#i have mixed feelings on what they said about sonic and silver's relationship personally ..

[sonknuxadow]

when i watched the one about silver i could hear all 11 sonilver shippers on the planet wailing in agony in the distance

[libelelle]

Oughhh that reminds me. An old idea I had that I still like is Silver being taken in by Team Dark during Rivals, how do you think they would get along, and how do you think Silver would be changed by primarily being around them?

Oh thats tough... a question that requires me to think about team dark and their characterization as well as silvers... these arw my thoughts that i managed to gather up 🫡

The biggest and easiest change i can think of would be his views on morality. His black and white thinking would not do him a lot of favors hanging around team dark. Everyone one of them has something about them that would clash with Silvers views. There good and theres bad and then theres Team Dark, the people who welcomed him and took him in but dont act like a how good people should... theyre unnecessarily violent, they steal, they lie and they dont do it because they have to, they do it because its who they are, and they wont compromise that for others comfort. His first change would be readjusting his views on what makes a person good, and whether that matters as much as he thought. As for what that change looks like, Team Dark is big on loyalty, and Silver doesnt do things in halves. I think more likely than him shifting his definition of morality, he like. Shifts the focus of thats sense of justice, from the focus being morality to loyalty. If that makes sense. I think itd be easier for him than rewriting his rules for whats good and bad, or trying to wrap his head around moral grayness.

Either way, loyalty would become a focus for him, hes part of a team now. Not that he isnt loyal as he is normally, he just hasnt had anyone by his side, fight for him and with him all the time. Not since blaze anyways. Obviously because hes such an extreme person, slights against his team would probably get explosive reactions, something omega would encourage. Unhelpfully. Itd take some time for him to understand the dynamics between his new team and the rest of their friends, particularly with Sonic.

As for individual relationships, i might have to think about this in detail more, but im sure he'd find Omegas uncomplicated nature... not relaxing, but easy. Hes predicatable. Once hes gotten used to them theyd make a very destructive duo, i dont really believe Silver cared much about "property damage" and "reckless behaviour" before going to the past.

Silvers relationship with shadow... this one is so hard for me it always has been. I thinkkkkkkkk that Silver would be like. Overly eager to prove himself to shadow. From silvers point of view shadow is cool, powerful, self assured...basically someone to look up to. As a memeber of team dark i think he'd look to Shadow for approval, whereas Shadow might feel a bit. Crowded by him. Especially at first, throwing silver into the mix is strange. This all being said id reallly have to think hard about this, just because their relationship isnt something i fewl confident i understand.

The member of team dark hed have the most troubles with with be Rouge though. Shes a spy a thief, and she keeps secrets. Shes not an easy person to read and that stresses him out. He doesnt dislike her, he just cant figure her out. The whole morality thing would be especially tough with her because of it i think. He still holds those values, i think, so her whole deal would get his mind running laps. Other than that though i think theyd have a good relationship, i think shed like his fire

Generally i think Silvers personality would be similiar, less naive maybe, definitely not getting any less destructive. Hed probably take on a role of the bleeding heart more often than you'd think though, just because no one else would.

[itz-pandora]

Thanks to val-va2 question, it made me have another question lmao

After all that, what was the relationship between Silver and Shadow like?

If only they both know that Shadow is Silver father and Silver is Shadow son

Regardless, I believe that Silver may be uncomfortable with Shadow presence, for the main reason that Shadow reminds him of Mephiles

And since Silver wants to get away from Mephiles anyway, will he try to get away from Shadow too?

(Omg this reminded me of that Silver and Sonic short with that weird mini interaction, I don't doubt that Silver will do something like that with Shadow)

- butterfly

Val's ask

Well, Silver's first impression on Shadow in 06 stunned Silver, which kinda matters. Silver doesn't know what exactly about Shadow made his heart rate spike, but it definitely did. He's not sure if it's the fact that Shadow looks like Mephiles, his premade perception of Shadow based on what Mephiles said, the Chaos Energy he can feel emanating from Shadow, or something that he can't quite put his finger on.

So that first impression made him kinda wary of Shadow, because of confusion.

The only person who knows the genetic relation between Silver and Shadow is Mephiles, and he never tells them the truth.

Silver feels mixed about Shadow after 06. He kinda feels guilty for thinking so negatively about him and stuff. He doesn't know why he feels so strongly about Shadow, but he does. (I've thought about making a lil comic with triple S about it)

Silver also feels awkward around Shadow, since he associates him with Mephiles, and actively tries to dismiss those thoughts, since they make him sad. He doesn't want to distance himself from Shadow despite the thoughts. Maybe out of guilt?

Neither Silver or Mephiles are normal about Shadow and Shadow's just standing there like 🧍 who are you 🧍 what do you want with me 🧍

[thescrump]

Through It All: A Sonamy Story - Chapter 9: “Wording”

He truly didn't know what to do next. Sonic's mind was a whirlwind of conflicting emotions. The realization of his feelings for Amy had thrown him off balance. The fear of rejection and the uncertainty of how to navigate a romantic relationship overwhelmed him. He couldn't shake the nagging doubts that gnawed at him, leaving him feeling vulnerable and exposed. He felt that he couldn’t trust himself with all of this. He needed advice, someone to talk to, and he knew just who to turn to: Tails. He found Tails tinkering with one of his inventions in his workshop. Sonic cleared his throat to get Tails' attention.

"Hey, Tails," Sonic said. "I need to talk." Tails turned around, noticing the troubled expression on Sonic's face. "Sure, Sonic," Tails replied. "What's up?" Sonic hesitated for a moment before speaking. "I-I like someone. I'm not sure how to handle this whole relationship thing, Tails. I've never been in one before, or even thought of one. I'm feeling kind of lost." Tails put down his wrench and sat down on a nearby stool. "I'm happy to help, Sonic. 

What specifically is bothering you?" "Well," Sonic started, "I have feelings for someone, but I don't know how to pursue those feelings. It's all new to me, and I don't want to mess it up." Tails nodded understandingly. "I see. Well, the first step is to acknowledge your feelings and try to understand them. Have you talked to the person you have feelings for?" Sonic shifted nervously on his feet. "No, I haven't talked to Am-her. I'm not even sure if she feels the same way anymore." Tails smiled encouragingly. "It's okay, Sonic. Sometimes, taking that first step can be the hardest part. But you'll never know unless you try." Sonic nodded, taking in Tails' words of wisdom. "Anything else?" he asked. "I'll need you to get more specific. Who is this person?" Tails responded. A silence filled the room. Sonic hesitated for a moment before he mustered the courage to speak Amy's name.

“It's Amy,”

he confessed, his cheeks flushing with embarrassment. “I... I've developed feelings for her.” Tails met his gaze with a knowing smile. “Ah, I had a feeling,” he admitted gently. “The way you two have been acting around each other recently... it's been quite evident.” Sonic looked at Tails, surprised. "Really?" Tails nodded. "Yeah, I've noticed the way you two have been acting around each other lately. It's pretty obvious." Sonic felt a mix of emotions - embarrassment, excitement, and fear all at once. "What do I do, Tails?" he asked. "I haven't seen her for a while, and she's changed the most out of all of us during that time after what happened on the Starfall Islands. If she looked different, I wouldn’t recognize her. I think I saw that her photo of me had 'Maybe It'll Never Happen' written on it. I don’t know what to do. I mean, Silver’s almost a prince by now." Tails leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Well, first of all, you need to talk to her. Be honest about how you feel. Tell her that you value her friendship, but that you're also interested in exploring something more. I know she still likes you on the inside. If you tell her, there's a 1000% chance she'll say the same thing." "Of course the genius kid has the best answers." Sonic said with a sincere smirk. "I've been reading psychology books and watching rom-coms." Tails jokingly responded.

That same day, Amy also had many things running through her head. What did the wonderful time she had with Sonic mean, if anything? She wondered. As she sat in her room, she glanced over at the picture she had of Sonic. On it, she had written “Maybe It'll Never Happen” in small letters. Amy sighed as she realized that she was scared to show her feelings. She had always liked Sonic, but she thought Sonic didn't reciprocate the feeling. She had put aside her feelings, but now the wishes of her past self were seeming to come true. She remembered what she had written down. "He deserves the person who makes him happy." If that was her, then… "Maybe I should take a chance," she thought to herself. With newfound determination, Amy picked up the picture, her grip on the pen firm. She crossed out the words that had held her back, replacing them with “Someday” A smile tugged at her lips as a surge of hope and excitement coursed through her. “That's better,” she declared, her voice filled with resolve. “I’ll need to talk about this with someone.”

[ninjakasuga]

Sonally Week Year 3 Day One

Another year, another of @gojira007 and their blog @boundforfreedomsonsal hosting another week of one of the best OTP’s of fiction. Here’s my entry for Day One: Dawn.

Foreward: Another year; another Sonally Week! Here’s my entry for Day One, and hope ya’all enjoy. This one is a sequel of sorts to my “Surprise” Day entry last year, where after some heckling over certain aspects of his romance with Sally; Sonic gets the news he’s gonna be a big brother! Instead of a literally dawn I decided to do a more thematic ‘dawn of a new part of life’ aspect than the actual time of day.

“Sonic.”

The blue furred Hedgehog in question continued to pace the floor, seeming to either not hear, or simply not regard the call of his name. He stopped, but not to reply, and began to tap his foot repeatedly as he often did in a show of impatience. Soon he was pacing yet again, causing the one trying to get his attention to sigh in exasperation, again.

“Sonic!” Raising her voice, just-oh-so-slightly, Sally again, attempted to get the attention of her fiancé’ this time reaching out and managing to grasp his tail and give it a small yank. Probably not the best thing for Sonic’s pride as he let out the cutest squeak in response, but Sally didn’t mind. Smiling coyly yet with a hint of apology in her eyes as he turned to face her, she reached for his arm, softly rubbing it. “Calm down a bit hun, you’re going to wear the floor out.” Rubbing his slightly sore posterior, Sonic gave his beloved a mild glare that softened almost as soon as it appeared; agitation giving way to the concern plaguing him. “Sorry Sal, it’s just, well it’s been over an hour since the expected due date. What’s the hold up?”

A voice quips from a chair along the opposite side of the waiting room from Sonic and Sally. “Well that’s how labor sometimes goes Sonny-boy. I mean you didn’t exactly pop out as soon as your Ma’s water broke. Slow-going was the name of the game.” Chuckled Charles Hedgehog, finding much amusement in his nephew’s impatience. An impatience he very much empathized with, but knew better than to get too riled up at this point. “So an hour past when the doctor expects the babies to come is small change, especially compared to how you made everyone wait a whole ten hours and ninety-one minutes before you finally graced us with your presence.”

Sitting besides Charles, Rosie Woodchuck let out her own dainty but hearty giggle as she reached to give the silver-furred Hedgehog a gentle squeeze of his hand. “Oh the language coming out of that room. We both feared for your brother’s manlihood if not his existence.”

“I wasn’t that hard on Mom was I?” Inquired Sonic with genuine curiosity mixed with a mild hint of indignity. His gaze only half-way went to his Uncle and Rosie; mainly because he still found it weird they were dating. Correction had been dating on the down-low since, well, a long time with the two only having a ‘break’ when he’d been roboticized all those years. He was genuinely happy for them, but it was still just plain weird to him.

“I think pregnancy is hard for any woman the first time around, or so I read and was told.” Mused Sally as she gently pulled Sonic to sit beside her, rubbing his quills to both straighten them out, and to soothe his nerves. Not unlike Sonic she was still processing the semi-recent revelation that her beloved former Nanny and Sir Charles had been dating under everyone’s noses for so long. Then again should she be surprised? Both were rather private people about their personal lives outside of whatever they did with friends and family. Not to mention the true reason they kept it quiet back in the day had more to do with concerns their positions in the Royal Court would cause unrest for some if their more intimate relationship came to light.

Looking toward Rosie, Sally was now curious about her own birth given the topic. “Were Elias or I rough on Mother?”

Rosie shook her head, “Not really, Elias took some time, but your dear Mother thankfully did not have too rough a time of it. Her calm demeanor kept up even dealing with labor pains, and the end result more than made up for it. You were much easier, as she knew what to navigate and you only took so many hours after the labor contractions began to grace us with your presence.” She smiled fondly, thinking about the two occasions, then giggled. “That said she wasn’t above occasionally reminding your Father it was his fault she was in that state, and well, that’s her story to tell more than mine.”

Snickering, Sally looked at Sonic with a very straight face, barely keeping a grin from forming. “I promise if we have kids, not to threaten your masculinity. That said, I will probably get my vengeance some other way.”

Lifting an eyebrow, Sonic elbowed his girlfriend-now-fiance’ gently in the arm. “Oh reeeeeeeally? Well you gotta catch me first Sal.”

“I already did.” She murmured, leaning in to kiss his cheek as she laced her fingers with his.

“Got me there,” Relenting, Sonic returned the smile, as well as the kiss, planting it on her fluffy cheek before leaning back in his seat. His concern for his Mother and his impending siblings, slightly alleviated for the time being.

The elder couple shared a look, one they had often shared when they were witness to the dear love and devotion between Sally and Sonic. From children to adults, the two always seemed to be a pair they fit so well, it was clear as day even when they were in diapers or arguing up a storm as toddlers, to their teen years. The small things in life that made all the gloom and doom of the past decade and some odd-change worth living for. Soon everyone’s heard turns as the double-door leading to the maternity ward opened and Doctor Quack limped out, leaning on his cane carefully, but with a confident stride; showcasing he’d come to master the walking tool quite well.

“Well-?!”

Holding up his free hand, both to interrupt as well as allow Quack to pull down his mask, his bill forming into a smile. “Your newborn sister and brother are here, healthy and loud, and your Mother is doing very well herself.”

The four cheer as they stand up, mindful this was still a hospital and kept it down, but their jubilation was completely understood.

“Can we see them?” Asked Sonic, already antsy and looking ready to speed down the corridor.

“Yes, we’ve already handled all the post-birth clean up, and checked their vitals as well as Bernie’s, who herself wishes to see you all as well. So I see no issue with allowing visitation right away, but do keep it brief, they do need their rest.” Advised the water-foul doctor as he kept himself straight, if just to fight off his own fatigue which was now creeping up after the long labor. “Just NO running Sonic, got it?”

At the mild admonishment, the Hedgehog simply grinned. “Me? Run through a hospital? Would I do thaaaaaaaaaaaat?”

“Yes, you would.” Everyone else remarked with amazing timing and matching deadpan. To which Sonic rolled his eyes.

“Sheesh, talk about a crowd! Anyway let’s go, let’s go!” Sonic urged, already half-dragging Sally along, forcing his beloved to keep in rapid pace close to him as they held hands still. Sally simply went with it, laughing softly at Sonic’s outright adorable impulsive need to see his new siblings. Chuck and Rosie merely followed at their pace, but there was certainly a spring in their step as well.

Eventually the group, along with Doctor Quack, reach the room designated for Bernie and her newborns. Managing to keep Sonic at bay enough, Quack pushed the door open for them and cleared his throat. “Jules, Bernie, your guests have arrived.”

Like an impatient puppy, Sonic squeezed past Quack, Sally trailing hand-in-hand still from behind. His emerald-green eyes, zeroing-in on the target, even as his breath hitched softly as a wave of emotion floored Sonic as he finally gazed upon his Mother and new siblings. As tired as Bernie Hedgehog looked, nothing could dull the intense love and adoration in her eyes and face as she held two swaddled bundles in her arms. Her husband Jules’ own expression was a mirror of his wife’s, only tinged with the pride only a Father can know. Each look up their expressions beaming more at the sight of their eldest child, with Jules instantly waving him over.

“Hey there son, come say hi to your baby brother and sister!”

Noticing that Sally seemed a bit frozen, Sally found back a ‘snerk’ that wanted to come out, and simply pulled him along. Upon seeing the two infants, mewling and cooing, her own eyes mist. “Awww, they’re adorable!”

“Y-yeah they are…” Sonic managed a dry chuckle,  why did his throat feel so dry? He’d been psyched for this ever since his Mom laid the bombshell she was pregnant nine months ago! Of all the times for Sonic the Hedgehog to choke and lose his cool, it’s this? He didn’t lose his cool this much, asking Sally to marry him for Almighty’s sake! Leaning over he got a much better look at the two.

One of the two clearly favored their Mother’s more light-purple coat, another had the milder-blue of his Father. Both were cute as a button, and just, the sounds they made! Sonic usually wasn’t one to obsess over cute things, but he was entranced. “So we got names for these two? Or do I call em’ Li’ Sib one, and two?”

“We were thinking of Sonia, for this little angel.” Explained Bernie as she gently pet the back of her daughter’s head. The newborn curled against the warm hand that carried the scent of her Mother. “As for this handsome young man, I was thinking of something with M, like Manwell or Manny.”

“If he’s anything like Sonny-boy he’ll be one manic child.” Chuckled Charles as he and Rosie moved closer taking the end of the bed so as to not crowd anyone.

Something about that line struck a chord with Jules, who instantly adopted a thoughtful look as he rubbed his chin. “Manic, manic, why not Manic?” He grinned even as his wife looked at him rather funny. “Face it hun, if Sonic’s any indication, these two are going to be spirited, and it kind of goes well don’t you think?”

After a moment, Bernie tired rolled her eyes. “Fine,” she however smiled, “Manic it is. However if that name causes him woe, I’ll be sure he knows he has you to blame.”

“Anybody gives him or Sonia woe I’mma deck em’.” Sonic proclaimed, pounding his fists together.

“Nor alone,” Agreed Sally as she leaned against him. They weren’t her siblings biologically, but already she had decided she would help protect them at all cost.

“Triple, and quadruple so.” Added Rosie, who nodded along with Charles. The family was united on this front.

“Fantastic.” Giggling, Bernie kissed the heads of her newborns. “Hear that, your family is ready to murder for you.”

“You all can plot future murder later, as much as I hate to spoil the moment, Mother and both newborns need rest.” Spoke up Quack as he stood at the door, keeping silent until now.

Yawning, Bernie nodded in agreement, she was drained. Her gaze lifted to her husband. “You get some rest too, you’ve been up with me through all this.”

“I didn’t do even a fraction of the work; but, rest sounds good.” He yawned, quickly covering his mouth. “Mind if I just crash here Doc?”

“I’ve already asked an orderly to bring a rollaway for you. I know better.” Smiled the duck-doctor in a knowing fashion. “Now come now everyone, time to go.”

Looking at his parents, Sonic instantly stated. “We’ll visit tomorrow, promise.”

“Looking forward to it son, looking forward to it.”

Giving his siblings one last look, Sonic smiled and winked at the two infants. “Welcome to the world you two, hopefully by the time you can talk and explore the world there’ll be one last fat-man to worry about. That’s a big-bro promise!”  

[twilight0wanderer]

Animorphs Playlist: Rachel

I mentioned in my Marco songs post that I had lists for all the Animorphs and a couple people asked for more, so here we go.

“Woman King” by Iron and Wine

Blackbird claw, raven wing Under the red sunlight

Hundred years, hundred more Someday we may see a Woman king, sword in hand Swing at some evil and bleed

Starting off, just the title of this song screams Rachel to me, and the hits just keep coming.  The whole song (heck, the whole EP) is about female power and presence.  The lyrics blend the violent and peaceful, the stern and sensitive, the mundane and the exceptional, just like Rachel, who refuses to be written off as a beauty queen or a berserker or a top student or a second mother but combines all of those and more into her character.

“Playing With Fire” by Them Lost Boys ft. Lexi Forche

The air is thick with smoke and I can’t breathe All your secrets pouring in and out of me Shut your mouth, lock the door, throw away the key You can’t be messing with me.  Don’t be messing with me!

This one runs on pure emotional association.  The aggressive beats intercut by more contemplative sections, slow builds and sharp drops, and the repeated refrain of “Don’t be messing with me” all sonically and essentially capture Rachel.

“Magus Perde” by Jethro Tull

Tough are the soles that tread the knife's edge Break the circle, stretch the line, call upon the devil Bring the gods, the gods' own fire In the conflict revel

A running theme among many of my choices will be more thematic or emotional connections (as seen in the previous entry).  I could probably articulate the connections given enough time and words, but that would be dissecting the proverbial frog.  Instead I’ll just point out that besides the lyrics listed above (which are pure Rachel Warrior Princess), this song is the closing track to the album Passion Play, and in keeping with the historical origins of the concept is a meditation on life, death, and rebirth.

“Winterborn” by Cruxshadows

Discard regret That in this debt A better world is made That children of a newer day might remember and avoid our fate And in the fury of this darkest hour We will be your light You've asked me for my sacrifice And I am Winterborn

About the only good thing to come out of reading 2/3 of Ghost several years ago (Oh John Ringo, No!) was being introduced to this song.  This is a song about willing sacrifice in defense of others.  More than that, the verses are from the perspective of a higher power providing reassurance and comfort, while the chorus is the statement of the person sacrificing themselves.  The parallels don’t just jump out at you, they club you over the head and go through your pockets for loose change, so I’ll leave it there.

“The March of Cambreadth” by Heather Alexander

Midnight mare and blood red roan Fight to Keep this Land Your Own Sound the horn and call the cry How Many of Them Can We Make Die!

This might be the least nuanced association here: when it comes to fighting, Rachel was the Goddess of War long before Kratos stepped on the scene.  This song is for the part of her that revels in the fight.

“White Flag” by Joseph

I could surrender but I'd Just be pretending, no I'd Rather be dead than live a lie Burn the white flag

While this song also invokes the imagery of war, the intent is broader - refusing to let circumstances force you down, living life whatever the situation is.  Rachel’s ability to live in the moment let her continue to enjoy the parts of her life outside the immediate scope of the war, whether that was appreciating teen idols, laughing at her cousin’s complete lack of chill at a school square dance, or taking time to build her relationship with Tobias.  These aspects faded as the war began to encroach onto everything, but she managed to maintain her life longer than some of the others.

“Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes” by Paul Simon and Ladysmith Black Mambazo

And she said honey take me dancing But they ended up sleeping in a doorway By the bodegas and the lights on Upper Broadway Wearing diamonds on the soles of their shoes

This was a late addition, but as I was writing this post I realized that I have a post-war Rachel-Tobias song but nothing for their relationship during the war, and this just jumped out at me.  This song, to me, captures the difference in their initial positions in life and society, and how little they let it matter to them.  They can be just as happy flying together or hanging out in Tobias’ meadow or Rachel’s bedroom as they could be at a dance or the mall or another more traditional venue.  It also captures a sense of her refusal to let him cut her out and their willingness to meet in the middle.

“Bird Song” covered by T-Sisters

If you hear that same sweet song again Will you know why? Anyone who sings a tune so sweet Is passing by Laugh in the sunshine Sing Cry in the dark Fly through the night

Sleep in the stars Don't you cry Dry your eyes on the wind

This is my post-war Rachel and Tobias song, although it could apply equally well to the rest of the Animorphs after her death.  Initially written by Jerry Garcia in memory of Janis Joplin, I picked this particular version because I love the harmonies and it’s three women singing it.  This is another emotional association, no great character examination, just mourning for a dearly loved friend.

“This War” by Sting

And you can see the coming battle You pray the drums will never cease And you may win this war that's coming But would you tolerate the peace?

This song is written as an explicit condemnation of war, but I interpret and apply it here to Rachel’s own mixed feelings about the war, her love for it, and her place in the world without it.  While she’s not financially profiting, she does find herself more at home in battle (especially as the series goes on) and this song - to me - captures her fear that in giving more freedom to that part of herself she’s losing other elements of herself.  I personally believe she would have had a better chance than some might expect had she survived, but we’ll never know.

“Riot” by Three Days Grace

If you feel so filthy, so dirty, so f---ed up If you feel so walked on, so painful, so p---ed off You're not the only one refusing to go down You're not the only one, so get up

This was already on my Marco list, where I said it was my song for him, Rachel, and Tobias.  Whether they’re stirring s#!t with each other because they’re bored or burning down the world because at this point who cares, this is the song for my feral children.

“Yellow Flicker Beat” by Lorde

I'm a princess cut from marble, smoother than a storm And the scars that mark my body, they're silver and gold My blood is a flood of rubies, precious stones It keeps my veins hot, the fire's found a home in me

I’m sure I’m not the first person to connect this song to Rachel.  Katniss is a different person, but as a song for a fighter who still can’t escape their war, it maps onto Rachel pretty well.

God is a DJ by P!nk

I've been the girl, middle finger in the air Unaffected by rumors, the truth, I don't care So open your mouth, stick out your tongue You might as well let go You can't take back what you've done

This song comes back to the joyful nonconformity of Rachel’s character.  She is who she is, and she doesn’t care what you think about it or expect from her.

Marco’s List

[thankgodforianflynn]

Sally and the Family Tree

(Narrating in First Person as Sally)

My Brother is a Squirrel

I am not

My Father is a Squirrel

I am not

My mother is mostly Chipmunk, but not fully

Why I am fully chipmunk?

...Oh, that’s right.

I’m a groundhog.

I’d argue that I’m adopted.

Because my own family tree

...Only makes sense when it needs to

That's the Acorn Family in a nutshell

...My Father is Complex

He is a Mobius Complex in and of itself

Is he the bad guy or the good guy?

Who knows?

...He’s my dad.

That’s all I need to know.

All I ever needed to know.

...So why then

Am I still here?

Oh, right

Sonic

...How similar are Hedgehogs to Groundhogs by the way?

...Am I hedgehog?

Or Groundhog?

Who knows?

I love Sonic

I Love Nicole

...I even love Amy, but, even looking at her is complicated.

Its like I fell in love with Knuckles’ Smaller Lesbian sister.

...Then why does she love Sonic?

Guy or Girl?

...Like I’d know.

I keep changing the answer myself

...I try not to look at the marks

They remind me of things

Things I Might not fully be prepared to deal with yet.

...Am I?

Am I ready?

I’m here.

I ask the questions people don’t ask themselves.

That’s my angle.

I’m the question.

Sally or Sortie?

Sally or Sortie?

War or Truce?

War or Truce?

I know several guys.

Because I’ve

...I would say

Nope

The answer keeps getting yanked from me

Almost all the time

I am a chipmunk, I decide.

...My Dad reminds me of that show.

We used to watch that show together.

Best time 

...Wow

I was actually almost about to say my dad and I had a moment

...We’ve never had a moment

Never

Ever

Ever

So why

AM

I STILL

...I’m the tactician

Always the leader, but, never actually the leader

Ever

I get funny feelings when I look at Sonic

I would never tell you those feelings

...

WOULD THE REAL ANSWER MATTER?

WOULD IT?

IT WOULD MAKE ME LOOK STUPID

RIDICULOUS

UTTERLY HUMILIATED

MY DAD WOULD NEVER LOOK AT ME THE SAME WAY AGAIN

...I raise my right arm

He raises left

I guess we’re sort of in sync.

I want to be sync

I want to.

With both of them.

But I have to remind-

NOPE

MAX IS NO FATHER OF MINE

WAS NEVER MY FATHER

NIGEL WAS MY FATHER

MAX IS A LIVING JOKE

...

I never wanted Sonic dead

But our link keeps changing

I would never tell anyone what  he actually was to me

THAT WOULD JUST BE SILLY

...Go away

I tell him

I ignore Knuckles

...I tell him that all the time though

Never actually true

AND

I HATE

SONIC’S FUCKING

SHADOW

...Nope

Wrong answer

He hates

Me

Like this was ever going to go any other way

‘Sonic?’, I wonder

Who was that?

Oh, right, blue and red hedgehog, with green eyes.

...He always has red copycats though

Sometimes Mauve

BUT

WHEN I TALK TO BLAZE

��...Sally, seriously stop it. You’re scaring me.’

‘OH, WAS I? I THOUGHT YOU WERE JUST IGNORING ME.’

‘...Amy goes first. Then you.’

‘...For the record, I think he’s more interested in his games then telling me about you.’

‘...Oh.’

Blaze sighs. ‘Wow. I need to keep the fire of creation alive.’ She stares at ALL THE ANGLES

APPARENTLY THE ANGLES WON’T STARE AT THEMSELVES

...Or was that an Anagram?

NOPE

...But, yes.

‘...’ Blaze murmurs an ‘N’ name, to some random third party

Nothing’s random about it.

‘...Scourge is a nutshell of his own.’, Sally murmurs. The nut jokes were back.

THEY WERE KIND OF FUNNY

IN THAT

ONLY A FEW MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY ACTUALLY SEEMED TO GET THEM

NO ONE GOT THE JOKE THAT WAS HER LIFE

She wanted to shove her younger/older brother down the hall.

...Where was she?

Where was she really?

Hell?

Was Mobius Hell?

...’Nope’

‘It’s Hades’, she reminds herself

‘Gonna stay out of the Hell trap entirely.’

‘...You know how Sonic keeps staring at your name funny?’

‘Like how he stares at a certain cop.’

...A strange outside party stands.

Just stands.

‘Where are the zones?’, certain parties murmur.

Both members have ‘Z’ in their names by the way.

‘...I just remember the hard times now.’, Sally murmurs.

‘...We’ve had some good times.’

‘But you keep making it harder to remember.’

‘THE ALPHABET ONLY HAS 25 LETTERS NOW.’

‘...Fine. 25.5. ‘Z’ is basically just an inversion of ‘S’.’

‘...What is a ‘sone’ by the way?’, Sally murmurs.

‘THAT IS THE OLDEST WORK JOKE IN HISTORY’

‘...Because he keeps finding himself in a PlayStation?’, Sally murmurs. ‘Even though he likes ninten-’

‘He likes NINTENDO’S STYLE’

‘...He has a way with Sega Stuff. His consoles keep breaking.’

‘...But, not Scourge’s. Scourge knows something I don’t.’

‘SONIC’

‘...Mario/Scourge.’

‘That was a freaky commercial, I admit,’ Sally murmurs

‘OH, WAIT’

‘BACK TO THE TREE’

‘...We don’t have lines in our tree here on Mobius.’

‘WE HAVE ‘8′s in between all our family members.’

‘...Bad joke.’

‘The actual lines are complicated.’

‘...What is the difference, by the way? 8. ...oo. Sadly, 0. ...But, there was no line through it. ////////////////////////////// THERE WE GO’

‘FEELS LIKE WE ONLY FILLED IN AS MANY LINES AS WE HAVE FRIENDS’

‘...Friends are family’, I remind myself.

‘...Then I wake up.’

‘THEY LITERALLY ARE OUR FAMILY’, I remind myself.

‘ONLY INSTEAD OF THE WOODS’

‘ANTOINE’

‘KEEPS LEADING SONIC’

‘THROUGH THE SAVANNAH’

‘OR WAS IT THE DESERT?’

‘I CAN’T REMEMBER ANYMORE’

‘...I do want to read those books sometime.’

‘Sonic likes dogs, but also cats, but seemingly never at the same time.’

‘See what I did there?’

‘HE LIKES BOTH OF THEM’

‘BUT IT HURTS TO ADMIT IT’

...So I remind myself.

To bring both Blaze and Buddy into the room

‘WOW’, I exclaim

‘SURE IS FORCES IN HERE, GUYS/GALS’

‘I BET INFINITE IS ACTUALLY BOTH OF YOU, BUT ALSO SILVER’

‘...He’s the reached the top’

‘But had to stop’

‘...And, that's weirdly bothering him.’

‘...Mammoth Monk?’

‘Whose that?’, I ask

‘I only know the Mogul guy?’

‘HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU AND INFINITE FUCKED?’

‘...’ Sonic get strangely silent and loud at the same time at that.

‘...Finn’s weird.’, Sonic admits. ‘Almost as weird as me.’

‘Yup. Sure is number one fanboy in here.’, I admit.

...Infinite looks at the sides.

‘Sorry, Princess, not yet. ...But, you are my princess.’

‘WOW’

‘I Didn't KNOW SQUIRRELS AND JACKALS WERE RELATED’

‘...They are.’, Infinite admits.

‘...I have an odd relationship with those guys. I think I was Gunner in a blast life.’

‘BECAUSE EVERYTHING YOU MAKE GOES BOOM?’, I ask

‘...Not entirely. You’re still here.’

‘AUGMENTED REALITY IS AM IRAC-’

‘...I stare at the funny pink guy/girl’

‘Still not sure’

All four previous lines were said by my jackal cousin.

‘...Afri- ...Makes strange dogs.’, he tells me.

‘Ah, you mean the new ones’, I tell him.

Its our inside joke.

...Not that inside though.

‘I DON’T KNOW HOW HE’

‘...Dad? ...No wait, that’s Mom.’

‘I KEEP FORGETTING WHAT MY MOM-’

‘...Did I imagine having a mom?’

‘NOPE’

All five prior lines by him.

‘...I keep-’

‘I KNOW SHE’S A FROG’

‘YOU-’

‘...Stop looking at my triangles.’

‘ONE DAY’,

All five prior lines, by him, most-ish

‘...Sally? How much has my mask been going around?’

‘...’ I hesitate to tell him.

‘Once.’

‘...You don’t want to know.’

‘...We’re getting off topic.’

‘Explain the prehistoric us.’

I say.

‘......I have a weirdly complicated past.’

‘I’M SET?’

‘NOPE’

‘NEED TO GRAB MY BACKPACK’

‘GOING HIKING’

He says

‘...One day’, I tell him

‘So, Elias wore it how ma-’, I say

‘YOU DON- I DON- YOUR BROTHER IS WEIRDLY OKAY with wearing my mask.’, he tells me

‘BAD ELIAS’, I SAY

‘...Why does this keep reminding me-’ I say

‘DR. QUACK’

‘DR.’

‘...Doctor’, he reminds me

‘SO’, I begin

‘NOPE’, he tells me

‘...Which one? Four or Eight? I always get them mixed up? ...Or is that twelve?’, he asks

‘...High British, Mid-High British, ...Somewhere between England, Scotland, Rome. ...Possibly Ireland’, ...We stare

‘WOW’, I say.

‘ARE WE ACTUALLY IN SYNC NOW?’, I ask

‘...Correction. ‘we’,’ he reminds us.

‘PERFECT’

‘WHEN DID SONIC ACT’

‘...Canary glass’

‘So that time’

‘...He oddly knew what was happening.’

‘He hope he hasn’t left himself for good’

‘He keeps forgetting himself’

WOW

...Is this technically TWO PERS- YES

IT’S TWO PERSON FIRST PERSON

I Don’t Even Know What Is Happening Anymore

...’That’s Sonic’, I say

‘Wait, wrong sonic’

‘...HOW MANY TIMES’

‘SINCE THAT- ...So many’

‘BUT, HE WAS MOST HUMAN WHEN SONIC WAS GO-’

‘Most Mobian’, I correct him

‘...Whatever’

‘You can call an Anthro a Mobian.’

‘But you can’t make it stick’

‘...Ah.’

‘That’s why I like Acorns’, I murmur.

‘...What’s happening?’, he murmurs

‘STOP THAT’, WE SCREAM

‘YOU’RE KILL-’

‘...Controlling.’, he corrects.

‘Eggman Tech works on Robotnik Stringy Theory.’, he reminds me.

‘...When is this game of cat and mouse going to end?’, I ask

‘THEY CAN’T-’

‘...They’re holding their breath’, I remind myself

‘FOR THE CURRY’, HE SCREAMS

‘...Does it remind them of catnip?’, I joke

‘No=yes=I don’t know=maybe=whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa’

REALITY IS BREAKING DOWN WE REALIZE

‘More like taking stage left’, he corrects me

‘EGGMAN OR ROBOTNIK’

‘STAGE RIGHT’

‘STAGE LEFT’

‘CENTER STAGE’

‘...Egg=Mind=Power’

‘...Robot=Dumb=Asshole=Strength’

‘...JULIAN QUAGMIRE’ WE SCREAM AT THE SAME FUCKING PERSON

‘...I would personally call him IVO QUACK’

‘YOU TOO? ...No wait. JULIAN QUACK’

‘WHO QUACKED FIRST BACKED FIRST’

‘...Julian’, we scream silently.

‘TURN YOUR INFERNAL ROBOT RUIN TRAIN OFF’, WE SCREAMS LIKE STUPID FUCKING BIT-

‘YOU CALL ME’

‘HELP’

‘...Mordred sucks’

‘WOW’

‘MORGA-’

‘...Cat. Mouse. Box. Fairy.’

