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#Lately I only have time to pop in to either shit post or be emo and then dip
yeehawbvby · 2 months
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Falling Away With You | Ch. 48
Sebastian x F!Reader and M. Rasmodius x F!Reader
Rating: Mature/Explicit
Chapter Summary: Y/n goes a little apeshit at JojaMart lmao
Author’s Note: *Crawls out of a pit covered in dirt and blood. Slaps this chapter down in front of you, on a SUNDAY no less!*
My health situation hasn’t improved whatsoever, but I will prevail, damnit!!
I wrote most of this and posted to ao3 early this morning, and haven't had a chance to proofread really. I'll do my best to get that done soon ^.^ Sorry if there are any weird wordings. Also sorry for the complete lack of Seb and Magnus in this one, I hope the shenanigans make up for it <3
Table of Contents + Work Summary
Check it out on ao3!
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I hate that stupid, cryptic, blue note I got.
Ever since it came, I think about it every time I check the mailbox, without fail. I don’t want to, I kinda just want to forget it exists, but I just… I dunno. I have a bad feeling about it. A gut feeling. Like, something’s totally up with it. It’s just been sitting in my closet for safekeeping until I decide what to do, though.
For some reason, I’ve been too nervous to bring it back up to Magnus. He’s forgotten it exists, from what I can tell. I think I’ll do my best to keep it that way for now. It feels more like my burden to bear than his, and besides, he’s already got the whole region to take care of.
After today’s confirmation that I don’t have bills or anything important like that, I head inside to get ready to leave the farm. Reeeally hoping my routine will shake out my heebiejeebies.
I got the OK from Magnus to use his fancy shrine for Spirit’s Eve. Got an idea of what I think I want to make myself look like, too. Maybe a tiefling or something. If tieflings don’t really exist, I’m sure some sort of succubi, or imps, or some sort of creature that looks like one’s gotta, no? I suppose I could always fall back on just pretending I’m an elf… man, a tail and horns would be so fun though. 
Either way, tomorrow is the big day and I am so ready for it.
I mean, like, almost ready. Whatever.
Today I’m going to Magnus’ place to get some practice in. Just a precautionary measure to try not to, like, blow myself up or something.
I’m gonna keep my outfit cozy and easy to move around in, but I have half a mind to make sure I wouldn’t mind losing these clothes in particular if something goes wrong with the transformation. Just some leggings, some crew-cut socks, an old hoodie, and my favorite boots, since I won’t have my shoes on in the shrine anyway. All of it is in black. Sebastian cosplay. 
I’ll pop my red studs in too, gotta commit to the bit. I haven’t had time to talk to The Emo and see if he actually did get his shit pierced last night, but assuming he did, and assuming he was able to use these for it, I wanna go all out, baby.
Now, before I head to the tower, I’ve got some errands to run around town. I woke up a bit late so there’s gonna be more people out than I’m looking forward to, but hopefully I have no creepy Alex encounters or awkward conversations with Shane again.
I promised Sam I’d visit him at work sometime soon, so I might as well head there first. He hates it there, and it’s been a while since we’ve caught up, so I’ll hopefully be a welcome distraction. I’ll bring him a coffee too to keep his spirits high.
After it’s done brewing, I grab two foam cups and pour the coffee in. Knowing Sam, he probably needs this stuff sweet, and I’m in the mood for sweet too, so I pour in a bunch of vanilla-flavored creamer. To make the beverages ~gourmet,~ I add a little whipped cream to each, as well as a light drizzle of chocolate syrup. After securing the plastic lids and giving Cannoli some well-deserved love, I head out.
While I pass by the bus stop, I make eye contact with Pam. I’ve never spoken to her, but… I dunno. I can’t tell if I like her or not. She gives me a nasty stink eye and I can only further assume she’s as mean as she outwardly appears. Unless she was just cursed with an intense resting bitch face...
I smile Pam’s way anyway. She doesn’t smile back, but that’s okay. It doesn’t benefit anyone to be so judgemental of her.
I pass a few local moms once I make it to the town square. None really mind me, which could mean they either didn’t notice, or they don’t care. Either is fine by me. I don’t hear what they’re saying, but Caroline talks very animatedly just before the rest of the group bursts into laughter.
I turn my attention back ahead as I pass by Pierre’s and nearly bump into Marnie as she’s leaving the shop.
We both squeak out a little “Oh!” before apologizing in unison.
“I wasn’t really paying attention,” I double down. 
“Oh, that’s fine. I rarely ever am!” She then motions to the two cups in my hands and adds, laughing, “At least the coffee’s safe!”
I awkwardly nod in agreement. Then, a brief flash of myself actually spilling coffee somewhere down the road raids my mind, my necklace tingling against my skin and my fingers practically buzzing.
Great.
“Everything alright, sweetie?”
That probably looked weird. “Yeah, sorry,” I try to recover, “just sleepy today!”
I take a sip of coffee to emphasize my point. Plus, I might as well drink what I can before these puppies go down. Hopefully I’ll be able to save at least one of them when the time comes.
“Aw, I’m sorry to hear that!” She puts a gentle hand on my shoulder. “I need to get back to the shop, but take it easy and don’t overwork yourself, you hear?” 
I nod, thanking her and waving her off with a shy grin before I continue moving. Once I get closer to the spot I’m supposed to be spilling these drinks — just before that little bridge over the river by JojaMart — I begin to walk more cautiously. If I can just keep these steady and focus on the ground… 
A sneeze creeps up on me. Oh god. Oh god oh fuck oh no.
Just as I’m beginning to carefully place one of the cups on the side of the bridge for safe keeping, the sneeze forces its way out of me. Luckily, one beverage — the one I hadn’t drank from yet — stays safely in my hand. Unluckily, the one I was working on trying to keep safe fell to the stones at my feet, opening up and dispersing its contents fucking everywhere.
God damnit. 
“Nice one.”
God fucking damnit.
I look up to the voice. It turns out Shane’s outside having a smoke. He’s at the opposite end of the bridge watching my clumsiness unfold with an aloof look about him. He’s bent over to lean on the stone wall, his right elbow propped up and his corresponding cheek in his palm. His left forearm is flat against the structure while his left hand lazily dangles his cigarette between two fingers.
Is that pink nail polish on one of them? I wonder if that’s Jas’ doing. 
I merely groan back my response, picking up the now-empty cup to discard in the trash bin near the store. As I proceed on my walk of shame past Shane, I point out, “At least my clothes stayed safe.”
Shane follows and asks, “How many ants do you think you murdered with that accident?” 
I grin a little at his dry humor. “Oh it was a massacre,” I bounce back. “The war in Gotoro pales in comparison.”
“Ha!” Oh my god, I made Shane — the grumpiest fuck I’ve ever met — laugh?! “Right on. Seems like pointless violence anyway.” 
I turn to see if I can catch him smiling for the first time, like, ever. It’s not there anymore, but there’s a residual brightness in his features.
Shane snuffs out his cig on the ashtray built into the garbage’s lid, abandoning it there before shoving his hands in the pockets of his bright blue shorts.
“Those sons’a bitches,” he nods in the direction of my carnage, “they had it coming.”
My nose scrunches as I laugh a little, giving him a funny look. “Damn, what’d they do to you?”
There’s a playful glint in his eye, as he deadpans me. “Exist.”
I shrug and nod — I get it, they can be pretty annoying! — and follow the man as he makes his way through the white-rimmed, glass-centered automatic doors. I try not to cringe outwardly at how many self-righteous pro-Joja fliers are on them.
Shane stops a few steps into the store. Turns around. I stop too and look up, tilting my head. What’re you looking at, punk? I think to myself. Dunno if I’d be pushing my limits by trying to say it out loud. Better not.
Shane gives me a weird look too, but I can barely see it. My senses are taking their damn time getting used to the obnoxiously fluorescent lighting.
“Don’t you shop at Pierre’s?” Shane wonders out loud.
I blink a few times as I adjust to the environment and then nod. “Visiting Sam,” I explain.
“Ah.” He nods too, in understanding, and then looking the other way he continues, “Enjoy.”
Shane makes his way towards a door to the right of the manager’s office. Says “Employee’s only,” so I’m assuming it’s a break room or something. I don’t miss the incorrect apostrophe, but choose not to linger on it either.
“You too.” He looks back over his shoulder, so I pair my well wishes with a lazy salute.
“Buh.”
…Buh?
I smile. I think he’s warming up to me!
Feeling a tad lost now that I’m alone, I look around before making any advances. Should’ve asked Shane if he knew where Sam would be around now. I dunno how the shifts work around here.
The cashiers to my left — a visibly exhausted red headed woman, probably in her late 30s or early 40s; and a scrawny, scruffy looking teenager, with thick-framed glasses sitting atop his freckled nose — both look miserable.
The boy is boredly leaning against the counter, zoned out on the ground in front of it. The woman looks totally spaced out on nothing in particular. It almost seems like she’s fighting off sleep, too. Poor lady. 
The woman and I lock onto each other. She looks away from my face before I can even register it, but I notice her eyes flicker longingly to the coffee cup in my hand a few times after the fact. I peer between her and the beverage twice before I all but scurry away into the aisles. I’m too awkward for this. My only option is to retreat. Never said I wasn’t a coward.
While I venture past the boatloads of boxed, bagged and canned foods in search of the resident dog boy, I observe some of the products. Some don’t look safe for consumption, while others seem like they’d be fun to try as a one-off sort of deal. It overlaps a few times as well. I mean, why wouldn’t I want to try this cereal which very explicitly states on the box that it’s more sugar than grains? It makes me stifle a giggle. I like the brutal honesty. 
I stop and stare at it for a sec. Gnawing my lip. Wondering if I should just…
No. I shan’t.
I break away from temptation and trek on. As I reach the end of the aisle, I pan across the back of the store. More shelf-stable products, a small produce section… ah!
Sam looks like he’s supposed to be mopping the floor near the freezers. To be fair, he is holding a mop, and it is touching the floor! But instead of cleaning, he uses the tool as a microphone; singing against the end of the brown wooden handle, both hands passionately gripping it as he bends his torso to quietly belt one part in particular. Sam’s eyes are shut, his bulky black headphones are secured over his ears, and he has not a single worry in the world. 
Holding his coffee in both hands now, I stop walking and lean against a nearby shelf. Observing. Waiting. Eventually he’ll have to see me.
He does a little spin move and carelessly bumps into the bucket of soapy water he’s working with, causing it to slosh around a little. Some of it lands on the floor, and some on the pants of Sam’s jumpsuit. Doesn’t faze him in the slightest. 
He does another spin the opposite way and nearly knocks over the conveniently placed display of sprinkles that are situated right in front of the ice cream freezer.
I feel like I should probably stop him before something bad happens, but he looks so damn content and so stinkin’ cute that I can’t be assed. 
Just as I’m thinking this, he opens his eyes, completely avoiding my direction while he immediately peers over his shoulder. Sam scans around, getting a full view of the proximate areas. It seems like he’s just making sure he’s not about to get caught by his boss or something, if I had to guess.
Eventually he lands on me. We both smile wide, and I triumphantly hold up his (unspilled!!) coffee in one hand, presenting it with a small flourish of the other and a bow of my head.
“For you, my good sir.” I make sure to sound extra fancy, dropping my voice an octave and annunciating my words a bit too much.
He looks around again before meeting me in the middle with a fist bump, completely ignoring my bit. Aw man.
“Hell yeah, thanks dude!” 
I shoot some awkward finger guns at him, “You got it, bud.”
