#friendship ended with nike adidas reebok | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

emilyplaysotome · 4 years

Text

The Game of Love - Chapter 1

Since I have a bad tendency to obsess over what I write until I give up on it, I’m posting the first chapter of something new I’ve been dabbling with. Think of it like an original Down the Voltage Rabbit Hole, without the characters you know.

Meeting someone special is hard for anyone, but more so when you’re famous.

I can’t tell you when it was that I went from being Hana to being Hana on a billboard, but it happened slowly enough that I went from eating virtually unnoticed at a restaurant to being bombarded with selfie requests during the short time I picked up my food. I suppose that being one of the youngest women to ever win a Grand Slam will force you into the spotlight, but I’ve never thought of myself as a superstar.

The goal had always been to win gold at the Olympics.

Maybe Roland Garros.

And Wimbledon.

The U.S. and Australian Open if I was lucky.

They never told me that if you win the Australian Open and then manage to win the others in the same year, the world goes mad. They never told me that Nike, Adidas, and Reebok fall all over themselves trying to get you to agree to let them put out the “Hana shoe” and you go from being a struggling journeywoman on the tour to being richer than you ever could have imagined, thanks mostly to your team who milks you for every free moment when you’re not on the court.

You learn how to wear dresses and talk on camera and carry the weight of what it means to be a champion, constantly looking over your shoulder at the younger, hungrier crowd behind you that works twice as hard and trains harder because they don’t need to be on Good Morning America when you do. Your identity becomes “Hana the Tennis Champion” and you forget who you were when you were just “Hana, the girl who loves tennis” – hitting balls after dinner with dad on the courts by your house or joking around with the girls on the junior tour.

Those girls become competition, and your friendship is forced to change despite wanting it to be the way it was when things were simpler. They are nice and you love them, but the feelings are complicated and you forget what it means to have friends who see you as you are. There is always a commitment, a show, a movie, a project, a product – even during the off season, and of course, there’s the training.

You’re grateful to be successful doing what you love, but you know it can’t last forever and one day you decide you want to go out on top and announce that you’re done with the game that up until this point has been your entire life.

And you’re only 32.

I’m only 32.

The day after I retired I woke up as Hana, for the first time in 20 years. I suppose it’s out of habit that I still wake up at 7 A.M. and go for a run, but it’s been a few months and not much has changed.

My mom suggested I get a therapist.

That this major transition would be hard on anyone, but even harder on a prodigy who has been used to a regimented training schedule since she was 11.

I laughed it off, but after a couple of weeks I could feel the unease nagging at me, mocking me, asking me, “Who is Hana if there is no tennis?”

My therapist says a lot of high achieving people struggle with their self-worth outside of their profession. She challenged me to reconnect with friends I’d made at all stages of my life and I learned that being great at one thing left little time for love, creativity, music, and hobbies.

I also learned that I didn’t make many friends in my 32 years since I was too focused, too dialed in to waste time on anything outside of the goal. To be the best in the world I had taken on the mentality that everything outside of my goal was superfluous, but now I struggle to make it through the day.

“Who is Hana if there is no tennis?”

“I am…I am…”

“What are you feeling Hana?” my therapist asks.

“Scared. Confused. Angry. Lost.”

I’d had this rosy image of retirement, where I’d leisurely wake up next to a partner and make breakfast for us. Not just any partner if I’m being honest…him.

“I wake up at 7 A.M. and run 5 miles,” I find myself saying. “Then I make a breakfast smoothie. And then I remember that I don’t have anywhere to be and the depression takes over.”

“Have you been doing interviews?”

I shrug, “Not as many. They asked me to do commentary for the U.S. Open this year and I said I’d think about it.”

“What is your hesitation?”

I pause, thinking about what it would be like to live a tournament without participating in it. To see and comment on someone’s legacy that wasn’t my own. To one day have to announce that I’d been dethroned in my achievements and smile as if it didn’t bother me, when I’d probably just wonder if I’d retired too early.

