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)
Kyogenshou
椎名林檎 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
黄色の手一杯に広げられた地図には 何も何も無い
そして何故に雨や人波にも傷付くのかしらね
魚の目をしているクラスメイトが敵では 決して決して無い
線路上に寝転んでみたりしないで大丈夫
いま君の為に歌うことだって出来る
あたしは何時も何時もボロボロで生きる
例えば少女があたしを憎む様なことがあっても
摩れた瞳の行く先を探り当てる気など 丸で丸で無い
徒に疑ってみたりしないで大丈夫
いま君が独りで生きているなんて云えるの
君は常に常にギリギリで生きる
あたしは何時も君を想っているのに
髪の毛を誘う風を何ともすんなりと受け入れる
眩しい日に身を委せることこそ悪いこととは云わない
無理矢理に繕ってみたりしないで大丈夫
いま君の為に歌うことだって出来る
あたしは何時も何時もボロボロで生きる
徒に疑ってみたりしないで大丈夫
いま君が独りで生きているなんて云えるの
君は常に常にギリギリで生きる
あたしは何時も君を想っているのに
The lyrics to 椎名林檎's song 虚言症 are about struggling with one's identity and place in the world, and feeling like nothing is certain or fulfilling. The first stanza asks why the singer's eyes feel dry, and why the map in front of them is empty despite being spread out with a handful of yellow hands. They then wonder why they feel hurt by rain and crowds of people, and acknowledge that a classmate with "fish eyes" is not their enemy.
The second stanza addresses the listener directly, telling them not to lie to themselves and assuring them that the singer can sing for them. The singer admits to always feeling broken, while wondering if a fictional girl who hates them could find any true purpose in life. The third stanza encourages the listener to accept the wind that tugs at their hair, and not deny themselves the joy of surrendering to the dazzling sun. The final stanza repeats the second, urging the listener not to doubt themselves and affirming the singer's constant thoughts of them.
Overall, the song touches on themes of disillusionment, alienation, and the struggle to find meaning in a confusing and sometimes hostile world. The singer uses images of maps, empty yellow hands, and fish eyes to convey a sense of the world's emptiness, and encourages the listener to find their own path despite the difficulties.
Line by Line Meaning
しかし何故にこんなにも眼が乾く気がするのかしらね
I wonder why my eyes feel so dry all of a sudden
黄色の手一杯に広げられた地図には 何も何も無い
On a map spread out in my yellow hands, there is nothing at all
そして何故に雨や人波にも傷付くのかしらね
I wonder why I get hurt even by rain and crowds of people
魚の目をしているクラスメイトが敵では 決して決して無い
Classmates with fish-like eyes are definitely not my enemies
線路上に寝転んでみたりしないで大丈夫
Don't worry, I won't lie down on the railroad tracks
いま君の為に歌うことだって出来る
Right now, I can sing for you
あたしは何時も何時もボロボロで生きる
I always, always live in a fragile state
例えば少女があたしを憎む様なことがあっても
For example, even if a girl hated me,
摩れた瞳の行く先を探り当てる気など 丸で丸で無い
I wouldn't even begin to try to guess where her worn-out eyes are gazing
徒に疑ってみたりしないで大丈夫
Don't worry, I won't try to doubt things for no reason
いま君が独りで生きているなんて云えるの
Can I really say that you're living all alone right now?
君は常に常にギリギリで生きる
You always, always live life on the edge
あたしは何時も君を想っているのに
Even so, I always think about you
髪の毛を誘う風を何ともすんなりと受け入れる
I easily welcome the wind that beckons my hair
眩しい日に身を委せることこそ悪いこととは云わない
I wouldn't say it's a bad thing to let yourself be swallowed up by the brightness of the sun
無理矢理に繕ってみたりしないで大丈夫
Don't worry, I won't try to patch things up by force
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Ringo Shiina
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind