椎名林檎 (Shiina Ringo, also sometimes spelled "Sheena Ringo" or "Shéna Ringö")… Read Full Bio ↴椎名林檎 (Shiina Ringo, also sometimes spelled "Sheena Ringo" or "Shéna Ringö"), born November 25, 1978 in Saitama and raised in Fukuoka, is a Japanese singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist. Her family name is Shiina (椎名) and she chose to perform as Ringo instead of her birth name Yumiko (裕美子) because - as a shy child - her cheeks would blush red like an apple (the fruit being 'ringo' in Japanese).

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)

love is blind
椎名林檎 Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Love is blind
Love is only sorrow
Love is no tomorrow
Since you went away
Love is blind
How well I remember
In the heat of summer
Pleasure, winter fades

How long will it take
Before I can't remember
Memories I should forget?
I've been burning
Since the day we met

Love is blind
Love is without a mercy
Love is now you've hurt me
Now you've gone away
Love is blind
Love is no horizon
And I'm slowly dying
Here in yesterday

In the morning waken
To the sound of weeping
Someone else should weep for me
Now it's over
Lover, let me be

Love is blind
Love is your caress
Love is tenderness
And momentary pain
Love is blind
How well I remember

In the heat of summer
Pleasure, winter fades

Overall Meaning

In "Love is Blind" by Shiina Ringo, the song explores the complex and bittersweet nature of love. The lyrics convey a sense of loss and heartache, as the singer reflects on the painful aftermath of a past relationship. The repetition of the phrase "Love is blind" emphasizes the theme that love can be blinding, causing one to overlook the reality of a situation. The line "Love is only sorrow" suggests that love can bring pain and sadness. Similarly, "Love is no tomorrow" portrays the sense of emptiness and lack of future prospects that can follow a broken relationship.

The lyrics also touch upon the memories and lingering effects of the past relationship. The singer questions how long it will take to forget these memories they should let go of. The phrase "I've been burning since the day we met" illustrates the intensity and passion of their connection, yet also hints at the pain that has consumed them since the breakup.

Throughout the song, there is a juxtaposition between the past (represented by "yesterday," "summer," and "pleasure") and the present (characterized by "now," "winter fades," and "slowly dying"). This highlights the contrasting emotions and states of mind experienced by the singer. The song's melancholic tone and introspective lyrics create a poignant and relatable portrayal of the aftermath of a lost love.

Line by Line Meaning

Love is blind
Love doesn't see the flaws or imperfections

Love is only sorrow
Love brings nothing but sadness

Love is no tomorrow
Love has no future

Since you went away
Since you left, everything has changed

How well I remember
I have vivid memories

In the heat of summer
During the passionate moments

Pleasure, winter fades
Happiness eventually diminishes

How long will it take
How much time will I need

Before I can't remember
Until I forget

Memories I should forget?
Should I really let go of these memories?

I've been burning
I've been consumed by intense emotions