#i wanted to try and capture the vibe of the song hopefully it comes across good lol

[brookbee]

David Bowie performing the song "Station to Station," 1978

[arvadthecursed]

this is silly so no one laugh okay!!

I kinda really want to get my first tattoo before I go to clinicals, and I'm trying to doodle what I want.

literally anyone who knows me knows how much I love Hozier. "All Things End" is such a beautiful song, and it really encapsulates how I feel about life and death and everything now that I'm older.

Things end and begin in infinite cycles and that's okay and it's beautiful and good, actually.

Anyway I wanted to capture the hopeful vibe of the song and also that cycle of life. So hopefully that comes across here, haha.

Sooooo yeah. Not sure if I'm gonna be able to get it before clinicals, but I'd like to!

[gatzbright]

3 4 & 11 🫶🫶

BELLA hi !! :D ♥️🫂

3. Describe the creative process of writing a chapter/fic

oooo ok okay. for fics usually like half the time it honestly starts with a title, because recently that will come from a song that has inspired the vibe or story i wanna write. i love pretty lyrics and they just jump out at me straight away and i'm like THAT NEEDS TO BE A FIC TITLE. then i start writing but a lot of the time i write random scenes that come way later bc i am impatient in my writing, but also entirely all over the place, and i just have scenes come to me in full force and i have to get them down. this is also not helpful when i have a 5k doc and only like 1k of actual coherent and Chronological fic. but yeah it gets written in the end after much chaos (hopefully. i mourn my fic graveyard on the daily ... shout out to australia fic. goodbye goodbye goodbye u were bigger than the whole sky and u will be missed). my attention span is also nonexistent on a bad day (adhd is so fun) and i will repeatedly find myself zoned out and staring at a wall. but then there's good days and i DO write :D i very much have to be in the mood to write too, and i am also a slow writer, but each to their own ya know! we are all writers n people and we are all different, and that's what makes life so fun. don't be hard on yourself guys bc u have ur own way of doing things and u ROCK (trying to convince myself that slow writing is fine. we will get there. whew). then comes posting time and i both love and loathe doing tags lmao. i love writing the free random tags but then remembering what people may Actually search to come across my fic is hard and annoying pft and i usually just get my previous fics up and look at their tags or the ones for other fics i know are similar. summaries and formatting and links also suck so bad. my god. i usually copy paste all of it over from my previous fic again and change where necessary. but yeah that is it and then i hopefully have a coherent and fun fic to post :D

4. Where do you find inspiration for new ideas?

i answered this one in the post before this so if anyone wants to read it is there :)

5. Link your three favorite fics right now

OOOOOO MY GOSH. YES. love this lets go (heads to my email to zero in on the fics i Know made me sob endlessly). house of gold (rated m) by tippysleeps is one of the most beautiful and heart wrenching fics i have read lately, if ever, and i sobbed at the end very hard into my pillow and made it extremely damp. this is so pos please read it i am yelling. it's like george moves to florida n then lots of domestic slice of life moments almost vignette style but still so in depth, and it reached into my chest and squeezed my heart n slotted right in next to it and there it shall stay. tippysleeps is a genius everyone needs to read his fics go go go. asystole (rated e; no minors) by womanhunt is incredible and i also cried while reading this fic (shoutout to bella !!!). dream and george go to london and george is experiencing being back there for the first time since his move, all alongside seeing dream in the city he grew up in. it's fluffy established relationship, while also making ur heart ache, alongside some flashbacks that i adored, and entirely full of love—it is love and dnf captured in a few thousand words. instigate the paradigm by nervouswaltz (also rated e; minors don't interact) i loved this fic so much it tore me to pieces when i read it. bird is such an incredible writer (ily birdy) who's words are always so visceral and he ties love and life and the experience of being human all together into every fic he writes. this one is a bodyswap fic and i think it's a very important read to make u think n see yourself from another persons eyes, and is all about learning to love yourself. it's so beautiful guys :( buh. please check out birds fics !!!

[indiee19]

She Does The Woods

Alex Turner x reader

Summary: You and a buzzed Alex go for a walk and a picnic in the woods and you can't resist how good he looks.

warnings: smut, oral sex (m! receiving), typical cliché couple things

word count: 2.8k

-Once again, Thea wrote this.

A/n: this song is literally the best song off the album. Argue with the wall if you disagree. Also, I'm working on the requests, so please be patient, I'm trying to do all of them. (And thank you, Thea.)

✿✼:*ﾟ:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑ ✿✼:*ﾟ:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑

You reached up on the shelf of the small storage closet , getting the picnic blanket down from the very top, putting it in the basket. Alex had promised you that he would take you on a picnic this weekend. You impatiently waited the whole week for this day, wondering where Alex was taking you on the picnic.

You heard the door open and heard Alex's footsteps as he padded down the hallway, looking for you, eager to see the outfit you chose to wear. He hadn't seen you since this morning when you both woke up and had spent the entire morning in bed, making you feel so good like he always did. You'd asked him to go get some fruit from the store while you finished the rest of the food you were going to eat on the picnic.

"Baby, where are you!" he shouted from across the hallway.

"In the kitchen, Al!" you yelled back. He walked into the kitchen, finding and watching you finish putting everything away. He walked over to the kitchen island where you were at, handing you the fruit he had bought for the picnic.

You thanked him and put it away along with everything else in the basket. Alex walked behind you, wrapping his strong arms around your waist, pushing your hair away and kissing up your neck.

"Al, stop," you laughed, pushing him away.

"What if we don't go on the picnic and just stay here?" he asked, continuing his kisses up your neck. "No, Al. You promised me that you would take me on this picnic and I've been looking forward to it all week, so we're going on it," you replied, turning around, grabbing the bandana around his neck and capturing his lips in a soft kiss.

He sighed and moved away, going to the family room. You finished packing everything up and went to the family room, sneaking up behind Alex, wrapping your arms around his neck.

"Are you ready to leave, my love?" you asked, kissing his cheek. He stood up, turning around and kissed you. "Yeah, princess. You go get the basket and I'll start the car," he replied, walking to the door and grabbing the keys.

You went to the kitchen and grabbed the basket, also grabbing your polaroid camera from the bedroom, though you didn't think that you would need it at all, and walked out the door after locking it.

You saw Alex in the car, fiddling with the radio, trying to figure out how to connect the Bluetooth on his phone to the car radio. You got in and laughed at him, amused at his small amount of knowledge on technology even though he had many references of it on his latest album.

"What're you laughing at?" he asked, clearly still frustrated with the Bluetooth on his phone.

"Nothing, I just find it hilarious that you have a very extensive vocabulary and are a talented songwriter, but you can't understand how to use technology, though your album has quite a few references to it," you laughed.

He playfully pouted and then went back to his phone to figure out how to connect his phone to the car. You laughed again and he glared at you.

"Do you need some help, my love?" you asked. Alex nodded and accepted the fact that he couldn't figure it out and handed you the phone.

You quickly explained to him how to do it and connected it to the radio. You then turned on something from The Beatles; Alex started to pull out of the driveway. You and Alex started singing along, him more than you and you watched the concentration on his face as he drove and as he sang, his angelic voice ringing in your ears and you didn't mind.

The car came to a stop light and Alex turned to you. "I want to hold your hand," he sang, taking your hand in his. You laughed and sang along with him, though you weren't nearly as good as a singer as Alex, your voice couldn't compare to his in any way possible.

The red light had turned green and Alex began driving on the road again, hand still holding yours as he continued to sing the rotor the song. You watched his facial features in the light that was hitting him through the window. You focused on his lips mainly, watching them move as he sang, remembering how they felt on your own, moving against yours in sync, just like the way he sang the song - in sync.

"Alex," you said, dragging out each syllable of his name. He looked at you then back at the road. "Yeah, princess?" he said.

"Where are we going?" you asked. He turned right and began to slow the car. "It's a surprise," he smiled, taking a few more turns.

"Please, I want to know, Al," you said, leaning over to kiss his cheek then his neck, lightly sucking on his neck just below his ear, hoping that somehow he would give in to you ad would answer your question.

"As much as you kiss me, I still won't tell you until we get there," he said. You stopped sucking on his neck, and sat back in your seat, playfully pouting.

"Now, look, just because I won't tell you doesn't mean that you have to stop kissing me," he said slyly, grabbing your hand and bringing it to his lips, placing a kiss to it.

"No, you won't tell me. No answer, no kiss," you laughed. Alex dramatically gasped and laughed. The rest of the drive was fairly typical and cliché, Alex singing his heart out, reaching over and kissing you whenever there was a red light.

You certainly didn't mind it being cliché if it meant that he kissed you, though you did wish that he would tell you were he was bringing you. It was only ten minutes before he pulled the car to a parking lot and parked the car, pulling the keys out of the ignition.

You opened the car door and stepped out, looking around. He had brought you to a dirt trail for hiking - in the woods.

"Really, Alex, the woods?" you asked. He got out of the car himself, and shut the door, opening the back door to get out the picnic basket.

"What?" Alex asked, walking around to the other side, grabbing you by the waist.

"First of all, you're literally wearing a black leather jacket, black trousers, and a button up ... and boots, it's way to hot for that. And plus, the drinks will get all hot," you said, gesturing to his attire and the picnic basket.

"It'll be fine, princess," he said, moving his hand to the small of your back, leading you onto the trail. He held onto you, knowing that it was way too hot, but still wanting to be close to you, always wanting to touch you.

He stopped when you both reached a secluded part of the trail that no one else was on, and to be honest, looked like no one really ever used it anymore.

"Okay, this is really giving me the 'I'm taking you out to the woods in a secluded area to kill you' vibes, Al," you joked, Alex letting go of you, you turning to look around the spot.

"You're right, me love, I am going to murder you," Alex laughed, grabbing you from behind, placing kisses on your neck, sucking on a spot. You laughed and pushed him away. "Alex!"

"Hey, come 'ere," he said, turning you around, kissing you deeply, shocking you. Your arms snaked around his neck, his hands traveling down your waist to your ass. He pulled you closer to him, your front now pressed up against his chest, biting your bottom lip teasingly, demanding entrance.

"Alex, we-we can't, not here," you said breathlessly, the breath you had now gone from the steamy kiss you and Alex just shared.

"Why not?" he asked, confused about why you wouldn't want him, even though you did and he knew that.

"Because, Alex, I'm not shagging you in the woods. Besides, someone could walk past us and see what we're doing," you answered, adding in the last part to try and explain to him why you couldn't even though you wanted to, but not as much as Alex wanted to.

He didn't seem to take that response to well, instantly kissing to hopefully persuade you into doing it. You felt him hard through his pants, and as much as you were afraid of getting caught, you had to admit that the thrill of it would be kind of fun and you moved your hand to palm him through his jeans.

Alex groaned into your mouth, breaking the kiss to suck on your neck to keep him quiet. You backed him up against a tree and suck down onto your knees, undoing his belt and jeans, pulling down his underwear just far enough for you to pull out his cock, slowly stroking him, placing a few light kisses to his tip, watching him as his head fell back against the tree.

He groaned in response before you took all of him into your mouth, his hands coming down on the back of your head, gripping your hair.  He felt heavy on your tongue and flattened it so that he could fit better in your mouth. You started to bob your head up and down on his length, enjoying the small, quiet moans Alex was letting out.

You hollowed your cheeks, Alex pushing your further onto him, the head of his cock hitting the back of your throat causing you to choke a little, but nevertheless, you continued. "Yesss, princess," Alex hissed, gripping your hair even tighter than before, moving you up and down on his length at a rate of his liking.

You looked up at him through your eyelashes, watching his face scrunch up in pleasure as you continued to bob your head, your tongue swirling his tip, hollowing your cheeks again.

You could tell that he was close when he started to buck his hips into your mouth, his cock hitting the back of your throat continuously as he bucked his hips. You swallowed around him and hollowed your cheeks once again, sending him over the edge. His hips stilled as his cock twitched inside your mouth and you felt his release hit the back of your throat, swallowing it.

He pulled you off of his cock by your hair, helping you stand up, holding onto you and he tugged up his underwear and trousers, fixing his belt as well. "Happy?" you joked, kissing his cheek.

"Very," he said, pecking your mouth. You laughed briefly. "Funny. We haven't even been here an hour and I've already sucked you off. And I've already got dirt on my pants," you said, gesturing to the dirt on your knees through the rip in your pants, getting the picnic blanket out of the basket and laying it on the ground, placing the picnic basket on it.

You sat down and Alex sat across from you, digging into the basket to see what you packed, picking the container that held the strawberries, getting one out, holding it to your mouth. You opened your mouth and took a bite out of it, Alex pulling it away from you and put it on the container lid.

"Let's see, what else did you pack in 'ere?" he said to himself, digging around in the basket more.

"There should be a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in there for you," you said, helping him find it. He thanked you and took it out of the container that it was in, taking a bite, managing to get some jelly on his fingers.

Alex laughed and put the sandwich down, licking his fingers clean of the jelly. You couldn't help but let your mind wander, thinking of very dirty things that Alex would no doubt think of. Imagine what he could do with those fingers, was all that was going through your mind, so much so that you didn't even realize that you were starring straight at him.

"Can I help you, princess?" he asked, noticing how much you were starring at him, specifically his arms and fingers. You tried to come up with an answer but you couldn't form any words at all, turning into a stuttering mess.

"Who's having the dirty thoughts now, eh?" he laughed, taking off his sunglasses. "Come 'ere, princess."

