#Catherine Drum | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

ghostchems · 5 months ago

Text

infernal - terzo x f!reader - part five

art by the incredibly talented @piaart!

author’s note: finally have this finished but man is it hard to be satisfied. i keep wanting to work on it and work on it but i also really wanted to get this out! also don't even know if this is good teehee. lots of awkward here. 4.9k words. part one/two/three/four. ao3 linky.

The date is going surprisingly well. You chose an Italian spot (ha!) and have had your fill of lobster ravioli and Cabernet Sauvignon all while you learned more about Dylan since he graduated high school. Went to a state school in the middle of bumblefuck, drank and drank some more, got overly into the college culture (emphasis on cult) and tipped a few cows in his time. It aligns perfectly with the slivers of information Catherine gave you through the years, though he’s mentioned nothing of the steady college girlfriend he supposedly had. Interesting. You laugh at his dumb jokes. You’re smiley. But it does feel like an act that’s partially fueled by alcohol and having someone’s attention on you.

He’s still talking but you’re admiring his small, button nose, how his brunette locks shape his face and his bright smile. You can’t help but think his face is a little too smooth, though. Has this boy been through anything meaningful? Has he suffered at all in his shiny little life? Your mind drifts back to Terzo’s rough hands and how they felt on you earlier that day. He forced you to your knees and it was clear that it wasn’t the first time he’s done so. You can still taste him on your tongue.

“You haven’t told me about your job! Aren’t you like an assistant?” Dylan snaps you out of it and you offer a shy smile.

“Yeah! I had to get out of that call center, man. It was like draining my life force. Not that this isn’t difficult but it’s nice to not be yelled at by some rando on the phone for hours a day.” You toy with your glass of wine.

“So, like what do you assist in? Is it just you?”

Huh. You’ve never really explained exactly what you do to anyone. Not even Catherine or Erica — you only really focused on Him. That won’t go over too well in this situation, will it?

“It’s just me and it’s mainly house maintenance right now. My boss’ place was a disaster when I started.” Perhaps the most watered down description of your job.

“So you’re like… you’ve cleaned it up?” There’s judgment in his voice that’s immediately sobering. He stares at you blankly.

“I guess I meant more like projects. The last big one was fixing up his yard. I had to manage the budget and scheduling of the landscapers and stuff.” Your voice is flat.

“Oh, okay gotcha.” Dylan nods and he is back to smiling. You’re seething on the inside. Was your answer acceptable to him? “What’s your boss like? Is he a guy?”

What the.

“Yeah, he’s a guy. He’s a little weird. Definitely eccentric. I’ve tried not to pry too much into his personal life, you know. Boundaries and all that, but when I first started he had me sort out some of his things and it looked like he used to be the lead singer in a band.” Another oddly phrased question. At least now you’ve been prompted to bring up the man you haven’t been able to stop thinking about.

“Oh, shit! That sounds awesome! What band?”

Oh, do you hesitate. A long silence stretches between you two.

“I’m… I’m not sure I should say. I don’t want to blow up his spot or anything.” You’re sheepish suddenly and Dylan notices.

“Aw, come on. Who am I gonna tell?” A good question. You drum your fingers on the table, thinking about how you’ve never really told anyone who your boss actually is.

“Catherine will tell me if she finds out.” A warning, last one until the big reveal. Dylan nods enthusiastically, some of his hairs falling into his forehead. For a split second you think that maybe if you were younger with much less life experience perhaps he would be perfect for you. But you know too much and you know that he wouldn’t be able to give you what you want. “It was Ghost.”

“Oh.” He makes a face and leans back in his chair.

“Oh? Sorry, is that not impressive enough?”

“No, no. It’s still cool. They’re just… I don’t know.”

Do you continue this conversation? Do you care what he thinks? You don’t…but your curiosity gets the better of you.

“What is it, Dylan? Are they lame? I’ve tried to… you know, not dig too deep into it because I feel like that would affect my professionalism.” That and you didn’t want to completely pry into the man’s life.

“Oh, I get that. Uhhh, I mean they’re not REALLY metal. They say they’re metal but they’re not so it’s just a little weird.” He shrugs and crosses his arms. You knit your brows together because you have absolutely no idea what he’s talking about.

“Right. Okay.”

“Yeah, I mean, they are basically like pop. Not metal, not at all.” He sounds so impassioned and you nod along but it feels inappropriate. Why is he so pressed? It turns you off even more and you do everything in your power to get this date wrapped up. You are done drinking and you’re too full for dessert. Responses shorten and eventually you’re out front on the sidewalk waiting for an Uber. Dylan has insisted on waiting with you and hovers just a bit too closely by your side. He seems a little oblivious to how this date has gone, bless his heart.

“Well, this is me.” Awkward, so awkward. You move to get into the car but Dylan stops you by your arm and leans in for a kiss. It’s truly over before it starts, a quick peck before he pulls away with a smirk. You are dying on the inside.

“We’ll hang out again soon, yeah?”

“Sure. Yes.” You lie and hurry into the Uber, wanting nothing more than this wretched day to finally end.

Terzo blinks awake. The cool air of the night pricks his cheeks. Leaves crunch beneath his soggy socks. He coughs, blood spilling from his mouth and splattering on his thick chest hair. A robe hangs loosely from his shoulders. Terzo’s eyes drift down to his hand to see he’s wearing his black gloves with sharp, golden nails. He squints and there’s something black stuck to one of the points. Gaze drifts to where he is. His driveway. A breeze rolls by that sends shivers down his spine as his eyes focus on your car.

He’s slashed one of your tires.

Terzo cackles wildly upon this realization. This is new even for him and his weird, otherworldly tendencies. Could be straight up mental illness. He takes a few lumbering steps forward before crouching to eye the tire, surveying the damage. Completely shredded with the rim touching the ground. There’s a familiar buzzing in his skull, a buzz that he used to get while performing. How far he had fallen. Still, he’s delighted with himself. A fitting punishment for the way you crushed him earlier. What hubris you had for leaving your car on his property. Rage shoots through him for a quick moment, the thought of you spending the night with your date crossing his mind. Would this boy drop you off in the morning? He could plan for that.

In his fits of unsatisfying sleep, ideas for being cruel sprang to his mind. He’s settled on ignoring you for most of tomorrow, to have you toil away waiting for any kind of attention but to no avail. Terzo would be watching you the whole day, of course, hidden away in dark corners and peering down from atop the grand staircase. He has always been the best at sneaking around undetected out of all of his brothers, having avoided so many moments where his father could have reamed him out due to this expertise. Primo and Secondo weren’t so lucky.

Sharp pang in his chest from thinking about them.

No, no. He must focus on you. He pushes the thoughts back to the void. You’ll be trapped here at the end of your workday because of this, wouldn’t you? That’s when he’ll reveal himself. He’ll torture you. Tease the information of your date out of you.

How well could it have gone when you are so devoted to him?

The house is cold without him, a shiver running down your spine every time you found yourself in a dark corridor. You try to keep your thoughts to a minimum and are somewhat thankful that the contractor was able to come today. He’s a quiet man but seems to enjoy your cheerfulness which breathes life into an otherwise miserable day. Between directions and answering questions, you would wander the first floor and hover by the stairs, listening for any signs of life only to hear silence. The last time you saw him flits through your mind — the pressure of the hand on your neck that forced you to the ground seconds after he angrily spat in your face seconds after he kissed you. What the hell. You should be furious at him for treating you that way, for leaping over the carefully placed boundaries the two of you have been dancing around for weeks.

But instead you sigh dreamily. You burn for him. Cheeks grow hot just from thinking about his rough hands on you. You hope he’s okay. And you’re sure he is, he’s a big boy.

The fact that you’re more worried about his feelings than you are about potentially losing your job over this is not lost on you. You’ve lived in constant fear of getting fired over the smallest mistakes since the start of this job but you are oddly calm about this situation. This feels like a natural progression. There was going to be a time where you had to confront this strange connection and you would rather it happen sooner rather than later with the way things have been going. As painful as it would be (emotionally AND financially) to say goodbye to him maybe it would be best for it be sooner rather than later.

The day goes by at a painfully slow pace with no sign of him. Anxiety builds and builds as you watch your clock tick down on your phone. You’ve taken to painstakingly wiping down every single mirror on the first floor (there is an absurd amount of them) because it takes up time and gives you something to focus one. After a while interacting with the contractor becomes painful for you, too heightened to be able to function in a normal social setting. You send him home early with a smile, being Friday and all, and you continue carrying out your mirror mission. This takes you to around 4:30 at which point you say “fuck it” and decide it’s time for bed! What is the point of even being here anymore when you could be under your comforter with a pint of chocolate chip ice cream as you ponder your existence?

It was an easy decision.

You meander out the front door, making sure not to slam it shut but have it at least be somewhat loud to announce your exit. Yes, you are stooping that low. A quick wave of relief washes over you because you made it. The day is over and while the issue looms you are at least out of his domain. Car keys jingle in your pocket. You make quick work of the walk from the porch to your car until the state of your tire stops you in your tracks.

“Oh my god!” You’re in disbelief. It’s like an animal chewed through the rubber. Your rim is on the ground. Tears start to well up in your eyes. This is it. This is the thing that’s pushed you over the edge today. A frustrated screech bubbles up your chest.

“Come back inside.”

You freeze as soon as you hear his voice. Spinning on heel, you turn to face him. He’s standing with his arms crossed, leaning against a column on the porch. His dress shirt is the darkest black you’ve ever seen, partially unbuttoned to show off thick chest hair and cut slacks show off his strong thighs. Did he get dressed up for you? His paint is crisp and hair is slicked back neatly. Fuck, he looks good*.*

“I can get an Uber?” A question as if you’re asking him permission, taking a few tentative steps towards him.

“Hmmm. No. I’ll call you a driver.” A rough response but you can’t help but feel warmth blossom in the pit of your stomach. “Get back inside.” Terzo growls, his gaze stern and pointed. He leaves you alone in his front yard. You feel silly by how hard your heart hammers in your chest but this is what you’ve been wanting all day. A moment passes by and you work up your courage to go inside and take your punishment. Thoughts of your shredded tire fade.

You walk inside the foyer and follow the sound of clinking glasses, finding him at the bar in the den. Terzo’s gaze falls to you then he directs you to the couch with his eyes. You silently follow the order and sit on one of the couch cushions furthest away from him. There’s a lump in your throat, fidgeting with your hands as you wait for him to join you. Eventually he turns around to face you with two drinks in his hand, one a red martini with a lime green umbrella and the other a pint full of something gross looking - not beer but still brown? His face is blank and you try to match his energy but it’s hard to keep your blush at bay. You reach out to take the martini from him but he pulls it back out of your grasp and instead presses the pint into your hand. The smell fills your nostrils: whiskey. Yuck. He runs a hand through his hair as he takes a seat on the other side of the couch, allowing for plenty of space between you two.

“You’ve called the driver already, right?”

“Yes.” He rolls his eyes but you’re still not sure you believe him.

Terzo’s arm stretches across the back of the couch, gloves just brushing your shoulder. Your grip on your whiskey tightens. This isn’t his usual charming aloofness, there’s something cold and cruel bubbling beneath the surface. Still, you want nothing more than to speak to him, even if he’s obviously pissed at you. He lifts his other hand up to his face, admiring the sharp golden nails adorned to his leather gloves. Eyes slowly drag from them to settle on you, gaze so piercing and yet uninterested in you.

“So, you had him pick you up here, si?”

“Yeah, but—“

“Drink.” He points at your glass and narrows his eyes. Not playing around. You do as he says and take a sip. “Keep drinking.” Lip twitches in a faint show of satisfaction as you bring the glass up back to your lips and take a deep gulp. There’s delight in his eyes and you’re more than happy to play the game just to see more of it. Your eyes twitch and you cough once you set the glass, the whiskey burns your throat.

“It was convenient for him.” Words are rough from the sting of alcohol.

“Ohh, was it now?” Terzo growls and digs his nails into the couch, tearing into the fabric. The sound gives you goosebumps. You open your mouth but he’s too quick. “Finish your drink.” He snaps, daggers for eyes that sends a chill down your spine. You swallow thickly and toy with your glass with the tips of your fingers before bringing it back up to your lips. Head tips back, the room swirls and you swallow down the rest of the liquid.

“Gross. Ugh.” Grimacing as you wipe your mouth with the back of your hand. “It’s less of a drive for him and I’m a pushover, okay?” You sigh, only partially joking. His eyes noticeably soften. You sink deeper into the cushion. “I said yes to this date because it was with my best friend’s older brother who I’ve known forever and I’ve always had a crush on him.” Terzo’s fingers shift from the couch to your shoulder, his nails just short of tearing through your shirt, his anger coming back up to a simmer just below the surface, but you continue on unafraid.

“I had to see what would happen. You have to understand… you build the thing up in your head as something perfect and special but then when you actually actually experience it…” You deflate and you eyes wander away from him, wanting to look anywhere else. “It’s never as good as you imagined it. Plus, he was a garbage kisser.” You immediately regret the words as soon as you say them. They hang heavy in the air and the air catches in your lungs. You feel him shift on the couch but you can’t bring yourself to look until his his hand curls around by back of your neck and forces you to look at him. Eyes sharp like knives.

“You let him kiss you.” A statement, not a question. Terzo makes you watch as he slinks closer to you. There’s like a current coming off of him right now that has you paralyzed even though you so badly want to protest. You whimper, words getting caught in your throat as he reaches for you. He grabs you by your waist with the tips of his claws poking against your skin, that delicious danger teasing you as always. “How did it compare?” Terzo trills, a charming smile with vicious edge. Hoo boy. Blood rushes to your cheeks.

“It didn’t compare at all.” You whisper as you try to sink as far into the couch as possible. Not because you don’t want to be close to him but you’re confused. Everything about this feels like a trap, like one wrong answer could set him alight but you’re not exactly fighting it. Instincts are telling you to run but you stay exactly where you are. Terzo’s hand drift up your sides, suggestively squeezing you in all the right places until he’s holding you by your shoulders. He’s smiling wider than before and there’s glee in his eyes — he’s pleased with you. A torrent of heat shoots through your core. He doesn’t say anything, merely taking in your reactions to his touches. His finger tips glide across your top, nearly clipping right through it until his hands settle around your throat. He squeezes just enough to make you gasp for air, then leans in to you, pressing his forehead against yours. You can feel his hot breath on your lips.

Tease.

“I could hurt you.” Terzo muses against your lips, lashes fluttering and eyes wide. There’s a slight tug at the corner of his mouth. Silence passes comfortably between the both of you as you take in each other’s breaths and warmth.

“I know. I’m… afraid of that. But it’s why I’m here.” You feel drunk, the words just tumbling out of you but you don’t care anymore. He is so close to kissing you that you can nearly taste him but instead he pulls away with a wry smile.

“Your glass is empty.” Terzo snickers and then jumps up in a way that can only be described as cat-like, snatching the glass from your hands. You’re left hot and bothered as he turns his back to you to saunter over to the bar. Alone with your thoughts while you watch him pour you another generous whiskey. Oh no. Oh no. You can still taste it on your tongue and it is not for you. But when he turns around with the warmth and charm you’ve been wanting all doubts are gone. You’re going to be messy tonight and that’s just that. When he turns back to face you he’s at least given you half of what he did the first time, walking slowly over to where you’re sitting on the couch.

He looms over you as your eyes drift up to meet his gaze and he audibly growls. You suck in a sharp breath, your nails digging into the soft flesh of your thighs. Terzo lifts a hand up and brushes his thumb along your jaw before tilting your chin up. He brings the glass to your lips and tips it back. You part your lips, the whiskey burning as it spills down your throat. He continues to pour until you can’t keep up with it and it leaks out of your mouth and down your cheeks. You gasp and he flings the glass down onto the side table as he crushes his mouth against yours, unable to keep away from you any longer.

And you certainly don’t care that he all but purrs into your mouth, soft lips moving against yours. He cups your face with his gloved hands, leather thumbs caressing your cheekbones as he slips onto the couch beside you without breaking the kiss. Fingers curl around his wrist and you press in close to him, losing yourself in how he tastes. His velvety tongue probes your mouth as the kiss grows in intensity. Deep pants try to keep your feet on the ground but you’re off in space, exhaustion and comfort mixing in a way that has you floating. Terzo pulls away from the kiss and you can hardly open your eyes. He gently guides your head to his chest, stroking his fingers through your hair.

“You never called me a driver did you?”

“Oh no. Never considered it.” Terzo squeezes you in his arms.

Oh, he’s so warm. A rumbling groan falls from your lips as his wraps his arms around you, just holding you there. Your limbs relax and you sink deeper into his chest as he starts to rubs up and down your back. In that moment you know you’re a goner. A deep, sleepy sigh falls from your lips and in a matter of minutes you are out cold.

Terzo almost feels guilty for being such an ass. Almost. He feels for you, he can relate to realizing that something isn’t all it was cracked out to be. At least for you it was a childhood crush and not being raised for one person. But still, he was a tad mean wasn’t he? It was necessary and the tension… the tension had been so delicious. Watching you squirm under his intense stare. And you just did what he said, unquestioningly, even when had you drink and drink and drink. Adrenaline is pumping through him and he struggles to contain himself— he must not go any further, despite how tempted he is. He could get away with it. You’re so soft, so pliable and so wanting. Terzo can feel the heat radiating off of you, no doubt from the alcohol and your closeness. He could slip his hand between your thighs and give you exactly what you want.

