firsthalfofmasente: Imaginal Disk by Magdalena Bay

vvvvlovesmusic

20

PART 1: REVIEW This album is pure bliss. From the extremely polished and pretty production to the beautiful vocal performance to the attention-grabbing pace,... this project, in my eyes, is flawless. First, this album shows such an incredible understanding of pacing and flow, as even songs without traditional transitions keep the listener hooked from start to end. Some pacing moments that really resonated with me are at found at the end of ‘Angel on a Satellite’ and the end of ‘Vampire in the Corner’. VITC is a slower song found in the first half of the album. After the vocals end, the instrumental loops four times until the chord progression is resolved and then the song abruptly ends with the beat of ‘Watching TV’. This is one of my favorite unconventional transitions on this album because it keeps the momentum moving, especially considering the following track has some buildup throughout the song and can be viewed as a slow burn. I think this shows an incredible understanding of album pacing and gives listeners like myself more of a reason to listen to the full thing again. The other example I had is very similar to the first and is found on ‘Angel on a Satellite’. It’s probably the slowest and most emotional song on the album, with the outro transitioning to the hopeful and happy ‘The Ballad of Matt & Mica’. I again love this transition and placement because it picks the album back up and ends it in a fun and uplifting way. Without transitions like these, the project would feel much less cohesive. Another thing I love about this project as a whole is the vocal performance. Songs like ‘Watching TV’ and ‘True Blue Interlude’ have some of the most angelic singing I’ve ever had the pleasure of listening to. Mica’s nasally voice really brings out the best in the dreamy, lively, and otherworldly production. The last thing I wanted to touch on about the album as a whole before we get into the details of the songs themselves is the production. This production style is as entrancing and entertaining as it is incredibly diverse and hard-hitting in soundscapes for being a “synth-pop” record. It can be psychedelic and electronic at times, or it can be borderline rock music with heavy bass and drumlines, yet somehow the whole thing from start to finish is very cohesive even with this diversity and range of sounds presented. With all of this out of the way, we can begin to talk about some of my favorite songs on this album. First, on ‘Cry for Me’ we are introduced to the beautiful synth-heavy atmosphere which is built up into an ABBA-inspired heartbreaking, yet grand and hopeful vocals with lyrics such as “think of love when you remember me”. The piano in the background also adds to the emotion and buildup of the track. The next track I want to talk about is ‘Watching TV’. I have already covered how much I love the transition into this song, but I also have strong feelings about the rest of it. First off, there is a killer crushed drum loop that starts off the song, with an electric bass lick and top synth notes coming in later. In my opinion, the real MVP of this song is the singing. Though the beginning is mostly spoken word, the middle and end pick up the pace with gorgeous vocals into the explosive outro with the repeated lines “It’s time to meet, the monsters inside you”. It’s hard to explain just how emotional and powerful this song is without just playing it for you, so if you haven’t already listened, please do yourself a favor and at least listen to this song. Next, I’d like to talk about the song ‘Image’. I like this song for different reasons than the others we have talked about so far. The writing on this song is, in my opinion, perfect. It is placed in the beginning of the album right after the first interlude, which makes so much sense for it being a very catchy song that also develops the atmosphere very well. I also love that there is a countdown started on this song that leads to the beat switch on ‘Tunnel Vision’. I think that because it is a more standard pop song, some of these things get overlooked, but I personally enjoyed the hell out of the songwriting and production as usual. The last song I want to touch on is my favorite on this album, which is ‘Love Is Everywhere’. I love the song ‘running out of time’ by Lil Yachty, so hearing the bass line on this project was truly special. I also love how it completely changes the pace from the previous song being very rock-inspired and heavy, to the ethereal funk-influenced song ‘Love Is Everywhere’. I can’t help but listen in awe of the vocals on this song paired with that groovy bass line. It brings such an amazing balance to the song sonically, while also keeping the album moving along interestingly. Overall, I don’t see this album being topped this year for me and it is truly an incredible experience every single time. PART 2: ANALYSIS Overview: Few albums have made me connect with them quite as much as Imaginal Disk. Since writing my original review a week following its release, I have found a lot more to say about it but struggled to find a way to say it on here in non-review form. I find that the best way to talk about its concept is to go track by track and then as a whole. This album can have many different interpretations thematically and conceptually, but this is just mine. I always highly suggest finding your own meaning to each track before you consider mine, especially because I will not be considering lore from previous albums or music videos, but taking lyrics as is. She Looked Like Me!: The album opens with a seemingly out of place verse about the duo, Matt and Mica’s ancestry and family history. Their families escape from their Nazi-occupied homes to Argentina take the forefront, with a line relating these ideas to concepts explored later in the project. This line is “La-love, born to marry”. As you will soon learn, this album talks a lot about fate and destiny, especially one’s fate to fall in love and die. The next verse again introduces us to a concept that will be further explored later, with the lines “I didn’t know her when she walked in, but I recognized her eyes… And she felt like a dream, I didn’t know what to think, she looked like me” “she shot at me like an earthbound bullet and then she wrapped her hands around my neck and I felt love”. These lines introduce us to the narrator’s obsession with perfecting herself and finding validation from others, essentially saying that even though she is choking herself, it is an act of love to be better. Clearly, this is an unhealthy mindset, but this is only the beginning. Killing Time: The next track takes a far more introspective and metaphorical approach to some of the concepts. Some important lines that build on to the story of the album are “without love I’m without me” and “if time is meant for living why’s it killing me?” These lines show clear desperation for love or validation from someone else. “There’s always time for living, but never time for me” implies that maybe this isn’t a new desire, but one that has grown so strong that it is uncontrollable now. True Blue Interlude: This brings us to the next track, which is almost like an advertisement for the person she wants to become. “Something lies dormant inside and it’s been there all along” shows how she believes that the change to become this “perfect” version of herself is found within, which is partially true. As we will discuss later on, the change she needs to make is not to try and push herself to be perfect, but to accept her issues and move forward. Though it is implied in that line that she needs to make the change herself, the next few tracks seem to conflict with that and show that she seeks acceptance from others. Image: The next track finds her in a new relationship to hopefully fill the void that that is her self-esteem and self-worth. This track has some conflicting themes, hinting at some confusion and problems in her relationship. For example, there is a line, “I‘m the best you’ve got, true or not, I’ve got common sense” that implies that the relationship might not be ideal or even working, but she stays in it to feel loved or validated. Another interesting line is found in the last chorus “make me in your image”. This is something that will be revisited later, but it gives a look into her mindset of needing someone else to love her because she can’t do it for herself. Death & Romance: This track brings a more literal approach to her feelings and her relationship. It goes back to the ideas of fate and destiny, directly saying that the two given things in life, death and romance, are never fair and can be taken from you easily. I would also say this is a way she coped with her less than ideal relationship, by convincing herself that even though it’s not fair, she’s lucky to have it at all. It’s a bittersweet look at her and her partner’s love for each other because of the sacrifices portrayed in the lyrics in order to love each other. In the first verse, the lines “I wait hours for your car, are we too late? Are we too far?” really tug on my heartstrings because it seems like even though they have both given so much to each other, it’s not enough to save their relationship. The chorus, “my hands, your hands, I’ll hold forever, no way I’ll break hold, no not ever” is almost foreshadowing the fallout and struggle to accept the end. Fear, Sex: Following the troubles in their relationship, this song brings a retrospective view to their relationship, heavily implying it ended somewhere after the previous track. “So you stand, in a broken war, you fall upon your sword” suggests that the other person in the relationship couldn’t take it and “surrendered”. The outro verse “please don’t die alone, overhead, I’ll surrender to the voices in the end, should’ve known those dirty bastards would put wires in your head, are you there? All alone lost in forever” suggests maybe her partner was manipulative and instilled fears of never finding love in her head. Vampire In The Corner: After the inevitable end of their relationship, she tries to come to terms with her loss, clearly not over the relationship. Though it seems like a love song, lines like “sorry like a flower that never gets any sun, I hang my head down, let the bees do their buzz” depict her as defeated and letting life wash over her, while being overwhelmed at life moving around her. The buildup and climax of the song represents a newfound obsession with themselves and their flaws after the end of their relationship, grappling on to the idea of perfecting themselves in a desperate attempt to somehow feel better. This also goes back to the idea introduced on ‘True Blue Interlude’ about finding the purest version of yourself and pushing yourself to be the best. Watching T.V.: In this song, we’re introduced to the true main conflict, her perception of themself. The track opens with the lines “too much watching T.V., it’s gonna rot you from the inside out”, which could be a metaphor for her addiction to validation and self-perfection. Another important line, “if you wanna be clean, you gotta scrub until the blood comes out” shows her unhealthy headspace and romanticization of being the “best” version of herself, even if it’s really taking a toll on her. The hook, “it’s