You hesitantly moved over to beside him, his arms wrapping around you, pulling you into his lap. "Tell me, love, if I touch you, will you be wet?" he teased, unbuttoning your jeans, pushing his fingers in them to play with the waistband of your panties that were slowly but surely dampening.

"Y-yes," you whimpered, voice trialing off into a moan when his fingers brushed against your clothed clit.  He lightly chuckled before moving the cloth of your panties to the side, his fingers teasing your folds.

You buried your head into Alex's neck to try and hide the indescribable amount of pleasure that he was giving you. "No, look at me," Alex drawled,  pulling you up by your hair. You looked up at him, starring into his big, brown doe eyes.

"Do you need me, love? Because I need you," he said. You quickly attached your lips to his, letting his tongue slip past them, exploring your mouth. You hesitantly pulled away, moving to shuffle out of your jeans, Alex undoing his belt and pants, pulling them down, along with his underwear, just far enough for his cock to spring free.

You sat back down in his lap, sitting up on your knees to move your panties aside, positioning Alex's cock at your entrance, Alex's hands going to your hips to keep you there. He pulled you down slightly; you whimpered when you felt the tip of his cock poking inside of you, hands gripping his shoulders.

"Alex, please, I need you," you said, knowing how much he enjoyed hearing you beg and whimper for him, desperate for his cock to fill you up so good.

He smirked, pulling you all the way down on him, throwing his head back, a soft moan falling from your lips. Once you were fully adjusted to his size, you pushed him down to be laid on his back. His hands were still on your hips, watching you as you began to slowly move. You sat up on your knees, his cock almost slipping out of you. His hands held you in place on him, his cocky smirk plastered all over his gorgeous face. Even though you were on top, he still had all of teh control.

Without warning, he let go of your hips, letting you slip all the way back down on him, his hands going back on your hips, helping you move on him and you moaned loudly. You slowly began to roll your hips on him, the pace gradually increasing. Soon you started to bounce up and down on him; Alex started to thrust up into you in sync with your own movements, driving you closer and closer to your high that you were now chasing.

His thrusting into you slowly began to get faster and faster, and you couldn't keep up with them. One of Alex's hands found your clit, rubbing small circles on it, driving you closer to your orgasm. You threw your head back and felt Alex's free hand travel under your shirt, massaging your breasts through your bra.

"God, love, you f-feel so good," Alex moaned, clearly just as close as you.

"Alex, I-I'm so close," you whimpered, Alex thrusting into you faster, bouncing you on his cock. "Cum for me, love," he said, thrusting up into you one final time, flicking your clit, sending you over the edge, your walls contracting around him, triggering his own release. He held you down on him and you felt his cock twitch, his release spurting inside of you. You collapsed on top of him.

You were both panting, sweat pooling on Alex's head. "I love you so much, princess," he said, kissing the top of your head.

"I love you too," you replied, struggling to stand up, sighing at the emptiness that was left when you lifted up off of him. "Oh, shit," you laughed, feeling his release run out of you, sure to stain your underwear, quickly putting on your jeans.

Alex pulled up his pants and underwear as well, doing his belt back up. "So, should we finish our picnic now?" he said, eating another strawberry, you sitting back down, digging into the basket, looking for something to eat yourself; you nodded to Alex.

[dkniade]

How To World Domination [English Translyrics]

Original Japanese lyrics: Neru [original upload]

English translyrics: Dusk

Referenced translation: Oktavia [here]

Content Warning: violent/war imagery, suicidal thoughts, depression, swearing 

See the end of post for notes

1st Verse

Who’s the one who’s crouching low, too scared to let your sorrows flow?

Strike as hard as you were laughed at — Twice or tenfold

Just you wait. It will be me who will seize our victory

Without arms, let’s hand in hand march on, and let me lead

Should the years spin out of grasp and should the heavens get upturned

Promise me you’ll let go of the price tag you have learned

“Again a poor draft… Should this one be my last?”

Please don’t give up. Don’t throw your life in the trash

1st Pre-Chorus

Shivering at station’s stop once again

Thinking “Should I just make it end?”

I’m at a loss, ‘cause tomorrow I must play the boss

Of my future self without a fail. I cannot tell if I will prevail

1st Chorus 

Let the years go by, and cars will fly and that’s how we’d get home

And survive the nights and talk to screens for comfort and to cope

So what? Convenience and ease? Well then, come and convince me

Don’t you know my heart’s still bleeding, voice behind the phone?!

If a missile flies across the sky, and victory’s secured

Then I’d join my hands and pray for joy and beg that I’d be heard

Then I’d know that I must be kind, more kind

Can I say I’ve come to terms with who I am?

2nd Verse

“Why don’t you look for the light within the gift that is your life?”

But the darkness takes and never gives back delights

Be it when I’m by myself or I’m with somebody else

Loneliness will strike back. I’m attacked. Requesting help! 

Bridge

“Wanna kill myself.” But they don’t believe me

“Quit your whining! So depressing…” From their words, I bleed

“Such a drama queen.” But I swear that I’m not lying!

I cannot find words in a mind so ill-defined

Thus I will sing of things only I see!

2nd Pre-Chorus

Shimmering, heading into the dark arcade

Thinking “Should I just waste life away?”

Yet at a cost, ‘cause tomorrow might not live at all

If I die today. The last refrain beneath the train has so much to say…

2nd Chorus

“Keep your fucking love. I’m fine unloved,” I say, yet deep inside

I know I’m ashamed and I’m to blame. To myself I have lied

Has something changed, my dear heart? Still wanna die and depart?

God, I hate that you don’t try. You know there’s help tonight!

If a missile flies across the sky, and victory’s secured

If the ashes of a million fly, and that is called a cure

Then I’d know that I must be kind, more kind

Can I say I’ve come to terms with

Who I am? I must change. Be kind, more kind

Before my heart hardens and turns into stone

———

“Can I say I’ve come to terms with who I am?”

I wrote translyrics for this first back in 2017, and then rewrote it in 2021. Now, I’m taking a shot at this yet again in 2022, because I remember seeing Oktavia’s interpretation and translation of its lyrics and thinking that it captured the vibe of the song very well. I feel that I’ve understood the song some more. This time, I’ve put in some of my own interpretations, so the lyrics are even more emotional than my previous versions while hopefully still retaining the original themes from Neru’s Japanese lyrics. Taking inspiration from the assonance, consonance, and end rhymes in Oktavia’s English lyrics, particularly her lyrics for “Melancholy of the Literary Boy” (warning: discusses depression), I’ve put more focus on the rhythm and flow of these lyrics as well.

This song talks about a pretty heavy topic, but because of the honesty of it, along with the line “I want to become a kind person” in spite of everything else discussed, it remains as one of my favourite songs by Neru.

Oh yeah, I wanted to talk about my thought process a bit.

In the first verse, “Should the years spin out of grasp and should the heavens get upturned” is foreshadowing the chorus’ lines “Let the years go by, and cars will fly and that’s how we’d get home” and “If a missile flies across the sky, and victory’s secured”. Oktavia’s translation says, “Let’s make a ‘no matter what crazy stuff happens after this’ sort of promise,” so I took the chance to expand on that line and link it to the chorus.

By the way, I really wanted to employ a bunch of rhythms in succession for the last lines of the pre-choruses (and bridge) since the melody cuts it up into sections, so I really liked those lines too. “Of my future self without a fail. I cannot tell if I will prevail”, “I cannot find words in a mind so ill-defined” and “If I die today. The last refrain beneath the train has so much to say…” sound nice when sung quickly.

In the chorus, there’s a line where Oktavia translated to “Honestly, so what? Before you marvel at how convenient all that’s gonna be, / convenience me and heal my emotional scars!” I’ve always loved the original line and Oktavia’s translation brings across the meaning very well, so I pushed it further by writing “So what? Convenience and ease? Well then, come and convince me / Don’t you know my heart’s still bleeding, voice behind the phone?!”. This is just a bit I added into the middle of the choruses, but the idea is that the narrators Tsuji and Azuma (the characters in the MV) are using a suicide hotline at night, hence that line and the second chorus’ “God, I hate that you don’t try. You know there’s help tonight!”

The entire bridge was the first time I’ve realized just how dark this song is. Prior to Oktavia’s translation, I’ve never quite understood the bridge, but her translation brought out the meaning much better, especially for the line “but it was like a dagger to my heart when people said stuff like ‘Seriously? This again?’ towards it”. Thus I ran with the idea of other people’s cruel opinions towards depressed individuals and wrote, “‘Quit your whining! So depressing…’ From their words, I bleed / ‘Such a drama queen.’ But I swear that I’m not lying!”

The starting line of the second chorus took many tries because Oktavia expresses the meaning very well in her translation, however it was a challenge to fit the message through the limited syllable counts along with the internal rhymes. Her translation is “Even if I say ‘To hell with love,’ embracing my misery and feigning a ‘I’ve stopped giving a shit’ sort of air”. Thus, I tried “‘You can’t save me with some love you’ve got,’ I say, yet deep inside” and “‘I’m unsavable, so keep your love,’ I say, yet deep inside”. The problem was that with the fast tempo of the song, the first line might sound like “You CAN save me with some love you’ve got” which defeats the whole purpose of the line. The line that I ended up using came to me during an improvisation and I rushed to scribble it down. “‘Keep your fucking love. I’m fine unloved,’ I say, yet deep inside”. I try to not swear in translyrics when the original doesn’t swear, but the original does swear (in a different part). With the melody of this line, the emphasized note would hit “fine” which emphasizes the sentiment behind the line well…

And lastly, I really wanted to keep the repetition and assonance in the original line (in romaji), “Yasashii hito ni naranakucha / Boku wa boku wo kouteishiteikeru kana”, so that line took some tries. Oktavia’s translation was “Then I guess I really need to become a kind person. I wonder if I’ll ever be proud of who I am…” An early version was “I would have to be kind. I know I must / Can I, would I say I’m proud of who I am?” But in the end, I wrote “Then I’d know that I must be kind, more kind / Can I say I’ve come to terms with who I am?” which has the repetition I wanted so I’m really happy how it turned out.

I believe that’s all. Thank you for reading!

[fandom-sheep]

Eret 11 MAY 21

Cat and DSMP Part 1/1

Cat! Goose!

Goose my beloved.

Eret’s streaming very late for me again. So I’m not staying the whole time.

Hello Elaina. Enjoy Goose.

Fundy! Kinda...

Fundy hearing the donations. LOL.

Fundy enters a stream and it starts to scuffed. Scuffed just follows Fundy wherever he goes.

A wild my beloved on the cube.

The Drista stairs.

Wait what. Why is the tower gone?

I have missed some lore.

Ah... it’s part of the nightmare thing.

Eret offering Fundy housing like a good almost adoptive parent.

Sneeze? OH WOW SNEEZE.

Sounds like Fundy about lost a lung. Good gracious.

The bargaining between these two.

Cat, Handsome, said cube was massive

You know what that works.

It’s hard to keep the audio right for Eret’s stream for my headphones. It’s either too quiet or the loudest my headphones can go and my family can hear it.

On stream explosions. Noice.

Wow youtooz. Not super cool. Permission is usually a good thing.

Eret keeps on sizzling.

Getting dirt for scaffolding. Going old fashioned Minecraft for this.

“Why is the Cube kinda hot” cue Eret losing faith in her chats sanity.

Cube go poof.

Oh. Red stone. That’s dangerous.

I like this song. Oh klahoma. Gorgeous song.

Love joy is such a fun band. I want to make a plushy of the cat.

It’s kinda sad that Eret can’t see themselves the way chat and their little fandom sees them. Most all of us think they look fabulous.

Not Arson. Just bombing. A bit of anarchy by the king.

Demolition. Now there’s the word.

Controlled ish demolition.

Ah I’ve almost saved enough channel points for water. Nice. I’m not going to redeem it I’m just going to keep hoarding the points.

Flame Arrow. Nice.

Eret cleaning up the SMP eye sours.

Watch me attempt to sleep to Eret here in an hour or so, but keep getting distracted.

Explosion time.

Someone get ready to clip it.

Bye Bye Cube. Let’s go.

Gotta get a song that fits the vibe.

Hayloft. Time to go poof.

Turning up my brightness just to watch this explosion in the best way possible.

Still wearing the red dress I see.

I hope the music isn’t too loud to get this part muted.

Drum roll...

Drum roll continues...

Drum roll still going...

THERE GOES THE CUBE!

That was so smooth and good looking!

Overall a very good explosion.

Just a little bit of a hole in the other building.

Twitch Pr-

Poor being’s so confused with his hair. Someone help them.

Twitch bleep.

Everyone attempting to give hair styling advice. Everyone’s trying to help the being.

That bird is majestic. I remember seeing that tiktok.

Animals just decided Eret was the animal whisperer.

Yes! Disney Princess Eret fanart! Someone make it, I shall reblog all of it.

Likes to hug cute animals and cute animals like being hugged by her. Nice.

It’s alright. Names are difficult. I have to like put name tags on people to learn who they are. That or name tags on their space (like on campers bunks and door decs on dorms)

It does feel very February. But I’m very ready for summer because that means I get to do my favorite job.

Hooray. I hit 15k points.

Eret trying to prove to us a ponytail won’t work. Like we aren’t going to hype them up no matter what.

Gotta heart in the chat. All Eret’s chat does is hearts and encourage. It’s a lovely place.

