#brighton rock i'm coming for you

[momentomori24]

I FINALLY FINISHED PURPLE HIBISCUS 🎉🎉🎉That book shouldn't have taken me that much time to finish but I finally made it to the end like right now. It may have taken an all-nighter, but I got it done. One book, one more to go. Gotta finish that one before school starts...

[bluewinnerangel]

FITF Tour exit songs

- NA LEG - Uncasville: Tina Turner - The Best

Gilford: The Smiths - This Charming Man

Laval: Petula Clark - Downtown

Toronto: Bryan Adams - Summer Of '69

Cuyahoga Falls: The Verve - Bitter Sweet Symphony

Sterling Heights: Shed Seven - Chasing Rainbows

Cincinnati: The Killers - All These Things That I've Done

Columbus: R.E.M. - The One I Love

Indianapolis: Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart

Maryland Heights (St. Louis): Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode

Kansas City: Van Morrison - Moondance

Milwaukee: Johnny Nash - I Can See Clearly Now

Chicago: Earth, Wind & Fire - September

Minneapolis: Sinéad O'Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U

Council Bluffs: Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)

Sioux Falls: Don McLean - American Pie

Seattle: The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

Vancouver: The Police - King Of Pain

Troutdale: Elvis Presley - Always On My Mind

Berkeley: INXS - Never Tear Us Apart

Los Angeles: 2Pac - California Love

Las Vegas: The Killers - Human

Phoenix: Spear Of Destiny - Liberator

Irving: The Doors - Hello, I Love You

Austin: Wheatus - Teenage Dirtbag

Houston The Woodlands: The Police - Walking On The Moon

St. Augustine: The Police - Every Breath You Take

Hollywood: Elton John - Your Song

Tampa: Pat Benatar - Hit Me With Your Best Shot

Atlanta: The Rolling Stones - You Can't Always Get What You Want

Nashville: Duran Duran - Hold Back The Rain

Charlotte: Lou Reed - Perfect Day

Raleigh: Van Morrison - Moondance

Columbia: Commodores - Easy

Boston 1: Boston - More Than A Feeling

Boston 2: Pixies - Here Comes Your Man

Philadelphia: Sinéad O'Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U

Asbury Park: Bruce Springsteen - Dancing In The Dark

New York: Queen - We Are The Champions (dj elf asked a fan to pick between this one and David Bowie - Heroes)

- EU & UK LEG - Hamburg: Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart

Copenhagen: Queen & David Bowie - Under Pressure

Oslo: Green Day - Wake Me Up When September Ends

Stockholm: The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army

Helsinki: Elvis Presley - Always On My Mind

Tallinn: Smash Mouth - All Star

Riga: AC/DC - Thunderstruck

Kaunas: Elvis Presley - Can't Help Falling in Love

Krakow: Iggy Pop - Lust For Life

Łódź: Ramones - Blitzkrieg Bop

Vienna: Oasis - Supersonic

Ljubljana: The Killers - Smile Like You Mean It

Budapest: Bloc Party - Helicopter

Bucharest: Foo Fighters - My Hero

Sofia: Rage Against The Machine - Bombtrack

Bilbao: Pixies - Where Is My Mind

Lisbon: White Lies - Farewell to the Fairground

Madrid: Editors - Munich

Barcelona: At the Drive-In - One Armed Scissor

Turin: Lenny Kravitz - Are You Gonna Go My Way

Bologna: Bloc Party - Helicopter

Luxembourg: Pixies - Where Is My Mind

Antwerp: Queens Of The Stone Age - My God Is The Sun

Paris: Biffy Clyro - Bubbles

Amsterdam: Blur - Song 2

Cologne: The Libertines - Can't Stand Me Now

Prague: Jet - Are You Gonna Be My Girl

Berlin: The Cure - Friday I'm in Love

Munich: Fatboy Slim - Praise You

Zurich: The Strokes - Last Nite

Dublin: Inhaler - These Are The Days

Sheffield: The Killers - Mr. Brightside

Manchester: The Smiths - This Charming Man

Glasgow: The Snuts - Gloria

Brighton: Ramones - I Wanna Be Sedated

Cardiff: T. Rex - 20th Century Boy

London: The Libertines - Can't Stand Me Now

Birmingham: Boyz II Men - End Of The Road

- ASIA & AUS LEG - Jakarta: Iggy Pop - Lust For Life

Melbourne: Jet - Are You Gonna Be My Girl

Brisbane: The Temper Trap - Fader

Sydney: Oasis - Rock 'N' Roll Star

- LATAM LEG - Panama: Hard-Fi - Living for the Weekend

San Juan: Pixies - Where Is My Mind

Rio de Janeiro: Nirvana - Heart-Shaped Box

Like last time the plan is to keep editing this post as tour goes on - 2022 LTWT here

Apple music playlist here

[woso-dreamzzz]

Movie Night

Courtney Nevin x Reader

Summary: You see your girlfriend

It's not often that you made the drive.

It was nearly three hours from Brighton to Leicester on a good day, nearly four on a bad one so it wasn't something you got into the habit of doing.

A route from hell divided you and your girlfriend. You weren't in one of those relationships that could meet somewhere in the middle. It was all or nothing.

When your contracts ended you had both already decided that you would need to go to the same club. The distance was stressful to both you and Courtney which was probably why you were making the trip.

You had training tomorrow but you had already dropped hints to Vicky that you were feeling sick so calling in would be easy tomorrow. You knew that Courtney had done the same with Aileen.

It wasn't the most responsible or professional thing to do but you couldn't care less when you ran from your car straight into your girlfriend's arms.

You take in a deep breath and relaxed into her familiar warmth and security.

"I missed you," Courtney said softly," So much."

"Missed you too," You said. Your words were muffled and you refused to remove yourself from her safe embrace.

You don't really know how long you spent on her doorstep, in the cold England night, just rocking back and forth, soaking each other in.

"I've got the movies queued up," Courtney whispered in your ear," And snacks. Do you want to head in?"

"You're perfect," You said as she lead you into the house.

Your girlfriend pushed you onto the sofa and bundled up the blankets. She milled around you for a moment before sitting down and pulling your legs into her lap.

They were a little numb from driving nearly three hours without any breaks and you actually moaned when Courtney began to massage you. She knew just where to put the right amounts of pressure and where to let up until you were completely boneless next to her, unable to really do anything but shovel more food into your mouth and stare at the screen in front of you.

You don't know how many movies you watched, you just knew that it was five in the afternoon when you left your house and now it was coming up to three in the morning.

You didn't want to move though, content in your little cocoon of blankets with Courtney's warm body next to you.

You yawned.

"Do you want to head up to bed?" Courtney asked as she readied the next movie (the shared Netflix account was a god send when deciding which movies seemed interesting enough to watch).

"Don't want to move," You grunted before completely contradicting yourself by readjusting your position so your head was in her lap.

Blindly, you reached for Courtney's hand and pulled it onto your head.

She was quick on the uptake and gently scratched at your scalp. The pressure was just right, exactly like the kind of perfect pressure she used on your legs.

"I think we're sleeping down here, huh?" She laughed softly.

"You can keep watching your movies," You said, eyes dropping closed and words slurring with sleep," I'm...I'm just going to take a little nap."

She chuckled and it rocked your body a little. It was a good rocking though and just pushed you deeper into your exhausted haze.

"You can sleep as long as you'd like," Courtney said fondly as her expert fingers continued to massage your head," It's not like we're going to training tomorrow."

[worsethankonstantinlevin]

Anti-fascist counter demos in the UK on Wednesday the 7th and Friday the 9th of August

There are going to be a new round of anti-immigrant fascist riots in the UK on Wednesday the 7th of August and Friday the 9th. If you are able to get to one of the counter-demos, and it is safe for you to do so (and I'm including safe for your mental health; please don't push yourself too far), it's really important to go. Not only to physically stop the fascists from burning down immigration lawyers' practices or attacking Muslims in the street, but to stand up and be counted. This is a terrifying time to be an immigrant or a person of colour in the UK, and seeing the fascists outnumbered and humiliated by decent people can go some way to making it less bad.

