1. ＜醒！誠！精！成敗！盛！晴！ そこに穴掘れ！生！勢！静！成敗！Say!!性！＞

Romaji: Sei! Sei! Sei! Seibai! Sei! Sei! Soko ni ana hore! Sei! Sei! Sei! Seibai! Say!! Sei!

Cultural Nuance: "Awake! Sincerity! Spirit! Punish! Thrive! Bright! Dig a hole right there! Life! Force! Stillness! Punish! Say!! Nature / Sex!" (a rapid-fire barrage of sounds built mainly on kanji that are all read "sei")

🗣 Japanese Insight: This phrase features one kanji after another that is read "sei." In between, "seibai" (成敗) and the English word "Say" are inserted, piling similar sounds on top of one another. 醒 means waking up, 誠 means sincerity, 精 refers to spirit or vitality, 盛 means flourishing, and 晴 expresses brightness. The following 生 means life, 勢 means momentum, 静 means stillness, and 性 means nature or sex (sexuality).
Because Japanese has a relatively small number of sounds, it has many homophones: kanji that share the same reading but differ in meaning. To the ear, the same chant, "Sei! Sei!", is simply repeated, but on the lyric sheet, kanji with completely different meanings line up one after another. The sound is simple, yet on the page the meanings shift like a kaleidoscope. This device makes use of the way Japanese distinguishes same-sounding words through kanji. The song also features chants in which a single kanji is paired with its reading in katakana, such as 祓 (futsu), 妖 (yō), 滅 (metsu), and 喝 (katsu). These chants, reminiscent of exorcism incantations, also shape the song's ritualistic, occult atmosphere together with the barrage of "sei."

"Seibai" (成敗), which appears midway through, means to punish wrongdoers. It is also a familiar word as a signature line in jidaigeki (時代劇, Japanese historical dramas set in the samurai era), used in scenes where villains are cut down. The song title "SAY-BYE!!" can also sound like an overlap of this "seibai" and the English "say bye." It could be seen as an expression that resonates with the series' theme of exorcising spirits and making them bid farewell to this world.

It is also striking that the barrage, which begins with 醒, closes with 性. In the chorus, too, the chant "Sei!" (性) is inserted again and again after each line. Considering the "occult and eroticism" approach KOTOKO described, it can also be read as the series' risqué elements slipping into what is otherwise a pure exorcism chant. KOTOKO has said she wrote it imagining shouting "Sei sei" together with the audience at live shows. The simplicity of sound that lets anyone shout along without knowing the meaning, and the layered meanings hidden in the characters: this phrase can be said to have both.

2. 「うしろの正面ダレデスカ？」

Romaji: "Ushiro no shōmen dare desu ka?"

Cultural Nuance: "Who is the one directly behind?"

🗣 Japanese Insight: This phrase evokes the final line of the traditional Japanese children's song "Kagome Kagome" (かごめかごめ): うしろの正面だあれ ("Who is right behind you?"). "Kagome Kagome" is a game in which children holding hands walk in a circle, singing, around the player who is "it" (鬼, literally "demon"), who crouches with their eyes covered. When the song ends, the "it" guesses who is standing directly behind them. "Ushiro no shōmen" means "directly facing one's back": in other words, the position right behind you that you cannot see.

"Kagome Kagome," with its somewhat mysterious lyrics, has long been the subject of various interpretations, and in Japan it is also a familiar motif in ghost stories and horror works. The anime title Ushiro no Shōmen Kamui-san also contains the same words, "ushiro no shōmen."

In the lyrics, the childlike, casual word for "who" (だあれ) is changed to "Dare desu ka" (ダレデスカ), using the polite "desu ka" (ですか). Moreover, written in katakana, it takes on the ring of an emotionless, mechanical voice, or of a question asked by something not human. What makes this expression interesting is that, although the question is asked politely, it sounds all the more eerie. In the second verse, too, a question mixing in katakana appears, "Warui ko dare da?" (悪イコ誰ダ？, "Who's the bad kid?"), creating a similar eeriness.
There is one more phrase in this song that evokes a children's game: "hora te no naru hō e" (ほら　手の鳴る方へ) in the latter half. It uses the same words as the call 鬼さんこちら、手の鳴る方へ ("Over here, Mr. Demon; follow the sound of my clapping hands"), used in tag (鬼ごっこ) and blindfold tag (目隠し鬼) when those running away clap their hands to lure the "it." This is the same call featured in JLR's article on Kento Nakajima's "👹 鬼事 ONIGOTO." Both "Kagome Kagome" and blindfold tag are games in which a blindfolded "it" searches for others they cannot see. It is intriguing that a song revolving around whether ghosts can be "seen" or "not seen" uses words that evoke two children's games.

