Songs, May 2005

Translated by: Sweiled

1. Please DO NOT take my translations and use them for whatever reason, without my permission.
2. Please DO NOT publish my translations elsewhere without my permission. Please kindly link back if you want, but DO NOT copy and paste them.


[number] = more explanation of the sentence below
xxx = more detailed explanations
[xxx] = what I felt a certain part of the sentence meant
(xxx) = other meanings of the word or literal translations or missing word/words not specifically mentioned. For e.g. The fans screamed when (Gackt and his band members) entered the stadium! Read it like you will a normal sentence.
=xxx= = real brackets used in the interview


[Translator note: This article is quite different from the usual one, being that there is no actual interviewer. It’s just Gackt talking about different things and it sort of jumps around. Personally, I find this to be the hardest article I’ve ever translated to date. .___. The tip is to remember that at least within each paragraph, he is talking about the same point.

Do feel free to ask me if there is any part you don’t understand. And because this is really him ‘talking’, the translation is sort of in spoken style as well. So, ah, try to pretend this is him speaking…. >.>;; Enjoy~]

We can finally rest for a short while after the release of the Love Letter album … (But) of course there is no such thing! As usual, it was a rush feel [1] with the singles released in succession two months shortly thereafter. (laughs) First was BLACK STONE, a song that took even my breath away as I was singing it. It has really been quite some time since I last released such a fast beat number. (lit. up tempo number) The reason why it has such a fast beat is because the song itself has two themes combined in it. First, as an opening for the project related to the “MOON” story and second… It so happens that it was near the first anniversary of my friend’s death. And in that song made to commemorate him, I wanted to express the feeling that “We are moving forward. We can even smile as we talk about you now.” That is why even the lyrics are very straightforward. However, I didn’t want to make a song which is too personal; I wanted to make a song which can combine (lit. pick up) those two themes perfectly. By doing that, I think it would become a song that can satisfy everybody.
[1] 突っ走る tsuppashiru: dash; rip; shoot; run swiftly


And “~メタモルフォーゼ” [Metamorphoze] was a song I wrote after the director of “機動戦士 Z” Gundam, Director Tomino, talked to me personally. [1] Because I have been a Gundam fan since a long time ago, I do feel that it is an honor to be able to provide the music for the movie. However, if you talk about the music, I was more amazed by the thoughts that Director (Tomino) put into this movie rather than the fact that it was a Gundam (movie). “I want to help you as long as it is within my ability.” [2] It was with such thoughts (lit. feelings) in mind that I made this song. Because the director plans to put his own closure on the “機動戦士 Gundam” work that he has done till now, I feel very happy that my music could be helpful to him like this. I think it will become a wonderful movie that will surely be passed on (lit. left) to the next generation. I myself feel really glad that I made two songs which helped [3] (others) like this.
[1] It should be noted that even though Gackt did start writing Metamorphoze for Gundam, the idea/concept of the song itself was born during Crescent time. He chose Metamorphoze because he thinks it’s the song that best fits both Tomino-san’s theme as well as his own.
[2] Literally, it means “If it is what I can do (or if I can), I want to lend my powers to you.”
[3] 手応え tegotae: response; effect. Basically saying that he feels proud that he has made 2 songs which has had an impact/helped others.


The most fundamental (requirement) of music is to be able to convey the thoughts straight (to the listener) through the melody. If the melody fails to carry the thoughts found in the lyrics, [the lyrics] becomes nothing more than meaningless strings of sentences. I believe the most basic thing a singer should do is to uphold that. (守る mamoru: to protect; to obey; to guard; to abide (by the rules); to defend; to preserve) But now, there are a lot of people who fail to notice such an obvious thing. That is because of the development of the karaoke culture in recent years, which only focuses on the singing techniques. You can easily understand then, why there are more people who no longer feel the need to express the most important “Things that have to be conveyed to the listener”. And I feel that this is also influenced by the ‘audition boom’ which looks at only superficial things; as well as the ‘producer culture’ which produces only the form. [1] The decline of music itself, though, is because of various factors such as internet distribution, violation of copyrights, etc… This period of time after the pass of the music bubble [2] is definitely not what you can call a good time for music. That is why I wish even more that those people who are starting (a career in) music now, as well as those people who want to receive some sort of acknowledgements through their music, will work even harder. I, on the other hand, will also do all that I can in order to convey these thoughts to the people in Asia.
[1] I think what he meant is a lot of producers only focus on ‘training’ the outer appearances (the form or shape, maybe skills) of an artist. But they neglect the most important thing, which is the inner part; the feelings and thoughts.
[2] Literal meaning of “音楽バブル”. I’m not entirely sure what it means but it seems to refer to the music industry around 8 years ago (during the 90s). Before internet became widely used and copyright issues/piracy have yet to arise. During the 音楽バブル time, people still buy CDs and really spend money on music; a time when the number of albums and singles sold hit millions… But now due to the popularization of cell phones and copying of CDs, people no longer spend as much money on music. This site http://music.cocolog-nifty.com/001/2004/02/wanna_own_music.html talks a little about the 音楽バブル, if you are interested. It’s all in Japanese though.


