#animated for another BPM but it was off so i just sped it up in the video editor for this song

[jestergal]

#my art #3D #OC: Lisa #animated for another BPM but it was off so i just sped it up in the video editor for this song

[that-ari-blogger]

Build Up

This might be an odd take, but the finale of She-Ra and the Princesses Of Power's first season is a two-part episode.

I don't mean this as a technicality. To my knowledge, Light Hope wasn't originally named "The Battle Of Bright Moon Part 1". I mean that in terms of animation and storytelling, this episode feels like the first part of a finale.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the animation for this episode feels like yet another step up from previously. But now, instead of the lighting and art itself being improved, it is the little things. The scene transitions, the expressions, everything feels so much smoother.

For example, the first meeting of Bow and Glimmer with Swiftwind has some fantastic emotions on display that aren't revolutionarily, but take a serious level of skill. That's what good craft is, the little perfections that so often fly completely under the radar.

In that same scene, the little comedy moment of Glimmer noticing her mother and glitching is so fluid. I'm not an expert on animation technique, but even I can notice how this makes previous episodes look choppy in comparison.

The effect that this has is rather interesting, because it creates momentum. The fact that everything flows together so well allows the episode to build up speed and anticipation without actually altering the pacing, mostly (I will come back to this).

For another example of how this works in another, more condensed way, take Jimmy Dean's Big Bad John. Have a look at these two verses:

Every morning at the mine, you could see him arrive He stood six foot six, and weighed 245 Kinda broad at the shoulder, narrow at the hip And everybody knew, you didn't give no lip to Big John. Through the smoke and the dust of this man-made hell walked a giant of a man that the miners knew well grabbed a saggin timber, gave out with a groan And like a giant oak tree, he just stood there alone, Big John

The BPM (Beats per minute) of these verses is exactly the same, and Dean doesn't sing faster to cram more words in. Instead, the technique on display is enjambment. In the first verse, each of the thoughts is disconnected as a description of the song's eponym is given from a place of relative safety. But later on, the danger becomes evident through the fact that this is one thought that carries through, gaining that momentum as it does until that moment of breath in the verses final two words. A moment of breath that John is giving those miners.

The point I am making is that flow is a part of pace just as much as actual timing of events, and a minour shift in animation to give the characters more of that sense of motion within scenes creates dynamism that really helps the buildup of tension of the episode.

The pacing is sped up, but only slightly, and it is through the scene composition. The mirroring of Adora and Catra here through the length of the shot is clever. What I mean by this is... complicated. There are several points in the episode where Adora and Catra get incredibly short and punchy scenes back-to-back-to-back, making the whole thing feel like a singular item.

This also helps the pacing, but instead of through events happening faster, it creates an illusion of speed through scenes themselves being shorter.

Essentially, Lianne Hughes and Josie Campbell, the director and lead writer of this episode, really show off just how good they are at their jobs in this episode. Once again, the expertise comes out not just in the set pieces, but in the subtlety.

Speaking of subtlety, Light Hope.

Light Hope is a robot, kind of. She's an illusion that you can walk into and is programmed with a set objective. Pedanticism aside, Light Hope is a robot.

The problem with that is that her way of speaking is... robotic. There is an extreme lack of emotion here, making her difficult to read. But there are a few minour details.

"Your... friend?"

Moria Gorrondona's voice acting here is stellar. Because Light Hope does emote, just only in tiny ways. She is a complex character trying to appear simple. And that cracks in this line.

At first, this seems like confusion. Light Hope is a robot, so this is probably a new concept to her. But there's also some concern in her voice, and why is that there?

I think Light Hope is a phenomenal character, but I don't like her as a person. Admittedly, this is in hindsight, as watching this episode on a first viewing, it is easy to miss these elements. But Light Hope is just as manipulative as Shadow Weaver.

Everyone you will ever meet is either running towards something, away from something, or both, be it a goal in life or a feeling of worthiness or a sense of guilt. And people will usually take the path of least resistance towards or away from that thing. Often, a person seeking to manipulate you will provide a path for you to run, but it will come at a price.

