#Vocals are like the hardest part of mixing for me

[phosphophyi]

Part of my new years resolution is to work on music more so I've been working on Cedar's Descent again. Sorry to the Oliver fans but I'm switching the vocalist to SAROS so that I don't have a heart attack trying to mix the vocals

[narcissistcookbook]

i love your work :) i was just wondering, have you ever experimented with live looping? also, do you have any tips for developing the split focus needed to monologue and play guitar at the same time? thanks!

I currently use a looper to trigger samples, and I'm working my way up to a little bit of live looping. I have mixed feelings about live loop performances though - imo putting down a loop shouldn't take longer than 10 seconds or so, and ideally should just feel like the beginning of a song. I don't find watching loopers build a track live very interesting personally, especially if they do it more than once in a set.

People who see me at shows on the upcoming tours will see a tiny bit of live looping on one track that suits it though!

And in terms of monologuing and playing guitar, hmmm. I wouldn't say I split focus evenly, I'm focused on the vocals far more than the guitar parts - I trust my sense of rhythm and timing to keep me on track with the guitar parts on a subconscious level for the most part. You'll want to get to a point with both parts where you can do them with pure muscle memory, and then you'll be able to switch focus between them as you need. The hardest part will be doing it live for the first time - I've found that no amount of practise will allow me to go on stage a perform a guitar/monologue for the first time without getting lost at least a little bit. So be kind to yourself and go into performances expecting to trip up early on, and you'll get better pretty quickly after the first handful of performances.

[voidsentprinces]

See a few people on the tweets and tumblr wondering if previous expansions got this much flack at their launches.

So, let me reiterate from my own experiences. Even before I was actually IN the fandom. There was a ripple of complaints and memeing about Raubahn (Savage) and Raubahn (Extreme) because the launch was so hard on their servers. That you could literally get stuck on the Raubahn instance battle at the beginning of the expansion. Entire lines of people rose up and was taken pictures of. In addition, there was a small but vocal debate on people being down on Zenos thirstiers. While there were a couple posts here and there disappointed about how neither Doma nor Ala Mhigo were fully fleshed out being too little after cut on different sides of the expansion. Some people questioned Hien's actions in the Azim Steppe as forcing the secluded Steppe Tribes to save his fallen empire and bursting in on a sacred tradition for his own personal gain. But, I wasn't really in the fandom back then. Thats just the stuff that rippled out and brushed across me like a wave on the shoe coating your toes as you walk on the beach.

When I finally DID join the fandom proper in the waning days of Stormblood. Shadowbringers hype was about to be in full swing. The fandom had gotten a few things here and there. The Call had just happened, I think. People were speculating about Solus and getting excited about a possible full fledged war with Garlemald. But then the Shadowbringers cinematic teaser drop. And there were a lot of questions, why was Y'shtola now called Master Matoya? What is Minfilia doing alive again? Holy shit, Gunbreaker hype! Hopes for Healer Dancer arrived. Why the fuck is Urianger so sexy? Etc. Blue Mage in coming.

At launch, Shadowbringers, if I recall correctly, was actually widely acclaimed. Soon after the same people who rained on the Zenos lover brigade also came down on Emet lovers. Some people felt G'raha was kind of a creep. For a small portion of the community, the Hydaelyn is evil circles became somewhat vindicated by the reveal of Hydaelyn and Zodiark being the eldest of primals. Thinking she might be tempering us and the story of light also being as bad as dark in excess leading some to believe she would be the final boss of the series with Zodiark. In addition, there were a few people here and there where Shadowbringers just ruined the entire story for them and they just did not like the direction the MSQ went. As the expansion progressed people lambasted Gaius for going through what they described as "man pain" instead of actual redemption. The NieR raid ending left people a little miffed. But the end of Eden left people happy. And bringing up the 'flat and emotionless' performance people are throwing at Wuk Lamat. There was even a period of time where people complained about Aymeric and Cid and a few others sounding weak cause they were most likely recording from their own bedroom closet due to COVID having shut every motherfucking thing down.

At Endwalker launch, it was kind of excited and mixed. Queues ruled the world as people desperately tried to claw their way in. Some people were mad we didn't raze Garlemald to the ground ourselves. In From the Cold was divisive. I, myself, was on a one Void crusade about being indifferent and even bewildered by the Fandaniel = Amon reveal and lukewarm on Krile being around but being Hydaelyn's sock puppet for cutscenes. The first part of the expansion feeling like a 5.6 rather than an actual expansion and then after Zodiark is when Endwalker actually did feel like it hit its stride. The people who felt vindicated in their Hydaelyn is Evil conclusion bent over backwards and tried their hardest to say she WAS evil the entire time. Some posts about being kind of iffy on Emet returning after Seat of Sacrifice gave him a decent send off. Hythlodaeus and Venat otherwise sweeping people off their feet. And it was mixed on the treatment of Ahewann in particular. And afterwards posts about Relics not being this long tedious grind, the Post-Endwalker Void stuff kind of taking the mystery out of the Void and kind of lackluster. Myths and Pandaemonium meanwhile were praised widely, far as I can tell. And in one single patch poster, an entire section went from called Lahabrea a Bread Loaf to a D A D D Y.

So with Dawntrail launching and getting mixed reaction. I can safely say this has always happened. Expect years of posts from different retrospectives either defending or lambasting Dawntrail as we see with Stormblood and certain sections of both Shadowbringers and Endwalker. Not everyone will like everything in the story. People have their own perspective on things. And they will voice their opinion on things cause people want to be heard. My thoughts on Dawntrail? At time of posting, I still haven't played the MSQ. But I did see a spoiler. So my opinion is that death is an illusion and so are pants.

[mandy4ever69420]

hey love tell me do u have an opinion about roberta, monicas S1 girlfriend, and the way she wanted to take liam away with the justification that the gallaghers were not raising him properly by erasing his blackness and community and origin and all that?

i do :) i think her argument captures something very Real and Infuriating in when people will make good points to try to explain around something really awful. like, with her specifically i am inclined to be forgiving of because well. if i'm not then i really don't like what it says about hiring a very beautiful Black butch woman for that role. but i really do Sincerely think she was just very caught up in the romance of shit and was very misinformed by monica and how very charmed she was by her. holds up b/c when they find her later to ask shes like "oh my god, why was i hanging around this woman, please fuck off i'm so embarrassed"

^^ there are a couple things that shameless does really well in contexts like these. the "that's a good point but it doesn't make your end goal moral" feeling of sympathy and being infuriated goes with the "someone finally apologized and really meant it but it was for the wrong thing or the wrong part of what they did which means they don't understand the problem at all but it's nice they're trying" thing you also see sometimes

but yeah. she has a point about liam being separated from his culture. that doesn't mean you can just, rip a little baby away from his family who loves him. that's pretty much just nothing but trauma right there. liam also explicitly talks about this later about his isolation and how really his family even though they ARE biologically related simply Cannot understand his position. also in a "bad day when i approve of frank" move frank does introduce liam to some nice relatives who are able to offer him something he was missing.

carl also is the most vocally concerned about Black issues & tries the hardest. because he was so little when we learned that frank is liam's biological father so he just went "huh. guess im Black" & presumably rolled with that without commenting on it for a good long while. which. is not how that works if you still experience white privilege & have parents who experience white privilege but oh my god genetics is so dumb racial categories are so made up and cruel. of course it gets weird. & you see where that goes wrong where carl thinks he can use the n word. even well intended and probably as the person who's put most thought into what randomly happening to be Black in a mostly white family means for liam he's Very liable to make it weird

