1. Come over now if you
wanna play hide-and-seek!Copy !req
2. Me! I'll play!Copy !req
3. The girl who wonders,
"Would it be okay for me to join in?"Copy !req
4. Me! I'll play!Copy !req
5. and so misses her chance,
ending up all alone.Copy !req
6. Hitori-chan, what's wrong?Copy !req
7. The girl who ends up all alone at a picnic,Copy !req
8. Here you go.Copy !req
9. swapping parts of her lunch with the teacher.Copy !req
10. I'm home.Copy !req
11. The girl who doesn't join any clubs,Copy !req
12. comes home right after school,Copy !req
13. And here, we'll stir-fry it a bit.Copy !req
14. and finds her smartphone full of
nothing but messages from her parentsCopy !req
15. There's a lot of vegetables,Copy !req
16. and coupon offers.Copy !req
17. so you can probably make it quickly
if you cut them in advance.Copy !req
18. That's me.Copy !req
19. You can probably do that
in the morning, yeah.Copy !req
20. Hitori Gotoh, first-year in middle school.Copy !req
21. Lately I've gotten good at making
so many dishes so quicklyCopy !req
22. I thought I didn't need to know any more,Copy !req
23. Sometimes I thinkCopy !req
24. I should really change the way I am...Copy !req
25. but lately I'm learning once again
how interesting cooking can be.Copy !req
26. But I always stammer when I try to speak,Copy !req
27. and I'm really bad at keeping eye contact...Copy !req
28. A life as the archetypal introvert
just seems to fit me best.Copy !req
29. Personally I like a lot of options with rice.Copy !req
30. Oh, of course. But you—Copy !req
31. You watching this?Copy !req
32. Nah.Copy !req
33. Back in school, I was the guy who sat in the
back of the classroom pretending to read.Copy !req
34. No friends.Copy !req
35. And now you're part of a band that's
extremely popular with young people!Copy !req
36. Yeah. A band is a place where
even introverts can shine.Copy !req
37. I see!Copy !req
38. Now, here's "Trigger" by Instorms!Copy !req
39. What is it?Copy !req
40. D-Dad, can I use your guitar?Copy !req
41. Sure!Copy !req
42. Th-Thanks!Copy !req
43. Aha!Copy !req
44. At last, Hitori's getting into guitar too!Copy !req
45. Maybe even someone like me can shineCopy !req
46. if I'm in a band!Copy !req
47. I've made up my mind.Copy !req
48. I'm gonna learn to play guitar!Copy !req
49. Then I'll form a band at school, and...Copy !req
50. E, A, G...Copy !req
51. What's with all the English?Copy !req
52. Then I'll play at the culture festivalCopy !req
53. and have everyone go crazy for me!Copy !req
54. Crazy... for me?Copy !req
55. I liked dark, cramped spaces,Copy !req
56. so I'd bury my face deep in my hoodCopy !req
57. My eyes resented the heartless world,Copy !req
58. but yearned for loveCopy !req
59. I liked being soaked by the rain,Copy !req
60. because my face looked better clouded overCopy !req
61. I pretended to be afraid of the stormCopy !req
62. while waiting for the sky to burstCopy !req
63. Strum through the light's distortionCopy !req
64. I want to make thunder roarCopy !req
65. Drum beyond the painCopy !req
66. What can I do? This fierce
pounding is out of controlCopy !req
67. Strum in a harmonizing quartetCopy !req
68. I want to cause a revolutionCopy !req
69. Drum in a lamenting forteCopy !req
70. What can I do? My savage
nature is beyond wildCopy !req
71. I practiced six hours every day, so I could
learn how to play in front of people...Copy !req
72. The result?Copy !req
73. Middle school ended, and I
never played a single note for them!Copy !req
74. I never performed once...Copy !req
75. At the culture festival!Copy !req
76. I never put together...Copy !req
77. The members for a band!Copy !req
78. And I never made a single friend...Copy !req
79. In three whole years!Copy !req
80. Now, in high school...Copy !req
81. I gotta form a band or die trying!Copy !req
82. But despite my vow, it's been a whole month
since high school started,Copy !req
83. and yet my heart remains
grounded in the guitar,Copy !req
84. little better than a shut-in...Copy !req
85. Lyrics and music by me.Copy !req
86. From the closet with love.Copy !req
87. But before I cause neighborhood problems
playing my crummy original song late at night,Copy !req
88. I've gotta upload a cover
I did of a popular band.Copy !req
89. It's been a pretty long time
since I started uploading myselfCopy !req
90. playing under the name "guitarhero"
