#bagsy not in net

[daily1975lyrics]

❝do you wanna leave at the same time?❞

[oh-bonerline]

Thirty seconds go by. Forty. Fifty. A minute and then several more. Matty standing by the door. Pathetic. Waiting. He’s gone around the block, that’s all. A walk to get his head on straight. But he’ll be back. He always comes back.  Maybe it’s him standing by the door like this that’s keeping Ross. A watched pot and all that. So he moves away from the front door, goes back into the living room. He sits on the couch with his arms wrapped around himself. The house is so quiet he can hear his erratic heartbeat pulsing in his ears. He can hear all the clicks and taps of the air con and the refrigerator, every tick of the vintage clock on the wall. And then the voice inside his head: Fucked it up again, haven’t you? Lost him for the hundredth time. You’ll never get it fucking right. You don’t deserve him. Never have. After all you’ve done? Fucking stupid. Thinking he’d ever marry you.  He picks his phone up from where he’s left it on the coffee table. He needs to shut the voice up, needs to block out the sounds of this house. He needs Ross, the only one who’s ever been able to make everything go silent for him. But Ross doesn’t want to talk to him now, maybe not ever again. He dials a different number. “Hiya,” he says quietly, apologetically when the other end picks up.

we'll knock around and see - chapter thirteen (part one) on AO3

[bedforddanes75]

george daniel you have ruined me

[themkp]

do you wanna leave at the same time?

do you wanna leave at the same time?

do you wanna leave at the same time?

bagsy not in net. the 1975

[wearsitlikeadress]

bagsy not in net my ultimate beloved

[butyou-callmewhenyourebored]

SORRY BUT I’VE JUST GOT BACK FROM THE COLOGNE GIG AND WTF HAVE I JUST WITNESSED 😭

THE SETLIST WAS SO ROGUE, SO UNEXPECTED, SO NOT LIKE ANY OTHER SATVB SETLIST. THE FIRST FIVE ALONE FELT LIKE I WAS HALLUCINATING 😩

- The 1975 (self titled)

- The City

- Milk

- Anobrain

- You

He then also pulled out;

- Then Because She Goes

- Bagsy Not in Net

- Frail State of Mind

- Medicine

- Lost my Head

- 28

As far as last shows (and my last show of the era) it was pretty perfect! If I was mentally stable going in to the gig (I wasn’t) I definitely wasn’t coming out of it! I now need to go lie down in a dark room to go recover because Healy really blindsided me there!

[snsdgojo]

the 1975, bagsy not in net // chapter 236

From the album notes on Apple Music: “It’s about wanting to die with your partner. Don't want to lose someone that I love.”

I would share a full analysis but it’s difficult for me to locate my exact thoughts and feelings.

[the1975attheirverybest]

The 1975: SATVB— A Review

Notes And Disclaimers: a couple of you have asked for my thoughts on the show. And, y’all know I don’t need to be asked twice, lmao. Consider this a conversation starter and feel free to agree, disagree, suggest alternative ideas, etc.

I’ll be returning to this and adding/evolving as the show grows and changes over time. Let’s geek out over this beautiful show and this beautiful band.

This review shall discuss opening night but will make references to additions/ alternations from subsequent nights when necessary.

———

Since SATVB has kicked off a couple of weeks ago, I’ve seen conversations about this show being a sequel to “At Their Very Best,” (2022). On the 1975 subreddit, a fan made a post about how SATVB is too much like ATVB. I think this issue is a good starting point for thinking about what SATVB is and how it works.

Instead of a sequel, I would like to offer a different word: palimpsest.

In other words, I think that SATVB is a self-conscious reimagining of ATVB, that is constantly thinking about its own former version, responding to itself, to the audience, and refining the points intended by the original show. You can still see a lot of the original show in this new version. But it’s also significantly different in, small, but important, ways.

The way that I propose we think about this is through an examination of the similarities and differences.

What’s new?

1. The first half: on opening night, Matty meta-theatrically references the older show by noting “during the first part of ATVB I wouldn’t address the audience at all, but this is a new show. So, I suppose I can.” The audience cheers before he has a change of heart - and starts singing a change of heart. This self-reference is by no means new to the world of the 1975, but it establishes the shows relationship to its predecessor. Matty calls our attention to the fact that SATVB is a mutation of last year’s show, even flirting with the potential of replicating or deviating from the expected path, only to shut it down.

2. The setlist: in typical 1975 fashion, the setlist starts off similar to what we came to expect from ATVB, but it quickly morphs from BFIAFL songs to other great hits. For example, Robbers is performed extremely early into the show. On opening night, it was performed 8th on the setlist. During ATVB, Robbers (along with Sex, Too Shy, etc) would be performed towards the end because there was a clean delineation between the two halves of the show. The first part was meant as a “performance” with a storyline and a message, whereas the second half was a “1975 greatest hits” where Matty would break the distance between himself and the audience, at one point even jumping into the crowd to do the robbers kiss. So, by including songs out of order, SATVB blurs the previously established line between the two halves and subverts audience expectations. Sending the message that this show is not going to be as structured as it’s original.

3. Consumption: on the face of it, it might seem like Matty is showing us a less destructive/ better version of himself. Replacing the dick-touching and raw-meat-eating with exercise (and we know beyond the symbolism of exercise as strength, that Matty’s workout and jiujitsu regimens have been a source of structure and a way of taking care of himself) BUT it’s ultimately still functioning within the concept of masculinity because he’s quite literally flexing his strength in front of thousands of people, taking his shirt off, presenting an image of himself that reflects the desirable male attributes of our culture. So, as a whole, this replacement of mastrubation with weight lifting ends up being an example of how he’s trying to change things/ get better, but is nonetheless ultimately always trapped within the masculine ideals that he knows are toxic.

4. The Rooftop: this, I think, is the second most darkest moment of the show. Next to Peanut (discussed below), “Bagsy Not In Net” is a devastating song. A spin on the romanticized Romeo-and-Juliet joint suicide concept of lovers in life and in death. The fact that it takes the place originally occupied by “I Like America” makes it even harder to stomach. He literally goes from “I’m scared of dying/ it’s fiiinnneee” to “do you wanna leave at the same time?” Not to mention that the song is one of his most vulnerable and fragile. “Dealing in death and being lonely,” “I’m reeling I know that I’m appalling.” Serves as a way of looking inward and finding the most difficult version of himself. As well as, perhaps, commentary on how he’s felt in the past 10-11 months since BFIAFL and since his reputation as “controversial” began to spin out of control. ILA felt like a….call to action? A statement of resistance meant to remind us all that it’s up to us to make shit happen. Bagsy feels like….a cry for help.

5. Peanut: this one is, perhaps, the most self-explanatory, so I suppose it doesn’t require me to linger around it for that long. Often artists can be accused of creating drama just to make art. When writers or artists of any kind are happy and content with their lives they feel least creative. See the Father John Misty song called “Songwriter” where he feels that he “undressed [his wife] repeatedly in public. To show how very noble and naked [he] can be.” Similarly, Matty’s been accused of self-destructing this past year and “not dealing with the issues underlying his addiction that drive him to ruin himself” or whatever. So, for this show, hd undressed himself instead. Bares himself naked both literally and metaphorically and exposes the most intimate parts of himself. The body double, peanut, shown out on the grass in a not-quite-fetus position is the most honest he’s been to date. The fetal position might symbolize vulnerability on some level but often people curl up into a ball when they’re trying to be “closed up” or “protect themselves” from the world. Animals sometimes do it to protect their vital organs as well. But peanut is not entirely closed off from our intrusive gaze; he’s not protecting anything. It’s all out for us to see. Including, yes, his flaccid dick and balls. So, the image connotes openness, exposure, having the most private and intimate parts of yourself projected out into the public. And….basic fundamental humanity. The body is not positioned to be viewed as sexy or desirable (though the show is nothing if not aware of the audience’s objectifying reaction). On one level it’s commentary on the work on a songwriter/musician. You make art out of the private parts of your life. On another level it’s commenting on his recent status as a celebrity famous enough to be papped, etc. or on the fact that underneath all that slander is a human being with feelings that we commodify and objectify. This point is further made clean when real matty, shirtless still from the earlier consumption scene where his body WAS positioned desirably for our gaze crawls over to peanut and comforts him (or in other iterations of the performance spoons him). The paradox of both versions of himself being side by side, of self-soothing, over having to literally be face to face with his own nakedness is the most introspective image that one could possible visualize. He’s looking inwards at himself and sharing allllll that he finds, all parts of himself, with all of us. The moment is made more uncomfortable of course by the crowds zooming phones getting his ass and his dick. So, in real time, we see the process of what it means to be an artist under the circumstances that he’s been in over the course of this year. The desire for connection and for reaching out to people immediately re-constructed as entertainment for the viewers. If that ain’t dark, I don’t know what is.

6. The SATVB-ification of Tiktok: literally. This is “The Man Who Married A Robot redux” over the last few months, Matty has addressed the discomfort of performing at festivals because he feels it’s impossible to be a rockstar out of context these days. And the struggle of knowing what to make of the “tiktok-ification of The 1975” since they went viral. So, his solution is to dish it back out. If tiktok is going to clip the show and spin it algorithmically then Matty is going to put tiktok in the show. Which, of course, he knows, will be filmed happening and posted to tiktok (three layers of meta-performance How’s that for post-modernity?). It’s espcially considering that he chose to use the subway surfers Reddit stories and stitched videos of slime etc. meaning the most heightened use of entertainment. We view these videos because we get two forms of media: the story being told and then the game/slime it’s being placed with. All the while Matty mono-tone rambles about our need for attention, human connection, how badly we have depended on the internet etc etc.

The show, as a result, is constantly in conversation with itself, with us, with culture. There’s a sense of immediacy to it because it’s responding to things that have happened recently/are still happening and is addressing us directly. Despite its very highly constructed nature, and all the tricks and paradoxes involved, the fact that it’s speaking to us and addressing what’s on all of our mind makes it so direct in its connection with the audience. So, in the end, Matty might be said to have succeeded at forming the connection that he seeks in his art.

[daily1975lyrics]

❝not dying, no, just lying seeing you here is the moment it's clear 'cause i'm crying❞

[snakes-and-island-fires]

Bagsy Not In Net

[thefrontofmymind]

obsessed with that video of ross and john vibing and playing chess while matty is pouring his heart out during bagsy not in net

[toomuchracket]

I really enjoy playing group sports, but the schedules with friends rarely align to make it work. It would be fun to rope in all the boys on a field trip to play some ultimate frisbee, they'd inevitably start playing soccer (which I dislike playing so that's prime "appreciating the view" time). Followed by tired, cuddly film watching + eating at home!

I'm a George girly, but dealers choice!

this is so sweet! i see it being a really nice day at the end of spring/beginning of summer, so not too hot but still sunny, and you suggest to george that the weekly meetup (because those boys CANNOT be apart for any length of time lol) should take place at the park - he's so up for it, and so are the rest of the boys (and carly and baby hann!). you take the frisbee, and everyone - including the kid lol - gets involved in an initially friendly game that soon gets fairly competitive (let's be real it's probably george and matty trying to outdo each other lol); it ends abruptly when baby hann asks if he can get an ice cream from the kiosk nearby, and the rest of you all go "you know what? i could go an ice cream right now too". so you all get them and sit on the grass, you between george's legs lying against his chest totally content, just enjoying the sweet treat and the sun on your bare legs. speaking of, once george has finished his ice cream, he defo reaches into your tote bag and brings out sunscreen like "reapplication time, c'mon babe" - you do your limbs and anywhere exposed on the front of your body while george clips your hair up and does the back of your neck, your shoulders and your back, a very cute little routine you've both established. and then it's his turn, and then you both face each other to put some on your faces, smiling sweetly at each other and having a cute little kiss - everyone finds the whole thing adorable, despite ross fake-retching and calling george "sappy and whipped" (which is actually true lol). george just laughs and stands up, grabbing his hoodie as if to put it on, then abruptly shouts "bagsy not in net!" and just fucking BOLTS to the middle of the grassy section you guys are in, closely followed by adam - still holding his son - and ross, matty behind them like "this is so bloody unfair you all have longer legs than me of course you're going to be faster than i am christ alive i hate being in goal" lol. but he stands between the makeshift goalposts (george's hoodie and baby hann's rain jacket) as his role requires him to, trying to stop the others kicking the ball ross brought with him between them. you don't really focus on the progress of the game, though, because you're too busy chatting to carly initially, and then too distracted by the sight of george (who's removed his shirt) all lean and golden and beautiful in the sunshine - he looks over and winks at you at one point, which sends you into a fit of lovestruck giggles. but after a few short games (everyone takes a turn in net literally if only to stop matty having a tantrum), you all part ways and head home for dinner, making plans to do the same thing next week if the weather stays good. and yeah, you and george are both sleepy from the sunshine - dinner is something quick to assemble, eaten sprawled out on the sofa, followed by a 90-min rom-com watch that you don't even see the end of because you fall asleep contentedly cosied into your boyfriend's chest. very cute vibes! <3

[2013-2016vibes4thesoul]

bagsy not in net

[swiftviolets]

shuffle your favorite playlist and post the first five songs that come up. then copy/paste this ask to your favorite mutuals ♥️

i don’t really have a favourite playlist so i’ll just use my spotify on repeat playlist lol

home alone—nct 127

bagsy not in net—the 1975

impossible—riize

hands up—nct wish

boa—megan thee stallion

[oh-bonerline]

THEY ACTUALLY PLAYED BAGSY NOT IN FUCKING NET

!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[felixalbright]

ten songs for felix albright.

i think we're alone now — tiffany / vienna — billy joel / o children — nick cave & the bad seeds / what's the use? — mac miller / all i want — joni mitchell / marcia baïla — les rita mitsouko / la vita nuova — christine and the queens & caroline polachek / i'm glad — captain beefheart & his magic band / los angeles — haim / sound & color — alabama shakes / bagsy not in net — the 1975 submergence

listen.