The Smashing Pumpkins . Machina Mystery
Propositions des Fans

          "...les demi-finalistes ont revu leur proposition, qui ne vont avoir aucune limite en longueur ; elles vont être envoyés et les fans vont avoir une chance de voter pour leur proposition favorite avec un prix spécial décerné à cette proposition pour déceler le regard capricieux des fans !. un indice de plus : machina II/the friends and enemies of modern music, est aussi une partie de l'histoire de Machina, une partie très importante."
          Comme vous le savez les vainqueurs officiels ont été choisis, le premier a reçu son prix. Les second et troisième vont bientôt recevoir le leur. Il y a eu tant de propositions si bonnes que même si Billy a choisi les vainqueurs il voudrait voir qui vous choisissez. C'est à vous maintenant de décider qui a écrit l'essai qui décrit le mieux la signification de MACHINA. Chaque essai est numéroté, et en bas de cette page (cf le site officiel) vous allez trouver le bouton "vote" qui va vous venez à soumettre votre choix. S'il vous plait, un vote par adresse e-mail.

          Nous allons faire correspondre les votes et annoncer le vainqueur, Billy va alors révéler la signification de MACHINA.

          tigershorty

          Proposition 1 - 3ème place (people choice winners)
      De: "Peter Anderson"
      Billy,
      Ma proposition ne va pas changer de ma première à ma dernière. Je crois encore que c'est une déclaration très réelle et vraie sur la vie en général et certainement sur l'industrie musicale (qui par là fait que je veux presser les têtes de chaque petite fille qui veut écouter *NStink et les Backside Boys). C'est donc ainsi que je le vois, encore une fois avec une mince révision...
      C'est ainsi, très simple, très compact, très réel: dans la vie, tu te fais chier à travailler et d'une façon ou d'une autre, à la fin, toute personne à qui tu soumets un investissement te dévisse (screw over). Cependant, les personnes qui sont dévissés avec toi (screw over) vont toujours être des amis et des personnes que tu aimes. Fin.
      Dieu te bénisse Billy,
      Peter Anderson
      P.S. Je n'espère pas gagner, Je suis seulement un pâle ignorant qui vient de la banlieue d'Olympia, WA, qui aime jouer du jazz et du blues avec son propre groupe d'inadaptés. j'espère que tu trouves ton propre nirvana Billy, il y a encore du temps. Ta musique est toujours vivante ici avec moi.

          Proposition 2 - 2ème place (people choice winners)
      De: "Clark Chilton"
      Pour construire sur ce qui a été dit plus tôt, Machina est un album qui tourne beaucoup autour de Dieu, l'amour pour Lui et l'amour pour une femme, et le destin du groupe. L'album est un message qui doit être entendu ; un message pour une certaine femme , pour les fans et pour le monde dans sa totalité. Le coeur de l'album est le salut par l'amour. Les différentes plages sont des dialogues avec Dieu, des dialogues avec les fans, et des dialogues avec June (elle est tout ce que Glass n'est pas). Cet album a une double signification, ou plutôt le nom Glass a une double signification. D'une part, c'est proche d'un appel pour June de connaître le Seigneur, d'accepter son amour réel (REAL LOVE)(supersonic cross!)) et de virer les drogues. D'autre part, c'est un message distinct pour les fans sur le décès des Smashing Pumpkins et leur cri de liberté pour échapper à l'industrie musicale et pour vivre leur propre vie.
      Cette double signification tire son origine du chanteur lui-même. Le nom Glass n'a pas été choisi par accident. Certains peuvent se voir eux-mêmes au travers de glass, mais peuvent aussi sonder le plus profond de ses qualités. Et nous savons tous que Bill est juste un tas de contradictions qui attendent d'être mise à jour. C'est sa (notre) nature duelle. Il en est ainsi avec l'album et sa signification. En surface, c'est un appel à celui que vous aimez, mais au plus profond de cette personne, c'est un doux appel à tous ceux qui ont besoin d'entendre ceux qui ont des oreilles. L'appel est le rôle dans lequel le groupe fait sa performance. La distribution des rôles existe dans les machines de Dieu (Glass), car en un sens, Glass est le dieu des smashing pumpkins. Si vous prenez le Christ hors du Christianisme, vous n'avez rien. et de même, si vous prenez BC hors des SP, vous avez à dire vrai peu de choses. Donc le titre encapsule comment Dieu travaille dans toutes nos vies, mais aussi comment Glass travaille dans le groupe. Dieu est au travail dans le vie de Billy et de June, les machines tournent dans et autour de lui et de June, mais les dents (cogs) tournent aussi dans le propre esprit de Billy et ainsi dans son groupe de rock.
      Et cette nature duelle est montrée dans la plage qui ouvre Machina I. La légèreté est montrée dans le moment de calme de la chanson, et exprime le flux et le reflux des sentiments envers Dieu. Mais ce n'est pas seulement le chanteur qui ressens cette nature duelle, c'est l'homme lui-même. Nous sommes constamment tirés entre l'enfer (4) et le ciel (3), les forces opposées au travail dans ce royaume terrien qui est siiiiii temporel.
      Cette nature duelle est la même avec Dieu aussi. Nous pouvons Le voir pour tout ce qu'Il est, et ainsi écrire des chansons de pure joie comme "With Every Light" ou "Stand Inside your love". Mais on peut aussi regarder Dieu et il va permettre à votre être de faire réfléchir sa gloire, et ainsi vous montrer des choses sur la vie qui ont besoin d'être changées, des choses qui sont pleines de pêchés ("Vanity" - vanité). et Il est rudement bon de retourner nos questions vers nous-mêmes (Job 42), mais toujours pour notre propre bien.
      Et ce parallèle continue jusqu'à la dernière plage de Machina I, parlant de l'Armaguedon (la fin du monde par Dieu ou la fin du groupe par Glass). Cash car star: sur la merde qu'est la musique aujourd'hui, et comment on veut en sortir (et c'est apparent dans beaucoup de chansons de Machina I et II). Mais c'est aussi une forte déclaration contre l'Américain à la recherche du bien matériel, et pour dire combien de gens sont loin de Dieu. Je pourrais trouver ces parallèles dans d'autres chansons, mais cela prendrait trop de temps. Mourning ou morning, innocence ou innosense. Je ne sais pas pourquoi vous avez commencé à porter du blanc, oui, mais je suis triste que vous le fassiez. Vous êtes mieux en noir.
      Parce que d'une certaine manière nous sommes de petits dieux ici-bas, cadrant notre detinée à travers nos décisions tout en luttant contre notre nature duelle "détestable". Et je crois que Machina capte cela bien avec cet art vivant, progressif, qui a été créé, donc pour parler. Je suis honoré par le fait que vous ayez aimé ce que j'ai écrit, et je vous remercie ! tant d'amour ! et pièce (piece), je veux dire paix (peace)....

          Proposition 3 - 3ème place (contest winners)
      De: mckinjg
      Par Gabe McKinney
      Ouahou, c'est certainement une série compliquée de liaison, n'est-ce pas ?! Je n'ai jamais pensé que des gens doivent en idoliser d'autres, créer des "héros". Car si vous le faites, vous ne pouvez jamais les dépasser, vous ne pouvez jamais continuer leur travail et en faire davantage. Mais Hemingway a sûrement écrit sans hésiter vers le point, n'est-ce pas ? Cela va être dûr, mais c'est ce que je vais essayer de faire.
      Maiiiis sérieusement, messieurs-dames....cette histoire est complexe et je ne prétends pas comprendre tous ses coins et ses recoins. Mais il me semble qu'il y a des thèmes récurrents dans les essais sélectionnés à cette étape. Certains de ces thèmes récurrents, fondamentaux semble même se contredire entre eux. Mais comme je l'ai dit, la simplicité est toujours la pierre angulaire. (Merci Mr. Anderson) Donc quelle est la plus simple, si ce n'est pas la plus efficace, et meilleure voie pour empoigner en apparence les idées contradictoires ? Pourquoi, à travers un raisonnement dialectique, bien sûr !
      Dans toute bonne théorie correspondante, il y a le truc dans l'esprit et alors il y a le truc qui correspond dans le monde "réel". Regarder Machina dans une telle lumière est avantageux. Evidemment, ce travail est un enregistrement musical, et tous les concours et la promotion et (vient ici un euphémisme : limité) le jeu extérieur à part, c'est un travail d'art produit (c-a-d, enregistré, joué, dessiné, créé, écrit, tout inclus) par des personnes réelles en temps réel et cela a une signification réelle. Et la signification réelle de tout cet art devrait, en fait que ce soit intentionnel ou pas, correspondre à quelque chose dans l'artiste personnellement. Avec cette théorie de l'auteur basique, laissez-moi partir et PROCLAMER Mr. Corgan comme l'auteur. (des messages faits par lui supportent cette prétention, en cela iol prétends que c'est un effort collaboratif, mais c'est surtout sa vision dans le principe. Est-ce incorrect? Est-ce que cela pose vraiment problème? Non, pas vraiment, en fait.) Le point suivant est évident; MACHINA veut dire quelque chose, au moins pour quelqu'un, au moins pour ces auteurs. Sinon, pourquoi les auteurs auraient-ils perdu leur temps là-dessus ?
      But before I begin to cash things out, let's cover a few things first. People have said, author included, that MACHINA is dramatically modeled. I can't speak for others, but when I think "plays," I think Jean-Paul Sartre. (And Christopher Durang, but, hey, who doesn't.) Sartre said that part of the "sucky" aspect of existing (besides the whole Îmy existing is completely meaningless' part) is "The Look" other people give you. I think this is important to getting to the heart of the work in question. "The Look" is when people look at other people and completely objectify them, making theme mere objects for the purpose and needs of the looker. This seems to be the concern, partially, of the subjects (that is, not only whom the story is about, but also the people in the story who are being looked at. The stars, the celebrities, you know.) I mean, the guy's name is Glass for heaven's sake. Glass is a good choice, because the word is so versatile. It implies fragility, and certainly that is part of who this person seems to be. However, Glass is a nice choice in that it works "double duty," implying also (and perhaps even more so, in light of the rest of the content of the piece) that the people who look at it can see themselves in the reflection of the Glass. This brings us back to "The Look." People guilty of giving "the look" are actually guilty of imposing themselves onto the person they are looking at, and in the case of Glass, this metaphor becomes literal. Very nice. BUT this would mean, when we take it and cash it out into the ever-precious reality, that we, the audience, yes, even the tried-and-true Smashing Pumpkins fan is guilty of this unjust and evil objectification. Yes, this is true. However·.
      As I mentioned, dialectical reasoning seems to pervade this work. And if this is the case, there must be an antithesis somewhere to be found and indeed there is. I will "borrow" (as it has been said) from Joe Lottino, and bring in another oh-so-important theme of the work, that of love, "pure love," as he put it very nicely. The intentions, at least, of the fans are good and based on this pure love, which cannot be defined, but only loosely described as a strange mutual understanding between yourself and a person you don't know and never will. There is a strange kind of reciprocity between the two. Perhaps it remains unsaid, or perhaps it is only communicated in terms of applause/performance, etc. Whatever form it takes, it exists nonetheless. So, there is a weird dialectic between fan and performer, the "looker" and the subject, the appreciative and appreciated. Does June = an appreciative audience? Perhaps, but I'll get to that later.
      Might I say that I don't think Glass = Mr. Cogan, Smashing Pumpkins, etc., necessarily. At lease this parallel doesn't seem necessary to me, and to say that this is the meaning of Glass only complicates matters without cause. I don't want to be misunderstood; the album/story is about those Corgan and the other authors of the work, but only insofar as the story is about subjects in general who find themselves in an awkward place in terms of fame, society, history and, yes, TIME. Fame and the implications of fame, and the strange relationship the "famous" (that is, those who are given the look) is partly what this work is about. And in this case, it is as much about those who make others into objects (for good or bad), as it is about those made into objects.
      Another piece of the puzzle seems to be the piece "an individual's place in the history of history." And this may be one of the lines that goes most directly to the core of what this is all about. As I mentioned in the previous essay, there seems to be the awareness on the part of the author to the fact that the author is being listened to. The authors are "speaking" by way of this album, and thus meaning that the album itself, not the person/author/listener is the Machine of God. And it seems that the author is speaking, though disjoined from the work, through the work with some air of authority. This idea certainly fits, if in fact the album is at least partly about what it means to be famous, and thereby achieving an everlasting status of some sort. The authors would, obviously, be speaking as authorities on this matter. This is where the whole business of "everlasting" comes into play, for as long as the work is in existence, there is still some piece of the author in extenstence, for, as we all know from Mr. Marx (WARNING: DANGEROUS TERRITORY) we are what we make. The author made something that will be around longer than they will, and thus the author is, at least to that extent everlasting. Not eternal, because eternality implies something outside of time, where as in this case time plays and essential role. For we are not talking here about rewards in some distant other world, but the role people fill here in this reality. Thus Glass, whom/whatever he may represent, is another "cog in the wheel," so to speak. The authors seem to be looking at the whole of the past, and extrapolating into the future somewhat and saying, "okay, look, we're not the final word in this area of human endeavor. But we do play a role in the history of this particular endeavor, and this position we fill and these works we have created will hold a place longer than our physical bodies will." This is indeed the case, as long as there are people around to consider the work and historic position of the author, and give that work and position "The Look."
      And now, ladies and gents; God and art. The point was brought up in some of the essays, and I think it is applicable here and I guess I have already gotten into it somewhat. Okay, so if the work is the machine, the language through which the author(s) conveys his/her (or their) message(s), then who is/are the Author(s) exactly? Are they God? No, I don't think that is the message here. Maybe more to the heart of the issue is that the creators of the work are trying to imitate God, in that they involved in creating as well, a point raised in several of the essays. I think this is a good point, because it makes clear that the subjects are not God, and are not trying to be God, but be like God. Which God doesn't really seem to matter, because the theme of redemption and salvation running through this particular piece also runs through most religions, but I'll get to that in a sec. Okay, so, they are being like God in that they are being creative. Fine, but what exactly is the role of art in relation to God? The relationship seems to be, to "borrow" from another musical ensemble of our current time (who Glass also represents, see what I'm saying?), "self-serving with a purpose." This is also how people approach God in general. The relationship of God/art to the individual is partly self-serving; they want something from it, namely self-immortality. But at the same time, the relationship does have some more altruistic ends; to do some good for the rest of the world, to be "missionaries," to get ones message out. People do this in art as much as they do it in religion. While an attempt to parallel art and religion doesn't seem to be the main point of this work, but these themes certainly are found in the work. It isn't exactly a dialectic, but it is some kind of strange similarity that the two have with each other.
      Moving on, (Remember what I said about brevity? Forget that.) to the theme of Redemption, which also comes to the surface every now and then. This is plays into the Machina story, in that it seems to be the synthesis of the dialectic. It is how the subject saves himself from the look, but strangely, it is through the look of another, June. While this seems contradictory, it is no more so than Sartre falling in love with Beauvoir. It is a real love, one that loves a self as its self not as something to reflect upon.
      Lastly, I return to Semiotics; the meaning of symbols, and how they confine that which they represent. If Machina is the language that the author is communicating by, this follows; the work can never fully encompass all that the author is about, and never represent the author's ideas completely or fully. Fully; now the circle motif. I don't think this work implies that this process happens over and over again to the same person, but it does imply that it happens again and again in history in general and to all those who hold some place in history. They come, shine, and slightly fade, and this is the cyclic activity to which this album speaks. The work contains symbols and we were asked to take into account the number 7, a symbol and a hefty one to boot. Sevens are everywhere. But could this simply mean that it is all over?
      Indeed this story does have an end. The end is now. The end of Machina is that it IS the end of the Machina, and there are going to be no more works by the author, no more attempts to communicate this way from the subject to the look givers. The subject is now facing the end with dignity, knowing that the work and the position secured by himself/herself is going to be everlasting, but that at the same time the author's word is not the final word and that things will continue and Glass will come again, and in the form of some new thing. And yes, it is somewhat upsetting when it happens, but it is going to happen and it has always happen and it won't stop happening. While the "powers that be" (i.e., the record industry) certainly speeds the process along, they are not the cause, for their time shall come as well, when all that is left of them is their mark on the world. And whether this mark is a good or bad one doesn't really matter, because the mark (that is, the synthesis of work and historical/cultural position-influence) will be everlasting.

