#and musicals where every single line is sung

[onesingulardimple]

I realised that my distaste for musicals was actually a confluence of a dislike of fan culture, the ADHD requirement to have my hands busy (so I prefer to play things than to watch things), and not being the target audience for High School Musical, which I took to be the archetypical musical. But as a kid I loved Muppet Treasure Island, Aristocats, Muppet Christmas Carol, Disney's Hercules, and lots of musical theatre productions, and I can now also see why classics like Sound of Music & Singing in the Rain, and newer classics like Mamma Mia! & Wicked are so loved.

I guess if there's a film I'm intrigued by I won't let myself be put off if I find out it's a musical, but this still won't get me to go and watch a live production of e.g. Cats, where the intention is the glitzy glam & spectacle.

people will claim to be filled with whimsy and joy for life but then hate musicals……. the vile tongue of man will never cease lying

[felixbit]

songwriter

pairing: han jisung x gn!reader w. 0.7k genre: fluff summary: your boyfriend jisung's birthday is right around the corner and you have the brilliant idea to make him a song. you learn it's not easy, and you begin to worry it won't work out. warnings: reader overthinks and gets a bit insecure, jisung is of course there to reassure a/n: im so sorry this one is so short!! i promise i'll make up for it with a better hanji fic in the future. felix fic coming tomorrow!

Being a songwriter's partner has benefits.

Every new Stray Kids album that would come out would have some sappy love song written by your boyfriend, Han Jisung. He would send it to you after the album would drop, asking if you liked it. He would then reveal that it was about you, and you had to act surprised.

Of course you loved all his songs. They were beautifully crafted and every single thing made your heart go wild. He put words to feelings you didn't know you had. But, he was so painfully obvious.

His birthday was coming up, and you had a great idea: what if you wrote him a song?

As it turned out, it was a little harder than you expected.

Lines were so hard to piece together and it was near impossible to make proper rhyme schemes. Jisung's ability to write a song was quickly becoming even more impressive than it already was. Even when you started to get lyrics on paper, you had to figure out how it was supposed to be sung.

Whenever Jisung went to the studio, you took special care to see just how he put together melodies. You tried to ask inconspicuous questions, and so far hadn't risen suspicion. You'd settled on trying to figure out playing his guitar instead of doing anything fancy with production.

Learning guitar chords had your fingers aching and sore. Building up calluses and memorizing just where to place your fingers in a short amount of time was no small task. But, you had basic chord progressions down in a few weeks and were on your way to something.

You'd let Chan and Changbin in on the secret of the birthday song, and you were eternally grateful when Chan extended an invite to use their studio. He gave you a ride, showing you inside and some basic functions of how to record.

Even if you didn't end up recording the song, the space was perfect for sitting and conceptualizing music. You had the lyrics pretty much solid, even if you questioned their quality every time you read them.

Halfway through trying to run through the song, anxiety started to creep up on you. Jisung's birthday was tomorrow, and you couldn't decide if you liked the song enough to show him.

Another half an hour of brainstorming, and you were tempted to scrap the song entirely. Everything you had come up with in your head wasn't sounding right when you tried it aloud. How could it compare to his songs?

You heard the studio door open, turning and expecting to see Chan. Instead, standing in the doorway looking perplexed was Jisung himself.

"Jagi, what are you doing here?" Jisung looked at you suspiciously before approaching the couch you were sat on.

You pulled the guitar out of your lap and propped it up against the couch. Shit. "Oh, you know.. you come here often?"

Jisung let out a loud laugh, sitting down next to you and scooting closer. "Your one-liners won't distract me. Why are you here? I mean, I don't mind you being in the studio, but.."

"I.." You looked down at the lyrics still pulled up on your phone screen before handing it over to your boyfriend, "I was doing this."

His eyes scanned over the lyrics a few times with a perplexed look before they shifted back to you. "These are.. lyrics, did you write this?"

Fidgeting, you nodded. "Yeah.. I was thinking it'd be a good thing for your birthday. If I wrote you a song."

Jisung stopped for a moment and looked at you, stunned. "A song? For my birthday? Honey.."

"I know, it's not great, really nothing compared to yours, but-"

"I love it."

You looked up to him, taking your eyes off the floor. He was looking at you like you were the only thing in the world. "You do?"

"I mean, it's really sweet. These lyrics, they're... I don't even know how you put these words together in the way you did. The feeling is so real, I didn't think I could feel that through words on a screen like that."

You felt your heart swell in your chest, leg bouncing as your eyes drifted back to the floor. "I mean, it's not that good.."

Jisung wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into a tight hug. "Don't give me that! It's the best! I would say it's just as good of a birthday present if you'd let me work on actually recording this with you and making it a full song."

"Really?"

Pulling you into a kiss, Jisung smiled. "Yeah! Now, would you please play it for me?"

[girlreviews]

Review #146: Parallel Lines, Blondie

Man oh man oh man. I love Blondie so much. I found this record in the Windsor Oxfam. I don’t remember exactly how old I was, but I remember what boyfriend was with me so that puts me between 15 and 18. Yeah, same guy. I actually don’t remember if he ended up getting his hands on this record or not. I think I still have it. Will rifle through my collection later to check.

Blondie was in the “being cool” wilderness for some absolutely crazy reason at that point, and nobody really gave a shit about them anymore. When I was 17 or 18 they were playing the Reading Hexagon which is honestly still just such an unbelievable insult I’m still annoyed about it. I’ll circle back to that.

Parallel Lines epitomizes the complete and total coolness and badassery of Debbie Harry. I have never wanted to be someone more than I wanted to be her. So much confidence. Such incredible cheekbones. Such commitment to art. No apologies. The voice of an angel one moment and snarling whimsical warnings, like, hey you, don’t fuck with me, the next. Always standing in front of all of those completely non-descript nobody dudes. Yeah they’re playing the music, but who cares, who are they? It’s all her. She is Blondie.

Can I pick a favorite? It opens with Hanging on the Telephone, in which she is really threatening to rip the phone clean off the wall. It might be that one. But we’ve also got the classic One Way Or Another, which needs no comment, and one of my actual favorites of all time, Heart of Glass which never fails to fuck me up, but like, it’s a god damn disco track? Like sure, yeah, let’s boogie away our heart break. And I did. And I have. And I will. And these are all SINGLES. We aren’t even discussing the actual album tracks yet. Just listen to it. Honorable mention goes to Sunday Girl, which I always really loved. It’s cute and it’s kind of sweet in a very teenage girl kind of way that worked for me since I was in fact, a teenage girl. Also, not on the official album release, but there was a version of that track where the latter half was sung entirely in French and I always really dug it.

Okay so circling back to the Hexagon. This is a weird story and I’m still not sure how I feel about it, to this day. As I said, Blondie were playing a show at the Hexagon. I was absolutely obsessed with them, and Debbie Harry. I was also 17 or 18 and spent every penny I had on going to shows, but those pennies were pretty limited. I worked as a waitress at the pub that was two doors down from my house. It was full of characters. One such character was a regular, he was in his late 40s, was very wealthy, didn’t drive, was single, and spent literally every bit of his spare time in that pub. Think on that. He paid a lot of attention to the various young women that worked there. Was he creepy? No not exactly. But did it make you uncomfortable? Yes it did. Because you never knew when he might make it weird. Everyone liked him well enough. One day out of the blue this guy presented me with five tickets to the Blondie show. I didn’t know what in the hell to say or whether to accept them. Or what it meant. Whether there were expectations attached to them. Whether it was okay to take them. I was uncomfortable. I was 17.

Here’s what happened. My Mom, who sort of knew him too, since he was always there, decided it was fine, because she wanted to go. But for it to be okay, she decided he also had to come. So we went, he came, and a few friends too. The thing is though, she never knew him like I did. I saw him every day. I saw him with the other girls that worked at the pub. I saw him drunk off his ass. I don’t know that I ever would have taken the tickets. Or if I did, I’m not sure I ever would have invited him. I feel a bit queasy about it to this day. I think in the end something really off-base happened one night between him and someone on staff and he got barred. That was usually the way it went with regulars who were there that often.

The other thing to note is that Blondie ended because Debbie Harry was with Chris Stein, who was literally dying of some rare autoimmune disease throughout their last tour. There were other factors at play, but essentially, they broke up because he was too sick and she stayed at his side and became his full-time carer. When he was well, he left her. They are, remarkably, still close friends to this day and still perform together. Just never forget that men are dogs, and that Blondie is and always will be Debbie Harry. I love her. To this day she looks better than I do in a mini skirt and I love that for her.

ETA: I checked and in fact, I do not still have Parallel Lines in my record collection, but I am quite confident it got lost when I moved back to the US. Also, I’m not 100% certain that show was at the Reading Hexagon. I just know it was a shitty venue not worthy of Blondie. This was 18 years ago. You get the idea.

