A disco ball is an object that reflects light directed at it in many directions, producing a complex display. Anti himself is constantly redirecting any sort of light we try to shine on him, creating a complex and distorted version of himself--the deranged, greenish glitch version; the orange, kjse version; the red, dark silence version; and the neutral, quit the game to win version. We can never get a good look at him--he's constantly shifting, misdirecting us. Not only that, but a discoball is fixed to the middle of a room--just as anti tells us, he's eternal. No matter what side he shows us, no matter which light he manipulates, he's a constant. People are known to lose track of time while they're around, as they alter your perceived reality. We know that time is broken, and anti is surely to follow.
Usually a disco ball is mounted well above the heads of people--just out of reach. Always there, always watching. But no matter how close we think we get, we can never get close enough to him.
One of anti's main grievances with us is that we've thrown him aside--replaced him. And disco balls were created in the 1920s, and have been on the decline in popularity in the last several years. People just dont use them anymore.
Disco balls are often the only light in the room, and once it goes out, everything goes dark. Whenever anti makes an appearance, he often turns out the lights, or messes with them in some way. He is the center of attention, and if you arent looking, he'll make sure you can't see. Case in point: chase brody. "Dark" silence, anyone? How he "cant see anything?"
Discoballs have been described as "the safest hallucinogenic around." And thats "probably why they've stuck around so long." They're "like a big voice in the sky, telling people to dance and forget about their problems." How many times have we heard anti giving us "suggestions", telling us that we're just "sitting there"--he wants us to dance. make like good puppets and dance
Articles claim that "when a room is filled with a good amount of haze [from a discoball], it creates the sense of being in outerspace." And what happens in outerspace? You're at the mercy of the void. You are no longer in control. One wrong footing, and its all over. Instead, the thing putting you there is in control--anti.
But the question remains: why are discoballs still surviving? For most folks, its down to nostalgia. We simply wont let them die. Almost how we insisted anti existed before he actually did, and how we are constantly clamouring for more anti content--we wont let him die. We need more. Its like we're addicted to the safest hallucinogenic drug. "Disco balls remind everyone of a ... simpler and purer time," 2016. When anti made his first appearance. Where all we were concerned about was the mysterious being himself--not the entangling lore surrounding our other egos. Disco balls fill our rooms with just enough light to dance to. We like to dance--any new information given to us, and we "dance" like mad, theorizing, searching, decoding. No matter what happens, we know that "the disco ball will always be there for us." Always there. Always watching. You cant look away.
Mirrors have a tendency to be really appealing to humans. And if you put a bunch of em on a circling sphere, and shine a little light on it--boom. We can't take our eyes (crossed: off the screen) away. Not only that, but disco balls are often used as a complex symbol. A metaphor for community, escapism.. witnessing. And whats one thing anti always does when he shows up? Unites the comminuty. He's a witness for everything we do. The theories, the analyzing--he's constantly there. Always there. "The mirror ball would always reflect the energy of the room," so when we're active and restless, so is anti. Hence the actions taken in mayhem 2018. We were so ready for him to show up after a few hints--and he granted our wish.
And yet, disco balls do not merely reflect light. They have "catalyzed a new notion of social sphere, creating a flux of people, shaping them into tightly knit, and mobile masses.. they describe a provisional social ecology." So basically, anti has created a space, where many people gather... (the discord)
"Clubs are often essential to for people to experiment and try on different identities, personalities,... personae." So not only is anti a disco ball, but he resides somewhere where it is common to try out new personalities, identities, and personas. Almost like... other.. alter egos... and none of them would exist without anti. Without the disco ball.
"The disco ball becomes a symbolic part of that space, creating hallucinatory image of these huddles masses of people moving as one on the dance floor." Anti is a part of our community, he is the one who forces us to jump through hoops for him--creating masses of people following his lead.
Anti's got a strange fascination with control. He's always claiming that he's "in control" now, and why would that be? "A disco ball that cannot spin seen during the day is a forlorn sight." Anti needs to be in control--he's terrified of what will happen to him if he isnt.
And what about his most hated enemy? Fucking circles. Wouldnt you be tired of them if you were constantly spinning in them? Forced to entertain? Constantly in the spotlight?
I leave you with an excerpt from a poem in an art exhibition featuring disco balls:
"Above them all is a silent observer
The moon hanging heavy in the sky
Slowly spinning, reflecting back to us,
bearing witness to it all."
Always there. Always watching.
(References here, here, and here)
Someone please photoshop anti onto a disco ball