          Proposition 4
      De : "james uhles"
      encore bonjour.
      here is my attempt to explain the concept of machina. the story of machina is the story of the smashing pumpkins; "machina/the machines of god" is the last album, and thus, the last chapter of the story. the story of machina (to which the songs act as a type of soundtrack while providing extra clues and information) tells the story of a musician (billy) who tries to live a life that makes an impact on the world. glass is the main character of machina; he arose from zero. who is zero, you ask? zero was the alter ego of billy during the mcis era. zero died at the end of that chapter (dawn to dusk, twilight to starlight signifies the life of an individual) after june left him. zero was resurrected as glass, billy's character for the adore and machina eras, who really wasn't a character at all. billy put aside all facades and finally became himself. after the creation of glass, billy sings in "the everlasting gaze" to the ghost children that he is indeed not dead; only his former self, zero, is. thus the name glass; the character is just a reflection of billy. this is evident on "adore," an extremely personal record for billy, where he writes songs to june telling her how much he needs her. this continues on machina; for example, in "stand inside your love" or "the crying tree of mercury," where glass/billy sings "i did it all for you." also, the name of glass demonstrates how fragile billy is and how he feels he can easily break. who does the character of june represent? i believe june is chris, the lost love of billy. june used to love billy but became jealous when zero/billy concentrated on the music instead of her. it was not that zero was a distant individual; he simply felt that he had a responsibity to begin a revolution that would change the face of the radio forever. zero had to ensure that his legions of fans, the ghost children, understood that life is precious and only love matters, not how popular someone is or how good they look. eventually the love that june used to have for glass crumbled into indifference and tolerance. in the end, june fell into despair and addiction and left billy to be on his own (possibly dying after a drug overdose, though this did not occur in real life). glass was shattered at this, as shown in "i of the mourning," where he cries while reading some of june's letters. yet, the story of machina is not only of glass and june. it also tells of glass and his band, the machines (the rest of the smashing pumpkins: james, jimmy, d'arcy, and later, melissa). they are termed machines because their record company believes they should be endlessly "cranking out" hits to create wealth and appease the ghost children. of course, glass and the machines want to be known as a group of individuals who have made a difference and not become simply food for the eye of the radio as many other acts have been. the frustration glass feels because of this situation is demonstrated on some songs on machina and machina ii: specifically, on "cash car star," glass sings about how "they," the record corporations that fail to support the work of the machines, "paint you black with the blood of your surprise" and just use glass to line their pockets with gold. as a result, glass and the machines decide to leave the music business after dropping a revolutionary "atom bomb" of music which would leave the eye of the radio blinded in white light. ("as the curtain falls, we bid you all goodnight.") after the machines stop their furor, glass is happy that the eye of the radio is no longer upon him ("the age of innocence"). glass sings that he longs to return "home" and that "love is everything i want." the story has seven chapters, with each sp album making up a chapter. evidence of a continuing story is present upon scrutiny of all of the smashing pumpkins' work: "siamese dream" comments on how billy is intertwined and connected with his love, june, much like siamese twins. "mellon collie and the infinite sadness" explains on how distraught billy is after june left him; while "adore" is a personal record where billy removes all masks and writes songs declaring his love for june. "machina" is the final part of the tale of the smashing pumpkins; the story is laid out in its entirety for all to understand. it took god seven days to make the universe; it took billy/glass/zero seven albums to make his impact on the world. ("it is finished when seven become one.") machina also presents the cycle of how one messenger is created and worshipped by fans after being presented by the radio. after one messenger retires or dies (or more commonly, is forgotten by fans), another is quickly concocted to act as a replacement. glass has completed his turn as a musical messiah and has laid down his guitars. soon someone else will arise to sing "someone's favorite song." yet, there is no need for tears, because glass is content to be free of the eye of the radio. furthermore, the echo of glass and the machines rings forever on, for how can the ghost children ever forget how glass changed them forever with his message of love? thanks for reading. "love is good and love is mine ; love is good all the time."

          Proposition 5
      De : Joe Lottino
      Selon moi.....
      Il y a beaucoup d'interprétations différentes du concept "Machina". Certaines diffèrent en voyant la signification au travers des images, des paroles, de la musique, et des histoire. Je sens que l'histoire n'est pas presque aussi importante que la signification qu'elle souligne. Je sens qu'il n'y a qu'une signification et que tous les symboles et les histoires et tout cela peuvent ajouter de la perspicacité à la signification, mais sont aussi ici pour distordre la signification relativement simple. Je crois que cette signification est beaucoup plus simple que beaucoup de gens ne le pensent. Je vais donner mon interprétation de l'histoire, et de là donner la signification.
      Cependant, le point de cet essai et du concours est de donner la SIGNIFICATION de Machina, donc je vais seulement aller brièvement à l'histoire.
      L'histoire semble être une histoire d'amour entre la rock star Glass et une femme appéle June. Glass est accablé par son succès et se termine en se délabrant vite (shattering fast). Je crois que la vidéo pour "Try,Try,Try" montre la relation que Glass et June ont eu. Pas exactement le même, mais dans la vidéo je crois que Billy représente Glass, et il a des larmes de sang. Glass a beaucoup de larmes dans un bocal taché de sang. Il pleure parce que c'est l'histoire de son seul vrai amour, June. Ils sont dans une relation physiquement déchirée (presque jusqu'au point de la mort) par les drogues, mais leur amour reste fort. C'est où je trouve la signification de Machina. C'est beaucoup plus simple que la plupart des autres essais et interprétation que j'ai entendu, mais c'est l'amour. Amour. Amour. Ordinaire et simple. La signification de tout cela n'est pas ce qui arrive dans l'histoire, mais ce que nous ressortons de l'histoire, et c'est ça après tout, l'amour est ce qui importe. L'amour que vous avez pour votre femme. L'amour que vous avez pour vous-mêmes. L'amour que nous avons pour le groupe, et l'amour du groupe pour nous. Toute sorte de pur amour. L'amour de Glass pour June. C'est ce que je crois être la signification soulignée derrière l'histoire de Glass et de June et toutes les autres obscurités renfermées. Je ne fais pas référence aux premières amours, mais à l'amour qui veut vraiment dire quelque chose. Quand vous turiez pour quelqu'un. Pas l'amour de peintures intéressantes, de personnes populaires ou de plaisirs esthétiques, mais le type d'amour accablant qui est indescriptible.
      Au groupe: "And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make - et à la fin, l'amour que vous prenez est égal à l'amour que vous faisez" Vous allez nous manquer. (Vous pouvez enlever ça de la sélection si vous voulez, ça ne donne rien pour l'essai, mais je voulais juste vous le dire)

          Proposition 6
      De : Coolschmo1@aol.com
      Les Machines de Dieu
      "Machina: The Machines of God" mêle beaucoup de concepts en un seul. Et avant que j'explique quel est ce concept, je vais expliquer tous les petits concepts qui en forme un seul. Et notez aussi que des références à d'autres matériaux et à d'autres chansons ne sont pas fixes, mais font allusion à et sont cachées derrière mon explication. Seulement ceux qui ont écouté le cd vont reconnaître les références subtils que j'ai faites.
      Beaucoup d'idées exprimées dans Machina reviennent à la science ancienne qu'est l'alchimie. Les alchimistes ont d'abord tenté de changer une substance comme le mercure, en or, le métal parfait, à travers un processus de purification. Mais ces essais sont devenus très tôt plus ambitieux. Les alchimistes ont commencé à suggérer que si le métal pouvait être purifié, il en était de même pour l'âme humaine. La croyance commune à ce moment étaient que les humains étaient faits d'éléments terrestres qui étaient chacun influencés par une planète différente, tout comme les métaux séparés. Cela leur fit croire que les métaux et l'âme humaine pourrait être nettoyés, pour devenir une réflection de Dieu qui les a créé. Mais ils n'ont pas été capables de créer ces transformations. Les symboles utilisés dans le livret de "Machina" sont aussi ceux qui été utilisés en alchimie. Ils ont aidé à encoder l'histoire pour le très peu que cela va toucher. De cette façon cela peut honnêtement parler à ceux qui écoutent vraiment.
      Les "Machines de Dieu" sont simplement les corps qui enferment les âmes que va faire l'ordre de Dieu. Machina est l'histoire d'une telle machine. Au début, le héros essaie d'être connu par Dieu. Il essaie tout ce qui est en son pouvoir, dans le but de recevoir le regard divin du seigneur. Cela signifie vivre sa vie en croyant que Dieu voudrait de lui. Il prétend, en son essence, errer dans les rues sales, absorbé dans de propres feuilles blanches. Mais tout cela n'est qu'une façade. Il masque ses vraies émotions et ses sentiments par peur de détection. Mais en faisant cela, il n'est pas sincère, ou il ne peux pas l'être. Depuis sa naissance, les forces qui l'entourent ont provoqué son âme, qui pourrait être une fois portée sur sa manche, être ensevelie loin sous des couches sur des couches de toile, ou ce que nous pourrions penser du profit des expériences. Vous voyez, quand toutes les couches sont déplacées, l'âme qui est dessous serait une réflection parfaite du seigneur. Alors, il voudrait lui-même être Dieu. Mais dans notre univers, ce n'est pas possible. Il y a trop d'influences qui empêchent et interdisent l'âme de se permettre de se montrer pleinement et sans interruption. Par exemple, si vous étiez un enfant abusé sexuellement, vous pourriez apprendre à réprimer votre colère. Mais ce message ne viendrait pas de l'intérieur de votre vrai vous, cela viendrait d'une couche de toile qui recouvrierait votre âme. Ce ne serait pas vraiment vous-même qui agiriez. Et si ce n'est pas vous-même, alors vous êtes une sorte de robot, programmé par tout ce qui est au-dessus de vous.
      The hero in Machina has been inhibited by these false realities, just like everyone else. He isn't able to show his soul to others. He is also a musician, which will come in handy in the next step of the story. Music is a very affective way of encoding a message. It is an alternative to the spoken word. One day our hero was touched by a message written into song. He felt as if it had touched his soul. He suddenly craved the feeling. This is how he began his quest. Eventually, with his band, he learns to use music to voice his disapproval of all that he sees around him. He is suddenly able to bear his soul to those listening. Because it is encrypted by the code of music, it allows him to gain confidence in sharing these thoughts. He knows that only those who are in search of the truth like himself, will understand.
      Some are deeply affected by his songs. They begin to attend clubs, crowd amphitheaters, and eventually fill out stadiums. Because of the musical encoding, they feel as if they are being spoken to by one person, God himself. You see, God himself is shining from the inside of our hero's soul. It begins a movement of thought that transcends the realms of music, into a philosophy. And the hero is responsible.
      Here is the explanation of how the hero was able to expose his soul to the fans. True, unflinching love allows a ray of light from himself to escape the layers of ancient memories and shine. In this case, the hero had a love for music and a desire to reveal his thoughts and fears. It struck a chord with others as the light penetrated their souls also. These people were previously held at bay by the society in which they lived. Their lives had not been their own. Music was the tool that allowed him to express himself without fear. And in doing so, others who previously felt that they were not being spoken to, became a part of something. And suddenly they were joined together in the beauty of compassion.
      The message was spread through the medium of radio. It reached a wide-spread audience of people from all walks of life. The audience had always created what the radio would play. And the students of the new revolution became the audience. The movement was greatly strengthened through the use of this tool. It suddenly became a message board for the disenchanted. As the revolution took off, new music was to be made. At first, he was up to the task. He stretched his thoughts to the limit. His ambition soared, for a time. And the personal successes yielded material success. But after awhile he became weary. Now it was becoming a chore. Our hero was no longer making music for himself. He was making these songs in the mold that he believed his followers would enjoy. He was no longer allowing his ray of light to shine, and therefore no longer in the midst of God's gaze. Soon the bandwagon mentality began, and many people who were not really touched by the music would indifferently support the band. And as the movement gained increased popularity, it began to be seen in the eyes of the public as a sort of fad. A passing idea that will inevitably come crashing down as soon as people come to their senses. For those who half-heartedly accepted this new revolution, this was correct. This already spelled the end.
      There is also a love story going on during this time. June, a girl who is affected by the hero's music is drawn to him. Before this point in time, June had placed her God in the form of material fixations such as drugs. She had never really been tasted what the real world had to offer beneath its hollow disguise. But once she meets our hero, something inside of her is activated. They are able to bask in each other's light in genuine devotion, which is an undeniable form of love. Our hero begins to realize that widespread acclaim is not what is most important to him. That the true love between two people in the most personal of relationships is what he yearns for. June is the one he comes to know as his soul mate, and together they begin the process of revealing the true nature of one another by exploring areas of the soul once shrouded in darkness.
      The revolution that had begun has now taken on a new form. Bastardized by the predictable spread of the once meaningful ideal. It continued without our hero. It would for years, decades, and even generations to come. Always changing, and losing the soul that it once had. But the true believers quietly lived their lives under the new principles of their regime. Our hero has now become a sort of "rock dinosaur." To the public he had just become a caricature of himself, a heavy metal machine. Always to be acknowledged by his past work, living in the shadows of what he once was. He realizes that the blank praise he receives is destroying him. No longer is he expected to break new barriers. The majority of his entourage believes in the public persona he has taken on. Who he thought he knew, didn't know him at all. He now understands that it is his time to start over. He decides to remove himself from the controversial role of a generational figurehead, and plans to become a pure musician. He needs to keep reinventing the "game" in which he plays, so that he will not fall victim to the rules that suddenly seem to take precedence over what's real. But he also realizes that because of his contributions, another child will take up his quest and devote his life to the same cause. Just as he was reached before. Rock and roll may have been purged by those who ignorantly destroy, but new revelations will continue to appear in infinite numbers through innovation. This cycle will continue for eternity. His echo will forever ring on in the form of everything that treads new ground.
      The false revolution, which no longer mirrors the will of God within, will turn very ugly. Some members take violent actions, harm themselves, or live a life of shambles because of their lifestyle of resentment. Others just look the other way and return to a life without meaning, which they actually never left. It is a war they can never win, since it is war without devotion or sincerity. They were never truly affected by the music. They only wanted in on the newest movement. Living as slaves to how they feel they should act. They seek to bind their release. In essence, the polar opposite to the goodness of the real revolution. Their enemy is the backlash of those who clutch the old ways with an iron grip. The army of public resent, always looking to return to a time of perceived slendor that never existed. Always fearful of the unknown. This war was never intended, but it will always take place.
      But our hero still clings to June and vice versa. They are the only people that can bring true love from within one another. As the years go by they become more distant to the rest of the world. They only want each other, and no one else. They are shedding more and more layers of the cloth everyday. Taking them into the darkest recesses of each other's souls, where others have never been. But in doing this, the relationship is strengthened, and more love is created. As they realize that part of themselves is a part of one another, they know that this love will last.
      When the story finishes, June and our hero have not been completely purified, since that can never be fully done. But, they are standing inside the love of each other, letting rays escape from the depths of their souls that reflect and summon the gaze of God. They do not allow their souls to be covered anymore, to become inhibited. This process is not easy, however. Digging up painful memories and exposing them to the light, and changing the perceptions others once harbored. But this process is necessary. It is the cleansing of the soul, a deep purification. As each cloth falls, their human qualities may cause strife. But, both of them know that they must hold on to this love. They have faith. Once a soul is laid bare then it will ascend into heaven, its home. But as was already said, this can never be completed. As you might have sensed, we won't make it home. Many more will follow in these steps. And in the distance, the real revolution plods on for eternity. He has unleashed a ripple that will roll across the realms of time.
      So the concept of this album would be that "Love will always win." Love is what motivates, empowers, creates, and decides what lives on. Love is ambition, devotion, and sanctity, and most importantly faith. Love is what draws the Gaze of God. It is the only pure thing in the universe. And everything that covers the soul from emitting this love is false. Only when it is all removed will someone truly reflect their God. When that happens, a person is free to be who they are. They are not prevented by long forgotten embarrassments, fear, or pain. They become true to themselves, and therefore true to the ways of God above. With this in place, hope is never far behind.
      This also tells of the inevitable removal from the superficial, prevalent social aspects of the world. In order to rid someone of their hesitation, they must agree on a sort of desolation. Once you allow true love to shine, you begin to realize the pseudo-reality that those who do not bare their souls live in. In this universe, precious few creatures really know one another from the inside. So many people live blindly, allowing the past to control the future. They accept what they are shown, and only that. Some of those people were reached by the "Machines of God", our hero's unique band. And he has reached them and allowed them to revel in the beauty of purity.
      And because of the eternal nature of the story revealed in this album, there will always be a savior to take hold of the radio, or whatever medium he chooses, and reach out to those who were desperately in need of a source of love. And when he falls, a disciple will take up the journey and apply it to his generation. There will always be those in need of someone to spark the life from within. In Machina, the tale of one of these messengers of God was told. But this was just one amongst the infinite. This is a never-ending story. A never-ending battle. And a never-ending devotion.

