#lost highway (original soundtrack)

[lovesongbracket]

Reminder: Vote based on the song, not the artist or specific recording! The tracks referenced are the original artist, aside from a few rare cases where a cover is the most widely known.

Lyrics, videos, info, and notable covers under the cut. (Spotify playlist available in pinned post)

Lovefool

Written By: Peter Svensson & Nina Persson

Artist: The Cardigans

Released: 1996

“Lovefool” is track #7 on The Cardigans’s third album First Band on the Moon. “Lovefool” was the song that propelled The Cardigans to international stardom. US listeners took notice when it was featured on the soundtrack to Baz Luhrmann’s William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay and Top 40 Mainstream, but was kept from the Hot 100 because it was not issued as a commercial single (until December 1998, songs were not eligible to chart on the Hot 100 until they got released as single in the US). Nina Persson penned the lyrics for this song, while Peter Svensson wrote the music. Nina was sitting in an airport waiting for a plane when she was inspired to write the song and thought it would have a “slow bossa nova feel.” She told The Swedish Performing Rights Society: “I do find that the biggest hits are the ones that are the easiest to write”. Peter recalled writing the music for this song in an interview with The Independent: “To me, that song is still that moment when I wrote it in a small room, sitting on my bed in our home town. It was supposed to be some kind of a bossa nova: a totally different song, slow and mellow and sad. The production on it, though, and the disco drums made it all shinier."

[Verse 1] Dear, I fear we're facing a problem You love me no longer, I know and Maybe there is nothing that I can do To make you do Mama tells me I shouldn't bother That I ought just stick to another man A man that surely deserves me But I think you do [Pre-Chorus] So I cry, and I pray, and I beg [Chorus] Love me, love me Say that you love me Fool me, fool me Go on and fool me Love me, love me Pretend that you love me Leave me, leave me Just say that you need me So I cry and I beg for you to Love me, love me Say that you love me Leave me, leave me Just say that you need me I can't care 'bout anything but you [Verse 2] Lately I have desperately pondered Spent my nights awake and I wonder What I could have done in another way To make you stay Reason will not reach a solution I will end up lost in confusion I don't care if you really care As long as you don't go [Pre-Chorus] So I cry, and I pray, and I beg [Chorus] Love me, love me Say that you love me Fool me, fool me Go on and fool me Love me, love me Pretend that you love me Leave me, leave me Just say that you need me So I cry and I beg for you to Love me, love me Say that you love me Leave me, leave me Just say that you need me I can't care 'bout anything but you (Anything but you) [Outro] Love me, love me Say that you love me Fool me, fool me Go on and fool me Love me, love me I know that you need me I can't care 'bout anything but you

Summertime

Written By: Mikey Way, Ray Toro, Gerard Way & Frank Iero

Artist: My Chemical Romance

Released: 2010

“Summertime” is a ‘new wave’ song, allegedly believed to be written about frontman Gerard Way’s wife, Lyn-z Way. In an interview, Gerard said that it started as a riff Mikey had written, before evolving into a song they ‘couldn’t have the record without.’ “[“Summertime”] is one of the lyrically personal songs on the album, whereas the rest of it is just me talking about my worldview. So it’s a really beautiful song and again—no rules. We can have a soft song.”

[Verse 1] When the lights go out Will you take me with you And carry all this broken bone Through six years down In crowded rooms and highways I call home? Is something I can't know till now Till you picked me off the ground With brick in hand, your lip-gloss smile Your scraped-up knees and [Chorus] If you stay, I would even wait all night Or until my heart explodes, how long until we Find our way in the dark and out of harm? You can run away with me anytime you want [Verse 2] Terrified of what I'd be As a kid, from what I've seen Every single day when people try And put the pieces back together Just to smash them down Turn my headphones up real loud I don't think I need them now 'Cause you stop the noise and [Chorus] If you stay, I would even wait all night Or until my heart explodes, how long until we Find our way in the dark and out of harm? You can run away with me anytime you want [Post-Chorus] Well, anytime you want Well, anytime you want [Guitar Solo] [Bridge] Don't walk away, don't walk away Don't walk away, don't walk away! [Chorus] 'Cause if you stay, I would even wait all night Or until my heart explodes, how long until we Find our way in the dark and out of harm? You can run away with me [Post-Chorus] Or you can write it on your arm You can run away with me Anytime you want

[bluevelvet-redroses]

Blue Velvet & The Goth Song That Was Going To Feature Its Soundtrack

The scene in Blue Velvet where Jeffrey and Sandy slow dance together to the beat of Julee Cruise's hopeful yet heart-wrenching dream pop song "Mysteries of Love" is probably one of the most beautiful scenes in the movie. However, it wasn't the case originally.

In late 1984, gothic dream pop collective This Mortal Coil would release their first album "It'll End In Tears". This Mortal Coil was a collective of artists signed to the alternative music label 4AD in the eighties, and it would mostly cover folk and rock songs from other artists (from Big Star to Talking Heads).

The second track of It'll End In Tears is a cover of Tim Buckley's "Song To The Siren", performed by Liz Fraser and Robin Guthrie of gothic dream pop group Cocteau Twins, who also covered Roy Harper's "Another Day" in the same album.

David Lynch had particularly grown fond of This Mortal Coil's version of Tim Buckley's classic, and it was his favourite song around the time Blue Velvet was filming in 1985. They even rehearsed the dance sequence with This Mortal Coil's cover during the filming of the movie.

However, the rights to This Mortal Coil's cover of Song To The Siren were particularly expensive, something Lynch couldn't afford due to the small budget of the movie.

So instead, Lynch and Badalamenti composed Mysteries of Love with Julee Cruise (who also made the french horn cover of the instrumental for the movie!), giving it a completely different feel than This Mortal Coil's. Instead of something haunting and sad, it gave something heavenly and pure, which only intensified Sandy's prediction.

Lynch finally ended up using This Mortal Coil's Song To The Siren eleven years later in Lost Highway. Though one could say the gothic elements of Blue Velvet are not all gone if we just take a look at Jeffrey's black wardrobe throughout the movie!

Source: Pitchfork's review of Blue Velvet's soundtrack.

[joeys-piano]

An-tag-onist game

Tagged by @words-after-midnight, whom I'm currently beta-ing one of their oldest projects and have only read two original fiction works for pleasure this decade and I'm happy to say that theirs is one of them. The other one is "On Earth, We're Briefly Gorgeous" by Ocean Vuong. Which says something about the things I actually read, but that is neither here nor there.

Tagging (if you'll like to play along because y'all have interesting tastes): @feu-eau, @somuchanemoia, @voxofthevoid, @paleborza, @bowties-are-cool3000, @astralalmighty, @rebrandedbard, @hellfridge, and @walkinaroundtheuniverse and any of the rest of y'all who stumble upon this!

---

Rules: Have some fun by making an antagonist/villain, morally gray, or otherwise complicated character answer for their (alleged) fictional misdeeds, horrible and/or hilarious. BONUS: Add a poll to let public opinion decide what should be done with them. (Or just do it in the tags. Up to you.)

The accused: Kni | Nai | Millions Knives | "Hundreds Spoons" from Trigun Stampede

Evidence Against Him (in no specific order)

Chad™ body

Evil™ snuggy

Knife tentacles

Vaulting through a window through the thrust of his own pelvis

The voice of someone you'd spill your guts to and he'll sell you out for one (1) potato chip

Started a neo-catholic cult to enslave humanity under desperation, featuring himself and his twin brother as Adam and Eve-esque, Revelation-style angels here to deliver humanity to its end and blah blah blah blah blah

Kept a man alive for 150+ years to genetically modify and enhance the remaining BIPOC and disabled denizens of Noman Land to carry out the violence deemed "necessary" to show his twin brother that people aren't worth saving

Forces his brother into ultimatums where the end result is the same: his brother doesn't save anyone or keeps the promises he intends to keep and this further isolates him from the people he cares about until Knives is the only one he's certain with

Gaslight Gatekeep Girlboss

Manslaughter

Loves his brother

Obsessed with his brother

Judges humanity on one (1) readthrough of the entire Bible, disregarding vast literature and actual history of what humanity can do and done

Has a body count in the thousands + the left arm of his brother, that he personally chopped off and is probably in preservation somewhere

Then gave his brother a bloody gun

Taunts him to kill a woman who is by no means a substitute to the mother figure he lost, but is an important person in his life whom he cares for and is cared back

Evil™ piano soundtrack whose title is his own name, that three notes into the song his twin brother knows shit is about to go down and rushes to where the music is the loudest to try to protect everyone from this madman

The horrors™ of the last two episodes of season 1, enough said

The intentional, institutional, and personal robbery of other's autonomy -- that any action not premediated in his grand game is a fault that lies outside of his own jurisdiction and should by no means exist, that there is no concept of free will or free choice because it's his way or the highway

Loving an idea of his brother so much that he violates said brother's memories and personal well-being, re-alters it into his image, and kills the things about his brother that makes his brother -- well, his brother

The audacity

Speaking as an asexual, I think a lot of his conflicts could be resolved if he got laid every now and then

Worst birthday present ever™

The way he slowly, deliberately, caresses down line that shot out from his brother's mechanical arm before he cuts it with a knife -- like there was some unresolved tension of an ambiguous but not ambiguous nature going on there; like, what a power move and a choice to just, just thread a finger over the one thing that seperates from your brother from your ideals and from the world he wants to live in before you take it -- and take him -- under

He alive

In His Defense

Loves his brother

The last three or four minutes of season 1 episode 3, where he unleashes the millions of knives like the mouth of armageddon and then it swallows an entire city -- it was cruel, it was badass, and it was a stunning animation sequence

Also that entire first confrontation with Vash in episode 3??? He has the air of someone truly frightening, just killed someone in a saloon, bathes his feet in dirty blood as he walks up to Vash -- voice soft, low, and saccharine; unafraid that there's gun on him, lightly touches the nuzzle, that I'm very convinced that if these two were not related there would be fanfics about the lovers to enemies tension going on in that saloon. And fuck, I know Knash or whatever the ship name is is a thing, and I'm frankly shocked that there aren't any fics I could find that focuses on the brothers to enemies to vaguely twisted lovers vibes that was in that scene. Were we all just sleeping on that, or what???

In their adulthood at 150+ years, Knives has never personally touched his brother. Like, skin to skin contact. Until the very last episode of season 1. It's always been personally impersonal. Like the touch of Vash's nuzzle. Skimming a finger over the steel line from Vash's mechanical arm. Knife tentacles stabbing Vash through the back. So close, yet so far. In that he wants to, really wants to, wants to bridge the gap from their childhood. And it's a sad thing, narratively, that the only first time he touches Vash -- like to skin to skin -- is when it looks like he's going to kill his brother for an ideal he wants Vash to believe in and it's like Knives accepting that of all the people he sent to hurt Vash, he will be the final person to hurt him the most.

[mijetboi]

so, i've unlocked a vast majority of the jukebox tracks in sonic frontiers, and looked up the rest of the list out of curiosity.

there were lots of good choices there, but i felt like there was stuff missing. if they ever end up updating the list with more songs in the future, here's some tracks i would love to have:

- supporting me (original... never really liked the gens 3ds or forces versions)

- bingo highway (my favorite sonic heroes track, honestly a biased choice)

- crisis city (original, modern, or classic, i'm not picky... kinda shocked it's not actually in)

- catch me if you can (i was disappointed by the lack of spinoff tracks)

- sea bottom segue (favorite lost world track, another biased choice)

ok, now just a little rant to add on to my disappointment that there were no spinoff tracks (not counting secret rings and black knight as spinoffs):

the lack of team sonic racing tracks is CRIMINAL. such a great soundtrack. bingo party, boo's house, lost palace... hell, i'm shocked green light ride wasn't even included, but whatever, i guess they have their reasons.

okay, with that TSR rant out of the way, i'll just continue my list.

- friends (i feel like the hyper potions era of sonic games from about 2017-2019 gave us some of the most fun music in a long time, but i also just love hyper potions)

and then i guess lastly, it would be cool to have some more tracks from frontiers itself to listen to other than just "i'm here", at least just throwing in the titan's boss fight themes would have made me happy.

the track list though, all things considered, is really good. i'm really glad that speed highway made it, despite the version chosen not being my favorite version, and it's just nice to hear crush 40 again.

ok, tangent over. if there were any tracks yall would have liked to see, comment or whatever, idfk how this works

[brucenorris007]

AGH!

I have another brainworm today, courtesy of scrolling through @gayemeralds​ blog last night and seeing their take on the Sonic films, which I haven’t even watched except for a few clips this morning. And it may or may not be apparent at this stage, but when my brain sees something broken in a fandom I love, IT STARTS SPITBALLING WAYS TO FIX IT, so... Here we are again.

(I’mtryingtoworkonONEFICrightnowandtumblrjustkeepswaggingfixationsinfrontofmystupidbrainadfadfasdflsdafjslik)

Primary issue with Filmverse Sonic: the themes don’t match. Not within the canon of the filmverse, but against just about every other iteration of Sonic that’s ever existed; there’s a de-emphasis on freedom and exploration and more of a focus on security, home being a single place, and finding happiness staying still. 

NOW, part of the reason for that is that Sonic is given good cause to feel more nebulous about a nomadic on-the-move lifestyle than other incarnations, as the opening of the first movie shows us. Instead of running being his personal freedom, it’s framed as necessary for his safety against a threat that’s immediately made very tangible, so the idea of not having to run anymore and finding a place he can return to would be a source of comfort, not unrest for him (barring dealing with the trauma of his guardian sacrificing herself for him, natch.)

Simple enough to remedy, methinks; if you want to maintain Longclaw’s role in the story–and actually, the first few minutes does pretty decently setting up the ‘chosen one AND just some guy’ dichotomy for Sonic–then just spice things up with a little subtlety.

How about Longclaw realizes one day that a threat, may or may not be made clear it’s the Echidna tribe, has found the island and so she pulls one of the cons parents sometimes do; “Say, Sonic, I think we should play a game today. You’ve been good about staying cooped up, I know it’s hard. How about you take these rings and see if you can hide out on a different world? I’ll come looking for you in a little while; make sure you do a good job hiding! Take some extra rings in case you get lost.” 

Obviously, she doesn’t follow, Sonic waits her out until he realizes she isn’t coming, he might find his way back to Mobius and discover her fate or he might not; in any case, he still ends up on Earth, running from his past (and from those looking for him, whether or not he knows it) and in doing so, learns to find comfort in being on the move.

Bonus, that initial betrayal of his trust makes him wary of bonding with anyone, adults in particular. Also, if the movie knows what its doing, don’t reveal all the origin stuff outright in the first five minutes; hint at it throughout and then give the audience a WHAMMY when he finally talks about feelings because he learns to trust later in the film, or even in the second film. 

Alternate opening: slow fade in, a scene of grassy knolls, gradual pan out to reveal a highway and power lines, confirming we’re on Earth and not Mobius. Still shot, music, then SHOOOOM! blue blur tearing past breaks the soundtrack. 

Cut to a stretch of highway farther on, SFX tell us the blurs’ moving from stage right and going to come into shot; a car appears in eyeline first, and the streak of blue leaps into bushes off the main drag.

Car passes. Spines pop out. Green eyes glance after the car’s rear bumper. Sonic’s voice starts narrating over his actions.

“I know what you’re thinking; you’re wondering, who’s that handsome blue devil?” etc. etc.

Maybe that’s just me. ANYWHO. That explains Sonic’s fierce independence and initial wariness to interact with others and why he feels the way he does about a static life in the same place. We’ve gotten rid of that part of the “happiness can be found standing still” theme. The other portion stems from Tom’s existence, which was another complaint and I’ll get to that, but first!

What breaks Sonic’s status quo of hiding and self-isolation? Who does he interact with first? 

Maddie.

He finds an injured animal–bird, rodent, any small critter he could actually carry–and being the inherently good dude he is, wants to help. He tries on his own, since anything else would require approaching humans, before he admits the problem is beyond his capabilities and he looks for a vet: hence, Maddie. 

Maybe initially he goes at night to help him avoid being seen, before it sinks in that people and even vets have working hours and so he camps out as near town as possible while remaining hidden until it opens and drops off the injured critter at the back door and making a racket to guarantee someone will find it. He only watches the place long enough to assure himself that the birdie’s been helped properly before he runs again.

He hopes that’s the end of things, that he doesn’t have to put himself at risk of being seen again, but no; he keeps finding wayward, inexplicably weak/injured creatures in the forest (OOH, this can tie into Robotnik) and so against what he thinks is his better judgement he keeps making drop offs. 

At some point, he becomes just a touch too comfortable with it, because the animals are getting help each time and he isn’t getting caught, and one night he naps a little longer than he means too outside the back door to the clinic and Maddie sees him. *Cue awkward beat of silence as they both realize several things, and Sonic wants to flee but he can’t move too fast before he passes off the injured birdie* 

Lacking anything else to say to the bright blue talking hedgehog that’s been dropping off nearly half of her recent patients, Maddie politely asks if he’s had any problems he wants looked at. Sonic gives her a wary glance and a shake of his head before disappearing again. 

Contact established, an acquaintance and subsequent friendship can develop. Sonic lingering longer at drop offs, checking in on his tiny rescue critters, Maddie inferring that he likes being off the grid and takes pains to hide lingering quills or other traces he leaves behind without meaning to, she starts smuggling snacks into work because she doesn’t know whether this skittish little friend-shaped creature last ate, inevitably Sonic shows up at her door injured himself.

Maddie reaches a point where she realizes Sonic should probably be exposed to more interaction/socialization/beings who can talk to him than the quasi-daily five minutes he spends with her.

Enter Tom. 

Now, whether or not Tom needs to exist in the filmverse at all is up for grabs, but let’s run with the thread of keeping him. First and foremost, he cannot be a cop, or at least cannot stay a cop unless he’s only there for a minor comic relief part and showing police ineptitude when it comes to or compared against Sonic. SO. 

We make him a liiiiiiiitle bit of a human parallel to the blue blur. Let’s say he’s... a few years younger. Not a teenager by any stretch, he still lives on his own, but he’s lost; emotionally, spiritually, whatever. Got his own sad story to tell or not tell, pretty new to the force, certainly not a sheriff. In limbo w/ no family, not unlike Sonic, not particularly interested in being a cop but applied to for the job “For security, I guess. We need to put down roots, right? (he said, sounding only marginally sure at best)” 

Closet nerd–might be relevant for second film when he meets Tails and they can mutually geek out over ancient stuff–secret desire to explore the world, possible amateur history buff, and the last thing he shares in common with Sonic is that he’s friends with Maddie. Since Tom doesn’t take his job all too seriously and, in Maddie’s words “Only thinks he’s a grown up” she figures he’s the ideal person to just hang out with Sonic a little. “Y’know, if you want to talk to somebody while I’m at work.”

(Also, Tom’s holding onto a power ring that’s since lost its luster, though he obviously doesn’t know what it is and this could help break the ice between him and Sonic so they have more than superficial conversations and also tie into lore about the emeralds being on Earth later and Tom’s obviously not got some super important lineage or anything he’s just some guy like Sonic but the ring found its way to him and adfsdfsdf MOVING ON.)

Then, Robotnik. He’s.... very very clearly characterized in the films to cater the stories toward young children to get them into Sonic. Or to be what some people think cater more toward young children; it’s not that kids wouldn’t like the other incarnations of Eggman that already exist. 

The aim of his portrayal’s another issue: fact remains, he’s only just kinda gets a pass as Eggman. There’s not really much trace of the hyper-calculating straight up mean bastard we all know Robotnik is. He does mean things, sure, but I mean... eh. Rather than investing quite so much in him being funny, nudge that aim slightly to the left closer to unhinged. Because as anyone on this site will tell you, unhinged leads to some downright hilarity. 

Make his status as a respected intellect on Earth more begrudging, establish somehow that a lot of people think he’s lost a fair bit of the plot because he’s held the existence of Mobius as a pet theory for years and no one’s listened to him. Remember when I mentioned him earlier? Have him doing experiments and screwed up things to the wild critters because his machines have detected traces of peculiar energy signatures lingering around them; energy that emanates from Sonic. 

Also, that guy who apparently... makes him coffee? Simps for him? Haven’t watched the films, and even seeing clips I don’t remember his name, but HO BOY THE POTENTIAL THERE. You could take either the Snively route from SatAM or something closer to the comics/games and have one of the extra clips at the end of the first film’s credits (or in the midst of the second film before revealing Eggman’s returned) be the crony’s robotization. It’d be so easy to frame things in a way that’s funny enough on the surface for kids while the millennial fans will be laughing for entirely different reasons (”WHAHAHAHAHAAAAT THE FUUUHUHUHUUUCK!”)

Ahem.

Finally, the plot: my brainworm hasn’t quite progressed that far yet. But Robotnik would somehow discover evidence of Sonic’s existence and thus get an absurd amount of funding for hunting the hedgehog from the government, the police get involved, Tom Does Not Like how the police handle getting involved, Sonic ultimately grows enough to declare that he’s made friends and/or trusts the humans who’ve helped him, decides to start fighting instead of hiding, beats Robotnik (sends him to another world? I think that happens at the end of the first film?) and Tom is called in for doing some or many things against orders/regulations/whatever and he’s told he’s on suspension. 

Then, in a subversion of every other scene we get when a cop is being suspended, when he pulls off his badge and looks at it and we get the close up shot of him holding it–contrary to every other such shot I can remember–it’s dirty. Damaged in action instead of something pristine, something to feel conflicted about. Someone says “It’ll be detailed and good as new when you come back.” Tom ends his role in the scene with “Don’t bother. I don’t want it.” 

And he makes his exit.

Movie closes out (I thought maybe a spark between Maddie and Tom could model for Sonic a different kind of love than the one of a guardian or a friend, but it’s not essential) with the question of what Tom and Sonic are going to do now that the former’s quit his job and the latter’s existence has been outted. 

Tom: “I dunno. But actually, I’m... I think I’m okay with that.” (Growth enough to let go of the idea that he could fix his restlessness by tying himself to one spot)

Sonic: “Lay low, I guess. Might pop over to another world for a bit,” (in response to sad looks) “I’ll definitely visit, though. Need my chili dog fix.” 

“Nothing else?”

Cue Sonic opening his mouth for a wisecrack, and instead he chooses to let some vulnerability show through on his face. Maddie discreetly pulls out her phone to take a picture, realizing she doesn’t have any of her two friends in the same place at once.

Click.

Tom, for some reason, blinks, looking a little dazed, and Sonic refuses to make eye contact with either of them. They say their goodbyes and he speeds off.

Cut to Maddie checking her camera roll, only for a small miracle to greet her.

An almost perfectly captured millisecond of Sonic hugging Tom. 

Soundtrack fades in over Tom driving into the sunset, driver’s side window rolled down and most of his life packed in the bed of the truck, a map for South America splayed open in the shotgun seat, the power ring hanging from a string around his neck. Close out on Sonic narrating again, introducing himself, upbeat tone notably more genuine than at the start of the film.

“I’m Sonic–Sonic the Hedgehog!”

[thegnasticious]

‘Ghosts’ by Nine-Inch Nails

So it’s Halloween time again, and I’ve found another creeper feature. This time it’s Nine-Inch Nail’s ‘Ghosts’. I originally heard about this album around 2009 but did not want to check it out at that time, it took me about thirteen years to coincidentally see it again, and I decided to find out what it was all about.

I will start with saying that my knowledge of Nine-Inch Nails is fairly limited. This is the only full Trent album I have in my library (otherwise is various singles from David Lynch productions.)

Well this album is put simply, creepy. It is at its core a soundtrack for fall, and the setting in of leaves. It highlights the omniscience of a coming death, which renews spring through usually, a frozen winter. Many different times seem to single a sense of alarm (sirens, deep bass tones, strangers flutes/horns) it truly sounds like a soundtrack taken from a dreamscape, rather than a major 90’s electro metal band. You would not think this album came from Nine-Inch Nails simply put.

Driving to Wisconsin was the way I was introduced to this album, and it fit the drive perfectly. At many moments the music sounds more like something from the score of a Lynch flick than anything else, the album is instrumental and it can go from something you’d sleep to, to something that would clearly wake you up in a heartbeat. Some might call this pacing schizophrenic, but when you look it as a whole, it’s quickly realized it is fundamental to understanding the album as an experience, not a single song in any way.

This makes this album highly atypical of its time, and in some lights it’s like modern Beethoven. I say this because it holds back in no way, and charges forward blindly. It is an angry bull, and it’s set on goring someone before it’s over. In this way Ghosts shows its true colors, and how behind every ghost is a horrible horrible death (after all they wouldn’t be ghosts without that, would they?)

I wouldn’t go as far as to call it Avant-Garde though I would assume it’s falsely labeled as so. In a way it’s like classical horror music. It leaves you hanging, provides resolve where it’s not needed, and drops it off where you would not usually expect it.

Driving and listening to it was an ethereal experience. I imagined the composer was not Trent, but some shadow in my studio. And now that I was leaving, it was having at this beautiful sounding album all in an empty space; an album wrote by and for nothing. If that didn’t define this album, I don’t know what will, honestly.

If Lost Highway 2 ever has a reason to exist (it doesn’t don’t worry) it will likely be scored with this music. Something about the music, is highly alike to driving at night on a country highway. It feels almost extra-terrestrial, as if the music itself is gliding above, looking down on you. This is something that seems to be hard to find in modern media, and in all honesty, I think it’s a damn shame.

David Bowie wrote highly of Nine-Inch Nails, and I couldn’t quite understood why, until I truly gave this album a chance. The versatility in this album, shows harmonic capacities which go far out of the accepted pop spectrum. It sounds more like a dissected ‘Prisoners’ score than an album at points, and that in my opinion works much in its favor.