Light Hope, in this scene, messes with Adora's head. She fools around, annoying Adora and keeping her talking until she gives her something of use.

"I need to figure out how to heal her."

Adora gives everything to Light Hope with this line. Most obviously, she gives her current goal. But she also, through her vernacular, gives her fear. She needs to figure it out. Adora is running away from failure and loss, and Light Hope pounces on that fear with pinpoint precision.

"She's hurt because of me. I messed up. I got Glimmer and Bow captured and Entrapta... It's my fault, I have to fix it."

Again, Adora is putting her whole heart out there, and showing vulnerability. I want to stress that this doesn't make Adora weak at all. The ability to be vulnerable takes bravery, and it marks out both Light Hope and Shadow Weaver as lesser for using Adora's against her.

"You do not yet realise the power you have. You are distracted by your attachments. There was one before you who could not let go. Her name was Mara."

Light Hope has seen Adora's memories, she knows what Adora knows, and Adora has just told her about her fear of failure. So, what does Light Hope do? She shows Adora someone she believes to have failed and says, "this could be you."

She-Ra is a tragedy desperately trying to happen, or rather, its a story about subverting tragedy. Everything is set to self-combust as the character arcs drive themselves into the ground. Love prevents this, and so Light Hope seeks to counteract that love.

Let's talk about the reveals in this episode, because they also contribute to that feeling of this being the first part of the season finale. This episode gives an information dump about the first ones, and while a lot of it turns out to be untrue, it is answers, for the moment.

Most notably, the series is now a sci-fi story, instead of an epic fantasy story. I know those terms are loose and ill defined, but you get the idea. This episode sets up the Horde landing, the First Ones being also from space, and the empty dimension.

But there is one majour moment that makes this feel like part one of a finale. The downfall of Shadow Weaver.

This scene is really cool, as it's when Shadow Weaver fully unravels. She loses her authority when Hordak gives that to Catra, and she loses her access to her magic in the same moment. Shadow Weaver is a character who covets power so taking these two away is a gut punch, and despite Catra being a villain at this point in the story, this scene is cathartic as all hell.

It isn't a hot take to say that this is when Shadow Weaver is at her most abusive. She loses, and starts spitting insults, for no reason other than self-gratification. She needs to feel powerful and so she tries to get that feeling by belittling someone she percieves as weak. She has been doing this the whole series but now she is unhinged.

Once again with Shadow Weaver, the things she says are unnervingly realistic, I know for a fact that certain people watching this episode have heard some of her words before, aimed at them.

But the reason this is so cathartic is because Catra isn't scared. Scorpia is scared in this scene, and nothing has even fazed her in the entire season so far (she's been surprised, but she's never hidden behind anything). But Catra is winning, and completely above Shadow Weaver's nonsense.

Shadow Weaver's last mode of control was her hold over Catra, and it's the mode that the audience has seen the most of. So, watching that get so thoroughly shattered is satisfying.

It's important to me that when Catra deals the final blow, she is striking downwards. The power dynamic is reversed, and now Shadow Weaver has to look up to see her, showing Catra has moved beyond her, at least for now.

Also, as a tiny detail, this is the first time we have seen Scorpia go through several emotions. Fear is the obvious one, but also grim determination, and anger. The blink and you'll miss it expression as she carries Shadow Weaver away is fantastic. Here, Scorpia is pissed and its awesome.

Finally, Swift Wind is introduced in this episode, which is... complicated. I don't find him funny or endearing, and since he is so desperately trying to be both, I'm not really left with much for the rest of the series. In this episode, however, I actually like Swift WInd's introduction. I think being a riff on Dobby the House Elf (sue me Galbreath, I dare you) is actually used to better effect here. Instead of his rebelliousness being just a comedy thing, its also used to motivate Adora with a peptalk.

"What good is all your power if you don't use it to help the people that you love?"

Swift Wind gets flattened in the rest of the series, but I think here, as a kind of eccentric heart character would have been a really interesting take on him and might have made him more popular with the fans.

