Mangajin36 - Pop Music in Japan

JAPANESE POP CULTURE & LANGUAGE LEARNING

POP

USIC

JAPAN

1111111111111111111111111111 22101133940036

Henes XJapan Blue Hearts Major Force ShOnen Knife Pizzicato Five The Boredoms Sadistic Mlka Band Shang Shang Typhoon Yellow Magic Orchestra Southern All Stan Kome Kome Club Street Sliders The Boom Nelories Nahki Tigers

2-3's B'z

.Japanese

" . . . there has been an evolution in Japanese rock and pop away from slavish imitation of foreign models toward music that 's more confident and prof essional." Bv STEVE M

cCLURE

I A Beginner's Guide

fi had¥ I0 for every time I've heard something like, "Japanese pop music? It's just a bunch of no-talent idols and bad imitators of foreign bands," I'd be rich. Such comments are dead wrong-not that there isn't a lot of egregious Japanese pop. Take Hikaru Genji (1t Genji), an "idol" act of the eighties. This squeaky-clean group is best known for the ability to lip-sync while whirling about on roller skates. This is the dreck you're likely to see on prime-time TV, causing many people to conclude that 90 percent of Japanel>e pop music is rubbish. Big deal. The same can be said of pop in any country. If you take time to separate the wheat from the chaff, you 'II discover Japan has produced some great pop music and boasts musical visionaries like Kina Shokichi Ot~A Nakaido Reiichi (i'!Jtf Ji Jlinl) and Sakamoto Ryiiichi (:lfi*ffl!- ). Japanese popular music, as opposed to court or aristocratic music, originated in rninyo (R;mf\) regional folk songs, music played at summertime bon odori (tJ;:f.!fl 1J ) festivals and local styles such as Osaka's kawachi

tn,

• Yellow Magic Orchestra, pioneering rock group of the 1970s.

c "(

14 Mangajin

oa

n'Tf~!j'gQ)f& kasLVkokumot.wno kara

(! jH'jJillj: totemo seiketm·na • dreck = ( i '/ ( t.!. t, 'tv ' 4ilJ kuwlkudaranai mrmo • chaff = • narralive songs='*~ ;;l'jQ)lJj( kataricilo 110 11/a • Allied forces= !!l!fr11I rengogu11 • loosely dell ned = )E~ Q)i).! r,~ t

• squeaky-clean"'

ondo (iPJP'.lif.lii{) songs. Echoes of these and other traditional styles can be found in Japan' s pop music, but it was the introduction of Western music after the Meiji Restoration ( 1868) that really set the ball rolling. Styles of popular music that flourished in the 18681945 period included military and brass band music, Osaka's rokyoku (¥€Uttl), also known as naniwabushi 1Em'i) narrative songs, chanson, Asakusa o pera, the show music of the Takarazuka (31:~) all-girl revue, jazz (in the broad, prewar sense of the term, encompassing dance music and straight pop . ongs), tango and Hawaiian music. Japan's defeat in 1945 and the ensuing Occupation by victorious Allied forces ( 1945- 1952) resulted in more foreign music being heard in Japan, especially through the US armed forces' Far East Network (FEN) radio service. Many Japanese musicians and music fans got a taste of genres like country, rockabilly and modern jazz thanks to FEN. At the time the main popular style was kayokyoku (:!X~:!Htln, a loosely de fined term that one authoritative guide to Japanese pop music describes as "Japanese MOR (middle of the road)." T he late Koga Masao (-.+Jj'ii&~) is recognized as the greatest

