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roo-bastmoon · 1 year

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The Long Game

First, let's acknowledge some major mismanagement by BigHit. Then, let's talk about what I think *might possibly* be their long game.

These are just guesses I have right now--I'm not stating facts and my opinions are subject to change as new info becomes available. But come with me for a few minutes...

In early 2022, Jimin's mail was "omitted" four times by BigHit employees, which lead to late insurance premium payments, which led to an on-paper "seizure" of his apartment. The press sat on that news for three months until the day his With You OST dropped and the scandal overshadowed his release. Jimin went to ground, avoided all social media for months. At this time, Jimin's personal information was leaked on the internet, and that was the last time we saw Jikook hang out alone that we know of.

Now in 2023, since Jimin's album FACE dropped, we already know about the sabotaged sales and streams by Hanteo, Billboard, YouTube, and Spotify. There was the issue with his in-ears not working properly during an encore. On top of all that drama, BigHit didn't get all the physicals shipped in time, they didn't playlist his songs for several days, they never sent his songs to radio (that we can see), they made one tweet to acknowledge Jimin's #1 on Hot100 but nothing else--not even a cake like the other solo albums got, they didn't let him film more than two music videos when they did that for their new groups, the press releases about their stocks going up after Hot100 also credited their new groups, and Jimin only had 9 days of uninterrupted promo between other members' works.

Now I am not a conspiracy theorist. I well understand that the military enlistment compressed schedules, and that each member had say in their creative works and promotions. I'm not a manti. But none of the above is a good look. Add up all those fumbles together, and you could make a solid case for mismanagement.

And now today, we see PD Bang on the cover of Billboard (which, OF COURSE, mentioned Blackpink in the same breath).

JUST LOOK AT THE WAY THE STORY IS BEING SHAPED FOR AMERICAN READERS. You see what's happening here? You think SM is gonna get a cover story for their side of the corporate shakedown?

And then there's this little gem:

"If your question is about the possibility of creating an artist like BTS again, the answer is no. However, if you were to ask whether there would be a K-pop artist from HYBE that tops the Billboard Hot 100 chart, my answer would be yes. [Jimin became the first BTS member to achieve this as a solo act on April 3 when his single “Like Crazy” debuted at No. 1.] The experience of managing BTS and operating different labels gave us access to powerful networks, infrastructures and experiences. With these, HYBE can repeat its remarkable results with the help of talented artists.

Okay so before everyone starts rioting online, take a moment, pause, reflect, think about what all might be going on here, behind the scenes, in this very political world of the music business.

Do I think Bang PD screwed Jimin over to score points with Billboard? No, I do not. But neither do I think Jimin's solo effort is anyone's priority but Jimin's.

"HYBE is primarily focusing on leveraging its accumulated expertise in managing and producing acts that consist of multiple members, rather than solo artists or mixed-gender groups in K-pop."

I think no one ever expected Jimin to make it to #1 on Hot100 and industry insiders felt pretty sure the West wouldn't let him stay in the top 10 the next week. Why? Well, partially racism. But mostly it's bad for their bottom line.

If your entire business model is that people pay for radio play and that gets them on your private chart and the private chart leads to more advertisers and awards... and then someone comes along and DOESN'T pay to play and gets to the top of your chart? Nobody needs you. So you HAVE to sabotage them. You absolutely have to change your rules. (I'm just sitting here waiting for Jimin to release his other songs so that Billboard can change their rules to say you can't be on Hot100 if your name starts with J- and ends with -imin.)

Now, it might have been satisfying for us as fans to see BigHit come out swinging and put Billboard on blast for his sake and ours. But they have ZERO. LEGAL. RECOURSE.

Billboard is privately owned and they can make whatever rules they want. They are part of a larger media company that has connections to every media outlet; no one is gonna publish an exposé any time soon, I promise you. We got exactly ONE English-speaking website to write about it and that was it. Everyone in the industry knows what is going on, and no one has the power to do anything much about it.

So what does that mean for the future?

Well... Bang PD just recently paid a HUGE mark up of $26 million to buy Trevor Noah's home out in LA.

And now he's on the cover of Billboard. WHY? Neither of these things will result in any immediate payout for him.

It's a long game.

And frankly, a very old and honored way of doing business. It's how they went up against the big three and it's how they are gonna go up against the West, I feel it in my gut.

Bang PD is getting a home on US soil. He will be paying US taxes. He's making in-roads by being nice with Billboard folks. He's making contacts; he's already had phone calls with Pharrell and Bieber and Grande and Laroi. Some of those are already shaping into collabs. We already know Hybe has set up shop in the US with Scooter at the helm.

Meanwhile, BigHit is adjusting in real time to the new rules around the charts (culling is happening to Yoongi too, so they changed up the check-out process of the BTS US Store). Suddenly there's plenty of focus on promoting via TikTok and other viral social media. They are dipping their toe into AI. They are discussing their own in-house ticketing option. This company is looking toward the future and hedging its bets.

Do I know with any certainty what's up their sleeve?

Absolutely not.

Do I trust any corporation very much?

Nope.

Do I have faith in BTS?

Probably more than anything else in my life, at this point.

So while I have no insider info, I just feel like the company is making very intentional and methodic footholds into the West. They are not complaining or screaming or suing or threatening anyone. They are not badmouthing competitors or whining about unfair deals. They are laying ground on complicated, political in-roads, one step at a time.

The Expo is in 2030. I'd wager by that time, BTS will have conquered the West and have some radio play.

And I think the company believes that in order to do that, they have to make their new groups profitable while BTS serves. They have to survive for the next two years.

When BTS is back, and their dues have been paid, I think they will be unstoppable. I hope they get to work on solo projects AND group projects. I think they will take over every corner of the world, if managed properly.

They just need to do it in a way that also assuages the Western music industry. The American Powers That Be have a chokehold on music and they will demand their pound of flesh somehow.

I strongly suspect BTS will never pay to play. But they will build relationships and find a way to become so interwoven in the cultural fabric that to deny them a place in Western spaces is to be left behind. And they will do it politely, and gently, and come out smelling like a rose.

So before you go off on social media and scream the walls down about neglect (and there WAS some, in my opinion) and abuse (we don't really know that), just take a moment to consider--if they had no legal recourse against Billboard, how can they beat them at their own game?

The best way to defeat an enemy is to make them a friend.

I'm just guessing here, but I think if fans stay loyal, BTS just might have the last laugh, here. I think they got radio scared as hell.

It sucks that Jimin didn't get fair treatment at this time. He is my bias and I feel it like a knife to my own heart. But he DID make history with his #1 and they can never take it away.

So I say give it time. All the people sniggering at him and BTS right now are going to sing a different tune in the future.

My best guess is that this is a long game, and it will require sacrifices that are totally unfair, but in the end... well, as long as BTS has ARMY, they cannot be denied.

Apobangpo.

#jimin #bts

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mysterygrl20 · 4 months

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My Top 9 albums of 2023

I got tagged by @blmpff. thank you 💕

I listen to mainly kpop. So i guess this is my favorite kpop albums of 2023. And my spotify is heavily tied to stationhead for listening parties so it's very biased and unreliable.

First off: Ateez and their 3 EPs they released this year stole my heart and overtook SKZ.

Halazia from Ateez's Spin off: From the Witness was a mini EP. This started my year as they literally released it Dec. 30, 2022 so I didn't add the album cover up there in the top 9. I was also still lowkey freaking out as I had got to see them in concert Nov. 2022 and they had Xikers (pre-debut) perform with them. And I watched this music video way too many times.

youtube

1. Outlaw - Ateez. This is a no skip album. I love every single one of these. Don't make me choose a favorite.

2. The World EP.FIN: Will - Ateez. I picked one of my favorite group songs off this but their unit songs are amazing: Everything- Jongho and IT's You (Yeosang, San, Wooyoung)

3. Dual - The Rose. I got to see them TWICE this year: Sept & Oct. 2023 and had a BLAST. This album is amazing. Also I really liked the album cover.

4. Rockstar - Stray Kids. Another no skip album. I got to see SKZ in March 2023 for their Maniac tour. And Mr. Bang keeps me delulu on Bubble.

5. 5-STAR - Stray Kids. [hehe fitting] Another no skip album. My number one song was obviously S-Class. Superbowl shook me to my core. And then they made me cry with Youtiful.

6. Deadlock - Xdinary Heroes. They spelled out FUCK YOU in their title song Freakin' Bad.

7. The Name Chapter: Temptation - Tomorrow x Together. I saw TXT in May 2023... It's an EP of 5 great songs.

8. Dark Blood - Enhypen. My vampires. I literally made a BL gifset to the lyrics of their song Bite Me. Another favorite: Chaconne.

9. House of Tricky: Doorbell Ringing - Xikers (and also their other EP: How to Play) I got to shanty (Tricky House) with them pre-debut. I love their concept too. Also Tricky House some how made it in my top 15 songs for 2023.

Honorable Mention:

FML- Seventeen. There's just something about this album I like.

The Name Chapter: Freefall - TXT. Solely for Blue Spring being on it.

SKZ Replay: I also hold this close to my heart as it was a christmas gift from Stray Kids in 2022. So it feels more like a 2023 album. It also has the most whiplash between songs.

Single: Dum Dum - Jeff Satur (and also Steal the Show) but also Macarena - Blitzers and Baggy Jeans - NCT U [which they also added to an album] and the eurovision winner Cha Cha Cha - Käärijä.

or title tracks like: Shalala by Taeyong or Guilty by Taemin that I want to include for reasons.

Favorite OST from 2023: Let's Try from OFTS. I listened to this every Friday waiting for the new episode to be released. And it should have made it into my spotify 2023 playlist. I almost picked MSP's cover of Tilly Bird's Just Being Friendly.

Tagging but no pressure @trashlie, @thatdamngoodlookingbutterfly, @quadruple-agent, @theteatimechronicles @tinytalkingtina @theelast-straw @aceoflights and anyone else who wants to join in.

#spotify #music #tagged meme #stray kids #ateez #xikers #xdinary heroes #the rose kpop #seventeen #enhypen #Youtube

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xiaojuun · 4 months

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2023 kpop recap ♡ tagged by @ambivartence !

Groups You Started Stanning?: well the big ones of course are wayv and nct (mostly 127 but i tune in for nct u of course of course ... loved golden age) ... i would say i also got really into triples this year musicwise, but i don't actually know the girls

New Ult Biases?: dejun ... my cringe bestie it was inevitable from the moment i saw him cleaning up poop on the puppy interview ...

Idol(s) Who Got The Most Of Your Simping?: idk you all tell me . i think i'm pretty normal KJSGJHBS but i'm sure we can make some arguments for mr. jaehyun and also my husband sehyoon who returned from war god bless

Most Streamed Group(s): cravity, treasure, enhypen, and purple kiss according to my spotify wrapped; nct and wayv definitely are my most streamed in the last couple of months though!

Most Streamed Soloist(s)?: woodz is the only one who made it into my wrapped report, but i'd guess probably also yena, yuri, and maybe eric nam

Top K-Pop Song(s) Of This Year (Opinion Or Streaming, You Choose): nct djj perfume is definitely my song of the year. others i think deserve soty shoutouts: save me kill me - cix, busted - woodz, rising - triples, fate - enhypen, agit - purple kiss, kick it 4 now - tnx, regret it - exo

Top Debut This Year: for the girls kiss of life with shhh ! for the boys ... dojaejung counts right ??

Choreographies You Learned: i don't learn choreo like on purpose HAHA but i can kind of dance along to groovy by cravity

Albums/Merchandise You Bought: too many albums per usual since cravity and treasure both had comebacks, and i just started buying for my new obsessions 🧍🏼‍♀️ i also got a tshirt at the omega x concert, and mary and i got the new truz crossbody bags which are actually so cute ... and we also got wayv seasons greetings to share which i think was a great decision

New Kpop Mutuals You Made?: my new nctuals i love u guys thanks for letting me in and treating me like a bestie even though i just got here 7 years late with my giant iced coffee in hand and sporadic posting around my insane work schedule. and for anyone else who started holding my hand this year, just know ... i don't let go easily or ever ! 😈

Tagging: gonna go through my follow list and tag my most recently made mutuals as inspired by that last question hehe no pressure though! also sorry if we haven't actually interacted before, in my mind we are best friends as soon as u follow me back . just fyi . <3 @minhyukie @bouncingback @neonsbian @irlvernon @lenteur @yutaslaugh @yunogf @baekhyunnybyun and bc i mentioned her in here @dongkwan teehee

#this was a fun one thank u siyuan !!

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jiminsass-istant · 3 months

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Bye bye old BTS

This video aged so badly, ngl..

Bighit and Hybe totally went the American popstar way in 2023 for 1 member. Good that they finally cracked into the US music industry bubble. Hope it helps the group as a whole with their 2025 comeback.

(For context, the above Boracity video explains how bts has been always snubbed due to their lack of US label push, lack of radio support, lack of playlist, spotify support, minimum remixes, fewer album versions, chart rule changes etc)

The problem is - they decided as a company (and with scooter) that the only way they can make it into the US gp, was to debut a soloist, with all english tracks (because there's no way US would accept more than 1 soloist from the same korean group singing korean songs).

One thing they got right was that the US GP would not embrace a whole Asian pop group. And releasing english songs is not something BTS would keep doing either, because they clearly have different individual ambitions. When it comes to pop, it's always the solo/ individualist culture in the US. It is much easier to sell one personality than sell 7 different ones to the GP. (the General Public, not army, not people who really get INTO bts and get obsessed).

So, I totally understand why they went for mainstream US popstar way for 1 member only and also because it aligned with his own personal ambitions.

But of course they made a couple of big mistakes-

1) Underestimating the popularity and OG fan power that can give chart ranks and achievements even to non-US promoted members and their music. (BTS have done it before with a korean song and jimin did it again).

2) While they paid attention to heavy promo, charts and playlisting for Golden, they failed to create a connection with the music- which seems highly non-personal and lacking in depth and has a non-interesting concept. The promo did do the work of making jk a common name, showcasing his talents and introducing him to the industry. But for a lasting impact, they have to create better stories with the music. Idc, army are acting too defensive when people are disappointed that he didn't write his songs. It's okay to not write, but the very least singers can do is connect to song meanings and relate to personal experiences during the promos. But thanks to idol culture, jk has never been able to talk about his dating experiences. Even in the interviews, it would have been nice to see him talk about how he related to the lyrics, what the concept was etc etc.

SILVER LINING:

The constant mention of 'ARMY' by JK in all of his US promo stuff. I do see Hybe's bigger plans here. JK is a medium to bring in new fans for BTS's comeback. When they look up JK's past content, they can't do it without learning about BTS. And it doesn't matter if you are a JK solo fan, you will still be called ARMY (BTS fandom). Hybe will still call you army, even if you are just waiting for more Jungkook music and Jungkook shows. But guess what, the next time these new fans get to see Jungkook will be at a BTS CONCERT. Not a Jungkook concert.

More thoughts..

JK concert will come immediately after though. Why do you think they increased the no. of tracks in Golden when the original plan was to release a mini album? It's to collect more songs for his name. A few more releases and he'll be ready to have his own concert.

Okay final thoughts-

Hybe is going the right way from a business perspective. But they have mismanaged a lot of things. Underestimated the power of individual members and fumbled their priorities. BTS are not underdogs anymore. They are big, and whether you like it or not, Hybe is going to move like a big corporation now, revenue being top priority, not artists. If they don't strike a balance between keeping OG OT7 fans happy, the significance of ARMY will be lost. Unless...they want that to happen and do not care about the fandom that moves on its own now.

And before you camp in my asks or comments, saying the same things about sabotage, company fraud etc, I am aware of it all. Please do share your opinions that can add to this discussion.

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airasilver · 5 months

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Opinion: Here’s who should have won Time’s ‘Person of the Year’

Updated 10:07 AM EST December 8, 2023

Editor’s Note: Holly Thomas is a writer and editor based in London. She is morning editor at Katie Couric Media. She tweets @HolstaT. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author. View more opinion on CNN.

Taylor Swift is Time’s 2023 “Person of the Year,” and apparently, I’m the only millennial woman on Earth who doesn’t feel seen.

OK, that’s an exaggeration. But since the announcement, it’s felt like a specific corner of Spotify Wrapped got bitten by a radioactive spider and attained superhuman powers.

I’m happy for her, I guess. I’ve nothing against a seemingly pleasant person having a lovely time, and there’s no denying she’s had a stellar year. As Time’s feature details, Swift’s now made more No. 1 albums than any other woman in history, has world leaders begging her to tour their nations and has reportedly become a billionaire. “Swift is the rare person who is both the writer and hero of her own story,” says Time. That’s great. I just don’t find that story especially compelling.

Ugh, I feel so mean. I’m well aware this will upset people, and I’d never want to rob anyone else of their joy. We’ve all had conversations with people who simply don’t “get” the music or TV we’re into. Typically, my response to such complaints is, “That’s OK, it wasn’t made for you.” But part of what’s making me so squirmy is the sense that Swift, and the stories she tells through her music, are basically aimed at me. If you lined me up alongside everyone I know who’s currently rhapsodizing over her success, I’d be indistinguishable. But I’m not biting. That’s not because I think there’s anything wrong with her. If anything, my choice for Time “Person of the Year” would be more problematic.

Historically, the title’s recipient has often been a provocateur. The idea isn’t necessarily that the “best” person wins — though that’s certainly been the case at times — it’s that the person who’s had the most influence, for “good or ill” over the previous 12 months, is recognized. Previous winners have included Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, Greta Thunberg, Martin Luther King Jr. and Elon Musk. This year’s shortlist included the Hollywood strikers, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Barbie, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, Russian President Vladimir Putin, the Trump prosecutors, King Charles III and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Time ultimately named Altman CEO of the year. I think he should have taken the top title.

In case he hasn’t yet crossed your radar, Altman is the 38-year-old chief executive of OpenAI, the tech startup responsible for creating ChatGPT. ChatGPT is a revolutionary generative artificial intelligence chatbot that was launched in November 2022. It’s since astounded observers by passing exams at law and business schools, writing effective job applications and computer code and composing part of a political speech for Israel’s president.

The implications of that tech alone are both miraculous and terrifying, particularly given the potential for disinformation campaigns to influence the presidential election in 2024. Many companies besides OpenAI are vying for a bite of the lucrative AI market, competing to develop newer, evermore sophisticated systems. Though the Biden administration recently introduced legislation to regulate the exploding industry, the pace of development is so rapid that it’s often difficult for governments to keep up.

The mysteriousness and speed of the AI race were evidenced in November, when, less than a year after ChatGPT’s launch, Altman was fired suddenly by his company’s board. Just days later, Microsoft, OpenAI’s biggest stakeholder, announced it was hiring Altman to head up a new AI team. This prompted a mass revolt among OpenAI’s staff, almost all of whom threatened to quit unless Altman was rehired. Within days, he was, and the board that’d fired him was replaced.

The circumstances around both Altman’s dismissal and rehiring were remarkably murky. In their statement announcing his sacking, the original board accused Altman of “being not consistently candid in his communications,” but didn’t elaborate on what that meant. Even more worrying, Altman’s return and the restructuring of OpenAI have been characterized as a victory for AI “accelerationists” — those who believe that the tech should be developed as fast as possible, unconstrained by safety concerns. The episode proved that Altman wasn’t just capable of spearheading potentially the most significant invention of the 21st century so far. He was able to upend the ecosystem that created it within days.

This, I think, is what’s lacking in Swift as Time “Person of the Year.” Her predominance in the entertainment industry is undeniable, but her story is essentially one of becoming mega-successful within an existing framework. As she told Time, we live in a patriarchal society fueled by money, so “feminine ideas becoming lucrative means that more female art will get made.” It’s not a million miles from, “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”

The impression that no one’s anticipating any controversy from Swift anytime soon was reinforced in November when Gannett, America’s biggest newspaper chain, hired the first-ever Swift correspondent. The journalist in question, 35-year-old Bryan West, is a self-avowed fan. Odd though some might find it to hire someone with such an obvious bias, West has argued that it’s no different than “being a sports journalist who’s a fan of the home team.” Whether you agree with that comparison or not, it’s undeniably in his professional interests for Swift to remain popular and relevant — and it seems unlikely that the appetite for stories about her will wane anytime soon.

This is why Altman, not Swift, ought to have been Time’s “Person of the Year.” His impact on the world could be exponentially more consequential, but not nearly enough people are aware of him or the implications of his technology. Every move Swift makes, however incidental, is the subject of feverish intrigue and speculation. Over in San Francisco, Altman is making moves that could change the fate of the world. And until a month ago, most of us were unaware he even existed.

I don’t know about Sam Altman but I agree, it shouldn’t have been Taylor. She’s just a musician who is everywhere and in everything.

At least I’ve seen good and bad on the AI front. Good and bad from Hollywood and etc. Taylor? Just everyone praising her? For what? Her singing? Her tours? (Where people died but while they bitched at males for things out of their control, Taylor is praised for it….doesn’t make sense to me.) Her making us spend money we then complain about?

She’s not that good of a singer. I don’t like her anymore. She’s the same as any other singer out there.

#time #taylor swift #anti taylor swift #opinion #unpopular opinion

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nayeonline · 8 months

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Ranking EVERY Post-IZ*ONE Single

One thing about me is I like izone and ranking stuff, so a+b=c here we go, u read the title :)

(note 1: im not including jpop partly because this is a kpop blog, and mostly because i dont understand how akb48 hkt48 work)

(note 2: don't question my decisions in what qualifies as a single, i dont understand them either. is it to do with promotions? is it to do with mvs? is it to do with what spotify tells me? who knows)

from best to worst, lets gooooooo

Antifragile - Le Sserafim (one of the greatest songs of all time.)

Glitch - Kwon Eunbi (im aware that i dont shut the fuck up about this song but its a literal masterpiece ok the essay is coming)

After Like - IVE (its 2023 and i'm speaking my truth when i say after like outsold love dive)

Love Dive - IVE (ive are such hit makers trewly)

Fearless - Le Sserafim (what a debut honestly)

The Flash - Kwon Eunbi (ya i’m an eunbi stan what about it this is real music)

Eve, Psyche & The Bluebeard's wife - Le Sserafim (i have in fact overplayed it but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still slay)

Eleven - IVE (remember when people were like ‘how are they going to top this’ lmao)

Kitsch - IVE (wonyoung loves this song so i love this song)

Door - Kwon Eunbi (i will never forgive you all for not giving this song a chance)

Taxi - Jo Yuri (“get connected for free with education connection” typa beat and ooh does it slay)

Underwater - Kwon Eunbi (quintessential eunbi)

Hush Rush - Lee Chaeyeon (dem jointz can actually do no wrong)

Knock - Lee Chaeyeon (certified hit)

Glassy - Jo Yuri (slays but have u heard the bside from this album???? Life changing)

Love Shhh! - Jo Yuri (rlly cute but i can only hear ‘L-O-V-E is shit’ lmao)

I AM - IVE (catchy but kind of dated???)

Let’s Dance - Lee Chaeyeon (LET'S GET THE PARTY STARTEEEEEDDDD)

Like A Diamond - Kang Hyewon (lofi queen this is fucking amazing)

Love War - Yena (underrated excellence)

Smiley - Yena (she's hella cute but yena’s music is not my thing)

Unforgiven - Le Sserafim (omg the unforgiven stans are after me) (all five of u lol)

First Love Letter - Kang Hyewon (i'm actually legally obligated to never say a bad word towards my sister but this slays anyway)

Winter Poem - Kang Hyewon (pretty as hell ngl but im bored and its september)

Smartphone - Yena (ur lying if u say ur streaming this in 2023)

Loveable - Jo Yuri (is anyone else bored)

I Want - IVE (sponsored songs are such an ick and they are literally never good)

Hate Rodrigo - Yena (i can’t stand this song i really don’t understand what you all are hearing that slays so hard but good 4 u i guess)

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night-dragon937 · 5 months

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it's that time of year again...

what the fuck is brostep lmao

also context - my sleep playlist is the Minecraft, stardew valley, fez, and altos odyssey osts combined in one big 8 hour 48min playlist (i just checked, but that's really weird because i could have sworn it used to be 13 hours...) and Minecraft album beta is by far my favorite, which should explain the top artists and songs, and why i listened to c418 for over 300 hours this past year...

also i have no clue how I listened to Spotify for 18 hours on nov 6, because i worked that day? i believe i had a 6 hour shift which is really funny to me cause it means i listened to Spotify every minute i wasn't working lol

and i listen to my sleep playlist on shuffle when I'm not specifically listening to Minecraft album beta so the top songs are up to chance

also its crazy that i listened to more kayzo than fob this year, but i have so much for stardust on cd and i listened to that a ton, so i assume that's altering the stats (same thing with dreams ep, i primarily listened to the cd bc the sound quality is better in my car, so the stats are off)

comparing to last year, i had 65999 minutes versus 115066. that's like. almost double, holy shit

my top artist in 2022 was c418 (I've had the same sleep playlist for a few years) but i had 6781 minutes vs 18512 this year, which again, holy shit, i guess i got more sleep lol (in 2021, c418 was also my #1 artist, with 8639 minutes- i guess i just didn't sleep as much in 2022 lol) (the year before that was fall out boy, that was either the year i made the sleep playlist, or the year before, i can't remember)

i played 3449 songs in 2022 vs 3902 this year which is surprisingly not a huge difference given how much more i listened.

last year my #1 song was revived by derivakat, and pigstep was #3

in 2022 i listened to 1407 artists compared to 1777 this year

fuckin wild, can't wait to look at my 2023 top 100 and see my entire sleep playlist there lol

and as usual, ask game, send a number and I'll send the corresponding song

#blog post #spotify wrapped #spotify wrapped 2023 #long post

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takingontheworldtogether · 12 days

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my friends who don't know shit about taylor swift requested a pre-album explainer of wtf is going on so i wrote them a little newsletter... if you want something to send to your non-swiftie friends it's beneath the cut

Good morning team,

Why do we need a Swiftie newsletter?

I mean, no one really needs this. But she’s dropping a new album (“The Tortured Poets Department” or TTPD for short) in three days and I’m here to provide you with the information you need before the album comes out. I’ll be back with a post-album review letting you know 1) what juicy gossip was revealed on the album, 2) what tracks you should listen to, and 3) a few things you can say to your Swiftie friends to sound cultured.

What’s this album about?

Okay, I know this is ancient history, but cast your mind back to 2016. Kanye and Taylor Swift are beefing, and Kim Kardashian posts a clip of a phone call that makes Taylor look like a liar. Taylor gets canceled on social media and disappears for a year.

While all this is going on, she meets her boyfriend, the British actor Joe Alwyn. I have no clue what movies he was in at the time, but since then he was in The Favorite and Harriet, and also Conversations with Friends (I think, I haven’t seen it because Normal People put me off Sally Rooney). Here’s a quick timeline:

Late 2017: Taylor comes back with “Look What You Made Me Do” and reputation. People think reputation is a bad bitch album, but it’s actually an album about finding love in a time of despair.

2019: She drops Lover, which is about many things but primarily about how she loves him and wants to spend the rest of her life with him.

2020: Pandemic. Taylor writes two quarantine albums, folklore and evermore. These are primarily fictional, but there are a few love songs about him. He co-writes some of these songs pseudonymously.

2022: Midnights. This album becomes wildly successful. It occupies all of the top ten slots on the billboard hot 100 in the week it comes out. It breaks a bunch of sales records.

2023: The Eras Tour starts! Two weeks in, they announce the break up. Taylor briefly dates Matty Healy of the 1975, who is by all accounts a total asshole. This appears to have been a shitty rebound. A bit later, she starts dating the football player Travis Kelce and everyone loses their minds about it.

It looks like this album is going to be about the end of a relationship of six years and possibly rebounding/moving on.

Okay, but like… why did they break up?

I mean, I don’t know any of these people, so all I can offer you are guesses based on song lyrics:

1 - He was really big into his privacy, which is kind of difficult if you’re dating Taylor Swift.

2 - A lot of songs on Lover are about wanting to get married. There’s a song on Midnights that implies that she wanted to get married and he refused. Yikes.

What’s the promo situation for this album?

The most notable thing to me (and what is this if not me rambling about my opinions) are some playlists curated by Taylor on Apple Music. Each playlist focuses on one of the five stages of grief in mourning a relationship, and they contain songs from her past albums. There are copycat playlists on Spotify, if you’re interested. My favorite is “am I allowed to cry?” which is the playlist for the bargaining stage.

There’s also a wall in Chicago with a QR code that leads to a video of the words “Error 321 13” and a hidden message in her song lyrics that spells out “Hereby Conduct This,” which is presumably a message that will be finished by the time the album comes out.

What do we already know about the album?

16 tracks with 4 bonus tracks. There’s a song with Post Malone (yes, really) and a song with Florence + The Machine. I agree, this is not an intuitive combination, but I’m excited.

Two of the songs are over five minutes long. Two songs are entirely self-written, five are written with Aaron Dessner (from the National), and eight are written with Jack Antonoff (the producer who works with all the pop girlies). Her collaborations with Aaron Dessner are some of my favorite songs of hers, so this is good news to me.

That’s my preamble to the Tortured Poets Department!

I hope this was informative, but I barely scratched the surface. You have no idea how deep this goes. Also, I need you all to know that I sat down and wrote this in one sitting without Googling anything, which probably means I know too much about this subject.

In the meantime, I’ve been listening to “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter which is a very stupid song that is fun to listen to. I’ve also been listening to girl in red’s new album, I’m Doing It Again Baby! which is aggressively mid. If you want to listen to a song on it, I recommend “Pick Me.”

See you in three days!

#i know i oversimplified and omitted a lot of stuff #but my goal was not to scare anybody away #taylor swift #ttpd

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jeju-tangerine · 2 months

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my top 10 kpop songs of 2023 :-)

after putting much too much thought and time into it, i have finally sorted out and written a list of my favorite kpop releases of 2023 ^_^ this was such a great year for kpop in my opinion, for full albums especially, and i hope 2024 will live up! in creating this, i decided to only include 1 song per artist, so as not to have the whole list be just one group. the songs often stand as representations of the entire albums, though. now here's my list :-)

a very special honorable mention goes to: "WOULD YOU RUN - Original Version" by TRI.BE, "LEFT RIGHT" by XG, "welcome to MY world" by aespa, and "loving me" by fifty-fifty (released in 2022 but i only got into it in 2023, but it's a masterpiece and deserves a shoutout)

NOW!!

youtube

10. super shy - new jeans i'll tell you one simple trick to ensure that you never grow to dislike a song from it being overplayed on tiktok: don't use tiktok. "supershy" is THE song of my summer. it's light, it's breezy, it's fun, and its repetiteveness only lends itself to it being so incredibly catchy. despite their questionable background as a group, newjeans and their team keep delivering music that feels like a breath of fresh air in the k-pop landscape, and i'm glad for it.

youtube

9. i want that - g-idle g-idle dominated this year with "queencard", which is not on MY personal list of favorites, but i would never deny its impact. however, though "i want that" was less successful, it hit so much harder for me - probably because of its actually enjoyable and catchy english lyrics (especially the verses), the dark undertones of the song, the dark… well, overtones, of the mv, and the masterful combination of the intense beat and the sweet bridge, nailed by miyeon's lovely vocals.

youtube

8. bye my neverland - kiss of life the initial soft, sugary, fairytale atmosphere of the song is soon elevated when a distant sound of a bell leads us through the prechorus right into an explosive chorus - not unlike the clock striking midnight and forcing cinderella to leave the ball. the emotional impact of this entry for me lies not really in its musical qualities, but in them being combined with the lyrics. "bye my neverland" is titled perfectly. it's an ode to making hard choices and to refusing to stay in your comfort zone, even if it seems crazy to throw it away - and at the same time, the song acknowledges that doing this is difficult. there's a sense of deep melancholy in it, but also comfort and hope. i guess that's growing up.

youtube

7. bouncy (k-hot chilli peppers) - ateez i am not a noise girlie at all, but i could not escape the siren song of ateez this year. "bouncy" goes so damn hard it's kind of ridiculous. every part is a joy to listen to, the members' deliveries are energetic and full of genuine passion - or sometimes nonchalant, when they should be -, and their live performances impressed me immensely. i might have to look more into their discography after this. "bouncy" doesn't need much description - it speaks for itself.

youtube

6. but sometimes - boynextdoor this is FUN music. i mean this more for this song than any other on this list: every single line, every sentence is deeply enjoyable and memorable. you know how some songs are nice and have pretty choruses, but when you try to remember what the verses sound like, you somehow just can't recall much? this is the opposite of that. such an incredibly fun song structure - and it's not even especially unusual. still, it's skillfully written in a way that seems to follow the phases one goes through after a breakup (or at least a teenager would). i also adore the choreography, and i'll be paying a lot of attention to boynextdoor from now on. especially jaehyun and his frankly insane charisma on stage.

youtube

5. mine - ive ive was my top artist on spotify this year, and for a good reason. in my humble opinion, they DOMINATED 2023. their first full album was absolutely killer, there is not a song on there that i dislike and "i am" is a masterpiece of a title track. however, because this is a deeply subjective list, i decided to go with "mine" as a representation of ive on here. it's my favorite track on the album, it was my 3rd most listened to song of the year as well and i love it so much. it scratches such a specific itch in my brain with its rhythmical tempo and dreamy soundscape. this song just sounds like what love feels like.

youtube

4. menow - fromis9 another perfect album of 2023 was in fact fromis' "unlock my heart". it seems like fromis have a fully realized musical identity now, and it's lovely to experience. there are better songs on the album, namely "attitude" (man that goes crazy), but "#menow" is still the heart of it, in my opinion. it feels genuine, fresh but cozy. there is a deep yearning for living life authentically to the song, and authenticity is one of the very main themes of the full album as well. "attitude" is phenomenal, but it lacks that wonderful casual girl-next-door vibe that fromis' body of work has to it, in my opinion. "#menow" captures it so well - while still being extremely fun! that prechorus? come on. other standouts on the album: "bring it on", "what i want", "eye contact".

youtube

3. rising - tripleS now here is my number 1 most listened to song of 2023. tripleS have released some super interesting-sounding stuff. i'm a big fan of "new look", and of "girls' capitalism" too, despite the title, but "rising" dominated. that second verse absolutely kills. i also love the first title-drop in the first verse, for some reason. the song is really catchy and fun, the mv looks kind of silly but gets you in the right mood, and i'm especially enamored with the last 2 lines. some songs have weak or underwhelming endings, but this is the opposite of that - i LOVE the very ending. what more do i need to say about tripleS? they were literally so right when they said la la la la.

youtube

2. farewell neverland - txt maybe i'm cheesy for it but i cannot resist a good acoustic guitar, especially when it goes as hard as it does in "farewell neverland". such a beautiful, beautiful song. deeply emotional, deeply mournful, DEEPLY atmospheric. AND it was the culmination of a gorgeous EP, which also featured such bangers as "sugar rush ride", "devil by the window" and "tinnitus". i don't know how to express how much i love this song. it's tragic, it's regretful, it's intense but measured. it sounds stunning and it is aging like a fine wine.

youtube

underwater - red velvet it's so difficult to pick just one song off a red velvet album. "chill kill" is perfection, everything i could expect from my favorite group and more. they never disappoint - they just keep surprising me with their music's longevity instead. among flawless bsides, "underwater" managed to slightly stand out. from first listen i felt there was something transcendent about the song, so it is here representing red velvet on my list proudly. there are few tracks that embody the 'velvet' of red velvet as completely as this one does. sensual, ethereal, a tiny bit dangerous. "underwater" gets you simultaneously submerged in the deep end and levitating in the air. i won't stand for ignoring "chill kill" the title track, though - it's perfect as well. the more positive-sounding melodies elevate the uncanny mood and really make it a classic red velvet title. and, okay - let me talk about the mv quickly. killer. literally. so creepy, so disturbing, so hopeful, so artfully made. and the vocals on the entire album are stunning, by the way. one other bside standout for me: "nightmare" - it literally has a musical structure which corresponds to the experience of having a nightmare and freaking out and then waking up and realizing it's all okay and it was just a dream. my GOD!!!! i come back to their music all the time, and the reason is simple: noone else does it like red velvet. they are a one of a kind kpop group and i'm so thankful for them.

thanks to anyone who's read this and have a great rest of 2024 guyz ^___^

#veltalk #red velvet #ive #fromis 9 #Youtube

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deadcactuswalking · 4 months

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REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 13/01/2023 (Liam Gallagher/John Squire, Lewis Capaldi, Bring Me the Horizon)

Welp, Noah Kahan’s back at #1 with “Stick Season” for a second consecutive week - kinda surprised this is the hit song we start off the year with but alas, welcome back to REVIEWING THE CHARTS!

Rundown

Now this is the kind of balls-to-the-wall week I expect from early January, and we’ll get to that, but as always, we start with our notable dropouts, songs exiting the UK Top 75 after five weeks in the region or a peak in the top 40. This week, we say farewell to “ten” by Fred again.. and Jozzy, “Take on Me” by a-ha, “(It Goes Like) Nanana” by Peggy Gou, “Everywhere” by Fleetwood Mac, “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)” by Whitney Houston, “Giving Me” by Jazzy, “Miracle” by Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding, "Escapism." by RAYE featuring 070 Shake and "As it Was" by Harry Styles.

Now as for songs still showing up on the charts, we have our notable gains, and given January actually has a lot of stuff going on pop music wise, I’m not entirely sure how well these will maintain their momentum but regardless, we do see boosts for… “When We Were Young (The Logical Song)” by David Guetta and Kim Petras at #53, “Riptide” by Vance Joy at #49 - oh, this is dire. Noah Kahan’s good, sure, but it really does not mean we need to stomp and holler our way back to 2014. Sigh, elsewhere, at least we have “Never Lose Me” by Flo Milli at #41, but also “Toxic” by Songer at #39 - God, let’s not do this, please - “Perfect (Exceeder)” by Mason and Princess Superstar at #26, “Feather” by Sabrina Carpenter at #19, “Popular” by The Weeknd, Playboi Carti and Madonna getting a second wind at #11 and finally, Teddy Swims with his first top 10 as “Lose Control” rises to #6, not really complaining about that one.

In addition, we see another film-related return with Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten” finding use in this romcom Anyone but You which no, I haven’t watched and unlike Saltburn, probably won’t. Regardless, the song debuted and peaked at #6 in 2004 the week that “Do They Know it’s Christmas?” by Band Aid 20 debuted at the top of the charts, and it’s now back at #24. I’m a lot less fond of this one, but it’s mostly fine, I’m more exhausted by how 2024 seems to be going even harder in just reviving catalogue songs instead of having new hits.

As for our top five, it seems pretty standard with “greedy” by Tate McRae at #5, “Prada” by casso, RAYE and D-Block Europe at #4 and “Lovin’ on Me” at #3, but then we have Sophie Ellis-Bextor reaching the same peak she reached back at release with “Murder on the Dancefloor” at #2. I don’t really get why the scene in the film, which whilst memorable, is hardly a worthwhile payoff to that shitfest, but I digress, is what propelled this but I almost think it was just sitting there, ready for any excuse to start skirting up the Spotify charts. Oh, and Noah Kahan’s at #1, of course, let’s check out what’s new, because there’s actually more here than last week… and it’s a bit more interesting… Hell, it’s actually pretty incomprehensible this week, so let’s just find some kind of through line, and we start with a certainty that is oddly comforting nowadays…

New Arrivals

#72 - “Skims” - D-Block Europe

Produced by THESCAM and Hash-K

Ah, my good old friends Young Adz and Dirtbike Lb. It’s even produced by… “THESCAM”, wow, I guess it says gullible on the ceiling of your mansion, guys. They released a mixtape or album or whatever and this is a single from it - yes, we’re getting back to back DBE weeks - and it’s just terrible as you’d expect. The tuned-out piano is almost plugg-esque, and surprisingly enough, Dirtbike Lb handles much of this, talking about women mostly as well as a lot of flexing, and whilst he can’t make a catchy hook to save his life, I like Dirtbike’s voice here, he sounds more… stable than usual, and the drums actually hit fairly hard through the whole song. On an objective level, if there is one, this is one of their most competent lead singles until Young Adz comes in with “Presidential, Emmanuel Macron”. That’s the French President. That’s just the French President, you can’t just say the French President. That’s not a bar. He’s mixed too loud and brags about paying with crypto and giving a girl so much money that she… can’t tax evade anymore. Sure. Good to have you back, guys.

#71 - “Nothing Matters” - The Last Dinner Party

Produced by James Ellis Ford

Alright, we have our first of many sleeper hits to debut this week, but this is actually one of the newer ones, being released just early last year. This is the debut single for all-female indie rock band The Last Dinner Party, hailing from London and getting James Ellis Ford, who’s produced for a who’s who of British alternative acts and Kylie Minogue, to work on their debut album coming out in February. We start with an organ, which is almost ironically religious for this kind of song, as lead singer Abigail Morris, through her very British delivery, pretty much condemns herself prematurely for what she’s about to say, “I have my sentence now”, it seems final and self-loathing for what is pretty much a newfound love song, where her partner is struggling to move on but it’s a complete rush for Morris, who seems to hold a lot of power. They can hold her like they held their last girlfriend, but what she’s going to do is fuck you so good that none of that matters, and yeah, this is brilliant. There’s such a bending character to Morris’ vocals, I love the flailing yacht rock guitars in the verses that end up picking up into an incredibly catchy bass groove peppered by the claps in the basic yet anthemic chorus that doesn’t change because, well, it doesn’t change like much will change at this point. To her, there’s not a third person that matters, or at least there’s not a third opinion she values more than getting off on their misunderstanding, and then that staccato bridge explodes into a great squealing guitar solo that ends up seamlessly mirroring the plastic horns that appear in the back of the - admittedly maybe a bit too compressed - mix for that final chorus, where we get a switch up in the rhythm and some impressive vocal runs from Morris.

#59 - “A Cure for Minds Overall” - Lewis Capaldi

Produced by TMS

…Can I use my free Get Out of Reviewing a Lewis Capaldi Song card? Oh, there are two Lewis Capaldi songs both from his deluxe edition? Sigh… well, I guess I’ll use these for another time. Well, for now, I can say that’s an ugly Britpop guitar tone that easily sounds like it could be a MIDI guitar just playing the same chord again and again, and like all of the songs from this album, Capaldi’s voice is mixed bizarrely, and really close, which could help the song’s intimacy, and mostly does, especially given it’s just as self-loathing and wordy as the others, and it goes for the same explosion of strings and belting as the others for the chorus… but God, it’s so tedious. I actually don’t mind the strings, the lyrics are pretty great, but this mix is such a blur of nothingness and the guitar just doesn’t stop. There are supposedly drums in this but they’re so unimpactful and shrouded by the terrible blending of the strings that it just sounds like a guy arguing with clouds and losing… which may actually be what he’s going for, in all honesty. I suppose it works?

#52 - “Ophelia” - The Lumineers

Produced by Simone Felice

…Why? Okay, so this is a sleeper hit from folk rock group The Lumineers and like I said, we’re stomp and hollering our way back to the days of “Ho Hey” as somehow, “Ophelia”, despite releasing in 2015 and being a minor hit Stateside, had never crossed over to the UK. This is really not my thing, even if I know that it’s really not a bad song. The reverb envelops the mix in a cinematic if slightly cheap, commercial-sounding way, and Wesley Schultz is far from a bad singer, his feature on my favourite song of last year kind of proved that I like his voice way more than I should. The jaunty hook is catchy if a tad unmemorable, carried by the gimmicky piano frolick that I’ve never liked, and you can hear he’s straining a bit in the third verse, out of a slight frustration but not a specific one. This song has always felt like vague-posting about a relationship to me and not in a very effective way because there’s little poetic about this song. I’m sorry, I don’t dislike these guys, I’m just not big on this one at all. I get why it’s going to probably be a hit now, I’m not really happy about it.

#37 - “Strangers” - Lewis Capaldi

Produced by The Monsters & Strangerz and Michael Pollack

Okay, our second effort from Mr. Capaldi here… he references “Wonderwall” within 10 seconds, and that’s not the last time we’ll be talking about Oasis, it’s one of those weeks. Anyway, this is just awkward: Lewis isn’t really fit for the fast-paced melody he uses given his frail, froggy voice, and there’s not much to cover that up given the minimal piano and strings backing. I genuinely think this could be a great song if just put against some real rock guitar and groove, it has an insanely catchy lead melody in the chorus that would rip in a pop rock context, but here we just have adult contemporary mush about a breakup… has this guy had 47 breakups or is he just talking about the same one each time? I mean, I guess it’s better than the last one because the mix sounds slightly more professional, but there’s not exactly much to latch onto here either.

#27 - “Practice” - Drake

Produced by 40 and Drake

This is a deep cut from 2011’s Take Care. What the Hell is going on?! To be fair, it’s still Drake, but it’s not even a song he’s pushing or got any kind of boost outside of a TikTok trend and, well, it fits the climate of pop music right now at least, since it samples the bounce classic “Back that Azz Up” by JUVENILE featuring Mannie Fresh, who also produced one of the most recognisable beats of all time, and a young Lil Wayne on the bridge. The Weeknd says he wrote the hook but it’s word for word from “Back that Azz Up” so not really sure what he’s going on about there. The explicit yet undeniable club jam actually never charted in the UK, but hey, now we have Drake singing it to yet another stripper he’s in love with. As for that version, I’ve never been a fan of this era of Drake, where he takes himself uber-seriously, can barely sing and is pathetic in a murkier way that just bothers me more than it allows me to laugh at him, especially when he just… recites the chorus to “Back that Azz Up” over a cloudy alternative R&B beat, and a lot of Juvie’s first for that matter. Outside of the drums, which sound straight from 2011, this isn’t exactly a beat too far from what Drake is putting out right now - he’d probably add a female vocal sample and 21 Savage guest verse if he were to make it today - so I suppose I guess why it’s here, but I can get this vibe done much more compellingly from early Weeknd, I see little value in this, or really the album as a whole in 2024, other than constructing the guy’s wounded armour in the public eye. I do hear people say they want the old Drake, so I guess the fans just put their streams where their mouths were.

#21 - “Kool-Aid” - Bring Me the Horizon

Produced by Zakk Cervini, Oli Sykes and Dan Lancaster

This cover art looks like an edgy AI prompt for “Kool-Aid Man digital art”. The Horizon boys have released many a single from this upcoming album, and I’m actually less excited with each one I hear, so I’m cautious here, especially given… well, it’s called “Kool-Aid”. Welp, is this an “Oh Yeah!” moment? No, not at all. This is an “Oh no” at best, and maybe that’s giving it too much credit. I do like the build-up with the shuttering synths and two-clap drop in the intro, but the rest of the song spends so much of its runtime in muddy breakdown mode that it just fails to function in any other way, despite going for screaming breakdowns afterwards as if the song had any momentum in the first place, with Oli Sykes going on about drinking the Kool-Aid and, man, I don’t think the social commentary is that interesting or up to date, and the violent relationship analogies aren’t nearly as transgressive as he thinks they are. The haunting backing vocals from Lucy Landry in the bridge are pretty sick, but they once again find themselves in a song that REALLY wants you to convince you on something, but never really tells you what that something is. They go all out with every Bring Me the Horizon trick in the book for the final chorus and it just seems desperate. I’ll pass on this, I hope there’s more to the deep cuts.

#16 - “Just Another Rainbow” - Liam Gallagher and John Squire

Produced by Greg Kurstin

This was headed for #1 on Sunday, really. Now at a much more reasonable spot but still higher than Liam Gallagher should be in 2024, this is the lead single from a collaborative album between Mr. Gallagher and John Squire, who used to be the guitarist for The Stone Roses, an influential and for what they were, incredibly popular rock band from the Madchester scene in the late 80s and early 90s. They actually released two top 40 comeback singles in 2016, to which Squire contributed, but have otherwise been largely inactive, with this being his first top 40 hit to his own name, with Squire making a guest appearance at Gallagher’s recent Knebworth performances in tribute to him guest starring at Oasis’ classic 1996 concert there, which I guess rekindled something in the duo. Is this slice of 90s alt-rock nostalgia going to be any good? You know what? Probably not, but on this week I’ll take it. Liam’s voice is still grating but that psychedelic guitar lick is pretty washed-out and cool, and I think the way the mirroring bass is mixed against it makes it sound pretty interesting instrumentally. It sounds lost and uncertain, finding itself only when the drums come in and it turns into a bit of a bluesy rocker that is just solid. There’s little to complain about other than Liam’s voice just being an acquired taste, as the song just slides itself to and fro, with some lyrics where he literally just lists the colours of the rainbow at some point, it’s kind of silly. I don’t see this lasting even a second week and it’s of course not the best of the rock songs of this week, even if it has the coolest solo of all of them: it feels really dynamic and kind of goes on forever in a soaring linger. If anything is proven by this song, I mean, John Squire still has it after all those years just painting away. That’s good to know.

Conclusion

Best of the Week should be pretty obvious, it’s going to The Last Dinner Party for “Nothing Matters”, which is actually fantastic and almost shocked me since I don’t expect much to stand out from the charting remains of indie landfill. Speaking of, I mean I guess it’s typical that another rock song gets the Honourable Mention, but no one was really competing with “Just Another Rainbow” by Liam Gallagher and John Squire, since the rest of this week really was kind of garbage. I actually think Bring Me the Horizon, who I do like around half of the time, snab Worst of the Week for “Kool-Aid”, which I feel second-hand embarrassment for. The Dishonourable Mention… give it to Lewis Capaldi. Moreso for the first one, but it’s not like “Strangers” is saving that sinking ship. As for what’s on the horizon, no pun intended, we’ll probably Ari and Lil Nas X playing an incredibly unbalanced game of tug-of-war for the #1. Thank you for reading and I’ll see you next week!

#uk singles chart #pop music #song review #liam gallagher #john squire #lewis capaldi #bring me the horizon #drake #d block europe #lumineers #last dinner party

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dangerliesbeforeyou · 5 months

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i just spent an embarrassing amount of time sorting all my spotify wrapped top songs from the last 5 years (which is how long i've been using it regularly) in order to see which songs and artists come up the most so, uh, i'm gonna go thru the data cos i'm a nerd lol

(this is all very self indulgent and only really exists so me from the future can come back and find it lol... but hey feel free to read if ur interested in my listening habits lol)

so what's interesting is that i've never had the same artist as my top artist of the year!

2018 -> BTS

2019 -> Banks

2020 -> Dreamcatcher

2021 -> EXO

2022 -> Girls' Generation

2023 -> Fall Out Boy

but despite that, both EXO and Banks have been in my top 5 for 5 times out of the 6 wrapped years!

even more interesting is that Banks is my 5th top artist this year despite the fact only one of her songs shows up in my top lists (i think i'm just always listening to her albums lol)

whiccchhh brings me onto the songs themselves

so no song shows up as top of my year every year, and there is also no song that appears in all 6 wrapped playlists BUT there is a song that shows up in 5 of the 6 and that is...

(drum roll lol)

Judas by Banks! not surprising cos it's such an amazing track but i kinda didn't realise just how much i listen to it lol! it's never been in my top 5 but it's always somewhere in the playlists lol

songs that show up 4 times out of 6 are:

Be by Hozier, Peppermint Chocolate by K.Will and Mamamoo, Vibrato by Stellar and Kingdom Come by Red Velvet!

songs that show up 3 times:

Lol by Taeyeon, Apple by Ga In, Snap out of it by the Arctic Monkeys, Bad Boy by Red Velvet & Tempo by EXO!

only other repeated song i'll mention is I Don't Care by Fall Out Boy which showed up in 2018 and then not again until this year lol

this year is a bit of an anomaly, because usually none of my top artists have more than 10 songs in the playlist (exceptions are usually if I had a particular album on repeat) BUT this year both my top artists (fob and hozier) have 18 and 20 songs in my top songs playlist respectively lol

(which is why when i've been rebloging those 'what is your 10th top song' posts it's mainly been fob and hozier tracks pfft.... rule of averages wins again lol)

& because of this most of the songs on my 2023 top songs list are ones that came out this year lol

some fun exceptions are:

How do you sleep by John Lennon, Why don't you do right by Lil Green, She's always a woman by Billy Joel, Can't rely on you by Paloma Faith and Irony by Wonder Girls lol!

honestly kinda shocked that hardly any of the mcr/green day stuff i was listening to earlier in the year has showed up (there are a couple mcr tracks, but i listened to american idiot SO much but not a single track is on my playlist rip.... guess i'm the (non)american idiot after all lol)

also kinda sad that spotify doesn't do a top albums things, though it is kinda obvious w/ my list pfft (top albums were So Much (For) Stardust, Unreal Unearth and The Age of Pleasure!)

& what i've discovered from looking at all this data is that i kinda like that every year is slightly different, with a different top artist and usually different albums that i play constantly throughout the year!

Last year it was Dance Fever, The Gods We Can Touch and 28 Reasons, few years ago it was III and 1719 lol! i just love having an album define so much of how i feel about a year :')

can't wait to see what albums define my next 5 years of life tbh!

anyway i think that's about all the data i can really pull from this lol!

#personal #spotify wrapped #i dont like data collecting unless it's data i'm actually interested in lol then i loveee data collecting #i spent so long on this data stuff lol #i literally made a SPREADSHEET #who am i #anywayyy i need to go get food and stop looking at data lol

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lerr-writes-fic · 1 year

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Music game!

rules: shuffle your “on repeat” playlist from spotify/the music service of your choice and post the first 10 tracks.

thanks for tagging me, @ellena-asg!!

I use Apple Music, so I put my Replay 2023 playlist on shuffle - it's gonna be a lot of Beyoncé, y'all.

spoiler alert: I am very predictable in ways even i could not imagine. Replay 2023 dragged my ass... more under the cut!

Steve Biko (Stir It Up) by A Tribe Called Quest

if I'm not listening to Beyoncé or movie soundtracks, I'm listening to A Tribe Called Quest.

2. SUMMER RENAISSANCE by Beyoncé

what a powerful way to end her rebirth after Lemonade. Also love that she sampled by man Giorgio Moroder who also worked on the soundtracks for Scarface (1983) and Top Gun (1986).

3. CHURCH GIRL by Beyoncé

this is my absolute favorite song on RENAISSANCE. "nobody can judge me but me, I was born free" brings me to tears and then I immediately shake my ass bc Beyoncé tells me to "drop it like a thotty, drop like thotty."

4. Verses from the Abstract by A Tribe Called Quest

this song is from The Low End Theory, which is a different album from song #1. it's wild to think this album wasn't a big commercial success, but it still went on to create alternative hip hop.

5. 6 Inch (feat. The Weeknd) by Beyoncé

this is my second fave song from Lemonade, and how could anyone not love this song? a sexy song about a woman working her ass off thinking she's doing it for herself, but in the end, she was trying to get her man's approval... brutal

6. Main Title (From the Motion Picture "Scarface") by Giorgio Moroder

okay y'all, i swear i'm writing these lil tidbits in real time as i listen. i had no idea this song would come up despite mentioning it in my answer for #2. fun fact about this album: it was not available on streaming until 2022, which i know bc i bought the Scarface CD in 2020 so that I could listen to it in my car

7. Top of the World by Trevor Jones

not gonna lie, my least favorite song from this album was next, so I skipped and got this song instead, which is an actual bop! fun fact about The Last of the Mohicans, it was my least favorite movie for 13 years, but i gave it a final chance a while back. lemme tell ya, Michael Mann does not disappoint, and the music is outstanding.

8. Auto Rock by Mogwai

another song from another Michael Mann movie, this time it's Miami Vice (2006), and apparently this is my most played song this year. Michael Mann does such a wonderful job of picking music to fit the tone of his movie endings.

9. Line of Sight (feat. WYNNE & Mansionair) by ODESZA

full disclosure, i had to skip 4 more songs from Beyoncé's RENAISSANCE to get to this song... sorry not sorry

10. Elk Hunt by Trevor Jones

welp, I guess we just had to end on a Michael Mann movie song. This the best song in The Last of the Mohicans though, so i ain't complaining.

welp. i am nothing if not predictable, which i hate 🤣🤣

#i want a refund apple bc i am embarrassed #they're really out here making me look like a fool #about me #and my predictable song choices apparently

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numetalpuppygirl · 1 year

Text

what i'm listening to 5/5/2023 (song notes under cut)

spot. link//yt link

Laura Les - Haunted: haunted. by laura les.

Machine Girl - Dumbass!!: i was listening to a whole bunch of machine girl in the lead-up to the gecs n girl show and i feel like it made me a bigger fan than i had been previously. i honestly still am not like the most familiar with their individual songs but this is one of the ones that sticks with me. NO SUCH THING AS THE BOOGEYMAN!!!!

Cracked Out - If You Leave Me I'll Kill Myself: pretty tasteless but as soon as i came across this post and listened to it i was immediately hooked on this song. it reminds me of the dumb edgy comedy bullshit i would have listened to as a tween, but like, the better side of that stuff. it was basically impossible to find much of anything about this group, so the spotify track is a local file that you guys won't be able to play, and it wasn't on youtube so i actually uploaded it myself this morning just to put it in the playlist lol

Sum 41 - In Too Deep: i feel like sum 41 tends to kinda get dismissed as part of the obnoxious skate punk scene of the 90s-00s, and to a large extent that's fair, but man did they have some good hits. i feel like edgy teen songs like these really can work by being simple as long as they just hit the premise with everything they've got, and this would be an example

Tyler, The Creator - DOGTOOTH: i was very pleased when this reached the top 40, brief though its stint was. i've been getting more into tyler recently bc i feel like i've been missing out, he's really such an interesting artist and he balances a lot of different traits super well while still delivering the goods in terms of good beats, good lines, etc. seriously, "not sure what you overheard but it's probably what I said" is such a good fucking line

Nick Lutsko - A Ghost Story: would STRONGLY recommend checking out the video for this one, either in the youtube playlist or on tumblr here actually never mind i can't find it. watch it on youtube it's fun. i followed nick lutsko on youtube for a while before whatever network it was that he was producing for went under. probably machinima. i mainly knew him because of his limp bizkit parody which is funny bc i wasn't even listening to actual limp bizkit at the time. anyway i really like his voice and i'm actually glad that he's still finding success these days

Naughty By Nature - O.P.P.: as i've referenced, i've been rewatching robbydude's paper mario vods, which are very good, and in one of the early ones robby references this song and it made me look it up. and then i made this post and it was underrated. i don't really have anything else to say it's just a good classic rap song

Slipknot - Left Behind: putting this here as more of a landmark to represent that i've been listening to iowa (the album this is from) a lot in general. i've had slipknot on the brain recently more than usual (not for any reason of course. winks) and reminded myself of why everyone loves iowa so much. it's so fucking brutal and biting... nu metal <3

Busta Rhymes - Woo Hah!!: honestly another one where it's like yeah idk this is just a classic what do you want me to say. busta's a legend and this song is legendary and he tears it up and it's good

Sweet Trip - Tekka: probably the most direct of the violet finds from this month (hi violet :3) i had never listened to sweet trip before but tekka instantly grabbed me... it's all crunchy and stuttery and has yummy synths. i especially love how it just fucking breaks down in the second half it's like that machine that's breaking down and sweating and sputtering it's almost sexual. you know

Ike & Tina Turner - I'll Never Need More Than This: so i've been on my phil spector bullshit, as you might have guessed, so i was revisiting some of his tracks to just kinda take it all in. as always, it. well it sounds really fucking good, and tina turner turned in a killer performance as always. i love. sound :)

Rowdy Rebel - Computers (feat. Bobby Shmurda): I'M SLIDIN OVER CARS WHILE I SHOOT

THEY THINK THAT I'M TOM CRUISE

Machine Girl - Scroll of Sorrow: it's really rather exciting. see for those in the know (which is all of you bc there's only two or three people reading this), you're aware that my mutual (hi again :3) had posted about how, at the live show, the vocalist of machine girl got up real near the crowd (including said mutual) during scroll of sorrow. as such, i was listening out for the song at my own show and well chat i'll tell you i was not able to recognize it :-) but there was one point where they got up on the railing above the pit and were singing from up there, and while it wasn't like exceptionally close to where we were at, it was still cool bc it was like hey! that's like the thing! that i heard about! :) amd anyway i like the song

Sonic The Hedgehog - His World: itsa banger... i actually heard the penny parker cover of this song from the sonic fandub way before ever hearing the original so even now i still mix up the lyrics but it's fine. i've actually never played a mainline sonic game or any video game or any media at all but i like the music

Strapping Young Lad - Oh My Fucking God: i straight up didn't know that strapping young lad was a devin townsend thing, not that i've listened to any of his other stuff. this song's weird and loud and stupid and i like it

Rae Sremmurd - No Flex Zone: okay now. based on this one and the previous song, can anyone guess what semi-popular artist playlist i was listening to this month? i tried to listen to a lot more rap this month, because i wish to learn more about this beautiful world. no flex zone has been my first exposure to rae sremmurd and it was a good one, although i like one of the guys way better than the other one. slim jxmmi i like him better

glass beach - classic j dies and goes to hell part 1: i didn't really "get" glass beach for a while, i thought they were alright, but this month they started to click (once again with some help - check out this post teehee). they're cute, earnest, and high-energy; i have to kinda be in the mood but i can get into it 👍 i've also seen the band described as sort of a modern emo type deal and while i don't yet know if i agree or disagree with that it compels me

NLE Choppa - Final Warning: straight up this dude is weird and has a weird hit on the charts rn but bc of that i was like "ok let's see what he was like before his big image change" and ended up liking some of that stuff. he's so energetic and it really gets you pumped up, which is def what i'm looking for in this type of thing. he's got some interesting lines, too. it almost makes me wish he hadn't changed at all - i feel like i missed out lol

Vanilla Ice - Prozac: okay look i try not to vanillapost too much but like i'm a little bit insane about vanilla ice. i'm obsessed with his career path and it is not uncommon for me to just sit and think about it for an hour or more. i really enjoy his nu metal stuff, at least the earlier portions of it, and this is a top-tier track from that era. real headbanger. FUNKY RHYME KILLER, THE DOPE SONG DEALER

#*char noises*#talking pop

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