Cutting corners...

The post previous to the JYJ post was very hopeful finger-wise.
I prepared some prints over the next week, which forced me to use my hand for some technical things and signing. I noticed my fingers were a bit irritated, so I took it easy again.

Then my dad asked me to teach him how to use the mat-cutter so he could frame something for my mom. Cool. I talked him through it. At one point I wanted to wipe the handle for one of the blades to make sure there was no shmutz. For the first time in my life I cut a corner in regards to sharp things. I don't like sharp things. They freak me out. I've had some bad experiences with needles/broken glass, which were out of my control. Spending most of my 28 years doing art things, I've had a multitude of opportunities to take the many exacto blades, razors, stencil-cutters, etching tools, clay tools, etc... for granted. But I never have, because (((shudder))).

Until this moment. Probably because my dad makes me nervous. Instead of removing the blade before wiping the handle (as I have done a dozen times), I left it intact. I'd be careful as always.

Regrets.

Lol.

Cutting corners... I nearly cut the corner off my thumb. *facepalm*

It wasn't that bad. Just a clean 3/4 inch slice. Not deep. But, ya know, panic attacks are a thing. So I spent the next 30 minutes lying on the ground, trying to keep my anxiety under some semblance of control, and keep a paper towel firmly clamped on my thumb. And even though it has been weeks and my thumb has beautifully knitted itself back together, it's making me anxious just writing this.

I am a really fucking anxious person.

Clearly.

Calm yo tits, girl!

FINGER STATUS: (January 3rd)

I took these pictures (with my tablet) about a week after the thumb incident, so it looks great already. As often happens after a big blowup, I compensate for the raw painful areas by using unusual parts of my fingers to do normal daily business things, which have potential to blow up too if I'm not careful. Well, all probably would have been well if I hadn't tried to cut my thumb off. The vice grip I held it with was the final straw. My thumb swelled up huge, more than for just the slicing trauma. And all those compensating spots blew up. So I had a nice little relapse.

As of now, a couple weeks later, all of my fingers look really good. gentle pinks instead of angry purpling reds. All the swelling is down. I'm tempted to draw again still. But I'm trying to not be stupid. I don't want another setback.

Patience.

Gonna keep this quick. One more image. I love my tablet. It's everything I wanted it to be.

The new responsive KPOPPY.com went up. The tablet was a huge help with that... and continues to be.

It has a little drawing program called Dabbler. A few days after I got the tablet I fussed around with it a bit to see what it was like. Haven't done any more because... fingers. But this was 10 minutes of screwing around...

Kinda fun.
Maybe I'll do more quick sketches in the future.
Well, managing viable finger time might delay that for a long while. Lol.
It would be cool to see what I could make with it.

Alright. Better stop before typing makes my fingers angry again.



PS.
Je suis... intolerant of religious bullshit.
Fuck the shitheads who thought they needed to protect their imaginary prophet from ink and pencils with sub-machine guns and RPGs.
And fuck the Pope for suggesting that insulting faith is unacceptable.
Take us out, Tim!

Big JYJ Post

ALBUM REVIEW : JUST US
youtube link to listen

Just Us: Just us... just us... JYJ...



Back Seat: Lead single. I have weird mixed opinions about Back Seat. Yoochun's awkward narration will always be both amusing and frustrating for me. And there is a lot of it on this album. Plus, the lyrics are about making out and having sexy-times with someone in the backseat of a car. Two minds on this. One that I have no interest in such things. One that these guys are almost 30 and it is very age appropriate and refreshing in an odd way, since most of their stuff isn't anywhere near that overt. Maybe Be The One? Anyway, ALL of that aside, I love the track. The melody, the simplicity of vocal + beat, building to a big layered 'crescendo' (I don't know what else to call it). Junsu's voice really jams in this one. ★★★

The MV is the most contemporary looking thing JYJ have ever done... even going back to their DBSK days. It still has some styling issues, but I can dig.

Letting Go: Pleasant melody. Pretty chorus. Straightforward imminent break-up song. Junsu's lyrics. Actually a reversal of the break-up songs he has previously written/performed, which are usually about the significant other 'letting go' and him being the dumped one. Yoochun awkward spoken-word again. And the obligatory bleeped-out "F*** off". Lol. ★★

Age 7: Junsu's solo. Ballad ballad ballad. While the lyrics aren't Junsu's, it sounds like something he would write or what a writer would create inspired by things he had talked about. Sounds like another one about that girl. Very sweet and sad. My favorite Junsu-voice is the quieter one and this song has it in spades. Yet another Junsu ballad that stops me in my tracks if it shuffles into a playlist. Can't help but be attentive and refrain from interrupting his voice with any other noise.
★★★★

Dad, You There?: This one is interesting. Emotionally charged. It sounds like a church song, which is appropriate. Yoochun's lyrics. Quite clearly written about his father who passed away recently while Yoochun was on tour and in the middle of shooting a drama. YC has been open about the strained relationship there. His parents split when they were living in Virginia and it sounds like it was far from amicable. He said he had reconnected with his dadwithin the last few years and had come to a better understanding of each other. I can't even rate this song. It's not made for me. It's for Yoochun and his family. I'm glad he had an opportunity to write it.

