Everywhere at the End of Time: An Auditory Representation of Dementia
A cover for the album Everywhere at the End of Time.
By: Victoria Davis, 4/20/21
With the recent sensationalization of the album Everywhere at the End of Time on TikTok, produced by The Caretaker, the album has piqued the interest of thousands as it is portrayed as an auditory depiction of the descent into dementia: a memory loss condition.
The album’s recent claim to fame occurred after an influx of people on the social media platform TikTok posted videos discussing the contents of the album and describing the experience of listening to it. The album is an audio experience that is meant to allow the listener to feel what the slow progression into dementia is like. The album consists of 6 and a half hours of jazz music with multiple stages, each stage changing more and more as the album progresses, until eventually the listener is left with the final stage of the album which is pure static.
The album represents dementia, a series of conditions that all contribute to severe memory loss and impaired judgement. The audio is often confused with being a representation of Alzheimer’s, a similar condition that also consists of memory loss and the impairment of judgement, but the difference between the two is that dementia often leads to a complete memory loss, even losing the memory of who you are, while Alzheimer’s affects your memories that occur after a certain period of time, forcing the patient to feel as though they’re in a different year or time period than what they’re actually in. The differentiation between these two are key when discussing Everywhere at the End of Time as the album portrays a complete loss of memory.
There are a total of six stages throughout the album, each with its own unique sound and feeling to accompany it.
The first stage consists of old styled jazz music. The songs have a feeling of age to it, as they sound as though they’re being played on an old radio, being accompanied with slight bits of static and a grainy feedback through many of the songs. Slight distortion can be heard throughout the music, but the distortion is subtle. It is to be assumed that the jazz songs are meant to symbolize memories, and as told by the creator of The Caretaker, the patient is aware that something is amidst.
The second stage features fewer tracks than the first, with more concerning names for the tracks such as “A losing battle is raging” and “The way ahead feels lonely”, implying that the patient is starting to deteriorate and is also aware of their diagnosis, and around the end of the second stage it is insinuated with the track titles that the patient is no longer able to pretend that they are well. This deteriorating state is furthered by the increased distortion and static presented in the tracks. This increase in static and distortion of the music can be perceived to mean that the memories of the patient are getting foggy and hard to recall.
The third stage is similar to the second stage with more and more distortion, static, and an increase in random skips in-between tracks. The prevalence of jazz music in this stage leads the listener to believe that the patient is still aware of what’s occurring, but as time goes on, it’s getting harder and harder for them to stay aware.
The fourth stage experiences the most changes yet, consisting of a drastic decrease in the jazz music and a heavy increase in static, skips, and distortion. The few times jazz music does play, it experiences distortion, sounding distant from the viewer with static lacing every note. When jazz music isn’t playing, static plays, with no other noise to join it. It is at this stage that the listener can see (or rather, hear) the drastic decrease in cognitive functions as the jazz music fades and static replaces it, signifying the loss of memory. During this point, though, the ominous feeling is replaced by a sense of calm for the listener as the realization that what was destined to occur has already come.
This calm feeling is overturned by stage five, in which any sense of peace is diminished by a copious amount of static with random bursts of random noises interweaved with the static. These random noises almost sound as though they could be a wheel squeaking, maybe hinting at a wheelchair that the patient may be in as their cognitive functions slowly reach rock bottom. One can only assume that this stage is the build up to something bigger as the track nears to completion.
Stage six, the final stage, is most unlike the other tracks in the most overwhelming way. Jazz music is rarely ever heard, if at all, and a static devoid of any life overtakes the track, shared with sudden loud booms, random bursts of grainy music, and the increase of the random squeaky noises that began in the previous stage. The listener is able to infer that any sense of who the patient once was is now gone. Their connection to memories have been broken, an empty void taking its place with terrifying, ominous noises accompanying it. The listener and the patient have lost all hope of it returning back to stage one, and an unfortunate acceptance takes over the listener as they realize this.
The end of the second stage could be interpreted as its own stage, as the last 10 to 15 minutes of the sixth stage can only be best described as the end, in more ways than one. While the end of the album is only minutes away, the ending could also be perceived as the end of the patient’s life, as harmonies of music, a quiet static, and then silence follow the ominous static and tones just moments prior. With the silence that follows this six and a half hours of audio, one can only assume that all of the audio prior was leading up to this moment. With the silence comes peace for the listener, as the intense emotions that come with this experience are finally over.
