#Sir Arthur Bliss

[paul-archibald]

Brass Bands: The Golden Age

The golden age of brass band compositions occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the UK. This period saw the creation of many original works specifically for brass bands, moving beyond arrangements of orchestral and popular music. A landmark moment was Percy Fletcher’s Labour and Love in 1913, the first original brass band contest piece, which set a precedent for later classic…

[talefoundryshow]

NOW ON NEBULA!

Ever wondered which videos are the TF Team’s favorites? We put our heads together and created this compilation to share! From Doyle to DDLC and the liminal to the sublime, there’s something here for everyone.

[fallloverfic]

The Tomb of Dragons spoilers

I'm not broken because Thara and Iana didn't get together, but it makes zero sense that they didn't end up together. This isn't me being blinded by shipping sunglasses. This is a series of very obvious events that I had assumed, certainly by the end of book 2, would have resulted in Iana/Thara being a couple, if not leading into it at the start of book 3/at some point in book 3. They held hands in the dark after Thara met Iana's mother, who clearly thought they were dating, how else do you read that???

If Monette wanted to highlight that supportive male-male platonic relationships can exist, Anora is right there, and a mainstay of the series and the book in particular. Ulzhavar, Csathamar, Rohethar, Ormevar, Maia, Csevet, Azhanharad, Teru, Thilmerezh: all these other platonic male friendships exist in Thara's life, and literally all of them come back for Tomb. Heck, even Hanu is a good example of this kind of relationship (until it ends where it ends). The build-up of Thara and Iana's relationship makes no sense if this is where it leads, even in the context of strong friendships. I love a good strong platonic friendship, too, and showing men comforting each other outside toxic masculinity or romance matters, I get it. And I don't dislike Hanu as a character, and I even find his relationship with Thara cute when it doesn't feel really forced. Their ending probably makes up for things about as best as it could when you introduce a brand new character and romance in the third novel of a trilogy (and not many of Monette's gay leads get this much! It's good it ends this way!). But just... why?

I don't know. This is massively disappointing. And after knowing this was coming (ARC readers wrote reviews about it months ago), reading the actual novella at last, hoping she had better explanation for it, only to find out she didn't, is not helping.

I enjoyed the book. I really did. It's got a whole lot of great stuff in it. But just... why?

Also, I enjoy bodyguard romance as a trope. I've had shippy thoughts and Cala/Maia and Beshelar/Maia for years. I've been a Jago/Bren stan since like 2005. I always thought the Queen and Joe were adorable in The Princess Diaries. I love Choi Han/Cale Henituse as a ship. And there are lots of manga ships I can think of that fit the trope... It's not the trope I have an issue with, and I'm not averse to it appearing, canonically.

But seeing this as "what if this is about fan thirst for the bodyguard ships in TGE" or "we can't feel bad about it because we've been asking for it" is... I mean sure. Whatever. It feels way too forced. I hope Monette found her bliss with it. Difficult as the book was to write, I hope she wrote the version she wanted to.

Like just imagine, if Monette had read a series where a bodyguard character was introduced in book 1, with a canon crush on the protagonist, got closer to the protagonist for the next two books (and the interest was returned if highly conflicted), and they became an official couple in book 3 of the trilogy, and this was inspiration for Osreth. Wait, what is C.J. Cherryh (author of Foreigner) doing in this Monette interview???:

Sarah Monette: I don’t know if I can claim her as an influence, but I really like Shirley Jackson. Definite influences are Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, J. R. R. Tolkien, Ellen Kushner, Joan D. Vinge, C. J. Cherryh.

The thing I’ve read most recently that I really enjoyed is Martha Wells’s Network Effect.

Uncanny Magazine: What are you working on next?

Sarah Monette: I’m currently in the middle of revisions on The Tomb of Dragons, which is the third book in the Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy (the first two being The Witness for the Dead and The Grief of Stones).

Just... there are ways to do the trope. Even speedier ways in one novel (e.g., Bad Judgment by Sidney Bell, though that's a romance novel). This ain't it.

[gellavonhamster]

monthly media recap: october 2024

read:

Captain Fracasse by Théophile Gautier - an old novel mimicking an even older one, about an impoverished nobleman who joins a travelling acting troupe. A lot of fun if you enjoy pages-long descriptions (I do). Chiquita and Soubrette my beloveds <3

In the Flesh (Books of Blood Vol. 5) by Clive Barker - picked it up primarily for The Forbidden, the story Candyman is based on (which turned out very different from the movie), ended up enjoying all four stories if "enjoying" is the right word. Gotta check out the other volumes.

Gawain by Gwen Rowley - a cute and absorbing retelling of The Wedding of Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnelle, with good character development and sweet romance. I'm not big on Morgause as an evil sorceress but I get that sometimes the plot demands it. Loved that Dinadan was there, too.

Bliss & Blunder by Victoria Gosling - an Arthuriana modern AU where magic is tech, empire is business, but love is still love and war is still war. Kinda clumsy at times, but with much more soul than I expected. I couldn't put it down. More here.

Count Averin. The Sorcerer of the Russian Empire (Граф Аверин. Колдун Российской Империи) by Viktor Dashkevich - I was kind of misinformed about the setting before I picked it up, so it ended up being cringe not up my alley for a number of reasons. The plot is okay and both main characters are cute, but I don't think I'll continue with this series.

The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights by John Steinbeck - as you can guess by the number of quotes I posted, I really liked it, or, more precisely, didn't care much about the first three stories, but adored the last two. The author's letters at the end were also immensely interesting.

watched:

A Cure for Wellness (2016) - creepy, Gothic, long but gripping. The plot was confusing at times, but that's on me. Also, it had me worried I might have nightmares of those eels in the toilet (thankfully I didn't).

Duke Bluebeard’s Castle (1988) - Béla Bartók's eponymous opera as a beautiful TV movie. The costuming choices and not only... much to think about

The Pit and the Pendulum (1961) - it's not bad, but I wasn't too engrossed. Might be due to me not vibing with Poe's works in general for some reason, though.

One Piece Fan Letter (2024) - so cute! Also, really nails the importance of Nami being the kind of character she is, and highlights how devastating the Paramount War was for everyone. I adored the cameos of Perona and Usopp.

The Substance (2024) - the reviews didn't lie, it IS good. Quite simple but powerful, lots of stunning shots, both lead actresses killed it. Once again, I was worried I might have nightmares after this one, but it seems like I'm made of a tougher stuff than I thought after all.

[posttexasstressdisorder]

Wednesday, 12-11-24, 8am Pacific

A groggy good mornin' everyone, Mr. Baggins back with our Morning Coffee Music. Let's listen to Our Favorite Canadian Kook, Glenn Gould, playing Preludes and Fugues Nos. 7 and 8 of Book I of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier, while I nurse this first cup and attempt consciousness. Note: due to the inane way these videos are set up, instead of the prelude and fugue together as one video, each has its own video. SO...in order not to completely decimate the room left for other goodies, we'll be hearing TWO Preludes and Fugues a day, which will be four videos. Like I said, inane. Here's Glenn.

I have to admit I love that picture of him. lulz. Now let's hear the early String Quartet without number of Sir Arthur Bliss, the one written pre-WWI. it is very reminiscent of the Debussy and Ravel quartets. Here is the String Quartet in A Major of Sir Arthur Bliss, played by The Maggini Quartet. I bought this as soon as I heard it on KMFA back in 2002-03!

Let's follow that up with a Mozart Symphony, his Symphony No. 38 in D Major, the "Prague" Symphony, K.504. Lenny and The Vienna play for us, from a 1986 DG recording.

We have our third Ballade by Chopin this morning, and Horowitz DEFINITELY recorded this one. More than once! Here is his 1951 RCA recording. The Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major, Op. 47, played by Vladimir Horowitz.

Now let's hear Fritz and The Band in their 1960 RCA Living Stereo recording of Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherezade. This is from a vinyl rip...it has that presence that only a physical stylus going through a physical groove can give!

As an encore, here is part of a television broadcast on Nov. 18, 1953, of Tchaikovsky's "Waltz of the Flowers" from The Nutcracker. Harp man be gettin' down in that introduction!

And here is one more beautiful little song to bring our Morning Coffee Music to a close, Morten Lauridsen's "Dirait on". We hear The Chamber Choir of Europe, and our pianist is the composer, Morten Lauridsen. The Conductor is Nicol Matt.

That's all the space we have for Morning Coffee Music on this Wednesday. I do hope you've enjoyed the selections this morning, and possibly heard something new to your ear. Mr. Baggins signing off for now, I'll return at 2pm Pacific with your Afternoon Stack of Classic Wax!

Until then, be kind, babies, be kind.

Baggins out.

[innumerable-stars]

Last call for promo post volunteers!

Folks, promo post time is nearly upon us. We're still hoping to find folks willing to spread the word about the following fandoms:

The Father Christmas Letters

Mr. Bliss

The Fall of Arthur

Hunt for Gollum

The Pearl

The Story of Kullervo

Sir Gawain and the Green Knight

Book of Lost Tales

If you adore any of these, now is your chance to share your enthusiasm and convince people to check it out! We're trying to have the promo posts up early enough this year that people have a chance to investigate new-to-them fandoms before nominations close - we think that will up the odds of fanworks for these fandoms.

We're not asking for a lot - just answers to the following in your own words:

Summary

Why Should I Check Out This Canon?

Where Can I Get This?

What Fanworks Already Exist?

You do not need to participate in the exchange to do a promo post. If you know you can't sign up for whatever reason, but still want to spread the word about your fandom, we are happy to have you.

[cesarescabinet]

📜, 🎶 & 🧑🏻❤️💋🧑🏻

What was your favorite Medieval story you read this year?

Diu Crône, easy. While I wouldn’t say it’s perfect I’m always struck by how creative the author is with worldbuilding—it just brings the story to life. I also really appreciate just how the author’s love of certain characters shines through and I can respect that myself—there's just something to relating to a man so far removed from your time period but finding common ground over the things you love. The human experience really :)

What was your favorite Arthurian musical you saw this year?

The one you introduced me to XD!! I love the 1920s style musicals with the clever lyricism, so A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court is right up my alley. I just adore Mary Testa’s take on To Keep My Love Alive—iconic song for an iconic character.

What is a ship you discovered you enjoy this year?

Sir Agravaine/Yvonne!!! Something about a man disregarded by his society for not fitting the knightly mold meeting a woman disregarded by society for not being conventionally attractive and being so ridiculously stupid in love for each other??? I want a slice-of-life TV show where these two get to live in domestic bliss! P.G Wodehouse I continue to stan!

My reaction when thinking about these two:

[tiodolma]

wherefore Sir Mordred made write writs to all the barony of this land, and much people drew to him. For then was the common voice among them that with Arthur was none other life but war and strife, and with Sir Mordred was great joy and bliss... ...And so fared the people at that time, they were better pleased with Sir Mordred than they were with King Arthur; and much people drew unto Sir Mordred, and said they would abide with him for better and for worse. And so Sir Mordred drew with a great host to Dover, for there he heard say that Sir Arthur would arrive, and so he thought to beat his own father from his lands; and the most part of all England held with Sir Mordred, the people were so new-fangle.

waahahhahhahahahahhaha serves all of them right!

[aliceyv]

In this retelling, Mordred got to grow up with his adoptive family in blissful ignorance. As a young man, he works as a humble shepherd.

A deadly plague soon spreads across his village. So, Mordred travels to Camelot for aid. An encounter with King Arthur and his knights leads him to accompanying Sir Galahad and others on to Castle Corbenic. It is there, he discovers more than he bargained for.

Available as an ebook on Amazon.

[fairydust-stuff]

Service

Ash walks away from the hot spring Dam it! He liked Yut Lung the prissy little princess! His hands are soft, i love how his dark eyes sparkle with mischief! Dam it focus! 

Ash is still worrying about this development when he walks into a lion man with a rediculous mohawk hanging by the front doors. 

“ Watch we’re your going bastard!” 

“ You must be Ash, touchy little guy huh?” the sprite exclaims 

“ You are?” Ash scowls 

“ Shorter Wong, no one will let me in” 

“ Are you poor?” Ash asked bluntly

Then it started raining heavily. 

“ Dam it its a long walk back!” Shorter complained 

“ Fine, come in!” Ash opened the doors wide and Shorter rushed in and shook his fur dry. “ Thanks could I have a bath…” 

Five minutes later and Shorter leans back in the tub with a sigh of bliss. Ash picks up his scrub brush. 

“ No! I don’t need you to wash me or anything I can do it myself” 

“ Do you not know what we do here?” Ash asked rubbing soap on his hands for a sensual wash he’s become numb to the process. 

“ I suspected, old pervert!” Shorter muttered  

“ Here you go scub brush, soap, that’s everything right? ” Ash asked 

“ Can I have a  rubber duck?” Shorter said  “ I always get a customary duckie” 

“ Sorry, i’ll check with…..your fucking with me!” Ash realized as he noticed Shorter laughing. 

“ Yeah you think Dino would give me a free toy?” Shorter chortled. “ He doesn’t even give toiletries without charging extra!” 

“ Would you like a room for the night?” Ash said sourly 

Shorter threw an arm around his shoulders “ Hey don’t be like that!” 

Ash pried him off “ Get off me you bastard!” 

“ Unfriendly employee’s no wonder, Dino, barely makes his payments” Shorter laughed. “ Is it true your all working off debt?” 

“ Non of your business, sir” Ash said cooly. 

“ True enough yeah i’ll take a room, gold is in my bags”...

Five minutes later Ash leads Shorter into the entrance hall 

“ Hey we have a customer” 

The other bathhouse workers look at Shorter with disdain. 

“ Can he even afford this place?” Arthur asked loudly eyeing his shabby clothes. 

Shorter pulls out a huge piles of gold “ Give me your best room and finest foods” he said. 

Suddenly the other bathhouse workers swarm all over him practically trampling each other to be of service

[johnny-hoxton]

Without knowing your Spirit you cannot know God.

Nirmala Srivastava

Performance of sexual union leads to spiritual happiness. Sexual intercourse is healing fire. Sexual union is consecration.

Sexual union must be done secretly. Verses are read in a detached manner and two are read together to imitate the manner of sexual union; they do not worship a female Devata, unless she is coupled with a male Deva; they use a couple of Chandas distinguishing the one as male from the other as female and the two are taken together and believed to be the symbol of Maithuna, and by such Maithuna the desired result of ritual is achieved; they believe that the reading of the Ahanasya mantra will confer bliss; they say that the highest and best form of Maithuna is that of Shraddha and Satya, Piety and Truth and this kind of Maithuna in the abstract is directed for performers of the ritual who have purified themselves by actual performances and observances in a religious spirit.

They direct the observance and performance of Maithuna as a religious rite or part of a religious rite and they direct that Mantras are to be uttered during the observance of this rite. One of the articles of faith of the Vaidik people therefore was, that sexual union led the way to bliss hereafter and must be performed in a true religious spirit to ensure spiritual welfare; wanton indulgence being severely deprecated. Ida (a woman) said: "If thou wilt make use of me at the sacrifice, then whatever blessing thou shalt invoke through me, shall be granted to thee."

Excerpted from Shakti and Shâkta by Arthur Avalon (Sir John Woodroffe) [1918].

[sinceileftyoublog]

Six Organs of Admittance Interview: More Than a Couple Chairs

Photo by Kami Chasny

BY JORDAN MAINZER

When Ben Chasny dives into something, he usually dives deep. Upon answering the phone in February, when I called him to talk about his new Six Organs of Admittance album Time Is Glass (out today on Drag City), he seemed a bit scattered. Despite mentally preparing himself all day for the interview, he got distracted by a "What are you digging lately?" Bandcamper compilation Drag City asked him to put together to advertise his record release. (A music fan with a voracious appetite, Chasny was rediscovering music he had purchased a couple years prior and forgot about.) Six Organs records often occupy the same dedicated headspace, Chasny setting aside blocks of time to think about nothing else. That is, until Time Is Glass. On his latest, Chasny blurs the lines between his outside-of-music life and the music itself, the album a batch of songs that reflects on the magical minutiae that sprout during a period of needed stasis.

The last time I spoke to Chasny, he and his partner [Elisa Ambrogio of Magik Markers] were still settling in from their move to Humboldt County in Northern California. "When Elisa and I first moved here, we didn't have any friends," Chasny said. "But there's a group of us that live in Humboldt now. A bunch of my friends moved up since the last time I talked to you." That includes fellow Comets on Fire bandmate Ethan Miller and his partner, fellow New Bums musical partner Donovan Quinn, and folk singer Meg Baird and her partner. "Every New Year's Day, if it's not pouring rain, we take a walk on the beach," said Chasny. One such photoshoot on January 1, 2023 yielded the album cover for Time Is Glass: That's Miller and his poodle, along with Baird's Heron Oblivion bandmate Charlie Saufley. This unintentional artistic collective meets up often, whether for coffee or as Winter Band, a rotating cast of area musicians who form to open up for musician friends when they come through town, like Sir Richard Bishop of Sun City Girls. As such, according to Chasny, Time Is Glass is a celebration of community.

Perhaps the supportive strength of his artistic family gave Chasny the willpower to incorporate elements of his daily life into Time Is Glass, something he couldn't avoid. He didn't share with me exactly what in his personal life made it impossible to separate the two, though he mentioned his dog, a difficult-to-train puppy that was a mix of three traditionally stubborn breeds. Said dog inspired "My Familiar", a song that uses occult language to inhabit the mind of his obstinate canine companion. "And we'll burn this whole town / No one says there's good," Chasny sings, alternating between his quintessential hushed delivery and falsetto, his layered vocals atop circular picking exuding a sense of sparseness. Indeed, you wouldn't expect a Six Organs record about home life to sound totally blissful; Time Is Glass is at once gentle and menacing. The devotional "Spinning In A River" portrays the titular carefree act as lightly as the prickle of Chasny's guitar or as doomily as the song's distortion. "Hephaestus" and "Theophany Song" imagine their respective mythological characters as gruff and voyeuristic. "Summer's Last Rays" indeed captures a sense of finality, Chasny's processed guitar and warbling harmonium providing the instantly hazy nostalgia before the fade-out. The album is bookended by songs more straightforwardly hopeful, the opener "The Mission" a dedication to friends falling in love with their new place of residence, the closer "New Year's Song" a twangy ode to dreaming. But it's the moments in between that Chasny was forced to capture on Time Is Glass. And thankfully, what was born out of necessity yielded, for him, new ways to interpret the same old, same old.

Read my conversation with Chasny below, edited for length and clarity. He speaks on domesticity, mythology, playing live, and Arthur Russell.

SILY: You've lived in Humboldt County for a bit. Is Time Is Glass the first Six Organs record in a while you made while situated in one place?

Ben Chasny: I did do a couple records here before. The first one, I was in the process of moving here, so I wasn't really settled. The second was at the beginning of lockdown. This is the first one I felt like was recorded at a home. Everything was settled, I have a schedule. When I was doing the first one, I didn't even have furniture in the house. I had a couple chairs. [laughs]

SILY: Do you think the feeling of being recorded at a home manifests in any specific way on the album?

BC: I started to incorporate daily domestic routines into the record, more often. A lot of the melodies were written while taking the dog for a walk, which I've never done before. There was always stuff to do as I moved in. The times weren't as separate. Before, it was, "Now I'm recording, now I'm doing life stuff." There was a merging of everything here. I would listen to it on my earbuds while taking walks and constantly work on it for six months.

SILY: It definitely has that homeward bound feel in terms of the lyrics and the sound, like you've been somewhere forever. There are a lot of lyrics about the absence of time, and there's a circular nature to the rhythms and the guitars. Does the title of the album refer to this phenomenon?

BC: A little bit. Time does seem, in general, post-lockdowns and COVID, different. The lyrics on the record have a bit more domesticity. It always seems like there was something that had to be done, that would normally keep me from doing music, that I tried to incorporate here. Maybe I'm just getting older, too. I'm getting more sensitive towards time. I'm running out. [laughs]

SILY: Was there anything specific about your domestic life that made you want to include it in your music?

BC: Just that I had to include it in order to do anything. It was no longer separate. The way life ended up working out, I could no longer separate my artistic life from other life. I had to put the artistic aspect into it in order to work. Instead of getting frustrated, I brought [music] more into the house.

SILY: Did working on the record give you a new perspective on domesticity?

BC: I don't know. A little bit. I was just trying to come to terms with basic life things. Let me look at the record, I forgot what songs are on it. [laughs] The song "My Familiar" is about my dog. I got this book called Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits, which was sort of taken from transcriptions of witch trials from Scotland in the 1500's. A lot of dealing with things like witches' familiars and demon familiars. I found a very strong similarity between that and my dog, which seemed like it was maybe a demon. She's a Husky-German Shepherd-Australian Shepherd mix, so as a puppy, she needed a lot of work. So that became a song. That's a more humorous way everyday life made its way into the music.

[With regard to] the last song, "New Years Song", Elisa and I have a contest on New Year's Eve when we're hanging out where we go in separate rooms and have one hour to write a song. We come out at 11 or 11:30 and play the song for each other. We've done it for a few years now. This was the song I wrote for New Year's Eve going into 2022.

SILY: You talk about God on Time Is Glass and delve a little bit into mythology. Was that something you were thinking about on a day to day basis when writing?

BC: The “Hephaestus” song was just a character. That was a rare song for me in that I was trying to make sounds that particularly evoked a mythological figure. I've made nods to mythology in the past, but the titles were almost an afterthought. This particular song, I was trying to make the sounds of that character in their workshop with the fire and anvils. I was trying to evoke that feeling. That was kind of a new one for me.

SILY: Maybe I'm reading into it too much, but you also seem to talk a bit about your state of mind on "Slip Away".

