Alternative(s) by angela

[Kitsunay]

This song was remarkably hard to translate, not due to difficult wording, but rather, because many of the sentences have a huge amount of meaning condensed into a handful of words. I may as well see if I can get help with making it a bit smoother of a translation. As a side note, the words Dive, Field, and Sign in the song almost seem to be irrelevant to the sentences they appear within, although field is semi-relevant in one.

Personally, I love this song for it's variability and how well the beginning conveys the sense of uncertainty that this song is about. The first few times I heard it while watching asura cryin', the song just fit the whole mechanical theme of the anime and the speed really made it go from a haunting intro into a theme song. The artwork for the intro is also very well timed as well, so the song became an instant favourite.

First attempt (Line-by-Line Translation):

 

I’m stuck at a crossroads and struggling with problems
If I choose the thorny path, is it the right one? Is it a mistake?
Tell me

I often have to make hard decisions
Whenever my escape routes are cut off
‘Weakness’ is exposed
When ‘criticisms’ are all I can think about

I need to survive
To keep going I don’t want to part with joy
I've ignored it and the odour of losing battlegrounds without noticing
Because I get used to the field (TN: may simply be 'I've gotten used to it' if 'Field' is an irrelevant word)
In seeking perfection, I've had to kiss the dilemma of choosing the lesser evil
Time is another day gone by
Come! I won’t run

No matter how many times I could redo things and choose the easy road
I refuse to do anything to reset my short lifetime
I don’t want to have the option anyways

The times I've been able to survive unexpected problems
Instinct held me tight
‘Strength’ is exposed
When everyone else notices their ‘trembling’ and I don’t

I’d like to sweep away opposition and to live only for smiles
Even if it's a detour
I’m sure that every fated coincidence will broaden my horizons
Be free
For simplicity, I matter, and my prediction is also that I matter
Time is another day gone by
I won’t let go if it’s love, but I won’t believe in things that don’t exist

I need to survive
To keep going I don’t want to part with joy
I've ignored it and the odour of losing battlegrounds without noticing
Because I get used to the field
In seeking perfection, I've had to kiss the dilemma of choosing the lesser evil
Time is another day gone by
Come! I won’t run and I won't let go if it's love

As a side note, my copy of the song has one part at the end which the transliterator, arsmagna, seems to have forgotten about. Basically, it is the sentence 愛なら離さない (ai nara hanasanai - 'I won't let go if it's love'). The last sentence of the transliteration should have the roumaji 'ai nara hanasanai' appended to it. The kanji transliteration does not contain this omission, so I assume it's an honest mistake (it can be hard to keep track of long translations when you're listening to the song ).

Anyways, input is appreciated. The part that references 'the odour of a losing battleground' is referring to how we sometimes know something will get us nowhere, but still ignore our instinct. I'm not completely sure it is the best way to translate that sentence, as the meaning is not immediately evident in my english translation. It is linked closely with the previous few words which mention how we also forget to take moments to feel good. It is also in that stanza that I encountered the semi-applicable usage of 'field'. To make things easier, I've bolded the parts I'm especially looking for input on.

<EDIT>
I did a second attempt at this one, trying less to translate and more to keep a sense of poetry and meaning in it. This time, I stopped trying to keep the lines directly translated and focused on retaining the meaning and ensuring mistakes were avoided. Some parts turned out better, and some didn't seem as good as they could have been. I managed to fix my earlier issue of being unsure about the battlefield line.

Second Version:

 

I've been at many crossroads, faced with troubles
The thorny path I've chosen, is it right? Is it a mistake?
Tell me

The times I was forced down cruel paths
My escape routes were gone
When they found 'weakness' their 'criticisms'
Were haunting me

I need to survive; To get by I don't want to part with things
That lift my heart back up
Before I know it I get used to the sour smell of a battle field
That makes me cast them away
Seeking perfection, I had to kiss the dilemma of making a choice
A day full of time
Come! I won't run!

Even if I could redo anything, it would be too easy
I wouldn't do anything to reset my short lifetime
And I wouldn't want to anyways

When I've been faced with unexpected dilemmas
Instinct has held me tight
When they found 'strength' I don't think anyone noticed
My 'trembling'

Fighting the current to disobey because I'd like to live for smiles
They call it a detour
I believe that fated coincidences will broaden my horizons
Let it free
I believe in my importance for simplicity
A day full of time
I won't let go of love if it's real

I need to survive; To get by I don't want to part with things
That lift my heart back up
Before I know it I get used to the sour smell of a battle field
That makes me cast them away
Seeking perfection I had to kiss the dilemma of making a choice
A day full of time
Come! I won't run! I won't let go of love

</EDIT>

One final thing. The name is 'Alternative', but as is a common mistake in English written by Japanese people, the name is a neglected plural. The whole song is about making choices and I feel that the more proper name would be 'Alternatives'.