Breeding
Lyrics: hide
Translation: w_b
Flying around in my skull
Are two insects with look-alike faces
They don't understand each other, they don't interact
Yet, I am one with them
If one says Red, the other insists on Yellow
If one says Right, the other points to the East
They're inseparable, they're beyond my control
And so I spew lies
They turn into demon children when they can't get by on a smile (1)
They brandish their thorns and even my cherished memories are bloodied
Despite all my efforts to tame them
They parallel each other like water and oil
On a whim they appear
To whisper by turns
"My, what a hot chick...fuck her!"
"You'll only get hurt, please desist."
One by one, their voices
Scream inside my head
Within my body I'm raising two insects (2)
But in truth, aren't I the pet?
Breed you, treat me, with these insects I'll make my way
Breed you, treat me, as I try to evade these demons
Breed you, treat me, this path I will follow
Breed you, treat me, if the insects vanished, so would I
Hey master!! We've been inside you!
Hey master!! Don't fuck with us!
Hey busters!! You've been inside me!
Hey busters!! Don't fuck with me!
Despite all my efforts to tame them
They parallel each other like water and oil
On a whim they appear
To whisper by turns
Flying around in my skull
Are two insects, my look-alikes
If I obey when they whisper
Doesn't that make me their pet?
Breed you, treat me, with these insects I'll make my way
Breed you, treat me, as I try to evade these demons
Breed you, treat me, this path I will follow
Breed you, treat me, if the insects vanished, so would I
Hey master!! We've been inside you!
Hey master!! Don't fuck with us!
Hey busters!! You've been inside me!
Hey busters!! Don't fuck with me!
Notes:
I think everyone is familiar with the image of a devil sitting on one shoulder and an angel on the other?
But why insects? I can only speculate in the end, but one of the possible meanings of the word 'mushi' (insect) is a secret urge or thought that surfaces from time to time, leading someone to bad action. For example, you might have a 'mushi' that makes you cheat on your wife, or a mushi that drives you to shoplift. Of course, there is no specific number of insects that one person can have and unlike the angel and devil, there typically is no good-bad mushi combination.
1. Ah, this line. My favorite line! Let me try to explain this delightful little image/wordplay.
I've wondered myself what in the world could be the relation between demon children (oni no ko), and brandishing thorns. That is, until I went digging through the internet and found that 'Oni no ko' is the Japanese nickname for an insect called the bagworm. You see, bagworms have a very special method of self-preservation: they build around their bodies a type of prickly cocoon. A cocoon which looks like it is covered in, you guessed it, thorns!
This is where the line about brandishing thorns comes in. When the insects don't get their way, they become 'demon children' or 'bagworms' and hide in their thorn-covered cocoons.
I've left the line as 'demon children' since those are the literal words and let's face it, 'bagworm' simply doesn't have a cool ring to it. But keep the double meaning in mind!
2. Up until this line, the word 'insect', or 'mushi', was written in kanji. However, from this line on the word 'mushi' is written phonetically in katakana.
For the lack of a better word, I stuck with 'insect' throughout the whole song regardless of the spelling. But katakana can be used to indicate a shift in meaning, and I believe it to be the case here. Perhaps from a simple insect to something more?