#this post was peer reviewed by my classics major friend that has never seen the show lmao

[doyoubuyallyourmurderweaponsathd]

The Significance of the Cult of Cybele (and Greek Mythology) to Yellowjackets

(tw for discussion of castration)

I'm not sure if anybody's made a similar post already but this was something I was thinking a lot about in the context of the mythological themes we've seen so far in the show and I'm really curious to see if anyone else has thought the same!!

So for those of you who don't know, Cybele (or Agdistis) was a Phrygian goddess that was later adopted by the Greeks and Romans and associated with the worship of the harvest, the earth, disorder in the vein of Dionysian worship, and particularly the mountains, especially in the context of a more "wild" land compared to civilization. She's often pictured with lions as well.

(Statue of Cybele, from Wikipedia)

What makes Cybele particularly interesting as a goddess figure is that she originally had both male and female genitals, which was a no-no for the other gods, so they cut off Cybele's male genitalia which grew a tree and through that tree Cybele fathered a male child named Attis. Attis was then raised by... a goat. Already a little interesting with the amount of goat imagery we've had, right?

(Akilah with her baby goat)

Attis is also commonly depicted with a shepherd's crook and youthful beauty, emphasizing innocence. As Attis grew, Cybele took him as a secret lover (standard mythology ick), but then the king (commonly depicted as King Midas, although the Midas inclusion was a later thing, but I think he's a relevant figure to this analysis) learned of their relationship and decided to give Attis his daughter's hand in marriage as a way out. However, this ends up making Cybele crazy jealous, so she crashes the wedding and makes everyone go mad. This madness leads both Attis and King Midas to castrate themselves and die as a result. Since Cybele became distraught over the death of Attis, she reached a deal with Zeus to keep Attis in a kind of zombified immortal state as her eunuch.

Now to get into more of the parallels! The castration of Attis occurred under a pine tree, and depictions of Attis are often with pine trees or pinecones.

(relief of Attis collecting pinecones)

We've seen this imagery in Yellowjackets before during Doomcoming, when Lottie places the pinecone in Travis's mouth. I've also thought that this action is really interesting in the larger context of Travis's character, because we see early in the season him being derogatory to Nat and saying she's only good for sucking dick, and later we find out that that was mostly projection from the true meaning of the Flex nickname. Now we have Lottie as the one inserting the phallic object, a subversion of gender roles.

(Lottie places the pinecone in Travis's mouth)

I believe that we mainly see the parallels here as Cybele/Lottie and Attis/Travis. The introduction of Akilah as a shepherd figure and another prophet this season kind of split the Attis role up between Travis and Akilah, but I believe that Travis fits the role better than her with what we've seen so far. The Yellowjackets interpretation of their relationship seems to be less explicitly romantic but following the themes of motherhood and familial bond more closely, as we see largely in season 2 when Lottie comforts Travis and Travis hallucinates Lottie in a nurturing role.

(Lottie calming Travis down)

There are still some vestiges of their relationship being more romantic or sexual in nature though, since Travis has the... reaction to Lottie comforting him and hallucinates Lottie while having sex with Nat. Within the theme of castration, we don't see one literally happening, but this appears to be what is metaphorically happening to Travis, or at least a sort of transition in his perception of his gender. After Doomcoming occurs, Travis doesn't bother with trying to be masculine anymore, instead blending in with the girls. I view Travis's character in the second season and onward as the beginning of a shift further into the cult of Lottie, which gets me into my next point: Ben and Nat's roles in this analysis.

(Ben and Nat during Doomcoming)

A lot of people view Ben and Nat's relationship as a kind of father and daughter one, which I think makes a lot of sense in this context. Nat was originally a firm non-believer in the wilderness worship and serves as Travis's connection to pragmatism and the real world, very different from the spiritual connection he builds with Lottie. Ben blesses their relationship in a way when he gives Travis The Talk in season one, and this is really the only time we see their characters actually talk. Travis saving Ben in the latest episode seems to have extra importance, as in the Attis myths, King Midas is the one to die while Attis becomes saved and venerated. There is a LOT of contradictory stuff in myths about King Midas, but I think the thing most relevant to Ben is the humiliation of Midas with donkey ears, similar to the humiliation he faces after his leg is cut off. The severing of his Achilles tendon in the latest episode can also be viewed as a metaphorical castration. Nat clearly has a much stronger role in this story than the daughter of Midas, but that pragmatism she displays is a good analogy for the safe and respectable marriage that Attis would have had, as we see in the more normal relationship Nat has with Travis compared to Travis and Lottie in season three.

(Lottie offering the bear's heart to the wilderness)

But how does the group's wilderness worship factor into this? The cult of Cybele's forms of worship also have significant parallels to what we've seen the girls do so far in the show. Particularly significant is the Hilaria, a Roman festival taking place the two weeks after the Ides of March. During Hilaria, worshippers of Cybele are actually primarily reenacting the story of Attis. The Hilaria begins with a fast of sorts, which can easily be compared to the starvation we see the girls go through. A pine tree is cut down as a symbol of the castration of Attis under the pine tree and lamented, and we see both the pinecone and Lottie sacrificing the bear's heart to the tree. Blood sacrifices of the devotees were also given in worship of Attis, which included self-castration in his image, although due to Roman laws on castration, animal sacrifices were made in its place. We see the girls shedding blood for the wilderness time and time again, whether of animals, Shauna's nosebleed onto the symbol, or Travis giving blood for Shauna's baby.

