[In Memoriam] Remembering the Kindness of B-DASH's GONGON

GONGON (Yuta Sugawara), the guitarist and vocalist of the legendary band B-DASH, which left a profound impact on the Japanese punk rock scene, passed away on July 5, 2024.

It has been about a month since then. I still haven't been able to process my feelings, and I find myself unable to face the facts head-on.

B-DASH is a band I was deeply obsessed with during my high school and especially my college years.
Back then, when I was into Visual Kei and thought 'Seishun punk is total crap,' for some reason, GONGON's singing voice naturally pierced my heart and helped me recover during a period when I was so miserable I wanted to die.

Even now, I find myself crying when I listen to Seishun punk songs I've never heard before.

They broadened the range of music I love and gave me so much courage.

Since then, I went to their concerts dozens of times, became friends with them, hung out in private, and even received demo CD-Rs; GONGON really cherished his fans.
I covered dozens of their songs in a cover band.

Speaking of their music, it is characterized by mysterious lyrics sung in what is called 'B-language' or 'random ad-lib gibberish'—words that sound good but aren't actually Japanese or English.
I think that comfort, which can be understood through feeling rather than logic, resonated with listeners.

...I don't really know what he's saying, though.

Despite being very easy to listen to, the lyrics exist in a unique world of their own, devoid of clear meaning.
Songs that fused those pleasant-sounding melody lines with the intensity of hardcore punk struck a chord with many young people at the time.

In the early days, the heat and irrepressible energy of punk rock were at the forefront. But in reality, the warm singing voice overflowing with GONGON's kindness and the side of them that felt like cheering songs pushing you forward were also a huge part of their charm.
I think that aspect became even more prominent in their middle to later years.

I have absolutely no interest in the typical J-Pop cheering songs that say things like 'Tomorrow will surely come' or 'I am by your side,' but those words in B-DASH's lyrics really resonated with me and saved me many times.
I can't explain logically what makes their songs different from the countless other pop songs out there, but it's not about logic. I think that's what music is.

GONGON, who I can call my lifesaver, seemed to have been struggling quite a bit mentally when I looked at his social media a few years ago.
I kept thinking, 'Is there anything I can do to help GONGON someday? Is there any way to repay him?' but now I can't even do that anymore...

I feel an indescribable sense of loss, helplessness, and even a bit of anger.
That's why I couldn't bring myself to face reality for a long time.

Despite this hopeless situation, I've slowly started to be able to listen to their songs again. And I've started to remember my youth, when they gave me courage.

I'm sure B-DASH's songs will save me from these painful feelings too.
To ensure this doesn't just end as a bad memory, I have no choice but to overwrite it with B-DASH's music.

I mean, I'm just reaffirming that they really are just good songs!

I'm glad I met B-DASH in my short life.
GON-san, thank you for the wonderful memories!
Since I'm the one left behind, I'll keep telling the stories of the wonderful songs you left behind and the fun memories we shared.