“I never wanted to be on television. And I want to be able to answer the question who Hana is if there is no tennis.”

“It sounds like this time is providing you with a beautiful gift – to explore that question and your interests without limitations.”

She’s right, and I feel guilty for pitying myself when I have the freedom to do and go wherever I want. I let out a caustic chuckle and say, “I want to live in my games.”

“The ones you used to play on the road?”

I nod, wondering how serious she thinks I am and wondering if the statement is a joke at all.

“Why do you think you like them so much?”

“It’s fun to be someone who isn’t Hana. And it’s fun to fall in love.”

“Has Hana ever been in love?”

I think for a minute and nod.

“But you knew that, didn’t you?” I ask.

She shrugs and pushes her glasses up.

“I’m asking Hana the person, not Hana the superstar.”

“But our breakup was all over the tabloids…”

“Our time together is about you, not what’s in a tabloid.”

“Superstars have to date superstars. It’s like a law,” I say laughing. “What would Instagram think if I gave them anything other than aspirational?”

I’m lying but I can’t help myself, even in therapy my pride gets in the way of being honest. Dating him was never about appearances, at least, it wasn’t for me.

“Tell me about him.”

Eight years of memories flash in my mind, 22 to 30.

“We met after I won my first major. His movie premiere had him in Australia and he got tickets to the final. We ended up at an after party together and he gave me his number. It was good until it wasn’t and then he broke up with me.”

“That’s a very condensed version.”

I shrug again, feeling bitter that he seems to have moved on just fine and I haven’t dated anyone despite the rumors that pop up from time to time. I don’t feel like talking about how I kept pushing for us to move forward, with a vision for my retirement and life with him as he kept pushing for me to stay on the road. I don’t feel like talking about how much of our time was spent apart and how I suspected he preferred things that way.

That it was better to have a girlfriend too busy to take up more than an hour of his day on a regular basis than a girlfriend who could be present the way she wanted to be when we were together.

A pleasant chime goes off and she silences the alarm, noting we’re out of time and asking if next week works.

“My schedule is free,” I joke, but I feel annoyed that there’s nothing but endless free time and nothing to do with it.

When I’m home I open the games I referenced in therapy – the ones I jokingly call “choose your anime romance adventure games” with my mom versus their proper designation of “otome” games, as they’re known with the fandom online that I’m a part of. It’s only when I’m online that I feel like I can momentarily answer the question that nags at me, and that’s because no one know I’m me.

HanaLovesOtome the tumblr user is popular because of the screenshots she posts, not because she’s one of the most celebrated athletes of a generation.

She participates in every event and has spent an ungodly amount of money on special date stories and lottery gatcha items that put her consistently in the top ten featured users of Ikemen Inc.

She’s popular because people will ask her to purchase stories and games they can’t afford, and she’ll video record herself playing or twitch live stream the sessions so everyone can get a sense of what it’s like to fall in love with Ikemen Inc.’s most exclusive bachelors.

Even when I was on tour, I loved playing otome games because for a couple of hours I could stop thinking about my life and instead lose myself in a world overseas where I get to make choices for a protagonist whose name I’ve made my own as I decide what eligible bachelor she’ll fall in love with.

I’d found the games a year before we’d broken up, mostly by chance after seeing an ad on twitter that boasted, “The Perfect Boyfriend is in your phone - meet him now!” While normally I would have continued to scroll past, something about the caption had stopped me in my tracks. Looking back it was probably because the idea of the “perfect boyfriend” being in my phone was ironic having had such a drawn out long distance relationship in which it often felt that he only existed in my life virtually.

After entering my name for the main character I would be controlling, “Decoding His Affections” thrust me into a world that consisted of a simple illustrated background, paired with a cartoon character sprite whose various expressions matched the dialogue being said in the text box where the story played out.