Stay safe:

come early, well before the fascists assemble

Wear a mask, not only to avoid police surveillance but to avoid being doxxed by the fascists

Don't carry identifying information, such as credit cards, in case the police arrest you

Write the number for a protest lawyer on your arm so you won't lose it

Bring water

Bring suncream

Bring a friend if you can

Wear comfortable shoes

Stand Up to Racism has thhe best list of organised counter-demos. I wouldn't advise turning up to oppose a fascist march if you're not sure whether a counter demo has been called, but here's a list of places the far right has singled out to target on Wednesday at 8pm, so you know broadly whether your city is on the list:

ALDERSHOT

Immigration Advisors Ltd, Victoria Road, GU11 1TH

CANTERBURY

UK Immigration Clinic, Canterbury Innovation Centre, CT2 7FG

CHATHAM

Immigration Status UK, Maidstone Road, ME5 9FD

CHELMSFORD

UK Immigration Information Centre, Violet Close, CM1 6XG

BEDFORD

Immigration INN, Ford End Road, MK40 4JT

BIRMINGHAM

Refugee and migrant centre, Frederick Street, B1 3HN

BLACKBURN

Rafiq Immigration Services, Whalley Road, BB5 1AA

BLACKPOOL

Immigration Solicitors, Enterprise Centre, Lytham Road, FY1 1EW

BOLTON

Deane & Bolton Immigration lawyers, Chorley new road, BL1 4QR

BRENTFORD

UK Immigration Help, Great West End, TW8 9HH

BRIGHTON

Raj Rayan Immigration, Queens Road, BN1 3XF

BRISTOL

Gya Williams Immigration, West Street, BS2 0BL

CHEADLE

Intime Immigration Services, Brooks Drive, SK8 3TD

DERBY

Immigration advisory Service, Normanton Road, DE23 6US HARROW

Yes UK Immigration, Pinner Road, HA1 4HN

HASTINGS

Black Rock Immigration, Cambridge Gardens, TN34 1EN

HULL

Conroy Baker Immigration Lawyer, Norwich House, Savile Street, HU1 3ES

KENT

Kent Immigration and advice, Castle Hill Road, CT16 1QG

LINCOLN

Immigration Lawyer Services, Carlton Mews, LN2 4FJ

LIVERPOOL

Merseyside Refugee Centre, Overbury Street, L7 3HJ

MIDDLESBOROUGH

Immigration advice centre, Linthorpe Road, TS1 4AT

NEWCASTLE United Immigration Services - Westgate Road, NE4 9PQ

NORTH FINCHLEY

Immigration and Nationality Services, Percy Road, N128BU

NORTHAMPTON

Zenith Immigration Lawyers, Talbot Road, NN1 4JB

NOTTINGHAM East Midlands Immigration Services - Stonesbury Vale NG2 7UR

OLDHAM

Expert Immigration - Ellen Street 0L9 6QR

OXFORD

Asylum Welcome, Magdelen Road, OX4 1RE

PETERBOROUGH

Smart Immigration Services, Lincoln Road, PE1 2PN

PORTSMOUTH

UK Border Agency, Kettering Terrace, PO2 8QN

PRESTON

Adriana Immigration Services, Church Street PR1 3BS

ROTHERHAM

Parker Rhodes Immigration Lawyer, The Point S60 1BP

SHEFFIELD

White Rose Visas, Wilkinson Street, S10 2GJ

STOKE

ZR Visas, Metcalfe Road, ST6 7AZ

SOUTHAMPTON

Y-Axis Immigration Consultants, Grosvenor Square, SO15 2BG

SOUTHEND

MNS Immigration Solicitors, Ditton Court Road, SS0 7HG

SUNDERLAND

North of England Refugee Service, High Street East, SR1 2AX

TAMWORTH

Lawrencia & Co immigration solicitors, Amber Business Village, B77 4RP

WALTHAMSTOW

Waltham Forest Immigration Bureau, Hoe Street, E17 3AP

WIGAN

Support for Wigan Arrivals Project, Penson Street WN1 2LP

[twotitsjohndecaon]

Brighton Rock | Nothing 'Ere Need Come Between Us

Hey besties!!! So sorry I disappeared for like a rlly long time. I got depression and then recovered from depression but we're back and thriving now!!! Here is the last part of the series, long awaited. tbh haven't read this shit in like a year so I hope it's ok but it should be :) Hope y'all enjoy :))

Word Count: 4.2k

Warnings: Filthy smut. Bad. Xtremely dirty. 18+ only, dni in any form if you're under 18 I'm dead serious. Blatant infidelity and cheating, if you're not ok w reading about that this also isn't for you. Some sad/mad emotions for a brief time. Maybe some drinking and swearing, I can't remember for sure. You have been warned.

“Where’ve you been for two hours?” Julie interrogated. You were flustered, not even thinking about the fact they might be back and you were gone longer than you should’ve. 

“I… got the sun cream, tried to walk back, but then I couldn’t find you all, so I looked for you then came back.”

“We were in the same spot!”

“But I wasn’t paying attention on the way there!” Julie rolled her eyes. 

“What’s on your neck?” she said, seeing the marks Brian had left, even though they were small. You hadn’t realized there’d been any. 

“Nothing. My skins just sensitive right now,” you said, your hand flying to your neck and clasping over the side of it. You sighed, changing and taking a quick shower, trying to position your hair to cover your neck. You hadn’t brought anything to cover it either, so you groaned and went back in the room, muttering you were going to take a nap, exhausted after your encounter, understandably. You had to be more careful, but you also didn’t know how else you could see Brian without suspicion. Luckily, Julie was still young enough to not realize a love bite right away, and she was in her “I don’t care” phase anyways so she dropped it pretty easily. But that and with the call earlier and your other disappearing acts, you worried she’d put everything together soon. You sighed as you tried to fall asleep, willing the thought to go away, and for her to be oblivious. You woke up, had dinner, and went to bed early still. Waking up early, you changed silently as Julie slept and snuck out to meet Brian. Luckily the heatwave made it so that the morning wasn’t frigid in any way, and you happened to run into Brian in the foyer as you went to leave.

“Ah, good,” Brain said, seeing you. You smiled at each other, happy to see him again. Time with your family was nice, so was time alone, but something about time with Brian seemed even easier and more enjoyable. “Look at you,” Brian whispered softly, giving you a quick kiss. Your chest fluttered for a moment. You only indulged him for a second before breaking away, fearful of getting caught somehow. 

“Shall we?” You offered. Brian assented and the two of you headed to the beach. “Where should we set up?” You asked, trudging along the beach.

“Over there,” he said, pointing towards a more secluded corner near the wharf, almost obscured into the large posts holding the dock up. You thought it a bit strange, but it was nice still. Besides, you didn’t want this getting out more than he did. The two of you sat down and made yourselves comfortable. “Sorry to wake you up so early.” “It’s alright. I had an early night,” you said.

“Tired from something?”

“I can’t imagine what,” the two of you sneakily smiled to each other and laughed. The sun rose further and its first true rays peaked out from behind the clouds and you sighed happily at the warmth. Brian admired you, and you could see him looking in your peripherals. To tease him further, you took off the light t-shirt you’d been wearing to cover your bikini top and tossed it aside, leaning down. You could hear Brian exhale softly at this, and his next move was scooting forward a bit, lifting your head, and placing it on his lap. 

“This good?” he asked, smiling down at you and brushing your hair away from your face. You smiled.

“Yeah,” you assented softly. You loved the little gestures he was making. In fact, you loved how Brian made you feel most of the time. He made you feel wanted and desired wholly, in softness and in lust. One moment he went from staring at you like he was going to devour you to the next, his gaze shifting, and then looking at you innocently as if you were the sun. You weren’t afraid of these feelings, even if they were rare and hard to shake. You knew this would be over soon, and you decided you might as well let yourself feel everything in your limited time together. Brian looked up, squinting towards the sea and sun. It was so quiet and peaceful, it being so early meaning that no one else had really come out to the beach yet. The only sounds were the waves. He looked thoughtful.

“What’re you thinking about?” you asked softly. He smiled.

“Do you know why the waves push and pull?”

“Because of the moon?”

“Kind of. The moon controls the tide, not the waves. That’s the wind. But do you know why the moon controls the tides?” he asked. You were quiet for a second.

“No, I guess not.” Brian looked down at you excitedly. He pulled your shoulders up and leaned his head down near yours so you were cheek to cheek and could see from his perspective.

“Well, the moon and the Earth are both rotating all of the time, and they’re rotating in the same direction. And the moon and the Earth have a gravitational pull on each other. So when the moon passes over some place on Earth, some place with water, that gravitational pull makes the water bump out towards the moon and on the side of the world directly opposite the moon. That’s what makes high tide. And when the moon isn’t over some place, it’s low tide,” Brian whispered to you, his voice going softly into your ear. “Make sense?” 

“Yeah,” you said, entranced by him. Brian looked at you, still looking out to the sea and decided to continue. 

“But— but the moon and the Earth, since they’re rotating in the same direction, means that it takes a bit for one to catch up to the other. So when there’s high tide, the moon isn’t actually directly over that place yet. The tides a little early,” he finished, hugging you to him.

“Wow. How do you know all of that?” you asked.

“I studied astrophysics in school a while ago,” he finished. 

“Well, that’s really something special,” you said, looking deep into your eyes. Ok. Maybe you did have to be afraid of these feelings. Because they were starting to feel very, very deep and hard to shake.

“I think you’re pretty special,” he said, looking at you deeply before kissing you. You melted into him this time, feeling the sun and joy upon his lips and it all felt like Brian. The two of you sat and talked lazily for a while longer before the mass of people started filing into the beach, and the two of you decided to go and walk down the promenade. The two of you were quiet, knowing that your outing together for the day would have to end soon again, both of you upset at this. You didn’t want to leave Brian, and you nothing seemed as good as being with him. He turned you around, holding your hands. The sun beat down on your backs.

“I’m terribly sorry sweetheart, but I really must go,” Brian said sorrowfully. Your face crumpled, and you nodded.

“I should too,” you said over the loud tourists now, the seagulls squawking, children playing, and people eating and mingling. Brian was about to tear away. “I don’t—“ you started. He turned back towards you and grabbed your hands tighter. “I don’t want you to go,” you said more clearly now. Brian sighed, rubbing his thumbs over your knuckles. 

“I don’t want to go either. I wish there was a way…” he trailed off, knowing there wasn’t one and he couldn’t finish that sentence.

“Can we find one?” you asked. Brian thought for a moment. 

“Shit,” he whispered for a second, rubbing his forehead with one of his hands, seemingly stressed for a moment before grabbing your hand again. He looked around, like he was fearful of being watched. You supposed you were too. He looked back to you. 

“Yes. I don’t know about finding a way— I can’t think of one right now, but I need to see you again. I— ok, come to the room again. Tonight for dinner.”

“How am I gonna get out of dinner?” You questioned, more to yourself. This seemed to be the only way to see Brian, but you didn’t know how you’d be able to weasel your way out of that one again. 

“I’m not sure, I’m sorry. But it’s the only time— I’ll have to make something up myself,” he finished. You were too preoccupied with your own problem to ask what that meant. “Same room as last time. I’m sorry it’s so difficult, but it’s the only time I can again,” he said, truly looking sorry but desperate to see you. You were a bit desperate too already for the next time you’d see him. This wouldn’t be fun to break once you left Brighton. You nodded.

“I’ll find a way,” you said. Brian and you looked at each other for a moment, not wanting to break away, unable again to do so. 

“Fuck it,” Brian whispered quickly before grabbing you and giving you a deep kiss. Once he pulled away, you had to smile. You couldn’t help it. That did it. 

“See you tonight,” you said, finally able to break away and hurried back to the hotel for breakfast. 

“Hi Julie, just have to change from my run before I head down,” you said, trying to avoid questions from the start as you walked into your room. 

“Whatever,” she said, flopping on her bed for a few moments as she waited for you to change quickly. You did so and headed down to breakfast, no questions asked. You went along with whatever shenanigans your family had planned for the day, and then it was nearly time. 

“Think I’ll sit out this dinner,” you commented just before your aunt and uncle parted ways to freshen up for the meal. Everyone paused, looking at you. 

“Y/N, it’s our last dinner, nonsense!” said your aunt.

“Really, the food’s not sitting with me well. I think it’s from eating out so much during this trip,” you said. Your aunt and uncle looked at you. 

“Well, you don’t have to eat if you don’t feel well, but you’ll at least sit with us. We want your company,” said your uncle. Fuck. It wasn’t working.

“I— really can’t,” you said, clamming up. 

“Why not?” Asked Julie.

“Y/N, what’s the matter?” Your aunt asked.

“You can tell us, is this why you’ve kept disappearing from time to time?” Asked your uncle. You felt terrible for lying, especially when they were being so kind and had been for even taking you on this trip. You had to think of something, right now, right in this moment. 

“I— I’m not alright! I’ve... well, this trip has been very special to me,” you said, calming down. Everyone was focussed straight on you, and all of your anxiety about Brian and everything for this moment gave you a saving grace. Your eyes became watery. You didn’t cry, but were visibly on the verge of it. 

“And, uh, I’m sad about going soon. Very upset. And truth is, I feel like I’ve made a… special connection to Brighton while I’ve been here, and I wanted to take one last walk around in the daylight. Alone. Before tomorrow. Just to connect,” you said. You paused, gauging the reactions. It was some of the greatest bullshit which has ever spewed from your lips, but after a moment:

“Aw, lovely, why didn’t you just say so?” Said your uncle. 

“We’re so glad we were able to give you such a touching experience. And that we’ve been able to spend more time with you,” said your aunt, pulling you into a hug. Somehow, it seemed to have worked.

“Sorry— I would’ve told you. It was just… hard for me to conceptualize,” you said. You felt even worse for lying now that they were being so accepting and caring about your feelings and you were taking advantage of theirs. But what had to be done had to be done. 

“We understand. Go, have your special moment. We’re so grateful you’ve come on our holiday,” said your aunt. They departed, leaving just with Julie. You went into the room, and sat on your bed, willing her not to comment on anything, even though you knew there wasn’t any real hope for that. The door closed, and she looked at you with contempt, hands on her hips, accusatory.

“You expect me to believe that for one second?” she said, voice high. 

“Julie! I don’t know what you’re talking about!” you said, done with all of her antics by this point. 

“You might have convinced them, but I know you’re hiding something. You keep appearing, doing strange things, strange calls… tell me right now what’s going on or I’ll tell my parents you’re lying,” said finished. You still felt bad for lying, but played into your part. She didn’t really have anything on you, to your knowledge. 

“There’s nothing to tell, Julie,” you said angrily. “I’m not lying.” Julie glared at you, and changed, now in a mood. The two of you ignored each other, and she left without a word, slamming the door. You should’ve waited longer to be sure they were gone, really, but you couldn’t help yourself, almost immediately jumping up and heading to Brian’s room. You knocked on the door, and no one answered. You groaned frustrated, and already near tears from the confrontations from just earlier. You needed Brian now, needed him to make you feel ok like he always did, and he wasn’t answering. Where was he? You knocked again, and still nothing. Your breathing picked up, and you turned around, crossing your arms. Great. Now he was turning out to be all a lie as well, all of this for nothing. You can’t believe he really was going to ditch you. You were so stupid, believing him, you’d given him what he wanted and he’d left you high and dry, and brought your feelings into it as well. Why did you have to go on and catch feelings for him? Deep feelings, ones that—

“Sorry, I’m so sorry I’m late,” Brian said suddenly, running up to you, and reaching underneath your arm to unlock the door and push you in. You were so baffled, and Brian was so quick in closing the door, you nearly tripped inside, but once you straightened up, Brian tossed the keys down, and looked at you. “What’s the matter?” he asked. Nothing. It was nothing, because he was here and you were fine now. You shook your head, and walked towards the bed. The room looked a bit more lived in now than it had before, but it was still pretty clean, unmussed. Brian grabbed your waist from behind, and leaned down to your ear. “What’s wrong?” but you didn’t answer again, fine that he was here, and grabbed the back of his neck to kiss him. He kissed back, the two of you starting to make out intensely, the kiss deepening and your tongues falling into each others mouth, Brian sighing into your mouth. You kissed until the both of you were out of breath. 

“Want you,” you whimpered softly, trying to convey how much you needed Brian right now, and he needed you just as much. Brian nodded. He turned you around and began slowly undressing the two of you standing as you continued to kiss, the process being deeper than ever but the slowest it had been, not a ravenous hunger this time but an intense process of appreciation. Once Brian had gotten the two of you to your underwear, he sat back against the bed and you came to his lap. Your lips still never parted, both of you moving with each other to get you more and more ready. Eventually, Brian made a beautiful gasp into your lips, and that alit you, kissing down to his neck, to which he sighed, then down his chest to his stomach. You looked to him, grabbing the waistband of his boxers, making direct eye contact. 

“Oh, sweetheart,” he cooed in complete appreciation of what you were about to do. You removed his pants, and took him into your mouth slowly. Brian groaned softly, making the most gorgeous noises, and you took your time to taste as much of him as you could. He wove a hand into your hair, guiding you but not forcing you down, moaning softly, until he tugged on your head to bring you up. “Very lovely, darling, but I want to fuck you still,” Brian said. You just brought him in for another kiss, not being able to wait any longer. You needed him inside you, needed to feel how fantastic it was. You removed your final pieces of clothing and sank down onto him, the stretch sending you reeling in the best ways. Just when you felt like you were about to leave the moment, Brian grabbed your upper back, bringing you to his gaze, and encouraging you to move. You moved together, it being wonderful, and you were with him, and it was everything perfect. You looked into his eyes and he into yours the entire time. This was different from the other times, it wasn’t an animalistic fucking for only pleasure as the two of you had in the past, it was a connection this time, a language the two of you were making only between yourselves. Before you knew it, and far too quickly, you were close, and so was he, and the two of you shuddered, falling into each other and into bliss as the two of you finished. You pulled off of him, but stayed in his lap, kissing, and he only held you tighter, as tight as possible as the two of you came down. You couldn’t avoid it forever.

“I’m leaving tomorrow,” you blurted out suddenly. Brian pulled back, looking into your eyes, his eyes moving back and forth, seeing you were telling the truth. He was devastated. He didn’t expect to be, and neither did you, but it was the truth.  “I don’t want to go. I don’t want to be away from you,” you said. 

“I— I don’t want you to go either,” Brian said in near horror, thinking about the fact that this was the last time he could hold you. “No, there has to be something, has to be a way,” he whispered, looking down, trying to think of something. You both racked your brains. “Stay here, stay a little longer with me, even if your family goes, you can… you can stay in here,” he said. 

“I can’t do that. What will they say? What about my parents back home, when they find out I’ve stayed in Brighton?” 

“Why can’t they know?”

“They… they’ll never approve. They already think I’m some sort of crazed slut, and if they figure out I’ve met someone on holiday, not only will my aunt and uncle who’ve only treated me with kindness and understanding find out I’ve been lying to them, but my parents will… they’ll stop paying for my school. And I can’t afford it on my own, and I don’t know what I’ll do,” you said, panicked.

“Are you sure they wouldn’t?”

“Yeah,” you nodded, nearly beginning to cry. 

“Shit,” Brian said, sweeping his thumb under your eyes to prevent any tears from dripping down. “But you can’t go. I— fuck, I know this sounds crazy, but I suppose I’ll just say it. I know I’ve just met you and I know this is insane, but I think I love you. And you can’t leave, I can’t—,” Brian stopped, almost choking up himself. Your breathing stopped at his admittance, but then everything became more clear and more complicated at once.

“I think I love you too. But I don’t know what to do,” you said, crying more. Brian continued to wipe your tears. You stood up, getting dressed, getting ready to leave, because there was nothing else to do.

“Wait, Y/N, no,” Brian said, getting somewhat redressed himself quickly to stop you.

“Brian, I have to—“

“No, please,” he pleaded, grabbing your arm softly. 

“Brian, I have to!” you exclaimed, this already being too difficult a departure. Going back home would be absolute hell. Everything after this, the memories, everything, would be hell. 

“But why…”

“Because, I—!” you nearly shouted, stopping with a gasp. Brian was just about to ask what you’d stopped for, before he realized himself. His stomach dropped. You’d seen it. On the dresser, you couldn’t believe you hadn’t noticed it before. A wedding ring, a man’s wedding ring, sat there, gleaming in the rising moon. You felt sick. He couldn’t be. But the room changes. And the strange meeting times. The not wanting to be found out. And… everything, which was making sense now. You couldn’t believe it. Sure, he was older, but still, you couldn’t believe any of this had happened, that he’d allowed it, that you’d gone along with it so far, that the two of you had apparently fallen in love despite all of it. 

“Y/N,” he whispered in immense fear of what was going to happen next, how you’d react, and the realization of what he’d done setting in. Your breathing was shaky, and you couldn’t move for a moment before you turned around and faced Brian, the arm holding you falling limp. You looked into his eyes. It was a look of betrayal now, but of things making sense, and the next steps being clear now. You swallowed, and took a deep breath.

“Because,” you restated, in only a whisper now. “Because my family wouldn’t allow it. And I love you, but you’re already for someone else,” you finished. Brian held your hands again. He was quiet, not meeting your gaze, looking absolutely distraught. 

“I do love you,” he said. “I’m not lying.”

“I know. But you, you’re… married,” you choked out. 

“I’ll leave—,” Brian stopped himself, not wanting to make promises. He really did love you. But he had fucked up. You shook your head. “I’m so sorry,” he apologized. You gulped.

“I won’t say anything. But I wouldn’t have if… and, I suppose, it’s beneficial still if we both just forget it happened. Don’t let it get out,” you said. Brian hated this, and so did you. Nothing was right anymore. “Well, that’s all it ever was, wasn’t it? Just a holiday fling? A mindless, holiday fling?” you said.

“It wasn’t,” Brian said, and you both knew he was right. “But that’s what we’ll have to leave it as,” he conceded.

“How the memory will go,” you finished. You squeezed each others hands, took in each other for the last time. Now you both knew, this would never, ever work. It was a true shame.

“Goodbye, Brian,” you said.

“Goodbye, Y/N,” he said slowly after you. You gave one last look into each others eyes. You left, walking back to your room and having a big old cry. Brian wished he hadn’t looked into your eyes that final time. He wanted the gaze of love, so brief, to be the only one in his memory, forever, but now his last glimpse was all of the hurt he created.

The next morning, you were on the train back. You were silent the whole ride, and luckily Julie seemed to have dropped everything from the night before. It’d worked perfectly, you supposed. No one had found out. But nothing was as it should. You went back home, and so did Brian soon after you, and each of you went back to your normal lives, now a bit more broken inside.

*** 

Time, much time, had passed, and many things had changed. You still didn’t feel as alive as you had with Brian since then, and neither did he, but you were beginning to get back into the swing of things. The seasons had changed, it’d grown hot and cold, and you missed him still, even though everything had ended so messily. One day, much after everything, you had managed to stumble upon something on Brian, then taking to a friend finding out where he was last seen, then through a few calls and using your best sleuthing skills, you had seemingly found where you could reach him. You knew you shouldn’t but you couldn’t resist. It didn’t have to mean anything, and besides, what was a letter?

***

Brian, much after, came home at the end of a long day. He opened his letterbox out of habit, sifting through everything quickly and tiredly on his couch, before he sat up, wide eyed. 

“To Brian May, from Y/N L/N,” it read. Brian opened it quickly, reading and smiling at your familiar person, it coming through your writing. He was thrilled to hear from you, and you had included a return address. Brian wasted no time sending a letter back. 

It was all innocent, really. Genuinely. But couldn’t help your excitement as you opened your letter from Brian, before starting to pen another in response back. 

“Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside…” you quoted, starting your correspondence back. 

[lanaxoxoxoxoxox]

HMMM I SAW THOSE DIALOGUE PROMPTS so i'm gonna give u one before i go to bed!

“why can’t i get you out of my head?” with ranboo?? :0

xoxo love u lana take care bb /p <3

i- this is perfect. literally perfect.

i know this fic is long BUT TRUST ME ON THIS ONE !!

"why can't i get you out of my head?"

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

ranboo x gn!reader

warnings: brainrotting fluff that will make you want to cry /pos,

definition: everytime you have tried to tell ranboo you admire them by giving hints

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

y/n's pov

where it started !

"Hey Will?" I spoke up into the mic.

Wilbur's voice came through my headphones. "Yes?" he said, taking a sip of his water.

I paused. "I think I'm going to tell Ran I like them."

Since Wilbur's webcam on, I could see him spit out his drink in surprise.

"You- what?! Really?" I nodded, laughing at his response. "That's amazing, Y/n. How are you going to do it?" he asked.

I explained to Will how I was going to slowly compliment him and just make it obvious bit by bit until Ran finally said something.

"That's actually.... really smart." he laughed.

"I know, right?!"

brighton beach !

It was 11:38 pm at night, and my eyes were slowly starting to close. Will had invited the other Sorry Boys and I to come see the Lovejoy gig in Brighton. The show was incredible overall, but the thing that was running through my mind is how I was going to first start the confession mission, as Will and I called it.

All of us were walking down a dark alleyway that was barely lit. Street lights flickering every other minute, and closed shop signs hung on the doors. We finally got to the pier, and walked down to the beach.

Coming down to the beach in Brighton was always a treat, even during the day and it's super busy, or if there's not really "sand", and the beach is just slippery rocks. At night it was especially great, because no one was there except for the occasional teenagers. Everyone else stared at the soft waves crashing against the shore, with the stars glimmering behind it. "What was I looking at?" you might ask. I was looking at the glimmering thing next to me, Ran.

They were looking at the view in front of them, their gray eyes glimmering from the reflection of the stars above. Their hair was fluffy and had streaks of caramel brown from the early morning sun.

I kept looking at them, admiring their features rather than the once in a lifetime view in front of me.

Ran finally turned their head and saw me looking at them, instantly making eye contact with me for a few seconds. He looked back to the waves and fixed their hair.

"Are you going to stare at me or the view of the waves?" he teased, looking back at me once more.

I stared at him for a few seconds, before tilting my head slightly to the right, observing his freckles that painted his cheeks and nose. "Hmm... I think you're much more admirable." I said, confidently.

I looked at them and could see blush tinting their cheeks. I looked over to Wilbur on my left and nodded to him. I mouthed, "Mission accomplished." Wilbur smiled.

on stream !

"Hey chat! It's your favorite human, Y/n here. Today, I'm joined by Ranboo in my lovely kitchen!" I said, smiling into the webcam.

