sick archive

i’ve gotta translate love, or else i can't become an angel ♡ compiling and archiving english language translations/resources for urbangarde and associated projects

[mentalhells]

Metrospective Eng. Lyric Translation Masterpost

Merry Christmas! What better way to celebrate than by listening to Urbangarde's most recent full studio album? (Especially when it contains a Christmas song...) In the holiday spirit, I've completed my attempt at translating the whole album. I hope I can spread the gift of Urbangarde to english-speaking audiences!🫶❤️‍🩹✨ 1) Angu Ragura - アング・ラグラ 2) Metraumerei - メトロイメライ 3) The Strawberry Death Statement - いちご黒書 4) Toyoko Kiss - トー横キッス 5) Dr. Nou - Dr.脳 6) Meme Game - ミームなゲーム 7) Kabuki Boogie Woogie - 歌舞伎ブギウギ 8) Apostreamer - 背神者 9) Youth Disqualification - 青春失格 10) Santa Claus Business - サンタクロースビジネス 11) Sick Sick Sixteen - Sick Sick シックスティーン 12) Ribbon Mandala - りぼん曼陀羅

[mentalhells]

Stuttering Love - 吃る恋

My mouth implores, so that my blood may flow My mouth yearns for your name It rolls around my tongue like candy But there’s a budding stiffness in my throat

The sound begs, as bleeding ink I dream of letters that I’ll always be able to speak But it’s no good, the instant they hit my mouth The flowers of words dry up and wilt

I steadied my breathing and kissed the world As lips stack up against lips The air itself shakes

I, I, I, I, I am, Y-y-y, y, y, when it comes to you I’m Uh, uh, uh, uh, utterly helpless The words passed right by Past myself and the rest of the world You faded further and further away S, s, s, stuttering love

My mouth loves, evoking smoke As I tried to finally forget your name Spitting it out like a loose baby tooth It became a seed, the song’s melody leads me astray

My way of speaking is like flying paper planes From this classroom’s window seat To your lips, a billion light-years away

I, I, I, I, I want to, Y-y-y, y, y-y, with you, C, c, c, c, I want to connect with you Should I write it with a pen? Or should we exchange swords instead? I’m stuck unable to even ask S, s, s, stuttering love

You might laugh at me Or maybe I scare you Maybe you’ll avoid me Or you might make fun of me But one day, for sure,

Will I be able to say it?

I, I, I, I, I am, Y-y-y, y, y, when it comes to you I’m Uh, uh, uh, uh, utterly helpless All that passed me by was a song Only the melody spiraled out You faded further and further from the stage Faded away from the audience

I, I, I, I, I am, Y-y-y, y, y, when it comes to you I’m Uh, uh, uh, uh, utterly helpless All that passed me by was love But what comes before I can call it love Is the feeling that someone’s called out my name S, s, s, s, s, s, s, Stuttering love

[mentalhells]

Black One Point - 黒一点

If I stain your family register and chop off my pinky finger* Pinky promise swear to kiss the ground If you cut the cake, If I’m cut loose from my prison sentence Drop the handkerchief and kiss the ground

You’re just you, or so I thought, but this isn’t you Women, when it comes to women, I just keep getting worse with getting the wrong idea

Being sugar and spice and everything nice Just isn’t you, so piss on the ground After all, snips and escargot And puppy dog tails are much more your style So pull down your fly and piss on the ground

You lone rose among thorns, rose among thorns,** I’ve got something to say to cute little you One white point, one white point, I wonder if it’s alright to say these words that I can't speak (It’s fine)

I've gotten all stained black This black crow’s gotten shot A man is just, a man is but One black point, one black point Just something to stain

Just shut up already and grab a shovel, stop singing already and drop the mic If you’ve got your shovel, then bury yourself The rising suicide rates, the alcohol that flows more every night Just die a soft and cozy death, go love yourself

My dearest, feel feel to go feel your fate When it comes to romance, love, romance and love, You believe everything the neck-tieromancy fortune says

You lone rose among thorns, rose among thorns, when I embrace cute little you One white point, one white point, I wonder if it’s alright to spill these filthy tears (It’s fine)

I held on to a darkened desire The black glass has gotten shattered A man is just, a man is but One black point, one black point, one black point, one black point Carve that brand into me

One more point, one more point I wonder if it’s alright to say, this final, single thing (It’s fine)