          Proposition 7
      De : "Sean C"
      hum, je voudrais juste dire merci pour cette occasion...en tant que fan, c'est exceptionnel...j'étais pas mal choqué d'avoir même été semi-finaliste...quoi qu'il en soit, voici...
      glass et june. amants. deux qui vont ensemble si parfaitement pour compléter l'autre. june montre à glass le pouvoir de l'amour...ce qui va le changer, changer son message...june permet à glass de voir l'amour comme le pouvoir que c'est. glass, celui qui as eu le monde...qui s'interroge sur chacun de ses mouvements avec un besoin de justification d'un pouvoir supérieur...qui sait qu'il peut parler la vérité, qui se rapproche doucement de la vérité chaque jour. qui cherche une voix pour le guider vers ce qu'est son vrai lui. avec son besoin de savoir qu'il fait quelque chose. qu'il fait quelque chose avec intégrité, avec raison, avec voix. avec une justification divine. avec quelqu'un qui lui dit qu'il fait ce qui est bien. avec glass il y a les enfants fantômes (the ghost children). les machines synthétiques. ceux à qui glass parle, ceux qui s'accroche à chacun de ses mots. ceux qui écoutent intensément pour trouver quelque chose d'un peu plus proche de la vérité, ou peut-être seulement quelque chose pour négligemment passer le temps et chuchoter des résolutions et des révélations calmes à leurs oreilles. ceux qui idolâtre glass. ceux qui font de lui celui qu'ils veulent et dont ils ont besoin, celui qui parle à eux et pour eux. le type même de personne que les enfants fantômes font de glass, glass a besoin de lui-même...il se voit lui-même dans les enfants fantômes...il est réfléchi tout comme il est vu...les enfants fantômes cherchent une justification, un but...glass cherche la même chose. chacun est dépendant de l'autre. tout comme june a besoin de glass, et glass de june, glass a besoin des enfants fantômes pour justifier sa raison, pour lui donner l'espoir qu'il y a toujours ceux qui croit...et les enfants fantômes ont besoin de glass comme celui qui les sauve et les guide...pour montrer que ce en quoi ils croient n'est pas perdu dans un monde sans coeur. mais glass est-elle la même personne? le même 'zero' qui leur parlait avant? celui qu'ils connaissent et aiment toujours, celui qui les a conduit si loin? les enfants fantômes ont-ils vraiment besoin de glass? n'ont-ils pas créé zero? zero, la personne dont les enfants fantômes avaient besoin pour être au bon moment...celui dont ils avaient besoin plus dans un temps sans espoir? glass est un produit de zero. glass parle d'amour, tandis que zero parle de la désillusion des ados. zero pénètre dans les rêves ados douloureux, tandis que glass prêche l'amour et l'unité...zero a capturé l'attention des enfants fantômes, glass leur laisse entendre ce qu'ils ont besoin d'entendre. l'amour. au lieu de la douleur brisée, de l'insécurité, et de la désillusion de zero, glass parle d'un amour éternel...il leur montre son pouvoir...comme il l'a vu lui-même. comme il a créé l'image, l'a fait arriver...lui et ses enfants fantômes. essayant de faire un monde meilleur pour que les désenchantés vivent dedans. donner de l'espoir. donner de l'amour. une fois june montre à zero que l'amour dompte tout, glass existe. glass vit comme lui-même. glass essaie de défaire ce que zero a dit...de montrer que l'amour dompte tout... avec tout le doute et l'incertitude de glass, il sait que l'amour et la foi domptent tout, comme il a vu ça de première main. l'amour et l'affinité des enfants fantômes envers glass et tout ce qu'il représente surpasse tout. ils croient vraiment en lui. ils ont vraiment besoin de lui. glass et l'ex 'zero'...ses machines de dieu (his machines of god)...june...les enfants fantômes(the ghost children). un conte unique...avec une corde unique. le principal (leader) est aussi hasardeux que les suivants...mais cela ne pose pas problème. il connaît l'amour, il connaît l'unité...il nous donne de l'espoir. ce n'est pas une idole, mais c'est une personne comme nous en avons besoin, et la personne comme nous la faisons. glass, le libérateur et le sauveur, essayant de mener les perdus et désenchantés enfants fantômes hors du tort de la société vers une entente d'amour et de vie comme il l'a vu.
      con amor,
      sean connolly

          Proposition 8 - 1ère place (contest winners & people choice winners)
      De : "Ana Silva" (akasha_@portugalmail.com)
      Je pense que l'histoire derrière la création de l'album "MACHINA \ the machines of God" est basée sur quelques idées principales, ces idées étant l'Amour ("the energy behind which all is created" - l'énergie derrière laquelle tout est créé) comme quelque chose de divin, sacré et universel ; l'évolution et l'auto-progression ; l'unité et l'individualité ; la syntonie avec une force plus haute ; et une bataille contre un monde qui ne comprends pas et rejette la vérité, l'éclaircissement que ces idées peut apporter à ceux qui veulent les entendre·en un mot, un monde superficiel.
      L'histoire parle de deux personnages principaux, Glass et June, c'est déjà universel, et leur conte est représentatif de chaque homme à la recherche de la vérité, de la signification de la vie, de la gouvernance par un être supérieur et d'un amour qui justifie leur existence.
      June et Glass sont éternels, sont des amants destinés (ce que beaucoup appellent des "âmes soeurs"). Ils se complètent l'un l'autre, et représentent les forces féminines et masculines qui sont dans chaque chose. Ils sont Un ("you're a part of me, eternal one" - tu fait partie de moi, éternelle) et même avant qu'ils soient jetés dans ce monde, ils étaient ensemble, dans une union parfaite, dans un endroit au-dessus de l'espace et du temps (comme nous pouvons le voir sur la Plate I et le lire dans "Glass and the Machines of God") "their fates had intertwined long before they were lovers, their moment extending back before their eyes first met, and that bond was eternal - leurs destins s'étaient entrelacés bien avant qu'ils soient amants, leur moment étendu avant que leurs yeux se rencontrent, et ce lien était éternel".
      Les âmes des amants immortels deviennent de chair et sont jetés dans ce monde. La Plate II, "The soul as living proof - l'âme comme une épreuve vivante", représente l'immortalité de l'âme. Dans la nature, rien ne disparaît, rien n'est perdu, et tout change. Alors pourquoi l'âme humaine serait-elle différente ?
      Les deux amants vivent maintenant dans ce monde, mais séparément, et ils rêvent de se trouver l'un l'autre. L'Amour est ce qui leur permet d'être sage, de percevoir une signification plus profonde dans l'Univers, d'être plus près de cette intelligence supérieure que certains appellent Dieu, d'autres Shiva, d'autres Jehovah·
      Sans June, Glass il y a Zero. Il est perdu, il est en peine, et il souffre et soupire pour elle. June aussi se sent perdue en agonie et incomplète sans son autre moitié. Elle est sans foi, sans espoir ; "she had no faith but that which destroys and she had only known herself in coarse mirror - elle n'avait pas de foi que celle qui détruit et elle n'avait seulement connu qu'elle-même dans le mirroir grossier". Mais même avant qu'ils se rencontrent, ils étaient spirituellement connectés. Dans la Plate III, "The chemist brings spark - le chimiste apporte l'éclat", nous pouvons voir Zero qui vie dans un monde abimé et à part, un monde plein de haine, de vide, de désespoir, de frustration. Cependant, il est au-dessus de ce monde car il a la foi, il espère trouver l'idéal sur l'Amour parfaite, absolu et unifiant auquel il aspire. L'idée de June est toujours dans ses pensées (la fille au-dessus de sa tête). Il espère être sauvé de sa peine ("because it is with faith and faith only that one justifies the reach - car c'est avec la foi et la foi seulement que un justifie l'atteinte") Sans cette foi, ce n'aurait jamais été possible pour lui de tenir, de ne pas abandonner. C'est pourquoi nous pouvons voir l'expression "Nil sine Deo" (nothing without God - rien sans Dieu) dans la Plate III. Sans Dieu, la foi dans une force plus haute, dans un Amour divin, quelque chose par delà la vie, un but à l'existence, Zero n'aurait pas été capable de tenir. La foi était tout ce qu'il avait ("could you believe in heaven, if heaven was all you head - pourrais-tu croire au Ciel si le Ciel était tout ce que tu diriges")
      Comme je l'ai dit, Zero vivait en agonie. Il avait été malheureux depuis son enfance. Mais d'un manière ou d'une autre, cette peine le rendait plus fort et le préparait à être unifié avec June dans le futur, même s'il n'a pas réalisé ça et le temps.
      Zero décide de faire du mieux qu'il peut avec cette peine, donc il la partage avec ceux qui souffrent comme lui et qui sont perdus ("to curse one's very existence is a kind of powers, especially if you can decide to make the best of that hate, to fuel that anger with the necessity of resignation and purpose· to cloak your pain and fear in the language of sound, in the poetry of devotion·" - maudir l'existence de quelqu'un est une sorte de pouvoir, en particulier si vous pouvez décider de faire le meilleur de cette haine, d'alimenter cette colère avec la nécessité de résignation et de but· voiler sa peine et sa peur dans le langage du son, dans la poésie de la dévotion). Il chante hors de son désespoir, souffrant pour June ("she's the one for me, she's all I really need out" - elle est celle pour moi, elle est ce dont j'ai besoin), lui demandant de venir et de le sauver ("pick your pockets full of sorrow and runaway with me tomorrow, June" - remplis tes poches de chagrin et fuis avec moi demain, June), lui demandant de ne pas prendre trop de temps pour apparaître dans sa vie (" Bye June, I'm going to the moon, hope you'll be there soon" - au revoir June, je vais sur la lune, et espère que tu seras là bientôt); mais aussi, il cherche son identité, son vrai lui. Zero n'est pas perdu seulement parce qu'il n'a pas encore trouvé June, mais aussi parce qu'il ne s'est pas trouvé lui-même. Donc il chante: "I just want to be me" - je veux seulement être moi. Zero continue, partageant son âme troublée avec le monde, étant "aimé" par beaucoup qui voient leur propre peines en lui, mais il est amer et plein de rage. Il ne peut pas voir ou accepter la beauté de la peine (ensemble l'ombre et la lumière peuvent être belles), il n'est pas en syntonie avec la force supérieure (il chante : "God is empty just like me" - Dieu est seulement vide comme moi).
      Mais un jour, cela arrive finalement. June et son amant sont finalement réunis (comme nous pouvons le voir dans la Plate V, "desire holds the moment still - le désir tient le moment encore"). Il l'a finalement trouvé, la sienne ("one for him"), tout ce qu'il voulait et demandait ("wanted and asked for"), son ange, sa salvatrice, un amour si vrai et pur· June, l'élément purifiant qui le libère de toute la rage que le monde lui a fait sentir ("away with everything you've grown to hate - loin avec tout ce que tu es parvenu à detester").
      Et leur amour divin "catches the gaze of a supreme intelligence, watching them and nodding a silent approval - attrape le regard d'une intelligence suprême, qui les regarde et qui incline une approbation silencieuse". Maintenant qu'ils sont ensemble, un nouveau chemin commence, un chemin qui va les mener vers les lumières et l'accomplissement. Leur amour ouvre leurs yeux vers une connaissance qu'ils ne pouvaient voir avant, ils deviennent capable de voir une signification plus profonde pour toutes les choses, et ils deviennent plus proches de Dieu ("In you I taste God" - En toi je goûte Dieu). Cependant, le chemin est encore long et difficile. Ce que la plupart des gens cherchent dans les autres n'est rien d'autre qu'une réflection d'eux-mêmes, et à l'amour vrai un autre être, un qui doit être entièrement instruit de l'identité des autres donc que l'autre être peut être aimé pour ce qu'il ou elle est vraiment, et pas pour réfléchir l'autre. Donc le chemin que les deux amants ont du suivre était aussi le chemin de l'auto-découverte. Avant qu'ils aient découvert et entièrement aimé l'autre, ils devaient découvrir et s'accepter eux-mêmes. Alors seulement ils seraient prêts pour un Amour suprême, qui transformerait Zero, celui qui est perdu, le désenchanté, en Glass, celui qui est illuminé. Mais changer n'est jamais facile, en particulier dans un monde qui se fout des changements.
      Zero was "loved" by a crowd of disenchanted souls who shared his former pain, who could relate to this anger. Now he wasn't Zero anymore, that he wasn't aching, but he felt a certain obligation to keep on singing for them, not to disappoint those who supported him. In plate VIII, "So empowered, the lovers negate the blinding brilliance of love", we see Glass holding the knife with which he used to "cut open his heart" and "bleed his soul". It his hard for him to evolve, to stop being Zero after a lifetime of pain, but he can't do it anymore, he can't fake it and he can't live to please a world that cannot be pleased ö for "the world is a vampire" ö insatiable.
      He realizes that his followers didn't truly love him. What they loved wasn't real, for Zero was not real ö it was only a shadow of his true self. What they loved was their own reflection in him ("They saw him surreal but he was as real as they needed him to be"). Zero was just "humming someone else's favourite song". Glass also realizes that though he can't please them, he can try to lead them into the light and make them hear his new message ö a message of pure and universal love.
      Meanwhile, June is also having troubles in the path of self-discovery. She doesn't know just how powerful she is, and how her love is meaningful to Glass. She has lived all her life in pain, so she became addicted to it. She was addicted to her misery, addicted to the darkness she had lived in and she had to be released from it. Glass was the one supposed to save her ("first time that I ever saw you, cracking hard thru days of pain, you were one of Gods children, left to cry out in the rain, waiting to be saved again") But at first Glass was still connected to a past where he used to sing for the disenchanted so he couldn't devote himself to their love - not yet· June felt lonely and wounded by the world. In Plate IX we can see her lost in her agony. Her pain was like spiders "crawling up inside her", while she waited to be healed by Glass's love ("and every little spider that crawled up inside her was waiting for my phone call"). She had only known the dark side of life, but finally she found light and learned to accept herself.
      Both Glass and June had been "fueled with anger", inspired by their pain. In Plate XIII, "Torn inside Machines of light", we see that though the two lovers are together; they haven't reached the light yet. They are still connected to the pain from their past. But finally they realize that the light, the wisdom they were achieving, can be just as inspiring as the pain the felt, only in a different way. After discovering themselves, Glass and June can surrender to their absolute and holly love, a love that heals the soul. Glass is "reborn as child" (pure) and "mystic sage".
      However, the wisdom he achieved was only the beginning - The beginning of a new path. Glass became able to see life and the universe as a whole, to see the beauty of its unity and its diversity. And he felt that he must share his wisdom with those willing to hear his message, to those able to understand. He's a messenger from God (mercury), for his words can lead those who understand them towards the light ö even though one most walk such a path on his own, Glass can bring faith to those who listen. So he and his band (The machines of God) keep on singing for those who are able to understand them - the ghost children ("these words were intended for them and their only"). Their art is now very different ö once Glass was changed by Love and self-discovery, his art also changed. The message is sent out in an encrypted way so that it was only visible for those who really seek it, those willing to understand ("we spoke in rhyme and riddle· not for fear of detection (·) but rather that those who had secretly wished to be spoken to were"). Alchemical symbols are used as a metaphor in this story because the alchemists' main goal was to reach spiritual evolution, this evolution being achieved through the union of the feminine element (mercury) and the masculine element (sulphur). Also, the ancient alchemists would encrypt their work to hide them from those who couldn't possibly understand it.
      So spreading this message becomes Glass's purpose. He believes to be guided by that superior force previously mentioned ("·everything I operate on is based upon what I believe God is telling me to do·"), a force that once perceived makes us realize that beauty resides on everything, that one must achieve balance between grief and bliss, shadow and light. Glass learned to accept life and he wants to show others that they too can learn it. He is "never alone" and finally "the sun is shinning on him".
      But what is exactly this force? What is what so many call God? One cannot know for sure. Glass cannot define who this force/being is ("who are you, this time, are you one of us, flying blind·"), but he knows he is following the right path ("and if there is a God, I know she's watching me, she says she likes what she sees·"). But whatever it is, we are all a part of it. Maybe God is just as blind as us, maybe he cannot explain where life came from, or maybe he knows it all· But either way, his manifestation is within us. God is refered as both "He" and "She", what suggests that he/she is unity, is totality, contains both masculine and feminine forces, as well as all the opposite forces that rule the universe. Plate XI, "The I of the radio", is a reference to God. The radio is used as a metaphor to represent this supreme intelligence because its "waves" cannot be seen but can be received by each and every one of us. And it "always plays your favourite song" because you can decode that force, you can access that force in many many ways ö love is the supreme way, but even love presents itself in so many forms, has so many faces ö and most likely you will decode it in the way that means more to you, the one you feel closer to ö your favorite song. The radio is communication with a higher power that we all share. As for the dichotomy I/Eye of the radio· I think it contains one of the most important ideas of this play. The I of the radio· as I said, we are all a part of a higher power that unites us, but still, we are ourselves· we are unique. Even though we are a part of a whole ö the universe, mankind, God ö our true beauty resides on our individuality. That higher force resides on life itself, on nature, on every living being, and of course, within us. And the only way we can fully understand it, feel it, taste it is by finding how it manifests in us. Getting in touch with our own soul is getting in touch with God, and getting ready for Love, the holiest of all things. As we can see in chapter 6, "the I of the radio celebrates your individuality"; "you are important". As for the "Eye" of the radio, it means that we a part of that superior being ("I am the radio, you are the radio, we are the radio"). So it sees and feels the world through us, it looks at us as we look at ourselves and at each other's. God sees everything because His eyes are the eyes of each and every living creature, so when we see something, the supreme intelligence is seeing it too. We are all very different (individuality) but we also have something in common (unity). This idea is represented by the structure of the play. Just like we are all different but a part of something higher, also the several parts of the play (the chapters, the songs, the lyrics, the plates) have their own meaning and focus on their own ideas, but are a part of a higher idea that comes together as they all unite.
      But the I of the radio isn't the only "I" referred. There is also the "I of the mourning".
      In my opinion, this means that pain (mourning, crying, aching) makes one get deeply in touch with oneself. Pain makes one feel more alive than ever. Whatever hurts becomes the center of the reality, the thing we focus on. When he was in pain, Glass got in touch with himself, and his mourning helped him to discover himself. Now he "makes a toast to life" because "he has survived", for his mourning is over and he learned through it.
      Glass and the machines of God spread a message through music, according to what Glass believes to be what God is telling him to do ö the right thing to do ("I always assumed that the voice I hear is the voice of God"). They have a mission, a very hard one. Most people do not accept the new form that Glass's art has assumed, or care to hear his message. Those who used to listen to him are still wrapped in their pain, still lost, still unable to understand. Our world is a material and superficial one, who does not care for ideals. And the music industry that once seemed to support him is also rotten. Music, which was supposed to be a form of light, is becoming a shallow and meaningless thing. It is becoming a business, only. The industry only cares about profits, music must sell more and more and more and all they seam to be interested on now is boys bands with nothing to say or angry, lost, noisy and aggressive bands with nothing to say as well ö bands that seam to stand for destruction instead of creation, anger instead of love. Music is becoming an ordinary thing ("Everyone's gonna be a big star"). Glass realizes that the music business only wants to use him and his pain for their own profits, they do not care about him and want him to whore his ideals (""cause when you're hypnotized they'll spin gold and paint you black with the blood of your surprise").
      Glass seams to be fighting against the whole world, for no one seams to understand ("yeah, nobody understands, yeah, that we've made our planes") or even care ("no one could or ever would hear the full secrets of glass"). And it is hard for him to keep his fait·has the whole world become plastic and shallow? ("Can anyone be true?"). Sometimes he doubts himself ("bracing against the inevitable doubt"). Does he really have a mission? "What if I'm insane?" It seams like the only thing he stands for is "a broken ideal for which no rewards are given but grudging respect". He fears the possibility of giving up in a moment of frustration and despair. But he must go on, he "kept swimming upstream", even knowing that he'll only be understood by few, that he won't be as adored as before. But that doesn't matter, that cannot matter, for he stands for something higher than that. "Vanity must die". He is afraid to lose control ("get on, get on, you've lost control", he is afraid of being used by the music industry. They wanted him to stay forever in Zero's shoes, because more people could relate to Zero· to being lost. Our society tries to use pain, disenchantment, hopelessness to make profits ("a culture and civilization that makes money on our differences to exploit what we want most ö To belong"). So society doesn't want the truth, society doesn't want enlightenment. The truth does not make money. Society pushes those who seek the truth deep down because they don't want the lie upon which its structure is build to be proven wrong. We are supposed to be lost and angry. They use our own agony as a drug to control us. They make us become addicted to it, and they make the discovery of the path of light even harder than it already is. But Glass fought against this lie, and he "betrayed" music industry ("all alone in my soul I betrayed rock and roll").
      Fortunately, there are still those who listen, those who believe. The ghost children believe, care and seek the truth. They want to hear the message. And we give Glass faith, just like he gives us. Glass feels that since there are a few whose souls can be touched by his words, then the fight is worth it. The ghost children made him realize that this war is worth fighting, so they became "a part of him", even "if he falls", they already realizes how important the message is.
      The ghost children haven't found the light yet· Glass can lead them towards it, but they most follow their own path. They are named "ghost children" for they are pure, they are receptive, they aren't adulterated, but they are still pale as ghosts, they still follow Glass instead of their own ways ("I am a stranger to you as you are to yourself öthey haven't fully discovered themselves yet). But once they achieve the full meaning of his message they will learn that they must follow their way and fight their own revolution.
      And what is Glass but a reflection of what others see in him? He is once again a mirror that the ghost children used to reflect their own soul. But now glass is shattering ("shattering fast I'm glass I'm glass"). As the mirror breaks, the illusion is broken. Once the true meaning of glass's message is known, the ghost children will distinct his message from the reflection of their own soul. They will not only listen to the message but also perceive their own souls more clearly. They will no longer be "ghost" children.
      Glass is not only a mirror, but also a vessel. He contains divine wisdom and must try to spread the message. Glass realizes that he is not the first one to have such mission and will certainly not be the last one ("the voice says you are one of many more to come"). He has done his work, he sung to those willing to hear, and it is now time for him to find peace. He carried the cross, he fought in this war, and now it is time for someone else to carry it on, for his mission has been fulfilled. It is time for him to walk away with his other half and "stand inside her lover" forever for their love is eternal ("I am one of many more to come, love is everything I want"). The love from those who listen to him may not be eternal· Glass knows that one day he may be forgotten. However, his words will last forever. "The echo rings forever on". His words symbolize some universal concepts that all should know, and maybe throughout time more and more will understand the message. The symbols he used are eternal.
      In plate XII, "In all things the symbols reign supreme", we can see a symbol that is related to purification and contact with a higher force. We can also read the sentence "It is finished when seven are one". The number seven symbolizes a cycle that ends and another one that begins, and something that is concluded in perfection. The 7th album, Machina II, Friends and enemies of modern music (enemies being the rotten industry that is perverting music's true essence), is the closing of the cycle but also the coronation of a work. The message is sent; the cycle ends in perfection, but will repeat itself endlessly, for someone else will stand for the same ideals. We also have 7 chapters in this play· together they form one main idea. Once again, we see unification. Something that united is eternal. The symbol we see in plate XII is an universal one. Therefore, others can use it to transmit the same message or an identical one. All the concepts in this play can be seen from many angles, approached in many different ways. Perhaps some will see the symbol upside down, transmit the message in another way, but it is still the same. The symbols reign supreme, last forever and remain the same no matter how the idea they represent is approached.
      As I previously mentioned, Glass's work is done and his mission is fulfilled. Though he knows that many will never understand it, he also knows that some were deeply moved by his words. Some will carry on the revolution and though "he was a general leading them into war that him and they knew they could never win", because it is hard to fight against the masses, they still tried, because trying is making a difference ("still they fought to love·").
      In plate VI, "As the machines resume", Glass and the machines of God are waving goodbye to the ghost children ("as the curtain falls we bid you all goodnight"). They are walking away but the machines of God will resume, will restart, for someone else will be the messenger from that higher power.
      In plate XVI, Glass is walking away, into the light. He has come to the end of the path he had been walking, and now he will live in peace and love unified with June, knowing that "This echo rings forever on", knowing that his mission was accomplished. And maybe one day he will live again in a place above space and time, united with his other half, and near all those he loved ("that night he dreamed of his mother young and beautiful and she told him many secrets, mostly about love·").
      This tale is an eternal one, for its story repeats itself over and over and over again. There is always someone who knows the truth, there are always those who won't listen, and there are always a few who want to find the light. And there is always Love. Love is eternal and universal for it is what everyone is meant to find. And in the end "only love will win". Hopefully, more people will find real love, and through it, be purified and find a profound knowledge. In the end only love can win.

          Proposition 9
      De : Jared3681@aol.com
      L'histoire de Machina :
      Dans toutes les choses, les symboles sont suprêmes. Et ainsi commence l'histoire de Machina. Le mystère de Machina est qu'il n'y a pas de mystère. Il n'y a pas une vraie histoire. A l'intérieur de l'album, il y a des allusions vers la fin. Ce qui s'est passé et ce qui va arriver. La lutte pour garder vivant la merveille des pumpkins. La seule histoire de Machina parle de Glass, la dernière star de rock'n'roll envoyé une dernière fois pour commencer une révolution dans la musique. Son effort pour faire de la musique avec de la musique qui fait penser les gens sur ce qu'ils écoutent étaient un si grand succès que cela a apporté sa propre démission. The Everlasting Gaze crie que nous savons que vous n'êtes pas mort. Vous ne pouvez jamais vraiment mourir. Ce qui a été fait va vivre pour toujours. Raindrops + Sunshowers nous donne le message que les choses mauvaises arrivent à tout le monde, mais vous essayer encore de rester avec nous toujours avec les événements mauvais qui sont arrivés. Qu'on le sache ou non c'est au-dessus de ce qui est demandé dans This Time. On doit dire à Glass si c'est vraiment fini. Peut-être qu'il ne peut pas accepter le fait que c'est vraiment la fin d'une ère. Blue skies bring tears est une chanson sur la perte qui est imminente, même si tout semble bien. Try, Try, Try est une chanson qui parle de la fin. Glass sait que la fin est proche, mais il lutte encore pour tenir à son amour, son amour de la musique. Dans Machina II, Glass sait que c'est la fin et il va sortir avec une détonation. Glass' Theme explique comment il fracasse vite maintenant et vient à une fin même après avoir vécu la grande vie, s'asseyant près de la piscine, peut-être cherchant même vraiment le suicide car il chante de jouer avec ses pistolets. If there is a god est une chanson qui dit que Dieu sait que c'est la fin, qu'il y a du trouble sur la brise. L'histoire de Machina parle d'en arriver à une fin, un chemin pour finir une ère musical. Glass a survécu au rock'n'roll et l'a peut-être même sauvé. Il s'est peut-être sacrifié lui-même, mais les gens vont éventuellement apprendre que la musique défierait l'esprit, ne serait pas sans esprit. Alors Glass a été un martyr. Il est devenu la légende qu'il s'est efforcé de devenir. Ce n'était pas son temps pour mourir. L'autre histoire de Machina est une histoire qui n'a pas été écrite par le groupe, mais par leurs fans. Ce que nous avons fait pour vous a déterminé le complot, le climat, et maintenant la fin de l'histoire de proportions épiques connues comme les Smashing Pumpkins. Machina est unique dans le sens où l'histoire est différente pour chacun de ceux qui l'écoutent. Est-ce que l'histoire est bonne; est-ce que l'histoire est mauvaise? Est-ce que l'histoire est heureuse; est-ce que l'histoire est triste? Cette histoire va-t-elle avoir une conséquence? Je prie pour qu'il y en ait, mais je crains qu'il n'y en ait pas. Cela prend place dans le feu de projecteur, mais même si vous êtes dans la lumière, je sens que les ténèbres vont ont fait de l'ombre. Obscurcis par la négligence, le rejet, la haine et la crainte. Nous vous aimons une minute, nous vous détestons la minute d'après. Nous ne pouvons jamais être satisfaits avec ce que vous nous avez donné. Déjà vous nous donnez même après avoir été infligés avec les blessures de notre mépris. Toujours heureux d'offrir votre cadeau à une foule sans mérite. Nous prenons ce qui a été donné et nous le mangeons pour le régurgiter, vous le vomissant par dégoût. Nous ne voulons rien de moins que la perfection, et même si nous la recevons, nous ne sommes pas encore satisfaits. Alors maintenant l'histoire en vient à sa fin, même après que vous ayez essayé de tenir, nous forçons la fin sur vous. Démission apportée par nous-mêmes. Nous ne sommes pas heureux avec la fin, mais nous devons l'accepter. Car nous vous avons dit que c'est au-dessus de ce temps et les cieux bleus apportent vraiment des larmes. Vous nous avez donné tant de chances, plus que nous l'avons mérité. Alors que l'histoire en vient à sa fin, nous pouvons seulement espérer pour cette conséquence, une autre chance d'entendre les mots des machines de Dieu. L'histoire devrait en venir à une fin, mais est-ce que ça a vraiment une fin? Est-ce que ce qu'ils disent est vrai? Les légendes ne meurent jamais. Si seulement c'était vrai, alors la fin serait si dure à accepter.

          Proposition 10
      De : "Matt King"
      I believe the story of Machina was influenced from an alchemical process called Rosarium Philosphorum. It is a seven step process of purifying the soul (process explanations taken from www.alchemylab.com). Step one is Calcination. "This is the destruction of ego and our attachments to material possessions. Calcination is usually a natural humbling process as we are gradually assaulted and overcome by the trials and tribulations of life, though it can be a deliberate surrender of our inherent hubris gained through a variety of spiritual disciplines that ignite the fire of introspection and self-evaluation." It is significant to note that in society, "The Calcination is expressed in the lives of revolutionaries, conquerors, and other warriors who try to overthrow the status quo." Step two is Dissolution. "This represents a further breaking down of the artificial structures of the psyche by total immersion in the unconscious, non-rational, feminine or rejected part of our minds. It is, for the most part, an unconscious process in which our conscious minds let go of control to allow the surfacing of buried material. It is opening the floodgates and generating new energy from the waters held back. Dissolution can be experienced as "flow," the bliss of being well-used and actively engaged in creative acts without traditional prejudices, personal hang-ups, or established hierarchy getting in the way." Step three is Separation. "This process is the rediscovery of our essence and the reclaiming of dream and visionary "gold" previously rejected by the masculine, rational part of our minds. It is, for the most part, a conscious process in which we review formerly hidden material and decide what to discard and what to reintegrate into our refined personality. Much of this shadowy material is things we are ashamed of or were taught to hide away by our parents, churches, and schooling. Separation is letting go of the self-inflicted restraints to our true nature, so we can shine through." Step four is Conjunction. "It is empowerment of our true selves, the union of both the masculine and feminine sides of our personalities into a new belief system or an intuitive state of consciousness. The alchemists referred to it as the Lesser Stone, and after it is achieved, the adept is able to clearly discern what needs to be done to achieve lasting enlightenment, which is union with the Overself. Often, synchronicities begin to occur that confirm the alchemist is on the right track." Step five is Fermentation. "The Fermentation process starts with the inspiration of spiritual power from Above that reanimates, energizes, and enlightens the alchemist. Out of the blackness of his Putrefaction comes the yellow Ferment, which appears like a golden wax flowing out of the foul matter of the Soul. Its arrival is announced by a brilliant display of colors and meaningful visions called the "Peacock's Tail." Fermentation can be achieved through various activities that include intense prayer, desire for mystical union, breakdown of the personality, transpersonal therapy, psychedelic drugs, and deep meditation. Fermentation is living inspiration from something totally beyond us." Step six is Distillation. "Distillation is the agitation and sublimation of psychic forces is necessary to ensure that no impurities from the inflated ego or deeply submerged id are incorporated into the next and final stage. Personal Distillation consists of a variety of introspective techniques that raise the content of the psyche to the highest level possible, free from sentimentality and emotions, cut off even from one's personal identity. Distillation is the purification of the unborn Self - all that we truly are and can be." The final step is Coagulation. "Coagulation is first sensed as a new confidence that is beyond all things, though many experience it as a Second Body of golden coalesced light, a permanent vehicle of consciousness that embodies the highest aspirations and evolution of mind. Coagulation incarnates and releases the Ultima Materia of the soul, the Astral Body, which the alchemists also referred to it as the Greater or Philosopher's Stone. Using this magical Stone, the alchemists believed they could exist on all levels of reality." Reading through the commentary there are a lot of parallels to the story that is portrayed in Machina. The significance of the number seven reoccurs, as in seven steps of transformation, seven albums, a seven pointed star, seven elemental symbols that create the central symbol. Machina II is the musical representation leading into the first step of the transformation process. It is the acknowledgement of the need for the destruction of the ego and the relinquishment of materialism. Machina/the machines of God symbolizes the transformation process itself. Zero's soul starts out unpure and the process of transformation separates the soul into a female and male aspect; into Glass and June. It is the job of the alchemist to bring these two into a new relationship, to join them. Once they are conjoined, they are physically, emotionally, and spiritually singular. They "descend into the watery vessel" to begin the purification. Glass ascends into the spiritual realm and June is left behind in darkness. While Glass is gone, June's soul is washed and purified. Once this process is complete Glass is free to return to June. This process is repeated as June ascends spiritually and Glass is left alone for purification. Upon re-unification the "Various blocks to the free flow of these inner energies are removed and the alchemist is able to experience life more fully, having both a living perception of the spiritual and the ability to express his being creatively in his encounter with the physical realm (quote taken from www.levity.com/alchemy)."

          Proposition 11
      De : Purpurneye@aol.com
      Billy, James, Jimmy, et Melissa, J'ai aussi envoyé un attachement (?) de mon essai si c'est trop difficile à lire. Mon e-mail mange (messes) toujours le texte.
      Colleen
      MACHINA FINAL ESSAY - 7TH DRAFT The Smashing Pumpkins act as town criers in our culture by defying dominant beliefs about music within corporate society. The Smashing Pumpkin's music calls out to everyone that the corporate music industry, and society as a whole, are killing the cultural meaning of rock and roll. In the past, stage plays, folklore and oral traditions acted as a way of communicating cultural meaning. Today, rock and roll continues this tradition. It tells stories that explain contemporary cultural problems.
      The story of Machina is a story of rock and roll. This story dissects the corporate music industry and explains why, in the end, the Smashing Pumpkins must break up. Ultimately this story does not represent an end, but a new beginning. Machina tells the story of the resurrection of the Smashing Pumpkins as human beings. This resurrection means breaking beyond the corporate machine that surrounds them and their fans. It breaks beyond society's belief in machine-as-god into a belief of God as love.
      The Machina story, like good folklore tradition, uses metaphorical characters to represent the life, death, and resurrection of the band. The Smashing Pumpkins became a band in order to play rock music that told stories about cultural problems.
      Zero represents Billy in the beginning years of the Smashing Pumpkins, but Zero also represents more. Zero represents what rock and roll means to the corporate owned music industry. Zero represents exactly what it says; zero, it means nothing. Rock and roll means nothing to the corporate music industry at this point in modern culture. Despite this lack of support and understanding, the Smashing Pumpkins seek to reclaim rock and roll, to breathe life into it before the band ends.
      The story continues. While gaining tremendous success and fame, a transformation began for the Smashing Pumpkins. Corporate record labels turned the band into parts inside their well established machine. The machine used Zero as a false idol to sell records. Zero represents a metaphor for the emptiness of god and the death of cultural meanings in rock and roll. Zero screamed the line perfectly, ¥god is empty just like me.¥ÿ Me meant Zero as a representation of rock and roll. god refers to those who created him; society. Corporate society created a false god of their own who was working through machines, not love. god is empty because the machines of corporate society take the personal meanings and personal ownership out of music and sell them. The band's songs do not belong to them anymore. They are bought by society, cogs in a machine created in a corporate image of god. The band resists this false image of god. They believe God resonates love not mechanical corporate beliefs. God symbolizes all forms of love; love for family, friends, nature, fans, society, everything.
      Modern music in our culture has friends and enemies. The Smashing Pumpkins are friends to modern music. Corporate power, the machines of god, is the enemy. As the story of Machina continues, the Smashing Pumpkins started to turn into the machines of god as well. They did not want this to happen. They don't want to become the enemies of modern music.
      At the height of the band's career the corporate music industry had almost completely transformed the band into machines. The Smashing Pumpkins did everything mechanically from writing songs to touring the world. Nothing they valued belonged to them anymore. The machine even affected those the band loved. For example, the machine distorted Zero's love, June. Plate XIII shows the love between Zero and June, caged and ¥torn inside machines of light.¥ÿ
      The Smashing Pumpkins as machines not only met the demands of the corporate owned music industry without support, but also the demands of their fans. The fans wanted a certain kind of music so the band played it, the fans wanted the band to come to a certain town so the band toured there. As machines, the band members can only do what the fans and corporate music industry expect. The band must respond when the correct button is pushed. Playing rock and roll within the machine-as-god of the corporate music industry dehumanizes the Smashing Pumpkins. Even the fans, cogs in the machine, contribute to this dehumanization process.
      Corporate media distorted the band's use of rock and roll as a way to communicate cultural problems. The media gives a false impression of what rock and roll really is, the freedom to express ourselves. The corporate owned media also creates machines out of the band by reminding them of unpleasant memories. These memories, or ghosts, continuously haunt both the band members and their loved ones. As parts of the machine there is no escape from these memories for the band. Every time they turn on the TV, the radio, and even read certain books, bad memories follow.
      It is during this process of transforming into a machine that Zero dies. He becomes Glass, a transparent reflection of his former self. Glass has become a machine of god, and is a false perception not only to himself, but to his fans, and to his love, June. Glass becomes a god-like figure to please his fans. Just as fans once heard the line, ¥as strong as I feel you make me real,¥ÿ the fans make Glass real. They follow him as a corporate created god, just as society has created a machine as god instead of symbolizing love. Glass and god-as-machine both are false perceptions. They are what the fans/society make them out to be. Like the fans who sing Glass' songs without reflecting, society recites God's word from the Bible. Society acts as though the reciting of the Bible creates the meaning of god. This is the same as fans thinking they can create the meaning of Glass. Just as Glass realizes he is ¥humming someone else's favorite song,¥ÿ we can realize god-as-machine supports corporate power. god has become the machines of god. This is not truth! It is a synthetic, fake truth. ¥Truth is outrageous.¥ÿ The real truth of God is love. It is freedom beyond the machines.
      After years of transforming rock and roll by challenging society about what is real and what is not, the Smashing Pumpkins realized they couldn't win the fight as machines. With every new chapter of their story they became even more machine-like. Even worse, the more the band and Glass became a machine, the more June and the rest of the band's loved ones were affected. All the emotions between the band members and those they loved became distorted. The machines distorted real love. Slowly June and Glass were drifting apart. The other band members began to drift away from those they loved as well. The machine had taken over. Realizing this, the Smashing Pumpkins decided to end. By now their soul was almost completely wasted, they were not humans. They wanted to die. Dying was the only human characteristic they had left. They wanted to die as the Smashing Pumpkins, to shatter the false image of Glass and to resurrect and survive as humans. The machines of god will no longer control the Smashing Pumpkins, and God survives as a symbol of love and faith.
      The band's journey through rock and roll challenges society and screams out that the corporate owned music industry imposed a false idea on the true meaning of rock and roll. By ending the band and releasing Machina II directly to their fans the Smashing Pumpkins have performed what they have been singing all along. They have broken through the false impressions that the music industry has placed on music. More importantly the Smashing Pumpkins band members, all five, will become human. Their souls survived the cultural death of rock and roll. Glass is gone, Zero is gone, but Billy and the others live. Billy can finally be with June, the one he loves. At last, the real truth of God as love will prevail.
      The Smashing Pumpkins have succeeded despite record label betrayal, and fans who insist on making them machines. They have worked their asses off. They have given to youth culture what no one else could. They gave us the true meaning of rock and roll and have created a heightened awareness throughout the world about how important rock and roll is to modern culture. And even though everyone may not understand the Smashing Pumpkins plight, it certainly has affected me. For that I say thank you. And now at long last I am happy to say that the Smashing Pumpkins can finally return home.
      par Colleen Froehlich (pseudo Coll)

          Proposition 12
      De : "Paul Huebener"
      Et comme c'était avec toute chose, nous parlions en rhyme et en énigme (as it was with all things, we spoke in rhyme and riddle)
      Machina/The Machines of God. Quite a grave, dignified title for an album whose most quoted line is "If I were dead, would my records sell". Of course, as with most things Pumpkin, this line is not meant to be taken simply at par value. For a self-proclaimed riddle, though, people tend to take this album pretty literally. In a way, Machina poses two riddles. The first deals with its meaning. The second is the question of why no one seems sure of the album's purpose, even though it clearly seeps from every groove of the disk.
      One important factor to understand in any type of analysis is that the interpretation of a story always depends largely upon the environment in which it is told. Perspective is everything. So, bearing this in mind, let us begin by examining the latter of the aforementioned riddles as it, if solved, may help us to understand the former. Why is it that people have such a hard time understanding Machina? What is it about our perspective on the story that creates a barrier between our zealous attempts at interpretation, and our confident understanding? The answer has more to do with where we are coming from than it has to do with obscure alchemic symbolism.
      Our perspective on Machina, or any story, is the key to understanding why we view it a certain way. The world we live in dictates to a great extent how we interpret everything we see. Our views tend to be only partially our own; they are substantially affected by the values and morals we are submerged in, be they good or bad. So if we can gain an understanding of our own perspective, we are likely to increase our understanding of why we tend to interpret things in the way that we do. We need, so to speak, a perspective on our perspective.
      Unfortunately, one of the greatest problems of our world is that it is extremely difficult to see it for what it is. Our culture is so encompassing that any view we try to take on life still originates from within the boundaries of our worldview and values. We all suffer from a bad case of cultural myopia.
      How then, can we hope to gain a detached perspective on ourselves? Our culture consists of everything we know. It surrounds us completely, and extends beyond our perception to the point that even our most radical thoughts are often supportive of, and products of, that which we vaguely wish to rebel against.
      Our culture is by no means unique in this problem, but the magnitude of its effects has probably never been greater. Living in a material world, as we do, isn't all it's cracked up to be. In fact, cracked is a good way to describe a life based significantly on the bizarre values of stress and consumption, as most of our lives seem to be. No one, of course, likes to view their own life as absurd, so this concept does not come easily to most people. It is always difficult to have an objective view of one's own style of life, including beliefs, customs, values, and so on. Thus, we are presented with a great problem in forming any valid analysis of our own perspective.
      If we cannot look around us for objectivity, because everything we see is a product of a biased view, then perhaps we should look for answers within. If people can be honest about their own feelings, then the possibility of valid perspective exists. A valuable test then, that we might use to gain perspective on a style of life, a culture, or a worldview, is to examine how the life in question makes individuals see themselves. If one were to test the style of life that most people currently call their own - to walk into the room of this life and take its temperature, as it were - by studying how it makes people see themselves, one would be left with a very interesting tale to tell.
      There is a problem, though, with looking within ourselves for answers. The same subjectivity that prevents valid perspective without, also corrupts our view within. Our surroundings forge very skewed self-images for us all. We cannot see ourselves as we really are; we only see what our values have taught us to see. So is all lost? It is no secret that people can be very unreceptive to the truth. Plato told us thousands of years ago that those who were able to see beyond the shadows and lies of their culture would never be understood, let alone believed, by the masses; and so it is today. Sagacity is only half the battle. For a truth to be useful, it must be acknowledged and believed. The responsibility, therefore, lies with those who possess knowledge.
      What all of this boils down to is that in order to clearly understand ourselves, and our world, we need the help of an outside perspective. We need something, or someone, to reflect ourselves back at us in a way that will make us see past our preconceptions.
      Machina/The Machines of God gives us this perspective. It is able to do so because everyone sees themselves in Glass. The story of Machina is difficult for us to understand because it shows us what, in some respects, we don't want to see. According to the views and self-images that we live with, we already know everything we need to. What we don't know a lot of the time though, is who we really are. But because we are taught not to question the self-images we are instilled with, we fall into the trap of not desiring any further knowledge. And this is the greatest failure possible; believing that there is nothing wrong.
      There are many of us, though, who grow tired of judging ourselves by other people's standards. Trying to be what you're not in order to please someone else will not bring you happiness even if you succeed. And for those of us who perceive a problem with this kind of life - with being strangers to ourselves - a desire exists somewhere within us to accept a broader view of things, and to reject former limitations. And this desire is fulfilled by Glass.
      The character of Glass is difficult to define. He seems unsubstantial, like a wisp of smoke. He is not even named in many of Machina's songs. However, as Machina is much more a story of ideas than it is a story of events, so too is Glass a character of ideas. His actual presence and actions need not occur in order for his purpose to be fulfilled. Whenever Machina shows you a reflection of yourself, the idea of Glass is present. And as Machina's purpose is to reflect yourself back at you, Glass' presence is felt throughout.
      When we see ourselves in Glass, and elsewhere in the story of Machina, it gives us a fresh perspective on our lives; it brings us into the story, and brings the story into reality. When we see ourselves in this new way, we are able to see our surroundings more clearly as well, and the message of Machina becomes apparent. With all the intricacies of the story, from alchemic symbolism to purposely misleading lyrics, it is almost hard to believe that the true message of the story is something as simple as "play the part of who you are".
      If the story of Machina is looked at from this new perspective, the rest of the mystery falls into place. Audiences who realize that scraping paint from their bones unashamed is equivalent to rejecting plastered self-images and embracing a new self-esteem, are approaching the story of Machina from the perspective which grants the most useful interpretation. Likewise, for those who approach Machina from a commercial point of view, there is plenty of evidence that the story is about a rock star's self-indulgence. But for those who see the story from the other side, it is clear that when Billy says, "If I were dead, would my records sell", he is not pondering the value of his inheritance. He is giving us a perspective on how success in a commercial world comes not from real emotion, but from machine-like products of a culture that exploits our differences instead of celebrating them, and offers no sense of reality, or life, to individuals.
      Because people don't like to hear about the real problems in life, many expressions of them are largely ignored. But when people find themselves drawn to a story for superficial reasons, they are likely to pay attention when they discover the story's deeper themes. And only then, by reflecting people back at themselves and giving them a different perspective on their lives and surroundings, can the truth can be expressed in a way that is meaningful. It's a clever trick, but a necessary one. Sometimes blinding rhetoric, as it were, is the only way to make people see.
      If our world were a dome, Machina would be a small spot on the wall of the dome - like many others. But for those who look closely, it becomes clear that this particular spot actually conceals, and thus reveals, a hole in the wall. But you can only find it once you accept that it must be there.
      And so, by solving the riddle of why people have a hard time understanding Machina, we have solved the meaning of the story itself. So at the end of all of this, if the Smashing Pumpkins were dead, would their records sell? Well... come to think of it, probably not. They're not good looking enough.

