#been playing a lot of pony town so it’s only natural that I draw some fs ponies

[shanimations]

FOUR SWORDS PONIES!?!?!?!?! More likely than you think.

[kanwriteseverything]

Iron Bullet Legacy: Chapter 4

Drunk and Stupid

Torryn’s POV 

Day two on the wrong side of the veil, venturing around the fay streets alone. I thought about putting my mask on, but I try to avoid doing so unless I’m pursuing a target. There are plenty of humans on the enchanted side anyway, so I don’t think I stand out in particular. 

The sun is on its way to set. I’ve passed a few portals labeled with outposts I recognize, but I’m hoping to find a waypoint that puts me near Yaling, which is where I was heading before the ambush. Travel on the enchanted side equates to double the distance beyond the veil, since this side is multiplanar, connected largely by portals and tears. As I travel further into North Haven, I should be heading South on the other side.

That’s what Lennox told me, anyway.

The younger fairy woke me up by accident yesterday morning, stubbing her toe on the door. She yelped something about rosemary in her distress, and I groggily breached consciousness, calling her the wrong name by mistake. 

“Can I ask who Fiona is?” she later asked as we shared morning coffee. 

I tore my hair out of its ponytail to comb my fingers through it. “My younger sister. When I lived at home, she came into my room a lot in the middle of the night.” She’s plagued by this recurring nightmare that often used to keep her from sleeping. I’d take her for a walk by the river to calm her down. “Sometimes she’d bump into my nightstand on accident and wake me up.” 

“Is that where you were headed on your journey? Home?”

“No, I was looking for a city I’ve never been before. Yaling.” 

That’s when she gave me a hybrid map for both sides of the veil, and showed me how the cardinal directions exist opposite one another. According to it now, I won’t make it to the right waypoint by nightfall. I should probably post up somewhere until morning. There’s an inn marked a few streets away. I can make my way there.

I hate being in places I don’t know. Well, I love it and I hate it. I hate having to watch my own six, mainly because I get so distracted and end up lost, but I love seeing all the places and people different from home. Fay tend to collapse their wings on the other side to blend in with humans, but here, there are so many fairies in one spot, sparkling in a way they only do beyond the veil, using their wings to hover above the ground. It all looks magical… which makes sense, since their bodies rely on magick to function.

Magick…

“You there!” a street merchant calls out to me. “Would it be you’re lost?”

What was my tell? The map, or me walking by his stand three times now? I guess I’m an open book. “Looking for somewhere to spend the night, actually. Headed to outpost 37 south.”

“37 south? That's a ways more to go. Aye, you’d best take up a room at the inn the ‘round the corner there, on your left.”

I was this close... Well, I’d surely have found it eventually.  

“There’s a cracking bar next door there, too, if you fancy yourself a bevvy.”

It’d do me no good to get tanked in a city I’ve never been, on the wrong side of the veil, but a little alcohol sounds like a good means of taking the edge of the last week’s chaos.  

The inn has a bright, lit-up sign even a foolish mortal could spot if he’d walked down the right street. The receptionist is a young fay by the name of Quillan, so says his name plate. He sets me up with a room for the night before I even get the chance to tell him that it’s Torryn with a y, not an i.  

Quillan also recommends the bar next door. It’s bustling with less-than-passionate older couples, more-than-passionate en-sports fans, and moderately-passionate drunkards, humans and fay alike. I order some roast beast sliders and a half pint of ale, able to secure a seat at a little table near the door I came in. The TVs are covering competitions for exerwing and celerwing, which are almost comparable to human gymnastics and cross country... but with flying. I guess it’s a bit like the pub back home, in that they both serve alcohol.

I don’t know that I’ll be back in these parts anytime soon.  

“Oh, come on! Tell him he can visit,” Lennox urged Sitara when I left. 

Her mouth twisted to the side. “I’d prefer not to. Human doctors are much more equipped to manage human wounds.” 

She wasn’t wrong, but I had to laugh. Doctors on my side always badger me about my profession when I need to be seen. I try to avoid it, if possible. With injuries notably fay related, some have refused to me entirely. Sitara though? She wouldn’t even accept payment from me after everything, since I was technically… well, entirely… brought in against my will. I still left behind some mortal and enchanted kroner, because I wasn’t too sure what they’d prefer. One of them has probably found the sachets I hid beneath a bunch of herbs.

The mage looked at me with a small smile. The roots  of her hair were starting to turn black when I last saw her.

Will I see her again?

No. I don’t know if I’ll ever be back in these parts.

A wine-soaked voice cuts through my personal space as a woman takes the seat in front of me. “Hey there, cowboy!” Co… cowboy? Oh, right. Fay use that as a term of endearment for human men, don’t they? “Haven’t seen yous ‘round here before!” Her slender hand walks onto my thigh.

She's bold, that’s for sure, but her makeup is quite nice. Much better than Fiona’s has ever been, though she is sixteen and half blind. Last time I was home, she used me as a practice mannequin. 

“I’m just passing through.” I put as much space between us as the tight corner allows. “Got a name, stranger?”

“I’m Torryn. What about yo—”

“Torry! Hi there!” My mom’s the only one who still calls me that at twenty-five. Unless you count Willem, who calls me Dowwy, since he’s not yet three and doesn’t exactly grasp how letters work. “My, we don’t get too many handsome fella around here!” She draws her syllables out twofold, playing with the ends of her blonde hair. 

This is one of those encounters, isn’t it? Where a man is sitting by himself, and it makes him vulnerable, an easy target, and a kind lady seduces him, because she has such a charitable soft spot for lonely men, only to wake up next to him at dawn and make off with whatever he has that’ll turn a quick kroner. Totally haven’t been kicked by that pony before. 

It’s either that, or this fay is just… remarkably way off the mark. 

“Do you live in New Haven?” I prepare a swift retreat to my room.

“Just a bit west, actually.” She nods, pointing east. “I’ve got a little place of my own.”

“Ah, well, this is my first time here. I just rented a room next door.”

“Oooh, neats!” She leans in close enough to lodge her noxious perfume between my sinuses. “Well then, what do you say, cowboy? Why don’t we hurry up and take this some place private?”  

“Sorry, miss...” She traces my hand. “I’ve got to head out early tomorrow. Best to get some rest. Nice talking with you. Enjoy your evening.”

My room back at the inn is peaceful. The bed is a bed, and the room is a room, but it’s peaceful. What in the fiddle was that fairy on about? She didn’t even tell me her name! I pull the pillow over my face as I collapse onto the mattress and shake off the lingering exchange. How exhausting. If I were five years younger, I probably would’ve stayed to talk. Maybe we would’ve gotten drunk and stupid together, but that’s just not fun for me anymore.

It used to be my scene, when I was young, and just getting used to new legs, as I’d recently joined the Enchanted Forces Unit. Bounty hunting has never been naturally conducive to long term commitments and, between my shiny new soldier status and prior experience traveling solo, I wasn’t a stranger to one-night stands. An EFU assignment I got a few months into the gig brought me to the east side of a rural town called Caphia. I met a girl at a tavern, which is where I would meet most girls. Her name was Ananke. She was gorgeous, and witty, and good at cards. Very good at cards. Maybe I should’ve taken the five lost games in a row as a red flag. 

Even though I wasn’t a stranger to one-night stands, that’s not what we were. I let her call me Torry, and “I was the only one” who called her Nan. She wore my shirts, and spent every night with me in my hotel room in Caphia… and Itagus, and so on. A number of our evenings were spent getting drunk and stupid, and it was fun.

Then I was tasked with taking down a trio of rogue fay in a big city. It was a case of human children trafficking that required I set up in Acadon for a month. I used most of my monthly EFU allowance to rent us an apartment from a sweet old man who ran a pharmacy down the street, throwing in extra kroner for the inconvenience, since we weren’t staying long. It was tough job, because it reminded me of Fiona’s accident.

Ananke was the type of girl who liked taverns and cards and drinking games so much she hardly ever left. She always seemed to be between jobs. When she needed money, she could find it, but we always gambled with mine. 

I quickly discovered I wasn’t built for her lifestyle. I didn’t take kindly to being hungover, and I liked remembering the night before in the morning. More than that, though, I felt guilty about the example I was setting for my siblings, even if they weren’t around to see it. That’s when it started, I guess. The beginning of the end, for me, anyway. She’d get drunk on her own more often, while I ate three trays too many of nachos or mozzarella sticks or fried pickles.

The closer I got to taking out the trio, the faster they started working. The disappearance rate was climbing, and I was losing my sanity. Fiona. This could’ve been Fiona, I kept thinking. This could’ve been my family. But Ananke didn’t get along with her family, who lived in whatever town she never told me the name of. She gave advice about my stress as good as a brick wall, though I bet the wall wouldn’t have told me that family is just a toxic, patriarchal construct, and I should go AWOL, and just have a beer already, Torry… but I wasn’t talking to many brick walls back then.

I killed the traffickers, and found a dozen terrified kids with them. After desperate mothers and fathers hugged me, thanking me for bringing back their children, I threw up outside the Caphia sheriff’s department. Missing posters with photos of tiny faces had to remain around town still. Too many for me to stomach.

That night? I wanted to drink.

So I sauntered into the tavern with a bit of pocket kroner, travelling light because of the mission, and the girl who liked taverns and cards and drinking games wasn’t there. I took a bottle back to my room, found the note, and got drunk. I was already stupid... had been the whole time.

All’s fair in love and war, she wrote.

She took a military issued blaster I was reamed for losing, a watch my parents had gifted me, and all the money from my bag, not to mention the cast iron skillet Fiona saved her chore money up to get me for my birthday the year before. Strange child, asking me to carry around a whole pan when I traveled, but I’d have said yes even if it were a whole trunk of them.

Would Ananke have taken it if she was sober enough to hear me that time I told her it was from my little sister?

I try not to wonder.

There aren’t too many people I’d share a drink with now. Hmm... maybe… no. Best bet is Fiona when she turns twenty-one, though she insists she doesn’t care about “that kind of stuff.”

Although, maybe Sitara.

Sitara…?

Fiddle, where’s that coming from?

Can I ask what happened? 

I’m sure the explanation you come up with will be better than the truth.

The fairy mage… 

Something about her isn’t adding up. 

I’ve never heard of a fairy getting sick from a lack of magick. Why so many candles, then? Why the cherry blossom tree? 

She said she was fine. The tree is magickal enough to sustain fay without the candles. Well, their magick is regenerative! A normal fay wouldn’t need to rely heavily on either! Let alone a fairy mage...

I don’t understand.

I mean, her hand has a bunch of rods attached to it, and wires leading beneath her skin. She somehow recognized the F3. Tons of fairy mages fought in the war… just… not many fought on our side.

I only knew her for two days.

But there’s something about her laugh… Maybe…

Makes me want to get drunk with her.

Someday. 

[1ddiscourseoftheday]

Fri 1 Feb

Happy 25th Birthday Harry!!!

For anyone who enjoys a picture of Harry Styles and come on, what's not to love, today was a Very Big Day. First, Helene Pabrum posted a pic that will be a classic for the ages, mark my words. Some people found it annoying in that it was clearly meant to be released (going by the inclusion of the Rob Sheffield book) but most were just glad it was released with its glistening hitties and beautiful lighting, swooning all around. Harry's cousin posted a throwback pic with Stan in it, Waseem posted a pic of Harry glaring intently at a pool game, Sarah Jones gave us Harry cuddling with her and Mitch, and when we were all half dead already Alister Mackie allowed himself to be bribed by the promise of a corn chip from a fan and tipped us over the edge with approximately 100 outtakes from the Another Man photo sessions, including our boy in that flowery field in a straight up dog leash that hadn't been visible in the published pics. Another Man mag made the Harry issue available to read free online until Mon. Pics were posted of Harry with Camille Rowe from 2017; he's wearing a shirt with a huge ass pride rainbow on it, lol.

Naturally there were lots of pictures from Japan as well. The video from Mt Fuji was from Jan 1 and the outfit in it suggests that many of the pics we've seen were from that day. There were various random ones, and Kunichi Nomura (who, evidence suggests, has some tie to Jeff/ HSHQ) posted yet another pic with Harry in the background. His blurry lil self is wearing braces and a hat shaped like a birthday cake! It was posted 5 am Tokyo time which was convenient for maximum exposure to European and American fans and it could have been taken at any time at all.

In completely unrelated news, Louis, previously MIA for weeks, was suddenly Placed in L.A. by a video from Jordan Green and a change to his ig location. He was playing footie with the lads! In a beanie! It would be the best two seconds of most days no contest, but stiff competition today so I'm gonna call it a draw for this reporter. Not only that, there is reason to believe music stuff is happening! Jordan posted from Village Studies, a famous studio where, among many other things, part of HS1 was recorded. Jordan's pic had something in it that isn't usually there though, a PIANO! God help us all if they're recording Louis playing that piano. We're unlikely to find out anytime soon though- Sony documents show that LT1 will not be released this quarter (a period ending in April). Disappointing news indeed and many are taking it hard, but the single could still come out at any time.

Eleanor posted some pics of Clifford and Bruce, I guess to establish that she dogsits for Louis while he's out of town? Seems like that could bite them in the butt pretty hard next time they want to use her posting dog pics to suggest that he's with her but sure okay. I mean, I don't even necessarily believe SHE'S with the dogs but Clifford looks great and that's the important thing.

Niall is promoting the RTE orchestra Flicker with a video of So Long, because he heard the fans saying they wanted a recording of the song he was playing on tour and ponied up when would your fave ever*coughHARRY* (JK love you hbd Harry babe!) But anyway thank you Niall Horan, Man of the People! He also tweeted a happy birthday to Harry and chatted more with Derry Girls actress Nicola Coughlan who said he was a "model customer" when she waited on him. No no, he's a MODEL! If you ever need help remembering Nicola, just think "shake like ...vibrato... a _____ , or some kind of bottle..."

Meanwhile rumors flew about Liam! It was suggested that his constant companion of the last few months, Edward Enninful, was less than constant to his long term partner, Alec. An anon suggested that Edward and Liam appearing alone at recent events could be connected to said partner unfollowing Liam on social media. Shocking if true! While Edward's post showing his and Liam's pictures snugged up close beside one another in a wedding-like place setting was, indeed, interesting, it seems that his partner never did follow Liam so we have no reason to suspect untoward behavior. This is good news but I had gotten so excited to talk to you all about a ship name for the pair! I mean come on Payneful was just RIGHT THERE!!! Oh well.

.

EDIT: oh crap! It was such a busy day that I literally forgot to say that the face girl's tattoo was fake! Well big surprise there, yawn. I find cheap stunty promo annoying enough when the boys do it and worse when someone else just decides to use them for it, no thanks. Next please, BYE

[shriekbackmusic]

‘Contaminated Pop’ - Lyrics Barry Andrews’ 2019 Solo Album

PUT ME TO WORK

I’ve been a groom I‘ve worked the room I’ve wrapped myself around a broom back in my prime

I fixed the stats

I shaved the rats

Brought litter for the Thundercats

- so many times

(I’ve been a jerk)

PUT ME TO WORK!

O mighty plume! O suffering moon! O weasles in the drawing room! (please make it fast) enklastify my words right now unruly  gods will show me how I’ll get the mule before the plough until the last I will not shirk PUT ME TO WORK!

I’ll get the weight upon on my back I’ll eat my body weight in thrak I’ll holler by the railway track (and holler loud!) This Plasma-shift i cannot stop Tumescence intra bellytop Merch is flying out the shop. and in the crowd, are many perks...

PUT ME TO WORK!

O master fruit so tried and true O solemn plague-rat kangaroo Something to get my teeth into is all I pray now linear ducks have just arrived the bullshit has metastasized i am intensely exercised O mood display! Let’s go beserk...

PUT ME TO WORK!

PUT ME TO WORK!

SHIT-PIXIE Don’t you feel in the spring the sickening overkill of everything? can’t help it it’s all hard-wired now All these earthly delights Looking as silly as a bag of lights Ah come on now It’s gotta feel real tired now…

Hey Mary! Get Lairy! You’re still off with the fairies But you know what the whizz and the gelignite can do.. Don’t tangle, just jangle Bring on the crimes and the scandals I’m the Shit Pixie - I’m gonna dance for you.

Nothing real will impinge on the fierce exertions of your perma-binge. Working for you? Got it in hand now? But you won’t draw the sting with your classical allusions and your broken wing. I’m gonna draw you a line in the sand now

So shabby! Gabby! Get yourself back to the abbey you can tell the enqiuiry what and when you knew They concluded what you did was totally scuppered and scoobied I’m the Shit Pixie and I’m gonna tell you true

All the gears grind for you but the light still shines on Column 32 It’s an idea (might make it worse now) Nothing glows in the night and you feel sexy as an ammonite all your virtues are a kind of curse now

Ah Mimi! It’s dreamy! if you shut your eyes you can see me I’m a horse of a different colour boiled to glue. Ignore it; just floor it. It’s so shot-away-in-the-war it’s just the Shit Pixie who’s got a thing for you..

Virgin of the Ladder

I really dig your chiaroscuro it gives me something I can misconstrue these sickly martyrs make me feel alright: they give me something I can live up to

I guess this is where the magic happens: an epiphany of stone and light? Blue-collar… of the Madonna to bring in something from the building site.

O my Virgin of the Ladder will you be with me when I start to climb? Gravity I’m overcoming Nothing doing when it comes to Time

in this year without a summer when I lost everything I thought was mine all the pain and the sheeting rain and I’m sorry baby that was the last of the wine

and I know I can change but there’s only so much a ladder will do D’you want an acolyte that is so scared of heights? rung by rung I’m climbing up to you O virgin of the ladder grant me only that I do not fall towards the centre of the earth Ah keep that ladder up against the wall Oh Virgin of the Ladder what a pretty gal you are maybe a slow climbdown into the squalid town Light a candle on the way to the bar

it’s laboured as an image overused as a metaphor  for spiritual ascension (Blake and Jacob did it long before)

but you are Mother of the Word Incarnate but what good are words when you want deeds? - you need practical KIT when you’re deep in the shit and that ladder’s gonna meet my needs O my Virgin of the Ladder will you be with me when I start to climb? Gravity I’m overcoming Nothing doing when it comes to Time

ABDOMEN JONES she will never understand all the tragic flaws of man and has not the slightest sympathy for anyone who can she disdains all protocol (she finds much distainable) still she has nothing in the quiver she’s unable to deliver

Calling Abdomen Jones I love Abdomen Jones and her animus is tidal Paging Abdomen Jones - with her 3 mobile phones - she says: ‘work is the blackmail of survival’

Honey badger isn’t fussed he has transcended disgust ….and it’s known that Jones atones for anything she must Doesn’t claim to be profound never takes the Higher Ground She is fully hypostatic - you should hear her in the attic…

Calling Abdomen Jones Strength to Abdomen Jones! with all her subtle modulations Paging Abdomen Jones with her libido made of chrome she says:  ‘pain is a kind of information’

And in any case she sees she is queen of all the bees (as she has some fun and stuns us with her fluent Javanese). And who tunes the concert grand? who will now conduct the band? Her case is prima facie (takes the Beethoven quite pacy)

Calling Abdomen Jones Lovely Abdomen Jones she makes the sound of steam escaping Paging Abdomen Jones she does just fine on her own says: ‘caresses are a form of scraping..’

LOLLIPOP BOMB

Darling monster, sweety-pie.. my mind is wandering sadly I must walk into the reeds` terribly corroded and the saints have crumbled into sand they will not intercede

And I carress the velvet hand grenade my part   is played and yes- the windows are steamy so no-one can see me

I lick the Lollipop Bomb I lick the Lollipop Bomb

hark the hot valkyries cry   their flaxen hair and crazy eyes they come at last for me honey angel baby lamb I am not what you think I am and i will never be

and I will dally in the sullen glade I’m not afraid of al that I will be streaming at twilight’s last gleaming

I lick the Lollipop Bomb I lick the Lollipop Bomb

tho I was galloping along I read all the portents wrong the Golden Age could never last that long

we are not brave we are not free and yet somehow, remarkably, are able to apall this thinning crowd here in this place the baffled looks upon their faces really says it all

and I will freak out when the time arrives it’s very clear to me that life is a long song and I sang the wrong one

I lick the Lollipop Bomb I lick the Lollipop Bomb

 FILTHY WONDERLAND

Come with me if you will - my imaginary friends - I have a tale to tell of phosphors and vapour. Upon a tiny screen i saw a magic realm though i was overwhelmed   I got it down on paper.

there’s a scenario: a woman and a wasp not everybody’s thing but no doubt it’s someone’s tumescent butterflies are spurting everywhere: to get the full effect you can even become one

there is a land of wonders and a lot are for hire where all pay homage to the glories of the gland. Do it with Dumbo’s mummy if that is your desire there’s nothing you can’t do in Filthy Wonderland