I've gotten all stained black I've written it out in black ink A man is just, a man is but One black point, one black point Leaving behind a kiss mark

This isn’t a kind world, so No one makes it out unscathed to tomorrow Everyone’s like that, everybody is One black point, one black point Just something to stain

If you cleanse your family register by cremating me to ash What a chic thing to do, go kiss the ground What a sharp thing to do, go kiss the ground

That’s one black point, go kiss the ground Kiss the ground Kiss it

TRANSLATION NOTES * for cultural context, japan's census system includes a "family register" document, part of officiating marriage in the eyes of the law is adding your spouse to your family register ** the original term here, 紅一点 (literally "one red point") refers to one woman in a group of men, but seeing as how the term originates from classical chinese poetry in which it refers to "a single red flower in a sea of green" i thought this was a fair localization. in contrast to this, 黒一点 (literally “one black point”), as in the chorus, and also the title of the song and the album, is sometimes used colloquially to refer to one single man in a group of women. see the album cover for a visual example lol. 白一点 (“one white point”) in the prechorus is also occasionally used to describe this, but "one black point" is more common.

[mentalhells]

Boku ni Shiyagare (Do it to me) - 僕にしやがれ

Go and do it, do it to me Wow wow, go on and do it Do it to me

Is that your boyfriend’s impact? Yeah, men are always saying that, right? But, is that your girlfriend’s impact? No one really says that, right? Isn’t that right? But you changed me You dyed me your colour I was made by you, made up by you And, so, I disappeared

With my sunglasses on, I was like a princess I waited, I waited, for all of thousand and one nights You were like a prince on a white horse You took me out, the evening came out, and my sunset reddened

It was your fault that I became a dog person It was your fault that I fell in love with the road It was your fault that I came to know what love was, but Maybe it was thanks to you? No, it was your fault, fault, fault, so

Go and do it, do it to me Wow wow, go on and do it Go and do it, do it to me Come on and settle it right this instant Go and do it, do it to me Go on and do it, so just do it Go and do it, do it to me I can’t seem to say see you girl So do it to me

Is that film's impact? Or is it literature’s impact? Or could it be, Pop music’s impact? Wrong, Wrong, wrong, it’s your impact! I’m empty without you My CD collection’s empty too

My suitcase is empty too This ring case is empty too

If you take off your sunglasses, summer waits for you If you get off at the next station, the sea waits for you Leaving my sunglasses on, I played spy make-believe Because on the beach, nowhere to be found, Because you're nowhere to be found

I had your name tattooed onto me, and I had your name engraved into the ring I can’t casually call out your name anymore * Your name, forget it, forget it, I want to forget it but

I want it done to me, I want you to do it to me I wanna get beat with a bouquet I want it done to me, I want you to do it to me I wanna get stabbed by your heel That’s right, I wanna get done in

Go and do it, do it to me Wow wow, go on and do it Go and do it, do it to me Come on and choose me right this instant Go and do it, do it to me Go on and do it, so just do it Go and do it, do it to me My words of proposal are Do it to me

TRANSLATION NOTES general: the suffix -yagare to any verb basically makes it more aggro, so shiyagare = do, but more aggro. i tried to convey that vibe without changing or adding too much! 🥹 *呼び捨て/yobisute in the original lyrics here literally refers to saying someone's name without adding an honorific suffix, so either you're really close to the person, or it's really rude

[mentalhells]

Otonaverse (Adultverse) - オトナバース

By the time September comes, I'm sure you'll have noticed too

How I've completely disappeared from your universe

Right after dessert, rising from my seat without missing a beat

Going by taxi, as far as I can go, if I can fly there I'll find

The galaxy's finest hotel, if I count the countless stars

Changing reality's timeline, I've jumped over the dateline too

So that in a parallel world our lips might meet

The sun illuminates the earth, birth of cool

Back then, if only I'd done this or that

But I'd messed up, I click my tongue, if a door to the multiverse closes

Being a grownup is just about pretending you're grown up, isn’t it

Yeah, we're both living in different universe, universe, universes

For example, doing your buttons up unaligned

Or perhaps calling a wrong number late at night

Searching like in a Spot The Difference night after night

That bar's door linking the multiverse

If you'd grabbed your silver purse and took off your golden heels

You're yesterday's Alice and Cinderella

Soul-searching to find myself night after night

The door to seeking someone holds what kind of universe?