Oh Eret forgot his cat ear sub goal. It’s alright I know I forgot.

Pride is next month. Nice.

Oh. We’re almost halfway already. Why does the world spin so quickly?

We forgot a dirt tower. Whoops.

I would wear Eret merch. I like it when people release merch around Christmas. Then I can ask for it as a gift.

Oh it wasn’t a dirt tower.

Just looking at Elaina’s stream in the stream selection screen it like very cozy.

All the way up the Drista stairs.

Look it’s the museum!

Eret’s got most of the builds around there. The museum. The fortress. Nice.

Some things are too historical to remove. Somethings are historical because they are being removed.

Oh no. L’sandburg.

It’s taking over the summer home.

Ah the lore is coming. It just seemed to be too early.

Hello unofficial ranboo Raiders.

Foolish making the awesome tall thingy!

Foolish’s builds are so neat. I want to watch Foolish’s streams more. Maybe just in the background but I start wanting to delayed liveblog and that requires attention.

Oh the giant portal turned out well. Sorry that was the lady’s foolish stream I watched.

Shulkers. The forbidden mob.

Eret with just a pit in the desert filled with llamas. Bones. And discus.

The mansion has been finished?

Alright is better than bad. It’s alright to be alright.

Lucky being not getting tired. I got the Johnson and Johnson vaccine and I was so so tired. I also had just no appetite.

Eret doing an smp tour. And looking at foolish’s builds.

Flickering the switch on the rainbow beacons.

Eret just knowing where everything is.

Kinoko is super pretty. Just for the aesthetic value of the kingdom I appreciate it.

Yeet. Just defenestrated himself out the window.

Oh? Spectator fly over the smp?

That would be really neat to like. Watch in VR. I think I’ve only used VR maybe twice.

Pretty Rainbow beacons.

The nurse who gave me my vaccine hid the needle from me because I mentioned to her that I was afraid of needles. It wasn’t a big deal at all.

30 minutes till I attempt sleep. Woo.

Goose my beloved. Someone make the gif because I’m not quite sure how to make it.

Oh yeah. Goose in Marvel. I hear MCU and think Minecraft cinematic universe. Not marvel.

Ghibli is so nice. It really romanticize small moments of life.

Yeah the characters are all really supportive in Ghibli movies.

Someone subbed for nine months “that’s enough to make a child” -Eret

That mansion is like a maze. I’m so lost already.

Everyone encouraging Eret and telling her she looks pretty. Good.

Eret needs all the hype and encouragement.

Antarctic empties flag. Yeah it does have a similar color pallet.

Michelle! Hello!

Fortress work. Nice.

Do it. I’ll listen the Eret play other games.

I don’t usually watch game play for non Minecraft games. But I’ll listen to it all.

Hbomb and Eret living in the same city feels like two worlds that shouldn’t meet. But it’s awesome that they have.

TOS means against twitches terms of service. Nice. Glad to finally have an explanation of what that means.

Look at our handsome and pretty streamer. All the hype.

I keep turning down the stream to hear the show my mama has on because I’m curious about what happens.

Yeah. Backseat gaming can be annoying. That’s part of why I share my thoughts here just in case I do start backseat gaming.

Almost to the sub goal. Hooray!

Ooo food.

No no. I see where they are coming from. Eret does give a bit of cat bus vibes. I can’t explain it but the vibes are there.

Creeper causing issues at the fortress.

Ed Sheepran my beloved.

I should draw more ferrets. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe I’ll draw us doing stuffs.

Actually I kinda want to make a little animatic of some heels walking across the screen followed by a hoard of ferrets. I think it’ll look cool. But I need the artistic ability and the ability to not scream making that.

Woop. Ad time. Off to the void of where ever the ads game me.

OH THE NEW VOID LOOKS COOL!

Bread. Flowers. Ted. Crown. And of course Eret.

We V O I D and get our streamer bits.

Hush the chat is V O I D and the occasional emoji or emote.

The void being centered looks good. Maybe that’s just the symmetry speaking but it’s good.

Oh. We hear the being. The being in void mode. And spooky mode.

Chat just starts yelling corpse.

Hydration. I try to stay hydrated. But I fail often if I’m not doing something active.

Tree!

Casually makes and snags tree.

Eret does read chat often. It’s strange. And it is weird how often it ends up being you.

You can tell I’m a tumblr peep. I may say stuff in chat but I’m fully not expecting or wanting to be noticed by the streamer.

Others hitting darkness o’clock and saying goodnight.

It’s sleep to the stream hours y’all. Whoop.

I need to visit the parks out west. I’ve only really seen the eastern US ones. But I have been to the Great Smokey Mountain park which is gorgeous.

Eret thinking of his friends triggers when naming his cat.

Eret’s builds are so casually pretty. Not like Foolish’s which are intricately pretty. Not like Phil’s or Sam’s which are complicated pretty. All pretty. Just different breeds of pretty.

Alrighty. It’s sleepy hours for me. As much as I love Eret I want to read some fanfiction and daydream a bit before I head to sleep.

Have a good rest everyone and may all your coming meals be delicious.

Wait no is it our turn with goose?

OUR TURN WITH GOOSE!

Eret honey that’s the ceiling.

Cat stream. Cat stream.

Sleepy kitty. A cat cam would be good.

Yeah. That happens with cats. Especially strays.

Goose captured the computer mouse.

Goose straight up chose Eret and Elaina.

Goose really just chose not to leave.

Oh my stream connection is acting sad. But I want Goose content.

I want to draw Goose now.

Maybe I’ll do water color for Goose. I know I tried to do that with Boots (Fundy’s cat)

Hopefully there will be some Goose face screenshots I can see. Maybe I can see him well in the Tiktok.

Artists just violently refusing payment. Sounds about right. The MCYT artists just kinda go “yeah give credit and we cool”

Cowboy cat. Nice.

I want to paint Goose in the cowboy hat.

Hype train! That we are zooming.

Bucket sponge?

WATER BUCKET FROM WET SPONGE! Tiktok people giving all the cool info.

Go Goose. Catch the computer mouse and the screen mouse.

Just sitting here at 11:30 at night getting screen shots of Goose for painting purposes.

Goose please. Look at the camera babe.

My phone is dying. And I can’t charge it and type.

Alright the camera is off the cat. The cat is also blocking the screen.

But no cat on camera means I’m getting some sleep. If I do any of the projects I’ve mentioned I’ll let y’all know.

Have a good rest everyone.

[punk-in-docs]

number 9 from the writer asks please 🧡

Number 9 you say- that would be -what, if anything, do you do for inspiration- and I can honestly tell you that I find quite a big handful of things inspiring depending on the story I’m writing-

For example, with Sinnerman it was really handy for me personally reading travel and cooking magazines and travel blogs for ideas. Trying really hard to think about the two characters and the separate worlds they came from and where they were heading. Evie’s character and antiquey surroundings came quite naturally to me. I’m of that ilk myself, the whole cottage core thing is definitely a style I subscribe too. Kylo’s came harder, he’d come from a place of nothing and worked tirelessly to get it and never looked back. I kinda liked using those as guide posts for the vibes and certainly the love that blossoms between them. It was a fun journey to take. It’s them exploring the other without fear and without judgment and I think that’s really neat. So few people take the time for that in love sometimes.

With wolves and doves that I’m writing now, it’s been a whole bevy of things, walks out in the sunshine near where I live. Out in nature for a good blustery walk in the rain or wind or sunshine can work wonders in giving me a sense of something I want to try and capture. Needless to say every Jane Austen film adaptation I can get my hands on helped marvellously. And I can’t recommend enough Julia Quinn or Tessa Dare books. So witty and quick and so so funny. It just builds a whole world and that’s what I love love love doing. The world of wolves and doves is not something I had to think too hard about. I devour regency romance books like a fiend so before I started I had quite a good heading on the language, fashions, etiquette, civility and society of that time. Me and snacks made sure to mould Vampire Kylo contrary to this neat quaint little society, to grate against those things. So from the offset he and Iris drift together. Outsiders that recognise something in the other. She wants and aspires to things that shes been taught she shouldn’t and Kylo likes that forefront of her thinking.

My inspiration revolves quite heavily around building worlds. It’s something I think I’m fairly good at. And it can stem from, really, anything; a song, a picture I stumble across on Pinterest, or a naughty thot that I come up with my darling snacks. It takes many forms and I think now - thankfully - that the worlds getting back to normal a bit it will hopefully be that I can start exploring more of the things that do inspire me. Going to a play, of wandering around a museum and even going to sit in a coffee shop with a notebook for a little while. It can sometimes offer the most odd weirdly amazing lighting strike of inspiration I’ve found-

[dogsliampaynedoesntinstagram]

Hi, it's the anon that asked for your opinion on the boy's solo demographics… I realised I didn't give my opinion (i'm not sure if you want it? I assume you would in order to have a discussion but if not, just ignore this ask haha) so I think that both Niall and Louis's goals have been to broaden their male demographic, but in completely different ways. TT

Niall seems to be really targeting Midwest America, with his mature folk/country/singer songwriter vibe. He almost comes across as an older version of Ed Sheeran to me. He has the laid back style, with nothing polarising about him or his marketing; very wholesome. I get the vibe he would appeal to like 30-45 year old’s? (in terms of new listeners). TT

Louis is almost the complete opposite in terms of how he has gone about getting a heavier male audience. He is 100% on top of the trends at present. He is very relatable, he publicises his smoking/drinking (which is somewhat applauded and encouraged in young people), he just seems like one of the lads. TT

Niall seems to be really targeting Midwest America, with his mature folk/country/singer songwriter vibe. He almost comes across as an older version of Ed Sheeran to me. He has the laid back style, with nothing polarising about him or his marketing; very wholesome. I get the vibe he would appeal to like 30-45 year old’s? (in terms of new listeners). TT

Louis is almost the complete opposite in terms of how he has gone about getting a heavier male audience. He is 100% on top of the trends at present. He is very relatable, he publicises his smoking/drinking (which is somewhat applauded and encouraged in young people), he just seems like one of the lads. TT

I think he would be attracting the 15-25 year old male audience. This may sound silly but I think his style of clothing is very influential and I think it would play a big part in who he attracts in terms of new fans. TT

To me Harry’s is the strangest out of all of the boys. When solo careers were announced I really thought he was going to go in more of a troye sivan direction in terms of owning femininity and just being soft? His actual marketing is very hard, abrasive, and sex, drugs & rock n roll. Most of the time it comes across as a farce to me? Like he is putting on a show at most times. TT

(Last one) Thank you for reading my rambles, and hopefully they made sense! I look forward to you responses and ideas, I hope I haven’t made I dick of myself haha Thank you :) TT

*************

First I should apologise that it took me so long to reply to these points TT.  I read them at the time and they’ve played a huge part in me developing and articulating my thinking.  And (as often happens with the anons I’m most interested in) I put it off till I had the headspace, and then it slipped down my inbox.  So if you’re still around - I thought you might be interested in my thoughts.

And today’s actually a really good idea for me to respond, because what reading this really clarified to me is that I don’t think it’s useful to look at 1D solo careers in terms of the new fans they’re trying to attract.  I think any attempt to look at it in those terms miss what they are doing, what they’re trying to do and what they need to do to be successful.  The audience that matters most to each of their solo careers is 1D fans.

And we can see it today, yesterday 1D was the most listened to artist in the world.  But it was always true - any member of 1D who managed to capture a significant percentage of their existing audience would have a sustainable and successful career.  In most markets, Harry’s last tour had about a fifth of the audience of 1D’s last tour.  Getting about a fifth of the people who bought a ticket to a 1D concert to buy a ticket to his concert built a very secure base for Harry’s career.

Now in a way my thoughts are very dated, because they understood the best bet for a sustainable music career was to get someone to buy a ticket to your concert.  Which it was - now it’s an open questio whether there can be a sustainable music career.  But I think people were and are thinking in those terms, even if it has become a wild dream.

When I read your anons, I was thinking about the difficulty of maintaining voting coalitions (we won’t mention why - it’s definitely still too raw).  And I came to think that this is the best metaphor for understanding 1D members solo careers.

The largest part of any party’s voting coalition is going to be the people who have already voted for them.  The same is true of 1D members, the largest part of their coalition of people who make their career sustainable is people who bought a 1D ticket. The advantage that pop acts have over political parties is that they don’t have to win.  They just have to build enough of a support base so they can do it again. 

If you think of 1D members’ audiences not as a single unit, but as a coalition of different people, then I think things become much clearer.  Harry’s strength has been in appealing to both people for whom he is a fantasy boyfriend and those who identify with his queerness.  All while being considered credible by lots of gatekeepers (also a factor in politics).

One of Louis’ difficulties is that it is incredibly difficult for him to build together a coalition.  There are lots of reasons for this, which I have talked about and will talk about more.  But one of the important ones in this model is that the way he operates in order not to be outted, takes a real toll on his core fans - both directly and indirectly.

I’m interested in what happened with Niall, because my impression is that even without the pandemic, his coalition from Flicker wasn’t holding up - and I’m not sure why.  Liam I feel doesn’t have that core support, he has people who like his songs, but he doesn’t have a loyal base to build a coalition from (maybe he’s like a new political party).  Whereas Zayn does very well in streaming - which is a different project all together.

Anyway - that’s the model I’ve been using for thinking about their solo careers and understanding what they’re trying to do. Thanks for helping me develop it!

