#artist: reeve carney

[buckhead1111]

Reeve Carney

buckhead1111

[yelhsaqi]

WAIIITT FOR MEEE

IM COMIN

[scribbleevee]

i love drawing cheek kisses i think they’re so sweet

[dellowdraws]

do you think they cut each other's bangs?

[cursed-iris]

"and crashing and pounding, his rivers surround him and drown out the sound of the song he once heard: laaa la la la la la laaaa..."

happy trails to my favorite orpheus ever, reeve carney!! the fact that i never got to see him live is a tragedy. no one will ever do it like him. you do not understand how sad i am that the last original broadway cast member is leaving, and his portrayal of orpheus is so fundamental to the character. i'm officially in mourning.

fly high, king ✊🏽😔 (he's not dead, just leaving)

[noalikestodraw]

In honor of Reeve Carney’s last performance in hadestown I made a thingy!!

Inspired mostly by the time I was watching when the chips are down and realized “oh my god, he’s been sitting there writing the entire time!!!” Which I thought was really cool (and also I was shocked that I’d seen that scene like 100 times by that point and never noticed). All of which to say I’m so impressed by the sweetness and intelligence that he brought to the role, and it’s been an honor to watch him for the last couple of years :)

[roukabi]

Four pals in the grass, what will they talk about?

[Image ID: A digital illustration of Orpheus and Eurydice from Hadestown (Broadway) and Orpheus and Eurydice from Hadestown (NYTW). The four of them are lying in green summer grass, with little white flowers scattered about. They’re situated in a circle, with the broadway lovers at the bottom corners of the image, right-side up, and the nytw lovers at the top corners, upside-down to the viewer. They are all smiling at each other because they are friends. Broadway Orpheus has his hands curled on his chest, broadway Eurydice and nytw Orpheus are resting their heads on their arms, and nytw Eurydice’s hands are below her chest (not shown, cut off). The artist’s signature is in the top left corner. End ID].

[bellafemme]

Artists who blatantly copy Lana Del Rey with no originality.

1 - Remy Bond.

Remy blatantly copying Lizzy Grant.

Remy coping Lana in concert too.

Lanaboards destroyed her in their thread.

2 - Saint Avangeline.

She also covers Lana's songs. She sings exactly in Lana's vocal tone. Changes the he's to she's.

Even Reddit brought it up. Twice.

Lilith sounds like Ultraviolence meets Pretty When you Cry. Saint Avangeline is lucky Lana isn't the suing type.

3 - Nessa Barrett

American Jesus. Heartbreak in the Hamptons. God's Favorite.

Lana brought her up on stage once, angering Lana's fanbase. At least Lana is aware of her. So did Reddit. Twice.

Notable Mentions:

Camilla Cabello.

Taylor Swift

Taylor not only copied the monolugue style like Lana, but she hired Lana's ex-boyfriend Reeve Carney to play her boyfriend.

Keep an eye out for more updates on this post.

[eerna]

Not to like compare who's better among all the Orpheuses, but who do you like best and in ascending/descending order (not to say that the lowest is the worse) among the Orpheuses?

I've only listened to Reeve and Damon btw hehe

Huehuehue ofc!! I have heard audio boots from quite a few, watched a couple on video boots. I only saw Donal Finn live.

8.) Reeve Carney (2020-2024). I know you said that lowest doesn't mean the worse, but for me... I can't stand this performance. You'll see my ranking of pre-2020 Reeve super high up, so I have 0 idea why this happened. He became breathy, shrill, started speaking every other line (for a role THAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE MEMORABLE FOR HIS SINGING) and his acting turned wooden. His arms do the Bill Cipher thing and I feel 0 chemistry between him and Eurydice. It is painful to watch bootlegs from this period, which sucks because MOST of his bootlegs are from this period. I can't tell if this happened right after the opening night in 2019, but he wasn't like this in the previews, and idk why the change happened.

7.) Jordan Fisher. Idk if this is controversial, but I think he doesn't get the role at all. His voice is good, but I feel no humility or honesty in his emotions, he performs it as he would any other role he is cast in. He plays himself playing Orpheus, if it makes any sense.

6.) Damon Daunno. I like him, but the NYTW Orpheus just doesn't mesh well with me.

5.) Reeve Carney (2017-2018). Similar to Damon, Edmonton/London Orpheus is just not my thing. Ranked higher than Damon because I think he's vocally better.

4.) Nicholas Barasch, J. Antonio Rodriguez. I like them! But it's a little like they are playing Reeve Carney playing Orpheus.

3.) Reeve Carney (2019-2020). The Orpheus who made me fall in love with this show. The bootleg from the previews was my optimal Hadestown experience before I saw it live for the first time. This is where Orpheus as a character became who he is, gentle and romantic, and the way he looks at Eva Noblezada in that bootleg specifically makes me feel faint. My fav version of the couple.

2.) Chibueze Ihuoma. Good lord. He is number 2 by a hair, he could easily share the no 1 spot. The fact that he was never the principal Orpheus even after 5 years of understudying boggles my mind. He is the one who does the "poor naiive little romantic boy" take on the role the best. I believe every expression, every gesture, every line. He is just a confused artistic dreamer who loved this world so much and tragically lost his optimism!!! And his vocals? He glides across that falsetto like an ice skater and makes it seem effortless. His voice feels like an extension of him instead of something he puts on for a show, which is to me one of the best ways to sing in a production - I don't want to be reminded the person onstage is a singer who has done this 1000 times before in different roles. He entirely embodies the clear, perfect voice of Orpheus - truly, "he sang just like a bird up on the line". I feel like he is to Orpheus what Eva Noblezada is to Eurydice, hearing them together would probably forever change my world.

1.) Donal Finn. Completely different take on the character from Broadway, he is halfway between NYTW's charming confident musician and Broadway's gentle romantic dreamer, and somehow this is the perfect combination that makes me personally fall in love with Orpheus. I can't describe how it felt to walk into that theater so sure I know the production inside and out and that nothing could surprise me, and then seeing this performance. He has something that I haven't seen in any other version: he is utterly broken and entirely rageful. If It's True begins with him pressing his face to the floor, heartbroken, and ends with him angrily screaming out rallying calls, and Donal manages the transition PERFECTLY. There's something about seeing Orpheus not only gradually lose his optimism, but also gentleness, while remaining so vulnerable and tragic. His voice is so melodic and beautiful and he can really nail the balance between singing and speaking in ways Reeve never succeeded. Even when he "ugly sings" it is still on point. Like Chibueze, his voice is an extension of him instead of a karaoke-like performance, and his accent is so damn endearing idk how I will ever NOT hear Orpheus as Irish. Also he couldn't stop sobbing during his final curtain call and I've never seen that before which makes him all the more endearing. I hope he will play Orpheus on the West End recording!

[lovesongbracket]

Reminder: Vote based on the song, not the artist or specific recording! The tracks referenced are the original artist, aside from a few rare cases where a cover is the most widely known.

Lyrics, videos, info, and notable covers under the cut. (Spotify playlist available in pinned post)

All I've Ever Known

Written By: Anaïs Mitchell

Artist: Eva Noblezada & Reeve Carney for Hadestown (OBC)

Released: 2019

After truly seeing Orpheus' hope and optimism in “Livin' It Up On Top,” Eurydice has completely fallen in love with Orpheus. She is shedding her habit of constant independence and trying to start to trust, but her cynicism leads her to be wary and frightened. She expresses to Orpheus that she has only ever held her own, but she is ready to not feel lonely. Orpheus addresses his inherent connection with Eurydice. Much of what Orpheus says to Eurydice in this song is used again in “Epic III,” when Orpheus sings of Hades love for Persephone; this draws a parallel between the two pairs.

[EURYDICE] I was alone so long I didn't even know that I was lonely Out in the cold so long I didn’t even know that I was cold Turned my collar to the wind This is how it's always been All I've ever known is how to hold my own All I’ve ever known is how to hold my own But now I wanna hold you, too You take me in your arms And suddenly there's sunlight all around me Everything bright and warm And shining like it never did before And for a moment I forget Just how dark and cold it gets All I've ever known is how to hold my own All I've ever known is how to hold my own But now I wanna hold you Now I wanna hold you, hold you close I don't wanna ever have to let you go Now I wanna hold you, hold you tight I don't wanna go back to the lonely life [ORPHEUS] I don't know how or why Or who am I that I should get to hold you But when I saw you all alone against the sky It's like I’d known you all along I knew you before we met And I don’t even know you yet All I know is you're someone I have always known [ORPHEUS and EURYDICE] All I know is you’re someone I have always known And I don't even know you Now I wanna hold you, hold you close I don't wanna ever have to let you go [EURYDICE] Suddenly the sunlight Bright and warm [ORPHEUS] Suddenly I'm holding the world in my arms [EURYDICE] Say that you’ll hold me forever Say that the wind won't change on us Say that we'll stay with each other And it will always be like this [ORPHEUS] I'm gonna hold you forever The wind will never change on us Long as we stay with each other [ORPHEUS and EURYDICE] Then it will always be like this

Run Away With Me

Written By: Noonie Bao, Oscar Holter, Carly Rae Jepsen, Robin Fredriksson, Shellback & Mattias Larsson

Artist: Carly Rae Jepsen

Released: 2015

On “Run Away with Me”, lyrics of restlessness and covert passion are delivered over high-paced retro-inspired synths, a pulsing bass, and crashing drums that drive the track. The song establishes CRJ as an artist who has grown past the the bubblegum nature of her breakthrough album Kiss. However, the pop catchiness of Carly Rae’s work is still present on E•MO•TION. According to Jepsen, the song is about the “magic” of long-distance lovers being together, even if only briefly: “The song’s about being away from someone for so long and having to make this one weekend together count. It’s totally romantic and not very real-life, but there’s something kind of magical in that.” The music video dropped the same day the song did.

[Verse 1] You're stuck in my head, stuck on my heart Stuck in my body, body I wanna go, get outta here I'm sick of the party, party I'd run away I'd run away with you, ooh-ooh-ooh This is the part you gotta say All that you're feeling, feeling Packing a bag, leaving tonight While everyone's sleeping, sleeping Let's run away I'll run away with you, ooh-ooh-ooh [Pre-Chorus] 'Cause you make me feel like I could be driving you all night And I'll find your lips in the streetlights I wanna be there with you, ooh-ooh-ooh [Chorus] Baby, take me to the feeling I'll be your sinner in secret When the lights go out Run away with me, run away with me Baby, every single minute I'll be your hero and win it When the lights go out Run away with me, run away with me [Verse ] Up in the clouds, high as a kite Over the city, city We never sleep, we never try When you are with me, with me I wanna stay Oh, I wanna stay here with you, ooh-ooh-ooh [Pre-Chorus] 'Cause you make me feel like I could be driving you all night (Night) And I'll find your lips in the streetlights I wanna be there with you, ooh-ooh-ooh [Chorus] Oh, baby, take me to the feeling I'll be your sinner in secret When the lights go out Run away with me, run away with me Oh, baby (Oh), every single minute (Ah-ah-ah) I'll be your hero and win it When the lights go out Run away with me, run away with me [Bridge] Hold on to me, I never wanna let you go (Run away with me, run away with me) Oh-oh-oh Over the weekend, we could turn the world to gold (Run away with me, run away with me) Oh-oh-oh (We could turn the world to gold) (Oh-oh, oh-oh) Over the weekend, we could turn the world to gold Oh-oh-oh (Oh-oh-oh) [Chorus] Oh, my baby Take me to the feeling (Take me to, take me to it, yeah) I'll be your sinner, in secret (Oh, when the lights go) When the lights go out Run away with me, run away with me (Just run away with me) Baby (Yeah, yeah) Every single minute (Yeah, yeah) I'll be your hero and win it When the lights go out Run away with me, run away with me [Outro] (Oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh) Run away with me, run away with me (Oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh) Run away with me, run away with me

[buckhead1111]

Reeve Carney

buckhead1111

[cyarskaren52]

https://web.archive.org/web/20200127175703/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/26/arts/music/grammy-winners.html

2020 Grammy Winners: The Complete List

https://web.archive.org/web/20200127172755im_/https://static01.nyt.com/images/2020/01/26/arts/26grammys-winners-billie/merlin_167891961_805fe086-4b08-486d-9d8e-20c0069f55bf-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp

Compiled by Lauren Messman

Published Jan. 26, 2020Updated Jan. 27, 2020, 10:28 a.m. ET

The 62nd annual Grammy Awards were on Sunday. Here are highlights from the show:

Billie Eilish won five awards, including record, album and song of the year, capping a night that also saw multiple wins for Lizzo and Lil Nas X.

Our critics and writers weigh in on the best and worst moments.

Lizzo and host Alicia Keys kicked off the show by addressing the death of the basketball star Kobe Bryant.

The ousted Grammys chief Deborah Dugan is at war with the Recording Academy. In a speech, Keys seemed to reference the turmoil.

Check out the red carpet looks.

See the complete list of winners below:

Record of the Year

“Bad Guy,” Billie Eilish

Album of the Year

“When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?,” Billie Eilish

Song of the Year

“Bad Guy,” Billie Eilish O’Connell and Finneas O’Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)

Best New Artist

Billie Eilish

Best Pop Solo Performance

“Truth Hurts,” Lizzo

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance

“Old Town Road,” Lil Nas X featuring Billy Ray Cyrus

Best Pop Vocal Album

“When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?,” Billie Eilish

Best Rock Performance

“This Land,” Gary Clark Jr.

Best Rock Song

“This Land,” Gary Clark Jr., songwriter (Gary Clark Jr.)

Best Rock Album

“Social Cues,” Cage the Elephant

Best Alternative Music Album

“Father of the Bride,” Vampire Weekend

Best Metal Performance

“7empest,” Tool

Best R&B Performance

“Come Home,” Anderson .Paak featuring André 3000

Best R&B Song

“Say So,” PJ Morton, songwriter (PJ Morton featuring JoJo)

Best Urban Contemporary Album

“Cuz I Love You (Deluxe),” Lizzo

Best R&B Album

“Ventura,” Anderson .Paak

Best Traditional R&B Performance

“Jerome,” Lizzo

Best Rap Performance

“Racks in the Middle,” Nipsey Hussle featuring Roddy Ricch and Hit-Boy

Best Rap Song

“A Lot,” Jermaine Cole, Dacoury Natche, 21 Savage and Anthony White, songwriters (21 Savage featuring J. Cole)

Best Rap Album

“Igor,” Tyler, the Creator

Best Rap/Sung Performance

“Higher,” DJ Khaled featuring Nipsey Hussle and John Legend

Best Country Solo Performance

“Ride Me Back Home,” Willie Nelson

Best Country Album

“While I’m Livin’,” Tanya Tucker

Best Jazz Instrumental Album

“Finding Gabriel,” Brad Mehldau

Best Latin Pop Album

“#Eldisco,” Alejandro Sanz

Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album

“El Mal Querer,” Rosalía

Best Americana Album

“Oklahoma,” Keb’ Mo’

Best Song Written for Visual Media

“I’ll Never Love Again (Film Version),” Natalie Hemby, Lady Gaga, Hillary Lindsey and Aaron Raitiere, songwriters (Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper)

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical

Finneas

Best Music Video

“Old Town Road (Official Movie),” Calmatic, video director; Candice Dragonas, Melissa Larsen and Saul Levitz, video producers (Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus)

Best Comedy Album

“Sticks & Stones,” Dave Chappelle

Best Musical Theater Album

“Hadestown,” Reeve Carney, André De Shields, Amber Gray, Eva Noblezada and Patrick Page, principal soloists; Mara Isaacs, David Lai, Anaïs Mitchell and Todd Sickafoose, producers (Anaïs Mitchell, composer and lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast)

Best Instrumental Composition

“Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge Symphonic Suite,” John Williams, composer (John Williams)

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella

“Moon River,” Jacob Collier, arranger (Jacob Collier)

Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals“All Night Long,” Jacob Collier, arranger (Jacob Collier featuring Jules Buckley, Take 6 and Metropole Orkest)

A Grammys Red Carpet Fantasia

We went to the Grammys red carpet in Los Angeles.

Best Recording Package

Chris Cornell, Barry Ament, Jeff Ament and Joe Spix, art directors (Chris Cornell)

Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package

“Woodstock: Back to the Garden — The Definitive 50th Anniversary Archive,” Masaki Koike, art director (Various Artists)

Best Album Notes

“Stax ’68: A Memphis Story,” Steve Greenberg, album notes writer (Various Artists)

Best Historical Album

“Pete Seeger: The Smithsonian Folkways Collection,” Jeff Place and Robert Santelli, compilation producers; Pete Reiniger, mastering engineer (Pete Seeger)

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical

“When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?,” Rob Kinelski and Finneas O’Connell, engineers; John Greenham, mastering engineer (Billie Eilish)

Best Remixed Recording

“I Rise (Tracy Young’s Pride Intro Radio Remix),” Tracy Young, remixer (Madonna)

