#it's no wonder he doesn't remember the lyrics by the time it's time to tour them he's ages past those ones

[statementlou]

Hello, do you think is possible that we will get a FITF live album? Louis and the band sound so good on tour.

they doooo! I love Steve's arrangements and additions to the songs so much! Honestly I have no idea; on the one hand it seems like Louis might be more focused on moving towards new stuff, like we are still in FITF mode but by the time it came out he had had it forever and now he's well into LT3 and probably feeling more excited about those new songs and sounds; on the other hand he is very good at working the industry stuff and all the angles and it's basically free money, right? He has said FITF was a further step towards the sound he wants most rather than the finish line, so it's possible that as happened with Walls as he works more on the new one he is getting less enthused about sharing the old stuff; but I think adding Steve's arrangements and just moving away from some of the songs seems to have lessened that this time around, so maybe that isn't a factor. Here's the thing though: the only way it would happen or make sense I think would be if it was recorded pretty recently, like one of the UK shows; the show was still being tweaked and gelled and cooking until then. But if they wanted to make vinyl (and surely they would? fancy double vinyl of live albums is SUCH a thing), that is very very long process of waiting around these days. First you have to get lacquers made (this is the physical thing that the recording is cut into that all the records are duplicates of- if you want quality it has to be more or less handmade by an artisan) but one of the two places left in the world that made those burnt to the ground in 2020 so there's a super long wait time on that. Then it just has to get made; but there are basically ten large scale factories left (again, in the WORLD) that press records so that also has a very long wait time... so it would take forever and the thing is I think we're getting LT3 in the late fall/ early winter (I bet he's using this month to finish it up so it can begin this lengthy process). So I kind of don't think so, like I guess they could do a CD/ cassette/ digital only in late spring and make so much money, and it would be fun, but who knows. Either way, I just hope Louis has Steve do some production work on LT3, I like his sounds and ideas a lot, and that he keeps him around to do his tours forever!

[cheeseceli]

Their s/o is a songwriter

Pairing: idol Ot8!skz × songwriter Gn!reader (individually)

Genre: fluff, headcanon, idol!au

Request: so what if skz finding out their partner is a song writer / composer? bonus points if the skz members also found out that they wrote their favourite song :>

Warnings: reader is implied to write for Kpop most of the time, not proofread.

A/n: as a songwriter, I appreciate this request a whole lot lmao. Thank you for requesting, I hope you like it!

Bang Chan

Honestly, I think this is something he would find out before dating you

Man knows everyone in the whole entertainment industry

Ofc he knows who you are

If anything, the way you both got to know each other more was through working together to make a stray kids song

Overall, I think he would love to have a partner in the industry

Even if you never get to be on stage

Simply because you understand him more than other people do

You know how music is essential and demanding at the same time

Your job probably makes him feel more connected to you

He likes to joke that you're the newest member of 3Racha

Always sends you songs he made your you to listen

And wants you to do the same

You can send him an audio at 1AM and bro will listen to it right away, ready to give you his opinion and advice (and praise)

Lee Know

Poor stray kids and stay

They will be listening to the songs you worked on nonstop

He just happens to be your biggest supporter 🤷🏻‍♀️

Has a whole 10 hours playlist with all of your work

Knows every lyric even if they aren't Korean

And he also enjoys dancing to it very much

Even if the song doesn't have a choreo, he likes to make up his own by listening to what you did

Probably invented a few trends with your songs because of it lmao

He also listens to it a lot when he's on tour

Even if it's not your voice that he's listening to, it's still you somewhat

He just wants to feel close to you

Asks you to sing or play the songs you produced

Might or might not have a small compilation of audios of you singing when he's way too homesick

(And if you wrote his favourite song, he would definitely have an audio of you singing it)

Changbin

Sees you as a very big inspiration

The amount of times he listened to one of your songs so he could get out of creative block is crazy

If anything, he probably already saw you as a role model before even getting to personally know you

Imagine the seo changbin fan boying you

If you write for other K-pop groups/soloists, he's probably trying to make references of what you wrote in his own rap

Fans always think he's talking about a certain idol or something but he really is just trying to include you in his work😭

And he would beg to have at least one stray kids song cowrote by you

Like literally begging

He needs to have one small Collab with you at least once

And will get a little pouty every time you can't work with skz because you're with another group at the moment

Hyunjin

Loves to have songwriting dates with you

Usually releases the songs you both write (with your permission ofc) as a skz-recorder

Stays are starting to wonder who is that composer/songwriter who is behind every single song Hyunjin is in lmao

I remember he said that one of his goals for 2024 was to produce more

So he will 100% seek your advice and even ask for some particular lessons at times

And he is always a little bit shy when he's about to show you what he's been working on

Because he feels like you are THE songwriter

And you're also his partner so like

Your opinion is a very big deal

And he's also so excited when you let him listen to a preview of your newest work

Is always awestruck

(Any song of yours would be his favourite lmao, and the best part of it is that he means it)

Han

He would LOVE to have a partner in the industry

Or just connected to art somehow, even if it's just a hobbie

I mean, look at his lyrics

Bro inhales and exhales art

The fact that you understand this side of him and even share this interest is so what he needed

He's also very very helpful when you need to write songs

I see late night dates in the studio

Even when any of you is far away for whatever reason

It can be 2am in Korea, he will be on his phone more than willing to listen to you brainstorm

Brainstorming with Han would be very fun overall lmao

It's either going to be the most sentimental thing to ever exist or it's going to be complete nonsense lmao

Oh and he would also make a lot of references to things you wrote

And would be so so so so happy if you ever made a reference to a work of his

Felix

I remember he said once that if he wasn't an idol, he would like to be a professional songwriter

So the fact that YOU are a songwriter/producer

He kinda loves you a little bit too much

One thing he loves is to understand your thought process

If you ever let him see your notes,he will try his best to understand every little thing

Even if it's only words with no correlation all over the page

He loves to know how your mind works

And he wants to know where the inspiration comes from!

(If it's from him he will never shut up about it)

Loves to know the stories behind each one of your works

He feels like he gets to know you a little more every time he listens to something that is yours

Is always covering one of your songs on lives

Seungmin

Literally everything you could've asked for, both in the dating aspects and in professional aspects

He makes sure you never overwork but will never restrain you from your work

Like, he knows that sometimes the inspiration comes at 2AM. He won't shut off your notebook, he'll be up with you and guarantee you don't stress

And he's your most honest critic

If you need help with rhymes, structure, chords or whatever, he is there

(After dating him you rarely browse anything at Google anymore, seungmin always understands the specific vibes you want)

And if you are a songwriter/ composer who doesn't know how to sing (that's me criticising myself) he always volunteers to make the demo for your songs

As I said, everything you could've ever asked for in a partner and coworker

I.N

Now this one

The moment he discovered he was begging to see some of your work

It's crazy how many of your songs were included in the playlist he has of songs that remind him of you😭

Talk about soulmates

I also believe that he would love to help you with songs

Give him one chance and this man is already with a notebook open trying to come up with the best verse ever

But he really likes to hear you brainstorm as well

Just you in your comfort zone really makes him admire you

And he loves how he can feel closer to you

Just reading the lyrics you wrote ou listening to the beat you produced makes him feel like he is meeting you for the first time again

Always having a new impression of you

Will also sing any demos you want him to!

Masterlist | you'll probably like: if skz wrote a song for you

Reblogs and feedback are always appreciated!

Dividers by @firefly-graphics

Taglist: @yuyubeans

[beautifulpersonpeach]

A question I’ve had on my mind for a long time BPP: do you remember how Jungkook said the J on his ring finger stands for Jungkook? What do you think of that? He could’ve chosen not to answer that question but he answered it and said it means Jungkook. I’m as strong a jikooker as anyone but it made me wonder about the JM theory. Sorry if this is not in line with your blog themes, it’s OK if you ignore this ask, I just love your perspective on things and wanted to know what you think. Thanks BPP.

***

Hi Anon,

I'm pretty sure my opinion about this is unpopular lol, both with jikookers who think Jungkook didn't mean it when he said so, and with non-shippers who can't stand any sort of shipping theorizing about his tattoos.

But, yes I think Jungkook is telling the truth when he says the J on his ring finger stands for his name. It’s possible he's telling a small fib to downplay his attachment to Jimin - it wouldn’t be the first time he’s told a verified white lie to protect jikook’s honour, as it were, so yeah it’s possible that he lied. But I'm choosing to believe he's saying the truth when he says the J stands for his name. That is, as far as we can tell, the truth.

Something that is also true is Jimin calling himself ARMY. Jimin has referred to himself as ARMY several times over the years, in situations that make no sense and that get eyebrow raises from all the members.... except Jungkook. Which leads me to think it's something of an inside joke between jikook - that much is clear, but I also think it's something more than that. What that is exactly, I don't know, but here's my gut feeling about it:

Jungkook has said the person he connects most with on stage, when they are performing in front of ARMY, is Jimin. For all the members, performing on stage is their reason to live, but this is most explicitly said by Jimin and Jungkook. Some of their most heightened emotional experiences, have been on stage and/or tied to their performances. Whether it's Jimin breaking down during Rosebowl and Jungkook screaming that he loves ARMY and loves him; or Jimin crying during his performance of The Truth Untold and Jungkook moving to support him; or jikook changing the lyrics at the end of their performance of the same song and turning to look at each other as the lights dim; or a teenage Jungkook stopping in the middle of a performance to stare at an injured Jimin during their Red Bullet tour - the other members moving around them wondering why they are locked in a stare-down in the middle of the show; or how Jungkook broke down in tears during the last LY concert and turned to Jimin for comfort who then used his sweater paws to wipe Jungkook's tears...