on my dad's advice, but...Copy !req
91. Wow, my latest video already
has so many comments.Copy !req
92. I've been racking up the views lately, too,Copy !req
93. and people are telling me I'm good...Copy !req
94. Yeah, maybe it's okay
if I can't handle real life!Copy !req
95. There are tons of people
cheering for me online!Copy !req
96. The internet is filled with socially
anxious introverts just like me!Copy !req
97. "I formed a band and played this for our cul—"Copy !req
98. I put the effort in, okay?Copy !req
99. I brought CDs to school
and set them on my desk.Copy !req
100. Talk to me!Copy !req
101. I bought band merch and showed it off.Copy !req
102. Talk to me!Copy !req
103. I put in song requests at lunch...Copy !req
104. This next song is a request
from Gotoh-san in Class 2-A.Copy !req
105. I'm gonna...Copy !req
106. for the death metal song
I'd been obsessed with lately.Copy !req
107. I'm gonna...Copy !req
108. I'm gonna crush your skuuull!Copy !req
109. Not the flashbacks!Copy !req
110. Begone! Begone, filthy memories!Copy !req
111. I wish I could perform live...Copy !req
112. That...Copy !req
113. That could work!Copy !req
114. I look... I look so cool!Copy !req
115. I'm already a total rocker chick!Copy !req
116. I look like a real somebody!Copy !req
117. The people can't look away!Copy !req
118. Someone's just gotta talk to me now!Copy !req
119. I'm gonna be all over this
year's culture festival!Copy !req
120. So you could see the corgi's butt...Copy !req
121. Do we move rooms next period?Copy !req
122. Science Room B.Copy !req
123. Hey, wanna karaoke after this?Copy !req
124. Great idea!Copy !req
125. You sure?Copy !req
126. Wonder what I should sing...Copy !req
127. Huh?Copy !req
128. Did I go overboard
hyping myself up last night?Copy !req
129. But I'm putting out such
powerful rocker chick vibes...Copy !req
130. D-Did I end up making myself unapproachable?Copy !req
131. No, no, no!Copy !req
132. I'm having a mental breakdown!Copy !req
133. Wow, look at that!Copy !req
134. At what?Copy !req
135. I-If they're laughing at me now,
it won't just be a mental breakdown,Copy !req
136. it'll be mental annihilation!Copy !req
137. Aw, it's so cute, I've gotta laugh!Copy !req
138. Guitar?Copy !req
139. My day's immediately better!Copy !req
140. Right, Kita-chan?Copy !req
141. Kita-chan?Copy !req
142. Sorry, sorry! What was it?Copy !req
143. Look, I know.Copy !req
144. You can't put the onus on others
and expect perfect results.Copy !req
145. This is a gathering place for
people just as lonely as me.Copy !req
146. I bet that guy's separated from—Copy !req
147. Papa!Copy !req
148. Sorry we're late!Copy !req
149. Hey, no problem.Copy !req
150. Now, let's grab dinner!Copy !req
151. What would you like?Copy !req
152. They're the perfect freakin' family!Copy !req
153. Please forgive my presumptuous empathizing...Copy !req
154. Ah. I broke 30,000 subscribers.Copy !req
155. Hey, that's right.Copy !req
156. The online world is where I belong.Copy !req
157. Sorta makes me not wanna go back to school...Copy !req
158. Guitar!Copy !req
159. That's a guitar, right?Copy !req
160. Do you play?Copy !req
161. Hello?Copy !req
162. I-I haven't talked to anyone
in so long... My voice!Copy !req
163. Hey, sorry to ambush you.Copy !req
164. I'm Nijika Ijichi, second-year
at Shimo-Kitazawa High.Copy !req
165. Hitori Gotoh. Shuka High. First-year.Copy !req
166. So tell me, Hitori-chan...Copy !req
167. Right to first names, are we?Copy !req
168. How good are you at guitar?Copy !req
169. Pretty decent, I guess...Copy !req
170. Really?Copy !req