But it wouldn’t be fair to you. Terzo wants you coherent and focused when he takes you. Plus you’re adorably snuggled against him right now, your soft breaths against his chest. He’s longed for this and you did not disappoint. Wait a minute. Are you sleeping? He is about to fall apart, his arms wrapping so much tighter around you. The urge to keep you safe, to keep you here and never let you leave overcomes him*.* He squeezes your hand that is clutched to his chest and then gingerly picks it up and places it back in your lap.

“Sleepy?”

You lift your heavy head to look at him and good god do you want to be asleep right now. A tender smiles breaks out across his face as he swipes some of your hair from your eyes. A stark contrast from how close he had just been to strangling you.

“Take the guest room tonight, puffetta. I will bring you some clothes.” Terzo pulls himself to his feet. “Meet you up there.” He’s so soft, so different than how torturous he was of you earlier. You’re sure he’s heard what he’s wanted to hear from you but he’s unpredictable. Something you liked about him. There’s an unknown darkness that lies beneath his charm and good looks and it calls out to you. You’ve never felt this way about anyone. How could you ever get away now?

You blink and realize that you’re alone. You’ve been alone. Oh shit. Scrambling off of the couch, you trip over your own feet with the effects of the whiskey hitting you hard.

Ah, the guest room. A cramped space with antique furniture that could use some time and attention. The overall theme of the room is… dust. You’ve brought up having the dresser refinished or even repainted and replacing the peeling wallpaper but it’s low on the list of priorities. You push the door shut and give a soft sigh of relief. Shoes come off. A lamp on the bedside table barely illuminates the room and a folded pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt are waiting for you on the bed. Eyes scan over the remainder of the comforter and pillows, wondering if anyone had ever slept here. You can’t help the feeling that you’re being watched but maybe the fact that you’re about to wear your boss’ clothes isn’t meshing well with the practically decaying room.

“Whatever.” You huff to yourself and undress with the grace of a toddler, kicking your pants off and throwing your removed clothes into a pile on the ground. Sitting down on the bed, you pull up the sweatpants and they are loose as they settle around your waist. The shirt slips over your head and swallows up your upper body. Did he purposely give you his largest clothing to make you feel small? It is so cozy, though. You wrap your arms around your body and flop back onto the bed, sinking into the softness of the blankets. Comfortable heat spreads across your skin from buzz of the alcohol. Limbs go limp and your eyelids grow heavy, a deep sigh falling from your lips. Fading fast.

The piercing ring of the rotary phone cracks through the air and you jolt upright and wide awake. What the? You don’t remember seeing it when you came in and it’s not like it blends in — it’s bright red with intricate black etchings along the base and the handle of the receiver. Not a speck of dust on it. The phone rings again, somehow louder and more harmful to your ears than before. You blink and suddenly you’re standing directly in front of the dresser with one hand curled around the receiver. Heart is pounding in your chest and ears. Something is calling out to you. Answer it. Answer it. Answerit. answeritansweritansweritanswerit.

You pick up the phone to silence. Then chittering. The receiver is hot on your cheek. Something pricks your ear but you can’t pull away. There’s a squelch. A screech. More screaming. It only gets louder and louder, needles in your ears, pain shooting through your brain. You can’t breathe. You twirl the phone cord around your fingers and shuffle your bare feet against the cold floor, the only thing you’re able to get your body to do other than press the phone so hard against your head. The closer you listen to the screams the more familiar they get, growing in intensity, pain and volume. Burning, the receiver is burning now and yet you can’t move, you can’t get any relief. The phone cord is nearly completely tangled around your wrist and you’re sweating, gasping for breath, and crying without even realizing it. The screams finally subside, replaced by a cold, dead silence.

You hang up the phone.

Suddenly, an overwhelming wave of exhaustion washes over you and you collapse onto the bed. The world spins as you sink into the soft mattress, the dial tone still echoing in your ears.

#terzo #terzo x reader #papa emeritus iii x reader #papa emeritus iii #papa emeritus x reader #ghost fanfic #ghost band fanfic #ghost fanfiction

201 notes · View notes

chaithetics · 8 months ago

Text

Devilish Worries and Bodies

Pairing: Matt Murdock x F (afab) reader Word count: 3.3K Warning/note: 18 + MDNI, mentions of anxiety/mental health/worries, and smutty smut smut! P in V intercourse. Some fluff. No description physical description of reader other than afab. Not proofread! Please validate me and this self-indulgent fic, sad girl era is thriving.

************************************************************************

Matt had already come home after a long day of fighting for justice through the legal, sophisticated, respectable way of the courts as the good samaritan lawyer for the voiceless and defenceless of Hell’s Kitchen. And then endured a long night of fighting for justice through the illegal, frowned-upon way of his vigilante persona, Daredevil. He’d come home, you’d helped him clean up the couple of cuts he had and he’d gone to bed now. He was sleeping peacefully, he looked like an angel as his eyes were closed and no worries were etched into his face.

He had been in a deep slumber by the time you left the bed, he was yet to notice. You hadn’t been able to sleep at all, and it wasn’t his fault that that was the case. You were now sitting on the sofa in the living room that felt even greyer and colder than usual. Everything felt so cold, you almost wondered if your vision was acting up. You just needed some rain outside and you’d be in Catherine Hardwicke’s blue-green-tinted world of Twilight.

You had a glass of water in your hands that was now room-temperature because you’d been sitting there so long. Holding it. Thinking. Thinking about just tipping the glass of water out onto yourself, because why not? Then that image would replay over and over. Then you’d sip from it. Somehow. Lower it. Back to holding and then back to thinking. It was still pretty full at this stage.

Staring out the window into the numerous lights that appeared to float mid-air, parallel to the sky at different points. You couldn’t see any stars, you hated that. At least if there were stars you’d have some luck of counting them, maybe trying to name some of them, in an attempt of some distraction technique you told yourself that a normal person could do. Then you thought a normal person probably wouldn’t even to do this. The voice in your head that said it, was mean, it was the kind of a high school bully which made you feel even worse. You let out a deep sigh and choke on a little sob that you didn’t know had been wanting to come out.

That’s the noise that wakes Matt up, he stretches out in the bed you share as he lets out a quiet but deep yawn as he tiredly rubs his eye. He moves a hand through his sleep-toussled hair as he immediately realises that you’re not in bed with him. He sighs as he focuses on the elevated heartbeat of yours he can hear drumming along further in the apartment. He immediately knows something is up, when he’d originally come home he thought something might’ve been bothering you as you seemed slightly detached but he’d been able to write it off as you just being tired because it was extremely late when he’d come home after a patrol. He couldn’t write this off as early hours fatigue though. He knew you, down to the core, even when you didn’t want to be perceived.

Matt gets up and slowly walks out of the bedroom with gentle footsteps, he could’ve been a ballerina in another lifetime. He’s so quiet with his movement after years of practice that you don’t notice he’s out of bed until he’s standing just a few steps away from the couch.

It’s when you get the feeling of goosebumps on the back of your neck and that feeling that somebody is watching you that you start to wonder. You’re not sure though if it’s just depressed paranoia that makes you feel like somebody is watching, Matt had absolutely passed out, he should be in a deep sleep still you think. But you try to slow your breathing and not given into the urge to look and further panic, but you think that if someone was behind you it’s better to look and know that there is or that you’re not just feeling depressed but also paranoid.

With a sigh after a sharp inhale you slowly turn your head and look, you see Matt standing there. He’s just a couple of steps away from you, he’s facing you and well… he’s not just facing you, he’s analysing you. You look at him with tears in your eyes as you know he’s doing a full scan of your senses.

Matt steps closer immediately and sits on the sofa right next to you as the first tear has just dropped. You’re not sure if it’s because he can hear the tear dropping out of your tear duct to run down your cheek, or if it’s because he can smell the extra stress hormones or something in these emotional tears.

“I thought you were asleep.” You whisper hoarsely, almost feeling ashamed at this scene happening.

“I was.” He says gently as he raises his hand to your cheek and then he gently rubs your cheek, wiping up the few tears had already shed.

“I didn’t mean to wake you. I’m sorry-�� Now it’s guilt as well.

“Don’t apologise.” He quickly cuts you off in a gentle tone.

He’s caring but he says it so nonchalantly, like this is normal. He’d spent a day working with clients, then he’d had a violent patrol and now you having a mini-breakdown interrupted his sleep. You felt bad and you knew that maybe you shouldn’t because you’re a human and you’re entitled to a cry and love and understanding. And all those things. But brains aren’t logical, and they sure as hell aren’t when you’re going through the emotions. You sigh as you look at his face, seeing the compassion and adoration.

“Are you going to talk to me, beautiful?” He whispers with a gentle, playful smile. He’s trying to ease this. Diffuse the anxiety.

“It’s just overwhelming. There’s a lot of mental noise and I’m struggling to not spiral-because well I’m already spiralling and nothing feels good. I’m not good. I’m just not good.” You spit out.

He quickly pulls you into his arms and your face is pressed against his warm bare chest. You can’t help but let out a soft sigh of relief and bury your head further into his chest. It’s so comforting and even when you’re a mess, he still somehow knows how to comfort you.

“Maybe you’re not good, and you’re just great instead.” He whispers as he starts to caress your back gently, he seems to be almost tracing an invisible pattern as he does. “That’s how I feel about you. Other days you may be good. It’s been bad before, it’s been good before. It can feel good again, honey. And it will.”

You sigh and tilt your head to look at him as you move more into his lap and adjust yourself to be more physically comfortable. You trust him, you love him, you believe him but you’re not sure if you believe him more than the disbelief you have in yourself.

Matt seems to sense this hesitation in you. “Five things you see?” He asks softly as his head is tilted to face you, he’s focusing on you because you’re his whole world.

“Um…” You inhale and start to look around as you think. “Your face…” You say and almost chuckle, he smiles that charming grin widely and chuckles. “Good, what else.”

You look around and think. “The window… The couch… that plant in the ugly pot my cousin gave us.” You say and you both smile at that. You had to describe in detail the absolute atrocity of the pot to Matt when had been gifted to you both and it was now a bit in your relationship.

“Good, good, not so good.” He chuckles with the smile that’s slowly distracting you from your worries. “One more thing.” “Um, the light.” You say quietly.

“Four things you can feel.” He says and you can’t help but chuckle. “Well, you, I guess, and four different parts of you.” You say as you look at him as your cheeks heat up.

“Sure, I’ll give you that one.” He says playfully. “Do I feel good?” He then asks teasingly. It makes you roll your eyes and chuckle.

“Yeah.”

“So something feels good.” He says with a proud smirk.

“Don’t use my words back at me, like that.” You say as you watch him smile. “Mm, don’t say them then, pretty thing.” He says proudly and he chuckles and kisses your lips softly with a little peck. “Now should I keep going with the grounding and distraction technique?”

“I don’t know-”

“Why, are you in your body and out of your head enough?” He asks with a smirk as he caresses your back.

“Maybe. You’re pretty good at that.” You say, he is. He’s so good at reassuring you and bringing you back to Planet Earth and away from the galaxy of overthinking and mental black holes.

You lean against him and press a soft gentle kiss to his collarbone as he’s so close to you. All of him is, he’s enveloping you. He lets out a quiet little groan at that, that he tries to muffle but you catch it. You look up at him and bite your lip.

You move slightly and caress his strong arms gently. “Honey, are you sure? You’re… Well you’ve been upset…” He says softly. He means it.

“Yeah, but I’m feeling better now. And maybe the dopamine and oxytocin is just what I need.” You say matter of factly but still a little anxiously. “Oh really?” He cocks his head slightly and there’s a devilish grin on his face but his eyes are filled with love and adoration.

“Yes really.” You smiled softly as you looked up at him, you really loved him and you felt safe with him. Matt started to run his thumb along your jaw and down your throat gently.

You felt your cheeks heat up more and then you trailed your hand down his chest, his stomach, being careful to avoid any visible cuts or bruises on his pale skin. Your hand made it’s way down to palm him over his boxers. You watched his face carefully, his cheeks started to tinge with a blush and he smiled.

“Mm, no.” He said with a smirk and then he quickly flipped you carefully and gently so you were now lying on your back on the couch while his hand was firmly on your waist as he looked down. You sharply gasped as this happened but then let out a giggle which just made his smirk grow ten times more.

Matt lowered himself, caressing your waist gently and then running his hand down to your thigh and up again slowly, your breath started to slow in anticipation as you bit your lip, he was paying attention to your breathing and then he tugged your sleep bottoms down. Your cheeks heated up more at that as you looked down at him. He was completely focused on you now as his fingers danced around your inner thigh, spelling out invisible love letters and filth on your sensitive skin as you gasped at each touch. For a man with a moniker that had the word ‘devil’ in it, he sure was heaven of a man.

Matt started to kiss your thighs, as his fingers moved up, he then paused his kisses as he finally travelled across to your vulva and ran a single finger through your folds. It triggered an automatic soft moan that made him smirk for a moment as he then gently spread your folds.

His finger starts to travel more, he teases your hole with his index finger, circling it and almost going in for you to swallow him up but never quite, you feel your core clench up at this and don’t even realise that you’re holding your breath, waiting for him. Waiting for more. He keeps exploring, teasing, and pulling out soft moans and groans of anticipation from you, he starts to slowly insert his finger which makes you gasp and then he pulls it out. He brings the finger to his mouth and sucks on it, tasting your juices.

You gasp at this and watch him, you’d been watching him the whole time but now your eyes are absolutely glued to him. He then brings his finger mixed with your juices and his saliva to that sweet, sweet, bundle of nerves that’s craving his touch. He starts to circle it slowly in a clockwise motion, applying a little more pressure.

“You know, that tasted pretty good.” He says. He says it so confidently, the nature of his tones words, and what’s happening makes your cheeks heat up more as you let out some soft moans. “I should probably try it straight from the source, that’s what I need to do, isn’t it?”

“Oh Matt…” You can’t help but feel like you’re going to explode just from his words. But he’s already dived in.

Matt kisses along your vulva as he inserts his finger into your hole, lightly, almost teasingly. The kisses get closer and then he starts to lick. You’re almost squirming a little now, it feels so good, he’s not even at your clitoris yet, but his mouth and fingers is the start of an overwhelming heaven and you know that. You let out a loud whine and as you squirm, he moves his free hand to firmly hold your thigh, keeping you in place and he groans against you. The vibration of that is absolutely perfectly and you bite your lip, trying not to cry out, as you feel your eyes close as he licks your folds while pumping the tips of his index and now middle finger out.

After a loud whine he smirks and then moves his mouth to the sweet spot as he keeps lightly fingering you, he licks your bundles of nerves, slowly, almost painfully so, circling it with his tongue and then you feel him kissing it and then he starts to lightly suck on your clitoris. You whine out at that, desperately so, as you claw the side of the couch and your eyes start to roll back. He hums against your clitoris, he’s so perfect and he knows that you love that so much. It always feels so damn good and it does right now. The vibration of that humming perfectly gets you off every time and sends pleasure right from your core right down to your feet and up to your head.

Matt keeps humming, well aware of what it does to you, and hungrily sucks on your clitoris, like his life depends on bringing you to orgasm, that he is a man dying of a thirst that only tour sweet juices can quench, that your release will be his salvation. He keeps sucking and you feel your eyes roll back so much and you’re moaning so loudly as your back arches, he’s taking you to the peak and you can’t hold it back anymore. You whine out and grip the sofa more as he firmly holds your thigh, his fingers digging in as his mouth brings you to an overwhelming and incredible orgasm.

“Oh Matt!” You whine out as the pleasure from it floods you. He keeps sucking and licking, making sure he gets each last drop and makes the most of your taste that he’s obsessed with and needs. He slows down after your release as you pant quickly you can’t help but smile and as you look down and see his face move away, his chin and mouth is wet but his lips are curled up in a smile.

“You taste sweeter than anything I could ever dream of wanting.” He says as he caresses your thigh, there’s a slight flush in his face as he pants a little. Your cheeks heat up more at his words and as you watch him move.

Matt takes his boxers off and then quickly kneels on the couch, spreading your legs and you see his thick member aroused and hungry. He’s looking at you as moves closer, holding it and then you move your hand down, feeling it and the precum that’s already dripping. You help him line himself up.

Matt immediately thrusts in, he bottoms out quickly, you sharply inhale and he lets out a loud, perfect groan that’s music to your ears.

“Absolutely perfect every time.” He whispers and then he slowly starts to move as his hand moves up your stomach and to your chest as he holds onto a breast while his other hand is planted onto the sofa to steady himself as he moves.

You feel yourself clenching more around him with each thrust, his rhythm is steady but quick and you’re already so sensitive after the mindblowing orgasm he just gave you. Matt groans as his pace increases while he thrusts into you. You can’t help but whine out as he squeezes your breast and grunts out while moving.

Matt then moves so his body is flushed against you, chest to chest, he puts his arm under your head, almost cuddling you closer to him as his hips start to move ten times faster.

“Oh Matt, fuck…oh god…” You whine out loudly as he moves quickly and you’re so physically overwhelmed. He smiles at your reaction and groans into your ear, pressing his lips right against you to kiss your hair and moan into it as he fucks you like his life depends on it.

His hips are moving so quickly and it completely contrasts to how the way he’s holding you is almost so gentle. You wrap your arms around his back, almost weakly and then start to scratch his toned back as the thrusts become deeper and deeper. You feel so full.

“So perfect, so beautiful. I love you.” He groans into his ear as he keeps pounding into you. He’s a man in love and one that craves your body. He’s absolutely obsessed. “Your pussy is always so needy. I love it.” He groans into your ear as the thrusts become faster.

“I love… I love you… t-too…” You whimper out as he keeps thrusting. You bury your head into the crook of his neck as he keeps going, he’s squeezing you tighter. “I love you s-so-so much…” You feel his hips starting to sputter as the rhythm breaks up a little. He’s still thrusting quickly into you but he’s getting close.

“You feel so good, I’m not gonna last long beautiful.” He moans into your ear as he holds you tighter and keeps thrusting into you. You nod against his shoulder and neck, you knew this, and you have no issue with it.

You dig your nails into his back and scratch him, goosebumps run along his skin at your touch and his breath changes for a moment as his body trembles slightly and he gives one last thrust as he then releases. He groans out and you look up at him smiling and biting your lip, he always looked so handsome when he finished and he made the sweetest noises.

He groans and opens his eyes slowly, he looks at you and then immediately kisses you on the lips lovingly and comfortingly. He pants against your soft lips as he rests them there after the kiss. You run your fingers through his dark hair that now has beads of sweat from this exertion. This is peaceful, he loves you and you love him. You’re perceived, and somehow, that’s okay with Matt.

After a moment he kisses you again and then he carries you to bed, he’s your loving, protective big spoon as your mind finally quietens down and you get to enjoy a deep sleep next to your handsome devil.

200 notes · View notes

burr-ell · 5 months ago

Text

I know I've beaten this drum quite a bit, as have others, but I think it bears repeating that most people who dislike Edelgard would probably not find her so aggravating if the game didn't frequently and unsubtly let her abdicate responsibility for her actions.

Like, it's wild to me that White Clouds goes to great lengths to show how fucked up and horrible demonic beasts are—Miklan's transformation is horrific and agonizing, and Jeralt is clearly appalled to learn that the beasts attacking the chapel were students who had been transformed, with the story heavily implying that these were students who'd gone missing earlier. The game also explicitly identifies them with the Flame Emperor and the Imperial army; the Flame Emperor uses them to attack the Holy Tomb to steal Crest stones and they're frequently used by the Empire in the war phase. But as soon as the Flame Emperor is revealed to be Edelgard, the game never again remarks on it or tries to explicitly connect it to her. Hanneman has one Explore line theorizing that "the Empire" wanted Crest stones from the Holy Tomb to make more demonic beasts and then...no one follows up on that! A single missable line of dialogue is all we get; the fact that Edelgard is using victims of experimentation, knowing that at least some of them were kidnapped fellow students, is just sort of something you have to remember on your own time.

The game makes a huge deal about how terrible the events of White Clouds were—bandits almost killed the house leaders; religious extremists invaded the monastery and used lethal force on students; kidnapped students were turned into monsters and died horribly; Flayn got kidnapped and experimented on for her blood; Jeralt was murdered by an assassin who'd infiltrated the monastery; Remire Village was nightmarishly razed and innocent people were slaughtered; a serial killer was wandering around abducting and murdering people and did so under the unwitting cover of the monastery for months. And then the game reveals to you that the Flame Emperor, who was connected to all these things and knew about them, was Edelgard...and then just sort of quietly ignores them for all of Part 2! She's allowed to give flowery speeches about how terrible the war is, and characters are willing to extend grace and airtime so the devs can make sure you know that oh she wanted to walk with you and make a better world, and not even in the parley with Dimitri does anyone bring up the fact that she's up to her eyeballs in complicity.

Even in the routes where you fight the Slithers directly, neither Claude nor Seteth engage with the fact that Edelgard knew about everything they did and did nothing to stop it. Not once is the game ever interested in telling her to take her precious ideals and shove them up her ass. And there's no reason why any of these characters shouldn't bring all this up (particularly Seteth and Claude), but they don't, and it couldn't be clearer between that and Edelgard's endless fawning over the player self-insert that it's because god forbid anyone think negatively of our precious, cute, oh-so-marketable El-chan.

And it's just a shame, because the game does have well-written female characters—Annette, Ingrid, Mercedes, Hilda, Leonie, Petra, Constance, Manuela, Catherine, Shamir, Rhea (when she isn't being sidelined and damselled), I would even argue that female Byleth is pretty solid! But they're all explicitly heroic characters, and the game absolutely does not want to engage with the idea of Edelgard having agency over evil, villainous actions. It would be great if she owned it—but she doesn't, and the game's writing suffers because of it.

#fe3h #fe3h meta #edelgard critical #it is FAR too easy to make edelgard another tragic woman Stripped of Choice. this is the route you take if you are a coward #nut up and let women be evil fuck's SAKE

91 notes · View notes

nipuni · 9 months ago

Note

Happy finishing Dr Who!

I saw you've been watching other David Tennant things - have you seen his and Catherine Tate's version of much ado about nothing? Very good chaotic vibes and I highly reccomend. It's on the internet archive.

Do you have any favourite dr who eps?

Thank you so much!! 🥰 We have and we love it! So far from his filmography we have watched: Taking Over the Asylum, Blackpool, Casanova, Einstein and Eddington, Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, Richard II, Decoy Bride, The Escape Artist, Broadchurch, Mad to be Normal, Around the World in 80 Days, Inside Man, Good Omens and Doctor Who of course 😊

As for favourite DW episodes ooohhh there are so so many, let me pull up a list so I can go in season order 😆

S1: Father's day, The empty child/The doctor dances, Bad wolf/The parting of the ways

S2: The Christmas Invasion, New Earth, The Girl in the Fireplace, The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit, Army of Ghosts/Doomsday

S3: Gridlock, 42, Human Nature/The Family of Blood, Blink, Utopia/The Sound of Drums/The Last of the Time Lords

S4: Voyage of the Damned, Fires of Pompeii, The Doctor's Daughter, Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead, Midnight, Turn left

Specials 2008: The Next Doctor, The Waters of Mars, The End of Time I and II

S5: The Beast Below, Vincent and the Doctor, The Lodger, The Big Bang

S6: A Christmas Carol, The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon, The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People, The Girl Who Waited, The Wedding of River Song

S7: The Rings of Akhaten, Hide, The Name of the Doctor, The Day of the Doctor

S8: Deep Breath, Listen, Mummy on the Orient Express

S9: Last Christmas, Under the Lake, The Zygon Inversion, Heaven Sent, The Husbands of River Song

S10: The Pilot, Oxygen, The Pyramid at the End of the World, World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls, Twice Upon a Time

S11: It Takes You Away

S12: Spyfall part I, Fugitive of the Judoon, The Haunting of Villa Diodati

S13: The Halloween Apocalypse, Eve of the Daleks, The Power of the Doctor

Specials 2023: Wild Blue Yonder

and if I had to pick my most favourites I think they would beeee The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances, Doomsday, The Family of Blood, Blink, Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead, Midnight, The waters of Mars, The End of time I and II, The day of the Doctor, Heaven Sent, The doctor falls and Wild Blue Yonder 🥰

This ended up being so long I'm so sorry 😭 AHH we are already rewatching and loving it even more the second time so this list will just get longer over time lmao

Thank you for the message!! I had so much fun answering this 😊❤️

#doctor who #david tennant #nips replies #dw report

90 notes · View notes

sheluvslani · 9 months ago

Text

Not What It Looks Like Pt. 1

Request: Omg Lani, I’m so fucking high rn and I gots an idea. What about a ghostface Amber fic where she breaks into r’s house as ghostface. I kinda want it to be like in scream 1996 with Tatum where r goes: “don’t kill me Mr ghostface, I wanna be in the sequel.” But like ghostface/amber spares them for s*x in return. And then r finds out it’s Amber bc of the way ghostface is fucking them. ITS A LOT, I KNOW BUT I FEEL LIKE IM COOKING UP SOMETHING HERE- (anyway, I love your work ;3, keep doing yo shi bsf)

Pairing: Ghostface!Amber x fem!reader

Summary: Ghostface breaks into r’s apartment, fearing for her life, r would do anything to survive.

Warning: Ghostface, breaking in, red text color is ghostface talking, set in scream 5 but with certain characters added from scream 6🤓

A/n: okay Walter white, I see you cooking up something other than that weed :3 I love this request tho, istg I gotta get high more often to create ideas this good LMAO! No but seriously, this sounds amazing and thank you for asking me to write this! (Plus, I find it funny that you censored sex)

You were at your friend Tara’s dorm with the rest of your friend group, playing uno and getting drunk. You were sat down between Tara and your girlfriend Amber. She rested her hand on your thigh as she watched the game, sipping on her beer.

“Uno!” You raised your hands in the air as a sign in victory, the rest of the group groaning and slamming their cards down onto the wooden dining table.

As you cheered and gloated in front of everyone’s face, the news on the TV started blaring, the siren blaring in your ears.

“Breaking News: Blackmore University film student by the name of Jason Carvey was found brutally stabbed in his dorm. The mutilated body of his roommate, Gary Bruckner, has been found crammed inside the fridge. A bloody Ghostface mask was found on the scene, police ran a DNA test and concluded that the mask belonged to Billy Loomis,”

“The infamous Ghostface of Woodsboro,” You and the group finished the sentence in unison. After the Woodsboro attack, the group moved to New York to live a “normal life”

But it looks like the plans gone to shit.

Amber reached over for the remote and shut the TV off. When you looked at her, her expression was stone cold, her jaw clenched as she stared at the blank screen. You originally thought it was from shock, but there was something in the way her lips pursed too hard that made it seem odd.

“It’s probably not even Ghostface this time, just some random looking for a thrill.” Mindy said as she got up to grab another beer.

“I’m sorry, Catherine Obvious, but have you been here for the past year?” Chad waved his hand in front of Mindy’s face when she sat down. “It’s obviously him… they followed us.” He leaned back his chair, drumming his fingers on his arm.

The room was silent for a moment, everyone taking in the information that no one wanted to hear.

“We need to go.” Sam stared down in the middle of the table, her eyes burning holes into the colorful Uno cards.

“Psh, Sam, it’ll be fine. Don’t be dramatic.” Amber smirked as she wrapped her arm around your shoulder, her attitude completely different than what it was 10 seconds ago.

Sam threw a death-glance at Amber, about to cuss her out before Anika spoke up,

“Yeah, I think we’ll be fine. If anything, we have cute boy across the street to help us.” Anika smirked as Sam’s face grew a bright red, muttering something under her breath before beelining to her room.

“Well. I say we call it a night.” Chad said as he stretched his arms over his head.

Everyone agreed and collected their belongings while Mindy was (rightfully) the one to help clean up everything.

————————————————————————

Amber had her arm wrapped around your waist as she walked you back to your dorm. When you arrived, Amber softly kissed your cheek as her other hand traveled up your shoulder, her fingers digging into your skin.

“Be safe, y/n. I can’t handle another one of Sam’s hour-long speeches about sticking together.”

You softly chuckled as she swept a strand of hair from your face. “I’ll try. But if anything happens, I’ll call you. Goodnight, Amber.” You softly squeezed her arm before letting go, entering your dorm as you blew her a kiss.

You locked the door behind you, placing your phone and keys on the entryway table. You stretched your arms above your head, your muscles tense from the game and a pounding headache from the news and the amount of alcohol in your system.

You walked into your bedroom, taking off your shoes before grabbing a pair of pajamas and heading to the bathroom, your steps slow and relaxed.

The hot water of the shower rained down on you, your muscles relaxing from the aroma of the lavender bodywash that Amber bought for you. The soap suds ran down your curves, collecting at the foot of the shower before being washed away.

When you finished and wrapped yourself in a towel, you walked to the sink to brush your teeth. The spearmint toothpaste lingered in your mouth before being replaced with the strong taste of the cool mint mouthwash you spat out into the sink.

You put in a black bra and a pair of black panties before grabbing your pajamas. The blue cotton antic stuck to your damp body as you pulled the shirt over your head and stepped into the matching pants.

You threw your dirty clothes into the weaven laundry hamper, the bin rocking against the wall for a split second.

You sat down in front of your vanity, grabbing your brush and running it through the knots in your hair. The brush caught on one particularly big knot in your hair. As you struggled to brush it out, the landline that was sitting on your bedside table started ringing.

“Unknown Number”

The words flashed on the tiny screen as the ringing filled the room.

Once you brushed out the tangle, you reached over to press the “accept” button on the landline.

“Hello? Y/n speaking. ” You called out as you ran a hand through your hair.

“Hello? Is Maria there?” The voice on the other line was adenoidal and croaky.

Maria was your roommate who was currently out of town, visiting her parents.

“No, she’s not available. Might I ask who this is?”

“I’m Joey. I’m in her trig class” The caller cleared their throat.

“Oh yeah? Joey from trigonometry. How come I’ve never heard of you, Joey from trigonometry?” You smirked as you teased the poor person on the other line.

“You sound exactly like how she describes you.”

“She talks about me?

“I don’t think I can really talk about that.”

“What does she say about me?”

“She says that you’re creative. You love reading and TV and movies.”

“Lots of people love movies.”

“Yeah, but she says you love scary movies and that you guys have that in common.”

“She told me the other day, she wonders…” The voice trailed off for a moment before continuing.

“What’s your favorite scary movie?”

Your ear perked up as you faced the landline, the bright green color of the screen stared at you, blinking the numbers over and over again.

“Well, I really liked “X”. It’s great representation of the psycho-biddy genre.”

“Sounds kinda boring to me. Have you ever seen Stab?”

“Once, i think. At a sleepover when I was, like, 12.”

“You lived in Woodsboro when you were a kid and you don’t know Stab?”

Now that, caught your attention. No one exceopt for the rest of the group knew you were from Woodsboro. You picked up the phone, pulling it to your ear as you made your way back into the living room to grab your cell.

“How’d you know I lived in Woodsboro?”

The voice on the other line was replaced by heavy breathing and the sound of rummaging.

“This isn’t fucking funny, Amber.”

“I told you, this isn’t Amber. But you’re looking particularly fetching tonight. Those blue pajamas really fit you.”

“What do you want?” You grabbed your phone and pulled up the dial button, as you pressed in the 9 and 1, the voice boomed again.

“Stop right there, y/n. You call the cops, you die. You hang up the phone, you die. It’s not hard getting into your dorm. Especially when you leave your window unlocked.”

That’s when you felt the slight breeze behind you. As you turned around, you saw that the living room window was wide open, the wind flowing with the curtains.

You bolted to the window, slamming it shut and locking it. You ran into your room, locking the door behind you.

The voice came on the landline again, “Come on, y/n… Don’t be shy, come and find me…”

You searched every nook and cranny in your room, carefully making sure there was no sign of Ghostface here.

When you searched under your bed, you found a bloody Ghostface mask, more blood stuck to your hands the longer you held it… it was easy to recognize this one too…

Mickey Alteri

The 2nd Ghostface

“What the fu-,” was all you could manage to get out before you heard the doors of your closet adjacent to the bed, crashing open. A black-robed figure sprinting at you was the last thing you saw before being tackled to the ground by Ghostface. A knife was pressed against your throat from the person above you, the voice changer crackled with every heavy breath.

“Surprise, y/n.”

#amber freeman x reader #amber freeman #tara carpenter x reader #mikey madison #scream 5 #scream franchise #scream movies #Spotify

144 notes · View notes

sixaus-meaa · 2 months ago

Text

Six The Musical as Tweets pt57

25 notes · View notes

thehangerson · 1 year ago

Text

doctor who nuwho masterlist

ive been meaning to post this on tumblr for a while and keep forgetting but a few years ago i made a nuwho / whoniverse watchlist including the spinoff shows in release order and now seems like the time to share it! i know ive seen theres a lot of new fans watching from 2005 on (from what im seeing mostly gomens fans. hi gomens fans) and a lot of ppl coming back to the show or rewatching in lieu of the new eps with david and catherine! so heres the list!

the full list masterdoc typed out for your copy-pasting pleasure is below the text break, but heres some links for those of you who are spreadsheet/doc fans.

google sheet checklist version

(the spreadsheet includes some tws and cws, which i update as i rewatch some things. if you have any i'm missing that you think should be included, please send me an ask or leave a comment and i'll add it!)

masterlist:

blue- Doctor Who, red- Doctor Who specials, green- Torchwood, purple- Sarah Jane Adventures, orange- Class

2005

01x01- Rose (03/26/2005)

01x02- The End of the World (4/02)

01x03- The Unquiet Dead (04/09)

01x04- Aliens of London (04/16)

01x05- World War Three (04/23)

01x06- Dalek (04/30)

01x07- The Long Game (05/07)

01x08- Father’s Day (05/14)

01x09- The Empty Child (05/21)

01x10- The Doctor Dances (05/28)

01x11- Boom Town (06/04)

01x12- Bad Wolf (06/11)

01x13- The Parting of the Ways (06/18)

The Christmas Invasion (12/25)

2006

02x01- New Earth (04/15/2006)

02x02- Tooth and Claw (04/22)

02x03- School Reunion (04/29)

02x04- The Girl in the Fireplace (05/06)

02x05- Rise of the Cybermen (05/13)

02x06- Age of Steel (05/20)

02x07- The Idiot’s Lantern (05/27)

02x08- Impossible Planet (06/03)

02x09- Satan Pit (06/10)

02x10- Love & Monsters (06/17)

02x11- Fear Her (06/24)

02x12- Army of Ghosts (07/01)

02x13-Doomsday (07/08)

01x01- Everything Changes (10/22)

01x02- Day One (10/22)

01x03- Ghost Machine (10/29)

01x04- Cyberwoman (11/05)

01x05- Small Worlds (11/12)

01x06- Countrycide (11/19)

01x07- Greeks Bearing Gifts (11/26)

01x08-They Keep Killing Suzie (12/03)

01x09-Random Shoes (12/10)

01x10- Out of Time (12/17)

01x11- Combat (12/24)

The Runaway Bride (12/25)

2007

01x12- Captain Jack Harkness (01/01/2007)

01x13- End of Days (01/01)

01x01- Invasion of the Bane (01/01)

03x01-Smith and Jones (03/31)

03x02- The Shakespeare Code (04/07)

03x03- Gridlock (04/14)

03x04- Daleks in Manhattan (04/21)

03x05- Evolution of the Daleks (04/28)

03x06- The Lazarus Experiment (05/05)

03x07- 42 (05/19)

03x08- Human Nature (05/26)

03x09- The Family of Blood (06/02)

03x10- Blink (06/09)

03x11- Utopia (06/16)

03x12- The Sound of Drums (06/23)

03x13- Last of the Time Lords (06/30)

01x02- Revenge of the Slitheen Part 1 (09/24)

01x03- Revenge of the Slitheen Part 2 (10/01)

01x04- Eye of the Gorgon Part 1 (10/08)

01x05- Eye of the Gorgon Part 2 (10/15)

01x06- Warriors of Kudlak Part 1 (10/22)

01x07- Warriors of Kudlak Part 2 (10/29)

01x08- Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? Part 1 (11/05)

01x09- Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? Part 2 (11/12)

01x10- The Lost Boy Part 1 (11/12)

01x11- The Lost Boy Part 2 (11/19)

Voyage of the Damned (12/25)

2008

02x01- Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (01/16/2008)

02x02- Sleeper (01/23)

02x03- To the Last Man (01/30)

02x04- Meat (02/06)

02x05- Adam (02/13)

02x06- Reset (02/13)

02x07- Dead Man Walking (02/20)

02x08- A Day in the Death (02/27)

02x09- Something Borrowed (03/05)

02x10- From Out of the Rain (03/12)

02x11- Adrift (03/19)

02x12- Fragments (03/21)

02x13- Exit Wounds (04/04)

04x01- Partners in Crime (04/05)

04x02- The Fires of Pompeii (04/12)

04x03- Planet of the Ood (04/19)

04x04- The Sontaran Stratagem (04/26)

04x05- The Poison Sky (05/03)

04x06- The Doctor’s Daughter (05/10)

04x07- The Unicorn and the Wasp (05/17)

04x08- Silence in the Library (05/31)

04x09- Forest of the Dead (06/07)

04x10- Midnight (06/14)

04x11- Turn Left (06/21)

04x12- The Stolen Earth (06/28)

04x13- Journey’s End (07/05)

02x01- The Last Sontaran Part 1 (09/29)

02x02- The Last Sontaran Part 2 (09/29)

02x03- The Day of the Clown Part 1 (10/06)

02x04- The Day of the Clown Part 2 (10/13)

02x05- Secrets of the Stars Part 1 (10/20)

02x06- Secrets of the Stars Part 2 (10/27)

02x07- The Mark of the Berserker Part 1 (11/03)

02x08- The Mark of the Berserker Part 2 (11/10)

02x09- The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith Part 1 (11/170

02x10- The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith Part 2 (11/24)

02x11- Enemy of the Bane Part 1 (12/01)

02x12- Enemy of the Bane Part 2 (12/08)

The Next Doctor (12/25)

2009

Planet of the Dead (04/11/2009)

03x01- Day One (07/06)

03x02- Day Two (07/07)

03x03- Day Three (07/08)

03x04- Day Four (07/09)

03x05- Day Five (07/10)

03x01- Prisoner of the Judoon Part 1 (10/15)

03x02- Prisoner of the Judoon Part 2 (10/16)

03x03- The Mad Woman in the Attic Part 1 (10/22)

03x04- The Mad Woman in the Attic Part 2 (10/23)

03x05- The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith Part 1 (10/29)

03x06-The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith Part 2 (10/30)

03x07- The Eternity Trap Part 1 (11/05)

03x08- The Eternity Trap Part 2 (11/06)

03x09- Mona Lisa’s Revenge Part 1 (11/12)

03x10- Mona Lisa’s Revenge Part 2 (11/13)

04x16- The Waters of Mars (11/15)

03x11- The Gift Part 1 (11/19)

03x12- The Gift Part 2 (11/20)

The End of Time Part 1 (12/25)

2010

The End of Time Part 2 (01/01/2010)

05x01- The Eleventh Hour (04/03)

05x02- The Beast Below (04/10)

05x03- Victory of the Daleks (04/17)

05x04- The Time of Angels (04/24)

05x05- Flesh and Stone (05/01)

05x06- The Vampires of Venice (05/08)

05x07- Amy’s Choice (05/15)

05x08- The Hungry Earth (05/22)

05x09- Cold Blood (05/29)

05x10- Vincent and the Doctor (06/05)

05x11- The Lodger (06/12)

05x12- The Pandorica Opens (06/19)

05x13-The Big Bang (06/26)

04x01- The Nightmare Man Part 1 (10/11)

04x02- The Nightmare Man Part 2 (10/12)

04x03- The Vault of Secrets Part 1 (10/18)

04x04- The Vault of Secrets Part 2 (10/19)

04x05- Death of the Doctor Part 1 (10/25)

04x06- Death of the Doctor Part 2 (10/26)

04x07- The Empty Planet Part 1 (11/01)

04x08- The Empty Planet Part 2 (11/02)

04x09- Lost in Time Part 1 (11/08)

04x10- Lost in Time Part 2 (11/09)

04x11- Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith Part 1 (11/15)

04x12- Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith Part 2 (11/16)

A Christmas Carol (12/25)

2011

06x01- The Impossible Astronaut (04/23/2011)

06x02- Day of the Moon (04/30)

06x03- The Curse of the Black Spot (05/07)

06x04- The Doctor’s Wife (05/14)

06x05- The Rebel Flesh (05/21)

06x06- The Almost People (05/28)

06x07- A Good Man Goes to War (06/04)

04x01- The New World (07/08)

04x02- Rendition (07/15)

04x03- Dead of Night (07/22)

04x04- Escape to L.A. (07/29)

04x05- The Categories of Life (08/05)

04x06- The Middle Men (08/12)

04x07- Immortal Sins (08/19)

04x08- End of the Road (08/26)

06x08- Let’s Kill Hitler (08/27)

04x09- The Gathering (09/02)

06x09- Night Terrors (09/03)

04x10- The Blood Line (09/09)

06x10- The Girl Who Waited (09/10)

06x11- The God Complex (09/17)

06x12- Closing Time (09/24)

06x13- The Wedding of River Song (10/01)

05x01- Sky Part 1 (10/03)

05x02- Sky Part 2 (10/04)

05x03- The Curse of Clyde Langer Part 1 (10/10)

05x04- The Curse of Clyde Langer Part 2 (10/11)

05x05- The Man Who Never Was Part 1 (10/17)

05x06- The Man Who Never Was Part 2 (10/18)

The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (12/25)

2012

07x01- Asylum of the Daleks (09/01/2012)

07x02- Dinosaurs of a Spaceship (09/08)

07x03- A Town Called Mercy (09/15)

07x04- The Power of Three (09/22)

07x05- The Angels Take Manhattan (09/29)

The Snowmen (12/25)

2013

07x06- The Bells of Saint John (03/30/2013)

07x07- The Rings of Akhaten (04/06)

07x08- Cold War (04/13)

07x09- Hide (04/20)

07x10- Journey to the Center of the TARDIS (04/27)

07x11- The Crimson Horror (05/04)

07x12- Nightmare in Silver (05/11)

07x13- The Name of the Doctor (05/18)

The Day of the Doctor (11/23)

The Time of the Doctor (12/25)

2014

08x01- Deep Breath (08/23/2014)

08x02- Into the Dalek (08/30)

08x03- Robot of Sherwood (09/06)

08x04- Listen (09/13)

08x05- Time Heist (09/20)

08x06- The Caretaker (09/27)

08x07- Kill the Moon (10/04)

08x08- Mummy on the Orient Express (10/11)

08x09- Flatline (10/18)

08x10- In the Forest of the Night (10/25)

08x11- Dark Water (11/01)

08x12- Death in Heaven (11/08)

Last Christmas (12/25)

2015

09x01- The Magician’s Apprentice (09/19/2015)

09x02- The Witch’s Familiar (09/26)

09x03- Under the Lake (10/03)

09x04- Before the Flood (10/10)

09x05- The Girl Who Died (10/17)

09x06- The Woman Who Lived (10/24)

09x07- The Zygon Invasion (10/31)

09x08- The Zygon Inversion (11/07)

09x09- Sleep No More (11/14)

09x10- Face the Raven (11/21)

09x11- Heaven Sent (11/28)

09x12- Hell Bent (12/05)

The Husbands of River Song (12/25)

2016

01x01- For Tonight We Might Die (10/22/2016)

01x02- The Coach with the Dragon Tattoo (10/22)

01x03- Nightvisiting (10/29)

01x04- Co-Owner of a Lonely Heart (11/05)

01x05- Brave-ish Heart (11/12)

01x06- Detained (11/19)

01x07- The Metaphysical Engine, or What Quill Did (11/26)

01x08- The Lost (12/03)

The Return of Doctor Mysterio (12/25)

2017

10x01- The Pilot (04/15/2017)

10x02- Smile (04/22)

10x03- Thin Ice (04/29)

10x04- Knock Knock (05/06)

10x05- Oxygen (05/13)

10x06- Extremis (05/20)

10x07- The Pyramid at the End of the World (05/27)

10x08- The Lie of the Land (06/03)

10x09- Empress of Mars (06/10)

10x10- The Eaters of Light (06/17)

10x11- World Enough and Time (06/24)

10x12- The Doctor Falls (07/01)

Twice Upon a Time (12/25)

2018

11x01- The Woman Who Fell to Earth (10/07/2018)

11x02- The Ghost Monument (10/14)

11x03- Rosa (10/21)

11x04- Arachnids in the UK (10/28)

11x05- The Tsuranga Conundrum (11/04)

11x06- Demons of the Punjab (11/11)

11x07- Kerblam! (11/18)

11x08- The Witchfinders (11/25)

11x09- It Takes You Away (12/02)

11x10- The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos (12/09)

2019

Resolution (01/01/2019)

2020

12x01- Spyfall, Part 1 (01/01/2020)

12x02- Spyfall, Part 2 (01/05)

12x03- Orphan 55 (01/12)

12x04- Nikola Tesla’s Night of Terror (01/19)

12x05- Fugitive of the Judoon (01/26)

12x06- Praxeus (02/02)

12x07- Can You Hear Me? (02/09)

12x08- The Haunting of Villa Diodati (02/16)

12x09- Ascension of the Cybermen (02/23)

12x10- The Timeless Children (03/01)

2021

Revolution of the Daleks (01/01/2021)

13x01- The Halloween Apocalypse (10/31)

13x02- War of the Sontarans (11/7)

13x03- Once, Upon Time (11/14)

13x04- Village of the Angels (11/21)

13x05- Survivors of the Flux (11/28)

13x06- The Vanquishers (12/5)

2022

Eve of the Daleks(01/01/2022)

Legend of the Seal Devils(4/17)

The Power of the Doctor(10/23)

2023

The Star Beast(11/25/2023)

Wild Blue Yonder(12/2/2023)

The Giggle(12/9/2023)

The Church on Ruby Road(12/25/2023)

2024

TBA

#doctor who #nuwho #torchwood #sarah jane adventures #sja #whoniverse

82 notes · View notes

denimbex1986 · 1 year ago

Text

'The Giggle

We begin The Giggle in Soho 1925, with a man walking into a toyshop. The man behind the counter is charismatic and rather creepy, especially as he talks about his various dolls up on the wall. Apparently it has real hair and the Toymaker’s German accent slips a little as they talk.

The man, Charlie, takes “Stooky Bill”, the doll in the toyshop, and takes it to his employer, John Logie Baird. He’s been testing his new invention, the TV, and wishes this doll could speak.

We then cut to the present where we left off last week. The whole place is compete chaos. Two days ago, everyone had suddenly decided that they’re right and they won’t change their mind. If you try to argue with the infected, they go mad. The only one who stands out is the Toymaker, who tries to dance with the Doctor in the street. The Doctor recognizes him, especially when UNIT show up and take the Doctor away to HQ with Donna.

Shirley and Kate Lethbridge-Stewart are there to greet him… along with a surprise guest too. It’s Melanie, the companion for the sixth and seventh doctors! After, we hear the same exposition we just got from the man in the street. Apparently this issue is worldwide, but those inside UNIT are being subdued by something called the Zeedex, which keeps them under control and not going mad. Whatever this thing is, it’s been generated from inside the brain… but some people aren’t affected like Donna and Mel.

Donna believes it could be a tune, just like in The Sound of Drums. But instead of four repetitive notes, they quickly realize it’s actually closer to a laugh. That same laugh jingle from the doll. This image has been put inside every single screen in the world, and with the Korean satellite allowing every single person across the world to be online at the same time.

The Doctor soon learns the exact location and time that Stooky Bill was broadcast on TV, so off Donna and The Doctor go to 1925 to figure it out. They instead find the Toymaker, and The Doctor immediately recognizes him. Despite telling Donna that she needs to go to the TARDIS, they both end up inside the Toymaker’s little domain.

The Doctor starts to doubt himself, and then the pair are separated. Again. Remember Charlie from the shop? The Doctor finds that he’s been turned into a puppet after losing a game to the Toymaker. And now he’s stuck on strings to do what the Toymaker wants. As for Donna, she finds herself attacked by the other dolls in the shop, until she destroys Sooky, the mum, and leaves the three babies as orphans.

The Toymaker taunts the Doctor, showing him all the companions that have passed and bringing up the Flux again. Please RTD, let’s not bring up that travesty of a series. Again. Anyway, The Doctor challenges him to a game, and the Toymaker boasts that he’s beaten everyone there is to beat. Even The Master, whom he’s turned into a gold tooth.

The only one he won’t play against is “The One Who Waits” but he won’t elaborate, claiming that’s someone else’s game. The pair decide to play Highest Card Wins… but the Toymaker wins. However, this just makes it 1-1 given the Doctor played and won all those years ago. The Toymaker decides they need to play in 2023 next, and the toyshop turns into a jack-in-a-box. As it does, The Doctor and Donna return to the present.

UNIT destroys the satellite but The Doctor is quick to point out this is only a link in the chain. There’s more to this than they realized and they’re about to step it up a gear. The Toymaker shows up at UNIT itself and a big dance number breaks out.

When he disappears outside, The Doctor realizes he has the Galvanic Beam. The Doctor’s pleas to have the Toymaker join him and leave together, play games across the cosmos, falls on deaf ears. The Toymaker has realized that Earth is the ultimate battleground and besides, hasn’t most of the Universe been utterly obliterated from the Flux?

The Toymaker eventually plunges a laser-beam straight into The Doctor, telling him he needs to play this game with the next Doctor. As The Doctor regenerates, he utters “Here we go again, Allons-y” and the regeneration becomes a bi-generation. Donna and Mel both pull from either side and one Doctor becomes two.

The pair of them decide to challenge The Toymaker together. They decide to play Catch, and the Doctors win. Their prize is to banish the Toymaker forever. “My legions are coming,” He says, as the box he’s kept in is banished to the vaults. His gold tooth however, holding the essence of The Master, is picked up by someone.

Meanwhile, the Doctor shows the New Doctor (Ncuti) to the TARDIS and both he and Donna agree that Tennant’s Doctor needs to chill out and stay in one place forever. The new Doctor, after winning the gae, smacks the outside the TARDIS and decides to create a second TARDIS, which has wheelchair access and a jukebox.

The pair say their goodbyes, and Tennant decides to join Donna noble’s family (and Mel) to sit down and chill on Earth with his family. Apparently he fought all those battles to settle down with a family, and Tennant has never been happier than he is now.

The Episode Review

So Doctor Who’s run with the Toymaker ends in crazy fashion with the very first Bi-generation and honestly? it’s a bit of a disappointment. The decision to keep Tennant around feels like having your cake and eating it too. On the one hand, we have a brand new Doctor running around and trying to slip into the role which should be the number 1 focus.

But then on the other hand, it shows a distinct lack of confidence that Ncuti Gatwa can do it alone, knowing that Tennant can just pick up the mantle should this Doctor fail to bring back viewers, which this show continues to leak. The Christmas Special is going to be the real tell though and it’ll be interesting to see what the views are like for that one.

On the positive side though, Ncuti’s Doctor is pretty good and it’ll be interesting to see exactly how he slips into the role in his own adventure on Christmas Day.

The episode itself is actually not bad either, and some of that stems from the charisma of Neil Patrick Harris and David Tennant, who both chew up the screen. Ncuti Gatwa holds his own too, which is a nice touch, but it’s far too early to tell how he’ll slip into the role of Timelord.

For now, this third special bows out with a decent episode but is this really a spectacular celebration of 60 years for Doctor Who? Especially when it borrows ideas from the past like The Sound of Drums, complete with the pop music number. Regardless, we’ll have to wait and see what’s in store for us next.'

0 notes

akaashiwaifuuwu · 1 year ago

Text

Nothings gonna hurt you baby.

Lee minho and fem reader

Warning : smuts, reader got slutshamed not from minho, punched? Ig thats all?

Honestly, all minho wanted was a roommates and him having a female roommate. Which was not his idea ofcourse but here he is looking at you. "Uhm hi?" You said "hello" was all he could respond.

"So your name?" Minho started taking the box which you were handing him "yn and you?".

"Minho" he started opening the box "well minho, I'm glad that you're helping me" you smiled at him while tying your hair

You have fully settled all your things and started going for work it has been 5 days since you have settled and you took the TV remote and turning on some reality shows while minho came "yn, watch something else what's this? is this something?" He took the remote and played some football game.

"Nooo I was watching it" you pouted until you heard a knock you got up to open the door "heyyy" you heard the 7 boys who was just standing "oh wait is this the wrong dorm?" You heard the freckle boy "no, this is my roommate sho sho let my boys come in" minho gave you show sho look.

You just turned around and on the reality show "oh what is this?" The same freckle boy sat next to you "reality show" you are focused on that until the girls on show started fighting you gasp "what a bitch" felix gasps as well "I know! All she does is nag around and ruin the other girls dream of becoming a model ugh Catherine is a bitch".

"Well I think Catherine deserves to be kicked out" felix got cut off by you "maddie is such a sweetheart she is a cinnamon roll" you both were focused on the shows too much "the one who is gonna get kicked out is drum rolls Cassie".

You and felix yelled fuck "damn they both just met half an hour ago?" Chan looked at both you "im felix" he gave you his hand "im yn, nice to meet you" you both shaked hands.

"Yn, what are you doing?" Minho sat beside you "im not disturbing you even felix wants to watch this, right lixie?" You turned around and saw felix blushing "yeah, I'm" he mumbled "see?" You gave him puppy eyes "okay then" minho exclaimed.

It has been 2 hours since the boys came and all of them is focused on the reality shows except minho he still doesn't have the idea why you were all too focused. Bangchan gasps "Kate is a bitch and maddie deserves more it".

"Please, maddie is a sweetheart even Kate she just I don't know made her point?" You were cut off my minho "guy you're my friend not her what the fuck man"

"A win is a win minho" hyunjin patted his back. "So, yn why did you shift here?" Jisung and all the guy turned toward you "well minho was looking for a roommate or so and I was finding a dorm so here I'm" you looked at minho "guys who are you asking her questions" minho glared at jisung "she is our new buddy" chan said

It's been awhile now 2 month since you moved in. You were coming back from work while listening to music and you saw a guy looking at you and you didn't mind cause he might have just like your hair or whatever and when he didn't stop looking you were scared.

You went out from train and he did the same "hey are you single?" The guy asked and you ignored and send your location to minho "im talking to you" you started walking fast "you bitch" he grabbed your shoulder and you could see the rage in his eyes "let her go" you saw bangchan and felix "okay fine guess she is whoring around with so many guys,no wonder why she looks so ugly and what a slut you're nothing but a fucktoy for guys to use and thro-" he wasn't able to finish his sentence minho punched him.

"Are you okay?" He looked at you, you were blank that guy ran away you came to your sense when you felt minho touch your face causing you to jolt back he looked so scared as if you're some glass, so fragile he doesn't want you to slip from his vulnerable hands.

"Are you okay?" Bangchan came "im fine" you smiled but you your cheeks were wet you felt minho wiping your tears and felix giving you some water. You're glad you have them.

You sat on the sofa while minho gave you another glass of water "yn you're the most beautiful women I ever saw" your eyes widened "don't think about what he said okay?" He looks at you "he reminds me of my ex he was so nice and then later on he abused me mentally and physically I never was able to say that" you were crying again "minho, don't I deserve love?" You were holding your knees close to your chest "you do yeah you do" he looks so sincere "just hold me minho without hurting just hold me" and hold you he did, he did picked you up and place you on his bed and he hopped in as well.

Your head was filled with his perfume, his hand and him.

"Yn you will catch cold" minho said firmly "its okay" you ran away and played with rain. Ah, rain. You love rain, since you were a kid rain gave you inner peace.

And cold? Yeah. "I told you but you didnt listen" he glared at you while giving you medicine "im sorry" you apologized to him "you're not"

"You're right, I'm not" he laughed at this remark.

"I'm not going to work okay?" You hummed "you're so nice taking care of me and so good looking" he looked at you and saw that you were fast asleep.

"My new wallpaper" he laughed "mate you're whipped" chan smiled "from where did you came from?" Minho was breathing heavily.

"Maybeeee from tree" bangchan laughed at him.

He came back from his work and heard you whimpering the door was slightly open he saw you and your hand under your underwear and other hand around your nipples he looked away and went back to the front door "yn I'm back home" he announced you came out flushed breathing heavily and you were washing your hands "hey minho you came early" he looked at your hands "yeah I wanted to see if you're doing okay or not".

Minho is stunned. You weren't wearing a bra and he can see your nipples. "Minho wanna go shopping with me tomorrow?" He hummed. Oh he is doomed.

"Let's go there" you grabbed his hand and entered a shop. You were trying and buying multiple cloths, accessories, makeup, shoes and what not. "Let me breathe" he showed you his palm "yes baby breathe, are you hard" you smirked "yn don't".

You entered the lingerie shop he closed his eyes "I feel like it's illegal to see this" you were guiding him "this is so pretty" you were seeing pink lace bra with pink undies. He opened his eyes and he was flabbergasted.

"I'm trying this one on" you exclaimed.

"Minho wanna see it?" You were yelling from dressing room "no ma'am" "you're missing anyway your loss baby"

You both were eating dinner at a restaurant with the boys and their girls, it was so overwhelming obviously both of your legs was touching but you both weren't moving. "Earth to yn" felix waved his hands infront of you "yeah tell me? You asked "what are you thinking" he turned his head like a dog trying to understand something "nothing" you smiled.

"Yn we need to talk" minho said when he came from office "tell me" you gave your full attention to him "I like you yn, you like me too tye feelings flows both way." You were stunned "im a horrible person you don't wanna do anything with me" you looked down "tell me all the horrible thing you did and let me love you anyway" that took your breathe away.

That's when you pulled him through his collar and kissed him. "I love you minho" you kissed him again and he grabbed you by your waist and started taking you to his bed. His bed where you spend more time than your bed.

"I love you more darling" he kissed you again and you both were pulling eachother and you were sitting km his lap and grinding "impatient aren't we?" When minho removed his shirt you said "Stop stop" breathing heavily "we can stop if you want we can cuddle and watch movie" he was cut off by you kissing "its not that it's just im a virgin" you looked at him "oh so I'm the one who is gonna corrupt you?" He smirked and you slapped against his chest "do you want this yn?" You nodded "I need words darling".

"Yes minho" you whispered.

Both of your clothes were on the ground you were panting he was taking his time worshipping you and whispering sweet nothing against your ear he was eating you out when you lift your hips he made sure to keep it down he made sure you stay still.

"Come I come" he looked amazed that you're not able to say anything. "Baby you can't speak?" With that you came and you were shaking "that's it yeah good night" he kissed your forehead "no need need you yes need you I need you" you started crying he realized you were deep into your sub space "call me sir" he ordered while he put his condom

"It might hurt" he hold your leg "but I will make sure it's pleasurable" he smiled while he put in "I sir I sir hurt sir " you cried "shush I'm here baby" he said this and started moving slowly and you were babbling "good girl" he said while you were moaning"good girl good girl good girl sir" he knew that you were gone.

"Baby" he saw you were shaking "baby I need to make you come one more time yeah?" He looked at you but you were gone "you know sleep okay tomorrow I will see" he picked you up and made sure that he cleaned you.

"Ynnnn you weren't waking up are you okay?" You saw 6 boys looking at you "where is minho?" You asked "he is cooking lunch for you" chan looked "shit I slept for that long?" When you stand up, your leg gave up and you fell "careful" chan said as he hold you "minhoooooo" you yelled "What what what?" He came running

"I can't walk?" You questioned him "damn" he smirked.

"OH" felix yelled while smirking "stop it lix I will kill you" you warned "yn and minho have hickeyssssss they both had sex" he started running around while singing "he went hard" hyunjin laughed.

Oh well.

"That's how I met your mother" he looked at his son and daughter.

178 notes · View notes

jgthirlwell · 11 months ago

Text

2023 Year In Review

This year once again I invited some friends and colleagues to reflect on 2023

JG Thirlwell Composer Foetus Xordox Manorexia Steroid Maximus Venture Bros Archer

2023 was an intense year. The year began with the premiere of my symphony for Alarm Will Sound and ended with guesting vocalizing with Dinosaur Jr on some Stooges classics. I completed the final season of Archer. Wrote a lot of material for new Xordox and Foetus albums. Released an album of string quartets and scored a Venture Bros movie. Worked with some great singers and premiered my Ensemble project in London. I spent several months traveling and set up a small studio in Melbourne for a bit. Road tripped through NZ with my partner, Dora. I played some excellent shows in London, Colchester, Auckland, Wellington, Melbourne and Sydney. I still woke up 5am in a panic on too many occasions. And I saw some great concerts.It was difficult to whittle down this list but here are a lot of albums I enjoyed in 2023, in no particular order.

Albums

Poil Ueda Yoshitsune (Dur et Doux) Poil Ueda - Poil Ueda (Dur et Doux) Genevieve Artadi Forever Forever (Brainfeeder) Knower - Knower Forever (Brainfeeder) Ultraphauna No No No No (Dur Et Doux) Gahlmm Break A Leg (GEIGER Grammofon) Oneohtrix Point Never Again (Warp) Lankum - False Lankum (Rough Trade) Evian Christ Revanchist (Warp) Chromb Cinq (Dur et Doux) Deskartes A Kant After Destruction (Cleopatra) Gazelle Twin Then You Run (Original Score) L’Rain I Killed Your Dog (Mexican Summer) Loraine James Gentle Confrontation (Hyperdub) Royal Blood Back To The Water Below (Warner) John Luther Adams Darkness and Scattered Light (Cold Blue) Catherine Christer Hennix Solo for Tamburium (Blank Forms) Rachel Fannan Bjork Impersonations (Instagram) Regal Worm Worm! (Quatermass) Wild Up Julius Eastman Vol. 3: If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich? (New Amsterdam) PJ Harvey I Inside the Old Year Dying (Partisan) Poppy I Disagree (Sumerian) Sparks The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte (Island) Queens Of The Stone Age In Times New Roman (Matador) Time Wharp Spiro World (Leaving) Murderpact Ultraheaven (Bandcamp) RVG Brain Worms (Our Golden Friend) HMLTD - The Worm (Lucky Number) Catarina Barbieri - Myuthafoo (Editions Mego) Ligeti Quartet and Anna Meredith - NUC (Mercury KX) Mandy Indiana I’ve Seen a Way + EP(FireTalk) Kate NV WOW (RVNG) Kelly Moran Vesela EP (Warp) Kurws Powiez / Fascia (Korobushka) Fever Ray Radical Romantics (Mute) Netherlands Severance (Svart) Tim Hecker No Highs (Kranky) Bohemian Flesh Bohemian Flesh (Ojet) Pure Adult II (FatCat) Model/Actriz - Dogsbody (True Panther Sounds) Laurel Halo - Atlas (Awe) Water From Your Eyes - Everyones Crushed (Matador) Moritz Von Oswald - Silencio (tresor) REZZETT Meant Like This (Trilogy Tapes) Jess Johnson and Simon Ward 'Terminus' Virtual Reality exhibition at the Museum in Dunedin NZ.

Books

Naomi Klein Doppelganger Graham Rayman and Reuven Blau Rikers : An Oral History Thurston Moore Sonic Life Malcolm Gladwell The Bomber Mafia Tony Cohen Half Deaf, Completely Mad Brett Anderson Coal Black Morning Book Wesley Doyle Conform To Deform Primo Levi Survival in Auschwitz

Films + TV

Beef Barry Fargo The YouTube Effect Mutiny In Heaven Beau Is Afraid In The Court Of The Crimson King Oppenheimer

Concerts

01.28.23 Kodak Quartet performed at the Jack Studio Festival Event at The New School, performing a work by Khyam Allami and a stunning rendition of Ligeti’s String Quartet No 1. 02.21.23 Pure Adult opened for Gilla Band at Brooklyn Made and both were excellent! 02.22.23 Clown Core (featuring Louis Cole on drums and keys) Elsewhere in NYC. 03.02.23 Laurie Anderson performs at a drone event anchored by Lou’s guitar generating feedback drones, on the occasion of Lou Reed’s birthday .Other musicians joining the drone included Shazad Ismailey, Steven Bernstein, Stan Harrison, Briggan Krauss and more. 03.09.23 Michael Byron’s new work In One Second There Will Be A Thousand Plateaus Perhaps for two pianos and small orchestra featuring pianists Joseph Kubera and Steve Beck with Petr Kotik conducting members of the S.E.M. Ensemble. At Roulette Intermedium. 04.04.23 Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs brought the rock power and played an intense and triumphant show at Mercury Lounge to end their first US tour. 04.08.23 Amarcord Nino Rota, a reimagining of the Hal Willner’s Nino Rota tribute album, at Roulette Intermedium. 05.03.23 Genevieve Artadi played a grreat set at Public Records in Brooklyn to support her new album Forever Forever, with Louis Cole on drums. 05.27.23 Gloryhammer at Irving Plaza. Saw them in Melbourne too. 06.27.23 Sparks played a brilliant show at the Beacon Theater in NYC and I also caught them at Palais Theater in St Kilda, Melbourne, Australia on 10.26.23 07.04.23 75 Dollar Bill at Union Pool 08.20.23 BeatFox . Incredible luck to see this guy busking on Brick Lane. 08.21.23 The very wonderful Deerhoof at The Lafayette in London 08.22.23 clipping. played a killer show at Outernet in London 08.23.23 The incredible Poil Ueda from Lyon, France played in London at the Lexington + Lost Crowns 08.24.23 Swans played an epic set at The Troxy in Londo 09.24.23 TENGGER played an amazing set at the Art Gallery of NSW. 10.06.23 Fuji|||||||||||ta at Tempo Rubato in Melbourne, Australia. 10.07.23 RVG played a killer show to a packed house at Northcote Theatre in Melbourne, Australia 10.17.23 Chloe Sobek at Make It Up Club in Melbourne Australia. 10.21.23 Paul McCartney at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne Australia 10.28.23 Sarah Mary Chadwick at Wesley Anns as part of The 86 Super Saturday Festival 10.28.23 Party Dozen from Sydney played a great set at The 86 Super Saturday Festival in Melbourne Australia. 11.10.23 Devon Townsend played a beautiful, brutal and ecsatic show in Melbourne Australia at the Forum. 12.06.23 Ashley Bathgate and percussion sextet Mantra Percussion performed Matt McBane’s Topography at National Sawdust in NYC.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Michel Langevin (aka Away/Voïvod)

My coups de coeur in 2023: TV Series: The Last of Us Music: The Damned - Darkadelic Godflesh - Purge Crown Lands - Fearless Gong - Unending Ascending Soft Machine - Other Doors Best show: KISS End of the Road World Tour in Montréal on Nov 18th Best Moments: -Recording and touring the new Voïvod album, Morgöth Tales, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the band -Celebrating my 60th birthday on stage in Lyon on the Voïvod/Testament Euro tour -Jason Newsted joining the band on stage in Fort Lauderdale, USA -Eric Forrest joining the band on stage at Hellfest, France

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Lydia Lunch

https://www.lydia-lunch.net/

“Time-one long second that goes on forever” So enjoy it motherfuckers!

