#the art and writing you guys produce are always bangers

[melit0n]

Most of the time my liking of Vessel is more of an admiration than an attraction, but like, once I month I see a photo or clip of him and I'm like yeah. If I was a fisherman in the middle of the Atlantic I'd have NO chance

[johannesviii]

Top 10 Personal Favorite Hit Songs from 2022

Another pretty decent year for pop music ; a very slow one, with a lot of trash, but the good stuff was so good making a top 10 took me ages, unlike 2021 where it was way easier. Outside of the top 100, some incredible stuff dropped this year too, so yeah - even if the charts don't always reflect it, music as a whole is currently very interesting to follow.

Disclaimers / Rules:

I’m using both the year-end top 100 lists from the US and from France while making these lists. There’s songs that charted in my country way higher than they did in the US, or even earlier or later, so that might get surprising at times.

No song that I already put on a previous list is elligible.

No old hit song that is re-charting due to a holiday or a trend is elligible either.

Of course there will probably be stuff in French somewhere on this post. We suck. I know. It’s my list. Deal with it.

My musical tastes have always been terrible.

I have sound-to-color synesthesia which justifies nothing but might explain why I have trouble describing some songs in other terms than visual ones.

So. Uh. Again, again. How was your 2022??

Still didn't catch covid but I did catch a very nasty cold a month ago. Still drawing and writing a lot, and also spending more and more time customising my clothes with dumb patches and embroidered messages and stuff.

I went to a LOT of concerts this year, and they were all fantastic for completely different reasons! I'm so glad I finally have the budget to do this without feeling guilty or cutting down some more vital stuff. So yeah. I went to see My Chemical Romance, The Soft Moon, Sigur Ros, Placebo and Enter Shikari. Before that the last concert I had attended was VNV Nation all the way back in 2019!

Speaking of which, let’s start with the good or interesting albums that came out in 2022 or in late 2021, and this is going to be pretty long.

Albums

I have to mention that I tried to get into Ghost this year. It's definitely not for me apart from a couple of songs, but also, Impera was pretty bad. Probably wasn't a good idea to start listening to these guys in their current era.

I also have to mention that I've been thoroughly disappointed by Mainstream Sellout, because I'm one of those weirdos who actually liked Tickets to my Downfall by Machine Gun Kelly. But yeah, the guy became self-aware, and that's the worst thing that could possibly happen. Awful. Emo Girl is unintentionally funny, though.

Not sure this counts as an "album" since it's an EP, and a five minutes-long one at that, but Snake Eyes by 100 Gecs made me even more excited for their new album in 2023.

Electric Callboy's Tekkno is dumb and funny in all the right ways and I'm glad they got so much positive attention out of it. That's trolling with actual effort and passion put into it and it's kind of a lost art form at this point. The music videos are amazing too.

Rakshak by Bloodywood is exactly the kind of thing Nu Metal needed to move forward and I love the fact that energy came from India, of all places. A lot of fresh ideas, generally interesting topics and politics ; I'm sold. This is great. More, please.

Muna by uh Muna didn't leave much of an impression on me at first but I kept thinking about it and I eventually came back to it to relisten to it several times later in the year. I'm not sure what it means. Probably something good, though. Maybe it will be one of my faves of the year in retrospect..? Also it's very gay, which never hurts.

I'm somewhat conflicted about Being Funny in a Foreign Language by The 1975. Objectively, it's probably their best album ; it's straightforward, it's very well produced, it has a couple of bangers. Subjectively, I'm not even sure I'd place it above Notes on a Conditional Form, which if you recall was a GIGANTIC MESS, just because the highs of this mess were stratospheric compared to the ones the new album has. Still really good, but I miss the chaos.

Death's Dynamic Shroud's Dark Life has SO MANY different ideas going in so many different directions it's kind of a miracle that the album stays so coherent. The colors and the textures are sometimes so complex and layered that just listening to them to try to pick them apart becomes a stim to me. Beautiful.

I only found this album last month but Dimensional Bleed by Holy Fawn is one of the best post rock things I've ever heard since Sigur Ros stopped releasing new music

Exister by The Soft Moon comes so close to being my album of the year. SO close. Among all the musicians trying to become the new Trent Reznor, this guy's the only credible candidate for me, just because he's not afraid to try really weird shit. When I saw him live in October, the last thing he played had a castanets solo over huge electronic beats. And it went hard as hell! I sincerely hope his future stuff will be even better. I'm sold.

But uh. Guys. I'm sorry.

I'm so predictable. Never Let Me Go, Placebo's comeback album, is my favorite album of the year. Of course, when one of my favorite bands ever decided to release new music after nearly ten years of nothing, I was thrilled, but also worried it would disappoint me. The first singles were amazing, but what if? What if the rest of the album wasn't as good? And yet, by the time it was over, I was trying to determine if it was my third or fourth fave album in their discography. Even now, I'd only put Meds and Sleeping With Ghosts above this one. It's distinctly them, but full of new and interesting ideas. I'm beyond happy things turned out so well.

Unelligible Songs

There's a TON of them! Because that year was very good! This is kind of a non-hits rec list of sorts, but you know the drill.

Should I start with some Gecs? I feel like I should start with some Gecs. So here's Doritos and Fritos, Hey Big Man and Torture Me. You're welcome.

While we're at it, if you've never watched any of the recent Electric Callboy music videos, your day is about to get slightly better. I suggest Pump It and Spaceman. Also both are actually good songs on top of being funny.

I might have trashtalked Ghost's new album earlier but Spillways is like Poison 2.0. That's a compliment by the way

I've not always enjoyed what these guys made post-Hot Fuss, but Boy by the Killers should definitely have been a hit.

What I Want by Muna also has this "should have been a huge hit" aura. I'm feeling every line of this chorus in my bones. Best song about delayed adolescence for queer people

Are we making a list of songs that should have been hits? Let me add Metric with What feels like eternity, then

However, American Teenager by Ethel Cain might still have a slight chance of becoming a hit song in the future. I want to believe

Hey do you want some cringe. Cause here's Slaughterhouse by Motionless In White oops

JEZEBEEEEEEEEEEL IF YOU'RE THE HUNTER THEN I'M THE PREYYYYYY

At this point I'm pretty sure I've listened to Precious Hearts by The Birthday Massacre for about six hours over the course of 2022 but since I'm an old idiot who only listens to music through .mp3 files and doesn't use spotify I have no way to check

My very first contact with Bloodywood was Dana Dan, and what a first impression that was. Turn the subtitles on, by the way.

Go_A dropped an absolute banger called Kalyna at the very start of the Ukraine war and it might just be their best track so far.

I am legally obligated to mention The Foundations of Decay by My Chemical Romance. Is it their best song? Hell no. Is it mixed like shit? Yes. Is it way to long? Absolutely. Do I enjoy it? Immensely. Also it had no music video and no promotion. What a power move

Nurture by Porter Robinson, which I mentioned last year as one of my favorite albums in a year full of incredible ones, was still one of my most listened-to albums of 2022, so it feels right to mention a song he released outside of any album this year (Everything Goes On).

Avantasia is back, with a..... an album I didn't like very much, oops, but damn, The Moonflower Society is one of their best songs ever. Long live ridiculous over-the-top power metal with super-serious poetry as lyrics.

Born Yesterday by Quadeca sounds like Sigur Ros trying to make a radio-friendly song, and it sounds absolutely immaculate. Also it's about someone who killed himself just before his birthday and his ghosts deeply regrets that decision

This is not the end by Gareth Emery might be standard EDM, but it's also genuinely comforting to hear these lyrics

I need to put a break here otherwise Tumblr won't let me post this thing. Are you still there? Ok good.

El Alma Que Te Trajo (Safety Trance ft. Arca). Send tweet

It's kind of funny that emo came back a couple of years ago through 8-o-8's and sad rappers with face tattoos. It's even funnier that I genuinely enjoyed some of their stuff. It's even-even funnier that some of them are straight-up doing pop punk stuff now. All of this to say that I love Girl Next Door by Lil Lotus

If you've followed anything in the metal scene this year you already know that Lorna Shore absolutely killed it in 2022. Hell yeah let's put some melodies in deathcore, I'm all for it. Anyway Sun//Eater is great

I should probably recommend some cool music that cool people like before I humiliate myself further by recommending more edgy shit, so this is the perfect time to say that Judgment Bolt, Neon Memories and Messe de E-102 are now permanently etched somewhere in my brain. Seriously please listen to Darklife by Death's Dynamic Shroud if you have the slightest, smallest interest in electronic music I beg you

Ok back to the cringe. Speaking of neons, here's Neon Grave by Dayseeker. I've never liked a song by these guys before so this was a bit of a surprise for me

Also I've listened to it again and again but I still want to cry every time I hear This is what you wanted by Placebo. Not sure why it's my absolute favorite track on an album full of fantastic tracks. Not sure what it says about me. Not sure I want to know

I think I mentioned an Enter Shikari concert. Not sure I can call myself a fan yet, but I spent an ungodly amount of hours listening to their old and new stuff in 2022. Turns out one of my favorite songs they ever made is one of the newest ones, The Void Stares Back. This is exactly the kind of surreal and borderline apocalyptic lyrics I need in my life. I even bought a t-shirt saying "I'm the child with the telescope eyes" at that concert oops

Oh Caroline is one of the best songs The 1975 ever made and, like all my fave songs from that band, it's deeply awkward and embarrassing. It's a guy begging his ex to come back and it gets humiliating. Perfection. Thank you

Just when you thought this list couldn't get worse I'm about to confess I love The Boy in the Black Dress by Yungblud. Can't get the image of a teenager trying to remove his nail polish with his teeth after a teacher told him he looked girly out of my head now. God I love narrative songs so much

We've reached the terminal velocity of musical cringe so here's sTraNgeRs by Bring Me The Horizon because OF FUCKING COURSE I love sTraNgeRs by Bring Me The Horizon. You must be new here. WE'RE DYING TO LIVE AND WE'RE LIVING TO DIIIIIIIIIIE

Also I'm not going to recommend too many the Soft Moon songs but Become the Lies is now a classic for me only six months after it came out, and I've been obsessed with Him (ft Fish Narc, who kills it as the evil twin of the narrator) to the point of making fanart of the mental amv I have for it. Might even upload it after finishing this post, I'm not sure.

Honorable Mentions

Tití me preguntó (Bad Bunny) - I swear I had this song playing in my brain for days and I'm not even sure I like it.

Jour meilleur (Orelsan) - I'm usually not the biggest fan of the guy, but this one is really nice.

As it was (Harry Styles) - Perfectly serviceable little pop tune.

Where are you now (Lost Frequencies) - A great earworm.

Enemy (Imagine Dragons) - Listen. It's bad. But I can't get over the fact that an overly-hated band made a song where the chorus literally screams "EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE MY ENEMYYYY", it's so much fun to sing along with it

Shivers (Ed Sheeran) - Do I really like Ed Sheeran now. Is this my life. Is this what growing old feels like

Belly Dancer (Imanbek & BYOR) - I'm going to the gym now and this is on their playlist. It's completely brainless but it had a serious chance to end on my actual top ten at some point. I physically can't listen to it without at the very least tapping my foot on the floor.

One Right Now (Post Malone & The Weeknd) - This WAS on my list at some point but I ended up cutting it. Nobody seems to like this song, and I love it for all the wrong reasons. Namely, the fact that a duet between two male singers talking about someone cheating on them sounds like they cheated on each other. And I think that's unintentional comedy gold.

Bad habit (Steve Lacy) - The very last cut I had to make. It's a wonderful song, and I simply adore its vibe, but I tend to lose some interest after 2:20 for some reason. No idea why.

Pretty sure there's nobody still reading this post. Which might be good because there's one deeply humiliating pick on this top ten. Let's do this

THE ACTUAL TOP TEN LIST

10 - Santé (Stromae)

US: Not on the list / FR: #90

I still can't believe this idiot climbed his way out of depression and burnout just to tell every emergency worker to join a union. What a king. Legends only

Also I seriously considered putting it at the top of this list in very early 2022 if the year turned out to be mediocre. I never expected it to be placed so low in the end. That's a good thing, by the way

9 - Break my soul (Beyoncé)

US: #38 / FR: Not on the list

So uh. As far as I know there's still no music video for this one, which is kind of a power move in this day and age, not gonna lie. But yeah. You know me. Can't resist a eurodance diva. And Beyoncé as a eurodance diva is all I ever wanted and more. What the hell happened this year, music-wise, seriously

8 - J'la connais, pt. 1 (Emkal)

US: Not on the list / FR: #89

Okay, the autotune is a bit grating. Doesn't matter.

Look, I usually dislike this kind of songs and singers always talking about girls cheating on them and stuff. But no, this dude right there is singing about people telling him his girlfriend is going to cheat on him, and he basically tells them he trusts her more than them ("Cette fille, j'la connais, eh, mais toi, tu es qui ? On se connaît ?" ("I know that girl, eh - but you? who are you again?"). Very refreshing. Well played, sir.

7 - Thunder (Gabry Ponte)

US: Not on the list / FR: #59

BEHOLD. THERE IS NOW A GOOD SONG CALLED "THUNDER" ON THE CHARTS. AND IT'S COMPLETELY BRAINLESS.

So uh, this one also plays at the gym. It's just some very basic and very commercial EDM. For some reason, it kinda sounds like a pirate song to me, the kind of thing you'd drink to on an adventure or something like that. There's not a lot that can be said about it. The colors are especially trippy, though.

Does it look like I'm stalling for time? Uh, maybe I am.

Oh god, here comes the really embarrassing part.

6 - Bad habits (Ed Sheeran ft Bring Me The Horizon)

US: #13 / FR: #53

So uh. This was in my honorable mentions last year:

And it was slowly exiting the charts when this new version dropped all of a sudden in mid-February, with way more guitars and bombast, and of course Oli Sykes screaming his head out at the end. And it climbed up the charts all over again.

And since I'm a major sucker with no taste, of course I loved it.

Doesn't make up for the fact the lyrics are still very vague and Ed Sheeran is still Ed Sheeran, but clearly that wasn't enough to keep this version of the song off my list. It's enough to make me question my choices, though. Steve Lacy should probably be there instead.

Eh. Too late now.

5 - Numb Little Bug (Em Behold)

US: #32 / FR: Not on the list

I initially put this one higher ; I'm not tired of it or anything, it's just that I don't listen to it as often as some things above it. And it got popular through TikTok, too - I'd ask if the kids are okay, but we all know the answer to that question, I think. I can't get over how brutal these lyrics are for what's essentially a cute pop song. And yeah, that's a huge mood. Do you ever get a little bit tired of life? Yes! Quite often actually! Glad we're all on the same page, at least. It's somewhat comforting.

Imagine how bleak and scary that song would be if it was more serious and less upbeat, though.

Oh. Oh shit.

4 - L'Enfer (Stromae)

US: Not on the list / FR: #46

Guess we don't have to imagine. Guess it already exists. Guess it's on the French year-end chart. And it's absolutely terrifying.

Look, I'm glad Stromae is back. I'm glad he feels better. But uh- yeah. This track is genuinely hard to listen to. I'm pretty sure it's objectively better than the three songs I placed above it, but yeah.

J'ai parfois eu des pensées suicidaires, et j'en suis peu fier (I've had suicidal thoughts at times and I'm not proud of it) On croit parfois que c'est la seule manière de les faire taire (Sometimes you think that's the only way to shut them up) Ces pensées qui me font vivre un enfer (These thoughts that make my life hell)

Yeah.

3 - About Damn Time (Lizzo)

US: #12 / FR: Not on the list

I had a hard time deciding where to rank this song between #3 and #2. Maybe I should say it's a tie. It changes day to day with my mood, really.

But yeah, thank you Lizzo for being a combo breaker in this short series of songs about addiction and depression and death! This one is impossible to resist. You hear it and you just have to move or tap your feet and smile. And-

I'm way too fine to be this stressed, yeah Oh, I'm not the girl I was or used to be, uh Bitch, I might be better

Favorite lyrics of the year? I don't know. Maybe. Amazing, in any case. Thank you for this gift, madam.

2 - That's What I Want (Lil Nas X)

US: #14 / FR: Not on the list

Aaaaaaaaand back to the sadness. Well, not really. The song itself is pretty upbeat. In any case, you've probably seen that one coming from a mile away because of my 2021 Unelligible Songs list:

And yeah! It's elligible at last! I'm so, so happy. And I want Lil Nas X to find love and be happy too. Montero was gay as hell, Industry Baby was a victory lap, but this one? This one is the guy bearing his soul and you can feel it even through the impeccable production and pop sensibilities. Cry your heart out to this upbeat tune, my friend, it's gonna be okay. And we love you.

1 - Meet Me At Our Spot (The Anxiety)

US: #74 / FR: Not on the list

I think I've listened to this one more than any other song this year and yet I'm still not entirely sure why I love it so much, especially considering it took literal months to grow on me. I can't even describe its vibe. Is it melancholy? No, it's too happy. Is it happy then? No, it's too tired. But it has energy, too. Is it romantic? Not really. What is it?

One thing's for sure, whichever vibe it is, I got lost in it for hours, to the point of creating entire scenes set to it in my mind. Which led to drawings. Which led to me inventing characters completely disconnected from the song and writing a story where the initial scene I visualised is only a small one in the grand scheme of things.

There's magic in this song's vibe, and I've been on a quest to transcribe it, and I will probably fail. In the meantime, thank you for meeting me at this spot. It's been a wild ride. See you next year!

[friedbreadwombat]

Look if you don't wanna read about me screaming in fandom hivemind incellulia spectacular, this is a warning, pls look away, go do something more fun, or something, idk.

*regurgitates idea like bird*

Stolitz Dancer AU!

Stolas is a choreographer, Blitzo is a performer.

Blitzo is yeah ur usual boi aligning w the helluvaboss plot, coming from not very much privilege, had to work his ass off to get to where he be now. His previous job before he crashed unceremoniously into the perfoming arts scene cursing about fizzaroli, was a guy of a trained private hire security squad that like, assisted the cia, or something. He has a gun yes, and that was all he cared about, besides horses. He doubles as stolas's bodyguard if the plot requires it, still, hence, because, he can do guns. Quality time with daddy. No, no I will never get over that sce-

Stolas is yes rich high fluffy goetia boy of the privilege yes. Again following series, coming from a long generational line of wealthy predecessors of the field, raised to be heir of goetia fam, was given the heck of a library, much knowledge babie, very learn, was hatched, and dancing, as soon as he could walk. what is autonomy, and can you eat it. It's what he's supposed to do, right? Well, nevermind because in any case he is very good at it. Hence he'd made a name for himself, despite holding and inheriting the family name. Privilege didn't have to raise a fine man, when it could raise a spoiled bastard reliant on capitalism, but yet, here we are. Intelligent, charismatic, very talented, and always, always somehow wiser than his years might tell, leading to a depth and myriad of stunning performances, dances, of absolutely anything, perfected and polished by yours truly. An artist both respected, and feared.

One day stolas gets a viktor nikiforov style call from Blitzo's management, specifically, Blitzo's team, it is not moxie on the line, it is not. He is not on 4 hours of sleep, no, you're tired, not him.

It's Blitzo's request. He wants to work with him. Stolas.

THE Blitzo.

The fastest risen artist in the past decade that hit like a car outta nowhere.

AND BOY, DO PEOPLE LOVE THE FIRE.

Feral amoral asshole genius man has blazed his trail of never before perceived depth, to the name of his field, relatively new and a few years in. Banger tunes that made ears feel novel, performances that were only described as 'breathtaking'. Productionally, a revolutionary, who somehow decided that he was gonna start scream singing his death metal rendition of some equivalenth of baby shark in a grocery store, improv-ed off the supermarket radio, and garnered an audience of about a hundred, and an online audience of about too many times of that for Stolas to feel chill about this.

