#room tour 2025 when
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annananamustdie · 11 days ago
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thehypnone · 8 days ago
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HI HYPNONE !!! I hope youre doing well !!!
We have a headcanon that Aeon/Phantom is blind and missing a limb due to a summoning accident ,,, do u have any thoughts or ideas about this at all,,,
first ficlet of 2025! i focused on the blind part because i also love @midnight-moth's headcanon where bug kinda sees with his quintessence, so here's my take on him learning to do it
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“Now focus,” Omega tells him quietly, so as not to break Aeon’s concentration. “Get the quintessence out and feel the world with it.”
The younger ghoul takes a deep breath and when he releases it, his magic starts radiating from him and spreading around the small room they’re currently in. As it settles on some items placed here and there and the walls, Aeon starts feeling them; though he can’t quite make out what is what or where just yet.
He needs it if he wants to perform on stage as he was summoned to do.
Yes, he could learn to function being blind—and missing half a leg and most of his tail—but it would not only take him long, but also wouldn’t suffice for touring. Aeon is determined and him being a quintessence ghoul is a blessing in disguise in this situation; knowing it’s possible, Omega has offered to teach him a skill that could make up for the sight he’s lost during his summoning.
“Let it settle like dust over everything,” the older ghoul advises, “let it hug everything and then you’ll get it all mapped out in your mind.”
Aeon tries; he pushes more waves of magic out and wills them to do what Omega’s just described. He can feel the quintessence thickening and starting to collide with different things and they do start taking shape in his brain, making him break into a smile.
“Don’t cheer just yet,” Omega gently scolds him, but he’s happy and proud of the other, too. He’s been working so hard and it’s finally starting to take effect. “Don’t lose focus, push it more.”
The younger ghoul keeps smiling, but his brows draw further together in concentration and determination. He obeys and presses on with his mind and then–
“The guitar!” he exclaims. It makes the whole thing drop, but Aeon doesn’t care. “Omega, the guitar, it was there, I had–I saw it!”
Omega chuckles as he reaches out to pat the other on the back, “Good job, bug. You’re doing so well!”
“Does it work the same with people? With faces?” Aeon asks eagerly, with his smile so bright Omega might just tear up. He’s so incredibly proud of him.
“More or less, yeah,” he replies and the other’s smile grows impossibly.
“I want to see you! Can I see you? Please!!!” Aeon begs, his nub of a tail wagging. How could Omega decline?
“It’s a bit trickier, but yes,” he says, “I believe you’re capable of that, you just need to focus really hard.”
“Okay! I can do it.” The younger ghoul decides and then shakes the excitement off of himself, making Omega chuckle—he’s not unlike a wet dog shaking off water. He needs a moment to get rid of the excessive emotion before he can ground himself and properly focus again, but after a couple minutes he’s ready.
Aeon gathers up his quintessence before pushing it out again—except this time he directs it all in front of himself, at Omega, instead of all around the room. Slowly, the older ghoul’s body shape starts appearing in his mind and it grows sharper and sharper until he’s not a blob of purple light anymore, but
Omega.
Aeon tears up as he looks at the face of his mentor for the first time. He’s smiling with pride at him and that makes it even better—even though Aeon doesn’t yet know how to recognize the emotions on others’ faces, he can feel them strongly.
“I hope I am not ugly enough for you to regret me being your first ever seen face Topside?” Omega jokes—he can see his lips moving—and tears start falling from Aeon’s sightless eyes before he throws himself forward, into the others’ arms.
“You’re g–gorgeous,” Aeon sobs into his chest as the image from his mind starts to fade—he mourns it already, but it only makes him even more determined to master this skill. He wants to see his packmates. He needs to see them.
“Oh, kiddo,” Omega coos; also quite moved. Then, in an attempt to lighten the mood again, “Wait until you see Cumulus’ boobs.”
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the-girl-lost-in-fandoms · 3 months ago
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DEBUNK OF TIT FORSHADOWING
hello! i promised a recap and debrief of all the times dip and pip teased what happens in the terrible influence show, so here it goes, brace yourself 'cause it's gonna be a long one
GENERAL REMARKS
so i started with the videos posted during the summer, since they were rehearsing the show during that time. i might go further back if this post does well (they said they've been writing for six/seven months and they were already teasing during dan's birthday stream). anyway, there were some recurring hints that i'm gonna get out of the way now:
a LOT of emphasis on the fact that it's been nearly 15 years of dan and phil (cough cough, reminds me of phil's infamous inconsistant line about their anniversary coming up in octodecember, cough cough)
a lot of ancient lore being introduced by 'the year was 2009/2011/2015', which is generally reminiscent of the recap at the beginning of the show, and most are the actual years featured in that segment of the show
they acknowledged 'we are ph-', which they also use in the show i.e. the phouse, the phortgage, the pheal, the phitchen, etc.
they are SO aware of the moms/dads/straight boyfriends that we have forced dan and phil onto, they kept asking us to bring them and they acknowledge them several time in the show
DNP GOING AWAY Q&A (1st Sep.)
strong emphasis on the haitus (reminiscent of phil's dramatic haitus microphone moments)
say they might adress the japhan wedding conspiracy (which they do!)
the nude colored briefs (are for sister daniel)
at 2:45, phil says 'gay' and the rainbow light and sound effect happen just like in the show
dan mentions red flags (might be far fetched but reminded me of the green flags/red flags of lawyer!dan and doctor!phil)
phil says cunt (like in the show)
'no but seriously imagine it'
phil broke a rib during repetition of 'some kind of stunt event' (during the boxing/wrestling match)
they spent $300 on silicon for 'full body character transformation onesie' for 'a perfectly unsexual moment of the show' (read: phil wears fake abs while pretending not to have sex with dan on stage)
Dan: 'you're not a 365 party girl? terrible influence when you're bumping that?' (charli xcx is on the preshow playlist and it teases the terrible song)
reveal of the 'dan and phil made me gay' T-shirt, teasing of the sweatshirt and black tour T-shirt
DATE NIGHT WITH DNP (25th Aug.)
dan sings muder on the dancefloor (which is on the preshow playlist)
dan going 'ohmygod they SHARE CLOTHES' (one of the conspiracies addressed in the show)
WRITING PHAN FICTION ABOUT OURSELVES (19th Aug.)
it's a fill-in-the-blanks game, as they do multiples times in the show (okay, not really foreshadowing as they've done this in all of their shows, but i think it was a way to introduce this to the newer audience maybe)
MrBeast mention
DNP REACT TO TATINOF (16th Aug.)
phil: 'fall out boy! my chemical romance! the shipping had started!' (basically all the ingredients of the no seriously imagine it post)
'if we asked people to confess stuff now it would be so much worse' 'the tone might be different' & 'and if you come to our show, there might be a different tone' (so... confess your sins to sister daniel, need i say more)
#spon (which is now #ad in the terrible song)
'i went to see dan and phil and all i got was this lousy plate' (EXCUSE ME DAN??? he was basically spoiling the merch two weeks in advance) (this is the moment that inspired me this post btw)
dan 'professional hater' howell is now the one starting the song in tit
'imagine that but 2025. we're old. we're gay. phil can say fuck' (and indeed, he says fuck)
DNP PLAY DRESS TO IMPRESS (11th Aug.)
they wear the matching 'precious baby angel' t-shirts (same phrase used to describe phil in the show)
DNP DRESS EACH OTHER (14th July)
Phil: 'like two Kens playing with Kens' (i bet pj was crafting the little rooms and the little dolls at this point)
they both have mesh shirts as the main show outfits
'how booty are the shorts, dan?' 'i'm not gonna bend over in these things'.... except for the photocards that feature your ass in those shorts!
the two first look (emo!phil and beach!dan), the white cowboy hat, phil's blue and purple bomber jacket are all featured in the photocards sold at the show
DNP MASSIVE MUKBANG 2 (5th July)
'we've been doing this since 2009 and 2006 *excerpt from phil's first videoblog*' (that's literally the opening of the show)
'we reclaim what Dan and Phil is in 2024'
'we’re gonna look at what YouTube is like in 2024, how do we fit in, we’re gonna be taking shots at people'
'we’re gonna spill some things that would have sent you into cardiac arrest seven years ago' (2024-7=2017. so basically any of the conspiracies they adress from that time, like the tour bus, vegas, etc.)
'we’re gonna go full theater kids' (oooh teasing the musical number already)
'what do people want? Series mystery hunting, lifestyle cooking, real life, get a dog, domestic' (that's basically all the things they try on stage)
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effinbirds · 4 months ago
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Last 2024 appearances, plus online store changes
Howdy, bird friends.
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I'll be appearing in Madison WI, Cincinnati OH, Toronto ON, Minneapolis MN, and New York City, NY to close out my 2024 tour. Come see me, get your 2025 calendars (I'll write mean things on your birthday), and grab some Effin' Birds swag that will no longer be sold in my online store. (And if you would like me to show up to your local event, tell the show how much you'd like to see me there -- that's far more effective than me telling them that they should spring for my plane ticket and hotel room.)
Store Changes
I shut down my Canadian shipping point earlier this year, and I'll be shutting down the one in the US when the inventory is gone. And some of it is moving very fast, so don't miss out.
I'll still have an online store, but it will be only on-demand items like mugs, t-shirts and prints. Things that I have to manufacture in bulk like my Hawaiian shirts, enamel pins, and trading cards will now only be available at my personal appearances. They were just too expensive to warehouse and ship.
So it's an online last call for these beauties! Grab them while you can.
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freedomfireflies · 2 years ago
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Destiny
Summary: You’ll lose Harry on August 17th, 2029.
They’ll say it was a freak accident. That nobody could have seen it coming. Nobody could have stopped it.
But you can.
And you will.
Word Count: 1.6k
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“I’m not sure. I swear, it was right here on the dresser.”
“I’ll have Anthony check again. We might be able to find a copy somewhere in the office. Or maybe we can find the file through email.”
“Yeah, that sounds good. Let me know. I was really looking forward to it.”
“Will do. Don’t move, I’ll be right back.”
Harry nods to his manager, who disappears down the corridor of the arena, before he leans against the wall and hangs his head.
Your heart hammers inside your chest as that familiar ringing returns to your ears. 
There he is.
He’s so close. So fucking close, you can almost smell his vanilla cologne. Can almost feel his soft curls run through your fingers or feel his lips on your neck.
Hear his voice in your ear.
Your body aches to be near him. Every muscle, every nerve-ending, every joint vibrates with the need to be close. To walk over to him, throw your arms around his neck, and bury your face in his chest.
To hold onto him one last time.
But you can’t. You made a deal.
You do this
and you move on.
Harry sighs to himself and looks back up at the ceiling, hands digging into his pockets.
You know what this means. He’s stressed. Aggravated over something he can’t control, and annoyed with himself for being unable to fix it.
In the future, when he'll get frustrated, you’ll press a kiss to his palm, whisper three, “I love you’s,” and count with him to ten.
He’ll remember to breathe, to relax, and to handle the problem one step at a time.
You wish you could do that now.
But this Harry doesn’t know you. He hasn’t met you yet.
He doesn’t love you yet.
And he never will.
You take a deep breath and glance down at the envelope in your pocket that you’d snuck from his dressing room. The same envelope Jeff is currently on a mission to find.
But he won’t find it. There’s no other copy in existence and there won’t be again.
You promised.
If he never goes on that trip to Italy, then he never meets Alexander. And if he never meets Alexander, then he never agrees to the tour around Europe. And if he never agrees to the tour around Europe, then he’ll never be in that car on August 17th at 5:03 P.M. 
He’ll never be flipped over seven times before the vehicle crashes into the wall.
He’ll never attempt to crawl to you and drag you to safety.
He’ll never realize he’s bleeding out faster than either of you can stop it, and he’ll never collapse onto the streets of Barcelona.
You’ll never lose him.
You made a deal that day. Some deity in the universe found you begging anyone that would listen to give you one more chance.
And they decided to give it to you.
They’d let you come back and keep him from finding that envelope. The very envelope that would set everything in motion.
They’d allow you to stop him.
They’d allow you to save his life.
Even if it means he'll never meet you.
Because you and he will bump into each other at a cafe in Paris on March 5th, 2025. He’ll already be waiting there to conduct a meeting with Alexander. The same meeting where they’ll choose the dates for the tour. 
The day they’ll choose to send him to Barcelona.
He’ll notice your dress first and he’ll stop you to tell you that it’s his favorite color. And you’ll blush wildly once you realize who he is and thank him profusely for taking the time to speak with you.
He’ll offer to buy you a croissant and you’ll laugh at his attempt at a French accent. Then you’ll part ways for about half an hour as he and Alexander talk while you return to your chai in the corner of the restaurant.
But he’ll stop by your small table before he leaves. He’ll tell you his name and ask for yours.
You’ll give it to him.
And from that moment on, neither of your lives will ever be the same.
You’d thought long and hard about the decision before agreeing to this second chance. Wondering if there was any other way you could warn him and keep him out of that car without having to lose him completely.
Destiny said no.
As long as your soul is intertwined with his, he will always meet the same fate. 
The only way to save him
is to let him go.
You hear Harry curse to himself as he runs a hand through his hair, tugging on it until he winces. 
The last fragile shard of your heart shatters when you see him drop into a crouch, head cradled in his palms.
“The fuck is wrong with me?” you hear him mumble, the hauntingly familiar question echoing between the empty arena walls until it finds you.
He’s asked himself that at least a hundred times throughout your relationship.
Your answer is always the same:
“Nothing,” you’ll whisper before taking him into your arms. “Nothing, H. You’re perfectly imperfect and I love you.”
He’ll melt in your embrace before allowing himself to sink into your body. “I love you.”
You’d give anything to offer him that comfort now.
Not that he’d know what to do with it.
Suddenly, his head lifts, eyes drifting around the white corridors in thought before they find you.
Your breath catches as you scramble to hide around the corner, pulse racing as you hear him stand, his shoes squeaking along the linoleum floors.
“Hello?”
Your eyes squeeze shut, back pressing into the wall. “Sorry,” you call, silently commanding him not to come over. “Just
looking for the bathroom. My bad.”
But you hear him approach. Hear his feet lead him to you in a way that almost feels
destined.
You’re frozen to your spot, acutely aware of the way you should be heading for the exit. You did what you came to do. He’s safe
and you need him to stay that way.
But you couldn’t resist one final look. One final glimpse of the man that had asked you to marry him only moments before getting into that damned car.
His head peeks out from behind the wall to look for you, brows raising when he sees the way you’re cowering away from him. 
“Are you all right?” he asks, and his voice holds the same compassion he’s demonstrated with you a hundred times before. Despite the fact that he doesn’t know you now
he still cares.
One of the many reasons you fell in love with him. His kindness for everybody.
“Yes, sorry,” you repeat, eyes falling to his shoes. You can’t look at him. “I just
couldn’t find the bathroom.”
“I get it.” He laughs. And the sound makes your stomach rip down the middle. “S’place is huge. You wanna go down this hallway, make a right, follow that hallway
and then it should be on your left.”
You nod without lifting your head. “Thanks. Sorry again for bothering you.”
“No, don’t be,” he insists. “I was just
taking a minute.”
“Yeah,” you reply, and your voice is small. Weighed down by the burden of your grief. “Sometimes we need a minute. Or two.”
“Or twenty,” he adds, chuckling again. “I swear, sometimes I think I have a handle on this shit, and sometimes
it feels like it's completely out of my hands. Like somebody else is pulling the strings and I’m just
along for the ride.”
Your throat constricts as the imminent tears rush to your eyes. “Yeah.”
He pauses and you can feel his eyes on the top of your head. He’s studying you. Your body language, your demeanor, your voice. Looking for something. Looking for what’s wrong.
He did this all the time when you were first dating.
Eventually, he learned to read you like a book.
“Seriously, are you all right?” he asks again, softer this time. Hoping to coax a real answer out of you.
No. No, you’re not all right. How are you supposed to tell him goodbye? How are you supposed to look at the man that asked you to marry him and see that he has no idea who you are?
And that he never will?
How are you supposed to walk through those double doors when you know that the moment you do
you’ll forget. You’ll forget him, you’ll forget your relationship, and you’ll forget the fact that you lost him.
And maybe that’s okay because at least then, you’ll forget that you watched him die. Forget that you watched the life leave his eyes as his hand went limp in yours.
He’d made you promise you’d be okay.
And it was the last thing he ever did.
You don’t know if he’d approve of this. You don’t think he would.
But you’d rather have his life than his love.
You take a deep breath and force your shoulders back. “Yes, sorry. Just taking a minute myself.”
He hums. “Yeah. I get that. Life is
hard.”
“Very,” you whisper before you trail your eyes to his.
He smiles.
And it almost guts you.
“Try
counting to ten,” you say as you take a step back, putting a lifetime of distance between you. “Whenever I’m upset, I just take a deep breath, hold it, and count to ten. And when I’m done
everything doesn’t feel so
loud.”
He seems intrigued by this premise, the corner of his mouth quirking up into a smirk as he nods once. “Yeah. I’ll try that.”
You nod yourself and turn on your heel. You don’t want to leave him but you can’t stay.
Destiny is calling you back.
You make it about three steps before a hand snatches onto your wrist and spins you around.
You know this touch. Know what it means, and you can’t force yourself to see him as he steps closer.
“Wait,” he murmurs, and there’s an urgency woven between each syllable that springs the tears to your waterline.
You go still.
"I know you..." he whispers, eyes trailing over the side of your face, "...don't I?"
Even now, the echo of his love calls out for you.
You swallow every truth you wish you could tell him, and slip yourself from his touch for the last time.
“You used to.”
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~ Other Harry Blurbs
~ Full Masterlist
Taglist: @walkingintheheartbreaksatellite @keepdrivingkisses @swiftmendeshoran @tiredinwinter
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typicalopposite · 7 months ago
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Tommy stumbles upon Buck's journal. They read it together 🙂
Omg! OMG!! I love this so much! So much I wrote it three different times before I figured out the way I actually wanted it to go! LOL! Hope you like the final cut! (she got a little long!)
<3<3<3<3<3
Buck is busy making dinner. He has his brand new apron on; a housewarming gift from Bobby. Although it’s not technically a housewarming gift, since Tommy has already lived in the house for almost a decade
 Either way, he loves it, and he is officially breaking it in. 
“Baby,” Tommy calls from their room. Their room
 Buck can’t help the smile that creeps across his face at that. “What’s this?”
He looks up from seasoning some veggies as Tommy walks in, a notebook in his hand. His notebook. Buck nearly yelps: “Oh— uh— uhm— wha— wh- where
 did you find that?” 
“It was sticking out from under the mattress,” Tommy says. “I didn’t know you kept a journal.” 
“Oh, well
 it’s not— it’s just—” Tommy finally lifts his eyes from the cover (that may or may not be covered in little doodles and a couple dozen fancily penned versions of their names together) to look at Buck. Buck feels his face getting hot; he sighs. “Uh yeah—I used to write a lot
 Back when I first started seeing my therapist, she suggested it. Said it might help to get all the thoughts I tend to keep bottled up
 out.” He lets out a nervous laugh, switching the spice shaker he’s holding from one hand to the other, and back. 
Tommy finally hands the notebook to him. “Is this one recent?” 
“It is,” Buck admits. “I— uh— I actually picked it up again when—” His voice falters, his nerves kick in. He knows he shouldn’t be nervous; Tommy would never judge him for anything, especially not something he uses as a coping mechanism. “When I met you
” he finally says. He can feel the blush all the way in his ears. Tommy smiles that soft understanding smile. “You— uh— you wanna read some of it?” 
“Only if you don’t mind,” Tommy says, but his eyes light up excitedly. 
Buck’s heart is racing as he quickly finishes the meal prep, shoves it into the oven, and sets a timer. “Okay
” He wipes off his hands and picks up the notebook. Buck’s Journal 2024-2025 is written on the front cover in the bottom corner. Tommy pulls him down onto the couch beside him, situating himself around Buck’s body, resting his chin on Buck’s shoulder so he can read along.  
Buck flips to the first page. 
March 19 2024 
Secretly followed Hen on a hunch she had. Flew through a hurricane, and saved Cap and Athena from their capsized cruise ship. Came up with the team's new motto, “Who Cares!?!” 
Oh and I finally got to meet Tommy. He’s pretty cool!
Next to the entry is Tommy’s number, he got it from Chimney so he could call about the tour
 and it’s circled. 
March 29 2024
Got a tour of Harbor Station today. Seeing all the helicopters and learning what all air ops does was pretty cool, not as cool as the guy who gets to man the helicopters and do all the stuff air ops does
 but still. I kind of didn’t want the tour to end. I’d have loved to get to know Tommy a little more, BUT unfortunately he had other plans
 weirdly they were with Eddie
 he flew him to Vegas to see a fight. 
He did offer to give me flying lessons though
 that will be fun. I wonder if he offered to give Eddie flying lessons too.
Buck can feel Tommy smiling. “So jealous,” he hears him whisper, and he nudges at his jaw with his shoulder. 
April 4 2024 
I have a date. 
Which is definitely not how I expected my day to end
 giving it kind of started with me hurting Eddie.  
Ok so to explain that
 I kind of convinced Chimney to bring me along to the basketball game because I was maybe just a little jealous of Eddie getting to spend so much time with Tommy when something always came up when I tried to
 and I guess it just got the better of me. I feel really bad about it, probably will feel bad for a while

BUT THEN Tommy came over! And he
 kissed me!? And I liked it?!? And now we have a date. On Saturday. 
Yes
 the date of their date was circled with a heart around it. “Awww,” Tommy says, pressing a kiss to Buck’s cheek. Buck laughs and turns the page, then quickly tries to turn it again, but Tommy stops him. “Can I see?” He asks. 
April 6 2024
I BLEW IT.
That was all that was written on that page. In big letters and underlined. Tear stains were scattered across the page. He feels Tommy’s arms tighten around him. “I’m so sorry baby,” he says quietly. 
Buck shrugs; smiles. “It’s all good because
” he skips a page to—
April 12 2024
I FIXED IT!
And now I have a date for the wedding! :)
Tommy barks out a laugh. 
May 6 2024  Buck writes about the bachelor party, and losing Chimney, and coming out to everyone at the hospital wedding
May 19 2024 Buck writes about helping save the kidnapped baby, and spending the night at Tommy’s for the first time. 
May 25 2024 Buck writes about the medal ceremony, and meeting Gerrard, and hating Gerrard, and wanting to fight Gerrard for being mean to Tommy, and wanting to make out with Tommy in front of Gerrard so he can go into homophobic shock and wither away like the old wrinkly ass he is

May 30 2024 Buck writes about Bobby, and the fear he had about almost losing him. He writes about Christopher going to Texas, and missing him. He writes about Tommy, and how he thinks he can picture forever with him. 
June 23 2024 Buck writes about Gerrard being the new captain. 
September 1 2024 Buck writes about Gerrard finally getting fired permanently. The time under him was miserable; he didn't feel like writing during that time. He writes about Tommy being his rock through it all. He writes about thinking he’s in love. 
The timer goes off in the kitchen. “Well,” Tommy says, pulling Buck into his arms for a kiss. “That was nice, getting to see some of the stuff you keep bottled up. Thank you for sharing it with me.”  
Buck smiles; he feels that damned blush creeping up again. He holds the notebook close to his chest, carrying it with him back into the kitchen. That was close
 he thinks. He really needs to find a better hiding place, at least until after their anniversary
 
