#2004 german tour

[a-silent-symphony]

NIGHTWISH Re-Signs With NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS

Symphonic metal giants NIGHTWISH, who have worked with Nuclear Blast since the release of their highly lauded 2004 album "Once", have signed a new multi-album deal with the German record label.

NIGHTWISH keyboardist and main songwriter Tuomas Holopainen states: "20 years ago our journey together with Nuclear Blast started, and the time has now come to renew our vows. Superbly excited to see what kind of magic we can cook up together this time!"

Nuclear Blast managing director Marcus Hammer states: "It's an honor to renew this partnership to continue writing music history. We're more than proud to carry on the collaboration with this exceptionally gifted group of musicians and their management team. Thanks for your friendship and trust, Floor, Tuomas, Emppu, Troy, Kai and Jukkis. Looking forward to celebrate your upcoming album and everything beyond! Kiitos!"

NIGHTWISH recently completed mixing and mastering its tenth studio album for a tentative late 2024 release.

In January, NIGHTWISH drummer Kai Hahto spoke about the band's upcoming follow-up to 2020's "Human. :II: Nature." album in an interview with Laureline Tilkin of Tuonela Magazine. He said: "At least it's not gonna be the same as 'Human. :II: Nature.', so… Probably, let's say that we go back to more heavy, heavier things on the new album, but also there's a lot of, again, new winds to blow, so to speak. So, different new elements. But, of course, it's still NIGHTWISH, but, of course, we brought back the big symphony orchestra again to the new upcoming tenth album. Yeah, it's gonna be exciting. And quite challenging music to play as well."

Asked if he is "in a way happy" that he doesn't have to play the new NIGHTWISH songs live right now, in light of the fact that the band is taking a break from touring for the foreseeable future, Kai said: "No, no, no. Totally opposite. I would love to go and play it live. But hopefully the time will come when we go back, charging the batteries first. Of course, it's nice to be home with the kids and wife and dogs, but still, of course, I've always been a player, so I also like to play for the people. But I believe I'm not gonna be bored. So I have a lot of things in the back of my head. Even NIGHTWISH is now taking a break. So, I'm not gonna be bored."

#nightwish #news

[marimayscarlett]

Can we talk about the bands engl7sh knowledge?

So Till was the first one to learn it. Knew enough to communicate in the early 90s. Probably most fluent of them all since he also probably read the entire dictionary and synonyms.

Richard did 0 to 60 in just 2 years. Obviously, moving to NYC and having English speaking wife helped a lot, but from 1998 not being able to, to 2001, speaking with easy, is truly impressive. Sassy german accent. More fluent in street talk than eloquence.

Then we have Schneider, who I think is as good as Till and Richard, but has the heaviest german accent making it seem like he's not as good.

There's Paul who's simply not used to expressing his opinions in English, and therefore, his brain cannot keep up with his tongue.

Dear sweet Olli, his English skills are as mysterious as himself. We probably only heard him speak English 3 times..

And then there's Flake. We know his skills got immensely better in the last 10 years alone. Went from don't wanna say something in case I sound stupid to reading books publicly.

Overall, like for a lot of us, english is necessary for survival. Especially if you travel a lot and meet lots of people. But kudos to them for learning it so quickly, especially when they were already in their mid/late 20.

Hi 👋

Oh, this is a wonderful ask! I think about the band's English learning journeys and their language skills in general quite a lot (it kind of is one of my 'roman empires', to use a contemporary phrase), since there are a lot of different skill levels present in this band. Let's work our way through it:

1. Till: the language genius of the band

I noticed Till's talent for languages and to express himself quite early on, and like you said, he seemingly was the one person in the band who could use English already in the 90s for conversation and explaining, like in this interview:

Another interview where Till speaks about the Nazi accusations the band has to face time and time again, he expresses himself and the points he likes to make so well:

Not only does Till speak English, from my knowledge he apparently speaks spanish, russian, I heard him speaking some polish - he is really talented in this regard and he has my utmost respect for it!

2. Richard: if eagerness to learn was a person

Richard seemed so lost on their first America tour in 1998, he was quite isolated from the rest of the bands which participated in this tour which made him apparently feel pretty lonely (I mentioned his language journey a bit in this ask). Movies helped him quite a lot to get more acquainted with the english language, and apparently he mastered english well enough around the time when he met his later-(ex) wife Caron in the end of the 1990s. Surely moving to the US together with her must've refined his english skills a lot, but to even consider moving there, he must've already speak enough english to at least feel a bit comfortable in an english speaking environment (at least that's what my thought process would be). I must say, I admire Richard's drive and eagerness to learn this language so quickly, and he became competent to express himself quite well. Here's an interview from 2004, he seems so relaxed speaking english, which makes me quite proud of him:

Here's another interview from 2017 as an example, Richard speaks quite fluent and seems to be very comfortable in the english language. He once said it's easier to make small talk in english than in german - he might not have to most sophisticated vocabulary in english with grand words and uses a lot of fillers (his famous "you know" always at hand), but he knows how to express himself in a straight forward yet entertaining and charming way.

3. Schneider: hidden talents

From what I've heard, Schneider definitely knows how to express himself and has a surprisingly well equipped vocabulary. I say 'suprinsingly', since I didn't expect this at first - like you mentioned, his german accent seems to distract from this fact a bit. In comparison to Thomas Lang (an austrian drummer), Schneider of course sounds a bit clunky and not that relaxed - nevertheless, he comes across quite soft spoken in the english language and knows his way around expressions.

In this interview Schneider finds his way into the speaking 'flow' a little better in my opinion, and brings across his points quite clearly. Despite his heavy accent, you can still understand him quite well (at least that's what I think) and it seems like he puts a lot of effort into finding the right words to describe certain things coherently.

4. Paul: motivated endeavours to express himself

Paul seemingly can use english to make conversation to a certain degree and understands the language without problems. In the earlier days of Rammstein, while speaking english he came across a bit ungainly, searching for correct expressions or words, like the infamous "slimey into people" - but you still know what he means 😅 I think here you can notice what you mentioned in your ask, he knows exactly what thoughts he would like to express, yet is a bit inhibited by the fact that he doesn't know the correct words for it.

Here's another, more "recent" interview from 2017 - he's a bit more comfortable speaking english, yet for me as a native german speaker, it became apparent (through all the english interviews I saw with him) that Paul tries to transfer the typical german sentence structure into the english language, which of course doesn't fully work and gives of a bit of a circuitous vibe. Yet he's quite understandable as well I think.

And a personal favourite of dear @dandysnob (who helped me looking for Paul's interviews, thank you dear 🤍), which shows Paul has no fear to make contact with fans using a different language than german 😊

5. Olli: Once again an enigma

I found several quite interesting and charming interviews with Olli, who's a joy to listen to (he comes across as shy and yet eager to answer the question he gets in a friendly and detailed manner), but all of them are in german. In my ask about Olli during meet and greets, it was mentioned that he doesn't seem to be really comfortable in the english language.

6. Flake: from fearing of ordering a cup of bacon to fearless one-man show

Flake is someone who isn't scared of expressing his opinion about matters and things he doesn't enjoy (he's not the biggest fan of the US to put it mildly) and also expressed that he struggles with the english language quite a lot (for example during 'Rammstein in America'). Plus he sometimes has a reoccuring stutter (since his child hood), is quite shy and he has, together with Paul, the broadest Berlin dialect you could imagine - and what does this guy do? Mastering the english language just enough to give public speeches about his early musician days in front of a whole audience, really overcoming his fear of public speaking and doing so gracefully in a different and hard language for him! Mad respect for him, and he maintains his distinct humor while doing so:

Flake's vocabulary isn't really refined, but good enough to express his thoughts in simple and understandable phrases. Same as Paul, he seems to adapt the german syntax into the english language, yet he speaks so fluently, barely searching for the words he needs!

Plus he even had the guts to sing in english on stage, another iconic moment, linked here (can't put any more videos in this post due to the video limit).

"But kudos to them for learning it so quickly, especially when they were already in their mid/late 20." I borrow this statement of yours to bring this post to an end, since this is exactly my point of view here - it really is remarkable how well many of them find their way around the english language 😊

#interesting ask and way too long answer #english skills in Rammstein #Rammstein language lore #Rammstein #ask #thank you for this message 🤍

[notafraidofredyellowandblue]

Rammstein interviews from OOR

Dutch music magazine OOR is one of the oldest still existing music magazines in the Netherlands. The magazine aspires to not be just a glossy magazine, but actually write journalistic, critical articles and interviews about both national and international bands.

Rammstein featured a couple of times in the magazine, with interviews between 1997 and 2009 when a new album was released. OOR particpated in the by Rammstein organised sessions for the press, and the various writers didn't hesitate to be critical about the band and to them in personal interviews as well.

1997 Sehnsucht - interview with Till

1999 Interview with Schneider

2001 Mutter - interview with Till and Schneider

2002 Interview with Schneider and Flake

2004 Reise Reise - interview with Richard

2005 Rosenrot - interview with Schneider

2009 Liebe ist für alle da - interview with Richard

In 2019, at the release of the Untitled album, Rammstein was featured as well, but that was more a lookback at the interview that occured 20 years prior in 1999 and 1997.

---

To be honest, i hesitated to post these, because these older interviews often have quite a negative tone, either because of the media's tendency to label Rammstein as nazi-music, being critical about the topics of the songs, being critical of Germans in general: all-in-all classifying Rammstein as 'wrong' (when used in dutch, this means anything from 'politically incorrect' to 'tacky' and lots in between).

In this set, additionally some prejudices the dutch have against Germans shine through (reminiscenses from the 2nd world war, but also the often stated mantra that 'Germans have no sense of humor')

And, particularly between 2000-2010, in interviews the difficulties in the band themselves working within the Rammstein democracy shone through leading to many questions about the end of the band.

But when i was working on translations i realised it's also interesting to read how the band was viewed back then, how that changed a bit when their music changed, and how time itself has changed (some things in the early interviews i'm surprised the journalists actually wrote that down...i'm sure they would get called out for it now). Also maybe it helps explain why the band rarely do interviews anymore, and when they do, how much more relaxed these are.

For context, the last of these interviews was in 2009, which next year will be 15 years ago; half of Rammstein's existence, and so much has happened and changed since then.

If nothing else, the last Q&A from the 2009 interview give us hope for a better future and recent tours (10-15 years after the interview) I think the band really showed they got there:

Do you secretly still love each other?

"Very much even. And above all, very secretly..."

🌺

#rammstein #OOR interviews Rammstein #flake lorenz #christoph schneider #till lindemann #richard kruspe

[cdaae]

Why Am I Like This- Phantom Collector Edition

I’m a completionist and an obsessive so I need all the different versions of a thing so here’s a list of where I’m at right now. I wish I could say that I was anywhere near done but there’s always more phantom stuff to collect

Books

Gaston Leroux x51(This includes all 6 English translations, 8 different languages, and three levels of French)

Gaston Leroux signed by Broadway Cast

The Underground’s of the Phantom of the Opera

The Phantom of the Bathtub

Night of the Phantom

Embrace the Night

Lessons from the Phantom of the Opera

Song of a Maiden

Madrigal

Phantom

Unmasqued

Phantom of Manhattan

Ruinsong

Roseblood

Beyond the Masque

Chanson de L’Ange

Sing Me Forgotten

The Angel of the Opera

The Phoenix of the Opera

The Phantom’s Opera

The Phantom of Paris

The Phantom’s Apprentice

Where Dreams Descend

The Phantom Cat of the Opera

Phantom Pop Up Book

George Perry’s Complete Phantom of the Opera

Phantoms of the Opera

The Trap Door Maker

Phantom Graphic Novel x2

The Phantom Cooks

2004 Companion

Geronimo Stilton

Thea Stilton

My Phantom

Phantoms in the Night

Phantom of Pemberly

Phantom of the Auditorium

Behind the Phantom’s Mask

The Phantom Returns

Phantom erotica

Book cassette

Souvenir edition OLC

Emoji of the opera

Phantom 2020

Phantom Phantasia

Songbird

The Phantom’s Lullaby

Phantom of the Little Russian Theatre

Masked Love

Treasures of Egypt

Victory

Venetian Romance

Susannah’s Secret

The Man in the Shadows

Love in the Spotlight

Let the Dream Begin

A Phantom’s Promise

Destiny’s Curse

Phantom by David Bischoff

Mini Leroux

L’Opera de Paris

Paris National Opera

Palais Garnier

Peeping Duck Gang

Out of the Darness

L’Opera De Paris Coulisses etc secrets du Garnier

Claude Rains Book

Movies/CDs/Media

Lon Chaney

Claude Rains x2

Herbert Lom x2

Phantom of Hollywood

Schell

Robert Englund

Charles Dance

David Staller

Julian Sands

2004 x17 (English x2, French x3 Germanx2, Greek, Spanish, Italian, limited(English and German), deluxe, and Ultimate, Special, Collectors(English and French)

Angel of Music

25th Anniversary

Love Never Dies

A Monster in Paris

Phantom of the Grindhouse

Anthony Mann

Phantom of the Theatre

Unmasking the Masterpiece

Love on Safari

Faust

1987 Cartoon(dvd & VHS)

Mystery Legends Phantom Game x2

2004 digital press kit(English and French)

OLC (cassette & CD)

CDs x59

Phantom of the Paradise Record

OLC small record(wywsha&motn)

Long box cd

Long box 2004

2004 VHS

Movie/book set

Long box OLC cassettes

Karaoke cassettes

Highlight cassettes

Robert Englund VHS

For Your Consideration 2004

Book casettes

Stage Fright

Props/Signed/Similar

Love Never Dies audience gift notebook

1992 tour Auction book prop

Jerry Mitchell signed LND after party invite

Phantoms Note from BWay x2

Don Juan Music from BWay x1 1/2

Ticket to 25th Anniversary Party

Majestic Theatre Phantom Barricade Cover

Photo cards, signed x16

Signed LOBs x2

Robert Englund autograph

Laird Mackintosh autograph

BWay 29th anniversary cast gift beanie

KAV’s dressing gown shoes

Manager’s BWay newspaper prop x4

Cast board name placards x3(2 BWay one Vegas)

Reopening cookies x2

London 35th anniversary rose petals and card

Il Muto page boy stockings

OBC cast member costume gloves

Printed cast member email

Cast made calendars 2006 and 2007

Full cast signed poster with Hugh

Signed trading card

Signed Michael Crawford Face mask

Signed Crawford Article

Signed 35 Poster

Signed Mask

Scrap of Christine’s wedding dress

Scrap of phantoms suit

10th anniversary invite

Opera glasses cast gift

Magazines

24/7 Magazine featuring Crivello

NYC City Guide 2014 & 2016

TODAY featuring Vegas

What’s On Vegas

Time Out New York

German LND

Theater Week 1988

In Theater 1998

Casino Player Magazine

Fate Magazine

Broadway Spotlight

Other

Megstine notebook

Mugs x7

Cups x5

Water Bottle

Ornaments x5

Phantom harmonica

Red death figure

Lon Chaney figure

Phantom Nutcracker

Phantom and Christine Barbies

Tote bag x4

Phantom creamer tops, complete set

Postcards x6

LOBs x2

Magnet x5

Stickers x12

Phantom Cat sticker set

Chibi phantom sticker set

Angel patch

Greeting cards x2

Posters x5

Art print

Calendar

Ramin based doll

Phantom doll + Ayesha

Snerik

Pen

Mardi Gras coin

Felt Raoul and Erik

Francœur bean

Small hand painted canvas

25th Anniversary limited edition boxed set

Canada gift bag

Mexico phone card

Japanese train card x2

Trading card

Lon Chaney money

Lon Chaney stamp

Pencil

Phone case

Gift bag

Japanese posters x6

Herbert Lom ad stamp

Complete LND London draft script

Blanket

Operetta

34th Anniversary blank playbill sticker sheets

Goosebumps pen

Goosebumps magnet

Goosebumps stickers x9

Bendyfigs phantom

German postcard

Angel of Music coffee

Where Dreams Descend popcorn holder

Raoul and Christine art print

Large paper bag

1994 calendar

Ireland phone card

Movie screening invite

German something?

