正しい街 by 椎名林檎

[masaegu]

Originally Posted by languagehacker

I wanted to ask you, how much truth do you think there is in this song? It doesn't seem like a song that was just made up from her imagination. There are some things in it that match up with things that are known to be true about Shiina, and I heard that she cries sometimes when she sings it. Do you think that this song is about her and that none of it is made up?

My hunch is that it is nearly 100% true. I felt this way the very first time I read the lyrics. To be something "created", it just sounds way too intense throughout and sorrowful at the end. However, if the question is if none of it is made up, that is impossible to answer. To write a song in the popular music style means writing a story that can be told in three minutes, not two or twelve. You are required to always count your syllables and such to match the musical notes. A few words might have been changed at the last minute but I just do not feel that she changed the real story to make it more appealing.

[languagehacker]

The problem about being limited by syllables and such in songs reminds me of something that I've been thinking about. When I'm doing my translations, I have no such limitations. The vocalist has already taken care of things like rhyming and such, so I don't have to worry about it. I can concentrate on getting the story across to the audience. The things I have to worry about are different, like how fast the reader can read and how much space is on the screen. Nevertheless, I find that the extra freedom I have allows me to get the story across better to the listener. If the subtitles are well thought out, then watching a music video with subtitles in a different language is better than watching without them and still better than watching with subtitles that are in the same language.

Thank you for helping me out with the translation. I'm glad that you were able to feel some sense of accomplishment as you helped make it happen. Because of you, the subtitles are the way they are.

The video can be found here:
YouTube - ‪Shiina Ringo - Tadashii Machi / "The Right Town" (subtitled) 【HD】‬‏

[Realism]

阿部嘉昭ファンサイト: 椎名林檎 「正しい街」論　（浅井秀一）

This page gives probably the best explanation of the song's lyrics.

　此の街＝福岡＝君「が正しかった」の後には、「のに ね（ぇ～）」という、ひしゃげたねじれが加えられる。 「正しかった」という意味は瞬時に相殺され、不協和音 的な否定や懐疑にすぐに席を奪われてしまう。ここには 以下の図式もある。過去は「正しかった」。「のに」、 現在の東京から俯瞰する福岡には「ね（ぇ～）」と揶揄 や否定の尾ひれが付属する。「街」のイメージが変容し たのだ。歌詞の以後を斟酌すれば、さらに状況設定が明 確化してくる。かつては自分が一体化していた「此の街 ＝福岡＝君」に、現在は「不愉快な笑みを向け」る。「長い沈黙の後更に態度を悪くした」。「正しい街」(� �外)にいまもいるのが「君」であり、歌の主体は中央に� ��る。つまり歌が描くかつての恋人同士は、いまは相互� ��異なる場所で暮らしている。歌は、立ち位置(郊外/中央)の齟齬・亀裂を描くのみではない。意図してマジ� �リティ(中央)からマイノリティ(郊外）への高圧的な態� �をえぐっているのだ。同時に、このマジョリティのマ� �ノリティとの対決は、マジョリティのマイノリティへ� �裏側の郷愁を分裂症状気味に語ってもいる（高圧と郷� �はここでは反射作用的なものとして考えられているだ� �う）。＜冷たいアスファルト＞は都会の代名詞的な役割を果た す。もっとも郊外の東京化・都市化が進む中で、＜冷たいアスファルト＞の獰猛な越境は続き、東京と福 岡に＜冷たいアスファルト＞の境目が存在するかどうか の判断が困難になりつつある。ともあれ「あの日飛び出した此の街と君が正しかった のにね」以降の展開はメジャーからマイナーへのシフト であり、マジョリティからマイノリティへの場面転換を 示唆しているように思える。

[languagehacker]

Looks pretty complicated and in-depth. Kind of wish I saw this before. Do you know what it means when it's talking about "majority" and "minority?"