ELLEGARDEN is a punk rock group that formed in December of 1998 in Chiba, J… Read Full Bio ↴ELLEGARDEN is a punk rock group that formed in December of 1998 in Chiba, Japan. It includes drummer Hirotaka Takahashi, vocalist Takeshi Hosomi, guitarist Shinichi Ubakata, and bassist Yuichi Takada. As of May 2, 2008, Ellegarden's leader Ubukata Shinichi announced an indefinite hiatus of the band. All previously decided shows (including shows not yet announced) up until early September 2008 will still be performed. Though they are on hiatus, the vocalist, Hosomi, has repeatedly stated that they will not be breaking up anytime soon, and will be back on the stage performing again in the future.

Soon after the hiatus began, an official announcement was made on the website declaring that all activities of the band had been indefinitely suspended

They are also referred to as ELLE.

ELLEGARDEN has a sound strikingly similar to some American Pop Punk bands, and sings in both Japanese and English. Their English lyrics (mostly written by Hosomi) are usually grammatically correct and generally very well pronounced. In the Summer 2006 issue of American J-rock magazine purple SKY (p.24), Takeshi was quoted as saying his English skills were improved by the time he spent working as a computer engineer in first Oakland, California, and later in Japan where he had English speaking co-workers.

ELLEGARDEN has been compared to famous artists of similar style, most notably Sum 41 (ELLEGARDEN was the band's opening act on February 2005 during the Sum 41 Japan Tour 2005), Blink 182 and Good Charlotte. Their popularity comes from the sounds that they bring and the strong emotions they express. Despite these similarities however, they have a wide range of sounds that don't quite fit into a single style, but encompass a decent range of rock sounds.

In 2006 ELLEGARDEN performed in numerous Japanese Summer Music Festivals, such as FUJI ROCK, SUMMER SONIC, NANO MUGEN FES and RISING SUN ROCK FESTIVAL.

Their final tour of 2006 features the American band Allister - the bands became friends during SXSW 2006.

It is difficult to get their tour and live tickets because they become sold out in a very short amount of time.

With the international release of their newest album "Eleven Fire Crackers", Ellegarden is quickly growing in popularity - no doubt aided by their recent U.S. gigs.

In 2018, Ellegarden announced their first tour in 10 years, ending their hiatus. The tour, titled "THE BOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN", is to begin in August at Shinkiba Studio Coast, the same venue as their send-off concert.

Koukasen
ELLEGARDEN Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

ほんの少し前に手に入れたような未来を
思い出と一緒に丸めて投げ捨てた
まだ先は長いよ荷物はもういいよ

I am dreaming of a girl rocked my world
南北へ続く高架線
この先にはきっとあるとささやいてる

ゆっくりと傾く足元に気をつけて
思うよりあなたはずっと強いからね
耳鳴りがやまないな君の声がまだ聞こえるよ

I am dreaming of a girl rocked my world
南北へ続く高架線
この先にはきっとあるとささやいてる

何億年も前につけた傷跡なら残って
消えなくてもいいさ痛みはもうないからね
血のにじんだ足跡置いていかれた記憶も
誰にだってあるだろ隠すつもりもないけど

I am dreaming of a girl rocked my world
南北へ続く高架線

この先にはきっとあるとささやいてる
Her name is laura

Overall Meaning

These lyrics are from the song "Koukasen" by ELLEGARDEN. The song talks about letting go of a future that was recently obtained, along with memories. The singer acknowledges that there is a long journey ahead, but they are done carrying the baggage. They dream of a girl who rocked their world, with the image of a continuous overhead railway line stretching from north to south symbolizing the belief that there is surely something waiting ahead. Despite the slow decline, they caution themselves to be careful and assure that the girl is much stronger than they initially thought. The ringing in their ears continues, and they can still hear her voice.

The lyrics then mention scars that were made billions of years ago, implying that they remain as reminders and even if they don't disappear, the pain is no longer there. They mention leaving bloody footprints and memories that were abandoned, acknowledging that everyone has these experiences and they have no intention of hiding them. The song ends by stating that her name is Laura, possibly referring to the girl who has been on the singer's mind.

Line by Line Meaning

ほんの少し前に手に入れたような未来を
Just a little while ago, I thought I had obtained a future

思い出と一緒に丸めて投げ捨てた
I bundled it up with my memories and threw it away

まだ先は長いよ荷物はもういいよ
The road ahead is still long, I don't need any baggage anymore

南北へ続く高架線
An elevated train track that stretches north and south

この先にはきっとあるとささやいてる
Whispers say that surely something lies beyond this point

ゆっくりと傾く足元に気をつけて
Careful not to stumble as we slowly lean

思うよりあなたはずっと強いからね
You are much stronger than I think, you know

耳鳴りがやまないな君の声がまだ聞こえるよ
The ringing in my ears won't stop, I can still hear your voice

何億年も前につけた傷跡なら残って
If there were scars made billions of years ago, they would still remain

消えなくてもいいさ痛みはもうないからね
They don't need to disappear, because there is no more pain

血のにじんだ足跡置いていかれた記憶も
Footprints stained with blood, memories left behind