Lt.; teigi no bakuzento silita

kayokyoku songwriter. Important singers right after the war included Kasagi Shizuko (~tft ~ ;(-=f), whose 1948 release, "Tokyo Boogie-Woogie," was a huge hit. Misora Hibari (~ ~ '0' li I) ) was a major star whose untimely death in 1989 sent the nation into mourning. Misora's forte a type of was enlw melancholy lwyokyoku ballad that leans to themes like doomed love affairs and painful separations. Traditionally based on the Japanese minor pentatonic scale, enka occupies a place in Japan similar to that of country music in the United States. Enlw's biggest fans are middle-aged salarymen, who croon along to favorite tunes in Japan's 280,000 lwraoke machine-equipped bars. The only Japanese artist to have any impact in the West in the post-war period was the late Sakamoto Kyu (:tii: ~ ) and Matsutoya Yumi (t}ff:~Etr~. aka "Yuming") gain popularity with a sophisticated, personal approach. Nakajima's songs are often dark and moody, and her style could be termed "Japanese chanson," with its emphasis on the dramatic. Matsutoya's image of the self-reliant, mature woman helps make her a favorite among young working women. Her music has a smooth, West Coast sound. In the late seventies three things had a major influence on Japanese pop. First was the "idol boom," which saw performers like Matsuda Seiko (t~t.=!!l f). Yamaguchi Momoe (ill "!M,), Go Hiromi (~ '(} i? ~) and Saijo Hideki (~~3'iift) capture the hearts and wallets of millions of teenagers.

Do

Under the idol system, new artists sign a contract with a production company, often when they' re as young as 12. Ten-year contracts are not uncommon. The potential idol is then groomed and educated under company su-

A show by six-member industrial thrash metal group the Boredoms is less a concert than an all-out attack on the senses.

pervision before making a debut. When the time is ripe, the production company makes a master recording and starts talking to record labels. Idol stars are usually paid a salary by the production company. When their shelf life expires at the ripe old age of 20 or so, they're usually let go in favor of the next crop of tarento ("talents"). The use of the term tarento is ironic, to say the least, since most idols' appeal is based on looks and certainly not on singing skill. The second big event in Japanese pop in the late seventies was the Yellow Magic Orchestra, a three-man group (Hosono Haruomi, Sakamoto Ryuichi and Takahashi Yukihiro [~~¥~])whose brilliant synthesizer-based style of music had an enormous influence on musicians worldwide. After leaving YMO, Sakamoto composed music for several movie soundtracks, including collaborating on the score for The lAst Emperor. The third big development during this era was the debut of Kina Shokichi and his band Champloose ( 7- -f /' 7 Jv- X), which brought the music of Okinawa, Japan's southernmost prefecture, to the attention of mainstream pop fans. Champloose's unique sound was based on the combination of electric instruments with the Okinawan sanshin, a threestringed instrument similar to mainland Japan's shamisen but with a shorter neck and snakeskin instead of cat or dog skin strung over the resonance box. The group's first hit was 1974' s "Haisai Ojisan" (1'1

· aka= (!lso known l!S) ~~J~ betsumei • groom= fj'( .omQ*41t' .0 sodarerulkunren sum • shelf life :: t!'tio'b~$ shiihin junryo • collaborate= ~fiiJ$fJf'f"t J.> lcyiJdo seisaku sum

Mangajin 16

Featur e• Story

Shang Shang Typhoon 's music draws on Japanese folk songs, music from Okinawa and China, plus a dash of rock.

-lt1 :13 t: ~ lv ), a bright tune that always gets the crowd dancing at Champloose's exuberant concerts. Highly recommended is the group's 1980 album Blood Line, which includes my all-time favorite Japanese song, a ballad titled "Subete no hi to no kokoro ni hana o" (-9'"" -r (J) A 0),(., 1: :(£a- , " Flowers for Every Heart"), usually referred to as "Hana." The original version features Ry Cooder on slide guitar. Th is beautiful song has been covered by a variety of artists, especially in Southeast Asia. With the popularity of "world" music in the late eighties there was new interest among the Japanese in their musical heritage. YMO's Sakamoto used Okinawan musical styles in his superb 1987 album

Beauty. Since then, bands using "ethnic" stylings have come to the fore. The most interesting group to come out of Okinawa of late is the Nenes ( ;j,- ;j,;(. pronounced "nay-nays"), a female quartet who specialize in a captivating blend of Okinawan folk music and contemporary pop. Their third album, Ashibi (ih L Cf. Okinawan dialect for "playing" or "relaxing"), includes traditional-style songs such as " Akabana," (ihtJ'Iilj:), pop tunes like " Bye Bye Okinawa," and a haunting cover of Bob Marley's "No Woman No Cry." All original songs on Ashibi were composed by China Sadao (~D~ 5.£~ ), one of Okinawa's best-known musicians and the man who brought the Nenes together. " Young people in Okinawa show no interest in

• exuberanl = ~;£: ftry f.t nekkyiileki-na • cover= IJ I { - 1 { - ") 3 / >d:- ff -1.> kabli blfjon 0 tsukuru • haunling cover = ;E.;ft. t, ft.~ v' 'fl I { - {I< :J 3 / ) wasuremrenai kabii (hiijon )

Mangajin 17

F e a t u r e • S t o r

BABEL PRESS

traditional music," says Nencs member Koja Misako (i5W1kf&:-=f). "Chinasan has decided on this means to attract their attention." Shang Shang Typhoon (1:. /:t ~) plays music that draws on traditional Japanese fo lk songs, melodies from Okinawa and Chinese songs, plus a liberal dash of rock and even an occasional nod to the blues. The seven-member band, fronted by female vocalists Ni shikawa Satoko (~li JII~$ f) and Shirosaki Emi ( LJ MI!!JHf~). has existed in various forms since 1980 when it was founded by the enigmatic Koryu !li:L'?"tiO.A 1.l'ttt.Kl.1~9tJ', till~ , "5J: -::> t.?tJ'tJ_-~,,t:.l.1(7)1.' t.: ~

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28 Mangajin

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Manga story featured on p. 70-77

But as we read more of the series and tried to come up with a coherent explanation of who Moguro Fukuzo was and why he acted the way he did, we were, quite frankly, stumped. We couldn' t decide if Moguro represented the forces of evil, if he just had a sadistic streak, or if there was some kind of deeper moral to the stories. Then, we found out that manga authority, author, translator, and regular contributor to Mangajin Frederik Schodt was planning a trip to Japan, and we asked him about the possibility of interviewing the creator of the Salesman to find out the inside scoop on this enigmatic character and manga series (which has recently enjoyed a second boom after being revived in animated form for a popular TV show). The result was this interview, which also serves as an introduction to our second selection from The Laughing Salesman, shown on pages 70 77 of this issue.

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11011 da.

only

(explan.) ~ · ~o •h ""A.

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• it's J:.A Tli know ... 0) [j i¥J~ii-c t:t. -0 r. f.li.l~llo know O) ;h c l:~fl~un iJ';\':% 1: Yonen-ki

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• childhood 'j: l.:f{l~O)'*M J

ih o

0)

a ru

no

~0 sa.

spoil/ruin

,

in order to exist(s) (explan.)(colloq.) l•t t.c t ' I.¥JJ1f~fi::J o Adulthood li I* A O)If.¥JVJJ :

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"Calvin has mysteriousiWtshrunk to the size of an insect!" 'fJ Jv "/1 :..- fp ..-f~1iJ 1: b c t'if-::> -r :f- o A,

chotro

matle

ne.

(interj.) a lillie/a moment wait-(request) (colloq.)

.:f -r

"I

+ ;t; /

Kyatchi-hon

-/){

A. -::> t.:.

!l) o

ga

haitra

no.

call waiting/another call (subj.) came in (explan.)

''Oh, wait just a second, okay? I received a call waiting (signal)." " Oh wajjjust a second, okay? I've got another call." (PL2) • a is essentially an interjection of recognition/making a connection. It can be

• • • •

used as an informal ''hi" when reaching someone on the phone or running into them in the hall/on the street: it can also be used like ·'oh'' to express a sudden thought/realization/awareness of something. hima refers to "free/idle/leisure time," and nara makes a conditional meaning, so hima nara =''if you are free." matre is the -re form of ma/Sit ("wait"), here being used to make an informal request. ne is like the colloquial tag, "okay?" which expects him to agree/consent. kyarchi-hon. from English "catch phone." is one of the names used for "call waiti ng" in Japan. A less polite term used sometimes is warikomi denwa, from the noun form of warikomu ("force/push one's way in/butt in on [something]") plus denwa (''phone !call)"): roughly. "a butt-in phone call."

Man: ~ ~iS~ 1~ -::> t.:. t i , fPJ Juwaki

mafia

handset

holding

ilLv'-r

mama. nani as is

what

naite

Jut.!. J: - o 11

da

yo.

are crying (explan.) (emph.)

"What're vou (.standing there) with the phone in ):OUr hand crying for?" (PL2) Koichiro: -? 0 -? ... U1 U Sob sob (effect of being choked up/crying) Narration: .:f -r ·y + J: -::> -r -f (J) ff:f£ ~

* / ':.

Kvatchi-hon

ni yo11e

sono

sonzai

o

call waiting

by/owing to that's/his existence (obj.)

_tt::h.C,:h.f.:.

!'1.l, ::J-17-D- l'""0 -::> f.:. o

wasurerareta owko, was forgoncn

man

Koiclrir(}

de ana.

(name)

was

This was KOichiro: the man whose existence had been f!!rg9tten on account ofcaJlWaitini (PL2) • juwaki literally refers to the " telephone handset/receiver," and motta is the plain/abrupt past form of mmstt ("hold"). The particle o. to mark juwaki as the direct object of moua, has been omitted. • mama =··as is/unchanged,'" so moua mama means "with the handset held in

• • • •

© Deluxe Company, All rights reserved.

First published in Japan in 1993 by Futabasha, Tokyo.

•

your hand and doing nothing else"- in this case referring to the fact that he's just holding the phone and crying. instead of talking, as he would normally be expected to do. naite n is a contraction of naire-iru no, the progressive ("is/are - ing") form of naku ("cry'') plus the explanatory no. indicating he wants an explanation of the situation. sono =''that's" in the sense of "belonging to that/of that," but in this case "that'' refers to Kiiichirii, so it means "his.'' wasurerarera is the plain/abrupt past form of wasurerareru ("be forgotten"), the passi ve of wasureru ("forget"). Sonzai o wasurerareru =''have one's existence forgotten:· kyatchi-hon ni yo11e sono sonzai o wasurerare/a is a complete thought/sentence ("[he] had his existence forgotten on account of call waiting") modifying otoko ("man"). de alia is the plain/abrupt past form of de aru, a more formalt'literary" equivalent of da/desu ("is/are'').

[ English translation rights arranged through Futabasha.

Mangajin 45

~

mIY! 1-t m~B-19! Jl

by

7· 7 -;; 7 "A • tJ / ;"\..:::.Deluxe Company

Zusetsu Gendai Yogo Benran

Sound FX: I! -t! ~~ r { Pi po pa pe (sound of dialing touchtone phone)

A Visual Glossary of Modern Terms

Man: ~ t.:.

f£11~

-IJ'

J:, i-:> t.:.

Mota

rusu

ka

yo.

< ...

mauaku ...

again absent from home (?) (emph.)

(exasp.)

" Is she out a~ain? Sheesh!" (PL2) • m su refers to one's absence from home. • mauaku (literally "completely/entirely"). is often used as an exclamation of exasperation.

