#big fan of these funky bots

[puppygirlpencil]

Day 5, the ANNIHILATORS!!

[jezabatlovesbats]

My WALL-E OCs

Have I told y’all about my funky little bots yet?

D-J is a DJ bot who was built to entertain passengers aboard the Axiom. D-J units can be programmed to say anything you need them to, but having achieved sentience, this defective unit in particular can talk on his own. Often, he randomly points out his observations, like his observations of what others are up to. He is great at interacting with an audience and with whoever he wants to talk to. D-J relies on engaging stimuli to stay happy. If the atmosphere around him is too boring or dull, he'll be able to liven up the place. Usually, D-J will not know what's going on unless he is informed of it. He has a very open attitude. 

D-J units were built to provide entertainment whenever it is needed. They are most often seen in the ship's nightclub, but they can also entertain you right in your cabin. They are sometimes used in the all-day care center, playing nursery music to help the babies sleep well. If they need to, they will play music for a funeral. A D-J unit would definitely provide music for WALL-E and EVE's wedding, if they had one. 

The D-J bots have two different ways of playing music. Place a CD on their turntables, and they'll play the music on that CD for you. You can also listen to the radio by turning it on on the back of their heads. You cannot do both of these things at once. That could break them. 

As an addition to their musical and verbal capabilities, D-Js are able to sing. When two or more of them sing together, they can create beautiful harmonies unless one of them isn't tuned right. Yep, they work like musical instruments; when they were first built, they had to be tuned. Defective D-J can't sing well, and he doesn't know why. 

D-J goes about his own business much of the time, but he sometimes hangs around with the reject bots, M-O, EVE and WALL-E. He considers all of them to be fun friends, and he is a huge fan of WALL-E and EVE as a couple. These robots have welcomed him into their little friend group. 

V-T (pronounced "vet," as in "veterinarian") is a hovering bot made to take care of the Axiom's animals.

V-T units are programmed to be compassionate and knowledgeable about zoology. This particular unit is very much this, but she gets excited literally every single time she sees an animal. This excitement can make her malfunction. She is known by other robots to be a big fat sweetie pie. She loves to hang out with her friends and to make sure they're okay. She also likes moving her "ears" to and fro to match her expressions. When she's not caring for critters, she practices her new hobby of sewing, and she sews creations for her friends. She "cries" a bit too much.

Some animals live in their own rooms on the Axiom while others are kept as pets. Often, people dress them up in BnL vests, leg warmers or collars. All of the animals on that starliner in particular are small animals such as dogs, cats, hamsters, parrots, bunnies and others. There is a veterinary clinic on the Axiom where the V-T units groom them and examine them. If you need to, you can call a V-T to your cabin so she can give your pet a checkup there. 

V-T bots are equipped with different medical tools depending on what branch of veterinary medicine they practice. Not only that, but they also have fun toys (like tennis balls and chew toys) and toys that can be used for stress relief (like heated plushies). This V-T loves to have fun with animals, and her extreme excitement whenever she sees one isn't a defect; it's just a part of her personality.

V-T's friends are all bots who work in maintenance, like FIX-IT and POW-R. A more major character that she likes to hang out with is BURN-E. Being good friends with him, she often checks up on him. BURN-E is glad that he's got a supportive friend like her. After landing on Earth, V-T adopted some pets of her own- a bunny, two guinea pigs and a snake, which she and BURN-E love to play with. 

[askhotelmanagementau]

BIG INFO POST!!! PLS READ :3

No its not bad btw lol

this will be for explaining everything about the blog!! Yayy!!!

Starting off strong,

Asking rules & qna

- No nsfw please 😀

- Feel free to ask anyone from ii! From mephone4s to even Cobs, everyone is open and important to the story :3

- (There's still gonna be lore posts! Maybe weekly or so.)

- feel free to ask me too!! Im here

- cd is gone sozzy :(

General qna

" Will we see any self inserts? "

Probably not. I'm not really into that no more!! :(

" Will we see ships? "

DUHHH!!! I LOVE SHIPS :3 !!! There's gonna be lots of silvercandlebrush (silver,candle, paintbrush) and fantube, maybe some trocheessues (trophy, cheesy, tissues) and even some knifropic (knife, mic, pickle) !! Feel free to give me ur ships btw, im very open to it and might have little side comics for them ;]

" Can we ask questions regarding lore? "

Yeah! Sometimes I won't spill because it's important, but usually yes. I've been plotting a huge storyline!!

" Can we ask questions as a character/oc? "

OF COURSE?? That's so funky and fun please do

CHARACTER LIST!!!

so you know who's doin what :D

Hotel staff:

OJ - Room 9/ Office

Silver Spoon - Room 5

Knife - Room 6

Tea Kettle - Room 3

Trophy - Room 9

Paintbrush - Room 2

Paper - Room 7

Suitcase - Room 8

Taco - Room 12

Soap - Room 10

Residents:

Room 1 - Bot, TestTube, Fan

Room 2 - Lightbulb, Cabby

Room 3 - Goo, Box (in the closet)

Room 4 - Tissues, Cheesy

Room 5 - Candle, YinYang

Room 6 - Microphone, Pickle

Room 7 - Nickel, Baseball

Room 8 - Balloon, Blueberry

Room 9 - Bomb, Pepper

Room 10 - Salt, Cherries

Room 11 - Mephone4, Toilet

Room 12 - Lifering, Clover

Extra (hard to explain):

Toilet : Cohost for Mephone4. He shares a room with mIstAH phONe, but visits Mepad frequently (and other places)

Mepad : Also cohost for Mephone4!! Prefers to live at the mansion, though does drop by :3

Marshmallow : mansion

Ghostbow : M A N S I O N

Dough : maamaamammaansion

Apple : mashun

Floory : Mephone4 and Toilet's roommate, but likes to chill in the lounge and outdoors more than his room.

Cobs : Meeple!

Mephone4s : Mansion, It's really awkward.

One room holds up to three contestants! And yes, staff also is in hotel rooms. There are 20 hotel rooms btw!! :3 just in case.

PLEASE DO ASK QUESTIONS ABOUT WHY PEOPLE ARE IN CERTAIN ROOMS, ILL BE HAPPY TO ANSWER :)

(PS: I may update this frequently! Do check this weekly if you're a superfan ;] )

Character list in abc order bc im very forgetful (reference sheets tba eventually)

Apple

Balloon

Bomb

Baseball

Bot

Blueberry

Box

Cabby

Candle

Clover

Cheesy

Cobs

Cabby

Cherries

Dough

Evil Paper

Fan

Floory

Ghostbow

Goo

Knife

Lifering

Lightbulb

Microphone

Mephone4

Mephone4s

Marshmallow

Nickel

OJ

Paintbrush

Pickle

Paper

Pepper

Silver Spoon

Soap

Suitcase

Salt

Taco

Tissues

Trophy

Test Tube

Yin

Yang

[universal-kitty]

hi hello I am casually sliding into ur ask box to seek rambles of your Sun n Moon self-ship 👀 how was your s/i’s first meeting with them? Do they have any habits or methods for comforting your s/i? - @limey-self-inserts

@limey-self-inserts

LIMEYYYY, thank you sm for this ask!! I actually haven't gotten into detail w/ these dorks yet... 😳 Guess the day is today to talk about them!

For reference, there's two versions of this ship now, so I'll go over both of them! Starting with Night Guard SI.

Lowkey inspired by the wonderful fic, Solar Lunacy ( @bamsara ), River is a struggling, would-be artist who needed some cash. Turns out, local Pizzaplex is looking for a nightguard, they pay stupid-well, and the wacky hours... Well, suppose they've done worse than a funky sleep schedule, right?

Turns out, that high price was for a reason. Chaos abound, Sun's odd attitude, Moon's..............himself, and the rest of the crew. It's a lot, but also... Whatever. Local fan/nerd of AI is delighted to be surrounded by such smart machines and treats them as people unthinkingly. (But also a little thinking-ly, because they believe in that kinda thing. Don't think too hard about the times they've talked to themself or inanimate objects, though...)

On a sidenote, they're closest to Freddy. (Perhaps, predictably, given his oddly fatherly nature.) Chica wormed her way in there by force, Roxanne is cool (and she pretends so hard that she isn't touched by that), and Monty... Is Monty; respectable distance given.

To give better details, tho-!!

.: First Meeting :.

River started working in the daytime to first meet Sun. Essentially settling them in with the "better" half to the duo...with the hope of avoiding the other entirely, given how much of a menace [and beyond] he could be.

For better or worse, River and Sun get mutually attached. And it sort of rubs off on Moon, with a pinch of them refusing to simply give up on him or stay afraid. (For their own good, far as he's concerned.) Buuut it helps that they're horribly oblivious- in every way that matters- and stubborn to boot.

Perhaps the only downside to the relationship is Moon pushing them to sleep is...a not unfounded ask; River is terrible at having a consistent bedtime, even with the busywork the Pizzaplex passes down. Even with the drama of the animatronics around them. If anything, the exhaustion goes up, the fussing of the Daycare Attendant rockets up ever skyward. Perhaps, ironically, all things considered.

.: Methods / Habits of Comforting :.

☀️ Sun being the energetic one, his methods of comfort mean rarely slowing down unless the situation truly calls for it. (And even then, bouncing in place enough to count it as stimming behavior.) He likes to tease, play games, and generally try to get River to relax via... I guess you could say "childish" methods, but definitely aren't unfounded ideas, either.

They've started bringing their mobile console (totally not the Switch) to work sometimes- when active service hours are out and the lights will be on for a portion of the night- and Sun LOVES seeing their video game progress! Their village in one game delights him, and the pocket monster game... They both have too much fun with that one. Sun pets the lil guys sometimes, while River watches. (He doesn't wanna play battles, though. The idea of them fainting concerns him. Too much pressure!)

Is also the main 'bot to ensure River eats, and does so in a somewhat healthy way, for what little the Pizzaplex can offer.

🌙 Moon, on the other hand, is a lot more quiet with his comforts. A lot of comforts from his side involve relaxation, sleeping/naps, quiet time, and parallel play (typically with him lurking over River's shoulder in some way).

In the beginning, "parallel play" is a BIG thing for Moon. Kinda like a feral cat, he's content at keeping his distance and assisting where need be. Making sure they don't get hurt on the job. Maybe scurrying off and dropping treats into River's path/on their head. They're vending machine snacks. They can't really complain; food is food. Water or other drinks (commonly Fizzy Faz) are left on any table or flat surface Moon can find.

Later on, after he's able to relax some and become the naptime 'bot again, River starts trusting him more to be asleep around. They take a long time to fall asleep, so Moon immediately started finding ways to aid their naps or sleepovers; finding preferred plushies in the Plex, needling River into bringing/buying blankets to bring over, setting up a hammock, etc.

It's actually this kind of motivation that actually makes their private room get decorated quite a bit before the Pizzaplex goes up in flames... (And yet, he ensures the fires don't get to that stuff. Almost gains extra damage because of it; Sun and Moon are dedicated to protecting it.)

Post-Pizzaplex burning, Moon rebuilds the "cozy nest" in River's apartment. They get put in "time out" there whenever they get overworked, are overly stressed, and so on. Along with the addition of Moon nabbing their candles and comfort items to put in there...if he can get away with it.

...They do have a small, moon phases blanket that's a major comfort item, and that typically stays in the main bedroom. (Secondary room was more of an office/workspace, but Sun/Moon command it later on.) Moon lowkey preens over that information.

Sun, on the other hand, is just glad to be here. However, he does take every opportunity to mother hen all he wants now that he gets to personally see into the life River leads. (Which is about what he expected, if a little worse. Honestly! Why wait so long to throw away trash?! "When I get up next," do it sooner!! Messy, messy!)

And then... There's my animatronic SI! Currently nicknamed "Dancer" for lack of a name idea.

Made for Sun/Moon, it was management's hope that they would be able to keep the two in line. For Sun, less stress and ability to give kids more even attention with a companion. For Moon, to keep him in check and prevent (harm) any danger to the restless kids during naptime.

Their base comes from Ballora; essentially the ballerina has been remade into a playful, breezy assistant! A flowing gown, gentle elf ears, and peaceful, closed eyes. Even their body is padded, to aid in comfort when holding or carrying kids.

Much like Moon, they have a music box in their chest, and often dance while it goes off.

Although they are overall a pleasant addition and Sun adores them (Moon has complicated feelings), Dancer has, occasionally, been a problem for management. Hair sometimes catching on their joints and causing chaos. Paint getting on their hair. The occasional malfunction, as well. (Much to Sun's panic.)

On that note, though, Dancer and Sun/Moon rather balance each other out! Where Sun gets stressed, Dancer is able to soothe him into peace. Even Moon, who has complicated feelings for the assistant (to this assistant), appreciates their company. He's hesitant to ever admit it, but he likes their singing voice. (Sun, however, would admit that in an instant.)

[silverspark-archived]

Mutual discord!

I made a mutual server, Feel free to join!

Here's the link !!!!

We have a music bot and emojis ! (pride hearts Included) and a funky little scp kinda theme because me and the other two mods (Spidernoirbitch and lyckol) are pretty big fans ahaha but you don't need to know anything abt scp to join-

I might add specific fandom channels if it gets a little too confusing but all in all you can talk abt any of your interests !

Hope to see you there lads !

[silverjetsystm]

Comics Obtained! 

Today, we have:

Ms. Marvel & Moon Knight #1

Strange #5

Batman - One Bad Day: The Riddler #1

Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty #3 [last week’s]

Punisher (Aaron) #2 [from earlier this summer]

Being this is an MK blog, I’ll chat about the MK stuff under the cut

Strange #5

Clea is dealing with super ghosts in her quest to revive Stephen, so she visits Mr. Knight to ask how and why Moon Knight keeps coming back to life. The House of Shadows/Midnight Mission isn’t a fan of Clea for Reasons.

Mr. Knight: “Well, I do owe Wong a favor. Which means I owe you a favor.” Clea: “I’m told the undead creature I destroyed yesterday was your brother. Is that going to be a problem?” Mr. Knight: “Randall’s been killed? Again? Looks like that’s two favors I owe you, then.”

FUCK RANDALL. ALL MY HOMIES HATE RANDALL.

Clea watches Moon Knight work to find some abductees.

MacKay is writing both Strange and Moon Knight and it’s definitely fun to see this kind of book cross-over. Marc’s used to the street level and magical things happening to him; he’s not magic himself. Magic types go far over his head. Obviously, Khonshu is able to pull his Fists back from Death because he’s a god. Marc telling Clea he has to scare everyone because he doesn’t have that kind of powers is a big oof kind of moment.

“We die. Khonshu brings us back to do his work. And then we keep dying and coming back. Because the work never ends.”

Switching from a conversational tone to yelling at the guy he’s beating up is peak Moon Knight. 

Clea banishing a guy to essentially the Shadow Realm is hilarious. Moon Knight was about to kill the guy but Clea decided to make him suffer worse than death. “Sure, okay, I guess? Great titanic team-up, regardless.” His chestnut of advice is people need a god’s power and influence to revive someone and the entity is really only do it for a worker.

I didn’t know much about Clea before this series and I am really enjoying what I’ve read!

Ms. Marvel & Moon Knight

I didn’t read the Ms. Marvel & Wolverine team-up ;__; This issue is about checks notes  Rat bots? Getting close to the Mission and Mr. Knight ain’t gonna let that happen. 

Kamala being hella worried about meeting Mr. Knight/Moon Knight is a mood. “I’ve worked with tons of different heroes at this point. And no one should be scarier than Wolverine. But this guy has a weird rep.” Weird rep. It is sweet, having Moon Knight go after drug dealers selling to kids and not just supernatural/supervillains. Ms. Marvel is kid who’s seen some stuff but is still a kid. She’s compassionate and brave, wants to do small talk, and talk to people she’s rescued. Marc is 100% focused, grim, and intimidating.

HUNTER’S MOON!!!

Ms. Marvel asking Moon Knight why him and Hunter’s Moon don’t share an office made me cackle.

Ms. Marvel: Are you okay, uh... Hunter’s Moon: Hunter’s Moon. The true disciple of Khonshu. Moon Knight: Not the time.

Okay, I’m a sucker for Hunter’s Moon summoning a sliver of Khonshu from No No Bad God Asgardian Jail like it’s a fucking Persona battle. Sure, Khonshu gave him fighting abilities but since Moon Knight kicked his ass, Badr’s been hitting the gyms and the rituals. Hunter’s Moon is very (as Ms. Marvel narrates) “Intense” but polite. Bows his head and tells her its an honor to fight alongside her. The ‘thought it was going to be a recruiting event’ fits Hunter’s Moon and the Cool Youth Pastor meme very well.