In a three thousand star suite, floating a comet bomb in the bathtub

If I nervously let out my voice for one verse, autumn has come

When was it, when would've, what should've I'd done, and all that

Just who says, well, any way, knocking on the door of the multiverse

Being a grownup is just about giving up being grown up, isn’t it

Searching out, finding, a reversible, reversible, universe, universe, universe

Back then, hand touching hand, gaze meeting gaze, birth of cool

Back then, if only I'd said this or that

Say it, just say it, and a door to the multiverse opens

Adulthood is just about committing to the adult act, isn’t it

That's a real grownup, yeah

Adultverse, adultverse, the adultverse

In the same universe

Go and find

Find me there

[mentalhells]

Shonen Picaresque - 少年ピカレスク

I’ve been ripping off people’s hearts * One single night, I killed a person’s heart You, who ripped away my heart, It's 'cause I’ll never forget you

I’ve been picking someone’s flowers Anonymized by twilight, I’ve stolen away someone’s dreams ** But you’re not here, so today once again The count of each kiss just wounds me more

I’ve been swindling people’s hearts One single night, I bought and sold a person’s heart You, who double-crossed my heart, It's 'cause I can’t forgive you

In order to crush bugs and frogs Anonymized by twilight, someone did something bad, but In the mirror, you said “I’ll give you a kiss for just the count of each of your wounds”

All I shed was blood, and it was So deeply, completely red Rip off the scab And let me hear you shout; “Boys! Boys! Picaresque!!”

Let’s play dangerous games Let’s go somewhere dangerous Even if it’s not right, it’s the way we live, so, Be picaresque! Let’s learn some naughty games Bad kids like us can go anywhere It's yours and mine, Boys! Embrace evil!

Seems you gave a person their heart One single night, a person received your love You set my heart aflame And then, at your whim, went away

Can't stop myself from snickering at your devout devotion *** Your honest heartbreak isn't even fit to become medicine The injection needle is sent flying, a glittering star It's like I'm not even me, your imparted insanity

The tears I shed by myself Were deeper blue than the sky I want to stain them white Go on and stain them red

“Boys! Boys! Picaresque!!”

Is forbidden love the only love? Are the only flowers the flowers that aren't arranged? Even if we exchange kisses until we break, Just be yourself! Let's have an abnormal love Let's do it until it becomes normal It's mine and it's yours, Brethren! Embrace ourselves!

We pledge! We boys united, Vow that even if we shed blood, to never shed sweat We pledge! We boys united, Vow that even if we shed blood, to never shed tears We pledge! We boys united, Vow to only shed deep red blood We pledge! We boys united, We deny the deep blue sky We deny our deep blue youths Deep, dark, crimson red blood, life itself, is all that we affirm, this we vow

I buried you, I buried me Becoming bare as before we were born I was once more reborn Reborn into Myself And then, I’d gotten it wrong Shouted out-

“Boys! Boys! Picaresque!!”

Let’s play dangerous games Let’s live as a dangerous pair Just because you can't live doesn't mean you'll die, so Be picaresque! Don't try to go somewhere like heaven We'll become grownups in hell, too It's yours and mine, Boys! Embrace evil!

“Boys! Boys! Picaresque!!”

TRANSLATION NOTES

"picaresque" is an adjective referring to a genre of episodic adventure fiction that features a rough 'n' rowdy badboy-esque antihero as its protagonist. i am a little embarrassed to admit i did not know this english term before starting this translation. guess it just never came up! * the unusual way heart/kokoro is written in the original, こゝろ, is as it is written in the title of natsume soseki's 1914 novel. person/hito is also unusually written in katakana, ヒト, as opposed to the usual kanji character, so that's why i decided to keep it feeling very deliberate and structured, if not a little stiff. ** an attempt at conveying a double meaning; apparently the linguistic root of the word tasogare/黄昏 meaning twilight, is the tasogare/誰そ彼れ that's written here, which literally means like an old-timey "WHO GOES THERE!". the idea is, that in the olden days when it became twilight, it became difficult to distinguish faces in the waning light. Neat! there's a lot of old-timey language in this song. *** "devotion", "heartbreak", and "insanity" are all preceded by the prefix 御 in the original; indicating a sense of formality and deferential language (and further indicating the narrator talking to someone, imo). anyways i took some license but i tried to zhuzh this stanza with that in mind.