171. Say, I'm in kind of a fix here...Copy !req
172. If you can't do it, that's okay, but...Copy !req
173. It's really okay, but I'm in a real fix...Copy !req
174. There's nothing okay about her!Copy !req
175. Okay, I'll come right out with it!Copy !req
176. Please, will you play second
guitar for my band for today?Copy !req
177. Band?Copy !req
178. We've got a concert coming up,
and our guitarist just split!Copy !req
179. The song's not too hard!
You'll pick it up right away!Copy !req
180. A concert? Right now?Copy !req
181. Please! Please!Copy !req
182. Um, err...Copy !req
183. Thanks! Let's head to the club!Copy !req
184. I haven't even said anything yet!Copy !req
185. I got dragged along.Copy !req
186. Do you come to Shimo-Kita a lot, Hitori-chan?Copy !req
187. Oh, well...Copy !req
188. Right, like I've got the courage to visit
a fashion town for trendy people...Copy !req
189. We're almost to the club.Copy !req
190. Nijika-chan's fashionable, too.Copy !req
191. She's got the real rocker-chick vibe.Copy !req
192. Meanwhile, I'm in a potato-quality tracksuitCopy !req
193. with a real bear of a set of bags under my
eyes, and a back as arched as a cat...Copy !req
194. Wait, do I also smell like mold?Copy !req
195. I spend so much time in the closet...Copy !req
196. No, I smell like mothballs.Copy !req
197. Meanwhile, Nijika-chan smells great!Copy !req
198. She smells just the way
a high school girl should!Copy !req
199. Oh, am I walking too fast?Copy !req
200. N-No...Copy !req
201. The club we're gonna play at
is called Starry.Copy !req
202. My big sister's the manager there.Copy !req
203. Playing at a club...Copy !req
204. That sounds weirdly legit.Copy !req
205. Wait, what's my heart doing?Copy !req
206. And so...Copy !req
207. I've been working there part-time...Copy !req
208. Hitori-chan, are you
actually pretty athletic?Copy !req
209. N-No, but I'm always the last one standing
in dodgeball for some reason.Copy !req
210. I... I see.Copy !req
211. Me? Playing in a club?Copy !req
212. No, don't back down now!Copy !req
213. Remember your daydreams of
performing at the culture festival!Copy !req
214. And your first solo show at Zepp Super Arena!Copy !req
215. Hitori! Hitori! Hitori!Copy !req
216. I'm the girl who sold out the Budokan...Copy !req
217. What?Copy !req
218. Oh, nothing!Copy !req
219. Please, don't let her think she
made a mistake choosing me!Copy !req
220. I might've made a mistake choosing her...Copy !req
221. We're here!Copy !req
222. This is the place!Copy !req
223. Th-The dark lands?Copy !req
224. Good morning!Copy !req
225. My first club...Copy !req
226. It's so dark... So stuffy...Copy !req
227. I-It's so soothing!Copy !req
228. You okay, Hitori-chan?Copy !req
229. I'm home!Copy !req
230. No, you're not!Copy !req
231. Could we ask the PA to record again?Copy !req
232. That's the band that's playing today.Copy !req
233. I thought bands would be intimidating,Copy !req
234. They might be a little older than us?Copy !req
235. but they're all indoorsy, shy introverts!Copy !req
236. After they're done, we'll rehearse too.Copy !req
237. They're just like me!Copy !req
238. That there's the PA.Copy !req
239. Good morning.Copy !req
240. Please forgive my arrogance!Copy !req
241. What's wrong now?Copy !req
242. You're finally back.Copy !req
243. Ryo!Copy !req
244. This is Hitori Gotoh. Hitori-chan!Copy !req
245. I met her in the park by miraculous
happenstance! She's a guitarist!Copy !req
246. Oh?Copy !req
247. Scary! Is she glaring at me?Copy !req
248. This is Ryo Yamada. She plays bass.Copy !req