BC: It's funny you caught onto that, because I wasn't really expecting to bring it up during interviews. I wouldn't say that I came close at times in the past couple years to schizophrenia, but I could see way off in the distance and horizon what that would be like. I...was trying to write about that. At the same time, the lyrics that have to do with two minds and the splitting of the mind are also somewhat of a reference to the idea of a celestial twin or Valentinian gnosis, how you have a celestial counterpart. That idea [is behind the concept of] someone's guardian angel.

SILY: On a couple songs, you sing to someone or something else. "The Mission" you've mentioned is for a friend and their new partner. What about on "Spinning in a River"?

BC: Maybe it was more of a general idea. It wasn't so much to a person as to a general concept of Amory.

SILY: What were all the instruments used on the record?

BC: I had some guitar, I was singing, and there's some harmonium on it, which I did a lot of processing on, lowering it octaves. I've got some really basic Korg synths. Electronic-wise, there's a program called Reactor I like to use a lot. I do it a little bit more subtly than electronic artists. I use it more for background.

SILY: I picked up the harmonium on "Summer's Last Rays"! I feel like you never truly know when you're hearing a harmonium unless it's in the album credits. Sometimes, that sound is just effects.

BC: There are two different harmoniums. When the bass comes in, that's also a harmonium, but I knocked it down a couple octaves and put it through some phaser. It has a grinding bass tone to it. This is actually one of the few Six Organs records with bass guitar on it. Unless it's an electric record with a band, there's never really been bass guitar. I was really inspired by Naomi Yang's bass playing in Galaxie 500 and how it's more melodic. I told her that, too.

SILY: On "Theophany Song", are you playing piano?

BC: Yeah, that's at my friend's house. I just wanted to play a little melody.

SILY: Was this your first time using JJ Golden for mastering?

BC: I've worked with JJ before. He did Ascent and a few others. I particularly wanted to work with him this time because I had just gotten that Masayuki Takayanagi box set on Black Editions and saw he had done that. I have the original CDs, and I thought he did such an amazing job that I wanted to work with him again.

SILY: Is that common for you, that you think of people to work with and you dig a record they just worked on and it clicks for you?

BC: That's the first time I had just heard something and thought, "Oh, I gotta work with this person." I usually have a few mastering engineers I work with and think, "What would be good for them?" or, "What does this sound like?" I usually like to send the more rock-oriented stuff to JJ, but I was just feeling it this time.

SILY: Have you played these songs live?

BC: The instrumental "Pilar" I have been playing since 2019. That's the oldest song on the record. I did do one show last September where I played a couple of these songs live. I have some ideas on how to work it out. It will be a solo acoustic show, but I [hope] to make some new sounds so it's not so straightforward. One thing about this record is I tried to write songs in the same tuning. On previous records, I used a lot of tunings, and it was a real pain to try to play the songs live. I did write this record with the idea that most of these songs would be able to be done live.

SILY: What have you been listening to, watching, or reading lately?

BC: I just got the Emily Robb-Bill Nace split LP. I just saw her live a couple nights ago. The latest one on Freedom To Spend from Danielle Boutet, which is awesome. Freedom To Spend is a go-to label for me. Also, this split with Karen Constance and Dylan Nyoukis.

I've been reading Buddhist Bubblegum by Matt Marble, about Arthur Russell and the systems he developed, which I knew nothing about. His compositional systems have almost a Fluxus influence. The subtitle is Esotericism in the Creative Process of Arthur Russell, so it's also about his Buddhism as well. When I first heard about the book, I didn't know if I needed to get it, but I heard an interview with Matt about the detailed systems Arthur Russell came up with. It gives me a whole new level of appreciation for him. It's so good.

SILY: Did you listen to Picture of Bunny Rabbit?

BC: It's so good, especially the title track. It seems like when he has us plugged into some kind of effects or delay, he's switching the different sounds on it, but it makes the instrument go in so many different areas. To me, the title track is worth the price of the entire record, even though the whole thing is good.

SILY: What else is next for you? Are you constantly writing?

BC: This is gonna be a very busy year release-wise. I have a couple more things coming out. It's hard to write stuff because I always think it'll take so long for it to come out. I'm halfway working on something, but I have no idea when it will come out.

[the-king-and-the-druidess]

The sword of lightnings

The sky is anthracite and heavy flat. It's torn on the distant horizon, and the gap is coloured gore. The wind has broken. Twelve monoliths of ancient symbols tower in the middle of the dark heath.