Unrelated to Cybele but relevant to the Doomcoming plot is the tragedy of Iphigenia. In this story, Agamemnon, in preparation for war against Troy, kills a stag that was sacred to Artemis. As punishment, he is made to sacrifice his eldest daughter, Iphigenia, in order to appease her. Iphigenia doesn't know she's to be sacrificed, and travels to Aulis with her mother Clytemnestra believing that she is there to marry Achilles. Different versions of the tragedy show Iphigenia's knowledge and acceptance of her fate in different ways, but in one version (the play Iphigenia in Tauris), Iphigenia is rescued by Artemis and becomes her priestess. Later on Orestes, the younger brother of Iphigenia, is caught by Iphigenia, but she doesn't recognize him and it is her duty to sacrifice any trespassers. To compare this to Yellowjackets, the human sacrifice in place of the stag is the role, also unwillingly, forced upon Travis (terminal case of eldest daughter syndrome). Jackie "took something that didn't belong to her" and unwittingly started the first hunt. Nat's salvation of Travis means that he no longer has a sacrificial (or even gendered) purpose to the girls, which in turn leaves the opening for Lottie to comfort him and eventually use him for her own plans, turning him into her own priestess. The sacrifice of Orestes/Javi also has interesting parallels, but ultimately Yellowjackets has the more tragic ending. (poor Javi :()

(Sacrifice of Iphigenia from a fresco at Pompeii, also check out the similarity between Clytemnestra's pose here...)

(...and Nat's pose here)

One last comparison that a lot of people have already pointed out: the Pentheus story. Pentheus, the new king of Thebes, banned the worship of Dionysus due to his distaste for it. Similarly to the jealousy of Cybele, the wrath of Dionysus caused the women of Thebes to become frenzied, viewing Pentheus as an animal and ripping him apart. The animal comparison is moreso what happens to Travis during Doomcoming, but the role of Pentheus is more similar to Ben's relationship with the Yellowjackets. Travis completely participates in all of the activities that cement the Yellowjackets as a hive (the seance, the Jackie feast, the offerings, the blessing of the sacrifice) while Ben is perpetually an outsider. We even see Ben spying on the girls as Nat is crowned queen, and he appears disgusted with her for finally giving into their formed society. That spying is what leads to his eventual capture, and while he's still alive, his fate remains to be seen.

(fresco of Pentheus being torn apart)

Now that I've gone over these comparisons, I think the biggest question is where the plot will go from here. In order to temporarily escape from Lottie, Travis shifts attention to Akilah, but swiftly realizes he's fucked up when Akilah starts actually having visions similar to the ones that Travis is having. He seems to genuinely like Akilah as well, so he begins to take responsibility for her and protect her to the extent that he can while still doing what Lottie says. Since we still don't know what Akilah's fate is, it's possible that either Lottie or Travis through the direction of Lottie are going to end up harming or killing Akilah through these rituals.

If that is the case, we've seen before that the wilderness loves a sacrifice, so I think this would shift them to a higher position within the community. Them saving Ben (but then mutilating him further through a group decision) keeps him alive longer, but as we proved in the trial, no matter how much love Ben has for the girls, he will always be an outsider. We may still see Ben killed soon as a sacrifice to appease whatever may be angered. Nat is also at a pivotal point in her amount of power. She has so far been a good leader, but the trial also proved that she doesn't have any real power over the girls, and she was uncomfortable with the antler crown. A still of a later episode shows all of the Yellowjackets pissed at Nat for something, so this may be where she's deposed.

I can only see sacrifice becoming even more important to the girls as the show progresses, so depending on their actions, the one who gives the most to the group is likely to become the next Antler Queen. Personally, I think a very dramatic choice would be for Travis to wear the crown, instead of the (mostly) level-headed Tai or the power-hungry Shauna. Shauna and Travis have so far been narrative foils, both of them having lost the most to the wilderness and having the biggest shifts in personality, both of them eschewing gender roles in how they're supposed to process grief and traumatic events. Shauna is volatile and not liked by the rest of the girls, setting up some sort of doomed Macbeth situation with her and Melissa, so I don't see that approach going well for her. However, what better way to endear yourself to the group than to continually sacrifice, to always do what's asked of you, to show grace in every situation and mourn appropriately and quietly? Being reborn free of manhood and worshiped as did Cybele's Attis, Travis could easily find a new role in their society as the puppet queen of Lottie, letting the wilderness speak through him as a sort of demigod, the sacrificial stag that appeases and protects them from harm.

(Akilah and Travis, about to enter the caves) (I love it when found family siblings recreate Plato's allegory of the cave like yes girl the world of the cave is superior to the world outside!!)

[paperclipninja]

Younger post-ep ramble 6x03

This week’s episode of Younger, ‘The Unusual Suspect’, was a big one. No scenes felt wasted, each one moving the story along and it all felt very purposeful. Despite some capital H hotness and really light and funny moments being scattered throughout, mostly thanks to fave (and only) NYC agent Redmond and the resurrection of some truly classic Diana Trout, there was definitely the sense of tension on the rise. It’s been simmering since the end of this season’s first episode and I feel like this week we have hit an apex.

We open with brunch at Maggie’s and what one can only assume is a time jump (either that or Clare has recovered remarkably well from birthing a baby the size of a four month old) and right away an overarching theme for this episode is established, as Lauren enters raving about the latest hit podcast, Exonerated. I’m gonna come straight out and say that I am so into this premise. The excitement around the table sounded like the break room in my office most days, they definitely nailed the trend of true crime fixation. It immediately allowed for Maggie’s quip about white women loving murder, a delightful array of OTT facial expressions from Liza and Kelsey dropping in that Millennial will be meeting with Audrey Colbert, subject of the podcast, to nab her book before anyone else does. Of course the other big news is that Josh and Clare appear to be happily family-ing it up (though mommy wipes, daddy dipes = vom in my mouth a little bit) and Maggie is dealing with unresolved BoUBT (Back of Uber Birth Trauma). Lauren’s vow to help get Maggie back on the ‘h for hunt’ once again epitomises why I love her character so and I want to record her sympathetic ‘oh Divaaa’ as my ringtone. I just love that Maggie, of all characters, is the one who seems like she should be the most pragmatic when it comes to something like birth yet her coping level is zero here.

