#kotlc music analysis

[bookwyrminspiration]

thoughts on lacy by olivia rodrigo as a marellinh song? I feel like some of the lyrics really suit marella towards linh when you read the song in a queer lens. like, of course marella likes linh, but she can't help but resent that linh has such good control of her powers.

-🎠

Oh I can definitely see that! There's a lot of lines we could draw on, so I'll just pick a couple

The lyric that stands out the most to me is: "Well, aren't you the greatest thing to ever exist?" That quiet resentment and jealousy adulterating "praise", which reminds me of the line: "Especially a Hydrokinetic who was currently looking all peaceful and pretty and perfect while making snowflakes flutter and spin in intricate patterns" from Marella's short story. The annoyance, the wish for her ability to come as easily--even though it hasn't been an easy road for Linh either. But the fact of the matter is Linh's over her biggest hurdles, and Marella's just gotten started. It's hard not to compare

We could take that a step further with "My stomach's all in knots / You got the one thing that I want" in which we combine a desire for Linh with a desire for Linh's control. If we're feeling fancy, we could throw in a confusion over which one actually draws her in. Does she want Linh, or to be like her? Maybe both. If we're working with an established relationship, this could be used as fuel for both an internal and external conflict. Marella doubting what she's doing and why.

We can see that again with "And I despise my jealous eyes and how hard they fell for you / Yeah, I despise my rotten mind and how much it worships you", which also expands into her reaction to her own reactions. She's drawn to Linh for several reasons and doesn't want to be. She doesn't want be jealous and want what Linh has, but she's just so perfect and sweet and it's impossible not to think about her. Even if she wishes it was, because this desire in her is vulnerable, it reveals parts of herself she's struggling with (her ability, in this case). Wanting is so intimate, and Marella isn't an intimate person. Linh is an antithesis to everything she feels she is, as Lacy is to Olivia

i think you're definitely onto something with this song, nonsie :)

[fix-me-sixteen]

hello, it is i, @the-way-astray, this is my main. that blog's still where all the interesting stuff is. obligatory warning that i don't take this blog very seriously, i literally just created it so that i could have a main that's attached to my sideblog lmfao.

hello, i'm stria, i use she/her pronouns. what else is there to say to about me. oh. i love the number sixteen.

banner and profile picture are both art of fitz vacker from kotlc by @/lemontarto (once again, thank you so much, absolutely devouring your style)

assorted tags i'll use, for my various purposes:

#insane post: posts that make me insane (basically analysis/meta)

#good post: posts with a good take

#wholesome post

#lh post: funny/chaotic posts

#useful post: post with useful advice

#fandom post: a post about fandom behavior in general

#story post: posts about a person's backstory, stories, or information in general

#unrebloggable post: posts that don't apply to me/i disagree with but i like them so i want them on my blog anyway

#interactive post

fandom tags formatted #[media] and character tags formatted #[character's first name] [character's last name] and #[media] [character's first name]

#SIXTEEN MENTION: a post that mentions the number sixteen

#four mention: a post that mentions the number four (which i love too)

#FAVORITE

#stria's parental issues: i vent about my parents. sorry y'all

#stria speaks: i speak (aka my own original post and not a reblog)

#legends: for posts about awesome famous people

#recommendations: usually books, sometimes other media

#polls

#animals (#cats, #snakes, #dogs, etc.)

#tumblr things

#art

#music

#writing

#[country] news

#personal

#political

#my secret fandom: stuff about my other main's media

other random shit about me:

main fandom is kotlc, i have an entire sideblog dedicated to it (@the-way-astray). if i really love something from there, i'll reblog it here. however, i also have a shit ton of posts about other fandoms saved that i need to reblog somewhere so. expect other fandoms, soon, too.

because of the mess i am now stuck in*, i don't use the like feature of tumblr anymore. it just gets too hectic for me, because when i enjoy a post, that usually means i want to be able to find it again, which is frustratingly not possible with the like feature. if i enjoy your post, it's pretty much going to be only reblogs. if i like your post, it was an accident. sorry. honestly tumblr should just hide the button from me so i don't have the temptation anymore.

i cannot reblog a post without saying something in the tags. as i said above, when i enjoy a post, i want to be able to find it again. so that's usually the reason.

i swear and use all-caps with no warning. if you desperately want that to change, tell me.

*if you aren't aware, i spent basically an entire week just cleaning out the likes of my old main because there were too many, and i still have hundreds more to sort through, it's part of the reason why i made this new main, so i'd have a place to put all my non-kotlc related liked posts.

[jeannefostergoriot]

Sooo little presentation post I’ll pin, mainly cause there are a few posts I did/reblogged I want people to see coming here. #fav are posts that are fun or historic, my personal hall of fame. #beauty are arts and fanarts that deserve seeing. And #adulting (Whose details are on the bottom of this) is a ton of advice to navigate life

So.

Name/Pronouns: Jeanne. You can call me Jane. Or pretty much anything, I’ll answer if you make it clear you’re addressing me. I use she/they.

Birthday : January 2003.

Hobbys: reading, reading, writing, listening to music.

Fandoms: TOH, KOTLC, MLB, PJO, HP a little, Danganronpa from time to time.

Trivia: LGBTQIA+ (ace, arospec, bi) and catholic, the intersection is important to me. Very fond of 19th century French literature. Knows a tons of unuseful things about Antic Greece and Antic Rome.

Fav music artists: Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, girl in red, Reinaeiry, Pomme.

The posts, now.

Music analysis (don’t hesitate to ask for some, with song and character)

Peter x Linh Song

I Hate It Here x Fitz Vacker

Down Bad x Sophitz

The Alchemy x Sokeefe

The Prophecy x Sophie Foster

I Can Do It With A Broken Heart x Marella Redek

My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys x Jolie Ruewen

Driver’s Seat x the Vacker kids

Great American Novel x Sokeefe

Family Line x Fitz Vacker

Dollhouse x Biana Vacker

Force of Nature x Marellinh

The other POV x Fitz and Sokeefe

Lil Incorrect Quotes/Short ff posts

Danganronpa x KOTLC x HP

Vespera, Fintan and Gisela…

Queer and Of Faith posts

Sermon about asexuality

Gender non-conforming Jesus

Tumblr is adulting

Eat from scraps

Tips to get through life easier

It’s ok to breathe

Maybe life is good? Check these

What does your body want?

Tidying with humanized objects

[thatonesongyouretryingtoremember]

✨️intro post✨️

I edit this over time so please check it kinda often for updates esp the last part with some posts I really like/ that I used real life braincells on, and the beginning for if I add more sideblogs. If you have LITERALLY ANY other questions not answered here, shoot me an ask in my inbox and I will probably answer. If I think it's in good faith but poor taste I'll just say that, so if you're being nice I won't be mad or at least I'll like the attention :3

I'm thatonesongyouretryingtoremember. Song for short and OneSong for long. Or Remy??? I use all pronouns or it/it's. My other blogs are @aroasexualboypussy which is a regular sideblog where I keep fandom rbs besides my own fandoms and spam rbs and @jupiter-jayfield-official which is a Mikhailgate blog/El appreciation blog kinda.I also made a blog called @twasagraveyardsmash and that's my "music blog" aka rambling, keysmashing, and reblogging about music I like, someone likes, or my other music- related posts. I have another ST rp blog as Max- @madmaxmayfield71 , and at some point I started a blog called @byler-freeze-book with the intention of it being a byler tag positivity blog but it kinda flopped. You can still send asks there tho <2 @angelbymadonna is my art blog. I also have a Miraculous roleplay blog as Zoe's superhero form, Vesperia @the-real-bee-holder-vesperia

Tumblr-spouse to @exhausted-enby-vibes <2, coparent of Mikhail Max

My blog used to have this glitch where it was hidden, but I didn't do anything to cause that, so if you see smthng lemme know. I also am still confused by tags on here, so lemme know if I tag something wrong. I also reblog most of the art I see, but I don't always know who's in it, so if I end up reblogging a problematic fanart on accident (which I haven't done yet) lemme know as well.

Hashtags I use

#song spouts bullshit, shitposts/non-ST posts

#song says a smart thing, new tag I'm gonna put on longer posts

#songs textpost bullshit, or #song's textpost bullshit, original textpost memes and meme formats

#artist song, my original art [find it on my art blog as well, linked above] [includes ficlets and visual art, the latter with image description]

#song's st rewatch, details and commentary while I watch the show!

#angela is jane, #angela ives, a theory I elaborate on further down in this post

Blog type/ content (I say content, what I mean is it's what my blog contains. It's for me, not you.)

I'll talk about my ST stuff first since that's what I'm primarily posting rn. I'm a fandom blog and will be for the foreseeable future. As far as ST, I have alot of ship content, but in my other fandoms I don't care as much about shipping. You can ask me about fandoms/media I like maybe :)

I ship elmax, byler, Lumax, hopclair, elumax, jargyle, jancy, Boyce, jopper, boycer, duzie, and a few other things. I also reblog some ronance, steddie, byclair etc content as well. My favorite ST character is Kali. Occasionally you'll see my blog possessed by the soul of a Kali disciple or elmax fangirl. I also some fandom posts besides my own if I'm reblogging art from my mutuals' reblogs ofc.

I post a bunch of shitposts about Stranger Things, and longposts related to theories or analysis I'm into at the time.

I am still not over Mikhailgate, btw. Even though I personally think Mikhail ships byler, alot of my mikhailgate content is willhail.

I also read KotLC, riordanverse (I've read 1-14 of chb chronicles and most of 15 and obv not Chalice yet, 1-2 Kane Chronicles, 1-3 mcga, and none of the spinoffs so far. Can't wait for the show!), and I watch The Owl House, Dragon Prince, and She-Ra 2018. I'm not as avidly in fandom for these but I like them. If there's something else you think I might like or don't know if I've seen/read, lemme know! At the time I'm writing this update, I'm sorry into Miraculous Ladybug! but I haven't seen the second half of S5 yet.

Stuff I want you to know

I have a detailed post about the history of mikhailgate.

My Spotify has tons of character playlists!

I have a theory about Kali's time at the lab which is actually a thinly disguised rant about her halfway finished arc.The theory is ass and I no longer believe it, but the rant still stands and I still believe she has more to offer.

^^pretty obviously not gonna happen but I like to keep it up :) it's an old theory that I no longer believe but I still think she should be in the next szn!!!

I wrote a thing about the Material Girl shopping sequence aka about El my beloved nobody else understands her <2.

Nancy and Steve are aromantic. (Check the respective tags as well, I have more)

Byler Week 2022

I'm right about El, nobody else. Jk but here's my super smart ST5 prediction! Aka thinly disguised El Hopper fangirl rant😅😅

Once again I'm the only correct person (/nsrs) so here's the official list my take of the party's riordanverse godly parents

Check out this post and this one and this one to start learning about the theory that Angela is the real Jane Ives!

There are tags for it too, #angela is jane, and #angela ives, make sure to check them out because there is always new input! This is related to the theories that El is actually not Terry's daughter, that El *is* Edward Creel's daughter (I'm not the guy to ask about those, shoot me an ask and I'll tell you who tho!) And that multiple timelines exist within what we see of Stranger Things!

[weaponizedducks]

hi welcome to my blog! i'm di, or dia

this is just a random collection of thoughts and rants and my hyperfixations are constantly changing like every minute soo

about me: she/her, bi, english nerd, i am a minor so nothing weird please, i thrive on human interaction send me asks

my qualifications: musical enjoyer (bmc and beetlejuice enthusiast), bi, avid book httyd defender, lover of weird and niche things, blue and red gay veteran, florence and the machine stan first human second, og x men stan (adding this for when x men is added to the mcu and the apocalypse comes) ect. will update as it goes on

current hyperfixation: no idea gang im tweaking

if you want to read (shitty) analysis of things thats under blue analyses things, if ur here about merlin thats blue rewatches merlin, anything else is untagged i think

also on the analysis thing i love it so so much, its almost always rambly and long but if you want me to analyse or talk about something pls pls send me an ask and i would love to!!! (if i know the fandom)

other blogs: @blues-writings my writing blog where i promote any fics i've written but until i crack down and finish my WIPs that blog is a ghostland.

DNI: terfs, homophobes, sexists, anyone who hates katara or korra, proshippers

(note: if anyone likes the shapeshifter books, httyd books, kotlc, the school for good and evil, sinclairs mysteries, be more chill, nevermoor, butterfly soup, please please please talk to me about them because i am starved for content)

(second note: every fandom tagged below is something i am interested in that i cba to add here. interact about them!!)

[loverofallthingssmart]

so i’ve been lacking kotlc content and my brain is empty so have the headcanons i came up with for gray’s college au (minus stina and wylie because i didn’t think of them so sorry monarchs maybe next time) like a few months ago (love you babe <3)

FITZ

mom friend

works at the same coffee shop as a baker as marella and that’s how she knows him

is a baker and tries to help jensi by promising a baked treat for every good grade

(It backfired and now he just provides the snacks every session)

best friends with keefe

older brother of biana by one year (DUH)

on a scholarship (for what i don’t know)

uber rich like super rich, the vackers are actually minor european royalty

has glasses but wears contacts to protect his “popular boy” image (we all know he’s a dork like come on)

BIANA

is a tutor (tutors jensi at math)

basically is the most vocal kam and marellinh shipper of them all

she does varsity volleyball and is on an athletic scholarship

majors in law???maybe??

best friends with sophie and is linh’s first real friend at the new school (like how dex was sophie’s in canon)

low key matchmaker and claims kam or marellalinh happened because of her

the one who suggests going to the coffee shop for tutoring sessions (mainly to bother her brother)

again, just like fitz, super rich because the vackers are actually minor european royalty

she’s the one keefe goes to for relationship advice and they're the brotp

the distinguished lesbian (or bisexual)

one of the only people in the gang to actually process stress healthily (get my babes some therapy please)

DEX

techno whiz (DUH)

basically in charge of the wi-fi and all the electronics and internet and such at the coffee shop

majoring in cyber security or something like that (minoring in data analysis for business to help with the coffee shop??)

his dad runs the coffee shop (elwin is in nursing school and owns the record store and harasses sophie for fun)

marella and dex are brotp because they like the same music and are the chaotic dumbasses of the group (we stan a bunch of dumb geniuses)

the one that’s not technically in your business but is a sucker for gossip

(amazing with kids and helps keefe with his child studies work)

Has ADHD which is why he focuses on tinkering and has a fidget cube

SOPHIE

the “perfect” friend (we all have that one friend who’s good at everything)

majoring in neuroscience (with a variety of minors and stuff) but not really sure what she wants to do when she’s done with college

everyone babies her and linh

youngest but makes up for it by exuding the rebellious older sister vibes since she and keefe are the ones suggesting and doing all these crazy ideas

has never backed down from a dare (and that’s how she earns marella’s respect)

tam’s first friend (like how dex is sophie’s in canon)

the one matchmaker who remains neutral in arguments (so the sneaky and sly matchmaker to biana’s loud and vocal one)

works at the record store by organizing the records and doing the displays and crunching the numbers (she’s too anxious to work at the register)

the record store is her second home (get it like elwin’s office in canon cuz she’s in there all the time)

lets elwin test his nursing knowledge on her and helps him study along with keefe (photographic memory buddies)

grady and edaline are her adopted parents

disaster child: she is quite literally a mess when she is hyper focused; no sleep, barely eats, stress (there’s a VERY good reason why she’s babied)

KEEFE

the clyde to sophie’s bonnie (the ultimate partner in crime duo)

best friends (turned boyfriends) with tam and thought thinking your friend was so super attractive was normal (biana and sophie helped him figure it out that “no keefe you do not want to kiss your bro platonically”)

was the one who helped tam and linh dye their hair silver

super protective of linh (even though he knows literally everyone in the group can hold their own he can’t help his older brother tendencies)

him and tam are the mushy gushy couple but also the married couple (don’t ask me how they can be both they just are)

majoring in psychology or child studies (used to major in business before he said a big fuck you to his parents and did what he want with the help from his friends)

lives with tiergan (who is the gang’s father along with grady and elwin and maybe alden)

does inventory at the record store

the local prankster at the college (his pranks are legendary and he’s never been caught, thanks to fitz, dex, and sophie helping him)

“can” drive (thinks he can but is that one driver that everyone is scared for their life with him behind the wheel) and do math

TAM

he is short like 5’3 and full of RAGE

literally saw keefe and his brain went 404 error (had a crush on keefe the whole time but thought it was unrequited and didn’t want to ruin their friendship)

works at the record store and actually does the inventory while keefe slacks around and flirts with him

has a damn good poker face BUT

blushes very easily (keefe thinks this is adorable and will always try to rile tam up...it works every time)and because of that gets teased by the gang a lot (all in good fun)

him and sophie are complete gossip buddies and paint each others nails and such

one time tam wore braids in his hair because of sophie (or marella!) and keefe would NOT stop drooling over it...now he puts braids in his hair whenever he wants to mess with keefe

majoring in family law so he can help with child custody and stuff like that

can’t drive OR do math (so he really didn’t get luck in any department)

super protective of linh especially from their parents

a gay disaster but thinks he’s low key about it

LINH

tall like maybe 5’7, 5’8 but still gives off little sister vibes

has a pet lemur named Rocco because she wanted an exotic animal and tam can’t say no to her

majoring in education (wants to be a kindergarten teacher maybe??)

bad at driving but good at math (neither of the song siblings can drive how sad)

an oblivious cinnamon roll (she can’t tell when people are being flirtatious which leads to more protective tam and keefe)

functional (that’s like pushing it) lesbian

loves heeled boots (her and biana go on shopping trips together….sometimes with a very reluctant sophie and an enthusiastic keefe)

studied dance and martial arts when she was like super young but quit because she felt overwhelmed

MARELLA

our favorite disaster lesbian

maybe 5’4 and adores her very tall gf

since her mom was sick and in and out of hospitals and on meds and such, she learned how to control her emotions and has a hard time opening up (but with the gang she’s comfortable and doesn’t really have that issue because she instinctively trusts them and feels safe with them)

keeps braids in her hair because her mother used to braid her hair and learned how to braid in her memory (she’s not dead but it helps with the pain)

her (and fitz surprisingly) are the designated hair braiders (biana is in charge of makeup and linh and keefe are in charge of outfits) for sleepover makeovers

surprisingly good at driving (you would think she’s a reckless driver but she’s not) but bad at math

the one sarcastic, done with everything waitress at the coffee shop

wanted to major in neuroscience because of her mom but then fell in love with gender studies and civil rights and stuff

GROUP HEADCANONS

fitz and biana are the best drivers and drive everyone around in Sophie’s sparkly white minivan named Silveny

PLATONIC CUDDLES FOR LIFE!!! everyone loves their cuddles and sometimes they just pile on top of each other in someone’s room and fall asleep like that

jensi is technically the honorary member of the gang so he’s included but not included included

when they're in the coffee shop trying to tutor jensi…..it's a mess there’s yelling, they’re getting sidetracked and they're getting side-eyes and annoyed glances thrown at them but it doesn’t matter because “no keefe a +b is not supposed to be 34” “fitz i don’t care if you got an A in calculus, i’m the tutor and this is college level algebra” “hey, stop getting crumbs all over the paper!” “this is fitz’s fault why does he always have to bake such good treats” “is this jelly on my goddamn notes”

whenever one of them is feeling down they all have this whole ritual of them like going to get ice cream and then going to a park and screaming at the sky….it's very cathartic and really helps the person who’s feeling shitty

EVERYONE has been adopted by ALL of the good parents (namely grady and edaline, della and alden, tiergan, elwin, and kesler and juline)

they each have their own designated spots in each ones’ house and the triplets (dex’s siblings..rex, bex and lex) know them and count them as family

they're a found family ok (in a modern au whatever still a found family)

[bookwyrminspiration]

daylight by maroon 5 for fitz and mr. snuggles

i've never heard this song before, so let me tell you reading the lyrics for this was a rollercoaster

We've got some very strong correlations in lyrics like: "But tonight I'm gonna hold you so close," given Fitz quite literally holds Mr. Snuggles very very close. Completely encased, in fact. Relevance is heightened by the reference to tonight, as this relationship, Fitz indulgence in acknowledging vulnerability and craving comfort via Snuggles only takes place under moonlight, away from the rest of the world.

This is expanded on in "Here I am staring at your perfection / In my arms, so beautiful." Fitz is enraptured by Snuggles. And there's some word choices we can really draw on--namely staring and perfection. Staring is brought up frequently during telepathy, especially so with cognatedom; in applying this song we can correlate the vulnerability of a night with Snuggles with that of a cognate bond. And perfection is a word frequently used to describe Fitz, to set an impossible bar. With no one else around, he can transfer this compliment/burden to Snuggles, giving himself a respite for once.

And all this is then contrasted with "'Cause in the daylight we'll be on our own" following that first line every time but the last. It's an interesting contrast because they're already on their own in a sense, alone the two of them. Fitz retreats into Snuggles. But by returning to the rest of the world in the morning Fitz becomes more alone. More solitary, taking back that "perfect" crown and trying to fill its shadow. He loses the vulnerability and the respite when he's around others.

anyway. correct assessment nonsie this song is very them 👍

[bookwyrminspiration]

Cowboy Cassonova by Carrie Underwood is a song about Fintan!

-Heathen

I can't believe she wrote that song about Fintan Pyren and Fintan Pyren specifically

I think saying "He's the devil in disguise / A snake with blue eyes" is apt. He's a master of trickery and deceit, of long games, of rancid, rotten thinking hidden behind well-intended passion. his visions, his convictions are enticing on some surface level, but once you get to the core of them they're unsavory and flawed.

I know Underwood intended this line to also be about the subject of the song, but "He's like a curse, he's like a drug / You get addicted to his love", while it could be used to describe Fintan himself, reminds me of his relationship to everblaze. How its so thoroughly ruined his life (in a way), and yet he so desperately craves and adores it. It's killed people he cared about, has stigmatized him, forever altered the course of his life, and yet he wouldn't give it up. it's fascinating

Oh! And "He'll tell you anything you wanna hear / He'll break your heart, it's just a matter of time" of course is reminiscent of the infamous finitar quote: "He'll offer you the sun and moon so long as you do his bidding. in the end you'll have nothing to show for it but grief and ruin." He says what he needs to to get people to do what he wants them to, twisting and manipulating them for his benefit without any real regard to the aftermath. If they won't be important to him then, it doesn't matter the consequence. It's a commendable skill he's developed there, enticing people to ruin

i've had this song on repeat while answering this and let me just say. I have no clue what a cowboy casanova is. but the song sure can be about fintan when you associate it with fintan!