Chat went 100 miles per hour seeing Ranboo and I in the same room. Chat filled up with "y/nboo" and "my favorite streamers!!" or whatever chants they could come up with.

"Chat's really loving this duo, huh?" I smirked. I looked over to Ran. "Might as well have to deliver this duo more, shall we boo?"

I may or may not have especially chosen that nickname on purpose, since it would not only just make them a little flustered, but more flustered since we were streaming.

I kept staring at Ran. They looked at me with surprise in their eyes, but also a scolding look at the same moment. I looked over at chat to see their responses.

user444: WAIT WHAT

user555: DID YOU GUYS HEAR THAT???

user10: "BOO"??? WHAATTTTTT [shock]

y/n4life: ahhh my fave duo!!!!

I innocently continued on with the stream, acting like nothing happened. And I swear, I made him blush again. 2 missions accomplished.

on the train !

Ranboo, Tommy, Wilbur, Niki, Jack and I were all on the train on the way to London to record a new vlog. Tommy and Wilbur were on their phones playing some random game, and Niki and Jack were talking about the vlog and stream ideas. Ranboo and I were just sitting next to eachother peacefully, sharing earbuds and listening to music playlists. It's been a couple weeks since the kitchen stream, and I had honestly forgotten entirely about it. I yawned, feeling my eyes slowly close and my head lean against the shaking train window.

Ranboo spoke up next to me. "Y/n, love." Wilbur and Tommy peeked up from their phones and exchanged looks with each other at Ranboo's words. "Your head is going to hurt a fucking lot if you lean against the window."

"There's literally nowhere else to sleep. What the hell am I supposed to do?" I said.

Ranboo faked coughed into his elbow and looked at the other side of the train. He then looked at me giving approval.

I laid my head down on his chest and curled my legs on the chair as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders. I blushed, hiding my face in his hoodie. Ran then placed his head on the seat, leaning his neck back, somehow being comfortable.

Tommy whispered to the others, thinking we couldn't hear him as we snuggled. "Deffo flerting." he said, getting the others to giggle. I saw Jack and Wilbur take a picture from their phones through the corner of my eye.

"You realize we can hear you, right?" Ranboo spoke up.

confessions !

I was walking down the shore with Ran at night, as he had asked me to come meet him there. I wasn't sure what he wanted, and I was utterly confused.

"Um, Y-y/n? Can we stop here for a second? There's something I need to tell you." Ranboo said, looking up at me with dilated eyes.

I nodded. "Yeah, is everything alright?" I said, taking his hand in mine.

He looked down at our hands and I could see the tip of his ears blush for a few split moments. He took a deep breath.

"I'm in love with you, y/n l/n. I've noticed your little compliments and flirts here and there, from the beach, the stream, on the train. Everywhere. And I can't help but fucking adore it. I've always fucking thought why you can never get out of my head. I truly love you, and if you don't love me back, that's fine. But I can only live with you knowing, no matter what your answer is."

I stared at his eyes. I'm 99% sure someone on TikTok said that a persons eyes dilate when they're in love, and just by telling and looking from his eyes, it seemed true. I looked quickly at his parted lips.

"Yes, I fucking love you too, idiot. I'm the one who flirted with you first!" I spoke back.

Ranboo tilted my head with his fingers, and looked down at my lips and back to my eyes. "May I kiss you?"

"Mhm." I said.

I felt him close the space between us, and I swear, my legs could have gone flat. He wrapped his arm around my waist, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. I pulled away, and I smiled, leaning my forehead against his.

Let's just say we left a trail of memories on the way.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───

do you guys want a part 2? i have some ideas teehee

hope you enjoyed!! please support me by sending in requests/asks, liking, replying, reblogging, following my blog or sending a dm!! everything helps for me to continue writing <3

love you xoxoxo

[allthe-queens-men]

Songwriter Showdown

Soul Brothers Edition

Songs credited solely to Freddie Mercury

Bicycle Race, Body Language, Bohemian Rhapsody, Bring Back That Leroy Brown, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Death on Two Legs (Dedicated to…), Don't Stop Me Now, Don't Try Suicide, Flick of the Wrist, Funny How Love Is, Get Down, Make Love, Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy, Great King Rat, In the Lap of the Gods, In the Lap of the Gods…Revisited, It's a Hard Life, Jealousy, Jesus, Keep Passing the Open Windows, Killer Queen, Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon, Let Me Entertain You, Liar, Life is Real (Song of Lennon), Lily of the Valley, Love of My Life, Man on the Prowl, Mustapha, My Fairy King, My Melancholy Blues, Nevermore, Ogre Battle, Play the Game, Princes of the Universe, Seaside Rendezvous, Seven Seas of Rhye, Somebody to Love, Staying Power, The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke, The March of the Black Queen, The Millionaire Waltz, We Are the Champions, You Take My Breath Away

Songs credited solely to Brian May

’39, All Dead All Dead, Brighton Rock, Dancer, Dead on Time, Dear Friends, Dragon Attack, Dreamer's Ball, Fat Bottomed Girls, Father to Son, Gimme the Prize (Kurgan's Theme), Good Company, Hammer to Fall, It's Late, Keep Yourself Alive, Las Palabras de Amor (The Words of Love), Leaving Home Ain't Easy, Long Away, Now I'm Here, Procession, Put Out the Fire, Sail Away Sweet Sister, Save Me, She Makes Me (Stormtrooper in Stilettoes), Sleeping on the Sidewalk, Some Day One Day, Son and Daughter, Sweet Lady, Tear It Up, Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together), The Night Comes Down, The Prophet's Song, Tie Your Mother Down, We Will Rock You, White Man, White Queen (As It Began), Who Wants to Live Forever

[1waveshortofashipwreck]

shuffle your favorite playlist and post the first five songs that come up. then copy/paste this ask to your favorite mutuals <3

@ronsenthal @sweetxvanixlla @panzershrike-pretz AAAAAAAAAAAA THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR THE ASKS!!! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to do them! 🫠 Ok so since four of y'all sent the ask I'll do 20 songs!! I'll only link four tho (one for each ask 💗) to keep the post short lmao (place your bets now for how many of the songs are by Queen 🤣)

Tura Lu by the Bollox

2. I Want to Break Free by Queen

3. Lola by the Kinks

4. Come Together by the Beatles

5. Wellerman Sea Shanty by Nathan Evans

6. My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up) by Fall Out Boy

7. Choose Your Fighter by Ava Max

8. Mississippi Queen by Mountain

9. Super Max! YoHe, YoHo! by the Pitstop Boys

10. Brain Stew by Green Day

11. I'm Going Slightly Mad by Queen (fun fact! This is the song that inspired my URL!)

12. Tie Your Mother Down by Queen

13. Fight From the Inside by Queen

14. Pompeii by Bastille

15. Famout Last Words by My Chemical Romance

16. Dance, Dance by Fall Out Boy

17. One Last Drink by Enter the Haggis

18. Brighton Rock by Queen

19. One Vision by Queen

20. Every Time We Touch by Cascada

A grand total of 6/20 songs were Queen!!

Thank you lovely humans again for the asks 🥺 I love each of you more than you knowwww!!!!!

[best-queen-song]

Round Two Masterlist

(Sorry it took me so long to get this posted, this week has been crazy!) Made In Heaven / The Show Must Go On

Long Away / Leaving Home Ain't Easy

Dear Friends / Pain Is So Close To Pleasure

Save Me / Another One Bites The Dust

One Vision / Misfire

Body Language / Sweet Lady

Las Palabras De Amor (The Words Of Love) / The Fairy Feller's Master-Stroke

Lazing On A Sunday Afternoon / In The Lap Of The Gods

Death On Two Legs (Dedicated To...) / Who Needs You

Drowse / I Want It All

Sheer Heart Attack / Somebody To Love

You're My Best Friend / White Man

The March Of The Black Queen / We Are The Champions

Under Pressure / Son And Daughter

Get Down, Make Love / Bohemian Rhapsody

Fat Bottomed Girls / White Queen (As It Began)

The Night Comes Down / '39

Ride The Wild Wind / Funny How Love Is

Heaven For Everyone / Love Of My Life

The Kiss (Aura Resurrects Flash) / My Fairy King

It's Late / The Hitman

Now I'm Here / Who Wants To Live Forever

Great King Rat / Spread Your Wings

Dragon Attack / Hammer To Fall

Killer Queen / Keep Yourself Alive

Innuendo / Doing Alright

Don't Stop Me Now / Bring Back That Leroy Brown

Mustapha / Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy

Seaside Rendezvous / Flick Of The Wrist

Need Your Loving Tonight / Stealin'

Jealousy / Hijack My Heart

Dancer / Liar

You Don't Fool Me / Ogre Battle

Dreamer's Ball / I'm In Love With My Car

Radio Ga Ga / Mad The Swine

Teo Toriatte (Let Us Cling Together) / The Invisible Man

It's A Hard Life / The Millionaire Waltz

Brighton Rock / These Are The Days Of Our Lives

Headlong / Stone Cold Crazy

The Prophet's Song / Don't Try Suicide

I'm Going Slightly Mad / Nevermore

Princes Of The Universe / Bicycle Race

I Want To Break Free / I Was Born To Love You

Back Chat / Sleeping On The Sidewalk

All Dead, All Dead / Jesus

Good Company / Some Day One Day

You Take My Breath Away / Father To Son

Seven Seas Of Rhye / We Will Rock You

[should-know-better]

I put this interview through a translator - it’s a bit clunky in places but readable.