Some legendary beasts preposterously endowed throw down a fairy girl with wings and tiara. The hobbit looking on is visibly aroused   to see these monsters ride the lovely Titania

…and Things with tentacles - that penetrate the bum, A massive squirrel with a fearsome erection the  whole environment inclusive as they come, pushing the envelope of natural selection…

There is a brave new vision that machines have designed (the old pornographers will never understand) such complicated pleasures for the liberal mind this is the way of things in Filthy Wonderland

a rampant unicorn; a goblin in a thong: sexual complexity well beyond triangular little Red Riding Hood encountering the wolf in ways (you have to say) are specifically glandular

Phantasmagoria: the Japanese Depraved My Little Pony is away on a hack there. Some mythic masterplan - the lion fellates the lamb - (I need to think this through before I go back there)

There’s an enchanted garden with a final frontier: a blessed Shangri-La to greet with your left hand. they put the magic in you in a new ecosphere a brave and weird new worldc     in Filthy Wonderland

There is a land of wonders (and a lot you can buy) where all pay homage to the glories of the gland. Make it with all the cast and crew of Family Guy nothing’s denied to you in Filthy Wonderland..

CONSOLATION

Christ, here comes the storm again that lacerates the heart: the savage wind of ‘really nothing doing’. Pray for us the blighted: all the failed in love and art, who question everything they were pursuing. When the black dogs come for you well, what else can you do, but downwardly revise your expectations? Just kiss the sickly little rose and hold her steady as she goes as you light out for those lands of Consolation

All the aching moments when it didn’t go your way (we saw it all and none of it was pretty) Now you hear their voices in the gruesome light of day, with the wheezing, cheap harmonium of self pity. And there’s some sad things known to man - and quite a few are sadder than the sodden Paggliacci’s ruminations - but still you’d have a heart of stone to leave the poor clown on his own with half a bottle left of Consolation.

When you’ve failed to consummate the wedding of the soul or any other union you may yearn for Let the baby demons come and stretch you on the coals There’s nothing else you’d really care to burn for. Well it really isn’t fun and it comes for everyone   it hauls you off despite your protestations. But all the Saints of Legoland; the Poundshop Martyrs hand in hand Will wash you in the seas of Consolation.

Satan in a monster truck Jesus on a bike all these things are sent to test your mettle Half-mast flags in Whitehall or your head upon a spike? Depends on where the dust is when it settles. All the things you struggled for you can check em at the door get ready for a dubious sedation. It’s all designed to reassure: the bingo and the talking cure, as they walk you round the grounds of Consolation

Feel the Need (lyric by Abrim Tilmon - Detroit Emeralds)

See how I’m walking See how I'm talking Notice everything in me Feel the need, oh Feel, feel the need in me

I need you by my side To be my guide Can't you see my arms Are open wide? Feel the need, oh Feel, feel the need in me

Every day, I need every day, I want,  without your sweet Sweet love, I'd rather die

I need it constantly your love takes care of me your love is better To me than apple/cherry pie

Your love is tuff and I can't get enough Girl, your love is So important to me Feel the need, feel the need in me

Just put your hand in mine Love me all the time The proof you will Plainly see, Feel the need, oh Feel, feel the need in me

I need you on the case To keep my heart in place You make me what I need to be Feel the need,  Feel the need in me

I need you by my side To be my guide Can't you see my arms Are open wide? Feel the need, oh Feel it, feel the need in me

[domain-of-friendship-blog]

An Evening of Moonlit Skies

((My entry for Pony Prom 2017, in collaboration with Indigo Skies!))

"Wow, if I thought this place was pretentious before..."

Tank Buster glanced around as he stepped out of the train and onto the platform. The entire city of Canterlot seemed to be more than a little excited to be hosting the prom if the decorations here at the station were anything to go by, but it all struck him as just a bit excessive. His gaze turned to his outfit as he spent a moment fiddling with his bow tie.

"Hey, Tank!"

As a voice called his name, Tank looked up to see a familiar tall pegasus waving at him through the crowd: one Indigo Skies, not only his date but the pony who had convinced him to come in the first place. She seemed to hesitate despite looking excited to see him - was she worried about stepping on her outfit, perhaps? - so he trotted over to meet her.

"Hey, Skies. I - "

Tank stopped halfway through his greeting as he got a proper look at her dress. Despite its simple design, it fit Skies perfectly, giving her the appearance of a finely crafted porcelain doll. "...Wow, you look great!"

Skies' cheeks lit up."T-Thank you... I was worried it wouldn't look right on me," she admitted, turning her attention to Tank's vest and tie. "You look great too! The color works well with your coat."

Tank glanced down at his outfit once again. "You think so? I don't usually wear quite this much blue..." Not sure what else to say, he simply shrugged. "We should probably get moving in any case. The gardens ought to be open by the time we get there."

Skies nodded, taking her position beside her date and smiling warmly. "I'm ready when you are."

Tank's cheeks turned subtly red as a thought struck him. After a moment of awkward hesitation, he slowly lifted a foreleg and held it out, offering it to Skies... who took it happily, placing her own foreleg over his as they began their walk toward the castle.

A few moments passed before either of them spoke, the silence finally broken by Skies. "This should be fun, you think?"

"It'll certainly be interesting, at the very least. I was never all that keen on formal gatherings like this, but... well, let's just say I've been trying a lot of new things recently." Tank rolled his eyes at his own statement before turning back to Skies. "Though sometimes it helps to get a nudge in the right direction," he added with a smirk; their presence at the prom had been more or less her idea, after all.

Skies giggled, meeting Tank's gaze. "Trying new things is better than regretting not trying them at all! At least, that's what I tell my kiddos to get them to try something out of their comfort zone once in a while."

Tank nodded assent. "You don't know what you might be missing if you never try it, right? I mean, I'd draw the line at anything obviously dangerous, but you know."

"Well, of course. They know to ask me, Auntie, or Grandmare about that sort of thing first." Skies sighed. "Then again, you know how kids are; they'll charge headlong into things if they get excited enough..."

Tank shrugged. "I dunno, I think there's something to be said for being bold sometimes. You know..." He paused before continuing, as though for dramatic effect. "...like marching into a dark, timberwolf-infested forest to go picking magic flowers?"

Skies gave Tank a puzzled look. "What do you mean by that?"

Tank quirked an eyebrow. He wasn't sure whether she was being coy, or had somehow already forgotten the incident that had brought them together to begin with... but he quickly shrugged and decided it wasn't important. "Never mind, I guess. In any case, do you know anyone else who's going to be there?"

"Oh, hmm..." Skies searched through her memory for a moment. "I think my ex is going to be here. The last time I spoke to her, she said she'd be wearing something that would 'drop jaws,'" she explained with a shrug.

"Is that so?" Tank quirked an eyebrow, sounding largely unimpressed. "I guess we'll see, then."

"She's really pretty, and she knows how to work all kinds of ponies... in all sorts of ways..." Skies' cheeks turned red again, prompting her to quickly shake her head to clear the thoughts from it and put on a sheepish smile. "Um, anyway! I heard the garden is home to all kinds of plants and animals!"

