Center Mass is the opposition to Lavish

[runic apex]

Hey, this has been in my head for a while now, and I haven't really seen anyone else talking about it, so I thought I would make this post as a place for my thoughts to live, and so other people can give their opinions as well. I have split this in two because its too long otherwise.

Basically, I think that Center Mass was made as a direct contradiction to Lavish, and as a look at how Tyler may actually feel as an artist.
The entirety of Lavish is him talking about feeling like he is in control, on top of the world, confident, and secure. I know that the song also doesn't take itself too seriously; it is a way to break up the flow of Clancy and re-establish an amount of unpredictability in the record. Yet it also offers a more traditional style of sound and conformity to one specific genre throughout, staying in line with its lyrics of level-headedness. The first verse in Lavish starts with the introduction of someone who is confident in pushing their way through to the front, "walk in like you deserve it", followed by statements of knowing your worth, and place as the "hot shot". The song speaks for itself, and while I do believe It wasn't made to be taken seriously, I think in the context of this comparison it says a lot about someone's showmanship to create a song like this to begin with. Depending on how you look at it, it shows a satirical portrayal of life as someone with fame, using the song as a conveyor for their own self-depreciation.

As for Center Mass the song is very clearly set up differently. If you got to go to one of the listening parties, Tyler even mentioned not thinking that many people would vibe with the song right off the bat; that it shifted in sound and tone potentially too much to be enjoyable for some people. The song in a way acts similar to Lavish in that it breaks up the sound of the album, however instead of the even flow we get in Lavish we have a song that shifts in tone, almost following the anxious words of the singer. Its opening verse talks about no longer speaking up, or maybe even no longer having the ability to, followed by the imagery of making oneself as small as they can. The line “Hoping they misplace my reservation” is also indicative of someone who does not want to be perceived, or have to deal with being in public or interacting with people, even when it is in the case of something they themselves planned. This is something that I think happens a lot with those of us who deal with anxiety. Dreading the plans that have been made and hoping that something either comes up or goes wrong that gets you out of it is not an unfamiliar feeling to me. Next the line that really started to solidify to me how this parallels Lavish is, “I thought you had it figured out (I know, I know) / You said you made it to the top (I lied, I lied) / So, tell us, how did you make out alright? / Well”, This statement really feels like a direct response to the song. A blatant admission to the boasting and exaggeration of confidence, while also revealing the true anxiety and insecurity of the person in the spotlight.

And last as my little throw away, most likely a coincidental aspect of this all, is the fact that both songs are track 8 on their respective albums. Quite literally paralleling each other in where they sit. This could 100% be a coincidence, but I only noticed it after me and my sister started talking about this whole theory and found it very interesting.