REGULARS

REGULARS A GRAPEY PLAYLIST:

ARTIST

Tom Rosenthal

Nathan Evans

Princess Nokia

The Oh Hellos

Hozier

Aurora

Juniper Vale

Jacob Collier

Audrey Hepburn

Chasing Grace

grentperez

Taylor Swift

The Lumineers

Mandy Moore

Gang of Youths

Harry Styles

FABLED EDITION

SONG TITLE

Away with the Fairies

Wellerman (Sea Shanty)

Dragons

Soldier, Poet, King

In The Woods Somewhere

Soft Universe

Fractions

With The Love In My Heart

Moon River

Hercules

Cherry Wine

August

Ophelia

Healing Incantation

Achilles Come Down

Sweet Creature

REGULARS CHALLENGE:

The Reckoning of Conventionality: Taylor Swift’s ‘Folklore’

Taylor Swift. A rare pop phenomena. Transitioning from country roots to mainstream music, this star has transcended genres. In the present-day, she stands as a standard of multiple genres, messily crafting and reckoning with her own conventionality. Reflecting back on her distinctive palettes of the bright and bubbly 2019’s Lover to the heavily electronic production of 2017’s Reputation, Swift’s career has been a storied, decade-long narrative. One that delicately traces the trials and tribulations of romance and professional life. 2020’s Folklore introduced a new chapter to Swift’s narrative. A confessional masterpiece, it focuses on the fallout from the high of summer, a star reflecting back on the journey she’s traversed. As mentioned on one Instagram post, Folklore is spun from Swift’s imagination, an amalgamation of stories to be passed down just like folk tales.

Winding back to the summer of 2020, the schedule of festivals, ‘lover-fest’, and an international tour fell into the common tribulation of a global pandemic. With these plans scrapped, Swift was left with bountiful spare time. No longer restricted to rehearsals or performing around the globe, the results of an unforeseen isolation led to Swift’s endless hours of writing Folklore. The surprise release became a stark and uncharacteristic change to her usual deliberate and calculated release schedules. These tactics compliment the changed musical direction for Swift, a glimpse into this new world of folktales.

Over the course of seven albums, the world has seen Swift evolve from a young fresh-faced country girl to a sleek shiny pop star. Now in her eighth iteration… I wanted to dive head-first into the world of folk, alternative rock and indie music. For this challenge (and it wasn’t hard), I spent time revisiting my top five favourite songs in Folklore. 1. the 1

“In my defence, I have none For never leaving well enough alone But it would’ve been fun If you would’ve been the one”

A wistful beginning to Folklore, “the 1” brings us to a palace of yearning. The pivotal relationship in the ‘roaring twenties’ that could have been the one. Reminiscing through an older and mature lens, the song’s powerful yet delicate one-liners evoke moments of longing and regret. “the 1” brings back that painful ping of nostalgia, the age-old question ‘what would have been’ if that relationship worked out.

02 cardigan

“And when I felt like I was an old cardigan Under someone’s bed You put me on and said I was your favourite”

Breathy and forlorn over the soft drumbeats and delicate piano keys, “cardigan” brings a magical, glittery quality to the album. A guide through enchanted forests, a lifeline in the turbulent ocean. It is low and thoughtful, a nod to how music has always been there, no matter what life threw at her.

06 mirrorball

“Hush, when no one is around, my dear You’ll find me on my tallest tiptoes Spinning in my highest heels, love Shining just for you”

A dazzling haze, “mirrorball” is a shimmering tune of intimacy between Swift and her audience. This sparkling tune of vulnerability is Taylor’s true reckoning

of conventionality, a confessional piece. Turning her suffering into art, she cries for the ordinary urge to be loved.

08 august

“But I can see us lost in the memory August slipped away into a moment in time ‘Cause it was never mine And I can see us twisted in bedsheets August slipped away like a bottle of wine”

It’s the delicate details that truly capture the essence of Swift in this album. “august” as the eighth track of the record is such a neat detail. The ephemeral quality of a summer fling, it starts off full of promise that it could be something but disintegrates before you know it.