[bookwyrminspiration]

midas by aurora is. very sokeefe. imo.

oh I can 100% see it. there is, of course, some dissonance since the song is about an unhealthy relationship and it doesn't match completely, but regardless

The first thing that stands out: "But you love me like a kid / You needed someone close / And I never really did," because Sophie is practically the only dedicated person in Keefe's life. He never had parents to rely on, nor friends he felt he could be truly open with (including Fitz). He's desperate and inexperienced in being close to someone at all, like a kid; he needs an anchor and has clung fast to the first thing he could--Sophie. And Sophie, in turn, has been brought up practically drowning in love from so many people--she doesn't need him the way he needs her.

There's also: "I'd find you on your knees / And you'd beg for me to be / The woman on your throne / But I'd rather be alone," which doesn't really need explaining. Keefe has devoted everything to Sophie. Despite what Stellarlune says about statues and imperfect drawings, Keefe does idolize her. She's this unreal, beautiful, powerful girl who is shaking and remaking the foundation of his world--both personal and social. He wants to follow her, to be hers, to devote himself to her--but she doesn't want that. Not in the alone sense as in the song, but in that she wants a relationship of equals. She doesn't want a throne, but a hand to hold.

The desperate, undying, too-extreme devotion. The idolizing and raising of another's image. Is it all sokeefe is? no. but it is a significant portion of how Keefe sees Sophie currently. this savior, this light at the end of his personal hell tunnel. and he's new to this, so he's latched on tight and doesn't know how to ease yet

[bookwyrminspiration]

hm. just having Thoughts about achilles come down as a moonlark song. “you crave the applause, yet hate the attention, then miss it - your act is a ruse” t h o u g h t s ,,,,,,,,

Well the thing about this is that you're absolutely 100% correct, so jot that down

I saw someone (so sorry I can't remember who) say something rather incisive about Sophie's relationship with attention, but I can't remember all of it so I'm just gonna use that as a starting place and if I misremember things I'm sorry. But it was about how there's a part of Sophie that does want attention, that wants to be noticed; not in a "all eyes on me in the spotlight" kind of situation but in the "I want to be praised and recognized and acknowledged and loved" kind of way. If you've been the shy gifted kid then you might recognize that, and I think we can see that in Sophie and in those first two lines.

She "craves the applause" as in she craves praise. She wants compliments and for people to like her, she wants to be told she's doing well and that people are proud of her achievements. But she "hates the attention" because she doesn't want to be focused on; she doesn't want to be observed and scrutinized and put in this spotlight where any mistake she makes will be public and ridiculed and impossible to hide. It's this seemingly contradicting balance that's got some nuance to it.

There's also the "then miss it" part, where as soon as the focus is away you want it back--not because you want the attention, but because the applause comes with it. There's seldom one without the other so even when you hate the attention, it holds the praise you're silently wanting so badly so you conflate the two.

Focusing on the "your act is a ruse" as well there are a few ways to look at it. One is externally, people seeing who she is from the outside and thinking that something has to be fake, there's something about her she's creating that doesn't add up. She's not really that smart or talented or powerful, she's just pretending to be. Or there's an internal view of her doubting herself, thinking she's not good enough and that she doesn't deserve to be where she is or that everyone is seeing her as better than she is, and she's just trying to fake it to go along with it because she doesn't know how to be anyone else.

Anyway the conclusion of this post is that Sophie Elizabeth Foster has gifted kid syndrome. Both incredibly capable and constantly doubting her skill and how far she can go, constantly on edge of how others perceive her at all times. Excellent song comparison!

[bookwyrminspiration]

lose my mind by brett eldredge has huuuuuge sokeefe vibes to me

Just listened to this and oh my god you're so right. I'd like to imagine Keefe playing this for Sophie for some reason and she's just breaking down because why is he playing country

Right off the bat there's "I knew right when I met you I would never be the same," which is almost identical to that one line Keefe says about how he'd felt Sophie's emotions through the air the day they met and then she rounded the corner and he knew nothing would ever be the same. Sophie is the inciting incident in Keefe's story. There's no question for him he just latched onto her immediately.

There's also this bit from the chorus, "Always find a way to mess me up and drive me wild / I love the way you make me lose my mind," because it encapsulated them! There's always something new, something going on between the two of them. It's overwhelming for both of them, making them think differently and in new ways. Driving them out of their minds sometimes--with excitement, with worry, with anything and everything. There's no bounds to the two of them, no thinking, just stumbling into each other and figuring things out. It's very endearing.

I'll point out one more part: I'm always watching you, wondering what you'll do next / But my favorite part about it is is I always have to guess." Keefe is always watching Sophie! He's got eyes for her and her only, always watching and waiting and see what she's gonna do and so excited to see it. He's learned her enough to have a better idea of what's coming next, but she still throws curveballs and challenges him in ways no one else does. That's not unique to her relationship with Keefe, but it is there as well. Sophie's unexpected and he loves to watch what she'll do and accomplish!

