RUSSIAN DIR EN GREY FAN-CLUB ADMIN: vk.com/club558881 Live in a beautiful city of Moscow. Bit introversial, but very open-minded and communicative. instagram.com/elenalester
Hi there, I came here and found your amazing translation of Dokugen. I'm asking how many chapters in total for Vol. 1&2, and if the translation project is still on-going. Thanks so much!
Hi! Thanks for your kind message :)
The first book is officially finished, I believe the second one is also, but I’m not sure, I would have to check it. It was translated from Japanese into Russian, then I started translating from Russian into English. However, I unfortunately do not translate anymore.
- the band was so energetic I have never seen them move around so much. Kaoru and toshiya kept moving around to different parts of the stage and there was just so much ENERGY
- kyo’s bowlcut is literal best hair cut #confirmed
-die FUCKED UP at the very beginning of itoshisa, when he started playing he accidentally had his guitar still distorted and it was holy HOLY FUCK until he hit his foot pedal and fixed it lol. He did this cute kinda ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ smile
- toshiya had the literal tightest pants known to man LIKE IT WAS A SECOND SKIN!
- Kaoru had his shoulderS EXPOSED again and it was A Pretty QUALITY Look let me tell you
- shinya? Deadpan facial expression when kyo literally trieD to DISASSEMBLE ONE OF HIS CYMBALS MID SONG?? Kyo just stood up there and started trying to twist it apart, meanwhile Kaoru is giving him this “what the fuck are you doing my guy” look, toshiya pointing at him like CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS FOOL?? and he was truly a fool because he FAILED at taking down the cymbal but it was all positioned wrong after he fucked with it so staff had to come fix it after. A FOOL
- THEY PLAYED KAISHUN I WAS HAPPY
- kyo spit water onto meeee… rip in actual peace @ myself. Just lower me into my grave! Goodbye!
- OH YEAAA
- I’ve had 15 hours of sleep since Wednesday and now I’m at a fucking DENNYS in Japan what is my life
I just would like to thank you for the translation of Dokugen. I've bought it, but I can't read Japanese, and I was so sad... Now I'm reading your translation, and it makes me happy ^^ Thanks again :)
Thanks for that, I really appreciate it ;) Sorry I didn't finish. I don't think I'm ever going to. Who knows, though :)
What would your personal top-10 DIR EN GREY songs be? cheers xD
Oh Jesus, I was afraid of this. I CAN’T PICK ONLY 10! Can you? Well, let’s see then.
1 — and the ultimate — DIFFERENT SENSE. 2. Kiri to mayu (2012)3. Kasumi (original)4. Merciless Cult 5. Ryoujoku no ame (single version)6. mazohyst of decadence7. Hotarubi 8. Bottom of the Death Valley (2013)9. Inconvenient ideal 10. ain’t afraid to die
Oh Jesus, consider the entire discography as my “top-10 Dir en grey songs” =\
So, I know I’m 2 days late, but nevertheless.
I don’t really have much to say, you know. Despite the fact that I had been promoting them throughout Russia and Europe for five full years doing my very best. This is what I’ve got in the last 9,5 years and I’m not sure I want any more. So yeah. Stay cool, guys.
Thank you so much for the translations of Dokugen again, and please pass on my thanks to the other translator working with you as well. There is a Dir en grey community on Reddit, would it be okay to provide a link to these translations? I'm sure everyone there (small community, less than 500 members), would love to read the chapters if they are English speaking like me. Your blog/s would receive full credit. If you say no, that's okay too. Thank you again, and happy holidays <3 <3.
Thank you for your kind words, I'm glad someone reads that :33 Of course, go ahead!
My friend @ndavidov has just made me realize that Toshiya brand’s title DIRT comes from "DIR" for Dir en grey + "T" for Toshiya. DIR+T. DIRT.
Oh my god, it's like I have just opened the secret of the Universe.
Please tell me you never realized that either :D
Translated from Japanese to Russian by Diana_ together with Russian DIR EN GREY COMMUNITY.
Translated from Russian to English by me.
Note of translator: In Japan, interviews and conversations in magazines are not made according to the rules of writing. They retain the structure of oral speech. Kaoru speaks and writes in quite a simple manner, no sophisticated beautiful words used, repeats himself sometimes, uses Kansai dialect. The book keeps his natural way of expressing himself in everyday life. His notes have not been edited according to the rules of writing. Now, remember that this book is a collection of notes, some of them quite old, so while Kaoru speaks in present time like “this guitar is new”, you shouldn’t forget he might have written that few years ago.