          Proposition 13
      De : "Willets, Jeremy M."
      Dear Billy, before I begin with my final theory, I just wanted to tell you that this journey has been an incredible experience for me. I sincerely thank you for leading me, as well as everyone else, on it. I feel like I've not only found out about you, but (as I'm sure was one of your goals all along) myself. I have attempted (as best I could) to fill in the blanks of my theory in my current turkey-induced-slumber state, so enjoy! And yes, Regis, wherever you are, this is my final answer...................
      When Machina I was first released, Billy said that he "titled it more like a play." By using the songs and stories together, we get a complete picture of what the story truly is - one of love, faith, personal epiphany, and musical revolution. The groundwork for this action is Hermetism (also called Gnosticism) - the idea of a divine spark in a man, which has fallen into this world, and needs to be restored to the world above. This world itself came into existence because of the fall of a heavenly counterpart of the spark, and the counterpart, too, needs to be restored above (see the two characters in Plate I). Hermetism aims to achieve the deification or rebirth of man through the knowledge of the one transcendent God, the world, and men.
      The main character, Glass (formerly Zero), is Billy Corgan. He resembles Mercury in Roman mythology (Hermes in Greek mythology). He is the "divine messenger" of God, and is looked to for divinely revealed wisdom (Hermetism). We see our reflections in Glass - the divine spark who spreads his wisdom and message through music.
      In Machina, alchemy is a metaphor for Glass' spiritual awakening. Mercury's alchemical purpose is to unite the six heavenly bodies that were visible to astronomers during the Middle Ages - the Sun (gold), the Moon (silver), Venus (copper), Jupiter (tin), Saturn (lead), and Mars (iron). The seven symbols (including Mercury) on the wheel in Plate XII - "In All Things The Symbols Reign Supreme" - as well as those in the introduction to the Smashing Pumpkins website, are representative of the seven planets. "It is finished when Seven are One," refers to the unifying aspect of Mercury, as the gathering, sorting, ordering principle in the alchemical separation and unification of planetary principles.
      In alchemy, the planets are symbolized as metals. These metals can be separated from their original forms, unified, to transformed into symbolic "gold" (the "perfect" metal). This gold is in fact a philosophical or spiritual gold, representing the enlightened consciousness that Mercury (Glass) strives to create. We are searching not for earthly riches, but spiritual ones.
      The "golden germ" - the potential for higher consciousness, the purification of the soul - is sealed within the vast Hermeticum and then "heated" (as seen in Plate II, "The Soul As Living Proof"). Symbolically, this indicates that, as the living vessel of Mercury, the human being contains the potential for elevation of consciousness. Mercury serves as the agent of unification and the mediator of various planetary principles through which the opposites may be brought together. Mercury unites the four elements, and seven planets into one - thus, the amalgamation of symbols in the middle of the planetary wheel in Plate XII and the website introduction.
      Through Mercury, the needs of one side of existence (i.e., the Yang) are communicated to the other side of human reality (i.e., the Yin). Mercury asks the question, "Why?" It provokes an answer that may turn the tables of spiritual/human reality within each and every one of us. It is concerned with the unification of opposites - the two "natures" in each of us. This is one of the many plots of the story -the change between Glass and Zero - Billy's two "natures."
      Like Billy said, "June is a girl." She represents everything feminine - love, fertility, "woman eternal" - and is the female counterpart of the divine spark. She is everything that Glass isn't. June's name comes from the Roman goddess Juno (Hera is the Greek equivalent). She is described as being striking, with white arms and beautiful hair, and carrying a scepter (see Plates IV, V, IX, and X). June is a muse - she is the catalyst of Glass' expression.
      The differences between the lovers are vast. She is vulnerable and vain (see "Vanity" from Machina II: Friends and Enemies of Modern Music). Her lifestyle is reckless, which is evident in "Speed Kills" - "first time that I ever saw you / crashing hard through days of pain [drug use] / you were one of God's children / left to cry out in the rain / waiting to be saved again." Glass feels that he can be the one to save June from her broken physical and spiritual state. He knows that she is the key to his creative expression.
      "The Everlasting Gaze" introduces Glass. God speaks through him ("A god machine"). He is "not dead." He is alive and ready to save Rock. "Only a warm heart and a knowing smile granting entrance to this mystery" (from "excerpt from Glass and the Machines of God" - Part I). The truth is there if one is willing to look for it. Not everyone, however, can achieve this knowledge. "Underneath the wheels lie the skulls of every c.o.g. [child of god]" (Plate XIII). The revolution has not been - and will not be - easy. In this song, we see the first insinuations of martyrdom by Glass. He is "forever waiting on cruel death." The divine messenger feels so strongly for the rebellion that he is willing to die in the name of it.
      In "Raindrops + Sunshowers," Glass is trying to walk with June "between the raindrops" - something that is impossible to do. He tries to please June, but is frustrated with her desires. The songs that he writes are his vague "expressions of my secret love." Even in the times of sorrow (raindrops) he still shows his love (sunshowers) for her.
      "Stand Inside Your Love" shows that the two were destined to fall in love. "Their fates had intertwined long before they were lovers" (Part I). Both sparks have found each other, and complete each other - Glass the male half, June the female half. "She the reflection in Glass, he in her that which he could not claim, her in him that which she so desperately needed" (Part I). Glass is energized by this love and feels "as though I am reborn / In my mind / Recast as child and mystic sage."
      In "I of The Mourning," we begin to see Glass' frustration with the current musical landscape. The latter half of "Glass and the Ghost Children" (Part II) goes along with this song. He is isolated at home, and nobody seems to care. The radio - an outlet more interested in Britney Spears than divine concepts - is the only thing that keeps him company in his time of greatest need. It is his God. Glass is searching for inspiration. His dreams and visions are becoming "video fodder to soak in" (Part I). He has survived Rock - and is waiting to save it - but everyone else would rather just change it instead.
      At this point in the story, Glass has hit a creative wall. He is not capable of expressing himself in the language of which he is most familiar - music. He fears that he will have to work through every detail, every word, every lyric, every note and aspect of his music, in order to effectively communicate his message. In his love for June, Glass finally realizes that - with her help - he will be able to focus his creative energies. June's love is activating Glass' dormant creativity.
      "The Sacred and Profane" is Glass' direct plea to God for "the bored / Your restless / The feedback scarred / Devotionless." We - the fans, the "Ghost Children," the "Synthetic Army" - are all "a part of me [Glass] now." He is our leader - our unifying force - and we must believe in him, as well as the movement. The hopes and dreams of the entire revolution rest upon Glass' shoulders (hence the song title being the name of their final tour).
      In "Try, Try, Try," Glass is telling his bandmates that they need to "Try to hold on / A little bit longer," because "it's almost over." "All the others [alt-rock bands] have perished. He caught glimpses of their faces every once in a while in rubble and wreckage strewn. He had fought way too long" (Part II). Glass' heart has gotten colder and older throughout the years, especially when you compare the lyrics to those found in the version of "Try, Try, Try" on Machina II. In that version of the song, Glass' heart is "a little bit stronger / never been broken / a little bit closer" but still "a little bit frightened." These fears have obviously taken over by the time the final lyrics for the song were completed. He has come to the realization that the band has survived longer than anyone imagined, but must soon come to an end.
      The "Heavy Metal Machine" is the Smashing Pumpkins (Plate VI). Their performance in "ch5/the story of june (so far)" is very mechanical. They are disenchanted with the current musical landscape. "If I were dead / Would my records sell / Could you even tell / Is it just as well." Even though Glass "yawned louder than he spoke any of the words," he is still willing to become a martyr for Rock, and save his soul. He's ready to become an atom bomb, and explode for Rock (see "Here's To The Atom Bomb").
      "This Time" is about the breakup of the Smashing Pumpkins. The fate of the band is divinely determined. Glass has lived his life alone, his "every step foretold." He is fulfilling a prophecy. He expresses some doubt about letting go of the band - "What are we letting go?" His world is literally "crashing down" on him. The sadness of the breakup is quelled by the thought that "Only love can win" - one of the overriding themes in the story. The song ends with the curtain falling on the band (Plate XVI).
      "The Imploding Voice" brings us back to the love story. June's love is everywhere, even in the "broken glass" - the destruction of Billy - his transformation from Zero to Glass. "These terrors and troubles will make you he was told, but somehow they continue to break him" (from "Glass and the Synthetic Army" - Part III).
      The phone conversation in "Glass and the Ghost Children" confirms that Glass is "operating on the premise that I'm hearing the voice of God." "Anywhere god decides" is anywhere that Glass will go to carry on the revolution. In this song, and in the second half of ch5, June is seen doing drugs - a very earthly diversion when compared to Glass' spiritual obligation. Her dissension into narcotics shows that she isn't perfect - and that Glass still loves her regardless. The theme of personal transformation continues near the end of the song, when June "can hear Glass calling / Or is it someone that looks like him [Zero]." "Real Love," echoes this same feeling. Glass wonders if June wants "real love / or is it me you're after." Does she want complete and undying love with Glass, or does she just want him for what he once was - Zero?
      In this song, as well as "White Spyder," Glass begs June to break from her drug use and destructive existence. "You gotta get away / to try to stay awake [alive] / you've gotta fix your gaze [on God, and the movement] / so you're not afraid." Glass' message will keep June alive - and cause their love to blossom - if only she will listen to him, and have faith in their love.
      "Wound" shows that Glass is willing to do anything for June's love. "Cause we've been here / Since time began / Begged god awake and make these plans." They were destined to love. Glass is a "broken man" who sees himself "turning." He is going through a personal epiphany during this musical revolution. He sees the "tide is turning / Destroyed in the wake / The jealous ingrates / Who'll tear this world down / To spite god above / With his own love." Glass is confirmed by the realization that there is some good in the world after all.
      Glass' motives become apparent in "The Crying Tree of Mercury." "Is it selfish it's you I want / I did it all for you." He feels that since he has been singing the same song his whole life, he deserves June's love. Plates VIII and IX - "So Empowered, The Lovers Negate The Blinding Brilliance Of Love" - are the visual depictions of this song. Glass' pleas are being ignored by June, because she dislikes the fact that their love has taken a back seat to his commitment to save Rock. She doesn't realize that she is his creative spark. His ambitions (to save Rock) and her behavior (specifically the drug use) are denying them the undeniable truth - their love is what really matters. The eternal lovers are slowly being pulled apart.
      "With Every Light" is a Utopian vision. There is "No more war and no more soldiers / To stand against his [God's] love." We are introduced to Glass' (Billy's) mother in this song, and at the end of ch5, when Billy dreams "of his mother young and beautiful and she told him many secrets, mostly about love and how it was like water that shined in the sun." "Every light that's shining down on" him is the light of love. Billy said that "we basically are everybody that we meet and the energy that sort of comes into our body becomes part of who we are." The great unifier is focusing the energy that he is receiving from the people that he meets, and those that he has met. He must believe in heaven, because that's where much of his love (thus, his energy) comes from.
      "Blue Skies Bring Tears" foretells the apocalyptic battle between good and evil that will eventually occur. "He [Glass] was a general leading them all into war that he and they knew they could never win but still they fought to love and always die standing" (Part II). This song shows us the doubt about the revolution that Glass still has, and serves as a temptation for him to abandon hope.
      This same doubt/hopelessness is present in "Lucky 13." "I'm no good / as the prodigal son" and "upon my wrists I bear the cross / my losses mount as I climb across the hole / of my own soul." He shows the same insecurities in "Dross." "Get out, get out [of the music business] / you've lost control / can anyone be true / does anyone, anyone wanna be you." Not only is Glass unsure of the cause, he doesn't even know if anyone will carry Rock music's torch when he is gone.
      By the time we reach the "Age of Innocence," Glass is "no more the simple man" - his life is still changing at thirty-three. He has reconciled his duality, and is a new man because of it. Glass has become true to himself, and has attained spiritual enlightenment and self-realization by the end of Machina. "No more the eye [of the radio - Plate XI] is upon" him. Glass calls for the desolation of ideas without hesitation - to delve deeper into ourselves, to contemplate how we go about living each day, to love one another, and to have more faith and love.
      We see ourselves, our reflections, in Glass - a feeling that can be extremely frightening. To know that the things you work for your entire life can be pulled out from underneath you like a carpet. To comprehend the difficulty involved in keeping real, true, and everlasting love. To try and discern our two personalities in order to have a greater knowledge of ourselves. Glass' "shattering" is allowing us all to grow as human beings. To create this consciousness in all of us - this is Glass' goal.
      "It is finished when Seven are One." Seven albums. Seven chapters. Seven days of creation. Unification. The cycle is complete. "When he'll [Glass/Zero/Billy] be seven is all you seek." Seven chances for us to peer deep inside ourselves and try to find out what really matters - the truest of truths. "Respect is faith, and faith is all we have left." The Latin phrase, "Nil Sine Deo," (from Plate III, "The Chemist Brings Spark") means "Nothing without God." No matter who we are - be it a rock star (Zero), a musical messiah (Glass), a lover (June), or a fan (the Ghost Children) - we must always remember that we are nothing without the divine chemist - the force in the universe that unites us all. We are "nothing without God."
      And so the echo of the Smashing Pumpkins rings forever on. "The revolution is never over, it is just beginning... We are in cracks and rust and swinging screen doors, never to be forgotten" (Part III).

          Proposition 14
      De: "Chris Ingraldi"
      Greetings Billy! Here is my new essay, I hope it's a bit better than the old one.. another labour of tears and confusion.... I cannot thank you enough for this opportunity! You have, over time, made me the happiest I've ever been, I'm really at a loss for words, but... Thank You. I'll send my essay as a Microsoft Word attachment and I'll copy it into the message as well, I hope it's not too horribly wrong!
      MACHINA: The Machines of God
      The story of Machina is one of extreme complexity and intricacy. However, it is determinable that it is a story of a journey through the mind of a single character, who actually has two contrasting personalities. This character is an "actor" in his own play, the play of his life where he portrays multiple roles and somewhat controls the fate of the other characters. Another very important figure in this story is June, who is the protagonist's love yet at the same time the source of much of his turmoil. Into this we throw the Ghost Children, drugs, and God, and we have the core of Machina, ready to be played out.
      The main character can be divided up into two very different personas. The first I will refer to as "Zero," who is passive and rather helpless, a mere reflection of his alter ego "Glass." Glass is a god-like figure, almost surreal in his perfection. He is revered and loved, but is the classic tragic hero. The relationship between June and Zero/Glass is one of true deception on both of their parts. Zero is whom the protagonist (let's call him Billy!) chooses to present to June, and so she sees this reflection of him, as in if a dirty mirror, and it is not Billy in his entirety. While she thinks she knows him, she does not realize his true self. Billy lives two roles, and has two spirits, one existing for the purpose of pleasing June and making their relationship work, one existing as an icon and a god.
      Zero is Glass' offstage and in love personality. June is the object of his affection, and he does his best to please her, but it is a difficult task. However, he succumbs to her desires wherever he can. The line "rain falls on everyone" shows that he feels he is no more special than anyone else, the same rain falling on him as on the rest of the world. However, June expects him to walk "between the raindrops," which is impossible. While he tries to please her, he is frustrated with her and her desires. He wants her to understand that he is nothing special, and to receive love from her by being who he is. We later see Zero's need for June, and his expression that he would do anything and everything for her if he could. He would go to the ends of the earth for her, because he sees June as perfect for him, and believes they were meant to be together. However, Zero does not feel that he is receiving the love he is giving June back to him, and this tears him apart. He feels alone, as if no one is there for him. He has a sense of nostalgia of the past, and keeps himself sane by thinking of what he had been through and conquered. On June's behalf, she gives Zero the illusion that the two of them are equals, but she does it consciously, knowing that she has power over him. She wants him for her own selfish purposes, knowing he will run to the ends of the earth for her, to his last breath. Yet she still thirsts for more and more and doesn't appreciate anything, sucking the life out of him, wanting the world, wanting the impossible. Drugs are also evident as a part of June's life, lost "in a haze of wine and cocaine." She is indulgent, both of drugs and of power, and becomes lost in consumption, blind to the realities of the world, for she is too selfish uncaring to see them. She is also blind to glass Glass, seeing right through him to Zero, passive and helpless. But all of these factors remain unsaid between them, and Zero tries his best to please her and humors her "authority." Yet June is restless; she takes advantage of her power and is actually quite bored with it. Zero spends his life trying to be a hero, trying to prove himself. When he becomes Glass, it is already foretold that he will shatter, in a personal Armageddon, his destiny waiting to happen.
      The "Glass" side of Billy is very obscure and god-like; a true hero to the ghost children. However, his reign over them must come to an end, as he lived like an atom bomb waiting to destroy himself. Glass is becoming reckless at his core being's relationship with June, and is fighting back against the power that was held over him. He is aware that his demise is near, and is letting himself "die for rock n' roll," which has pretty much all gone to hell at this point. The world he has built up around himself is now coming crashing down around him, and he wants to go out with a bang. To his Ghost Children, he was a figure of mystery, as he was "re-writing his story everyday, moving the fixed destiny point," and like a god he was a great source of confusion to his followers, who believed they could never, and perhaps were not supposed to, figure him out. Full of mystery and obscurity and wonder, he plays the part with his misfit band as the rock n' roll savior, American to the bone, "by the pool, playing with (his) guns." "Yeah, we're coming to your town/Yeah, we'll help you party down/Yeah, we're an American band for you." He is the epitome of the rock icon and exists to keep his Ghost Children happy, by playing our favorite songs as a god, as the I of the radio, pleasing his army, his Children. In the end, it is just the character of Glass who is shattering, for Glass is just an image, an image we see in the looking glass, and the end of Billy's reign as the king of rock n' roll is Glass' death, leaving us only with reality.
      The basis of this story is the relationship of Billy and June, and the contrasting feelings of Billy's two personalities Zero and Glass. The album speaks of the end, the Armageddon, which is unleashed by Billy as he gives his final farewell to the Ghost Children. And so the complex mystery comes to an end, and Glass is shattered, leaving his life behind without hesitation.
      Machina also deals extensively with God, not necessarily in a very religious way but as a questioning of His nature. In Lucky 13, God's existence is questioned, as He is described as a "ghost" who sees and judges us yet doesn't exist, as well as a divine being. So where does He exist, if anywhere? Perhaps only as a voice, the voice of conscious and reason, inside the protagonist's head. But if this divine voice he is hearing is in fact the voice of God, then would it not make the protagonist to be God himself? Indeed, he is almost a god to his followers, his Ghost Children, and so he takes his life in his own hands as his own inner voices and thoughts become his guidelines for life, which if he were to express them would also be regarded by his followers as guidelines for their own lives. But this character, Glass, could be acting upon illusions of his mind, and so be totally rampant. He hears the voice of God inside his head, and acts accordingly with what it says. If he is acting directly upon god's demands, he is a god himself, and his followers are the Ghost Children.
      I found the most difficult concept in Machina was deciphering the meaning of "It is finished when Seven are One." I found that the symbol denoting this phrase paralleled the weekday heptagram, created with the widespread use of the 7-day week. If we arrange the planets which were known in Hellenistic times in order of the length of their orbital times, the result is the following: Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. The planets correspond to the days of the week in order. This theme of sevens run throughout the Machina mystery, with the seven albums and the seven chapters, and I will not claim to understand it, since I don't. But upon looking at the history behind the number, and it's relation to the Bible and to Christianity, it may cause one to focus more on the concept of God in Machina. Also, the completion of the seven symbols bring the picture to a full circle, complete. And so, tying in with my other theories, the time when Seven become One may describe the end of the story, the close of the play. Glass has shattered, and Zero is now complete· perhaps he finally found love, or perhaps it simply means that his prophecy, of him becoming what his dreams had spoken of, had come true, completing the story. The Armageddon had arrived, destroying all while at the same time intertwining everything perfectly. And after all the chaos, Glass and Zero are destroyed, leaving behind the One, the only, the hero· Only Love Yeah Only Love Will Be Enough Yeah Only Love Will Win.....
      love and thanks,
      Christina

          Proposition 15
      De : Alex Yue Cobains@aol.com
      Now that we have been given a chance to re-interpret the lost transmission amongst the static waves, we can refine our theory behind the album Machina. We can draw and conclude many ideas that revolve around the album, however, as I've said before the main concept behind Machina is simply the theory of love. We can see this right away on the corver of Machina, where we see the two star crossed lovers together bound next to each other. Love is the gift of happiness and sadness from God to us all (the machines) to spread, taste and experience throughout. This is the one intangible object/feeling that can make or break a heart and soul of anyone. No machine, idea, thought, breath, a blink, or even God could strip us of our own feelings of love. The richest of all richest is this idea of love and the greatest buried treasure that can ever be found is love. Worth more than any amount of gold or diamonds, and is as expensive as the price of life, love plays into all our lives. This idea of love is what is the main act of Machina. A superficial idea that can be seen in Machina is the end of Glass (Billy) and the Machines (The rest of the Pumpkins) in the music scene. In songs like "I of the Mourning" and "This Time" it can clearly be seen that the band is saying goodbye for one last time to everyone who cared to listen (the glass children). However, as I said before, this is only the superficial concept that can be easily seen. Once we delve deeper in between the lines and solve the equations we can see that Machina blossoms into more of a love concept in a long complex story. From all the information given to us from the album, the written excerpts, as well as the art we can figure out who the main characters are. Before we decipher the story, let us set the stage and introduce the main characters that are presented to us: we have Zero (the hero), June, Glass, the Machines, and the Ghost Children. >From the excerpts and chards written by Billy we can figure out that the Ghost Children are the fans. They are the ones that listen and breathe the music that is echoed by the Pumpkins. Glass is a man who is in love with a girl named June. In this case we can say that Glass is Billy himself and June (Yelena) is his lover. However, this idea is not restricted to Glass being Billy, he could be anyone who has ever tasted a strong love for any girl named June. The Machines are the rest of the band that Glass leads to soothe the souls of the lost children. However, if we think about, all of us are also Machines. We are all put on this Earth to serve a purpose that can only be determined by ourselves. We are all little cogs that interact and in the end bring out a various products. The most seen product created between the machines is love. The last character, Zero (the hero) is more complex than the others. Zero (the hero) is a past reflection of Glass himself, or Billy. This is Billy from before he met his love June, or before Billy had been in love. Zero (the hero) is how Billy was, from the beginning to Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness era. He played with his Machines and rocked out shows, to help move the music generation that was the early 90's. This is what made him a hero, but as time went on Zero (the hero) changed, as well as did music. Soon Zero had undergone a metamorphosis and became what we now know as Glass. The catalyst in this change was a newfound love for June. Glass now knew he no-longer needed to be the hero and lead the Ghost Children along, but rather he needed to be a new hero to June. This starts the story that is then explained on the album Machina/the machines of god. With the opening song "The Everlasting Gaze" his line, "You know I'm not dead" screams and echoes out among all the Ghost Children and tells them that Zero (the hero) is not dead, but still alive and can be renewed in Glass. As the album moves on the story becomes more of a love story/message for/to June. The idea of love clearly manifests itself and comes out in songs like "Stand Inside Your Love", where Glass echoes his heart out to June. Then in the song "Try, Try, Try" Glass pleas to his lover June to try to hold on to this love that he has for her. Try to hold on to this love, despite all the shit that fame brings and how all the traveling tears them apart. Yet, he pleas to her, to try, to try and hold on. One day he will arrive 'home'. As the album progresses we can see that Glass and the Machines are done. This is personified in the song "Heavy Metal Machine". The Heavy Metal Machine (which can be rock in general) is done and we all need to let it go. In this song we can hear Glass trying to disconnect himself from this machine and to let him die and be reborn apart from this machine. However, the story does not end on Machina: the machines of God. It continues on the next album Machina 2: the friends and enemies of modern music. As we read about the story of June (so far) many things surface. When the table is cut and comes crashing to the ground the father says, "there is no such thing as success, only hard work and tears". This is the idea that there is no true success. When you win in one, you lose somewhere else. Glass may have won in music, but when he won in music, he lost the time, and energy, that could have been spent with June. Once the table fell (which is symbolic for rock music) Glass sat there and pondered what to do next. There he decided to move on towards his love June. The vision he sees of his mother in his dream is saying that love is a reflection that maybe so bright at times it blinds you, but in the end it is a reflection of yourself. Glass now will return to his 'home' which is his own heart as well as the heart of June. He sings this out in the song "Home" off the album, that love, love is everything that I want. He no longer wants the fame or fortune, but he wants to go back home to June's heart and build the castle to forever hold them there. Love can also be seen again in the song "Let Me Give the World to You". Here Glass, tells June that he has given up music and wants to prove it to her by giving up everything he had in music for her. He is going to give his own world and have is dedicated to being with her. Once again, as said in the story of June, he trades one for something else, never actually succeeding in having both. In the song "Cash Car Star" the idea of fame and the music industry can be unlocked. This song demonstrates how everyone wants to jump on the current "what's hot" bandwagon (ex. All those boy bands, blonde teen girl singers) and get their quick buck. It is no longer "about the music" but about getting a "fast car". Yet, another reason for the demise of the Heavy Metal Machine, and Glass moving on. The most important song on the album in my opinion is "Glass' Theme". In this song, Glass tells everyone how he is shattering in a million fragile pieces (breaking away from his current life). What will he become of now? From Zero (the hero), to Glass, to ???? perhaps he will become just Billy Corgan, lover of June (Yelena). Now that Glass has now found a new rekindled feeling of love. He is now reborn and recast with a new focus to please and be with his lover June. As we put all the pieces of the puzzle together, from the album and the excerpts we can see that Glass is ending a time of music in his life and starting a life of love with June by his side. The albums Machina and Machina 2 are more than a final goodbye to the fans but also a love song to June. Glass hangs up his guitar and picks up June to be reborn together under the gift of God, love. Love, love it's who you are. The curtain now falls on one chapter and rises on a brand new chapter.