Narration: -f (f) Sono

koro

that's upproximatc time

Sound FX:

Meanwhile

~ Jv Jv Jv ... ~ Jv Jv ... ~ Jv '"' To ru ru ru ... 10 ru ru . . . ro ru ru

Rinnng • .. rinn2 ... rinng._._. (sound of telephone ringing) Sound FX: ;f. 1 ;t! 1 (effect of tos ing/throwing re latively Poi poi small and light things aside) Woman: 7j: It' , 7j: "' ! ~ Ri!i ?.if -IJ~ 7j: 1.- ' ! Nai.

nail

Juwaki

go

nail

is not here is not here handset (subj.) is not here

" I can ' t find !hi can ' t find it! I can't find the handset." (PL2) SoundFX : 71-+t -:::!') Gasa goso

(effect of moving paper/objects around)

Woman: a?-:> t.: !! Ana! ex istedlis here

''1 found it!" (PL2) Sound FX: Jv Jv Jv, 7' "I Ru ru ru, pu!

(ringing followed by effect o f the sound suddenly breaking off/being cut oft) Woman: (t t' l;JJ-:> -1? ~-:> t.: o Kedo but

kirchaua. hung up-(regret)

" But they hung up." (PL2) Narration: 1) -'E :J / t :J - r v :J.. li J: Rimokon

10

remote control and

kodoresu cordless

<

wa yoku

r

~ 1: 7j: ¢ o maigo ni naru.

as-for often lost/astray become

(Television) remotes and cordless (phone handsets) often 20 astrav. • aua is the plain/abrupt past form of aru ("exist"), so it's literally the state•

• • • © Deluxe Company. All rights reserved.

First published in Japan in 1993 by Futabasha, Tokyo. English translation rights arranged through Futabasha.

46 Mangajin

)

menr "[It] existed." It"s often used idiomatically as an exclamation for w hen one finds what one is looking for, like English " I found it!" kircharra is a contraction of kiue shimaua, the -re form of kiru ("cut." or in the case of a phone, "hang up") plus the plain/abrupt past form of shimau ("end/finish/put away''). A form of shimau after the-re form of a verb implies the action or its result is regrettable/undesirable. The subject of this verb is the party on the other end. rimokon is abbreviated from rimoto komororu, the cumbersome katakana rendering of " remote control. •• Kodoresu is a katakana rendering of "cordless." yoku is the adverb form of iilyoi ("good/fine''). here meaning "often/frequently" rather than "well.·· maigo is written with kanji meaning "be confused/go astray" and "child,'' so maigo ni naru literally refers to a child "becoming lost." Adult speakers are more likely to use the verb mayou when speaking of becoming lost, but they can informally use maigo ni naru without it sounding panicularly funny. Using the expression for inanimate objects, though. is distinctly humorous.

~m~1-t ffl ~! 1J!~

by

Zusetsu Gendai Yi5go Benran

A Visual Glossary of Modern Terms

Man :

77-:;7:A • tJ/;"\..::..Deluxe Company

JiJ, :t v, 4- iJ' ~

1m J.>

J:: o

A,

kaeru

yo.

ore, ima kara

(interj.) Ume now From will return home (emph.)

" Hi, it's me. I'm just s tarting home now." (PL2) • a is an interjection of recognition that's often used as an informal " hi," when reaching someone on the phone or meeting them in the hall/on the street. • ore is a rough/masculine word for ''lime."

0

Sound FX : .:¥.,·;; G I.

C reak (a dull and very b rie f "creak" from opening door; a more s ustained creak would be gii) Man:

b-? Fii " Whe w" (sigh of fatigue/relief)

Sound FX :

J~-t

Pachi C lick (flicking light switch o n)

GJ

Messa~: JiJ, :t v , 4-

iJ' ~

1fff -0

J:: o

A, ore, ima kara kaeru yo. (interj.) Ume now from will return home (emph.)

Sound FX:

" Hi it's m e. l'mius t s tartinl! home now." (PL2) t: ·;; Pi! BeeR (beep after final message on answering machine)

v

(!) J!ii L.. i.P ore no koe shika

Man: -t-'-:>,i'IJ Yappari

:;f

after all/as expected Ume

A-:>"lv'Jj:v ' o haitte-inai.