This chapter is very interesting and it was a huge challenge for our team. We literally broke our brains. Kaoru fanboys a lot about his equipment and uses musical and technical jargon all the time. There were moments we thought we were doomed, we couldn’t understand what on earth he was talking about. For this matter, to make the text easy and comprehensible, I interviewed a few professional guitarists, so if you want to fully understand details, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND reading comments below the text, they explain A LOT.
To avoid any questions: I refer to guitars as “she/her” because in Russian, the word “guitar” is feminine, it’s a force of habit, I can’t control it, sorry :D Enjoy!
CHAPTER IV : AFTER A POINTLESS LOOP (PART I)
In previous column, I talked about GANESA №2. I was going to talk about another guitar this time, but today I will focus on GANESA again, this time – on the 7-string model. Since it has additional effects pedal, I’m going to break the story into two consecutive issues. My current mood is weird, I want to write more, so I’m going to talk about inner doubts and conflicts that arise during the process of creating music, from the first draft to its final release. Although I’m not sure whether I should write about it or not…
The album «Kisou» of 2002 features songs that had been written with the 7-string guitar. So, the first 7-string model of GANESA series was created for the tour in support of the album.
In fact, it had also been used for recording «Deity» from the previous album «MACABRE», but I had played 7-string ESP HORIZON model mostly for «MACABRE». I do not remember exactly, but it seems to me that I never played HORIZON at concerts. She’s one of those guitars whose fate is now unknown, which I wrote about earlier. I have no idea where she is now. The guitar was rented, so maybe it is still being used. On the other hand, the demand on 7-string guitars is low, so it’s quite possible that she has been left untouched for years. When I think about it, I want to find her. I have this thing for collecting stuff, and since I already possess both 6- and 8-string models of «HORIZON», it would be nice to have the 7-string as well. But, if nothing can be done… then nothing can be done.
I have been using my signature 7-string VIPER with a neck of an average length and a weak tension of the strings now.
I have small hands, my arms are not very long, so I asked the manufacturer to use the measurements of the GANESA guitar (she was perfect). I never liked that weak “viscous” string tension before, yet it has become my favorite sound recently. Unstable pitch* (when sound “floats” and does not stand on a frequency-related “higher” scale, creating low, “viscous”, “dirty” sound; see the detailed note from a professional guitarist at the end of the chapter) sounds so cool! I’m not sure I would use this guitar for recording purposes, but I do sometimes use her for composing and arrangements. It’s not just about the instrument itself, you can create different sounds with the help of effects unit, I have tried various “tricks” before I started working on music.
I need complete isolation from the world when I write music. Once you’re alone, a greater attention is paid to important details that are usually easily overlooked. In other words, psychologically I do feel anxious when isolated, but for me it’s the best state for creativity. I can’t concentrate, nothing helps me if there’s no place where I could be alone: without it I can’t find my inner self. When we gather in the studio for pre-production work, each band member sits quietly with his earbuds in. Sometimes we do not exchange a single word for days. But that’s the only way it works.
I try not to listen to any music at such times, in order to avoid any possible undue influence. But then I can spend more time working with guitars and try something new with amplifiers. Using all the time in the world.
As a matter of fact, I got an offer to start series production of my 7-string VIPER, but I’ll talk about it later.
While I was writing this note, I was simultaneously watching European Football Championship on television. And now I’m listening to the Italian band Hour of Penance and their fifth album «Sedition». I really like it! Although both the singer and the drummer have been replaced (I did not notice that). The new release of their compatriots Fleshgod Apocalypse is also very good. I spent all night listening to them.
I composed music for «Kisou» with 7-string GANESA. This album was both a challenge and an experiment for me. Three songs had been recorded with this guitar: «Zomboid», «Gyakujou tannou keloid milk» and «Karasu». It seems to me that due to the fact that I was able to write the last two, the rest of the songs turned more diversified. As I agonized over them (not even close to the agony I have to face now), I realized that the path of greatest resistance is the best for me. I need to analyze and suffer all the time. It is in the process of thinking and suffering where I often find a clean, clear and simple vision of how things should be. In other words, no matter what you have to go through, the most important thing is that it allows you to grow and become stronger. I learned this lesson thanks to an episode from the past associated with the work on «Gyakujou tannou keloid milk»…
«Gyakujou» came as a couple-song on the «FILTH» single, which preceded the album release.
