#stuff about jazzy will just be with luke mainly for now I think

[thekrows-nest]

(anon)

Heh, it’s all good.

After the long, analytical sad asks (poor Mary), time for something relatively nice.

I’m not sure if you’d prefer Jazzy to not be discussed much, being a child character on an 18+ blog.

Some people really don’t feel comfortable with that and I don’t want to inspire weird asks or claims that a child character is being discussed inappropriately. Happy to leave her as a background character. (As she probably should be.)

But if it’s cool, after the ‘Dove inexplicably tries to harm Krow’s loved ones’ wild card ask I had a headcanon that quickly gives Jazzy and Luke some plot armour.

Maybe Jazzy casually does capoeira and is kind of talented?

Off to google. Not sure about after school programs but in SF Columbidae there is a club with free classes available during the term (for kids whose families can’t pay the fees). That fits.

Maybe her classmate’s parent picks them both up after school and then they spar for a hour or two until Luke gets off work to collect her.

She’s still really young (colouring book/tooth gap kinda stage?) and is a bit clumsy, doesn’t have the complex parts down. Normally a chill gentle artistic kid. But she’s got good instincts. She’s confident and strong for her age and her upbringing taught her she should be treated respectfully. She also grew up watching how Krow carried themselves.

For some reason A-hole Dove (or an older child, or a nasty lady?) got an attitude, roughly grabbing Jazzy’s arm, and before either Luke or Krow could react the offending ass was wallpaper.

Krow was horrified (it will not be without consequences) but internally squeeing over their little charge. Tiny, cute, but packing such deceptive power… well, she could almost be Krow’s own daughter. *happy birb noises* *delulu plans about teaching her butterfly knives* They are swelling with pride.

Luke is worried about her being punished for defending herself, he needs to explain Karens the world to Jazzy. But he is also quietly relieved. He feels guilty about working so much at odd hours and Columbidae City is so sketchy.

It’s reassuring that in addition to Krow protecting her Jazzy isn’t completely helpless.

Yeah jeez anon what did Mary ever do to you? /silly

(I appreciate the concern anon and you're very valid to have them, since it is something I had wondered too. I had been hesitant for a bit to even mention Jazzy before because of those connotations. Ultimately I figure I can talk about her a little, both to give context to Luke and even Krow's characters more, and to further humanize them, since she is important to both of their lives.)

It's possible that Jazzy could be learning capoiera (or karate or taekwondo or some other martial art) both as a means for learning self defense but also boosting in her self confidence. It'd further fit for her to learn what with being an afab PoC kid. Luke (and Krow) would wanna make sure she isn't defenseless.

(I wouldn't say Jazzy is super duper young, she's definitely old enough she can read some on her own, but isn't in the double digits yet either) and yeah, that is all very fitting with how I see her as. She's a good and chill kid, but a combo of her upbringing and also looking up to Krow has inspired her certainly.

I think if Krow ever were to see Jazzy actually defend herself, he wouldn't be sure whether to be horrified, impressed or laugh. Probably some combo of all three. In the end probably settle on being proud she can stand up for herself and willing to. (and you know what yes he is totally devising plans to show her how to use a butterfly knife when she's older).

I don't think Luke would punish Jazzy if it was valid reasons for defending herself (and most likely was). Have to explain a bit how the world works certainly, but he has also taught her (and she knows) to not use violence unless needed.

Jazzy is gonna be very capable when she grows up for sure.

[thisaintascenereviews]

The End Of The Year, Pt. II Part II: Top 20 Non-Metal Albums Of 2017For the next part of my list, I wanted to talk about my top twenty favorite “non-metal” albums of the year. See, metal has been so great this year, I couldn’t contain my picks to a single list, so I had to make a separate metal list. I’ll be posting that list tomorrow, but if you want to see my picks for my favorite non-metal albums, take a look here. I’ll be going more into detail within the top 10 (and that’ll go for my other couple of lists, too, for the record), but I still wanted to highlight all of these albums.