Jikook have been doing this for years. Consistently. There's a peculiar chemistry they show only when they are on stage together in front of ARMY that frankly doesn't feel at all like the fanservice I'm used to seeing from idols. It's as though they lose certain inhibitions when they are in this heightened emotional state when performing. They connect on a level I can't fully explain to be honest, but I think it's a connection they both recognize and perceive that the presence of ARMY is one way to facilitate it.

Basically, at the intersection of Jungkook and ARMY, lies Jimin. Without Jimin convincing him during pre-debut to stay with BTS when he wanted to quit to become a dancer, Jungkook wouldn't even be in BTS. That's just one example. I don't doubt Jungkook is telling the truth when he says the 'J' stands for his name, but I think the placement of the 'J' is also intentional, and that he intentionally placed it above the 'M' in ARMY knowing that it spells out Jimin's initials. Because I think for Jungkook, he feels that the person he is, the Jungkook that's matured into a global superstar honed by hundreds of performances in front of ARMY, won't exist without Jimin.

Like I keep saying, what exactly jikook's relationship is, I have no idea. But there's something about them that's peculiar. It's wholesome and beautiful and perplexing and simple.

[moodymisty]

Got inspired by the scenario in your Polux snippet (reader being rescued from an overly pushy lord on Terra). Decided to write something for Magnus. Reader is reincarnated from our Earth into Warhammer, but doesn't know anything about Warhammer. I have a ton of reincarnated!reader x Magnus thoughts. Also, sorry if Magnus is OOC. Please enjoy. -🌳 anon

----

The garden on Terra is calm.

You sit on a bench in the garden, watching the leaves sway in the artifical wind. The artifical light that allows the plants to grow warms you up. The artifical river flows gently nearby.

Whenever the truth of Terra's - Earth's - condition hits you, the knowledge that everything you ever knew and loved from Earth is gone, including the animals, the plants, the very water itself, you retreat to one of the many greenhouse gardens on Terra, a tiny slice of what once covered most of the land. A way to ignore for a moment the visceral disgust Terra invokes in you.

You've started favoring this garden recently. It's relatively close to the quarters you share with Magnus, compared to some of the larger gardens. It's small, and doesn't have anything of note. People rarely come here, so it's often just you, your thoughts, and when you're feeling up to it, your voice.

You mumble sing your way through the lyrics you've forgotten, then sing the words you do remember. It's the first time in thousands of years that song had been sung on this planet.

When you finish singing and lapse into silence, you're startled at the applause you hear. You turn around and see a man, probably of a high station based on his uniform, clapping.

"You have a wonderful voice, my lady." He praised.

You're not sure how to react. You'd chosen this garden because it was so often left alone, and now someone had found you here. Additionally, he had heard you singing. Was his compliment genuine? You barely remembered half the lyrics and hadn't done any vocal warm-ups. You doubted you were that good.

"Thank you?" You hesitantly answer.

The man continues speaking. "I've seen you around the Palace recently, my lady, but only now have I been able to catch you to speak. You are beautiful as your voice. Where are you from? I haven't seen you before, so you must have only recently arrived in the Palace."

"Uh," you say, a bit startled. "I'm here with the-"

The man interrupts you, striding forward and grabbing your hand. "Let me show you around, the Palace can be quite tricky to navigate."

"Thank you, but I don't need a tour," you tell the man, trying to tug your hand out of his grip to no avail, "I'm here with the-"

"Nonsense!" The man exclaims. He begins dragging you towards the entrance of the garden. He's a lot stronger than he looks. "It's so easy to get lost in the Palace, and I know all the best spots. I've been here many times before. I've even been granted a permanent bedroom here! It's quite luxurious, I'm sure I could show you later. And perhaps we could share some wine? It was gifted to me by Primarch Magnus himself! He's the one in charge of the Thousand Sons Astartes Chapter. I'm in charge of providing the Thousand Sons chapter with the ore that is needed for the pigment of their armor, you see. So I've met Primarch Magnus quite a few times. Why, he once told me-"

You tune the man out as he continues to drag you along, instead focusing on how to get yourself out of this situation. The man won't stop talking enough for you to get a word in, so you can't tell him that you (technically) serve the Thousand Sons directly. You can't scream for help, the garden is empty except the two of you, and you doubt there would be any in the hallway leading to the garden who would either be high ranked enough or strong enough to get this man to let go of you.

Actually, you can think of a way screaming for help might work.

Magnus! You scream in your mind. Magnus, please help me!

Magnus had once told you the sound of your thoughts were quite distinctive. You're hoping that he'll hear your discomfort through his powers and come rescue you.

Sure enough, just as the man drags you into sight of the garden entrance, Magnus walks through the doors. The man stumbles to a stop and stops talking, obviously surprised at the sight of the Primarch here.

"Lord Magnus! What a surprise-"

"Let go of her."

Magnus's voice is deep, and obviously upset. The man releases your hand immediately.

As soon as your hand is free, you run to Magnus's side. He wraps an arm around your shoulders protectively, still glaring at the man.

The man is surprised by this. "Oh, she was one of yours? M-my apologies Lord Magnus, I didn't realize-"

"Leave."

The man does so.

Magnus waits for a minute or two, until presumably even his advanced Primarch hearing can't hear the man leaving anymore. Then, he turns to you.

"Are you alright? Did he hurt you anywhere?"

You smile up at him. "I'm all fine now that you're here. Thank you for coming, Maggy."

You know that if Magnus's title was something other than "the Red", he would've blushed.

"The arrogance of these Terran lords." Magnus fumes. "Attempting to kidnap my woman."

You blush at how possessive his tone is. "I don't think he knew."

"Irrelevant. He should have known to stop speaking to you as soon as he knew you were of my legion."

"He didn't even let me tell him so." You admit.

Magnus growls. "I'll be having words with that man."

You feel the tiniest tinge of pity for the man, but it's gone as soon as it appeared.

Magnus grasps your hand. "Let's return to our chambers."

You snuggle into his side. "Sounds good to me."

"I'll be assigning you a guard to accompany you in the future. I don't want a repeat of this."

"Yeah, I think that sounds good. Having an Astartes around would have helped. Of course," you add teasingly, walking your fingers up his arm. "I got someone even better."

The look Magnus gives you tells you you're going to be having a fun time tonight.

love the idea that magnus can hear our thoughts if we're loud enough, that surely will not be used for anything nefarious

[foxes-that-run]

You are in Love

This song has a new light after Say don’t go, she wanted him to say I love you and he didn’t, she’s searching for signs in silence

The 1989 Liner notes make a poem that tells the story of one single couple, which we all know is Harry Styles and Taylor. In September/October 2014 Taylor did a lot of 1989 media while heart broken minimising the relationship.

Taylor has said 'You are in Love' is about Jack and Lena. Neither Jack, who worked on the song or Lena knew that before this. Where, arms crossed, Taylors talks about crying and said the relationship she wrote 1989 (and it's 81 uses of the word 'love') about was infatuation. After Say Don’t Go, makes sense, she was hanging out for an I love you that seemed to come after the album.

In an Elle Interview she said she had been in love but was disappointed and that happily ever after wasn't real, but would be beautiful and mundane. She said the lyrics were things Lena had told her. (OK, weird chats between Lena and Taylor about burnt toast and the chains Jack doesn't wear.) In her Rolling Stone interview in the same time she sounded sad, RS said jaded:

In summary, like writing Clean in London closing the book (but leaving out that Style was written 2 weeks later) there is some self-preservation in discussing inspiration. It's Taylor's art, sharing vulnerability and her choice how it's presented.

I think this narrative also worked against them in long run, HS wrote Fools Gold about his hurt about it at the time. A lot of fans view that the relationship was less significant to them than their later (very recent) work indicates.

Playing live

You are In Love only made it on the setlist for 28 shows on the 1989 World Tour (at 54 Mins) and not at all on the Rep Tour. It was played at the 4 August 2023 Eras show.

When was it written / Working with Jack

In October 2014 Jack said to the Hollywood Reporter that it was the fourth song they wrote together. Jack's quote calls it "you were in love" I wonder if it was an error or the song was retrospective at one point. We haven't seen original lyrics for it. Jack said they were 5,000 miles apart when they wrote Out of the Woods and referred to a cancelled show in September 15, Taylor was in Cape Town, Australia and NZ in October - November so it was likely then, with YAIL after. Sweeter than Fiction was first mentioned 30 August and released October 2013. So we know it was written between September - November 2013. Taylor likely recorded the vocals in January 2014 when she was in LA. My guess is September 2013 after Harry and Taylor saw each other at the VMAs.

Lyrics

[Verse 1] One look, dark room Meant just for you Time moved too fast, you play it back Buttons on a coat, lighthearted joke No proof, not much, but you saw enough Small talk, he drives Coffee at midnight The light reflects the chain on your neck He says, "Look up" And your shoulders brush No proof, one touch, but you felt enough

The open sounds like remembering a moment, rather than in it, playing it back. This and the line of "Meant just for you" reminds me song Harry wrote for One Direction If I could fly about wishing he was with TS and sharing his vulnerability only with her.

Taking off a coat is also referenced in Style. "The lights are off, he's taking off his coat". This post has photos of You are in Love/haylor

Another Style reference with Coffee at Midnight "Midnight/ You come and pick me up, no headlights”

'No proof, one touch' is one of my favorite lines, it captures wanting to keep a part of their time together just for them and also how strong their connection is.

[Chorus] You can hear it in the silence (Silence), silence (Silence), you You can feel it on the way home (Way home), way home (Way home), you You can see it with the lights out (Lights out), lights out (Lights out) You are in love, true love You are in love

The song is about the feeling that love is something you feel rather than being told. It is silent, private and unseen. The open includes a reference to way home, home being an important concept of safety in HS and TS's songs.