[misc-obeyme]

Hello there! I hope you’re doing well, I was wondering if you could do a few head cannons or a ficlet (whichever you prefer) where the brothers (and/or dateables) find out that MC is multilingual.

I’m mostly thinking in the context that they didn’t know before and suddenly hear MC speaking said language, but you can change that if you prefer of course! Or not do the request entirely if this idea doesn’t strike your fancy.

Have a nice day/night!

Hi, anon!

Okay I wasn't sure if multilingual meant MC speaks two languages or if it's like more than two, so I kinda did a little bit of both. And really I think everything could apply to either option, so hopefully that all still makes sense!

Thank you for the request!

brothers react to hearing GN!MC speaking in a different language

Warnings: none!

Lucifer

When he first hears it, he’s sure he’s just tired. He’s never heard you speak any other language before. Surely his mind is playing tricks on him. Starts thinking he must really need to take a break like everyone is always saying.

If you do it again, then he’ll ask. MC, are you multilingual? Demonstrate all the languages you speak. However many it is, he's impressed. He wants to know the details of how you learned this language. Tell him more about it.

He will ask you to teach him the language so he can speak it with you. Really loves it when he gets fluent and can carry on conversations with you that other people don’t understand. He will say all kinds of things with the sole purpose of making you blush.

Lucifer will find records of music that’s sung in languages you know. Might ask you for a translation of the lyrics, but mostly just wants to share the experience with you. Sit with him in the music room to listen and he won’t be able to stop himself from holding you close, whispering sweet sayings that you've taught him in your ear.

Mammon

Woah! MC! Since when could ya speak more than one language? You’re always surprising him with the things you can do!

He will ask you to teach him all the swear words. Says them to Lucifer under his breath more because it makes you laugh than because he really means it.

Wants to know the circumstances in which you learned this language. Is it your native tongue? Or did you just learn a whole new language for some reason? Either way you had to learn a second language at some point and that sounds like a lot of work. Wouldn’t do it himself but he’s impressed that you could.

Actually picks up parts of the language pretty easily. Depending on how often you use it around him, Mammon will be able to imitate your most used phrases. He’ll say stuff without knowing what it actually means, he’s just repeating you. If you tell him what it means and how to use it, it will just become part of his own speech from that point on. Only says lovey things when the two of you are alone.

Leviathan

The first time he hears you speaking it, he’s confused. What was that? Did you just speak in a different language? Quick, MC! Tell him all the different languages you know!

Instantly wants to hire you to translate any media that’s in a language he can’t speak. Video games, manga, shows, movies, even songs! If you insist on teaching him so he can do it himself, he’ll actually be excited to learn. Teach him everything!

Absolutely will watch movies and shows in any languages you speak with you. He’s gonna need subtitles. He’ll ask you about how accurate the subs are. Makes you go through every single line and complains about any inaccuracies you guys find. Posts your translations in online forums.

Talk to him in your language and he’ll be flustered even if he has no idea what you’re saying. You could be telling him to clean his room, but it sounds so romantic? Now he’s blushing like crazy. Levi actually really likes to hear you speak to him in a different language. If he's learning it for himself, he won't get as flustered if he knows what you're actually saying. Either way, he's going to hesitantly ask you to say it again.

Satan

You’re sitting near each other somewhere when you ask a question out loud in a different language. Without looking up or missing a beat, Satan answers your question in the same language. Several moments pass before the two of you look at each other in surprise. Then you both launch into a conversation in that language about how surprised you are that the other person knows it.

This guy has spent many years learning all kinds of languages and that includes human world ones. His main goal was to be able to read books in their native languages rather than translations. But it turns out he’s just good at it so he speaks pretty fluently too.

Now that he knows this about you, he’s almost always talking to you in a language the others doesn’t understand. Finds it especially entertaining to discuss his prank ideas with you while Lucifer is sitting right there.

Do not think for one second that he’s not going to take this opportunity to recite poetry in that language to you. Blushes the whole time, but does it anyway. Please indulge him, MC. You are the only one who can truly appreciate these romantic lines.

Asmodeus

Did he just hear you speaking in a different language? Oh, MC, you’re so full of surprises! He has no idea what you just said, but he is swooning! Please flirt with him in your language, he’s really going to fall even harder for you now. You could say anything but if you do it in the right tone of voice you will get a dramatic reaction from him.

Teach him how to say “I love you” and things like “hug me” and “kiss me.” Know that once you do, he’ll be saying them to you all the time. Asmo might ask you to teach him some insults, too, just so he can use them on unsuspecting demons who have no idea what he's saying.

Designs some clothes with sayings in your language on them. Won’t tell anyone what they mean - he only knows because you told him. But everybody else is just going to have to wonder about it! This is a secret between the two of you! (Well, and everybody else who speaks that language… but that is not the point.)

Might start learning the rest of the language without you knowing. Gets Satan to help him. Then when you’re alone with him he starts saying a whole speech about how much he loves you. Giggles happily at the look on your face before kissing you.

Beelzebub

The first time he hears you, he thinks he must have heard wrong. Blinks in confusion. What was that you said, MC? He’s not sure he heard you right. Explain to him that you were actually speaking a different language and he’ll be even more surprised.

He wants to know more about it. Where did you learn it and why? Beel asks you about the names of food. He doesn’t want to learn them necessarily he just wants to hear you say them.

If you tend to refer to a specific food in the other language, he will start calling it that too. Just straight up replaces that word in his vocabulary. Might do this for non food related things as well. Pretty much just does that thing where he picks up little words and phrases from you simply because he's absorbed it from being around you so much.

He likes to listen to you speak in a different language, even if he can't understand anything you're saying. Might ask you to say anything just so he can listen to the sound of your voice. You could read a dictionary to him and he would be all about it. Content to just sit quietly and listen.

Belphegor

The only one who doesn't even notice at first. It's not that he doesn't care, it's just that it doesn't even register. For some reason, it seems perfectly normal to him that you speak multiple languages. He considers you to be a smart person, someone on Satan's level, and Satan knows several languages, so why wouldn't you?

After he hears you using that language a few times, he gets curious. He doesn't know what you're saying, but he does realize if you're using the same language, especially in the same context. Always letting out a string of it when you hurt yourself? Maybe you rant in that language when you're frustrated? He recognizes the sound of it.

Now he's going to ask you about it. What language is this, MC? Tell him about it, please. He'll ask you to teach him how to say things like "take a nap with me" and "Lucifer sucks." The first time he says that last one, Satan does a spit take.

Belphie will ask you to sing in your language. He wants to hear some songs that were originally written in it. He's especially interested in lullabies. If you sing him one, he'll fall asleep on your lap pretty quickly. Might get needy and ask you to sing to him every night.

masterlist | Thank you for reading!

[nobodysdaydreams]

Unpopular opinion, but while I’m not a fan of random or spontaneous musical episodes of media in general (there is usually no reason, they add nothing to the plot of show, they’re awkward, the members of the cast who can’t sing are mysteriously absent from the episode or shameless dubbed, it’s weird when they parody a specific musical and force it to tie into the plot), I would have been strangely fine with a Wolf359 musical episode and think it would have actually fit the show extremely well.

The Dear Listeners’ whole thing from the beginning was about music, so it fits the theme extremely well, it’s not like the musical vibes would “come out of nowhere” and if the Dear Listeners are the ones that cause it happen, it would actually make sense. It’s also plausible in the Wolf359 universe as the Dear Listeners can create time loops, clones, and do a ton of stuff that’s already way more impressive than forcing people to sing, and AI like Eris can trap them in a virtual reality so that’s also a possibility.

Not to mention the entire cast would have ATE UP a multi hour special musical episode. Just imagine:

Lovelace. We heard her sing already in Change of Mind, she would rock this. A song about her old crew perhaps?

Minkowski. The whole plot to her musical and her Broadway dreams. Her talent show performance. All of it. Maybe a song about Dominik or whether she regrets coming here. Her dreams of seeing the stars and how now all she wants is to see home again.

Kepler. He’d turn the Whisky speech into a villain song and what a villain song it would be. Casually and smoothly threatening their lives as he twirls the glass in his hand. He sings a reprise on the way out with old lyrics meaning something new or with entirely new lyrics and the final line of the song is cut off when he’s blasted out of the ship, leaving a haunting silence where his last words should be.

Speaking of villains, Rachel. Her rotating between the characters, condescending each of them as an aside, talking about everything she’s done and will do to get ahead, interrupting David Clarke when he tries to have a solo.

Hera. She’d have a nice heartfelt song about her inner feelings, anger, sadness, heartbreak, etc. that Pryce would do a villainous reprise of that has disturbingly similar emotions related to her own disability, but takes a dark and vengeful turn at the end as opposed to Hera’s more hopeful and resilient attitude about her situation. Also the way Pryce sings hers can lead the audience to thinking it’s Hera singing at first until they realize.