He's had fans screaming at his stages, and fighting rabidly for the tickets, of which, a, lucrative, amount, flagged up onto a lucrative place at an incredibly, lucrative, price. And, no, it wasn't because he was a hot- no, no gotta keep it professional, gotta keep it together, no, can't be dangerously hor- no, not while they are supposed to produce together. He must uphold, his very best, yes.

The last conversation Stolas had had with the man, also very yuri on ice, had left him with a piece of, something, in his heart, that he could not forget. What exactly was it?

He'd keep that a secret to himself.

Better for himself, than to someone who's gonna tease him endlessly for it, you know?

Anyway, he had been offered to choreograph one of his performances for a new song.

So yeah cool shit ig wtv, they gotta meet up to collaborate so i can write interactions, and for stolas to nail the choreo with him in person, for the best of results, so he can guide out and polish it for the best. And Blitzo thought, capable as this unpredictable smartass is, that for this once, he could hella learn a lot of shit from this guy. And delete verosika from the scene. He is the best after all. Nothing else.

Nothing else.

Stolas and Blitzo do a plane and meet because planes exist here.

Stolas has a heart attack when he sees blitzo for the first time. Because he is famous, and lives, completely and genuinely, the name he had made for himself, in what, 3 years?!

He is also hot, and well fuck, he can't fucking deny this anymore, his eyes are having a field day, and his face is tomatoed at this point, or at least, it feels that way. Blitzo would probably have said something if it were that visible, anyway.

Holy shi- Anyway, they bleehblah bloohblah more shit happens, they dance, sexual tension or something, i dont know, im just recalling that 1 klance fic from ye old days.

INSERT THAT 1 SWAY ANIMATIC. They dance on tables. Because they are table hoppers.

Yes.

This is prob at some banquet formality scenario, prob nearing the actl performance, like some sort of acquaintance rich people party.

Maybe they're getting real close now. Its getting pretty.

Pretty.

But, aha yeah blitzo has the same issues helluva boss portrayed, does not like love, he's been avoiding the entire thing schtick he has with stolas, insert that 1 scene of one of the eps, the uh captured by the humans spy guys one where stolas goes to save him and he has an acid trip, where hes like chained by stolas, sitting atop a flight of stairs, and stolas is pulling him closer. Maybe because it will trap him again, relationships are his glorified chain prisons, anyway. He'd escape, if he could, but every attempt he makes to hack stolas' social media account to post memes on his main,

Has him going places he'd never thought he'd go.

So, how would it all play out? Will they make it a hell of a show? Will Blitzo nail his epic stunt, and throw in an unholy amount of fireworks again? Will Stolas remain composed, around his new, and growing, celebrity crush? Will stolas eat blitzo's pet rat?

Idk depends on if this gets written or no it just came to mind and I wrote it

[manicdragondreamgirl]

I haven’t had chemistry since like 2008, and I’m also an idiot who likes to make my friends upset, so I rated the periodic table in order to tilt my friends:

Hydrogen - this is like your childhood friend who has always been with you more or less and always will be down to get a drink and chill even tho you haven’t spoken in years. Solid bro imo 7.5/10

Helium - always down for a good time, even if probably created Alvin and the Chipmunks which in some places is considered a war crime. 4/10

Lithium - Gives me bitchy vibes and is flammable as fuck if I remember. Skinny bitch with an attitude 3/10

Beryllium - idk this sounds like a sailor moon villain lol for that it can have a 6/10

Boron - more like BORONG amirite ha ha wait no seriously I have no idea lol 5/10 clean neutral rating

Carbon - *screaming* 2/10 I will not be taking questions

Nitrogen - cool cool cool tight tight tight 9/10 Nitrogen just is the cool hot chick you wish you were

Oxygen - kid who takes up all the glory for the group project even tho you did all the work, 4/10 for natural charisma

Fluorine - lol what are you knockoff chlorine lmfao bitch 3/10 reminds me of the dentist

Neon - I can vibe with this boy for his contributions to signs which cause my eyes to scream 8/10 modernized Art Deco thanks you

Sodium - 10/10 this is me and I won’t be taking questions next element

Magnesium - magnesium is a close relative of magnificent and therefore I think the case is closed folks 9/10

Aluminum - 10/10 for providing a home to my Diet Coke addiction I’d be dead without you

Silicon - 6.9/10 :smirk:

Phosphorous - This has a very soundly name and it’s welcome to do that but idk, not a fan, seems like he’d be smelly, 2/10

Sulfur - 1/10 pretty sure that dog farts are purely comprised of this and as such if I was leaving negative ratings I would

Chlorine - 7.8/10 for being in pools so we could swim without brain eating amoeba in the south you a champ

Argon - he seems like a nerd jk this guy has a good color 9/10 for just being himself

Potassium - I hate bananas and this word gives me the physical sensation of biting into one but only by thinking of abstract letters and making them into something which we can nutrientise from bananas and to me that shit is bananas, b a n a n a s — 3/10 for making me sing hollaback girl thru adhd word association

Calcium - hm my brain went to mega milk so you get a 2/10 today bud I don’t make the rules

Scandium - pretty sure this is fake lol what’s next faxdium, e-Mailite and copinium? 5/10

Titanium - this song’s a banger and also is the only thing that lets me wear earrings 10/10

Vanadium - if your erection lasts for longer than like idk it’s supposed to then don’t take vanadium wait what do you mean it’s not an ED treatment 4/10

Chromium - decent bloke shame the browser eats all your memory 5/10

Manganese - if a weeb tries to tell me how to pronounce mayonnaise one more time... 1/10

Iron - excellent tool against the fey, in your blood, what a bro, 10/10 this bitch slaps

Cobalt - has a powerful energy; I respect him. 8/10

Nickel - if I had a nickel for every time someone made this joke lol 5/10 he’s doing his best

Copper - taste bad 3/10

Zinc - isn’t that the dude in the green tunic and white tights who saves premcess Lelda or something lol 7/10 those games are good

Gallium - seems like a prick 4/10

Germanium - sounds like a child pronouncing geraniums which are superior 3/10

Arsenic - bad vibes coach 1/10

Selenium - isn’t this just sailor moon lol 10/10 love this bitch

Bromine - farmine wherever you aremine - 9/10 I love a good bro

Krypton - he’s okay I guess 5/10

Rubidium - yet another Steven universe villain who will be redeemed I imagine 4/10 seems a bit dull

Strontium - I feel nothing when I see this lad’s name and that seems like a shame 1/10 I don’t like it

Yttrium - this is an atrium in Yharnam, or something 8/10 would love to sit in one and make contact with higher beings

Zirconium - oh wait THIS is the sailor moon villain from the dead moon circus! 9/10 I enjoyed that arc

Niobium - seems sassy, I like that in an element 7/10

Molybdenum - I hate this one, rancid. 1/10 for making me have flashbacks to difficult Ancient Greek vocabulary there is no fucking way that sound combination is anything but Beta and Delta borking and then Latin being like oh imma steal that

Technetium - 6/10 decent name but seems a bit forced

Ruthenium - 5/10 kindly old lady element I guess lol

Rhodium - 10/10 this ain’t my first rhodium babee this lad has good vibes what a name what a king

Palladium - 10/10 for making me think of paladins

Silver - 12/10 I’m breaking the rules for this silver is the best it is so cool and also it is the other best tool for dealing with supernatural creatures when iron has failed you highly suggest Even if I am extremely allergic to it going into my ears...wait hold on

Cadmium - 2/10 sounds like a total douche

Indium - 8/10, i just think it’s independent and neat

Tin - 10/10 good ear sounds when involving rain and roof shapes and automatically reminds me of Nora Jones’s come away with me album which is also 10/10

Antimony - 7/10 decent protagonist good name all around seems rad

Tellurium - tell ur mom what? That’s so early 2010s league of legends humor bro 2.5/10

Iodine - strikes fear in my soul from having it poured on my wounds but this is why I have more pain tolerance than god 5.3/10

Xenon - I think this is a declension of Xena warrior princess which is a win in my eyes, 8/10

Caesium - kind of has a cunty Latin name, 4.5/10

Barium - yeah boss, bury’im! 7.5/10 I love a good mobster gag

Lanthanum - A bit pretentious on the Tolkien spectrum sorry bud 3/10 sounds like you’d be the dickwad elf everyone hates

Cerium - 6.5/10 I like this one, gives me a clean vibe

Praseodymium - the fuck who sneezed all their alphabet soup onto the paperwork and called it an element Christ we can’t keep doing this 1.5/10

Neodymium - oh my god what did I just say 1/10

Promethium - thank Christ we’re back to greek 9/10 Prometheus was a Chad I could get behind

Samarium - 5/10 gives me boring wizard vibes

Europium - 4.5/10 don’t rename opium chrissake can’t take these nerds anywhere

Gadolinium - 5/10 it’s a starship knockoff but it’s trying to be bold with the G sound

Terbium - 2/10 I don’t vibe with this one

Dysprosium - sounds like an antidepressant that has a lot of shitty side effects 3/10

Holmium - sounds like someone anxious asking their beloved to hold them 8/10 I like hurt/comfort fics

Erbium - you can’t just describe something as herby you daft bastard 2/10

Thulium - sounds like a spell I like it 8.5/10

Ytterbium - macguffin in a shite sci-fi show that gets highly overrated because BBC produced it and superwholock stans emerge and go utterly feral 1/10

Lutetium - bards are an element I agree 10/10

Hafnium - sounds like a river (my dog) sound and has a cute vibe, I’d offer it head pats 7/10

Tantalum - noooo you can’t be sad yuor so sexe haha 6.9/10 tantalizing

Tungsten - 10/10 this is a lad with history

Rhenium - 5.5/10 it’s ok

Osmium - 4/10 I wasn’t a big wizard of oz fan

Iridium - 9/10 sounds like iridescent and that’s in my top 10 favorite words and concepts

Platinum - 10/10 best Pokémon game

Gold - 7.9/10 all that glitters and all but it’s still pretty on some people, silver is better tho

Mercury - yikes 8/10 so it doesn’t kill me

Thallium - sounds like the brother character in a ps4 exclusive western rpg that oddly falls under the radar in terms of reviews and gets shafted at awards for no reason 7/10 I’ll support you tho

Lead - 2/10 that’s gonna be a no from me dawg pretty sure I still have lead in my hands from stabbing myself with my mechanical pencils

Bismuth - 6/10 sounds good in mouth and reminds me of biscuits for some reason, I’ll take it

Polonium - to thine own self be true so stop trying to act like the arts don’t influence science jk pretty sure this is named for Poland but hey that’s where we get the Witcher so you get a pass 6/10

Astatine - 1/10 I don’t even know what you are

Radon - 7/10 this motherfucker knows his shit and how to party, rad is right

Francium - I bring you francium...and I bring you myrdurdium... 7/10 for a good vine

Radium - killed the video star probably 9/10 I can get behind her

Actinium - as opposed to passtinium I prefer actinium in the voice of writing 8/10

Thorium - overrated Norse god 5/10 because lightning is still cool

Protactinum - sounds like some pretentious condom brand 4/10 wouldn’t do it with a dude who bought these

Uranium - I always thought she was a hot sailor scout 10/10

Neptunium - same for her I knew they weren’t cousins you couldn’t lie to me 4kids 10/10

Plutonium - sounds like a macguffin unfortunately 5/10

Americium - I read this with a pivotal letter missing and nearly died, 7/10 for the laugh

Curium - 10/10 gives me Curie vibes and also reminds me of curiosity which reminds me of—[old yellered before the association could set in]

Berkelium - what I shout when I want Burke (fam dog) to slaughter innocents and raze territories 2/10 world was not meant to know his commands

Californium - 1/10 California is cool with geography but probs could stand to chill with the ego sorry to my friends in Cali

Einsteinium - 6/10 it’s alright but we’re really running out of ideas huh

Fermium - 3/10 this one is porny

Mendelevium - 1/10 my brain didn’t like parsing this and I stand by my earlier statement of running out of good names

Nobelium - 0/10 you didn’t name any noble gases this cowards this gas can’t be a noble oh wait it’s NOBEL I take it back 5/10 seems an alright chap

Lawrencium - fear the old blood my sorry dead hunter’s ass I’ll never get back my life from the hours I spent trying to beat this lava shitting bastard 2/10 for being a boss who eats Taco Bell specifically before being challenged to have fresh lava shit with which to punish you for having the audacity to exist in his space

Rutherfordium - my god what a snob 4.2/10 I respect him a little but only because he sounds like a right lad

Dubnium - DROP THE BASS 10/10

Seoborgium - not sure about this one but it can have a 7/10

Bohrium - as an American English speaker this sound combination makes my pathetic throat become a black hole as I try to properly create the sound of it 10/10 I love when my body becomes a massive void in the universe

Hassium - lazy 2/10

Elements 109-118 can go fuck themselves I hate them all, collective 6.66/10 for their general demonic vibe

[straykidsupdate]

Stray Kids on Growing Up, Taking More Creative Risks, and Dealing with Self-Doubt

Stray Kids are following their own path. And that reluctance to play by anyone else's rules is precisely what makes this group of teens and young adults stand out. They've been releasing some of the boldest tracks in K-pop since making their debut with the blistering "District 9" a year ago, a song that harnessed their teen angst into a dizzying mix of hip-hop, rock, and EDM and quickly established them as rookie group to watch.

It's their ability to channel that raw emotion into their music that has resonated with fans all over the world, many of whom are on the cusp of adulthood themselves. As such, the group's signature sound can't be contained in a single genre; it's more of a state of being — a deeply earnest one.

"Stray Kids music is music that's relatable and can help you out when you're having a hard time," leader Bang Chan tells MTV News over the phone from Seoul, where the group is preparing to embark on their first solo U.S. tour. Though, he quick to add, "It's got a lot of energy, doesn't it?"

And nowhere is that empathy and energy more apparent than on their latest single, "Miroh." Inspired by the word miro, or "maze" in Korean, the boisterous track — produced by members Bang Chan, Han, and Changbin, otherwise known as 3racha — is a cacophony of sounds, rhythms, chants, and animal noises. The hook is massive, a perfect stadium-sized banger that shows off the group's grit and potential. "It’s not hard / in this rough jungle," Bang Chan sings. "It was me who ran into it / I'm okay."

"'Miroh' was a really big attempt," the 21-year-old singer and producer said. "It shows that as we're getting older we tend to take more risks and try out new experiences, challenge ourselves."

And as members Bang Chan, Woojin, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N grow and mature, so does their music. Their previous I Am... series focused heavily on the theme of identity through the teenage perspective. Who am I? Who am I trying to be? And does everyone feel scared and aimless like I do sometimes? With their most recent release, Clé 1: Miroh, it's clear that these questions are still at the forefront of their minds — and they're facing them head-on, charging into adolescent uncertainty with newfound confidence and perspective that comes when you enter your twenties. And of course, a bit of bravado. Their song "Boxer" opens with a cheeky declaration: "Hello, I’m a young man who can fly anywhere."

Within that "long but short kind of period" since their debut, Stray Kids have released four EPs and one pre-debut mixtape, all of which have been primarily written and produced by the members themselves. While 3racha have shaped the majority of the group's discography, all nine members are credited writers and encouraged to contribute to the production.

"The fact that we make our own music is one of [our] biggest weapons because that way it's a bit more genuine," Bang Chan said. "It's the message that we form and want to send everyone."

"It's much easier to express ourselves and express how we feel to the fans," rapper, and fellow Aussie, Felix added. "It's way more honest as well," Bang Chan concluded. "It's really important to Stray Kids."

That creative ethos starts with Bang Chan, who put the group together when they were trainees under Korea's JYP Entertainment. (The Stray Kids logo is even written in his handwriting.) Fans were first introduced to the Australia-raised leader on the group's survival program, aptly titled Stray Kids. Over the course of 10 episodes, Stray Kids — then teenagers with big dreams  — underwent teamwork challenges and regular evaluations for the chance to debut together as a group. The series documented the nine individuals as they prepared their blustery pre-debut song "Hellevator," producing and practicing around the clock for a dream that was never very certain. In fact, members Felix and Lee Know were originally eliminated from the project but were ultimately brought back in the final episode, giving even more meaning to the phrase "nine or none."

The group's nonstop pace didn't slow down after their debut, either. If anything, the desire to create and funnel their questions into their music got even stronger because of their fans (called STAY).

As such, they're always creating. And when they feel stuck, they resort to the kinds of distractions you might expect from a group of young men: fresh air, movies (Creed), and anime (One Piece) for Bang Chan; video games and EDM music for Felix, who added, "I've been listening to 'My Pace' a lot."

"I'm always on my laptop trying to make new stuff, whenever we have free time," Bang Chan said. "On the plane as well. I make a lot of music on the plane. I remember I worked on 'I Am You' on the plane to New York last year. And we did use a bit of it, so it was pretty good."

Of course, with that comes its own unique kind of pressure. "There's that feeling of, 'Will people like this music? Will our fans like this music? Will STAYs like this music?' Sometimes, that can get into our heads," he said. "Trying to satisfy everyone is going to be an eternal challenge." Trying to do so while keeping up with the furious pace Stray Kids' set in their first year is also challenging.

So it makes sense that time (examining it, questioning it, running away from it) is a running theme throughout Miroh. Album closer "19" is a moody and personal song, written and produced by member Han, that finds him navigating that age between adolescence and adulthood. "Maze Of Memories" is a hip-hop track in which the cadence matches the various twists and turns one might encounter while chasing your dreams. It starts off slow and foreboding, then evolves into something darker and more sinister — a nightmarish soundscape — before ending with a confident refrain of "never give up." And then there's "Chronosaurus," an atmospheric song that associates time with something to be afraid of.

"While I was writing 'Chronosaurus' I did think a lot that time is something that has a lot of pressure attached to it. Even when you're taking a test there's always a time limit, or when you're working there's always a deadline," Bang Chan said.

"I would love to have a superpower that could control time because then I could do whatever I want," he added, laughing. "But time being something that no one can stop, because it's something that's always going to be with me anyway, you might as well get comfortable with it. Try to take some of the pressure off it."

This candid exploration is something that means a lot to their fans, many of whom are also navigating their own everyday struggles — running into their own mazes and up against deadlines. "We wanted to spread the message that you guys aren't the only ones," the leader told the passionate crowd of fans at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center on Tuesday night (May 14), the first of two sold-out nights and the first stop of the U.S. leg of their Unveil world tour. The two-hour set traces the group's young discography, telling the story of Stray Kids from the beginning.

source

[stokan]

The Top 20 Things of 2019

1. “Shallow” at The Oscars How can something be so anticipated, so hyped, so seemingly bigger than the freaking Oscars themselves, and yet still somehow exceed all expectations? We now know the answer: by completely subverting them. That’s why it makes perfect sense that the greatest moment of Lady Gaga’s career would be the simplest one. Her and Bradley Cooper simply standing up from their seats still gives me chills every time I watch it (and I’ve watched it A LOT). And the close up on their faces needs to be shown in sex ed classes.

If I could travel back in time, sure going back to kill baby Hitler would be great, but mostly I’d just want to go back to the exact second the curtain starts to raise on this performance, before I knew where it was headed next.

2. Olivia Colman winning Best Actress at The Oscars If you think it’s weird that there are two separate things from the same awards show on my list of the top things from the entire year, then, well, you’ve come to the wrong place.

This is the absolute platonic ideal of someone winning an Oscar. Our genuine shock at hearing their name, THEIR genuine shock at hearing their name, the genuine emotion from everyone involved, a speech that is heartfelt, human, funny, and charming in a way that only a true star could ever dream of being, all in equal measure. And it’s all part of a YouTube clip you can watch endlessly and find new things every time. (Glenn Close’s reaction when she loses is like an entire drama in and of itself.) Sure awards shows may be dumb, but then also, this is why they’re not.

