#my top 3 favorite songs off each album so yeah

[rubbish78]

Hi my goal is to try to convince at least one of my followers to listen to McFly. They have been a band since 2003 so their music style has changed over the year but it's in the realm of pop/rock/alternative music.

Each album above I’ll recommend 3 of my favorite songs so maybe check them out??? 🤷‍♀️

Room on the 3rd Floor (2004):

'5 Colours in her Hair' (the song that made them famous in UK)

'Room on the 3rd Floor'

'Surfer Babe'

Wonderland (2005):

'She Falls Asleep Part 1 & 2'

'The Ballad of Paul K'

'All About You'

Motion in the Ocean (2006):

'Transylvania' (MY FAVORITE SONG)

'Sorry's Not Good Enough'

'Star Girl'

Radio: Active (2008): my favs album...so every song tbh...

'POV'

'Corrupted'

'Lies'

Above the Noise (2010): my least fav album but it has some bangers

'Shine a Light'

'I'll be Your Man'

'Party Girl' (they hate this song now and refuse to play it live and Idk I just find it amusing. Generic sounding pop song and they felt forced to write it at the time)

The Lost Songs (recorded in 2011/2012 but wasn't released until 2019/2020):

'Red'

'Touch the Rain'

'Josephine'

Young Dumb Thrills (2020):

'Growing Up' - featuring Mark Hoppus

'Young Dumb Thrills'

'Tonight is the Night'

Power to Play (2023):

'I'm Fine'

'Where Did All the Guitars Go?'

'Route 55'

OH and I liked to mention that they helped write some of One Direction songs BTW

+ BONUS ALBUM when they merged with the other band Busted for two years

McBusted (2015):

'Air Guitar'

'What Happened to Your Band?'

'Get Over it"

[tbyfandoms]

Sweet Nothing | Austin Butler x Reader

Pairing: austin butler x singer!f!reader

Word Count: 3.6k

Summary: noticing y/n’s struggle to come up with a final song for her new album, austin offers his help which leads to a trip down memory lane and a whole lot of sweet nothing. based off the song sweet nothing by taylor swift (requested)

Warnings: mild swearing

Masterlist/Request Form | Ask/Tell/Request

A/N: I love this song and I loved writing this fic and that’s really all I have to say. thank you so much to the person who requested this. writing fics based off of taylor’s songs is one of my all time favorite things and I appreciate when people trust me enough to write a fic based off one of their favorites. it truly means the world. enjoy and lmk what you think! love ya’ll so much :) <3

“Dammit,” you mutter, groaning as you slam your hands down on the piano keys. You’ve been at this for hours and nothing, absolutely nothing, is coming to mind when you try to think of lyrics for a new song. At least nothing you can actually use.

All you need is one final song to complete your new album set to come out later this year, but you’ve been struggling immensely to come up with anything. You feel solid with everything else you’ve written thus far for the new record, but you feel like something’s missing, you just don’t know what.

For months you’ve been revisiting your feelings on past relationships and experiences that you’ve never been able to face before. This album has honestly been the most healing and eye opening experience for you. With each finished song you’ve found yourself feeling lighter or more empowered which has been such a surreal experience. For this final song you want to continue that theme of opening up and talking about things that have affected you. But you don’t want it to be heavy like some of the other songs and also don’t want it to be a fun pop-infused track like the rest of them. You want it to be that middle ground. You just wish you knew what that middle ground is.

After a few more minutes of fiddling around with the black and white keys, you hear your boyfriend of six years come in through the front door.

“Hey, baby,” he says as he spots you sitting at the piano in the exact spot he left you in hours ago. “Still working on that song?”

Sighing, you nod your head and rub at your eyes. They’re honestly starting to burn after staring at your notes of random lyrics for so long. You could use a nap right about now.

Austin walks over and places a light hand on one of your shoulders before leaning down and planting a kiss on the top of your head. The action leaves you feeling warm inside and causes a small smile to form at the corner of your mouth. Turning, you look up at him and are met with his pale blue eyes and sweet smile.

“Why don’t I help you? We can work on it together.”

Nodding your head you say, “Yeah, I’d love that.”

Looking around, you try to find something that you can pull up to the piano so Austin can have somewhere to sit. Before you can even glance halfway across the living room though, he’s picking you up by your waist and settling in behind you and placing you on his lap, pulling you back so you’re flush against his chest, his arms wrapped loosely around you.

“Austin!” You giggle, bits of your frustration and struggles already melting away with his presence. “You do realize this stool is not only small but also not that sturdy?”

The blonde hums and you can feel him shrug his shoulders. “At least if it breaks I’ll be the one to hit the ground first. I’ll soften your landin’.”

Rolling your eyes, you chuckle before reaching out for your open notebook. You unhook the pen from the page you left it clipped in and begin to tap lightly on the paper, reading over what little you have on it.

“Do you have any idea what you want this song to be about? Or are you still tryin’ to decide?”

“I guess still trying to decide. I mean you know how special this album has been for me so far.” Unwrapping Austin’s arms from around your waist, you get up and turn yourself around, settling back on your boyfriends lap once you’re face to face. “I just want to keep that feeling going. I don’t know why I’m struggling so much with this. It’s one last song, I’ve dealt with worse pressure and deadlines before I just-I don’t know, it all feels-“

Cutting yourself off, you take a deep breath, suddenly feeling a rush of emotions beginning to bubble to the surface. Maybe it’s the fact you’ve been working for hours or that all of these songs have opened up parts of you you never thought would be open again. Whatever it is, it has you on the brink of tears.

This music has been some of your most vulnerable art yet and you know that there’s a part of you that’s worried it won’t be received well or that it’ll be picked apart. There’s a reason you’ve never closed the chapter on so many of these stories before, your stories. These songs are literally about things and people that have kept you up at night and there’s something awfully scary about releasing something like that, even if you have been doing stuff like this for years. Somehow, it feels different this time.

“Hey, look at me,” Austin cups your face between his hands and tilts his head to try and catch your eyes. He can see the gleam of tears in them and his heart constricts at the sight. He hates the pressure you put on yourself and the pressure other people put on you as well. It’s something the two of you have worked on together over the years, but he knows you still struggle with it deeply, especially with things like this. “I know how important this album is to you and I have no doubt in my mind that you’re gonna figure this out. Forget what anyone else might think, this music is yours and yours alone. Hell, you know you could just throw on a five minute track of you just breathin’ and your fans would think it’s the best damn thing in the world.”

A loud laugh erupts from the back of your throat and you throw your head back, the sound carrying throughout the living room. “How is it you always know the right thing to say?” Wrapping your arms around Austin’s neck, you lean in and rub your nose lightly against his.

“It’s a natural talent, or so I’m told.” The two of you let out breathy laughs before going silent. A beat passes before Austin pulls away slightly. “I just know my girl and I know she’s gonna figure out this song and that it’s gonna be incredible. Just take a breath, sweetheart, it’s just me and you here. You don’t need to worry about all that outside pressure when you’re with me, you know that. I’ve got you.”

It’s impossible to hold back the smile that spreads across your face. Reaching up, you cup the blonde’s jaw in one of your hands and lean in, connecting your lips and quickly falling into a smooth rhythm.

Austin’s lips are soft and warm against your own. Your body practically melts into his, a content feeling coursing through your veins. These moments with your boyfriend, where it’s just the two of you, are some of your most favorite. When you’re with Austin it’s like nothing else matters besides the two of you. The outside world and all the pressure, gossip, and expectations that come with it float away. With Austin, you’re no longer Y/N Y/L/N, you’re just Y/N. In the best way possible he expects nothing from you, unlike previous boyfriends and a large part of the public, all Austin wants is to love and care for you. Honestly that’s all you could ever ask for in a partner.

Trailing your hands down the actor’s chest, you grab onto the pockets of his jacket he has yet to take off, using them to bring him impossibly closer to you. As your fingers settle into the pockets, you pull one hand out as something brushes across it.

Holding the item between two fingers, you break apart from Austin and look down at it, a joyous laugh instantly passing between your lips as you realize what it is. “Aus, no way! I can’t believe you still have this in your pocket!”

“What is it?” Shifting his head down, Austin peers at the small item pinched between your fingers. Recognition flashes across his face and he smirks while shaking his head. “I almost forgot about that! That’s crazy it’s stayed in there all this time, it’s so small, like a firefly.”

Holding it up in the sunlight, your eyes gleam at the small token. The way the sun shines across the smooth surface, it practically does resemble a firefly. To others it may seem like nothing, but to you and Austin it’s a fond memory of one of the few getaways you were able to have without being constantly followed by paparazzi. It’s nothing but a pebble, but the story that goes along with it will always warm your heart.

“Do you remember when we got this?” You ask barely above a whisper, the feelings of the memory already seeping into your mind, a sense of calm and peace settling within you.

“Of course I do. We picked it up last July when we were in Ireland. I remember we found it while playin’ I Spy and walkin’ around the coast one afternoon.” A small smile curves Austin’s lips upwards, the sound of the waves and the feeling of the sun on his skin coming back to him full force.

“It was your turn to guess what I spotted and you picked it up and were so sure that was the thing I was talking about. The smallest pebble in the world amongst a thousand other things and yet you were dead set on making me believe that’s what I saw and that you won.”

Austin’s deep chuckle fills the air as he takes the pebble from your hand. “And I did win. Fair and square and you know it, baby.” The man winks at you before reaching over and placing the pebble on the built in shelf on the wall next to the piano. Dozens of your and Austin’s accomplishments and shared memories line the shelves. It’s one of your favorite parts of the house.

As you stare at the new addition to the collection, an idea comes to mind, a little joke if you will. “I spy with my little tired eye, tiny as a firefly, a pebble that we picked up last July.”

Austin smiles and nudges his head into your neck. “Real specific,” he quips. “Do you think it misses Wicklow sometimes?”

Giggling, you nod your head. “Probably. I know I do. I’d give anything to be back in that town with you again.”

“Me too. We’ll have to go back sometime.” You hum in agreement, the thought seeming really nice.

As you look at your boyfriend and reflect back on that vacation and the thoughts you’ve had since he arrived home, words, no lyrics, start to form in your mind.

Quickly, you untangle yourself from Austin before getting up and turning back around towards the piano. You carefully sit back down on his lap, not wanting to hurt him, and pick up your notebook.

Before your pen even gets a chance to touch the paper, your phone buzzes across the piano’s music shelf.

Picking up your phone, you check to see if it’s anything important. Unfortunately it’s not, it’s merely a news notification that you could’ve sworn you turned off ages ago. Even more unfortunately, the article happens to be about you. Scoffing at the title and the clear absurdity of it all, you hold the device up for Austin to see.

“They said ‘the end is coming’,” you mumble, feeling tired of the constant speculation on not only your career but your relationship with your actor boyfriend as well.

The blonde looks at your phone and rolls his eyes at the bold print he comes across.

EXCLUSIVE! Y/N Y/L/N and the Evident End of Both Her Career and Relationship With Actor Beau Austin Butler!

“Not a chance. Everyone’s up to somethin’, you just gotta stick with what you know and trust that everythin’ will turn out okay. You’re doin’ incredible in your career right now and no matter what anyone says, I’m not goin’ anywhere. You’re it for me, Y/N, no one’s ever gonna be able to compare.”

Austin leans forward and presses a kiss to the back of your shoulder, the feeling making your heart flutter. You scrunch your shoulder up and press your cheek to it, basking in the warmth there as Austin tilts his head down towards you.

“And you wonder why I find myself running home to you every day. How could a girl ever give up a guy that treats her as good as you treat me?”

Nuzzling his nose in the crook of your neck, Austin responds, “I could say the same about you, sweetheart.”

Austin kisses your shoulder again quickly before you toss your phone to the side and pick up where you left off. For a while the only sounds audible in the house are the soft breathing of the man behind you and the rapid scribbles of your pen on paper. Despite the pressure you’re dealing with and the sudden unwarranted gossip article interruption, you feel at ease. Just like Austin said you would, you find yourself rapidly coming up with a final song, the man of the hour ironically becoming your inspiration. You should’ve known you’d end up here, there will never be enough songs to describe the love you and the actor share.

“You know what this reminds me of?” Austin mumbles softly as he leans his head on your shoulder, the vibration of his voice sending chills down your back. You hum in response, not trusting your voice. “Remember that one time we were driving home from…somewhere, I don’t know, but suddenly you just got this random idea out of nowhere and started writin’ this poem on a napkin we had in the glove box.”

“I do!” You grin. “It was called Mirrorball and when I finished writing it and showed you, you turned to me and said ‘what a mind!’. You do realize you say that to me all the time? Pretty much anytime I show you something new I write.” You giggle and sneak a glance over your shoulder, melting at the sight of Austin’s sparkling eyes and coy smile.

“Okay but I was right because you ended up turnin’ it into a genius song that’s still one of my favorites of yours to this day. Everyone loves it and yet has no idea it started as a little poem written on a random car napkin. It never fails to blow my mind how you’re able to come up with this stuff. I hope you realize how talented you are. You’re amazing, Y/N, seriously.”

“Austin!” You squeak, heat rising to your cheeks as you become shy over his words. It’s not that you don’t know you’re talented, it’s just the fact there’s someone else who constantly supports you and understands your art as much as you do. Someone who believes in you wholeheartedly and is genuinely in awe over your life’s work. To have someone be honest with you about it all and be unashamed to admit their astonishment over it is really special to you and you appreciate it a lot. “Thank you, truly.”

Your boyfriend smiles kindly at you, understanding completely how you’re feeling. Somehow he’s always able to do that; read your mind in a way, understand all the things you’re trying to say without actually saying them. You’re not sure when this started happening but whenever it was it was natural and just more of a sign to you that you’ve never had anyone quite like Austin in your life before and you know that you never will again.

“I don’t think I say it enough so I just want you to know how much I appreciate everything you do for me. I know being in this relationship hasn’t always been the easiest and who knows what the future will hold, but yet you’ve always stood by me. You don’t let the noise in and are only ever concerned with what’s happening between you and I alone, never what anyone else thinks of us. You know better than anyone that there are times I fear our relationship will crumble or that something will change and you’ll turn out like every other guy I’ve been with. And I know it won’t and I know you aren’t, I know it with my whole heart, and yet sometimes it still happens but you take it in stride.

“You never pressure me about it all or expect me to be someone I’m not. You accept me for who I am and who I’m trying to be without any questions. We’re not perfect and we have our moments, I know that, but there’s truly no one else in this world I’d rather be with. Outside, there’s an endless amount of people pushing and shoving, both metaphorically and physically sometimes, and yet as soon as I step through that front door it stops. I walk in and half the time I find you humming Elvis songs in the kitchen and it’s like nothing else matters. When I’m with you I’m just Y/N. No pressure, no expectations, nothing, and it’s…sweet. I just want you to know how much I appreciate you seeing me for me and that I love you more than you could ever imagine, Austin.”

Instantly you feel the man’s arms tighten around you, his chin settling on the top part of your shoulder as he holds you close. “I did not expect to get emotional today,” he jokes, his voice quavering, a tell tale sign he’s trying to fight back tears. “I don’t know what else to say besides I love you, Y/N, so so much. You don’t ever have to thank me for all of that but I appreciate it just as much as I appreciate you.”

Reaching a hand up, you thread your fingers in Austin’s hair, turning your head so you can lean it against his as the two of you take in this loving moment. You and Austin express your love to each other practically every day, but you can’t remember the last time it was as intense and deep as this. Your heart feels so incredibly full right now and a small part of you is grateful you were struggling with this song because without that frustration, you would’ve never had this moment with the man you love today, and that thought alone seems unbearable.

After some time passes, Austin begins to shift behind you. You watch as he reaches a hand out and grabs your notebook from the piano. He hums as he reads over what you have so far, majority of it based off things you were discussing earlier. His lips twitch happily as he gets further down the page and it’s not long before he asks, “Can you hand me that pen?”

You happily oblige him, intrigued in whatever it is he plans on doing. Austin’s quick with it, he brings the pen up to the top of the page and in an instant he’s finished. After he places the journal back on the piano you take a moment to look over what he wrote. A satisfied sigh escapes you and a smile forms on your lips as you’re met with the most perfect title and the missing words you couldn’t quite place for the refrain.

“Well, I think you just earned yourself some writing credits, Mr. Butler,” you tease, squeezing the hand still wrapped around your waist.

“I guess you’re not the only lyrical genius in this house then, are you?” Austin begins to pepper kisses all around the side of your face which causes you to erupt in a fit of giggles. You squirm against him and a thought flashes in your mind that if this keeps up, the piano bench may actually collapse. But hey, at least you’ll have someone to catch you, to soften the landing, and a part of you feels content in knowing that. Sometimes things happen and you end up getting knocked down, but it’s not so bad when you’ve got someone there to help you get back up.

Luckily, the two of you settle down and get situated. Just as you were earlier, you begin to play around with the piano keys. Based off the lyrics you have so far you feel a soft ballad would be best for this song, not too deep or intense and not too pop-infused; that perfect middle ground.

The notes you begin to play are alright, but you can tell there’s something missing. The beat isn’t quite hitting right as you think about the lyrics in your head, but before you can begin to fuss over it, Austin places one of his hands over yours.

“What if you add this in…”

The blonde’s slender fingers begin to push down on the keys along with yours and soon the space is filled with a tune you immediately fall in love with. Austin continues playing as you slip your hand out from under his and you watch adoringly as he tries to piece together the lyrics with the melody, genuine interest and enjoyment evident in his actions.

You revel in the sight before you, a visual you’ll never quite get over. This has happened before, you and Austin making music together, but each and every time it’s so special to you and you just have a feeling this one’s going to be even more-so.

Glancing at the open journal infront of you, you yet again smile at the title Austin’s written out. He captured the song, the feeling, perfectly.

There’s no other phrase you’d rather use. It all truly is a whole lot of Sweet Nothing.

[cameronprincess]

Valentine’s Day Plans

Word Count: 1,000+

Warnings: Strong Language

AN: Okay what if i said this is my favorite fic I’ve ever written. Maybe it’s because Cal is my cheat lane as well. Happy reading and hope you all enjoy<3

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February 13th 2019

Daniella Walker. The name that is mainstream as she was making her way into the music scene as what the internet calls their "pop princess."

Daniella first had internet fame how everyone does in the early 2010's, by posting on Youtube. From the age of 16 she started posting covers of her singing different popular songs at the time ranging from Halsey to Ariana Grande. First viral video being her cover of Honeymoon Avenue from the album Yours Truly.

Her life changed at 19 when one of her self produced songs called Speechless dropped and became an overnight sensation. Flying from her home country of London, England to countless radio interviews to her first American Music Awards as an attendee and performer at.

That’s when she met some of her longtime friends in the music industry, 5 Seconds of Summer. She met them because she accidentally bumped into a red haired Micheal as she was coming off stage and they were about to take the stage. The two gushing over much they enjoyed each other’s music.

She was a huge Amnesia fan.

Over the years they continued to keep contact with one another. She was featured on their 3rd album Youngblood on their song Want You Back as backing vocals.

Daniella had also become a regular feature in 5SOS content. As well as being posted on their respective girlfriend’s Instagram’s pretty frequently.

For a little while she was considered a groupie when she went to Bali with them in 2016. Until stan twitter quickly defended her from the trolls on the internet claiming how do they not know her.

She was now 24 standing in line at her favorite local coffee and bagel spot in downtown Los Angeles. The line continued move at a slow pace as she hummed along to the beat in her airpods she been sent the night previous. She was absolutely in love with it. She had a studio session set with Max Martin that she definitely couldn't be late for.

He's worked with artists like Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Ariana Grande, and Britney Spears.

It's been a dream of hers to work with him and only her 3rd album that is saying she's gotta be doing something right.

She finally approached Bailey, one of the cashiers she had blossomed a friendship from after being a regular here for 4 months.

"Everything bagel with a side of strawberry cream cheese and Iced Americano double shot with light ice and vanilla creamer!" She shouted to the back. "Hey Daniella."

A smile was plastered on her face. "Hey girlfriend! You'll never believe what I've got planned today." She started as she dug in her purse for her card to hand over for her to swipe.

"Please you're literally a pop star. If you told me you were going to meet up with Kim Kardashian I would probably believe you." She stated in her strong jersey accent as she handed the card back.

"No I wish, but on my bucket list though, maybe I could get a discount on those Skims bodysuits I like. Anyways besides the point here, somehow managed to get a studio session with Max Martin! And cherry on top, the guys are showing up with Ryan fucking Tedder.” She said excitedly as she moved off to the side of the line so other people could move.

"See this is what I mean. It's Thursday at nine in the morning and you're going to work with your hot Australian friends and I'm here covered in flour all day while dealing with the bitches in the back and isn't Max Martin that Swedish dude who's written and produced for basically every A list singer." She leaned against the register.

"Yeah it's so exciting is it not. And Alexis you're so talented at making bagels. Hone in on that." She joked making the curly haired blonde roll her eyes in fake annoyance.

“Your accent makes this sound all posh Dani.”

“Oh whatever.”

"Your beautiful everything bagel and iced coffee m'lady." Bailey turned around to the kitchen workers as she handed her two paper bags one full of her favorite little snacks and the other with her bagel.

"Oh my goodness, you didn't have to do th-." She started.

"Oh please shut up yes I did. You're gonna be late with the hot guys.”

“Text me when you can, I'd love to hear all about it." She smiled.

"Will do."

As she was on the highway on the way to the studio her mind was clouded with thoughts some negative some positive, but mostly negative.

Before she knew it she was finding a parking spot and walking into Capitol Records.

Showing security her badge, she looked down at her Apple Watch and cursed, realizing she was going to be late if she didn’t climb the stairs in under 2 minutes. Thank god for her zumba classes she’s been taking.

Once she figured out what studio she was gonna be in for the next 6 hours, she spotted his long hair and glasses talking to Ryan and the four men sat in the couch in the corner. All of them laughing at something on Luke's phone. She knocked bringing their attention to her standing at the door slightly out of breath.

"Daniella! Pleasure to finally meet you." Max said getting up from the comfy chair to give her hug.

"So nice to meet you too. I'm so incredibly excited and I also see you've invited some of my good friends." She stated nudging Ryan's elbow.

"He had a lot of positive things to say about you." He said sitting back down.

"Daniella you probably know them," Ryan gestured to the men sitting on the couch.

"Know them. These guys are basically a second family to me." She joked.

"I hope you don't mind that I decided to bring them along here to hopefully do some live instrumentals for ya." He told her looking at her with a smile.

"Oh my goodness not at all! It actually sounds so cool. I’ve missed these guys." She smiled widely.

Micheal stood up and gave her a brotherly hug. “Have you gotten shorter?” He joked making Daniella give him the bird.

“Haven’t you gotten weirder.”

“Touché.”

Ashton was next, giving her another squeeze and pat on the head.

Then Luke who did their handshake they made up in Bali together, that neither of them forgot even after 4 years.

Finally it was Calum who smiled at her first and then suddenly picked up her up and spun her around in a circle, earning a loud laugh from Daniella and his signature smile that she still got butterflies from.

Even after her 6 years of knowing him, he still makes her blush like a school girl.

“Alright everyone let’s get to work to hear this beautiful voice of hers.” Max stated turning around and facing the recording booth as Daniella walked in and put on her headphones.

Two hours passed as Daniella stood in the recording booth, recording the second verse. She was mumbling the possible verse in the microphone. The song had a Lorde lyricism with Ariana Grande singing vibe.

She and Max had titled the song Selfish. Max and Ryan giving her corrections if needed. Other than the couple comments or corrections from the group she had total artistic freedom and she loved that.

“Could we leave that first half blank of that chorus and I’ll stack some more vocal layers on that run.” Daniella suggested over the noise of the metronome. “Thank you.”

“Yup sounds amazing.”

While Ryan was stacking her vocals, she leaned next to Ashton's drum kit and told him what pace she needed for the chorus.

Calum was fiddling with his bass strings trying to tune them when Daniella walked over. “So what’s your big opinion on it??”

“I think it sounds bloody brilliant.” He said in a Scottish accent.