Jacobi and Maxwell. They sing a duet about how they doubt what Goddard is doing sometimes, but it’s allowing them to follow their dreams and discover who they’re meant to be (plus how they found family in each other). After Maxwell dies, or the musical hallucination of her disappears, Jacobi has to sing the reprise alone and the hopeful tempo is replaced by one of sadness, anger, and ultimately acceptance as he wishes Alana goodbye.

Hilbert. He would either resist for such a long time then sing a short sad song about Russia and his sister that he claims means nothing, or he’d refuse to sing and finally be forced to sing in a monotonous unenthusiastic off key bland voice with a heavy accent. Go girl, give us nothing. Another option is this is Blessie’s song sung through Hilbert.

Cutter. Do I even need to restate it, this man dragged a grand piano to space so he could dramatically play it before his evil plans. He would eat up a villain number and enjoy every single second of the performance too. Starts out falsely pleasant and sweet, the ominous vibes slowly come in until they’re in full swing.

Eiffel. He’d also insist this was stupid and try to refuse to sing or would awkwardly or sarcastically sing a weird song, but would eventually break down and sing something quiet and heartfelt about Anne and whether he can even be a hero now after all he’s done.

I hope this post finds the right people. Please someone understand my vision!

[itsmattchou]

all day, i'm thinking about you !

starring: zb1 & some zumblrcord members warnings: jiwoong gets ageshamed (misa core), mentions of eating children, turkish alpha wolf, hanbin is a 'hater', taerae is delulu, cutie yujin, english isn't my first language!!! genre: uhm i have legit no idea. misc? synopsis: in a parallel universe where zb1 are the fans of zumblr… how do they act as fanboys? notes: zumblrcord people love this idea. are you a zb1 too? shoutout to moni @taerrrrrae for the elif evil editing idea! mentioned: elif @jinkiseason ; venom @zerobaseonefics ; irene @itaerae ; tea @teaxeee ; eris @keita-luv ; misa @terazono-keita

ZUMBLR (점브러) is a 9-member project group formed by MNET‘s survival show DELULU PLANET 999. They made their debut on July 4, 2023 with the mini album 'OLD AGE IN THE LIGHT' and the song 'Out Wilted'.

Fandom Name: ZB1 (ZeroBaseOne) Official Merch: a Zumblr mug🤓

kim jiwoong he's not as open about being a zb1 as the other boys. it's more like his secret identity. kim jiwoong at day, zb1 at night, he's basically like batman. he writes a lot of fanfictions but nobody knows about it, he uses a different name on the internet. he's part of the zb1 discord and gets roasted for his age regularly. he likes buying the zumblr albums and loves listening to their music, especially when he's jogging or cleaning his apartment. he's waiting for the day that one of members acts in a kdrama. his bias is elif.

zhang hao he's always uploading covers of zumblr songs. if singing covers, dance covers or violin covers doesn't matter. he uploads them and is fairly popular in the fandom. listens to every song the second a new album drops and is also big on streaming. he's also really into 'drama' surrounding zumblr. he still laughs about the way mnet tried evil editing "RAWRR turkish alpha wolf" elif into making it seem like she eats kids because they didn't want a furry in the line up. elif still made it as P04. hao can't decide for a bias.

sung hanbin he's the most well known zb1. he went viral for 'hating' on zumblr member venom (everybody knows he's utterly in love with her). he also writes fanfictions but he's more open about it. probably cries every night thinking about zumblrs future disbandment. he works in a coffeeshop and makes sure to regularly play zumblr songs in order to promote them further. he has like hundreds of fellow zb1 friends and moots online. he claims that he biases somebody else, but everybody knows that his bias is venom.

seok matthew he's the sweetest fan for real. he streams and votes a lot, he would feel guilty if not. he likes buying the albums and always makes sure to preorder them so he could receive extra benefits. he always has a photocard in his phone case and changes it regularly. he cried while watching the dp999 finale, even though his pick made it. he likes to upload funny videos about zumblr onto youtube (zumblr out of context eg) and has a big following too. his zumblr lightstick is his most beloved possession. his bias is chou, obviously.

kim taerae he's literally the most delulu out of all of them. he might not seem like it, but he definitely is. while hanbin and jiwoong are the ones writing the fanfictions, he's the one who's constantly reading them. he loves covering zumblr songs and uploading his singing onto youtube and tiktok. taerae rewatches delulu planet 999 often and is constantly sad about all the eliminated trainees. he really likes to trade his photocards for no specific reason. he's incredibly bad at voting and streaming though. he is an ot9.

shen ricky he's the kinda stan that owns EVERYTHING. he rich fr. albums? owns every single version of every album. seasons greeting? he has it. merch? best believe he buys every piece possible. concert tickets? he's spoiling himself with vip tickets. he has won multiple phone calls too and every other broke stan is incredibly jealous of him. he's talked to every member so far and literally went viral on multiple platforms for his obsession with zumblr because he posted about it. his bias is irene, as she's just as rich as him.

kim gyuvin he only speaks in zumblr references and has annoyed friends into becoming zb1s too. he runs a meme page / very popular fan page for zumblr. every other zb1 knows him. zumblr has even mentioned him in lives before. he buys every album (but only one version. he's kinda broke.) and decorates his room with some fan articles. he likes learning the dances. he goes to karaoke bars regularly and always puts zumblr songs on, his favorite being 'never', the solo song from chou. gyuvin changes his bias like every single day.

park gunwook he's the friend gyuvin annoyed into becoming a zb1. he started watching delulu planet 999 when it was already too late and almost ending and he really regretted not tuning in earlier. he's a big zb1 now even though his #1 pick (tea) didn't make it. but he's still a bit more chill compared to some other members. he doesn't buy albums because he wants to save up to go to one of their concerts instead. he streams zumblrs music kind of unintentionally as it's always playing on loop while he's his doing homework. he doesn't bias anyone in the group. (missing tea hours)

han yujin he watches all youtube videos about them while he's doing his homework. he once scribbled the zumblr logo on a test sheet and got an extra point because the teacher is also a zb1 (biased). he cries often because the maknae- eris- is younger than him. he likes to do dancing covers and uploads them on tiktok. he always saves up money in order to buy some albums or merch. he reads zumblr fluff whenever he's sad. has won a phone call once and made the member 'fall in love' with him as he's just too cute. his bias is eris.

bonus:

terazono keita really doesn't give a fuck about zumblr. he only cares about misa who sadly didn't make the cut and only placed P12 in the dp999 finals.

lee seunghwan is unemployed. he spends his free time listening to zumblr music.

[hotdamnitsmoony]

what i think the marauders favourite tv show would be - based on my favs :)

james - stranger things. he’d watch it because everyone was raving about it and then become emotionally invested in the characters. he thinks the concept of the monsters is really cool but also very terrifying. he’d definitely make everyone else watch it too, and he’d be mouthing along the lines while they did. his favourite character would be steve harrington, because i think they’re pretty similar. the episode he’d like the most would be s4 ep6.

regulus - the rain on netflix. it’s a kinda disturbing show about an apocalyptic world where the rain literally kills you if it touches you and there’s a whole thing with sibling betrayal and i just feel like he’d eat it up. his favourite character would be lea or kira. he would really love dystopian and apocalyptic shows in general tbh. his favourite episode would be the cult one, because it explores religion in an apocalyptic world.

sirius - greys anatomy. i’ve said this before but he would secretly LOVE greys, even if he won’t admit it. his favourite character is addison montgomery, closely followed by mark sloan. the episode he likes the most is the musical episode but if you ask him, he hates it. also he would so do the superhero pose amelia shepherd does before her surgeries before he does anything important.

remus - the society. it’s a dark, weird and kinda obscure show that only had one season because of covid but he’d love it. he’d bring it up in conversation with everyone and ask them what they’d do if all adults suddenly disappeared, which would obviously have varying responses. he’d complain about not getting a satisfying ending to it all the time. his favourite character is sam or kelly definitely. he can’t choose a favourite episode because literally so much happens in every one.

lily - the good place. i’ve also said this before, but i just genuinely think she’d love it. it’s a show that she would watch while knitting or studying, because it’s easy to follow and funny. she’d definitely quote it a lot and it’d create some great & healthy conversations between the marauders about mortality, morals and death. her favourite character is janet!

pandora - a series of unfortunate events. she’d love this show wholeheartedly. it’s so messy and reminds her of the odd things that seem to keep happening to her. she’d know the “that’s not how the story goes” song and sing it all the time, though she’d change the lyrics to fit whatever situation or drama is going on. her favourite character is sunny, and she started wearing more bows in her hair because of violet! her favourite episode would be s2 ep3!