Best Immersive Audio Album

“Lux,” Morten Lindberg, immersive audio engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive audio mastering engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive audio producer (Anita Brevik, Trondheimsolistene and Nidarosdomens Jentekor)

Best Contemporary Instrumental Album

“Mettavolution,” Rodrigo y Gabriela

Best Gospel Performance/Song

“Love Theory,” Kirk Franklin, songwriter (Kirk Franklin)

Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song

“God Only Knows,” Josh Kerr, Jordan Reynolds, Joel Smallbone, Luke Smallbone and Tedd Tjornhom, songwriters (For King & Country and Dolly Parton)

Best Gospel Album

“Long Live Love,” Kirk Franklin

Best Contemporary Christian Music Album

“Burn the Ships,” For King & Country

Best Roots Gospel Album

“Testimony,” Gloria Gaynor

Best World Music Album

“Celia,” Angelique Kidjo

Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media

“A Star Is Born,” Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper

Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media

“Chernobyl,” Hildur Guonadottir, composer

Best New Age Album

“Wings,” Peter Kater

Best American Roots Performance

“Saint Honesty,” Sara Bareilles

Best American Roots Song

“Call My Name,” Sarah Jarosz, Aoife O’Donovan and Sara Watkins, songwriters (I’m With Her)

Best Bluegrass Album

“Tall Fiddler,” Michael Cleveland

Best Traditional Blues Album

“Tall, Dark & Handsome,” Delbert McClinton and Self-Made Men + Dana

Best Contemporary Blues Album

“This Land,” Gary Clark Jr.

Best Folk Album

“Patty Griffin,” Patty Griffin

Best Children’s Album

“Ageless Songs for the Child Archetype,” Jon Samson

Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books and Storytelling)

“Becoming,” Michelle Obama

Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)

“De Ayer Para Siempre,” Mariachi Los Camperos

Best Tropical Latin Album

“Opus,” Marc Anthony

“A Journey Through Cuban Music,” Aymée Nuviola

Best Regional Roots Music Album

“Good Time,” Ranky Tanky

Best Music Film

“Homecoming,” Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and Ed Burke, video directors; Steve Pamon and Erinn Williams, video producers (Beyoncé)

Best Country Duo/Group Performance

“Speechless,” Dan + Shay

Best Country Song

“Bring My Flowers Now,” Brandi Carlile, Phil Hanseroth, Tim Hanseroth and Tanya Tucker, songwriters (Tanya Tucker)

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album

“Look Now,” Elvis Costello and the Imposters

Best Engineered Album, Classical

“Riley: Sun Rings,” Leslie Ann Jones, engineer; John Kilgore, Judith Sherman and David Harrington, engineers/mixers; Robert C. Ludwig, mastering engineer (Kronos Quartet)

Producer of the Year, Classical

Blanton Alspaugh

Best Orchestral Performance

“Norman: Sustain,” Gustavo Dudamel, conductor (Los Angeles Philharmonic)

Best Opera Recording

“Picker: Fantastic Mr. Fox,” Gil Rose, conductor; John Brancy, Andrew Craig Brown, Gabriel Preisser, Krista River and Edwin Vega; Gil Rose, producer (Boston Modern Orchestra Project; Boston Children’s Chorus)

Best Choral Performance

“Duruflé: Complete Choral Works,” Robert Simpson, conductor (Ken Cowan; Houston Chamber Choir)

Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance

“Shaw: Orange,” Attacca Quartet

Best Classical Instrumental Solo

“Marsalis: Violin Concerto; Fiddle Dance Suite,” Nicola Benedetti; Cristian Măcelaru, conductor (Philadelphia Orchestra)

Best Classical Solo Vocal Album

“Songplay,” Joyce DiDonato; Chuck Israels, Jimmy Madison, Charlie Porter and Craig Terry, accompanists (Steve Barnett and Lautaro Greco)

Best Classical Compendium

“The Poetry of Places,” Nadia Shpachenko; Marina A. Ledin and Victor Ledin, producers

Best Contemporary Classical Composition

“Higdon: Harp Concerto,” Jennifer Higdon, composer (Yolanda Kondonassis, Ward Stare and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra)

Best Dance Recording

“Got to Keep On,” The Chemical Brothers, producers; Steve Dub Jones and Tom Rowlands, mixers (The Chemical Brothers)

Best Dance/Electronic Album

“No Geography,” The Chemical Brothers

Best Reggae Album

“Rapture,” Koffee

Best Improvised Jazz Solo

“Sozinho,” Randy Brecker, soloist

Best Jazz Vocal Album

“12 Little Spells,” Esperanza Spalding

Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album

“The Omni-American Book Club,” Brian Lynch Big Band

Best Latin Jazz Album

“Antidote,” Chick Corea and the Spanish Heart Band

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[blueeandyellowmakesgreen]

for the spotify wrapped ask:

number 37?

