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turtleations · 10 months ago

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Pink Cloudy Sky, P.S. To the Beginning of the End (Summarized)

Chapter 00 - 01 Chapter 02 Chapter 03 Chapter 04 Part 1, Part 2 Chapter 05 Chapter 06 Part 1, Part 2 Chapter 07 Part 1 Part 2 Final Chapter

From the cloudy sky, as REM sometimes remembered, the warm rays of the spring sun came down.

A somewhat lazy afternoon in late spring. REM was leaning against the wall of the clinic’s waiting room, feeling the weight of the guitar in his knees as he went through the setlist of tomorrow’s live. During practice that night, he would do the final checks. He’d have to plan the timing of the MCs, the finale, the arrangement of the new songs…

Suddenly, his eyes fell on the list of that afternoon’s appointments. There were a few more patients than usual for a Saturday. Maybe he could take a nap first…

No, before those appointments, he had to practice scales.

What was to become of him and SAVER TIGER from now on, no one could say.

He was nervous about it, and impatient. Claiming anything else would have been a lie. The one thing he could say was that leading SAVER TIGER now was the most fulfilling period of his life so far. The one year in which he had put everything into fulfilling hide’s dying wish.

He could not even dream of paying back all he owed him.

But maybe this was enough?

Everything after this, he should do for himself, REM thought.

The SAVER TIGER of those days was over. This was the SAVER TIGER he had breathed new life into.

There was no point in dragging the past forward.

The end of the century, rock music, and SAVER TIGER. Those were the only things that mattered to him in this moment.

Just that, and keeping up the creation of good music, continuing to perform.

He could play the guitar like this. He could feel the strings under his fingers, feel the melody in his ears, feel the music with his whole being.

There was no greater happiness than that.

In the afternoon sunlight filtering through the trees, the pick REM was holding in his right hand fell to the floor with a small noise. In his dream, his soul kept sliding over the fingerboard.

From autumn 1998 onwards, the new SAVER TIGER continued to go on tour: Starting on the 1st of November 1998 in Yokohama, they had six performances in Yokohama, Yokosuka, Meguro, and Takadanobaba until the 15th of April 1999. Then, in May, they performed in three locations in Yokohama and Takadanobaba.

The second part of their tour started in early August and took them to Osaka, Tokushima, Yokosuka, Yokohama, Chiba, Machida, Meguro, and Kumagaya in 11 shows. The final one was planned for 13th December 1999 in BAYHALL in Yokohama.

REM expresses how ecstatic he would be if those who read this book would listen to SAVER TIGER’s music. And while they are at it, they should check out their official website.

Speaking of which, it was hide who first got into the internet, and used it to communicate with the fans in a meaningful way.

And with this feeling carved into REM’s chest, he wants to put down the pen.

Appendix

Study of the dental pattern of patient Matsumoto Hideto.

At this point, REM want to attempt an examination of patient Matsumoto Hideto as a dentist. The following is based on a dental model he made, as well as things hide told him.

It was a model made for the purpose of examination. That day, it became a special thing for REM: The only memento he had of hide’s physical form. Every time REM sees the model in the waiting room or touches the examination table where hide had been sitting, he wants to talk to that white, inorganic thing.

That is why he is sharing the report on that medical examination now, resigning himself to the criticism of the other people from his field.

It would probably be terribly unreasonable to reach conclusions about hide’s entire body just from that model, the state of his oral cavity, and what he told REM. Moreover, it would be rude to hide, one might think. Others would be of the opinion that it is okay to do it, of course. REM thinks it’s reasonable enough.

But REM’s honest feelings are these: It is not a bad thing to disclose a little bit of hide’s personal matters to the public. In this moment, as his friend and as his fellow guitarist from a band called SAVER TIGER, REM wishes to do all he can for hide, utilizing his means as a dentist.

Therefore, REM informs that the following is not a true patient’s chart nor an actual medical report. It reflects only the personal opinion of one single dentist.

[Patient Matsumoto Hideto] 1) Main complaint (the patient’s acutely perceived subjective symptoms for discomfort) .. Sometimes his jaw joints are hurting. It also happens that he cannot open his jaw. Also, severely stiff shoulders. 2) Medical history (past illnesses and current systemic ailments) .. Arrythmia 3) History of present illness .. Observations of grating sounds and irregularities of temporomandibular joint at times are ambiguous

Psychologically, systemic problems are ambiguous. 4) Current symptoms .. Abnormally stiff shoulders

Since long ago, many cases of clenched jaw, jaw muscles are stressed.

Palpation of temporomandibular joint not particularly abnormal, movement of lower jaw is not irregular or restricted. No palpation of muscle occurred. 5) Symptoms concluded from model of the mouth cavity .. Extensive wear of all teeth, corresponding low occlusion.

This is what REM got from what he heard from hide and the examination of the dental model.

One week after his visit at REM’s clinic, hide went to L.A. again, with no follow-up appointment planned, no clarity on when he would be back in Japan, and with the symptoms of his jaw not being acute, REM did not interview him too extensively. He also notes that there was no time for photographs of the oral cavity or X-rays.

At this point, REM talks a little about temporomandibular joint and how it works. Compared to other parts of the body, it is extremely complex in its movements. With its position between the upper and lower jaw and before the ears, it executes a lot of movements when speaking, eating, or even during sleep for some people.

Very roughly said, there is complex movement when chewing or opening and closing the mouth: Up, down, left, right. In contrast, the abnormal occlusion comes from a way of chewing that differs from the ordinary. Damage to the teeth can also be caused by accidents and violent fights. In any case, if the teeth are worn down by chewing or grinding, the height doesn’t match anymore, which leads to irregular chewing patterns.

If that irregularity is particularly bad, it leads to pain of the temporomandibular joints and overall discomfort. This, caused by emotional stress in the first place, can lead to muscle pain, which in turn leads to more tension.

Opening and closing the mouth can create various problems. This is called temporomandibular joint disorder. Of course, when it comes to hide, REM can’t diagnose that for the aforementioned lack of examinations and tests. But between what patient Matsumoto Hideto told him and the information provided by the study model, it’s a conclusion he finds definitely possible.

The model shows that from the front to the back teeth, all the pointy bits had been worn away so that the teeth were essentially flat. This must have been caused by the teeth grinding hide had told REM about. But for the wear to be so extensive all over, the grinding and gritting must have been extremely strong and have gone on for a very long time.

Teeth grinding is a phenomenon that happens unconsciously in times of required self-control or nervousness and stress. If the grinding goes on for a long time, it often happens that normal chewing is no longer possible. This disturbs the entire system of the jaw muscles and joints and causes pain. If it gets worse, the pain can spread to the surrounding muscles, then the shoulders and fingers and even the back and legs. Also, this affecting the muscles is often the cause for stiffness of the shoulders.

According to the model, the size of hide’s jaw (the gap between the upper and the lower jaw) when chewing was a lot lower than it used to be due to the wear, and the bones inside the joint no longer fit the normal position. The wear is so extensive that REM assumes the pain spread past the environment of the jaw to parts of the body far away from it.

And thus he concludes this meagre investigation.

Finally, there is one more episode REM wants to add in line with this report.

This is how he remembers it:

That day, hide asked him, “How do I get my teeth back to their original shape?” after he came to REM’s office for consultation.

After the examination, they had, of course, gone for drinks, and this is when hide brought it up. REM said, “For that, I would have to fix all your teeth, I think. There is no time for that now, and there is a risk that the shape of your face is going to change. One day, when we are both old men, and there is time to spare, and visuals no longer matter, I can fix them for you.”

Hide said, “Since my teeth are one source for my stiff shoulders, I want to have them fixed. Just, right now, there really is no time for it, but please do it one day. After all, you are to be my attending physician for the rest of my life.”

As attending physician, REM could have been of some help. Even now, that thought sometimes shoots through his mind.

Afterword (1)

With the irresponsible reports and information going around after that certain day, REM wants to detail his days with hide as precisely as possible. And he wants to let as many people as possible know the truth.

That kind of thought is always with him.

“Hey, REM! Please.”

Every day they have this conversation inside REM’s mind, when he listens carefully for hide’s words from beyond the sky and replies, “Hey, hide. How can I help you, so you can rest easy?”

This is a book that has been created as a joint project by REM and Nakamoto-san of Yokosuka, who goes by the name of BENZO, over the course of half a year.

The aim was to write as accurately, truthfully, and diligently as possible about REM’s life as a musician, the historic band SAVER TIGER as made by hide, as well as REM’s irreplaceable days with his sword friend hide, and the enthusiastic rock scene of Yokosuka.

He was aiming to be accurate, but there are probably points where his memory is off, or his perception differs from others. In that case, he is sincerely sorry.

In the light of the close bond he shared with him who has gone beyond the sky, he hopes it can be forgiven.

Finally, he thanks a great many people, starting with hide’s parents, his younger brother, the people from his office, the former members of X JAPAN, the past members and staff of SAVER TIGER, the members of UNITED, AMIT, Doppel Ganger, LAFERIA, and 4th Dimension, Kuriji-san, and then the people of Zushi Dental Clinic, Takeshi-san, Arakawa-sensei, Nakano-san, Someya-san, and many others. Above all, BENZO, who has become a drinking buddy for life and without whom this book would not exist in this form. All these people have helped him greatly, and he takes this opportunity to express his deepest gratitude.

He dedicates this book to his mother, who went to heaven first and may have met hide there, his father, who is still practicing as a doctor on Shikoku, his older sister and his younger brother, his wife Miwa, and their son.

And of course, he wants to dedicate this book, and the next words that come from his heart, to him, who has gone beyond the sky.

“hide, thank you.”

1999-05-02 His first birthday above the sky.

Afterword (2)

28 October 1999, Thursday, cloudy sky, 10:30 AM.

The night before, REM drank with his bandmates in their usual place, “99”, but their condition wasn’t bad. The window was wide open. Feeling the comforting wind and the morning’s aroma from his fingertips to his hair that once again reached his shoulders, REM went down the national highway No. 134 southwards, towards the coast of Miura. There, on a small hill, different from the rest and seemingly removed from the reality everyone else is living in, is hide’s resting place.

REM wondered if he was plotting new ideas in this place of rest, and if those were now flying around freely through the air…

As always, REM reported about live performances and new songs, and the state of the band, and then made his way back home along the coastal road. There was one tiny thing he noticed:

As REM was talking to hide, a feathered life-form about the size of his little finger’s nail (some kind of insect) was flying through the air around him and the others. At that time, they didn’t particularly care… And now, that life-form was inside the car.

There was no telling if it was the same creature from before, but form and size were identical.

REM calmly closed the window and, without thinking anything, he turned on the car stereo and stepped on the accelerator.

When he got home and left the car, the line between the ordinary and the extraordinary was crossed again.

Several days had passed since then.

It’s the 6th of November now, and with the image of this feathered little life-form flying freely around in his home, REM decides to let the story come to an end.

#hide #pink couldy sky #REM #summary #saver tiger #ending this on some ethically questionable violations of doctor-patient confidentiality #and with a number of endings comparable to the Lord of the Rings #It's always strange to have such a long project come to and end #anyway I hope you enjoyed this 27K “summary”#I enjoyed making it and I'm glad this information is more accessible now (in theory at least)#It'll probably be a while before I do something similar again #but when I do

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lunawings · 8 months ago

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So. Guess where I was tonight.

Oh man what a DISASTER.

Well the show was probably fine but listen. OK LISTEN.

For the past two Miku Expo shows at least, they announced the day before that they were unable to do merch in a tent outside from 2 like they did at other venues, and would be doing it inside from 6.

Except like. Only VIP get in at 6. Everyone else gets in at 7. That means, if you're not VIP, the best you could hope for is to get in right at 7, an hour late, and you would have to line up hours earlier just for that chance. And if you didn't line up hours early, you're just SOL because the show starts at 8.

So, longtime followers of this blog will know that the merch line is a big part of any idol concert to me. But, somewhat regretting my experience in the merch line at Koushien, and learning of the situation above, I decided not to deal with it. Heck, I even made plans beforehand to keep myself from lining up.

I lined up anyway. Only a little early though, because my brain kept nagging and NAGGING ME. You always do merch Luna. Always. You'll regret it. YOU'LL REGRET IT.

So as soon as we got in though, everyone rushed to the lobby to find... the merch was behind us and down the stairs. And the crowd was already basically too thick to go back. WELP.

But it turns out, I did not regret it. Because I learned penlights sold out BEFORE THEY OPENED THE DOORS FOR GENERAL ADMISSION ANYWAY.

That was the one thing I really wanted the most. And I had no chance of getting it, even if I lined up hours earlier as originally planned. So. Actually. I did not regret it.

Except.

THIS WAS SUCH BS.

Merch should not be VIP only in my opinion!! I mean they ALREADY get a special gift bag as it is!?

AND ANOTHER THING

Most people at Japanese idol concerts use two penlights, right? Well, even for the people who could buy one at the venue, it was limited to one per person. And they sold out so quickly online. So, actually being at this show with two official penlights would be nearly impossible unless you had some from previous shows. Which would be fine EXCEPT

THEY TECHNICALLY REQUIRE YOU TO USE ONLY OFFICIAL PENLIGHTS

This was written on the website and announced before the show.

HOW???????

I said screw it and used the generic ones I had programmed for Kinpri cheering. (Miku green was my Taiga green sorryyyy.) I didn't get kicked out or anything but OHHHHHH that made me mad.

I WOULD HAVE USED OFFICIAL ONES

IF YOU HAD LET ME!!?!!?!!

So yeah. The show. I only had two major complaints about the show.

Honestly, I don't know that much Vocaloid music. It's just that like, I only have so many chances to go to Japanese idol concerts nowadays and I'll be damned if I'll miss any of them. So I can't comment on the setlist, but other people seemed to enjoy it.

I was in the orchestra pit which I wanted so I could be in the action. Except.

I just found myself thinking like...... if you really HAVE to use a TV instead of a hologram. Then like. Why not raise it. Just a liiiittle bit. So the shorter people in the orchestra pit can see???

I mean, it didn't really look to me like the characters were really on stage. They tried their best to hide it, but it was obviously a TV. So what's the difference!? Why not put it where everyone can see lol....

My other complaint, and I am surprised I didn't hear anyone else complaining about this... it was super short. Like less than two hours!? One of the shortest concerts I've ever been to. I was kinda pissed looking at the time afterward because I was already committed to staying overnight when I could have made the last bus. Ugh.

But despite all that, I did have fun. Aside from the merch disaster, it felt like a typical Japanese idol concert and I enjoyed bopping along with the music, cheering, screaming, having a good time with Miku.

Miku miku ooo eee ooo.

#hatsune miku #miku expo

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shinedowncharts · 3 months ago

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Shinedown—“Threat to Survival” 9 Year Retrospective/Review

I have often wondered how qualified I am to talk about Shinedown in any sort of quasi-objective or professional manner. I am a super-fan who is hyper-aware of every move the band publicly makes, so much so that I dedicated a social media page to it. Is there any way in which I could give Shinedown fair criticism, should they ever need it? This thought plagued me as I prepared to revisit Threat to Survival, the band’s fifth studio album, in the form of a written review. I have such positive memories and affiliations with this record, and I could not wait to share how this record changed the course of the band’s career; however, Active Rock is sorely lacking critical music reviews on an elevated level. There is a level of buzz-wording and anti-radio sentiment that plagues rock journalism to this day and makes it overall non-interesting.

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Where to begin?

“Asking For It,” the blistering opening track is a thrilling first look into the record that hits the listener with such speed and dopamine that the content and purpose of the song cannot be fully processed until the track is over. What seems to be and lyrically functions as a warning call to those who use position and authority to spit on the little guy who may just fight back later, two other things are going on here.

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First, the album is said by the band in multiple interviews at the time of the record to be eleven different scenarios of life and death contemplations and contradictions, serving as a stark opposition to optimistic, tide-turning Amaryllis that put a bookend in Mainstream/Active Rock crossing into popular culture (Which is, for the most part, continuing to this day, twelve years later). “Asking” is maddening, and it demonstrates a shift in writing that Shinedown was inching closer to with Amaryllis: Instead of writing about personal experiences through a 100% first-person perspective with personal pronouns like “I,” some of it is rebranded as “you,” addressing the audience as if there is a nugget of advice to be mined and the experience is shared, or even a hypothetical. When describing the songs in interviews, the word “you” was used quite often. Whether or not this style of writing is better is anyone’s judgment.

Second, there are a variety of producers on this record—an experiment that I am thankful for but am glad is no longer in practice for the band, truth be told—and Dave Bassett, longtime co-writer of Brent’s who still works with the band to this day, serves up the best production on the whole album. Dave was able to pull out other tracks like “Thick as Thieves,” “Misfits,” and “Outcast,” just to name a few, so he automatically gets my blessing.

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Speaking of “Outcast,” it is my turn to be the outcast because the album does not hit its stride until the fourth track comes along. The preceding tracks were the two singles that defined the era on radio stations and concert setlists, “Cut the Cord” and “State of My Head,” and I have never fully identified with either. I find nothing inherently wrong with these tracks, but there is a hint of Shinedown trying to do something quintessentially Shinedown in 2015 after Active Rock was still reeling from its swift rejection from mainstream pop radio and the streaming era’s complete lack of attention to it. Eric Bass got to try out his production hand for the second time on a major single with “Cord,” which is why this song was chosen as a lead single; yes, it would do well on radio and thematically set the tone, but it would allow for feedback and focus on Bass production. Pete Nappi tried his hand on “State of My Head,” the only song he appears to have produced for Shinedown. “Outcast” gives us a truly unique riff that could blow a car stereo out, a different sound structure than anyone was doing—and is still doing—on the radio, and allowed for Shinedown to flex their muscles vocally, as a low, rumbly cadence switches dramatically between the verses and the pre-chorus to a soaring belt from Smith, who never disappoints. The projection of this song is to announce the comeback of the band that breaks Mainstream Rock records at least three times a year and has enough potential to lead us into the record cycle with as much attitude and feet-to-the-fire lyricism as could offer.

If you want to talk about feet-to-the-fire lyricism, let us visit “How Did You Love,” the final single from the album. Scott Stevens gets to help set up himself on this track as the producer powerhouse he has developed into today. This is in no small part to this track, and he now gets to court artists such as Halestorm, Daughtry, Dorothy, and Scott Stapp. The record has his signature build and structure that I have become all too familiar with in the last year, but it was developed and tested in its adolescence on this track, as well as “Dangerous,” and who could say anything negative about either one of these songs? They are perfect, I have no complaints about either one. I think “Love” in particular set the tone for some increased contemplation on the future, life, and death which is certainly not unheard of in rock music but was lyrically lackluster at the time.

Skipping ahead to “Dangerous,” this song is referenced as a moment where Smith’s ex-girlfriend told him he would be much more “dangerous” if he were to put down the bottle and put his best foot forward in his personal life, let alone the music. He describes this moment as an awakening, and I can hear it in his voice. The passion in his voice comes from a man who truly experienced the awakening he desperately searched for decades and finally found, but not just found, earned. The vocal performance and personal connection are truly what makes the song great. While the instrumentals are wonderful, the selling point is the punch, the empowerment, and the catharsis that Smith brings to the table.

“Thick as Thieves” and “Misfits” are two pieces of the same puzzle and are the two most riveting songs this record has to offer. Reflecting on personal relationships in Smith’s life, namely his first love from back in the day on the latter track, there is a level of orchestration that has only been challenged by “BRILLIANT” and earlier single “The Crow and the Butterfly” to bring a grown man to his knees…That would be me. The longing in the vocals and lyricism on both tracks illustrates that for as glorious as reminiscing on the glory days with glorious people is, those people are gone, and so are the times when those memories are made. With the hope that you feel on “Misfits” and “Thieves,” it is painstakingly obvious in the delivery that those people are never coming back.

With a semi-comprehensive understanding of the standout tracks, the album can be viewed with consideration of quality and cohesion. The quality of the record is there, no question at all. The first two singles blend into the background, in my opinion (Clearly nobody elses, as they both went #1), but are in no way a hindrance, and the only real dud is “Oblivion” with some promising instrumentation and vocal melodies, but drones on way too long and causes a bit of a slog in the middle of the record. I am crying, screaming, dancing, and smiling throughout the whole record, and the songs are properly dispersed where the emotional balance is even throughout. Cohesion is where I must praise the album again: I can trace an emotion that would elicit a fight or flight response on every song, and I do not even have to listen to an interview to figure it out.

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What is most valuable to me about this record is not this record; if there had not been a slew of new producers all on the same record, a single produced by Eric Bass, and an assigned theme to write to and structure the tracklist after, we would not have the boldest and best artistic statement the band has ever made, ATTENTION ATTENTION. While I do not at all want to undermine the work done on this record and the great material, it is a transitional moment in their career. Had Shinedown followed up this album with a selection of songs following a similarish thematic structure and the same or similar selection of producers, the creative output would have dwindled very quickly. This could be said for any record that repeats production teams, but Rob Cavallo was shared across two records. While this record was a beautiful listen and never fails to grab my attention, I remember it as a last hurrah; a goodbye to songs produced by high-class, hired help and engineered for an 11-12 track run of smash radio hits, to then usher in a wave of self-produced, painstakingly personal, and foaming at the mouth with passion concept records that took Shinedown from Active Rock darlings to a truly one of a kind band that can execute a vision with precision and excellence on all cylinders. What better legacy could an album like Threat to Survival ask for?

#shinedown #threat to survival #cut the cord #state of my head #asking for it #how did you love

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swiftie-sherlockian · 8 months ago

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~THE ERAS TOUR (CORAL’S VERSION)~

This post is MASSIVE, so I’m putting a cut here

I changed the order of some of the sets lol

So hello! I came up with what I would have made the Eras Tour setlist look like!! Let’s get into it!!

Lover Set

1 - Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince

The Eras Tour still begins with this song, and the exact same intro.

2 - Cruel Summer

Changing this would be cruel. LOL.

3 - Afterglow

The first song that wasn’t here originally. I think, if done right, there could be a great transition. 4 - The Man

The Man speech follows Afterglow instead. Taylor puts on the sparkly jacket and there we go, back to what you’re used to!

5 - You Need To Calm Down

Still follows The Man, still has the first verse and chorus cut, still in the sparkly jacket.

6 - Lover

Do I have to really explain this? Just as normal, Lover follows. Jacket is taken off, Taylor gets a guitar.

7 - It’s Nice To Have A Friend

Taking the place of The Archer, I added this song instead. I just think The Archer makes a better surprise song than a main setlist song. 8 - Daylight

Finishing off the Lover Set, we have Daylight, on piano like in Paris.

Now onto…

Fearless Set

9 - Fearless

Still the first song, still shortened.

10 - The Best Day

One thing that I wanted to accomplish with remaking the setlist was making some unrightfully short sets longer, which I did with the Fearless Set and as you’ll see later, the Speak Now Set. Now, I love The Best Day, and I feel like it would follow Fearless really well.

11 - White Horse

I like this idea. I don’t know how to explain it, but I like this idea.

12 - You Belong With Me

Belongs here and always will, as a fan favorite. 13 - Love Story

I wanted this to be Track 13, so I made sure my decisions would make it that way.

Our first set that changed its spot comes next…

Speak Now Set

14 - Enchanted

There was no way I was gonna change this.

15 - Dear John

One thing I will never forgive Taylor for is making the Speak Now Set so short, so lengthening it was one of my priorities when remaking the setlist. I just feel like this would go well here.

16 - Mine

Hype everyone up again after depressing breakup song.

17 - Back To December

And bring them down again. Maybe give Taylor a piano for this one. I like this as a surprise song, but let’s still put it on the main setlist because I think it fits there. Make it clear that Speak Now is a rollercoaster of emotions about many exes.

18 - Speak Now

This just should’ve been there!

19 - Long Live

I can’t cut this. It was practically written to end the set.

Now, here’s mu favorite part of my rewritten tour. Something you would never expect, it’s…

1989/Debut Set

20 - Wildest Dreams

“Wait, you mean Style, right?” No, I do not. Style is in the set, but I decided I think Wildest Dreams should open instead. Don’t judge.

21 - This Love

Should’ve been on the real setlist and I stand by it.

22 - Style

Here we go. You wanted Style? Here’s Style.

I do like Style. I just actually genuinely prefer the mellower part of 1989 to the peppier side. Don’t judge, it’s my opinion!

23 - Blank Space

No explanation needed.

24 - Shake It Off

Still no explanation needed.

25 - Clean

But I bet you’re wondering, where’s Bad Blood? It should be next to the other 3 fan favorites, right?

26 - Bad Blood/Should’ve Said No

NO! Because this is the 1989/Debut Set, and I LOVED this on the Reputation Stadium Tour, so why not bring it back? During this, we probably have an iconic costume change (as a result, we probably have different outfits for 1989 part of it, sorry). This kicks off the Debut half of this set, and I knew I needed a Debut Set because there should’ve been one.

27 - Picture To Burn

Without question, this had to be there.

28 - Teardrops On My Guitar

Can we give Taylor an electric guitar for this one?

29 - Our Song

Has to end it.

reputation set

30 - …Ready For It?

No other song could open the Rep Set, except for maybe…

31 - I Did Something Bad

Should’ve been on the set.

No need to provide an explanation for the changeless…

32 - Delicate

33 - Don’t Blame Me

34 - Look What You Made Me Do

Would have put Getaway Car here, but it’s better as a piano surprise song. I would also want to add more costumes for this set. I’ve seen rumors of a version of the bodysuit where the snake is green instead of red, and I dunno if that’s an edit, but even if it is, it should be on my version.

🍂evermore set🍂

35 - willow

Here’s the evermore set!! Sorry for moving it, I just think I like it better later in the tour. Now, I cut ‘tis the damn season (no body, no crime still is before it when HAIM’s around) because I just don’t like it as part of the set. willow belongs as the opener.

36 - gold rush

Maybe shortened, but I think it’s good as a full song. Also, let’s keep the cloak for this one.

37 - marjorie

38 - champagne problems

39 - tolerate it

As they are on the real tour.

Red Set

40 - 22

Where’s the Red Set? Here’s the Red Set!

41 - Red

Why isn’t this song more popular? Add it!

42 - We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (Rock Version)

IT’S BACKKKKKKK

43 - I Knew You Were Trouble (Rock Version)

Yes!!!!

44 - All Too Well (10 Minute Version)

🪩folklore set🪩

45 - the 1

It’s always been here. But she stays on the roof because guess what was never removed?

46 - invisible string

Joe Alwyn don’t get her down!

47 - the last great american dynasty

Followed by the love triangle all in a row (RIP betty speech, you were a necessary sacrifice for this beautiful row)

48 - cardigan

49 - betty

50 - august

Don’t be mad, guys

But I cut the illicit affairs bridge

And my tears ricochet

It’s better as a surprise song!!!!!!!