          Proposition 16
      De : LilyPlume@aol.com
      ***Machina: The Mystery within A Mystery***
      "It cried 'a mystery I am and you must find me first if this game is ever to begin' in faith there is all power, in love all faith every action a pebble dropped into the clear pool of humanity, rippling forever on until the waves become indecipherable and unseen what seems like confusion becomes order of the highest magnitude." (Chapter III)
      Once again I find myself faced with the same questions, the same revelations, the same doubts...and once again I've lost myself in a world where nothing is as it seems, and what seems too obvious is really a decoy, because it is actually a well-disguised truth. When analyzing the mystery surrounding Machina you can't trust anything, it's a fast-paced ride straight thru all the complications and relief of life itself. The problem doesn't lie in deciphering the symbols, so much as it lies in distinguishing between which symbols are real, and which are just thrown in to add humour to the album. Once that problem seemed to have been solved, I had to move onto the larger problem of constructing the plot of the story. The mystery is somewhat of a play, the characters being the interpretations of the band, as played by themselves. Even then, all is not revealed. Th! e story and plot means nothing if you don't see the underlying theme. "What does it all mean?" You can ask that question over and over, and you can analyze each word a million times, but it means nothing if you don't open your heart and your eyes to see the insanely simple conclusion... Billy: The character of Billy is the only real human being in the entire plot. Oddly enough, Billy plays one of the smallest parts in the story. He appears only in Chapter V. The reason behind this is that in relation to all of the other parts, Billy himself is tragically insignificant. In the "dinner table" scene of Chapter V, Billy appears to be the only character actually awake, hoping to own what he feels instead of merely going thru the motions "...in their dreams they saw him surreal, but he was as real as they needed him to be." (Chapter II) ...He is portrayed as a radio, a machine, a messenger...eternally transmitting what he is given from Glass, June, and what seems to be God. Eventually, Billy realizes that he can no longer take his words from the ideal that is June, that maybe the time had come that he owned them. "He didn't see her leave and! he would not hear her when she returned..." (Chapter V) Glass: Billy's inner soul...the part of him that "seeks the unseekable." (Cupid de Locke) Glass is eternally searching for what he believes is purity, his love, June... Because Glass runs on the purest of emotion, he sees things in the terms of "Truth is Beauty, and Beauty is Truth." But Glass wasn't always this misunderstood philosopher/rockstar. Though not literally, the ghost of his past identity, Zero, still haunts him. "...the mask came off and he beheld yet another mask..." (Chapter II) June: June is not necessarily a person, but yet another part of Billy's soul...the part that drives him, the part that inspires the music. June seems to be the messenger from God, the dues ex Machina, because it is she that brings the inspiration, always being sought out. She is also the ideal that Glass is searching for, given feminine qualities because the music has always held seemingly feminine traits. But because nothing is ever perfect, June's flaw in character is that she never really grasps her importance. June never realizes how much Glass depends on her, that he can't exist without her. They are destined to be together, they are spiritual twins... "...their fates had intertwined long before they were lovers, their moment extending back before a time their eyes first met, and that bond was eternal, thru fire and chard to meet again and again until this moment, our apex and! conclusion..." (Chapter I)
      June & Glass: June also creates turbulence in her relationship with Glass through her vanity and disregard for his intense bond with her. "'Do I look alright' she asked no one in particular..." (Chapter V) Because their relationship reflects the one between Billy and his music, it represents the struggle he has gone through as he "kept swimming upstream" (Chapter II) in order to get where he is, to finally "bleed in [his] own light," even if his intentions seemed only to find out if he would drown...
      After this being said, here lies the underlying theme. So once again, I ask, "What does it all mean?" The answer is so simple in all it's complexity, it almost seems unreal. The fact is, everything we all do, everything we dream, and everything we create is based on the purest of notions, the fact that love rules all. "Love is the energy behind which all is created" (17) The power the truth and beauty of pure love has over us is so intense that we are more than willing to sacrifice all and suffer our souls just for a small taste of it. Sometimes our hopes prove false and we feel that we have come up empty-handed, "If you spin your love around, all the secrets of your dreams, you may find your love is gone, and not quite what it seemed." (Thru the Eyes of Ruby) But the truth of it all is that the disappointments matter just as much as, if no! t more than, the rewards. So still we move on, pushing ourselves, eternally taking the path less traveled...suffering heartbreak, finding love, building walls, breaking them down, finding ourselves, leaving pieces along the way...but always moving, waiting for the dawn, waiting for truth...only to wake up and do it all over again. And as momentary and superficial life may seem, it truly is eternal...kisses are still blown across crumbling tables, wars are still fought within the hearts and souls of all, but most importantly, the music is always reborn, revised, and replayed. And as long as we keep hope in something, someone, anything, everything, and nothing at all, "the echo rings on forever" And so as the seven albums have come together and become this unforgettable epic, the seven chapters of what we know as the mystery of Machina will be revealed and form an eternal, unrequited pledge of faith. S! o God continues to speak to those who are willing to listen, "You are one of many more to come...in sadness and in love, in faith and movement alive." (Chapter I)
      Thank you for everything Billy, It's been an amazing ride...and know that you will continue breaking down those walls you've created for yourself...With love eternal,
      Kristin Bowman

          Proposition 17 - 2ème place (contest winners)
      De : Charles Roig
      Une histoire simple et éternelle: Les Significations de Machina
      Par Charles Roig
      The story behind Machina/ The Machines of God is exactly as it is first introduced, in the excerpt of Glass and the Ghost Children included in the CD's liner notes: a simple and eternal story, long played out through human history. It is the story of human beings and their attempts to get through a mysterious and painful life, and dramatizes, through music and stream of consciousness excerpts, the perils and joys of existence. The plot can be drawn mainly from the excerpts of Glass and the Ghost Children, with needed information provided by the songs and art plates. The songs of Machina don't further the plot so much as provides a soundtrack to it, adding the emotional weight and the philosophical introspections of the characters. The story of the album depends upon a simultaneous appreciation and consideration of these three pieces of art. Excerpt 1 introduces the story as Glass' story. It is the story of a boy and girl, but it is mainly Glass' story. Glass sin in a band, the Machines, and the excerpt describes one of their performances. They are giving themselves over their love of music, a pure love of performance, and the gaze of God is drawn down. One of Glass' fans, June, is at the concert. She and Glass meet, and being their love. June is thus a particular character, Glass' love, as well as a symbol for all who would hear and are touched by Glass' music. June is very much a product of her times, aching to belong and scarred by materialistic society. She has no faith but that which destroys, a pessimistic fate that everything is eventually horrible. She only knew herself in coarse mirrors, in reflections not genuine that returned an image depraved that was not the truth but which she embraced nonetheless. She was fickle, giving her self unto whatever could incite her soul for the moment. She does not play herself, does not follow her true self; instead, she looks for completion, in earthly contrivances and societal machinations. One such machination is drugs, and she is opium eyed and gouge mouthed. She lived this way because she had bought into the idea that told her everything was dead in the world. She followed these dark ways in an attempt to find peace, but the darkness she had experimented with ultimately overwhelmed her. She was linked to Glass, beyond time and creation somehow. They were reflections of each other, begging reflections finally found but still eternally just out of reach. They had been predestined, and everything in their lives led to the formation of their beings such that they would come to this moment and meet. They were but machines of God, following his mysterious plan unknowingly. So it is with all human beings, all God's machines. The story of Machina is merely the tale of one machine, Glass. The plight of the machines is to raise their lights, their soul, in some manner to gain the approval of God, to draw his everlasting gaze. The gaze and approval come silently, and one can never know if it is being drawn; maybe when we die all the answers will be revealed, but who can say? There is not guarantee, so there is no proof that all we do is for naught. But there is faith, and faith alone sustains us through this life of pain and joy, alternating g randomly and unequally. Faith alone sustains a torn inside machine of light on its path to purity, for there is only faith alone and nothing else to confirm. Fleeting moments that beg awe and suspicions, fleeting moments of coincidence and dreams, voices heard inside and intuition, these fleeting moments, always questionable, are the only things a machine of God has to suspect there is some divine plan.
      So it is with Glass. He had his voice, disembodied with no claim, but were the sounds his? Was this God speaking through him, to him, or merely his own delusional madness? And if the sounds were not his, was he merely a machine, with no will of his own? This is the question that plagues Glass, and it plagues all the machines in some form or another. The question forever lingers unanswered, of course. Meanwhile, Glass surveys his efforts and their effects. His grand schemes and sincere attempts of communication of his soul, reduced to mere ceiling thumbtacks and kids clamoring for more and more. He'd become a part of the machine that is materialist society, he'd become just another fad to which the hopeless kids tried to find meaning in. He was made a mouthpiece for what ailed them, singing for them, when all along Glass had been striving to sing to them, disintegrate all his life's travails in an effort to communicate himself. To belong.
      Amongst these ruins, our hero dies zero, and finds a dead station moving static code. The radio, the medium always used to communicate with God, has gone dead. The voice inside tells him he is but one of many more to come, in unending time.
      Excerpt II deals with Glass' actions following this revelation. Glass retreats, retreats from his failed schemes and the ghost children, his fans who would not hear his full secrets, seeing only him and his messages in a surreal light, filtered through their own needs. They used Glass to belong, while all along Glass was using them to the same end. Being the initiator of the communication, Glass could see it for the sham it was. His echo sent back, their love returned only obscured reflections of his own love for them. He was their leader, leading them into a war of sincerity and love against a materialist society that traded commerce on the exploitation of these very things. But the movement was revealed for the sham it was, and Glass was tired. He sought a place to once again call home. He retreats home, in exile, to ponder what went wrong. He listens to the radio, hoping for a guiding hand, but God returns only static. Still he waits, machine that he is, for the order that may never come. Signs pointing to the correct direction, signs such as the weight of his self imposed exile indicating that this was not what he should be doing, plagued him, but still he swam against the flow of current, against the radio static, like the dumb fish and rebellious machine he was. In rebelling against God's plan, he was stagnant, a lone hermit surrounded by the ever-increasing stench of his own refuse. Finally, the universe cries to him, "A mystery I am, and you must find me. First, if this game is ever to being, in faith there is all power, in love all faith, every action a pebble dropped into the clear pool of humanity, rippling forever on until the waves became indecipherable and unseen. What seems like confusion becomes order of the highest magnitude."
      And so the universe tells Glass, in clear terms, that he is not to reason why. The enigma that is the universe, that is God, the unraveling of that mystery, is the point of life. But the only means to unravel that mystery is in faith, in faith in God and following his plan. The ways to faith lie in love, love of another, love of life, love of dedication to your life. To live fully is to love fully, for in living without reservation or doubt, one loves life. Human action becomes meaningful, for every action we do, even in exile, has an effect on these other machines of blood and flesh. And just like the cacophony of waves a body of water becomes under a hail of pebbles, so is the pool of humanity a seeming chaos, acted upon by every particular human's action affecting the whole pool. Ours is not to reason why, for we are merely the machines of God, unable to see, being in the center of it, the grand design we are a part of. We are but the cogs and God the watchmaker. It is only ours to continue on our purpose, to play our part in the grand design, and to trust in faith in God and depend that all will turn out right tin the end. The seeming chaos of hour human interactions is really a preordained order construed by God, in his mysterious ways. Glass reasons and believes in this, and in that belief a mask of himself falls off . . . only to reveal another mask. Glass realizes how insignificant human men are, though they claim power and mystery over all. It was a sham, for human were but just another facet of the great mystery, mysteries even to themselves.
      Part III reexamines the mystery of Glass, reaching into his childhood, showing how this life of pain is engineered to be part of God's plan. In the air of existence, there hangs an implied violence, a dull ache of life. This ache molds a person. The pain is such that tit forms dreams of future times, when all will be good and right. The dream is a sham, of course, a carrot tied in front of our faces, spurring us on, a preprogramming of sorts so that we will lead our lives.
      Glass describes himself, a little boy once so old in his shoes. For every indignity and scar of life that touched his soul, was crated a means to deal with that pain. " A boy, a zero, a hero, a goat, a ghost frozen glass" Glass is but merely a ghost made solid, still transparent, still fragile and immaterial. Glass is but one of the ghost children, elevated somehow by God's purpose to his role of rock and roll superstar, great eraser and disintegrator of life. The pain of life provides the fuel for human action; it is only in cursing one's existence, in trying to change, in making the best of that hate of life to focus one's purpose, that life moves on. Pain, then, is God's electricity, pumping into this grand watch so that we cogs will move and operate. If the machines/cogs were happy, they would not move. IT is that simple. But pain and only pain would prove too much, so we have the victories oh so sweet and pure, altogether too fleeting and intermitting, spurring us on throughout the pain to reach a victory once again.
      A child will draw a perfect life, never to be achieved. IN the yearning for that perfect life, the child signs the contract that will spur on his life The desire to hope for that perfect life was made before he could even think, part of God's creation of him; it's part of his machine programming. Glass' purpose is to disintegrate all of life's travails for entertainment, to ease the pain and provide some of that joy of life for the rest of the machines. Glass is somehow integral to the working of the grand moving of the universe, but it is no glass particularly. It is merely his role as an eraser, providing joy for the rest of the machines. He does not even affect all the machines; Glass was made specifically for this moment of time to appeal to just these certain people. Glass is just as much a tool as any other machine. In teenage arms, he held a guitar and thought he could change it all. As a man, now disillusioned, he holds that same guitar now broken under the weight of his dreams still unfulfilled. His moment is over, and a new entertainer is ready to take his place. Glass was a machine specifically created for one segment of time, and now his purpose is done, his ability as a cog lubricator over.
      The above description of life might sound harsh, and we might seem mere slaves to God, but that is not the case. To work in this plan of God's is to give purpose to one's life, and one must have faith that it is all for ultimately a better end. And human beings still possess their free will, can still rebel against this plan. If not, why then have the pleasures of life? No, one can choose not to be part of this grand design, and then their lives will become stagnant, but that will be their choice.
      Glass is a machine himself, and he needs to be spurred on as well. That is June's role, as his love. The lovers had found each other, but the love was not completely satisfying. How could it be, for if it were, there would be no need to further proceed with life? Even mingled in the purest happiness of this earthly plane, love, is a lacking. The task that remains is to continue striving in that love, to work onward against the lacking to try to capture it. Or else, to accept the lacking and realize this is as good as it gets, here on earth. The love that brings people together is red hot with passion, but love always cools. It is subject to time. Hopefully it cools into a solid rock upon which to build a deep relationship, but in can often cool into so much slag, not good for much of anything.
      June, as described above, was a soul always given to looking to whatever might mover her. Ultimately, Glass failed to move her as much as she needed. Instead of striving one with the love, in the faith that it would get better, she still gave herself to drugs and black holes of the soul. At his moment was when Glass underwent his crisis of the soul and existence. So empowered, the lover's negated the blinding brilliance of their love. The remaining excerpts don't provide much in the way as to what happens next, but an examination of the songs can lead to some conclusions, as well as a reinforcement of all that proceeded.
      As said before, in order to receive the full impact of this album, the above plot must be combined with the emotional and thematic weight provided in the songs. It is my opinion that the songs maybe the very songs Glass would write and sing with his band. The songs and their content rarely spell out the plot plainly, but one can interpret them as the songs Glass writes as he deals with the events related above. Looking at them in such a way, one can see how they plainly fit in with the life of Glass described by the excerpts. The first song, "The Everlasting Gaze", sets up the frame of the story very nicely, as it presents Glass' striving to be noticed by God. He sings, "You know I'm not dead", a protest to God that he is still alive, and not deserving to be forgotten, as he seemingly has. The song also presents the image of human beings as God's machines of blood and flesh. The human body is seen as a mere vessel for the soul, sometimes later referred to as light. The creatures, Glass' fellow humans, beg God to tear their lights from this painful existence of the flesh.
      "Raindrops + Sunshowers" presents the twin themes of Glass' efforts to reach his ghost children and the futility inherent in that action. The song states, "I just send my echo out to get your love without obscured reflections of my love" This statement is enforced with the impossible image of trying to walk through raindrops. Glass is speaking of his desire to truly interact with his fans and to not just have his love and communication regurgitated to him; that is not true human interaction. Unfortunately for Glass, this seems to be what happens to him. Later songs, such as "Heavy Metal Machine" and "I of the Mourning" continue this theme of disillusionment in his art, while songs such as "Glass Theme" and "Dross" are comments upon the sham that Glass' career has become. "I betrayed Rock n Roll," Glass wails in the former of these songs. The excerpts provide an even more vivid image, of an artist discovering "he wasn't speaking at all, just humming someone else's favorite song", only "as real as they needed him to be. Discarded until he roared back into their vision" "But no one could or would ever hear the full secrets of glass." They don't truly believe nor have an artistic stake in his words; he's just a diversion to them.
      In the excerpts, Glass also questions at times a disembodied voice in his head, the one that spurs him into action. He wonders if it is his at all. This voice is presented in "The Imploding Voice" The lyrics to the song are benignly instructive, telling Glass that all he has to do is play himself, be himself. In that sincerity, the voice advises, Glass will not be able to go wrong. And as the song ends, the voice says that no matter what occurs, it will always be there. Which leads into the climax of the album, "Glass and the Ghost Children". Glass' reflection on his purpose and contemplation of God reaches its height, as he reasons that we are all machines of God, doomed by our DNA to play out our lives inevitably to death, like preprogrammed automatons. Glass rebels and tries to reason with God, defiantly pleading that he doesn't want to die. Meanwhile, June is in the midst of her own rebellion, about to inject herself with drugs. The song breaks into an interlude of "Le Deux Machina", with Glass' description of this voice of God he hears within himself. The final coda of the song describes June's drug experience, hallucinating on the drugs as she hears Glass calling for her.
      The plates for this song are also important, as they are the only two piece plates. Plate VIII shows Glass, enraptured by his music and listening to God (depicted in a headphone helmet Glass wears). Glass is in ignorance of June, in plate IX, who is about to overdose. The plate is called, "So Empowered, The Lovers Negate the Blinding Brilliance of Love" The lovers negate this brilliance by not seeking to solve their dilemmas in each their understanding love; instead, Glass grapples with certainties and questions that cannot be defeated, and June descends into earthly drugs. Around this point, June apparently leaves Glass to find her own way in the world. The lovers taking their leave of each other is described in the song, "Go", as Glass lets June go and find her own way in the world, while he himself continues to grapple with his uncertainties of existence. At this point, "I of the Mourning" dramatizes the exile of Glass, lisenting to radio static for a sign from God, while June makes her own way in the world. The song "Real Love" is important, as it discusses the problems Glass and June were having with the fading of their love. "Real love, or is it me your after? Is it time, cause it's now or never . . .We never listen, real love will listen and tell a fortune. . . .Real Love is painless. " Songs such as "Speed Kills" are testaments to the saving power of their relationship, and acknowledgements of their lives of pain. "First time that I ever saw you, crashing hard through days of pain, you were one of God's children, left out to cry out tin the rain, waiting to be saved again. .. Cause when I ride with you tonight, we can move at the speed of light" Other songs and the excerpts reinforce this image of love as the true means of dealing with life, as "This Time" proclaims that only love can win, while the excerpt state, "In faith there is all power, in love all faith, every action a pebble dropped into the clear pool of humanity." This last sentiment echoes the song "With Every Light", in which Glass comes to appreciate, too late, the true meanings of this existence. With every light he finds, with every person he meets, he feels a light shining down upon him. Everyone is someone sent from above, and we're none of us alone.
      The song "Vanity" apparently describes June's return to Glass. It describes a girl, who lost the singer in a "haze of wine and cocaine" consumed by vanity, now standing at the singer's door. "She swears she'll turn around, turn around for good" Glass takes her back, as he sings, "You know you'll run around, run around for her" At this point, Glass' purpose as an entertainer done and Glass ready to go on with his life, he takes June with him to find a new place to call "Home". "We'll wander off through the dead of night . . .with an urgent wind upon my rolling heels to carry me along, my face so ghost that I turn to ruins past and home, home, let the words spill from my mouth, love, love is everything I want, I'm one of many more to come, love is everything I want" Here, Glass admits and accepts his place as just but one of many to come in God's plan, and reaffirms that he doesn't want to be special and the only one anymore. Love is all he wants now.
      Acceptance takes over Glass, and the final song, "Age of Innocence", is his exit. He is no longer the eye upon his fans, no longer disintegrating life's travails into art form. With a last affirmation to love, he leaves, to find his own way in the world, with June. Plate XVI depicts this action, saying, "The Echo Lives on Forever" This is another recurrent theme throughout the album, of the unending nature of time. In several of the plates are the symbols of infinity, as well as depictions of snakes eating themselves. These images are echoed in the excerpts, as the voice within Glass says he is one of many more to come, and later his revolution is described as ending, another one ready to take its place. In the end, human ambition is deemed futile and unnecessary. We are all just machines of God, doomed to our deaths and lives of pain. It is in striving to deny that part of our existence that we do ourselves more harms. In the end, only love, faith, and acceptance of life can win.

