After quitting school to enter a musical contest, Shiina was quickly signed to EMI, then promptly left Japan to avoid the trappings of contract work. After returning, she quickly released a series of singles and albums, all self-penned (a relative rarity for Japanese pop artists), and all meeting with great success on the Japanese charts. A hiatus to start a family followed, itself followed (after a divorce) by both a new album and a new side project, the band 東京事変. (Tokyo Jihen - or Tokyo Incidents)
After more success with the band, Shiina returned to a solo career in 2006 as the Music Director for the film 「さくらん」(Sakuran), quickly taking the number one slot on the Oricon charts with the album Heisei Fuuzoku released in tandem with a major soundtrack project. Following was a B-sides album which peaked quickly at the number one Oricon slot. In the years proceeding this, she spent most of her time dedicated to Tokyo Jihen occasionally revisiting her solo work.
Despite being involved in the main Japanese pop scene, Shiina has created a niche for herself based on a much wider musical range than most artists. Where most pop singers develop a basic sound based on contemporary pop aesthetics and throwaway lyrical matter, Shiina builds on a base of jazz, rock, Motown, and even French chanson equally well (the chanson works especially well with her trademark nasal delivery), infusing her projects with a very different aesthetic, and gaining a fan base separate from the core constituents of the Japanese pop apparatus.
Despite the release of album 三毒史 (trivisa-itihasa) in 2019, released after a myriad of singles being majorly included in aforementioned work. In 2020, Ringo and band Tokyo Jihen turned their backs to their past, doing a major reunion, with the drop of a few projects, such as sixth studio album 音楽.
Discography
Singles
幸福論 (Koufukuron)（1998）
歌舞伎町の女王 （1998）
ここでキスして。 (Koko de kisu shite)（1999）
本能 （1999）
幸福論（1999）
ギブス (Gibs)（2000）
罪と罰 （2000）
真夜中は純潔 （2001）
絶頂集 （2000）
茎（STEM）～大名遊ビ編～ （2003）
りんごのうた (Ringo no Uta)（2003）
この世の限り (Kono Yo no Kagiri) (2007） (With Saitou Neko and her brother Shiina Junpei)
ありあまる富 (Ariamaru Tomi)（2009）
カーネーション (Carnation)（2011）
自由へ道連 (Traveling Companion to Freedom) (2012)
いろはにほへと (Les Couleurs Chantent) (2013)
孤独のあかつき (The Solitude of Dawn) (2013)
NIPPON (2014)
至上の人生 (A Life Supreme) (2015)
最果てが見たい (2015)
長く短い祭 (2015)
神様、仏様 (2015)
ジユーダム (2016)
目抜き通り (2017)
獣ゆく細道 (2018)
Albums
無罪モラトリアム (Muzai Moratorium) (1999)
勝訴ストリップ (Shouso Strip)（2000)
加爾基 精液 栗ノ花（Karuki Za-men Kuri no Hana）(2003)
平成風俗 (Heisei Fuuzoku) (2007) (with Neiko Sato)
三文ゴシップ (Sanmon Gossip) (2009)
日出処 (Hi Izuru Tokoro) (2014)
三毒史 (trivisa-itihasa) (2019)
Covers Album
唄ひ手冥利～其ノ壱～ (Utaitemyori Sonoichi)（2002）
逆輸入 ～港湾局～ (Reimports Vol.1) (2014)
逆輸入 〜航空局〜 (Reimport Vol.2 -Civil Bureau Aviation) (2017)
Compilations
私と放電 (Me & Electric Discharge) (2008) - (B-Sides)
ニュートンの林檎 (Apple of Universal Gravity) (2019) - (Overview)
Izonshou
椎名林檎 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
夢の隙に現を殺し 戦う不条理なレッグカフ
今朝の二時
シャーベッツのロゴが溶けている 黄色い車の名は「 」
明け立ての夜を強請る 品川埠頭に似合うのです
今朝の五時
其れすら知りながら あなたの相鎚だけ望んでいる あたしは病気なのでしょう
甲州街道からの渋滞が 激化して日本の朝を見ました
覚醒を要する今日と云う 厳しい矛盾に惑うのです
つい先も
どれ程 若さの上に丸で雲切れの 笑顔を並べど変わりませぬ
孤独を知る毎に あなたの相鎚だけ望んでいる あたしは あたしは
あなたの其の瞳が頷く瞬間に 初めて生命の音を聴くのです
天鵞絨の海にも 仕方のないことしか無かったら あたしはどう致しましょう
翻弄されているということは 状態として 美しいでしょうか
いいえ 綺麗な花は枯れ 醜い過程が嘲笑うのです
何時の日も
The lyrics to "Izonshou" by 椎名林檎 are a blend of post-modern imagery and personal narrative that, when decoded, reveal a story about a woman who is struggling with her own mortality and the futility of existence. The opening lines, "Suddenly I wanted to hear a sleeping breath / So I hid the key in the freezer" set the tone for the rest of the song, which is a contemplation of the absurdity of human life and the desire to escape it.