's voice only

(not) recorded

"As expected, o nly my own voice is recorded." "As us ua l m v own message is the o nly_o n e." (PL2) Narration:

mt iJ' ~ b

fi1 t ;f,X L.. <

1j: J.>

(!)

motto sabishiku naru

no

more

lonely

1: JiJ -:> t.:. 0

becomes (explan.)

de ana. was

In this wav. the man who received m essal!es from no o ne came to feel even lonelie r . (PL2)

© Deluxe Company. All rights reserved. Fin;t published in Japan in 1993 by Ftllabasha, Tokyo. English translation rights arranged through Futabasha.

• yappari, a colloquial yahari, implies that something fits one's expectations. • shika works together with a negative (- nai) later in the sentence to mean "only." Haille-inai is the negative form of haitte-iru (literally, "is inside"). which in the context of a tape-recorder/answering machine means "is recorded." The phrase- shika haitle-inai means ·'only- is recorded." • dare by itself is the question word "who," but followed by mo + negative it means " no one/not anyone." Inserting kara ("from") between dare and mo makes it "not from anyone." • rusu refers to a person's absence from home, and roku refers to a " record/ recording," so rusuroku implies a recording made during one's absence i.e., a message o n an answering machine. Telephone answering machines are known as rusuban denwa in Japanese. Rusuban is the traditional word used for the task of guarding/watching the house while everyone else is away, so a rusuban denwa is a telephone that takes phone messages while you are away, and rusuroku is the term for referring to those messages. • hairanai is the negative of hairu (literally, "enter/go in/come in"), so rusurokuno (=ga) lwiranai ="messages don't come in." This complete thought/sentence modifies otoko ("man"): "the man for whom messages don't come in from anyone." The subject marker ga often changes to no in modifying clauses. • sabishiku is the adverb form of sabishii ("lonely''). The adverb form of an adjective plus naru ("become'') implies either "become(s) that quality,'' or '·become(s) even more that quality." In this case motto ("more") helps indicate the latter meaning. • de alta is the plain/abrupt past form of de aru, a more formal!'' literary" equivalent of da/desu ("is/are").

Mangajin 47

A Visual Glossary of Modern Terms

F e atur e • S t o r y

Pop .\fusic ""nrru~dfrom

page 19)

i;; dominated by Kirihara's accordion and bac ked by Kubo's guitar plus bas and drums. \ 'ocali t Kirihara's lyrics are surreal meditations on subjects from Japanese tourists shopping overseas to the depressing urban landscape of "No Love Lost": " Broken bicycle/Crushed fruit on the street!The clouds in the sky don' t seem nice at all." The elories have gained a loyal cult followin g in Britai n, where they played live gigs in addition to recording a session for Radio One's John Peel. The duo have released four C Ds. Their first fulllength album, Mellow Yellow Fellow Nelories, was recently released in the United States on the He llo Recording indie label. Pizzicato Five (!! -T 7J 7 7 1 ·~l) is another Japanese act that has set its sights on the American market. Last year the band appeared at the New Music Seminar's " Psycho Nite" Japan showca e. and M atador Records will release their US debut album in June. This delightfully bizarre trio (never mind the " Five") is fronted by fashion plate Nomiya Maki. Describing PS's music isn't easy. Nomiya, Konishi Yasuharu, and Takahashi Keitaro are obviously keen students of '60s pop culture, which they refract through their Japanese sensibility. The result is gems like "Twiggy v . James Bond," which immediately conjures up images of sports cars chasing each other along the Ri viera, or tongue-in-cheek ersatz psychedelia like " Magic Carpet Ride" (not the Steppenwolf chestnut), which appears on the band's latest Japan album, Bossa Nova 2001, as well as on their US album, Made in USA. What could be Pizzicato Five's strongest selling point outside Japan is their brilliant use of videos, in which Nomiya adopts an amazing variety of pop personae. The Boredoms hail from Kansai, but their industrial thrash metal bears no resemblance to the pop of Shonen Kni fe and the Nelo ries. Boredoms' lead singer Eye Yamatsuka achieved notoriety in the early '80s with the band The Hanatarashi (-if · I \ T -9 7 :/ ). known for violent performances. One legendary Hanatarashi gig featured a backhoe which the band used to chase audience members around until they smashed it into a wall. A show by the six-member Boredoms is less a concert than an all-out attac k on the senses. The songs have titles like ·'Greatborefull Dead" and "Cory & the Mandara Suicide Pyramid Action or Gas Satori." The mosh pit in front of the stage resembles a mix master set on liquefy, full of fan s bent o n causing and/or sustaining gross bodily harm. The Boredoms' latest album, Pop Tarari, was re leased by Warner in the United States last fall, and they are expected to take part in this summer's Lollapalooza concert tour. The group is part of a Japanese underground scene that manages to survi ve in the face of massive public indifference. This is rebellious music, but not in the narrow, po litical sense. The extreme, over-the-top music of the Boredoms, Daihakase, Captain Condoms, UFO or Die and Dowser is designed to disrupt the complacency of what they see as a conformist society.

