#spell punk librarian

[shadowwizdaily]

The Shadow Wizard of the Day is Spell Punk Librarian from Skylanders: Ring of Heroes!

[unofskylanderspages]

Seen above: The Spell Punk Librarian fight in Ring of Heroes

[yourlocaltoad]

Spell Punk Librarian's Soul stone icons from Skylanders: Ring of Heroes (Skylanders: Ring of Heroes, 2018)

[noxcorvorum]

Do you have any horror podcast recs

I liked tma and old gods of Appalachia but I'm caught up and need to BINGE

hello! youve come to the right place :)

Ghost Wax feels kindof similar to tma, especially tma season 1, with the main character (Owen Voncid) taking statements of people who've encountered the supernatural. However, Owen is a necromancer (the last Reclaimer!) who briefly reawakens the dead so that they can tell their final story, and all of the statement givers are dead. He also has an assistant, Luca Eso, who made the wax cylinders that he uses (he's been around for a very long time, and the remembrances are beginning to slip from his brain) and is a pop culture nerd. They work with a seer, Pip (or Phillipa Le Fay, to respect the stagecraft), who uses her grandmother's tarot cards.

All three of these people work for the Order of Hamsa, which fights the supernatural. Hamsa are incredibly powerful entities who have magic such as geomancy and necromancy, and usually inhabit a human body, though generally not for an incredibly long amount of time. There are several Hamsa in this podcast, including Owen. Owen has remained in his body for much longer than usual. Some other characters I enjoyed are Emea, the apiarist as well as Owen's best friend and a Hamsa, Cosa, the android librarian/archivist, and Azem, who is very thoroughly haunting the narrative. Don't look away.

I absolutely love this podcast, its easily in my top three. There's several incantations/spells which are so fun to me, found family, and really fun sound effects. It has 46 episodes as well as 2 Tales from the Vault, which are filled with smaller stories (I submitted a story to the second one!), there's content on patreon, and season 2 is in production.

Malevolent is about Arthur Lester, a 1930s private investigator from Arkham, Massachusetts, and the voice in his head and his eyes. Episode 1 opens with Arthur coming to on the floor of his office, suddenly blind, a strange entity speaking to him, and his business partner dead on the floor. Arthur and John, as the entity comes to be named, must now figure out how to navigate the horrors, try to find a way to separate themselves, and figure out where John came from. There's lots of cosmic horror/lovecraftian influences in here, and they have so many miles to go before they sleep.

There's a LOT of audio gore/squishy flesh sounds/Arthur screaming because the horrors love ripping into him, so if that's no good then this podcast is not for you. Some of the more eldritch characters also have voice filters, most notably John, which could make them hard to understand, though there are transcripts available. the plot can also be a little hard to follow sometimes.

I really enjoy this podcast, I'm currently relistening to it and having a great time. It's kindof forced family? because Arthur and John physically cannot get away from each other and yet they Have To communicate. They're so so much "its rotten work" "not to me, not if its you" AND "its rotten work" "especially to me, especially if its you, ill do it but christ alive". It's currently 42 episodes at usually 40ish minutes each, and still going, with new episodes releasing mostly monthly. There's also one voice actor, everyone sounds similar because it's the same guy.

Hello from the Hallowoods is a post apocalyptic show about identity, grief, family, and survival. It's formatted as a radio broadcast by an entity named Nikignik, who narrates everything. There is one voice actor for the majority of this show (save for the occasional character speaking outside of Nikignik's broadcast), and they do an amazing job, especially considering the amount of characters.

Some of the characters I really enjoy are Diggory Graves, a nonbinary frankenstein's monster with knife hands and a leather jacket, Percy Reed, a transmasc piano ghost, Riot Maidstone, the lesbian punk daughter of a rockstar, Olivier Song, a genderfluid cloud witch, Ray, a ghost possessing an automobile, Moth Scarberry (moth/mothself), Ray's adopted kid, Walt Pensieve, the asexual groundskeeper of the Hallowoods, and Polly, a devil in a floral suit. Some of the antagonists include Lady Ethel Mallory, a gaslight gatekeep girlboss of a marketing specialist for an evil corporation and the Instrumentalist, a religious fanatic who keeps killing people and turning them into instruments. Darker than your dreams, and farther north than you remember, the Hallowoods loom.

Each episode has a different theme based on the title (such as Keys, Names, and Bones), and is split into several different stories that follow different characters as Nikignik jumps around. There's not very many voice filters, because Nikignik is doing the voices himself, though I think there are a few, and transcripts are available. There's 145 episodes at usually 30 to 50 minutes each, and a new one releases every wednesday.

Sidenote, the Instrumentalist is *really* religious as well as homophobic and transphobic, and he regularly misgenders/deadnames a trans main character. He only exists in the show for about 50 episodes, and definitely gets what he deserves.

The White Vault is a found footage podcast with the first two seasons comprising a repair team's trip to Outpost Fristed in Svalbard. They go up to repair some damaged equipment as well as look at some weird readings, and then have to wait out a massive storm. They find a hatch in the auxiliary bunker, and explore the tunnels beneath to find a village beneath the ice. Theres Graham Casner, the survival guide, Walter Heath, the repair technician, Karina Shumacher-Weiß, the geologist, Rosa De La Torre, the medic, and Jónas Þórirsson, the representative of the company sending them. Travel is not advised.

I listened to the bulk of the first 2 seasons at 2 am while playing powerwash simulator, and it made me so incredibly anxious that I had to have my back to a wall *in the game* so nothing could sneak up one me. Highly recommend. There's so much fear and helplessness surrounding what could be hiding in the storm and in the ice, and I absolutely love the concept for the antagonists.

Seasons 3 and 4 are about a different team in Patagonia, season 5 checks back in at Svalbard, and season 6 is somewhere else entirely. 3-4 are pretty alright in my opinion, maybe a bit repetitive as it follows a similar pattern to the first two seasons, but I don't hate them. I think 5 is pretty good, though it has my favorite character in it, so, you know. I think 6 goes in a bit of a different direction, though I'm not caught up so I can't really comment on it. Seasons 1 and 2 are absolutely stunning, though.

The creators and cast of seasons 1-2 also have a horror dnd podcast called Dark Dice. I must admit I haven't finished the first campaign, though I really liked what I did listen to. I'm told the second campaign has Jeff Goldblum in it, and has 2 different parties with one hunting the other, though I haven't listened to it yet, so take that as you will.

Jar of Rebuke follows Dr. Jared Hel, a cryptid scientist with amnesia in a small Midwestern town, and perhaps closer to the cryptids than they realize. They're also immortal, and (for a reason I don't remember at this particular moment) he has to wear a key around his neck, and never take it off. I'm not caught up, though I really liked what I did listen to. There's lots of fun cryptids and supernatural happenings, such as Jared getting a hellhound as a pet. The episodes are about 10-20 minutes each, and it's ongoing.

As someone on tiktok so aptly said, if you have trust issues with your therapist, you probably shouldn't listen to this podcast. Jared is manipulated by their therapists, and we sometimes hear them talk about him like he's a test subject or creature, not a person.

Do You Copy is another found footage podcast surrounding Redtail National Park, which more or less contains an area called the Dead Zone, in which technology doesn't work and other spooky stuff happens. The Dead Zone has a possible imminent ecological disaster, and though the park is evacuated until the emergency is over, there are a couple people still inside. These include two ghost hunters, a hiker and their dog, and two park rangers who have been instructed to stay inside in hopes of hearing from the three others. I found the Dead Zone and what lies inside VERY interesting, both from a horror perspective and a speculative biology/ecology perspective. It is finished at 14 episodes.

The Hyacinth Disaster is a space horror found footage podcast, and easily in my top three (the other one on that list is tma). It is set in 2151, when Jupiter and Mars have been colonized, and the asteroid belt is being mined for resources. There are two main mining companies in the show, Halaesus Mining Co in Lagrange 4, Greek objects, and Lykaeon Minerals Corporation in Lagrange 5, Trojan objects. The Corvus, a ship contracted to Halaesus and ordered to survey and harvest an asteroid in Lagrange 5, was captured by Lykaeon and held for ransom, and Halaesus denies the ransom broadcast is true, unwilling to pay. The skeleton crew of the MRS Hyacinth has gone rogue in the slowly dwindling time limit to survey a possibly incredibly valuable asteroid, hoping to pay the ransom themselves. But they are 6 people manning a ship meant for 53, and there are so many things to go wrong.

Conlin Hynes is the captain of the Hyacinth and is a good friend of Ember Roth, the captain of the Corvus. Con isn't the greatest captain, not by a long shot, but he's incredibly loyal, and maintains a talented crew. Famke Hynes, or Blue, is Con's sister, and the captain of her own ship, the Sibirica. She would have been the captain of the Hyacinth had she won the rock paper scissors match when they first bought it. She's returned to the Hyacinth to run comms for her brother as they bring Ember and her crew home, and to blow things up along the way.

Finch is Con's wife, and doing an admirable job at being an one-person engineering and seismology team. She's doing her absolute best with the equipment they have that corporate refuses to replace or reapir. Dreadnought in exosuit 2 is by far the youngest of the crew at 24. He's a surveyor, and in fact surveyed Saniss 130991, the very rock they're at, himself. He saw the potential and purposefully misfiled it, hoping to make a bigger profit if corporate didn't know about it, and told Finch, who told Con, and now they're all here.

Grimm is in exo 4, one that he bought himself and has carefully maintained. He refuses to tell the others what he's named it. He moves around a lot, as he gets bored of jobs quickly. Seems like a hardass, but he's actually a pretty nice guy. Argus in exo 7 is one of Con's best friends, having worked with him and Grimm on several jobs. He's a pretty optimistic guy, and follows Grimm as he moves from job to job. His lucky object of choice is a surprise tool that will help us later.

There's lots of angst and horror but also lots of comedy. I've seen a couple reactions that thought there was too much comedy for the situation, but personally I really enjoyed it. It's 7 episodes long, at about 2.5 hours total. There's a lot of sound effects for the ship controls that could potentially be irritating, Dreadnought's dialogue is full of static and sometimes difficult to understand because his radio is partially broken, and there's a loud, extended, high pitched static sound often in the first few episodes (It's when they activate the squealer device, it lasts for about 10-15 seconds each time and there's a countdown from 5 right before), so if you have issues with mechanical/static sound effects, this probably isn't for you. There's transcripts for episodes 1-4 on the website, along with a database of more information about the world.

I'm so so normal about this podcast, I have a note full of facts and trivia (Ember was voted into captaincy by her crew, and according to dreadnought, the ratio of greek names to jovian objects is about 1 in 50,000), my senior quote was from here, I've relistened to it so many times. I cannot recommend this enough.

Among the Stars and Bones is another found footage space horror, but this time it's about anthropology and alien technology. The format is mission files being sent back to the company from a large team investigating an abandoned alien settlement. There's about 7 different perspectives, one from each branch of the team (xenoanthropology, IT, etc).

I really enjoyed it the first time I listened, there were a lot of good anxious moments. A couple of my favorite characters are Dr. Celia Pannella, who heads the xenoanthropology section, and Ben Kelleher, who heads the xenoarchaeology section. I found the alien science/speculative biology really really interesting.

Given you liked tma I'm assuming you know of The Magnus Protocol, but if you don't, it's pretty much Magnus but in a civil service job instead of archiving. It has such characters as Colin the longsuffering IT guy, Alice, who is coping with the horrors by ignoring them, Needles, and Chester and Norris, two text-to-speech voices who we have definitely never heard before (/s).

It has 10 episodes plus an Easter/April Fools special, and it's on a break until April 11th.

Mabel is a podcast about ghosts, families, secrets, and connections. Anna Limon is a carer who has been hired to take care of Mabel Martin's mother Sally. The house is odd, the house is alive, and the house is hungry. Anna is unraveling a mystery as fast as she can find the thread, and Mabel, having grown up half-feral and half-faeral, is somewhere under the Hill.

I will admit I haven't finished this show, but I would definitely recommend it. I actually had to restart it because I wasn't expecting to be as invested as I was. It is very much a faerie story, with riddles and all.

The Silt Verses is a story about faith, and what people will do to keep it. It follows Sister Carpenter and Brother Faulkner as they travel upriver, looking for revelations of their outlawed god, the Trawler-Man. There's a whole cast of gods, many of which are capitalistic, and most of the ones that are not have been outlawed. Some examples are the Trawler-Man of the river, the Waxen Scrivener of decay and books, the Saint Electric of radio and electricity, and the Cairn Maiden of graves and death.

I'd say it has semi similar vibes to Old Gods, mostly with the many deities and monsters. I'm only about halfway through it, but I'd definitely recommend it.

Hope you find something you enjoy!

[andtherestishistory13]

Books I’d recommend to Greta Van Fleet. As a librarian I’m qualified for this and it’s fun!

Josh: Anything by Arthur C Clarke, even though I’m sure he’s read them because he likes 2001: Space Odyssey; The Time Machine by HG Wells; Dune by Frank Herbert; Something Like an Autobiography by Akira Kurosawa

Jake: Tolkiens other books (he has a great King Arthur book called The Fall of Arthur 10/10), The Republic of Pirates by Colin Woodard; Anne Bonny by Phillip Thomas; The Princess Bride by William Goldman; Jimi by Janie Hendrix

Danny: This was a little harder, but; Slash: The Autobiography by Slash; The Greatest Game Ever Played by Mark Frost; Sympathy for the Drummer by Mike Edison; The Body by Stephen King; Just Kids by Patti Smith

Sam: Just Kids by Patti Smith; Dune by Frank Herbert; The View From Space (it’s a NASA book); The Secret World of Stargazing by Adrian West; Laurel Canyon: The Inside Story by Mike Walker; Morning Glory on the Vine by Joni Mitchell; Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

Bonus: All: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen; I Put a Spell on You by Nina Simone; Revenge of the She-Punks: A Feminist Music History by Vivien Goldman

[fantomcomics]

What’s Out This Week? 4/26

Please, trees, free us from the pollen!

BLAB! Vol 1 TP - Monte Beauchamp, Noah Van Sciver & Ryan Heshka

BLAB!-the Harvey Award-winning anthology of cutting-edge comics, art, and culture-has returned to its comics roots with a stellar lineup of contributors. Noah Van Sciver depicts the tragic demise of Crime Does Not Pay editor Robert Wood. Ryan Heshka recounts the rise and fall of Superman creators Siegel and Shuster. Sasha Velour portrays the making of film director F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu. Children's book illustrator Giselle Potter examines Peter Rabbit author Beatrix Potter's passion as a naturalist. Illustrated articles include the history of the gorilla and a report on UFOs. All this and much more in Comics and Stories That Will Make You BLAB!

Black Cat Social Club TP -  Christopher Painter & Bob Quinn

The story of three punk rock witches, Alice, Hazel, and Maggie, who cast spells with their songs to battle corporate demon jerks, defeat rival witch bands, save the world, and get to the next gig. Black Cat Social Club have been at this "band thing" for quite a while, with limited success. (Bummer.) Despite their kick-ass punk rock skills (and a little songcasting magic), these witchy women have been struggling to reach their big break. Discouraged, bassist Hazel sells her soul to a demon for more magical power, prompting singer/lead guitarist Alice to step in and assume the debt herself! Plus side, the band is killing it at their shows now. Downside? They may literally be killing the entire world by fueling these corporate demons' evil plans, which for sure involve brimstone, monsters... you know, the works! Can the band stop the apocalypse? Is drummer Maggie's songwriting, uh, "technique" the key? Will the demon Stan ever shut up?! If you've ever wished Josie and the Pussycats had more demons, or Buffy was fronting a three-piece rock band, you've found your next favorite book in Black Cat Social Club!

Boy’s Abyss GN Vol 1 -  Ryo Minenami

Reiji's life is as miserable as the small town he can't escape. The most interesting thing that's ever happened there is a double suicide down by the river. Does Reiji have any power over his fate, or will he too fall into the abyss?

Charisma’s Turn GN -  Monique Couvson & Amanda Jones

From the award-winning author of Pushout, an inspiring graphic novel about what can happen when Black girls are given the opportunity to find their genuine power. Charisma's Turn is a graphic novel that follows the dynamic story of Charisma, a Black high school student who is grappling with mounting pressures from home and school. When frustrations with her family intersect with a conflict at school, she reaches a crossroads, facing a choice that could change her future. Featuring vibrantly illustrated art from Amanda Jones and a foreword by poet, artist, and arts educator Susan Arauz Barnes, this book will appeal to teens, parents, educators, librarians, and more. Charisma's Turn exemplifies how Black girls can be truly empowered to reach their full potential when they have supportive educators and community members in their corner.

Cut-Over Criteria GN -  Koala Omugi

A fresh new boys' love office romance in which opposites attract! Recent graduate Jin has been assigned to help out his upperclassman Seto, a highly competent but somewhat standoffish systems engineer. Though Jin is good at his job, he does seem to have his head in the clouds more often than not... and Seto's eyes always seem to linger on him more than they should!

Deep Cuts #1 (of 6) -  Kyle Higgins, Joe Clark, Danilo Beyruth & Chris Brunner

New Orleans, 1917. In the city's bustling red-light district, a young clarinet player lands a job with his hero-but he'll soon discover there's more to the music business than playing the right notes.

Join writers KYLE HIGGINS & JOE CLARK (RADIANT BLACK) and an ALL-STAR CAST OF ARTISTS for SIX DOUBLE-LENGTH ISSUES that weave stories of struggle, joy, and hope through the history of jazz!

Disney & Pixar’s Turning Red: 4*TOWN 4 Real GN -  Dirchansky & KAlfee

4*Town 4 Ever! 4*Townies are hyped to see 4*Town performing their favorite hits live, but how will Canada's greatest boy band spend the day leading up to their epic Toronto concert? Hang with Robaire, Jesse, Tae Young, Aaron T, and Aaron Z as they enjoy a rare break in their busy schedules! Jesse and Tae Young embrace their artistic side and visit a ceramics museum, Aaron T gets his fashion on at the mall, and Aaron Z and Robaire stay in the dance studio to master their moves before the sold-out show. Only the realest fans deserve to get this up close and personal with Tween Beat Magazine's Hottest Band of the Year!

Fashion Illustration: Outfit Of The Day GN -  Pie International 

Fashion Illustration is a new genre in the Japanese illustration scene, offering the most up-to-date, modern and practical styles for everyday. This book introduces 40 up-and-coming illustrators from Japan who are becoming popular on social media, including Daisuke Richard the author of Kikanetsu published in June 2019. Filled with loads of cool, stylish coordinates and color patterns, this guide offers a whole new way for discovering new trends in fashion. Find your own outfit of the day!

Jujutsu Kaisen: Thorny Road At Dawn GN -  Gege Akutami & Ballad Kitaguni

A modeling scout approaches Kugisaki, but he turns out to be a cursed speech user with an ulterior motive, and when Inumaki tries to rescue her, things don't quite turn out as planned. Mechamaru goes on a solo mission, Gojo and friends try to host a party, and more chilling and charming adventures ensue in these five short stories set in the world of Jujutsu Kaisen!

Money Shot Comes Again #1 -  Tim Seeley & Gisele Lagace

The XXX-plorers are back on their hands and knees for the good of humanity! When the giant ass space jellyfish who run the ordered universe arrive on earth, the porn-stars-cum-science explorers must put away grudges, crushes, and side-hustles to once again take one (or two! or three!) for the team. An epicly sexy new arc begins, which takes aim at dumb billionaires and bad optics, and guest stars a LEGENDARY underground comix heroine! NEW ARTIST Gisele Lagace puts her sexy spin on the book!

New Retro Illustration Bilingual Edition GN -  PIE INTERNATIONAL

Retro but modern. This is the new trend, the new way, the new form of illustration created by the new generation. "New retro," a combination of the word "New" and "Retrospective," is a phrase meaning "appreciating and enjoying something old while reimagining it into something modern." This book introduces 40 up-and-coming illustrators working in this "new retro" style. Through the 300 illustrations showcased in this one book, readers can appreciate and enjoy retro culture, items and motifs reimagined and transformed into something new.

Platinum Blood GN -  Mor Ichigaya

Alucard, known by "Al" for short, is a vampire who has been raised by a priest, You. Providing Al the fluids he needs to survive has created an unusually close relationship between the two, but what will become of their partnership as You's mortality catches up to him? This book contains explicit content and mature themes, including incest and violence. It is not intended for anyone under 18 years of age.

QUEEN In Comics GN -  Emmanuel Marie & Sophie Blitman

Brian May, Roger Taylor, and Freddie Mercury form one of the greatest rock bands in the world. Under the leadership of its charismatic singer, Queen is a planetary success for each hit with its decadent shows, inimitable aesthetics and style. "Bohemian Rhapsody", "We Are the Champions", "Don't Stop Me Now" or even "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" are just some of the hits! Discover the great stories and little secrets surrounding the legend!

Sacred Lamb GN - Tim Seeley & Jelena Dordevic

Online celebrity Kellyn West, who just recently dispatched "her" own stalker-slash-serial killer Clay Coogan on a live stream, finds herself the newest resident of a secluded town known as Sacred Lamb. This is where the government hides "endemic victims" under witness protection in hopes of preventing innocents from being murdered when, inevitably, psycho slashers return from the dead. But when the body count starts rising inside the barbed wire fences, Kellyn must team up with the original survivor girl, known only as "The Babysitter," to rally the E.V.s and withstand an army of slashers at their door, seemingly back from the dead, and definitely back for blood.

Sap Hunters HC -  Laurent Genefort & Alexandre Ristorcelli

Through the branches of the gigantic World Tree, Pierig searches for the source of the malevolence that poisons the sap. The colossal branches of the World Tree are home to many diverse clans of people, each living among their tier. When Pierig, a Sap Diviner, is captured by the Bellicose clan for his rare skills, he learns that the World Tree is dying and its nourishing sap, the fuel for each of these communities, is being poisoned... Accompanied by three warriors, Pierig is forced to trace the origin of the evil that is eating away at the plant titan through each of its levels, and down to the very base if necessary. But along his journey, issues deeper than the root of this sickness begin to surface, putting everything Pierig knew to be true into question.

Silence #1 (of 5) -  Devin Kraft

In this extraordinary Rock'n'Roll/Mythology mashup, Johanna Jones returns to her hometown of Anthem, a down-on-its-luck shipping town, to discover the ship her father sailed on has gone missing. She ends up aboard a yellow submarine named the Heart of Gold, headed directly into Hades' Hexagon to find the missing crew, accompanied by her childhood best friend, a rich young addict, and a punk legend.

Star Wars The High Republic Adventures: Quest Of The Jedi One-Shot -  Claudia Gray, Fico Ossio & Tom Fowler

On the ancient world of Angcord, the Force works in unforeseen ways. When legendary Jedi Knight Barnabus Vim and his intrepid Padawan Bly arrive on this mysterious world, seeking an ancient artifact of the Force, they quickly find more than they were bargaining for. But just what is the mysterious Echo Stone, and what does its existence mean for the continued survival of all those who call Angcord home?

Souls Of Black Folk: A Graphic Interpretation GN -  W E B Du Bois, Paul Buhle & Paul Peart-Smith

Peart-Smith's graphic adaptation provide historical and cultural contexts that bring to life the world behind Du Bois' words. Readers will get a deeper understanding of the cultural debates The Souls of Black Folk was engaging in, with more background on figures like Booker T. Washington, the advocate of black economic uplift, and the Pan-Africanist minister Alexander Crummell. This beautifully illustrated book vividly conveys the continuing legacy of The Souls of Black Folk, effectively updating it for the era of The 1619 Project and Black Lives Matter.

W0RLDTR33 #1 -  James Tynion IV, Fernando Blanco, & Jordie Bellaire 

In 1999, Gabriel and his friends discovered the Undernet, a secret architecture to the Internet. They charted their exploration on a message board called W0RLDTR33.

Then they lost control. Someone broke into W0RLDTR33-someone who welcomed the violent hold the Undernet had on them. At great personal cost, Gabriel and the others thought they sealed the Undernet away for good. They were wrong. And now they will know the meaning of PH34R.

The Witches Of World War II GN -  Paul Cornell & Valeria Burzo

In the darkest hours of World War II, Doreen Valiente (then known as Doreen Dominy), an expert on British folklore and the occult, is approached by British intelligence at Bletchley Park who tell her they know she's a witch... and that's how she can best serve her country. Together with the "most evil man in the world," a hard-nosed white witch, the grizzled founder of Wicca, and a professional exorcist and con man, Valiente will travel deep into the heart of Nazi-occupied Europe and gamble her life, her belief, and her powers on a mission to help capture Rudolf Hess, second in command to Adolf Hitler himself.

Whatcha scooping up this week, Fantom Fam? 

[hungry-skeleton]

Quick question

Who dis guy-?

Spell punk librarian! They're from ROH and are a minor boss but I love their design sm

[marlowe1-blog]

"Peppercorn Rent" by Roberta Rogow (Teddy Bear Cannibal Massacre)

Honest, I'll go back to Cheever soon enough

This one is a cute one. It is so cute in fact that the author told me that she didn't like the anthology and I can totally see why. Roberta is a filk singer, a Sherlock Holmes fan fiction writer and a children's author. Also a children's librarian.

I can see why she did not appreciate seeing her story after a story about The Big Bad Wolf killing himself in a vomit filled apartment because Little Red Riding Hood is having an orgy with the three little pigs (and before a story about mutant rats). Seriously the more stories I read in this anthology, the more I wonder why I bought so many stories about hopeless losers living in filth? Granted, at this point I wrote my first novel-length manuscript where the main characters are named Dogshit and Trash and Dogshit leaves Trash asleep in a pile of dirty diapers in the alleyway in the opening chapter (I would have to become much much more famous for it to ever see the light of day. The best I can say about it is that I learned a lot. Also "Let's Live Suddenly Without THinking" is a great title. Yeah I did steal it from e.e.cummings)

And the main reason why this one is in this anthology is because I lost the rights to a story about a guy who could paint people's souls to the point that they lose the most vital part of themselves (causing a suicide before he's killed.) My (ex-)friend wrote it and since he presented femail at the time I figured that I needed another woman written story for balance. So I reached out to Roberta as a friend of a friend (aunt of an ex-girlfriend to be exact) and here we are.

This might be the first time I re-read the story since I published this anthology (this is true for a lot of these stories. By the time I finally put out the book I didn't even want to look at it again. Especially when I had to fix the typos twice (like I went through and fixed all the typos I could find. Then found dozens more. It's still full of typos. Pro-tip, running a spell check and grammar check is NOT copyediting).

I appreciate this story a lot more. I didn't know about the convention of peppercorn rent as a British thing and the main character is obviously a werewolf. The main thrust of the story is the fact that the peppercorn rent is that the daughter of the house needs to spend the night with the lord and since Ms. Lupine (get it?) is renting a very cheap upper room, she wants to make certain that it gets paid.

Meanwhile the new lord wants to sell the land in order to put a burger chain store on it. The rest of the story is a comedy of errors as the lord continually tries to run away from the protagonist and they keep ending up stuck in restaurants and punk clubs. And jail.

Also she's a werewolf.

One part that I might have been less enamored with when I published but I rather enjoy now is the "doesn't quite get the current times" part. I think I learned to appreciate this in the works of other authors and artists. The club is too loud and the band fronted by a singer who calls himself Lime Green Jello is a little broad - not as broad as the punk rock episode of Quincy, but definitely silly enough to forgive the fact that one doubts that the author has ever been in a punk club. Also Lime Green Jello is the CEO of the burger franchises? That's a bit of a stretch. LIke CEOs are usually too busy figuring out ways to screw their workers and not pay taxes to have a side gig fronting a punk band, but ok, we'll go with it here.

Overall, this is a silly story with decent characters and enjoyable plot contrivance.

timlieder.com

patreon.com/timlieder

[bloodiedpixie]

Summary:  The year is 1977 (summer to be exact), rebellion against the establishment and groovy patterns are on the rise. Simon Snow is a 20-year-old outcast trying to stumble his way through life. With labor strikes causing job loss and the inability to stay in one place, Simon is used to traveling, and can never find a real reason to stay in one place for more than a few months. 

Baz Grimm-Pitch is a 20-year-old librarian, who (accompanied by his two friends Dev and Niall) is just trying to find some direction in life. When Simon stumbles into the Grimm-Pitch library and sees a very attractive man (Baz) reading a book on the register counter, they both just might find what they're looking for.

Word Count: 6360

Rating: Teen and Up Audiences

So this a 70s normal au fic I’ve written, so far only one chapter is up which you can read here!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/28460262/chapters/69739998

and you can listen to the playlist that goes along with it here!

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5edgzIeLCmzylazIzE36ny?si=YKhJFDwRSrmCq8DvHUElaw

[queerwrock]

Anti-jkr Wizard Rock

Anthony Goldstein by Chasitherin

Can't Stand Your Bigotry by The Fizzing Whizbees

Cherry Picking by AJ Solomon

Consider by Totally Knuts

Correct the Architect by Harry and the Potters

Cursed Child Isn’t Canon by The Weirdos Are Out

IV. Dead Words by Creevey Crisis

Dear Jo by Mary Lambert

Fandom Autonomous Zone by Tonks & the Aurors

Firework by The Weirdos Are Out

F*** You, JKR by Kalysta Flame

Good Ol’ Jo by Fangirl Riot

Harry’s Haikus by Sage Palmieri

Here (demo) by The Hogwarts Elevator

Hermione Granger’s Not a Transphobe by Kathryn Hoss

Hogwarts Never Ends by errandofmercy

Hut on the Wrock by Karl​-​Johan Nor​é​n

I’m a Puff, and I’m Staying by Dream Quaffle

I’m Magic by Aguamenti

Is There A Spell? by Ludo Bagman and the Trash

It’s Intersectional by Abby Ritter

JKR Freestyle by Aguamenti

JK Rowling and The Fascists of The Christ by Song a Day

Joanne by Hogwarts Therapist

Joanne by Grace Kendall

Just Kidding (Mugglef*cker) by Andri from Pagefire

My Cursed Child Review by Tianna and the Cliffhangers

Of Course by Bradley and the Dadleys

Open at the Close by Totally Knuts

Our Epilogue by CG Matovina

Power in a Fandom by Fangirl Riot

Revelry by Proma Khosla

Revisionist History by The Whomping Willows

Rewriting Your Story by Totally Knuts

Rogue Librarian by Ariel Factor Birdoff

Sit Down by Totally Knuts

Slytherin Anthem by Luna (Not) Lovegood

Start Again by Hogwarts Therapist

The Bi Who Lived (Prod. by Aguamenti) by Bisexual Harry

The Harry Potter Hannukah Song by Mikaila

The JKR by Sally Slytherin

The Metamorphmagus Song by Anna Dardick

The Queen by Jami Schafer

Tired by Totally Knuts

Transphobe Rowling by Craic Boi Mental

Unite! By The Arkadian

Waiting by Ashley Hamel

When Magic Was Magic by Witherwings

Where Do We Go From Here by Shauna Carrick

Wizard Ⓐnarchy by Candle Wix

Wizard Punks by Tonks & the Aurors

Yellow and Black by Boom Boom Racoon

You Said by Romilda Vane and the Chocolate Cauldrons

Masterlist

[archivyrep]

"Reference only": 'The Librarian' and Archives in the world of 'Hilda' [Part 1]

The Librarian in the opening montage of every episode, which is part of the show's theme song

In my recent post for I Love Libraries, I focused on the importance of libraries and librarians in the animated show, Hilda. In this post I'd like to focus on archivy/archives themes in the show. While libraries appear in about nine minutes of the first season, in one episode ("Lost Clan"), the purple-and-black-haired librarian is not shown, and in another ("Nightmare Spirit"), the librarian, who gives off some serious goth vibes, or even some gay vibes, only appears briefly. She reminds me a lot of the half-demon and half-vampire punk rocker and "vampire queen," Marceline, in the Adventure Time series, although Marcy, a person who was born as half-human and half-demon, who later turned into a half-vampire/half-demon, is not a librarian in the slightest (and neither is her girlfriend). That leaves two episodes: "The Ghost" and "Tide Mouse." In this post, I'll look at those two episodes and note the archives themes in both.

Reprinted from my Wading Through the Cultural Stacks WordPress blog. Originally published on Sept. 23, 2020.

Let's start with the next episode, "The Tide Mice." Samantha Cross, who is kinda the POP Archives guru, since she has reviewed a LOT of depictions of archives and archivists in popular culture, has a post about this episode. She begins by noting how Hilda and Twig, her deerfox, Twig, find a secret special collections room in the Trolberg library, a room which is only seen one time in the series. While she notes that as a result the room is only seen in this episode it "doesn't make a huge impact on the story as a whole." However, she describes the Librarian as a "goth/witch librarian/reference archivist," which seems about right, accurately calling them overworked, although chill and generally helpful until a "precocious ten-year-old wants to take a spell book home for reasons."

She adds that it isn't the fault of the librarian that Hilda found a loophole to the librarian wanting the book to stay in the library by using the photocopying machine, calling it "a cautionary tale for those working at libraries and archives" because...wait for it... "never let precocious children use copiers." Definitely true! What she said made me laugh. Hilda photocopies a page of the book that she was reading when the Librarian confronted her in the special collections room, intending to help her friend, David, and her mom. Snobbishly she leaves the book face down on the copier while she reads the page she photocopied! You could say that this scene highlights the issues of “problematic patrons” in a library setting.

Later in the episode, she faces the consequences of her actions, learning that the enchantment of her friends will cause her to possess their souls, and returns to the library with Alfie and Frida. Hilda learns a lesson about copying a spell to "summon supernatural mice" and problems about magical interference: that spells don't care "about the intention of the user" even if that user's intentions are good. In this case, Hilda wants to help her friend David audition for the Warblers and her mom to be a successful graphic designer. I recommend you read what she has to say about the episode and many other pieces of popular culture media.

© 2022 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

[that-crazy-five-foot-two-chick]

Summary: Winry sat in the optimal place to study in the school cafe for the entire fall semester. Then spring came, and suddenly some self-entitled twit who dressed like off-brand Gerard Way decided it was his territory. He was so not going to get off easy.

Rating: T

Word Count: 1.8k words of coffee shop/college AU with a side of enemies to almost-lovers

A/N: It's finals week, I posted this on Ao3 at almost 5am, and if the rest of the sentence didn't make it obvious, I'm writing from unfortunate experience. Not beta-ed or proofread, although I happened to see one thing to fix when I woke up this morning. Feel my raw power. Rawr.

It wasn't that big a deal.

It kind of really was, though.

Every Thursday morning during the fall semester, Winry sat in the same spot at the same school coffee shop. It was the spot sent by the entire patron pantheon of cram papers. Maybe one person didn't need an entire booth, but it was in the corner, and the tops of the bench seats had opaque plastic barriers that just so happened to be perfect for minimizing excess visual chaos. For the most part, there weren't loud conversations, and the jazz music that came through the speakers helped her tune out people ordering coffee. Add to that the fact that she could use campus flex dollars and not her own bank account that was begging for mercy, and it was the perfect spot to get papers done.

But apparently not this spring.

As soon as Winry walked in, she noticed him in the corner. Some emo wannabe guy on his computer. Probably on Reddit complaining about how women didn't appreciate the amazing pics he sent them on Tinder. Or at least, it was a fair guess based on the sour look on his face. Why did this guy of all people have to steal the holy grail spot? Ugh. She was still gonna get her coffee, darn it.

"You know the deal, Sciezska. Medium roast with a shot of espresso and vanilla creamer."

"On it! You paying in flex?"

"Yeah." She scanned her student ID and lowered her voice. "Who's off-brand Gerard Way in the corner?"

"Who's Ger—"

"The punk kid."

"Ohhh. I can try to get his number for you, if you want."

"No, he looks like a total tool! And not the kind I like dealing with!"

"Which means you think he's hot. I didn't think you were into that type, but you're not wrong."

"For the last time, no, Sciezska! He took my spot! And I'm trying very, very hard to keep this to a stage whisper, but if you keep trying to set me up with some random creep, I won't be able to!"

A distinctly male voice grumbled, "I'm not a creep."

"Keep telling that to the girls on Tinder. I'm sure they'll understand eventually."

"Yeah, and I'll bet if you look at your 'Live, Laugh, Love' sign a little more, you'll understand it eventually." He mumbled something under his breath.

"What was that, Mr. Nice Guy?"

"Lay off, it's eight in the morning. I said the only reason I even have a Tinder account is because my roommate stole my phone while I was going to the bathroom."

"Well, if you didn't want it, why didn't you delete it?"

"Eh, I figured if I really got sick of being single one day, it'd already be there."

"Never would have guessed you were single," Winry said dryly.

"Come on, it's way too early to be rubbing that kind of crap in. Who says I'm not fine with being single anyway?"

Sciezska timidly spoke up. "Medium roast with espresso and vanilla creamer?"

Winry thanked her as red jacket boy continued. "'Edward Elric, Bachelor.' Almost sounds as good as 'Edward Elric, Bachelor of Science.'"

"B.S. degree. Sounds about right."

"About time you stopped acting like I'm an idiot!"

Winry snorted. "That's not what I meant."

"Hey!"

"And with that, I'm going to go find some other spot to write my paper."

Edward, as his name apparently was, scoffed and mumbled something that sounded like "good riddance". Maybe the librarians wouldn't get on her case too much for bringing in coffee.

-----

A week later, Winry walked into the cafe, assuming the circumstances of the previous week were an anomaly. They were not.

"Medium roast with a shot of espresso and vanilla creamer," she grumbled and sulked in the direction of the corner seat.

"Hey, don't start with me again, blondie. I've had a whopping four hours of sleep and I can't promise you'll like what comes out of my mouth."

"We're at a coffee shop. Get some coffee. I can't help it if you're too hung over to be polite."

"Now look, genius. I did not stay up until 4 A.M. working on a stupid chem paper for that sadistic pyromaniac excuse for a professor just for some random chick to accuse me of being hung over."

"Oh."

"Yeah. And for your information, coffee doesn't really help me wake up. It just helps me focus on homework." He lifted up his empty cup and gave it a shake.

"That's the weirdest thing I've ever heard."

"ADHD is a weird thing, and yet, here I am."

"Huh, interesting."

"Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to pick up where I left off with the same stupid ten page paper I started last night."

"Oh right. Sure," Winry stammered. "Listen, I'm really sorry I just assumed things about you. It was wrong of me, and I'd like to make it up to you, if that's okay."

Edward eyed her suspiciously. "What do you have in mind?"

"Well...I could look over your paper once you're done writing it? I've got a paper of my own to write while I'm waiting, and I can sit right across the table here so you don't have to come get me. I won't try to talk to you or anything. Neither of us need that kind of distraction."

"Alright, alright. Get your coffee and sit down. The girl at the counter's been up there waiting for a good minute or two while you've been at confessional over here."

"Wait, she has?" Winry's eyes widened, and Edward laughed at her expense. He was kind of attractive when he wasn't scowling...wait what? She pouted and got up to retrieve her coffee. When Winry returned, she plopped down on the bench opposite Edward and opened her laptop. Peeking out from behind it, she added, "By the way, I'm Winry. I figured you ought to at least know the name of the person who's proofreading your paper."

"Well, Winry, you're the one who volunteered." The corners of his mouth twitched upward. The two worked on their assignments in silence, occasionally speaking up when necessary.

-----

Edward was in the corner again the next week as well.

"Hey, Edward! Mind if I join you for homework again?"

"Normally, I'd say no, but you didn't bother me too much last week, so you might as well." He turned away slightly.

"Great! Have you gotten your coffee yet? I didn't see a cup, and you got something the last two times."

"Eh, I haven't been here long. If you're going up and getting yours, would you mind ordering a caramel macchiato for me?" He asked, sliding his ID across the table.

"Yeah, no problem. I'll be back in a sec."

She returned and slipped his ID back before pulling out her computer. "Do you have anything for me to look over this time?"

"Not this week. But if you have anything you need looked over, I can do that, too."

"Actually, I do, if you wouldn't mind."

"Winry, I just volunteered. Just send the paper to my school email. Mine's 'elricedwa'," he instructed as he proceeded to spell it.

"Medium roast and a caramel macchiato?" Sciezska called out.

"Coming!" Winry replied and turned to Edward. "I just sent it, so you should be able to start while I'm getting our stuff." Eyes glued to his laptop, Edward gave a thumbs up.

Once she returned with their drinks, Winry sat down and wordlessly set Edward's drink next to him.

"Thanks," he muttered distantly. His lips mirrored the words he was reading. Though his lips weren't plump by any stretch of the imagination, they were shapely. His steely concentration made the air leave Winry's lungs. To top it all off, the first rays of sunlight came through the window just right, hitting Edward's hair in a way that made it positively glow.

What was she thinking? Those were only the sorts of things people thought when they had a crush. She'd only had two positive interactions with him, including this one. ...well, maybe it was a crush. She could certainly do worse than someone with a questionable fashion sense. After all, he worked hard, and he got good grades, if the quality of his writing was any indication. Okay, fine. He was also drop dead gorgeous, if you could see past his clothing choices. Yeah, she had a crush.

"Did you hear anything I just said?"

"...no."

"Figures. I finished reading your paper. It's not bad, I just left a few suggestions for sentence structure. Now I am going to enjoy my caramel macchiato." He took off the lid and breathed in the steam with his eyes closed, nearly drooping into the cup in content. When he opened his eyes slowly, Winry was awestruck by the similarity between the color of his eyes and his drink.

"What?" Edward furrowed his eyebrows.

"Nothing. I didn't say anything. At all. Nope."

"Okay." He shrugged. She reopened the document and went through his suggested edits. Gnawing her lip in concentration, she leaned forward a bit to settle in and tackle the editing.

"...hey, uh, Winry?" Edward gulped. "Are you going to drink your coffee?"

"Oh! Yeah, I almost forgot. Thanks, Edward!" she smiled.

"No–no problem. And you can call me Ed, you know. Most people do. Except for that excuse for a professor that calls me pipsqueak. Can you believe he's my advisor? I mean, come on, I'm a grown man. I'm not that short."

Winry made a poor attempt at containing her laughter. "Okay then, Ed. Prove it. Stand up."

"Fine." He slid out of the booth and stood. Winry followed suit and appraised their respective heights.

"Well, I'd hardly call you tall, but you're at least taller than me by a few inches, for whatever that's worth."

Edward grinned as if he had won some sort of prize. "Time for shorties to sit down now!"

"Watch it now. You're not too far from that label yourself, mister."

They both returned to their positions in the booth and worked steadily for the next hour. At the end of that time, Winry closed her laptop. "Ed, are you okay? You seem distracted."

"ADHD. I'm always distracted," he dismissed.

"No, like, are you sick or something? You did get more than four hours of sleep this time, right?"

"No comment." Ed's mouth twitched. He mumbled barely loud enough to hear, "Wouldn't have mattered anyway."

"Are you sure? If you're not feeling well, I can drive you over to the health center."

"N-no. That's not it." He exhaled, then slid a napkin across the table. His hands trembled slightly. "Anyway, here's my number. In case you need me to look over a paper. Or whatever. I've got a class soon."

Winry blushed, but tucked the napkin in her laptop. "Thanks, Ed. See you next week?"

"Yeah. Next week."

-----

Winry: This goes with your major, right?

Edward: Blocked

[unofskylanderspages]

Seen above: A render of the Spell Punk Librarian, as seen for its boss battle

[dustedmagazine]

Listed: Jeffrey Alexander

Jeffrey Alexander is a fixture in a free-wheeling, Grateful Dead-loving, guitar jam underground, a founder of the Iditarod and Black Forest/Black Sea and a sometime member of Jackie O Motherfucker. His Direwolves splice acid folk with a buzzing, humming motoric-ness that edges near Stereolab, but his latest band, the Heavy Lidders, is pure transcendental pleasure. In her review, Jennifer Kelly noted that, “These songs take their time to loosen and relax, pursuing repetitive vamps until the edges melt away and the hard colors swirl into pastels.” Alexander is also a DJ and here he lists some of the music he spins for listeners.

For this Listed, I decided to run down some of the bootlegs and quirky things that I often play on my radio show — hope you dig it. I started doing radio back in college in the 1980s, where I was also the record librarian. The archives at the station opened me up to a myriad of sounds and new zones. Radio for me is like a new mixtape — not knowing what is going to come next… or waiting for the next mic break to try and find out the name of that killer song they played 15 minutes ago. The mystery of it all is still exciting, like remnants of pre-internet music fandom when we searched through record stores, made lists from music magazines and traded tapes. I had a spell as a commercial FM DJ on WRNR in Maryland in the 1990s, but it wasn’t until moving to San Francisco that I started my own program called Pome Pome Tones. PPT currently broadcasts Wednesdays 7-9pm Central fortnightly on www.dunebuggyradio.com. Podcasts are up at www.mixcloud.com/dwlvs.

Fairport Convention — Reno Nevada — April 27, 1968

Recorded live on the French TV program Bouton Rouge. Brooke Sietinsons of The Espers turned me on this this when we were VHS tape trading in 2000 and I’ve been retreating to it every so often for 20 years. This is Fairport at their most delightfully blinding San Francisco ballroom jamming free flight. It’s just so fucking good. I love the crisp dual vocals of Judy Dyble and Ian Matthews, I especially love that they both sit down and look so bored during the guitar jam out. Especially Judy, just like a Donna Jean icy stare. But the jam out is super nice too — modal jazzy freak-outs, some of Richard Thompson’s best ever captured on video. This takes the most boring song from my favorite Richard and Mimi Farina album to incredible new zones. I also tend to play a lot of Ian Matthews’ early 1970s records on my radio show, as well. Such a pure voice and perfect ringwear rock vibes.

The Smiths — How Soon Is Now? (Chopped + Screwed)

The chopped + screwed style coming out of Houston, TX in the late 1990s/early 2000s is so fascinating. Full-on Robitussin-fueled shamanism, it’s like the modern-day version of dub. There are so many examples of this across the spectrum, but this 10-minute chopped version of The Smiths takes the cake — probably because 16-year-old me in 1984 sat on the floor listening to the original version of this over and over again, studying the gatefold. But this version is so much better. Thank you Scobed + Robed.

I’m Still In Love With You (Alton Ellis, Sean Paul)

Althea + Donna’s Uptown Top Ranking is one of my all-time favorite songs, and one of John Peel’s as well. A well-worn Jamaican riddim starting with Alton Ellis in 1967 and made famous again by Marcia Aitken in 1977. DJ Algoriddim has expertly mixed together a boat load of these variations here and it’s a killer 30-minute jam.

Jon Rose – Paganini’s Last Testimony

When things get autumnal each year, I gear up for a spooky edition of my radio show. One of my favorites featured this Jon Rose piece which he originally broadcast on ABC, Australia in 1988. It’s an amazing sinister collage of bible-belt radio bits, demonic violin, and Rose reciting devilish text from Paganini’s own letters. The CD is long out of print but you can hear the entire 57 minutes of this glorious creation on an old episode of Pome Pome Tones here.

10cc — I’m Not In Love 1975 Disco Purrfection Version

12-minute remix version of a favorite song from my early childhood — unbelievably smooth mix by DJ Disco Cat. Read the comments on the YouTube post for the full mix backstory. Purrfect.

Sun Ra Arkestra — at Victoria Theater, San Francisco California — Aug 3, 2013

I’ve been super fortunate to experience the live Arkestra a handful of times, and this set from 2013 simply floored me. They completely consumed that old ratty theater space with their magical floating power.

Dire Wolves — at Festival of Endless Gratitude, Copenhagen Denmark — Sep 13, 2019

Live DWLVS ! Yeah, I play my own music on my radio show all the time, somebody has to. This is a short rough audience clip — the proper audio of the whole set was released on LP by Feeding Tube / Cardinal Fuzz with a fabulous poster.

Flow & Heady by Dire Wolves Just Exactly Perfect Sisters Band

Copenhagen 2019 was the last time I saw these DWLVS bandmates in person, but we have plans to meet up again at the Milwaukee Psych Fest November 19-20, 2021, unless ya all spreadnecks shut it down.

Chuck Brown and The Junkyard Band — at Wilmer’s Park, Brandywine Maryland — Sep 19, 1989

I grew up in Baltimore and spent a lot of time going to punk and hippie shows in DC (old 9:30, DC space) in the 1980s, but Wilmer’s Park in southern MD was totally the place. All-day and night go-go shows, mini festivals with overnight camping, shows from Hot Tuna, Zero, Allmans, Root Boy Slim (!!!) and some of the best BBQ I’ve eaten, oh man. There was a lot of crossover of punk/funk/crunchy scenes back then, I loved it all. I went to a lot of Trouble Funk gigs, but this was the only time I witnessed the legendary Chuck Brown.

Alice Coltrane — at Palace of Culture, Warsaw Poland — Oct 23, 1987

Harp solo during her appearance at the Jazz Jamboree festival in 1987. Perfect, transportive.

Bardo Pond — What Are Their Names?

Probably the greatest band of the last 30 years covering one of my absolute favorite David Crosby songs, what could be better? I curated this Terrastock festival in Providence RI in 2006 and assembled a CD compilation of some of the performers for a micro release on the label I used operate called Secret Eye. The original features Jerry Garcia, Neil Young, Phil Lesh (what an amazing LP!) and this Bardo version somehow channels that essence in a slow fried perfect hash jar tempo.

[shemakesmusic-uk]

This segment features artists who have submitted their tracks/videos to She Makes Music. If you would like to be featured here then please send an e-mail to shemakesmusic@hotmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!

Manpreet Kundi

South Asian, UK-based artist Manpreet Kundi is releasing her self-written debut single ‘something’, setting the unique tone for her upcoming EP. Created acoustically at the piano; the song's essence is dreamy, lovelorn, melancholy and raw—dressed up in both dark and sad pop ambiances. something is layered in an emotional and lyrical sense; but at its core, is about "doubting everything you ever were to someone who for a while made you feel the most significant. It is the chaos and sheer sadness in the breakdown of what you had with said person; after they seemingly change their mind and leave you in panicked confusion with little to no explanation." The composition is an enchanted entwine of lingering vocal melodies and evocative instrumental; blending Manpreet’s signature acoustic piano, smooth atmospheric sounds and heavy, slow-tempo drums. "The entire song fell into place very naturally; born of my reflective tendencies and the intense, prolonged emotion I was feeling." Each section develops dynamically, inviting the listener on a journey through tender string arrangements to deep, bassy, hard-hitting sections. Her boyfriend Michael Brooker is the main producer of the track; along with Manpreet directing the nature of fundamental components plus engaging in elements of co-production—yet giving him creative freedom over the project's soundscape. Manpreet casts a glitter-dripping spell of magical, emotive piano and hauntingly mesmeric vocals to move you with the innate rawness and sentiment they carry. Writing music mostly at her piano; she is constantly inspired and liberated by the instrument that ever-propels her dynamic songcraft. Manpreet's heady, slow-tempo and cinematic style is reflective of main musical influence Lana Del Rey; as well as the 80's and 90's Disney movie soundtracks she began singing along to at 3 years old. She also grew up a fan of Taylor Swift, who furthered her love of poignant story-telling and sparklingly melodic lyricisms. She is repeatedly drawn to Lennon Stella's powerful vocal delivery, and unrivalled Frank Sinatra's spellbinding artistry. Listen to ‘something’ below.

300D

Jen Weisberg (former Ruby Pins) and Ben Pearce (former Windhal Flat) met through the Santa Cruz music scene of 2004. They didn’t become friends until a chance meeting on a street corner in Oakland, and they didn’t form 300D until a couple months into the pandemic. Ben Pearce produces Jen Weisberg’s words and vocal melodies. Their sophomore release ‘Grocery Vaping’ follows their December release ‘Valley Riff’. 300D held the Oakland friends together through the pandemic when Jen (a librarian) was enlisted as a disaster service worker, and Ben returned to Santa Cruz to help his family with the childcare gap left by school closures. ‘Grocery Vaping,’ echoes the duo’s musical evolution through swelling strings and words of longing. Listen below.

300D · Grocery Vaping

VIAL

VIAL is an indie punk quartet based out of Minneapolis, Minnesota, made up of Taylor Kraemer, Kate Kanfield, KT Branscom, and Katie Fischer. Their album LOUDMOUTH is here. Building on the band’s indie-punk DNA, it’s equal parts volatile and vulnerable. Producer Henry Stoehr (Slow Pulp) approaches the band’s core tenacity with an open heart, unleashing energy informed by guts, not necessarily genre. The band’s punk rock roots pack plenty of punch while new-wave moments rub elbows with WLW songs that wear roughness on their sleeves. There’s even a carnivalesque intro, reclaiming for VIAL what it means to be ringmaster. After all: in their three-ring circus, there’s no room for clowns. The track we’re focusing on here today is ‘Planet Drool’. The track is an emotional release of anger about our recurring feelings of discomfort in select punk scenes set to a fast-paced punk instrumental. Although named after the fictional universe of the 2005 children’s film The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl, ‘Planet Drool’ is the heaviest VIAL song they’ve yet to write! Listen below.

Chloe Castro

Chloe Castro has released her first single, 'FUTURE', since her debut EP AMID. Following a childhood spent living between France, Brazil and Wales, Chloe Castro relocated to the North East of England where she began writing songs aged 11. In 2016, half-Brazillian/half-British Chloe battled it out on National Television making it to the quarter finals of BBC One's The Voice UK. Having been recognized for her hypnotic voice, depth and lyrical prowess after her successful television debut, Chloe dedicated the next few years to honing her skills and building her repertoire in a studio in her spare bedroom with producer and co-writer Jake Karno. Inspired by artists including PARTYNEXTDOOR, Bryson Tiller and Frank Ocean, UK based R&B/Trapsoul artist Chloe Castro delicately blends together R&B and Soulful tones with Trap and elements of rap to create a sound that is uniquely her. 'FUTURE’ sees Chloe deliver a dark, sassy and powerful 'I don’t care if we break-up' song promoting independence and self-worth with straight to the point lyrics and emotive vocals. ‘FUTURE’ touches on the vulnerability of being in love and the frustration of feeling underestimated. It pairs that with a self-assured “fuck-you” attitude to create an anthemic vibe for summer 2021. As Chloe describes ‘FUTURE’: “Future is my way of saying let me do me, I know what’s best for me. Like feeling underestimated by someone but knowing your worth and not caring what anyone thinks, even someone you love.” Listen below.

Chloe Castro · FUTURE

[trophywifejimgordon]

thank you @bastardlarusso for tagging me! ^_^

Nickname: well, my dad calls me “punk.” other than that i haven’t really had one since i stopped going by my deadname? i think? (watch me be forgetting something crucial)

Zodiac: cancer 😔✊

Height: 5′9″. ish. 

Last Thing I Googled: other than “fist emoji” to put into this post? “the power of love lyrics” sfdgfgdshfnddghf

Song Stuck In My Head: funnily enough, the power of love (huey lewis & the news)

Amount Of Sleep: hahahahahaHAHAHA next question

Lucky Numbers: 34 (and any permutations of that. 17. 68. 43. etc)

Dream Job: author.....

Wearing: cobra kai t-shirt (thanks maryonna <3), jeans, ufo socks babeyyyy

Favorite Author: oof. uhhh, depends on the genre? i’m a pretty big fan of stephen king, jonathan stroud, edgar cantero, john brunner.... OH, and lyda morehouse, definitely. again, i’m probably critically missing some important figures in my literary experience but that’s who’s popping to mind atm.

Favorite Instrument: piano. it’s the only one i even kind of know how to play, anyway....

Aesthetic: tacky 80′s sci-fi shit. you seen re-animator? like that. actually, just tacky things and 80′s things in general. i look like if an entire decade threw up on me.

Favorite Song: how fuckin embarrassing is it if i say “on top of the world” by imagine dragons? 

Favorite Animal Noises: anything my little spengy boy says when he’s using his words (spengs being my cat, not esteemed ghostbuster dr. egon spengler.)

Random: when i was in middle school (well before IT (2017) came out, essential fact), i wrote a ~10k fanfic shipping gamzee makara from homestuck with pennywise from IT, on the basis that they were both clowns. i wrote this (AS A JOKE!) for a friend of mine’s birthday, rushing through the whole thing in one excruciating all-nighter. for the first part of the night, my goal was to go out of my way to fit every word from the spelling bee list (which both of us were competing in.. .i think? i know i did) into the story, but being that there were like 400 words on the list and that it took me about a paragraph if not more to write each one in, i had to give up on that in favor of finishing the fucking thing around like 2 am. i made a cover with bad clip art (ok, to be fair it was SUPPOSED to be bad) and printed the whole thing (around 15-20 pages) on the school printer, which technically had a limit of printing 3 pages per person per day, but the librarian liked me. her mistake. to make this worse, i hit print twice and i had to stand there while my weird clown fic printed in purple comic sans two times in a row, while someone else was watching me indignantly as she waited for her paper to print... whoops. anyway so that would all be bad enough, but the next year i wrote a sequel (i remember this being the best/worst installation in the series), and the next year after THAT i finished it as a trilogy, but also, i figured that the gift had to continually escalate, so i enlisted two other friends, and we made a fucking musical. 

every song was just a parody of some other song, with absolutely no rhyme or reason to genre or theme. i wrote the lyrics to these, and we actually recorded them, with one of my friends playing the ukulele and all of us singing parts. there was a cover of bring me to life by evanescence that we had to record about one thousand times because we kept laughing. i ruined my voice doing a terezi pyrope impression over a bad “bet on it” parody. at one point “can’t help falling in love” transitioned directly into “soldier boy.” possibly the most notable part of this whole enterprise was the fact that one of the songs we chose to be a part of this was “angel of the morning,” which... appears in one memorable scene in it: chapter 2, a movie that came out three years AFTER we did this. still don’t know what that means, but i’m pretty sure it’s a sign. anyway, i haven’t actually talked to the dude we did all this for in YEARS, but i still have a copy of that cd in my car. funny how life works out, i guess.

tagging: @oathedkeeper @charlesbukkakeowski @acieumdiddle @airi-koizumi @dragonmomknits @04kenma @marsunlost and anyone else who would like to do it!