In favor of…

51 - hoax

And

52 - the lakes (original version)

I just like this better!

Surprise Songs go here!

53 - Guitar Surprise Song

54 - Piano Surprise Song

Midnights Set

Alright, before we get into the Midnights Set, I wanna thank you guys for taking your time to read my version of The Eras Tour. I know you guys may not agree with every change I make, and in comments/reblogs, I would like you to BE RESPECTFUL!!! and not attack me over my changes. Thank you, and let’s get started!

55 - Lavender Haze

56 - Maroon

I do like the surprise song version, but I think it would sound far better as part of the set.

57 - Anti-Hero

58 - Midnight Rain

59 - Bejeweled

So wait, what happened to Vigilante Shit and Mastermind?

Ehhhhh… cut in favor of…

60 - Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve (shortened)

And

61 - Hits Different (shortened)

My reasoning being that those two songs would work great in mashups with songs from The Tortured Poets Department once that would have come out.

62 - Karma

Nothing else would do.

Thanks again!! Bye!!

@a-victorian-girl

#taylor swift #the eras tour #debut era #fearless era #speak now era #red era #1989 era #reputation era #lover era #folklore era #evermore era #midnights era

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notafraidofredyellowandblue · 2 years ago

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What would be your perfect Rammstein concert setlist? 🌻

Oooohhh, time to delve into the old videos again to get inspired 😊 thank you @me-la-nie ofcourse much of this changes now and again, or some get switched for other songs, but all in all it would be something like

1. Ramm4 (or Rammlied, i like the opener to be a bit up-tempo 🌺)

2. Angst

3. Sehnsucht

4. Sex (they dropped that in 2019 after a few shows, but i think it worked really well)

5. Morgenstern

6. Reise Reise (because i love the guitar solo)

7. Mutter (i know they'll not play int again, but i love that song)

8. Adios

9. Klavier

Here i'm going to put the transition to B stage, but a B stage more similar to the one in the Made in Germany tour where the band is actually playing...the tranition also gives Till a break from singing, for which they currently use the Deutschland RMX 🌺 (sorry Richard, that one's not on the list 😘)

while going tho small stage a remix of Armee der Tristen is played

10. Bück Dich

11. Mann gegen Mann

Whole band back to mainstage with the rubber boats (yes, we're keeping that n)

12. Ausländer (because that follows very well from the crowdboating 😊 )

13. Du Riechst So Gut

14. Zerstören

15. Zeit

16. Te Quiero Puta (why should only the Mexican fans get that one live 😊)

Encores 1

17. Mein Teil

18. Deutschland

19. Du Hast

20. Dicke Titten (imagine the whole stadium singing along to that 😊)

Encores 2

21. Frühling in Paris (but the way they did it in 2012, with everyone playing right from the start)

22. Sonne

23. Adieu (keeping that one as the closer)

🥰

(and then my perfect place would be if they played Pinkpop again, then i think i could manage the courage to go 😊)

#perfect setlist #rammstein

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sleepanonymous · 8 months ago

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What are your top 5 Sleep Token songs annnd why?

Also love your blog! 💜

Oooh interesting question, ty Anon! I'll go in descending order (mostly so number one should be cut off naturally because it's kind of personal). Also! Spoilers for the TOG Tour setlist.

Number five is Vore, because out of 17k+ minutes I listened to Sleep Token on Spotify in 2023, I listened to Vore the most. Once again shouting out Vessel for writing a song about one of my squicks and making it one of my top 5. I thought it was an absolute banger the first time I heard it back in February 2023 and it's still one of my go-to Sleep Token songs.

Number four is Hypnosis. It was the first song I'd heard by Sleep Token (and I thank Spotify every day for putting it into my Discover Weekly playlist back in 2022). Hypnosis from BRRF 2022 was also the first YouTube video I ever watched of Sleep Token (fun facts: the instant I realized they were all masked I thought they were super pretentious, and I also mistook III for a woman😅).

Number three is TNDNBTG. I'm not kidding when I say that Vessel singing this song to me live altered my brain chemistry (even if it was for 1.5 seconds). Hearing this live in Phoenix was one of the best moments of my life, and then reliving it in Albuquerque was almost equally as amazing. Plus Vessel bowed right in front of me after the song (not saying he bowed to me, just that I was in a lucky spot lol). If things work out in Denver this next weekend, I'll also get the sigil for TNDNBTG as my first tattoo on my 32nd birthday.

Number two goes to Jaws. This is another song I fell in love with immediately when I first heard it, and everything I've learned about it since (from the alternate live lyrics to the fact that Vessel, II, and the producer finished the song in 4 days) has made it that much better. It's one of the only Sleep Token songs I never skip and am always in the mood to listen to. (Spoiler Alert but) If neither Atlantic or Heaven is a Spectrum existed, then I would call Jaws Vessel's magnum opus.

My favorite Sleep Token song is Atlantic. To be honest I didn't click with this song until I forced myself to sit down and actually listen to the entirety of TPWBYT sometime around June last year. Funnily enough, that happened in two sittings because when I started making connections to Atlantic, I was utterly shook and didn't end up listening to the rest of the album right then because this song went on repeat. Without getting too deep or trauma dumping, I've struggled with SH in the past and I've been through several bouts of suicidal ideation. I'm also hyper-independent, so the whole idea of the third and fourth verse is my absolute worst nightmare. It's the first Sleep Token song I made such a severe personal connection to, which is essentially Vessel's main goal with his music. I just hope to god that he wasn't drawing from personal experience.

#anon asks #sleepanon answers #sleepanon rant #song atlantic #song jaws #song tndnbtg #song the night does not belong to god #song hypnosis #song vore #cw self harm #cw suicide

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blxckdragonfly · 2 years ago

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Finding You (Darkness Finds You Universe #5-- Part 1)

(Song: "Finding You" by Kesha.

Warning: Slight smut on the page, other than that none! And also fluffy af shit.

Pairing: Chris Motionless & Lycia Winters "Pronunciation of her name: Lai-shuh" (Played by Ana De Armas), featuring Lyra Crowe Büdgen (Lilith Czar-- Played by Mothica) & Malakai Black.

Synopsis: Lyra receives the news from MB that Chris and Lycia's relationship has been leaked to the public and she has to be the one to deliver the message to them.

Word Count: 3,059

A/N: And we're back! This is a two parter piece because it's super long. Myself and @blackrose-92 had written so much that I had to break it up into parts on it's own! We hope you enjoy it. x Tiger

Spotify: Linked Below!)

Allen County War Memorial Coliseum– Fort Wayne, Indiana: September 9th, 2022.

(Lyra’s POV)

“Thank you, Indiana! I am Lilith Czar! Goodnight!” I say as myself and my bandmates take our bow after playing our last song of our set, which was Buzzkill. Tonight’s show was a blast, we had the audience singing every word of the setlist back at us. We’d been flown in for the second half of the Trinity of Terror tour after We Came As Romans had caught a bad case of COVID.

The boys in Ice Nine, Black Veil and Motionless are going to have so much fun tonight. I walk backstage after my drummer, Lindsay and I grab a water bottle to soothe my hurting voice. When I grab my phone, I see that there are a few texts from Malakai and a missed call. I raise a brow and swipe through my phone.

Malakai: Uh, wife? You might want to get a hold of Chris and let him know about this.

He attached a link to an article which I open and my jaw drops at the words I read:

Motionless In White Frontman’s New Flame?

The photos in the article show Chris and his new girlfriend, Lycia, kissing as she was helping him with his stage makeup. I was shocked but also above all, mad and upset that their relationship had been leaked to the press and media. I get up after draining my water bottle and I respond to his text.

Lyra: On it, Shadow. Thank you for the heads up, husband.

I put my phone in my pocket and I started walking further backstage, stopping when I saw Chris with Lycia. The sight makes my heart melt and I think of my own relationship. She’s leaning against him in his arms and he moves in to place a soft kiss against her cheek.

My heart. I thought. I shake my head and get my focus back as I slowly walk up to them.

“Hey, you two,” I say, as Chris pulls away from Lycia, keeping an arm around her. “Malakai messaged me. He wants me to show you this, Chris. It’s not good.”

I pulled up the article on my phone and I showed him the leaked photos of him and Lycia. I saw anger cross Chris’s face and he grits his teeth.

“Are you fucking serious?!” Chris growls as he kicks at the wall behind him and Lycia.

“... That’s why I kept my phone.” I said with a sigh and I saw Lycia let out a huff in frustration.

“Well, I knew that was going to happen to us. Sooner or later,” Lycia says and Chris pauses with a look of shock and he raises both of his eyebrows raised. My jaw hits the floor in shock.

“What?” Chris says and Lycia shrugs as she looks at Chris in the eyes.

“I’ve been around my fair share of celebrities as a photographer,” Lycia explains. “It, sadly, comes with the territory.”

Chris looks flabbergasted at how well his own girlfriend is taking the news that their relationship is out in the world, not in the way they wanted to announce their relationship and I don’t blame him. I was in the same thought process as he was.

“Sure, babe,” Lycia continues. “I’m a little bit mad about the whole thing. But that’s part of dating a celebrity and it’s almost as certain as death and taxes. The paparazzi following you.”

I glance over at Chris, who’s still frozen in shock with his jaw on the floor. It made me amused.

“Dude, you should see yourself,” I said. “You look like you just saw Corey Taylor run out of the bathroom naked.”

As soon as I said that, Chris’s facade cracked and he started to laugh, shaking his head.

“That’s fucking disgusting, Lyra,” Chris says. “Don’t ever say that again.”

I start to laugh at myself. “What? It’s the best thing that I could come up with.”

“Ugh. Thanks to you, I need to be fucking baptized,” Chris mutters and he hears Lycia start laughing before glancing over at her with a devious smile. “Or maybe I can settle with a shower.”

“Ew.” I put both of my hands up in the air. “Alright. I’m out of here.”

I turn and walk away as I hear Chris laughing and I find a quiet place in the venue to call Malakai and have a talk because I’m sure he’s wanted to hear from me since I got off stage.

_____________________________________________________________

(Lycia’s POV)

Chris takes my hand and he walks me back to Motionless’s dressing room after making sure the room was empty, he shuts the door behind us and locks it. He backs me against the door, meeting his lips with mine in a deep kiss. I start to giggle after a few minutes and pull away, staring at him.

“What’s got you so eager, babe?” I ask as I see a grin cross his face.

I wanna feel you tonight like the very first time

Let's run away, baby, drive straight into the moonlight

Kiss me and tell me you're mine like no one’s watching

Like time is stopping

“I’m really impressed with how you were able to handle our relationship being leaked like that,” Chris murmurs, the seductive change in his tone making me shiver– my heart starts to race. “All I want right now… Is you.”

I gave him a touched look as I knot my dark red acrylic nailed fingers into his blonde hair, eliciting a soft groan from his lips, I smiled at the sound. My heart starts to flutter and pitter patter in my chest at the sight of him.

“Do we even have time?” I say. “Lyra just got off stage.”

I hear a soft chuckle from him. “Oh, believe me, honey. When it comes to loving you– I will always make time.”

I melted in his arms and I gave him a seductive smile of my own.

“Mm. Is that so, babe?” I pushed him onto the couch beside the vanity, I moved to straddle his hips as I wrap my arms around his neck. He nods at me as I lean forward into his lips. “Well, then. Give me all you’ve got, Motionless.”

I feel his fingers knot in the strands of my hair as his lips meet mine in another kiss, this kiss being so passionate that it takes the breath out of me. He and I take as little time as possible to get ourselves undressed, he places subtle but loving kisses across my skin and scars.

“God, you’re so fucking beautiful,” Chris murmurs as his hands run along my exposed skin, caressing my tattoos and scars. “How did I end up being so worthy to be able to fall in love with such a gorgeous woman like you? I love you so much.”

I know forever don't exist

But after this life, I'll find you in the next

So when I say "forever," it's the goddamn truth

I'll keep finding, finding you

Tears fill my eyes as I look at him, seeing the warmth and the strength in his chocolate brown eyes, heart beating at every word he speaks to me.

“I can say the same about such a wonderful man like you,” I whisper. “I love you more.”

I close the gap between us and I meet his lips with mine, the feeling of wanting him pushing me over the edge, I sink myself onto him. A gasp full of pleasure escaping me as I break the kiss that we share. I dig the nails of my right hand into his shoulder and my left is in his blonde hair.

His hands found their way to guide me, he met my lips deeply and passionately.

“Fuck,” I whimper into his skin as he kept our momentum going.

His hand moves to silence me so we don’t get caught. The way his hand covered my mouth was so hot.

"Baby. Sh." He whispers as a grin crosses his face before he moves his hand away, meeting my lips again, my nails scratching into his skin and I hear him growl softly, his warm breath against the side of my neck. My eyes closed at the pleasure.

Fifteen to thirty minutes later, I awakened from the most intense bout of making love that I’ve ever had with Chris. I feel his fingers running through my caramel brown hair and I look around to still see that we’re in the dressing room together. He feels me starting to stir in his arms, I let out a soft whimper as I stretch my now sore body from gripping onto him and the couch, my eyes meeting his.

I'm gonna search for your love, right through Hell and Heaven

Millions of years yet to come and in all dimensions

I know that you'll always be my happy ending

My happy ending

“There she is,” Chris murmurs with a soft smile on his face. “Hi, baby.”

“Hi,” I whisper and he places a gentle kiss onto my forehead. My fingers tracing across his tattoos on his arms. “Well, I think we should do that more often.”

I hear a soft chuckle from him. “Don’t tempt me, Lycia. It might start happening.” I giggle as his fingers move along my skin, tickling me.

