#we continue to work behind the scenes! and yes there is a soundtrack album coming too

[camlannpod]

🔥 ANNOUNCEMENT 🔥

We're releasing the album version of Camlann on 5th July! It'll be on the @tincanaudio bandcamp.

This version will have no housekeeping, so you can just listen straight through the series. It'll also have bonus tracks of blooper reels!

Oh, and we hit 100k 😉

[bubblyhoney]

soundtrack

warnings: sailor language, suggestive themes/mentions of sex, drinking, nicotine use, being tipsy/intoxicated. no graphic or explicit nsfw content besides basically tonguing and giving hickeys and an ass grab.

tags: karl jacobs x fem!reader

words: 1898

A/N: i wrote this thinking that both people in this fic are of drinking age; i’m not, but i thought it would be a cool idea. i can assume many adult gatherings feature alcohol, so yeah. drinking isn’t integral to the plot of this fic. also it is pre-(or post)pandemic bc it’s just a general rule of thumb to not have parties right now.

-

“Don’t, kill, me,” Karl warbles, setting down his bottle with a sigh. Freaks plays loud and tinny on the TV, album cover bathing those occupying the couch in a grayish light. Those occupants being just you and Karl. The room is lit with purple string lights and that one thrifted lamp with frogs on the shade he’d sworn was the best purchase he’s ever made. You’re sprawled out on the other half of the sofa, ankles crossed and a can of vodka seltzer swaying in your hand. The song changes to 20 Min by Lil Uzi and your foot bounces to the beat.

“What time is it?” You sigh, placing the nearly-empty can onto the coffee table next to your apple berry-flavored pen. He flicks his wrist towards his face.

“2:46,” he delivers, and takes a swig of the Angry Orchard in his hand. His sixth, specifically. The rest of the group had left roughly ten minutes ago, leaving the two loneliest people to drink alone. You, thoroughly tipsy, decided it was better to spend the night on his spare than pay $50 for an Uber. He agreed, of course. Why wouldn’t he?

Lifting onto your elbows, you just stare at him. He lifts an ankle to cross over the other and your eyes drop. What is his fascination with Spongebob socks?

“We should play 20 questions.”

“What?” His head swivels like a bobblehead and a giggle barely escapes your lips.

“20 questions!” You say excitedly, heaving onto your knees to look at him earnestly. “You go first.”

“Um, okay.” The song fades into Paper Planes and he bobs his head to the beat. “What’s your favorite breed of dog?”

“Shiba inu. Are you a virgin?”

The fucking tone of your voice makes him dissolve into giggles, hand pressed to his chest. You just shrug, reaching for the pen in the table. “Fair question, I think,” you say defensively. His chest heaves, but he sits up.

“No—no, I’m not a virgin.” His cheeks are red, but he’s smiling like it was an easy answer. Your mind floods with images of his long hair in your face, long fingers—a sweaty chest. You shake your head. “Okay, my turn,” he continues, giving you a weird look. “would you rather kiss Chucky Cheese or Ronald McDonald?”

“Karl!” You whine. “That is not how 20 Questions works!” You grumpily pull from your pen, blowing the smoke out of the side of your mouth. Eughk. Apple berry sucks.

“Fine, fine,” he sighs, rolling his eyes. The tell-tale guitar chords of The Adults Are Talking floods the room and his face brightens with a new question. “Have you ever been to a concert?”

“Yes, actually. The Jonas Brothers in 2009.” He wrinkles his nose, finishing his cider and dropping it onto the coffee table with a sharp noise. Your eyebrows furrow. “Don’t you dare badmouth my boys.”

“Wasn’t gonna!” He reaches for your pen and you give it to him with a slight pout on your lips that he glances at.

“Good. Where is the weirdest place you’ve had sex?” A grin climbs your lips.

“Jesus Christ, Y/N.” His eyes widen and smoke curls out of his nostrils as he hands your pen back. You just shrug and pick up your discarded seltzer. “Gimme a sec to think.”

“So many places?” You tease, finishing the last drop of your drink and crushing it beneath your palm. He shrugs, mirroring you, and cracks open another cider. He seems to think, brows furrowing, as he pulls a swig from the dark bottle.

“Boat.”

“Boat,” you repeat.

“Yup.” He looks at you, gaze flickering to your lips imperceptibly fast. If you were sober you’d probably notice, but you’re not and you don’t.

“You’ve fucked on a boat?” No way. Karl Jacobs. On a boat. Having sex. What an image—

“Yeah, senior year was great for me.” More Than A Woman fills the space of the silence as you consider this. You blink, processing.

“Whose boat?” You're genuinely curious. Was it a yacht, pontoon, fishing boat? Row boat? The sudden scene of him getting his foot stuck in a fishing net while pantless clouds your vision.

“My girlfriend’s.” And that’s that on that because he’s moving on before you can open your mouth and continue the discussion of the logistics of this. “Stop investigating, perv. Now it’s my turn. Hmm— wait! Where is the weirdest place you have had sex?” A sneaky grin is on his lips and now you just want to kiss him, damn it.

“I-Uh. I think it was under the bleachers. I also had a great senior year,” you offer, scooting forward on your knees so that you’re only a foot from Karl. He looks impressed, actually.

“Who was it?”

Your eyebrow raises in question.

“Personal question or one of the 16 left, Karl?”

His cheeks heat and he looks once to the TV.

“Personal,” he mutters into the mouth of his bottle.

“It was Brian Hernandez,” you sigh, gazing off into the distance with a fond look in your eyes. You feel the end of the game of 20 questions as you see him chew on his bottom lip from your peripheral. “Dude was insatiable. Managed girls’ basketball and looked damn good doing it.”

“I managed girls’ soccer,” he says simply, uncrossing his legs. “My girlfriend was goalie.”

“How long did you guys date?” You fold your legs up underneath you, tucking a lock of hair behind your ear. You feel the most sober now out of all tonight.

“Dunno.” He sips at his cider. “Couple weeks maybe?”

You smirk. “Karl Jacobs puts out in the first couple weeks?” That’s hot, you don’t say. He gives you a look. “18 year old Karl was a player,” you tease, leaning forward to poke at his chest.

Smacking your hand away, he sighs and lifts a hand to tousle his hair.

“Guess he was.” Clear eyes meet yours and you take a hit from the pen that lays discarded in your palm. He watches the smoke float from your mouth. The TV screen swipes to Deceptacon and the mood quickly shifts. “So.” He turns toward you with lifted eyebrows. “You were a total nerd in highschool, huh.”

Your jaw drops. “I was not!”

“Come on; yes, you were.” He makes a face and drains half the bottle of cider. “You probably were in SpellBowl and every teacher’s pet.”

“Nice try, bitch. You were a dumb jock. I’ve seen the pictures. The yearbook pictures.” You look pointedly at his hair.

“My hair was not that bad.”

“Yes it was.”

“No, it wasn’t,” he grumbles and pushes his hand through his long curls. “Just a little… short.” It’s your turn to make a face.

“A buzz cut nearly to your scalp is more than short.” He huffs at you and finishes the cider just as the song switches. “Anyways.” You don’t really have anything to say, actually. Too busy thinking about teenage Karl smacking tennis rackets around and fielding lost soccer balls for his girlfriend. She’s long gone, right?

“Are you wearing lingerie?” Karl asks suddenly and you look up. He stares pointedly at your chest and you move a hand to pat at your stomach.

“Oh,” you start, and flick the last three buttons open, fabric falling to reveal a baby blue lace corset. “Yeah.” He can’t seem to stop imagining what’s underneath it. Fuck. “Do you like it?” The tone in your voice is taunting and he has to look away.

He clears his throat and places the second glass bottle onto the coffee table.

“Yes.”

You rise onto your knees and pull your arms out of the button-up, letting it fall back on the couch.

“Do you want to touch it?” You're looking up at him from underneath your eyelashes, he realizes, and you know exactly what you’re doing. You’re not asking if he wants to touch the corset; you’re asking if he wants to touch you.

“Can I?” He glances at you warily. You just nod, and it’s then that you’re shuffling forward. The material is soft on his fingertips when he brushes a hand across your torso. “Silk,” he mumbles, and stares, transfixed, at the loopy flower pattern crawling across your waist in shades of milky blue. You just hum and watch. He realizes suddenly when he traces a finger up on the ridge of the neckline that you’re not wearing anything underneath it. It makes him stop in his tracks, neck flushing. “Are-are you—,”

“Wearing a bra? No, I’m not.” You lay a hand on his shoulder, hoisting one leg over his thighs and settling down comfortable on his lap. He bristles then relaxes as you slide a hand up into his scalp. “Do you want me to show you?”

He glares at you, barely annoyed, and shifts so that his large hands rest in the curve of your waist. Poison starts in the speakers as his eyebrow raises.

“Do you normally wear corsets when we all hang out?” A lock of your hair moves past your cheek as he brushes it out of the way. His mouth tilts into a smirk. You seem to think about it, lips pursed, and grip both his shoulders in your hands.

“Only when I’ve got someone to impress.” A hand on your lower back presses insistently and you fall further into his lap.

“Who are you here to impress, Y/N?” He’s barely an inch from your mouth now, and can’t seem to keep his eyes on one part of your face. Cool breath fans onto your cheeks and they warm. God, he’s even cuter up close.

“You,” barely passes your lips before he’s taking the side of your neck into his hand and stretching to connect your lips with his own.

Cherry, you think. Cherry chapstick, that cheeky bastard. Taking your wrist in his hand, he loops it up and around his neck. You’re making a noise into his mouth, you realize, right as he’s sliding a hand down to the side of your thigh and gripping it between his long fingers. You shiver as he pulls away too soon, pressing a small kiss to the corner of your mouth before sinking his teeth into your neck. The gasp that leaves your mouth is surprisingly loud and your cheeks flush further. He just hums, pleased, and stretches an arm to the opposite side of your waist to hug you closer. Warm lips move on the skin of your neck and his tongue darts out few and far between the kisses.

“Fuck,” he breathes when your hips jerk forward once.

“Sorry,” you whisper up at the ceiling, eyes falling shut. “reflex.”

He grins against your neck and moves to grip an ass cheek in his palm.

“Your reflex to me licking a hickey is to grind into my crotch?” he teases. You just have to nod, lips parted, as he soothes another bruise with his tongue.

“Karl.” He seems to either not hear you or ignore you for he’s removing himself from your neck and connecting your mouths once more. “Karl,” you stutter between kisses, and he squeezes at your ass.

“Yes?” His lips are bitten and puffy when he pulls away, a smug look on his beautiful face.

“Take off my corset.”

He looks between your face and the lingerie, eyebrows raised in surprise.

“Don’t mind if I do.”

-

A/N: ask or send me some stuff!! requests, rants, anything. :D comment what you think !

[x--daughters-of-darkness--x]

HALESTORM: Behind-The-Scenes Footage From Making Of 'Back From The Dead' Video

HALESTORM has shared behind-the-scenes footage from the making of the official video for the band's new single, "Back From The Dead". The track is taken from the group's upcoming fifth full-length album, due in 2022. Directed by Dustin Haney (Noah Cyrus, Luke Combs) and produced by Revolution Pictures, the clip features frontwoman Lzzy Hale and the rest of the band in a morgue and cemetery somewhere between life and death.

Lzzy says: "'Back From The Dead' is about survival, not in a physical sense, even though I know we all have been touched by death especially these last few years. This song is personal and written from a mental health perspective. I wanted to give myself and the world a hard rock song we could shout out loud as the gates opened again. I was on the edge of this world getting completely lost in oblivion, but even though it was the harder of two choices, I didn't just let the darkness and depression in my mind dig me an early grave. I didn't just sit and let it take me. I've erased my name from my headstone, so save your prayers, I'm back! I hope this song, as I pass it on to you, reminds YOU of your strength individually and that you are not alone."

She continues: "The video was so much fun to film! Dustin Haney is an amazing director. Dustin and his team really helped bring my words to life and the video is one of the most cinematic pieces we've done in years! I hope this song, as I pass it on…reminds YOU of YOUR individual strength and that you are not Alone. Raise your horns!"

By breaking rules, bucking trends, and busting down doors, HALESTORM has surged through rock 'n' roll on a singular path without compromise or apology. Along the way, the Pennsylvania-bred and Nashville-based quartet — Lzzy Hale (vocals, guitar), Arejay Hale (drums), Joe Hottinger (guitar) and Josh Smith (bass) — has collected a Grammy Award, scored successive number ones at radio, garnered multiple gold and platinum certifications, and performed to sold out crowds on five continents.

Going against the grain again in 2021, the band weathered the flames of chaos in 2020 and returned stronger than ever with their most empowering and undeniable anthems to date.

"Throughout the pandemic, I was writing a lot of melancholic and hopeless songs about the ups and downs of the world," admits Lzzy. "I've been in this group longer than I haven't been in it. We've always had shows. Even when I was 13 years old, we had a couple of bowling alley gigs once a month. This was the first time I didn't know if we would ever play again. However, I started to use music in the same way I did as a teenager—to get myself through this situation that was plaguing us all. I sidestepped and said, 'Let's keep our heads up, get our attitude back, be a light in the dark for a second, and celebrate the fact we're surviving and there's hope for the future.' So, we started to write songs that were a reminder to ourselves of who we are and what we're capable of. That became the mission statement."

In a way, it's always been the mission statement…

Since roaring to life in 1998, HALESTORM has uplifted audiences with a combination of sonic ass-kicking, provocative songwriting, and unshakable hooks. The four-piece received a Grammy Award in the category of "Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance" for "Love Bites (So Do I)". The song also minted them as the first female-fronted band to hit #1 on the Active Rock radio charts. Thus far, their discography spans two gold albums "Halestorm" and "The Strange Case Of..." , a platinum single "I Miss The Misery", and two gold singles "Here's To Us" and "I Get Off". Between surpassing one billion cumulative streams worldwide, they've notched two consecutive Top 10 debuts on the Billboard Top 200 with "Into The Wild Life" (2015) and "Vicious" (2018). The latter represented a critical high watermark with Rolling Stone citing it as "a muscular, adventurous, and especially relevant rock record." In its wake, "Uncomfortable" emerged as their fourth #1 at rock radio and earned their second Grammy Award nomination, while Loudwire christened HALESTORM "Rock Artist Of The Decade" in 2019. Not to mention, they have supported everyone from HEAVEN & HELL and Alice Cooper to Joan Jett on the road.

Even as the world went dormant during 2020, Lzzy remained prolific. She lent her voice to collaborations with everyone from Dee Snider of TWISTED SISTER, IN THIS MOMENT, APOCALYPTICA, and Mark Morton of LAMB OF GOD to EVANESCENCE, Cory Marks, and Mongolian phenomenon THE HU. Additionally, she joined forces with a trio of legends — Corey Taylor of SLIPKNOT, Scott Ian of ANTHRAX and original SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo — for the theme song to Netflix's "Thunder Force". Plus, the group contributed a cover of THE WHO's "Long Live Rock" to the documentary of the same name. Expanding her presence across television, she hosted the AXS TV "A Year In Music" series, joined the cast of Hit Parader's "No Cover" as a judge, provided the singing voice for Bella Thorne in the Prime Video hit "Paradise City" and launched her own show "Raise Your Horns" on Rolling Live. On the channel, she appeared in Mike Garson's David Bowie tribute with a performance of "Moonage Daydream" alongside Broadway star Lena Hall. She also participated in the platform's Ronnie James Dio tribute, supporting the Stand Up And Shout Cancer Fund.

At the same time, she remained a huge proponent of encouraging the dialogue around mental health. She participated in a Grammy Mental Health panel and empowered the next generation of rock musicians as the keynote speaker at the Little Kids Rock Modern Band Summit. She also made history as Gibson Guitars' first-ever female ambassador.

"I've learned a lot about myself through all of these different projects," she admits. "I said 'yes' to various adventures, and it made me a better artist."

Working out of her home studio in Nashville, Lzzy and the band channeled this renewed spirit into the music at the onset of 2021. Collaborating with Scott Stevens of THE EXIES, the musicians hit their stride and cooked up the single 'Back From The Dead'. Dramatic distortion and drums rumble as she screams, "I'm back from the dead!" HALESTORM come out swinging as punchy verses give way to a call-and-response chorus shocked to life with a searing solo and thunderous groove.

"We needed a reintroduction," she exclaims. "We needed something that simply said, 'Hey, we're back'. The live show is the time we feel as truly alive as we can be. When you walk out on stage with your guitar strapped on, your guys are next to you, and you have an audience looking at you, it's everything. We're celebrating the fact we're all back together again. Whatever it is that was trying to destroy that part of myself and my bandmates that our fans need couldn't do it. It failed miserably. We're fucking back."

From the moment the band graced the stage at a secret Nashville gig, they were indeed "back," albeit louder, heavier, and emboldened by an unbelievable year. Amped up to jump back in, their tour schedule took shape with festival dates followed by a co-headline run with EVANESCENCE in the fall.

Readying their fifth full-length album, they're delivering the soundtrack for a world ready to roar again.

"We've lost a lot of people, but we can start healing again," she leaves off. "I appreciate the little things even more. I don't only feel this confidence in myself, but also in every one of my band members. We're not the same people, none of us could ever be. HALESTORM is my source of my joy. It's my connection. It's the closest thing to my religion. We're moving forward. With this next album, I hope we're able to create a greater sense of community. We have a beautiful opportunity. When you listen to it, I want you to feel like you can walk through any fire."

[harrysdimples]

folklore track by track review

the 1: love me a piano intro. oh this guitar?? swearing in the first 5 seconds? I like these lyrics. never bleed????????? hmm.................it would’ve been you.............I..............it would’ve been fun if you were the one.........bruv..........dare I say it...............am I just clowning.....or like.......................is she....ya know.......talking about........you know.......h****?? oh these vocals ! bruv I don’t care this is about harry because I say so afhdjssa. I really love this production and her vocals, it already sounds so much more mature than lover and it’s only the opener, feels like a more-mature version of a deep cut on red. excellent start!

cardigan: oh this percussion?? the piano?? her voice sounds fab. is this about the met? black lipstick? or bleachella? her VOCALS bruv sound 10x better than anything on lover?? I love these lyrics omg. THIS IS SO GOOD. HEARTBEAT ON THE HIGH LINE ONCE IN TWENTY LIFETIMES. this so good?? try to change the ending peter losing wendy?? leaving like a father running like water????? I love this so much omg. the atmospheric vocal...the percussion....the lyrics.....the piano......LAV IT. I can’t get over how already this is more lyrically dense than lover and reputation but I ain’t complaining!! I’m both surprised and not surprised that they went with this for the single from this era but I really like it, it feels like it would fit right at home in the NFR tracklist.

the last great american dynasty: love these strings?? omg the beat? is this political? hmm I like the lyrics of the verses but i’m not 100% feeling the lyrics/structure of the chorus, feels a little like she’s trying to fit too many words into the line, but I love the storytelling aspect of it and it’ll probably grow on me. it’s like a grown-up version of starlight or the lucky one. Is this supposed to be like an alternate version of what taylor’s life could’ve been like? or am I just completely misinterpreting that lmao?

exile ft. bon iver: like this piano intro. love bon iver. oh the birds in the background?? ooft these lyrics....brutal. is this about calvin? is that a kazoo? afjdshjsa I promise i’m not trying to be like this but like......this is very......hm. I really love his voice. the bridge is really pretty with both their voices. I can see myself staring dramatically outside the window listening to this when we’re allowed to properly go back outside lmao. very nice and pretty, it’ll probably hit harder later on than my first listen but I like it. 

my tears ricochet: this a-cappella intro? oh this is sad :( what a ghostly scene....................................I didn’t have it in myself to go with grace :( oh this buildup?? I still talk to you........omg these atmospheric vocals I. LOVE. I need to read the lyrics on my next few listens to this but I really like it so far.

mirrorball: this feels like the outro in a coming of age 80s movie. love the soft guitars. oh these vocals! I know she didn’t mean to but when she signs tallest it sounds like she’s saying toilet to me lmao. jack’s atmospheric vocals!!! yes!!! the bridge is really beautiful. all I do is try, try, try. I’m just trying to get you to look at me :( I do have to say, while I love how lyrically dense this album is and reflective it is in comparison to her last few albums, the instrumentation doesn’t change a whole lot throughout these songs on first listen, it’s more that atmospheric vocals/sounds are built on top of it, which is fine, but I think they’ll benefit a lot from me listening to them outside the context of the album. love the meaning behind this though and I think it’s really beautiful.

seven: (this is when I stopped doing live reactions and instead went for post track reactions) Is it weird to say that this did better at the “love letter to love” concept meant for lover than lover did? this song feels more like for her legacy/future family and how she’s grown than as an active, present moment which is nice. I will say while I did love NFR when it came out, it also hit a wall with me eventually where it needed some breathing space or something to break up the sections of the album (which harry does actually quite well) and I feel like we’re hitting that point (if we haven’t already). I’m always slightly apprehensive about long albums like this which is why I said this will benefit from listening outside the context of the album. 

august: I’m really curious as to who this is about lmao. but this was excellent in the progression of the track and the buildup/atmosphere and dynamics of the track, this was what I was wanting a bit more with songs like exile and it did great at building a different sonic landscape which is what was needed in the album imo. one of my favourite tracks so far.

this is me trying: this is very...wistful and reflective. a hybrid of the archer and I wish you would to me. “I was so ahead of the curve, the curve became a sphere, Fell behind all my classmates and I ended up here” is a LYRIC bruv. feels reminiscent of what she said in the miss americana documentary about how you’re stunted in your growth when you become famous at a young age and you fall behind the emotional development of most people around you, which is really interesting. “Pouring out my heart to a stranger, But I didn't pour the whiskey” is that supposed to be like a metaphor for stopping herself from saying too much all the time because she knows it could get out/be perceived in a certain way? either way, these are some great lyrics. “you're a flashback in a film reel on the one screen in my town” hmmm.....

illicit affairs: I LOVE THIS. EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS. I have nothing else to add. this is fantastic. favourite track so far. amazing. 10/10.

invisible string: this song is really sweet lol I wish I was in love with someone to relate more to this. very referential to her work as a whole and I liked the more stripped down production.

man this is a long album lol

mad woman: FUCK YOU FOREVER. scream. this is very lana-fied lmao. I wish she did a little more with the electric guitar in the back though, imagine this more being soft-rock? so this is definitely about scott and scooter right? I do like this but it does feel very sonically similar to some of the tracks we’ve heard so far and I wish she had switched it up a little to fit the excellent lyricism of this song, more guitar would’ve really elevated the song imo. 

epiphany: lol I got a bit emotional listening to this, I can already tell i’m going to listen to this at night and cry lmao. I have a massive fear of death/the unknown and this song sort of touched on that concept to me and I really liked the production. this feels like it should be in a movie soundtrack or in like, grey’s anatomy. the heartbeat-like sound in the outro? beautiful. this is the sort of concepts I’ve been wanting from taylor for a while now and the execution of this was really good imo. 

betty: ms swift it’s okay to be gay. the elaborate-ness of putting yourself in the position of a man just to say you liked a girl. how are the kaylors/gaylors holding out lmao this is a nice story (like an upgraded version of ybwm) but I can’t get over how effectively no-homo this is lmao. the key change? love story wishes. oh the wistfullness to be young......and in looooOOOOoooOOove.

peace: love the guitar in the intro. this gives me another more grown up perspective of a song on melodrama? I love her vocals in this. I feel like i’ve said this about 40 times already but the atmospheric sounds....chef’s kiss. 

hoax: the closer. the LYRICISM bitch. “your faithless love's the only hoax I believe in” shut up :( the bridge is gorgeous. I’m not sure how I feel about it as the closer though, it ties up the themes of the album pretty well but I almost feel peace would’ve been a better closer? still really gorgeous though.

okay. overall thoughts. top 3 albums of taylor’s discography for me along with 1989 and red. It did feel long towards the end though and I still think her problem is editing and streamlining her projects which is why I think 1989 (as her best album for that) and red (while being longer than this has enough songs to break up the album so it’s not monotonous for the listener) rank above this for me at the moment, but that could change. If I were her, I would’ve taken out invisible string and possibly betty and seven to have as deluxe tracks. her lyricism is better on this album than both reputation and lover combined, she really did that in like 4 months. I will need more time with it as I always do with taylor’s projects but it was the album she needed in my opinion. I think part of the reason I disliked lover and to a lesser extent, reputation, was because they didn’t come across as if she needed to write them like her other projects, but more projects she felt she should to write because that was where the narrative of her public image was forcing her to go, this feels like a return to form, even if I would tweak a few things. the visuals for this album have all been great (her best album cover after 1989 imo) and I think it benefitted a lot from going into it with next to no expectations, without a single or anything and I hope she continues to just do whatever, rather than painstakingly plan marketing surrounding an album and just allow her talent to speak for itself. really good. favourite tracks are probably: illicit affairs, the 1, cardigan, epiphany and mirrorball. least favourite are probably: invisible string, seven and maybe betty too. i’d rate it about 8/10 at the moment. also: ****** never dies.

[nicklloydnow]

"The Plugz’ 1979 debut album on their own label, Plugz Records, is sometimes cited as a landmark for the Hollywood punk scene, as it was a visible (the only?) instance of an L.A. punk band of significant popularity adopting the DIY ethos at the level of self-distribution. Otherwise, Electrify Me isn’t mentioned too often as a classic album of early L.A. punk. I guess that’s understandable. The band didn’t introduce an unexpected combination of musical elements the way X did, nor did they have a charismatic, they’re-gonna-start-a-riot stage presence like the Germs; they weren’t musically ahead of their time like the Screamers or visually arresting like the Weirdos and, again, the Screamers. The listener today winces at the occasional artistic misstep (is that a Cockney accent I hearon the line “You’re brainwashed and don’t know it”?) that’s symptomatic of an early American punk band in the shadow of its higher-profile British counterpart.

But as signaled by Quintana’s thundering drums on the opening track “A Gain A Loss,” the Plugz brought a level of musical fire and artistic vision to the punk scene that still sound great today. Electrify Me charges through 11 tracks that admittedly sound almost all the same, reflecting the sonic economy of the Plugz’ early guitar-bass-drum format in all its glory. With their stop-on-a-dime beat (Quintana proves himself to be one of the great drummers of L.A. punk) and Larriva’s surprisingly deft guitar solos, frantic songs like “Adolescent”go toe to toe, I think, with any song by X or the Weirdos. Lyrically, Larriva tosses scribbled manifestos and sarcastic observations from the underground, pausing for an occasional pop-art exercise (the dada vocal of “Wordless,” the refrains of “Do the Watusi” etc. that would have recalled Patti Smith’s “Horses”) or the intimate observation of the title track, which unexpectedly breaks the album’s pace with a seductive reggae skank.

(...)

Larriva has put out five albums with Tito & Tarantula, contributed music to some 20 film/TV projects, and acted in approximately 25 film/TV projects according to his IMDB page. Now in what has to be his early 50s, he shows no sign of slowing down. While his music has probably peaked in terms of popular reception in the U.S., Tito & Tarantula tour Europe extensively to ever larger audiences, and he probably enjoys greater commercial reward from his music than ever before.

Undoubtedly, some part of this success reflects broader changes in the economics of musical distribution. Larriva began recording music as a no-budget DIY operation, then moved on to the realm of corporate record labels that notoriously hold the strings over recording artists with disadvantageous contracts. Through trial and error, Larriva’s generation of musicians have learned how to self-distribute more effectively, earn better royalty rates (always an incentive for re-recording older songs) and secure lucrative publishing and licensing deals via film soundtracks and advertisements.

As in Rodriguez’s films, Larriva’s art across music, acting and soundtracks characteristically returns to specific styles, roles, songs, motifs and collaborators. (In this vein, I shouldn’t forget the one-off Psychotic Aztecs record from 1998, which reunited Larriva with Steven Medina Hufsteter and the former Oingo Boingo rhythm section for a higher-octane, Spanish-language version of what he does with Tito & Tarantula. Hufsteter went on to join Tito & Tarantula for much of the 2000s.) Some fans and critics might be disappointed by this recycling. How many more dimensions of the sensuous, turbulent Latin-flavored roadhouse rock that Larriva has played for the last 20 years are there to be discovered? The music on his albums continue to evolve, but his work will probably never exhibit the great advances in style and approach that marks his albums with the Plugz and early Cruzados.

If it’s easy to conclude that Larriva’s most creative years are behind him, this discounts his crucial innovations in articulating, re-coding and giving new platforms of expression for the musical, visual and narrative codes of Chicano pop culture. Larriva is an unsung pioneer of postmodern popular culture, blazing paths in reflexively revisiting and mythologizing a given tradition of musical and symbolic creativity via the medium of one’s own art and career. The closest comparison to Larriva’s career (I’m surprised this connection hasn’t been made) is Chris Isaak, another canny musician-as-aesthete who has reflexively mined a pop-culture genre (in his case, the late 50s/early 50s rock romanticism of Orbison, Presley, and Nelson) for a career as songwriter, recording artists, actor and TV host. But whereas Isaak can reasonably be accused of what Simon Reynolds calls “retromania,” or pop culture’s addiction to its own past, Larriva comes to this endeavor from a different position as a Chicano artist who can access a longer tradition of revisiting… tradition.

Larriva has been living in Austin now for about a decade, so far as I can tell. It’s no doubt a better place than L.A. for his career—close to family, collaborators like Rodriguez, and audiences enthusiastic for the well-trodden musical genres that Larriva draws from. But Larriva is a quintessential L.A. artist. He was there at the center of the Hollywood punk scene, yes, but it’s his artistic trajectory out of the scene that remains more significant, shining light on the dead-ends and new opportunities of the L.A. music and film industry as it moved over the 80s and 90s from rejecting underground culture and independent production to incorporating them deep within its economic being. This shift in L.A.’s economy can be told in analytical models, but also in human relationships. Contacts and collaboration were essential to the shifting fortunes of Larriva, who seems to have played his rolodex as well as his guitar. Those relationships can be said to have helped build L.A.’s Chicano rock scene of the 80s. They might even be said to have shaped, in their own minute way, the ways we consume genre, aesthetics and tradition today."

[outerspaceisbetterthannothing]

Stuck with me [Ashton Irwin] Ch.2

playlist

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

Summary: Can a sudden meeting really change your life for the better? Or will it be just another mistake they made?

A/N: Soz it took so long, but I’m really happy to be back on track. And I’m also happy with these two dorks here. They are adorable. The feedback is extremely appreciated. Enjoy

Warnings: none, apart from a little sadness

Chapter 2

“So, how exactly are we going to get inside?” Ashton asked after couple of minutes.

Y/N sighed heavily.

They were sitting in his black pontiac not far from the place she only yesterday could call home. Her eyes were glued to the entrance, waiting and praying, that her ex’s lazy ass will get out soon enough. His car was parked right in front of the building, so she was pretty sure he was still inside. And having close to no wish to see Josh ever again, she asked Ashton to wait till he would go somewhere. Despite an early hour, they could already feel the heat of another sunny day in LA. Y/N sighed again.

“I know where he keeps the spare key,” she confessed, feeling Ashton looking at her.

Ashton sniffed, but didn’t say anything. They drowned in silence again. It wasn’t heavy silence, but Y/N would lie if she said it wasn’t an awkward one.

Ashton turned on the radio and started going through the stations, but after five minutes or so he turned it off again.

“So, what do you do?” Y/N asked and snorted right after those words left her mouth.

Ashton looked at her, quirking his eyebrow quizzically.

“I’m sorry,” she said, still giggling a little. “Thought that I’ve already agreed to kinda live with you and only now started asking questions. And, I mean, with my luck, chances are you’re in a gang or something.”

“That would be not very good for you,” Ashton muttered, amused more by her nervous giggling than the fact that in her imagination he could end up being in a gang.

“So, what do you do for a living?” she asked again after calming down.

“I’m a musician,” he stated simply and earned another look of surprise.

“Musician?”

“Well, yeah.”

Y/N moved in her seat to face him, though still having the entrance in her peripheral, and asked again, her words full of doubt, “No, wait, like real musician getting paid for his music or like every second guy in LA who isn’t an actor?”

Ashton laughed, quite surprised by her remark and how fair it really was.

“No, first option,” he answered. “I’m actually in a band.”

“What kind of band?” she asked, hardly capable to keep her interest at bay.

“Well, you’ve probably heard of us,” Ashton said, looking away from her and getting slightly uneasy all of a sudden. He totally forgot the feeling of that moment, telling somebody about his work and the band, too used to people knowing his name and almost everything that was behind it. “5 seconds of summer?”

He felt with his skin the awkwardness of that moment. She looked at him amused, shaking her head a little. “Never heard,” Y/N admitted easily and then added, “but I’m not into music, I never remember band’s names. So what kind of music do you play? Are you a guitarist or something?”

“I’m a drummer,” Ashton chuckled. From all the girls in this city he found the one who’s never heard about him. How little was the chance, really? “As for what kind of music, well, kinda pop-rock maybe. I don’t even know, that’s a hard question, we try not to narrow ourselves with specific genres, to be honest.”

He looked back at her, she was puzzled, but still interested.

“Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have megalomania or something, but you must have heard at least some of our songs,” he said with yet another chuckle.

Y/N just shrugged. “I don’t really care about music,” she explained. “Anything that plays on the radio or at a party is good enough for me.”

“Unbelievable,” Ashton rumbled, getting his phone out and going through his spotify. Couple moments later first sounds of She Looks So Perfect filled the car.

Y/N kept her eyes on the phone in Ashton’s hand. Soon she was nodding her head to the beat, a ghost of a smile on her lips. “Not bad,” she said halfway through the song, “but never heard it before.”

“You have to be kidding me,” Ashton almost groaned, tapping on another song.

When you're talking to your girls, do you talk about me? Luke and Mike started the verse. Ashton fixed his eyes on the girl in his passengers seat, who was smiling at him and shaking her head in silent apology.

“Come on! It was the soundtrack for the Ghostbusters remake!”

“I don’t watch remakes,” she winced.

“Is it some kind of a life philosophy?” Ashton couldn’t hold back and laughed.

“You can say so, I guess,” she agreed. “They’re just never as good as the original. But the song is cool.”

Ashton huffed. Now it was a challenge. They did joke about being the biggest band nobody heard about, but… If Ashton was completely honest, he always took it as a joke and joke only. He scrolled up through the list of their songs and tapped on another one.

Remember the words you told me "Love me 'til the day I die"

“Oh,” she ushered with a look of genuine surprise on her face, “I’ve heard this! I’ve definitely heard this, at a bar, I think! So it’s your song? That’s sick!”

“Tell me about it,” Ashton laughed again at her excitement.

“So how did you make it to the big scene?” Y/N asked, giving a building in front of them another worried look. She knew they couldn’t sit here the whole day.

“Well, we’re from Australia,” Ashton started.

“I thought, I heard the accent, just couldn’t figure it out,” Y/N said, smile still on her face.

“Yeah, we left home long ago,” he nodded. “So we kinda started pretty young, got some fans there, then moved to London, got to tour with 1D. Have you at least heard about One Direction?” he mocked her, quirking an eyebrow again.

“Yes, I have, mister Music. They are a boyband, right?”

“Yeah, so we toured with them for some time, then released couple of pretty successful albums. That’s like long story short.”

Y/N nodded. The rest of the album came after Youngblood, and Ashton turned on his phone again to stop the music, but she stopped him almost intuitively, lightly brushing her hand against his. He looked at her, stunned with this contact. And ten hours ago she couldn’t even speak to him. But Y/N didn’t notice the surprise in his eyes, her attention at the building again.

“So, your band is like 1D?” she asked a moment later.

“No, we’re different. And we’re better,” Ashton answered with a smug smile.

Y/N turned to him again, amused with such a bold answer. “How so?”

“We’re still together,” he stated.

“1D aren’t together anymore?”

Ashton burst out laughing at the exasperated look on her face. She couldn’t fake it even if she tried. “You’re unbelievable,” he repeated.

Y/N rolled her eyes and smiled, looking even younger than she was.

But the very next moment her smile faded away, as the door to the building opened, two people coming out. The guy was tall and lanky, he was holding a girl in a too short dress by the hand. Ashton didn’t even need to ask if that was Y/N’s ex, he understood everything by the way she straightened up and got smaller at the same time. The guy and the girl got in an old rusty car and went away in an opposite direction. Ashton looked at Y/N again with a question in his eyes.

Y/N shrugged. “I’ve already known he was a dickhead, not a big deal,��� she answered his silent question. “Let’s just go through with it as fast as possible.”

Ashton nodded and they both got out of the car.

The insides of the building were just as shabby and uninviting as the outsides. Ashton looked at Y/N’s back, she walked first. She seemed so young, pretty and innocent. She didn’t belong here in a slightest. Couldn’t she see it herself?

Y/N, unaware of the attention given to her back, made her way to the post boxes, fished the key out of one of them, and rushed to the stairs with a satisfied grin on her face. Ashton followed suit.

Little apartment on the third floor though looked cozy and carefully looked after. Ashton didn’t really expect to see that, but, he would bet, it was all because of Y/N. A week without her, and that douchebag of her ex would make this place fit the surrounding.

Y/N didn’t waste any time. The moment Ashton entered the apartment, she was already in the tiny kitchen searching for something. Two minutes later she rushed into the supposed bedroom with a pack of trash bags. Ashton looked around the living room and decided to follow Y/N.

Bedroom looked as neat as the living room except for the undone bed, left by two people not so long ago. Y/N was standing there and just looking at this bed, like only now she’s realised that her ex cheated on her in their bed and it was really the end of their relationship. Ashton coughed, bringing her back to the reality. Y/N jumped a little and tuned to the wardrobe, trying not to look at Ashton.

“So, what exactly happened between you and that moron?” he asked, looking as she took one trash bag and started to put there all her clothes, not even looking at things that were disappearing inside the bag. Ashton came up to her and picked up the trash bag to help her.

“Thanks,” she smiled a little, but all her look was screaming about how awful she felt here and how much wanted to leave. “Nothing new, to be honest,” she started talking, not sparing him another look. “We were at that bar with his friends. I never really got on with them, they just didn’t like me, don’t know why,” she shrugged.

That’s because they all knew you were thousand times better than all of them, Ashton thought, but kept it to himself.

“So Josh, my ex, started to flirt with that girl, which wasn’t new also. But, for some reason, I wasn’t ready to tolerate it anymore. So I came up to him and we started fighting, right in the middle of a bar. What was different this time though,” Y/N continued, taking another trash bag and collecting her shoes, mostly flats and sneakers, “is that he was really angry. I’ve never seen him so angry with me. When things went really off the window, he started shouting, said I was useless, worthless, not sexy. You know,” she shrugged, stepping to the chest of drawers, “all the pretty things a guy can say to his girl. And then he did the most romantic thing, he slapped me on the face and said I can go back to the hole he digged me out from.”

Ashton felt his knuckles hurting from how hard he was holding on a trash bag. He looked at her back, wanted to say he was sorry that she end up with a shitty man like that, that she had to go through all of it. But something stopped him. He knew, pity was not something she needed or wanted right now.

“And thank you,” she said, not looking at him but still being able to read his mind. “For not saying how you’re sorry. With Josh I totally got what I was asking for. I was stupid from the beginning, and here I am now.”

Nobody deserves that, thought Ashton still looking at her back. He felt the urge to say something, to change the topic, to get her from that awful memory somehow. But she did everything hersels. Y/N grabbed a hoodie and a pair of leggings from a pile of clothes she digged from her drawers and disappeared in the bathroom, leaving Ashton with “Hold on a second.”

Ashton looked around the bedroom one more time. Not more than ten minutes she spent packing her stuff. Empty shelves in a closet looked oddly sad. Y/N packed all the books from a tiny bookshelf, the only two photo frames and rather small pile of makeup. Not much, but without these few things the room was left empty and almost depressing. Not a sign of a neat cozyness he saw when entering the room.

Y/N came back from the bathroom and pushed the dress from the other night down one of the trash bags with a severe sigh.

“God, I hate that dress so much,” she mumbled, looking around.

“Why to take it then?” Ashton chuckled looking at her concentrated face, as she was packing last bits of her staff and checking all the corners for missed items.

She looked back at him quickly, not really registering him standing there, too occupied with her mission.

“Don't wanna leave anything behind,” Y/N answered quietly. “Don't wanna him having anything of my staff. He's taken more than enough from me already. I'll decide on what to keep and what not later.”

Ashton only nodded, knowing well what she was talking about. And suddenly an odd feeling came to him. He couldn't even fully comprehend it, but he felt proud. He was standing there, in the bedroom of her cheating asshole of an ex, looking at her tiny figure and couldn't help feeling proud. The way she coped with it, the way she finished it once and for all, not even sparing him another tear, not wishing for him to have a single reminder of her. She was so strong, and yet so unaware of it.

“I think, we're done here,” she said, looking around for the last time. “Let's go back to the living room.”

Ashton took two full trash bags, she grabbed the third, filled only on a half. She spent even less time in the living room, taking little interior stuff like half burnt candles and one tiny fern which was carefully held by Ashton, while Y/N was finishing packing.

“What did you do?” Ashton asked just cause he got bored from standing there with a fern in his hands.

“What?” she looked up at him with surprise in her eyes, like she forgot again she wasn’t alone.

“While you lived here,” Ashton explained. “You said you didn’t go to college. What did you do?”

“Almost nothing,” she admitted with a sigh and looked away. “I tried to get a job couple of times in the coffee shops nearby, but Josh didn't like when I was away for long, so all my attempts usually ended up in scandals and me spending hours here without him. I mostly read.”

“He didn’t like you to be away?” Ashton asked in confusion.

“Yeah,” Y/N shrugged. “Said my place was next to him. Or started blaming me for being greedy if I tried to point out that I need my own money.”

Ashton nodded again. He didn't know what he could answer to that. He remembered his own words from the previous night. What if it was Lauren? Could she fell for such guy? Could she believe in this being love?

“But don’t worry,” Y/N continued. “I’m going to get a job as soon as possible.”

“It’s not why I-” Ashton rushed, “I just asked.”

She looked back at him and surprised him with a bright smile. “I know. But I do wanna get a job. I feel like I’m finally got tired of doing nothing and being noone.”

“You’re not noone,” Ashton shook his head, deep frown on his face. Y/N only smiled at him.

She grabbed a sparkly purse from under a sofa and examined its contents, Ashton got a glimpse of a shattered phone screen. She chuckled and rushed back into the kitchen. He heard clicking of some jars and then the crunch sound of paper. Right after that Y/N came out, hiding something in her purse.

“We good to go,” she said and grabbed on the nearest bag.

Ashton hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to cope with the fern and two bag, but Y/N grabbed the poor plant from his hands. Ashton took other bags, suppressed an unwelcome sigh drawn by the weight and followed her to the door.

Y/N closed the door behind them, locked it and left the key where she’d taken it in a post box on the ground floor. The way to the car was silent. As all her stuff ended up in Ashton’s car trunk and she herself on a passenger seat, holding the poor fern, Y/N congratulated herself on going through it so fast and firmly. And yet, when Ashton was setting off and driving from their parking lot, she glanced in a rearview mirror at the building she had been calling home for over nine months. And now was praying never to see again. Was she really letting go of it? Was she ready to let go of it?

They turned and she couldn’t see the building anymore. Whatever. Was she ready or not, life was already pushing her away from what she knew. And Y/N had no other choice than to start moving along.

***

Ashton pushed the door to his bedroom and froze.

Darkness around reminded him of a previous night, which had happened an entire lifetime ago. Yet less than twenty-four hours had passed since their meeting. He turned to the door to her room and heard it again, the sound that made him freeze. A quiet sob.

Ashton took another step to the room she’d occupied and raised a hand to knock. But he didn’t. He put his hands in his jeans pockets and just stood there, in front of the door, listening to her quiet crying.

Truth to be told, he wasn’t surprised. He remembered her earlier in the day, when they went to grab her stuff. She was so fierce, so on-a-mission-like. She didn’t brake then, didn’t go into reminiscing on the good old days (which probably weren’t that good). And he felt how strong she was that moment, how ready to change her life. But Ashton knew what was behind each strong woman. He saw it in his mom too many times before. He felt it inside himself every so often. These mountains of sadness and regret and pain, they shown noone. The darkness of their bedrooms was the only creature who could see their burden. And noone else.

Ashton sighed inaudibly and went to his own room, hesitated at the door frame, but left the door open, God only knows why. He fell on his bed and stared into the ceiling.

He wasn’t surprised, yet it was so odd to hear her crying. She was so lively and almost happy just couple hours ago, when they were having dinner.

“So you cook.”

Y/N jumped at the sound of his voice, coming so unexpectedly from behind her back. She gave Ashton a sheepish smile and shrugged.

“You made breakfast,” she explained, turning off the stove and checking on the meat for the last time. “I thought it would be only fair if I cooked dinner. Being roommates is about the partnership, right?”

Ashton chuckled, “I guess.”

He helped her set the table and they spent more than half an hour just talking about stuff. She happened to be a good cook, and mocked his slightly surprised looks.

“What do you mean, you don’t usually eat?” she asked.

“In here, I don’t usually eat in here,” Ashton explained. “We eat out a lot, or just order something. I almost never cook.”

“Oh, how boring,” she pouted in fake disappointment. “And I almost thought you’re a vampire or something like this, so you don’t need food at all.”

Ashton couldn’t hold back the laughter. “First gang member, now the vampire. You do have a wild imagination.”

She shrugged nonchalantly. “Well, if you ever have a chance of becoming one of these, vampire is better.”

“Why? They’re killers.”

“Gang members are too, but as a vampire you can live forever at least,” she explained, finishing her dish.

“You wanna live forever?” Ashton was having a hard time rushing after her thoughts.

“Why not?” she smiled and with that started clearing the table.

Ashton sat up on his bed. He never knew the soundproofing was so terrible in this house,but he could basically hear every damn sob of hers. He couldn’t just lay here while she was crying her heart out, could he?

And then he stood up, came up to his door and closed it, to muffle the sounds. He lied back on the bed and sighed one more time hiding his face in his hands.

He remembered his own heartbreak, happened so long ago. He was hurting like hell and needed someone to come ease the pain. He needed a person to just listen and understand his pain and struggling. But if at the moment of his darkest grief he’d had somebody to listen, he wouldn’t have spoken up. He wouldn’t even have let this person in. He was aching and he wasn’t ready to get help. Some wounds needed not only time to heal, but also loneliness and growth. And no matter how much he wanted, he couldn’t help her with that.

Ashton thought of Lauren again. Would he come up to her, if it was his little sister there crying in the bedroom? He sighed again. No, he wouldn’t. He would fully respect her right to cry in the security of her bedroom and come for help the moment she was ready.

His phone vibrated shortly somewhere on the bed, signaling about the new message. Ashton stretched his arm and grabbed the little device.

He sat up and read the message.

He fully respected Y/N’s right to ache and suffer alone in his guest room. But he also couldn’t just sit here listening to a living creature in pain so close to him and not being able to help in any way.

So he stood up, took his jacket and left the room. He couldn’t stay here, so he would go to where he could easily forget it all.

***

Y/N woke up to the sound of shower. She stretched without opening her eyes and thought it was just like waking up in the Josh’s apartment with walls so thin you could hear everything you neighbours were doing. Including morning showers. But still she couldn’t help noticing how everything was slightly different, even the sound of water.

She picked up her phone from a night table and switched on the shattered screen. It probably broke when Josh threw her purse on the floor of his apartment, or any other moment, she didn’t have a clue and wasn’t interested for that matter either. Still, she could work out the time through the thick net of cracks. It was almost ten, but felt like early morning. Y/N wasn’t the person to sleep long in the day, and even ten was past the waking time for her. But today she didn’t really want to get up. Preferably at all.

Y/N buried her face in the pillows and sighed. She felt terrible, not a piece of yesterday’s joy and resolve left in her. She couldn’t even remember why she started crying yesterday night. One moment she’s deleting Josh’s number and all their messages, the next she’s sobbing under the covers of the bed. She cried for several hours, couldn’t even remember crying so much ever before. And then she fell asleep worn out by all of the crying. So today she was useless, ugly and tired as hell. She didn’t want to get out of bed and exist. And she definitely didn’t want Ashton to see her like this.

The water stopped and couple moments later Y/N heard the door click. She didn’t know what plans for the day he had and if she could just avoid him today, but she was willing to try.

Truth to be told, Y/N was surprised to hear him at home at all. She remembered him leaving late at night, she heard his car. But she didn’t hear him coming back, being asleep at that time obviously. She wondered for a moment where could he go at almost one in the morning, but dropped it fast, knowing it was not her business anyway.

The next thing she heard was the sound of opening door to his bedroom and his pretty fast steps down the hall. Couple minutes later his car drove out of the parking lot, and Y/N took a deep breath of relief.

He left. Hopefully for the day. Surely real musicians had a lot to do, like write new music or whatever other shit he was doing. And she could just proceed with her day, being miserable.

Y/N spent another hour just wallowing in the bed, drowning in sleep and coming up to the surface again, until she decided to finally get up and at least cook some food.

She spent some time in a bathroom, found in one of the trash bags, which were standing now next to the window, her favourite soft socks, decided that she was covered enough for an empty house in just socks and a band tee, and left her room.

The living room was just as bright and spacious as she remembered, with its light walls and big windows. Y/N though for a moment of how wonderful it would be to call this house a home. But she pushed that idea from her mind. She was here just for the couple of days and had no right for such thoughts.

“Good morning,” she heard from a kitchen and jumped from a shock. Y/N turned back and saw a strict looking lady in her mid-fifties probably, looking at her with a smile on her lips and a stern expression in her eyes.

Y/N just froze there not knowing what to say. Was it his mother? Another roommate? Just a person he sent to deal with the problem, which Y/N was, because he regretted helping her in the first place?

“My name is Mrs. Powell, I’m a housekeeper,” the woman explained, not caring much for a startled expression on a girl’s face. “Mr. Irwin has left to the studio for the whole day. But I’ll be happy to get you an Uber as soon as you’re ready.”

***

Taglist: @paqueretteash , @myloverboyash 

[today-only-happens-once]

Im new to Hamilton and have an idea on the plot but don't fully understand it. Could you help out?

*tries not to immediately start babbling about how much I adore and will defend this show omg* first, understand my sweet anon that I have absolutely zero chill about Hamilton. So you have come to the right place but also be ready for way more information than you probably cared to know. 

Hamilton is a rap/hip-hop opera written by Lin-Manuel Miranda based on the life and death of United States Founding Father, Alexander Hamilton. It features a predominantly minority cast (which is its greatest point of controversy). If you’ve listened to the soundtrack, you have heard all but one scene of the show. It is based on Ron Chernow’s biography, which Miranda read while on vacation. It is hard to briefly summarize the plot, but I’ll do my best. (I kept it as brief but thorough as i could and it was long as heck so I put it under a cut, friend)

The opening number gives us a crash course on Hamilton’s background as an immigrant from the Caribbean. In the beginning of the show, he meets Aaron Burr, Lafayette, John Laurens, and Hercules Mulligan. All of them end up joining the military shortly before the American Revolution breaks out. Once it does, Aaron Burr attempts to win the good graces of Washington only for Washington to request Hamilton to be his right hand man. Hamilton agrees. 

While fighting the war, he meets Angelica and her sister Eliza at a ball. Angelica has a crush on Hamilton but realizes that Eliza likes him too, and on top of that, Angelica is expected to “marry up” since she is the oldest sister. Hamilton is of poor means, so for all kinds of strategic and sad reasons, Angelica decides to take a backseat and lets Hamilton and Eliza meet and fall in love. Eliza and Hamilton get married.

Back at the war, things are falling apart but Hamilton is doing his best to help Washington pull through. But Hamilton is a hothead and impulsive and when a disgraced soldier starts ranting publicly about Washington and blaming him, Hamilton challenges him to a duel (or rather, has his friend Laurens challenge him to a duel). The solider gets shot in the duel and Washington finds out and sends Hamilton home as punishment. This is how Hamilton finds out that Eliza is pregnant. 

BACK AT THE WAR (there’s a lot of back and forth in the first act), Lafayette tells Washington that he has a plan but like, Washington really needs Hamilton yo. So Washington sends a letter and Hamilton goes back to the war-front but now is like “cant be so impulsive i gotta kid on the way”. ANYWAY he helps Lafayette and Washington win the battle of Yorktown which wins the war.

Now, as a side-note, Aaron Burr had fallen in love with the wife of a British soldier. She had his daughter, named Theodosia after her mother, but I think either died or stayed with the British dude so we never get to meet her but we do know Burr has a daughter now.

Also, Washington becomes president.

The show then speeds through a bunch of years following the war effort in one song (”Non-Stop”) in which we learn that Hamilton and Burr both worked as lawyers. During these years also was, of course, the formative years of our government in which the Constitution was getting drafted.  Hamilton works on the Federalist papers to help the Constitution get accepted. Burr refuses to help him with it, but it gets passed anyway and Hamilton is generally showing Burr up left and right. Thus ends Act 1. 

If act 1 is about the war, act 2 is about the politics. Thomas Jefferson shows up from when he’d been in France during the war and is asked to be Secretary of State while Hamilton is asked to be in charge of the Treasury. They show two political debates throughout act 2 that shows how they butt heads: the first being about whether the federal government should “assume states’ debts and establish a national bank” (Hamilton is in favor, Jefferson is against) and the second being about whether or not the US is obligated to assist France with their revolution (Jefferson says yes, Hamilton says no). Hamilton is trying to establish a banking system for the government and do his job but politics are politics and they’re complicated.

Meanwhile, Eliza wants Hamilton to take a break and spend some time with his family but Hamilton is all like “i got sh*t I gotta do” and refuses to take time off. This leads to Eliza going to visit her family for a few weeks upstate but Hamilton stays behind and ends up having an affair with Maria Reynolds. Maria’s husband finds out and basically blackmails Hamilton into giving him money to keep quiet about the ongoing affair. 

Also, Washington decides to not run for President anymore and John Adams takes over.

As political tensions run even more high, Burr, Jefferson, and Madison (who supports Jefferson) figures out that something fishy is going on with Hamilton regarding money. They assume he’s basically taking money from the government and pocketing it for his own benefit. When they confront him about it and accuse him of treason, Hamilton is like “AW NAW IM JUST HAVING AN AFFAIR HERE’S THE EVIDENCE” and they’re like “yikes but a’ight you’re not treasonous i guess and nah we wont tell anyone”. 

Hamilton is afraid they won’t be true to their word, though, and writes the Reynolds Pamphlet basically saying “hey world i had an affair which is bad but i promise i didn’t commit treason”. Eliza finds out and is devastated and angry. 

Now, remember how I mentioned that Hamilton had a baby? Yeah, turns out it was a son. And that son hears someone talking trash about his dad and is like “imma fight you” and challenges the guy to a duel. Hamilton doesn’t want his son to get hurt and tells him to shoot his gun in the air instead of at the other person, and how the other person should do the same if they’re “truly a man of honor”. Duels are mostly about having the guts to show up anyway. 

But WOOPS because the other guy doesn’t shoot in the air, he shoots Hamilton’s son, and the son dies. 

Devastated and grief-stricken, Hamilton and Eliza move upstate and Hamilton… well, just listen to “It’s Quiet Uptown”. I can’t do it justice here (not that I’m doing any of the rest of this show justice with this summary but yanno)

Now the next Presidential election is up and people are actually campaigning now because Burr is tired of not getting what he wants so he decides to go out and get it. So it’s Jefferson vs Burr and the public keeps harassing Hamilton for his opinion. Hamilton backs Jefferson because even though Hamilton has never agreed with him, he appreciates that he’s at least honest and forthright with his opinion whereas Burr never wants to commit to anything. 

Jefferson wins the election.

This pisses Burr off and he challenges Hamilton to a duel. Hamilton agrees. 

He aims his pistol at the sky, just like he told his son.

Burr shoots him, and he dies.

Eliza is the one left behind to tell his story and continue his legacy. 

This ends our show. If you ever want to know more about characters or the controversies of it (I do have strong opinions on those whoops) or just about anything else regarding the show? I am always completely down to talk about it. I’ve written papers on it for college, I got to see it in Chicago a few months ago, I’ve basically memorized the album… I’m a huge Hamilfan. So don’t be afraid to hmu.

[secretradiobrooklyn]

Plant Shadow Edition | 2.27.21

Secret Radio | 2.27.21 | Hear it here.

Liner notes by Evan, art by Paige

1. Stéfan - “J’suis pas méchant”

In our continuing dive into French music for French culture we have been finding our way towards the origins of French punk — which apparently all springs from the overnight, international, transformative success of Plastic Bertrand’s “Ça Plane Pour Moi.” That created a sudden realization in the French music industry that punk had big potential, and they started trying all kinds of variations on punk… or “paink,” as it’s spelled locally. Basically, it was treated like a novelty fad. I don’t know anything about Stéfan beyond what he wants me to know, which is that he is not mean (“méchant”). I think that’s adorable, getting all wound up just to tell us not to be scared. I hope the whole band is like 10 years old.

2. African Brothers Band - “Ngyegye No So” - “Afro-Beat Airways”

Credit as always to Analog Africa for providing the very best in the history of African rock. This is from the first volume of “Afro-Beat Airways,” this one focused on “West African Shock Waves: Ghana & Togo 1972-1978.” The first pressing sold out a while ago, but they just put together a repress. Their packaging is always stellar, full of useful information about bands and musicians that it is difficult to research alone. The compilation was the result of a happy accident: AA founder/research adventurer Samy Ben Redjeb had a flight from Frankfurt to Angola get canceled, so he picked a flight to Ghana instead, where he hooked up with the once-legendary (in Africa) producer Essiebons, who had just digitized about 800 previously recorded songs. From that came “Afro-Beat Airways,” which is just overflowing with a huge variety of rock and funk and psych shamanism and catchy hooks.

There’s a great passage in the middle of the song that bears noting: “Yes! Clap for him,” says the singer of the keyboard player, then announces, “I’m now going to introduce myself,” lists his accomplishments in the band — composer, singer, arranger, master guitarist — and then says, “Now: I will give you some phrases on the guitar. You watch me,” and proceeds to wind some gorgeously rhythmic lead patterns through the tapestry the band has set up. It’s such a real, recognizable moment, that really helps translate the song from a hypnotic slab of funk to a performance by a band unfolding right in front of you.

3. They Might Be Giants - “Don’t Let’s Start”

Thanks to our recent rediscovery that “Birdhouse in Your Soul” is a thoroughly excellent song, we’ve started into a TMBG period. My favorite thing in re-encountering them is that they’re such pure geeks of theater and band and video and books — which is exactly how I saw them at the time, and it’s so great to see it stand the test of time. It still feels extremely unique and tuned to a frequency that is transmitting cool new ideas. And: they’re so concise! So much happens in the songs they make — it’s like they write a full-on pop song arrangement, and then just trim out every measure that doesn’t feature vocals. You can get so much done that way in two and a half minutes!

4. Ata Kak - “Obaa Sima”

I love this tape so, so much, and we’re aware of it thanks to Awesome Tapes from Africa. The lead adventurer of that label bought a copy of this tape at a street table in Ghana (I think), fell hard for it, then went on a hunt to find the artist Ata Kak, finally did, they found that the original master tapes were hopelessly destroyed, and together they realized that as far as they could tell, he had bought the ONLY locatable copy of the tape. That’s the one that you are hearing here — this is the opening track. ATFA sold it as a combo cassette tape and tea towel, which I personally think is a really odd pairing. Like, is the tea towel for handling the cassette? Still, it’s turned out to be a very welcome tea towel in the kitchen.

Apparently the copy we hear runs faster (and higher) than the original. They decided to present it as the artifact was originally discovered, holding that even more important than releasing as Ata Kak originally intened. I think it sounds so freakin amazing, I’m glad they presented as is. 

5. Evariste - “Wo I Nee”

Such a strange character! This song was released in 1967, but it sounds (and looks) completely outside any norm of any decade. For starters, the singer is wearing his hair as if a monkey were up there — a big tail drops down and curls across his nose.  The song structure is traditional, but the sounds that he makes are just something else entirely. 

Really, the video does all the work that the song hasn’t already done:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOfdJ8ZcLJc

- The Velvet Underground - “Booker T. - live in NYC 1967”

6. Abdel Halim Hafez - “Ahwak”

We were surprised to see we had a new soundcloud follower in Egypt, and we looked at their playlist and they were all songs as cool as this. We still have no idea how they ended up on Sleepy Kitty though. Great tracks though!

7. Boreal Hills - “Belcher” - “Dope Hugs EP”

Man, this EP was one of the prizes of being the Eleven editor. This thing was the soundtrack of a fantastic summertime. St. Louis freakos’ first release and forever my favorite. Tom O’Connor is the drummer on this EP and the two guys together just make this killer ruckus that I can’t get enough of. Also, it hits the reptile part of my brain where Swell Maps’ “Full Moon in the Headlights” reigns. Tom does tons of cool recording now, including Julian’s band Nerve Estates.

Every track of “Dope Hugs” could be a hit in my opinion. I feel like the pop world could have bent itself around this set of recordings. It reminds me of Jeff The Brotherhood in some ways, though I have to admit I prefer Boreal Hills in this moment.

8. Strychnine - “Ex BX”

‘70s French paink music. There’s a really entertaining summation of some of the forces French painks were rebelling against — “to bring together the wicked use of guitars with an unfathomable disgust for everything and a skin-deep boredom which undermined as much as they nourished the adolescent daily life.” It sounds very sincere and hard-felt. I can’t wait to dig deeper into this “Paink French Punk Albums 1977-1982”; already had to restrain myself from including an Electrochoc track as well.

9. David Bowie - “Queen Bitch” 

It’s really impressive how Bowie can paint feelings I believe he was feeling, that I’ve never felt but that I can get through him. He’s a pure uncut crystal of glam. His heavy rhythm rock period is pretty much the most exciting rock n roll in the world.

10. Le Tigre - “Hot Topic”

Paige: I don’t think any of my teachers were ACTUALLY using this song as a syllabus, but there’s a very high overlap. 

I personally feel like underlining Marlon Riggs — “Tongues Untied” was one of the most amazing things I’d ever seen when I saw it in History of Video Art. Also just noticed: Did they say Justin Bond? As in Justin Vivian Bond?

This is the first of two songs this episode that has lists of idols/icons in the lyrics.

11. Erkin Koray - “Arap Saçi”

We’ve been meaning to look further into Erkin Korya’s Turkish psych music, and this one has high overlap with “Cemalim,” the first song of his we heard. This one lands a little harder — and I love the way it pulls the melody in unexpected direction, like it’s floating on different breezes. The singer sounds like he was transformed into a singing hookah.

12. The Little Rabbits - “In the Bathroom”

This album is one of the all-time most overlooked gems from the turn of the millennium: “Yeah!,” by the Little Rabbits. My impression is that they got bigger later, maybe? This one seems to have disappeared pretty much without a trace, even though I swear it contains some of the DNA of Beck’s smash genre-bender “Odelay.” I don’t understand why this album wasn’t gigantic — it’s as turned on as Sonic Youth but coming from a completely different perspective. I hope they were all friends at least. 