[Verse 2] Morning, his place Burnt toast, Sunday You keep his shirt, he keeps his word And for once, you let go Of your fears and your ghosts One step, not much, but it said enough You kiss on sidewalks You fight and you talk One night, he wakes Strange look on his face Pauses, then says "You're my best friend" And you knew what it was, he is in love

As per Say don’t go, she’s searching for signs of I love you in silence

The mundane aspects of life are romanticized, letting her guard and past worries go. There is a similar idea in New Years Day where cleaning up after a party and in Keep Driving where mundane mornings are romanticized as here. "Maple syrup, coffee / Pancakes for two /Hash brown, egg yolk /I will always love you"

Taylor said she had not experienced being her lovers best friend at that time, to me the best friend line sounds exactly like 18 year old HS.

Taylor has worn a few shirts of Harry's, like the one at the top in the 1989 polaroids and these two. Harry also referred to this in From the Dining Table "I see you gave him my old t-shirt / More of what was once mine" Harry also wrote on Olivia “she’s lying in bed with my tshirt on”

[Bridge] And so it goes You two are dancing in a snow globe, 'round and 'round And he keeps a picture of you in his office downtown And you understand now Why they lost their minds and fought the wars And why I've spent my whole life trying to put it into words

Harry also refers to a picture of Taylor in Sunflower Vol 6 "I've got your face hung up high in the gallery" it is not a literal gallery or office downtown, but a metaphor for showing everyone she is his person.

In Wonderland, Taylor also talks about loosing their minds "And in the end, in Wonderland, we both went mad". On Midnights a romantic struggle is called a war in The Great War. Here she is saying that the relationship was challenging, but the love made it worthwhile.

Taylor uses the imagery of dancing in a snow globe and fishbowl again in the Lover Video, which also references Harry. The imagery is that they are under the microscope, unable to escape being on display but being in that together here and in Lover is beautiful.

[Breakdown] 'Cause you can hear it in the silence You can feel it on the way home You can see it with the lights out You are in love, true love You are in love

Taylor is telling herself it’s love he’s not saying. Before say don’t go this song never had that element to me, but the silence is a bit :( now

The song closes with a warm idea that this love is present away in private quiet moments and that is what makes it a true love.

You are in love had a Taymoji pack:

[rinsuniverse]

Can I request woozi with a reader who loves loves loves music? I’m autistic and music is just one of those things that make me so so so happy! And I really vibe with svt songs it’s crazy…

woozi with a s/o who loves music ✧˖°.

i feel like it's necessary for woozi's s/o to LOVE music

i think he said in an interview one time that his ideal type is someone who loves music as much as he does!

but anyway, if he knows you love music, he'd be so overjoyed!

he'd feel even more motivated to keep producing music

he'd send you lots of song recommendations and playlists

and he'd sing your favorite songs to you on very lucky days

one day, when you were attending one of seventeen's concerts when you guys just started dating

he memorized where you were supposed to be seated

and whenever he'd look over at you and saw you bopping your head to the music and listening happily as you get lost in the wonderful sounds he put together

he can't help but smile at you and fall in love with you

the way you can get so lost in music just like he does

it just makes his heart so happy

he wishes he could've taken a photo or video of that moment, but he treasures that memory and makes sure to remember it vividly

during the time he has to go on tour and leave you home alone for a long weekend, he compiles a playlist of music he loves, music he thinks you would love, and music he KNOWS you love for you to play on a speaker for when the house feels too quiet

when you're in the car together, he insists he always has the aux, but of course, he'd play specific songs especially for you

since this drabble is kind of short...

here's an imagine for you!

imagine it's been a terribly long day, and you're feeling so exhausted on your way home

when you get home, you aren't surprised jihoon's not there

i mean, he stays up pretty late working

but you decide you're gonna beg for him to come home at a reasonable time so he can come chill with you at home

so you shoot him a text like

you: ji

you: pls come home

and he responds

jihoon: right now?

you: just earlier than usual

jihoon: why? what's wrong?

you: i've had such a long day

jihoon: you can't come to the studio and hang out with me here?

you: ...

jihoon: fine i'll come home in a bit

and you lay there on the couch with your work clothes still on

you don't even have the energy to clean yourself up or make yourself something to eat

when he comes home, he tsks at you

"wow. have you just been laying here since you called me?"

"mhm."

he chuckles, plopping himself on top of you

"want to call it an early night tonight?" he mumbles into your shoulder

"yes, please."

he gets up and helps you up, leading both of you to your room

he takes off your jacket for you before laying it over your desk chair

you go to the bathroom to actually change into some pjs

and he changes into some shorts that he left over at your house

and then you both lay next to each other in bed

"i'm so tired," you say, sighing

you lay your head on his chest and listen to the rhythm of his heart

"why? did you not have a good day?"

"it was an okay day, just felt like it was too long."

"oh, makes sense," he says.

he doesn't ask if you want to talk about it

because, to be honest, he doesn't know how to comfort you with words

and if you really wanted to talk about it, you would go on ahead and do it

you lay there in silence until he starts singing "hug" to you

you listen to his voice and the meaningful lyrics

and it feels so wholesome and so pure

you want moments like these to last forever because you love music and you love him

so if he's singing to you, it's just everything you love at once

you quickly fall asleep in his loose grasp

his arm wrapped around your shoulders with his fingers drumming a soft beat on your chest

and when he finishes singing, he quickly notices your soft snores, and he feels so accomplished and happy

he feels so warm in these music sharing moments with you

he plays some of your favorite songs on his phone at a low volume

and you both sleep well together 🫶

thank you so much for the request! i hope you enjoyed it <3 feel free to request many, many more things ✧( ु•⌄• )◞◟( •⌄• ू )✧

(p.s. requests are still open! i specialize in woozi stuff, but i don't mind writing about other svt members! i can also do some nsfw if you want! so request whatever and as much as you want! ς(>‿<.))

[waterparksdrama]

ok track by track review of Intellectual Property. GO!

as you wish anon. be warned this is literally like one of maybe 4 times i've listened to this album in full again

st*rfucker - a bit too saccharine on first listen but it has better replay value as time goes on. the beginning of the shoehorned jesus lyrics and the continuation of limo imagery to represent fame which is actually fitting admittedly bc just like a limo that is supposed to represent glamour and celebrity living, they are just as widespread and accessible as him and aren't really that glamorous at all. also this is me saying again wow he complains a lot about fame for someone who isn't really that famous. i still hate the cutoff at the end bc. cmon man. 7/10

real super dark - ok i did like the gilbert gottfried inspired melody i think that's fun actually. the song lyrics? uhhhhhh. just more complaining. if you have listened to any of the albums since fandom you are not missing much there other than the otto serial killer jokes he has inserted here? which is a choice i guess. instrumental is great tho. i feel incredibly stupid listening to a lot of the other parts of the song tho. 7/10

funeral grey - god i can't bear listening to this one on my own i'm sorry. live it's fine, but the studio recording i would rather kill myself than listen to again. IT'S SO ANNOYING. the terrible overenunciated vocals. awsten's attempt at humor by writing these wattpad fic lyrics that make me cringe to my core because i know there's a part of him being genuine. the one direction ripoff hook because he managed to get one of 1d's actual songwriters to help write the track. the only saving grace is the ending but at that point it's too late for any redemption. 2/10

brainwashed - ironically this was written with the 1d guy again and. i'm actually fine with this one LOL. it's simple and lowkey so it's considerably less annoying than funeral grey. considering awsten said the lyrics on this album were hypersexual, but it's 2023 so this is fairly tame, it just makes me wonder how much he has repressed in his psyche. 6/10

2 best friends - ok now we're back to simple annoying. if you tune out the lyrics enough, it sounds like disney channel filler music. but it's actually about ~~sExxxx~~ hahahahaha everything about this album so far is like reading fanfics clearly written by middle schoolers. awsten's sad about his situationship so he goes out with his 2 best friends to forget but it doesn't work :( but he could just fuck his friends bc it wouldn't hurt to try at this point. hey what if this was what the song was actually about that because in travis' insane songfic he made jawn and awsten hook up during this chapter #neverforget #riptravisficeventhoughmebitchingontumblrmadehimkillit 4/10

end of the water (feel) - hearing awsten try to hit those high notes reminded me of people saying brendon straining on his high notes on the last panic tour was like hearing a dog that needed to be shot out back for its own good. this is very obviously a charlie puth ripoff to the t because not only does he hit high notes that no man should ever reach, but i'm pretty sure the verse instrumentals rip off "light switch" by charlie. anyways more of "ughhhhh i'm not getting a text backkkkkk" that makes me want to throw awsten's phone into the pacific. i still don't know why kurtis conner is here and how this is supposed to relate to any of this at all. also actually now that i'm crossing checking the genius pages for these, the descriptions for these songs make them sound much better than they actually are lol. 3/10

self-sabotage - this one is mid on it's own but funny because i remember the amount of twitter discourse this song has spawned. "awsten's being toxic and misogynistic" did we not listen to some of the songs off fandom "awsten has bpd" what if he just sucks sometimes. the memories of this are more memorable than the song itself. 5/10

ritual - remember when i found out the soundbyte at the beginning was from an aids psa. good times. fine song other than the shoehorned soundbyte. the entire song is just a repetition of the verses and chorus like a ~~ritual~~ spooky! i like the flair vincente void adds with his screams i feel like this feature makes more sense because it's a song about protecting yourself from the doctrines of religion that harmed you when you were growing up and apparently vincente has known awsten since he was 13???? only thing i hate is the corpse ripoff ending so much so that i have a personal version where i edited that out. 8/10

fuck about it - BORINGGGGGG OH MY GODD. if you've heard one blackbear feature, congrats you've heard them all because they all sound the same and blackbear adds no energy whatsoever. he made a bayside instrumental sound boring you really can't underestimate him. anyways back to the song itself; the situationship has dissolved into pure sex and disinterest and annoyance outside of that and with the way awsten sounds like he plans having hate sex, i don't think he's ever had hate sex before. there's the ending synth i think is fun and that's the only reason this gets a point at all. 1/10

closer - it's a sweet song but um. haven't we heard this in a way before? *cough cough 21 questions* i think this is the closest (lol) parx comes to at a return to pre-fandom form, but when i listen to the chords too much i'm just like "did he lowkey rip off that one smashing pumpkins song". anyways it's just about needing to be closer to someone or ending the relationship completely. simple but effective but not nearly as effective as 21 questions for me sorry. 7/10

a night out on earth - ok i had physical tickets to the last tour bc i won them on idobi so i was like "THIS SONG BETTER BE AT LEAST DECENT BC I STILL HANG UP THE TICKET WITH THIS NAME" and it was at the least. it's like. a good waterparks song, but i feel like i've heard it already? my mind goes back to see you in the future but for these i can't tell who's ripping off who more lol. yeah i feel like other than some interesting production here and there it's a rehash of shit we already heard before. shoehorned religious lyric. fake ass band guys. "i turn my agony into songs and people only like when i'm hurt". "i've been dead since 2016" (part two). "i'm evil now. idgaf. wat ever."