.
.
.
March 29 2025
I bought a ring. I’m going to ask him to marry me on our anniversary. I want to spend the rest of my life feeling this happy and safe and satisfied. 
.
.
.
April 4 2025
He said yes!
<3<3<3<3<3
might put this one on ao3 later too!
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ksadvent · 4 days ago
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✹ K/S Advent Masterlist! ✹2/2
Day 21: ForFucksSakeJim: Heaven Had Come So Near (fic, TOS) Day 21: ForFucksSakeJim: that’s when I love you (fic (short), AOS) Day 21: Phoenix_Rose: A Winter's Break (fic, TOS)
Day 22: ForFucksSakeJim: A Phase Change (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 22: ForFucksSakeJim: When Guards Are Lowered Free (poetry, AOS) Day 22: remylebae: Curation and Creation (fic, TOS)
Day 23: ForFucksSakeJim: devotions such as yours (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 23: ForFucksSakeJim: This Simple Feeling (fic, TOS) Day 23: IvanW: Uncle Jim's Makeover (or Joanna McCoy's Holiday Miracle) (fic, AOS)
Day 24: ForFucksSakeJim: All I want For Christmas Is You (fic, AOS) Day 24: ForFucksSakeJim: Winter’s Bounty (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 24: kayson: Duality Concordia (fic, TOS) Day 24: lorvee: Care for a room tour, Mr. Spock? (art, SNW)
Day 25: deliciousblizzardshark: Observance (fic (short), AOS) Day 25: ForFucksSakeJim: All My Flaws and All (poetry, AOS) Day 25: ForFucksSakeJim: I Just Want You For My Own (fic, AOS) Day 25: T'Lara: [manip] Happy Hanukkah! (art, TOS)
Day 26: ForFucksSakeJim: Of Gold and Blue (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 26: ForFucksSakeJim: To That Which We Exchange (fic, AOS) Day 26: Orabla: An Evening Cuddle (fic, TOS) Day 26: T'Lara: Bitter Cold (drabble, TOS)
Day 27: deliciousblizzardshark: This is not a tragedy (fic, AOS) Day 27: ForFucksSakeJim: luck nor fate (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 27: ForFucksSakeJim: Steeping Starlight (fic, AOS) Day 27: SButler: KS and McCoy By the Fireplace (art, TOS)
Day 28: ForFucksSakeJim: The Holiday on the Edge of Forever (fic, AOS) Day 28: ForFucksSakeJim: To Love and Be Loved (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 28: indeedcaptain: The Royal We (fic, AOS)
Day 29: ForFucksSakeJim: Early Spring Snow (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 29: ForFucksSakeJim: Our Minds Aglow (art, TOS) Day 29: ForFucksSakeJim: These Private Stars (fic, AOS) Day 29: ForFucksSakeJim: What We Orbit (fic, AOS) Day 29: mazarinememories: A Romantic Meal (fic, TOS)
Day 30: ForFucksSakeJim: Familiar Stars (fic (short), AOS) Day 30: ForFucksSakeJim: Frost and Found (fic, AOS) Day 30: ForFucksSakeJim: it might just have been you (fic, AOS) Day 30: ForFucksSakeJim: logic blind (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 30: ForFucksSakeJim: Revelry (poetry, SNW) Day 30: T'Lara: Of Gourds and Peaches, Sumptuous and Ripe (fic, TOS)
Day 31: ForFucksSakeJim: Delta-Snowflakes (crafts, TOS or AOS or SNW) Day 31: ForFucksSakeJim: Keeping Count (fic (short), AOS) Day 31: ForFucksSakeJim: melt me like snow (poetry, TOS or AOS) Day 31: ForFucksSakeJim: No Troubles as Tribbles (fic (short), TOS or AOS) Day 31: ForFucksSakeJim: T'hy'la: Friend, Brother, Lover (crafts, TOS or AOS or SNW) Day 31: ForFucksSakeJim: Trouble With Tribbles (fic (short), TOS) Day 31: lesbobaggins: Starburned and unkissed (fic, TOS) Day 31: Lupo (LupoLight): Happy Mew Year (fic, AOS) Day 31: spacedogfromspace: Better Than Drinking Alone (fic, AOS)
The 2024 collection is now closed for posting. The K/S Advent Calendar will return next year for a new round. If your prompt(s) did not get filled, you can submit them as new requests for Advent 2025, if you wish to. If you do not want to wait that long, you can also submit them to our sister event @ksspringfever which will go live in March 2025, a fest without any specific theme as long as the work is focused on Kirk and Spock, be it slash or gen/friendship. Sign-up has opened a few days ago!
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omar-bb · 8 months ago
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notes & quotes from omar's live today
he wanted to release Red Light sooner but he and his team wanted to get it right
he's excited to headline at Gröna Lund - gonna be playing a new song there and at his other shows this summer!
"one of my favorite songs. i'm telling you, you will fucking choke when you hear that one. it's dark, it's dirty, it's groovy..."
"should I leak some of it? it would be fun for you to be able to sing along..."
"i hope it's fine by my team that I just leaked that"
"maybe it'll be the next single after Red Light. only maybe. I'm not promising anything"
someone asked about an Asia tour - "I cannot be live bc I'm gonna leak a lot of shit. But you wanna know something funny? This song .... it is actually a k-pop pitch song from start. it was made with k-pop in mind. it is not fully k-pop and now that i've been doing my touch on it, it is a little less k-pop but.. they actually wrote the song k-pop in mind."
teased doing a tour in the future
another "leak" - "I was actually meant to go to korea like right now or a month ago, like after the oscars ... i was supposed to go to korea. but it never happened. i was very sad. but maybe one day.
he had a scared moment where music started playing in the other room and he thought it was an unreleased song but it was just his alejandro tiktok lol
inspo for red light? "I didn't write the song ... it was a demo that got sent to me. at first ... it was a girl singing red light, and when i heard it the first time i was like yo this sounds like fucking rihanna ... i was like is this a long lost rihanna song? this is the greatest thing i've ever heard. and then i just fucking took it. i was like this is my song before rihanna takes it from me. and now it's my song."
Red Light music video when? "we shot a visualizer, so it's not a music video ... it's very beautiful. very stunning. i've never done anything like that. ... it's not a real music video. it's more visuals for the song."
will be doing red light on 25 may and also a new song
"you'll hear a whole new omar when you hear that song"
he has been replying to messages in his community on whatsapp and sms. they'll be leaking more stuff through there
new OMR Beauty product when? "....................... stay tuned"
"you will die when you see the next launch of OMR Beauty. that's all I'm saying. Next!!!"
will he start a fashion brand? "i don't really have the time for that unfortunately. ... not for now"
thinks he is not gonna bleach his hair
Someone asked red light spanish version when? and he sang a bit of it in spanish
omar backflip when? "when i'm in heaven"
is he going to act again?"i'm actually reading some scripts right now. just reading, it's not anything happening really yet, just testing the waters. we'll see, i would love to act. i actually miss acting, it was a fun time ... nothing will ever be like YR obviously, but just the thought of meeting new ppl, new friends, being together for a few weeks or a few months, and filming smth very special, that would be so much fun. ... i'm actually reading a really cool script right now" but more focusing on music right now
he has 40-50 new songs from the last year apparently??? Maybe i misunderstood this
album when? "don't know, we'll see" - he has a lot of songs and could drop an album but he wants it to be perfect so it'll be awhile
there will be red light merch this summer
he and edvin hang out sometimes
not doing Rix FM this year
there will not be 12 red light remixes lol "but maybe a few"
Eurovision 2025? "absolutely not. sorry not sorry." something about always being thrown out of the competition
he's stopped drinking coffee regularly and drinks matcha instead
someone suggested hoemars as the fandom name and he laughed lol
a lot is happening in May he says !! "y'all better eat good, sleep well" lolol
he said he might do another live next week once Red Light is out
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katuschka · 2 months ago
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Olalla Chapter Nine
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Josh Kiszka x f!OC x Jake Kiszka 5.569 words
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Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, intended for adult readers. Any resemblance to real persons is purely coincidental. Also, if you're under 18, go find some other entertainment elsewhere.
Warnings (are spoilers): phone sex, masturbation, LGBT themes, mentions of infidelity, anxiety, betrayal&trust issues, secrets, overall a healthy dose of emotional shit as always
If you like the story and want to get notifications, you can join the Taglist
Previous chapter Olalla masterpost
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Over the mountains, woods and valleys two guys fought with shepherd's axes. Hey guys! Stop fighting! The girl has two braids; you can share!
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November 2025; Josh 
He stood silent, but the contents of his mind were full of roaring memories of moments similar to this one. He could hear his younger and more carefree self shouting, almost as if someone played it in his in-ear. Can you feel iiiiiiit?
Exhilaration, stage fright, happiness, fear, anticipation

All the emotions crammed into that fleeting, magical moment that lasts just a few seconds before everything bursts. The moment which ALL the souls and hearts in the large arena shared as one. He couldn’t see them yet, but their cries reverberated through the walls on their way from the green room to the stage and the volume reached the deafening level as soon as the band’s silhouettes appeared behind the semi opaque curtain.
There was no speech this time, no pre-recorded intro; just the sound of Sam’s Hammond organ that first started as a feeble hum, barely audible in the roaring mix of cries, clapping hands and stomping feet. Back to basics, while sticking to the most essential refinements. 
The tones grew louder then, and Josh could feel them set the stage beneath his feet vibrating, which only added to his agitation. So glad to be back, and yet so anxious. 
So much had changed in just one year, so many things that altered their course. The ‘Spring/Summer festival tour’ literally changed his life. He had loved, he had lost, he was now taking a path to the unknown, and it all left people wondering. His sudden disappearance and a subsequent injury started brand new rumors, and all the attempts to stop them from spreading felt like fighting Hydra. Eventually, they just stopped trying and focused on work, but now it made his guts clench again. Did they still love him? Would they still accept him, standing in front of them so vulnerable and naked? He knew some of them condemned him for what he had done, a few believed the lies about him, but thousands of them still came back. 
He looked at Jake for reassurance, but found him crouched under his own heavy thoughts, while his hands followed Sam’s direction, adding more ringing notes to the whole cacophony of the tamed melody and tumultuous feelings. 
Josh was on his own in this. He too looked down and smoothed a wrinkle on his new ebony satin wrap jacket. It hugged him around the waist and fell in smooth cascades around his hips. It was a perfect piece of garment, elegant when tied up, and frivolous-looking when he let it open. Unsure about it at first, he had gained some meat back during the last month, so he could now finally acknowledge that it really looked good on him. He put his chin up, both metaphorically and literally, and ran his fingers across the edges of the new dark brass laurel wreath that now decorated his head. It was a last minute addition, designed to hide the scar that was still visible under his patchy haircut. A deep breath in, and

The curtain dropped. 
... and the room exploded. He looked down and realized they had been just as nervous, and finally they could just let it all out. Raising his arms up in a simple gesture, he urged them to do it, and then welcomed him in return. 
It was a wonderful song to open the show with. Just like with Heat Above, the initial tension grew until it was almost unbearable, only to be replaced by smooth harmonies and a soaring melody. However, they also experimented a bit more with this one, changing the tempo as well as the mood right where the chorus was supposed to be, hitting the listener right in the chest with its aggressive force. It was a perfect hymn for disturbing times, and the lyrics were Josh’s new prayer. 
When it was over, Josh closed his eyes, panting, and tried to get ready for the next song. The initial high subsided and he was now painfully aware of his surroundings. The new setlist had been one of the main topics of the recent late night quarrels. Sam and Daniel wanted to continue with Safari, while Jake opposed the idea without being able to explain why. He got outvoted eventually and now it was his turn to play the initial chords. 
Everything went smoothly until the first chorus. Josh turned slightly to the left, just like he had been used to doing, only to see Jake still standing at his side of the stage. He took one step forward, but Jake kept ignoring him. The audience noticed too, and he could see their frowned and confused faces as he continued to sing “why don’t you give some lovin’” and by that time it was painfully obvious that Jake wasn’t coming. One of the most notorious examples of their twin bond, one that started years ago as a telepathic need, was gone. Jake no longer wanted to sing that song together with him. 
Thousands of miles away, still tucked in her warm bed, Agnieszka was watching the livestream. 
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Agnieszka 
After she had followed all the accounts that promised to do the streaming, Agnieszka had set her alarm clock to 3:30 to make sure she wouldn’t miss a single minute of it. With her headphones on, a cup of strong coffee at hand and a wildly beating heart inside her chest, she joined thousands of the people in the arena and hundreds of others online as a silent voyeur.  
While reading all those excited comments, she had no intention to join the live chat. She had even gone as far as to create new burner accounts everywhere, just to be able to keep tracks without being seen. She had already learned the power of gossip with the two of them still here, and things only got worse after they left, all because of one smudgy photo made by some fan from Warsaw.
It happened early on during their stay. The two of them were just helping Agnieszka with some groceries when a girl approached them and they reluctantly agreed to take a photo with her, well aware that things could get much worse if they refused. Much to everyone’s relief, nothing really happened afterwards, even though the picture circulated through the online space for a few days. It was just a photo of the guys “on vacation”, location unspecified, with both of them hiding under their hats and behind their sunglasses. They were probably just taking some time off after the recent media shitstorm, people concluded. Joshua needed to get out, and Jake was there to keep him company. 
It was only after the fans started discussing possible reasons for and creating their own theories about Josh's mysterious injury and why the tour got postponed when the girl posted another photo on Reddit that ultimately caused a huge uproar. The picture showed the three of them leaving the supermarket, location specified, with her confirming that the dark-haired woman who seemed local was indeed there with them. And since it was a clear violation of the guys’ privacy, the girl got roasted for it immediately and deleted it shortly afterwards. But the harm was already done, the photo quickly appeared on other platforms and fueled people’s imagination.  
Things got a bit out of hand in early October. At one point, she even martyrously tried to convince Joshua not to come back and just forget about their little affair, but he was adamant, unwilling to let anyone ruin his life any further. 
And now Jake only made things worse. The fourth song just started, and the people in the chat were still discussing his strange behaviour. To say that it made Agnieszka feel uncomfortable would be an understatement. Of course she knew they were supposed to sing those lines together, as she had spent the last two months watching every video that there was. Official material, fan footage and old interviews became her everyday bedtime stories. She even fell asleep while listening to Joshua’s guided meditation a few times. 
It always made her feel like an Alice in Wonderland, unable to comprehend how she came to know these talented and flamboyant people. She had dined with them, got drunk with them, kissed them and developed an intimate relationship with one of them. 
Was there really any relationship at all? As those strangers kept wondering, they were asking questions to which she had no answers. No, she wasn’t lurking backstage; no, she didn’t know how he labeled himself, because she never cared to ask; and no, she had no idea what was going on between him and Jake.  
Pcheh. Their ‘intimate’ relationship

What was it, if not a folly?
Everytime she found a new gray hair – which seemed much more frequent after what happened up on Koscielec – Agnieszka would ask herself what am I doing? And then she would continue doing that. There were plenty of other men willing to be with her if she only let them, and she had the freedom to do it if or when the opportunity presented itself, but she just couldn’t. She kept waiting for the phone calls and Google Meet rendezvous. 
One such face call was scheduled right for after the show. Agnieszka had to wait for Joshua to get back to the hotel, which would take a while, so she just lay back on the pillow and enjoyed the moment of peace, as well as the warmth of her soft comforter. The house was now half empty and eerily quiet during early hours. No one wanted an early breakfast at this time of year; the few adventurous hikers and alpinists who dared to conquer the icy trails mostly kept to themselves. A calm before the Christmas storm, one would say. 
Even the sounds of the waking town coming from the outside were strangely muffled by the falling snow. Minutes dragged, and boredom and restlessness started to set. Agnieszka tried to kill the time by watching other newly posted videos from the show that just ended. 
Eventually, she dozed off waiting
 
She was walking along the ridge that separated the northeastern valleys from the southwestern ones. It was a dangerous path between two seemingly different worlds, covered with frost and ice, forcing her to consider every step carefully. To her left, everything was sprinkled with white and with mist lurking at stony rims. To her right, where the hillside was blessed with more sunshine, the autumn still kept flaunting its fiery colours. The setting sun behind her back illuminated the landscape and enhanced the visible split of seasons. 
Agnieszka couldn’t tell how she got up there. Just a moment ago, she was safe in the warm bed, awaiting a new day, from which she now couldn’t remember anything. The only thing was certain – the winter was coming and once again, another sun-like light appeared on the eastern horizon, disrupting the age-old alternation of day and night and sending chills down her spine. 
She heard three voices calling her name simultaneously. 
Together, it created an unearthly sound
 then suddenly, their voices turned to deafening ringtones

Olalla
Veela
Neszka
Agnieszka needed to take a few seconds to find out where she was and what happened. With the sleepy haze still clouding her brain, she looked around to see that the sky outside turned to steely blue, making outlines of furniture in her bedroom already visible. The phone, which she still held in her hand, kept on buzzing.
Still feeling weird from the recurring and yet ever changing dream, she pressed the accept button, squinting at the oppressively bright screen. Sexy

Joshua, on the other hand, was his usual flawless and charming self: freshly-showered, rosy-cheeked and with his short damp curls slicked back. “Oh, hello darl
 did I wake you up? I thought you said you were going to
”
“Oh yeah, yeah, I was. I just fell back to sleep after the livestream ended, I guess. But I saw everything,” she responded groggily while rubbing her left eye, before she adjusted the pillow behind her so that she could sit. 
“Oh, cool. It was a hell of a show, wasn’t it.” He greeted her with his usual bright, toothy smile, but Joshua’s face was an open book and Agnieszka already knew that face she caught a glimpse of behind the smiley mask quite well – when she could read a lot of conflicting things in his eyes, all of them centering around uncertainty and self-doubt. A simple twitch of an eyebrow always gave him away. She knew how nervous he was; he had confided to her prior to the show.. It was the first US show since he got outed and his personal life became a tabloid shitshow. And while the band was indeed greeted with rapturous ovations and they did put on a ‘hell of a show’, the undercurrent of doubt on both sides ran deep and the fact that his own brother seemingly threw him under the bus right when he felt the most vulnerable didn’t help at all. 
False consolations were not her nature. “Joshua
 when I said I saw everything, I really meant everything.”
He sighed and started rubbing the back of his neck. “Was it that obvious?”
“What? That something is obviously going on between the two of you? Yeah, I would say so. At least to everyone who’s familiar with your stage behaviour. It shouldn’t be a big deal, I suppose, but I saw your face, and so did everyone else. It was pretty clear you didn’t expect that. The people in the chat spent the next half an hour making assumptions. Some of them even mentioned the ‘dark haired stranger’ that allegedly drove a wedge between the two of you.” She added the last sentence for comedic effect; to lighten the mood a bit. However, it had the opposite effect and Joshua’s face turned to stone. 
“Well, you shouldn’t really worry about that.” He sounded strangled, and for the first time turned his gaze off the screen. 
“Are you ok, Joshua?” 
“Yeah! Yeah
totally fine,” he replied absentmindedly. “We’ve had a few disagreements, but it’s nothing serious. Promise. I, eh
 I wish you were here, sweetheart
 So, anyway, what did you think of that lill’ insertion after Danny’s drum solo, birthday girl?” he chuckled, trying to change the subject. 
“You mean ‘My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean’? Yeah, that was very subtle. Everyone thought so
” She didn’t even try to hide the annoyance in her voice, unable to comprehend how he could think that it was a good idea. Obviously, he didn’t share the sentiment. 
“Well, I did that on purpose. And since people already talk
 Well, I just hoped you’d like it. So, how was your special day?” 
“Pretty uneventful, just like all the other days here.” As it always was. She stopped celebrating her birthdays a long time ago. Joshua was probably the only person on Earth who tried to make a big deal of the uninteresting fact that she was now thirty three. Well, him and Maya. “I went for a walk, I got a new backpack, I actually had a massage
that was nice and pleasant
 and I got my IUD replaced
 that was much less pleasant.”
“Well good to know!” He made another funny face and she had to laugh back. Most of her former lovers would be grossed out by the bold remark, but not him. He was just
 different. 
For example, he couldn’t just sit still, which was in fact often pretty cool and entertaining during their face call as he always inadvertently gave her a tour of whatever place he was currently at. So, as he walked around, she could see glimpses of his suite. “Wow, that’s a fancy hotel room. Very different from the dingy attic one.” 
“And cold,” Joshua replied irritably. “It’s really the worst part of the deal, to be honest, and no amount of luxury could possibly change that. I’d give anything to be back in that snug attic room if it meant I could feel your soft skin again.” 
“Soft
”
“Yeah, like satin. Go on and touch it if you don’t believe me.” With that, he finally hopped on his bed and leaned his back against the headboard. He must have untied his bathrobe in the process, as she could see his bare chest now, knowing too well where this was going. They had tried a few times in the past and always ended up giggling. Yet he kept on trying. “Are you naked?”
“Hell no! It’s November. I’m wearing button-up pajamas.”
“Unbutton it then.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. His incessant attempts to coax her into having phone sex with him were always so
 cute. “I think I’ll need a bit more convincing.”
He closed his eyes and exhaled harshly. Agnieszka couldn’t see his other hand, but she knew very well where it was. “I’m imagining your palms right now, so callous and coarse from all the hard and honest work, like the finest sandpaper
”
She was just getting comfy and he made her burst out laughing again. “You’re an idiot.” 
He chuckled with her. “All right, all right, let’s try again. I was serious about your skin. So soft and warm, and when my fingers travel further down
 come on, travel with me
 it feels like a velvety cushion, and it smells like honey and hay. Can you feel it too, baby?”
“Yes,” she moaned involuntarily. Hearing him talk about it like that really did create a good illusion. “I imagine your fingers. Say more, because I swear I can almost feel them”. 
He was breathing heavily now, which turned her on even more. He told her more about the things he’d do and she followed his directions, sliding her middle finger inside. “I wish I could touch your cock.”
“And I’d give anything to feel your lips around it right now
”
She bit her lip when the question popped up in her head. It wasn’t the first time, but she never mustered enough courage, until now. Still not sure if it was ok to ask that, she took a deep breath first. “Do you ever imagine a man doing it to you, Joshua? I mean, do you still
?”
He seemed unfazed, just a little annoyed. “Why are you asking me now?”
“I think it’s sexy,” she cooed. “Besides, if this is supposed to work, we shouldn’t keep secrets from each other.” Saying that, she felt a pang of guilt even before she finished the sentence. 
“Sexy, you say?” he asked huskily and she could hear the unmistakable sound of slapping flesh. Judging by the movement of his shoulder, it was more than apparent what he was doing. It made her heart beat wildly. If only she could be there with him

“Yeah
 you were always in control when we were together, hardly ever letting me take the lead, even when I wanted to. And I just wondered
because
” The sound of him clearing his throat interrupted her in mid-sentence. 
“It just felt natural. You’re so delicate, like baby deer
”
“No, I’m not
”
“Yes, you are, baby. Compared to most of my previous lovers, you are
 You’re strong, but still a flower
 I just
just can’t stop looking at you
 So, erhhm, to answer your question -  yes, I do.” 
This was all strangely exciting. 
“Tell me more.” 
“Are you still touching yourself?”
She was. Because she didn’t lie. It made her slightly anxious, but the fact that the idea also turned her on couldn’t be denied. Also, learning to know his desires seemed like the best policy against the anxiety which was almost crippling at times, and today was no different.  Seeing him wrapped in satin, adored by hundreds of people, and not all of them women, made her feel like an onlooker, forced to remain in the distance. She didn’t want that.
And so he told her, with reluctance at first, but seeing that she didn’t stop and wanted more, he went on. Slowly, they guided each other towards their respective climaxes. Even though separated by thousands of miles, for a split second they felt closer to each other than before in the aftermath. 
“What time is it there right now?” he asked groggily after a while, when she could no longer hide her weariness and yawned expressively. 
“Almost eight thirty.”
“Can you perhaps go back to sleep for a while.”
“I guess so.” She had no real responsibilities until after lunch, so the idea of staying in bed for a while seemed quite agreeable. 
“I think you should, then. And I should try to get some sleep as well. See you soon, love.”
“Good night, Joshua.”
Agnieszka tried to follow his advice, but after a while, she grabbed her phone again, quite sure that a certain person wasn’t asleep just yet

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Jake
Jake in fact did try to go to bed early-ish this time. He also tried everything that was supposed to help him accomplish this special mission. He had a few drinks, a soothing shower, late night sex
 and if that wasn’t enough, skin-to-skin cuddles were expected to do the trick. 
However, half an hour later, his mind was still racing, and it had nothing to do with the person now sleeping so peacefully right next to him. The person who – in fact – was also the one who had tried to persuade him that he should improve his sleeping habits. Women. So, instead of grabbing a guitar or a book, he was now lying in the darkness, watching city lights painting pictograms on the ceiling above him. He didn’t dare leave the bed, afraid that it would wake Lisa.  
Suddenly, his phone lightened up with a familiar notification. He kept most of them muted, so he knew immediately. And surely enough

Veela: Care to explain what the hell happened?
Jake knew immediately what she meant, and it made him feel both pleased and angry with himself at the same time. What the hell happened, indeed. It wasn’t deliberate. It wasn’t out of spite. He just didn’t want to play the song. And he certainly didn’t want to sing it
 with Josh, no less! For years, it had been ‘their’ song, and it didn’t mean anything else. They wrote it before Josh really started caring about the meaning of the lyrics he was writing. The stupid ditty suddenly got a brand new meaning and Jake just couldn’t stomach it. 
He certainly didn’t want to make people wonder, or to make her angry
 or maybe he did? Either way, there was no way out. 
He quickly scrambled out of bed – afraid that he would wake Lisa – and took the phone with him to the bathroom where he sat on a closed toilet seat, feeling sneaky. 
Kuba Starlight: “I just wasn’t in the mood for singing, thats all. No big deal.” 
The response was immediate. 
Veela: Is that the only reason?
His thumbs hovered above the keypad for several seconds before he finally typed a brief answer.
Kuba Starlight: Yes. 
He watched the three dots moving while rubbing his chin, anxiously awaiting her next jab. It took her a while, leaving him wondering what kind of indictment she was drafting. 
Veela: Because I just talked to him and it didn’t seem like a “no big deal” to him. And people noticed too. It’s no.1 gossip right now. I’m slightly jealous. You’re trying to steal my spotlight, no doubt. :p
The last remark made him smile. Perhaps she wasn’t that angry after all. 
And so am I, he thought. Wonder how you did it. 
Kuba Starlight: People will always talk. One day I forget to comb my hair and the next day they start a rumor that I’m a depressed drunk.
Kuba Starlight: Josh is quite oversensitive these days. 
He expected her to continue pestering him about the stupid ‘stage incident’, but she switched back to her caring and understanding (and nosy) self instead. 
Kuba Starlight: In fact, I have. 
Veela: You shouldn’t blame him. 
Veela: I know you were worried about the show too. Maybe you two should just
 talk?
Veela: What about my previous suggestion? The room is still available. 
Veela: I just really don’t think you should spend Christmas alone. Unless you’ve found someone to spend it with

He couldn’t even tell why answering truthfully suddenly made him feel so irritable. Perhaps because he wasn’t really truthful. 
Kuba Starlight: Nothing serious. Just a casual acquaintance. 
Veela: OK. That’s good news. 
Is it?! He watched – all hopeful – as the three dots appeared again. 
Veela: It might get serious eventually. You never know. :)
That only made him feel worse. And there were no more dots after that. Obviously, she dropped the subject, which in turn made his stomach drop. It was always like that, with him being torn between ‘honey, don’t feed me’ and ‘why aren’t you talking to me?’ She was convinced they were friends – bless her heart
 and damn his. He kept feeding her this idea only to keep in contact with her, knowing too well it was both self-destructive and toxic. 
He shouldn’t want her to keep persuading him; he in fact shouldn’t be having this conversation in the first place, but that wretched creature inside his head always prevailed. The truth was that he had considered her suggestion – his heart even skipped a beat when she first mentioned it as a possibility  – and the wretched creature wanted him to say yes. 
It was right after right after Josh casually informed her that their parents were taking a long-desired trip during Christmas, and she immediately thought about him being left alone, bless her big heart. 
So yes, he wanted to say yes, it just wasn’t justifiable up until recently. Now he had a perfect excuse, so he quickly started typing another message. 
He re-read the blabbery he just sent and groaned again, loudly this time. Not only because he didn’t really think it through yet, it was still just a vague idea. But also because of all those typos he always made when he was in a rush. 
Kuba Starlight: But she asked me if we could go sking, so maybe we could come together.
Kuba Starlight: You know
 to keep an eye on him. 
Kuba Starlight: Not that I don’t trust you
 but, you know

Kuba Starlight: But don’t worry about our stay. I’ll find us something else. Somthing with jacuzzi and champange. 
And she never commented on it. She never judged him. 
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Veela: :D
Veela: Oukey then! I’ll be happy to see you again. And to meet your new girl. 
December 18th 2025, Nashville; Josh
They made it. The first part of the tour successfully completed, Christmas was finally here and the atmosphere in the city already satiated with the holiday mood. Just a few more days
 and then he would see her again. 
There was one last thing that Josh desperately needed to do, and so far it had prevented him from being able to join and enjoy the festivities. He had been sitting in their favorite cafeteria for more than an hour now, more and more convinced that he had been stood up. The idea weighed like a huge stone on his chest and it grew heavier with each passing minute. 
But at last, he appeared. Effortlessly charismatic as always. Lean and tall, with his hair neatly braided this time. He spotted Josh immediately, but remained standing by the door for a few excruciatingly long seconds before he finally made his way towards Josh’s table. 
Josh stood up and made one hesitant step forward, but Christopher quickly stopped him with his outstretched palm. A simple gesture that felt like having a bucketful of icy water tipped over his head. 
Josh knew that it was absolutely foolish to hope for a hug, but after all those years, it was just like a conditioned reflex. He had spent so much time hugging that man that it seemed unnatural not to do it, even under the current circumstances
 “Please, at least sit.” He sounded defeated.
Christopher took the chair opposite to Josh and leaned back with his arms crossed. It wasn’t going to be easy, that was certain. “Ok, spill. What do you want?”
“I
 the idea that I’d never see you again was just unbearable
I mean
”
Christopher cocked his brow exasperatedly. “Spare me.”
Josh started to panic. It was so hard to tame the thoughts in his head so that he could transform them into a coherent sentence. Christopher was well aware, but also unwilling to make it any easier for him. Josh had spent hours looking into those eyes. Somewhere behind them, there used to be a place that felt like home. Now he could clearly see that he was no longer welcome there. So, instead of trespassing, he lowered his eyes and opted to tell it to the coffee cup. “No
 I mean, without, eh, I cou..couldn’t stand not to see you again and
and not to tell you how sorry I am.” 
A few more excruciating seconds passed before he dared to look up again. Christopher was rubbing his lower lip with the tips of his fingers – something he always did when he was searching for the right words. The silence made Josh’s chest tighten.
“I gave you quite a lot of freedom,” Christopher said at last. 
“I know
”
“And you said you’d never do anything that would hurt me. And I trusted you.”
“I know
”
“And you betrayed that trust
 twice!”
“We were no longer together when I
 I didn’t expect you to
”  The sound of Christopher’s palm slapping the wooden desk right in front of Josh made him jump. 
“YOU TOLD ME
” Christopher raised his voice menacingly, but quickly tried to calm himself down when he saw Josh’s startled stare. They were in public, after all. He knew the rules, and it affected him too now. So, he took a deep breath before he continued: “You told me that it was not even a possibility, so naturally, I feel like everything you EVER said was a lie.”
“I didn’t lie. I
I didn’t know it was a possibility, Taffy,” Josh’s voice faltered. He squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to fight off the stinging sensation, but it was no use. He was crying. “I’m so sorry,” he sobbed. They sat silent for several seconds; thankfully, it was enough for Josh to pull himself together and Christopher mercifully granted him that luxury. 
“The thing that happened with David
,” Josh cleared his throat and continued, fully determined to say everything he wanted to: “I know no apology could even make it right. The worst thing is that it really meant nothing. I feel like I’ve lost control of my life even since, which
I guess
I fully deserve. Like a drunken boat. You remember the poem? And now she
 she’s both the anchor and the sea. And it happened so fast. I
 when you came to the hospital  with mom and Jake, I felt like being stuck between two cogwheels. But the thing I said, it hasn’t changed. I never stopped loving you.” 
Josh so desperately wanted him to understand it. Even if he would never see him again, even though he knew Christopher didn’t want to accept it, Josh just needed him to understand that some people are like tattoos, and there’s always enough space for more than one. Sweet Olalla understood

Christopher slowly leaned forward and, with his elbows now on the table, he put his hand together and started rubbing his lip against the fingertips once more. Josh waited patiently. Whatever the outcome, at least he knew Taffy was giving it a thought. 
“How’s your head? Are you well?” he finally said. 
Josh looked at him in confusion. Did Christopher think he’d gone mental? “I
yeah, it’s healed pretty nicely. I still have headaches sometimes, but
 why?” 
Christopher took a deep breath. “Because I’ve been fucking worried, jerk!”
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December 22nd, Zakopane; Agnieszka
Just like the last time, she was restless since the early morning. But unlike the last time, she didn’t spend hours waiting in the freezing cold. Also, no separate room for him this time. Joshua was just going to stay with her. Eulalia was basically home to him now. 
Jake and his girl rented a private chalet on the opposite hill, right next the main ski slope. He was supposed to drop Joshua around five and then they’d all meet in town for dinner later. That was the plan. 
It was already half past five when the bell above the main door finally chimed and a familiar figure stepped inside. She quickly jumped out of her seat behind the reception desk and ran right into his arms, nearly knocking him off. 
“Ugh, sweet girl, easy!” he chuckled, hugging her back. He buried his face in her hair and stayed that way for several seconds, which wasn’t strange at all. However, she soon began to wonder about how silent he was
 that was definitely strange. 
Breaking the embrace at last, she was finally able to take a good look at him
 and froze. 
There was a nasty bruise on the left side of his chin, and his lower lip was split and swollen, making him look like he had been in a fist fight. 
“Joshua, what the hell happened?”
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@thewritingbeforesunrise @fleet-of-fiction @writingcold @lvnterninthenight @its-interesting-van-kleep   @takenbythemadness   @edgingthedarkness @myownparadise96   @gvfstuddedmajesty @josh-iamyour-mama @jazzyfigz @tripthelightfantastix @sanguinebats @wetkleenex-gvf @peaceloveunitygvf @kiszkas-canvas @fleetingjake @lizzys-sunflower @hollyco @emojakekiszka @gvfmarge @dayumclarizzel @lipstickitty @clownstarr @musicislove3389 @i-love-gvf @blankvz @psychedelectable
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louisupdates · 4 months ago
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Louis Tomlinson has revealed that he failed to get a ticket for Oasis‘ 2025 reunion tour over the weekend.
Tickets went on sale on Saturday (August 31) and promptly sold out at 7pm.
However, some fans who managed to reach the other side of multi-hour long queues were left frustrated to find huge price increases on tickets, due to Ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing policy.
Ticketmaster have clarified on their website previously that tickets that are “market-priced” “may increase or decrease at any time, based on demand. This is similar to how airline tickets and hotel rooms are sold.”
Now, the former One Direction singer said he tried for tickets but could not got beyond the queue.
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Speaking to Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle on the grid at the Italian Grand Prix yesterday (September 1), when asked if he managed to bag a ticket, Tomlinson said: “I didn’t, I was in the queue, but I never got a number
 I did try, I did try.”
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bangtanhoneys · 5 months ago
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GRACE TOUR DIARY: April 3rd 2025 - New York City
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The red roses were the first thing Grace woke up to the next morning. She could see them in their vase as they sat on the vanity table of the bedroom of her hotel suite, and the team had already packed away the teddy bear. It was going to be a long but hectic day—soundcheck, go through any rehearsals of pieces that needed a last-minute touch, and then it would be the concert, and afterwards, straight to the airport to head to Seoul.
It was a little vacation, but at the same time, the concert that the idol industry and the government had put together as a tribute to BTS had fallen right in the middle of her tour. It was a little amusing that they would do this after everything that they had put BTS as a group through. 
None of the boys would be performing, with those in the military given leave to attend. It had been put to her while she was planning her own concert whether she would attend or perform, seeing as she would be the only member to do so (something she questioned as to why she would be the only one performing but it was easier to bite your lip and say nothing).
There had been a lot of secret planning and a lot of secret rehearsals with those idols and groups already signed up, and somehow Seokjin had found out. He had accidentally seen the concert plans and set list, seeing Grace’s name predominantly with some of their hardest yet popular songs. Sworn to secrecy, Seokjin locked his mouth up, threw away the key, and said nothing. 
Yet the red roses and the note meant he hadn’t forgotten she would be flying into Seoul tomorrow, undercover to hide the fact she was back in the country. 
But that was later, and right now, Grace had to perform on the last night of the American leg of her tour.
Second nights were always easy—it was the same thing; maybe one or two costume changes added a bit of variety to the night—same venue, crew, dancers, city. There had been no major hiccups other than one VCR didn’t play on time for when it was needed, and some dancers wanted a run-through of two songs, In My Head and Dangerous Woman. Everyone knew the songs like the back of their hands, but sometimes a refresher was needed. 
After all, it had been a while since they had put together the concert with all the songs, VCRs, costumes, and dance routines. 
A long, refreshing shower woke up Grace, and she could see that her blonde dye would need a top-up soon. That would need to be added to the list of things to do the moment she got to Seoul, and that list was growing every moment. 
“Just think about your own concert, not that one coming up,” she muttered to herself as she changed into her casual clothes to go and get breakfast and meet up with the team.
There was nothing to report over breakfast, and with plenty of time until she had to drive over to the Barclays Center, she packed up everything in her room and mournfully looked at the red roses. They wouldn’t be able to come on the flight with her, and as much as she wanted to take them with her, it wasn’t going to be practical. So the note was tucked carefully into her purse and with instructions to give the flowers to someone who would appreciate them for longer than she could, Grace was ready to go home.
Rehearsals went smoothly, and any little knots were worked out. Dancers were happy, the team were happy, the venue staff were happy, people selling food and merchandise were happy, and all Grace had to do was wait. 
She hated waiting and was one of the most impatient people in the group, always just wanting to get on stage and just go for it. The wait to get into costume, grab her mic, pump up her dancers, and then finally, finally, get on stage - it allowed for unwanted thoughts to creep into the mind. 
What if no one turned up? You sold out the stadium for two nights in 10 seconds. 
What if there was a threat? There is plenty of security and police around to stop it. 
What if you mess up? You’ve done this job for nearly thirteen years, so what?
As the costume for the opening segment slid up her legs, Grace allowed herself to relax. The chatter of the staff and the noise of the crowd above her allowed the nervousness and anxiety to wash away. The moment the mic was in her hand and her team was pumped up, the idol persona washed over her, and in that moment she was Grace of BTS. 
“New York!”
The crowd was even louder than the night before. The lights, the signs, the costumes, the people - it was just bigger and louder and more hyped up than anything she had seen. It was as if they knew this would be the last time they would see a BTS member until they were all back together again and back for their world tour. 
“Welcome to the In My Head tour! Are you ready to help me finish this leg of the tour?”
Grace grinned at the noise in return and nodded, letting the crowd and their feelings hype her up through every performance. 
And when it got towards the end, when they knew the BTS song was coming, the noise grew. 
“This is the last night of the American leg of the tour, and it seemed only right to have this song for this moment. I just wanted to say thank you to all of the team, staff, dancers, band, venue staff, and, of course, ARMY. You have come out in your thousands to fill up this stadium of 17,000. And to those who are outside, I hope to see you all soon when we will hopefully be back as an eight. Until then, let me remind you of a special place.”
The instrumental of Magic Shop soon started, and it took all of Grace’s professionalism not to stop singing and burst into tears. Hearing 17,000 voices sing along to a Korean song that was written with ARMY in mind, and after all the hard work, pressure, tiredness, and sickness and everything else that came along with creating this tour, this song meant more than anything.
She had a good cry in Sejin’s arms when she got backstage, and her bodyguard stood in front of them, not even letting the normal BANGTAN BOMB cameras capture this moment. Every bit of emotion that had been built up from releasing her own solo album to now was coming over in a wave of tears. Sniffling quietly as the make-up artists cleared her face of make-up, her last costume off and packed away, and she was back in normal clothes as handfuls of tissues were passed her way.
“Sorry,” she chuckled as she wiped her nose.
“Nothing to be sorry for,” Sejin sighed. “I’m surprised this hasn’t happened already. The Grammy's, I think, were a good sign of you starting to realise what the music industry and the world think of you, and it wasn’t because of what band you belong to.”
“It was just listening to them all sing Magic Shop. It was as if I felt every bit of their emotion and thought in that one song. That all their worries and happy thoughts came at me at once, knowing they were happy to see me but sad at the same time because who knows when we can come back here?” The tissue in her hands was replaced with a new one from her bodyguard and Grace let out a huge sigh.
“I want to go home,” she chuckled and rubbed a hand over her face.
While some of the team were going to stay behind to pack up costumes and make sure they arrived at the next location as well as the stage, the rest of them would be heading home for a little break. Not that Grace, Sejin, Hana, the bodyguards, or the make-up/costume team were going to have much time. 
The drive to the airport was quiet. The Barclays Center faded from view, as well as the few concertgoers still hanging around. And the lights of the highway from Brooklyn down to Queens illuminated the car now and then, and finally, the JFK airport came into view. 
Check-in was handled quietly and discreetly, with the private plane ready to go. As much as Grace had baulked at the idea of even having a private plane, especially one that would fly to Seoul, the government had already booked it for her to make sure that she flew home safely and arrived on time to get to rehearsals for their tribute concert.
It was awkward getting on a plane where everyone treated you like you were royalty, but once she was in her seat with a blanket thrown over her, Grace didn’t care. There were fifteen hours of flying to get through and much-needed sleep to be caught up on. 
But first.
Grace pulled out her phone and opened up the messages to Seokjin.
‘ On the plane and ready to fly home. See you in about sixteen hours.’
The reply came just as she fell asleep.
‘I’m already counting down the minutes. See you at the airport. Love you.’
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sarahowritesostucky · 4 months ago
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The fic: Lestat lands the Superbowl halftime show gig
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November, 2024: Death Valley
Louis sprays his mouthful of blood halfway across the dinnertable when he sees the headline on his tablet:
"Lestat de Lioncourt, self-professed 'vampire', vows to 'eat one lucky fan' at his upcoming Death Valley concert."
Louis isn't able to get tickets, as they're all sold out.
He pays a scalper an exorbitant fee (like, $9,000 for a $900 ticket) and a meet and greet pass.
He attends the concert and is annoyed, amused, astounded, impressed, and completely not surprised by how ostentatious Lestat is in his performing.
There's a fucking hurdy gurdy player in the band: It's Lestat. He incorporates it in one of the songs. It is friggin metal.
He plays the electric violin in another song.
The "lucky fan" who won the contest to get eaten comes up on stage and the entire crowd watches as Lestat drinks his blood.
Everybody but Louis thinks it's a mere performance, and they cheer.
Louis just smirks and shakes his head in wry amusement at the sheer audacity of it.
Hello, Mon Cher, Louis hears in his head.
Everybody but Louis thinks the fan is faking going limp, and then being dead. Two of the tour's crew come up and carry the body off stage.
Lestat doesn't bother wiping his blood-smeared mouth before he moves onto singing his next song: Pretty Baby. The whole time, he's staring at Louis.
Louis attends the meet and greet. He and Lestat entertain themselves by pretending they don't know one another and are just groupie and idol in front of all the other fans in line for the meet and greet.
Louis takes home a glossy headshot of The Vampire Lestat, signed: To my biggest fan and favorite Fledgling, Lestat D. L.
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February, 2025: the New Orleans Superdome
Lestat beats out Taylor Swift for top Spotify artist of 2024. The Swifties begin a feud with The Fledglings (Lestat's fans).
Lestat books the 2025 Superbowl halftime show gig--which is going to be played at the New Orleans indoor Superdome.
Louis purchases himself an entire box for the Superbowl--to the tune of $300,000.
Lestat uses the cloud gift and the fire gift during the show. Everybody except for Louis--and the very confused stadium staff who definitely didn't rig up a lift wire for this performance--thinks it's just an act with really good special effects.
Late, after the game and after everyone has cleared out, Lois finds Lestat in the losing team's deserted locker room --eating the star quarterback.
"Mon Chere," Lestat says, pulling back with a red chin to smile at Louis. "Care to join me? There's enough for two."
Louis snickers and tells him no thank you. "That's Taylor Swift's boyfriend," he says, amused.
"I know," Lestat says gleefully, then goes back to feeding.
"Of all the things you could've done to bring the rage of the world down upon you." Louis drawls. "The Swifties aren't going to be very happy."
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Feel free to use this fic imagine if you want! And tag me in the post if you write it--I'd love to read it!
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parowanormal · 3 days ago
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.đ–„” ʁ ˖ 2025 ins and outs ˖ ʁʁ đ–„”.
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i've seen a lot of cute ins/outs journals, so i wanted to make one for myself. i pulled out all my fun journaling supplies to make it extra pretty <3. transcription:
-> ins: getting up with the sun, paper sudoku and crossword puzzles, beautiful notes on beautiful stationery, Gunpla, skeletons, making cardboard cutouts, physical media -> outs: impulsive purchases, FOMO via social media, phone in bed, skipping meals, excessive self-infantilization, talking to fill pauses in conversation, mourning my childhood
i also wrote out ways to satisfy my intellectual, sensory, and emotional needs. usually, when i'm not doing what i'm supposed to be doing, it's because one of those needs is unmet. social media often blends all your needs into a never-ending feed of Posts: infographics, ASMR slime videos, room tours, outfit videos, world news, cute baby animals...it's really hard to determine what you need at the moment when you're being bombarded with every type of fulfillment all at once.
the @catcrumb cat at the bottom is one of my mantras this year! it's silly but it's easy to remember and makes me happy when i say it. pause. assess. okay. continue normalstyle. i need to be more mindful of what i'm feeling instead of ignoring it.
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black-arcana · 11 days ago
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Watch: HALESTORM's LZZY HALE And JOE HOTTINGER Cover SKID ROW, FLEETWOOD MAC During Surprise Acoustic Gig
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Lzzy Hale and Joe Hottinger of Grammy-winning hard rock band HALESTORM played a surprise acoustic set on December 27 at The Underdog in Nashville, Tennessee as the support act for THE DEAD DEADS. Video of the performance can be seen below.
Lzzy and Joe's setlist was as follows:
01. White Dress 02. Mz. Hyde 03. I Remember You (SKID ROW cover) 04. Familiar Taste Of Poison 05. I Like It Heavy (with "She Won't Mind") 06. Gold Dust Woman (FLEETWOOD MAC cover) 07. I Am The Fire
This past October, Lzzy and Joe announced an intimate tour featuring the two of them performing acoustic, stripped down versions of HALESTORM favorites and the music that has inspired the band. Dubbed "Halestorm's Lzzy And Joe: The Living Room Sessions", the tour consists of 12 dates in January 2025.
When the trek was first announced, Lzzy said in a statement: "With this tour, we're inviting our fans to experience what it would be like hanging with Joe and me in our living room: picking up instruments, telling stories, chatting about songs that helped shaped us as a band and brought us to where we are today."
Joe added: "Back when we decided to quit our day jobs and make music our full-time endeavor, Lzzy and I would play music wherever we could, and sometimes that meant playing acoustic covers in any bar or restaurant that would have us. That time really allowed us to develop our playing skills and dig into songwriting, and it really set the groundwork for what HALESTORM is today."
In a September 2024 interview with PK of Louisville, Kentucky's ALT 105.1 radio station, Lzzy spoke about the progress of the recording sessions for HALESTORM's follow-up to 2022's "Back From The Dead" album. Lzzy said: "We've had three separate sessions in the studio with — we're making a record with [producer] Dave Cobb. And he's actually a huge closet metal fan, and so he's really excited. And so we're making this great music, but we're constantly touring. So we've had, like, three different sessions in the studio. We're probably — what? — 70, 80, maybe, percent there. We have a studio in our house and so I'm doing a lot of the finishing touches on vocals and sewing everything up, doing solos and all that. And then we get back in in December to just say, 'Okay, this is good.' And then, yeah. And then there we are. So we're excited about it. We really are."
Cobb has shared in nine Grammy wins, including four for "Best Americana Album" and three for "Best Country Album". He's also been named "Producer Of The Year" by the Country Music Awards, the Americana Music Association (twice) and the Music Row Awards, and has been a Grammy nominee in the category.
HALESTORM and I PREVAIL recently embarked on summer 2024 co-headlining tour. Produced by Live Nation, the trek kicked off on July 9 in Raleigh and ran through August 17 in Las Vegas. HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD and FIT FOR A KING served as support. The tour was also the catalyst and the creative spark for HALESTORM and I PREVAIL's collaborative track "Can U See Me In The Dark?", which was released in June.
"Back From The Dead" has tallied over 100 million streams worldwide. Rolling Stone called the title track "a biting but cathartic howler about overcoming all obstacles," and that song as well as "The Steeple" marked their fifth and sixth number ones at rock radio, respectively. Associated Press said the album "will definitely be in the running for best hard rock/metal album of the year." Their previous album, "Vicious", earned the band their second Grammy nomination, for "Best Hard Rock Performance" for the song "Uncomfortable", the band's fourth #1 at rock radio, and led Loudwire to name HALESTORM "Rock Artist Of The Decade" in 2019.
Fronted by Lzzy with Arejay, Hottinger and bass player Josh Smith, HALESTORM's music has earned multiple platinum and gold certifications from the RIAA, and the band has earned a reputation as a powerful live music force, headlining sold-out shows and topping festival bills around the world, and sharing the stage with icons including HEAVEN & HELL, Alice Cooper, Joan Jett and JUDAS PRIEST. Additionally, Lzzy was named the first female brand ambassador for Gibson and served as host of AXS TV's "A Year In Music".
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tellthemeerkatsitsfine · 25 days ago
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All right, I did something. I did it a few days ago, and I've not posted about it yet because, to be honest, I thought I might change my mind. I purchased this thing about three minutes after I discovered it was on sale. I purchased it at 5 AM, while half asleep, and in that moment, I at least had the presence of mind to pay seven extra dollars for a refundable ticket, in case I come to my senses later.
However, it's been a few days, and I've not come to my senses. I don't think I'm going to. I'm sticking with this. Look what I purchased:
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Here's some relevant information: The Bell House is a theatre in New York City. Google Maps says that the drive from my house to The Bell House in New York City takes seven hours and thirty minutes. However, I know from experience that it's actually longer than that. I know this from the experience of the only time I've been to NYC before, which was in May 2022, when I went there to watch Nish Kumar perform his previous stand-up show.
I was lucky, that time, that my brother happened to be house-sitting in NYC for a few months. I don't own a car, but because my brother was there, my dad said he was happy to take us down in his car, so he could see the city and visit my brother. My dad and I got to split the driving, and we got to sleep for free at the place where my brother was staying. We drove all day on Saturday, which took about 8.5 hours. Had dinner, then my dad and my brother and I all watched Nish Kumar, slept for about five hours in the apartment where my brother was, and drove 8.5 hours home the next day.
I hated every moment of that trip during which I was not actually in a room with Nish Kumar. I hated NYC - too many people, and I just disliked the atmosphere. Plus I had a massive fight with my brother right before the show, because I was annoyed that so few people on the NYC subway wore masks even though there was a huge surge in COVID rates there at the time (this was May 2022, when COVID was a bigger danger), and my brother said masks are for sheep, and we ended up yelling at each other on an NYC sidewalk and almost missed the show.
However, I fucking loved every single second of Nish Kumar's show. It is still one of my favourite stand-up shows I've ever seen, and I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to see it live. I consider the entire terrible trip worth it for that, even though I came out of it saying, "Wel, I've now been to New York City once, hated the place, and I never feel the desire to go back."
That's what I said at the time. But I didn't know, back in 2022, that Nish Kumar would be coming back two years later with an even better show. And I really think it is. In his 2024 show (Edinburgh 2024, touring in 2024-2025), Nish Don't Kill My Vibe, he manages to outdo the high bar that his 2022 show set. It's worth the trip again.
I have been lucky enough to hear the material from Nish Don't Kill My Vibe, probably about ten different times throughout the past year. I've heard it in various WIP stages, and then got to see it live twice when I visited the UK over the summer - once as a preview in London, and then the next week in Edinburgh. Does that mean that I definitely don't need to do a 17-hour round trip in one weekend just to see it again?
No! No no no no no it does not and I refuse to come to my senses about this! Sure, I've seen it before, but even in Edinburgh, it was still billed as a WIP. It's into the touring stages now, it's different! I've already seen a couple of people online, who've seen the show on tour, reference bits in it that I don't recognize. Which means there's new stuff! Nish Kumar is performing material that I've not heard before! I must hear it!
Obviously I'm aware that only a small percentage of the show will be any different from the stuff I've already heard. But 1) The stuff I've already heard was brilliant and I want to hear it again and I want to hear it live, and 2) I know I'm pretty much just paying to be in a room with Nish Kumar. But he's so cool. I would pay an inadvisable amount of money to be in a room with Nish Kumar.
So, I'm going to have to figure some stuff out. I still don't own a car, and my brother doesn't happen to be staying in NYC this time. I called my parents and asked them if I could request a really large favour - perhaps we could call it a Christmas present - where I take their car on an 8-ish-hour journey on a Saturday in March and then an 8-ish-hour journey back on the Sunday. Because I'd have to do it that way - the show is Saturday night, I work all day on Friday and Monday, and my job is one that has school holidays off, and their policy says that they do not give vacation days outside those holidays except in "very exceptional circumstances". I'm pretty sure those "very exceptional circumstances" are meant to be, like, a family member's funeral. Not "My second favourite comedian in the whole wide world is going to be on my side of the ocean for once, and I hear he might have, like, three minutes worth of material that I've not heard before!"
The other option would be to drive down Saturday, see the show, and then get in the car immediately and drive home all night on Sunday. This has the advantage of meaning I wouldn't need to pay for accommodation out there. It has the obvious disadvantage of, you know, ignoring my human body's basic physiological needs.
Anyway, I'll figure it out. I told myself when I bought the ticket that I could also use public transit, but since then, have actually looked that up, and learned that there is no bus that leaves later than the time my work on Friday finishes, and arrives in NYC before showtime on Saturday. So I'm now really counting on being able to borrow a car.
My parents were surprisingly receptive to the idea, when I asked about it. When I said I want to go to NYC, my mother joking asked "Is it to see Nish Kumar?", because that was the stupid reason I had last time. And I had to say... "Yes, yes it is. He's got another show." She said we'll figure it out and can probably make it work. My dad actually liked the city of NYC, and said he might even come down again just to see the city.
Anyway, that's what I'm doing with my life. That, and planning an even bigger trip to the UK next August, now that I have the whole summer off. Nine nights in Edinburgh, and before that, some time in London, and then trains through Wales and Ireland. I've already booked a couple of nights at an Air B&B in Galway. I'm going places in 2025. Literally, if not metaphorically. It'll be good.
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ag-updates-and-archives · 2 days ago
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L.S. Dunes: Present tense
Anna Zanes|January 7, 2025
L.S. Dunes appear on the cover of the Winter 2024 Issue — head to the AP Shop to grab a copy.
L.S. Dunes are more than the sum of their parts. 
That’s not to say the band members aren’t alternative heavyweights in their own right. Though they scoff at the term “supergroup,” the collective CV of members Anthony Green, Frank Iero, Tucker Rule, Travis Stever, and Tim Payne scoff right back. But come here for nostalgia or crate-digging, and you’ll be sorely disappointed. It’s not to say these five are rejecting the superlative, or shying away from their legacy — they’ll tell you outright that their work across Saosin, Circa Survive, My Chemical Romance, Thursday, and Coheed and Cambria have paved the way for the artists they are today, not to mention the explosive, tender entity that is L.S. Dunes. The point is, after decades of experience as key players in the East Coast post-hardcore scene that emerged during the millennium, LSD have learned it’s less about sticking to your guns — and more about trusting your gut. 
By way of a group chat spawned in the creative desert of COVID-19 — initially serving as a brain dump for the antsy artists — L.S. Dunes were formed. However accidental the band may have been, quickly, it became a lifeline. Though for them, the comfort and companionship they found in each other and music was unsurprising. “This shit is ancient,” Green tells me. “People have been gathering to sing, dance, celebrate music, and get cathartic for fucking as long as we’ve been on this planet. And it’s cool when you can find people that are going to properly pay homage to music, give music what it deserves, and not make it about them or a scene or an image — they just make it about how powerful and transformative music can be if it’s really done in an honest, true way.” By texting back and forth parts on the fly, instinctively building off one another’s input, the group began to grow and evolve — a familial, DIY process that they’ve stuck with to this day, whether they’re working in the chat, on the road, or in the visionary womb that is Will Yip’s Studio 4. 
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There are few rules but a handful of mottos. For one, Dunes refuse to look back — instead opting to highlight where they are today as artists, embracing the thirst for experimentation and creativity that started it all, supporting each other no holds barred, and shrugging off lurking expectations. As Iero puts it, “One of the big rules in the band is that you chase everything.” 
We’re sitting backstage in the nondescript green room at Brooklyn Paramount — the guys are gearing up for their third show supporting Rise Against on tour. “The way I can describe it is like a trust fall,” Stever says, and the other four nod along enthusiastically. “This band is doing that with melodies or guitar parts for me, and they always catch it — and it doesn’t matter if it’s not exactly what I thought it was going to be. I trust that it’s going to be something that I really love, and that’s what we do here. That’s what made me addicted to it from the get-go, sending it constantly, whatever I have.” Onstage, they embody the same ethos. L.S. Dunes are a fluid unit, undulating in tandem with the ferocity of Green’s maniacal movements, riling up as he cracks the mic cord like a whip. As energy builds, magician-like, Green appears to grapple with an invisible forcefield for a hair-raising moment — and all breath seems to catch — before he pushes it back out into the crowd, dousing the audience with an unbridled display of emotion and sweat. Whether the display is rageful, loving, or pained seems unknown, and also unnecessary. Like magnets, these five musicians are conducted, and connected, by something unseen. 
In describing L.S. Dunes — a feat — I lean on the word “present.” Rule agrees. “This is the present. We have our other bands, but this one reminds us to be here now.” Evidently as an audience member, it’s felt. Watching them take the stage for their debut set at Riot Fest — with only two rehearsals under their belt — I witnessed lauded alternative heroes play a daytime festival slot on a small stage, a special, and momentous, opportunity. But not because it felt like a My Chemical Romance underplay, or a portal through which I could catch Circa Survive reincarnate. Once Dunes began to play, all greater context, any preconceived notions, and even the surroundings fell away. This was no Pet Sematary situation — bringing together many styles, Dunes balance chaos and meticulousness in a manner that revival or replication couldn’t touch. “It’s naturally its own thing,” Stever says, “because we all as individuals bring something completely different than we could have to our other bands. That’s a double-edged sword from the get-go that we have. We’re going to be related to everything we came from in this band, and that’s OK. We’re lucky for what we have outside of it. But we get the short end of the stick sometimes.” 
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The short end of the stick, for members of “supergroups” — and actors leaving sitcoms alike — is, in many ways, typecasting. Iero, Green, Stever, Payne, and Rule have altered culture in their own right, as a part of the soundtrack that fueled an entire generation of emotionally driven listeners. For many, their work has been the impetus in identity and community building — and as such, they’ve been woven into the rose-colored memories of our youth. Considering their success, it’s easily assumed — in the age of anniversary tours, nostalgia festivals, and the reissue of knee-high Converse — that these artists will live as our Warped Tour scrapbook, and on command, can bring us back, and make us feel that way again. Or that they want to. For L.S. Dunes, it’s simple — grow or die. “Yes, everything that you’ve been through and experienced has gotten you to where you are today. There’s no sense in hiding from that. But at the same time, there’s no sense in rehashing who you were, and what you did then. Those projects exist. We did that already. Go listen to that shit if that’s what you want to listen to — it’s still there,” Iero impassionately explains. “We’re not saying that we wish it didn’t happen. No, I love that it’s there! I believe in, appreciate, and stand by 99.99% of the things I’ve ever created throughout the years, even though sometimes I may look back and cringe a little bit.” Rule, piggybacking on his bandmate’s point, drives it home. “Our younger selves,” he says, matter of factly, “are what allowed us to start a fucking supergroup.” 
This year, ironically, L.S. Dunes performed at Las Vegas’ nostalgia-drenched When We Were Young Festival — and stuck out as one of very few new bands on the bill. With the exception of Green, the whole group were on double duty that weekend — Coheed and Cambria, My Chemical Romance, and Thursday were also set to play. In the heat, 30-something interviews deep, my Swiss cheese-like memory was stretched to its limits. For two days, we’d been summoning the ghosts of MySpace — for some with fondness, others trepidation. For most, both. Eager for the oasis of an idiosyncratic perspective, I sat down with Dunes, during the millisecond they happened to be all in one place. The band were straddling two honorable realities — feeding hungry fans 20-year-old records and satiating their current creative drive. When I brought up the phenomenon of nostalgia, Iero had insight: “If we rest on our laurels on that shit, we become a caricature of what we were then. You’re placing yourself in a timeline that’s already passed. But moving forward and taking chances, that’s also hard. The music industry is in this giant cycle of fear — we have to keep doing the same thing because nobody’s buying records, but nobody’s buying records because you’re doing the same thing. It’s a fear-based cycle.” The key to breaking it? “It’s about understanding the pitfalls that are out there, and also believing in what you’re making so much that you don’t give a shit,” he says. 
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I’ve heard it said, “expectations are planned resentments.” And Dunes have come up against these — fans of their previous projects lashed out, and a controversial video the group made with AI was met with a wave of internet backlash. But at the end of the day, they’ve won out. The LSD fanbase is as dedicated as they are when it comes to realizing this new chapter. “It’s like any relationship. If you’re not giving your authentic self, there’s no way there’s going to be true growth or real understanding,” Green says. “But if we’re giving our authentic self as much as we possibly can, as a group, we can cultivate a relationship with our listeners where they just want us to be happy, and make the music that feels truest to us. And it’s not always going to be what they’re expecting.” Anyway, none of this was supposed to see the light of day.  “This was all just an exercise. None of us needed to be busier. We have no business being on the road as much as we are right now, between all of our bands!” Rule reminds me. That same sentiment has been their bedrock, and their driver. “[L.S. Dunes] still operates under the guise that it wasn’t supposed to see the light of day. That takes the pressure off — the only pressure is in having fun and making stuff with your friends. You’ll end up with genuine, free-spirited songs and art, and that’s what we’re trying to do.” Being present is L.S. Dunes’ North Star. And with success, they haven’t changed course. The exercise is still stepping out of fear and looking forward, and the triumph is emerging authentically themselves, as an unapologetic unit. 
In the final cut of Past Lives, their 2022 debut album, the band tell me many songs are their very first takes and demos. Onstage, they’ve adapted songs on the fly — Green instinctively added a verse to “Fatal Deluxe,” in real time, and they haven’t looked back or played it as it is on the album since. “Collaborators can do stuff like that,” he says. “If there’s grip, there’s too much fear in the pot. There needs to be a little bit, but you can’t get sucked down into the fucking void. With too much fear, it’s impossible to be as creatively exploitive as we’ve been able to be with each other.”
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Another slogan the band live by is “first best guess.” With all credit to Rule, the remark has turned into lifeblood for LSD, and it works, in part, due to how well the quintet gel together. “We don’t critique in a way other than with positivity. We don’t get halfway through a song and think, ‘Oh, what do we need to do here?’ If it’s not done yet, we still just keep being creative and keep piling on, and eventually it just falls into place,” Payne outlines. “There are very few songs that we were like, ‘We need to change this.’ It’s usually just first best guess. When Tucker puts drums in, first best guess. That’s usually the most natural, and that’s how we all approach it. Just like, ‘Let’s go with it.’ Hop on while it’s exciting.” 
Since the start, intensity has been signature to LSD’s music. Lyrically and sonically, their sound is layered, complex, analytical — a smooth compound of multiple ideas and techniques. Lyrically, Past Lives toed the line of darkness, and though that subject is no stranger to Green, entering that space again took a toll. What began as helpful felt heavier as time went on. “The first record, I was like, ‘OK, I’m going to use this as my therapy. I’m going to get all this dark shit and all this hard shit I was going through,’” he reveals. “But I didn’t realize how careless I was being with some of the spells I was casting, lyrically, for myself.” Forever a champion of using his pain for artistic good, Green kept this in mind while the band got to work on Violet, their follow-up album. “I saw this second record as an opportunity to counteract some of the damage I did to my own brain,” he continues. “Just singing some of those songs for an entire two-year cycle
 I thought, ‘How do we make something where it’s not going to feel like I need to go to therapy at the end of the show?’”  
Violet does see growth across the board, and Green infuses his poetic lyricism with newfound hope — though, as a whole, the band tell me their sophomore album is, in many ways, just a continuation of the first. The creative momentum has been stimulating and powerful from the jump, as has their kinship. But with tours and sessions at Studio 4 with Yip under their belt now, bonded in new ways — this is where the rubber meets the road. “It’s about friendship and companionship of us as a group,” Green says. “Everybody knew each other, and some people were closer than others at the beginning of the band. My mom used to say — when you make a pasta sauce, you can serve it that night, and it’s great. But the next day
 it’s sauce. We started LSD, and it was cool. We were all together. But really over this time of everybody being together, our friendship as a band has altered how we operate. It’s become this big relationship.”
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From Past Lives to the forthcoming Violet, that bond has catalyzed a shift. “The biggest difference for me between the first record and the second record, as far as writing and all this stuff, is that on the first record, we sent ideas back and forth, and we were so excited,” Rule observes. “It was that excitement of sending your first best guess. On this record, we had our first best guess with confidence. I think playing together gave us confidence to be able to have more guts making this record.” But the call wasn’t only coming from inside the house — those who’ve really seen, heard, and honored such an authentic and personal project have only furthered this sense of confidence. Green goes back to the idea of connection. “The fanbase for this band is very unique,” he says. “They have given us a very clear signal of like, ‘Hey, we got you. Go do what you love.’ So I don’t feel like we had to climb up from a mountain or anything like that. It was almost just a newer experience of being able to write.” 
Sonically, Past Lives also felt like an exorcism of sorts,blending catharsis and cynicism. The textural album surges to the rhythm of Rule’s urgent, explosive drumming and Payne’s profound bass tone — Redditors have deemed him “Tone God” for a reason — and the tactile chemistry between the two guitarists, who clearly coax each other out of their comfort zones. It’s aggressive and guttural, swinging from fast to slow — while, like a pulsing artery, Green’s dark dialectic reigns, dialing in feelings from his introspective and heart-wrenching solo album Boom. Done. On Violet, however, from instrumentation to structure, you can literally hear their increase in confidence and closeness — not only in the risks taken but in the restraint as well.
For the first 43 seconds of the album, all you hear is the bright, rough timbre of Green’s voice and a percussive inhale. Spiritual and esoteric as the lyrics are, it’s a deeply human moment, one in which you can really feel that “trust fall.” Then, instrumentation seeps in, and there’s a bit of Deftones’ “Be Quiet and Drive (Far Away),” and its forefather, “Never Let Me Down Again” by Depeche Mode — both of which are also built on a crescendo of breathiness and heavy guitar riffs. Off the bat, the track begins to build the case that where Past Lives was a passionate and uninhibited contemplation of death, Violet is an anthemic, self-assured celebration of life — a paradox that only LSD could articulate so beautifully, back to back. 
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“It doesn’t matter what we do individually. The most important thing is what’s best for the song. Whether that’s playing less or playing more or not playing at all — there are a lot of things you can do to service a song in the best way possible,” Payne points out. “We all went into the first album with that mentality, but again, you’re tracking remote, and you’re like, ‘Oh, I’m going to do all this shit.’ With Violet, we really harnessed that. Collectively, we all simplified, having the knowledge that ‘I can actually play less here because I know when you write your shit, it’s going to fill up that space,’ and that’s what makes all of the parts play off each other. Sonically as a band, this is a little bit more of a less is more approach.” 
Less may be more, yet, true to form for Dunes, Violet has infinite layers. No two tracks are alike — the empowering ballad “Paper Tigers” sees refined arrangement and toothsome rock riffage. It’s Rule’s favorite, and the drum fills let you know it. “Machines” is purely post-hardcore, soaring and melodic, apart from a few delicious shrieks. That one is Payne’s preference, while Green goes for “Fatal Deluxe” — “I get lost playing that song,” he says. For Iero, it’s complicated. “Forgiveness” might be his favorite on paper, but from the green room at Brooklyn Paramount, he professes, “It’s the type of song that when you write it, and hear it, it fits any definition of the word success. Writing a song that gives me chills, that if I heard it from someone else, I would be fucking sick that I didn’t write it myself, that’s success to me. So if it comes out and no one likes it, I don’t care. It doesn’t matter to me. It’s already the best thing I may have ever done.” If you know anything about Iero, you know he’s been a part of a generous handful of bands, as well as written on 5x platinum songs like “Welcome to the Black Parade.” It’s a hefty claim, though the rest of the group corroborate — it gives them chills. 
“Songs are like loves, right? They’re like relationships. Sometimes you meet someone, and you’re just not ready for it, and it doesn’t work out. Sometimes you rekindle that down the line when it works out for both of you. Songs are just like that,” Iero explains. “They just come together, and it’s this beautiful romance that is love at first sight, and it just happens. You only get a couple of those in your lifetime. ‘Violet’ was that for me. I have the video of me playing it for the first time. I had gotten this guitar that my friend Michael sent me, and I just sat down to play it, and the first thing I played was ‘Violet’ almost in its entirety. Then that day, I sent it to everybody, and I was like, ‘I don’t know if this is good or not.’ Then Tucker sent it back with a drum beat, and I was like, ‘Oh, I think this is really good.’ All of a sudden, we just started writing on it, and I was like, ‘Wow, this is kind of cool. Maybe this is something that’s going to make the record. Then Anthony sung on it — and then I was like, ‘Oh, my God, this is everything that I love about Morrissey and the Smiths, but without the racism. It’s one of those things that just fell out of me, and it seemed like it fell out of everybody else at the same time. The way it came together — the song steps up, and when you think you’ve had your chorus and that’s all you’re going to get, it steps up again. It’s just one of the most beautiful things I think I’ve ever heard.”
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The process that ensued echoed every familial sentiment these five men had shared with me. Green adds, slightly smirking, “He doesn’t remember this, but Frank turned and looked at me, and goes, ‘This part needs to be big.’ I’m also thinking the same thing in my head, but my heart started to beat. Like I was at the principal’s office.” He continues, enthusiasm building, “I wrote and wrote and wrote and listened, and I absorbed... And I was on my way to the studio singing to the song, listening to it in reverse — and had a moment. I was so excited when I got to Will’s studio
 I was just so overwhelmed by the spirit of what makes you creative and what gives life and what destroys something to make something new. I knew it didn’t matter if anybody else thought it. And that’s the type of special that this band has.” Tucker laughs, “I remember walking into the studio — and you were losing your mind. Then I listened to it. I fucking fell in love with it.”
It would be remiss not to honor Yip in this story. An authority when it comes to contemporary alternative music, Dunes favorably call him the “sixth member” — a title bestowed on the producer by not one but two other bands I’ve spoken to recently. All the fanfare is well deserved. Sonically, Violet embodies the confidence and stride the band have felt on their sophomore run — it’s sharper, shinier, and tighter without forgoing any of Dunes’ spontaneous emotion. He reaps fluidity and cohesion across 10 truly diverse tracks, matching the thoughtfulness of Dunes themselves. But most importantly with Yip, for this band that value trust above all else, they’ve never had to worry. “He’s really specific. He has this thermometer gauge to get that feeling right — he’s all about feeling. He’s not going to fucking push you to do anything. He’ll always advocate for you,” Green gushes. “He’s never going to do whatever the label wants or whenever anybody’s paying, and he’s going to make sure that you’re comfortable with what you’re singing, what you’re playing.” And for a band born out of a desire to subvert expectations, that’s the ideal environment. 
Though they gave me more than enough, one question lingered after my conversations with L.S. Dunes. As someone who has dated, befriended, unfriended, and been surrounded by musicians for 30 years, I couldn’t crack the code as to how, and why, these five talented men can honestly just get along. A band that leave ego at the door, unequivocally in full support of each other, feels as common as seeing a solar eclipse. But like eclipses, LSD are also about alignment. For the band, it was the time and place, with enough time and places behind them, that they had agency to begin. “They say you can’t pick your family — we got to pick our family with L.S. Dunes,” Green says. “We get to decide this is the amount of crazy we can deal with. This is the amount of chaos we can handle within each other — and this is what we can add to it.”
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