HI THANK YOU!!

classic hadestown <3333 will always be prideful this managed to make it to my top 5 artists

[l-boomburg]

BIIIIIGGGG lore dump

Just wanna flex, so here's a bunch of random things about my Degrees of Seperation, or as I call them, social jumps.

Disclaimer: these "jumps" can be anything ranging from a conversation/ acknowledgement to an actual friendship.

I'm two social jumps away from Acappella Group Pentatonix, Twitch Streamer Tubbo, Rapper Dan Bull, Broadway actor Reeve Carney, actor Gaten Matarazzo, and Mariah freaking Carey.

And one jump away from the playwright Don Zolidis, Twitch Streamer Eret, and CG5. Also from numerous tumblr artists and TCFSV author Bonesandthebees but that isn't very impressive.

Now that I think about it, I'm two to three jumps away from like... every modern MCYT. That's freaking cool.

[00towns]

2022: Selected Media in Review

Hadestown 

I caught Hadestown on Broadway in early November on last minute tickets purchased with my coworker for nosebleed seats. We had just finished our last day at a three-day museums conference and were desperately looking for something to fill our last evening that didn’t require massive amounts of critical thought or force us to talk to each other. Sitting on a stone bench in Central Park, we scrolled through a litany of day-of tickets and debated The Book of Mormon, Kinky Boots, and Six before settling on a 7PM showing of Hadestown. 

Despite actively trying otherwise, I don’t have a wide repertoire of musical theater knowledge, so when I picked up the playbill and began scanning the names the only one that rang a bell was Eva Noblezada, whose Yellow Rose (2019) I had caught at a film festival a few years ago. My coworker, already a fan of the musical, explained the premise to me. It was a retelling of Orpheus and Eurydice, set in an ambiguously post-industrial Western backdrop with appearances from Hermes, Persephone, the Muses, and Hades – think Makoto Shinkai’s ‘two kids against the world’ motif with a familiar cast of Olympians. She noted in particular Eva as Eurydice’s country, folksy sound contrasting and complementing the high-pitched musical motif of Reeve Carney’s Orpheus. While both roles were played by understudies in the show that we watched (as well as the roles of Hades and Hermes), I particularly loved the sense of intimacy cultivated between Eurydice and Orpheus. The other standout element of Hadestown to me was the lighting design, which at one point swings huge industrial lanterns out into the audience on thick metal cables, creating an almost beating-heart effect through the circular stage design. Entirely unexpected and haunting, I left the show with a newfound appreciation for steampunk, folk, and mythologies that beg the audience to remember a time before we knew all the endings. 

(Virginia and DC friends, Hadestown is playing next year at The National in June.) 

2. Chen – 사라지고 있어 Last Scene - The 3rd Mini Album

In lieu of a Baekhyun solo album this year, I’m deferring to my thi– 

I’m kidding, of course. 

In a listening party video during promotions for this album, Chen reflected on the song Photograph and its high notes, something fans have come to expect from Chen because of his position within EXO. Notably, those notes are missing from this album with the exception of this song, and Chen seems keen to address this head-on. I don’t want to mince his words and I don’t speak Korean, so I’ve included his words (edited for light ribbing from his members and in translation) below: 

“I’ve been debating a lot. I can sing high notes, but then I sang high notes a lot in EXO’s albums too. [...] So I debated a lot, even when I released my first solo album, I sang too high … I became like a singer who sings high [notes]. Although that’s what I’m good at, I wanted to do it for a longer time. I’m getting older anyway, and I want this to be my strength for 10 to 20 years in the future. So I wanted to show it gradually over time.” 