249. I-I'm Hitori Gotoh! I'm so very sorry!Copy !req
250. Hang on!Copy !req
251. Y-You're okay!Copy !req
252. Ryo's just not the expressive type.Copy !req
253. Feel free to call her weird! She likes it!Copy !req
254. I don't, actually.Copy !req
255. Seemed like she did...Copy !req
256. By the way, about the manager...Copy !req
257. She told you to practice until it was time,Copy !req
258. but instead you snuck out of the club,Copy !req
259. so she got so mad she went out shopping.Copy !req
260. N-No way!Copy !req
261. Let's be in the studio before she comes back!Copy !req
262. You too, Hitori-chan!Copy !req
263. C'mon!Copy !req
264. R-Right!Copy !req
265. Real life is scary.Copy !req
266. But I feel like there's
some fun stuff coming up!Copy !req
267. Here's today's set list and score.Copy !req
268. Wh-Where are the other band members?Copy !req
269. This is everyone!Copy !req
270. We'll be doing all instrumentals this time.Copy !req
271. Right. I can handle this song.Copy !req
272. Though without any vocals, the playing's
gotta be all that much better...Copy !req
273. But I'm supposedly good at guitar. I can do this.Copy !req
274. I think I can do this!Copy !req
275. Gorilla?Copy !req
276. Maybe they'll be blown away by my playing!Copy !req
277. I mean, I get pretty good...
pretty decent reactions online.Copy !req
278. Let's take it right from the top.Copy !req
279. It's your first time,
so we'll run through slow,Copy !req
280. I even have 30,000 subscribers!Copy !req
281. then we can speed it up
as you get used to it.Copy !req
282. Yeah, let's do this!Copy !req
283. Okay, let's go!Copy !req
284. You suck!Copy !req
285. H-How can I suck?Copy !req
286. Ah, I'm kidding!Copy !req
287. I'm guitarhero!Copy !req
288. Well, not totally kidding, but...
Ah, I'm sorry!Copy !req
289. I've got 30,000 subscribers!Copy !req
290. Allow me to explain!Copy !req
291. In a band, it's super important to be in
sync with your fellow live performers!Copy !req
292. But Hitori has social anxiety
and can't make eye contact,Copy !req
293. and she'll be inclined to
rush ahead of the others!Copy !req
294. She might be an awesome solo player,Copy !req
295. but when in a band, she's sub-water-flea
level, the worst there is!Copy !req
296. Hello. I'm Plankton Gotoh.Copy !req
297. She sounds like an unfunny comedian!Copy !req
298. And thus, Hitori Gotoh turned to dust,Copy !req
299. and never picked up a guitar again.Copy !req
300. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait!Copy !req
301. Come out, please!Copy !req
302. The show's about to start!Copy !req
303. I c-c-can't do it!Copy !req
304. It's not your fault!
We just came together today!Copy !req
305. It's not like I'm very good either.Copy !req
306. I'm very good.Copy !req
307. Just look at me, okay!Copy !req
308. Stay here in reality!Copy !req
309. It isn't like I could
do the intro or anything...Copy !req
310. I-I could offer up my life
to put on a harakiri show!Copy !req
311. Th-They'll at least remember
the name of the band, right?Copy !req
312. Sorry I sucked!Copy !req
313. That's a little too rock!Copy !req
314. It's okay.Copy !req
315. If they boo you, I'll give
them a bonk with my bass.Copy !req
316. Does a bass make such a fancy noise?Copy !req
317. I mean, bloodshed is pretty rock.Copy !req
318. It's rock.Copy !req
319. You can't justify everything with "rock"!Copy !req
320. Besides, it'll probably just be my
friends who come to watch us play!Copy !req
321. And Nijika is my only friend, so...Copy !req
322. Normal high school girls
don't know good music from bad.Copy !req