While the prologue of “Decoding His Affections” was free, it ended with a prompt asking me who out of the five characters I’d just met, I wanted to get to know as my Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department partner and future perfect boyfriend. For the low price of $3.99, I could purchase one of five options and determine how my protagonist would fall in love. Depending on my dialogue selections, I was either granted a “Love Ending!” or a less desired “Happy Ending!”

Throughout the course of 13 interactive chapters, Sebastian went from being my underling, to my partner, and finally, to my boyfriend. As the protagonist with my name started to fall for Sebastian, I found myself enjoying the escape from my reality with a game “self” who always met with a positive response in love.

I soon found myself lost in a world where I could be transparent with my intentions without any fear of rejection. Sebastian clearly liked my main character back, but was conflicted about falling for a woman whose time in Tokyo had an expiration date. Even though their relationship was in a grey zone for the majority of the game, he was always warm, always loving, and most importantly, had responses that gave me butterflies as I read his poetic musings from a cold hotel room after a long day of training.

Seeing as how these games were a product of Japan, in addition to the subdued romance I also found myself getting a kick out of the cultural differences that were peppered throughout the story. Simple gestures such as the time that Sebastian grabbed her hand in order to protect her from an impending explosion, resulted in a shook inner monologue where my heroine wondered if her heart was racing from the danger, or because of the physical contact. There was something sweet about this world in which men and women shared a shyness around physical touching that was unlike anything I’d ever experienced as a Western woman. Handshakes, hugs, and even kisses on the cheek were something that happened in my life on a daily basis, yet I was suddenly living in a world via my phone where every gesture was laced with romantic subtext.

It was clear that the only thing Ikemen Inc. changed in their games was the names of their clearly Japanese love interests, in order to better appeal to a western audience. Other than that, their games remained true to their point of origin.

Looking back, our relationship was already strained with me hinting towards my expiration date and him pushing me to stay on the tour. The day I’d played my first otome game we were bickering over text about it, him convinced it would be better for both of us if I refocused on my career instead of settling down with him in his Calabasas home. As I achieved Sebastian’s coveted “Love Ending!” thanks to my carefully selected dialogue choices, I surprised myself by tearing up in which I read an ending where Sebastian confessed to me, or moreover the woman I whose life I was intermittently controlling, his undying love.

I’d felt a bit foolish at the time, having fallen prey to simple plot devices and romantic tropes, however Sebastian had done something for me that my relationship could not.

He’d managed to touch that part deep in my heart that still wanted to believe that romance was possible in this world, and more importantly, was possible for me.

In the weeks to come I found myself leaning on these games more and more as it became clear that my vision for the future did not align with his, it felt like every free second I was pouring myself into my fantasy life. By the time he ended things, I’d made way through the entire Ikemen Inc. catalogue of premium games and started to make my way into the exclusives with a higher price point, more beautifully illustrated scenes (CGs), and the Ikemen Inc. community leaderboard.

I play them a lot lately.

Maybe too much.

When I log in to my tumblr I see a message from my friend KittyGirl.

OMG Hana! Did you see they released Tyler Holland?

I saw and I played and I’m posting the full vid on twitch later ;)

…

I wonder who KittyGirl is as she types, and I wonder if she ever wonders who I am. I wonder if she would care if I was Hana the superstar or if she even follows tennis.

A lot of the girls on here don’t.

A lot of the girls on here are much younger than I am.

I wonder if it’s weird I don’t have many friends my age and that the people I feel closest to at the moment are all usernames in my feed.

STOP HANA YOURE THE BEST!

I smile because it gives me a sense of purpose and I haven’t felt that for some time.

It’s really good. He might be in my top 5 boyfriends.

NO. Really!?

Really.

Sometimes I wish that the men in my phone would come to life. That one day I would wake up and Sebastian would be there in human form, not his two-dimensional anime character form. I’ve thought about what he would look like if he were real.

Not just him.

Him and all the others I’ve dated over the years.

I wonder what it’d be like to date someone you know would never leave you.