You know who else wasn’t coping? Me and my Liza and Charles loving heart as Liza suddenly up and left the brunch because she ‘was late for a thing’, cue the scene that was released as a sneak peek last week that I have definitely only watched a normal number of times *cough*. The set up for The Rubin Museum from the opening conversation was fab and the fact that Charles and Liza are using the podcast to frame up a role play situation is just too much. Obviously I had seen the scene prior to the ep and while it is certainly *insert flames here*, I can’t help but wonder what it would’ve been like not to have expected it (actual combustion probable). I mean regardless, I will never think about a trip to the museum in the same way again. The voice-over narrating what we were seeing was such a great device that is really different to anything the show has done before, it built the anticipation of what was playing out and it felt like a scene from a movie. The moment when Charles turned and came face to face with Liza was a great reminder of how electric the chemistry between these two can be (actual lightening bolts were sighted) and quite frankly, seeing these characters being adventurous and lustful in their relationship is a yes on all fronts. I think the fact it all took place in a place of intellect and culture was extra fitting, it somehow kept the whole thing true to the characters and I am here for the #nerdlove. 

The office drama was amped this whole ep and that of course was largely due to the ever growing reign of our season 6 villain, Quinn. With the time jump since last episode confirmed by the fact that Quinn’s book is both published and sitting on the best seller list, Kelsey and Diana’s first encounter with Quinn as she uses the WiFi for a conference call included a) Diana saying goodbye in Mandarin, which was yet another lovely tidbit to add to this character while also setting up the classic Diana we got throughout this ep and; b) some of the best fashion and hairstyles all in one scene (and episode as a whole) ever. I mean the fashion on this show is always next level but this episode in particular took it up a notch: Diana’s high-neck printed electric blue top and Kelsey’s hair/makeup/outfit in the conference room were so stunning I was actually distracted by them. 

Kelsey’s office refurb was also noted, loved Liza’s ‘set it (Claw) on fire’ comment and of course, Diana telling Kelsey that now she is publisher, maybe she should stop speaking like a trucker was D. Trout golden line no.1 for this episode. Even better was seeing Kelsey, Diana and Liza settling into this new way of working. I adore the dynamic between these three and the way we’re seeing Diana adjust to her former assistant now being a peer without a fuss is why this show is so wonderful. It would have been easy to have Diana trying to assert herself and maintain some sort of authority, but to see her just want to get on with the work and do the best job she can gives a great credibility to the notion that this character is the best in the industry. I could pretty much write out every Diana Trout line from ‘The Unusual Suspect’ and leave this entire ramble at that (’why is everybody in this country obsessed with true crime? Actual people have died and they’re selling branded beanies on Etsy’ LOLLLLL) but I would then need to do that for Redmond because the fave one and only agent in NYC was back this week and as always, he was in fine form. 

The pitch of Audrey Colbert’s book is up there with the funniest scenes of this series, from the creepy af Audrey (A+ casting of Willa Fitzgerald) to Liza and Kelsey trying to play it cool while being hella freaked out to Redmond’s attempt to present a compelling pitch being railroaded by Audrey’s ‘crippling lack of media training’, it was Younger writing and delivery at its finest from start to finish. Seeing Redmond so unnerved by Audrey was unnerving in itself and really, I am so happy with the amount of Michael Urie in this episode. Our next encounter was of course when Kelsey and Liza interrupt his infrared sauna treatment (again, so many hilarious lines, I really feel that a transcript of the entire episode is about the only way to do it justice but may be problematic to pass off as a recap/review…or would it?) and discover that Audrey’s book is being shopped around thanks to the dagger next to Claw on the bestseller list, which = bulk sales = dodgy business = Chinese bots tweeting = Quinn is the worst (math doesn’t lie) = Audrey doesn’t want to be associated with anything suspicious on account of the fact she’s been accused of murdering two ppl (fair). I do want to back this truck up a little though to the way Kelsey and Liza discovered their next big hit was being pitched to half the major publishing houses around town.

Diana Trout hobbling into the office on crutches before dropping the bomb that her injury was the result of being so frazzled upon hearing the news re: Audrey going elsewhere, that she got caught up in her reformer (just go and re-watch this scene, you will not be sorry) is everything I never knew I wanted to see. The reference to Jackie Dunn, who you may remember has been a longstanding nemesis of sorts of Diana’s, was such an utter delight as a long time fan and once again, seeing Kelsey, Liza and Diana all equally vexed by the news was so great and continued to solidify them as a team. I promise no more direct quotes* (*this is a very loose promise), but ‘postpone the power-trip Kelsey, I am handicapped’ in response to Kelsey’s stunned expression upon Diana’s request for espresso, is so outrageously funny and makes this whole scene an absolute stand out on account of its hilarity. 

I missed Lauren and Diana interacting this week, however I appreciated seeing Lauren be the wonderful friend she is to Maggie and Josh. Taking Maggie to the support group obviously allowed us to meet Beth, who Maggie engaged for some one on one tutoring (looking forward to seeing where that goes this season) after returning to the store to apologise for running out during the group session. While Maggie was lining up her ongoing therapy, Lauren and Josh shared a sweet and heartfelt moment that highlights why their friendship is such a lovely one on this show. Obviously Josh had told Lauren that he and Clare had a moment that made him think, ‘maybe we should make this relationship work’ and Lauren is following up to see where his head and heart are at. 

I absolutely loved said scene between Clare and Josh, when he had finally settled the baby, asks Clare if she wants to go to her bed and then joins her on the floor when she says she sleeps where she can now. There was such a sense of unity and care and it made my heart swell. So in his discussion with Lauren we also find out the baby is named Gemma (last name TBC, for both father and daughter) and when pressed about what he actually wants, Josh reveals that he doesn’t think he and Clare are right for each other. I have said it before, but for all the wacky that Lauren can be, she is the most incredible friend who only wants the best for those around her in such a relentless and genuine way and this scene really highlighted that once again (the line about her dad having such a little bottom though brought us straight back to Lauren light in the best possible way).

The divorce proposal was such a great scene and while I was hoping that perhaps Clare and Josh could work things out, I am thrilled to see that the writers put both these characters on the same page right from the get go. I love that this show constantly bucks stereotypes and expectations of how certain characters and relationships will play out, so to see two adults who have an agreed desire to put their child first but know they need to do so outside a romantic relationship is something really unique on television. I have always enjoyed Josh and Clare’s dynamic and I hope we get to see a real, loving co-parenting arrangement play out.

