(Fortunately, nasalfire translated my blog post. I hope that more people will be able to understand the beauty of “Beautiful Moonlight.”)
Hello, Block here.
The Nijigasaki unit singles have finally been released!
I’ve bought them and listen to them a lot every day.
Now, for today…
This! I will be discussing QU4RTZ’s second song, “Beautiful Moonlight” (*1).
Particularly worth examining are the song’s:
- English lyrics
- Connection between words
What do you think “(Beautiful) Moonlight” in the title and lyrics convey? Let’s keep that in mind as we look at the song.
Now, let’s take a look at the lyrics.
I’ve denoted each character’s parts with the following colors. Since this is based on what I hear, there may be errors.
Kasumi
Kanata
Emma
Rina
The white moon, floating in the night
Shining gently through the window
Is this “white moon” a full moon? A new moon? m00c provides an easy to understand explanation:
“The white moon, floating in the night”
When at a low altitude (angle), the moon appears reddish/orangish due to the atmosphere, the same way sunsets appear reddish/orangish. That means the moon is pretty high in the sky.
Considering the phase and height of the moon, this is a full moon a few hours after sunset.
Apparently, the moon in the song is a full moon.
Although when the moon rises depends on the phase of the moon, we can use the time of the full moon’s appearance to analyze the lyrics.
The lyrics “Shining gently through the window” suggest that the singer is not under the moonlight, but rather looking at the moon from outside of the moonlight.
The word “window” implies “a place hidden from the outside” and “contact with the outside”, opposite of how it’s used here (*2).
So, looking at the moonlight from afar suggests a feeling of longing when separated from “you”.
The taste of the hot milk tea
I drank with you at a café after school
This connects with the upcoming “remember”. It seems like the singer spends time with you after school.
Going to cafes after school suggests that it’s a pretty close relationship.
Throughout the song, “milk tea” represents the time spent with you.
Here “hot” provides a hint about the singer’s feelings toward you.
Note that the milk tea’s role as a reminder of love first appears here.
Apparently, it has a melty, sweet taste.
Everyday and Night (English in the song)
I remember
Anywhere Anytime (English in the song)
I want to see you
The English parts (sung by a 3rd year) complements and emphasizes the Japanese part (sung by a 1st year).
These lyrics explicitly convey the feeling of longing when separated from you.
You’re always on my mind (English in the song)
I can’t wait for our next date
They were together at the café after school.
Do they not see each other in class or at school in general? The next time they can meet is specifically at their next date. Maybe at a café again?
By the way, “our next date” means that it’s very likely that they had dates before. They probably had one at the previously mentioned café.
The number of dates keeps increasing.
Perhaps…
the singer doesn’t want to run into you at school by chance, but instead wants to spend time alone with you.
In other words, maybe they are already dating.
Of course, there are other possibilities, such as the two of them being very close and there’s a one-sided crush.
However, in that case the song might express “the pain when being with you” more.
More than anything, interpreting in that way makes me so happy that I can’t stop smiling.
It’s possible that the two go to different schools, but up to this point you’d have to think about things like them walking home together.
Beautiful Moonlight
A momentary goodbye
According to the lyrics in the second verse, the two can see each other until the sun goes down.
That means that “Moonlight” represents the time they are apart.
We can conclude that they can’t see each other when the moon’s out.
And then the reason to think “maybe they are already dating” is the “momentary goodbye”.
“Momentary” means “temporary”.
Being unable to see each other when the full moon is out (*3) (nighttime) is temporary.
Looking at it in another way, it becomes “we can see each other tomorrow” (*4).
The singer went to a café today with the one they love, and they have a date tomorrow too.
The loneliness of the time apart (when the moon is out) is also beautiful.
So the title “Beautiful Moonlight” has the nuance of “the time apart is both painful and beautiful” and “I want to be with you so much it hurts”.
Doesn’t it seem like they’re dating?
Missing your voice
A lonely tasting is
Slightly bittersweet
The milk tea’s taste comes up.
Here, the time spent together and the taste of the milk tea enjoyed together come to mind when tasting milk tea alone.
But the absence of your voice leaves a slight twinge of sadness.
- This isn’t the milk tea from when the two went to a café together, but is from a different time instead.
- Filled with thoughts about you, the singer experiences bittersweet feelings.
Those are probably the main reasons.
Goodnight moonlight
Keep watch all night
Even with my eyes closed tight, your face comes to mind
These lyrics are fascinating.
Below are two ways to interpret them. (I know I use this pattern a lot.)
- With the moon looking after me as I sleep, your face comes to mind through closed eyes.
This is a straightforward reading of the lyrics.
The moon is shining through the singer’s window.
With the moon looking after the singer through the window, the singer sleeps while thinking of you.
Yep, there’s nothing odd with this reading.
- As I picture your face through closed eyes, the moon is looking after you through the night. Good night.
I like this reading more.
The singer is asking the moon to watch over you after saying goodbye.
The moon has already climbed up in the night sky. After falling asleep, the moon will set and the singer will be able to see you again tomorrow.
These lyrics say, “Until then, please look after them.”
I want to see you in my dreams, ah
The singer really misses you.
“I want to see you in my dreams” means that the two can’t see or talk to each other, probably meaning it’s too late to call each other.
A high school idol unit nowadays probably wouldn’t say, “I can’t use the phone because of my parents” with this song’s melody.
Why does the time spent with you
Go by the fastest?
This starts the second verse.
Now the scene has changed to when they’re together.