“If things were like when I started, right now I would be a billionaire"

With "One Man Band" (Modern Sky, 23) the one from Liverpool returned this summer to the direct, optimistic and resounding chorus songs he carries in his soul.

Through Zoom Miles Kane sounds exactly like his songs, or more specifically like his latest video, where he spends a great sunny day with his dog on the promenade of Brighton: a sympathetic and unmistakably British euphoria, as contagious as he is unpretentious stains his answers.

It is not that sophistication has not been an integral part of who is still half of The Last Shadow Puppets, but these days it's time to go back to the essentials. That in addition, one thing does not take away the other. In a few days he begins an extensive tour that will take him in March to Spain in an unprecedented format: electric but solo. It will be the 5th in Barcelona (Sala Bóveda), 6 in Bilbao (Kafe Antzokia), 7 in Madrid (Jaguar) and 8 in Valencia (16 Tons). Kane is excited both for the novelty and for returning to our country. And it's nice to talk to him.

We should start by talking about the title of the album and the song of the same name, which is one of the most representative.

Yes, it was the first one I composed for the album. With it I was proving to myself a little that I am good enough, that I am going to lead the way of my own trip, do you understand me? And with a lyric like that I sing about the good times and leave the bad out. It's a pretty positive song that gave me confidence to make the rest of the album.

It is full of a luminous and optimistic energy. What did you have in mind when you started recording it?

Well, exactly that! I fell in love with the guitar again. I was loving playing it again, and I wanted to make an animated rock album. With words that had a meaning, but in a simple way. Put my guitar in front with the catchy lyrics and melodies and look at the plan. That's the heart of my sound, so we got down to work. The idea was to make Miles Kane's ultimate album.

Did you get tired of the guitar, then?

A little yes, before making this album. I think there are times when it can happen to you. I love Motown, soul and that kind of thing. And I love what we do in The Last Shadow Puppets, with all the strings and the woodwind that gives it a rather cinematic air, of a soundtrack. All that freaks me out. The songs have layers, and they end up having a dramatic tone. But I think you can keep the drama in a simpler way. In this case I wanted my guitar to be there. It may not sound so sophisticated, but I think you still have that feeling. And that's what I've tried to do, strip everything, remove all the strings, the pianos and have only guitar, bass, drums and voice.

Do you think people have a hard time making optimistic music? I say it because there is a lot of dark music out there, it seems that it has more prestige.

Well, I write about how I feel. And I think people identify themselves because it's real. I write from my experiences. I'm already looking back at my life, love, friendship or the classic material that I suppose everyone composes on. It's just that. I do it my way, I really tell what is happening to me in every moment. That's what I've always done. I think my best songs come from there.

The second side of the disc is softer and more delicate. Why did you structure it like that?

The album begins with a song called "Troubled Son" but is very animated and heavy. And it ends with a song titled "Scared of Love" and it's just the voice and an acoustic guitar. For me it's the perfect ending of an album: we started very high, kicking the door down. And then I tried to take a trip between those two songs that summarise everything. I think it makes a lot of sense to start like this, then to end with "Scared of Love". It's like starting with the fifth gear and then going down to the first, I don't know if I can explain.

For your new single "Time of Your Life" (song included in a seven-inch that accompanied the special edition of the LP) you have made a great video. It's Brighton, isn't it?

Yes, it's Brighton.

There you are with your dog, enjoying time on the promenade, in the clothing store, eating "fish and chips", that is, enjoying the small pleasures of life. It has caught my attention because we are used to having only the negative, miserable image of your country.

Honestly, all I wanted was to drive to Brighton, spend the day there and take the opportunity to make the video. I took my dog. I wanted it to be very simple. I like the mod atmosphere of Brighton and we combined these ideas without thinking too much. In 3 hours we had recorded the video. Me with my dog, walking. I like fish and chips and I'm a mod, so it's a day in my life. That simple, no nonsense. It's basically what I like.

It's just that many times we tend to wallow in the mud, don't we?

Yes, we all have our moments of depression, don't we? I get it. I have them myself. Of course. It's normal. But it's an animated song, and I wanted a video that was very simple and animated, very much from real life.

I guess that in this world many people are afraid to look cheesy, I don't know.

Yes, because I imagine it can happen. There may be people who think that the video is. And that the song is sugary. But if you think about it, well, I don't care. I like it and that's what matters. And yes, I think you have to have balls to do it. The people who will seem cheesy are probably sitting at home spending the day miserably. And it seems very good to me, that they are still there.

In January you start a huge tour with dozens of dates. You start in the United Kingdom, don't you?

Yes, I start with my band in January and February. But the tour I'm going to do in Spain I do alone, which is completely new to me. I'm going to play with drum loops and my electric guitar. It's not going to be something acoustic, but hard, a little like Sleaford Mods. But I wear my guitar, so I will play my riffis and stuff. It's something new, but I think I can move it forward. And it hits with the name of the album, "One Man Band". I want to go out and test myself.

I guess it's quite a challenge. How do you make it work?

It's a challenge, yes. It's very difficult to know what it will be like because it's the first time I've done it. I've always had the idea in my head to do a little Sleaford Mods-like thing, with drum loops and playing my guitar on top. You will still have the Miles Kane experience. It sounds a little cheesy, but it's going to be sugary. I did a test when the album came out, a bit like a teaser. And next week I'm going to do a solo like this in Sheffield with the same format as when I go to Spain and the rest of Europe. I think it works and I'm working to take the format to another level. I think it's going to be super fun, it's going to be stuck and it's going to be rocking. I haven't played solo in Spain for centuries, so I really feel like it. I think it's something completely new, and that's why it's very exciting. It seems to me that in Madrid all the tickets were sold and the concert was moved to a larger hall. I'm looking forward to getting to Spain. It's an honour.

And in those solo concerts are you going to play a little of everything?

Yes, a little bit of everything. I'm going to play my best songs. The good thing about this album is that many of these songs have connected and I still have to play them. I haven't played in Spain for years. But I think some of the venues are already sold out. They are going to be small, but I really feel like it. And this album is very fun to perform live. And I will also play the old hits, so it's going to be a full-blown party.

How has getting on a stage changed for you?

Performing is what I like most in the world. Sometimes life makes it hard precisely because I can't perform. You have to wait, you can't play every night. I still have the same tingling as when I started playing the fucking guitar at school, as a child. When I grab the guitar and go on stage, I don't care if there are ten or thousands of people. I love it.

That's the attitude. And it shows: recently I watched Youtube how you faced "The Back of Love" by Echo and The Bunnymen, live in a studio and I told myself: this is how a version is made.

Do you like them? I love them.

I'm freaking out. But it's a very hairy song, with that sharp guitar and the crazy drum beat. Why did you choose it?

I love making versions. I have done a lot throughout my career. Especially live, I like to play versions. And Echo and The Bunnymen is one of my favourite bands ever. There are many songs I could have chosen, but I still remember when I heard that song in Liverpool for the first time. It's quite unusual, isn't it? You have a crazy battery and it's like very epic. It has something from Scott Walker and also a surfing side. And it's very rocky. So it seemed appropriate to me. When I recorded it in Liverpool with my cousins we remembered when we were younger and how much we liked it. We started to do it, and it's true that there are times when it doesn't work. But in this case we decided to make a punk version, it went well and it sounds very cool.

And how do you see the Liverpool scene these days? From here we have the impression that there are always things happening throughout the United Kingdom.

It's fine. There are many young bands knocking on the door. There will always be kids in the bedroom wanting to be stars or making songs, and it often depends on the attention you put on them. But I think it never disappears, it depends on whether people look or not.

You yourself started very young in this world, but things have changed a lot, haven't they?

Yes. Obviously, if things were like when I started, right now I would be a billionaire. Streaming doesn't seem fair to me, it's hard how things have been put. It can be hard. But I am grateful to be able to still be here after twenty years. It is true that it is becoming more and more difficult, but this album has brought me back to where I wanted to be. What is difficult after being in this for so long is that you already know how things are. But it reached the 5th position. It is the highest position that a solo album of mine has reached. So I'm freaking out with it. As a 37-year-old man I feel like I'm in a good place, let's cross our fingers. For me, going out and doing these shows next year is going to be super special, I have never wanted to do something so much in my life.