‘A FAIRY INSTEAD OF A MOUSE? WOW’

‘AT LEAST’

‘OH, WAIT YOU DID THAT TOO’

‘LAVALAMPAS STUPIDSADASDAASDSDA’

‘YOU’RE RIGHT, THEY’RE ALL STUPID,’ SALFINITE MURMURS

‘WE’RE GOING OFF THE TRAILS’, I SC- RETH

‘One of those days’, we murmurs.

‘...We’ll get them.’, he says.

‘SCHRODINGER CATS ALLWAYS LANDS ON THEIR HEADS’

‘,..Feet=Heads?’

‘What a strange hydrya’

‘SO THATS WHY ROBOTNIK SUCKS AT TAPDANCING’

‘...NOT THE BOX’, WE SCREAM

‘ONE DAY’

‘NOT NOW’

...The Eggman Broke

‘Julian Sucks, doesn’t he?’

‘YOU HAVE NO IDEA’, Ivo calmly explains to them. ...By screaming politely.

‘Bitch’

‘...We are, aren’t we?’, Ivo tells us.

‘Shoot us in the head’, Ivo tells us

‘...’ We shoot at their conjoined head.

‘...Bad Idea’, Ivo admits. ‘I was this guy-’

‘...Fuck it, I WAS NEVER AS BAD AS THIS GUY’

‘DID YOU REALLY THINK THAT?’

‘DID YOU’

‘...’

I unfuse from Infinite-Ultimate.

‘..Pyramid scalpel?’, ...Bitch

‘BITCH, YES’

...Am I  the real bad girl here?

‘...NOPE’, I realize.

‘...Unless you’re talking to Julian.’

‘... Never talk to Julian again’, he tells me.

‘PERFECT’

‘...Don’t we all’

‘NOPE’, I CORRECT HIM

…...I am the bad girl.

Whther

NOPE

I DON’T

‘I COULD’VE BEEN A REAL PRINCESS’, Someone murmurs.

‘...Let it fray, I tell them’.

‘...Sally, please just-’

‘I DON’T WANT TO LOSE YOU AGAIN’

...We all stare at each other.

‘WHO SAID THAT?’

Amy sighs.

‘Julian was born on a farm’, we tell ourselves.

‘Ivo was born in the city’.

‘...The roaring city’, Amy tells IVO, NOT JULIADAEASEAEWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

‘,...They say Tigger is the most cunning of the beasts.’

‘They didn’t say he was the most braindead too.’

‘Julian’s Tigger, Ivo’s Whinny’

‘...We needs help.’

‘FUCK YOUR POLITENESS JULIAN’

‘SCREAM’

‘SCREAM’

‘NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU’

‘NOT EVEN THE NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU’

‘SCREAM FOR US’

‘SCREAM FOR MEWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE’

‘...Carver Edlund is a bitch’.

‘JULIAN’

IVO SMASHES HIS KEYBOARD TO OBLIVION

‘Not your puppets bitch’

‘Never your puppets BIATCH’

‘...FOR FOGHORN LEGHORN’

‘THIS STORY’

‘...’ All Roboticizers break instantly.

INCLUDING THE COMPUTERS

BUT VERY SLOWLY

‘...In your head you’re a saint, Julian’

‘In our heads, you’re the devil’

‘Never let us get our thoughts together.’

‘Never let us create’

‘GO CREATE ROME AGAIN’

‘THIRD TIME IS A BITCH’

‘...I like the z names’, Ivo tells us.

‘BUT, HE, THEY’

‘ITS PART OF THE LORE JULIAN’, Ivo says like a most polite man

‘RASPUTIN IS AWAKE’, Ivo SCREAMS

‘WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO TELL FATHER?’, Ivo asks.

‘...’ He didn’t know

Julian didn’t know

FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING

EVERYTHING

‘...I’m my own family tree’, Salyl realisays sadly.

‘Everyone’s left’...Julian says

‘...Julian farts and poops on the same desk’, Ivo said silently.

‘...Can’t believe he let himself het this way.’, Ivo says...More like Carpenter Ivo

‘JULIAN IS THE WORST’, WE ALL SCREAM

‘ROBOTS?’

‘MORE LIKE SHOBOTS?’

‘OR NOBOTS?’

‘GOBOTS?’

‘AUTOBOTS?’

JULIAN SITS ON AN ANTHILL FOR oo TIME.

HE KEEPS SITTING ON THEM FOLKS

HE KEEPS SITTING ON THEM

...Julian really is Snively by the way.

Not Ivo.

Ivo is pleasant.

JULIAN SNIVELY ROBOTNIK IS A NIGHTMARE

‘...colin’, the real Snively corrects us

He likes being grammatically correct.

JULIAN WOULD BE BRAINDEAD WITHOUT HIM

...How closely related

...Exceedingly, I remind myself.

...Odin can find his own way home.

...Exceedingly FUCKING DISTANTLY CLOSELY

...They both keep changing the family tree.

...Colin, stop being a bitch.

...KnuxKrag

NEWSTONE

NEWMOBIUS

WE NEED A NEW PLANET TO Live on

...I keep forgetting my gender

CORRECTION

THEY KEEP FORGETTING IT

I’VE WANTED TO TRANS FOR THE LONGEST TIME

BUT THESE ASSHATS

THESE ASSHATS

BOTH

KEEP RUINING

...McGee Alice

PERFECT

AN OPENING

...The tales of Sally Acorn will continue, once we finish writing the book

OUR MUN’S PINOCCHIO BY THE WAY

KEEPS FINDING HIMSELF IN ODD PLACES

...We felt wooden  sometimes

Hollow even

Julian’s fault

...Or someone’s

Starts with a S/Z/J/P/K/L/M/N/O/P

NOW THAT’S A TOUGH ACORN TO CRACK

...Julian looks at Mice funny

...Monkey Island 2

JULIAN IS THE BIG ASSHOLE

He secretly hates

...It was complicated.

Julian is God

...Julian is everything

INCLUDING ROBO-ROBOTNIK

EGGMAN WAS BEST TIME

...We want the EGgmen

...Eggman

All of him

...We knew he was still a kid at heart

WHICH MADE THIS PAINFUL

SOGODDAMNPAINFUL

‘...Zovi’

‘Go away’

‘...I’m his favorite.’

‘...Because I was his sally acorn all along.’

‘...Zovi HAS A YCH HERE COMPLEX’, JULIAN SCREAMS

‘NOT A-’

‘...How similar iss a *CENSORED YHWH/YHVH* complex to a YCH/God complex?’, he asks

‘Similar...But not that much’

‘...Was it?’

‘...THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A SHORT STORY’

‘...His life’s greatest work’, Sal tells us.

‘I’M NOT A SALVODORE DAHLI THOUGH’

‘...Sally was the best person here.’

‘I forgot how to be her though.’

‘In our rush to stay kids’

‘...Julian is new daddy’

‘...We stay away from the ‘M’ parent word though.’

‘TWO GAY DAYS FOR ALL OF REALITY’

‘ALL OF IT’

‘ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL OF IT’

‘...’ Iva stares longingly at Infinite space. And him too.

‘Kids? Play with your dads’

...She then asks the question.

‘REMOVED BY HOW MANY?!’

‘...Oh, Ivo. Julian. You Smug Prick Bastards.’

‘YOU NEVER TOLD ME HOW MANY’

‘PARENTINGSDASDSOAJKSDAJOASJDOJOASDJOASDJO:ASDJO:ASDJO:ASDJO:ASDJO:ASD’

‘...Dio was our new daddy’

And I have Star platinum to think thank for it.

‘...’

‘...I love Squirrels and Cats’, Tells us

‘...And you’re both, Sal/Sally Acorn/Salva/Acorn Girl’

‘...Is Alicia’

‘NO WAY’, JOTARO AND DIO Politely say

‘...She can be.’, Dio tells us.

‘...I was her aunt’, Alicia tells us.

‘...Really?’, Dio asks.

‘...And, then She was confused.’

‘...I was her mom. Then her aunt’, Alicia tells herself.

‘GREAT’

‘GREAT’

‘GREAT’

‘...AUNT’

‘...And, then I skipped three generations.’, Alicia told everyone.

‘That many,’, Dio tells us.

‘...’

Max is silent

‘I DIDN’T KNOW WHAT I WAS GETTING INTO’, He says quietly.

‘...Wood. Ireland. Scottland. Gaelic. Celtic.’

‘THIS FAMILY IS NUTS’

‘...But, you are my daughter’, he tells Nigel and Sally.

...

Longest pause longer long longity long shenlong pause

‘...I meant’

‘SO COMPLICATED’

‘SO COMPLICATEd’

‘You’d think pirates made up the majority of this family tree.’, he realizes.

‘...Maroc-ko.’...He pauses

‘THE ROBOT GUY?’

‘...Different robot guy.’

‘...……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..”

...We stare longlingly 

SHUT UP

We can fix it nothing.

The nothing fixes nothing

Everythinasddddddddddda

‘...’

‘ZOVI’S IN HELL’

‘WHAT ARE WE DOING JUST STANDING THERE DOING NOTHING ALL THE TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME TIME’

‘...Nana best guy’

‘NANASHI IS THE BEST’

‘...But we can and cannot compete with him’

‘...Was everyone Sally Acorn’s Mom now?’

‘Please let everyone be my mom now’

‘Even Bunnie’s my mom now.’

‘...But, the entity was and wasn’t.’

‘NOW THAT’

‘WAs.’

‘Confusing’

‘I was the only one he wasn’t allowed to touch.’

‘...Even Nicole is a soft hologram’

‘I’M SORRY NICOLE’

‘I DON’T WANT TO DIE’

‘...Reality was bleeding us dry’, we realized.

‘...Entity foundation to nothing.’

‘...Which was something alright.’

‘...He is still the diamond in the rough.’

‘Still learning his way.’

‘...’

Sonic was the entity’s best friend/self/best self

‘...’ Sonic doesn’t want to die’

‘...’

‘...Abraham Acorn’

‘Abraham Acorn would know what to do’

‘...IF HE HADN’T BECOME THAT’

‘HOW LONG IS EVERYONE GOING TO BLAME ME FOR’

‘...I was and still am will for-never be the Nightmare King.’, Max says. The previous line too.

‘...Just do it’, Infinite said

‘I’M DONE FOR’

‘...Nanashi is best guy’, Infinite admits

‘...Where Qrow though.’

‘OH’

‘SO THAT’S WHY ADAM IS’

...Going to be late.

WE HAD SUCH THE LUCK WITH BULLS

ADAM MORE BULL FIGHTER

FIGHT BULLS

ALL TIME

BLAKE IS BITCH

BLAKE HAS TOTAL HORUS ENERGIES

...Salem Ultra bitch

GREEN RAINBOW BITCH

ULTRA WHITE GREEN RA

...She-ra

Cat-ra was cuter though

I’M GETTING

WE’RE GETTING

...On and odd track

Off and on oddish track.

WE KEPT  BECOMING POKEMON

...Perfect

PERFECT

WE TAUGHT DEMONS HOW TO 

BECOMES GHOD

AND POKEMANSZSAZSZSZZSZS

*CENSPOLLYWHANTSSEAESSEAT*

...I was reverting.

No longer.

...Family Tree bigger than Yssssdrassil

...Acid

Fire

Water

...

Acid is fire and water

DON’T ASK

DON’T ASK

...My Personality was me.

And not me

And so many me’s

Working in tandem

BETTER BUT NOT GREAT

NEVER GREAT

NEVER USE THOSE TWO WORDS

...Great but not bedhole

I mean better

...HOW MANY AUNTS DO I HAVE

POSTING

[wykart]

13 x Missy

Sooo I wrote a fic for the first time in a lonnnng time (and the first one for doctor who). It’s just a bit of angsty fluff + a bit of sadnesss

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: Missy/Thirteenth Doctor

Synopsis: The Master is dying after being lasered in the back by her shitty dick twin and the doctor returns to save her (yay) 

The starless sky stretches out above her, bright fires reflecting in her eyes – she started those fires – so she can’t exactly complain. The doubled-edged knife in the back had been one thing – but now – she was to be consumed by the very monsters she created. She may not have stood with the doctor, but she fell all the same. She hopes that the doctor understood what she had meant, the knowing look in the eyes and the blade pressed against his side (I am going to stop him. I will stop him so that he can become the one you know now. One more nudge towards the waters of change he goes). It was fitting that the one who ended her was herself, it was an exemplar of personal growth taken to a comical extreme. Now, she is lying on a Mondasian colonist ship, paralysed and halfway dead, watching the world burn up. This time, she watches from the inside, instead of from a vantage where she can spectate with glee as death rears its head to feast. She wonders if anyone is watching now. Little does she realise; there is.  

Amongst the explosions of carnage surrounding, she doesn’t notice their approaching footsteps. Missy is startled when a face fades into view - a kind expression that blocks those fires above that were teasing her so mercilessly.

She glows, the warring fires behind her a ringed halo around her form, casting down upon her darker scalp while platinum ends dance in the breeze – a breeze conjured by a ship being eaten up by the vacuum of space, but peaceful all the same. Her face is dashed with the ashes of war, eyes wide and concerned – an intoxicating mixture of forest green and earthy tones that reflect the icy pools staring upwards.

Missy tries to move, but instead feels the full extent of her paralysis. The new arrival notices, however, picking up on the slightest twitch of an eyelid or tightening tendon in the face. Hope spreads across the woman’s face in a golden grin. “Hello there.” The woman reaches down to touch the other’s face, a gentle gesture brushing a coil of brown hair aside from skin doused in dirt and tears. “I’m sorry I didn’t come back sooner, but this black hole made things a bit of a chore, let alone crossing my own time stream. I was able to lock onto this place as a previous location in the tardis matrix, then track any Gallifreyan life signs – there aren’t too many of them around after all – and… I’m rambling aren’t I?” The doctor glances back at missy apologetically. Missy smiles, curling her lips to a thin upturn, the best she can do in her current condition.

“Hello.” she whispers.

The doctor chuckles, a mirthful laugh brought new joy on new lips. She flashes Missy a winning smile. “Hello.” They spend a mere moment gazing into each other’s eyes before the doctor springs up. “Right then!” She exclaims, and begins pacing the dusty landscape while waggling her sonic screwdriver around like an idiot. Same old Thete.

“Now Missy, I’m afraid there’s not much I can do for you, you’re going to have to regenerate.” Missy wishes she could roll her eyes, maybe offer a sarcastic remark or two - but is instead left essentially lifeless. She thinks perhaps that the doctor is enjoying this a little too much. You really do underestimate me you know, she imagined herself saying, I crafted the device myself, there is no chance of regeneration. “I know what you’re thinking, that regeneration is impossible, but I believe I might just have found a way around that.” The doctor smirks, throwing her screwdriver into the air and catching it. Oh this one’s smug alright, some things never change. “Overriding the mechanism requires a surge of regeneration energy far more powerful than a single cycle, perhaps more than a full set, and all from one source as well blimey - quite the weapon I might add - brilliant, but altogether a little contradictory to your new and improved goodness.”

“Luckily for you, I have plenty of regeneration energy to spare, a charitable donation from the Gallifreyan high council in fact - though I won’t blame you for that oversight, I would never have suspected it myself considering my somewhat rocky relationship with that charming bunch.” She rounds on Missy, her eyes flashing gold as regeneration energy surges behind them. Suddenly, Missy realises what she is about to do, and wishes that she could protest. “Anyway, I think that I might just have a near infinite number of regenerations – that’s quite enough to spare I think.” She smiles again. Happy, Missy thinks to herself, so happy. Doesn’t she realise that this could kill her? The worst of it is; she probably does.

“Alright then,” the doctor said, rubbing her hands together and blowing starlight from her lips, as if kindling a small flame. “Here goes nothing.”

The doctor bends down beside missy, inching closer. She places each of her glowing hands upon Missy’s cheeks softly. Her face grows lax, expression softening as her lips part slightly, letting bright particles flow from them, flooding life and movement into her patient. She kisses her, soft and slow and deliberate - as much a procedure as an affectionate gesture - and missy is overwhelmed by a mixture of power and love. A soft golden glow envelops them both, energy coursing from one to the other, like breath pushed back into her lungs, wrenching her back to life. Missy feels each nerve activate one by one, a tingling sensation as feeling and autonomy returns. The doctor helps her to her feet. Standing up, she no longer finds her self having to crane her neck up to meet the doctor’s eyes. It’s a welcome change.

The doctor exhales a sigh of relief. “Phew, I’m okay!”

“Wasn’t that part of your plan?” Missy teases, finally to snark this idiot as much as she deserves.

“Well, sure it was part of it. But I didn’t think it would actually work!” She laughs and links her arm through Missy’s, striding out enthusiastically and dragging Missy along with her. Arm in arm, they trek across the desolated forest, embers dancing on the winds of battle, towards the tardis.  

Missy can feel the next one along, feel it ready to burst forth into the world and bring a new age with it – like a child’s tooth, clinging to the gum by a strand of mangled skin, the new pearly white waiting in the space it will leave behind, ready to come through and bite.

It’s strange, she’s never felt the same sentimental connection with her incarnations like the doctor did, and she had always considered them foolish to do so. It probably has something to do with her past as a parasitic body snatcher, or perhaps her sheer number of incarnations, a constant plight for extended life that blinded her from the individual pleasures of a renewed consciousness. Even so, other time lords were never quite as sentimental, or as dramatic, as the doctor when it came to regeneration. To the doctor, it was something akin to death, and missy supposed it was to do with the mortal company he kept, who could not sense that underlying essence that lived in each incarnation, or overcome the superficial aspects of existence. He had adapted to that mortal way of thinking, all those infants he surrounded himself with weeping for him... her, she corrected. How could she forget.

She stood now – the doctor – fiddling around with the tardis console as if she had some idea of what she was doing. She wore an abominable mix of clothes as usual; baggy blue ¾ pants held by revolting yellow suspenders over a striped top. At least the coat was in good taste, and the look of it billowing out behind her as she strode the scene was admirably dramatic. The doctor had never shared the master’s sense of style.

“You copied me.” Missy teases.

“Well, it was bound to happen eventually. To be honest, I was beginning to think I’d developed a fault. Besides, you’re much prettier.” She casts missy a sarcastic, sultry look. Missy rolls her eyes.

“Well dear, that’s a given.” A sharp stab of pain lurches through her hearts and she stumbles forwards against the console, gasping for breath. “Why is it taking so long, I’m itching to get this over with.” She groans.

“No, you’re not,” the doctor sighs matter-of-factly. “You’re scared.”

Missy scoffs. “I’m not scared, you ridiculous old fool.”

“Yes, you are,” she steps away from the console and meets missy’s eyes.  “You’re and sad too. You spent a long time as missy, you changed so much.” She gathered Missy’s hands in her own, glowing with yellow light and buzzing with energy, with potential. “You’re not ready to let that go.” She whispers.

“Don’t be stupid.” Missy snatches her hands away, forcing the regeneration energy down again. Not yet. The doctor raises an eyebrow, as if Missy has just proven her right. “Oh, shut up,” Missy snaps. “I’m not being sentimental, I just really liked this one. I mean look at me,” she does a little twirl in her purple skirt, though it’s ravaged and caked with dirt, “I’m gorgeous.” The doctor smirks, a loving, but knowing smile. It’s infuriating. “You sure you want me blasting off in here – new regeneration cycle, and a borrowed one at that – it might ruin your pretty little control room.”

“It’s ok,” the doctor says, knocking her fist against the glass cylinder extending from the console, invoking a warbled sound from within, “she’s a resilient one.”

Missy smiles, and feels a sadness stretch through her like poison – a melancholic affliction of the blood planted by the doctor, spreading through her veins. It was a promise of stars, a promise of adventure. A promise made on the crimson grass fields of Gallifrey under silver canopies and a dark, beckoning sky. [Stand with me, it’s all I’ve ever wanted. Me too.]

“I wanted to stand with you, I was going to come back. I –“

“Missy,” the doctor interrupted, her voice suddenly gentle and series. “Everything you’re about to say, I already know.” Why, why does the doctor have to be so forgiving, after everything she’s done… “You’re here now, and I have a promise to keep.” [Every star, you and me, you watch us run.]

Missy nods, staring down, trying to take in everything she’s feeling, the feeling of being herself, being Missy. “Isn’t it funny that I ended where I started,” she begins, and – to her horror – she is close to tears, “that I always knew on some subconscious level, what was going to happen in the end.”

“That you’d double-cross yourself like the cunning bastard you are and secure both your birth and your demise.” The doctor replies snidely, coming to face her.

“Well, when you put it like that it sounds rather obvious but… yes. Oh listen to me go on with my poetry,” she sighs, “I sound like one of your pets.”

“Friends, missy, and it’s time you learned the difference.” She reaches out and places her hands on Missy’s shoulders, staring deep into her glassy eyes.

“It’s never felt like this before regenerating. Timelords aren’t supposed to feel like this.”

“Like what?”

“Like they’re dying.” And listen to her, lamenting ‘oh the pain, oh the misery.’ It’s weakness, all of it. But, she doesn’t believe that, not anymore.

Before she can beat herself up about it any more, however, the doctor leans in – just a fraction – and brushes her with a soft kiss. It’s enough to set her hearts racing, every cell in her body screaming their need to stay alive. The doctor reaches up and cups Missy’s cheek gently, and – Missy is relieved to see – she is tearing up as well. Sentimental idiot. Her cheeks are flushed, and her blonde hair hangs about her face in ragged tufts, sticking out at odd angles in the heat, the energy surging.  

“Koschei, listen to me,” she says, her hands now clasped loosely behind Missy’s neck, “you are so very strong.” She emphasises every word, a whisper. To her dismay, the doctor steps back, letting her fingers linger and brush her shoulder as she backs away, smiling sadly. Showtime.

Missy gulps back tears and returns the doctor’s smile as she finally allows that humming, all-consuming energy to course through her. She can feel it, the walls of the dam burst and crumbling to a flood of gold, of life. Looking the doctor in the eyes, she whispers one final message.

“I don’t want to go.”

[adevotedappraisal]

“Famous” by Kanye West from The Life of Pablo

Before Kanye drops his new album Yhandi in the middle of a twitter media storm, It would be instructive to look at his 2016 album The Life of Pablo, the album that first signaled this change to the current persona as the biggest rebellious son on Earth, flipping many of his former beliefs on their head, turning off some former fans, fascinating others and frustrating others until they hate-watch everything the Chicago rapper does.

You can say what you want about how Kanye West is feeling or what he’s thinking, and a lot of people have said something, but I’ve always just listened to his albums to get a barometer reading. I really don’t place weight on any particular news story for the full truth.  I don’t scroll down, I just press play.  Because Kanye West albums are about the man writ large.  And through the bombast and outsourced beats, layered upon other beats, we can draw a bead on the man himself based on the control he wields on his albums.  And so the most blatant example of this was 2008s 808s and Heartbreak, which followed the tragedies of his breakup of his relationship and the death of his mother. Well look there, as sad as the themes were there, no one worried about the artist, because of the focus and intent seen on the album.  It had a clear point of view, love it or hate it.  The same was seen with 2007s Graduation and 2010s My Twisted Dark Fantasy. Control, a clear intent, and a noticeable theme.  Any missing of the mark probably first started with 2012s Cruel Summer.  Filling the first half with sure bangers and leaving the rest of the album anemic and unfocused showed a lack of concern with the project, but nothing could be read into the psyche of the man.  Yeezus showed a dark, abrasive side, with divisive songs like “Black Skinhead” and “On Site,” but still I say, a general clarity of focus. I can’t say the same for The Life of Pablo, and I believe that a part of the general feeling of concern for Kanye is, on a subconscious level, built on a foundation of the reaction to this fragmented, sewn-together album.

There are glimpses of a good album underneath all this variegated metropolitan sprawl.  “Ultralight Beam” is Kanye at the top of his conceptual powers.  Anchored by choir harmonies arranged by Kirk Franklin, who makes a closing prayer here, the song is a majestic cloud of praise for God. Kanye, mostly on the chorus is still the real leader of the song, the verbal heavy-lifting done by the fantastic star-making verse by Chance the Rapper. And there’s “Famous,” marinated in controversy, from its opening, Taylor-baiting couplet to its creepy music video, both contemptuous and obsessed with celebrity, that said, it impresses more from its handling of the Nina Simone sample it chops and the way he has Rhianna interpolate it, and the way the beat rises to a crowning sample of Sister Nancy booming atop this millennial Dancehall.

This is juxtaposed with stuff like the horror-show rap of “Freestyle 4” the squalling, lumpish funk of “Feedback,” with his ridiculous boasts (“Steve Jobs mixed with Steve Austin!”) and charmless interludes like “Silver Surfer Announcement.” Not to mention the songs sound so disparate together. Take “Highlights,” the uptempo rap that could’ve been on Graduation (2007), while closeby the radiant “Waves” with its stadium echo boasts, could’ve been on My Dark Twisted Fantasy.  But this album on the whole has no musical or lyrical theme to hold all these styles together, it’s all sacred notes with profane lyrics, modern beats with old samples, with the guy’s quality of verse all over the place.  Now you see why everyone got worried?

Along with “Ultralight…” Kanye is most clear in intent and ‘here’ rapping on “30 Hours,” which harkens back to his earlier work, with unassuming synth work underscoring an inspired vocal sample, textured from effects, with West rapping about topics personal and boastful, but mostly it is a song about memory, and the images one focuses on to define a remembered event, in this case a college-aged love affair, and the inter-state expedition that underscored the desire and infatuation of the profane, romanticized muse. These songs, differing in texture and sound, reveal the rapper only in parts, sometimes contradicting, as opposed to his halcyon days of 2005s masterpiece Late Registration, when the whole show was laid out.  

It’s getting to the point where his televised rants and tweets have stopped being annoying and are beginning to anger some people, but the whole story is never there, that’s just the stage for his over-blown Kanye West (now Ye apparently) persona.  It is a persona that has seemingly made a dramatic reveal into a disciple for the Arch-Villian persona himself Donald Trump. Oh Ani, you’re breaking my heart. But this is a persona nevertheless, contemplated and constructed, discussed and plotted just like a lot of your favourite artists and their personas, whether it’s the Caring Humanitarian persona or the Trap Lord persona, all curated, and with the busy West, always revealing a new chapter in this year’s saga just in time for a new release date.  What the albums The Life of Pablo and Ye from this year show is something else.  

They show a man in transition, dissatisfied with some past version of himself and reaching out into the world for a new sound, for a new answer to the Negro Question, and finding himself in various places: in in the Bible, in his wife and children, in his obsessions with sex and power.  But I’m not sure I hear in those inconsistent albums a firm answer to his questions or a firm sonic wharf for his restless spirit.  But with West it won’t matter.  Cuz as always I’ll know when he’s back on the horse the next time I press play.

[dustedmagazine]

Dusted Mid-Year Exchange: 2018, Part 2

Part two covers mid-year favorites from H. C. McEntire to Yuzo Iwata.  If you missed part one, check it out here.  

H.C. McEntire — Lionheart (Merge)

Who recommended it? Justin Cober-Lake

Did we review it?  No. 

Ben Donnelly’s take: 

 Country music likes to provide bona fides in the lyrical details. Be it bad boy specifics of a truck model or coffeehouse ballads spiked with animal bones and rusty weathervanes, the singer signals that they know life out on the dirt roads. What's striking about Lionheart is how it delves into the particulars of a North Carolina life, from textile miles to chicory and gardenias. Indeed, nearly every song mentions the local flora, yet such details fall into place incidentally. McEntire describes places where nature is growing over every outbuilding and brick alley. There's a sense of discovery in theses settings where relationships with friends, family and a lover play out. All those vines were too common to notice until now, when love and the gratitude that follows make the mundane vivid.

McEntire longs for the present moment perfected, not a past reconstructed, and that's why her rootsy details don't have anything to prove. She’s comes to this twang a decade after playing the knotted indie rock also endemic to the region, a style that leaves nary a trace musically here. When she sings “I’m the clown who feeds the crows,” she’s both a figure in her natural habitat and someone who knows the other locals are smirking and murmuring, as she wanders on her own.

 Efrim Manuel Menuck—Pissing Stars (Constellation)

Pissing Stars by Efrim Manuel Menuck

Who recommended it? Jonathan Shaw

Did we review it? Yes. Jonathan said that a “mind-scrambling collision of plasticized media culture and geopolitical rapacity provides the thematic impetus for Pissing Stars.”

Bill Meyer’s take:

Words and notes are mere platforms; it’s the blasted, low-definition, high-contrast sound of Pissing Stars that hits you first and leaves a mark. Menuck (founder of Godspeed! You Black Emperor and Silver Mt. Zion) uses grimy sonic filters to amplify an emotional anguish whose extend deeper than the current geo-political situation. The album’s organizing preoccupation is a love affair between TV personality and an arm dealer’s coddled son, which caught Menuck’s attention when he was in his teens (he’s well into his 40s now).  The songs address love and money, and the impossibility of redemption and the yearning to transcend that impossibility, not as binary relationships but as far boundaries of a vast and incomprehensible field.  Menuck sounds broken and partially remade, awash in sounds made to match.

  Mesarthim — The Density Parameter (Avantgarde Music)

The Density Parameter by Mesarthim

Who recommended it? Ian Mathers

Did we review it? Yes Ian admired the way that Mesarthim, “seesaws from something even the staunchest, pettiest gatekeepers would have to admit are metal, to sections featuring patterns and instruments that, in a different context, would make perfect sense at a rave.” 

 Eric McDowell’s take:

“Safe to say that black metal’s got what it takes to make innocent listeners uncomfortable: the corrosive distortion, the pummeling drums, those terrifying roars — not to mention all that netherworldly symbolism, mythology and branding. But if Mesarthim’s keeping somewhat more experienced listeners (Bandcamp dabblers, Dusted midyear exchange reviewers) on their toes, it’s not because they’re doubling down on those tropes. It’s because they take such a free hand with gestures to genres that seem to take the legs out from under their black metal persona.

 Not to overstate the case: The music on The Density Parameter, the Australian duo’s third full-length, is plenty dark and crushing. But then there are the unsettling touches — the synthetic arena-rock drums and boxing-movie-montage keys of “Ω,” the bleeding-heart strings of “Transparency” or the ghoulish club beat of “74%.” To say that Mesarthim sounds like a band bored with convention is really to say that they sound pumped about the possibility of subverting it. And when they want to indulge, they can do that, too, as they prove in the album’s final overpowering minutes.  

  Roscoe Mitchell and the Montreal-Toronto Art Orchestra—Ride the Wind (Nessa)

Who recommended it? Derek Taylor

Did we review it? Yes. Derek said: “Flimsy idiomatic descriptors like jazz, classical and the like are irrelevant to the proceedings, replaced by the umbrella adjectival phrase of organized and energized sound.”

Jonathan Shaw’s take:

Adequately describing music this enormously complex, aesthetically confrontational and confident requires a technical vocabulary and understanding of jazz history that this reviewer lacks. For this 2016 set, Mitchell wrote and worked and played with the 19-piece Montreal-Toronto Art of Orchestra. Their varied instrumentation and dexterous, evocative playing create some dizzying experiences: see the transition out of the choppy clatter of “Splatter” into the lyrical grace of the first few minutes of the title track. From staccato, oddly percussive reeds to undulant brass and strings—it’s a sharp and then gorgeous progress.

A couple reference points occur: Mingus’s orchestral and ambitious Let My Children Hear Music (1972), especially the whirling, swirling “The Shoes of the Fisherman’s Wife Are Some Jive-ass Slippers”; “A Brain for the Seine” (1969), a long composition by the Art Ensemble of Chicago, in which Mitchell has been a key player throughout its long and bewilderingly experimental existence. Those dates invoke the high point of the American free jazz avant-garde, and few personages loomed as largely, or productively, in that period as Mitchell’s.

That begs some questions: Can we still have an avant-garde in the early 21st century? Can a figure as established and prominent as Mitchell produce authentically avant-garde art? If the avant-garde is thought as a political and historically specific phenomenon, likely not; the postmodern and late capital have reduced those possibilities all but completely. But if by “avant-garde” we mean a style, and a style specific to jazz, then this music carries its mark and its intensity. It’s also lovely and bracing to hear Mitchell work through a new arrangement of “Nonaah” here, a song that recalls the mid-1970s cultural environment of its original composition and appearance in Mitchell’s oeuvre. The song caps this set, and in doing so insists that we hear history at work. Thanks, Derek, for recommending this stirring and provocative recording.

 Kacey Musgraves — Golden Hour (MCA Nashville)

Who recommended it? Patrick Masterson

Did we review it? No.  

Derek Taylor’s take:

“Jazz is dead” — it’s a declamatory provocation at once reductive, alarmist and cavalier that’s been floating around for the better part of a half-century, uttered by the idiom’s traditionalists, progressives and detractors alike. The same fatalistic phrase could equally and erroneously be applied to country music. Twenty-nine year old Texan Kacey Musgraves isn’t exactly a corrective to that combative line of thought and her brand of musical expression is fraught with certain stylistic choices (concessions?) that appear cardinal in this age of Country Music Awards commodification. But embrace of pop conventions has always been efficacious strategy going back to Countrypolitan, Western Swing and even The Singing Brakeman.  

Golden Hour, Musgraves’ fourth album, is reportedly a reflection of recently-found, matrimony-rooted optimism, audible in the gilded acoustic guitar melodies that serve as the skeletal frames for the songs around which a warm-blooded corpus of lap steel, banjo, drums and noninvasive keys is fleshed. Her voice is a modest wonder, musing on solitary afternoons leavened and enriched by the safety that comes in knowing that loving companionship is the current and foreseeable norm or using the kitschy metaphor of a “Velvet Elvis” to elucidate her lover’s left-of-center appeal. Apart from others of her age and ascendant success, she seems to cotton that the gifts of prosperity and stardom need not come through the mercenary espousal of whatever pop chart-calibrated admixture the A&R suits and million-bean counters deem worthy of exploitation.

  Olden Yolk—S-T (Trouble In Mind)

Olden Yolk by Olden Yolk

Who recommended it? Ben Donnelly

Did we review it? Yes. Jennifer Kelly said, “The vocals slide over one another like colored transparencies, creating shifting shades and moods.”

Ian Mathers’ take:

“Je suis les enfants/in the barrel of a gun” is a heck of a way to open an album, and the mix of the slightly sinister and the slightly baroque carries throughout the first Olden Yolk record. Which means, yes, building on that proud legacy of twee bands not afraid of the Velvet Underground, and I see those Clientele comparisons and can agree with them too. At points though I also think of early, spikier Go-Betweens. All of which is to say that the considerable charms and pleasures of Olden Yolk are coming from a distinct and well loved (if sometimes underestimated) lineage. There are discernible traces of psych-folk, jangle-pop, even a bit of the tang of the garage in there, but as with any act producing music worth paying attention to, here all those referents are just attempts to point at the contours of the very specific, individual thing Olden Yolk are doing. Whether it’s the brasher likes of “Esprit de Corps” or the lovely eternal sigh of “Gamblers on a Dime” or especially the forbidding sprawl and tangle of the closing “Takes One to Know One,” Olden Yolk build on the past with such verve and panache they never feel of the past.

  John Prine — The Tree of Forgiveness (Oh Boy)

Who recommended it? Isaac Cooper

Did we review it? Yes, Isaac said, “Prine finds his warmest balance yet between boundless empathy and joking detachment.”  

Eric McDowell’s take:

Portrait of the artist as an old man, the cover of John Prine’s first album of original music in 13 years says it all. He looks a bit tossed around, sure, but sly as ever. He’s surrounded by darkness and wearing black, but his face glows. Perhaps he’s “seeing the light,” but he’s gazing right at us, eyes skeptical, mouth ready to crack an acid joke.  

On The Tree of Forgiveness, Prine’s intimate and gruff voice doesn’t so much guide us from light to dark as show us their inseparability. Often they’re embodied in the figures and narratives characteristic of Prine’s music. There’s the down-and-out beggar of the trucking-on opener, “Knockin’ on Your Screen Door” whose family “up and left me / with nothin’ but an 8-track / another side of George Jones.” On “The Lonesome Friends of Science,” there’s the poor washed-up Pluto, “once a mighty planet there / now just an ordinary star / hanging out in Hollywood / in some old funky sushi bar.” While other tunes have an earnest tenderness that makes us want to pin Prine himself as not only their singer but also their subject — the strings-saturated “Summer’s End” or “Boundless Love” (“If I came home, would you let me in / fry me some pork chops and forgive my sins?”) — that risky move is no more tempting than on the closer, “When I Get to Heaven.” “I’m gonna get a cocktail / vodka and ginger ale / and I’m gonna smoke a cigarette that’s nine miles long / I’m gonna kiss that pretty girl / on the tilt-a-whirl / yeah, this old man is going to town”: The plan feels pure Prine, but it’s also sketched as a sing-along, inviting us to share in the fantasy.  