3. ぬるぬるヌルぬるり　なかなか目覚めない

Romaji: Nurunuru nuru nururi nakanaka mezamenai

Cultural Nuance: "Slimy, slimy, one slippery slide... just won't wake up."

🗣 Japanese Insight: "Nurunuru" (ぬるぬる) is a mimetic word (a type of onomatopoeia) describing a sticky, slippery texture. It is used for things like slimy fish or oily hands. "Nururi" (ぬるり), with its ending changed to "-ri," describes a single, smooth slipping motion. It has the same form as するり and つるり. As the same word shifts from repetition to a one-time motion, it creates the sensation of something creeping closer little by little and finally slithering in.

It is also eye-catching that only "nuru" in the middle is written in katakana (ヌル). This notation, moving back and forth between hiragana and katakana, can also be seen as having a visual effect, as if the letters themselves were sliding. In English, it would become "slimy" or "slippery," but the raw vividness of the Japanese mimetic word, as if it were touching the skin directly, may be hard to convey.

This sensation can be taken either as the eeriness of a ghost creeping closer or as sensual contact. It could be read as the "occult and eroticism" KOTOKO spoke of coexisting within a single mimetic word. In the lines that follow, "dorodoro" (ドロドロ) in "dorodoro no nō" (ドロドロの脳) and "torotoro" (とろとろ) in "torotoro ni tokeai" (とろとろに溶け合い) continue the chain of sticky mimetic words. Generally, "dorodoro," which contains voiced consonants, gives a heavy, murky impression, while "torotoro" gives a soft, pleasant one. Even among similar-looking mimetic words, the difference in sound lets you feel the sensation shift from discomfort to pleasure.

In "nakanaka mezamenai" (なかなか目覚めない), "nakanaka," when combined with a negative form, means "not easily." As is typical of Japanese, the subject is omitted, and it is not made clear who is not waking up. Although the song opens with a chant that shouts "Sei!" (醒) for awakening, here someone does not wake up. This contrast also seems to heighten the sense that the boundary between dream and reality is growing blurred.

4. 甘テラス　YES！　知るもんか

Romaji: Ama terasu YES! Shiru mon ka

Cultural Nuance: "Sweet Amaterasu, YES! Who cares about that!"

🗣 Japanese Insight: "Ama terasu" (甘テラス) is wordplay on the name of the sun deity of Japanese mythology, Amaterasu (天照), formally Amaterasu-ōmikami (天照大御神). Amaterasu-ōmikami is one of the supreme deities appearing in the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki, and is enshrined at Ise Jingū (Ise Grand Shrine).
The original 天 is a kanji meaning the heavens, but in the lyrics it is replaced by 甘 (sweet), which shares the same "ama" sound. The part corresponding to 照らす ("to shine upon") is written in katakana as テラス. As a result, the sacred name of the deity turns into a word with a sweet, melting sound. In this song, where words of exorcism mix with words of desire, the way even the name of a mythological deity is sweetly broken down can be seen as an expression that shakes the boundary between the sacred and the profane.

"Shiru mon ka" (知るもんか), which follows, is a casual form of 知るものか. It is a rhetorical expression that pushes the other person away, meaning "How would I know?" or "That's none of my business," and the colloquial ring of "mon ka" creates a careless, provocative tone. The line right before it also continues with casual words of rejection: あっらー？　叩った (butta)！　やなこった (ya na kotta)！ "Butta" and "kotta" share the same "-tta" ending, creating a rhythmic, rapid-fire effect. The lyrics affirm with the English "YES!" and then immediately push away with "shiru mon ka." This sudden switch between affirmation and rejection also seems to symbolize the song's unpredictable development.

Furthermore, these two lines can also be read as hiding the names of gods and holy figures from religions around the world. The exclamation of surprise "arrā" (あっらー) sounds almost the same as "Allah," the God of Islam, and "butta" (叩った) sounds almost the same as "Buddha," the founder of Buddhism. Given that "ama terasu," which comes right after, is a play on Amaterasu, the sun deity of Japanese mythology, the English "YES" may also be heard as the same sound as イエス (Iesu), the name used for Jesus Christ in Japanese. It can be seen as wordplay typical of this song, which stirs together the sacred and the profane by slipping the names of gods into shouts of affirmation and rejection. Note that this is not an intention that has been officially explained, but JLR's own interpretation.

In the same position in the second verse, the lyrics go "arabutta ya ga tatta" (荒ぶった矢が立った, "a raging arrow has landed"), and here too the sound "butta" remains. What "ya ga tatta" brings to mind is the idiom 白羽の矢が立つ ("a white-feathered arrow is planted"). This idiom comes from a folk belief that a god demanding a human sacrifice would plant a white-feathered arrow on the roof of the house of the girl it wanted. Besides meaning to be chosen as a victim, it is also generally used to mean being specially chosen from among many.