BOOKS

Love the World or Get Killed Trying Alvina Chamberland Mother Howl Craig Clevenger Nein, Nein, Nein! : One Man's Tale of Depression, Psychic Torment, and a Bus Tour of the Holocaust Jerry Stahl Mystic Debris Justin Gradin Niagara, NY Ric Royers The Pale-Faced Lie : A True Story David Crow The Conspiracy Against the Human Race: A Contrivance of Horror Thomas Ligotti The Field: The Quest for the Secret Force of the Universe Lynne McTaggert Yuval Noah Harari Box Set (Sapiens, Homo Deus, 21 Lessons for 21st Century) Season of the Witch Cathi Unsworth Every word John Tottenham utters or writes

TOURS with Sylvia Black & Gregg Foreman, Joseph Keckler, Marc Hurtado (tribute to Alan Vega & Suicide), Ian White, Kevin Shea (Sinister Impulse), Tim Dahl & Matt Nelson (Murderous Again)

Workshop & Performance Badass Babes of Burlesque w Rita D’Albert Zebulon LA

Workshop at the University of New Mexico thanks to Greg Moss

Reading with Zoe Hansen & Ron Athey at The Philosophical Research Center LA Reading with Eugene Robinson Makeout Room SF

Finishing the documentary with Jasmine Hirst Artists - Depression, Anxiety, and Rage and premiering it in Italy

Meeting butuh Queen Azumi OE and discussing up coming performances together with Tim Dahl

Completing the 233 episode of The Lydian Spin with Tim Dahl

FUN

Nights in London & Brighton spent with Nick Soulsby, Cathi Unsworth, Billy Chainsaw, Chris Bohn, Jack Sargeant, Pam Hogg,

Tina Kit (opened for my Suicide tribute in London & Brighton) best new band of suited and booted bad boys

Squired around Europe by Sebastien Greppo, a man like no other - who so lightens my burden…

Watching every episode of The Dark Side of The Ring with Kevin Shea

Training squirrels, levitating objects, saving lives, screaming into the void.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Mike Berdan

(Uniform) https://uniform-nyc.com/

ALBUMS

Lankum - False Lankum

Surgeon - Crash Recoil

Ryuichi Sakamoto - 12

Fellwinter - The Dawn Of Winter

Abysmal Lord - Bestiary Of Immortal Hunger

Death Kneel - Dawn Simulation

Shit And Shine - 2222 And Airport

Carnivorous Bells - Room Above All

Agonal Lust - Mankind Is A Talisman Of Misfortune

Godflesh - Purge

FIRST-TIME READS

A History Of Violence (1973) - David Cotner

Someone Who Isn't Me - Geoff Rickly

Your Dreams - Thomas Moore 4. In A Lonely Place - Karl Edward Wagner

Burn You The Fuck Alive - B.R. Yeager

The Holy Day - Christopher Norris

A Collapse Of Horses - Brian Evenson

The Devil Thinks I'm Pretty - Charlene Elsby

Let's Go Play At The Adams' - Mendal W. Johnson

Counterillumination - Audrey Szasz

MOVIES

Godzilla Minus One

CIGARS

Cohiba Magico Maduro Petit Robusto

God Of Fire Serie B Double Robusto

Padron Family Reserve no. 95 Maduro Petit Gordo

El Pulpo Toro

Tatuaje Reserva J21 Broadleaf Robusto

Atabey Benditos Double Corona

Romeo y Julieta Línea de Oro Nobles

H. Upmann Half Corona

Foundation Cigars The Tabernacle Robusto

OpusX Eye Of The Shark

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Mario Diaz deLeon (composer, Luminous Vault, Bloodmist)

ALBUMS Evita Manji - Spandrel? Eartheater - Powders Slowspin - Talisman Marta DePascalis - Sky Flesh Kalia Vandever - We Fell in Turn Eraldo Bernocchi + Hoshiko Yamane - Sabi JakoJako - Verve Surgeon - Crash Recoil Cavalera - Morbid Visions / Bestial Devastation Bell Witch - The Clandestine Gate Steve Lehman + Orchestre National de Jazz - Ex Machina

SONGS Kelly Moran - Vesela Vines - I Don’t Mind Cybotron - Maintain Barker - Birmingham Screwdriver VMO - Supergaze Omar Hisham - Adhan (Be Heaven)

EVENTS New Firmament: MONAD - Roulette Peter Evans: Being and Becoming - Roulette Anna Sperber: Amplifier - Roulette 20 Years of Shinkoyo - Roulette Anthony Braxton + Wolf Eyes - Pioneer Works Caterina Barbieri - Pioneer Works Felipe Lara + Claire Chase + Esperanza Spaulding + NY Phil TAK Ensemble: Swoonfest - The Clemente Center Kayo Dot: Choirs of The Eye - MilkBoy Cecilia Vicuña / Raven Chacon - The Poetry Project Krallice / Indocrithere / Geryon / Ocrilim - Saint Vitus Cavalera: Morbid Devastation - Irving Plaza Hulder / Blackbraid / Aeviterne - Le Poisson Rouge Eartheater / Concrete Husband - Elsewhere

BOOKS Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz - An Indigenous Peoples History of the United States

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Alexander Tucker (Microcorps)

I started off the year by releasing a project very close to my heart: Fifth Continent, a collaboration with the late Keith Collins, partner and collaborator of film maker and artist Derek Jarman. The album was partially recorded in Jarman’s cottage in the desert-like landscape of Dungeness, on the South East coastline of Kent, in the UK, with elements constructed from Collins own spoken word pieces, and environmental recordings. The album was released on James Ginzberg’s Subtext label, and we also produced Fifth Quarter, an anthology publication of writing, recollections, photography and newly commissioned artworks about Jarman, Collins and Dungeness.

Although I probably made more music than usual this year, and had a greater focus than ever on the various projects I have underway, 2023 felt like a weird and often frustrating year for me and music. About five years ago I set about teaching myself modular systems, experimenting, and recording the results as I went along. This culminated in a new solo guise primarily for electronics and the synthesis of voice and acoustic instruments, MICROCORPS (the debut album Xmit came out on Alter records in 2021). Using these systems is at the same time liberating and incredibly frustrating. For a while this year nothing felt good enough: I could feel the potential of my ideas glimmering in the distance but was unable to catch up with them. I decided to take a short break from the modular, and focused upon compositions for cello, saxophone, and clarinet. But the pull of electronics is never far, so I began processing these recordings, using granular synthesis to stretch, mutate and reorganise the audio into new pieces. As soon as you want more from your practice and yourself, things can become more laborious - it’s difficult to be in the moment and focus on what’s in front of you. I used to be happy with the immediate effects I produced, but I think this is being replaced by a different approach, something more considered, which is exciting and, in some ways, sobering - even if the results are far from what you would describe as sober. I’m also so lucky to have many friends and fellow artists around me to offer help and suggestions, to whom I’m eternally grateful. As R.Crumb says, “Keep on truckin”.

Music I dug this year: Godflesh - Purge (Avalanche Recordings) Rắn Cạp Đuôi - *1 (nhạc_gay) Mun Sing - Inflatable Gravestone (Planet Mu) RS Tangent - When A Worm Wears A Wig (The Trilogy Tapes) Arnold Dreybaltt And The Orchestra Of Excited Strings - Resolve (Drag City) Elvin Brandhi and Lord Spikeheart - Drunken Love (Hakuna Kulala) Mark Fell and Will Guthrie - Infoldings / Diffractions (NAKID) Afrorack - The Afrorack (Hakuna Kulala) Kinn - Dogtooth (First Light Records) General Magic - Nein Aber Ja (GoTo Records)

Live shows: Emptyset - Village Underground Elvin Brandhi - IKLECTIK Mick Harris/FRET – Downwards’ 30th, Centrala Mun Sing, Crys Cole, Penelope Trappes - Boundaries Festival Maxwell Sterling - Cafe OTO Pole - EartH Nik Colk Void - Too many to count! Phew - Cafe OTO Residency Acid Horse Festival Devo - Hammersmith Apollo Kinn - New Cross Road Baptist Church

Comics: In 2023 I produced a new issue of my ongoing oblique and nonlinear comic series, Entity Reunion. For this issue I drew upon my love of HP Lovecraft, using the repetition of the comic format to peel back layers of the everyday to reveal omnipotent entities underlying all reality. The viewpoint of each page is from the point of view of the protagonists, who hold an electronic device, photographing their surroundings only to capture the blurred features of some insidious face. There are also references to Lovecraft’s own fictional grimoire the Necrononmicon. I wanted that dreamlike sensation of being the protagonists of the dream but also viewing yourself as separate entity.

Books: I read nearly all of Patrica Highsmith’s ‘Ripley’ books, a bunch of John Le Carré novels, Mark Kermode’s book on The Exorcist and I’m currently working my way through the spy novelist Eric Ambler’s books. I also re-read Bruce Robinson’s analysis on Jack the Ripper and Victorian society, ‘They All Love Jack’.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Tom Chiu (composer, Flux Quartet)

2 0 2 3 IN REVIEW

Albums Worth Exploring (including a couple entries from 2022 that I discovered late)

Bar Italia Tracey Denim (Matador)

Blur Ballad Of Darren (Parlophone)

Bush Tetras They Live In My Head (Wharf Cat)

Death Valley Girls Islands In The Sky (Suicide Squeeze)

Dummy Mono Retriever (Sub Pop)

Duster Remote Echoes (Numero Group)

En Attendant Ana Principia (Trouble In Mind)

Everything But the Girl Fuse (Verve)

Horse Lords Comradely Objects (RVNG)

Kelela Raven (Warp)

Lael Neale Star Eaters Delight (Sub Pop)

Lana Del Rey Do You Know That There's A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd (Interscope)

Lewsberg Out And About (12XU)

Munya Jardin (Luminelle)

Slowdive Everything Is Alive (Dead Oceans)

Sweeping Promises Good Living Is Coming For You (Sub Pop)

Wednesday Rat Saw God (Dead Oceans)

Yo La Tengo This Stupid World (Matador)

Night at the Movies

Poor Things Past Lives Monster

Recurring Personal FAVES

FAVE Sandwich: Mekelburg's Clinton Hill, Brooklyn

FAVE Burger: Two8Two Bar & Burger, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn

FAVE Craft Beer Brewery Omnipollo (Sweden), brewed at Twelve Percent Beer Project, North Haven, CT

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Pierre Cerrato

Producer - Editor Floyd County Productions (Archer)

Favorite Movies/TV Archer Season 14 The Last of Us Gen V Beef This Fool Season 2 Fargo Season 5 Primo (Amazon Prime Show) The Bear Season 2 Episode Barry Season 4

Favorite Records I listened to a lot of music but these were in constant rotation. Some are from last year but what is time and who cares?

Boris/Uniform - Bright New Disease (2023) Birds in Row - Gris Klein (2022) Fleshwater - We Are Not Here to Be Loved (2022) Asunojokei - Islands (2022) Everything But the Girl - Fuse (2023) Night Owls - Versions (2022)

Honorable mention Boris - Feedbacker (2003) this was my introduction to Boris. This year is the 20 year anniversary of its release. Roberto Carlos Lange shared it with me one day while at work. He said it was something he thought I would like. Blew my mind and I have been a fan ever since.

Favorite Concerts The Cure - State Farm Arena - also saw The Cure at Riot Fest but this was better of the 2. I regret not going to Night 2 in Atlanta because they played Disintegration. H20 - Riot Fest 2023 Set Fleshwater - Riot Fest 2023 Set Future Islands - Shakey Knees 2023 Set The Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Shakey Knees 2023 Set Converge / Brutus - The Masquerade Drain / Drug Church - The Masquerade Donny Benet - Terminal West Idles - Re:Set 2023 Set

Favorite Food

MF Sushi - Atlanta - went twice and each time it was a special occasion. Heirloom Market BBQ - Atlanta - best BBQ in my neck of the woods. The Aviary - Chicago - specialty cocktails with spectacular presentation. Cafe Tola - Chicago - best empanadas i've ever had in my life. Selva Negra - Miami - a solid contender for Nica food. Jaguar - Miami - great vibes, service and ceviche! No Hard Feelings - Chatanooga - great cocktails and vibes!

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Zachary Lipez

(editor at large of Creem Magazine, writer, singer of Publicist UK)

Music I made a (very) long list on my wildly popular blog, Abundant Living. But, for kicks and with the understanding that maybe you don’t feel like reading (or subscribing to) my wildly popular blog, here’s some stuff I included and some stuff I forgot (with particular attention paid to albums I think might be of particular interest to JG friends/fans but which may have slipped through the radar) (meaning: I mainly put the stuff that wasn’t on too many other lists). Fatboi Sharif Decay (Backwoodz) Skech185 He Left Nothing for the Swim Back (Backwoodz) Zohra Murder In The Temple (American Dreams) The Native Cats The Way On Is The Way Off (Chapel) Geese 3D Country (Partisan) Gold Dime No More Blue Skies (No-Gold) Algiers Shook (Matador) EXEK The Map and the Territory (Foreign) Skinhead Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt (Closed Casket) Débruit & Alsarah Aljawal الجوال (Soundway) Fairytale Shooting Star (Toxic State) Among The Rocks and Roots Pariah (Cacophonous Revival) Full of Hell, Nothing When No Birds Sang (Closed Casket) Uniform & Boris Bright New Disease (Sacred Bones) Sleaford Mods UK Grim (Rough Trade) Money&King Act Unnaturally (self released) Blu Anxxiety Morbid Now, Morbid Later (Toxic State) Nana Benz du Togo AGO (Komos) Citric Dummies Zen and the Arcade of Beating Your Ass (Feel It) Ghösh Prismassive (Ramp Local) Peasdez Fenomenologia Del Espiritu Agonico: De La Existencia Sordida Al Pendulo De La Nada (SPHC) Upper Wilds Jupiter (Thrill Jockey) Death Valley Girls Islands In The Sky (Suicide Squeeze) Raphael Rogiński Talán Body Void Atrocity Machine (Prosthetic) Feeling Figures Migration Magic (Perennial) Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band Dancing on the Edge (Sophomore Lounge) Nosaj from New Kingdom & steel tipped dove House of Disorder (Fused Arrow Records) mclusky unpopular parts of a pig / the digger you deep (self released) Advertisement Escorts (Feel It) King Vision Ultra Shook World (hosted by Algiers) (PTP)

Live Shows that Stand Out In My Memory Moor Mother/Armand Hammer/The Caretaker/Raphael Roginski for the Unsound Fest at Lincoln Center (I covered this for The Quietus if yr interested) Sleaford Mods at Coachella (profiled them for CREEM) Lydia Lunch/Zohra at St.Vitus Lydia Lunch Retrovirus last American show ever (?) at TV Eye Various skinhead/nü oï bands at the Monarch/TV Eye etc. with Liberty & Justice being the standout Son Rompe Pera at TV Eye Chisel (the Ted Leo outfit, not the neo-bootboy band with the “the” in their name) at LPR

BOOKS My phone has pretty much eliminated my ability to read. I did read the first 100 pages of more books than I care to admit. I finally finished Mark Andrews’ Paint My Name In Black and Gold: The Rise of the Sisters of Mercy and I recommend it if, like me, you think The Sisters of Mercy are better than the Beatles (or whatever inane comparison annoys your friends the most). I also discovered Gene Wolfe and read the first book in the Book of the New Sun trilogy. Otherwise, it’s pretty much been just using Louise Glück poetry as inspiration to write terrible versions of Louise Glück poetry.

TV Doom Patrol Pokerface Rick and Morty (idc idc idc idc) HasanAbi twitch stream A ludicrous amount of Britbox mysteries and—passively, yes, but not without a fair amount of emotional investment—various Real Housewife shows/spinoffs

Movies Didn’t watch any new movies this year but I did have a lot of youtube videos playing in the background while I did other things, and sometimes those videos would be three hour long screeds about what was wrong with a number of movies I’d never heard of. So I feel like I got the gist.

LIFE Converted to Islam and married Zohra in January. Both choices have proven to be rewarding as all hell. Cashing in my “as a Jew I…” argument card—while simultaneously being too new a Muslim to reasonably claim either special knowledge and/or marginalization status—has really fucked with my ability to be self-righteous online. But the love that Zohra and her family have shown me has more than made up for my newfound inability to really wipe the floor with a motherfucker in the instagram comments. In fact, I liked marrying Zohra so much that I did it again in December (first time was a religious ceremony, the second time was our rendering to Caesar etc). If you know me/us and weren’t invited to either that’s because essentially no one was. As my parents couldn’t attend (on account of being dead) I didn’t really see the point of a big party. That was perhaps selfish. We love you (probably) and will have some sort of to-do in 2024.

Otherwise, I am still very much enjoying working for the new CREEM Magazine (please subscribe) and doing my newsletter (please subscribe). Musically, I lived vicariously through Zohra and the release of her first solo album. Murder In The Temple, with amazing production by Ben Greenberg and contributions by Lydia Lunch, is a synthesis of so many of Zohra’s obsessions. It’s unlike anything in the post-goth-dark-whatever sphere and I can’t express how proud I am of it and her. As for my music, I did some neat-o Scientists-esque stuff with Telematics (Sohrab Habibion, Robert Austin, and Alexis Fleisig) and Zohra and I did a Sheer Terror cover in the style of Tindersticks to commemorate Paul Bearer’s marriage. Also, I’m pretty sure my most successful band (Publicist UK) got dropped by our label (apparently taking eight years to finish a demo is a long time) so get at me if you have a low-to-mid tier label and want to put out an album of eight minute gothic metal songs with zero mosh parts, about an aging hipster loving his wife and cats and missing his dead mom and dad. C’mon, do it. You’d be printing money.

