The Year in Review, Day Four

Dec 04, 2023

It’s the fourth day of a 23-day celebration, revisiting some of 2023’s best podcast episodes and writing! Today’s theme: TXT!

Here are my essays analyzing TXT’s musical universe!

“Decoding TXT’s Neverland”

“The Name Chapter: TEMPTATION tells the story of one of TXT’s nights in Neverland. They start out feeling a natural high, the mood boost children get when their need for instant gratification is met. The first few songs and the ‘Sugar Rush Ride’ music video are about these easygoing days that are to Peter Pan’s liking. But when the high wears off, so does the novelty. There is nothing beneath the surface in Neverland; it is actually a sad, broken place. It is a barren wasteland with dreams and futures unfulfilled… and discarded sources of long-term satisfaction.”

Read more here!

“KIMSEJEONG’s and TXT’s Related Life Lessons”

“Door, The Name Chapter: FREEFALL, and both albums’ corresponding music videos celebrate life not being black-and-white. By giving unflinching descriptions of reality, they end up revealing the pockets of magic within the mundane. In other words, juxtaposing time in the ‘real world’ with time in a mental ‘Neverland’ actually reveals a surprising amount of overlap between them. Everyone can find the optimism of a fairy tale’s character and the whimsy of a dreamlike island somewhere within daily life. KIMSEJEONG’s message is that rainbows do not come without rain, and TXT’s is that the joy of skipping stones requires disrupting a stable surface while trusting its stability will come back in due time. Both artists show that finding fulfillment and beauty in life comes not from pursuing perfection, but from finding the good in life’s imperfections, and there is no better theme to use to address this search for the light in a dark world than transitory phases of life.”

Read more here!

Here is my write-up about TXT outside of their musical personas!

“TXT’s Weverse Interviews: Four Takeaways”

“Their latest interviews show their newly mature, big-picture, confident outlook, summarized by this HUENINGKAI quote: ‘You can’t really climb up higher and higher if you keep running away.’ That is why TOMORROW X TOGETHER are always reaching for the sky.”

Read more here!

Here is my essay about TXT’s music’s personal impact on me:

“While unintentional, their commentary on childhood parallels how I characterize my life as an autistic person. Autistic people like myself have a lot of childish traits: [W]e can come across as self-centered, not responsive in socially acceptable ways. We struggle to read people and understand certain mannerisms. We fear changes to our daily schedules and fear the future because of the unknowns. But we also hold onto the best qualities of children: we are not jaded. We have boundless energy and joy for certain topics that we can’t wait to gush about to anyone who will listen! We react in an outsized way to the littlest joys and do not take any moment of peace for granted. We prioritize our needs in the present moment. We can get so giddy that we rock back and forth or show other external indicators of uncontained delight! Our daydreams, our inner worlds, are so vivid and real to us. We still have a spark in us, a pure vision that leaves us overflowing in untapped potential and unique ways to reinterpret this world, should neurotypical people give us that chance.”

Read more here!

Here are some of my TXT-themed podcast episodes from 2023!

“The Star Seekers: The Ultimate Guide”

Stream the episode on Spotify here!

Stream the episode on Apple Podcasts here!

Stream the episode elsewhere here!

“TXT’s Neverland”

Stream the episode on Spotify here!

Stream the episode on Apple Podcasts here!

Stream the episode elsewhere here!

“The Name Chapter: TEMPTATION Study Guide”

Stream the episode on Spotify here!