Not so lost in Translation

Toc de Mac*

Alizée - Mes Courants Electriques

I hung myself by the feet

It's the craziest thing I've ever done

Went down the stairs

Four steps at a time

Just to find you, it's true!

Your speed of light

It's the whole block's hallucination

You're my perfect being

My double espresso, my amphetamine

You saw me, you got me no more

I've seen your fake attitude

You came in a tutu

Of ideas about grand adventures

Eating words

Not at my crib, not at yours

Hunting ego

Why who? Why do it?

Alter ego

Your choices are fucking fantastic

You're hyper-hot

Praise my entirety, honey

I put the magical flute

It's the best ball for dances!

Wiped out, beat up, exhausted

But...high from joy

You read

The flowers of "loved" evil**

It's the hottest book of the summer

You're my master of thinking

My master of tricks

*it's Corsican, meaning something like "c'est mortel" or fecking amazing, that's a killer

**Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil) by Charles Baudelaire

Go back to Alizée's songs

Gourmandises

Alizée - Gourmandises

When you think about me

You, the wolf of the steppes

Deep inside you

Do you feel the euphoria

I hunger for you

You say it incessantly

And taking care of me

Tell me if that hurts you

Oh wolf are you there for me?

You make the promisse

And if I offer myself to you

It's in millions of tender kisses

There are kisses

First-kisses

Taste of saltwater

Taste of melancholy

There are kisses

Stolen it czarinas' trains

Kisses of a summer

When hands take each other

But Alizée's kisses

Are a real delicacy*

When I think about you

You, the wolf of the steppes

I'm not afraid of you

Does that oppress you ?

Take this path right there

You say it incessantly

Oh, sleep near me

And devour me with your eyes, my princess

For kisses

First-kisses

Taste of saltwater

Taste of melancholy

For kisses

Stolen in czarinas' trains

Kisses of a summer

Where hands take each other

But Alizée's kisses

Are a real delicacy

::::::::::

*Gourmandises : ah...this is hard to translate. "Gourmand" in English means almost the same thing in French, but the French connotation is more epicurean, more gluttonous? in a sense. I'll leave the interpretation to you.

Back to Alizée

Abracadabra

My mood and I

We change skins

Each time

Abracadabra

Sees my heart in disarray

My mood is colored

Carensac*

Abracadabra

When my heart beats

I cast a spell

That leaves them speechless

Absurdities

Perhaps...but for me

It's very captivating, without

Coloring**

Abracadabra

My mood and I

We change skins

Each time

Abracadabra sees my heart is gutted

My mood is colored

Tagada***

If someone sets upon me

If it's worrying

I'll eat some more

Abracadabra

Blahblahblahblah

A little witchcraft

Even if it doesn't work

::::::::::

*Carensac : delicious Haribo candies that come in rainbows of colors (so the phrase would be "my mood has the color of carensac"

**sensationalizing? fabrication?

***Tagada : another Haribo candy, strawberry flavored and colored this time

---Note : throughout the song are "meows" of cats, so I'm thinking this has something to do with the Inquisition, or the Salem trials, or anything about the maltreatment of "sorcerers" back then.

Go back to Alizée

Veni, Vidi, Vici

Alizée - Gourmandises

A dash of felicity

A humorous nature

Because everything can happen

The weather tells us it's easier

If we put

A drop of lemon in water

Changing the taste without changing the hydra

Life is beautifully spiced and flavored

The life that piques

And grows like a hayfield

Veni, Vidi, Vici*

It's also a bit of luck

Little by little

The bird makes its cozy nest

Veni, Vidi, Vici

My good star glows

I don't have mea culpa**

I'm right here, and I love it

A dash of femininity

On a young girl

Languages are made easier, juror

I like Latin in a jacket

A dash of first steps

When I tell myself : everything's happening too quickly

Far away the city-bells

Enliven the wind

Veni, Vidi, Vici

It's also a bit of luck

Little by little

The bird makes its cozy nest

Veni, Vidi, Vici

My good star glows

I don't have mea culpa

I'm right here, and I love it

Parler Tout Bas

Alizée - Gourmandises

On rainy days

My toys are alive

The big ones have claws

Like concrete stumps

How do I tell them

When one is only 15

That the unmade bed no longer has

The taste of zan*

What is it good for

Living rags

Words of love

When they're too short

I dream big

Like an elephant

I dream immensely

A round belly

With deep eyes

My bear says "What's it good for ?"