For ten bucks, you’ll get around 34 2 minute tracks, if you decide to take the dive. I’d suggest doing so, but plan a nice drive for the experience

4.8/5

[mondoradiowmse]

07/03/24 Mondo Radio Playlist

Here's the playlist for this week's edition of Mondo Radio, which you can download or stream here. This episode: "Dead Men Fall", featuring classic industrial and more. If you enjoy it, be sure to also follow the show on Facebook and Twitter!

Artist - Song - Album

Throbbing Gristle - Still Walking - 20 Jazz Funk Greats

Throbbing Gristle - Discipline (Manchester) (Live) - 20 Jazz Funk Greats

The Normal - T.V.O.D. - T.V.O.D. (Single)

The Normal - Warm Leatherette - T.V.O.D. (Single)

Fad Gadget - Insecticide - The Best Of Fad Gadget

Cabaret Voltaire - The Set Up - #7885 Electropunk To Technopop

Cabaret Voltaire - Nag Nag Nag - #7885 Electropunk To Technopop

Killing Joke - Butcher - What's THIS For…!

Killing Joke - Follow The Leaders - What's THIS For…!

Rainbirds - Fireworks (I Don't Wanna Miss That) - Rainbirds

Front 242 - U.Men (LP Mix) - Back Catalogue

Nitzer Ebb - Control Im Here - Belief

Front 242 - Special Forces - Back Catalogue

SPK - Metal Dance - Trevor Jackson Presents Metal Dance: Industrial Post Punk EBM Classics & Rarities 80-88

Test Dept - The Unacceptable Face Of Freedom: Face 3 - Trevor Jackson Presents Metal Dance 2: Industrial New Wave EBM Classics & Rarities 79-88

Front Line Assembly - Digital Tension Dementia - Digital Tension Dementia (Single)

Meat Beat Manifesto - Wavy Line - Actual Sounds + Voices

KMFDM - Vogue - Money

My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult - After The Flesh - The Crow (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Skinny Puppy - Tin Omen - The Singles Collect

Download - Glassblower - The Eyes Of Stanley Pain

Godflesh - Flowers - Merciless

Ministry - Dream Song - The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste

Al Jourgensen - International Intro - Animal Liberation

1000 Homo DJ's - Supernaut (Trent Reznor Vocal Version) - Black Box - Wax Trax! Records: The First 13 Years

Nine Inch Nails - Terrible Lie - Pretty Hate Machine

Trent Reznor - Driver Down - Lost Highway

Coil/Nine Inch Nails - Gave Up (Open My Eyes) - Recoiled

[newmusicweekly]

Seraphina Sanan is the Fresh Voice of Gen Z

Metal/ Pop Punk Artist Seraphina Sanan’s debut single “Left It All Behind” unleashes powerful Queen-inspired sound of multi-talented 15-year-old Chicago singer/songwriter   15-year-old singer/songwriter Seraphina Sanan releases her debut single, “Left It All Behind,” produced by NI Music Group at Sound City Music. The first of six original tracks by the talented young artist (also set to release through NI Music Group), this initial pop-influenced ballad hits hard on the universal theme of relationships gone sour, bridges burned, and lessons learned. In true punk rock fashion, the gifted Chicago Academy for the Arts student adds: “When I burn a bridge, I stand on it to make sure the other person knows I’m burning it down.” “Left It All Behind” presents a deep dive into the crazy life of an American teenager, chronicling a summertime friendship that fell apart before the start of school and the promise of a new connection lost. The perfect soundtrack for a sunny day highway cruise, the song introduces audiences to Seraphina’s trademark courageous vulnerability expressed through impactful songwriting, along with her signature Queen-inspired sound that meshes beloved genres of rock, pop, and heavy metal.   “This song was hard to write because the memory is still fresh,” shares Seraphina. “Losing the friendship was tough, but it taught me to stop dealing with fake friends and people who only want to use me.”   Introduced Read the full article

[pauszkopkodo]

Released in 1997, LOST HIGHWAY is a neo-noir film co-written and directed by David Lynch and stars Bill Pullman, Patricia Arquette, Balthazar Getty, and Robert Blake. The film’s surreal narrative follows a musician who begins receiving mysterious VHS tapes of him and his wife in their home, and who is suddenly convicted of murder, after which he inexplicably disappears and is replaced by a young mechanic leading a different life. Director David Lynch has described it as “psychogenic fugue” rather than a conventionally logical story.

The film’s soundtrack features an original score by Angelo Badalamenti (Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive) and Barry Adamson, as well as songs by artists such as David Bowie, Trent Reznor, Nine Inch Nails, The Smashing Pumpkins, Lou Reed, Marilyn Manson, and Rammstein. In New Orleans, Lynch collaborated with musician Trent Reznor. Two songs by Reznor and Nine Inch Nails, “The Perfect Drug” and “Driver Down”, were specifically composed for the film. Reznor then produced the soundtrack album. The album reached No. 7 on the Billboard 200 and reached Gold status in the United States.

Lost Highway, Various Artists, Produced by Trent Reznor and David Lynch, Waxwork Records, 2022, 25th Anniversary double LP. Design: Matt Needle

[brokehorrorfan]

Lost Highway's original motion picture soundtrack is available on vinyl via Waxwork Records. It features music composed by Angelo Badalamenti (Twin Peaks), Barry Adamson, and Trent Reznor (Gone Girl), plus songs from Nine Inch Nails, David Bowie, The Smashing Pumpkins, Lou Reed, Marilyn Manson, and Rammstein.

Priced at $42, the remastered double-LP album is pressed on 150-gram splatter colored vinyl. It’s housed in a gatefold jacket designed by Matt Needle with a heavyweight art print insert.

[herrlindemann]

METAL EDGE - January 1998

Just how far should a band go to win over a crowd? Rammstein go further. Some nuisances breathes flames, Till Lindemann sings while engulfed in them. And that’s just to open the show. With only a handful of American dates under their belts, the buzz surrounding German industrial metal giants Rammstein is spreading like wildfire, propelling their Sehnsucht debut to gold status only six months after its release, and earning them the second headliner’s position on Korn’s Family Values Tour. That may seem a bit ironic for a band whose lyrics hammer from brazen metal imagery to treading a fine line between sweetly erotic and disturbing sexual extremes. Then again, when the song titles in question are smash single and MTV Buzz Clip “Du hast” — which translates to English, “You Hate” — and the more provocatively penned “Küss Mich,” “Tier” and “Spiel mit mir” — “Kiss Me”, “Beast” and “Play with me”, respectively — the risk of being too risqué is lost. Rammstein are from Germany, sing in Geman, and according to guitarist Richard Kruspe, who joined me on the phone from his homeland with a translator for a pre-Family Values interview, they write their music in German, as well. Write music in German? Whether listening to their pair of tracks on David Lynch’s Los Highway soundtracks—edits of “Rammstein” and “Heirate Mich”, their American unveilings— or any of the tracks of Sehnsucht, they slam with all the eerie forbidding of a militant strike, twisting American metal and industrial with their foreign flair, for results that crash between hollow hauntings and throbbing mayhem. Live, the six imports from the other side of the crumbled Iron Curtain detonate more explosions than an air raid, and spew enough sexual imagery to dement even the sickest set of Family Values. Behold, America, the wrath of Rammstein is upon us…

PG: Were you expecting to get this big, this fast, here in America?

RK: Yes, we knew right away! (Laughing) Of course, we didn’t expect this. Everybody told us in the beginning that this would never happen, and the project would lead to nothing. But we always stuck to what we were doing, and it was a big surprise that with German lyrics and German music we would make it anywhere, especially in the United States. We feel very honored and proud.

PG: Do you have any plans to sing to American audiences in English? Or will you continue in German?

RK: In the history of Rammstein, there was one time when our record company asked us to translate at least one of our singles into English because they were afraid that they wouldn’t work in the U.S., and we were, of course, curious to do that and listen to the songs in English. The fast was, the U.S. DJs, at radio stations, refused to play the English song, they wanted to play the original German song. That was when I understood that you couldn’t jump from one language to another, because it does change the song. The German language is very important to go along with the music, it fits the music, and is an important part of the picture.

PG: Do you feel odd singing lyrics to audiences that can’t understand them?

RK: It was funny to perform in the U.S., hearing people sing along and knowing that they probably didn’t know what they were saying. But it was fun for us to hear people not singing, but shouting the lyrics. The audiences were emotional, and we were touched by that. It reminds me of back when I was a child, singing along to English songs, not understanding what I was singing, but just singing along because I had to. The same thing is happening now in the U.S., so it’s very nice!

PG: What songs were you singing?

RK: (laughing) AC/DC… «  TNT, » « Highway to Hell »…Songs with key words that were repeated throughout the entire song, like our « Du Hast » and « Sehnsucht ».

PG: I was amazed by the extreme sexual content of the lyrics when I saw an English translation. The lyrics are only in German on the CD sleeve too, do you think fans realized what the songs are about?