By the way, do you have plans to do new things with Alex (Turner)?

Not at the moment, but never say never again...

[pb-dot]

Film Friday: Bohemian Rhapsody

This week I want to try something a bit different. So far I've mostly written about movies I really like. Hidden gems, movies that are, if not 10/10s are for the most part good and clever and made by people who really care about making a good flick. Today, I'm going to talk about a movie that I don't like. I'm actually going so far as to say the movie pisses me off. I'm going to try to be fair and explain my reasoning because there are some interesting points as to why this thing sucks, and I don't want them to drown in the bile. So, let's talk about Bohemian Rhapsody.

For the uninitiated, Bohemian Rhapsody is the story of Freddy Mercury, lead vocalist in the British classic rock leviathan Queen. Born in Zanzibar and later immigrating to the UK, Mercury's truly stunning baritone tonal range and operatic songwriting sensibilities paired with his flamboyant and powerful stage presence made him and Queen an unstoppable force in the music scene up until his tragic death from AIDS in 1991.

Now, if you're thinking this is the kind of life story that the typical musician biopic yearns for if you could write a bit less of a bummer ending somehow, you'd be right. The screenwriter has solved this by climaxing the movie at the triumphant note of Queen's legendary Live Aid 1985 performance, where Freddy, by now aware of his HIV diagnosis, reunites with the band to pitch one for the angels and sing his heart out for a good cause.

So, to cover the good things first. The Live Aid recreation is some truly impressive stuff, best viewed on the biggest screen you can. The soundtrack is, of course, Banger City, although it's mostly the crowd-pleasing hits. Not a lot of Innuendo, Barcelona, or Brighton Rock on the soundtrack if you feel me, but I suppose there is something to be said for the mass appeal. I also like Rami Malek in the lead role. He plays Freddy with a vulnerability that feels very genuine, and although he doesn't quite reach the peaks of Stage God Grandure that ol' Freddy operated on, he does sell the simulacra reasonably well.

Now, onto the less good parts. Now when I say Freddy's story fits the musician biopic, that isn't necessarily strictly a compliment. The by now well-worn ruts of "Rise To Stardom but Oh No Being Famous Kinda Sucks And Is Bad For You Actually but You Get Together With The Band Again and Rock Out Because That Is The Most Important Thing" is the kind of thing even a causal watcher of the subgenre can dictate in their sleep. Being a bit formulaic isn't strictly wrong of course, but it does feel a bit disrespectful when applied to the life of an actual real person.

Of course, I say that, but for being a film about Freddy Mercury, Bohemian Rhapsody doesn't actually feel like that as much as it feels like a movie about the band members of Queen's perception of the guy. Now I say this in part because Freddy's interactions with the LGBTQ community (more on this later) feel a bit told from an outside perspective, as the filmmakers have chosen to tell this slice of the story as the poor lad's downward spiral. Freddy's in a bad place and he goes to gay clubs and truck stops and whatnot. Like, considering what ended up killing the man I can see where that came from, but it also feels like a flattening. Freddy didn't hang out in gay bars to die from aids, one assumes, and the fact that Freddy's soon-to-be shitbag ex looms in the background of several scenes dressed and lit like a villain on Star Trek does not help.

The reason why I say this really is "Freddy as understood by Queen" is because of what I have to assume is historical revisionism going on. Our protagonist does bicker with his bandmates, and he's late for rehearsal, and it does come up of course, but the rest of the band is just so goddamn reasonable. Yeah, he's a flake and he's out there partying all night with those scary gays (not that there's anything wrong with that) but y'know, he's Freddy, he's a bit of a tosser but he's a good lad. Nobody loses their temper with him, nobody says an ill word about this obviously spiraling man, and if anyone does bring anything up it is in the gentlest, most understanding tones you've ever heard. While that isn't bad in itself, it does feel highly suspicious, especially when you take into account that bar Freddy, all of Queen's original lineup is still alive and was, in fact, involved in producing the movie. Honestly, if they had owned this perspective a bit and made Freddy this Jesus Christ in Spartacus-esque figure, too large to be contained on film alone, that would be neat, but no, it's a tell-all story told by people who at the best have a fraction of the story.

This isn't the film's biggest sin in my eyes though, no, it isn't even the atrocious editing although yes it does break several core tenets of good editing for no discernable reason. No, the most atrocious thing this movie does in my opinion comes down to one particular scene in Act 2. Here, Freddy has a heart-to-heart with his long-time friend and, in the actual man's own words, "common-law wife," Mary Austin. In a moment of melancholy Freddy confesses to Mary that he is Bisexual, to which she responds "Freddie, you're gay" and in essence cuts the conversation and the relationship right there. Now this isn't outrageous in itself, people have assumed that bisexual men are just gays in disguise up until very recently. What is somewhat unforgivable though is that this statement, and Mary's followup on it is literally the last words on Mercury's sexuality.

Now, the exact thats and whiches of Mercury's sexuality are a bit murky to my understanding, so this could be an attempt at hedging their bets in that regard. That said it is just incredibly disrespectful to let someone else than the character in question have the last word on anyone's sexuality, fictional or not.

Now I can see what the filmmakers were going for here. "You're lying to yourself and me when you say that you love me (in a way that we both find meaningful)" can be a place where a relationship ends, and it's an appropriately grim one for the start of a downward spiral. That said, it's hard not to read this as "This FAIRY thinks he can trick us into thinking he's BISEXUAL but he's LYING because he's GAY and then he gets SAD and has DANGEROUS GAY SEX about it."

It's a whole mess of a scene, and even without all the other issues, it soured the entire experience for me. This wasn't the story of a musical genius with a complicated relationship with his own sexuality and the degree to which he was public with that sexuality in a time when that kind of openness was sought with destructive intent. This is the story of a musical genius whose understanding friends and bandmates love and support despite being a silly little gay. This is celebrating the works of a man despite the inner life he led that fueled those works, not because of it. I wouldn't call this movie explicitly hateful exactly, but it's so thoroughly saturated with what esteemed philosopher and playwright Abigail Thorn calls "yer da'-thinking" that it'd honestly be better if it just called Freddy a slur and got it over with.

To pull back from that frothingly rage-filled abyss for a second, it is perhaps too much to expect even a biopic to even-handedly handle its subject matter. After all, when making a movie about someone dead, all you have is whatever they left behind and the perspectives of the people who survived them. Adapting anything also requires some changes made, if nothing else because setting a start and an end to a story changes the story even as it creates it. That said, this isn't an excuse to remix historical events to your liking. Live Aid 1985 did not struggle until Queen turned the tide, it was a highly successful event in which a very famous band did one of the best rock performances of all time, to name one example.

So in short: I don't like Bohemian Rhapsody (2018) very much. The song is still a banger though.

[solradguy]

If you haven't already: the 60s for the music ask thing

For some of the 60s questions, I think the asker is supposed to send in a song for them? So I'm gonna do the ones that aren't in brackets because idk how I'd answer the brackets ones haha

62. Artists/bands you think have an impeccable discography, with no bad albums:

Coheed & Cambria never misses. Daisuke Ishiwatari's stuff is always super solid too, I can't think of a soundtrack he's done where I didn't like less than 80% of it. (sorry Queen, that Flash Gordon soundtrack's keeping you out of this)

63. Do you prefer live recordings or studio recordings?

Studio more often than not, but sometimes there's a live album that's better than the studio one. Metallica's live album, S&S, that they did with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra is bonkers. Dio-era Black Sabbath is crazy live too. So sad I'll never get to see them live. This recording of Heaven and Hell by them is great; better than the studio version, even.

65. Are there any songs you know the entire lyrics by heart?

I do, but not many because my memory for audio is really bad haha These will probably be unsurprising: Bohemian Rhapsody (of course), Bring Me To Life - Evanescence, Kryptonite - 3 Doors Down, Neon Knights - Black Sabbath, Brighton Rock - Queen, Killer Queen - Queen.

There might be more. This is definitely one of those things were I don't realize it until it comes on lol

66. Share your favorite playlists that you or someone else has made!

Classic Heavy Metal - rare, obscure, classics by qumran77 over on YouTube. It's a good one to put on shuffle.

[patrickjonesblog]

Best of New Colossus 2024

I'm currently recovering from a busy New Colossus Festival and a few folk have asked for rundown of my faves, so here you go.

First of all, this years fest was my absolute favorite and it was great to see so many packed venues appreciating the music. I've been every year to this festival, I love it and long may it continue.

