I think Cage surprised a lot of people — both in the tone and visuals and in the choice of unit. It comes on Hinatazaka’s 2nd single Doremisolasido, which seemed to promise just more cheerful, colorful tunes.
Cage isn’t too dark, but it feels nice and strong more in the way of Keyaki songs. And a very pleasant surprise for me to see Higashimura Mei, noted as much for her extreme shyness as for her strong dancing, centering with trio of 2nd gens. In particular this includes my favorites, (hopefully not relegated to) variety members Kanemura Miku and Nibu Akari.
There’s actually a bit of déjà vu in translating these lyrics — I guess there’s actually not a few recent idol songs with themes of escaping where you’ve found yourself in life and striving for something better. But I can get swept up in it, especially with the very pretty MV that sticks close to the lyrics and avoids getting too corny.
The grammar of this one is actually noticeably more complicated than other 46G/48G songs I’ve worked on, and makes me appreciate the long sentences they had to rapid-fire out while singing. Also you should expect even more translation mistakes than usual!
日向坂46 (Hinatazaka46) Cage Translation by SaitoWinterStar 世界から 空がなくなってしまえばいいと思った sekai kara sora ga nakunatte shimaeba ii to omotta I wished the sky would disappear from the world そうしたら 僕はもうあの空を駆け巡る鳥たちを羨むことはないんだ sou shitara boku wa mou ano sora wo kakemeguru toritachi wi urayamu koto wa nai nda If that happened Then I'd no longer envy the birds that rush about there 空を飛んだってしょうがない sora wo tonda tte shou ga nai Flying through the sky is just what they do 僕は 鳥籠の中でいつもより大きな声で泣いた boku wa torikago no naka de itsu mo yori ooki na koe de naita As for me I cried from my cage louder than before 瞼 閉じてしまえば 見えなくなるって manabuta tojite shimaeba mienaku naru tte "When you close your eyes you can't be seen" わかってはいるけど勇気がなかった wakatte hairu kedo yuuki ga nakatta I have the understanding, but didn't have the courage 天井の染み眺めてると 何かしら意味あるように tenjou no shimi nagamete ru to nanikashira imi aru you ni If I stare at a spot on the ceiling So it will somehow have meaning 思えてしまう 一人の真夜中 omoete shimau hitori no mayonaka Thinking it through Alone in the dead of night どうせ醒めるならば どんな素晴らしい夢だって見たくないんだ douse sameru naraba don'na subarashii yume datta mitaku nai nda After all, when I wake up I don't want to see it was some kind of wonderful dream 現実に戻るのがきっと怖くなるから genjitsu ni modoru no ga kitto kowaku naru kara Because surely it'll be scary to go back to reality それならいっそ寝返りを繰り返して どうにか諦めた方がいい sorenara isso negaeri wo kurikashite dou ni ka akirameta hou ga ii And so all the more I toss and turn Somehow I'd better give it up ベッドからもう起きようか BEDDO kara mou okiyou ka Should I be out of bed already? どうして頑張らなきゃいけないんだ? dou shite ganbaranakyaikenai nda? Why do I have to hold out here? Oh… 自由はどこにある? そうだ いつだって目の前にあるんだ jiyuu wa doko ni aru? sou da itsu datte me no mae ni aru nda Where is freedom? They say It's always there before you もう 何も邪魔するものない 好きなことやればいい mou nani mo jama suru mono nai suki na koto yareba ii There's nothing stopping you anymore You should do what you like 自分が勝手に縛られて ルールや常識の外へ出ないだけ jibun ga katte ni shibararete RUURU ya joushiki no soto e denai dake You're willfully binding yourself And just don't go outside of the rules and norms 存在などしてない 想像のCage sonzai nado shite nai souzou no Cage That's not a way to exist A cage for your imagination Wow… もしも 鳥籠の窓 開けてしまったら moshimo torikago no mado akete shimattara If you open the cage's door 逃げ出した鳥はどこへと飛んで行く? nigedashita tori wa doko e to tonde yuku? To where does the escaped bird fly? 