[luthienebonyx]

Author interview

Tagged by: @seaspiritwrites

Name: Luthien. My real name also starts with L. I answer to L as well, so then I don’t have to think about which me I’m meant to be at any given moment.

Fandoms: At the moment, Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire, in the sense that I’m glancing at it sideways while the torrent of words continues. In the past, many others.

Where you post: AO3, these days.

Most popular oneshot: In this fandom, As Sunlight Drinketh Dew, which is probably the most explicit thing I’ve written for this pairing, and was also my first attempt at writing Jaime POV.

Across all the fandoms I’ve written in, and keeping in mind that a good chunk of my fanfic pre-dates the AO3 so this answer is really only in relation to the stories I’ve posted since around 2010, my most popular oneshot is, surprisingly, A Night to Remember. This is a Phryne/Jack Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries fic, which is also on the explicit side. (I think I’m sensing a pattern.) It’s one of those stories that just doesn’t die. I can never pick which ones those are going to be.

Most popular multi-chapter story: In this fandom, More Than a Memory. This was the first story I wrote for this fandom, apart from a couple of drabbles years and years ago, and it just came pouring out of me after the finale aired. I was very surprised that it had any real following at all, because I was a completely unknown writer in this fandom and the story is canon compliant right up to the end of Season 8, with everything that that means for this pairing.

In my fandoms on AO3 overall, the most popular multi-parter is A Fine Romance, which is an unfinished Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them newtina fic. I had to stop writing it for a while because my health crashed in mid-2017, and then the second movie pretty comprehensively jossed my plans for the rest of the story, but I think it captured the fandom vibe at the time it was being posted.

Favorite story you wrote: Right now, it’s probably Beloved, part of my After Everything fix-it universe (written partly to make up for writing More Than a Memory) because it’s a very ‘me’ story, and also because even though I finished it a few days ago, it’s still hanging around in my head. Once I get back to working on my Regency AU, You I Know, that will be the favourite, because that’s the story I’ve wanted to write for YEARS.

So far as past fandoms go, I’m still very fond of my Once Upon a Time rumbelle AU Plain Jane. That’s another one of those ‘me’ stories.

Story you were nervous to post: I feel as if I should say More Than a Memory, because I really honestly expected that hardly anyone would read it, but it was one of those stories that wouldn’t let me NOT write it, so it wasn’t like I had a choice about it. I just threw it out there.

I think probably As Sunlight Drinketh Dew was the one I was actually most nervous about, because it was my first time trying out Jaime POV, and that sort of thing is always nerve-racking.

As for stories from past fandoms... I can’t really remember? Except that I always HATE my stories right before I post them, so in that sense they all make me nervous.

How you choose your titles: On a wing and a prayer? Titles are the bane of my existence. Sometimes, if I’m really lucky, the title will come to me very early on, which is a huge relief. Other times, I’ll have a story finished and edited and ready to go - except that I don’t know what it’s called. Then I get out my big book of quotations, and google lyrics, and just hope to god that something jumps out at me. 

Weirdly, I haven’t had my usual titling trouble for most of the stories I’ve written in this fandom, but that might be more just my attitude. A vaguely appropriate title will cross my mind and I’ll just seize it and decide that “That’ll do!” It’s nice not to have to deal with these little title-related stress-outs.

Do you outline: Hahaha. I’ve TRIED to outline in the past. I just end up with scene drafts instead. 

My usual approach is to have a list of bullet points of the main plot beats, plus any other reminders to myself of details that I’m going to need further down the line. For my longer stories, I think of my list of bullet points as making up the skeleton, and then the flesh and blood of detail happens as I write. But no, I really wouldn’t dignify any of that with the description of ‘outline’. Outlining is something that happens to other people, I’m afraid.

Complete: In this fandom, 23. However, 18 of those complete stories belong to series that are still on-going, so their storylines are not yet complete even though the stories themselves are.

Overall? I have 122 complete works on the AO3, but that doesn’t include every fic I’ve ever written, so the actual answer is... I don’t know?

In-progress: In this fandom, two actual stories and two series. I need to get back to my Regency AU, You I Know, very soon. It’s currently at Chapter 8 of... many. I’m also partway through writing the second and last chapter of the latest Aussie Coffee ‘verse fic, On the first day of Christmas (my true love gave to me). In terms of series, obviously Aussie Coffee is still not finished - I still have another five (hopefully) short instalments to write once the Christmas fic is done - and After Everything still has at least one more story to go (which I’m currently working on).

In other fandoms... I think I’ll just sweep a few stories under the rug and pretend that they don’t exist.

Coming soon/not yet started: Coming soon: A Sansa bystander POV fic from right at the beginning of After Everything, when the ‘after’ bit hasn’t started yet - I’m not writing that series in chronological order. Also, the rest of the Christmas Day fic from Aussie Coffee, and FINALLY a new chapter of the Regency AU.

Not yet started: I have an idea for a musician AU kicking around in the back of my head, but it’s right at the bottom of the priority list, and probably will be for some time.

Do you accept prompts: I do sometimes, if I’m in the mood, or if I don’t have anything more pressing to write. (So yeah, not so much with the prompts right at the moment!) Usually only drabble prompts, though. I have two writing modes: drabbles of exactly 100 words, no more and no less, and “who the hell knows how long this thing will be?” I’d rather not get into anything in the second category by accident.

Upcoming story you are most excited to write: Regency, Regency, Regency!!!! I have SO MUCH planned for this story. I’m going to stuff every last Regency detail and plot point that I can think of into it - and I’ve been reading about and researching this period for decades, so I can think of A LOT. I’ve wanted to write a novel-length Regency AU through several fandoms, but I’ve never been well enough to commit to it before. But now, for some reason, I am well enough to just keep writing most days, and so I’m not losing writing momentum, and things like this are finally possible. AND I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT EVERYTHING ABOUT IT!!!!!

But the rest of the Aussie Coffee ‘verse is also going to be fun to write. The path it’s going to take isn’t the one that might seem most likely right now...

Tagging: @nire-the-mithridatist @woodelf68 @firesign23 @it-may-be-dull-but-im-determined @ladyem-fandom and anyone else who wants to do it.

[doomedandstoned]

An Interview with UK Sludge Mongers SWAMP COFFIN

~By Shawn Gibson~

Let's take a moment to get everyone acquainted with you. Where is Swamp Coffin from?

Jon Rhodes (guitar/vocals): We’re from Rotherham, England. The armpit of the North.

Shawn Denton (bass): It’s a bit grim but it’s ours. Yorkshire is the best place in the world.

Dave Wistow (drums): It was either “Swamp Cough” or “Swamp Coffin”, it was a tough choice.

What are your favourite bands from this area?

JR: Disaster Forecast are a great fast hardcore band from Rotherham and there’s Bodach who are a riffy two-piece. Down the road in Sheffield there’s Kurokuma, Ba’al, Deltanaught and Blind Monarch. We’re lucky to have such a thriving local scene.

SD: Depends on how “local” you mean for the Area but if you think about a 15/20 Mile radius of us, there are the ones Jon has said, but we’ve also got Hidden Mothers, Temple Steps, Son of Boar, Gandalf the Green, Drawn from Ichor, Spaztik Monkey just far too many good bands. Not only that but we have some great venues and promoters such as Holy Spider Promotions, The Green Wizard, Circle Sounds etc who just make the scene thrive not only locally but are a linchpin to that scene across the country.

Why do you guys play sludge/doom? Would or do you play other music?

JR: I think we’re pretty lucky in that we can chuck in elements from a few styles into our songs and it still works. I’m a big death metal nerd so being able to add those sorts of riffs and vocal styles to the slow NOLA riffs we all love is perfect for me.

SD: I can’t play anything else. I’m self-taught and that’s just how my bass playing is. I love all sorts of weird and wonderful and varied stuff, but at the crux of it, I just love a big nasty groove.

DW: I’d have to hit the gym if we wanted to play anything faster.

Name a great book you have read.

JR: I like a good autobiography. Ozzy, Schwarzenegger and Bret Hart’s books are all great reading.

DW: Dragon Teeth by Michael Crichton, that’s the last great book I read.

SD: All of the releases by 27b/6 David Thorne is my hero. Such a wanker

What gear do you use and setups to create this badass heavy music known as Swamp Coffin?

JR: Volume and fuzz are the two main ingredients. I like old solid state amplifiers, a Big Muff, a couple of overdrives and then the signal is pushed even more by an EQ pedal so I’m hitting my amps as hard as possible. Guitar wise it’s a stock Telecaster copy with single coils.

SD: Don’t even get me started, big old solid-state peavey head and jazz basses. The pedalboard is mostly COG Custom stuff. He’s a local fella from Sheffield and is an absolute wizard. I run 6 drive/gain stages with various stacking and combos for different songs for a different feel. As a three-piece we need to make sure we can still achieve that WALL OF SOUND and for me, I need to make sure I can cover a broad frequency spectrum and cover some of the typically “rhythm guitar” areas to allow Jon that space and freedom to take lead sections without it feeling like something is missing. This is a section I could bore you on for hours.

Flatcap Bastard Features by Swamp Coffin

What are "flatcap features" and who are the "bastards" wearing them?

JR: I’ve always wanted our music to represent where we’re from. We were stuck for a name for the EP and did a thing on our Facebook asking for title suggestions. Flatcap Bastard Features stood out. To me, it invokes the area’s hard-faced steelworkers and coal miners. Also it gives us an excuse to use Sean Bean saying “Bastard” for our intro tape.

SD: Everyone is Bastard Features, just not all wear flatcaps.

What heavy bands influenced Swamp Coffin?

JR: Crowbar, Down, Eyehategod and C.O.C are the obvious ones but I’m hugely influenced by British extreme bands like Carcass, Iron Monkey and Labrat.

SD: For me, the obvious is Black Sabbath, but also bands such as Iron Monkey, The Abominable Iron Sloth, Deftones, Kyuss, Karma to Burn, Dozer, Truckfighters, Hangnail. I’m more from the Groove/Desert/Stoner side of things.

Who are some current bands that Swamp Coffin is listening to these days?

JR: Goblinsmoker’s first EP is still on heavy rotation. I’m a big fan of Conjurer, Employed to Serve, and Slugdge who are all doing different but amazing things for British heavy music. I’m always trawling Bandcamp for something new and horrible to listen to.

SD: Definitely not Tides of Sulfur. Fuck those guys. [editor: he was joking, they’re actually good friends.] I'm digging loads of underground bands at the minute, Battalions, VOW, Torpor, Wallowing, Hidden Mothers, Blind Monarch, Under. There are just so many good bands and so many good releases at the minute it’s impossible to keep up.

Tell me about an awkward time that Swamp Coffin has had?

JR: It took us near enough two years to find a bass player that would stick around for more than a couple of practices, that’s always awkward when they don’t want to come back! Shawn is as big a cunt as me and Dave so he fit in perfectly.

DW: Those two are always creating awkward situations, I just sit back and laugh.

SD: I feel most awkward when we’re turning down shows, especially when its promoters we don’t know or have a relationship with. It feels awful as we’re offered some really killer shows with some great bands, but we all have families and full-time jobs that we have to prioritise and plan around.

On your Bandcamp page your picture shows you guys messing around in the back yard and smiling. I love it and think we need more of that! People looking hard or like they are straight from Satan's asshole in these pictures sometimes!

JR: I don’t mind bands doing serious faces and folded arms, there’s always a place for anger in this genre, it’s just not us though. That picture was taken at a family barbecue at Dave’s house and is us just fucking around and having fun. I like that we don’t take ourselves too seriously.

SD: We play in a genre that at times, falls victim of taking itself too seriously. For me, this is fun, it’s a release and time to do it for me. I’m not a dark and miserable person. I love having a laugh, and taking the piss and trolling and winding up my friends. If you take a look at our Facebook page, as much as there is the serious promotional stuff, a lot of it is us having fun with the fans of the band and other bands we know and love.

Are you guys playing any shows or tours?

JR: 2019 was our first year as a gigging band despite us being together for three years now. We’ve played some amazing shows with some amazing bands so hopefully more of the same for 2020 and beyond. Our first gig of the year was with UK legends Raging Speedhorn in February in Sheffield, after that we’ll see where we end up. If anybody wants to book us on Bloodstock or Damnation we won’t say no.

SD: We’re not in a position to do a “tour” at the minute although never say never. Like Jon says We have Raging Speedhorn in Feb, which is a personal highlight for me and can’t thank Greg at Record Junkee enough for that show, and we’ve got a couple of others waiting to be announced. We’d love to play a few festivals, big ones and the small, local underground ones. For us though, it’s about playing shows with other bands we love and enjoy.

Something I like about your music is that it's heavy as hell and has a groove about it! Please tell me a little about your process for songwriting.

JR: Generally, I’ll turn up to practice with a few riff ideas and a rough idea of where I’d like the song to go and the overall vibe. I normally jam these out with Dave and we improvise sections until we hit on something cool. Shawn is the glue that holds it together and chucks his bass line ideas on top, brings the groove out and helps keep things interesting. Lyrically, I just try and scream about whatever is pissing me off at that point in time.

SD: Riff on the root and see what happens. Jon comes up with the bulk of the riff ideas, I’m not an ideas man, but I’m the sort of guy that once I hear the framework of something can come up with ideas and approaches to change and shape it. It kind of just happens, there isn’t a process of sorts. Just play until its right to our ears.

Hey Ho, Stolen Logo by Swamp Coffin

"Last of the Summer Slime" is my new jam! I love the end where it slows way down. Tell me about this song and was it fun to make?

JR: I loved recording Slime. We were bouncing a few ideas around for how to end it and Owen Claxton (who recorded the EP) suggested the ending you hear on the record, everything slowing down and detuning. It’s 13 minutes long so we wanted to almost reward the listener for making it that far with the ridiculous ending. The song is about my kitchen burning down last year and the shitstorm that followed it so there’s a lot of venom on that recording and when we play it live.

DW: I think we started out with that slow riff at the end, did we not. We built the whole song around getting there. It was pretty fun explaining to Owen how we wanted to record it.

SD: This is one that just happened naturally. I really wanted to try some stuff down-tuned a step further to A, we started jamming and then there was a song. It just kind of happened. But as Jon says, the ending is all Owen, great idea of his to fuck with things in that way and fuck with the listener. I think he captured us, our approach and who we are extremely well there.

What is in the future for Swamp Coffin?

JR: We’ve got a few tracks lined up ready for a follow-up record and we’ll hopefully be in the studio mid-next year. There are a few more gigs lined up and we’d love to try and get on some festivals. After that, who knows? We’re just enjoying taking each day as it comes.

DW: Beer?

SD: Who knows, it would be good to get a release out there on a small independent label. Vinyl would be nice but who knows. Mostly it’s just taking it as it comes, play the gigs we want to play and hope people like it.

Follow The Band

Get Their Music

[umusicians]

UM Interview: What If Elephants

Montreal Indie Pop band What If Elephants are making their stamp on the Canadian music industry with a sound that is very much their own. Formed in 2014, the quartet strikes a delicate balance with their elegant and rousing sound – between accessible pop and deeper, introspective lyrics that lie just below the surface. The bands success includes being a Four times semi-finalists in CBC Searchlight, winners in Canada’s Walk of Fame RBC Emerging Musician Program 2018 and featured both on Canada Destinations and Parcs Canada for promotional campaigns.

Amandah Opoku sat down with Joey Langlois of What If Elephants to talk about the band's new single “Sugar Daddy”, Canadian music influences, growth as a band and more!

Amandah Opoku: Joey, thank you for doing this interview today! Before we kick off please tell our readers about yourself and one random fact people do not know about you. Joey Langlois: Thanks for having me! People may not know that I am a huge fan of sci-fi movies. Namely the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, and anything Christopher Nolan does haha.

Amandah Opoku: If you could describe What If Elephants’ music in three words, what words would you choose and why? Joey Langlois: This one is easy for me to overthink. To keep it simple, I’d say; fun, reflective and accessible. Fun because I know all of us in the band love to groove, so hopefully that’s transmitted haha. Reflective because we put a lot of thought into all the musical and lyrical decisions we make, as well as what we’re saying with a given song. Accessible because it’s fairly easy to digest the musical and lyrical ideas we put out.

Amandah Opoku: What If Elephants is a Canadian Indie Pop band, based in Montreal. Have any Canadian artists influenced you musically? If so, who? Joey Langlois:  Hey Rosetta / Tim Baker as projects, have had a significant influence on us as musicians. I’ve personally loved hearing what Justin Bieber, Scott Hellman, Alessia Cara, Shawn Mendes, Valley, Walk Off The Earth, and soooo many more artists have been doing in the past couple years. I’m also influenced by a lot of friends projects; Maya Malkin/Motel Raphael, Bayla, Flara K, and many other we’ve had the pleasure of working with over the years.

Amandah Opoku: What If Elephants is a unique name. How did you come up with the name for the band? And what does the name “What If Elephants” mean to you? Joey Langlois: One night, we were chilling with friends and I brought them the problem of choosing a band name. As we tossed around ideas saying; “what about this, what if that?…. what if elephants?”, kinda just popped out. There’s something majestic about that animal. There’s also the idea that we strive to address the elephants in the room - as the expression goes - while still remaining accessible. To be honest, I was looking for a new band name earlier this year haha. For some people it seems like the stars align. For others, there just isn't a name that feels like sums up your ideas.

Amandah Opoku: What inspired you to pursue a music career and create “What If Elephants”? Joey Langlois: For me, it was wanting to create music with positive messages for following generations of youth. When I was a kid, there seemed to be a lack of depth and/or positivity in a lot of the easily accessible music. The way we access music has changed, but there is still a need for more positivity!  As a person, I much prefer to collaborate than work alone, so forming a band with friends just made sense. We love spending time together, which I think is key for the long haul.

Amandah Opoku: What is one piece of advice you received since you began pursuing music, that has aided you on your path? Joey Langlois: Everyone has their own story of how things work out. Be honest with your art, work hard, and stick with it as long as you love it. That’s synthesized. It’s hard to pinpoint one piece of advice, all the advice becomes a vibe haha.

Amandah Opoku: What If Elephants is made up of 4 individuals with divergent musical experiences that contribute to your sound. What’s it like writing and working together with your different influences? And how do you incorporate everyone’s ideas into the creation process? Joey Langlois: A lot of our songs had unique processes from one another. We’ve created arrangements in a jam space. Recording session all together. I’ve sent only lyrics for someone else to write chords and melody. Sometimes I arrive with a song I wrote with another songwriter and we arrange, and the list goes on. I generally have a good idea of where I want to go sonically for the production, so often in that stage, I’ll communicate basic ideas musically or verbally and then Justin, Alanna, or Collin will interpret it with their touch and ideas. It really is never the same though - thus far.

Amandah Opoku: 2020 was quite a year for all of us. How has the pandemic affected you as a musician? What have you learned about yourself? Joey Langlois: 2020 has taught me that I need to be a lot nicer to myself with my inner voice. I can be very destructive to myself with my thoughts on my musical pursuits or just life in general. I’m not sure that this is entirely new for me, but 2020 highlighted it for sure. As a musician, I’d say that it opened up time for some collaborations that may not have happened otherwise, which is the other side of the coin which has cost the industry a lot.

Amandah Opoku: What Elephants is releasing a new single “Sugar Daddy” at the end of this month, what inspired the song? Joey Langlois: I’ve never really had that much money, but I’ve never experienced extreme poverty either. The song reflects some of my experience of what happens when you’re in the grind of reaching goals or just paying bills and how it can put stress on a relationship. The song is a reminder to evaluate my priorities when things start to fall apart.

Amandah Opoku: What was the writing and recording process like for “Sugar Daddy”? Joey Langlois: I wrote the first draft of the song in 2018, and my friend Tokyo Speirs contributed lyrics to polish the chorus. The verse underwent two re-writes, after which Mike Bilenki helped refine some of the lyrics as well. As a band we had come up with the core arrangement pretty early on, so the last stage was having our friend Lucas Liberatore co-produce it with us and give the last push on a long, long journey to deliver a polished track. Without him stepping in, we weren’t even sure about finishing it for this EP! Everything was kind-of recording across that whole time span. Some pre, and some post-COVID 19.

Joey Langlois: “Sugar Daddy” features Maya Malkin, how did the collaboration happen? Joey: Maya has been a good friend to me and the band for years. I’ve always admired her skills as an artist and songwriter. Once the verses had been written, somehow to me it just kind of felt like that verse needed a character Maya could totally capture. I won’t say I told you so, but when I hear it, I couldn’t be happier that she leant her voice to this track. Very excited about her solo project as well!

Amandah Opoku: With “Sugar Daddy” out at the end of this month, what can fans expect from What If Elephants next? Joey Langlois: ‘What can we expect next’ is one of the most difficult question to answer these days. What we plan on doing is releasing another single and finally, our new EP between now and May. Making informed decisions with the constantly changing structure of our lives these days seems impossible, but we hope to give the best experience possible as we share what we’ve created, as we adjust to varying constraints. We’re working our butts off on making some cool videos – that’s been my hobby these days. I spend hours setting up weird science experiments just to see if an idea I’ve developed for hours has a chance of working haha.

Amandah Opoku: You (What If Elephants) released your debut EP ‘Getaway’ in 2015, how would you say you’ve grown as an individual and a band?  Joey Langlois: Oh my. I think we’ve grown closer to each other. We don’t get to just hang out a ton. Music takes a lot of time, and then each of us has our own life. I feel like we’ve all become more decided on what we enjoy in life, which is helpful to, you know - enjoying life haha. Recently, I’m learning to enjoy the little things that can easily seem like distractions from the important things, but might be opportunities to get insight on something inspiring. Dishes for example. I mostly have avoided dishes for as long as possible and then dreaded them. Now, they’re becoming a moment to listen and learn - be it from a podcast, music, or through talking with Alanna. It’s actually become a bit of a retreat, but not always haha. It would be great to have a dishwasher. That’s one example.

Amandah Opoku: What have you learned since the release of your debut EP, that you wish you knew when you first started this journey? Joey Langlois: Make the music you truly want to make. That first EP is something the I’m grateful for, but I know that at the time, I was very much making music that I thought suited Montreal better than the poppy sound I would otherwise naturally emit. I am still learning that. Learning how to be myself is a constant effort. Whether it’s getting over self-consciousness, or actually just trying to know what I really want. I find that I sometimes get confused between what the world says I should want, and what I actually want. Also, I wish I had started collaborating with other artists and writers so much earlier.

Amandah Opoku: If you had to choose 1 song to send to a listener to introduce them to What If Elephants, what song would you choose and why? Joey Langlois: “Elastic Band” gives a good general overview of our vibe, but I must say that I can’t wait to release new material because I do find it represents where I’m at now, much better. 

Amandah Opoku: For new fans who come across your music, what would you like them to take away from your music? Joey Langlois: Hope. We go through so much hardship in life, both practically and relationally. I want people to know they’re not alone and that there are ways we can think and things we can do that can have a positive effect or our own lives and the lives of others. And I hope they also just have a good time jamming to it.

Amandah Opoku: Joey, thank you for sitting down with me! Before we close this interview, is there anything you want to say to your fans and our readers? Joey Langlois: It’s been a pleasure! Please hang in there everyone. Be kind to the people around you (including you!) - both the people who agree with you and the ones that disagree. In the end, it is the culmination of our small gestures towards one another that shape our world. We feel so lucky to be able to create this music, and so thankful that people would take the time to listen and connect with it. 

Connect with What If Elephants: https://www.whatifelephants.com/ https://www.facebook.com/whatifelephants/ https://www.instagram.com/whatifelephants/ https://twitter.com/whatifelephants

[mediamonkey29]

Album Review: “Witness” by Katy Perry

Katy Perry’s latest album “Witness” was released on June 9, 2017 and it was accompanied by a three day live stream event on YouTube, which captured every single moment of Katy Perry’s life in a house outfitted with cameras, and culminated in a concert for fans where Katy performed songs from her album. “Witness” received a mixed bag of critical reviews with a lot being on the less favourable side, however, I disagree with the critics. There is a certain expectation for Perry to continue to release hit songs that are widely marketed on Top 40 radio, but an artist has to keep progressing and “Witness” is evidence of Katy’s musical progression and life journey. Katy’s fans (the amazing Katycats) seemingly agreed by making this yet another #1 album, debuting with 180,000 sales plus streaming on the Billboard 200. Read on for a track-by-track review of the album.

1. Witness

The album kicks off with the title track and the simple introduction is accompanied with a heavier bass beat, which ensures that the focus is on Katy’s vocals and her lyrics. In a world where we’re all pretty much staring at screens 24/7, Katy’s message about being a witness in life and with each other is a much needed reminder that we need to create actual connections. The chorus is one that draws you in and is one that always gets me to sing along (which does make it harder when you’re trying to write a review…).

 2. Hey Hey Hey

Always one to create power anthems, Katy Perry continues the trend with the song “Hey Hey Hey”. The song is catchy and could be a potential single off of the album. Lyrically, it is filled with descriptive juxtapositions that highlight the multiple layers in any individual’s personality, as well as the true strength that one possesses that the external world doesn’t always realize. Katy. Another strong song and even stronger message.

 3. Roulette

This is quickly becoming a fan favourite. There is a throwback vibe with the percussive beats and the overall vibe of the song is fun but edgy as well. The lyrical flow and imagery created all comes together and creates a pretty great song.

 4. Swish Swish (featuring Nicki Minaj)

This was one of the singles that have been released from this album and it is the one that the media has focused on the most. It is a response to Taylor Swift and her “Bad Blood” but Katy also said it is applicable to anyone that tries to tear you down in life. The track features Nicki Minaj, who always brings it when she features on a song, and this was no exception. The beat is strong and makes it a great song to play at the clubs, and I think Katy’s vocals shine. I thought this would be a bigger hit on the radios.

 5. Déjà Vu

This is another track that is infused with the electronic sound that is currently taking over Top 40 radio. My only critique is that by the 5th track, the beats are starting to meld together and the songs are sounding very similar. This track doesn’t stand out as much for me but one of Katy Perry’s strengths is her use of creative descriptors to get her message across and this song is another example.

 6. Power

I love this song. The Jack Garratt produced song, begins with a strong drum solo that just gets you hyped and this is the kind of empowerment track that I absolutely love from Katy. If you’re going to name your track “Power”, you better back it up with strong lyrical content that makes you feel empowered and Katy does just that. You can’t help but feel like an absolute boss when you’re listening (or singing along) to this track.

“The song is about taking back your power if you feel like you aren’t treated the way you should be because we’ve got that power.”

 7. Mind Maze

Lyrically, I love this song. It’s about the struggle that goes on within the mind when we’re navigating the world. I’m not a fan of the vocal effects on the chorus of this track that create a very synthetic sound and masks the power and vulnerability that could have elevated this track. However, the overall track is pretty good and like I said, I love the lyrics and the message conveyed in the song.

 8. Miss You More

This track is so vulnerable and you can just feel the lyrics in your heart. Katy’s voice is able to convey emotions so well and this is the perfect example of her often overlooked vocal abilities. Songs like this don’t always get heard on the radio but it is the type of song that just makes you slow down and listen. Great track.

 9. Chained to the Rhythm (featuring Skip Marley)

This is one of my favourite songs on “Witness”. This song was the first single released from “Witness” and relayed the “purposeful pop” message that Perry wanted to convey. Many speculated that the entire album would be political, however, that has not been the case. This track and “Bigger Than Me” are the only tracks that are a response to the election results (Katy was a Hillary supporter and appeared at numerous Clinton campaign events). This song is more reminiscent of the sound that we are used to hearing from Katy and it stands out musically from the rest of the album. That is to say, it’s not as cohesive sonically with the overall album, but it is still one of my favourite songs and I’m glad that it was included. The track features Skip Marley, the grandson of Bob Marley, who does a fantastic job with his verse.

 10. Tsunami

Katy loves her double entendres and (sometimes) subtle messages in songs that aren’t so in your face. This track is packed full of them and it’s also an indication of Katy’s growth and liberation. The way that the song is sang is reminiscent of ocean waves, which is absolutely perfect for this song. This is another great song.

 11. Bon Appétit (featuring Migos)

As we already discussed, Katy loves double entendres and this track is no exception. This is a little more lyrically in your face, than the previous track “Tsunami”. It has a great beat and it’s catchy. You can’t help but sing along/dance along to this track. The track features Migos and is continuing with the current Top 40 trend of combining pop and rap.

 12. Bigger Than Me

This is another one of my favourite tracks. Billboard stated that this track was inspired by the 2016 presidential election, specifically Hillary Clinton’s loss. However, don’t think that this is a political track. The lyrics convey a message of struggle in one’s self-evolution in life and in striving to find their purpose. The beats are strong, the production is perfect and Katy’s vocals shine. I love this song and I think it is very underrated.

 13. Save as Draft

“Save as Draft” is another song that is filled with vulnerability and you can hear it in Perry’s vocals. She has stated that this is one of the harder songs for her to perform on her Witness World Tour. One of my favourite parts of the song is when she says “So I take a deep breath…” and she pauses for breath and you feel that tension and emotion building up, then it continues with “and I save as draft”. You can feel the emotions are still raw and this song is very personal to Katy. She shines in songs like this and “Save as Draft” is no exception.

 14. Pendulum

Turn this track all the way up. I love, love, love this song. So much so that I had to listen to it in full once and then repeat to write the review because it is so hard for me not to join in when this song gets playing. The song has a gospel inspired feel to it with a full choir and the production is perfect. I love the uplifting message as well, which is one of those inspirational, you’re going to be okay, kinds of songs that immediately lifts you up from any kind of bad mood. Katy does not currently sing this song on the Witness World Tour and #JusticeForPendulum is a thing. I, for one, hope that she includes it in one of her two Toronto stops…please.

 15. Into Me You See

“Into Me You See” is a play on the word intimacy and it is about a relationship in which Perry’s partner broke down the walls and the guard that she had put up. This created an evolution for her where she is more willing to show her vulnerable side and her true self. This is a really powerful and personal song that shows a lot of strength. It’s not easy to put yourself on display like this and through the Witness World Wide live stream and this album, we know that Katy is no longer afraid to be as vulnerable, although she does have her insecurities (what human being doesn’t?). It’s a very stripped back song and wraps up the standard version of the album perfectly.

16. Dance with the Devil (Target Special Edition Track)

Katy Perry described this track as her battle with alcohol, which got bad during her depression. It’s another glimpse into the personal life of Katy and her vulnerability on full display. The sound is a more electronic inspired, edgy, darker track, which reflects the lyrics of the track very well. It’s a really well produced song and hopefully will be released on Spotify so that fans who can’t get a hold of the Target special edition can listen too.

17. Act My Age (Target Special Edition Track)

Another song that I absolutely love and I wish it would’ve made the standard version of the album. This song could easily be a radio single because it is an anthem. I love it. The production, the sound, the lyrics. It’s all amazing. It’s a shame that most people won’t hear the song unless they can get their hands on the Target Special edition. This is one of my favourites from “Witness”.

Final Thoughts

The progression of the album from “Witness” to “Into Me You See” is a look into the personal life of Katy Perry and her evolution over the past few years, since the release of her previous album “Prism”. The album is packed with a few strong radio singles but it seems like this was more of an artist adventure for Perry and one that I was glad to witness.

Overall, I think Katy does a great job of showing her musical progression and a more vulnerable side to her, with songs like Save as Draft, Miss You More and Into Me You See. It’s not easy being vulnerable on a daily basis and it must be even harder to do it in front of millions of people watching, but Katy has managed to do so and released an album that, in my opinion, should have received a better critical reception. The focus was placed on “rivalries” that the media continues to perpetuate and place all their attention on, rather than giving the album a fair chance. Is the album filled with big hits like “California Gurls” and “Teenage Dream”, no. But if you have heard Katy’s entire catalogue, and not just the released singles, you know that she has always written and recorded songs with more depth to them, such as Lost, Pearl, and By the Grace of God. This is just an album with less frills and more depth. I predict another album in the future that carries forth in this direction, and what many seem to overlook is that Katy has the voice to do an album with more depth. I look forward to the future but in the meantime, I will be enjoying the “Witness” era and I hope you’ll take a listen to the album and judge for yourself.

You can purchase “Witness” on iTunes or stream it on Spotify, and you can also catch Katy on her “Witness” tour (Click here for dates and tickets). I will be going to her concert tonight and tomorrow night, so check back here for the full review. 

[sinceileftyoublog]

The Wood Brothers Interview: Warts and All

From left to right: Jano Rix, Chris Wood, Oliver Wood; Photo by Alysse Gafkjen

BY JORDAN MAINZER

In between One Drop of Truth and their next record (hopefully out early next year), The Wood Brothers are giving a glimpse as to why they’re even more essential as a live band than as a studio band. Live At The Fillmore, out a week from Friday, documents their two-night stand at the San Francisco venue, a mix of songs from Truth, older material, and covers. According to drummer (and “third brother”) Jano Rix, the nights there weren’t technically their best shows but the ones that captured the spirit of their live show better than any other. Speaking to me over the phone last week from his dressing room in San Rafael, Rix shared some insight into the band’s live approach, including how their songs change over time and how they construct set lists. Read the interview below and catch the band on tour at various points throughout the rest of the year; they’re working with Thistle Farms so that $1 from every ticket sold will go towards helping female victims of trafficking, prostitution, and addiction.

Since I Left You: Why did you decide to release a live record?

Jano Rix: One reason is we tend to change the arrangements of songs over time, and things just evolve. Sometimes, the instrumentation evolves in songs, and we play them in a completely different way. To present a different take on the songs and kind of document that. And depending on where the songs fall in the set on a certain night, we might play them on completely different instruments. It’s nice to document some of that stuff. Sometimes, we feel like we get better at them, too, over the years. [laughs]

SILY: Is this recorded performance some of the best that your old songs have ever been?

JR: We like to think so. [laughs] But we tend not to listen back to the records for years and years. Sometimes, we’ll hear the album version come on the radio and are so surprised at the tempo. We’ll have completely forgotten and be like, “Oh yeah, there are horns on this song.” It’s about the evolution and capturing where we are creatively this year.

SILY: How do you decide on your set lists on a nightly basis?

JR: There are a lot of factors: what day of the week it is, the town we’re in, what we played last time in the town. We look back at previous years’ sets and try to do something different each time. If we’re playing multiple nights in a place, we’ll try to write different sets for different nights. And just trying to construct a flow that will take people on a journey from the beginning to the end. Take into consideration what the venue feels like and what the audience is gonna feel like there. If it’s all standing, if it’s a seated theater, if it’s a festival and there’s three other bands playing within a half mile of us--then the soft songs with lots of space are not gonna go over well. We all meet about it about an hour before we go on. That’s when we write the set.

SILY: How has touring One Drop of Truth been unique as compared to touring previous records?

JR: That’s a good question...I haven’t really pondered that...I don’t know that it’s really all that different. We don’t play songs mostly from the record we just put out. We play all Woods Brothers songs every tour. We mix up new songs with the old songs. People want to hear songs from the first record. So I wouldn’t say it’s that different. Our crew has gotten bigger, and we’re carrying more instruments, gear, and lights, which is it’s own challenge, but it’s been really rewarding.

SILY: Your discography certainly has some upbeat songs, but they’re mostly very lyrics-forward. Your live shows seem to be more celebratory. Do you “put on a show” more than simply play songs?

JR: For sure. It’s a show! It’s changed a lot since the early days just because of the venues we’re playing. When you’re playing to a few hundred people in a club, they’re basically in your living room. When you’re playing to 2,000 people, what gets across and what’s possible is different. As time has gone on, we’ve had more songs on records that are danceable, and people have come to really like that. We’re just kind of in it with everybody. They like what we do, but we like what they do, too. We’re feeding off of them. It influences us how to write a set.

SILY: On the performances of Smoke Ring Halo’s “Blue And Green” and [Jimmy Reed cover] “Big Boss Man”, you play keys and drums at the same time.

JR: I do that quite a bit these days.

SILY: It’s obviously something you can’t realize just listening to the record. So where does a live album, for you, fit? In between a concert and a record? Or is it still just a record?

JR: It’s definitely more in between. Especially this one and the last one. Though we recorded the entire spring and listened to all of it, we decided to put out just the Fillmore, warts and all...We had some more perfect performances, but the Fillmore had a lot of energy. We thought it would be cool to document the experience of going to a show.

SILY: What are all of the different instruments you play on any given night?

JR: I play all sorts of messed up toy instruments. [laughs] I play drums, the shuitar, a crappy old guitar I mashed into a percussion instrument, keyboards, melodica--that’s about it. But I’m pretty busy up there.

SILY: Do you have a pretty standard rotation of covers in your arsenal? Or are you constantly learning new ones?

JR: It’s best when we’re constantly learning new ones. We learn new covers when we have openers sit in with us and try to learn a song they know. It’s always good inspiration.

SILY: What else is next for you and The Wood Brothers in the near future?

JR: We’re on the road. We’re working on the final mixes for the next studio record, which we’ve been working on for the past year. We’re getting ready to finish that up, and the album will come out the beginning of next year. We’re excited about that. We also have a show at Red Rocks [Amphitheatre] a couple weeks away. That’ll be a big, fun show for us.

SILY: Any plans to come back to Chicago?

JR: Of course. Every year we’ll be in Chicago. It’s one of our favorite cities to play. You guys have the most great venues of any cities we know of. There are just so many.

SILY: What are your favorites?

JR: SPACE in Evanston. The Vic. Lincoln Hall. Old Town School of Folk Music--that place is amazing! We’ve just played so many venues in that town, as opposed to other major cities where at every size, there’s maybe one decent venue, if it’s decent.

SILY: What are some of your other favorite cities to play?

JR: We do always enjoy our West Coast runs, especially during the winter, for the change of weather. It’s really fun to play Levon’s Barn [Levon Helm Studios] in upstate New York. The Beacon [Theatre] in New York. Stone Mountain Arts Center in the middle of nowhere in Maine. It’s beautiful and has the best backstage anywhere. There are so many great venues around, but they’re not always the big ones. It depends on the vibe.

SILY: Is there anything you’ve been listening to, watching, or reading lately that’s caught your attention?

JR: I wish I had an answer for that, but nothing specific comes to the tip of my tongue. I have been listening to a lot of Cuban salsa lately.

Tour dates:

8/27 - Boise, ID - Knitting Factory Concert House ** 8/28 - Salt Lake City, UT - Red Butte Garden ** 9/5 - Morrison, CO - Red Rocks Amphitheatre ^ 9/8 - Chattanooga, TN - Moon River Music Festival 9/21 - East Aurora, NY - Borderland Music and Arts Festival 10/16 - Pensacola FL - Vinyl Music Hall 10/17 - Ponte Vedra, FL - Ponte Vedra Concert Hall 10/18 - Wilmington, NC - Greenfield Lake Amphitheater 10/19 - Greensboro, NC - The Carolina Theatre 10/20 - Black Mountain, NC - Leaf Festival 10/25 - Placerville, CA - Hangtown Music Festival 11/7 - Roanoke, VA - Shaftman Performance Hall ^^ 11/8 - Highlands, NC - Highlands Food & Wine Festival ^^ 11/9 - Louisville, KY - Headliners Music Hall ^^ 11/10 - Cincinnati, OH - Taft Theatre ^^ 11/12 - St. Louis, MO - The Pageant ^^ 11/13 - Kansas City, MO - The Truman ^^ 11/14 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue ^^ 11/15 - Madison, WI - Barrymore Theatre ^^ 11/16 - Indianapolis, IN - The Vogue ^^ 12/3 - Baton Rouge, LA - Manship Theatre ^^^ 12/4 - Houston, TX - The Heights Theater ^^^ 12/5 - Austin, TX - Paramount Theatre ^^^ 12/6 - Dallas, TX - The Kessler Theater ^^^ 12/7 - Tulsa, OK - Cain's Ballroom ^^^ 12/9 - Omaha, NE - Slowdown ^^^ 2/27 - 3/2 - Punta Cana, DR - Avett Brothers at the Beach 3/6 - Santa Barbara, CA - Campbell Hall

** w/ Colter Wall ^ w/ Fruition + Steep Canyon Rangers ^^ w/ Nicole Atkins ^^^ w/ Katie Pruitt

[justindaguiso-blog]

FINALS

Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino is an annual event that is held during Buwan ng Wika. It is a week-long celebration of Philippine Cinema where new Filipino genre films are screened for 1 week in all regular cinemas nationwide. No foreign films will be screened during PPP except in specialty cinemas, it is in order for the whole country to celebrate and enjoy local-made films. This event is organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines in partnership with the National Cinema Association of the Philippines. In this video, we will review and discuss 3 films that we witnessed shine during the week-long celebration. 

To start off, The LSS movie is a romantic, comedy, musical movie directed by Jade Castro. Starred by young loveteam actresses Gabbi Garcia and Khalil Ramos. The movie was released on September 13, 2019 and was included on the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino, also known as PPP. The movie also took home some awards for winning the Best Special Jury Prize, Audience Choice, Best Supporting Actress, Best Theme Song,and  Best Sound Award.

The main characters that are shown in the movie are Sarah starred Gabbi Garcia, and Zack starred by Khalil Ramos. The movie is all about pursuing and chasing your dreams, but there are always going to be trials and hardships through the journey. They met for the first time randomly in a bus on their way to their own destinations. They started to have a conversation because of a Ben&Ben song that they commonly listen to which is “Ride Home”. They shared their own stories and Zack told Sarah to name her first ever album their name on it, inspired by Ben&Ben.

Both of them have a very different life, struggle through different scenarios, but both of them have similar passion in music. Zack grew up living only with her mother, since his father left him at a very young age. He has a friend that he likes for 6 years already, yet he had no chance to confess his love for her. Meanwhile, Sarah who is aspiring to be a famous singer, couldn't because of financial problems. She had been struggling to find a stable job. Ever since she lost her first long job. So, she ended up having to sacrifice her dream for her brother's studies. As this shows that family does come first in our local tradition.  Then finding out, all the financial support she's been giving him was all went to renting a studio and making music. Leading no choice but to support her brother's dream instead.

Zack has been very unsure of his life, but his mother, Ruby is trying to help him out by finding a girlfriend. Since he’s old enough to have one, but never had a chance to. He took a leap of faith and asked her out, yet failed. Since his love of his life already have a significant other. This truly broke his heart and didn’t know how to cope up with it.

Both of them were hurt because of the situation of what happened to them. They reunited through the same artist that they commonly listen to, Ben&Ben. Where it truly shows that music brings people together, the power of music truly shows that no matter who you are where you live. We can all be one big family through music that connects us. They ended up being together for they are truly meant to be from the beginning. They now tackled their struggles together. Worked together to achieve their dreams. As I continue to watch the film, it truly shows that the target audience are people like us, the millennials, especially for those who are into love stories and music.

Speaking of music, this movie aims to also promote the artists, "Ben&Ben" who is a local band composed of two brothers, Paolo and Miguel. This band has been in the music industry for quite some time now, and they are absolutely killing it and putting a dent in the industry. They were able to gather a lot of loyal fans recently, from their skyrocketing growth. This factor made people attracted to see the movie, which is a great strategy to have their target audience which are the generation z.

             One triumph, that they stumbled upon while being on tour with Ben&Ben, Zack had the chance to visit his dying father with Sarah and his mother. But when they arrived, Ruby which is Zack’s mother was furious to see his father’s face. Knowing that he left both of them together with nothing, then have the audacity to meet up with them during his final days. Zack was very torn seeing his parents argue, but all he wants is to be together with his family with the remaining time they have together. But Ruby insists to leave.

After some time during on tour, Zack told Sarah that he will be leaving out of the country for a long amount of time. It will be very hard to keep a long-distance relationship strong, especially across the world. They still manage to be connected despite the time they couldn’t spend together. Sarah’s dream slowly coming into reality. This really shows that with hard work, patience, initiative and with a little bit of luck, your dreams will come true. The luck factor will just come with the risk that you’re willing to take, are you willing to do anything to reach your dreams? This shows that Sarah really wants to inspire her future potential fans that dreams do come true.

The movie is not that unique at all to be honest, it's very similar to all typical love story where everything is going just fine, until the main characters fell rock bottom, but despite the challenges they still fought and will have a happy ending. It is very common when Jade Castro directs a movie, since he is famous for those kinds of movies. Where he is able to balance out the comedy and romance factor without making it too cheesy to watch. But one thing that put this movie above the others for me is, it is a musical movie. Therefore, after watching the movie I really got hooked to Ben&Ben's music, resulting for me actually being a fan of their work. The producers did a great job choosing the best artist to go along with the movie, if the soundtrack or singer is different. It would be a different vibe watching the movie. As someone who loves listening to music, it’s amazing to experience this kind of movie, where I can sing along to the songs as well as to react to the movie as well. It’s a win win scenario for me because I totally enjoyed sitting inside the cinema while being able to focus on what’s happening to the story.

The color presets they used in the movie are really good. Especially when Zack and Sarah first met at the bus. The color and the tones look really good for the scene, creativity wise, the film did an excellent job. The camera angles of their conversation are amazing, while watching I keep on asking myself. “How were they able to capture an angle from the outside of the window of a bus?” This shows that our country has been using a bit more advance equipment unlike before. One thing that's off for me is the acting of Paolo and Miguel, which are the Ben&Ben twins. Yes, despite them being singers not actors, the way they act out during a serious scene makes me giggles because of how forced his reaction is on screen, despite of it happening at least they still tried, so kudos to the twins.

The songs that are used in very specific scenes are effective, the producers made sure that they could incorporate the correct songs per scene. If it’s a sad scene, they’d use a sad song, and if it’s a happy scene, they’d use more of a lively upbeat music. Though the movie doesn’t have that much of a surprise factor, the delivery of the expected production from them was totally bull’s eye.

             As an artist myself, I can truly relate to Sarah’s struggles of trying to make a living out of the passion that I truly have. Since one problem here in our country is that the artists don’t have the support of the locals. Which is indeed sad, but true. It made me put myself in her shoes on what would I do, give up my dream and pursue other things that will guarantee that I can make a living out of it. It’s painful to see as Sarah continues to struggle emotionally throughout the movie, trying to have a point in her career where she can finally say “I made it!”.

Overall, the movie is amazing, I truly recommend this movie for all ages, you will definitely have a smile on your face after watching the movie. The execution of the movie is all around a masterpiece. Because, it truly is not easy to have two big main plots, and they have to manage to find a way to make those two major characters merge into one leading storyline. Hopefully we get to see more local musical films like this one. For more local artist could have the chance to be in the big screen, because I believe these artists are very underappreciated. And I truly believe that this will change the game of musical film.

  On to our next film  ‘Cuddle Weather’ by director Rod Marmol presents an insight in the life of 2 sex workers who happen to form an unusual relationship as ‘cuddle partners’. Beyond all the bright neon lights, colorful wardrobe and demanding clients with peculiar kinks. The life of Adela Johnson (played by Sue Ramirez) has been filled with nothing but loneliness. No matter how thrilling the nightlife in Poblacion may be, Adela always had a dream of leaving her line of work and old life behind, to be given the chance to start a fresh chapter with a new identity; a new name. After all, that was the goal why she became a sex worker for almost 9 years; to earn easy cash and save up for her future. In one of her client sessions, she met Ram (played by RK Bagatsing) who had a client next door, a sex worker who had little to no experience about how the industry works. He kept pestering Adela to teach him her ways on how to be a better sex worker. Adela gave in and booked him for an hour just to cuddle. Since she was mostly alone in her condo, a good-warm cuddle was all she needed. Their relationship evolved from cuddle buddies-roomates-until they eventually cared for each other. With a good mix of a past love coming back to her life, along with her never-ending family drama; They both agreed to stop accepting clients and eventually leave that old life behind once they saved up enough money.

Overall, Rod Marmol humanized the idea of sex workers in the eyes of the viewers. It changed the stereotypical thinking of people when it comes to the said industry. It showed a different side of their life that not alot of people know,since most of them had been isolated or left by their loved ones due to the nature of their job. It tackled more about the effect on Sue’s character whenever she meets up with different clients almost every night, only for her to feel emptier and alone in the end, that no amount of money can ever fill the void. It made it seem that Adela is slowly losing herself to her job. From the beginning of the film, the first thing you’ll notice is her bright-colorful wigs and her sparkly and skimpy outfits; all of which serves as a way to mask her true self from her chosen profession. Throughout the scenes where Adela is seen as she journey’s on through self-discovery, her clothes are slowly leaning towards a plain jane and simple style. The soft pinks and bashful outfits somehow shows that she is slowly removing the mask and unveiling her true self. It is quite unfortunate that characters such as Adela and Ram are forced to enter this type of profession because of their lack of better opportunities. It reflects the society and environment that surrounds them which is quite sad because as fictional as these characters are ,there are real people going through the same situation and struggle. It shows how desperate times call for desperate measures and for Ram’s case, he was scammed by an agency that promised a Seaman job offer. He was later scammed by the said agency who only took his money, which later led him to earn some cash as a sex worker; He still continues to send money to his family in the province to create an illusion that he’s still working abroad. From what I notice that aside from prostitution, Rod Mormol tried to show different types of mishaps in life, from broken families; which is where Adela came from. To the bread-winner of the family be scammed by agencies with false career hopes and promises. It’s a mix of poor choices and unfortunate situations, something that some viewers may resonate and relate to. 

The way that Rod Marmol was able to combine humor, drama and romance is impressive, since this film has a serious message behind identifying yourself as a human being and prostitution in our country. He was able to tackle those serious issues with humor, finding ways to deliver the message without getting too scarily real. It will always come down to the creativity of the director, for Marmol’s case, he knows who are the target audiences are and how to properly execute the movie.

Cuddle Weather is also produced for Regal Entertainment and Project 8 cor. Being a comedy, Cuddle Weather takes a light approach in its depiction of the so-called world’s oldest profession. I do applaud Sue Ramirez’ take on bringing Adela Johnson to life, knowing how risky and mature the role seems to be. From the sultry and provocative clothes, to Her effortless delivery of lines that involve R-rated terms like “pokpok,” “libog,” “bugaw” and “tigasan” also makes her a lot more convincing as the character she’s playing. But it is Sue’s charming chemistry with RK as Ram that provides a lot of the film’s kilig moments especially during the cuddle scenes when they’re still trying to get to know more about each other. Her role as Adela sure is more mature than her role in ‘Ang Babaeng allergic sa Wifi.  As Ram, RK is also worthy of consideration for acting honors as he embodies the typical probinsyano who, because of initial setbacks, had to resort to drastic measures to keep his own dreams alive. It was Ram who believes that he and Adela have a legitimate shot at a happy-ever-after together, despite their less than ideal circumstances. ‘Cuddle Weather’ placed third in the list of highest grossing films during this celebration. 

  I admit that I was enticed by their movie poster and teaser, it riled up so much curiosity to see what this movie was all about. From the questionable position both Sue and RK were in, to the neon signs and sultry vibe. In all fairness, it did not disappoint. It delivered so much edge, drama, laughs, kilig-moments, innuendos and thrill to the viewers. Though personally, aside from the narrative of this film, the actors who played their roles, the flashy wardrobe, loud and busy setting, Cuddle Weather tackled more of one’s self-identity and worth, but beyond that it feels as if it placed all its cards on the table. No surprises behind the curtain nor moments that will push the audience to think more and question what this movie was about. To be clear, ‘Cuddle Weather’ is a sexy dark-romantic comedy. It was not meant to be a porn flick. It is not what you may readily think it may be. There is a lot of heart to this movie more than the flesh. 

 Next up, Lola Igna is a comedy drama film that is written and directed by Eduardo Roy Jr., starring Angie Ferrero, Yves Flores, Maria Isabel Lopez, and Meryll Soriano. Eduardo Roy Jr. has already directed some great films as such as “Bahay Bata”, “Quick Change”, “Pamilya Ordinaryo”,“Fuccbois”, and “Last Fool Show”. This film is also an entry for PPP, the story revolves around Lola Igna with her granddaughter and great-great grandson.

             The story is about an old woman, in fact a very old woman who lives in the middle of rice fields, who is the main character. Lola Igna is already a 118-year old grandma who is ready and wanting to die. But the people don’t want her to, for them to hold the world record for being the oldest living person alive. One factor as well is because of the million of dollars that will be given and the fame that the neighborhood will get out of her. This shows how sad the society truly is, using someone’s circumstances for personal gain only. Also, the thirst for fame is also being displayed, shows how people love the attention so much, despite the suffering of an old woman.

Lola Igna’s personality is not to be admired nor wanted to be encountered. She’s alway nag people around her. It’s reasonable for her to be, since she’s really unhappy at the situation of her life. The director wants the movie’s story to revolve around Lola Igna, and it delivers, the audience has been interested on what will happen next, because of how fascinating her life is.

             It truly breaks my heart to see her being all lonely and sad, because imagine all of your loved ones are gone and you being left alone because you’re still here in this world and they left earlier than you did. My grandparents have a very special place in my heart for I do believe they deserve nothing but love and attention. With their remaining time on this planet, we need to show them our appreciation for they’ve been through a lot. And for sure they’ll appreciate every nice gesture we show to our elderly.