323. That kind of take could get you
in trouble on the internet.Copy !req
324. Okay? So just chill!Copy !req
325. I d-dunno...Copy !req
326. I know good music from bad.Copy !req
327. Well, you're not normal.Copy !req
328. Hey, that wasn't a compliment.Copy !req
329. Sorry.Copy !req
330. But...Copy !req
331. We can't force her.Copy !req
332. You're right.Copy !req
333. Sorry to push you so hard.Copy !req
334. No, actually...Copy !req
335. I r-really was happy you reached out to me.Copy !req
336. I've wanted to be in a band for so long...Copy !req
337. B-But I couldn't get the people together...Copy !req
338. So I just upload covers
to the internet instead.Copy !req
339. What do you usually play?Copy !req
340. M-Mostly songs by popular bands
from the last few years,Copy !req
341. so I could play them right away
once the band got together...Copy !req
342. That's awesome!Copy !req
343. It's not.Copy !req
344. It's the reason I'm the way I am now.Copy !req
345. Being in a band with other people
was a pipe dream after all.Copy !req
346. Covering all popular songs?Copy !req
347. She sounds like guitarhero-san!Copy !req
348. Have you heard of her?Copy !req
349. She's probably about our age, I think...Copy !req
350. guitarhero...Copy !req
351. M-Me?Copy !req
352. I'll send you a link if you haven't!Copy !req
353. She's super awesome! You should hear her!Copy !req
354. Awe... some?Copy !req
355. She comes up in my recommendations
a lot, so I've seen her too.Copy !req
356. She really is excellent.Copy !req
357. Right?Copy !req
358. Though her naming sense is a bit cringy...Copy !req
359. It is?Copy !req
360. I follow her with notifications on!Copy !req
361. I'd love to play with her some day!Copy !req
362. You just did, actually...Copy !req
363. Look, what I'm getting at hereCopy !req
364. is that even awesome, popular people
are out there playing guitar,Copy !req
365. lots and lots of them,
in places we're not even watching.Copy !req
366. You should watch her later!Copy !req
367. I think you'll get what I mean
if you watch the videos.Copy !req
368. I always figured real-life people
didn't care about me at all...Copy !req
369. You can't give up on playing in a band
just because it didn't work out today!Copy !req
370. It's possible it's our problem, anyway...Copy !req
371. Our problem?Copy !req
372. Hitori-chan?Copy !req
373. But someone this nice has been
watching me all this time,Copy !req
374. and actually spoke to me...Copy !req
375. She stood up.Copy !req
376. It's the kind of miracle
most people never experience!Copy !req
377. I can't let it go to waste!Copy !req
378. I... I'm...Copy !req
379. D-Do you want to perform after all?Copy !req
380. Hitori-chan?Copy !req
381. I know all that, rationally...Copy !req
382. But I'm still too scared...Copy !req
383. There's no way I can play
in front of an audience...Copy !req
384. If you're scared,
you could play from in here.Copy !req
385. I-It's the same environment
that I play in all the time!Copy !req
386. Where exactly do you live?Copy !req
387. How you feelin' tonight, Shimo-Kita?Copy !req
388. She's suddenly more outgoing.Copy !req
389. By the way, how do you
want us to introduce you?Copy !req
390. "Hitori-chan"? Should we use your real name?Copy !req
391. I'd... I'd rather not...Copy !req
392. Any nicknames, then?Copy !req
393. In middle school, they called me
"Hey" and "You there"...Copy !req
394. I don't think those are nicknames!Copy !req
395. I never knew anyone well enough
to get nicknames from them!Copy !req
396. Hitori...Copy !req
397. Hitoribocchi ...Copy !req