5. 天地も解んないような昇天　極上の未知の快

Romaji: Tenchi mo wakannai yō na shōten gokujō no michi no kai

Cultural Nuance: "An ascension where heaven and earth can no longer be told apart; the finest, unknown pleasure."

🗣 Japanese Insight: "Tenchi" (天地) means heaven and earth: in other words, the entire world. "Tenchi mo wakannai" (天地も解んない) describes a state of being so lost in the moment that one cannot even tell up from down. "Wakannai" (解んない) is a casual way of saying 分からない ("can't tell / don't understand"), a colloquial form in which "-ranai" changes to "-nnai." Here, the kanji 解, which means to understand or to untie, is used.

"Shōten" (昇天) literally means ascending to heaven. In Japanese, it is also used as a euphemism for dying. On the other hand, in casual settings, it is also used as an exaggerated expression for supreme pleasure or a state of ecstasy. It could be seen as a word in which two meanings overlap: the story of exorcism that sends spirits up to heaven, and the peak of pleasure.

This song features several expressions of religious origin for "going to the next world." The second verse also includes "jōbutsu" (成仏), a Buddhist term meaning that the dead become buddhas, or that a spirit severs its attachment to this world and returns to the afterlife. The fact that shōten and jōbutsu appear side by side in a single song is also characteristic of these lyrics, which freely draw on religious vocabulary. Incidentally, the anime's opening theme is titled "成仏Come true" (by ORCALAND), so the word "jōbutsu" appears in both the opening and the ending.

Also worth noting is the rhyme at the end of each chorus. "Gokujō no michi no kai" (極上の未知の快) in the first chorus changes to "kanjō wa mitsu no kai" (感情は蜜の怪) in the second, and to "kōkotsu wa shichi no kai" (恍惚は死地の戒) in the final chorus. "Michi" (未知, unknown), "mitsu" (蜜, honey), and "shichi" (死地, place of death) sound very similar, and the closing "kai" is the same sound all three times. Yet the kanji are completely different: 快 as in pleasure, 怪 as in the uncanny, and 戒 as in warning. 快 means comfort, 怪 means something mysterious and unknowable, and 戒 means a warning or admonition. The flow in which the meaning shifts from pleasure to the uncanny and then to admonition, all while keeping the same sound, can also be read as suggesting that danger awaits beyond sweet temptation.

6. マガ玉たまポロリ　数珠繋ぎの呪い

Romaji: Magatama tama porori juzutsunagi no noroi

Cultural Nuance: "A magatama bead drops with a little plop; a curse that forms a chain like prayer beads."

🗣 Japanese Insight: Magatama (勾玉) are beads shaped like the letter "C" or a comma, used in ancient Japan as ornaments and in rituals. One of the Three Sacred Treasures (三種の神器), regarded as proof of Japan's imperial throne, is also a magatama: the Yasakani no Magatama (八尺瓊勾玉). Magatama can also be written 曲玉.

In the lyrics, the 勾 part is written in katakana as マガ. The Japanese word まが is also linked to words expressing calamity and ill omen, such as 禍々しい (ominous) and 禍事 (calamity). The katakana notation may be seen as adding an unsettling ring to the name of a sacred jewel. The repetition of "tama" (たま) right after it is also striking. In old Japanese, "tama" could also refer to the soul, and it could be seen as a word that resonates with "Kawaii sono tamashii" (可愛いそのタマシイ, "that cute soul of yours") in the first verse.

 "Porori" (ポロリ) is a mimetic word (a type of onomatopoeia) describing something small and round lightly dropping out, just once. It is used in phrases like 涙がポロリ (a tear rolls down) or ボタンがポロリと取れる (a button pops off). It is also used when something hidden slips out unintentionally, as in 本音がポロリ (one's true feelings slip out). While ポロポロ describes things spilling one after another, "porori," ending in "-ri," describes a one-time event. It has the same form as "nururi" in Phrase 3. The light, cute sound of "po," a semi-voiced sound, creates a sharp contrast with the weight of the "noroi" (呪い, curse) that immediately follows. Incidentally, "porori" is also known as a slang expression for unexpected exposure on TV variety shows and the like. It may also be possible to hear it in connection with the series' risqué elements. In addition, 玉 (tama) is also slang for testicles. Heard together with the line that follows, ぶらぶら宙ぶらりん　落ちちゃったら拾って ("dangling, dangling, hanging in midair; if it falls, pick it up"), "tama porori" may also be read as carrying a risqué implication.

"Juzu" (数珠) are Buddhist prayer beads strung on a cord. "Juzutsunagi" (数珠繋ぎ) is an idiomatic expression describing many things lined up in a row like the beads of a juzu, and it is also used in everyday life, as in 車が数珠繋ぎになる (cars lining up bumper to bumper in a traffic jam). Here, it is thought to express curses chaining together one after another.