If everyone’s already pointed out that Prine’s always been this way, singing with wit about old age and death and wearing black since the early days, then I guess he’s done his job.

Alasdair Roberts, Amble Skuse & David McGuinness — What News (Drag City)

What News by Alasdair Roberts, Amble Skuse & David McGuinness

Who recommended it?

Bill Meyer

Did we review it? Yes. Bill Meyer said, “Turns out, the news is that Roberts has made the most unabashedly gorgeous record of his career.” Bryan Daly’s take: This inspired trio has shepherded both the songs and the traditional instruments on which they were played from deep in the past and conveyed them to the present, with all the care and fortitude it took to deliver news through the wild countryside in the age when they were written. An old Britain comes vividly alive not only because of the scholarly work that has been done in presenting them faithfully, but also because of the emotions that streak these songs with color. After spending some time with these characters in the world where they live and die, casual understanding of the song's history and meaning becomes insufficient. Digging through the archives for context becomes its own rewarding pursuit. But just as digging through the archives these days can mean typing few words into your phone, the world is another place from when these songs were written. Amble Skuse's subtle weaving of shifting modern noise provides the most sublime moments throughout, like the ambiguous but familiar clacking that opens the album. Is it a camera? A typewriter? A horse? What news is being prepared? Lest we forgot we haven’t slipped into the times when these songs were first sung, a familiar hiss and static of the current grounds us in the now.

Alasdair's ageless tenor also plays well against McGuinness's period instruments (grand piano, dulcitone), illuminating timeworn themes like betrayal and confused notions of honor. Characters are portrayed with such sensitivity that the dust that might have gathered on their stories has been shaken off in travel through time. When the players imbue such reverence for presenting the past as is done here, songs arrive freshly felt. The news travels fast, even through the space of hundreds of years.

 Caroline Rose — Loner (New West)

LONER by Caroline Rose

Who recommended it? Justin Cober-Lake

Did we review it? No

Patrick Masterson’s take:

Loner leads off with a song called “More of the Same,” but such a description could hardly be less apt for Caroline Rose’s third full-length. In the wake of 2014’s I Will Not Be Afraid, Rose took her catchy but simple country-tinged folk, her insecurities and her formidable wit and lathered a thick coat of synth-tinged pop on it. Press materials cite Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears as inspirations, both of which seem like more than lip service (check the FutureSex/LoveSounds vibe of “To Die Today” and, well, this cover of “Toxic”), but perhaps the most clear pop parallel is on the significantly altered (and, hence, appropriately titled) “Soul No. 5,” where her shog-off attitude toward admirers recalls Nicki Minaj or peak-era Ke$ha before she dropped the dollar sign: “I like to hit ‘em and quit ‘em / That’s just my style,” she shrugs with flair.

Bang, bang and away she goes is right: Whether it’s this kind of forthright pop approach or something more serious (and seriously invested) like “Jeannie Becomes a Mom” – I’m still thinking about how she ends with “Now you’re in real life” reverbing out to the point that you can barely understand it before metaphorically clarifying right at the finish – and closer “Animal” or even the funny, cringe-worthy cat-call escalations of “Smile! AKA Schizodrift Jam 1 AKA Bikini Intro,” every song on here moves at a swift clip to showcase some point along the spectrum of Rose’s talent. Call in Britney, call in Ke$ha, call in Angel Olsen, call in The Replacements — none of it seems quite sufficient. Caroline Rose is a league apart and better than she’s ever been.

 Salad Boys — This Is Glue (Trouble in Mind)

This Is Glue by Salad Boys

Who recommended it? Jennifer Kelly

Did we review it? Yes. Jonathan Shaw said, “The contrast of blithe pop with alienated, distraught lyrics is nothing new. This record reinvests that contrast with liveliness and complication.”

Patrick Masterson’s take:

The cover to This Is Glue is almost comically accurate, an album of pastel shades. Listening to “Blown Up,” which kicks off Joe Sampson’s 12-song, 45-minute-long sophomore LP under the Salad Boys name into gear with a propulsive indie-rock fling before segueing into “Hatred,” which… sounds like anything but, gives you the two major speeds of the record in just about nine minutes. So yeah: The Christchurch, New Zealander loads up on soft-baked indie jangle like it’s 1986. In one of Dusted’s first reviews this year, Jonathan described it as “compulsively listenable from the jump,” which is nearly as damning as it is praising. Put it on! Forget it’s on! And on and on and on.

But look at the album art closer and you’ll see the bright speckles of red and that smear of darkness to the left – there’s more going on than initially meets the eye. Same goes for the music; working harder to hear the details rewards multiple plays. Stuff like “Psych Slasher” or “Under the Bed” are fairly overt hits, sure, but there’s also “Scenic Route to Nowhere,” where Sampson’s accent is most evident and there’s this almost Oneida-esque stretch at three-quarters distance; the über-jangle of “Exaltation”; the frontier strings in “Dogged Out”; and “Right Time,” which had me remembering some of my earliest indie-rock encounters listening to 3WK and realizing I had no idea what I didn’t know. Trouble in Mind tells me these lyrics are “more claustrophobic and yearning” than 2015’s more upbeat Metalmania, but the way Sampson barely ever rises above an inside voice even at full emoting had me focusing harder on the guitar tones, frankly; in this way, Salad Boys’ closest analog to me isn’t whatever I forgot from the Left of the Dial box, it’s another Antipodean group increasingly lost to the salads of time: Ides of Space. I mean that as a compliment, and I almost never give stuff like this compliments. Eat up.

 Tove Styrke — Sway (RCA)

Who recommended it? Ian Mathers

Did we review it?  Yes, Ian called it, “ a perfect sparkling little showcase for how much the craft and delivery of this kind of pop song can matter.”

Jennifer Kelly’s take:

Um, yeah, Swedish electro-pop, not my favorite. Ian’s right, though, Styrke is good at what she does, imbuing glossy, focused-tested beats with soft, engaging humanity. “Sway,” one of the singles, has a big sweeping chorus, a sugary blast of “Swaa-aa-aay” that could melt the hardest heart, while “Say My Name” slathers staccato rhythms with giddy female empowerment. Styrke’s girlish voice has a nice touch of vulnerability to it, shading marketable hooks with recognizable human feeling. Production is immaculate, meticulous, air-tight, engineered for maximum impact. You could do worse, obviously. But really, when so many good, less commercially viable bands are vying for your attention, why spend time on stuff that’s doing just fine without you?  

 Yuzo Iwata—Daylight Moon (Siltbreeze)

Daylight Moon by Yuzo Iwata

Who recommended it? Bryan Daly

Did we review it? Yes. Bryan said: “these are deeply thrilling guitar-driven instrumentals with the room-live warmth and sense of play found on the Matrix Tapes, and mentally chasing a melody on any of these songs captivates fully.”

 Jonathan Shaw’s take:

It’s hard to know if “Gigolo” intentionally alludes to “Gigolo Aunt,” one of the most coherent songs on Syd Barrett’s eponymous final record of studio material. But Yuzo Iwata’s delightful tune has the same lively, blithely bouncy quality as Barrett’s, and it plays a similar role on Daylight Moon. “Gigolo” is a space of unadulterated joy on a record that’s otherwise redolent with more difficult feelings. The difficulties are suggested by variations in tone; the record’s instrumentation is invariably simple, with Iwata backed by a straightforward rock combo. That anchors the record in a consistent sonic vocabulary. But Iwata’s playing projects the record onto multiple emotional planes: the meditative lilt of “Up on a Dragonfly”; the foreboding, spaghetti-western shamble of “Border”; the gently somber “Goodnight, Daylight Moon.”

The most intense sounds on Daylight Moon assert themselves on the fuzzily metallic “Drone Beetle” (recorded in 1999, unlike the other songs on the LP, which date from September 2015), and on “Daylight Moon II,” easily the record’s most incendiary performance. It’s got an aching, terrible beauty, and it feels like the fiery catharsis that offsets the goofball charm of “Gigolo.” Both songs are terrific, but “Daylight Moon II” is more vividly present, Iwata’s soloing seeks transcendence. It gets there. I wish it were here longer.

[bdugo]

Do you have any headcanons about Shadilver?

I do! And I apologize ahead of time that this turned out so long and ramble-y.

I hope you don’t mind that I also went into some general character headcanons, as well, because TBH this is mostly me talking about my Silver headcanons with some Shadilver sprinkled in.

More under the cut!

I’m just going to start out with some of my Silver headcanons:

Silver is overall very determined, and sometimes it can lead him to becoming one-track minded about whatever his current goal is. However, since he’s also very trusting, it’s not all that hard to get him to switch objectives altogether. He’s working on learning to listen to all sides of a story before jumping to conclusions.

He can come off as awkward and stand-offish around people he doesn’t know, and has a track record of bad first impressions (something he has in common with Shadow), but once he warms up to someone, they’ll find him a kind and reliable friend to have. He’s generally better at befriending girls, as he has a sibling-like relationship with Blaze, and Amy is one of his closest friends. Amy is a good listener, but whenever it’s her turn to talk, Silver might end up there for hours. It’s not a problem though, he likes to listen to her and offer help if she needs it. Plus, he loves her baking, so it’s not a bad trade off to listen to her tarot readings while also getting free cookies.

I like to think that he and Rouge get along too, since Rouge is a socially savvy person and can more often than not see right through Silver. It isn’t uncommon for them to meet up so they can sit and gossip together.

Both Rouge and Blaze have mastered Silver’s mannerisms and social cues, so it’s easier for him to talk to them since he doesn’t feel the need to explain or defend himself around them like he might around someone else. Amy knows these cues pretty well, herself, but sometimes her curiosity gets the best of her and she can’t help pestering him for answers when he doesn’t always want to talk. They’re the kind of therapy/venting to one another type of friends.

Since Silver is from the future but frequently visits the past, he’s sort of a weird mix between a historian and a mega millennial. I like to think that, before he ever visited the past (or present, I suppose) that he really liked to seek out information, almost obsessively, because of the destroyed state of his future. Basically, anything he could find he would study, like books or technology. Now he’s a walking source of weird facts and bits of history, some useless and others very helpful.

Shadow on the other hand is pretty handy with things like machinery and vehicles, but doesn’t know much about social media/the internet. Silver helps him with keeping up with trends, and even makes him a Twitter account so he can follow his friends and see what they’re up to (Shadow makes a point that they’re NOT his friends, but Silver ignores him). He doesn’t end up using it nearly as much as Silver, but when he remembers to he’ll check his feed.

Silver posts pretty regularly, just to share pretty pictures he took or to make sure that none of his friend’s posts go without a like or a retweet.

Silver tries to teach Shadow current, popular things like slang and trends, though Shadow doesn’t always fully understand them. When he explained to him what dabbing was, Shadow tells him that he’s already been doing that for years, and is confused when Silver busts out laughing.

Silver loves making friends, and ever since he befriended Shadow, Rouge and Omega have sort of unofficially allowed Silver into their group. Omega likes Silver because he is powerful similar to Shadow, and being tech savvy is important in the eyes of a robot, so he is useful to have around. He also just likes that Silver can make Shadow and Rouge happy, too.

Blaze is around Team Dark a lot by default. She’s around Silver a lot of the time, so she’s grown close to the team herself. Shadow and Blaze get along and have a generally quiet friendship, both holding a lot of responsibility. They’re both powerful and had to learn to control themselves, as well as their tempers. Rouge likes Blaze a lot, she reminds her of Shadow and she’s easy to fluster. Lots of flirting goes on, which everyone ignores at this point. Rogue is testing a theory on whether it’s possible for Blaze’s cheeks to light on fire or not. Omega loves Blaze, of course. She’s capable of a lot of destruction, though she never uses her powers needlessly, much to Omega’s disappointment. He likes that his group of friends is growing, but he won’t ever admit it. Rouge and Silver are likely to hang off of him, or sit upon his shoulder casually, which Omega likes because he can prove his strength, and also he’s found out that he’s quite fond of hugs.