~ ~5l ~ 1-t ffl ~i} ~ ~ Zusetsu Gendai Yoga Binran

r•

(co111inued 0 11 J>af:e 50)

?.!\?.!! ~ 7 7 / 11ersttretsu-11a fan • gil( = Ill i!i!Jii,!-i # slmtme11/ ,'t',,UC7) shusshinno • resemblance ='l!!fU rtti).i • notoriety = :11:: r, akWII\'6/:/l.':,if akultro • backhoe = 1 < / 7 :t. 7 ( -~P.cnffi!j'jiJI~) /iakku/ul(isslw no kus,,-c;kuki) • mosh pit = 7 7 / IJf~ i ..., "(.j1jl L. 7.. i" - ;; liil C7) A-"h translation righl> arranged lhrough Kodan;ha Lid.

by ~:k ,t=J ~ Mother : ~ U Kaislla

1.:

t±

·ttl tt. t:.

iJ'"'?

ni

wa

nareta

kai?

company to as-for became accustomed

i'I

Akizuki Ris u

(?)

" Have you gotten used to your new job?" (PL2) New O L: ') lv Un.

" Uh-huh" (PL2) • kaislla is literally "company/firm," but it's often used in si tuations where an English speaker would more likely say "work/the office." Here it's a question having to do with new employment, so "new job" seems more appropriate. • nareta is the plain/abrupt past form of nareru ("grow accustomed to"). • kai makes a softer/ less abrupt question than ka: i!'s reserved for informal use.

Mother: "' t.: b ¢ ~ .!JCJI. ljiwaru·na

senpai

mean

semors people like

toka

inai? not exist?

"No sen pai who are_mean to you?" (PL2) NewOL: "'~"'

#lv~ " Ano. Yamakawa-san irasshaimasu (interj.) (name-han.) is present ''Is Mr. Yamakawa in?" ( PL4) OL:

~

TI

Akizuki Risu

fJ'?

ka? (?)

