bonobos formed in 2001 by vocalist/guitarist Sai Chunho. Later that year Sai would be joined by bassist Morimoto Natsuko, guitarist Sasaki Yasuyuki, and drummer Tsuji Bondo. It was not until 2002 after a few live stints in Osaka that the band would release any demotapes. One of their demos, moujiki fuyu ga kuru, hit #1 on the Kansai (western Japan) area student geared CRJ-west charts. It was voted as the #1 song overall for the year as well on that chart.
bonobos joined on the label GALATIC and released their first mini-album, Headphone Magic. This album sold fairly well for the indie newcomers as it hit the Oricon chart. That same year brought the major debut of bonobos with the song that made them popular in the first place, moujiki fuyu ga kuru. It would be followed in January of 2004 with the single water.
In March of 2004 they released their first full major album, Hover Hover. This brought a lot of attention to the group as they would perform in the Rising Sun Rock Festival that summer.
bonobos are still going strong as they released their second major album, electlyric, in May of 2005.
Source:
http://www.circlewithadot.net/bands/bonobos/bio.html
あ、
bonobos Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
なんとなく乾いた喉には水でもくださいな
このままずっとずっとなにもかもうまく言えずに
忘れっちゃうのは悲しすぎるんです
あぁ、言葉はときどき 馴染まないシャツみたいに
とってもねぇ 恥ずかしくて 厄介なんよね
君に伝えなきゃいけないと うなされるくらいあんだよ
いつも伝えなきゃいけないのに 泣きたい気持ちになんだよ
君に伝えたいこの気持ち 少し大きめの あ、
はやくぼくの胸をつきやぶれ
言ってることのほとんどは 冗談みたいなもんです
残りのちょっともあんまりよろしくないよ
とってもさみしいことだけど
大切なことホントは いつでもちゃんとわかってるのに
でもいつでも一人でこねくりまわして駄目にしてしまうよ
あぁ、見えないものに頼ってばかりいる
幸せのかたちなんてどうでもいいのにね
君に伝えなきゃいけないこと うなされるくらいあんだよ
いつも伝えなきゃいけないのに 泣きたい気持ちになんだよ
種をまかなくちゃ 水も引かなくちゃ もぎとれるくらいになったら
いつか伝えたいこの気持ち 少し大きめの あ、
どうかあなたの胸に突き刺され
少し大きめの あ、
Bonobos's song あ、 is a beautiful expression of the difficulty of expressing oneself through words. The singer says that he is unable to say anything right and ends up forgetting everything he wants to say, which makes him very sad. He compares words to a shirt that doesn't fit well, and he finds them embarrassing and bothersome. The singer wants to express his feelings to someone and dreams about it so much that he cries. He wants to convey his feelings, but he can't find the right words to use. He feels that what he is saying is more like a joke, and the little that he says is not very good. He is always alone and upset, even though he knows what is truly important in life. He relies only on invisible things for happiness, and he even admits that he doesn't care what shape happiness comes in.
Bonobos's song あ、 is a touching expression of the human experience's complexity. It is not always easy to say what is on our minds or to find the right words to do so. Sometimes, we feel like we are speaking in jest, and it only serves to make us feel more alone and misunderstood. The song speaks to the emotional turmoil we experience when trying to convey our deepest desires and feelings. It is easy to get lost in our thoughts or to become so tangled up in our emotions that they don't make sense. This song encourages us to continue trying, even when the words don't come easily, and to fight for what we truly believe in, even if we don't always know how to express it.
Line by Line Meaning
心の皺を伸ばしながら
While smoothing out the wrinkles in my heart,
なんとなく乾いた喉には水でもくださいな
Please give me some water for my dry throat.
このままずっとずっとなにもかもうまく言えずに
If I keep being unable to express myself properly like this forever and ever,
忘れっちゃうのは悲しすぎるんです
It would be too sad if I were to forget everything.
あぁ、言葉はときどき 馴染まないシャツみたいに
Oh, words are sometimes like shirts that don't fit well,
とってもねぇ 恥ずかしくて 厄介なんよね
Very embarrassing and troublesome, you know?
君に伝えなきゃいけないと うなされるくらいあんだよ
I have so much I need to tell you that I wake up in the middle of the night with an urgent need to do so.
いつも伝えなきゃいけないのに 泣きたい気持ちになんだよ
I always need to tell you, but I end up feeling like I want to cry.
君に伝えたいこの気持ち 少し大きめの あ、
This feeling I want to convey to you, with a slightly larger "ah",
はやくぼくの胸をつきやぶれ
Please come and pierce through my heart quickly.
言ってることのほとんどは 冗談みたいなもんです
Most of what I'm saying is like a joke.
残りのちょっともあんまりよろしくないよ
The rest of it is not very good either.
とってもさみしいことだけど
It's very lonely, though.
大切なことホントは いつでもちゃんとわかってるのに
I always know what's really important, but
でもいつでも一人でこねくりまわして駄目にしてしまうよ
I always end up messing it up by obsessing over it alone.
あぁ、見えないものに頼ってばかりいる
Oh, I'm always relying on things I can't see,
幸せのかたちなんてどうでもいいのにね
Even though the shape of happiness doesn't really matter.
君に伝えなきゃいけないこと うなされるくらいあんだよ
I have so many things to tell you that I dream about it and wake up in the middle of the night.
いつも伝えなきゃいけないのに 泣きたい気持ちになんだよ
I always need to tell you, but I end up feeling like I want to cry.
種をまかなくちゃ 水も引かなくちゃ もぎとれるくらいになったら
When the time comes to sow the seeds, draw the water, and harvest the fruit,
いつか伝えたいこの気持ち 少し大きめの あ、
This feeling I want to convey to you, with a slightly larger "ah",
どうかあなたの胸に突き刺され
Please pierce it into your heart.
少し大きめの あ、
With a slightly larger "ah",
Writer(s): 蔡 忠浩, 蔡 忠浩
Contributed by Isaac P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@juicewaffle4700
Thank you for uploading bonobos albums! In my country, legal music streaming corporates don't service old bonobos' albums. It is a great pleasure to listen here.
@cawa7229
this album is so good, thanks for uploading it. the resemblance to shinji sato voice is unsettling. it is a shame there is no much information about the band