#and volume 9 in english is in May too

[retracexcviii]

Another month, another no chapter

This time they have been slow sharing this month's contents of the magazine but as you can see in the images, this isn't the month in which we will have vnc back:

At the start of December Jun said in Twitter she started making manga pages again which is a good new, as long as she feels okay, but that doesn't mean next month we will have chapter neither.

I think it will be announced in Twitter before the magazine confirms the content of the month so we will see if it comes back in January, February or September 2023.

[katarh-mest]

finished Apothecary Diaries light novel 9

Bah, now I have to wait until January 18th for the 10th one to come out in English, but that was some good binge reading.

Spoilery thoughts under the cut. No holds barred. Stay out if you mind. Mostly just trying to untangle stuff that's been rattling around my head as I've inhaled a novel a day for the last week.

JinMao

Maomao quickly got adopted by the aro-ace community (for good reason) but as the series goes on, I think she's probably more of a graysexual / sex neutral. She's not sex repulsed. She was simply raised to view sex as a transactional thing, not a romantic thing, and never saw how it could apply to her. (She lacks certain assets.) She also saw women around her using men and being used in turn, selling their talents and bodies, and decided she wanted no part of that aspect of being a courtesan, because she could see the damage it could do to both parties of the transaction. Her own mother died of an STD. Men in the pleasure district waste all their money chasing fantasies that are not real.

That said, she was trained as a courtesan and knows exactly what women need to do to please men, to the point where she was the one running the darn sex ed class for the rear palace.

I don't think she'll ever change her views on sex as a transaction, but Lahan planted the idea in her head that she'll probably want to have at least one kid for the experience, and there's only one way to do that. So there's her incentive. It's funny because she objectively knows Jinshi is attractive (and has a decent frog, ahem) but that isn't the same as being attracted to him. He makes her flustered sometimes and there's a massive level of denial that comes from her perceived status difference, but as the story progresses, we've learned that status difference isn't nearly as steep as she thinks it is. And you can come to care for someone, even love them in a non romantic way, without being sexually attracted to them. This seems to be about where she is as of volume nine. She doesn't reciprocate his feelings, and she really doesn't understand why he picked her, but there's an affection and some level of resignation that his infatuation hasn't cooled yet, and may not ever. (She hoped it would.)

Then there's Jinshi. I pinned him as the classic nonbinary bisexual stereotype at first too, but he's more of a pure monogamist demisexual type, if anything. (Or as someone put it, he's "Maomaosexual.") Which is a disaster to have as a position such as "imperial male" whose only real job is to try to father as many children as humanly possibly.

I realize now that pretending to be a eunoch in the rear palace was his way of avoiding getting forced into his own political marriages he wasn't interested in. Taking the "eunoch medicine" (was it some sort of proto-spirolectone? was it just a libido blocker? who knows? pretty sure it stopped erections and maybe suppressed facial hair growth to some extent) wasn't a big deal for him because he, too, wasn't particularly interested in sex. Not with the randos who only wanted him for his pretty face. Probably the Emperor being a lusty bear and the horror stories about his grandfather had him also decide he wanted none of that either.

Until he fell in love with Maomao, and then he wanted to have her no matter what it was going to cost him, no matter how long it took. (And no matter how long it took him to convince her to come around to the idea - which he still hasn't done, although it seems she's finally starting to get resigned to it.)

Too bad for him, Maomao being the La princess means that's going to be a messy political marriage too. (And it's what he was trying to avoid! Who could have known that the cute little apothecary that was working as a laundry girl was the missing daughter of General Lakan?) The whole nation is apparently already aware she's been proposed for the position of the Imperial Brother's consort - and her getting dragged on the trip west with Lakan and Jinshi in this current arc is all but declaring her the front runner and daring the other factions to do something about it. I keep thinking back to the hairpins - she has Jinshi's, Gyokuyou's, and even Lihua's hairpins still. At the right place and time, those three could make a powerful statement about how many allies she has in the court.

Other Character Thoughts

The real nonbinary beauty Ah-Duo, who had a hysterectomy alongside Jinshi's birth. (I had one of those myself a few years ago. Its been swell. 10/10 highly recommend if you don't want kids.) In a modern setting you'd probably be able to keep your ovaries, but she likely lost those as well during the traumatic birth, so she went through menopause at the age of 16. That's, uh, not great from a health standpoint, but hey, she's alive, and thanks to the intentional baby swap, her son's alive. She is the mom friend everyone deserves. I'm so happy that after she "retired" that she got her own estate and became the local zookeeper for People Who The Government Had To Pretend Died For Reasons But Didn't Deserve It.

(On that note: We now know for sure that Ah-Duo knows Jinshi is her son. She proposed the swap! Anshi knows; she agreed to the swap and loves her grandson much more than she did her second real son. Suiren knows. The Emperor knows but can't say anything. Luomen knows but won't say anything. Maomao figured it out but also won't say anything. I suspect the women in the Ma family probably figured it out as well - Taimao, Maamao, and Chuo, all independently, and all tacitly keeping the secret. Gaoshun may suspect but like Maomao, knows not to think too hard about it. Gyokyuou does not know; she thinks of Jinshi as a brother-in-law, not a stepson. Probably a good thing, considering they are close in age. I think she knew that the local eunoch running the rear palace was the missing Imperial Brother, and that's how their relationship has always been. And I don't think Jinshi knows he's Ah-Duo's son. It's going to break him if he ever finds out. Being "the spare" his whole life has been bad enough. He definitely never wanted to be first in line.)

There's the bisexual Big Sister Pairen, who could have quit being a courtesan long ago if she wanted to, but she likes sex work and has a libido the exact opposite of Maomaos. Maybe some day her prince Lihaku will be able to afford to buy her out. (Hopefully Maomao gives him tips on how he needs to ride into town. On a white horse. With a parade and stuff.) Having a true sex positive character in the same series as an aro-ace spectrum character to act as a foil is a great contrast. (The fact that Pairen is also implied to be a succubus sucking out men's energy to stay youthful is also funny as heck.)

Then we've got the one off characters, like the Shrine Maiden. They never call her this by name, but today we'd flat out call her trans. Not that she had a choice... she was castrated at birth. I'm happy her tale didn't completely end in tragedy and she's now got a place on Ah-Duo's Government Secret Farm. Same with Suirei - sure, she directly or indirectly caused the deaths of a lot of people as part of a conspiracy to kill Jinshi, but she was ordered to do it by her stepmother. So she didn't have much of a choice.

Same with Lishu. Her life has been one of misery but maybe she'll finally get a chance at a happy ending in a future volume. Hated by her dad. Married to a pedophile (that her father thought might be her real father - fucking EW) .... who promptly died. Sent to the nunnery. Sent right back as a bride to his son, still as a 9 year old. Even more ew. (The emperor absolutely treated her like a daughter the whole time, thank god.) Multiple assassination attempts. Bullied by her own maids. Treated like shit. Threatened to get swapped to the Imperial Prince as a consort. Falsely accused of infidelity because stress stopped her period. Humiliated. Ended up locked in a tower. Drugged. Almost driven to suicide. Saved, but sent right back to the nunnery since clearly she wasn't fit to be a consort.

That poor girl.

But she's still got a chance at happiness, if Basen gets to claim her as his reward. Crossing my fingers for them.

Going Forward

I can't wait til volume 10. Is Lakan getting dragged over there because the Empress's brother is trying to snag Maomao (the only La family princess) as a consort for one of his family members, even as he tries to force a marriage between Jinshi and his own daughter? (Or worse, make her become a middle ranked consort to the emperor as a snub to Gyokuyou?) Or is it genuinely because there's war brewing and the general is needed to help make plans?

[subarashiihibi]

my thing about izaya is that he's so strange and weird and i love that so much. i didn't want to ramble too much in the notes of that poor person's post but i find the way he speaks and the words he chooses so interesting so let me ramble a little bit. this may or may not even be coherent so bear with me here im just going to speak my thoughts.

ok this got really fucking long and all over the 0place so im putting this under a read more sorry.

so i have volume 9 of the novel in both english and japanese. i only have two novels in japanese and that is this one and yuuyake wo. so i'm pretty crazy about this izaya speech analysis shit. anyways i was rereading thru the jp ver the other day just to compare it to the eng and i kinda realized that like.

a lot of people you can separate their speech in either formal and informal speech right? someone like shizuo speaks really informally and uses a lot of rough, dragged-out versions of words and stuff (しゃーねえ vs しょうがない) and then someone like shinra who speaks in a ton of yojijukugo and generally sounds like a nerd emoji gijinka.

izaya on the other hand rly... doesn't fit in either? i mean sure he sounds like another nerd emoji gijinka but it's kinda different. it's not so much the words he speaks but rather the intonation and his tone...

and he has his moments where he speaks pretty seriously and whatnot of course, but in general he just... doesn't sound very human when he speaks? i don't know if that's a conscious effort or not. is it his attempts at distancing himself from his own individual humanity? or is it just because he's a weird guy? i dunno. but it's interesting nonetheless.

one thing i will note though is that despite his somewhat inhuman speech patterns, it's also pretty...dramatic? to the extent where it's really exaggerated but also very cute and charming. (this part is important.)

i think a lot of what makes izaya's speech so weirdly inhuman is because he doesn't really use a lot of slang or similar lingo that people his age would typically use. i know mikado said in the novels that he doesn't really try to fit in with his age group's fashion sense either so it makes sense but still. he's like an old hag it's so funny. and it's because of that that when he says stuff like 'i don't get all hot and heavy over headless women' or whatever he said to celty it's really amusing to me because like... why is the strange man saying this?💀

another example i kinda giggled about on my twitter when i read it it's not even crazy and i sound corny and cheesy and stupid but theres this scene in vol 9 where izaya messages celty for business and hold on let me just put it as a quote.

he sounds so old saying 'video game' like 😭 idk it's just funny cause he barely even knows anything abt games like bro knows nothing im crying

in the jp hes like 「…ゲーム中なのかい？」 and then when celty tries to explain herself he says 「何を言ってるのか、良く解らないんだけど」 and im rly bad at tling parts of sentences and stuff but just know that the way he words it makes it sound like this gif to me

i love both versions i think the original jp makes him sound like hes so lost and confused (hence why pw gif cause lord that man always looks lost LMFAOOOO) and then eng tl just blunt ass "I don't know what you're talking about." makes him sound like full on hag 😭😭😭

OMFG WAIT I HAVE TO MENTION THIS FUCKING SCENE WITH SHINRA ITS SO FUNNY.

first i think it's funny the translation has izaya say fuck here cause he very rarely swears and i did read this one thing about how he only swears when his mask slips so to me this is like genuine bewilderment that he cant even hide LOL. second why is he so excited to hear about 'whatever sexual fetish' shinra has im crying he's so damn nosy . okay but this is not the funniest part let me add that now.