mary - desperate housewives. she would love the drama, the betrayals and the overall storylines. she’d know every little thing about it, from all the names of lynette’s children to mrs mccluskey’s backstory. her favourite character is gabby solis and she will take no criticism. her favourite episode is the one where carlos’ mum falls down the stairs.

marlene - glee. i genuinely believe she’d know every single big song and wouldn’t stop singing them. you hear “Don’t Stop Belivin’” being sung (badly) in the hallway? it’s marlene. her favourite character is santana lopez and she knows the entire monologue that she says to kurt in season 6. she constantly complains about this show but really does love it. her favourite episode is the klaine & brittana wedding!

dorcas - heartbreak high! she’d love the petty drama and storylines that happen in this show, and she’d so create her own “map” but put concealment charms on it because unlike harper and amerie she’s smart enough not to get caught. her favourite character would be ca$h or harper, and the episode she likes the most would be ep4.

barty - how to sell drugs online (fast)! this show is so hilarious and i really think he’d enjoy it. he’d smell the plot twists coming a mile away but he’d still love it, and probably make evan watch it with him. his favourite character is moritz because he’s just such an idiot and he sort of reminds him of himself, though i feel like he’d love lisa too. he would say that he doesn’t have a favourite episode because he loved it all.

evan - the umbrella academy. he would compare the dysfunctional family to the marauders nonstop. he’d love the way it explores time travel and superpowers, and would spend hours in the library researching if it was possible because he’d get hyper fixated on it of course. his favourite character is klaus (no surprise there lol) and he literally cried during that one episode in season 3. his favourite episode is the first ever one.

(as always, these are my own opinions!! i’ve personally watched all these shows and love them all very much!! this took a while to make but we move who needs a sleep schedule anyway. )

[selpide]

a long, confusing, existential introduction

i have noticed there's a proportion of us humans who seem to have a tendency to look for the essence of things

an obsession, some would say

(some would be right)

minimalism, others will state

(other will be wrong)

(there's nothing small about this search)

i am a number of this proportion, you see

everything i do, i try to undress it to the bones

find the skeleton

trace the carcass

what's the closest i can get to one truth before it burns my skin alive?

that's where i like it

that's where i live

a nomad in the borderland of skulls

there's some holy serenity in being able to go the distance

that distance

i went that distance yesterday

i have trouble putting into words what i do

and what i do is who i am

so i spend an unhealthy (what is healthy anyways?) amount of time in this so-called minimalist search for the most precise arrangement of letters to make other people understand what my ego claims as hers

i am a writer

that is without a doubt

the first thing i have ever been

the last thing i will ever be

let's set aside the clearness and focus on the blurry lines

i am a singer

(i make songs)

am i a singer?

i am a cinematographer

(i am an audiovisual communication graduate)

am i a cinematographer?

do i deserve to claim myself as part of these guilds, these collectives, these ideas, these concepts, these communities, these archetypes, these

words

do i deserve to be called by any of these perfect words?

when you are called by your name

even if you know you are not your name

(you are not some letters nor their sound

you are flesh and blood and bones and maybe, if we are all lucky, a soul

however

when this name is called upon)

you answer

as if you were synonyms

as if meaning and symbol became lost within each other until becoming one and the same

so when someone says

"writer"

and i turn my head

when i jump at the sound

when my brain has already done the job — and i cannot escape my fate — the fate my brain has woven for myself — when someone calls for a writer and i raise my hand

do meaning and symbol get mixed up just the same?

this is where it got heavy for me

do i deserve to claim the same name as every single person who came before me, and whom i admire, and whom i respect, and whom i couldn't dare to offend (them nor the rest of the world) by suggesting we may belong to a somewhat similar category?

but then again

names

words

why should anyone be worthy of a title? surnames are given. they come to us by birth. like it or not, they're part of our identity — they give information on who we are — be it by acceptance or denial — be it by proximity or self-made walls — opposite or mirror — we don't need to deserve our surnames. they are us and we are them.

am i a singer?

yes

am i a cinematographer?

yes

i first was a songwriter — a writer of songs. then i discovered i could sing them. badly. but they were sung. less badly. and they kept on being sung. less less badly. and then i discovered i could put my own music into them. i once met kim yerim on the streets of madrid. i handed her a piece of paper with the lyrics of my song written on them. and she spoke these words: "so you are a producer? you are a composer?". and it was a conversation, and she was looking at me in the eyes, and so i answered. i said: "yes". and it was as simple as that. because it is true. i produce songs. i compose songs.

i am a producer.

sunghyuk said i already am a producer.

and it is as simple as that.

so i write songs. and i sing them. and i produce them. and that's all too long to fit a social media bio, isn't it?

so what am i?

a music maker

i am a music maker

i first was a scriptwriter — a writer of scripts. then i discovered writing scripts was too boring for me. there is only so much you can control about a story with a script. movies have so much more to them. movies move. so i started editing videos. turns out i have an eye for that. rhythm. that's all it is, really. i have an inner metronome. i can sense patterns. i can repeat them. i am a little clock pedaling backwards and onwards and to whichever direction has the beat that pulses the brightest. but you can't edit a blank screen — you need images. and there is only so much you can control about a story when images aren't yours. so i got myself a camera. a little green sony point and shoot, y2k excellency, all digital grain and untreated saturation and pixelated zoom. then another camera. a little red sony handycam that, as i write this, is on the cabinet under the tv of this apartment in the middle of another continent that i moved to three months ago

(i got this camera when i was 14)

(i think it might be my favorite camera)

then another one

then another one

then you know how it goes

i became a videographer

but these cameras could take pictures too, right?

pictures are so beautiful

i became a photographer

this kind of motion got be so obsessed i could not picture myself doing anything in this life that didn't rely on its cadence

so i got into college and i majored in film

(it's not film)

(you can't major in film in spain)

(not in university)

(so i got into audiovisual communication)

(you can major in audiovisual communication in spain)

(in university)

(i specialized in film)

(i wrote a film script as my final degree thesis)

(i ended up working as a scriptwriter)

(i am, as of today, a scripwriter)

(i miss my red sony handicam)

(i miss the colors)

i miss the motion

i direct my own music videos

i keep a record of my own life

i can't escape live photographs nor still movement

there's so many information in there

how can you shorten that up for a social media bio?

a filmmaker?

but does that sum up everything?

i don't think so

so what am i?

an image maker

i am an image maker

let's get back to words

because i am a writer

that's the only one i savor between my teeth

every letter is mine to say, mine to keep, mine to pray, mine for me

a writer

but what does a writer do?

letters are the smallest piece of a writer's craft

but we are not letter makers

same happens with words

we work with them

we don't create them

(not all the time)

(not as a summary of our duty and routine)

(words are not the word)

it's sentences

i guess that's it

that's just how minimalist it can get

so what am i?

a sentence maker

i am a sentence maker

i am a music, image and sentence maker

but what is music?

what are images?

what are sentences?

art

i am an artist

yes,

but

but

(always a but)

aren't they all languages?

i am a translator

aren't they all symbols?

i am a speaker of metaphors

aren't they all unexplainable ?

i am a magician

aren't they all but a beautiful attempt to capture, to portray, to preserve, to understand, to celebrate, to blame, to share

life

itself?

i am a life curator

(it's funny

i have a song about this

i scrambled some of its lyrics around

i love clues and riddles and the silly breadcrumbs some humans leave for others to find in hopes of making their everyday a little more adventurous

i hope someone someday finds this funny

i hope someone someday

thinks of this

as an adventure)

this is me

sélpide

life curator, writer and magician

welcome to the museum

i hope you find yourself inside here

[2010s-nostalgia]

frozen hate discussion??? 👀👀 take my hand

no but really. even just aside from how they took a pretty good fairy tale and did... um, nothing with it? nothing interesting at least, frozen is still just a mediocre movie with bad designs and music that's really just okay.

what really bothers me more than anything else is that frozen just comes off as cynical. it's making fun of older movies that are better than it.

every single time someone tries to make a fairy tale edgy/adult or feels the need to point out every unrealistic aspect about it an angel dies. "you can't marry a man you just met" represents a fundamental misunderstanding of both the genre and the disney movies based on it. it's this annoying tongue-in-cheek tone and utter pessimism that quite literally sucks all the magic out of the movie, and then they have the balls to make fun of better films. it's just cynical and grating and honestly coming from disney itself just annoys me. oh you think snow white and cinderella are unrealistic? you think love at first sight is stupid? should we throw a party? should we invite buzzfeed.

whereas movies like shrek, which also try to deconstruct the fairy tale/disney genre, actually work because instead of someone busting out an "erm, actually!" line every five minutes or pulling some cheap twist, they simply tell a story that reverses the tropes. and there's no moment in shrek where the movie turns to the audience and goes "you dumb dumb fuck ass idiots came here to see a fairy tale? well fuck you! twist villain attack!"

I don't much care for tangled either but at least you can tell it was made in earnest. also literally everything frozen was applauded for has been done better before. the sisters thing? lilo and nani have an actual bond. playboy villain? gaston. taking time to fall in love? beauty and the beast? tarzan? hercules? literally like most disney movies? anna and kristoff were together for like a week before saying I love you. get real.

okay thanks mod love your blog <3

I agree with everything. Honestly, making fun of past movies would be okay if it succeeded at all. Enchanted exists, it made the same points, and it worked soooo well. In Frozen, Anna is told she can't marry a man she just met, then gets with Kristoff within like two days. Love's not supposed to be a major part of the story? A whole song is sung by the love interests' family about how they should get together (they get together later). So much of the movie is focused on a romance with so little chemistry instead of being about the sister relationship the film claims to be about!

I should say I don't hate Frozen. It's fine, but I don't want fine, ya know? I want great!!! (Also didn't love Tangled either. Idk what management change happened in the animation department in the mid 2000s, but they really lost the groove around that time. Maybe Bob did a shake up)

[amemenojaku]

can we get the diao ye zong top ten songs ? (or album tier list)

we sure can!!! I'll put this under a readmore though because it's very long

1) 墓標 (bohyou): I'll be honest here I think this song and the hohuri album are one of the main reasons behind the DiPP Renaissance in 2015-2020 (significant increase of DiPP fanworks/fans being able to recognize jacketko & labelko). a big circle making DiPP songs led to more fans reading the original story and then making fancontent of it which in turn got more people into it etc. so to my dear followers if you're reading this and you're not a dyz fan but you gave DiPP a try thanks to people creating more content of it after 2015 mayyybe you should also listen to 屠 (hohuri) by diao ye zong...... anyway the song itself is really good. the intro is chilling - just imagine getting that CD back in the summer of 2014, putting it in your music player/pc expecting the first track to be an arrange of A Sacred Lot like written on the tracklist and instead you get THIS! (I did with my friends and it was scary.) the instrumental is amazing, I love that it's mostly original with bits of arranges from DiPP here and there, and Merami's performance is leagues above everything else she'd ever sung for the circle until then imo (and it kept getting better after that). and just, that last part...

2) 悠久の子守唄 (yuukyuu no komoriuta): dyz song I have the strongest emotional attachment to.... it's a bit old now (you can even hear the difference in quality of Merami's mic lol) but it still makes me feel so many things... when I say I'm really invested in hakurei shrine maidens fanworks this is what always comes to mind first

3) Dolls into pitiful pretenders: DiPP meta song where jacketko mocks both the other honest men AND the DiPP fan community at large (if you want to interpret it that way). Merami's best performance to date imo, even now, especially during the reverie part

4) n_tegralより愛をこめて (integral yori (a)i wo komete): it's difficult to choose one dyz hifuu(renmerry) song above all the others, there's just too many good ones..... but if I have to then it HAS to be the followup song to the fucked up hifuu cat music (iykyk). has shaped my interpretation of merry's character like literally nothing else ever will. also it's just beautiful. 'together we will become a world' etc etc...

5) まぼろしの友達 (maboroshi no tomodachi): like with the hifuu above it's tough to choose one akyuusuzu/FS song out of the (still)growing selection of really good remixes we got over the years... but this one is so emotional and soft and the different layers of interpretation are the cherry on top of the cake for me. there isn't a single line in the lyrics that doesn't hurt me lol

6) 幻想萬歳楽 (gensou manzairaku): very very different from everything else in this list but I love noh and this one based on the okina opening performance is just genius. the instrumental is beautiful. I had a paper to write on noh a few years ago and just listened to it on loop

7) 異聞『正義の味方』 (ibun "seigi no mikata"): I was hoping for a vocal remix of little princess from dyz so the first version of seigi no mikata (kishin/輝針 「セイギノミカタ」 from sasage) already had me really glad, but then a few years later they made a new one that's much, much darker and I love it even more. it reminds me of the like 2-3 really dark shinmyoumaru songs some circles released the year following DDC... very powerful and desperate. I love that it can be interpreted in two opposite ways - shinmyoumaru's anger at the betrayal, or this (fucked up and funnier)

8) 夏の終わり／世界の終わり (natsu no owari/sekai no owari): RENMERRY KABOOM <3 when the fear of being left behind in a boring unchanging world pushes you over the edge. 'if you plan to cross over that boundary, I'll find every door possible, close them shut and break the keys!' chilling despite the catchy instrumental. similar to maboroshi no tomodachi in the 'it's ok if you end up hating me for what I'm about to do. I love you and that's what matters most to me right now' it's just... ough.... uaghh...... hurts :)

9) ハロー、マイフレンド (hello, my friend): alternate universe where marisa lives an ordinary, unfulfilling student life in the outside world and sometimes dreams about a shrine maiden flying in the sky. MUST be listened to with the instrumental remix of Casket of Star that comes right before it in the album, it's beautiful and has that little phone alarm at the end of it - pulling marisa out of her dream. I think this song would resonate with a lot of people for whom fiction is one of the only respites from real life. it sure did with me!!!

10) Salvator noster: this is a crazy mix of so many things - keiki's theme and pokemon SV area zero music and gregorian chants and buddhist (?!) imagery and that dyz-typical everpresent undertone of something going really, really wrong. definitely my favorite arrange of Idolatrize World ever and up there in the list of Merami's best performances (she never stumbles once in the fast parts and it's amazing)

for my top 10 albums:

屠 (hohuri) (cannot be dethroned): flawless from beginning to end despite turning 10 years old this year. god I feel ancient

Q: would be number 1 if hohuri didn't exist. I already wrote a short review of it here but anyway it's the dyz album I'd recommend the most to anyone who's looking for a whole experience

喩 (tatoe): full of what-ifs and interesting AU concepts. really, really solid and relatively easy to get into for newcomers as long as they're fine with some darker topics from time to time (if not then number 7 on my list is a better pick)

慄 (furue) (not on spotify yet): hifuu-only with the added flavor of being based on Lafcadio Hearn's works. so like, perfect lol. narrated/drama tracks between every song and I really recommend those in particular, they're amazing, especially the one where merry goes a bit crazy insane. my fav is the arrange of Infinite Nightmare but it's worth checking out for 無間夢幻無想夢想幻葬 and its longass title alone

△ (tetra): the ultimate hifuu dyz album!!! hifuu club hallelujah etc etc. I know the go-to dyz hifuu song is absolute one-way street but I hope this album as a whole will reach same levels of popularity one day... every song has its own identity and explores different sides of science fiction as a genre. also a good variety of vocalists in this one if you get tired of Merami

伝 (tsutae): built around the concept of a day of noh, with its opening performances, plays in all the different categories and kyogen inbetween. they're not actual plays ofc but the premise really works. I always wonder how different it would've been if this one had been made after HSiFS released

奉 (sasage): most newcomer-friendly dyz album imo. simple concept: one song to represent each main game from EoSD to DDC. the atmosphere of each game is transcribed perfectly into each song. nothing ever gets particularly dark. in the same spirit 掲 (kakage) (its twin sister album to me), themed around spell cards, is pretty good for dyz beginners too and since it gets a bit heavier at times I think it works well as a transition to some other better but more fucked up albums

騙 (katari): the album that got me into dyz :') when it came out I'd been into touhou for a little while and had already listened to a few dyz songs, but this is the one that really caught my eye. it's messed up and hopeful and bittersweet... 真実の詩 and rebellion -たいせつなもののために- (the followup to absolute one-way street) make me feel especially nostalgic

彁 ( ): I love that the album themed around 'fantasy' as a concept uses a kanji that doesn't exist as its title. overall solid album (I just don't like the clownpiece song but only because I'm not a fan of that vocalist). the reimu song at the end is perfect. maybe THE reimu song to me (even if Hearken unto, from the latest album, is a strong contender now)

密 (hisoka): secrets!!! the first two tracks are a punch to the guts, the reimari song is the softest thing ever, the 3-part keine song is an amazing experience and Kirisame Eversion is like... it sure is something lol (saying this positively. I adore it). really good hidden secret song too

other contenders which I like very very much in chronological order: 遙 (haruka), 辿／誘 (tadori/izanai), 薦 (susume), 音 (omoi), 逆 (sakasa), 軛 (kubiki)

if you've read all of this: thank you :] sorry for being insane

[extraordinaryhistories]

#2 – 'A Winner Needs a Wand' (A Sun Came, 1998)

There is an alternate universe somewhere out there where Sufjan Stevens becomes an indie rock musician of the Pavement or Modest Mouse variety – all rough and ready (but not truly heavy) guitars, shambolic drums, tense chord progressions and grim lyrics gesturing at deeper meaning that no quantity of relistens will ever unlock. In this universe, he is not very popular. But we get a glimpse of it throughout A Sun Came, an album that tries to be a million different things at once and seems to fail (sometimes charmingly, sometimes not) at many of them.