[mentalhells]

Narcist - ナルシスト

Haven't you already gotten tired of acting weird? I ask, while facing the mirror The reflected face isn’t young anymore That day is still held within those eyes

I can't pretend to laugh anymore And although I cry at the end of movies, I freeze up when it matters most, it’s no good I watched your crying face without uttering a word

Chasing after nothing but dreams, I don’t see anyone else The curtain opens, the curtain closes, but everyone's long since gone

Even though I can't love myself There's no way I could love anybody else Not a single soul, not a single soul, I can't love anyone, Because after all, I'm unloved

Even though I can't love myself There's no way I could love you All by myself, all on my own, all alone as always I'll walk straight through the darkness of the city

Doing it my way, from today on, I'll do it my own way I fasten my necktie and close my eyes The dreams I see at night are always of when I was so young The future is so much longer than the past

You told me that I'm cold, that you just don't get me If you bathed in the spotlight onstage, maybe you'd understand

Because I can't love myself I don't like tonight’s party As if somebody, someone, anyone could understand me They'd only understand how conceited I am

Because I can't love myself I can't meet with you tonight All by myself, all on my own, as always, I can live all alone I'll ride the train and walk and go to work

Even though I can't love myself Is it okay if I love someone else? Not a single soul, not a single soul, even though I don't love anyone, Because after all, even though I'm unloved

Even though I can't love myself Is it okay if I love you? Just for tonight, just for tonight, I'll be a narcissist I'll face the mirror and act the narcissist Because I'm going to meet you

[mentalhells]

Bulimaking SHOW/Kasho Ka SHOW/カショオ化SHOW

(original lyrics)

I'll dig in to that I'll dig in to this too I'll dig in to it all "Let's dig in"

It tastes so good, it hurts so bad I can't stop it, it won't end I want to eat, I want to barf Bread and words, all of it

Cake, macarons, parfait, crepe, They become pink flowers Ice cream, choux cream, Have bloomed into deep crimson flowers

Each time the pointer on the gauge sways My mental health starts to shake I'm getting shaken up tonight, yummy yummy*

Bulimaking SHOW I wanna eat anything and everything Bulimaking SHOW I wanna try to eat my dreams and stuff Bulimaking SHOW I wanna eat anything and everything May I binge and purge? Bulimaking SHOW

It’s so fun, it hurts so much Whose fault, It’s your fault I want to disappear, I want to erase Fat, meat, and my body whole

Sushi, ramen, sushi, ramen They become a seven-coloured rainbow Carbonara, arrabbiata What colour will they turn?

Indigestion For some reason, I just can’t eat enough Indigestion I can’t eat away enough of the nightmares too Indigestion Somehow, I'm not satisfied It doesn’t taste good Can't take in, process, digest it**

Sweet or bitter, I don't understand Spicy or salty, it doesn’t matter It's like I'm chewing on a flavourless game

I'll dig in to that I'll dig in to this too I'll dig in to it all "Let's dig in"

Bulimaking SHOW I wanna eat anything and everything Bulimaking SHOW I wanna try to eat the whole world Bulimaking SHOW I wanna end it right away Because it just won’t end

ah Bulimaking SHOW I wanna eat, wanna eat so bad

Bulimaking SHOW I wanna eat, wanna eat so bad

Bulimaking SHOW With a thrust of my middle finger Thanks for the meal

Bulimaking SHOWification SHOWification SHOW Bulimaking SHOWification SHOWification SHOW

TRANSLATION NOTES this may not be an urbangarde song but the lyrics are still written by mr. matsunaga so i'm putting it here!!!!!

the word カショオ/Kasho is slang for the act of binge eating and purging that we typically just refer to with the medical term bulimia, whereas 化/Sho as a suffix is something like “-ification”or “-ization". obviously the wordplay isn’t as good as the original but i tried lol

*very likely a pun on yami as phonetic readings for 闇 and/or 病, litereral/metaphysical darkness and sickness/illness respectively

**i thought it was interesting that the term 消化不良 refers both to physical indigestion and not being able to digest or process information seeing as disordered eating and other self-harm can be triggered by stress… so i wanted to try to work that in somehow

[mentalhells]

Relay Column: Adventures in the Age of Information (Tenma Matsunaga) | Fashion Tech News

On a hot summer day, I happened to pass by an art exhibition after work and decided to drop in. The

Mr. Matsunaga recently provided an article to Fashion Tech News, which has been translated into English! His perspective on the creative process in the modern age is very eloquent and fascinating, give it a read!

[mentalhells]

Youth Disqualification - 青春失格

The renovated station plaza Is almost like a labyrinth, almost like the gates of Wonderland

Within the revived station’s throngs of people While chasing after you, I fell down a rabbit hole

I pass by the tunnels, I push through the darkness And the sky spreads wide

It was all too blue, all too blue, the end of my spring, the end of this story is All lost, I’ve lost it, I realized, I’ve definitely been Disqualified from youth

Trees are cut down in the forests, people flock together When you wrap it all up, it’s almost like a maze through the looking glass

It’s nothing but tunnels, this town It seems like one big grave

It’s all too heavy, all too heavy, I can’t make this a memory, not even a memory Just forget it, if I can forget it, it’ll shine on for eternity Even though I’m disqualified from youth

It was all too faint, all too faint, the end of the dream, the beginning of the end When I wake up, when I wake up I’ll realize it I’m disqualified from youth But even so, on that day, the sky was so clearly blue

TRANSLATION NOTES

The original title Seishun Shikkaku is likely referencing the Osamu Dazai novel Ningen Shikkaku, commonly translated as No Longer Human, so I wanted to translate this as No Longer Young SOOOOOOOOOOOO bad. But I just left the official English title instead so pretend I did. Also Temma has said in an interview that he wrote the lyrics for this song after finding out that Yoko eloped and I just think about that a lot and wanted to share.

[mentalhells]

The Strawberry Death Statement - いちご黒書

The wrist cut’s wound and the wound’s scar Erase it, erase it, with a lazer  The face I hate so much in my graduation album Erase it, erase it, with magic

The sun-bleached remains, the traces of tears Erase them, erase them, never again I don’t want to remember them anymore, therefore Goodbye

Although, even now, inside the mirror Your youth wasn’t that blue, A fifteen-year old girl sings

Oh strawberry, don’t tell me it was once-in-a-lifetime Remember all the heavy feelings you’d rather forget One time, one time, just once more, let me tell you It’s not your dark past, don’t blot it out with blackest black, ah Your strawberry, strawberry, strawberry, Strawberry Death Statement

My piercing hole aches today The tattoo on my chest stings Won't you let me forget this deep crimson, Hey, please

But even so, once in a while, sometimes in my dreams, Love isn’t all peaches and cream, A fifteen-year old girl casts a curse “Every single person is a strawberry”

Oh strawberry, each and every word, even all the days you got it wrong Write them down in your bible, write it out with reddest red Strawberry, strawberry, strawberry, strawberry

Just once, I wanted to die Because I wanted to live

The wrist cut’s wound and the wound’s scar Scratch marks left behind on the aristocrat The shortcut’s wound and the wound’s scar Leave behind your footprints, you stray cat First cut, last cut Even if you try and try to erase the unerasable past A rough cut at the final cut Lest I ever forget the past in parentheses  So that it can die twice, your dark history No matter how many times you mess up, it’s your bright history No matter how many times you rewrite your red history Let it dye  Let it dye  Let it dye  Let it dye

Oh strawberry, don’t tell me it was once-in-a-lifetime Remember all the heavy feelings you’d rather forget Once, twice, three times more, no matter how many times it takes, let me sing It’s not your dark past, paint it over with red and white and red Your strawberry, strawberry, strawberry, Strawberry Death Statement

Strawberry, strawberry, Strawberry Death Statement Strawberry, strawberry, strawberry, strawberry

TRANSLATION NOTES

Regarding the title, a literal translation of it would be “Strawberry Black Book” (the term having the same meaning it does in English, referring to classified or otherwise unscrupulous documents). However the “official” english title on the MV is “The Strawberry Deathtatement”... So I tried to parse that out a little more! Also I think the title might be a reference to the 1970 film The Strawberry Statement.

