雷鳴オーバードライブ
Thunder Overdrive
Iwatooshi | Ashikubi | Hyakka Kenran
ワンツースリーさぁ 始めようか
ONE TWO THREE saa hajimeyou ka
One, two, three, let's begin!
弦をかき鳴らして
Gen wo kakinara shite
Strumming the strings
ビットパーセカンド 刻み付けて
BITS PER SECOND kizamitsukete
Bits per second, etched in stone
自分だけのグループを
Jibun dake no GROUP o
My own group!
結んで開けばドクロかタカラ
Musunde hirakeba dokuro ka takara
When you tie and untie it, it reveals either a skull or treasure.
曖昧なままじゃ踏み出せないから
Aimai na mama ja fumidasenai kara
I can't take the first step if things remain unclear.
衝動を解き放って 一振りの夢をみれば
Shoudou wo tokihanatte hitofuri no yume wo mireba
Unleash your impulses and dream a single, powerful dream.
駆け抜けるほどに燃える 感情は泡沫の空へ
Kakenukeru hodo ni moeru kanjou wa utakata no sora e
The more I run, the more my emotions burn, like fleeting bubbles in the sky
薙いで薙いで突き進め
Naide naide tsukisusume
Slash and thrust your way forward!
時代の渦を切り裂いて
Jidai no uzu wo kirisaite
Cutting through the whirlpool of time
足踏みしてちゃおいてかれるぜ
Ashibumi shite cha oite kareru ze
If you hesitate, you'll be left behind!
まだまだ始まったばかり
Madamada hajimatta bakari
It’s still just the beginning
オンリーワン さぁ極めようか
ONLY ONE saa kiwameyou ka
One of a kind—Let’s master it!
誰の許可もいらない
Dare no kyoka mo iranai
I don't need anyone's permission.
デッドオアアライブ 勢いつけ
DEAD OR ALIVE ikioi tsuke
Dead or alive—gaining my own momentum
死神たち飛び越えて
Shinigami tachi tobikoete
Leaping over grim reapers
泣いても祭りは後に引けない
Naite mo matsuri wa ato ni hikenai
Even if you cry, there is no turning back.
命かけてもっと盛り上がれ
Inochi kakete motto moriagare
Risk your life and get even more excited
重力を解き放って 鎖を断ち切れるなら
Juuryoku wo tokihanatte kusari wo tachikireru nara
If I could unleash gravity and break free from these chains
こんな世界だってほら 悪くないと思えるじゃないか
Konna sekai datte hora warukunai to omoeru ja nai ka
Even in this kind of world, you can see that it's not so bad, right?
甘んじても許されない
Amanjite mo yurusarenai
It's not acceptable to be complacent
明日のことすら吐き出せない
Asu no koto sura hakidasenai
I can't even think about tomorrow
ただ呼ぶ声に前を向いたら
Tada yobu koe ni mae wo muitara
But when I looked ahead at the sound of the voice calling me
黎明のチャンスがそこに
Reimei no CHANCE ga soko ni
The chance to see the dawn is here
さあ見開いて
Saa mihiraite
Now, open your eyes wide!
衝動を解き放って 一振りの夢をみれば
Shoudou wo tokihanatte hitofuri no yume wo mireba
Unleash your impulses and dream a single, powerful dream.
駆け抜けるほどに燃える 感情は泡沫の空へ
Kakenukeru hodo ni moeru kanjou wa utakata no sora e
The more I run, the more my emotions burn, like fleeting bubbles in the sky
薙いで薙いで突き進め
Naide naide tsukisusume
Slash and thrust your way forward!
時代の渦を切り裂いて
Jidai no uzu wo kirisaite
Cutting through the whirlpool of time
足踏みしてちゃおいてかれるぜ
Ashibumi shite cha oite kareru ze
If you hesitate, you'll be left behind!
まだまだ始まったばかり
Madamada hajimatta bakari
It’s still just the beginning
Romanization: kuronatsukikage
Iwatooshi is a fictional naginata that built his story around being Mushashibo Benkei’s, warrior monk and infamous collector of 999 swords, naginata. When he was supposed to gain his thousandth sword, he fought young Minamoto no Yoshitsune, and was beaten twice. The second time, he became Yoshitsune’s retainer. It was said that Benkei wielded Iwatooshi when he fought off over three hundred men trying to put a halt to Yoshitsune’s honorable suicide.
Iwatooshi is a great guy. With that said, Raimei Overdrive is simply a song that showcases Iwatooshi's personality. I wouldn’t say that like Shokudaikiri’s or even Ookurikara’s image songs that they heavily derive their consciousnesses off of a certain person or deity respectively, but I can see where Iwatooshi mirrors Benkei. I don’t think Benkei exactly craved battle like Iwatooshi does, however the fact that Benkei collected 999 swords from samurai he deemed unworthy can play a factor.
The song starts out with him counting towards the start of what seems like a battle. Knowing Iwatooshi, he gets quite excited when he's about to fight, and this is showcased throughout the song through lyrics like "dead or alive, gaining my own momentum / leaping over grim reapers" and "risk your life and get even more excited." Iwatooshi, as a character, is loud, boisterous, and laughs in the face of danger. He’s also a pretty big guy, which also alludes to Benkei’s stature historically, and the fact that naginata are huge weapons.
Even more lyrics to showcase his zeal for battle include “slash and thrust your way forward / cutting through this whirlpool of time / if you hesitate, you’ll be left behind.” While it sounds like he is quite the impulsive guy (he is usually) there are a couple lyrics that contradict that, like “I can't take the first step if things remain unclear,” and “I can’t even think about tomorrow / But when I looked ahead at the sound of the voice calling me / The chance to see the dawn is here.” There can be moments where Iwatooshi needs to reassess the situation, but times to contemplate the next move do not mean hesitation. It contributes a lot to his personality that yes, he’s quite the battlemonger but he only fights when the threat is certain.
Another theme I pick up on is defiance. “I don’t need anyone’s permission,” “if I could unleash gravity and break free from these chains,” and “it’s not acceptable to be complacent,” hint to some sort of barrier he’s facing that prevents him from reaching his true potential, or even other people’s true potential. This could be a reference to Benkei, who for a chunk of his life was a rogue warrior and apparently not very pleasing to the eye. He was at first, a monk in a monastery, but he became a yamabushi at the age of seventeen, which after that I assume that he became a killer. Doing things his own way until Minamoto no Yoshitsune beat him in battle, twice.
My favorite lyrics are in the chorus, “Unleash your impulses and dream a single, powerful dream / the more I run, the more my emotions burn, like fleeting bubbles in the sky.” Iwatooshi, in short, is a free spirit, the thunder to the lightning. Overdriving his enemies. He may not have been a real historical weapon, but he holds a story nonetheless.
Fast forward to when his Kiwame was released, Iwatooshi did confirm that he is a fictional sword, and that Benkei did not wield him as Benkei was defending Yoshitsune’s place of death. However, despite that information, he held pride in being remembered still, even as a fictional naginata.
At first I was always sleeping on this song but of course, when you finally give a chance to the songs you've been skipping is when you realize that this shit has always been banger. The bassline especially is what attracted me. Fork found in kitchen.
In seriousness, this is a great fucking song. Thank you Ashikubi for singing it deadass. As a parting gift (not really a gift from me, per se) PolyphonicBranch posted a full animation for the Raimei Overdrive on his YouTube (8 years ago.) You may have seen it before, but a refresher is always nice, no?