???

ehy the hell is izaya orihara talking about foot fetishes???😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 im crying bruh i was so flabbergasted when i read this i was like WHAT did he just say? he says it in the jp ver too which just makes it even funnier. this goes back to what i said earlier but i always get so amused when izaya has something to say about sex or whatever cause he's so fucking weird and unsettling why does he know that

(i mean i also get so hard i nearly pass out thinking about izaya tlaking about sex but thats probably just a thing with my heart condition and stuff)

oh also another scene i think is really cute and amusing and funny is back when shinra was first still trying to get izaya to form the bio club w him.

1. shinra is funny as fuck in this scene but also izaya's "Hmm. Can I punch you?" made me havbe a good laugh. in the jp he says 「んー。殴ってもいいのかな？」 which is pretty much the same thing just with the intonation of like 'hmmmmmmmmm should i hit u or not...' sorry like i said im just bad w explaining this stuff. but i felt the need to point it out not cause im one of those annoying ppl who praise the original jp ver and reject translations and localizations i just think it's important for izaya specifically cause i love him and i want to analyze his speech patterns as best as i can.

i was going thru the novel just now for other stuff i wanted to mention and i forgot abt this part but it's so funny.

'Let's not get hasty. Type calmly, please.' its not even funny or nothing i just find it so amusinf whenever he talks like that💀 i will say though the english translation kind of makes him sound more weird and inhuman than the original. that line in the original was basically just him telling her she needs to calm down enough to at least type properly LOL. idk if im just being nitpicky cause this is izaya tho so feel free to ignore that. fwiw i like the eng tl bc while it's a different intonation than the original japanese ver i think if he did speak english it would probably sound smth like that anyways.

this too made me laugh like ??? seriously he is really nosy when it comes to people's intimate affairs. in the jp ver he calls them an 'intimate couple' which just is like .. ok bro💀

does anyone else see my vision of izaya getting cucked by celty (does it count as cucking when celtys the one dating shinra) while he looks sad and pathetic and miserable that he never decided to shoot his shot w shinra back in the day

if i were commenting on the actual stuff going on in this scene rn this post would be a lot olonger and even more terribly all over the place so im just gonna focus on how i think it's funny izaya says 'easy, man...' this is like one of the only times his words are somewhat natural and sound like smth you would hear someone else say. in the jp ver it's 「おいおい…」 which is somewhat less out of left field in terms of coming from izaya but still it's pretty surprisingly normal. i have to wonder if in that moment he's too worried about shinra to care about keeping up appearances.

this is just random and me making fun of izaya as usual but why the hell does he weigh himself after his showers💀💀💀 it's cute and endearing and only adds to his strong gap moe but still... it's strange...

speaking of cute things this is from a volume i forget but he says this one phrase a couple of times and it is just both really cute and also kind of idk... saddening. one of the times i can remember he says it is when namie was making fun of him or something and he replies 'Don't tease me. I'm only human.' or something along those lines and it's like . hm. ok.

i think it's cute he says 'dont tease me' a few times cause eughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh (trying to ward off severe brain damaged incoherent thoughts) but 'im only human' is like... are you really? even after you try so hard to escape your own humanity and individual self so much... im going to try and give my thoughts on it here but this is just based off my hc that izaya has bpd so yanno. im basing a lot oif this on my own experiences sorry. i do that a lot. (gestures over to all the posts i make abt fob/mychem fan izaya)

when it comes to just straight up acknowledging his humanity izaya has no problems with this because 'sure, i'm human. isn't that obvious?' is probably something along the lines of what he thinks. it's easy for him to just say that because it's just that. it's just words. it holds no real meaning and shows no true insight into how he actually perceives himself. but when it comes to actually having to come face to face with his own humanity and the fact that yes, he is only human, it's a lot more difficult because now it's out of his control. i wonder also if he has problems with perceiving his own self.

i say this a lot but i truly do believe izaya is so so so beautiful and i love him so much. also i just saw a funny post on twitter so i wanna say this here idk if yall know this but izayas actually a latina hes got chismosavirus❤ ok thats all i have to say sorry for rambling so much

[my-deer-history]

Francis Kinloch in the Müller-Bonstetten letters: Part 4

My translations here, German originals from volumes 1 and 2 below the cut.

1 Dec 1777

Kinloch has asked me if I want to sail to Carolina with him. I do not know my own decision on this yet. 

3 Dec 1777

I am beyond curious to know what Kinloch will decide to do now; what should I answer, if he were to go to the new world, and asked me what my decision was? I confess to you that you alone bind me to the old world. In the new, the path to fame seems faster and clearer.

16 Jan 1778

I mentioned our translation to Kinloch. “I congratulare [sic] you et B. upon walking down to posterity hand in hand; would to God I might be permitted to hold up the train of one of you gowns, and so escape the oblivion which threatens me.”

3 March 1778

Around thirty Englishmen have been announced in Geneva.

Where Kinloch may be is entirely unknown to me.

“Wednesday,” March 1778

Kinloch has reappeared; the error was with the post.

9 April 1778

Kinloch writes to me: “the whole town (Glasgow) is on fire with a military ardour which runs from breast to breast; near 700 men of the Edinburgh Regiment, are already raised; the Glasgow Regiment too goes on very well.” He himself wanted to make his way to France, because he is on his last 200 pfennigs. In the same moment, he received a letter wherein an old Scottish nobleman, the nephew of his grandfather, movingly invited him to see him as a father in these great misfortunes, and to come to Scotland. So he is currently living in Gilmerton, his family’s old estate, where he was received with ancestral hospitality. He is awaiting a ship to the West Indies, to get to Carolina, where he will seek to champion the new republic.

10 Dec 1778

I have decided to maintain a more orderly correspondence in Switzerland and with foreigners [...] I had not written a word about Kinloch and committed other atrocities through negligence [...] Farewell, you everything.

20 Feb 1779

Kinloch spent fourteen weeks* on the ocean and fought fiercely against a corsair.** He received a pass to the American army with some small effort, and has arrived safely in Carolina.

*A typical Atlantic crossing took between four and eight weeks, so fourteen is incredibly long.

**More likely a pirate or privateer ship.

24 March 1779

Now the English are coming from the mountains into Carolina. They are breaking in from Kinloch's plantations, and I think success is certain. The Georgians have taken up royal service in large numbers. The Palatinate* and Mountain Scots back in Carolina have always been Tories.

*Germans from the Pfalz region.

31 May 1779

I dread every day the news of Kinloch’s loss. I read an honourable account of him in the Philadelphia newspaper. He fights for America. He is often sent to reconnoitre the enemy.

19 June 1779

[Burney] curses correspondence; I sympathise with him on that. I will soon not have any foreign acquaintances or friends left. War separates me from Kinloch; to North and other Englishmen I write perhaps twice a year.

1 Dec 1777

Kinloch fragt mich, ob ich mit ihm nach Carolina segeln wolle. Hierüber weiß ich vor der Hand meine Entschließung selber nicht.

3 Dec 1777

Ich bin über die Maaßen begierig, zu wissen, wozu nun Kinloch sich entschließen will; was soll ich antworten, wenn er in die neue Welt gehet, und mich über meinen Entschluß fraget? Ich gestehe Dir, daß Du allein mich an die alte Welt fesselst. In der neuen scheint mir der Weg zum Ruhm schneller und freier.

16 Jan 1778

Ich hatte dem Kinloch ein Wort von unserer Uebersetzung gesagt. “I congratulare [sic] you et B. upon walking down to posterity hand in hand; would to God I might be permitted to hold up the train of one of you gowns, and so escape the oblivion which threatens me.”

3 March 1778

Bei dreißig Engländer werden bereits in Genf angekündiget.

Wo Kinloch seyn mag, ist mir vollkommen uns bekannt.

“Wednesday,” March 1778

Kinloch ist wieder zum Vorschein gekommen; der Fehler war an den Posten.

9 April 1778

Kinloch schreibt mir: the whole town (Glasgow) is on fire with a military ardour which runs from breast to breast; near 700 men of the Edinburgh Regiment, are already raised; the Glasgow Regiment too goes on very well. Er selbst wollte sich nach Frankreich begeben, weil er die letzten 200 Pf. im Vermögen hat. Im selbigen Augenblick bekam er einen Brief, worin ein alter scottischer Edelmann, der Neffe seines Großvaters, ihn rührend einladet, in diefen großen Unfällen ihn als Vater anzusehen, und nach Scotland zu kommen. Also lebt er nun auf Gilmerton, dem alten Gut seiner Familie, woselbst er mit der antiken Gastfreiheit empfangen worden ist. Et erwartet ein Schiff nach Westindien, um nach Carolina zu kommen, wo er die neue Republik zu verfechten suchen wird.

10 Dec 1778

Ich habe den Briefwechsel in der Schweiz und mit Fremden ordentlicher zu unterhalten beschlossen [...] um Kinloch hatte ich keinen Buchstaben geschrieben und andere Gräuel in Nachläßigkeit begangen [...] Adieu, du Alles.

20 Feb 1779

Vierzehn Wochen har Kinloch auf dem Weltmeer zugebracht und heftig mit einem Korsaren gestritten. Mit leichter Mühe gab man ihm einen Paß zur amerikanischen Armee, und er ist glücklich in Carolina angekommen.

24 March 1779

Nun kommen die Engländer von den Bergen her in Carolina. Von Kinlochs Pflanzungen her brechen sie ein, und ich halte den Erfolg für sicher. Die Georgianer haben in großen Haufen den königlichen Dienst genommen. Die Pfälzer und Bergscoten hinten in Carolina sind immer Torys gewesen.

31 May 1779

Von Kinlochs Verlust fürchte ich tägliche Nachricht. Ich habe ehrenhafte Meldung von ihm aus der Philadelphia Zeitung vernommen. Er streitet für Amerika. Oft wird er geschickt, um die Feinde zu rekognoszieren.

19 June 1779

Briefwechsel verwünscht er; hierin sympathisire ich mit ihm. Ich habe nun bald keinen fremden Bekannten oder Freund mehr. Von Kinloch trennt mich der Krieg; dem North und andern Engländern schreibe ich etwa jährlich zweimal;

[apinkylemon]

English translation for Nana 7.8 Ai Yazawa Interview (Part 2)

This are the original scans from my original 7.8 copy:

PLEASE READ THIS NOTES BEFORE READING THE INTERVIEW

NOTE 1: I'm not a professional translator, i did this the best i could, english is not my first language so there may be misspelled things

NOTE 2: This interview is from the 7.8 fanbook published between volumes 7 and 8 of Nana, when Yazawa talks about the characters you have to keep in mind what we knew about them at that point and not what they did or became latter in the story

Thank you

MISATO REPORTS - 30 QUESTIONS TO AI YAZAWA (9 to 19)

Okay, we already know more or less the author's position regarding the series, let's continue with the interview

Question 9: Which band would you prefer to play in: Blast or Trapnest?

Uh, i don't see myself on a punk band (laughs) better with Trapnest.

Question 10: And what instrument would you play?

I use to play piano, so i would play the keyboard

Question 11: Tell us about an experience at a concert

I once won tickets to see a rock band that I loved. I got first row, just in front of the guitarist i adored. Since i know what it feels like, I was inspired by that experience to draw the scene of the girls front row at the Trapnest concert.