“Don’t make fun of the Scottish people.”

“You always seem to forget I’m half Scottish and you’re literally British.” He laughed as she hit his tattooed arm slightly.

Max leaned into Micheal's headset, "Okay Mike start from when Daniella comes in at "I used to be cautious about this and stop when the beat drops back down to the acoustic version that we have prepared.”

3 more hours passed as their session ended and Daniella so proud of the song they had made and gotten mastered.

"Alright, could we schedule another one for Friday morning? We’ve got selfish crossed off the list. We could get started on Messier Things as well." Max asked her looking at his calendar.

She nodded with a thumbs up. "That should work with me."

"It was so good to finally see you guys today. What’s new in the wonderful world of 5SOS land." She asked the boys as they were walking to a lunch spot on the less crowded side of LA so the likelihood of them all being noticed and ambushed by paparazzi was a zero percent chance.

“Going on a promo tour for Easier. Thats literally all. New York, LA, Atlanta, and some overseas.” Ashton said laughing.

"Well whatt are you guys doing for the day of love that happens to be tomorrow." She asked wiggling her fingers together.

"Spending time with Sierra." Luke quickly answered with a smile. He loves that woman more than air it seems. But it’s good to see him so happy.

"Crystal wants to go see some new movie." Micheal stated with a raised eyebrows. He probably had no clue but he was with Crystal and thats all he cared about.

“Oo lemme know if you need a dog sitter. I’ll bring Pepper. Y’know she loves Moose and Southy.”

"Probably just a dinner with KayKay." Ashton’s bright smile came up whenever he talked about KayKay.

"Absolutely nothing." Calum said quickly with a slight eye roll. She knew how he felt about Valentine's Day. He hated that day with every fiber in his being.

"We could spend it together Cal, I'm not doing anything either. It can be like old times!" Reminiscing on when they would go their favorite Ramen restaurant in the city and rewatch Criminal Minds at his house whenever they were both free.

As much as only everyone around them knows, they've had a flirty relationship ever since they've met. But what they don’t know is they claim they’re just friends who have occasionally kissed each other, slept in the same bed, and she's worn his clothes more than once but just friends.

But due to them being too awkward to act upon their obvious feelings, they have no official label on whatever they are.

"Ramen on Melrose it is." He laughed making Daniella laugh along with him.

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Hi, I know you're resting now, I wanted to share my opinion about the album. I noticed that there are five tracks in Face and they are so similar to the 5 stages of acceptance. What do you think about it? Perhaps my question is incoherent, I am writing it through a google translate.

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Ask 2: FACCE IS SAURRR GOOODD!! 😭😭😭 WHEN IS THE REVIEW BPP?

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Ask 3: Which remix is your fav?? I think beans and toast won this won

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Ask 4: Bpp Imma need to go to SK and hold Jm hostage…I need him to make more music…Im going crazy Hes not my bias or my bias wrecker but hes wrecked me…I cant believe that he made my soty my aoty…I just wish the album had more songs…Like crazy is crazy good!!!!

*

Ask 5: BPP, hi!

I was hoping JM would show us a bit of his true self in his new album. And did he, huh? That MV and song reeks of homosexuality. I know it's simething ARMYs do not talk about. But... What do you think?

*

Ask 6: So did Jimin really end kpop for you BPP? Which song is you’re favourite? ☺️ He’s blown my mind at least. It’s Instant AOTY for me!!!!!! I hope Like Crazy is promoted really harf because I think it has really good potential It’s my favorite in the album ☺️

***

Hi Anon(s),

Before we get into it...

...I have a bone to pick with Jimin.

I don’t understand what Jimin thinks he’s doing not putting Letter on Apple Music or Spotify. Like, why does he think that’s a good idea? Does anybody know? This song is so perfect - Jimin's lush vocals harmonizing with Jung Kook's is beautiful - Letter needs to be available on as many platforms as possible. See, these are the kind of choices the tannies make that just causes me to laugh because yeah these hidden songs are 'gifts to fans' but it's also a crime against all that is good and honest in this world to keep it off channels those fans will gladly pay for? The fact Ddaeng is still stuck in Soundcloud purgatory is reason enough to kidnap Bang PD's nephew and sell him to the mafia, far as I'm concerned. The only reasons I haven't done it yet because kidnapping is illegal in my country, the Cosa Nostra require a blood oath, and Jin wouldn't like delays to his game update.

Letter is Promise all grown up, a little wiser and more developed, and I hope in every subsequent album Jimin releases for the rest of his career, that there is a version of Promise, a song that feels like Jimin - comforting, easy, warm, simple, and beautiful. Listening to it I'm so thankful Jimin exists. (Yes Jimin, I'm that fan who is simply happy you're alive - Pixid reference, so for anyone who hasn't watched it yet I've linked it here).

*

FACE is a solid 8.1 / 10.

(Are you streaming?)

It's a great thing Jimin has been so forthcoming in talking about the process and his reasons for making the album, the songs on it, as well as how he had key input on the choreography. I strongly suggest everyone watch his live (linked here - I should probably also mention the English subs aren't up yet, just FYI). Jimin has been very clear about what he's communicating in FACE so I won't tarry on it.

My favourite songs in order of least to most:

5) Like Crazy

4) Face Off

3) Letter

2) Alone

1) Set Me Free Pt 2

Something about each song in reverse order with the exception of Letter - for Letter, see mafia case above.

Set Me Free Pt 2

This is the best song on the album.

Alone

There are two reasons why SMF Pt 2 comes out on top over Alone though Alone in many ways is the superior song. (1) The production (including the use of autotune) in SMF Pt 2 is incredible, and (2) because Alone ends on too disturbing a note for me to dwell on, knowing that it has come from Jimin.

Everything about Alone is perfect. The way the song begins with piano, then guitar, and then drums. Jimin’s voice. That man’s voice seriously fucks with my head. It’s the way I feel every time Yoongi twitches his voice when he’s being particularly nasty. Or anytime I hear Joon’s adlibs in a song. Or what happens in my head every time Hoseok slathers his vocal inflections with grit. I don’t know if I’m making sense, but what I mean to say is that Jimin’s voice during the entire song feels like a gift. It draws you in. And then you hear what he’s singing about...

It’s heartbreaking.

I can’t abide the thought that this is something Jimin went through recently, and that I relate in a very personal way. The emotions expressed in Alone feel too raw, too scary, and too real, and while that could point to a worrying state of mind in its author, I think Jimin’s idiosyncratic bluntness and clarity of speech in Alone shows the state of someone who still reflects often, is self-aware and also resilient.

Still, it’s a sad song to hear, an even sadder one to sing, but it is one of the most powerful and beautiful songs I’ve ever heard.

(He's a problem)

*

Face Off

I appreciate the vision Jimin had for this song. Starting with the gag of him playing the Flea Waltz in the intro - the song the members have teased Jimin with repeatedly by saying it's the only song Jimin knows how to play on the piano - Jimin used that common (good-natured) taunt and then weaponized it in a song putting those who have crossed him in their place. It's clear by the second verse when Jimin raps that he's pushing himself to express what he means in as many ways as possible. He's challenging himself and sending a message, and that I can respect.

Anon in ask 1 who talked about the album showing the five stages of grief, I agree sort of. If we were to assign a response to each song, I'd say...

Face Off is Anger

Like Crazy - Denial (though bargaining works too)

Alone - Depression

Letter - Acceptance

(PJM2 will be madness)

*

Like Crazy

This is my least favourite song on the album because it never really develops, but it's also not supposed to. Jimin has said he wanted to express a dreamlike state in Like Crazy, and he does that impeccably well. The song leans into its 80s groove, heavy padded synths, something reminiscent of if Foster The People and The Weeknd made a song together. The thing about dreamlike states is that they lull your mind, and one easy way to create that effect is repetition and monotony. Think about why someone trying to hypnotize someone else tries to keep their voice steady, calm, and monotone. So, many times listening to Like Crazy I wanted the song to go somewhere, to become fuller or less predictable, but that would kill the trance so it didn't. While it's not my preference, I can appreciate Jimin's commitment to the idea of the song.

It's a great track even then. I sometimes listen to it right after Big Man, Little Dignity by Paramore.

Speaking of Like Crazy, there's been much ado about about Jimin's sexuality, queer-coding, etc in the song and so Anon in ask 5, I see where you're coming from.

Jimin is queer. I don't know what else there is to say about it or why even the mere possibility of Jimin being queer should generate the amount of fuss/discourse it does. It's possible I'm wrong of course, but like you Anon I don't think I saw Jimin even stand straight once during the entire MV. There’s not a single straight thing about this guy.

For the sticklers, perhaps the more diplomatic way of saying it is, 'many of us strongly suspect Jimin is queer.'

(What a stunner)

*

Jimin seems very pleased with his first album and this is my favourite thing about the last few weeks. Watching him for the last nine years, it's gratifying to see how he has fully embraced himself, his limitations, his pride, his vices, his virtues... Jimin is a strong tenacious person and in making this album, he turned that intensity inwards, towards learning to love himself. The result is five great tracks, and I'm eager to see what more he will show us in the future.

[everynya]

when u get this, list 5 songs u like to listen to, publish. then, send this ask to 10 of your favorite followers or moots (positivity is cool) 💖

HELLO NAT!!!! WAVES MY ARMS AROUND

SALUTATIONS ARSENE!! i’m so sorry i took forever to get to this i was in a very bad headspace, but ty for the ask! no one expect too much from me post wise these days i just felt bad i hadn’t answered this yet (imagine u are my 10 favorite followers and i send this to u 10 times cause ngl…i’m just gonna let whoever wants to do it do it, so oomfies if u see this u get my pass to do this cause i cannot have faves!)

hello and welcome to nat’s current top 5 radio hits. i shall share and explain each one like a maniac (i yoinked my top songs i heard these past weeks from my airbuds app)

⭐️ CamGirl >.<!!! - Villiano Antillano

⭐️ Oh Qué Sera? - Willie Colon

⭐️ In The End - Drake Bell

⭐️ Mr. Bass - A.C.E.

⭐️ Run Away To Mars - Khoi Dao, Geoff Bisentte

5. to start off, even if you dont know spanish i recommend her so much…Villiano is a puertorrican trans woman who has been revolutionizing rap for women and does so especially in her album this song is from called Miss Misogyny, let me say THE SONG IS GOODDDD its about sex work and the control and empowerment and the lack of shame and taboo around these things, its one of her many songs in the album that in an interview she says was made for female rappers to claim rap as their own by writing her own songs that dont put women down and are about the control they should have in their music…ive been listening to Villiano since one of the collab songs she did with a popular dj that blew her up years ago and ive enjoyed what shes done. its a trap song so maybe not everyones cup of tea but yeah

4. this song is really good, spanish song of the week i loop. thank fuck it wasnt a reggaeton song. but this song is by a puertorrican (though the song was originally by a brazilian artist, willie reinterpreted the song after a trip to brazil he had) thats generally about believing in things and finding in a sense a love for the unknown, its a really good song that uses a lot of metaphors

3. I can’t share why for this one, sorry, but anyway it’s a good song!

2. this one isnt in my airbuds top songs this week at all. but. anyway. ace. MR BASS NE MAMEUL ULLINEUN RIDEUM MR BASS DALKOMHAN NAUI SOKSAGIME JUNGDOKDOEGO MAL GEOL MR BAS CANNN YOUUU FEEEEL NE IPSURUI TTEOLLIM MR BASS AAAHH MR BASS AHHH

1. OKAY. OKAY. run away to mars but covered by khoi dao (voice actor) makes me all kinds of levels of crazy and every few days i loop it. first of all, this specific va is the voice claim for my oc f/o actually! khoi is such a great guy and ive always adored his voice and i cannot ever unhear the idea of the stupid idiot i made in my head sounding like him. its a very classic ‘liking a song cause you imagine your f/o singing it’ AND ITS SO ON BRAND FOR HIM ANNNDDD MY SHIP. the song fits him and my insert stupidly well

the song underneath has very sad undertones, i feel i can rlly relate to it rn but ill talk abt it more on my ship. its really befitting of these two (esp emi aka the f/o) given the fact that the song not only has the kind of energy where if you dont listen deep enough you can miss its meaning and just enjoy its energy which is very on brand for him but also its so heavily focused on escapism and insecurity in a way where it KILLS ME. the part of ‘three two one i miss you, im sorry i got issues’ makes me sick cause he would truly apologize over the mere fact of having emotions because he tucks them so far away he doesnt believe theyre even real or his (in a way, hes the one who ‘runs away to mars’)…his escapism in a sense is nayla, in the idea that he becomes focused on her faded colors or more so her issues and so he loses what is home and ‘how long till im discovered’ by not just anyone else but himself, he doesnt find on his own that hes having a hard time with himself.

none of this made sense and theres way more to it, but the amount of times ive been unable to not associate these two w this song…. like sorry that my current obsession rn is a ship of two characters i made and makes no sense to anyone but me

[milfmacbeth]

Hi! Your top 5 best and top 5 worst endings of anything that you liked? Could be TV shows, books, movies, podcasts. Thanks!

hi!! thank you for the ask <3

i generally prefer tragic or bittersweet endings over unambiguously happy ones; this will be long; spoilers ahead (obviously)

best endings

hannibal

the wrath of the lamb fucking rearranged my brain chemistry. how do i explain to people that one of the most romantic things i’ve ever seen was a murder-suicide?

technically hannibal was canceled and not ended but in absence of a season 4, i will consider twotl the ending. i don’t even want a season 4 because i can’t imagine any better ending than the one we’ve got. yes, season 3b was a rushed mess of hannibal, will, and dolarhyde playing fuck marry kill with each other, but they stuck the landing so well, and it’s this perfect tragic mix of “this could’ve all been avoided” and “there’s no other way this could’ve ended”.

and yeah the ending is ambiguous and it’s implied they lived but my favorite interpretation is that they died in each other’s arms.

black sails

wars have been fought over the interpretation of this ending. i personally think john silver is lying but whatever your take, jack’s “a story is true, a story is untrue” speech is brilliant and it’s a perfect ending to a great show

fleabag

“i love you” “it’ll pass” I AM NORMAL. 

i love you, female characters written by women. i love you, comedy that turns into tragedy halfway through. i love you, clever use of narrative devices.

this show is damn near perfect, and even though the first thing i did after finishing fleabag was go on ao3 in search of thousands of words of fix-it fic, i wouldn’t change a thing about the ending. 

white fang

i wouldn’t say i have a favorite book, but if i had to answer that question it would either be the iliad or white fang. this is the book that got me into reading.

this book caught me at exactly the right time in my life. i was obsessed with wolves as a kid; i was 11 or so, and my grandma handed me this beautifully illustrated book that had the most amazing old book smell (because it’s been in a wooden attic up until then).

it’s about the life of a wolfdog (more wolf than dog) that was born in the wild but gets tamed/adopted into a dog pack that hates him because they can smell he’s not really a dog and hooo boy does something is wrong with you and others can tell that you’re not like them hit when you’re a lonely child.

anywayyyyyy it ends with white fang, having been adopted by a kind man, lying in the sun, still a little confused/out of his element but content. the ending is bittersweet and thematically fitting and he’s a good dog and deserves it.

the mechanisms

the mechanisms are a band of immortal space pirates telling stories of their adventures. their last album is titled death to the mechanisms and in the eponymous song , they realize they’re not quite as immortal as they thought they were. it’s sad, it’s funny, it’s beautiful, it’s poetic, and it’s a worthy send-off.

if you’ve got six and a half minutes, it’s worth a listen (even without context), if only for gems like “witnesses will say that they have never before seen someone so viciously excited to die” or “his body will float there forever, far beyond the warmth of stars” or “pointless, ignoble deaths the lot of them. but who that lived can really boast otherwise?” (this band is so quotable it's insane)

onto the hating!

worst endings

dexter

what the absolute FUCK was that. i adore this show but the ending sucks so much it feels almost malicious

supernatural

i’m not sure i can answer “do you like supernatural?” without a lawyer present. i was obsessed with supernatural as a teenager, then i stopped watching around season 10 or 11. i decided to rewatch the entire thing after november 5th. 

supernatural would be so good if it was good. i’m a “supernatural should’ve ended after season 5” truther but i admit that some of the later seasons do have their moments.

not the ending though. the ending is so completely beyond parody i don’t even know what to say. castiel is in superhell for gay angels. dean gets nailed by vampire clowns. when i first saw the aged-up version of sam i literally burst out laughing. at least the wincesties got a forehead touch out of it i guess???? i am so glad that i’ve built up enough emotional distance to laugh instead of rage about this because i know my teenage self would’ve had a conniption.

goethe’s faust and euripides’ orestes

they’ve got nothing to do with each other but i have the exact same beef with both of them so i’m just gonna throw them together. 

faust ending: faust loses his wager with mephisto and should’ve by all rights gone to hell but god says ????? (don’t even ask i’m not sure i could explain whatever twisted logic is going on there. something about faust using his devil-bestowed powers for good) and faust goes to heaven anyway.

goethe, my guy, you named the thing faust. eine tragödie. where’s the tragedy i was promised? false advertising. fuck you.

orestes ending: standoff between menelaus and orestes; orestes is holding a knife to hermione’s (menelaus’ and helen’s daughter) throat; this will not end well. or so you thought! at the last possible second, apollo swoops down and fixes everything, tells orestes to marry hermione and ???

nothing is satisfyingly resolved but hey, at least no one’s dead. except iphigenia, and agamemnon, and clytemnestra. this fucking family…

this is what the ancients called deus ex machina and what i call an ass pull.

i just think if you’ve constructed an entire narrative that follows a very clear, specific direction, you shouldn’t then swerve to the left. SEEMS LOGICAL TO ME

and it’s not just philistine bitching on my part btw. there’s actual academic debate about what the hell these authors were thinking. that being said, i’m a hater because i’m a lover, and i wouldn’t be so mad if i didn’t love both these plays

game of thrones

i am sure everyone has heard about how much the ending fucking sucks. from building up the night king to be a badass villain only to kill him in the ass-pulliest way imaginable in one (1) night, to walking back all the character development the characters went through to jon’s heritage being meaningless to having a thus far sympathetic dany snap and burn a city down over literally nothing to jaime and cersei being killed by falling rocks to brandon fucking stark, a character so uninteresting the show forgot about him for a whole season, sitting on the iron throne.

also, euron greyjoy is my favorite character in the books and i’ll never forgive the show for butchering him (i don’t know who the fuck that guy on the screen is, it sure ain’t euron).

one thing that i find fascinating is that it’s literally just the writing that sucks. the costumes are beautiful, the soundtrack is better than the show deserves (thank you ramin djawadi ilu mwah <3), the dragons look great, the actors are doing the best they can. highest production value piece of garbage ever made.

the magnus archives

(little warning bc i’m really mad about this so vitriol ahead. also, i have not listened to the magnus protocol and i’m not sure i ever will)

i yelled about this a lot and i’m ready to yell about this some more!! THIS IS A SEASON 5 HATE BLOG. i’m so serious it’s literally a better podcast if you ignore season 5 and act like MAG 160 is the ending.  jonathan ‘the archivist’ sims should’ve had a corruption arc and i will die on this hill, everything E V E R Y T H I N G pointed towards jon becoming a monster and enjoying it. it could’ve been so good!!! instead we got some formulaic bullshit, the concept of (and i cannot stress this enough) parallel universes introduced like three episodes before the ending, and the single shittiest romance i have ever been subjected to. the way martin treats jon is sooo fucking vile and yet the podcast is constantly like aren’t they so cute :) isn’t this soo romantic :) NO IT FUCKING ISN’T. he’s dating his shitty coworker who he doesn’t even like that much why exactly am i supposed to be rooting for this relationship jesus fuck i feel like i’m being gaslit. i don’t just have a notp i genuinely feel like jonmartin ruined the entire thing.

s5 also completely ignored jonah magnus who, apart from being one of the most interesting characters, is THE GUY THE PODCAST WAS NAMED AFTER. but yeah, sure, who cares about him? let's have five more episodes of jon and martin being fundamentally incompatible. 

and then there’s the ending where jon is the only one who stands up for what’s right. the podcast tries to act like keeping the fears in their world or releasing the fears are two equally bad choices but the latter is so clearly worse. so clearly the wrong choice to make. AND THEN THEY MAKE THAT TERRIBLE CHOICE FUCK THIS SO MUCH

tma season 5 is one of those cases where you can so clearly see the potential of something that could’ve been so great and they just threw that away AND FOR WHAT 

(ok i’m done yelling about this now. just kidding i’ll never be done)

[confessionsofabargainbinaddict]

My Favorite Albums of 2023*

*not necessarily from 2023

Last year, I decided that, instead of limiting my "favorite" list to just the past year, I would broaden the scope to include any CD I acquired that year, whether it was released that year or not. Over the past 12 months, I've added 155 CDs to the already over-burdened collection (which may seem like a lot but it's down from 260 last year, so I believe some praise is due). These are my favorite 9, in alphabetical order by album title.

Foo Fighters - But Here We Are

"Times Like These," whether he intended it to be or not, was one of the very few, great post-9/11 songs. And while I might expect that from Springsteen, Grohl didn't immediately spring to mind as a voice of comfort and empathy, so the song's impact may have actually been a bit greater than something akin to "The Rising" (which, don't get me wrong, is an amazing song). And now, a couple decades later, it shouldn't be surprising that a Foo Fighters album dealing with intense and intimate grief would also be stunning, but, like before, I certainly wasn't expecting it and also, like before, I've turned to it a hell of a lot more than I would have thought.

Caroline Polachek - Desire, I Want To Turn Into You

You know those albums where you really like a bunch of the songs but not all of them but you also know that, with each repeated listen, you're going to find ways into the songs you didn't like as much on previous listens and come up with reasons why you actually do like those songs and therefore, think the entire album is brilliant? Yeah, this is one of those albums.

billy woods and kenny segal - maps

Let me preface this by saying that I am years late to the billy woods party, so I do not have any way of comparing this to his previous, abundant discography, but if it is at all indicative of the rest of his work, I have some major catching up to do! woods is a top notch lyricist with a clear love of language and the ways in which it can be structured. His metaphors and imagery are complex and layered but never so obtuse that they alienate the listener. And all of this verbal brilliance is nestled comfortably on segal's inviting but never settled production. I'll come back to this one often.

Stevie Wonder - Original Musiquarium I

I'm not normally a fan of "best of" compilations but this one, with the addition of the four unreleased tracks capping each "side," is so well put together and clearly thought through, I'm thrilled to have it as a part of my collection. Plus, it's really hard to ever go wrong with Stevie.

Laura Mvula - Pink Noise

Roughly 5 years ago, I heard "She," and was blown away. I added Sing to the Moon to my discogs want list but never got around to snagging a copy. About 3 years ago, I heard "Got Me" and decided to be a bit more active in trying to acquire a copy of Pink Noise, but I think there were some transatlantic issues because nothing seemed to be remotely affordable. Fast forward to midway through this year, the album miraculously pops up on Amazon for under 10 bucks and a day or two later, I'm finally blessed with these 10 fiercely intelligent yet uncompromisingly catchy pop bangers.

Pool Kids - Pool Kids

It's mathy, it's tappy, it's stupidly technical, but if you strip that all away, at its heart, these are 12 solid pop-punk/emo songs. So while the base effort is already worthwhile, the tremendous musicality turns them into something truly special.

Atmosphere - Sad Clown Bad Fall 10

Okay, so it's only 5 tracks but hear me out. I was introduced to Slug and Ant through their brief stint with Epitaph Records and their, imho, brilliant album, Seven's Travels. Over the years, I've picked up an Atmosphere album here and there, but my takeaways have been lackluster and I started to wonder whether they were just a one-off in my book. And then I found this at a used record store in Seattle, and it not only reignited the flame but made me want to revisit the rest of my collection. That's pretty impressive for only 16 minutes of music.

Triple Fast Action - Triple Fast Action

Triple Fast Action were probably the favorite band your favorite 90's alt-rock band (The Colour and the Shape was, apparently, greatly influenced by Broadcaster) and with only two albums to their name, it was a wonderful surprise to discover this treasure trove of unreleased and rare tracks, most of which were recorded in their rehearsal studio. While not everything is great, there's a general bittersweet air hovering around this 2-disc compilation - they could have been big, but for whatever reason, the stars didn't align. At least we now have so much more music.

Ratboys - The Window

Ratboys aren't reinventing the wheel here. They pull upon most of the major indie rock tropes of the past couple of years (Americana, pop-punk, prog rock...) but even with the genre hopping, the album shifts seamlessly from track to track and always feels authentic. What would we do with a new wheel anyway? Wouldn't you rather just get the top-of-the-line version?

Other assorted 2023 stuff

Favorite Albums NOT acquired in 2023:

Proper. - The Great American Novel

Tigers Jaw - I Don't Care How You Remember Me

Elvis Costello - Brutal Youth

Face to Face - Face to Face

Florence + The Machine - High As Hope

Beauty Pill - The Unsustainable Lifestyle

Favorite Live Bands seen in 2023:

The Verve Pipe (City Winery - 4/23)

Home Is Where (Elsewhere - 7/8)

Four Year Strong (Rocks Off Concert Cruise - 10/15)

The Hold Steady (Brooklyn Bowl - 11/30)

Favorite Movies watched in 2023:

Soft and Quiet

Poor Things

Shotgun Wedding

Pearl

Favorite TV Shows watched in 2023:

Alice in Borderland (Season 1)

The Fall of the House of Usher

The Curse

This is Pop

Channel Zero (Seasons 1 and 2)

Evil (Seasons 1 and 2)

The Last of Us

Favorite Books read in 2023:

Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry

In the Dream House - Carmen Maria Machado

Wraith - Joe Hill and Charles Paul Wilson III

Favorite Podcasts listened to in 2023:

Fearful Symmetry

Love and Radio

Detoxcity

U Springing Springsteen on My Bean?

"Finn and the Bell" episode of Radiolab

"Wake" episode of The Memory Palace

[spaceytingz]

top 3 albums of 2023?

also hiiiii i really like your outfits and your hair. your vibes are so cool 🌌🫣

hi, thank you! and thank you for the ask!

i REALLY have trouble defining my favorite albums every year. Usually it's made easier if one of my favorite artists release, but now it's hard. My favorite of the year though is easy:

Gag Order by Kesha. I always, always ride for Kesha, probably more than I do for anyone else sans Carly Rae Jepsen. It's a very weird album and, historically, I don't do well with those, but this one is really good, probably because I get her. Like, me and Kesha are in it for life. I even love the interludes that have little to no singing in them which is a testament to how well they're done and how well they fit in the album. I have multiple favorites, some include Living In My Head, All I Need Is You (which started hitting EXTRA hard after my cat died), Too Far Gone, and, of course, Happy which feels like a more grounded and grown up version of Spaceship. No skips, amazing, love her forever.

I'd usually put Carly Rae Jepsen's release as my #2 if both have released in the same year and Kesha beat her for the first spot but sadly I'll have to break the tradition this year.

As my #2 I have Diamonds & Dancefloors by Ava Max, I'm personally a big fan of her, both her albums are very fun and dancey, I like her songwriting, I like her vocals, they're not like super meaningful but I like to have fun. No skips although she gets a bit corny on a few tracks (Weapons, Cold As Ice). Love it.

The whole reason I'm having trouble with this...ranking is that these two are the only albums I can say are more or less 10/10, start to finish. Now let's go over the contenders for the #3 spot:

Starfucker by Slayyyter is probably the strongest contender for #3 cause its highs are high, I love the soundscape and the aesthetics, and it really only has... one weak track (Tear Me Open) and like... two meh tracks (Memories Of You and Rhinestone Heart). The rest is either amazing or good.

Then we got the elephant in the room, The Loveliest Time by Carly Rae Jepsen. This is a shining example of an excellent 2/3rds of an album getting DESTROYED by the absolutely horrifying other third. Carly loves to experiment on B-sides, and she usually pulls it off, but the tracks Anything To Be With You, After Last Night (horrible), Stadium Love, Weekend Love and Aeroplanes completely sour the experience for me. See, I actually kinda like Aeroplanes, Weekend Love, and, hell, even Anything To Be With You, which the whole fanbase unanimously loathes, but, frankly, those tracks are very meh for her standards and especially for the standards set by the other tracks on the album which are AMAZING (I play the Shy Boy - Put It To Rest + Kamikaze sequence daily.). It kinda reminds me of Dedicated Side B, which had a lot of killer tracks, and a few... less good ones (This Love Isn't Crazy, Window, Heartbeat, Comeback, NIDHCAA), but frankly, DSB's "worse" tracks are more or less decent. You know it's bad when I've streamed her album from last year more this year

We also got Miley and Lana's albums, both of which have like... five or six good tracks each for me and the rest is unlistenable so I can't put them at #3. We got Paramore's album, which is honestly....... good but their lyricism has really..... taken a plunge towards the toilet, the last two tracks are tragic, the News and Big Man Little Dignity are catchy but corny and..... idk if i'd place it above Starfucker and The Loveliest Time. Rebecca Black's Let Her Burn has a few standouts but the rest of the tracks are just okay and Performer is the worst song of her career. (Doe Eyed is like #4 on my year end chart so far though).

Yeah, I'd give #3 to both STARFUCKER and The Loveliest Time, for old times' sake.

[femmesandhoney]

hiii idk if you’ve been asked this before but what is your favorite song on lana’s new album?? for me it’s definitely either margaret or the grants, also what is your favorite album of hers? cuz i’d say her most popular songs are from born to die (summertime sadness) and ultraviolence (brooklyn baby) (which are both amazing albums actually- old money/sad girl/cruel world/fucked my way to the top/black beauty etc and dark paradise/blue jeans/carmen/this is what makes us girls/ are definitely some of my favs of hers and all own my heart completely…) but also i feel like some of her other albums are so underrated.. i especially love chemtrails over the country club, (wild at heart is another all time favorite) honeymoon, and norman fucking rockwell. but yeah anyways i wanna know your opinions!!

to save you time im just gonna list some of my favorite songs off each of her albums, because i'm truly a fan of all her albums and music. ofc there are some albums and songs i gravitate to less frequently, but i still enjoy them lots. in no particular order,

born to die + paradise

lucky ones

american

this is what makes us girls

off to the races

lolita

without you

(okay i enjoy paradise a lot it seems lmao) i think born to die is somewhat underrated by new fans who just listen to the basics and don't actually give love and attention to all the other bangers, it's like a weird paradox on tik tok

UV

florida kilos

shades of cool

money glory power

west coast

i took longer to get into this album than you may expect. really caught me off guard sound wise after listening to BTD and Honeymoon. it's good, i'm in the mood for it more often than not, but i also wouldn't list it as the top of my list. i think a lot of "fans" of lana have this era of her locked in their minds and she fights to escape it. it's a curious album to me for that reason, i try to understand what's so intriguing about it to make people keep her locked in their minds as a young twenty something women in abusive relationships.

honeymoon

terrence loves you

god knows i tried

honeymoon

swan song

i personally think honeymoon is a no-skip perfect album, i really love each song and listen to it through and through. i took to this album immediately as a teenager and i find it so comforting. if i ever was held at gunpoint and told to for real pick a favorite album in its entirety, i would probably say honeymoon.

lust for life

in my feelings

white mustang

free

heroin

cherry

13 beaches

i took foreverrrrr to sink into this album, way longer than UV, i think it was my final mental block into becoming a solid fan of lana as an artist and not just her music. i began to appreciate her lyricism, her creativity, her commitment to be authentic in her art with this album and it carries me as a fan of hers today. the genre switch up from her other albums stumped me for ages and eventually i just sat down and listened to it on repeat until it was less intimidating and i could appreciate it in full. not her best album stretch or anything, but some amazing iconic and gorgeous songs

norman fucking rockwell

bartender (if i could marry a song, it would be this)

how to disappear

venice bitch

fuck it i love you

i really enjoy this album, but i actually don't gravitate to many of the songs as individuals. as a cohesive piece of art, it's insanely good. she should have won AOTY for it. no one is doing it like lana. she's always ahead of her time.

chemtrails over the country club

tulsa jesus freak (my beloved)

white dress

chemtrails over the country club

yosemite

dark but just a game

this album took me a bit longer to love all the songs, but lana is such a beautiful lyricist it won me over. i also think the first 3 songs on this album are probably her most perfect opening stretch. some of my all time favorite songs of hers, but the album itself i don't rank as my highest or anything

blue banisters

nectar of the gods (top tier)

wildflower wildfire

text book

thunder

black bathing suit

i actually really loved this album pretty quick, it's the sister to COTCC but it really does have a completely different vibe, idk how lana does it

did you know there's a tunnel under ocean blvd

taco truck x VB (i had this shit on REPEAT)

jon batiste interlude

kintsugi

A&W

i'm glad she's getting recognition for this album, it's sort of a cumulation of the journey she's had since chemtrails and i think it's such a solid beautiful work

[therehavebeenstranger]

I was tagged by @allgremlinart in a "top 5 no-skip albums" tag game! i am very much more an albums person than an artists person and i have strong opinions so i am very excited to write this post :))) these are not in any particular order!

transangelic exodus- ezra furman

let's be clear. this could be pretty much any ezra furman album. there's a world in which this list is just five ezra furman albums*, but i'm trying to be restrained, and while ezra has many no-skip records, this is the one where skipping is going to do you the dirtiest. this genre-hopping, transformative, trans-formative, gorgeous album is furman at her very best. queer rage and fear and joyjoyjoy in this teeming pop AND punk rock album take us on a flight-for-our-queer lives trip across america. angel, i'll be your guardian if you'll be mine. This album has deep personal significance for me in my life as a queer jewish person. it is survival music. love-yourself-or-die music. it took a long long time to find the border of a kingdom of love outside the reigning order. i found my angel on a motorcycle i'm a queer for life outlaw outsider

2. darkness on the edge of town- bruce springsteen

okay. i mean, yeah. i'm a springsteen fan. i like the boss. but i am a springsteen fan in that i am from new jersey. a springsteen fan in that when my parents were first seeing each other, they would meet for dates in the bruce section of a tower records in manhattan; in that my father grew up in monmouth county in the 70s, doing his underage drinking at the stone pony, then became a man who wanted to rock his toddler in the rocking chair before bed but didn't know any lullabyes so used to sing me to sleep with thunder road. i'm a bruce fan in the way i am a brunette--it's hereditary, a happy accident of genetics. my relationship to darkness is a little different. it's the first bruce album i approached on my own and really spent time with, and man, what a place to start. so complete, so fresh, so moving. also, the best and most sensitive queer album ever made by an ostensibly straight man** (in my opinion this album is gay af). i think the song that makes this a no skip is candy's room. after all these heavy guitars, getting shocked with that song, hearing it build is like getting splashed with cold water in a good way. i feel like i don't breathe listening to this album.

3. sunday in the park with george obcr, music and lyrics by stephen sondheim

i am at my most funadamental a musical theater bitch baybee! sorry! deal with it! sunday isn't quite my favorite sondheim*** this is my favorite sondheim recording. man, the music in this show--have you listened to sunday recently? all those voices in perfect harmony (harmony!) as the image comes together. the real delight is listening to patinkin and peters playing off each other--listen to color and light rn! one of my favorite moments in all recorded music is mandy's triumphant "and the care, and the feeling, and the life! moving on!" sunday is my favorite art about making art, and of course this gives us move on, which has the best art making advice in the world: just keep moving on. anything you do let it come from you then it will be true. give us more to see.

4. dogrel- fontaines d.c.

i don't have a long speech about this one. i have listened to some or all of this album at least once a week since it came out in 2019 and i still don't know how to talk about it. it's just fucking perfect. it's perfect. even if we just think about the opener and the closer--how is this an album with both big and dublin city sky on it??????

5. tea for the tillerman-cat stevens

this album is a part of my dna, basically! it's inside my skin! when i was very small, the music playing in my mom's car would always be either the la cage aux folles obcr, jesus christ superstar, or cat stevens (my parents are cool in my opinion! sue me!) and these songs in particular got so deep inside my imagination. they've never let go, nor do i want them to. my childhood was spent wondering what a moonshadow was, and would the faithful eye find me, picturing the frightening world described in where do the children play, or imagining sad lisa's tears, or seeing the father and son arguing, staring out the car window, wishing they could reconcile--knowing somehow that they wouldn't. this album taught me melancholy, but also beauty and mischief and joy--god, the brief burst that is the title song at the very end! magic, every time!

(honorary mentions: contra-vampire weekend, joy as an act of resistance-idles pretty. odd-panic! at the disco (leave me alone) sigh no more-mumford and sons (LEAVE ME EVEN ALONER) pony-orville peck, jesus christ superstar movie soundtrack-webber/rice many others i'll think of later probably)

Thank you to gremlin for the tag! you can probably tell i had a lot of fun with this one. i'm going to tag @danielkahndyke @hopelesslyfree @apocalypse-friend @bruce-wayne-simp and if you guys respond i will pretty certainly be combing your lists for recs (hey hopelessly i will listen to any taylor you put on there back to front even if it's not 1989 😘)

:)

*the full list would be, in no particular order, and only counting full length releases in the post-harpoons era: exodus, year of no returning, day of the dog, twelve nudes, perpetual motion people. all of us flames gets left out bc i still find that it leaves me pretty raw. it's a tough listen for me. this is the furthest thing from a critique.

**to me, this album is fundamentally about being queer and strange and from new jersey and having a dad. to me.

***attend the fuckin tale, baby...or go into the woods. or...have company over? or, or... i like sondheim

[okcomputeroknotok19972017]

less serious than the ones past but 🔥 radiohead's 2003 album Hail To The Thief

even when i try to take a step back it's hard for me to give an unbiased opinion about any radiohead album. Theyre all the #1 album of all time they shot to the top of the charts they earned one thomillion dollars they were given all the grammy awards each year and jonny won the oscar both times.

err... a little more seriously, i love hail to the thief. it's such a special album to me <3 my favorite song of all time, scatterbrain, is the penultimate track, and the album also contains where i end and you begin which probably lands at 4 or 5 on my top 10 favorite radiohead songs ever, if i had to choose. is hail to the thief a bit of a mess? yes. a little bloated? yeah. would i have it any other way? no! there is still an overarching sound and flow which is only strengthened by the variety of songs! probably could take off we suck young blood though, that one's embarrassingly bad. but all in all if you dont like hail to the thief youre missing out and also your subjective opinion is objectively wrong.

also shout out to my irl who bought me it on vinyl the other day i love him so much hes the best <3333 i like to play the CD at work sometimes, i think it fits the store well.

[saturnisfallingdown]

top 5 video game soundtracks 👀

OOOH THIS IS A GOOD ONE !! and also insanely hard. again just off the top of my head but

5. The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe – ever since it dropped I have not let it go once. its got incredible ambient tracks its got some phenomenal suspense tracks and the infinite hole is the only song ever. Tom Schley is really such a fanatstic composer and I'm so glad they got him for Ultra Deluxe!! Favorite track: The Infinite Hole

4. Hades – being completely honest I havent even played hades. but I have watched my girlfriend play it when i crash at his place and I'm always in awe of how incredible the soundtrack is Favorite track: The Painful Way (I watched him fight Megaera so I'm best acquainted with it)

3. Deltarune Chapters 1+2 – picking any Toby Fox work feels basically like cheating but im sorry i do not control the fact i was introduced to undertale at an impressionable point in my life. But yeah I love the deltarune soundtracks so much!! Chapter 2 specifically, the memory I have of playing chapter 2 on launch day and hearing A CYBER'S WORLD? for the first time is one of my best gaming memories ever. Favorite track: A CYBER'S WORLD? or Attack of the Killer Queen

2. Undertale – Again, a cheat answer. But without a doubt, I've listened to the undertale soundtrack probably more than I have any other soundtrack and most albums period. There's a reason it's as acclaimed as it is. It's Raining Somewhere Else has put me to sleep sooo many times Favorite track: It's Raining Somewhere Else or Heartache

1. Portal 2: Songs to Test by – I love the portal 2 soundtrack SO MUCH and i fully think it's one of the most underrated parts of the game!! The blending between music and environment is just. phenomenal. Triple Laser Phaser is a classic example (the track gaining those layers of different laser sound melodies as you slowly get each beam where it needs to go). I've always had such a soft spot for this soundtrack and i could ramble forever but I wont. but i could Favorite track: Reconstructing More Science or Love as a Construct

[oenothera5]

I posted 4,745 times in 2022

That's 914 more posts than 2021!

17 posts created (0%)

4,728 posts reblogged (100%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@gellalaer

@jhopegrandma

@bunjywunjy

@kippurbird

@riverwindphotography

I tagged 385 of my posts in 2022

#house of worth - 30 posts

#i will always reblog this - 25 posts

#be excellent to each other - 13 posts

#ayup - 10 posts

#so true - 7 posts

#muse likes - 6 posts

#oh yeah - 6 posts

#love the hair - 5 posts

#sigh - 5 posts

#they have a point - 5 posts

Longest Tag: 89 characters

#much of my music tastes come from a much older boy i had a crush on in junior high school

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

🍃🌺🌙If you receive this you make somebody happy. Go and send this to ten of your followers who make you happy or somebody you think needs cheering up. If you get it back even better🌙🌺🍃

Thank you! Can't wait to see you in less than a month! <3

2 notes - Posted August 8, 2022

#4

💕✨create the illusion of hanging out with your mutuals tag game✨💕

I was tagged by @perhaps-mr-collins-has-a-cousin Hello there! Stay healthy, friend!

are you a morning person?

No. Not in the slightest. Please do not chat/call/text me before I have drunk my coffee and it is past 9:00 AM.

ideal breakfast?

A soft boiled egg with a piece of toast.

favorite warm drink, and how do you take it? 

A latte with nonfat milk

sit in the sunshine or the shade? 

It depends on the time of year- if it is winter or spring, then sunshine. If it is summer, then definitely the shade.

favorite baked good? 

The oatmeal butterscotch cookies that a friend of my mom’s made when I was growing up

a song or album that makes you feel at peace? 

Rain by BTS . I like jazz, and it really does feel like looking through the window outside at a rainy day.

a chore that if someone completed it for you you’d love them forever?

Folding and putting away the laundry. Luckily, Mr. Poppy does it, mostly, because if it weren’t for him, it would just stay in the laundry basket in a heap.

favorite board/card game to play with friends?

Anything in the Rook/Euchre/Hearts/Spades family. I grew up playing Euchre as a regional thing, but Mr. Poppy’s family plays rook because they are from a different region.

what kind of snacks/candy do you want at a movie theater?

I normally like popcorn with lots of butter and a soda, but a giant roll of sweet tarts or sprees is good too.

bar with live music or bar with a pool table? 

This is tough. I really like live music, but some of my happiest times were hanging out with friends around the pool table when I was younger. I am terrible at pool, but it was about being with friends.

go-to wine/cider/beer/cocktail? 

If I am having cocktails I’ll usually order an amaretto sour.

go-to bar food? 

Nachos with lots of stuff on them.

are you tending the fire, looking at the stars, or singing campfire/folk songs?

Looking at the stars. I love watching for meteors, and looking at constellations and (if I’m far enough out of town) the Milky Way. But I will cheerfully do the other two as well! I’ve been to Wood Badge and OLS so I’m pretty good at building fires.

a favorite Scripture verse or prayer?

The prayer by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, S.J., that starts: Above all, trust in the slow work of God. [I am a very impatient person]

See the full post

3 notes - Posted February 7, 2022

#3

Personal Tag Game

I was tagged by @raksh-writes . Hi there!

Last song: “Late Night Talking” by Harry Styles. I really like it- it is such an ear worm. Very excited to see him this fall!

Last TV show: Obi-Wan Kenobi. The cinematography is amazing. Meh on the storyline though. When I die I want Pablo Hidalgo to be a pall bearer so that the Story Group can let me down one last time. Will continue watching just for the visual spectacle!

Currently watching: Also watching Bride of Habaek/Bride of the Water God. The premise started off really well but then never panned out. Instead of the search for the missing stones (which sounded cool) it’s just the two leads moping for each other and the female lead bordering on rude to her employee. Maybe other people would enjoy this plot more, but it is not what I came for. I am only watching to the end because I hate DNFs. [I also have second hero syndrome because the first lead is kinda bland. This is one of Nam Joo-Hyuk’s earliest roles so maybe he was just learning to act or the writers gave him boring material to work with]

Currently reading: Momo/The Life Before Us by Emile Ajar/Romain Gary. It’s okay. It’s better than some things I’ve read so far this year, but not the greatest. It’s in the category of boyhood/apprenticeship novels. I hope it gets better? I’m only 1/3 of the way through, and I’m supposed to have it done by the end of today. 😳

Tagging (but only if you want to play, as usual!)

@myevilmouse @sunshinerainbowsbts @hannahbee12719 @seokjinger-ale @reliablemittenmain @heilith and @jhopegrandma

6 notes - Posted May 31, 2022

#2

It’s time for my annual social media hiatus. I’ll be back April 17th. See you then!

[the queue will run for a little bit more, but if you need me, you can always find me on Discord!]

Photo information: “Mule and Rider Exiting Tunnel and Crossing Kaibab Suspension Bridge“ Black and white, silver gelatin print with some silvering. Circa 1930.

Henry G. Peabody Photographs (circa 1930). CP PEA. Greater Arizona Collection. ASU Library, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ. http://azarchivesonline.org/xtf/view?docId=ead/asu/cp_pea.xml

9 notes - Posted March 1, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Why is my Tumblr feed suddenly showing me blogs I’m not subscribed to?

Please @staff make this stop. I only want to see what I want to see, which is posts from people I’ve followed.

12 notes - Posted January 18, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[zero-ek]

It's M3 day!

I'll be completely honest, I've been having a severe case of the blues for the past couple months, with college and work kicking my butt, on top of going through a bit of an ego death, i haven't been excited... for anything, really. The point being that, in the face of over 600 XFDs to comb through, i might've been not as interested as I normally would've because of my not-so-great-mood right now.

Still, i did my best to give each one a shot and pick out the albums i thought deserved a highlight. I realized I might've been too unforgiving last time, so for this one i tried to be more lenient and pick albums that just in general sounded interesting to me, not exactly expecting them to wow me or anything.

Once again, thanks a million to ハルちゃん for putting the playlist together, this time i really do encourage you to check it out for yourself and see if i any of those i ignored catches your eye.

As per usual, i'll start with my favorites:

nayuta - Echoes

XFD Video

While i still love her as "nayutan" i can't lie i've been having a lot of fun calling her "boss" lately so i'll keep doing it here.

After a breathtaking concept album earlier this year, the boss is going back to her quintessential sounds this time around, but while this album may seem more unassuming than ArtemIs was, the composer lineup here is anything but.

We have:

• SperioNz on multiple tracks (who had a hand on "Blue Canvas", "Tokigusuri", "Setsuna" and "Yui Yuware", some of her straight up classics, in my opinion) • Kasokaso (La Prière's "Eiketsu no Gemini", "Senjou no Utahime" and "Habataku Kimi e", Tamu's "0-0", "Undertaker" and "Inorigoto", to name a few) • Tsukagoshi Yuuichirou (La Prière's "Kimi yo" and "Kindan no Ai to Maken", Tamu's "Son Macabre") • Gushimiyagi Hideyuki (Nakucha's "Fragile Utopia", "Odd-eye Lily" and "Rest in Peace, My Dear")

Judging from the songs already released, this one is very much not the otherworldy experience of ArtemIs or super blood pumping like Clarity, but it is shaping up to be a really enjoyable listening experience nonetheless. The boss has pretty much perfected her voice and the styles that go well with it, so i'm feeling safely positive about this one.

Then there's the boss and Tsunchaka's first album:

NaYuri - Magical Magical

XFD Video

Okay first as a magical girl fanatic i need to say i love this illustration it's so friggin adorable. But also i need to ask, girls, which of you came up with this title and why???

I'm pretty excited for this one because 4 out of 6 tracks are composed by Fujiya, i know it's not a great thing to do but i really associate their sound with the boss by this point, i mean, just like SperioNz, they composed songs that are in my opinion classics of hers: "Blue Knots", "Decillion Encounter", "Kouyatte, Itsumade mo", to name a couple.

I'm interested to see how it'll pan out in full soundwise, since despite my deep love for magical girls, it usually takes a lot for these more cutesy sort of songs to stick with me, particularly since i tend to prefer both of their voices when they're in the sweet but mellower side. I have enjoyed the NaYuri singles well enough, but for now i'll see if this one captures my heart.

Also boss for the love of god take like a month off please.

Speaking of Tsunchaka:

Yuuri - Nemuranai Hoshi ~Piano Arrange~

XFD Video

She is also releasing solo work this M3, this time a piano rearrange of her first album, which i guess doesn't leave much for me to say. Not that i don't like it, but i already talked what i could about her voice and composition in my other M3 post earlier this year. Plus, that one never really made it to streaming (3 of five songs are on her channel, though one of them is in an older, rougher form) and i'm predicting this one won't either...

So yeah, i really would love to talk about it more, but i don't really have much to say. I like your stuff, Tsun-chan, let me listen to it!

Natsume Itsuki - ENIGMA

XFD Video

Now this is one i'm counting every minute to the release, Tamu has been unstoppable for like two years straight now, her previous original album is still my favorite of hers ever, and even the singles she's been releasing in the meantime have been nothing short of incredible.

And from the looks of it this one is shaping up to be just as much of a banger, i mean, we have Feryquitous (needs no introduction), Kisaragi Yuuna ("Mujouken Surrender"), n.k ("Natsu no Nokoriga", La Prière's "GHOST") and RD-Sounds ("Ai to CodeQ...", "Son Joyeux"), all writing on top of yet another really intereting concept.

Also i did note HONNWAKA88 shows up both here and the NaYuri one (they're also on Tsunchaka's first album), i didn't think much of it at first but if Tamu picked them for a concept album i guess they're a composer worth paying attention to.

I've learned with HYPNOSONIC not to judge a song by its preview so for now i'll keep my initial thoughts on it for myself, but honestly given her track record so far and this composer lineup, i genuinely do not see a world where this album isn't just straight up incredible.

Also you too Tamu go take a break you haven't sat still for like a whole year now.

Sennzai - Arrêter le temps [Remastered]

XFD Video

Sennzai is taking a break from new stuff this time around and instead releasing a remaster of her first album, which while i do welcome it did get me daydreaming about hearing some of my favorite utaites remaking their earlier work. Like can you imagine "Nacollection 2" with Nakucha's current vocal chops, or "Omoide wo Tsuzutta..." with the boss's current, more developed timbre?

To be fair, in this case it does seem to still be just Sennzai's old recordings with a better mix, but a girl can dream...

Nanahira - ICONIC

XFD Video

In the same vein, Nanahira's upcoming release is a compilation album of her previous hits, which i suppose serves as a great way to introduce the uninitiated to Nanahira's high octane cutesy madness we all came to love.

I don't go to the gym but i imagine this makes for a great playlist for cardio... or really just Nanahira on shuffle, generally...

Yosumi doesn't have an XFD so there isn't much for me to comment, but she is releasing a single... which is only one track less than her previous release so i guess we could say she's been keeping up her activities more or less. I did like how her previous release sounded in the previews, but that one never made it to streaming, so i'm hoping this one being a single means it'll be different, but i'll keep my expectations moderate...

NoWorld also doesn't have an XFD as of yet but they are releasing another EP, i can't comment on it since i haven't heard anything, but i have been keeping up with them, and they have released a project for Comiket 104. I'm sorry to say that i'm still not really sold on them, it feels like they they haven't quite yet found a style of instrumentals that suits NoiR's voice, but they do seem to be on their way there, i did enjoy the last two tracks of the EP, so i'll still stick around and see if they pursue those styles more in the future.

Risa Yuzuki and BlackY - ELYSIAN

XFD Video

Okaaaaay....

So Risa Yuzuki is another doujin music veteran who's also really popular, and while i have kept an eye on her for a while, for some reason even i don't understand, she never really got to me like the Other Four™ did, despite being objectively just as great of a singer as them. Now while i'm still not madly in love, this project in particular did manage to get my attention, so instead of judging this album alone, i'll go back and do another take on her other stuff and see if she manages to capture me this time around.

Okay, Risa, go on, i'm listening...

Now, for my personal pics from the XFD playlist:

Yuhgao - Aergonauts:

XFD Video

This one did caught my eye (ear?) despite being mostly an instrumental. While it's very clearly plugins all the way, the tracks are mixed well enough, and the instrumentation does sell the vibe they were going for quite nicely. The couple of vocal songs are also to my liking, i've noticed a lot of artists have been using Hanakuma Chifuyu and i'm not complaining, her vocals are exactly the type i tend to prefer, and it's still crazy to me that we can get VSynths to sound this smooth these days.

I'm not sure i'll be keeping up with this artist but it i did enjoy listening to this preview.

KIRATORA - KILLER TUNES Vol. 1

XFD Video

I really like this one mainly for how they tune Teto, and after listening through way too many XFDs with too little gain or proper EQ on the instrumentals, this was a breath of fresh air to listen too, this is someone who really does know their way around the studio.

All the songs are already on their channel, i really recommend this one (the Teto ones in particular!)

Akira - GOLDIROCKs Tone

XFD Video

While the rough mixing does take away from it a little, both the instrumentals and vocal songs on this one are really good, and the composition really ties them together very nicely. I'm particularly in love with the piano here, since they go for a mellow and rounder tone that to me is the best a piano can sound. I'm not as in love with the strings but they serve the songs well enough.

There's very little on their channel so i don't have any hopes to listen to these in full, but i seriously enjoyed the heck out of these previews, i just adore some nice orchestral work. Who knows, maybe they'll be the next ARForest in a couple of years...

Kinoshita Tamako - Beyond

XFD Video

I've heard of gap moe, but i could never have guessed her voice would sound so pretty and mature from the album art alone. Like it's almost to the point where there's a disconnect between her voice and the instrumentals in a couple of the tracks. She seems to be going hard in the utaite grind for quite a while so i really hope she catches the eye of a high profile composer, because i could totally see her going far!

Ninomiya Hagu - Hanaya Tsurezure

XFD Video

(I don't know if that's the right romaji for the title guys)

I'm simultaneously amazed and a little sad with this one, because on one hand she sounds absolutely incredible, like easily top 5 of all the singers in the entire playlist. But i feel like at times the mix don't really do her justice, she's almost fighting with the instrumentals at times, which is straight up criminal with how good she sounds!

I'm still very enamored with this album, i just wish it had stayed in the oven just a little more. Still, I'm very much keeping tabs on her from now on.

uncloud records - Planet²

XFD Video

This is another one that just instantly grabbed me, it's amazing how i could instantly catch on the vibe they were going for, and how each track just stays in line with the EP's vision. Plus, once again, all the singers have that soft but sweet vocal quality that i love, on top of chill, well produced instrumentals, what's not to like?

Definitely checking this one if it ever comes out on streaming.

Story Teller - Photogenic

XFD Video

There's a whole bunch of the more standard ballad/j-rock sort of vibe in this playlist, but this was the first one that made me want to stop and listen. Mainly because of the vocalist's voice, it's not like super unconventional, but it also has this... how do i put it... "not super feminine" character that these sorts of songs tend to avoid, but that works in their favor here, especially when paired with that gorgeous album art,

The instrumentals leave a little bit to be desired, but it's nothing disastrous, just a case of the "very obviously a plugin", which i'm sure every composer goes through. It's still very well made and i like it a lot.

Ruru - Hariko no Hanayome

XFD Video

The vocals on this one are pretty diverse for (what i assume) is a single utaite, though i enjoyed each approach to different degrees each, it still picked my interest as a whole given that 1: lesbians 🏳️‍🌈, and 2: the instrumentals are not only all very well made, but they also flow into each other seamlessly (i know it's an XFD with transitions, but still), something even some of my favorite concepts albums usually slack at.

I'll keep an eye out for this one.

Kirk-Krank-Caldwel - DEVOTE

XFD Video

While this is another standard J-Rock sort of deal, honestly for a first album it's incredibly well put together. The instrumentals sound interesting, the mixing and instrumentation sounds pretty nice, and honestly even the overal production, with the song placements and everything, it definitely doesn't feel like a hastily put together project.

Her vocals are good too, they're not jaw dropping or anything, but she has good chops (despite the pitch correction, yes i heard it), plus, they fit very nicely in each song mix and arrangement wise, which, again, for a first album is pretty tough to come around when it comes to doujin music.

Honestly if she does keep it up with music this is a really strong start.

Midy - ENIGMA

XFD Video

Amongst the legions of EDM stuff i listened through, this was the first one i really enjoyed. Despite being electronica all the way, the synth choices and the overall mix and master makes this one very gentle on the years, and actually gets you paying attention to the songs rather than just the beat. The vocals are the cherry on top, being not too soft, but not too high pitched either, perfect for carrying the groove of the tracks.

Also, looking into them more, apparently they've composed for Denonbu, which i guess explains everything.

Also also, virtual "truck" maker lol

Kikazaru - Kolmanskop

XFD Video

Another one that instantly grabbed me, like the band track is fine, but the acoustic one is really something else, like yeah there's some volume balancing issues, but i think it adds to the overall lo-fi rawness vibe of it all, and her vocals sound so emotive and sincere too, i just love it.

There's also this single that also caught my attention for the very same reason.

Fuling Cat Mark - Heavenly Game

XFD Video

This one is on the more cutesy-pop side, but not really to the extreme degrees that you'd find in the playlist so far, the vocals are more soft and easy on the ears, and while still very sparkly, the instrumentals go for a more groovy and chill vibe that's more comfortable to listen to. (also they are mixed real nice so bonus points for that).

Nirayama Souta - Action!!

XFD Video

Okay i'm cheating here a bit, but you see while there have been quite a few male-vocal albums compared to the grand total of zero we had last time, i'm really sorry to say it but production on them has been abysmal all around. So while this one isn't really my vibe, it's the first male utaite i found here with a decently produced album, so i thought they deserved a highlight.

Hasumi Elena - TYRFINGR

XFD Video

Another male utaite! And i really like how rough and aggessive their voice sounds too! I haven't been a big fan of the hardcore EDM i've been hearing but in this case it works really well, like they're not just straight up sonic violence on your years and actually have a good amount of groove to actually get you paying attention to the composition instead of just the beats.

Tsugu - Mischevious

XFD Video

With the same energy, this is another heavy EDM one, but goddamn if the vocals don't totally make it work for me, like those vocal inflections are so tasteful and enticing my gosh i just can't not like this.

Also yes, she has covered CH4NGE, and it sounds as good as you would expect.

lent/Ran - Jeux Bleu Original Soundtrack

XFD Video

This one is an instrumental, but amongst the actually quite a handful of piano solist albums i checked out, this was the most interesting sounding to me so far. Again, the piano has that smooth and mellower quality i tend to like, the mixing is very good (though to be fair a couple of the others did sound like full on grand pianos, while i imagine this one is digital) and the compositions are pretty original sounding.

Also like the title says, this one is the soundtrack for a game that has a pretty interesting premise, i'll keep it in my bookmarks just in case

Honorable mentions (AKA i think they sound good but i don't really have much to say about them)

Pollaid - Safe House

Samba? In my EDM and metal dominated playlist? It's more likely than you think.

In all seriousness, this was a nice listen through, still very rough around the edges as far as recording in general goes, but the singer very clearly has some chops and that really brings the songs to life overall.

Igarashi Itsuki - Underdog spirit ~Makeinu Konjou~

XFD Video

Another very well made male utaite album! Again, not really my jam, but we don't really get a whole lot of these around these parts, so it's very much welcomed.

Rose Panna - Chimidororareshi Hanayome

XFD Video

This one is interesting, she absolutely can sing (apparently she used to be an utaite) and while the instrumentals aren't anything impressive, they work just enough to sell the idea of the songs and the album as a whole. This really feels like someone doing their best with very little.

Kira Yuki - 歌兆朱月

XFD Video

Much like Rose's album, she sings sing really good, and her voice conveys the vision for the album really clearly. Plus this time around the instrumentals do match the level of quality of her vocals, so while i'm not super interested, i think it's worth keeping an eye on them.

Nohana Koyori - PURPLE HOLIC

XFD Video

Not really the project but the singer herself, while i haven't really vibed with her vocals, i saw her name pop up a lot in other works. I don't believe i've heard of her before, but i suppose she's someone worth paying attention to going forward.

Michitose - Kuusou no Amaryllis & scales night

I really like the instrumentals here and technique wise the vocals are fine, they just didn't really click with me that much. Still looks like a very well put together project worthy of attention.

Nanaki Nana - Nanairo Neiro

Not only that is my current favorite illustrator, 甘春わすれ, but much like Heavenly Game this is like only 75% on the "overly cutesy" meter, so i still enjoyed listening through it overall.

Kohai - Meguru to Senpai

This one, on the other hand, is just like Planet², but i'd say the instrumentals are even more comforting with this one, like oh my gosh that bass is just straight up godly.

leviern & lufm - Cafe Komorebi

A very cozy and comforting little semi-instrumental.

Pancake Cats - Kasoku -EP-

A very well produced standard-fare j-rock totally not influenced by a certain anime.

Yumeno Yuki - All you Need is Ordinaries

Ditto

AKA - re:LOAD

Just like with Risa Yuzuki, this is the sort of stuff that by all means should wow me, but it doesn't and i don't know why. I mean i decided to give Risa another shot this time, so maybe these guys will grow on me too.

Haruna Hakumei - Yorokobe Bokura no Tsuchifumazu

Just some impressive guitar work all around, piezos be damned, pure acoustic goodness ftw!

And that does it for 2024's M3. On one hand i feel like i did a really awful job when going through the spring ones earlier this year considering how many pics i got this time, but also, i feel like just overall i had a much better time listening through this roundup compared to the previous one. Like for once there was a lot more representation for like male vocals, metal songs and instrumental stuff other than EDM, even if a lot of it didn't necessarily sound really good.

Also, a lot of the usual high fantasy stuff was very well put together this time, like they're not really my thing, but i could still recognize that as far as composition and recording goes, they were really well made. There's also a bunch of objectively well produced stuff that just weren't my cup of tea, so i didn't really bother with them, but they were still fine as pieces of music.

Once again, i encourage you to go through the playlist yourself if you want to kill some time, even if it's going through the most popular stuff only, this time around i'm positive that you might find something i missed that suits your fancy.

See ya!

[dograffe1]

I'm not delaying it any longer. Nirvana review right here right now no more excuses. Full in depth review with each song let's go. (note: a few of the songs included are found on the deluxe editions of the correlating album. I won't do any live, pre-production, demo recordings etc. The only instance in which I will is if the song has no "final" version. I'm also not counting songs that appear on multiple albums or singles as a different version, I will rate whichever one I find to be better and will include it on the first album it was on.)

Bleach

Their first album, not their best not their worst, I rank it at #3. Love the sound of the songs and the rhythm but other than that it's just a good album Songs:

Blew: 7/10

Floyd The Barber: 9/10

About A Girl: 8/10

School: 6/10

Love Buzz: 7/10

Paper Cuts: 9/10

Negative Creep: 9/10

Scoff: 8/10

Swap Meet: 7/10

Mr. Moustache: 9/10

Sifting: 9/10

Big Cheese: 6.5/10

Downer: 9/10

Overall score 9/10, Favorite Song:

Nevermind

The second album and without a doubt one of the most iconic albums of all time. This album ranks #1 on my list and basically just everything about it is amazing. I think this is the album that made me love and truly appreciate rock music. Songs:

Smells Like Teen Spirit: 7.5/10

In Bloom: 10/10

Come As You Are: 9.5/10

Breed: 10/10

Lithium 11/10

Polly: 8/10

Territorial Pissings: 9/10

Drain You: 10.5/10

Lounge Act: 9.5/10

Stay Away: 9.5/10

On A Plain: 9/10

Something In The Way: 8.5/10

Endless, Nameless: 8/10

Even In His Youth: 8.5/10

Aneurysm: 9/10

Curmudgeon: 10/10

D-7(Live At The BBC): 8/10

Been A Son(Version on the Lithium Single): 10/10

Overall Score: 11/10, Favorite Song:

Incesticide

In my opinion the "worst" album, ranking #4. But it's Nirvana so #4 still means "really, REALLY good". Lotta good songs on here but overall kinda weak when compared to the other albums. Songs:

Dive: 7/10

Sliver: 9/10

Stain: 8/10

Turnaround: 7.5/10

Molly's Lips: 9/10

Son Of A Gun: 7/10

(New Wave) Polly(Why was this made? As you can tell I hadn't listened to some of the songs off Incesticide before this): 2/10

Beeswax: 6.5/10

Mexican Seafood: 8/10

Hairspray Queen: 10/10

Aero Zeppelin: 9/10

Big Long Now: 7/10

Overall Score 8/10. It's a 7 if you include all the confusion it gave me with the different session titles and Downer and Aneurysm being on here and the worse version of Been A Son. Favorite Song:

In Utero

Another album that at some points rival Nevermind. Ranks #2 in the album list. This is the album that solidified that Nirvana was a top 3 artist for me. Songs:

Serve The Servants: 9/10

Scentless Apprentice: 11/10

Heart-Shaped Box: 9.5/10

Rape Me: 10/10

Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle: 8.5/10

Dumb: 10/10

Very Ape: 9/10

Milk It: 7.5/10

Pennyroyal Tea: 8/10

Radio Friendly Unit Shifter: 7.5/10

Tourette's: 8/10

All Apologies: 9/10

Gallons Of Rubbing Alcohol Flowing Through The Strip: 7/10

Marigold: 10/10

Moist Vagina: 6.5/10

Sappy: 9/10

I Hate Myself And Want To Die: 8/10

Forgotten Tune: 7.5/10

Jam: 8.5/10

Overall Score 9.5/10, Favorite Song:

Now The Painful Part, Or Maybe It'll Be Enjoyable, Who Knows.

That is the 4 mainline Nirvana albums including a few Deluxe songs from each. As of right now I have never listened to the unique songs from MTV Unplugged In New York, With The Lights Out, or Sliver. I won't be ranking these ones but I will give an overall score. I apologize in advance if I miss any songs, please let me know if I did or if I messed something up. There are so many new and unique songs that it might be hard for me to track them. Also please let me know if I missed a "better" version of a song, I know there's a lot of different recordings and songs that were only performed live so yeah.

MTV Unplugged In New York

Jesus Doesn't Want Me For A Sunbeam: 8/10

The Man Who Sold The World: 8/10

Plateau: 11/10

Oh Me: 8/10

Lake Of Fire: 8/10

Where Did You Sleep Last Night: 9/10

Overall 8/10, Favorite Song:

With The Lights Out

Heartbreaker: 8/10

Anorexorcist: 9.5/10

White Lace And Strange: 9/10

Help Me, I'm Hungry: 7.5/10

Mrs. Butterworth(1988 Rehearsal): 8.5/10

If You Must: 10/10

Pen Cap Chew: 9/10

Raunchola/Moby Dick: 5/10

Beans: I don't even know

Don't Want It All: 5/10

Clean Up Before She Comes: 6/10

Blandest: 9/10

They Hung Him On A Cross: 4/10

Grey Goose: 5.5/10

Ain't It A Shame: 4/10

Token Eastern Song: 8/10

Opinion: 4/10

Here She Comes Now: 7/10

Verse Chorus Verse: 9/10

Old Age: 10/10

Return Of The Rat: 5/10

The Other Improv: 5.5/10

Do Re Mi: 4.5/10

You Know You're Right(Version found on the "Nirvana" compilation): 8.5/10

Overall 6/10 if you include the bad, 8/10 if you just include the good. Favorite Song:

Sliver - The Best Of The Box

Spank Thru: 4.5/10

Oh The Guilt: 9/10

Overall: 8/10, Favorite Song:

Closing Thoughts

Nirvana deserves to be at the #1 most listened to spot on my Spotify profile. I don't have much else to say in all honesty except oh my god it is going to take me so long to organize all these songs and different versions of said songs that I just added to my two different rock playlists. Originally I thought this would be a two in one post where I discuss the story of Nirvana and the background of some albums but I also didn't originally plan to rate EVERY SINGLE SONG. I'm sorry for this being such a long post but I guess I'm very adamant about Nirvana. I also hope this post doesn't get taken down because of some of the songs' names because I've been writing this for an hour. I am insanely tired, it is 1:30 AM at the time of writing this. If you've read all the way to the end then imma give you a big ol' smooch. Thank you and good night.

[chorusfm]

Neon Trees – Sink Your Teeth

Consistency is hard to come by in the music industry. Times change, sounds change, and stylistic choices over time can evolve into something completely different than what was popular a decade ago. The great thing about music, however, is that if you can write good songs you can find sustainable success in the music business, regardless of genre. Neon Trees have been one of the most consistent pop rock bands since they debuted in 2010 with Habits, and found early success in singles like “Animal” and the karaoke favorite of “Everybody Talks.” Having now released their fifth studio album, called Sink Your Teeth, Neon Trees’ sound still feels as refreshing as ever as they return to the music scene. The band released the first taste of the new record back in June of 2023 with lead single “Favorite Daze.” As great as Neon Trees are at writing a catchy chorus, this particular single features some of the best verses of their career to date. The rest of the material that surrounds the track feels like a sonic evolution of the band that continues to showcase their staying power in the pop rock scene. Where Neon Trees last record, I Can Feel You Forgetting Me, embraced the more somber side of the pop genre through darker tones and moody aesthetic, Sink Your Teeth gets back to the shimmering sound that the band embraced on Pop Psychology. After the aforementioned vibrant opening track, “Secret” follows in the sequencing with great guitar work and an amazing build-up to the chorus of, “Now you’re so far away / But you’re still here in my head / Gonna lock you up and keep you like a, secret / Every night and all day / The feeling like we just met / Gonna lock you up and keep you like a secret.” The hook feels like a burst of sunshine hitting you in the face on a perfect summer day. My personal favorite in the set, “Bad Dreams” is a solid mix of guitar-driven pop rock meshed with the smooth vocals of Tyler Glenn, who commands the song and never lets up. Not to say that the lyrics have a few missteps, like in the second verse when Glenn playfully sings, “I’m still on stage, and you’re watching me count the stars / Then I eat you up like milk and lucky charms.” The lyrics are forgivable when the music that comes through the speakers are a burst of good vibes. “Recover” features some different sounding guitar tones in the opening bars before getting to a comfortable blend of synth pop in the verses. The pre-chorus of, “We fought with each other / An ending so blue / I’ll never recover / Recover from you,” is as well thought out as it is sad to hear about the heartbreak in Glenn’s life. The summery pop bliss of “Heaven” marks a stark contrast to the spanglish track of “El Diablo” and makes for a memorable transition in the sequencing to go between the two vibes. It’s a nice way to close out the Side A of the disc, and keeps the listener engaged in the album listening experience. The back half opens with “Past Life” that kicks things off with a unique, programmed beat before Glenn’s vocals cut through the heavy synths with surgeon-like precision. The heavy bass line in the chorus by Branden Campbell is top notch and it pulsates the song into a club-ready anthem. “Paper Cuts” features some great lyrical wordplay in the chorus of, “I can cover a scar, yeah I’m keeping it cool / Cause the thicker the skin the darker the blue / Why does it hurt so much / Every time we touch / You’re givin’ me paper cuts.” You can tell Neon Trees were in a good groove at this part of their songwriting process for Sink Your Teeth, and their great band chemistry remains on full display. ”Cruel Intentions” features a very The 1975-esque chorus with the guitar tones brought forth over Glenn’s vocals of, “You got cruel intentions / Sink your teeth in / To your new obsession / 3 day weekends / Well I’ll be gone on Monday / You clean up the mess you made / You got cruel intentions / And I intend to run away.” The guitar work by Chris Allen cannot be understated in its importance throughout the… https://chorus.fm/reviews/neon-trees-sink-your-teeth/