Translating lyrics is an imposing task. Not only do you need to consider the emotion of the song that you feel through the instrumental portions and the nuance of expression within the singer's voice, but there are underlying currents of both cultural and personal meaning that create the depth of emotion.
The title of this blog, "Kashi wa Kakera," is both a slight allusion to the band who will be taking the spotlight in this project, the pillows (and their song Boku wa Kakera), and also an attempt to capture the spirit of the project. Lyrics are but pieces of the whole, and to properly translate a song requires more than simply turning the words from one set of symbols to a semi-equivalent set of different symbols.
I want to help strengthen the connection between fan and band, between word and feeling, by bridging that gap left when only the words are considered. This blog will be a series of annotated translations, referring to points of cultural significance, outlining interesting wordplay and references, and attempting to tie together these pieces of story created by lyrics into a fuller narrative through use of interviews and other sources relating the individual history of the songwriter and band members.
I know that the majority of songs in the pillows' catalog have already been translated, and many of us who consider ourselves Busters have been able to deepen our relationship to their music because of this. This project will seek to facilitate a further deepening of that relationship among the fans who are drawn to Sawao's words by providing further pieces of the story to them.
This will not be only about the pillows' lyrics, but that will be the main focus. Learning enough of the history of a band or musician to tie tenuous pieces together into threads of narrative is a long process, and I unfortunately do not possess the knowledge for other bands at the present time.
Anyway, comments and suggestions are highly appreciated, and I look forward to learning and sharing more in the hopes that others will find this project useful.
-Alan