I wish they had a bit of talk between Ms, Marvel, a Muslimah and Hunter’s Moon, a person who was raised in Islam and didn’t find faith until Khonshu revived him. There’s also the angle with Moon Knight being a Jewish man who is also estranged from Khonshu. Narrative foils. C’mon people. But I get it, it’s a superhero team-up issue. It’s been a while since I’ve read Kamala and I’ve missed her so much. I love her funky stretchy powers and spunk.

Local cat does not believe in letting duck go to the comic book shop

[chororine]

right then, the actual songs

favourites tier:

Austria (did this guy yank my subconscious thoughts I needed to hear during this phase of my life, or what??? the catchy melody helps too)

Belarus (so happy!! this is a weirdly specific comparison but it feels like an Eastern European-flavoured “Logo Te Pate” aka the shapeshifting training montage song from Moana)

France (classy, quick and elegant like a leaping deer - if French Disney songs are anything to go by, they do snappy lyrics super well and this is no exception)

Sweden (objectively the best actual song of the batch, if you ask me) 

good tier:

Czech Republic (not the most original style in the world but a nice little slow-yet-positive-and-catchy number, with lyrics based around a Relatable Feel)

Greece (not as catchy as “I Can’t Go On” but big, energetic and passionate is v much what I’m here for)

Hungary (not as much my taste as "Story of My Life” but it’s always refreshing when a country embraces their individuality; sounds v cool and mystical)

Israel (while not the most unique song in the world, still a very likable upbeat and hopeful dance track)

Lithuania (ooh, funky! admittedly the chorus doesn’t quite live up to the intro and bridge for me, but it still hit me right in my weakness for brass)

Macedonia (I’m a sucker for songs about girls having fun on their own ok)

Moldova (that rhythm and slightly unusual instrument choices make it stand out in the best possible way; no less from Epic Sax Guy)

Netherlands (a bit of an early 2000s R&B vibe and nice, heartfelt lyrics)

Norway (happy, bouncy and light without being too fluffy or inconsequential)

Portugal (ballads aren’t usually my taste but it’s sweet and heartfelt and feels kind of... intimate and cosy, I guess is how I’d describe it?? and heartfelt is always a win for me)

San Marino (so much energy!! I feel bad calling the chorus “annoyingly catchy” but it does it so well damn it)

Spain (you do it for her~ and you would do it again~ nothing too special but a very solid, catchy chill number)

meh tier: 

Albania (okay I guess, but pretty interchangable with some other songs in this tier)

Armenia (alright but not the same without That Hair from the video)

Azerbaijan (not bad by any means but it’ll def be remembered for Horse Man more than anything else. plus I heard the chorus the same way as Irk: “I’m a skeletons”; was this song written by a tumblr bot or what?)

Belgium (nice, sort of bittersweet vibe, but I’m not feeling it strongly enough to actively like it)

Bulgaria (decent lyrics and music, but a little boy band-y for my liking)

Croatia (starts out slow and for the most part stays slow, but you can’t deny those operatic vocals have a lot of character)

Cyprus (”E.T.” called - it wants its intro back, but at least this picks up and grows some individuality when the chorus kicks in)

Denmark (nothing inherently wrong with it, but so generic I had to double check I hadn’t already typed my thoughts on it on Tuesday night)

Estonia (there’s that “going for bittersweet but not pursuing it actively enough to stand out” thing from Belgium again)

Finland (good lyrics, good voice, but almost nonexistent melody and instrumentation)

Georgia (a decent power ballad with a key change, but still a power ballad with a key change)

Germany (beautiful, relatable lyrics sadly stuck inside a forgettable melody and music)

Iceland (lyrics sound like they drew a noun out of a hat to base a song around; melody and backing not memorable enough to compensate)

Italy (good music and melody, but click that CC button and you’ll see it’s a tad pretentious; not quite “social media is teh evul in my day we just stared at the wall” but close enough to put me off)

Latvia (the hard rhythm’s a nice change of pace but it doesn’t particularly stand out to me. this lady can rock the Sailor Moon hair, though, I’ll give her that)

Malta (good effort, but ultimately just another power ballad)

Poland (she has a great voice with a lot of character, but... yawn. NEXT)

Russia (ok, so they won’t be in the final, but I have to say that’s no big loss - it’s a sweet little song and disabled representation is always good, but doesn’t have much else going for it)

Serbia (another obvious Katy Perry fan, but at least that rhythmic backing gives it a touch of its own flair)

Slovenia (in another recurring theme this year: nice sentiment in the lyrics, but the actual song’s boring as shit)

Switzerland (decent, but feels disappointingly like a more conventionally Eurovision version of “Light and Shadow”)

Ukraine (a touch of metal is a nice bit of variety, but not really my taste)

United Kingdom (we’re used to sucking at this point, it’s ok)

shit tier:

Australia (our Trojan horse - if they win where are they gonna pick to host next year but London - is rubbish this year. part of me is hoping they win purely by virtue of this kid’s looks)

Ireland (is this guy 12??? kid, the Junior contest’s through the other door)

so-bad-it’s-good-and-what’s-Eurovision-for-if-not-that tier:

Montenegro (enough said)

Romania (it’s more like a parody of Eurovision songs than an actual Eurovision song. I love it)

to be edited on Thursday or when I re-listen to the playlist (whichever comes first) EDIT: I'm pretty sure all countries are present and accounted for!