“You didn’t make yourself one?”
I sigh, lamenting, “I did…”
Sam scans my face as we share a short silence. Then, the lightbulb almost visibly goes off in his noggin. “You spilled it, didn’t you?”
Pursing my lips, I nod. “I spilled it, yeah.” 
“Buuummer, dude.” He pats my head and I sigh, leaning into his touch. I’ll be damned if I don’t still love head-pats, even if it’s been a while since I’ve gotten one. “Wanna split this one then?” he offers, palm still on my crown. At this point he’s just trying to messy me up.
“No thanks, I’ll just grab another later if I’m really craving it.” Not having noticed the trance I’ve been in as my hair gets slowly and steadily ruined — it feels nice, okay? — I finally look up at him, cheekily glaring as I manually remove his large hand from me. I add on as I try to repair the frizzy aftermath, “Sick performance, by the way!” 
“You think so?” he beams. Makes me laugh.
“Of course! It looked like you were having a lot of fun.”
Sam’s face is a bit flushed as he takes the compliment, not even trying to hide it; he has a big goofy grin on his face, too.
It drops and Sam looks behind him as a deep voice with a bit of a southern twang booms from one of the aisles nearby. “Samson?”
“Shit, here.”
Sam hurriedly places his coffee into my hand and rushes back near his water bucket, looking around for his manager as he moves. I try to make things less suspicious by pretending to look at some nearby end caps. 
I take a peek over when I hear Sam greet the man, “Hiya! What’s up, Morris?”
Crossing his arms and puffing out his chest to try and make himself look mighty, a man in a navy blue suit, a bright red bow tie, and a poorly-applied black toupee corrects him. “That’s Mr. Saxton, son.” 
I roll my eyes. Awesome to know the guy running this Joja is just as insufferable as the dudes who work on the corporate side.
Sam puts an anxious hand on the back of his neck, and halfheartedly smiles as he apologizes, his speaking patterns much more formal than before. Poor guy… it hurts to see him having to tone it down so much for this dipshit.
I turn my attention back in front of me so as to give him some privacy. Not sure he’d want me to hear him getting his ear talked off.
This display is full of holiday cards... I might as well waste some time with these bad boys. I pick up one with a cartoon beagle wearing a birthday hat on it, stealing a sip of Sam’s coffee as I read the pun on the front: “Have a doggone good birthday!” Alright, nice and cheesy start…
I flip the card open. It starts blaring Baha Men’s “Who Let The Dogs Out.” Fucking hell. Jumpscare me, why doncha! I shudder at how tinny the music sounds — likely made worse by its volume — then close the card and place it back in its spot, not bothering to read more.
“Excuse me, miss?”
I peer over my left shoulder, and see that Mr. Saxton is making his way towards me. A vein is popping in his forehead, but he has a toothy smile on his face that screams customer service. Not sure what’s going on and feeling a little anxious about the situation, I don’t answer with words — I just turn my body to him and watch him expectantly. 
My eyes flicker to Sam real quick, who’s closer to the opposite end of the freezers now. He’s looking over here though, and when his eyes catch mine, he mouths “Go!” and motions his arm towards the front end of the store. Maybe he got caught socializing or something… wouldn’t doubt that there’s probably heavy surveillance in here. Man.
I look back at Sam’s boss as he says, “I’m going to need you to discard your beverage.”
My brows furrow and I tilt my head. “Why?”
Ah, he’s the asking-questions-is-talking-back type: He huffs a deep breath and tilts his head as if to mimic me, clasping his fingers together in front of his ribs. The smile and vein are both still on his face.
“It is not only unacceptable to bring your own food into a grocery store,” he strains, “but I cannot have you spilling your drink all over our products.”
…I haven’t spilled anything. What does he think I am, some crusty little kid? 
Damn, this is bringing out a rage that I haven’t experienced since working behind a Joja desk. I didn’t know I was even capable of it anymore. Must be something about the overstimulatingly bright blues, or the blindingly white strips of lights. Same ones we had above each cubicle in the office.
My anxiety is rapidly replaced with a petty yearn to cause a ruckus as I realize that I don’t work for Joja anymore. I never have to even come here again, actually.
I don’t answer to this fucko! I don’t answer to anyone!
Screw this guy!
Feeling courageous, I put on my own customer service mask as I inquire, “Do you want me to spill this on your products?”
“E-excuse me?!”
I hover the cup near the cards, tilting it a little. Doing a little eyebrow wiggle too for good measure. “It feels like you dooo.”
“I— w-what are you doing?”
Seb would be so proud if he were here. Not sure how Magnus would react, but I’d like to imagine he’d support me too.
Completely on impulse, I bring the cup in front of me and splash a little coffee in the man’s direction instead of the cards’. The now-lukewarm liquid splatters onto the white button-down beneath his jacket and rapidly seeps into the fabric, leaving a light brown, unsightly splotch.
Sick, got him where it hurts and none got on the floor! Less work for Sam!
Making sure my voice is just as cheery as Morris was trying to keep his, I cap this off, “Stop treating your employees like crap and stop treating complete strangers like children, asshole.”
This feels so good. My heart is racing and my pits feel a little moist and I might just end up an anxious mess the second I walk away, but I’ll be damned if this isn’t cool as fuck in the moment. When Leah asked me last week if Magnus ever wanted to go apeshit, it didn’t even occur to me how badly I wanted to go apeshit.
I walk down the nearest aisle as Morris continues sputtering something about me leaving, paying for this, whatever.
Shane’s kneeled down in the middle of the aisle stocking shelves. He faces me for a moment and grins slyly. “That was cool as hell.” Why does this feel so validating? “A woman after my own heart.” 
HUH?
I blink that fucking flashbang away — seriously, the last time I saw him he was still being a dick, and today he’s treating every interaction like we’re fully acquainted, if not more, what the heck — as he turns away to scan items onto the shelf again.
“I really didn’t do much…” I really didn’t. Just kinda caused a minor inconvenience for the guy. 
My hands are shaking though, so it must be catching up to me.
“That still took some balls.” He glimpses at me briefly and adds, “Y’look like you might cry, though. Get outta here before I change my mind about you.”
I huff out a quiet laugh and steady Sam’s — well, my, now — coffee in both hands. “On it, boss.”
26 notes · View notes
brightwoods · 3 years
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I know I still have asks to answer and I will when I’m around again, but for now I’m just here to shitpost quickly before bed because this sound has been stuck in my head all day
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nemeseos-noctua · 3 years
Note
Hi! Could i request hcs for Diluc and Xiao with a reader who is shy? Thank you!
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𝐅𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆: xiao, diluc (separate) x gn!reader
𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: a few swears in diluc’s! (it’s like one or two)
𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒: this is actually my first tumblr post.... ive been super busy with school, sports, and other stuff. sorry! ill try to write more in the future! (constellations has been doing everything so far since i still dont know how tumblr works lol)
also, these are stupid long... and for what.
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adventuring was a lot for you to process
okay, so maybe having your own Benny’s Adventure Team was not great while traveling through Dragonspine and Liyue
too many of everything
you ended up getting really beat up.
after passing through Mingyun Village, you could see Wangshu Inn and decided to stay there until you were healed up
you always found comfort in the night sky, so you went out there every day
It was your fifth night staying at the inn before you saw a short male standing on the balcony where you would usually be. Strange. You’d never seen anyone like that before.
You seemed to have caught him off guard when you started to approach him since he jumped a little. 
Taking a closer look at his face, you studied it a bit. He had golden eyes and dark teal hair that seemed to frame his face perfectly, accompanied by lighter streaks of the same colour.
Pretty... you thought, completely entranced by this strange man (boy?). 
“Ah, sorry. I’m probably disturbing you... I’ll go now...” 
He blinked. 
god he’s in love
not even romantic love but he loved you like the past adepti
xiao would see so many couples over the years that he’s been at the inn and absolutely hated them, but this?? 
okay it’s a different type of love but damn it felt nice
You started to turn and walk back to your room before hearing his voice.
“Stay.” 
STAY??? WE MOVING KINDA FAST BUT ALRIGHT PRETTY BOY !! 
On the outside, you were cooler than a cucumber. The inside? Chaos. Millions of thoughts raced throughout that little head of yours. 
“Only if you’re fine with it...”
Turning back around, you took a few steps forward before noticing that he wore a lot of accessories on him. One of them being a mask that resembled one of the Vigilant Yaksha’s in that one book you read as a kid. Probably just a fan or something.
You reached the balcony, taking a spot next to him while also keeping some space between the two of you. Leaning on the balustrade (the railing of a balcony), you rested your head on top of your arms.
A comfortable silence was placed in the middle of the two. A silent breeze blew, adding to the mellow mood. 
“What brings you here?” the pretty stranger suddenly inquired, gaining a small jolt from your serene state. “Did I scare you? My apologies.”
“Oh, uh, it’s nothing...” You lifted your head to look out at the lands of Dihua Marsh. Seeing Dragonspine in the distance gave you a chill. Those were not the greatest memories. The small movement didn’t go unnoticed by the boy.
“You’re an adventurer?”
“Oh... yeah, I am... I’m not that experienced yet, though...” 
for SOME REASON... this man felt even more inclined to protect you
you still had a fair amount of bandages wrapped around your limbs, so it was clear that you were injured
GOD IF HE COULD JUST HUG YOU RIGHT THERE AND THEN
but he did not.
he has restraint.
he is a good boy.
“I met a traveler that wasn’t very experienced either.” This fact shocked you. So he has been here for a while... but why hadn’t you seen him before? Does he just... disappear into thin air..?
the answer is yes
he does indeed do that
but that’s besides the point.
“Oh... that’s nice...” 
It was getting late. The moon was starting to lower back down and the lids of your eyes were getting heavier and heavier by the minute. You let out a yawn, but it was muffled by your head being buried in your arms once again.
“You should go get some rest.” You hummed. 
Then, a thought popped into your head.
“If you don’t mind me asking... what’s your name?” 
Even though you weren’t facing him, you could feel his piercing gaze on you. It wasn’t uncomfortable at all, but gave you a feeling of protection.
“Xiao.” You mouthed his name to yourself silently. It was nice.
“Goodnight, Xiao. I hope that we can do this again soon.”
“Goodnight to you...”
“(Y/N).”
“...(Y/N).”
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you were a cryo catalyst that tried to fight against some cryo slimes alone
hint: that was a bad idea
my favourite elemental reaction was immune!
literally... you couldn’t even do anything to them
and you were getting beat up. 
badly.
for plot convenience you were at the lake next to Dawn Winery
“Shit...” 
At this point, you’d been fending these slimes off for around a quarter of an hour now and you were getting tired now.
Your dumbass tried to drown them in the lake but forgot that they immediately froze any moisture underneath them. You tried attacking them but everything you could do was inflict the freeze effect (against CRYO slimes). 
You literally could not do anything. Time to get frozen to death!
“Burn!”
WHAT???
Suddenly, a big fire bird swept up the slimes that had been occupying you for the last 20 minutes or so, effectively taking them out. 
At this point, the only thing that kept you standing was your adrenaline, which quickly ran out as you dropped to the ground in exhaustion. You let out a sigh, finally free from those damned slimes. You will have your revenge one day... just not today.
While you were resting on the ground, your saviour had been standing there, watching you calm down. And so you looked up to be greeted by probing crimson orbs, which definitely startled you.
Your saviour was.... Master Diluc. Master Diluc Ragnvindr, wealthiest man in Mondstadt. Him. In front of you. 
“OH! I, um, Master Diluc! What brings you here?” 
‘WHAT BRINGS YOU HERE??’ HE LIVES HERE THOUGH?? 
“I was taking a stroll around the winery and happened to see you in your own predicament.”
You attempted to stand up, though your legs failed you as you only flopped back onto the dirt. 
diluc doesn’t wanna admit it but that was unbelievably stupid, cute, and endearing
okay and what if this emo boy doesn’t like people
he still has feelings too >:(
“I’ll stay here with you so you won’t get attacked again. So relax.”
Mans was telling you to “relax” while you were in the presence of a literal typhoon here. He was so brooding and scary-looking all the time that you couldn’t even try to relax.
A few minutes pass and the sound of water rushing was the only thing keeping you two company. 
It was nice to enjoy nature, but the tension between the two of you was still higher than ever.
To break this silence, you had tried to stir up some small talk.
“The weather is nice today, huh...”
He grunted, which seemed to be a regular response of his. You started to notice this after a few questions like “how’s your day been” or “have any plans today?”
Not that you were genuinely interested. You bet that he could tell that you were trying to make it less awkward by responding at all, but it just didn’t help at all.
You were probably sitting for a good 10 minutes before deciding to stand up again, in which you were successful. But could you walk back to the city?
That was debatable.
You definitely felt and looked unstable, so being the gentleman he was raised to be, Diluc reluctantly bent down and slung your shoulder over his.
The height difference between the two of you was pretty big, so he ended up just carrying you to his place. As goofy as it looked, it got the job done.
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― riri ✨
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toasty-bat · 3 years
Note
Ok this was going on too long to be put in replies so here we are. Tramp Stamp, the "pop rock" "band".
Okay so. The members. Marissa Maino, has released a few EPs in the past, as has the guitarist Caroline Baker. The drummer, Paige Blue, is a songwriter with a couple of published songs.
However, for each member their former music and style was COMPLETELY different to how they make music now. Sure, styles can change, but this much this quickly? They each apparently spontaneously dyed their hair similarly neon colours at around the same time, before even forming the band.
Their music is also weird. It's like Blink-182 of it was modernized and then diluted down to buzzwords only. It's also clearly supposed to be the sort of "riot girl feminist" stuff seen in pop punk in the early 2000s - except again, it's diluted and "off". Their lyrics all sound like something specifically crafted to appeal to Tumblr users and young people on TikTok, and it seems to bank on the idea that because the target is young, they won't really remember late-90s to early-2000s pop rock and so won't know why they sound "off".
The band has barely started existing, but despite having no sold songs or EPs or albums under their belt, they already have stan accounts, a well-established website, and well-designed merchandise at high prices. Not something a brand new normal band does.
They're VERY defensive whenever they're criticized for anything. Recently they were called out for stealing their name from another band, @/thetrampstamps-blog (these guys are real), to which they responded "we don't like white cis men!!". It was quickly pointed out that every member of their ""band"" is cis, and white.
Everything about them seems manufactured. Their brand-new instagram is full of clearly professionally taken shots in studio lighting with full professional makeup and hair (not necessarily weird for a band....unless that band was created less than a month ago and hasn't even released a debut EP yet). They regularly use outdated slang and act like when old people write teenage characters - for example, one of their TikTok songs contains lines like "Tumblr girl, sk8ter boy", "I'd rather die than hook up with a straight white guy" (????) and "it's some major fuckin tea".
Their lyrics and captions may sound plausible when they're separate, but when it's all put together it reads like an AI-generated Buzzfeed article about current youth trends.
Their website claims their music is "the kind of stuff women talk about with their friends, but no one has ever put it into this kind of music before" (this is apparently a quote from one of the band members.) I'm sorry, nobody has ever done this before? Doesn't your band claim to take direct influence from early-2000s feminist punk scenes?? Have you ever listened to a feminist punk band before, ms "definitely in a feminist punk band"???
As for the "we hate straight white men" stuff, one of the members is openly married to a straight white guy. Not saying you can't be married and also be a feminist pop punk icon, but..their entire thing is that they're "a brilliant voice on white-boy privilege and fragile masculinity". (That's supposedly another quote from one of the band members. Definitely a real human person thing to say).
The band claims to be emo as well, but couldn't recognize MCR music when asked to name MCRs most popular songs. Not that it's impossible, but how likely is it that an emo/pop-punk band taking influence from the 2000s and early 2010s doesn't know what MCR is???
(TW: Sexual assault, alcohol for this bit)
One of their songs describes raping a man by getting him drunk and pressuring him into sex. Whether this is industry-plant related or not, this clearly isn't some "voice for the youth" shit that anyone Gen Z is interested in.
The irony is that they're also connected to Dr. Luke, a cishet white male who owns their publishing house... and who has multiple SA accusations against women (notably Kesha)
(TW over)
Also, they claim to be Queer Punk, but 2 of them are openly cishet. Now, I don't believe you should pressure public figures into coming out, but I can say as someone who enjoys the queer punk scene, I've never seen a Queer Pop Punk band made up of 2/3 cishet people.
On one of Marissa (the singer's) tumblr accounts before it was deactivated, the DNI said "-Phobic against any sexuality, including straight!"
(...what about the whole "we hate straight men and we're queer punk"... thing...)
Tldr: Everything from their social media presence to the way they dress to their song lyrics/style sounds like something old people in suits would imagine appeals to the young generation. They specifically targeted punk and queer spaces and appear to exploit them, and in response to criticism they either explode at whoever is criticizing them, or they delete accounts and immediately recreate new ones.
At first it seems plausible that they're just weird, but the further down the rabbit hole you go, the less and less real it all is. It reaches a point where you see them post and it feels like you're watching an AI that was fed information on Gen Z and is randomly generating content based on that information.
(don't judge me I fell down the rabbit hole HARD ok lmao)
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rfamess · 4 years
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This cured my boredom for a little bit. Was making a few new music playlists and thought.. hmm. I wonder what kind of music the RFA listens to? So, I made this. For no reason at all.
What Kind of Music the RFA + V/Saeran Listen To:
Saeyoung/707:
- (I always see people writing that he’d listen to all star or other cringe meme songs because that’s what seems to be his entire personality, but I like to think he has more substance than that and listens to songs that don’t have to do with memes.)
- He definitely listens to rap/hip-hop.
- Can you not imagine him driving down the road in his cars, windows down, music blasting?
- He listens to his music uber loud in his headphones while working.
- His favorite artist is probably Tyler the creator, i mean, how could you not love him.
- Listens to Mac Miller when he’s sad :(
PLAYLIST:
Who Dat Boy - Tyler the Creator
Stutter - Freddie Dredd
Evil Fantasy - Freddie Dredd
Sweatpants - Childish Gambino
Bounce - Logic
Dead Wrong - Notorious B.I.G.
Movement - Oliver Tree
Stick to Your Guns - Watsky
Both - Gucci Mane
No Sleep Till Brooklyn - Beastie Boys
Can I Kick It - A Tribe Called Quest
No Limit - G Easy
Circles - Mac Miller
Broke Bitch - TMG (lol)
Bonfire - Childish Gambino
I THINK - Tyler the Creator
Good News - Mac Miller
I - Kendrick Lamar
FACE - Brockhampton
King Kunta - Kendrick Lamar
Lovely Things Suite: Knots - Watsky
Zen:
- (Similar to Saeyoung, I don’t believe Zens entire personality revolves around musicals, he probably doesn’t listen to them that often imo.)
- I like to think he’s a... well rounded individual when it comes to music
- Listens to anything and everything.
- I could see him listening to the same music as Seven, but is also very into 70s-90s rock like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the like.
- He runs listening to all of his music on shuffle and doesn’t have a specific playlist so there’s never a certain vibe to it— it really is all over the place.
- In addition to Seven’s playlist, here’s Zen’s
PLAYLIST:
Funny Face - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Santeria - Sublime
Badfish - Sublime
The Luck You Got - The High Strung
Dedicated to the One I Love - The Mamas and the Papas
Heart of Glass - Blondie
Come as You Are - Nirvana
Brown Eyed Girl - Van Morrison
Machu Picchu - The Strokes
Dirty Harry - Gorillaz
Love of Your Life - Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Adults Are Talking - The Strokes
Bailee - The Licks
Where is my Mind - Pixies
Hurt Like Mine - The Black Keys
Gap - The Kooks
Give it Away - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Take Me Out - Franz Ferdinand
Hoops - The Rubens
Conquest - The White Stripes
Ten Cent Pistol - The Black Keys
Yoosung:
- Yoosung likes more upbeat music, maybe more new age/alternative pop
- Listens to music every time he tries to study, but usually get distracted by it and starts to sing along instead of actually doing his work
- Is probably trying to branch out of his style, Seven and Zen try to convince him to listen to their favorite genres
- The three of them always argue about who has the best taste in music lol
- He’s constantly wondering if his music is “manly” enough (it’s okay yoosung it’s just music)
- If this dude gets drunk and hears any of this music he goes absolutely wild and dances all over the place
PLAYLIST:
Bambi - Hippocampus
Turn - the Wombats
Paris - Magic Man
Chronic Sunshine - Cosmo Pike
Death of a Bachelor - Panic! At the Disco
Silvertongue - Young the Giant
Brazil - Declan McKenna
Unbelievers - Vampire Weekend
Baseball - Hippocampus
Australia - The Shins
Prune, You Talk Funny - Gus Dapperton
Honeypie - JAWNY
Alien Boy - Oliver Tree
Satellite - Guster
So Young - Portugal. The Man
Blinding Lights - The Weeknd
Circles - Post Malone
Unbearably White - Vampire Weekend
Tiny Umbrella - Coast Modern
Way it Goes - Hippocampus
Electric Feel - MGMT
Jumin:
- this guy has 2 modes and that’s it: classical bitch or music that has words
- He appreciates the fine art of classical music and listens to it when he has work to get done or when he’s trying to relax.
- If he’s in a good mood he’ll put on a playlist that includes “music with actual lyrics!”
- It’s a dad playlist. Billy Joel, Billy Joel, Billy Joel, Elton John, The Beatles, Billy Joel.
- He likes Billy Joel. Jumin has a dad personality you can’t convince me otherwise lol
- He tried to branch out but can get very picky in his interests. “I don’t like this guitar riff— change it”
- Either way his 2 modes are apparent in his playlists
PLAYLIST:
Dreams - Fleetwood Mac
California Dreamin’ - The Mamas and the Papas
Don’t Ask Me Why - Billy Joel
Starman - David Bowie
Miss You - The Rolling Stones
Dancing in the Moonlight - King Harvest
Come and Get Your Love - Redbone
It’s Too Late - Carole King
Movin’ Out - Billy Joel
A Horse With No Name - America
I Want to Hold Your Hand - The Beatles
Honky Cat - Elton John
Vienna - Billy Joel
The Stranger - Billy Joel
Waltz in A Minor - Chopin
Hungarian Dance No. 5 in G Minor - Brahms
Waltz No. 7 in C Sharp Minor, Op. 64, No. 2 - Chopin
Souvenir de Paganini - Chopin
Solfeggietto in C Minor - Bach
Prelude in B Minor, Op. 32, No. 10 - Rachmaninoff
IV. Allegro Molto From Quartet - Yo-Yo Ma
La Fille Aux Cheveux de Lin - Debussy
Porz Goret - Yann Tiersen
Carnival of the Animals: VII. Aquarium - Camille Saint-Saëns
Carnival of the Animals: XIII. The Swan - Camille Saint-Saëns
Jaehee:
- We all know her obsession with Musicals (specifically zens)
- Other than this she listens to...well honestly I don’t know
- Her music doubles as something she can get hyped up with and something she can listen to to relax.
