Cobalt Issue 24 - In Medias Res

Featuring
Hermit
LosingSightofShore
MiddleoftheNight
HighoftheMiddle

Contents
Haiku
HolyMayne
TheGreyAreaBetween
‘Art’and‘Content’
JamalOjomu
AColectionofPoems
ŠimonMichalčík
WordsHavePower
NanaYaaAdu
WelcomeBash
KeithMulopo
Iam Here
Emilia(In
Emilia(InColaboration
withShakeSoc)
Hermit
NinaG
IntheMidst,IRelect
MohammedSultan
LosingSightoftheShore
EmilyDoras
PaperPusher
LucyCarter
MiddleoftheNight
SiennaSamra
HighoftheMiddle
MariaSedykh
Poem totheMidleofyourLife
TejinMustafa
3
4
6
8
9
10
12
13
14
15
16
18
20
20
President’sLeter
Ihavetoadmit,InMediasReshasbecomemyfavouriteissuetoworkon.Imightbealitle
bitbiased,becausethethemeresonatedwithmeinawaymuchdeeperthanIexpected.Alot
ofusareexperiencingasenseofmiddle,betweentwostates:somewherebetweenayoung
personandafuladult,midwayinourstudies,struckbypersonaldilemmas,wherebeingthe
maincharacterischalengingandrewarding.Beingstuckinthemiddleofaction,beingstuck
andsimplybeing–alofthosewereexploredbyCobaltcreatorsandwe’reinvitingyouto
diveintoactionwiththesebeautifulpages.Perhaps,beinginthemiddleisnottoobadatal?
Maria

InMediasRes-Haiku 3
HollyMayne

THE GREY popularthantheyalreadywere,asshownbytheone
So,howdidwegethere? Tosomeextent,onecanpoint
thefingerattheglobalpandemicweareinthemiddleof.
Videostreamingserviceshavebecomeevenmore
bilionsubscriberpeakinsubscriptionsreachedin2020.
Furthermore,theexplosionofplatformssuchasTikTokled
thewayforcontenttobecomeincreasinglyminiaturised
andhasprovokedothersocialnetworkstofolowtheir
A R E
Alead.Bothinternetcontentandtheartshavebeensubject
‘stuf’forlonger,hencethemovetowardsshorter,
BETWEEN
repetitiveformats.Theartshavefoundnewcontainers
thatprofoundlychangehowtheyareappreciated;the
pandemicreinforcedthedominanceofthesenew
tolargechangestomaketheiraudiencesabsorbmore
packages.
Itwouldberatherignorantofmetonotacknowledgethat
‘ART’ AND
Itwouldberatherignorantofmetonotacknowledgethat
artandcontenthavefedofeachotherforages.The
criticaly-acclaimedanimeseriesSerialExperiment’sLain
(1998),directedbythelateRyuutarouNakamura,explores
theimpactofearlyformsofinternetcontent,suchas
emails,onaschoolgirl’sbehaviourandpersonalreality.
ShaunLevy’sFreeGuy(2021)isfulofintertextual
referencesnotonlytoothermoviefranchisesbutto
populargamingcontentcreators,whohavedevelopeda
‘CONTENT’ largefolowingbyinteractingwiththearts.Artandinternet
contenthavealwaysharmonisedwithoneanother.
Isartbeginningtoimitatetheform andnatureof
internetcontentoristhereversetrueinstead? Our
medialandscapehasalreadygotentoapoint
wherethetwoareinterdependentononeanother
fortheirsuccessbutIthinkweareinthemiddleof
atransitionperiodlikenoother,whereasolidline
cannotbeerectedbetweenthetwoterms.Weare
bearingwitnesstoamajorshiftin
thewaymediais
packagedand
interactedwith.
Butifthetwoaresointerconnected,whatexactlymakes
art‘diferent’? Onemayarguethatartissomewhatmore
‘valuable’thancontent.Personaly,Ifindthispositiontoo
ambiguoussince‘value’ishighlysubjective.Theartshave
spawnedanentireecosystem ofonlinecontentthat
reacts,commentsandparodiessaidworks,whichadd
newlayersofmeaning
topre-existingtexts.
4

Theimportanceoftheoriginalartpiecesdefinitelyshould
notbedownplayedbuttooverlookthevalueofthe
derivativesthatgrowfrom them wouldnotbethebest
decisioneither.Withtheriseofthe‘videoessay’format
onYouTube,creatorshavebeenabletoproduce
long-form,in-depthstudiesaboutalmostanytopicthey
seefit.Inaddition,theprofessionalgearthatisavailable
toconsumersthesedayshasgivencreatorstheabilityto
createcontentthatisonparwiththedocumentaries
foundonmajorstreamingplatforms.Ontopofthis,
platformshavebeenwilingtopayoutmilionsofdolars
tohigh-profilecreatorstoproducecontentexclusivelyfor
theirwebsitebecauseofthevaluetheycreatefortheir
respectiveaudiences.Usingmoneyasameasureof
valueisratherproblematicbutitishardtodenythat
internetcontentisalsoworthyofmerit.Contentisnot
inherentlyinferiortoartorviceversa-thetwojust
providediferentsensesofvalue.
Nevertheless,valuecanbemanipulated.ThisiswhyI
drawthelinewhenitcomestocryptocurency’splacein
theworldofart.Outsideoftheenvironmentalcosts,
viewingartandcontentasoneandthesameinthecase
ofcryptobecomestroublesomesincetheirsensesof
valuearedriedoutalmostintheirentirety.Therecent
boom inthetradingofnon-fungibletokens,orNFTsfor
short,areagreatexampleoftheprocessof
‘contentification’foritsownsakeinpractice.Without
getingtootechnical,thecreationofanNFTusualy
involvesthe‘minting’ofanartpieceusingadigital
curency.Thisartpieceisthenregisteredontoaledger
knownasthe‘blockchain’,whichconfirmstheuser’s
ownershipofthespecificdigitalasset.Apainting,
injectedwithideologyandhumanemotion,canbe
convertedintoasoulessdigitalreceiptinamaterof
minutes.
Artdevolvesfrom beingathought-provokingentityto
beengagedwith,toamerecommoditythatcanbe
shownofonsocialmediainordertodrum upmore
hypeforthemarket.Thisisunfortunatelythereality
foralmostalartthatisproducedwithinacapitalist
system.Underthisstructure,artisstrippedofal
context,intentionalityandgravity,renderingitan
aestheticassetusedtoatractatention,likea
clickbaitthumbnailonYouTube’strendingpage.
Thereisalotofcontentthatatemptstobuildonthe
originalworkitiscommentingonbutNFTsfailtodo
this.NFTsareemptyhusksthatlieinthegreyarea
betweenartandcontentthatbringnothingexcitingto
thetable.
WHYDOESTHIS
AL MATTER?
Bothartandinternetcontentaresuchcriticaltools
forinterpretingwhatisgoingonaroundustoday.Al
ofwhatweencounter,from viralmemesto
documentaries,areareflectionofthestatethat
societyisin.Thinkingabouttheartorcontentwe
comeacrossispartandparcelofanalysing
contemporarylife.Tome,thecontinuous
convergenceofthetwosaysalotabouthowwe
interactwiththingstoday.Arthasbecomemoreofa
producttobeconsumedratherthananideatobe
explored.Incontrast,internetcontenthas
transformedhowweengagewithart,pushingusto
seekoutcommentariesorparodiesofexistingworks.
Iam honestlynotsurewhetherthecontinuous
convergenceofthetwothingsispurelygoodorbad;
foreverymedium,theshiftcomeswithahandfulof
advantagesandafairamountofdisadvantages.
However,whatIam certainofisthatweareinthe
middleofaratherimportantculturalmomentthatwil
transform themedialandscapeweknowoftoday.
5
JAMALOJOMU

6

7

WordsHavePower
From childhood,myearshadbecomeaccustomedtothesobbingwhich
accompaniedepisodesofprayer
intongues
AlanguagewhichIcouldneverandwouldneverunderstand
yetmadecompletesense
whenthesewordshappenedtobounceofmytongue
Inmomentsofintenseandearnestprayer.
Wehadgatheredtogethertoworship,toheartheWord
ofGod
Wehadgatheredtogethertopray
Asiftogetherourvoices,ourprayerscouldfinalybe
loudenoughtobeheard,loudenoughtobeanswered
Becausewehadgatheredtogethertopray
(Forstrength,forgoodhealth,forprotection)
Becausewordshavepower
Andalwecouldoferwereourwordsandoursincerityandourtearsand
ourscreamingandourpain
Asanofering,aliving,breathing,bleedingofering
ThatcouldpossiblyplacateourGod
OurmercifulgraciousGod
NanaYaaAdu
8

WELCOMEBASH
Theair’sfrantic.Peoplegyrating
Withcarnalmusicblaring-
Tablesarenow tinydancefloors.
Facesuponfacesuponfaces:
Somefriendly,manyknown,
Alotunknown,few leftcold.
Tenderveselsaroused
Withliquorbundling,
Minglingwithfalseease,
Somesoeagertoproveandplease
Eventhoughthey’restumbling.
Whereinthisseashe’dbe,
Thewomanwhoensnaresmy
memory?
Satdown.Shieldedbyhandsome
Faces,myheartgalopsathersight.
We’refoundoneachother’sradar,
Yetexpresionsremaindormant-
I’m paralysedbyprojections
Ofsocialblemishessurfacing.
Amidstthelarge,mutating
clumps
Andthehubbub’sjoyand
laughter,
I’m rootedbyuneaseand
shame:
Bemoaningmyaversionto
mases,
Lamentingmyaversionto
venture,
Concedingmyaversionto
fulfilment.
9
KEITHMULOPO

10

11

HERMIT
NinaG
12

InTheMidst,IReflect
MohammedSultan
Sub-Editor
in my heart,
These are not ripples: gentle and calm
This is not the sea, crashing lovely against shore
Nor a glacier melting, dripping into a mirror
Not the cloud, swimming to rain
Nor is it rain, tapping on my skin.
What numbers will I use
To describe this chaos
Which words to pick
To build this poem?
Novelty, a higher high, lust, pain,
Insatiated for eternity,
I eat my own flesh
To murky the blood bleeding
Into the seductive gold.
What comes,
When I am finished eating
And reach my bare heart
The last thing to consume
My soul in my mouth
What will it taste like?
This disturbance
13

LosingSightoftheShore
EmilyDoras
Cariedbyanundercurentofanguish,
Yetanchoredbytheweightoftime,
From themidstoftheoceanit’softenhardtodefine,
Thebeginningofwhatwasmine.
Asthesightoftheshorestartstodiminish,
Intoroughremnantsthatnolongeralign,
Likeafadedphotographthatwasoncestunninglysublime,
Asstructuredasabookwithoutaspine
Wherethepagesbegintotarnish,
Recountinganarativeforeshadowingdecline,
Theseaoflifeisshroudedbyaspurioussunshine,
Blindingmefrom themountainIhaveyettoclimb.
Reachingthemiddleisnotasigntofinish,
Butpartsthepastandfuturebyafineline,
Theirwavescrashliketwosurgingseasstrugglingtocombine,
ButI’lletthebuoyancyofthewatercarymetothefinishline.
14

PaperPusher
LucyCarter
Editor
Iwakeupeachmorningandconsidermyoptions.Ican
leavethisstupidjob,makesomethingofthelifeIhave
left,orIcanstayput.Ialwaysfindmyselfchoosingthe
later.It’sparalysing,thefear.Itcreepsintomymuscles,
mybones,leavingmeunabletoevenreachthedoor,
nevermindturnthehandle.Metaphoricaldoor,ofcourse.
Andhandle.NottosoundlikeasecondrateWiliam
Blake,butIknowit’salinmymind.Nooneisstopping
mefrom going,runningaway.Iseemyselfracingdowna
hil,thewindinmyhair,thesunonmyskin.AndthenI
rememberI’m alergictograssorealisticalyitwouldbe
moreofatears-running-down-my-face,sneezysortofan
afair.Thisishowmostofmyfantasisingends-withan
abruptcrashbackdowntoearthasrealitydisruptsmy
daydreaming.
They’reendles,dayafterdayofreports,andupdates,
andmesagesfrom onhigh,telingusthatweneedto
tweakhowweanswertoemailsbecauseclients“just
feellikewe’rebeingtooabruptwiththem,okay?”If
you’renotpracticalygrovelingattheirfeetthanking
them forhiringyouthenyou’rerude,snappy,bitchy,
“abrupt”.I’dratherbeinoneofthosecubicles.Atleast
thenIwouldn’thaveafrontrowseattothepathetic
atemptsatoficeromancethatgoonaroundhere.
IguesIshouldbegrateful.Ihaveajob,andalIrealy
havetodoissendemails,movepapersaroundonmy
desk,andsoundsomewhatenthusiasticaboutthe
companyethos,orvalues,orwhateverbuzzwordthey
chooseeachweek.Butthisplacedrainsme.Iwakeup
everydayfeelingthesame,doingthesamethings,just
wantingtoendital,myjobormylife,thetwoofthem
sotiedtogetherthatIdon’tknowwhichwoulddiefirst.
I’m beingdramatic,ofcourse.ButI’m trappedbetween
twooptions,neitherofwhichareveryappealing.Istay
here,andnothingchanges;orIleave,andfacethe
unknown,bothofwhichfeelliketheyhavemorecons
thanpros.Hencetheparalysis.
FormostofmylifeIthoughtthatworkingatanofice
wouldbegreyanddepresing,likeitisin90sfilms;rows
uponrowsoflitlemakeshiftcubicles,thehum of
fluorescentlightsandtheratleofkeyboardsaspeople
inputdataandusespreadsheetsinasomewhatcompetent
manner.It’sworse.Sure,theopenplandesignisles
stiflingthanthosestufycubicles,butthatdoesn’tstop
mewantingtojumpoutofthetastefulfloor-to-ceiling,
prime-real-estatewindowseverytimemymanagercals
usalinfora“quickchat”.
Likeeveryevening,Isetmyalarm forthenextdayand
falintobed.Andlikeeveryevening,Ithinkthatmaybe
I’lknowwhattodoonceI’vehadsomerest.
15