Kelsey’s interaction with Zane when she is buying a bottle of Dom Perignon to celebrate scoring Audrey’s book (eek!) is my favourite interaction of theirs this season. Their banter was really effortless, Zane’s, ‘you’re not listening’, as he pulled out the cash to pay for the one remaining bottle smooth and a little bit over confident, but really played up that he has something in the works that is legit. I especially love that we later discover both are buying champagne to celebrate the same win. I feel like we also need to stop and appreciate that they were about to drop $400 between them on two bottles of bubbles like it was no big deal. What is this life? How do I get it?

Though admittedly Kelsey deserves a nice glass of something this ep considering all that she is dealing with. I have made no secret that I have struggled with Kelsey’s character these past couple of seasons and no one is more surprised than me at how much I am getting on board with her this season. Kelsey calling out Quinn point blank that she faked her best seller was so good to watch and seeing Liza backing her up and standing her own ground made this extra satisfying. Gah, I just LOVE how Laura Benanti plays Quinn and her stating that ‘the money is real, what else do you need?’ is so cold and matter-of-fact. What I love most about this whole confrontation is that it immediately made me think back to the first time we met Quinn - her whole presentation was about the fact that no one wants your success more than you do and that women helping women is actually holding women back. That right there should’ve been the red flag that her “helping” Liza and Kelsey was not legit. 

And so her true motivation for investing in Empirical becomes evident. It had nothing to do with saving an ailing publishing house, it was to ensure her book would be published, she could have some control over how big it would become and be seen to have the support of a reputable publishing house, all in order to gain name recognition so she could successfully run for Senate. In her mind, Kelsey and Liza benefit from the whole thing financially so it’s a win win but she also holds the power so feels like she has the upper hand. Which is why the scene at The Cut (which is so fab, the looks Quinn shoots Kelsey are searing), when audience members question the dagger next to her book, is so damn satisfying. Kelsey’s move to announce Quinn’s run for Senate is so bold, I am very on board and boy oh boy Kels, I think you’ve got yourself quite the adversary. I was very much Liza watching this all unfold, shocked, impressed and a little bit scared for and of Kelsey and what this all means.

Now Liza was late to the event because she was living out the next chapter of the podcast at the Brownstone which we need to discuss, however I first owe some of you an apology. At the end of last week’s ramble I suggested you may need a fire blanket at the ready after seeing the museum scene sneak peek to you know, contain the flames. I fear some of you may have deployed it prematurely (this is not a euphemism though I am very aware it sounds like one) in response to how damn hot that scene was, but I was not to know that we were going to get this later scene, in which Liza just wanders into the townhouse BECAUSE SHE HAS A FREAKING KEY (suspected ep 2, confirmed ep 3, appreciated always) and decides to have a good old snoop at her bf’s mail. Similar to the museum scene, this set up felt more like a movie than a typical Younger episode. There was an ominous weight to it; the music, the lighting, the Charles padding silently up behind her (barefoot again?) and the tension was palpable. 

Liza asks Charles about what’s going on, he provides a vague answer about moving some things around before asking her if she’s listened to chapter 7 of Exonerated, which conveniently mirrors almost exactly what just occurred, with Audrey’s ex finding her going through his things. Ok, so this is where it gets tricky for me. This entire exchange, from the way these two fall into that speaking in third person and wrapping a narrative around themselves, the way Charles wraps his arms around her, the way they look at each other, I mean, this whole thing makes my heart spontaneously combust because it is sexy and flirty, dripping with desire and just really really hot *reaches for backup fire blanket*. But then Liza is clearly distracted by that letter and Charles’ deflection and part of me is wondering why on Earth she isn’t pressing him harder for an answer or following up, I mean, we saw how open they were with one another last season, but then the other part of me looks at Liza and thinks, you are a person who has eyes and that whole situation is right there in front of you so I get it, go with it and worry about it later.

I am aware of how long this ramble already is, but I am going to do something a little different here and digress slightly away from the episode itself and put out some conjecture on my part. It could well be completely over-analysing (lol, I’m neck deep into a freaking novella about a 25 min episode of TV, I think that’s a given) but I know that there is concern about Charles behaving secretively and I have seen some people expressing disappointment in this season so far. 

For what it’s worth, my take on it is that it might seem as though some of the characters are behaving a little out of character but I feel that actually, the characters are behaving in ways we haven’t seen before because they’re in situations we haven’t seen them in before. As invested viewers we feel like we know these characters as whole people in every aspect of their lives when in fact, we’ve not seen Liza at the top of her game in her career or Josh as a parent or Charles in a romantic relationship or away from the office. So while the way they behave might not be the way we imagined it, to me it isn’t so much out of character as seeing a new dimension of the character. Also, the addition of flaws does not necessarily equate to destroying a character, it builds them out and makes them more real, if anything. 

In relation to Charles and Liza’s relationship and the ‘Charles is being shady’ concern, IMO the key purpose of that is to create tension and you can FEEL it building. As crazy as it may sound, I think the Liza/Charles dynamic thrives in the build and resolution of tension and that’s why their moments in this episode felt so electric and hot, it’s like those unspoken, unresolved tension points charge their chemistry. As much as I think I would love to have Charles and Liza sitting around blissfully happy (I mean, I would obvs), the reality is, it’s not that fun to watch. I believe the tension is building towards a resolution of sorts that will actually put them in a better place and move the relationship forward. (*Full disclosure: since writing this I listened to the podcast from ATX fest and Joe Murphy, one of the writers for Younger, said very similar things so if you listened to that podcast I promise I have not just taken what Joe said and pretended they’re my thoughts, I legit had this written and then heard (ngl, I may be feeling a little smug as a result). I’m putting it down to us both being Australian because clearly that is a thing that makes sense).

