The 'Sound Magic' That Breaks Down Language Barriers: On the 'Body Temperature' More Important Than Truth Hidden in the Lyrics of 'Cho'
[Introduction]
2002. The streets were filled with the ringtones of flip phones, and in classrooms after school, everyone was humming this song with 'pseudo-English' gibberish. B-DASH's major debut single, 'Cho'.
This song, which permeated living rooms as the ending theme for TV Asahi's 'Platina London Boots,' struck the music scene of the time with a massive '?' and an even greater '!'. The lyrics are composed of nonsensical 'gibberish (GONGON-ese).' However, it is packed with the primitive 'joy of music' that modern J-POP, with its high-definition lyrics, has forgotten.
In the information-overloaded Reiwa era, perhaps we are drawn to this song again because we are tired of days where we are required to find the 'correct answer,' and our souls are craving the 'freedom to surrender ourselves to the sound'.
[Synchronicity of Lyrics and Visuals]
Looking back at the music video, one finds a coexistence of calculated 'chaos' and overwhelming 'positive energy'.
The expressions of the members captured with a fisheye lens, the street-style color palette. And above all, the BPM that condenses the speed of ska-punk and melodic hardcore. The texture of the sound is completely dry, without a hint of dampness.
'Oh-oo-wen-mei-ah-ra-satchu Way a so-re-ho-en-mei'
The moment this phrase resonates, the light levels in the video increase by a notch, directly shaking the viewer's adrenaline. The sound of the instruments is not so much precise studio work as it is 'living sound' played straight in a garage. It is this 'high body temperature' that imbues the nonsensical words with an 'emotion' more persuasive than any famous quote.
[Deep Lyric Interpretation]
It is easy to dismiss B-DASH's lyrics as 'meaningless.' However, I believe there is a 'metaphor' hidden there that transcends language.
'We spare shull feh a shuweh Iryoutai Makkara-go / Rippa na Kenpoukai Seihoui'
The sudden appearance of strings of kanji like 'medical team' (Iryoutai) and 'martial arts world' (Kenpoukai). This is a playfulness that exploits our brain's habit of trying to find 'meaning.' However, conversely, it also sounds like a brilliant counter to existing values, suggesting that 'words are nothing more than symbols'.
'Weh (ad-lib) wao wao wa-ie-ru-rai / Biss Pan Day ie'
This shout, labeled as an ad-lib. Here, the 'overflowing initial impulse' that cannot be expressed by existing grammar or social rules is crystallized. Perhaps they did not 'discard' meaningful words, but rather 'liberated' words to become music itself.
Not 'what is being sung,' but 'how it resonates.' When listening to this song, we are released from the spell of 'having to understand correctly' and can return to being mere 'creatures who enjoy sound'.
[Conclusion: What This Song Asks of Us]
More than 20 years since 'Cho' was released. In 2025, with its long-awaited availability on streaming services, this 'ultimate gibberish' has been unleashed upon the world once again.
The comment section is filled with voices saying 'It makes me cry with nostalgia' and 'RIP, thank you GONGON!!', alongside the surprise of the younger generation who say, 'It sounds too new even now.' Why does this song not lose its freshness even as times change? It is because B-DASH did not seal 'meaning,' which has an expiration date in any era, into their music, but rather the universal energy of 'impulse'.
In these days when we find ourselves searching only for the 'correct answer'.
Why not push your earphones in for once and throw yourself into some full-throttle nonsense?
After you finish listening to 'Cho,' there will surely be 'something' indescribable left burning in your heart.
[Hashtags for note]
#BDASH #GONGON #2000sMusic #MelodicHardcore #JapaneseMusicAnalysis #Essay #LifeWithMusic #SubscriptionRelease