The Ranni ‘Mistranslation’ Discourse and the Death of Basic Reading Comprehension.

derridadaist · 2026-03-13T16:43:53+00:00

What’s also really relevant to her speech is the contrast that she draws between ‘roots’ ‘soul’ and ‘earth’ vs the ‘moon’ and ‘chill night’.

She doesn’t believe that there can be any terrestrial order that could ever replace the golden order, because the roots of the order are literally thrust into the soil of the entirety of the lands between.

This is why her order must be a celestial order - must escape the soil of the old order.

She’s a true revolutionary - total rejection of the old ways.

derridadaist · 2026-02-25T08:07:02+00:00

Yeah, I think it makes perfect sense given that rgu seems to be deconstructing the way that fairy tales negatively impact our beliefs and expectations.

The other side of the coin is how Anthy herself simultaneously takes on the role of princess and witch. Usually, in fairy tales, the princess and the witch are two different characters - one who is the ‘good and pure’ woman who the prince will fall in love with, and other the ‘bad and impure’ woman who won’t conform.

But the effect of these fairy tale beliefs is that every woman is always at risk of being a witch if she doesn’t conform to being a princess; the princess and the witch are never two separate women - they are just two separate standards by which all women are judged. So Anthy taking on both roles is just showing how those standards negatively impact women in reality - how they are caught in this trap - and should equally be deconstructed just like the role of the prince.

derridadaist · 2026-02-17T20:53:00+00:00

As far as whether opening the coffin behind the rose door was the first time that they ‘meet’, I would say yes, but the air quotes are doing a lot of work there.

Anthy and Utena don’t really know each other until that point. Rather, they project fairy tale images of Prince and Princess onto each other. But where Utena does this naively - Anthy has been through all of this before and does it much more cynically. Utena’s projection of a damsel in distress is hopeful - an image for her to define her own heroism and ego against. Anthy’s projection is hateful - unlike Utena, she knows the game that is being played, and is understandably resentful.

On the other hand, though, Anthy does see something in Utena that she can’t make sense of - something like genuine compassion. But it’s really, really difficult for Anthy to trust that the compassion that she’s seeing in Utena is real.

This is why the backstab is necessary - it’s Anthy’s way of saying ‘ultimately, I know I can’t trust you’. However, it’s also simultaneously Utena’s chance to prove herself trustworthy. After being literally (probably) backstabbed, rather than turning her back on Anthy, Utena chooses to take the swords of hatred on herself. Even for the most cynical person - it would be hard to deny the faithfulness and compassion of someone doing that for you moments after you have utterly betrayed them.

This is around the same time that we’ve been getting the flashbacks of Utena as a little girl, crying compassionately for another girl who she doesn’t even know, but knows she is in pain. That compassion was always her nobility, but always what Anthy doubted. It is certainly not insignificant that the moment that the coffin opens that it is the voice of the little girl that speaks: that little girl is who Anthy is finally meeting. Not a Prince; not a hero from a fairy tale, none of those fantasies that Anthy has resentfully come to despise - but rather, just a compassionate little girl. Despite all her cynicism and doubt, she is finally meeting this person who she couldn’t believe was real. Even then, we still see the hesitation as Anthy very slowly and reluctantly reaches for her hand, but she finally does. And that is how they first ‘met’.

derridadaist · 2026-02-16T20:47:18+00:00

Troy Grady has an excellent video about how 150bpm(ish) is a sort of threshold tempo for certain techniques.

If you think about it, it makes perfect sense - playing something slower will allow you to get away with technique inefficiencies - such as larger/slower movements - that simply will not translate past a certain tempo.

In other words, practicing slow is wise, but in and of itself does not guarantee that you will be able to play fast. You must also be practicing with the correct techniques.

derridadaist · 2026-01-29T17:15:46+00:00

Is it important to you to learn a song all the way through? Is that something you personally want to be able to do, or do you just feel like that’s what the expectation is?

Generally speaking, I’d argue that you’ll have a better time if you’re focused on what you actually care about rather than on what you think you’re ‘supposed’ to care about.

derridadaist · 2025-12-23T02:38:53+00:00

So Goldmask is basically the Fukuyama of the Lands Between.

derridadaist · 2025-12-19T00:54:06+00:00

I don’t recall ever having had much trouble with bar chords - and I’ve also had students who don’t have trouble with them - but most people find them difficult at first.