“Mm. Aren’t you supposed to go on stage with Motionless?” I say and I hear a faint laugh from him.

“No, not yet,” He moves the dampened strands of my hair that have stuck to my forehead aside. “Black Veil’s still playing. They usually have a pretty long set, so we’re okay. I can hold onto you a little bit longer. No need to worry.”

I breathe a soft sigh and I rest my head back on his shoulder, I feel him caress my back softly as I shiver and move closer to him for warmth, wrapping my arms around his waist. “Jesus, it’s freezing in here.”

“Mm. Well, I could warm you up some more.” I feel his fingers moving toward my skin again and I start to giggle.

“As much as I would love that, what happened to you not being tempted?” I chuckle as I see a smirk cross his face. He keeps his pattern on my back going, before he reaches over for his discarded Cyberhex bomber jacket, draping it around both of us to keep me warm. I smile as I settle myself against his chest.

“So, what are we going to do about the article?” Chris asks as I start tracing the haunted house piece tattooed on his chest. I shrug at him.

“There isn’t much we can do other than confirming it and embracing it,” An idea crosses my mind. I reach for my own phone, which is in the pocket of my faux leather jeans.

No, I know forever don't exist

But after this life, I’ll find you in the next

So when I say "forever," it’s the goddamn truth

I'll keep finding, finding you

I open up the camera on my phone, he looks at me with a raised brow which makes me giggle as I take his hand in my own, intertwined our fingers together so the jack o’ lantern he has tattooed on his hand is showing and the moon I have on my right wrist is showing too. I took a photo of our hands together. I open up my Twitter and I tweet out that same photo with a simple caption and tagging him in it–

LyciaRose: 🖤

Suddenly I hear his phone get that notification, he saw it and a soft smile crosses his face, he not only following my Twitter back but responding to me:

ChrisMotionless: 🖤

As soon as that happened, my phone blew up with responses from his fanbase, some of them already in support of us and congratulating us on our relationship.

"Let the madness begin," I murmured. I see a look of worry cross his eye but in a reassuring gesture, I lean in and kiss him softly. I feel him relax under me and melt into me. We break apart and his hand caresses the side of my face.

"I'm not going to be surprised if I get asked about you in interviews from now on." He breathes a sigh.

"Baby, you can say as much or as little as you want," I bring our intertwined hands up to rest against my chest. "It doesn't bother me."

He leans in and meets my lips in a sweet and tender kiss.

"You're so incredible, you know that? You truly, truly are." He whispers into my lips.

The fingers of my free hand brushes the blonde of his hair, before lying against his face. My thumb tracing the tattoo under his jawline. I watch as his eyes close at my touch.

"As sweet as that statement is, and it is," My voice stays honeyed and soft. "I'm not. I'm happy and in love with the man of my dreams. I won't even let the public eye take that away from me."

His hands cup my face as he kisses me again, with a love I've never felt before.

“Come on, babe. It’s only a matter of time before they find out we’re gone,” I reluctantly pulled away from his warm arms, as much as I would have loved to be in them.

“You’re probably right.” I hear a sigh from him as he watches me put my clothes back on as he moves to do the same, I put on my red strappy crop top from Pretty Little Thing, my faux leather jeans from Fashion Nova and my black heeled boots. I take his Cyberhex bomber jacket and put it on, running my fingers through my hair quickly.

“I’m taking this by the way,” I glance at him with a soft smile. I hear him chuckle softly, kissing the top of my head as he puts his own clothes for the stage back on.

“I shouldn’t expect anything less, even though it’s very cliche,” He murmurs as he places a soft peck on my lips. “But you always look fucking adorable in my stuff anyway.”

I blush and look away from his eyes. “Why, thank you.” I giggle as he unlocks the door to the dressing room and offers me his hand, which I take. We walk back out of the room together, hand in hand.

I get my camera gear out of its case and put my camera around my neck as I watch Chris get ready for the show, offering to help him with his makeup before heading out to the pit before Motionless hits the stage. I take my photos of him and the band throughout their set.

Towards the end of their set, when they played Eternally Yours– I watched as Chris took one of the roses that was taped to his mic stand. I still have my camera and see it in my lens as I see him knelt down in front of me, he reaches out for me to take the rose.

“Baby? What– What’s this for?” I say as I shrug my camera back around my neck. Chris leaned closer to my ear and I heard cheering from the audience.

“This is me apologizing again for bringing up those bad memories,” He says. I give him a confused look for a moment.

“What do you–” It hits me, he’s mentioning the day when we were on set of the Masterpiece music video, and when I spoke of my drug issues and losing Marcus. “Babe, you didn’t know.”

“I still want to make it right, honey,” He murmured as I took the rose from him. He places a warm and loving kiss on my lips, I hear “aww’s” from the audience before I realized that I forgot to take photos of him handing out the roses to the audience. I tuck the rose behind my ear and I get back into shooting the photos.

After their set, Chris and I walked backstage together, hand in hand and the first person we see is Lyra, who has just gotten off Facetime with her husband.

“Aww, who would have thought that Chris Motionless was such a romantic?” Lyra teases. I hear a sigh from Chris.

“Let me guess, you saw that?” Chris says as Lyra shows him the photos she took of him handing me the rose during Eternally Yours.

“Don’t worry, Malakai and I won’t say anything,” Lyra says with a shrug.

“You told Malakai?!” I hear Chris’s voice raise as he glares at Lyra.

“Maybe…” Lyra shrugs her shoulders with a devious grin. Chris rolls his eyes at her.

“Motherfucker,” Chris mutters. “As long as you didn’t tell anyone else about that…”

“Or what?” I see Lyra turn her head to the side, her voice taking on a darker tone as Chris starts to brace himself at seeing her blank expression. “Malakai and I can easily kick your head off, you know.”

“Fine. I’ll fucking shut up now,” Chris mumbles and Lyra’s face becomes normal once more, a friendly smile gracing her face. Chris flinches. “Goddammit, Lyra. I hate it when you do that.”

I take on a look of pure confusion, more so a look of “What just happened?” and Lyra chuckles.

“What you just saw is a small glimpse of my work in House of Black,” Lyra says. I glance over at Chris.

“Well, baby. She’s definitely one of your weirder friends, I’ll tell you that.” I say and I hear Chris chuckle and Lyra laughs. “No offense.”

“None taken, Lycia. I take it as a compliment,” Lyra says with a smile. Chris pulls me closer, wrapping his arm around my waist, I lay my head on his chest as he speaks to Lyra about a proposition of her husband’s, that one of their friends come up on stage with him and do Slaughterhouse which he had no problem with. Quite frankly, all I wanted was to get back to the bus and get some sleep after Ice Nine’s set. I was exhausted but at least I knew that as long as I had him, this whole matter about our relationship being leaked will go away. I hope.

I know forever don't exist

After this life, I'll find you in the next

When I say "forever," it's the goddamn truth

I’ll keep finding, finding you, oh….

#darkness finds you #darkness finds you universe #chris motionless x lycia winters #malakai black x lyra crowe #chris motionless fanfic #chris motionless #motionless in white #Spotify

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sugaggukkie · 5 months ago

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BACK again from the dead for another edition of I Review Kpop Performances At Western Music Festivals, today’s edition is possibly the most important one of all time it’s QUEEN’S OF THE UNIVERSE, THE LOVELY LADIES OF IVE!!!!!!!!!!

Where to fucking begin!!!! Let’s do the good the bad and the baddies.

THE GOOD: they sounded amazing. the vocals were THERE from all six members!!!! i didn’t think a single member of the group was slacking and i was actually very surprised by how strong gaeul and leeseo’s vocals came through and i FUCKING LOVED that they used hand mics the whole time!!!! yes ladies!!! i also really really really liked that they did what i would consider a very traditional kpop performance for a western fest. thinking to the other kpop acts ive watched, a lot of them are acts that are already formulated to appeal to western artists, like black pink and le sserafim and newjeans, but ive is like Thee Most Kpop A Group Can Get. they’re dressed like fairies, they have regimented, impressive choreography for every single song, they just really feel so classic (on that note justice for classic and wave not on the setlist) and I thought it was interesting and exciting to see it on a stage like lolla!!! as someone who has been in the field at the main stage at lolla more times than i can count, a truly engrossing and impressive performance like IVE’s would’ve knocked my fucking socks off

THE BAD: lollapalooza’s sound engineer should be taken out back and shot. the first like half of the performance was amazing and you could hear the girls very clearly over both the band and the backtrack and they were fucking killing it, and then at some point the ratchet up the sound of the band and drown out the girls entirely until it clears up A LITTLE later in the performance but not nearly enough to be able to hear them clearly which i was PISSED about. ALSO whoever did the band arrangements for this set can get fucked. making off the record sound like boring lounge music should be a crime punishable by death. speeding up the tempo for after like and then slowing it down on love dive were such weird and bad decisions like IF IT AINT BROKE DONT FIX IT WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT. sometimes i think live bands add to kpop performances but NOT THIS ONE i wish they would’ve just sent them out there with an instrumental backtrack, no voiceover, and let the girlies SING. UGH.

THE BADDIES: god fucking damn was i so pleasantly surprised by the STAGE PRESENCE from all of the girlies!!!!!!!!! as someone who has like very very very closely followed ive’s career since their debut it’s truly so wild to see how much they’ve grown as performers and how much confidence they have on stage!!!! i remember watching stages for eleven where you can tell they are petrified to make a single mistake or put one elbow out of their preassigned formation, and now to watch them at lolla being lose and fun and spontaneous and making each number their own is so great and i love it so much. special shoutout to gaeul who SLAYYYYYYED so fucking hard I couldn’t take my eyes off her she was ELECTRIC!!!!! also rei is a tried and true natural born PERFORMER you can tell she’s so comfortable on stage and she’s so fun and inviting muah muah muah love you miss rei my queen

Final review: I love IVE more than the rest of the world combined and I thought they absolutely crushed their lolla stage many fucking blessings

#favorite song: ascendio literally gave me full body chills it was so fucking GOOD #hearing Wonyoung yell ‘LOVE ME. DONT TOUCH ME.’ at the crowd sent me to another dimension #SO GOOD. UNBELIEVABLY GOOD.#least favorite song: the fucking icona pop cover that is so horrible I literally skipped through it bc I couldn’t take it #also that seemed to be the song they had the most trouble with in terms of sound mixing #which tracks bc the song is cursed #special shoutout: eleven is one of the best debut songs of all time in my opinion and still slaps so fucking hard two years later #final note: all this did is make me love IVE more and make me even more mad i didn’t get to see them live when they were on the west coast #ive please god come back soon PLEASE GOD i need to see liz sing IN PERSON.#text

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folkwhore1998 · 2 months ago

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It feels like a perfect night to dress up as eras and make fun of our exes

The red set!!! So special. Red brought a few popular Taylor smash hits. The setlist itself- I understand why it is the way it is. 22, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, I Knew You Were Trouble, ATW 10 Min Version. (Sidenote: WHY HAS SHE NOT DONE GIRL AT HOME??????) Everyone knows and loves them. However.. I would have loved to see Holy Ground or Red on there, but I understand why they are not on there. Keeping the songs everyone knows is a more logical and inclusive approach for the fan base! Also, I see far too much yapping about how she should not have put the ATW 10 MV on the setlist and I need the yapping to stop. She sat on this version of the song for YEARS and has never had the chance to sing it live prior to its release. I love the fact that it is on the setlist.

We have a few different Red sequin shirts apart of this setlist: (which are ranked with my favorites first- I still LOVE all of them)

I BET YOU THINK ABOUT ME

A LOT GOING ON AT THE MOMENT

I KNEW U WERE TROUBLE

THIS IS NOT TAYLOR'S VERSION

WHO'S TAYLOR SWIFT ANYWAYS? EW

WE ARE NEVER EVER GETTING BACK TOGETHER LIKE EVER

I am so happy that I Bet You Think About Me got its own t-shirt because the song is incredible but also it's just so damn funny. Taylor is everywhere and there is no escaping that because she is a music phenomenon so yeah, I bet you DO think about her. (Just waiting on I Bet You Think About Me x Tim McGraw mashup... when you think Tim McGraw... I BET YOU THINK ABOUT ME)

We have one Red body suit as well. I do believe at one point they changed a little bit, but nothing super drastic that it is worth noting.

We also have the Red trench coat she wears during Red.

We are coming to the end of The Eras Tour, and the likely hood of there being a new red body suit is basically 0%, but I would have loooooooved to see it. I like the one she wears of course and I think it fits the Red era well, but I love variety (and Red).

How the hell she wore the trench coat in the summer heat is beyond me. Under the stage lights too? I'd call it a night after ATW 10 min version if I were her LOL. Which ATW 10 minute version being on the setlist is amazing. She does sing like 10 minutes straight in all of the eras, keep in mind she is also playing guitar for the entire duration of the song.

I think we can all agree that the 22 hat trend is amazing and so much fun. I love seeing how excited the baby Swifties get. I am so happy for all the little girls who got to experience this because they will likely remember it for the rest of their lives, but I wish we would have seen the OG Swifites get the opportunity as well!

I am also so obsessed with Kam's moment during WANEGBT. Do you guys think Taylor knows what he is going to say every show?

Question: What songs are some of your favs from Red?

Some of my favorite Red set moments:

SHE LOVES A RAIN SHOW!!!!! I saw someone talk about how the way she approaches rain shows as a fun and positive thing helps fans stay excited despite the rain. Like tell me why I want to be able to experience a rain show.