[airadam]

Episode 117 : Rockin' Steady

"...and though the flag been tattered and beaten..."

- General Steele

The short month of the year puts a little pressure on the recording schedule, but the show is here on time for you as always. Once again, we feature the sounds of J Dilla, Big Pun, and Big L, alongside plenty of other great stuff - and we keep the same speed going all the way through the mix!

Shows coming up;

Sadat X & El Da Sensei @ Joshua Brooks, March 20th

GZA @ Gorilla, Manchester, April 9th

Twitter : @airadam13

Playlist/Notes

EPMD ft. KRS-ONE : Run It

We start the episode with an all-NYC, all-uppercase collaboration from the "We Mean Business" LP, the seventh in EPMD's industrially-titled discography. A nod to LL on the hook, stick-up business over an Erick Sermon beat (of course), with KRS playing clean-up man flawlessly. Favourite part of the verse - real 'G's do indeed want to stay at home and read the paper.

Jay Dee : Another Batch - 11

One of a bunch of late-90s Dilla beats that got leaked onto the internet back in the day, this one smacks along with a bassline that comes through like a funky duck! I don't know if anyone ever rhymed on this, but I can imagine someone like De La doing great things with it.

Chuck D ft. Jahi : BOT

I don't know if it was intentional, but this track seems to call back to two tracks from the legendary "...Nation of Millions..." album; "She Watch Channel Zero?" ("she looking at the screen more than talking to me") and also "Night of the Living Baseheads" ("battery on low, look like fiends with a Jones"). Chuck D might have been one of the very first in Hip-Hop to catch onto the Internet, but the elder statesman sees the BS it's brought us as well! He combines here with the lead MC in the group known as "PE 2.0" to get it all off his chest, and he's got plenty more to say on the new "Celebration Of Ignorance" album.

Black Thought : 9th vs. Thought

No-one can accuse Black Thought of not being a team player, with it taking until 2018 before we saw a solo release from him, the "Streams of Thought Vol.1" EP. 9th Wonder was the producer for the project, and on this track he gets headline billing. Fans of top-flight lyricism are in for a treat here, as the MC of choice for many MCs shows his skill level in a major way.

Boot Camp Clik : World Wide

Serious track from the Brooklyn stalwarts, uniting on 2006's "The Last Stand". I absolutely love General Steele's opening verse, from which this month's epigram is taken, and then it's followed with the late, great Sean P just thugging it all the way out on the second verse! They go out of the immediate crew for production, tapping up Large Professor for a head-nodding beat that easily could have made for a fire single. Not the best-known tune maybe, but a tune that is big by nature!

Big L : Don't Front (Freestyle)

Short and powerful like a shot of rum, this is a concise taste of Big L's legendary freestyle aggression over a smooth 90s beat from Diamond's "You Can't Front". 

Slum Village : Go Ladies (Instrumental)

One of my favourite Dilla beats easily, as heard on the "Fantastic, Vol.2" album, flipping a well-known 80s soul sample and somehow making it even better than you could have imagined. It's only when you listen back to what else was coming out around that time you can hear how much of a shock to the system a laid-back groove like this was.

Donnie : Cloud 9 (Spinna Mix)

If you enjoy soulful music, Donnie's 2002 debut "The Colored Section" should definitely be in your collection. "Cloud 9" was one of the standouts, and DJ Spinna puts some extra bump into it on this remix, which is on a nice 12" release. His bass style is so distinctive, and with so much of the beat being in the lower frequency range, it leaves plenty of room for Donnie's masterful vocals!

Foreign Exchange : Hustle, Hustle

There are plenty of great tracks on "Connected", the debut Foreign Exchange album, and I was sure I'd already played this - glad to find out I hadn't, as it was the perfect fit for this slot! Nicolay's beat is smooth on that kind of early-2000s, neo-soulish vibe, and then you have lyrical treats coming from every angle. Quartermaine and C.A.L.I.B.E.R spit bars about trying to get ahead in the world, and Phonte comes in beautifully on the hook, in a fairly early demonstration of his singing talent. I don't blame you if you find yourself humming this one on the way to work.

Kev Brown : Hold Fast

One of the great bassline masters in Hip-Hop, Kev Brown certainly put Landover (MD) on the map with his top-quality "I Do What I Do" album. He's just as solid on the mic, and takes the reins alone on this track from the second half of the LP. Scratches are credited to DJ PMD, who is not Parrish Smith, but in fact Peter Rosenberg (who hails from the same area) under his original DJ name!

Jermaine Dupri ft. Snoop Dogg, Warren G, and R.O.C : Protectors of 1472

Unless there's some other, non-publicised significance to the number 1472, the "Life In 1472" album has one of the most contrived titles of all time! I don't actually have the album, but this DJ Premier-produced cut is on a compilation of his rarer/lesser-known cuts. I cut this one fairly short, as I think you get the best of it in a compact dose - the last verse is by far the longest, but Snoop towards the front is the clear headliner.

J Dilla : Won't Do (Instrumental)

Classic Dilla from towards the end, based around the "Footsteps In The Dark" drums, with fragments of the vocal yelling out for help along the way. The vocal version is on "The Shining" LP, but for this instrumental, you may need to pick up the 7" boxset of the album (or the MP3 version), which contains instrumentals for every track!

Sadat X ft. Timmy Hunter : Neva

The three-bar loop makes mixing a bit tricky, but I really wanted to play this one! Sadat looks back over his life and career, and celebrates his own effort and self-belief - justifiably so. Diamond D provides the beat, as he does all the way through the "Sum Of A Man" album. It's been a long road since that first LP with Brand Nubian, but Sadat is still travelling it, and for that we should be thankful :)

Dabrye ft. Jay Dee and Phat Kat : Game Over

That beat will definitely do things on a big sound system. Sparse, menacing, insistent. Ann Arbor's Dabrye takes no prisoners on the production, and then pulls in his fellow Michiganders Jay Dee and Phat Kat, who just spit raw Detroit flames in the space the beat leaves! The 2006 "Two/Three" album is one for anyone who likes the more angular, awkward, and aggressive style of production.

Clear Soul Forces : Continue?

I've been saving the combination of this and "Game Over" for ages :) CSF's 2013 "Gold PP7s" is an essential album for anyone who thinks they don't make MCs like they used to - it should give you faith for the future! I can't even keep up with all the gaming, comic, and anime references that they just firehose you with, but the spirit is undeniable. Ilajide's videogame-styled beat bumps hard, and overall this is just one of those tracks I can't see any reason for anyone not to love!

C2C ft. Tigerstyle, Netik, Rafik, Vajra, Kentaro : Le Banquet

Here we have an all-star lineup of scratch DJs, liquefying their crossfaders one after another as the featured instrumentalists on this track from the "Tetra" album. If you listen closely, there are actually some quotes from "Game Over" in the mix - they sound like vocoded re-records, but they could well be heavily-manipulated samples...

J Dilla : Dillatronic 09

One more Dilla instrumental as we come towards the end, this time taken from the "Dillatronic" collection of beats, a posthumous collection of 41 pieces - many very short - from the MPC of the man himself.

Noreaga ft. Nature, Big Pun, Cam'ron, Jadakiss, and Styles P : Banned From TV

Late 90s thug styles, and the kind of triumphant sound that either had to start or finish the episode. Nature was the original guest on here, but while almost everyone else was invited on, Big Pun bullied his way onto the track! While everybody comes off, the true gems on this tune are towards the front - Nature's memorable opening line, and Pun's devastating verse. The Swizz Beatz production is a perfect snapshot of the keyboard-based beats of the era - the "horns" should be corny, but somehow they work in context, and the kick/basstone combo bangs! Classic Berra-ism from Nore on the last verse too - if it's with tomato juice, then it can't be Hennessy straight...

Please remember to support the artists you like! The purpose of putting the podcast out and providing the full tracklist is to try and give some light, so do use the songs on each episode as a starting point to search out more material. If you have Spotify in your country it's a great way to explore, but otherwise there's always Youtube and the like. Seeing your favourite artists live is the best way to put money in their pockets, and buy the vinyl/CDs/downloads of the stuff you like the most!

Check out this episode!

[usabilityrocks]

Duolingo: User Experience Storyteller’s Dream

I really love the language learning app Duolingo. 

I’ve been a big fan of Duolingo since its early days, and I’ve already used it for Irish, Dutch, Spanish, and Italian. The Duolingo experience is an ideal way for me to “get my ear in” before I travel abroad somewhere, so I’m constantly adding other languages to explore too!

Exploring Italian on Duolingo. I think I will wait until I get a bit more fluent before sharing my skills on LinkedIn, but I like it! Social is a key part of the Duolingo experience.

I use Duolingo on my laptop and smart phone, and have even tried it on Google Glass!

Duolingo takes advantage of voice-enabled devices of course, although it can be used without that feature. 

Now, I’m especially thrilled that my own national language, Irish (Gaeilge), is doing so well on the platform and receiving such high-level recognition. 

Duolingo’s got it all going on really from a UX perspective: it’s free, fun, global, local, social, all about mobility from the cloud, includes gamification, is powered by the crowd, packs voice interaction, and now it’s got... chatbots, which are ideal for that language conversational interaction! Duolingo’s all wrapped in a simple yet funky, colourful, visual look and feel  that appeals across all ages, too. 

A Duolingo bot can be unlocked to practice your language skills “for real” after a certain level. Not available in all languages, but it’ll get there as that technology matures globally I guess.

Chatbots are an ideal way to engage with a language-learning app, delivering a conversational UI for conversational solutions. Of course, text input and gestural interactions are also available.

Duolingo is being used by so many people and for so many things! I know people who use it to learn French, German, Spanish, Italian, Vietnamese, Irish, Romanian, and more, be it out of love of learning new languages, getting the hang of some phrases in advance of foreign travel, strengthening the kids’ school language learning, just wanting to converse with others in their own language on a more casual basis, or simply out of plain old curiosity. For many, Duolingo is the “only game” in town.

I’ve now realized that Duolingo is a UX storyteller’s dream! Duolingo’s approach resonates with so many that you can weave almost any narrative you like about how ideas, innovation, trends, technology, design, and people collide in a big-hearted way, worldwide.

This TED talk with Luis von Ahn about large-scale online collaboration will help you get your head around what Duolingo is about. But, honestly, the best way to experience Duolingo is to ... start that conversation yourself!

Duolingo explains as you learn: Noun gender in Spanish is covered  as you use your own voice on a smartphone, for example.

Hey kids, you talkin’ to me? Italian lesson with voice input enabled.

More carrot than stick with the Irish lesson. There’s a change! Listen and then drag and drop the words to translate. Nice!

Activity stream showing my Duolingo progress.

Hey You! Your friendly Duo reminder on the smartphone!

Bring the Bitterballen. Learning with others can be fun too. Duolingo lets you try group learning as well as learning on your own.

[tune-collective]

The 20 Best deadmau5 Songs

The 20 Best deadmau5 Songs

He may not be one for metaphors or lofty album titles, he may not know how to refrain from weighing in on any given subject, he may not really know how to play a bunch of traditional instruments, but Joel Zimmerman, aka deadmau5, is absolutely one of electronic dance music’s greatest producers.