The lyrics contain references to various cultural artifacts, such as the logo of Sharbetts, a fictional candy brand mentioned in Haruki Murakami's novel "Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World." The yellow car mentioned in the fourth line is left unnamed, adding to the sense of mystery and surrealism in the song. The singer's desire to sink into the ocean without being tainted by it is a metaphor for her perceived purity and desperation to escape the ugliness of life.
The chorus is a repetition of the line "I am sick, so I only desire your sledgehammer." This ambiguous line can be interpreted in different ways, but it likely refers to the singer's desire to feel alive and to break free from the monotony of existence. The use of the word "sledgehammer" suggests violence and destruction, further emphasizing the singer's existential crisis.
Overall, "Izonshou" is a haunting and provocative song that challenges listeners to consider the meaning of life and the possibility of transcendence.
Line by Line Meaning
急に只 寝息が欲しくなって 冷凍庫にキーを隠したのです
Suddenly, I wanted to hear just the sound of breathing, so I hid the key in the freezer.
夢の隙に現を殺し 戦う不条理なレッグカフ 今朝の二時
In the space between dreams, I kill reality and fight against absurd leg cuffs. It was two o'clock in the morning.
シャーベッツのロゴが溶けている 黄色い車の名は「 」 明け立ての夜を強請る 品川埠頭に似合うのです 今朝の五時
The Sharbet logo is melting. The yellow car's name is unknown. It suits the fresh morning as I beg for it at Shinagawa Pier. It was five o'clock in the morning.
あたしが此のまゝ海に沈んでも 何一つ汚されることはありませぬ 其れすら知りながら あなたの相鎚だけ望んでいる あたしは病気なのでしょう
Even if I sink into this sea, nothing will be tainted. Despite knowing this, I only desire your mallet. Perhaps I am sick.
甲州街道からの渋滞が 激化して日本の朝を見ました 覚醒を要する今日と云う 厳しい矛盾に惑うのです つい先も
The traffic jam from the Koshu Highway intensified, and I witnessed the morning of Japan. I am confused by the harsh contradiction of needing to awaken on this day. It was just now.
どれ程 若さの上に丸で雲切れの 笑顔を並べど変わりませぬ 孤独を知る毎に あなたの相鎚だけ望んでいる あたしは あたしは
No matter how many round, cloud-splitting smiles I line up on top of youth, it will not change. Every time I experience loneliness, I only desire your mallet. I, I...
あなたの其の瞳が頷く瞬間に 初めて生命の音を聴くのです 天鵞絨の海にも 仕方のないことしか無かったら あたしはどう致しましょう
In the moment your eyes nod, I hear the sound of life for the first time. If there is nothing to be done even in the velvet sea, what am I supposed to do?
翻弄されているということは 状態として 美しいでしょうか いいえ 綺麗な花は枯れ 醜い過程が嘲笑うのです 何時の日も
Is being toyed around with a beautiful state? No, beautiful flowers wither, and the ugly process mocks. This is true no matter the day.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: RINGO SHEENA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind