#i knew this album was gonna be a banger but GOD

[the-kipsabian]

but all i ever wanted was for you to have some faith in me now all i could ask for is for you to fucking let me be

[mickandmusings]

third times the charm

pairing: tyler owens x f!reader

word count: 3.8k

summary: life has a funny way of putting people in your path, and ultimately making them part of your life. but what happens when the one person you never want to see stumbles in over and over again, a disastrous tornado tearing up your path of moving on?

aka: the two times tyler owens enters and, consequently, leaves, your life at the wrong time, and the one time he comes at the perfect moment and finally stays.

warnings: reader is described in a feminine manner; why are we ignoring his bull rider trope? cause i'm not babes xx; angsty mainly, but fluff too; lovers to enemies back to lovers (sorry); this author knows nothing about tornadoes or weather so sorry

shoutout to megan moroney and her banger new album where this title and idea come from :)

-

i.

"What do you mean you're leaving?!"

Tyler shuts the tailgate of his red pick-up with a loud slam, the cowboy hat on his head nearly flying off with the force. Y/N stood just a few feet away, her arms crossed over her torso as her chest heaved in short, shaking breaths. The sunlight hits her just right, and the gold chain around her neck glimmers in the sunlight. It catches Tyler's attention from the corner of his eye-it had been burned into his mind from the moment he'd bought it with a chunk of his earnings from last year's rodeo. The chain was delicate, simple, but the charm had been the main appeal: it was gold, the same shade as the chain, but in the center of the small heart shaped pendant sat a capital 'T'. She'd worn it since he'd given it to her for a birthday present, and it had been the center piece of even their most intimate moments-her bare beneath him with only the glittering jewelry adorning her as he had her unraveling under his touch. Even the thought of it had heat traveling up Tyler's neck, and he swallowed down the feeling, along with all of the guilt bubbling to the surface.

"I'm leavin', simple as that."

"Ty, I-I don't understand. You get bucked off one time and you're giving up?! You've been riding since we were kids, I-"

He turns to her, emerald eyes blazing with an emotion he couldn't put a label on.

"I didn't just get 'bucked off', I almost got my head trampled in case you forgot!" His voice is laced with anger. He's not angry with her, he's angry with himself. After a series of unfortunate injuries in last month's local rodeo, Tyler knew he couldn't ride again, it would kill him. He'd spent the last few weeks in physical therapy and doctor's offices just to make sure the damn bull hadn't left behind more than scars.

It was better this way, he could leave his town behind, and forget about the deep, gut-twisting feeling of failure that sat like acid in his stomach. But leaving his hometown also meant leaving her.

Tyler had fallen for Y/N their junior year of high school, and they'd rarely been seen without one another ever since then. She was sweet and shy to his brash and confident, his biggest supporter-always sitting in the stands for all of his rides-whether he was the talk of the town or stumbling home, his shotgun rider, and the girl who wore his heart (literally and figuratively) on a chain around her neck. Looking at her now, with tears lining under her gorgeous eyes, he wanted to just forget all of his plans and pull her into his arms. He wanted to reassure her that he'd stay here, that he'd give her the life that he'd promised her-apple pie and babies, the perfect picket-fence life she deserved.

"Tyler, you-you can't be serious! W-What about your parents, your plans, hell, Tyler, what about me?!" Her shoulders now moved as she let out shuddering breaths, eyebrows furrowed as she grew frustrated. "Tyler Owens you promised me, you promised me a farmhouse, and a wrap-around porch, a-and babies! And now you're just gonna take off to God-knows-where to what? Storm chase?"

She stops and lets out a dry chuckle. She'd been 'chasing' with him before, vivid memories of him scaring her shitless chasing tornadoes in his truck, only to 'apologize' to her by making love in the backseat after the storm had passed. Through their time together, she, too, had grown to love the storms. Y/N took her camera into the storms with them, more than ready to capture the freakishly beautiful moments of pure disaster before it struck. She'd stand in the pouring rain next to him, laughing as wind whipped hair around her face. He'd snap a picture of her with her own camera that she'd set aside and she'd roll her eyes. They'd been happy, bonded by a mutual love of mother nature's chaos and one another. Now, she turns her back to face him, shaking her head as her bottom lip trembles.

"Ya know, I should've listened to everyone who told me to stay away from you in high school, that you'd just hurt me. I didn't believe them, not one bit, because I know you. You're running because you're scared. You don't have to run, Ty. You've never run from your fears, for God's sake you ride them! What the hell are you thinking?!"

Tears stream down her face, and Tyler feels his resolve slipping. He hadn't thought it through, not really, and now as she stands in front of him, he realizes he's only hurting her more and more. He needed an out, he needed to skip town, no matter who it hurt.

"I'm thinking that I'm a fuckin' failure at everything, no matter what I try! The only thing I'm good at is storms, chasin' them, getting close enough to see something! I fail at everything, Y/N/N, and if I stay, I'll just fail you, too. Over and over."

"Tyler, you've never failed me," she brings her hands to either side of his face, her thumb brushing a cut that still hadn't scarred over from his fall. Her eyes were blurry and her hands trembled. "Please, stay." Her voice was hardly a whisper, pleading desperately.

"You know I can't."

She nodded solemnly, wiping tears so she could take a final look into his eyes. She gave no warning when she launched her arms around his neck, all but hanging onto him like a child. He hugged her tighter than he ever had, and when she let go, he placed a final heated goodbye kiss on her lips. Y/N looks at him, her brain screaming pleas to make him stay, but she simply kisses his cheek before speaking.

"C-call me when you get there?"

He takes one last glance at her, taking her in completely, as if trying to memorize her. His eyes land on the jewelry adorning the spot just below her collarbone, the gold shining in the sunset, knowing he'd never see it on her again-if he ever even saw her again.

"You'll be the first person I call, baby."

Y/N's call never came.

She spent the summer miserable, but refused to take off the gold chain she hid under shirts. It burned her skin in a metaphorical sense, but she ignored it, just like the heartbreak that had festered into deep resentment for Tyler Owens. She'd decided to take off to the local university for a clean start, somewhere new, somewhere his ghost wouldn't haunt her. Things had begun to look up, and she found herself smiling again. The morning before her first day of classes, she almost took the chain off, but couldn't bring herself to do so.

When she spotted his tall figure sitting a row ahead of her in her Intro to Meteorology class, she pretended not to know who he was. It was only fair, he'd done the same to her. For a reason that neither of them could vocalize, they begin to hate one another. Without knowing it, Tyler had become the storm that had sparked her into chasing after danger forever, the one that had left destruction so fatal she wasn't sure if she'd ever recover.

-

ii.

"You've got to be kidding me."

Y/N rolls her eyes and nearly throws her laptop across her dorm room when she looks down at her field partner pairing. The name in bold stares back at her like some sick joke.

Tyler Owens.

She shuts her laptop with a force that could shatter glass and slams her face into her pillow to let out a scream that could have easily been heard four counties over. The universe had to hate her.

With one glance at her watch, she hops from her bed and packs her duffel, her camera slung around her other shoulder. After silently praying that this storm takes her away in one quick swoop, she opens the door to her room and stumbles down the stairs to the lobby, where he was waiting for her outside the double doors. She can already feel her skin flaming with anger when she catches sight of his towering frame, baseball cap thrown backwards over his head.

"'Bout fuckin' time sweetheart, thought the storm would pass before we even got out there!"

"Oh, kiss my ass, Owens."

She rolls her eyes and climbs into the red truck she had once been a permanent fixture in, feeling almost like nothing had changed since the last time she'd crawled into the passenger side. She had half a mind to let down the driver's side visor to see if her picture still sat inside it, but Tyler climbs in the second she thinks about it. The half hour drive is uncomfortable, silent, and laced with tension so thick both halves of the couple begin to wonder if the air supply is getting thin. But as the storm approaches, both of their eyes are locked on the massive twisting figure just ahead of them. Y/N reaches for her camera, focusing the lens as best as she can through the windshield of the truck. She sighs when the view is less than satisfactory. Without much thought, she begins to move the window crank on the door to let down the window.

"What the hell are you doin'?" Tyler's voice breaks their silence.

"What does it look like, Owens? Getting a better shot." Her body hangs halfway out the window, camera leaning out the window as she moves the lens and clicks.

"Get your ass in the truck, I'm not payin' your hospital bills when you fall out and I run over you."

She rolls her eyes and ignores him, almost her entire body hanging out the window.

"Okay, okay, get in the truck, I'll get you closer, Jesus."

She pulls herself back into the truck and rolls the window back up as Tyler moves forward down the muddy path, closer to the storm now building ahead. The wind and rain grow more intense, shaking even the bulky vehicle that could easily withstand even the most treacherous of conditions. The spiraling tunnel only moves at a more pummeling speed, and Y/N's sharp shout fills the air.

"Stop the truck!"

He hits the brake and before the truck even stops, Y/N's rolling out of the passenger side, camera raised as she captures a monster of a storm. Tyler finds himself silent, momentarily distracted-her hair blowing with the force of the wind, the smile drawn across her face, and the long sleeve button down she'd been wearing was slipping down her shoulders, exposing her tank top and-wait-he raises an eyebrow, his heart stopping. Against her neck sat a gold chain he knew too well. It stops him completely in his tracks, shocked that she still wore his initial around her neck. The sound of a roaring train pulls him from his thoughts and sends him leaning out his own door.

"Y/N," he's shouting over the loud winds. "GET YOUR ASS IN THE TRUCK!"

The barrel of wind only gets closer, the fierceness of wind making Tyler's heart race. The girl outside his truck, however, only smiles wider, raising her camera for another shot of the approaching storm.

"I'M FINE, TYLER. WIND'S NOT EVEN THAT BAD!"

Tyler huffs as his voice, raspy from yelling, shouts again.

"THAT WASN'T A REQUEST, SWEETHEART. GET YOUR ASS IN THIS TRUCK!"

She ignores his shouts, only squinting her eyes at the horizon as the wind picks up another notch, making the shirt now halfway down on her arms blow like a flag in the wind. Tyler gives her a minute to comply, hoping this was just a momentary phase of her being stubborn. After five minutes, Tyler cursed and stomped out of the truck over to her. He says nothing, picking her up over his shoulder.

"TYLER! WHAT THE FUCK?! PUT ME DOWN, ASSHOLE!"

He doesn't give in to her retorts, simply swinging her door open and shoving her into the passenger seat. He gets into his driver's side and slings his arm on her headrest, turning to back the truck around.

"What the hell is wrong with you?! Do you have some sort of sick kink where you get off on ruining my life? I had a perfect shot, it-"

"You had a perfect shot of getting sucked into a tornado is what you had, Y/N. You're gonna get yourself killed gettin' that fuckin' close!"

"Like you would care." Her voice isn't even a mumble, and Tyler hardly hears her over the sounds of the storm.

It sends a jab of pain through his heart he doesn't expect, and instead of saying anything, he lets her stew in anger in his passenger seat. When he drops her off at her dorm, she agrees to email him her half of the project, and a week later he receives it.

He opens the email to find exactly what he imagines, the most spectacular shots of a storm he's ever seen. After the report and photos are submitted, the two never speak to one another again. They both graduate under the same Arkansas sun, but lead different lives in the same area of the country. Y/N swears she sees his truck pass her every time she goes out to shoot, and he sees her in every girl that stands in a field with a camera.

Y/N would never admit that she has a burner account subscribed to his livestreams, or that she laughed and smiled as she watched him hoop and holler with his ragtag group of friends, memories of the chases they once went on filling her mind more fondly than painfully these days. And if she had one of the red and white shirts with his stupid cartoon face plastered against it, well, no one would ever know.

When Boone and the rest of his crew would stop for food and rest breaks, if Tyler saw her name plastered in a newspaper or magazine, he'd put it on the counter next to his plethora of snacks. He'd never admit he'd cut her articles out of them and kept them in a small scrapbook that lived in his glovebox, right next to the picture of her that once lived in his visor-only because a magazine cut-out clip of her lived there now, her smiling with a massive twin barrel storm behind her, the gold chain peeking from the shirt was wearing.

-

iii.

"Ty, man, this one's a beaut! She's unreal!"

Boone's voice filled Tyler's ears from the passenger seat, but as Tyler looked out at the horizon, his attention was far from the brunette that sat next to him. He saw her car before he saw her-the same rink-dink, decked out, black Subaru she'd had in college, meaning she was here on her own, not for business.

His green eyes darted to the field across from where it was parked, spotting her instantly as she stood in the tall grass, hair blowing as she brought her camera to her face, crouching down to get the perfect shot. She shook her head when she pulled back from it, enjoying the sight in front of her.

Tyler puts the truck in park and all but barrels out of the door, his boots taking him towards her, but not nearly fast enough.

"Jesus, who's that? And why's she got Ty all in a tizzy?" Boone leans over to Lilly, who gives him an incredulous look.

"That's Y/N Y/L/N, she's a storm photographer, apparently he's got some fan girl crush on her or somethin', he keeps her work in a binder."

"Holy shit! Tyler knows the Y/N Y/L/N?"

Tyler would've blushed and denied Lilly's statement vehemently, but he was too far away to hear. Instead, the whipping winds and the sound of Y/N's delightful laughter filled his ears.

"She's a beaut, huh?" Tyler's voice carries over the noise, falling on Y/N's ears. She takes a breath and turns to face him for the first time in years. She nods slowly.

"Yeah, she's gorgeous. Got some great shots."

Her throat feels dry as his eyes peer down at her. She finally braves a look up at him.

"Um, I'm not studying it or anything, just bored, really. I'll let you and your crew have her."

She gives him a small smile, but he notes it's genuine as she caps the lens on her camera.

"It was good to see you, Ty. Good luck."

"Y/N, wait. I-I need to ask you somethin'."

She pauses her steps, turning back to face the man in front of her. For a split second, he looks just like the younger version that had left her all those years ago-the hat, the belt buckle, but none of that same all consuming fear.

"Sure, go ahead."

"Why do you still wear it? I saw you, that time in college, and when you did that shoot outside of Kansas City, the picture they published of you, it-you can see it real clear."

Y/N stills, pushing back hair that's blowing in the wind as she looks at him. She could say a multitude of things-how she wore it because she'd gotten so used to always wearing it. That she wore it because she wanted to hold onto him the only way she could. She could lie and say that she used it as a good luck charm. None of them would be the truth, and she was sick of lying to him, so she simply told the truth.

"Well, all the best chasers, they carry their first storm with them, right?"

She pauses, realizing how vague that was.

"What I mean is, without you taking me through my first storm I never would've done this. I was terrified of them, and you and that stupid red truck of yours showed me how beautiful they can be, and now I capture their beauty for a living. I never would've had any of this without you, so-"

She shrugs, giving him a small chuckle. The silence suffocates as he looks at her.

"Tyler listen-"

"If you're gonna apologize, don't. I'm the one that should apologize, I left you all those years ago. That was real shitty of me, and I didn't give you a warnin' or a reason why. So, I'm sorry, for all of it."

She nods, giving him a smile. The quiet floods between them again, and she pushes back her hair again before she speaks.

"I-I watch your videos, y-your livestreams. You're still crazy, but it reminds me of when we used to chase, and you'd scare me to death, and then you'd, uh, 'apologize' for it and, sometimes it's like I'm there with you."

He laughs with her.

"I-I've got every newspaper and magazine clippin' you've ever been in. You're pictures they're-breathtakin', it feels like you're standin' in the field right there next to you. I guess that's just because I used to be and memories, ya know?"

She nodded, giving him a sweet smile, one that sends his heart racing. They both turn their attention to the horizon where the storm seems relatively calm, at least by their standards.

"Uh, Y/N? I'm sorry, I promised you somethin' all those years ago, and I never made good on it. I think about that a lot, and-just-I'm sorry."

"I forgave you a long time ago, Ty, we were kids." She pauses, tilting her head as she looks at the storm brewing. "Besides, I don't think I'm cut out for that life anymore, I like life on the road. I mean, where else do you get moments like this? The storms back home are wonders, but nothing like this."

"I agree with you there," he chuckles. His heart pounds, and the words slip out of his mouth before he can stop them. "I miss you though."

She cuts her eyes to his own, as if waiting for him to explain himself.

"You were my original chasin' partner, ya know? Plus, when things got scary, you never flinched, not really. This reporter I've got now? God help us all, can't stand much more than a strong wind."

Y/N laughs loudly before she shakes her head.

"Well, you might be in luck. I hate working for that magazine, I really, really do." She turns to face him, camera pulled close to her chest. "The Tornado Wranglers hiring? I'm looking for a job. I have a portfolio if you need it, references too."

Her statement is laced with sarcasm.

Tyler finds himself laughing now, a wide smile plastered across his face.

"I'm familiar with your work, have it on good graces that you're just what we're lookin' for. Lucky for you, we've always got room for one more, that is, if you'll have us. I gotta warn you, those over there are a handful."

"If they're anything like you, I'm likely to fall in love with them instantly."

Y/N doesn't register the words stumbling out of her mouth until they'd already filled the air between them. Without a word, Tyler grabs her hand, pulling her in closer than people who have a history like theirs should. His calloused fingers reach out to the gold pendant lying on her neck, moving it back and forth between its fingers. It had withstood their time apart-it was scratched and a little weather-worn, but, then again, so were they.

"The clasp broke about a year ago, the rest is all original. Pure gold, willing to sell it for a good offer. The guy at the pawn tried to undersell me, I know what I've got."

Tyler's chest warms, that sarcastic, witty humor he'd missed back in full force.

"Do you take alternate forms of payment?" He pulls her in by her waist with a cocky grin.

"Depends, Owens, what did you have in mind?"

He cocks his eyebrow, giving her a sort of contemplative look as his hands rest on the small of her back, hers around his neck.

"Well, I still owe you about-," He lifts his hand from around her and pretends to count on his fingers. "A billion apologies, we could chase this stunner of a storm, drop these characters back off at the motel, find us an empty field, and I could apologize like I used to...maybe?"

She shakes her head and pulls him in for a heated kiss. They're both smiling so hard its hardly a kiss, but the feelings are there.

"You've got yourself a deal, but I'm keeping the necklace."

"Wouldn't have it any other way, baby." He kisses her head, pulling her back towards his group of friends, who were now whistling at the pair, obviously catching the interaction. "Fair warning, after he finds out just who you are, Boone's likely to fall in love with you."

She raises her eyebrow, pulling away and heading towards the motley crew ahead of her.

"Guess you'll just have to chase me next."

-

taglist:

@fraaaaankiiiiieee

[komcch]

I knew when the new album dropped and my first chance to be listening to it would be while on a plane that it was gonna feel pretty special but god I was NOT prepared for the art that they spun into these songs.

The callback to Cross My Heart in Worlds Collide had me gobsmacked and fully convinced that was the final song, so when i realized that wasn’t the end and we were getting THREE mashup songs like they did in Masterpiece Theatre hooooly shit..Haven is truly a masterpiece, the album itself and that 8 minute absolute banger of a track my GOD It’s good.

Going in I had hoped for 3 things: songs that transitioned into eachother, more upbeat songs than slow, and a callback to the iconic 4 note salut that they had tied into every album since I think Phantoms had not paid that homage and I really missed it. I had hoped for all of that and really didn’t think it was gonna happen but this album hit every mark. The 4 note salut was such a moment it really got the hype it deserves and it makes me feel like they understand why the audience loves their music. It’s so freakin good, thank you Marianas Trench.

[vamprlestat]

M, I don't remember if we've talked about them before or not, but I'm gonna suggest Barton Hollow by The Civil Wars.

flood THANK YOU!!! i knew a few of their songs, but i never listened to any of their albums

this one already starts with a banger hahahaha

but my favorite was actually barton hollow. love the “not even god can redeem me from my horrible crimes” vibe. that’s the shit right there:

[hinamie]

oh my god ok so i know im late I didn't talk about it because it happened during one of my Offline Eras but . but listen ok lisn the new former vandal album sent me THROUgh the FUCKINNG ROOF to be fair i knew it would like i joked about going upstairs to listen to it and cry when it dropped but i didn't think that every fucking song would hit me so hard in the kokoro it made me wail because I too have immense religious guilt ANYWAY im gonna rant incoherently and at length now hope u all missed me

ok first of all gotta shout out the fuckin album title i knew it was gonna be devastating when I saw it . fuckin. divine interference????? music for god's playthings indeed i eat that shit up i was like yoooooo hes also got a bone to pick with jesus go off bestie <333

so former vandal are artists visionaries kings so ofc tracklist is all mythology n religion-inspired (lazarus/goliath/ouroboros etc) and i think its so cool that theyre all in caps until u get to the end and the final song is denial and it's in lowercase and maybe its simple but i was like ART. ARTTTTTT. and it made me go back and look at the tracklist of their previous album and I realized that the whole thing was about vices and unhealthy coping with an overwhelming and forsaken existence but then the final song was Get Right (still my go-to comfort song to this day tbh tbh tbh) and it's like an acknowledgement that ok maybe none of this is the answer and something has to change anyway wrong album oops back 2 divine interference

i made a point of listening to the songs that hadnt been released as singles first so the first song i listened to was Lazarus and tbh probably my fav song on the album maybe tied with parables and maaaaybe even icarian. BUT LAZARUS SLAPS SOS SOSOOSO HARD god the theme of not knowing how to leave something behind even when it's bad for you,,, both criticizing but also mirroring the actual story of lazarus in the lyrics being like "wow kinda fucked up of god for resurrecting u without ur consent" but also acknowledging that he himself is guilty of holding onto the things that kill him.,,, GOD ITS SO FUCKING G GOOD I FDFGSADFGDG

salt also !!! BANGER not quite up there with the likes of lazarus but it gets bonus points because a. i lov the idea of starting to recognize that you're coming into yourself n an identity apart from your vices n traumas and b. for having two of the most RAW lines in the entire album imo which is reaaallly saying something: "now that everything's bright I guess I'm fine/but there's an art in the dark that took years to refine" and "the spark of divine intervention/that I'm still terrified I've left behind" (ALBUM TITLE DROP ALBUM TITLE DROP) god these two just dont miss and i love it but i am far too neurodivergent to contain myself they need to give me a break pls i am v i b r a t i n g

ok gonna move into the Chill(tm) tracks I think with goliath as well as shame/rotten I vibe more with the lyrics than the actual songs because i prefer my angsty alt pop to be Upbeat thank u very much but can i just say. the lyrics of these two songs ESPECIALLY SHAME/ROTTEN LIKE ok first of all i love the tonal shift halfway through that manages not to make them feel like completely different songs it's just jarring enough like there's been an acceptance of sorts,, like omg same i too am like 'god i feel like the scum of the earth might as well own it a bit',, "the fear of god/the need for blame" fuckin bullseye ow,, "I starve to feed the parts of me/far from who i oughta be/tell me are you proud of me yet?" FUCKIN BULLSEYE OWW

I know i just said i prefer my angst upbeat but crocodile tears (very upbeat very rock wuaw) is probably my least favourite track if i had to pick but it does have a lyrical BANGER of an opening verse ("holding the hand that's holding me under" g o d) i think i just don't dig the overall melody too much and find the ending a bit repetitive fr my tastes,, who knows though it took a while and many re-listens for ouroboros to grow on me maybe this'll b a similar story ,, but then again ouroboros had the advantage of echoing mine own mental health and self-destructive behaviours shdgj

ok so i was crying from the beginning right but the songs that made me ugly bawl were growing pains (very similar vibes to get right but in a "i know that i'm healing" way rather than a "i need to heal" way) and denial,, but starting w growing pains,, my god idk What they did with the mic/vocals after the bridge but it felt like the music was being injected directly into my ears secret direct path 2 my bloodstream god I hadnt felt chills like that in such a long time and idk just the whole Mood of the song having been hurting for so long and only now starting to recognize the damage you've done but also appreciate the progress youv made,,, i have so so many emotions but DENIAL (its funny saying it in caps bc its the only track in lowercase getit getit) oh my god ths going straight on the list of Songs That Make Me Think About My Relationship With My Dad but also Songs That Make Me Emo About All The People I've Grown Apart From and i think its so powerful to frame a personal transition away from faith as growing apart from an old friend and missing them despite any hard feelings holy shit though holy shit . the first listen by this point i had already been emotionally devastated by the Whole Album so i was like ok surely ill get a break by the last song lol nope sorry i ended up crying so hard i think i gave myself a headache

I think I must have yelled about the songs that they released as singles when they dropped individually but it's been so long that i forget what i said but honestly parables and icarian are still just as good as when i heard them for the first time (when parables dropped i spilled my tea on my fucking notes bc i was vibing too hard),, I love parables' msg of accepting the lessons ur (traumatic) past taught u and how it shaped u as a person even if u recognize that that person is someone hurt and in need of healing and maybe that has to happen alone! and i know for a fact i've gushed about icarian (still one of the most gojocore songs Ever imho dont fight me on this) but now looking at it in the context of the rest of the album i love that it's first cause it really frames the whole icarus thing of having flown too close to the sun or to god and getting burned and that pain essentially being the catalyst for the entire Journey tht the rest of the album outlines (obsessed w the fact that the next song is jaded like fr having these two songs one after the other is literally "fucked around/found out" gsfhjsh)

but all that being said not to b dramatic but this album destroyed me it rearranged something deep in my soul and i don't know who i was before it but i probably wont ever be the same :) i literally love these two so much im so appreciative of them its so rare to feel so Seen by a piece of media so to have an entire album hit so incredibly close to home for me and slap while doing so????? i feel so lucky . this entire album feels like taking the first step to address years of hurt and self destruction it feels like losing a friend it feels like finding yourself and i just . i love it so much

[melit0n]

Hi bb I saw you also reblogged the ask game! (I am currently going through the one you sent me.) I would like to suggest Form Follows Function by Michl! 💛

Took me over a month (how many months has it been??) to get to this but I did!!

IMMEDIATELY Would You Believe Me is such a banger. The yearning is fr yearning in this one. The line, “If there is a God I hope She gives me to you.” is such a lovely one. The “to you,” repeated after it, followed by that absolutely scrumptious bass line, just adds to it. Gives the vibes of ‘if there is something holy up there, and if She can hear me, I pray She makes me yours and only yours, for what is living without your love?’ UGH.

The chorus of Promise hello?? Obsessed with “I know that the world could all fall apart, and if it all does: I'll fall, I'll fall, I'll fall, I'll fall, I'll fall where you are.” This is really a ‘I yearn for the love the poets speak of with you. Or maybe just the love people have.’ album, huh? The synths are super funky too. That goes for like, the whole album!

Deserve You got me point blank, I’m not gonna lie.

y really reminds me of doomed love: the type you always see in tragedies. Orpheus and Eurydice, Cupid and Psyche, etc. There’s a couple of other lines that I like, but “Glue and thread, never seem to hold for too long.”, mainly because I heard ‘for too long’ as ‘fortune’, which reminded me of the red string of fate. The last lines, “I break apart, still here you are.” are really comforting as well, even if they end with a series of why’s that don’t really get answered.

The piano is nice in Por fin…I’m ready, but the title is what really stuck out to me. 'Finally…I’m ready.' Followed by beautiful synths and calm piano just reminds me of a warm memory, warped by time. It’s an open ended question, and you can’t see what once was as clear as you want to, but the sun is golden and her hands are still soft, and that’s all that matters.

I won’t fail u is so soft as well oh my God 🥺🥺

Overall, a good album! Deserve You went immediately into my main playlist lol. Went to Yearn city with that one (everyone knew my name) fr

[solar-halos]

do u ever think about the way olivia rodrigo invented music

just kidding i know the emotions she sings about have existed since the beginning of time but im just now realizing that if i was born in the taylor swift era i would 100% be a swiftie bc i was thinking abt olivia rodrigo’s music the other day and unironically had the thought “wow she literally invented having emotions” before i managed to catch myself. but honestly i think it’s crazy how accurately she captures all these feelings of insecurity and heartbreak (and now joy!) so perfectly!!

“lacy” and “pretty isn’t pretty” seem so similar on the surface, but i feel like lacy is more of a gradual realization that no matter what u do—or how ur actually perceived—you will never feel as feminine as u want to. there will always be people (aka Lacy) who are gonna be effortlessly elegant and beautiful and feminine and feeling jealous of that is so fuckin stupid but that doesn’t stop u from caring. and then i like “pretty isn’t pretty” bc i feel like that’s the aftermath of Lacy. idk the part abt her trying every shade of lipstick really hit bc when i was first experimenting w makeup i remember feeling so insecure that none of them seemed “my” color. also i really like the gradual buildup of “it’s in my phone/head/magazines/the boys i bring to bed” bc i feel like that describes the pipeline so well

anyway now let’s get into the new songs she released. i’m actually not sure if they’re new bc when i searched it up after it popped up on my spotify google said she released this back in 2023? so idk. but her youtube channel literally has this all released within the last few days. but my favorite thing about these songs is how im in the same era she’s in rn. that happened to me with “sour” and “guts” reopened a lot of those old wounds, so i absolutely love the healing theme (? i know that’s not the right word but it’s hard to think rn) this album has. let’s start off with obsessed since that popped up for me first

obsessed? yeah, obsessed with this fucking song. seriously. “if you knew how much i thought about her you’d think i was in love” already starting off on a banger. also i watched the mv and i loved it. this song literally couldn’t have came at a more perfect time, yall ever just randomly remember that ur s/o has dated ppl that aren’t u before? chilling realization, really

scared of my guitar? “i can’t lie to it the same way i like to you”? “i lay in your arms and pretend that it’s love”? “i’d rather be tied to someone even if they’re wrong”? oh my god. i was literally thinking about this the other day. like, being in a relationship bc u want to be or if it’s bc you’re scared of being by yourself. and i also like the fact that it’s insinuating that the other person is the better half. bc sometimes it does feel like literally just loving someone when you struggle so much with the thoughts i mentioned is just the same as stringing them along. but then also i think it’s nice to pretend you’re in love bc obviously at the beginning of a relationship you have no idea if it’s ever going to go that far, so i think we often fall in love with the idea of being loved. which sounds a bit corny when i put it like that, but scared of my guitar made *me* feel like a tortured poet bc i used to be like “im chill ! :o)” and then open up ao3 and write a billy taupe/lucy gray story like girl…. that’s not the same as olivia rodrigo being folksy and cute

speaking of being folksy and cute, “girl i’ve always been” is so folksy and cute! i literally hate country music so fucking much (i’m sorry… one time this guy in hs played God’s Country in front of the class for a presentation and he stood there kinda ominously so ever since then i’ve kinda hated it) but this song was nice i liked it! i like the confidence it exudes, someone already mentioned this in the comments but it really is giving off lucy gray vibes, especially “with venom on my tongue u ask me who i’ve become” like okayyy someone needs to write a billy taupe/ lucy gray inspired story abt that line immediately. i don’t really have much more to say since this one was the one i found the least personally relatable, but i love the sassiness of it all!!

stranger. this one was a FUCKING banger, this was the sort of era i was in when guts released so im so glad miss olivia rodrigo could put the feeling of realizing u don’t *need* someone u thought u literally couldn’t live without into words. “i always thought it was some comforting lie ppl told” literally. also the call back to “enough for you” by saying “if im not enough for you then you’re not enough for me either” :,). i think growing up is quite nice

so american. fav! <3 <3 <3. “he’s like a poem i wish i wrote” hands down my favorite lyric fucking ever. i LOVE this song. like i said with “lacy” and “pretty isn’t pretty” bleeding into each other, i think the same applies w this song and “scared of my guitar.” like after u get over ur fear of ur guitar u realize that ur so american and suddenly wanting to get married and be in love doesn’t seem so selfish anymore. i really, really love this song (if i haven’t already mentioned that)

sorry, i know this was a long post! stranger had me bursting into tears so i told Boyfriend i needed to write in my “notes app” abt it so everyone say hi Boyfriend. but seriously im feeling so american rn i literally was like “leave me alone and don’t touch me im feeling explosively emotional” and he was like ok! here’s some fruit. and then now im writing on my phone about songs i love. like is there any better feeling??

[greenskellyblob]

9 people I’d like to know better

Tagged by; @thefloatingstone

Last song; Achilles Come Down by Gang of Youths, I’ve been listening to this song relentlessly a year ago, and it still frequently pops up when I let youtube radio do its thing. I’m not gonna complain!!! It’s still a banger! I’ve just googled it and realized it is a song in an album, and I never listened to the whole of it. Huh. I should do that sometimes.

Anyways, here’s the song:

Currently watching: Just finished Community and the last season of Black Mirror. I finally know where some memes come from now!!! I’ve been seeing Community memes around and I never knew TwT. Consider me enlightened now. I really enjoyed it, all the characters there are stupid and unhinged and taking their stupidity seriously and I loved it! V good, v nice way to spend the time.

On the other hand, this season of Black Mirror kinda dissapointed me? There was one episode I REALLY LOVED (Demon 79, the last one, hell yeah the ending!!!!! WOOO!!!!), the first one (Joan is awful) was kinda neat, Loch Henry was depressing and I laughed out loud at how one character died because it is SO STUPID, Mazey day was boring, and Beyond the Sea was the biggest bullshit I ever saw. Such a big old dump!!!!! Something Extremely Traumatic happens to one character on a very important mission, and the Earth command doesn’t even get them to talk to a therapist. Also a lot of dick measuring going on there. Also shitty ending nobody could have predicted (sarcastic). Just, ugh. Sorry about the vagueness but I don’t want to spoil people who haven’t watched it yet. But if you want to watch only one episode of season 6, make it the last one :D 10/10

Also I’ll be cheeky and say I just finished the VOD of C-Puff’s ( @thefloatingstone‘s) stream :3 Can’t wait to see more!!!! And, please, don’t apologize for lore dumps they are delightfull and I finally have a streamer I can watch and not feel like I’m missing most of the story/worldbuilding. You know what? Everyone, have a link for that too. For some reason it doesn’t let me embed it?

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

Currently reading: Nothing in particular, my brain is once again in the reading slump. I guess comics would count, actually? In that case, an absolutely amazing comic called “Tiger, Tiger” by @pepurika. It has two very gay siblings, A giant bisexual (?) himbo, an old god’s child (they are very chaotic and very, very gay from what I understand) and cool old ships. ALSO SEA SPONGES!!!! Sea sponges are very important. They literally drive the plot okay! There is ship stealing, identity theft, deals with gods, marvelous scientific discoveries and much, MUCH more, all in the name of sea sponges! The main character got hyperfixated as a child and went unhinged, and if that sounds relatable to you, you’ll enjoy her :) Also everyone there is very smart and capable and yet you have to wonder where they keep their braincells because they are all also??? Kinda dumb??? In incredibly relatable ways. Heccking 10/10 comic. I have to read it all from the beginning because I can’t wait for the last book to come out asaajudzgigui the suffering is sweet tho.

I slapp’a link your way. Go read, you’ll have a really good time (this is a threat)

https://www.tigertigercomic.com/tiger-tiger/001

[hzrnvm]

Speaking in Tongues!

Best song: This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody). I mean come on. This song is literally my favorite of all time. I've had multiple periods of my life where the thing that kept me going was continuous listening to this song. I've spent hours upon hours of my life thinking about it and listening to it, deciphering the lyrics. It feels like I know a secret about it: like the words he sings have a second meaning that I've achieved, that I've earned. It's an autistic love song, and one of the few songs that I feel like is like me. Where I really purely feel the precise exact concept of the song. Also listen to the Stop Making Sense version please it's a little better.

Song with a special piece: Slippery People has possibly my favorite string of Byrne-noises of all time. Fun fact: the very thing that got me into Talking Heads were his noises. I heard them in a Mouth Dreams song and it was like a siren call to me. The Stop Making Sense version is better too, of course.

Least Favourite Song: You can't do this to me. Come on. God I really really don't want to say I Get Wild / Wild Gravity because I really love that song so much but yeah I guess it'd have to be that. I guess I didn't really like how it's tone and pace felt kinda different from the rest of the album but honestly it's not too harsh.

Most Overrated Song: Burning Down the House, sorry! You knew it would be this way too, I'm sure. The album is literally "Song that lots of people only know the band for", then 7 songs that non-fans don't know, then This Must Be the Place which is venerated but not nearly as known as Burning Down the House. Also it sucks that all the supermarkets play the studio version instead of the Stop Making Sense version which is, you guessed it, better.

Most Underrated Song: I'm gonna have to go with Swamp. I considered Making Flippy Floppy, which was my favorite song for a while and I rarely see it mentioned, but I went with Swamp because both this version and the Stop Making Sense version, which is better, are mentioned severely less so. I love when they get ominous and stuff. The bit in the SMS version where he says "[Click-click...] See ya later..." is just so great, he sounds so gristly when he says that.

Banger of bangers: Girlfriend is Better, baby. What a great song. Really danceable. The Stop Making Sense version is even moreso.

Rating out of 10: Solid 9. It's so so good but i had to knock it down a smidge for the fact that they did most of the songs better somewhere else. Crazy how this isn't even my second-favorite Talking Heads album. what a great band.

[babysaid]

Okay, so my thoughts on RUSH!:

I asked for a meal and Måneskin delivered a BANQUET! It’s a really good album overall: the entire band was on their A game for this one!! I really like the direction they took and the recent interview with Zane Lowe where they talked about the creative process makes me love it even more!

FUCK every basic bitch hating on this album because of the leaked lyrics!!!! Songs are not poetry and the instrumentals / vocal delivery can really elevate the entire thing!!!

Vic was born to play bass, Thomas is a legend, Damiano honestly has one of my favorite voices ever and Ethan is so good I just want him to [redacted] [crash sounds] [gunshots] [dogs barking]

My two cents song by song - that no one asked for - is below the cut

- Own My Mind is already in 3 different playlists of mine. Can’t wait to hear it liveeeee 9.5/10

- Tom Morello had less than 30 seconds and delivered everything in Gossip! Thomas is honestly so fucking talented, I’m gonna cry. Lyrics slap, instruments slap, promo slaped. 9/10

- My first hot take is Timezone. I already knew I would have problems with this songs when I heard it on the tiktok promo. Weakest link the first 5 songs. Emo as fuck, sounds like something a Wrapped Tour band would play (derogatory). Gets points because I can imagine a very aggravated Sony executive listening to “I don’t give a fuck about the contracts that I signed” and I giggle. Also, I miss being a teenager 7/10

- DON’T GET ME STARTED on BLA BLA BLA. Silly as fuck but I LOVE IT. God put Vic De Angelis on this earth just so she could EAT this bass line!!!! My fave along with Own My Mind 9.8/10

- Baby Said has old Strokes vibes so it’s right up my alley. Again, not very strong lyrics but the instrumental and Damiano’s vocals 🫶 8.5/10

- Second hot take: I appreciate its political commentary but Gasoline was never my cup of tea. I’m being very generous calling it “political commentary” tho, they could’ve done better. Gets points because Damiano quoting Chaplin during Coachella and yelling “FORA BOLSONARO” on my concert live rent free in my head. Loses points for being too long 7.5/10

- Feel is a banger!!! @ Walk Like a Badass Playlist on Spotify, we have visitors. Also, again, THOMAS ♥️ 8/10

- I love ass shakers and I especially love ass shakers like Don’t Wanna Sleep. AGAIN, THOMAS AND VIC 8.5/10

- I can tell Damiano was drunk as fuck recording Kool Kids, ICONIC. Also super catchy 8.5/10

- Ballad Alert! If Not For You deserves an acoustic version and I will bug everyone until I get it. Automatic 9/10

- Testing my patience along with Timezone is Read Your Diary. It starts great but then it just becomes a Disney Channel song, babes. A good Disney Channel song, but still. Weakest link on the second part of the album. Gets points for the bass line and, again, because I miss being a teenager 7.5/10

- The first song in italian, Mark Chapman GOES. HARD. AS. FUCK. Instrumental is point, Damiano’s vocals are DELIVERING and ngl it hits different in italian. Makes it to my top 5 of the album 9/10

- I already loved La Fine before, so I still love it but it loses a little of it’s charm when put next to Mark Chapman ngl. I have no choice but to rate it 8.8/10

- The biggest Teatro D’ira vibe on the album is Il Dono Della Vita. A very cohesive and emotional song instrumentally, I can’t wait to read the translation. I hope this one makes it to the live setlist so I don’t have beat anyone on their team to a pulp. It also reminds me: I will never forgive them for not doing Ventanni in São Paulo but doing it in Argentina. That was a hate crime against brazilians and THEY KNOW IT. I digress. 9.5/10

- Mammamia on this album feels like seeing a cousin at a family gathering lmao. Still SLAPS tho 8/10

- My top song on Spotify Rewind in 2022 was Supermodel, so I really like it. HOWEVER, it feels very out of place on this album and it doesn’t go as hard now that we have better songs. You can tell this was a “commercial” song because the other ones are so much more well made (even the ones I don’t like as much). Still has a place in my heart tho 7.8/10

- I really loved The Loneliest when it came out and I still love it! But it suffers from the same curse as Supermodel: the new ballads are so much better. All I can think about now while listening is “I hope they don’t pass up If Not For You and Il Dono Della Vita on the live shows so they can play The Loneliest”. I know it’s gonna happen tho, so I resent it a little bit. 8/10

[saphushia]

Hi hi Saph! I am here to also give music recommendations, because while I'm very sure you would be a very nice undead person, I do not want you to die. So!

Yesterday I was listening to Interlude IV (Showtime) by Zack Callison and Grace Rolek until it lost all meaning, so that is my first recommendation. It had me fixating on how I would animate one of my OCs going off on another OC, if I knew how to animate :D so I guess it's a good story song if you can associate it with someone!

My second recommendation is the Noragami OST album by Iwasaki Taku (岩崎琢)! I put down his name in Japanese because you might be using Spotify, and Noragami OST isn't under his name in English, which is odd but it's okay because Noragami OST slaps. Iwasaki combined multiple music genres to get a really unique, compelling sound and I love it! There's another album for the second season that has some goodies, but it's a little more boring.

My third and final recommendation, because I wouldn't be me if I didn't give you a song rec in a different language, is Geççek by Tarkan! Geççek is short for geçeçek, meaning 'it will pass,' and was written to tell people during the pandemic that hey! Times are really horrible right now! But you'll get through it and you'll be alright!

Okay that's all from me, oof this ask is a big long ^^; nourish and hydrate yourself, stretch, get your eyes off the screen for a bit, take care of yourself! Have a good timezone!

oooo!! these are all really cool!! i can def see how interlude IV would fit great for oc animatics, and Geççek is very neat!! esp with the added information abt it!! but most of all, holy shit the noragami OST- i'll be totally honest i was skeptical when i saw it, but GOOD GOD. this is like. my dream digimon soundtrack aubdsfkjg. it's the perfect mix of electronic and more traditional (is that the right word? the best i've got rn lmao) sounds that's just soooo unique you're so right. i haven't listened to the whole album yet but you can bet your ass i'm gonna!! (also wow this has reminded me how damn long it's been since i saw noragami akjbdskjfg)

Marmalade -by- Gallus ONE PIECE "WANOKUNI" ost (it's not as high of a banger % as the noragami ost but good god there's some good ones in there, you can kinda skip around if u want cause it's a lot lmao. the pieces that use traditional instruments like shamisen are soooo good tho) Sakeme no Me -by- cali=gari

[dingus-on-stardust]

…so I might be a tad obsessed with Fall Out Boy’s newest album.

Just a smidge.

Anyways, oh my god this album is fucking amazing. We started off with some absolute bangers; “Love From The Other Side” and “Heartbreak Feels So Good” are masterpieces, and I was deeply curious about the rest of the album. It did not disappoint, and lived up to the hype and more. See the music rant below the fold if you want to read this dingus’ thoughts!

We start off the album (post the first two) with a great banger. That bassline just hooks you in and gives you a sense of “oh shit, this album is gonna be good”. It feels like old plus new Fall Out Boy, like comfort food but reinvented with different spices, you know?

“Hold me, hold me like a grudge. The world is always spinning and I can’t keep up”

The next song I wanna gush about is one that’s really upbeat and happy. As funny as this sounds, it’s like “Happy” but done right, you know? XD But seriously, I like this song a lot. It samples “Little Bitty Pretty One” by Thurston Harris, which many of you might recognize from Matilda (1996). It literally made me pop up like “I RECOGNIZE THIS BUT WHAT IS THE NAME”. Anyways, take a listen!

“Feeling so good right now, Feeling so good right now. Til we crash and burn somehow”

Strap in for this next song, because it feels straight out of a movie. Like seriously, it’s so dramatic and dark for almost no reason, but it slaps. It feels like this should play over the climax of a movie, probably over where the villain is monologuing, or hell even over the fall/corruption of a hero. Especially with that line “Just another day spent hoping we don't fall apart. So drop a bomb on all the things we dreamed about”. Anyways, it’s an amazing song that goes so hard, take a listen!

“Smash all the guitars. Till we see all the stars. Oh, got to throw this year away, we got to throw this year away like a bad luck charm”

Ok ok I cannot stop myself from talking about this song any longer. I knew this song was going to be good, I knew it was going to slap, but I still was not prepared for the sheer amount of talent, work, time, and music that went into this piece. Call me dramatic, but like, masterpiece doesn’t even begin to describe this. I absolutely love the call back to “Love From The Other Side” with “You were the sunshine of my lifetime, What would you trade the pain for?”. This song resonates with me so strongly, on such another level. From the jazz and orchestral background blending with FOB’s punk rock so seamlessly, to the lyrics and vocal performance, everything is just so goddamn amazing. Anyways, please listen to it. It’s way too good to just fall under the radar. I honestly think it’s one of my favorite songs I’ve found in a while.

“So much for stardust! We thought we had it all, thought we had it all. Thought we had it all, thought we had it all, thought we had it all…”

Broooo I absolutely love this album sm, FOB really came back with some absolute bangers. If only they were close enough so I could see them in concert 😭

[rxscss]

‘ceremonials’ the debut album of persephone + the machine.

ceremonials is the first album released by persephone in eleven years - using her real voice instead of the autotuned ‘baby’ voice she is notorious for. a huge pivot from the pop bangers she once churned out, ceremonials is an alternative/indie album completely written and produced by persephone herself, along with help from her new band that she has affectionately dubbed as ‘the machine.’ the album consists of a collection of works she has written over the past eleven years and tells the story of where she’s been and ends off with hopes of brighter days ahead. ceremonials has been dedicated to her children, archie and austen sinclair.

complete track list under the cut!

morning elvis {song here}

"oh, you know i'm still afraid. i'm still crazy and i'm still scared. but if i make it to the stage i'll show you what it means to be spared."

leave my body {song here}

"i don't need a husband, don't need no wife. and i don't need the day, i don't need the night. and i don't need the birds, let them fly away. and i don't want the crowds, they never seem to stay."

hunger {song here}

“i thought that love was in the drugs but the more i took, the more it took away and i couldn't get enough. i thought love was on the stage, you give yourself to strangers, you don't have to be afraid. then it tries to find a home with people, or when i'm alone picking it apart and staring at your phone.”

falling {song here}

"sometimes i wish for falling, wish for the release, wish for falling through the air to give me some relief. beacause falling's not the problem, when i'm falling at peace. it's only when i hit the ground it causese all the grief."

girl against god {song here}

"and it's good to be alive, crying into cereal at midnight. if they ever let me out, i'm gonna really let it out. i listen to music from 2006 and feel kind of sick. but oh god, you're gonna get it. you'll be sorry that you messed with this."

the bomb (song here)

“you said this could have been the best thing that ever happened to you, so you decided not to do it now you come back every summer like a carnivorous flower and i stare at your hands in the heat, and i think they are the most beautiful thing i've ever seen.”

heartlines {song here}

"this fantasy, this fallacy, this tumbling stone, echoes of a city that's long overgrown. and your heart is the only place that i call home. can i be returned? you can. you can. we can."

cosmic love {song here}

"i took the stars from my eyes and then i made a map, and knew that somehow i could find my way back. then i heard your heart beating, you were in the darkness, too. so i stayed in the darkness with you."

never let me go {song here}

"and the arms of the ocean are carrying me and all this devotion was rushing out of me and the crashes ahead for a sinner like me, but the arms of the ocean delivered me."

dog days are over {song here}

"happiness hit her like a train on a track, coming towards her, stuck still no turning back. she hid around corners and she hid under beds, she killed it with kisses and from it she fled, with every bubble she sank with her drink and washed it away down the kitchen sink."

shake it out {song here}

"and i've been a fool and i've been blind. i can never leave the past behind. i can see no way, i can see no way. i'm always dragging that horse around. all of his questions, such a mournful sound. tonight i'm gonna bury that horse in the ground. 'cause i like the keep my issues drawn, but it's always darkest before the dawn."

you’ve got the love {song here}

"sometimes i feel like throwing my hands up in the air, cause i know i can count on you, sometimes i feel like saying 'lord, i just don't care' but you've got the love i need to see me through."

free {song here}

"but there's nothing else that i know how to do but open my arms and give it all to you. 'cause i hear the music, i feel the beat and for a moment when i'm dancing, i am free."

bonus track:

tiny dancer (cover) by elton john (song here)

“but oh, how it feels so real lying here, with no one near only you and you can hear me when i say softly, slowly hold me closer, tiny dancer count the headlights on the highway lay me down in sheets of linen you had a busy day today.”

[kryoymir]

Sword Art Online Progressive -Scherzo of Deep Night- Review

So in a move absolutely everyone saw coming, I manipulated my work schedule to go see the new Sword Art Online movie opening night, and I thought I would share some of my thoughts on it here. As an obligatory notice I will go in-depth on the movie here and touch on the novel it's based on, so spoilers abound. I'll put a little non-spoiler review here though just to be nice.

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

Overall, this film is a more solid outing than it's predecessor. Instead of feeling like two different stories patched together, it stands as one cohesive work. Special recognition goes to the score and voice acting, while the animation leaves a little to be desired, especially in the climactic final battle.

PLOT

The biggest issue I had with the first movie, Aria, is that it feels like two separate plots kind of haphazardly put together, which is largely due to the fact that half of it is original content. Scherzo doesn't have this issue, as it stays much closer to it's source work. The biggest changes lie in the complete erasure of the Elf War campaign (for understandable reasons), and Nezuha being swapped for Mito in the final battle (which I knew was going to happen the first time she appeared in promotional artwork). Overall, the story hits the same beats - Kirito and Asuna catch wind of a plot orchestrated by the proto-Laughing Coffin to get the Aincrad Liberation Squad to attempt the floor five boss and get a rare item that would disrupt the power balance, and decide to put together a crack team of trusted allies to beat them to it. The story itself is solid, and it's further bolstered by some sublime fight scenes. A major weakness, though, is several mentions of events that have not been depicted in the anime in any form that are treated like given knowledge, and with the next project in the SAO portfolio being an original story, it seems unlikely any of these things will be shown in the near future.

ANIMATION

This seems like it would be a given for a high-budget movie in one of the biggest anime franchises of the 2010's, but I still feel the need to address it. Given some slight reshuffling of staff for these movies, I've noticed a major, glaring weakness in the animation, and it's that the faces are ridiculously awkward compared to earlier entries. I know part of this is probably owed to the decision to make the characters visibly younger, but a lot of shots are just off, like the animators didn't have a good reference sheet or just weren't used to drawing these characters this way. And dear God, the CG model on the final boss looks like it was ripped out of a fucking PS2 game. Even the boss monsters in the original Aincrad arc at least kind of fit the visual style of the anime. I visibly cringed at the first shot of it, and a couple people in the theatre made comments about it too.

SCORE

This is the easiest part for me- the music! It's fucking awesome. Yuki Kajiura has slowly been incorporating more electronics into her work, and it's most prominent on Fuscus the Vacant Colossus, my favorite track on the album. It's a nine-minute banger.

VOICE OVER

I can't comment on the dub (yet), but the Japanese voice work is great as usual.

DIFFERENCES FROM THE SOURCE

Yes, I'm doing this. I've read this book about eight times since it came out and I'd like to point out the changes made, but I'm only gonna list off the major ones because I don't feel like doing everything.

Flour foor boss fight, Viscount Yofilis was absent entirely

Kirito and Asuna's duel was cut

Changes to the dungeon sequence

Mild changes to the DKB/ALS party scheme

Mito/Asuna duel is original to the movie, as is her inclusion in the boss fight

Kirito alone encounters PoH at the end

Anyway, that's my opinion. Overall, if you enjoyed Aria, you'll probably like this too. However, unless you're super into the series, you can probably stand to wait for it to hit streaming services.

[grandhike]

music asks— 5, 11, 13, 28!

oh, man. this was fun but i accidentally spent the last 3 hours excavating old playlists and re-listening to a bunch of stuff. also i think i forgot to eat dinner? heheheeeee

5:A song that needs to be played LOUD

The first thing that came to mind was the acoustic/live version of Cloud Cult's Chemicals Collide. This is not even my favorite song of theirs but I have this in my car and I always turn it way up so when the rest of the instruments come in around 1:45 I can get my hair fully on end.

11:A song that you never get tired of

The Killers - Human

13:One of your favorite 80’s songs

okay this is kind of a silly answer because there are certainly other songs from the 80's that really hit with me as an adult. BUT, I'm gonna go on a lil' journey here. When I was like 11 or 12 I think, I spent at least one summer obsessively listening to four or five tapes on my dad's walkman. Just...constant. From what I remember, the albums in rotation were Paul Simon's Graceland, the absolute banger compilation Simply Mad About The Mouse, and I think some Jimmy Buffett? (side note I just googled to make sure I spelled his name correctly and seeing his full name on the wiki page gave me the same feeling of consternation as when I first heard the words Charles Entertainment Cheese strung together). But the most important one was without doubt the Beaches soundtrack (released in 1988 or 89). Now, to this day, I still have never actually seen Beaches. But I know that soundtrack down in my toes. My favorite song from it is and has always been: Otto Titsling. You're welcome.

28:A song by an artist with a voice that you love

oh god there are so many. i spent so much time cycling through a bunch of faves trying to pick, and really what I'm left with is decision fatigue and awe at the expressive power of the human voice. here's one: Nina Simone - I wish I knew how it would feel to be free.

[jupiturcrush]

Joan Jett, getting older and getting cooler

Joan Jett played at the Florida Theater and I caught wind of some of the reviews on the way out. A middle-aged man commiserating with a friend, “she was pushing the new album, but we want to hear the old stuff.” I would never openly diss the patron Saint of rock and roll, but of course, if you’re going to see Joan Jett, it’s safe to say you’re there for the timeless bangers. Although it was a nice variety of material, I consider that $150 spent towards the 6 songs I knew, and the 3 I love. My personal anthem for sexual frustration (Do you wanna touch me) my daily affirmation (I don’t give a damn about my reputation) and lyrics that transcend space, time, and reason for how they somehow apply to every single person (hate myself for loving you).

The show itself was a little lackluster, I don’t know what her shows in the 80’s were like, or really any previous show to compare, but it felt a bit like a deflated balloon. Lacking energy, verve. Her hits are just so powerful, so BIG. They are truly some of the defining anthems of the genre- literally “I Love Rock n Roll.” And the performance didn’t quite match the emotion and ethos of the original songs. Forget the audience, for the sake of rock n roll, some songs have to be sang with full gusto, or not at all. Every fiber of your soul needs to go into a song like Bad Reputation. She was giving us 60%.

But honestly, she could’ve laid on the stage asleep and it still would’ve been worth it. You have to see the pillars of rock and roll while you can.

And I think I’m content with a subpar experience because the concert was about more than just music for me.

Seeing Joan Jett is one of the few points of reference I have for older women who inspire me. I just can’t ever seeing myself getting “old” and Joan Jett embodies that agelessness. She has style, confidence, and edge. She wears all black and plays electric guitar. She doesn’t give a damn. And if she’s not feeling like giving a 100% performance, she ain’t gonna give two fucks about it. She’s not gonna fake it.

And in a way, that’s also pretty cool. She’s in her 60’s so I suppose it’s fair that a show won’t match the energy and intensity of those in her 20’s.

She’s still Joan Fucking Jett.

When I was a teenager, I couldn’t imagine what I’d be like, or even look like when I was older. The concept of 30 was as distant and utterly unimaginable as God himself.

And now that I’m here, it makes me look toward 50, another milestone that’s widely considered “old” with a new approach. After all, Joan Jett has surpassed 50, and still has her fire. An undeniable presence. And you don’t have to be a famous musician to have that.

Women like Joan make me unafraid of aging, because they never lost the adventure of life. They didn’t settle for suburbia and kids and a husband. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but it’s always nice to see people who go off the beaten path and hold their own.

Beauty fades, but cool is forever.