He’s quite prodigious with eight studio albums released in 10 years, a successful label that helped spawn Skrillex and others, and his own music production Master Class series. You get the feeling he does everything the hard way, but he somehow does it so well.

Here’s a list of the 20 best deadmau5 songs to date, in our critical opinions. Enjoy, and feel free to disagree.

20. deadmau5 – “Bot”

For Lack of a Better Name is deadmau5’s fourth studio album and one that cemented the noise artist as one of the greats. It spawned tons of hits, and while “Bot” isn’t the LP’s grandest achievement, it is one of deadmau5’s most interesting songs. It’s full of wacky textures and frog noises. It sounds like the tribal music of exotic aliens who dwell in some kind of fantastic cyber jungle.

19. deadmau5 – “Alone With You”

This glittering bit of progressive house come from Random Album Title, deadmau5’s beautiful third LP. The persistent beat keeps bodies moving through the sparkling, melodic mist. It’s the kind of emotional build one happily and aimlessly explores over and over again.

18. deadmau5 – “Closer”

That exciting five-note progression should be instantly recognizable as John Williams’ alien-speak melody in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Daft Punk also used the sample, officially titled “Wild Signals,” as the intro to its Alive 2007 set, but deadmau5 takes the motif and turns it into something even grander. He deviates after the first two minutes, though those five notes continue to make their way in and out of the melodic lines. Maybe the aliens are listening.

17. deadmau5 – “Snowcone”

The first official single from deadmau5′ latest album, W:/2016Album, earns its name. It’s light and airy atmosphere captures the feeling of a light snow, and as we move forward into the beat, we find ourselves exploring deadmau5 hidden love of hip-hop rhythm. Kanye West and Pete Rock are fans. They shared a video of themselves listening to it in the studio, upon the reception of which deadmau5 announced “Snowcone” as one of his favorite songs on the new LP.

16. deadmau5 – “Infra Turbo Pigcart Racer”

Track five from while(1has got to be one of the most unique weapons in deadmau5′ musical arsenal. At just more than nine-and-a-half-minutes, it tells the supersonic story of, well, let’s pretend it really is a piggy racecar driver. It’s called Fast and the Furriest, and it is all about one adrenaline junky porker who makes his way into the Tron world and unlocks the true supersonic potential of those light bikes. Alright, I just made all that up, but doesn’t it sound like that?

15. deadmau5 – “Hi Friend”

This song perfectly captures the vibe of going out to your favorite nightclub and running into everyone you know and love. Lots of electro, heaps of filters, and dope party raps from MC Flipside.

14. deadmau5 – “Aural Psynapse”

Though it appears on 2011’s 5 Years of mau5 double-disc compilation, “Aural Psynapse” was first recorded and released in 2001 under deadmau5′ former alias Halcyon441, another Joel Zimmerman screen name lost in the annals of time. Proving the old adage that everything old is new again, the single went on to peak at No. 7 on Billboard‘s Dance/Electronic Digital Song chart. It’s a beautiful, emotional song where synths take the lead in all shapes and forms. Definitely a classic deadmau5 atmosphere.

13. deadmau5 – “HR 8938 Cephei”

This stand-alone release never graced an official deadmau5 album. It was one of Zimmerman’s Soundcloud dumps, but it’s nothing to overlook. At nearly 11-minutes long with a distant star namesake, it’s a progressive journey that starts cold and somber, builds into a hopeful, shoulder shaking beat, and here and there blasts the listener with strong, powerful moments.

12. deadmau5 – “Brazil (2nd Edit)”

Whatever happened to the first edit of “Brazil?” Well, deadmau5 decided it wasn’t that important. He might have been right. This track has been sampled by Kylie Minogue, Alexis Jordan, and Taio Cruz. It’s got an infectious beat and an easy-going staccato synth melody. Does it make you feel like you’re in Brazil when you listen to it? It’s a lot cheaper to enjoy than a vacation, in any case.

11. deadmau5 – “Maths”

Who’s ready to get weird? We are, and deadmau5 is bringing the electronic, alien funk heavy on this cut from 2012’s > album title goes here It served as the album’s lead single, and originally, it was supposed to be the final track on 4×4=12. The anxious, rising motion of the hook is the stuff dance floor come up dreams are made of. No one can stay seated when a tune like this gets dropped. This weird little tune is a get-up-and-go machine.

10. deadmau5 – “Moar Ghosts N Stuff”

Question: Why does “Moar Ghosts N Stuff” precede “Ghosts N Stuff” on 2009’s For Lack of a Better Name? Answer: Because deadmau5 is a troll, and he does whatever the hell he wants. This creepy organ intro is bone-chillingly cool. It’s actually a sample of Frederic Chopin’s Piano Sonata, Op. 35, No. 2 in B-Flat Minor, if you care to know. The vocal sample is from a monologue in The Brain From Planet Arous, a black-and-white, 1957 sci-fi indie flick. It also is an incredible way for deadmau5 to say “yeah, I just totally changed the game, and I am one of the best ever. Part two comes before part one. -shades fall on eyes- Deal with it.” This motif is one of deadmau5’s most memorable and instantly recognizable melodies. It just had to crack the top 10.