& the gallaghers ARE biologically related but i want to mention that a lot of adoptions of kids of color by white parents go very, very abusive. which um. is not the case entirely here because most of his family is good to him to the best of their abilities. and it's not adoption. but still most of these characters (i think especially fiona @_@) have some weirdass racialized affectionate nicknames for him. though yeah frank is up there w the nicknames. he's just being an asshole on purpose though. so that's slightly different. & i know like calling kids 'monkey' is kind of just a thing people do but jesus christ. you do need to think about this when you are a white caretaker of a nonwhite child. Why is this not the only tv show i've seen fail to think of very specifically that with a white woman caring for a mixed child side note. you guysssss please for the love of god

anyway there are some real world dangers that white families are not really equipped to prepare little nonwhite kids for. & just on the feeling of being subject to racism that maybe his family could sympathize with but they dont have the tools to deal with or give him advice on. there are people who try and im sure do a very good job but the gallagher family has So much going on and most of them Are very selfish. for understandable reasons. it's fine. but it means they don't do a lot of looking into liam's perspective and just assume "that's probably fine"

anyway the best way in this sort of situation is just expanded social circles. liam Should connections in his life that he can rely on and feel close to. is it too predictable from me to get into the "nuclear families are limiting and enable abuse" thing here. i feel like i'm always on that. well i stand by it. kids need bigger communities of people to rely on to be safe and understood it's really just not possible to get everything you need from only 2 parents or only your biological family. particularly in liam's case though, you can't be forcibly separating him from loved ones, you can't just ask him to do all the work himself (which is what they did in canon)

& you can't just assume 1 Black friend in the community will be idk a spokesperson or something. a friend is not a family member unless you let her be And she wants to be & it's very unfair to ask V to be like wise or cultured enough to offer liam a complete connection to his culture. she's just one person with her own insecurities and shit going on. who tbh already wasn't super stoked about being asked to take care of other people's kids when she DID love them. imo it was a slightly racist maneuver for fiona to tell the kids to put (kev and) v near the top of their emergency contacts as like caretakers without even asking. and she DOES know them & they DO care about these kids

[homosandhomies]

My favorite solo from each main character on glee (because why not)

SUE: Vogue. “WILL SCHUESTER I HATE YOU”

KURT: Rose’s Turn. Chris Colfer rarely got songs that highlighted ALL his vocal strengths. This song used everything. He had a strong head voice, an amazing mix, and he can EMOTE WITH EVERY INCH OF HIS LIFE. No wonder he got the Golden Globe.

QUINN: This Is A Man’s World. This scene is ridiculous, but out of context the song absolutely slaps. Diana can BELT and she deserved to do it more.

ARTIE: Stronger. Probably my favorite Britney song. Kevin ate. That is all.

PUCK: Only the Good Die Young. This song is so fun and I think Puck’s voice is very underrated. A good ol’ jam. Thank you for repping the Jewish community king ❤️

WILL: Sway. It’s a shame that we never talk about his voice because HOLY SHIT MATTHEW MORRISON IS INCREDIBLE. This man is so talented and we never acknowledge it because of Will Schuester’s shenanigans.

BLAINE: Somewhere Only We Know. You can hate Blaine all you want but you can’t deny the POWER of this song. The love in his eyes is sickening I am not okay right now

FINN: I’ve Gotta Be Me. Given the fact that Cory didn’t have any singing experience before, this song makes me so fucking happy because you can see how much he had grown as a singer, but also how proud he was of himself! Look at him go!!! (Bonus: If I’m bending the rules in terms of what qualifies as a solo I would 100% make his Paradise By the Dashboard Light. That was his undoubtedly his very best vocal performance. It’s SO FUCKING GOOD it makes me go batshit.)

RACHEL: My Man. “She may be difficult but boy can she sing.”

BRITTANY: Run the World. The dancing is definitely the more impressive part of this number, but it still sounds great! This song really highlighted Heather’s strengths, when most of her songs weren’t very memorable in my opinion.

MIKE: Cool. Maybe Tina should be a professional vocal coach because damn look at him go!! Idk why an Asian kid wanted to play the role of a leader of a white supremacist group but at least he sounds great 🤷‍♀️

MERCEDES: I Will Always Love You. Literally every single Mercedes song is perfect, so this was the hardest one for me. This means I had to base it on acting. And she DELIVERS here. It should be illegal to be this talented.

TINA: Because You Loved Me. The fact that this is one of TWO solos that Jenna actually got to finish infuriates me. She was ROBBED because she is an amazing singer.

SANTANA: Nutbush City Limits. LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, MISS NAYA RIVERA. HOLY SHIT. Finn saying before the song, “They say that true divas aren’t really mortal” is so true. This woman was an absolute icon and I will always be blown away by her talent.

JAKE: Let Me Love You (Until You Learn to Love Yourself). It’s so EARNEST and HEARTFELT and Jacob Artist popped off with the acting. And the falsetto!! God it’s just beautiful.

EMMA: Getting Married Today. This is a trio, not a solo, but it’s so fucking good that I HAD to do it. That is literally one of the hardest female songs on Broadway, and for some reason they had Jayma sing it even FASTER than the original version? I can’t imagine the stress of trying to do that, but she was perfect.

SAM: Copacabana. This is just a really fun song! Everyone’s having a good time and Chord sounds amazing.

RYDER: Your Song. This is my favorite Elton John song, and boy was it done justice. The acting is really good in this scene. The mix of anxiety and earnestness coming from Ryder is adorable. He had great chemistry with whoever that girl was. (On a storyline note, I hated how this all developed though. If it had gone my way, Unique would confess it was her, then Ryder would sing this directly to Unique.)

KITTY: Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours. I just really like this number. Obsessed with Becca’s high notes.

MARLEY: Wrecking Ball. The cheating storyline with Bree was so fucking stupid and shouldn’t have happened. That being said, Melissa ATE what they gave her and left zero crumbs. She really came in like a wrecking ball.

UNIQUE: I Know Where I’ve Been. THIS SONG MAKES ME GO FUCKING CRAZY!!! THE TRANS CHOIR!!!! THE ACTING!!!!! THE FUCKING HIGH NOTE!!!!!! IT’S JUST SO GOOD I CAN’T HANDLE IT!!!!!!! This is the best part of season 6, full stop. THE most underrated Glee song ever. I will not accept criticism towards this opinion.

[bvannn]

Weekly Update April 5, 2024

This week has had ups and downs. I did get two snow days, which I mainly used for homework but did get a fair amount of art stuff done as well. The beginning and end of the week, including today, I’ve had awful flareups and I really don’t want to move my legs. I also had a very important doctor appointment regarding that cancel right after I wrote my last weekly update, so last weekend wasn’t the best but I did find another clinic to do it first thing on Monday so luckily it wasn’t dragging me down all week. That appointment has been split into two, the first meeting in May and the second in August. Those are a ways out but the May one is sooner than the other clinic was going to. Anyway point is I’m doing pretty bad right now but I’ve done what I can about it so no one needs to be concerned. I did some art stuff as well.

Last night I tried to get licensing done for that cover song I finished, but looks like I need to wait a bit longer for that, since the release date needs to be clearer. I’ll try to put more time into the video for that, just so I don’t have completed work that isn’t publishable for as long. Once I have more time, which I believe I should this weekend, I’ll try to really push for getting music video boarded. Once it’s boarded I’ll decide if I want to do it in flash or csp, although I’m anticipating that it will most likely be a mix of both. Whatever makes production faster, on a shot by shot basis. Most likely won’t need to make another full blown rig. Outline work will be a bigger priority.