20. J.I.D – The Never Story 19. A Loss For Words – Crises 18. Oddisee – The Iceberg 17. Calvin Harris – Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 16. Rancid – Trouble Maker 15. Marc E. Bassy – Gossip Columns 14. The Menzingers – After The Party 13. Gentlemen And Scholars – Revelry 12. Carousel Kings – Charm City 11. Kip Moore – Slowheart

10. Vern Daysel – Blood of the Wolf

Earlier this year, I came across southern rock artist / singer-songwriter Vern Daysel, and his debut LP, 2016’s Shootin’ the Breeze, and it was a great record. You couldn’t even tell that he was from South Africa. Yeah, it’s surprising, but that LP was pretty good. Definitely nothing unique, but it was great for what it was. Not to mention, southern rock isn’t a genre that’s popular, so you don’t hear a lot of bands or artists like that anymore, but when he randomly released his sophomore album, Blood of the Wolf, I was excited, and this LP is pretty damn good. It’s more or less the same kind of stuff, but it doesn’t bother me, just because Daysel’s sound is so unique for the style he plays. It’s also done so well, it doesn’t bother me to hear more. Not to mention, I also wanted to highlight a “rock” album. I haven’t listen to many outright “rock” albums, even though a lot of whast I’ve been into have been pop-punk, punk, metal, hardcore, and stuff like that, I’ve barely any “tr00 rawk” music. This is that album, I guess, but it’s still a damn good record.

9. The Empty House – New Day

I’ve got a few hop albums on my list this year, well, in the top ten (I have five overall, actually, and there are tons more that I really enjoyed this year, they just didn’t make the cut, unfortunately), but one of them is The Empty House’s New Day. This is a duo that you probably haven’t heard of, and that’s fine, because I came across these two through Luke James, a reviewer on YouTube that covers a lot of hip-hop. He talked about their debut mixtape, New Day, and how it was very jazzy, free-flowing, easygoing, and more relaxed. I thought I’d like it a lot, and sure enough, I did. This thing is great. It’s very much in the same vein as A Tribe Called Quest, but not as great as them. I remember saying that in my review, because it’s like, this thing is awesome, but it doesn’t really compare to Tribe. Nonetheless, though, this is still a great record. I love it a lot, because it has a lot of stuff I love in hip-hop. The jazzy and low-key production, very clever and witty bars, solid hooks, and MCs that know what they’re doing. This is definitely a hip-hop record that I would recommend, and I’m glad that I came across it, because I love to highlight more underground acts.

8. dvsn – Morning After

I can’t say that I’ve listened to as much R&B this year as I wanted to, but one album that I had to check was dvsn’s sophomore LP, Morning After. I loved their debut LP, 2016’s SEPT. 5th. I think it was one of my favorites of last year, too, but I was definitely interested to see how they would follow it up. Sure enough, it’s great, but it’s not as great as the debut LP. I can’t say it’s that great, but I love what they’re doing here. This LP is more hazy, relaxed, easygoing, and definitely a bit catchier, but everything I still love about them is here. The vocals are awesome, the instrumentation is great, and the lyrics are pretty well-written, despite not being anything new or unique within the R&B genre. There are some interesting songs and moments here, but it’s more or less stuff that was already rehashed on their debut LP, or just stuff I’ve heard in general within R&B. If you are going to listen to some R&B, though, make it dvsn. These guys are super underrated, and they really shouldn’t, considering they’re signed to Drake’s label. Hell, they were featured on Views last year, too, but no one’s really talking about them, and that definitely needs to change. This album isn’t as great as the debut, but that’s fine, because Morning After is still awesome.

7. Chris Bullard – It’s Me

Chris Bullard is a country artist that is also quite underrated, but he shouldn’t, because his debut LP, It’s Me, is a great one. Hell, Maren Morris is featured on this thing, but when I came across It’s Me on Bandcamp way early this year, I was really into it. I loved it. I still love this album today. It’s a great country album that fans of the genre could really get into, especially if you enjoy acts that fall into the gray area of “pop-country,” but they’re not overly pop, either. They’re no Sam Hunt, even though I enjoy Sam Hunt a lot (that’s probably an unpopular opinion in the general music world, but I still enjoy his stuff a lot, since I enjoy his blend of R&B and country), I can understand why people wouldn’t like that. If anything, Bullard brings the catchiness and bombast that pop music can have, but has a signature country twang to it. He’s got a killer voice, some great lyrics, and an overall upbeat and down to earth feel to him that I really enjoy. He’s one of my favorite current country artists working in the scene today, and he’s an overall great guy, so definitely check out this record if you’re into country music at all. It took me by surprise, and I’m glad it did, because he’s an artist that deserves to be more well-recognized in the country scene.