- The Velvet Underground - “Booker T. - live in NYC 1967”

13. Les Rita Mitsuoko - “Marcia Baïla”

They have a song called “Les Histoires d’Amour Finnisent Mals en General” that Paige’s French teacher referred to in passing. We looked up the song and it was awesome. The more we checked em out, the more interesting they got. Everybody seems to have a background in clown in France, we have found.

A pretty worthwhile video experience: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zWlnzFXcKY

14. The Brims - “Anti Gandja”

This song arrived to us via a collection called “Those Shocking Shaking Days,” which Eleven received from Now Again Records. I dug it but couldn’t find a place for it in my brain. Now it fits right in. The collection is gorgeously made, with a fat book of photos and text and 20 heavy Indonesian psych tracks that pretty much all trip way past San Francisco albums from the same time. They’re so committed to the psychedelic overdose… even when singing a song about NOT smoking weed.

15. Cave - “This Is the Best”

There were so many nights at the Art Castle on Cherokee where we had to make peace with the music coming through the walls from 2720. It was so bass-heavy, so anarchic and often key-free, that we really couldn’t counter-program it if we tried.

One night, though, we heard something undeniably cool through the wall. That happened from time to time — that’s how we discovered Aleuchatistas and Prince Rama, among various others. We dropped what we were doing and slipped in the door that shared a secret hallway with our spot, behind where the band was set up. Turned out to be Cave, a band we knew of via Chicago and a very loose acquaintance with Rotten Milk from the Lumpen scene. The whole show was an ecstatic experience, getting lost in a rowdy, ever-circling, ever-growing drone. But the song that brought it all together was this one — I completely lost my shit, crashing around the dance floor zone. When we learned the name of the song from them afterwards, “This Is the Best,” I was like, YES: so they know it as well as we do. We’re all in this drone together.

16. Marpessa Dawn - “La petit cuica”

Paige has been interested in who Marpessa Dawn in for awhile — she’s a black American from Pittsburgh. She apparently went to Franc4 and became a start in music and films. She was in a ton of films. She’s not very well known in the States, but it seems like kind of a next-generation Josephine Baker story — or at least that’s what it is in my fantasy. 

17. Ebo Taylor & The Sweet Beans - “Odofo Nyi Akyiri Biara”

The first several things I found by Ebo Taylor really didn’t hook me, and I think I felt like he was working a different angle than I was into. But then lately I’ve been hearing these amazing tracks from him, so I stand corrected. Which is a win all around!

18. Hedwig and the Angry Inch - “Midnight Radio”

Paige: It’s the only time that something that is a rock musical truly works as a work of rock itself. One of two if you count “Rocky Horror.” I can listen to this soundtrack as a rock album — in a way that Rent, love it as I may, I cannot.

Evan: I’m recognizing some serious influences on Sleepy Kitty — especially when it gets to the guitar solos. We haven’t gone for the anthemic singalong yet, but the structure that builds to an instrumental crescendo of overwhelming guitars is pretttty familiar. 

- Frank Zappa - “Watermelon in Easter Hay"

We saw the documentary “Zappa” last month and this tune really stands out from the rest. It appears to be the second most popular Zappa track, which I will admit surprises me quite a bit. Great movie to watch, we highly recommend it fan or no. 

19. Jeffrey Lewis - “I Wanna Be Vaccinated”

An anthem for our times.

20. Joan Jett - “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap”

I think if I’m honest, I probably heard this version of “Dirty Deeds” before the original. I really like how it has the infinite rock feel of the AC/DC take but with a completely different underemployed hit man in the lead role. A rare case of pure ‘80s glam-rock aesthetic working to advantage.

21. Katerine - “Moment parfait”

Philippe Katerine is a character who would be impossible in American culture — he’s not handsome in any way that American popular art recognizes, and he utilizes the deep-seated instinct for clowning that runs through French culture and pop culture. Meanwhile, though, his melodies are giant, his production is varied but always innovative, he’s a screen actor as well, and his album art features him as a character with large ears, wispy blond hair and an uncircumsized nose — in some contexts we’ve even seen his nose blurred.

Paige: I can’t tell if it’s maybe like if Beck and Jack Black were the same guy in the culture.

22. Teshua - “Wild Dog”

This song is written by one of the most important people in St. Louis for us: Tim Gebauer. We’ve been listening to the ways they’ve been working together for the last few years, when we come over for a late-night hang at Electropolis Studio. This is a song I think we first heard Tim sing and play himself in the kitchen. This version makes gorgeous use of the theatrical aspects of Teshua’s voice cradled inside Tim’s dreamy reverberatingly quiet production.

This song was written suspiciously soon after getting a new cat — a wild cat that didn’t want to come in yet. Aben is beautiful and tough and prowls the streets of south city but comes home to the comforts of his family. 

23. T.P. Orchestre Poly-Rythmo - “Karateka”

I think this song is on “The Skeletal Essences of Afro-Funk,” a T.P. Orchestre collection, but I first consciously ran across it while scouring Discogs for more information about the most Tout Poissant band ever. This one is composed by Papillon, with Joseph Vicky on lead vocals. Papillon is their secret weapon guitarist who can also bust out some trippy Farfisa as needed. 

24. Silver Jews - “The Country Diary of a Subway Conductor”

When we did our welding at the City Museum — before we ever suspected that we would live in St. Louis for a day, much less ten years — we used a quote from this song on the back page of the invitations that we handprinted: “This is the way pioneers took to other settlements.” “Starlite Walker” is one of our all-time favorite albums together; I’ve always dreamed of covering this entire album. The soundscape of this track captures some of my very favorite aspects of Stephen Malkmus’ voice and guitar frenzy… as well as the completely unskilled but perfectly rendered drumming. And over it all wander the characters sketched in by David Berman. He was sometimes the most mysterious voice in rock music, and he wrote my very favorite book of poetry. I will always be partial to this album above all others, though “American Water” and “The Natural Bridge” are right there as well. 

- Dan the Automator - “Bombay 405 Miles” - “Bombay the Hard Way”

25. Amanaz - “Sunday Morning”

This is the most Velvet-Underground-without-being-the-Velvet-Underground bands ever, which is amazing because this song was written in 1968 on the other side of the world from New York, in Zambia, at a time when music had to physically travel miles to reach distant shores. It’s astounding to think of Lou Reed’s instant influence on people he would never meet and likely had never even imagined. It’s very strange as well, though, to think that what this song sounds most like is “Loaded” — which hadn’t yet come out when this song was recorded. I suppose there’s no reason to think that the influence — actual, implied, or somewhere on the astral plane — didn’t run the other way.

[buttonholedlife]

African political techno

In the African futuristic track “Wire Cutter” by Sankara Future Dub Resurgence (SFDR), a group of musicians from Uganda inspired by the philosophy of the Burkina Faso revolutionary, Thomas Sankara, sing: “Yes I seek to inspire / Yes I move with guile / Underground Resistance my style.”

With their love of dub and experimental music, they decided to create a futuristic style of music that draws equally on ancient African knowledge. The video for “Wire Cutter” video was filmed in Kampala, Uganda’s capital. It’s a live recording, but it’s also more than that. “Wire Cutter” is a piece that calls viewers to look closely and notice the images layered throughout the performance space. It’s also important to take note of the space—the one and only Dub Museum.

For example, when the lyrics mentioned above are heard in the video, the camera zooms in on images of Detroit techno artists Underground Resistance (UR). The shot ends with a close-up of Cornelius Harris, a key member of the group. At another point in the track, where the lyrics state “We only fear fear itself, we only fear the collapse of the imagination,” an image of UR’s founder, Mad Mike, is foregrounded.

Images of other experimental musicians and socially conscious visionaries are also featured, such as Laraaji, Turiya Alice Coltrane, Cedric “Im” Brooks, and Audre Lorde. They coexist alongside photographs of ancestral shrines in Uganda, as well as Zar spiritual trance ceremonies in Ethiopia. Lastly, there is a special wall devoted to the West Papua liberation struggle.

The sonic anchor of “Wire Cutter” is as much about sound as it is about dub poetry and powerful visuals. Driving this narrative is an assemblage of minimalistic electronic noise and non-metric rhythms generated by Dhangsha. In between these sounds, one hears deliberate moments of deep meditative silence, raw and at times distorted African dub poetry vocals, and djembe-driven, percussive grooves created by SFDR.

When the djembe rises to the surface, it reveals acoustic drum patterns that are actually hand -to-skin translations of Dhangsha’s digital rhythms. This is more than simply a moment of “fusion;” it signals the completion of a musical cycle.

When enslaved Africans were forcibly transported to the Americas, they brought their music with them. During the course of almost 500 years, this music continued to change in response to the reality of violent oppression and social survival. For future generations, this music symbolized—and continues to symbolize—resistance, creativity, and the triumph of the human spirit.

The evolution of techno from within Detroit’s African-American community is an overlooked chapter in that story of resistance, but in “Wire Cutter,” a critical exchange takes place as this music returns to the African continent and is reunited with a group of African youth who naturally embrace their ancestral traditions, while looking clearly to the future with outernational vision.

Aniruddha Das, the creative force behind Dhangsha, explains this cycle further:

The flow of the same energy between Detroit and Uganda [gets] filtered by the diaspora currently based in Europe, [transforming] pain and searching and yearning into positive vibrations and frequencies and texts of resistance… Another SFDR track, “Two Thousand Seasons Dub“, really shows how Detroit vibes—specifically UR—are echoing now in Uganda to create an African political techno. It is also lyrically influenced by the anti-colonialism tome by Ayi Kwei Armah.

The first time I watched “Wire Cutter” and “Perfect Black Light” (also by SFDR), it felt like a work of science fiction, especially because of the setting. When you look at the settings of the videos, you see a community of people at the outer limits. They’re not connected to any scene because they are their own scene, and unlike the club scenes that most of us frequent, this is a scene that people actually live in. It’s not self-conscious. You can’t be self-conscious when you’re trying to get on with the routines of everyday life.

The sci-fi sense also comes from the fact that these are African people in settings that are neither metropolitan or rural. Again, they’re at the outer limits where no one—no tourists, that is—are likely to go. And here they are using technology, experimenting with it, having fun, being creative, and it’s obviously for themselves, and not for some festival-size crowd or even for the internet. But like I said: outer limits + technology = creativity. And that’s Afro-futurism.

Re wild Re define Re design Thoughts from a Black anarchist mind

– “Perfect Black Light” (Sankofa Future Dub Resurgence)

The world of the Dub Museum, as captured in these two videos, is far removed from the downtown nightclubs, EDM festivals, and other places we usually associate with underground and experimental electronic music. These videos take you deep into the Kireka neighborhood in Kampala, the location where the SFDR music was recorded. This is a neighborhood with a food market, corner shops, plots where people plant food, a school for the children. A simple place of day-to-day living, and of struggle and survival in this African city.

The manner in which the Dub Museum was created—independently, and autonomous of NGO or political party support—certainly makes it flow with the ideals of Thomas Sankara and beyond. Filmmaker Eyi Safi, in the liner notes to a Sankara Future Dub Resurgence album, describes a typical day at the Dub Museum:

In one corner of the yard people were sitting around a fire that was going, listening to the music that was playing and chatting among themselves. Coming from the speakers one heard the Sankara Future Dub Resurgence track, then a roots reggae track by Gregory Isaacs was put on and this was followed by a heavy instrumental dub track by Augustus Pablo and then experimental beatless noise track from the Dhangsha cassette “Future Tense,” and throughout the evening this musical cycle would be repeated. Different musical styles from roots to experimental noise music played as a soundtrack to daily living as people prepared and cooked food, laughed, chatted and most importantly enjoyed music. Throughout the afternoon and night, various Dhangsha tracks were played …

During the rehearsals for the filming of the SFDR video, a beautiful scene was witnessed in the Dub Museum yard. An eight-year-old girl, whose mother makes and sells banana pancakes in the space adjoining the yard, was watching rehearsals. People said that she came to rehearsals every day because she just loved the music. The mix for “Perfect Black Light” was put on the sound system speakers that were set up in the yard. Out of the corner of our eye, we saw the little girl start dancing in perfect timing to this experimental music track! Whereas it might be possible that many adults would have difficulty and hesitancy on how to dance to this track, she had no such problem. She found her groove in the music and she was dancing, raptured in own journey with the track.

Not only had the music returned back to the African continent, but also it was now passed to the next generation or, as the Ugandan musicians say in the track “Perfect Black Light”:

In perfect black light We see the dub seedlings grow Apachita generation the next generation Jah know

This content was originally published here.

[songgypsy]

Scarlett Begonia

Scarlett Begonia is not only Nashville’s connection to the past, present, and future of fair-trade, it’s the story of a family business that keeps on keeping on.

by Trisha Leone

I moved to Nashville in 2009. A singer-songwriter from Colorado making the pilgrimage to Music City, because that’s what songwriters do. I wanted to be around the best, and I was not disappointed. In my first year, I watched Sheryl Crow perform for a music video in Centennial Park, I had a great conversation with Ray Stevens at Grimey’s Record Store, and I saw Chrissy Hynde perform at the Exit/In to a crowd of less than fifty. Since then there have been many other memorable moments, but what I treasure most are the people, many of whom I met at a store called Scarlett Begonia on West End Avenue. It’s across the street from the Commodore at the Holiday Inn, where singer-songwriters line up for a chance to perform at Debi Champion’s Writer’s Night, a longstanding Nashville tradition.

As with most songwriters who come to town, I needed a day job. My husband, a guitar player, as well as a guitar amplifier builder and repairman, quickly found work at Rock Block Guitars on Elliston Place—which is how I first found Scarlett Begonia. The colorful window displays drew me in like a magical spell, and for several minutes all I could do was stare in awe at all the beautiful details—hand-carved gourds, seed jewelry in every color of the rainbow, stylish clothes and intricate weavings. Lucky for me, someone broke the spell and spoke to me in a friendly voice that I loved the moment I heard it. It was Kyle Elias, one of the owners. We became fast friends and when I told her I was looking for work her eyes twinkled. She flashed a big grin and said she would talk to her daughter Gabriela. Not only did I gain some lifelong friends working at the store, but I also gained an education in customer service, merchandising and music. As we worked, we listened to music, curated mostly by Jack Elias, Kyle’s husband and co-owner of the store. While I helped customers and straightened displays, I honed my craft of songwriting by listening to Gram Parsons, Rodney Crowell, Emmylou Harris, Marshall Chapman, Bonnie Raitt, Bob Dylan, and yes, the Grateful Dead, whose song “Scarlet Begonias” is the namesake of the store. The stories that Jack and Kyle told while the music played were priceless, but before I delve into those, let’s go back a few years to the beginning.

The roots of Scarlett Begonia go back to 1971 when Jack graduated from Vanderbilt with a degree in Latin American studies. He met Kyle in the summer of 1974 while working at the Jolly Ox restaurant in Goodlettsville, TN. Jack soon left to travel with a friend throughout South America and his descriptive letters of the beauty he encountered enticed Kyle to follow within a few months. After returning to Nashville, the couple spent the next two years waiting tables and tending bar at the Gold Rush on Elliston Place, saving money for their next trip to South America. (Both the Gold Rush and Rock Block Guitars on Elliston Place are no longer here, partly a result of changing times, and the escalating rents that come with progress.)  They even celebrated their wedding reception at the Gold Rush in 1976. Jack and Kyle’s stories of the ‘70s and ‘80s Nashville music scene are priceless--stories of serving drinks to Townes Van Zandt, Shel Silverstein, and Guy Clark, who used to tell them to play his latest album while he sat at the bar. Just across the street, the Exit/In was in the height of its glory days, and many legendary artists played at the iconic venue before they made it big. Jack and Kyle are music lovers to the core and one can learn a lot about music from the soundtrack of their lives.