3. Sharon Van Etten - “Seventeen” in advance of this year’s Oscars I just want to be on record that my favorite movie from 2019 about aging, feeling that life is passing you by, grappling with mortality, the passage of time, and the generation coming up behind you is Closing My Eyes And Listening To “Seventeen” By Sharon Van Etten. It has it all: the creeping melancholy and regret, the sense of doom that you try to dance away, the feeling that the past was maybe just a dream, the urge to yell into an increasingly uncaring void.

Part of the curse of aging is everyone becoming their own Casandra. Now you know, but no one will listen. And part of the joy of aging is realizing it doesn’t really matter if they do.

4. The writing on Succession

“Proof that, as long as the writing is there, TV doesn’t need to be anything more than people having conversations in rooms.” - theringer.com

I have a rule with these year end lists that I can’t feature something I’ve listed in a previous year. But it’s actually illegal to write about the best of 2019 without mentioning Succession. So I’m going to get around my self-imposed rule by this year specifically highlighting the writing on the show.

The amazing thing about Succession is how watchable it is not despite, but almost BECAUSE of the fact that not much actually happens. People talk a lot about things they are GOING to do, or MIGHT do, but there’s not a ton of actual DOING. And that’s actually great, because what we’re really here for is the talking. Every character talks with the biting wit of an Armando Iannucci character, the deep intelligence of an Aaron Sorkin character, and the realism of an actual human being. I find myself constantly rewinding just to make sure I took in the brilliance of each dialogue exchange. And literally every line Kieran Culkin is given to say would be the best line of the entire season on 90% of the shows on TV.

Everyone talks about how great the acting on Succession is, and rightly so, but actors are nothing without good words to say. And on Succession, to paraphrase a president of the United States that I’m sure ACN would love, they have the best words.

5. The chemistry of Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein in Booksmart My favorite movie of 2017 was Lady Bird. My favorite movie of 2018 was Eighth Grade. So suffice it to say I was well prepared for how much I loved Booksmart. But what I was not prepared for at all was the incredible chemistry of two actors I had previously never even heard of before: Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein. It feels impossible that the two of them aren’t real-life best friends. Life-long friendship is such a specific bond it feels impossible to fake, and yet somehow Kaitlyn and Beanie pulled the magic trick off. Experiencing the giddy contact high of their chemistry felt like being in the presence of a miracle. And anyone who says the romantic comedy is dead clearly didn’t see Booksmart, because maybe the best romantic comedy of the decade was the story of two people realizing the deepest, purest, most unique love of all can sometimes be the love you have for your best friend.

6. Fleabag Season 2 What on earth is there left to say about Fleabag that hasn’t already been said? And yet somehow even with all the discourse about this show it has still maintained its status as the rare cultural phenomenon with a 100% approval rating. To be as massive and as beloved as Fleabag and yet inspire zero backlash, not even a stray contrarian take from an online troll, feels impossible, and yet also, in the case of Fleabag, totally right. If (the now VERY problematic) Louie was the beginning of giving people money to make their idiosyncratic, personal, not-quite a drama not-quite a comedy TV shows, then Fleabag is the end. The apex of the art form. There’s nowhere to go from here but down. 2019 was the year television finally peaked. It was the year we all witnessed perfection. And it was the year that we fittingly all had a priest to guide us there.

7. Chelsea Peretti’s monologue at the WGA Awards Ironic that the year that proved that awards shows don’t need hosts is also the same year that gave maybe the best example ever of what a great awards show host can do. Chelsea goes so far inside baseball it gives new meaning to the phrase “corker”, and it’s all the better for it.

8. Vampire Weekend - Father of the Bride If you don’t think Father of the Bride is the best album of 2019 then congrats on not being a late-30s straight white man. But as a late-30s straight white man myself I’ve got two big things going for me:

1.) A life that has benefited from a history of privilege and near-total control over society stretching from the beginnings of civilization up until today 2.) An understanding that Father of the Bride is the best album of 2019

But what about Bon Iver and Wilco and The National and Sturgill Simpson and Big Thief, didn’t they all put out albums for late-30s straight white men this year you ask? To which I say: did any of those albums have a song on them called “Unbearably White”? No they did not! And that sort of ironic self-awareness is the kind of shit that has fueled a million straight white male sketch comedy scenes. It is the air we breathe. Also, have you heard “Harmony Hall” lately? Or “This Life”? Or “Stranger”? I mean, come on, leaving Brooklyn to make your “settled down in LA” album is the sort of late-30s straight white guy catnip James Murphy could only DREAM ABOUT. I may not have much these days, other than unlimited power and privilege, but at least I will always have Vampire Weekend, and they will always have me.

9. Lizzo Every year there is one thing that defines the year. One thing that 50 years in the future when someone mentions that year, it will be the first thing that pops into everyone’s head. And in America for 2019 that thing will be the impeachment of Donald Trump. But if there is a second thing, then it’s Lizzo. She was there when the year started, only got bigger as the year progressed and was arguably still getting more popular as the year ended. And she was everywhere. She was on massive stages and behind tiny desks. She was at the movies, she was on TV, she was coming out of every open car window. And she was definitely at every wedding you went to this year. Lizzo WAS 2019.

With the impeachment of Donald Trump I don’t know how far down the presidential line of succession we have to go before we get to Lizzo, but I know we would all be better off if we would hurry up and get there. Lizzo is the best of us.

10. This picture of Baby Yoda 

Ok I was wrong. Take everything I said about Lizzo and double it for This Picture Of Baby Yoda (you know the one, or if you don’t, click the link above). On the wikipedia entry for the year 2019 that definitely needs to be the picture. 

11. Kodi Lee on America’s Got Talent I realize you probably weren’t sitting around watching America’s Got Talent this summer. I certainly wouldn’t have been if I hadn’t happened to be working the live show tapings. But lemme tell you, if you didn’t see the show, you missed out on something truly magical this year. Something that makes you rethink what human beings are capable of. Something that goes so far beyond inspirational that I don’t think our language has a word to fully express it. Kodi Lee is a real life superhero, and provoking emotion is his superpower. Making it thru a full Kodi Lee performance without crying should be the new Turning Test. Forget America; Humans Have Talent indeed.

12. Taylor Swift - “Cruel Summer” Look I didn’t expect to ever find another “Teenage Dream”, but, well, here we are. I mean, a Taylor Swift single produced by Jack Antonoff and co-written by Annie Clark is pretty much genetically engineered to be one of my favorite things ever, but still: wow. Do the kids still use the term “banger”? Because if so, this is why the term was invented. I would have more to say about how great the rest of Lover is as well, but sorry, I gotta go now. I have to listen to “Cruel Summer” for the eight millionth time.

13. Michelle Williams in Fosse/Verdon If there was an award for best acting performance in any medium this would be the clear winner for 2019. In fact, can you win an EGOT for one single performance? What about a Nobel Prize? I can’t come up with an award or a title big enough to truly honor Michelle Williams’ work in Fosse/Verdon.

As a fellow actor very rarely a performance will come along that will make me think: ok we’re done here. Let’s all the rest of us pack it up and go home, because someone just won acting. This is one of those performances. So congrats to Dame Michelle Williams, you’re the new Pope.

14. American Factory My favorite line in all of Shakespeare is “there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so”. And nothing is evidence of that more than the piece of art I have thought about most this year: the documentary American Factory (available on Netflix right now!). So many of the things we in western societies believe are universal bedrock virtues and value are in fact simply products of the society in which we were raised. Individualism, personal expression, autotomy, the importance of leisure time, and so many other things, are not absolute human values, only relative ones. What is important to someone in America, can be ridiculous and incomprehensible to someone in China. And vice versa. And neither side is right or wrong, only thinking makes it so.

American Factory is documentary that doesn’t say WHAT IF EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW WAS WRONG, but instead shows something that is perhaps even more powerful: what if everything you know is simply just that, a thing you know.

15. White Claw Life is an endless parade of infinite options, possibilities, and choices. So I have no idea how you personally chose to spend your 2019. With one exception: I Know What You Did Last Summer. You drank an alcoholic seltzer water. Probably many of them, but at least one. At a park, at a beach, in a backyard, definitely at a party. If at some point this summer your paws weren’t wrapped around a White Claw (or a similar product) then you didn’t actually experience 2019. Because this is the year we all collectively got obsessed with combining America’s two hottest drink trends: flavored sparkling water and…hold on, lemme look up the name of this stuff…alcohol?

History may record summer 2019 as Hot Girl Summer, but those us who actually lived it know the truth: it was Hard Seltzer Summer

16. Marriage Story A movie that fundamentally misunderstands things I care about deeply - theater, Los Angeles, how the entertainment industry works - is my favorite movie of the year because of how deeply it gets right the thing I care about most: human beings. The way we talk, the way we behave, the way we love, the way we hurt, the way we create bonds that never fully go away. It’s been said a lot, but part of the beauty and magic of this movie is that it doesn’t take sides. Both people are right and both of them are wrong. And that’s how human relationships often work in real life, but rarely in art. There are no heroes, there are no villains; there’s only being alive.


(Also, Adam Driver, Imma let you finish, but Raul Esparza doing “Being Alive” is one of my favorite YouTube clips of ALL TIME. If you ever need to weep uncontrollably and you don’t have time to watch Marriage Story, then Raul Esparza’s “Being Alive” will do the trick)

17. Lil Nas X - “Old Town Road” “What kind of music do you like” used to be a very important question. Your sense of identity used to be defined by the type of music you listened to and what that choice said about you. But now music-as-cultural-signifier is as dead as the concept of owning music itself. Rap music is for elementary school kids. Country music is made by queer black Americans collaborating with Dutch teenagers. Billy Ray Cyrus and Korean pop stars appear on remixes of the same song. A song about an old road and an antiquated mode of travel becomes a massive hit thru the brand new music app TikTok. What kind of music do we like in 2019? All of the “kinds” of music at once, in one marvelously inescapable two minute burst of joy. Music is dead; long live music.

18. Chernobyl If you thought it was crazy that the year’s biggest song was a novelty country/hip-hop track by an unsigned artist rapping about trying to find parking for his horse, then wait until you find out what the summer’s biggest hit TV show was about! I mean, nothing screams “summer fun” like nuclear radiation and shooting dogs. But as always, no one ever truly knows what people will want until you give it to them. And clearly what we really wanted in our LOL Nothing Matters age was a captivating reminder that life on earth truly could end at any moment. Some things very much DO matter. And that something as dramatic, devastating, and consequential as Chernobyl could have happened in the fairly recent past and already have been largely forgotten about is incredible. But if you can take such a compelling story and tell it as well as the makers of Chernobyl did, then people will watch and learn and better understand an issue of vital importance, no matter how seemingly uncommercial it might be. So in a very 2019 sentence: thank you creator of the the Hangover franchise for your miniseries about a 1980 Russian power plant explosion. It was our collective summer obsession. (2019 was a weird year.)

19. Raphael Bob-Waksberg - Someone Who Will Love You In All You Damaged Glory

“I think about how loving someone is kind of like being president, in that it doesn’t change you, not really. But it brings out more of the you that you already are.”

Back in the day, Raphael Bob-Waksberg had a tumblr that was so good it both single-handedly inspired me get much better and writing my thoughts and putting them on the internet (thus what you are reading right now) and intimidated me out of doing it more often (why I now do this only once a year). In fact, I’m almost positive I had his tumblr listed as one of my top things of a year in the past, which is really the highest honor a tumblr account can receive. It was one of the single most impactful forces in the direction of my creative life. And now Raphael has taken the voice that created that tumblr and created my favorite TV show (BoJack Horseman) and wrote my favorite ever Craigslist post, and used it to create a book about love and loss and being human. And it feels like a wonderful treasure that was written just for me. It IS my worldview, expressed better than I ever possibly could. When I meet people now rather than doing the usual introductory small talk I am just going to hand them a copy of this book.

20. The New One - Mike Birbiglia Speaking of art that felt deeply personal to me…just hearing even a rough outline of the story Mike Birbiglia tells in The New One was enough to start me on a path of perhaps reconsidering one of my most deeply held beliefs. By talking about parenthood in a refreshingly honest and shockingly open way, he is able to possibly change lives. I know finally actually seeing the show in person (and it’s now available on Netflix) felt like a possible turning point in mine. Is it theater? Is it standup? Does it matter? Here’s what there are no questions about: it’s hilarious and deeply felt and perfectly constructed. It’s an absolute master class in story telling. And it’s my favorite thing I saw this year.

[beaniegara]

11 Questions

tagged both by @yaboybergara​ and @ricky-goldsworth​ which is great because that gives me 22 questions mwahhahaha thank you folks!! <3 

RULES

1. always post the rules

2. answer the questions given by the person who tagged you

3. write 11 questions of your own

4. tag 11 people you want to get to know better (or however many you want)

now, see, I don’t know what to ask........ so I’m gonna be a little shit and tag folks to pick 11 of these 22 questions and answer them too. nini and gray pls don’t sue me for reusing your questions, thank fdgkfndgfdsk I’m tagging @kaylotta, @queerunsolved, @haunted-gays, @thatmademadej, and @i-am-ghost-proof-baby <3 if yall wanna do it, of course. no pressure.

this is incredibly long (and uncomfortably honest). let’s go lesbians let’s go

first, nini’s questions:

1. How many pets have you had in your life?

one. I’ve always wanted them but my mom and I have always lived in tiny apartments and had no way to care for a pet so it wasn’t until I was 17 that we adopted a kitten!! his name was merlin and he was the laziest, moodiest lil ball of fluff I’ve ever met. I.. had to give him away a year later because we moved to a place even smaller that wouldn’t allow pets so long story short I’m scarred for life and don’t think I can ever take any more pets without feeling guilty to my bone 

this is merlin btw I love him with all my heart and he now lives in a farm. as far as I know anyway.. :(

2. Do you believe in destiny? Why?

mmm interesting question. weird, metaphysical theories aside, I don’t believe anything is set in stone per se, but I do believe that some things are just... meant to be? in a way? for example, you can’t tell me ryan and shane weren’t meant to be friends and find each other in such an unlikely place as they did. one of my mottos, completely stripped from context because it’s from a rather pretentious tv show, is “the universe is rarely so lazy”. meaning that good things happen for a reason, and that you trailed that path for that to happen. yknow what I’m saying? I can’t really explain this without writing a 10 page essay because that’s just how my gemini ass thinks 

3. If you could chose one person on the great beyond, would you take the chance to talk to them? 

you mean someone who has passed away? oh yeah, I would talk to my grandmother. she was raising me and died when she was 4 and that changed not only my entirely life but our whole extended family dynamic... so many questions.

4. From all your hobbies, which one would you love to make a living of?

oh man, writing. I’ve been dreaming of being a writer ever since I was 9 or something. never panned out but that would certainly be the dream. if I could work with videos, subtitling, tv shows, cinema etc that would also be dope as hell!

5. What’s your favorite color palette to wear?

fkgjfsdgiusfdksd I have no fashion sense whatsoever, idk? I do like to wear dark clothes (because weight..) and reds (because pale).

6. What’s your opinion on queerbaiting?

I don’t have the time for it. for starters, it’s something that usually comes from people with very poor writing skills that can’t come up with plots interesting enough to keep viewers/readers hooked in. that already says something. no offense to anyone who is a fan of shows like these, but when it’s mostly written by white men I just don’t have any high hopes for it. you can ask flavs what my reaction was like when I realized the character I had headcanon’ed as wlw in hannibal was actually a wlw. I couldn’t believe it, because what???? since when does that happen, especially in a show run by a white man??? kjdfghsjgd 

I think this is part of a bigger conversation but my point is, don’t fall for it. I know it’s all part of the fight for representation, asking big names to produce big shows with lgbtq+ characters in it and so on, but for the love of god, watch something else too!!!! let GOT rot and die!!!!!!!!! look up different, smaller, cheaper shows, that’s where you find lgbtq+ content creators!!!!!! there’s so many wlw webseries out there, you wouldn’t believe it. you have a choice. don’t give any more of your time and love and word-of-mouth to shows/movies that clearly have no interest in being more diverse. they don’t deserve you. 

and that’s not to say any of it is on us. quite on the contrary, they’re using us. but aside from calling out their bullshit, we do have a chance to boost lgbtq+ content creators. don’t let them fool you into thinking they’re doing you any favors, or that they’re our last chance so we should be paying attention to what they’re doing/saying. fuck them!!!! you can’t queerbait me because I don’t trust you or give you the chance to do it. and you can shove your very straight, very white shows where the sun doesn’t shine, @ hollywood.  

7. Is there a language you would love to speak?

french and korean, mostly. I can understand a little bit of both, but I really wish I was fluent :( oh, will to live and learn, where art thou...

8. Do you have, like, a dream so wild you think it’s impossible?

kjgnsfdkjhjjs having enough money to support myself and my mother??? I don’t have any big, wild dreams, I think. just.......... living comfortably would be a+  

9. How many AUs of your own life do you have in your head?

oh man. I keep thinking about living somewhere in idk iceland or scotland just like... tending goats or something. that’s the most comfortable version of myself I can think of.

I also like to imagine if I could handle being a film director, because that sounds like fun. maybe a screenwriter? anything creative in films, really. 

there’s also the unattainable dream of having a wife and idk maybe adopting a kid? and we’d just. support each other. and love each other. and that’s just. I. [cries]

I like to think how things would be if I were actually hot and not socially awkward.. I’d be someone completely different, basically lol 

10. If you were to meet your younger self, do you think they would think you cool or not?

oh god, younger me would hate present me D: I had such high hopes for myself, I had lots of dreams lol never in a million years did I think I’d be where I am today...

11. Not a question, but please add something postive about yourself, something that you love about you.

IDJFSSIODUGSDFKGDSJ IT’S LIKE YOU KNEW I’D BE A NEGATIVE FUCK, NINI. I................................ I like that I have an easy time with languages? or with classes in general. I like to learn from people, I’m just really unmotivated to leave the house lol 

now onto gray’s q’s:

1. What’s your favourite music video of all time?

straight-up impossible questions right out of the gate huh I SEE YOU, GRAY. I SEE YOU kjdfgjfsdhgkdsjfs

I’ll have to go with a few,

“prototype” by viktoria modesta is just GORGEOUS. I can’t get over this video & song and it’s been years.

“jackpot” by block b looks creepy as shit but the context makes it such a clever yet fun video. take into account that these guys were screwed over by the kpop company that created the group, and that the lyrics talk about hitting jackpot in an industry that’s savage to say the least. to me this video is a visual representation of what a dangerous trap entertainment companies are in the kpop industry, and it also ties in with the groups’ story of being made into dolls by a company and then telling them to fuck off in the end lol 

“treat me like your mother” by the dead weather. I don’t know why I just love it. (cw: gun violence)

“emperor’s new clothes” by panic! at the disco. I MEAN, LOOK AT IT.

“manyo maash” by puer kim. I just love the aesthetic?

honorable mention: “tick tick boom” by the hives because that’s a banger. ba dum tssss.

2. What’s a favourite memory of yours?

I have plenty of good memories, thank god. I think one of my favorites is just hanging out with my friends in 2008-9; one of their older brothers was driving us around town, we were listening to the white stripes at full volume, singing along, all sitting pressed up close together in his shitty car. man, my teenage years would’ve been fantastic if I had stayed there with them!! 

3. Do you play video games? If so, which one’s your favourite?

I DO!!! I mean, not as much as I’d like because a) no money to spare on games/consoles, and b) I suck at basically everything. but I’m obsessed with paladins these days, and I’m also a big fan of LOTRO. I like horror games--mostly the resident evil and silent hill type--and fps. I grew up playing some tomb raider, medal of honor, resident evil... oh, those were the days. 

4. How did you first get into [your fandom of choice]?

with bfu it was that kind of thing where I’d see a meme or two cross my dash and it was always this ridiculous screenshot, or those “that’s it, that’s the show” kinda things with dozens of thousands of notes... until one day I was incredibly anxious, and I needed to watch something or I’d never finish the assignments I had for college. so I just thought “oh hey I should check out that unsolved thing people like so much, it’s buzzfeed so it’s probably good bg noise to work with” lol and it did work, and I did finish my assignments, and that means that I first watched the show barely paying any attention to it because I was busy doing something else. but ryan’s and shane’s voices helped me relax and to this day they still help a lot with my anxiety, to the point that I need to keep coming back every minute or so during episodes because I get distracted just listening to their voices and not absorbing a word lol

5. How did you first get into fandom in general?

uhh.. well, I was a big “pottermaniac” (that’s how I called it) since I was 9, but that was before I realized fandom was a Thing on the internet too. I remember when I was maybe 10 or 11, I entered a chatroom (god, those were wild) just in time to see someone saying in all caps HARRY POTTER IS GREAT AND YOU’RE ALL DUMB FOR NOT SEEING IT or something fkdsjgfdugfsdk and it was this girl using the nickname fawkes. she was older than me, I think that 15 or something, and we exchanged addresses (!!! how am I alive!!!) and were pen pals for a while. but it took me so fucking long to actually find the fandom online that I think my first brush with it was with the arctic monkeys forum I found online in 2008, where I mistakenly said I liked “the muse” and people laughed at me so I never went back to it lol then in 2010 I found out about kpop and that’s when I really dived head-first into fandom life. took me long enough (tbf I was very against the notion of being a “fan” because I was an idiot).

6. What’s at the top of your bucket list?

great fucking question. no idea. I guess.. traveling overseas? if we’re talking wild, distant things. but closer to my reality, getting a job that pays me at least the minimum wage disjgdfgkfsdk #fuckinternships

7. What’s something not many people know about you?

I love dancing and miss it like hell.

8. What’s your favourite medium for storytelling - movie, book, television, musical, comic, internet video, video game, something else? Why that medium?

ohhhhhhh this is an interesting question. as much as I love writing, and think that’s one of the best things we humans have ever come up with, I do love.. musicals? not necessarily theater--although that’s great and I’d sell my soul to see chicago live--but I love the idea of telling stories through music. I really wish we could bring back the custom of telling stories orally, and through music, and that we could as society agree that collective singing is beautiful and should be reintroduced in our day-to-day lives. sure listening to (1) artist singing is great but hAVE YOU TRIED SINGING ALONG DURING A CONCERT WHERE EVERYONE ELSE IS SINGING TOO? best fucking feeling in the world. 

we had two bands in brazil, in different periods of time, that were so incredibly famous they’re still cornerstones in our music history. one was legião urbana, some folk-ey rock band that had a couple of songs telling these really long stories that I LOVE with all my heart. faroeste caboclo is our bohemian rhapsody, most people my age or older know the lyrics to it. and mamonas assassinas was this comical (?) rock band that sang dumb, fun songs that usually told stories too and that was the best. I miss that kinda thing. 

9. What’s your favourite food?

red meat, mainly churrasco. but I also can’t live without chocolate milk AND the whopper. capitalism has me by the stomach.

10. Do you have a joke to share?

fjgfsdgskfdgfsk I don’t.. it’s been so long since I last tried telling a joke, I don’t think I know any?

11. What song/artist helped you through your struggles?

pitty has been a big part of my life for some 14-odd years now. “be ok” by ingrid michaelson and “starlight” by muse were my anthems when depression hit hard during my teenage years. the white stripes has also been a constant, with gems like “blue orchid” and “a martyr for my love for you” turning into sort of theme songs for certain parts of my life. choi sam helped me through college. and even though they were a huge disappointment to the point that I stopped listening to them altogether, block b gave me a good 4 or 5 years of distraction from life.

[grimelords]

​My October playlist is finished, please enjoy it. From 14 minute 70s acoustic guitar instrumentals, Armand Van Helden bangers and Christian music I’ve had a lot of feelings about this playlist has it all in four hours.

Love Love Love - The Mountain Goats: Posting on the web about Mountain Goats songs you've had a moment with is about as universal as it gets, so here's mine for this month. I woke up one morning with the line about Sonny Liston in my head one day after not listening to this song in years. John Darnielle is perhaps the only person on earth I'd trust to write a song about Kurt Cobain's suicide and he does a very simple and beautiful job of it here. Ben's My Friend - Sun Kil Moon: I discovered Sun Kil Moon way after I probably should have via that guy who was doing parody songs of him last year. This song is fantastic because it takes so long to make its point, and like so much good art is just some middle aged guy recounting his every thought and movement for four minutes. You Were Meant For Me - Jewel: I was trying to remember how Dreams by Fleetwood Mac went and all I could think of was this song, and settled on singing it to myself instead. Sober - Lorde: Sorry to be a normie but listening to Lorde break down this song on an episode of Song Exploder was incredibly good and it definitely made me appreciate the way the brass sounds a lot more. Melodrama really does get better and better as a cohesive whole the more I listen to it. Night Moves - Bob Seger: We as a society need to bring back Power Voice I think. I've been obsessed with this song for months now and as far as I can tell Bob Seger has precisely zero other good songs, which is unfortunate because this one is so good. This also is another song about getting the Lamenting Night Hornies because you heard a thunderstorm that reminded you of the times in your youth that you Fucked and it's, in my opinion, very beautiful. Cairo - San Fermin: This is on the list not only because it's a good song but also unfortunately because of Podasts. San Fermin guested on an episode of Improv4humans and got absolutely roasted about this song so I highly recommend the ep. UFO - Sneaky Sound System: It's unfortunate that Sneaky Sound System's highest played song according to Spotify is the Nicolas Jaar remix of Big (an all time top ten piece of music) because it's really overshadowed the rest of their incredibly good singles. Do you remember 2006? What a time to be alive. UFO (Van She Tech Remix) - Sneaky Sound System: This is my absolute pick of the month and I have been raving to everyone who'll listen but nobody cares, I cannot get enough of it. Do you remember when Justice came from France to bless us all with the secret of bass and we betrayed them by inventing Skrillex not three years later? Van She remember. Charlie Chazz & Rappin Ralph - Duck Sauce: I believe there is a real argument to be made that any song that doesn't refer to the listeners collectively as Party People is absolutely worthless. Duck Sauce's album is a completely underrated classic in my opinion, it's a go-to mood elevator from beginning to end and for some reason has a subplot thoughout about aliens transmitting coded messages to influence human evolution, which is a big thumbs up from me. I Took Your Picture - Cults: Guess what Cults are still really really good. I haven't given this album enough time yet but this bassline has invaded my dreams so that's a good sign. Pavement - City Calm Down: The way this layers and builds into and through the chorus is so satisfying. I love this sort of thick synth production and the contrast between the different registers of his voice is so satisfying as the chorus comes back again. Pogo - Digitalism: Australian electronic music had a real moment around 2007 between Digitalism, Van She, The Presets, Midnight Juggernauts, Cut Copy and all them and I'm realising retrospectively that it was very, very good. Semicircle Song - The Go! Team: The world's best band are back and their new album isn't out until fucking January! This song features big horns and a bridge that's just a montage of children telling you their star sign so that's how you know it's good. The Garden's All Nighters - The Number Twelve Looks Like You: It's a real shame that #12 broke up after this album because it feels like they were really on the edge of something. Over 4 albums they morphed from a straight ahead grind band into some sort of math-prog thing approaching it from a whole different direction to everyone else. I love the idea of writing such an expansive, complex song seemingly just about living in New Jersey. The way it transitions into the groovy latin part is so nice and the solo is just beautiful; and unlike other bands in the same sort of sector they never make a joke of genre switches either, they just keep moving forward with a smile. Paris/Orly - Deux: I forget how I first came across this album but it’s easily the wankiest thing I absolutely love. An 80s French synthpop duo that only ever released a cassette and some singles that got reissued by a label called Minimal Wave a few years ago. It is absolutely the best. New wave mixed with Kraftwerk and synthpop except incredibly french and cool as well. I constantly have their song Game And Performance in my head but this one was my obsession this month. Walking Into Sunshine (Larry Levan 12" Mix) - Central Line: There’s something very authentic about disco songs that are lyrically all about working all week all day every day, and desperately needing a break to perhaps, dance your worries away in a new york discotheque. Cradle In The Crater - The Number Twelve Looks Like You: This is maybe my favourite #12 song because it appears to be about some kind of super child who came from space and perhaps wrought havoc on the citizens of earth, but told in a very real and emotional way like it’s a story about someone they really knew. It reminds me of Mother 3 and the good times I had as a teen playing that game with my best friend, so that’s an added bonus. Under The Ice (Extended Version) - Topo & Roby: Italo disco forever. This song is a duet between a woman and a robot where they relay the story of him coming from a distant planet in a spaceship and crashing on the north pole then getting trapped under the titular ice where he waits to I think murder me. Now that I think of it it’s world similar to Cradle In The Crater. It sounds so good, far better than a novelty song like this has any right to. There’s also a video with someone’s 80s mum dancing with an incredibly shit robot on youtube if you’re interested. Outta The Woodwork - Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett: I really love the covers they chose for this album because they both really make it their own. Outta The Woodwork really sounds like a Kurt song now and I love the strong piano giving the song the harder edge the lyrics deserve and Kurt just lazily soloing to hell any chance he gets Peepin' Tom - Kurt Vile and Courtney Barnett: I think I almost like this version more than the original, making it just an acoustic thing but still keeping all the dynamics of the original is so nice. I love specifically the deep bass voice of ‘peepin’ to the high ‘tom’. It satisfies something weird in my brain. Mercury (12" Version) - Bloc Party: I can’t believe i’ve lived this long without ever knowing that there was a 12” version of Mercury out there. The song I always felt was way too short to contain the amount of energy it has has a 7 minute version that well and truly lays it out into a slow intense burn instead. Electric Feel (Justice Remix) - MGMT: Just to get my 2007 opinions straight Electric Feel is not a good song. Kids is a good song but Electric Feel isn’t. That said: this remix comes damn close to making it good. Justice figured out the secret sound and we’re all the better for it. Comin' Apart - Gary Wright: There’s no greater joy than tracking down a sample and finding out that the original song is also a banger. This pairs extremely well with My My My as a sort of extended intro. My My My - Armand Van Helden: I posted that playlist a couple weeks ago of songs mid-2000s bangers with extremely horny videos and this is a highlight from that. I'm always amazed with how much mileage great producers can get out of a relatively straightforward sample because this hums along for almost 7 minutes and only gets better. Laser Life - The Blood Brothers: The Blood Brothers are one of the few bands that scratch the brain itch I have for totally bonkers Mars Volta markov chain lyrics phrases like 'Oh dream machine I'm a pound of flesh inside a drum machine dream'. They're also the only band I think that can get away with having this sort of cabaret swing feel in a song with a lot of screaming and not have it be absolutely unbearable. Camouflage, Camouflage - The Blood Brothers: Where a lot of The Blood Brothers early songs were just chaotic bursts, they have a few songs that spread out into a long multi movement ideas culminating in very good final lines like 'I couldn't see the love and affection it was camouflaged as a jungle of erections, and I couldn't see the skeletal lightning it was camouflaged as a young machete' 16 Tons - Tennessee Ernie Ford: The mistake people make in covering this song is trying to match the extremely grim lyrics to the music, but this version succeeds exactly because it's on some upbeat Frank Sinatra shit with the clarinet refrain sounding like a children's song while still being very much about dying face down in the dirt from arsenic poisoning. Take This Hammer - Leadbelly: On the other hand you have a song like Take This Hammer from a guy who really worked on a chain gang complete with involuntary WAH sounds to time your hammer strikes to, and it's still so much more upbeat and positive musically than it has any right to be looking at the lyrics. San Francisco - Foxygen: There's something about the chorus of this song, and they way the phrases of the two voices line up where if it gets stuck in your head it just goes around and around and around forever and it is absolutely maddening so I thought I'd share that with you all. El Manana (Metronomy Remix) - Gorillaz: This remix reminds me of Studio to a degree with the way it just moves forward with no regard for regular structure. It's gutsy to remix a song and somehow restructure it so the chorus doesn't even sound like it's the chorus anymore but just another small part in a slowly winding up machine. Monkey Gone To Heaven - The Pixies: The way he's screaming that GOD IS SEVEN in this song I feel like if Black Francis hadn't made it in music he'd be running a very successful incomprehensible conspiracy website. This is a song I can get very lyrically involved in when I'm in certain moods, nodding my head like the creature in the sky DID get sucked in a hole and now there's a hole in the sky, and we're all in trouble because of it. Cannonball - The Breeders: I like this song because it feels like everyone in the band is working on their own unique structure. The clean guitar especially just comes and goes at will through the whole song, the lyrics start whenever, the rhythm guitar just keeps strumming along. It all comes together for the chorus and then they just go their own separate ways until it's chorus time again. S.A.D. - Kirin J Callinan: The production on this song just amazes me, especially as it moves into the later choruses the sheer weight of the chords is just crazy. The barest suggestion of guitars chugging in the background but blending into the huge synths chords. Combined with the vocals it's the most threatening pop song I've ever heard. Wrapped up in plastic thrown down the stairs feeling fantastic. Water Coast Blues - Honeyboy Edwards: I feel like Honeyboy Edwards has gotten a raw deal from history. When he died most of his obitaries made a big point of how he was one of the last living people to know Robert Johnson personally. Which is an important detail but it overshadows Edwards contributions in his own right as a guitarist and songwriter who had a 70 year career. The album this recording's from is a really good compilation that gives an overview of his whole career, mixed with interviews with Edwards and Alan Lomax that are just amazing. Anyway just listen to the playing on this song because it is incredible. The bass figure he switches into when he says 'when I had money'? Phenomenal. Another Leather Lung - The Sound Of Animals Fighting: The Sound Of Animals Fighting was a supergroup of a bunch of guys from RX Bandits/Chiodos/Circa Survive and bands like that coming together in animal masks to make the most pretentious band possible at the time. There's a lyrics on one of their other songs where he sings 'the artist! the true manifestation of struggle!' which is quite good. But outside of that they did make some very good music and the second half of this song where it takesoff is really something. Bone Machine - The Pixies: It's amazing Black Francis hasn't been linked to a string of murders in the mid 80s honestly. This whole song feels like evidence. Also the way he says 'I was talking to peachy peach about kissy kiss.. [incredibly long, awkward silence] ... he bought me a soda. he bought me a soda and he tried to molest me in the parking lot hep hep hep hep' is perhaps the most amazing verse ever. Stomping Tonight On The Pennsylvania/Alabama Border - John Fahey: This is John Fahey's best song and I've listened to it probably 4 times a week for the last 4 years. It is quite honestly an eternal mood. Ares - Bloc Party: War! War! War! War! I love the guitar in this, because it's just textural noisemaking more than anything else and mixed with the vocal manipulations in the chorus it's just absolute chaos. It's such a shame that everyone in Bloc Party either left the band or had their brain removed after this album because between this, Mercury and Talons it was truly an incredible moment. Special Rider Blues - John Fahey: I can't believe I only found out this month about John Fahey covering Skip James, and even that it took me this long for me to listen to the full version of his America album. Mark 1:15 - John Fahey: I also learned that on account of cds only holding 80 minutes of music, this 14 minute reissue version of Mark 1:15 is 2 minutes shorter than the original vinyl version and I'm completely riled up about it and demanding a second, definitive reissue to restore them. Regardless, this song is an absolute masterpiece and when it switches into the portion of When The Springtime Comes again about three quarters of the way through it's just amazing. Swim - Nicolas Jaar: Here's another quite long and involved piece of music from the other side of the spectrum. It has a very similar feeling to Mark 1:15 really, so if you liked that persevere through this. It's taken me such a long time to get around to listening to Nymphs for some reason but I'm glad I finally gave it a shot because this song especially is a real masterwork. Crimes - The Blood Brothers: A third Blood Brothers song for you, If you didn't like the other two there's a chance you'll like this one because it's much more sedate. This song is also a good first Blood Brothers song because the way the second vocalist sounds when he finally turns up is really funny if you're not expecting it. This is another on the long list of songs I seem to just always have in my head and sing to myself when I'm walking around. NRG - Duck Sauce: Are you ready for the most powerful 12 minutes of your life? It's the entirety of the NRG single by Duck Sauce. I like to think of it as a purposeful multi-movement work rather than a song and two remixes because that's what it feels like. Starting out we have the original, incredible instant power of NRG. NRG (Skrillex, Kill The Noise, Milo & Otis Remix) - Duck Sauce: and next we have the absolute peak of the work, the fever pitch. See if you can guess which part Skrillex was responsible for. I love the addition of miscellaneous woos and yeahs among the already busy main riff, I absolutely love the bass which sounds like some kind of steel drum pulled down four octaves. I love the distortion on the vocals in the second half as it slowly gives you time to catch your breath. NRG (Hudson Mohawk Remix) - Duck Sauce: The we move into the comedown, the HudMo contribution where the drums somehow sound like they're coming from next door like the party has passed you by and moved on to enliven your neighbours. I love the snare building and then splitting into triplets like it's going to drop before the peace of the synth gives way to the rolling thunder drums hafway in. On The Other Hand Baby - Etta Baker: I don't know what to say about Etta Baker. She's incredible and it's an absolute shame that she didn't really get recorded until she was about 70. This album was recorded when she was about 92 and her playing is still amazing. Crucible - Sleigh Bells: You have to give Sleigh Bells credit for still going strong four albums in if nothing else. Somewhere along the line they adopted this sort of corny rock chick thing that wasn't really there in their first album and I think it works against them but I really can't get enough of the instrumental of this song. The distorted brass and string amongst everything else especially. I feel like there's a much better song buried in here somewhere but I'll take what I can get. Pirate Blues - As Cities Burn: As Cites Burn are another good example of a metalcore band absolutely mellowing out into a indie rock band over the course of three albums, and the result Hell Or High Water has turned out to be one if my favourites of all time. This song especially is an obsession, and I love a band having the sense to no longer make metalcore, but learning enough from it to take a song to a a huge crescendo when they need to like this one does. Timothy - As Cities Burn: Between As Cities Burn, mewithoutYou and a couple of other christian bands I was very nearly converted in highschool and it still informs a lot of my uh theistic thought in a strangely unembarrassing way. This song, from their second album where they were sort of caught between their metalcore origins and the full fleshed indie rock of Hell Or High Water is one of their best. Yelling at god about your dead friend is a massive thing to write a song about but it's done so well and it builds and builds before dissolving into a sparse, thoughtful solo for a good six minutes into a beautiful ending.

listen here

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 26/12/2020 (LadBaby, Boris Johnson, Ed Sheeran)

It’s Boxing Day in the UK as I write this and I’m pretty tired but we still have to review those charts regardless, especially this chart as this is the Christmas chart – at least it’s being paraded around as such – and hence we have a Christmas #1. For the third year in a row, family vlogger, pseudo-comedian and amateur musician, not to be confused with DaBaby, Mark Ian Hoyle – more commonly known as “LadBaby”, has bagged the #1 for the holiday season. Every time I’ve covered the Christmas #1 it has been this guy and, yeah, I’m tired of it. At least this year he felt some stiff competition, and hey, the songs’ proceeds do go to charity. Oh, yeah, and this guy is the third act to have three Christmas #1s in a row, putting this nobody from Nottingham with a barebones Wikipedia page and a couple million YouTube subscribers on the level of the Beatles and Spice Girls. God, the UK Singles Chart never fails to amaze me. Anyway, that’s arguably not even the biggest story here so let’s start REVIEWING THE CHARTS.