This could be seen as the day after the events of the first verse, or it could be seen as taking place on the same day before parting ways.
It appears they often rendezvous (I’m already using the word “rendezvous”), and I think I’ll…leave that part to your imagination.
Rather than this day being special, it seems more like another normal day.
With the sun setting, I have to go home
Barely making it in time
Just as a certain school idol said, “The fun times always fly by.”
These lyrics convey wanting some more of that time, even if it’s just a little.
This part says, “When the sun sets, our time together ends.”
The full moon becomes visible starting at around 5 pm.
With that kind of time limit, after parting, arriving home, eating dinner, and studying, the contemplation in the first verse probably happens at around 10 pm. By that time, the moon should be pretty high up in the sky.
The way back home
My heart aches
Walk so slow
It’s not enough, not enough
Here we get their emotions while walking home.
After returning home, there is a heavy sadness of wanting to see you again.
It’s natural to ”wanna be with you more” when they’ll part ways soon.
Wanna be with you more
If I could just stop time
For just even a little bit…
The singer always wants to see you.
Here, instead of “If I could stop time forever”, “For just even a little bit” is like grasping at straws. The feeling of their chest tightening really hits the listener’s heart. Cute.
The way they say it, knowing they can’t actually stop time, makes it even sadder.
If we assume they’re dating, the lyrics take on a meaning like, “Even though I know we’ll see each other again, it’s not enough”.
Ah, it’s too cute! This doesn’t have anything to do with the lyrics. I just find this really adorable.
Beautiful Moonlight
Don’t want to say goodbye
Parting brings greater loneliness
When they part, the moon isn’t that high in the sky yet.
If that’s the case, then these lyrics mean:
“Moon, I don’t want to say goodbye yet, so don’t rise yet.”
“Don’t bring the time of our sad parting (nighttime).”
And because the singer knows the sadness of not being able to see you, they feel “greater” loneliness.
This growing distance
Feeling a bit sad
As the moon rises, it brings with it the two’s parting, making the singer sadder.
These lyrics confirm my interpretation up to this point.
When I write about lyrics, I tend to write less from the second verse onward since I focus on the first verse and then check my interpretation with the second verse.
Just a little more, moonlight
Don’t change, red light
Your figure fades after I see you off
“Wait” is implied before “Just a little more”.
The moon rises. The red light changes. Both bring with them the singer’s parting with you.
Contrary to the singer’s wish, time keeps going and the time to say goodbye comes as usual.
I always want to see you
After parting, the singer starts to dearly miss you (when the beautiful moonlight is shining). Soon the moon will rise.
By the way, the CD came out on February 12.
According to the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan’s website (*5), the sun set at 5:19 pm. Since it wasn’t a full moon, the time of the moon’s rise is a little different, but the overall atmosphere of the song fits with the period’s sunset. Also, they were drinking hot milk tea.
Love-colored milk tea
The aftertaste lingers still
Melty and Sweet
Even apart, the singer wishes to see you.
The milk tea that represents the time spent together appears. It should give a hint about the singer’s feelings. However, the lyrics here are direct, saying “love-colored”.
That lets us see the song as a way to convey the singer’s love.
The café’s milk tea leaves a melty and sweet sensation.
So, even when the singer is sad from being apart from you, their love remains.
Even with the lingering aftertaste, they still want to taste it (and see you).
I want to cross the skies and see you right now
This part is sung by Emma.
There is a lot of meaning to Emma singing this part because she went to Japan to pursue her passion.
You can feel the passion of someone in love.
Beautiful Moonlight
A momentary goodbye
Missing your voice
A lonely tasting is
Slightly bittersweet
The last chorus’s lyrics are the same as the first, but now there’s no solo part.
Throughout the song, Kanata’s and Kasumi’s solo parts have been next to each other, and the same is true of Emma’s and Rina’s. But here they come together, emphasizing that the singer always feels this way.
Goodnight moonlight
Keep watch all night
Even with my eyes closed tight, your face comes to mind
I want to see you in my dreams, ah
Earlier I presented two interpretations for these lyrics. Since both are valid, it’s possible to read this part like, “even apart, we’re together underneath the moonlight”.
Also, it’s nice to see the one you love in your dreams. The “ah” in the lyrics are a cute touch.
Closing
That concludes my analysis of the lyrics in “Beautiful Moonlight”. Did you enjoy it?
Since I’ve recently been writing posts with a focus on reading lyrics, I haven’t been doing much analysis that included a lot of conjecture like this.
Even though things like:
“What the phrase ‘Beautiful Moonlight’ means in the song”
“They’re actually already dating.”
aren’t stated in the song, they fit naturally with the situation described in the song. Because I found a lot of similar things, I used the word “analysis” in the title, which I haven’t done in a while.
While I was reading the lyrics, I kept finding new things. It’s fun to carefully read lyrics.
I might not have posted much on Nijigaku yet, but I’m enjoying it. I hope you liked it.
Block
*1: Lyrics: Ayaka Miyake, Composition: ygarshy, Arrangement: PASSiON KiNG
*2: Reference: https://madoken.jp/research/window-terminology-a-la-carte/1141/. Retrieved February 20, 2020
*3: The moon rises at different times depending on its phase. A full moon rises at night and sets in the morning, while a new moon reaches its apex at around noon.
*4: It’s fair to respond, “They don’t see each other first thing in the morning.” There are a lot of parts where I used my imagination.
*5: Reference: https://eco.mtk.nao.ac.jp/koyomi/dni/2020/s1302.html. Retrieved February 20, 2020
