1. An alternative rock band from Japan… Read Full Bio ↴There are 2 bands with this name:
1. An alternative rock band from Japan
2. An alternative rock band from Slovakia
for the female duo from the United States, please see Pillows
1. the pillows (ザ・ピロウズ) are an alternative rock band from Hokkaidō, Japan, best known outside Japan for their contributions to the soundtrack of the anime series FLCL (Fooly Cooly).
They consist of 山中さわお (Sawao Yamanaka) -vocals & guitar-, 真鍋吉明 (Yoshiaki Manabe) -guitar-, 佐藤シンイチロウ (Shinichiro Sato) -drums-.
The band officially formed on September 16, 1989 as a four-man group. The fourth man and original bassist, 上田ケンジ (Kenji Ueda), left the band in 1992 to become a music producer and do solo work. Since then, 鹿島達也 (Tatsuya Kashima) and later 鈴木淳 (Jun Suzuki) have taken his place as supporting bassists. Neither Kashima nor Suzuki have been named official members out of respect for Ueda.
The band name is intentionally left without any capitalization.
Official website: http://www.pillows.jp/
2. An alternative rock band The Pillows from High Tatras, Slovakia.
White Ash
The Pillows Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
もて余してる
吐き出せないで
無気になってる
味気ないガムを噛んで
Sunny funny bunny
何スネてんだ?
とっくに どうかしてんだ
手をのばす本能は
ヤケドして痛くてもはなせない
and be ash!
white ash!
In the song "White Ash" by The Pillows, the lyrics talk about feeling lost and overwhelmed with emotions, specifically with the inability to express oneself. The opening lyrics describe a stagnant feeling of having an unused, decaying pride with a lack of energy and apathy towards mundane things, such as chewing bland gum. The mention of the "Sunny funny bunny" and asking "何スネてんだ?" (What are you sulking about?) can be interpreted as a moment of self-reflection, wondering why one is feeling down when everything appears to be fine. The lyrics suggest that it's okay not to have a particular reason or meaning for feeling the way one does.
However, the chorus provides a sense of release, with the repeated line "and be ash! white ash!" suggesting that letting go and breaking down can be a way to start anew. The phrase "white ash" specifically symbolizes the result of burning something to the point that it turns completely into ash, a clean slate. The following lines mention how reaching out may burn and hurt, yet one cannot let go of their innate need to communicate and express themselves.
Overall, the song's message might be about the struggles of being human and the overwhelming emotions that come with it. The lyrics suggest that sometimes, even if it's difficult, it's crucial to let go of everything to finally start again, like the remnants of a burnt fire turning into clean, white ash.
Line by Line Meaning
すさんだプライド
My worn out pride
もて余してる
It's out of control
吐き出せないで
Can't spit it out
無気になってる
Feeling listless
味気ないガムを噛んで
Chewing tasteless gum
Sunny funny bunny
Silly little bunny
何スネてんだ?
What are you sulking for?
意味なんかなくたっていい
Don't need to have any meaning
とっくに どうかしてんだ
I'm already messed up
手をのばす本能は
My instinct to reach out
ヤケドして痛くてもはなせない
Even if it hurts, can't let go
and be ash!
And become ash!
white ash!
White ash!
Contributed by Chloe N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.