The way I see it, the reason why you first start playing music doesn’t matter. Be it “to be popular among girls” or something else, it’s perfectly fine. But you won’t have the will to keep moving forward if that’s the case. You play music because you want to do something, to become something. If you cannot understand that, you’ll only gain satisfaction once before you lose it. That is why I think it’s even more important for those people who really want to play music now to focus on how far they see themselves going in the future and also, to what extent can that image they saw be made true?


Of course, I did not always have music in my mind since I first started playing too. However, slowly but surely, I started moving towards music. I was born in a family which refused to acknowledge anything other than classical music, and I was made to practice classical piano since I was three years old. It is natural then, for me to dislike piano after being forced to play it. Even though such is the distinction in Japan’s musical education, music is not, by nature, something that should be forced into someone like that. Take for example, baseball. If you were asked to keep swinging the bat everyday, you will become good at it, but it will (also) take the pleasure out of playing baseball. So when I was 10 years old, I would lock the doors to the piano room, throw stones at the teacher’s house, etc., before I was finally allowed to stop. When I think back now, maybe the end of that music is, in truth, the beginning of my music.


When I entered junior high school, I started hanging out with a group of “Yankees”. [1] One of them was very good at fighting, and he had this different sort of air about him. It was quite rare, but one day, I went to his house to play after school. It was a magnificent house and there was a grand piano in the middle of the room. I could not believe at all that this guy, who seems more suited with wooden swords than pianos, can actually play it; but BAM he started playing right then and there. Truth is, he was also made to practice piano since he was three. That is why he is so good now. I played for him as well, but you could tell immediately that our levels were totally different. And in that instant, the feeling of “I don’t want to lose!” arose, and I started practicing hard.
[1] No, not that American Yankee. Here it refers to someone like a juvenile delinquent. Due to a Japanese trend some time back which follows American punks. Thank you, nanani, for that information.


And from that day, I did nothing but practice. Every day, I would practice till midnight and then start again early the next morning. In order to raise my “level to something other than technique” [1], I would even hunt down and listen to the cassettes of the original songs. And the songs you would hear were played by the professionals based on their own interpretation. It was excellent. It made me wonder, ‘the notes are the same, yet why is it so different?’ And this finding brought forth the new attraction in music for me. How to read the thoughts found in the music, and then to express that. That is where I learned this from.
[1] Literal translation is level other than/besides/except technique. “テクニック以外のレベル” I think what he meant is to not just train and focus on ‘techniques’ or ‘skills’ but also on other factors, like conveying one’s emotions or feelings, etc.


And for as long as I can remember, I’ve always had a very aggressive (attitude) towards the things I want to do. I had an interest in wind instruments and I kept playing until I ruined my teeth [1]. No choice but to give it up. Well, (let’s try) percussions then! During that period of time when I was hooked on percussions and drums, I wanted to learn from one of my seniors who played the drums very well. Just for that reason alone, I chose to go to the same (senior) high school [2] he did… My studies weren’t really good at that time, but I managed to pass the entrance exam with flying colours after studying like mad. (laughs) It’s really true. Since a long time ago, I’ve always hated losing (lit. the feeling of not wanting to lose is strong). I’m the type who will not stop once I have started moving.
[1] Literally, he said “歯がぐらぐらになる” (ha ga guragura ni naru). Guragura generally means loose, rickety, shaky, unsteady, etc. Until my teeth becomes guragura is what he said essentially.
[2] Er, just in case anyone is confused, he was in junior high school when he met that friend of his who played piano. And he chose to go that senior high school that his senior went to, so that he can learn drums from him. Nobody really says ‘senior high school’ in Japan, but I decided to put that in to make it clearer for you.