- She loves to dance, so a lot of her songs and just songs that she’ll never be able to refuse to move her feet to!
- She likes the old classics and then she likes Doja Cat. Lizzo? Queen.
- She’s a barb let’s be real please. you can never convince me that she’s not
PLAYLIST:
Adore You - Harry Styles
She - Harry Styles
Call Me - Blondie
Starships - Nicki Minaj
Hey Mickey - Toni Basil
Juice - Lizzo
Say So - Doja Cat
Voulez-Vous - ABBA
Waterloo - ABBA
Cuz I Love You - Lizzo
Killing Me Softly With His Song - Roberta Flack (LOL the memories associated with this song after Killing Stalking..... hahahaha BUT ITS STILL A GREAT SONG!)
Only - Nicki Minaj
Boss Bitch - Doja Cat
Go Your Own Way - Fleetwood Mac
Beez in the Trap - Nicki Minaj
Woman - Harry Styles
9 to 5 - Dolly Parton
Blame it on the Boogie - Michael Jackson
One Way or Another - Blondie
Tia Tamera - Doja Cat
Truth Hurts - Lizzo
V:
- indie boy indie boy indie boy indie boy
- Cmon just look at him he’s an indie boy
- If you’ve ever met a film student that gatekeeps music, they have the same exact taste but V won’t say shit to make you feel stupid. It’s just music bruv
- If you’ve ever been to an indie concert you know the fuckin dance you know what I’m talking about. he does that.
- Rolls a joint, pops the music off and he paints, does photography, whatever. Either way he straight vibes every single time the tunes come on.
- Low key thinks he has the best music taste. that’s just how dem indie kids roll let’s be real here.
- For some reason knows everything about every type of music. will spew facts about artists and songs at random
PLAYLIST:
Shuggie - Foxygen
Necessary Evil - Unknown Mortal Orchestra
Homage - Mild High Club
Another One - Mac DeMarco
Plants - Crumb
What Once Was - Her’s
Heart and My Car - Summer Salt
Cottage Roads - The Walters
Moonlight on the River - Mac DeMarco
Work This Time - King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
Like Yesterday - Paul Cherry
Call it Fate, Call it Karma - The Strokes
Knowhere - Nick DeLaurentis
Escargot Blues - Guantánamo Bay Surf Club
A Side / B Side - Tipling Rock
Dark Red - Steve Lacy
That I Miss You - Vansire
Top Tier Love - Lonely Benson
Driving to Hawaii - Summer Salt
Taking Up Space - Mustard Service
She’s the Only One - King Guru
Saeran:
- emo boy emo boy emo boy
- We all know it
- As much as I’d love to say he listens to heavy death metal, there’s a part of my mind saying NO he’s not like that.
- Well he is, but he’s got more than a few single interest
- Probably listens to Nirvana, Cage the Elephant, anything similar
- Is always trying to listen to new music
- Kind of sick of Seven blasting his music all the time and listens to the opposite of hip hop whenever possible
- Honestly enjoys all types of music, but sticks to his favorites
PLAYLIST:
- All Apologies - Nirvana
- Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene - Hozier
- Soma - The Strokes
- Black Madonna - Cage the Elephant
- Hysteria - Muse
- Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High - Arctic Monkeys
- I Got Mine - The Black Keys
- Supermassive Black Hole - Muse
- Under the Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Back Against the Wall - Cage the Elephant
- Creep - Radiohead
- Heart Shaped Box - Nirvana
- Demon Days - Gorillaz
- Bulls on Parade - Rage Against The Machine
- Matador - The Buttertones
- Holiday - Green Day
- RIP - The Licks
- London Calling - The Clash
- Loser - Beck
- What I Got - Sublime
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Adventures in Auditory Agony
So I recently made a playlist of absolutely horrible music to drive around to, and the image of Ronan and Blue terrorizing the others with it popped into my head and refused to leave until I wrote this entirely self-indulgent fic to go along with the playlist. It’s v silly and also my first foray into writing TRC content, but...here we are.
Post-TRK/Pre-Epilogue Bronan friendship and gangsey shenanigans, rated T, read on ao3
In the week following Gansey’s graduation, something strange happened.
He hadn’t wanted to leave for a week, not when he was going to be leaving Henrietta so soon anyway. He’d disliked the plan even more when Maura had insisted Blue couldn’t go with him, that if she was going on this road trip with him and Henry, the Fox Way ladies needed to take advantage of every moment they had with her. Gansey couldn’t begrudge Maura time with her daughter, just as he couldn’t blame his own mother for wanting him to spend a little time with the rest of the Gansey clan before he took off again.
So he acquiesced to his mother’s demand-phrased-as-a-polite-request that he would spend a few days at home, on the condition that he could bring Adam along. Adam was even less thrilled than Gansey at the prospect of leaving Henrietta, especially when he knew Ronan wouldn’t come with them, especially especially when he remembered the last time he’d visited D.C. But Gansey desperately wanted company, and with Henry visiting his mother, Adam was the only option left, and he knew it. Besides, at Gansey’s suggestion, they’d added a few extra days for visiting some of the colleges Adam was applying to.
(Neither of them mentioned that the idea of some quality time together—just the two of them—before they each went their separate ways for the foreseeable future was an appealing one. They both thought it.)
The plan was met with mixed feelings by every party involved, but it went off without a hitch, and four family dinners, three college visits, two breakdowns in the Pig, and one emotional late-night heart to heart later, the two boys had returned to Henrietta.
For a while, Gansey noticed nothing amiss.
The first night back was a game night. As usual, Blue somehow managed to beat everyone at Super Smash Bros. despite passing up actually learning how to play in favor of smashing buttons at random. As usual, Adam was alarmingly good at Monopoly. As usual, Ronan got bored before they could finish a round and insisted on playing Cards Against Humanity instead. As usual, Gansey was terrible at every game but nonetheless seemed to have the most fun.
The next day was spent split off in pairs. Gansey spent some time at 300 Fox Way, helping out around the house and good-naturedly tasting Maura’s experimental teas before Blue got fed up with Orla, who was not in the least deterred from her usual flirtatiousness by the official nature of their relationship, and dragged him out of the house to 1) go for a drive, 2) make out in the back seat of the Pig, and 3) explore a local farmer’s market. The rest of the day was spent at Monmouth Manufacturing, though Adam and Ronan were nowhere to be seen. Ronan had been spending more nights at St. Agnes than Monmouth, though, so Gansey wasn’t surprised. All went as usual.
It was on his second full day back that Gansey realized something had happened during his week away.
After a lazy morning, everyone was gathered once more at Monmouth Manufacturing to go for a trip to the Barns. Ronan had volunteered to drive the BMW.
Adam and Gansey followed the other two as they headed out of the apartment, watching amusedly at the scene unfolding. Blue had thrown herself sideways into Ronan, and despite her size, she’d managed to knock him off balance for a moment.
“Hey, asshole, cut it out,” he growled, mussing the colorfully clipped mess of her hair affectionately.
Blue huffed and attempted to shove his hand away. He redoubled his efforts. She ducked away, but he followed, and it quickly escalated into a chaotic tussle.
“‘M gonna shave it all off,” came Blue’s muffled voice from behind Ronan’s arm, “just to spite you.”
Adam laughed. The sound made Gansey grin.
“I’d shave it for you if you asked nicely.”
“No way. It’s a punishment, not a reward.” By this time she had freed herself and was grinning breathlessly back at him as she jogged up to the Beemer.
Then Blue climbed in shotgun.
Ronan was unfazed by this. He hopped into the driver’s seat, and Gansey saw rather than heard him answering her quip.
Gansey, however, was not unfazed. And neither was Adam, if the slight frown and amused quirk of his lips when he turned to meet Gansey’s eyes was any indication.
Gansey could only shrug and follow Adam into the back seat.
Blue rode shotgun in the Camaro more frequently than Ronan or Adam did these days, and on the rare occasion that any of them ended up in Adam’s piece of shit car, she had as fair a shot as either of the others. But if Ronan was driving, it had always been Gansey or, more recently, Adam in the front. It wasn’t that Blue and Ronan weren’t close—they were just about as close now as any of them, and it made Gansey’s heart feel like it was swelling up three times it’s regular size, like the Grinch’s in the old cartoon he and Helen used to watch every December. But Blue had never attempted riding shotgun in the Beemer if either of the others were along, and Ronan had never asked her to, and something about it felt significant when she casually swung herself into the front seat.
It was practiced, Gansey realized as he buckled his seatbelt. It was easy. What had Ronan and Blue gotten up to while he and Adam were away?
He didn’t have to wonder long.
Ronan wordlessly tossed Blue his phone, and she hooked it up to the aux that he’d dreamt to work in the BMW. This, too, was practiced and easy. Blue even knew his phone password.
Just as they screeched out of the parking lot, some kind of music that Gansey could only call aggressive blasted through the speakers. It wasn’t the murder squash song, which he appreciated, but it also wasn’t all that much better. It was all angry electric music and yelling and loud, so loud, but Blue and Ronan were both yelling the words and head-banging, which he had never seen from either of them. It was so strange, he had to glance over at Adam for confirmation that he wasn’t hallucinating. Adam stared back at him wide-eyed.
For a while they only watched in silence, and Gansey almost felt as though he were intruding on some kind of private ritual until Blue turned and began to teasingly sing some of the lyrics of the next song—a horrible, upbeat electronic sounding one—at him. From the few lyrics he could understand, it was about carrying out a relationship over the phone. It was more than a little pointed, and he found himself blushing at some of the more explicit lyrics.
Some of his discomfort evaporated when she laughed delightedly at him and returned to dancing in her seat, replaced by fascination.
Finally, Adam broke in, yelling to be heard over the music, “Can someone please explain what is going on?”
Ronan met his eyes in the rearview mirror and shouted back, “We’re going to the Barns, Parrish. Where have you been?”
“Or do you just mean like, the state of the world today?” Blue asked, turning to face him. “Because you will not believe what’s going on with climate change.”
“I mean the state of my good ear, which is on the verge of becoming my other bad ear. The hell are we listening to?”
Blue lowered the volume just enough that they could speak without having to shout, warding off Ronan’s dirty look with one of her own. “Our playlist. I wanted to name it “emo to the excreamo,” but Ronan kept insisting on names that were objectively terrible and we couldn’t compromise so now it’s a sad nameless little playlist.”
“For the record, ‘songs to commit crimes to’ is the perfect name.”
“It doesn’t make sense! I can’t commit ecoterrorism while blasting Britney Spears.”
“Not with that attitude you can’t. You probably shouldn’t even fucking bother with the ecoterrorism if you aren’t gonna blast Britney Spears while you do it.”
Gansey’s head was spinning. “There’s Britney Spears on this playlist?”
“Obviously,” Blue shot back over her shoulder. It did not seem obvious to Gansey given that the current song was some kind of angry electric rock and that the playlist had been made by Ronan Lynch and Blue Sargent, but then again, nothing else about their current situation had seemed obvious to him ten minutes ago, either.
“I can’t blast anything as bop-worthy as Britney Spears, or I’ll get caught and then I won’t be able to commit more ecoterrorism.” This Blue directed at Ronan. “You must be a terrible criminal.”