‘A Winner Needs a Wand’, somewhat uncommonly, is actually quite successful at that sound. It is in many ways the harder-edged twin of ‘We Are What You Say’. While that song is still entrancing in an obscure, mystical sort of way, there is very little trance in ‘A Winner Needs a Wand’. The drums are bashed, the guitar is loud, and the song’s heart is quite literally ripped out, musically-speaking – you’ll only find power chords in its riff, a series of unsettling back-and-forth lurches on an acoustic guitar that give the song an almost grunge-like character. Of course, Sufjan being Sufjan, the fiddles, flutes and mournful piano lines prevent that comparison somewhat (the more antiquated instruments seem to be here for no other reason than Sufjan... knows how to play them.) But throw that riff on an electric guitar and turn the distortion up to full. It is remarkably authentic, and remarkably listenable. ‘A Winner Needs a Wand’, even despite its 5/4 trickery, is a bona fide rock-out.

‘A Winner Needs a Wand’ was written in the days before Sufjan emerged nearly overnight as a pop master, and so there isn’t much in the way of a chorus here. The song shifts through multiple sections, multiple melodic ideas, and shockingly – for this stage of Sufjan’s development – almost all of them work. The motif that dominates the first handful of verses snakes around the 5/4 groove with a surprising effortlessness, but I am particularly enamoured with the melody attached to the ‘never want to blame you’ sections, sung by Sufjan and Marzuki vocalist Shannon Stephens. It sort of shoots up into the air, dives down a little, and then shoots up immediately again, perfect for the climactic moments in which it appears. (The ‘tries to make you’ section at the end feels like an attempt to recapture that particular lightning in a bottle, and it sort of succeeds, but barely.)

There are a lot of words in this song, every one of them oblique. We can try to break them down, but we would only get so far. Unlike ‘We Are What You Say’, ‘A Winner Needs a Wand’ is singular, not plural – ‘I’ and ‘me’ abound, in a more conventional Sufjan style of lyrical confessionalism. But there is definitely another person in this narrative. There are references to conflict and to unmet expectation; Sufjan cannot deliver on the responsibilities vested on him by the other (‘There’s still nothing you can do to exchange my dues to you’). It is very possible to read ‘A Winner Needs a Wand’ as a eulogy to a failed relationship, if one is so inclined. There are the hints of sex (the titular ‘wand’ being a particularly clear phallic symbol, as well as the invocation of an epicene) and of emotional torture. But then you hear him sing ‘like the fennel seed, the funny gene you found’ and ‘that fits me like a quarter door, that hits me like a sound’ and you begin to wonder whether the granular interpretation is worth it. There are themes here, but a clear narrative? Much less so.

And in any case, it is perfectly possible to enjoy ‘A Winner Needs a Wand’ (or any Sufjan song, really) without a single thought given to that narrative, because this is one of the most musically compelling songs on A Sun Came, a full-band workout quite unlike anything else you will find in Sufjan’s career. It is not triumphant or contented – it brims with anguished tension – but it remains consonant, and that’s the space where Sufjan works best. An early success; still a little belaboured, but endearingly so. The day Sufjan mashes this up with ‘All Good Naysayers’ in a live performance is the day I die happy.

[ihrtmichael]

you’ve probably talked about this before so forgive me but as someone who has only seen the Cats movie, I’m so curious what your thoughts on it are (I sadly don’t remember the actual plot but I do remember liking the music)

how long do we have…..

so i just wanna start off by saying: i was REALLY excited for the movie and REALLY wanted it to be good. like, i was ready to be TOXIC about this 😭 but then i saw it opening night and as the movie progressed i was like… this is terrible lol.

immediately we have to state the obvious: the digital fur technology DOESNT WORK. theyre fuckin ugly looking, and IMO part of the musical’s appeal is that i’m watching grown adults wear yak wigs, unitards, and leg warmers and they’re all dancing, singing, and acting like cats onstage. it’s crazy! and that’s what makes it so fun! it’s easier for me to suspend my disbelief that these people are cats! howard ashman once said something along the lines of “musicals only work onstage and in animation because you’ve already suspended your disbelief,” and it’s stuck with me ever since. there’s something about sitting in the theatre for 2-3 hours watching a production happen LIVE in front of you and shutting out the rest of the world. and for cats, seeing those huge set pieces that make YOU feel like you’re the size of a cat. and then having the cats come out into the audience and interact with you. it’s totally different compared to watching a movie. i easily believe these people are cats. i easily believe that I’M in this junkyard. you don’t get that with this movie.

and yeah like i mentioned earlier before i went crazy, the designs of the cats are butt fuckin ugly 😭 in the musical, i can easily tell the cats apart. they have their own distinct beautiful colorings and markings. in the movie, they’re all some boring shade of brown or grey. like where is demeter? jemima/sillabub? alonzo? i can’t tell these bitches apart and they look gross!!!!!

the plot: idgaf what anyone has told you, the musical has a plot !!!!! it’s pretty paper thin, since i think the main focus of the show has always been the dancing, but it’s still there. basically, it’s a huge honor for the jellicles to be reincarnated. every year, it’s old deuteronomy (their leader) that chooses who gets to live their next life. i’ve always described it as “a chorus line with cats.” the cats present themselves and all their accomplishments to prove why they’re worthy. they break the fourth wall multiple times, explaining things and interacting with the audience. but they also don’t explain EVERY LITTLE THING. the show is sung through. they don’t sing “grizabella the glamor cat” and then turn to the audience like, “she’s a bitch cuz she turned to drugs/prostitution/what have u and left us and so we don’t like her.” we already got that in the song. in the movie, they make victoria (the white cat) represent the audience, and they explain everything to her. like. EVERYTHING. it’s redundant and clunky and doesn’t go with the story! and more proof that this movie Doesn’t trust its audience. and then the bullshit with macavity catnapping EVERYONE??? bitch bye i can’t 😭😭😭😭

the songs: i know every. single. word. to the original album. it is so serious to meeee 😭 it’s music by ALW, do u know how hard it is to fuck that up?! the arrangements are fuckin ATROCIOUS, and don’t even get me STARTED on the performances. they keep trying to inject humor in places that are arguably already really funny and ridiculous. bustopher jones always gets some giggles in the show but then in the movie they have to have james fuckin corden stop the song to make some dumb joke about “are u calling me fat?” like SHUT UP AND JUST SING THE SONG????? and then u have the random taylor swift song that is beautiful but doesn’t fit the story or vibe at ALL. that shit should have stayed in the end credits. the only number i honest to God enjoyed was skimbleshanks because they kept it upbeat and fun. rum tum tugger and mister mistoffelees were SO DISAPPOINTING especially because those numbers are PARTIES when u see them live and in the film they’re soooooo underwhelming. and don’t get me started on macavity. that number is supposed to be jazzy and sexy and fun and they gave us…. taylor swift. not even taylor acting as a cat, it’s literally just taylor in horrifying fur technology singing the song as taylor and randomly throwing around glittery catnip????? literally makes NO sense. and jennifer hudson is a beautiful singer, but i didn’t really care for her version of “memory.” especially when u watch it in the film she was doing… way too much. yall couldn’t CGI out the boogers running down her face?!:$:&/ this is wacky!!!!

anyways, if u like the soundtrack for the film, i promise you’ll LOVE the broadway soundtrack even more.

that’s all i can think of off the top of my head, but i’m sure there’s more😭 IMO, cats as a film only works if it’s animated or if you just film the stage production. the only cats film i acknowledge is the 1998 recording with john partridge and elaine paige, so if u can get your hands on that or even a bootleg of the 2016/17 broadway revival i cannot recommend them enough! i know cats has a reputation for being dumb and weird, and maybe she is, but she’s *MY* dumb and weird show. its fun and exciting and im always in awe of the pure TALENT you need to have to be in a production. i genuinely can’t describe what it was like to see this show live back in 2017. easily top 5 theatre experiences, and ive seen 50+ musicals/plays.

[return-to-twisted-wonderland]

🔆anon

Thought of this and couldn’t unthink of this. But hey it getting me back into writing for Ruse.

(I’ve been wanting to write for Ruse, but don’t want to write for the High Priest and their reaction to what is pretty much everything he does.)

— —

(The beginning of February, about half a month after book 6.)

Ruse, Cater, Kalim, and Lilia were all hanging out in the music room for club time. Ruse was finishing some homework while the other three talk. That was until Cater found a song while scrolling on his phone, one that might be good for Ruse.

Cater: Hey, Ruse!

Ruse: *not looking up from his work* Yes?

Cater: I found a song that I wanted to know if you would sing with us.

Kalim: Ooo! You found a song for that?! What is it?! I bet it would be super fun to finally be all together for a song!

Ruse: *looks up at Cater with an annoyed expression* You’d ask me to sing a song? Not to mention you said “us” before even asking the other two their opinions.