Comic was the other big priority this week, and it’s is going well. I got the first page laid out, and all but 2 panels done. I don’t anticipate lettering being too big a challenge so that’ll probably go quick. Tonight or this weekend I’ll try to finish up that page and get going on the next, which is only 3 panels so it should be faster (although one of those panels is pretty complicated but it’s fine it’ll go quick enough). Real happy with how everything is going there. Have done bits of writing for future ‘episodes’ as well in spare time, so hopefully I can dive right into a second issue after the first.

Music has also been chugging along. I’m mainly focusing on the Zelda medley and the other vocal cover for now, since I’m really happy with how they sound so far. Vocal cover needs backing vocals, harmony vocals, a couple other touch ups, and a solo and it’s done, and the Zelda medley is still down to me picking instruments, which seems to be the hardest part of music making atm. Once those two are done I’ll take another crack at the ones I’ve had on the back burner, and hopefully time myself so I can eventually offer music as a commission option. I’m not going to put it up as an option until I can price it properly and figure out how quickly I can get a song done when I’m not distracted. Don’t want to keep customers waiting!

Other writing projects are a bit stuck due to artblock, although if I have time later today I’ll try to take a bite out of either. Epithet TTRPG is in a tough spot because I know what I want the session to look like: a scooby doo style whodunnit mystery at a science fair, but the problem is figuring out the villain’s plan, since it’s going to have to be at least partially disconnected from the overarching story. Songwriting is also stuck because I’m just plain bad at rhymes, simple as. Of the two songs awaiting lyrics one is 2/3 done the other is like 15% done if that. If I can find time I’d love to just have a dedicated time block where I just sit and write, but the other projects are higher priority.

Next week will probably get messy with homework again after the weekend, so I’ll probably only be able to partially board the music video and maybe finish up the comic page I’ve been working on and start the next. I don’t anticipate a lot of activity. I’m still a. It messed up medically but I’m trying to figure out how to stabilize myself during flareups enough to still at least get writing done. It’s hard, things are hard. I’m still trying though.

[boysplanetrecaps]

Build Up Ep 8 Recap Part 3: Waterfire's Drama

Welcome back to my increasingly unhinged recaps of MNET’s Build Up! In the previous one, we all got pregnant, whether we have uteruses or not! In this one, our ears will be both blessed and challenged. Let’s talk about it! 

LTR: Hayoon, Sunyoul, Wumuti, and Suhwan

So, the team comes up on stage and Dahee asks leader Sunyoul about their name. Sunyoul explains that he and Hayoon are “like water” and Suhwan and Wumuti are “fiery” so their team tries anything, whether watery or fiery. 

Backstage, Woong points out what every person in the room is thinking: “When water and fire mix, the fire dies!” In my opinion, they should have called themselves Steam, since that’s what is created when water and fire mix, and steam is powerful. 

Wendy says she’s heard that the team had trouble choosing a song, and Suhwan says that since they were the leftovers they didn’t necessarily have a shared musical style. We’re reminded of how they were the ones left. Aww! It’s especially galling since they all have gotten great reviews and have won top tier and stuff like that. 

I mean, I think I know why Hayoon and Wumuti were left for last. It’s just that neither of them really meets the Korean standards of male beauty. I’m not calling them ugly, but Hayoon looks like a real Korean person, like someone you’d actually see on the street, which is not what K-idols look like. And Wumuti -- please forgive me for saying this, but Wumuti’s face is sort of unusual looking. I think he’s had a bunch of fillers put in there and it just looks a little odd sometimes. I love his personality so, so, so much and I think he has a lovely singing voice. But yeah. Neither of them would qualify as a "visual" in a kpop group, to the best of my understanding.

As for Suhwan, he easily might have been picked earlier if things had played out differently, but also, I think he kind of lacks sex appeal. Maybe if he got a different haircut it would help. 

But even though they were left for last, Wumuti’s optimism is unflagging. He’s like, great, they expect nothing from us -- but we’re going to do great anyway. That’s what I love about Wumuti! Remember back on Boys Planet when his whole team on Switch was pretty sure they’d get eliminated, but Wumuti kept working his hardest to get the performance ready? And then he cheered from the audience for the performance like he was their biggest fan? He’s such a sweetheart. 

Back in Sunyoul’s Small Room of Serious Decisions, he tells his team, “Since we were the last ones left, let’s be the last ones left on Build Up as well!” Heck yeah!

If you don’t love Sunyoul, you’re wrong. 

We skip ahead to something we haven’t seen thus far -- the round four interim inspection. 

I love how they put a bunch of round folding tables in a high school gymnasium and had Baekho and Eunkwang just sit awkwardly to one side. That's that MNET budget showing again.

Team Waterfire is nervous to perform at this evaluation. They had a lot of trouble choosing a song and eventually decided to sing Drama by Aespa just as a placeholder, I think. They should have asked me! I have an Exo song for all occasions! 

Ok, hear me out, hear me out:

I think they would have done great with Young by Baekhyun x Loco. Yes, it has a lot of rapping, but Hayoon is actually a fantastic rapper. And I can also imagine his vocal tone sounding really cool on the choruses. Plus, there’s also all those tight, crunchy harmonies on the bridge that would have made use of their skills. Not saying it would have won the night; just saying I would have enjoyed it a lot.

Alternatively, they could have done Blooming Day by EXO-CBX. All four of these guys are charming, and charm is what this song needs. They could have done the “can I be your boyfriend?” stuff with aplomb. They could worn jeans and soft looking t-shirts and looked like they smelled like clean laundry out of the drier. They could have offered Dahee flowers and pulled heart shaped confetti out of their pockets. They could have had some backup dancers, and done a little bit of choreo here and there. Tell me I’m wrong. 

Or, or, if they really really wanted to do a girl group song, why not Wow Thing? Bright, cheerful, flirty, perfect. Hayoon could do most of the Soyeon parts, Wumuti could be Seulgi, Sunyoul could be Sin B, and Suhwan could be Chungha, more or less.

Drama is such a weird choice. It’s one of those weird Aespa songs that isn’t so much a “song” as it a series of noises accompanied by choreo. I’m not saying I don’t like it. In fact, it is on my “angry kpop” playlist that I listen to whenever I’m mad. I love the “trauma, I break trauma” bit. I love the idea of just embracing drama. Too often, girls’ and women’s issues are dismissed as just drama. We’re told to hold back under threat of being labeled "dramatic," and it’s like, no, you WILL listen to my concerns because I am NOT scared of that label. 

But I might be putting more into the song than is really there. As it is, the lyrics barely make sense. There’s probably some Aespa/ Kwangya/ naevis lore that explains what the hell they’re talking about but I do not have the time to invest in that. Also, there isn’t really a tune? And it’s mostly rapped? And it keeps talking about "my girls in the back," which sounds weird when men say it...? I don’t know -- I could probably think of 50 other songs that would have been better than Drama. It feel like they wrote the names of 1000 kpop songs on pieces of paper and pulled one at random out of a hat.

Anyway, this is the world we live in -- the one where they’re singing Drama.

They sing for their fellow contestants at this midterm evaluation, and...

... Bain is all of us. 

The reviews are poor -- Yeo One is like, yeah, my team could easily beat this. So they decide to turn things upside down.

s w e a t e r

To symbolize their intentions, they go to an action school and, I don't know, jump on trampolines.

A true feat of strength and agility!

They learn a lot and um, they become better... performers? question mark?

And that brings us to performance night!

Full version without reactions

My take:

I really respect the hard work, skill, talent, and time that went into this. Every note that was sung was perfect in terms of pitch and rhythm. All four of them sounded great.

But I didn't like it very much.

Did you watch Road to Kingdom? Pentagon did a weird cover of Follow by Monsta X. Hui did the remix himself and it was very dramatic. It also wasn't fun to listen to. The charm of the original song, and the tune, was surgically removed. The soundscape they made was impressive but it actually kind of hurt my ears at points.

I don't know where kpop groups got the idea that wearing military inspired outfits and singing harsh, discordant songs would be charming. I know a lot of them do it, but I wonder if fans actually *like* it?

For me, the part at the beginning where Suhwan and Wumuti are sort of "talking" to each other was incredibly cringey. Like I had to turn it off and try watching it later.

In fact, in general, Wumuti's spoken word rap style makes me want to evaporate. Sorry, friends.

The weird discordant harmonies hurt my ears sometimes, too.

On the positive end, all the singing was technically very good. Suhwan in particular stood out for me as having a strong, confident voice. Sunyoul sounded sweet and light. Hayoon added a bit of spice at times, and also demonstrated that he can clean his vocal tone when he wants to, which is a valuable skill. And Wumuti held things down as the ideal lead vocal. Their harmonies were on point -- they hit these little bursts of crunchy 3- and 4-part harmony that were truly impressive.

But like, why? Why do this? Why sing this song, and why sing it this way? Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should.

I also have to comment on how awkard Suhwan is on stage. Even in the ending pose, when the other three look over their shoulders at the audience, Suhwan just sort of turns his head to the left and looks off into the distance.

I showed My Fella first the original version of the song and then this cover, and he said it was like a whole new song, and then added, kind of embarrassed, "But I mean, I didn't like it. I didn't like how it sounded. I felt like the original song had this "mean girls" energy to it, but this just sort of didn't make sense." He specifically picked out Suhwan and said, "This guy looked so awkward standing there, and then when he actually sang, I thought, oh, so that's why he's here." So some mixed feedback there. He and I don't always agree on stuff, but we sure as heck agreed here. (I don't tell him my opinion on stuff before I show it to him -- I like to hear what he thinks.)

For comparison's sake, here's Hayoon's ending pose:

It's actually really good. He manages to bring an almost sexy energy to it. Hayoon is an interesting guy -- the dichotomy between onstage and offstage Hayoon is so bizarre. But it's cool.

And Wumuti...

PLEASE STOP DOING WEIRD THINGS TO YOUR FACE LIKE PUTTING STICKERS ON YOUR NOSE and fillers in your cheeks and lips

The MNET edit emphasizes how amazed the judges are, and they have every right to be.

Eunkwang can't believe the harmonies.

We also see a lot of shots of the audience who look amazed. But like, are they amazed at how good it is, or are they amazed just at how different it is?

When the performance is over, the audience cheers loudly, the judges applaud (Jaehwan stands up) and the guys backstage say things like "This team did a good job" and "The vocal composition is well organized." But it's not like, "Wow, I loved that."

The judges vote, and we get the high score: a 95 from Jaehwan.

Honey-badger Jaehwan don't care.

Well, he's a judge. He gets to vote how he wants.

Dahee asks Jaehwan about his score, and he says that he thought it was pre-recorded vocals at first. That's fair -- their vocals were technically perfect. He also thinks they had good teamwork and harmony, which is also true. Unlike in Jay's team, where Jay stood out, there wasn't one person who stood out significantly more than the others. Jaehwan also compliments Suhwan's vocal fry, which makes everyone try their own.

There's also a lot of praise for Hayoon, who says "thank you." VCG repeats the way Hayoon says "thank you" in a high-pitched tone that verges on mocking, though I don't think that's how VCG meant it.

Ok, before I go on, I have to say that I'm absolutely bewildered at the judges' response to the performance, because I feel certain it can't be how most people honestly feel about listening to it. I have a theory, though, if you'll take a short walk with me.

I work as a tutor for people who have to take difficult tests. Something I've noticed is that certain types of high-scoring students sometimes talk themselves out of the right answer because it's "too obvious." The reason it seems obvious is that it's right and they're good at it, but the right answer is boring to them, and they can imagine a whole convoluted explanation for how the other answer would be right if you squint and look at it from across the street.

I kind of feel like that's what's happening to these judges. Their ears tell them "this is unpleasant to listen to" but their brain is bored by things that sound nice at this point, so they convince themselves that the obviously good performance is not as good, and that this highly technical display of vocal skill is preferable.

VCG says he gave them a high score because "I thought if you sang a ballad, you would kill it." See what I mean? He's grading not based on whether or not he actually enjoyed THIS performance that he just watched. He's grading based on some imaginary thing he's making up as he goes along.

I tell my students all the time: Just answer the question in front of you. I want to tell these judges: Just grade the performance you watched and listened to. Just that. Just. Do. That.

Anyway, that's about all we get for judges' feedback. No kind words for Sunyoul or Wumuti at all, which is a bummer.

So here's a nice picture of Sunyoul, whom I adore.

No mention of who specifically did the arrangement (I feel like it was Wumuti, don't you?). No comment on the song choice or the "girls in the back" or anything.

So, that brings us to the end of this recap! Sorry if this was your favorite performance of the night, but also, I'm glad that someone liked it, since I like these guys as humans and as performers and I know they must have worked so hard on it. I really wish I liked it.

I'll see you in the next one, when I cover Uptown Funk by a team with no name! Just no name at all.

[dross-the-fish]

I saw your post about your version of Adam being inspired by Blade Runner. Do you have anything like that for Edward?

Like Adam my version of Jekyll/Hyde is a mix of different iterations, including non-Jekyll and Hyde adaptations. I have heard people say the Hulk is actually based on Jekyll and Hyde, admittedly i don't consume a lot of Marvel content and from what I've seen I've never felt the Hulk part of Bruce Banner's personality was very Hyde-like. I feel like the Hulk is a little too animalistic and I don't like that he doesn't seem to retain his intelligence. But you know what character I do see shades of Hyde in?

Just a disclaimer before I proceed: I love Batman TAS. It was my favorite show from childhood. However, I don't really like the way DID is handled in most media and while this isn't the worst I've seen by a long shot, this show is no exception. I also don't fully buy that Harvey Dent isn't aware of what Two-Face is doing, even under the influence of hypnotism. Like Jekyll he may be shocked by how far he's willing to go when he's Two-Face but I've always believed he remembers what he did and him asking "did I do this?" is more the result of that than a lack of awareness. What I do really love is how this scene basically states that Dent has always been Two-Face, even before the accident that pushed him over the edge. That rage and cruelty was always just under the surface and the longer he represses it the harder it's getting to contain. Especially as his life becomes more stressful you really feel like even without the accident he would have given into his alter ego and it would have destroyed him. I also really like that this is not the first time we see Harvey and it's established that he is Bruce's friend, so watching him fall has a real tragic impact because you see people who love him trying their hardest to save him and they just can't The vocal performance really sells it for me too, Richard Moll did a phenomenal job with this portrayal and I do draw a lot from it when I think of Edward's mannerisms vs Henry's. When written well I've always felt like Two-Face reads as more like Jekyll and Hyde than The Incredible Hulk does and I do take notes.

