#the vibes of tbhc tour

[musicandotherstuff]

Alex Turner at La Frette studio for the recording of Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, 2017

📸: Zackary Michael

[skylarbee]

(07.03.2024, Jaguar Club, Madrid, Spain)

[nicoscheer]

17 Oct '23

3Arena

Dublin, Republic of Ireland

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Miles during the monkeys gig this pic is from 505 where Alex kept on looking over

He was literally pointing up at the mirrorball at looking up at it for like a solid 10 seconds after come closer

Don’t forget who you are it was so magical (also that turtle plushie behind him 🫠🫠)

Alright crazy things that happened (the ones I can currently recall and in now specific order):

-Nathan dropping his pick and Miles laughing at him

- Liam’s drum kit wasn’t fixed up correctly so his hi hat (I think) like turner 90 degrees and a stage hand had to rush and try and fix it during a song and before the next one miles just jammed out a bit and improvised to give the guy more time to properly fix it

-Miles pointing and looking up at the mirrorball for like solid 10 seconds after come closer

- seeing those chairs and music stands in the back knowing we’re gonna get strings

-after singing the last line of fluorescent adolescent “remember when you used to be a rascal” and then fucking pointing and staring at Miles who was standing to the left side of the stage (which also explains why Alex was suddenly so fond of the left side (also during I wanna be yours I sometimes had to play find Alex cause he was just casually chilling at the very edge of the left stage side like mate at this point just walk down to him )instead of right as usual to jam with Jamie right where the stairs led up to the stage so he was the first one to greet the guys once they went off before the encore and after the show(to smother Alex in a big hug))and watched their set and asking “do you remember?” Before himself answering like 2 seconds latter with “I remember” but like in such a small sad voice that it nearly broke me

Like here’s the entire performance you can hear and see it at 3:13 (I’ve only got the little I remember snippet cause I was screaming my head off)

- when Alex said “let’s hear it for Miles Kane” (some say he said wonderful after we screamed our throat raw) somewhere three quarters through the set we all exploded before realizing he was just thanking him for opening and then played fluorescent adolescent where at the end (check point above) he asked miles if he remembered when he used to be a rascal (and like the fact that Miles was in the band the rascal and Alex wrote Fluorescent with his ex Johanna Bennett around the time when him and Miles started becoming close friends)

- during body paint not Alex singing “and if you’re thinking of me I’m probably thinking of you” while adamantly pointing towards Miles

- I didn’t think it possible to get I wanna be yours x star treatment cause they did it the night before In Belfast but when that little shit said “I don’t wanna be hers I wanna be yours” I certainly lost my shit

-experiencing 505 with the mirrorball and strings

I wanna be yours x star treatment

Body paint

There’d better be a mirrorball

Why’d you only call me when you’re high

Teddy picker ; Alex said teddy is back before the song 🫶🏽🫶🏽🥹

Coup de grace

Never taking me alive

Body paint

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Blurry Miles in Dublin

[misskattylashes]

Okay, people have been asking me about Alex singing Star Treatment to Miles in Dublin night 2. So I thought I would do a breakdown of the Milex related lyrics:

I Just wanted to be one of The Strokes

Now look at the mess you made me make

Hitchhiking with a monogrammed suitcase

This is Alex lamenting on how he is wanted to form a band to play Strokes songs, but somehow he has ended up a superstar who is a bit lost

Miles away from any half-useful imaginary highway

There is a debate around this, like if he means he is far from reality, or indeed Miles is away from him now

I’m a big name in deep space

Ask your mates but golden boy’s in bad shape

I found out the hard way

That here ain’t no place for dolls like you and me

He’s famous but in a bad way because reality has made him realise it is impossible for him and Miles to be as they were (Dolls = Puppets) – proof of this is when he gestures to himself and Miles in Dublin.

Maybe I was a little too wild in the 70s

Rocket-ship grease down the cracks of my knuckles

EYCTE had a 70s vibe about it with a lot of references to Bowie etc. And indeed Alex was extremely wild!

Rocket-ship grease....ahem interpret as you wish. But let’s not forget a rocket is phallic shaped!

Love came in a bottle with a twist off cap

Let’s all have a swig and do a hot lap

This could be lube ..poppers...booze all three. Hot lap can mean something very NSFW but it is also associated with racing and alludes to how quickly everything happened during EYCTE.

But it’s alright ‘cause you love me

And you recognize that it ain’t how it should be

Alex is sure that Miles loves him and understands that their situation is shit.

Jukebox in the corner

Long hot summer

They’ve got a film up on the wall, and it’s dark enough to dance

They listened to Long Hot Summer by the Style Council during the writing of EYCTE.

Why does it need to be dark to dance? Alex has previously used dance as a metaphor for sex, so.....

Back down to earth with a lounge singer shimmer

Elevator down to my make believe residency

From the honeymoon suite

Once again, back to earth after EYCTE. Make believe residency can allude to the fact that the majority of his AM images have been him pretending to be someone else.

Honeymoon suite. Him and Miles were so happy during EYCTE it was like a honeymoon period.

So in a nutshell, Star Treatment is about the fact that real life means the little bubble him and Miles lived in during EYCTE isn’t compatible with real life. But he is sure of Miles’ love and that he appreciates it can’t be how he wants it.

Let’s not forget in the Mexico Tour video from 2019, the turtle segment has the original version of One Point Perspective with Alex singing ‘one more year I’ll call it quits’. Was that the original plan? One album then out? But for some reason things changed ...

Hope this clarifies things a bit. One day I would love to analyse the whole TBHC album.

[alex-turners-world]

Well here is my opinion on these things 🙊// I honestly don't think he will get carried away, he is almost 40 years old and that photo did not look very good on him, he will get wrinkles and, in my opinion (possibly delusional), on the car tour he will He looked very happy, I was surprised to see that people said the opposite because when I saw the whole tour he seemed much healthier than on the 2016/2018 tour, it seems that he is sober and he really seems happier. . 2018 seemed miserable, now not so much. I think she's just old and getting older // As for the Louise thing, I don't like it, but I don't think she's miserable being together. Sure it's a little... Weird... That they don't even live together after 6 years, but I think people look at random photos of them with bitch faces resting and see that he's miserable and hates her. And then pictures come out where they're smiling together and they're like, Oh my God, it's fake and he hates her! I don't know how I could, it's none of my business, but I think they just don't like dads harassing them on the streets haha. He can get whoever he wants, I don't think he'll stay with Louise for long if he hates her, even if it's her fault and he cheated on her, I don't think he'll have the willpower to stay. a relationship for a long time. 6 years if she is miserable. Since he is with her it seems like he is sober, now he also seems healthier, I think she is good for him. But I don't know haha ​​// Hahahahahaha 😂 I have the feeling that this Anonymous is Louise or Amanda Hahahahahaha 😂 The Car tour has been Alex decline in style, (and I am NOT referring to his Artistic level) (YES not to his level Personal), he looked so sad like he was working hard, he looked so angry at how people talked at his concerts while he sang, he looked so sickly (I know we shouldn't talk about other people's bodies, but Alex looks exaggeratedly thin and messy the whole fucking tour in the same clothes) (honestly, if you compare him to Matt, Jamie and Nick, he doesn't even look happy or healthy physically speaking) I know he's 38 but the poor men looks like he's 50. By far, Alex looked healthier and happier in 2016 with The Last Shadow Puppets on the Everything You've Come to Expect tour, literally speaking in every interview and concert video. Alex is pure happiness next to Miles Kane. On the Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino tour in 2018 we saw Alex proud of his work, in interviews he defended each song and the new musical concept that the band had adopted, while on The Car tour, in interviews Alex looks weak , maybe lazy for having to apologize for not making noise to the fans or lazy because some fans have not been able to understand that the man and his friends have evolved and matured, come on, they are men about to reach 40 years old. I don't know how much Louise has influenced Alex, but Alex definitely needs a true Muse to inspire him and clearly Louise didn't inspire anything at least in the 4 years of their relationship before The Car.

Well I don't think he looks 50, he looks his age or even younger than his age I would say. But he definitely looks sad and unhappy with his life. It was just the vibe he gave off this tour. He was very unenthusiastic this tour and it was boring to watch because he was so done. He looked like he didn't want to be there. And the interviews...such a shame he didn't say much about it, just half arsed answers and conversations about Matt's lame photo aka cover of the album (sorry, I'm really not a fan of Matt's photography, it's so boring). Alex did look happy and proud talking about tbhc album, I think it was his best work by far and it's a pity the album didn't get the recognition it deserves.

As for him looking happy during eycte tour, well...he was high and drunk for the most of it, so... But I agree that he looks happier, more enthusiastic and more open around Miles. Don't we all when we're around our best friends?

[shit-talk-turner]

Mods, how many times have you seen AM and which was your favourite?

I remember you went to Brooklyn and the NYC concerts - what was interesting about seeing them evolve from start to almost end of tour?

This mod has seen them three times! At Forest Hills for TBHC, the Brooklyn show, and then Forest Hills again for the Car. My favorite, by far, was Brooklyn. We were closer than I could ever afford to be at Forest Hills and it was a smaller venue than I'll probably ever get to see them in. It was also a long show (or maybe felt long because we waited a long ass time before it actually started lol) with a huge variety of songs and it was awesome to go with the other mod and have someone as fangirl-crazy as me there. And spotting the WAGS and other close personal friends of the band close to where we were was very cool! I remember at the Brooklyn show I also felt like the whole crowd was VERY into it, and Alex was into it, more so than Forest Hills. I had some people behind me at the Car show who were talking during songs they didn't know and then LOSING THEIR SHIT during AM songs. That wasn't the case at the Brooklyn show. I remember also getting pretty much all the songs I wanted to (or was pleasantly surprised to) see at the Brooklyn show, like the Ultracheese and From the Ritz to the Rubble (did not get Suck it and See, which would have been my peak as far as seeing them live is concerned), as well being surprised by the debut for Body Paint and Mr. Schwartz. That was the icing on the cake. Also, Brooklyn being a no phone show made it that much more special too because I wasn't worried about getting a video of my favorite song myself or people filming around me incessantly. Everyone was just vibing and it was unreal.

[paperlovesadness]

Something to rely on - Miles Kane song analysis

// From Coup De Grace - 2018 //

Okay - I need to start releasing my draft-posts into the world. I've had this sitting there for a while but wasn't convinced it's ready. I think I should just stop overanalyzing though so here goes.

We're here - another silly little subjective analysis of a Miles Kane song (geared towards how it could possibly maybe be about Alex? question mark question mark ??)

I was gonna do Adios Ta-Ra Ta-Ra first, but then I was listening to this album and this one just got stuck in my head and didn't wanna leave. So here we are (will do others too of course though).

Big disclaimer is: this is just one little personal interpretation done for fun and please don't take it too seriously.

Even I personally have more than one idea in my head about a lot of these lyrics and songs and what they could mean. I just choose one - the one most convincing to myself, one that sticks out to me the most and write it down for what it is in that moment in time.

I like sharing these because I'm curious if anyone else in the world finds some of my thoughts convincing - and if not - what they think these things mean instead! Honestly the thing I want most from these is feedback and potential conversations - be it in tag, reblog, reply, or message form. I love trying to figure songs out together! So please share your thoughts!

[Verse 1]

Crescent moon, left in my drive

All too soon, you made your point

Keeping off the radar, how does that make you feel?

The moon seems like a thing in the whole Miles/Alex "lore"

-> We've got that interview, where Alex jokes around about them missing each other while on tour, looking at the moon, wondering what the other's doing.

-> There's the "He moves the moon that kid" quote from Alex when introcuding Miles during an AM gig.

-> "I'm Alex from the lash shadow puppets and I play the awhooo [interviewer Cat - so you're a wolf. Cool] // And I'm Miles from the Last Shadow Puppets and I play the midnight moon".

-> The moon is also ofc associated with Alex himself due to TBHC and the fact he 's stated that he's intereted in space overall

other things maybe worth noting?

* "Kiss me underneath the moon's sideboob" [AM - TBH+C]

* The Ultracheese. The whole song. The title being a cheesy [hehe] metaphor for the moon

* "Crawling through like midnight panthers

Growling at the moon" [ MK - First of my kind]

* Paraselene woman, I'm your man in the moon [Alex Turner, Glass in the Park]

All that to say... We've got another moon here and maybe that's done on purpose.

This one is crescent - seems like a sad metaphor. Crescent moons can symbolize either the beginning or the end of something. "Left in my drive" is giving me very much breakup vibes. Something left behind on the way out of your home/life.

There's nothing much left of the moon that they perhaps shared as "their thing".

Keeping off the radar - a thing that Alex very much does - not one for social media or a public presence at all if he can help it. Here - maybe also direct ghosting is invloved after a breakup or fight - whataver went on.

[Chorus 1]

Something to rely on

Something to get high on

Miles has had enough of the push-and-pull of the relationship. He wants something he can actually rely on. Something that'll bring him the pure joy love is supposed to bring - a high.

Miles also references a high/getting high together in other songs - like in "Wrong side of life" (the song he says is about the person who he broke up with/the one he's wrote most of the CDG album about + incidentally a song he apparently dedicated to Alex during a gig he was at) he writes about wanting to get high with you.

So i feel like we have a doube meaning - the high of love/and actually getting high.

(something - let's be honest - that is obvious Miles and Alex did once or twice during the EYCTE era)

I don't want to beg or steal, I don't want to borrow hearts

Another clue to the fact that the relationship was an on-and-off / push-and-pull / hot-and-cold thing. Maybe even an affair. Maybe just open or perhaps simply casual - but Miles doesn't want it to be just that.

He doesn't want to beg for the persons love and full attention.

Doesn't want to share them with anyone - have to steal them away from the person they officially "belong" to.

He doesn't want to have them sometimes - a heart borrowed for the day' when it's convenient. He wants to own the person's heart and in return be theirs fully too.

I just want to make it real

Something to rely on

Confirmation for the theory above. He wants it to be a real full-on relationship, not whatever it has been and has obviously not been enough for him.

The making of a mystery, wishing on a falling star

I don't want to let this sadness rule my heart

He knows he can't take it anymore - his heart is at stake and it's hurting. Whatever the relationship is offering isn't satisfying him and the sadness that brings is taking over his life. He has to put an end to it for his own good - but he still loves the person. He'd like to be able to rely on them. He wants to wish on a falling star for this to work out. (more space related things?)

[Verse 2]

Keeping it clean, through all the things you wanted me to be

Out of touch, with all the rumors I keep hearing of you

Keeping off the radar, how does that make you feel?

Keeping it clean is a confusing metaphor - It brings to mind images of staying clean - so drugs/alcohol. But that doesn't personally makes sense to me in this context.

I'd go towards keeping their image clean. This relationship - whatever it was - was a secret. That seems like something mostly the other person wanted - not ready to fully commit. They wanted Miles to be a secret / a friend with benefits maybe / something without a label perhaps, when Miles was all in and ready for the real deal with them.

He needs to seperate himself (be out of touch) from the rumours about this person who broke his heart // perhaps the rumours inevitably make their way towards him, because this person is a well-known public figure, often gossiped about. And associated with Miles closely - so he keeps hearing about them even though he'd like not to know what goes on in his life post their fall out. <- that's assuming the lyrics are from the "now" perspective; post-heartbreak.

But it can also mean that they had an actual relationship - but it was kept secret - something initiated by the other person, not Miles.