I’m unsure if Chen is discussing his physical ability to sing high notes, which can be strenuous for a vocalist and may deteriorate their ability to sing over time, or on his longevity as an artist who is able to continue surprising his listener by doing something interesting or unexpected, with hitting high notes serving as the locus of his concern. I think there’s an ambiguity in the way that he talks about time that makes room for us to see Chen more deeply as an artist who has never been understood as anything but extremely talented. I’ll be the first to admit that I know very little about vocal technique, although it’s definitely not a stretch to say that there are many, many ways to be a talented singer not defined purely by range. Rather than split hairs about Chen’s vocal ability, I instead found his thoughts on exemplifying his talent as a singer to be a wonderful reflection on patience. To me, it seems like Last Scene has addressed the question of his ‘best’ by a purposeful omission, saying that his best is always moveable, always relative, always being negotiated. How might I learn from this ethos of continually finding new ways to be good to myself, to be a good-myself, to show my best sides both privately and publicly? 

<사라지고 있어 Last Scene> is Chen’s third mini album and his first release since returning from his military service. You can listen to the titular song, Last Scene, here, and the entire album here.

3. After Yang (dir. Kogonada) 

I found After Yang to be a quiet yet powerful piece of diaspora film that filled out the maximalism of Everything Everywhere All At Once. I loved the quiet domesticity of the film; at times, the futuristic setting was entirely alien, and at others I saw a vivisection of myself, my family, and my most intimate thoughts laid out on the screen. Of course, domestic life is also a major theme in the huge, extravagant, multiversal project of EEAAO, but the tenuously moving plot of After Yang situated the most wrenching, heartrending evocations in heartbeats of silence, hung as string lights over vignettes of quiet kitchen scenes, peaceful garden memories, and thick dark pigtails. The gentle attention that After Yang begs of its audience was almost refreshing, and reminds me that the most moving parts of my experience as a diasporic subject have been when nothing much happens at all. 

4. Jenny Nicholson – The Church Play Cinematic Universe 

This one is for me. 

Jenny Nicholson occupies the special place in my conscious that doesn’t really mind what it is obsessed with. The Church Play Cinematic Universe is loosely a video essay on a set of yearly Christmas plays put on by a megachurch in Canada that riff off widely known movie references to tell and retell the story of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. More specifically, it’s a eighty-minute video of Jenny Nicholson scathingly unpacking the annual Christian-ification of beloved media franchises. Personal favorites include ‘The Lion King of Judah’ and ‘The Princess Bride of Christ’. 

Recently, a close friend’s father told us that in his 50s, he believes that the only media that truly sticks with you throughout your life is the things that you consume in your teens. I reference this now in a twofold sense: I can only seem to bring myself to this type of meaningless yet critical thought in reference to cultural locuses that have reached a critical mass of age and nostalgia, particularly if I haven’t experienced them myself (see also in this category: Eddy Burback’s ‘I ate at every Rainforest Cafe in the Country’, Defunctland’s 'Disney Channel’s Theme: A History Mystery’). The other sense is that the passion that video essayists have for inane topics tugs at my gut in a way that I can only understand through the way I feel when a random YouTube video I was fixated on in my teens lights all my cells on fire when it pops up. I would like in some sense to be incensed by anything as much as I was watching greedily everything that I could get my hands on, determined to brute-force my way into becoming a whole person through the Internet, no matter if that person (and their relationship to the Internet) came out like a grow-a-sea-creature capsule that got stuck in the plastic. Having now escaped my pill-shaped prison, I know those most intent obsessions were not a purely individual complex, but nothing elicits quite the same response. I appreciate Jenny Nicholson and her commitment to pedantry for reminding me that in those days and today, I am never alone online. 

To illustrate the ridiculousness of my point, I’ve attached a few links to videos that I would make video essays on if I was a content creator. 

BTS’s Blood Sweat and Tears ‘Ask In A Box’ (I have most of this video committed to memory)

ASMRrequest’s Departure Ep 2: Frontiers 

The Real Bros of Simi Valley: Season 1, episode 1

Thank you, 2022, for a bizarre list of things that have stuck with me into the new year. Onto the next!

[shewhosleepsalotincemeteries]

14, 15, and 30 for the music ask game :)

14. A song that you would love played at your wedding

While I don’t really see myself having a wedding, I do think that the idea of singing Wedding Song from Hadestown with one’s partner at your wedding is like disgustingly cute

15. A song that is a cover by another artist

I have been watching this performance on repeat for the past few days

30. A song that reminds you of yourself

Many many options here, but I’ve been vibing a lot with this recently