[lgcnina]

✰ ◞ TEAM UNKNOWN FINAL MEETING. and thus, the curtains close on this act.

there's an odd sensation resting on the precipice of her shoulders, a weight that teeters back and forth between a burden far too heavy to lift, and the touch of long-awaited relief. mixed somewhere deep within, confusion, a perplexity nina can't seem to untwine from the tendrils of expectancy these last few months have allowed to fester in the pit of her stomach. at one point, back when their trainee group had first been curated, she'd been so sure that, initial hesitance aside, they'd eventually be able to decipher just what this would all be about.

it was all too particular, planned and organized in a way far too odd to be solved by ordinary means, and thus, ninas preconceived notions had all but quickly died a few days into their tiny groups first week.

now, having pushed through, the finish line right at the tips of her toes as she herded to her final meeting, nina still can't tell which way was up and which was down.

anything could happen at this point ( in fact, anything had happened— anything was what got her in this position to begin with, an unforeseen occurrence she'd still need more time to digest on her own, even now that it was all seemingly completed ).

alone time would come to her eventually. now, entering the meeting room and sitting before her appointed coach, there were a few final questions that needed reflecting.

"what was the hardest part during these last ten weeks?"

"dancing hasn't ever been one of my strongest suits, i think that's something we might be able to agree on," nina begins, candid, wanting to get straight to the point. there wasn't a need to dwindle, not when honesty was something she'd never had an issue with providing— not when it came to performance, a reflection of skills, and the talk of growth. "all this time, i'd thought i'd done well to improve that aspect of my skill set, but this whole experience was a bit of a wake-up call. i could've been doing more before this." with the emphasis she'd always pushed onto her vocal capabilities, it seemed only natural for dancing to take something of a hit, lacking in proper attention outside of what was mandatory. week two had been a proper kick in the ass, and while she'd managed to make it through with a little help and true signs of growth, that hadn't saved her body from feeling thoroughly throttled.

even now, parts of her ached that'd never felt such a sensation before. learning the choreography for antifragile had been a particular beast, all on its own. growing pains, with plenty more to come if she truly meant to stick by her newfound convictions. "the dance lessons proved to be my biggest challenge, but they helped."

"alright, then what was the easiest part?"

again, nina feels as though it's quite an obvious answer. "i'm a vocalist— a singer." there's a pause, a moment for her to collect her words, rifling through what she'd like to say. "week one hadn't ever been something i found myself feeling worried over. don't get me wrong, we sped through several techniques and lessons, far more than i was expecting us to tackle in such a short amount of time, but adapting wasn't hard. i enjoyed it the most, in fact— there's nothing wrong with circling back to basics or touching on more advanced skills." nina tries not to mull over her words too much, wanting only to share where her mind has been for the last two months. "i wouldn't mind taking part in more intensive vocal lessons like this again in the future."

"throughout all of this, have you learned anything new about yourself?"

now that . . . gives her momentary pause. they were pushing, prodding, digging deep with claws too sharp and intrusive. it was one thing to make self-discoveries— it was another to then bare one's vulnerability to those who might not always understand. for as honest as she was wanting to be, trying to be, truly letting go and allowing others in ( especially when they weren't anywhere near close to breaking her boundaries ) was cause for inner alarm. of course they'd want to know something like this, a prolonged, stress-inducing event such as this was almost always a breeding ground for personal growth. nina remains silent, lips pursed slightly as she gazes at the table separating herself from the coach.

against the bile, nina speaks. "i've learned that i'm capable of asking for help when i really need it." her voice is steady, even, and her gaze lifts to make eye contact. "i'm not the only person here, experiencing all of . . . this," with her hands, she gestures vaguely around her. "the perspectives and input of other people really can help broaden things." i just have to stop being so stubborn all the time.

"finally, what do you wish to accomplish from this point on?"

swallowing, nina straightens in her chair slightly. "growth is always something i'm working towards, in all aspects." this past year alone has proven to her how detrimental throwing all your eggs into one basket could truly be, a damaging fall from heights unthought of forcing her to really see her world for what it truly was— there wasn't room to slack, not anymore, not when slacking even the slightest bit could mean the difference between being seen and being overlooked.

"i want to keep honing my skills. growing stagnant hurts more than anything else, and that's the last thing i want for myself."

i don't want to hurt again. i will not hurt again.

[existentialmagazine]

Review: Trash Pals warm new alt-rock tune ‘Delancey’ offers an anthem of hope when things feel dark

Indie-rockers Trash Pals have made quite a name for themselves in the last year, hitting it off with warm rock in their track ‘Perfect Dream’, as well as dancing into rawer admissions in ‘Dust It Off.’ Whatever they do though, Trash Pals are always standing out, formed by the multifaceted artists Conor Rayne and Gabe Schnider that know exactly how to weave emotion into sound.

Now with their latest offering ‘Delancey’, the duo continue to surprise and mesmerise fans, shaking up their sound once again for something a little more stripped back. Through warm acoustic guitar, the introduction alone hangs heavy in the air, a tender mix of strums and finger-picked plucks that’ll make you feel like part of a campfire performance. The glowing vocals are perfectly complementary, singing ‘it’s been a long time since there’s been sunshine peaking through your window’, an acknowledgement of the darkness and yet a light in itself as it reflects on what’s still to come. Their positive aura only keeps shining, taking listeners on an aching but uplifting journey that reminds you of the progress you’ve made. Continuing ‘so many moments you could’ve thrown it all away when you were low’ , their wholesome presence is one hard to deny, a beautiful reminder that you’ve lived through the worst things you’ve ever experienced and still continue to push through.

Just as the chorus washes over you, the pair deliver a line that many will have yearned to hear, simply but powerfully declaring ‘all I can say is, I’m so glad you’re here.’ With a much-needed hand to hold, the sound soon also shifts to fuller heights, beaming through soft tumbling drums, guitar strums and soaring vocals, all radiating in unison as Trash Pals plead ‘don’t go away, won’t you stay?’ Through the lowest of lows, and the hardest of hurdles, ‘Delancey’ offers a respite through it all, a place to go when nobody else is there to tell you what you need to hear. A constant reminder of your worth, of your progress, of your need to keep moving forward, this heartwarming anthem is one that’ll surely find it’s way in that playlist you return to every time you need a pick-me-up.

Keep listening to ‘Delancey’ here, it serves as such a dance-along escape even when the seas are rocky and there seems to be no hope.

Written by: Tatiana Whybrow

Photo Credits: Unknown

// This coverage was supported and created via Musosoup, #SustainableCurator.

[allthemusic]

Week ending: 20 January 1955

Another busy week, as the festive, sentimental Christmas songs are swept away in favour of something a bit fresher - is it going to be more rock and roll? One can only hope...

I Can't Tell a Waltz from a Tango - Alma Cogan (peaked at No. 6)

Well, it's a distinctive title, though one that leaves me a little concerned for Alma's musical abilities. They're... quite different dances, really.

It starts out and it's absolutely a tango, in terms of the backing music, solidly in 4/4, with trumpet flourishes and that stompy string sound that you get - but Alma's all mixed up, singing about how "I never know what my feet are gonna do". Quite a severe issue - so is this just a song about how she has two left feet?

Nope, not at all! The reason for her fumble-footedness is more romantic in nature. She's not got issues in general - in fact, we learn later that "I've even won a prize or two" - but the issue only crops up "darling, when I dance with you". Which is either cute or implying that her love just a really chaotic dance partner!

Throughout, Alma sounds like she's mildly amused - she has a happy, warm voice, and it's glorious. It's not an all-time classic, or anything, but it's lovely none the less, how friendly and outright gleeful she sounds here.

There's also a terribly exciting orchestral break where the rhythm briefly slips into something jazzy and syncopated, which is a wonderful contrast to the tango rhythm's stompiness. I actually briefly thought they were going to turn it into a waltz - a missed trick, though I enjoyed what they did, too!

Mr. Sandman - The Four Aces (9)

Well, this is the second version of this in as many weeks, and I have to say, I think I prefer this one to Dickie Valentine's? It's still not my favourite version of the song, but there's a vintage charm that appeals.