However, aside from music, there is another great love they share which is the culture and people of South America. After marrying in ’76,  they ventured out to explore the treasures of South America, traveling and living in places throughout Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia--embracing the native cultures, shopping at the markets, making friends, and developing a keen eye for the finest in indigenous arts and crafts. After spending their limited resources on irresistible finds at the markets they came up with the idea to bring their treasures back to the United States and open a shop. Thus, Scarlett Begonia was born and opened its doors on October 1, 1981.

Jack and Kyle’s wedding reception at the Gold Rush in 1976.

Scarlett Begonia was fair-trade before fair-trading was cool. For almost 40 years, Jack, Kyle, and now their daughter Gabriela have mindfully chosen every item in the store and displayed them with careful attention to detail. Through the years, they’ve dressed some of their favorite musicians in Nashville. Emmylou Harris bought an Ecuadorian Poncho from Scarlett Begonia in the late ‘80s which she is wearing on the “Brand New Dance” album cover. The cotton men’s Matrimonial shirts from Ecuador are also a favorite among many musicians and are easily recognizable on stages throughout town. Every item in the store has a story—about where it came from, who made it, and how it got here, nothing is ordinary. Master gourd carver Pedro Osores is a close family friend and travels from Cochas, Peru every other year for in-store demonstrations. Jack, Kyle, and Gabriela still purchase many of the items on an annual trip to the Otovalo market in Ecuador, including handwoven rugs and wall hangings, paintings by their godson Patricio, Chales (lightweight scarves), handcrafted jewelry made by Betty and much more. They know the artists’ families and their children and have stayed true to their original objective to provide an outlet for struggling artisans from around the world and to gain positive exposure of native cultures through their folk art and clothing. On any given day, Jack can be heard conversing in Spanish with his Latin American friends on his flip phone while out on the sidewalk. Fair-trade is still a basis for all their business dealings. Scarlett Begonia also offers items from several Nashville-based companies that share their business practices and sentiments including Thistle Farms, Bee Attitudes, Center Earth Pottery, fine jewelry by Sealy, and several others.

Gabriela shopping at the Otovalo market in Ecuador.

Scarlett Begonia is the heart and soul of Nashville. A small family business that continues to open its doors day after day. For almost forty years, the colorful windows of Scarlett Begonia have brightened the busy street that leads to downtown Nashville. The antique bells that hang on the side of the wooden open sign ring every time the door opens as they have for decades. Sure, shopping online is easy and convenient, and we’re all busy. However, what we need most in these troubled times is connection. Do yourself a favor, take the time to stop by Scarlett Begonia and visit with Jack, Kyle, and Gabriela. Learn about the artists, see and touch the Tagua seed that sustainably provides raw material to make jewelry, ask Jack about the Panama hats, feel the softness of bamboo fabric, look at the picture behind the checkout counter of Jack and Kyle at one of their first markets, and listen to a few stories about the Gold Rush days. It will do the heart good. And although Scarlett Begonia has withstood the test of time, there are no guarantees what tomorrow will bring, because as we all know, “the times they are a-changing.”

Scarlett Begonia is located at 2805 West End Avenue Nashville, TN scarlettbegonia.com

[deadcactuswalking]

REVIEWING THE CHARTS: 28th July 2019

This is going to be pretty short and rushed I imagine, but we’ll see.

Top 10

Now, we have a funny top four, similarly to last week, full of Ed Sheeran, but not at our top spot, as “Senorita” by Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello is back at #1 for a second week after our number-two took it last week.

Our number-two, by the way, down one spot from last week, is “Beautiful People” by Ed Sheeran featuring Khalid. Now, the rest of the top four is Ed Sheeran.

First of all, at number-three, we have “I Don’t Care” featuring Justin Bieber returning at number-three, which, due to nonsensical chart rules, must be some kind of record for highest re-entry ever on the chart. We’ll talk about this more in the dropouts section.

Oh, yeah, and to my surprise, “Cross Me”, also by Ed Sheeran, featuring Chance the Rapper and PNB Rock is not moving at number-four. I figured this one would be in freefall.

Thanks to a Justin Bieber remix, and well, not much else, Billie Eilish’s “bad guy” is up eleven spaces to number-five? I’m puzzled about this one, honestly, if anyone could tell me what happened here I’d appreciate it; this should be floundering in the top 30 right now.

Thanks to the rise of “bad guy”, however, Lewis Capaldi’s “Hold Me While You Wait” is down a spot to number-six. Please drop off quicker, I’m begging you.

Also down a single spot on the chart is AJ Tracey’s “Ladbroke Grove” at number-seven.

Eilish claims another victim as MIST and Fredo’s “So High” is also down one spot to number-eight. Don’t worry, all of these songs will rebound.

Oh, and “Wish You Well” by Sigala and Becky Hill is also down a space to number-nine, but I’m still disputing the fact that song exists.

The #10 spot is, once again, held by Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus, Young Thug, Mason Ramsey and now that guy from BTS. Congratulations on a record-breaking 17th week at #1 in the US, but here in Britain, it seems oddly stable at #10, I expect streaming cuts to kill it any time now.

Climbers

Freya Ridings’ “Castles” is up eight more spaces off the debut two or so weeks ago, entering the top 20 at #18 and becoming her second ever single to chart there. I’m not complaining, it’s a pretty good song. Outside of the top 20, we have only one other gain here, and that’s “Ritual” by Tiesto, Jonas Blue and Rita Ora gaining more traction than I expected 12 spaces up to #28. I hope this doesn’t reach the top 20, it’s pretty trite and honestly would make an awful fit for Ora’s next album whenever in the next decade that comes out.

Fallers

We have plenty of these, however. First of all, “Goodbyes”  by Post Malone and Young Thug continues its unfortunate slow-burning dive down five spots to #17, with “Someone You Loved” close in front by Lewis Capaldi at #19, thankfully down five spaces from last week. It’s not fast enough, but I’m just glad this is on its way out. D-Block Europe’s “Home” is down five to #25 after surprisingly staying pretty stable on its second week. The biggest surprise here, yet at the same time not a surprise to me at all, is Krept & Konan’s “I Spy” with Headie One and K-Trap collapsing down 14 positions to #32. While most British trap has a pretty short chart run, I at least expected this to last longer than any given D-Block Europe song. Oh, and “One Touch” by Jess Glynne and Jax Jones is on its way out down seven spots to #35 after pretty much flopping, especially considering it’s a Glynne lead single.

Dropouts & Returning Entries

Thanks to a nonsensical UK chart rule that to be fair made sense for situations like an Ed Sheeran album bomb, “Take Me Back to London” featuring Stormzy disappears entirely from its number-three debuts last week, and was replaced by “I Don’t Care”, which dropped out from #2 last week. It must be really confusing for those who don’t know all the chart rules to see stuff like this. Elsewhere, we have a couple dropouts so the new arrivals can move in, with “Bounce Back” by Little Mix proving that the damage control single doesn’t work, after dropping out of the top 40 in its sixth week from #34. Miley Cyrus’ “Mother’s Daughter” is out from #36, which isn’t a surprise, and neither is “Love of My Life” by Remedee, Not3s and Young Adz dropping out off the debut at #37. Young Thug’s “The London” with J. Cole and Travis Scott is also out from #38 and since we have no returning entries, let’s get straight to the new arrivals.

NEW ARRIVALS

#40 – “RAN$OM” – Lil Tecca

Produced by Nick Mira and Taz Taylor – Peaked at #11 in Canada and #19 in the US

I really did not want to talk about this song. This is... “Lil Tecca”’s first UK Top 40 hit (Yes, that is his name, it’s dreadful) and the 16-year-old’s first major-label single. He has like eight songs out and he’s essentially a younger, less interesting or even convincing A Boogie wit da Hoodie clone. A Boogie even has a song called “Ransom” that sparked a lot of buzz in him back when he started out. Some may say it’s the melodic New York trap scene repeating itself, I say it’s a clear “Homage” (Read: trend-hopping and copying another rapper for the sake of this complete nobody getting a lot bigger, especially now he has a label behind him). Nobody is talking about how he’s probably some kind of industry plant because nobody cares about the person, Lil Tecca, they care about the song, “Ransom”. This guy has no star power at all or even any potential as a legitimately interesting artist. Okay, let’s stop stalling and get to the meat and potatoes of this song, which are that hook and that video. The video, while uninteresting, was directed by Cole Bennett of Lyrical Lemonade and hence propelled the song to, you know, any sense of popularity, which it wouldn’t have gathered before at all, at least not to the heights of a worldwide smash and top 20 hit in the US. God, this guy infuriates me. I’m definitely going to talk about this song a bit more in January, if you catch my drift, but essentially, this song is melodic trap boiled down to its essence, with a Lil Tjay type beat carrying a Juice WRLD type rapper. There’s one barely-a-verse which lasts about 24 seconds, but the issue is the song is two minutes and 11 seconds long, and, yes, that chorus is infectious but not nearly as powerful as he thinks it is to carry the song for this long, especially since he has no charisma. It sounds like a Python programme wrote and performed a rap song, it really is some of the most monotonous, non-descript garbage to come out of SoundCloud rap. I hate this, it’s definitely on my worst list for 2019, and next!

#38 – “Sorry” – Joel Corry

Produced by Joel Corry

Is it bad that my first observation about this song is that some rapper is going to mention this in a sappy out-of-character love ballad? I mean, think about it, “Sorry” and Joel Corry rhyme. It’s going to happen. Anyway, who’s Joel Corry, you ask? Good question. His Wikipedia page or lack thereof redirects me to a record label called Ostereo which seems pretty successful, and they have a tiny paragraph on Corry. Apparently, he started establishing himself as a DJ on the MTV reality show Jersey Shore. This isn’t looking great, I know, but bear with me, he’s also a body-builder and now presents a radio show on KISS FM. Okay, so, really, much like Lil Tecca, he’s a complete nobody who got picked up by some big label who couldn’t care less about artistic intent, except this is a little more intriguing, considering Ostereo is an independent label and Joel Corry is a DJ, so I’m assuming it’s EDM and I’m right, but it seems snipped from a DJ set. You can tell in the intro, it sounds like the end of a song and an abrupt bleep transition, maybe that’s just for artistic effect but it doesn’t sound great. This is pretty standard deep pop-house, with an unnamed female vocalist singing over a lot of snare and keys, with plenty orchestral stabs to remind you a song is playing. Albeit oddly-mixed at times, the build-up is pretty affective, the drums sound cheap as hell though, as does that drop, it’s really anti-climactic and doesn’t really work at all. The final build-up and drop is admittedly pretty epic though, it gets rid of the anti-climactic minimalism and leaves just a club-ready synth melody over a lot of strings, it sounds really cool is what I’m saying. The build-up itself is manic as well, very interesting, and the singer seems to be a sample from Monsta Boy’s “Sorry! (I Didn’t Know)” featuring Denzie, and, yes, I know samples aren’t typically considered guest spots but the female vocalist is instrumental to this song and its success so surely a featured credit wouldn’t hurt. It’s not Denzie, and by the way, this is so much better than that Monsta Boy song thanks to how Denzie is one of the most incompetent singers known to man, and this female vocalist is actually pretty talented despite singing the exact same lyrics, and referencing Brandy, as in “The Boy is Mine” Brandy, which was unexpected. I’ve searched it up and I can’t find her anywhere, not even on the Genius page, so to me this is just a bit of a douche move.

Edit: I’ve done some extra research and the vocalist is Hayley May. It’s also from the Love Island soundtrack apparently, which makes me like the song a lot less on principle. I’d love to see more from May though, she doesn’t even have a writing credit on this song.

#36 – “Hate Me” – Ellie Goulding and Juice WRLD

Produced by Jason Evigan and The Monsterz & the Strangerz – Peaked at #18 in Hungary and #82 in the US

Oh, Ellie Goulding exists. Yeah, I forgot about that. Listen, I don’t hate Ellie Goulding, far from it, I think she’s fine, but at least lately after about 2015 or so, she has not been nearly as interesting as I want her to be, especially because the songwriting chops are definitely there. When I saw her collaborate with emo-rapper Juice WRLD of all people, I knew this would be far from interesting or good so I’m honestly starting to lose hope in that upcoming album, especially since her other singles “Sixteen” and “Close to Me” were far from special. This is Goulding’s 22nd(!) UK Top 40 hit and Juice WRLD’s third, and, yeah, this isn’t great. That hook is really desperate and this would work if her delivery wasn’t bratty and the lyrics really don’t fit and it feels very cluttered and rushed, like they’re just trying to get it over with... which makes sense, I mean that’s the topic of the song but it’s not convincing, because she wants an answer and she wants it quick, so she’d stop at nothing, surely, but the song’s really short and doesn’t really have any lasting impact. Juice WRLD doesn’t freaking exist, gladly, he doesn’t even join in with the chorus really, which by the third repetition gets really aggravating. The production is an airy mess with trap percussion and cloudy synths that cover Juice WRLD’s vocoder-fuelled performance to the point of not being able to recognise him. It’s not good at all, but I feel it’s just tolerable and bland enough for me to not dislike it. I never thought I’d say this, but Lil Peep did it better.

#12 – “How Do You Sleep?” – Sam Smith

Produced by Ilya – Peaked at #4 in Singapore and #29 in the US

Sam Smith’s second single from this upcoming new album and era, after the success of “Dancing with a Stranger” with Normani, seems to be a lot more energetic especially in comparison with his other two albums he’s released. He seems to have ditched the shoddy pop-soul and has gone straight into more danceable territory, which I’m not complaining about. I loved him on “Latch” and “La La La”, and thought “Dancing with a Stranger” was pretty cool, but other than that there’s not a single song by Smith that I like. Anyway, this is his 14th UK Top 40 hit, and you know what, it’s not bad at all. I love the twinkling synths that carry the song’s main melody, they’re cute but paired with trap percussion and intense sub bass can come off as both oddly sinister as well as infatuated, fitting with the content and subject matter of this song, in which Smith questions how his partner sleeps when he has Smith tangled in a toxic relationship which he can’t get out of, and that “love will keep them up tonight”. I love the second verse, where Smith admits he’s lost himself in his relationship through his subtly Auto-Tuned vocals that are still pretty impressive. The chorus is incredibly catchy while still being powerful and despite all this, that drop kind of sucks. After a great vocoder vocal bridge, the drop is really weak and squeaky, especially with that screechy synth tone, which doesn’t sound as melodramatic or pained as the rest of the song, and instead sounds incredibly lazy. It might grow on me, as the weeping of the drop is kind of humorous right now but could easily fit in with the song’s overall tone and mood, but we’ll see. Overall, this song surprised me, it’s actually really good bar from the trap and EDM elements possibly bogging it down a bit, I think Smith’s songwriting is definitely what shines here instead of Ilya’s production, which is disappointing since I usually love his production.

Conclusion

Yeah, I’m shocked too, but Best of the Week goes to Sam Smith for “How Do You Sleep?”, and Honourable Mention is reluctantly going to “Love Island anthem”, “Sorry” by Joel Corry featuring Hayley May, even if it’s not all that good, only decent. Dishonourable Mention is going to Ellie Goulding and Juice WRLD for “Hate Me” because of course it is, and Worst of the Week should be pretty damn obvious, it’s Lil Tecca’s for “RAN$OM”. Follow me on Twitter @cactusinthebank for more musical ramblings and I’ll see you next week.

hideu

[tatsie-kun]

Purple Sky: Versailles Interview

Versailles: Of Metal and Roses By Sarah Dworken Translated by Koichi Makiuchi From Purple Sky, Winter ‘08 Transcription by Tatsie-kun

Though it's easy to get stuck on their eighteenth century French aristocrat image, don't let the ruffles, flaxen locks, and love for roses fool you. Versailles is a band that cares deeply about their music. 

Behind their elegant, gothic exterior, the band is dedicated towards standing out sonically and combining their multi-faceted talents with years of experience in music with other bands. The result is a promising new band with high hopes for the future both in and outside Japan. Even though they debuted as a band this year in June, the individual members are no novices. With two strong leaders, Kamijo (ex-Lareine) on vocals and Hizaki (HIZAKI Grace Project) on guitar, Versailles commands a strong presence. The group is rounded out with the ever-friendly Teru on guitar, the elegant Jasmine You on bass, and the silently mysterious Yuki on drums. In addition, the band has the knowledge and skills to promote what they consider the ideal form of musical expression; Versailles pop. We got a chance to sit down with Versailles for a very candid, insightful interview, not just about the band and it's future overseas, but also about the Visual-Kei industry, human emotion, and even a little amateur magic.

Purple Sky (pS): First of all, thank you so much for coming here and meeting with us. I know you have very busy schedules and I really appreciate it.

Everyone: It's our pleasure.

pS: Congratulations on the release of your new album, Lyrical Sympathy.

Everyone: Thank you.

pS: Could you say a few words about how you feel about your new album?

Kamijo (Ka): Even though it's our first album, we put so much spirit and work into it.

pS: I can really tell you put your heart and soul into it. Is there anything else you can say about it?

Everyone: (laughs)

Hizaki (Hi): It's a really good start even though it's our first album. We worked so hard for it.

Jasmine You (Jy): We started by releasing a DVD and then put it all together with a compilation album. Now we're releasing a new album.

pS: Is that the typical process to release it in that order?

Ka: We started with a DVD album because people use their eyes and other senses, right? Releasing it that way is something unique we came up with.

pS: You're all veterans in Visual-Kei. For example, Kamijo, you were in the very famous Lareine. How have you brought these previous experiences in other bands together to become Versailles?

Ka: Last year Hizaki and I started thinking about this band and we gathered our final members. Now that we've gotten together I think we have a better band than before. I think these are the best members of any band any of us have had.

pS: Why did you choose to call the band Versailles?

Everyone: (looks at Hizaki)

Hi: The name Versailles was there at the beginning. We started calling ourselves that and, as the music process continued, we just got used to it. It's really the only name we could think of. It just fit.

pS: That's really poetic.

Hi: (laughs)

pS: Let's talk about the new album a little bit. Lyrical Sympathy has a lot of string ensembles, piano and even brass. I was wondering if any of you were classically trained.

Ka: We are really interested in classical music. Hizaki and I are the core classical lovers. My grand mother and mother used to play the keyboards, so I already had influences from there. That's the reason why I have an interest in classical music.

pS: Anyone else?

Yuki (Yu): I'm really a hardcore rock lover.

Jy: I'm actually a magician.

pS: Can you show us a trick?

Jy: Well I haven't prepared anything but... (Jasmine You performs a little trick involving flicking an elastic band from one finger to the other)

pS: Oh! Very nice!

Jy: Thank you.

pS: Anyway, Lyrical Sympathy is a really emotional album. What sort of feelings were you thinking of throughout the album?

Ka: I was really thinking a lot about the lyrics. The emotions came from there. While I was writing the words I was thinking about what emotions I wanted to express and what the story would be. It's about love, the love that humans cannot feel, something way beyond human comprehension. And, of course, the loneliness that accompanies it. All those natural feelings, I contemplate on these things very deeply.

pS: Without getting too specific did these emotions come from certain experiences?

Ka: What we feel is real. We're not making it up. We only create what we see.

pS: So they're very genuine lyrics. A lot of people can relate to them.

Ka: Basically, we want people to understand, but we don't want to ask more than that. I don't want people to think that I'm selfish. Yes, it's better for people to understand the lyrics.

pS: I'd like to ask you about your musical influences. We already talked about your classical influences, but what about from the rock world?

Ka: I was really inspired by movie soundtracks. Like Paul Mauriet and John Williams.

Yu: I really like Dream Theater.

Teru (Te): As for me, I really love melodic metal.

pS: I can hear that very much in your music.

Te: Oh? Thanks. Also, I really like symphonic metal.

pS: How do you incorporate all these influences into your songs? Do you feel that your experiences from listening to music help you to create music?

Ka: Well, I've been listening to John Williams for my whole life. My music is actually based on that too. When we incorporate all these different styles, this is what comes out.

Yu: I've worked with many different bands and those experiences have been my influence. My music is built on them.

Hi: While we're making music, I concentrate on the techniques I've learned over the years. I like to say I've gained experience through them. I've been basically following that method.

Ka: But I won't be influenced by any artist who might be my rival. On the contrary, I would like to influence them.

pS: Hizaki, you're still releasing solo material correct? How do you balance the two projects, the band and solo career?

Hi: Yes, I'm still doing solo work. Well, first of all, I do it because I'm trying to build up my skills. I'll concentrate on Versailles even though I'll be releasing a mini-album at the end of February.

pS: I'd like to talk a little bit about the power metal scene in Japan. Teru, you mentioned that you're a fan of melodic and symphonic metal, which is very closely related to power metal. But it seems that power metal is not as popular in Japan as it is in, say, Europe. Because of that, do you think you would consider playing in Europe?

Ka: It's more like we're always looking out towards the world. I think that our songs will be well received all over the world. It's not so much "power metal" as it is "Versailles metal" (laughs).

Hi: We're already considering playing live around the world.

pS: So does that mean there are plans to perform overseas?

Ka: Well, we're hoping to go to foreign countries. Japan has four seasons, right? Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. We're looking at Spring.

pS: I hear Texas is very lovely in Spring.

Ka: Yes, so is Japan (laughs). We're performing in Texas in May.

pS: The American fans will be very pleased.

Ka: We're planning on eating a lot while wearing those hats. The huge ones.

pS: The ten-gallon hats? Other than the Texan image, how would you describe the look of your PVs and the way you look?

Ka: I want the audience to decide what the image is. I want the audience to try to know what we're showing.

pS: People who are familiar with your style would say that it's a Visual-Kei take on the look of a French aristocrat. Do you think this type of image is just ingrained in the genre? What does the image mean to you?

Ka: Everybody in the band came up with the same image at the same time. We individually designed our costumes.

pS: So you do you music and design?

Jy: Yes we do.

pS: That's very impressive. Now if I can, I'd like to compare your type of music and the way it fits in with the image of the genre. If you look at the metal genre in Europe, it's really popular to have this hyper-masculine fantasy image: whips, leather, metal spikes. In Japan, it seems to be more about elegance. Is that the type of difference you want to make?

Ka: The main difference is definitely the vocals.

Yu: It's better not to think of the word "metal". There are all different genres.

Ka: Yeah, we can't really look at the genre. I like to think of our music as "Versailles pop" there's more to it than just the metal, in terms of music.

Jy: Everything in Visual-Kei, compared to the European metal, has to be beautiful. That's the main difference.

Te: That is the popular image, in terms of metal and Visual-Kei.

Ka: Japanese artists don't need to rely on the design of the CD jacket. Those others like to show off their costumes. But we need to show what's on the inside rather than the outside.

pS: Do you think the "pretty" or beautiful image is an advantage over the European bands. Does it make you stand out?

Ka: We hope that people will pay more attention to the music than our image.

pS: So it's music quality over visual quantity?

Ka: Not exactly. The most important thing is Versailles.

Everyone: (laughs)

pS: I think so too. Speaking of overseas, do you think you are gaining popularity with European and American fans of power metal? How do you feel about that?

Ka: Well, hm. We're happy that they can look past that image of European metal.

pS: How do you think the American audience will receive you? Visual-Kei is gaining popularity thanks to other bands that have toured in the United States. Your music seems to be slightly different from theirs, so how do you think that will affect the American fans?

Ka: We just want all the fans to be inspired by us. We don't ask for much more than that.

pS: Since other Japanese bands have performed in the United States, what sort of expectations do you have for going there?

Te: We want some sort of red carpet when we arrive at the concert hall.

pS: Well, I'll see what I can do.

Ka: And roses scattered on the carpet.

pS: Aside from that, how did you decide to perform in the United States?

Ka: I actually went to America once before, alone, for a convention. But now that I've been invited with a great band, I'm really happy to be able to go there.

pS: Can you tell me about your experience in the US?

Ka: It was a very interesting experience. In the audience there was someone with panties on their head. It's the kind of thing I don't really want. (laughs)

pS: I'm sorry. We Americans are weird.

Everyone: (laughs)

pS: What are you plans for the New Year?

Ka: Live only. We're going to do a live in the kabuki district.

pS: Do you have any advice for those who want to start their own bands?

Ka: Advice?

pS: Anything at all.

Yu: Work, work, and practice.

Te: Rest.

pS: That's boring. Say something more exciting.

Te: What? Ok. Party!

pS: What do you want for Christmas?

Jy: A new Cadillac.

pS: You're a big car fan? Do you have a Cadillac now? What type?

Jy: Yeah, but it's a secret.

Yu: I want lots of alcohol and plenty of time to drink that alcohol.

pS: Please try American alcohol when you go there.

Hi: Something for everybody.

Te: Sleep.

pS: After such a big release, you should sleep. Just please don't sleep during the lives.

Ka: America.

pS: That could be arranged.

[justindaguiso-blog]

FINALS

Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino is an annual event that is held during Buwan ng Wika. It is a week-long celebration of Philippine Cinema where new Filipino genre films are screened for 1 week in all regular cinemas nationwide. No foreign films will be screened during PPP except in specialty cinemas, it is in order for the whole country to celebrate and enjoy local-made films. This event is organized by the Film Development Council of the Philippines in partnership with the National Cinema Association of the Philippines. In this video, we will review and discuss 3 films that we witnessed shine during the week-long celebration. 

To start off, The LSS movie is a romantic, comedy, musical movie directed by Jade Castro. Starred by young loveteam actresses Gabbi Garcia and Khalil Ramos. The movie was released on September 13, 2019 and was included on the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino, also known as PPP. The movie also took home some awards for winning the Best Special Jury Prize, Audience Choice, Best Supporting Actress, Best Theme Song,and  Best Sound Award.

The main characters that are shown in the movie are Sarah starred Gabbi Garcia, and Zack starred by Khalil Ramos. The movie is all about pursuing and chasing your dreams, but there are always going to be trials and hardships through the journey. They met for the first time randomly in a bus on their way to their own destinations. They started to have a conversation because of a Ben&Ben song that they commonly listen to which is “Ride Home”. They shared their own stories and Zack told Sarah to name her first ever album their name on it, inspired by Ben&Ben.

Both of them have a very different life, struggle through different scenarios, but both of them have similar passion in music. Zack grew up living only with her mother, since his father left him at a very young age. He has a friend that he likes for 6 years already, yet he had no chance to confess his love for her. Meanwhile, Sarah who is aspiring to be a famous singer, couldn't because of financial problems. She had been struggling to find a stable job. Ever since she lost her first long job. So, she ended up having to sacrifice her dream for her brother's studies. As this shows that family does come first in our local tradition.  Then finding out, all the financial support she's been giving him was all went to renting a studio and making music. Leading no choice but to support her brother's dream instead.

Zack has been very unsure of his life, but his mother, Ruby is trying to help him out by finding a girlfriend. Since he’s old enough to have one, but never had a chance to. He took a leap of faith and asked her out, yet failed. Since his love of his life already have a significant other. This truly broke his heart and didn’t know how to cope up with it.

Both of them were hurt because of the situation of what happened to them. They reunited through the same artist that they commonly listen to, Ben&Ben. Where it truly shows that music brings people together, the power of music truly shows that no matter who you are where you live. We can all be one big family through music that connects us. They ended up being together for they are truly meant to be from the beginning. They now tackled their struggles together. Worked together to achieve their dreams. As I continue to watch the film, it truly shows that the target audience are people like us, the millennials, especially for those who are into love stories and music.

Speaking of music, this movie aims to also promote the artists, "Ben&Ben" who is a local band composed of two brothers, Paolo and Miguel. This band has been in the music industry for quite some time now, and they are absolutely killing it and putting a dent in the industry. They were able to gather a lot of loyal fans recently, from their skyrocketing growth. This factor made people attracted to see the movie, which is a great strategy to have their target audience which are the generation z.

             One triumph, that they stumbled upon while being on tour with Ben&Ben, Zack had the chance to visit his dying father with Sarah and his mother. But when they arrived, Ruby which is Zack’s mother was furious to see his father’s face. Knowing that he left both of them together with nothing, then have the audacity to meet up with them during his final days. Zack was very torn seeing his parents argue, but all he wants is to be together with his family with the remaining time they have together. But Ruby insists to leave.

After some time during on tour, Zack told Sarah that he will be leaving out of the country for a long amount of time. It will be very hard to keep a long-distance relationship strong, especially across the world. They still manage to be connected despite the time they couldn’t spend together. Sarah’s dream slowly coming into reality. This really shows that with hard work, patience, initiative and with a little bit of luck, your dreams will come true. The luck factor will just come with the risk that you’re willing to take, are you willing to do anything to reach your dreams? This shows that Sarah really wants to inspire her future potential fans that dreams do come true.

The movie is not that unique at all to be honest, it's very similar to all typical love story where everything is going just fine, until the main characters fell rock bottom, but despite the challenges they still fought and will have a happy ending. It is very common when Jade Castro directs a movie, since he is famous for those kinds of movies. Where he is able to balance out the comedy and romance factor without making it too cheesy to watch. But one thing that put this movie above the others for me is, it is a musical movie. Therefore, after watching the movie I really got hooked to Ben&Ben's music, resulting for me actually being a fan of their work. The producers did a great job choosing the best artist to go along with the movie, if the soundtrack or singer is different. It would be a different vibe watching the movie. As someone who loves listening to music, it’s amazing to experience this kind of movie, where I can sing along to the songs as well as to react to the movie as well. It’s a win win scenario for me because I totally enjoyed sitting inside the cinema while being able to focus on what’s happening to the story.

The color presets they used in the movie are really good. Especially when Zack and Sarah first met at the bus. The color and the tones look really good for the scene, creativity wise, the film did an excellent job. The camera angles of their conversation are amazing, while watching I keep on asking myself. “How were they able to capture an angle from the outside of the window of a bus?” This shows that our country has been using a bit more advance equipment unlike before. One thing that's off for me is the acting of Paolo and Miguel, which are the Ben&Ben twins. Yes, despite them being singers not actors, the way they act out during a serious scene makes me giggles because of how forced his reaction is on screen, despite of it happening at least they still tried, so kudos to the twins.

The songs that are used in very specific scenes are effective, the producers made sure that they could incorporate the correct songs per scene. If it’s a sad scene, they’d use a sad song, and if it’s a happy scene, they’d use more of a lively upbeat music. Though the movie doesn’t have that much of a surprise factor, the delivery of the expected production from them was totally bull’s eye.

             As an artist myself, I can truly relate to Sarah’s struggles of trying to make a living out of the passion that I truly have. Since one problem here in our country is that the artists don’t have the support of the locals. Which is indeed sad, but true. It made me put myself in her shoes on what would I do, give up my dream and pursue other things that will guarantee that I can make a living out of it. It’s painful to see as Sarah continues to struggle emotionally throughout the movie, trying to have a point in her career where she can finally say “I made it!”.

Overall, the movie is amazing, I truly recommend this movie for all ages, you will definitely have a smile on your face after watching the movie. The execution of the movie is all around a masterpiece. Because, it truly is not easy to have two big main plots, and they have to manage to find a way to make those two major characters merge into one leading storyline. Hopefully we get to see more local musical films like this one. For more local artist could have the chance to be in the big screen, because I believe these artists are very underappreciated. And I truly believe that this will change the game of musical film.

  On to our next film  ‘Cuddle Weather’ by director Rod Marmol presents an insight in the life of 2 sex workers who happen to form an unusual relationship as ‘cuddle partners’. Beyond all the bright neon lights, colorful wardrobe and demanding clients with peculiar kinks. The life of Adela Johnson (played by Sue Ramirez) has been filled with nothing but loneliness. No matter how thrilling the nightlife in Poblacion may be, Adela always had a dream of leaving her line of work and old life behind, to be given the chance to start a fresh chapter with a new identity; a new name. After all, that was the goal why she became a sex worker for almost 9 years; to earn easy cash and save up for her future. In one of her client sessions, she met Ram (played by RK Bagatsing) who had a client next door, a sex worker who had little to no experience about how the industry works. He kept pestering Adela to teach him her ways on how to be a better sex worker. Adela gave in and booked him for an hour just to cuddle. Since she was mostly alone in her condo, a good-warm cuddle was all she needed. Their relationship evolved from cuddle buddies-roomates-until they eventually cared for each other. With a good mix of a past love coming back to her life, along with her never-ending family drama; They both agreed to stop accepting clients and eventually leave that old life behind once they saved up enough money.

Overall, Rod Marmol humanized the idea of sex workers in the eyes of the viewers. It changed the stereotypical thinking of people when it comes to the said industry. It showed a different side of their life that not alot of people know,since most of them had been isolated or left by their loved ones due to the nature of their job. It tackled more about the effect on Sue’s character whenever she meets up with different clients almost every night, only for her to feel emptier and alone in the end, that no amount of money can ever fill the void. It made it seem that Adela is slowly losing herself to her job. From the beginning of the film, the first thing you’ll notice is her bright-colorful wigs and her sparkly and skimpy outfits; all of which serves as a way to mask her true self from her chosen profession. Throughout the scenes where Adela is seen as she journey’s on through self-discovery, her clothes are slowly leaning towards a plain jane and simple style. The soft pinks and bashful outfits somehow shows that she is slowly removing the mask and unveiling her true self. It is quite unfortunate that characters such as Adela and Ram are forced to enter this type of profession because of their lack of better opportunities. It reflects the society and environment that surrounds them which is quite sad because as fictional as these characters are ,there are real people going through the same situation and struggle. It shows how desperate times call for desperate measures and for Ram’s case, he was scammed by an agency that promised a Seaman job offer. He was later scammed by the said agency who only took his money, which later led him to earn some cash as a sex worker; He still continues to send money to his family in the province to create an illusion that he’s still working abroad. From what I notice that aside from prostitution, Rod Mormol tried to show different types of mishaps in life, from broken families; which is where Adela came from. To the bread-winner of the family be scammed by agencies with false career hopes and promises. It’s a mix of poor choices and unfortunate situations, something that some viewers may resonate and relate to. 

The way that Rod Marmol was able to combine humor, drama and romance is impressive, since this film has a serious message behind identifying yourself as a human being and prostitution in our country. He was able to tackle those serious issues with humor, finding ways to deliver the message without getting too scarily real. It will always come down to the creativity of the director, for Marmol’s case, he knows who are the target audiences are and how to properly execute the movie.

Cuddle Weather is also produced for Regal Entertainment and Project 8 cor. Being a comedy, Cuddle Weather takes a light approach in its depiction of the so-called world’s oldest profession. I do applaud Sue Ramirez’ take on bringing Adela Johnson to life, knowing how risky and mature the role seems to be. From the sultry and provocative clothes, to Her effortless delivery of lines that involve R-rated terms like “pokpok,” “libog,” “bugaw” and “tigasan” also makes her a lot more convincing as the character she’s playing. But it is Sue’s charming chemistry with RK as Ram that provides a lot of the film’s kilig moments especially during the cuddle scenes when they’re still trying to get to know more about each other. Her role as Adela sure is more mature than her role in ‘Ang Babaeng allergic sa Wifi.  As Ram, RK is also worthy of consideration for acting honors as he embodies the typical probinsyano who, because of initial setbacks, had to resort to drastic measures to keep his own dreams alive. It was Ram who believes that he and Adela have a legitimate shot at a happy-ever-after together, despite their less than ideal circumstances. ‘Cuddle Weather’ placed third in the list of highest grossing films during this celebration. 

  I admit that I was enticed by their movie poster and teaser, it riled up so much curiosity to see what this movie was all about. From the questionable position both Sue and RK were in, to the neon signs and sultry vibe. In all fairness, it did not disappoint. It delivered so much edge, drama, laughs, kilig-moments, innuendos and thrill to the viewers. Though personally, aside from the narrative of this film, the actors who played their roles, the flashy wardrobe, loud and busy setting, Cuddle Weather tackled more of one’s self-identity and worth, but beyond that it feels as if it placed all its cards on the table. No surprises behind the curtain nor moments that will push the audience to think more and question what this movie was about. To be clear, ‘Cuddle Weather’ is a sexy dark-romantic comedy. It was not meant to be a porn flick. It is not what you may readily think it may be. There is a lot of heart to this movie more than the flesh. 

 Next up, Lola Igna is a comedy drama film that is written and directed by Eduardo Roy Jr., starring Angie Ferrero, Yves Flores, Maria Isabel Lopez, and Meryll Soriano. Eduardo Roy Jr. has already directed some great films as such as “Bahay Bata”, “Quick Change”, “Pamilya Ordinaryo”,“Fuccbois”, and “Last Fool Show”. This film is also an entry for PPP, the story revolves around Lola Igna with her granddaughter and great-great grandson.

             The story is about an old woman, in fact a very old woman who lives in the middle of rice fields, who is the main character. Lola Igna is already a 118-year old grandma who is ready and wanting to die. But the people don’t want her to, for them to hold the world record for being the oldest living person alive. One factor as well is because of the million of dollars that will be given and the fame that the neighborhood will get out of her. This shows how sad the society truly is, using someone’s circumstances for personal gain only. Also, the thirst for fame is also being displayed, shows how people love the attention so much, despite the suffering of an old woman.

Lola Igna’s personality is not to be admired nor wanted to be encountered. She’s alway nag people around her. It’s reasonable for her to be, since she’s really unhappy at the situation of her life. The director wants the movie’s story to revolve around Lola Igna, and it delivers, the audience has been interested on what will happen next, because of how fascinating her life is.

             It truly breaks my heart to see her being all lonely and sad, because imagine all of your loved ones are gone and you being left alone because you’re still here in this world and they left earlier than you did. My grandparents have a very special place in my heart for I do believe they deserve nothing but love and attention. With their remaining time on this planet, we need to show them our appreciation for they’ve been through a lot. And for sure they’ll appreciate every nice gesture we show to our elderly.

             One factor that’s really messed up is that her own grandchildren even encourages her to join the contest for the oldest grandmother because of the given prize money, that they’ll benefit off of her, they’re using her age for their benefits. But one thing that really is messed up that because of the contest. She became a tourist spot for people. The director wants the audience to have empathy to Lola Igna, and for the audience to realize it’s not right to approach a “celebrity” to bother them, just to ask for a picture. Because people tend to forget they also are living their own life.

             A lot of people are going to her bahay kubo just to witness her. It’s very disgusting to see that she’s being treated not like a human being but an object that is to be seen, her whole being is being disregarded just because of the fame she’s able to have for her age. As more people to show up, people around are making money of her, selling merchandise to tourists that are in the area without Lola Igna’s consent. She’s being the town’s entertainment place as she became the most visited person already. Even after doing your work, everyone’s going to be at your home which is supposed to be not invaded, because it’s your private space. But people still show up because she’s famous. This can be comparable in the life of a celebrity, because they don’t have any privacy as well. It’s very disturbing to see fans rushing in their way just to ask for a picture, but also forgetting they have a life to live as well. We need to learn how to give space and not be too close with them. This is how Lola Igna feels as well, probably even worse because all she wants is to have is peace, but that is not going to happen.

             She doesn’t have a lot of family left around her, her relatives are only her granddaughter and her son, Nida and Bok respectively. But one day a young man shows up to her place and claims to be her great great grandson. She was even called “Lola”, and this man is named Tim. He is the son of Ana who is Igna’s great granddaughter, and sister of Nida. Lola Igna’s perspective of life changed a bit after meeting Tim, she finally felt the peace and happier to say the least. Lola Igna asks him to make a coffin for her, which is very sad. This truly shows how tired and ready she is to die. She felt the whole world is in her shoulders and she wants to give up in life. But when Tim came to her life, he’s been a ray of sunshine for her that gives her the more will to live and energy that she needs. Though they just met each other, the connection of love that they have for each other can be truly seen, and it made me so happy that Lola Igna is happy. During the scenes of them being together, it made me cry a lot, making me want to go home and give a hug to my grandparents.

              She’s done nothing but good to the community. Being a midwife for a very long time, delivering babies to life. She mentioned something about bringing life to this world, yet she couldn't live her own life .She's been living for so long but she doesn’t fear death as she says if you die it’ll be just the beginning of freedom.  A journey which a soul may be able to be free. She always talks to her dead husband, and acts that he’s still around. This breaks my heart seeing, for she really misses him a lot and wants to be reunited with him in the afterlife. The film really puts you in the point of view of being a senior citizen, how hard it is and much appreciation and care they need.

 Spoiler alert, she almost died at one point of the film, but she didn’t die. She learns to appreciate life more as the movie progresses. It brought me to tears, and made me appreciate elderly more. This movie is for those who had forgotten their grandparents, that they do exist and matter. Their life may be unfamiliar with us, but they’ve been through a lot and we need to learn to be patient with them. The film shows appreciation for elderly, for director Eduardo Roy Jr. wrote this film for his great grandmother that he never got to meet, but still loves her unconditionally.

             There’s a lot of lessons that are taught and wanted to be tackled not only the life of Lola Igna. There’s also the side of politics, beliefs, and how social media is in the current generation. Learn to appreciate life, be thankful for everyday that you get to breathe, do not take it for granted. Live everyday with nothing but happiness, and motivation.  Life’s more than just life and death, it’s how we live our life and continue to appreciate the beauty of it.

Overall, these 3 films presented themes about pursuing one’s dreams, finding one’s own identity, and to appreciate one’s family. Something that we FIlipinos often take for granted, as the event’s goal is to remember our roots of how traditional Filipino families and values are supposed to be. The future of Philippine cinema looks bright and it definitely needs more support from our fellow countrymen. As well as to appreciate the works of local artists who tries to bring back Filipino films in the map. 

[sinceileftyoublog]

Tropical Fuck Storm Interview: No Hard Dicks (Maybe Just One)

Photo by Jamie Wdziekonski

BY JORDAN MAINZER

The former members of The Drones have certainly kept busy! I interviewed Gareth Liddiard of Melbourne rockers Tropical Fuck Storm at the end of last year about their first album, A Laughing Death in Meatspace, a collection of spitfire and stream-of-consciousness blues-punk centering around the sociopolitical ramifications of our obsession with technology. Last month, the band released their second record, Braindrops, which combines comparatively personal lyrics with much more subdued, dark instrumentation. It’s by no means an autobiographical record--the songs about relationships are abstract in theme, and there’s still plenty of sci-fi absurdism--but it’s distinct from Meatspace, a different style of songwriting the band has added to its already wide musical arsenal. Oh, and some of the album’s instrumentation was inspired by and actually taken from their live, mostly improvised soundtrack to the Coen Brothers’ No Country For Old Men, which they’re performing again as part of Brisbane Festival on September 26th at The Tivoli. 

Will the upcoming tour and No Country performance yield yet more new music? Not according to band member Fiona Kitschin, who told me over the phone this week that the band is concentrating on touring for the next year. I spoke to her from “the side of the road” “somewhere in East Texas,” on their way to a show in Austin. After the band’s current headlining tour, they’re back home in Australia and then Europe. For now, read on for Kitschin’s breakdown of the record, and catch them tomorrow night at the Empty Bottle with rockers Conan Neutron & The Secret Friends and local punks Basement Family.

Since I Left You: Last time I talked to Gareth, he mentioned you were already working on the follow-up to A Laughing Death in Meatspace. Lo and behold, Braindrops was just released. Did you always plan to release the albums in such quick succession?

Fiona Kitschin: We just wanted to get more music out there quickly. The first record went really well, so we just wanted to get right into the second one and have more songs. Getting back into the studio was kind of the plan.

SILY: How is Braindrops different than Meatspace? How is it a continuation of it?

FK: I don’t know about sounding different. When we recorded the first one, we did one song at a time. The first single we put out was “Chameleon Paint”, the only song we had. The second song we wrote was “Soft Power”, and then we put that out. We were putting out the only things we had. We hadn’t really played much together when we recorded those. After the album came out, we toured a lot, so by the time the second one came out, we were more of a band. I don’t know how it affected the sound, but I guess it’s much more mellow and sad and fucked up.

SILY: The instrumentation definitely sounds queasy--especially “Desert Sands of Venus”. How did you come up with that song?

FK: [laughs] I think we just played it really drunk. We also did a score for the film No Country For Old Men, and that was about 10 months ago, right before we went in to record Braindrops. Some of the ideas for the score became songs on Braindrops. The music for the scene where he goes to the Desert Sands Hotel, that was “Desert Sands of Venus”, which is literally a field recording of Venus.

SILY: Songs like “Paradise” and “Aspirin” are about relationships, which is something new for this record. Can you talk about the inspiration behind those songs?

FK: Not really, because I didn’t write them! [laughs] It was Gareth who did that...Oh, here he is if you wanna ask him!

SILY: Sure!

[asks Liddiard]

FK: He said because on the first album, all of the songs are political, and on the second album, he wanted to do non-political songs. Love songs.

SILY: There’s still definitely some politics on this album.

FK: Yes, just not classic politics. A love song can be political.

SILY: Around the time I was listening to Braindrops, I was listening to a totally different new album that used sci-fi and conspiracy theories to make a larger point about politics today. There’s that here with “The Legend of Straw Men” and “Maria 63″, though the latter is more in the concrete world. It was a funny coincidence. Artists are doing a lot of it these days.

FK: They are! Every song used to be a fucking love song, didn’t it? We were in The Drones for 18 years, doing the same stuff we’re doing now, but it feels like the world is so fucked up now, people are actually interested in [political music].

SILY: When you go into play, do you like to know the story of the lyrics of the songs? Or do you approach your playing and participation in them separately from what inspired them?

FK: I don’t really like to know. I’m Gareth’s partner, so I leave him to do his thing with the songwriting. I don’t want to go into the details of it really.

SILY: How has your role in the band changed as a player, singer, and harmonizer over the past couple records?

FK: I really enjoy singing a lot more. I’m also the manager and the tour manager and everything on that side of things. That’s my day-to-day job, doing all that shit. It hasn’t really changed. But as far as the playing goes, I enjoy singing more.

SILY: What’s the inspiration behind the new album’s title?

FK: [laughs] Someone said “rain drops,” and I thought they said, “brain drops.” I thought it sounded cool, so that became the title of the song “Braindrops”. When it came time to picking an album title, we had our whiteboard out, and that was on the list of contenders. It just seemed to be the best in the end.

SILY: Even if you don’t know what it means, it kind of fits the album thematically and instrumentally. It’s got a weird psychedelic feel to it.

FK: Yeah, it’s an exploding brain. It works.

SILY: What about the cover art?

FK: That was done by a Canadian artist called Joe Becker. He did the last record, but Gaz had just found him online, got in contact with him, and asked him if we could use that painting. This one, we asked him to do a specific piece of art. We gave him the themes of the album, and this is what he put together. We also used his artwork for our 7-inch series [released before Meatspace]. There were lots of hard dicks on those covers, so we asked specifically for no dicks on this one. But if you look closely, he snuck in a little cell phone with a dick pic.

SILY: I’m sure the online censors haven’t caught it yet.

FK: No, it’s quite small.

SILY: How have you adapted these new songs to the live stage? Is it the same approach you took with the first record?

FK: They always come out heavier on stage. We like to do things loud and aggressive. We explode a lot more on stage than we do on the album. We’re not doing all the songs--we’re not doing “Aspirin” or “Maria 63″, at least not yet.

SILY: Is there anything you’ve been listening to, watching, or reading that’s caught your attention?

FK: We’ve just been listening to the podcast Root Of Evil. It’s about the family of the [Black Dahlia murder] main suspect, Dr. George Hodel. It’s funny in a fucked up, sick way. We’ve just been getting in the van and listening to some depressing, fucked up shit right now.

Braindrops by Tropical Fuck Storm