The band members are 櫻井敦司 (Sakurai Atsushi) (vocals), 今井寿 (Imai Hisashi) (guitars, noises, electronics, vocals), 星野英彦 (Hoshino Hidehiko) (guitars, chorus), 桶口豊 (Higuchi Yutaka) (bass) and ヤガミ・トール (Yagami Toll) (drums).
BUCK-TICK's music has changed and evolved hugely over the course of their career. Their early work is what the Japanese call "positive punk". It used simple rhythms and chords, with the songs mostly in major keys and using some English words in the lyrics. Starting with 1989's TABOO, they experimented with a darker sound, which grew more mature with 狂った太陽 in 1991. darker than darkness style 93 delved into a harsher industrial rock sound which continued all the way up through Mona Lisa OVERDRIVE in 2003. With 2005's 十三階は月光, they deliberately adopted a "goth" concept, which they combined with a retro straight rock sound for the albums 天使のリボルバー (2007) and Memento Mori (2009). Their next album, 2010's RAZZLE DAZZLE, then incorporated many instances of dance-rock.
Some elements that persist throughout their music are resounding, jangling guitar chords, throbbing, prominent bass lines, harsh roars of electronically distorted noise, and ambivalent melodies that wander between major and minor keys, as well as Sakurai's distinctive rich baritone voice. Jrockrevolution described the band's style as having gone "from the bubbly sounds of pop to the buzz of electronic cyberpunk to lustful velvety goth to the smooth style of hard rock and back again". Sakurai, who is the main lyricist of the band, is famous for the erotic decadence of his lyrics, but he also often addresses existential psychological themes. His lyrics is also described as "dance in a daydream about reality". Imai, the main composer, has written many songs that read like science fiction stories, involving genetic engineering and computer hackers, but more recently has branched out into love songs.
As Josephine Yun describes them, in 'A Concise Report on 40 of the Biggest Rock Acts in Japan', "BUCK-TICK's music is smashed-together nuances of everything from Depeche Mode and New Order to U2 and The Knack. While wry, it can float and be nebulously melodic. [...] Masked in eye makeup, Atsushi looks and sounds possessed. BUCK-TICK was (and continues to be) and anomaly in the Japanese music scene, a tangle of goth rock diluted with synth and electronica. It's unhappy, dirty music, the musical equivalent of exploded soot and smoke."
BUCK-TICK and their members have performed with, for example, KMFDM, Soft Ballet, Luna Sea, Sheena Ringo, and The Yellow Monkey. The band members have also participated in different side-projects, such as Schaft, Schwein (Sakurai and Imai with Raymond Watts (PIG) and Sascha Konietzko (KMFDM)), and The Mortal.
Les Enfants Terribles
BUCK-TICK Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
急上昇 挑発的 GO GO GIRLも悪くない
高性能 TOJO BABIES 豹変するのがCABALLERO
狂おしい アンファンテリブル 骨までしゃぶっていいかな
Oh Yeah Oh Yeah Oh Yeah Oh Yeah
Oh Oh とろけそうなロマンス
Oh Oh 浮世色めく BOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh 粋に狂い咲け Oh Yeah
最上階 衝動的 ギリギリ イケないNO NO BOY
急上昇 挑発的 骨までしゃぶっていいかな
Oh Yeah Oh Yeah Oh Yeah Oh Yeah
Oh Oh 水も滴るBOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh とろけそうなロマンス
Oh Oh 浮世色めく BOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh 粋に狂い咲け Oh Yeah
Oh Oh 水も滴るBOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh 足踏み鳴らせ
Oh Oh 浮世轟くBOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh 一気に駆け上がれ Oh Yea
Oh Oh 水も滴るBOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh 足踏み鳴らせ
Oh Oh 浮世轟くBOYS & GIRLS
Oh Oh 一気に駆け上がれ Oh Yea
The lyrics to BUCK-TICK's song Les Enfants Terribles describe the reckless and wild behavior of the titular "enfants terribles" or "terrible children." The lyrics suggest that these individuals are drawn to danger and provocation, with lines like "Oh Oh, water drips from BOYS & GIRLS" and "浮世色めく BOYS & GIRLS" indicating a sense of excitement and decadence. The lines "骨までしゃぶっていいかな" and "粋に狂い咲け" imply that these individuals are aware of the risks associated with their behavior and are willing to embrace them fully.
The song's repeated refrain of "Oh Yeah" and "Oh Oh" adds to the high-energy, almost manic feel of the lyrics. The use of both English and Japanese lyrics also emphasizes the song's themes of cultural and linguistic hybridity, further underscoring the idea of these "terrible children" as boundary-breakers and rule-breakers.
Overall, Les Enfants Terribles is a song that celebrates reckless abandon and the thrill of living on the edge, while also recognizing the risks and consequences that come with such behavior.
Line by Line Meaning
最上階 衝動的 ギリギリ イケないNO NO BOY
Being the most audacious one, who likes to live life on the edge, he might be someone who cannot be approved by the society.
急上昇 挑発的 GO GO GIRLも悪くない
She, who's on the rise and very provoking in nature, isn't a bad girl either.
高性能 TOJO BABIES 豹変するのがCABALLERO
Highly efficient, the Tojo babies are the ones who can transform themselves into Cabelleros.
狂おしい アンファンテリブル 骨までしゃぶっていいかな
By being insanely rebellious and wild, the Enfants Terribles, can savor life to the fullest.
Oh Yeah Oh Yeah Oh Yeah Oh Yeah
Oh yeah x4
Oh Oh 水も滴るBOYS & GIRLS
Oh oh, attracting a lot of people.
Oh Oh とろけそうなロマンス
Oh oh, feels like melting with romance.
Oh Oh 浮世色めく BOYS & GIRLS
Oh oh, the boys and girls who shine in this worldly life.
Oh Oh 粋に狂い咲け Oh Yeah
Oh oh, bloom in style and become crazy, oh yeah.
Oh Oh 足踏み鳴らせ
Oh oh, stomp your feet.
Oh Oh 浮世轟くBOYS & GIRLS
Oh oh, boys and girls who create commotions in this world.
Oh Oh 一気に駆け上がれ Oh Yea
Oh oh, run up very fast, oh yeah.
Contributed by Riley W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.