I love the comparison between this song and their relationship. There are even more lyrics to compare, like the one about letting her take over his mind. It's such a sweet, positive representation of the two of them. Thank you for sharing!!

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Mastermind by Taylor Swift (Yes, she's back to haunt you) for Sofitz, please

I simply cannot escape Taylor Swift and at this point I should probably stop trying. But I can 100% see the connection between the two!

The whole first verse fits Sophie and Fitz's meeting so well: "Once upon a time...all the stars aligned / You and I ended up in the same room / At the same time." That's how they found each other! Yes, there was some element of orchestration, but anyone could've been the one to find Sophie. It just so happened to be Fitz, everything aligning for it to be the two of them in that museum, no one else. Focusing on that "once upon a time," it's unreal to both of them; Fitz can't believe this girl is the one, and Sophie can't believe this whole other world is real and that this boy is taking her to it. It's a fairytale for them.

Then you can take the "What if I told you none of it was accidental" line in the context of sophitz to apply to how orchestrated this fairytale is. Because she'd always belonged in a different world and because he'd been looking for her. As fantastically as their meeting seemed, it was methodic, meticulous, the result of a thousand different pieces working behind the scenes. It's almost like in this interpretation, neither Sophie nor Fitz are the mastermind. Instead, they're the pieces moved around by the masterminds, and the masterminds aren't intending to put them together, but that's what's happening.

There's also the "This is the first time I've felt the need to confess / And I swear / I'm only cryptic and Machiavellian 'cause I care," which can be applied to how novel and intense this is for the both of them. This is the first time either of them has had to be so open with someone else and to take that step, the first time that step has even been an option. And they're dancing around everything and it's all cryptic and subtlety because neither of them wants to mess it up. They care, so they try not to blunder into it and have no clue what they're doing but want to do it anyways.

It's such a sweet way to look at their relationship and what they mean to each other, everything moving around them as they, terrified, chose to take that move closer to each other, to give it all they've got. They don't want to mess it up, trying to think everything through, but pulled forward by the intensity of their feelings. I love them, your honor :)

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Everything Moves by Bronze Radio Return for the Black Swan. (The lines "Ignore it son, it's a song/But I can feel you white knuckles tight from holding on" reminded me of the scene in Exile where Tiergan and Sophie were talking about the dwarven swan song and Tiergan was trying to convince Sophie it had nothing to do with the Black Swan, but could see she was desperate for answers.) What lines do you think fit?

Oo that's a fascinating comparison! I mean, that scene in Exile was literally Sophie holding on to the meaning of a single song when she was being told to let it go.

I think the "Ramble on, chug along / And if the beat stops thumping man then something's wrong" line can fit well with the inner workings of their organization. The way they work is that something is always happening, even if it's waiting. They're a constant, unceasing push. Someone's always working, investigating; there's always some sort of lead to follow. If there isn't, if no one's doing anything, then their system falls apart. The Black Swan as an organization and a concept doesn't work if it's not in motion.

There's also "So lately I, wonder why, we rely, on the sure thing / It's too damn comforting," which goes with their purpose. The Black Swan questions their world's functioning, the "sure thing" that they use again and again because it's familiar and comfortable for those who don't want to change. But they don't believe in that, they want to shake things up and do it new in a way that protects and considers everyone shunned by the current ways. They're there to wonder, to question things, and to try and change them. The elven world is too comforting for people who benefit off the suffering of others, and they don't want to let that slide.

That continues in the lines "I'd rather have then never had the spinning room, / The feeling that I moved." Typically when the room is spinning, it's a negative descriptor, you're off balance and stumbling, dizzy, so it's interesting here for it to be portrayed as the preferred option. The Black Swan would rather be uncomfortable, dizzy and off kilter but changing and moving and chugging along than stop and sit with that faux comfort. They value progress above comfort, even when that progress comes at a cost. It's a constantly working and spinning machine, the way they move. "Everything moves, everything pulses," even. It's a never ending endurance, but they'd take it over the alternative any day.

Those lines are more for the Black Swan as a whole than for specific moments like you pointed out, but I thought a solid comparison could be made for them! It's a fascinating perspective to take on the Black Swan, so thank you for sharing it!

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I’m so sorry but hayloft 2 Brant and Jolie

Oh I was just listening to that song! Okay so the way I'm looking at this Jolie is the young lover who was killed, and Brant is the survivor who can't handle the trauma of witnessing it and loses himself.

Well first off there's "One got shot and the other got lost in / Drugs and punks and blood on the street," which mirrors what happened to the two of them. Jolie died in that fire and Brant lost himself, lost himself further than he already had. Turned more and more towards the Neverseen, towards blinded thinking, away from who he had once hoped to be. Who he was died with Jolie. He became senseless, bereaved, hopeless.