          Proposition 18
      De: Malinda Andrea Lynch
      Mystère de Machina
      The mystery of Machina you claim can be explained fairly simply. Machina I, the excerpts from Glass, the sory of June, all of them come together in a matter not yet revealed to us. What does June, Glass, Zero, Daphne and the rest of these excerpts have to do with the album and the lyrics of the songs?
      Zero was the beginning. The angst of love and hate. The lover of pain. Zero's will was changed by devine intervention, possibly influenced by June, the devine feminine. Zero's angst ended and he became Glass. Glass no longer willed to attack like Zero did, but desired to give love freely and willfully. Glass is the epitome of the evolution of the band, and now Glass is being torn apart, shattered by forces no longer in his control and he has lost the joy his music and dreams once brought him.
      In Machina I and II, you are speaking to those who are truly listening to what you have to say, your ghost children, but the meaning and the message is different from child to child. Every word spoken creates an image and a feeling that is intepreted by the mind of those receiving it. I at first hear what I want to hear. Beautiful music and lyrics about life and reason, pain and grace. Looking into it deeper, I can interpret a message to us, your fans, your ghost children, that is lost to the masses who have their eyes and ears closed and who have been brainwashed by the guerilla marketing of teenage boy/girl bands who have sold their identities and their free will to the machines of corporate america. The same forces that once supported you because of greed and have now turned their backs on your vision and dreams.
      I believe your songs speak to us about a love between perfomer and audience, inspirer and the inspired. The songs speak of how thankful you are for our love and dedication to you. Thankful that we can see and share your visions of beauty, your moments of pain and transgression. I believe you are also saying good-bye, knowing that there are forces drawing an end to the band. We as your fans have a connection with you and you to us. The love is passed both ways and the experience of it all has made us, you and the band more blessed because of it. You are also warning us not to lose the meaning of it all. The love for the i of the radio. We have looked to you for so long as the savior of rock'n'roll and you are concerned about what will happen to your ghost children when rock meets its' end.
      This is the story about people who had a dream, but the dream became a war with critics and nay sayers. Characters who once thought that they were part of reality became part of their own individual universe. A universe that was created out of a will to remain independent of their own creativeness. I believe Glass is a rock star torn by the arrogance and aloofness of those who want to buy and sell him and his work. The band "The Machines" have created new realities that are separated from their once united dream. Each character views themselves in a different manner and views what is going on around them in a starkly different but poetic reality that is neither truth nor fiction. Insted it is the truth to them in their own minds. Most of this is symbolic and riddled with metaphors that are created from their views of the world.
      The excerpts are seperate stories of how each character views their own reality of what is going on around them. Although these views are not intertwined they will come together to help explain the truth of what is really happening to them. Only when the story is complete can we truly understand what is happening in the true universe surrounding these characters. The story is broken, as Glass is broken, and all we get are the pieces of the puzzle to put together what is going on. The end is near but whose end? Ours? Glass? Rock'n'Roll? I don't believe so. Maybe Glass will go down as a martyr only to be reborn when the time is right. I believe the I of the radio will be quiet for awhile and only speak softly to the ghost children, but a day will come when the I of the radio will reveal itself to the massesagain so that all may learn of the love shared between us all and the sacrifices we make to keep it pure and free.
      I have learned so much from the seven albums and the seven chapters of the band and now it has come full circle and the beginning is the end is the beginning. We have seen so much through your eyes and your love has been magnified ten fold through us. Thank you for giving me this oppurtunity to share my thoughts with you and I am lucky to have come this far in the contest. I truly hope that the joy you have given me has been returned to you.
      Malinda Andrea Lynch

          Proposition 19
      De : "Janelle B"
      Machina is an album that tells a story, the tale of a man and his search for meaning and his own soul in a hollow world, and the transformation and evolution he undergoes on his journey. It is a quest to find truth or reason through the insanity, or maybe in the insanity of the world, and is told metaphorically through the characters of June, Glass, and Zero. The seeds for revolution begin inside the "perfect house with the perfect parents and the perfect hot rod car and the perfect dog" but it is all a facade, a creation to make everything look harmonious and in their proper order, a coverup for the problems underneath. The child is raised, created and formed and molded and pushed, turned into something he is not and never meant to be, but had no choice. He is formed and sent out into a world, voiceless, molded and blinded to believe and buy into the materialism and shallowness of a world founded on sand, not any real principles. He is taught to become something other than himself, he is taught to believe what he must believe in order to continue in this world. The story begins with Zero, our hero, the man we love and idolize, who brings us the music we want to hear. He is our leader, our hero and our salvation, we follow him as he rises in fame through the messages of the music. Zero wants to change the world, to propel himself into every eye, for he fears that deep inside himself, he is nothing, he is zero, he will one day end and have no legacy to leave. He fears the finite, he fears his own mortality, and as such he tries to reach immortality in the path of a rock god, to become a legend and live forever with an immortal legacy. He is a product of the created world of his upbringing, ever frustrated at the futility and hollowness of the life he leads, yet unable to find an escape. June is another character, fraught with insecurities, struggling to cope with the world and her fear that all is empty, that there is nothing for her to live for "she stalked a barren trail because she believed that all that was good had died long before she was named" and she seeks escape from the problems of mortality through drugs. Both, seeking to find a way to cope with the hollowness of life, the futility of an existence dominated in a world which is not real, where existence is a "polite reality" created as a facade to block awareness of the true emptiness behind it all. They come together in their search for meaning, life, and happiness, and their union is fated from beyond time, it will provide them everything they seek. Yet life is not blissful at first, their love is fraught with problems, and they move together through stilted and overly polite societies, through the ravages of war, unable to join together until they can know themselves more truly, break down the facades and masks they wear between each other to discover each other and form a true union.. Yet, despite the layers shrouding our hero, the false realities he has been brought up to believe, he still seeks something deeper, he needs to find his soul and a communion with God, he seeks the purity that he lost so long ago. This process of purification and rediscovery is represented through the symbols of alchemy, the idea that a soul can be purified to reach a divine state, in a similar fashion to the purification of the elements to form gold. Zero sets out on this path, undergoing the seven alchemical steps in his process of transforming himself, purifying his soul to a more divine state. He realizes the hollowness of the fame and the adoration of the fans, for he has become a hollow shell of what he used to be, he is no longer leading them in correct paths, but only filling the role set out by others for him. And so, our hero dies Zero, reborn as glass, more purified, on a quest leading to union with and guidance by the divine power, seeking to become one. This process continues as Glass, the general of the army and one of machina, leads the revolution "to love and always die standing." . He was a zero in the past, he was empty, but he became a hero, in the revolution of Machina. Machina, the machines of god, are the metaphorical expression of the purposes behind the band, the role that SP has played as outsiders trying to crack through the walls of the created materialistic world that exists today. They are a band, and they make music, but it is music that challenges this created, false reality, that is a threat to the perfect, tended and carefully maintained fronts of the people on the inside of society. The music is the atom bomb that threatens to destroy this false reality, and as such the fight against the intrusion of the Machines against their proper world becomes fierce and intense, as people fight to continue to believe in the illusions they have formed their lives around. It is a hopeless fight, because it is impossible to ever overthrow the entirety of the facade played by everyone, but it is also a fight that will continue for as long as anyone ever wants truth, and searches for meaning beyond careful cultivated belief systems that fit everything neatly into a place that can support and justify the way we all live. Glass leads this fight, against the hollowness and complacency of society, with the ghost children as his followers, struggling to overcome the past, the barriers before us all, trying to access higher truth through the static of the mindsets imposed by our upbringing. Ever present, in the romance, the war, the creation and destruction of truth, is the eye of God. The gaze of a watchful and influential higher power constantly surveys the struggle, and guides his children in the paths of fate, intervening to bring the characters to their destinies. Love is found, June and Glass come together, under the watchful care of an interested and involved god. Above all, Glass seeks communion with the divine, he wants to achieve unity and validation through the approval of the divine, the ability to bring himself closer to the truth and the purity of soul found in a higher power. The radio is the symbol for this communication, the communion between the higher power and our characters in this play. It is a message sent out, communication and information availible everywhere, but only through the medium of a radio can it be accessed. Thus, the feedback of interfering frequencies, static and other factors, will prevent the truth from being found. This is metaphorically congruous to the necessity of spiritually being "in tune" in order to receive inspiration, to know the will of God and to act on it, one must be able to accept truth and revelation no matter what form it comes in. Meanwhile, the love between June and Glass grows, as each slowly grows and struggles to overcome the obstacles to a clear vision of themselves, and comes closer to the communion with the divine they seek. Glass is Billy, with the metaphor of Glass used to describe the role he fulfills. Those who look to Billy see in him what they want to see, he is demonized or sainted, a god to some and a threat to others, a savior and a fool, depending on who you ask. Glass is transparent, symbolic of the way in which we can look through Billy and find our own truths through his music and messages, but it is also a metaphor for the reflection of yourself you see when you look at glass. It shows a relationship, where you see in others what you want to see, you create a reality in which you perceive others to be what you want them to be, rather than the reality of who they are inside themselves. You don't truly see them, you only see a reflection of yourself, you can recognize in them only what you see inside yourself, it is all you can identify, or all you want to see. When glass breaks, you no longer can see a reflection, symbolic of the shattered notions that happen when reality sets in, and one's created reality is broken down and confronted with the truth. When Glass breaks into chards, the ideas June has imposed on Glass, to see him the way she wants to see him, are being torn down and destroyed, and she becomes able to see reality, through love. In the end, the only thing that becomes more powerful than belief, whether the created belief systems or true conviction, is that of love. The revolution is the struggle for the right to love truly, a love impossible until the truth is known, for nothing can be loved which isn't known. As Glass becomes purified as he follows the seven steps of alchemy, overcoming his former created awareness and existence, he comes closer to a knowledge of his true self. And it is through love that this is possible, love is the only thing with the power to overcome, to see beyond the false fronts, the only driving force that can bring him to the realization and immortality he so desires. He finds the ability to look inside himself, to access divine inspiration and knowledge intuitively, trusting the integrity inside of himself as he rediscovers his own soul. As such, he becomes Mercury, the messenger from the gods, the one who can speak truth and access divine inspiration. He discards his former self and becomes unified with God, one with a divine higher power as he increases in purity and exaltation. Yet in achieving this unity, he also comes closest to his own true nature, which finally emerges from under the confusion and the shrouds of the creation of his upbringing. Finally, the ghosts of the past are put to sleep, he has found himself underneath the scars and the traumas "imprinted as tattoo under my skin" and he has become himself, in his purest form, through this love. Unity is the final answer to our story, as all things come together to form one purpose and goal under heaven, the seven chapters into one story, the seven albums into one purpose, seven steps of purification and seven days of creation, a circle as we rediscover the beginning in the end. Glass has become Gold, the king, the sun, June is a queen, exhalted to the moon. And Glass and June unite finally, lovers unified in the purest sense, for they have found themselves and so found each other. "the song ends, the lovers arc, and in this bliss there is hope, expectation, and yes, pure and indivisible love..." The union of the lovers becomes "our apex and conclusion" as they find the only answer that is real, the only power that is immortal and eternal, the union of lovers in pure and indivisible love, yes, only love can win.