RK: It come across on an emotional level. The people who sing along get the message, and of course they’re interested in what they’re singing. We believe that the people that are interested enough will translate the lyrics.

PG: So it’s like a humanitarian mission. You’re compelling the American youth to learn German by enticing them with sexual lyrics?

RK: (laughing) It would be very nice! But we’re a band which is trying to awaken interest in Rammstein. If fans are interested in learning the German language, because of the subjects themselves, that would also be very nice.

PG: Wit the sexual content of lyrics, especially the incestual songs, do you fing it ironic you’re on the Family Values tour?

RK: Those lyrics have different questions which occur within them, not only about incest and sexual situations, but they’re love songs in extreme forms. For me, live is all about relationships, between woman and man, you and music…The lyrics aren’t scandalous, they’re just love songs from extreme angles. It’s written and sung in Rammstein’s language to express the extremes of life. There is no link lyrically to the Family Values tour, it wasn’t intended to be ironic, it was just coincidence, a matter of timing.

PG: Overseas, some of America’s favorite bands, including Metallica, have reportedly asked not to perform after Rammstein, due to your spectacular live show. Are you aware of that happening at all on Family Values?

RK: There are several bands on the Family Values tour, and in the beginning, when we were asked to do the tour, we were told we’d be playing in the beginning. We said that would not be possible for us. We didn’t want to come over to the United States and play in front of empty halls (while audiences are filing in). Due to the success we are having now, we’re second headliners. We’re happy to be second headliners, because when you headline a tour like Family Values, you’re responsible for the whole evening. The second headliner doesn’t have those responsibilities on their shoulders, so you can experiment. It’s easier, there’s not as much pressure, so we’re pleased. If any band has to say that they will not play after Rammstein, it is just due to insecurity about their own performance.

PG: This is your first real tour of America. Are you looking to turn a lot of heads and steal the show?

RK: This is a Korn tour, and Rammstein are very happy to be invited to play with them. A lot of fans will attend the dhows just for Korn, and we’re aware of that fact. The essence of an evening like this isn’t for people to walk out saying that someone played the best, but for the to leave the venue and say that they had a fantastic evening and saw five great bands with five great performances. The goal for Rammstein is, being on the Korn tour, to be able to play for so many people and play as well as we can. Hopefully the other bands will do the same and it will be a smashing evening for everybody.

PG: What do you think it is about Rammstein that appeals to American audiences?

RK: If I would know why our success came so out of the blue in America, I would put together 10 bands and send them on the road, but it’s a mystery. The chemistry in the band is so essential because you have six characters onstage which are able to link the music and the lyrics, which fit together, to the public, the audience, and there is no f.cking way for the audience to turn away. They have to look at the stage because there is a singer who is able to express, in a very visual way, the songs with the lyrics, and each and every member of the band has a way to bring the message to you. In the end you are a part of it. Possibly, that is the reason why nobody can escape, and that is why everybody becomes hooked on Rammstein. For me, that is why Rammstein are the first metal ‘boy group » band in the world.

PG: “Metal ‘boy group’ band?”

RK: By that I mean, it’s not a normal band where you have a singer and the band behind them. With Rammstein you have six people onstage and each one of them is part of the visual aspect of the show, as you would have with a boy group band. You can watch anyone on stage and be satisfied by them.

PG: A heavy-metal answer to the Backstreet Boys?

RK: Yes. (Laughing) That’s a common term here in Europe, ‘boy group’. Also, Rammstein are very unique in a visual way. That makes our show unique.

PG: What are the influences that make Rammstein what it is?

RK: The thing is, we have six very different characters with different musical backgrounds. We were all friends, in different bands, and were unhappy with the bands we were playing in. There were six different meanings when you asked us what music meant to us. We were looking for a new style, one that would be both satisfying to play and listen to. That was our goal when we started. What’s also very important to know, it that grew up in former East Germany, behind the Iron Curtain, and the music that we could listen to was very limited. There were a lot of musical styles and bands that never got released in East Germany. That made us like a white piece of paper that wasn’t really influenced by anyone.

PG: So you weren’t listening to any of the American metal bands growing up, like KISS?

RK: Even in East Germany, you got the information coming across, and big bands, of course, you got information about. You didn’t have records at all though. You had to make tapes from second or third copies. KISS, for example, was an absolute phenomenon. They represented capitalism in its purest sense, and every child was KISS infected because they were so big. Kids wrote KISS on their notebooks, and if the teachers saw it they could get kicked out of school, just for having it written on their books. When I saw one of their videos in the U.S., it took all the illusions away from I what I thought they were about when I was a child. I used to have a poster of them in my room as a child, and when I was 12 years old my stepfather tore it down and into a thousand pieces. I was up all night trying to put it back together, and you can be sure it was hanging the next day. When I saw their video, my illusions faded away, of course you can’t keep the sentiments you had as a child because your imagination is so much bigger than the reality is.

PG: Were there any other American bands you listened to?

RK: KISS was a phenomenon, and you could read about them in a lot of magazines, even in East Germany. I tried to listen to other American bands as well, and as I got older I got really, really into one band, Big Black, a great industrial band.

PG: How about today? Any current bands you like?

RK: I listen to a lot of different bands now, but I’m not particularly a big fan of any one. I really like bands that do their own thing and have their own special way, like Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Suicidal Tendencies, Pantera…Bands with a unique style and a unique face to them.

PG: How long will you guys stay in the States? Is Family Values it, or will America have another chance to see you?

RK: I just hope to survive this tour! (Laughing) It will be the longest tour we’ve ever done. After the tour the most important thing, for me, will be to write another album. Of course, we’ll have to come back though, because America is like a second girlfriend…We’re in love, so we’ll have to come back.

PG: A second girlfriend! How does the first girlfriend feel?! (Laughter)

RK: The first girlfriend is Germany, and we’ve known each other for a long time. She can do without us for awhile!

PG: A lot of American bands can’t sell in America, but do well overseas, and the opposite is true for a lot of European bands. How does Rammstein manage both?

RK: We know magic! (Laughing) I don’t really have an answer for that because the only thing I know is that it’s happening! If it stop happening, we’ll question what we’re doing wrong and fix it, but so far it’s been perfect.

[graveyarddirt]

Lost Highway: Favorite Track Poll

Dust off the old records and hunt down the CDs in storage, we're celebrating October 30th by listening to the original Lost Highway soundtrack and casting a vote for our favorite track.

01. "I'm Deranged" David Bowie 02. "Videodrones; Questions" Trent Reznor featuring Peter Christopherson 03. "The Perfect Drug" Nine Inch Nails 04. "Red Bats with Teeth" Angelo Badalamenti 05. "Haunting & Heartbreaking" Angelo Badalamenti 06. "Eye" The Smashing Pumpkins 07. "Dub Driving" Angelo Badalamenti 08. "Mr. Eddy's Theme 1" Barry Adamson 09. "This Magic Moment" Lou Reed 10. "Mr. Eddy's Theme 2" Barry Adamson 11. "Fred & Renee Make Love" Angelo Badalamenti 12. "Apple of Sodom" Marilyn Manson 13. "Insensatez" Antônio Carlos Jobim 14. "Something Wicked This Way Comes" Barry Adamson 15. "I Put a Spell on You" Marilyn Manson 16. "Fats Revisited" Angelo Badalamenti 17. "Fred's World" Angelo Badalamenti 18. "Rammstein" Rammstein 19. "Hollywood Sunset" Barry Adamson 20. "Heirate Mich" Rammstein 21. "Police" Angelo Badalamenti 22. "Driver Down" Trent Reznor 23. "I'm Deranged" (reprise) David Bowie

Be sure to cast a vote [reply to or reblog this post] and we'll see which track'll claim ultimate victory on Halloween morning. 🎃

[beevean]

Favourite video game composers?

Where do I begin.

Fumie Kumatani is a legend among legends, responsible for some of the finest, most emotional works in the Sonic games, especially in Adventure 1 and Unleashed. At Dawn? Tricky Maze? Tikal’s theme? Gamma's theme? For True Story? Supporting Me? The Last Scene? High and Broken? Gaia Gate? Cool Edge Night? Skyscraper Scamper Day? All hers.

Jun Senoue? Hello? The perpetual banger machine? Giving us quality content since 1994? Even excluding the facemelting masterpieces that are the Crush 40 songs, I cannot possibly link all of my favorite works, my man can go from the hardest buttrock to the most somber piece. If you love an Adventure rock track, it was composed by him. Hell I even like some of his Sonic 4 work!

Tomoya Ohtani sort of replaced Senoue in the 10s, and he evolved an "anime" style, but before that his versatility had no peers and he’s also extremely prolific. The Knuckles raps, The ARK, His World, Wave Ocean (both with the help of Mariko Nanba) Crisis City (+ Classic and Modern remixes), Flame Core, End of the World, Endless Possibility, Windmill Isle Day, Rooftop Run Day (+ Classic and Modern remixes), Aquarium Park’s themes, Sea Bottom Segue, Infinite’s theme, Egg Gate, Mortar Canyon...

Kenichi Tokoi has been with us since Sonic Jam and I can't get enough of his jazzy, energetic style. You have no idea how many bangers he composed, and few people appreciate him! He gave us The Dreamy Stage, Egg Carrier’s theme (with some help from Kumatani), Mechanical Resonance, Unknown from M.E. (the good version), Battle Highway, all of Cyber Track themes, Sand Ruins, The Palace that Was Found, Unawakening Float, It Has Come To This, the Werehog Battle theme, Dragon Road Night, Jungle Joyride Night, Crimson Carnival, Planet Wisp’s themes, Terminal Velocity, Battle with Death Queen... I could go on forever. (and not Sonic related but Spaceship Strut has been living in my head rent free for years)

Hideaki Kobayashi! The one who can put an entire orchestra and choirs in a GBA soundchip! The one who gave us the delightful intro and history themes of Mega Collection! The one who made my favorite non-orchestral final boss theme (and horribly underrated) in the series! The one who gave us Solaris’s themes, the Egg Dragoon theme, Perfect Dark Gaia’s theme and Nega Wisp Armor’s themes! And easily the best staff roll theme in the series!

Yutaka Minobe is hella underrated, and his tracks often stand out in the soundtracks. He did The Doom, Ice Mountain, Music Plant, Lost Jungle, Deep Woods and the third Infinite boss theme.

Same for Mariko Nanba, who gave us Circus Park, Dusty Desert Quicksand, Tropical Jungle, White Acropolis, Kingdom Valley, Aquatic Base, Coral Cave, Haunted Ship and many of Colors’ area themes. (basically she’s half the reason ‘06′s ost is the greatest)

Tatsuyuki Maeda is not a name that you read often, but he also made some of my favorite tracks, from Volcano Valley to Gene Gadget, from Egg Rocket to Ocean Base.

Hideki Naganuma needs no introduction. Rush’s OST is iconic.

Naofumi Hataya and Masafumi Ogata, the geniuses behind CD's original soundtrack (and Sonic 2 8-bit, a personal favorite of mine), are a mandatory mention. Hataya also did a number of tracks outside of CD, like Ocean Palace, Mystic Mansion, Gems Collection’s OST, Terminal Velocity’s area theme and Ghost Town. (Ogata also did Ristar’s Crying World, one of my favorites from that game)

And finally, Tee Lopes, who earned his rightful place among the greatest after one game, and then proceeded to bless us more in Team Sonic Racing and even outside - that cover of Underground Zone he did with Senoue? Bliss <3

... And these are all just Sonic composers :p

Kenji Yamamoto is the most consistent composer for the Metroid games, and responsible for the masterpieces that are Super Metroid's and Metroid Prime's OSTs. Of course, special shoutout to Minako Hamano for giving us Maridia Rocky Underwater Area and Ridley’s theme, among other tracks she was not specificially credited for :) I know she was hugely responsible for Fusion’s OST, at least.

Yasumasa Kitagawa and Hiromitsu Maeba are by far my favorite composers for Ace Attorney, although they only did The Great Ace Attorney (and the crossover with Layton). Objection 2015, The Great Pursuit, Herlock Sholmes' theme, Barok van Zieks's theme, Kazuma Asougi’s second theme, The Game is Afoot, The Great Secret Trial... Aside from them, Noriyuki Iwadare is by far the most famous AA composer, and I like him a lot too, but he’s basically the Jun Senoue of AA, I don’t know where to begin with him lol. Maybe with Trials and Tribulations’ Objection theme, now the de facto Phoenix’s theme.

Hidenori Shoji, the man who has been carrying the Yakuza franchise since its inception! I’m only familiar with his work on Yakuza 0 but holy shit what a work - I am so weak for this kind of eclectic style. I mean, this guy gave us Receive You and its many different remixes!

Megaman had a ton of composers, too many to list, so special shout out to Yasuaki Fujita (main composer of MM3′s OST) Toshihiko Horiyama (main composer of X1′s OST, plus Apollo Justice’s), Naoto Tanaka (main composer of X5′s and X6′s OSTs, plus Justice for All’s), Ippo Yamada (general composer of the Zero series - a few examples of his work: Enemy Hall, Departure, Cannon Ball, Straight Ahead), Masaki Suzuki (many of Zero 2′s best tracks are his) and Shinichi Itakura (the one who graced us with Falling Down among other tracks :P).

Jeremy Soule is mostly famous for his Skyrim work. I know him for composing the OSTs of the first three Harry Potter games :P at this point tracks like Hogwarts’ theme, Diagon Alley and the title screen of Prisoner of Azkaban are part of my genetic makeup.

And of course, the one and only Michiru Yamane. Symphony of the Night is just her flexing as hard as she could - she could go from Marble Garden to Lost Painting to Festival of Servants in one game with no struggle. And before that, Bloodlines’s OST is an underrated gem in the Genesis library.

(also, as a bit of a footnote: NicolAmarfi and Blue123. I love Katawa Shoujo and its music so much, even if it’s a small indie visual novel)

[ageless-aislynn]

Ugh. So sorry to have dropped off the face of the earth these past couple of days. We’ve had a ton of power outages and then, when the power WAS on, our Internet kept going down.

So, I’ve been having a ton of power-free, Internet-less fun, as you can imagine.

Anyway, will be trying to catch up on everything I missed. The only good thing: I still can’t get down that dang Coastal Highway section of ODST on Legendary (the LAST LEVEL ZOMG I JUST WANT TO FINISH PLEASE HELP ME PATRON SAINT OF VIDEO GAME PLAYERS IF YOU ARE OUT THERE). But if I would’ve been playing and been winning and almost got to the end and then BLAMMO power outage so it didn’t count...?

So at least I was spared that, lol.

I actually took a break from playing on Legendary and went back and played the entire game through on Easy because I do truly love it! The visuals and the soundtrack both combine to make the most amazing atmosphere!

I mean, just listen to “Deference for Darkness” and you’re right there with the Rookie in the dark and quiet Mombasa Streets, exploring the devastation and searching for clues as to what happened to your team - but beware of stumbling across enemies as you go! Just beautiful.

Link to entire playlist, if you’re interested. 💖

I was so stoked that they added the Acrophobia skull to ODST, so now you have the ability to fly but... they didn’t lift the invisible barriers or the dang death barriers oh c’mon so you can’t go up very high or out of bounds very far. *SAD FACE* I was really looking forward to exploring around at greater lengths like you can on Halo 2 (which I still consider an almost perfect game in so many ways in my very limited experience *chef’s kiss*).

Anyway, like I said, I’ll be trying to catch up on things today and if I seem to miss something, don’t hesitate to let me know! I’m also getting back to writing. On the menu we have...

...in the Halo section: “15 Minutes” Chapter 6 and “Recreation” Chapter 3. And over in the ZOMG I just want to finish these WIPs they’re so old and I feel so guilty that I didn’t get them done section aka The Flash: “Guardian Angel” Chapter 3 - 5 (estimated) and “Cupid’s Kiss” Chapter 3 (conclusion).

I’ve quietly closed off any other Flash fics that I originally intended to add to and have temporarily shelved WIPs that were never posted, like “Try” (aka The Big Beast of ReverseSnowThawne) and “The Price” (Frosthunter). Those last two really bug me because I honestly do love them and I think they’re worth finishing but I’ve just lost my mojo for the Flash. I know what I want them to say but when I work on them, they sound lifeless and cardboard and it just makes me feel frustrated. I still hope to one day come back to them. “Try” has 3 chapters done but I didn’t want to start posting them until I knew for sure I was going to finish it. Conservative estimate on that one is something like 25 - 30 chapters, it’s a BIG story with actual worldbuilding and the like so it’s a large commitment that I didn’t want to flake out on. 😥

“The Price” has a grand total of one (1) person who said they’d like to read it and, darn it, that’s enough for me to wish I could get it done. 😕

Ah well, I can only do my best, right?

Anyway, if you read all of this, here, have a delicious, freshly baked cupcake!

...or have a hug...

...or just a friendly nod of acknowledgement, whatever works for you! Have all 3, if you’d like!

🤗💖

[thesunlounge]

Reviews 381: Forgiveness

Forgiveness is the Moscow-based collaboration of Alexander Kalinin and Ilya Kasharokov, and with their self-titled debut on Not Not Fun, the duo have produced an inward gazing suite of old skool ambient, chill-out, proto techno, and trip hop constructed from sampler, synth, guitar, and field recordings. The result is an intoxicating head haze of broken balearica—and a soundtrack for futuristic Soviet sunrises and beaches of alien origin; for slow motion night cruises down coastal highways and for visages of melting skies; for city streets soaked in rain and a haze of neon noir; for dystopian skylines merging with sea and cloud; and for seedy adventures into the depths of the dark.

Forgiveness - Прощение (Not Not Fun, 2022) In “Бытие (Being)” wah wah waves wash to shore and edge-sanded bass pulses surround echoing clacks while romantic guitar plucks reflect in the moonlight, with soft noir flecks caught in spiderwebs of tape delay. “Ноябрь (November)” comes to life on menacing bass lines that almost seem to growl with animalistic intent, while ping ponging layers of slapback delirium refuse to align. Slowly, a low slung groove moves into focus, pulling the body into a sumptuous late night swing, with synth bass thumping, primitive rhythm boxes snapping and cracking on the beat, and crazed synth echoes blasting all across the spectrum while space guitars wail in the distance…blending at times with the dissonance of the electronics to create ghostly howls and subdued screams that merge with the heady hazes of the night. 

“Трезвый (Sober)” begins with a trip hop beat stutter—this slow and spacious cut up groove flowing beneath melting keys and sub bass mutations. Claps pitter, patter, and pop across the sky, G-funk spectres pan across the mix evoking faded remembrances of block party dream days, and everything is pitched down to a dopamine drug crawl…the vibe tweaked out, ultra-stoned, and completely at odds with the title. “Рандеву (Rendez​-​vous)” ends the side in further lazy hip-hop remembrances, as kick, clap, and heroin funk bass move in slow motion between jangling ripples and golden soul vocals that warble under a fog of wow and flutter. Phaser and flangers whoosh and whorl while ska strokes climb shimmering stairways of light, and tambourines and shakers further entice the body into island dub hypnosis…the whole thing not unlike some long lost Ruf Dug remix of A Vision of Panorama.

The B-side opens with “Аббис Адеба (Abbis Adeba)” and its mystical sequencing and exotic polyrhythmic world percussions evoking faraway deserts on exoplanetary systems. Sickly synths spray alien vapors and filtering arpeggiations bath the mix in hues of otherworldly neon as the bass lines grow increasingly insectoid, all before everything fades to nothingness. “Восход (Rise)” is aglow in the light of a thousand balearic sunsets, with tremolo guitars flowing in from panoramic horizons and shimmering pads riding harmonious bass waves from the edges of infinity. Echoing shakers stretch out over the surface of shimmering oceans, bongos beat hippie beachside beats, and toms smash and bash bombastically while balmy currents of fuzz guitar bathe the soul in a warming glow of psychedelic sound. 

“Болото (Marsh)” follows this chill-out meditation with charging disco kicks, wiggling technoid basslines buried under layers of industrial filtering, and subaquatic synthesizer scientifics, as airs of Detroit strongly suffuse the spectrum. Spaghetti western guitars anachronously echo across the mix while futurespace electronics filter into wildly unrecognizable forms, with everything held together by rigidly claustrophobic displays of machine drum madness. “Исход (Outcome)” closes the tape with calming cave clatters, sanded soundbaths, and beaming voices obscured by layers of pinging computronics. And as twinkles of metal merge with trace smears of clean guitar romance, everything coalesces for a moment of mystical fourth world dub…as if the musical transmissions of UNKNOWN ME have been given a soft studio rework treatment by Basic Channel.

(images from my personal copy)

[cardest]

New Orleans playlist

Hungry for some po boys? Feeling the Mardi Gras vibes for this weekend? This is the ultimate NOLA playlist, right here. Play the songs here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-iHPcxymC182dTlE-Gii6ZOO5ZrN1Z1T

Louisiana and New Orleans, all in the one awesome playlist. If there are songs I left out, let me know and I can add those. Or come meet me at Le Bon Temps Roulé  and we’ll listen to this NOLA playlist together with drinks.

LOUISIANA & NEW ORLEANS

001 Bob James - Take Me To The Mardi Gras 002 Earl King - Ain’t no city like New Orleans 003 John Lee Hooker - goin’ to Louisiana 004 Crowbar -  Wrath Of Time By Judgment 005 True Detective - Theme (The Handsome Family - Far From Any Road) 006 EyeHateGod - New Orleans Is The New Vietnam 007 The The Meters -  Chicken Strut 008 Paul McCartney - Live And Let Die (from Live And Let Die) 009 The Rolling Stones - Brown Sugar 010 Lucinda Williams - Crescent City 011 King Hobo -  New Or-Sa-Leans 012 Concrete Blonde - Bloodletting 013 Down - Underneath Everything 014 True Blood Theme Song (Jace Everett - Bad Things) 015 Corrosion of Conformity -  Broken Man 016 The New Orleans Jazz Vipers - I Hope Your Comin' Back To New Orleans 017 Willy DeVille - Jump City 018 Left Side - Gold In New Orleans 017 Necrophagia -  Reborn through Black Mass 018 Johnny Horton -  The Battle Of New Orleans 019 Dr John - Litanie des Saints 020 Foo Fighters - In the Clear 021 Redbone - The Witch Queen Of New Orleans 022 Jucifer - Lautrichienne 023 Danzig - It's a long way back from hell 024 Harry Connick, Jr. -  Oh, My Nola 025 The Gaturs - Gator Bait 026 Jon Bon Jovi - Queen Of New Orleans 027 Cyril Neville -  Gossip 028 Carlos Santana - Black Magic Woman 029 Gentleman June Gardner - It's Gonna Rain 030 Eddy G. Giles - Soul Feeling (Part 1) 031 Tool - Swamp Song 032 Beasts of Bourbon -  Psycho 033 Seratones - Gotta Get To Know Ya 034 Chuck Berry -  You Never Can Tell 035 Grateful Dead - Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodleoo 036 Pale Misery - Hope is a Mistake 037 Exhorder - Homicide 038 King James & the Special Men - Special Man Boogie 039 Chuck Carbo -  Can I Be Your Squeeze 040 Amebix - Axeman 041 Tomahawk - Captain Midnight 042 Waylon Jennings - Jambalaya 043 Heavy Lids - Deviate 044 Red Hot Chili Peppers -  Apache Rose Peacock 045 Necrophagia -  Rue Morgue Disciple 046 Johnny Cash -  Big River 047 Albert King -  Laundromat Blues 048 Meklit Feat Preservation Hall Horns - You Are My Luck 049 Le Winston Band  - En haut de la montagne 050 Dr. john - I Thought I Heard New Orleans Say 051 Down -  New Orleans is a dying whore 052 Samhain -  To Walk The Night 053 Creedence Clearwater Revival -  Green River 054 Southern Culture on the Skids -  Voodoo Cadillac 055 Bonnie, Sheila -  You Keep Me Hanging On 056 Warren Lee -  Funky Bell 057 Elf - Annie New Orleans 058 Cannonball Adderley - New Orleans Strut 059 Doug Kershaw - Louisiana Man - New Orleans Version 060 Willy deVille  - Voodoo Charm 061 The Animals -  The House of the Rising Sun 062 Porgy Jones -  The Dapp 063 Lost Bayou Ramblers - Sabine Turnaround 064 IDRIS MUHAMMAD - New Orleans 065 John Lee Hooker - Boogie Chillen No. 2 066 Hank 3 - Hillbilly Joker 067 Nine Inch Nails -  Heresy 068 Talking Heads - Swamp 069 Irma Thomas - I'd Rather Go Blind 070 Mississippi Fred McDowell -  I'm Going Down the River 071 Dee Dee Bridgewater   - Big Chief 072 Dr. John  - Creole Moon 073 Agents of Oblivion -  Slave Riot 074 Steve Vai - Voodoo Acid 075 Saviours -  Slave To The Hex 076 Kris  Kristofferson -  Casey's Last Ride 077 JJ Cale - Louisiana Women 078 Cher - Dark Lady of New Orleans 079 LE ROUX - Take A Ride On A Riverboat 080 The Melvins -  A History Of Bad Men 081 Floodgate - Through My Days Into My Nights 082 Opprobium - voices from the grave 083 Quintron & Miss Pussycat - Swamp Buggy Badass 084 Child Bite - ancestral ooze 085 Sammi Smith - The City Of New Orleans 086 The Explosions - Garden Of Four Trees 087 Bobby Boyd - straight ahead 088 Bobby Charles - Street People 089 Wall of Voodoo -  Far Side of Crazy 090 Rhiannon Giddens - Freedom Highway (feat. Bhi Bhiman) 091 Elton John - Honky Cat 092 Serge Gainsbourg - Bonnie and Clyde 093 Fats Domino - I'm Walking To New Orleans 094 Cruel Sea - Orleans Stomp 095 Down -  On March The Saints 096 Danzig -  Ju Ju Bone 097 The Neville Brothers ~ Voodoo 098 Megadeth -  The Conjuring 099 Miles Davis - Miles runs the voodoo down 100 Elvis Presley - King Creole 101 Led Zeppelin - Royal Orleans 102 The Lime Spiders -  Slave Girl 103 BIG BILL BROONZY  -'Mississippi River Blues'   104 Kreeps - Bad Voodoo 105 Dirty Dozen Brass Band -  Caravan 106 Kirk Windstein -  Dream In Motion 107 Eletric Prunes - Kyrie Eleison - Mardi Gras 108 Merle Haggard - The Legend Of Bonnie And Clyde 109 Corrosion of Conformity -  River of Stone 110 THE ADVENTURES OF HUCK FINN (MAIN TITLE) 111 Zigaboo Modeliste - Guns 112 ReBirth Brass Band - Let's Go Get 'Em 113 Inell Young -  What Do You See In Her? 114 Jimi Hendrix - If 6 as 9 (Studio Version) Easy Rider Soundtrack 115 Deep Purple -  Speed King 116 Exhorder - The Law 117 Crowbar -  The Cemetery Angels 118 A Streetcar Named Desire OST - Main Title 119 WOORMS - Take His Fucking Leg 120 steely dan - pearl of the quarter 121 Tabby Thomas - Hoodoo Party 122 Black Label Society -  Parade of the Dead 123 Dwight James & The Royals - Need Your Loving 124 Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter (2012) The Rampant Hunter (Soundtrack OST) 125 PanterA - The Great Southern Trendkill 126 Ween - WHO DAT? 127 Earl King - Street Parade 128 Ernie K-Doe - Here Come The Girls 129 Dejan's Olympia Brass Band ~ Mardi Gras In New Orleans 130 Body Count -  KKK Bitch 131 Goatwhore - Apocalyptic Havoc 132 C.C. Adcock - Y'all d Think She Be Good To Me (from True Blood S01E01) 133 The Meters - Fire On The Bayou 134 Dr. John - I Walk On Guilded Splinters 135 Balfa Brothers - J'ai Passe Devant ta Porte 136 Ween - Voodoo Lady 137 King Diamond -  'LOA' House 138 Creedence Clearwater Revival - Born On The Bayou 139 Dax Riggs -  See You All In Hell Or New Orleans 140 Professor Longhair - Go to the Mardi Gras 141 Dixie Witch -  Shoot The Moon 142 Ramones - The KKK Took My Baby Away 143 Fats Waller -  There's Going To Be The Devil To Pay 144 Mississippi Fred McDowell -  When the Train Comes Along with Sidney Carter & Rose Hemphill 145 Treme Song (Main Title Version) 146 Tony Joe White - Even Trolls Love Rock and Roll 147 Nine Inch Nails -  Sin 148 Exodus -  Cajun Hell 149 NEIL DIAMOND - New Orleans 150 James Brown - Call Me Super Bad 151 Jimi Hendrix -  Voodoo Child ( Slight Return ) 152 Allen Toussaint - Chokin Kind 153 Dash Rip Rock  - Meet Me at the River 154 Hawg Jaw- 4 Lo 155 Hot 8 Brass Band - Keepin It Funky 156 Hank Williams III - Rebel Within 157 Dejan's Original Olympia Brass Band - Shake It And Break It 158 Jelly Roll Morton -  Finger Buster 159 The Royal Pendletons - (Im a) Sore Loser 160 Little Bob & The Lollipops - Nobody But You 161 Gregg Allman - Floating Bridge (True Detective Soundtrack) 162 Michael Doucel with Beausoleil - Valse de Grand Meche 163 Dolly Parton - My Blue Ridge Mountain Boy 164 Othar Turner & the Afrossippi Allstars – Shimmy She Wobble 165 Jucifer - Fleur De Lis 166 Soilent Green -  Leaves Of Three 167 Ides Of Gemini -  Queen of New Orleans 168 Betty Harris -  Trouble with My Lover 169 Lead Belly - Pick A Bale Of Cotton 170 Candyman Opening Theme 171 Goatwhore - When Steel and Bone Meet 172 Acid Bath - Bleed Me An Ocean 173 Pere Ubu - Louisiana Train Wreck 174 Walter -Wolfman- Washington - You Can Stay But the Noise Must Go 175 Alice in Chains -  Hate To Feel 176 Body Count -  Voodoo 177 Live and Let Die - Jazz Funeral 178 Smoky Babe -  Cotton Field Blues 179 Professor Longhair - Big Chief Part 2 180 Lewis Boogie - Walk the Line 181 James Black - Theres a Storm in the Gulf 182 The Balfa Brothers - Parlez Nous A Boire 183 The Jambalaya Cajun Band - Bayou Teche Two Step 184 The Deacons -  Fagged Out 185 Thou - The Changeling Prince 186 Black Sabbath -  Voodoo 187 King Diamond -  Louisiana Darkness 188 Doyle -  Cemeterysexxx 189 KINGDOM OF SORROW - Grieve a Lifetime 190 Hank Williams III - Louisiana Stripes 191 FORMING THE VOID - On We Sail 192 BUCK BILOXI AND THE FUCKS - fuck you 193 Down in New Orleans - The Princess and the Frog Soundtrack 194 Trombone Shorty & James Andrews  - oh Poo Pah Doo 195 Whitesnake -  Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City 196 The Dirty Dozen Brass band - Voodoo 197 Joe Simon - The Chokin' Kind 198 Down -  Ghosts along the Mississippi 199 AEROSMITH  - Voodoo Medicine Man 200 Nine Inch Nails -  The Perfect Drug 201 The Byrds - [Sanctuary III] Ballad Of Easy Rider 202 The Iguauas - Boom Boom Boom 203 PJ Harvey - Down By The Water 204 Louis Armstrong - Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans 205 Dr John - Right Place Wrong Time 206 ESTHER ROSE - handyman 207 Lightnin Slim - It's Mighty Crazy 208 Slim Harpo - Blues Hangover 209 Irma Thomas - Ruler Of My Heart 210 WEATHER WARLOCK - Fukk the Plan-0 211 Superjoint Ritual - The Alcoholik (Use Once And Destroy) 212 Stressball - dust 213 Trampoline Team - Kill You On The Streetcar 214 Xander Harris - Where’s your Villain? 215 Dukes of Dixieland - When The Saints Go Marching In 216 Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds - Su Su 217 Danzig - I'm the one 218 EyeHatteGod - Pigs 219 Hank Williams Jr - Amos Moses 220 The Cramps - Alligator Stomp 221 Crowbar - The Serpent Only Lies 222 Shrüm - drip 223 Thou  - The Only Law 224 DR. JOHN - Babylon   225 Garth Brooks - Callin' Baton Rouge 226 Wild Magnolias - All On A Mardi Gras Day 227 NCIS New Orleans TV Show theme 228 Skull Duggery - Big Easy 229 Harry Connick Jr. - City beaneath the sea 230 Elvis Presley - Dixieland Rock 231 Tom Waits - I Wish I Was In New Orleans (In The Ninth Ward) 232 Neil Young - Everybody's Rockin 233 Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals - Delinquent 234 CORROSION OF CONFORMITY - Wolf Named Crow 235 Widespread Panic - Fishwater 236 Lillian Boutté - Why Don't You Go Down to New Orleans 237 Bryan Ferry - Limbo 238 Scream - Mardi Gras 239 EyeHateGod - Shoplift 240 Better Than Ezra - good 241 Duke Ellington - Perdido (1960 Version) 242 Bob Dylan - Rambling, Gambling Willie 243 Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - sAve my soul 244 Le Roux - So Fired Up 245 Concrete Blonde - The Vampire song 246 Boozoo Chavis - Zydeco Mardi Gras 247 Idris Muhammad  - Piece of mind 248 Les Hooper - Back in Blue Orleans 249 Doug Kershaw - Cajun stripper 250 DOWN  - Witchtripper 251 Soilent Green - So hatred 252 Professional Longhair - Big chief 253 Willie Nelson - City Of New Orleans 254 Tom Waits - Whistlin' Past The Graveyard 255 Brian Fallon - sleepwalkers 256 Patsy - Count It On Down 257 Into the Moat - The Siege Of Orleans 258 Bruce Cockburn - Down To The Delta 259 Jello Biafra · the Raunch and Soul All-Stars - Fannie Mae 260 Exhorder - Asunder 261 Cane Hill - Too Far Gone 262 The Slackers - peculiar 263 Crowbar  - A Breed Apart   264 COC - Wiseblood 265 Necrophagia - Embalmed Yet I Breathe 266 EYEHATEGOD - Fake What's Yours 333 Alan Vega - Bye Bye Bayou 666 DOWN  - Stone the crow

I don’t beads by the way! Hit play here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-iHPcxymC182dTlE-Gii6ZOO5ZrN1Z1T