Tank had to stifle a chuckle at the abrupt change of topic. "Huh, that sounds cool. I doubt we'll get to see much in the way of animals while the prom's going on, though; they probably won't like the noise too much."

Skies' ears folded back. "Oh, that's true..."

Before long, the two found themselves passing by numerous well-dressed unicorns, Canterlot locals presumably going about what business remained before the prom was set to begin.

Skies lowered her head a bit and whispered to Tank. "Looks like the snooty ponies are gonna be really judge-y this evening."

"Ugh, tell me something I don't know." Tank rolled his eyes, making no effort to lower his voice as he shot an annoyed glare at a nearby unicorn looking down his nose at them. "The ponies around here are so stuck-up, I'm surprised the weight of their collective egos hasn't collapsed the mountain by now."

Try as she might to resist, Skies burst out laughing, the sudden noise startling several ponies nearby. Grinning a highly satisfied grin at her amusement, Tank glanced at the unicorn again to find his expression changed to one of great indignation. This was enough to push him over the edge, finally joining in the boisterous laughter. The startled ponies pointed their muzzles in the air and marched off, muttering words like 'uncivilized' under their breath as they went. Tank and Skies paused a moment, grinning at one another as they caught their breath before heading off toward the castle garden once more.

*******

As soon as they'd passed through the ivy-covered gate to the royal garden, Tank glanced curiously around at the festivities. A fancy-looking band played a classical piece from atop a short stage behind a fairly large dance floor at one end, while the other featured long tables covered in enough food to satisfy a small army. Smaller paths led deeper into the gardens from beyond the main area.

"Well, I know what I wanna do first," he declared with a grin.

"Hmm, let me guess..." Skies' gaze swept across the garden, taking in all the finely dressed ponies before she continued. "You wanna eat and then dive deep into the garden to see what might be lurking there, right?"

Tank rubbed his neck with a free hoof. "Am I really that predictable...?"

"Nah, we just think alike is all~" Skies giggled and began tugging Tank toward the buffet. "C'mon, let's grab some food before the good stuff is all gone!"

Tank trotted alongside Skies over to the buffet tables. All the food looked exquisite, making it difficult for him to decide where to start, but he soon settled on gently plucking a small sandwich from a nearby plate and lifting it to eye level for a closer look. "Is that... cucumber and watermelon? That's... unorthodox. Well, nothing ventured..." He took a hearty bite, eyebrows raising as he chewed. "Huh, that's better than I was expecting."

Skies slowly traveled the length of the table, equally plagued by indecision. Distracted as she was, she hadn't noticed the well-dressed unicorn sampling a glass of juice near the far end until she'd already bumped into him.

"Oops! I'm so sorry!"

The unicorn turned to face Skies, the juice glass held aloft in his magic entirely unharmed. "No worries at all, my dear! No harm, no foul, as it were." He took a sip from the glass, his monocle-clad eye quickly scanning her up and down. "Say, if I might ask... by any chance, was your dress designed by a Miss Rarity?"

It was then that Tank caught up to the two, quirking an eyebrow at the stallion's inquiry. "Actually, yeah. We got it from Carousel Boutique in Ponyville. How'd you guess?"

"Why, I'd recognize her impeccable work anywhere!" the unicorn boasted. "She has the most exquisite style, her dresses simultaneously standing out in their own right and enhancing a pony's natural beauty... and you do wear it very well, my dear." He took another gentle sip of juice. "But do forgive my interruption! I should be off; ponies to meet and sights to see, after all!" With that, he nodded and wandered off in the direction of a small crowd now giving Skies and Tank quizzical looks.

Tank's brow furrowed. "Well, that was... a better reception than we got on the way through town, at least."

"I - I suppose so..." Skies' ears folded back and her cheeks turned red as she began fidgeting uncomfortably.

Tank tilted his head, his expression softening. "Uh... you alright over there, hon?"

"I'm fine..." Skies' face had regained its usual color, though the smile she now wore looked... strained. "Um, I saw some chocolate-covered strawberries over at the other end that looked good."

Tank hesitated for a moment. Though he hadn't known her for very long yet, he had already figured out just how bad Skies was at masking her feelings... but prying into the matter sounded like a less than stellar idea even if there hadn't been a crowd nearby. Whatever was bothering her, it seemed best all around to leave it be for now and let her decide to open up on her own.

"Ooh, that sounds good," he finally decided. "Where'd you see that?"

Skies wiped her eye with a foreleg before pointing it at the far end of the tables, her smile now looking much more sincere. "Over by the fruit bouquet and chocolate fountains."

Tank's eyes widened as he followed along. "Wait, chocolate fountains? How did I miss that? Please tell me they have marshmallows too."

"You probably missed them because they're not all chocolate!" With a giggle, Skies came to a stop in front of a series of fountains, each one's contents a different color and flanked by platters covered in various fruits and confections.

Tank walked slowly along the row of fountains. "Chocolate, strawberry, caramel..." He stopped to sniff at one containing a thick yellow syrup. "Is that... banana?" Plucking a wooden skewer from the table, he speared a marshmallow from a nearby bowl and coated it in the yellow syrup before moving the skewer to his hooves to eat his treat. "...Yef."

"See? Not just chocolate!" Skies deftly grasped a skewer of her own with her wing and used it to dip a strawberry under the flow of chocolate. Satisfied with its hefty coating, she popped it into her mouth and chewed happily, oblivious to the chocolate it had left on her lips.

"Well this is redundant," Tank declared, staring at his strawberry-coated strawberry before chowing down. "But delicious~" He glanced over at Skies, noticing the mess around her mouth. "Hey, uh. You got a little right here," he warned, pointing his hoof at his own muzzle.

"Oh, dear... you're always such a mess, aren't you?"

A tall, stunning gray unicorn clad in a beautiful glittering gown approached Skies, stopping only once their faces were scant inches apart. She glanced over at Tank for barely a moment, only long enough to give him a devious smirk before turning back toward the pegasus before her. "Let me get that for you, sweetie..." Before Skies could react, she found the mare's lips pressed against hers.

Skies hesitated for a moment before finally pulling back and shielding her mouth with her foreleg. "Winter Snowfrost! Stop being weird in front of my date!"

Tank stared at the strange mare blankly. "That... certainly was a thing that just happened." Still facing the unicorn, he glanced over at Skies. "I'm getting the sneaking suspicion we just found your ex."

Winter directed her smirk at Tank once again. "Of course it did, darling. Who wouldn't want to smooch such a beautiful bird? Ah, but I miss when we used to - "

"WINTER!" Skies snarled, her wings flared reflexively. "I know you like teasing, but will you please not bring up our past in front of a bunch of strangers?!"

Tank's eyes went wide as dinner plates. He'd never seen Skies this genuinely angry before; this situation needed de-escalating, now. Straightening up, he stepped forward and stood beside her, looking Winter square in the eye. "Alright, I've seen enough. If you're only here to cause trouble, I think you need to step off."

"Oh, my Skies... I do believe you've found yourself a good one." With a glow of her horn, Winter floated a napkin over to Skies. "I'll talk to you later, my dear; you know where to find me. Do let me know if he gives you any trouble," she added, giving Tank one last glare before turning up her nose and trotting off to mingle.