A woman in a black hooded mantle stands in the centre of the stone circle. A dark knight kneels before her, his long cloak brushes the ground behind him. The lady's green eyes gaze at him from the dark cavern of her hood with sincere love; he looks at her as if he had never seen beauty and power before.

The knight unsheaths his sword and reverently holds it out to her. "I swear my alliance to you, My Priestess. Henceforth I promise to be loyal to you forever and ever."

Morgana nodded softly and solemnly.  "Arise, Sir Mordred, Knight of the Old Religion. I declare you ready."

He stands up.

"Do you trust me?" She suddenly wihispers.

He nods slowly.

Morgana raises her head to the moonless sky and the dark melody of incantation flies from her lips. It grows louder and louder. Mordred waits tensely, fearing and marvelling at the picture before him. The wind returns, its gusts lift up their cloaks, tear their hair; it's howling in their ears with anguish. Stubborn matter does not want to be transformed, but the ritual words of the sorceress leave the elements no room for resistance.

When the summoning was sealed, a glowing white lightning splits the black sky, and, like a snake, strikes right at the centre of the sword's fuller. A grand elliptical flash of light explodes and illuminates the stone circle, swallowing the sorceress and the knight in its glow.

But when the astral clock counts down to three, everything falls dark. Morgana and Mordred again emerge to the all-seeing zodiac's stare. The two are not affected by the bolt in the slightest, for this fate is not meant for them.

"We did it...we did it!" Morgana exclaims joyfully, letting herself to breathe again. Her heart soars free.

Mordred finds himself smiling. The blade in his hands shines like the pale moon; it's heavy, strong, hardened three times, in three magick quests: in the Avalon waters, in dragon flame, in heavenly light. It's hard not to admire. He puts the sword of lightnings away in its scabbard, bows and presses his Lady's gentle hand to his lips in a burst of emotion.

"I am honoured to to fight with this sword."

She closes her eyes in bliss. "It is done now. King Arthur is gone thanks to you, Mordred, and now we have everything we need to deal with Merlin as well. By his own weapon."

So once Merlin had assassinated the Isle of the Blessed's immortal patroness with a bolt of lightning, and now by the sentence of the last High Priestess the same cup will not pass from him, for even Emrys' power could not resist the magic of the three elements of power.

"We shall have him." Mordred seals grimly but gently.

Morgana takes a step closer to him to envelope his strong figure in a soft embrace. Mordred draws in a breath, a keen love feeling pierces him, and he leans in to find her unkissed lips.

The sky incandescent by Morgana's magic erupts in a violent thunderstorm, rain pounds the thin roof of Merlin's lonely tower, and the wizard awakes in terror. Something dark is coming.

[illsuiteddowner]

Arthur caught a glimpse of Jack attacking just as the Joy began to kick in. Jack's appearance coincided with an overwhelming rush of relief. The tension went out of Arthur's body and all the anxiety and fear and stress melted away. Arthur fell limp to the floor and watched the struggle from the there, completely lost in overwhelming bliss. There was a part of him that was vaguely aware that he was scared a moment ago, but he couldn't for the life of him remember why.

Why should he be scared? For the first time in... well, right now Arthur couldn't remember how long, there was someone who cared about him. Jack cried out and Arthur's chest swelled with fondness at the sound of his voice. He wasn't alone. Someone gave a fuck about him. He struggled to stand up and help his companion, but his limbs didn't seem to want to work correctly. He had only managed to sit up when Jack returned to him. Arthur's face lit up, but before he could say anything, Jack was holding him.

Arthur relaxed into the touch instantly. He nuzzled his face into Jack's chest for a moment to hide his smile. He was still smiling anyway when he tipped his head up to look at Jack, his cheeks flushed and his eyes sparkling.

"Oh, yes," he said. "I'm absolutely brilliant!" His voice came out louder than he meant it to. He had trouble regulating his volume on Joy, but it was hard to care. "I felt so dreadful a moment ago, but I can't imagine why. Everything is much better now!"

Arthur couldn't help staring when Jack looked so strikingly vivid and beautiful right now. His eyes were the sort of limpid blue people wrote poems about. In the clarity of real life, not on the TV screen, Arthur see the gray hairs running through Jack's temples. He looked so familiar and unfamiliar at the same time, like a face you thought you remembered from a dream. Arthur couldn't quite remember what was real and what wasn't, but he felt so safe and happy in Jack's arms that he never wanted to leave, so did it really matter?