His friendship

It's hard to say

Hard to last a life time

So to him...

Speak softly

Find the right words

Talk about everything, talk about me

To find rest in

His arms : the gentleness

He has a heart inside

My heart is for his

This poem

It's for him

To the inanimate world

On rainy days

My toys are alive

Adults have laughs**

That hit you

While passing by

What's it good for,

A love that melts ?

Me, I have a friend

I would like to say,

Please don't laugh

Even if it's dumb,

That I love him...

:::::::::

*Zan : I could not find it in the my French dictionary, then I remembered Zan and the Wonder Twins.

**The phrase is "Les grands ont des rires qui vous giflent en passant."

The term "les grands" also refers to "adults," which fits better in this context than in the context of "les grands" used in the first stanza.

Back to Alizée's Songs

Mon Maquis
Alizée - Gourmandises

It's an unsolvable maze
An impenetrable maze
It's my maq...my bed
It's my maquis*
It's a refuge, a room with no view
Where the air is pure, so pure
It's my maq...my bed
It's my maquis

It's an unsolvable maze
Of laughs and giggles
It's my maq...my bed
It's my maquis

It's a lair, sure like a father
Secret tracks, paths of glass
Little brother, it's also
Your room, your maquis

It's an unsolvable maze
An impenetrable maze
It's my maq...my bed
It's my maquis

It's a garden whose path
Is also mine
It's my maq...my "here"
It's my maquis

A sealed room, a room with a quilt**
Of puppets doing pirouettes***
Little brother, here
Here I'm your friend
::::::::::

*maquis : a shrubland biome in the Mediterranean region (can be found in Corsica), like a chaparral
**she also calls the maquis a bed
***pirouette : in ballet, it's when the dancer spins on his/her toes

J.B.G.
Alizée - Gourmandises

J.B.G., Bikini
Her code name is
J.B.G., J.B.G.
J.B.G., for life
Around the globe
It's an icon, J.B.G.
A James Bond Girl
That will save more than a life
It's ecstasy*
A James Bond Girl
It's dynamite
Her code is J.B.G.

Oh, she's a gun**
Locked and loaded
A gun of beauty

An icon, 'cause we
Gotta give it to her
Without resistance, 'cause...

And if it gets complicated***
She cleans it up****
What an island of beauty

Watch out for those who behave
Without an ounce carefulness
Her blood isn't made of milk
:::::::::

*not sure if that means the drug
**the french word is "canon" which also means "icon"
***the french word is "se corser" which means "to complicate." Alizée also comes from the island of Corsica (Corse in french)
****original word is "décorser," not a real word but you know.... Anyway, she's saying that she is "Un-Corsicating" herself, or leaving Corsica to become a "canon" or an "icon" around the world.

The Alizé*
Alizée - Gourmandises

The wind
Sweeps away heartaches
I'm like the wind
A thousands spirits in time
I am quick to judge, no doubt
It's fine, oh well
It's just that, I'm restless
I'm growing, like love

It's at the wind's mercy
That I'm a vagabond
I'm like the wind
I kiss a whole army
of dreams and cornflowers
It throws me indoors
I know what I know
Even in tears, I do
So, say it

Stop
Saying that the wind has changed
It's not true
Please
Stop
Saying that adolescence
Is nothing we know, 'cause me
I found my love
It's a wisp, it's a soft wind of love
It's heavy, it's the Alizé
Me, I say love
Drinks itself to total merriment
What it wants, Alizée always has

As the wind
Brings heartaches
In a hurricane
Whirling miles and miles an hour
I'm just like it, no doubt
It's fine, I am
At the gates of my life
I'm growing, like love

It's up to the four winds
That I am housed
I'm like the wind
I bring all my secrets
In the Garden of Eden
I dive into it
I know that this hymn
Will be heard for a while
So, say it

Stop
Saying that the wind has changed
It's not true
Please
Stop
Saying that adolescence
Is nothing we know, 'cause me
I found my love
It's a wisp, it's a soft wind of love
It's heavy, it's the Alizé
Me, I say love
Drinks itself to total merriment
What it wants, Alizée always has

*The Alizé is a tropical wind. Alizée's name is a feminization of Alizé.