Miles kept the rules - kept their image clean, kept it all a secret. But that meant having to deal with rumours about the other person being with other people.

In this context "Keeping off the radar, how does that make you feel?" can also refer to the relationship. He's asking the person - keeping us secret - how does that make you feel?

[chorus 2 / ending]

The making of a mystery, wishing on a falling star

I don't want to let this sadness rule my heart

Your actions from the start

In spite of me insightfully inviting me to fall apart

This person was doing more-than-friend things with Miles and suggesting a possible something-more from the very start - when they first met. Their actions clearly invited him to fall for them and then in turn fall apart from the heartache that it caused in the end.

Miles may have known it's a bad idea (in spite of me) but coudn't keep himself from falling anyway. The person was super close to him, understood him well (insightfully inviting me) - which made falling all the more easy.

[Bridge]

All aboard the guilt train

Last call before we leave

First off - makes me recall the "All aboard the Kane train" thing Alex once said during a TLSP gig. May be a coincidence - may not be.

Secondly - Miles seems to feel guilty for the way things went - but he believes both sides should take the blame.

Last call before we learn to love

The last before we leave

(And here we collectively fall apart)

"Last call before we learn to love" seems to me to imply that it's the time to take accountability for their mistakes in this relationship so that they can move on and form other ones ina healthy way? [maybe] BUT-

if so, I still believe this is Miles being freshly hurt by the hearbreak. There are contradictory statements about this love he's lost on the album (and I believe some more on the next one). It doesn't really seem like he's given up on them and their bond.

Even here

You're all that I wanted

All that I need

You're all that I wanted

You're all that I need

at the end of the song we get "wanted" in past tense but "need" in the present.

So doesn't truly seem like giving up on the person and their true shared feelings.

[yellowloid]

The more time passes, the more I am convinced that TLSPs will never come back or perhaps in the very distant future. The Car is an album very similar to the sounds of the duo and I find it difficult that they can come back with a third album with the genre of the previous one. I feel like Alex has sort of found his genre and things to draw inspiration from and Miles currently does a completely different genre than what AM does. Alex has clear ideas and I believe that at the moment he is thinking about himself, he is determined to continue with this style, I have no doubt that in the future he will be able to change again but it is very difficult that he returns as in 2016

(ugh i'm so late this was sent like. MONTHS ago but life has been hectic)

anyways, i think as fans we really have no way of knowing whether tlsp will ever actually come back with a third album. of course we can all hope for it to happen, but in the end the only people who have a say on it are - you guessed it - miles and alex themselves. and although i agree on the fact that their latest albums were different from one another, that doesn't necessarily mean they'll *always* stick to those styles. they're always evolving as musicians and that's what makes their music good, and yeah you could certainly say the latest albums (tbhc+the car / coup de grace+change the show) are much more mature and elaborate than their earlier stuff (which is normal because they've grown as artists and people), that still doesn't mean they've "arrived" as artists. they'll keep changing and maturing and evolving in their style, and who knows what they'll release next with their solo projects.

(also, although i partly agree on the fact that their current styles are different, i wouldn't say they're so inherently opposite from each other??? although the "jazz" vibes in change the show are very much absent from the car, i can't help but think of songs such as 'coming of age' and 'constantly' which are very close in sound to songs they've written together or that alex has been recommending over the years. and although right now he doesn't make that kind of music himself, it doesn't mean he doesn't appreciate it/wouldn't consider ever making something like that. vice versa, the same applies to miles) (we also have to take into consideration the fact that those two have influenced each other so much over the years, both with their solo stuff and tlsp - see the strings, which are a crucial part of the car and which are an obvious and natural evolution of the iconic tlsp strings)

plus, the fact that their solo styles are different rn doesn't mean they wouldn't mix well! those two work magic when they're together. they're so talented and they bring the best out of each other, they could literally make a masterpiece out of mixing those two styles or even creating a new one that is shared between the two of them. there are points in common they could easily play on - for instance, the very strong bond vibes they've been hinting at ever since eycte. when it comes to them, the possibilities are quite literally endless - they don't have to stick to anything (not to their solo styles, and not to their 2008 or 2016 ones either) because the point of tlsp is and always has been pure freedom of creation. the art they make together doesn't have to appeal to a pre-written rule. tlsp is the safe space where they can be completely free to do whatever they want, together, and that's exactly what makes this project so beautiful.

now to be practical... i sincerely doubt they'll be back in 2024, unless they've already been working on tlsp3 secretly - which i don't think is the case. they don't really have much time before 2024 comes, and with alex touring for the car for the better part of 2023 and miles being busy with (pre-)recording of mk5 (or at least already working on it), throwing tlsp3 into the mix would be quite difficult to deal with.

that being said, i can't even begin to express how much i'd love for them to be back as soon as possible. but aside from that, i'm willing to wait as much as i'll have to, no matter how long it takes - as long as they come back in the end, and i'm 100% convinced they will. we just have to give them the time they need. and remember, anon: hope is the last to die!