The experience that this album provides is an intense one. The emotions felt so heavily throughout it by the listener can only give those without this condition a slight idea of what those with this condition experience on a day-to-day basis. The album is meant to spread awareness and to attempt to portray an accurate depiction of dementia, and while it is unsure if this is a completely accurate experience, the feelings alone leave the listener wondering if this is how those with dementia truly feel while developing this condition. The idea that one's life may end having forgotten who they are is a terrifying one for many, and one that most hope to never experience. The reason why this audio is so popular now is because the album plays on the fears that many of us have as humans: being alone, being forgotten, and forgetting.
With the recent sensationalization of the album Everywhere at the End of Time on TikTok, produced by The Caretaker, the album has piqued the interest of thousands as it is portrayed as an auditory depiction of the descent into dementia: a memory loss condition.
The album’s recent claim to fame occurred after an influx of people on the social media platform TikTok posted videos discussing the contents of the album and describing the experience of listening to it. The album is an audio experience that is meant to allow the listener to feel what the slow progression into dementia is like. The album consists of 6 and a half hours of jazz music with multiple stages, each stage changing more and more as the album progresses, until eventually the listener is left with the final stage of the album which is pure static.
The album represents dementia, a series of conditions that all contribute to severe memory loss and impaired judgement. The audio is often confused with being a representation of Alzheimer’s, a similar condition that also consists of memory loss and the impairment of judgement, but the difference between the two is that dementia often leads to a complete memory loss, even losing the memory of who you are, while Alzheimer’s affects your memories that occur after a certain period of time, forcing the patient to feel as though they’re in a different year or time period than what they’re actually in. The differentiation between these two are key when discussing Everywhere at the End of Time as the album portrays a complete loss of memory.
There are a total of six stages throughout the album, each with its own unique sound and feeling to accompany it.
The first stage consists of old styled jazz music. The songs have a feeling of age to it, as they sound as though they’re being played on an old radio, being accompanied with slight bits of static and a grainy feedback through many of the songs. Slight distortion can be heard throughout the music, but the distortion is subtle. It is to be assumed that the jazz songs are meant to symbolize memories, and as told by the creator of The Caretaker, the patient is aware that something is amidst.
The second stage features fewer tracks than the first, with more concerning names for the tracks such as “A losing battle is raging” and “The way ahead feels lonely”, implying that the patient is starting to deteriorate and is also aware of their diagnosis, and around the end of the second stage it is insinuated with the track titles that the patient is no longer able to pretend that they are well. This deteriorating state is furthered by the increased distortion and static presented in the tracks. This increase in static and distortion of the music can be perceived to mean that the memories of the patient are getting foggy and hard to recall.
The third stage is similar to the second stage with more and more distortion, static, and an increase in random skips in-between tracks. The prevalence of jazz music in this stage leads the listener to believe that the patient is still aware of what’s occurring, but as time goes on, it’s getting harder and harder for them to stay aware.
The fourth stage experiences the most changes yet, consisting of a drastic decrease in the jazz music and a heavy increase in static, skips, and distortion. The few times jazz music does play, it experiences distortion, sounding distant from the viewer with static lacing every note. When jazz music isn’t playing, static plays, with no other noise to join it. It is at this stage that the listener can see (or rather, hear) the drastic decrease in cognitive functions as the jazz music fades and static replaces it, signifying the loss of memory. During this point, though, the ominous feeling is replaced by a sense of calm for the listener as the realization that what was destined to occur has already come.
This calm feeling is overturned by stage five, in which any sense of peace is diminished by a copious amount of static with random bursts of random noises interweaved with the static. These random noises almost sound as though they could be a wheel squeaking, maybe hinting at a wheelchair that the patient may be in as their cognitive functions slowly reach rock bottom. One can only assume that this stage is the build up to something bigger as the track nears to completion.
Stage six, the final stage, is most unlike the other tracks in the most overwhelming way. Jazz music is rarely ever heard, if at all, and a static devoid of any life overtakes the track, shared with sudden loud booms, random bursts of grainy music, and the increase of the random squeaky noises that began in the previous stage. The listener is able to infer that any sense of who the patient once was is now gone. Their connection to memories have been broken, an empty void taking its place with terrifying, ominous noises accompanying it. The listener and the patient have lost all hope of it returning back to stage one, and an unfortunate acceptance takes over the listener as they realize this.
The end of the second stage could be interpreted as its own stage, as the last 10 to 15 minutes of the sixth stage can only be best described as the end, in more ways than one. While the end of the album is only minutes away, the ending could also be perceived as the end of the patient’s life, as harmonies of music, a quiet static, and then silence follow the ominous static and tones just moments prior. With the silence that follows this six and a half hours of audio, one can only assume that all of the audio prior was leading up to this moment. With the silence comes peace for the listener, as the intense emotions that come with this experience are finally over.
The experience that this album provides is an intense one. The emotions felt so heavily throughout it by the listener can only give those without this condition a slight idea of what those with this condition experience on a day-to-day basis. The album is meant to spread awareness and to attempt to portray an accurate depiction of dementia, and while it is unsure if this is a completely accurate experience, the feelings alone leave the listener wondering if this is how those with dementia truly feel while developing this condition. The idea that one's life may end having forgotten who they are is a terrifying one for many, and one that most hope to never experience. The reason why this audio is so popular now is because the album plays on the fears that many of us have as humans: being alone, being forgotten, and forgetting.
P1Harmony Make Their Debut With Not Only An Album But a Full Length Movie
P1H: A New World Begins movie poster
By: Kristyn Foran
February, 2021
Over the years, Korea has had many artists to debut in the music industry but never has a group debuted with a full length movie. P1Harmony is a Korean boy band that debuted on October 28, 2020. The group consists of six members. Yoon Keeho is the leader, vocalist, and dancer of the group, Choi Taeyang (Theo) is a vocalist and dancer, Choi Jiung is a rapper, vocalist, and dancer, Hwang Intak is a rapper and dancer, Haku Shota (Soul) is a rapper and dancer, and last but not least is Kim Jongseob. Jongseob is a rapper, dancer, and youngest member of the group.
These boys got to show off their incredible acting skills in their movie P1H: A New World Begins. Going into the movie, I don’t know what I was expecting but it surpassed all expectations. The acting was amazing, the storyline was engaging. I will say I was confused throughout the movie about how the plots connected to each other but it was soon revealed in the final minutes. The movie is a one hundred minute long Sci-fi film. It was shot pre-debut so fans got to see what the boys of P1Harmony looked like before getting their makeovers. The only thing that changed really was their hair but I could hardly recognize Theo!
It opens with Theo, Jongseob, their sister, and uncle. They are in an open field preparing to shoot down a drone that injects a parasite in people causing them to go rabid and kill the people around them. Many more start to appear and surround the family. Most drones are destroyed and Wheat manages to capture one. The family hide out in an abandoned movie theatre where they eat, sleep, and occasionally, take apart robot drones. Jongseob takes apart the drone and explains that the drone can detect human voices and that is how it infects people.
On the way back home from a nearby convenience store, Jongsoeb and his sister encounter Soul who is surviving alone. Theo and his uncle stumble across a group of “sleeping” drones and have to make their escape quickly. The family takes Soul in and take care of him. The next day, they all travel together and the movie takes an unexpected turn. Sister is injected with the parasite and the story unfolds in unexpected ways.
Next, we meet Keeho and Jiung who wake up in the woods with no memory of who they are or how they got there. Two men get out of a car with guns and start to chase and shoot at the boys. They fight them off and make their escape. Keeho and Jiung meet a man who seems to have abilities that defy nature’s laws. Keeho is presented with a watch that gives him the power of teleportation and Jiung, a ring that makes him able to move things just by focusing on it. One of the most important characters, Intak, isn’t even introduced until almost the end of the movie.
I think audiences will enjoy watching P1H: A New World Begins because it is full of twists and turns. The characters are well developed and the storylines are complex. This is a movie that I feel anyone can enjoy but especially si-fi fans.
February, 2021
Over the years, Korea has had many artists to debut in the music industry but never has a group debuted with a full length movie. P1Harmony is a Korean boy band that debuted on October 28, 2020. The group consists of six members. Yoon Keeho is the leader, vocalist, and dancer of the group, Choi Taeyang (Theo) is a vocalist and dancer, Choi Jiung is a rapper, vocalist, and dancer, Hwang Intak is a rapper and dancer, Haku Shota (Soul) is a rapper and dancer, and last but not least is Kim Jongseob. Jongseob is a rapper, dancer, and youngest member of the group.
These boys got to show off their incredible acting skills in their movie P1H: A New World Begins. Going into the movie, I don’t know what I was expecting but it surpassed all expectations. The acting was amazing, the storyline was engaging. I will say I was confused throughout the movie about how the plots connected to each other but it was soon revealed in the final minutes. The movie is a one hundred minute long Sci-fi film. It was shot pre-debut so fans got to see what the boys of P1Harmony looked like before getting their makeovers. The only thing that changed really was their hair but I could hardly recognize Theo!
It opens with Theo, Jongseob, their sister, and uncle. They are in an open field preparing to shoot down a drone that injects a parasite in people causing them to go rabid and kill the people around them. Many more start to appear and surround the family. Most drones are destroyed and Wheat manages to capture one. The family hide out in an abandoned movie theatre where they eat, sleep, and occasionally, take apart robot drones. Jongseob takes apart the drone and explains that the drone can detect human voices and that is how it infects people.
On the way back home from a nearby convenience store, Jongsoeb and his sister encounter Soul who is surviving alone. Theo and his uncle stumble across a group of “sleeping” drones and have to make their escape quickly. The family takes Soul in and take care of him. The next day, they all travel together and the movie takes an unexpected turn. Sister is injected with the parasite and the story unfolds in unexpected ways.
Next, we meet Keeho and Jiung who wake up in the woods with no memory of who they are or how they got there. Two men get out of a car with guns and start to chase and shoot at the boys. They fight them off and make their escape. Keeho and Jiung meet a man who seems to have abilities that defy nature’s laws. Keeho is presented with a watch that gives him the power of teleportation and Jiung, a ring that makes him able to move things just by focusing on it. One of the most important characters, Intak, isn’t even introduced until almost the end of the movie.
I think audiences will enjoy watching P1H: A New World Begins because it is full of twists and turns. The characters are well developed and the storylines are complex. This is a movie that I feel anyone can enjoy but especially si-fi fans.
Korean Boy Band, BTS, release new album titled “BE”
Promotion from BTS’ Official Instagram
By: Kristyn Foran
December 3, 2020
“One day, the world stopped without any warning.” This year as a whole has not been like any other but musical artists are still releasing amazing music. BTS, a Korean boyband who has taken the world by storm released an album titled “BE” last month. The band is made of seven members, each very talented and driven. Kim Namjoon, also known as RM, is the leader of BTS and is part of the Rap Line alongside Jung Hoseok, who is the lead dancer and goes by the name, J-Hope, and Min Yoongi, also known as Suga. These boys can also be heard doing some background vocals in select songs. The Vocal Line consists of Jeon Jungkook, who is part of the Dance Line and youngest member of the group, Kim Seok-Jin, who goes by Jin and is the oldest member, Kim Taehyung, also known as V, and last but not least, Park Jimin who is the lead singer, last member to join the group known today, and part of Dance Line. When interviewing someone who has been a fan of BTS since 2019, they expressed that “BE” is their best album “since Dark and Wild”.
The album holds eight songs. It opens with the song, “Life Goes On”, which expresses the feelings of the members since the world has shut down. It has a soft, mellow sound but it is relatable to the audience because we’ve all been going through this together. The lyrics are reminiscent of how life used to be and wanting it to be that way again. The second track, “Fly To My Room”, which is my favorite on the album, is performed by four of the members, Jimin, V, J-Hope, and Suga. It’s a laid back song with a 90s R&B influence. The next song is “Blue & Grey”. It’s a calm, soft ballad. The lyrics express what it’s like to be mentally and emotionally drained with everything that is going on. It’s a beautiful song and right now more than ever many can resonate with it. The fourth track is not a song at all. It’s titled “Skit”. It’s used to express how each member feels about their first song hitting Billboard’s hot 100 and to seperate the album into two parts. The next song, “Telepathy” is an upbeat, almost electronic song. It’s lyrics describe how someone can feel connected to others despite being socially distant. “Dis-ease” is the next track. It gives a message of strength and even includes puns. The next song is “Stay” performed by Jungkook, RM, and Jin. The song expresses how technology brings the band together with the listeners. The final song is Dynamite, which is BTS’ first all English song. It has a 70s, disco feel and was released earlier this year before the album. Out of all of these songs, a BTS fan stated that they have two favorites, “Telepathy” and “Fly to my Room”.
Min Yoongi has not been able to participate in any live performances or promotions for the new album. In 2012, before BTS’ debut, Suga was involved in an accident that would be revealed in 2013 to have dislocated his shoulder. He was able to still perform well throughout the years but a recent flareup caused him to have to get surgery in order to stop it from getting worse. Getting this procedure meant that he would need to rest and heal, meaning that he could not perform with his bandmates. Don’t worry, though! He can still be seen in the music video for the song, “Life Goes On.”
This album is one that I feel many people would relate to as it talks about a situation that the whole world is facing. Many will say “you can’t even understand what they’re saying” but sometimes you don’t have to. The translations, if you take the time to read them, will tell you exactly what you don’t understand. Music is not always about the words. It’s about what you feel when listening to it. There’s a reason why “Life Goes On” is #1 on the Billboard chart.
December 3, 2020
“One day, the world stopped without any warning.” This year as a whole has not been like any other but musical artists are still releasing amazing music. BTS, a Korean boyband who has taken the world by storm released an album titled “BE” last month. The band is made of seven members, each very talented and driven. Kim Namjoon, also known as RM, is the leader of BTS and is part of the Rap Line alongside Jung Hoseok, who is the lead dancer and goes by the name, J-Hope, and Min Yoongi, also known as Suga. These boys can also be heard doing some background vocals in select songs. The Vocal Line consists of Jeon Jungkook, who is part of the Dance Line and youngest member of the group, Kim Seok-Jin, who goes by Jin and is the oldest member, Kim Taehyung, also known as V, and last but not least, Park Jimin who is the lead singer, last member to join the group known today, and part of Dance Line. When interviewing someone who has been a fan of BTS since 2019, they expressed that “BE” is their best album “since Dark and Wild”.
The album holds eight songs. It opens with the song, “Life Goes On”, which expresses the feelings of the members since the world has shut down. It has a soft, mellow sound but it is relatable to the audience because we’ve all been going through this together. The lyrics are reminiscent of how life used to be and wanting it to be that way again. The second track, “Fly To My Room”, which is my favorite on the album, is performed by four of the members, Jimin, V, J-Hope, and Suga. It’s a laid back song with a 90s R&B influence. The next song is “Blue & Grey”. It’s a calm, soft ballad. The lyrics express what it’s like to be mentally and emotionally drained with everything that is going on. It’s a beautiful song and right now more than ever many can resonate with it. The fourth track is not a song at all. It’s titled “Skit”. It’s used to express how each member feels about their first song hitting Billboard’s hot 100 and to seperate the album into two parts. The next song, “Telepathy” is an upbeat, almost electronic song. It’s lyrics describe how someone can feel connected to others despite being socially distant. “Dis-ease” is the next track. It gives a message of strength and even includes puns. The next song is “Stay” performed by Jungkook, RM, and Jin. The song expresses how technology brings the band together with the listeners. The final song is Dynamite, which is BTS’ first all English song. It has a 70s, disco feel and was released earlier this year before the album. Out of all of these songs, a BTS fan stated that they have two favorites, “Telepathy” and “Fly to my Room”.
Min Yoongi has not been able to participate in any live performances or promotions for the new album. In 2012, before BTS’ debut, Suga was involved in an accident that would be revealed in 2013 to have dislocated his shoulder. He was able to still perform well throughout the years but a recent flareup caused him to have to get surgery in order to stop it from getting worse. Getting this procedure meant that he would need to rest and heal, meaning that he could not perform with his bandmates. Don’t worry, though! He can still be seen in the music video for the song, “Life Goes On.”
This album is one that I feel many people would relate to as it talks about a situation that the whole world is facing. Many will say “you can’t even understand what they’re saying” but sometimes you don’t have to. The translations, if you take the time to read them, will tell you exactly what you don’t understand. Music is not always about the words. It’s about what you feel when listening to it. There’s a reason why “Life Goes On” is #1 on the Billboard chart.