and then i think the part that makes me go awwww but also confuses me is the im a natural blue radio interview snippet? like why does this all tie in together now. geoff's not even here bro how is this the only release where otto's the only one namedropped when awsten hasn't even named dropped him until last album. 80% the album is about some random relationship how is this supposed to tie into all of these.

idk i feel like i've just had this on my mind when when of my mutuals made their own analysis on awsten's mindsets towards life and said how he uses fear as motivation but his perfectionism keeps him from using failure as an editor and how this song was the peak example of this; the rehash of the same ideas over and over because despite his stubbornness, despite "ultimately -not- giving in to the perception that you’re worth ‘Demonizing'", he never confronts the problem for real, just compartmentalizes the problem away and doesn't truly overcome the root of his problems. that's what i feel like manifests in this album for me to be put off by it at its core. nothing ever changes, he just finds a new situation to complain at. maybe that's also why his fans never change even as new ones come though. maybe that's why we also stay stagnant in this with him.

again i get it, he's a public figure; if he did dive too deep into this and didn't choose to generalize the lyrics for his own sake, he would probably end up incriminating himself way too much and have a hard time performing some of these songs. but i can't help but wonder. if he's truly getting over a mental obstacle like that, or keeps himself so set on the future that he ignores the problems he never solved. like he always does. like he always seems to be doomed to. anyways, 7/10 song.

all in all, it's an album that tries to reach a concept of coming to terms with your sexuality and religious trauma all entwined in fame but in reality it's mostly just about a sucky situationship and awsten complaining again while putting in random religious references sometimes and the beginning and ending are about fame. my hot takes are: tennis imagery = gay sex, there's not enough of a distinction between "soulsucker" and awsten to make "album lore" when the overarching concept of parx's discography is "awsten's life sucks", and darth vader is luke's father. - iz

[earlgreytea68]

I was thinking about Patrick not being the greatest at remembering lyrics when performing, and I wonder if that’s part of his considering himself “not a singer”. Like, he must know how his voice sounds and that people like hearing it, but that’s not the only thing being a singer entails. (Also I feel like this is probably somehow connected to him prioritizing the rhythm and sound of lyrics over meaning, and him saying his ADHD prevents him from reading much? It sounds like he has an interesting mental relationship with Words).

I was thinking the same thing. He never seems to forget the music part of the songs, but the words part of the songs is just...not his most important thing, it's not his focus, he says it all the time. They are Pete's, and so it makes total sense to me that it's Pete who runs up with the words all the time, of course Pete knows them all, words ARE his thing. I feel quite sure sometimes Pete is like, "What exactly am I supposed to be playing right now?" but I know he knows the words.

And yes, I think it really does betray that Patrick is never actually a singer in his head. He gets up there and he sings but the whole entire time he doesn't think of himself as being a singer.

You know, I feel like for the Mania tour I saw at once point they had kind of a teleprompter thing at Patrick's feet that had lyrics???? Am I totally making that up???? Why did I think that???? Only because it's clear if they did have it they dropped it for this tour and I kind of love that maybe they were like, "Part of our return to the old days is Patrick will just not know the lyrics sometimes."

[alarrytale]

In my honest opinion I don't think louis' future is on stage. He always says performing is his favourite part of the job. Okay so why doesn't he learn the lyrics, is often late on stage, doesn't take care of his singing voice or uses alcohol for courage to even come up on stage.I understand being nervous and stressed, especially since he's doing it on his own but I'd imagine doing things you love is usually without a poker face. He almost never smiles during shows. It seems like a chore or he's just burnout. When he says performing is his favourite part of the job i think he remembers the nostalgia of performing with the band. He was always happy to share the stage with his friends. I don't think he loves it as much now as he says he does. I think he excells in many other areas but performing is not his thing (maybe it would be if he let his body be free, not analysing his every gesture). I think what he means when he says he loves it is that he loves seeing the fans, visiting new counties and traveling the world with people he has good relationships with and whom he trusts.

In the future i see him running a successful management company, his festival and a clothing brand. (Not to mention being childless and more in tune with himself etc.)

Louis needs to take some time to sit down and be honest with himself. He might not like some of the realisations and it won't be an easy transiton but how can you move forward in life without really knowing what you want or what you're good at. Gaslising or lying to yourself won't bring any success on a personal level. I know he stopped doing things for our approval and only listens to himself but sometimes a good advice and an open mind can do wonders. He's so special and I believe he can truly leave a positive change in this world. I only want him going his own unique path unbothered by anything that doesn't serve his true potential. It's a long way to go but i hope it's achievable for him.

Hi,

I do believe him when he says performing is the best part of his job. I think he loves performing, loves connecting with his fans, feeds on fans energy and loves entertaining. But i don't think he's very good at it, being on stage alone. He's got major confidence issues, is very in his head and is self-concious about his movements etc. as not to seem too flamboyant. He wants to relax and just enjoy it, but he can't relax too much unless he forgets himself. It's tricky, and he struggles with it.

I think he loves the touring life and the lifestyle that comes with it too. He's basically on a vacation with his friends and gets an adrenaline high every other night while performing. I think he knows this will not last forever so he's doing the most out of it while he can. He probably is a bit of a stoner, and that does impact his performance on stage, manifesting in the things you mention. It's an unhealthy coping mechanism as i've talked about many times before. We know the pressure he's under to live up to a certain image, but he also puts pressure on himself.

I think he'd be an excellent performer if he didn’t have the baggage he's got and if he was out. It would be such a weight off of his shoulders and he would not have to perform heterosexuality and exaggerated laddyness as well as perform his songs. I keep hoping he'll find his confidence, but as you see it's complicated. I don't think it would be better for him if he gave up on the thing he loves the most because of lack of confidence. He'd see himself as a quitter and a failure, which he's obviously not. So he keeps trying and trying. Faith in the future and all that. As long as he's got fans, he'll keep doing it. He is living his dream.

[exsqueezememacaroni]

Hearing Mike Patton: the big list

OK here we go. My Mike Patton listening journey so far, opinions on what I've heard. This is a rolling WIP - I'll be making edits to the original post as I see fit. Please don't reblog (lol, there's a no reblogs feature now - so you can't!) but feel free to comment/reply. Long post, so it's under a cut.

the Mike Patton bands (more that 1 studio album as a full member/lead) in order of preference

#1 Tomahawk - you know I love this band and I pretty much love everything about it. John's driving drums, Duane's soundscape guitar, Mike's perfect blend of creeped out whispers, raw powerful singing, and just audible triple-tracked screaming. And horror of horrors, I prefer Kevin's sludgy simple punk bass to Trevors, like, good playing

Studio Albums: Self Titled: I have listened through this album more times than I can count. One of my s-tier. The first four songs are basically perfect imo. Every song makes me wanna fuck Mike dirty on the floor, ahem. Least favorite is POP 1 - frankly I don't love the inflection in his voice during the verses think the verses are a liiiittle to whiny sounding. Mit Gas: Was my intro to this band and still one of my faves, though ST just edges it out. This time the middle of the album is the best to me, You Can't Win through Capt. Midnight. I want to like Desastre Natural, but I just don't, sorry Mike! Anonymous: Ok - I actually do love LISTENING to this album, but I kind of hate that it exists. I want someone to tell me it's not cultural appropriation. Antelope Ceremony is such a wonderful bop and I love Mike's vocals and chill little interlude/bridge. Crow Dance is fantastic. Cradle Song can suck it. Oddfellows: As mentioned I'm actually not a huge fan of Trevor just within the context of this band. Like, the songs are still Tomahawkesque, but they're too...normal? Tight? Eh, it's pretty good but strangely my least favorite of the catalogue. IOU is good Rise Up Dirty Waters is good, I do not like White Hats/Black Hats. Tonic Immobility: I probably haven't listened through this as often as I should, maybe just a few times. But I remember liking it better than Oddfellows. So maybe Trevor is redeemed. The first 3 songs are great....and then I don't remember the rest of the album off the top of my head! Live Shows/Bootlegs: I think I've listened to/watched basically all the bootlegs and live show videos available on yt. Some multiple times. Listen - I love this band. Particular bootleg highlights (that I remember) are of course the London Astoria 2002 show, the House of Blues shows in 2003, and the Stockholm 2002 show cuz it came off the soundboard. Listening to the first tour is really fun to hear how the band learns to play live with each other. And how Birdsong, Mayday and Harelip get developed. I wish I knew the scratch lyrics, and I bet so does Mike 😂. How I wish there was better quality video footage of the first tour. Like with every fiber of my being. Mike Patton was SERVING LOOKS. Special note that I think Trevor during the Oddfellows tour looks pretty dang cute! And you know what, the more I listen to the Oddfellows tour show, the more I'm appreciating the songs off it...I still don't love White Hats/Black Hats, but live Mike does put a good spin on it.

