Kago no sanagi

Romaji and English translation of the song 籠の蛹 (Kago no sanagi) from the album DIVISION by the GazettE.

Lyrics originally sung in English are in italics , and words or phrases I felt were implied are in [brackets] in the translation.

I also (usually) put repeats of chorus/verses/stanzas in [brackets] if they’re not written that way in the original lyrics for ease of singing along.

If he writes a word in the lyrics but doesn’t sing it, I put it in light grey to make it easier to skip when singing along.

I usually romajize katakana characters in CAPITALS, and keep punctuation and line spacing as close to the original booklet as possible. If you see me putting spaces before punctuation at the end of a sentence or writing things in mixed-case capitals, that’s because it’s how it was in the booklet.

Any comments I had during the romajization/translation process will be included as footnotes so as not to disturb the flow of the song. They’re not required reading, but Ruki does some pretty nifty things with his lyrics/kanji choices, or sometimes there’s further explanations about words or phrases in there.

Kago no sanagi: Romaji

I depend on your existence

Risei wo chigiri tta anata no sei
Ukiyo ni saita hana wa kareru
Suhada ni yakitsuki hagarenu kankaku
Toiki majiri no kotoba oboeteru?

Sono yasashiki uso ni ima nara tokekomeru
Aimai ni midasu no nara BARABARA ni shite

Benihiku tabi kokoro wo kakushi kuruwani chiru
Kami wo nazoru nokoriga ni asaki yume wo miru
Yurari yurari yurare nagara
Te wo nobaseba todoki souna ano sora ga ima wa tooku
Tada…namida kobore sou

Teguri ito wo musubi wasure hodoketa jounen
Sanagi no mama de wa kagokara tobezu
Rakujitsu ni somaru yuuutsu wo mata nodoni nokoshite

Benihiku tabi kokoro wo koroshi banshuu no yami he
Fureru kotosae nidoto kanawanu imi wo sono toki ni wa mada
Uwano sora wo oyogu me ni anata ga ima mo kiete kurenai kara

Kawareta yoru wa tsuukoku sae yurushite kurenai
Koko wa mujihi na yoku no su
Sayonara sae nigosu kuchi ni nani mo nozomanai kedo

Koko ni aru kiokumade tsurete ikanai de
Kuruwa ni chiru saga ni ima¹ mo asu wo midasenai mama
Tada nokoriga wo tadori samayou hitori kago no naka de…
Anata ga kienai

I depend on your existence

Caged Chrysalis²: Translation

I depend on your existence

You’re the reason my senses are torn to shreds
And the flowers that bloomed in this sad world are withering
I can’t strip myself of the feeling burned into my naked skin
Do you remember the words we whispered when our breaths were intermingled?

Even now, I’d melt into those sweet lies
If you’re going to plague me with uncertainty, then I’ll fall apart

I reapply my lipstick and lock my heart away as I disappear into the red-light district³
The lingering scent left by your fingers combing through my hair triggers these superficial flashes of a dream
That make me shiver and tremble
I stretch my hand towards the sky that seems so close, only to find it’s too far to reach
And as usual… tears threaten to overflow

We melted into our passion, but neglected to tie our threads [of fate] together
I’m still a chrysalis, so I can’t fly from this cage
[And so], dyed by the light of the setting sun, hopelessness remains lodged in my throat

I reapply my lipstick and kill off my heart as I head into the late autumn darkness
At the time I thought it would be impossible to feel something like that again, and yet
I never seem to be able to rid myself of you slipping through my absent-minded visions

I’m owned by the night, and I’m not even permitted [to hold onto] my grief
This is a ruthless place that breeds lustful desires
You never even really said goodbye, though I didn’t expect anything [from you]

The memories I already have [with you] here can’t be taken away
As is my nature, I disappear into the red-light district, even now unable to envision tomorrow
I’m just pursuing your lingering scent as I wander alone inside this cage…
[But still] you won’t disappear

I depend on your existence

現在 genzai “now, the present time,” is written, while 今 “now, immediately” is sung.
Like a cocoon that hasn’t yet opened to reveal the butterfly inside – insects that pupate inside a cocoon need to break out of it at the end of their development, or they’ll die inside. In this case, she seems to be not only trapped in a cocoon, but also inside a cage, so even if she manages to “hatch” from her cocoon, she’s still got the cage to contend with.
If it’s not obvious, the singer is a prostitute who works the streets at night in the red-light district. She’s fallen in love with one of her customers (who it seems doesn’t feel the same way about her) and can’t get him out of her mind, but it seems like she knows she’s trapped in the life she’s in so her feelings wouldn’t matter even if he reciprocated them.