Final Thoughts

I haven't spoken about the stakes in this post, and that's because that's what I will go into next week. Suffice to say that they build steadily over the course of the episode to set up the finale.

Next week, I will be looking at the actual finale of the season. The Battle For Bright Moon, so stick around if that interests you.

Previous - Next

#rants #literary analysis #literature analysis #character analysis #what's so special about...? #she ra and the princesses of power #she ra catra #she ra spop #adora #spop #catra #she ra adora #she ra #she ra princess of power #she ra and the princess of power fanart

[thcblairwitch]

chatzy : break free

                   ▄▄▄▄  TAGGING - LYDIA MARTIN, KARA BLAIR                    ▄▄▄▄  LOCATION - Underground ( Commons Area )                            ▄▄▄▄  TIMEFRAME - Part of “Broken Chains” event                           ▄▄▄▄  SUMMARY - Kara and Lydia are speaking more about finding a way to remove the handicaps when a young banshee nearby collapses -- and, in the small emergency, the two discover their first large step towards removing the handicaps. [ CHATZY LOG ]

Kara

It was exhausting - to be honest - staring at the words all day long and finding no progress that was tangible. She herself had only been Underground for a few weeks, and latching herself onto helping Lydia with the Handicaps was the most productive thing she could find to do. Not to mention, she ​hoped​ at the very least that her knowledge obtained through the years of being a scribe for the Hunters helped the situation some.

She felt like she had been staring at the same diagram for two hours, and honestly she wasn't sure ​how​ Lydia had managed to go this long without losing her mind. But, then again, from what she heard about Lydia Martin, the female was a lot more headstrong than she was on some levels. And the banshee had seemed to have dug in her heels for the long run. She was about to speak when a commotion caught her off guard and shattered her thoughts -- dark eyes darting up quickly in time to see a blonde, Handicapped banshee ( Terra, she thinks? ) begin to wheeze -- like there was no air around for her to inhale -- before suddenly collapsing like a marionette with sliced strings.

"-- ohmygod!" Kara breathed, papers forgotten as she stood quickly to move to the banshee's side -- hands hovering over her almost uselessly as she tried to figure out what to do. Kara was by no means a medic.

Lydia Martin

Lydia’s head worked in mysterious ways, even to the redhead she’d always wondered how she pieced things together. Her way of though was not precise in any form but it worked thus far. She’d been given such a title of being able to unravel the confusion knot that might hold back her group of friends which now she’d been wrapped up in herself. Hope seemed far away but the blueprints given to her by Stuart from the infamous Juliet had added a veil of strength to a fading female.

This train was is chugged through ideas was brought to an abrupt stop when the energy lever was tugged as the girl collapsed. Lydia jolted herself into action then going to her side. Quickly she began to run through symptoms and reactions to decipher the code that was this girl’s illness.

“I think she’s going into cardiac arrest.” Without much of another though Lydia rolled up the sleeves on her knitted peach colored sweater to prepare her hands for the job that they were going to have to do.

Kara

Kara's eyes -- brimming with panic and uncertainty -- darted up to Lydia's when she knelt on the other side of Terra and spoke, brows twisting and crinkling inwards before her eyes flashed back down to the girl. A hand shook as she pressed it against the column of the girl's neck to feel for a pulse, her ​own​ heart aching as the blonde girl reached out and wrapped a panicked hand around Kara's wrist at the touch. " -- I can hardly feel her pulse. It's --" her eyes narrowed, chewing harshly on her lower lip, "It's there, but barely." What was the term? Brandy -- ? ​Brandycardia?​ The term danced around her mind and she wasn't sure what to do with it, or if it was correct.

She shook her head as she watched Lydia crumple up her sleeves for a moment, "No -- she needs her heart sped back up. Adrenaline -- a shot of adrenaline will hike it back up. At least long enough to turn her over to the medic in the infirmary. She --" Kara suddenly cut herself off abruptly at a beeping noise; it was odd and out of place. And she knew this ​wasn't​ the time for a distraction, as Terra's fingers tightened more so around her wrist, but she couldn't help but let her eyes dart to the source of the beeping. It was her handicap, Kara's fingers that were on the side of Terra's neck moving to swivel the Handicap around to reveal the side of it.