Him or You
Alizée - Gourmandises 2003

Where is he?
When he leaves
My whole life
Means nothing

Where is "he"
His manly voice I love?
Without "him" he is nothing

He is wiser*
I'm wearing his blue hoodie
His irises, the water around it
They're blue, like Chinese seas

He is mysterious
In his stratosphere**
Between the two
I wanted both

Not having made a choice
Is like lead in my heart
Like a thorn in my throat
"Him" or you

The wooden shutters
Let the deadly showers
Pour on me
"Him" or you

Where is he?
When neither of them are here
The whole city holds no charm

You or "him"
My two male halves
Without them
I am nothing

"He" is stronger
He's funny when annoyed
And when he's wrong
I love "him" more than him
"He" says:

He's in love
As water forms waves
Without them
My soul is incomplete

In my heart, weighing like lead
Are tears of Chinese ink
Pointing the choices
"Him" or you
To find deep within me
The childish rhymes
But the wooden horses
Are cold

Lolita
Alizée - Gourmandises

My name is Lolita
Lo or Lola
I respond to both
My name is Lolita
When examine my mistakes
It's Lola who bleeds
When my tongue slips
I have this crazy laugh
Crazy like a phenomenon
My name is Lolita
Lo for life, Lo four diluvial loves

It's not my fault
And when I give up
I see others
Ready to throw themselves on me
It's not my fault
If all around me I hear
Hello, helli, t'es A
Lolita*

My name is Lolita
Student down below
With tight blue stockings
My name is Lolita
I have a temper, and I don't
Half-cotton, half-wool
Hush ! Don't say a word
To mom that I'm quite a sight

It's not my fault
And when I give up
I see others
Ready to throw themselves on me
It's not my fault
If all around me I hear
Hello, helli, t'es A
Lolita*

*The french don't pronounce the "h" sound unlike English speakers. So in this case the phrase would be "ello helli t'es A" or L.O.L.I.T.A.
(in the french alphabet, "I" is pronounced "ee"

It's Raining
Emilie Simon - The Flower Book

It's raining
How unfortunate
It's been raining since morning

He wants
To separate from my being
Without appearing to be dishonest

It's raining
In these raindrops
My doubts flee
I worry no more
It's raining
But it's not the rain
That fills my nights

It's raining
How unfortunate
It's been raining since morning

He wants
To make me a queen
Am I worth it ?

It's raining
In these raindrops
My doubts flee
I worry no more
It's raining
But it's not the rain
That fills my nights

Star Seeds
Emilie Simon

For a piece of you, I'll leave without hesitation
To ends of the world, to the highest mountain

Just a trace of your voice, a whistle to suggest
I'll imagine the rest

I've scattered, i've spread opal star seeds
On your way
I've scattered, I've spread opal star seeds
On your way
Your long journey

Last Bed
Emilie Simon

Stretched out on her bed of dreams, she smiles
The once alluring lady is nearing the light
Tonight, this is her last bed

Tomorrow will arrive without her
Death whispers that she must wear her laces
A good sign of eternity*
Death whispers her refrain**

She holds a white glass of absinthe in her hand
Her lover waits for her absence tomorrow
Tonight, this is her last bed

Tomorrow will arrive without her
Death whispers "You are so beautiful"
In the name of the Father, the Holy Spirit
Close your eyes, and join the night"
: : : : : : : : : :
*eternity in heaven (she'll be in her best clothes)
**the original word is "ritournelle," and it means incessant singing/chanting/anything incessant

Linen Song
Emilie Simon

I'll come to take you
I'll know how to defend you
Beyond borders
I'll spin the earth

I'll weave songs
From dusk till dawn
A spot for each star
A linen of songs

I'll weave songs
From dusk till dawn
A spot for each star
A linen of songs

No one deserts war
To return alone
I'll know how to wait
With this linen of songs

I'll weave songs
From dusk till dawn
A spot for each star
A linen of songs

So far from your sky
So far from my call
Listen to my heart
Listen to my fervor

I'll weave songs
From dusk till dawn
A spot for each star
A linen of songs

I'll come to take you
I'll know how to defend you
Beyond borders
I'll spin the earth

I'll weave songs
From dusk till dawn
A spot for each star
A linen of songs
::::::::::::::::::::::::
Emilie Simon writes poetry...
This is obviously about Odysseus's wife, Penelope, who waited for his return while staying faithful. She fended off her suitors by weaving a shroud for Laertes, Odysseus's father, and promising to marry one of her suitors once the shroud is finished. However, she unravelled the shroud every three years, until a maid sees her and warns the suitors. In the end, she still remained faithful to Odysseus.