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Jim Siegel

Vivid Oblivion

Records And Other Things I Liked In 2023

Lankum - False Lankum (Rough Trade)

Milford Graves with Arthur Doyle and Hugh Glover - Children Of The Forest (Black Editions Archive)

Nakibembe Embaire Group (Nyege Nyege Tapes)

Henning Christiansen - Mediterranean Music-Water (Holidays)

Alain Goraguer - La Planete Sauvage (Expanded) (Decca)

Phill Niblock - Boston III (Alga Marghen)

Sam McLoughlin & David Chatton Barker - The Heavenly Realms (Folklore Tapes)

Svitlana Nianio & Tom James Scott - Eye Of The Sea (Skire)

Half Mortal - Creature Of Christ (Hospital Productions)

Pharoah Sanders - Pharoah box (Luaka Bop)

Ragnar Johnson & Jessica Mayer - Spirit Cry Flutes And Bamboo Jews Harps From Papua New Guinea (Ideologic Organ)

PJ Harvey - I Inside The Old Year Dying (Partisan)

Jana Winderen - The Blue Beyond (Touch)

Rezzett - Meant Like This (The Trilogy Tapes)

Arsenije Jovanovic - Sailboat Galiola Nuria's Unfinished Logbook (Pentiments)

Only Voices Vol. 1 + 2 (DDS)

Wounded Son - Pain Is All I Have For You (Hospital Productions)

Various - Cease & Resist: Sonic Subversion & Anarcho Punk In The UK 1979-1986 (Optimo Music)

Umeko Ando - Upopo Sanke (Pingipung)

Philip Jeck & Chris Watson - Oxmardyke (Touch)

Lori Vambe - Space-Time Dreamtime: The Four Dimensional Music Of Lori Vambe (Strut)

Mozart Estate - Pop-Up! Ker-Ching! And The Possibilities Of Modern Shopping (West Midlands)

Sandwell District - Feed Forward box (The Point Of Departure)

Japan Blues - Japan Blues Meets The Dengie Hundred (DDS)

Various - A Web Of Braided Willow - The Folklore Of The Wickerman (Folklore Tapes)

Surgeon - Crash Recoil (Tresor)

Mark Glynne And Bart Zwier - Home Comfort (La Scie Doree)

Ariel Kalma - French Archives Vol. III 1964-89 (Black Sweat)

Marginal Consort - 06 06 16 (St Elisabeth Kirche, Berlin) (901 Editions)

Brendan Perry - Eye Of The Hunter / Live At The I.C.A (4AD)

The Complete Obscure Records Collection box (Dialogo)

Various - Avant Garde 21xCD Box (Deutsche Grammophon)

Bill Nace Live at Public Records, December 2023

The Elephant 6 Recording Co. Documentary

Squaring The Circle - The Story Of Hipgnosis

Shame And Dignity with Stanley Schtinter and Sukhdev Sandhu at UnionDocs, NY November 2023

Godland, dir. Hlynur Palmason

Wawa Pretzel w/ Melted Cheese (Sandwich)

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Simon Karis

(CEO of Nice Music, recording artist)

Okay so fave releases of 2023

Absurd Cosmos Late Nite 'These Magic Clothes Don't Play Themselves' (Reseach Laboratories) Actress 'LXXXVIII' (Ninja Tune) Armand Hammer 'We Buy Diabetic Test Strips' (Fat Possum) Danny Brown 'Quaranta' (Warp) De-Bons-En-Pierre 'Card Short Of A Full Deck' (Dark Entries) Evian Christ 'Revanchist' (Warp) Eyes Of The Amaryllis 'Perceptible To Everyone' (Horn Of Plenty) Francis Plagne 'Into Closed Air' (Bison) Francis Plagne 'Udge' (Horn Of Plenty) Giuseppe Ielasi 'Down On Darkened Meetings' (Black Truffle) HHOST 'Windswept Italics' (Altered States Tapes) HHOST 'Veil' (Snail Editions) JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown 'Scaring The Hoes' (no label) Kassell Jaeger 'Shifted In Dreams' (Shelter Press) Khanate 'To Be Cruel' (Sacred Bones) Klein 'Doubt'/'Normani's Torment'/'STORM' (no label) L'Rain 'I Killed Your Dog' (Mexican Summer) Land's Air 'Land's Air' (Tone List) Locust 'The First Cause' (Mysteries Of The Deep) Low Flung 'The Wheel' (Snail Editions) Matt Harkin 'The Door Knocker' (no label) Nick Ashwood 'Inside The Body Of A Wave' (no label) Nuno Loureiro 'Lua Onus' (Super Pang) Patten 'Mirage FM' (555-5555) Pissed Jeans 'No Convenient Apocalypse' (Sub Pop) Princess Nokia 'I Love You But This Is Goodbye' (Arista) Red Wine & Sugar 'Turkish Coffee & Twice Baked Potatoes' (Chocolate Monk) Rezzett 'Meant Like This' (The Trilogy Tapes) Richard Youngs 'Modern Sorrow' (Black Truffle) Rory J S 'P' (no label) Rrose 'Please Touch' (Eaux) Solo Andata 'Slip Casting' (12k) WPH 'III' (no label) 100 Gecs '10,000 Gecs' (Dog Show/Atlantic)

fave back catalogue listens that made sense in 2023 Armand Hammer & The Alchemist 'Haram' (Backwoodz Studioz) Beherit 'H418ov21.C' (Spinefarm) Bernard Parmegiani 'De Natura Sonorum' (INA-GRM) Bowery Electric 'Beat' (Kranky) Charalambides 'Exile' (Kranky) Def Leppard 'Hysteria' (Mercury) Elastica 'Elastica' (Deceptive/Geffen) Elucid 'I Told Bessie' (Backwoodz Studioz) Emptyset 'Demiurge' (Subtext) Emptyset 'Recur' (Raster-Noton) Hematic Sunsets 'Musik Aus Dem Aroma Club' (Klang Der Festung) Joey Beltram 'Classics' (R&S) Ka 'Languish Arts' (Iron Works) Kim Cascone 'Cathodeflower' (Ritornell) The Kinks 'Lola Vs Powerman And The Moneygoround Part One' (Reprise/Pye) Kreator 'Terrible Certainty' (Noise International) Lol Coxhill & Morgan Fisher 'Slow Music' (Pipe/Aguirre) Low 'Hey What' (Sub Pop) Marsfield 'The Towering Sky' (Faraway Press) Massive Attack 'Mezzanine' (Virgin) Matt Harkin 'Sanctuary 1, 2015-2016' (Hobbies Galore) Maurizio Bianchi 'Endometrio' (no label/Dais) Moodymann 'Mahogany Brown' (Peacefrog) Moor Mother & billy woods 'Brass' (Backwoodz Studioz) Nearly God 'Nearly God' (4th & Broadway) Nightcrawlers '2031 AD' (no label) Richard Youngs 'Beyond The Valley Of The Ultrahits' (Sonic Oyster) Rita Revell 'I Had A Very Bad Time!' (Happy Endin') Roc Marciano 'Reloaded' (Decon) Seine Trance-Parenz Fredi Alberti 'Klaenge Aus Dem Engelsraum (Die Verdunklung Der Sonne Und Des Mondes)' (Scribble Art) Simbiosi 'Elements' (Werkdiscs) Suede 'Dog Man Star' (Nude) Valerio Tricoli 'Say Goodbye To The Wind' (Shelter Press) 100 Gecs '1000 Gecs' (Dog Show)

fave melbourne/naarm restaurants in 2023

Khabbay (Indian/Pakistani, Carlton) Laksa Village (Malaysian/Chinese, Donvale) Cinger Biang Biang (Dolan/Uyghur/Chinese, Carlton) Lim Kopi (Malaysian, Naarm/Melbourne CBD) Raya (South East Asian desserts, Naarm/Melbourne CBD) Taste Hunan (Hunan/Sichuan/Chinese, Naarm/Melbourne, CBD) Laksa House (Malaysian, Naarm/Melbourne, CBD)

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Brendon Randall-Myers

(composer, Scarcity, Marateck, Glenn Branca Ensemble)

If 2022 was the Return of the Show and the Return of Travel, 2023 was about Building Stability (i.e. making my teaching studio a primary income source), Hunkering Down to Finish Two Albums, and Re-Learning How to Be a Human Being. I also played a bunch of cool shows with Dither (collabs w/ Carla Kilhlstedt, Lee Ranaldo/Brian Chase, Amirtha Kidambi, AJ Santillan, and Laurie Spiegel; playing Electric Counterpoint on GFA), a couple fun Scarcity shows (playing with Liturgy, improvising on graphic scores by Anthony Hawley) and did some performances with Whimbrels and Contemporaneous.

These were albums I enjoyed (incessantly) at some point during 2023 that were mostly - but not exclusively - also released in 2023.

Agriculture - Agriculture Armand Hammer - We Buy Diabetic Test Strips Arnold Dreyblatt - Resolve Big Brave - Nature Morte Blackbraid - Blackbraid II Bummer - Dead Horse Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want to Turn Into You goat (JP) - Joy in Fear Goldfeather - Change JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown - SCARING THE HOES Jute Gyte - Unus Mundus Patet KEN Mode - VOID Killing Joke - Night Time Krallice - Mass Cathexis 2 - The Kinetic Infinite Model/Actriz - Dogsbody Modern Nature - How to Live Nabihah Iqbal - Dreamer Neil Young - Greatest Hits Oren Ambarchi - Shebang Pink Pantheress - Heaven knows The Prodigy - The Fat of the Land Rid Of Me - Traveling Slowspin - Talisman Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream Swans - The Beggar Trauma Bond - Winter’s Light Tristan Kasten-Krause and Jessica Pavone - Images of One Victory Over the Sun - Dance You Monster To My Soft Song! Yaeji - With A Hammer

Here were some shows I attended:

Wolf Eyes + Raven Chacon @Union Pool Liturgy @TV Eye Gamelan Dharma Swara, Ridgewood Presbyterian Church Moor Mother @Merkin Hall Object Collection @The Brick Theater Spectral Wound @Saint Vitus Pyrrhon + Barrsheadahl @Saint Vitus The Smile @Forest Hills Stadium Krallice @Saint Vitus Mediaqueer @Windjammer Sarah Hennies + Tristan Kasten-Krause @Issue Project Room Peter and the Wolf @Guggenheim Model/Actriz @Music Hall of Williamsburg

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Grace Bergere

(songwriter / singer / performer)

This year was full of firsts for me!

Definitely the most musically eventful year of my life to date. I went on my first tour playing bass with my great friends in COP/OUT, supporting Days n' Daze (A band I'd been listening to for years as a young punk kid.) I immediately realized touring is really all I want to do. I also got to tour alongside Subhumans in Cop/Out. Meeting them and getting to know them was mind expanding. They were all kind and humble thoughtful individuals, completely down to earth and engaged with everyone they spoke to. Every night across the midwest they brought the crowd to a cathartic screaming euphoric mess. Working with COP/OUT, whose message is so clear; to be good to each other, question everything even when it means swimming upstream with every bit of strength you have, filled me with hope. Playing on that tour with them, and watching Subhumans every night reminded me the power of music to affect real social change which is something I believed to have been lost in recent years. I met my great friend Jessica Mills on that tour and we still talk all the time.

I also started playing guitar in The Art Gray Noizz Quintet. One of my longtime favorite bands (that my very talented cool boyfriend happens to play bass in.) We went all across the West Coast, landing in Las Vegas. Playing with them has demanded I advance as a guitarist, stepping into Andrea Sicco's shoes. Andrea is a complete beast of a musician and all of his musical projects are awesome. Check out MOVIE MOVIE, his most recent project.

I also joined Crazy And The Brains on second guitar. They’re a super fun high energy punk band. I love being around such positive fun loving musicians and watching them bounce around while I do my best to keep up.

I recently finished recording my album at HOBO SOUND in Hoboken by James Frazee. The time and effort it took over the several years since I started, was at times grueling. But James never stopped caring or checked out. He helped me shape this album into something I am truly proud of, along with Richard Dev Greene, one of the first people to ever believe in my music. I am so grateful to both of them.

I started spending time with Victoria and Kay of Puzzled Panther. They quickly have become two of my best friends. It is so meaningful for me to have found such badass, driven young women to share a dream with. Puzzled Panther is raw and hypnotizing. They have a unique strong hold over their audience and every show of theirs I’ve been to has been fantastic. Victoria has joined me a few times on a song at my shows, and every time I believe has been one of the strongest points in my set.

I Met Eugene Hutz of Gogol Bordello (the first huge band I ever went to see as a young teenager.) He will be releasing my upcoming single and video for “Come And Go” on his label Casa Gogol Records in early 2024.

I just played the biggest show I’ve ever played with my solo project that plays under my name. We were on a bill with Gogol Bordello and JON SPENCER (Also one of my favorite artists.) Being on that stage standing there in front of more people I’ve ever seen in an audience from that vantage point, I felt like every second of my life was leading to that moment. Each song brought me back to the time in my life when Id written it and it felt very much like watching my life projected in front of me. It was indescribably satisfying to be on that stage. Later, in the audience, I screamed along to Gogol and watched my mom dance to songs she'd heard me blasting through the house as a kid, and felt just as moved by them as I did as a young teenager the first time I saw them.

I am so grateful to be working with Eugene. He is kind and thoughtful in his feedback and hugely supportive of me and my dreams.

I will be playing New Years Eve with the Art Gray Noizz Quintet before Kid Congo Powers and The Pink Monkey Birds !!

This last week I can honestly say, has been the best of my life to date. Like looking out over a valley after climbing for years.

BEST SHOWS

(other than the ones I was lucky enough to play at listed above)

RICHARD DAWSON

I got to see Richard Dawson three whole times!!! it was his first US appearance. He is a completely unique force. I’ve never seen such a captivated crowd. we all cried and screamed along with him.

PIGS X 7

One of those times he was playing with Pigs x7. They quickly became another favorite band of mine despite having severe technical difficulties. it was actually kind of a highlight because their front man just started joking around and had the entire audience laughing along with him and talking for about 10 minutes. I got to see them two other times that went perfectly. What a band..

JON SPENCER AND THE HIT MAKERS

I saw them at TV Eye. I had been able to squeeze myself into the DJ booth for their set. They hammered away into some kind of magical hypnosis that made me feel like I'd taken MDMA. (I had not.) I had to lean against a wall to keep my balance. They played with Licks, a badass 60s garage rock inspired band fronted by my friend Skunk.

LYDIA LUNCH RETROVIRUS

Also driving and hypnotic and loud as hell. I was left with a similar feeling of having been dosed with something at all of their shows…

JOSEPH KECKLER

The first time I saw Joseph perform was at TV eye with Lydia Lunch. He’s completely unique. He writes gorgeous songs that he sings in an incomprehensibly wide range, sometimes in languages that he has invented himself! His seamlessly mixes humor with honest beautiful songwriting.

SONGS I LISTENED TO A BILLION TIMES THIS YEAR.

ART GRAY NOIZZ QUINTET- Lie Come True JOSEPH KECKLER- The Ride JON SPENCER AND THE HIT MAKERS- Death Ray GOGOL BORDELLO- Shot Of Solidaritine PUZZLED PANTHER- Smoke And The Mirrors We Broke PIGSX 7 - Reducer ARCHERS OF LOAF- Banging On a Dead Drum

OLDER HITS THAT WERE NEW TO ME

LAURIE ANDERSON- Poison POISON GIRLS- Fear Of Freedom CULTURE SHOCK- Things To Do CAPTAIN BEEFHEART- Tropical Hot Dog WARREN ZEVON- Desperados Under The Eves MINNIE RIPERTON- Les Fleurs BOBBY GENTRY - Ode To Billy Joe TOWNES VAN ZANDT- Highway Kind

BOOKS

Joseph Keckler- Dragon at the edge of a flat world. Mark Lanegan- Sing Backwards and Weep Miriam Toews- Fight Night

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

Marc Urselli

producer / engineer / sound designer

I want to thank JG Thirlwell for inviting me to submit my 2023 Year in Review. I had never done one of these before and it's been a fun challenge to go through my calendar and social media to remember and realize how much I was able to pack into this year! Selecting and writing down all of these things also helped me further grasp and understand how tremendously privileged and lucky I am to be able to do what I love all year around, year after year, and to live my life to the fullest and according to my own wishes and my own design. I don't take this lightly and I don't take it for granted. I am very aware that it comes from hard work, limitless passion and unweavery dedication, not just luck and good fortune, but nevertheless I am grateful every single day for this life and for being healthy, being able to do all of this, and for all the people in my path who trust me, inspire me, support me, challenge me, and enlighten me!