li t.:.t!~t'i 9HI:I'i' l:t"o .:·f~d· 1J{.:·~"'ilt.:.t?71tt.:.ib1Jit"1J-ci3tJ iT o llJIII li 9H±l~ -r-t"tl{, "'n'IJ< "'t.:.l...i l...J:. 7 lrsumo o-sewa 11i naue-orimasu. Yamakawa wa gaisltutsu-clul desu ga, ikaga itashimasho always (hon.)-are receiving favors (name) as-for ou!laway is but. what way/how shall do " Thank vou for aU vour kindness. M r . Yamaka wa is away. How can I b e of assistan ce?" (PIA) • orimasu is the polite form of the PL4 (humble) verb oru. equivalent to iru ("exists/is presem"). • ... deshO ka asks a question. "I wo nder if (it/he/she) is ... ?/Is (it/he/she) perhaps ... ?"Using the PL3 (-masu) form before desha is a very polite style. .. ormal" politeness would be " . .. slwji11 u·a oru desho ka?" • itsumo o-sewa ni naue-orimasu is a po lite greeting that es entiall} thanks the listener for patronage/services or any kindness he/she may have done fo r the speaker. Sewa means "help/aid/favor,.. and sewa ni naru is an expression meaning " receive favor/aid/help." Naue-orimasu is a PL4 equivalent of naue-iru. the progressive ("am/is/are -ing") form of naru. so o-sewa ni nalle·iru (or orimasu) literally means "1/we are (always) receiving your favor." An OL saying this to a colleague's wife implies the wife's actions indirectly benefit the company; a wife might also say it to an OL because she knows the OL helps her husband in the cour~e of hb job. • ikaga is a PL4 equivalent of do ("what/what way/how"), and irashimasho is the polite voli tional ("let's/! shall") form of the PL4 verb irasu, equi valent to sun t ("do"). In a questi on the volitio nal form becomes "what shall we ... ?/who shall I ... ?/etc., so ikaga irashimasho ka = "what shall 1/we do?" • Osore-irimasu. • (gratitude) " l ' m ve.-y_much obli~" (Pl4) ~-:? ~-:? OL: -IT 3 7 ""("::: ~ ~' it" n'? f Sayo de gozaimasu ka? I Bwsu bw su • that way is it? (effect of mumbling on and on) ''Is that s o? I (etc. etc.)" (PlA) .:. ~ t? n' t? i3 at Jii ", t.:. l i T Q_L: 1t: 1i c' Nochi-hodo koch ira kara o -demva irashimasu. • later this side/direction from (hon.)-will call ''I'll caJJ you b ack later." (PL4) • o r ' 'I' ll have him r e turn vour call later ." ( PlA) - -

here our OL is simply practic ing at random a number of stock phrases used on the phone. osore-irimasu is the polite form of the PL4 verb osoreiru. which is similar to sum imasen in that it can be used either as an apology or an expression of gratitude. sayo is a formal equivalent of so ("that way") and de go::.aimasu is a PL4 equivalent of da/deSII ("is/arc"). so sayo de go'-llimasu =so desu ="it is so/that way." The quest.ion m~rker ka makes it " Is that soT .. 11oclu-lro:;to IS a more formal word for oro de. afterwards/ later on. kocltira l it~ral!y means "this side/direction:" but is often use~ as an tnd•rect. and therefore more pohte, way of refemng to oneself/one· sown company. Depending on context. this sentence could mean she will call back later herJ: o self, or that the absent person will return the call later. Arigato, okiisan. Mo ii yo. mother already good/okay (emph.) • o- is honorific, and itaslrimasu is the polite form of the thanks " Thanks, Mom. T hat' ll be_e n ough." ( PL2) PL4 verb irasu. equivalent to suru ("do"). so o-denll'a irashimasu = demm .mru = "make a phone call.'' It-:> .:. H ~ l ~ i.P-:> t.:. (!) 1.: o ' - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - 1 Mother: f.t 1-v t!. o Nan da. Kekko omoshirokaua no ni. • mt) ii is li terally "already good/fine." idiomatically what is it? quite/considerably was fun/enjoyable even though meaning ''that 's enough." • 11011 da by itself implies either disappointment or relief. " Oh. Even tho ug h it was quite fun. " "Alread y? I was havin~" (PL2) here the former. 0 L (!) 7 -r• omoshirokana is the past form of omoshiroi ("is fun/ Oeru enjoyable/interesting"). 110 Mana • 110 11i ("even though/a lthough''), especially at the end office lady 's manners OL E tiquette of sentence, can express regret/disappoi ntment.

Manga1in 53

0•-"~ii1Caffii

by

GJ

OL Shinkaron

tJ i'o

-saki

ni denwa suru zo.

oka)/all right transaction target/destination to

make call (emph.)

" All rightl l ' m_glling to call the client." (PL2) Sound FX: ::._· < Goku

Book T itle:

Gulp (effect of swallowing hard) -r !v ~? (f) ""