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standardlovers · 4 years

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Ranking Phineas And Ferb Songs

1. Do Nothing Day, no complaints, it's really calming, it makes me really relaxed and steady, reminds me to take time in life for moments where nothing is happening, 10/10

2. Quirky Worky Song, absolute tune, great for quirky working it's right in the title, it's the type of song that if it played in public a lot of people would know it but not know where they know it from, 9.7/10

3. When We Didn't Get Along, really this is THE break up song, i just feel it in my soul, it really captures some raw emotions of abandonment as well as the sadness and mourning what it lost, even a lil bitterness abt peter the panda, 9.7/10

4. Fabulous, every moment in this song makes me feel alive, it really hits and takes me back, i love it i have a fun lil dance i do everytime i listen to it, 9.4/10

5. Perry The Platypus/Perry Theme, really this song gives us a nice beat, brings great introduction to a clear change between Perry's character filling a role between pet and agent, i just think this is kinda a perfect song for a spy 9.3/10

6. There's A Platypus Controlling Me, love the unity of this song, the coming together and the recognition of oppression and propaganda 9.2/10

7. Busted, i feel like we all know what there is to say about busted, that choreography! the respect i have for this song? astronomical! 9/10

8. I'm Linadana And I Wanna Have Fun, it holds the late80's-early90's energy we really needed to see reflected in the show, it has a good rhythm and really it's only not higher cause of how good the ones above it are 9/10

9. Disco Miniature Golfing Queen, honestly i just feel the need to get dressed up and throw on some rollerblades, dance with a gold club i love this song i love this energy 8.7/10

10. Come Home Perry, this feels heavy, it's a strong song and it is quite tragic, i feel like the show really lacks if we don't have perry there, it is hard to see them miss him, 8.6/10

11. Ain't Got Rhythm, really i love this song so much, i love the vibes the energy the ex rocker working at a library vibes, it makes me think of jon archivist so, 8.3/10

12. My Nemesis, really this song is a jazzy kinda calm, it's soothing but it's got a beat, generally fun to listen to, fun to have as background music but not overwhelmingly brilliant, its hard not to love it tho 7.9/10

13. Gitchee Gitchee Goo, great song really a classic , deeply romantic but, when it says that gitchee gitchee goo means "i love you" then says that he says "i gitchee gitchee goo you too" he's saying "i i love you you too" and it bothers me, 7.4/10

14. Today's Gonna Be A Great Day/Theme Song, honestly it's a really good song i think it goes off so hard and gets everyone singing but im disappointed people stop singing after the P&F bit, i think we should sing the full song, 7/10

15. Little Brothers, this hits both for the sense of sentiment and also comedy as the listing the basic traits required to be a 'little brother' it really is a song that feels like it comes from a place of love, 7/10

16. My Goody Two Shoes Brother, it's very musical theatre, it sits right in my chest when i hear it it's good but really my love for Dr Doof just takes over whenever he bursts into song, a 6.8/10

17. Truck Drivin Girl, honestly i love this song just for the whole dynamic of Candace and Dad, i think they're cool i think they vibe with each other and just i love them interacting it's so fun and catchy, 6.8/10

18. My Undead Mummy And Me, really this just brings me to a state of unavoidable nostalgia, i feel like i need to be in the mood for this song but if im in the mood it undoubtedly slaps 6.7/10

19. Ready for the Bettys, i loved this song, i still love this song it's upbeat, it makes me feel included in something, i really can't explain why it's not in the top half other than the fact in my soul i know this song is a 6.5/10

20. Let's Take A Rocketship To Space, this feels so cool, it reminds me of a gentle cold breeze, it should be higher but my chest feels tight when i listen to it and the "it's a final frontier baby" just does not sit right when you hear it, 5.7/10

21. You Snuck Your Way Right Into My Heart, really the song itself isn't bad, i just don't think id be a fan of love händel if they made a full album, 5/10

22. I Love You Mom, really this song leaves much to be desired, there's nothing really wrong with it but there's nothing really right either, maybe it's considering the issues we know exist between Candace and Mother but yeah no thanks, 4.4/10

23. He's A Bully, there's not much wrong with this song, it's just not my style? it doesn't hit the way you would want it to, so it does have to settle, 4/10

24. E.V.I.L B.O.Y.S, honestly this song slapped but feels overplayed, underwhelming, it doesn't give me anything to work with and the lyrics kinda flop and could not be listened to outside of the context of the show unless you heavily relate to Candace, 4/10

25. Chains on me, the lyrics are very good i think it's very well written but the actual presentation of the song isn't my favourite, 3.9/10

26. Queen of Mars, i don't Hate it but i wouldn't listen to it often, makes me feel sad abt Candace really, it hurts my feelings, are you okay Candace :-( 3.8/10

27. S.I.M.P (Squirrel In My Pants), really i don't vibe with this song at all, i was hoping it would be a lot more candace but it just doesn't feel authentic it does not spark joy, 3/10

28. Summer belongs to you, feels DCOM, very high school musical with a hint of a BoM beat and im just not a big fan, 2.6/10

29. Backyard Beach, this should definitely be higher but i can't get behind it idk why i just can't really back it up i'm not a fan, it's only saved by my love for ferb cause he's the singer of this one, 2/10

30. Phinedroids and Ferbots, bad it's not a good song, it feels so forced, i don't enjoy the experience of listening to it at all? 1/10

#soy.txt #this isnt all of them i just picked 30 i had listened to recently!#phineas and ferb #i think these songs all have a lot to offer some are just better than others

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happymetalgirl · 3 years

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Rating Christmas Songs

Yep, it’s that time of year we get inundated wherever we go with mostly shitty Christmas music, usually the same stuff as the years before and the many years before. There are some songs among the barren crop of overplayed tunes that I think are pretty enjoyable, but for the most part I feel pretty confident that most of us are just putting up with the vast majority of the holiday playlist (I mean no one is dying to play any of these songs any other time of year, so they can’t be that great), so it’s time to set the record straight.

Here’s a rating of a few of the season’s musical staples and some brief reasons behind them. I’m sure I’m missing a few classics, but do feel free to bring them up and I will offer my thoughts on them. Granted these songs all have dozens, of not hundreds or thousands of versions, so I’m kind of going by an average of what I generally hear, not the dubstep remix version or even my favorite version necessarily.

“Jingle Bells”

The classic, easy to sing, easy to play on whatever instrument, upbeat childhood Christmas song. It’s hard to mess this one up, and I’m just glad it’s not trying to get all overly serious about Christmas as many of the songs further down this list do. But I mean, it’s fucking “Jingle Bells”, who actually gives a shit about this plinky-ass song.

5/10

“O Holy Night”

This one’s cool the first several years you hear it because it sounds pretty grand and epic, but it does wear off after awhile. Still, I’d rather hear this song than most, and I’ve yet to hear it truly butchered. So cheers to that!

7/10

“Jingle Bell Rock”

The failed swaggering “update” or cousin of the classic children’s Christmas song, it’s one of those songs that sounds like a bunch of upper class white folks sipping wine and putting on the usual façade of in-person Facebook-style humble bragging and life-highlighting about their year for the family they’ve not flexed on all year or since Thanksgiving. The song though is so drab and seemingly intentional sucked of lol the fun the kid’s song had, and in its place is just overly drolly Sinatra-imitation with no spirit at all. It’s the definition of background music, and it’s for the worst kind of background. Dancing to it sure as hell sucks. If you’re hearing this song, you’re probably not having as much fun as you’re supposed to be for a song that’s supposedly more “rock”.

2/10

"O Tanenbaum"

While his semi-jazzed-up approach that characterizes the rest of the soundtrack still seeps into this song, I’ve always loved the more stripped back piano-centric approach that Vince Guaraldi takes with this song on the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack. The simple and sweet lullaby-esque melody at the core of the song really works well with the instrumentally minimal approach (which I do hear most often) and it evokes a sense of very sweet nostalgia (for me at least), and I can’t not like it.

9/10

“Angels We Have Heard on High”

You know I’ve heard some pretty alright versions of this song when it’s pushed toward its more energetic side. That over the top run on “glOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoria” tends to be the make-or-make moment of the song, and when a singer or choir commits to it and goes all out, it can sound pretty rad; I’m sure some power metal band somewhere out there has put a decent spin on it. The rigid, traditional delivery I hear more often, though, sadly sounds more often like it’s had the life sucked out of it.

7/10

“Silent Night”

Probably my favorite of the soft Christmas songs, just soulful melodies abound here and written in a way that hasn’t encouraged too many stupid renditions.

9/10

“Santa Baby”

This song is just fuckin’ weird, and I get the place of romance it’s coming from lyrically: finally dropping the charade of Santa Claus and being romantic with the speaker’s husband after putting on the act for the children. It’s cute and endearing, but god is it always so weirdly sung, in a hyperseductive baby voice, not subtle at all, and kind of not fitting with the kind of sweet endearing romanctic tone you would think it’d be carrying if you just read the lyrics. There are definitely worse Christmas/holiday romance songs, and I can definitely imagine this song being performed more sweetly than it usually is.

6/10

“Hark! the Herald Angels Sing!”

This. Song. Is. A. Banger. Glorious and triumphant as shit! It sounds good slow and fast, but definitely best when it’s played bold and loud, as opposed to some contrived-ass attempt at a ballad. This song feels like finishing a marathon. I’d pay to hear Khemmis do this fuckin’ song.

10/10

“Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”

Sinatra’s version of the song is probably the most famous at this point, and as a consequence, the very title I think tends to invoke his signature smooth delivery on its own. I used to hate this one, but these days I find its naturally soothing character much more welcoming, god, especially this year. I can see why some find it to droll and sloggy, but I think it’s a nice wind-down tune.

7/10

“Last Christmas”

You know, the original synth-pop version by Wham! isn’t too bad on its own; George Michael’s delivery is pretty heartfelt and I can see why it’s become such modern Christmas staple. However, in the context of Christmas background music, that repetitive chorus refrain that seems to be the only lyric anyone knows in the song, gets really grating when it’s the only thing that sticks out, the more scaled-back delivery of the verses aiding their being buried in the chatter with your eggnog-sipping relatives. Furthermore, I’ve yet to hear a cover of the song less dry than sandpaper. Positive points to the original only.

6/10

“Away in a Manger”

This song certainly gets points for its strong narrative consistency, but aside from the “the stars in the sky” line, the melody is really really lame, and infantile in a bad way, and I have yet to hear a version that doesn’t sound like it was done by or similar to an apathetic children’s choir. It’s that quintessential song that every church kindergarten choir gets forced to sing because it’s nice and slow and narrow-range that all the kids look absolutely braindead singing. Not that it’s ever the kids’ fault or anything, it’s just a boring-ass song whose weak-ass strategy hinges on a bunch of 5-year-olds getting into something they clearly don’t give a shit about.

4/10

“The Little Drummer Boy”

You know, I could envision a slow-building post-rock-esque version of this song being pretty cool, but to date, all I have heard is stiff corny solo vocal delivery a la Angela from The Office and haphazard attempts at injecting tons of energy into the song that don’t really fix the kooky melody at the core of it. I swear you can always hear whoever is singing it getting red in the face from the needless intensity.

3/10

"Christmas Time Is Here"

Another solid cut from the soundtrack to A Charlie Brown Christmas, its rather simple instrumental foundation serves as a pretty solid introductory piece for the season; it feels so much like welcoming in the winter. And then of course the jazz embellishments on the instrumental version are some of the best in the Christmas genre, though listening to the soundtrack these days makes me wonder what it would be like if a more bombastic and dynamic jazz band took these songs on a more wild ride. I would love to hear that.

8/10

“Joy to the World”

It’s a little bit cheesy, but I kinda appreciate how ridiculously celebratory this tune is. It’s another one that I think would be interesting to hear Khemmis do a quick cover of, despite the religious theme that doesn’t really fit into their style. At the very least, it always sounds fun or, indeed, joyous.

7/10

“We Three Kings”

I’m not convinced anyone cares about this song.

5/10

“The First Noel”

This is another one of those songs whose runny melody tends to lead to it being delivered so often way too seriously, never really all too fun or worthy of the seriousness either.

3/10

“O Come, O Come Emanuel”

This is another one of those songs that, on the surface, seems more genuine with its minor key and often stoic delivery, and that definitely makes it better than the vast majority of Christmas songs, but the melody and lyrics are a bit oddly mismatched, and the melody that serves as the key appeal in the song does wear thin as the years go on. Nevertheless, I always do seem to find a cool new version ever year or two.

7/10

“Do You Hear What I Hear?”

Goddamn this is such a goofy-ass song. Who the hell made this? I cannot take it seriously. One point for all the kids for the apt “do you smell what I smell?”

1/10

“Mary Did You Know?”

Again, who wrote these lyrics? Like, in the story Mary made up to explain her out-of-wedlock pregnancy, that was kind of the main thing, that this kid would do some crazy shit. I can’t take this song seriously either, especially when it gets the goofy overly operatic treatment.

3/10

“Santa Claus Is Coming to Town”

It’s another one of those songs that literally just says what Santa Claus does. Musically it’s catchy-ish, but I mean it’s about Santa Claus, and it’s so often sung in that overly serious, toned down Motown style that no kid likes. I never liked hearing it then, and I don’t now.

3/10

“12 Days of Christmas”

Structurally iconic, this song really doesn’t offer anything beyond that; have you ever tried listening to someone doing the whole thing? It gets old really fast, and the fact that the “halfway” point in the song, the six geese a-laying, isn’t actually the halfway point, because the verses get longer and longer... fuck! The only thing this song is good for is for structuring workouts around, nothing regarding listening to the song. It gets one point for its utility.

1/10

“It Came upon a Midnight Clear”

We really are in a stretch of trash Christmas songs right now. I don’t think this is anyone’s favorite Christmas song. It’s so lethargic and sleep-inducing, I’m falling asleep just thinking about it.

3/10

“We Wish You a Merry Christmas”

Eh, it’s kinda not a really important song. At least it wakes you up, but apart from throwing some energy into the Christmas playlist that many are often desperate for, it’s just a cheery addition of holiday-themed white noise.

4/10

“What Child Is This?”

Finally some good fucking food. I’ve heard some baller versions of this captivatingly grand song, whose accidentals and minor key really make it one of the more interesting listens during the holiday season. I would dig an Opeth cover or a Pallbearer cover, or... a Khemmis cover.

8/10

“Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!”

This is just one of those standard, old-timey, inoffensive season-themers. It’s alright, I’ve never heard any version of it that really blows my mind.

5/10

“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”

This one is almost indistinguishable from, but significantly less annoying than, “Jingle Bell Rock” and is similarly stiff in a way that it’s clearly not meant to be.

3/10

“White Christmas”

This might take the cake for the sleepiest Christmas song out there. It is SLOW, like Bell Witch should ironically do a 20-minute-long cover of it just to see how it goes.

4/10

“It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”

The shopping mall theme song. It’s always given that Sinatra treatment and it only barely fits well enough into that style.

4/10

“Feliz Navidad”

This one always feels like it needs to be sung with a big, cheerful group to capture the liveliness that its main appeal is based in, which puts it at a distinct disadvantage this year. Still, it’s always a fun, sometimes even bouncy song to play during the holiday season.

7/10

“Grandma Got Run over by a Reindeer”

I do actually welcome the absurd narrative that has somehow made itself one of the season’s ironic staples, and its slightly dark humor makes for a nice change of pace in the playlist with its upbeat, campy humor.

6/10

“Deck the Halls”

Fa la la la la, la la la no.

Annoying as fuck: 2/10

“Frosty the Snowman”

God, this song should be way more cheery and kid-friendly than it is. I mean, I’m sure kids don’t mind it, but it’s just yet ANOTHER one of those songs that can’t escape its old-timey suit-and-tie incarnation for the liveliness it desperately needs.

4/10

“God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”

One of the more compositionally clunky of the well-known minor-key Christmas songs, this one unfortunately tends to show why minor-key songs are generally a weird fit for theme. I have heard a good few modern renditions though that make the song worth keeping around.

6/10

“Jingle in the Jungle”

This one’s for the real ones out there. “Jingle in the Jungle” is not a real Christmas song per se, but it pushes the boundaries; it’s courageous. The song comes from the television series, Bob’s Burgers, in a stressful Christmas-themed episode where the musically adventurous son of the titular character, Gene, burns out his dad’s cell phone battery waiting on hold for a radio station to request this song. The phone dies and he does not get the chance to request the song, but a Christmas miracle occurs, and the station decides to play the obscure, bongo-laden song anyway, and it sure is a fun minute-long diddy.

8/10

“Wonderful Christmastime”

Paul McCartney’s peppy Christmas tune that only kinda accomplishes its light-hearted goal is simply one of many throwaway inoffensive modern Christmas songs that seems to have only gained cultural traction due to it being repetitive and simplistic af, and being made by a Beatle.

5/10

“Happy Xmas (War Is Over)”

Well it would only make sense to have the battle of the Beatles here with John Lennon’s standout Christmas track, a far more soulful, bombastic, and triumphant song that echoed his idealistic spirit in a way that makes this song not all too different from his standout solo works and compositions with The Beatles. It’s a warm, hopeful song that draws from a grounding in the harshness of reality rather than some escapist fantasies about Santa or religion. Despite the acknowledgement of the ills of the world, Lennon’s vision of Christmas and his wish for the world is a day of recognition of love and unity, which is purer than 99% of the dogmatic or materialistic Christmas music above, and definitely the song right below this one.

9/10

“The Christmas Shoes”

Alright, rubbing the hands together, we’re coming to the end here, with this fucking song. It’s not the most famous Christmas song, thank God, but when I heard it for the first time, I was immediately repelled by the saccharine melody, uncannily blank-faced delivery, and sappy lyrics, but it’s one of those special songs that gradually reveals several layers of shit the more you fixate on it. For the uninitiated, the song came out in the year 2000, from the Christian band NewSong; it’s an aggressively sentimental holiday ballad with a bit of pop country vocal flair that only adds to the sinister hokey-ness of the lyrics. And that really is the ugliest facet of this song; as sickeningly cheesy as the music is, the simple lyrics here are more morbid and more disgusting than the grossest brutal death metal songs. The song is a simple narrative about a poor boy buying his sick mom some nice shoes on Christmas Eve so she can look nice for Jesus when she dies, tonight, on Christmas Eve. Yeah, it’s fucking sickening. The song is narrated from the perspective of a man in the store when the boy is buying the shoes and the narrator offers to buy the shoes for him, and he muses vaguely and confusingly on his generosity and Jesus being the “true” meaning of Christmas. Yes, there are so many questions being begged by this narrative. Why would Jesus give a shit about the shoes? Why is getting shoes this divine Christmas gesture? How do these shoes even come close to offsetting the pain and suffering and loss this family is suffering. This is like the opposite of John Lennon’s “Happy Xmas” in that it’s offering a pathetic consolation for the cruelty of a world where a loving God apparently offers only a stranger’s mild and momentary generous gesture for a poor family in the thralls of a mother’s illness. It’s grounded in the same reality that John Lennon presents, but it whitewashes it and minimizes the suffering in a manipulative way to shoehorn a rather cliche reminder to adhere to religious dogma and to keep your mind pure and holy and only on Jesus. A plain-faced telling of the narrative on its own makes it seem kind of benign, but the weirdly sappy tone of it all does a pretty poor job of hiding how contrived the emotion is and how unnatural it all is. Every facet of the lyrics is crafted to maximize the superficial primal tug at the heartstrings; it’s supposed to feel extremely tender and sweet, and aside from being completely transparently manufactured, the response it delivers to the story it sets up is creepily unhuman, the opposite of a natural response to the details of what the song presents, and its misplaced sense of justice makes the song a pretty apt representation of so much wrong with evangelicals’ attitudes surrounding Christmas.

0/10

“All I Want for Christmas Is You”

by Mariah Carrey. Ending on a positive note. Probably the best and most classic modern Christmas song to come out in my lifetime, it’s a sweet, romantic, upbeat love tune that really captures the best aspects of the holiday season. Never mind the relatives and their dumb political views and drama or the religious nonsense that people get so disingenuously up in arms about, or the consumerism. Christmas at its best is a time to appreciate love, and this song gets it.

9/10

And that is it, for me, I obviously know I will never be able to rate every Christmas/holiday song ever.

I had some time, so I had a little fun and charted the 38 semi-serious ratings of Christmas songs here, which I will also be doing with the 200-something metal albums I’ve been reviewing and now rating at the end of the year. Should be interesting. Now 38 isn’t a particularly huge sample of the huge swath of Christmas songs, nor was it random (I just listed a bunch of songs I was familiar with). It didn’t produce the normal curve I somewhat expect for the larger sample of metal albums later at the end of the year; rather, it shows a two-peak pattern, which could be due to the sample size, or maybe it just illustrates a somewhat unsurprising polarized sample of opinions on Christmas songs. The songs that I remember that are (mostly) pretty common, I either really like or really don’t like, most of the songs are not in the middle. These were songs I have heard for a long time and remembered pretty vividly, so I’ve developed some relatively strong opinions on them. Anyway, look at this graaaaaaphh.

#Christmas #Christmas songs #Christmas music #Holiday songs #holiday music

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ice-cream-nekogirl · 5 years

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Come Come Kitty Kitty (Shinsou Hitoshi X Reader)

Summary: It might be a little bit embarrassing, but your pet name for Shinsou is ‘Kitty’ because to you, he’s the cutest thing EVER.

DAMN! I WAS LATE!! But Happy Birthday to our favorite purple son!! Shinsou is so freaking cool and adorable and he deserves the freakin’ world man!! He needs to be in Class 1-A NOW!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHINSOU!!

Sorry for any OOC-ness!!

Featuring: Our Favorite Purple Boy!!

Shinsou wasn’t the type people would assume would be spoken for, but to everyone and his own shock, he had managed to get a girlfriend. It wasn’t a big shock to some people though, particularly your best friends Izuku, Uraraka, Tsuyu and Mina. They’ve known about your crush on him for months now, because you were surprisingly pretty open about it.

It took Uraraka and Mina’s encouragement to get you to muster up some balls to tell him your feelings, and you did! After all, he sang My Chemical Romance to you in such an intimate and sweet way that day that it was impossible for you to not confess your feelings to him. From then on, you became his dork and he was your dork too, maybe that’s why you both worked out so well: You were both dorks in your own way.

But Shinsou was so much more than just your ‘dork’.

Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so pretty pretty

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Stay with me

Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so silly silly

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Play with me

Every text, every call he gave you and your phone would ring ‘Hello Kitty’ by Avril Lavigne. That was your given song to your boyfriend, because he was your kitty, and you had called him that to annoy him on purpose at times because he was cute whenever he got flustered for a change.

At first Shinsou was flattered because he personally loved that song, but it was different when that song would play out loud where yours and his classmates would hear it and know that it was him texting you.

“You should be flattered dude. You got a girl who loves you so much~.” Kaminari took great joy in teasing Shinsou about this, as it annoyed the hell out of the brainwasher.

“I know she does.” He muttered in response, he WAS flattered, but it was just kind of embarrassing. He was trying to present himself as a serious and focused hero-in-training and having ‘Hello Kitty’ as his leitmotif by his girlfriend wasn’t exactly the best way to make himself seem tough or formidable.

Shinsou should have known better though, that’s just how you were.

You were his dork.

He was your kitty.

~HELLO KITTY HELLO KITTY~

He sighed heavily walking into the dorms, thinking about how sore he would be tomorrow morning. Aizawa was a brilliant mentor, but it felt like his lessons were getting harder and harder, which kind of added to the stress he was constantly under, and you knew it.

You often made him feel better in your own weird ways, whether it was taking him to go pet cats at a café, baking him something loaded with either sugar or chocolate, massaging his shoulders, showing him old cartoons you used to watch or getting him to sing punk and classic rock with you.

But you weren’t here, and he had guessed that you probably went out with Uraraka or Tsuyu. Everyone seemed to be out as a matter of fact, not that he minded, Shinsou had learned how to value his solitude from an early age and became an introvert ever since.

Yet, he missed you. You were the only one who really got him, and he was feeling a lot of stress today for some reason. However, he wasn’t going to be needy and would just wait until you got back so he could maybe suggest an old horror movie or something.

It wasn’t long ago when you and him had confessed to ‘like-liking’ each other, and just thinking about it made him smile and blush a little bit. You were singing your favorite songs, and some of his too. Especially My Chemical Romance, while you were singing Avril Lavigne, another one of his favorite singers.

Even if she did sing that song that seemed to be embarrassing him a little bit. But it was one catchy song…

Shinsou especially liked the idea of the song being about cute cats, but he couldn’t help but blush every time you sang ‘come, come kitty kitty’ to him because you were referring to him as ‘kitty’. In a way that became your other song for him, and he had to admit, deep down, he liked it. And it had been stuck in his head for quite some time…

Perhaps it was time to break out the hairbrush again…

Nobody else but him was here, and he felt like singing something might get some of the stress off his mind. So he did take your hairbrush (before leaving a ‘will return’ note on the space) and went to the same TV to hook his phone up to it.

He made extra sure that nobody was around once he saw his playlist, and started the song. His song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiaYDPRedWQ

“Mina sako arigato, k-k-kawaii.

K-k-kawaii.”

With the music video playing, he held the hairbrush as his makeshift microphone and started to sing in a rare, upbeat voice in tune with the fast rhythm. Mimicking the moves as he stared intently at Avril and imagining that you were here with him so he could sing this song for you.

And he made sure to follow her moves, which were so energetic, a contrast to his low-key self as he followed her moves, becoming more authentic and animated as he started to dance a little bit as much as his body would let him.

“Mom's not home tonight

So we can roll around, have a pillow fight

Like a major rager OMFG!

Let's all slumber party

Like a fat kid on a pack of Smarties

Someone chuck a cupcake at me~”

Shinsou wasn’t shameless, at all, even when he let music take him away for a bit. He knew he’d probably never get this crazy and stupid around you, since after all, he just started dating you and that made things even more awkward somewhat. He was still an introvert, and that’s why you loved him, but he opened up to you a bit.

It’s just that, he couldn’t get as silly as you, or at least, he couldn’t do it without feeling so embarrassed and fearing that he would make himself look so stupid that it would turn you off…

You had no fear though, you weren’t afraid to be your most silly and authentic self around him, and he secretly admired you for that…

“It's time for spin the bottle

Not gonna talk about it tomorrow

Keep it just between you and me~.

Let's play truth or dare now

We can roll around in our underwear how

Every silly kitty should be~.”

Even when he was singing, he could feel his face growing hot because he couldn’t even believe the words he was saying and how he was moving. And the thought of you seeing and hearing him like this. He couldn’t imagine the look on your face…

Of course he knew you’d probably just squeal and say he was the most adorable thing ever, but it still made him blush heavily just thinking about it.

“Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so pretty pretty

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Stay with me

Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so silly silly

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Play with me~.”

You thought you heard music in the second floor, and it was your favorite song at the moment, “Come come kitty kitty you’re so silly silly, don’t go kitty kitty play with… me…” So you sung the lyrics, at least until you got closer and saw your dear Shinsou at the same place you were those months ago, singing his sweet heart out.

Quickly you hid behind the corner, thankful that your boyfriend didn’t seem to notice and seemed really into the song and music video he was watching and mimicking.

“K-K-K-Kawaii~

Hello Kitty, hello Kitty

Hello Kitty, you're so pretty

Hello Kitty, hello Kitty

Hello Kitty, you're so silly”

Shinsou was completely oblivious to the fact that someone, or rather YOU, were watching him sing and dance like a dork. The music was too loud for him to really notice anyone else that might have been in the same room, or maybe he was singing too loud.

Either way… he had no idea that you were there. And he proceeded to sing the ridiculously catchy chorus with more vigor, using his feet and following the thankfully easy dance moves on the TV.

“Wake up, got a secret

Pinky swear that you're gonna keep it

I've got something you need to see

Let's be friends forever

I wanna do everything with you together

Come and play with Kitty and me~.”

You bit your bottom lip, your cheeks flushing bright cerise at how adorable your boyfriend was. He was always adorable, but this took it a whole different level. Especially with the cute song he was singing, and how he was dancing rather awkwardly in an attempt to follow what was in front of him. It was too adorable to ignore, so you got out your phone and started to record everything that was going on, just so you could watch it all to yourself another day when you needed a cute video to smile at…

You were going to pay dearly for it but it was just too ADORABLE to pass up…

“Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so pretty pretty

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Stay with me

Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so silly silly

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Play with me~.”

Shinsou sung his favorite lyrics, jumping slightly just like Avril, pretending to gesture a kitten over to him when he sang ‘Come come Kitty Kitty~’ and was smiling more than he realized. Truth was, he was thinking about you when he sang those lyrics. This was his song, the one you gave to him, it might have been embarrassing but you chose this for him because he knew you found him adorable.

Which touched him because ‘adorable’ was the last word he’d use to describe himself.

“Kawaii

Hello Kitty, hello Kitty

Hello Kitty, you're so pretty

Hello Kitty, hello Kitty

Hello Kitty, you're so silly

Mina sako arigato! K-K-Kawaii!

K-K-Kawaii!

Meow~.”

Your eyes widened when Shinsou almost got a little more provocative with his dancing, even pretending to scratch like a cat with his trademark smug smile that he gave to no one he could see. Your cheeks starting to burn as your heart race sped up, feeling a rush of giddy excitement running through you as you resisted the urge to squeal out loud and kept your phone as still as possible to keep recording…

“Hello Kitty, hello Kitty

Hello Kitty, you're so pretty

Hello Kitty, hello Kitty

Hello Kitty, you're so silly~.”

Shinsou held the hairbrush, singing and dancing around in an almost free manner now that the music took it’s hold on him. Now he got why you gave him this song, it was so catchy and he could shake his hips to it, and dare he say he could even give his rear a little shake since nobody was around. It was liberating even though he wouldn’t dare do this in front of anyone without making a fool of himself as he nodded his head at the last chorus.

“Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so pretty pretty

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Stay with me

Come come Kitty Kitty

You're so silly silly

Don't go Kitty Kitty

Play with me~.”

Just like he did with the last song he sang, Shinsou dramatically dropped the mic for no one else to see, visibly out of breath and sweating a little bit since that was a fast song. He wiped some of the sweat off his breath, panting ever so slightly now that the song ended. He hoped you would be here soon though…

Unfortunately, he realized that his wish had come true…

Because the second he looked away from the TV, he met your (E/C) eyes staring right at him, wide and startled, and with your phone directed right at him. His purple eyes started to widen ever so slightly as a quiet gasp left him once he realized what you were doing, and that you apparently had been there longer than he thought…

You grinned rather nervously with rose-pink cheeks as you pushed stop on your phone, but all you saw was Shinsou’s face gradually turn red as his brows furrowed into a VERY un-amused glare.

“Delete that.” His reply was fast and demanding, but you perked up when he started walking to you, and before you could say anything at all, you remembered his quirk and smirked, shaking your head and he gasped slightly when he caught onto your little scheme. “(Y/N), Delete that!” He repeated as you ran off screaming when he started chasing you down the hall.

Your scream turned into a laugh as you made your way down the stairs, still having the relentless Shinsou on your tail, he couldn’t brainwash you because you refused to say anything to him because you knew better by now. “(Y/N) I’m serious…” He said to you somewhat sharply when you ran a little faster, and made your way to your own room and shut the door on him.

He tried to open it but you already locked it. “(Y/N)… don’t you dare show anyone that…” Shinsou’s face was flushed from both embarrassment and from running so fast as he panted a little bit, just waiting for you to reply so he could make you do what he asked. He’d feel bad about it later but he just lost all of his dignity…

“But you’re adorable Toshi!! Besides I’m not going to show anyone I swear!” You finally replied, but Shinsou didn’t actually try to brainwash you since he had enough kindness to hear you out, “Hehe… that was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen…” You said sweetly, using your telekinesis to open the door but his head was down and his eyes were staring at his feet as his cheeks were burning scarlet red.

He tried to scoff, but it just came out as an embarrassed mumble, “S’t up…”

“I mean it! You’re adorable!!” You got up, hugging him rather tightly, worsening his already dark blush as his cheeks burned hotter and turned more beetroot. “I’m… not… cute…” Shinsou was somewhat self-deprecating by nature, as his history kind of enabled him to be fairly humble and although appearance didn’t matter to him, he still never considered him attractive. So the fact that you found him cute or handsome at all, truly did make him happy.

He just didn’t know how… and was still trying to accept that.

“Yes. You. Are.” You cupped his warm cheeks, smiling at him and kissing him on the forehead, “I’ll delete the video… but I mean it… you really are cute. My cute little kitty~. My dear Hitoshi…” You said the sweetest, most sincere words he had ever heard as his purple hues widened a bit, his whole face lighting up as he tried and failed to avert his gaze. “(Y/N)…” His voice turned shy, but he couldn’t stop himself from giving you a coy smile as he rubbed the back of his neck, “You’re so mushy gushy…”

Mushy gushy or not though, he kind of liked it. Shinsou didn’t think he would ever be one for romance, but it felt nice having someone give him this kind of affection. He liked hearing you call him ‘your kitty’, in private, but still. And you giggled happily when he returned the favor by giving you a sweet little peck on the cheek.

“You don’t have to delete the video.” He almost sounded reluctant telling you that, but you were his girlfriend and he loved you, “But don’t EVER show that to ANYONE… EVER.” But Shinsou did give you a very stern, serious warning with a firm little glare as you giggled rather nervously but nodded, “I promise~.”

You meant that, because that video was for you. Only you could see your kitty be that adorable, “OH! That reminds me… Happy Birthday!” Suddenly you recalled why you had to come back, you had gone out with your girl-friends for some advice on how you should spend your beloved Shinsou’s birthday.

However, even Shinsou was surprised, “Oh… right, it’s my birthday.” He sounded very casual about it, not exactly huge on birthdays even if it was a big deal since it meant that he existed. Maybe that’s why he was so stressed today, because of the unwanted age that came with it…

“Thank you (Y/N).” Shinsou thanked you though, knowing that you were pretty serious about this. “Of course! Now c’mon! Let’s go downstairs to the kitchen! I’m gonna make you a cake and I have a gift for you in my room!” And he was proven right when you grabbed his hand and started to kind of pull him in your direction to lead him to the kitchen. Shinsou was the low-key one so that naturally meant that he had to follow you since you were the more energetic one.

But he smiled and chuckled quietly, following you with ease despite how forceful you could be. That was just you being his dork. “Okay you dork…” He said to you fondly as you playfully smiled at him.

“Thank you kitty~.”

You swore you’d never seen a boy blush so red that fast, but you truly did adore your kitty.

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daveykid · 5 years

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A Deeper Look into Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the U.S.A."

I'm not sure how much specifically you know about this album, possibly aside from the album's title track. (Which so happens to be the ultimate embodiment of the theme of this deeper look, and quite likely not so unintentionally.)

First, the obvious side.

This record is the best seller for Bruce & his band at an estimated 30 million units. It's also estimated to be the 25th top-selling album of all time. It had seven singles in the Billboard Top Ten from June 1984 to February of 1986. Seven Top 10s out of the twelve total tracks on the album - and a string of hits that lasted for over twenty-one months. (For a musical 'frame of reference', an album we know intimately, Drake's Scorpion had eight singles that reached Billboard's Top 10 list, but hung around a total of only eight months. Obviously, time, trend, and music consumption moves at a much different pace these days so it's not a direct comparison but again just a frame for reference.) The title track as a single is certified Gold status, and the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) placed the song 59th out of 365 for their Songs of the Century list. (The list is based upon "promoting a better understanding of America's musical and cultural heritage." In the top twenty of this list are songs like "Over the Rainbow", "White Christmas", "Take Me out to the Ball Game", "Stars and Stripes Forever", and "God Bless America". Very different than a song like "Born in the U.S.A.") We today, still hear classic rock and classic hits stations playing "Born in the U.S.A" and "Dancing in the Dark" seemingly on a once-every-hour basis.

And now to the dark side.

If you take the catchy & fun-loving choruses, the mostly-upbeat instrumentation, the seemingly pridefully patriotic title of the album and its' greatest hit, and ignore the rest - the sales, the awards, and the recognition that this is one of America's most glory-freedom-working man-red, white, and blue-centric albums of all time makes a lot of sense. However, if you discard the album cover, mute the comfortable sounds of the Cougar-Mellencamp style 80s Americana-Rock & Roll, and read the lyrics - then you might discover this album to be one of the greatest misunderstandings in pop music recordings.

From here, I'll just let selections from Springsteen's lyrics speak for themselves. I limit the following to selections, not to try to take away from a 'Heartland-Americana' message, but simply because some of the songs are actually just somewhat silly love songs, and their lyrics don't take either side of my 'argument'.

We'll start with the title track of the album and the first song on the album.

"Born in the U.S.A"

Born down in a dead man's town The first kick I took was when I hit the ground End up like a dog that's been beat too much 'Til you spend half your life just covering up

Born in the U.S.A I was born in the U.S.A I was born in the U.S.A Born in the U.S.A

Got in a little hometown jam So they put a rifle in my hand Sent me off to a foreign land To go and kill the yellow man

Born in the U.S.A I was born in the U.S.A I was born in the U.S.A I was born in the U.S.A

Come back home to the refinery Hiring man said "son if it was up to me" Went down to see my V.A. man He said "son, don't you understand"

I had a brother at Khe Sanh fighting off the Viet Cong They're still there, he's all gone He had a woman he loved in Saigon I got a picture of him in her arms now

Down in the shadow of the penitentiary Out by the gas fires of the refinery I'm ten years burning down the road Nowhere to run ain't got nowhere to go Born in the U.S.A I was born in the U.S.A Born in the U.S.A

Okay, actually those are the EXACT lyrics for the ENTIRE song without any REDUCTIONS. Holy shit. That's heavier & more critical than even I knew. Enough said - on to track two.

"Cover Me"

The times are tough now, just getting tougher This whole world is rough, it's just getting rougher Cover me, come on baby, cover me Well I'm looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me

Now promise me baby you won't let them find us Hold me in your arms, let's let our love blind us Cover me, shut the door and cover me I'm looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me

Outside's the rain, the driving snow I can hear the wild wind blowing Turn out the light, bolt the door I ain't going out there no more

This whole world is out there just trying to score I've seen enough I don't wanna see any more, Cover me, come on in and cover me I'm looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me

Outside's the rain, the driving snow I can hear the wild wind blowing Turn out the light, bolt the door I ain't going out there no more

Here the lyrics aren't specifically anti-government, US-critical, etc., but they certainly aren't happy lyrics. These words are expressing heavy depression, intense anxiety, and forlorn frustration. The narrator is searching for a romantic partner to willfully blind himself and be ignorant and shielded from the world outside.

"Darlington County"

Driving into Darlington County Me and Wayne on the Fourth of July Driving into Darlington County Looking for some work on the county line

We drove down from New York City Where the girls are pretty but they just want to know your name Driving into Darlington City Got a union connection with an uncle of Wayne's

We drove eight hundred miles without seeing a cop We got rock and roll music blasting off the T-top, singing

Little girl sitting in the window Ain't seen my buddy in seven days, play it boys County man tells me the same thing He don't work and he don't get paid

Little girl you're so young and pretty Walk with me and you can have your way And we'll leave this Darlington City For a ride down that Dixie Highway

Driving out of Darlington County Eyes seen the glory of the coming of the Lord Driving out of Darlington County Seen Wayne handcuffed to the bumper of a state trooper's Ford

This song is probably the most jingle-jangle, pop-friendly tune on the record, but again, the lyrics tell a different story. And also nothing really political here, but it is a story of two somewhat morally decrepit, sleazy guys who, even though they are unemployed and looking for work, are pretending to have a lot of money in order to get with pretty girls. The narrator even describes her as a 'little girl' who is 'so young and pretty'. The listener can assume that the narrator leaves town with this girl and leaves his buddy stranded, only to see him getting arrested by a state trooper. There's nothing to be proud of in this story.

"Working on the Highway"

I work for the county out on ninety five All day I hold a red flag and watch the traffic pass me by In my head I keep a picture of a pretty little miss Someday, mister, I'm gonna lead a better life than this

Working on the highway, laying down the blacktop Working on the highway, all day long I don't stop Working on the highway, blasting through the bedrock Working on the highway, working on the highway

I met her at a dance down at the union hall She was standing with her brothers, back up against the wall Sometimes we'd go walking down the Union tracks One day I looked straight at her and she looked straight back

I saved up my money and I put it all away I went to see her daddy but we didn't have much to say "Son, can't you see that she's just a little girl She don't know nothing about this cruel, cruel world" We lit out down to Florida, we got along all right One day her brothers came and got her and they took me in a black-and-white The prosecutor kept the promise that he made on that day And the judge got mad and he put me straight away I wake up every morning to the work bell clang Me and the warden go swinging on the Charlotte County road gang I'm

Working on the highway, laying down the blacktop Working on the highway, all day long I don't stop Working on the highway, blasting through the bedrock Working on the highway, working on the highway

This is another song that seems to be just an upbeat, pure-pride working man's Americana ballad about hard work and the simple life and simple pleasures. Look closer and we see the story unfolds in another dark direction. The narrator is a highway construction worker who's got nothing better to do during his workday than to fantasize about a sexy girl. He eventually meets someone that he feels fits that description. They like each other. They quickly elope to Florida. Her brothers come and get her and take her back home. Turns out she was not even the age of legal consent, sending him to prison for statutory rape where he's forced into manual labor where, you guessed it, he's working on the highway. Not much joy here. No pride to be found. Nothing to be proud of.

"Downbound Train"

I had a job, I had a girl I had something going, mister, in this world I got laid off down at the lumber yard Our love went bad, times got hard Now I work down at the car wash Where all it ever does is rain Don't you feel like you're a rider on a downbound train She just said, "Joe, I gotta go We had it once, we ain't got it anymore" She packed her bags, left me behind She bought a ticket on the Central Line Nights as I sleep, I hear that whistle whining I feel her kiss in the misty rain And I feel like I'm a rider on a downbound train

Last night I heard your voice You were crying, crying, you were so alone You said your love had never died You were waiting for me at home Put on my jacket, I ran through the woods I ran till I thought my chest would explode There in the clearing, beyond the highway In the moonlight, our wedding house shone I rushed through the yard I burst through the front door, my head pounding hard Up the stairs I climbed The room was dark, our bed was empty Then I heard that long whistle whine And I dropped to my knees, hung my head and cried Now I swing a sledge hammer on a railroad gang Knocking down them cross ties, working in the rain Now, don't it feel like you're a rider on a downbound train

Shit. Another song that ends with the narrator getting arrested for a seemingly-honest act of desperation. There's nothing from the lyrics that need elaboration. Guy gets laid-off from a low-skill, low-education job. Marriage suffers. Woman leaves. Man gets an even shittier job. Man dwells on his broken heart and becomes delusional. Man breaks into either his old home which he doesn't own anymore or to the home where his ex-wife lives. Either way he ends up doing forced labor in prison.

"I'm on Fire"

Hey little girl, is your daddy home? Did he go away and leave you all alone? Mhmm I got a bad desire Oh oh oh, I'm on fire Tell me now, baby, is he good to you? And can he do to you the things that I do? Oh no I can take you higher Oh oh oh, I'm on fire Sometimes it's like someone took a knife, baby Edgy and dull and cut a six inch valley Through the middle of my skull At night I wake up with the sheets soaking wet And a freight train running through the middle of my head Only you can cool my desire

Another song that has nothing to be happy about. I won't even touch the 'hey little girl, is your daddy home?' part, because that could either be the narrator's way of talking sexy to a woman who already has a man, or it could be taken literally: a pedophile trying to have sex with a non-adult girl. The last two verses of the song are again describing severe mental and emotional instability. The narrator feels like he's been cut through the middle of his mind with a long, but dull knife. He also frequently wakes up in sweat and feels like a freight train is running through his mind. This is definitely not a love song, and there is nothing to be happy or encouraged about here. I'll skip "No Surrender" because though that is another song of run-out-of-options desperation, it is the most hopeful and resilient story on the album, which doesn't say much.

"Bobby Jean"

Well, I came to your house the other day Your mother said you went away She said there was nothing that I could have done There was nothing nobody could say Me and you, we've known each other ever since we were sixteen I wished I could have known I wished I could have called you Just to say goodbye, Bobby Jean Now, you hung with me when all the others Turned away, turned up their nose We liked the same music, we liked the same bands We liked the same clothes We told each other that we were the wildest The wildest things we'd ever seen Now I wished you would have told me I wished I could have talked to you Just to say goodbye, Bobby Jean Now, we went walking in the rain, Talking about the pain that from the world we hid Now there ain't nobody, nowhere, nohow Gonna ever understand me the way you did Maybe you'll be out there on that road somewhere In some bus or train traveling along In some motel room there'll be a radio playing And you'll hear me sing this song Well, if you do, you'll know I'm thinking of you And all the miles in between And I'm just calling you one last time Not to change your mind, but just to say I miss you, baby Good luck, goodbye, Bobby Jean

This is another song of broken relationships, inevitable endings, and filled with regret. The narrator loses the only person he feels he could express himself to, the only person who truly understood him - and it seems obvious to the reader that this connection and love was unreciprocated because he didn't even know she was leaving, let alone gone. Another song of disappointment and sadness. The music is seemingly light-hearted with a doo-wop, Jersey boardwalk kinda sound.

"I'm Goin' Down"

We sit in the car outside your house I can feel the heat coming 'round I go to put my arm around you And you give me a look like I'm way out of bounds Well you let out one of your bored sighs Well lately when I look into your eyes Down, down, down, down I'm goin down, down, down, down I'm goin down, down, down, down I'm goin down, down, down, down We get dressed up and we go out, baby, for the night We come home early burning, burning, burning in some fire fight I'm sick and tired of you setting me up yeah Setting me up just to knock-a knock-a knock-a me down Down, down, down, down I'm goin down, down, down, down I'm goin down, down, down, down I'm goin down, down, down, down, hey now I pull you close now baby but when we kiss I can feel a doubt I remember back when we started My kisses used to turn you inside out I used to drive you to work in the morning Friday night I'd drive you all around You used to love to drive me wild yeah But lately girl you get your kicks from just driving me down

And yet another about the dying embers of a love soon to be lost. Simply put, it's a couple who's been together for quite some time, and it's growing boring, regular, even poisonous.

"Glory Days" Now I think I'm going down to the well tonight And I'm going to drink till I get my fill And I hope when I get old I don't sit around thinking about it But I probably will Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture A little of the glory of, well time slips away And leaves you with nothing mister but Boring stories of glory days

I employ only the last verse here to encapsulate the overall meaning of the song. The story features an ex-great high school baseball player, a formerly popular talk-of-the-town beauty, and (assumedly) the narrator's father who's recently been laid-off and can't find work anywhere else. The common denominator the three characters share is their sadness, their brokenness, their strong nostalgia, and their fruitless desire to be young again.

"Dancing in the Dark" I get up in the evening And I ain't got nothing to say I come home in the morning I go to bed feeling the same way I ain't nothing but tired Man I'm just tired and bored with myself Hey there baby, I could use just a little help You can't start a fire You can't start a fire without a spark This gun's for hire Even if we're just dancing in the dark Message keeps getting clearer Radio's on and I'm moving 'round the place I check my look in the mirror I want to change my clothes, my hair, my face Man I ain't getting nowhere I'm just living in a dump like this There's something happening somewhere Baby I just know that there is You can't start a fire You can't start a fire without a spark This gun's for hire Even if we're just dancing in the dark You sit around getting older There's a joke here somewhere and it's on me I'll shake this world off my shoulders Come on baby this laugh's on me Stay on the streets of this town And they'll be carving you up alright They say you gotta stay hungry Hey baby I'm just about starving tonight I'm dying for some action I'm sick of sitting 'round here trying to write this book I need a love reaction Come on now baby gimme just one look

This the second most successful and well-known song and also the second most often misunderstood song from the album. Most folks tend to just focus on that strong, driving backbeat and the cute little dancing chorus. Read these lyrics and we have the story of ANOTHER unskilled, undereducated, lonely and isolated man who is working third-shift, going through a monotonous depression, and desperately reaching out for any kind of emotional & physical connection. There is no resolution that gives us a happy ending. The 'baby' referred to throughout the song never speaks, is never addressed, doesn't have a name, and the reader has no way of knowing if this person even exists. It's just a bare and desperate man appealing to the world for anyone.

"My Hometown" I was eight years old and running with a dime in my hand Into the bus stop to pick up a paper for my old man I'd sit on his lap in that big old Buick and steer as we drove through town He'd tousle my hair and say son take a good look around This is your hometown This is your hometown This is your hometown This is your hometown In '65 tension was running high at my high school There was a lot of fights between the black and white There was nothing you could do Two cars at a light on a Saturday night in the back seat there was a gun Words were passed in a shotgun blast Troubled times had come To my hometown My hometown My hometown My hometown Now Main Street's whitewashed windows and vacant stores Seems like there ain't nobody wants to come down here no more They're closing down the textile mill across the railroad tracks Foreman says these jobs are going boys and they ain't coming back To your hometown Your hometown Your hometown Your hometown Last night me and Kate we laid in bed Talking about getting out Packing up our bags maybe heading south I'm thirty five we got a boy of our own now Last night I sat him up behind the wheel and said son take a good look around This is your hometown

Thought this one was going to be different? You thought Bruce wouldn't... couldn't let us watch the record stop spinning in its' final seconds and send us off into the night in darkness, desperation, gloom, regret, heartbreak, inevitable sadness, etc. etc.? You were hoping for a shot of love or light or hope or anything that will make us glad and happy about life and the world we live in? Well, you were wrong and embarrassingly naive for hoping. This song is a saddened look at the narrator's hometown. Violent and unstable relationships between black and white residents fueled by racial tension and inequality. Someone was murdered in the heat of this friction which caused an economic and cultural downward spiral to which the narrator's only answer is to move himself and his family away. The story ends in the same way it began, but not so proudly and optimistically - the narrator offers his son one last look behind the wheel at his old hometown. No pride. No resolution. No tribalism, no nationalism, no patriotism. No union pride nor worker's pride nor industry pride. Just a river slowly drying up. Just individuals and communities growing more desperate as their already-small window continues its' shrinking.

And that is a lyrical examination of literally EVERY song on the album whose title track the RIAA says proudly promotes a better understanding of America's musical and cultural heritage among songs like "Over the Rainbow", "White Christmas", "Take Me out to the Ball Game", "Stars and Stripes Forever", and "God Bless America". It looks like what we've got here is a failure to communicate.

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tonguetiedmag · 6 years

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album review: BB by modsun

Mod Sun graced the music world with his brand new album 'BB'. The American rapper from Bloomington, Minnesota brings fun beats, catchy lyrics, and an all around fun, but deep vibe to the table with his new album.

The first song, “#noshirton”, is the perfect opener to his nine track album. The positive and upbeat tune, along with its fun lyrics, including the line "no shirt on, hanging out the window", is really the perfect track to start this album.

As we move onto the second song, the same theme of happiness and joy carries throughout the music. Mod Sun talks about where he used to be and where he is now, whipping down Rodeo to be specific. This artist clearly appreciates his growth, his success, and his all around happy and positive vibe. My all time favorite line from this one; "on the first day of school they said watcha wanna be boy / I said amazing". This song specifically brings the good vibes, that’s for sure.

The next song keeps up the upbeat energy- you could even say that this one is more positive and hype than the previous! It's genuinely hard to sit still while listening to this song. Add this song to your next house party playlist, and make sure it’s on your commute to work playlist, because this is an all around fun and cheerful song that you definitely don’t want to miss.

This next song fulfills its name “TrippyBB” by most definitely taking you on a trip. With all the different sounds and beats going on in this song, you feel like you could be floating in outer space while jamming out to the music. This song creates the perfect transition between the upbeat, happy, and cheery beginning of the album, to the rest of the record- which becomes a bit more traditional, with songs that are somewhat more moody and emotional.

That's exactly the feel of this next song “hey mom, i'm okay”. This song has a much slower and more moving vibe to it, as Mod Sun touches on the more emotional aspects of his life. He discusses his feelings of being alone in the world. He states “I find myself alone searching for Nirvanna”, and continues talking about conquering his monsters. Even though this song has a different feel than the beginning of the album, the lyrics are by far the most moving and the most powerful. Another one of my favorite lines is "I studied myself and understand the constellations". This song sets the stage for the rest of the album, preparing its listeners for deeper and more emotional coming tracks.

“Freestyle freesmile BB” mimics the mood of the previous song. His lyrics continue to get deep and more personal, including the line “how to rap about the life you're really living". The song continues to tell a little more of his story, about the tracks he's dropped, his losses and his wins, and about helping those who are lost find their way.

I immediately thought of household rapper D'Angelo when I heard this next song “poundzzzzzz”. This track moves away from the slow and emotional vibe that he had going, and jumps back into the upbeat style we’re used to, but still keeping his tracks on the path of staying down to earth and talking about what's really going on in his life. It's clear that Mod Sun literally keeps it real, with his lyric “I think its time you act like you know”. I love the vulnerability that he exposes in his music, and his ability to call things out for how they really are.

We move onto something a little more powerful than the last track, “grow thru what u go thru”. Again, Mod Sun really likes to talk about what’s real in the world and what's really going on in people's lives. He talks about the hardships, the downs that people experience; my favorite line being "All I wanna do is make you love you".

The last song comes full circle, with Mod Sun bringing back that upbeat happy vibe that the beginning of his album had. He talks about a country that only spreads peace, only talking if it’s deep talk, not being conceded, rolling with his crew and “being happy without needing a reason". I love the vibe of this song, just like I love the vibe of all the tracks, but this one really closes off the album well.

Overall, you really get to understand and go through Mod Sun's journey with him through this record. From happy to sad, emotionally deep to just having fun with his friends, you get a sort of 360 view on his life, love, family, friends and emotions. It starts off happy and ends happy, while still finding a way to still include some deep and hard-hitting tracks.

Listen to Modsun’s new album “BB” here: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/bb/1308739511

Review by: Moriah Schindler

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