Question 12: Do you believe in horoscope?

Normally i don't. I ignore the typical predictions that come out every end of the year. But i like that typical Japanese thing of guessing someone's personality based on the blood type they belong to.

Question 13: What do you prefer? Long or short hair?

I like both. I don't like common things (laughs) I like originality. Yasu is original.

Question 14: Which three objects would take to a desert island?

Tobacco, paper and pencil. How crazy going to a desert island to draw (laughs) Oh, and CD! I can't live without music! Oh, only three things... this is so difficult...

Question 15: If you opened a business, what would it be?

A decoration store like Sabrina, second hand items from the 60s and 70s.

Question 16: What novels do you like?

"Good moorning , sadness" by Sagan. It's my inspiration, i also like the mystery novel "Eien no ko" by Arata Tendō. I cried too much

Question 17: What films do you like?

So many...! The ones i rewatched the most are "Gattaca", "Death in Venice" and "Velvet Goldmine"

Question 18: And TV shows?

I barely watch TV. Well, i don't have time.

Question 19: Do you surf the internet?

Sometimes. Since there's a fanpage, i visit it to read the comments

Misato: There is so much new information for me too.

Part 3 of 3 coming soon

[jasper-book-stash]

May 2024 Reading Wrap-Up

Alright, I can finally work on this, after being a full week into June. I read 11 books in May - one religious text, one occult/witchcraft book, two romances, two nonfiction books, and five poetry books.

Religious Text

Los Agvinaldos del Infante: Gloda de Epifania // The Child’s Gifts: A Twelfth Night Tale | Tomas Blanco

I found this book on the free books table of the library I work at, and I yoinked it immediately. I'm utterly fascinated by translated works, so being able to look at both the Spanish and English versions of this story was really neat. It's a story about the Three Wise Men heading to Jesus's birth and it talks about the gifts they brought from each of their kingdoms. It was neat.

1/10 - Why Did They Publish This?

None applicable.

2/10 - Trash

None applicable.

3/10 - Meh

None applicable.

4 to 6/10 - Mid-Tier

Echoes from the Orient: Wisdom of Lao-Tse With Parallels in Western Thought | Robert Wood

This is a book I found in a secondhand book store for dirt cheap, and my main complaint with it was that the comparisons were usually weak and drew from too many places. Not bad, but not good either.

Confessions of a Reluctant Optimist | Phyllis McGinley

Remember this post? This author is who that was about. This compilation of poems was a fascinating look back into the author's time and place.

7 to 8/10 - Good With Caveats

Bending the Binary: Polarity Magic in a Nonbinary World | Deborah Lipp

I went back and forth so much on this book, but ultimately landed at 8 out of 10 with the caveat being that you're going to go back and forth on if the book is worth reading for quite a few chapters. There are a lot of places where it was like "Bestie, what the FUCK does this mean?" but most of those instances were explained in more detail. We love seeing elaboration on wild claims, at least. It delivered exactly on what was promised. AN IMPORTANT NOTE: The author is cisgender, and this is very apparent in many places, and not just in the places that the author outright says it.

Love For All Seasons | Kitty Clevenger, Fred Klemushim, Rick Cusick

This anthology was put together by Kitty Clevenger, and honestly, my main complaint is that they could have done better. Sure, the artwork is gorgeous, but not every poem felt attached to that central theme - it just felt like the compiler just grabbed whatever poems mentioned one of the seasons in them. And the font (by Rick Cusick, apparently) is difficult to read at times - some of the letters are hard to decipher/identify.

Yesterday I Saw The Sun: Poems | Ally Sheedy

Apparently this author is known for other things. This is my first instance of hearing of her. And I enjoyed the book. Not much to say, other than giving a warning that it gets heavy. Which is a good thing tbh.

Swimming Shelter: 100 Days of Coronavirus: An Exercise in the American Crawl | Al Ortolani

Nothing like reliving the coronavirus (and, in some of the later poems, murder and police brutality) through poetry. My main complaint about this one was formatting. I feel like I could have done better. Let me edit your book and fix your formatting, PLEASE.

9/10 - Very Very Good

February Poems | John Mooney

This was gearing up to be a deeply middling zine of poetry until the fucking clown poem hit me. 9 out of 10, no notes.

Pounded By The Classics: Seven Literary Tales Of The Tingleverse | Chuck Tingle The Lesbian Classics Get Me Off: Seven Ladybuck Tales Of The Tingleverse | Chuck Tingle

Chuck Tingle's tinglers literally never miss.

Ancient Egyptian Literature, volume II: The New Kingdom | Miriam Lichtheim

I didn't get volume two read in time for the May book club meeting, much less volume three, but this was still a damn fine read. I love analyzing old literature told through a modern lens.

10/10 - Unironically Recommend To Everyone

None applicable.

[ineffable-opinions]

Omegaverse BL in Japan (Part 2)

[Summary of these posts: 1 2 . Corrections and critique are welcome.]

Omegaverse is a popular enough genre in Japanese BL to warrant dedicated labels from even major publishers. For example: Libre publication’s label Be x Boy Omegaverse. This is in addition to specialized anthologies.

Popular Works

Romantic Joutou by Moriyo

Kashikomarimashita, Destiny by Sachimo

Highschool setting

Abarenbo Honey by Tobidase Kevin – cute and sexy, delinquents romance

Sayonara Koibito, Mata Kite Tomodachi by Yoha – class president x transfer student; serious and dark

Office setting

Kurui Naku no wa Boku no Ban by Kusabi Keri – younger subordinate x older boss; pretty and moody

Soredemo Suki Desu Kasahara-san by Omaru – coworkers romance; erotic and heartwarming

Beastman

Pendulum: Kemonohito Omegaverse by Hasumi Hana – beastman x human with special ability; sweet with a tinge of melancholy 

Omegaverse with children

Oyasuminasai no Ato wa by Kabano Sakadachi – nursery school principal x single father; sweet with a tinge of melancholy 

Tadaima Okaeri by Ichikawa Ichi – salaryman x househusband; heartwarming and soothing

Other than "α x Ω"

Sukijanaitte Hyakkai Tonaeta by Kabano Sakadachi – main CP: α x α. Side CPs: α x Ω & Ω x Ω

Boku no High Spec Kareshi-sama by Yotsuashi - Ω x α

(source)

Growth of omegaverse in commercial BL

As with most things in Japanese BL, omegaverse first boomed in doujin works around 2014-15 period and then spread to commercial works. 2015-16 was a pivotal year for child-rearing and omegaverse BL with the publication of Welcome Home (ただいま、おかえり Tadaima, Okaeri byIchikawa Ichi.

It has been serialized in Fusion Product's Omegaverse Project anthology magazine since November 2015 and has been collected in four tankōbon volumes [first volume was published in 2016]. The series is published in English by Manga Club. An anime television series adaptation produced by Studio Deen is set to premiere in April 2024. (source: wikipedia)

In 2022, by May, 80 works had been published. Previous year, there was a dip in number of new omegaverse works published after rapid increase since 2019. In 2020, 8 times more works were published with omegaverse setting compared to when it debuted.

How does this compare to the total number of BL publications?

The proportion of omegaverse continues to be small compared to the total. In 2020, there were 160 omegaverse works out of nearly 3500 BL works. One out of every 20 BL works belongs to omegaverse. This is fairly significant for a single setting / sub-genre.

Year-wise trends and corresponding popular pairings

[Total number of works only indicate how many iterations of that pairing showed up in the market, it doesn’t indicate how well they did commercially or popularity-wise. Popularity is discussed below.]

2015 – Diversification Era

α×Ω 9

β×Ω 3

α×α 1

Other×Ω 1

2015 was the year when omegaverse works began to appear in the commercial BL market, emerging out of doujin BL boom. While α×Ω pairing was obviously the first kind of pairing to become popular, β×Ω pairing wasn’t too far behind.

Omegaverse is not limited to α×Ω pairing alone. The wide range of possibilities omegaverse offered was explored early on. It can be said that the [pairing] diversity is one of the reasons for its explosive popularity.

There seems to be high affinity between BL and omegaverse, as both share unique worldviews and settings while being highly versatile, ranging from fantasy to modern day works.

It was the period when omegaverse was being tested as a setting based off on how far narratives can go without breaking the premise that Ω is the uke and α is the seme.

Overall tendency was to highlight the discrimination against Ω and the preferential treatment towards α in an easy-to-understand manner. Omegaverse as a setting was in its infancy. It was probably thought that exaggeration [of key characteristics] would popularize omegaverse.

Notable works:

Romantic Joutou

sayonara koibito matakite tomodachi

2016 – Early Odo Reversal Era

α×Ω 13

α×β 2

Ω×α 1

β×Ω 2

β×α 2

α×α 1

Ω×Ω 1

Most highly rated work of that year kashikomarimashita destiny - Devotion to death is an α×β work. Seemingly, breaking the rules can be considered a standard practice in the omegaverse BL.

As omegaverse become more popular, many a masterpiece such as Kuruinakunowa Boku No Ban and Tadaima Okaeri were created.

Compared to previous year, 2016 was witness to many epoch-making works such as Pendulum - Beastman Omegaverse, which married beastman setting with omegaverse setting.

Another notable work is Boku No High Spec Kareshisama that had a path-breaking Ω seme. It also had a β×α side pairing.

The works published in 2016 pretty much covered every possible combination in the Omegaverse.

2017 - Serious Works Era

α×Ω 17

α×α 1

Ω×Ω 1

α×β 1

β×Ω 3

Ω×α 1

In 2017, the omegaverse became even more popular than in 2016.

Continuing from the previous year, omegaverse kept exploring various possibilities. It was in 2017 that omegaverse established itself as a new genre that goes beyond the framework of special settings.

The first volume of Akabeko's Shonen no Kyoukai series, published that year, brought omegaverse close to the real world. It was around that time the setting of [secondary] gender tests being conducted at schools, which later became commonplace, first appeared. Consequently, compared to the previous years, more realistic and serious works were produced.

It’s no longer about “poor Ω and alpha who has it all”! The number of characters that went beyond typical omegaverse attributes increased, and genders combinations also diversified.

There was no set standard marking this period. The foundation laid in the years before finally paid off and the sub-genre flourished and spread.

2018 Omegaverse Boom Period

α×Ω 20

α×α 1

β×Ω 1

Other×α 1

α×Other 1

In 2018, the number of Omegaverse works has increased explosively! Total number of omegaverse BL works produced that year was more double that of previous year. A variety of settings and fetishes emerged due to an overwhelming increase in the number of artists.

While α×Ω continues to enjoy steady popularity Megumi To Tsugumi at the top, other types of pairing were also increasingly well received due to the appeal of particular works.

The aforementioned Megumi to Tsugumi and Omae No Koi Wa Ore No Mono had Ω who did not conform to the ‘cute and protected’ image instead were bigger and badder than your average α.

Omae No Koi Wa Ore No Mono

The number of works that had gap between gender attributes and individual characteristics increased. Settings also diversified. The buds of the previous year have bloomed, including beastmen, threesomes, and inc3st!

