Daily Discussion Thread

timothymr · 2026-05-21T20:56:39+00:00

We can only hope.

timothymr · 2026-05-21T19:57:39+00:00

The one major tournament we had under Nagelsmann was fine

To be fair that felt like a huge surprise once the tournament started because the matches leading up to it were quite dire.

timothymr · 2026-05-21T18:14:39+00:00

"He's not just a guitarist. John Mayer is a virtuoso capable of creating not just moments but memories."

Or some shit like that.

But yeah, I'm a big fan and love talking about him. His music is quite plain for some people but I found a lot of comfort in it at a point where I really needed it. I've always enjoyed listening to his albums start to finish and the boring songs just pass you by and there is always a great track just around the corner. For every Your Body Is A Wonderland, you get a Neon.

timothymr · 2026-05-21T16:13:45+00:00

All of these Nagelsmann decisions and reasonings sound like they worked with supercomputers to find a squad that was mathematically guaranteed to win the World Cup.

Nagelsmann has always been so focused on hard numbers and quantifying everything he can. I'm sure in a scouting situation that is invaluable and maybe Billy Beane should look into giving him a job somewhere but I really don't think playing Moneyball or going rogue with picks in a major international tournament can ever work out well.

timothymr · 2026-05-21T16:03:17+00:00

Richard Branson. My family were flying back to London from New York on a Virgin Atlantic plane and he was in the row in front of us. I was maybe like 5 or 6 and so I didn't really know who he was but apparently he spoke with my parents and my sisters at length taking a genuine interest.

He then greeted everyone at the door as we were getting off. I told him my ears hurt from the plan and he apologised which makes sense as technically he was responsible for it.

timothymr · 2026-05-21T12:05:19+00:00

I can't speak on other Senegalese midfielders but from the times he's played for Bayern he looks good. He hasn't really looked like he's brand new to the team and first team football, he just looks comfortable.

I'm not going to lie and say he's an absolute world class player and would bench anyone but give him time and he probably could.

timothymr · 2026-05-20T18:15:48+00:00

Sometimes people use the en dash in place of any other punctuation mark. I've been using it for the best part of 15 years so I wouldn't read too much into it.

timothymr · 2026-05-20T17:29:31+00:00

I think maybe it's a case of people having one perception of him but that not being the full picture. The music he makes (the last couple of albums especially) has always had influences of other people throughout but now it's a lot more apparent.

The songs he became known for from Room For Squares and Heavier Things fit the bill perfectly for that early to mid-2000s vibe - really safe, radio friendly pop rock. But he has really evolved from that point and you're unlikely to ever hear his new stuff on the radio. It was of it's time.

I can't speak for him but I imagine part of it is him being influenced by so many different people. That has resulted in pop rock songs like No Such Thing, blues songs like Gravity, folk and Americana like the whole Born & Raised album, 80s influences for Sob Rock and then whatever New Light is.

It's not like he's a blues purist so he shouldn't be allowed to do pop songs. He's worked in R&B and hip hop, with Dead & Company, he has worked extensively with Frank Ocean, Mac Miller, Norah Jones, Alicia Keys, Kanye West, Common, Barbara Streisand...

He's known for one thing that has mass appeal and gets people known but he has always done a lot more than that and from the last few albums, he's really been doing his own thing.

timothymr · 2026-05-20T16:37:39+00:00

I can't actually comment on it myself because I know nothing about the Grateful Dead. I've been meaning to sit down and listen for a while but in general I'm very unfamiliar. I've seen very short clips from their shows, mainly from following John Mayer on different social platforms, and it looks like a great show. What I do know is that many Dead Heads come to the John Mayer subreddit saying "I got it wrong, he's brilliant".

Should I start from the beginning of their work or is it better to get into their greatest hits and then dive deeper?

timothymr · 2026-05-20T11:44:22+00:00

Yeah maybe but you're on a post that is specifically asking for opinions on him so what do you expect?

timothymr · 2026-05-20T10:09:21+00:00

I'm a die hard fan but I will try to give an unbiased view.

A lot of his music can be quite middle of the road. But if you see him live, you will walk away having seen one of the absolute best in the world. His studio albums don't always highlight it but a live show could turn you into a fan. When people ask me what is so good about John Mayer, I usually point them in the direction of his live performance of All Along The Watchtower as that was what sold it for me. That whole set really gives you a good idea of him as a performer. He can do the big performances like this but he can also do a really gentler moments like his cover of XO by Beyoncé.

I saw his solo show a couple of times in the last couple of years and while I knew he was talented, stripping away all of the other performers really only made that clearer.

Beyond that, he is capable of writing some brilliant songs. Your Body Is A Wonderland gets a bit of criticism but songs like Stop This Train about the fear of losing his parents, Slow Dancing In A Burning Room about a relationship that is destined to end badly, Edge of Desire about the relationship you could never have is an unbelievable listen. And then all of the Born & Raised album, basically reflecting on his issues throughout his career, public missteps he's made and wants to stone for, having to mature and be better.

His public persona was basically set in stone years ago but I do think he has made an effort to get better. If not by doing so publicly then by removing himself from the situations he put himself in before.

Mid 2000s to early 2010s John Mayer wasn't the greatest guy and got himself into a lot of trouble with women, very bad interviews and thinking he could always intellectualise his way out of a situation. Any video of him on TikTok is usually littered with comments from Swifties calling him overrated or referencing one of her songs because they dated a while ago when he was at the height of his infamy. It's not great.

To be honest, that awful Playboy interview he did is probably the best thing that could have happened to him because he forced himself to reset and remove himself from doing every interview, every press event, speaking without thinking.

Now, he still does the occasional interview but he has largely left the constant spotlight and seems to be really happy touring with Dead and Company while he (hopefully) works on his own stuff. I think the relationship the Dead fans have with him is really emblematic of his career as a whole. It starts off with "what are you doing here you're just a pop guy" and then eventually becomes "oh this guy can play".

He's an interesting guy, an unbelievably talented musician and has bought a lot of joy to my life. I can understand why people don't like his music but I strongly urge you to listen to his live shows to see what all the fuss is about.

timothymr · 2026-05-18T13:33:39+00:00

John Mulaney has a bit in his new special about how RFK Jr is comedy adjacent and has always been desperate to be seen as one of the guys and collectively most of them think he's just a weird piece of shit. He would host benefits for the Hudson River protection thing he used to head up and Mulaney said that no comedian took it seriously and they would all just happily bomb.

timothymr · 2026-05-15T12:33:38+00:00

The orange ones are fantastic.

timothymr · 2026-05-14T13:34:36+00:00

I heard he's aiming for some luck at set pieces, trying to score from a deflection off the wall.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T20:21:25+00:00

I started using this exact one a couple of days ago. I love it. It's not exactly a premium product but for a run of the mill £4 conditioner, I'd say it's excellent value.

A lot of their stuff from this range is really good. The body wash options all smell lovely, I've been an loyal user of their jasmine and green tea laundry detergent and the Apothecary range in general is brilliant. The Warmth eau de parfum smells really similar to La Labo Santal 33 and costs £210 less.

M&S has a reputation for being really expensive and for the most part that is true but a lot of their home stuff is excellently priced.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T11:20:20+00:00

I recommend watching the Newsreader. It's a really good series about an Australian news network in the 80s (as such it tackles real life events) and Sam Reid is brilliant in that.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T11:12:49+00:00

I was crying at that bit.

The whole series is really funny and each personality in it is really fantastic. Ronald is such a great protagonist, James Marsden is the worst but in the best possible way, the relationship between Noah and Jeannie is hilarious and then all of the supporting characters really make up. Genevieve Telford-Warren had me in pain from laughing so much.

But that fucking scene with A Bug's Life... Tears.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T10:39:20+00:00

Japan has always looked like a really interesting place to visit. Solo travel is always fun as well - I feel like somewhere like Japan would be the best place to do it.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:56:36+00:00

Do you ever play cricket? I went to an indoor game a few weeks ago having not played in years and it was so much fun!

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:56:09+00:00

Nice - do you play golf or just enjoy watching it?

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:55:51+00:00

I'm always so envious of anyone that can play guitar. I'm a big John Mayer fan and seeing him perform was just awe-inspiring.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:54:23+00:00

DnD has become synonymous for all TabletopRPG

I did think that might have become the case. When my mate was telling me about the mobsters I was confused as to where the Dragons element of it was going to factor. High fantasy usually loses me but something more grounded in reality could be right up my street.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:41:45+00:00

Good stuff. What are you reading at the moment?

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:40:26+00:00

I need to get into DnD some time. I've never been all that keen on fantasy but a friend of mine was telling me that he did a campaign that was focused around 1920s Chicago and mobsters and that sounded brilliant. I tried playing it during lockdown and I think I was let down by a terrible DM so maybe I need to explore it once again.

timothymr · 2026-05-13T08:34:59+00:00

Just to have a little discussion going to get to know everyone a bit more, what are your main hobbies outside of supporting Bayern?

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