Rundown

As I said before, this is the “Christmas week” so throughout the UK Top 75 there are a lot of holiday songs re-peaking or reaching new peaks, before dropping off entirely the next week. Let’s start as we always do by listing the drop-outs from the chart, of which there are quite a few notable ones. Most of our top 40 debuts from last week are gone, like Taylor Swift’s “champagne problems” and “no body, no crime” featuring HAIM, as well as “Show Out” by Kid Cudi, the late Pop Smoke and Skepta. We can also say goodbye to “Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse)” by Post Malone and Swae Lee, finally after 54 weeks and a surprise return earlier this month, in addition to other top 10 hits like “you broke me first” by Tate McRae, “See Nobody” by Wes Nelson and Hardy Caprio and “What You Know Bout Love” also by Pop Smoke, as well as some more minor hits like “Wonder” by Shawn Mendes, “Lonely” by Justin Bieber and benny blanco, “Train Wreck” by James Arthur, “Golden” by Harry Styles and “Plugged in Freestyle” by A92 and Fumez the Engineer, but I can see almost all of these rebounding hard next week so I don’t think there’s much to worry about here. For fallers, since Christmas has really consumed everything about this chart this week, we have some big ones that’ll find themselves back in the top 10 or at least top 20 next week like “positions” by Ariana Grande at #19 (the first non-Christmas non-debut song to appear on the chart, by the way), “Sweet Melody” by Little Mix at #20, “Whoopty” by CJ at #22, “34+35” by Ariana Grande at #28, “WITHOUT YOU” by The Kid LAROI at #31, “Prisoner” by Miley Cyrus and Dua Lipa at #35 alongside “Midnight Sky” also by Miley at #36, “willow” by Taylor Swift off the debut to #37, “Get Out My Head” by Shane Codd at #38 and “Paradise” by MEDUZA and Dermot Kennedy. We also have “Therefore I Am” by Billie Eilish at #43, “Really Love” by KSI featuring Craig David and Digital Farm Animals at #45, even “HOLIDAY” by Lil Nas X at #49, “Mood” by 24kGoldn featuring iann dior at #54, “Loading” by Central Cee at #59, “Head & Heart” by Joel Corry and MNEK at #60, “Monster” by Shawn Mendes and Justin Bieber at #64, “Blinding Lights” by the Weeknd at #66, “Dynamite” by BTS at #67, “Lemonade” by Internet Money and Gunna featuring Don Toliver and NAV at #72, “Levitating” by Dua Lipa with the biggest fall down to #73 and finally “No Time for Tears” by Nathan Dawe and Little Mix at #74. To put the dominance of holiday music on the charts in perspective, if we take the songs that are not either explicitly Christmas-related or a clear Christmas #1 campaign (i.e. LadBaby), the song at #38 would be at #10 and our #1 would be “positions” by Ariana Grande at #19. “Whoopty” by CJ, that entered the top 10 last week and dropped to #22 this week, would be at #3. There are 11 songs in the top 40 that never made an effort to take advantage of the holiday season. When we get into some of our debuts, it’ll be even clearer how big Christmas is in British pop music. Anyway, let’s skim through our gains and returning entries, most of which are Christmas or Christmas-related. For returning entries, we have the comically awful “Lonely this Christmas” by Mud at #71, last year’s scam attempt at a Christmas #1, “River” by Ellie Goulding at #69, “The Christmas Song (A Merry Christmas to You)” by Nat King Cole at #63 (which I’d appreciate more in the top 20 like it is in the US every year – this is a classic), “2000 Miles” by the Pretenders at #62 (again, incredible song that deserves a higher holiday peak each year), “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)” by Darlene Love at #58, “Santa’s Coming for Us” by Sia at #55, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” by Sam Smith at #53 and for whatever reason, “Holy” by Justin Bieber featuring Chance the Rapper at #41. In terms of notable gains – and I stress notable, since a lot of higher-up Christmas songs had small gains but still good performance - we have “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” by the Jackson 5 at #57, “Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!” by Frank Sinatra at #56, “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby at #52, “Baby it’s Cold Outside” by Brett Eldredge and Meghan Trainor at #51, “Forever Young” by Becky Hill at #50 (both off of the debut), “Baby it’s Cold Outside” AGAIN by Michael Bublé and Idina Menzel at #47, “Love is a Compass” by Griff at #46, “Feliz Navidad” by Jose Feliciano at #44, “Cozy Little Christmas” by Katy Perry at #42, “Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow!” AGAIN by Dean Martin at #39, “Sleigh Ride” by the Ronettes at #34, “Christmas Lights” by Coldplay at #33, “Santa Baby” by Kylie Minogue at #32, “Mistletoe” by Justin Bieber at #29, “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms at #27, “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney at #26, “Holly Jolly Christmas” by Michael Bublé at #25, “All You’re Dreaming Of” by Liam Gallagher at #24 (thanks to a Christmas #1 campaign that crashed and failed), “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” by Andy Williams at #23, “Happy Xmas (War is Over)” by John Lennon and Yoko Ono with the Plastic Ono Band featuring the Harlem Community Choir at #21, “One More Sleep” by Leona Lewis at #18, “Merry Xmas Everybody” by Slade at #17, “Underneath the Tree” by Kelly Clarkson at #15, and finally, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Justin Bieber illegitimately notching a spot in the top 10 at #8. Finally, we can get onto the new arrivals, although something about this next one tells me that we won’t be in line for anything all that good.

NEW ARRIVALS

#70 – “I’ll be Home” – Meghan Trainor

Produced by Meghan Trainor

...for Christmas. She’ll be home for Christmas. I guess she just can’t finish sentences, even though her cover art has the full title. Anyway, this is a 2014 original Christmas song that went nowhere except Sweden. It’s not anything like the Bing Crosby and wasn’t nearly as successful, mostly because it’s a jingly, inoffensive ballad tacked onto a silly Christmas EP that also features Fifth Harmony and Fiona Apple of all people – who probably should have charted her track instead – as well as the deluxe edition of that debut record Title that nobody liked. At least in this, she’s not going for a faux-retro style, or at least one that I can find the inspiration for, and is just singing over this oddly jaunty piano melody – which sounds pretty albeit bland – as well as some swells of strings and acoustic guitar that do work sonically. The content implies that Meghan Trainor is in contact with Santa Claus personally, and that he gave her the advice to be home with her lover this Christmas and... that’s why this charted, isn’t it? Well, it’s not her fault – it’s not a “stuck with u” moment, but it is dodgy that she decided to put this on her own Christmas record that was released in October of this year, which can’t seem unintentional. I’d be lying to say this isn’t a pretty little tune from Trainor and her voice does fit this instrumental, but a jazzy rendition from someone with a deeper, smoother voice, would work wonders with the content. Oh, and that Christmas record features guest appearances from both Earth, Wind & Fire and Seth MacFarlane, as well as her dad, because, you know, sure, 2020.

#65 – “Gnat” – Eminem

Produced by d.a. got that dope

I can’t tell if I’m underestimating Christmas or overestimating Eminem when I say I expected an album bomb – or whatever that equivalent would be in the UK and our land of silly chart rules – from the deluxe edition of his pretty damn terrible album, Music to be Murdered By. This 3/10 trainwreck consists of two hours I’ll never get back of either great beats wasted by Eminem’s corny, stiff flows and painfully unlikeable delivery or obnoxious, unlistenable beats that are dated enough for Eminem to start going on his Relapse “killing women in funny accents” shtick, which was awful then and even worse now when he tries to replicate it. Marshall, you’re 48, and I know that you’re just “messing around” but if you’re going to treat the album as a cinematic masterpiece within the album and its thematic Alfred Hitchcock interludes, you have to understand that the audience will see it as that way as well, so you having fun and being painfully unfunny in the process over cutting-room-floor trap instrumentals cannot slide. At least Kamikaze had some genuine anger and dare I say some actual balls in how it tackled controversy and dissed everyone he could think of off the top of his head. The last record was angry and bitter, this one’s just tired and lazy, and that’s before we get into some of the ugliest bars, instrumentals and cadences Slim Shady’s ever put on record, which is especially present on “Gnat”, a lightweight trap banger with some acoustic guitars not dissimilar to those that would appear on a Lil Baby mixtape, complete with questionable bass mixing and really bad hooks. On the verses, he sends a death threat to Mike Pence, but on the chorus, his bars are “like COVID” because “you get them right off the bat”. I don’t know about you, but in 2020, I don’t want to hear Eminem harmonising with producer tags, making topical and insensitive pandemic references, or spitting sex bars with coughing ad-libs. Before the beat switch, his flows are some of the sloppiest and drawn-out he’s ever used, and yes, I’ll admit, that second beat is a lot better and Em kills it over that instrumental – but only for a brief moment before we have a third beat, which Eminem is pretty great over, especially with that sax and sweet piano keys overlaid with hard 808s and Eminem’s rapid-pace, quick fire flow... and then he raps the chorus again and I want the song to end as quickly as it started – thankfully, it does end rather abruptly. Just wasted potential all throughout – if that beat switch and flow was a guest verse on damn near anyone else’s record (Em has made tracks with Don Toliver of all people, and he could work), this could be great. For now, Em, you know Kris Kristofferson? I think you should Piss Pissofferson. Forever. Look that up, by the way, that’s a lyric on the record because of course it is.

#61 – “In the Bleak Midwinter” – Jamie Cullum

Produced by ???

I had only briefly heard the name “Jamie Cullum” before this, but he is an English jazz-pop singer and pianist who’s basically useless and uninteresting but, hey, at least he has a radio show on BBC Radio 2. Sure, I mean that might have been the reason that Amazon Music picked him up for an exclusive project for which this is the biggest single. It’s not on Spotify, it’s not even on Genius, and it’s barely on YouTube but since it is, I should tell you that this is his first charting single since 2009 and it’s a remarkably uninteresting rendition of a Christmas carol done a lot better by Jacob Collier – and that one’s on Spotify – so yeah, your sleepy piano arrangement and tone that makes you sound like Robbie Williams half the time and Beck the other, doesn’t interest me. Goodbye.

#30 – “Afterglow” – Ed Sheeran

Produced by PARISI, Fred Again and Ed Sheeran

If we inexplicably remove everything Christmas-related on the chart, Eminem’s “Gnat” would have debuted at #20, and this new track from Ed Sheeran, already stunted from being released on an unconventional day, would have hit #5. Regardless of chart position, Ed Sheeran’s back with his first solo single since Divide. Yes, I’m purposefully ignoring that collaborative project he put out in 2019 because as far as I know, it doesn’t exist. At the end of the year, when things are looking as if he could start touring again, Sheeran predictably releases his lead-off single. This song in particular is a heartfelt ballad from Ed to his wife, who he wishes to be there forever and even if they aren’t together at any moment, whether he’s touring or they separate for whatever reason, he’ll “hold on to the afterglow”. I won’t lie, it’s a really sweet and convincingly sold love song from Ed, even if it’s not anything new, it does feel like a different approach since he’s a newly-wed man now. Although I’m not a fan of this somewhat muddy mixing that somehow messes up just a guy and his acoustic guitar, making what should be a really pretty, ethereal and mellow track sound almost ugly, which doesn’t flatter Ed and his limited delivery at all, especially when he starts getting multi-tracked in the second verse and whooshing sound effects of strings pop up in the mix, and, yeah, it just sounds cheap and gross at this point, which is really a waste of incredible content and a great performance from Ed, who sells everything as well as he can. I understand how this is supposed to be down to Earth, so a perfect mix wouldn’t make sense, but if you’re going to make him harmonise with his own background vocals and even show signs of belting, give him some more grandiosity and go full out instead of restraining him so that it just sounds jarring. With a different mix this could be one of Ed’s best tracks since the melodies are on point, the song feels really heart-warming and sincere, especially coming from Ed to his wife, but we won’t get a remaster anytime soon, I imagine, so for now this is just pretty damn good. I love the cover art as well, painted by Ed himself, and released alongside the single as a bit of a Christmas gift to fans, as well as the start of what I’m pretty sure will be a promo cycle. If this is a good peek into what that album will sound like, it’s safe to say I’m more than excited than ever to hear from Ed Sheeran.

#5 – “Boris Johnson is a Fricking Jerk” – Kool & the Gang

Produced by ???

Okay, so the song’s calling Boris Johnson something stronger than a “fricking jerk”, and the song is decidedly not by soul legends Kool & the Gang, although I’d love for that to happen sometime. This is a family show, of course, so we have to take some liberties. This track originates from a comedian from Basildon, Essex of all places, and whilst we don’t know his name, the songwriting credit on Spotify is given to contemporary British poet Wayne Clements so maybe he’s behind this, who knows? Whether he is or not, I can tell you the history behind this comedian’s music, as he has been making crude short singles about controversial topics in British society and politics for a while, including some about Nick Clegg that charted, although never higher than #63. He retired in 2016 but after writing an autobiography, the guy’s back and he released a compilation of punk rock tracks, all of which are small and profane, with a “band” of puppets that I also can’t name. State-controlled Russian television networks – because, sure, again, it’s 2020 – say that he will start touring in 2021, mostly because he’s finally reached that mainstream audience with this family-friendly tune about Boris Johnson. Here’s how Vick Hope and Katie Thistleton introduced it live on air during the mid-week chart reveal.

Now at #19, we've got a track about Boris Johnson that has so many bad words in it, we can't play it on daytime Radio 1.

Ah, you cowards. Wait... Anyway, I’m pretty happy that the British public can stick it to Boris and the heartless Tories that follow him and currently rule the country, even if it is all a bloody stupid joke from an anonymous punk rocker. We can dig into Boris for his failures on Brexit, mishandling of the pandemic, disgraceful reality-star-esque personal life, that he wasn’t even born in the UK yet is basically a nationalist, his history of Islamophobic commentary, his crap excuses for journalism back in the 2000s or even his clown-nose, blonde bowl-cut “hair style” he adopts whilst addressing us on live television feeding us lies and misleading statements that turn into retcons the next time he has to address the nation, whether it be on Brexit or COVID-19 tiers and regulations, both of which are a confusing mess to both sides of Europe that exist to drift us away from where we should be going as a nation, and further into the realm of political party tribalism that we know absolutely does not work in the States and that we mock the Yanks for. We’re more than the sick man of Europe, we are the America of Europe. I guess you could say Ireland is our Canada, but we don’t even have a Mexico to make us look better, we just have other western, central and northern European countries that may be flawed but are far ahead of whatever the hell this shell of a union is in 2020, less than 80 years after the creation of our National Health Service. People will look to pundits and newsreaders like Piers Morgan, entertainers like Phillip Schofield, war veterans and charity-givers like Captain Tom Moore, and even politicians like Boris Johnson, as the “heroes” of Britain’s 2020 but it’s increasingly clear that absolutely no-one is a hero, and it’s the people’s right to be upset. Hence, nearly exactly a year after Boris Johnson cheated his way into power by smear campaigns and elitism, we have this song debuting at #5. Unfortunately, the song doesn’t go into any of that. It just repeats the title in an anthemic – and considerably agreeable – refrain that is an undeniable punk hook. The riffs and guitar work here isn’t of any interest, but the guy’s delivery is powerful and furious, so I’ll give the song credit: it’s not just correct but it’s really good, especially for a one minute runtime. He also released some satirical MIDI-level synth-pop remix with gross Christmas sleigh bells and hi-hat skitters, because, say it with me, it’s 2020. I wouldn’t recommend the album though, it overstays its welcome by the time you get to “Jesus Died of a Stranglewank”.

#1 – “Don’t Stop Me Eatin’” – LadBaby

Produced by who cares?

I can’t get mad at this lazy “parody” of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” about sausage rolls, or even its Ronan Keating remix, which is LadBaby doing a favour to Ronan Keating, if anything. Sure, my blood boils with the idea that this incompetent Internet personality from the East Midlands – which I think I’m sadly also able to describe myself as – got the #1 over Mariah Carey, or even that Boris Johnson diss track, but it’s going to the Trussell Trust and it’s ultimately an inoffensive, vaguely happy track that even gets the vegans involved. I, for one, prefer “Boris Johnson is a Sausage Roll”, a version of our #5 you can – and should – play on the radio even after Christmas. I don’t have anything more to say about this guy so piss off, LadBaby, you can’t even get the album cover right to the song you’re parodying, thrice in a row.

Conclusion

Best of the Week is definitely going to the Somethings for “Boris Johnson is a Something Something”, with an Honourable Mention to Ed Sheeran’s “Afterglow”. I can’t bring myself to give a charity single Worst of the Week so I’ll spare LadBaby the honour and grant it to Jamie Cullum for his greedy Amazon exclusive trite, with a Dishonourable Mention for “Gnat” by Eminem, for just being wasted potential all across the board. Next week, everything Christmas-related will be gone and we’ll get a bunch of returns and hopefully some new, interesting returning entries. We might even get the impact of Playboi Carti’s long-anticipated album – and I hope so because it’s fantastic – but that’s wishful thinking. Anyways, I hope everyone had a happy holiday season. Here’s our top 10:

Thank you for reading. You can follow me @cactusinthebank for more rambling about pop music and occasionally politics, and I’ll see you next year.

[swimintothesound]

Swim Into The Sound’s 2017 Un-Awards

Welcome to Swim Into The Sound’s first annual Un-Awards! In this direct (and more negative) companion piece to our Diamond Platters, we take a moment to reflect on some of the worst moments in music over the past year. From bad lyrics to tasteless cover art, this is a quick-hit version of the lowest points that 2017 had to offer.

In a year where we keep thinking “well, at least things can’t get any worse” 2017 always managed to surprise us. From politics and celebrities all the way down to movies and music, this was a year of general-purpose deplorable behavior and reprehensible choices. While there were plenty of good moments over the past 365 days, you will find that none of that light reaches these depths. This post is a place of darkness, a hell devoted solely to the most soul-crushing and life-questioning music of the year.

I’d also like to throw out a disclaimer that I don’t particularly like being pessimistic, especially when it comes to art that people have (presumably) worked hard on. Aside from that, negativity stands in direct opposition to the ideals that this website was founded on in the first place. What I’ve found is that it’s hard to talk about the good without also thinking of the bad, especially for a year like 2017. As I mentioned before, the previous post is the exact inverse of this one, and the next article going up will cover our favorite albums of the year, so if you are searching for affirmation, this is not the place to find it. Just think of this as the lone negative meat in a positivity sandwich.

Truth be told, aside from a few visibly-frothy entries, most of these awards are positive spins on negative experiences: moments that surprised me, music I’m embarrassed to enjoy, or weird synchronicities that I noticed throughout the year. I could have gone out of my way to shit on Katy Perry, The Chainsmokers, Imagine Dragons, or any number of middling radio-ready albums that were released this year, but at a certain point that all just feels redundant and hack. I prefer to be original in my distaste. So without any further adieu, I’m proud to present Swim Into The Sound’s list of the most spine-chillingly-regrettable music of 2017.

Biggest Disappointment

Winner: Queens of the Stone Age - Villains

Being a fan is a mixed blessing. The upside is that you get to enjoy the rollercoaster of hype that is an album rollout and you get the sweet experience of listening to a highly-anticipated album for the first time when it releases. On the flip side, that fandom can easily backfire if your expectations have been built up too high. While I love Queens of the Stone Age, in 2017 I fear that I may be outgrowing them. The group’s 2004 release Songs for the Deaf is literally my favorite album of all time, and there’s no higher praise than that. Each record since then has been good to great until 2013’s ...Like Clockwork which just didn’t sit right with me outside of a select few songs.

This year, the group’s seventh LP represents a new artistic low. Featuring limp “dancy” grooves, irritatingly-clean instruments, and some of the most laughable lyrics I’ve ever heard, the band we see on Villains bears little resemblance the one that I fell in love with years ago. I recognize that wanting a band to stay the same is a shitty thing for a fan to ask, but I just can’t understand, enjoy, or tolerate the direction that the group is headed. I’m a lifelong fan, but that makes these recent records hurt all the more. When you love a band, you devour each release that they put out. Even if the last few records haven’t hit as hard, you stick with them because you want them to be better. The excitement of something new is impossible to stay away from, but now after months of listening, all I want is for Villains to stay away from me.

