Drummer Nao formed the band in 2004, recruiting vocalist Shou and guitarist Tora from the band ギブス which had just split up, and they were signed to the PS COMPANY indies label Indie-PSC. Their first single 「名前は、未だ無ひ。」 was released the same year. During their first year, they did small tours with other Japanese bands. Their first oneman tour was held in August 2005 in Japan. After a sold out gig in Tokyo the same year, Alice Nine became more popular in Japan, and went major on KING RECORDS under the management PS COMPANY. In 2007 they were signed in Europe by CLJ Records.
In May 2007, Alice Nine was performing their debut show in America, during the Jrock Revolution Festival at The Wiltern in Los Angeles. In December Alice Nine was doing their first performance ever in Europe. They were one of the five bands at J-ROCK INVASION EPISODE 1 festival in Cologne, Germany.
On June 2, 2009, a blog entry by vocalist Shou announced the changing of their name from アリス九號. and alice nine. to Alice Nine for media reasons. He explained that the Japanese transcription was beginning to lose its purpose as a means to "represent aesthetics" and that the English transcription was closest to the band's original intention.
From March 1st 2015 the band became independent from their label TOKUMA JAPAN COMMUNICATIONS and changed their name to A9. However, in August 2019 they informed that they will change the band's name back to Alice Nine / アリス九號.
Alice Nine have released eight full albums, 絶景色 (2005), Alpha (2007), VANDALIZE (2009), GEMINI (2011), "9" (2012), Supernova (2014), IDEAL (2017) and PLANET NINE (2018).
Their next single will be released in October 2019 and it's titled as 革命開花-Revolutionary Blooming-.
Official site: https://a9-project.com/. They also have a MySpace site for overseas fans.
WHITE PRAYER
Alice Nine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
耳鳴りは 止まらない
一人の 夜の音が 静かで
Searching for Raison d'etre
白紙の 人波に
極彩の ペンキを持ち 歩く
いつからか 何も感じなくなった
And cry, with love
忘れてるはずさ
グレーに染まった
世界がリアルじゃないと
眠っても 眠っても
朝は来ないから
今此の手で 鍵を開けよう
Black or white, jewel or stone
無力さが 愛しくて
無力なら 誰かを 求めるから
Please save me,
With a white rose
痛みを 分け合える、
そう出来る強さが欲しい
｢期待する事を 忘れた君へ｣
And cry, with love
だから伝えたい
悲しい唄も 決して無駄じゃないと
眠っても 眠っても
朝は来ないから
今此の手で 鍵を開けよう
どれだけ 色を重ねても
染まる事の無い 俺で居よう
And cry, with love
忘れてるはずさ
グレーに染まった
世界がリアルじゃないと
眠っても 眠っても
朝は来ないから
今此の手で 鍵を開けよう
The lyrics of Alice Nine's song WHITE PRAYER depict a sense of numbness and loneliness that the singer is experiencing. The lines "So many lies, so much pain" suggest that the singer may have been hurt a lot, and their ears ringing could symbolize the lingering effects of the trauma. The quiet night sounds and the desire for a Raison d'etre, or reason for existence, hint at the singer's feeling of purposelessness and disconnection from the world.
The image of walking through a crowd with bright colors of paint on a blank sheet of paper suggests a desire for self-expression and individuality, but the singer feels as though they are not truly experiencing anything, that "nothing has been felt" for a while now. Yet they still want to cry, with love, perhaps wanting to feel something, anything, not wanting to be completely numb.
The repeated line "眠っても 眠っても 朝は来ないから" (nemutte mo nemutte mo asa wa konai kara) means "even if I sleep and sleep, morning will not come." This could imply a sense of despair or hopelessness, but the line "今此の手で 鍵を開けよう" (ima kono te de kagi o akeyou) offers a glimmer of hope. It means "let's open the lock with our own hands now," suggesting that despite feeling isolated and disconnected, the singer can take action to change their situation and find the key to unlock their sense of self.
Line by Line Meaning
So many lies, so much pain
There have been many deceptions and much anguish
耳鳴りは 止まらない
My ears won't stop ringing
一人の 夜の音が 静かで
The sound of the night is silent when alone
Searching for Raison d'etre
Looking for a reason to exist
白紙の 人波に
In a blank crowd of people
極彩の ペンキを持ち 歩く
I walk with a rainbow-colored paint
いつからか 何も感じなくなった
At some point, I stopped feeling anything
And cry, with love
I cry, but with love
忘れてるはずさ
I should have forgotten
グレーに染まった
Stained with gray
世界がリアルじゃないと
Because the world doesn't feel real
眠っても 眠っても
Even if I sleep and sleep
朝は来ないから
Morning won't come
今此の手で 鍵を開けよう
I will unlock the door with my own hands
Black or white, jewel or stone
Whether it's black or white, a jewel or a stone
無力さが 愛しくて
Feeling powerless is lovely
無力なら 誰かを 求めるから
If you feel powerless, you'll seek someone out
Please save me,
Please rescue me
With a white rose
With a white rose
痛みを 分け合える、
I can share this pain
そう出来る強さが欲しい
I want the strength to do so
｢期待する事を 忘れた君へ｣
To you who has forgotten to expect
And cry, with love
I cry, but with love
だから伝えたい
That's why I want to tell you
悲しい唄も 決して無駄じゃないと
Even sad songs aren't a waste
眠っても 眠っても
Even if I sleep and sleep
朝は来ないから
Morning won't come
今此の手で 鍵を開けよう
I will unlock the door with my own hands
どれだけ 色を重ねても
No matter how many colors I add
染まる事の無い 俺で居よう
I'll stay unstained
And cry, with love
I cry, but with love
忘れてるはずさ
I should have forgotten
グレーに染まった
Stained with gray
世界がリアルじゃないと
Because the world doesn't feel real
眠っても 眠っても
Even if I sleep and sleep
朝は来ないから
Morning won't come
今此の手で 鍵を開けよう
I will unlock the door with my own hands
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Shou, Alice Nine
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind