#but the final verse has more dramatic appeal for time

[everyryuujisuguro]

[1mnobodywhoareyou]

Bex and Riley for dealer's choice of birthday prompt!

A prompt request for two OCs 🥺 my brain children feel so loved right now. Thank you! But you made me make SO MANY DECISIONS and I’m mad at you for that 😉. Hope you like it! 

For context, Bex and Riley are both OCs in the Bex Verse. Riley is Bex’s best friend (Bex is Willexie’s kid) and currently playing around with gender and pronouns.

They reach the school and Bex turns to give Willie a tight hug. They return it readily, counting as they squeeze her ten times before finally letting go. 

“Ten’s not too old to hug your old Nomy in front of your friends?” they tease. 

Bex plants a hand on her hip as she rolls her eyes. “I’ll never be too old for hugs.”

Willie chuckles and restrains themself from ruffling her hair, “Yeah okay, we’ll see about that. Love you. Have the most amazing day.”

Bex wraps her arms around Willie’s waist one more time. “You too, Nomy! Love you, bye!” She waves as she runs off. 

She sees Riley in their usual spot at the edge of the playground, just outside of the chaos of the daily school drop off, and runs toward them.

They notice her almost immediately and jump up, wrapping her in a tight hug once she’s close enough. 

“Happy birthday!”

Bex smiles. “Thanks!” she says before holding her skirt out and giving a twirl, “Look what Auntie Carrie got me!”

Riley offers her an exaggerated appreciative whistle. Bex rolls her eyes. He’d finally learned how to do that and Bex is only slightly frustrated that she can’t figure it out for herself. Apparently even in a family of musicians, she’s got a distinct lack of people who can teach her how to do this one thing. 

“Nice!” they offer. Riley doesn’t understand the appeal of dresses, especially not floofy twirly ones, but if there’s one thing that is true for her, it’s that she’s going to amp Bex up any chance she gets. 

And if there’s one thing that Bex and Carrie share, it’s a love for floofy twirly dresses. Carrie had made sure that Bex could have her new dress ready for school today. They’ve made half a tradition over the last few years where part of Carrie’s gift to Bex is her birthday outfit and every year it’s more extravagant than the last. Bex’s dads make sure that Carrie keeps it age, season, and school appropriate though. 

She spreads her skirt out as she sits on the grass like usual. Riley drops down beside her. They know there’s not enough time before the morning bell to actually dig anything out of their bags so they spend their few minutes alone excitedly chatting about Bex’s upcoming party and what they’re expecting her family to do. Luke probably has some cheesy song planned. Reggie will bake like always and do something overbearing and embarrassing. Alex will cry. Granted, he cried this morning. Something about milestone birthdays and being ten and almost all grown up. He’ll absolutely cry again, though. Willie will try way too hard to be cool. They’re all so predictable but at least it’s funny when it’s not annoying. 

The warning bell chimes and Riley jumps up. They offer Bex their hand and she readily accepts the help in being pulled up, brushing off her skirt and legs once she’s standing. 

She laughs as she curtsies in thanks. Riley bows before offering her his arm. “Milady,” Riley teases. 

“Thank you, good sir,” Bex counters with another giggle as she wraps hand around his arm. 

“Anything for the birthday girl.”

They laugh together as they make their way toward the school. Unfortunately they aren’t in the same class this year so they separate dramatically once inside, complete with Riley pressing a gentle kiss to Bex’s hand. 

“Happiest of birthdays to you, Lady Bex.” Riley bows again as she makes her way to her own classroom, leaving Bex to find her way to hers. 

“You guys are so weird,” Bex hears someone mutter just loud enough for her to hear. She brushes it off and rolls her shoulder back, just like Auntie Carrie taught her, walking to her classroom head held high.

She used to fight back. When people talked shit about her. Or her dads. Or Luke. Or Carrie. But after many, many chats with her grown ups and teachers and principals, she started practicing new ways to deal with her ‘haters’ (as Flynn calls them). Right now, the strategy is a Carrie Wilson special and it’s been working out okay so far. Riley has a harder time but they’re all working on it. 

Riley’s waiting outside of her classroom at recess. “Happy birthday!” they exclaim as soon as she gets out the door. 

Bex laughs as she follows him outside, “You already said that.”

“Yeah, but I want to say it again. I’m gonna say it so many times today. Happy birthday happy birthday happy birthday happy birthd-”

Bex cuts him off with a hand to his mouth and another laugh. “Okay, okay I get it! Don’t expect this many happy birthdays from me when it’s your turn though.”

“No, you’ll probably do something way cooler.”

“Pft as if.”

“Yeah, ‘cause you’re the coolest.”

“You’re just saying that ‘cause it’s my birthday.”

“Nope,” Riley retorts, rushing away before Bex can respond. 

“Wait! You can’t run away from me! It’s my birthday!” Bex yells as she follows after her. 

Bex catches up to Riley where they’ve stopped at a broken piece of pavement. There aren’t a lot of great places to bug hunt on the school grounds but every once in a while, if they look really carefully, they can find something new in disrepair that hosts some creatures for them to watch. 

Bex crouches down and flips the corner of cement over. “Awe, just pillbugs,” she says with dismay as she watches the little ecosystem. “They don’t even count.”

She gently replaces the concrete, careful not to disturb them any more than necessary. Riley sits beside her on the cement pad. “We’ll find the coolest bug today,” he assures her. “We have to! Birthday and all.”

“It’s too bad we can’t go to the front where all the flowers are,” Bex says with a pout as she plunks down beside Riley. They’d tried. Many times. But the teacher on supervision duty always caught them and made them stay on or around the playground. Sure, there was some grass and stuff, but nothing like what the front of the school offered for insect-friendly hunting grounds.

They sit in silence, staring at nothing until the bell rings to take them back inside. 

There’s no playful exchange this time around but Riley’s waiting for her again at their lunch break, with another round of happy birthdays, and then again at afternoon recess. 

They don’t have any more luck in their bug hunting, choosing to forego it entirely for their last break and instead opting to flip through the book that Riley had brought from home. 

By the end of the day, they’re both nearly bouncing out of their skin in excitement, the disappointment of their failed insect tracking behind them. Riley gets to come home with Bex. Something that’s not necessarily new. Or rare. But it’s different this time. 

Bex’s classmates (and their parents) and teachers gawk when at the end of the day The Carrie Wilson™ is there in a limo to pick up Bex and Riley. The Carrie Wilson™ who happens to be sporting a dress that almost perfectly matches Bex’s.

Carrie greets Bex and Riley with a wink and smile. They quickly clamber into the car, beaming the entire time. She follows and lets the driver close the door behind them.  

“You should turn ten more often,” Riley enthuses as they take in the interior of the car. Carrie had had it stocked up with Bex and Riley’s favourite treats (and some proper after school snacks at Alex’s insistence. “They need protein, Carrie.” 

“They’d better still be able to eat dinner and cake!” had been Reggie’s input.

“Let the kids have their fun!” was Ray’s contribution. “It’s not every day your kid, niece, grandbaby turns ten!”

To which Alex had fought back tears. Again.)

Bex looks around with wide eyes. She catches sight of the chocolate eggs that she only ever gets when somebody goes on tour and squeals with excitement. She takes one for herself and hands another to Riley. 

“Wait til you see these!” she tells him excitedly as she unwraps her own and cracks the chocolate open. She shoves the candy pieces into her mouth as she grabs the signature yellow canister and pops it open. She teaches Riley about the joys of Kinder Surprise, grateful to see that they both got toys that aren’t pre-built. 

“Best birthday ever,” Bex sighs. 

“And it’s only just began,” Carrie reminds her with a wide smile. “Let’s get you home so you can see what everyone else has in store for you.”

“How many times has Daddy cried?” Bex asks around a mouthful of chocolate.

Carrie laughs, “He made me promise not to tell. Or count.”

Bex rolls her eyes, a perfect imitation of her dad, “Figures.”

Okay i genuinely needed to cut this off cuz it almost turned into #Bex’s first sleepover which I am NOT equipped to write right now. Maybe I’ll extend this for ao3 later…

[connie-rubirosa]

Did you see the revival finale with McCoy (and Waterston's real) daughter as the guest star?!! I'm just like 😬😬 How they brought her in and dealt with their relationship was honestly just disappointing.

[l&o revival critical comments ahead]

oh boy DID i see the finale..... [facepalm]

i agree with @valenshawke that it was nice seeing sam waterston act with his real-life daughter, but the writing was sub-par, to say the least. once again, i don't think any of these writers have that much familiarity with the established canon (not that the l&o-verse has ever been much for continuity), but i find it hard to believe that jack and rebecca went from starting to patch things up with that season 17 cameo to jack visiting her semi-regularly when she moved to california (we hear snippets of this in seasons 18-20), to now another ten years and they're back to having this extremely distant, adversarial relationship? not to mention the fact that we've been hearing about rebecca in passing for years and not once does jack ever mention that his only daughter is a lawyer, just like dear old dad. knowing jack, he would have been bragging about it all the time. what greater honor could he have?

rebecca herself is also presented as being ready and willing to abuse her connections to help her client, which on the one had i understand that as a defense attorney, you do what you have to do to help a client. but on the other, do you expect me to believe that the only child of JACK McCOY genuinely thinks that pleading to him because "he's her dad" to cut her client a break is going to fly with him? and if their relationship is on such bad terms, why still would she think that an appeal to nepotism would help her? it's almost insulting that she would even try that with jack, more than once in the episode, and then barge into his office near the end almost in tears because he wouldn't grant her client a special favor because she was his daughter—it's almost like a tantrum. ugh.

the whole thing just doesn't make any sense and feels like the writers didn't even try—it's just like "how can we make this as dramatic and emotional as possible," but in a cheap, melodramatic way, not genuine or earned in the way the original l&o was known for.

and just the whole "oh no!!!! jack's daughter is working for the defense!!!!" is so contrived. like it literally wouldn't matter. she would just do her job. it's not like jack was the one personally prosecuting the case, so who cares? i would have much preferred to see the return of an old character who has left the DA's office for a different kind of law (serena southerlyn would make the most sense to me, considering as she was fired by branch for empathizing too much with defendants, but i'd take paul robinette as well who canonically became a defense attorney)—in other words a character whom the audience already has a history with and is emotionally invested in rather than essentially making up a character and conflict just for the sake of conflict.

i just want a normal, good episode of l&o that doesn't involve any soap-opera nonsense about the main characters' personal lives. is that too much to ask???? (apparently, it is!)

[crazy-joes]

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[mystoryboudoir]

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[careysmith1]

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[parkplaceconstruction02]

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[servicepropainting]

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[quidfree]

Speaking of tlaao you mentioned endeavours retirement happening during graduation is it cool if I asked what exactly made retire in that verse and also like how the lov and afo were brought down?

i think i spoke about this in the author's notes or comments or something so forgive redundancy, but my general thinking was that (because i hate the pacing in BNHA it's so stupid and bad agrhghjdf) the big final LOV showdown of choice would take place in their last year of high school, and the whole dabi = touya reveal would unfold then. the way that happened in canon is pretty much exactly what i had in mind (obv), so it would be something similar, only i thought endeavour would actually recognise him sooner (you would think, as a father...). anyways i imagined that after a number of battles won and lost, the league would do one final big attack on 1-A's eventual graduation to wipe out the promising new age of heroes, and endeavour (knowing who touya was) would get seriously injured protecting both of his sons (from each other, even) during some of the more gruelling fighting. post battle the scandal of touya's identity + his injuries and endeavour's general guilt would feed into his decision to retire, and his newfound focus on trying to heal the family's wounds/save touya (eg via speaking up at his trial and such despite the cost to his own reputation).

besides the enji element, i hadn't given much thought to how the league/AFO would be specifically brought down- the plot mechanics don't matter as much as the characters' role in it to me. i wasn't aware of shigaraki and midoriya's million quirks each at the time, but i definitely would have preferred to go in a direction where victory isn't a matter of who can throw the most out-of-nowhere OP shit at each other. i did see a lot of dramatic bakudeku team-up sacrificing, natch. would have liked to see all the extended cast really going hard to secure the big 1v1s, and those being very psychological. i also would have liked some juicy dark finale, where like after all the damage he's done shigaraki has to die but the way they do it is by midoriya getting through to his humanity only to kill him off anyways. i get the appeal of current dark martyr midoriya, but i would have liked it better if it were more understated and personal of a corruption.

[bahrain-lights]

The news that Red Bull is intending to employ a lawyer to advise them on appealing the steward’s decision from last week’s British GP with the intention of getting Lewis Hamilton a race ban or worse had my legal brain itching. Under the ‘read more’ button you’ll find an explanation of what Red Bull’s options are as well as my humble expectations of the whole situation, should Red Bull go all-out on this.

I'll tag @race-week, @babssionate and @weraceasone because they're bound to get questions about this and maybe this'll help :)

FIA appeal procedure

The FIA has its own appeal procedure. If a team, a driver, or any motor sport figure/authority does not agree with a decision, this decision is firstly appealed to the stewards who made the decision. This can also be read in the decision itself (here). The stewards can then re-evaluate their decision. If they decide not to change the sanction they decided on (in this case, the 10-second penalty) or if they change it but any party still doesn’t agree, they can appeal this decision to the FIA International Court of Appeals (ICA), which is an international tribunal with 32 (independent) judges. I won’t bore you with the full procedural course of an ICA case, if you want to you can read it here (in the FIA Judicial and Disciplinary Rules), but if you don’t want to or can’t, just take it from me that this is a lengthy procedure, time-wise. It is also expensive: just the filing of the appeal in and of itself costs (in this case) €3000,- (Article 9.1.1 FIA Sporting Decision), not even beginning to think of the costs of travel (parties are obligated to appear in person to the hearings) and legal representation (you can bet your ass that Red Bull Lawyer is being paid good money).

So, summarizing, a FIA decision can be appealed as follows:

Original decision made by the stewards – appeal with the stewards – appeal at the ICA

Wait - what is a tribunal?

Now seems like a good time to explain what a tribunal is, exactly. A tribunal is a specialised court that focuses on one single event or one single professional group. On the one hand you can think of war tribunals, like the Nuremberg Tribunal after WWII. Tribunals exist in day to day life in professional groups that have their own set of rules and regulations. For example, there are medical tribunals for doctors and surgeons who break medical rules, there are legal tribunals for lawyers who break behavioural codes, and there are military tribunals for soldiers who break the law. Think of it as a small legal system within the larger existing international legal system. The FIA is the same, it’s its own ‘legal system’ with its own legal code (the International Sporting Code and all affiliated codes) and its own court and appeals system.

So – what happens after the ICA?

The reason it is important to understand that the FIA is its own legal system is because it means the ICA is the final body where an FIA decision can be appealed. What the ICA decides, goes, no more appeals possible.

But what about the ‘regular’ court then?

So let’s say the ICA decides not to give a race ban, and decide that the original 10-second penalty was a correct penalty. Can Red Bull take the case to a regular court? Well, yes and no.

They can’t bring any party to court based on the FIA Sporting Code. As explained above, the FIA has exclusive jurisdiction over the application of this Code. If Red Bull wants to bring any party to a national court, they’d have to base it on national law, not the sporting code.

Now this is where it becomes interesting and also legally very improbable that Red Bull is going to achieve something. Red Bull has two options here, either taking Mercedes to court or taking the FIA to court.

Taking Mercedes to court

This would be a private case – and most likely be ruled by British law as both teams are based in GB. Now, I am not well versed in British law at all because the British legal system is fundamentally different from the one I study (Dutch). However, this would come down to some sort of personal damages and liability claim. This would be such a lengthy, complicated, impossible case that I doubt anyone will take this route. They’ll have to hire experts to analyse the actual move on track, wait for reports – it would take years. Meaning it would be wrapped up years after this year’s WDC is decided. Also taking into account that Max hasn’t suffered any permanent physical damage either (thank god), this is such an improbable scenario for Red Bull to win I just don’t think this is a route they’ll take.

Taking the FIA to court

Speaking of complicated cases: this. If it would get this far, Red Bull would be taking the FIA to court based on the FIA breaking certain procedural rules or fundamental legal principles. I won’t explain this too far because (1) it’s very complicated anyway en (2) I just cannot be asked to take all my Dutch legal knowledge and properly translate all the legal terms to English because that would take hours to convert.

Since the FIA is based in France and Red Bull in England, but is an Austrian company, I’m not sure to which national court this would be taken. To find that out I’d need to check several international treaties and, well, I disliked my International Law courses for a reason so I am Not Doing That.

So, what do I think will happen?

I think there’s a high chance Red Bull will appeal the decision at least once. However, I am not deeply familiar with the Sporting Code. Since I couldn’t say which Articles from the Code they’d be using I can’t really predict the success rate of that appeal. I’m guessing Red Bull are currently employing that lawyer to find out just that: how sensible an appeal would be. Assuming an appeal had a high chance of success, I think there’s a solid chance they’ll take it up to the ICA. However, I think the chance of them taking this to a regular national court is slim to none regardless of the final FIA decision.

This news sounds a lot more dramatic than it actually is - don't blow it out of proportion! I just wrote this because I enjoy this topic and I like informing people, lol.

All in all, Red Bull for now has only hired the lawyer for advice - this is incredibly common all across the corporate world and is by no means alarming. Remember: asking a lawyer for advice does not always lead to an actual court case. Advice and mediation is often a far larger part of a lawyer's job than taking things to court!

[opbackgrounds]

Inspired by the fights giving you little to talk about: despite being a battle manga, I’ve always found the fights to be the least interesting aspect of One Piece. Some of them do a great job at tying in other elements while others feel like they’re just sort of there. What do you think makes a fight feel meaningful in One Piece?

When analyzing something like a fight there are two things you have to look at. First, there’s how the information is actually presented on paper. It’s all the technical stuff like the artwork, paneling, the powers themselves and how they’re conveyed. It’s really hard to get invested in a fight if you can’t understand what’s going on, or if that Information is presented in a way that’s boring or unappealing. There are some stories where the entire appeal is the technical. Take, for example, Jojos or Death Note. Yes, there’s all the connective tissue in the background stringing the characters along, but there are a lot of people out there who just want to see some crazy Stand battles or Light dramatically eat potato chips as he outsmarts everyone else in the room.

The second thing is the story behind the fight. Why are these two people punching each other in the face? What ideas are being expressed? What problems are being resolved? Does this conflict tie back to the main themes of the arc or is it purely for spectacle?

Take, for example, the difference between Luffy vs Bellamy and the Luffy vs Yokozuna fight. Don’t remember Yokozuna? He’s the random sumo wrestler Luffy beat the crap out at the start of the Wano arc, an antagonist so inconsequential I’m not sure I spelled his name right just now.

The antagonists are similar in personality. Both fights are one shots. Luffy walks away from each unharmed. So why is the Bellamy fight remembered as one of the more epic moments in the series, when Yokozuna is barely a blip on the radar? The answer is obviously story. Oda crafted the Bellamy conflict as the climax of the Jaya arc—the emphatic final note on some of the most interesting introspection into Luffy’s character in the entire series.

Not all fights have to be so heavy or important. Comedy has always been integral to One Piece, and sometimes you just need to cut back for some Rule of Cool. But good fights—even for secondary or minor characters—should have internal stakes as well as external. Chopper’s fight vs Gedatsu in Skypiea is his first solo win and one of his first steps toward maturity. Usopp vs Perona closes out the Sogeking storyline. Zoro vs Kuma proves how much he’s willing to sacrifice for the sake of the Straw Hat Pirates.  I’m less versed in the technical aspects of drawing out a fight scene, but the general consensus within the fandom is that Oda is good but not great at things like paneling and composition of fights. The action can be muddled or confusing, especially when crowds are involved, which is becoming increasingly common as the cast of important characters grows exponentially over time.

The biggest change I’ve noticed, however, is that Oda is not dedicating as much time to individual fights as he once did. I mentioned it when going over the Alabasta saga, but the Chopper and Usopp vs Miss Merry Christmas and Mr. 4 fight was 3 or 4 uninterrupted fight chapters. Nothing else happened. Those 4 characters were the only ones shown. We got to see a definitive beginning, middle, and end.

A good fight will be its own story in miniature, both from a technical punchy-punchy level and also in terms of character motivation. And in modern One Piece, a lot of that story is being cut for time.  This is not always a bad thing. With as many characters that are running around, the story would quickly descend into Bleach levels of terrible pacing if every fight for every character was shown in meticulous detail. But go too far in the other direction and things can feel choppy and unsatisfying.  I don’t want this to sound like I think there are no good fights in the mangas recent history. I thought the Katakuri vs Luffy fight was fantastic and generally enjoy Oda’s action scenes. They’re just not Oda’s bread and butter, and that’s okay.

[putschki1969]

H-el-ical// LIVE Limited Production Album Song Commentary 〜「Blooming」Edition 〜 ♪ Angraecum

In this regular series all H-el-ical// songs from the limited albums (only available at the live venue and through mail order) will be discussed. Hikaru and the composer Hideyuki Gushimiyagi are talking about the song production and share some insight. There will also be comments from other creators that participated in the making of the individual songs. Please be sure to check out everyone’s thoughts. A new episode will be airing every Friday at 20:00 (JST). Find summaries for all previous videos in the tag #helical-video-series.

This time soundproducer Akihiro Tomita will provide answers for the questionnaire.

H-el-ical// “Blooming” Mini Album Scans & MP3s

STREAM and PURCHASE the digital album HERE!

Summary/Highlights 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

The final song of the “Blooming” album series. This one didn’t get a YouTube release just like the previous song but it is NOW AVAILABLE on various streaming platforms. Hikaru says that apparently ”Angraecum” means “staying forever on your side” in flower language. It is a winter flower so Hikaru wanted to combine the wintry image with the meaning of the flower in the lyrics. When she had finished the lyrics they were talking about what kind of song/melody to use and eventually came up with the idea to do something waltz-like, something they hadn’t really done in the past. Gushi thought a waltz would really suit the winter atmosphere Hikaru wanted to convey. The winter imagery is very prevalent in the first verse. Hikaru is a big fan of the melody in the bridge. She says it goes very well together with the lyrics and there is so much warmth being conveyed. Also, it ties everything together nicely. Gushi is happy that Hikaru likes the bridge so much because that’s usually the part that gives him the most headache. Typically, Japanese songs have a A melo (verse) → B melo (bridge) → chorus → sabi (musical synth) → C melo structure and for Gushi it’s usually more or less easy to do the A-melo and chorus/sabi/peak of the song but the rest is a bit more tricky. The first part of the song is a lot of fun for Hikaru, there is a sense of playing with the notes and it has a nice walking rhythm.

This time soundproducer Akihiro Tomita will provide answers for the questionnaire.

What was your impression when you first heard the song? He was very surprised by the waltz rhythm, the gorgeous melody and orchestral arrangement accompanying Hikaru’s lyrics. Typically, the lyrics stand out a lot and make up the charm of all H-el-ical// pieces but in this case he was really taken aback by the music itself. He feels like this was almost like a curveball on Gushimiyagi’s part. Gushi says he had a ton of fun making this.

Any difficulties? Not really since Hikaru and Gushi literally outdid themselves with this song. The way the melody embraces the lyrics, the scenic despriction, the insight into the minds of the characters, the impressive peak of the song, it is such a well-balanced song so he made sure to emphasise that during mixing to make it sound as lovely as possible.

Anything you want the listeners to pay attention to when it comes to this song? The dramatic, poetic and expressive lyrics full of determination and emotions which will easily resonate with the listener. It’s best to sit down and relax while listening the song so you can properly reflect on the worldviews that are presented by Hikaru’s vocals, the melody and the arrangement.

Hikaru is happy that this waltz-like song stood out to Akihiro Tomita. She really tried her best to create a variety of songs for her solo project that included genres from many other cultures. She and Gushi get inspired by music from all over the world and they want the H-el-ical// songs to have a universal appeal.

LIKE the video and SUBSCRIBE to her channel!

[sophiphi]

this is how you fall in love by Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler but make it ✨Juke✨

The lyrics???? The melody, the order of how its sung, their voices, the harmonization, the entire song in general is amazing! But lets break it down on why it would be a Juke song in the first place.

The entire first half of the song is sung ONLY by Jeremy Zucker, which would translate to Luke being the one to sing this part. But get this- the only melody in the background are piano chords. The minute I recognized this, i was like “Julie!!!” (yes, Juke has consumed my entire mind to the point i relate a lot of the songs i listen to on the their relationship sue me). We’ll get to the part on why the piano instrumental is so significant later, but lets take a look at some of the lyrics first-

You are the reason I can survive

Julie is literally one of the only reasons why Luke is still alive. She saved them with her witchy powers and the power friendship and love for her boys. Its basically understandable why Luke would write this line if ever.

I had a nightmare

But now that I'm not scared

This is how you fall in love

Let go and I'll hold you up

So pull me tight and close your eyes

Oh, my love, side to side

Julie and The Phantoms is a kids show, so they obviously won’t dig in into the darker consequences of what happened to the boys and the aftermath they have to constantly deal with, but I think its normal that they get “nightmares” over what happened to them. Sure they dont need sleep- but i hc that they can sleep if they wanted to. And when they do, sometimes they get plagued with nightmares, so they dont do it that often although the ability to sleep comes in handy when Julie wants to take a nap with them, they don’t usually get nightmares with her.

That being said- for a while the nightmares were a bit of a constant reminder to Luke as to why it wouldn’t be a good idea to act on “their interesting little relationship” (in his mind at least). To him, it would just leave both sides in pain. But then he gets a wakeup call of some sorts, hence “but now that i’m not scared,” he’s ready to take the risk and enjoy whatever time he has left with Julie.

Moving on to the second half of the song, Chelsea Cutler sings the the next verse and chorus alone as well- but with GUITAR chords in the background instead of piano (yall see the parallels im trying to hint at now?). Again, we’ll talk about that more later, but some of the lyrics are:

“What's easy is right," my mother's advice

You are the reason I never think twice

I like to hc a mother-daughter talk between Julie and Rose happening before she died, where she asks about Rose and Ray and their relationship, how she knew it was ‘right,’ and thats what her mom tells her. She tells Julie that everything with her father was easy, it came easy, loving him and all, and that when she finds someone who’s easy too, then that might be a hint that they’re the ‘right’ one for her. And let’s face it- Julie and Luke are like two sides of the same coin, they fit and they’re easy, at least in my opinion and interpretation of their relationship.

Also- i had to add that last bit because, remember ‘Finally Free’?? He literally gave her the idea to sneak out and she was all in without so much of a thought. Remember when she threw herself at him in a hug without thinking twice because she needed to have that contact at least once, so yeah! He makes her impulsive, and she keeps him grounded.

The pre-chorus and chorus comes (that last part i did with Luke) and with Julie’s pov in mind, its a bit similar and different all the same. In Lukes pov, he didn’t want to take the risk knowing that when he left her they’d both be in pain anyway, and Julie didn’t need that. In Julie’s pov, she’s scared of losing him and being hurt all over again- she had to watch them slowly wither away from existence and couldnt do anything about it until she could, but those moments before will always haunt her. Anyway, she gets over it quicker than Luke, deciding that she might as well let herself be in love for as long as the universe would let her.

Now, both Jeremy and Chelsey come together in the bridge and the last chorus, their voices blending beautifully. Both piano and guitar could be heard now, as well as the violin (and yes, the guitar and violin is more prominent, but the piano is also there- especially at the end end), but when each instrument appears is what makes it so appealing to Juke and my interpretation of how it would symbolize with them.

Like I mentioned earlier, piano could only be heard during Jeremy’s (Luke’s) part. Who rocks the piano between the two of them? Julie. The title of the song is literally called “this is how you fall in love,” and who is Luke in love with? You guys see where’s im going with this now? Chelsea’s (Julie’s) part comes only with guitar (and a bit of violin in the bg), and she’s quite obviously in love with Luke. Towards the end, both instruments come together as their voices harmonize as well. Yea, so anyway- if ever Juke came up with this song in the JATP universe i think they would definitely intentionally write the structure of the song to be this way, because they are songwriters and songwriters can be dramatic when it comes to symbolism, even in the tiny little details (take this from someone who songwrites every now and then).

Personally, I also hc that Luke came up with the basis of the song first- meaning the first verse + pre-chorus and parts of the chorus. He wrote the song first for Julie (because Jules, you deserve a song- a million of them actually) and Julie ended up helping him complete it once she found out about its existence.

This post is getting too long and a bit outta hand, so lets end it here lmao 😌✨ But anyway- this is how you fall in love is a Juke song, thanks for listening to my tedtalk

[mystoryboudoir]

Capturing your confidence and beauty with the best boudoir photographer in Melbourne

In a world where self-love and body positivity are taking center stage, boudoir photography has emerged as a powerful means to celebrate and embrace one's unique beauty. For those in Melbourne, finding the right boudoir photographer is essential to ensure that your vision translates into stunning imagery, celebrating your confidence and sensuality. With the Melbourne best boudoir photographer at your side, you'll capture not just images, but a transformative experience that boosts your self-esteem.

The Art of Boudoir Photography

Boudoir photography is an intimate and personal style of art that involves elegant and appealing images, which are sometimes done in a romantic or private situation. The essence is to celebrate the human body's beauty while telling a tale via light, shadow, and composition. Boudoir photography has grown in popularity in Melbourne, with professional photographers committed to making their customers feel at ease and empowered.

Why Choose the Best Boudoir Photographer in Melbourne?

When seeking out the best boudoir photographer in Melbourne, it's about more than just technical skill. It's essential to find someone who understands your vision and can make you feel confident and at ease. The right photographer takes the time to understand your ideas, preferences, and comfort levels. They will work with you to create a personalized experience that reflects your personality.

Professional boudoir photographers in Melbourne are well-versed in creating a supportive atmosphere that promotes confidence. Whether you're a seasoned pro or a first-timer, they know how to draw out your inner strength and beauty through their lens. From posing to lighting, the best boudoir photographers will guide you every step of the way, ensuring your final images are stunning and authentic.

The Experience of a Boudoir Shoot

Boudoir photography isn't just about the final product; it's an entire experience. Most Melbourne boudoir studio strive to provide a nurturing and uplifting environment. The moment you step into the studio, you should feel welcomed and empowered. Many photographers go the extra mile, offering pre-shoot consultations where they discuss your vision, wardrobe, and comfort levels.

A good boudoir session will include everything from professional hair and makeup to wardrobe consultations, possibly even access to a curated selection of outfits. This completely personalized approach sets the stage for striking images that showcase you at your most confident. The studio setting can also be customized; whether you prefer soft and romantic lighting or a bold, dramatic atmosphere, the best boudoir photographer in Melbourne can accommodate your style.

Celebrating Your Unique Beauty

One of the most major advantages of boudoir photography is that it celebrates your own attractiveness. In a culture that frequently emphasises restrictive beauty standards, boudoir photography encourages you to accept yourself—flaws and all. Each session is intended to emphasise your originality and empower you.

The beauty of working with a talented boudoir photographer in Melbourne lies in their ability to bring out the best in you. With their experience and expertise, they can capture angles and expressions that make you feel stunning. You'll leave the session not only with beautiful photographs but with enhanced confidence that's palpable in every shot.

Your Artwork

After your boudoir session, you can look forward to receiving your stunning images. Whether you choose to create a beautiful photo album, wall art, or simply digital copies, the products will serve as a lasting reminder of your incredible experience. Many Melbourne boudoir studios offer bespoke packaging options, making the final reveal just as special as the shoot itself.

If you're considering boudoir photography Melbourne, investing time in finding the best boudoir photographer Melbourne has to offer is crucial. With their skill, creativity, and ability to create a comfortable environment, you'll not only capture stunning images but also experience a journey of self-love that leaves you feeling empowered. Step into your unique beauty and confidence with a boudoir session that celebrates you. Embrace this empowering experience, and discover the beauty that lies within you through the art of boudoir photography.

[grimelords]

October Playlist

My October playlist is finished and it’s complete from Rico Nasty to Rachmaninoff. I absolutely guarantee there’s something you’ll love in this 3 and a half hours of music, and probably something you’ll hate too! Something for everyone!

If you’d like to have these playlists delivered to your inbox instead of having them randomly appear on your dash, please subscribe to my tinyletter here.

listen here

Santeria - Pusha T: In anticipation of Jesus Is King I relistened to the entire Wyoming Sessions project a few times, and a year removed from all the hype and controversy here's the thing: it's fucking great. The individual albums ranged pretty widely in quality and felt slightly unfinished for how short they were sometimes, but taking the project as a whole 5-album 120 minute playlist it turns out it's a masterpiece. My personal tracklist goes Ye/Daytona/Nasir/KTSE/Kids See Ghosts, which isn't release order but I think makes it flow the best - both Kanye albums bookending it and the less impactful Nas and Teyana Taylor albums buried a bit further in where you can appreciate them now that you're deep in the mindset of the whole thing rather than alone on their own.

Puppets (Succession Remix) - Pusha T & Nicholas Brittel: This remix is such a perfect match: Pusha T’s corporate villainy finally given a context and prestige it deserves. It’s also short enough that it could feasible be the actual theme song next season, which would be a marked improvement imo.

Use This Gospel - Kanye West, Clipse & Kenny G: I am and remain a Kanye stan, even after everything. It’s nice to see him going back to the extremely uneven mastering of MBDTF era, it’s a sound that is uniquely his and it’s fun to see him revisit it. The thick vocoder harmony is so soupy you get lost in it, and the way it opens up to include the full choir in the No Malice verse is beautiful. Kanye reunited Clipse through Christ and we have Him to thank for that at least. The Kenny G break is great, and the grain and dirt on the whole track when the beat kicks in is so gritty you can feel it.

Man Of The Year - Schoolboy Q: I didn't love the Chromatics album they surprise released but it did thankfully remind me of the time Schoolboy Q sampled Cherry for Man Of The Year. Taken exclusively on lyrics, Man Of The Year is a triumph: he's the man of the year and it's all worked out but the sample and the beat underscores the dead eyed melancholy that runs through the whole of Oxymoron of never winning even when you've won.

Cold - Rico Nasty: This song fucking tears your face off. Imagine STARTING your album at this level of intensity. She just goes straight to 100 and burns the house down. Outside of Lil John so few rappers can get away with just straight up screaming in the adlibs but the way she just lung tearingly screams GOOOO through this is fucking sick.

Fake ID - Riton & Kah-Lo: TikTok songs are becoming their own genre, but it’s a very nebulous sort of a mood encompassing everything from aughts pop punk hooks to skipping rope raps like this. It’s a strange new way for songs to blow up that everyone seems compelled to write articles about but my take on it is it’s exactly the same as ads were in the old days. Remember how many songs did absolute numbers because someone put it in a Motorola ad? Same thing except you’re not being sold a phone this time, so in some ways it’s better. Anyway, this song bangs. The spirit of 212 era Azealia Banks lives on even if she’s doing her best ever since then to kill it.

Doctor Pressure - MYLO & Miami Sound Machine: There was a very good era in the mid-2000s where you could just put mashups out as singles and they’d chart, it was sick. My only two examples are this and Destination Calabria but I’m sure there’s more. Drop The Pressure is a masterpiece but as an alternate version this mashup is equally masterful.  

If You’re Tarzan, I’m Jane - Martika: Martika is unfortunately best known for the 1989 one hit wonder Toy Soldiers, a sort of boring overdramatic ballad which is best known for being sampled by Eminem in 2004 in his quite bad super duper serious song Like Toy Soldiers. I say unfortunately because every other song on her first album is great, it’s all hypercolour 80s synthpop and I love this song especially because it is so completely stuffed with activity it becomes dizzying. It gets so lost in itself that they completely abandon the dramatic pause before “I’m Jane” for some reason toward the end and instead just layer three different tracks of vocal adlibs. Every part of this song is great, the weird ‘o we o we o’ chant before the second verse? The neighing horse guitar before the bridge? The musical tour of the world IN the bridge? The part where she says ‘I want to swing on your vine?’. This song has everything.

You Got Me Into This - Martika: Every part of the instrumentation in this is amazing. The bass sound, the main synth, the extremely athletic brass, the wonderful echoing 80s snare that’s as big as a house. I just love it. She also does some really intriguing slurs on the word ‘love’ all the way through, just moving it around absolutely anywhere.

Space Time Motion - Jennifer Vanilla: I love when someone has such a clearly defined aesthetic and mission from the very beginning. Jennifer Vanilla is the alter ego of Becca Kaufmann from Ava Luna who I've had in this playlist before but never competely investigated. Jennifer Vanilla feels like an episode of Sex And The City where Samantha gets really into Laurie Anderson and she is incredible. This video is the best mission statement I’ve ever seen and is currently criminally underviewed so please do your part and support the Jennifer cause by watching these two videos.

So Hot You’re Hurting My Feelings - Caroline Polachek: Caroline Polachek said watch me write a Haim song and did it. Apparently the very early versions of this album started when she was in writing sessions for Katy Perry, but then it started to turn into something else and she took it for herself, and I think you can hear that. With more normal production and a little faster this is a hundred percent a Katy Perry song, but instead it’s completely uniquely Caroline Polachek and it’s all the better for it. And also Katy Perry must be furious because her new songs are simply not good at all.

Electric Blue - Arcade Fire: I just love the obsession of this song in the outro, chanting over and over and over “Cover my eyes electric blue, every single night I dream about you”

Promiscuous - Nelly Furtado and Timbaland: I got a youtube ad for one of those Masterclass videos the other day and it was Timbaland teaching production. This ad went for five minutes for some reason and I watched the whole thing and it made me admire Timbaland even more. He’s demonstrating his compositional technique which is basically to just beatbox, and then loop it, and then add some extra percussion layers with more beatboxing and hand percussion, then loop that and add a little melody by singing or humming. ‘It’s that simple’ he says. Then later he goes back in and puts in actual drums or synths or whatever. I was stunned because suddenly a lot of his music makes sense. Without the barrier of instrument or timbre to get hung up on it allows him to write from this instantly head-nodding place of just making up a little beat you can sing and dance to immediately. Listening to a lot of his music now you can hear the bones underneath everything so clearly, all his beats are supremely beatboxable and all his melodies are very hummable, they’ve never overcomplicated by instrumental skill or habits, they just exist to serve the song.

Serpent - TNGHT:  TNGHT are back baby and this song is like nothing I’ve ever heard before. It feels like afrofuturist footwork from another dimension, the mbira sounding lead against the oil drum percussion in this cacophony of yelps and screams that just builds to an irrepressible energy without a bassline in sight.

Ghosts Of My Life - Rufige Kru: I'm reading Mark Fisher's Ghosts Of My Life right now and some good person has put together a spotify playlist of all the songs he mentions. He has a whole essay about why this song is sick so I’m not going to go into it here but it’s interesting to hear about someone growing up with jungle when it’s a genre that has always felt very niche to me. I guess partly as a result of it never really making it mainstream as a genre here, and also me being a little too young for it.

Renegade Snares - Omni Trio: My biggest introduction to drum and bass comes from the game Midnight Club 3: Dub Edition and this really great song from the soundtrack that is finally on spotify after a very long absence. At almost the exact same time as I discovered this song with its spacious piano and repitched snares, I discovered Venetian Snares and breakcore in general. Having no particular frame of reference for breakcore as an offshoot of drum and bass only amplified its appeal to me as a completely alien genre that sounded like nothing else I’d ever heard, and so my personal history with drum and bass is a story of walking backwards into it after the fact which is interesting if not helpful.

Punching In A Dream - The Naked And Famous: The Mark Fisher book also mentions the Tricky song which I’ve never heard from which The Naked And Famous got their name and I thought ‘man remember The Naked And Famous, they were sick?’. The sort of harder edged Passion Pit instrumentation mixed with pop punk, a winning combination.

Vegas - Polica: My favourite part of this song is the unexpected blastbeats after the chorus, using their two drummers to their full advantage and just shaking the song by its foundations every now and then lest you get too comfortable.

Right Words - Cults: I’m beginning to suspect I may be the last surviving Cults stan but if this be my lot I’ll gladly do it

Running From The Sun - Chromatics: The new Chromatics album got me to relisten to their definitive document Kill For Love, and something new I appreciated this time about an album I love a lot is its length. Kill For Love is almost 80 minutes long and it luxuriates in that length. It’s sequenced perfectly so it never feels like it’s long for no reason, but large chunks just completely space out and go out of focus in the soft neon light and the second half of this song is a good example. The whole thing just evaporates into smoke and it feels perfect. If this were a shorter and more concise song that had a proper ending it wouldn’t feel right, this whole album has no straight edges at all and it’s all the better for it.

Chance - Angel Olsen: I cannot belive this song. This feels like she wrote her own version of My Way looking forward instead of back. Instead of the ruefully triumphant "I've lived a life that's full / I've traveled each and every highway" it's “I don't want it all / I've had enough / I don't want it all / I've had a love." before the turn from the future to the present at the end, where she gives up on a forever love in exchange for right now. I love how raw this vocal take feels. It's not her best voice but it feels very very honest as a result. She's just singing her heart out in this huge showstopping closer. In an interview she said "I didn’t love the recording of it very much, and now I just feel in love with it as a closing statement, because it’s a way of saying, ‘Look, I have hope for the next thing in my life.’ I’m not going to anticipate negativity or hate or an end. But instead of us looking towards forever, why don’t we just work on right now?"

Something To Believe - Weyes Blood: This album just keeps paying dividends. I’m systematically going through long obsessive periods with every single song on it and now it’s Something To Believe’s turn.

Don’t Shut Me Up (Politely) - Brigid Mae Power: Without meaning to, Brigid Mae Power seems to have created some incredible fusion of folk music and stoner metal. The way this song absolutely sits unmoving on one deep and resonant chord for so long is amazing. When it does change chords it feels like a full body effort to get up and shift. She has a similar feeling to Emma Ruth Rundle, who more explicitly wears her metal influences, but Brigid Mae Powers' strength is in how much it resembles the traditional folk side of the spectrum. Her voice is also amazing, with the huge effortless runs she goes on about halfway through just coming unmoored from the song completely and floating off into space.

Sweetheart I Ain’t Your Christ - Josh T. Pearson: I had a real problem with Josh T. Pearson for a long time because of how he presents as so authentic on this album, and as I’ve previously discussed in these playlists the concept of authenticity in country music is a source of neverending anguish for me. But his newest album The Straight Hits! has largely cured that for me because it’s not good at all, is extremely contrived (all the song titles have the word ‘hit’ in them) and he’s shaved his beard and replaced it with one of the worst irony moustaches I’ve ever seen. So now I’m free to enjoy The Last Of The Country Gentlemen as a character construction, which allows me a far deeper and truer engagement than the idea of a man actually living and thinking like this which is frankly a little embarrassing.

Codeine Dream - Colter Wall: I love this song, it has that feeling that great folk songs do of feeling like you’ve always known it. The strongest moments on this Colter Wall album to me are in songs like this that chase this particular feeling of morose isolation, and where he leans away from storytelling like his biggest hit Kate McCannon - a kind of cliche country murder ballad. This song is fantastic because of the way it wallows in this black depression not as a low point, but as a reprieve from the lower previous point. Things are as bad as they get now, and they’re always going to be like this, but at least I don’t dream of you anymore.

Motorcycle - Colter Wall: I only just found out about Colter Wall this month and have been listening to this album over and over. When I first heard him I though it was strange I'd never heard of him before because he's obviously some old country veteran based off his voice, but it turns out he's 24 and this is his first album he just sings like he ate a cigar. I love this song especially because it's so straighforward. It's a simple and supremely relatable mood: what if I bought a motorbike and fucking died.

Who By Fire - Leonard Cohen: I watched American Animals a couple of weeks ago and it’s a great movie, highly recommended. This song plays near the end and I waited for the credits to find out what this great song was, and like a rube found out it’s only one of the most celebrated songwriters of all time. I’ve never had much of a Leonard Cohen phase, somehow. In my mind I always get him mixed up with Lou Reed, which I’m learning is actually way off. I love the harmony vocals in this, and the way they move around into the shadows in the ‘who shall I say is calling’ parts.

Words From The Executioner To Alexander Pearce - The Drones: Alexander Pearce was a convict who escaped Sarah Island’s penal settlement in Tasmania with seven other convicts in 1822. He was recaptured two months later alone. In 1823 he re-escaped with a fellow convict, Thomas Cox and again was returned alone.He was executed by hanging later having eaten six men during his escape attempts.

It Ain’t All Flowers - Sturgill Simpson: I found this album going through the Pichfork 200 albums of the decade list and I feel like a fool for not having heard it sooner because now I am completely obsessed. Sturgill Simpson is doing the very best work in country music right now because he's looking backwards with one eye and forwards with the other and this song is a great illustration: a perfect Hank Williams Jr type country song with big voiced hollers that morphs into a surprise psych freakout for the whole second half.

Desolation Row (Take 1, Alternate Take) - Bob Dylan: I’ve always liked Desolation Row a lot as a song but the acoustic guitar on the album version is simply not good, it's just kind of mindlessly playing this long directionless solo the whole time and over the course of a song this long it really adds up to just being annoying. Luckily because it’s a Bob Dylan song there’s a whole universe of alternate takes and mixes and this is a great pared down version I found without it. The best kind of Bob Dylan songs are the ones where he just makes an endless stream of allusions and bizzare imagery, and this and Bob Dylan's 115th Dream are my favourite examples of it.

Living On Credit Blues - El Ten Eleven: This is a groove I get stuck in my head a lot, and this is also a song I think would work well as a theme for a tv show. I've been meaning to do a 30 second edit of it just for my own amusement, maybe I'll do that soon. El Ten Eleven are a duo where one guy plays drums and one guys plays a double necked guitar/bass and looping pedals and somehow against all the odds of that description they manage to make emotional, driving instrumental music of very deep feeling, like this song which is one of my all time favourites.

Dusty Flourescent/Wooden Shelves - Talkdemonic: This is sort of a companion Living On Credit Blues, and Talkdemonic are similarly an instrumental duo with good drums. This entire album from 2005 is highly recommended, it's a sort of halfway between the post rock of the time and a kind of acoustic hiphop instrumentals that ends up sounding very rustic and homemade, like a soudtrack for a winter cabin.

Turnstile Blues - Autolux: This is a perfect song, built around a perfect beat. Every part just fits perfectly.

Fort Greene Park - Battles: The new Battles album is finally out and I absolutely love it. I cannot think of another band that has shed members in the same way as Battles; originally a quartet on their first album, then a trio for their second and third and now down to a duo for their fourth album - and somehow still performing material from their first album live. The paring down has seemingly only servers to focus them and the new album sounds fresh but still distinctively Battles, with no sense of anything lost or missing. This song is my standout so far, and the guitar line in particular is so good and interesting to me because I don’t think I’ve ever heard Ian Williams play something so distinctly guitar-y in his whole career. This is a straight up pentatonic riff with bends and everything. Filtered through his usual chopped and looped oddness it feels like he’s almost gone all the back around the guitar continuum and is this close to just doing power chords next album. And I’ll support him!

Diane Young - Vampire Weekend: I've listened to this song a lot in my life and I only looked up the lyrics the other day to find out that the opening line is 'you torched a SAAB like a pile of leaves' which I somehow never noticed. What a power phrase. There's also this very good quote from Ezra about it: "I had this feeling that the world doesn’t want a song called ‘Dying Young’,“ says Koenig, "it just sounded so heavy and self-serious, whereas ‘Diane Young’ sounded like a nice person’s name.”" and he was right to do it. This song is 100 times better because he’s saying Diane Young than it would be if he was saying ‘Dying Young’. That’s a songwriting tip for you.

Monster Mash - Bootsy Collins & Buckethead: Hey did you hear Bootsy Collins and Buckethead did a cover of the monster mash? Thank god for freaks.

The Dark Sentencer - Coheed And Cambria: There's not that many bands that I absolutely loved as a teenager that I've completely abandoned. I've moved on from a lot but I'll still keep up with them if they have a new album or something. Coheed And Cambria are one that I've almost completely turned my back on. They've had 3 apparently pretty patchy albums since I stopped listening after Year Of The Black Rainbow, which was extremely bad and really taught me what people mean when they say an album is 'overproduced'. On a whim I decided to see what they're up to now and listened to their album from last year and guess what: it rocks. It's got everything you'd expect from them: big riffs, bad and confusing lyrics, his weird high voice, overwrought and overlong songwriting, cheesy muscleman solos. Everything about this band is sort of cheesy and embarrassing and takes itself way too seriously, but I'm discovering slowly that that's what's so good about it. The weird pulp sci-fi story and mindset that underpins this whole band is ridiculous and overwrought and as a result it gives the music a reason to exist the way it does. It’s so big and dumb because the story it serves is so big and dumb. It feels exactly like reading Perry Rhodan or some increidibly long and dense but not especially good series like that, it’s pulp music and that’s what I love about it.

Romance In A (6 Hands) - Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano works for 4 hands (where two guys sit next to each other on the same piano) have always seemed to tend towards the realm of the gimmick or party trick, and works for 6 hands (where three guys do it) even more so - but this Rachmaninoff piece is just beautiful and I can’t believe I haven’t heard of it before this month. It doesn’t overload everyone with a million things to do, it just builds this very wide harmonic bed for the simple melody to swim in - then the way the melody transfers over to the middle register is just magical before the tension of the final section takes over and builds.

Love's Theme - The Love Unlimited Orchestra: I’m so glad I got to learn about the Love Unlimited Orchestra this month. Aside from having one of the best names in music, they were Barry White’s backing band and had their own solo instrumental records too. Here’s a fun aside: Kenny G was a member when he was 17 and still in high school. This is a genre of music that has seemed to totally disappear into the realm of parody and farce only which is sort of a shame because it is unironically very beautiful and dense in its own way.

Dancing In The Moonlight - Liza Minelli: Can you believe I thought Dancing In The Moonlight by Toploader was an original until the other day when my girlfriend played this Liza Minelli version that predates it by several decades? This also isn’t the original! It was written by a band named King Harvest in 1972, with this version AND a version by Young Generation both coming out in 73 and a whole bunch of others in between (including a Baha Men version in 94) before Toploader finally had a proper hit with it in 2000. Truly the world works in mysterious ways. This version is the finest I think, it just goes and goes, frenetically unwinding at a breakneck pace before opening up into a flute solo of all things and then winding up again even and finishing in a kick line breakdown. Absolutely no limits.

Girls - Royal Headache: The sheer amount of power and melody that this song manages to pack into a minute and a half is incredible, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard a more instantly relatable opening lyric than “Girl! Think they’re to fine for me! Oh girls! And I’m inclined to agree!”

Pov Piti - Matana Roberts: In anticipation of Matana Roberts new volume of her Coin Coin album series that just came out I relistened through the three previous albums and they are even more powerful than I remembered. This song serves as a pretty good mission statement for the whole project, and the heartrending tortured screams that open it set the tone for the rest of it. Matana Roberts sings the injustices of slavery into being, and her sing-song delivery highlights the trauma - her indifferent delivery mirroring the indifference of the world at large. The way she rattles off this story like she’s gone over it a million times and grown numb to the facts only accentuates the pain in the telling, a pain that rises to the surface in the screams of her instrument and herself.  

Kingdoms (G) - Sunn 0))): This new Sun 0))) album is one of my favourites they’ve ever done because it’s so straightforward and back to basics. Every song is just ten minutes of straight up no-nonsense, big, rich, drone. They even put the notes in the track names so you can drone along if you like.

listen here

[kpoptimeout]

Top 10 Most Underrated K-pop Songs of 2019 (Idol Edition)

2019 has come and gone before we knew it.  

Continuing with the K-Pop Timeout Tradition (see 2018 Ver) of listing the Top 10 Most Underrated K-Pop Songs because all the other sites are just bothered with the Top 10 that pretty much everyone will have heard of/have fan wars over, below are our top 10 picks of songs that did not rank high but deserves your attention!

Like last year we have a separate post for Top 10 underrated non-idol tracks. Unlike usual years where there is a separate post made for Top 10 underrated K-Drama OSTs, this year there is instead posts for the Top 20 most underrated K-Pop songs of the decade.

Some of the artists have escaped the list in recent years to stardom (like NU’EST, N.FLYING, and OH MY GIRL), so hopefully, it happens again!

This is in alphabetic order NOT in the order of awesomeness because all of them are awesome. Also, all MVs are linked in the song titles because Tumblr won’t let me share that many videos in one post.

1TEAM “Vibe”

After braving through the shitshows of Mnet’s BOYS24 and YG’s MIXNINE, these talented boys finally debut as 1TEAM under Liveworks Entertainment (the label for the solo promotions of SHINHWA’s Hyesung and Minwoo). This debut song of 1TEAM highlights some of the key strengths of the group - their extremely laid-back retro sound and also addictive hooks. With K-Pop boy bands going for increasingly dramatic and over the top complex sounds due to the popularity of hype bops among overseas fans, it is a breath of fresh air to see 1TEAM deliver such a chill and amazing song and it is unfortunate they have yet to receive more attention both in South Korea and overseas. They continue this sound in their comeback “ROLLING ROLLING” and went more mature and sexy while still simple and retro in “MAKE THIS”, showing that they will continue to develop this unique sound. If you like the relaxing summer sound of WINNER, you would also love 1TEAM’s “Vibe”! 

3YE “OOMM (Out Of My Mind)”

After not getting much attention as Apple.B under GH Entertainment, 3 of the original Apple.B members Yuji, Yurim, and Haeun re-debuted as 3YE. And this was the right re-debut to make as the girls went from generic cutesy to edgy and hard in the most unexpected way. “OOM (Out of My Mind)”, their first comeback track, is definitely a powerful bop but what makes it stand out from other hyped-up party tracks is the structure of the song. The first verses were typical powerful girl group song sounding (a mixture of RnB vocals and rap), but things change up quickly at the bridge. The song suddenly becomes very melodic and sounding like something you would expect from a quirky girl group track. Then the song changes again, creating a dark and breathy build-up reminiscent to Billie Eilish’s “bad guy” and “all the good girls go to hell”. Only then do we get the beat drop you would expect from a lit girl group track and the adventurous path to get there makes the drop all the more enjoyable. Also, all three girls’ have amazing stage presence to carry the powerful choreo. If you love powerful girl groups like BLACKPINK and EVERGLOW, you should really check out 3YE’s latest song!

A.C.E “UNDER COVER”

After stints on KBS’ “The Unit” and YG’s “MIXNINE”, the boys of A.C.E have definitely increased significantly in their international fan base and have the makings of a small but dedicated Korean fan base. However, these boys really deserve a lot more attention, especially with “UNDER COVER” being one of the best and also most underrated tracks of 2019 K-Pop. After attempts with artsy edm music in their debut era and later a cuter sound in “Take Me Higher”, the boys and the label seem to have finally found their sound. It is dramatic, it is powerful, it has a strong rock influence combined with hip-hop and RnB. Honestly, this is what I would expect TVXQ to sound like if they debuted in the late 2010s (cries thinking about OT5 early days and their rock influence tracks). This song also clearly highlights the strength of every member - Byeongkwan’s playful rap and diva-like stage presence, Wow’s more relaxed rap and sexy charms, Chan’s boyish appeal and perfect complementation of other members’ sounds, Jun’s attractive vocal colour and Donghun’s emotive voice and wide vocal range. If you love the dramatic and powerful boy band tracks like the bops of B.A.P, it is time to stream “UNDER COVER”!

fromis_9 “FUN!”

After the amazing comeback with “Love Bomb” last year, I really did not know how fromis_9 can top that but they really did with “FUN!” They continue to go for the really quirky, really weird and playful cute girl group sound they perfected in “Love Bomb” to bring an amazing and refreshing summer track. “FUN!” has a ridiculously catchy hook and like other fromis_9 songs have beautiful bridge parts to also showcase the members’ amazing vocal abilities and harmonies often hidden under their hype and wild choruses. Also, the music video is a delight, with the girls’ parodying various CFs. The album for this song peaked at #2 on Gaon Charts but somehow this amazing title track did not rank at all on Gaon and only peaked at #94 on the K-Pop Hot 100 of Billboard. If you love the addictive, fun and weird side of girl groups like Red Velvet and Oh My Girl, you would really enjoy fromis_9′s “FUN!”

GWSN “Pinky Star (RUN)”

After a unique debut and a string of consistent bops, it is unclear why most K-Pop fans are still sleeping on GWSN. “Pinky Star (RUN)” is an amazing song, showcasing GWSN’s indie video game-like sound which is heavily electronic and 8-bit like yet has all the K-Pop high notes and dance breaks you would also expect. This perfect blend of the girls’ unique sound and a seasoned K-Pop style production makes the song all the more amazing and it all the more infuriating they are still quite a nugu group in South Korea. The MV is also beautifully shot, with amazing sets and smart use of the aspect ratios. If you love to see the artsy pop vibes of BOL4 and IU married with the quirky girl group sounds of Oh My Girl, you would love GWSN’s “Pinky Star (RUN)”!

JBJ95 “Awake”

After PRODUCE 101 Season 2 and the success of JBJ, JBJ members Sanggyun and Kenta continue as duo JBJ95 and continue delivering quality music. One of their best songs and one of the best of K-Pop this year is arguably “Awake”. The song excels in having this bright and dreamy texture to it, which blends perfectly with the concept of the song and the Bauhaus-styled MV set pieces. Those listening to the song which literally feel woken up by the upbeat chorus which incorporates some dancehall beats into this electro-pop song. While JBJ95 are without a doubt doing quite well out of the post-PRODUCE 101 groups with variety show appearances and web drama roles, this song did not win any awards albeit its superb quality. If you are a fan of SHINee’s more fun and dream-like tracks like “Why So Serious?” and “View”, you would love this song!

KNK “Sunset”

Last year was extremely annoying when IN2IT’s “Snapshot” and SF9’s “Now or Never” flew under the radar of most K-Pop fans and the Korean public in general for their sexy supermodel runway sounds. Apparently, people have still not learned their lesson this year with the spectacular release by KNK in the form of “Sunset”. These talented men are back again with one of the best concepts ever - the song is just a 90s house bop that serves expensive runway model realness. The chorus of simply just Seoham saying “Sunset, for-for y'all” again and again in his deep voice is definitely one of the highlights of the song along with the classy and mature choreography. The MV of this absolute bop is also an example of how low-budget MVs can look expensive if there’s good camera work, creative lighting and smart editing choices. So if you liked IN2IT’s “Snapshot” and SF9’s “Now or Never” last year, and love yourself some good mature and sensual choreo like Taemin’s, “Sunset” is the song for you!

ONF “Why”

At this point, ONF is just one of the best-kept secrets in K-Pop. All the members already showcased their immense talent on YG’s “MIXNINE” but somehow South Korea still does not seem to know they exist. And it is infuriating that after a masterpiece like “Why”, they are still swimming in absolute nugu-dom. This song sounds ridiculously dramatic, with beautiful high notes and sentimental harmonica/synth instrumentals in the chorus. One of the highlights of the song is Wyatt’s deep-voiced speed rapping which was layered with multiple effects so that it sounded like it was being received through a device from afar and also serves to make it so much more grungier. Basically, the song sounds like it could be the OST for a high-budget Netflix dystopian sci-fi series and the MV shot in Moscow actually gave us some very expensive looking CGI and effects. It is difficult for me to find a song to compare “Why” to but if you love yourself a dramatic boyband track, you should really check it out!

SAAY “ZGZG”

This song just hits hard in a very unique way. Following her departure from EvoL (a highly underrated girl group), Kwon Sohee/SAAY has mainly worked as a producer and songwriter, penning bops for SM Entertainment and often working with Super Junior M’s Henry Lau. As a solo artist, she shows that she has a lot to show in “ZGZG”, which honestly would not be such a great song if not carried by her off-the-charts amount of charisma. The chorus is just her swag-filled mumbling of the word(s?) “ZGZG” and it works because of her attitude. She also belts high notes and delivers smoking hot bars when she raps in the song too. If you are a fan of confident female solos like Hyuna, Sunmi, and Chungha, I now urge you to check out this amazing song by SAAY!

UP10TION “Your Gravity”

UP10TION is an extremely talented group but have failed to make a mark in the K-Pop industry due to years of TOP Media’s mismanagement. One of the biggest mismanagement moves, in my opinion, was giving UP10TION good but extremely generic K-Pop title tracks. There was never a song that screamed: “this is an UP10TION-only track.” I can go on forever about TOP Media’s poor management of all its groups but now is the time to focus on what a brilliant song “Your Gravity” is - UP10TION has finally found a unique sound and they really owned this song, making it arguably one of the best and most underrated songs of the year. The song plays on an addictive synth hook and good use of diverse beats. The whole song just sounded super fresh yet not cutesy but high energy at the same time - a rare example of balancing freshness and coolness. The MV is also filmed very well, with shots from very interesting angles and great use of a few set pieces in a variety of ways. The closest comparisons I can make would probably be WANNA ONE’s “Energetic” era. If you love a powerful and feel-good track, UP10TION’s “Your Gravity” is the song for you!

Special Mentions of Underrated Debuts:

There were many strong debuts this year and I would like to mention 2 underrated rookie groups to look out for in 2020!

Male - 1TEAM “Make This”

I have already discussed 1TEAM’s greatness and music style above, but the reason I also chose them as the most underrated male group debut is because out of all the underrated male idol debuts this year, 1TEAM is the only one that have already showed us their consistency and duality. “MAKE THIS” continues 1TEAM’s retro sound and aesthetic - the song sounds like how people in the 80s think future sexy music would be like and also how people right now thought 80s sexy music remade might sound like. So even though 1TEAM went from soft and cute in their first two title tracks to mature in this latest comeback, they still stayed true to their retro sound. The MV is also delight due to the very “2001: A Space Odyssey” inspired looking set pieces.

Female - BVNDIT “Dumb”

MND Entertainment’s newest girl group and basically Chungha’s younger sisters, BVNDIT may have been overlooked as they debuted in the same year as JYP’s ITZY, HINAPIA which features PRISTIN members, and a string of post-PRODUCE 48 girl groups like EVERGLOW, CHERRY BULLET and ROCKET PUNCH. However, BVNDIT has a lot to offer and has likely one of the most standout sounds and looks. The girls all have confidence and stage presence unlike any rookie girl group and this really shined in their songs following the safer pop song debut with “Hocus Pocus.” The south-east Asian and Latin American influences in the drums used in their songs like “Dramatic” and “Dumb” also gives them an opportunity to attempt more powerful and mature choreography than some of the rookies, giving them an additional edge. With the company now starting to use a “Chungha-like budget” in their production as seen in the “Dumb” MV, I believe we can expect a lot from BVNDIT in 2019.

Which idol songs do you think were underrated this year? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below and let the song sharing begin!!!