Frame

Vegas key card

Angel of music bear

Tea towels x2

Mask sticker

Blockbuster card

Phantom press invite

Mini 2004 scrapbook

Playing cards

Assorted Japanese 2004 film memorabilia(10 pieces)

2004 film poster and booklet

1999 ticket info

2023 newspaper clippings

Gingerbread ornament

Aussie keychain

Phantom/Christine blanket

2011 wall calendar

2012 wall calendar

2013 wall calendar

Angel ornament

Universal Erik doll

Sarah/Steve Ad

1993 calendar

2004 Mylar

1995 calendar

Italy confetti

Crawford ornament

Halloween figure

Matchbox

Soap?

Heart frame

Jewelry

Pins x11

Charm bracelet

Necklace x2

Key chains x14

Replica Ring

Hair bow x2

Think of Me hair clips

Jewelry pouch

Music Boxes

Square black jewelry music box

Il Muto

Limited Edition boat scene

Boat Scene

Phantom and Christine wedding

Porcelain signs x2

Limited edition mirror scene

Mirror scene

Mirror

Limited edition MotN

Red Death

Throne water globe

Music water globe

Phantom w/ stick water globe

Rooftop water globe

Russian egg(?)

Mirror scene water globe

Phantom w/ stick

Phantom in throne

Monkey music box

Limited edition Jack in the box

Boat scene water globe(broken globe)

Russian egg (?? Missing top)

Small music box(no music)

Universal Phantom and Christine

Phantom and Christine with Marni

Opera House

Phantom Automata

Madame Alexander Christine Doll

Broken Mirror

Erik and Christine porcelain figure

Music pedestal

Clothing

Socks

Glow in the dark boxers

Night shirt

Phantom BWay x2

Sydney Harbour shirt

Christine dressing gown VTC

Peacock dress

US tour grey shirt

Christmas Sweatshirt

Toronto shirt

Candy of the Opera

1988 mask shirt

Phantom of the Opry shirt

New York shirt

Mask sweatshirt

Ghost Red Death Shirt

35th anniversary shirt

Italy shirt

Programs/Playbills/ETC

Loose understudy slips x14

Ticket stubs x11

Newspaper clippings

Mini flyers x6

Flyers x40

Ken Hill souvenir program

2004 film souvenir program

ALW souvenir programs x49

BWAY playbills x63

Signed playbills x12

Tour playbills x20

London programs x18

YK phantom playbill

World tour playbill

Melbourne playbill

Robert Englund film souvenir program

Italy program

Sweden program

Music Books

ALW piano x3(easy, intermediate, expert)

2004 film

YK phantom

LND London

I can honestly say this may not even be everything because sometimes I forget to add new acquisitions to the list. If there’s anything on the list you wanna see pics of, I’m happy to share!

#phantom of the opera #personal #phantom #the phantom of the opera

[rockyp77mk3]

From: American Air Museum in Britain

Major General Carroll McColpin was born in 1914 in Buffalo, New York. When he was 14, he built his own plane and taught himself how to fly. He quickly became aware of how Britain was fighting to repel the Germans and felt that the US would eventually become involved in the war. Rather than wait and take that chance, he joined the RAF in 1940.

He was sent to Dallas for flight training in the RCAF before being sent to England. He eventually served in all three RAF Eagle Squadrons, became CO of No. 133 (Eagle) Squadron, and soon had five aerial victories to his credit. As a Major, he became the first of three pilots to receive the British Distinguished Flying Cross on October 4, 1941.

In September 1942, he turned No. 133 over and transferred to the USAAF. He had an impressive career with 12 enemy aircraft destroyed and served three tours in the ETO as CO of the 407th Fighter-Bomber Group and then the 404th Fighter Group.

General McColpin was one of the most decorated and admired fighter pilots of the war with 280 combat missions and 12 aerial victories. Some awards include the Air Force Legion of Merit with two Oak Leaf Clusters, both the US and British Distinguished Flying Crosses, the Air Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters, and both the Belgian and French Croix de Guerre. He was decorated at Buckingham Palace by King George VI.

He retired from the USAF in September 1968 and died at the age of 89 in 2004.

#history #aviation #wwii

[black-arcana]

POWERWOLF To Release New Studio Album, 'Wake Up The Wicked', In July

POWERWOLF will release a new studio album, "Wake Up The Wicked", on July 26, 2024 via Napalm Records.

"Wake Up The Wicked" — the highly anticipated follow-up to the extremely successful "Call Of The Wild" (2021) — will arrive just in time for the award-winning band's first-ever full North American tour, starting in August 2024, followed by their biggest European headline tour to date, the "Wolfsnächte 2024".

"Wake Up The Wicked" was once again produced by Joost Van Den Broek at Sandlane Recording Facilities and marks a new benchmark and undisputed career highlight for the band. The new album is hard, surprising and full of variety. While staying true to their established, loved sound, POWERWOLF go one step further and showcase a different facet of their deft musical and technical skills. This is evident, for example, on the outstanding single "1589", which is based on a true story from the 16th century.

20 years after their formation in 2004, POWERWOLF are expanding their repertoire with the highest quality and adding many future live hits to their extraordinary discography. "Wake Up The Wicked" is yet another statement cementing the status of the band as a leading force in the world of heavy metal

"Wake Up The Wicked" track listing:

01. Bless 'Em With The Blade 02. Sinners Of The Seven Seas 03. Kyrie Klitorem 04. Heretic Hunters 05. 1589 06. Viva Vulgata 07. Wake Up The Wicked 08. Joan Of Arc 09. Thunderpriest 10. We Don't Wanna Be No Saints 11. Vargamor

POWERWOLF are undoubtedly one of the most celebrated and successful heavy metal bands of the last decade. Multiple No. 1 album chart entries, gold and platinum records, huge sold-out arena shows, as well as headline slots at the biggest festivals have paved their way. In less than 20 years of band history, POWERWOLF has made it to the very highest league of heavy metal.

POWERWOLF has conquered countless stages at the world's biggest summer festivals, and their last "Wolfsnächte" headline tours (2019, 2022),as well as their aforementioned North American debut in early 2023, were almost completely sold out — resulting in a massive triumph. They have performed headlining sets at Wacken Open Air and Summer Breeze, as well as held premium slots at genre festival giants such as Hellfest, Graspop Metal Meeting, Masters Of Rock and many more, captivating enormous audiences. No other German metal band has been able to write a success story even remotely comparable in recent years.

Following their onslaught of North America, POWERWOLF will embark on their most impressive European tour yet in celebration of their highly anticipated 2024 studio album. Amid 16 shows in total, the tour will visit colossal venues in Munich, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Prague, Hamburg and Antwerp. POWERWOLF will be accompanied by Swedish heavy metal legends HAMMERFALL as special guests, with support from viral rising stars, dwarven metallers WIND ROSE.

The story of the frontrunners of today's German metal scene, POWERWOLF, began in 2004 and only knows one direction: ever upwards. Their trajectory may seem like something out of a fairytale, but it is the result of the band embodying the highest quality of heavy metal in the universe. Outstanding album production, bombastic live shows and a tireless drive for perfection on and behind the stage are what this exceptional band is known for around the world.

Over the course of their career, the band has not only fascinated metal fans, but has also won over international press and critics. Countless cover stories in the most important magazines, critics' awards such as the Metal Hammer Award, and effusive album and concert reviews underpin POWERWOLF's outstanding international status.

POWERWOLF is:

Attila Dorn - vocals Falk Maria Schlegel - organ Charles Greywolf - guitar Matthew Greywolf - guitar Roel van Helden - drums

Photo credit: VDPictures

#powerwolf #wake up the wicked

[derwahnsinn]

31 Days Idol Challenge - Oliver Riedel

Day 10 - Favourite Look in a Group Photo

When I made this challenge before this year's tour, I was not sure which photo I would go for. As soon as this Adieu photo by Jens Koch was published, it became easy.

Of course, it is separate shots put together, but it's still presented as a group photo - and Oliver looks fabulous. I like how he has a prominent placement, how his posture and facial expression is so different from how we normally see him in photos, and how he looks hands on and ready to go. It totally fits the character he had in the Adieu music video, where he totally rocked that mini-gun.

Seeing this photo blown up and used for Rammstein's merch booths this tour, was amazing. The details were mind-blowing. I actually took photos of one of those banners, and while my angle and lighting was not perfect, I have tried to adjust the colour balance and aspect to resemble the original. The spots on the photo are spots that were on the actual banner I photographed.

Since this photo is photoshopped and not accurate, please do not circulate it. I put a disclaimer on it as well, so no one will think of it as the original photo. While it is not perfect, it does show a little bit of the crazy detail in this fantastic photo.