Around this time, works published the previous year or earlier got sequels and CD dramas. It also became a trend to have spin-offs of α x Ω works to have other pairings...

2019 Back-to-roots Era

α × Ω 23

Ω×Ω 1

β×Ω 2

α×α 3

α×β 1

The total number of omegaverse works in 2019 surpassed previous year count by nearly 80 books. In addition to the continuation of popular works from the previous year, it was no longer unusual to see α×α pairing or β-seme.

Marriage themed work Yukyu Omega was published.

The first volume of the child-rearing omegaverse series Kiraide Isasete was published in 2019.

It was the year that the omegaverse wave entered a new stage, just like the lives of the characters in them. That year also saw the publication of Ousama Alpha To Puppy Love that explored the themes of child-rearing and childbirth, which were relatively untouched in other BL settings prior to the omegaverse boom.

2020 Odo Omegaverse Era

α × Ω 23

β×Ω 1

The total amount of work increased yet again in 2020. The popularity enjoyed by α×Ω pairing was stronger than ever. Many of the popular series featured α×Ω pairing too. Of course, there are some works featuring other pairings, but the omegaverse odo (royal road progression) is still strong.

Even with α×Ω pairing, the attributes that were once like a chasm between characters started to come together「圧倒的攻め×圧倒的受け」「精神的にはほぼ攻め×攻め」.

The fact that some of the most popular works from the past have continued churning out newer volumes suggests that the omegaverse genre in BL will continue to grow!

There have also been some bold stories with enigmatic developments, such as Rebirth, reasserting the endless possibilities of the omegaverse.

2021 – Meta-omegaverse Era

α × Ω 17

β×Ω 1

Ω×α 1

In the year 2021 too α×Ω pair reigns in popularity. Works with a strong storyline continued to be well-received, continuing from the previous year. Works with a strong meta element, such as Kamisamananka Shinjinai Bokua No Eden was published that year.

Boku No Tsugai Ha Thoroughbred Omega explored whether or not to disclose gender – bringing in the choice not to tell. This thought-provoking addition to omegaverse is probably a reflection of reality.

2020 also saw more works that places emphasize on different scenarios and have less explicit content than in the past. In recent years, various other verses have sprouted from omegaverse such as Dom/Sub verse.

2022

α × Ω 18

α × β 2

α×Others 1

The omegaverse has established itself as a major [sub]genre. It is expected that α × Ω pairing will continue to dominate!

Fusion with new genres is steadily progressing! The Mibu No Tsugai series is a time travel BL that combined omegaverse with historical setting (late Edo period). It is clear that the omegaverse setting has become so well-established that addition of elements and setting do not affect accessibility of the subgenre.

Other notable works:

Omega Ni Dake Ha Naritakunai – isekai into an omegaverse manga

Kuzu, Omega ni Tensei by Saitou Kuzu – isekai into omegaverse

Omegaverse is easily malleable and combines well with other sub-genres and settings.

(source)

PART 1

PART 2 (you are here)

[rigelmejo]

9/19/2024 some updates!

Glossika Japanese: I finished the A1 section, it was about 3000 sentences. The full glossika japanese course states it has 6400+ sentences and 5000+ words. So with how MANY words were in A1? I am predicting A2 will have 2500-3000 words and then there will be a small amount of sentences in B1 and B2. Also: the course's claims of A1 etc categorization do not actually match up to any A1-C1 clearly. I'd say everything in the "A1" module felt beginner, except for a few grammar points I didn't learn in japanese 1 in college. But it was beginner enough material that I don't think I could pass an N5 or N4 practice test with 90%.

What is good about the A1 module? It did at least cover a decent amount of new words. While there were a lot of repeated words and words conjugated multiple ways, I'd say at least 1500-2000 new words were covered. Maybe there were even 2500+ new words covered, but I'm going to guess closer to 1500-2000. I've done the beginning of Nukemarine's LLJ memrise courses before, years ago, and studied 2000 words in that. So a lot of glossika japanese A1 has been review for me. But I do think the sheer volume of sentences has been useful, with the various grammar and conjugations. While I don't think I learned very many new words... possibly only a few hundred... I DO think going through A1 has improved my listening skills in japanese. Now, that improvement could just be because (according to glossika app) I studied for 63 hours in the last few months. And yes, I recognize I should expect solid project in a language like japanese every few HUNDRED hours, not every few dozen, so I need to keep studying for longer to truly judge how much progress glossika materials can help me get to. But I will say even just the 63 hours? It's clearly helped. I can understand about half of the lines/phrase chunks in Death Note, I can understand enough of kids shows to just Watch them (so I suppose I could start immersing by watching shows).

I watched Criminologist Himura and Writer Alice yesterday for about 15 minutes and I could follow the main plot. Many details were fuzzy, and to be fair the show is Very Visual in showing what's described so that helps me follow Himura's lines of reasoning and reactions, and my brain felt FRIED trying to focus.

But its the first time I watched a jdrama and could just FOLLOW it (if roughly). When studying chinese, I could start doing that around 5-6 months of learning (when I'd studied 2000 words brute force in memrise and 800 hanzi in a book), i would feel exhausted and couldnt do it longer than 20 minutes at a time until I kept trying and eventually could handle a full episode of chinese shows. But I could Start building up stamina to watch/focus and try to comprehend at that time. So I'd guess my japanese is now around knowing 2000-3000 words overall (some from prior to glossika, many reviewed with glossika recently, som new words). Listening a LOT just tends to help me, personally, with improving comprehension and comprehension speed. I suppose I could start watching japanese shows now, but im going to be real, I am a chicken. Id rather learn more words first. I could probably rewatch a show I already saw in english, but a new show in japanese would probably make me need to focus so hard id get exhausted if i try for too long at a time.

Anyway, overall? Id say glossika is presenting new information SLOWER than I'd like (I do think Clozemaster is faster with new word introductions, but last time I used it maybe a year ago their Radio mode just didnt give you the same pick-what-to-study-new control that glossika does). But glossika is faster than pimsleur. And I do think I may be getting to a lot of genuinely NEW words for me soon, which will be the biggest test of if the material is actually useful for me more than another program that may only have 2000 words. So I'll keep going. I'll update again later.

I'd also like to try Listening Reading Method with Alice in Wonderland in japanese again, if i can get myself to focus. I think I know enough japanese now that a wall of (older childrens book) text is not going to immediately exhaust me. Or at least, exhaust me less than last time I tried.

My chinese is still in a weird holding zone. I have been listening to audiobooks still. Its like I lose all my instant recognition of words after a few days not listening to chinese, but then within a few hours the instant recognition comes back! But the first few hours of listening after those days of a break, i can't understand fully the audio i COULD nearly fully understand just before the few-days break in audio. So it's like my recognition goes UP each time I study then DROPS every time I take a few days break. I think it's probably normal, and the recognition that drops then goes back up is probably just words I know LESS fully or that are less common than the core-words I seem to recognize immediately even after long breaks. I imagine what will fix this is simply listening for a LOT of hours. I'm just lazy. I need to listen more.

[pancake-breakfast]

I should be sleeping, but I'm not known for my wisdom in that particular field, so on with Trigun Book Club!

Archive

Trigun Volume 1: Covers + 1-3, 3 Detailed Thoughts, 4, 4 DT, 5-6, 5-6 + DT, 6 DT, 7-8, 9-10

Trigun Volume 2: Covers + Extras, 1, 1 Supplemental Research, 2-4, 5-6, 7-8

TriMax Volume 1: Covers + 1-2, 2 DT, 3-4, 3 DT, 5-6

TriMax Volume 2: Covers + 1, 2-4

Stream-of-consciousness thoughts for TriMax Vol. 2, Chapter 5 below.

Chapter 5: Desperado

Oh, no. They're coming for Vash's friends on the sand steamer.

Wait, that's the girl from the end of the last chapter, huh? That means they can't be far from Milly and Meryl.

Nico-oniisaaaaaaan!!!

"Did your work go well?" Heh. I'll note he does not answer this question. Nicholas D. Wolfwood. The "D" is for "Deflection."

Gods, his hands. This is so much more traumatic in context.

NIGHTOW, WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING HERE, LITERALLY ON THE SAME PAGE AS THAT NIGHTMARE?!?!

NM, it's just Vash's bad driving. Or maybe he noticed WW wasn't sleeping so good and decided to unsubtly wake him up?

LOL, I have SO MANY THOUGHTS about what's going on in WW's head here, but they're all spoilers, so I'll keep them to myself.

LOLOLOLOL, WW dragging unconscious Vash into the inn and demanding two rooms is just so funny to me. Like, no wonder these people are staring at him like that. They must have SO MANY QUESTIONS.

I assume there will only be one room. And one bed. Edit: My assumption was wrong.

LOL, nothing wakes Vash up quite like the sound of someone else in need, trying to do the right thing against impossible odds.

He's so cute when he's semi-conscious.

WW, what the hell life have you been living? I'm so sorry, my guy. No wonder Vash is giving you such a headache.

I wish I could find a suitable picture to show just how much this building looks like the old Spanish missions dotting the landscape in certain parts of the Southwestern U.S., but it seems like 99.9999% of the pictures are of the buildings inside the walls... or of the ones that have been extensively renovated rather than having crumbly bits like so many of them do. (Also, it's late and so I can't be arsed to do a detailed search. Maybe this will help get my point across? IDK, I'm not writing an essay on Spanish missions right now. I already did that back in 4th grade.)

If I had a son who was recklessly hellbent on getting himself killed alongside me as I defended the town/inn/whatever, I'd tie him up and lock him away, too.

LOL, dehydrated Vash. Gods, babygirl is in baaaaad shape. He's trying, though.

I dunno, a half-dead Vash is still probably pretty competent.

Is now a good time to point out that the word "Desperado" means "The Desperate"? (Also, apparently it's not actually Spanish. We're learning things today in Trigun Book Club.)

"What was that, Vashie?" *Vash barks insistently* "You think you can come up with a plan?" *Vash barks enthusiastically* "Ok, I trust you, boy!" *Vash wags his tail.*

Some quick Spanish notes on page 134 here for those who may not hear these terms so frequently: Mi Amigo = my friend (may not actually indicate a friend; can also be used to create a mock-friendly tone in a situation where intimidation is coming into play) Jefe (pronounced "heh-fay") = slang term meaning "boss" or "leader" (can also be used sort of like "man" or "dude" in English, or in a mock-friendly tone to kinda rub in that the person being called "jefe" is not in charge of the situation) Comprende? = Do you understand?

This guy has too many teeth. And a weird way of standing. Is... is he wearing metal underwear?? What kind of weirdness do you have to go through to get this kind of anatomy? How does he close his lips??? M... maybe it's a mask of some sort??

Holland en Flambe sounds like a dessert.

Rest in peace, vodka. I'm sure someone out there misses you.

Hahahahaha, this kid. He's having to hold the whole weight of intimidation because Vash looks like a rag doll someone left out in the rain too long. Wait. Does Wolfwood know Vash is here?? Heheheheheheheh.... BF's gonna be maaaaaaad....

I love Vash's expression through this bit. He's trying, but he does NOT have the energy for this right now.

FWOOM

Listen to your father, Rob.

Ohhhhh, shit.

Ok, I LOVE LOVE LOVE this. I love the absolute chaos of the top part taking over the whole page, with this guy's shouting bearing down on Vash and the family from the top, claws sweeping in from the left with a motion so fast and deadly it leaves motion lines going all the way up the page... and then, cutting in at the bottom, in a panel that's practically pure-white serenity, the soft but definite *click* of the Punisher's machine gun opening. Beautiful.

And, of course, we turn the page into a two-page spread of Wolfwood letting 'er rip, adding a more controlled and entirely different type of chaos to the scene.

LOL, BF's mad. Just a little, though. Confusion has tempered his anger.

Ok, this, though. How the angle goes from him carelessly tapping Vash on the head with his gun (while practicing shit trigger discipline, I might add) to us looking up at Wolfwood from a perspective very close to what Vash's would be if he could lift his head. How, in the second panel, Wolfwood looks like a desperate man about to pull an executioner's trigger out of fear and confusion for the unknown before him. How, even so, he's debating if Vash is actually the monster he's heard of when there's so much evidence that, despite superhuman skills that Wolfwood has witnessed multiple times firsthand, Vash seems so kind and cares so much for people he ends up in this situation even while half-dead.

Meanwhile, Vash seems to be taking well-deserved nap....

[all-hallows-street]

Lingzi's Odaibako/Twitter Answers Collection Volume 1

In case you weren't aware, the author of 1031 All Saints Street Lingzi has a twitter account they update rarely, mostly rt'ing announcements of the Japanese release, 1031 fanart, Jpns comedians, and sometimes posting doodles and answering fan questions through Odaibako. You can still send questions/comments/requests through Odaibako but please be respectful and mindful! As the author stated they will not respond to any questions or suggestions about future content! Also do not spam, Lingzi answers in rare bursts so they might not get to answer your comment any time soon. Here is a compilation of what has been answered so far. Chinese questions and answers are being machine translated and I'm verifying with a friend the Japanese questions translations.

A few clarifications. I will skip some doodle requests/drawn answers and will compile them later in a post with all of Lingzi's twitter drawings. Everything with [] marks an edit so the English sounds more natural.

1. Hello~ Lingzi! What made you want to become a manga artist?

To put it simply, it was because of a domestic comic called "Super Alloy Society". At that time (around 14 years old), I became completely obsessed with it after reading a few chapters, and I was very eager to draw such a work myself 😌

Source

2. Does Nick [have] feeling[s] towards Lynn?

ummm······I would say it's more like “he is curious about/interested in Lynn”

Source

3. Who out of all the character would have the [ugliest] laugh?

Ah-never thought about this before, maybe broken [Cupid]？

Source

4. Will we get stories about Nick's university friends? Their designs are so cool and I would love to know more about them!

maybe? 🤔🤔 let me ask my editor next time.

Source

5. anyone you relate to in the series?

Does this count? Look that is my name on the background 🤣🤣

Source

6. Which character do you enjoy drawing [the most]?

Definitely Nick[.] He's the easiest to draw, also [the] sexiest. 😌

Source

6. Lingzi, do angles live longer than demons?

Yes! Angels basically cannot pass away unless they are killed. Teacher Lynn's age is also in the three digits~

Source

7. I really, really, REALLY love All Saints Street. Thank you so much for creating this series! There are so many diverse characters, and I love the charming and relaxed atmosphere. I find it really difficult to choose a favorite character because I just love them all so much (Nick is objectively the best though). It encouraged me to try learning to read Chinese again in order to read the manhua. Again, thank you so much for creating this!

Wow I'm flattered, thank you for [liking] my manhua 😳😳 I will do my best to keep [it] going!

Source

8. A work of my pleasure! I love you! I love “All Saints Street”! I love you big hair! Thank you for creating such wonderful works!

[Thank you]! 😊😊 Hope you will like the Japanese [dubbed] version too~

Source

9. This is not an ask but I wanted to say thank you for your hard work! Your series makes me very happy and I love it so much! It's inspired me more to continue making my own characters and helped me create art more. thank you so much! <3

Thank you too 😊😊 Glad I [..] helped.

Source

Not a question but a fact related to a previous question that is very much lore relevant:

Fun fact: Although angels live much longer than demons, because demons can reproduce independently but angels cannot, the number of angels is currently less than one-tenth of the number of demons. ( ← A small private device

Source

10. Can Lynn turn into a girl like Nick and Neil?

No~ Transfiguration is a demon thing.

Source

11. Can Ira taste demon blood? or does he hate it?

He can [...] but demon blood is always too strong for vampires, one bite is like [drinking] ten cups of coffee at once[.] They can get really hyperactive by drinking demon blood. Some vampires may like it, but not Ira. (And it's really bad for vampire kid[s])

Source

12. Hi! This is not a question but i wanted to tell you that I REALLY LOVE ALL SAINTS STREET, since 2020 i been in love with this manhua/donghua, thank you for create all saints street, the manhua/donghua really help me in hard times and inspire me to create my own comics. I really love the characters specially Abu and Luis ❤️

Thank you too, glad you enjoy my work 😊😊

Source

13. Who gives the best hugs?

Maybe?

Source

14. Why are Lily's wings so small compared to other angels?

No special reason, I just think it's cuter this way.

Source

REALLY IMPORTANT NOTE: IN CHINESE FANDOMS C P MEANS CHARACTER PAIRING, IS HOW THEY REFER TO SHIPS/SHIPPING

I will replace it with ship because I don't want the use the acronym due to tumblr search.

15. Will it be very Lynn/Nick? Because people keep telling me that Nini/Lily is the official ship, I am troubled. If the original painting is very bad, it feels like I have violated someone else's OC. I'm very sorry for disturbing you, and I really like your illustrations and works!

To answer this question, mainstream ship ≠ is correct. I think any ship has a reason to exist as long as some people like it. I don’t think it is a minefield at all... and even "official" ship does not mean anything. What kind of ship you want to consume is completely up to you, and you don’t need to ask for my opinion, just be happy

Source

Continued in Part 2!

[thelivebookproject]

April - June 2023 | Reading Wrap Up

Hello hello, it's me!

Another three months have passed, which means I'm back with a reading wrap-up! I've done much much better these past few months because my pace of life has changed, which hopefully means I'll have way more time to read now than I had had until now. Yay for positive changes!

Code: books read in English are in black, books read in Spanish are in red and the book I read in French is in blue.

APRIL (3) • Everything I Know About Love: A Memoir - Dolly Alderton • De la Terre à la Lune (Baltimore Gun Club #1) - Jules Verne • A Rational Arrangement (Arranging Paradise #1) - L. Rowyn

April, if slow, was good: Dolly Alderton's memoir was absolutely amazing (although it wasn't until almost 60% when it convinced me because the beginning was very slow), I tackled my French reading goals with a Jules Verne I bought in a flea market in France, and I finally read A Rational Arrangement, after being threatened into it by a couple of friends for months. It was good, but not enough to read its sequel novella!

MAY (7) • Duke I'd Like To F...: A Historical Romance Anthology (Duke I'd Like to F... #1) - Various authors • Loxandra - María Iordanidu, translation by Selma Ancira • Mafalda, volumes 1-2-3-5-8-9-10, edited by Lumen - Quino • I'm So (Not) Over You - Kosoko Jackson

May had a lot of rhythm to it: I started with what I can only describe as "vaguely historical, mostly porn" (fun and entertaining); continued with a really good journey into the Greece at the beginning of the century with Loxandra (very recommended!); followed by seven volumes of the adventures of Mafalda, a very popular Argentinian comic strip not too dissimilar from Calvin and Hobbes, although it's more political and socially critical; and ended with a gay rom-com. Honestly, brilliant all around.

JUNE (6) • Viajes con Heródoto - Ryszard Kapuscinski, traslation by Agata Orzeszek • Una furtiva lágrima - Nélida Piñon, translation by Roser Vilagrassa • A Week to Be Wicked (Spindle Cove #2) - Tessa Dare • Emoji Pride and Prejudice: Epic Tales in Tiny Texts - Chuck Gonzales & Katherine Furman • Supersaurio - Meryem El Mehdati • Gods of Jade and Shadow - Silvia Moreno-García

And June was the month I saw my TBR, tackled it, and beat it into submission by reading four books that had been on it for YEARS. All of them were very good, I honestly don't know why I waited that long... I also picked up a Tessa Dare for light reading (as usual, very fun) and read a new-to-me Brazilian author, Nélida Piñón, who sadly wasn't it for me. But overall I'm very happy with my month!

In other notes, I've kept participating in the Goodreads group La vuelta al mundo en 80 libros (I do recommend it if you can read or discuss in Spanish!) and I joined the wonderful Forgotten YA Gems' Summer Reading Bingo Challenge once again (fifth edition!! Time flies!), which means it's time for a fancy bingo card update now that the first month has finished:

- New to you author: Una lágrima furtiva - Nélida Piñon, translation by Roser Vilagrassa - Heard about it online: A Week to be Wicked (Spindle Cove #2) - Tessa Dare - Retelling/adaptation: Emoji Pride and Prejudice: Epic Tales in Tiny Texts - Chuck Gonzales & Katherine Furman - #ownvoices: Supersaurio - Meryem El Mehdati - On TBR forever: Gods of Jade and Shadow - Silvia Moreno-García

Not doing too bad, I think!

All in all, I'm very happy with my reading progress and my yearly goals are on track -how are yours doing?

[a-queer-kind-of-fear]

15 questions, 15 mutuals

tagged by @viciousland

1. are you named after anyone?

yes, my great-grandfather who had a big impact on the family despite / owing to his early death. his first name is my middle name.

2. when was the last time you cried?

phew, the last time i remember was in late 2019, early 2020 when talking about my grandmother’s death in therapy. i may have cried since, but i don’t remember. unfortunately, i don’t cry easily.

3. do you have kids?

no. i think would like to care for children some day, in some capacity, if i’m ever in a position to do so. i wouldn’t reproduce for ethical and personal reasons, but i might adopt.

4. do you use sarcasm a lot?

oh yes.

5. what sports do you play / have played?

the only sport i really pursued is martial arts. judo, karate, kung fu, kickboxing, mixed martial arts. i’d started training with tonfas and katanas as well, but that was some time ago. i still train with and without my tonfas every now and then, but only solo these days.

6. what's the first thing you notice about people?

really depends on the person and under which circumstances i encounter them. different things stand out for different people. if i just pass them by on the street, it’ll probably be how they move. that is to say, where are they going? how slow or fast are they? do they see me? are they looking at their phone? are we in danger of bumping into each other? do they expect me to step out of the way? quick vibe check to determine if too many or not enough people step out of their way. everything i can gauge without looking at them directly for too long.

even in passing, i’ll sometimes notice when someone’s wearing something particularly elegant, is very beautiful, graceful, or has some other peculiarity. another thing that can be hard to miss and that i pay special attention to are people’s voices and their volume.

7. what's your eye colour?

results are inconclusive. the most accurate description i can give is blue-green-grey with light brown/golden rings around the pupil. people tend to become more puzzled, the more they try to settle on a colour.

8. scary movies or happy endings?

yeah... these are not mutually exclusive, but it’s gotta be scary movies for me.

9. any special talents?

language/s and low-level telepathy.

10. where were you born?

a small town in southwest germany, close to france.

11. what are your hobbies?

reading, writing, singing, translating.

12. do you have pets?

no, alas 😢 my parents have two cats and a dog, and i still think of the cats as ours even though i don’t live with them anymore. pretty sure the cats still think of me as part of the family, too. they’re always really happy to see me. haven’t met the dog, so we don’t have a relationship yet.

13. how tall are you?

170 cm or 5'7''

14. favourite subject in school?

probably english

15. dream job?

anaesthesist (get it? because you put people to sleep?)

tagging: @venacesaur, @azover, @autumngracy, @skeletordidntdieforthis, @sanspatronymic, @thejournalman, @voidedvisions, @dilfslayer1080p, @inthecornerreading, @deez-no-relation, @anarcho-tits, @thane-kyrell-ciena-ree, @orphiclyre, @theformerissilent, @6151-richmond-street

[sunniedesi]

Changes to the Future Diary Manga

Something that was recently brought to my attention by @yunoteru4ever in my post about “the special edition of chapter 59” (https://www.tumblr.com/yunoteru4ever/711169742119092224/this-is-a-huge-taste-of?source=share) is that the Future Diary manga received plenty of revisions for its collected release. Despite my extensive knowledge, and quite frankly, strange fixation with this series, that’s something I never noticed. I was under the impression that “the special edition of chapter 59” was just a singular addition to one of the manga releases, but oh boy was I wrong, or rather missing a lot of context. To clarify, here’s a summary of why there are different versions of the manga:

The series was first serialized in the magazine Shonen Ace while it was still ongoing (from 2006 until 2010).

Once the manga ended, it was compiled by Kadokawa Shoten into 12 volumes, which we could say it’s the “official” or rather final cut of the manga, since Esuno made the revisions/ edits for this final release.

The official English translation used this final cut of the manga, so volumes 1 -10 have their revised versions translated to English… volumes 11 and 12, well, as we know those ended in licensing hell.

As @yunoteru4ever​ said, the unofficial English translations that we can find online are from the original Shonen Ace release, at least from volumes 4 - 12. After comparing both the unofficial translations and the final release, I’m actually quite certain that the unofficial translations of volumes 1 - 3 used the final release. Meaning that we’re probably missing the Shonen Ace releases of those volumes, which is a real let-down.

Continuing off of this last point, I wanted to add that this is the reason why the translations for volumes 4 - 12 in those pirate manga sites had such a downgrade in quality. I still remember being bummed and confused about the sudden shift in scan quality between volumes 3 and 4 when I was a kid using those sites, so it feels good to finally know why.

Now, as I mentioned in the second-to-last point, I went through every volume comparing its Shonen Ace release to its final version. Since I did find many changes, I took screenshots of the images and put them side by side, for the sake of keeping a record on them. I uploaded them over on Imgur in case anyone’s interested to see, though they’re mainly changes to the art. (Left is the final release, right is the Shonen Ace release).

Volume 4: https://imgur.com/a/RIuyO2g

Volume 5: https://imgur.com/a/0B6EyDm

Volume 6: https://imgur.com/a/3yRJMsz

Volume 7: https://imgur.com/a/3dYHWJS

Volume 8: https://imgur.com/a/w8E9NeI

Volume 9: https://imgur.com/a/jZemL7g

Volume 11: https://imgur.com/a/lQoGQU0

Many of the art style changes were quite subtle (like a mouth having a slightly different curve, the pupil being a little smaller/ different color or an eye having a new crease), so I did skip a few of these minor revisions. I noticed Esuno had redrawn Marco a lot, and many of his changes in general had to do with making the faces look more polished, which makes sense since one of the main criticisms against Esuno's style was the way that he drew people being too "alien-like" (and if you’ve seen Tantei Akechi you know he’s improved a lot in that regard).

Anyway, regarding the pictures on Imgur, you may notice that the images from each volume are all in English except for volume 11, and that’s because I used the official English translation for the comparisons, which volume 11 doesn’t have. Though that isn’t really an issue since the revisions on that one were just changes to the art.

Also, I didn’t upload any photos for volumes 10 and 12, because volume 10 didn’t really get any changes, and volume 12, well… I can’t just do side-by-side comparisons with that one.

The last volume had some pretty major changes, heck the entire ending of chapter 56 was redone. I thought the best way to tackle that would be giving it a new translation… but I wasn't sure if I'd have the time to do that. That is until I unexpectedly got sick last week and had nothing to do while curled up in bed all day. Needless to say, I managed to finish the translations for volume 12, so hopefully they'll be uploaded soon (I'll make sure to post about that when it happens).

I will leave you with one translation, though: MurMur’s Special Future Diary Corner Part 10. I’m not entirely sure if the MurMur corner bits were part of the Shonen Ace release of the manga, but they don’t appear in the pirate manga sites, and since volume 10 was never released in English as a digital book, there’s no online digital translation of it, so I figured I might as well post this bit. This is actually the second-to-last MurMur Special, as volume 11 didn’t have any and the one in volume 12 is on my post about chapter 59.

[madmarchhare]

From @irumaismybaby, thanks for tagging, though coming up with things was hard.

10 Characters, 10 Fandoms, 10 Tags

1- Iruma Suzuki- Welcome to Demon school Iruma-Kun

I saw the anime first before reading the manga, I was unsure before I saw the first episode when it came out, but Irumas personality and reactions (Along with him being a massive fucking cinnamon roll) won me over and now M!IK is one of my favourite series ever.

2-Tanya degurechaff- The Saga of Tanya the Evil

I can't remember where I first saw The Saga of Tanya the evil, but I am a history nerd and a gun nut, especially for WW1, WW2 so it was right up my alley. I love her natural coldness and calculability, juxtaposed to her appearance, and she partially inspired the MC/main narrator for my novel.

3-Mikaela Hyauka- Seraph of the End

I love his role in the story, and Seraph of the End was one of first the Animes I watched and pretty much the first manga I read. I like his hair cut and that also inspired the appearance of the MC mentioned above.

4- Mash Burnedead-Mashle

I like listless characters that end up OP. Also the art of Mashile is as marvelous as it's humour. I found the story really engaging, and it was the first manga that was released new that I was able to buy the volumes for myself so it is special to me. Also I like cream puffs. Pastries are nice, cinnamon buns and homer Simpson doughnuts especially.

5-Wangnan Ja- Tower of God

I saw the anime adaptation of Tower of God first, then decided to get a webtoons account to read it, as I heard some big bits were left out. I loved the story and binged it during my A-level exams month and the ones running up to it. I absolutely loved Wangnan's introduction and loved how he played off Bam and Khun. I really hope he comes back into the story again because I love his depressed ass.

6-Micheal. J. Caboose- Red Vs Blue

From the Red Vs Blue web series, which I started watching almost ages ago, as it came on Netflix, leading me to binge watch it multiple times, almost six or seven times. I love caboose as a character, due to his teamkilling, and general stupidly which hides his massive strength and brilliance with robotics and machinery.

7- Buggy the Clown- One Piece

I started one piece around 2019/20 during the summer and binged as many of the English dubbed episodes there were then read the manga from around chapter 800, where I couldn't wait for more EPs to be made, and then caught up. I love Buggy, purely because of his personality, cunning and tbh his style, he has a great presence and knows how to use showmanship. He may seem underpowered, but his closest opponents are either literal god's, or those approaching it. He is just very fun and I enjoy seeing him.

8- Tintin- Tintin

Tintin was the first graphic novel/ comic I really read that was story based. I loved the characters and places the series showed, and how Tintin managed to get through all of them with his wit, friends in high places, and ASTONISHING luck.

9-Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III- How to Train your dragon (Books)

One of the first books I ever read for myself, well really tied as first with 'A series of Unfortunate Events: The reptile room' was Cressida Cowell's, How to train your dragon, how to speak dragonese, the third book in the series. I went back and read one and two then read every book in the series. It was and remains one of my favourite books, and characters ever.

10- Bill Cipher- Gravity Falls

I like mad characters in fiction, where they just do what they want without too particular a reason. Gravity falls was one of the first shows I got really obsessed with when I was younger. And I got obsessed with Bill, I had him as my screen saver on my phone for ages.

@agarespicero @jemimacatclover @pursonsoisooi @irumeanie @iruma-kun-out-of-context @mairumakun @welcome-iruma-manga @firedragonsposts @welcometomemeschool @shaoron

[dustedmagazine]

Dust Volume 9, Number 2

Joanna Mattrey

This month’s Dust comes as winter withers, as shirt-sleeves days alternate with last ditch blizzards, as the grey gives way to watery patches of sunlight. We find, as always, a bit of solace in the music that comes our way, this month including improvised jazz from Portugal, side projects from indie mainstays, pristine indie pop and blistering noisy metal. Bill Meyer, Tim Clarke, Ray Garraty, Chris Liberato, Jonathan Shaw, Jim Marks, Ian Mathers, Andrew Forell, Bryon Hayes and Jennifer Kelly contributed.

The Attic — Love Ghosts (No Business)

Love Ghosts by The Attic - Rodrigo Amado / Gonçalo Almeida / Onno Govaert

Portuguese tenor saxophonist Rodrigo Amado is a reliably robust improviser, but a chief pleasure of his work in The Attic is how relaxed he sounds. The trio, which also includes bassist Gonçalo Almeida and drummer Onno Govaert, has the patience to let a performance wander and pause, and the purposefulness to reward your attention by getting you to a destination as appealing as the views you caught along the way. Govaert’s cymbal surges carry Almeida and Amado through some probing exchanges, their lines twisting and curling around each other, but even when they pull the strands taut, there’s room to savor the rich complexity of their tones and they unencumbered logic of their ideas.

Bill Meyer

 David Brewis — The Soft Struggles (Daylight Saving)

The Soft Struggles by David Brewis

David Brewis of Field Music’s prior solo outings have been released under his School of Language moniker. The Soft Struggles is the first album under his own name, the distinction being that this is a much more mellow affair than his usual Prince-indebted funky guitar-pop. The best points of comparison here are probably Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks and Nick Drake’s Bryter Layter, the stately, elegant songs enriched by strings, woodwinds and upright bass. When it works it’s beautiful, such as waltz-time single “Surface Noise,” and “When You First Meet,” which features Eve Cole on vocals. “Start Over,” in contrast, feels self-consciously saccharine and stiffly well mannered. There’s no denying this is an interesting and compelling new direction for Brewis, but one that needs a bit more wearing in before it’s burnished to its best.

Tim Clarke

  Chasmdweller — Blood Vortex (self-released)

Blood Vortex by Chasmdweller

These Canadian gutter freaks play old school death metal and get it right. It’s not too fast but also not slow enough to let the doom to slip in. It’s dirty but not too much. There is also nothing new. The cover art is excellent, but the vocalist lacks English; he makes a single guttural sound throughout the whole CD. Is he even human? It sounds as if he’s an entity from hell. With this type of music that only makes it better.