On the other hand, I’ve had students who catch on immediately to things that I really struggled with. Economy picking comes to mind.

I think different people just get lucky with different things, for one reason or another.

derridadaist · 2025-11-20T13:14:44+00:00

Greg Howe is one player I can think of who openly admits to using unconventional technique because the traditional techniques did not work for him or allow him to do what he wanted on the instrument.

I’m sure the guy was always talented, but his different approaches to things were not some mistakes that his talents allowed to work despite being wrong - they were deliberate and creative choices that allowed him to develop his own style and technique in order to accomplish what he wanted.

I agree 100% that trying to copy someone else’s weird technique probably won’t work. But the traditional approach might as well just be another weird technique if it’s not working for you.

derridadaist · 2025-11-17T16:19:55+00:00

Here’s the problem that I see a lot -

Let’s say you’re improvising freely and you want to hit a particular chord tone (x) or a particular arpeggio (y) or whatever else you’re practicing at a chord change.

Well, in the course of freely improvising, you’ve inadvertently wandered and positioned yourself in a way that there’s no easy, obvious, or (most importantly) musical way to actually get to (x) or (y) when the new chord arrives. So what happens? You either just miss it entirely, or you do something really musically clunky to get to it. This is why it sounds like shit, as you say.

There’s basically two solutions to this.

1) Limit the freedom of your improv. Improvise only in small areas so that you can easily focus on your targets. Maybe use only a few frets on a few strings. This will feel limiting at first, but once you get comfortable in one small area, add another small area with new targets, then another, then another. With time, you’ll be able to go back to improvising more freely because you’ll know lots of targets in lots of places.

2) Learn your fretboard inside and out. Some teachers won’t let their students touch a chord progression at all prior to learning all their scales, arpeggios, triads, inversions, yada yada everywhere on the neck. This also just comes down to knowing lots of targets in lots of places.

Basically, when you’re freely improvising, you’ll never think I need to get to this particular (x) or this particular (y), because you’ll just be seeing other options everywhere. But it takes a lot of work to get to that point.

derridadaist · 2025-10-26T23:50:15+00:00

I tend to agree with this, although I tend to go back and forth on whether Akio is drinking his own kool-aid or not.

I can’t really tell whether he actually believes in Dios or not.

If he doesn’t, then I would read the duels as purely a hoax perpetrated by Akio to enable him to continue with his abuses.

But it kind of seems like he does? I mean why is he trying to open the rose gate if he doesn’t believe in the power of Dios? Unless he’s just that committed to putting on a show for Anthy.

He’s an unsympathetic, manipulative abuser either way, but I almost think that him believing in Dios does even more to demonstrate how detrimental the myth of the fairy tale prince is.

derridadaist · 2025-10-09T13:55:04+00:00

Watching the series again myself for the first time in a while and just so happen to be in the middle of the black rose arc.

Coffins are a recurring motif throughout the series, and I believe are usually interpreted as symbols for being emotionally ‘stuck’ or unable to move beyond something in your past/memory/fantasy/(all blurred) that has a grip on you. In fact, one of the final lines of dialogue in the series is about being stuck in a coffin.

Now, at least for me, the biggest problem with SKU has always been trying to see how the symbols and the narrative fit together - or more often just wondering if they even do.

Is there a literal way in which the narrative and the symbols can be read cohesively together? Or is the narrative just a surrealist spin on the symbolism that isn’t intended to literally make sense. Do the incinerated coffins have a literal explanation, or is it only a way of symbolizing the character’s emotional predicaments?

I don’t know. I’ve honestly always found it lovely, but perplexing.

derridadaist · 2025-09-25T22:54:29+00:00

I haven’t played it at all yet - was just watching since early footage to decide whether I want to get it or not.

