rivers_bend

Well, we've made it another week, friends, and what a week it has been!

As usual, please share your ups and downs with us. Where has your fitness journey taken you this week? How have you been feeling? I hope the week has been kind to you and you've found opportunities to make yourself happy.

( My Week in Review )

May the week ahead be a good one for us all.

Happy Wednesday!

I'm taking search offline sometime today to upgrade the server to a new instance type. It should be down for a day or so -- sorry for the inconvenience. If you're curious, the existing search machine is over 10 years old and was starting to accumulate a decade of cruft...!

Also, apparently these older machines cost more than twice what the newer ones cost, on top of being slower. Trying to save a bit of maintenance and cost, and hopefully a Wednesday is okay!

Edited: The other cool thing is that this also means that the search index will be effectively realtime afterwards... no more waiting a few minutes for the indexer to catch new content.

My friends, the weather rollercoaster is starting to seriously mess with me. It was 70 and sunny on Saturday morning, and by yesterday (Sunday) morning there was hail and then snow. It snowed again today, too. I just want the spring to stay for a little while before the sweltering heat moves in.

How has your week been, weather-wise, fitness-wise or otherwise? Please do share, if you're feeling so inclined.

( My Week in Review )

May our week be the one we most need for where we are right now!

Here are some thoughts on the album as we've entered BTS in Chapter 2 - Group Era*

[*AFAIK, Chapter 2 was initially used for the interesting combo of enlistment + first solo eras. However, as soon as they were all discharged from the military, BTS themselves began using "Chapter 2" when referring to the here and now. I'm not gonna argue with the Tannies. If that's how they see things, then that's how they see things and it's up to everyone else to clarify if the "Chapter 2" era is the solo or the group one. *Hands*]



The only hint abt what ARIRANG was probably gonna sound like was a good 16-second clip in the animated teaser. So, most ppl (myself included), were preparing for some booty-shaking music. Only to then get v. confused after clips for "SWIM" dropped...

As soon as the first notes began playing, I was ON THE FLOOOOOOOR. This is an album that gives listeners 41 minutes of AMAZING music. It's also meant to be listened to from top to bottom if you want to appreciate it to its fullest extent. This is a v. grown up album and I love that for all of us.

One of the coolest things is the bouquet of genres happening:

* Do you want songs that make you feel like you're getting down at the club with hella loud beats? "BODY TO BODY" and "FYA" are deffo the ones for you.

* Do you like rap and/or hip-hop that goes IN? Then go check out "HOOLIGANS", "Aliens", and "2.0"!

* Is meditating your thing? "No. 29" is THAT BITCH that'll give you all the peace and quiet you need.

* Are you a fan of easy listening pop music that you can chill out OR drive to? "SWIM" is there for you.

* Is your playlist filled with songs that are slightly off-center or alternative rock? "Merry Go Round", "NORMAL", and "Like Animals" will fit the bill.

* Maybe you're in the mood for dance music that makes you feel sexy? "One More Night" will make you shimmy every which way.

* Is your thing music that's r&b but make it weird? "they don't know 'bout us" is the one tune you'll want to check out.

* Are you into YEARNING-centric, r&b songs? "Please" is the song for you.

* Do you like 70s rock/anthem rock? "Into the Sun" gets the spotlight easy.



IMO, this is an album for those ppl that like music in general. The breadth of genres the Tannies have tapped into is something I haven't seen in a loooooooooooooooong time.

ANOTHER THING this album has done v. effectively is being played out and abt in the world. Within the first 3 weeks of ARIRANG, I've heard:

1. "SWIM" at my local CVS* and at a supermarket. [* The CVS part I was expecting as, whoever's in charge of making the playlists for CVS, they keep selecting BTS English song circa "Dynamite". To date, I've heard: "Permission to Dance", "Butter", "Seven", "Like Crazy", "Slow Dance", "Don't Say You Love Me", "Running Wild", "Sweet Dreams", "Mona Lisa", and "Killin' It Girl".]

2. A car was blasting "2.0" down the main street by my apartment building. There's a stoplight and that's how I managed to have enough time to realize that some dude was playing BTS at top volume, LOL

3. I took one of my elderly aunts to go grocery shopping at Walmart. There's a tiny store inside that specific Walmart that repairs cellphones and sells accessories as well. As we were leaving, I heard "One More Night" playing.

Please note that I don't live in a city that's particularly K-Pop friendly? Like, we're lucky if we get one K-Pop concert per year. And still random songs from the album are playing here and there.



So now I'm gonna go into the criticisms and well, why some ppl are WRONG.

FTR, folks ARE allowed to dislike this album and/or BTS' music (solo and group). I understand (to a certain extent) that there will be ppl who don't vibe with the music. And I'm OK with that as long as it has to do with musical preferences. There are certain beats and styles that set my teeth on edge too. Saying "I don' like this cuz it's not for me" IS a valid reason.

HAVING SAID THAT, tho, there have been certain "points" that have come up enough times for me to sit there and 🤔

Complaint no.1: BTS is Too Westernized/has been too Westernized circa the English Trilogy

The "funny" thing abt that is the majority of times I've seen it being brought up, it's been by non-Koreans (meaning non-Native OR diaspora Koreans). And I'll give those folks a hard 😒. Cuz "too Westernized" according to WHOM?

Doubly so because BTS has gone out of the way to reinforce the idea that they're proud of being Korean and their culture (see the album title, the vinyl album covers, the connection they've reinforced between the real story of the (real life) 7 Korean men who sailed to the US in 1896 and recorded "Arirang" at Howard University, and other details (up to and including concert sets, VCRs, and their individual fits.)


Complaint no. 2: OMG, there are too many songwriters. With the majority of them being Western songwriters! WHY couldn't the members just write and/or produce everything?

To which I gotta say, if you look at the credits, out of the 15* songs, RM has 14 credits. The only song he doesn't have one is "No. 29" (which has no lyrics.) 5 of the remaining members have at least 2 songwriting credits in the album. The only one w/o any credits is Jin**.

[**NB: per Jin himself, he'd been in the middle of his solo tour while everyone else was writing songs. And it would've been extremely selfish on his part to ask them to wait ~3 months until he was done to then start the songwriting process. He's a bit bummed out he couldn't be a part of that aspect of the album. HOWEVAH, it's v., v. clear that he was hands-on when he joined the Tannies in California AND afterwards.

(*Re the 15th song: there's a hidden track titled "Come Over" that (as of the time of this post) is only available in the Deluxe version of the vinyls. There doesn't seem to be any current plans to release it on streaming platform (though there are some campaigns asking Yoongi and co to please do so.) It's part of the current leg of the tour setlist.]

Now, as for BTS having too many outside songwriters, one only needs to go back to 2016's "Save Me" to see that they were already working with non-Korean songwriters and producers. Also, a lot of the big songs in BTS' repertoire (such as "IDOL", "Euphoria", "Black Swan", "Boy With Luv", and "Mikrokosmos") have multiple Western folks credited too. IJS


Complaint no. 3: It doesn't sound like the "old BTS"

This specific complaint is over something that doesn't exist. Because BTS has never had a specific sound. Pre-2015, their songs were more hip-hop heavy. 2016-2019 had more abt EDM beats. Their 2020 music onward has had a blend of the two and then some.

At the same time, the "old sound" criticism has had a lot of pushback from some fans saying that ARIRANG (especially the first half) reminds them of BTS' 2014 album Dark & Wild.

So, again, this is one of those "ppl complaining cuz they've got nothing else to complain abt" type of things.


Complaint no.4: There's NO message

This is ridiculous. Also an indication of a reading comprehension fail. Head on over to Doolset's amazing translations and then try to say the songs are vapid. PFFFFT!


Complaint no.5: There's TOO MUCH Autotune

?????? Yes, there's Autotune--which is a tool that talented ppl like BTS have used in amazing ways. They're not the only ones as seen in BIBI's "Kazino" or anything by T-Pain. When it comes to BTS, Yoongi does like using AutoTune the most, but it's not a crutch. Rather than it being weird, its addition to the songs enhances the music.

AutoTune has gotten a bad rep because many 'singers' have relied on it as a way to hide their lack of talent. It does serve a purpose, though, whether ppl want to accept that or not


Outside of all of that nonsense, I think many of the ppl who have been v. negative toward this album fall into one of these categories:

A. Those who wanted this to sound exactly like every other Kpop bg album. And I get that cuz we do like familiarity. It's also the reason why some groups are known for having a specific sound. And, again, BTS is not in that category (please note that this isn't me putting down other groups while elevating the Tannies. It's simply an observation.) Even if you were to go from album to album, it's v. hard to pinpoint what makes an album a BTS album since they, again, don't have a signature sound AND they also dabble in a lot of genres.

B. Ppl who expected a return to a heavier EDM sound because that seems to be the "sound du jour" among a lot of Kpop releases. Kinda like how Jersey Club was EVERYWHERE 4 yrs ago.*Hands*

C. Some ppl didn't listen to any of the Chapter 2 (solo era) works. There's a lot of their individual albums being represented here.