I don't know if we've come across the Four Aces, but they're a four-man barbershop quartet hailing from Pennsylvania. Compared to the British Dickie Valentine, who's trying his hardest to sound glitzy and American and not quite succeeding, this is just a slight bit more sparkling and glam.

It starts with some very Disney-ish harps and then "Mr. Sandman" echoing at you like somebody's singing it from the bottom of a well. There's a slight clash in the harmonies, and the overall effect's just the right side of eerie.

Then we get a celeste (?) that takes over the "ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba" part. I do kind of miss the vocals doing that, to be honest, but the barbershop rendition of the song that follows is perfectly serviceable, and the "doo doooo doo doo" parts in the background are lovely and vintage.

There are also all these jammy chords throughout - the Four Aces aren't playing it safe, and it pays off. Decisions like leaning on the "Mr Saaaaandmaaaaan" line for all it's worth, or like using an urgent, driving double bass to back it all off really pay off, too, making it feel a bit more jazzy and edgy that it really has any right to be, given the G-rated, nursery-rhyme subject matter.

And then we end, with some brass and some layered echoing "Mr. Sandman"s from the backing singers. Actually, we fade into that, combined with the harps again. The effect is sort of uncanny - I like it, but you could use it basically untouched in a horror film, and it would be properly creepy.

Well, I enjoyed both of those songs. Neither are rock and roll, but they've got some of the same chaos. In particular, I enjoyed how quirky and tongue-in-cheek they both felt. In Alma's case, the song was explicitly humorous, and in the Four Aces' case, it was just a bit too cutesy and echoey to take entirely seriously. Fun times, either way.

Favourite song of the bunch: Mr. Sandman

[vagabondbabbler]

https://smoulder.bandcamp.com/album/violent-creed-of-vengeance

#28: Smoulder - Violent Creed of Vengeance

Oh hey, we've reached the first band on the list I've actually spent a lot of time with. I like Smoulder and actually own this album on vinyl which should give you some idea of my feelings ahead of time. Let's get into it tho.

Smoulder plays doom-tinged "epic" heavy/US-power metal. The riffs are top notch and there's a lot of depth and complexity to the songs - this is one that gets better the more you listen to it and pick it apart. The real standout of the album, though, is Sarah's vocals. She's one of the most unique vocalists in modern metal imo and this album is a showcase for that. The lyrics are heavily laden with fantasy themes (to the point that Michael Moorcock does the spoken intro for a track about Elric and the Eternal Champion), but she alludes to in interviews there's a lot of personal allusions too. This album also sees them try out more speed/eu-power metal on certain tracks - which also rock.

My gripes about the album are relatively few. I had trouble getting into it the first couple times I listened, but it really grew on me. Ironically the vocals that I just sang the praises of were one of the hardest parts at first. She weaves in and out around the melody/rhythm instead of mirroring it, and her vocals are mixed in a more doom metal style where they feel a bit distant in the mix. As someone for whom vocals are an easy "in" to music and who really loved her singing and the mixing on Dream Quest Ends (both a little more standard heavy metal vibes), it was a bit of an adjustment. However, it was worth the time it took to get into this one. Highly, highly recommend.

I'll end with the bands own words here: Love metal. Hate fascists. Death to rape and rape culture.

https://www.invisibleoranges.com/smoulder-interview/

[harshr]

SEEK INSPIRATION: a playlist of various songs that inspired me during the creation of "Seek Comfort". Yes, this is deeply indebted to the ID:YD feature with Male Tears breaking down their influences, but I've long kept extensive notes on my songwriting process and am always excited to talk about the various ways my music comes together.

SEEK COMFORT // 40 Watt Sun - Reveal Patrick Walker is a brilliant songwriter, especially when it comes to his use of negative space and slow, subtle melodic shifts. As you're probably aware, I'm generally allergic to songs of this length, yet somehow he enables 9 minutes to pass almost effortlessly and then that final lift at the end is absolute magic. Needless to say, I take copious influence from Walker's craftmanship, but nowhere more evident than on "Seek Comfort".

DEVOTIONAL // Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American Hate to break it to you: "Devotional" is a pop-punk song and "Bleed American" is top-tier pop-punk. I'm not really borrowing anything specific from this particular track, but I've listened to this album so much that there's no doubt it has greatly influenced on my songwriting. To be fair though, I've also been writing/playing pop-punk since the mid-90s; I just don't usually allow those elements to creep into Harsh R material.

ARE YOU MY PEOPLE? // Distel - Majestik Distel's music is inherently unsettling and that's a feeling I often seek to emulate. Sparse rhythms + discordant tones is always the way.

HIDING PLACE // Die Kreuzen - Gone Away I celebrate the entire Die Kreuzen catalog, from their USHC classic self-titled debut all the way through to their proto-grunge/glam ends, but it's the quieter songs that have always been my favorite. In this particular instance, I'm referencing their mix of aggressiveness and vulnerability for my lyrics and performance -- readily apparent here on "Gone Away", but a common theme across their entire discography.

I WAS NEVER THERE // Kowloon Walled City - Backlit Ok, this one is a straight-up KWC rip. Much like 40 Watt Sun, KWC are another fine example of a band with a masterful approach to space and dynamics. There's a very good reason I had Scott Evans mix my earlier material.

INSTAGRAM WITCH // Trepaneringsritualen - Black Egg The music on this one is essentially my attempt at "P_rnogr_phy"-era Cure, but TRP was a direct reference for the vocal, especially for the timbre on the loud part. Otherwise: magic and darkness, secrets and light.

EMPTY SHELL (ft. RUNOTI) // Years of Denial - Human You Scare Me I've long been a huge fan of European-style darkwave and I think my record shows a marked shift towards that style, but it's most apparent on "Empty Shell". Years of Denial are easily my current favorite genre stalwarts, though they go further by incorporating elements of techno, noise, and beyond; I spend a lot of time picking apart their songwriting and production choices and do my best to incorporate some of those ideas into my own music.

REMEMBER DEATH // Merle Haggard - If We Make It Through December If you want to learn how to write a song then you learn from the best, and there is no one better than Merle Haggard. The chord changes and phrasing in "If We Make It Through December" are subtle and sublime; you'd probably never notice the intricacies until you try to play it yourself and that's exactly what I did. Or at least tried to do - this one goes a fair bit beyond my skill level and it's that challenge that pushes me to strive harder.

WAVE GOODBYE // Sevdaliza - Darkest Hour I've spent a solid amount of time with Sevdaliza's masterpiece "Shabrang" over the past few years (massive thanks to Terror Apart for the tip!) and there are so many ways it has affected me, but it's definitely the emotional tone that hits hardest, like a dark force pressing down on your soul. Also: it's not employed so much on "Darkest Hour", but I absolutely love the way the Sevdaliza manipulates her vocals and that's definitely something I'll be carrying forward into whatever I do next.

For non-Spotify users, check out the BNDCMPR playlist below. It's missing the major-label tracks, but you can always find those on youtube or elsewhere.