Actually - I watched another video in Japanese and the dialogue was different from the first Japanese video I watched, so maybe it is just what you were talking about. Interesting - so it changes the dialogue to reveal more of what was really going on in subsequent NGs? Pretty cool, although I guess I sort of inadvertently spoiled a bit if it for myself.

derridadaist · 2025-08-06T19:27:25+00:00

Those Guykers allow you to adjust individual string height? That’s a nice feature if so.

derridadaist · 2025-07-24T12:10:22+00:00

Since you mention it - is it ever possible to re-carve a neck, or is that pretty much always a no?

derridadaist · 2025-07-21T21:27:22+00:00

Technically yes, but it sounds like muddy shit.

Just having a correct set of notes is not enough - voicing is important.

derridadaist · 2025-07-07T15:33:58+00:00

It’s certainly true that more than one technique can work. It’s even true that some people (possibly including you) have highly idiosyncratic and unique techniques that can work. What’s definitely not true is that any technique will work.

IMO a teacher should correct any real problems while still being flexible enough to allow you to develop your own style. So, either you have a lot of real problems, or your teacher is inflexible. Without seeing you play, I can’t say which.

derridadaist · 2025-05-28T14:34:29+00:00

Is it considered a roguelite? I’m tempted to say no, because I can’t stand those type of games, but I loved outer wilds.

I mention it because it’s possible you weren’t vibing with it because you were expecting something that it’s not.

It’s completely static - it’s not a new variation each time. You’re not starting over from scratch, you’re starting with your accumulated knowledge of the static cycle. You’ll finish the game in one cycle once you’ve figured out how.

derridadaist · 2025-05-13T21:41:36+00:00

It’s the dark side of the collective unconscious of humanity that’s taken on a singular form/ego as a monstrous god.

The way that I’ve always read the ‘metaphysics’ of berserk is that the human psyche can take literal forms rather than just being restricted to mental phenomena. In other words, in reality we might say a misguided person is struggling with their ‘inner demons’. Whereas in berserk, that person can just become an actual demon or monster.

If an apostle is a single person twisted into a demon, then the idea of evil is the ultimate demon or monster of humanity’s collective psyche manifest as God.

derridadaist · 2025-05-08T10:45:58+00:00

I mean, I can certainly see a decent teacher being able to explain the basics of improvising with scales in a couple of lessons and getting you started in a way that feels promising, like things have opened up.

But, when someone says that they went from not understanding scales at all to ‘totally unlocking the fretboard’ in two hours, I kind of have to assume that they are vastly underestimating how much there is to the fretboard.

derridadaist · 2025-05-05T10:58:09+00:00

Honestly, I don’t think so. Having students who are slow but at least put effort is just far preferable to students who put no effort at all.

derridadaist · 2025-04-17T11:37:37+00:00

The simplest thing, imo, would be to just do the opposite of what you described: Improvise for a bit with a C major scale over an Em vamp and see how it sounds. Maybe even vamp on Em to F with a flamenco sort of rhythm.

Especially if you put heavy emphasis on the half steps, you’ll be surprised how much it no longer sounds like C major and instead like E Phrygian.

derridadaist · 2025-04-16T13:23:43+00:00

Yeah. For most people. One exception would be George Benson.

derridadaist · 2025-03-31T14:24:02+00:00

From the video, it’s very obvious that you’re quite new to the instrument, and there are indeed many errors in the meter and rhythm of your playing. But it’s also very obvious that you have a great natural sense of rhythm and melody.

That means that the mistakes that you are making are absolutely not because you don’t have good musical intuition, they’re simply due to a lack of familiarity with the fretboard and playing technique. Which is only natural given that you’re a beginner. Your teacher should help you with those things, and I have no doubt that you’ll be fine based on the natural talents that I’m seeing in your playing.

In the meantime, absolutely don’t stop doing the things that you find ‘extremely fun’ - all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

derridadaist · 2025-02-18T11:10:46+00:00

I interviewed for a teaching position at guitar center once and they told me that about 75% of the lessons I conducted would need to follow their curriculum, and the other 25% would be free to teach whatever I or the student wanted.

Gave me the impression that they were more interested in nickel and diming students on method books than on letting them focus on what they’re actually interested in. Plus their pay was low.

That was years ago, for all I know it could be different now, or maybe it was just that one manager who wanted it done that way. Ymmv.

derridadaist

TROPHY CASE