[mentalhells]

Kabuki Boogie Woogie - 歌舞伎ブギウギ

Boogie woogie in Kabuki, heart-pounding in Donki That’s where me and daddy met up, just the two of us Getting a parfait at the coffeehouse, drinking a papagena at the bar At last, we’ve arrived at our little candy home

My smiling daddy’s chest, I stabbed straight through it With a strawberry, strawberry, strawberry switchblade

So I'll sing and dance, boogie woogie Kabuki boogie, boogie woogie Oops, I did it again! Sorry about that, God

I break out laughing, boogie woogie Life is all boogie woogie For tonight, let’s get some sleep When I wake up tomorrow, I’ll become a brand-new girl

Gunfire in Shinjuku, the gunfire of war I’ve gotta strip off this bloodstained dress and run away In the pedestrian zone, the camera spins around I want to be the heroine, but I’m just an extra

While looking for my real daddy I set a trap inside a book A lemon, lemon, lemon mini-bomb

Won’t you tell me, boogie woogie What should I do, boogie woogie Please don’t get the wrong idea about this No way, God

I break out laughing, boogie woogie So much that I start crying, boogie woogie I’ve gotta wake up from this dream When I wake up, I’ll be the perfect girl like… If only I could become just like that girl

Someday, my prince will come for me and say…

You’re the only one that I can’t save I just can’t save you, okay? It’s all a fairytale, just a stupid story

So sing and dance, boogie woogie Life is all boogie woogie Quick now, open your eyes When he comes in for the kiss, in his chest, When roses bloom there, you’ll wake right up With a boogie woogie, good morning

Sing and dance!

[mentalhells]

Toyoko Kiss - トー横キッス

Dig it up here, dig it up here, dig it up here, dig it up here, Dig it up here, dig up this metropolis Enwrap the police

Just where is this, just where is this, just where is this, just where is this, Just where is this, just where is this, this is Toyoko Where the kids gather

At Number Six Toa*, the dialogue is to do some DYING with a DIVE All living creatures, you too, and the dying, you too Do a DANCE of diversity If the lips of Heaven and Hell meet

A kiss with a lonely look behind, a kiss with a pathetic prostration  A kiss like licking each other’s wounds, kiss, kiss A kiss that’ll break if you touch it, a kiss where you get what you ask for A kiss that can’t touch the heart, kiss, kiss Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss A Toyoko kiss

While pretending to live While playing dead Let’s keep dancing ‘til we die in Cine City

When the flowers bloom at Hanazono Shrine, while LYING, we’ll LIVE You, dead as anything, and you, who can live as well Will get direct-marketed DECADENCE Even if the lips of the above-ground and underground happen to meet

A kiss that you can’t sell or buy, a kiss plucked before ripening A kiss like wounding each other, kiss, kiss A kiss without a customer, a kiss that keeps the condemned captive A kiss that longs to touch the heart, kiss, kiss Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss A Toyoko kiss

A head-over-heels kiss, accept it with a kiss, okay? A kiss in pitch darkness, set it ablaze with a kiss, okay? A head-over-heels kiss, accept it with a kiss, okay? A kiss in total darkness, end it with a kiss, okay?

TRANSLATION NOTES 

General: This song is referencing the Toyoko kids, groups of often troubled teens that hang out on the streets beside the Toho Cinema (To-yoko, beside “To”) in Tokyo’s Kabukicho neighborhood. The area is somewhat of a red light district, and is a hotspot for host clubs. The Toyoko kids themselves, often homeless, are known to struggle with substance abuse and self-harm, with some also turning to prostitution. Suicide attempts in the neighborhood are also unfortunately common. There’s references to a few notable locations within Kabukicho in the lyrics.

*The address/name of a building full of host clubs in Kabukicho. The “Toa” is written in roman characters on the building, but with kanji that match phonetically in the lyrics. 

[mentalhells]

Angu Ragura - アング・ラグラ

Angu ragura, gura, agura Ah, gura gura gura gura Oh, oh, oh, in Angu Ragura You and I are both  Ah, gura gura gura gura Oh, oh, oh, in Angu Ragura

Where are you all? In hell? Somewhere within hell In an under, under, underground livehouse If you push away the headstone from the common graves And carry on, carry on, press through the tunnel, then 

Where is this place? In heaven? It’s the Flickering light of your arthouse theater  Our collective hallucination ends and then Everyone, everyone, is no longer there, but yet

An angel that can’t fly, unable to become a devil A resistance that can’t emerge to the surface Stirring up the earth, the night and the dance (From heaven until hell, Gu ra gu ra) Is all wrong, what’s right is

That you can’t become a sacrifice to justice

Angu Ragura, gura, agura Ah, gura gura gura gura You’re shaking, I shake too Angu Ragura Ah, gura gura gura gura Oh, oh, oh, in Angura Ragura

Where are you all? In the future? Within the future’s past The past, past, past’s nuclear blast shelter Dash through the womb of the Bodhi tree* The present era, present time, present reality and present world Have all caught up with us