             One factor that’s really messed up is that her own grandchildren even encourages her to join the contest for the oldest grandmother because of the given prize money, that they’ll benefit off of her, they’re using her age for their benefits. But one thing that really is messed up that because of the contest. She became a tourist spot for people. The director wants the audience to have empathy to Lola Igna, and for the audience to realize it’s not right to approach a “celebrity” to bother them, just to ask for a picture. Because people tend to forget they also are living their own life.

             A lot of people are going to her bahay kubo just to witness her. It’s very disgusting to see that she’s being treated not like a human being but an object that is to be seen, her whole being is being disregarded just because of the fame she’s able to have for her age. As more people to show up, people around are making money of her, selling merchandise to tourists that are in the area without Lola Igna’s consent. She’s being the town’s entertainment place as she became the most visited person already. Even after doing your work, everyone’s going to be at your home which is supposed to be not invaded, because it’s your private space. But people still show up because she’s famous. This can be comparable in the life of a celebrity, because they don’t have any privacy as well. It’s very disturbing to see fans rushing in their way just to ask for a picture, but also forgetting they have a life to live as well. We need to learn how to give space and not be too close with them. This is how Lola Igna feels as well, probably even worse because all she wants is to have is peace, but that is not going to happen.

             She doesn’t have a lot of family left around her, her relatives are only her granddaughter and her son, Nida and Bok respectively. But one day a young man shows up to her place and claims to be her great great grandson. She was even called “Lola”, and this man is named Tim. He is the son of Ana who is Igna’s great granddaughter, and sister of Nida. Lola Igna’s perspective of life changed a bit after meeting Tim, she finally felt the peace and happier to say the least. Lola Igna asks him to make a coffin for her, which is very sad. This truly shows how tired and ready she is to die. She felt the whole world is in her shoulders and she wants to give up in life. But when Tim came to her life, he’s been a ray of sunshine for her that gives her the more will to live and energy that she needs. Though they just met each other, the connection of love that they have for each other can be truly seen, and it made me so happy that Lola Igna is happy. During the scenes of them being together, it made me cry a lot, making me want to go home and give a hug to my grandparents.

              She’s done nothing but good to the community. Being a midwife for a very long time, delivering babies to life. She mentioned something about bringing life to this world, yet she couldn't live her own life .She's been living for so long but she doesn’t fear death as she says if you die it’ll be just the beginning of freedom.  A journey which a soul may be able to be free. She always talks to her dead husband, and acts that he’s still around. This breaks my heart seeing, for she really misses him a lot and wants to be reunited with him in the afterlife. The film really puts you in the point of view of being a senior citizen, how hard it is and much appreciation and care they need.

 Spoiler alert, she almost died at one point of the film, but she didn’t die. She learns to appreciate life more as the movie progresses. It brought me to tears, and made me appreciate elderly more. This movie is for those who had forgotten their grandparents, that they do exist and matter. Their life may be unfamiliar with us, but they’ve been through a lot and we need to learn to be patient with them. The film shows appreciation for elderly, for director Eduardo Roy Jr. wrote this film for his great grandmother that he never got to meet, but still loves her unconditionally.

             There’s a lot of lessons that are taught and wanted to be tackled not only the life of Lola Igna. There’s also the side of politics, beliefs, and how social media is in the current generation. Learn to appreciate life, be thankful for everyday that you get to breathe, do not take it for granted. Live everyday with nothing but happiness, and motivation.  Life’s more than just life and death, it’s how we live our life and continue to appreciate the beauty of it.

Overall, these 3 films presented themes about pursuing one’s dreams, finding one’s own identity, and to appreciate one’s family. Something that we FIlipinos often take for granted, as the event’s goal is to remember our roots of how traditional Filipino families and values are supposed to be. The future of Philippine cinema looks bright and it definitely needs more support from our fellow countrymen. As well as to appreciate the works of local artists who tries to bring back Filipino films in the map. 

[voguingtodanzig]

EXPLODED VIEW FEAST ON DISCOMFORT AND GROUND CHICK PEAS (10 months ago on Clyrvnt)

By Raymond Cummings

What a difference a half-decade makes. Working in concert with Bristol-based BEAK>, Annika “Anika” Henderson cut Anika, her 2010 debut album — a skeletal, singsong-y satchel of covers and originals — in a mere 12 days. The LP felt equally alien, familiar and out of time, a scuffed reinterpretation of numbers by Bob Dylan, Yoko Ono and Lynn Ripley. Stiff and stark and somewhat Nico-esque, Henderson’s vocals leaped out from the production’s knotted beats, guitars and synthesizers like a sigul in a black and white Magic Eye image.

Four years later, the U.K.-born, Berlin-based musician would spend weeks recording what would become a very different album in Mexico City with a new group of collaborators. A year later, they’d realize that they had something special on their hands, and a year after that, they’re ready to unveil it. “Gothic” might be the right watchword for Exploded View’s eponymous first album, though it’s home to a broad spectrum of darknesses: the muted, gorgeous “One Too Many”; mesmerizing drone-poem “Lark Descending”; the trundling, bleary bleep-sweep of “No More Parties in the Attic.” On “Disco Glove,” the quartet locks into an industrial, No Wave groove that suggests a badly wired, breakdancing robot; “Orlando” rides thermal, ascending / descending scales and shredded drums into a quasi-New Wave blaze of glory. And at the center of it all is Henderson, her vocals increasingly incisive, malleable and emotive — reminiscent, at moments, of Natalie Merchant in 10,000 Maniacs’ earliest days — and her sentiments insistently, painfully personal in almost political ways.

A few weeks prior to the release of Exploded View, we interviewed the band via Skype; early in the day they’d performed at the Green Man Festival in Wales, and we spoke just before they took the stage at the Exchange in Bristol, U.K.

How did Exploded View become a band? Martin Thulin (drums/guitar/production): We’re actually on our way to becoming a band, you know? Because this actually started as a job, with us rehearsing for Anika’s gig in Mexico City in 2014. It happened very naturally, with us trying to recreate what we played together. Annika “Anika” Henderson (vocals/synthesizer): Yeah! I like that; it’s true.

Exploded View has a monolithic sound that's multifaceted — sort of industrial, sort of organic, a melodic gloom but with a lot of colors. I’m aware that improvisation was key here, but this album was recorded straight to tape and has a very defined musical point of view. Was there a particular vibe that you were trying to capture? MT: No, not really; I think it just happened. We just started playing, and I think everyone was doing their part. [Exploded View] is what came out. AH: Yeah, there was definitely no aim. We were never intending on releasing anything; it was just jamming for the sake of jamming, playing for the sake of playing. Hugo Quezada (bass/synthesizer/production): The intention was to adjust to the technical limitations we had — like not using more than eight channels.

In the lyrics, there are a lot of elements at play — politics, sociology, personality, relationship dynamics — and an intimate darkness that suits the music. But overall there is an encouraging self-awareness, pushing listeners to take stock in themselves. There’s pessimism, but also encouragement. What inspired this album? AH: A lot of unresolved personal issues and anxieties. The band brought me to this place and helped me work through it — it was a very personal, intimate thing in that I wouldn’t have shared my deepest, darkest secrets with just anyone. Because it was the band, I was somehow able to do it. Some of the songs brought out certain things that I’d been struggling with for years. So, it definitely wasn’t a contrived album; it wasn’t trying to be political, but these were things that were on my mind and came out with the music. I didn’t want to edit things. Hugo and Martin, when they were editing this stuff, they weren’t editing [words], but just cutting out sections of what we recorded. Some of this stuff, I felt like it was a bit too personal, a bit too close to home — and they were like, “Come on, come on, just leave it in!” It’s very rare that I feel that comfortable, that I’m able to write that freely. I wrote everything on the spot. I’m never aware of what I’m writing when I’m writing it; if I ever am, then it’s wrong.

Annika, you were previously a political journalist. Do you view music as another form of reporting? AH: No, not really. I feel like it’s more of an artistic relationship with the world. It’s not just a reflection, but it’s a reflection through your eyes. Good, honest journalism should be impartial and it should be balanced, but as an artist you’re able to digest it and express it in a different way that’s more understandable for people. You’re not just directly putting across events that happened; you’re working through the emotions you feel when you see these events, and hopefully in doing that, you can help other people get some kind of release. Music can be for enjoyment, to help you get through a breakup, whatever. I think with this album, personally, I was working through a lot of stuff; hopefully it can help other people. It’s very different [from] journalism. I am politically engaged, though.

"Disco Glove" is my favorite song on the album: this mechanized, grinding, clanking beast. How did that one take shape? HQ: That song and “No More Parties In the Attic” were the first ones we actually recorded. We met at my place — I have a small, home studio in my house — and started fooling around with instruments. I just set up this really old sequencer, and we built things around that really fast, annoying click track. Amon Melgarejo (synthesizer/guitar): It was like this through the whole album; we were reacting to what was happening. This was one of the two most “bad vibes” songs on the album. AH: I found it quite painful to listen to! While we were recording, I hated it; that’s why I sound so stressed, kind of angry, passive-aggressive. MT: For me, on the drums, on that particular song, I had one reference; it’s a song by Second Wave called “Courts or War.” They used a drum machine; I tried to play on the live drums as if I were a drum machine.

For each of you, what is your favorite song on Exploded View, and why? HQ: I guess for me, my favorite one is “Stand Your Ground.” The day we recorded that song in particular, Annika was cooking some falafel. AH: [Laughs] Really? HQ: Yeah! I started playing some chords on the Mellotron, and then the bass for the whole song started coming. I remember very clearly that Annika came into the room with the falafel, and started singing this melody. It was a really beautiful moment, as friends and as musicians. AM: For me, it would be “Lost Illusions.” We were playing all day, and everything was shit, and we’d played and played, and nothing came. Hugo went to his guitar, his head against the wall and started playing that woooooo-woooo-wooomelody, and all of us joined in. And it was the first time I realized that we had something. I really love the whole structure of the song. MT: “No More Parties” is probably my favorite track, because that was not a track I was particularly keen on when we were mixing it. It was really frustrating to work with that song, because I thought the other songs were really easy to mix. We spent a long time on fixing the mix. When I listen back to it today, I can say that is my favorite track because it really worked out nicely; it’s nice when you have a song that you’re really frustrated with and you put in some effort to make it work. There are also a couple ballads, like “Lark Descending,” that I find extremely beautiful. The music works in a very pointed way with the lyrics; it’s like a painting. AH: I also quite like “Stand Your Ground” because it was really the core of my issues, in their most uncoded form. It was the unconscious completely laid out there, complete vulnerability in a way where I wasn’t hiding anything.

When and for how long a time was Exploded View recorded, and what was the process like? AH: It was at the end of 2014; I think I stayed a couple of weeks. MT: It’s set up in Hugo’s house, which is also his studio, and we were the producers — me and Hugo — so we had a lot of equipment there. Everything was centered around this tape recorder, an eight-track, which limited the whole thing because we were recorded everything live. You really had to think about what you were doing because you didn’t have 500 tracks to do whatever you wanted. When you work like that, you have to work with the limitations; I think that was really important. The fact that it was recorded in a house with a kitchen made it more like an everyday thing; it wasn’t like going to a studio.

So, in a way, there was more humanity to it. HQ: Yeah. AH: This was more of a friendship; it wasn’t just a recording session. That’s what made it so special. Personally, I’ve been working with people in Berlin for two years, and I never really got that environment of trust. There were these strange scenarios that were very forced, and [there was a lot of] talk about money and when everyone was getting paid for the session; it just became very uncomfortable. What was nice about this session is that no one wanted anything. MT: When we were recording, there was a lot of frustration going on within the session between the band; it’s really uncomfortable, not very nice sometimes, but it also makes it very special. I think that frustration is all over the record. Maybe now that we’re more comfortable with each other, that we’re friends, we don’t need to make another album the same way.

As a listener, I’ll say this is a strong, fantastic record. Even if it didn’t feel the best while recording it, everything came out great in the end. MT: To be honest, we left it to rot. [Laughter] For several months. AH: At least a year! MT: When we listened back, we thought, “Wow, this is interesting.” To be honest, I didn’t expect anything. When I started working with it, we had some really cool songs. I was amazed that it turned out more song-based than long jams; I thought we’d just had really boring jams. AH: It’s strange, because I really wasn’t comfortable with releasing it for a long time. It was only at the end of last year that we started talking about it again. I think sometimes when something is so close to home, it’s too personal; you don’t really like it. It’s only when you’re really through those traumas that you can see an album as something separate from yourself.

When you perform these songs now, are you taken back to what these sessions were like? Or is it completely different? HQ: We try to regain the structure of the songs, but not the feelings, because everything is totally different. I guess we’re reinterpreting the songs. AH: I don’t bring back that frustration because it’s not necessary. I’m through it, we’re over it, it’s not still there. We don’t need to relive that every time we play. MT: I’m now the drummer of the band; I’d never played drums ever in my life before this record. We’ve been switching roles. Maybe something that’s different, when we play live, is that for good or for bad — I don’t know — I’m actually becoming a better drummer. That could be good or it could be bad, because one thing about the record is that it’s extremely sloppy. Like amateurs. AH: But that’s cool — it’s post-punk. [Laughter]

Sacred Bones released Exploded View in early September.