6. For The Win – Heavy Thoughts

Something I haven’t made secret whatsoever is how much I don’t like pop-punk anymore. I mean, I don’t hate it, or anything like that, and if a good album comes my way, I’ll listen to it, but it’s not something I go out of my way to listen to. I just don’t care about it. With that said, I got a couple of pop-punk albums here, but For The Win’s Heavy Thoughts, well, it’s an easycore album. Easycore is pop-punk with breakdowns, pretty much, and I still enjoy easycore, mainly because I like hardcore a lot, so I’m totally fine with pop-punk bands taking a hardcore / metalcore approach to things. I don’t mean a band like A Day To Remember, either (they’re one of the first bands that started it, as well as arguably the most popular band of this kind of style, but I never looked at them as easycore, and I’m not really a fan of them whatsoever; I like a couple of their albums, but they’re not a band that I actively listen to anymore), but For The Win caught my attention earlier this year when I saw they signed to Victory Records. I made sure to listen to their debut EP, as well as their debut album, and I loved both of those. Sure enough, Heavy Thoughts is a stellar record. This thing is awesome, but at the same time, it’s not a unique album. It’s pretty basic easycore, but it’s done so damn well, I can’t complain the slightest. This thing is chock full of hooks, breakdowns, clever lyrics (some of which really hit me in the feels, honestly), and everything that I love about easycore. For whatever reason, I can get much more into easycore than pop-punk, but that’s fine with me, because it seems like easycore is coming through with much better and much more interesting albums.

5. Khalid – American Teen

Now we’re in the top five, and this is where things get really, really good. At my number five slot, we’re going to be talking about Khalid, a pop / R&B artist that’s been making waves throughout this year with his debut LP, American Teen, as well as many features on other projects throughout the year. If you’re a fan of pop, R&B, or both, don’t sleep on this record. It’s pretty damn good. Khalid mixes both styles in a way that’s all his own. Not to mention, dude’s got an amazing voice, and because there is a pop sensibility throughout this record, he uses it well. The hooks on this thing are great. What I love most, however, are the lyrics. The lyrics on this LP are very much about, well, being an American teen. Khalid himself is only eighteen, I believe, or he was at the time of this album being recorded, so he talks a lot about what it’s like to be a teen in this day and age. It’s not cringy, pandering, or anything like that, but it’s honest. If anything, too, I can relate to a lot of this. I went through a lot of the same things, and I felt a lot of the same ways that he did, so this LP took me to that time. It’s great when an album can do that, and this one definitely did, but even aside from that, it’s a great album. I’ve been spinning this periodically throughout the year, but every time I do, I absolutely love it. It’s an insanely great record, and definitely my favorite pop record of this year. I mean, I’d say Khalid is more pop than R&B, but he’s got elements of R&B and soul in his sound, but he’s definitely more in the pop vein. If anything, he reminds me a lot of Justin Timberlake, because if you recall, his music has the same kind of sound, and that’s never a bad comparison to make.

4. Amine – Good For You

My favorite rappers are Chance The Rapper, KYLE, Childish Gambino, and a few more, so when I first heard about Amine, the guy that made “Caroline,” I was hooked. Amine has a unique voice, he’s very goofy, silly, and witty, but he knows how to craft a good hook, as well as have some very eloquent bars and ideas within his music. Honestly, if you enjoy any of those three rappers, and you want something similar, Amine’s debut LP, Good For You, is better than that – it’s great for you. This album took me by surprise, because I picked it up, knowing that “Caroline” was on here, but I wasn’t expecting a lot of awesome songs. This thing is awesome. It reminded me a lot of Chance The Rapper, but I feel like Amine puts his spin on that sound, and he’s not merely copying Chance’s sound. He just happens to have a similar sounding voice, which definitely happens, but he takes that sound and does something different with it. His sound ventures into pop and electronic music in a few places, but he still has some catchy bangers and even some low-key R&B tunes, too. This is the kind of album that I feel like could appeal to people that don’t listen to hip-hop, because Amine’s got a more “alternative” sound. I hate to say that, but I hope that makes sense. Not to mention, too, this thing really stands out in the current hip-hop landscape, since it’s all dominated by trap, and all that stuff that people constantly talk crap about. If you want a good alternative, Good For You is perfect for that, because it’s got its own unique sound that I really enjoy.

3. Broadside – Paradise

Broadside is a really interesting band to me, because they’re one of the few pop-punk bands that I love. I loved their debut LP, 2015’s Old Bones, and I love their new LP, Paradise. Released earlier this summer, Paradise caught me by surprise, because instead of going in the same direction that literally every other pop-punk band has been going into (read: boring emo and grunge that’s been done to death since 2012), they went pop. Not just pop-rock, but full blown pop. I’m not shocked that I’ve seen some fans hate this album, and I guess I get it, but I gotta admire a band that has balls. I haven’t seen a pop-punk band do this since Fall Out Boy did it ten years ago, and I think that’s why I love this album so much. Not only does it work insanely well, but I love that they took this risk. This LP is catchier, slicker, and more energetic, as well as more reliant on its pop hooks, versus being a pop-punk album. This isn’t really even a pop-punk album. It’s more of a pop / pop-rock album. Like I said, though, it works. This thing is awesome in every single way. Similar to Fall Out Boy, too, this band was already headed in that direction, since Old Bones had plenty of songs that were more pop-leaning, and their vocalist has one killer voice, so I’m all for it. This LP doesn’t do anything super unique, mindblowing, or insanely experimental, but for the genre, which is known for being very stale, boring, and lackluster, I’m glad to hear a breath of fresh air. I’m glad they did something different. I’m glad they weren’t afraid to embrace pop, and for that alone, I love this album. It’s one of the best of the year for me.

2. Big K.R.I.T. – 4eva Is A Mighty Long Time

My favorite hip-hop of the year goes to a man that I’ve wanted to talk about again for a long, long time. Well, sort of, because I did get into some Big K.R.I.T. projects earlier this year, but I’ve wanted to talk about a new project for the last two years. I got into K.R.I.T.’s two years ago, when I first heard It’s Better This Way. I was hooked by his southern hip-hop sound. I got hooked onto that whole style of hip-hop, too, but I wanted a new album from him. Unfortunately, he was dropped from his record label, which he talks about on 4eva Is A Mighty Long Time; this album is his first independent album, but it’s also a double album that showcases two sides to Big K.R.I.T. I’ll be damned if this isn’t awesome, either, because it surprisingly works really well. I think I like the first disc a bit more, since it’s less experimental, as it’s Big K.R.I.T. doing his thing, but that’s the point of it. The second disc is more about the man behind Big K.R.I.T., Justin Scott, and it’s more experimental, jazzy, soulful, and stuff like that, but it works, too. Some of the best songs are on the second disc. This LP is a bit long, around 85 minutes, so if this is your first rodeo with K.R.I.T., take some time to get into this one. It’s a bit of a long listen, but there’s a lot to really get into here. I put it really high up here, because this LP did have a big effect on me when I listened to it, but when we get to my favorite albums overall, it’s not as high as you might think, and I’ll just say why – this thing is two discs. It’s a bit too long, and it does drag in spots. I didn’t come back to this as much as I wanted to, even though it was a lot, but it was more so periodically, because this LP does take a lot of time to get into. I love it, though, and in terms of K.R.I.T. projects, this is one of the better ones that I’ve heard.

1. Soul Scratch – Pushing Fire

For my favorite non-metal album this year, this one should be a no-brainer to anyone that’s followed my yearend list since it first started. Soul Scratch’s sophomore album, Pushing Fire, was the first album that I listened to in 2017. It’s also been the album that’s been at the number one helm for the longest, too, and it’s only been dethroned once. You’ll see what I mean in a couple of days, but I love this album, This LP is a fantastic funk, soul, and R&B record that blends all three styles into something interesting, unique, and awesome. This LP is also very poignant and relevant, because some of the songs are more political in tone, but not angrily political. That’s what I like this album, because they take a different approach to the whole situation that’s been unfolding since last year. They take the approach of love. They talk about how there’s a lot that needs to be done for our country, and the best way to go about that is through loving one another, versus hating everyone that’s not like us. They also talk about other issues and plights that people are facing today, and they do it in a poignant and intelligent way, but if you want cute songs about love and relationships, as most soul and funk bands have, you’ll find those, too. They’re done really well, and this band is awesome. They have a great vocalist, and their musicianship is top notch, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from this band. Soul Scratch is a band that I wish would get bigger, but unfortunately, because their sound is very niche, and about 40 years too late (yeah, funk music isn’t the hot commodity that it once was), I gotta make sure that I talk about them, because this album is absolutely fantastic in all the best ways.