旅人 Lyrics in English by THE BLUE HEARTS
導火線（どうかせん） literally means a fuse, the cord used to ignite an explosive. In the song, "導火線に火がついた" means "the fuse was lit," describing the moment the singer's passionate, explosive energy began, perhaps in adolescence or even before birth. It's a vivid and memorable word with both a literal and metaphorical sense.
The Blue Hearts were Japan's great punk band, and "旅人" (tabibito, "traveler") is them at their most cheerfully reckless. The hook is a strange one: "プルトニウムの風に 吹かれてゆこう" (let's go, blown along by the plutonium wind). Plutonium is about the last thing you would want blowing in your face, and that is the joke and the point. The world is dangerous and a bit poisoned, so you might as well walk straight into it. The road ahead runs through "桜のトンネルや悪魔の通り道" (tunnels of cherry blossoms and the devil's path), pretty and scary in the same breath.
The second verse is a love letter to punk records. The singer wonders when "導火線に火がついたのは" (the fuse was lit): in junior high, or before he was even born? He loved records that were "爆発寸前の火薬のような" (like gunpowder about to explode). Then comes a lovely little piece of advice to the traveler: "後ろには 出来たばかりの道がある" (behind you is a road that has only just been made). You don't follow a path, you leave one. Watch for "バッチリ" (bacchiri), casual slang for "spot on" or "nailed it", and the rough "ぜ" (ze) at the end of a line, a swaggering way to finish a sentence. The last verse is honest too: "計画通りにいかないことが たくさんある" (lots of things don't go to plan). He shrugs and keeps walking anyway.
