#(by reading a detailed analysis of every song lyric by lyric)

[send-me-a-puffalope]

why doesn’t spotify have public notes for people (me) who have character playlists and want to ramble about how each song fits a character

[aethelwyneleigh27]

Toothache

How does one go "You're Too Sweet For Me" to "My Baby's Sweet As Can Be"?

Synopsis: Simon Riley finds himself stuck in a situation, growing feelings for his roommate who's so annoyingly caring, domestic, sweet and too good for him. What happens when he let's himself indulge in the sweetness rather than cage himself in the bitter life he's been told is the only one he's deserving of and the only life he's known?

Apologies to this mess of a lyricfic, I couldn't help it even though this was supposed to be a relationship analysis..

MEN WRITTEN BY ANA HUANG ARE GONNA BE THE DEATH OF ME. Alright back to our original programmed schedule with Hozier. ALSO SURPRISE! THIS CONTAINS 3 HOZIER SONGS as an apology for not posting these past two weeks due to me enjoying holidays, reading, prom dress picking and wanting to stab myself because of life, there's the added bonus 👀

My CoD Masterlist

My Simon Riley x You Playlist

Also reader in this one had a lot of characterization, she's me fr, so AFAB?Reader, Fem!Reader, Short!Reader, Reader is VERY feminine with fashion, soft-girl-sunshine!Reader and Chubby?Reader. Y'all have no idea how hard it is to write without a personality and physical intimacy in romance, I tried but failed 😭

Warnings and Disclaimers: Mentions and details on sexual content ahead (is this considered smut? Idk anymore). Not detailed smut but vivid memories of sexual intercourse (especially the dialogue) with Simon. Again, this is a safe account for all ages because I'm not a MDNI acc, you are responsible for your own media consumption. DO NOT GO ON MY DMS, INBOX OR REPLY TO MY CONTENT TO TELL ME YOUR AGE. I don't need to know that and let's strive to not make each other uncomfortable. Mentions of questioning of religion or rather belief on afterlife??

Pink, bold and italic: Lyrics

Italic: recalling past events

Little snippet of an image of how I imagined he'd hold you, courtesy of the one and only @ave661

"It can't be said I'm an early bird, it's 10 o'clock before I say a word. Baby, I can never tell, how do you sleep so well?"

Simon Riley was never a man to live the life he was taught to in the military, it was out of habit for him to not leave his room until around noon. Then there was you, his roommate, he didn't exactly calculate how much it would affect his personal life to save money through rent by willingly letting someone within the same living space.

He'd find himself with not even a wink of sleep, hearing your footsteps through the thin walls, hearing the lock on the windows outside click open.

"You kept telling me to live right, to go to bed before the daylight. But then you wake up from the sunrise."

He'd always hear you, quite frankly it was like nagging on the constant.

"Simon you shouldn't do that, you'll hurt yourself"

"Simon please go get some rest"

"Simon.."

He'd swear he'd rip his own ears out every time his name falls from your lips from how sweet and chirpy it sounded and yet deafening silence would consume him whenever you aren't around.

"You don't gotta pretended, Baby, now and then. Don't you just wanna wake up dark as a lake? Smellin' lika bonfire, lost in the haze?"

Something about you makes it so tempting for Simon to give in, I mean it would be a one time thing, wouldn't it? So soft, so pliant, he set himself up for an addiction. It wasn't healthy, he knew this, he'd convince himself of the fact that he would end up hurting you.

Just too different, it repeated like a mantra in his head. He was bitter, brooding and didn't find any sense of pleasure in living. Why'd you think he has the job he chose? It's all he knew, till you skip your way into his life, giving him the sweetness he was deprived of.

"If you're drunk on life babe, I think it's great. But while in this world, I think I'll take my whiskey neat"

Drowning himself in alcohol, a trait Simon promised himself he wouldn't ever do when he was young, setting his glass down with a small thud from the wooden table. But what would the kid version of him know about life. He didn't have healthier options of coping with what seems to be his dilemma.

But then there you were, sweet little thing coming home at the late hour in that skimpy dress of yours. Revealing too much to the eyes of those who wish to have you for themselves with just one look. Where did you go that night?

"My coffee black in my bed at three, you're too sweet for me"

Desperately trying to keep himself awake and at bay from his thoughts of you. Drowning himself in now two cups of straight black coffee to help him focus.

It was odd, you got used to the scent, was strong with a lack of sweetness but it calmed you down knowing he was around.

How he'd corrupt you, he wanted to shatter that rose tinted glasses of yours to save you from himself because being with him would change you. Selfish but he doesn't want that, you were utter perfection..

Simon further delved into his feelings, what the fuck was wrong with him?

"I aim low. I aim true, and the ground's where I go. I work late where I'm free from the phone and the job gets done"

Grumbling, Simon walks back into the apartment in the middle of the night. You heard a thud, you come out of your bedroom, yawing from you incomplete sleep.

"Si..? Are you hurt? What happened?" You asked in a soft tone, careful not to agitate someone would could possibly be pissed off.

Simon stays silent, glaring at you as his eyes was only thing visible because of his balaclava. Your soft gaze intimidated him, because why would he feel that squeeze in his heart?

"But you worry some, I know but who wants to live forever, babe? You treat your mouth as if it's Heaven's gate. The rest of you like you're the TSA, I wish I could go along Babe, don't get me wrong..."

The only thing Simon heard was a sigh from you and nothing more, you walk up to him, each footstep feeling louder than that last.

Something Simon didn't expect you to do was wrap you arms around his waist, tiny thing you are that your head only goes up to his chest. Your body against his, basking in the warmth in contrast to the cold weather he had to deal with coming home.

"You know you're bright as the morning, as soft as the rain, pretty as a vine, as sweet as a grape. If you can sit in a barrel maybe I'll wait, until that day.."

You took care of him that night, to his reluctance and stubbornness. Despite refusing, he had no choice, he wouldn't want a soft thing like you on his ear the whole night till he agrees. You were persuasive in your own irritating way.

Sitting on the edge of the tub of the warm bath he's in, washcloth in hand. Touch was so gentle, why was it so soft? Why's it so warm? "It's the water you fucking idiot" his subconscious screaming at him. In denial.

Why is his heart beating so fast..? He wants to stab it to stop the feeling..

"I'd rather take my whiskey neat, my coffee black and my bed at three. You're too sweet for me"

Using both your hands this time around, one gently holding his chin with your fingers while the other wiping away at the eyeblack he had. Every scar on his face felt the graze of your finger.

The slow blinks, your eyes on his. Before any conscious thoughts consume Simon, he lifts his arms from the warm water and wraps them around you.

Your nightgown was now damp but you couldn't care less, now with the man you were pinning over, foreheads against the other.

"Si.." you softly whisper. That nickname will be the death of him, you'll be the death of him. He crashes his lips on yours, not wanting to let go till you both were panting. You were too fucking sweet, your lips, your skin, everything. He wanted a taste and he got it...

"My lover's got humor, she's the giggle at a funeral. Knows everybody's disapproval, I should've worshiped her sooner"

Another sleepless night wasn't uncommon for someone like Simon.. however this aching feeling wasn't, he doesn't know where it's from or what it's about. Not until he heard you in the kitchen, letting out a giggle even though you knew better.

"If the Heavens ever did speak, She's the last true mouthpiece. Every Sunday's getting more bleak. A fresh poison each week "We were born sick"

That sweet fucking voice, like the angels speaking to him themselves. "Oh- I'm sorry Si, did I wake you up?" You asked, turning around to the sound of his footsteps.

That tiny nightdress of yours, a reminder of the night you spent together, that morning you slept in his bed.

Lashes beautifully displayed on the delicate skin of your under eyes. Soft noises while your chest was peacefully moving up and down with every breath.

"She tells me, "Worship in the bedroom". The only Heaven I'll be sent to, is when I'm alone with you I was born sick, but I love it Command me to be well. A, Amen, Amen, Amen"

"Simon.. Ahh~" you moan out softly, your body writhing underneath him. It felt hot, sweaty despite the well ventilated room, so intimate from something that was supposed to be the farthest thing from domestic.

"Shhh, you can take it sunshine.. You don't want the neighbors to hear us, do you?" Simon whispers, callous hand covering your mouth with as little pressure possible, you whimper at his words.

Closing your eyes to lose yourself in the pleasure you've never felt before. Your body being worshiped with gentle hands and soft kisses that leave marks by the very same man who kept distancing himself from you, now he'd stop at nothing for your pleasure.

"Take me to church, I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies. I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife, offer me that deathless death. Good God, let me give you my life."

"Simon.. no more–" you whined. Scratching his back hard enough to leave marks without being aware, he'd always imagine what those pretty pink nails could do to him.

"Just one more, please sunshine.. you remember our safe word right?" Simon asks for you to nod softly, you didn't have energy to take anymore. "I told you I'll make you feel good, didn't I? So be a good girl for me and take it, hmm?"

Your eyes roll back at his praise, your legs shake with one after another wave of pleasure running through your body. This man was starved.. insatiable.. who would be able to resist such a request? Not you.

"If I'm a pagan of the good times, my lover's the sunlight to keep the Goddess on my side. She demands a sacrifice, drain the whole sea, get something shiny"

It took everything in Simon not to worship the ground you walked on that night, he wasn't trying very hard, was he? Because always.. at the end of the night, you're in his bed, his mind, his life.

Was it really a sin? To want something you don't deserve? Simon stayed up that whole night, not a wink of sleep while thinking of whether this arrangement should continue. Every bone and organ in his body telling him to be selfish, take what was something that wasn't his to take.

"Something meaty for the main course, that's a fine looking high horse. What you got in the stable? We've a lot of starving faithful that looks tasty, that looks plenty, this is hungry work"

Simon's gaze, never faltering on your sleeping figure that he refuses to go anywhere but his own arms. He tries to close his eye to compose himself, free himself from the emotions you emit from him.

His efforts were to no use, all he saw was the image of you, sweetly smiling, those doe eye staring right through his soul.

"No masters or kings when the ritual begins. There is no sweeter innocence than our gentle sin In the madness, in the soil of that sad earthly scene. Only then I am human, only then I am clean"

You were getting too close for your own good, Simon knew that, he'll be damned if he let's himself hurt you. So he does what any stupid man would do, avoid you like the plague. Did it mean nothing? Were you just some fling, never to be talked about again?

Fuck you Simon Riley, he made you feel loved in bed like no man ever has or ever will, completely ruining your chance of ever thinking of anything else and that was just a hook-up session? Maybe this one time you can let yourself be delusional, was there really something more? Only one way to find out.

"Oh, oh, Amen, Amen, Amen, Take me to church, I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies. I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife, offer me that deathless death. Good God, let me give you my life"

You caught him, fucking finally, after days of waiting and trying to get him at the perfect time. "Si.." you whispered softly, you didn't know where to start. He took a quick glance at you before looking back at what he was doing.

"Simon Riley, don't fucking ignore me. Not after everything that happened those nights" You said, it was stern but he needed to hear it. It made him stop, think about what had happened.

Before he could generate a response, "Why?" You asked. It was a vague question, why was he ignoring you? Why does he feel this way? Why does he love you yet refuse to act on it?

"Take me to church, I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies. I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife, offer me that deathless death. Good God, let me give you my life.."

"You don't deserve a man like me, you deserve one who is like you, optimistic, sweet, fucking beautiful and alive.. A man who's not damaged, scarred, has blood on his hands and haunted by his past. A man who's not afraid to show his love for you. A man who won't put his burdens on your shoulders and a man who will take care of you instead of the other way around. That's what you deserve and I can't give that"

Everything felt like it came to a stop, were you hearing that right?