Kalim: I’d be happy to play any song together!

Lilia: *gives a small chuckle* As would I. It would be nice to finally have our quartet actually work as four and not as a trio.

Ruse: Not my point. But even if you still agree, you have to be aware who you’re asking. Why would I sing so freely? I said before I’m only here because I have to be in a club per school rules.

Cater: C’mon, Ruse. I ask because you’re a great singer-

Ruse: Of course I am.

Cater: Because you’re a great singer and singing with use would allow you some spotlight because it ends on a solo. I just thought our group would be amazing with you in it because of how amazing you are.

Ruse: I am amazing, but the hymns is sing are sung for a reason, for reverence. What even is your song about?

Cater: Oh! Hold on, I can text you the lyrics.

Ruse: *glares at Cater*

Cater: *instantly remembers and gets up* Right. I’ll show you. *scrolls through the lyrics while Ruse watches*

Ruse: Diamond, this is a song about disobedience. That is literally the title of the song.

Kalim: Oh! That song? That one’s great!

Ruse: Why would your world even have a single like that? Obedience to those higher is what keeps society running. A single person out of line can harm so many others because they don’t have the knowledge the higher ups are able to carry the burden of.

Cater: Uh… *thinking* It’s because it belongs to a villain.

Kalim: No it-

Lilia: *cover’s Kalim’s mouth while whispering to him* We can’t tell him exactly where it’s from yet. If he believes this it might help him. I can explain later, but you can’t tell him, okay?

Kalim: *nods*

Ruse: Why would I sing a villain’s song. Especially all about disobedience.

Cater: Well, a villain needs a song and that song needs to be sung. If there’s never any villain to show the wrong thing, there can never a hero to show the right thing. So you could use it to know the way the mislead are thinking.

Ruse: But do I have to sing it?

Cater: That gets the emotion they’re feeling across the best. Plus this might be your best moment because you don’t know when the next one will be.

Ruse: … Fine.

—

The Pop Music Club are finally their first full run through of the song after about two weeks straight of practicing it. Cater is on guitar, Lilia is on bass, Kalim is on drums, and Ruse is singing.

Ruse: Thank you, thank you, thank you! Thank you for gracing me with your presence.

Good afternoon, sir. What can I do, sir? Just say the word, sir. Anything for you sir.

Your friends all say, sir. You don’t deserve her. I disagree, sir. I live to serve, sir.

Ruse, Cater, Kalim, and Lilia: I think about all the wasted time I spent. I wanna be disobedient!

I shoot wake wondering where my summers went. I wanna be disobedient!

Disobedient!

Disobedient!

Ruse: I’ve been good, sir. So very, very good, for what? And I’ve given you every single thing I’ve got!

It’s feeling strange, man. This whole arrangement. Is gonna end with me

Ruse, Cater, Kalim, and Lilia: With me totally deranged!

When I think about all the wasted time I spent. I wanna be disobedient!

I shoot awake wondering where my summers went. I wanna be disobedient!

Disobedient!

Disobedient!

Cater, Kalim, and Lilia: *instruments only for about 30 seconds*

Ruse: I. Want to be. Disobedient.

*a feeling starts to creep in* I. Want to be. Disobedient.

Disobedient.

*the feeling gets bigger* Disobedient.

Disobedient.

Ruse, Cater, Kalim, and Lilia: *strike the final cord as Ruse’s feeling reaches its maximum*

—

Kalim: Woo! That was a great run! Sounded like we were pros!

Cater: Yeah! 100% #beastbandever! *turns to Ruse* By the way, Ruse. You good? Your voice started wobbling at the end.

Ruse: *snaps back to his aloof and prideful expression* Of course I’m alright. I always am. *starts collecting his things* I just need to take what I’ve learned of the emotions, as you said was the point of this exercise. Goodbye. *leaves*

Kalim: But we still have club time left… Is he sure he’s okay? He didn’t sound good. Maybe we should check on him.

Lilia: While that’s a nice sentiment, I think he needs some alone time. We can go back to practicing other songs in the meantime, since everything is already out.

—

Roth: He fell for that excuse?! And finished the whole song!

Marr: We did raise him to be trusting.

Roth: To us! He is supposed to be a skeptic about everyone else’s words, especially nonbelievers! Does he know how much time went into making sure he didn’t believe them while keeping our word as fact?!

Domar: He’s been getting progressively more and more corrupted the longer he spends there. The “wobble in his voice” and those “emotions” were a seed of doubt. Marr, you claimed you could find a way to get him back.

Marr: And I’m working on it. I’ve made progress, but I can’t make miracles happen.

Roth: Tell that to the people who ask us to practically change their lives hoping we can give it to our deity.

Domar: Now’s not the time for your whining, Roth. And Marr, we need him back now. The long we leave him, the more strings will snap.

Marr: Don’t be ridiculous. We have temple guards with the power to drag him back kicking and screaming if he doesn’t come willingly. And plus, with how young we got to him and how he’s still holding onto everything, it’s doubtful he’ll ever be able to let go of everything, it’s practically a part of him. We just need to get to that part of him and it will give us back our puppet. Amy fight can easily be quashed the same way any dissenters are.

— —

That got long. Oops.

And the song is Disobedient from Steven Universe the Movie: https://youtu.be/Mpi0wyVRP0I?si=h6UGYOKYlY8JXOvf

By the way, yes, Ruse is incredibly naive. He can be skeptical and stubborn, but if you hit a weak spot, he can believe about anything.

I love SU~

And Ruse singing "Disobedient" works so well~

[numetaljackdog]

what i'm listening to 9/5/2023 (song notes under cut)

spot. link//yt link

Laura Les - Haunted: haunted. by laura les.

Laura Les/osno1 - ditch a body in the laundry (feat. Dylan Brady): i'll make no secret of it; i've been a sad little dog this past month. and this song is like PERFECT sad little dog soundtrack material (the whole ep is, and lots of laura's work if we're honest... but more on that later). there's this absolutely ice-cold novocaine hatred instilled in it, the kind of agony that stings the skin because the very action of having to exist as a physical animal hurts so bitterly. i'm really terribly obsessed with it and have also cried a lot to it and i really like the addition of dylan because while his part is short it's very good. links to this post also

House Of Pain - On Point: i lovvvve house of pain omg ^-^ their second album is kind of a cult classic and while idk if i'd say i like it better than the first, it's still real good. and this is a banger single. that horn riff? awesome. we did this one for videos night (which i am still planning more of!!) and it was fun. there is a little surprise slur moment in the last verse which is. y'know. but as far as the sound goes i think this is basically unparalleled, i could listen to songs that sounnd just like this forever and ever

Radiohead - How To Disappear Completely: did i mention that i was sad. bc i was. this was another song i turned to when lying in bed late at night and just really going through it. the idea of being able to disappear off to somewhere, anywhere that wasn't where i was...... well you get it. tears a gal up. it's almost like this is a good song on a good album or something

Madness - One Step Beyond: yeah okay a couple songs from the skaugust WILT stuck around. i just adore that fucking deep growly riff that comes in after the spoken intro, i can never ever get enough of it. and it's so danceable but still maintains that narstyness. good good shit i love ska so terribly much and especially the rockingest rocksteady beat..... of MADNESS

Nirvana - Blew: this should probably be higher tbh but it's close competition. despite remaining relatively unknown when held up next to something like about a girl, blew is SUCH a highlight from bleach (and i do really like bleach). the way kurt's voice lays over the main riff makes it so chunky and layered but it also feels dissonant, like it was accidental or improvised. every day i become slightly more of a nirvana fangirl.... there's worse things to be

Ada Rook - UNDERNEATH IT ALL: GOD i fucking love this album. it can be really dumb sometimes but it's so just. grrrrrrrrrh. ada rook is one of those musicians who just Gets It, i've often said that her music is the type of music i wish i could make. and the addition of ash nerve on this one creates that nice balance between abrasive screaming cyber rage and prettier clean sung choruses and harmonies. kind of the same effect the two achieve on angel electronics projects but i prefer the overall sound of this a lot

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard - See Me: does anybody have the video of that weird as fuck animation with this song over it....... i watched that and was like idk what to do with this but the song jams i wonder who this is. and i found it in the notes and was like ahhhh that makes sense. the glizzard. and yeah idk the descending melody that kind of quavers around the lead line is just really otherworldly and takes me in right away each time i hear it. it's cool

The Specials - A Message To You Rudy: i feel i've said pretty much everythingg i wanted to say about this song. it's just one of the catchiest damn things ever

House Of Pain - I'm A Swing It: hey they're back!!! this one doesn't stick in my head as much as on point but again the sound is just immaculate and there's always so many corny-but-actually-really-good lines. it also always interests me how much everlast referecnes rock musicians and the like. he knows the audience lol

laura les/osno1 - nothing just hanging out: less of a song really, but still so representative of that coldness that represents me. none of the cemetary stuff is gonna be available on spotify, those are my local bandcamp files, and i don't have an individual upload of this track on youtube nor the time to create one, so i just put in an upload of the full ep. just listen to the whole thing it's really good and not that long. but yeah sorry lol

Mark Morrison - Return Of The Mack: i think this appeared on a previous WILT but i mean. talk about the catchiest things ever!!!!