Who could be that perfect boyfriend, or husband, or father.

It’s just as I’m thinking about this again that my phone chimes, letting me know I’ve received an email. I’m surprised to see it’s from Ikemen Inc. and that HanaLovesOtome has been invited along with the four other top Ikemen community users for an all-expenses paid, one month vacation to Ikemen’s Dream Resort.

My gut reaction is to scream, “Yes!” but then I remember I’m Hana the superstar.

What would people think if they found out?

What would the tabloids write if they saw me?

I pause.

Who is Hana if there is no tennis?

Hana is HanaLovesOtome.

And so I write an email back, deciding not to loop in my management team, and let the team at Ikemen Inc. know that I would be delighted to experience the resort. The response back is immediate and includes additional details and an NDA.

I skim the details of the agreement, relieved that I am not allowed to talk about the experience as that means no one else will and my identity as Hana the superstar will most likely be off limits to the press and send it back.

It all happens quickly and before the hour is up I’ve managed to secure my spot in the Ikemen Fan 5.

In the two weeks leading up to my departure, I no longer feel depressed or as if time stretches out in a way that makes me feel small and insignificant. I have an event to look forward to and arrangements to be made.

My therapist thinks a solo trip will be good for me and encourages me to journal and continue with the homework she’s given me outside of our sessions. My mom agrees that it will be good for me to have a real vacation which is something I haven’t had in years.

I’ve seen the world through touring but I’ve never really had time for tourism.

To that point, when I get on the plane it strikes me that this is my first time on a plane without the purpose of coming from or going to a tournament. I check two large suitcases and still bring a racquet in case I need the release of losing myself in a training session or two, despite the fact my performance no longer matters.

I wear the sunglasses I always wear to obscure my identity in first class and a wig and baseball hat and n95 mask, which always does the trip. At Narita airport, I see a man holding a sign that says “HanaLovesOtome” and I follow him to a town car that takes me two hours outside of Tokyo proper. It’s only when we pull off the main road, down a long skinny isolated one that I take off my disguise and breathe a sigh of relief that I managed not to attract the attention of any photographers or fans.

In my head I always saw Ikemen Inc. as a small developer, tucked away on a floor in a nondescript office building somewhere in Toyko.

The reality of their facilities surprised me, and we drove 15 minutes through dense woodland, past another small road with a sign indicating guest and employee parking - up to a manicured property where at the center was a sleek looking high rise. My driver stopped under the porte-cochere and helped me with my suitcases, triggering the mechanism for the large glass double doors to open which caught the attention of a man inside.

“Please, allow me to be of assistance,” he said, quickly grabbing the roller’s handles and helping me in to a spacious reception area. “I’m Roman and I run the resort division of Ikemen Inc.”

“Hana.”

There was something familiar about the way that Roman talked and the way he dressed that I couldn’t quite put my finger on as he introduced me to the woman at reception and made small talk about my trip. I engaged in the idle banter until the persistent feeling that I knew him from somewhere became so overwhelming that I finally found myself asking, “Have we met before?”

“Yes,” a female voice called out behind me.

I turned to see a girl, no older than 20 approaching us with a suitcase of her own. She wore the same expression that countless fans wore upon recognizing me as they rushed up to me and asked for a selfie except she was not looking at me, but at Roman.

“He’s Roman Hinton, from Ikemen’s Paradise Palace.”

“Ah, you’ve stayed with us in Paradise I assume?” Roman asked the girl smiling.

“Oh you have no idea,” she said dreamily, and it was then that I realized my wish of dating one of the men in my phone might come true.