If you don't know what it's all about it's similar to SXSW, or Iceland Airwaves, or a personal favorite of mine back home - The Great Escape in Brighton. Tons of small venues showcasing new and upcoming bands. New Colossus leans towards indie, rock and shoegaze, but there's a smattering of other genres too all in the best small venues in the Lower East Side, NYC.

Here's what I enjoyed the most:

Cucamaras

Possibly the festival highlight for me. Nottingham band taking influences from early Arctic Monkeys, Fontaines DC, Yard Act. As with a lot of these new bands their Spotify list doesn't really do them justice, you have to see them live.

NOBRO

Definitely the most fun set of the week. 4 piece canadian all female punk band, with sing-a-long choruses, crowd surfing and smiles galore. My fave chant: EAT! SLAY! CHARDONNAY!

Reme

Half spanish, half english classic rock, super talented musicians. Sleeves proudly adorned by all their influences, Beatles, Bowie, Queen, Elton John all come through, another fantastic live band.

Scrounge

Two piece, reverse White Stripes formation. Killer riffs and angry vocals. This is an instant classic. Formidable live.

Langkamer

Bristol lads with a drummer / singer. Sound like Pavement, Belle & Sebastian and Teenage Fanclub. Full of catchy melodies and fun lyrics.

O.Wake

I broke my no local band rule for O.Wake, as they play regularly in NYC along with my other local faves Mary Shelley and TVOD. But Im glad I did. They're a little hard to pigeonhole, the new single is quite funky phoenix style indie, great lyrics and songs that veer in all sorts of directions but usually with a great hook.

Slash Need

Certainly won't be a lot of peoples cup of tea, but if they're on a festival you're at this year - GO SEE THEM. Musically they're dark electronica, I would imagine Peaches is a big influence and if you know the belgian dance band GOOSE similar sounding to them. Visually, it's a feast, lead by a fierce lead singer, heavy beats and two gimp-like dancers that get uncomfortably close.

Hotel Mira

Probably the most primed for a main stream audience out of all this list. Radio friendly indie-pop with a very enigmatic lead singer but you can't deny they got tunes and they're good fun live.

Minas

The most intense set of the week. Difficult to categorize again, nearest I can think of is The Prodigy. Welsh rap / industrial noise / metal?? I honestly don't know, but they put on a helluva show. Two of the best heckles came out of this set, 1. "MORE YELLING PLEASE" after a particularly shouty track and 2. "Are YOU OK?" a response to the singer asking us if we're OK after a track which had him pounding the floor and screaming. Terrifying, but super interesting.

Holiday Ghosts

Perhaps the polar opposite to Minas, bright sunny indie, chock full of tunes from Brighton / Falmouth. Hints of a milder Sleater Kinney.

I've done a spotify playlist with these and a few more artists I liked the sound of but didn't get round to watching so check it out .

While I have you my general 2024 new music playlist is taking shape, so give that a follow too and I'll continue to add to it.

[darlingdelilah1978writingblog]

CHAPTER 4: BRIGHTON ROCK

Harold's P.O.V

"Death is all around, the new king is among us" A voice spoke in almost a whisper.

"What new king? ...I- I -I don't understand" I stuttered in confusion

"You need to protect him at all costs" The voice whispered again

"What are you saying?" I questioned the voice from beyond

"Protect him" The voice began to vanish into thin air.

" I don't understand. What new king? There hasn't been one over five centuries!" I spat as I ran after it.

Then there was a voice that said. "Harold wake up we got to go. Harold?" when I felt a pair of hands shake me. "Harold, Harold wake up we need to go" the voice became more transparent. I opened my eyes to see Delilah sitting on the edge of the small bed.

"Delilah, where are we going?" I sat up in bed and I wiped away blocks of sleep from my eyes.

"We are going to Colistone Key" Delilah spoke through a half smile.

"We're going home?" I drew my knees up and wrapped my arms around them.

"Yes Harold you're going home and I'm coming with you now get up we must be going there's a boat waiting for us" Delilah stretched out her hand for me to take.

I took Delilah's hand and rose to my feet before exiting the tent where we entered the tent that sat next door which revealed a very ill Mustapha, who was fast asleep.

"Mustapha time to get up we must be going" She sat on the side of the bed while speaking in a sweet and soft tone.

Mustapha opened his eyes as a curtain of jet-black hair hung before him. "Delilah, where are we going?".

"We're going home mate" I step forward as I put my hands behind my back.

Mustapha sat up in bed. "Good, we have to tell Lady Satine that we failed her".

"Fingers crossed she won't be pissed" I mumbled under my breath.

"Yep," Mustapha matched my tone as he attempted to get out of bed.

"Easy had you're still very weak" Delilah grasped his hand and aided him.

Mustapha put his feet lightly on the ground. "Thank you dear".

"Now that we got you up it's time to go there is a boat waiting for us" Delilah aided him with his posture.

So at that moment the three of us made our way toward the outskirts of the small settlement to find Meadow and Deaqe standing alongside a woman.

"Bloody hell" Meadow whispered under his breath.

"Mustapha?" Deaqe raised an eyebrow as a concerned expression was plastered on his face.

"Hello, darlings" Mustapha's voice was dry and raspy.

"Is it true?" The pixie lowered his voice in fear of our sponsor.

He nodded as his knees began to buckle beneath him.

"Come on let's get you all on the wagon that will get you to the ferry before Mustapha faints" The woman spoke through a shy half grin.

"Thank you Genny" Delilah matched the woman.

"Pleasure is all mine now come right this way" Genny motioned us to follow her as she began to walk away.

So with that, we went down the road to the wagon where we bid farewell to Genny before we got our way to Brighton Rock, and from there we headed to what we call "The Key". As we were on the road Mustapha began to fall ill again.

"I think I'm going to be sick" Mustapha spoke through the side of his mouth as he took slow deep breaths.

"Wagon halt!" Delilah spat harshly.

Then with great force, the wagon came to a complete stop as the two of them got off of the wagon before Mustapha emptied his belly.

"Poor block that serum fucked him up badly" Deaqe lowered his voice.

"Meadow I need you!" Delilah spat in desperation.

"Oh shit......I'm coming love!" Meadow spat in return as he got off the wagon and ran over to aid the Sprite.

I looked up in their direction to see a ghostly and weakened Mustapha.

"I couldn't agree more Deaqs" I rose to my feet ready to lend a hand.

Once the three of them got to the wagon Meadow and Delilah hoisted the strangling into the cart as Deaqe and I aided him onto the floor.

"Ahhh! Let me go!" Mustapha cried out in agony.

"I know I know let me get into my bag here and give you something" The Sprite spoke in a tone that only a mother could have as if she took care of an ill child, as she pulled her bag off of the seat and rummaged through it.

[helloalasdair]

Boyz Nite, Brighton, 19th May

Cabaret by and for trans men / trans masc ppl

Standup comedy performance (paid)

I'm gigging a lot at the moment and it sometimes feels like I only leave Bristol when I have a gig somewhere, meaning I get back home very late (11.20pm Megabus from Swansea, anyone?) having only seen the route from train station to venue. This time, however, I ended up staying overnight in Brighton, which I'm going to make a separate post about.

So: Boyz Nite, organised by Cerys Bradley of Sportsperson. Part of Brighton Fringe (England's largest arts festival, by dint of Edinburgh being in Scotland), it is a cabaret featuring trans men and trans masc performers. This was the second iteration, featuring Cerys MCing, myself, Darren Ely (comedian that evening, also writer and improviser I believe), Richard Melanin III (drag king clown), and a last minute lineup change meant there was someone else (drag king) who isn't on the posters and whose stage name I've unfortunately forgotten. It was something like Lord Byron Wagner but not that.

I find gigs like this can sometimes be a double-edged sword. I have to lay very little groundwork for the audience (no "give me a cheer if you know what 'trans man' means!"), but that does sort of reveal just how many of my jokes are about laying groundwork for general audiences. That means, for example, my chihuahua joke (as I've named it in my head) often just... doesn't get much? Or it gets a cheer rather than a laugh? "Yes, you and Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson are both men. Factually accurate; move on," I imagine them saying to me. I worried a bit that this would happen here, but for literally all of my ten minutes. Watching it back, I don't think it did. I think what you can hear is a room of 60 people (in a 40 capacity venue, really) realise that they can call their T gel all sorts of fun things too.

This gig felt good. It felt like connection and all that fluffy stuff, yes, but it also made me feel like I'm Good At Comedy, which is not a feeling I often come away from gigs with! I think that's a really strong ten minutes and I can see where the tweaks are to make it stronger. And it's always good to meet other trans masc people in comedy and adjacent fields, because it doesn't happen often.

The night was rounded off by sound tech Izzy doing his deed poll, which was just really lovely and made me realise that the only way I'm going to get mine done is to schedule it for a gig. Should have bloody done it when I came out. Anyone want to buy my middle name for ad space?