“Fine. ‘Songs to get murdered to’ works just as well.”
Blue punched him in the arm. “That’s insensitive! Gansey’s been murdered!”
Ronan barked out a surprised laugh at that. “Yeah, by you and your kiss of death, Maggot.”
“For the record,” Gansey interjected, “Jane’s kiss of death was vastly preferable to the thousands of hornet stings.”
“What a compliment.” Adam raised an eyebrow and looked from Gansey to Blue.
Ronan snickered. “Congrats, Sargent. Kissing you is slightly better than getting stung to death.”
Blue’s reply was interrupted by the sound of “it’s Britney, bitch,” from the stereo, which sent her scrambling to set the volume to its previous ear-bleeding level.
They carried on like this for a while, Ronan pushing 20 over the speed limit and Blue scream-singing lyrics to songs that almost all had to do with sex, cars, or both. Gansey thought the one about a dreamer in a Beemer seemed a little on the nose, and sentiment Adam voiced moments later.
“I can’t help it if I’m someone’s muse,” came the reply. Blue snorted loudly, and Ronan reached over and pinched her on the exposed skin between the top of her knee socks and her ripped shorts. She slapped his hand and squirmed away.
At one point, Blue sang (if you could call it that, when it was really closer to talking or shouting but set to music) the intro to a song that began, “Hey you lil piss baby,” leaning across the center console to get in Ronan’s face, without missing a single word. In fact, Gansey realized, she knew at least some (if not most) of the words to all of these songs, and he wondered just how many times they’d listened to them together.
The fact that they had coordinated dance moves and established which of them sang specific parts when there were back and forth elements solidified for him that the answer was…many, many times.
This coordination was amusing for the most part. An amused smirk played across Adam’s lips as he watched their stupid dances, and Gansey was just ruminating on how happy and carefree both of them seemed, open in a way he rarely saw from either of them, when their performance jolted him out of his reverie.
Blue was moaning. Loudly.
It was part of the song, of course, the singer’s desire to — like rabbits, with a moan in place of an expletive, blaring over and over through the speakers. Ronan was singing along with the rest of the lyrics. Blue contributed the…interjectory sounds, and apparently took this role very seriously.
When her eyes, glinting mischievously, met his in the rearview mirror, he realized she was doing this on purpose. To mess with him. His mouth finally caught up to his brain, and he spluttered a scandalized, “Jane!”
She threw her head back and cackled gleefully. Ronan fist-bumped her. Gansey’s face felt hot.
“I think you’ve become a bad influence, Lynch,” Adam shouted, but he was failing to suppress his smile.
“If anything,” Ronan shot back, “Sargent’s been a bad influence on me. She’s the one that found most of these songs.”
Gansey wondered at that. He wondered all through the suggestive and outright explicit of the next song as well. He wondered at Blue’s ability to sing along without so much as a blush, all while he tried very hard not to think on any of the images his mind conjured up in response.
But of course, she was dauntless and outspoken in everything she did. He smiled at the mental image of her playing these songs for Ronan, ranting all the while about how women in media are sexualized for male gratification but expected to keep themselves modest and pure, the double-edged sword that is the masculine perception of female sexuality, and raging against the vilification of the women who wrote songs expressing that sexuality while men could objectify women in their song’s as much as they pleased. Gansey wished he could’ve been there for Ronan’s response.
None of that made the upbeat, electronic excuse for music any more aurally appealing, unfortunately.
One song ended with sudden bursts of horrid, metallic clashing sounds at a volume so painful that he, Adam, and even Blue covered their ears. She reached to lower the volume, but Ronan slapped her hand away.
“Come on, Ronan,” Gansey yelled, “this isn’t even music! It’s just…screeching!”
Ronan threw a wolfish grin at him over his shoulder. “I know. It sounds just like the Pig when she breaks down. Does it turn you on, Dick?”
Gansey let out a deep sigh, but before he could defend himself, the song had changed and Blue had let out a little excited yelp.
“I just remembered!” she gasped, grabbing for Ronan’s phone. “Henry gave me a song to play for you. You’re gonna love it.”
Ronan sneered. “I don’t trust Cheng’s taste in music.”
Blue only waved her hand dismissively and fiddled with his phone until a new song, not dissimilar in style to the rest, was playing. A few verses in, Adam began laughing, a full, joyous laugh rarely heard and positively contagious.
“It’s perfect for you, Ro,” he gasped out.
Ronan had to concede that a song about only answering the phone for your boyfriend’s personalized ringtone was rather fitting, even if Henry was the one to recommend it. He didn’t fight Blue when she added it to the playlist, and his threats following her announcement that she was making the song Adam’s ringtone were halfhearted at best.
Looking from Blue and Ronan’s bickering to Adam’s gasping laughter, Gansey tried to take in and file away every detail. He wanted to be able to look back on this moment when they were spread out across the country, to remind himself that the separation was only temporary. His chest felt like it was going to burst.
By the time they got to the Barns, it was his eardrums that felt like they were going to burst.
“Next time,” he groaned, stepping out of the car and into the Virginia summer heat, “I’m bringing ear plugs.”
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lunar-lair · 4 years
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Bakusquad Headcanons
Uhhhh idk how but I ended up with a ton of headcanons for these dork kids, so uh. Here I guess??
After Bakugou really settles into the group and begins to let them actually physically touch him, Ashido's hand is basically constantly buried in his hair, especially when she's comforting him. Of course, she does this with all the others too, and has been doing it with Kirishima since their middle school days, but she's always saying Bakugou's is the fluffiest. ("It's just cause I use the best conditioner," He'd always huff.)
Kaminari has this habit with all of them. He'll put his pointer finger on some part of their body-usually their cheek, since that makes them laugh more for it's cuteness-and let a small, sm all static shock run through their skin. It never fails to make them laugh, and along with his jokes, he's one of the best at cheering people up in the team.
Whenever they're all cuddling, and one of them is cold, they snuggle up with Bakugou, and he'll heat up his hands like he does before he blows something up. But it's just really nice and warm. Not a bad warm either. Plus, he just runs warm anyways. (So does Kaminari-he's got electricity running around in his veins, they're gonna be warm-and Sero's not bad himself, but they don't have that advantage. (On the contrary, Kiri runs pretty cold, and Bakugou calls Mina 'barbie' just because she's basically freezing all the time.))
Any time Bakugou gets the chance, he'll just idly braid anyone's hair that's long enough to braid; aka, everyone except him and Mina. It's just really relaxing for him.
They all have these special hoodies, shirts, whatever, that they wear when they're real unhappy or just feeling really cozy comfy warm and shit and it's real easy to tell which one it is, so they just adjust the way they treat that person to accommodate
They all brought a bean bag a bit into the year that was their favorite color and they're all just piled in Sero's room cause he has the most room.
After realizing saying 'we need to talk' is a bit daunting, the squad made a little code phrase for when it's Serious Talk Time, whether that means later or now, and it's "I've got a story to tell". They decided on it pretty early on, but late enough that Bakugou was willing to participate in said talks in the first place, obviously.
They always have excellent nail polish, make up, whatever. Mina's pretty good at it, and Bakugou had fashion designers for parents. He wasn't getting out of his childhood without some Knowledge. Anyways, they're always perfectly presentable. It's great.
The whole squad is constantly secretly trying to destroy all of Kiri's crocs. Shh, don't tell.
Bakugou is entirely infuriated with Kaminari and Mina's hair, 24/7. Kaminari's won't settle down from it's staticyness for more then two seconds, and Mina's is just fucking untameable. He doesn't like Sero's much, since it's not long enough to do as much as he can with Kaminari's, and it's th ick, bitch. Kiri's is the most agreeable when it's down.
At some point, they bought a giant teddy bear. They only bring it out when someone is in severe emotional destress. It is The Happiness Bear. It has a few rips and burns and torn off fur, from Kiri, Kami Baku and Mina, and Sero respectively.
None of them agree on music choice. Mina likes bubblegum pop, Kiri's about more somber stuff, Sero listens to indie, Bakugou listens to rock, metal, and pop-punk-that scene-and Kaminari just listens to whatever he comes across. He had some really obscure music on his playlist, some emo, and even some shit like Beyonce and Taylor Swift, sittin right next to Ricky Montgomery and The Altogether. He's the most agreeable when it comes to listening with others, but theirs is always a bit...too much for him, since he's in the middle. Think of him as the circle and everyone else laying just outside the circle. The circle can't really expand, but the points aren't as broad. He's gets along best with Kiri and Sero, since he had plenty of chill music on his list, and some real obscure indie-ish shit somewhere. Bakugou likes some of the darker stuff he's run across, like Autoheart. He used to be REAL into All Time Low, but burnt himself out on their music. He knows every song, and every lyric; he doesn't hate it. It's just not his first pick. And then he's still got some shit like Owl City and Fun lurking around somewhere, and that's the shit Mina likes. Basically, he gets the most band recommendations, and gives the most.
Bakugou gets REALLY into Autoheart and Lincoln, shit like that as he gets older and mellows out-kinda like mid 2nd to 3rd year and on?-since it's still that kind of depressing feel but it's a lot more lowkey.
Kiri gets DE EP into The Altogether and Ricky Montgomery, and maybe Cavetown and The Oh Hellos, Sleeping At Last, Alec Benjamin...all those almost-sleepy singers, who sing about both sad and happy shit with the same calm tone.
Kaminari gets just,,,,SO into The Wrecks for like,,,,a month, with their party music vibe that's almost All Time Low but with more energy this time.
Mina's always been a Beyonce and Owl City stan, man.
Sero doesn't mind Owl City, either, though; got that kinda tone to it, yknow? Absolutely into Fun.
Skskdkdk sorry I got into a BIG tangent,,,,I just know so many obscure bands that they'd like man
Also I hella projected onto Kaminari bc I feel like he's that dork to be into a song called "Favorite Liar', another called 'Mediocre At Best', one called 'Agrophobia', and ANOTHER called fucking 'Light'.
Also he's definitely into Mother Mother. That's a must. Sero might be too.
Might make,,,,,a separate post abt that
Kami and Sero rlly like fall
Mina's a winter gal
Kiri's all for summer
And Baku's all bout spring
They have had multiple discussions about scars for no reason other than to discuss something.
Kami is ALWAYS letting off a static shock of SOME KIND and he shocks the first person he touches when he wakes up. Once he did this to Jirou and it partly fried her buds for a while, it blew Bakugou up because he had just walked in from his jog, it conducted with some of Mina's acid and fucked her over, etc etc. So Kirishima is always sent to wake Kaminari up, and all of them have rubber gloves on hand early morning just in case he wakes up before Kiri can be the first to touch him and he groggily tries to touch anyone
Bakugou's room smells like caramel due to nitroglycerin smelling like it 24/7, and it's calming as hell, so that's where they go when they need a good calming cuddle pile
They always do a group hug before and after dangerous missions
...just in case.
They go to the park at least once a month bc why tf not? And they always hog all the swing sets. Bakugou usually goes on a jog.
