#second only to actual Belgian ales

[nice-bright-colors]

So last week I found a Tripel version from these guys. Today, there was this and a Quadruple. This being only 6.8% vs that Quad at 10.0%, was a much better option.

10.0% means I’m not waking up for my flight in the morning.

Now we’re back to Sunday Night packing for a business trip.

[severalpossiblemusiks]

2, 10 and 30?

2. A band I always come back to.

I think this is gonna sound cringe, but one of the first bands to get me into metal was a Christian glam metal group called Stryper. While their lyrics are overtly Christian and prosletizing, their musicianship is incredible and I have yet to find a dual-guitarist lineup I like better. Their early stuff in the 80s is like a mixture of glam and power/speed, and their more recent stuff after getting back together in the 2010s gives me a lot of Judas Priest vibes, lots of classic heavy metal with touches of power metal.

10. Most underrated musician.

I could list many musicians here. Some of them are actually quite popular within their own circles, but in terms of the general population they may not have a large following. First is Django Reinhardt, a Belgian/French Romani guitarist who effectively created the jazz manouche style (sometimes called g*psy jazz), and accomplished this with only two functioning fingers on his left hand due to severe burns. He also influenced the likes of Tony Iommi, Jerry Garcia, and Eddie Van Halen. Second is Paco de Lucia, a Spanish/Portuguese flamenco guitarist who branched into jazz and made "new flamenco" a world fusion style of flamenco and jazz. His works with jazz fusion guitar legends like Al Di Meola and John McLaughlin are some of my favourite pieces of music ever. Third is Buckethead. The man just hangs out and releases like 20 albums a year, almost all of them instrumentals. There are some other artists and groups like Leah McHenry (who goes by LEAH), Eye of Melian, dArtagnan, Steeleye Span, Imperial Age, Lords of the Trident, Sunburst, Blazon Stone, Númenor, Fire Whale, Grimgotts, Daniel Amos, Fief, Ziggurath, Crazy Lixx, Bloodywood, Crown Lands, Haralabos Stafylakis, T. Patrick Carrabre, Harmonium, Auri, Wilderun, Vials of Wrath, Karen Sunabacka, Oceans of Slumber, Signum Regis, and Paul O'Dette. (Sorry about the lengthy list. Also this covers metal, rock, classical, jazz, folk, and more)

30. A song from your favourite band.

[sufferingisinevitable]

@association-of-freed-people @durkin2002 @sneggleblech @hominis-the-white-wizard

I've seen you guys post about the Dutch farmer protests and I'd like to give you guys some extra context, most of you really don't know how bad shit has gotten in the Netherlands these past few years. I'll try to keep it short.

Our current vice-premier and minister of finance and WEF-member (and minster of foreign affairs in the past cabinet) Sigrid Kaag was in the past fired of her lesser position in foreign affairs because of perjury, turns out she was secretly married to Anis al-Qaq, the right-hand man of Yasser Arafat. Despite this she can not only just return to governing but leads the most progressive party of the Netherlands, D66. They got second place in the last election.

She has also send millions of our taxpayer money directly to hamas, repeatedly. There are also regular sex-schandals within the party, including silencing the victims.

Despite this she's a media darling. This has obviously nothing to do with the fact that our national broadcasting was led by a lady named Shula Rijxman for the past 6 years, whom despite claiming political neutrality for her entire career became a D66 alderman of Amsterdam within the month she quit.

It shouldn't surprise you that the Public Broadcasting Network literally broadcasted a documentary about Kaag's career, made from taxpayer money and checked and corrected by Kaag personally (one of the many scandals that quickly got ignored, don't get me started about their employee diversity trophies). It aired in the weeks leading up to the last election.

Well at least there is more media than just public broadcasting right? Well there is but all our national (and most regional) papers, magazines and tv channels are in the hands of only two companies. Two Belgian companies whom both receive millions of EU funding of which both owners completely coincidentally have direct ties to the Renew Europe party, which both our ruling party (VVD) and D66 are part of. No, it isn't nationally acknowledged that both our second and first party are basically the same party, it's just one of those things nobody talks about.

You can probably imagine how our media treats dissidents. I would be called a conspiracy theorist for stating these verifiable facts, or a 'wappie' as they've been called since corona.

I work for a very progressive employer so I see daily how disconnected our elites are from the real world, and it won't take long until shit will completely hit the fan. Funnily enough, the farmer protests probably won't even be the cause, it will be those darn immigrants and the lack of actual houses to put them in, since they get priority over people who have been searching for decades and well, people are starting to notice they are being discriminated against in their own country. There is so much more to talk about (I didn't even mention our prime minister, who has his whole own unique form of dementia) but I'll keep it at this for now.

It would be funny if it weren't so sad.

[absoloutenonsense]

Sunday Snippet 

Thank you @crinkle-eyed-boo and @wabadabadaba for tagging me to post a snippet of a WIP! I finally have a bit of time to write fic again and it’s great. Here’s a bit that I just wrote from my monster au:

The bar is pretty full when they get there. It’s two-for-one shots on Mondays, so Louis isn’t surprised, and it’s actually something that will probably work in his favor. If Harry starts doing something weird or otherwise inhuman-like, he can just point someone out in the crowd or something. Niall knows people everywhere, he’s sure someone would catch his attention. 

Weaving in and out around people and tables, they finally come to the booth where Liam and Zayn are already sitting with four pints and four shots. They look surprised when they see Harry.

“Hello,” Liam says, looking directly at Harry.

“Hi,” Zayn says, looking between all three of them. He settles on Harry after that and holds out his hand. “I’m Zayn.”

Louis stops himself from grimacing as he looks over at Harry, who is… just staring at Liam and Zayn with a confused look on its face. Finally, it tilts its head at Zayn and meets his hand out to complete the handshake. 

“This is Harry,” Louis supplies, since it doesn’t seem like Harry’s going to say anything. Honestly, he didn’t expect for it to be acting this weird right off the bat. He shakes his head as he adds, “It-- he’s a friend. From out of town.”

Harry leans over and shakes Liam’s hand next, bending slightly over the table. It still has its arm around Louis’ neck, which means Louis is pulled forward, too. He elbows it in the abdomen, which makes Harry yelp, pull back, then laugh and kiss the side of Louis’ head as an apology. 

“So, what are we drinking?” Louis asks, as a way to draw attention away from the rising blush on his cheeks. 

“A new Belgian ale they got last week and a Washington Apple,” Zayn says. He looks down at the set of four and blows a raspberry. “I didn’t realize I needed to get five.”

Niall laughs, “I told you Louis was bringing a friend.”

“He didn’t believe you,” Liam says. 

“Louis doesn't have other friends,” Zayn says, mildly defensive. 

“What are you talking about?” Louis asks. “Everyone likes me.”

“Everyone does like you, but that doesn’t mean you have other friends,” Zayn says. 

Louis rolls his eyes, and is about to tell him off, when Harry speaks up. 

“Lou fits in with different groups really easily. I bet if we went back to his hometown you’d see how many friends he still has.”

They all look at Harry like they don’t know what to say. 

“Thank you, Hazza,” Louis says, looking at the rest of them smugly. Maybe bringing it wasn’t a bad idea after all. It might be helpful to have someone in his corner on a night out. 

“Let me grab myself a pint and a shot,” Niall says, putting a hand on Louis’ shoulder and patting his chest a couple of times. “Louis, Harry, you go on and take those, I’ll be right back.” 

Before Louis can process what Niall said, Harry’s sliding into the booth and turning to him with a bright smile. He sits down next to him, leaning on the table as he grabs his beer. 

“Were you waiting long?” Louis asks. 

“No,” Liam says, shaking his head. “We got the drinks just a minute before you guys came in.” 

“Lucky you got a table.”

“It cleared out just as we were looking for one,” Zayn says. “It’s Liam, I swear he’s got lots of luck with that sort of thing.” In the next second, Niall is back at their table, putting down his beer and shot before turning to grab a chair. “Just like Niall has lots of luck at the bar.”

Niall sits down and grins before holding up his shot glass. “Cheers,” he says, clinking glasses with each of them. 

Harry has a bright smile on its face, cheersing with each of them, saving Louis for last, making piercing, almost giddy eye-contact before it takes a sip. Louis smirks before throwing the shot back like the others are doing. Harry frowns, but only for a second, before shooting it back too. It coughs, like some of it went down the wrong way. 

Louis pats it on the back a few times until it stops. 

“Harry’s not used to doing shots,” he says. 

In case you’re writing and would like to share, I’ll tag: @uhoh-but-yeah-alright @lululawrence @homosociallyyours @becomeawendybird @disgruntledkittenface @jacaranda-bloom and anyone else that would like to!

[acommonloon]

“What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell just as sweet.” n'est-ce pas

But is it really?

TL;DR

Hadn't had La Fin Du Monde in too long. Lol, still haven't, because that's not what this is - to my surprise. I took my first sip and thought, "WTF." I sent a pic to my kiddo who lives in Belgium. He responded, "Lol I like the name!"

But the name was the problem for me. I'd noticed the green script n'est-ce pas but was not moved to look it up or to examine the bottle more closely to see the other green lettering: Belgian-style IPA.

Oddly, this was the second time in two weeks I'd ended up with a Triple IPA instead of a Tripel Belgian Ale.

At a small brewery in New Albany we were attended by a rather inattentive bartender. She was more attending than tender and mostly attending to her phone. I'd been there previously and had a conversation with a different bartender about their Belgian Tripel. I was pleased to see it was still on.

So this time I just asked for the Tripel. When I I took the first sip I thought, "WTF!" I knew it wasn't the beer I ordered so I scanned the list and notice they had a TIPA. That stands for Triple IPA. D said, "Just tell her to get you what you want." No, technically she wasn't wrong bringing me a Triple but an experienced bartender would have asked me to clarify the Triple or the Tripel.

At some point she asked me about the beer (points to her) and I said, "It's good, I meant to order the Belgian Tripel though." She looked confused, looked up at the board, and replied, "Well actually that's pronounced TripPel." She said the last syllable so it rhymed with bell. I didn't reply but when she walked off I looked at D and said, "No it isn't."

I didn't want to be annoyed by this. I didn't want to be the mansplainer. I didn't want this bartender to embarrass herself. Mostly I didn't want her to give people the wrong beer. Still, many times in my life I "Knew" something only to find out I was wrong so I texted my kiddo. He responded, "I'm with Belgians now I'll ask.

....the Belgian brewer I'm with said it's just like triple."

I didn't mention it to the bartender but I asked her to fill me a crowler of the "Belgian" Triple to take away and said it like triple. She gave me the correct beer without comment.

Back to the first beer with the name. La Fin Du Monde which I believe means "The End of the World." I never knew that but my kiddo had replied that the beer label is basically saying "It's not The End of the World."

Google says n'est-ce pas questions "is it or is it not, yes or no" or as the old English guy might say "To be or not To be."

<sigh> getting a triple IPA when you wanted a Belgian tripel is not the end of the world or even outrageous fortune.

The pay off: if you've read this far (get a life) I still wasn't "SURE" I knew the whole truth of this issue triple vs tripel so I pulled up google translate French to English.

When I clicked on the little speaker symbol under the French block a woman's French voice said, "trip el" with the accent on the "el" and it sounded like bell. OMG WTF!

Then I clicked on the English side and an English woman said,

"Try pul"

Anyway...

[wisdomrays]

TAFAKKUR: Part 266

EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE: Part 1

AND THE HEAVEN, WE HAVE CONSTRUCTED IT MIGHTILY, AND IT IS SURELY WE WHO HAVE VAST POWER, AND KEEP EXPANDING IT. (DHARIYAT 51:47)

In this work we study a verse from the Qur’an, the 47th verse of the Sura al-Dhariyat (The Winds that Scatter), under the light of new discoveries in the field of astrophysics. We note that recent evidence about the accelerating expansion of the universe is also strongly consistent with this verse, although this has shocked the scientific community. In the last part of the article, we discuss possible relations of “metaphysical dimensions” and the concept of “the seven layers” with the word “sama” (translated in to English as “heaven”) as mentioned in the verse.

The existence of the universe is perhaps one of the greatest mysteries in science and philosophy. No convincing argument has been ever put forward that has enabled us to understand this amazing event, not since the beginning of modern science. Religions like Islam, Christianity, and Judaism, on the other hand, explain that the Creator built our robust universe directly out of physical nothingness, independent of any cause. Therefore, the initial creation of such universe would be impossible to explain physically.

In his translation of the relevant verse, S. Yildirim has noted that God keeps the universe expanding and He will continue to do so. Yildirim attributes two meanings to the word musiun in the verse; the first is the owner of great power, strength and wealth; the second is one who expands. Thus, it should not be a surprise to learn that this verse is indeed describing a continually-expanding universe. This might further lead Muslims to think that the Creator has not left the universe unattended after the Big Bang, but rather it is He who has kept creating and expanding it.

In the 1920’s a discovery was made that completely changed our perception of space. It was discovered that distant stars depart from the solar system and leave us even more and more alone in dark space. Then, Fr. Georges-Henri Lemaître, a Belgian astrophysicist, mathematician, and Catholic priest, proposed the idea of the expanding universe. Despite its finite size, it was believed that the universe was expanding.

We can explain this fact simply by an analogy. Think of a toy balloon with spots on it. Mark one of those spots and inflate the balloon. As we inflate it, we observe that all other spots on the surface of the balloon move away from the marked one. So, if we replace the balloon with our universe, the spots will be the stars and planets. If the universe is expanding indeed, then we expect them to be moving away from each other. In other words, the distances between heavenly bodies must be increasing.

Unfortunately, we don’t have a gigantic ruler to measure such immense distances. However, there are other means, such as measuring wave frequencies. Consider the following analogy: Someone throws one ball every second toward a target. Assume that balls travel with constant velocity. If the thrower is stationary, the target will receive one ball every second. However, if the thrower is moving towards the target, it will receive balls more frequently because the balls will be less spaced out. The converse is true if the thrower is moving away from the target. So it is actually the wavelength which is affected; as a consequence, the perceived frequency is also affected. That is, the distances between the waves emitted by objects moving away from us (wavelength) must be increasing, so the frequency decreasing. Likewise, think of an ambulance siren coming towards you and going away from you. It is a good example showing that while an acoustic source that is approaching us emits a higher frequency, the same source radiates lower frequency when going away from us. In physics this is known as the Doppler effect.

RED SHIFT

This phenomenon does not only occur with sound waves, but also with electromagnetic waves. When we think of the spectrum of light, violet at one end has the shortest wavelength and red at the other end has the longest wavelength of visible light. So, any wave of light shifting toward red means the source is moving away from us. It has been determined that the frequency of light emitted by the elements within distant stars shift to a lower frequency, which is called a red shift.

It is this shift that makes astrophysicists think that the universe is expanding. One mustn’t be confused by red shift. This terminology is just used to explain in what direction the frequency is actually shifting on the spectrum. Those signals captured from distant stars have a much smaller frequency (much higher wavelength) than that of red light and they are indeed in the microwave regime and shifting to even much smaller frequency radio waves.

In 2002, an article presenting new evidence of the accelerating expansion of the universe was published by the Royal Astronomical Society. It was not so long ago, only five years, that general opinion concurred with a decelerating expansion. However, the first evidence found by two astronomers in that year led us into a universe that expands in an accelerating fashion, contrary to previous views. This result was absolutely unexpected, because many scientists believed that expansion would slow down due to gravity. Another interesting fact is that if space were to cease expanding, this would be in contradiction to the above verse. God, however, by never allowing this to happen, shows how futile the actions of those who deny His verses are and how extensive His power is, as well as how purposefully He creates.

[borisbubbles]

Eurovision 2010s: 55 - 51

55. fusedmarc - “Rain of revolution” Lithuania 2017

[2017 Review here]

Who else? My love for Fusedmarc has become a BorisBubbles.tumblr calling card and come on, there’s no way I wouldn’t drag them this high. Two years later and I still cackle thoughout this song with the exact same vigor as I did two years back. 🤭 Now, I do understand that “Rain of revolution” is one of the worst 10 songs in this decade and... well, yeah, (yeah, yeahyeah NRG yeah yeah yeeeeaaah) that’s the entire point. If we lived in the universe where ESC entries can be compared to motion pictures, in which “Waterloo” is Citizen Kane and “A matter of time” is fucking Titanic, then “Rain of revolution” is The Room, for Viktorija and Denis posses the exact same endearing insanity, inscrutability and genius as Tommy Wiseau.  And honestly, this song should be shown in movie theatres because it turned inteptitude into an artform. Reminder that fusedmarc were the only 2017 act to refuse PBC:UA’s offer for stand-in rehearsals because they were afraid Ukraine would fail at getting their ~vision across~ 😂😍

Reminder that this resulted in technical errors DURING THEIR LIVE PERFORMANCE. 😍

Reminder that they song is punctuated by endless YEAH YEAH YEAHs 😍

Reminder that they only won Eurovizijos Atranka because a diehard vegan facebook group found out that fusedmarc were *also* vegan and urged their lithuanian members to vote for them, allowing them to beat Aiste 😍

Reminder that Victorija styles herself after Little My from the Moomins 😍

Reminder that her diction is equivalent or worse  to the English spoken in the Nekci Menij show. 😍

Reminder that Viktorija’s nail game is more on fleek than yours.😍

Remember that LIFE LIKE ROLLERCOASTEN, SPEENING MI ORAWND 😍

It’s all about MICKIN a start and let their light shine FRUUU U. So DANCE to the RIVEM of ur SOLE, chant ‘LIETUVA’ like that random woman does at the start of the performance (IS THIS THE SAME LITHUANIAN FRUMP who went all out during Belarus, because if so I may have found a soul sibling), end the reign of RevoLucian and look for the reason why hamster on the road. Life is like a rollercoaster and live it to the fullest.

________________________________________________________________

54. Tom Dice - “Me and my guitar” Belgium 2010

I’ll be honest: As a Belgian, Tom Dice has a lot of emotional value for me. The year was 2010: Belgium hadn’t qualified for a final for six straight contests, sending failure after failure. Neither VRT had, until that point, shown any idea behind what they were doing, consistently picking the wrong songs during the national selections. RTBF meanwhile, didn’t even try, sending novelty acts they knew would never qualify. So, imagine being Belgian and seeing Tom get announced, fedora perched askew on his head, with a tepid guitar ballad and you’re like “oh MORE of the same, well bye 😬", except SURPRISE Tom is naturally charismatic and has a great voice and turns his by all standards generic song into an experience. 

It’s the Todevska principle: Tom OUTSOLD. Is he the best entrant? No. Like many ESC alumni he entered the contest with his least good song. Is he the most exciting entrant? Far from it. 

However isn’t it fair to state that we, Eurovision fans from Europe, have always had at least one dark age in our history with the contest? Periods where our supposed “best” wasn’t good enough? Periods where we struggled being proud of whom we were and where we came from. For someone to come out of nowhere and put you country back on the map after years of adversity, be it an ABBA, or a Bobbysocks! or a Tamara Todevksa, that makes for a magical rebirthing experience. Tom Dice is Belgium’s and I am #Proud of it. 

oh and also the live owns dwi. 🤭

________________________________________________________________

53. Aram MP3 - “Not alone” Armenia 2014

WOD EEF EETS ONLE WAN KEES!

Long before ASMR became a popular thing, Armenia send an entry that is only enjoyable if the listeners plugs in their best airphones, clears their heads and lets the music sweep over them.

And I mean, “Not alone” may be a mere Build-Up-To-An-Epic-Climax Ballad, but dear gods is it effective. You see, “Not alone” starts off quiet and solemn, a gentle piano tapping, punctuated with small drums... and then the orchestra comes in and builds and builds and builds until

at long last

WOD EEF EETS ONLE WAN KEES

DAT TERNS AL SIEDS INTO TRIZZ

DE STRONGEIST VIND INTO BRIZZ

OHPEN ALL DORS WIDNO KEEZ

and fuck, take my lifetime supply of hairpieces because that shit is awesome? The only real downside Aram has for me is that he requires a lot of set up: you really NEED to be in The Proper Mood to enjoy “Not alone” in its fullest glory. But when you are willing to take that plunge and be swept away by its rawness, you’re in for three minutes of catharsis. PS: Aram performing it drunk at the finale 😍 

being awesome AND being incompetent in two different performances, what a kraljic <3

________________________________________________________________

52. Ott Lepland - “Kuula” Estonia 2012

There are two reasons why “Kuula” ranks this high and neither is Estonia bias :o

The first is, obviously, the context. I’ve spoken widely about how terrible Baku2012 sounded as a whole, and how disappointment everything was. Well, “Kuula” was not only acoustically sound, it is actually the ONLY song that I was pleasantly surprised me. I had no opinion whatsoever going into Baku and he roses to my #3 of the year.

Which brings me to the second reason why “Kuula” ranks this highly. It is just... really fucking good, lol?

With powerballads such as these it’s REALLY important to suck the listener/viewer in and the combination of Ott’s great voice, adorable personality, the magical language that is Estonian (which also, conveniently, allows me forget “Kuula” has Deep Meaning and Touching Lyrics 🤗), and a great organic build up captivate me immensely. Even though songs like “Kuula” are far from what I normally love, it never fails to sustain me, proving tho every great rule they’re always a greater exception. 🤗

________________________________________________________________

51. Anouk - “Birds” the Netherlands 2013

~She slayed it from the outside~

Oh my god Anouk was such a rollercoaster. From my end, I was OBSESSED with Anouk from the second she was announced (as the first participant of 2013!!!) because hell yeah I LOVED “Nobody’s wife” and “Girl” and this expected ~High Voltage Rock OWNAGE~

What we got instead was... something just as great, if completely different. “Birds” may not have been an in-your-face rock song, but it never-the-less was a beautiful, mesmerising, unpretentious avant garde ballad. “If being myself is what I do wrong, then I would rather not be right” sticks out as an absolutely brilliant line that I often use in my daily writing. 😍 I LOVE how Anouk performs btw, on the satellite stage, in a sea of f(l)ags:

While also delivering distinctly Dutch diction. 😍 Paraphrasing:

“Burds follin daun de roeftops, aut of de skai laik reendraups, no eir, no praad.” 

Like ^ pronounced that in dutch and you literally have Anouk’s diction nailed. 😍

“Birds” was basically the “Me and my guitar” of the Netherlands, but there’s also the added bonus of  Anouk herself. You see, in contrast to her song’s ethereal demeanor, Anouk is KNOWN to be a huuuuuge abrasive confrontal bitch with zero filter 😍 and fragments of her diva personality definitely oozed into Malmö as well, from nonchalantly recording a gritty webcam vid for official channel’s preview vid (😍) to  flippantly pulling a hood over her face each time a journalist wanted to interview her. It ended, how else, with Anouk writing “Walk along” for Trijntje, and then cussing her out for being frumpy / talentless / sucking at life when she NQ’d. When Trijntje tried pinning them blame Anouk for writing her a bad song on purpose (lmfao), Anouk retaliated by stealing Trijnje’s coach seat on The Voice NL. PETTY QUEEN <3 We truly aren’t worthy of this irl Cersei Lannister. 😍

Also um, I just realized I ranked those two on opposide ends of the Dutch chart:

The 2010s marked wonderful renaissance for the Netherlands. I’m never ~OBSESSED~ with their entries, but they are a very solid Eurovision country, reliably delivering good music. I think they’re also the country that has the lowest amount of godawful entries on average (literally 2. Fuck you, “Without you” and “Amsterdam”.). If anyone deserved to win based on track record alone it was definitely them. 

[rcppled-a]

        ✃ ✁ SORRY TO BOTHER YOU ⇢ @gothamoutllaw『DRABBLE』✃ ✁ 

The issue is simple - Joel’s been feeling love sick ever since Last Tuesday. Everyone with eyes and a functioning brain was able to pick up on it. His posture was slumped, the vibrancy behind his eyes lost its luster, and even the tone of his voice quieted into something dismal. He felt all shades of blue that could have out colored the crashing waves at the nearby shore. 

Half of those that knew of his newfound love for a particular person took pity on him, and those that didn’t merely rolled their eyes. Either way, the reactions didn’t quell the longing he felt burrowed beneath the cage of his ribs. Which was dramatic - very much so. Joel was very well aware of how ridiculous it was, but he still moped. He still dragged his feet from place to place, and stayed in the bed they shared for a few moments longer in the morning. 

It was pitiful. Honestly, it really was. Yet he kept up the act until his phone pinged or rang. And when it did, it was like life rushed back into him all at once. Eyes brightened when he went to snatch the device from wherever it laid. It could have been in his pocket, on the counter, across the room- hell, Oram could have had it in the trenches of the sea and Joel would still bust his ass to get his phone. 

If the notification was from Jason, he would skip in a field of flowers with his head adorned with itty-bitty hearts. He’d float on cloud nine until he inevitably landed back on earth; back into the reality that they were states, maybe even continents, apart. If the notification wasn’t from his boyfriend then he’d let out the longest, most wistful sigh in existence. The gloomy cycle would then resume with the addition of the world’s smallest violin that played in the recesses of his mind. 

And all of this just because he missed Jason. He missed the man so much he was about to drive all of the sea creatures into the ocean for good. Lior told him to just cheer up, Dane offered to go on an alcoholic free bar hop, and Hugh noted that it might help to busy himself did he tone down the whining. The only thing he actually listened to was the last out of the three, and tried to keep himself busy like Hugh suggested. Except that was always easier said than done. Work at the diner only took up so much time in a day, and when he had a day off he wasn’t too sure what to do with himself. He did a laundry list of chores, ran all of his errands, and even took Jack to the dog park for an hour and a half. After that he was about to resort to pebble kicking when an idea came to mind. 

Half an hour later and he rapped his knuckles on the front door of a modest home. Though he’s been here plenty of times before, there’s still a shiver of unease that rolled through him. The air here is different somehow; charged with a certain heaviness, ancient even. Yet the feeling dissipated once the door opened - only to reveal a man with a deep set scowl. 

“Hey, Vince,” Joel chirped with a polite smile on his face. “Thought I’d bring over some stuff since I was on this side of the town.” It wasn’t a blatant lie, but it wasn’t the entire truth either. Still, Vincent seemed to accept the reason and let him through with Jack right at his heels. The door was closed and locked behind him as he toed off his shoes. “So how’s your day been so far?” An innocent enough question to start off a conversation in his mind. 

“Peaceful.” Came the flat response, but it didn’t carry the usual harshness. Joel might have decided to stop by without warning, but the company wasn’t despised. 

“Oh, cool, um, here.” The plastic bag of pastries was handed over as they ambled further into the house. "I got two boxes of Gyepi-manju instead of one since you said you liked it last time.” And also because he felt a little bad for the spontaneous visit. 

A small grunt was all Vincent voiced as he absently rifled through the goods. “Want something to drink?”

“Yeah, uh, water would be great.” 

And with that, he was left to his own devices as Vincent wandered into the kitchen. He decided to settle in the living room to wait - still with Jack at his side. When he sat on the couch, the Belgian Malinois sat near the coffee table; tongue lolled out and panting from the walk over. 

“So you just so happened to be on this side of town.”

The voice came from his right and nearly made him jump. Brows furrowed, he looked over and took the offered glass without speaking up. It wasn’t so much a question as it was a statement; a keen observation that made it clear Vincent saw right through him. It shouldn’t have surprised him since he had come to terms with how the man seemed to just know things without being told. Yet here he was, pulse quickened from being called out. 

"I, uh.. yeah?” Talk about being cringe worthy. Joel was quick to advert his eyes once he took the water; fingers clasped tightly around the sides. “You in the middle of that?” A nod was made towards the partially formed puzzle on the coffee table. The only things completed were the edges and half of a sickly green license plate. Which led him to assume the finished image was a car of some sort. 

“Just started on it.” A slight pause. “You can help if you want.” 

A smile spread across his face at that; one that was more relaxed and not strung up on nervousness. “Cool.” 

The two of them fell into a comfortable silence as the puzzle was pieced together. Much to his surprise, his thoughts latched onto solving which piece went where. He wasn’t stuck in longing for the most part, and thoroughly enjoyed his decision to swing by so he wouldn’t feel as alone.

 Half an hour passed before Vincent decided to break the peace. “So where’s Jason?” 

Joel nearly took the knob off of the piece he tried started to slot. “Um, work.” 

“Since?”

A beat passed before he responded, “since.. Tuesday.” 

A knowing hum came from the other before they lapsed back into silence, but it didn’t last for long. “And that’s why you’re here?” 

Again, he didn’t answer right away and kept his eyes on the bumper he worked on. “Not.. the whole reason why.” The words quieted the more he spoke, barely above a mumble. 

“But a part of it.”

What was there to say back? He hit the nail on the head, and Joel didn’t like fessing up when it came to these kinds feelings. The errors of his past in similar instances were still scarred in his subconscious for him to talk freely. 

A deep sigh was let out as the puzzle pieces shuffled inside of half the box. “The tide isn’t suspiciously high and it’s not storming. Which means I’m not down in the dumps so that can’t be why you’re here. We met up last weekend so it could be that you missed me that much, but something in me doubts that.”

“Hey, don’t say it like that. I did miss you-”

“But not in that kind of way. I get it, Joel, no offense taken.” And the softened touch to Vincent’s features was even more proof that he wasn’t irked in the slightest. 

Shoulders slumped, he leaned against the back of the couch; features morphed into defeat. “Yeah, okay, fine. I just wanted company, and the others were just..”

“Too much?” 

Joel let out a small chuckle and shook his head. “Way too much. Dane offered to go bar hopping, Lior told me to cheer up, and Hugh said that it might help to do something- anything so.. here I am.” One of his shoulders rose and fell in a half assed shrug. 

“Bar hopping? I thought you didn’t drink, though?”

The confusion was understandable and expected given his history with alcohol. “I don’t, but I still like the atmosphere of them. Lots of shit goes on, lively atmosphere to just.. melt into after a long day’s work- that sort of thing. So sometimes Dane and I go bar hopping. He gets to chug whatever the hell he wants, and I get to slam down colas and ginger ales.”

“I.. see.” The look on Vincent’s face is golden. Everything was scrunched up as he tried to understand the appeal of such a thing, but he ultimately failed to do so. 

“It’s a fun thing to do when I’m in the mood for it. Just didn’t want to get dragged everywhere tonight.” Again with the shrug, but this time he used both shoulders. 

“Then what are you in the mood for?”

And there it was - the question of the hour. Well, more like the past week. Joel scrubbed his hands over his face and let out another sigh. He really didn’t want to answer that question, but he could feel the other’s gaze bore into him the longer he waited. Eventually he mumbled behind the cover of fingers, “you know..” 

“I’m not a mind reader, Joel. So technically I don’t know.”

A snort escaped him as he finally dropped his hands. “You sure? Because some of the stuff you say is boderline creepy and accurate,” Joel pointed out - which earned him a mild deadpan in return. 

“Being observant and physic are two completely different things, but back to the big rain cloud over your head.”

For a second he thought the man’s words were true and glanced up. “Is it that obvious?” He said in hopes it’d cover up the dumb action. It didn’t, but it wasn’t pointed out and made of at least. 

The shift on Vincent’s features might as well have been exaggerated given how little he expressed his emotions. “It looks like someone kicked Jack right in front of you, but instead of getting angry about it- you’re just severely depressed.” 

The words took him aback for two reasons. The first being that he had never heard Vincent use a metaphor like that in all his years of knowing the man. Secondly, it was frighteningly accurate as per usual. “Like I said- creepy.” Joel said as a last ditch effort to deflect and alter the conversation. 

Again, it didn’t work.

Vincent ignored the comment and returned his attention to the puzzle between them. “Have you talked to him recently?” The pregnant pause that followed was a clear indicator that Joel hadn’t. “And you haven’t contacted to him, because..?”

“Because I..” A sigh and then a frustrated groan. “I don’t want to bother him.”

“I don’t mean to be rude, but you send everyone memes at the crack of dawn.”

“That’s different, though!”

“How?”

Well, shit. Joel didn’t have an answer to fire back. “It just..” Words faltered as he wracked his brain to explain the weird knot in his gut. “I don’t know.” Or rather, he didn’t want to know. Whatever turned the gears of his subconscious stayed behind the veil of denial. And he was fine with that for the most part. Clearly, Vincent didn’t share the sentiment. 

“Joel, I know we’ve talked about this briefly before, but I really don’t think you’re bothering him. Not in the way you think you are. Not like the way James made it seem like.”

Bingo. Bingo was his name-o, and Joel wanted to hurl. Every part of him went rigid at just the name of his ex. It took a shit ton of reflection for him to get over the breakup and that was years ago. Now Vincent was uncovering old wounds and airing them out all willy nilly. 

 “The amount of texting, or snapping, or whatever really isn’t as bad as you think. Besides, the only thing that changed about your relationship with him is that you’re both upfront about how you both feel. Nothing else has drastically changed- has it?” 

“No,” Joel answered without missing a beat. “Everything’s the same, we’re just.. really sappy on top of the usual.” And at that moment - it clicked. The way his expression cleared was an indication that it actually clicked. “Wow, James was dumb, huh? I mean with the whole.. I’m a constant bother and talk way too much thing, not the, um, drinking part.”

“That’s exactly what I said the first time you mentioned him, so yes,” Vincent confirmed, hoping that the irrational fear in the other lessened some.

Lips pursed, Joel reflected on it for awhile longer as he went back to the puzzle. The slow, methodical process helped him organize his thoughts. Eventually, he felt better about the whole thing. Enough to actually relax his shoulders and contemplate the idea of messaging Jason. And he ended up doing just that after a few more minutes. It might have just been a short text to see how Jason was doing and say that he missed him, but he felt better - less antsy and just a little less guilty ridden than before. 

[agustdef]

Here & Now - Chapter 2

Pairing: Yoongi x OC

Genre: Fluff; Chill romance

Word Count: 1,963

Warning: None.

Banner Marker: @dee-ehn​

A week of me constantly working felt like a month. I was physically and mentally drained, but I had to keep going. The light at the end of the tunnel was so close and I could just imagine the rest that I'd get as if it were happening.

"Kendall!"

The screaming of my name sent me jolting forward and out of the daydream, I'd slipped into. Blinking a few times I regained my bearings and stared at Marcus with wide eyes. He just frowned, his eyes holding what felt like disappointment.

"How much sleep did you get on the plane?'

"Three hours."

"And when you got home?"

"Three hours?"

He sighed and I guessed he wasn't appeased with my answers. "How much sleep did you get while in New York?"

For a moment I paused, thinking about it. After a few seconds too long he slapped the table, calling on my attention again.

"Actually, I slept every night for at least seven hours. The most consistent it's been for about a month. I'm just using too much of myself. Working my brain to meet all deadlines and also trying to get everything that I want to out of me. Too much creative output methinks."

Shrugging I grabbed the piece of Belgian waffle I'd been eating, dipped it into syrup and shoved it into my face.

Marcus released another sigh, his face softening. He was entering one of his big brother modes, I could feel it. I always did my best to not worry him that much, but sometimes it just couldn't be helped.

"You're taking a break from all work after this. You look dead most of the time, even with that sparkle of joy in your eyes. Plus your skin looks dull. Where is that radiant brown skin that you've honed with your sixty different skincare products."

A laugh escaped me and I almost choked on the waffle. He was a freaking dork.

"My skin looks just fine, thank you very much. Never come for it again. And I promise I will be taking a break. I'm going to be sleeping, eating and seeing several movies. Also catching up on music."

The last words had him narrowing his eyes and opening his mouth to say something.

"Not for inspo nor for work. I'm behind on some releases and need to catch up and expand my library. We both know that I'd be driven mad if I couldn't at the very least listen to music."

Marcus' lips pursed and then he nodded. He knew that I was right. I couldn't fully promise to control my impulse to get work of some kind done, but I would at the very least try for my sake, his and my literary agent, Ara.

"Okay. Even though I want to just ban you from work now we're having a brunch meeting for a reason." He paused and took a sip of his nasty earl grey tea.

Clearing his throat he turned his attention back to me. "You know the projects you have coming up, it's not a lot and you've worked with at least one person on all of them before. So obviously I'm not too worried about that. You have meetings with the producers for Halsey's album and then the ones for Bruno on Tuesday. Thankfully, they're hours apart so you have time to sprint to the other side of the city."

As he spoke I scrolled through my phone's planner, making sure that I had all those things noted somewhere. I'd have reminders, but I preferred to have it on me at all times. I'd end up cross-checking them with the things in my paper planner.

"Got it."

He nodded and scanned his own phone, then something in the air shifted. Marcus glanced up at me with this serious expression that had me prepared to shit myself.

"And then there's the meeting with Suga in a week."

His grave expression only lasted for a second and then he was smirking at me. Wiggling his eyebrows he did this weird dance that I never wanted to see again. I felt very embarrassed and also wanted to launch something at him because he was teasing me.

"Stop."

"Stop what? I'm just saying you have a meeting next week. A meeting with someone you fangirl over. Someone you've said some very interesting things about." He sounded so smug.

"And? I've fangirled about most of the people I've gotten to work with. Full on thirsted. Brendon Urie, Hayley Kiyoko, Tinashe, Halsey, Trey Songz, Rihanna. Hell, I'm in post-production with Hanbin. And everyone knows how deep that thirst ran." I rolled my eyes and sipped my iced green tea.

"True. But come on, we both know your composure can suck sometimes. Even you, woman with the resting bitch, sad and/or tired face slips up. And I'm more than sure that he will catch you slipping." He enunciated every word, growing more pleased with himself every second.

My cheeks were burning, from embarrassment and annoyance. I flipped him off and stared into his eyes. "Keep fucking with me and I will shave your head. All the hard work for those waves will go out the window."

And as usual, it shut him down. He knew I'd never go that far, but I was not above some form of retaliation that he wouldn't see coming. We'd known each other for well over six years, and even though we spent 2 years, not on speaking terms friendship wise his work as my agent kept him in the loop of my behavior.

Silence reigned as we finished off our food and waved down the waiter to order the burger we'd been eyeing. Once that was taken care of I felt this sort of shyness overtake me. It wasn't foreign, because I was naturally shy, but with a close friend, it felt misplaced.

Clearing my throat I felt my cheeks burning again. "So... um, any particular reason that they asked me? Like the email said that he wanted to work with me, but even then I have no clue why. I asked Hals and she denies having any part in it."

Marcus failed to keep the smirk from making its way back onto his face. He tried hard, the corners of his mouth quirking up and down. Eventually, he just gave up.

"Oh. Well, it's not like you're some unknown producer. You've made a name for yourself with how consistently good your work is. Plus people know that you dabble in a little of everything and are willing to experiment. Plus if you've forgotten you've done a fair amount of work in the world of k-pop. Stray Kids, Jackson Wang, Loco, Mamamoo. You just finished working with B.I., someone who is arguably one of the best producers and writers out there."

"But..."

Reaching across the table he used his hand to cover my mouth, "No buts. You've created a rep for being good at your job and great to work with, it's not surprising that he or anyone else might want to work with you. Stop it."

Swatting his hand away I glared at him, wiping my mouth with a napkin.

"Fine. What time is the meeting?" I asked.

Just before he could speak the massive burger was sat in front of us with a mountain of fries. My stomach felt tight after the waffles and bacon, but upon seeing the beauty made some room. I ordered ginger ale for burping purposes and then grabbed the knife, cutting the burger in half.

"It's going to be on Wednesday at two. You're free that whole day, including deadlines for Ara because those edits are obviously due tomorrow. So you can relax all day until that and perhaps prepare some stuff to show him to get the vibe he's going for."

I took a huge bite of the cheeseburger as I mulled over what he said. One thing dawned on me as I swallowed.

"What is this for exactly. You cut off all my access to the emails and I'd like not to be in the dark about it."

"Oh, he's releasing more Agust D music," he said nonchalantly.

My eyes widened and I felt like my eyes would roll out of their sockets because of it. I'd assumed it was a BTS thing or some other BigHit artists situation, not his solo stuff.

"I want to fire you so bad," I said once I regained my composure.

"Nah, you can't and you won't. You know I do my job too well and this is the only time I've withheld information for my own amusement."

"I hate you a little bit. Not gonna lie." I shoved several fries into my mouth and chomp as I glared at him.

Marcus just winked at me and continued stuff his face with food. No more talk of work happened, we just sat and eat our food occasionally making conversation of some random topic like the character I named after him and then murdered. It had been over a year since that book was written, but with the last of the edits being due his salt levels had risen again.

He ranted and raved about how rude it was, killing a dear friend. One would think I'd actually done the deed and somehow brought him back to life. I had to admit it was funny how riled he was about it though.

Right before he started listing the reasons why I should change the character name my phone vibrated on the table. An image of Hals flashed onto the screen and I thanked Zeus for the interruption.

Picking up the phone I wasn't given the chance to speak because she was whispering with someone in the background. When she stopped I interjected.

"Hello?"

"Ken! Hi, where are you?" She got right to the point.

"I'm out wrapping up a meeting with Marcus. Is there something you needed?" As I spoke to her Marcus waved down our waiter and requested the check.

"Yes, but depends on how you answer the next question. Which is are you busy for the rest of the day?"

She sounded too happy like she was up to something and I didn't like it one bit.

"Besides doing a read through no. Why?"

A laugh could be heard on the other end, which was very much so hers though she'd moved away. Another voice said something, but I couldn't quite make out what it was.

"I could hang up."

"Wait, no. I wanted to see if you wanted to hang out and work on some stuff. Nothing serious, just run a few things by you and we spend time together. You can even do your read through." She's pulled it together and sounded normal, but I was still suspect.

Glancing down at my watch I saw it was only almost one and I had all the time in the world to get shit down. That and I only had half the book left and that wouldn't take me much.

"Fine. I'll be there in half an hour."

"Good. You know how to get in. Love you. Bye."

She hung up quick, leaving me no chance to respond to her. Shrugging I pushed the phone into my pocket and looked up in time to see the waiter hand Marcus his receipt. When he got up so did I and we headed out of the restaurant.

"Need me to drop you off?" he asked.

"Nah. I can just Uber there, we're going different directions," I said.

The sun was so bright that my glasses weren't transitioning fast enough to save me and I couldn't really see him.

"Okay. Be safe." He reached over and ruffled my hair, sending the curls I'd worked hard to keep intact going everywhere.

Before I regained sight he was gone, knowing I'd hurt him. Rolling my eyes I ordered and uber and used the window the restaurant to reset my fro. By the time it was sitting how it once was the car pulled up and I eagerly fled to the safety of air conditioning.

It only took fifteen minutes to get to her place because for the first time ever traffic in LA was being kind to me. I hopped out of the car with a nod to the driver and made a beeline to her placed. Once there I knocked and was met with her smiling face. As usual her smile made me smile and she pulled me in for a tight hug.

"Thank you for coming."

"It's no problem, love."

She pulled away and let me in. I kicked off my shoes and was several steps in before I noticed the person standing across the living room. His back was to me and then he turned around, making my eyes widen a fraction before I got it together.

Halsey smiled and I could see the mischief in it. "I forgot to tell you I had a visitor. Kendall this is Yoongi, Yoongi this is Kendall. You'd be more familiar with the name Sailor V. You're working together soon, right?'

"Hi," I said still processing.

He also appeared surprised. "Hello."

[bearsuitrecords]

Andrei Rikichi – "Caged Birds Think Flying is a Sickness" It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine review:

By the time you recite the title, this 28-minute blast of fresh air will be almost over and you’ll be asking yourself “What the hell did I just hear?” The latest in Bearsuit’s roster of quirky signings (Eamon The Destroyer, Harold Nono, Bunny & The Invalid Singers, et. al.), Rikichi is the international son of a Tokyo father and Bucharest mum who grew up in Switzerland and Belgium and now resides in London. Dumpster divers may have come across his previous releases as a member of such Belgian groups as The Unaccountable Red Mist Orchestra, but this is his opening salvo as a solo artist.With a remit inspired by the Ramones (if it takes more than two minutes to say your piece, you’re a wanker in need of an editing machine), most of these “songs” are over before they begin. So you’ll probably have to listen three or four times before playing (as the saying goes) to catch all of Rikichi’s intricacies. One can almost feel the bones crunch and the blood spurt on the opening gooshy industrial cacophony of the ‘Theme From The Butcher’s Parade’ (think Nine Inch Nails-meets-The Residents) and whilst sliding down the slippery, blood-soaked slope of the horror show ‘They Don’t See The Maelstrom’, you’ll appreciate Rikichi’s command of the studio and all its inherent madness and tricks, like a mad scientist version of Carl Stalling in a candy shop full of 21st century technological wonders. Of course, that may not excuse the excessively glitchy ‘At Home I Hammer Ceramic Golfing Dogs’ (which did take longer to type than listen to) or the hurricane-induced whirlwind ‘Whatever Happened To Whitey Wallace?’ (I didn’t know he was missing), but there’s so much happening over, under, sideways, and down inside these Musique concrète creations (including the occasional operatic aria that would give Klaus Nomi a run for his tonsils – ‘This Is Where It Ends’) that you just have to sit back and let Rikichi have at it. Something impossibly surreal or wonderful or both is just around the corner and you only have to wait about 120 seconds to experience it. Some tracks, like ‘Bags, Lyrics, New Prescription’ (which sounds like a typical day out for good ol’ Andrei) come off like cinematic cues for a film soundtrack to a non-existent film, while the 13-second ‘This’ will undoubtedly inspire reams of analysis in the British Journal of Aesthetics under such highbrow titles as “If A Song Lasts Less Than 15 Seconds, Can You Hear Enough Of It To Postulate And Defend Its Reason For Existing?” Which will most certainly end up being the title of a track on Rikichi’s next album. And ‘Death Of A Postman’ is one of the most beautifully sombre pieces of funeral music you’ll hear this year. While the pingy Undersea World Of Jacques Cousteau bloop-bloop ‘Player Name – The Syracuse Apostle’ (look him up) stands tall at almost four minutes (maybe it should have been two separate songs? Sounds like it could have been), the “Hallelujah” chorus of ‘This Is Where It Started” (curiously, but necessarily imbedded in the middle of the album) segues seamlessly into ‘They Hide In The Dark Forest’ to such a degree that I wouldn’t be surprised if the punster in Rikichi didn’t actually record a single, 28-minute extravaganza and then take a razor blade to the tape, Brion Gysin-style and just randomly slice the tune into 14 segments. Sort of like a musical answer to The Human Centipede…and almost as demented! Of course this is not the sort of thing you’ll put on for a romantic cuddle-up with the girl you want to bring home and introduce to mum, but there’s madness in Rikichi’s method of assembling found sounds, distorted segues, disjointed rhythms, atonal noise, and the odd (odd?) electronic bursts of brilliance (how’d he do that?) that justifies the sign outside his recording studio which reads “Quiet! Genius At Work Creating Something He Hasn’t Quite Figured Out What To Call It Yet…but if you hum a few bars….” Jeff Penczak [It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine] https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2022/09/andrei-rikichi-caged-birds-think-flying-is-a-sickness-2022.html?fbclid=IwAR1iyqCE6_SUTFM7ZnARN-2LwLXtsQezisHfeaY9O-bavQBdEX7J4H0io9I

[brews-and-pubs]

Effing Brew Company, Effingham IL

Summer Trip 2022, Day 4

I stopped at Effing Brew four years ago and I still love all their beer. Plus, who can resist a stop at a brewery with the kind of chutzpah to pick that name?

The bartender, or "Beer Fairy" as her shirt proclaimed, loved that I was doing this trip and was delighted to help pick out a flight of four beers.

Granville Davis is a 7.2% APA and even though it's listed as 51 IBU, it's incredibly well balanced and doesn't really taste at all bitter. Were it not for the alcohol content, this would make a wonderful session beer!

Amber Waves is a 5.1% American Lager and was an instant favorite.

Melodious Monk was the bartender's ... er, Beer Fairy's ... favorite and was 7.2% but sadly, I can't find the style listed anywhere. It was very smooth, but while I did enjoy it, it wasn't quite as good as I'd hoped.

Tyrant's Blood was one I added to the flight just because of the name and in spite of the "rye" in the description. It was also 7.2% and I did like it even though it showed the alcohol more clearly than the other three high ABV brews.

While I was still working through this flight, my Brewben showed up:

I'd had this sandwich here four years ago and loved it EXCEPT that it was made with THREE slices of bread and that was just too much. Their menu has changed substantially since then, but they've brought this back as a Saturday special. I asked the Beer Fair whether I could order it without the third slice of bread and she said absolutely! That's how she always gets it herself :) It was right up there in the top 10% of all the Reubens I've ever had.

After finishing with all that, I asked her to surprise me with a second flight of beers of her choice. She loved the idea in spite of being a bit nervous whether I'd actually enjoy them. (I did.)

Lil Blue Eyes surprised me -- it's a Blueberry beer, but in the Effing style, with just the right hint of fruitiness balanced by the rest of the ingredients. This would be a great beer for a very hot summer day.

Effin Heffen should have been better than it was, but it was still good. It's a German-style Hefeweizen but without the character of their other brews. (And I have to apologize that I didn't capture the ABV for these last four.)

Teutonic Knight was a strong Belgian Blonde ale, enjoyable but definitely not one I'd do a pint of.

And finally, Railsplitter is a mild Wheat beer that had a more malty flavor than I would have preferred after everything else I'd had.

Overall, the visit was very enjoyable. I was also surprised to learn that their Mug Club is only $40 for membership -- and that's a Lifetime fee, not annual -- and the mugs hold a minimum of 4oz and up to 8oz more than a pint! Wow.

Tomorrow, Blind Tiger Brewing in Topeka, another revisit from four years ago.

[beinglibertarian]

What Is Going On In Syria?

This is the third time that I’ve sat down to write about the situation in Syria. The third time there’s been an unexplained chemical attack that, after the hype has died down and the media stopped reporting, turns out to have very little evidence substantiating it. Once again the media and both the political left and right are calling for military intervention to stop this atrocity – an atrocity that the US government cannot confirm at this time had anything to do with Syrian government forces.

But, of course that hasn’t stopped the “herd” from joining the cacophony calling for intervention, saying “it’s time dictatorship gave way to democracy, and it will take our bombs to bring that democracy.”

With logic like that how can anyone disagree or call for patience until further evidence is produced; after all, “you support democracy in the Middle East, don’t you?”

The team at CBS News seems to lack the ability to differentiate Syria from Iran on a map, and most of the people I’ve had the pleasure of discussing the Syria issue with have yet to speak with a single person from the region, yet all are experts when it comes to what should be done with one of the last secular governments in the region.

It worked out well for us in Iraq, right? There was no long drawn-out attempt to rebuild, that cost trillions of dollars, and was almost thwarted completely because of a premature withdrawal by US military personnel leading to the rise of ISIS in the region (arguably the most brutal enemy of humanity since Nazi Germany).

How about in Libya? “We came, we saw, he died,” said a gleeful Hillary Clinton (under whose direction the US support of “moderate” rebels in Syria began). Hurrah! Three cheers for the Obama administration and Hillary Clinton’s state department. One less brutal dictator and finally those poor people of Libya can experience the American Dream – except, for them, it quickly became the American Nightmare. A nightmare in which the US did nothing to help guide the people of Libya into a more prosperous future. Rather, they funded and armed the very jihadists that up until that point had been kept at bay by a key US counter-terrorism ally – the Gaddafi regime!

Andrew McCarthy wrote for the National Review that:

“The Obama administration, like the Bush administration, had touted Qaddafi as a key counterterrorism ally against rabidly anti-American jihadists in eastern Libya. Nevertheless, Secretary Clinton led the policy shift in which our government changed sides in Libya — shifting support to the Muslim Brotherhood and its allies, just as Mrs. Clinton had urged shifting U.S. support to the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. In Libya, this included arming “rebels,” who naturally included a heavy concentration of jihadists.”

“But… you support democracy in the Middle East, don’t you?”? I guess we can tell the Africans currently being sold in open slave markets in Libya how it’s their fault that the democracy we created in the vacuum never materialized.

Democracy is a good thing; freedom and individual liberty (as anyone who has read any of my previous work or who follows this publication will know) are invaluably good things.

We can only hope that the people of the Middle East will be able to experience that same freedom and support them in their struggle for it and, if democracy were truly our goal, we would support their education in classical liberal – Western – values.

We would support their understanding of (as Professor Niall Ferguson so adequately stated it in his book Civilization: the West and the Rest) the “6 killer apps” that caused the dominance of the West over the rest for the last 500 or so years.

We would check our own example (See “Why Arabs Don’t Trust America”) and ensure we, in our respective nations, are adhering to our own values, that we are living the examples of free speech, individual liberty, and tolerance that would provide the “city on a hill” example for others to follow.

But that’s not why we want the Assad government out. If only that was the real reason.

If only we were as noble as we actually believe ourselves to be, risking life and treasure for the good of mankind. If spreading democracy really were our aim, why stop with Libya or Syria?

Why did we not liberate Zimbabwe during the decades that it endured the brutal Mugabe Regime?

Why not remove Teodoro Obiang Nguema from power in Equatorial Guinea?

Or how about freeing the people of Eritrea from the dictatorship of Isaias Afewerki? After all, Eritrea has a worse record of human rights abuses than North Korea. Where are the calls from media and concerned citizens to remove these dictators?

The reason there is no mass movement for the removal of any of these other dictators, as brutal as they may be, is because no one told us we should.

Had you heard of Bashar al-Assad before the media began its regime change narrative?

No.

The reason for regime change in Syria is geopolitical.  It is not about democracy; rather, it is about positioning. It is about the weakening of other enemies in the region in the form of Russia and Iran, and the bolstering of allies like Israel and the Gulf States.

Award winning investigative journalist, Phillip Knightly, wrote in The Guardian in 2001 about the “depressingly familiar formula” that Western media follow when preparing a nation for conflict, saying there are four stages taken when preparing a nation for war:

1. The crisis. 2. The demonization of the enemy’s leader 3. The demonization of the enemy as individuals 4. Atrocities

Knightly explains the stages further:

“Stage one, the reporting of a crisis, which negotiations appear unable to resolve.  Politicians, while calling for diplomacy, warn of military retaliation. The media reports this as “We’re on the brink of war,” or “War is inevitable”.

News coverage concentrates on the buildup of military force, and prominent columnists and newspaper editorials urge war. But there are usually sizable minorities of citizens concerned that all avenues for peace have not been fully explored and although the mainstream media ignores or plays down their protests, these have to be dampened down unless they gain strength.

We now enter stage two of the pattern – the demonization of the enemy’s leader. Comparing the leader with Hitler is a good start because of the instant images that Hitler’s name provokes. So when George Bush Sr. likened Iraq’s takeover of Kuwait with the Nazi blitzkrieg in Europe in the 1930s, the media quickly took up the theme. Saddam Hussein was painted as a second Hitler, hated by his own people and despised in the Arab world.

Equally, in the Kosovo conflict, the Serbs were portrayed as Nazi thugs intent on genocide and words like “Auschwitz-style furnaces” and “Holocaust” were used.

The crudest approach is to suggest that the leader is insane. Saddam Hussein was “a deranged psychopath”, Milosevic was mad, and the Spectator recently headlined an article on Osama bin Laden: “Inside the mind of the maniac”. Those who publicly question any of this can expect an even stronger burst of abuse.

In the Gulf war they were labeled “friends of terrorists, ranters, nutty, hypocrites, animals, barbarians, mad, traitors, unhinged, appeasers and apologists”. The Mirror called peace demonstrators “misguided, twisted individuals always eager to comfort and support any country but their own. They are a danger to all us – the enemy within.” Columnist Christopher Hitchens, in last week’s Spectator article, Damn the doves, says that intellectuals who seek to understand the new enemy are no friends of peace, democracy or human life.

The third stage in the pattern is the demonization not only of the leader but of his people.

The simplest way of doing this is the atrocity story. The problem is that although many atrocity stories are true – after all, war itself is an atrocity – many are not.

Take the Kuwaiti babies story. Its origins go back to the First World War when British propaganda accused the Germans of tossing Belgian babies into the air and catching them on their bayonets. Dusted off and updated for the Gulf war, this version had Iraqi soldiers bursting into a modern Kuwaiti hospital, finding the premature babies ward and then tossing the babies out of incubators so that the incubators could be sent back to Iraq.

The story, improbable from the start, was first reported by the Daily Telegraph in London on September 5 1990. But the story lacked the human element; it was an unverified report, there were no pictures for television and no interviews with mothers grieving over dead babies.

That was soon rectified.

An organization calling itself Citizens for a Free Kuwait (financed by the Kuwaiti government in exile) had signed a $10m contract with the giant American public relations company, Hill & Knowlton, to campaign for American military intervention to oust Iraq from Kuwait.

The Human Rights Caucus of the US Congress was meeting in October and Hill & Knowlton arranged for a 15-year-old Kuwaiti girl to tell the babies’ story before the congressmen. She did it brilliantly, choking with tears at the right moment, her voice breaking as she struggled to continue. The congressional committee knew her only as “Nayirah” and the television segment of her testimony showed anger and resolution on the faces of the congressmen listening to her. President Bush referred to the story six times in the next five weeks as an example of the evil of Saddam’s regime.

In the Senate debate whether to approve military action to force Saddam out of Kuwait, seven senators specifically mentioned the incubator babies atrocity and the final margin in favour of war was just five votes. John R Macarthur’s study of propaganda in the war says that the babies atrocity was a definitive moment in the campaign to prepare the American public for the need to go to war.

It was not until nearly two years later that the truth emerged. The story was a fabrication and a myth, and Nayirah, the teenage Kuwaiti girl, coached and rehearsed by Hill & Knowlton for her appearance before the Congressional Committee, was in fact the daughter of the Kuwaiti ambassador to the United States. By the time Macarthur revealed this, the war was won and over and it did not matter any more.

So what should we make of the stories in the British press this week about torture in Afghanistan? A defector from the Taliban’s secret police told a reporter in Quetta, Pakistan, that he was commanded to “find new ways of torture so terrible that the screams will frighten crows from their nests”. The defector then listed a series of chilling forms of torture that he said he and his fellow officers developed. “Nowhere else in the world has such barbarity and cruelty as Afghanistan.”

The story rings false and defectors of all kinds are well-known for telling interviewers what they think they want to hear. On the other hand, it might be true. The trouble is, how can we tell? The media demands that we trust it but too often that trust has been betrayed.”

How can we tell, indeed.

From the Gulf of Tonkin incident that catalyzed the Vietnam War (and was only recently outed as a false flag attack after the release of previously classified documents) to the “Dead Baby Story” which, though initially corroborated by Amnesty International, when it was later discovered to be false, caused Jack Healey (then Executive Director of Amnesty International)  to accuse the Bush administration of the “opportunistic manipulation of the international human rights movement”.

We all know the story of the next Iraq War. Colin Powell presented the intelligence images of weapons of mass destruction sites in front of the UN General Assembly, which was a key moment in the buildup to, and eventual declaration of, war in Iraq.

Is our memory so incapacitated that we will fall for this same routine again?

As Herman Goering said during the Nuremberg trials:

“Why, of course, the people don’t want war. Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don’t want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship…

Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country.”

In this case all that was needed were reports of attacks, and with each successive wave of propaganda the public has become more and more convinced of the opinion told to them of what the fate – of a nation they can’t even find on a map – should be. By the time the facts of these attacks come to light, it will, like in so many cases before this, be too late to go back and undo the damage.

One thing is certain in my mind: In their fixation to depose al-Assad, Western powers presented the Syrian people with a horrific alternative – the only viable opposition in the region – fundamentalist groups like al-Nusra (with large contingents of al-Qaeda fighters, many of whom were fresh off the battlefields of Iraq where they were fighting US military personnel) and ISIS.

When the option is replacing dictatorship with democracy one can sympathize with the cause, but when the option our intervention provides is between dictatorship and an exponentially more brutal dictatorship, we (Western nations) must stop to reevaluate before we (through our intervention, our “blood and treasure”) subject the innocents of Syria to the barbarism of fundamentalists like ISIS or, if history is any indicator, the anarchic tribalism that we unleashed in Libya.

The post What Is Going On In Syria? appeared first on Being Libertarian.

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[all-they-say-is-na-na-na]

All They Say Is Na Na Na’s Favorite EPs of 2017

#25. ‘1UL’ by Danny L Harle (Bubblegum Bass/Electropop)

PC Music has always toyed between commercial dance-pop and experimental music, but this seems to be most straight-forward approach the former. Even though it could be improved in some ways, the EP ‘1UL’ contains Danny L Harle’s strongest material. The title track could easily be a number one hit if promoted the right way, and his collaboration with Carly Rae Jepsen “Happy All the Time”, despite not featuring Carly herself on the vocals, still has all the charisma of any of her pop anthems. It would be interesting to see how would his music translate to a full-length release, but if this is a little teaser, we should not worry.

Highlights: “1UL”, “Happy All the Time”

#24. 'Paradise' by ANOHNI (Art Pop/Electropop)

Last year, former Antony and the Johnson frontwoman ANOHNI released her debut solo album 'HOPELESSNESS', which was one of the most critically acclaimed albums of 2016, due its heavily political lyrical content and its production, handled by Oneohtrix Point Never and Hudson Mohawke. 'Paradise' is essentially a compilation B-sides from that album, which is mostly fine. The big single from this album is the title track, which is one of her best tracks under this moniker, but there are also some other nice tracks that, despite not being as good as the ones on her main album, are still worth a shot.

Let's hope she's not retiring

Highlights: "Paradise", "Jesus Will Kill You"

#23. ‘Steve Lacy’s Demo’ by Steve Lacy (Hypnagogic Pop/Alternative R&B)

Even though Steve Lacy is only 19 years old (and 18 at the time when he released his debut EP) he already has a quite long list of collaborators. After becoming a member of neo-soul band The Internet in 2015, he went on to work with Isaiah Rashad, Kali Uchis, Tyler the Creator and even Kendrick Lamar on one of the highlights of his latest album ‘DAMN.’, the song “Pride”. But his debut EP ‘Steve Lacy’s Demo’ remains one of, if not his strongest work. Even though it is quite short and seemingly simple, it feels like a really strong take on the post-Mac DeMarco sound of vaguely-psychedelic lo-fi indie-pop. But Steve’s own sound feels more full overall due to his strong melodies and excellent voice. We really need a full length album from this guy pretty soon, by the way.

Highlights: “Dark Red”, “Some”

#22. ‘Unalloyed, Unlicensed, All Night Long’ by Jesse Osborne-Lanthier (IDM)

The term “deconstructed club music” is thrown out way too easily these days, but it rarely ever feels accurate. Jesse-Osborne Lanthier’s latest EP for the Raster-Noton series, the last in their Unun series, is definitely “club” music, while simultaneously being challenging of its purpose and overall sound and aesthetic. Tracks like “Blackwell Dynonetics” or “Lick and a Promise” take elements from commercial EDM or trance, but doesn’t feel like a cliché, in fact, what Jesse does seems to be stripping it down to its most basic elements (like on “The Zika Slam”, where he takes that to its literal extreme) and it sounds like nothing else. Whether that is a “deconstruction” of typical club tropes is entirely based on the listener’s opinion, but one thing is certain, this EP actually sounds “fun” and promising for Jesse’s upcoming work.

Highlights: “Blackwell Dynonetics”, “Lick and a Promise”

#21. ‘Sudan Archives’ by Sudan Archives (Folktronica/Art Pop)

Sudan Archives is the project of singer, songwriter, producer and violinist Brittney Denis Parks, and this is her proper debut under this moniker. Having been part of a rather conventional pop and R&B band in her teens, she decided to take her own path as an experimental electronic artist, taking inspiration from Sudanese music, specially its usage of pentatonic scales and fiddles, as well the usage of violin in a non-traditionally Western way. But the R&B and pop influences are still very present on the record, overall it sounds a midpoint between tUnE-yArDs' deconstructed folk and FKA twigs' electronic-soul music, and definitely presents a very promising future for the artist.

Highlights: "Come Meh Way", "Paid"

#20. ‘Skin Companion EP II’ by Flume (Wonky/UK Bass)

Flume is one of the few producers who helped shaping the commercial club sound of the decade. But unlike all the other “chilltrap”/”future bass”/whatever producers, you can really tell when you are listening to a Flume song. And if his latest album ‘Skin’ was not enough, his companion EPs should not leave you a single doubt about it. The second one of those is probably the most “leftfield” out of them. Opening song “Enough” (feat. Pusha-T, delivering an excellent performance) is one of the most aggressive, jaw-dropping rap tracks that are closer to Death Grips than anything else. His other collaborations with Moses Sumney and indie-pop group Glass Animals have a more R&B-vibe which melts perfectly with the smooth production. It is dance music, it might get played in the radio, but it still feels unique. And extremely fun. Also, if you are not convinced about Flume’s greatness, just go to one of his shows. He really delivers.

Highlights: “Enough” (feat. Pusha-T), “Weekend” (feat. Moses Sumney)

#19. ‘KILL’ by Nkisi (Afro-House/Acid Techno/Hardcore EDM)

The Belgian-Congolese, London-based producer Nkisi is one of the founding members of the Afro-diasporic collective NON, and despite releasing a lot of killer music throughout these past few years and delivering excellent DJ sets as well, she never released an actual EP until now. ‘KILL’ shows everything that makes her one of the most interesting producers as of lately. In this release, hard-hitting techno, house, hardcore dance music, trance, kuduro (and smooth organic sounds that sound influenced by Central-African folk music and coupé-decalé, as you can hear on the rhythmic title track) and even the often-forgotten genre of gabber coexist - and all of that actually sounds cohesive. And if you are a fan of dance music, it should be impossible to miss this one.

Highlights: “Parched Lips”, “Kill”

#18. 'Tommy' by Klein (Sound Collage/Ambient Pop/Glitch)

By looking at this EP's cover (one of them, anyway) you might suppose this comes from PC Music... in a way, it kinda does, as the cover was made by Hannah Diamond. But, the music sounds nothing like it. At all. Having released music under NON Worldwide and Howling Owl, this is Klein's first release under Hyperdub... and doesn't sound like anything else ever done. While she has always done a very experimental take on the pop, R&B and gospel music she was raised with, this is absolutely unbelievable. One of the most mind-bending and occasionally disturbing releases of the year, probably the midpoint between Tim Hecker and like... Brandy. But still, completely unique.

Highlights: "Cry Theme", "Everlong"

#17. 'All Bitches Die' by Lingua Ignota (Death Industrial/Modern Classical)

This is probably one of the most abrasive releases of the year, but also one of the most vulnerable and personal. This is Lingua Ignota's (the project of musician Kristin Hayter) second EP this year, and explores themes of domestic violence and abuse in a very raw, angsty yet emotional way. But it also has some of the most interesting music to come this year, a combination of loud industrial-noise similar to that of Pharmakon or Dreamcrusher, combined with piano-and-vocal-centered classical music. It is not very accessible for those who are not already into those genres of music, but it still is an incredible, one-of-its-kind records.

Highlights: "Woe to All (on the Day of My Wrath)", "Holy is the Name (of My Ruthless Axe)"

#16. 'Shaneera' by Fatima Al Qadiri (UK Bass/Arabic Pop)

Fatima Al Qadiri has always been an artist who has explored the concept of identity and culture in a political context, from the fixation on Orientalism in 'Asiatisch', to the oppressive nature of 'Brute'. However, on 'Shaneera', she decides to take on LGBT identity in Arab countries. This is not only her best release to date because of its concept, but also because of its production. 'Shaneera' is probably her most fun, dancefloor-oriented project to date, mixing UK club music with Arabic pop and mahraganat, as well as funny and attitude-filled vocal samples from her collaborators, in a very inventive and unusual way.

Highlights: "Spiral" (feat. Bobo Secret), "Alkahaf" (feat. Bobo Secret and Lama3an)

#15. 'Whities 011' by Lanark Artefax (IDM/UK Bass)

Irish producer Calum MacRae has been music as Lanark Artefax for a couple of years, and has big fans such as Aphex Twin or Björk. His second EP, 'Whities 011', is a big example of why. A combination of techno, IDM, UK bass, grime and ambient music that sounds like both a combination of underground dance music genres of the past few years, and also something that has never been done before. Fans of atypical uses of vocal samples, dreamy atmospheres and weird rhythms will find a lot to like on this EP.

Highlights: "Voices Near the Hypocentre", "Hyphen to Splice"

#14. ‘Now That the Light Is Fading’ by Maggie Rogers (Art Pop/Synthpop)

The Maryland-born musician Maggie Rogers was discovered by Pharrell Williams, and her song “Alaska” became a cult hit thanks to the Internet. But there is more to Rogers than her potential to become a viral star. The previously mentioned track seems to pick up where Ellie Goulding’s debut ‘Lights’ left off (and actually succeeds at doing that) but the overall sound of ‘Now That the Light Is Fading’ feels more expansive. Tracks like “Dog Years” or “On + Off” take on a hazy-electro-R&B sound which sounds closer to a mix of Bat for Lashes and Nao, and fits perfectly with her soft voice. Her debut EP is, surprisingly, extremely strong, one of the best pop releases of the year so far, and shows that she has potential become a great artist on her own.

Highlights: “Alaska”, “On + Off”

#13. ‘Transphobic’ by Quay Dash (Hardcore Hip Hop/Experimental Hip Hop)

Quay Dash is not fucking around. The NY rapper came through with one of the most fun, diverse, innovative yet hard-as-fuck rap releases of the year. From the SOPHIE-produced opening track "Bossed Up" to the closing track "Decline Him", she proves that she's one of the better upcoming rappers. With an unbelievable flow, attitude and direct lines as well as a production that matches all of that, she is way better than most of the hip-hop acts in the mainstream nowadays, and definitely deserving of a spot in the limelight.

Highlights: "Decline Him", "Bossed Up"

#12. 'Alice Glass' by Alice Glass (Electropop/Post-Industrial/Glitch Pop)

2017 was a very intense year for Alice Glass. And not only because of the release of her debut solo EP, but also because she came forward about her experience in Crystal Castles, about being raped and abused by her bandmate, Ethan Kath, and the repercussions against that. Personally, while I always liked the EP (even though it was, understandably, quite divisive,) it truly clicked with me lyrically once she explained what happened. The lyrics deal with all the angst, sadness and confusion of being in that situation, along with the excellent production that accompanies it - musically, it combines the synthpop and punk vibes from her band, along with a more electronic production, influenced by industrial music, trap and even gabber. I really hope we do get an album from her next year, because I feel like we need more.

Highlights: "Blood Oath", "Natural Selection"

#11. coucou chloe - 'Erika Jane' (UK Bass/Experimental Hip Hop)

One of the best club music releases of the year was the second EP of French singer, rapper, producer and DJ coucou chloe. Having her music played by both Björk and Rihanna, her music is a very creative, minimal take on dance music, and 'Erika Jane' (also her birth name) proves that. The hip-hop influences are presented in the same way they appeared on Arca's first projects: very deadpan and at times impossible to wrap one's head around, but still extremely interesting for those who are interested in the genre.

Highlights: "GS", "Flip U" (feat. Sega Bodega)

#10. ‘Luz Mala’ by Bungalovv (IDM/Post-Industrial)

While the concept of “luz mala” (literally translated as “bad light”) does not appear on the whole concept of the Argentinian musician Bungalovv (member of the Buenos Aires electronic music collective TRRUENO) other than as an inspiration, his latest EP released under the Mexican-Canadian label Infinite Machine seems like a really odd take on the country’s folklore, both theme and sound-wise. Also inspired by African and Middle East rhythms, it takes on a sound that is decidedly “club-oriented”, yet feels innovative and playful, organic and industrial simultaneously. It is one of the label’s best releases in a while, something that trascends the usually vague term of “global bass” and does something actually exciting that will surely leave us waiting more (as the label promises an LP by 2018) and that is something to be excited for.

Highlights: “Ulna”, “Fémur”

#09. 'Shadow Expert' by Palm (Math Rock)

Palm are one of the most innovative new bands in rock music. Following their 2015 debut LP 'Trading Basics' with this EP, they leave the noisy intensity of their sound back then in favor of post-punk-influenced rock music with completely odd structures yet ridiculously catchy hooks, provided by both of the band's vocalists, Eve Albert and Kasra Kust. This sounds like a modern take on Battles or early Foals, but it is completely its own thing as well. Can't wait for their next album, 'Rock Island', to be released early next year!

Highlights: "Walkie Talkie", "Shadow Expert"

#08. ‘EP II’ by Buscabulla (Synthpop)

When people talk about music from Puerto Rico, the first things that tend to come to mind from there are salsa, bachata, reggaeton and so on. In theory, Buscabulla would be an exception, but does not mean that the Caribbean influences in their music are not present. That is probably the thing that distinguish them from any other of their contemporaries. While on their debut, self-titled EP the influences were a bit less obvious, at a musical level ‘EP II’ shows them being more unafraid and unashamed to show them. Their lyrics and music are likely influenced by the experience of living the USA as Latin American people, trying to reconnect with their roots. And their approach has a very successful result.

Highlights: “Tártaro”, “Frío” (feat. Helado Negro)

#07. ‘Finding People’ by Croatian Amor (Sound Collage/Post-Industrial/Minimal Synth)

Danish producer Loke Rahbek, member of bands such as Damien Dubrovnik or Lust for Youth, released this EP earlier this year as Croatian Amor, in which he makes the perfect "bubblegum industrial" album, finding the midpoint between experimental sound collage pieces and sweet, almost poppy synth melodies. 'Finding People' comes from an alternate world where the most influential Kate Bush track isn't "Wuthering Heights" or "Running Up That Hill", but "Waking The Witch" or even "Hello Earth". Personally, this EP was the soundtrack of my winter.

Highlights: "Sky Walkers", “Keepers”

#06. ‘ADD VIOLENCE’ by Nine Inch Nails (Electro-Industrial/Industrial Rock)

Last year, Nine Inch Nails released an EP called 'Not the Actual Events', which was probably their most abrasive, most metal release since the 'Broken' mini-album. Personally, I was into it, but my favorite NIN EP was without a doubt this EP. It is abrasive and experimental, while maintaining the "poppy" elements of their 2013 'Hesitation Marks'. From lead single "Less Than" (which was a minor radio hit in Alternative radios) to the William Basinski-esque loop on the ending of "The Background World", this might be one of the best things Reznor ever made (in my opinion, at least) and proves that Nine Inch Nails still have a lot to give.

Highlights: "The Background World", "Less Than"

#05. ‘When I Was Young’ by MØ (Electropop/Art Pop)

I was personally surprised by this EP. While I never really lost faith in MØ, after her singles I thought she'd make something that would be completely radio-oriented pop. I guess I was wrong and I'm thankful for it! The surprise-released 'When I Was Young' EP back to her debut album 'No Mythologies to Follow' but still feels a little more accessible and playful. While "Roots" and "Run Away" are both gorgeous Dirty Projectors-esque art-pop ballads, the title track and "Linking with You" have more colorful dancehall vibes. But the EP's strongest tracks are "Turn My Heart to Stone" and "BB", both career highlights. This might be my favorite release of hers, and I'm definitely down to hear more of this stuff.

Highlights: "BB", "Turn My Heart to Stone"

#04. ‘Steroids (Crouching Tiger Hidden Gabber Megamix)’ by Death Grips (Industrial Hip Hop)

I think this kind of represents my entire relationship with Death Grips:

https://twitter.com/iamvulnicura/status/866813534566481922

And this… release sounds like Government Plates + NOTM + gabber music. What’s not to love?

Highlights: uh… the whole thing?

#03. '13' by Denzel Curry (Trap Rap/Hardcore Hip Hop)

This is what rap music in the charts should sound like... in my opinion at least. '13' (Denzel Curry's first EP on a major label) is fun as hell, but still has extremely unusual yet accessible production and beats. Also, Denzel really kills it with his flow and lyricism, not being afraid to get political or serious but not afraid to have fun either. It also has excellent features from underrated rap hero Lil Ugly Mane and Ronny J. Probably one of the best rap releases of the year.

Highlights: "Hate Government", "Zeltron 6 Billion" (feat. Lil Ugly Mane)

#02. 'EP2' by Yaeji (Ambient House/Ambient Pop)

I'm probably going to say this several times, but, 2018 is going to be the year of Yaeji, and this is the perfect proof of that. Her production, fusing ambient music, deep house and trap, is immaculate, and so are the hooks found in this album. The way in which she alternates lines in Korean and English on "Drink I'm Sippin On" and "Raingurl" is something I have never heard before, same thing with the way in which she does it, full of attitude and passion. It also has the second best Drake cover released this year (the best is the Paramore one,) so you know, you must check this out if you do not want to miss something completely new.

Highlights: "Passionfruit", "Drink I'm Sippin On"

#01. 'RINA' by Rina Sawayama (Electropop/Contemporary R&B/Art Pop)

I have rooted for Rina Sawayama ever since I heard "Cyber Stockholm Syndrome". And with this EP she certainly did not dissapoint.

'RINA' is probably one of the most innovative pop releases since Charli XCX's 'Vroom Vroom' EP. The way in which she explores themes of loneliness in the modern age, the Internet, identity, depression and loss of love are really personal, but still playful enough to engage the listener. The production, handled by Clarence Clarity, is also very reminiscent of late-90's/early-00's pop (like Britney, N'Sync or Kelis) and modern J-pop (like Perfume or Utada), but also feels noisy in a Sleigh Bells-like way.

Rina Sawayama is one of the most exciting new artists to emerge in the last few years, and we will be definitely hearing more of her soon.

Highlights: "10-20-40", "Cyber Stockholm Syndrome"

[nerdyfoodandbeercollector-blog]

It’s Pronounced “Sisyphus,” Why Is That So Hard?

“Craft beers, brewed without a purpose, for a greater purpose.”

Tucked between the bustling Lyndale-Hennepin mess by the Basilica and Dunwoody college sits Sisyphus Brewing, a hidden gem of Minneapolis. With their comically-named delicious beer and their weekly amateur comedy nights, this brewery is sure coming up in the Minneapolis brewery scene and finding its niche. In this reviewer's opinion, Sisyphus is consistently a top 3 brewery in Minneapolis. 

If the taproom looks like it used to be some kind of gutted warehouse or factory, it's because it is. But not without its charm. The exposed brick walls offer a classic vintage feel, the bar itself is an old bowling lane (I think), and they recently put in some rather spacious wooden booths. The shuffleboards, pinball machines, and board game offerings make it the perfect place to hang out with friends and family. The owners also worked hard to add a second space between the main taproom and the brewhouse. This extra room is perfect for events, like a groom’s dinner, but it mostly serves as the taproom’s comedy space where they host amateur and professional comedy shows each almost every week. In fact, on most Thursday evenings, there’s an amateur comedy night where anyone can sign up to tell a few jokes. And it is absolutely free (what a great way to spend your Thursday! And it isn’t like you had anything else to do, right?. Even though the event space is designed as a complete contrast to the main taproom (carpeted, dimly lit, little-to-no natural light, fancy light-up Sisyphus sign with a hipster, vintage wooden backing, and no shuffleboards), the feel is still 100% Sisyphus (and the bar is a gorgeous cut of wood).

Sisyphus is still a smaller brewery, but I think that comes with a big advantage for them: an ever-changing tap list. They typically only have 6-9 beers on tap, but when one runs out, they almost always have a backup ready to go so you might see a changed list over one weekend. This, of course, has some drawbacks. If you really, REALLY like one of their beers, there's always a chance it won't be on tap for a few weeks. But that means you get to try another one of their delicious beer. And that you have to come back because it will be different again and again (gotta catch 'em all, am-I-right?). 

So why is it called Sisyphus? “He’s the greek guy, you know the one that pushes a rock up a hill over and over again,” says Sam Harriman, the owner, and previous head brewer. “We have a small brew system, so we are like Sisyphus, always brewing.” But this is his stock answer. You can tell there is more to it than that. You want his answer? I guess you’ll have to ask him next time you catch him playing pinball. What’s my answer? The myth of Sisyphus tells the story of a man being punished for eternity, which doesn’t make a lot of sense for the theme of a brewery. But, if like Albert Camus (and Sam) have hinted, if Sisyphus is all of us, then maybe we need to flip the myth on its head. Maybe Sisyphus actually enjoyed pushing that rock up the hill. And if that’s the case, then it doesn’t matter if it falls right back down, you enjoyed yourself while doing it. So we need to go find our rock, our passion. For Sam, it’s beer. “I mean, each week we brew a bunch of beer and then people drink it all, so we have to do it all over again the next week.” If you imagine Sisyphus as happy, it changes the narrative completely. 

The brewery always try to offer a tap list with varying styles and strengths so that every kind of beer drinker gets what they want. What kind of beers do they make?

They make lighter beers like their "Anitsocial Apple Ale" (named by Sociable Ciderwerks), the traditional Belgian Blond (recently made with various fruit infusions), or the Citra hop session ale. And drinkable malty beers, like their Kentucky Common, or the "Argyle Penguin Amber" ale. And dark beers, like the "Safe Lady Peanut Butter Stout" (get it?), a traditional chocolatey-sweet porter, or their imperial brown. They make a whole slew of IPAs (I like to think that Sam, one of the owners and previously the head brewer, is a wizard with hops), like their all Citra hopped IPA "The First Beer We Named," the west coast IPA made with wheat called "Isaac the Fax Man," an east-coast style that can only be named "Cloudy with a Chance of Yeastballs," or my personal favorite the "Bottlecap Mosaic" which is an ale with pilsner malt brewed with Mosaic hops (it is really good). They make amazing barrel-aged and imperial beers, like their birthday "Cake" beer, which is actually made with chocolate cakes. And they’ve even started an Employee Beer Series where each employee gets to design and brew their own beer (check out mine, the “Orange You Glad You Like Chocolate” stout). And each beer is $5, no matter what, though some beers are served in a pint glass and others (depending on ABV) are served in tulips. 

I could go on and on here, but the point is, they make traditional beers that are perfect within their own style, they try and tackle all sorts of styles, they play around with different hops and make vibrant IPAs highlighting each hop's unique flavors and aromas, and watch out because some of them are higher in ABV than you might think (delicious and dangerous). The icing on the cake (beer)? The staff are always friendly, the managers are awesome, the owners are so kind, and the brewers know their stuff. The cherry (blond ale) on top? The sales of one beer go towards NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness), so you can feel good about grabbing a second or fifth beer (what happened to 3 and 4?).  I walked into Sisyphus on their opening day three+ years ago and was stunned by how delicious their first beers were and they've been making some of the best beer in the city ever since.

P.S. I work there, so I am biased :-) 

[johnboothus]

Homebrew Projects to Tackle While Social Distancing

Right now, going out for a beer simply isn’t an option. (Please support local breweries by ordering delivery online, if you’re comfortable with it!) But, there is more time than ever to make your own beer.

Whether a clone of a popular IPA or something totally unique that’s only possible in a 5-gallon batch size, everything required to brew is available for online delivery — and while you wait for shipping (or aren’t quite ready to tackle a brew day yet), we have plenty of reading recommendations to keep you occupied, too.

If You’ve Never Brewed: Read This Book

The seminal text for homebrewers that breaks down the science of the brewing process and how to take control of it at home is available online — for free! “How to Brew” by John Palmer is similar to a brewing textbook but is written in an approachable style, with easy to understand metaphors to explain chemistry, and answers to frequently asked questions.

Palmer has updated the book several times from the text that is available online, but all of the information on the website is correct and will give you a thorough knowledge of brewing. For the most up-to-date advice you can order his 2017 edition on the book’s website.

If You’re New to Brewing: Buy a Kit

To really give homebrewing a shot, order an all-in-one starter kit from your local homebrew shop or an independent homebrew retailer like More Beer or Adventures in Homebrewing. The American Homebrew Association has a registry of homebrew shops by state that are guaranteed to have all the ingredients and equipment you need to start brewing. Call ahead to arrange for delivery or pickup — right now local businesses desperately need support to stay afloat. (You can expect to spend about $175 for an all-in-one kit with ingredients.)

For a low-budget start to brewing at home, you’ll only need to order an ingredients kit like this one that has hops, malt extract, and yeast; sanitizer (StarSan is a homebrewing standard); bottles (go swing top for the lowest effort and investment, just make sure to drink the beer quickly!); and a fermenter (this can be a big plastic bucket or glass jug).

You’ll also need your largest stock pot, a funnel, and, optionally, some tubing to use for a blowoff tub and to siphon beer from fermenter to bottles. (This helps avoid oxidation of your beer!) Piecing together this equipment will cost between $70 and $90, depending on the recipe you decide to brew.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to your first brew day.

If You Like a Project: Rig Your Mini-Fridge

There is a saying among brewers, “Brewers make wort, yeast makes beer.” It’s up to the yeast to turn sugars into alcohol and flavor compounds, but brewers can still set those little bugs up with the best possible environment for doing so. The most important factor in this environment is temperature. The second most important is that temperature stays consistent. Both can be achieved with these purchases: a mini-fridge and a temperature controller.

Now is probably not the time to buy a mini-fridge off of Craigslist, unless you can do so with proper social distancing measures in place. However, hardware and home goods stores sell mini-fridges online. If possible, getting a min-ifridge that is at least 4.5 cubic feet is ideal; any smaller, and your fermenter may not fit. This is because the compressor, usually located in the bottom rear of the refrigerator, takes up ample space; and even with 4.5 cubic feet, you’ll need to take off the internally mounted shelves attached to the door. It’s easy enough with a screwdriver and a serrated knife.

However, if you want to save money and purchase a smaller, non-ideal-sized fridge, handy homebrewers build a simple wooden collar and add it to the mini-fridge frame. (Many tutorials online, like this one, will take you through the proper sealing steps. What else do you have to do right now, anyway?)

While it is possible to skimp a bit and DIY the fridge component, I suggest buying a ready-to-go temperature controller. It will run you about $40 and pay for itself in ease of use, as well as energy efficiency compared to wiring your own unit. Simply mount the temperature control near an outlet (near the mini-fridge that is now your fermentation chamber), plug the temperature controller into the outlet, and plug the refrigerator into the temperature controller. Now you’re able to keep the yeast at a consistent temperature within a degree or two.

If You Homebrew Often: Try a SMaSH Beer

Hops

There is a lot to learn about hops simply from smelling them, or adding them to a fermenter for dry hopping. But the best way to understand the full range of an individual hop varietal is by brewing a “SMaSH beer.” The term comes from “Single Malt and Single Hop.”

SMaSH IPAs were becoming the big trend before hazy IPAs took over the scene. The reason to brew this kind of beer isn’t to reminisce about trends of the past, but instead to get to know your future favorite hop.

By brewing a beer with all pilsner or two-row malt, and a very clean yeast like White Labs 001 or Wyeast American Ale, the hops have a chance to shine through. There is no mistaking hop character for yeast esters or malt flavor when the base of the beer is so simple.

One thing to watch out for in this very simple style: Since very aromatic hops tend to have lower alpha acids, you may only be able to achieve your desired bitterness by adding a large, 60-minute addition. So instead, substitute a hop with high alpha acids (like Magnum), or be okay with making a beer that isn’t as bitter. Large 60-minute additions can lead to vegatal flavors in the final beer.

Malt

Without commuting to work or going out for meals, there’s never been more time for the ultimate experiment: the side-by-side brew. Usually, brewing and fermenting two of almost the exact same beer is too time- consuming, especially when the result is… a lot of one kind of beer. However, as the time indoors stretches out long before us, homebrewing a half-batch suddenly doesn’t seem so bad, even if the brew day is as lengthy as a full-batch.

Testing the impact of base malts, like the popular (and more expensive) Golden Promise against the humble pilsner malt, is one way to go. Another is to perform a specialty malt trial: Does switching out roasted barley for chocolate malt really make the difference between calling something a stout or a porter? And how do we know special B malt is all that flavorful anyway? Have we actually tried brewing a Belgian quad without it? These questions have finally found their day to be answered.

Yeast

So many aspects of a style, from mouthfeel to aroma, are determined by yeast. Mastering a yeast strain until results are consistent isn’t an easy feat, so it can be intimidating to try a new strain. During this pandemic, when the fermenter in the closet is never too far away, is the perfect time to experiment with new yeast strains that will ferment differently than the ones in your comfort zone.

Monitor yeast daily to check activity, and adjust the temperature accordingly. There should be bubbles coming up through the airlock at least every minute or two. If that isn’t happening, heat things up a degree or two to keep yeast active and working. When taking a sample to measure the gravity, don’t forget to give it a taste. It will be warm and flat, but yeast character is apparent in the flavor within days of fermentation and will continue to develop.

Who knows? Maybe you went into quarantine an American ales expert, and you’ll leave it the queen of German wheat beers.

If Beer Is Too Much Work: Brew Something Else

So, you’re stuck at home. You don’t really have the money to get into a new hobby, or maybe all those steps and ingredients are just too much. For this recipe, all you’ll need to order is a pack of wine yeast that costs about $3. Then, find an empty plastic bottle or a large glass pitcher to use as your “fermenter.” Clean it as well as you can, and make sure to rinse it thoroughly afterward. Any residue from soap will come through in the flavor of this simple brew.

As this beverage ferments, taste it to experience how the sweetness changes as the yeast does its thing! It doesn’t take much to learn about fermentation in isolation.

Something Brewed Recipe

4 cups water (960 grams)

½ cup table sugar (100 grams)

⅓ cup fresh-squeezed citrus juice (about 3 limes, 2 lemons, or ½ orange)

Wine yeast (available on Amazon)

The above recipe should be scaled to the size of your “fermenter.” A triple batch is a good amount for a 1-gallon container.

Heat water to about 100ºF. Stir in table sugar until dissolved completely. Turn off heat and add fruit juice. Pour into “fermenter.” Sprinkle in yeast and swirl lightly to hydrate yeast. Cover fermenter opening with a paper towel secured with a rubber band.

Allow to sit at room temperature for at least 4 days before tasting it. After about a week you’ll have a lightly carbonated, pleasantly sweet, lightly citrus-flavored alcoholic drink. In about 10-14 days you’ll have a barley sweet, somewhat fizzy, alcoholic drink. After 16 or so days your drink will be very dry and mostly still and contain a little more than 5% alcohol.

To serve, gently pour into a glass (avoid pouring too much yeast). Chill or add ice before enjoying. Garnish with a citrus wedge or top with soda water for extra character.

The article Homebrew Projects to Tackle While Social Distancing appeared first on VinePair.

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[silverhands-etcetera]

Hair Of The Dog

Hold the phone. Stop the presses. All of that.

It turns out there actually are famous Belgians. Tons of them. All blue, with no shirts on, 3 apples high.

The Smurfs are Belgian. How was this overlooked the first time we took up this line of questioning?

We rolled back through Antwerp, heading toward the one town I know best in all of Belgium. -Looking forward to seeing old and new friends once again, converging on Temse, a river town that has hosted me enough times that I have officially lost track. But I know the Plaza, and the main streets between all of the relevant bars and junk shops. I’m still learning the history and the town’s relationship with all of the neighboring villages. I’m beginning to sense that Temse tries to take the lead in local civics, -needing to wrestle the crown from literally none of the apathetic surrounding burgs, who would rather live their lives than convince you of anything.

I like Temse, but it might be because I don’t hang out with any of the people who are in charge of things.

We hang out with Bert. He lives over in Rupelmonde, but he works at de Gulden Cop (the Golden Cap), a swanky bar on the main square, under the shadow of the purposefully-majestic clock tower. The drinks are expensive, and the food is amazing.

I had a rare moment of clarity when Bert asked us what we’d like for supper. I asked “what do they do best here?” -and I was rewarded with a phenomenal Coq au Vin that I would have skimmed right past if was reading a menu. The bar’s once-seemingly-random chicken decor all made sense now -it was excellent. Falling apart in the dish, super salty. It would have easily been the best thing about any normal evening..

—

The vast space between each of the players up on stage in Landgraaf was replied to in Temse by the 6 foot by 10 foot elevated ledge at de Gulden Cop. We were set up on top of each other, amps turned sideways to accommodate our feet. Absolutely perfect. I played the acoustic from the top of the set, and we were quiet & punchy -dynamics were smooth and effective. We got a read on the room and picked up on what the locals were getting into. It was a packed room of tables, with just a narrow aisle down the middle. All of the seats were filled with people who had been drinking for upwards of 4 hours at the minimum. The room was loving it, but when we leaned towards shit-kicking country sounds, you could really see the Belgium coming out in them. -I mean, there was no dancing involved due to the close quarters and for actually being in a fancy chicken restaurant, but the whole room clapped along emphatically to the fast numbers. (not even on the 1 and the 3, more like on the “&” of the 1 and the 3, creating a whole new flavor of that jarring, groove-sapping, pocket-dropping challenge to all musicians) I think all three of us on stage take different methods getting through or around this phenomenon, but this time I embraced it & tried for some real-time analysis of what was actually happening -just for a couple measures, then I had to tune it out.

We were just about to take a break for beers, when I caught sight of some sort of supernatural hallucination walking in the door. On second glance, it was actually Slien, who took the train over from Ghent. Twice on this trip so far we’ve had friends from earlier in the tour taking a trip to come & see us again. It makes us feel like we’re doing something right, not just to cross paths with good people, but to build bonds and make impressions strong enough to return to whenever we are able.

I had just enough time to hand my fresh beer to Slien, and we went back to work. The proximity of the crowd, and even more importantly of ourselves to each other, brought the evening into a warm, close focus. The songs were gelling, and the sounds of the amps and the people and the drums were hanging in the air with the cigarette smoke. It’s a small town, back in time, standard-issue evening in Belgium. There’s a little bit of Jackson County in this part of the world, and I have been comfortable here since the first time I set foot in this town.

—

We took the only open table to sit with Bert & Slien after the show. Aimee was relishing a giant snifter of nutty brown ale, talking beer with Bert until the conversation drifted back to famous Belgians. Smurfs, man. Los Pitufos. An entire race of creatures with one patriarch and one woman, and a weird friar-looking man who wants to eat them. How did this become a thing? They are Belgian, though. As was Peter Paul Rubens, -the painter who was famous for his depictions of sandwiches. Oh, and Audrey Hepburn was born in Brussels, no big deal…

—

I’m always down for a walk, and we had a line on another bar that might be open late on a Sunday night. So we said goodbye to Bert and headed off traipsing through the streets of Temse, well past midnight, as one does. Our path took us past Weiza’s old bar on the long street next to the highway bridge, down across a smaller plaza and past the doors of an “American Pool Hall” themed place that was closing up shop, and two other beer joints that were totally dark. But the walking was good. The mix of people, and the setting was a lovely lesson in counterpoint and perspective. I have walked stone streets at all hours with Slien, with unknown friends in Andalucia, and now in her home country with my people from back home who have been looking out the same windshield as me for three weeks. We all walk with an easy understanding and deep comfort in being where we are, at that place in time, and with these almost random humans. The night is quiet far away from the platz, the air is damp and a few puddles are still on the street, it’s still not cold yet, just cool enough for a jacket & a scarf.

We close the loop back to de Gulden Cop, where most of the same people are still inside, still drinking. It’s a more affluent crowd than most of the places we’ve played in Belgium. The inherent stuffiness that we busted them out of was now completely abandoned -looking in through the windows we watched as they were doing some sort of dance (in their chairs still, mind you) involving the giant cloth napkins and a square dutch folk song. After that they played a Barry White song.

Our quest for a hipper bar apparently dashed, I sheepishly went inside to buy a round while the band & Slien waited outside on the patio. Bert caught me at the bar -“you’re back, eh?” I invited him to join us outside of the fishbowl, and we all stood and talked of the future while watching all the people inside doing the thing they do on a Sunday night in Temse. It was a great night, a great show, and another great time in Belgium, thanks to Bert.

In the end, the crowd beat us out. Some of these people were sitting here when we showed up at 6. It was after 2am once again (how does this keep happening?) when we finally gathered for a round of photos, and Sherri fired up the van for our five kilometer drive home. De Gulden Cop was still hopping, still pumping out the disco/folk beats and keeping the heart beating in this otherwise sleeping town.

Score so far: Belgium 3, Silverhands 0