ravings

Top 5 novels of the 2010s
1. Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer (2014)
2. Too Like the Lightning by Ada Palmer (2016)
3. Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente (2018)
4. Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (2013)
5. The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu, Joel Martinsen trans. (chinese version published in 2008, english 2015)

Honorable mentions- The Water Knife by Paolo Bacigalupi (2016), Ready Player One by Ernest Cline (2011), We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler (2013), The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman (2013), The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (2012), The Stone Sky by N. K. Jemisin (2017), The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal (2018), Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik (2018), 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson (2012), New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson (2017), Among Others by Jo Walton (2011)

Top 5 Non-Fiction Books of the 2010s
1. Don't Be a Jerk by Brad Warner (2016)
2. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman (2011)
3. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo (2011 in Japan, 2014 in the US)
4. Behave by Robert Sapolsky (2017)
5. 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari (2018)

Honorable Mentions- Confession of a Buddhist Atheist by Stephen Batchelor (2010), The Poisoner's Handbook by Deborah Blum (2010), Quiet by Susan Cain (2012), Getting More by Stuart Diamond (2010), Flash Boys by Michael Lewis (2015), The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee (2016), Two Shores of Zen by Jiryu Mark Rutschman-Byler (2010), I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong (2016)

Top 5 Albums of the 2010s
1. The ArchAndroid by Janelle Monae (2010)
2. Oczy Mlody (2017) by The Flaming Lips
3. Aventine by Agnes Obel (2013)
4. 50 Song Memoir by The Magnetic Fields (2017)
5. Dopamine by Borns (2015)

Honorable Mentions- Metal Resistance by Babymetal (2016), Morning Phase by Beck (2014), Year of the Black Rainbow by Coheed and Cambria (2010), Tron: Legacy by Daft Punk (2010), The Terror by The Flaming Lips (2013), Welcome Oblivion by How to Destroy Angels (2013), Hesitation Marks by Nine Inch Nails (2013), The Race for Space by Public Service Broadcasting (2015), Oceania by Smashing Pumpkins (2012), Laminate Pet Animal by Snowmine (2011)

Top 5 Films of the 2010s
1. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
2. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)
3. Inception (2010)
4. Arrival (2014)
5. Black Swan (2010)

Honorable Mentions- 12 Years A Slave (2013), Annihilation (2018), Big Hero 6 (2014), Borgman (2013), Coco (2017), Get Out (2017), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Spy (2015), I, Tonya (2017), Jumanji (2017), Just Go With It (2011), Knives Out (2019), Looper (2012), Moana (2016), Moonrise Kingdom (2012), Mortal Engines (2018), Popstar (2016), The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Sorry to Bother You (2018), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Whiplash (2014)

So, BABYMETAL. The fusion of Japanese teen idol tropes with those of death metal. I've been spending some time with their music, and I've been a little surprised at what I've found there.

For instance, the track, "Megitsune" ("Vixen"). In Japanese mythology, foxes ("kitsune") are trickster changelings, usually female, and often wicked.



The lyrics of this song actually discuss the implied sexism of the kitsune myth and tie it into the inherent contradictions that Japanese women face in their lives. This is not the sort of subject matter you'd expect from a musical act like this (and it's very cunning to sneak tracks like this in with all the Gimme Chocolate stuff). I don't think you'd get away with lyrics like this in the standard Japanese teen idol setting, and you don't exactly see women's issues discussed regularly in death metal either. Another reason this group (and this song in particular) is fascinating as a mash-up of different musical cultures. I think whoever masterminded this is a genius.

My transcription and translation of the lyrics to "Megitsune" is below. ( Read more... )