Bonus material: 1) Dreamy young Oliver with hair, by Fritz Brinckmann 1995. 2) Pile of Rammstein where Oliver has more hair than Schneider, by Joachim Gern 1995. 3) Barefoot Oliver front and centre, by Jan Hinrich Hoffmann 1995. 4) Photo where you can really see that Oliver is younger than the rest of Rammstein, by Frank Lothar Lange 1997. 5) Oliver and Richard sharing a moment, by Ross Halfin 2001. 6) Shaved Oliver with glasses, by Olaf Heine 2004. 7) The Rosenrot photoshoot, by Kasskara Agentur (Mat Hennek and Felix Broede), 2005. Oliver looked confident and proud, perhaps because the band was dressed up by his wife? 8) The German Conference, Sonoma 2008, by Olaf Heine. I like how the others are listening to Oliver (well, apart from Richard, who is posing for the camera). 9) In LIFAD costume, by Paul Harries 2010. This was a really good look for Oliver. 10) Oliver in his element, by Frédéric Batier for Mein Land 2011. 11) Smiling Oliver on the photo shoot for the Untitled album, photo by Jes Larsen 2019.

--

Others doing this challenge:

Till: @endlich-allein Flake: @anwiel13

#Rammstein 31 Days Idol Challenge #Oliver Riedel #Rammstein #Oliver in a Group Photo #Rammstein 31 Days Idol Challenge - Oliver #My photoshopped photo #Till Lindemann #Richard Z. Kruspe #Paul Landers #Flake Lorenz #Christoph Schneider #Jens Koch #Rammstein Photographers

[jelliclekay]

Bombalurina performer of the day: Rachel Marshall

Hamburg - 01/2000 - Bombalurina (cover Cassandra, Demeter)

Hamburg - 04/2000 - Demeter

Düsseldorf - 04/2004 - 10/2004

German Tent Tour - 05/2012 - 07/2012 - Swing (cover Cassandra, Bombalurina)

#the cameraman here did her so dirty #cats the musical #bombalurina #bomba of the day

[herrlindemann]

Break Out - June 2004, interview with Till and Flake

Thanks to Ramjohn for the scans!

For a long time it was very quiet around Germany's most popular critics' band. Three years after the 'Mutter’ release, the kings of martial rock are back with their new album 'Reise, Reise' - and, to anticipate it, with a good deal of courage for change. The last few years have been very stressful for the sextet from the greater Berlin area - several world tours, new records, monstrous live performances and always anxious not only to convey something audible to the fan, but also to always have something for the eye with them. All this also leaves its mark and shapes a band. On a muggy Friday afternoon in June, we met with Lindemann and Dr. Lorenz for a nice chat about the new CD, the past and the future in a luxury hotel in Munich.

In recent months, rumors have been circulating that the band has fallen out and is about to break up.

Flake: With six men, it's completely normal to argue, and rumors result in things that are half-said, for example on the Internet or something - we would have said something if it had come to that. Funnily enough, I found out about this when I went to Sound & Drumland to buy a cable. I asked the seller to issue the invoice to Rammstein, but he said to me: 'Why Rammstein, what do you need a cable for, you don't exist anymore?' I just thought: Aha!

Till: I think there were also rumors that Richard moved to New York, I went back to Mecklenburg, which is actually where I'm from. And maybe someone gave an interview in the wrong place, where it also happened that we once had a fight — and since everyone always thought that Rammstein had the East German collective spirit blah blah blah over the years — is that end of the band? There is nothing to all of that, and besides, we fight all the time, and that's part of it!

Flake: On top of that, Richard is working on a solo project, but I don't know how far that's progressed either.

Interesting, Richard Kruspe-Bernstein is working on his solo project.

Till: He asked us if he could do something of his own alongside Rammstein, and we gave him carte blanche — and why not. Richard has always brought a lot of input to the band. For this reason, there was once more space on this recording for the new CD, so that others in the band also had their chance to get involved. We created an organic rehearsal room situation where everyone could contribute this time. Richard then does his solo project on the side, but that's his and no one knows how far it's gotten. I also published a book and took part in a film. Flake and Paul have been writing a book. All of this is also a way in which we deal with each other in a much more relaxed manner and have also become more tolerant. Previously this would have been impossible. It used to be take or die with the band. I think it's really good that the reins have loosened up a bit and everyone says: you do yours, I'll do mine. Despite all that, we made a great record and that's a state of affairs that I really applaud!

When listening to 'Reise, Reise' it is already noticeable that Rammstein have tried to break new ground here. The single release 'Mein Teil' hits the classic Rammstein notch, while other songs are much more poetic/melancholic/musical ('Amour' — Alexandra could have sung this song too! 'Morgenstern', 'Wo bist du') come along . But then they also have softened sing-along songs to offer like 'America' or 'Reise, Reise'. The song 'Flugangst' could also have been on the 'Sehnsucht' album. The whole thing is much more multifaceted and will make the classic Rammstein fan who loves the brute guitar work ponder and the new one, even more. Thanks to the singing voice of Till Lindemann, the fan that needs to be developed is more likely to bring Rammstein closer. The tightrope walk that Rammstein walked with 'Reise, Reise' impressed me and was successful.

Flake: You're like a doctor.

Till: We're coming back with 'Mein teil’. The boys are back in town. I'm a little annoyed because I was really annoying in the beginning when we recorded the song 'Amour' because that song was kind of a duet thing like that Kylie Minogue/Nick Cave thing. The verse sung by a woman, that would have been nice. But nobody listened to me, because I have nothing to report anyway…. [grin!]. This is the worst nerd in the group anyway [Lindemann points to Dr. Lorenz]. Look, he's gotten really skinny.

Flake: We don't write songs in the traditional sense. We just stood in the rehearsal room and made music together. Completely freely and without any of us giving any instructions. We were never away from the window. After 'Mutter’ we toured for two years, then we basically had six weeks off and then we started working on point. The creative process for this record started immediately after the tour. This time we were very quick with the plate because there were no complications. We didn't have to mix anything twice, and we didn't have to move anything. It was actually the first record that went according to plan that was really fast and relaxed.

Till: The stages like mixing took eight weeks. We had a few more songs on the schedule and that's why there was this momentary delay. But everyone was always in the right place at the right time. Even Richard was always there when he needed to be there. This time the record was actually made in the rehearsal room and like before, where tapes were brought into the rehearsal room and then the songs were made. In general, this record was made entirely by all of us in a collaborative effort.

The most provocative title on the record is undoubtedly 'Mein Teil'. The text is about the 'Cannibals of Rottenburg - Armin Meiwes', who became well-known in the media, and shows the human abyss.

Flake: This story has nothing to do with cannibalism. The Word is wrong in this regard. If you eat each other by mutual consent as a type of relationship - that also has something to do with sex and love - that's not cannibalism, the word is just wrong. We're not singing about cannibalism, we're singing about this one case of Armin. We're not breaking a taboo, we're just presenting the matter.

Till: The question is which part of a body belongs in which hole - well, we know classic sex, but this is about a completely different form of sexuality. This is some kind of multiple oral sex!

Ok, but what about the subsequent death?

Till: That doesn't matter. People die from taking viagra or coke and lying on a hooker. This is also fatal. If that made him happy, as he wanted, that he died doing it, then that's sick, but so sick that it's fascinating!

Flake: We don't break taboos when The Star makes a six-page article about it with colorful photos and everyone thinks it's okay — and when we make a song about it, everyone sticks to it.

Till: That's not true, because The Star received a very big reprimand from the press authority. But that is what distinguishes The Star from leaning out of the window like that. And The Star, who is always so polarizing and criticizing, who is always very strict with everything, also drew a lottery ticket this time, because such a story is of course also appealing. In addition, everyone took care of this story, the Bild Zeitung has probably never sold as well as with these articles. Besides, we all know that such a thing exists and that it happens. Meiwes also claimed in all seriousness in court that he loved him in the few hours that they knew each other, even while eating, and he wants to be a part of him. It's kind of the dark side of love — it might even be a love song. We've also got the aunt out of the grave and you next to it, ‘Heirate mic’ — that kind of thing just happens. I find that kind of thing fascinating.