"Wow, I couldn't possibly imagine why you two broke up." Tank rolled his eyes before turning back to Skies. "I see what you meant before though... You okay?"

Skies finished wiping the chocolate from her face and tossed the napkin in a nearby trash can. After several seconds of silence, she finally spoke up. "Can we go for a walk?"

Tank nodded. "Sure."

The two made for one of the paths that led deeper into the garden, stopping only once they were out of earshot of any other ponies.

"I'm sorry about her." Skies glanced over her shoulder at the path behind them as she spoke, as though expecting the unicorn to appear behind her once again. "She tends to get extra flirty with me whenever she sees me with somepony else. She means well... I think... but she gets carried away really easily."

"If you say so." Tank took a seat beside a rose bush. "Sorry if I got too aggressive back there."

"It's fine... I was pretty guilty of that too." Skies sat down beside Tank, her eyes fixed on the flowers. "The roses are really pretty in the moonlight..."

Tank craned his neck, looking skyward. "Yeah. I love these bright moonlit nights; everything is familiar and different at the same time... It almost feels like walking through a dream, you know?"

"A dream you never want to end," Skies added.

"Well, maybe." Tank looked over at Skies. "But if good things lasted forever, then they wouldn't mean anything anymore, would they? Being rare and fleeting is part of what makes them special."

For a moment, Skies' only response was to continue staring at the roses. "Um... Tank?"

Tank tilted his head. "Hm?"

Skies turned away, ears flattening against her head. "I'm sorry for... asking you to ask me to prom."

Tank spent a moment staring incredulously at her before responding. "...Uh. Why?"

Skies took a deep breath. "I dunno, I just... feel like I forced you to bring me is all."

Tank put a hoof on Skies' shoulder and smiled softly. "Hon, trust me - if I didn't want to be here, I wouldn't be. You have nothing to apologize for." He retracted his hoof and used it to rub his neck instead, his smile fading. "I'm... sorry if this is because I haven't been a very good date. Like I said before, I don't usually do this sort of thing very often."

"Aw... you're a fine date." Skies lowered her head, resting it gently on Tank's shoulder. "You're more fun than most of the dates I've had before. I don't think I'd have even enjoyed being here tonight if not for you."

Tank rested his head atop Skies'. "I guess we're just being a couple of worrywarts then, huh?"

Skies smiled. "Hehe... I guess we are."

click!

A sudden camera flash startled both ponies, soon followed by the head and shoulders of a strange-looking earth pony wearing pink-tinted sunglasses popping out of a nearby bush. "Zat is perfect!" she declared before leaping from her hiding place and galloping down the path, out of sight in a blink.

"What the - ?!" Tank straightened up reflexively, eyes darting this way and that before fixing on the path down which the clandestine photographer had retreated. "Wh... Did I consent to that?"

"Oh, I think that was Photo Finish... She's probably just taking pictures of outfits she likes." Skies stretched a little as she sat up, idly scratching her ear. "I wouldn't worry about it. She might not even publish it, since we're common folk and all."

"...Hmm. I'm wondering if I should've read the fine print on my ticket a little more closely..." Tank shrugged. "Oh well, it's not a big deal. Probably."

Skies' smile finally returned in full. "Wanna stay here, or walk around some more?"

Tank stood up. "Why don't we check out the rest of the garden while we're here? I don't imagine we'll get the chance to see it again anytime soon."

"Okay. Let's go then!" Hopping up on all fours, Skies led the way as she and Tank delved deeper into the royal garden.

[joneswilliam72]

A conversation with Boy Harsher: "We wanted to convey this sense of desperate longing, while running away."

Provocateurs of darkwave splendor, Jae Matthews and Gus Muller are Boy Harsher, a burgeoning act currently carving out an image as leading voices within the recent renaissance and reimagination of darker synth music. Wielding a chaotic formula that marries brooding synths with intoxicatingly danceable beats, Matthews and Muller’s art attempts and succeeds in capturing emotional instability, while allowing listeners enough room to dance their worries away.

Despite their musically synthetic exterior, Boy Harsher is a grassroots act in the purest sense. In fact, Since The 405 last spoke with Boy Harsher, they started up their own label, Nude Club Records, which they’ve already reprinted their two prior releases, and now, their sophomore album Careful.

In line with everything (for the most part) Boy Harsher previously produced, Careful sees Matthews and Muller more in tune with who they are as musicians, and of course, as a couple. Reflective of overarching and overwhelming grief, Careful cleans out the skeletons from the duo’s closet and somehow manages to exude a sense of hope amid the brutally honest accounts of romantic dysfunction and strained familial ties. It is no secret that we here at The 405 have been unabashed fans of the dark-minimal wave duo for a while now, so getting the chance to speak to Jae and Gus again was a no-brainer.

Fresh off their European tour and now gearing up for their U.S. venture. I spoke with the duo from Northampton, Massachusetts to break down their alluring new album, southern-gothic literature and the evolution of their relationship relative to their musical evolvement.

----------

In another interview, Jae, you mentioned that you’d love to go on tour with Deftones, but it would be very uncomfortable. Why was their album so important for you?

Jae Matthews: I grew up in a very small, rural town in upstate New York, so the music I had access to was whatever came out of KRock (Utica, NY). Deftones’ White Pony was in heavy rotation in 2002—lol it took a couple years to make it up North, plus it really resonated with me. I felt so alone during that period of my life, and found companionship in music. Now, White Pony just feels so classically teenage—both raw and tender, but I definitely still listen to it.

Aside from the music that you have consumed in your lifetime, are there any pieces of literature, movies, fashion designers or anything of that nature that have influenced the way that you express yourself through your own art?

Jae: The first big moment for me was with Raymond Carver - his writing really got me. I spent many years trying to write that way. Later, I started reading a lot of southern gothic, starting with Flannery O’Connor, then moving more contemporary to Harry Crews and Larry Brown. I felt a kinship to the south—my father once lived there and talked often about North Carolina and Florida and Alabama. But I had never been - so those narratives fed into the place and my desire to wind up there.

Augustus (Gus) Muller: Filmmakers like Terrence Malick and early David Gordon Green had a big impact on myself and Boy Harsher. They convey such a heavy beautiful atmosphere. Particularly the narration. Hearing the narration in films like George Washington and Days of Heaven really changed how I thought about telling a story. There’s this beautiful ASMR quality to them too.

Outside of the dark wave, industrial and even cold wave genres, who are some artists and bands we should all be looking out for?

Jae: Lately I’ve been getting into that contemporary minimal-ish folk country stuff, I really appreciate this Joshua Tree based musician Itasca, our friend Daniel Bachman,the last Weyes Blood album Front Row Seat to Earth—although her split with Angels in America will always be my favorite. I’ve been totally intrigued by Orville Peck. If I am in a certain type of mood, I just want to listen to this shit and pretend I’m living fifty years ago. I romance some idea of desert living, with country music in-house bands.