"You have no idea how much you contradict yourself, Si. How are you so sure that you haven't given those things to me already? You might not be like me but "like me" isn't what I want.. I want you, every flaw, every beautiful scar. Not once before your silent treatment have you hurt me, it's frustrating yes, but you are worthy of that. Every struggle, frustration and mistake, every bit of your love is worth all of that. I want you to see that Si, your actual true worth rather than what some psychotic fucker decided to torture you with"

"Boys, workin' on empty. Is that the kinda way to face the burning heat? I just think about my baby, I'm so full of love I could barely eat"

"Si?"

"Yes, Sunshine?"

"I love you" You whispered after smothering him in a plethora of kisses. Never has anything made Simon melt more in his life than his wife say that. Doesn't matter how long it's been, how much the both of you have been through or how much frustration the both of you were going through..

It will always stay the same, the feeling those three words give him, like the first time, every moment feels that way. Familiar, finally.. Home.

"There's nothing sweeter than my baby I'd never want once from the cherry tree. 'Cause my baby's sweet as can be, she give me toothaches just from kissin' me"

He always thought about how unfaithfulness was such a struggle between some people, he thought about how good he has it constantly, reflecting back on what he used to have to how now this is something he never thought he'd have or deserve.

"When my time comes around, lay me gently in the cold, dark earth. No grave can hold my body down, I'll crawl home to her"

When a man finds himself in the verge of embracing death's arms, what causes the struggle? What causes him to fight that pain, to keep on going? Not once has this crossed Ghost's mind.

No. He's not Ghost, he's Simon. Your Simon.

And you're expecting your Simon home, fuck everything else, he'll give the biggest "fuck you" to death itself and crawl home to you because he'll be damned and he'll experience everything he has in his life over and over again just to hold you again.

"Boys, when my baby found me I was three days on a drunken sin, I woke with her walls around me. Nothin' in her room but an empty crib and I was burnin' up a fever I didn't care much how long I lived, but I swear I thought I dreamed her. She never asked me once about the wrong I did."

It should matter, the amount of blood on his hands. Not once did you judge him for it, what the fuck was wrong with you? Giving a monster such as him a bath like he was some innocent stray kitten, although this time around it was far more messy. The dried blood caked underneath his finger nails.

Flashing him a tired smile while you wiped off the blood that made the water in the tub a hue of brownish-red. Taking your hand in his, his lips brushing against your knuckles. The way you looked at him was enough to make him cry.

"When my time comes around, lay me gently in the cold, dark earth. No grave can hold my body down, I'll crawl home to her"

"Fucking get up" Simon repeats to himself, "She needs you, she loves you" despite how many times he's convinced himself you didn't due to the voice of his father in his head, it felt like a knife twisting in his heart imagining how it would be for you without him.

How much you cried the night he came home a day later, you told him yourself, practically sobbing while clutching your aching chest and him with your other arm how you weren't ready for Price to show up at your doorsteps holding Simon's belongings.

He won't let that happen.. he can't...

"My babe would never fret none, about what my hands and my body done. If the Lord don't forgive me, I'd still have my baby and my babe would have me"

Simon knew it, no one would ever love him like you do. No one would show him the same acceptance, devotion, care, concern and love. It wasn't healthy to be so attached dependently to someone in love.

He couldn't help it, it felt so right, everything with you did. Never a judgmental one, at least towards him. Always first to hold him, the first to ever take away the heavy guilt that weighed his heart and shoulders down after he'd done something he knows he'll go to hell for, if it's even real

"When I was kissing on my baby and she put her love down soft and sweet In the low lamplight I was free. Heaven and hell were words to me"

Every inch was kissed, not a part wasn't worshiped. "So fuckin' beautiful, so sweet. All for me, hmm?" Simon mumbled against your skin, suckling on the soft sweetness that he so claims. All hickeys, no bruises.

Fuck, he'd not just survive but thrive on just you. No other sustenance, your supple thighs he adores to cover in purple, your neck, your lips and your skin that he often compares to sugar syrup in his head.

"When my time comes around, lay me gently in the cold, dark earth. No grave can hold my body down I'll crawl home to her"

The question was, was it worth it to live an eternity of lifetimes filled with suffer to be with you in at least once? The only answer to ever graze Simon Riley's lips was the word "yes", the day that changes is the day that he'd be the biggest bull-shiter the world has ever known.

Simon opened the door to your shared home, "Daddy!" A loud squeal wakes him up from his dread of what he's seen on the field.

"How's my little sunshine been? 'Ave you been good to your momma while I was gone?" Simon asked, carrying the little girl in his arms.

"Yes! Momma said we'd go to the park tomorrow as a reward for me helping out!" Little one saying it so proudly, Simon couldn't help but smile, beaming with pride as his little girl grows up to be what he recognizes as a good person.

"Simon..? You're finally home, I missed you so much" You said, peeking out the laundry room. You walked out, quick to give him a peck on the lips.

"I love you Si.."

"I love you too Sunshine"

Also this is a very long fic.. I expect long feedback.. @connorsui 👀

Does this make sense? Idk anymore it's like almost midnight and I'm running on a few hours of sleep. GOD MY PROM DRESS LOOKS SO GOOD, I CAN'T WAIT.

Taglist: @wishesforyou @puff0o0 @simping4konig @simp4konig @blingblong55 @azereus @rustic-guitar-notes @shadofireshinobi @thelightdjinnofpalestine @09maruchan @anonymuslydumb @skeletalgoats @icarustypicalfall @ghosts-cyphera @fawnchives @connorsui @capuccino192 @miss-gms-and-the-rotten-womb @celestialhole @the-second-sage @starryylies @everlastingmoonlightsworld @keiva1000 @iexiam @drewsmusee @konigceo

Trying out new dividers as well by @anitalenia

[blusocket]

I've seen some people express some confusion about what Fortnight is about, why it opens the album, what's happening in the video, etc, so here's my attempt at an analysis. For the most part I'll be referring to the characters in the video with the names of the people playing them (Taylor and Post) but at times I'm going to be making direct reference to the events of Taylor's personal life and referring to the muses by their names (Joe and Matty) for the sake of clarity and simplicity.

The song itself uses the suburbia conceit as an extended metaphor for the beginning of her relationship with Matty (he's the neighbor she runs away to Florida with, Joe is the cheating husband.) For more eloquent and detailed thoughts on the narrative of the song you can check out Jaime @cages-boxes-hunters-foxes's post here.

The video is really dense, and I'm not 100% confident in every aspect of my interpretation, but I feel pretty sure that it's making extensive use of visual metaphor in order to tell roughly the same story as the song, just in a different setting. To start, Taylor wakes up chained to a bed in a white dress.

To me this suggests that she's been driven mad by being left at the altar, and is now trapped, surveilled and controlled, in a type of asylum. This represents the end of her relationship with Joe--waiting for a marriage that never came, feeling trapped, mentally unwell etc.

She then takes 'forget him' pills which reveal Post's tattoos on her face when she looks in the mirror.

This represents Matty (the "miracle move-on drug") and shows that he made a mark on her while she was still in the asylum--that is, still in her relationship with Joe. Additionally, in the wide shot where we see the mirror, its size and shape are very reminiscent of a one-way mirror, often seen in interrogation rooms and psychological experiments, further reinforcing the idea that Taylor is imprisoned here.

She then is able to go to the typewriter room and do her work, creating art about how she's feeling, shown by her repeatedly typing "I love you, it's ruining my life" on the typewriter. She's still in pain and feeling trapped. While there, she encounters Post and they create art together, which creates beauty and color in her life. The blue and gold obviously reference her writing about Joe, but the fact that her work is gold and Post's is blue may be a deliberate choice to draw parallels between Matty and Joe, as she does on numerous songs throughout TTPD.

The next scene, where Taylor's hair is down and she and Post are wearing the same black coat and pants, takes place inside her head (symbolized by the shape of the papers they're laying on.) She is dreaming about them being free and creating art together, represented by the papers surrounding them and book she's holding, which has the word "us" written on the cover. She's writing their story before it's begun.

She then reaches for his hand in her fantasy, accepting and asking for this relationship

Then we see that she's being studied and experimented on--the results of the lie detector test read "I love you, it's ruining my life." Her pain is an object of fascination.

Interestingly, Post is part of the group experimenting on her, but when the experiments begin to cause her pain, he liberates her.

This inspires Taylor to destroy the place where she's been trapped, which we see through her opening the filing cabinets that cover the walls and destroying the mirror. I also find the shot of her standing still while papers burn around her interesting and significant; I interpret this as Taylor destroying her own work about Joe. By choosing to leave, she is metaphorically burning--rejecting--the story she wrote about them.

Finally, Taylor and Post enter the dangerous outside world together; the rain echoes the lyric "I chose this cyclone with you" on the album's title track. While I do feel the meaning of Post being in the phone booth is somewhat ambiguous, the framing and the accompanying lyric--"I've been calling ya but you won't pick up" suggest that he's attempting to communicate with her but can't reach her. They are free of her prison, but still separated.

Then, he hangs up the phone and reaches for her hand, and she takes it. The final shot of the video is a close up on their linked hands, presenting us with a cautiously optimistic ending--they are lost and vulnerable in the middle of a storm, but they have each other.

I feel this is a somewhat less sinister, for lack of a better word, portrayal of the start of Matty and Taylor's relationship than is suggested elsewhere on the record, though I believe Post's character being part of the group experimenting on her is significant and the editing creates some ambiguity about exactly when and why she decides to break free. But I hope this clarifies how the video sets up the beginning of this story, the fallout of which is then chronicled over the course of the rest of TTPD.

[neouime]

Love Wins All: An Analysis

Here are my notes for the music video. I have more to say, but it's already two in the morning where I live, and I have been sitting here admiring and contemplating IU's artistry since four hours ago. My butt hurts. I will come here later once I let my thoughts marinate.

There's a cube object chasing after them. - The cube is obviously the antagonist of the story. I have no idea why they chose a cube rather than any other creature or shape. Maybe because the design is simple? I think a cube is a smart choice. It looks like human technology, something man-made. The cube may be an invention that was once intended for the benefit of humankind but ended up becoming an instrument for control. The shape of the cube with its equal sides can represent a system that demands conformity.

IU is mute/deaf (she uses sign language), and Taehyung is blind in one eye. - There is one reading by a Korean UAENA about how they represent people with disabilities. There is one cube targeting IU and Taehyung. No other people are shown, but by the end of the music video, we can see several floating cubes outside the building. We can deduce how the cubes may be specifically searching for individuals like them who are marginalized and in hiding.

There is a scene where IU performs on stage, and black figures point their fingers at her. - IU explicitly declared that the song is dedicated to her loved ones, including her fans. We can interpret the black figures as representing people who spread unnecessary hate (혐오) against artists like IU. (Regardless of context, pointing your fingers in Korean culture is considered rude. It is associated with assigning blame or picking out flaws.)

Both the cube and the people in black are forces that persecute and discriminate, respectively. - This reading stems from the fact that IU is a well-known personality in real life and that her character in the story has disabilities.

While there is a male and female lead, the story and the song are not exclusively romantic. LWA is a fan song. Taehyung represents UAENAs. 

While IU sings on stage, he gives her flowers and looks at her adoringly. - They are able to spend moments both happy and sad by each other's side. At the end of the story, Taehyung stands in front of IU to defend her from the cube and destroy it, while IU comforts him and covers his eyes as they're killed.

The camera and the pile of clothes are details prompting an intertextual reading. - This will be familiar to ARMY, but the pile of clothes is an installation by Christian Boltanski. This does not require further explanation since we can infer what it symbolizes from the story's outcome. On the other hand, the camera is something that is more important to the plot than it seems. It captures only the beautiful and healthy appearance of IU and Taehyung. The Korean UAENA I mentioned earlier said that the camera shows an existence where people with disabilities can live happily. 

The camera shuts down by the end of the music video. - Nothing is recorded, and the memories are lost. But then, how does "love win all?" Okay, we'll look at the lyrics. "찬찬히 너를 두 눈에 담아 한 번 더 편안히 웃어주렴 (With my eyes, I memorize you thoroughly. Let's laugh in peace once more.)

Artists like IU come and go. - For every single and album she releases, IU writes an introduction. For LWA, she sums up the story as a promise to "fade away together splendidly." Also, the lyrics "필연에게서 도망쳐 Run on" appear, which both mean to run away from (도망쳐, to escape) and to run towards the "inevitable." (Korean is not my first language so pardon me if I'm wrong, but I think there's a mistake with the translation provided in the music video. There, the lyrics say "run away from necessity, run on." They use the word necessity, but she's referring to an event that is certain to occur.)

Memories [of their music and their moments with fans] are all lost to history; what matters is to live in the moment. (You don't need a camera to prove that you existed and lived your life.) This aligns with her values as an artist. In her interviews, IU says her goal is to perform (creation rather than chart success).

You may say that the story is tragic because they both die in the end, but they were at peace since they were together. "일부러 나란히 길 잃은 우리 두 사람" (The two of us, side by side, gone astray on purpose). **Edit: IU Team StarCandy on Twitter translated the phrase 길 잃은 우리 as "[we] who took the road less travelled."

I love the lines "너와 슬퍼지고 싶어 My lover" (I want to be sad with you) and "부서지도록 나를 꼭 안아" (Crush me, wrap me tightly in your arms). It illustrates the relationship between IU as an artist and her fans. The song is a declaration of her intention to cherish the good and bad with us. She does not mind even if the pressure of our love sometimes feels intense. She believes love has the power to break you down, but instead, it builds you up. 

Additionally, the line "나와 함께 겁 없이," which is translated as "Will you courageously set with me?" actually more literally translates to "together with me, without fear." There is trust between IU and her lover. In other words, they may not know where the journey leads them, but they consciously choose to walk to it together.

A few more details from the music video that I loved are as follows. I like that the food (the macaron) is connected to memory and joy. It's the end of the world, but they haven't lost their imagination, hope, and ability to delight in each other's presence. In a way, food is crucial to survival in terms of sustenance and because it brings simple pleasure.

After taking a bite, they are transported to a less dreary setting. Their clothes are the same, but they're no longer tattered. Of course, things aren't perfect because while things are more clean, the people themselves remain evil. IU and Taehyung maintain their cheerful disposition even as the black figures appear and surround them.

IU and Taehyung choose to be happy. They dress up and dance around the room despite the reality that everything is still in ruins. (The photo booth is lit in bright, warm colors, while the room outside is cold and blue. Another piece of evidence for this interpretation is that while they're blissfully taking pictures, the strips come out showing Taehyung's milky eyes.)

I also like the alternative explanation for why IU is deaf, and Taehyung is partially blind. - IU performs happily in front of the crowd of black figures. It may mean that she either cannot hear or will not listen to their words of hate. As for Taehyung, he is partially blind to IU's faults. IU (the idol/artist) is the one leading them as they run while Taehyung (their fan) follows, their hands clasped in each other.

Moreover, neither of them speaks throughout the story. Whether IU is deaf or she signs to avoid making noise and risk their capture, I think it's beautiful that they can communicate through gestures. The relationship between fan and artist goes beyond the need for words (which is ironic, too, since we become fans of IU's music before the artist herself. Through her lyrics, we learn of her personality and how she sees the world).

I LOVE their acting. It's almost scarily good how IU can convey her love through her gaze. The smallest details too!! Her softly tapping Taehyung's shoulder to calm him while he tightly grips her hand as they face death? Chills.

Okay, I'm back. I just want to add this:

I said that the song is not exclusively romantic. However, the element of romance is indeed important to the plot. It elevates the story by depicting people (including those with disabilities) finding love even in the middle of hardship. - Their hardship is not the disability itself but rather the prejudices in the world that limit the possibilities they can enjoy.

IU and Taehyung know that the "end" is "inevitable" (she uses both words in her lyrics), and they know that they can only steal these short moments of happiness, but they still try to "look for the opposite of loneliness" (오랜 외로움 그 반대말을 찾아서).

Trivia: IU says that whenever she's stuck with writing a song, she uses the suggestion of a peer (Kim Eana) to look up the meaning of a word in the dictionary. Thus, giving birth to the idea love = opposite of feeling/being alone.

Love as an act of resistance - Viewing a brighter world through the camera, IU wearing the veil, and the pair teasing the black figures (IU sings on the stage despite their jeering and they run around the room) are acts of resistance. They may have a poor imagination (가난한 상상력), wherein they still desire to become "normal" and without their disabilities, but it is also thanks to their imagination that they are able to endure.

Note: The translations are mine. It's always difficult to think of how to word sentences that fully preserve the sentiment of the source, especially since they're song lyrics.

[caelum-in-trees]

permanence & i wanna feel calm: sister songs

this is not the first time i have described bears in trees's songs permanence, from the ep "i want to feel chaotic", and i wanna feel calm, from their newest album "how to build an ocean: instructions", as sister songs. it will likely not be the last, either.

so i wanna talk about it! permanence is, and has been, one of my favorite bit songs from nearly the moment i discovered the band. i love the sentiment within the song, pictured prominently in the lyric, "i want to feel chaotic / but calm enough to hold you in the morning." i think that's a very common sentiment among young adults: the desire of freedom, and self-exploration, and doing things that maybe aren't the best for you, but are fun anyways, but at the end of the day wanting some consistency, wanting to be reliable enough to hold and be held by someone else. another lyric is "i want permanence in the little things", hence the title of the song. it's a sweet sentiment, to cherish little moments and want them to last forever, or at least be remembered, and loved, for as long as possible. i would be lying if i said this sentiment has not made me cry before. bit are pretty good at making me sob, with their lyrics, in the best way.

now let's talk about the more recent i wanna feel calm, and how, exactly, it compares to permanence. one of the lyrics is, "seeking stillness in a rippling", essentially looking for still waters in a place where there are none. perhaps it is just me, but that sounds an awful lot like looking for calm in the chaotic. as well as that, another lyric literally is, "i wanna feel calm", but more of the mentions of calm are regarding the repetition of the line, "you keep me calm". this ties back to permanence, which is largely a song of love, and the calm the singer wishes to have for the unknown "you" the song is directed towards. i wanna feel calm is paralleling that in that the unknown "you" is granting the singer that calm they have been longing for, for so long, and it ties full circle, back to holding someone calmly in the morning. beyond the parallels of calmness tied to the "you", there is the desire for the permanence of the mundane. the verse, "i want to cherish every insignificance / lay in the light of your mundane / i want to hold onto every impermanence / each an eternity in their own way" parallels the sentiment found earlier in permanence. both songs express a love for the mundane, and a desire to make them last forever, and hold close to the littlest details. these two themes, as they are both prominent in the two songs, are the reason i feel that these two songs are sister songs. i just find that the connecting themes tie them together closely, in such a gorgeous way. perhaps this is intentional. perhaps it is not. either way? i cherish it, a whole lot. the little connections between the two songs make them both impossibly more important to me, and i hope you find the analysis interesting, if nothing else! take care, thanks for reading, and make sure to hydrate <3 stream bears in trees!

[crumblinggothicarchitecture]

so I just listened to Florence+the machines Cassandra and ts Cassandra one after the other and like…listen I know i don’t like ts but I’m trying to give her the benefit of the doubt and judge her music without letting my dislike cloud that judgement the worst part about that experience is that it’s genuinely an ok song. Like I write poetry(cringy poetry but it’s a good outlet and over the years I’ve learned the difference between actual poetic devices and just spitting out words that rhyme) and it sounds like something I would write?? Like not in a rude or patronising way but when I need to journal or whatever and I just write out the first thoughts I have and think its an absolute masterpiece and then a few hours later I look at it and go oh so I was delusional lol but by then the emotions have passed and I don’t feel like working on that poem anymore. That’s what her lyrics make me think of😭 like it’s an ok song but the references to her life actual ruined it for me I was trying to enjoy the song but then there’s a line about filling her cell with snakes or smth and it took me out of it immediately I was like ugh this drama again?? Really?? And without the Easter eggs the song is…boring?? Like she sings a portion in the beginning then the rest of the song is lines from that portion rearranged and sang the exact same way again?? And musically like there’s nothing?? With Florence’s Cassandra the music builds and makes you feel something for yourself whereas ts is meant to make you feel smth for her. Florence’s lyrics and melody were like a breath of fresh air after listening to ts. Florence feels like she truly has something to say and embodies that character she’s created for the song idk maybe that’s my own personal bias getting in the way tho sorry for the long ask I just wanted to get your thoughts because I really enjoy your analysis of her music it helps me feel less insane lol❤️❤️

Hello dear!

Hope you are doing well, and if you are not- I hope that you will be doing well soon.

I cannot express enough how awkward the placement of Taylor Swift's "Lore" interjections has become in her music. Sometimes I truly feel like I am listening to two different songs every time she breaks the flow of the music to add so throw-back call to old drama. It's maddening- because on one hand I know that Swift wants people to think she is a great artist- yet she cannot stop acting like a preteen with a popular gossip blog by interjecting cheap-shots at her enemies at every possible turn. It's so- bad.

I am going to explain in a different post by Swift's "confessional" style of music doesn't actually live up to the precedent standard of the confessional poets from the 1960's- just because I want to clear the air in stating the literary difference between what Swift does (writing hit pieces against people she hates) and what true artists do with their confessional poetry (think Slyvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Robert Lowell- Etc.) wherein often the poets express dislike, hatred, messiness of human experience and the like. However, it's a remarkably different tone, and effectiveness, compared to Swift's rapacious, barbed insults towards her fellows in the industry or in life.

She really just can't ever let anything go, huh? It must be terribly stressful and lonely to live like that.

To the point you mention above- on how Swift's writing is so continuously self-reflexive that it no longer elicits any empathy in the audience- so that, yes, we do only feel something "for her." She does this by design. I think you are quite clever to see the rhetorical difference here. Swift is writing for herself- for her own "woe," but other writers are capable of writing from a broader perspective- one that elicits empathy in the audience- that builds on our common humanity. More detail on what I mean here will be posted in the "Cassandra" post soon. :)

Anywho, I quite enjoyed reading your perspective on the two songs. I feel a little bit more based seeing that other people key into the innate difference between the two texts- much like I do.

I enjoy much of Florence's work- though not all of it. I do, however, respect that she, unlike Swift, actually seems to understand the Cassandra archetypal pattern. All I'm really after here- is just some artists who know how to think and create!

Swift's work is just cringy self-effacing "poetry" meant to pull sympathy and pity from people. It's actually giving me second-hand embarrassment. I think everyone at some point in life seeks pity and sympathy from others- yet most people grow out of this impulse somewhere around the teen years. Because it's just dreadfully juvenile to always being seeking pity- it's like when toddlers whine to get something they want. The proper thing to do is to tell the toddler- "Hey, use your words to tell me what you want, because I cannot understand you when you whine like that."

I wish someone would tell Taylor Swift to grow up and stop whining like a toddler who never learned how to properly express themselves.

But- I think you are right. Without the odd interjection of "lore," she wouldn't be able to write a full song. She's completely dependent on her audience's juvenile interest in gossip.

[octaviasdread]

I hereby conduct this tortured poets society album meeting in all of its mania and sorrowful blues as I move from unhinged impressions to unhinged first-listen analysis because I am incapable of saying less.

(and to all the Aimees i’m so sorry but that’s on Kim)

This Anthology is taking me so long to process, but nothing feels like the first jarring moments of I Can Do It With a Broken Heart - the cacophony and flashes of a birthday breakdown bopping to 80s arcade game synth. It's crumbled cake and mascara streaks when Bejewelled is actually a delusional Mirrorball,

and The Secret Garden reference in I Hate It Here, oh god, she’s so me:

I hate it here so I will go to / secret gardens in my mind / people need a key to get to / the only one is mine / i read about it in a book when I was a precocious child

I need to come back to that. But the whirlwind of Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me? Plans cancelled. IM THE ONE barricaded in the bathroom with a bottle of wine, actually. It's me chained-up in that poor things victorian mourning dress shrieking elegies in my tortured nightingale screams.

She's Grammys Taylor looking at the crowd of her peers rolling their eyes, she's the litany of snide jokes diminishing her success, and the children, sisters, friends, and girlfriends of those who wronged her loudly singing her songs.

so i leap from the gallows and i levitate down your street / crash the party like a record scratch as I scream / who’s afraid of little old me

i was tame i was gentle til the circus made me mean / don’t you worry folks we took out all her teeth

ohhh, the throwback to Speak Now and the significance of MEAN. The song and its titular word show how childish language encapsulates that pointless spite and the bone deep hurt mean behaviour breeds - but now she’s a phoenix risen, and they hurl her youth and her downfall back in her face - word for word, surprised face - its the dark side the The Lucky One, of not escaping the cage of fame games.

you lured me and you hurt me and you taught me / you caged me and then you called me crazy

i wanna snarl and show you just how disturbed this has made me / you wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me / so all you kids can sneak into my house with all the cobwebs / i’m always drunk on my own tears isn’t that what they all said?

PUT NARCOTICS IN MY SONG took me out. This album is funny in the most sardonic and absurdly humorous ways,

like the classic cowboy western guitar strings in her crime songs (I Can Fix Him, No Really I Can - pistols drawn), but especially the ones leading into Fresh Out The Slammer. Fucking genius, and to follow on with static sounds at 2:26ish to the house where you still wait up, is exactly the kinda detail I adore.

Naively, I thought Florence was done with me after Florida!!! It's a lyrical meme for single 20 & 30 somethings who moved away from home,

my friends all smell of like weed or little babies / and the city reeks of driving myself crazy / little did you know your home’s really only / a town you’re just a guest in

and the haunting morphs from the ghost of your girlhood into the catalogue of decisions and delusions which get you through adulthood. Yet it feels almost like an interlude within the song when

me and my ghosts we’ve had a hell of a time / yes i’m haunted but i’m feeling fine / all my girls got their lace and their crimes / and your cheating husband disappeared/ well no one asks questions here

appears like an alternative pov for No Body, No Crime with the girls and their ghosts and their pacts made over wine. Every Action has an Equal Reaction. Run away to Florida, or Texas, and lose yourself to lose the heartbreak. Its self-destruction, it's trauma-healing, bonding, and its breaking.

(what a song for an angsty girl collab, problematic girl in hand with problematic girl, lyrically and thematically, maybe the real love story is the friends we make along the way.)

And that wasn't even the last of it. It's Florence 2.0 with B side Cassandra, but instead of Dance Fever, its Taylor’s glorious mythology with all the allusions, parallels, intertextual and lyrical ruining of my mind:

when the first stone’s thrown they’re screaming / when its burn the bitch they’re shrieking / when the truth comes out its quiet

so they killed cassandra first cus she feared the worst / and tried to tell the town / so they filled my cell with snakes i regret to say / do you believe me now?

No apologies anymore. A girl given the gift of prophecy by Apollo, the GOD OF POETRY, is cursed with her prophecy never being believed: Burning all the witches even if you aren't one, indeed. She saw the truth of the Trojan horse, and the Trojans insulted her. Rep snake branding and the current cultural view of KK and Ye. I don't need to say anything else.

i was in the tower weaving nightmares / twisting all my smiles into snarls

the family the pure greed the christian chrous line / bloods thick but nothing like a payroll / bet they never spared a prayer for my soul

I literally played that THREE times before I got over it enough to finish my first listen,

and i’m still thinking about Clara Bow and that Stevie Nicks tambourine we collectively freaked over from the Spotify installation, and all the silent movie speculation from the track title release.

you look like Clara Bow in this light - you look like Stevie Nicks in '75 - you look like Taylor Swift

Three women whose public profession became entangled with their pain. Silver Springs. Boyfriend songs. The jokes. Clara Bow.

Clara feared being left behind by 'talkies.' Miss Americana. The fear of 30 bringing death to a woman's Hollywood/Musical career,

beauty is a beast that roars down on all fours demanding more / only when your girlish glow flickers just so / do they let you know?

Three women who beat the odds - three women whose talent, craft, and popularity carried them through.

But there's something more to unpack here with cycles and patterns - of the past endlessly repeating. It's the transient nature of fame and our fleeting view of beauty mapped out in the untouchable, ever-changing, and culturally worshiped moon.

It's a body of physical craters, a natural body we call discovered, and fight to claim. We project emotions and create rituals of worship - you're the new god we're worshipping. Endless stories are told about her, but we can never fully see the moon with human eyes. Eclipses, shadows, - 'half moonshinе, a full eclipse' - half-truths and half-moons:

this town is fake but you're the real thing / breath of fresh air through smoke rings / take the glory, give everything / promise to be dazzling

There's a play on light and a play on words in the repetition of Dazzling, shining so bright so blindingly bright. Who is dazzled? Who is doing the dazzling? There's an instability between Director - Public - Star. It's Hollywood lights, No one in my small town thought I'd see the lights of Manhattan / No one in my small town thought I'd meet these suits in LA.

She beat the 'War Big Machine' - but for me, there's ambivalence and illusion on all sides of the final lyrics, you've got edge, she never did / the future's bright, dazzling.

(and ‘Edge’ is particularly ironic when you consider the songs on this album…)

Moving again into the B Side, it's Taylor's departure from Invisible string, red strings of fate, and golden threads à la the golden chain of fate in Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities that strikes me.

First, I thought her writing was a complete departure from the themes of destiny and fate, but then, The Prophecy:

cards on thе table / Mine play out like fools in a fablе

it isn't an absent symbol; it transformed. It's the evermore forest amped to the max. Witches, folklore, fairy-tale and fable - a homeric epic. Its the hero's journey distilled as she opens the song with a move from 'full throttle' adventure, to slowing down 'Hand on the Throttle' to appeal for Supernatural aid at the hero's transformative fall.

and it was written / I got cursed like eve got bitten / a greater woman wouldn't beg / but I looked at the sky and said / please I've been on my knees / change the prophecy

Lover asking Traffic Lights becomes spending my last coin so someone will tell me, and this might be the most slept-on heartbreaking line. Her search for reassurance can't be framed as an arbitrary musing anymore. It can't be dismissed as a mere thought on her drive home, or something triggered throughout the day - its intent. It's a quest for answers, a plea, a last-ditch hope difficult to deny.

and I sound like an infant / feeling like the very last drops of an ink pen/ a greater woman stays cool/ but I howl like a wolf at the moon / and I look unstable /

gathered with a coven 'round a sorceress' table / a greater woman has faith But even statues crumble if they're made to wait / i'm so afraid I sealed my fate / no sign of soulmates

She's asking for a gift from the Gods, and when the God's won't answer, she plunges straight down from heaven or Olympus into the self seizure of power in witchcraft. And when it fails, she descends further - Spending my last coin so someone will tell me it'll be okay - paying mortal fortune tellers, even if they lie.

The song leans on figures without redemption, on the Eve's, on the women cursed and punished, and those who scream like infants rather than enduring burdens and pain in silence. She's poisoned, infected like Aurora from the wound of the pricked hand with dreams of him. Is this a punishment?

She's infected, cursed like Eve got bitten, [lyric of all time!!!!] but does a monster always do monstrous things? Who is the monster? Who is the folkloric, the literary Mad Woman? Perhaps she's written from the desperate, the scarred, and the wronged.

and the transition into another tale with Peter? As in Peter losing Wendy? Is it an epilogue to the Betty trilogy? or a different use of the metaphor?

and I didn't wanna hang around / we said it was just goodbye for now /said you were gonna grow up / then you were gonna come find me / words from the mouths of babes / promises oceans deep / but never to keep

The triangle is echoed in love's never lost when perspective is earned, reflecting the different povs of Betty, August, and James, and placing Peter as the new conclusion - the shelf life of those fantasies has expired / lost to the lost boys chapter of your life/ the woman who sits by the window/ has turned out the (porch?) light.

Promises wear out. Wendy's window closes, and so does this chapter in her life.

my lost fearless leader / in closets like cedar / preserved from when we were just kids / is it something I did? / the goddess of timing / once found us beguiling

is also - intentionally or not - Narnia coded. Is the storybook collecting dust in her closet? Or is the closet still holding a portal to another fairytale land accessible only in youth, another home you can't return to (and another folklore parallel with mtr, anywhere I want just not home).

Side B is so harmonious with ttpd being the end of a chapter as the anthology moves through all the seven stages (or Taylor playlists) of grief.

The Manuscript, the signing of the autopsy, is the Death of the Author. It's the Roland Barthes realisation of All Too Well reborn in joy and fan culture, the story isn't mine anymore, of the Eras - 'I hope you hear these songs and think of this night' - Tour. She knew what the agony had been for - art. connection. - and its these things that create the hope lost in ttpd's journey through mania, disorientation, loss and despair. It all leads to healing, nothing left but a manuscript.

So many thoughts from listen no.1 and they’ll probably change, but i’m so exhausted from this 31 song rollercoaster that I'm just gonna let this sit. death of the author, I guess.

[thelunarfairy]

(Apologizes if an incomplete ask sent through, I was asking a question but the Internet cut off :<)

My question was though, how much can you analyze about the English lyrics of No. 7 (anime intro)? The lyrics supposedly explain some of the story and you're the best theorist I know who can put this in an organized post XD

(Sorry if you've been asked this before haha feel free to ignore if so and have a great day!)

I looked at the Japanese and English versions, and well, to better organize the meaning of the song, I'm going to write it here in a more objective way, it will be easy to understand the meaning as you read the lyrics.

This is because the Japanese version has a lot of wordplay and puns, the English version translated it literally and in the same way as the Japanese, which made some passages confusing.

Let's get started (this is the full version of the song)

So now let me tell you the story of number 7

1 Huh? Eh? Instantly happy and sad, even the past and the future 2 Two shadows appear within the rumors (the passion turned into nothing, it's just a story) 3 A sweet fruit mixed with the unreal 4 Yes, yes, even if I tell you repeatedly 5 Look, look, you're not listening properly (passion turned into nothing, an endless story) 6 After all, the boring thing is the ugly reality 7 Morning, day and night, like ten winds and five rains, rumors circulate 8 Without becoming pure in heart, turning my back against the unchanging mirror 9 I Want Some Magic, Say Seven Mysteries, That's Not Perfect 10 But We Are Struggling Because We Are Incomplete

11 Swinging the blade, words, too far 12 Wearing the smiling mask of lies (you in that place) 13 They Were Hurt Because Of Someone Else 14 Between sin and punishment, in that place where no one exists 15 Surely He Is There So now let me tell you the story of number 7

A secret history I heard from somewhere

16 It's a secret just between you and me 17 I will not lose to you, memory nor the brittle truth 18 Let's catch up, it's a reality like a rumor from some time ago 19 Every night and morning seems stupid 20 The dance of the second, the third morning, the fourth twilight 21 First, second, third, fourth 22 Mirai, Misaki, the mirror that doesn't see, the silent solitude 23 Is it the first? the eighth? Wait, there's no eighth 24 Until the four o'clock stands, if you repent, 25 It becomes four pains, eight pains 26 Trouble Towing in Seven Rounds 27 Hits, punishment 28 Come, come strange mystery 29 My body's habits, everything, are never perfect, so We are struggling because we are incomplete

Swinging the blade, words, far away 30 Please reach out, the laughter, the overlapping lies 31 (he is still there continuously) 32 I blurred the details while pretending to be fine 33 Between sin and punishment 34 Alone, placed in that place 35 Surely he exists

36 Hiding the past, blinding the eyes in front of the destiny that is coming to an end 37 I changed once, so I will change again The answer is clear

Swinging the blade, words, far away Wearing the smiling mask of lies (You alone) Were hurt because of someone else Between sin and punishment In that place where no one exists Today it also exists

So now let me tell you the story of number 7 Hey tell me about the continued story

ANALYSIS

Let's use numbers to better analyze the excerpts

1 = could mean that Hanako is happy now to be having fun with Nene and Kou, but at the same time sad about having to deal with the past and the future (Nene's future death)

2 = This excerpt is very emblematic, but "within the rumors two shadows appear" could refer to the twins "the passion turned into nothing, it's just a story" they would be in love with each other and what remained of that story would be murder. There is also the possibility that he is referring to Nene, since Hanako-san now has an assistant. Two shadows, and the passion that turned into nothing, an impossible love.