I also think there is an unsettled feeling this season because the entire premise of this show, the roles these characters played, the interactions we have grown accustomed to week after week, has been completely flipped upside down. As viewers we garner comfort from the routine of watching a show but also from knowing where the players are positioned, how they will behave and what it looks and feels like. I think the writers know exactly what they’re doing and are achieving exactly what they would’ve hoped (apologies writers if this is wildly inaccurate and I’m just assuming things incorrectly left, right and centre) - everyone is sitting in discomfort and it’s largely due to the unfamiliarity of it all. The set up, the way we’re seeing characters etc, it reflects what the characters themselves are experiencing on our screens, which is all kinds of meta and actually pretty cool. But the further you push that discomfort and make viewers sit in it, the greater the impact and more satisfying the resolution. It’s like waiting for a beat to drop in a song, the build up can become almost unbearable but damn it’s good when it lands. That’s how I feel this is all going to go. 

That is what I meant by this episode feeling like an apex, it feels as though there’s a limit to how far an audience can be taken in a state of flux without some resolve somewhere. And the writers know this, it’s what they do, it’s WHY we tune in. I’m not suggesting that everything is going to go back to the way it was, the evolution of a show like Younger is exciting and part of the fun is seeing where it goes, but we are three episodes in to a twelve episode season and while we consume it week to week, it ultimately has to make narrative sense across the whole season. It’s as though we’re at the end of an ‘establishing’ phase right now. So I am reserving any judgement until I see how it all comes together, but have no doubt there will be many resolutions and many new points of tension throughout.

Right now, I am thoroughly enjoying all that we’re getting and I think the writing this season has been excellent so far, with moments like the final scene of ‘The Unusual Suspect’ providing us with the first true cliffhanger of the season. Our last bit of Redmond for the ep was peak Redmond (I love that he dashed off to a better table uptown), and of course the big Mercury reveal, YESSS. That moment of realisation washing over Liza’s face, props to Sutton Foster, and I cannot WAIT to see how this all goes down. The prospect of inter-generational team ups of Kelsey/Liza vs. Zane/Charles while members of each team are in relationships with one another is the kind of set up I live for in a TV show. Is it July 10th yet?

[patternsintraffic]

My 100 Favorite Albums of the 2000s: #100-#91

Hi all. As you can tell from the title of this blog post, I am about to take you off on quite a tangent. Music is in the works (both the completion of Lights & Reflections and the first full-length Harsh Lights album), but currently I find myself sitting up into the early morning hours with a newborn while my wife tries to get some uninterrupted sleep. So I am taking the opportunity to finally post this ridiculously long-winded writing project that I embarked on last year. The actual list-making and blurb-penning has been done for many months now, but I never took the time to format and post it. So here I am with some free time, getting around to finishing this undertaking!

As you may have seen, I decided to join in the fun at the turn of the decade and make a list of my favorite albums from 2010-2019. I wrote about my top 20 albums of the decade, and had a blast revisiting those records and sharing a little bit about why they are special to me. However, the most surprising part of the process for me was that choosing 20 albums to represent that ten-year period was...pretty easy? I started my career in late 2009, so the entire past decade I've been working full-time, pursuing my own music in my spare time, and more or less adulting. I've definitely listened to a ton of great albums, but it's hard to find music that truly excites you as an adult the way that it did in your formative years. The whole time I was crafting my list, I was thinking about how much more difficult (and rewarding) a task it would have been to compile a list for the previous decade, spanning 2000-2009.

So of course, not long after posting my 2010-2019 list I got to work compiling my favorite albums of the aughts. That 10-year period starts when I was 12 years old and wraps up as I was starting my post-college career. Pretty much my entire journey of musical discovery and growth occurred during those years. I had little in the way of responsibilities, and for most of the decade I ravenously consumed an absolutely enormous amount of music. Multiple hours worth on an average day. I was still buying physical CDs all throughout those years, so I really focused on each album I purchased, giving them many repeat listens and learning them intimately. And so much of what I heard was new and fresh to my ears. At 12 years old, there were so many sounds and styles of music that I had yet to encounter, and all of those first experiences and coming of age moments left lasting impressions.

Suffice to say, putting together a top 20 list of albums to represent that 10-year period was nearly impossible. I knew I would have to make a larger list to feel like I was doing justice to even a fraction of the albums that impacted me in that decade. What I eventually arrived upon after making an initial list of albums and then cutting it down quite a bit...was 100. Yes, I'm going to write about my favorite 100 albums from 2000-2009. And I'm going to have a damn good time doing it. Most of my favorite albums ever will be contained in this list, and most of them are wildly underappreciated, in my opinion. For the sake of keeping each post to a manageable length, I will be posting 10 albums at a time, starting with numbers 100-91 below. Walk with me down memory lane in countdown form, and I hope you can enjoy me waxing poetic about 100 albums that were staples of my young life. Let's get nostalgic.

100. Paris Texas - Like You Like an Arsonist (2004)

There are hundreds of albums that I could have picked to round out my list here in the final spot, but I wanted to shine a light on this poppy punk rock record from 2004. It doesn't do anything particularly groundbreaking, but it's a really fun take on the genre and it didn't get the recognition that it deserved. "Bombs Away" and the title track are absolute barnburners. What a shame that the band broke up shortly after this album was released. I remember reading a review of Like You Like an Arsonist around the time of its release that criticized it for sounding like a collection of songs that could blend seamlessly into the soundtrack of a blockbuster action movie. Looking back, I agree with the reviewer's assessment, but I see it as high praise.

99. Greenwheel - Soma Holiday (2002)

In 2002, you could throw a shoe and hit a band that sounded much like Greenwheel, a radio-ready alternative rock outfit with some heavy riffs and a throaty lead singer. But these guys stood above many of their contemporaries on Soma Holiday, their only major label release. (Their independent EP Bridges for Burning and never-released second full-length Electric Blanket both hinted at a sustainable career that didn't come to fruition.) This album had enough muscle for the rock kids ("Shelter" and "Strong") and enough sweetness for the emo kids ("Dim Halo" and "Breathe," which was later recorded and popularized by Melissa Etheridge). What could have been.

