The Saddest Album I've Ever Experienced, Part 3

Welcome back to the saddest album I’ve ever experienced, called "Everywhere At The End Of Time" by The Caretaker. Today we are going to be looking at section C.

Now I know in my last two parts to this, I keep saying it's six albums, well I stand corrected, Its one whole album, told in six parts. I’m sorry for the misinformation, I was called out on it a couple times. Anyways, part six is one of the most heartbreaking parts in this album in my opinion, because this part is where the symptoms of Alzheimer's really begin to show. Like last two times, reader discretion is advised.

In the last two, I referred to the listener (me) and you the reader as "Us, The Diagnosed" and thats going to continue throughout the series, This album is an Alzheimer's simulator, after all. Its meant to be experienced as if we are diagnosed. The album is split up into six parts, and those parts are broken up into parts, starting at A1, and ending at R6. In between there are interlude songs, STAGE 2- STAGE 6. I covered STAGE 2 in my last article, so today we are focusing on all C parts.

C2- “Misplaced in Time”- This song opens after our interlude song, and beginning of album “C” called “STAGE 2” this is where Alzheimer’s really begins to show its ugly face. Ambient, yet dark horns, as if a ghoul or witch is slowly trotting through the streets of New Orleans, and everyone that sees her coming looks away. The echo of this song is haunting, meant to scare. Portraying this disease as some sort of voodoo. The repressiveness of this song makes it more and more uneasy to listen to. Towards the end the effects we now know to be associated with this disease begin to come in, the haziness, the distortions and crackles. Extreme echoes, as if this vinyl player is sitting in an empty warehouse and the music is bouncing off the vacant walls.

C3- “What does it matter how my heart breaks”- This song opens very reminiscent of the first song in the melodrama, A1, but has a sadder tone. It feels as if we are trying to remember how the song goes, but can’t quite put our finger on it. The echo and distortion overmasting the sounds of on the cusp of remembering. It creates a very frustrating feel more than the warmth of remembering your favorite song. Some parts come in clearly, but different, more drawn out, sadder, more distressing. It feels as if our caretake is sitting next to us, playing this song, but we don’t remember it the way we used to, or at least we are trying to, it sound so familiarly different. And agonizing “tip of my tongue” moment that abruptly ends in an echo.

C4- “Glimpses of Hope in Trying Times”- If you’ve ever heard “Echoes” by Pink Floyd, the begging of this song feels very recognizable to you, because it starts off with the same bell rings, except its layered with a droning hum, and followed by the darkest ambient we have heard to date. It makes you feel vague, hopeless, lost, scared, agitated, wondering how the hell did I get here? There are times that feels like you’re being watched while there is nobody around. Then a glimmer of light shines over your face, in the far distance, a ballroom. A warm escape that is so close yet so far. The song teases us, back and forth with this distant beautiful noise, and this whirling drone that gives the name a perfect landing. That’s all it is, a glimpse, nothing more. As the song fades out, so too does our glimpse of light, our hope, our happy place.

C5- “Surrendering to despair”- The saddest name of a song yet, plays off what I said in my last sentence, our hope is gone. This disease is eating away at us. But in a way, we have come to accept it once more. It’s a pseudo-triumphant song, one you play at the end of a war, yes, its over, but what have we truly lost. It’s a song you sit down and listen to as you have a warm brandy, sit by the fire and realize some battles you cant win. Sometimes the dice roll in your favor, sometimes they don’t. We have to accept it, and what’s to come. Its one of those nights where you sit in silence next to your loved ones, and just accept defeat. You just have to surrender to the despair. No this song isn’t free of distortion, or cracking, or skips and repeats, which makes it more haunting to listen to. These noises, these splotches and warps, they’re getting worse, louder, more noticeable. To the point the music cuts for a little, and all you hear is static skipping, which is a huge foreshadow of what’s about to happen. They creep up but once you notice, its deafening. And with that, we hit the one-hour mark on this six-hour journey.

C4 and C5 wrecked me. I had to take a 45 minute break writing this because if I let anymore tears hit my keyboard, I would’ve fried my laptop. And I know its only going to go downhill. Thankfully in between this series I’m working on a deep dive on a reddit user that did unspeakable things, and certain conspiracy theories that are considered “Info-hazards” so yeah, yay mental health. Anyways thank you guys so much for the support on this series, I truly appreciate it. I decided that I was going to write something at least once a day, and I’m already a few days behind, so I need to catch up.

Hug someone you love, tell the people in your life you love them, and stay safe.