Where the slick black was usually solid and ungiving, there was a small screen that had appeared from under a small flap - raised on a hidden hinge. It almost looked like a smart watch. Displaying information that did nothing but confuse her further -- ​BPM 32. FAIL SAFE ACTIVE. PLEASE USE KEY.​ IT was flashing at her, it insisting that she meet it's demands -- and following the beeping, she heard a light click.

Lydia Martin

The last time Lydia found herself flipping through the pages of any sort of anatomy textbook was in high school, college hadn’t really forced her to consume knowledge the same way that she used to. In moments where that was so vital she felt almost idiotic sitting here with all the best intentions but no certainty of the situation. Reading things was only have the battle, putting them into proper usage was something else entirely.

Adrenaline. How in the world were they supposed to get their hands on adrenaline? With a bit of an unsure expression and an overcast of panic Lydia spoke. “And where are we supposed to find that right now?” Then the beeping took hold of her attention as well, drawing her in with Kara’s hands. The handicap was calling out to her almost dangling the answer in front of her face like a piece of meat to a starving carnivore. Then it let go, allowing the animal to feast on this much like Lydia on these words the screen presented.

“What does BPM have to do with a fail safe...” It was originally whispered then things started to flood in. “​Of course​. Of course they did, why wouldn’t they?” The female dug into her hair for a pin that she’d been using to keep things in place before gently taking the device into her hands and toying around with the lock that before had baffled her. They might finally have answers, something to hold on to.

Kara

Kara was rightly confused -- overwhelmed with all the oncoming stimuli as she looked to Lydia for some kind of assistance. "Did what?" she asked softly, eyes darting away from the redhead long enough to look back down at the blonde banshee, heart twisting in sympathy as Terra's freehand began to gesture to her bag that was just a few feet beside her -- the hand shaking as she did so. Kara looked back to Lydia in time to see her toying with the lock with a hair pin, " -- should you ... -- isn't that going to --- " she stuttered over her words as she picked at the lock, knowing nothing more than the self defensive mechanism programmed into each and every Handicap.

Despite that, she was distracting her mind back to the original point, reaching around herself to grab the bag that Terra had been gesturing to and opening it -- finally moving both hands away before she was tugging out an Adrenaline pen. If the blonde was carrying one, it was no doubt a heart condition that she was well aware of -- and Kara could at least be sound in the fact that she was prepared and they didn't have to worry over losing the young female under the hands of two who weren't completely sure what they were doing.

" -- hurry -- she needs ...- " she trailed off, already beginning to pull the cap off of the needle.

Lydia Martin

She knew that saving this female’s life was important, more important than the handicap which was why almost when Lydia let go to assist her in returning to heart rate to it’s normal state. Although, Kara was on that mission while Lydia’s hands contiued to click at the lock that sat against the back of the device. She could do this. She just had to focus. The world around her was starting to fade backwards, a hum ringing through her ears, and the clicking of the pin against the metal all the girl was able to feel.

Then as the reality of the situation started to come back into view there was a click. Lydia’s eyes stretched as the realization set in and her hands removed the item that had been so long baffling her. “Go ahead, she’s good.” A few scoots backwards allowed Kara to complete her job much as Lydia’s hands had done theirs. It made sense, it was so obvious but in the blindest connotation. “​Fail safe​.” Again whispered while the clutches on the item tightened and a smile started to form. She then turned her attention back to the girl that had opened her eyes to what she’d been missing.

“Let’s get her to a medic, make sure she's gonna be okay.”

Kara

Kara paused -- suddenly struck into a stasis with confusion and awe. Wide eyes were poised on the Handicap in Lydia's hand. Dangling, unlocked, and open -- ​useless​. "You --" she started, eyes still wide before she was looking down at the girl. Looking down at her ​exposed​ and bare throat where the Handicap had been moments prior. Albeit, a harsh gasp shattered her resolve and pulled her back to the moment -- that this girl's ​life​ was far more important in that moment than her shock. So, Kara moved again -- with a quick jolt of her arm, she was shoving the spring loaded needle into the girl's leg and injecting the needed medicine into her blood stream.

The girl began to gasp and cough harshly, rattling hard in her throat, but -- the coughing was a good sign. She could breathe -- and Kara's hand fell to her neck once more to feel her pulse; relieved to find it much easier to find, as well and faster. She dropped the used EpiPen uselessly to the ground before she looked to the unhinged Handicap once more.

Before Kara could speak, or even begin to move Terra, another male came into focus -- human, Kara thinks -- she thinks it was Terra's boyfriend. But she was far too in shock and dazed to hear what he was saying -- thanking them, she thinks, before gathering his girlfriend up and leading her towards the infirmary. And, all throughout it, her eyes were blown wide -- vision tunneled where the only thing in focus was the Handicap in Lydia's hand. " -- you did it."

Lydia Martin

Lydia wanted to react or reply to everything that was going on with the banshee beside her and Kara but she couldn’t find words. Everything was still blurred in the grand scheme of things. Somehow this opportunity of answers had fallen into her lap where she had been able to decipher the clues left for her. All that research, all that work, it had paid off in some sense. She wasn’t going to think about what could go wrong, not just yet, she wanted to enjoy these moments of certainty while she could. This was a day where a girl was saved and perhaps many more from the chains they’d been held down by. Hope was restored.

“It makes perfect sense... The BPM, the heart rate, that’s what keeps it working. When someone needs medical attention like that they have to take it off, I guess with a key but they’re not hard to pick after you’ve studied the thing. We can do this. We can actually remove them Kara.” A smile had finally returned to the lips of the fiery haired girl.

Kara

Kara reached out tentatively for the deactivated Handicap that the other held -- gently taking it from her and turning it over in her hands a few times. Still in amazement that Lydia had actually succeeded. She still hadn't moved from her spot on her knees where she had dropped to help Terra -- surprised that the outburst and the revelation hadn't won them more attention.

"We shouldn't get too ahead of ourselves," she warned her gently, trying to not take away from the moment too much but still show reality to the other, "We need to test it on someone who doesn't have a heart condition. Preferably someone who doesn't heal quickly, like a shifter -- so their heart rate will be easier to control. We need a way to slow it down, and then we can use an EpiPen to bring it back."

Lydia Martin

She was right, Lydia’s heart was getting ahead of her head again. Now she was able to shuffle through some of the issues that might occur upon this discovery. Nothing was perfect and things couldn’t just be that simple. A nod was her response to the truthful words that the other female spoke. “Yeah, we just have to find someone willing to let us do that. It’s not going to be their favorite activity. I don’t think it’ll be able to work the same on werewolves though... The healing aspect is a variable we can’t think about right now.”

“I think I might have an idea as to how we can slow the heart rate enough or at least who to ask...” Allison wasn’t the first person she wanted to interact with after all that happened. The bitterness still sat against her tongue but she shoved it aside to let the words through. “I’ll talk to them and we can go from there.” ​Shut up, Lydia. You don’t want this.​

Kara

"We'll figure it out on werewolves in time -- this is a big step, I'm sure everything else will follow," she assured her, taking a step back from showing her logic by showing her the light again, trying to balance things out so that Lydia didn't suddenly lose hope. "We'll figure it out for werewolves, and vampires -- as soon as we solidify what we've learned so far, we can start work again." ​We​. Kara was wordlessly offering to continue helping Lydia in the long run -- hoping to have finally found her place among the Underground.

"I'll ask around, too," she offered when it came to finding someone to test it on -- a few names already coming to mind; members of the McCall pack that she knew Lydia held so dear, even if she knew it would be difficult to do something so dangerous to one of her friends. Eyes then turned up to the redheaded banshee once more -- "Allison?" she asked, voice soft and gentle as she knew it was a sensitive topic. "I can -- do you want me to talk to her?" As Kara and Allison had been in the same base together, she had a rapport built with her as well. But, she also understood if this was something Lydia felt she ​had​ to do.

Kara

"We'll figure it out on werewolves in time -- this is a big step, I'm sure everything else will follow," she assured her, taking a step back from showing her logic by showing her the light again, trying to balance things out so that Lydia didn't suddenly lose hope. "We'll figure it out for werewolves, and vampires -- as soon as we solidify what we've learned so far, we can start work again." ​We​. Kara was wordlessly offering to continue helping Lydia in the long run -- hoping to have finally found her place among the Underground.

"I'll ask around, too," she offered when it came to finding someone to test it on -- a few names already coming to mind; members of the McCall pack that she knew Lydia held so dear, even if she knew it would be difficult to do something so dangerous to one of her friends. Eyes then turned up to the redheaded banshee once more -- "Allison?" she asked, voice soft and gentle as she knew it was a sensitive topic. "I can -- do you want me to talk to her?" As Kara and Allison had been in the same base together, she had a rapport built with her as well. But, she also understood if this was something Lydia felt she ​had​ to do.

Lydia Martin

Variables would seep their way into anything and everything Lydia tried to decode in relation to these handicaps. All she was truly sure of was that they’d made a step, a hefty sized on, in the right direction. Things would progress from there. Whether the results were positive or not she was not able to tell at that exact moment in time which was how she kept her brain in check, the unknown was still out there. “We just need to keep it simple right now. Stick with the basics and then figure out everything else.”

“Great. So we have our next step then.” Kara was an important asset to Lydia’s work, in fact she kept the girl from completely going off the deep end and digging her head into this until it drowned her. Then it came. An exhale. Her name almost seared against the skin as the words burned off of Kara’s tongue. “I’ll talk to her, you just work on finding someone we can test and I’ll figure out how we do it.”

#;; chatzy log #c: l. martin #;; twio event 004

[ashovertroubledwater]

Song analysis: Strobe by deadmau5

"Strobe" is the behemoth progressive-house track by Canadian electronic music producer Joel Zimmerman, better known by his moniker deadmau5. The track saw it's release as a single in 2010, quickly becoming a cult-classic for both producers and listeners alike. The artist is said to have created it in parts, with different sections of the song having been completed at separate times and locations. While Joel can be known to employ the abused tropes of house music like the progressive repetition of looped percussion lines and monotonously repetitive synth melodies, Strobe does the opposite of lull it's audience with any of these things. Remarkably, the over-ten-minute length of this piece doesn't work against itself or feel forced. Most EDM consumers or mau5heads (as Zimmerman's most faithful fans lovingly call themselves) consider this to be his magnum opus. You'd be hard-pressed to find someone in Joel's audience who didn't ravenously obsess over this track at it's release, and even more hard-pressed to find someone today without oddly strong nostalgic ties to this track. But, upon asking listeners and scouring various forums for why it is that Strobe evokes such strong emotions and opinions on it, most answers come tied with only vague language at best; adjectives like evolving, atmospheric, or just simply magical can be among the commonly found the descriptors. Most responses are quite dodgy when it comes to what exactly makes Strobe so impressive and gives it an almost-endless replay value. People would much rather reminisce over how the record turned them on to electronica as a genre, or how it sound-tracked a momentously memorable time in their lives. I'd like to look past these dwellings and dig into the why of Strobe, it's begged me to be dissected in essay format for years. There is a small part of me that's hesitant to make such an attempt too, for in the name of full disclosure I am one of those aforementioned listeners who is obsessively fascinated with Strobe and my feelings for it. I don't want to lose the sense of wonder and other nebulous emotions it elicits. But, in the name of a sound and critical analysis, I'll be diving headlong into every aspect of what makes this tune such a stand-out, and the seemingly mysterious ways it does so. I've observed MIDI and Ableton project files, listened to covers using only singular instruments, and even taken chunks of the lead melody to my own keyboard. I'll make a consorted effort to keep the musical jargon light, which is a statement I find myself laughing at considering this is an electronic dance record. I also feel intrinsically qualified to take apart this song purely because of how much I've listened to it since its release. Oh by the way, I've seen deadmau5 play it live in concert. For the sake of respecting the holistic undertaking that is Strobe, I will be looking at the full length version of this song only. To listen to the radio or club edit would be selling the track short of it's grandness. So let's get right into it. Strobe starts out unlike most dance tracks that managed to achieve it's level of popularity. Although it's most known for the 128-BPM tempo it eventually reaches, the track starts out considerably slower. No kick-and-snare loop builds it's way into a lead synth melody for the first thirty seconds. Instead, for the first minute, a small combination of eerie mallet and bells, plus a smooth synth all oscillate in a slow and limited melody. The stress isn't on the progression of notes themselves as much as it is on the reverb effect added to these sounds. This reverb manages to highlight of the dichotomy of the way these instruments are used in this song versus how they're more traditionally used. When I think of how mallet-and-bell instruments (real or synthesized) and smooth synths usually sound, words like eerie or atmospheric aren't the first to come to mind. But the space this reverb creates gives Strobe an immediate and distinct ambiance to it. Couple that with the on-edge feeling given by the slightly evolving variance in the melody itself, and Strobe has done a lot to already gently place the listener into it's world. This is the first of many times in which I will gush over how well this song establishes itself with that ambiance. Here I am, just like all the other forum-dwellers using vague and all-encompassing language like atmosphere and ambiance. Let me be as specific as I can with my own interpretation of what kind of atmosphere Strobe establishes. There is a loneliness to this melody and the reverberation of it. It's seemingly somber, but I wouldn't go as far to say it's sad. It feels much too stuck in revelation, making it more exciting and eerie than sad. Also worth mentioning are the visuals displayed during the live performance of this song. The LCD screens on the gigantic rig known as The Cube on which deadmau5 stands display images of space and stars from what seems to be another planet. The background lighting and spotlights consisted of deep and cold colors, purple being the most prominent in the beginning. This is all important to me, as Joel is heavily involved in the production of his live shows. He goes as far as creating many of his own animations and visuals displayed on those panels, so the feelings of space and loneliness that are personally provoked feel validated - at least to an extent. It's very evident that Zimmerman makes a clear-cut effort to tell you that this won't be a beat you can just mindlessly dance to. It'll require a patient presence to hear this song out and experience it. About a minute and thirty seconds in, a lower-frequency synth and a piano fade in to accompany the initial melody. The synth melody specifically is much more elongated and simple, only further affirming the dire implications of solidarity and loneliness. Shortly after two and a half minutes is when the sense of scale begins to reveal itself when a small section of synthesized strings are welcomed in, and now this thing is waxing cinematic. A white noise hiss paves the way for what appears to be the rattling of some kind of shakers which mimic/actually the patterns of a rattlesnake. A rattlesnake? Even typing this, the use of such a sound seems so shallow and cheesy, the kind of attempt on a unique sound effect that would fail in most other dance tracks. But this isn't the "dance" part of the track yet, and somehow at this point you're inclined to just roll with it. Now the introductory part has been fully fleshed out. All that's left is to cycle through the melody's progression before it starts to fade out, giving way for what would eventually evolve into the lead synth. Another rattle, and on comes the four-on-the-floor kick drum. Exit the cinematic, enter the electronic. All your curiosities and questions are validated; there is so much more rhythmic, sonic, and melodic evolution that's about to take place. Strobe has just drastically sped up in tempo, and it was hard to even be aware of it. I'd first like to cover the sonic qualities of the lead synth, bass, and percussion, as these can be summarized much more distinctly than the melodic qualities. The lead saw-line synth is as warm as any other analogue synth. The synced bass line clearly has that distinct trance sound to it. The timbre and envelope of these sounds are progressively expanded, like the synths are opening their mouths to speak more rigidly with time. The kick is present and punchy in the mix, and the hats and claps are a subtle compliment to it all. The first iteration of the kick and snare portion of this song last up until just after the five minute mark. This is where Joel begins to allow the melodic prowess of this lead melody to rear it's head, but only in a constrained fashion for the time being. The sixteenth-note mannerism of this lead synth is the closest I can come to guessing at why the track is titled simply as "Strobe"; the melody flashes these chords at you in the on/off fashion of a strobe light, though this lead progression is already far from binary. The song flows on, bending upwards and downwards as it breathes with the kick. At this point in time everything is already complex enough to believe that this is the melodic peak of the song. From here on, you could probably expect a few new synths to glide along the higher-frequency areas of the mix. Maybe pepper in some quirky bass stabs (after all, this was released at the height of the dubstep craze) and you've got yourself a second half of the song that has established itself as good house tune with some trance influence. I could have also seen some airy female vocals taking this track further into that trance direction, but this song doesn't do that and retains it's atmospheric loneliness. The harmony itself is in B major, which has a fair amount of sharped notes in it's scale. What those sharp notes lead to is a pulling feeling, it keeps the mind busy if you just try to focus on the lead synth. Some call this all to be melancholic, but I refuse to do so and will leave the melancholic determination up to each individual listener. The word melancholic gets too close to the word nostalgic, and as I said I will refuse to let my nostalgia take over this dissection. At the what seems to be the height of the buildup to this beat, the drum line is pulled out from under the lead. The synths hold their form, but retract in timbre and how long the sustain lasts on each note. Once again, something's about to happen. But Joel doesn't add any new sounds like I thought he would. He instead makes a statement about the confidence he has in how he's about let the melodic progression shine. The rattles and hisses wear off, and the synth lead is left to it's own devices. This is where the melody receives it's final form, and it is quite possibly the most beautifully complex thing I've heard in any dance song. As the sustain of the notes is elongated, the focus is solely on the lead once again, and then melodic bliss just seems to appear. This melody is so quick to ascend and descend. It feels like it has a mind of its own, darting from one chord to the next in such a fluid fashion. No kick drum. Attempts to describe the feeling that this all gives me will forever fall short. Mr. Zimmerman is unabashedly telling you to hear the melody for all it is, live in it's world for a moment. The organ in the background accompanies the last few notes of each bar of the progression, which is another purposeful touch. Organs often carry a sanctimonious and solitary connotation with them, as they're often found in places of worship and large cathedrals. This adds to the not-just-fun-but-seriously-alone aura. At this point the listener is so far removed from a mindless dance beat that it's almost personally violating. The melody seemingly freezes by momentarily repeating itself at the six minute and forty second mark to usher in the big payoff. The drop hits and the kick-and-snare pattern returns in full force. All of the evolution Strobe goes through seemingly is released and this lonely melody finds a friend and a proper place for itself alongside the beat. Eventually the organ will reappear again here and there. There is now a harmony present to the world that Strobe was seemingly longing for during those first six minutes. This transcends all tropes of EDM and club music in such a confident fashion. I am eternally grateful that Joel didn't walk this track down a more typical dance path I initially thought it was heading down. His confidence his the pacing and the stunning synth progression is inspiring. Eventually, Strobe slowly takes itself apart and for a moment all that's left is the atmosphere that initially greeted you. Right, I got so wrapped in the moment that I forgot how this piece of art started out. It leaves you back where you started - alone. But not without the journey you just went on. One of the most fascinating things I take from this song is how repayable it is. Overtime, I've come up with the following theory to pinpoint why that is for me: there are no vocals over this beat to tell a distinct story. And why should there be? The length and evolution provide enough time to tell any story Joel could have wanted to. But Strobe wonderfully toes this line between being able to illicit feelings of solidarity/introspection, and leaving just enough up to the listener's interpenetration. In a way it feels like this song never ended. It builds a world in which I would go home and immerse myself in every night while I fed my newfound dance music obsession in middle school. This song does what every actor in Hollywood tries to perfect the art of, which is to say so much without using words. All this, in the end, leaves an impression that this song is much more of an experience than a dance beat. In my preparation for writing this, I came across a reddit user who managed to find one word to describe the feeling of that same experience best: cathartic. Strobe by deadmau5 takes the listener from a soft atmosphere to a vibrant and fascinating conclusion. It pulses like a dance track, but there's a (lonely) world's more to it than that.