#2 Mr. Bungle - The partner band to my proper introduction to Mike Patton. They're only second because I truly find I end up listening to Tomahawk more often. The range between albums coming from the same core trio is gorgeous. Bär and Danny (and Theo, while he was with them) are incredible. The live band is master class. The live shows have some fucking balls. Sorry, I don't count Scott or Dave as part of the band!

Studio Albums: Self Titled: I mean, what can I say? It's definitely ska! (lolololol). It almost doesn't even make sense to talk about any Bungle album. But really, I strangely appreciate how earnest (???) this album is. You can just tell these are a bunch of kids who love...sounds. And love making music together. Mike's high pitched vocals are tempered by good growl-ly stuff. Travolta is an obvious favorite, Egg maybe a less obvious favorite??? The "no place like home" bit makes me so happy. Even though it's my url namesake, Squeeze Me Macaroni is pretty silly and might be my least fave? Disco Volante: Sometimes when I'm sad I'll listen to this album and it will almost always make me feel better, even though it has no reason to. It's not my favorite album of theirs, but it's definitely an important one, and I have deep love for it. Every track is my favorite...even Backstrokin! (fartn', pissn', strokn' my fuckin dick) For some reason After School Special always makes me think it's a TMBG-influenced track?? California: Ya, I know, obvious fave, but it really is. I just think it's more of an actual uh, cohesive?, album than DV is. And it's got, like, songs! Retrovertigo has been a sleeper, but it might just be my favorite right now. My favorite on my first listen was Ars Moriendi. It's sacrilege, but I don't love Pink Cigarette. Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny: Again, probably the studio album from Mr. Bungle that I've listened to the least, but it's still good and I do like it. I just need to be in the mood for it. I think it would make a killer live show and it pisses me off that people are mad at them for the tour set. Like, what did you expect from this band? Hoo boy, let's see - I like Raping Your Mind, Anarchy Up Your Anus and Eracist, and I think I need to listen to the album more to compare the rest! Demos: Crap, I am such a bad Bungle fan, I haven't listened to any of them all the way through. I'll get on that and report back. Live Shows/Bootlegs: I am pretty sure I have seen all the available yt video footage of live shows from ST tour to the Cali tour? I haven't completely seen any pre-album shows. And I've listened to maybe 30% of the bootlegs starting from the ST tour, but honestly mostly from the DV and Cali tours. I'm such a hyprocrite and I haven't listened to/seen any of the RWOTEB shows completely. The early Bungle show videos are just so bonkers, they must have just felt so fucking alive then. Mike with the shaved sides (when you could see his head) is perfect. And I particularly love the two bootlegs from the 1999 Bowery Ballroom shows. Mike is like super nice to the crowd, and the crowd is so super nice to the band?!?

#3 Faith No More - Ha ha, FNM is only 3rd! And it's true, I just never really listened to much from this band until maybe December last year. I remember that infamous bf playing me the whole of TRT and I just cannot listen to Mike being that high pitched for that long. But since listening to the Download Festival 2009 show casually while working, I've fallen pretty hard. I appreciate what everyone's bringing to the sound - for me it's Billy that really sells it and while I think the synths/keyboard add a lot, I wish there was just more. to. them. I must admit my guitarists in order are Trey (ya!), Jim, Jon, Dean. I'll just be listing Mike era output.

Studio Albums: The Real Thing: Yup, still can't listen to this one too often. I do not like Epic. I don't even like when Mike sings Epic in his mature voice. My fave song from this album is Woodpecker From Mars. That should tell you something. The Real Thing is pretty great. Edge of the World is fun, but it was only on the cassette supposedly?? Angel Dust: Ah, the golden child of FNM albums. I love it, but it's not my favorite, simply because I dislike Kindergarten SO MUCH. Not like "oh I don't love it", no, I heavily dislike this song. But everything else is great. Midlife Crisis the obvious fave, and the first half of the album is just fantastic, but if I had to chose one it actually might be Caffeine. King for A Day...: Yup, it's this one. This one is my favorite. Maybe it's Trey adding magic guitar dust. Maybe because they recorded in Woodstock and gave it some east coast flavor. Honestly maybe it's because there isn't much keyboard. But I think this album is such an engaging listen and I have a good time whenever I do. Ricochet is wonderful, The Gentle Art of Making Enemies sounds 10X better live but does the job in the studio (I really wish he hadn't choked up his vocals on the 2nd "you need something wet in your mouth"), and I have a real fondness for Ugly in the Morning. What the hell is Star A.D. doing here? Album of the Year: I think it's just Mike that doesn't like this album at this point? Ya some of the songs sound a little like throwaways...but they're still easy on the ears. Like I kinda love how sweeping, (gentle?), and sentimental a lot of it is. The way Mike belts the last lines in Ashes to Ashes does something to my body that I cannot possibly describe. Sol Invictus: Fuck, I really just check out on Mike after like, 2010, huh? I have listened through this album exactly once. It was fine, and I have no idea why I haven't listened to it again (I just started listening to it again right now...I think I need to talk about older Mike's 'Tom Waits' voice at some point, oh and maybe his like, thrash screech voice too, I'm still a fan of him growling like a dog though) Live Shows/Bootlegs: Mike is almost always better live, and for me it's most apparent in FNM shows. I think he gets some flack for seeming checked out??? during shows (maybe not being faithful to the songs?), but I don't know how you could look at any performance and not see Mike giving all of himself to the music. He knows how the song goes, he just something else to say. Anyway I will always be entranced by the 1997 London Astoria Show (god help me) AND the 1997 Brixton Academy Show (and fuck). And where would we be without the 1995 Santiago Chile show? And and? On god there are so, so many good ones... omg and all the TV appearances! The professional footage from the reunion shows are beautiful, and the tour is so much fun, but most of them don't have the same charm as the shitty bootlegs and I particularly dislike the Area 4 Festival 2009 video, with the exception of Patton's stripper euro. I've listened to probably 15% of the audio bootlegs, just a couple with Chuck, there are so ding dang many of them, and there is so much video footage, I'm just less desperate for them. Ok, and last thing, I do appreciate the changed lyrics on Epic for live shows ("so you lay down on it and you FUCK it some more," "What is it? It's SHIT!"). They make the song 10% more bearable.

(sorry I got distracted by yet another Tomahawk 2001 video, and now it's time for bed - more to come)

#4 Fantômas - Does this count as a solo project since it's all Mike's aural vision? Either way, I know I'd be more legit if I placed them higher on the list...but....I'm getting there. It's just that I mostly am listening to all this while I'm working, and you just can't listen to Fantômas while doing something else. You gotta sit with headphones, preferably in the dark, eyes closed. Or at least I do. The good thing is, listening to this band has really prepared me for Adult Themes for Voice, at least the few tracks I've heard off it (like, I just picture Mike in his hotel room, hearing all of Fantômas, but only the vocals coming out). And all that being written, the technical ability and, funnily, musicality it takes to pull this off is just staggering. Of course Trevor was on board, but kudos to Dave and Buzzo for saying yes and smashing it.

Studio Albums: Fantômas: Actually, I initially rated this one lowest, but it's growing on me after a few listens. I'd probably put this one and The Director's Cut in a tie, but still under Suspended Animation. With a couple more run-throughs, it might rise to clear second. It doesn't make sense with anything except TDC to talk about tracks, right? I do like how convincing it is as a soundtrack, and I love when Mike sounds like he's truly descending from outer space, only to land on the power lines. The Director's Cut: Would it help if I actually knew the originals? I did have to listen to this one also a few times to get into it, and I have to admit, I like that it has songs. Rosemary's Baby IS really good. And I have a soft spot for Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me. Spider Baby is silly - do I like it? I dunno. Delìrivm Còrdia: Suspended Animation:

#5 Dead Cross -

[forfoxessake]

I posted 166 times in 2022

129 posts created (78%)

37 posts reblogged (22%)

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I tagged 164 of my posts in 2022

Only 1% of my posts had no tags

#100 movies challenge - 110 posts

#movies seen in 2022 - 110 posts

#movie review - 89 posts

#100 movies - 22 posts

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Longest Tag: 55 characters

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My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

[02] Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts

Directed by Eran Creevy, Giorgio Testi,  Joe Pearlman

 As a fan, I absolutely loved this. Of course, there wasn't going to be anything new, it was not the point. It was a time to remember what they experienced throughout those years and it's wonderful to be able to look back and see things from a distance. Unfortunately, due to covid this probably was smaller than could have been but not any less enjoyable.

14 notes - Posted January 10, 2022

#4

[45] Tom At The Farm (2013)

Directed by Xavier Dolan 

 The thing about this movie is that you are constantly waiting for something horrible to happen. The tension is palpable. It's sexually charged, it's angry and mad and without a reason. Tom is at the farm and he can't get out of it.

18 notes - Posted April 12, 2022

#3

[41] Belfast (2021)

Directed by Kenneth Branagh 

 Remembering your own past is a thing that seems to be popular with directors currently. I like this trend, and I like that Branagh did it slightly differently. He goes further back and tries to remember something from his childhood that at the time he wasn't fully able to understand, and he doesn't try to make it make sense to us. It still feels like living in his memories, a bit confusing, sometimes fantastical, often a bit scary. Grown-ups can be magical and so big, almost unreal characters. It's an honest trip down memory lane, one where you don't ask your family to explain things how they really were.