MIDDLEOF
THENIGHT
HAIM
3AM
SiennaSamra
Editor
Asongabouttakingitslow,easingintotherhythm of
themundaneandappreciatingthepresent,Aplin
deviatesfrom herEnglishindierootsanddabblesin
R&B.Youcanreadthesongasanode,similartoJohn
Keats’“OdetoaNightingale”ifyouwanttogothat
farintoliteraryhistory,butAplintalksabout
liberation.Shebringscolourintoalthe
huesofblueyouseeinthemiddleof
thenight,makingyouexcitedforthe
rolingsunrisethat’sgoingtocreep
abovethehorizonshortly,oh-so
soon.Birdschirpinginthe
background,thelisteneristhrust
intoamiddleofthegardenwhere
theylistentothissongwithvery
litlerushandjustgroovewith
Aplin’sdelectablevocals.
SKYLIGHT
GABRIELEAPLIN
Ifyou’rekeen,there’stheThundercatfeatureofthissongonthe
deluxeversionoftheiralbum WomeninMusicPart I.Butnothing
comparestotheoriginal.Haim,abandformedofthreesisterswho
areavidpromotersoftheirJewishfaith,releasedthisalbum in2020.
Whilethesongisn’tapplicableenoughfora3am moviemontage(the
witchinghourisalwayssynonymouswithdeep,relaxing,ambient
music),thissongistheperfectwaytokickstarttheplaylist.Thesong
isaboutabootycal,andwealknow whenthoselovetomaketheir
unsolicitedappearance.It’sfunky,it’sfresh,it’salsoawayforthe
bandtodiptheirtoesintoalitlebitoftechnicolourR&Bandjustlike
algreatwomeninmusic,eschewingmenandtheiruniversalwaysof
sexting.
HITMEWHEREITHURTS
CAROLINEPOLACHEK
It’salaboutthosesadboyhourswhenitcomesto
themiddleofthenightandthatiswhatPolachek
doeswithnotonlythissongbuttheentiretyof
herdebutalbum Pang.Thealbum centersonthe
sadelementsofbeingheadoverheels,soinlove
ithurts,ithurtssomuchthatshedemandsher
lovertohithersoithurtsenoughtofeelit.This
songisaboutexperiencingthechangesinher
lifewithoutbeingabletocontrolthem,where
shefeels“likeabuterflytrappedinsidea
plane”.Monotonouswiththeenunciationof
hersylables,thesongevokesrepetitionwith
how throatyhervocalsare.Itsoundslike
she’stalkingmorethansheissinging,
16 havingaconversationwiththelistener,a
heart-to-heartasshedemandstobehit.

1:1
TAEYEON
“11:11”isasongbyKoreansingerTaeyeon,soyeah,it’sinKorean.(Geniusisright
thereforyoutolookuplyrictranslationsandjustbecauseitisinadiferent
languagedoesnotmeanyoucan’tappreciategoodmusic).Thesongshowsa
paralelbetweenthedaycomingtoacloseandthemomentspriortoacouple’s
separation.It’salaboutwishes,countingonstarsandnumbersdeterminingyour
trajectoryinlife.WithTaeyeon’slightanddelicatevocalsbeingaccompaniedbythe
gentleacousticofaguitar,theEnglishrefrain“IbelieveI’lbeoveryou”peeksinto
thenarrativeandbringsthelistenertoahyper-awarenessoftheirownemotions.
Heavierthesubject,thegentlerthemusicis–iswhatTaeyeonappearstogoby,
introducingasenseofcalm rightbeforethestorm,orrightbeforeitturnsmidnight
andyoufoldinonyourself,succumbingtoyourdeepemotionalwoundsofloss.
Now,there’sanabundanceofwomeninthisplaylist,butmypersonalgo-to
formalevocalsinthenightwouldhavetobeDaveBayley,the
singer-songwriter-produceroftheband.Thissonghadashoutoutbackin
thesummerwhenIwrotemytopfivealbumsforthesummer,anditwil
now makeanotherappearanceasIgointodepthaboutitsbeauty.“Helium”
isreservedforthosenightswherethesunisbeginningtoset,youcansee
itteeteringontheedgebeforeitslipsaway,unseen,anditisonlyyouleft.
There’sareasonwhythealbum iscaledDreamlandandtheoutroofthe
songsolidifiesthathazyescapeofslinkingintoREM,feelingyourlimbsgo
looseandyourminddriftaway.It’salaboutlove,it’salaboutrelationship, HELIUM
butit’salaboutthatfluidnessofhow dynamiclifeis.
GLASSANIMALS
OUTOFTIME
THEWEKND
FusingJapaneseCityPopwithawesternnarrative,AbelTesfaye(TheWeeknd)
honoursTomokoAran’s“MidnightPretenders”inthistrack.He’sdistressed,
begging,pleading,almostfranticinthissongforthereturnofhisloverandthe
calm classicsampleinthebackgroundismockinglysardonicasitpokesfunat
Tesfaye’scrooningforasecondchance.Somepeoplenoticedthatthissong
hasaverysimilarsongstructureto“IFeelItComing”andthatthesetracks
canbeoverlappedwitheachotherorcanbelistenedtoconsecutivelytohear
thedownfalorelevationofTesfaye.Jim Carrey’sominousvoiceishypnoticat
theend,manipulatingthelistenerwith“don’tyoudaretouchthatdial”,
controlingthem tohalttheiractionstobereturnedtothemodern-daywaveof
popmusicwithsongsthatsoundnearlyidentical.They’restuckinthepast,
justlikeTesfayewhosubmergeshimselfinmemoriesthatareinescapable.
LucoversBritishband10cc’s1970shit.Acomparisonisnecessary
betweenthetwobecausewhile10ccelevatesthesongtobea
summersojournserenade,wherethereisanabundanceof
romanticfeelingthatappearstobeheightened,Lutransformsthe
coverintoamidnightmourningsong.Thesongfluxesbetween
familiarandforgoten,reviving10cc’shit.It’stheperfectsongto
listentowhenyou’regrievingforthelossofafriend,alover,for
yourpastself,foralthethingsyouwantedtosaybutyounevergot
achance.Instead,youwipeyourtearsaway,uter“bigboysdon’tcry”
underyourbreathandskiptothenextsongonthisplaylist.Ihighly
recommendlisteningtoboth10ccandLu’ssongsback-to-back,just
tohearthenuancesLudeliversinthesong,whilestil
stayingtruetotheoriginalandappreciatingit.
17
IMNOTINLOVE
KELSEYLU

THEHIGHOF
MariaSedykh
President
18

THEMIDDLE
Theswelingofthechestwithdeepestbreathingin
beforethemindfulbreathingout.
Thechestypainandwheezingafterlaughter.
Laughingsomemore.
Listeningtopop-singerstaking
eachbreathbetweenthelyrics.
Thefinalcrunchofabranch
undermyfoot.Walkingso
silentlyatnight
thatIdon’t
hearmyown
stepsinthe
darkand
disappear.
Theculminationofthechurchchoir,piercing
straightthroughme.
Catchingafleetingideaatthemomentlast.
Catchingafreshraindroponlipssaltedwithsweat.
Beingsotiredthateachmusclehums,buzzes,aches.
Falingintoasplit.Risingsoquicklythatvision
blackensforawhile.Scratchinganitch.Turning
thetaptomakewaterhotenoughforboiling
myself.Boilingmyselfintheshower.Thefirstpuf
ofbreathinthechilyair.
Somehobbyspilingoutintoobsesion.
Loosingmyselfinmusic,findingmyselfinchaotic
dances.Theidealripofgrapeskininmymouth.
Thingssosweetthatmakemythroatache.Thebrief
hypnosisoftheflowingwater.Flamessoenticing
andvibrantthatImightjustthrustmyhandinto
thefire.
Thelastredsliverof
thesunbeforeit
sets.
19

20

21

AlPhotosfrom pexels.com andunsplash.com areCC0licensed
FrontCover:KendalHoopes(pexels.com)
Page3:AlvaroMatzumura(pexels.com)
Page4&5:Mo(pexels.com)
Page6&7:ArinaKrasnikova(pexels.com)
Page8:SharonPagadala(pexels.com)
Psge9:CotonBro(pexels.com)
IngaSeliverstova(pexels.com)
PhilipWarp(pexels.com)
Page12:AnnieSprat(unsplash.com)
Page13:lilartsy(unsplash.com)
Page14:JonasMendes(unsplash.com)
Page15:pixabay(pexels.com)
Page18&19:notethanun(unsplash.com)