3 = A metaphor about the contrast between reality and a distant desire

4 and 5 = Hanako's story is being told little by little and someone (it could be Nene) is not realizing the details between the lines.

6 to 10 = Complaints about how reality is terrible and he wants to experience something unreal, not just him, but the other mysteries, everyone feels incomplete and is looking for something that reality cannot offer, something that they cannot achieve but they really want it. And specifically about the mirror, he says it is unchanging, confirming that no matter what he does, nothing will change.

11 to 15 = reference to Tsukasa's death, the murder. About how Hanako lied while creating a fake smile. He hurt Tsukasa, and he went to the place where nothing exists "Surely he is there" and the verses mention the sin and punishment that Hanako has to take responsibility for.

16 to 18 = Probably Hanako talking about his past with Nene. He says he will "reach him" that is, he will tell her the whole truth.

19 to 29 = references the other mysteries and how they are all fighting to create a better version of themselves, even though they are imperfect. In addition to, of course, mentioning a little about their feelings.

30 to 35 = reference to Tsukasa, he wants Hanako to show what he really feels, at the same time that Tsukasa "blurs" the way he feels "I blurred the details while pretending to be fine" "Alone, placed in that place" "he is still there continuously" reference that Tsukasa was left on Hanako's boundary and hides that he feels sad about it.

36 and 37 = it's a little difficult to know if the speaker is Hanako or Tsukasa, the excerpts fit for both, but it's probably more linked to Hanako, since he's the one hiding the past.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

Place where nothing exists = boundary, Hanako says that when he enters a boundary, the person ceases to exist in the human world while there.

Swinging the blade = stabbing, direct reference to murder.

In that place where no one exists, he is certainly there = clear reference that Hanako believed that Tsukasa was on the boundary

In that place where no one exists, today he also exists = reference to Tsukasa's return.

Hey tell me about the continued story = about the story we are following now

CONCLUSION

Basically it's Hanako talking about himself, about the mysteries and about Tsukasa. We also see many parts where he talks about how he feels, but in short, that's it.

The lyrics of this song change subtly according to the translation you are looking for, but the general meaning is this.

That's the way I interpreted the opening lyrics, other people may have different ways of seeing how they work, but for me that's it.

[foxes-that-run]

I was reading one of the more prominent Taylor blogs a few days ago. I came across an ask about IDWLF who was it about. Her answer was Calvin Harris. I knew that was wrong. Why is it Swifties totally shut Harry out? I considered telling her she was wrong but she doesn't take being corrected very well and I wasn't looking for drama.

Thanks for the ask anon. I went way too deep on this and have posted a detailed analysis of the video and song as to why. But the TLDNR is:

Yes it’s about Harry. I think it’s in part a response to Perfect. TBH it would have probably really annoyed Harry, it was huge, I think he’s always wanted to do a duet with her and she did one with Zayn when he’d ditched 1D. Savage.

The song is quite Haylor in that it’s about really wanting to be with someone and the timing not being right, and I think it’s an important part of their story in that time. I have so much more here:

As to why some people have Haylor blinkers, Could be jealousy, beliefs about another ship, directioner baggage, not questioning media. People ship who they ship, or some just only believe every song is about Taylor’s offical BF at the time. But midnights unstuck that.

Ed Sheeran said that he counts Taylor as a real friend because they see each other and don’t post about it. The world not knowing the time they spent together apart from lyrics is a good thing really, though it’s confusing when the “runtime is edited”.

Speaking of runtime, Calvin and Taylor weren’t seen together after April when he’d already written a diss track about her and Harry. To think she then wrote this song and high infidelity about him while he slammed her on twitter is inconsistent.

Some swifties are like Taylor’s word is the word of god. (If she says Mr Joe Nobody’s has a big reputation he does, even if her ex inspired Slut!)

Which is fine, I love Taylor, and if it makes them happy that’s great. But she’s even told us not to believe everything she says in Dear Reader.

[entomophagouserisian]

Incoming: some weeb shit I've folded one of my favorite math things into (permutations)

So I recently went back to Revolutionary Girl Utena because my girlfriend hadn't seen any of it yet and I hadn't seen much beyond season 1 (I know it's a foundational work of sword lesbianism and regret not having gone harder on it before).

I was kind of laughing with her about how edgy the translated lyrics of Zettai Unmei Mokushiroku (Absolute Destiny: Apocalypse, the song that plays during the scene where Utena climbs up to the arena every episode) and I noticed that there wasn't a translation for a chant at the end of it that hits my ear in a very pleasing way.

The chant in question:

Mokushi Kushimo

Shimoku Kumoshi

Moshiku Shikumo

The reason there is no translation is that it's mostly gibberish. They took the word "Mokushi" (Apocalypse) and rearranged the syllables in all possible ways to create this particular piece of poetry. The repetition of syllables in this way ends up feeling really good to my brain when I hear it and I have therefore been alternating between trying to memorize it and analyzing its structure for the past few days.

Unfortunately in order to present my process for this analysis I'm going to have to teach you some basics of the mathematical conception of permutations.

(The following aside into math is actually wholly unnecessary to my overall analysis, so feel free to skip to the clearly marked conclusion at the end if it feels like too much or you just don't feel like engaging with it)

A permutation is any reordering of a set of objects. Note that it's just reordering, it doesn't include deletions or the introduction of new elements or new copies of old elements. Commonly if we want to analyze permutations directly, and more specifically to talk about the permutation where the first object goes to 2nd position, second object to 3rd, third object to 1st, we use (123) (read as 1 goes to 2, 2 goes to 3, 3 goes to 1). As well, if the 3rd object stays put and the first two swap places, we would use (12) (read as 1 goes to 2, 2 goes to 1) to describe that. If no change is made, we usually just use (1) (read as one goes to one or the identity) to describe that. (This is very much lacking the rigor and generality that I would've preferred, but this post would've been substantially longer if I'd gone into that much detail, so I'm kind of hoping someone can come in with just this much explanation and understand what comes after)

So my first step in my analysis was to try to record how each of the "words" related to the base/actual word Mokushi (this is admittedly where it would be quite useful for me to change over to hiragana, but I don't know it and don't have a keyboard downloaded for it and don't feel like downloading one just for this post or copy/pasting the hiragana repeatedly, sorry to those of you who study/enjoy Japanese)

So, rewriting the chant as the permutations applied to Mo-Ku-Shi (written this way to emphasize the 3 objects being permuted):

(1) (132)

(123) (12)

(23) (13)

It was fun but didn't get me anywhere (other than verifying every possible ordering was present, but I was already pretty certain of that) so I instead chose to look at what permutation is happening at each step in the sequence rather than just how they compared to the original:

* (132)

(132) (13)

(132) (132)

Here, we see a much more obvious pattern. For all but one transformation, we are permuting by taking the first syllable and pushing to the end, moving the other two toward the beginning of the "word". To hear it, it is very easy to recognize the 2-syllable repeats happening throughout that first pulled my attention. However, this one permutation couldn't be done exclusively if they wanted to cover all possible permutations, as applying (132) 3 times brings you back to the original word, so the third Permutation is instead (13) which just reverses the syllables in this case since there's only 3 of them, but this also notably changes them to a "word" not yet seen which can bring us to the two we are still missing by applying (132) two more times.