time to meet the monsters inside you” could be further grooming her belief that she needs to be perfect, or could be a wake up call. For sake of convenience and to align with the rest of my analysis, I will go with the latter. I think this also makes the most sense given the rest of the tracklist, so with that we can continue. Tunnel Vision: This track is kind of a self-reflection of sorts, with her finally coming to terms with her identity and true self, embracing her flaws and learning to give herself grace. “I learn of right and wrong, I learn to follow one and suddenly I can breathe” shows the relief she feels after growing as a person and allowing herself to make mistakes and learn from them. Love Is Everywhere: The turning point of the whole album is found on the follow up track ‘Love Is Everywhere’. This song is perfectly placed, with her experiences in the last few tracks shaping her and eventually teaching her that she doesn’t need others to validate her. There’s always room for love whether it be within you or externally. The bridge, “building an image to judge you for what you did, wrap it, pack it, throw it with all the sh*t, there’s always room for love” is an amazing summary of the plot so far, and is such a beautiful message universally. However, this is not the end. That’s My Floor: This track introduces a new plot point. Even after being more kind to herself, there is still something missing in her life and it leads her to rock bottom. “Life’s a chore, but floating above the lobby, that’s my door” in my interpretation alludes to taking her own life as an escape from all the hardship she’s endured. The instrumental breakdown at the end with the erratic guitar could represent her mental health rapidly deteriorating. Cry For Me: In all honesty, I could make an entire post analyzing this song alone. The instrumental has so many layers to it, not to mention the powerful poetry on top of it. All around, this song is perfect, but I will do my best to just explain why this song is so amazing lyrically. The first act if you will, begins with the lines “thinking of you from a road that has no bends”. She is clearly thinking of her ex-lover and regrets letting go of them. “I’ll take all your thanks and all your sympathies, cry for me, cry for me” shows more of her intentions behind taking her life, implying that she thinks because she dies that people will give her attention and sympathy that she felt she didn’t receive while she was alive. The next verse, “plenty of time here to nurture consequence, if you don’t hear back then god had other plans, I leave all my dregs to all my progeny, cry for me, cry for me” suggests that she is letting her emotions take over her and “nurturing consequence” by wallowing in her sadness and hurting herself because of it. “I leave all my dregs to all my progeny” could be referring to the ones around her, like friends or family, being left with the hurt she passed down. The second act starts with the lines “fate, lead me astray” which I interpret as a cry for help, desperately asking someone to change her mind. “All along there was a story, spare me all the allegories please, oh please” is kind of a contradiction to the last line because she is essentially saying she doesn’t want help or words of advice. I think the previous line is internal, while the other is external, like saying that she doesn’t want help while secretly hoping someone can save her from her emotions. “Think of love when you remember me” is mostly self-explanatory but it’s probably her note to those around her to remember the great times she had when she was alive instead of dwelling on how her life ended. Angel on a Satellite: This track is almost like a divine intervention. It seems that after her attempt to end her life, she comes to her senses because of either a realization that she can come out of the situation stronger, or because of someone else talking her down from it. This intervention or person is represented as an “angel on a satellite”. At the end of the song, she says “when I see me through your eyes I love me, so don’t leave my sight, you always see the sky, angel on a satellite” which could imply two different things depending on what you believe the intervention was. First, it could be her talking to herself and finally truly loving herself and finding her worth from within. Alternatively, it could be that she goes into a new relationship and falls into the same pit of depending on someone else to feel better about herself. The Ballad of Matt & Mica: The final track is a reprise of the first. Its overly confident and positive lyrics like “fly high overzealous, past paragon, that’s why I’m the greatest” make it clear that no matter what happened in the last two tracks, it ultimately worked out and gave her a happy ending either with herself or a partner. It’s such a fitting conclusion for this rollercoaster of an album and puts a very upbeat spin on the opening. Conclusion: Though the story is not necessary to appreciate the greatness of this album, it certainly doesn’t disappoint and makes me love it even more every time I play it. I swear every listen I find something new I love about it and that is truly saying something considering I have some 10k listens to the tracks. I hope this makes you understand why this album is so special to me and inspires you to make your own interpretations of this album and others. Thank you if you read this far :) show more

drewbs

44

🦄

pedro

19

yo el 2021: mercurial world disco culiao bueno te amo magdalena bay yo el 2024: imaginal disk disco culiao bueno te amo magdalena bay

Fff

36

is this a yoyo reference? seviper reference?