Shin Takarajima – Sakanaction | 2015

新宝島 [Shin Takarajima]
サカナクション [Sakanaction]
Words & Music : 山口一郎 [YAMAGUCHI Ichirō]

Sakanaction is a rock band. It was formed in Hokkaido ^wiki, centered around guitarist and vocalist Ichirō Yamaguchi. The band name is a coined word combining “魚 / sakana” (=fish) and the word “action”. It’s a strange but interesting name.

“Shin Takarajima” was produced as the theme song for the live-action film “Bakuman,” which was adapted from a manga. “Bakuman ^wiki” is a manga created by the duo of Tsugumi Ohba (story) and Takeshi Obata (art), who also created “Death Note ^wiki“. The story follows two boys who team up to become manga artists, much like Ohba and Obata themselves.

The title “新宝島 / Shin Takarajima” is taken from the debut work of Osamu Tezuka ^wiki, a pioneer in the Japanese manga industry and often referred to as the “God of Manga.”

新（しん） [shin] : new
宝（たから） [takara] : treasure
島（しま） [shima] : island

Incidentally, the title of Osamu Tezuka’s “Shin Takarajima” is derived from Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island.” However, Stevenson’s “Treasure Island,” Tezuka’s “Shin Takarajima,” and of course, the story of “Bakuman” are all different. Yet, Yamaguchi seems to find a common thread in the themes of challenge and adventure.

次とその次とその次と線を引き続けた
tsugi to sono tsugi to sono tsugi to sen o hikitsuzuketa

次（つぎ） [tsugi] : next
その [sono] : that
線（せん） [sen] : line
引く（ひく） [hiku] : draw
続ける（つづける） [tsuzukeru] : continue

(translation) “Kept drawing lines, one after another.”

The lyrics immediately draw you in. Manga illustrations are made up of lines.

次の目的地を目的地を描くんだ宝島
tsugi no mokutekichi o mokutekichi o egakunda takarajima

目的地（もくてきち） [mokutekichi] : destination
描く（えがく・かく） [egaku / kaku] : draw
宝島（たからじま） [takarajima] : Treasure Island

(translation) “I’ll draw the next destination, Treasure Island.”

Here, the word “描く” is read as “egaku,” but it can also be read as “kaku.” In Japanese, “書く / kaku” (=write) and “描く / egaku” (=draw) share the same pronunciation but are distinguished by different kanji characters.

このまま君を連れて行くと
kono mama kimi o tsurete iku to
丁寧丁寧丁寧に描くと
teinei teinei teinei ni egaku to
揺れたり震えたりした線で
yuretari furuetari shita sen de
丁寧丁寧丁寧に描く
teinei teinei teinei ni egaku
と決めていたよ
to kimete ita yo

このまま [kono mama] : just like this
君（きみ） [kimi] : you
連れていく（つれていく） [tsurete iku] : take
丁寧（ていねい） [teinei] : careful, polite
揺れる（ゆれる） [yureru] : shake
震える（ふるえる） [furueru] : tremble
決める（きめる） [kimeru] : decide

(translation) “I’ll take you just like this,
and draw carefully, carefully, carefully.
With lines that shook and trembled,
I’ll draw carefully, carefully, carefully.
I had decided so.”

It’s unusual to repeat the word “丁寧 / teinei” (=carefully) so many times, but the way it’s emphasized gives it a really cool, unique feel. (“Teinei” is not a native Japanese word, and since such terms are not typically elegant, it’s rare to see them being emphasized in lyrics.)
As a complete aside, there’s a Chinese table tennis player named “丁寧 / Ding Ning,” but this has no connection to the Japanese word.

次もその次もその次もまだ目的地じゃない
tsugi mo sono tsugi mo sono tsugi mo mada mokutekichi janai
夢の景色を景色を探すんだ宝島
yume no keshiki o keshiki o sagasunda takarajima

夢（ゆめ） [yume] : dream
景色（けしき） [keshiki] : scenery
探す（さがす） [sagasu] : search

(translation) “The next, and the next, and the next are still not the destination.
I’ll search for the scenery of dreams, Treasure Island.”

このまま君を連れて行くと
kono mama kimi o tsurete iku to
丁寧丁寧丁寧に歌うと
teinei teinei teinei ni utau to
揺れたり震えたりしたって
yuretari furuetari shitatte
丁寧丁寧丁寧に歌う
teinei teinei teinei ni utau
と決めてたけど
to kimeteta kedo

歌う（うたう） [utau] : sing

(translation) “I’ll take you just like this,
and sing carefully, carefully, carefully.
Even if the lines shake and tremble,
I’ll sing carefully, carefully, carefully.
But I had decided otherwise.”

このまま君を連れて行くよ
kono mama kimi o tsurete iku yo
丁寧丁寧丁寧に描くよ
teinei teinei teinei ni egaku yo
揺れたり震えたりしたって
yuretari furuetari shitatte
丁寧丁寧丁寧に歌うよ
teinei teinei teinei ni utau yo

(translation) “I’ll take you just like this,
and draw carefully, carefully, carefully.
Even if the lines shake and tremble,
I’ll sing carefully, carefully, carefully.”

それでも君を連れて行くよ
soredemo kimi o tsurete iku yo
揺れたり震えたりした線で
yuretari furuetari shita sen de
描くよ君の歌を
egaku yo kimi no uta o

それでも [soredemo] : but still

(translation) “But still, I’ll take you with me.
With lines that shook and trembled,
I’ll draw your song.”

The lyrics elegantly portray the struggles and hopes of a manga artist through an abstract narrative. In the latter part, the word shifts from ”draw” to “sing”, suggesting that they may be expressing their own feelings rather than those of Bakuman.
The music is a pop, dance-style alternative rock, featuring retro and exotic synthesizer sounds. The music video, which seems to pay homage to scenes from the old comedy TV show ^YT, also became a hot topic. It’s a bit strange but interesting nonetheless.