Tuesday 30 May 2017

Roy Kim - Only If translated lyrics

Track 5 on Blooming Season EP. 


(FYI The Korean title of this song is "Sangsanghaebwatni" (상상해봤니) which does not mean "Only if" but something like, "Have you tried to imagine?")


This is one of my favourites on the album, it has a classic Roy Kim longing sound to it.  <3




Without thinking, when our two eyes met
Truthfully I was even a little scared
If I meet you
I fear I will not see anything else
If I can’t see you, I’m afraid it will hurt too much
You, so pretty, I cannot leave behind
I cannot just have you meet someone else

Have you tried to imagine it?
If we’d met when we were younger
Without any worries
We used to live following our hearts


Meeting someone
Besides each other’s feelings
There’s such a lot you must think of
The love you plan for and
The freedom I’d planned
They cannot come to flower in the same season


 So if by chance we brush by each other
With that long ago smile I will gaze at you


Have you tried to imagine it?
If we’d met when we were younger
Without any worries
We used to live following our hearts
Have you tried to imagine it? 
At that time
If we’d loved each other
I guess we wouldn’t be hurting like this now


Have you tried to imagine it? (x 6)




Translator's Notes:


It's another one with the confusion of you/me/us, given the context I translated mostly as "we" although it could just refer to him.  Otherwise it was fairly straightforward.  Roy Kim is much easier to translate than some others!!!  ^__^

Saturday 27 May 2017

Roy Kim - Pretty You translated lyrics

Track 2 on Blooming Season EP... I knew this was going to be easy to translate when I was listening to it today.  ^__^ 


Even though I know
I cannot have you
Even though I know
In the end this is all my mistake
Since I cannot now let you go


Since you are pretty
Since you are pretty it is like that
Whoever I meet
They will be compared to you, and
Even the manner of speaking unknowingly resembles you
Even though everything was a dream
I can understand it


 Since you are pretty
Since you are pretty it is that way
Let’s both go far away
To a place where there is no one
Take my hand tightly and let’s go, let’s go
Where we can greatly breathe our love
To that place, to that place, to that place


Even if we are both just seeing each other
Even though my heart cannot keep you imprisoned
Even though time flows and passes, like that it will be ok


 Since you are pretty
Since you are pretty it is that way
Let’s both go far away
To a place where there is no one
Take my hand tightly and let’s go, let’s go
Where we can greatly breathe our love
To that place, to that place, to that place
Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go




Translator's Notes:


1. "Since I cannot let you go" is technically "put you down" like she's a heavy suitcase or something?  I couldn't think of another way to put that in English WITHOUT making her sound like a suitcase?  Idk if the putting-down-a-burden thing was what Roy was going for though, so...  ^_~ 


2.  "Where we can greatly breathe our love" really makes BASICALLY NO SENSE but hey, that's what it says, or "breathe it in/out deeply" or something else which ALSO MAKES NO SENSE but whatevs.


3.  "Even if time flows and passes": the two verbs are actually the same, so it is really "even if time flows and flows".  Time flows A LOT in Korean, not so much in English?  So I went with "flows and passes" - one translated literally, the other for meaning.


4.  A note about 그래:  This and it's ilk are literally THE BANE OF MY LIFE when translating (hmm, ok, maybe there's worse, but it's close) and it's ALL OVER THIS SONG.  T_T  There is NO good English translation really, it and the like of 그렇게 come from 그렇다 and basically mean "it is like that".  So they can be translated as "yes" or "right" or a hundred other things that really have ZERO FUNCTION in an English sentence and just get in the way. 
Roy sings 그래 about a million times in this song, and I have not directly translated it for most of them.

Sunday 21 May 2017

Roy Kim - Suddenly translated lyrics

Track 3 on Blooming Season EP and the main title track.

I think I might say this every time I post a translation, but I LOOOOVE this song.  ( *_*)

It's just.. lovely.  <3  It's so Roy Kim it's PERFECT.

And because sometimes you just have to throw your key in the sea and walk off into the woods with a suitcase in order to move on.

On the days you suddenly float into my mind
Unable to catch hold of anything
Finally, the well-hidden memories of being with you
Alone, secretly, I keep drawing them out

The image of us I pictured
As it is very attractive and beautiful
I'm afraid I won't be able to forget it
Finally, I will have to erase you in them,
But according to my heart I cannot

Whether we'll be able to see each other again
I don't know, but let's all be happy
Even as we think of each other as we go through life
Let's just giggle at it
Thinking we dreamed the best dream and
Let's again tremblingly live
And let's try to think it's ok if we meet again

No, if I try thinking of it again
Even that way going on living without you
Is a difficult thing to bear
Since you are also like this
This time I will try even harder

But I still love you this way
Even though now I can't see you
But I can wait
Why can I not go to you again?
I don't know if I am just afraid

Whether we'll be able to see each other again
I don't know, but let's all be happy
Even as we think of each other as we go through life
Let's just giggle at it
Thinking we dreamed the best dream and
Let's again tremblingly live
And let's try to think it's ok if we meet again


Translator's Notes:

I realised that the official YouTube has subtitles on the MVs so I checked my translation against them when it was done so I feel like it doesn't need much explanation.  The places where it's really different are when I am being more literal (you know me and the exact words :p), that's all.
That's the wonderful (frustrating?) thing about translations, how different they can be while still saying the same thing.  ^__^

Roy Kim - Heaven translated lyrics

Yeah, ok, Heaven is track 6 so no way should I be there yet, but a) I love it <3 and b) I could tell it was going to be sooooooo easy to translate I couldn;t resist.