That’s the end of my rough first chapter. Let me know if you want to know where we go from here and I might post more. Tagging @nitelotus since she asked to see it

#down the voltage rabbit hole #voltage fanfic #voltage games #voltage romance sims #voltage inc #mlqc #ikemen #ikemen sengoku

6 notes · View notes

azlyrics85 · 3 years

Text

The life of Pete Doherty through 10 of his best lyrics

There’s not a whole lot about Pete Doherty that hasn’t been bastardised in a single shape or every other. certainly a controversial discern inside the rock ‘n’ roll scene of the ’00s, one thing that has always been pure approximately Doherty (no, now not that) is his entire immersion in his paintings, specifically the act of writing lyrics. underneath, we’ve picked out ten of our favourites as a reminder that underneath the tabloid headlines, there’s some serious expertise. AZlyrics

Doherty, the son of a army family, grew up inside the uk and Europe’s navy barracks. Floating around the grounds, Doherty discovered solace in the written word and soon commenced composing his personal poetry. At age eleven, he picked up a guitar, and the arena seemed to click on for the clearly charismatic Doherty. attaining 11 GCSE’s with seven at A* showcased that Doherty become a sincerely gifted child. but it might take him assembly his songwriting counterpart for his skills to be surely unearthed. assembly Carl Barat is absolutely the moment that Doherty’s adventure to stardom commenced. starting off The Libertines in 1997, the band cultivated a guerilla following that only reached mainstream interest with the band’s launch of their 2002 debut, Up The Bracket. regrettably, it become right here that matters started out to awry for the musician as his escalating drug habit had begun to cause rifts within the organization and, particularly, Barat himself. In 2003, Doherty changed into jailed for burgling Barat’s flat; it might begin the chain of activities that could see Doherty yo-yo within the organization alongside swirling heroin and crack dependancy. It marked a unhappy time in British rock music. Doherty turned into in large part championed as one of the greatest songwriters Britain had produced in a generation. not due to the fact Oasis had a band amassed up this type of cultural impact in any such brief time. As Noel Gallagher as soon as placed it: “If Oasis changed into the sound of the council property making a song its coronary heart out, The Libertines had been the tramps behind the dumpster.” The Libertines formally break up after their 2d self-titled album, and Doherty sought pastures new, turning his romantic poetical stylings to a band of his personal, Babyshambles. The organization, nonetheless plagued through Doherty’s drug addiction and now his non-stop positioning inside the tabloid press, as a result of his relationship with twiglet Kate Moss, struggled to in shape the depth of The Libertines upward push to reputation but nonetheless delivered a few classic songs to boot. happily, unlike many others, this story has a satisfied finishing. Doherty quickly found sobriety, in some shape or every other, and has moved to the seaside with his antique buddy Carl Barat. as well as enacting their very own desires of Albion, the duo also got the vintage band returned together and have been relentlessly visiting pre-COVID. The duo even have an idyllic bed and breakfast in Margate called The Albion Rooms, that's a ought to for any fan. That’s all well and appropriate, however the iconic figure of Pete Doherty will always loom largest in his songs. thru his lyrics, Doherty became the archetypal starry-eyed poet, the romantic trapped in a rock celebrity shell, and he converted the British rock scene along with his style. underneath, we’ve got the evidence. Pete Doherty’s 10 satisfactory lyrics: ‘music when The lighting fixtures go out’ “Is it merciless or kind no longer to speak my mind and to misinform you rather than hurt you?” whilst you think about a top notch Pete Doherty lyric, this is likely the primary place you’ll land, so it feels only proper that it must be the first on our list too. A touching refrain built within one of the band’s greater lilting numbers, ‘music when The lighting fixtures exit’ is ready as ordinary a Doherty music as you will locate. Wrapped up in romance and delicately poised for chaos, the song sounds like the type of diatribe one would imagine Lord Byron to have coughed up between bouts of syphilis. It’s a moment at the Libertines LP that stands out for its allure and one track that usually begs for a sing-a-lengthy at live shows. ‘Hooray for the twenty first Century’ “What became of the running elegance?