Ray Garraty 

 CVS — Ad Hoc (Feeding Tube)

AD HOC by CVS

Who can resist a little corporate trolling when your mailing address is in Barcelona and the surnames of your combo’s members are Cunningham, Volt and Serra? With luck, they’ll be able to construct the covers of future releases from defied cease and desist letters. Shenanigans aside, the three musicians make a sound you may want to hear more of. Mark Cunningham (Mars, Blood Quartet) takes his processed trumpet sound into more amorphous territory with assistance from Pablo Volt’s looped trumpet and Andy Serra’s guitars and tenor saxophone. Each of the tape’s six tracks stakes out an eerie vibe, which gets less comfortable as the sounds recede multiply; this is the acid bath you won’t be able to refuse.

Bill Meyer

Dignan Porch — Electric Threads (Repeating Cloud)

Electric Threads by DIGNAN PORCH

On Dignan Porch’s fourth LP, Joe Walsh brings his blurry bedroom psych-pop into sharper focus. Since arriving on the scene in 2010, his mostly home-recorded, mostly solo project has often been accused of having a muddled sound and songs that aren’t distinct enough. The kind of music that “you half remember liking when it was playing in a friend's car,” as one reviewer put it, but which fails to leave a lasting impression. This isn’t an issue on Electric Threads. The album’s ten songs — a mix of chuggers and janglers, squawking motorik fuzzouts and one distinctly Lennon-esque ditty — are easily Walsh’s most immediate to date, sailing on their big hummable melodies and plentiful, vaguely sad hooks. Electric threads, besides being the title of the album, is also a good phrase to describe the lead guitar and organ lines, irresistible whenever they surface. Like on the title track, for instance, where a quivering light beam of a riff, evoking Only Life-era Feelies, periodically rises out of the mix and hovers there for a few moments before deferring to the crunchy rhythm action below. This brings up one small bone to pick: at times it feels like Walsh is holding the reins a little too tightly on his otherwise brilliant guitar work, and not letting it drift to the places it feels like it wants to go to. Because when he does cut his playing a little slack on closer “Ancestral Trail,” the album reaches its most gorgeous high note.

Chris Liberato 

 Isolant — Drain (Sentient Ruin Laboratories)

Drain by ISOLANT

Isolant’s new mini-LP Drain features a hybrid of doom and industrial metal that may have you flashing on Godflesh, c. Streetcleaner — or, depending on your ears and the depth of your catalog, on Justin Broadrick’s earlier, underappreciated band Head of David. That’s a good thing, and so is the fact that Isolant’s founding member Max Furst is a little less isolated, having recruited vocalist Mattia Alagna and noisenik Miguel Souto into the project. The songs on Drain are piercing and crunching mechanisms of misery, and Alagna adds a layer of organic dread with his growls and groans (he sounds almost as bummed out on Drain as he did on Abominion, the most recent LP from Bay Area crusty doomsters Abstracter). There are also some strangely Goth, dark-romantic passages; see the second half of “Death Pulse” and the rumbling, foreboding tonality of “Lamentation.” Isolant is at its best, though, when the band lets Furst’s guitar create its heaviest textures. Opening track “The End Begins Me” is a steamroller, flirting with melody even as an implacable sense of dread squeezes the life out of the song.

Jonathan Shaw

 Isik Kural — Peaches (RVNG Intl.)

peaches by Isik Kural

Last year, Isik Kural, a Turkish sound designer and musician based in Glasgow, released the gauzy, loop-based synth-pop full-length in february. This new ep presents some of the instrumental tracks from in february with the vocals removed (mostly) and found sounds pared back. The resulting lean quarter-hour of music, by chance, provides an antidote to the tragedy currently unfolding in Kural’s homeland. The beauty of that land is well captured by the video for a live version (recorded in a field in northern Turkiye) of the track “lo si aspetta,” in which birdsong and other environmental sounds blend with what seem like the plucks of a stringed instrument over keyboard effects. Fitting together like a suite, the tracks have distinct touches, such as the frog-like glitches in the title track and the Andean string sounds in “montevideo” with a neat slide at the halfway point. Gentle and thoughtful, peaches offers a welcome respite and a fresh perspective on Kural’s work.

Jim Marks  

 Lantana — Elemental (Cipsela)

Elemental by Lantana

Everyone in this Portuguese sextet is female, and if you’re thinking one should refrain from commenting upon their gender homogeneity, think twice; Joëlle Léandre’s liner notes celebrate the fact. Maria Radich’s dynamic vocals may steer the listener’s associations towards symbols and ceremonies, but be sure to listen to the folks stirring the sounds that swirl around her. The electronically enhanced three-strings, one-trumpet line-up unravels the melodic implications of her post-linguistic forays and weaves them into a multihued sonic cloak. Aughts-era freak-folk followers who wonder where cellist Helena Espvall went after Espers disbanded, wonder no more; she’s now well situated in Lisbon’s improvised music scene.

Bill Meyer

Joanna Mattrey & Steven Long — Strider (Dear Life Records)

Strider by Joanna Mattrey & Steven Long

This long-standing duo’s first full recording together began with the idea to make ambient songs, avoiding the longer and less structured approach taken with some ambient music. Mattrey (credited with the Stroh violin and field recordings) and Long (credited with “Organ, Stove, Barometer, Synth, Short-wave Radio”) have succeeded in one sense, with each of these eight pieces sticking to the melodic yet static framework they were aiming for. But if you’re thinking of Eno’s “it must be ignorable as it is interesting” dictum then much of Strider might not count as ambient, because if anything it’s a little too attention grabbing. The horn on the Stroh’s violin gives the string lines here a plangent, piercing (and yeah, faintly old-timey) quality and Mattrey is unafraid to explore its harsher ranges. Whether it’s paired with an icy river breaking up (“Eyes”), echoing synth beeps (“Retro”) or what sounds a bit like an attempt to replicate an ambulance siren (“Host”) the results are an unusually compelling mix of meditative focus and the aural equivalent of a smack upside the head. Ambient, then, specifically for anyone worried the genre is at risk of lapsing into wallpaper pleasantries.

Ian Mathers  

 Mal Sed / Scy1e— Mal Sed / Scy1e (Weird Ear)

Mal Sed / Scy1e by Mal Sed / Scy1e

Settle down and stop worrying about your influences. That’s the message of this project, whose circuitous production process is inseparable from its sounds. Peter Lamons, whose recording handle is Mal Sed, bought some Giuseppe Ielasi from Weird Ear proprietor Raub Roy, and then shared his own sounds inspired by Ielasi’s chopped and glued treatment of grooves. Roy liked what he heard enough to reactivate the label and make a cassette. When the proposed cover art came in, its design instigated him to make some music of his own, and the project became a split release. Mal Sed’s rhythms are a bit more fluid and less crammed-together than Ielasi’s, but his wheels still bump at each corner. Roy, who tags himself Scy1e when he hits record, matches Mal Sed’s peg-legged beats and raises him several barrages of squelchy electronics. Niches have cracks, and there’s no telling how deep they go.

Bill Meyer

 Pacific Walker — Pacific Walker (Bluesanct)

Pacific Walker by Pacific Walker

Pacific Walker is the new project from the respawned creative partnership of Michael James Tapscott and Isaac Edwards, who previously recorded as Odawas. For this venture, they’ve enlisted the services of Raphi Gottesman, who drums in Tapscott’s folk-rock outfit China. This sounds nothing like either of those projects, rooting itself instead in drones, field recordings and guitar arpeggios. The A side of the cassette comprises one long multi-part piece entitled “Mycelium Ab Astris Ad Astra,” a patchwork panoply of throat singing, astral ambient atmosphere and dusky desert melodies. Over on the other side, the trio offer up poignant frescoes of twilit synths, guitars and samples that gallivant through the outer reaches of the human psyche. Odawas aficionados will miss Tapscott’s fluid lyricism and upper register vocal range, as there’s not a word sung here. Fret not, sonic adventurers; Pacific Walker are after those parts of your brain that are amenable to unexplored sonic phenomena. Open your ears and let them inside.

Bryon Hayes

 Ivo Perelman / Matthew Shipp — Fruition (ESP-Disk’)

Fruition by Ivo Perelman/Matthew Shipp

While the title implies some sort of culmination, don’t think for a minute that these guys are done with each other. This is their 18th duo recording, and while a full accounting of their trios and quartets will have to wait for another review, suffice to say that the next one, a CD with North Carolinian drummer Jeff Cosgrove, has already been announced. Tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman and pianist Matthew Shipp have become each other’s most enduring partners, and their rapport is undeniable. Shipp knows exactly when and where to place a stone in the harmonic foundation that his partner needs to formulate and elaborate upon his imploring melodies, and the quavers in Perelman’s ascending queries accentuate the gothic bleakness of the pianist’s heavy chords and ruminative asides. Do you need this one? That all depends on how unacquainted or acquisitionist you are. If you need them all, well, you already have it, right? If you haven’t heard them at all, and you are open to cosmically inclined improvised music, Fruition is an excellent point of entry.

Bill Meyer

Santa Muerte — Eslabón (Hyperdub)

Eslabón EP by Santa Muerte

As Santa Muerte (Our Lady of Holy Death), Houston-based Mexican producer Panch Briones makes bass heavy club music grounded in the culture and mythology of his homeland. The title of his debut EP for Hyperdub, Eslabón translates as “link” and the four tracks make explicit his cross-cultural influences with a mix of IDM and traditional beats under effervescent synths, snatches of µ-Ziq influenced melody and indigenous spoken word samples. The music skips lightly, radiating concentric circles of euphoria across a surface beneath which you hear the bustling tension of living within two worlds. Briones works plenty into these short pieces and leaves you looking forward to what he might do in a longer format.

Andrew Forell 

 Philip Selway — Strange Dance (Bella Union)

Strange Dance by Philip Selway

Strange Dance is the third solo album by Radiohead drummer Philip Selway. While previous albums Familial and Weatherhouse were pleasant enough, they suffered from feeling a little safe and pedestrian, especially compared to Radiohead’s more adventurous work. On Strange Dance, Selway is branching out, collaborating and taking more risks. At best, on singles “Check for Signs of Life” and “Picking Up Pieces,” Selway explores possibilities with growing confidence. On the latter in particular, intricate rhythmic beds are buffeted by swooping strings and dissonant guitar lines from Portishead’s Adrian Utley. At its weakest, such as “The Other Side,” major-key piano melodies unfold sweetly but predictably. However, the main issue with Strange Dance is Selway’s lyrics, which frequently lapse into platitudes.