There's also "An eye for an eye, a leg for a leg / A shot in the heart doesn't make it unbreak," a line I think we can make a direct comparison with "If she doesn't get to live--no one does!" (Everblaze p. 557). Brant has suffered an incredible loss and his response to this is to try and make it even, to try and hurt people back so they're on the same level. If Jolie is dead, taken from him, he'll kill people and take them from others so that he's not alone in it anymore, so that someone else hurts as much as he does. But it won't work, all he'll do is breed more pain. Killing others won't bring Jolie back, a shot in the heart won't make it unbreak. And yet he's so lost he doesn't know what else to try.

Finally gonna highlight "She's not a bad kid / But they had to do it / She had to crack." He's not inherently a bad person, he's a person who got stuck in a shitty situation as a pyrokinetic in a world where that's the one thing you're not allowed to be. He's not a bad kid. But he sees no alternative. He had to crack. There was nothing else for him to do, no one for him to turn to, to understand him, who could bring Jolie back. And this is on top of being a pyrokinetic in their world. He had to do it. He had to try and burn their world down and kill them because it's all he knew, all he was taught, not because he was a bad kid but because he's a consequence of their societal structure.

So to summarize all that: yes. You are correct. The tragedy and loss of self in Hayloft 2 followed by questionable, mentally unwell decisions to try and cope matches with Brant and Jolie's story excellently! Thank you for the suggestion!

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I was listening to my playlist and little talks by of monster and men came on and I thought it fit Oralie and Kenric after Kenric's death and how Oralie struggles with it

I love that song! And I completely agree, it's a perfect encapsulation of their relationship and how they now stand

One of the first lines, "The stairs creak as you sleep / It's keeping me awake," reminds me of how Oralie mentioned she and Kenric used to be neighbors, but now that's gone and Alina has moved into his old space. The stairs are like a representation of the building, a place that used to be his but is now empty of everything but his memory. As he sleeps, as he rests six feet under, those reminders (creaking stairs, building lived in my the wrong person) haunt her and she's kept awake perpetually remembering.

There is of course, "Now we're torn, torn, torn apart / There's nothing we can do," where I think the connection is clearer. Oralie and Kenric were violently torn apart from each other in a way that can't be undone. There is literally nothing she can do about his death except process, grieve, and continue living. They are now eternally apart from each other with such a bitter end--unless Oralie dies someday, but that's it's own thing. Death is like that in its permanency.

They've been torn apart, leaving them with: "Now wait, wait, wait for me, please hang around / I'll see you when I fall asleep." Now Oralie is desperately holding on to any piece of him she can, all the memories, trying to treasure them in a way she'll never forget. As for the second line, we can interpret it in two ways. One, she will literally see him when she falls asleep, she will see him in dreams and hold onto him that way, aching over what she'd lost. Or two, she will see him when she dies. Sleep was compared to death in that first line, so in this instance she could be talking about how they'll find each other in the afterlife. Either way, she's trying to hold on to the ghost of him, begging him to haunt her

The grief of the song fits beautifully with Kenric and Oralie's story, so thank you for giving me a chance to look at the lyrics with them in mind!

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I saw your post where you related a Set it Off song to kotlc and I have a suggestion! Look into the Cranewives's music!! I don't have enough brain power to think about it super hard, but some of their songs (or lyrics) could probably relate really well! Also I love the Cranewives <3

I've heard of them before I think! And thank you for the suggestion--since you didn't specify anything I kinda just glanced over everything and didn't think about it super deep, but I 100% can see some connections

For some reason Tongues & Teeth kept reminding me of sophitz in Legacy, that is their falling apart. It's not perfect; the attitude of the speaker is much crueler than Sophie, but the "I will only break your pretty things / I will only wring you dry of everything" felt reminiscent of how destructive Sophie could be to Fitz and his reputation. This pretty place he has that he struggles with, how she crashes through everything and how their kisses can only hurt because they're not ready and they're ruining each other.

Also Allies or Enemies is very much feeling like Keefe's perspective in Lodestar when he's with the Neverseen. The "I swear I didn't mean what I said" and "Sometimes I can't help myself at all" feels like the desperation he drowned himself in throughout the whole experience. The whole question of whether or not they were working together or if Sophie would hate him, how it was killing him inside, the "But I want to be let in, not out," how he so badly wants to be close to her and trusted. But he doesn't know where they stand.

I won't look further right now because I don't want to overwhelm myself, but I can definitely see the potential in their music! If you ever have the brainpower and think a certain song or something would relate well, I'd love to hear it!