Interestingly, a lot of the (initially) lukewarm opinions some had abt ARIRANG changed once they saw the Tannies perform the songs LIVE either on the Netflix comeback special (which is still available to watch) OR any of the concerts livestreams.

This is something that happened to me a few years ago with "Permission to Dance". I don't care much for that song. BUT, when BTS did the PTD Onstage in Los Angeles, Seoul, and Las Vegas, they closed out their concerts with PTD and that's when I got it! The trick to that song was experiencing it live. FWIW, I still pretty much whatevs abt it, but there we are.

So, if you don't like any of the songs, maybe check out the Netflix comeback and your opinion might change. Maybe it won't. IDK, you do you. XD

NGL, even after many listens, I'm still in awe with BTS and what they've done with this album. Realistically, they could've dropped anything and it'd have still been well-loved by ARMYs. Instead, they chose to not do the typical/expected "reunion album". They switched lanes into mostly new soundscapes at the same time they reinforced the idea of the OT7. Which brings me to the FACT that this is group album. There are no subunits or solos anywhere. EVERY. SINGLE. MEMBER. GETS. HIS. MOMENT. IN. EVERY. SINGLE. SONG!

And this goes down to the infamous ~line distribution angle. All 7 members have abt the same amount of time in ARIRANG. And that's a hella impressive thing to do when you've got SEVEN different ppl and 15 songs to do. [NB: Even better is how BTS has incorporated the group idea into their performances. Their current tour has NO solo or unit songs and it all makes me feel v. shiny-eyed. UwU.]

This is an album that invites the listener to ride the groove as it switches from rap to r&b to rock to easy pop. IMO, it's one of the most accessible in the Tannies' album discography. The songs feel v.much of the here and now instead of falling into a nostalgia trap. Give it a spin and you might end up digging it too. :D!

That's Gotta Sting (1498 words) by dreamlittleyo
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Relationships: Roy Kent & Jamie Tartt
Additional Tags: Season/Series 03, Past Jamie Tartt/Ted Lasso, Past Roy Kent/Ted Lasso, Jealousy, Unrequited Crush
Series: Part 5 of Burning and Building Bridges

Summary:
They're in a standoff now. It's clear Roy has no intention of explaining himself, so it's Jamie who finally breaks the silence, almost shouting as he blurts, "You fuckin' asshole! After lecturing me about how I can't sleep with him, you turn around and… and… and what did you do, anyways?"
*
Jamie is more observant than people give him credit for.


Read on AO3...

( Or read below the cut... )

 

One for the Road (4646 words) by dreamlittleyo
Rating: Mature
Relationships: Roy Kent/Ted Lasso
Additional Tags: Season/Series 03, Casual Sex, Friends With Benefits, Affection, Exasperation, Protectiveness, Does It Count As A One-Night Stand If It's The Middle Of The Afternoon, Past Ted Lasso/Jamie Tartt, Past Keeley Jones/Roy Kent

Series: Part 4 of Burning and Building Bridges

Summary:
"In the interest of full disclosure," Ted says, gaze darting around restlessly before settling on Roy's face, "if you're hoping sex will shut me up, you're in for a severe disappointment."
*
Ever since learning Coach Lasso is amazing in bed, Roy is a little bit obsessed. That doesn't mean he needs to do anything about it. Ted's probably not interested in him anyway.

Roy just needs to keep his mouth shut and his head down, and not do anything stupid. Right? Right.


Read on AO3...

( Or read below the cut... )
 

- — - — - — - — -

Self-Made Boys by Anna-Marie McLemore

New York City, 1922. Nicolás Caraveo, a 17-year-old transgender boy from Wisconsin, has no interest in the city’s glamor. Going to New York is all about establishing himself as a young professional, which could set up his future—and his life as a man—and benefit his family.

Nick rents a small house in West Egg from his 18-year-old cousin, Daisy Fabrega, who lives in fashionable East Egg near her wealthy fiancé, Tom—and Nick is shocked to find that his cousin now goes by Daisy Fay, has erased all signs of her Latine heritage, and now passes seamlessly as white.

Nick’s neighbor in West Egg is a mysterious young man named Jay Gatsby, whose castle-like mansion is the stage for parties so extravagant that they both dazzle and terrify Nick. At one of these parties, Nick learns that the spectacle is all meant to impress a girl from Jay’s past—Daisy. And he learns something else: Jay is also transgender.

As Nick is pulled deeper into the glittery culture of decadence, he spends more time with Jay, aiming to help his new friend reconnect with his lost love. But Nick's feelings grow more complicated when he finds himself falling hard for Jay's openness, idealism, and unfounded faith in the American Dream.

Why you should read it: I have complicated feelings about The Great Gatsby, which makes it extremely impressive just how much I adored this beautiful remix. It's such a phenomenal book, taking all the best things about the original classic, and shaking them up into a configuration that is both instantly recognizable and completely new. I loved McLemore's writing style, I loved what she did with the characters, I loved Nicolás Caraveo with my entire heart. This was an excellent read from start to finish, and I recommend it whether you love the original novel or not.

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Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa

London, 1812. Oliver Bennet feels trapped. Not just by the endless corsets, petticoats and skirts he's forced to wear on a daily basis, but also by society's expectations. The world―and the vast majority of his family and friends―think Oliver is a girl named Elizabeth. He is therefore expected to mingle at balls wearing a pretty dress, entertain suitors regardless of his interest in them, and ultimately become someone's wife.

But Oliver can't bear the thought of such a fate. He finds solace in the few times he can sneak out of his family's home and explore the city rightfully dressed as a young gentleman. It's during one such excursion when Oliver becomes acquainted with Darcy, a sulky young man who had been rude to "Elizabeth" at a recent social function. But in the comfort of being out of the public eye, Oliver comes to find that Darcy is actually a sweet, intelligent boy with a warm heart. And not to mention incredibly attractive.

As Oliver is able to spend more time as his true self, often with Darcy, part of him dares begin to hope that his dream of love and life as a man to be possible. But suitors are growing bolder―and even threatening―and his mother is growing more desperate to see him settled into an engagement. Oliver will have to choose: Settle for safety, security, and a life of pretending to be something he's not, or risk it all for a slim chance at freedom, love, and a life that can be truly, honestly his own.

Why you should read it: This book is so sweetly satisfying. I've never actually read a Pride & Prejudice retelling before (I love the original book, but not enough to seek out any of the many variations that inevitably exist when a book is in the public domain). This one called to me though, and oh it was a wonderful read! I enjoyed it enormously.

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This Wretched Beauty by Elle Grenier

London, 1867. Dorian Gray is the heir to a title and their family’s estate, but they’ve never been given the chance to decide whether that’s actually what they want out of life. Forcibly estranged from their father by their manipulative grandfather, Dorian feels trapped in the life that has been decided for them.

Then one night they sneak out of their grandfather’s house, they meet a sweet and talented young painter named Basil, who immediately recognizes Dorian as his new muse. They agree to sit for Basil for a portrait, and Dorian is struck by the beauty and depth that Basil paints into their likeness—and they dare to begin hoping there might be more to life than being their grandfather’s perfect, empty-headed heir.

Dorian is further elated when Basil introduces them to the world of molly houses and drag performers—they’ve never seen such joyful variety of humanity and gender expression. But, as the barrier between the London they know and the one they're discovering begins to crumble, Dorian must face the fact that freedom and safety do not come hand in hand.

The aftermath of this realization pulls Dorian into a terrible downward spiral, torn between guilt over their own actions and hatred for the suffocating expectations of society. They push away those closest to them, surrounding themself instead with vapid courtiers and decadent socialites. And as Dorian’s spiral of self-loathing deepens, something strange happens—Basil’s portrait of them begins to change. Their smile becomes a little sharper, the glint in their eyes a little colder.

Dorian will have to choose—embrace the wickedness within and allow themself to become what they were always meant to be, or dare to try for something far more fragile and dangerous: a life of their own making.

Why you should read it: This retelling of The Picture of Dorian Gray was brilliantly crafted. It does a fantastic job of creating a very different narrative out of the source material, without ever losing track of the heart of the story. Dorian was such a real and messy and complicated character, and their journey was emotionally difficult without ever feeling completely hopeless. I've loved so many of the books in this series of retellings, but I think this one is my favorite so far.

 

Heart on the Line
by Yolande Kleinn
M/M, Erotic Romance, Friends-to-Lovers
[30 Pages / 6,900 Words]

AMZ / Apple / BN / Kobo / SW / All Buy Links


In the months both he and Avery have been single, Landon has gotten too much in the habit of sleeping with his best friend. For all the times they've hooked up through the years, they've never carried on quite so long, and the intimacy between them has never felt like this. Now, with Avery calling in the middle of the night and Landon desperate to see him, it might be time to acknowledge that something—maybe everything—has changed.

( Excerpt )