Runner-up: Portugal. The Man - Woodstock

While I wrote glowingly about Portugal. The Man’s entire discography last month, Woodstock (while not bad) is not an album that I particularly wanted. It’s not the band’s worst, but it’s the most sterile, safe, and poppy album that the group has ever created. Outside of a handful of adrenaline-pumping car-ready songs, Woodstock takes no risks. The album breaks no new ground, asks nothing of its audience, and seems entirely too content to settle. While those qualities are the exact opposite of what I expect from the trailblazing Portlanders, I’ll hold my reservations until I hear what comes next.

Album I Feel Like I Will Adore In A Few Years

Winner: Fleet Foxes - Crack-up

Until earlier this year I never particularly liked Fleet Foxes. In preparation for their 2017 release, I found myself endlessly replaying the group’s self-titled LP alongside Helplessness Blues while doing other things. Somewhere along the line “inoffensive background music” turned into brilliant folk epics, and I finally understood what made the band so unique. However, in a Bon Iver-esque pivot, Fleet Foxes’ third LP Crack-up represents an experimental shift in sounds, and unfortunately, it’s a change that doesn’t sit particularly well with me. There are some awe-inspiring moments scattered throughout this record, but as a whole, it’s not a release that stuck with me in the slightest, let alone one that can hold a candle to the band’s earlier work. I recognize that there’s something special going on in Crack-up, but I feel like it will just take some time for me to properly excavate it, just as I did with the group’s first two records.

Runner-up: Sun Kil Moon - Common As Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood

Sun Kil Moon is another artist that I’d never listened to until 2017. After hearing this year’s mouthful of an album Common As Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood, I came away pleasantly surprised. Featuring solemn, looping instrumentation and long podcast-like narration by Mark Kozelek, I listened to all two hours and ten minutes in complete fascination. I dipped back into his previous work like Benji and loved it just as much, but for whatever reason, I never ventured back into Valleys after that first listen. Maybe it was the album’s lengthy running time or the idea that the narration would prove too distracting for a casual listen, but Valleys always felt too daunting to dive back into. I feel like one day when I’m a middle-aged dad with a couple of kids I’ll finally have the time to revisit this album and it will speak to me on an entirely new level. The songs and stories here feel like something that I will find solace in when I’m older, but I just don’t have the 2+ hours right now.

WTF Moment of the Year

Winner: Bhad Bhabie

Of all the memes to emerge from 2017, few have been as successful as 14-year-old Danielle Bregoli. She first gained traction in January thanks to a Dr. Phil clip in which Mrs. Bregoli challenged an audience member to “cash her outside.” The teen’s delivery of the phrase caught fire and became a meme/infinitely-renewable social media caption for a hot minute. One of the more perplexing news stories of 2017 (and that’s saying something) was Danielle’s announcement of her music career as “Bhad Bhabi” complete with a deal on Atlantic Records. Preceded by an appearance in a Kodak Black video, this announcement blindsided the music world and spawned a million think pieces. However when Bregoli released her first song in August the unthinkable happened: It wasn’t that bad.

The video for “These Heaux” was the first part of a one-two punch alongside “Hi Bich” that set social media ablaze in September. As everyone collectively remembered the months-old meme from what seemed like a lifetime ago, most people took this as an opportunity to laugh at her once again. Meanwhile, I watched the same videos as everyone, and recognized it as bad music, but found myself embarrassingly enjoying both songs. “Heaux” and “Hi Bich” are both competent and well-produced Rae Sremmurd-esque bangers that, yes, are propped up by production, but still enjoyable. The truth is, they’re musical fast food. It’s not nutritious, healthy, or even filling, but sometimes you just need to bask in the utter trashiness that is Bhad Bhabie.

Runner-up: Lil Pump

Earlier this year I wrote a 3,000-word post in which I attempted to reconcile my newfound love of trap with my extreme dislike of the current crop of SoundCloud rappers. While that write-up was primarily inspired by the reprehensible human being that is xxxtentacion, I now regret lumping Lil Pump into the same category. While his brand of blown-out hyped-up trap is of the same school as xxx, Lil Pump isn’t nearly as bad on a personal or musical level as Onfroy. More surprisingly, I actually found myself liking his breakout single “Gucci Gang” more than I am comfortable admitting. Featuring a worryingly-mindless chorus and the same laundry list of flexes as most trap hits, “Gucci Gang” manages to be an infectious banger that has also propelled Pump to the forefront of both the charts and popular culture.

Most Un-sexy Sex Song

Winner: Alt-J “Hit Me Like That Snare”

In an interview with Q Magazine, Alt-J’s lead singer Joe Newman described “Hit Me Like That Snare” as an “atypically filthy psychedelic grind.” Wow, guys. Wow. If you want to avoid listening to the song, I don’t blame you. All you need to know about this track is that the band rhymes “slithering” with “scissoring” (yes, that kind), and the lead singer describes the song as “spicy.” Whew.

Runner-up: DJ Khaled “Wild Thoughts”

While I thought “Wild Thoughts” was exceedingly-sensual on first listen, the song now has too many things working against it for me to find any titillation here. From Rihanna’s baby talk to memories of dancing hot dogs, I just can’t listen to this song without picturing Santana’s face, or DJ Khaled screaming. The single achieved a level of cultural-pervasiveness so quickly that it became saturated beyond its original artistic vision. God knows I have no problem with DJ Khaled, but this track now contains too many distractions to remain pure. The music video is still unspeakably steamy, but as a whole, “Wild Thoughts” has lost what little sexy luster it initially had.

Am I The Only One Seeing This Shit?

Winner: Rappers Counting

I’ll admit that this category was created with the sole purpose of repurposing already-written articles, but that doesn’t make the observations contained within them any less valid. The first of these two hyper-specific happenings of 2017 can be found in this article where I outline three examples of rappers using numbers as lyrics. Not like clever wordplay involving numbers, but counting upwards sequentially one numeral at a time. It’s a weird thing to have happened multiple times in one year and feels like such a lazy cop-out of songwriting, but at the same time, each artist in the list manages to make it work for one reason or another.

Runner-up: 21 Savage’s Food Lyrics

Another weirdly-specific phenomenon of 2017 is something that I noticed while listening to 21 Savage’s debut Issa Album over the summer. Despite his tough gangster exterior and dark, moody beats, 21 also managed to fit an alarming number of food references into his first retail outing. While not particularly jarring, these references provide a weird contrast to the rest of the Mr. Savage’s “murder music” and end up sticking out like (multiple) sore thumbs throughout the record. It happened just consistently enough that I began laughing every time they poked up, and I felt the cosmic need to compile them somewhere, so I did.

Most Insensitive and Heavy-handed Song about Suicide

Winner: Arcade Fire “Creature Comfort”

On this second single off Arcade Fire’s Everything Now, we hear Win Butler clumsily address the topics of suicide and self-harm. The song’s first verse explains “Some boys hate themselves / Spend their lives resenting their fathers / Some girls hate their bodies / Stand in the mirror and wait for the feedback.” Taken on their own, these lines aren’t particularly offensive, but it’s the second verse where things get truly tactless: “Assisted suicide / She dreams about dying all the time / She told me she came so close / Filled up the bathtub and put on our first record.” I mean, what a pretentious and shitty way to insert yourself into someone else’s misery. It’s such a bizarre form of narcissism and masturbating to your own past, this line truly is one of the grossest sentiments that I’ve heard put to music over the past year.

Runner-up: Brand New “Same Logic / Teeth”

While it’s true that suicide isn’t exactly a groundbreaking topic for an emo band, Brand New somehow manages to stumble over it fantastically one of the few times that they tackle the subject. Surrounded by excellent songs of diverse sounds, styles, and topics, “Same Logic / Teeth” sticks out as Science Fiction’s  most significant blunder. With questionable lyrics, bizarre vocal choices, and overwrought sentiments, it’s easy to see why most bands would prefer not write songs about killing yourself because the only time I have ever wanted to end my life is when I’m hearing Jesse Lacey sing about how fish won’t judge me by my faults.  

WTF Moment of the Year 2: Weird Boogaloo

Winner: Vulfpeck “Captain Hook”

Venturing back to the “WTF Well” for two more entries, another of 2017’s biggest surprises came at the end of Vulfpeck’s Mr. Finish Line. The band’s third full-length studio album is a stone-cold chiller, but after half an hour of unspeakably funky tracks, “Captain Hook,” the record’s final song threw me (and every other listener) for a massive loop. Teased as a collaboration with Bootsy Collins, most fans expected a brainwave-shifting epic of an album closer, a modern “I’d Rather Be With You” but with even tighter instrumentation. What we got was a goofy comedy track featuring two of Vulfpeck’s members affecting the voices of an infant and an old Jewish man. Bootsy’s contributions are noticeable but minimal, and as a whole, the track is just a fantastically-bizarre experiment. “Captain Hook” is a weird child-like song featuring a trio of the three most disparate voices you could ever imagine, however (now that I know what to expect), I absolutely adore the song. It’s such a weird marriage of voices that, when combined with Vulf’s approach to music, circles back from annoying to endearing. It’s one final cherry of weirdness on top of the funk sundae that is Mr. Finish Line.

Runner-up: Taylor Swift “Look What You Made Me Do”

Preceded by snake imagery and a dark rebranding, “Look What You Made Me Do” marked Taylor Swift’s long-awaited return to the forefront of pop. After 2015’s 1989, numerous turbulent relationships, a public unmasking via Kardashian, and a complicated legal battle, the song represents Swift’s full embrace of the dark side. As the first single released off Reputation, “Look What You Made Me Do” was met with waves of confusion when it dropped this fall. From the Right Said Fred sample to the thinly-veiled jabs at her detractors, nearly everything about this song was poked and prodded through upon it’s August 25th release. There’s a strange schadenfreude to watching the biggest pop star flail to spectacularly, but at the end of the day she’ll still make a million dollars, sold-out rock stadiums, and be more successful than the richest DC supervillain, so as much as I want her to succeed, I guess it’s also okay to laugh. I definitely haven’t “come around” to the song, and I doubt I ever will, but the air of “what the fuck” was palpable the night that this song was released.

Weirdest Flex

Winner: Lil Pump “Gucci Gang”

After a brief intro and meme-ready chorus on “Gucci Gang,” Lil Pump surveys his surroundings and begins to describe them in the song’s sole verse. “My lean cost more than your rent” he boasts, “Your momma still live in a tent” he continues, “Still slangin' dope in the 'jects / Me and my grandma take meds.” These lines are so outlandish and bizarre that I can’t help but love them. First, we get the worrying comparison between the upkeep of his own opiate addiction to monthly rent, then the (uncalled for) implication that the listener’s mother is homeless, and the final cherry on top: the fact that Pump spends quality time popping pills with his grandmother.

It’s actually one of Pump’s numerous references to the elderly on his scant number of released songs, leading me to think that this is either A) a genuine lyric, or B) a worrying cry for help. At least he’s spending some quality time with his elders before they pass. Even if it’s a drug-fueled haze, I hope that both parties treasure their remaining time together.

Runner-up: Drake “Gyalchester”

On one of More Life’s most hard-hitting tracks, “Gyalchester” finds Drake braggadociously displaying his opulence in rapid lyrical flashes. Halfway through the first verse, the song’s beat cuts out just long enough for Drake to exclaim “I don't take naps / Me and the money are way too attached to go and do that.” While the sentiment of money over everything is hardly new for the rap game, using naps as a framing device to explain how fond of currency you are is such a “Drake way” to go about it. At this point, Drake is far beyond the memes of his earlier career, but lines like this one are how he got that reputation in the first place. All this said, I’m not gonna begrudge anyone their beauty sleep or lack thereof, everyone has their own unique schedule... Plus the song bangs, so cornball lyrics are easier to overlook.

Most Abhorrent Cover Art

Winner: The Darkness - Pinewood Smile

I honestly don’t want to write too much because I just want to stop looking at this. The facial hair. The teeth. The nose ring. The Photoshopped band members. I’m sorry I had to subject you guys to this, but this abortion of a cover is too bad to not share.

Runner-up: Maroon 5 - Red Pill Blues

*Adam Levine walks into the studio*

“Hey, have you guys heard of Snapchat?”

Most Undeservedly Shit Upon

Winner: Arcade Fire - Everything Now

For the sake of ending on a somewhat positive note, I’m going to wrap up by talking about two albums that were widely disliked, but I managed to appreciate. First off we have Arcade Fire’s fifth LP Everything Now. While I did just spend a paragraph dunking on the album’s suicide track, I actually thoroughly enjoyed this record. I’ll start this off by saying I have no reverence for this band, I don’t care for their older work, and they’ve always struck me as a painfully average indie group. Perhaps thanks to this lowered expectation, I emerged from my first listen of Everything Now with a smile on my face. It was goofy and cheesy, and about as far from subtle as you can get, but I still enjoyed it for what it was. Since the album is in this “shit upon” category, I guess it goes without saying that I was largely alone in this sentiment.

Maybe people were turned off by the unrelenting social media campaign, or just expected more based on the group’s previous work, but either way, it seemed like indieheads the world over were sick to their stomachs after hearing this record. I personally think the album has a wonderful Abba-esque charm to it. There’s a tremendous melodic through-line with the titular “Everything Now,” there are memorable choruses on “Creature Comfort,” and even a gloriously chunky riff on “Chemistry.”

At the end of the day, I think I enjoy Everything Now for the same reason that I enjoyed M83’s Junk. I went into both albums with low expectations and ended up loving the cheesy throwback vibe that they embraced. I can totally understand why that pivot would turn off long-time fans, but apparently, this sound is right up my alley. It’s not going to be on my end of the year list or anything, all I’m saying is Everything Now is good for what it is. You know what? It’s great for what it is. If fans could take their blinders off, remove their feelings on the album’s lead-up, and take this as a standalone adventure, they would probably enjoy Everything Now for the goofy romp that it is.

Runner-up: Foo Fighters - Concrete and Gold

Even before Concrete and Gold was released, I saw about a half dozen articles about how the Foo Fighters have nowhere else to go and are the embodiment of “New Dad Rock.” While it’s true that the band is unchallenging to listen to and don’t exactly think outside of the box, the criticism is a double-edged sword. Aside from being a thinly-veiled put-down, the dad rock label means that Foo Fighters won’t ever release a “bad” record, but they’re also never going to release another “classic” like Colour and Shape. While I agree the group is in a weird spot career-wise, I resent the idea that they won’t ever release something impactful as Colour and Shape simply because they’re older. Apart from the fact that 2011’s Wasting Light was one of the band’s best, on Concrete and Gold we see a band that’s still incredibly hungry.

Eschewing the conceptual framing devices of their past couple releases, Foo Fighters set out to make a straight-up rock record, and they succeeded. The band still go through their usual motions, oscillating from biting punky tracks to slow moody epics, but as a whole Concrete is a record that’s well-paced, well-produced, and solid from front to back. Just because it’s played on the radio doesn't mean it’s an inherently “okay” album, and just because the band is growing old doesn’t mean they’re settling. Concrete and Gold is concrete proof of that.

[gyrlversion]

Stray Kids On Growing Up, Taking More Creative Risks, And Dealing With Self-Doubt

Stray Kids are following their own path. And that reluctance to play by anyone else’s rules is precisely what makes this group of teens and young adults stand out. They’ve been releasing some of the boldest tracks in K-pop since making their debut with the blistering “District 9” a year ago, a song that harnessed their teen angst into a dizzying mix of hip-hop, rock, and EDM and quickly established them as rookie group to watch.

It’s their ability to channel that raw emotion into their music that has resonated with fans all over the world, many of whom are on the cusp of adulthood themselves. As such, the group’s signature sound can’t be contained in a single genre; it’s more of a state of being — a deeply earnest one.

“Stray Kids music is music that’s relatable and can help you out when you’re having a hard time,” leader Bang Chan tells MTV News over the phone from Seoul, where the group is preparing to embark on their first solo U.S. tour. Though, he quick to add, “It’s got a lot of energy, doesn’t it?”

And nowhere is that empathy and energy more apparent than on their latest single, “Miroh.” Inspired by the word miro, or “maze” in Korean, the boisterous track — produced by members Bang Chan, Han, and Changbin, otherwise known as 3racha — is a cacophony of sounds, rhythms, chants, and animal noises. The hook is massive, a perfect stadium-sized banger that shows off the group’s grit and potential. “It’s not hard / in this rough jungle,” Bang Chan sings. “It was me who ran into it / I’m okay.”

“‘Miroh’ was a really big attempt,” the 21-year-old singer and producer said. “It shows that as we’re getting older we tend to take more risks and try out new experiences, challenge ourselves.”

And as members Bang Chan, Woojin, Lee Know, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, and I.N grow and mature, so does their music. Their previous I Am… series focused heavily on the theme of identity through the teenage perspective. Who am I? Who am I trying to be? And does everyone feel scared and aimless like I do sometimes? With their most recent release, Clé 1: Miroh, it’s clear that these questions are still at the forefront of their minds — and they’re facing them head-on, charging into adolescent uncertainty with newfound confidence and perspective that comes when you enter your twenties. And of course, a bit of bravado. Their song “Boxer” opens with a cheeky declaration: “Hello, I’m a young man who can fly anywhere.”

Within that “long but short kind of period” since their debut, Stray Kids have released four EPs and one pre-debut mixtape, all of which have been primarily written and produced by the members themselves. While 3racha have shaped the majority of the group’s discography, all nine members are credited writers and encouraged to contribute to the production.

“The fact that we make our own music is one of [our] biggest weapons because that way it’s a bit more genuine,” Bang Chan said. “It’s the message that we form and want to send everyone.”

“It’s much easier to express ourselves and express how we feel to the fans,” rapper, and fellow Aussie, Felix added. “It’s way more honest as well,” Bang Chan concluded. “It’s really important to Stray Kids.”

Getty Images

Members from left to right: Bang Chan, Hyunjin, I.N, Han, Changbin, Seungmin, Felix, Lee Know, and Woojin

That creative ethos starts with Bang Chan, who put the group together when they were trainees under Korea’s JYP Entertainment. (The Stray Kids logo is even written in his handwriting.) Fans were first introduced to the Australia-raised leader on the group’s survival program, aptly titled Stray Kids. Over the course of 10 episodes, Stray Kids — then teenagers with big dreams  — underwent teamwork challenges and regular evaluations for the chance to debut together as a group. The series documented the nine individuals as they prepared their blustery pre-debut song “Hellevator,” producing and practicing around the clock for a dream that was never very certain. In fact, members Felix and Lee Know were originally eliminated from the project but were ultimately brought back in the final episode, giving even more meaning to the phrase “nine or none.”

The group’s nonstop pace didn’t slow down after their debut, either. If anything, the desire to create and funnel their questions into their music got even stronger because of their fans (called STAY).

As such, they’re always creating. And when they feel stuck, they resort to the kinds of distractions you might expect from a group of young men: fresh air, movies (Creed), and anime (One Piece) for Bang Chan; video games and EDM music for Felix, who added, “I’ve been listening to ‘My Pace’ a lot.”

“I’m always on my laptop trying to make new stuff, whenever we have free time,” Bang Chan said. “On the plane as well. I make a lot of music on the plane. I remember I worked on ‘I Am You’ on the plane to New York last year. And we did use a bit of it, so it was pretty good.”

Of course, with that comes its own unique kind of pressure. “There’s that feeling of, ‘Will people like this music? Will our fans like this music? Will STAYs like this music?’ Sometimes, that can get into our heads,” he said. “Trying to satisfy everyone is going to be an eternal challenge.” Trying to do so while keeping up with the furious pace Stray Kids’ set in their first year is also challenging.

JYP Entertainment

Bang Chan (left) and Felix (right)

So it makes sense that time (examining it, questioning it, running away from it) is a running theme throughout Miroh. Album closer “19” is a moody and personal song, written and produced by member Han, that finds him navigating that age between adolescence and adulthood. “Maze Of Memories” is a hip-hop track in which the cadence matches the various twists and turns one might encounter while chasing your dreams. It starts off slow and foreboding, then evolves into something darker and more sinister — a nightmarish soundscape — before ending with a confident refrain of “never give up.” And then there’s “Chronosaurus,” an atmospheric song that associates time with something to be afraid of.

“While I was writing ‘Chronosaurus’ I did think a lot that time is something that has a lot of pressure attached to it. Even when you’re taking a test there’s always a time limit, or when you’re working there’s always a deadline,” Bang Chan said.

“I would love to have a superpower that could control time because then I could do whatever I want,” he added, laughing. “But time being something that no one can stop, because it’s something that’s always going to be with me anyway, you might as well get comfortable with it. Try to take some of the pressure off it.”

This candid exploration is something that means a lot to their fans, many of whom are also navigating their own everyday struggles — running into their own mazes and up against deadlines. “We wanted to spread the message that you guys aren’t the only ones,” the leader told the passionate crowd of fans at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center on Tuesday night (May 14), the first of two sold-out nights and the first stop of the U.S. leg of their Unveil world tour. The two-hour set traces the group’s young discography, telling the story of Stray Kids from the beginning.

Earlier singles “Hellevator” and “District 9” are full of angst and aggression — teens who balked at societal pressures and followed their own rules — while the energetic “My Pace” is uplifting and anthemic, and b-side “Voices” exposes their deep-seated insecurities. “I Am You,” a song written for their fans, packs an emotional punch (“You shined on me when I didn’t even know myself,” Hyunjin raps) and “Get Cool” is a playful ode to living in the moment (“Doesn’t matter if the world is a cold place ’cause I’m getting cooler,” Bang Chan sings). By the end, it’s clear: Their music is a mirror to their fans, reflecting their innermost thoughts and anxieties — and intertwining their stories in the process.

“At events where we get to meet up with our fans they talk to us about what they’re feeling or what’s on their minds,” Bang Chan said. “Knowing that, we can tell that our fans are changing and getting older with us. It’s really cool to experience that.”

But it’s not just the themes in their music that connect with fans; it’s the members themselves. Despite the number of rappers in their arsenal and their powerful stage presence, Bang Chan jokingly insists: “We’re a mess!” And anyone who’s seen even one episode of their weekly web series or tuned into one of their live streams would probably agree. After all, teenage boys are still teenage boys, regardless of whether or not they’re idols.

Take, for example, their main rapper, who spits bars at a breakneck speed. “Changbin-hyung is different on-stage,” Felix said. “When people see him on stage, they think he’s this dark rapper. But at the end of the day, when it’s just us, he’s a big brother that plays around a lot.”

And then there’s baby-faced Felix, whose deep voice and effervescent personality hardly seem like an obvious pairing at first but are essential to the group’s sonic identity.

“I now know how to use my voice a bit more. As we record for new songs, I’m able to improve and learn from 3racha on how to record,” he said, reflecting on the past year. “And not only that. Since being in the group, I’m learning more about myself as well and who I really am. Being with Stray Kids has made me feel more confident. It made me who I really am. I feel brave these days.”

When asked about the biggest change he sees in himself since being part of Stray Kids, Bang Chan was quick to note that he still doesn’t have any answers. “I have always been on a quest to find who I really am,” he said, pausing. “Honestly, I don’t think I’ve figured it out 100 percent yet.”

“But I have learned a lot about how to be on stage and how to communicate with my members and STAYs,” he added. “Even producing our music, every time I make a new song, I learn something new. And I’m still learning. I’m excited thinking about that now — there’s so much more to learn.”

This perspective — approaching life as a series of shared experiences, not obstacles — is what makes Stray Kids voices for their generation. By opening up, they’re encouraging others to do the same, to forge their own paths and perhaps learn something new about themselves along the way.

The post Stray Kids On Growing Up, Taking More Creative Risks, And Dealing With Self-Doubt appeared first on Gyrlversion.

from WordPress http://www.gyrlversion.net/stray-kids-on-growing-up-taking-more-creative-risks-and-dealing-with-self-doubt/

[onestowatch]

ieuan Thinks “VIRTUAL REALITY” Has Us Trapped in a Simulation [PREMIERE + Q&A]

We live in a crazy world at the moment. Between celebrity politicians and self-driving cars, sometimes it’s hard to tell if everything happening around us is real or if we’re living in some sort of wild simulation. Young electro-pop mastermind ieuan thinks we might be – and he’s got just the music for the ride.

San Francisco-born and now London-based, this fresh singer/producer has been on the rise tackling topics like LGBTQ+ love, loss, religion and youthful angst via sultry, synth-drenched bangers that might be on the playlist of that exclusive, invite-only nightclub downtown. Having shared the stage with artists like Charlotte Lawrence and Elijah Daniels, and even finding himself playing events such as San Francisco Pride, ieaun is starting to make waves with pop fans globally.

Ahead of the release of his EP Childstar, ieuan sat down with Ones to Watch to exclusively premiere his latest single, “VIRTUAL REALITY,” as well as talk Black Mirror, growing up gay, and Joe Biden.

OTW: Hey ieuan, thanks for sitting down with me.

ieuan: No problem. It’s a nice break from making Frappuccinos. I’m working at the Harry Potter exhibition in North London right now to fill my time since I finished the EP.

OTW: Oh no way, I’m a huge Harry Potter nerd.

ieuan: Yeah, it’s hard because I really, really loved it growing up, but when the music is on all day and people keep asking me where to buy butter beer it kind of leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.

OTW: Haha, I totally understand that. But you’re California born, right?

ieuan: Yes sir, I’m from San Francisco.

OTW: What had you make the move to London?

ieuan: Well, my whole family is English. My mom and dad are from the UK, and they’re the only people in my entire family to not live here. And so we sort of had a bit of a childhood here - when I was little we spent a few years here before moving back to San Francisco. I just always wanted to come back, and I had the opportunity to study here for university so I’ve been in London about a year. Yeah.

OTW: Oh nice, what university are you studying at?

ieuan: Well it was University of East London. But I got kicked out.

OTW: Ohhhhhhh shit! What happened?

ieuan: Basically, everything started heating up as I moved here, I got proper management and started spending more time in sessions and meetings than going to class, and because I’m an international student they thought I was just trying to trying to get a visa. So they kicked me out. It wasn’t because I was just like, too lazy to go, but I was spending my time making music instead of learning stuff I already know, if that make sense.

OTW: For sure, that makes a lot of sense to me.

ieuan: But it’s quite funny to tell people I got kicked out of school, haha. I love doing it.

OTW: Well, since you got kicked out for doing music stuff, I suppose we should talk about your new track “VIRTUAL REALITY.” Can you tell me a bit about the inspiration for the track?

ieuan: Yeah. About a year ago, after I released my last mixtape Over the Garden Wall, I was kind of like, “Alright, where do I go from here?” At the time I was binge watching Black Mirror, like I think that shit is fantastic. I was really, really, really inspired by the perspective and obscurity behind each episode and how every one was different but they all have this underlying theme of “ah, technology is scary, ahhhh!” And so, I was going to the studio with this storyline I had in mind for the EP and I was like, “What goes better with the theme of dystopian technology than this world where everybody lives in VR instead of real life?” So yeah, it was really just like Black Mirror, and I was listening to a lot of electronic records at the time, so they both sort of came together to create that song.

OTW: Makes sense. What are some of the more unbelievable things you’ve seen happen in modern times that draw the comparison between your project and Black Mirror?

ieuan: Ummm, hmm. Oh my god! Here’s one. I take the train a lot in London, I work an hour and a half away, so I’m on the train quite a bit. I will literally see parents on their phones and like all that shit while their kids are running around screaming. I saw this kid like hurt himself so badly and his mom just did not care. This girl was too busy watching Facebook videos and playing Candy Crush to notice that her child cut himself up. Like that is ridiculous. Black Mirror shit.

OTW: Damn, that’s crazy. On an unrelated note, your publicist said that you’re homies with Joe Biden?

ieuan: Oh my god yessssss!! I love.

OTW: I gotta know how that happened.

ieuan: My life is fucking ridiculous, let me tell you. I was at my boyfriend at the time’s theater show on the East Coast, in Wilmington, DE, which is where Joe Biden is from. My boyfriend was always flexing like “yeah, I’m from the town where Joe Biden is from” and I was always like “yeah, whatever.” And then I was at this play, and we invited a few of our friends from DC to come see it, so we were all there together. One of the girls was very quiet so I started talking to her, and I was like, “What’s your name?” and she was like, “Maisie.” And I said, “Oh, Maisie what?” and she was like, “Biden” and I was like *gasp!!!* She was like the dopest girl ever, and she invited us all to stay over at her grandpa’s house that night. She was Joe Biden’s granddaughter. It was the most surreal… if you weren’t there, you wouldn’t believe it. We roll up, and there’s like security and a private lake and all that, and then we walk in and there’s just Joe Biden sitting there in a black turtle neck. I really wanted him to be like “Hello, my fellow Americans!” and all that but the things he said really shook me. He was like “Hey guys, I bought you donuts and orange juice for the morning. Let me give you a house tour.” He took us to the basement and the first thing I see is a Migos music video on a projector. Like bro, where the fuck where am I?

OTW: Black Mirror, man.

ieuan: Oh my god, you’re so right. What if it’s a simulation, and I’m making it all up? But yeah, it was absolutely insane. He was such a nice guy.

OTW: Well that’s good, I like to hear that. So you mention that you were in Biden’s hometown because you were visiting your boyfriend at the time. You’ve been a pretty outspoken advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, can you talk a little bit about how your sexuality and experiences thus far have affected your music?

ieuan: Yeah. Well, I came out when I was eleven.

OTW: Oh wow! Quite early.

ieuan: Yeah, so I was really, really young. I think because I came out so early - must’ve been like 2010 or something, it was a little bit before Born This Way by Lady Gaga came out - you didn’t know many gay people.

OTW: Or didn’t know you knew many gay people.

ieuan: Exactly. And like, I just had a really strange, gay childhood. I don’t know many people who have had a gay childhood. It inspired me to put some of that strange energy into my songs. I’m really glad that nowadays kids can come out at whatever age they want and people are supportive. It was very, very weird at the time. It led to me sort of seeing a lot more than any other 11-year-old would. I just figured it out so early. I don’t know, when I came to music I felt like it was a similar thing. This isn’t going to make any sense, but whatever, ahaha.

OTW: All good! You’ve performed at some functions benefiting the community as well, like San Francisco Pride.

ieuan: Yeah, that was insane.

How do you think other LGBTQ+ musicians, or allies even, can do things like that to benefit the community?

ieuan: Well, I think it just depends what you’re doing it for. Like for me, I don’t sit down to write music and say “this is for x.” I was just making sure that my music is a sonic projection of my personality. I am gay, and I am quite energetic, and the way the community responded to that ultimately sort of led to performing at pride being a very obvious decision. I think as long as you’re not sacrificing the thing that makes you special, you will get to where you want to be.

OTW: For sure. Last question on this subject, I suppose. Both San Francisco and London have pretty iconic gay scenes. How do they compare?

ieuan: Haha, yes they do! They’re very, very different. London is a lot more young. The gay scene is a lot more like 18-to-25-year-olds. Back in San Francisco I feel like it’s a lot more mature. You’ll see 50-year-old, married gay couples walking around going to art museums. It’s two different scenes. Over here in London, you’ll go out to Heaven or something and it’s just packed with gay kids, but then in San Francisco it’s all “let’s go to the art museum!”

OTW: Well, back onto music – you just finished your Childstar EP, but you also released an album called TECHNICOLOUR Vol. 1?

ieuan: Yes sir.

OTW: That’s a lot of content for one one year. Where do you find the inspiration?

ieuan: Um, well I think if I’m not creating like 24/7 I lose my mind. I’m a severe workaholic, I get that from my mum. I’ve just been listening to so much music, music from my childhood and albums that I never thought I’d listen to. It inspires me to like, literally never put the pen down, if that makes sense. I feel like I’m wasting my time if I’m not writing new music or producing or thinking about new visuals. That album was sort of a collection of the things I’ve been doing for the past three years.

OTW: Can we expect a Vol. 2 at some point?

ieuan: Oh absolutely. It depends if I’m not gonna sleep for another three years which I plan on doing anyways.

OTW: Well sweet, all the better for us. If you could form a supergroup with any artists living or dead, who would they be and what would you call yourselves.

ieuan: Haha, I think that may be the best question I’ve ever been asked. Oh my gosh. Okay. Me, Robyn, and Travis Scott, and we’re gonna be called The Robosluts. That’s my dream. We all use autotune, it’s insane. I would be the leader of course.

OTW: The head slut?

ieuan: Yes, the head thot.

OTW: Excellent, haha. Well, last question – who are your Ones to Watch?

ieuan: The first one off the top of my head is Instupendo, he’s sick. Must be 19 or 20. He makes this insane electronic-lullaby-dance-ambient music. It’s really, really beautiful, and I literally put it on repeat for my Animal Crossing and Pokémon sessions. If you’re trying to sleep and dream about some cool shit, you definitely have to put him on. Absolutely. There’s also this boy called That Kid. I think his real name is Spencer. He makes this really sick gay, ecstasy-fueled dance pop. Those two are my go-tos right now. Oh! And I can’t not mention my boy Jesse Saint John. He is a dream to work with. I don’t think I’ve met anybody in the last five years who is as supportive and loving and caring as that person. And we’ve only met once, when we performed together in LA. He writes for other artists but his own music is just brilliant.

OTW: Thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us.

ieuan: My pleasure. I hope this hasn’t been too embarrassing for me!

[weeklyrapgods-blog]

Brooklyn’s own Masta Ace is a hip hop icon to say the least. He is a revered member of the legendary Juice Crew. He was also a part of the group eMC with fellow rappers Wordsworth, Stricklin, and former member Punchline.

Masta Ace is loved by fans worldwide. I personally admire his ability to maintain longevity ans consistency with the ever-changing climate in hip hop. Over the decades, he is one of the few artists who has put out music, effortlessly, and still be on point with the current sound.

Masta Ace dropped his first album ‘Take a Look Around’ in 1995. Then he came with other projects ‘SlaughtaHouse’, ‘Sittin’ on Chrome’, ‘Disposable Arts’, ‘A Long Hot Summer’, and many more. In 2016, he dropped one of my favorite projects of all — ‘The Falling Season’.

When I first saw the “Me & The Biz” video, I was floored. This was a time when hip hop music was about having a good time. However, the most iconic Masta Ace verse was on the hit song “The Symphony” produced by Marley Marl, which featured his fellow Juice Crew members Big Daddy Kane, Craig G, and Kool G Rap.

Watch “The Symphony” Below:

He was also part of the supergroup Crooklyn Dodgers, which consisted of rotating members such as Buckshot, Special Ed, Chubb Rock, Jeru the Damaja and O.C. I had a deeper appreciation for Masta Ace and his craft when I heard this collaboration:

Watch “Crooklyn Dodgers” Below:

Over the years, he has collaborated with some other hip hop dynamos like Edo G, A.G., 9th Wonder, Diamond D, Jean Grae, Greg Nice, Torae, MF Doom and so much more. His music just gets better with time like a bottle of fine wine. He is indeed a “Masta” of the art of hip hop.

The legend took some time off his busy schedule to interview with us over at Weekly Rap Gods and discuss his career and latest project with Marco Polo titled ‘A Breukelen Story’.

INTERVIEW

Who are your musical influences?

There are many. But in my earlier days of writing rhymes it was LL, Rakim, and Slick Rick to name a few. But honestly, I’m influenced every day I hear somebody spit a dope verse. That’s what keeps me motivated to elevate my skill.

Who inspired you to start rapping?

The culture was growing and developing all around me back then. I started out DJing. There was a crew of us from my block that would get together and make tapes. Instrumentals of us cutting and scratching breakbeats. Out of the 5 guys in our crew, I was 4th best and I decided I could bring more to the tapes if I spit a few bars. I was really just emulating what I heard on the tapes coming from uptown and around the city. But that’s how it started.

Embed from Getty Imageswindow.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'8iorUR9lRIdSRGZsPWhI8Q',sig:'j9A44l81McfbO8iL87c_sMBxYS8hL4LAaTz2iqZWYaY=',w:'594px',h:'416px',items:'74306461',caption: false ,tld:'com',is360: false })});

How did you become part of Juice Crew?

Won a rap contest back in 1985 and first prize was 6 hours of studio time with Marley Marl. After recording demos with him for two years, he decided to put me on his compilation ‘Marley Marl in Control Vol. 1,’ which led to my affiliation with the label and crew.

Juice Crew

How did you come up with the “Me & The Biz” concept?

That was supposed to be a duet with me and Biz, but he didn’t wanna record where I wanted to record. It was going to slow down the album being completed, so Marley suggested leaving the demo lyrics I wrote for Biz on the song. I was really surprised to see that there were people who thought it was actually Biz on the song because I don’t think I sound anything like him. The idea for the video came later when Warner Bros forced me to put that out as my first single. A Biz puppet was made and the rest, as they say, is history.

Watch “Me & The Biz” Below:

How was your first time overseas? Where did you go?

My first time was in 1989. I went to the UK. I opened up for EPMD and Public Enemy at London Arena in front of 15k people. I had never performed in front of more than a couple of hundred before that day. It was incredible to know that people so far away from home knew my songs!

What was your stand out project? Why?

My career was ‘Disposable Arts’ (2001). I reached a point career-wise where I felt it was the end of the road for me. After having been signed to a bunch of majors and playing the industry game, I was tired of it all. That album was going to be my last hurrah so I wanted every song, hook, beat, concept to be 100% authentic and a representation of my mind state at the time. I put my all into that album, my soul, I was honest and didn’t have a major label telling me what to do and how I should sound. I didn’t care about radio play or anything. That album had single-handedly extended my career 17+ years.

Do you think technological advancements help or hinder hip hop?

Honestly it’s both. The digital age has made it much easier for people to put out music without any help from a major. But that’s a double-edged sword because now there’s no gatekeepers weeding through the garage to find the jewels. That means much more unpolished music is being put out and it ultimately lowers the talent bar because it’s like ANYBODY can make a song now.

  What are your thoughts on the evolution of hip hop?

I’ts continuous. It’s going to always be changing. It’s important that the integrity of the music isn’t lost in the process. As long as we have a good balance of talent being promoted, things will be ok.

Name 5 of the dopest albums you’ve ever heard.

There are many top to bottom dope albums. But here are 5 of my favorites. Just know there are many more:

Mobb Deep — ‘The Infamous’ Nas — ‘Illmatic’ Dr. Dre — ‘The Chronic 2001’ Kendrick Lamar — ‘Good Kid Mad City’ Slick Rick — ‘Great Adventures of…’

Who are some current artists you like right now?

Kendrick, J Cole, Cyhi da Prynce, Marlon Craft. There’s a bunch more.

Your music is always so fresh and competitive with current sound of hip hop. How do you maintain longevity over the years?

By continuing to be a fan of the music and seeking out new music and talent, it keeps me on my toes. There’s a lot of talented dudes out here killing it lyrically. You just gotta raise your game if you wanna keep up.

Recently, Juice Crew went on tour. What was it like hitting the stage again?

That was fun. We did 4 shows in Europe, so far, and about 4 stateside as well. The hope is we can continue to do more dates as a collective. Time will tell.

Embed from Getty Imageswindow.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'wkvszr-YRpFqZRaGdy3Eaw',sig:'CUluWTxyH9SO_I9_jwyFs5ZCRBF4IvIrpTCOVPUfJM0=',w:'594px',h:'395px',items:'872847246',caption: false ,tld:'com',is360: false })});

Tell us about your new album

The new album is called ‘A Breukelen Story’ and it’s a collaboration between myself and producer Marco Polo. It dropped Nov. 9th and features Pharoahe Monch, Styles P, Lil Fame, Smif n Wessun and my eMC brothers — Wordworth and Stricklin.

Buy/Stream ‘A Breukelen Story’ — Out Now!

Watch the first single/video “Breukelen (Brooklyn)” now:

Do you have any upcoming shows?

Follow my Bandsintown Page for all show updates and tours: www.bandsintown.com/mastaace

Marco Polo & Masta Ace

  It was an honor to interview such a prestigious and humble hip hop legend. Masta Ace is one of my biggest rap inspirations. There was no way I could truly reflect how rich his legacy is in this interview. Weekly Rap Gods salutes Masta Ace on his abundant contributions to the hip hop culture. Be sure to get Masta Ace’s latest album ‘A Breukelen Story’. It consists of 19 absolutely amazing bangers produced entirely by Marco Polo. Hip hop enthusiasts you must add this to your collection!

The Legendary Masta Ace Tells Us ‘A Breukelen Story’ (Interview) Brooklyn's own Masta Ace is a hip hop icon to say the least. He is a revered member of the legendary…

[brettdeadly]

AN INTERVIEW WITH VIC AUGUST

Firstly thank you for taking the time to be interviewed with clout culture magazine lets start with your introduction. Could you please tell our readers who you are and what it is that you do?

Thanks for interviewing me! I go by the name of Vic August and I’m a 17 year old rapper, singer, and songwriter from Western Australia. I was born in Albany then moved to Perth and stayed there for a nice decade, then started moving around the country with my parents and taught myself everything I needed to know about music whilst on road. I just signed with WVS/ onelove earlier this year and have been working 100x harder on my music for my fans.

  Such a well traveled and talented individual

Congrats on getting signed too that’s a massive accomplishment we’ll definitely come back to that in a sec. How’d you first get into music and teach yourself the ropes?

My personal relationship with music spans languages and genres; my dad is a proud Punjabi and loves to blare bhangra every opportunity he gets, and my mum is much more into the more Westernised sounds coming out of the East Indies; namely the modern Bollywood side of music as well as a handful of Bob Marley, Rihanna, and Michael Buble. I grew up listening to whatever my parents were into, which subconsciously impacted my melody selection and shaped my voice into what it is.

In school I was never really into music classes like that, I’d just pass them for the sake of not failing and never really learnt anything. It was around this time in 2013 when I was introduced to battle raps between kids in grades 7 & 9, which piqued my interest in Hip-Hop.

It was a couple of years after this that I had found out one of my friends from this period – who was into rapping – had unfortunately passed away, and this made me realise how precious life really is and quickly things can go left. Dealing with the loss of a friend at a young age I feel like you’re extra sensitive to everything, in my case I dealt with what I was going through by writing about it. I’ve been writing verses and stuff since I was like 7 but it was around this time I started honing my story-telling.

From that point forward it was all about me finding a way to make money to buy a MacBook and a microphone, then once I did that I bought Logic Pro X and taught myself how to produce, record, and mix. Here we are now

  A lot of events and genres shaped your music, sorry to hear about your friend. you talked about how this helped to shape your story telling just like turning coal into diamonds youve turned your pain into art for your ears, what advice would you give to someone who may be going through tough times as well?

More than anything I feel like it’s very important to grieve, don’t try to hold anything back and learn about the 7 stages of grief, you’ll feel a lot more prepared navigating through it. This may seem like a simple thing but some people I knew at the time didn’t do this and dealt with everything going on by trying to numb their pain instead of trying to heal it.

  That’s such valuable advice. You talked about how you taught yourself to produce, record, mix and write what’s your favourite part of making music?

Oh man definitely recording and mixing, I can’t decide my fav between the two tbh. I love having no barriers or no limits when I record, whatever I say, I say. Then of course playing with my vocals or any guest vocals and bringing out the best of them is a really cool process that takes you into the world of the song and you get to actually feel the atmosphere you’ve created as a vocalist whilst engineering your sound.

  All that hard work and musical engineering is definitely paying off your music has been breaking into the top 50 viral charts and being featured in Spotifys A1 hip hop playlist along with many others. How does it feel to now be recognized on an international level?

Amazing is a massive understatement, it’s crazy to get that type of recognition and see the music grow everyday. I have a great team that keeps me grounded, I’m not the type of person to hit a level like this and get complacent. Still spend every night recording until I pass out, if anything seeing how far the music can go has made me want to work 300x harder and feed the streets & sheets as much as I can.

  All of those qualities are so important and definitely amounting to a lot of success you’re even getting recognized by labels now. How’d it go about that you got signed? Especially at such a young age thats another huge achievement.

So basically I was sending demo’s to WVS for about 6 months before I got selected by the public in the Wildcard section of their Next Gen initiative.

When I was in Melbourne earlier this year for it I had a meeting with the label manager Mat Cant and we were just chatting about music and life and all that. At this time I had MIA, Fallback, and Sideways recorded and sitting on my hard drive but I had no idea they would end up on Glass House 2, or even that I would be making Glass House 2 so close to the first.

Anyway during our meeting one of the things Mat had mentioned to me was that he was interested in offering me a one-track deal, and if things went well from the single it would move on into a slightly longer term type situation.

About a week or so after I had came home from Melbourne I had recorded and mixed about 85% of Glass House 2 and sent Mat a private link to what I had. He replied to me saying something along the lines of “I’m keen to put this whole thing out for you” and the rest was history.

And yeah I believe I’m the youngest artist to ever be on WVS’ roster. Now that I think about it I think I’m youngest artist to ever get his own Spotify Playlist Cover too, shoutout Mellow Styles.

  Wow this is only the beginning and that’s already looking bright. What plans/goals do you have for your music in the future?

When I started making music I had the intention of helping people go through life if that makes sense, like talk about things I’ve gone through and make them relateable and things like that.

When I was performing my set at Next Gen I saw a different side of music, I’d never been to a live show of any kind before that point, so my first experience with one was being a performer on stage. For those 15 minutes I was up there, everyone in the audience came together regardless of race, colour, or creed and enjoyed one of the things they had in common; my music. From that day forward I saw music as a tool of unity, in times like these I feel like bringing moments like those to both my fans as well as the people of the world who may not be familiar with me is very important.

I’m very open in my music and make sure I’m always offering a piece of me with every cut, if it costs my vulnerability to bring together a community of people with golden hearts and warm intentions so be it.

I’ll be doing a lot more live shows next year especially in and around Melbourne, really excited to see how they turn out. I may or may not have a project in the works right now as well :0 … I don’t wanna say too much about the sonic aspect of it but it’s a big step forward from the Glass House Mixtapes and it’s a lot more playful and catchy this time round rather than narrative driven like GH2.

  Those would of been amazing experiences especially seeing the power of music. Would you ever consider going on tour in the future and if so who would be your dream line up to go on tour with you?

Oh my days, Figuero and I chat about a national tour all the time! Hopefully we’ll manage to pull it off sometime next year. Since Fig’s already on the hypothetical tour I’d love to bring the Bay City Boys on tour with us, Manny Lado, Lordholani, and Yung Juiceboxx really have some of the craziest performances I’ve ever seen and I think putting everyone on one stage and having the performances back to back would be an amazing experience for the fans.

  That’d be a dope line up. Do you have any dream music collaborations?

I’d love to work with Mike Dean, Travis Scott, Charlie Puth, Chantel Jeffries, Tory Lanez and Charli XCX to name a few.

  Those are gonna be some bangers! Here’s a serious one so get prepared, which emojis describe you atm?

shi uh

  If your life was a movie/tv show what would it be?

I don’t really watch movies or tv like that but I’m gonna say The Simpson’s, Bart was my guy

  Ah yes the Simpson’s is a classic what’s your fave album?

Astroworld

Actually nah Swaecation is probably my fav album this year

Astroworld is up there with it tho

  They’re both bomb! Do your favourites influence the way you make music/the vibe you try to create?

Most definitely, I love being able to incorporate different sounds from all my fav artists and put them all in one track with my twist on it. I feel like one of the best parts of creating music is being inspired by one of your fav songs and then working off that to create your own vibe.

  Do you have a certain vibe you try to create or is different for each song?

Depends on how I feel, usually I find a beat that matches my current mood and let the beat speak to me as far as melodies and stuff. I have a consistent vocal mix across all my tracks, that’s my own sound that remains the same regardless of the genre or style of music I’m making.

  Yea i love your sound its very melodic. What’s your greatest accomplishment so far?

I was chatting to Mag about this a couple days ago, back when I was a child I used to dream of having one song of my own that I’d listen to for hours, now I have thousands that are the soundtracks of both my short and long drives.

It’s crazy what you can accomplish if your heart, mind, and soul is invested. Along the road I’ve received messages from both national and international fans telling me my music helped them get through a difficult period of their life, and they really felt what I was talking about.

I value being able to touch hearts and having a positive impact on people more than anything else, I feel like being able to do so with an increasingly powerful fanbase is – and will always be – my greatest accomplishment.

    You’re a real one that’s really heartwarming. Does that motivate you to keep accomplishing things and what else motivates you?

Definitely, I’m all about the long-run. Ever since I started making music I’ve been insanely motivated to keep going, at this point it’s a fire so big I don’t even know exactly where it started, all I know is this is it for me.

I wanna go down as one of the greats and having an average work-rate is the best way to not get me there. I just wanna keep going and keep pushing and pushing until the boundary is so stretched out it snaps.

  Such good things to keep you motivated, what obstacles have you had to overcome in both music and life?

Overcoming self-doubt in my early days, killing my ego, learning how to forgive instead of holding grudges, just basically learning how the universe works and how to manoeuvre in it best I can.

  Those are all such valuable things to learn. What advice would you give your younger self?

Never take advice

  I feel like there’s a bit of a story behind that, why would you give your younger self that advice?

It takes a tremendous amount of self belief to be someone in this industry, a lot of people along the way will try to project their insecurities or their boundaries on you and try to taint your thoughts.

It’s always the people who don’t do shit/ haven’t accomplished shit that have the most advice to give. Live life on your own terms, not anyone else’s.

Music in particular is something that I believe you need to navigate through on your own, as far as learning how to create. When you treat it too strategically or your process is too routine that’s when it starts fuckin up.

  Wow those truly are wise words to live by. Last and maybe the most important question what links can we find your music at?

Search Vic August on your favourite streaming service and I’ll be right there :)). All links to my socials/ Spotify & Apple Music profiles are available from my SoundCloud page at: https://ift.tt/2vxtgls

  Sweet as thank you

as we wrap this up is there anything else you would like to add?

shoutout all my fans I fuckin love u

  & shoutouts to you too thank you so much for being interviewed by Clout Culture Magazine, it’s been dope getting into the mind of Vic August. It’s exciting to see what the future holds for you no doubt it’s gonna be a lot of big things. All the best

My pleasure

  Check out Vic August’s music here including tracks featuring Famous Dex and many more

https://wvs.lnk.to/bandit

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2x0MF1N via IFTTT

[crescendo-kuci]

Top Albums of 2017

It’s that time of year again! In a year of reinventions, triumphant returns, tragedy, and necessary accountability for musicians of all levels, these albums affected me and stayed with me through one of the most tumultuous times of music in recent memory. I will not mention the artists by name, but up until news of their personal lives surfaced, two different albums would have been in my top 5 (one of them even claiming the top spot). I don’t mind not having them here though, as it is more of an insult to the victims if I included the bands in this list than an insult to the bands if I don’t include them in this list. Fair enough? 

Lets start with some albums that I enjoyed this year but just missed cracking my top 10 (in alphabetical order):

Chon - Homey Electronic/hip hop/R&B combined with the trademark Chon math/prog rock made for a great follow up to the mostly same-sounding (but still incredible) Grow. 

Dryjacket - For Posterity “Epi Pen Pals” is one of the best songs from this year, and I don’t believe Dryjacket is getting nearly as much attention as they deserve.

Japandroids - Near to the Wild Heart of Life Although it’s their worst LP to date, there are a few classic Japandroids jams (the title track and “No Known Drink or Drug”) and the epic “Arc of Bar” that still made this a great indie rock album.

Jay Som - Everybody Works If this textured, full, tonally exceptional album is the typical result of the recording process happening completely in a bedroom, all albums from here on out should be recorded in a bedroom. Also, “Baybee” is a jam.

Julien Baker - Turn Out the Lights My number 11 album of the year. Julien’s voice reaches beauty and power that it didn’t reach on Sprained Ankle, and the added instrumentation doesn’t hurt either. Get the tissues ready, you’re gonna need ‘em. 

Looming - Seed Jessica Knight continues to have the most overlooked/underrated/underappreciated voice in independent music, and I’ll never forgive any of you for making that true (unless you listen to this album and their 2015 banger Nailbiter). Educate yourself! 

North End - Alpha State I tweeted in January that this was the first great album of the year, and it stayed with me all the way to the end. If you’re looking for a dynamic instrumental rock album to carry you through work or studying, look no further. 

Oso Oso - The Yunahon Mixtape As a big fan of their album Real Stories of True People, Who Kind of Looked Like Monsters, I was so pleased when I saw them surprise drop this album. What I originally thought would be a lesser album due to the nature of its release turned out to be an incredible step forward. It’s slightly more muted than their previous effort, but with more earworms spread throughout the track listing. Do not skip this album. 

Tigers Jaw - Spin Having an overall shine that wasn’t present on their previous efforts, Brianna and Ben (along with producer Will Yip) have created a great showcase for the scene’s first steps into the middle ground between independent and major labels. “Guardian” was constantly on repeat for me, and “Escape Plan” might downright be my favorite Tigers Jaw song to date. 

Turnover - Good Nature So we can all agree that Peripheral Vision is an absolute scene classic, right? Well, the band also agreed, so they didn’t change their sound or approach all that much for this album. But hey, don’t fix it if it’s not broken. 

The Top 10 

10. Sorority Noise - You’re Not As ______ As You Think

Watch: “No Halo”

Singing about deeply personal struggles with both a vulnerable whisper and a frustrated yell is nothing new for Cam Boucher, but this album instrumentally captures the tone of his words to a degree I haven’t heard in their past efforts. If you’re not yet acclimated with Sorority Noise, get listening. 

9. Phoebe Bridgers - Stranger in the Alps

Watch: “Motion Sickness”

Although I was an admittedly late passenger on the hype train for this album, I haven’t been able to get it out of my head since I listened. “Motion Sickness” is the stand out of the album, but Phoebe’s voice stays engaging and beautiful from start to finish. Even John Mayer himself has given Phoebe some strong praise, not that you’ll need any more motivation to check out the album once you hear her voice for the first time. 

8. Japanese Breakfast - Soft Sounds From Another Planet

Watch: “Road Head”

On the first listen of “Machinist” I wasn’t too keen on the direction Japanese Breakfast was going with Soft Sounds From Another Planet, but once the full album released I was all in. Where “Machinist” was 100% about spacey, technological sounds that captured the lyrics (I’ve come around on the song and love it in the context of the album), the rest of the album uses those effects to a tasteful and effective degree. There are even a couple of stripped down songs at the end of the track listing just to keep listeners on their toes. On top of all of that, the bass groove in “Road Head” is just so damn good. 

7. Prawn - Run

Listen: “Greyhound”

All of you monsters slept on my favorite album of 2014, Kingfisher, when it came out, so I’m not going to let you do it to Prawn again. They’re consistently writing energetic, beautiful songs that have far outpaced the rest of their peers. “Greyhound” in particular was a song I had on repeat all year, but Run has top to bottom jams. Don’t miss out on them this time around. 

6. Vasudeva - No Clearance

Listen: “Take Away”

My favorite instrumental album of the year goes to none other than Vasudeva. No Clearance does what very few instrumental albums can do for me, and that’s be completely entertaining and engaging from start to finish. The band has included a ton of moody, textured, and even electronic passages that give their trademark upbeat and lighthearted grooves an incredible sound. Although “Take Away” may not be the best example of this (I’d give that to “6&5″), it’s a perfect song for newcomers to Vasudeva to get acclimated with the band. 

5. Hodera - First Things First

Listen: “Out of Sync”

Back when Hodera premiered this song on their Audiotree Live Session, I was immediately sold on their follow up to United By Birdcalls. What I was surprised to hear on the album, however, was how much they embraced their country influences. I’m by no means a country fan, but Hodera embraces the genre with just enough rock instrumentation to keep me enjoying the album. Matthew Smith even seems more comfortable in letting his conversational singing style lead the tracks, which is fine by me. Hodera is one of those bands that should’ve caught on with listeners of bands like Pinegrove, so here’s your chance to catch up if you’ve missed them. 

4. Less Art - Strangled Light

Listen: “Pessimism as Denial”

Ah, “supergroups.” You gotta love ‘em. Consisting of members of Thrice, Kowloon Walled City and Curl Up and Die, I knew I would probably like Less Art’s debut album before I even heard it. When I listened and heard that it was exactly the middle ground between those three bands that I was hoping for, I ecstatically listened to it repeatedly. This is right at the max in terms of heavy rock that I can still enjoy, with tight drumming and tonally perfect bass and guitar instrumentation throughout. Can’t wait for all of these guys to unite and melt my face again with those sweet, juicy tones.

3. Manchester Orchestra - Black Mile to the Surface

Watch: “The Gold”

I listened to “The Gold” about thirty times the night it premiered. And then I put it on repeat when I went to bed and woke up to its beauty. So, yeah, I guess you could say I was pumped for a new Manchester Orchestra album. While “The Gold” is the standout track, there’s a beautiful and haunting vibe that engrosses the rest of the album. These songs are uniquely united in a way that hasn’t been seen on their previous efforts, and it makes for an immensely enjoyable complete album listen. Despite the closer “The Silence” being nearly seven minutes long, you’ll want to experience Black Mile to the Surface all the way to its chilling end. In terms of their discography, I’d place Black Mile to the Surface second just behind Mean Everything to Nothing, and I’m of the firm belief that Simple Math is a near perfect record. 

2. Pet Symmetry - Vision

Listen: “Hall Monitor”

If I were to make a top songs of 2017 list, I would have to include “Hall Monitor,” “You & Me & Mt. Hood,” “Stare Collection,” and “Lint Roller” in the top 10. It was honestly incredibly difficult to pick which song to link with this post. Off of that alone I decided to place this album so high on this list, but even the songs on the album I don’t consider my favorites this year are stellar. When I listen to this album all the way through, the only song I skip is “Eyesores” because it’s just a short burst of distorted vocals and guitars, but that’s it. Every other song is a genuine joy to listen to, and I really can’t ask much more from a band that barely even takes themselves seriously. Get listening. 

1. The Menzingers - After the Party

Watch: “After the Party”

I’ll admit, I hadn’t heard a single song by The Menzingers until they released “Lookers” last year. I know, blasphemy. I proceeded to do my homework and check out their older material in preparation for this album release, which usually results in either negatively comparing newer material to older material or getting burned out on the band’s sound. With After the Party though, neither of those ever happened. I still get just as pumped now when a track from the album comes up on shuffle as I did when it first released. Whether that song is the title track, “Tellin’ Lies,” “Lookers,” “Your Wild Years” or “Bad Catholics,” I’m always happy to let it play. That’s not to say that a full album listen isn’t warranted though - the slower tracks are perfect in their sequencing and tone to offset the loud punk tracks. If you need any further proof that this is my favorite album/band of the year, they were my top played band on Spotify and claimed three of my five most played tracks. 2017 for me was the year of The Menzingers.

How do your picks compare to mine? Anything you think I might have missed? Let me know on Twitter @CrescendoKUCI and I’d be more than happy to reply! Thanks for reading this post, and I hope you’ve found some great new music to enjoy.