/ Nike Air, Reebok, Adidas/ Scratch playing cards, Pitbulls, ecstasy/ Hooray for the 21st Century” one of the lesser travelled songs from The Libertines lower back catalogue, ‘Hooray For The 21st Century’, is speedy, livid and ferocious in same measure. A scathing indictment of the brand new century and its commercialisation, it once again sees Doherty reminiscent of the past for his emotional grounding and lamenting the future unfurling in the front of him. powerful and specific in its punk delivery, the song is a high-quality second at any Libs stay show due to the fact they hardly ever play it. however, after they do, assume a positive section of diehard fans to lose their cool. It’s a tune that captures Doherty at his incendiary quality. AZlyrics ‘the man Who might Be King’ “I lived my dream today/ I lived it yesterday/ and that i’ll be living yours tomorrow/ Don’t have a look at me that manner” There’s absolute confidence that by the time The Libertines launched their debut album in 2002, rock ‘n’ roll had modified. The Strokes had carved a really perfect storage rock gap for The Libs to fit into neatly, and that they didn’t disappoint, turning into Britain’s answer to the rock revolution. whilst the debut LP is rich with punkified skiffle moments, the follow-up became tons extra numerous and centered at the fame that surrounded them. ‘the person Who might Be King’ is one of the most vitriolic tracks on the report. stimulated by the 1975 movie of the equal call, it sees Doherty and Barat offer up their critiques for the proposed King, “i'd say only one issue: lie, lie, lie, lie, lie”. but the most blistering moment comes within the chorus as Doherty holds a replicate as much as all of these those who looked down on him as a penniless poet and roaming rock famous person. ‘You’re My Waterloo’ “You’ll never fumigate the demons/ regardless of how an awful lot you smoke/ So simply say you like me/ For three precise reasons/ and that i’ll throw you the rope” certainly one of the earlier songs inside the Libertines back catalogue, the tune remained one among their untested demos earlier than they in the end brought a new edition of ‘You’re My Waterloo’ to the band’s modern-day release, 2015’s Anthems for Doomed youth. It’s becoming that the track should land on such a named album, as it is so intrinsically linked to Doherty’s personal youth. continuously shifting and in no way settling down, Doherty struggled to make significant connections early on in his lifestyles; it’s a part of why his and Barat’s relationship turned into so connected to their survival. right here, Doherty uses his own emotions of alienation and casts it via the paradigm of an old piano ballad, the kind you may expect to listen a forlorn lover singing after final time with a gin in hand. It’s a motif that Doherty observed appealing and used all through his career — the crumbling British Empire put through the wringer as a romantic ceremony. ‘Can’t Stand Me Now’ “Cornered the boy kicked out at the sector / the world kicked returned loads fuckin’ tougher now” any other song from The Libertines, there’s little or no to say approximately ‘Can’t Stand Me Now’ that hasn’t already been stated or that the band don’t say of their lyrics. one of the greater specific comeback songs you’ll ever come across, Barat and Doherty element notably the plight in their friendship, with Barat making a song “light arms thru the dark, shattered a lamp and a darkness it cast,” as an instantaneous connection with Doherty’s jail time. equally, Doherty returns fire with “No, you’ve were given it the wrong manner round/ you close up me up and blamed it at the brown,” hinting at Barat’s zero tolerance for Doherty’s antics. however following this line, Doherty furnished lyrics that no longer best showcases his nation of thoughts at the time but exactly why The Libertines discovered an audience: “Cornered the boy, kicked out at the world/ the sector kicked again lots fuckin’ tougher now.” This was why a era connected with Doherty, he became risky and gifted, of route, but he became also achievable and fallible — he was an everyman. ‘Fuck forever’ “So what’s the use among dying and glory/ i will’t inform between dying and glory/ New Labour and Tory/ Purgatory and glad families” With Babyshambles, Doherty had a modern-day path to take. He was not fighting with Barat for lyric area like a 21st century Lennon-McCartney. Now, the singer had unfastened rein to enact his own sound and his own vision. One track that possibly typifies that feeling is ‘Fuck for all time’, which featured on Babysdhambles’ record Down in Albion. by no means one to turn down a