It was after all of this that I properly noted that that middle step reversed the previous "word" and I mentally zoomed out to notice

~~~~Conclusion~~~~

the chant is set up to mirror itself. The pairs 1&6, 2&5, and 3&4 are all the reverse of one another, ordered such that for all but one pair heard in sequence, there is a 2-syllable repetition when moving from one word to the next. (Yes it took me this long to notice it was mirrored. No all that permutation work was definitely not necessary, but forgive a [likely autistic] math nerd for her indulgences.)

It's just a silly chant in a cartoon but it made me happy to see permutations in it and I am sincerely moved by the poetry of making gibberish out of a dark and serious word like apocalypse by listing off anagrams.

[tokiro07]

Undead Unluck ep.2 thoughts

[Getting the Shaft]

(Contents: Animation, ch.2-3 comparison, OP/ED analysis)

So I found out that a number of people employed at David Productions were formally members of Shaft, and dang does it show. Fuuko practically did Shaft's signature head tilt like three times! I wonder if they weren't allowed to go all the way with it specifically because it's iconic to Shaft so they have a copyright or a trademark on it?

Admittedly, I don't think I ever considered Shaft as a possible studio for UU, and in certain respects I kind of wish I weren't seeing that future come to pass. The excessive use of negative space and the lack of background characters makes the world feel lifeless, and the occasional full-body shadows literally drain the color from the frames whereas I feel based on the volume covers and color pages is the opposite of the blinding neon vibe that I would have expected. I also worry that using the trappings of a Shaft production's visuals will result in UU looking like any other Shaft work rather than having its own visual identity, though I suppose we'll have to wait and see on that

However, this is the future we got, and all in all, those are just gripes. The combat has exactly the energy that it needs to, the comedic moments are given a lot more gravitas than they had in the manga, and once again David Pro loves to add in fun details. My favorite in this week's episode was Andy realizing what the source of the Unluck was going to be and slowly inching closer to Shen and Void so they'd be more likely to get caught up in it. I don't believe I saw the almost electric trail of blood from Andy's finger as he prepped his Parts Bullet against Void, but maybe i just missed it. If I did, let me know, I'd love to be wrong about this one

As I (and many others) predicted, episode 2 covered chapters 2 and 3, and I think it did it quite well. I'm not sure if it's because I read the manga, because it's an anime, or because the director specifically was trying to do this, but I felt like the anime made the exposition and details a lot easier to absorb than the manga did. If I had to attribute that to something, I would say that a panel can cram in multiple details and layers that the reader needs to be active to pick up on while an anime has to show everything individually and any deviation can be detected through movement. I don't know that for a fact, but it's the impression I get

The difference between Unavoidable and Shen's ability was pretty difficult for me to wrap my head around at first in the manga, but I feel like this iteration will make it a lot easier to differentiate them, hopefully. I wouldn't say that UU is obtuse in general, but I imagine a lot of it is going to be clearer going forward

We also got the opening and ending themes, both of which had great songs and animation. Both were definitely odd, though; they were kind of subdued compared to a lot of other shonen anime openings, with the OP spending about half of it on abstract fractals rather than establishing the characters or setting as one might expect and the ED being extremely somber and heavily symbolic. Even as a manga reader, both of them gave me a bit to chew on, which isn't something I usually expect from OP/EDs

I'd really like to read over the lyrics, but I don't think they're up anywhere yet, and even once I find them I imagine they won't pertain to the story and instead will just match the vibe more than expounding on the themes

Without going into spoilers, my favorite part of the ED animation is Andy waking up under the sakura tree with Fuuko after drifting along the River Styx and passing under dead trees; it's said that under every sakura is a corpse, so the idea that Andy is, in effect, burying his past and leaving his previous life behind him for a brighter future with Fuuko is extremely poignant and touching

If there's anyone worried about Andy and Fuuko's relationship based on the first two episodes, just know that that one bit right at the end of the ED is a better representation of their ongoing relationship than the first couple of episodes are. They are easily the best romantic couple in shonen manga, at least that I've ever seen, so just know you have that to look forward to

I'm particularly excited for next week's episode, cus I really like the Union member they're going to meet. I only recently came to like this character as much as I do, but they make a strong first impression at least, so I hope everyone out there enjoys them too. See ya then!

[ts1989fanatic]

OPINION

Matty Healy exposed the dark side of the Taylor Swift parasocial fantasy

The responses to Taylor Swift's latest breakup highlight a toxic cultural phenomenon.

Karma may be your boyfriend, but Taylor Swift is not your best friend.Chelsea Stahl / MSNBC; Getty Images

June 6, 2023, 5:29 PM EDT

By Patricia Grisafi

It’s a bummer when your best friend starts dating an apparent dirtbag. God, you think, what does she see in him? He looks like he smells of stale coffee and cigarettes. He looks like a hipster stork. You’ve heard him brag about how he watches humiliation porn. And don’t forget the racism and antisemitism.

Except Taylor Swift is not your best friend.

I don’t know what prompted the breakup, but I doubt it was a tearful Swiftie on TikTok.

When news broke this week that Swift and The 1975 lead singer Matty Healy had ended their brief relationship, social media celebrated in a way that was notable — and a little deranged. (And immediately started speculating about her next fling.) Just hop on Twitter and read the comments about how Swift had really heard her fans and tossed that loser in the trash. I don’t know what prompted the breakup, but I doubt it was a tearful Swiftie on TikTok. Still, imagine feeling like you have that kind of influence over a person you’ve never interacted with. Or that kind of personal investment.

Swift is — in some ways — an unusually private celebrity. It feels like her every move is carefully choreographed. We hardly ever see her messy, incoherent, or intentionally challenging. But fans feel like they know Swift because she writes prolifically about romantic relationships. It’s hardly novel, a musician writing about love and loss. Still, fans pore over these songs. They find Easter eggs in the lyrics, do complex analysis aligning certain ex-boyfriends with specific details. And because language is subjective and Swift is arguably both elusive and slyly encouraging of these readings, the meanings are ever-shifting. Depending on who you ask, she is everything from an Aryan pinup girl to a queer icon. In short, she is the perfect parasocial fantasy subject.

The term “parasocial interaction” has been around since sociologists Donald Horton and Richard Wohl theorized on the phenomenon in the 1950s. A parasocial interaction refers to a relationship in which a consumer comes to believe that media personalities are their intimate friends and that an emotional connection is shared. The phrase has become more popular recently with the rise of pop culture super fans, or stans. These fans can become incredibly invested in their favorite celebrity’s real-life relationships, and devastated if those relationships implode.

See, for example, when comedian John Mulaney separated from his wife Anna Marie Tendler in May of 2020 and began dating actor Olivia Munn. While celebrity relationships have always been fodder for gossip and people are naturally curious about their favorite stars (this writer included), public response regarding the Mulaney situation was noteworthy. Critics suggested that this was because Mulaney’s public persona made it seem like he was your buddy, your pal, a friend you could relate to. And he made his personal life part of his public persona by integrating details about his wife and French bulldog Petunia into his comedy routine. When he violated the parasocial social contract by not living up to that fantasy, things fell apart. It’s similar with Swift — particularly, this situation with Healy.

Swift stepping out with Healy disrupted fan notions of her and the values they believe she holds dear. She’s dating a guy who makes racist remarks? Who unrepentantly laughs about violently objectifying women? Is this who you are, Taylor? And if this is who you are, who am I?

Things got so intense that a group of Swifties circulated an open letter telling other fans to #SpeakUpNow.

Things got so intense that a group of Swifties circulated an open letter telling other fans to #SpeakUpNow and condemn the relationship: “He has been involved in acts and controversies that deeply trouble us,” the letter says. “We urge you to reflect on the impact of your own and your associates’ behavior and engage in genuine self-reflection.”

Rapper Ice Spice, who Healy called a “chubby Chinese lady” on a podcast, was brought in to share the stage with Swift in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Some speculated this act was a professional olive branch, others an empty, performative gesture to both Ice Spice and fans who were disturbed by Healy’s original remarks (he has since offered both an apology and a non-apology for the comments).

Poets talk a lot about how the speaker of the poem is not the writer of the poem. You’ve got to put distance between them. That’s healthy for artists and fans. You don’t know anything about Taylor Swift except what she carefully curates and puts out into the world. Her songs may speak to you, but she directly is not. Proclamation of ownership over a stranger and her love life, the fantasy that our whispers reach Swift’s ears and she heeds our pleas, is problematic.

Parasocial relationships can show the beauty of human emotion, our capacity for empathy, and our ever-expanding desire to connect. On the darker side, they reveal our desire for control, our capacity for cruelty, and our instincts to possess. If the parasocial fantasy is punctured, you might have to make an ethical choice that forces you to confront the dissolution of that illusion — and, more importantly, yourself and what you’re willing to accept.

ts1989fanatic: in some ways the last month or so on SM has been far worse and much more divisive than this🐍🐍🐍🐍 in 2016. There are times when I don’t recognize our fandom anymore.

I honestly don’t know if it’s the rise of TikTok as a preeminent SM platform or just a general increase in SM usage but I do know it’s become far more toxic than it was just a few short years ago.

[fallen-stellar]

You know, I have a dream I want to tell you about

Omoi no Kakera by Switch Song Analysis

Lyric Translation from Mika Enstars (@/mikaenstars) and KYM2020 (taken from the Ensemble Stars Wiki)

Overview:

This song is about finding what you once were, through the slumbering fragments of things you once desired or dream of. Even if you can't find it, there are people who are more than willing to help you reconnect with them and repaint them for you, embracing who you once were.

Note: This analysis is made with me having a decent knowledge about metaphors and Switch itself. I have dived deeper a bit with the Japanese original of the song, however I have not included every detail that might be hiding! So if you can add more to this or see some misinterpretation, please free to discuss with me! I love discussing these things with people! Anyways, enjoy reading!

Omoi no Kakera is a bit of a hard one to crack and it's bound to be different for everyone, but I will share with you today what I see this song to be!

Since it's a Sora-center song, fittingly, the song centers on Sora and his relationship with Switch. But before that, we should know how the song gets told to us and some references that I will be saying throughout this analysis.

Omoi no Kakera translates to "fragments of imagination". The lyrics also include being in this illusion, particularly using the kanji "幻", which means vision, illusion, apparition, and even a short-lived dream. The song revolves around these things, so buckle up because this is quite a ride!

I am not kidding when this song is a tough nut to crack, it relies heavily on metaphors and references to how Sora perceives Switch and his relationship with the members, both of which I just have a decent knowledge of, but I have taken the challenge to scrap up what I can find. As I said in the note, please freely to criticize or discuss this song with me! I love discussing with people, especially these particular topics.

In order to understand my blabbering in the next few paragraphs, let us address one term that is constantly repeated in the song and what ties this whole song together:

Fragments of Imagination/Memories

This is basically the topic and even the title of the song and it's a phrase repeated in almost every stanza of this song. Not really the exact words, but precisely the words imagination and memories are constantly repeated throughout the song. These are mostly referred to as being found or being seen, however, it's mostly accompanied by being caught in a dream or being in someone's heart:

The sleeping fragments of memory will remain there in your heart The world that surrounds us is a swaying fragment of memory

These are also referred that could be touched:

When I touch it (the fragments of memory), it's like I can hear you, I wish you could tell me

Or be interacted with:

If you have trouble finding them, come and see me Connect them and paint a new layer

What I could get from this, basing the that this is possibly Sora's perspective, this might be literal memories from him or referring to memories, specifically with Switch, which will be much clearer as we go on. The ability to interact with these memories will be important later on as we go. With this in mind, let's finally tackle the song itself!

The song starts by introducing us that the persona of this song is in a dream, or at least it will bring us much more understanding since it's a Switch song, it has magical elements to it.

The world that surrounds us is a swaying fragment of memory When I touch it, it's like I can hear you, I wish you could tell me

Keep in mind that this is Sora's world, the memories are his. When he touches one of his memories, he feels like he can hear one of the members of Switch.

The next lines are actually heart-wrenching to dive deep about, even if you don't know the context behind it all:

A beautiful dream that you told me that day I've already forgotten about it now You're already yourself there's nothing I'm worried about

Let it be known that the first line, "A beautiful dream that you told me that day," is sung by both Natsume and Tsumugi, telling Sora that he has told them something before, to which he responds, "I've already forgotten about it now." Natsume then responds, "You're already yourself" or "You're your own person" in other translations. Let's take these one by one. Sora has told Natsume and Tsumugi about his dream before, and the two then tried to let him remember it, but Sora responded he doesn't remember it anymore. Natsume responded to him with "You're your own person (now)." However, this is immediately followed by "There's nothing to worry about."

This entails that Natsume (and Tsumugi by extension) have seen how much Sora has grown, to the point that he has already forgotten about a dream he had (we will come back to this in a second). Even though he has forgotten this dream, Sora became his own now, which Natsume is proud of, reassuring him that "there's nothing to worry about it."

Even if one day it may seem like nothing but a dream The sleeping fragments of memory will remain there in your heart If you have trouble finding them, come and see me Connect them and paint a new layer

The basic meaning of this stanza without any connection with any prior lines is even though everything feels like a dream (specifically a short-lived dream), the fragments or the traces of the memory will always be inside them. When in times they couldn't find themselves, they should seek guidance to connect them and bring them in a new light or make them better or change it (in reference to "painting a new layer").

Honestly, that doesn't boil anything down to any simpler terms, so in order for me to clearly state the meaning of this line, let's take another line from the song.

This world that we've chosen, the fragments of memory that come and go If we recognize each other Our days will become even more wonderful

This stanza of the song basically confirms that the fragments are from Sora's and Tsumugi and Natsume is in the fragments, especially with the line "If we recognize each other, our days will become even more wonderful." This is a reference to how Sora desires for Switch to be together (if you want a deeper dive on this King of Thieves scout story is a good way to start!) It's not really in terms of recognizing each other, but it's apparent with Sora that he hates it when Switch, especially Natsume and Tsumugi get into misunderstandings, especially with their "colors" change. With the previous line being "the fragments of memory that come and go", meaning every day in Sora's life, he wants Switch to be together and he wants these specific fragments of memories.

You know, I have a dream I want to tell you about. It continues out into the sky, far far away, like a line being drawn Never stop dreaming and never give up on anything...

When I said we will come back to the dream Sora "forgotten" about earlier, we will come back with him telling the first line, "You know, I have a dream I want to tell you about."

This is just my interpretation (everything about this post is my interpretation, so please feel free to say something that I missed or got wrong), but since this line is after the prior lines, it might be referring to how Natsume and Tsumugi have helped him to remember his dream or reconnect with them. This is also heavily backed up that this is from past to future order with these lyrics:

A continuation of the past is waiting in the future Today I will show you it

A continuation of the past dream for the future that they will do in the present.

Let's go back to the chorus of the song:

Even if one day it may seem like nothing but a dream The sleeping fragments of memory will remain there in your heart If you have trouble finding them, come and see me Connect them and paint a new layer

The chorus of the song could be explained in simple terms: If things don't seem true or things might be confusing, the desire will still always stay in your heart. And if you have lost yourself, you could find us, we will connect these desires and memories and make them even better.

With that in mind, putting ALL of what I have blabbered about in this whole analysis in Switch terms:

It is implied that Sora is lost, even from the start he told us that he could hear them from his memories, and telling "I want you to tell me" is basically a term asking for guidance. Sora has forgotten about the dream he once told to Natsume and Tsumugi, may it be Switch being recognized or finally bringing the magic of Switch to everyone (or anything). Natsume and Tsumugi then reassure him even though he has forgotten the dream, or even if everything feels confusing or like a dream, the sleeping fragments (or the hidden memories or desires that are waiting to be awakened), are always in his heart. They will help Sora to find them if he can't, connect them, and make them better for Sora. Once they did connect, Sora finally found himself or this dream that continues on, telling himself to never stop dreaming and never give up on anything. It's a continuation of what Sora has desired before through the present, where Natsume and Tsumugi are helping him, up to the future of himself and Switch.

Adding onto this, the dream that they might be saying here couldn't be the literal sense of Sora's dream, however, it fits as well, but what he really is or what he desires. It actually makes sense how Natsume told him, "You're your own person" meaning Sora has grown already. However, the thing that Sora lost was integral to him, even tho Natsume (and Tsumugi) were proud that he was growing up. Even the last line emphasizes how important this dream was or whatever Sora lost:

Embrace the fragments of your memories...

It's telling to hold on tight to these memories, as even when we grow older, these dreams are what shaped us throughout the years.

