August 10, 2024

Translation: Feelings (Eiichi Ohtaki)

I'm not interested in Ohtaki's self-penned lyrics (yet?). Lately I've been playing his outrageously stylish and catchy 1976 Go! Go! Niagara record on repeat (it's like Yellow Magic Orchestra's Naughty Boys, if Naughty Boys were a mix of 1950s music and reggae), and I get the sense that he's an Anthony Kiedis type lyricist: outstanding at the rhythmic arrangement of words and syllables, without necessarily worrying too much about what the words signify. But I love the second track on this record (his 1972 debut) so much, that I got to wondering what the lyrical set-up here in the opener, Feelings, was. The words are plain enough, though pretty; and as for the music, well, listen for yourself of course (and keep in mind that Ohtaki recorded his debut right after making Kazemachi Roman, I mean, what the hell? some people get all the level-ups). Or we could just defer to Corwin Stephen:

"This is ridiculously cool"



:::



The bitter orange light
of the sky
has turned my whole body
transparent and white,
and I surrender to the knowledge
that, underneath my eyelids,
the feelings I have for you
are secretly
beginning to fill vast spaces,
beginning to fill vast spaces.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Translation: I Passed through Your Town (Hiro Yanagida)

The bittersweet vibe continues in I Passed through Your Town . I love Hiro's bright arrangement, all ska horns and infectious group voca...