Recently, a very dear friend introduced me to Yorushika (ヨルシカ). Now, I never would have thought I would get into a band like that, as the music is quite light and while it has a lot of rock elements, it can be perceived by some as sugary. But look again, and you will keep finding more and more depth in both the music and the lyrics, which vocalist Suis always delivers with flawless perfection, while both she and her partner-in-crime N-buna keep their faces concealed in order to let the music speak for itself.
By some good fortune, the very first Yorushika video I watched was the official video to Nautilus (which is now in my top favourite tracks). And it had English subtitles. Normally what impresses me first is the music, and I'm a great lover of catchy hooks, however, while there are plenty of beautiful hooks in Yorushika's songs, the first thing that impressed me on this occasion were the lyrics. Full of metaphors which expressed the protagonist's emotions in a very powerful way, they struck a chord inside me, and I had to listen more. As I slowly got familiar with the world of Yorushika, I discovered the story of Amy and Elma, the protagonists of the two albums, That's Why I Gave Up on Music (だから僕は音楽を辞めた) and Elma (エルマ) . With the help and explanations of my friend I could piece the narrative together, and still find a lot of joy in analysing the lyrics, looking up translations online and figuring out exactly what happened between the fated couple.
Amy was an aspiring but not yet successful musician who had to work part time to make a living. One rainy day he met Elma in a cafe, and ended up teaching her how to play the piano. It turned out that Elma had a talent for imitation, so she started copying Amy's personality and his music. Through her he rediscovered both himself and music; however during that time he was diagnosed with a fatal illness which left him only two years to live. He ran away from his job and Elma, returning to Sweden where he grew up. He travelled around writing songs and letters (a bonus from the album That's Why I Gave Up on Music) to Elma until the time he drank poison and jumped from a pier into the sea.
When Elma received Amy's first letters, she decided to follow him and ended up visiting the same places not long after, writing a diary (which is included in the album Elma) and composing songs in Amy's style. The two albums run parallel to each other, the songs offering Amy and Elma's perspective. While Amy's feelings are more compicated, and thus harder to understand, the pain and heartbreak in Elma's songs and diary are almost too much. As she wanted to imitate Amy and erase herself completely, when he is gone she is left to grow old on her own, always carrying an emptiness inside her, the memories of the time spent with Amy slowly fading away despite her efforts to preserve them. As a way to remember, she ends up singing Amy's songs as well as the ones she composed while following in his footsteps, thus leaving a legacy of her own as well as protecting his, trying to somehow fill the hole left by his absence.
From now on I alone will grow old
Growing cold, growing cold
A hole pierced my heart
All the songs are written and composed by N-buna, an ex-Vocaloid producer whose song written in 2013 Tōmei Elegy(透明エレジー) reached number one on the Vocaloid platform's daily ranking. He was only 18 years old at that time. He's been growing from strength to strength since, joining forces with vocalist Suis in 2017 to form Yorushika. N-buna's deep lyrics and catchy melodies and Suis' ethereal vocals have achieved a constantly growing popularity among the Japanese and overseas fans alike, the story of Amy and Elma capturing the imagination and transcending cultural boundaries. Their latest albums, Plagiarism (盗作) and the EP Creation(創作) are once again conceptual, this time focusing on a protagonist who steals sounds and songs, turning them into his own works in order to try and fill the hole inside him.
The sound itself is always varied, shifting effortlessly between indie rock, indie pop, swing, with an abundance of classical instruments and references to a variety of songs, especially on the Plagiarism album where you can hear melodies inspired by Ray Charles, Justin King and Beethoven, among others (reference: https://omunibasu.blog/2020/12/21/plagiarism-by-yorushika-album-review/). The contrast between the upbeat, cheerful melodies and Suis' sweet vocals, and the profound lyrics dealing with the darkness in the human existence is probably one of the main attractions to the fans, and after having listened to the majority of songs numerous times while researching the texts, I came to really appreciate this contrast as well.
I could write a conclusion... however, I think I will simply leave you with a quote from Eat the Wind (Creation EP) instead. I hope it strikes a chord in your heart just like it did in mine.
The heart on the shelf is 15 yen (12c)
The only one left unsold
I put a discount sticker on
And waited for closing time
Surely with tomorrow's weather
Customers will line up here too
Who will buy this twice-discounted heart?