Up yours wanker is diabolical LOL

Not the buggggg. And tell me again how you think she lip syncing? Riiiiiiiggggght.

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wavernot4love · 10 months ago

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alright y'all lil (alright, maybe not so little) recap of the second show of AG's Boom Done tour last night 3.4 in Buffalo @ one of my favorite venues, Mohawk Place. because my brain commits absolutely everything to memory at shows & i like writing it all down before i forget

(for fun & plus maybe folks going to this tour want to know what's shakin, since i haven't seen much online yet):

(note there will be setlist spoilers)

- alright so first, a freakin HIGHLIGHT for me was, of course, GET OUT!!!

Anthony was just kinda messing around with his guitar & then teased it by being like "hmm... how should i play this..." and then went into that and the crowd reception was AWESOME, dude. whatever the opposite of masking is, that's what i was doing there. i definitely started physically jumping up & down once i realized what it was (typical wavernot4love @ the AG show behavior). aka evidently he knew your boy (who like i've mentioned on here, got into Circa last summer through a kind person at a Dunes show rec'ing me Get Out & then BSN. Get Out was straight up my introduction 2 Circa) was in the building (/Ih).

also, i had to shorten my clip to post because in the rest i must've had my phone right next to my mouth,,, which made for some horrifying tone deaf live vox from wavernot4love. be glad i spared y'all from that one.

(i'm gonna put one of those keep reading thingies here, click it 2 see the rest)

- he also played Dyed In The Wool & Frozen Creek, continuing that theme (though I expected these more since he's played em recently). Dyed In The Wool with everyone singing along during the chorus was probably my top moment, and one that's gonna stick with me forever, honestly. i remember thinking it straight up felt like, a churchlike (but positive) experience or something during the songs everyone did that for (remember, it's just anthony this tour no backing band, so it was somewhat quiet in there). more on that later, but AG kept pointing out how nice the singing along was & how fun/awesome this all was, and man, that it was.

- he mentioned valuing spontaneity over a planned setlist every night and basically implied he was just goin for whatever felt right at the time. so just consider the songs i mention here as a basic guideline, he could very well switch stuff up every night. i love that he's like this when it comes to shows - idk dude, like, at one point he even asked folks what time it was, laughing when they told him, jokingly accusing them of being untrustworthy & then going right back into the tunes. dude was just here to play, for as long as he could.

- kinda tied to that, there was a running gag of the set being "inconsistent" (his word). he'd bring up jokingly that there'd be moments where everyone could be singing along, and then songs that nobody knows (and he'd jokingly "apologize" for that), and he'd even (lightheartedly) call specific people out and be like (to laughs) "look at this person, they have no *idea* what i'm gonna play next!" actually i think he said that before Get Out. at one point he was (paraphrased slightly) like, "so if i start playing 12 Circa songs in a row, let me know." i love how he just does whatever the hell feels right in the moment.

- also a couple times he messed up while starting a song (i think due to laughing) and bro would call out folks laughing at him for it (lightheartedly) and be like "this is all performance. vou don't know what goes into this!" (this was not at all serious and said through laughter. straight up half the show was all of us in that room just cracking up together)

- he introduced his Title Fight cover (Numb, But I Still Feel It) by calling TF one of his favorite bands & joking that they're gonna hear this & think it's time to get back together so... if you hear that Title Fight reunited, you know why, which, well, if you know that side of the scene, you know what's up. real shits and giggles moment, if i do say so myself.

- at one point (only bad thing) someone at the front was being objectively Weird in the way people (unfortunately) do to try to get an artist's attention (let's just say it involved throwing money (????? literally what) while yelling stuff about understanding because they're in the industry (??)) and he honestly handled it with so much grace. he pretty much said that made him uncomfortable etc and he would Not be taking more of their money please, he already did that, and that led to him ranting for a second i think mostly to himself in a thinking out loud/under his breath kinda way about *hating* having to sell stuff in the first place in order to do this and like,,, i go into this a bit in the tags but it genuinely reminded me of how i get when i'm passionate about something. what i'm trying to say, is dude clearly was heated & meant it. fully. just felt relevant to include

- then he ranted about something related to the moneythrowing, drunk (question mark) weirdo (long story, but it ended in him telling them to tip bartenders with their money instead of weird things), then used that to go on a tangent about how we should always tip people working in service in general and respect/be kind to them even if they seem rude or whatever because doing that shit is hard & sucks and maybe your kindess will be the wakeup call that causes them to one day have a moment where they're like, man, i was a dick back then for no reason. (i feel like i am nearly direct quoting him here)

- then after a song he joked about the incident saving we were probably just all watching like 🧍‍♂️ and it was like watching dad yell at mom at the dinner table while you just sit there staring at the ground and safe to say the mood was fully lightened after that moment of self awareness fhfhfh

- then a few songs later i guess the person that was being weird had left so he was like, (at this point there were no weird vibes whatsoever, like we were all just scoffing/laughing at the situation and cheering him on) "oh that person who hates me left. did they give the bartender that money?" (someone implied they thought so) and he was like "good." and that was the end with that weirdo situation lol. i have absolutely no idea why that person, drunk or not, thought that was a normal cool thing to do. as always, please don't be weird 2 musicians they are in every sense just Some Guys (gender neutral), treat them like anyone else.

- back 2 totally unserious things, during... uh don't mind me, like i've said in my previous posts i'm still getting 2 know Boom Done, so whatever song has like, the horns kinda near the end? he just started making freakin. horn noises since since there were, in fact, no horns in the building and made us all do them too and everyone was just straight up cackling because it was so stupid (/pos).

- idk one thing that stood out to me was one person belting along at the end of... i can't remember what song it was actually, i think one of his older tunes, but you could tell he heard & a song later complimented it & said it was beautiful. i'm telling ya, he kept going on about how nice folks singing along sounded and encouraging that, which was awesome because i wasn't sure what the vibe was gonna be there since it was just him playing.

- don't want to go into detail since it feels like something between Anthony & whoever he decides to tell it to in real time, ya know, but he did tell a pretty extensive story leading up to Miracle Sun. in terms of themes, it was in regards to (with plenty of laughs mixed into the serious bits, of course) letting folks that matter to him down + falling into a cycle of engaging in stuff that temporarily made him feel better but was moreso just self destructive, in the past. just interesting stuff to hear in connection to a song.

- at the end, before Dear Child, he just talked in the most honest manner about knowing he's let people down, cancelled shows (there were laughs mixed in here too), just not been the best version of himself over the years etc, but appreciating how long everyone has stuck around, and how we keep coming back, & jow much it means whenever we tell someone go check out a song or anything like that, & helping him continue to do this and also support his family and whatnot and man it just. embodied everything i love about AG solo sets i guess. i just admire how open a book &p vulnerable dude is. while i love his more theatric frontman persona of course as it's fun as hell, it's so nice at solo shows like this to hear more from him, in seriousness and otherwise. also dude was posting about how fun it was on instagram later so i'm just glad we all had a great time.

- also at one point before a new tune he was talking about these cds he had that have that on it + some rerecordings, Frozen Creek (feat. Keith of GOW), etc. i love cds so i ran to snag one later of course (they're $12)

- as for other merch he had a few shirts (like that cute one i keep seeing around, with him & the puppy), some art prints, & the Boom Done book thingy (i really wanted it but couldn't swing the $25 right now sadly)

anyways,, i posted on Setlist FM for the first time, here are all the songs i remember for sure (there were definitely at least 4/5 others i am not thinking of, i'd say he did 17ish songs, he played for close to an hour and a half. keep in mind he talked a LOT with us which was awesome)

edit: someone added a few more!!!

anyways, that's the show!!! 1. i may or may not be trying 2 figure out how to pull off one of the other northeast dates (looking @ Cleveland, which is closer but i'd have to drive to, or New York, which is further (+ yknow.. dealing w getting around in NY) but i could take a bus to, this weekend/next week as we speak,,,, that's how freakin good and homey (more on that in the tags aka uhh literal diary section of this post) and impactful this show was.

and 2. if any of this (especially said tags) sounds loopy it sure is because i wrote most of this at roughly four am last night post show, when i was even moreso still back *at* the show in my head. i still stand by all of it though of course, i just know it might not be the most coherent.

this tour rocks. AG's tunes mean so much to me. get out 2 a show!!! tell me about your experiences if ya do/did!!!! yay!!!!

#it is safe to say i have genuinely endless respect & admiration for this person who happens to be my favorite artist in the world #i could not be happier or moreso in my neutral state of how i feel like things should be than i am at the ag show #also the more i hear him talk the more i realize homie reminds me of... me.#not in a “me modeling my behaviors after him because i look up to him” kinda way #though i certainly have picked up on small things there like i tend to with folks #like phrases and the like #but no #moreso just in a “the two of us happen to share some innate similarities in regards to a buncha stuff” kinda way #just an observation. in hindsight i wonder if i subconsciously picked up on this back when i was first getting into his music #n that contributed to it resonating with me so much #i don't know man i just know i'm glad 2 have this dude's music in my life and to see homie thriving #truly hope we can meet @ a show sometime soon so i can dive into how much of a positive impact he's had on my life. i have so much to say!!#i tried to make that happen at this show i really did #i just guess it wasn't meant 2 happen then. and that is okay!! i know it will whenever it's meant to.#going back to what i said about everything just feeling.... right at the show i keep thinking about how while i miss that already #and am kinda having a crisis where in my head i feel like i'm still there (or should be) as opposed 2 here back in regular just. life #i'm just glad and lucky moments like this show are a real thing that can be my life at all.#basically i just mean the vibe of ag shows feels like everything i define my life by really #realized as something/place i can actually physically experience.#shows r my safe space that embody everything i dream about when i'm just going about day to day life #live music is everything 2 me & that's only amplified exponentially by folks like anthony that get it & turn shows even moreso into a home #thanks for reading if you have #i'm truly glad to have this space where i feel like i can talk about Everything #i love that on here the “oversharing” thing is just a thing everyone does #actually that ties back to what i brought up about anthony #i respect how unapologetically open that dude is in ways that might be “too much” for some people & really connect 2 that #point is i am so grateful for days like this and music like this and people like this #anthony green #circa survive #wavernot4love talks ag tunes

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charissenicolette · 2 years ago

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Soiree with Styles: Harry's Love on Tour 2023 – Philippines

(Photos are taken by me. Please link back to me if you want to use them.)

To celebrate Harry's Love on Tour 2023 as it comes to a close and one year of being a fan, here is my review of the Philippine leg (this is overdue by three months and a day).

Singer-songwriter Harry Styles brought Love on Tour on March 14, 2023, at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan (around 20 km away from Manila). This tour is highly anticipated as it is known to be lively, interactive, and fashionable. It was worth the wait. With Harry's House being a critically acclaimed (Grammys, Brits, Billboard, Rolling Stone, NME, among many others) album, people are eager to hear the album's vibrant sound live.

The stage is simple, with a colorful platform for the band. The audience is excited to witness Harry on stage. He steps out in a sparkly gold and blue shirt and light blue pants.

The show opened with the first track and the third single from Harry’s House "Music for a Sushi Restaurant". It’s the best way to start the concert, as it's groovy. Harry walks around the stage, and as he dances to the song, it's obvious that he has fun performing the song. As he sings the first line of the song's bridge, "If the stars were edible," he asks the audience to sing. The audience enthusiastically sings. He ends the song singing "’Cause I love you, baby" then proceeds to get an electric guitar for the next song "Golden".

With "Adore You", adoring fans sing along to "Walk through fire for you/Just let me adore you" After this line, Harry replies with, "Okay".

"Kamusta, Philippines? (How are you, Philippines?) Good evening, people of Manila!...and surrounding areas." Styles proceeds to introduce himself and thank the audience. He mentions that it's been five years since he last went to the country.

He tells the audience that their job is to have fun as they possibly can and to feel free to be whoever they want to be. "Are you sure?" The audience responds, "Yes!"

"Keep Driving" and "Daylight" are paired with pretty visuals of a street and buildings, along with a blue bird.

His band starts playing a riff. "Woman", a track from Harry’s self-titled album. I did not expect that this would be on the setlist. I was pleasantly surprised that it was. After his singing is done, the band extends the instrumental. It’s reminiscent of rock music from decades ago.

After Harry switches between upbeat and mid-tempo songs, the show slows down. "Matilda" is a fan favorite. Harry's bassist and one of his guitarists sing backup vocals suitable for the song’s comforting vibe.

"Little Freak" is another emotional ballad. "You never saw my birthmark," fans sing. The song smoothly transitions to the next, which is "Satellite".

"Satellite" Harry does the famous satellite stomp during the instrumental break of the song. His energy is evident and contagious. It’s no wonder why fans are ecstatic to watch him live.

"Manila, maraming salamat. He asks the audience if they are having a good time, and they excitedly scream.

He spots a fan named Nicole in the audience. She had previously attended HS LOT in Bangkok, Thailand, a few nights before. She got his attention when she shouted his name. And he responded. Like a parent, Harry then "shushes" the audience as if they were his children, then asks Nicole how she is. Harry says, "She's good!"

A fan named Andreana proposes to Harry, and he replies, "Very sneaky! I thought that we should get to know each other first. 2023 is the year to shoot your shot." Interactions such as this are one of the reasons fans look forward to attending the star's concert. He makes people feel welcome and is friendly towards them.

Harry enjoys "Cinema" as he grooves along to it. Before the song's bridge, he asks the audience to put their hands in the air. This is one of the most memorable moments of the show.

Fans consider "Treat People with Kindness" an okay song, but the live treatment makes the song delightful. The audience singing the chorus (originally sung by the American indie pop band Lucius) makes the song special.

Harry sings One Direction’s first hit single "What Makes You Beautiful". It's given a fresh update, with the drums and percussion making it an up-tempo pop rock song.

He then proceeds to sing songs suitable for the summer "Late Night Talking" and "Watermelon Sugar".

"Love of My Life" To end the song, Harry says, "Mahal ko kayong lahat. Maraming salamat, Philippines!" ("I love you all. Thank you, Philippines!")

The encore begins with Harry’s first single from his self-titled debut, "Sign of the Times". The song is unforgettable and beautiful, with keys making the song grand and the audience turning on the light from their phones.

Harry spots some fans in the audience dressed as bananas. So, he sings "The Banana Song". This song shows off not only his musical talent but also his sense of humor.

Harry sings the leading single of Harry’s House "As It Was" "Seems you cannot be replaced" "Absolutely not!" "Leave America, two kids follow her/I don’t wanna talk about who’s doin’ it first" "Okay". The song’s final part is extended and sped up as Harry "baptizes" the audience as he splashes them with water from a bottle.

"Kiwi" closes the show. It’s one of his singles from his self-titled debut album. This is one of his favorite songs to perform live, so the audience joins in.

The rock number leaves the audience enamored. What words best describe the evening? Golden, just like his song and shirt, and as his biggest fans would say since his One Direction days, extraordinHARRY, indeed.

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slavghoul · 3 years ago

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Interview from Laut 5/2022. Some very interesting insights from Tobias here on future tours, songwriting and... Imagine Dragons.

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Tobias Forge is not really happy after taking a look at today's advance sales figures. When I meet the Ghost boss in the backstage room of the Lanxess Arena in Cologne, the conversation first revolves around the supposed German overcautiousness when buying concert tickets. And indeed: in the evening, many seats remain empty. But when it comes to the stage show, Ghost give their all again tonight despite weak sales.

First of all, how is Papa Nihil? With the daily reanimations on stage, you're putting him through quite a lot.

That's probably true. But in some moments he's fine. This coming back from the afterlife, reanimation and all that, that's certainly hard - but that’s not my problem.

How does the transport look? Does he have private pallbearers or is he occasionally reanimated during the day to polish his saxophone?

No, no, we have people who take care of his saxophone, he stays nicely in the coffin. Anything else would be torture. Think of rigor mortis. We only resuscitate him if we need him.

Then give him my regards and of course congratulations on "Impera". Tell me honestly: Does a band's new album always has to be their best?

Ah, wow, hahaha! It should at least be your intention to make the best album you can. Nobody goes into the studio to make an okay album - even if the result might be just that in the end.

But that also flows into all the promo talk: even bands that haven't been relevant for 30 years regularly tell you that this new record is really the best of their career. Of course, self-reflection is not always easy.

We haven't got that far yet, so I'm a bit more pragmatic about it. When I look back, of course I think to myself, on this one we did this and that wrong, and on this one that was really great. Of course, when you have 15 albums, you can't easily list the concrete qualities of each one on one hand.

I think Metallica did it well, I saw an interview once where they said, "'Ride The Lightning' is our best album. Full stop." Pretty matter-of-factly, I mean, they could have easily said, "The Black Album is the best," simply because it did their career the best.

When I start a new album, I look closely at what I didn't like on the previous one. It's always a reaction to the previous album. Now that's not just to say, "Oh, the last album wasn't heavy enough, so I'll make this one heavier." Practical things too. I want the record to sound smooth, I want the hi-hat to be mastered properly and I like it in the mix.

Talking about hindsight: Over the years, Ghost have played almost all the songs from all the studio albums live. But only four songs from "Impera" can be heard tonight. What about the rest, will they be played on later tours?

It will come later, definitely. There's a pretty simple reason why the setlist is the way it is: band and crew are scattered all over the world. That's different from five dudes living in one city and rehearsing every Monday. We had to pick up a bit where we left off with our US tour - even if it's at the expense of other songs. "Watcher In The Sky", for example, we're really looking forward to that. "Twenties", at least some people want to hear that one, haha! Maybe also "Respite On The Spitalfields". A few of them we call "gag songs" because we have some special things planned for them - but we can't do them yet.

Interesting, because I have the feeling that many bands already sort out obvious surplus material for the release tour, which is then never played live. Is there no song that you can't listen to any more or that you think in retrospect is too weak or not successful? Or could every single song reappear in the setlist one day?

I would say about 95 per cent, yes. The rest are songs that just wouldn't work well live.

For example? "Deus In Absentia"?

"Deus" is definitely an odd song, but that also depends on where you place it in the set. That start-stop thing is very special, but it could work again. One song that didn't work at all live, although we really tried, is "Depth Of Satan's Eyes". I don't know why, I always liked it. I think it's the speed, maybe it's just too slow.

It just doesn't have that awesome swing like "Zombie Queen" from the same album.

Yeah, exactly! (laughs) So there are definitely some songs with asterisks behind them, but that doesn't mean we'll never play them again. We have to entertain quite a lot of people, so the stage show has to be fluid.

Is that also the reason why your closer "Monstrance Clock" got kicked out? Did you play it too often?

We played it a hell of a lot. But we're also thinking about an alternative tour, where we can play the stuff we're not playing at the moment. At the moment we end with "Square Hammer", which is such a banger that it leaves no room for more. Then in an alternative setting we will play "Monstrance Clock" again - those are just two completely different endings.

What interests me honestly is the role of the external songwriters in Ghost. On "Impera" there are more songwriting credits than ever for Salem Al Fakir and Vincent Pontare, known among others as songwriters by and for Avicii. How does it all work: you have a song idea and they put the finishing touches on the harmonies?

Most of the time I come up with one or two songs and say: "Look, I have song A here and I have song B here. Tell me, which one is the more interesting?" And then I just wait for the reactions. As soon as I present something to someone else, it's the reactions that encourage me to keep working. Just like with you as an author, where an editor looks over it again and says, "Look, I know what you want to say here, but can't you bring it to the point even better?". Otherwise I'll lose interest as a reader. Why don't you try to emphasise this other part a bit more, it's more exciting."

It totally helps me to exchange ideas with very good songwriters in order to grow myself. It also helps me to realise where I can trust my intuition and where not. Sometimes I try to bring in new things to specifically differentiate myself from my intuition - but then I get to hear: "No, no, you should do it your way, it just works better here."

But it's not like your partners write specific melodies or parts of the songs?

Of course you pass the ball to each other, of course there is input, especially when it comes to arrangements. My vocal lines are usually very intuitive. But when you sit down and think about how to add a third voice, then you get to the point where music becomes almost mathematical. It mustn't sound funny or sad, even if it might be harmonically correct. A lot of stuff like that.

Without influencing the sound too much?

As a pop musician, when you work with outside songwriters, they usually take more of a producer role. They build the sound. It was never like that with Ghost. In the demo phase, I play all the guitars, bass, keyboards and sing. But Salem [Al Fakir] in particular is an incredibly talented keyboard player who I can always rely on when I need a good piano part. But the instrumentation is always the same: two guitars, bass, drums, piano, organ, maybe Mellotron.

In my opinion, there are many negative examples from rock when it comes to the later involvement of external songwriters - Ghost is an absolute positive example for me, especially as far as the catchy tune factor is concerned.

What would be a negative example?

The last Linkin Park album ("One More Light"). They did a very good job of unfolding and trying things out for six albums and then just got off track with external people. I don't mean that in a "they have to be heavy and have fat guitars" way, because they had also made interesting electronic pop music before. But the result was just not homogeneous.

I don't have the album in my head right now, but I think that's the typical mistake. I never ask anyone to write me a song. That just doesn't work. But I think other people think, "Oh, I'll just get Greg Kurstin [Sia, Adele, Twenty One Pilots] to do it, he'll give us a sound".

And you manage to make sure that the end result is still Ghost through and through, though?

Yes, I hope so. I'll give you an example: there are bands that become overnight sensations. Let's take Imagine Dragons. Labels, media - suddenly the whole business wakes up. You ask yourself: What did they do right? And then over the years these conversations come up: "You, maybe you should have producer XYZ mix your album." - "Um, why?" - "He did Imagine Dragons, too." Yeah, wow, he mixed Imagine Dragons. Nothing else. I don't mean to speak ill of them at all, don't get me wrong. But the basis of your recipe is in the ingredients. If you come up with rotten potatoes, you can't save them by the way you prepare them. No mixer can save your song.

One reason why Imagine Dragons work so well is this. (Tobias stomps and claps the "We Will Rock You" rhythm.) Queen, if you will, but also ... [He sings "Halo" by Beyoncé and "Apologize" by OneRepublic.] Both were written by the same guy [Ryan Tedder]. His thing was always that drum foundation. And it's the same with "Radioactive, Radioactive" [sings]. That's the whole thing.

If you want to sound like Imagine Dragons, you have to write your songs that way. You don't need someone to put a tambourine in at one point, you have to write it directly like that. So when people like Greg Kurstin or Ryan Tedder come up and show that they can write for Sia on the one hand, but also work with the Foo Fighters, then you have to pay attention to what exactly you want from them. Because if you're not careful, they'll write you songs that sound exactly like that.

But to give a positive example, too: Aerosmith. They wrote first-class songs in the seventies and had another great career later on with songs written by others. And that worked really well. It's never black and white. I think we are also in a grey area, somewhere in the middle. Write your songs with others, sure, but be in the middle of it. Don't go and say, "Write me a Ghost song."

#the band ghost #interview #tobias forge

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age-of-greta · 2 years ago

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The Lovers

The Lovers represent relationships and choices. Its appearance in a spread indicates some decision about an existing relationship, a temptation of the heart, or a choice of potential partners. Often an aspect of the querent's life will have to be sacrificed; a bachelor's lifestyle may be sacrificed and a relationship gaine, or one potential partner may be chosen while another is turned down. Whatever the choice, it should not be made lightly, as the ramifications will be lasting

Author’s note: hi!! as always this fic will contain two time jumps, then and today. I proofread, but typos happen! Still planning on posting weekly! Enjoy!

Pairings: Jake x reader & Sam x reader

Warnings: cursing, alcohol consumption, adult content, minors DNI

Word count: 6.8k

PART 3:

THEN:

Monday was a long day. You had a morning torts class, followed up by yoga, then you were showered and in the office by noon. You didn’t have set hours since you were basically on call 24/7. Your uncle never made you work on weekends or breaks that your colleges had. He wanted you to be a kid as long as you could. It’s not like you didn’t know what you were doing, you had been working there since your freshman year of college. You knew the law, you just had to have a certificate and take an exam to prove it. Your office attire was a bodycon calf-length grey dress with black open-toed heels. However this would not suffice for the concert so in your car you brought one of your favorite outfits. It was a pleather two-piece set. The top looked like a cropped corset and the pants were skin tight with cutouts in the side. You knew it looked amazing on you, but you were nervous about dressing so scandalous hoping it wouldn’t send the wrong message. At around 5 you ordered soup and salad to your desk from Panera for dinner, and at 5:30 everyone had left the office but you. You told your uncle you would lock up because you wanted to study there for a while. When he left you lept up from your desk and headed straight to your car. You grabbed your makeup bag, curling iron, and your outfit plus jewelry. You sat at your desk and began to apply a brown black smokey eye, heavier bronzer, more blush, and a glossy pink lip. Next was your hair, which you put some beachy waves in and sprayed them into place. It was 6:50 at this point and the concert started at 8, you were perfect on time. At 7:10 you walked out of the firm with your outfit and gold jewelry on. You clicked down the street in the same black heels you had been wearing all day just down the block to the theater. You were giddy and excited to see how they performed. When you rounded the corner you were surprised to see a good bit of a line of people outside. You walked up to the box office and told them your name. You were then given a VIP pass and taken in through the side entrance and led to the boy’s dressing room.

“I don’t want to cover The Beatles. That seems cliche.” You hear Josh say as you walk in the door.

Immediately all eyes are on you, and it’s not hard to figure out why.

“Hello everyone.” You say awkwardly.

Sam coughs really loud. “Sorority girl! You made it and you look uh-wow incredible.” He says as he leans in for a hug.

Then you notice their outfits. Josh is in low rise jeans and a vest with hordes of necklaces. Danny is in black jeans and a white fringe top. Sam is wearing just black dress pants and necklaces, Jake is sitting on the couch with black dress pants with white details on the side with a matching blazer and necklaces. You can feel he’s staring straight into your soul. They all look so good, but Jake has you feeling some type of way.

“Me? You all look incredible. I love the style.” You say as your face flushes a bit when you make eye contact with Jake.

“You’re too kind mama.” Josh says with a smile. “Now back to the setlist for tonight.”

“Let’s grab you a drink.” Sam says as he lightly grabs your wrist and leads you across the room to the bar.

“Wait, are you really still making a setlist when the show starts in thirty minutes?” You say to Sam with a laugh.

He grabs a glass and starts making you a tequila sunrise. “Yes. We like to wait until the last minute to form setlists. Josh says it gets the creative juices flowing, but mostly it just ends in arguments.” He says with a laugh. “Here you are madame. How was your day?”

You take the glass from him. “Thanks Sam. It was okay, pretty typical, nothing really special.”

He smiles at that. “Well now it is.”

You sat with your drink while the boys battled over their setlist. It was amusing to watch Josh, Jake, and Sam bicker while Danny just nodded his head. Eventually they got their 10 minute curtain call so they all headed to side stage for final checks.