STUDIO SESSIONS, ALBUMS & PRODUCTIONS When compiling this list, it really dawned on me how fortunate I am to be working with such incredible talents and how priviledged I am to be able to witness, participate and contribute to the creation of exceptional works such as the following:

Producing, Recording & Mixing sessions with David J of Bauhaus, Norwegian artist Ihsahn (of Emperor) & Toby Driver (of Kyao Dot), John Stanier (of Battles), Brian Chase (of Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Restless Spirit, Vicki Peterson (of the Bangles), John Cowsill (of the Cowsill Family and The Beach Boys touring band) and many others for my new RAMONES tribute album to come out next year on Magnetic Eye records

Producing, Recording and Mixing a cover of Soundgarden's song "4th of July" with my doom metal / throat singing project SteppenDoom for the Magnetic Eye album "Soundgarden (Redux) and featuring Matt Cameron of Soundgarden themselves on drums

seeing the release of Brian Carpenter's "Ghost Train Orchestra & Kronos Quartet - The Music of Moondog" album featuring Kronos Quartet (which I recorded at EastSide Sound) and many other amazing guest artists

Producing, Recording, Mixing, and Mastering a live album by Brazilian artists Zé Ibarra, Dora Morelenbaum and Julia Mestre of Bala Desejo for Glasshaus Presents & Tower Records

Mixing new albums by Glenn Max Vanderwolf (produced by Dennis Martin), by Bloodmist (Toby Driver, Mario Diaz De Leon, Jeremiah Cymermann), and by Ikue Mori & Zeena Parkins at EastSide Sound fully utilizing the analog console and the analog outboard gear (something nowadays is more and more rare)

Recording & Mixing 6 new albums by John Zorn this year alone, which brings my total JZ count to over 120 albums, and which as of this year can finally be heard on streaming platforms as well!

Recording and Producing a new album by Marco Cappelli's Italian-inspired band IDR at EastSide Sound in NYC and then going to Rome, Italy to overdub trombone and vocals with famed contemporary Neapolitan singer Raiz

Producing, Recording, Mixing, and Mastering 2 new albums by incognito jazz / blues artist Russell Orr with legendary Brian Marsella & Brian Mitchell on keys, respectively

Recording, Mixing, and Mastering two new albums by Jessica Pavone and her trio

Producing, Recording, Mixing and Mastering a "We Are the World"-type track for NYC Mayor's Office of Immigrant Affairs with a song composed by Captain Beefheart / Jeff Buckley's guitarist Gary Lucas and 10 other musicians from various parts of the world playing their local instruments and singing in their mother's tongue

Recording and Mixing the new album by Italian singer/songwriter Beppe Voltarelli, produced by Simone Giuliani, which took second place in Italy's Premio Tenco

Recording a new film score by composer Billy Martin (of Medeski, Martin & Wood) and arranged by Simon Hanes (of Tredici Bacci)

Producing, Recording, Mixing, and Mastering contemporary classical music sessions commissioned by Miller Theater and Columbia University with artists such as Laura Barger & Julia Den Boer, Miguel Zenon, Matt Mitchell & Miles Okazaki, Russell Greenberg & Vicky Chow

Recording new albums by contemporary classical/jazz musicians such as Miles Okazaki, Brian Drye, Anna Webber & Matt Mitchell and others Recording new albums by amazing Latin Jazz artists such as Gili Lopes, Homan Alvarez, Rodrigo Recabarren, Benjamin Furman

seeing the HBO release of John Lurie’s “Painting with John” new season where all the music was recorded & mixed by me and seeing my face briefly on TV

recording in an old church in Italy with Adriano Viterbini and Vincenzo Vasi for a project that will come out sometimes next year hopefully

SOUND DESIGN GIGS & LIVE SOUND MIXING GIGS Similarly to the list above, I am eternally greatful for the fact that all these wonderfully talented people trust me with designing, mixing and amplifying their sound so that the rest of the world can truly and fully experience their art in the most complete, sonically articulated, detailed and full spectrum way there is! Some of these highlights include:

Mixing a 90-piece orchestra + 90-piece choir playing the score to Stanley Kubrick "2001: A Space Odyssey" live-to-picture conducted by Brad Lubman in the Auditorio Nacional of Mexico City to a sold-out crowd of 10'000 people

Mixing the Grammy Award Premiere Ceremony in Los Angeles and being there to amplify and mix the immensely talented house band led by Cheche Alara and the performances by musicians such as Samara Joy, Anoushka Shankar, Arooj Aftab and more…

Mixing the Robbie Robertson tribute concert & memorial organized by Martin Scorsese at Village Studios in Los Angeles with artists such as Jackson Browne, Jason Isbell, Rocco DeLuca, Citizen Cope, Angela McCluskey, Blake Mills and Jim Keltner

Mixing the National Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony concert at the White House with artists such as Dionne Warwick, Samara Joy, Joe Walsh of the Eagles, St. Vincent and others.

Sound Designing and Mixing the world premiere of "Perle Noire: Meditations for Joséphine" at the DNO Dutch National Opera House in Amsterdam, a beautiful performance/concert/opera directed by Peter Sellars, composed by Tyshawn Sorey and performed by Tyshawn Sorey and ICE International Contemporary Ensemble with soprano Julia Bullock

One of my sound design pieces inspired by Icelandic nature sounds and folklore was presented at the "Le Son 7" Art Gallery in Madrid between the 3rd and the 13th of May 2023, after it was presented the year before in London and will be presented in January 2024 in New York

mixing 12 shows by John Zorn in 2 days at Big Ears Festival in Knoxville TN

mixing more shows by John Zorn to celebrate his 70th birthday in places like Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Miller Theater in New York, Reggio Emilia and Modena in Italy, Philharmonie in Paris, November Music Festival in Den Bosch Netherlands and Mexico City

Mixing Brian Carpenter's Ghost Train Orchestra live at Roulette with special guests David Byrne, Karen Mantler, Joan As Policewoman AND doing so right after I mixed another matinee gig earlier in the day with the New York Choral Society

working sound for the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art with musical guests Lizzo and David Byrne

Mixing Claudia Acuna at Lincoln Center

mixing Idina Menzel's performance in Trafalgar Square in London for Gay Pride 2023

playing keys (something I almost never ever do!) for Japanese electronic artist Coppé's first-ever performance in Italy

mixing my first ever K-pop gig in Times Square NY

teaching Mixing Workshops at SAE in Mexico City and MOB Studios in Rome, Italy

RECORDS In no particular order, here are some of my favorite records of 2023 that I was not involved with but I wish I had been ;-)

Anohni and the Johnsons "My Back Was a Bridge for you to Cross"

Lil Yachty "Let's Start Here"

Boygenius "The Record"

Ryuichi Sakamoto "12"

Jaimie Branch "Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((World War))"

Arooj Aftab / Vijay Iyer / Shahzad Ismaily "Love in Exile"

Peter Gabriel "I/O"

Hania Rani "Ghosts"

Meshell Ndegeocello "The Omnichord Real Book"

Bill Frisell "Four" - Ambrose Akinmusire, Bill Frisell, Herlin Riley "Owl song"

Porcupine Tree "Closure / Continuation"

Dr. John "The Brightest Smile in Town"

Spencer Zahn "Statues II"

Meshuggah "Chaosphere 25th anniversary 2023 Remastered edition"

Ennio Morricone "Segreto Songbook 1962-1973"

Sin Fang, Kjartan Holm "Angakok"

MUSIC SHOWS It's always hard for me to recount the shows I've seen because I usually see about 300-500 shows every year. LPR (Le Poisson Rouge) definitely shines through as my favorite venue and the one I've visited most often! Here are some of the highlights of 2023:

Spotlights, Imperial Triumphant, Puzzled Panthers at Saint Vitus

"La Splendida", a heavy metal opera by Laurent David & Kilter at Culture Lab LIC

Exotech 3 times, at Public Records, Mark Morris Dance Theater and at LPR

Tredici Bacci at least 2-3 times, one of which at Sultan Room

John Cale at Paradiso, Amsterdam

Plini at Melkweg, Amsterdam

Mary Halvorson Quintet at Bimhuis, Amsterdam

Thurston Moore at OCCII, Amsterdam

Jeff Goldblum at Town Hall

Xylorius White at LPR

Hal Willner's Amarcord tribute concert at Roulette

Snarky Puppy at Beacon Theater

Tim Bernardes at LPR

Groa at Taste of Iceland showcase at Pianos

JG Thirlwell & Mivos Quartet at National Sawdust

Bloodywood at Irving Plaza

Hermeto Pascoal twice, at Pioneer Works and LPR

Sexmob at Fotografiska

Grace Jones at Hammerstein Ballroom

Lisa Fisher at Blue Note

Iggy Pop and Debbie Harry / Blondie, London

Laurie Anderson & SexMob Let X=X at Barbican in London and BAM in Brooklyn - The Cult at MEDIMEX festival in Taranto, Italy - Tom Morello at MEDIMEX festival in Taranto, Italy

Emperor at Kings Theater

Ibrahim Malouff at Drom - Elan Mehler & Dave Douglas at Fotografiska

The Misfits at Prudential Center - Oumou Sangare at Brooklyn Bandshell

Red Fang at Gramercy Theater

The Eagles & Steely Dan at MSG - Tammy Faye Starlight at Joe's Pub

Julian Lage at Village Vanguard - Mdou Moctar at Summerstage

Makaya McCraven at Locus Festival, in Locorotondo Italy

Fatoumata Diawara at Locus Festival, in Locorotondo Italy

Sisters of Mercy at Cinzella Festival, in Grottaglie Italy

SunRa Arkestra at Locus Festival, in Locorotondo Italy

Robert Plant at Locus Festival, in Bari Italy

Mr. Bungle at Terminal 5

Melvins, Boris and all the other amazing bands at Desert Fest at Knockdown Center

Front Line Assembly at LPR

Peter Gabriel at MSG

Empire State Bastard at LPR & St Vitus

Cavalera Conspiracy at Irving Plaza

Swans at Music Hall of Williamsburg - Steven Bernstein w/ Millennial Territory at Dizzy's

Nick Cave & Jonny Greenwood 3 times, twice at Beacon Theater and once at Kings Theater

The Mission at LPR - Titan to Tychons at NuBlu

Dresden Dolls at Bowery Ballroom

Robert Glasper's Art Blakey tribute at Blue Note - Puzzled Panthers at Bowery Electric

Ghost Train Orchestra at Roulette

Arthur Brown in London

The Mongol Khan theater production at the Coliseum in London

8 Bit Big Band at Sony Hall

Bud Spencer Blues Explosion at Monk in Rome Italy

plus all the amazing artists I can't recall individually that I have seen at Winter Jazz Festival, Long Play Festival and Big Ears Festival

BOOKS I am sadly a slow reader and my pile of books on my bedside table is always bigger than the time awake I have when I finally do get to bed, but here are some I have read, or started to read or am planning on starting to read:

Kid Congo Powers "Some New Kind Of Kick"

Nick Cave & Seán O'Hagan "Faith, Hope and Carnage"

Warren Ellis "Nina Simone's Gum"

Rick Rubin "The Creative Act: A Way of Being"

Quincy Jones "12 Notes: On Life and Creativity"

Quincy Trouple "Miles & Me"

MUSEUMS I try to visit museums in every city I go to, whether I am on tour, working, traveling for pleasure or whatever the reason is… Art is my passion, my love and a way of life…

Museu Picasso, Barcelona, Spain

Fundcaio Joan Miró, Barcelona, Spain

The Salvador Dali Theater and Museum, Figueres, Spain

Salvador Dalí House / Fundació Gala, Cadaqués, Port Lligat, Spain

Park Gúell, Barcelona, Spain

Moco Museum, Barcelona, Spain

Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain

Vermeer Exhibit, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Moco Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Amsterdam Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Art on Paper, New York

Frieze, New York

Karl Lagerfled "A Line of Beauty", Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY

Yayoi Kusama "Infinity Mirror Rooms", Tate Modern, London, UK

Frida Kahlo & Diego Riviera House & Studio, Mexico City

Palacio De Bellas Artes, Mexico City

Museo Jumex, Mexico City

Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporanea, Mexico City

Paul Gugelmann "Poetic Machines", Aarau, Switzerland

MOVIES There are soooo many movies I still want to / need to see… I love movies but I prioritize work and live music in my life and I will only watch movies on planes, on (very very) rainy days or those rare times when I don't have a concert on my calendar, so here are a few of those rainy/non-concert films, in no particular order:

Killers of the Flower Moon (for the story, the acting and the soundtrack)

Equalizer 3 (because aside from its Hollywood-ish story and ending, it's a realistic look at how organized crime works in Italy)

Little Richard: I am Everything (for his story, his character, his music and his courage!)

Psychedelicized: The Electric Circus Stroy (for the amazing portrait of a time that's past but that changed NYC forever!)

American Symphony (for the amazing story, talent, spirit and courage of Jon Batiste)

32 Sounds (because my life is about sound…)

Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song (because Leonard was an amazing artist and songwriter and singer and so many friends are in this movie)

Oppenheimer (because that history is so complex and so divided as the country in which it took place)

TRAVEL Travel is the richess of life! I travel SO MUCH that I am on a plane AT LEAST once a month and usually it is to an international location… This year was no different, so I've decided to only list 12 trips for this section:

January: Ringing in the year in a medieval tower in Barcelona and spending the first 4 days of the new year trying all the tapas bars, restaurants, food stands this beautiful city has to offer and seing the Sagrada Familia cathedral for the 3rd time in my life

February: Living in Amsterdam for 3 weeks visiting all the musuems, all the music venues and all the while working at the Dutch National Opera with some amazing folks (see list above)

March: Snowboarding the Swiss and the French alps

April: Visiting Knoxville Tennessee for Big Ears (easily the best independent music festival in the US!!!) for the 2nd time in 2 years, and hopefully the beginning of many more visits in the future!

May: Spending time in sunny Los Angeles and plotting a way to spend more time there and make music

June: Visiting London twice in one month to work and see amazing music shows, theater shows and art exhibits

July: coming back from London on July 6th only to realize that strangely there is no travel for the rest of this month! So weird and unusual!

August: Spending the month in Puglia, Southern Italy eating good food, kitesurfing in the Adriatic and Ionium sea, seeing tons of concerts and playing one myself!

September: arriving in Mexico City and getting my very own police escort motorcade to make it in time from the airport to the theater

October: On tour with John Zorn in Italy, France and the Netherlands

November: Flying to Los Angeles with a 36 hour notice for a concert I was hired for in secrecy having been told "we need a mixing engineer who can mix music for a room full of musicians" and showing up for the Robbie Robertson tribute orgnaized by Martin Scorsese with people like Joni Mitchell and Leonardo DiCaprio in attendance

December: DC-to-DF aka flying to Washgington DC to work at the White House and then flying straight to Mexico City I've finished the year with travel to my motherland of Switzerland, my fatherland of Italy and my second home of London UK!

+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + +

DJ Food aka Kevin Foakes

Music: Kosmischer Laufer - Volume 5 LP (UCR) Soia, Julien Sénélas, Jérôme Vassereau - In C for 11 Oscillators and 53 Forms LP (unjenesaisquoi) Cate Brooks - Tapeworks DL (Cafe Kaput) Memorials - Music For Film: Tramps! LP (State 51 Conspiracy) King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard - PetroDragonic Apocalypse… LP (Album of the year) Brian Eno - The Lighthouse radio station (Sonos) (most listened to) Niholoxica - Source of Denial LP (Crammed Discs) SareemOne - Olivine Window Coast Contra - Breathe & Stop Freestyle/Never Freestyle/Scenario Freestyle Move78 - Grains LP Heiroglyphic Being - The Moon Dance LP (Apnea) Raj Pannu - Past Crimes EP 12" (To Pikap Records) Gordon Chapman-Fox - The Nine Travellers LP (Castles In Space Subscription Library)

Gigs / Events: Beyond The Streets exhibition @Saatchi gallery, London Sunroof / Finlay Shakespeare @iklectik, London The Light Surgeons - The Consensual Hallucination @iklectik, London Memorials at the State 51 Summer Psych party @State 51, London FogFest2 @iklectik, London JG Thirlwell & Ensemble @Bush Hall, London Machina Bristronica, Bristol Visiting Peel Acres with Eilon Paz for Dust & Grooves Nihiloxia @the Jazz Cafe, London

Design / Packaging: Yves Malone - A Hello To A Goodbye LP (Castles In Space) Drumetrics - Phuzzle (Drumetrics) Waclaw Zimpel - Train Spotter LP (State 51) David Boulter - Factory 3" CD (Clay Pipe Music) Fluctuosa - Wetware EP 12" (Analogical Force) Fluxus - Orbit & Shine LP (Castles In Space) Floating Points - Birth4000 12" (Ninja Tune) Cate Brooks - Easel Studies LP + badge (Clay Pipe Music) Brian Eno - Top Boy OST CD (Beatink)

Books / Magazines / Comics: Medical Grade Music - Steve Davis & Kavis Torabi (White Rabbit) Doctor Strange - Fall Sunrise - Tradd & Heather Moore (Marvel) Tales To Enlighten - The New Testament - Matt King and James Edward Clark Pop - Milton Glaser (Phaidon) Kevin O'Neill Apex Edition (2000AD) Mark Stafford - Salmonella Smorgasbord (Soaring Penguin Press) Savage Impressions - Bruce Lichen (Independent Project Records) Hexagon Bridge - Richard Blake (Image) Monica - Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics) Acid Valley - Luke Insect Petrol Head - Rob Williams & Pye Parr (Image) Lawless - Dan Abnett & Phil Winslade (Rebellion) Giant Robot Hellboy - Mignola/Fegredo (Dark Horse) Facelss & The Family - Matt Lesniewski (Oni Press)

Films: Barbie Squaring The Circle : The Story of Hipgnosis

60 notes · View notes