20 notes - Posted April 7, 2022

#2

[14] Pleasantville (1998)

Directed by Gary Ross 

This was one of the movies I always stopped everything I was doing and watched whenever it was on tv after school. I wasn’t old enough to understand what it was talking about or the more complex themes but I still enjoyed it a lot.

I was surprised to still find enjoyment and beauty here, it’s a very original work, filled with practical effects and what is a simple plot at first but it gets more and more exquisite when those tv characters start to feel like real people and you can’t stop the changes. We can’t go back to seeing the world in black and white, pleasant.

24 notes - Posted January 24, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

You know what.

I truly am an #MCR5 believer but I don't think it's happening on #MCRLA5 - specially now that the main buck of the tour is almost officially over. No more tour buses and all.

This #Return tour has been about them reconnecting with My Chemical Romance, not just us, but them relearning nearly all of their songs, giving them new arrangements, new lyrics, it means something different now.

They choose to give us a different set list every single night, it’s incredible rare and precious what they have done, it show us that they are truly committed, it’s far beyond a “let’s make money off people’s memories tour”. They didn’t need to do that to have a successful tour and yet they choose to - even now so close to the end - add songs that they haven’t played yet and even a song they have never played live before.

It’s watching them become a band again, and I really think they needed to learn how to be that again, to learn all of their songs, revisit who they were, to find out who they want My Chemical Romance to be from now on.

Whoever that is going work out it’s up to them, maybe it won’t be as intense as they were before (up until BP), but it will special.

24 notes - Posted October 15, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[libraryofgage]

I hope you don't mind but I wrote a little something lol

Also please ignore typos hfjkds

---

Eddie is driving, of course. He'd drive everyone crazy with his fidgeting if he didn't. He's still fidgeting a little, his fingers tapping the wheel along to the music in his head instead of what's playing on the radio. His left leg is bouncing, barely brushing the bottom of the wheel. His teeth are digging into his bottom lip, the copper-taste of blood creeping into his mouth.

He should have noticed sooner. He should have realized what was happening long before....well...

Before Dustin's frantic phone call and Robin's shaking video call and the group chat that had been collecting dust for the past three years (last used to plan a virtual birthday party for Steve that eventually fell through because of life, which leaves a bad taste in Eddie's mouth even now).

And now he can't stop thinking about it, about his text chat with Steve being untouched for three months. He wasn't even the one who sent the last message. That had been Steve, congratulating him on another tour and asking how the newest album was coming along. Eddie had meant to answer, but he got distracted and it slipped his mind and and and

And nothing. How many times did he see a funny animal and think of texting Steve about it? How many times did he almost send Steve a meme? How many times did he find himself working on that damn album, staring down the lyrics of the title track of an album dedicated to Steve in his heart (like he didn't always dedicate them to Steve and Wayne in his heart anyway), thinking about Steve and his hazel eyes and sunny smile and those two freckles on his cheek?

And now? Now Steve has been radio silent for a month, not even talking to Robin or Dustin for four weeks.

And that's a problem.

"He could be dead," Erica says from the last row of the van, her voice clipped and cold as Eddie's hands tighten on the wheel.

"Don't say that," Dustin hisses.

"We're all thinking it, and if we don't talk about it now, we won't know what to do if it's true."

She's right, of course. Erica is always right, especially when it really hurts. Eddie forces himself to take a deep breath as they pass the sign welcoming them to Hawkins. The sun is slipping below the treetops now, casting shadows and orange light across the road as Eddie forces his foot off the gas pedal so they don't get pulled over.

When Eddie left Hawkins, he never looked back. He chased after a future that nearly escaped him with such single-minded focus that he barely remembers the drive out of his hometown. But he does remember that it didn't look like this.

Hawkins always had a few farms and homes on the outskirts, people who wanted to be surrounded by forest or make a living on pumpkins. When Eddie left, those houses had been lived in; bikes were haphazardly left strewn across lawns, fields of crops were carefully tended, people sat on porches with sweating glasses of lemonade and iced tea in their hands, and lights streamed out from the windows.

Now, those houses and fields are in an unbelievable state of disrepair. Some have smashed windows, the fields of crops are dug up and wildly overgrown, and every single house is dark. If he weren't so sure this was his dimension, Eddie would wonder if they'd somehow driven into the Upside Down when they crossed the town line.

"Uh, that's weird, right?" Dustin asks, nose practically plastered to the window as the town passes by.

Every building is dark. The sun hasn't even properly set, but the streets are empty and the town is dead. It's eerie, sends shivers down Eddie's back, makes his hair stand on end. His jaw clenches, his grip on the wheel tightens, and he tries his damnedest to not imagine the worst case scenario.

He doesn't have to hold off for long as he turns down a residential street. Before his brain can force images of demogorgons attacking Steve to the forefront, an actual demogorgon rushes from behind a house ahead of them, petal-mouth flared wide and teeth on display as its roar forces something Eddie had once buried to flare to life.

Amid the screams from the back and Robin suddenly grabbing the wheel and jerking it to the side so avoid the demogorgon, Eddie somehow remembers to slam his foot on the brakes. The tires squeal painfully, the car drifting sharply and perfectly angling them to face the demogorgon head-on.

Eddie's throat is straining, and he doesn't know why until he realizes he's also screaming. His heart is pounding against his ribs, and his brain has started chugging into over drive. How is he going to get the kids out? How is he going to get Robin out? Who's going to tell his bandmates and his agent that he fucking died the one time he visited Hawkins?

And then he notices a figure (a boy, achingly familiar) sprinting out from behind another house, sliding between the car and the demogorgon, bat raised and swinging with ease. It catches the demogorgon in the stomach, tearing through skin and muscle and sending it sliding back a few precious inches. A shot rings out a second later, the demogorgon's head jerking back. A second shot follows, and the demogorgon's head explods, viscera and a few teeth splashing across the windshield.

The boy with the bat, wipes away some of the gore, turns to another house, and waves a hand. Eddie is already rolling down the window, getting it open just in time to hear the other shout, "Thanks, Ms. Dithers! I'll see you on Sunday for book club!"

Eddie follows the direction of the wave to see an older woman in the upstairs window of a house. Her hair is gray, her glasses are huge, she's wearing a nightgown, and she's reloading a shotgun as she smiles. "Don't mention it, Steve, dear. You'd better bring those Savannah bars again, or I won't be letting you in the door!" she calls back, waving kindly at Steve.

With one more wave, Steve turns to the car. He locks eyes with Eddie first, and Eddie gets the joy of seeing them light up, Steve's whole demeanor suddenly shifting into something bright and happy as he hurries over to the open window. "Hey, guys!" he says, "What brought you down? How come you didn't call ahead? I'd've told you about the curfew."

He leans on the door like it's easy, like he isn't a breath of fresh air Eddie didn't even know he needed. He smiles just as easily, and Eddie is breathless. He definitely couldn't speak for the fucking life of him.

"You didn't answer your fucking phone, dingus!" Robin shouts, barely managing to get her seatbelt off before she's launching herself out of the car. She jumps the hood in a moment of unprecedented grace and crashes into Steve's arms.

She spurs everyone into action, like she made them realize Steve is real and alive. The car shakes as everyone else piles out, surrounding Steve and pushing until he's forced to take a step back before he trips. Despite that, Steve looks...overjoyed.

Eddie tries to be a little calmer as he exits the car, desperately hoping his hands aren't shaking like he thinks they are. He can feel himself on a precipice of something. He's teetering over the edge of a cliff he can't name; or, well, a cliff he doesn't want to name.

And then Steve meets his eyes again, and Eddie is lost in hazel. He's doomed by freckles and sun-kissed skin and a smile that's just for him. He's trapped by warm hands pulling him into a hug, the subtle smell of hairspray, the inescapable stream of Steve, Steve, Steve coursing through his brain.

How the fuck is Eddie supposed to walk away again after this?

okay but a like post-series fic i want that's like: steve harrington being the only man left in hawkins fighting monsters

and not like a 'everyone died, last man standing' way but just. they beat it back, the story ends, nice little tie-up and neatly concluded, eleven loses her powers because their world is completely cut from the other. and life goes on. eddie (yes, eddie lives au don't fight me) goes off with his band, robin-nancy-jargyle off to separate cities for college. the kids go to high school, graduate high school, and scatter across the country. joyce and hop buy a beach house far-far-far away from goddamn hawkins indiana.

steve though. steve stays. he does it too without comment, takes all their calls telling him all these amazing things. the years pass. the calls are fewer and far between. he's mostly in contact with only dustin and robin. except robin's out of country doing some crazy temp job in some remote country, she never catches him at home right now so just leaves him messages. and it takes a couple of weeks for dustin to realize he hasn't gotten steve on the phone.

frantically he calls around "have you heard from steve???" except the most people talk to steve anymore is like phone calls during holidays and holy shit what could have happened??

and what if it's back?

cue everyone who can in that moment, rushing back. eddie hopping on a flight from fucking london direct to indianapolis somehow, heart in his throat. he manages to meet hopper in the airport and they pick up max and dustin at the bus station.

they get to hawkins that is even more different that what they left. a smaller town, a town that shuts down completely when the sun sets. it's creepy and deserted.

except for the fucking upside down monsters of course.

and they're in their stupid little rental in front of this demogorgon and they're screaming but then the thing just goes splat on the concrete and steve fucking harrington is blinking owlishly at them.