I'll regret later lol.

 The version on Blooming Season EP is a solo, original version is from the Goblin OST (Part 12), where he sang it with Kim E-Z from Flower Jam Project (or whatever else they translate that as, sorry idk the official English name).


I’m wasting my word
Wasting my time
I take everything and give it to you
And that moment changing everything
I was feeling it

Feeling my heart, to you
Opening up repeatedly

You wake up my heart
And walk to my world
I call you a miracle

In the midst of every breathing thing
I only remember you
While feeling and cherishing you
I want to put you near to my side
She blew me away

Heaven is in your eyes
Heaven is in your sound
To me, the world you see
Is everything
Heaven is in your kiss
Even though tears fall down
You, uniquely beneath heaven
My smile, unique beneath heaven

I'm dreaming all day
I deeply close my eyes
I call your name

The frequently breaking out smile
How is it this way?
Whoever you are, at one time
You imagined this day
You blow up my heart, my heart

Heaven is in your eyes
Heaven is in your sound
To me, the world you see
Is everything
Heaven is in your kiss
Even though tears fall down
You, uniquely beneath heaven
My smile, unique beneath heaven

As if today is the last
I will look at you,
At you, who was so good

Heaven is in your eyes
Heaven is in your sound
To me, the world you see
Is everything
Heaven is in your kiss
Even though tears fall down
You, uniquely beneath heaven
My smile, unique beneath heaven


Translator's Notes:

The "You, uniquely beneath heaven / My smile, unique beneath heaven" bit just seems very awkward in English... I can make it make more sense, but I have to go adding in verbs that aren't there?  Literally that IS what the song lyrics say, nothing else.  I think the meaning would be more clearly rendered as "You are the only one beneath heaven that makes me smile" or similar, but... that's not ACTUALLY what it says, in exact words.  I like exact words lol.

Also, if you really want to know, that smile isn't "breaking out" but more... gushing.  Like idk, a waterfall?  It's a water-shooting-out verb to my brain.  I just decided "breaking out" is more what an English smile would do?

Friday 19 May 2017

Roy Kim - Egoist translated lyrics!

OMG I am soooooooo happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  ^________^

Roy Kim is back with a new album!!!!! 

Mini album, ok, but!  <3

I feel like I have waited FOREVER for this one.  So glad it's finally here!

Sooo in typical Kpop style it comes with Korean (and Hanja) title with a hotly debated translation... iTunes are going with Blossom, everyone else is going with Blooming Season or words to that effect.

I am going with that one, just, you know, because.  ^__^

(Actually it's because Roy Kim's official facebook announced the album title by saying, "Singer-songwriter Roy Kim will be releasing a mini album 개화기(開花期) on the 16th.  "개화기" has the meaning of the period when flowers bloom." (my translation from the Korean announcement)

THEN I looked it up in my Hanja dictionary (yup, I totes have one of those!) and the Hanja mean "opening flower period" so HA iTunes, we're right, you're wrong, there is a "season" in there too.

So~~  Apart from sticking it to iTunes, to me "Blooming Season" really does just make more sense, and although "Flowering Season" might be better English, no one else is using that one.  ^_~ 

Also, in case you wanted to know, 개화기 also has the meaning of "period of enlightenment" in Korean, as in, like the Renaissance or whatever.  Mainly Joseon dynasty turning modern, but yeah.  Maybe Roy had this in mind too?)
 
Anyway.  Got straight down to work, and here are the translated lyrics to the first track off the album.  Although it is the... second title track?  
Confusing muchly, eh.
 
You frequently expect things from me, but don't make a mistake
You're just fooling yourself
You will dream of a forever love but
It just gets hard as time goes by
Don't cross the line, this distance now is good
Don't try asking what this is between us
Just make love, just do love, yeah
Yes, look at me a little
Can you see what I want?
 Too hot, wanting to draw back my hand, that kind of love
I don't want to do it again
Because that little cold, suitably cool, that kind of love
Will be more comfortable to me
Like you are a planet, I am a star, and between us the Milky Way
If there were just that perfect gap
If it's not more, if it's not less, it'll be good
Will you understand me?
Time continually passes by, and
I simply have to go, and
You, while knowing it, why are you like that?
Instead of wanting more, instead of giving overflowingly,
Match with me a little more
 I know the bad things, egoistic is right too
But do you know it hurts me too?
 
Too hot, wanting to draw back my hand, that kind of love
I don't want to do it again
Because that little cold, suitably cool, that kind of love
Will be more comfortable to me
Like you are a planet, I am a star, and between us the Milky Way
If there were just that perfect gap
If it's not more, if it's not less, it'll be good
Will you understand me?
If I'm honest, I'm afraid
Don't hate this me
While it's like this, why do I wish for love again?
Once again, love
Too hot, wanting to draw back my hand, that kind of love
I don't want to do it again
Because that little cold, suitably cool, that kind of love
Will be more comfortable to me
Like you are a planet, I am a star, and between us the Milky Way
If there were just that perfect gap
If it's not more, if it's not less, it'll be good
Will you understand me?
 
(Translator's Notes: 
As with pretty much EVERY KOREAN SONG LYRIC EVER there is great lack of clarity about I/you/we/the old lady from across the street, whatever.  While we can safely rule out the old lady across the street I think, lines like "you will dream of a forever love" could be "we will dream" or even "I will dream".
Also I invented the word "overflowingly" because that's what the lyrics said, and yeah, I could have said "giving too much" which sounds like a thing an English speaker might say about a relationship, but... it's not quite overflowingly is it?  ^_~)