9. deadmau5 – “Sometimes Things Get, Whatever”

Another absolute fan favorite, this one being an early cut from 2008’s Random Album Title. It’s an easy song to relate to. We’ve all been overwhelmed by life to the point that we revert to cold robot mode, right? Zimmerman probably feels this way all the time. He’s totally that perfectionist sound engineer guy who frets over everything. I can’t actually say that with certainty, but c’mon, listen to this. Ironically, it’s a pretty straightforward and simple composition. He’d probably have a big explanation for why that’s not true, of course. It probably took like a million hours of engineering to create this. It’s probably too complicated to explain, so, you know, whatever.

8. deadmau5 – “Animal Rights” with Wolfgang Gartner

Storytime! This jam dropped a couple weeks before I turned 23, and the night of my birthday, I was partying in college, and some drunk frat guy wandered into our after party and heard it was my birthday and decided he was gonna give me a lapdance. So I put on “Animal Rights” and he was like “Hey, I really like this song. Who is it?” And I was like, “Don’t worry about it and take your clothes off.” That has nothing to do with how awesome this Wolfgang Gartner collaboration is, how it’s super funky and was totally exciting and fresh at the time, how it blends Gartner’s signature “complextro” sound with deadmau5’s awesome, techy atmospheres – but then again, maybe it does. Either way, go get a lap dance from a frat boy to it. It’s a pretty fun experience, even though he’s totally feeling himself more than you are.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_esYONwdKuw

7. deadmau5 – “The Veldt” feat. Chris James

Grab your reading list. This tune is inspired by a Ray Bradbury short story, also titled The Veldt. That’s more to do with Chris James’ original lyrics, but it’s still totally awesome. You should know Ray Bradbury as the guy who wrote Fahrenheit 451, and if you don’t, get it together! deadmau5 created this song live during a 22-hour livestream. Dude is insane, right? The original version is just more than eight-and-a-half minutes long, and when the radio edit ends at just more than two-and-a-half, you’re like “wait, where is the rest of the song,” but the video is really cool, so we share it with you. This is a majestic bit of music, a perfect combination from deadmau5 and James.

6. deadmau5 – “Some Chords”

I nominate this track for Best Song Title of All Time. Basically every song in the history of ever could have this name, but only deadmau5 was lazy and clever enough to think of it. The chords in question are the backbone for the song, the musical template around which the beat aimlessly meanders. The chords evolve through different instrumentation, all the while the texture accents weave in and out to build the song to an aggressive fever pitch. 

5. deadmau5 – “Raise Your Weapon”

Heartbreak is never easy, but the music is inspires is some of the best ever written. “Raise Your Weapon” is a rallying cry, something to cling to in times of sadness. It’s opening piano notes, matched by singer Greta Svabo Bech’s listless vocal entry, welcomes your sorrow, but soon, the song finds strength, just as you will, given enough time. Bech is positively powerful by mid-section, and of course, so is the music, which eventually dissolves into a dubstep breakdown. It grips the listener from beginning to end, and though it’s a rather primitive bit of dubstep, it’s got some of the cooler noises we’ve heard in the garish genre. We’re happy to hear those piano chords finish it out, though. Part of your sadness never dies.

4. deadmau5 – “Faxing Berlin”

Faxing is an outdated form of communication, but it may have still been slightly relevant when deadmau5 first released this track in 2006. Email was totally relevant by then, but old people, you know? Famously supported by Pete Tong, “Faxing Berlin” is actually deadmau5’s first single ever, which is worth celebrating in itself. It’s also the first-ever release from mau5trap records. It’s also a constant favorite among fans, it’s slow build progressive vibe being absolutely quintessential to the deadmau5 sound. It’s one of his chillest, prettiest compositions. It’ll put you in a trance you’ll never want to escape.

3. deadmau5 – “I Remember” with Kaskade

“Faxing Berlin” is beautiful, but “I Remember” is one of the most luscious, gorgeous, all-encompassing electronic tunes of all time. It’s got classic written all over it, from the moment the beat and chords hit your ears, to the transcendent minute vocalist Haley Gibby sings into the mic, on through its full, spell-binding nine minutes. It’s kind of the perfect rave anthem, with soft female vocals whispering vaguely positive messages and chords in the tone of soft blues and whites. Something about it makes me reminisce about raves I went to in the mid 2000s, or maybe that’s just the song’s reminiscent vibe creeping into my head. I see what you did there, guys. Good game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7ArUgxtlJs

2. deadmau5 – “Ghosts n Stuff” feat. Rob Swire

Here we are again, these instantly-recognizable synth chords, this moment-defining sound. Of course, this time, we get the incredible Rob Swire, a man who was already a legend for his work with Pendulum, and who would go on to be even more famous as Knife Party. Swire is a beast on this track. This song was originally created at the request of Pete Tong, who essentially dared deadmau5 to make a new tune in time for his appearance on BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix. It’s one of deadmau5’s biggest hits ever, which is more than impressive for a last-minute production. This beat matched with these scream-along vocals makes for one of dance music’s most memorable refrains. It’s a classic. Kids 20 years from now will be like “have you heard Ghosts n Stuff,” and wish they were around to party in 2009, for sure.

1. deadmau5 – “Strobe”

I don’t think anybody would argue against “Strobe” being deadmau5’s best song. It’s iconic. It’s got all the elements that make deadmau5 the producer he is. It’s slow and pretty, it takes time to evolve, it’s got a slow and steady build, it erupts into progressive house perfection, it even carries a bit of hard electro edge. It’s just the jam. It’s such the jam, deadmau5 recently reimagined it for mau5trap’s 100th release, then he gave it away for free because he knew all you fools wanted it so bad. It’s one of those perfect electronic tunes that stays with you forever, and for that, we owe deadmau5 our eternal thanks.

Source: Billboard

http://tunecollective.com/2017/02/14/the-20-best-deadmau5-songs/