One of Kaminari's favorite ways to fuck with them is to let his hands hum with just a small bit of static and then POOF up their hair
It's always hilarious
Especially on Bakugou, since it just makes it kinda,,,,poof mo re??? It's hilarious trust me-
If Sero could make a conductive kind of tape, him and Kami could totally have a type of electroweb attack. Or maybe if Mina's acid could conduct well enough she could like spread all over the ground and it would work as a way to direct his electricity his pointers may not help with. Like zeroing in his electricity in little spots under villian's feet and giving Kami good control in the ground too and it could cause less damage! Plus maybe if he lost his pointer or smth she could put it on the villian and then they would get electricity right to the skin? Idk something like that
Hm...his combos with Baku are limited. It's possible he could like coat his hands with his sweat and then Kami could blow it up himself if his quirk is out of commission? Or his arms; we know they get recoil in canon. But maybe he could soak something in the nitroglycerin using the grenades-just open em i guess?-and then set it ablaze?? It'd have to be a PRETTY special case tbh
If civilians could possibly be harmed Kiri could act as a lighting rod,,,,using a lightning rod attacked to his head?? Or some super conductive clothing or something. Idk.
Everybody knows you could bathe Kiri in the sweat and then he'd ignite it no prob
Sero could swing one of them (or multiple) and then 'oh shit a flying bomb/rock/acidic substance/electricity plants comin ur way' i guess
Idk. I swore to God Baku was my fav but I'm bein real biased towards Kami. Sigh...oh well. I'll work on it later. It's late.
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honeyopinion · 3 years
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20/20 Albums of the Year
Circles by Mac Miller  |  Hip-Hop, Soul, Funk Released: January 17, 2020
Best Album For... Pouring One Out for Mac
I wrote a few different drafts of this album summary, and none of them felt like they really fit the impossibly large bill of accurately describing the posthumous importance or brilliance of this album. If you are a fan of hip-hop or soul music of any kind, try to give this piece of work a chance. I for one, used to judge Mac based on his early frat rap days in the late 2000s. But a decade later he came to leave the world with one of the most surprising and frankly impressive artistic evolutions that I’ve been able to witness in real time. RIP Mac. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora 
Start With: “Circles” or “Everybody”
Marigold by Pinegrove  |  Alternative Country and Folk Rock Released: January 17, 2020
Best Album For… Passing Through a Small Town on a Cloudy Winter Day 
Pinegrove was one of the last great concerts I got to experience before the pandemic. And it was my favorite performance of theirs from the last 6 years of seeing them play live. Is this my favorite album of theirs? Honestly, it’s not. But I still find it extremely enjoyable, and the memory of seeing these songs performed live, along with some of their classics, was enough for me to include it on this list. This is an album that marks Pinegrove’s exit from their pop punk roots. It’s still sentimental, but much more country and folk rock focused vs. anything trying to be associated with emo or punk. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora   Start With: “The Alarmist” or “No Drugs”
Watch This Liquid Pour Itself by Okay Kaya  |  Synth Pop, Art Rock, Folk Released: January 24, 2020
Best Album For… Crywanking at 3am, Bathed in The Dull Light of Your Overheating Laptop
What if Feist and Father John Misty had a secret love child? They might sound something like Okay Kaya. Self proclaimed “Singer ~ Crywanker,” Okay Kaya brings serious BDE to weirdo art pop that she seems like she could be a plant  from the mind of Nathan Fielder. Kaya delivers with such deadpan precision as she rolls out line after line of sarcastic joy, staring blankly at our dystopian reality. “Here I am, the whole world is my daddy,” “Netflix and yeast infection,” “Sex with me is mediocre,” “I just want us to do well like Jon Bon Jovi’s Rosê,” and, “My parasite and I are blushing / In the zero interaction ramen bar,” are just a few examples of some of her memorable and biting lyrics. The entire album is both a critique and nihilistic fondness for the absurdity of our lonely technological society, not quite sure how to deal with taboos like repressed female sexuality, depression, and codependency. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Baby Little Tween” or “Asexual Wellbeing”
UNLOCKED by Denzel Curry and Kenny Beats  |  Hip-Hop Released: February 7, 2020
Best Album For... Nodding Your Damn Head To, Feeling Cooler Than You Actually Are
I had to double check that this was an album. Clocking in under 20 minutes, this collection of songs feels more like an EP, especially with the track titles that purposefully look like file names and placeholders. But for a short album, Denzel wastes no time, furiously zigging and zagging effortlessly over Kenny Beats’ 90s New York-indebted production (ad libs and all). Kenny pulls out samples of an array of pop culture references made by Denzel (like quotes from movies and weapon sound effects like a lightsaber) — as he rotates his flow between admirable impressions of DMX, Nas, and Joey Bada$$.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “So.Incredible.pkg” or “DIET_”
Cardboard City by Zack Villere  |  Pop, Electronic, R&B Released: February 14, 2020
Best Album For… Pal-ing Around With Your Friends From High School, Maybe Quoting Superbad At The Same Time
The first time I watched a music video from Zack Villere, I noticed the top comment said: “how did frank ocean get trapped in mark zuckerberg.” And while that definitely gets at the heart of how Zack Villere presents himself, he is not a phenomenal singer like Frank Ocean is, nor does he come off as an asshole like Mark Zuckerberg does. I would say that he is just a slightly awkward nerdy white guy who loves hip-hop production and R&B melodies. So the better question is really, “how did drake get trapped in michael cera?” This premise should not work at all, but somehow it does. This is only Villere’s second album, but he shows some serious production and songwriting chops, plus a commitment to his delivery that comes across as genuine, charming, and unique. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Grateful” or “Superhero Strength”
The Slow Rush by Tame Impala  |  Psych Rock, Synth Pop, Disco Released: February 14, 2020
Best Album For... Throwing a Silent Disco For One 
Tame Impala continues on their now 10 year streak of psych rock dominance. Along the way we’ve seen Kevin Parker master and stretch the boundaries of psychedelic production. This has resulted in his music coming as close to sounding like the best aspects of The Beatles, while also expanding into hip hop drums, R&B hooks, plus more and more electronic elements. This is an album that I was not super impressed with when it initially came out, but as we entered the pandemic and were tasked with finding small joys in staying at home all the time, I found myself going back to this album and appreciating the themes of solitude and self reflection that Parker has drawn from throughout his career.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Posthumous Forgiveness” or “One More Hour”
1988 by Knxwledge  |  Hip-Hop Released: March 27, 2020
Best Album For... Pumping Your Brakes and Driving Slow, Uh *Homie* Although this album is named after a year in the 80s, the sound here is a perfect portal back to 90s golden era hip-hop, with all the gospel, soul samples, and the kind of deep bass you want to feel in your chest. This is the rare, largely instrumental hip-hop album that I find myself going back to, other than works from the legendary J Dilla and MF Doom. Knxwledge is good friends and a frequent collaborator with Anderson .Paak (in the form of NxWorries). Here we get Anderson to grace us with his presence on the track “itkanbe[sonice]”, and of course it sounds just like an authentic vintage soul sample. When I hear this collection of songs it makes me wish I still had a car, so I could inevitably damage my speakers listening to this.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “dont be afraid” or “thats allwekando.”
Future Nostalgia by Dua Lipa  |  Pop, R&B, Funk, Disco Released: March 27, 2020 Best Album For... Alarming Your Pet With Your Enthusiastic Lip Syncing
This album is a pure sugar rush. Like Bruno Mars with the help of Mark Ronson, or Calvin Harris a few years ago, Dua has harnessed a nostalgia (it’s even in the title, wink) for disco, funk and R&B, and is instantly a sexy, catchy, not-so-guilty pleasure. It’s sad that the majority of these songs are all bonafide club hits that didn’t have a proper home this year … except for my living room. And hopefully yours.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora 
Start With: “Pretty Please” or “Future Nostalgia”
Hold Space For Me by Orion Sun  |  Alternative R&B and Hip-Hop Released: March 27, 2020
Best Album For... Wishing Frank Ocean Was Your Dad
“Alternative R&B” is a contentious term, but what else would you call one of a few R&B singers cool enough to make it onto (NYC indie darlings) Mom+Pop Records?? On one hand, she brings the vulnerable and introverted lyrics of an indie singer songwriter like Tracey Chapman, crossed with the raw presence and sweet melodic delivery of a true R&B star like Aaliyah. I’d even go far enough to refer to her as the musical stepchild of Frank Ocean and SZA.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora
Start With: “Ne Me Quitte Pass (Don’t Leave Me)” or “Lightning”
You and Your Friends by Peach Pit  |  Indie Rock and Dream Pop Released: April 3, 2020
Best Album For... Going Back To Your College Town To Crash A Party
Peach Pit seem like they would be cool dudes to hang out with. You have no problem picturing them as the band playing a house show in an indie movie about college kids. And that’s because there’s a familiarity to the scenes that their songs portray, of stumbling through your 20s, either being too dumb or having too much fun to notice. It’s funny to refer to this as “Indie” rock since this is Peach Pit’s major label debut with Columbia Records. But It has all the trappings of Indie; sticky melodies, gentle reverb, an “I’m not trying that hard” vibe, and lyrics that are oddly specific enough to be interesting, but still vague enough to be relatable.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Feelin’ Low (Fuckboy Blues)” or “Shampoo Bottles”
Heaven To a Tortured Mind by Yves Tumor  |  Psych Rock, Indie Pop, Post-Punk, Alternative R&B, Experimental Electronic Released: April 3, 2020
Best Album For... Tearing Up The Fucking Dance Floor With Your Hot Robot Girlfriend
If Tyler the Creator, Alex G, King Krule, and Blood Orange all got into the studio together and dropped a shit ton of acid on Halloween, their recording session might sound something like Heaven To a Tortured Mind… And even then, you still might have trouble putting your finger on exactly what you’re hearing. “Dream Palette” is a good reference track for Tumor’s most wild and mesmerizing qualities. The biggest styles of the past half century of music have been loaded into this gleefully effective genre blender, with blades of dissonance slicing everything up, creating a surrealist sonic smoothie.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Super Stars” or “Dream Palette”
The New Abnormal by The Strokes  |  Indie Rock, Dirtbag Disco, Synth Pop Released: April 10, 2020
Best Album For... Mixing Yourself Another Drink This Saturday Night
Back from the dead, The Strokes return with their first album in 7 years to turn some heads and settle back into some old habits. The charming messy haired garage rock of the early 2000s still pops up here and there, but this is really a record where the group is mature enough to show you that they actually are trying, and are unafraid to take joyous swings for the fences. Julian Casablancas pushes his scratchy alley cat yelp of a voice into something more vulnerable, sunny, and sweet, like he asked for a piña colada (you know, with one of those little umbrellas) instead of a double shot of scotch before hopping up on stage… Or maybe he did both. But these days, everyone is looking for some sort of break from our groundhog day lives any way that we can. Sometimes that sounds like selling out, or depending on how you look at it, stepping up. This album is the result of a group of old friends who got together to make music they simply want to make for themselves. Now far removed from the 2000s New York scene where their younger selves were acting too cool and disaffected to care about having fun.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Eternal Summer” or “The Adults Are Talking”
The Loves of Your Life by Hamilton Leithauser  |  Indie Rock and Alternative Country Released: April 10, 2020
Best Album For... Drinking Down At The Docks, Watching The Sun Set
While I am a fan of The Walkmen, I have no idea what their frontman Hamilton Leithauser looks like or how he dresses. But hearing these songs off of his latest solo, I imagine the following: a member of Mumford and Sons if they were edgy and cooler, giving off a “cowboy rocker meets depression-era dock worker” aesthetic. That’s exactly how his music comes off to me. It’s a convincing blend of blues rock, Americana, and old timey country music. All expertly narrated by dusty country guitars and standup bass, tarnished horns and flutes, and what I imagine to be a restored saloon piano. The Loves of Your Life originally started as a collection of short stories, each about characters based on both people he knew and strangers. Leithauser then wrote the music separately, and finally came to mix and match their parts together in a surprisingly convincing fashion to create the album.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Wack Jack” or “Cross-Sound Ferry (Walk-On Ticket)”