98. Sleeping at Last - Ghosts (2003)

It's been almost 10 years since Sleeping at Last became a solo project for Ryan O'Neal, releasing themed singles that make up overarching concept albums and EPs. Though the output from the current incarnation of the band is beautiful and soothing, the minimalist and orchestral style is a far cry from Ghosts, Sleeping at Last's one major label album. At the time they were a three-piece featuring guitars, bass, and drums alongside O'Neal's piano and distinct vocals. Ghosts features an uncommon blend of cinematic, ethereal, and earnest indie rock that just seemed to go deeper than its peers in 2003.

97. Taking Back Sunday - Where You Want to Be (2004)

I've never been a huge fan of Taking Back Sunday, though of course I rocked the singles from Tell All Your Friends like any self-respecting high-schooler in 2002. It was the follow-up, 2004's Where You Want to Be, that really got its claws in me after I picked it up on release week. With a killer opening trio of "Set Phasers to Stun," "Bonus Mosh Pt. II," and "A Decade Under the Influence" giving way to ballads like "New American Classic" and "...Slowdance on the Inside," this is just a great rock record.

96. Sherwood - A Different Light (2007)

A Different Light is a bright, summery, buoyant pop album full of smooth vocal harmonies, glistening guitars, and shimmering synths. Sure, the lyrical content isn't all rainbows and butterflies, but if you could capture the sound of pure positivity and optimism, it would sound a lot like this record. Between the singalong melodies, handclaps, and "whoa-oh"s, if you don't have a good time listening to A Different Light then music might not be the right medium for you.

95. Young Love - Too Young to Fight It (2007)

I'm fairly certain that Young Love, the dance-rock side project of beloved post-hardcore band Recover's frontman Dan Keyes, was not at all well-received. But for someone with no preconceived notions or attachments to Keyes' previous work, I thought this album was a hell of a lot of fun. In a world where Young Love made a mainstream impact, alternate-universe Kyle can be seen storming the dancefloor to the title track or "Discotech." Too Young to Fight It also gives us the smooth R&B of "Tell Me," the indie rock of "Take It or Leave It," and the experimental and apocalyptic "Tragedy." This is so much more than a dance album, and if it hadn't been released by a musician with strong ties to the hardcore scene it would have had a fighting chance of being recognized as such.

94. Vendetta Red - Sisters of the Red Death (2005)

Vendetta Red frontman Zach Davidson has one of the most dynamic hard rock voices I've ever heard, and Sisters of the Red Death is one of the catchiest rock records I've ever heard. Despite those facts, I have a complicated relationship with this album because of its often-horrifying lyrical content, which details acts of sexual violence and gore. That's usually a dealbreaker for me, but I won't completely write off this record since it is a concept album set in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world. Apparently female empowerment is at the core of the message, so it's not like Vendetta Red are condoning the acts that they're singing about. It's still a bit unnerving when you get the urge to sing along to one of the plethora of earworm melodies throughout this album and then realize exactly what you're singing. While I may not have the stomach for Sisters of the Red Death in 2021, I can still wholeheartedly recommend "Silhouette Serenade," which contains all of the awesomeness with none of the gross-out lyrics.

93. Ours - Distorted Lullabies (2001)

Now 20 years into his career, Ours frontman Jimmy Gnecco is surely tired of being compared to Jeff Buckley. But damn, he really does sound like Jeff Buckley. And when you're being compared to one of the all-time great voices in rock music, that's not such a bad thing. Distorted Lullabies is the first proper Ours album, and it's filled with melodic rock songs that highlight Gnecco's incredible range. As the saying goes, I could listen to Gnecco sing the phonebook (those were still around in 2001!), but put his powerful and emotive voice on dynamic rock songs like "Sometimes" and "Meet Me in the Tower"? Yes, please.

92. Armor for Sleep - What to Do When You Are Dead (2005)

This here is an emo concept album about a boy who commits suicide and his experience in the afterlife. Despite the overwrought subject matter, the songs on What to Do When You Are Dead are carefully crafted and interesting. "Car Underwater" is a scene classic, and my favorite track might be the keyboard-centric interlude "A Quick Little Flight." Armor for Sleep seemed a bit more thoughtful in their songwriting and arrangements than many of their contemporaries.

91. Cauterize - Paper Wings (2005)

The single "Something Beautiful" led me to Cauterize's 2003 major label debut So Far from Real, but upon purchasing the album I found that the rest of the tracks didn't live up to that song's high bar. Not so with the independently-released follow-up Paper Wings, which was just full of emo rock songs that I absolutely devoured in 2005. This was actually the first album that I had to order online because it wasn't sold in stores. I remember the surreal feeling of the CD showing up in the mailbox, and that first experience attached some additional meaning to Paper Wings. It doesn't hurt that it features propulsive songs like "Wake to the Sun," "Closer," and "Tremble." Cauterize later signed to another label and re-recorded most of these songs for Disguises, which rejiggered the tracklist and added a few new tunes. Even though the production might be a little better on Disguises, I always preferred the Paper Wings versions and the flow of the original tracklist. There's nothing like the first time.

[martinahlijanian]

In Search of the Lost...CLM

It’s Springtime in Boston – new beginnings, growth, shaking off the doldrums of winter (especially this recent one!!)  In that spirit, I’ll throw off my dusty 2020 sanitized cloak and admit to you all something unprofessional, yet based in beauty and a deep love – some might call it a devotion. My beloved??  The Moody Blues.  Yup, I’m a devoted fan – have been for decades. Make your elevator music joke – I don’t care.  I know – nowhere nearly as cool as Post Malone, T-Swift, Dua, Doja, Don’tya, whomever. But majestic, original, thoughtful, and DEEP.  Long ago in a New England portion of the galaxy far, far away, a suburban ethnic kid picked up a handful of vinyl albums at a yard sale, and the incredible double album “This Is The Moody Blues” was in the pile. I was immediately hooked. Have seen the boys several times in concert, and they never disappoint (though to steal a line from Don Henley about his own band, they don’t exactly dance around the stage – they mostly loiter.)

 By now you’re probably thinking “the connection between THIS and Contract Lifecycle Management systems (“CLMs”) will be the most tortured bootstrap in history”, but if you followed the Moodies, it would be so very clear and obvious.  Back in the medieval era (certainly not the dark ages) the boys released an album called “In Search of the Lost Chord”, an appropriately pretentious title implying not only that the Moodies knew of a unique, world-changing musical chord (typically 3-5 notes played together simultaneously), but that they, and no one else, found it!  If your experience evaluating CLMs has been anything like mine over the past few years, you’ve been on a similar quest, but with less than satisfying results.  Here are some of my impressions from my search for a perfect CLM.

 Keeping with the musical theme for just another minute, my other non-work passion is synthesizers. I’m the proud owner of 6, ranging in age from 29 years old to 4, with the toddler being an absolute musical powerhouse of seemingly infinite possibilities called the Yamaha Montage.  The synthesizer market exemplifies Moore’s Law, that old chestnut that says the number of transistors per silicon chip doubles every year, with corresponding performance increases and speed gains resulting from denser integrated circuits. That’s certainly the case with my synths. My boat anchor of a keyboard in 1981, an Italian-built instrument called the Crumar Orchestrator (no longer with us), was very heavy, cost $1,050 (Armenians never forget prices), and produced a whopping 5 sounds, though two sounds could be layered together.  Needless to say, the new Yamaha plays rings around it, for only a few bucks more, but requires extensive training and synth engine tweaking. No one could seriously consider the two as peers – the Yamaha is a high-end laptop embedded into an 88-key digital synth with touchscreen programming that would make Dr. Moog himself drool.  And yet there was something wonderful about the simplicity, intuitiveness, and real-time access of the Crumar’s sounds. In CLM terms, the Crumar didn’t have many bells or whistles, but did the job, and did so quite well and dependably.

 Back in 2016, I had the pleasure of serving the team at SmashFly Technologies. We realized we needed a high-functioning CLM, and after a thorough RFP process, we selected SpringCM as our first system, enjoying a fantastic relationship with both the SpringCM team in Chicago and the platform itself. The integration of our prospects’ contract forms into the platform for redlining, version control, and eventual e-signing was a key element of our use case, shortening the sales lifecycle substantially.  And internal workflows created with the system were embraced by both our Sales and Customer Success teams for both new and upsell/renewal business, respectively. Did the platform have every possible mind-numbing feature?  No, but it was always there when we needed it and fit our business needs perfectly, with secure, real-time support and document processing. Definitely a Crumar relationship!  

 Author and theologian Richard Foster has written often on the virtues of simplicity, counseling one to “strip away all excess baggage and nonessential trappings”, and even the Moodies themselves, despite being known for complex orchestral production and cosmic lyrics, have echoed this concept (yes, with another keyboard reference), singing:

There's one thing I can do Play my Mellotron™ for you Try to blow away your city blues Your dreams are not unfound Get your feet back on the ground

So, in the spirit of the Moodies’ grandeur (pomposity?), I’ll attempt to blow away your CLM blues and get your feet back on the ground with an overview of my CLM experiences and suggestions for core requirements, particularly with respect to recent CLM market developments. As you may’ve guessed, I tend to lean toward simplicity, but as someone who has embraced technology since my garage band days, I get as excited about bleeding edge product developments as much as anyone, so I’ll try to keep the scales balanced.

 In my startup-oriented world (ranging back 9 years), speed is everything.  Correctness is assumed, whether it be contract version control, updated pricing/BAFOs, or proposal submissions – those are as fundamental as breathing.  But speed varies greatly between organizations and markets.  A twenty-four month (or longer) RFP pursuit under a federal government procurement, being run by a large publicly-traded company, doesn’t have the same day-to-day time pressures as the end of a quarter at an IT startup, particularly one that is chasing B or C-round funding or later investment/sale avenues.  So like my beloved Crumar, a selected CLM must be fast, intuitive, and dependable. I can’t write code, and never want to be deep into programming instructions of my CLM; if we’re at that point, we’ve failed. As I’ve told my engineering colleagues for years, “this company is in DEEP trouble if you want me to write code”.  (The corollary to that, of course, is “and we’re in equally deep trouble if engineers are interpreting contract terms”, but I digress, and you know I love you guys. )

 Any system that has a steep learning curve, plods along in terms of system performance, and/or has numerous updates (so-called “upgrades”), patches, and maintenance downtime beyond market standards must be avoided.

 Uptime availability should be as close to 99.9% as possible, if not higher.  If you’re reading this, you’re probably a contracts, legal, or compliance pro, so you know any firm that won’t state that uptime availability percentage specifically in the contract’s SoW or SLA is telling you they’ll never hit it; run for the hills! Similarly, data center operations should be with a well-established, secure North American supplier (you know who they are – they certainly don’t need free advertising from me) to the CLM company, and the history of that relationship should be explored.  A firm that bounces between all of the major cloud providers may try to argue that they’re always trying to get the best deal for their clients, but for my money, stability, security, and dependability are best served by a long-standing CLM-cloud provider marriage.  

 In addition, CLM implementation times should be clean and short.  If you hear too many horror stories in the market, or references to “Well, Sue, it all depends on the amount of legacy data you’ll be transferring into our Platinum Platform, and what condition your data is in”, keep looking. You haven’t played the lost chord – just some sour notes.  We all understand that dysfunctional customer data is not the responsibility of a new supplier, but my experience has been that a supplier who tries to foist performance concerns on the prospect early in discussions is typically the one who has the most problems during the contract term, and as a result is either terminated or churned at renewal time.

 Speaking of pet peeves and more bootstraps, you may not believe there’s any connection at all between CLM demos (or the lack thereof) and a long-term positive relationship, but I maintain there is, and have experienced it.  A company that plays hide-the-ball with its product may not be as confident in its features as its collateral or website proclaim.  I certainly appreciate the arguments against a “demo right out of the gate” view – limited SE resources, non-serious buyers just trolling, numerous demos placing company IP at risk, SDRs need more due diligence discussions to properly tailor the demo, need to avoid multiple demos for the same prospect (so wait a bit and get all stakeholders on the same call), etc. But any experienced SDR or Account Exec/Regional Sales Manager should be able to tell from the first discussion with a prospect whether she/he is serious, has an immediate need and budget, and has authority to move forward or needs to have a senior exec (or two) participate in any demo.  Hiding the ball from a serious prospect is counter-productive to the aims of the relationship and quite frustrating.

Wow – now I’m fired up. Given that I’m writing this late on a Tuesday, perhaps I should play the Moodies’ classic hit “Tuesday Afternoon” and mellow out!

 My friends know that I LOATHE the use of jargon, but I have to use the phrase “table stakes” just once here – it’s in the context of a CLM’s e-signature capabilities.  Any CLM with kludgy e-signature placement, or non-intuitive use (or worse, multiple drop-downs/windows before insertion in a document) should be avoided.  Simplicity really should reign here.  In most companies the contracts or legal reviewer is not likely to be the signatory, so any digital doc in a CLM should be easy to prepare and forward for senior management’s execution.

 Your company’s templates and forms, and especially your Fallback 1 and Fallback 2 clause libraries, will require a bit more heavy lifting from the CLM partner, but given the evolution of CLM systems across the board, this process should be fast and clear. And the redlining of a prospect’s Word doc should never send the CLM into a spin.  

Your selected CLM should have easy-to-create workflows that integrate with your company’s CRM, and appear as a widget or new page within the Account or Opportunity section thereof. If workflow creation requires multiple calls to the CLM provider’s tech support team, or worse, a purchase order for fee-based tech services, you’ve selected the wrong company.  Which leads me to report generation…

 In the synthesizer world, drum and percussion effects generated from the keyboard sound cool on the sales floor of Guitar Center or Sam Ash, but in terms of live performance, I can unequivocally state I’ve never used them, and never given them a second thought. And my studio friends tell me they’d rather use software-based drum sounds & loops than 90’s-style percussion from their synths. Basically, a “bell” of limited value. Report generation hardly falls to that level, and my CFO and CMO depended upon recurring reports generated automatically from the CLM, as did my SDR Manager.  But ad hoc ROI report generation gets too much press, in my humble opinion, and may be touted at great length by your intrepid CLM sales rep.  As far as I’ve seen, every CLM in 2021 has report generation; I wouldn’t be too swayed by a firm that crows about this as a product discriminator, unless your senior management is asking for numerous non-standard reports other company systems can’t provide.

 I hope my earlier levity about engineers doesn’t generate too much hate mail – I have the utmost respect for them, as they know; that same sentiment applies to my beloved Sales colleagues. But having said that, for the safety of all, I only provide my Sales pros with access to NDA templates.  That’s it.  Your CLM will certainly have a rules-based structure where you can provide, or remove, access to forms or project documents based on department, unit/function, individual name, or transaction.  Again, simplicity should be the rule, not the exception here.  Ask for sandbox or live “dummy” system access and have the provider walk you through the gory details of this process. You should be able to do it alone, on a real-time basis; time-sensitive special projects (often M&A related) sometimes arise with little notice, and with strict guidelines about disclosures to other team members.  If you can’t readily change access rules yourself, you’ll have problems, and will spin your wheels – while the clock is ticking and the C-suite is waiting for a reply – all because this process is too difficult.

 Every app on the planet needs to have mobile functionality, and CLMs are certainly no different.  As we emerge from COVID travel restrictions, the need for airport/Acela/in-meeting access to your CLM will return to 2019 levels. Any hiccup or frustration with the mobile use experienced during demo should receive substantial negative demerits in your evaluation phase.  I’ve seen everything from a unique mobile app for a vendor’s platform to the identical (though hard to read) platform access using a browser on your iPhone or Android device. This comes down to personal preference, and what an otherwise high-scoring provider is selling. So long as core functionality is present in a mobile platform, I wouldn’t make a final decision based solely on this.

 Lastly, a CLM platform’s ability to host a private document that could be shared via public URL, such as your company’s Supplier Code of Conduct or SLA, should be easy to find today and require nothing but the most basic training steps to create.  

I suppose no essay on technology would be complete today without a reference to AI or ML. And pitch deck references to AI/ML are just as ubiquitous; there isn’t a major CLM player who isn’t emphasizing AI.  However, make sure a vendor’s AI solution isn’t substantially dependent on a third party’s tool; I know of at least three heavyweights in this sector whose AI is subject to the vagaries of their supplier relationship with subs.  

 The distinction between strategic roadmap and current offering is an important one as well.  No one wants to repeat the selection and implementation process any time soon, so a company’s track record of creative product development, as well as its record of actually delivering those future-proof features, should be an important part of your investment strategy.  Today’s flavor of the month that either doesn’t have the R&D resources, including funding and personnel) or technical acumen (or both) to evolve the product over time will not be a solid choice, particularly if your company is in high-growth mode.

 Another core requirement in 2021 is digital transformation. Where e-contracting automated processes within the Contracts, Legal and/or Sourcing department, digital transformation takes the data in our world and shares it with finance, ops, HR, and other company systems, beyond your CRM.  If your vendor doesn’t at least address this, keep looking.

 Which brings us back to synthesizers.  Do I miss my Crumar? Absolutely.  Was one of COVID’s silver linings less time sitting in traffic and more time embracing my Yamaha….oh, and of course my family? Heck yes!  But my favorite synth of all-time is actually a wonderful instrument called the Korg N364. It’s modern-ish, but with many live performance capabilities and instant access to over 500 sounds.  It’s absolutely bulletproof in terms of construction and reliability, and is playable right out of the box.  While the Moody Blues never did find The Lost Chord, I’m convinced one could come VERY close with uninterrupted time, extreme creativity, and the Korg machine.  It’s the perfect balance between features, reliability, and intuitiveness.

I hope some of these thoughts help you find the best CLM for your team!