空の向こうに行きたい場所 叶えたい願いや夢が sora no mukou ni ikitai basho kanaetai negai ya yume ga I want to go to a place on the other side of the sky The wishes and dreams I want to come true あると言うなら それもいいけど・・・ aru to iunara sore mo ii kedo... If I say they exist That's ok, however... 僕が作り上げたただの思い込みを信じてただけなのかな boku ga tsukuriageta tada no omoikomi wo shinjite ta dake na no ka na I guess I just believed in those safe assumptions I made up ここを出られないなんて被害者意識だった koko wo derarenai nante higaishaishiki datta It was a feeling of being the victim that can't get out of here 見えない籠に閉じ込められている方が都合がよかったんだろう? mienai kago ni tojikomerarete iru hou ga tsugou ga yokatta ndarou? Maybe it's ok being locked in this invisible cage? カーテンをまた閉めようか KAATEN wo mata shimeyou ka Shall I close the curtain again? 日差しが昨日よりも眩しかった hizashi ga kinou yori mo mabushikatta The sunlight was more dazzling than yesterday Oh… 世界は広いんだ きっと まだ知らない何かがあるはず sekai wa hiroi nda kitto mada shiranai nani ka ga aru hazu The world's vast Surely There are still things I don't know そう探してみる価値はあるよ ここから飛び出そう sou sagashite miru kachi wa aru yo koko kara tobidasou There really are things worth trying to find I'll fly from here 誰にも僕を止められない 強い風が遠くから吹くように・・・ dare ni mo boku wo tomerarenai tsuyoi kaze ga touku kara fuku you ni... No one can stop me Like a strong wind blowing from afar 自分を試したくて 壊されたCage jibun wo tameshitakute kowasareta Cage I want to test myself So I broke the cage 人はみな そこから動かないけど hito wa mina soko kara ugokanai kedo One person can't stir everyone from here, but 誰も何も束縛してないんだ dare mo nani mo sokubaku shite nai nda No one is bound by anything 傷つく可能性 不安だけで諦めている kizutsuku kanousei fuan dake de akiramete iru You're likely to get hurt You give up just from the anxiety 籠の鳥よ kago no tori yo You are the caged bird Oh… どこかに飛びたいよ だって ほら背中に翼があることに doko ka ni tobitai yo datte hora senaka ni tsubasa ga aru koto ni I want to fly somewhere Because With these wings on my back 気づいてしまったんだ kidzuite shimatta nda It's that I realized ここにいてじっとしてた方が koko ni ite jitto shite ta hou ga To stay here motionlessly 安全だって言われたって羽ばたいてみたい anzen datte iwareta tte habataite mitai Even though they said it was safe, I want to try and stretch my wings Wow… 今すぐ ima sugu Right now 自由はどこにある? そうだ いつだって目の前にあるんだ jiyuu wa doko ni aru? sou da itsu datte me no mae ni aru nda Where is freedom? They say It's always there before you もう 何も邪魔するものない 好きなことやればいい mou nani mo jama suru mono nai suki na koto yareba ii There's nothing stopping you anymore You should do what you like 自分が勝手に縛られて ルールや常識の外へ出ないだけ jibun ga katte ni shibararete RUURU ya joushiki no soto e denai dake You're willfully binding yourself And just don't go outside of the rules and norms 存在などしてない 想像のCage sonzai nado shite nai souzou no Cage That's not a way to exist A cage for your imagination Wow… Wow…
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My Top Songs of 2019, Part 1 – SaitoWinterStar · December 16, 2019 at 12:53 am
[…] stands out to me, I just like it overall, though the choice of unit was an inspiration to get me to sub it. Also if the traffic analysis is to be believed, it’s far and away my most popular sub. […]