Tim Clarke

 Shame — Food for Worms (Dead Oceans)

Food for Thought continues a run of albums on which all the elements seem to be in place but never quite gel. Charismatic front man? Check. Bruising rhythm section? Yes. A couple of exciting guitar slingers? Sure. A zeitgeisty sound? OK. Decent songs? Some. So, what’s the problem? Three albums in and Shame seem unsure who they are. They’ve devolved into The Libertines redux without the cocksure attitude that made them kind of fun for five minutes. There’s plenty of earnest belting but the overall tone of Charlie Steen’s sometimes terrific delivery is irritability, and rest of band hit enough highs to make the missteps more noticeable. “Alibis” for instance, burns with righteous fury but the petulance of “Yankees” and sanctimony of “Adderall” grate. “The Fall of Paul” harnesses the band’s energy and dynamism to great effect but is followed by the meandering “Burning by Design” which sucks the air out of the room before attempting to resuscitate itself at the end. Food for Thought is disappointing, there’s enough here to pique the interest but not to sustain it.

Andrew Forell 

 Sluice — Radial Gate (Ruination)

Radial Gate by Sluice

Justin Morris’ songs as Sluice start spare and pick up weight as finger-picked precision gives way to the rich sustaining drone of string, the howl of untrammeled feedback. This second album from the North Carolina based musician starts in a tremble of immanence as tape hiss shushes and banjo notes tangle in the distance. Bowed notes waft in, glimmering like the bright line in the east when the sun’s just about to rise. This intro piece “Ostern” assembles all the sounds that Morris will incorporate in a humming cloud of sensation. Later, he will separate them out and surround them with space. In “Centurion,” for instance, where his warm spoke-sung delivery sounds a bit like Bill Callahan, as a guitar jangle sidles up into the foreground. Drums clatter in, a violin saws up out of white space, and finally pedal-screeching guitar builds up like a giant wave in previously serene water. It’s indie-folk, sure, but tapped into strong, unruly undercurrents. Or what about the existential inquiry that is “Fourth of” where memories of hot summers past and present cleave together in layers, and swimming hole becomes a metaphor for the connection of all things. (“I am the rock, I am the eddy, I am my roommates in love, I am blackberry jelly, I am the weir, I am the spillway.”) Morris enlists a whole orchestra’s full of capable player to flesh his songs out with mournful arcs of pedal steel, surging tides of stringed instruments and warm communal singing. Hold on for the end with “New Leices” grows from lyric interior musing to bright harmonized concord. Really lovely, this, like acoustic Akron/Family but simpler.

Jennifer Kelly

 Son of Dribble — Son of Drib Against the Wind (Minimum Table Stacks)

Son of Drib Against the Wind by Son of Dribble

New Jersey’s Minimum Table Stacks has a sixth sense about which arcane or overlooked sonic gems deserve the vinyl reissue treatment. Take Son of Drib Against the Wind, for instance. It originally took shape as a limited run cassette, self-released by Columbus, Ohio trio-turned-quartet Son of Dribble in mid-2022. The band’s fuzzy yet morose Velvets-meets-Joy Division garage rock clamor practically screams out for a wider audience and a more robust pressing, so it’s great that the label took the bait. Vocalist Andy Clager, with his handsome blend of Jonathan Richman baritone and Julian Casablancas croon, is the perfect front man. You’re not sure what he’s singing about, but you know it’s poignant. For added effect, the band tips its hat to an eclectic assortment of genres. Doo wop harmonies, proto-punk stomp, and arty synths all make an appearance. It’s as if Son of Dribble are the smarter, edgier, and grumpier cousins to fellow Columbusites Kneeling in Piss. Clager and crew picked the better band name, at least.

Bryon Hayes 

 Spiral Joy Band — In the River (Feeding Tube Records)

In The River by Spiral Joy Band

There are certain varieties of drone music that give credence to the notion that music is always out there somewhere, and humans don’t make it up, they just get to turn the cosmic tap on and off. Patrick Best and Mikel Dimmick are both members of Pelt, so it goes without saying that they are already well practiced at operating the tap. But since Pelt can go for years without a gig, they’ve sometimes run a side hustle in similarly expansive sound named the Spiral Joy Band. The two quarter-hour examples of said endeavor that can be heard on this LP come from a time, about a dozen years ago, when they both lived near Madison, Wisconsin, and had the empathetic assistance of a third string scraper named Troy Schafer. The combination of violin, viola, and harmonium guarantees access to a continuous, pulsing expanse of rich aural texture, which they show no compunction about cashing in. Locked grooves at the end of each side make this the record of choice when you don’t know if you’re going to be awake by the end of the side, but you know how you’re going to want to feel when you wake up.

Bill Meyer 

 Spitting Image — Full Sun (Slovenly)

SPITTING IMAGE "Full Sun" LP by SPITTING IMAGE

“Black Box” careens around the corners on car-crash riffs, drums spiking out of the infinitesimal pause between one hurtling phrase and another. Shouted lyrics slash in and out of the mix. At one point, late in the cut (which is only a minute and a half long so not that late), two people shout the title at each other. It is hard not to picture them, separated by inches, screaming in each other’s faces. This cut, and the harder, faster ones like “Spirit Trouble Flash” have a good bit of Big Black’s punk ferocity, a little of Shellac’s uncompromising angularity, though less complicated, more garage punk than noise art. Spitting Image, out of Reno, Nevada, have been around for a little more than a decade, grinding out an underground, basement show existence with, before this, just a handful of EPs, singles and one cassette release to show for it. This first full-length sounds, to me, a lot like the Xetas, which is to say it bangs pretty hard, until it doesn’t. The last three songs are disconcertingly down-tempo, lyrical and pensive, and I’m not sure that works, but the rest is pretty good.

Jennifer Kelly

 Tanukichan — Gizmo (Company)

GIZMO by Tanukichan

Tanukichan lays translucent, ethereal textures over buzz saw bass and rupturing drums, in an ice cream swirl of indulgence and crunch. “Don’t Give Up” vibrates like a mirage on heat-soaked asphalt, tremulous, idealized and gut-shocked with an underpinning rock and roll roar. Gizmo is the second soft-focus shoegaze pop album from Oakland’s Hannah van Loon, following Sundays in 2018. It takes its name from her pandemic pup, and, like the first, enlists the support of her friend Chaz Bear, better known as Toro & Moi. Some cuts play up the dreamy sweetness of van Loon’s murmuring soprano; others turn up the wrenching abrasion of rock sounds. “Thin Air” pairs van Loon with Enumclaw, another Oakland artist with a wry, slant on indie anthemry. These are lullabies buzzing with enough TNT to blow down buildings. More of this, please.

Jennifer Kelly

 Tithe — Inverse Rapture (Profound Lore)

Inverse Rapture by TITHE

This reviewer is unsure how an “inverse rapture” might work: will the sinners go to heaven? Will the believers be left behind? In either case, count me out — but count me in for more music from Tithe. The grim gang in the Portland-based band generates a convincingly pissed-off hybridization of grind and black/death, and the resulting songs are as unhinged as you might expect. The gloriously filthy guitar tone is best appreciated when Tithe slows to a trot, or a menacing shamble, as they do in passages of seven-minute-long “Killing Tree.” Still, the short songs have the greatest impact; “Demon” and “Pseudologia Fantastica” clock in well under three minutes, which may be the ideal length for this sort of whirling, battering chaos. Yikes. Beyond the religious symbolics of the band’s name and most of the song titles, it’s hard to say what all shouting and howling concern. One imagines it’s the usual stuff: Christianity is oppressively awful; in its name, people do lots of horrible things to one another; thus, evil and violence (symbolic or otherwise) are the only adequate responses. So why not let the Christian Rapture go off as originally planned? The True Believers will exit the earthball, and the rest of us can hang around and do our thing. Which will likely include turning this record up even louder.

Jonathan Shaw

 Ulthar — Anthronomicon (20 Buck Spin)

Anthronomicon by Ulthar

Fewer things seem riper for black/death musical fixation than H. P. Lovecraft’s fiction and cultural profile. His supernatural imaginary is suffused by the Empire of Slime, an accretion of repulsive, tentacular forms, sanity-shredding powers, and by his mandarin, aristocratic aesthetic sensibilities. Bay Area band Ulthar has embraced the fixation across their recorded output, which has now spread — like a cosmic fungus — onto two new paired LPs, Helionomicon and Anthronomicon, for about 70 total minutes of involuted black/death. By any measure, that’s a whole lot of Ulthar. Anthronomicon is the better LP of the pair, full of spurting pseudopodia and corkscrews of sound, and also imbued with an aggro, blackened hostility. “Saccades,” named for a variety of rapid eye movement, is a strong example of the record’s vibe. The nod to REM sleep evokes the surrealism just underneath the band’s noise and bluster. Check out the riff that emerges around the 2:20 mark; it’s brief lived, but it snaps the song into focus, sending it into the headlong tumble that dominates its second half, during which whirling chaos struggles with downhill momentum. It’s an exciting song.

Jonathan Shaw

 Ed Williams — Decomposition Study (Insub)

Decomposition study by ED WILLIAMS

Do you suppose that the old saying that too many cooks spoil the soup was first uttered by a chef who didn’t want to take questions or orders? Composer Ed Williams takes a different approach on Decomposition Study, one that admits multiple inputs from the distant past as well as the moment of performance. He devised a canon in a form favored 600 years ago by composers of madrigals and handed it to two musicians playing upon one arciorgano, a sixteenth century, bellows—operated organ with two keyboards. As they played the piece, four more musicians intervened at will, and Williams mixed the results, which were projected through a cube speaker. Clearly, there’s still some hierarchy shaping the results, but also a degree of democracy rarely heard in classical pieces for organ. While the antique keyboard’s gentle voices bring a whiff of older times, the performance’s exploration of tonal extremes and clashes feels more in tune with the past half century of psychedelic musical pursuits. Sign up for the novelty, stay for the disorientation.

Bill Meyer

[aibafiles]

'batts finally got to go to the arcade' update post

wacca - finally got to play this at a volume i could actually hear! im enjoying it a lot but a) i feel like i need to turn the speed up past the presets next time and b) i don't feel too challenged by anything in the 8-9 range im playing in and need to go higher. though as far as i can tell the expert tickets aren't widely available like chunithm? sidenote: i played the arcaea collab and it is immensely funny that the english patch translates hikari's name to 'light'

sound voltex - im still bad at sound voltex. i still drop lazers. thats ok. i cleared some 10-11s but i think this game just may not be for me

pop n music - first off this game is hard as shit just learning to read all 9 buttons. second why didnt anyone tell me about boys come back to me

dancerush stardom - what the fuck. this is fun as hell

chunithm new - i checked zenius right before the drive over to see that they had added a new cab within the last week that was allegedly offline. it is connected online and was able to pull my profile, but at the very end it fails to upload my scores? strange. anyway i got to try out some songs from the new tracklist i didn't get the time to at otakon. very sad random (my beloved) and mixed nuts were later additions

chunithm paradise lost - YEAH BABEYYY THAT'S WHAT IM TALKIN ABOUT got my rating from 10.05 to about 10.60 and im slowly starting to work on some 12s. tried some world's end charts that killed me dead (but i cleared bbkkbkk!) also there was a group on their way out that apparently stopped to watch me play and i didn't realize until they started applauding at the end?? it was so funny. i think i was playing shiny days master (very fun chart)

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