Desert
Emilie Simon

Oh love, my soul-mate
I'm counting the days, I'm counting the hours
I'd like to draw you on a desert
The desert of my heart

Oh love, the trace of your voice
Bring me happiness with each step
Let me draw you on a desert
The desert of my heart

Some nights, my nose pressed against a window
I wait for you, despairing
In a desert, in my desert, right here

Oh love, my heart is heavy
I'm counting the hours, I'm counting the days
I wish to draw you on a desert
The desert of my heart

Oh love, I've had enough
I've left the village
I'm leaving you, that's all

Some nights, my nose pressed against a window
I've waited, despairing
Let the wind take my ashen sorrows
Here they are

En Cendres
Emilie Simon - Végétal

I am nothing but a shape without definition
With a gloomy, disdainful look
Irritated, I blindly advance
To a windowless room with a view of my feet

From misunderstandings, I've stopped hearing
And these déjà-vus make me grumpy
I no longer smoke, but I leave in ashes
How long will I still have to wait for you ?

I often hear the evening murmur
The ruined concrete walls are a witness
He promises them beau, but he feels ugly
In front of his picture on nightstand

From misunderstandings, I've stopped hearing
And these déjà-vus make me grumpy
I no longer smoke, but I leave in ashes
How much longer will have to wait for you

I no longer smoke, but I leave in ashes...

Annie

Emilie Simon - Végétal

Annie runs into some friends

It has been quite a while since she's seen anyone

Not since autumn

Annie, falls in love with a boy

That takes a lot of time, so she abandons him

This good lad

The time passes and takes little Annie

But she quickly forgets

She really doesn't have the time

However, she bored...oh little Annie

Annie falls down the stairs,

A misfortune

Her important date shall wait

I think, she doesn't wake up

Annie, her tomb is placed near some dandelions

Not a lot of people will visit

All in all

There'll be no one

The time passes and takes little Annie

But quickly, she forgets

She never really has the time

However, she gets bored...oh little Annie

My eyelet fixed on your iris
Like Narcissus, I contemplate
In these mirrors between your temples
The dark reflection of my vices

Stretching from the willow tree
All my beechwood, your poplar
Little by little, I fold up
In front of your charms and words

Mme hybrid rose tea
Nightbeauty in the twilight
Far from regrets and scruples
Some perfect thyme petals

Mme hybrid rose tea
Don't hold it against me to search
All that remains of us
Is a vaporous memory

How do want me to mint myself
Your dreams gnaw at my thoughts
Your brambles are intended for me
You were, however, so charming

Don't take in this broomy air
It's by accident if my hands tremble
As soon as we're together
Intertwined under a conifer

Mme hybrid rose tea
Nightbeauty in the twilight
Far from regrets and scruples
Some perfect thyme petals

Mme hybrid rose tea
Don't hold it against me to search
All that remains of us
Is a vaporous memory
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

I love love love this song, being the tea lover that I am...

Lotus Lady
Emilie Simon - Végétal

I am buried alive
Happy with myself
Above stagnant water
Gaze, gaze at right at me

Lady, lady, lotus lady
Lady, lady, lotus lady
Lady, lady, lady, lady, ah, ah

I am buried alive
Happy with myself
Between two reeds, you bend over
Waterproof, look at me

What do lotus ladies matter
I pluck their petals
What do ladies matter, ah, ah

No more, no less than a lotus lady
No more, no less than a lotus lady
No more, no less than a lotus lady
No more, no less than a lotus lady

I am buried alive
Happy with myself
Above stagnant water
Gaze, gaze right at me

Lotus lady under the reeds
Lotus lady bends on water

No more, no less than a lotus lady
No more, no less than a lotus lady

Lady, lady, lotus lady, ah ah...

Opium
Emilie Simon - Végétal

I let go, let myself inhale
The shady fumes...
Evaporated, like the smoke, in an ashen cloud

My opium, no serum, my opium
My opium, no serum, my opium

I let go, let myself inhale
The fumes in the petals
Clouded over, I leave smokey, like a good little guinea pig

My opium, no serum, my opium
My opium, no serum, my opium

I let go, let my self inhale my opium...

I let go...

I let go, let myself inhale
The deep fumes...
Sleepy, I let it guide, and proceed into weightlessness

My opium...no serum...my opium

I let go...