From the nighthawk’s star, from the sparrow’s moon** The letters that these birds have delivered are Written in red ink, penned by you (The asphalt and the surface of the moon both, Gu ra gu ra) Even if it’s wrong, what’s right is that

There’s no answers, we can only ask questions

Who are you? No one at all Where are you? Nowhere to be found What time is it? Anytime is fine Can you hear this song? Can’t you hear it? This song, that is Can’t you hear it? Then listen up Lend me your ear, hold your breath Strike your hand in the very center of your chest, Underground

Angu ragura, gura, agura Ah, gura gura gura gura Oh, oh, oh, in Angu Ragura, You and I are both  Ah, gura gura gura gura Oh, oh, oh, in Angu Ragura

Angu Ragura Ah, gura gura gura gura Dance before they make you dance Angu Ragura Ah, gura gura gura gura Oh, oh, oh, in Angura Ragura

TRANSLATION NOTES

General: “Angura”, a shortening of “underground”, is the label ascribed a scene of experimental, avant-garde theatre and art in midcentury Japan. Many Angura works and figureheads of the movement (for example, Shuji Terayama) are frequently referenced in and cited as inspirations for Urbangarde’s works, with Mr. Temma Matsunaga even saying that this song was a return to their roots:) The title is a reference to the novel (by Yumeno Kyusaku) and film (one of my personal favourites) Dogra Magra. There’s probably tons of other references in here that I’m completely missing! I say it every time but if you have any other ideas or interpretations from reading the original lyrics, I’d love to hear them!

*the tree that Buddha sat under when he attained enlightenment, lending to the ~themes~ of the Buddhist cycle of Samsara throughout the album

**honestly not sure about this one but it seems that, as sparrows are common migratory birds in Japan, several month names in the lunar calendar make reference to their comings and goings (the kanji for “moon” and “month” also being the same)

[mentalhells]

Ribbon Mandala - りぼん曼陀羅

Tie and release, tie and bind our hands Tie and release, tie and release Ribbon Mandala

When I peeled the apple’s skin to unravel it I repeated rebirth, was reincarnated, but still Farewell to you who dove into the ribbon river You were one, two steps ahead of me, I was just too late

I learned when I bit the apple’s core truth that This was a near-death experience giant-killing love In order for you to wrap the ribbon’s rope around me so tight, Did you curse me? Kill me? Or was it a fight?

To be born and die, born and die, and to be born, If I can go to meet you Just one more time, it’s fine if it hurts, that’s why

Tie and release, tie and release, as it rustles The Ribbon Mandala Make it and break it, make it and break it, but then You’re still fine, so Tie and release, tie and release, as it flutters By the binding of this ribbon; This love is, by this love, this love will, for the sake of this love—

The fever that rises as the loop line goes round, Becomes summer, becomes winter, as it turns Taking flight until the final train, overflowing tears, In spring and in autumn both, they’re too bitter

I learned when I bit the devil’s fruit that I could no longer become an angel nor a girl In order for you to to dye the ribbon rope red, Was it through a curse, or was it through love?

To be born and die, born and die, why is it that Once more I live, I’m revived, I remember, I realize, I’ve been ready

To love and part, love and part, and to love My heart is a Mandala To love and part, love and part, and yet Still to be in love with you Love and part, to tear us apart

Boarding the first train, Once I’m through this tunnel, I’ll be reborn Boarding the red train, When drawing with a red pen, blood began to flow

Tie and release, tie and release, bind our hands Tie and release, tie and release and tie This Ribbon Mandala

Tie and release, tie and release, as it rustles The Ribbon Mandala Make it and break it, make it and break it, but then You’re still you, so Me and you, and me and you, and if I’m me, then This love was, for this love to be brought to an end, for its sake, Oh Mandala, oh Mandala, oh Mandala Oh, Ribbon Mandala, turn the cycle without end

[mentalhells]

Metraumerei - メトロイメライ

Metraumerei, rather than dreaming Metraumerei, become a dream

Get on the train at Platform 0 Lie, la, la, let’s go to the world beyond Clipping this life’s ticket Let’s turn, ta, ta, transmigrate our souls

Lined up on the tracks of Platform 100 Was a girl, ga, ga, girl’s first slip-up Don’t get caught crushed to catch attention Climb up the thread of fate