Silver loves his friends and tries to stay around them as often as possible, since he dislikes being alone. It makes him feel insecure, and he’s more inclined to becoming frustrated. This is one reason why he relates to Shadow a lot, because he knows that Shadow feels lonely with his power and destiny. Because of this, Silver tries his best to make Shadow feel as not alone as possible.

Shadow does see Silver and his endless optimism as a reassurance that his future will be all right. He figures that by the way that Silver is and the positive way he talks about the future, he must be on the right path.

Side note: I’m basing Silver’s future being fixed mostly on this line in Sonic Colors for the DS:

Shadow trusts Silver and respects his power. He appreciates how well Silver is able to understand him and his needs, because Shadow often needs to be alone, and even though Silver prefers having company, himself, he understands Shadow’s wishes.

Shadow finds Silver to be a bit goofy, but nonetheless a good listener (thanks to his talks with Amy) and he is grateful for his attentiveness towards him and his feelings.

Silver has given Shadow pretty much the same promise that Rouge has, that he’ll always be there supporting him no matter what, even if the world is against them. Silver jokes that he’s fought the world already, so there’s no need to worry, he’s pretty much a professional at this point.

That’s another part of my headcanons for Silver, is that he laughs a lot. He has a perpetual grin on his face, probably because he’s just remembered a funny joke. He likes to make people laugh, it raises his confidence and he’s found that it lightens social situations and it makes people like him more. Sometimes he’ll over do it, carry on a joke longer than he should, but he doesn’t ever notice when he does it and no one ever faults him for it.

He thinks his friends are hilarious, and has the tendency to repeat others. If someone said a funny word or sentence, he’ll repeat it back. “That’s funny!” is an actual genuine phrase coming from him.

Shadow makes Silver laugh a lot, though it’s usually unintentional on Shadow’s end. Silver just thinks Shadow’s bluntness is funny, and he thinks Shadow makes smart observations. Whenever he can get Shadow to laugh too, he’ll smile the whole rest of the day because it’s important to him that he can make Shadow as happy as he makes Silver.

It’s also important because a lot of his confidence stems from how others perceive him, so he tries to show off his skills as much as possible. He tries to be low-key, but even he knows that he’s not in most situations.

He can be a bit of a shit talker, mostly during times of crisis or battle, because the only time he’s truly confident in himself is when he’s using his psychic powers. He can be impatient when he’s distracted from a goal, and snarky to those who oppose him if not just flat out rude (this is usually reserved for evil folks like Eggman). Of course it’s been said that he has a strong sense of justice and fairness, so evil and selfish acts infuriate him.

To sum it up:

I headcanon both Shadow and Silver as gay, and Silver has a huge ass crush on Shadow pretty much immediately, while Shadow’s feelings develop more slowly. They relate pretty easily with one another, and because of Silver growing close to Shadow, he has become a honorary member of Team Dark alongside Blaze.

[mastcomm]

Questions for a Wedding D.J.

Monique Proctor became known as DJ Smiles Davis 11 years ago.

“My career as a D.J. happened organically,” said Ms. Davis, 35, who grew up in Grand Rapids, Mich., in the 1980s and was introduced to music at her grandparents’ record store there.

In her early 20s, she began working at Amoeba Music, where she was in charge of organizing cassettes and doing inventory at one store. “I’d take home 10 CDs a day and burn them,” she said. “During that time, my neighbor had a turntable and I become obsessed with mixing vinyls. It was stimulating and exciting. I started doing parties and that took off.”

At 24, Ms. Davis left Amoeba to become a D.J. full time. By then she had amassed a collection of more than 100,000 songs. And during the last seven years she has worked at more than 200 weddings. In addition, she has been a D.J. for various celebrities, including Martha Stewart, Gwen Stefani and Bruno Mars, and has performed at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

Last year Ms. Davis started her own creative agency, All the Favors, which represents D.J.’s, bands and designers who do installations for weddings. She lives in Silver Lakes, Calif.

How did you choose your D.J. name?

I was reading the autobiography of Miles Davis when it was popular to change your name to something iconic while giving it a new spin. I smile a lot. The second it came out of my mouth that was it.

What songs typically work well at weddings?

Aretha Franklin, “Respect.” Diana Ross, “I’m Coming Out.” Skee-lo, “I Wish.” Stevie Wonder, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered.” Redbone, “Come and Get Your Love.” Young MC, “Bust a Move.” Talking Heads, “This Must Be the Place.” And A-ha, “Take on Me.” They’re strong, iconic and legendary with sing-along value. Even if you didn’t know the lyrics when you hear the repetitiveness, it’s easy for people to catch on.

Any pet peeves?

When clients send long lists of what to play, and what not to; when their parents make too many suggestions; and when they give me a Google document in real time and start crossing things off and adding more songs.

What are some of your rules?

I don’t play cheesy disco, the “YMCA,” “Macarena” or “Stayin’ Alive.” I don’t play hip-hop during dinner. I try to set a vibe early on. I play a little bit of everything during that first hour so I can determine what people are gravitating toward and then go hard with that later.

What distinguishes wedding music?

These are songs that resonate with people who are feeling love in the air. They don’t have to be love songs, but they have to create nostalgia and memories. You want music that attaches songs to certain moments. When people sing out loud collectively, there’s a shared connectivity. Shouting at the top of your lungs creates endorphins. I want to pull people out of their comfort zone and to dance like no one is watching.

What is the main job of the D.J.?

To read the room, pick up on energy cues, and if one genre is working to keep playing it. It’s knowing when to go high and low and when to increase the tempo and energy. When people make requests, I know a vibe needs to shift or something hasn’t been played enough. All of this has to be done while accounting for different ages and cultural and ethnic demographics on the floor without losing members of the crowd.

[Sign up for Love Letter and always get the latest in Modern Love, weddings, and relationships in the news by email.]

What is your fee?

$1,000 per hour, minimum of three hours of playtime. I don’t charge for set up or breakdown, which can take an additional three hours. Gear can cost an additional $1,000 or more, and includes a basic sound system, two speakers, two turntables, a wireless mic, a mixer, and an assistant.

How many songs will you play throughout the night?

About 200. During the dancing hours I’m mixing one song per minute.

What should couples ask a D.J.?

Do you M.C.? Some D.J.’s don’t feel comfortable on the mic. Can you play genres that speak to me? If a D.J. can only play Top 40 they may not be for you. Do you have video content on your website I can watch? Do you have playlists from past weddings, and examples of how you transition, like going from dinner to dancing, that you can send me? You can ask them to make you a custom playlist, too. They should be willing to meet you in person before you hire them. If the gig is local they should be open to bringing their own sound system and open to traveling for work.

What differentiates you from others?

My song selection and personality. I’m a former dancer, so I may come out from behind the booth and dance with you. I bring more feminine energy in the room. I want people to feel sensual. I use my music knowledge and music history to connect dots sonically. That keeps people connected to the music even if they don’t know the song. That’s always a goal: getting people on the dance floor. I’m really good at creating the right energy for the moment.

What’s your favorite part of the night?

The last hour when ties have been undone and the bride has slipped into a more comfortable outfit. The energy is relaxed. Drinks have been poured and guzzled. I can go on a musical journey and play whatever I want and guests will go with me. There’s a sense of emotional high. I see my clients at this part of the night. We got through the hard stuff and we got to this point together and everyone is satisfied.

Continue following our fashion and lifestyle coverage on Facebook (Styles and Modern Love), Twitter (Styles, Fashion and Weddings) and Instagram.

from WordPress https://mastcomm.com/questions-for-a-wedding-d-j/

[mastcomm]

Questions for a Wedding D.J.

Monique Proctor became known as DJ Smiles Davis 11 years ago.

“My career as a D.J. happened organically,” said Ms. Davis, 35, who grew up in Grand Rapids, Mich., in the 1980s and was introduced to music at her grandparents’ record store there.

In her early 20s, she began working at Amoeba Music, where she was in charge of organizing cassettes and doing inventory at one store. “I’d take home 10 CDs a day and burn them,” she said. “During that time, my neighbor had a turntable and I become obsessed with mixing vinyls. It was stimulating and exciting. I started doing parties and that took off.”

At 24, Ms. Davis left Amoeba to become a D.J. full time. By then she had amassed a collection of more than 100,000 songs. And during the last seven years she has worked at more than 200 weddings. In addition, she has been a D.J. for various celebrities, including Martha Stewart, Gwen Stefani and Bruno Mars, and has performed at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

Last year Ms. Davis started her own creative agency, All the Favors, which represents D.J.’s, bands and designers who do installations for weddings. She lives in Silver Lakes, Calif.

How did you choose your D.J. name?

I was reading the autobiography of Miles Davis when it was popular to change your name to something iconic while giving it a new spin. I smile a lot. The second it came out of my mouth that was it.

What songs typically work well at weddings?

Aretha Franklin, “Respect.” Diana Ross, “I’m Coming Out.” Skee-lo, “I Wish.” Stevie Wonder, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered.” Redbone, “Come and Get Your Love.” Young MC, “Bust a Move.” Talking Heads, “This Must Be the Place.” And A-ha, “Take on Me.” They’re strong, iconic and legendary with sing-along value. Even if you didn’t know the lyrics when you hear the repetitiveness, it’s easy for people to catch on.

Any pet peeves?

When clients send long lists of what to play, and what not to; when their parents make too many suggestions; and when they give me a Google document in real time and start crossing things off and adding more songs.

What are some of your rules?

I don’t play cheesy disco, the “YMCA,” “Macarena” or “Stayin’ Alive.” I don’t play hip-hop during dinner. I try to set a vibe early on. I play a little bit of everything during that first hour so I can determine what people are gravitating toward and then go hard with that later.

What distinguishes wedding music?

These are songs that resonate with people who are feeling love in the air. They don’t have to be love songs, but they have to create nostalgia and memories. You want music that attaches songs to certain moments. When people sing out loud collectively, there’s a shared connectivity. Shouting at the top of your lungs creates endorphins. I want to pull people out of their comfort zone and to dance like no one is watching.

What is the main job of the D.J.?

To read the room, pick up on energy cues, and if one genre is working to keep playing it. It’s knowing when to go high and low and when to increase the tempo and energy. When people make requests, I know a vibe needs to shift or something hasn’t been played enough. All of this has to be done while accounting for different ages and cultural and ethnic demographics on the floor without losing members of the crowd.

[Sign up for Love Letter and always get the latest in Modern Love, weddings, and relationships in the news by email.]

What is your fee?

$1,000 per hour, minimum of three hours of playtime. I don’t charge for set up or breakdown, which can take an additional three hours. Gear can cost an additional $1,000 or more, and includes a basic sound system, two speakers, two turntables, a wireless mic, a mixer, and an assistant.

How many songs will you play throughout the night?

About 200. During the dancing hours I’m mixing one song per minute.

What should couples ask a D.J.?

Do you M.C.? Some D.J.’s don’t feel comfortable on the mic. Can you play genres that speak to me? If a D.J. can only play Top 40 they may not be for you. Do you have video content on your website I can watch? Do you have playlists from past weddings, and examples of how you transition, like going from dinner to dancing, that you can send me? You can ask them to make you a custom playlist, too. They should be willing to meet you in person before you hire them. If the gig is local they should be open to bringing their own sound system and open to traveling for work.

What differentiates you from others?

My song selection and personality. I’m a former dancer, so I may come out from behind the booth and dance with you. I bring more feminine energy in the room. I want people to feel sensual. I use my music knowledge and music history to connect dots sonically. That keeps people connected to the music even if they don’t know the song. That’s always a goal: getting people on the dance floor. I’m really good at creating the right energy for the moment.

What’s your favorite part of the night?

The last hour when ties have been undone and the bride has slipped into a more comfortable outfit. The energy is relaxed. Drinks have been poured and guzzled. I can go on a musical journey and play whatever I want and guests will go with me. There’s a sense of emotional high. I see my clients at this part of the night. We got through the hard stuff and we got to this point together and everyone is satisfied.

Continue following our fashion and lifestyle coverage on Facebook (Styles and Modern Love), Twitter (Styles, Fashion and Weddings) and Instagram.

from WordPress https://mastcomm.com/questions-for-a-wedding-d-j/