Crisis Sigil - Blood Semen Box-Elder: a favorite album cut from the new crisis sigil. this release my first proper exposure to the project and mannnn that shit is brutal. this one esp methinks. once again. rook music good

Nicki Minaj - Roman Holiday: was listening to this one because of worstsongever and being like whoever nominated this doesn't know shit. this slaps hard. i was never like especially a nicki fan but this just straight up goes. weird as fuck but that's kind of the appeal. if you want a REAL bad song, that will come later

The Front Bottoms - Au Revoir (Adios): no not this one!! well. maybe a bit. idk i like folk punk but never really cared about these guys that much? but i've met some people recently who do like them and was like yeah i could give this another spin. i do admittedly alwways think of the post that's like "this gif is silent but it still manages to sound like shit." it's not as deep of a song as it's probably supposed to be, but i still think there's something there. a lot of folk punk songs focus around character writing that acknowledge their flaws, including (and sometimes especially) the narrator and this is a good example without coming out and stating it. it piqued my inch rest

Roxy Radclyffe - Exemption's Dominion: i'll be real i don't exactly "get" what this song is about but it is freaky and cool. i was really interested to see the music video when it popped up in my subscriptions. the part of the song that does get stuck in my head is the little two-word pitchshifted phrases in one of the verses

Haggus - Uneducated Politician: someone recommended "mincecore" to me, and these guys in particular. weird as fuck sound but i think it's fun! maybe it's just the bad recording quality but the growls on this track in particular come out sounding reallll fucked up, which is what drew me to this selection in particular. still got a lot to learn about this whole scene but it's made it this far with me!

MC Boing - Car Song: tbh i don't tend to really like danny harle, i don't mind him but it's just not really my deal. this one got me, though, despite being dumb as all fuck. we are driving in a car car car car car car. mc boing indeed

Eminem - FACK: you did this to me, worstsongever (R.I.P.). it's annoying to me that i actually don't completely hate this thing.... it manages to be so stupid it loops back around to being funny for about a minute and then it just gets so old so quickly. but somehow still found itself stuck in my head :( many such cases

[hrodvitnon]

Listened to that song the other asker sent- and in the More Videos thing, the Japanese dub song for GvK was there!

(link's telling me it's broken lmfao, if it is the song is called Into the Deep)

It's theorized to be sung from Godzilla and Kong's perspective now. Lyrics are very fitting for the both of them and pretty interesting depending on how you interpret these lines hate to be that guy but 'The Dark's your Mate'?? Really, Legendary?

Both of these songs really remind me of a storytelling tool used by especially talented composers- most famous two examples off the top of my head being FF16 and MGR, where a character's theme song has lyrics that act as kind of hidden characterization for eagle-eared viewers to sniff out. It's a great tool for stories that don't always have time to flesh out their characters, letting the background music play as both an inner monologue and just sounding cool as hell most of the time. Seriously, I actually cannot recommend the Eikon Themes of FF16 enough. Every single one is straight gas. Like, most of Jetstream Sam's characterization comes from The Only Thing I Know For Real. Honestly, could be a really good tool for fleshing out the Titans that isn't direct characterization.

(but honestly at this point I'd just be happy to have McCreary back for another movie... for the love of god Wingard please no more junkie xl...)

Oh yeah, I've heard the FF16 score! Good stuff. It'd be amazing if McCreary comes back for the next movie, his KOTM soundtrack was one big Chef's Kiss, but I also wouldn't say no to someone like Mick Gordon taking a swing at it.

[ibelieveloveisreal]

Why is BTS' ARMY fandom so crazy???

I'm ranting at 1am my time as to why people might deem the ARMY fandom so crazy because my fiance just said the only reason why BTS is currently charting #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 for at least 4 weeks, was because BTS has a crazy fandom.

To correct my fiance, he asked an Alexa, which is not Google, and therefore did not have current info. The true #1 as of this moment is Ariana Grande. Regardless of who is currently #1 though, I want to sest the record straight as to why people might think ARMY is crazy. In this essay, I will...

Actually say what I'm gonna say because otherwise, why else would i get my laptop out at 1am?

Most important to note is that ARMY is not crazy as much as they are united more than any other fandom out there.

Any artist or anything that's granted a fandom has the potential to be as crazy to the outsider's perspective. Closest? Probably the Supernatural fandom for a good period of time; although they're not music, the fans were/are deemed crazy. Music Artist-wise? One of the most worldwide names of today would be Beyonce and Taylor Swift, and their fans are also considered as "crazy" because these fandoms are made up of diehard fans. But why is ARMY seemingly bigger and crazier?

Kpop, in general, has nurtured a culture of how fandoms should work by unity. Kpop fandoms are serious about what artists they support, that any fan is only allowed to be in one official fandom membership of the Kpop group. Since BTS started off as Kpop, their fandom culture is just the same. When the group or any solo artist has a birthday, an anniversary, or is doing some sort of promotional work, the fandoms set up ads and food trucks to send love and support to the group/artist. Korean men are also required to serve 2 years in their country's military and while each artist is gone, the fans have each other to keep their fire going, although artists are still able to tap into the platforms to interact with their fans. That's how fandoms in Kpop work.

Almost every single diehard fan out there also knows their artist's background, their albums, their songs, the way that each album relate to each other, the meaning and lyrics behind every song, etc. Almost every single, if not every single ARMY, has understood BTS' message in at least one song. The positivity and hope that BTS has placed into their music has just made ARMY interested for more, and to learn more about the artists behind the music. From there, it's an avalanche.

BTS stays relevant every week because of how much BTS interacts with ARMY and there are a multitude of platforms and content in which BTS gives to ARMY. ARMY also interacts with eachother in deep and positive ways.

The fans are not only loyal to BTS, but they're loyal to each other. There are multiple accounts, such as this post, that support ARMY being ARMY, loving themselves, supporting themselves. Certain ARMYs have also come together to make fan songs (one even with international collaboration where each line is sung in a different language) to BTS and BTS has actually listened to them during their live streams. ARMYs have also created groups within themselves based on occupations. There is literally twitter accounts for lawyers within BTS banding together to provide legal education, definitely not legal advice and teacher accounts to provide educational support and tutoring at any educational level to fellow ARMYs.

ARMYs also support multiple charities with or without BTS's direct involvement. When BTS donates, privately or publicly, ARMY follows shortly to match their donation. When it's a BTS birthday or anniversary, ARMY donates or volunteers to various charities and every time ARMY is gathered outside of a BTS-related event, it just starts off by fans for fans.

Why is ARMY act so crazy against anyone who says something about BTS or ARMY in general? Why is am I waking up in the middle of the night and spending over an hour writing this essay defending the fandom itself as opposed to just defending BTS?

ARMY is super defensive because of what they know of how much BTS had to go through to get to where they are now. BTS started in the underground and fought with so much backlash, hate, and were filled with anxiety with every step of the way, and yet they only get more and more positive with every step. BTS rises above whatever they feel because they feel the social mission to spread love and positivity with everything they do, from music, to interactions with the fans, and worldwide campaigns. ARMY is an army, not in a military sense, but in a defensive sense. The relationship between BTS and ARMY has easily transcended beyond a typical fans and fandom relationship because both sides want to connect to their fans in a very real and sincere way. BTS is always proving their authenticity to their fans but showing and expressing very real moments and genuine feelings. ARMY are also very proud to be within their fandom because they know what they can truly do together.

To be fair, it's likely that one may have come across or observed an ARMY either crossing a line to "defend" BTS when in reality, they were just spreading hate within themselves and outside of the fandom. Truthfully, true ARMY fans who understand BTS's positive messages would certainly not be setting such a negative example of their own, therefore the one who claims they're ARMY and yet they would hate on others and within the fandom itself must seriously consider if they're a true fan or not.

By no means, are other fans not loyal to their own. By no means, are other artists less than BTS. If you're never in a certain fandom, you'll never be sure why they love what they love so much. What I said to my fiance is, just because he doesn't like their style doesn't mean they're not putting out good music; just like I don't appreciate his favorite artists the way that he does but it doesn't mean they're not putting out good music either. I'll say that for any fandom in any category. Honestly, if BTS wasn't good with their music, their fans would not have not even started being their fan, and that's to be said for any fandom. I'm not sure why it's really a hater's business as to why a fan would be a fan of their own favorite thing, but honestly, any fan has the right to love their thing at whatever capacity they choose.