09 this is me trying

“They told me all of my cages were mental So I got wasted like all my potential And my words shoot to kill when I’m mad I have a lot of regrets about that”

This song has the sharpest and most absorbing premise on the entire record. Its emotional core is palpable, realistically complex, and truly moving. It is a dreamy and remorsal track, coping with failures, where Swift seeks forgiveness, reiterating that she is really trying. What makes Folklore such a shimmering gem in Swift’s discography is the vivid and confessional storytelling. The sincere words that string together like poetry revealing her yearn for self-reflection, growth and adaptation. The level of maturity and growth presented in Folklore compliments its longevity and timelessness. This reckoning of conventionally is what truly captivates Swift as the authentic artist of the decade.

by Lauren Knezevic

POP CULTURE REWIND

REGULARS ENCHANTED

In 2007, Kevin Lima’s Enchanted was released, a combined live-action/animated princess musical. That in itself should be everything you need to know about this film to watch it.

The movie begins in animated Andalasia, where evil Queen Narissa (Susan Sarandon) schemes to protect her right to the throne by ensuring her stepson, Prince Edward, does not get married. While hunting for trolls in the forest, Edward (James Marsden), hears Giselle’s (Amy Adams) sweet voice singing from her tree house. The two instantly fall in love; the wedding is planned. Stubborn and enslaved by greed, the evil queen exiles Giselle through a magical portal to live-action Times Square. Homeless and scared, she sets out to find her true love.

The genius of Enchanted is its witty, self-deprecating style meshed with its contemporary homage to the genre of Fairy Tale. This genius can be admired best through its songs. There are three in particular which stand out.

While still in Andalasia, Giselle sings “True Love’s Kiss”. She begins the ballad while in her tree house, surrounded by adorable forest animals like bunnies, blue birds, a raccoon, a tortoise, and deer. She longingly adores a mannequin which she has made herself, male and anonymous. It has sapphires for eyes and flowers for ears: a romantic, perfect, princely vision. But no lips. She calls for more forest animals to seek out the perfect set of lips. She tries a pea pod, a comb, a crab, and a wormy apple, but none of them are perfect. This animated vision is not her true love. Does she need a male voice in her life? Already in this song, a seed is planted which rejects traditional archetype agendas: a magical, princely kiss is not all Giselle has to live for.

Another song that captures the wit of Enchanted is the “Happy Working Song.” By thrusting a Disney princess into the “real” world, the movie puts the morals and ethics of the infamous role to the test. Finding herself in Robert’s (Patrick Dempsey) dirty New York apartment, she summons the vermin of New York to help her clean it. The song satirically mirrors “True Love’s Kiss”; animals infest the apartment to help Giselle clean it. Cockroaches scurry from the bathtub drain and wipe away the mildew, pigeons swipe crumbs from the table with their feathers, rats scrub the toilet with toothbrushes, flies ring out a dirty rag. The juxtaposition of “filthy” animals helping a princess clean an apartment creates a sense of real-world humility and empathy that is often impossible to render in traditional fairy tales.

But it is the performance of “That’s How You Know” which truly reinvents the fairy tale genre. In Central Park, Giselle breaks out into song a cappella (a classic princess move) and is accompanied by an impromptu and diverse ensemble of Reggae street performers, a mariachi band, breakdancers, blue-collar workers, and cyclists (who stampede over Prince Edward). Giselle parades around in a dress made out of curtains, revealing a resourcefulness which embraces NY life. All the while, Dempsey, in his corporate suit and cardboard-looking face, trails behind her, proclaiming “I don’t dance. And I really don’t sing.” The mundanity of Robert’s character subverts the princely trope, and as Giselle sings from Rapunzel’s tower on the set of a play, the movie meta-theatrically rejects traditional fairy tale expectations of love at first sight. The ensemble comes together to join Giselle in her celebration of real love, not true love.

Of course, Giselle finds her happy ever after in New York - not with Edward despite his desperate search to find her, but with Robert, the movie’s title becoming less about fairy tales and more about the every-day lives we lead.

This November, the sequel, titled Disenchanted, will be released. Adams, Dempsey, and Marsden will return to the live action/animated universe. The movie is set fifteen years after Giselle’s happy ever after with Robert. After moving to suburbia and feeling threatened by the community’s overseer, Giselle wishes their lives were a perfect fairy tale. The spell backfires, and the family gets sent to Andalasia.

For all the suburbians out there who felt left out by Enchanted, don’t fear! Your lives are enchanting, too.

YOU ARE HERE: PENRITH ARE YOU THE CROW?

“Hey, Mika, at school today, my teacher told me a story after lunch. And, you shouldn’t be the crow or the Peacock.”

Confused with how out of context it was, a chuckle escaped my mouth once I heard my brother say those words. Eating at a Vietnamese Restaurant, my brother’s mouth is stuffed with spring rolls. He asked, “Are you the crow?”.

I’ve heard of this story before..back when in primary school. It was about a crow who wishes to be as colourful as other birds. The crow then talked to the parrot, who said that the peacock was the most beautiful. But, then the peacock told the crow that he was lucky because the crow was not caged, like it was, because of its colours.

Though I vaguely remember the story at the time, I started thinking about where I came from. I started to think how this resonated with my then conflicting thoughts with Penrith.

Penrith. Located further in Greater Western Sydney. A suburb somehow mixed with parcels of empty land, yet, surrounded by a community of buildings. A place where I’ve lived for most of my life.

When people hear that I come from Penrith, I almost always get on the following responses:

“Penrith? That’s a trek.”

“Oh you live in Penrith? First of all, how are you bothered?”

“You’re so far away from everyone… have you considered moving closer to the city?”

While hearing these comments has briefly entertained me, when I hear that word, ‘Penrith’, instantly, there’s a familiar warm feeling of comfort inside.

But it took me a while to accept that Penrith was my home. I used to think Penrith was boring and wanted to live near the city. The sensory overload that came with walking into Zara, Muji, Abbey’s Bookshop, and the constant moving in the winding streets, made me believe that the comfort I had wanted to name home was there. I believed there was nothing that the city lacked and it could fulfil all my needs.

I enjoyed the city life, shopped at a wider range of stores, hung out with my friends at the last minute, and never worried about catching public transport late at night by myself.

And for that, I resented living in Penrith. The random blocks of buildings and the smaller shopping centres, compared to the City Squalor, made Penrith lack in excitement. I always thought living in the city fulfils that adrenaline of adventure that I craved. I felt that I was missing out on the action.

“So are you the crow?” My brother asked once again. I stared at him. These memories of living here

came over me. It felt like everything had slowed, and time had paused in the moment. My brother, who asked a simple question (that I could have said yes or no to, because like any other six year old, he talks about the next random thing after I answer. He could even forget what I said) perplexed me.

I realised how little I had paid attention to this suburb. It was an attractive territory that I was blind to.

Having lunch with my family at Jamison Bakery, where the aroma of Bahn mi was a gentle message to my soul. The Aqua Golf, where memories of my friends and I were undoubtedly consistent in missing the targets in front of us. Walking on Yandhai Nepean Crossing, observing the view whenever I would reach the middle of the bridge. The parks that seemed to be in every corner of every suburb. Thinking of these brought a deep feeling of longing that made my heart ache and pound like a drum inside my chest. It was then that I accepted Penrith was where I felt the most satisfied, the most content.

Of course, the prospect of going to the city exhilarates me. But, the fast-paced life, with almost everything I could imagine, did not completely replace the confidence that I had to call Penrith my home; a home that included the pieces of family, memories and community. Penrith was my heart’s home.

My brother, now grunting that I took long to answer, was finally relieved that I responded, “No.”

“Why?”

“I’ve accepted where we live will always be my home.”

Indeed, it is a home, and home is the freedom and pride that comes with living here.

by Mikaela Mariano