Magatama, used in ancient ornaments and rituals, and juzu, used in Buddhist prayer: the sound and shape of "tama" (玉, bead) connect the two words. The sound "porori" also calls to mind the image of a single bead falling away. In the following "burabura chūburarin" (ぶらぶら宙ぶらりん), mimetic words (a type of onomatopoeia) describing something hanging and swaying in midair are layered on as well. This chain of visual images, of beads falling and things dangling, creates an unstable, floating sensation in this part of the song.

7. 共に逝[イ]きます　絶頂[アソコ]まで

Romaji: Tomo ni ikimasu asoko made

Cultural Nuance: "Going together, all the way there (to the climax)."

🗣 Japanese Insight: This phrase uses a notational technique often seen in Japanese lyrics and manga, in which written characters are combined with an unexpected reading. In Japanese, ruby (ルビ), small reading aids placed beside kanji, allows the written characters and the pronounced sound to carry separate meanings. The defining feature of this technique is that the meaning read with the eyes and the meaning heard with the ears overlap at the same time.

逝く is a word that expresses "to die" in an indirect, formal way, and the kanji is also used in words such as 逝去 (passing away). On the other hand, the sung sound is いく, which simply means "to go." Furthermore, in casual settings, the word is also used as slang for reaching the peak of pleasure.

"Zetchō" (絶頂) refers to the summit of a mountain or the height of something, but it is also used to mean the peak of pleasure. The reading assigned to it here, "asoko" (アソコ), is originally the demonstrative あそこ, meaning "that place over there." In slang, however, it also becomes a euphemism that indirectly refers to body parts that are hard to name out loud. Being written in katakana emphasizes that implication even further.
In this way, reading the characters reveals "death" and "peak," while listening to the sound reveals the casual words "going all the way there together." Beneath that, the slang meanings overlap as well. The use of the formal word "tomo ni" (共に, together) and the polite "-masu" creates a gap in which the risqué content sounds, if anything, courteous. The story of sending spirits to the afterlife, and the series' risqué elements: what makes this phrase interesting is how it expresses both at once within a single line by using kanji and ruby. Since English basically has no notation system equivalent to ruby, this kind of layered wordplay is one of the things most easily lost in translation.

🎤 Emotional Summary

"SAY-BYE!!" is a song in which horror and comedy, fear and pleasure, exorcism and desire trade places at a dizzying pace. To leave a strong impression in an ending sequence of only about 60 seconds, KOTOKO repeated the same sounds, aiming for lyrics that would leave listeners "poisoned." At its center is the barrage of kanji read "sei." It reaches the ear as a simple chant, yet on the page, completely different meanings appear one after another.

In this song, the very mechanics of the Japanese writing system become tools of expression: a barrage of kanji built on homophones, the inorganic or unsettling tone created by katakana, and the technique of layering multiple meanings into a single line through ruby. Mimetic words (a type of onomatopoeia) such as "nurunuru," "dorodoro," "porori," and "burabura" are also important elements. They convey the sensations of sliminess, falling, and swaying directly to the skin, creating a feeling that moves back and forth between fear and sensuality. Furthermore, words that evoke "Kagome Kagome" and the calls of tag, the sun deity Amaterasu, magatama and juzu, shōten and jōbutsu, all words associated with mythology, religion, and children's games, are remade one after another into something sweet and eerie. The rhyme at the end of the choruses, shifting from 快 (pleasure) to 怪 (the uncanny) and then to 戒 (admonition), can also be read as suggesting that danger lurks beyond pleasure.

Even when you only listen to the sound, its sense of speed and addictiveness will likely come across beyond the language barrier. But as you read the Japanese characters one by one, you begin to see that the sacred and the profane, the frightening and the funny, are folded over one another, layer upon layer, in every single sound. A song that KOTOKO, who has been singing denpa songs for more than 20 years, released aiming for "something that hits home," with Japanese wordplay as her weapon: that is "SAY-BYE!!"

📚 Sources & References

• Warner Music Japan, KOTOKO official page: "SAY-BYE!!" digital release announcement (July 4, 2026)

• Lisani! (anime music media), interview with KOTOKO: "'SAY-BYE!!', a song only KOTOKO, with a career of over 20 years, could create" (July 16, 2026)

• Lisani! interview with KOTOKO on the release of her all-denpa-song album すぅぃ～とさいくろん-☆いぇいっ☆- (June 24, 2022)

• Official website of the TV anime Ushiro no Shōmen Kamui-san (KAMUI ---He's behind you) (introduction and story)

• Digital Daijisen dictionary (Kotobank): entries for 電波系, 白羽の矢が立つ, 玉, and 曲玉