[lianawrites350]

Into the Shadows: An Analysis of BTS’s “Black Swan” Music Video

Read the full essay here or on The Medium! https://medium.com/@bethalal5813/into-the-shadows-an-analysis-of-btss-black-swan-music-video-c71c5008bbbe

What if I no longer love my art? Every artist has, at some point, asked themselves this question. It’s a question fraught with fear, shame, pressure and doubt, asked in the deepest, darkest moments where no one else can see. South Korean boy band BTS, and one of the biggest musical acts in the world, also asks this question except they confess this fear to their global audience. In their 2020 single “Black Swan” from their album Map of the Soul: 7, RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook examine their relationship with music and the fear of losing their passion for it. As American dancer Martha Graham said “a dancer dies twice — once when they stop dancing, and this first death is the more painful.” This struggle with their fears is like death to them, tearing at their certainty of who they are, and they must find a way to overcome their fears or risk losing themselves entirely.

“Black Swan” is a raw, vulnerable insight into the insecurities and pressures BTS face as musicians and artists. Whereas their previous track, “Dionysus” is a delirious high, showing an artist’s intoxicating passion for their art, “Black Swan” and its corresponding music video is the bleak hangover. This R&B trap ballad admits the pressure and fears they face and how that interferes with their love for music. The title’s allusion to both Tchaikovsky’s evil character in the Swan Lake ballet and the 2010 thriller Black Swan hints at this duality of passion and fear, perfection and insecurity. The title could also reference the term “black swan”, an event, in this instance falling out of love with music, that happens unexpectedly, has extreme impact, and is of human nature. The music video, shot at the Los Angeles Theatre and released on March 4, 2020, captures these dualities by incorporating motifs of shadow and light, on-stage and off-stage, and black and white to explore the lyrics’s themes of fear and overcoming fear.

“Do your thang with me now. What’s my thang? Tell me now” This intro directs BTS to keep doing their passion, except they’re struggling to remember what their passion is. This struggle is at the core of the first verse, which introduces the shadows that haunt them. Suga raps “The heart no longer races when hearing the music play”. As a rapper, idol, musician, and producer, music is deeply intertwined in Suga’s life. His love for it is detailed in his 2016 song “First Love” which described the piano as the first love in his life, there for him throughout his life whenever he needed it. In this verse, however, he fears losing this passion for music one day, confessing it would feel like death. RM raps similar sentiments, admitting a deep fear that what if this first death is happening right now.

The music video articulates shadows through its lighting. Reflecting his opening lyrics, Suga crouches by himself on an elegant, empty stage that is half-submerged in shadows. In the music video, the stage is a metaphor for their relationship with music, and currently Suga’s love for music is submerged in darkness. The camera is pulled back in a long-distance cut, making him appear even smaller on the stage. Projected onto the background behind him, a huge shadow awakens and flexes like a bird stretching its wings. The shadows are awakening and actively overtaking him. The next scene is RM standing alone in a hallway of the theater, staring at the camera. The hallway is more clearly lit than the stage, but a daunting shadow is projected on the ceiling, looming over him. This shows that they are still being followed by their fears even when they leave the actual stage. As he raps about his “first death”, he momentarily turns his back from the viewer, hesitates, before looking into the camera directly, rubbing his throat.

This gesture of suffocation and death and the fear being realized in the present is reflected in the music video’s costuming and choreography. For most of the music video, the members are in fully black outfits, signifying their descent into the shadows. Black-and-white costuming is featured, however, in the choreography scenes that are intercut throughout. These scenes take place on a blacked-out stage with a single spotlight, symbolizing the shadows they are facing. Two dances take place here: the group’s official choreographed dance and Jimin’s solo dance. The costumes are designed to look mid-transformation from white swans to black swans. Jin and RM are in white suits but have black undershirts and black jacket linings. Further along the transformation, Jungkook has black trailing up his coat sleeves while Suga and J-Hope have black color on their tailcoats. V wears a black undershirt with actual feathers on his collar, and Jimin, the primary character in this music video, has black feathers running down his white jacket. The black represents the shadows, and the gradual overtaking of black, particularly around the neck, suggests the shadows suffocating them. In the group choreography, as Suga raps, Jungkook dances around him as a representation of Suga’s struggle against the shadows before offering his hand which Suga accepts. In RM’s verse, Jimin and V mimic RM’s moves behind him, amplifying his fears. In his solo scenes, Jimin performs a modern dance with the shadows nearly completely obscuring him. A clear shot of his face is not seen until nearly the start of the chorus, suggesting intense private turmoil.

The chorus section drags them deeper into the fear itself. The pre-chorus lyrics describe a muffled silence, impenetrable by songs or their cries for help. The silence is filled with only their heartbeat. This cavernous emptiness represents their fears of falling out of love with music, most likely brought on by the intense pressure, expectations, and scrutiny they face as global superstars as well as possibly anxiety and burnout from constant musical output. In the music video, V looks down at the camera, like a human to an insect, as it circles around him. This reflects the lyrics of trying to escape from the maw, evoking the voraciousness of this fear and the danger of being eaten alive by it. In the pre-chorus line “Do you hear me”, Jimin is alone amongst the audience seats, the room completely dark except for a large spotlight on him. The camera is held at a long-distance and Jimin is crouched away from the camera, reinforcing the isolation and the disconnect BTS feels. Jimin slowly rises but never looks at the camera.

To understand the main chorus, we need the context of BTS’s discography. In 2017, BTS released a hidden track called “Sea” where they described their journey as a group like walking through a desert, which represented their struggles and failures, as they tried to reach the sea, which represented success. The same metaphor is used in “Black Swan” except now they have reached the sea, or the ocean in this case, but find themselves at the bottom of the ocean with no light or sound. The success they have achieved through their struggles has come now with new fears. Rather than swimming in the ocean of success they are drowning in its depths. Further, on the same album as “Black Swan” is “Interlude: Shadow” in which Suga discusses the pressures he feels from his immense success by using the metaphor of shadows to describe his fears of failure, self-doubt, anxiety, and loss of control. Though “Black Swan’’ focuses specifically on the fear of losing their love for music, all these fears and pressures and doubts manifest themselves in the shadows heard and seen in “Black Swan”. In the music video, Jimin dances solo, succumbing to the shadows. As he sings that he is crying out silently, he drops out of the frame, and the scene cuts to the group dance.

During the chorus, the music video contrasts the darkened stage and a brightly-lit lobby, signifying the song’s focus on the group’s internal struggle behind the scenes. In the lobby, Jimin slides across the floor while the others prostrate themselves, reaching out for help. The movements are large and expressive, showing how they are trying to escape and failing. They struggle to rise but their feet are held in a rut on the ocean floor, and it is “killin’ me now, killin me now.” At this line, the scene switches to the stage where the members wear their white-and-black outfits; they are trying to perform, but the shadows are overtaking them. The camera is at a long-distance, disassociating them from the stage. When V sings “Struggle but it’s all ocean floor” the scene returns to the lobby, their metaphorical ocean. It feels like eternity being trapped at the bottom of the ocean, and they direct the listener to “Film it now, film it now”. The scene cuts back to them on the stage to be filmed for the world as Jin drops his arm from head to belt like taking a snapshot. As global superstars, BTS have every move, word, and decision scrutinized by millions across the world. Through this song, they surrender even their darkest moment to these millions of eyes, knowing there is no escape from the pressures and fears. The irony of their journey they discover is that at the bottom of the ocean is more sand: they never escaped the desert.

To be free, BTS has to confront their shadows and, somehow, overcome them. The ending of the chorus shows close-up shots of the members on the stairs. Jimin stands slightly away from the others, and instead of a close-up shot for him, it cuts to him on the stage. The camera curls around him as black wings burst forth from his back, signifying him turning into the black swan but also alluding to a hidden meaning. BTS’s 2016 album Wings, explored the growth and struggles of the group as they became adults. Their song “Outro: Wings” spoke about how BTS’s fandom ARMY are the wings to BTS that enable them to have freedom and success. The motif of wings returning here foreshadows how grappling with this fear will allow them new freedom and new heights.

After Jimin’s wings spread, the music video cuts to J-Hope, wearing all-black, in a new foyer. The light in the room is almost completely extinguished except for a floodlight-like light on him, as if he is in the ‘belly of the whale’. J-Hope raps about sinking deeper into the shadows. This time, however, instead of being pushed there, he tells the darkness to let go and walks himself into the deepest depths to face his own shadows. Throughout their discography, BTS have emphasized the importance of facing your fears. To them, fears are not a weakness to hide or something to run from but an essential part of growth. Fears can be overcome if only we’re willing to acknowledge them and push through them. This fear of their music and passion may be their deepest, darkest moment. Nonetheless they face it head-on. J-Hope dances near a fountain, symbolizing the ocean he is trapped in, and the camera begins to move closer to him, closing the previous emotional distance.

The reward of confronting his fears is seen in J-Hope’s final words of his verse: “I saw myself”. Struggling past the insecurities, pressure, and doubt, BTS have remembered the true reasons why they love music. They don’t specify these reasons because it is private to them, but by remembering why they do this, they realize that music is an essential part of who they are. Their fears were not a negative thing trying to destroy them, but an opportunity to grow deeper into themselves. As J-Hope raps, the scene cuts to a large, window-lit practice room. This time, the behind the scenes don’t suggest inner turmoil but inner peace and familiarity, a place they use to prepare to go back on stage. We now get a close-up of J-Hope’s face, cutting out any emotional distance, as he grabs and faces Suga.

Suga’s verse signals the return journey from the ‘belly of the whale’. J-Hope mirrors Suga’s movements like a shadow as they circle around each other. When Suga raps that he’s found himself, J-Hope leaves, alluding to Suga finally escaping the darkness. As if from a dream, Suga says, he wakes up in his studio, and realizes that no matter how violently the waves throw him, he won’t get dragged away because his love of music is in himself. Similar to the stage, the studio has at times been a burden to them, as seen in their 2015 song ‘Dope’, where the studio is the place where their youth rots away while they work; here, however, it goes from being a place of work to a place of love. The music video returns Suga to the stage where he first started the song. The camera now closely circles around him as opposed to the long shots in the first verse, and the shadow projected behind him is much smaller than it was in the first verse. Their fears held them down on the ocean floor, but openly acknowledging these fears and finding the reasons they truly love music means that they could never lose their passion again. He reaches out to his shadow like a friend.

The second chorus section references their 2018 song “Fake Love”, which features musical motifs repeated in “Black Swan”. “Fake Love” describes a bad relationship where they are masking their true selves. The lyrics “a forest of just us…I forgot the route that I came along”, shows how they have lost themselves in an effort to save the relationship. “Black Swan” continues the themes by describing them being in a bad relationship with music where masking their insecurities causes the death of their passion. The second pre-chorus section finds them waking up from their ocean nightmare in a forest. In the music video, Jin is in a dressing room, perhaps the most well-lit set of the video, surrounded by mirrors. In a different scene, Jungkook stands in the balcony section, where the whole theater is in darkness except the stage. Doolsetbangtan.wordpress.com notes that in Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami the forest is a kind of labyrinth that represents “the understanding of the self”. RM is a known fan of Haruki Murakami and is a main songwriter on both songs, so this is likely the forest he is referring to. In “Fake Love” they’ve lost themselves in the forest, but in “Black Swan” they’ve woken up in the forest, knowing once again who they are. Jin chooses to look himself in the mirror, and thus his shadows, as the lyrics contrast being swallowed by the jaws of fear with “nothing can devour me”. Overcoming the silence around them, they “shout with ferocity”, and Jin turns to stare into the camera. Though millions of eyes are on him, he is just as free to stare back at them. The mirror images don’t move with him, a homage to the film Black Swan, but also symbolizing that by looking into his shadows, he is no longer controlled by them. From the balcony, Jungkook has metaphorically risen above the fears of the stage. BTS know who they are and thus know the route through the forest. Jungkook leans back far over the balcony. Arms spread wide, he has found his wings and is not afraid to fall.

The final group dance takes place on the stage; however, unlike earlier, the camera moves from the audience’s perspective to BTS’s perspective. BTS are silhouetted against the spotlight, and their backs are to the audience, removing the control that the world has on them. They dance and sing for the love of it alone, and here, wearing all black, we see the transformation of the black swan completed. The black swan side of themselves at first appeared dangerous; like in Tchaikovsky’s ballet, it seemed evil, seductive, deceptive, as opposed to the white swans in them who were good, pure, but vulnerable. In truth, though, the appearance of the black swan as the sudden appearance of fear, is a good thing. Like in the 2010 film, the black swan side of themselves is raw, emotional, and in touch with the art, as opposed to the white swan character who is obsessed with perfection, technicality, and therefore afraid. The black swan is good because it is in touch with the deepest part of their souls and who they are as people and artists. Jimin’s solo, from the same stage and perspective, is a silhouette against the bright spotlight. He dances freely, expressing being broken by the pressure and rising once more again with faith in himself.

The difficulty of creating art, however, is that the insecurities, doubts, and pressures never quite fully leave. The outro of “Black Swan” shows the cyclical nature of these fears in BTS’s lives. BTS’s songs are typically structured as 3-verse, 3-chorus with a thesis-antithesis-synthesis approach showing their problem, revelation and growth through the progression of the song. “Black Swan”, however, is condensed into a 2-verse, 2-chorus structure, and the lyrics repeat for the second chorus and the outro. This repetition and break from their three-part structure indicates that their fears are not entirely gone. Producer and Youtuber Joey Nato noted that the synth of the outro sound follows the “What’s my thang” melody of the intro, and the music sounds submerged as if underwater. This suggests the ever-presence of their fears lurking at the edge. On the stage, they dance in a line behind Jimin, who reaches out for help and drags his feet across the floor as they sing about the sound being shut off and their feet held in a rut. Joey Nato points out, though, the “Do you hear me” is more aggressive in the outro. They have gained the ability to confront these fears.

In a solo shot, J-Hope is again surrounded by shadows. He stares into the camera before descending into the darkness. As he does so, Jimin, in his solo dance, collapses, and the camera pulls away, leaving him to the darkness. Though we don’t see the conclusion, we see a post scene of Jungkook in the balcony section. A large shadow has overtaken the stage. As he watches, the shadow shrinks and disappears. Satisfied, he walks off. It’s interesting to note here that a behind the scenes clip revealed that the looming shadows were performed by Jimin and J-Hope, adding a deeper layer of intimacy and familiarity to the shadows plaguing them. In the group dance on the stage, as they block the light, their shadows loom large in front of them. In the final formation, however, their silhouettes become interlaced with their shadows. They have confronted and overcome their fears and recognized that these fears are a natural, ever-present, and vital part of who they are as humans and artists.

BTS’s discography openly talks about their personal challenges, including growing up, mental health, and contending with injustices in society. Throughout these struggles, music remains a vital source of strength carrying them through it. “Black Swan”, however, rocks this security as they question their love for music. The song is spectacularly raw and its intense vulnerability makes it a definitive entry to BTS’s discography and the music industry as whole. But this struggle is not theirs alone. “Black Swan’s” various performance concepts reimagine the song in different contexts of art and shadows. In the premiere performance on The Late Late Show with James Corden, BTS danced barefoot and dressed in black on a stage designed like a fairytale forest at night. This performance paid homage to Tchaikovsky’s Black Swan and the ballet’s theme of good vs. evil. The Korean music show performances had them dancing in both black and white costumes amongst ruined classical architecture. These performances evoked imagery of grandeur decaying, of the art itself being broken because of their shadows. On The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’s “BTS Week”, they introduced a new spin on this struggle and performed on a stage designed like an abandoned church, alluding to the disillusionment of belief, in institutions but also in themselves, as their core identity is being called into question. Their Japanese promotions on NHK Songs modernized the theme. BTS performed in flowy, loose modern clothes on a simple stage, evoking an image of a performance student dancing alone in an abandoned auditorium as they struggle with their inner demons. No matter the interpretation, these performances and the song itself speak to the struggle of the soul decaying under pressure, shadows overcoming the light, and an artist fighting against all odds to keep the love of their art alive.

[skepticalcatfrog]

Okay look this is too good to stay in my brain, so this is what you all get today.

Secret Shanghai Tumblr Playlist #1

(Aka, it's not a real playlist. It's just being collected on Tumblr. But maybe I will make it one eventually.)

Anyway, here's our song of the day:

Chinese Satellite by Phoebe Bridgers

If you're a fan of Benedikt Montagov, and you also love being sad and making him suffer, you're going to love this one.

This, to me, is specifically related to Benedikt's character in the first chunk of Our Violent Ends. You can go ahead and just listen to the song if you'd like, but I'm putting a (sort of) line-by-line analysis below the cut for anyone who wants to enjoy this song in the precise way I do as they listen along.