But the band members wanted to include the song into the album as well. My story is about those times.
At first we planned to make «Gyakujou..» a title track. And we started the usual pre-production work to create standard arrangements [for a single]. But somewhere deep inside I knew this music was quite weak for a single. It would have been better had I expressed my concerns at an early stage of work, because by that time we had progressed quite far already. At that point, it was hard for me to go against the band. I asked label’s CEO and our staff for an honest opinion about this song. But the deadline was close, and I still could not decide what to do. Had it been the lack of energy in the song, it would have been possible to fix it with a bright arrangement. But it would have ruined the atmosphere of the track, and that I could not afford.
Finally the first day of recording came. I remember waking up in the morning and going to the studio. I was tense and decided to talk with the band about postponing the recording of this song.
To be continued.
P.S. I re-read the note. Did I have to go into such details … By the way, I’m watching football again.
Important notes from pros:
He says that, roughly speaking, he ordered the 7-string VIPER with the same characteristics as ESP GANESA.
The band plays heavy music. Heavy music often uses “dropped”, i.e. lower guitar tunings (standard tuning is E). That is, the sound becomes low. This is because low pitch reduces the tension of the strings and strings become “saggy”.
Kaoru did not like that weak string tension and vibration you get on lower pitch. Once you begin playing, stings touch frets, they “rattle”, and of course, it makes it sound dirty, with a jingling metal effect.
However, his taste changed over time. Some guitar players intentionally add the “dirt” to their style in order to create the atmosphere and emotional sound. It all depends on music genre you play. For example, blues musicians use open tunings (no strings fretted): the idea is that you don’t have to worry about taking wrong notes in blues music – as long as the listener understands that, you’re okay. Rock music is a little bit more restricted. Wrong notes will sound crappy.
Pitch is a frequency, an acoustical attribute of sound, the quality that makes it possible to identify sounds as “higher” and “lower”. Thin strings + lower pitch = “floating” sound, because the instrument doesn’t have enough string tension to keep the vibration stable. Tuning may seem just perfect at first, but once you actually start playing, you can’t be 100% sure you’re gonna use your left hand perfectly accurate. You may accidentally pull the string with your finger, which can make the note sound higher.
Now back to the guitar. Every guitar is made differently: some guitars are best for lower tunings, some – for standard tunings. Some guitar frets are very comfortable to use, some are not. Some strings lie higher, some lower.
That’s why Kaoru says that VIPER sounded a little different and dirtier than GANESA. But he kinda likes that. He has probably tried various options (for different songs he can adjust it in different ways), lowered strings or undermined frets – I can’t be sure, but the point is that he managed to achieve the sound he wanted.
Translated from Japanese to Russian by Diana_ together with Russian DIR EN GREY COMMUNITY.
Translated from Russian to English by me.
Note of translator: In Japan, interviews and conversations in magazines are not made according to the rules of writing. They retain the structure of oral speech. Kaoru speaks and writes in quite a simple manner, no sophisticated beautiful words used, repeats himself sometimes, uses Kansai dialect. The book keeps his natural way of expressing himself in everyday life. His notes have not been edited according to the rules of writing. Now, remember that this book is a collection of notes, some of them quite old, so while Kaoru speaks in present time like “this guitar is new”, you shouldn’t forget he might have written that few years ago.
Chapter III. A vow to cherry tomatoes.
In this issue, I will talk about my first signature ESP guitar, Ganesa №2. Perhaps many will wonder why №2, but there are so many things from the past that regard the first one, I’ll leave her story for the next time (The reason is also that the №1 looks different now).
The Ganesa series came up with approximately 10 different models. I want to tell you about those times when Ganesa №2 was created. You have to surf your memory, hook up to something and start recalling the rest; otherwise, you won’t be able to write anything. Many things had happened back then; they are popping up in my head now…
At that time, I met a very important person to me, and that’s what I want to write about today.
This GANESA was manufactured before the 1998 live at BUDOKAN, so, apparently, I recorded «GAUZE» with it. I became convinced of this leafing through old magazines, without them I would not know for sure. I’m really grateful to the publishers of old magazines! Although we have been placed on magazines’ covers quite often recently…
Perhaps the first thing is to tell about the shape of this guitar. Initially, they had an idea to give it a shape of a sea horse, to make it look really fabulous. I myself had a very similar design concept in my mind, so I was pleasantly surprised when they gave me a draft with almost the same picture. Once it was produced, I began using it. This is the story of this model.