What Kinda Music by Tom Misch and Yussef Dayes  |  Neo-Soul, Electronic, Hip-Hop
Released: April 24, 2020
Best Album For... Cooking For Someone You’re In Love With
Exactly what kind of music do Tom Misch and Yussef Dayes make? It’s orchestral, it’s jazz-infused, it’s hip-hop beats joined with gentle soul. It’s a little sexy, it’s a little mysterious, and you’re going to want to listen to it a whole lot. That’s it. That’s what kind of music it is! Send tweet. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “What Kinda Music” or “Storm Before The Calm”
Petals For Armor by Hayley Williams  |  Electronic Pop and Art Rock Released: May 8, 2020
Best Album For... Browsing Depop for Your Next 80s Normcore ‘Fit
Hayley, Hayley, Hayley. You are too good for this wretched world!! After exploring more adventurous sounds and genre hopping over the last few Paramore records, Hayley decided to go out on her own. This really frees herself from the expectations that come along with being the face and heart of a wildly popular band for the last 15+ years. Thom Yorke fans rejoice, because Hayley Williams has a clear admiration for Radiohead’s haunting indie electronic vibe, while emoting some pain and darkness atop her love for 80s pop and art rock (think Genesis, Devo, The Talking Heads). This is a promising new avenue for Hayley to explore herself and process her pain and desire completely on her own. I see this new project of hers only blooming further from here.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora 
Start With: “Simmer” or “Sudden Desire” 
Set My Heart On Fire Immediately by Perfume Genius  |  Indie Pop and Art Rock Released: May 15, 2020
Best Album For... Daydreaming That You Were Somewhere Else
For his 5th studio album, Perfume Genius enlists production wizard and guitar god Blake Mills, along with Grammy Award-winning arranger and multi-instrumentalist Rob Moose to create a beautiful swirling mosaic of 80s pastel pop that also packs serious classic rock grandeur. Bass guitar dances between satin smooth lines on one song to churning distorted currents on the next. Sparkling string arrangements and organs bleed together to expose a fading sunset that you’ll want to try and hold in your hands to keep it in sight. Perfume Genius is unafraid to challenge traditional masculinity, packing a 21st century queer machismo into both the quiet moments and jubilant explosions.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora 
Start With: “Without You” or “Describe”
græ by Moses Sumney  |  Indie Pop, Art Rock, Neo-Soul, Psychic Folk Released: May 15, 2020
Best Album For... Astral Projection 101 
I mean this in the best way possible, but I think that Moses Sumney is a witch. Or maybe a wizard? There’s no other reasonable explanation for the level of creativity and wonder that he summons. This album feels like a private concert by a waterfall (similar to one on the cover), with ethereal pleas, and heavy ideas—like meditating on what lies beyond the constraints of the physical self and reconsidering how well we can actually trust memory and the mind. Sumney layers his voice to create the effect of a ghostly choir, accented by a stark intimidating falsetto that reverberates through the ruins of an abandoned temple where Sumney is the only one in attendance.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Cut Me” or “Polly”
WILL THIS MAKE ME GOOD by Nick Hakim  |  Psychedelic Neo-Soul Released: May 15, 2020
Best Album For... Playing Pool in a Hazy Dive Bar
Nick Hakim is a silky smooth smokey crooner who paints with warbly piano loops, dreamy reverb-heavy guitar, boom bap beats—not to mention a falsetto that would make Smokey Robinson jealous. Clearly a fan of Motown and 60s jazz, Hakim could be considered a peer of Thunder Cat and Anderson .Paak’s to a degree. I remember seeing him perform at Music Hall of Williamsburg a few years ago. The performance ended with him falling down on stage (presumably from being under the influence of multiple substances). But while the song continued he popped back up and belted an impressive high note like it was nothing, drink in hand. And it’s that kind of messy beauty that also makes this album so engrossing. Like watching the eye of the storm get closer and closer, but unable to look away from the sheer magnetism that nature can wield.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  Start With: “All THESE CHANGES” or “ALL THESE INSTRUMENTS”
RTJ4 by Run The Jewels  |  Hip-Hop Released: June 3, 2020
Best Album For... Making Your Next Protest Sign
Run The Jewels’ fourth outing might be the most unapologetically angry rap album in the “fuck this” year of 2020. And it reminded me that I should absolutely still be furious about everything that happened during this groundbreaking yet terrifyingly familiar year: country wide protests over the continued murder of innocent black people at the hands of the police, government drone strikes and detaining kids in cages, the state of our environment worsening—and that’s not even addressing the pandemic or election. Killer Mike and El-P are here to scream from the rooftops that our current system of cutthroat capitalism and white supremacy is killing the planet and its inhabitants, and I’m glad that they’re using their platform to continue to sound the alarm.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “out of sight” or “ooh la la”
Your Hero Is Not Dead by Westerman  |  New Wave Revival and Indie Pop Released: June 5, 2020 Best Album For... Wanting Your Old School MTV
The cover of Westerman’s first proper album is mostly black and white, except for the title, which is scrawled out in lettering which spans the Crayola color spectrum. It’s an album that on the surface is cold and buttoned up, but when these choruses open up, the maximalist 80s power pop bursts like the bulbs of a neon sign. There’s a level of even-keeled cool and confidence in small moments on display here that makes this relatively new artist seem well beyond his years. Having seen him play at Rough Trade a few years ago (opening up for the stellar Puma Blue), the songwriting growth on display on this record is impressive. I’m only sad that there wasn’t an opportunity to have seen him play these new songs live.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora 
Start With: “Easy Money” or “Confirmation (SSBD)” 
Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers  |  Indie Rock and Alternative Country Released: June 18, 2020
Best Album For... Burning Incense and Breaking Out a Ouija Board to Talk to The Ghost of Your Former Self
This is without a doubt, a career defining release for Phoebe. Taking everything she’s learned from writing, performing, and touring with the likes of Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker (in boygenius), and Conor Oberst (in Better Oblivion Community Center), Bridgers levels up to become the truly prolific singer-songwriter she’s been telling us she would always be. Bridgers has explained her personal definition of “a punisher” as a well meaning person who’s, “just talking to you and they don’t realize that your eyes are glazed over and you’re trying to escape.” Vital to understanding this album and its central message is that Phoebe finds herself caught between the contradiction of falling victim to this phenomenon while also doing it herself, especially if she ever met her musical idol, Elliott Smith. Punisher serves as a warning to her audience that if you focus too much on trying to find yourself through other people (via escaping through fandom, drugs, toxic relationships), you’ll always feel lost and dissatisfied, without the proper self awareness to ever quite know why. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Garden Song” or “ICU”
Women In Music Pt. III by HAIM  |  Rock, Pop, Folk, R&B Released: June 26, 2020
Best Album For... Preparing For A Better 2021, lol 
With this album, HAIM skyrocketed to the #1 position of family bands that start with an “H.” Sorry, Hanson! But seriously, HAIM has outdone themselves on this one. If there was one album from this list that I would dub my personal AOTY, this would be it. You might wince at any tracklist longer than 10-12 songs these days (I know I usually do), but almost every song proves itself worthy, pulling at a different thread of my heart until there’s nothing left. Sunshine State Beach Pop? Check. Blues Tinged Dad Rock? Yup! Dive Bar Country? Mmhmm! No, wait, what’s that you say, Glitched-Out R&B? Yes, yes, and yes. You can have it all, sister! ‘Cause when you’re Haim, you’re family! ;) And these three “women in music” continue to prove that they are just about the best Assorted Pop Rocks(™) act in the world right now.
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “I’ve Been Down” or “Don’t Wanna”
Lianne La Havas by Lianne La Havas  |  Neo-Soul and Indie Pop Released: July 17, 2020
Best Album For... Sipping Coffee and Journaling on a Weekend Morning
This album exudes a warm vulnerability, like a comforting hug we all needed this year. On her third album, Lianne La Havas makes the risky decision to self title it, a move that artists make when they believe that it is the piece of work that they most want most directly associated with their name. It’s one thing to name your first album after yourself if you can’t think of anything else at the time, but to make a self titled album in the middle of your career, it means that you are sure about having captured who you really are and who you want people to remember you as. “If I love myself, I know I can't be no one else,” La Havas admits on the standout track, “Paper Thin.” She knows that she will meet her destiny and reach self actualization, but only through self love. And finally, I cannot overstate how breathtaking La Havas’s voice comes across on this album. The strength and control on display in her vocal tone and vibrato is quite a spectacle. 
Spotify      Apple Music     YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Paper Thin” or “Sour Flower”
Limbo by Aminé  |  Hip-Hop and R&B Released: August 7, 2020
Best Album For... Trying and Get Over Kanye With
On Limbo, Aminé establishes himself as one of the torchbearers of soul-sampling, lyrics-driven hip-hop that still cares about storytelling, skits, and presenting vocals clearly. Kanye West, Drake, and J. Cole all paved the way for someone from the next generation like Aminé to keep the dream alive and avoid succumbing to the “feel good, don’t think” form of passive listening that mumble rap has made the standard for mainstream hip-hop.
Spotify      Apple Music     YouTube      Pandora  
Start With: “Pressure In My Palms” or “My Reality”
Shore by Fleet Foxes  |  Folk and Indie Rock Released: September 22, 2020
Best Album For... Running Along The Beach With Your Arms Stretched Out
It was really kind of Robin Pecknold and co. to have released an album this triumphant, calming, and awe-inspiring during the year of our Lorde 2020. On behalf of myself and anyone else who suffers from Seasonal Affective Disorder, the SAD people of the world really needed this, man. And to anyone who is quick to judge these beard-o’s of being boring, you’re simply not using your ears properly. Yeah, you know those two things on either side of your head? Get the gunk out of them! That way you’ll hear the choir of angels with acoustic guitars who are here to guide us through quarantine and beyond. 
Spotify      Apple Music      YouTube      Pandora 
Start With: “Can I Believe You” or “A Long Way Past The Past” 
Listen to all of these albums together in our playlist.
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Request; The Kombat Krew and Pop Culture.
This is the fluff post for tonight. I am so tired, but I want to upload! This week has been really hard on me. But here we are. Some trash. A little NSFW in places, so to be sure. I’ve added a cut! 18+ under the cut.  GIFS do not belong to me. 
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Kabal;
·         Vape nation represent. Kaballin. Got the spins? Ninja Mime 4 was bullshit!
·         Pop Culture is something he’s well versed in. He’s a fucking meme spouting shit lord. To be fair.
·         He’s seen Johnny’s movies. He invented the fucking drinking game for it. He’s fucking down to rip the shit out of them. Unless Tremor is about. Then he keeps his mouth shut.
·         If you like them, he will tease you about them. But not too much.
·         He doesn’t let on how much he’s into geek culture. Not to you straight away anyway. You kind of guess when you finally end up back at his apartment.
·         First time you go there, everything’s getting hot and heated, he’s got you up against the hallway wall. Before you stumble into the living room and see everything.
·         Neatest part of his apartment is his games and comic shelves.
·         He goes fucking red. Pretends its not his. He certainly doesn’t play WoW and troll people till 2 in the morning, in nothing but his underwear eating pizza. Those glasses aren’t his either.
·         He loves his geeky stuff. And hopes you’ll accept it.
·         When you start smiling and rifling through his collection, noting how its impressive, most impressive. He’ll start to smile and relax.