~~~

(Each bit of analysis is going to be associated with the lyrics in the image above it, so you'll get a chance to read the lyrics first. There won't be analysis for every single line here, because some are just based on pure vibes. I'm only detailing the ones that I associate with specific things.)

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We see a lot of this feeling in him, specifically when he's around his family. He's trying to behave as much like himself as he can, but he's so lost and so full of grief and anger at this point that it's difficult to not let it show (and he often isn't successful at hiding it).

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To me, this line refers specifically to Juliette killing Marshall. Benedikt wishes it could've gone another way, even if he doesn't know how.

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The first half of this section is pretty clear cut. It's frequently referenced, not only by Benedikt himself but also by other characters, than he's sort of been overtaken by numbness. A lot of the time, he just isn't feeling anything at all, and when he does feel something, it's overpowering.

As for the second half, that has a bit of a double meaning for me. Not only does it mean that he wants to be wrong about the fact that he'll never see Marshall again (even if he believes that to be impossible), but it also sort of stands for how much he misses Marshall's frequent contrarianism. They would often have small, non-serious disagreements, and as annoyed as Benedikt could get with them, it became the norm for him. There isn't anything to replace that relationship, it's simply gone.

-

Again, I see this part as being about how contrary Marshall frequently was. He's described to be very impulsive, and he isn't afraid to speak his mind even if it can cause trouble for him.

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This lyric, to me, is about how Benedikt would be willing to do a lot of things - even things that are out of character for him - if it meant that he'd get to see Marshall again somehow.

-

I feel like it's somewhat clear what this bit is referring to. Benedikt still lives in the apartment that he once shared with Marshall, and even after he's gone, it's like he's still everywhere. The absence of him, in and of itself, is a reminder that he was once there.

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And that's all I've got! As I said at the top of this section, there are some lyrics that I didn't specifically analyze, but that doesn't mean I don't think they fit. I just think they fit based on vibes rather than specific, citeable things. Hope you enjoyed this, if you read this far! This song makes me insane.

[cinnamonroll999]

Top 5 Most Solid Chanbaek Proofs-Part 3

3. Heaven Lyrics Analysis

This is where stuff gets too "coincidental" to be a coincidence any more. I'll start from the beginning.

"Heaven", on Exo's EX'ACT album, is a b-side song written by Chanyeol.

As you probably guessed from the title, "Heaven", is a sweet song about a person who the singer feels like is an angel who came from heaven. In the song, the singer describes the angel as a beautiful person who is like a ray of light for them.

The keywords in the song are heaven, angel, sky, light, etc.

Hello, angel

You're like a painting, when I look at the sky, I can only see you.

As you read in the above image, Chanyeol used "sky" as a way to describe Bakehyun.

And apparently, during this time, Chanyeol also posted pictures of the sky on his Instagram.

Now, posting pictures of the sky is really common, especially among idols, but it's still pretty suspicious how he used it to describe Baekhyun too.

City street lights (Okay)

Even when the lights go out (Okay) and the moon disappears, it's still shining (Woo)

Because you are the star (Yeah, yeah) that fell from the sky

By chance, Baekhyun's superpower given by SM for their Kwangya plot line is light. This is a very small detail and is probably a coincidence, but we should take it in account to not miss anything.

I'm smiling for some reason

I can't sleep even if I close my eyes every night

I stay up all night again, thinking of you

Your shining smile makes me breathe

Perhaps you, you

Are hiding your wings behind your back

Yeah, anyone can tell you're my only angel

When I'm with you, I can fly

Years ago, Bakehyun showed everyone the "angel wings" on his back. He has prominent shoulder blades, and I think he's mentioned before that he is insecure of them.

Here, he bent down to show them to everyone and by coincidence, Chanyeol was the one who revealed them. He knew exactly where to press.

Baekhyun then gets up, and I believe he says "I'm an angel" or something along similar lines.

Yeah, she says, "Don't, don't

Casually say that I'm pretty as if it was a joke"

I took this particular point from @yeolspuppy's analysis. You should go check that out if you want a deeper analysis, since I only covered the major points. I'll link it below.

Bakehyun has some traditionally female traits, so in turn, many Exo members and Exo-Ls describe him as "pretty". While fans do it to praise Baekhyun's visuals, Exo members do it jokingly like an inside joke.

Saying that a girl is pretty jokingly seems really weird. In a world where people assume that they are a couple when a boy and a girl hang out, it seems like you wouldn't want to tell a girl that she's pretty in fear that she might find out about your feelings. However, if you have already confessed and are in a relationship with her, then why would the girl assume you are joking when you call her pretty? That is supposed to be a compliment.

Chanyeol is a celebrity who would face major backlash for using "he" in a song, especially in a country like South Korea. In order to protect his reputation, mentioning anything other than a "she" would be dangerous. Just because Chanyeol mentioned "she" does not confirm that he is straight or was referring to Baekhyun.

Thus, this line could easily mean Baekhyun telling Chanyeol to not jokingly call him pretty.

Heaven Song:

@yeolspuppy's Analysis:

There are honestly tons of song with Chanbaek clues. I compiled them all along with some other Exo songs that give chanbaek vibes. You can check it out if you want to:

Here's a YouTube channel I'm subscribed to. They give pretty good Chanbeek, Baekhyun, Chanyeol and Exo Daily Updates. Their analysis is also pretty good. Check them out: