

光に触られ

hikari ni saraware

touched by the light

うざまに取りつくろう

uzama ni toritsukurou

let’s take out whatever annoys us

漁り火のない海でもう生きもできないよ

isaribi no nai umi de mou iki mo dekinai yo

can’t breathe in this sea without a lurelight[2]

光に憧れて

hikari ni akogarete

aspiring to be like the light,

光に近づけたら

hikari ni chikazuketara

if i come closer to the light,

もしかして自分もなんて意味ない

moshikashite jibun mo nante imi nai

maybe there’s no meaning in this ‘me’,

分かれよ

wakare yo

so let’s divide*

光にうわしたって

hikari ni uwashitatte

even if the light is a burden

光に焦がれたって

hikari ni kogaretatte

or even if it’s something yearned for

日が来るとような

hi ga kuru to you na

as if the day will come,

この喜劇は上れないから

kono kigeki wa uwarenai kara

not getting this comedy

光に枯れたって海はないから

hikari ni karetatte umi* wa nai kara

and if the light wanes away, there’ll be no sea

* im pretty sure this is entirely wrong

[1] the sword of damocles is a symbolic ancient greek metaphor that basicallt says "with great power comes great suffering/risk/responsibility"

[2] translated as 'swallowed' but in reality it's '(kusuri) kaite' so the whole line should read 'carelessly, i took (the medicine/drugs)'. for some reason he doesnt actually say 'kusuri'.... just 'kaite'. in my translation i wanted to reflect his lack of pronouns aswell which is why i used 'swallowed' rather than just 'took'

[3] jp: isaribi — fishing equipment that is basically a lure with a little light on the end of it that people use to catch fish. lurelight sounded the prettiest so thats how i phrased it

落日 / 斉藤壮馬　[1]

rakujitsu / saitou souma

Sunset / Soma Saito

陽が沈んだのはさっき？

you ga shizunda no wa sakki?

Did the sun sink down just now?

ピンク色した空が見ていた

pinku iro shita sora ga miteita

I was watching a pink-coloured sky

わだかまったようだ、最近

wadakamattayouda, saikin

Something’s seemed off, recently —

いや、それよりずっと前から

iya, sore yori zutto mae kara

No, it was worse before,

間違っていたのかもな

machigatte ita no kamo na

Maybe I was mistaken.

日々はどうしようもなくね

hibi wa doushiyoumonaku ne

This weather, it’s hopeless,

残酷に流れていくけど

zankoku ni nagarete iku kedo

It’s flowing with such cruelty,

ひびは繕わなくていい

hibi wa tsukurowanakute ii

Fixing the weather isn’t important —

にせものでいい

nisemono de ii

It’s okay to be fake. [2]

なんてさ、単なるクリシェかな

nante sa, tannaru kurishe kana

Well, it’s just cliche

だけどさ、月並みな言葉

dakedo sa, tsukinamina kotoba

But, these ordinary words,

それが時にして刺さるのさ

sore ga toki ni shite sasaru no sa

Sometimes they sting —

どこかで半身を失くした

dokoka de hanshin wo shitsukushita

Where did I lose the other half of my body?

そんな感覚がずっとのって

sonna kankaku ga zutto notte [3]

This feeling’s been here for so long.

影をまた見間違う

kage wo mata mimachigau

Again I mistake the shadow.

きみがどうしようもなくて

kimi ga doushiyoumonakute

You can’t be helped,

ほんものに潰されても

honmono ni tsubusaretemo

Even if I’m crushed by the truth

意味がわからなくてもいい

imi ga wakaranakute mo ii

It’s okay not to understand what it means

にせものでいい

nisemono de ii

It’s okay to be fake

なんてさ　言えたらいいのにな

nantesa ietara ii no ni na

Well, I wish I could say it,

だけどさ　うまくはいかないな

dakedo sa umaku wa ikanai na

But it’s not going too well,

夜にならないで、今だけは

yoru ni naranaide, ima dake wa

Don’t be there at night, just for now.

日々はどうしようもなくね

hibi wa doushiyoumonaku ne

This weather, it’s hopeless,

残酷に流れていくけど

zankoku ni nagarete iku kedo

It’s flowing with such cruelty,

ひびは繕わなくていい

hibi wa tsukurowanakute ii

Fixing the weather isn’t important —

にせものでいい

nisemono de ii

It’s okay to be fake.

なんてさ、単なるクリシェかな

nante sa, tannaru kurishe kana

Well, it’s just cliche

だけどさ、月並みな言葉

dakedo sa, tsukinamina kotoba

But, these ordinary words,

それが時にして刺さるのさ

sore ga toki ni shite sasaru no sa

Sometimes they sting.

Notes

[1] - This is my translation of what was written on the lyric sheet that Soma posted today (sep21). I bet it’ll be released later this year as part of his upcoming EP ‘Nuance’ (I’M SO EXCITED….. GAHHH) ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡ Or if it’s not part of the main tracks, maybe this will be a secret track?

Here’s a picture of his tweet. I had to rotate, flip, and enhance it to read the lyrics right. ( ˶°ㅁ°) so! some of this is probably wrong …

Also, since I didn’t hear the song, i couldn’t have transcribed this without the help of r/translator, and here is a link to my thread!! (..◜ᴗ◝..)

[2] - I just wanted to footnote this because I didn’t exactly translate it PROPERLY. (¬_¬") It’s literally“fake/counterfeit is okay”, but I wanted it to have a verb for it to fit more naturally into English (ˊᗜˋ) www

[3] - Soma scribbled right over this part ww.. i don’t know what it says, it’s likely wrong and in fact not “notte”, but I guessed based on what was visible. (´ ˘ `)