398. How about Bocchi-chan?Copy !req
399. Another tactless comment!Copy !req
400. I'm B-B-Bocchi!Copy !req
401. She likes it?Copy !req
402. It's just my first ever nickname...Copy !req
403. This is making me teary-eyed.Copy !req
404. Oh, you haven't told me your band name yet.Copy !req
405. It's Kessoku Band.Copy !req
406. Kessoku Band...Copy !req
407. Isn't that the word for "zip tie"?Copy !req
408. It's brilliant.Copy !req
409. It's the worst pun!
We're totally changing it!Copy !req
410. Why? It's cute.Copy !req
411. Y-Yes.Copy !req
412. Band name aside, it's time to play!Copy !req
413. Don't worry.Copy !req
414. The key is to have fun, even if you suck!Copy !req
415. Your feelings really come
out in your playing, see?Copy !req
416. R-Right...Copy !req
417. We can always work on the
skill part next time.Copy !req
418. Yeah.Copy !req
419. Next... time...Copy !req
420. Okay, let's go!Copy !req
421. Right.Copy !req
422. They're okay with there being a next time!Copy !req
423. Nice to meet you! We're Kessoku Band!Copy !req
424. We'll play a bunch of
songs you probably know,Copy !req
425. so please enjoy!Copy !req
426. Who's that?Copy !req
427. I hate that I can't play as
well as I usually do, but...Copy !req
428. playing in a band with other
people is so much fun!Copy !req
429. I've never really shone before today...Copy !req
430. And I still don't!Copy !req
431. This might actually be a low point for me!Copy !req
432. Boy, I screwed up!Copy !req
433. Your intro bombed, too.Copy !req
434. E-Excuse me!Copy !req
435. B-B-B...Copy !req
436. What?Copy !req
437. B-B-B-B-B...Copy !req
438. Okay, you're freaking me out!Copy !req
439. B-Before our next performance, I'm gonna get
brave enough to say hello to my classmates!Copy !req
440. What a dramatic declaration.Copy !req
441. Such growth...Copy !req
442. Okay, I get it.Copy !req
443. Sure!Copy !req
444. Then let's have a Bocchi-chan-welcome-party-
slash-concert-post-mortem!Copy !req
445. Actually, I'm pretty exhausted from
all this social interaction, so I'm gonna go.Copy !req
446. Sorry. I'm sleepy.Copy !req
447. P-Pardon me!Copy !req
448. There's no "ties" in this band at all!Copy !req
449. I'm gonna get over my social anxietyCopy !req
450. and bring out my full guitarhero powers!Copy !req
451. For Nijika-chan,Copy !req
452. Ryo-san,Copy !req
453. and Kessoku Band!Copy !req
454. S-Sorry! Sorry!Copy !req
455. The tune that plays when my loneliness
and the pedal are stepped onCopy !req
456. Tracks down my cheeks over and over againCopy !req
457. The pounding of my lonelinessCopy !req
458. Is joined by the rhythm of the snare drumCopy !req
459. To create a solid pulseCopy !req
460. Someone, please remove
the distortion on my heartCopy !req
461. And take a look inside meCopy !req
462. Nobody can get inside my heartCopy !req
463. But it's the kind of night
when I hope someone willCopy !req
464. Distortion it's MotionCopy !req
465. Once it starts, there's no stopping itCopy !req
466. Limits can be overwritten with experienceCopy !req
467. Isn't that right?Copy !req
468. Distortion is always like thatCopy !req
469. My heart takes off, outpacing my left brainCopy !req
470. Toward where you areCopy !req
471. An escort to the next noteCopy !req
472. Distortion on my day-to-day anguishCopy !req
473. The chord I play when I'm alone at nightCopy !req
474. Is it the same for you?Copy !req
475. I spent all those days chasing my ideal imageCopy !req
476. Play an F chord with distortionCopy !req
477. So loud that the needle swings off the scaleCopy !req
478. Watch it!Copy !req