“They’re going to take you to your spot, but we’ll see you after the show?” Sam asks as he heads towards the door.

“Absolutely. Break a leg.” You say to him with a smile and he makes a heart with his hands.

Josh and Danny shuffle out the door leaving Jake lingering behind.

“I really like your outfit.” Jake says walking towards you. “Pay attention to the encore.” He says touching your arm and waltzing out the door.

The show had been absolutely electrifying. You knew they would probably be good, but they absolutely exceeded every expectation then some. You were in the VIP pit portion which was essentially you and press. The boys had just finished up “Black Smoke Rising” and they walked off stage. During the concert there had been a few times you made eye contact with Jake. He looked so hot shredding that guitar. Some of the faces he made were obscene, and had your mind long lost in the gutter. You smiled at Sam every time he would look at you, trying to be cool and calm. But seeing Jake in his element like this absolutely fascinated you. He didn’t make you nervous, more like curious. It’s like you were both trying to figure each other out. After a few minutes of chanting, the boys made their way back to the stage. It was time for the encore and you were excited to see what Jake had up his sleeve.

“Shall we do one more?” Josh beamed into the microphone throwing his hands up with flare.

You had to admit Josh had incredible stage presence and knew how to command a room. The crowd cheered and then you heard the first chords of Highway Tune come from Jake’s Les Paul. The energy in the venue went up to a 10 as Josh started belting out the first verse. The song continued and the climax had turned into a jam session. Danny was beating the drums, Sam was plucking at his bass, Josh was smashing his tambourine into his hand, and Jake was playing his guitar… behind his head. You were convinced this was possibly one of the best sights you had ever seen. When the jam session started to calm down a little Jake walked towards the edge of the stage and looked at you. He put his pick in his mouth, cracked a smile, and started strumming the intro chords of “Sunshine of Your Love” by Cream. You felt your heart swell a little, but tried not to feel too sentimental about it. You flashed him a huge smile and slightly swayed to his continuation of the song. You glanced over at Sam who had a confused look on his face. Josh shot him a “just go with it” and soon enough Sam joined in and so did Danny. They played the instrumentals of the song for a few minutes-leading to Jake playing the guitar solo before shifting it back to Highway Tune. They closed out the song and were met with cheers from the audience. They said their goodbyes before exiting the stage. The lights came on and security guards had come to escort you backstage.

When you got backstage everyone was in a great mood.

“That was such a great fucking show!” Danny exclaimed as you walked in the door.

“Indeed. The crowd was great, although Jake you all threw us for a loop with the Cream cover. But it’s good to keep us on our toes I suppose.” Josh said while pouring a drink at the bar cart.

“Sorority girl! How did you like the show?” Sam said, as he came over and embraced you in a tight hug.

You smiled at him. “It was great! You guys are so good, and I really liked the encore.” You looked for Jake’s eyes but he was at the bar making a drink.

“You will have to come to more shows. I think you’re our good luck charm. We haven’t felt this good after a performance in a while.” Sam said, nudging your arm.

You laughed and threw your arms up. “Hey, I’m there. You can call me a fan now.”

You see Jake approaching you with glasses in hand.

“Here. You said you make the best martinis, well I make the best old-fashions.” Jake says, handing you a cocktail.

“Oh thank you.” You say and you take the glass to your lips and drink. “Shit. This is so good Jake. Were you a bartender in your past life?” You say with a laugh.

Jake chuckles at you. “Bartender might be a stretch, but definitely a drunkard.” You laugh at that.

“Well thanks for getting me a drink brother. I’ll be right back.” Sam says to you as he heads for the bar cart.

Jake smirks at you.

“You know you’re a really good guitarist Mr. Kiszka. I enjoyed watching you all play tonight.” You say to Jake playfully as you take another drink.

“What can I say? I’m good with my hands.” Jake jokes back with you also sipping his drink.

You laugh at that. “Is that so? Well I do have a shelf I need hung in my apartment.”

Jake laughs. “I could be of assistance.” He says and stares into your eyes still smiling at you.

“Damn they need some better tequila.” Sam says, walking back over to the two of you. “I have tried to make a decent margarita, but the tequila is all wrong. Do you guys wanna get out of here and stumble to a real bar?” Sam asks.

“I’m game, but I do have class at eleven so I won’t be out too long.” You say tipping back the rest of your old-fashioned.

“What a studious girl you are. Let’s go!” Sam says grabbing your wrist and dragging you. You glance back at Jake and he’s frowning a little bit, but starts to follow Sam towards the door.

The boys had changed out of their stage attire and opted for a little more casual look. You had ended up at a little bar that you suggested right across from your office as you didn’t anticipate it being crowded. It wasn't busy at all, just a few men in suits with pints of beer sat at the bar. You and the boys took a corner booth in the back and you were wedged in between Sam and Jake. Josh insisted on ordering salty dogs for everyone and Danny had ordered pretzel bites for the table. You weren’t necessarily buzzed, but you could feel it coming. When the drinks arrived everyone toasted their glasses to a great show. After the first round of drinks Jake decided to switch to water. This threw you for a loop, but you chalked it up to general tiredness. Sam had ordered tequila sunrises and margaritas for the both of you. When Danny’s pretzel bites arrived you were feeling warm and buzzed.

“Y/n do you want some?” Danny asked, pushing the basket towards you.

“Actually soft pretzels are my absolute weakness, so yes I would like one. Thank you. ” You say back to him after taking a pretzel from the basket.

Danny nods to you and throws up his pretzel stick silently asking to “cheers” it with yours. You oblige and clink your pretzels together giggling.

“Can we get another two margaritas over here?” Sam asks the waitress motioning towards you two.

You finish chewing your pretzel and then look at him. “Fuck Sam I have class and work tomorrow. Are you trying to do me in?” You say to him.

Sam huffs out a laugh. “I feel like it would take a lot more to do you in sorority girl.” Sam says with confidence and throws his arm around you.

“Jake, why have you not had a drink in over an hour? Are you feeling okay?” Josh asks, side-eying him.

“No, I'm good. Just not in a drinking mood tonight I guess.” Jake says nonchalantly.

Josh snickers at this. “That’s a damn first.”

When your margarita arrives you know you have had too much and couldn’t possibly drive yourself home.

“Okay Sam last drink and then I’m calling an Uber.” You say while sipping your margarita.

“Oh shit I forgot your car was still here. That’s your office right across the block isn’t it?” Sam asks you.

“Yes, but there is no way I am driving in this state. I’ll just Uber here early in the morning to get my car.” You say with a laugh.

“Mama I’m not a fan of you Ubering by yourself, especially at this hour.” Josh looks at you with a concerned look.

“Yeah me either.” Sam adds.

Before you can respond you feel a hand on your thigh.

“I can drive you home.” Jake says very casually, and squeezes your thigh a little.

“That’s a good idea. He has only been drinking water for the past hour and then he can just Uber back to the hotel.” Danny says still eating pretzels.

Josh eyes Jake for a moment before clearing his throat and nodding his head.

“That would actually be a huge help. Thank you Jake.” You say looking at him.

He doesn’t return the eye contact, but he hums at your response.

You had finished your margarita, and excused yourself to the bathroom to pee. You stared at yourself in the mirror. You were definitely buzzed, but you were thankful you still looked good. You applied some extra lipstick and blotted your face before returning back outside. Jake stood at the booth waiting for you.

“This was really fun, guys. Thanks for letting me tag along.” You said to the group flashing them a smile.

Sam gets up and hugs you. “It’s our pleasure sorority girl. Get home safe and text me when you make it back okay?” Sam says with a smile.

You salute him. “Will do Sammy.” You say.

He beams a little at the new nickname and salutes you back. You say your goodbyes to Josh and Danny, then hand your keys over to Jake. You two walk out of the bar and you lead him to your car. You drove a white Toyota Rav 4 Hybrid, luxury edition. It was a graduation present. Jake opens your door for you and carefully helps you inside. You smile at him. “Thanks.” He nods his head and walks over to the driver's side.

“This is a nice car.” Jake says as he gets inside and puts his seatbelt on. He motions towards your radio. “May I?”

You nod your head and hand him the aux cord. He scrolls through his phone for a minute before Jimi Hendrix is lowly playing through your car.

You smile at this. “You know I have a cat named Hendrix. He lives back at home with my parents.” You say.

“That’s a pretty badass name for a cat.” Jake says, huffing a laugh. “Did you have fun tonight?” He asks you.

“I did. Maybe even a little too much. I’m going to pay for this in the morning, but nothing a vanilla sweet cream cold brew with almond milk can’t solve.” You say back.

“Is that your coffee order?” Jake asks with his eyes on the road.

“Yes it is. My go-to everytime. Please don’t tell me you’re a coffee snob and you think anyone who drinks anything but black coffee are weenies.”

Jake laughs at you. “First of all, I have never heard a grown adult say the word weenies. Secondly, I am not a coffee snob. In fact I enjoy a pumpkin spice latte just as much as the next guy.”

The rest of the ride back to your apartment consisted of a lot of comfortable conversations. You debated the over-ratedness of pumpkin spice and came to the conclusion that you both loved it too much to hate it. Despite the fact that you both enjoyed liking things that were “different.” You found out Jake was a fall lover just like you and also shared a love for poetry. You had never met anyone like Jake. He was so fascinating to you. He was ridiculously smart, kind, witty, talented, and beyond attractive. He parked your car and walked you up to your apartment. When you got to the door you asked him to come inside while he was waiting on his Uber, and he agreed.

“How long until your Uber is here?” You asked him setting down your bag.

“It says 20 minutes.” Jake says looking down at his phone.

“Okay I’m going to change. Just make yourself at home.” You say to him while walking into your bedroom. You immediately strip out of your concert outfit and pull out your black silk slip gown. You knew it was a little sexy, but you wanted Jake to see it. Then you speed walked into your bathroom and fixed your face, put on deodorant, added body spray, and gargled mouthwash. When you came out Jake was sitting on the couch, but The Zombies were playing on your record player quietly. When he saw you he shifted around in his seat a bit. “You know you look really good in black.” Jake says with his eyes fixated on you.

You grin at him. “Yeah, so do you.” You say sitting down next to him. There wasn’t an inch of space between his legs and yours. You crossed your legs and leaned over to him. “I’m actually pretty sad that you guys are leaving me so soon.” You say, twirling your hair.

“I’ve got to say I didn’t think I would like Atlanta as much as I do. But I know I’ll be back incredibly soon to visit.” Jake says with his eyes flickering from your mouth to your eyes.

“Oh yeah? What do you like so much about Atlanta?” You say to him with a flirty tone.

“I think you know.” He says leaning in closer to you. You can’t help yourself now. You lean in just as close and then his lips are connected to yours. You feel like a million fireworks are going off in your chest. The kiss is soft and sweet, but it continues. You start to deepen the kiss and Jake’s hand finds your hair. He laces his fingers in your hair and gives it a little tug. You moan ever so slightly at this and you can tell that turned Jake on. You put your left hand on his thigh and start rubbing it, you can tell he’s hard. His right hand finds your soft thighs and he runs his hand up under your slip, just lightly massaging your thigh. You can feel how wet you are. You lightly bite his lower lip and Jake lets out a deep breath.

“Jake, cancel your Uber.” You say through kisses.

Jake hums and pulls away. “As much as I would love that, and I know you can feel how much I love that.” He says obviously talking about his hard on. “You have class in the morning and I don’t want to be the reason you miss it or are tired.” He says tucking your hair behind your ear. “And trust me love, if I stayed here tonight you would be exhausted in the morning.” He says giving you a smirk.

You look back at him with lust still full in your eyes and nod your head. “Yeah yeah Mr. responsible I suppose you’re right.” You say trying not to sound disappointed.

He leans over and kisses you softly one more time. “My Uber is five minutes away. I’m going to head down. But just know I’ll be seeing you tomorrow, and I’ll finish thinking of you tonight.” He says with a smirk while getting up.

You giggle at him and walk him towards the door. He kisses you once more before leaving, and your brain feels like scrambled eggs. You take a few Tylenol, wipe off your makeup, and down a glass of water before climbing into bed. Your head is swarming with thoughts but you’re so tired that your eyes get too heavy and sleep wins.

The next morning your alarm goes off at 9 and you groggily climb out of bed and take a long hot shower. When you get out you start to feel like a human again. You wrap your hair in a towel and put on your robe while brushing your teeth. You hear a knock at your door. You glance over with confusion. Who could that be? You look at your phone. It’s 9:30. What the hell? You rinse your mouth out quickly and head for the door, but when you open it no one is there. Then you glance down. In front of your door is a venti vanilla cream cold brew with almond milk and a breakfast sandwich. You pick up the bag and see it says:

“Mobile order: delivery for Jake”

TODAY:

You had woken up from the late night around 9 and frowned when you reached over and Jake was gone. All you wanted to do was cuddle up to him this morning, well and maybe kiss him again. You decided it was time to get up and make yourself presentable. You headed to Jake’s bathroom and brushed your teeth with the toothbrush that was kept there for you. You know the implications in a relationship when one person has things at the other’s home. Jake had a toothbrush in your bathroom cabinet too. You then washed your face, did some basic skincare, pushed up on your lash extensions, and loosely ran a brush through your hair. Next was deodorant and a spritz of perfume that Jake had sent you one time while he was in Paris on tour. You decided to unpack your clothes a bit, hanging up your dresses that you planned on wearing this weekend. When you finished you realized you were in only one of Jake’s button downs and decided that you should probably wear a little more clothes before going downstairs to greet everyone. You decided on a distressed Black Sabbath t-shirt with some black bike shorts. You knew you would be heading to the venue later so you would have to change eventually. You threw on your black furry slippers and headed downstairs. Josh and Danny were in the kitchen cooking breakfast and Sam was sitting at the island cutting up fruit.

“She’s awake!” Josh yells through the house giving you a smile.

“Yeah good morning princess. Bacon or sausage?” Danny asks you while flipping over sausage patties.

Sam makes a fake gagging noise and you laugh.

“Good morning everyone. I’ll take bacon please Danny.” You say taking a seat next to Sam. Danny nods at you and continues back to cooking. Josh is setting everything out. There are eggs, pancakes (which you can tell are vegan by the way they look), bacon, sausage, and the fruit that Sam is cutting. You look around for a minute before asking, “Where is Jake?”

“Ah lover boy will be back soon. He is out getting coffee for everyone.” Josh says while getting out the syrup.

“How did you sleep last night?” Sam asks while raking his strawberries in a bowl.

“I slept pretty great actually.” You smile to yourself thinking of last night. “How did you sleep Sammy?”

“Oh like a kid on Christmas. I couldn’t wait to get up at 8 and start slaving away on breakfast. Jake’s itinerary is going to kill me.” Sam says back to you with a sigh.

“Wait, this mega breakfast is part of Jake’s itinerary?” You say giggling.

Just then Jake comes through the door with a carrier of coffee in one hand that he’s balancing under his chin and another coffee in his other hand. He locks eyes with you and smiles before walking towards you. He sits down the coffee carrier and hands you the iced coffee in his hand. It’s your favorite from a local Nashville shop with extra cold foam. Jake knows exactly what you like.

“Good morning love.” Jake says kissing your forehead. You notice that Sam looks away fast. He’s probably just tired, he has never been a morning person.

“Good morning Jake. Thank you for the coffee.” You say shooting him a sweet look.

“Of course. I’ll make your plate.” Jake says, then hands everyone their coffees.

You smile into your drink. Jake could be tooth-rottingly sweet. Jake makes your plate; putting a pancake with syrup, a small amount of eggs because he knows you aren’t a huge fan, two pieces of bacon, and a few scoops of fruit before ushering you into the sitting room close to the studio. It was rare that you all ate at the table when the boys cooked. Jake sat your food down on the table and then plopped down next to you on the couch. You placed both of your coffees down on the table. Sam took a seat next to you with Josh next to him and Danny next to Josh.

“I would like to make a toast dear friends.” Josh stated holding his coffee in the air. “To a good weekend. May our days be merry and our drinks overflow. May brother Jake also not have an aneurysm if the itinerary goes awry.”

“Cheers to that, but the itinerary will be followed.” Jake said, holding his coffee in the air.

Everyone laughed and you, Sam, and Danny held your coffee in the air to join the twins. You all started eating your breakfast and the boys started talking about a new song they were working on. You finished your breakfast and were content listening to them talk. They were all musical geniuses as far as you were concerned. Jake had finished his coffee and his hand found his way to your thigh. You and Jake were so complicated. You acted like a couple and to an outsider you looked as if you were in a relationship. You had gotten comfortable with PDA around the boys, which was something you had to get used to. But you have become increasingly paranoid about it in public. The boys don’t get recognized often when you’re with them, but you’re worried one day they will and then questions about you and Jake will start buzzing amongst the fans. It was nearly impossible to explain your situation to anyone. Then god forbid you start seeing leaks of other girls Jake has been with. It would ruin you, so you would rather remain like this. Ignorance is bliss.

“Enough album talk. Are we ready to get on with our day?” Jake says snapping you out of your thoughts. You force back your worries and smile at him.

“What exactly are we doing today?” You say.

“Well” Jake starts, “since we have to go to the venue in a few hours I figured we could go by the farmers market and look around.”

You were a sucker for the farmers market, especially the ones they had in Nashville.

“Sounds good to me. But I think I need to change shoes” you say motioning to your slippers.

After the boys cleaned up breakfast you were all ready to go. You ditched the slippers and threw on your black platform converse and added jewelry and sunglasses. You all piled up in Josh’s jeep. Josh drove, Danny road shotgun as he insisted he was taller than Sam and needed more leg room, you sat in the middle with Jake and Sam on both sides.

“Comfortable Sammy?” You asked Sam playfully as you tried to buckle your seatbelt.

“Oh yeah I’m living the dream back here.” He replied. “Daniel scoot your seat up before my knees break off.”

When you arrived at the farmers market you all sort of split up. You and Jake had gone to look at the soaps and candles, your favorite. Danny and Sam went to try the homemade hot sauces and Josh went straight to the local honey cart. Jake held your hand and the bag of beautiful smelling soaps and candles he had bought for you. Then he dragged you over to the flower cart. There was an assortment of beautiful bouquets wrapped in brown paper. You absolutely loved fresh flowers.

“Will you pick a bouquet to put in the vase on our island?” Jake asked you.

You nodded at him and smiled. You started studying all of the flowers, but eventually ended on white roses. It just fits them.

Jake pulled out his card to pay for the roses and then said, “I’ll also take the largest bouquet of peonies that you have.”

Peonies were your favorite flower. Jake knew how to make you swoon.

“Here you are. Beautiful flowers for my beautiful girl.” He says handing you the two bouquets.

“I love today, so much. I can’t wait for tonight.” You say kissing his cheek.

This is not normal for you to do in public, but the flowers and candles have put you in a great mood. Jake kisses your cheek back, twice, and agrees about how excited he is for you to see them perform again.

When you got back to the house you were a little bummed because you knew the boys would be leaving soon. They had all come back and started taking showers, which was the first step in their show prep. You were in the kitchen putting your flowers in vases, making sure to cut the stems so they all fit correctly. Sam was the first person out and ready. He came out in just a pair of short shorts and wet hair.

“Look at you Martha Stuart.” Sam says as he plopped down in a stool.

“Sammy, will you accept this rose?” You say dramatically handing a white rose towards him.

He clutches his heart and plays along with your antics. “Always and forever my green thumbed goddess. Speaking of green” he starts, “I may or may not have stocked up on the devil’s lettuce for tomorrow night.”

You look at him with delight. “Sammy, you're my hero.” You say hugging his neck.

You and Sam were definitely the stoners of the group. At one time your favorite thing in the world was getting Josh higher than a kite and asking him his thoughts on space and time. Jake walks down the steps while you're mid-hug with Sam. Then Josh and Danny come out of their rooms.

“Are we ready? The driver is here.” Jake says.

“Yes, let's do this! The time is upon us. We will see you there later mama.” Josh says walking by you and patting your shoulder.

Sam gets up to run and grab his shoes and sweatshirt. You walk over to Jake and wrap your arms around him and he wraps his arms around your waist.

“Good luck tonight Jakey. I’ll see you later.” You say looking into his eyes.

“My luck will be there watching from VIP, and I know my luck will look damn good.” Jake replies while rubbing your back.

He leans in for a kiss like he does before every time he leaves for a show, but this kiss isn’t soft and sweet like usual. Jake kisses you hard and holds you tight. It takes the breath away from you and now you don’t give a shit about the show, you just want Jake to take you upstairs to continue this.

Josh coughs really loudly and your moment is cut short. “The driver is here, we shouldn't keep him waiting any longer.” Josh says walking to the door. Sam is behind him and he doesn’t look up at you when he walks by. Strange. You give Jake a final kiss and release him to head to the door. They pull out and it’s just you there. You decide to go upstairs to take a nap before getting ready for the show and the after party.

When you wake up you have about two hours before you need to leave to head to the venue to see the boys backstage before the show. You climb out of bed and straighten up the blankets and pillows. You head straight for the shower, tonight is a full glam night and you can’t wait to see what Jake thinks of your outfit. You shower and shave/exfoliate your whole body. You put on some oil before getting out and your skin feels the softest it has in a while. You towel dry your hair before lightly blow drying it. Once it’s dry you throw in some texture spray and put your big rollers in. Now it’s time for skincare and makeup. You tone and moisturize, brush your teeth again, then throw on some teeth whitening strips. You shuffle your music and start feeling yourself when Depeche Mode comes on. For makeup you have done a full glam face. Very dewy skin, heavy contour and blush, subtle highlight, a fox eye look made with black eyeshadow, a big mauve glossy lip, and you even added some extra half lashes on top of your extensions. You then put on lotion and luminous skin tint on your whole body. You walked to Jake’s closet and pulled out the dress you would be wearing tonight. It was a small black silk dress. The neckline plunged incredibly low and there was a keyhole cutout just under the cleavage. Jake loved you in black, and you knew tonight would make it hard for him to look anywhere else but you. You smiled at this thought, Jake always made you feel so hot and confident. You slid into your dress and it was skin tight. It hugged your curves so well and your breasts set perfectly in it. You grabbed your black strappy heels that tie around your ankle and put them on. Then you went back to the bathroom and took out your rollers, fluffed your hair, and sprayed a ton of product in it. You finished off by drowning yourself in perfume, taking off your whitening strips, and spraying on extra deodorant. You decided to do gold chunky jewelry putting on large gold bangles on each wrist and thick gold hoops. You were so happy with how you look and found yourself so excited for tonight, even if you did have to see your high school friends. You grabbed your small black YSL purse and stuffed in lip gloss, blotting paper, deodorant, and gum before heading down. You checked your phone and Jake had texted you saying your driver would be pulling up any minute. You walked outside, locked the house up, and waited for your ride.

You arrived at the venue and the driver had dropped you off in the back entrance that would lead to where the boys were. You walked to the door and told them your name before being handed your VIP lanyard pass. You tucked it in your purse hanging half out so it was visible. You walked excitedly to the dressing room so ready to see Jake. You open the door and immediately see… Cole? What the fuck was he doing back here. You then see his brother and their friend. Fuck. Josh must have given them VIP passes, he thought he was a comedian. This meant you would all be sitting in the VIP area together, great.

“Holy shit hey mama! Damn, look at you.” Josh shouts from across the room while walking up to you already in his stage attire.

You survey the whole room. Sam and Danny are on the loveseat scribbling down what you presume is a setlist. Your high school friends are standing around at the bar area which is where Josh just came from, and Jake has his back turned to you sitting on the couch with guitar in hand. When he hears Josh he turns his neck and looks at you with wide eyes.

Josh hugs you and whispers “Before you kill me I genuinely did not intend on giving them backstage passes. That was a venue fuck up.” He says half laughing. You shoot him a glare and then fake a smile at him. He steps away and Jake is right behind him. He wraps you into a tight squeeze with his hands hovering on your hips. “Goddamn angel are you trying to kill me? I mean fuck. You look unbelievable.”

You giggle at him and breath in at the pet name that Jake uses when he’s turned on. “Do you like it? Or is it too much?” You say innocently, rubbing your hands on your dress.

Jake smirks at you and pulls you in closer, peppering kisses on your neck. “Like it? I have half the mind to cancel this goddamn show to take you home just to show you how much I like it.”

You laugh at him and he takes your hand and leads you to the couch. You pass the bar on the way there and wave and say hello at your high school friends who are still talking to Josh. At least he is keeping them entertained, you thought.

“Oh wow you look great!” Danny says as you sit down next to Jake and cross your legs.

“Yeah, you do.” Sam says looking up at you sweetly.

You thank them and then Jake throws his hand over your legs while they finish planning the jam session encore together. Josh takes his seat next to you and your friends from high school trickle in standing around the table sipping whatever cocktails Josh had made for them. Twenty minutes go by and the boys have to head to sound check and final call. Jake kisses your head and grabs his guitar before heading out with the other three. Then security escorts you and the others to your VIP seats. It’s a small section side stage on Jake’s side. On the walk there you make small talk with Cole and he gives you a few compliments.

When you take your seat Cole sits next to you and says, “Soooooo are you and the guitarist dating or something?”

There it was. That question that you hated so much. You decided to play it cool and shook your head and smiled.

“No.” Is all you say and leave it at that. He looks at you curiously but doesn’t press any further. One of the security officers brings you a High Noon and you knew it was compliments of Jake. The lights begin to go down and the show starts.

After an enthralling show, which entailed a moment where Jake walked over to the very edge of the stage and played the solo of “When the Curtain Falls” looking straight at you, you were being escorted backstage again. Of course this meant the high school friends were right behind you. You were irritated at this, but it wasn’t security’s fault, they didn’t know. You were greeted by boys in a great mood still sweaty from the stage.

“That was a hell of a show guys!” Cole says.

“Oh yeah thanks man.” Danny says, looking at you curiously. You nod towards Josh and Danny cracks a smile. Jake hugs you and you giggle and shove him away. “Jake, you're so sweaty oh my god get changed so we can get to the bar.” You say.

He looks down at you and curls his lip. Then you realize what had just happened. You had just announced your plans with your high school friends in the room. Fuck.

“Yes, that's a great idea. Let’s all get changed and get out of here I’m ready to drink!” Josh declares.

“Where are you guys going?” Cole asks.

“Oh yeah we have this little hole in the wall where we go and drink and play pool. It’s very lowkey.” Danny says.

“Feel free to join us if you want.” Josh says to them and you shoot him a glance. You know he is just trying to be nice. Josh would hate for anyone to feel left out. They all three oblige and after the boys change you’re leaving the venue and headed towards the bar for what you know is going to be an eventful night.

* thank you for reading!!!! also I’m seeing Greta today in Knoxville :)

#greta van fic #greta van fleet #greta van fleet fic #jake gvf #jake kiszka #jake kiszka x reader #sam gvf #sam kiszka #sam kiszka x reader #the lovers

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