But hey, God is cruel, so I fell into a dream that it was all a dream, it’s a ghostly morning I can’t do it, I can’t wait, not even a full term Pretty soon now, I’ll be born “good mor ning”

Metraumerei, Me-Träumerei This fleeting world is but an illusion Don’t wake up, rather than dreaming, become a dream Metro-i, Me-Träumerei In this world, you’re all there is Shine trauma’s light and light up the dark Rather than getting hurt, become the pain

Metro-i, Metro-i, Metraumerei Get on in, Metraumerei

Before long, the train will arrive The train at Platform 0 will arrive Don’t speed into heaven, yo Don’t fare-dodge to hell Don’t release that ribbon Don’t cut short being reborn, reborn From Local to Express to Semi-Express to the Special Express The ghost train will arrive Don’t dream of heaven In a dream, become a dream In Hell, let there be a ray of light

On the 99th Platform’s soul-packed train A boy, bo, bo, boy is on the chase If there’s a railway crossing, crossing and breaking right through Freaking out before a breakup

But y’know, hey, God is capricious, so I fell in love, down to love’s punchline, it’s a Code Red morning Red lines, lines and lines, surface on the tester Pretty soon now, I’ll become the wind “fare thee well”

Metraumerei, Me-Träumerei This whole world is inside a station Don’t love, rather than loving, become love Rather than gazing at the stars, become a star Shining brighter than light

Metraumerei, rather than dreaming, Metraumerei, because you can become a dream,

Metraumerei, Me-Träumerei This fleeting world is but an illusion Don’t wake up, rather than dreaming, become a dream Metro-i, Me-Träumerei On midnight’s subway If you run free of the tunnel and come out aboveground More than you, you, you’ll become you Metro-i, Metro-i, Metraumerei Get on in, Metraumerei

Hey, Metraumerei, rather than singing Metraumerei, if you become a song Metraumerei, rather than dreaming If you become a dream You’ll hear the Metraumerei

[mentalhells]

Dr. Nou - Dr.脳

Dr. Dr. Nou, won't you please tell me "With a Chat Chat Chat I'll quickly tell you all" OK,OK,NO, Today's weather will be…? "It seems there'll be showers of gasoline rain"

I've got no umbrella, I'm gonna get laughed at It's a complete downpour inside my head If there's no future, I just won't look I'll sort it out with AI

Dr. Dr. Nou, I want to ask you "With a Chat Chat Chat I'll quickly answer you" OK,OK,NO, Tomorrow I will…? "It seems you'll bathe in the Metro's lights"

Please wait behind the white line In a single instant, becoming drenched in blood If there’s no past, I won't put parentheses I'll pose the question to AI

I'll make you understand Even the very ends of the earth Even mankind's fated path Even how you and I will die

If you don't understand Even just your own heart If you don't understand that, well then Don't think about a single thing We'll let it decide

NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, to Dr. Nou NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, to Dr. Nou NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, to Dr. Nou in my Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, Brain, I don't know！

Dr. Dr. Nou, won't you tell me "Worthless scum, I'll tell you roughly" The meaning of living is…? The value of a life is…? "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't understand"

Where's the doctor gone? The operation is soon The inside of my head is screw-operated Where's the lab? What a placebo this is Elon, neuron, objection, refutation

Where am I? Who am I? It's an AI-dentity crisis You're me, I'm you AI my me mine You your misery!

I'll make you understand If I can't make you understand I'm only making you understand, see, How humans can be broken, that is

I don't understand, Who's the one who doesn’t understand? Is it the world, or me? If we can't decide, then with this computer With this enter key—

Dr. Nou, are you living? Are you dead, are you doing this? Artificial intelligence, omniscient and omnipotent You're poisonous, what'll you do with it? Dr. Nou, do you know? Are you overthrowing humanity? Are you chat, chat, chatting with me? OK, will you be the ruin of me? Dr. Nou

I'll make you understand Even the very ends of the earth Even after a thousand years of history Where will you and I go

If you look up To the sky of my cracked mind Pink clouds will gather And enshroud the world "I will make you understand"

NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, by Dr. Nou, NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, by Dr. Nou, NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, by Dr. Nou, You too will surely, I'll surely too

NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, Ah, Dr. Nou NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, Ah, Dr. Nou NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO, Ah, Dr. Nou Dr. Dr. Nou, nou, nou!

TRANSLATION NOTES

Nou = brain but Dr. Brain just doesn't have that ring to it so I just kinda tried to split the difference.