日本流行摇滚乐队发行日英双语音乐专辑

AS IT IS 2015-10-09 Japanese Rock Band Goes English 日本流行摇滚乐队发行日英双语音乐专辑

It took 10 years for a popular Japanese rock band to release¹ a music album in both English and Japanese.

"This is my dream," said Takahiro Moriuchi, one member of One OK Rock.

Two of the band's four members spent time in VOA's music studios last week. They were tired after a long trip from Japan. But they spent some time talking with Larry London on (VOA's) Border Crossings.

Moriuchi and Toro Yamashita say they hope to spread the band's message in both languages to fans around the world.

Singer Moriuchi, 27, told VOA their message is that everyone should try their best to succeed.

"That's my opinion, but it's really simple. Just … never give up, dream come true."

One OK Rock joined together in 2005. In the past 10 years they have released² seven albums. Their seventh album, 35xxxv, reached the No. 1 spot on the weekly Oricon albums chart in February. Oricon measures the success of albums in the Japanese music industry.

In July the band signed a contract with Warner Brothers Records, an international record company.

This most recent work is the band's first attempt to record two different versions⁴ of the same music. The Japanese recording⁵ was released in February. The album was recorded a second time in English. This version³ came to the US in September.

In the past, however, the band often wrote the words to its songs in a mix of both Japanese and English.

Mr. Moriuchi says that English is very difficult for him. But, he hopes the band's Japanese audience will improve their language skills by listening. He also says that writing in English adds something special to their music.

"I love English ... Yeah. Sounds, like, really beautiful, for me. And then, when I was kid, I always listening... you know, English music."

Guitar player Toro Yamashita, 26, formed the band with high school friend and bass⁶ player Ryota Kohama, 26. Mr. Yamashita then asked Mr. Moriuchi to join. When the original drummer left the band, Tomoya Kanki, 28, officially joined in 2007.

Rock is a type of music with roots in U.S. culture. It has influences from country and blues⁷ music going back to the 1940s. There are many types of rock music, but it is usually focused around electric guitar and an amplifier.  

Mr. Moriuchi says that American music is an important influence for One OK Rock. He lists Foo Fighters and Linkin Park among the bands that shape their music. He also says that music is like a language everyone understands.

"The most important thing is feeling, like… passion."

The band will begin performing across the U.S. on October 9 with the groups "All Time Low" and "Sleeping with Sirens⁸." On December 2, they will begin performing across Europe with the groups "We Came As Romans" and "Dead!"

Words in This Story

chart – n. a list that shows which music recordings⁹ have sold the most during a recent period of time

guitar – n. a musical instrument that is held against the front of your body and that has usually six strings¹⁰ which are played with your fingers or with a pick

bass – n. a kind of guitar that usually has four strings and that makes low sounds

drummer – n. a person who plays a drum or a set of drums

country – n. a style of music that developed in the southern and western U.S. and that often contains lyrics¹¹ relating to the lives of people who live in the country

blues – n. a style of music that was created by African-Americans in the southern U.S. and that often expresses feelings of sadness

band(s) – n. a usually small group of musicians who play popular music together

1 release   

vt.发布，发表，发行；释放，放开

参考例句：

• After my examination I had a feeling of release.考完试后我有如释重负之感。
• This medicine will give you release from pain.这药吃后会解除你的疼痛。

2 released   

v.释放( release的过去式和过去分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. 事后才说他们本不应该释放他，这倒容易。

3 version   

n.版本；型号；叙述，说法

参考例句：

• His version of the events is pure supposition.他对这件事的说法纯属猜测。
• What is your version of this matter?你对这件事情的看法 怎么样？

4 versions   

n.译本( version的名词复数 )；版本；（个人对事件的）描述；（原物的）变体

参考例句：

• There are two versions of the game, a long one and a short one. 这游戏有两个版本，一长一短。
• When both versions of the story were collated,major discrepancies were found. 在将这个故事的两个版本对照后，找出了主要的不符之处。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

6 bass   

n.男低音(歌手)；低音乐器；低音大提琴

参考例句：

• He answered my question in a surprisingly deep bass.他用一种低得出奇的声音回答我的问题。
• The bass was to give a concert in the park.那位男低音歌唱家将在公园中举行音乐会。

7 blues   

n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐

参考例句：

• She was in the back of a smoky bar singing the blues.她在烟雾弥漫的酒吧深处唱着布鲁斯歌曲。
• He was in the blues on account of his failure in business.他因事业失败而意志消沉。

8 sirens   

n.汽笛( siren的名词复数 )；妖冶而危险的女人；危险的诱惑；塞壬（古希腊传说中半人半鸟的女海妖，惯以美妙的歌声引诱水手，使他们的船只或触礁或驶入危险水域）

参考例句：

• police cars with lights flashing and sirens blaring 警灯闪烁、警笛刺耳的警车
• In big cities you always hear sirens all the time. 在大城市里，你总能听到警笛声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 recordings   

n.记录( recording的名词复数 )；录音；录像；唱片

参考例句：

• a boxed set of original recordings 一套盒装原声录音带
• old jazz recordings reissued on CD 以激光唱片重新发行的老爵士乐

10 strings   

n.弦

参考例句：

• He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。
• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

11 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。