Arthur belatedly caught himself staring and buried his face in Jack's chest again. "I'm so glad you're here, Mr. Uncle Jack, sir," he said, words muffled into Jack's shirt.

@unclejackworthing

It was Arthur's fault for getting too comfortable. Jack was in the kitchen trying to figure something out while Arthur waited in the living room. Jack was only a room away. He got too comfortable.

When the knock on the door came, he nearly jumped out of his skin. He was in no state to entertain company. He was wearing someone else's pajamas and covered in bruises after his last encounter. But when he he hesitated too long, he heard a voice through the door:

"You'll want to cooperate, of course. It's a matter of your health." Arthur looked through the window and made direct eye contact with a doctor. Another one was behind him, difficult to mistake when they were dressed almost identically in the same odd fashion sense common among Wellington Wells' medical community.

Arthur's heart sunk, but he put on the best smile he could and opened the door. He tried to keep his body mostly behind it. "Gentlemen! Lovely day for it! Now what's all this about a medical emergency?"

"Yes, well, you'll forgive the intrusion, but my colleague and I happened to be wandering along when caught your scent through the window. It's ajar."

Arthur looked at it again. Indeed it was. Why did every little thing have to go wrong? The doctor pushed past Arthur into the living room, then turned to face him, so Arthur had a doctor on both sides.

"And, when we'd sniffed you out, then we couldn't help but notice that peculiar pungency telltale of one off their Joy." The doctor smiled, his creepy little mustache curving up at the edges. "So of course we both agreed it was our medical duty to come remedy the situation."

"Oh, dear!" It wasn't difficult to look horrified. It was harder to to look like he had nothing to hide. "Silly me! Has it been that long since I've popped a Joy? I'll take one straight away. I'm so thankful to you for warning me, Doctor." Arthur kept turning between the doctors, unsure which one to face. "And, uh, Doctor. Jolly decent of you."

"Yes, we'll administer a dose presently." The doctor leaned close, peering at Arthur with one fish eye. The one behind Arthur--he was getting them mixed up now--took a noisy sniff of Arthur's neck. "Are you certain you don't need more extreme medical intervention, sir? You do seem to be rather beat up."

"Oh, not at all! That's why I'm at home in my pajamas, you see. Silly me, I tripped down the stairs and the doctor put me on strict bed rest until I've healed up."

If only smiling hard enough would make them believe him. His cheeks were starting to hurt. "I've been going crazy here at home instead of at work. I'm sure the Joy will help with that." Arthur tried to step out from between the duo. "I'll just step away and go take care of that right now. I shouldn't waste another minute."

The doctor behind Arthur grabbed his upper arm and wrenched him back in place. "You'll forgive us for wanting to take you back to the office just to be sure. It is a matter of your health, after all. You can't be too careful."

"Oh, pish-posh!" said Arthur desperately. "I'm as healthy as a horse. Just some light bruising."

"I think that's for a qualified medical professional to to decide, don't you think?" The doctor in front of Arthur produced a rather large syringe as the one behind him held Arthur's arms. "But first there is the matter of your Joy. I think you'll be much more agreeable once the proper dosage is applied.

The doctor came in close and tilted Arthur's head up to expose his neck. He ran a finger along the vein he chose and then stabbed the needle into Arthur's skin, fully compressing the plunger and emptying the pink liquid into Arthur's bloodstream.

"Shit," said Arthur. His legs had suddenly stopped working correctly. He collapsed into the doctor's arms. Too much Joy.

[verdiprati]

This is so intense. I love it. Perfect fit for Sarah Connolly’s voice. 

How I saw him in the street, among his companions, How my heart went out to him, how I faltered there, How I lay there, fevered and lost, for ten long days, How I sent my slave-girl about the city to find him; ‘Bid him come, bid Delphis come, Bring him here. I am dying.’ How I heard his first footfall outside my door, And the fire turned to ice in my veins, And he entered, all golden and smiling, with garlands about him; And he sat by my side, and he took my hand in his hand. Ah.  And he said: ‘Simætha, Simætha.’ And he said: ‘I could keep from you no longer.’ And he said: ‘I was coming unsummoned, Simætha.’ And he said: ‘I have always loved you.’ And he said: ‘Oh love, you have called me, oh love, you have saved me, Have caught me from the fire of the longing that consumed me, Oh love, I am here!’ ‘You have saved me from the fire,’ he said, ‘from fire, from fire.’

[blissedasanewt]

The March from "Things to Come" - Sir Arthur Bliss conducts