Back in 2017, a few months after the release of THIS IS NOW, miko and Jyou did some modeling for fashion brand Civarize. A pair of the garments they modeled featured black & white feather/wing motifs, which also feature in this song.

Well, technically the feathers are black on both garments, it’s the background that’s different.

Interestingly, Archangel Diamond’s tumblr page is still up, even though their own website is not. Here’s the post about the collaboration with Civarize: [Link]

Some interesting points from miko’s blog about this song are that it was first available for purchase exclusively at a concert in April 2015. Since the song wasn’t quite finished, no lyrics card was included. She states that the band didn’t know at the time whether they’d ever release a polished version in the future, but had committed to further developing the song through live performances. As for the meaning of the song, miko writes:

I think it’s a song that’s representative of 2015 in many ways. It’s a song full of strong resolve, the determination to tackle my weaknesses head-on. But that determination itself came from having self-doubts and anxieties. It feels that way now, in hindsight.

Since the song “THIS IS NOW” later went on to become the song that represented 2015 for Igu, miko writes that “TWIN WINGS” was given a new purpose:

Just because you doubted yourself or were weak, look ahead and dash forward with all your might. Being able to do that is also “everything now,” so stand tall and proud. That’s what this song is about.

Lyrics in Japanese can be found here on Rock Lyric.

☆

TWIN WINGS

yokoshimana kibou, joushiki
kegare ni wa veeru wo
migi te ni takusu shiroi hane
anmoku no daatii ruuru ni
minai furu no ekisupaato
hidari te ni wa kuroi hane wo

In my heart, still breathing
saa, ikou
In my dream
kono tsubasa de ima tobitatsu no sa

Dive in to your pain
kowagarazu susunde dare mo kowasenai
Cry in your pain
kazarazu ni kono mama dare mo tomerarenai

kuro mo shiro mo nai
kimi dake no risou e

shinseina mousou yurikago
fukashin no aidentiti
migi te ni takusu shiroi hane
keppekishou no hakai shoudou
“kiken inshi wo haijo shiro”
hidari te ni wa kuroi hane wo

In my heart, still breathing
mada ikeru sa
In my dream
mujun no sora ima tobikoerun da

Dive in to your pain
kowagarazu susunde daremo kowasenai
Cry in your pain
kazarazu ni kono mama daremo tomerarenai

kitto mieru sa
osanai kono me datte

In my heart, still breathing (x3)
In my dream
bokura wa sou mada ikiteirun da

Dive in to your pain
kowagarazu susunde daremo kowasenai
Cry in your pain
kazarazu ni kono mama daremo tomerarenai

Dive in to your pain
furimukazu shinjite koko ni iru kara
Cry in your pain
waratte mo nakenakya nani mo mamorenai

tomo ni yukou yo
kimi wo shinjite ii kai?

TWIN WINGS

Wicked desires and common knowledge
Place a veil over impurity
The white feather entrusted in my right hand
An expert at pretending not to see
the unspoken dirty rules
In my left hand, the black feather¹

In my heart, still breathing
Alright, let’s go
In my dream
With these wings, we’ll fly away now

Dive in to your pain
Move forward without fear, no one can break you
Cry in your pain
Don’t hide it, you’re unstoppable just as you are²

Neither black nor white,
Go toward your own unique ideal

A holy cradle of delusion
An identity of non-aggression
The white feather entrusted in my right hand
The destructive urge of mysophobia
“Eliminate the dangerous factor”
In my left hand, the black feather

In my heart, still breathing
I can still keep going
In my dream
Now, I’ll fly beyond this sky of contradictions

Dive in to your pain
Move forward without fear, no one can break you
Cry in your pain
Don’t hide it, you’re unstoppable just as you are

Surely I can see it
Even with these immature eyes

In my heart, still breathing (x3)
In my dream
That’s right, we’re still alive

Dive in to your pain
Move forward without fear, no one can break you
Cry in your pain
Don’t hide it, you’re unstoppable just as you are

Dive in to your pain
Believe without turning around, because I’m here
Cry in your pain
Even if you laugh, you can’t protect anything if you can’t cry

Let’s go together
Can I believe in you?

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^1. Two of these lines end in the object marker を, which tells us that some verb is left unspoken. The first instance is the second line, which I’ve translated to “place a veil over impurity” because “place” or “put” seemed like the most logical thing… But then again wouldn’t the white feather be removing the veil from impurity? Hmm…

The second instance is in the sixth line, where some verb is being done to the black feather. I feel like “grasp” or something similar would be the most logical, but… ⤴

^2. What I translated as “don’t hide it” was literally “without decorating it.” I feel like there is an equivalent metaphor in English but can’t remember it for the life of me. “Gloss over” is kind of similar but I think most people don’t think of the “gloss” in that phrase in such a literal way. Maybe I’m just thinking about the phrase “putting lipstick on a pig.” Ahaha… ⤴