Gus: Divine Weight by Alex Zhang Hungtai and Deep Listening by Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dempster, Panaiotis have been big for me recently.

What’s the inspiration behind the label name, Nude Club Records, and when did you decide it was time to release your own music on your own label?

Jae: I made a zine years several years ago entitled Nude Club. It was a collection of my friend’s art, writing and conversations. It’s the name we kept coming back to when consider all the ideas for this imprint.

What are some difficulties you’ve faced starting a label?

Jae: It’s a petty thing, but I always find typos, like after printing two hundred shirts or 500 records. It’s crazy! I cannot BELIEVE we keep missing them.

Gus: It’s just doing a million things at once. It can be overwhelming.

Can you take us behind the decision of releasing ‘Face the Fire’ as the “first taste” per se from your new album?

Jae: The melody behind ‘Face the Fire’ felt very athemic to me, so I ran with that feeling. The lyrical content evolved into this “pushing through” narrative, that action feeling. We were talking about the look of To Live or Die in LA, the giant red sunset, the dry heat. So I tried to create this story around your imperfect self, your vice, your hateful qualities, and that acceptance, while imagining it within that setting. That process probably only makes sense to me, but there ya go.

Gus: It’s a nice fade into the album. We haven’t released music in a while, so wanted to ease back into it with a nice slow burner. Also, the narrative we developed in the music video really reflects a lot of the narrative and sentiment of the record, so it was nice to have a strong visual aspect as well.

In the music video for ‘Face the Fire,’ there are scenes involving someone strolling lost on the beach, while there are others moments where the individual tosses themselves on a bed. Can you dive into how this video reflects the song and why did you choose this specific still from the bed scene as the album’s cover art?

Gus: When we were writing the song I always pictured a burning sunset on the beach. So we just riffed off of that. We both started to see similarities with Larry Brown’s novel Fay. So we based the narrative around the runaway. We wanted to convey this sense of desperate longing, while running away.

Are there any creative challenges when making art with your significant other?

Jae: The benefits are immense, you’re fully connected and a part of this intimate, trusting bond. Feeling this way in the studio is the reward. But it can also be real painful if your relationship isn’t faring well. It’s easy to take things personal, and the stakes to just become higher and higher. Most of the first two releases detail a lot of the pain and angst that Gus and I went through in during a rather rocky period. We’re more patient now. So I guess the music also becomes so reflective.

Gus: It’s very involved. We’re learning to be more patient with ourselves and also putting limits on how much we work. We need to leave enough time for ourselves.

It says in the album press release that your chaos made the project vulnerable and invariably lead to momentary destruction. “Jae had ‘careful’ tattooed across her back while Gus fried his speakers.” At that point, it mentions that you were not on “speaking terms.” That sounds pretty chaotic, but I’m a little confused about what happened. Would you mind diving into that particular moment for a bit of clarity?

Jae: Gus and I broke up, in a rather extreme and dramatic way. But, we still had a show to play, actually an event we curated called Cry Fest. We wanted to play the show, but we couldn’t be around each other— so we didn’t plan a set or anything. I asked a friend to tattoo my back, and while I let the vibrations kinda travel through my vocals, I don’t think I was really saying anything. I was crying, and screaming. Gus was somewhere else in the room—making a huge amount of noise and threw a lit candle. I am sure it was overwhelming to witness our mutual breakdown. Also, the cops came and we got a noise violation.

Can you talk about the significance of the spoken or sampled interlude ‘Crush’ to the rest of the album?

Gus: The ambient tracks have always been important us. That’s how we started. It’s also reflects our live sets. ‘Crush’ was a track that start as that simple drone we made, we liked it and wanted to expand on it, while he sound bytes are found recordings.

Speaking of the track L.A., as someone from the L.A. area and I tend to forget what I love about the place sometimes. As someone who has played there numerous times, what is the draw of the city for you?

Jae: We love L.A.; our fans in L.A. are incredibly enthusiastic and warm. I’ve always felt really connected when we play there. Every time we go I fall in love with someone, it must be the place—it’s just totally foreign and embraces this false sense of possibility.

Gus: L.A. represents a fantasy for us.

You’ve moved from Georgia to Massachusetts in the past and it seems to have done your career well. Do you ever foresee yourselves moving on from Massachusetts to a place like New York or L.A. in order to launch your careers even further?

Gus: We benefited a lot from being close to New York. It’s such a strong music community and definitely helped us get a leg up. I’m starting to accept I’m not a city person. We spend a lot of time in cities touring, and I really like the split lifestyle.

Jae: We talked about moving to LA. But I think we both realized that we really thrive in an environment that is isolated, more anonymous. I really appreciate my solitude.

I’m not sure if it’s meant to be ambiguous, but who is Jerry in the track ‘The Look You Gave Jerry’?

Jae: Specifically, Jerry is my stepfather, who passed away two years ago—right in the midst of writing this album. And Jerry is also my father, who died when I was sixteen. This song attempts to process this cyclical grief, the way that these losses have hurt me and my family. The “look” in the song is this phenomenon that my mother described—her inability to forget the look of her husband as he left her—just really heartbreaking stuff.

Jae, it is mentioned in the album’s press release that trauma of losing someone is almost in tandem with your understanding of love, how have the emotions of losing someone helped inform your understanding of love?

Jae: I can’t say that it’s made me steely or anything. Maybe just realistic and tired. The fear of natural abandonment and death allow me to expect that loss.

Has the recording setup remained the same?

Gus: Not really. Same laptop and horrible speakers. We got a few new synths which have contributed a lot, but the set up is still very minimal.

It seems your music is a manifestation of your tumultuous but very loving relationship which is reflective in the sometimes chaotic yet melancholic sound, is it possible that as your dynamic evolves, the music will reflect that as well?

Jae: It’s certainly possible. We’ll continue to make music that feels right!

You mentioned in a recent interview that all our your songs represent a different location, even though the latest releases have a more rural influence. Can you maybe go through which locations are reflected in a few of the tracks?

Jae: We move every couple of years and the music tends to reflect the different settings. The first two albums feel completely drenched in southern heat and lust, where the latter two—to me at least—have more of a nostalgic cold presence, much like the Northeast.

I've been to one of your shows in L.A., and they are hypnotically hectic and seems to play off that small packed atmosphere well. As Boy Harsher garners more recognition and gets to play bigger venues, how do you foresee this project maintaining that chaotic intimacy that has become synonymous with your shows?

Gus: Our music definitely is designed with intimacy in mind. We’re going to just keep doing what we’re doing and see how it translates into bigger spaces. I could never see us getting a drummer or anything like that, but who knows!

from The 405 https://ift.tt/2HefxKN

[houstonlocalus-blog]

Summer Exhibitions: Hot to the Touch

Unspeakably human or unimaginably bestial? at Anya Tish Gallery. Courtesy of the gallery. 