Music became very fun after I started playing drums. We held many live performances, and that was when I realized how amazing it was. Unlike the classical music I had been listening to, only four people held the stage (this time). (However,) the vocalist of the band left and after around one and a half year passed… (One day) I was drunk and told You [2], the guitarist who is still playing with me now, “Maybe I can be the vocalist.” “That is impossible!” He said it with such certainty (lit. to such an extent) that it made me totally angry. But I had vocal (lessons) when I was young and I can sing in different registers. [1] I was just trying to get back at him for saying that but, again, I sacrificed my sleeping time to practice, and in the end it was decided “You’ll be the vocalist”
[1] 音程もとれる. I have no musical background so I don’t really know the proper music terms. Basically ontei means ‘interval’ or ‘step’. For those who don’t have any musical background, register means the range, or part of a range, of a human voice. Thank you, Jen!
[2] This part made it seem as if You was with him all along, but if you read this part in Jihaku, Gackt actually met You only after the vocalist left. So after the vocalist left, I think he stopped participating in any band activities. Until around 1.5 year later when he met You and they talked about forming a new band. For more information, please read Section 2, Chapter 4 of Jihaku on "My first band 'Cain's Feel'".


[Translator’s note: Going back to the point of why he started playing music…]
So I do love music. But, rather than say I reached this point after searching (hard) for what I can do, I think it’s more appropriate to say that I reached here with the help of others as they guided me forward. But whether (something) can be done or not depends on your own self, and that’s why I practiced like crazy. [1] To beat that guy, (I need to do) this; to bring myself to this point, (I need to do) that. I do this over and over again; and that’s also the way I decide my themes.
[1] I think he is trying to say that he knows what can be achieved and what cannot be. He practiced hard because he believed that it is something he can do.


And precisely because of that, I want to tell everybody (this). First, people like to say, “I don’t have the talent,” right? Only those few who have reached their limits have the right to use the word ‘talent’. And those are people who have been practicing hard desperately for years without being able to produce any results at all. No talent is really all that’s left to say. That is why, to those people who say, “I’ll practice guitar for dear life,” flippantly, I really want to ask, “Are you really prepared to die [1] for it?” “Do you hold the guitar close to you as you sleep?” [2] And especially if you have it in mind to express something through “music”. If you are not really prepared to go all out, you won’t be able to convey that (successfully). I believe that your “ability [3]” is something you develop over time through perseverance as well as your own method of practicing. So before you say, “I can… I cannot…,” just go do it first!
[1] Not very obvious when you translate it over to English. In Japanese, he said “必死でギター練習してます” 必死 is a strong determination to do something, to the point where you are even ready to die for it. A very strong ‘I’ll achieve it no matter what!’ A lot of people like to say that, but not many really meant it. So Gackt said that he wants to ask those people, “Are you really ready to “die” (死ぬ shinu) for it?”
[2] In a very long-winded way: ‘Are you really so determined to learn it that you spend every possible minute practicing, and even in sleep, you would hold the guitar close to you?’
[3] Actually, throughout this whole paragraph, he only used one word ‘才能’ which can mean talent, ability, gift, capacity, aptitude, etc… Depending on the context and based on my interpretation, I’ll choose the word which I feel represents the meanings and his thoughts the closest.


I often tell the newer bands, (lit. young bands) “If there is a point you would like to reach no matter what, start planning [1] from now.” If you do that, you’ll know exactly what you have to do now and you’ll know that you cannot do it at this pace. So then, you will be able to feel the tension (緊張感 kinchoukan: strain, stress, tension) and improve. Those who don’t feel any can never improve.
[1] The literal translation is start calculating or counting backwards. From that point you want to reach, you slowly move back and see what you need to do to achieve that level. So then you’ll know what exactly you need to get to that stage/point. Basically, to plan your moves.


I have always been living in stress too. At the most critical moment, you’ll struggle desperately.


First, I’ll start from there.

Top | Previous page