[natemonoxide]

RPM Challenge days #7 to #10

Day 7: Tuesday 7th of February 2023. 7:30am That's all the writing done! Sure, the songs might be a bit hit-and-miss, but I wrote sixteen songs in a week! That's got to be some sort of record for me. Even during the first RPM I was only recording a song at a time, so the writing process was spread over two weeks. The last 4 songs are: Project 13 (Feb 5th) - DOWNFALL 2:01 - Demo instrumental finished, no lyrics yet Project 14 (Feb 5th) - TUNS 2:43 - Demo instrumental finished, no lyrics yet Project 15 (Feb 6th) - ENOUGH 3:48 - Demo instrumental finished, no lyrics yet Project 16 (Feb 6th) - END 2:51 - Demo instrumental finished, no lyrics yet As a side-note, these are probably just working titles. As much as I like the idea of streamlining things by having single-word song titles, it makes them easy to forget. Like I see the title 'Clouds' and I don't even remember what type of song that was. Taking a break for the rest of the day. I've got some repair people coming to sort the gutters out within the next four hours, and after that I should probably try to sleep. The hardest part is done! Time to celebrate… Now I've just got to figure out when I'll be awake during sociable hours to record 16 sets of vocals.

Day 8: Wednesday 8th of February 2023. 3pm Absolutely knackered. I started recording vocals at 9am, and only wrapped up at 2pm. Didn't stop for so much as a cup of tea from start to finish. The worst part? I only managed to get HALF of the vocals done. The thought of doing the same again tomorrow is exhausting, but I really need this stuff done. It's starting to sink in just how much work there's still left to do if I want to have everything done by the end of the month.

Day 10: Friday 10th of February 2023. 1am I recorded vocals for another 4 songs yesterday, and I started on the production/mixing side of things. 12 of the 16 songs have finished vocals. There's still a lot left to do though, including re-recording all the instrumentals. I only realised when I started recording vocals that two of the songs have basically the same chorus. The instrumental and lyrics are different, but the melody and rhythm are the same. They're not similar enough in content that I can pretend it was intentional and a callback to a theme either. Oh well, if I spread them out or make one a bonus maybe it wont be so obvious. Except that I'm pointing this out here…

[xandria]

𝕔𝕙𝕖𝕖𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕙𝕚𝕞 𝕦𝕡  —  Bokuto Koutarou

contains - oral (m!receiving) + teasing + praising + needy!bokuto + switch!bokuto + dom!bo at the end + slight dom!reader vibes

wordcount - 2,042

summary - you didn’t know why your boyfriend was upset, he wouldn’t tell you! good thing you know just how to get your big pretty man to open up <3

There’s one sure-fire way to fix grumpy Bokuto, and that’s to fuck him. 

Or, in this case, since you’re in the car on your way home, road head. 

He’s pouting severely from his position in the driver’s seat and has met all of your positive advances and concerned questions with gruff one-word answers. 

You sigh, fine, you figure, you know how to solve this. 

You stare at your boyfriend, the angry grip of his fist on the wheel has you eyeing his large veiny hands, and the other fist tucked under his cheek as he leans on the door has you staring hard at his plush, pouty lips. As frustrating as his grumpy mode could be sometimes, you had to admit, sometimes it was stupidly cute. 

Especially when you first start to seduce him, and he desperately clings to his bad mood for as long as he possibly can (spoiler alert: not very long). Seeing the blush involuntarily overtake his cheeks and the strain of him trying his hardest to keep his lips pulled into a frown was intoxicating.

And then, the delicious final breaking moment when grumpy Bokuto disappears entirely, and one of your favorites replaces him- needy, horny, touch-drunk Bokuto. Fuck, you loved him like that. Absolutely weak for your touch, he’ll beg and whine until he gets what he wants, you, and then will praise you endlessly for your good work. When he’s drunk off of you like that, high off your every move, he is ridiculously vocal in his pleasure, and physically responsive, never able to keep still, his strong hands always grabbing at you greedily in any way he can. 

You are nearly drooling in your seat, sitting there picturing your very clear goal of ruining the pretty, angry man in front of you. You sat there fantasizing of what was to come, your none-the-wiser boyfriend staring hard at the road. If he had only turned to see the sultry, drooling stare his girlfriend was giving him through hooded lids, he may have immediately pulled the car over.

“Kouuu,” you muse his name with an enticing hum, unbuckling your seatbelt. He chooses not to notice, keeping his eyes on the road as he grunts in response. 

You lean across the middle dash, coming closer to his face, he still doesn’t turn. 

“I’ll give you a reward if you stop being grumpy” 

“Whatever,” he scoffs. Yep, holding tightly to his bad mood. Oh well, you smile, it just makes the next part all the more satisfying. 

You lean in close, your breath on his skin raising goosebumps he tries to ignore, you lightly press your lips on the soft spot of his neck, right beneath his ear, and he tenses. 

“Are you sure?” You hum, your tongue making slow contact with his sensitive skin, causing him to shiver. 

“Even if the reward is... road head?” You coo, just as you lightly bite at the already red skin on his neck. 

His response is positively delicious, you can feel heat and confliction pouring off of him. His primal side tenses and clenches his fists at the thought of your pretty mouth working its magic, while the stubborn, angry side of him huffs and turns his head, refusing to let you see the blush you brought to his cheeks. 

“What?” You smirk at his turned face, peppering open mouthed kisses on his now protruding jawline. “Do you not want it?” You run your hand across his taught chest, moving it up to the side of his neck to turn him towards you, not yet facing you, but just enough that you can graze your lips against his ear as you whisper, “I’ll only give it to you if you want it. You have to ask for it,” 

He shudders, a breath catching in his throat as you slide your hand back down his chest, running your nails slowly over the abs under his shirt, before teasing the waistline of his pants. At this point, he’s practically a mess trying to keep it together, his previously pouting lips now parted in arousal, his face red and hot and his resolve wearing thin. 

Your fingers tease the elastic of his shorts before you slip a hand inside, just over his briefs, purposefully palming his clothed erection with excruciating delicacy. You trace your fingers up his shaft at an agonizingly slow pace, and he inhales sharply. 

“But, if you don’t want it,” you say, suddenly caressing his cock with more pressure, gripping it firmly as you slide your palm back down it, just knowing you’re about to get that delicious confirmation you’ve been waiting for. It erupts from his mouth in a deep whine that makes your cunt ache.

“F-Fuck, I want it babe. I want it so bad.” 

A triumphant grin spreads across your face, and you return your lips to the tender skin on his neck. 

“Yeah?” You hum against his skin and finally slip your hand underneath his underwear, wrapping your fingers around his cock. He moans at the sudden feeling of your skin finally touching his. 

“Tell me what you want, be sure to ask nicely.” 

His response is instant, a guttural groan behind his desperate and needy tone. 

“Please, give me road head. Ahh shit, that sweet mouth of yours. I need it.” 

That’s all you needed to hear to pull his member free from its strained place in his briefs, holding it teasingly with your fingertips. Lightly kissing the tip, you trace the tip of your tongue along the ridge with ghosting pressure, purposefully only giving delicate touches that frustrate him beyond belief. 

He is a panting mess by the time you finally put your lips around his aching dick, but you only take the head into your mouth, not a bit further. He grunts in protest and, whether involuntary or not, bucks his hips up in an attempt to push deeper in your mouth. 

You, however, knowing good and well your overzealous lover, saw this coming, and pulled up from him just before, using your forearm to hold his lap down. 

“Ah, shit, Come on... t-take it all,” he groans, and it breaks in a whine, a pout forcing onto his aroused features.

“Uh uh, grumpy boyfriends don’t get to be impatient. I’ll take you as slowly as I want,” you smile, and to add insult to injury, you slide your tongue up flat against him, from the base to tip, and he sputters out your name like a curse. 

Satisfied with his suffering, you pop his head back in your mouth and slide your mouth down all the way to the hilt, hollowing out your cheeks. Holy fuck, was he a mouthful. He responds immediately with verbal affirmation, like the perfect partner he is, a guttural moan of “Good” pulling from his throat, the hum of his baritone going straight to your cunt.