  As the summer temperatures really start to rise — and many Houstonians start hiding away in their indoor, air-conditioned summer hermitages — the summer begins its bold and exciting programming with an onslaught of exciting new exhibitions across the city. Local galleries and museums, from small, independent spaces to large institutions, have brought in some quality shows this summer that may be just enticing enough to coax weather-weary locals and visitors out of their climated hovels for some much-needed cultural stimulation. All of the fun was actually kickstarted in June with the unveiling of a series of prolific shows. A number of the featured artists, like Gao Hang and Jonathan Leach, have managed to really pull ahead of the pack. It’s definitely worth putting on an extra layer of deodorant to go out and check out some of these shows.  

  Gao Hang, Shark V, 2017. Courtesy of Anya Tish Gallery.

  In the beginning of June, Anya Tish Gallery (4411 Montrose) opened up Unspeakably human or unimaginably bestial?, a three-person exhibition featuring the talents of JooYoung Choi, Gao Hang and Karen Lederer. The exhibition, which draws its name from the poem “What do animals dream?,” features a diversity of works showcasing sculptures, paintings, and monoprints focused on popular culture and the aesthetics of our increasingly digital world. The lighthearted and excitable nature of the exhibition successfully dances around the playful processes each artist uses with their medium and subject. Of the three powerful artists, I was constantly drawn to the work of Gao Hang. Hang’s paintings and drawings, which I have seen at The Second Bedroom’s shows around town, may be executed with a light-handed touch, but they are anything but shallow. And, as with a Milton Avery essence, his pieces are rejuvenating and clean. Much of the works are derived from a narrative formed from his everyday experiences of being a Chinese artist living and working in our strange city of Houston, focusing on subjects like truck culture, guns, sprawling urban landscapes and ROUS’ (Rodents of Unusual Size). His paintings are bright, bold, and appear as drawings or watercolor works at times, only giving the viewer the information they actually need to complete the image. The pieces vary in size and come off as illuminated details or massive windows to some surreal event.  

  Gao Hang, Bear, 2017. Courtesy of Anya Tish Gallery.

  Hang’s work at Anya Tish are in line with the theme of the exhibition, and depict several predatory animals from his own place within. A Wolf, Snake, Bear, and Shark walk into a bar…the wall of his work is at first humorously taken in, and the predatory animals seem almost adorable. The wolf is hunched over as if being reprimanded and presented in a shocking orange. Flanking the small painting of the bear is the shark’s head in a series of cool blues (a partner shark painting was added this past friday). Large and emotionless — just as I would imagine a shark’s face would appear while swimming close to the portal from which you are viewing it — it is here that the elements began to click for me. Although they initially appear to be the key players in a bar joke, the potential of these animals to become murderous beings quickly becomes clear. It goes without saying that there is a lot of deadly shit out there that might seem innocuous at first glance, just like a meme of a cute puppy in a police uniform. The paintings, which with his technique and brush work appear as thinly painted, low-resolution depictions of themselves, almost appear to be the last innocuous thing you see before you are torn to pieces. It’s as if your mind has grown calm and painted this picture of this colorful, peaceful creature the second before your mind goes dark. The slightly tainted and dark nature of Hang’s work is always present and covert. The paintings may be painted light handedly, but the strong and dark moment is dwelling just below the surface of the painting.

  Unspeakably human or unimaginably bestial? will be on view at Anya Tish Gallery through July 15, 2017.

  Gallery Sonja Roesch. Photo by Paul Middendorf.

  Around the corner and down the street at the Sonja Roesch Gallery (2309 Caroline Street) is the new body of work, Planes Drifter, by Jonathan Leach. The exhibition explores the schematic before the build, laid bare after destructive excavation. It is a group of works that explore dissection, history, the brutality of laws and order on invention and progress, as well as the folding and unfurling of patterns and logic to create new maps of perception. “Hard-edged painting techniques attempt to conform and control fluidity into definite delineations,” Leach states. The show, within the clean white box of Sonja Roesch, presents a series of new and old works of the past 10 years in a variety of fresh materials and methods of presentation. As you enter into the gallery, you are faced with one of Leach’s newest pieces, “Daylight.” This massive work plays with the new technology of a light box compiled of a fine LED fiber optic network, which he uses as the structure of this illuminated painting. And while trying to dissect it, it’s difficult at first to understand what is going on within the field of vision. The piece features a similar dialog as seen in many of Leach’s earlier works, but he has now found a way to redefine elements of his practice. The grid of LEDs change and alter the movement of the painting and actually create a pixelated effect of the hard-edge lined painting that proves efficacious. I might normally dismiss the work due to the nontraditional material. I was drawn in, however, as seemed to be the case with many of the other attendees. “Daylight” maintains the traditional roots of painting, which I found to be respectable, and the work uses the painted lines as the primary focus of the piece as opposed to the other way around. It was a bold move for Leach that worked quite well.

  Jonathan Leach, “Rib 1-5,” 2017. Photo courtesy of Paul Middendorf.

  The other works within the show all present a well-rounded core sample of his labor over the years. Leach, who is known for his hard line abstract works on canvas, plexiglas and plexi-boxes, is using his past successes and experiences to continue to propel his work forward. Instead of riding that single wave of past success until it crashes against the rocks, he has changed course and continues to work through his ideas. It’s a dynamic which is ever-present in the exhibition. With “Rib 1-5,” Leach works with a variety of plexi pieces cut and reconfigured as they protrude from the wall as fin-like appendages. His play on light and shadow, which has been seen in his older work, is presented here in new form. Depending on the time of day and positioning of the light source, the works change completely, as the shadows cascade down the wall in hard dark lines, intersecting with each other, fading, growing, and reforming. The works are simple in original presentation, but the shadows and reorientation of the installation create a new depth to his plexi works. The pieces fall in place as if odd or foreign nautical flags, drawing the eye of the viewer. And much like his other works, there are many ways to view this body. As you move about them, the pieces morph, change, and move with you.

  Jonathan Leach, “Paved with good intentions,” 2008. Photo courtesy of Paul Middendorf.

  At the end of the show, I found myself coming back to one particular piece. Having a purist aesthetics at times about painting and technique, I revisited Leach’s large painting “Paved with good intentions.” This painting, from 2008, is one of the oldest in the show. I had never seen it before, but it reads as if it could have been painted this year. It features some of Leach’s previous junctures in painting, but one can still see the foundation he uses today. The bold bright lines and colors are reminiscent of vintage German and French prints and poster works in the geometric and abstract years, and the movements of the painting are rhythmic, showing true direction for the viewer.

  Planes Drifter will be on view at Gallery Sonja Roesch through August 15. Building upon their resources, Leach and Hang have elevated their works in a fashion that is ever so prevalent throughout this round of summer programming. Hang, as a newcomer to the Houston scene, shows no signs of intimidation within his paintings and amongst his peers. His topical application of material and tongue-in-cheek impressions slowly dissolve as the viewer investigates further into the subject, elevating his paintings even more. In a similar fashion, Leach builds upon his long-standing career locally and refuses to rely on a “one-trick pony” state of affairs. He continues to grow, escalate, and much like Gao, his works are far beyond first impressions since they contain such a devoted depth and complexity. There is plenty to explore inside and out with Planes Drifter and Unspeakably human or unimaginably bestial?, so try to catch them before they close. 

Summer Exhibitions: Hot to the Touch this is a repost

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