21st Cherry Boy
21st Cherry Boy
Lyrics by Sakurai Atsushi & Imai Hisashi
Translation by Lola
I hope you wake up and realize the whole world is brilliant
Born in profound darkness, you are Love (1)
Maddeningly innocent in your cruelty
Your desires, pure and base are endearing
Let's dance in sinful ways, drenched in the downpour of love's song
If you're decked out, come to me and we'll keep on embracing through the devil's night (2)
Touch me and with your lips, with your love's breath
Breathe life into me now, like you're a god (3)
21st Cherry Boy Too young to die.
21st Cherry Boy I wanna be your toy.
21st Cherry Boy Too young to die.
21st Cherry Boy I wanna be your toy.
Me and you are both alone, we just keep on dancing strong in this world
If you're decked out, come to me and we'll keep on embracing through the devil's night
Then touch me and with your lips, with your love's breath
Breathe life into me now, like you're a god
21st Cherry Boy Too young to die.
21st Cherry Boy I wanna be your toy.
21st Cherry Boy Too young to die.
21st Cherry Boy I wanna be your toy.
21st Cherry Boy Too young to die.
21st Cherry Boy I wanna be your toy.
21st Cherry Boy Too young to die.
21st Cherry Boy I wanna be your toy.
It is you who rushes through
Notes: This translation was edited May 27, 2013.
(1) Just wanted to note that the "profound darkness" could also be translated as "despair" or "hopelessness".
(2) I'm not entirely certain if it's necessarily relevant in this song in particular but, the "devil's night" or "demon's night" if you prefer, may refer to the concept of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons in Japanese folklore, a night in which, it was believed the streets were flooded with demons and if you happened to be in their path you would die, unless protected. This parade of demons is referenced a lot in Japanese visual art and the theme of night parades filled with demonic or devilish characters, recurs in many Buck-Tick songs.
(3) Literally this stanza translates as, "Touch me with your lips, with your love's breath/Now, like you're a god". And while that is fairly clear enough on its own, I added the "Breathe life into me" bit because the Japanese line about love's breath omits the verb. Verb omission is quite common in Japanese, especially with certain combinations where it is obvious from context what the verb would be. However, while the Japanese makes it obvious that what would follow is "breathe life into me" or a variant on that (I have seen it translated as "rejuvenate me" or "refresh me" in other contexts), I thought it would be best to clarify in English, just in case the meaning was not immediately understood.
薔薇色の日々
Rose coloured daysLyrics by Sakurai Atsushi
Translation by Lola
I have nothing to gain by lying here, yet here I am
Glistening gaze roving in the middle of the night
If you're out there, let your eyelids close gently (1)
As though it's completely dark for your dream
In which you smell so sweet that it feels like it is not a dream
Though within it you are so faint that I get the feeling this is not me
Then, in the middle of the night I awaken to an incubus (2)
And stare at your red stained hands (3)
As for your lips, the rosy hue becomes them
As does the passion and despair in your dark eyes
I shall walk ahead of you
Listening to your plaintive cry for me
You smell so sweet that it feels like it is not a dream
Though within it you are so faint that I get the feeling this is not me
Then, in the middle of the night I awaken to an incubus
And stare at your red stained hands
The flower smells so sweet that it feels like it is not a dream
Though within it you are so faint that I get the feeling this is not me
Then, in the middle of the night I awaken to an incubus
And stare at your red stained hands
I wait for the night, dreaming of flushed wet skin
What I'm waiting for is you, the very picture of a crimson flower
Notes: This translation was edited May 24, 2013.
(1) Literally the line translates to, "If you are alive/living/existing, close your eyelids gently".
(2) The kanji used is "悪夢" which means "nightmare" as well as "incubus". I went with incubus because of the rest of the imagery in the song. An interesting note, is that the word incubus comes from the Latin verb "incubo" or "incubare" which means "to lie upon". I found this noteworthy since the very first line in the song states that the "I" in the story is lying down. All the better for the incubus to come. Since it is believed that the male demon lies upon sleepers, mostly women, in order to engage in sexual intercourse. Some maintain that the female equivalent, the succubus, is in fact the same demon and that it simply possesses the ability to assume the shape of either a man or a woman.
(3) Here I chose "red stained" but literally it is, "stained the color of a rose".