Flake: That's crazier than if Till made it up — if he sat down at his desk and it turned out to be a relationship story where one cuts off the other's tail and they eat it up together and then he eats it up. Everyone would then have said, What kind of sick imagination does Till have, what's going on in Till's head? But it was just there and it's the truth!

When it comes to the song 'Amerika', opinions differ. A great song to sing along to, which will certainly be one of the new highlights at the live concerts " ...Amerika Amerika - Coca Cola - Wonderbra and Sometimes War... ". But why didn't Till Lindemann provoke more here in his text?

Till: Provoke even more? We don't want to criticize. We already have the problem that 'Amerika' is interpreted as a political song. And it is now being assumed that Rammstein is becoming political and we only want to list facts and facts, just like we do with Armin, that really happens and everyone is involved. Since the Iraq war, this has also become an issue for us. We hung the pictures of Saddam's palace in Baghdad in the rehearsal room before and after the Americans were there. The Americans sit in the armchair with a dull look, smoke, have their guns at the ready, and are occupying again. I sat with Flake with the pictures and we tried to understand how many little wars they've started over the last twenty years. In South America, Latin America, Angola, Korea, Vietnam — they had a lot of construction sites. Hence this 'sometimes war': It's like the Coca Cola can in the Marian Trench, where the deep sea diver goes down and finds this Coca Cola can at the bottom. They put their flag on the moon — the Americans are everywhere! Even if you buy a German coffee machine, the instructions for use are in English. This is Americanized and the subculture, such as food, is spread all over the world. It's spreading like a plague. There's this bacillus that crawls everywhere, and I wouldn't be surprised if Santa Claus comes to Africa. Halloween is now being celebrated more and more here — we used to call it carnival in the East. It was actually the same procedure as the children wore masks, and I was an absolute fan of dressing in women's clothes. I always thought that was cool, but it's a dark side of me [grin!]. Now it's Halloween and people cut open pumpkin heads. The frightening thing is that everyone forgets their cultures and traditions and accepts it all without resisting it. It's just adapted that way. In Mecklenburg, plastic reindeer stand in the front yard at Christmas and people decorate their houses with fairy lights. When I see that, I get a crisis and it really annoys me. We didn't tour as much in America with 'Mutter’ as before, because they only have 110 volts in America, and we have 220 volts, the guitars sound much better there [Long and loud laughter all around!!]. We also brought German culture to America. Ask America for special German stories, they say Mercedes, Schumacher, AEG and Rammstein. We have become an institution. I was also very enthusiastic about our German government for not heeding the American call to go to war. Beforehand, I would have sworn stone and bone that they would take part, and I thought it was all the more wonderful that they said no. Nevertheless, I also find good things about the Americans. For example a lot of movies, great musicians and music and in some things they are already leaders in the world, but I don't like the world police thing that much.

Flake: You can't blame the Americans either. We were there right after 9/11 and saw how the Americans deal with it. Underneath every TV report was 'We Strike Back' or 'God Bless America' as if they were completely uncriticious, and then I just saw them in a village in Oklahoma watching Afghanistan being bombed with these infrared images. They stood there and applauded like baseball. Then I saw that I was afraid of these people - a dull mass who are happy when bombs fall. I've never been a great friend of the Americans, and whether we succeed there or not, I don't give a fuck. I don't have to like everyone who buys my CDs.

In addition to the songs already mentioned, there was also a treat in the form of the song 'Los'. An unplugged song that shows Rammstein from a totally different, but very pleasant side. So far, however, it is not clear whether the band-related song will be on 'Reise, Reise' or not.

Till: Shit, I don't even want to hear that. It's a good song, but I don't want to put it on the record. That's a good b-side or something.

Flake: I generally have a problem with a band singing about themselves, I find that very dangerous. You know that from these hip hoppers like 'Hey we're here, my voice is the microphone, my weapon in the street fight...' that's all really embarrassing, or just like the rockers used to be 'Yes, we rock and we are the Rock'n 'Roller..' I find that disgusting, because you can see that it's a rock band. The music of 'Los' is actually a very dull Rammstein riff where we then just took the riff away. The original sounds almost akin to 'Wollt ihr das Bett in Flammen sehen?'.

Till: There were opinions in the band to dig up the old roots. Listen, here's something from way back. So a remix or a second version of the song was made. We were in Stockholm in the back room of our studio and between Paul, Oliver, Flake and Schneider the guitar was going around trying to spin on this Morricone tune. Schneider used to be a blues guitarist and started playing the scheme and was the winner. At the time I would never have thought that it would become a song of its own. For me there was no question that this song should not be on the record. Maybe as a hidden track attached to the back. We will see. I like the original a lot better because there's a really good chorus on 'Los' and that's completely gone on the current version.

At the last Christmas party, Rammstein delighted the crowd of fans with the 'Lichtspielhaus' DVD. Well done, but for me also with many deficits. For example, why only this short excerpt from the 'Big Day Out' in Australia and why not the complete legendary ’96 Arena concert? One would have wished for more from the TV trailers, too.

Till: About the '96 arena concert, you can call Emu, our manager, and tell him to publish it — I can only underline that.

Flake: From the Australian concert there are only these recordings. I think that's a pity too, but we really don't have any more material. I also like the arena concert. As far as TV goes, I can tell you we're a bit TV shy because we seem very awkward in front of the camera. That then disenchants the Rammstein myth, and for this reason television is not the right medium for us.

Till: Basically, we suck in front of the camera. It's ok on stage, but not when it comes to interviews or reports.

Rammstein has also suffered from stagnant sales figures since 'Mutter’. But the band is also concerned about the rapidly fluctuating music industry and its users.

Till: Downloading, burning CDs and downloading for free on the net are the biggest problems. I find the whole thing sickening. I think it's stealing when someone can download music for free. That music is offered too expensively is another story, the record company has to bear this consequence. I think the Russians found a good solution. In Russia there is a huge market called Kyrilix. It was agreed with the record company that the price for a CD would be halved so that something would come in at all. I think that would be a good compromise. It's crazy, I walk through Moscow and find photos of us that I can't remember myself. We once sang a song live in Russian in Russia, and they recorded it and released it. They probably bugged us while we were fucking in the hotel, and now you can buy that too. I'm curious about this single song downloading story. Then bands just have to straighten themselves out and admit that they're not coming up with a smash hit and you have to go along with all the other bad songs. I download a song for one euro — I think that's a good way of getting paid. This could then result in a way of marketing as it actually has to be. If nothing happens, the medium of music will go down the drain. Television is now doing these superstar or popstar stories and exploiting the rights in a similar way as record companies have done and making a huge profit from it. I don't think that's good. Same problem with a lot of good bands that will never have a chance to get out. The record companies say we don't have the money to offer you a deal or to do a studio thing. Take Rammstein: what we experienced with our record company was perhaps unique, but they believed in us, invested a lot of money in us, and we are then obliged to give it back to them. At some point we'll be out of contract and then we can do whatever we want - but without this record company we'd be a fart in the wind.

#Rammstein #Till Lindemann #Flake #Paul Landers #Richard Kruspe #Christoph Schneider #Oliver Riedel #2004 #interview #translation #*scans #*

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

I'm on tour with my new novel The Bezzle! Catch me TONIGHT in LA with Adam Conover at Vroman's, then on MONDAY in Seattle with Neal Stephenson, then Portland, Phoenix and more!

#20yrsago Education czar calls teachers’ union a “terrorist organization” https://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/02/24/paige.terrorist.nea/index.html

#20yrsago Garry Trudeau puts $10K up for anyone who will confirm Bush’s Air Guard claims https://web.archive.org/web/20040401103812/http://www.doonesbury.com/strip/faqs/index.html

#20yrsago Nelson’s Grey Tuesday RSS https://web.archive.org/web/20040503084858/http://www.nelson.monkey.org/~nelson/weblog/culture/blogs/greyDay.html

#15yrsago Conan copyright trolls censor fan-readings of public domain stories https://www.sffaudio.com/conan-and-new-zealands-new-copyright-law-vs-broken-sea/

#15yrsago Unimaginably gigantic cell-phone market in Shenzhen https://www.bunniestudios.com/blog/?p=283

#15yrsago John Hodgman explains what’s wrong with “Meh” https://waxy.org/2009/02/john_hodgman_on_meh/

#15yrsago @brucesterling's The Caryatids, my pick for best book of 2009, a novel of clear-eyed hope for the future https://memex.craphound.com/2009/02/24/bruce-sterlings-the-caryatids-my-pick-for-best-book-of-2009-a-novel-of-clear-eyed-hope-for-the-future/

#10yrsago Mozilla’s $25 Firefox smartphone: a free/open device for billions of new netizens https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/with-firefox-os-mozilla-begins-the-25-smartphone-push/

#10yrsago Whistleblower: NSA secretly continues Merkel surveillance by bugging other German officials https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2014/02/nsa-moves-from-bugging-german-chancellor-to-bugging-german-ministers/

#10yrsago Text of Little Brother on an art-litho, tee, or tote https://www.litographs.com/products/brother

#10yrsago Takei to Arizona lawmakers: we will boycott Arizona if it passes its anti-gay Jim Crow law https://www.cnbc.com/2014/02/25/razing-arizonageorge-takeicommentary.html

#10yrsago How Youtube’s automated copyright system lets big music screw indie creators https://torrentfreak.com/why-youtubes-automated-copyright-takedown-system-hurts-artists-140223/

#5yrsago Deposition of opioid profiteer Richard Sackler reveals his bizarre defense: definitional games and insistence that words mean their opposite https://arstechnica.com/science/2019/02/sackler-behind-oxycontin-fraud-offered-twisted-mind-boggling-defense/

#5yrsago Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will pay every staffer a living wage, ending the longstanding practice of Congressional staffers taking second jobs https://rollcall.com/2019/02/22/alexandria-ocasio-cortezs-call-for-a-living-wage-starts-in-her-office/

#5yrsago As expected, the EU has advanced the catastrophic Copyright Directive without fixing its terrible defects https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/02/european-governments-approve-controversial-new-copyright-law/

#1yrago This is your brain on fraud apologetics https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/24/passive-income/#swiss-cheese-security

#pluralistic

[sunburnacoustic]

Muse - Planet Muse

Author: Sascha Krüger from VISIONS No. 161

Dom sometime during the Black Holes era, looking back on Absolution and Muse's Glastonbury 2004 highlight. Archived: Wayback Machine, translated from German.

Dominic – the now-adult

Originally we didn't want it, but then it happened like this: We ended up touring with "Absolution" for two years, with many good but also difficult moments. Especially for me because my father died at the same time, almost exactly in the middle of that time. As a result, I went back and forth between the extremes – from pure joy and lightheartedness about what happened to us, to moments of deepest sadness and acute crises of meaning. The day of his death alone is exemplary: After a really overwhelming gig, I come off the stage and get the terrible news. Surreal, there is no other way to describe this emotional fair. The good thing was that I really got to know my friends – it was amazing how many of my so-called friends didn't even know how to respond to this tragedy. Chris was a special support during this time – he lost his father when he was 17, so he knew there was nothing to say – it's enough to have someone there to give you a hug when you need it. And in a curious way, this death has made me feel more confident – because when you lose someone so close to you, you learn to appreciate what you have all the more.

But other things were tough too. There were many injuries on this tour; for example, Matt cut his lip halfway on the first gig of the first US tour in five years [Atlanta 2004 show], so we had to cancel a few gigs. It got us so down - we honestly thought it was a sign that we should hook America. Just a few weeks later, Chris broke his wrist and we had to deal with a backup bassist. It was awful – and we were headlining V Festival. We sounded like a piece of shit*. And when Matt delusionally gave me a few cuts in the face with his guitar neck during a gig, we thought for a moment: Okay, we should stop touring for real. It was all very tragic for the band.

----------

*NME didn't think so.

#muse band #muse #dom howard #chris wolstenholme #matt bellamy #referenced gigs: Glastonbury 2004 #Atlanta 2004 gig that fucked up Matt's face #I did not know about the Chris thing you know #muse interviews #Visions Germany #Visions Magazine #archived interviews #the rest of the interview hasn't been archived and so is lost. It was a three-part feature I think

[weirdowithaquill]

WIP Game:

RULES: post the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it! and then tag as many people as you have WIPS. (... I do not know this many people)

Thank you @jobey-wan-kenobi for tagging me in - here's my best attempt to categorise the various inane WIP pieces I have floating about. Oh, and cause I'm a multi-fandom writer, the fandom is at the end of the title.

Edit: Alright, so now I'm sort of using this as a check-off list for things I've written. Things people ask about generally get more progress done on them - so ask about what you want to read!

1: Jinty, Pug and the Ffarquhar Branch Engines (RWS) 2: Bowler the Redeemed Engine (RWS) 3: Arry the Churlish Engine (RWS) 4: Murdoch the Mighty Engine (RWS) 5: Seaside Engines (RWS) 6: Duncan the Disagreeable Engine (RWS) 7: Sir Topham Hatt and his Engines (RWS) 8: Ivo Hugh the Young Engine (RWS) 9: Arthur the Midland Engine (RWS) 10: Mixed-Traffic Engines (RWS) 11: Mid Sodor Engines (RWS) 12: The Caledonian Twin Engines (RWS) 13: Very Important Engines (RWS) 14: Silent Engine Bert Again (RWS) 15: Duke's and Duchess' Engines (RWS) 16: The 2004 Special: The World-Famous Engine (RWS) 17: Edward; a Requiem in Steam (RWS) 18: Mavis the Quarry Engine (RWS) 19: History of the Sodor Highland Railway (RWS) 20: The Island Song (RWS) 21: Five American Engines (RWS) 22: TATMR Horror Story (RWS) 23: The Reject Railway (RWS) 24: Tales From the Other Railway (RWS) 25: Tidmouth Train to Hell (RWS) 26: RWS/World Trigger Crossover (RWS, World Trigger)

27: Hyuse & The Iron Horse (World Trigger) 28: Crash-Course in Meeden (World Trigger)

29: In Orwell's World (Voltron) 30: Comfort Food (Voltron) 31: Pidge & Dr Strangelove (Voltron) 32: Keith and the Wolf (Voltron) 33: Grandma McClain and Adam Join the Voltron Crew (Voltron) 34: Planet Obscure (Voltron)

35: TDWT Rewrite (Total Drama) 36: Total Drama Grand Tour (Total Drama) 37: Pull Your Weight (Total Drama) 38: X-Treme Torture Rewrite (Total Drama) 39: A Night To Remember (Total Drama) 40: In the Hold (Total Drama) 41: Total Drama King Lear AU (Total Drama)

42: BirdFlash story (DC) 43: Jingle Bells, Nightwing Noel (DC) 44: Red Hood Reading Club (DC) 45: WikiHow Does Not Have An Article For That! (DC) 46: Manor on the Hill (DC) 47: Swear Jar (DC)

48: Malevolent Spirit (Saiki K) 49: When You Fall, I Will Pick You Up (Saiki K) 50: Dark Reunion's Anti-Love Ray (Saiki K) 51: Rome (Saiki K) 52: How to Win Over Saiki K, or a Rhapsody of a Man Not in Love (Saiki K) 53: Saiki K Europe Trip (Saiki K) 54: Kusuo's Christmas (Saiki K)

55: Jinrao (Naruto) 56: Obito, Father of the Jinchuuriki (Naruto) 57: Akatsuki Parents (Naruto) 58: Naruto & Nazis (Naruto) 59: Sakura Out-trains Everyone (Naruto) 60: Dogs Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 61: Refuelling Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 62: Work Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 63: Barbeques Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 64: Snorkelling Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 65: Adoption Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 66: Children Shouldn't Be This Hard! (Naruto) 67: KakaObi Regency Story Part 2 (Naruto) 68: Sasuke/Naruto Story (Naruto) 69: The Club (Naruto) 70: Atomic (Naruto) 71: Only Love Can Hurt Like This (Naruto) 72: The Railwayman AU (Naruto) 73: The Hidan Story (Naruto) 74: School Shenanigans (Naruto)

75: Just Ask Him Out Already! (Assassination Classroom) 76: AssClass Yearbook (Assassination Classroom) 77: The Theoretical Sequel to 'The Informant' (Assassination Classroom) 78: Lost in the Night (Assassination Classroom)

79: Britain in the AtLA World (Avatar; The Last Airbender) 80: Picture of Sokka of the Water Tribe (Avatar; The Last Airbender) 81: Night at the Fire Temple (Avatar; The Last Airbender) 82: Fast Car (Avatar; The Last Airbender)

83: Stay Away From Minnemeny Island (One Piece) 84: Kaoru and the German (Ouran High School Host Club) 85: Romantic Killer AU (Romantic Killer)

86: The White Elephant *The Sherlockverse* (Various)

Right... so that took way longer than expected. Originally, it all seemed fine - I have most of my things in a single, neat folder. And then I remembered I have a Microsoft Account... and a WordPad full of old fics... and several workbooks with their own things in them. I think I'm still missing one workbook, all truth be told!

@lswro2-222 @predawnrex04 and that's all the people I know who aren't @jobey-wan-kenobi

Edit 2: When I get down to like... 60 or something WIPs on here, I'm going to overhaul the list to take them off and put up the new ones. Until then, remember to ask about the WIPs you're most interested in!

#wip #wip update #work in progress #work in process #ao3 fanfic #ao3 stuff #ao3 writer #ao3 author #read on ao3 #thomas the tank engine #railway series #world trigger #voltron #total drama #total drama island #dick grayson #wally west #dc universe #the disastrous life of saiki k #naruto #naruto shippuden #assassination classroom #avatar the last airbender #Weirdowithaquill #Weirdo's WIPs #fanfiction writer #wip game

[azeriairis]

So I recently got back into cats the musical (as in the stage and 1998 film versions, not the 2019 movie). And I have to physically put in effort to remember the chorus to my favorite song, purely because I listened to the German Version too many times, and as such the chorus that comes to mind is the German translation not the original English. The German version had no reason to slap as hard as did, and now I actively struggle to remember the original English, and I don't know whether to applaud them for making such a good version, or hate them for how much it sticks in my fucking brain. (the specific recordings that have gotten stuck in my head are from the 2002-2004 Berlin production, and the 2010-2013 German Tent Tour, especially the Tent Tour)

#cats the musical

[charlenasaxen]

Favorite Quotes - Total Competition by Ross Brawn

“come up against the powerful new Ferrari organization which includes Michael Schumacher and a new technical team led by Brawn”

“theoretically that, at that speed, they could drive along upside down and stick to the ceiling”

“an F1 driver who lifts his foot off the throttle will decelerate as quickly as a Porsche 911 driver doing an emergency brake”

“If anyone can claim to have created and mastered ‘Total Formula One’, it is Ross Brawn”

“Imagine if you are the fifth fastest runner in the world and someone comes up with the idea of cloning Usain Bolt a few times”

“the first race win for Williams since 2004 and coinciding with Frank Williams’ 70th birthday.”

“then at Benetton in the mid-1990s, Ferrari through the early 2000s and finally with his own team, Brawn GP, in 2009. So, Ross has won 24 Drivers’ and Constructors’ titles”

“sure enough, the team he put together has been untouchable since”

“With the notable exception of Adrian Newey, other technical directors and Team Principals have not been able to keep up as well”

“I thought I would do a year in motor racing and see how it goes.”

“and I said, ‘Well, it’s more professional than putting the ratios in wrong.”

“It was a great year, Monaco, Austria, Monza, plus the British championship. It was pretty busy”

“we got married in that year. She came to some of the races. Great fun.”

“I went back, saw Jean and calmed down and then ended up staying for seven years.”

“A Not bad. Has anyone done better?

R I don’t know. I never added them up.”

“rode a horse and cart through the rules and came up with a car that was three or four seconds quicker”

“In ’91 we’d been very aware of this hot little German driver who we were battling with”

“he was the only one who ever gave us any trouble. So Tom and I knew Michael Schumacher very well.”

“because Michael was our boy.”

“We had this complete commitment to Michael winning the championship. We considered him to be our best opportunity and that proved to be the case.”

“Luca, Ross’s poodle, who is of course named after Luca di Montezemolo”

“Michael was extremely well rewarded because he was the best at what he did, but I’m convinced he would have done it for a fraction of what he was being paid”

“I remember when Jos Verstappen, Max’s dad, was the hot number in Formula One”

“We told Flavio that we were not going to accept his deal. So Flavio backed off and we went into battle”

“Michael had a blind spot, he was so competitive he didn’t see things the way you or I would”

“And I said, ‘Calm down Michael and have a look at the TV.’ And he calmed down and had a look”

“If you were racing Michael Schumacher, you knew you’ve got no quarter. If he saw a gap, if you left an inch, he would take a foot”

“And he said, ‘No, it wasn’t too close because he got through.”

“’95 was the year Michael announced he was leaving. That was a pretty bitter blow to me. I had been very close to Michael”

“I didn’t speak to Tom for quite a long time after that. It wasn’t until he was very ill, before he died”

“they had had some quality issues so they had taken the head of quality control from Fiat and put him in”

“We really established what could be done with a Formula One car. We had, I think, 53 consecutive podiums.”

“Years ago, if Ferrari won, I would be out on the town, celebrating with my friends. Now you’ve made it normal.”

“For five years we won every race and it was predictable”

“Michael charged up the field, because he was so much faster than anyone else…he set off from the pits, and unlapped himself from everyone, and he finished fourth”

“they included the 2007 car, because they said very graciously that it was mine.”

“our mindset was not to have much sympathy when the perpetrators of the one-race tyre had a problem”

“There are three religions in Italy, of which football and Ferrari are two”

“When I went back in 2014, Luca put on a royal tour for all my friends. There were tears flowing and fabulous memories.”

“And I said, ‘Richard, our relationship has just taken a step back.’ ‘Who’s that?’ he said. ‘It’s Ross, I’m here.”

“they are the ones for whom the battle was so easy that no one even remembers them”

“I would ring Michael up and say, ‘Can you be here tomorrow?’ ‘Yep. What time?’ Never any hesitation”

“And Michael was in the lead and he was setting the fastest times, lap after lap”

“it was like the two of you were in a couple of armchairs in front of the fire just chatting. Meanwhile, he is driving at a level that most people couldn’t imagine. Purple, purple, purple.”

“It didn’t really physically strain him. We would be having a conversation the same way that we are now”

“they would be very breathless, trying to get the words out in between pants of breath. He never did that. He also never seemed to sweat that much”

“you would go on the podium and there would be two drivers there almost unable to stand up and Michael would be jumping around”

“God, what on earth is this creature we’re competing with?”

“two fingers up to the other drivers. ‘Not only am I testing, I am going in the gym at night and working out.”

“I would be lucky if Ralf and Juan Pablo spend together as much time in a gym in a week as Michael does in a day.’”

“very few of them actually push it to the level that Schumacher did”

“eventually all the holes line up somewhere and the arrow shoots through them”

“the intention of the regulation and the application of the regulation may be different things”

“I would think, ‘Great, how are we going to take advantage of this?”

“The perception from the outside is that with Jean, Rory, Michael, you had a bulletproof team”

“It is not your name on the tin because you aren’t there – which is very galling”

“I met them together to have it out with them. And they both pointed to each other . . .”

“Now they are suing each other.”

“Yes. At least we didn’t get to that!”

“if you want to be ultimately successful you have to build trusting relationships”

“however everyone felt, people would have known that you were the architect”

“Going for a meal with Niki and Toto was good fun. Then knowing that you couldn’t trust them, you couldn’t lean on them, was a problem.”

“But one is the alliances that you described. I had a reputation for being close to the FIA”

“Was it intelligence or instinct? I was stunned that anyone has the capacity to decide that they are going to park their car during qualifying in Monaco”

“we were pretty straight up with him: ‘Bernie, we don’t want to work for you.’”

“Dead simple to get round it. Instead, Dieter got Niki Lauda involved because Bernie suggested Niki.”

“But neither Niki nor Bodo had much of an idea what to do. So they would keep leaving the meeting and ringing me.”

“Bernie never imagined in a million years that Mercedes would earn it – but they achieved it”

“He will go and meet his maker one day, but no one has managed to depose him. There is no higher authority.”

“I couldn’t feel comfortable not to at least raise it. When it was raised everyone said, ‘Up yours.’ I thought, ‘Thank God for that.”

“you have a track record of getting out there and quietly doing it.”

“if we’d all said, ‘Right, you can have half an hour in my garage’, it would be a lot more efficient”

“Toyota had the double diffuser. Would they have won that case if they were fighting it by themselves?”

“You want a highly paid technical guy working on the car, not trying to figure out how to get his furniture from Italy”

“just that process of sitting down with everyone on a regular basis helped to drive things along.”

“one of the greatest gifts I could give someone was to ask them to represent the team on the podium”

“The only one I ever wanted to definitely do for myself in latter years was Monaco in my last year”

“I knew I was leaving by then. It was a special race with Nico. I’d been there when his dad had won it with Williams”

“To enjoy success with people. To enjoy it as a team meant much more to me than individual success”

“Michael Schumacher was very much the same. He wanted to enjoy that victory as a group.”

“even extended to him organizing football matches on a Thursday night, a five-a-side game with all the team”

“you all know Matt, we’ve all relied on him for years. He’s made one mistake. Support him while he gets over it”

“Pat wouldn’t have done that just for the sake of winning a race. It’s not worth it. So there must have been other circumstances”

“after Michael and I won our first race together”

“He was very good with the drivers. He was very close to Michael.”

“Tom and I had a serious fallout, but we made up in the end. Jean Todt would never have spoken to Tom for the rest of his life.”

“I wouldn’t use a calculator, I would just ask Jean what XYZ × B was, and he would give me an answer”

“Jean was very successful at Ferrari, because he was determined to get the best people. He got Michael for a start.”

“He would come to me and say, ‘You know, Michael’s a little bit upset about this”

“And I would think at first, ‘Why didn’t Michael tell me?’ But then you realize that sometimes people find it difficult”

“the various elements, all the subterfuge in the teams – it’s just a great cocktail.”

“The men choose their machines. They have put themselves in a position to win”

“Put it into Formula One and five months later they have got an answer.”

“or (on one occasion) a helicopter flight from Nice airport to Monte Carlo. Ross just made the effort to be friendly and good company.”

“Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look upon them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death”

“not to pursue quantity at the expense of quality. Scale creates additional challenges.”

“Intelligence is the ability to shape the world around us and strategy is how we go about it”

“Total competition requires a complete, integrated and inclusive process”

“Michael Schumacher is a very special person to me on a professional and human level. We pray for his recovery.”

#quotes #total competition #ross brawn #f1 #michael schumacher

[the-snitch-anon-system]

A complete explanation on why flamethrowers are amazing.

SPREAD THE WORD PEOPLE

PART 1 THE HISTORY OF FLAMETHROWERS

The first recorded mention of a flamethrower in history is in 1AD. It was created by the Greeks as a method of torture. It was often used for getting information. This prototype flamethrower is more similar to a blowtorch, this is because it had a more concentrated flame rather than a larger one. This however wasn’t as powerful due to the fact that modern flamethrowers use gasoline, but as the Greeks didn’t know about that, it wasn’t as strong.

The first MODERN Flamethrower was designed in 1900 by a German engineer called Richard Fiedler. Mr Fiedler had made them for warfare. They were intended to be used to reinforce trenches, showering enemy soldiers with fire and intimidating others. It was never intended as a physical weapon, it was for psychological warfare.

The flamethrower wasn’t recognised as an official weapon until 1911, that was when the German military began using them. It’s first use in World War One was on February the 16th 1915. It was only used a few times in World War One, then it was put away as a military weapon. Years later they brought them out again in World War Two.

It was used extensively in World War Two, this is the first use of the portal flamethrower. The portable flamethrowers were light enough to be carried by soldiers. The Americans saw that the Germans were were using it, and then created their own. They created their own flamethrower that was stronger, lighter, and with hotter longer flames. Creating more damage.

The flamethrower later inspired the blowtorch. Blowtorches are actually a subcategory of flamethrower, meaning that most metal things you use were created with a flamethrower.

PART 2: FLAMETHROWERS IN MEDIA

The first use of a flamethrower in public media was in a propaganda comic created by the Americans in World War Two. It was used to scare people into believing the Germans were cruel (which we all know isn’t true as most Germans are super nice trust me ik loads). They showed images of a flamethrower in comic form to try to show the younger generation at the time what is happening in war.

The first use of the flamethrower in cinema was in the 1982 film The Thing, directed by John Carpenter. It was then first seen in the movies video game counterpart The Thing, created in 2002. It was then seen in TV shows until the tv show Dr Who was created. They were seen as attachments to Cyber Men but they were later changed to lasers. They were then used for Daleks however they too were later changed to lasers.

PART 3: THE REBIRTH OF THE FLAMETHROWER

After Dr Who changed the flamethrowers used by Daleks and Cyber Men, they weren’t really seen in modern media. Flamethrowers has become a greatly American thing after the first and second World Wars and you only really saw them in American tv shows/movies. That was until Rammstein began to perform live.

Rammstein, now famous for its pyrotechnics, started as a small group in Eastern Berlin. However when the band took off they performed in front of larger, more energetic crowds. They began using official flamethrowers in the 2000s. The most notable use of the flamethrower by the band is during the song Mein Teil, from the album Reise Reise released in 2004. During the live performances of the song the lead singer ,Till Lindermann can be seen using a flamethrower to light the bottom of a large cooking pot that contains the keyboard player , Christian ‘Flake’ Lorenz.

The flamethrowers in Mein Teil started off as just one regular sized one. They then upgraded to two flamethrowers ,the most noticeable use of this was during their tour in 2017. However in recent years they have started using an extremely large flamethrower, one that has wheels, in their live performances of the song. During this they will take the keyboard player out of the cooking pot and then set him on fire. An image of the flamethrower has been attached below.

Not the best images ik I took these are from when we saw them live

The bands extreme pyrotechnics have been described as ‘unfathomable’ and ‘insane’. Their flames have been known to reach the back of the Maddison Square arena and have heat able to be felt by people outside of the arena. Rammstein have had an unexpected affect on the popularity of the flamethrower. Giving the Flamethrower, and the band, a new sense of notoriety.

CONCLUSION:

In conclusion, the flamethrower has been around for many many years. It has been used in torture, war, movies, video games, even in gigs and live shows. The flamethrower has such a large and vast history, as well as a promising future as lovers of the flamethrower continue to increase each year. Making the flamethrower fucking amazing.

-Talia

#the snitch anon system #snitch anon talia posting

[glassprism]

this is a question i've had for a while and you seemed like a good person to ask i hope you don't mind! do shows vary noticeably from country to country? like as in do you see say, japanese or german productions consistently have different stylistic choices to american ones? sorry if i'm phrasing this badly 😭

Oh yeah, definitely. Just off the top of my head:

London - Generally tends to be the more "experimental" production, the one more open to changing up the blocking. In the last decade before it was shut down, there was an increasing tendency for violent Phantoms. There was also a tendency to cast Christines with very light, squeaky voices.

Broadway - In contrast to London, the more staid, "consistent" production, with actors keeping more strictly to the blocking. Phantoms, apart from Hugh Panaro, don't seem to lean too strongly towards any one interpretation (e.g. crazy, violent, sad, etc.). Christines tend to sound very similar, neither light not dark, with a generic, fairly heavy vibrato.

Japan - The acting here tends to be more subdued, which could be cultural but could also be that many productions use a pre-recorded orchestra. Singers also tend to not use a lot of vibrato, which I believe is a cultural preference.

Vienna - Fantastic orchestrations. Phantoms, Christines, and Raouls tend to be either really, really good with some fascinating interpretations, or kind of boring.

Germany - If Vienna is like London in being more open to experimentation, the productions in Germany are like Broadway, preferring not to deviate too far from the beaten path. Generally tends to be a pretty top-notch production in terms of casts with plenty of classical voices.

Toronto - Home of the crazy Phantoms. Seriously, Phantoms here and in the Canadian tour definitely seem a little nuttier than the norm. Also, the Christines are either these beautiful, operatic voices, or they're super squeaky.

Copenhagen - Another generally good production. Tends to double cast so that one Christine tends to have more of an operatic background and the other is more experienced in musicals. Also, everyone here seems very tall (Peter Jorde, Flemming Enevold, Susanne Elmark, Tomas Ambt Kofod, Isabel Schwartzbach), which might just be a Scandinavian thing... unless they're actually really short (Teresia Bokor).

Budapest - Probably part of the blocking, but the Christines here tend to be more independent, intelligent, and not playing so much the naive, child-like interpretation favored elsewhere.

Poland - Stylistically, in their first production, everyone seemed to be imitating the 2004 movie: growly Phantoms, light-voiced Christines, tenor-y Raouls. By the revivals though, that seems to have died down a little.

Helsinki - Really loves casting operatic voices.

#GP gets asks #anonymous