combat, Doherty began to politicise his paintings and once again shine a mild on the operating elegance who, in his opinion, have been being royally shafted. but, while our favorite lyrics are far extra widespread, the track’s basis became a wreck-up. The music become an immediate attack on Barat and the affection that changed into now misplaced between them. AZlyrics ‘What A Waster’ “She wakes up within the morning, and writes down all her dreams/ reads like the e book of revelations, or the Beano or the unabridged Ulysses” An avid reader himself, there’s some gravitas to his words on ‘What A Waster’ that may in any other case be misplaced. add to that the extra authenticity Doherty brings to the concept of what a ‘waster’ clearly is, and this track takes on a new stage of realness for the listener. Doherty will become our narrator for this track as he info the trials and tribulations of his lover, singing, “in which does all of the cash move? immediately up her nostril.” soaking wet in punk rhythm and a refusal to slow down, the music is a rebel while performed stay. What possibly lands most poignantly of all is the fact that the song acts as a self-pleasant prophecy. Doherty become poised to be the saviour of British rock track however threw it all away fro narcotics. although, this self-flagellating masterclass remains one of the band’s first-class songs. ‘Time For Heroes’ “we can die in the magnificence we were born, but that’s a category of our very own my love.” Famously inspired by means of the instant Pete Doherty became cracked on the pinnacle by way of rebel police for checking his hair inside the mirrored image of their rebellion shield for the duration of the 2001 might also Day protests, ‘Time For Heroes’ turned into constantly probable to be entrenched in magnificence war. “Did you see the fashionable youngsters within the rebellion? Shovelled up like muck and set the night time on fireplace” sings Doherty with gusto. while the upper class controls the establishment, one aspect the working magnificence has constantly had below its spell is song. It seems only fitting that Doherty have to choose the savage song to make his emotions clear. the whole thing that makes a incredible Libertines track is here. There’s romance, violence and misaligned patriotism all of which makes this tune feel like a William Turner painting being enacted in front of our eyes. The lyric above first-rate encapsulates all of these feelings into one of the maximum sincere lyrics Doherty has ever written. ‘the coolest antique Days’ “if you’ve lost your religion in love and song then the quit gained’t be long” Few lyrics speak as virtually for Doherty’s individual and eventual downfall than the lovely ‘the good vintage Days’. another second in which Barat and Doherty are glad to appearance backwards for their visions of the future, the band sing their hearts out with the permeating idea that once they stop the choral renditions their lives will come to an end. while it is able to appear the type of aspect you’d anticipate scrawled at the lower back of adlescent diaries, there’s a certain grandness to the lyric that still feels actual. even as Doherty and Barat have been satisfied to location themselves at the bottom of London’s underbelly, they had been capable of provide grandiose moments of reflection, too, strong within the knowledge that they’d stand through the sentiment if wishes be. always placing song and art at the leading edge of everything he did, Doherty lived out this lyric time and time again. ‘Albion’ “Down in Albion/ They’re black and blue/ however we don’t talk approximately that/ Are you from ’round here?/ How do you do?/ I’d like to talk about that” whilst the traditional line of “gin in teacups and leave son the lawn” is the lyric without end quoted from this 2006 tune from Babyshambles album Down in Albion, the tune’s commencing strains say a long way greater than that. They provide up a crystalline vision of britain, or Albion, as Doherty refers to it. no longer handiest noting the continuous fistfights that appear to clutter our streets, nor just the stiff upper lip that stops us from talking approximately it but also the want for exchange. missing any robust narrative to the music, Doherty instead offers modern-day Britain vignettes, and it’s a harsh reflection. soaking wet in violence and a refusal to connect, Britain has spent a lot of its glory years as a prisoner of itself, by no means definitely unfurling and evolving. The singer notes that dying and instead attempts to conjure up a brand new land, a new Albion, wherein the beyond is well known, and the destiny welcomed. AZlyrics

1 note · View note