[alexstorm]

I feel like this might be the last AM album and tour, at least for a long time. You know there’s always the possibility of bands reuniting or touring again. Funny how an anon recently mentioned Alex saying he wanted to be like Mina she withdrew from the public after two decades. With everything Alex said last night before and after performing Mirrorball, him not going out with the band that much, not being in a “whole” relationship and only occasionally holidaying together, etc I feel like he’s gonna go for a big change. “Let’s leave the past behind / something tells me you’re gonna be okay / don’t worry about me I’ll get along fine (or sth along those lines)” I don’t think these were random. There’s been many times he did something and we found out he’s mentioned that in the past. I mean TBHC was supposed to be a solo album but he said Jamie was so enthusiastic about it so maybe that made him want to stay and then he decided to make a “goodbye” album aka The Car. Everything from the beginning to the end of The Car album is like saying goodbye and leaving things behind.

Q: “Over and out, it’s been a thrill”, you sing on Big Ideas. Hello You, Jet Skis On The Moat and Perfect Sense also contain “goodbyes” and “goodnights”. Are you saying goodbye to something?

AT: “Yeah, I think that’s fair. That all has to do with where I arrived in life at the moment. I’m 36, the band exists for about twenty years, including the whole run-up. So I’ve been in the band for more than half of my life. You leave things behind, while the clock keeps ticking. People, places, your younger self. Time. Though that’s not necessarily a bad thing, you get new things in return. But it’s human nature to sometimes look back on what has been, what’s behind you. Though I’m pretty good at leaving things behind.” (OOR 2022)

There was also that Sydney Herald interview that had this suggestive tone that he might leave the band and the journalist even quoted Sting.

Besides the songs the OOR journalist mentioned, Mirrorball, Hello You and Mr Schwartz have this melancholic goodbye and “the end is near” vibes. (“Gradually, it's coming into view / It's like your little directorial debut / As fine a time as any to deduce / The fact that neither you or I has ever had a clue / The gloved hand's reachin' in to hit the switch / There's not one goddamn thing that you can do about it / But Mr. Schwartz is havin' tea with the grips / Askin' after all the wives and the kids / It's at the heart of what the business is”) / (“There's just enough time left to swing by / Hello you, still draggin' out a long goodbye? / I ought to apologize for one of the last times / As that meandering chapter reaches its end / And leaves us in a thoughtful little daze”)

Maybe he realized he has to say a proper goodbye to the band with an album and give them an explanation/apology through his lyrics, maybe that’s why this tour is longer than the previous one. (“Still draggin’ out a long goodbye”)

And if we’re getting into conspiracy theories a little bit, The Car is the seventh album and 7 represents “completeness” (“שבע “seven” is spelled with the same consonants as the word שבע “complete/full” ”). Yeah I know this is unrelated and out of place but it can kinda make Perfect Sense.

I can't comment on anything he said last night during Mirrorball as I haven't seen it but it's no surprise that people perceive The Car as a goodbye album. It has all these lines you've mentioned and a very nostalgic vibe which usually sets in before you either close a chapter or say goodbye to something as you look back on things. The question is if it turns out this way what he's gonna do next. Still music on a different level or something completely different?

[alexturner2005]

Sorry if this is getting annoying but I saw that post of yours explaining the bad vibes of tbhc tour and I just wanted to ask, what relationship drama made Alex's image go boink?

You don't have to answer it if you don't wanna keep talking about things from so long ago, don't worry. I was only mildly curious. Thanks regardless.

i’d say the main thing is that the timeline was sketchy. he was still with taylor at the beginning of july 2018, was first seen with louise (who seemed to possibly be a groupie; at minimum she was a fan) a week later in lyon, and was definitely dating her by early september. since he was on tour it’s also likely he broke up with taylor over the phone, which isn’t great lol. there’s more to it, but i don’t really want to get into opinions and speculation.

no anger towards you, but as a note to everyone: i don’t want to talk about this any further please

[musicandotherstuff]

Alex Turner - Falls Festival, Australia

31/12/2022

(Source)

[radioheadyaoi]

hiiii bff 🫶 really love your tbhc movie masterpost !! i'm proper Obsessed with it actually !!!! is the martini police a black sabbath kind of rock band or the beatles kind of rock band? what music do they make? what are the vibes? what colours do you associate with them? this is all very important to me

hiiii !! glad to hear it because i am myself obsessed with this little thing i have created in my head. also feel free to stop me if this makes no sense. love love love these questions so this might be a long answer.

the martini police is sooo cool i think. its born from the lyric "who you gonna call? the martini police" and how that seems to be the name of the band that alex's character of the album is the frontman of. i was never really sure what kind of music they made, but then when i bought tranquility base hotel and casino 7 inch single, when i noticed that "anyways" is created as a song by the martini police (while tbhc is created for am) that i figured that the martini police is a rock band in the sense that arctic monkeys is. i thought it was cool, how tbhc title track "belongs" to arctic monkeys, while anyways is the martini police's, and i thought that anyways might be the song that comes post hotel lounge stay.

the more i thought about martini police, i started to like the idea of them a fixture of how arctic monkeys was during the am era, and how alex was during the eycte era. so so many arctic monkeys fans want alex and the band to return to how they were during the am era, and make that kind of music. so, in this little thing that i've written, the frontman wants to have a sort of departure from this, like alex has, and make different kinds of music. basically, the martini police exists in that space of music born from whatever people say i am and favourite worst nightmare, leading into am, the music that some monkeys fans won't let go of. sex, drugs, women, rock n roll! the way i saw their evolution as a band was something like wpsia -> fwn -> am -> everything you've come to expect (it's not arctic monkeys BUT i think it could fit in the universe that this thing i've written exists in, and also because alex during that era truly just was peak rockstar). and then it would be staying at the hotel that would allow them to venture out into the kind of music that is humbug -> suck it and see -> tbhc -> the car (althought not particularily in that order).

if i had to pick monkeys songs i think that the martini police would've definitely made, i'll say: i bet you look good on the dancefloor, do i wanna know?, knee socks, i want it all, arabella, brianstorm, teddy picker, 505, cigarette smoker fiona, still take you home, from the ritz to the rubble. off eycte, i'd say sweet dreams tn, used to be my girl, bad habits, aviation. if this makes any sense at all.

i'm not a huge rock fan outside of the monkeys so i'm bad at giving examples, but think something like the strokes during their is this it era, that kind of music, that kind of album, and room on fire too (cause i love meet me in the bathroom). the strokes, of course, because of how much they inspired arctic monkeys but also because they're one of my favourite bands. that's probably one of the best examples i can give you, so i don't know if that leans more towards the beatles or black sabbath or not.

i have no idea if any of this is making sense, i hope it does.

vibes and colours! such a good question, i'm actually kind of stumped. i think colours are such a big part of tbhc, like the music videos alone are so visually stunning. the band itself? to be honest, i've never really thought of it. i'll add some pictures so it all makes sense.

so there are two ways i think of this band. first is through pictures like this.

where you can see alex and then the big screen behind him (also him) because something about it just screams rockstar to me. i'm pretty sure you're a taylor swift fan, so you might see all those photos of the eras tour, where its her on stage and then the massive her in the background. like that. its because of photos like the one above that colours like orange and yellow and green and red stuck with me. bright colours to contrast the rock n roll leather and cigarette smoke. oranges can just be so jarring i think, but they stick, they're memorable.

whenever i think about this frontman character i always always think of this photo (below)

but then, at the same time, there are blues and purples. (this is so silly because i'm literally just saying every colour ever but hear me out)

in the greens and oranges and yellows and reds - such earthy colours - sits the sex, drugs, and rock n roll band that is loved by so many. the martini police at their greatest heights. purples and blues on the other hand, i also found to be spacey colours, and are this band coming down from this insane rock n roll lifestyle and begin to adapt. blues and purples are this softer side to the band, still a rock band, but existing outside the typical rock n roll lifestyle.

i don't really know what any of that means, so i'll move onto vibes. now of course, as mentioned, i'm not a HUGE rock fan, but i've learned a lot about bands from my dad, and i've seen a few documentaries. i think that the martini police's rise to fame follows the same as arctic monkeys, so no need to talk about that. you know how sometimes you watch a band or singers peform on stage and you can just tell they love being in this band, they love performing together? i see the martini police like that. even through a rise to fame they've stuck together and love each other a lot - same as arctic monkeys. their vibes, i think, are how the monkeys were during am era all the time, on every stage, for every album, making am/wpsia/fwn music. slicked back hair like a greaser in the outsiders, leather jacket, smoking on stage.

i think being a rockstar is like being a character actor, and that's what this frontman is. he's never really him, even though he's so honest in his lyrics. it's about being yourself so you can be loved, but its also about selling yourself.

i'm gonna end this here before i say something that really doesn't make any sense, but i hope this answered your questions at least a little bit. if not, feel free to send more my way <3

[partynthem]

so how tf does it work that am are going on tour for the first time in almost 3.5 years in less than two weeks and the only “real” confirmation of a new album is still just an offhand comment matt made in an instagram live like six months ago. no offense but is there actually an album or not

[alexturntable]

Some thoughts on AM7

We’re a couple of weeks and 9 shows into this era with no official announcements for new music in sight. All we have is some new merch and a cool new stage design and maybe a little snippet of music played here and there that may be something but could also be absolutely nothing and just them goofing around.

It feels like they’re using these shows to warm up and find the best combination of songs to put on the setlist. They keep adding and removing and rearranging the order and it’s nice that they keep changing it up.

The one “new” thing is that Knee Socks outro. The tempo is fast and the vibe is reminiscent of their older stuff. I feel like this may be a good indication of what’s coming with AM7.

Also the fact that Alex is back living in England after living in LA for so long and that he seems to have been in a nostalgic mood - as he mentioned in the one interview we got so far - it feels like this album will have a vibe similar to earlier albums and less like TBHC. Adding to that the stage design that resembles the snooker hall in Sheffield makes me think that nostalgia is playing a big part in this album.

Whatever it’s gonna be I feel really excited about it and I hope they give us any indication to what it’s gonna sound like soon.

They seem to be having fun and enjoying performing again and I really hope this energy and positive vibes stay there for the rest of the tour.

[shit-talk-turner]

Absolutely. TRNSMT, Southside, Mad Cool, Lyon, Royal Albert Hall and the rest. TBHC tour was the real Arctic Monkeys. While the last tour was just either not Arctic Monkeys or the new Arctic Monkeys we need to get used to now 😐. Seeing their performances on The Car tour I decided to not go to a gig. Would have loved to go to a TBHC tour gig though.

// not necessarily a dig at anyone specific but watching some 2018 concert videos today and it really is crazy how bad The Car tour was in comparison. not the album but the actual performances and energy. I saw them three times on The Car tour and had the time of my life and thought they were great so i’m really not trying to hate, i’m just saying in comparison to their prior tour, there’s such a difference in vibe & connectivity. and no this isn’t about age or them being older. i’m about the same age as the band. it’s about the energy behind the passion.

we didn’t feel this way about the shows we saw (king’s theater and forest hills)

[otherpeoplesheartachept-2]

TRANQUILITY BASE

Here’s my @coexchange piece for @that-bi-bliophile! 

I hope it’s okay I stretched your prompt to fit an entire album. I listen to the album Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino by the Arctic Monkey a lot and it’s inspired countless daydreams so I figured I’d fit a Snowbaz bullet point fic into this universe. If you don’t want to listen to an entire new album (which is understandable) but want a feel for the album and the vibe I’m going for, I’d suggest listening to the songs Star Treatment, American Sports, and/or Four Stars out of Five.

For some background, in this AU Tranquility is an out of date game from an out of date console made as promotion for the real and still existing hotel on the moon. Simon lives on earth, which is currently a weird mix of waste land and advanced technology. Basically global warming isn’t fixed, all rich people just moved to the moon and left everyone else on earth to do the jobs they don’t want. Baz is the child of some of those rich moon people. They’re both like 18 when they “meet” for the first time.

Tranquility The Game is Simon’s way of escaping the reality of his shitty father and taxing job. The old gaming system is one of the few things he has that matters to him. He’s build up his own imaginary life in this digital hotel, where he’s a successful musician with a band, rich enough to afford stays in fancy moon hotels.

Baz’s dad, head of Grimm Co. is the new owner of the real TBHC. Baz goes to the hotel for a business meeting because Malcolm wants to teach him how to run the company. Baz is bored and finds an old copy of the game and console in some storage closet. He takes it home and boots it up.

He’s surprised to find it works, and even more surprised to find someone else already in the game.

Simon is confused and furious that someone else is in HIS game. He immediately shoves virtual Baz against a wall and demands he leave the game.

Baz is like “what the fuck how does anyone even still play this” but he’s intrigued by the attractive angry game boy so he insults him and keeps coming back to the game.

The relationship is hostile at first (because Simon doesn’t want Baz ruining his virtual world and Baz looks down on Simon for living on earth) but Baz, despite himself, is desperate to get to know Simon, this weird kid clinging to an out of date, boring videogame. And Simon secretly likes having someone to share this game world with, even if he “hates” him.

They get into petty fights a lot and call each other names that are supposed to be insults but are really just thinly veiled pet names. Baz’s favorites are “earthling” and “freckles boy” Simon’s are “fucking posh space boy” and “bastard”.

Baz tries to goad more information about Simon out of him but Simon is very committed to holding on to the fantasy life he’s made up for himself, he won’t even tell Baz his last name.

Despite all their “fighting” they start to warm up to each other.

One day Simon gives Baz a tour of the virtual hotel and Baz explains how different everything is in the real hotel. Throughout the tour Simon starts to open up about his father and his friend Shepard and the crumbling state of planet Earth. (Cue discussion about capitalism and class and how fucked up it is that billionaires just left the Earth and all the poor people to die.)

Baz talks about his life and how isolated he feels because his father and all his “friends” are very emotionally closed off. Simon sympathizes but teases him a little.

Simon: Like you’d rather be anything but a posh moon business man.

Baz: I would. If I could be anyone I’d be an astrologist. What about you, Earthing? Who would you be, if you could be anyone in the universe?

Simon, suddenly somber: My father says dreaming isn’t for folks people like me.

Baz shows up in the game one day to find Simon playing a guitar, he’s quite good at it.

Simon learns Baz can cook after Baz asks if there’s a way to get in to the game hotel’s kitchen (there isn’t). Simon likes Baz about ten times more when he explains how to make the perfect shepherd’s pie. Baz realized he might be in love when Simon starts explaining how good sour cherry scones are and how they should be their own food group.

They go star gazing together on the roof of the hotel. Baz knows a lot about constellations and explains them to Simon.

Baz: You know that isn’t how they look tonight?”

Simon: No?

Baz: No. it takes the light ages to get to us, so what we’re seeing is years behind. Like, look at that star there, it’s been dead for twenty years.

Simon, pointing up: There?

Baz: No, *takes Simon’s hand to readjust it* there.

Simon: Oh… yeah.

Neither of them are looking at the stars at this point. Cue gay thoughts about Simon’s freckles being constellations and some EXTREME pining.

Baz learns they can write in the notepads left in each virtual hotel room. They start leaving notes and little drawings for each other in game when they play and the other isn’t there. Sometimes Simon leaves chords to songs he’s writing. Baz will add lyrics to the songs sometimes. Baz will also flirt in the notes but Simon can never tell if he’s serious or if it’s just Baz being sarcastic and dramatic.

One day Simon’s playing guitar and invites Baz to sing with him. Baz is nervous about exposing his feelings for Simon with the romantic lyrics. Simon gets so wrapped up in listening to and watching Baz sing that he stops playing before the song is finished. They do the classic routine of staring until the other person stares back then quickly looking away and blushing. Again, Major Pining.

At this point they both think the other might be interested romantically, but they’re too nervous to take the next step into actually talking about romance.

One day Baz insists on teaching Simon to dance. They move some furniture in the hotel lounge and figure out how to use the futuristic jukebox in the corner of the room. Simon is clumsy but happy to follow Baz’s lead. (It helps that he can’t physically step on Baz’s toes. However, a few times he does bash into furniture in his real life bedroom). Baz’s hair is loose and falling in his face. Simon can’t stop smiling. Baz is still pretending like this is purely a teaching moment but he can’t hide the faint blush on his cheeks. The music shifts to a slow song. They lock eyes. Simon reaches for a phantom cheek. Baz leans into the imagined warmth of a digital palm. All they hear is their shared breathing and heartbeats until someone speaks.

Simon: If I could be anyone, I’d be someone who kissed you right now.

They can’t really kiss, it’s a videogame. But they finally admit they have feelings for each other.

They daydream about meeting somehow. Simon sneaking onto a cargo ship to travel to the moon. Inventing a way to fully convert themselves into part of the game so the never have to leave. The two of them hijacking a spaceship and enough rations to last years, then flying out somewhere in the Milky Way to live out the rest of their lives together. But they know these are just fantasies. They won’t say it out loud, and sometimes, when staring into pixelated eyes and making elaborate plots they forget the impossibility of it all, but they know they can never make these dreams reality.

Any spare time they have is spent in the digital hotel with each other. Simon starts carrying the game console around with him everywhere, even when he knows he can’t play. Baz has stopped showing up for anything he’s supposed to in the evenings, he just locks himself in his bedroom with the game.

“What would you do if I was really there?” becomes a common question.

“It’s a crisp evening here, so I’d pull you in close, keep you warm. Kiss you underneath the sliver of moon.”

“I’d hold your hand. Kiss every freckle I can find on it until I have to push up your sleeve to find more.”

“I’d mess up your hair. It looks better messy.”

“I would punch that stupid look off your face. You can’t seriously think the sun used to revolve around the Earth, that’s fucking insane!”

“I’d tell you… I- I, I never want you to leave.”

Are some of the answers.

One night they’re in the game and Simon’s struggling to stay awake. It’s adorable but Baz tells him he should go to sleep. Simon says he wants to spend more time with Baz. He asks Baz to tell him about space so he’ll stay awake. Baz knows that will put Simon to sleep rather than keep him awake, but he does it anyway. Simon fights as long as he can but falls asleep “next to” Baz within minutes. Baz realizes he’s sleeping but keeps talking about black holes while stroking the digital version of his boyfriend’s hair. And when he’s sure Simon isn’t going to wake up, Baz whispers about how much he loves him before falling asleep as well.

The next morning Simon wakes up alone in the game. Baz wakes up to the sound of his headset cracking under the weight of his skull.

Frantically he tries to turn on the console, reattach a piece of electronics that came off the headset, plead with a god he doesn’t believe in. Nothing works.

He searches for replacement pieces, a new headset, ways to convert the Tranquility game to newer systems, but there’s nothing. It’s a shitty game on an outdated console that no one cared about. He’s heartbroken.

Simon doesn’t realize anything’s wrong at first. He thinks Baz is just really busy for the first few weeks. Then he worries he did something to hurt him. Then he’s angry Baz never bothers to talk to him about why he left. Then he’s scared something happened to Baz.

For a few years he returns whenever he has the time, searches for Baz, or clues that Baz was there while he was away. But he’s never there, and there’s never any notes revealing he just missed Baz. Eventually he can’t stand to keep coming back to the deserted hotel. Whatever happened to Baz happened, deep down they both knew they couldn’t live this fantasy life in an old game forever.

Baz continues searching everywhere in real life and online for a way to get back to the game hotel, to Simon, but all he can find are parts he already has, or headsets that don’t work anymore like his.

Soon enough Simon can’t stand to even look at the gaming console. And he could use the extra money, so he decides to sell it. A local pawn shop takes it for less than Simon was hoping to get, but they said the name scratched into the side really devalues the piece.

After years of searching, Baz finds a full working console with headset for sale online, from an Earth seller. The interplanetary shipping is expensive, but worth it. When the console arrives Baz finds “SIMON SNOW” carved into the plastic exterior. He cries for days.

He boots up Tranquility The Game but he knows he’ll be the only one there. The hotel looks the same as it was the last time he played. He finds a note from Simon addressed to him, angrily asking why he left without a word, then another apologizing, saying he was just hurt but he knows things had to end at some point. Those were three years old. Simon never left anything else.

Baz decides to leave a note of his own: “Simon Snow. I wish I could tease you for carving your name into an electronic device; it’s extremely childish, and probably quite unsafe. Still, in a way I’m glad you did it. If you even found your way back here I’d hate for you to know the depth of my feelings, even after these long years. But I doubt you will. Knowing that is bittersweet. I will admit sometimes I still fantasize about you, about impossible ways we could still be friends, more than friends, anything other than ghosts haunting each other’s memories. Simon Snow, I loved you.”