“Holy fuck, y-y/n, you look so fucking perfect right now.” He reaches one hand over to grab firmly at your ass, light-headed at the sight of you bent over the middle console for him. 

You pulled up from him quickly, and the sudden lack of contact mixed with your stern, dominant tone made him whimper, “Watch the road, both hands on the wheel, or I stop.” 

His hand darted away from you, the sudden sound of fists tightening around leather making you grin as you returned to your good work, bobbing rhythmically up and down his thick shaft. 

“Oh my god, s-shit, so fucking good angel. Love that- huhh, perfect fucking mouth of yours,”

The more you work with your skillful mouth, the more praises and curses pour from his throat. You love what a receptive lover he is, how confident and positively wet he makes you when he tells you exactly the way you make him feel. Which, at the current moment, was heavenly.

“F-Fuck, babe, I’m gonna- we should p-pull over-”  

“Keep driving. You take care of not crashing, and I’ll take care of you.” 

Your eagerness to please him... holy shit. This side of you is ruining him right now. He momentarily fears for the safety of his life and his pride, because you have the reins pulled so fucking tight on him right now it’s embarrassing, honestly. 

Your skilled tongue and fast-paced bobbing are making him come apart at the seams, his knuckles white and shoulders shaking, and he’s using every drop of will power to keep his eyes from clenching shut from the overwhelming stimulation. You slow your bobbing, tightening your lips as you pull up slowly to the top of his member, swirling your tongue around his sensitive head. Using your left hand to stroke the bottom of his shaft while your mouth is busy showing special attention to his head, your right hand slips under to take his heavy balls in your tight palm.

“Oh fuck, y/n! God, yes.” The way he hums and moans while you fondle his balls and suck on his sensitive head has you twitching, the sound of his voice vibrating in your soaked panties. 

You slide him out of your mouth with a smile, reveling in the shake of his muscular thighs, the tightness of his abs, all the little signs in his demeanor and body language that tell you you’re doing phenomenal. You lick another long, wet stripe up his shaft. He moans, and you take his large length in again with heightened enthusiasm. 

You start speeding up, his dick bottoming out in your throat with each head bob. His fingers curl and twist into your hair, tugging tight as his large palm on your scalp pushes you farther down on his cock. You specifically told him both hands on the wheel, but due to his endless symphony of deep moans and whiny praises egging you on, you figure you can let this disobedience go unpunished. Besides, with the obvious tensing of his thighs and twitching of his cock, you know he’s giving it his all not to just buck up into your mouth and fuck your pretty throat, he’s really being such a good, considerate boyfriend <3

“Fuck, shit,” He pants, and you can hear in his voice that he’s moments away from climax. You moan onto his cock as you hollow out your cheeks, and he pulls on your pretty locks trapped in his fist as his balls tighten. 

“Oh, fuck, yeah, that’s my baby,” Your name falls from his lips again and again as he cums, and you swallow his load that fills your mouth with greedy ambition. You bob up and down, his sensitive shaft twitching a few more times and he hisses, pulling you hard by your hair from overstimulation. 

You let his intense grip guide your head up to meet his eyes, and they are now dark and lidded with dangerous intent. The way he stares at your swollen pink lips makes you shudder. 

He reaches his thumb up to swipe the dripping cum from your bottom lip, and then pushes it in your mouth, setting his thumb on your tongue. 

This is one of your favorite things about your boyfriend. Some would think the sudden changes in mood would be exhausting, but usually, oh god, it took you by surprise in a way that had your panties soaking and your knees shaking. 

The power has entirely shifted, a moment ago you had all the control and dominance over your needy, horny, post-grumpy boyfriend, but now, oh boy. He’s looking at you with a fierce intent of payback, his golden eyes drinking in the way you tense with nervous anticipation, and you can see the punishment waiting for you in his eyes. 

Still gripping your hair tightly in his fist, he pulls you in for a quick, but devastatingly passionate kiss. He pulls away just as quickly, looking back to the road in front of him with deadly determined eyes. 

“We’re pulling over.” 

Your heart nearly pounds out of your chest as he whips into the closest secluded parking lot, your head spinning so fast you have no time to process the severity of your coming punishment as he throws you into the back seat, At least he isn’t grumpy anymore <3

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[pigspeetsandhooflikefeets]

victorian child voice hi can you please give me Guy factoids (and headcanons if you want)

sure. I've kept tabs on this man plenty and a lot of the facts make me happy

Guy is tall, at least in one way or another, as he states people have called him "longfellow". that's another tern for a tall man

One of Guy's other nicknames is "Roberta". he asks you not to question it

He claims to have never read a book in its full, but is great at writing essays and busy work, as he got an A in high school English for a book he read cliff notes on. it is to be noted that Guy brings books to the beach. it's unknown what he does with the books. it's possible he gets bored and never stops halfway

He mentions only a single girl he's dated (Maria Bouncer). Every other woman he mentions bails on him before the date is over (usually due to random things; cringe)

He loves trees and frogs, and dares you to say something bad about either.

He never mentions currently having pets. He shares this fact with Buzz and Nate.

Guy's favourite foods include mint milkshakes, Pringles, and milk by itself. Whatever makes him happy I guess!

Guy LOVES kissing. He makes a LOT of jokes about kissing just about anyone, from hockey players to his opponent in squash. He also alludes to enjoying other people kissing.

He denies stalking his jogging neighbor

As a child, he played peewee baseball/t-ball. his coach had... unique opinions on him.

He knows a few Yiddish phrases, which isn't special since almost all the hosts do, but it's a very hard to trigger line. You need everyone to get the Fiber Optic Field Trip question from the puppeteer wrong. The hardest part for me was recognizing the phrase actually.

Guy cannot tell Spanish, French, and German apart. He shares this fact with Buzz. Guy also hates Latin.

His family is implied to be dysfunctional and quick to argue, but he very rarely talks about anyone in it at all. His entire family hates one of his grandfathers, saying he's his grandmother's shame.

Like Cookie and Schmitty, he wears glasses (as shown in his single on-screen performance). It's unknown why he needs glasses, but it's entirely possibly he needs reading glasses, as he struggles to read some cards.

As for headcanons

Guy is bisexual (heavily implied but never confirmed, ya know). He was attracted to men before he was attracted to women (when you're surrounded by guys your age in sports it just happens)

Guy can float, but he cannot swim well. Would he drown, no, but if you asked him to do laps it'd take forever.

Guy's worst performing sport of the four big sports (football/soccer, baseball, hockey, American football) is football/soccer. High power, low control.

Guy went to college for a sports broadcasting degree. He was scouted for YDKJ during a sports game he did commentary on near (but not in) Chicago, giving the game way more flavour than it deserved

He is the youngest child. Besides his obvious youngest-child-energy, I simply headcanon Bob as his oldest brother, and since Bob mentions a younger sister, Guy's sister is the middle child. I have designed all three of these characters and not one of the 3 most reoccurring hosts. Wowie Zow.

Guy is heavily implied to have both autism, dyslexia, and some form of depression. He vocally stims (random singing and making weird vocal inflections), not recognizing boundaries or sarcasm (such as his relationship with Cookie), and is overly empathetic. Guy additionally is horrible at spelling and remembering directions (mixing up North and South frequently) and cannot get into books/reading long passages. Additionally, Guy has frequent dramatic outbursts that don't feel faked like some other hosts. He'll cry on a dime and has multiple occurrences where he has suicidal thought. Therapy. Therapy for Guy.

My interp of Guy that is 25% horse and resembles a horse satyr is not a headcanon, but a warning.