So So: I freakin' love So So. I feel like this is the transition into the songs on the album where JYJ just sing the fuck out of everything. It's another break-up song, but the narrative is interesting. Conveying the process of falling out of love over the course of seven days (tied together with the 7 deadly sins) and regretting it all. Love the instrumental and most of the abundant English works really well. Hello husky-voice Junsu. Ooo and another awkward Yoochun narration! XD ★★★★

Sad Dawn (2:30am): Another break-up song. This one being the day after, dwelling on regretting it in the early morning hours. Rough. Hehe. I listen to Sad Dawn pretty frequently still. More of the Jaejoong rock influence in this one. I adore the track. That little military march drum. I love the vocals. I love the rhythm transitions and Jaejoong breaking it down at the bridge. The whole thing has this really satisfying pulse to it. And no English or narration! ★★★★★

Let Me See: This song is my shit. Vocal acrobatics. Nearly acapella. Winding, loping melody. A touch of strings. A touch of piano. Lyrically it's more abstract. Some kind of existential struggle. Poetic. This is the ultimate JaeSu song. I've wanted this song since I first became a fan of DBSK. Junsu and Jaejoong have my favorite voices in Kpop... and beyond. Due to their having the strongest voices of the five they were more likely to sing separately, trading off, with the other members harmonizing with them in turn. Getting a proper duet out of them was a rare and brief thing. Only a few songs in their massive discography feature JaeSu singing together.. and the long part during the Lion Heart cover they did on TV. The repetitive breathy chant-singing parts recall Love in the Ice in a really beautiful way.

Thusly, Let Me See is my crack. I almost get this tangible sense of their voices physically weaving into each other. Gives me chills and makes me gloriously happy. No amount of Yoochun's awkward narration can dim my opinion of this one. I could listen to it forever. ★★★★★



Lazy Life (30): This is Yoochun's baby. And it's so him. It's a smokey dive bar, he's the hired entertainment for the night, and this is what he sings when his buddies show up to heckle him. All personal stories about meeting up with friends and his brother, or seeing Junsu and Jaejoong after a while when they were all too busy. Junsu's infamous EUKYANGKYANG laughter immortalized on a record once again. And a narration that actually works, making plans to go out for drinks with a buddy. Oh, Yoochun, you greasy bastard. Lmao. ★

Baboboy: Favorite song on the album right here. I love the sound of it. Makes me feel good. It's more towards R&B, but it has this vaguely rock thing going on? Even with another awkward Yoochun narration in there, I love this shit. particularly love Jaejoong and Junsu at the bridge. The lyrics are more about the beginning of a relationship, but a potentially unhealthy one, where they are toying with each other. Interesting. Jaejoong's lyrics. And so him. ★★★★★

This one is probably my most favorite to see them performing live. It's like the best of what they all have to offer... at least in the upbeat, playful performance category.
Asia Tour - Thailand fancam

Dear J: Jaejoong's solo. Supposedly Jaejoong wrote these lyrics after being inspired by a dream he had where Angelina Jolie appeared to him in her Maleficent get-up. He had just seen the movie apparently. ROFL. This was brought up during a fanmeeting and came as a hilarious shock to Junsu and Yoochun who were unaware of the origins. Again, so him. Big rock song. It would fit right in with JJ's solo rock albums. I love it. Rock is his wheelhouse and it shows. ★★★★

Creation: Here we go. Creation feels like the perfect fusion of JYJ's talents. Vocal acrobatics from JaeSu, narration and a darker sound from Yoochun, pop, elements of R&B, and rock. It's an epic ballad, but not in a way you typically hear. Jaejoong's lyrics are about perseverance, breaking free, and finding hope for the future. Poetic. Beautiful. It's a big fucking song, but they own it, and it's awesome. I think is the one that many fans and non-fans agree on loving, which is cool. ★★★★★

Valentine: Damn this song for making me so conflicted. Lol. Okay, so it's entirely in English, which I'm always iffy about, but it's not terrible. However small, Chris Brown has some kind of credits on it (with a bunch of other guys). Not even gonna go there. Ahem. It has a sound that fits into my personal taste, R&B-wise. Junsu did a lot of stuff on Incredible in this vein and I loved it for that reason. I think they all sound good on it. ★★

More about their touring and performances after the cut...