"Oh, hey guys!" he calls jogging up to the driver's side window. "Wow, what brought you back down this way? You should have told me, I would have told you about the curfew!"

turns out steve just forgot to pay his phone bill that month, didn't even realize he was missing calls and he's been fighting monsters the entire time because actually they WEREN'T cut off from the upside down at all and he's just been casually fighting monsters for the remaining hawkins residence—the whole town knows now and steve's the guy you call when you have a monster problem

sidebar: WAYNE still lives in hawkins, and he and steve are best friends, eddie munson you are gonna LOSE YOUR MIND

[artemisandhersilverbow]

The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived

I've not been in the business of paternity testing TTPD because it's led to a much richer experience without it. I've been particularly moved/saddened by religious trauma as theme throughout. To me, if there's a relationship at the center of TTPD it's her most enduring, and traumatic, one with fame. Also, I just don't think any of these songs are inspired by a single "muse." Or really any of her adult work. Maybe some songs of hers are one thing on the surface and many other things underneath... maybe all of them can be true. Maybe none of them are. Her mind is just that good.

I say this because I was really struck by a line in "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived": But you are what you did. Which finally reminded me of the song "Innocent"... which was (allegedly?) written about K****.

Opposite sentiments, sure. But it made me wonder what that experience of rerecording it for Speak Now must have been like. That song certainly doesn't ring true for her anymore, but she rerecorded it faithfully. And then... I replayed TSMWEL and that (truly top tier) bridge hit a little different:

Were you sent by someone who wanted me dead? Did you sleep with a gun underneath our bed Were you were writing a book? Were you a sleeper cell spy? In 50 years will this all be declassified? You'll confess what you did And I'll say good riddance ‘Cause it wasn't sexy once it wasn’t forbidden I would've died for your sins Instead, I just died inside And you deserve prison, but you won’t get time You'll slide into inboxes and slip through the bars You crashed my party and your rental car You said normal girls were boring But you were gone by the morning You kicked out the stage lights but you're still performing And in plain sight, you hid But you are what you did And I'll forget you but I'll never forgive The smallest man who ever lived

She's used the "crash my party" idea in "This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things," and could refer to the VMAs moment or the Bleachella era for ex. And the first thing that really made the alarms go off was the crash of the rental car mention. K**** talks about his near fatal car crash (resulting in having his jaw wired shut/facial damage) of his rental Lexus in his music and documentary.

As for the fateful recording leak, even Tree Paine clapped back about it once the full clip came out saying what they did was illegal. But that's certainly not the only problematic thing that's come out about him in recent years.

Slip through the bars could be working double/triple time - slipping through bars of prison, his own lyrics/performing, her own songs about him.

I remember that interview of young Taylor in Miss Americana being asked if she was a K**** fan after that famous interruption and she replies something like, "Yeah, I mean it's K****." That artist who would one day become Y**zus. But I imagine that devastating line about dying for your sins carries far deeper weight than just this simple reading. And I fully think this song is inspired by more than one bad man/system and the same lines apply to any matter of sin.

The "kicked out the stage lights, but you're still performing" feels pretty self explanatory with what he's up to these days (not performing massive world tours). But I do think the "In plain sight, you hid" is pretty powerful because obviously the phone call moment was shared by him/his wife and presented as the full truth (it wasn't). And they rode that controversy for all they could get out of it.

The sexy/forbidden line is hard for me to even express in a way that feels ok to talk about in a wildly speculative way (which is what I'm doing). But there's the surface level/romantic lead of "oh we couldn't be together and once we could be you weren't interested anymore." But if we read it, knowing how K**** (grossly) capitalized on this moment, as a call out about the consent of that entire situation I read it as far more bone chilling.

Anyway, in the days after TTPD release and Taylor herself sharing articles that focus on how we should not be classifying each song as being about [insert name here] lover and an album that seems to constantly tell us "you don't know me, but if you looked closer you might find something bigger," it would be fairly genius to cloak a song about an abusive industry as a truly spectacular break up song. And for us, it can be that if we want.

One last thought... while this was an interesting puzzle to connect, and get off my chest, it's true that it really doesn't matter. I don't think there's a way to know the documentary-level truth about any of this music (unless you're her). She knows her own mythology looms too tall and I wonder what else I'll learn (more universally) while practicing forgetting as I replay and replay and replay.

[foxes-that-run]

Ready for it?

Ready for it? is about a magnetic damaged relationship Taylor won't let go of, wondering if her lover dreams of her, it references a relationship plagued by the media. The title, "Ready for it?" is referenced in one of the TS Parody Tabloids, referring to this awful real piece of journalism about Haylor. Harry has also referred to the song in To Be So Lonely with "Wasn't ready for it all"

When was it written

In the HBO Bad blood documentary Taylor’s PA said it was written on her plane during the 1989 tour, which is May - December 2015. The footage they show is from Taylor arriving in LA from China on 13 November 2015, but not necessarily when it was written. It refers to Two Ghosts, Stockholm Syndrome and Perfect which are from then.

Live performances

Ready for it opened the Reputation stadium tour and the Reputation set of the Eras tour where the screens are reminiscent of the 1989: ones"

Lyrics

Knew he was a killer first time that I saw him Wonder how many girls he had loved and left haunted But if he's a ghost, then I can be a phantom

I knew you were trouble: I knew you were trouble when you walked in / So shame on me now / Flew me to places I'd never been, yeah Now I'm lyin' on the cold hard ground

Haunted is a theme in Taylors work and in Harry's also. After Haunted on Speak Now, this is the next haunted and all others refer back to Two Ghosts or Harry. Here Taylor responds to Two Ghosts, which was also written in 2015 and ups her role to a Phantom, both models of Rolls Royce cars. As a luxury car enthusiast car references are generally to Harry.

Two Ghosts: (We're just two ghosts standing in the place of you and me / Trying to remember how it feels to have a heartbeat)

Holdin' him for ransom

Stockholm Syndrome: "Who's that shadow holding me hostage? / I've been here for days / Who's this whisper telling me that I'm never gonna get away?"

Some, some boys are tryin' too hard He don't try at all, though Younger than my exes but he act like such a man, so I see nothing better, I keep him forever Like a vendetta-ta

Harry remains is the youngest of Taylor's exes, and he did act like such a man.

"Keep him forever" is also a reference to Stockholm Syndrome which Harry wrote while dating Taylor, released a few weeks after 1989 and added to the One Direction Setlist during the period Taylor wrote this.

I, I, I see how this is gon' go Touch me and you'll never be alone I-Island breeze and lights down low No one has to know

The impact Taylors fame has on a relationship (touch me and you''ll never be alone) is explored extensively in 1989, especially,

I Know Places, Wonderland and Slut! explore this. Harry Styles Kiwi and Sign of the Times also refer to this.

This line reminds me of Perfects "And if you like cameras flashin' every time we go out"

Island Breeze also reminds me of IKYWT "Flew me to places I'd never been, yeah" and the Blue dress on a boat. It may also refer to her Rhode Island home, she purchased in May 2013.

In the middle of the night, in my dreams You should see the things we do, baby In the middle of the night, in my dreams I know I'm gonna be with you, so I take my time Are you ready for it?

Wildest Dreams "Even if it's just in your wildest dreams, ah-ah, ha (ha-ah, ha) / Wildest dreams, ah-ah, ha / You'll see me in hindsight / Tangled up with you all night"

Little Freak also references this line with references to blue light (adult film) dreams and wet dreams dangling. Little Freak also references "starry eyes, crystal ball" from the Ready for it video.

Knew I was a robber first time that he saw me Stealing hearts and running off and never sayin' sorry But if I'm a thief, then he can join the heist, and

IKYWT: No apologies / He'll never see you cry / Pretends he doesn't know

Stand up (One Direction) also has a similar refrain: "You can call me a thief (I'm a thief, I'm a thief) But you should know your part (I'm a thief, I'm a thief) I'm only here (I'm a thief, I'm a thief) Because you stole my heart"

See more on the Haylor theme of robbers and thieves.

We'll move to an island, and And he can be my jailer, Burton to this Taylor

Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton had a long, magnetic, tumultuous relationship over years with infidelities between two A-listers. Taylor made the same likeness in the Wildest Dreams video, which was released in the time this was written. During that period, Taylor liked a series of posts that likened her and the Wildest Dreams muse to old hollywood couples and celebrities including James Dean and Marilyn Monroe.

Every love I've known in comparison is a failure I forget their names now, I'm so very tame now Never be the same now, now

In Question...? Taylor describes a similar comparison to other loves: (Does it feel like everything's just like second-best after that Meteor strike?)

(Baby, let the games begin Let the games begin x 2)x2

Games are also a Haylor theme, this line:

State of Grace - Love is a ruthless game, unless you play it good and right

Blank Space - Love's a game, wanna play?

Boyfriends - And you know the game's never ending

Music Video

the costumes are reminiscent of Taylor's 2014 VS show, which HS and she were friendly then left the afterparty 5 mins apart from.

Keep Driving refers to "Kiss her and don't tells, Wine glass, puff pass, tea with cyborgs, Riot America, ..." is the tea with cyborgs referring to TS in this video?

So although Joe's birth year appears in the start of the Video, the song was written more than a year before Taylor met Joe. In the Behind the Scenes of the video Taylor is quite sassy, saying "there are other numbers of significance, "89 and 91 next to each other" with a laugh, at the end she also says the boys in the video are not really humans. This is trolling H. These numbers don't mean the song is about Joe, the overall Reputation narrative was that love songs were about Joe to shut down discussion of other muses, though multiple songs including this one were written in the 1989 and 1989 tour time period.

The unreleased Two Ghosts video also has blue electricity spheres that look like the ones at 1:56.

The lyric video for the all you had to do was Stay is reminiscent of the Ready for it video freeze frame:

Taymoji

Ready for it has a taymoji set that includes a moon heart, the description is 'partial eclipse of the heart' Total Eclipse of the Heart was a One Direction X-Factor competition song, it also has an anatomical heart, which Harry got a tattoo of in 2014 after Style was written and a red flower. The flowers description is 'roses are red, this flower is also red..' possibly the same reference as in Maroon, "Carnations you had thought were roses." The flags also look like "took off faster than a green light go" in Holy Ground.

