It would be nice to feel confident before starting out, but such days don't come as often as one might hope. "군청찬가" sounds like a song that says, even if you're as anxious as you are hopeful, let's just move forward together for now. It feels more trustworthy precisely because it doesn't shy away from regret and pain within its bright encouragement. It is closer to a song sung by people who are still clumsy at this, checking each other's voices, rather than one performed by someone who has already figured everything out.
Letting go of yesterday is not that simple
The piece opens with a wistful reflection on how much easier things would have been if one could simply keep moving forward without looking back. It does not ignore the self that turns to face the past. Because both the youth already gone and the hopes still remaining are present in the same space, the song’s starting point cannot be reduced to a light, fresh beginning. It is a desire to move on even while held fast by memory.
The sense of being unfinished matters, too. If starting out required becoming a more polished and solid person first, the present self would be left waiting indefinitely. The song does not treat its own shortcomings as grounds for ending. Even knowing that regret may lie ahead, it urges us to layer our voices together.
Holding expectations and anxiety in equal measure
The power of the chorus does not lie in erasing fear. It lies in carrying both anticipation and anxiety together, knowing that it is okay to run at your own pace. When failing to keep up with someone else's speed makes you feel like a failure, the concrete word "pace" comes close to the body. After all, it is an invitation to move as far as one can with one's own strength.
Even scenes where people who don't know each other's faces or names produce a single sound together add to that encouragement. You don't have to know one another perfectly to share something. Simply liking the same song and feeling moved in the same moment can create a brief connection. For someone alone, overlapping voices that were once small provide the strength to move forward.
You can move to the next chapter without letting go of your memories.
In the latter part of the song, vanished places and irreversible time appear. Even after growing up, promises one does not want to forget remain. Therefore, the forward movement described in this song is different from forgetting everything about the past. It leans toward accepting that even times filled with resentment and pain have shaped who I am today.
At first, the song seems to look for answers in the outside world, but by the end it arrives at the idea that those answers are already within one’s reach. It feels as though a heart once waiting for someone else to give permission to begin has shifted slightly. This is not a song about running toward a certain future; rather, it is about taking a step forward because there is something precious one does not want to lose. It fits well on the day one starts something again.
Listen along with the track information
Open the official video on YouTube
“Gunjo Zan” was produced as the one-year anniversary song for “Project SEKAI COLORFUL STAGE! feat. Hatsune Miku.” Here, you can listen to the official MV sung by Eve.
It is the first track on the digital EP released on September 30, 2021, titled 「群青讃歌 / 遊生夢死」. The title is read as 'gunjōo sankā'.
Official EP and tie-up information, plus the official Eve music video
If you liked this song
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영광의 가교 by 유즈 is a song that looks back on the practice and frustration hidden behind the results, encouraging the next step.