Mechanical vibrations produced by strings of an electric guitar are captured by a pickup that converts them to electrical signals to create sound. However, the quality of the wood from which the body is manufactured also affects the sound quality significantly. Whenever I wanted to get a sharp sound, I would try different options. Now I’m almost not worried about it, but before that, the more I wanted to learn something, the more it confused me. Although I really tried to look at a challenge from different angles. You have to use your head and seek out new ways to solve a problem; it’s the only way to achieve something. Nothing happens on its own.
We were working on our first album, trying out new arrangements, composing musical phrases. I knew neither sleep, nor rest. I was chasing something even I myself couldn’t see. Happens almost every time you create an album, but that was our first time, and the gap between the initial enthusiasm, expectations and reality turned out particularly cruel. I was hopping mad at myself.
Perhaps the only entertainment we had was evening o-bento parties. It was relatively common in music industry to be provided with expensive o-bentos.
Yakiniku was our usual evening routine after interviews and meetings. We were young and ate with great pleasure; those who were older were pretty good as well. Yes, those days made me think about many issues.
It was at that time when I met a really important person in my life. His name was Mr.Shiraishi, he was the CEO of «east west japan» label (hereinafter – abbreviated as «ewj»), a Warner Br. division, with whom we happened to sign a contract. Starting with the debut single, he became our executive director. We had changed several different executive directors prior to that. They were idiots who seemed to enjoy only their fake status in show business. Typical representatives of the business world who talk about women once they get drunk. So far, I had met only this type of managers, but Mr. Shiraishi was the opposite. I am what I am today only thanks to all the things he had taught me. I learned a lot. Not just about music, but also about human relations.
«Your work is a world of total freedom»
These words have largely become a push forward for me, because at that time I was out of my wits and at a loss. He was also a vegetarian. He would always have soluble noodles with cherry tomatoes for lunch. I wanted to try it so bad. We worked together on «MACABRE» album, but then DIR EN GREY changed label, we couldn’t carry on our work any longer. As we all gathered for a last drink, standing in front of all the members of the band and staff, I couldn’t hold my tears. We would never work on music together again and it broke my heart; I wanted to learn more from him. At that time, I gave myself a promise, a vow, that someday we’ll work together again, and although it has not yet been fulfilled, it will happen.
We only worked together for a year, having signed a major contract with «ewj». Mr. Shiraishi helped us greatly. After that, we basically worked on our own for a while. At the beginning, I had a lot of doubts, but once I had him as a leader, there was a sense of total freedom in me. I’m convinced that I am me purely thanks to him. There were a lot of things I couldn’t comprehend at that time, but I tried not to show my anxiety openly. And although I’m still not fully confident about myself, I feel some kind of determination. I feel that I can handle myself, I can create music freely without someone else’s help. And it seems so natural I hardly ever notice any effort.
So I am very grateful to Mr. Shiraishi and our team, I know I gave them a lot of trouble. Was I able to express my gratitude with words?
Maybe I’ll write some music today.
By the way, I purchased a «Dead Kennedys» T-shirt yesterday (one of the leading US hardcore punk-band in 1980-s), but I can’t seem to find it anywhere at my place. Where did it go?
Until next month!
P.S. I recently contacted Mr. Shiraishi. He was traveling in mountains. In the past, he used to spend most of his free time indoors; things have changed, haven’t they? Cherry tomatoes are good. Tom-Yam (thai sour-spicy soup made on chicken broth with shrimps, chicken, fish or other seafood) is also good. But it’s truly difficult to eat properly while Shiraishi’s nearby.
So, I have finally purchased a new laptop — my previous one crashed completely, — restored my daily activities and therefore will continue translating Dokugen again in the nearest future. My sincere apologies to those who waited for the next chapters.
Toska - Russian word roughly translated as sadness, melancholia, lugubriousness. No single word in English renders all the shades of toska. At its deepest and most painful, it is a sensation of great spiritual anguish, often without any specific cause. At less morbid levels it is a dull ache of the soul, a longing with nothing to long for, a sick pining, a vague restlessness, mental throes, yearning. In particular cases it may be the desire for somebody of something specific, nostalgia, love-sickness. At the lowest level it grades into ennui, boredom.