[magxit]

🎀 anon again. Mag I think I saw the wrong lyrics for I Can Fix Him before, now I definitely think it's about Matty. My Boy Only Breaks his Favorite Toys is probably about Joe - she seems to be talking about a long-term relationship and there's some references that could be about him. I would say this one was written in 2022.

Fortnight is about Matty but mentions Joe cheating and was also probably written in 2022.

I wouldn't say Florida!!! is about any of them but I think she's referencing the breakup with Joe in this one and he's the cheating husband again lol

I still can't get the full lyrics to The Alchemy but streets are saying it's either about Matty or about Travis (there are a lot of references to football but some are saying the chorus gives mixed signals)

Who's Afraid of Little Old Me seemssss to be about Joe but I'm not sure? Like it's not specific at all and could be about any ex who treated her badly, even Matty. Maybe that's the point. Also it's very harsh, the mad woman of this album.

I don't have the lyrics to Fresh Out The Slammer anymore but I thought it was about Matty when I saw it for the first time. The slammer was the RS with Joe. But I'm not sure, I don't really remember about the lyrics.

TTPD (the song) is def about Matty again lol just like The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived and But Daddy I Love Him (she cooked him with TSMWEL and he didn't deserve TTPD)

Didn't listen to Guilty as sin but ppl are saying it's about Matty too.

So Long, London is obviously about Joe and it made me feel a little sad for him because he seems to have real issues with his mental health but he also cheated so fuck him (but fuck Matty Healy more. With all due respect Mag)

I'm inclined to think loml is about Matty but the references to marriage left me wondering. Maybe it's about both??? The song is so Matty coded but at the same time it's also Joever coded lol and I found it interesting that she doesn't call the guy the love of her life.

I would say Down Bad is about Matty bc she mentions stage, so she was on tour, and she implies that she was love bombed just like in almost every song about him.

Same about I Can Do It With a Broken Heart 💀

Clara Bow about herself.

Don't remember about The Black Dog.

.

[billk128]

If Summer Has to End...

...why not spend a sundrenched day in a stadium parking lot? If you can then go see Bruce Springsteen and the E St Band rock the house, well, there could be worse fates. It was certainly better than the 2 weeks prior when friends and I gathered in the Philly area for a show only to learn Bruce called in sick, right when we were gearing up for that pre-show tailgate. I was a bit soured by that one, and the time it took to announce the new August 2024 make up dates. But with a larger crew of friends heading in for the 3rd nite of 3 in NJ's MetLife Stadium, I decided to pull the trigger on the cheapest ($45, though $64.50 after criminal Ticketmaster charges) seat available and take in another show.

Earlier this year during the US arena leg, a DJ on the great NYC Metro area WFMU (https://wfmu.org) noted that people were complaining about the static setlists of the shows, and he was a bit flummoxed by that noise, wondering how an artist you love playing songs you love, and some of the great rock songs to boot, could ever be a bad thing. As a setlist watcher (not just Bruce) myself, I took that advice into what was a great show in at the Rock in Newark, NJ in April (see: https://www.tumblr.com/billk128/714870079502925824/its-boss-time-once-again?source=share), and told any that asked to spare the flawed judgment of a show on its setlist alone.

Of course, New Jersey gets some hometown favor, particularly across multiple nights, but I was a little taken aback by song selections particularly in the more flexible first half of the show. The encore section had its own surprises, but the earliest treat for me was my seat: while at the very side of the stage (and mainly, the video screens), it had a very nice overhead view and plenty of visual depth, plus I had room to right and left of me, so I decided to stick it out there, even if I might have slipped down to join my friend Terry and crew a couple of sections below. The breakneck pacing doesn't allow for much travel anyway.

The sound, while not as full rhythmically as it could be at that height and on the side, was still quite good: the vocals could be almost too up front at times, and the solos were as crystal clear as I could remember in a stadium. I don't know how it all carried to the other end of the stadium, but damn, it sounded mostly great to me.

The 3 hour show has lost none of it power or intensity (and perhaps added some), while trimming down some of the self-depreciating humor and time passage themes that were more featured in the arena shows. There is very little bloat to the songs that get played every night and every attempt to keep things light, even as darker thoughts pervade the music. And though I don't believe it was truly intentional, the alternate songs played on this night carried a lot of that weight.

All of which might have been lost on the crowd, of course, which was rightfully jubilant throughout. Each of the 3 nights in NJ opened with a Lonesome Day/Night couplet itself a departure from the standard No Surrender show opener (though I think indicative of shows to come), but the first real surprise was a driving Two Hearts, in its tour debut. One could ask why rockers from The River album have never gotten their fair share in Springsteen performances, and I might point to this rendition as a reason they should have, punctuated by the sublime and note-perfect rendering of the guitar fill between chorus lines by Nils Lofgren.

And those simple but wide open and chillingly relevant lyrics - if young people need some guidance, how about: Once I spent my time playing tough guy scenes/But I was living in a world of childish dreams/Someday these childish dreams must end/To become a man and grow up to dream again.

I got a bit lost in that one, nostalgic for my own youth perhaps, but was jolted back by another ravaging Prove It All Night, where Bruce's guitar solos danced on top of the sound and left you on your own to decide. Whereas Bruce's playing has always been visceral, it used to be part of the very direct "I got to prove it to you all night" ethos, also from a distant youth, while his playing now, even if similar, has a more sinuous feel that leaves the destination less clear. That is, until Max starts pounding those drums and it all comes cascading down into a cataclysmic finish...

And then a left turn was taken into Something in the Night, the first of the major vocal challenges Bruce presented himself, and if he was not as spot on vocally as the show I saw in April, he managed to bring the goods at the right times, as in the ending howls of this tortured, smoldering rocker. While never a favorite of mine over the years, the song has grown on me through strong live renderings during those same years, a sneak live treat that appears and penetrates; meanwhile, somehow these apocalyptic words are still as potent (and/or prescient?) as ever: When we found the things we loved/Were crushed and dying in the dirt/We tried to pick up the pieces/And get away without getting hurt/But they caught us at the state line/Burned our cars in one last fight/And left us running, burned and blind/Chasing something in the night.

Spirit in the Night appeared a couple of songs later but the last meaningful surprise was Atlantic City, coming after the well-played, with a nice (and new, I believe) Curtis King vocal moment, Nightshift, but why this remnant from the forgotten soul covers record is still included every night is kind of a mystery. Atlantic City (which eliminated the Max/Anthony Almonte percussion duel space in the set) was played with a horn-powered approach vs. the harder edged take sometimes employed, and if playing it in NJ might seem logical, it also perhaps vaguely alluded to yet another inept Bozo failure now torn down and forgotten in that city. But more directly again the lyrics painted another ominous and viably current picture: Now I been looking for a job, but it's hard to find/Down here, it's just winners and losers and "Don't get caught on the wrong side of that line"/Well, I'm tired of coming out on the losing end/So, honey, last night, I met this guy, and I'm gonna do a little favor for him...

From there we moved into the 2nd half of the show that changes very little each night, but rolls like a freight train and offers many highlights. I can't consider Mary's Place ever a high point, but people got up to dance immediately, so Bruce wins that battle once again. Backstreets was majestic, Bruce again finding the range on that last wordless vocal, bringing the emotions to a peak. And forget Tom Morello's spacey solo effects, the sound and patterns Nils devises on his Because the Night solo, again so crisply rendered on top of the overall sound, how can they be from this planet?

At the end of Thunder Road, I noticed the sax fills from Jake Clemons were off the charts - I mean, total Big Man level power. And I'll never know if this played a role, but it sure seemed like a good enough indicator to Bruce to start the encores with Jungleland. Talk about emotion - the violin/piano intro and opening crash led into Steve Van Zandt's riveting guitar solo, which stayed true to the original but shredded its perfection with guttural tones and rumbled all over its ending with string-bending clamor. Then of course the sax solo, which wavered only in a spot or 2 as Jake stepped it up quite nicely, and Bruce wrapped it up with one final, momentous (and smartly modulated) moan. He then hugged Jake, and it was clearly heartfelt and I do not doubt misty eyed. Between Jake, the nephew of Clarence, channeling his uncle, and Bruce, who sang every note of that solo to Clarence when recording, one can only imagine the feelings, and that made it even more of treat for me.

Hijinks proceeded from there - led by Steve, particularly in Rosalita, where the mobile band members gathered down the catwalk on a mini stage out front, and got to interact closely with each for a change away from that big stage. Steve kept it up during another setlist turn into Detroit Medley, adding a counter melody to Bruce's vocal I think in the Jenny Jenny part, keeping it going with a smile until Bruce turned and gave him a chuckling WTF look, which was quite amusing (and yes, I could see all of this from the upper deck, it was right in front of me otherwise).

A wonderful and spirited show came to a close not with the typical Bruce solo version of I'll See You in My Dreams but with Jersey Girl - sure, another shout out to the locals, but not one I needed to hear again. "Dreams" is a much more fitting and resonating tune, and missed here, but there will be no quibbling with setlist changes from this source. And though the show proper retains its power and glory without them, I think the future bodes well for subtle curves and sublime surprises in shows down the road...

(And though Jimmy Buffett died, I predicted no cover song would be played, and there was none - why would there be? There is no connection.)

Setlist - 9/3/23:

Lonesome Day Night No Surrender Two Hearts (Tour debut, first time with the E Street Band since 2017) Prove It All Night Something in the Night Letter to You The Promised Land Spirit in the Night Kitty's Back Nightshift (Commodores cover) Atlantic City Mary's Place Last Man Standing (Acoustic with Barry Danielian on trumpet) Backstreets Because the Night She's the One Wrecking Ball The Rising Badlands Thunder Road Encore: Jungleland Born to Run Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) Detroit Medley Dancing in the Dark Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out Jersey Girl