·         He explains his love for pop culture came from a need. He always wanted some of it growing up, but his family was poor. So, when he started earning money, he just bought everything his heart ever yearned for.
·         He’ll live for movie nights in as well. Like, bad movie night just consists of all of Johnny’s films. You both made a drinking game out of them, take a shot for every explosion that wasn’t needed, when there’s overacting, underacting, just some bullshittery. You both end up on your arse. Fucking slaughtered.
·         He loves music too. Like he loves indie music, but not the Smiths. He fucking cannot stand the smiths.
·         Oh yeah two words. Trashy Emo music. He knows the lyrics to ‘Check Yes Juliet’ and you cannot tell me otherwise.
·         Blurting out ‘Allstar’ whilst on a late-night drive. You trying not to laugh and also grabbing the wheel, as he does all the actions. You love it.
·         Reading comics in your pjs/underwear, laid out on his bed, at 2 Am in the morning. Discussing the latest theories, directions for the movies and debating who’s the best hero/ villain.
·         Is the type of dick to choose Rainbow Road on Mario Kart all the time.
·         Is actually good at the course.
·         Is loves vines as well. Whenever its time for him to tell a story, he will always start with some shit like, “There I was, BBQ Sauce on my tiddies”
·         Walking meme lord.
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Sub Zero (Kuai Liang);
·         I’ve touched on this in his full smut fic but here we go.
·         He doesn’t have time to himself, and the rare time he gets, he does not wish to devote it to Popular Culture.
·         Kuai hasn’t had much exposure to popular culture, as he calls it. He will not refer to it as pop culture. I mean he calls movies, motion pictures in game. So yeah, the man is deprived.
·         The brief exposure has had, mainly stems from Johnny and Cassie. Cassie with her memes, snark and references. And the fact Johnny made him watch a few of his films.
·         That put him off pop culture for life… well sort of.
·         He does love reading fiction, so he has read Game of Thrones, The Witcher and Lord of The Rings. He loves fantasy. It allows him to be transported somewhere other than the temple.
·         Fiction was a crutch he used, though he won’t admit it’s a weakness. When he felt alone, isolated and just generally out of synch. He would read.
·         He claims its for relaxation purposes, because a good warrior is well rested and in the right mindset.
·         When he gets with you though, you’ll have to introduce him to stuff slowly. You don’t want to over-ride his system.
·         He ends up watching Lord of the Rings and he does enjoy it. Does not enjoy the Hobbit films though. He does love it.
·         He more loves watching a film, because you’ll always end up falling asleep on his chest. Your limbs tangled with his. And you looking so content.
·         He doesn’t get a lot of time to himself. But he does love to spend it with you. If you’re really into pop culture, then he will try and devote some time to it. He wants to share your interests after all.
·         Is an amazing Dungeon Master when it comes to sticking to the rules. He has a pretty decent campaign, but it takes him ages to craft it. His imagination has its limitations, because he’s trained it that way.
·         Comics and Games do not interest him overly. He’s not into them.
·         But he loves watching your eyes light up when you play/ talk about them. He loves the passion you have for them. It’s cute.
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Scorpion (Hanzo Hasashi);
·         Like Kuai, the only exposure he’s ever had to pop culture is from Johnny, Cassie and Takeda. Takeda comes out with some absurd nonsense. Which leaves him staring at him. Shocked, confused and a little grumpy.
·         Johnny has made him watch some of his films, read screenplays and storyboards, in an attempt to turn the Shira Ryu into a fucking franchise.
·         All starring Grandmaster Grumpy face himself. But there’s a lot more nudity, can you fucking believe it, and there’s a mystical opossum that spreads wisdom.
·         Him and Kuai are very similar, in the fact they’ve both been put off it, but are willing to indulge in it. Because of you.
·         He’s more into movies. He actually would love some Inception, Shutter Island type bullshit. Complex plots that thrill. He wants to be kept occupied or he’ll get bored.
·         He’ll actually enjoy discussions at the end. What he liked, what he didn’t. What he thought he was stupid and if he’d watch it again or something similar.
·         Exploration into pop culture.
·         If you mention that a particular movies is your favourite, he cannot bring himself to say a bad word about it. So, he ends up growing to love it as much as you do.
·         He’ll love to joint read a book together. Then spend hours talking about it. Sleep often eludes him, so its nice that you’re awake with him.
·         Music is something he does enjoy, whilst he can see it as distracting, he also views it as a tool for relaxation. Just nothing too trashy. Do not expect him to serenade you with a rendition of ‘Tik Tok’ it’s not happening.
·         He prefers slower music, more chilled out, things to relax and unwind to.
·         He’ll on occasion, wrap his arms around your waist, holding you from behind. Before swaying gently to the music with you. Whispering sweet nothings in your ear. He loves it.
·         He’s not overly into Comics or videogames. BUT, he does have a soft spot for Star Wars. He doesn’t know why he likes it. But he loves him some Space-Bullshit. Happy the family drama isn’t about him. Loves it. Just don’t tell anyone yeah?
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Raiden;
·         He’s very curious and willing to indulge in it. He knows of Popular Culture, he has seen many a Mortal enjoying it, using it as an escape mechanism. This is totally a dig at myself.
·         He’s never understood nor experienced it. But he is very curious, and his eyes are filled with wonder.
·         He’s read comics, played some games, watched some movies and read some fiction. He attributes all this exposure to you. You’ve really helped him explore it.
·         He loves to read comics however. He enjoys the art style, the worlds created and how much artistry goes into them.
·         He won’t admit the plots sometimes get him.
·         He loves to explore anything to do with Mortals and their customs. He thinks of it as educating himself.
·         He has seen some of Jonny’s movies, reluctantly. Once Johnny found out that you were introducing him to Pop Culture; he insisted on having some of his stuff in there.
·         Raiden is not impressed at all. He’s confused by Johnny’s films, he’ll sigh, and comment on how it explains a lot. It explains how one man can be such an idiot.
·         Imagine introducing Raiden to Mario Kart. He is so confused. You say its like driving a car, and he’s just like, what?
·         Once he gets the hang of it, he really gets into it. He’s fascinated and amazed at technology. He picks it up really quickly.
·         As far as music goes, he’s really open to listening to anything and everything. He would prefer more classical music. Anything that can help him relax.
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Erron Black;
·         Before he went to Outworld, there wasn’t a lot in terms of Popular Culture. It was like 150 years ago.
·         So, when he finds out how much the world has changed, he has to admit he is very curious and is willing to explore it with you.
·         He would love to binge watch movies with you. Watching Westerns with him is always interesting. With him scoffing and pointing out inaccuracies or stating how fake their accents sound… even though they sound the exact same as his.
·         If you make a comment on Harrison Ford as Han, whilst watching Star Wars, he’ll raise an eyebrow and be smug. Because he knows damn well he has a resemblance to him. You cannot deny it. Do not @ me for this trash opinion.
·         ‘I wouldn’t be caught dead in that outift’ Of course you wouldn’t Erron, of course you fucking wouldn’t.
·         Tremor loves Johnny’s movies, and when its his turn for movie night, he always puts one on. Nobody is going to argue with him. So yeah, he’s seen a fuck ton of his movies. Kabal is always bored on his phone. Tremor is really excited and pointing out his favirote bits. Kira is not present, she’s got a date, and the sausage fest that is the Black Dragon rec room, is not on her list of things to do. Kano is probably passed out in a puddle of his own Piss I don’t know.
·         So, when you suggest watching Ninja Mime, he shudders and shakes his head. He’d do anything for you, but not that. Until you reveal that there’s a drinking game for it. Then he’s down.
·         He would love playing Red Dead Redemption. He fucking loves it. Brings back some memories. He’s impressed by it so much he can overlook some of the inaccuracies.
·         Looks after his Horse in RDR. Because he actually misses having a horse.
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galaxae · 3 years
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3, 7 and 18 for as many as you can answer; btw do you still have an ocs page? like with introductions and all that
wow this took forever oops!
tysm for the ask!! i’ve been meaning to make a carrd or something with oc intros, but i have so goddamn many ocs and so little time now that i’m in college and all that. and i have the code saved from my old pages before i remade, but those are kind of outdated and incomplete
that being said i’m probably gonna end up making that carrd regardless of how busy i am cause special interest indulgence and all that, so i’ll post about it when i do
anyway! i’m putting the actual oc answers under a readmore because i’m gonna try to do all the ocs i listed and it’ll be kinda long lol
3. What does your oc’s voice sound like? (Or, if you have one, what’s their voiceclaim?) Can they sing, whistle, or roll their rs? Do they have any speech impediments or notable dialects/accents?
how does one even describe voices... ok here goes
avani: she’s my character for a ttrpg campaign, so her voice sounds basically like mine (which might not help much cause you don’t know how i talk lol), but when i’m talking as her i pitch my voice up a bit and make it a bit more nasally. she’s not much of a singer, nor can she whistle, but she can roll her r’s pretty well. also, since she’s autistic and hard of hearing, her tone of voice often comes off the "wrong” way
farhan: he’s another ttrpg character i play lol, or at least he will be next semester, so his voice is again kind of like mine. but when i talk as him i pitch my voice down and it’s a bit hoarse. ig his voice would also be more “masculine” than mine but whatever. he can sing and whistle but has a pretty small vocal range (since he’s, like, 13 right now and will be 16 when i rp him next semester)
carter: i imagine his voice as low and on the quiet and raspy end, with a tiny bit of a lisp. he’s way too insecure to try to sing or even whistle or anything like that, though if he practiced at it he’d probably get pretty good
calira: she’s mute so n/a i guess. but she talks pretty formally in her dialect of elvish sign language, which is definitely unusual
sam: they have kind of a low voice that’s also raspy, but with quite a bit of pep and variation in their tone. they can even sing pretty well and they like to whistle constantly while working. that creates some kind of whiplash cause sam comes off as a typical edgy teen a lot of the time
jizoriel: high-pitched with lots of voice cracks, peak pretentious preteen/early teen jerkass. he can’t really sing or do anything similar, nor does he want to very much
victoria: so quiet and raspy that you can barely make out that it’s low and has a soothing and pleasant tone to it. she can sing well, or at least she could once upon a time
rowan: just! the happiest and most cheerful voice you can imagine! so much love behind how she talks! her voice fills up her whole head and the whole room!! and she whistles sometimes while she walks
ace: defies any masculine or feminine labels, smooth and cool in theory but they stutter quite a bit
charity: gruff but with a hint of cheer and clarity behind it that comes out when she’s startled. she loves to sing but can’t whistle and can’t roll her r’s either
jamal: i actually have a voiceclaim for him! it’s this (the voice that sings from 1:51 to 1:58)
kimberly: her voice is a bit high and a bit... idk how to say it exactly... i guess shrill would be the word?
fabián: his voice seems higher-pitched than it actually is cause he talks higher when he’s anxious, and he’s always anxious. it’s a bit hard to describe his voice otherwise tbh. i can hear it in my head but i can’t quite put it to paper oops. oh yeah also he has a great singing voice but never uses it sooo
7. What song reminds you of this oc? Does this match up with the type of music your oc likes to listen to?
this question opens up a wormhole cause i have playlists for many of these guys but instead i’ll just provide one (1) song for each and vaguely describe their music taste, how does that sound
avani: honestly “mr. capgras encounters a secondhand vanity” by will wood is a “her” song to me. her music taste leans a lot more toward older music though (like some classics from the 70s and 80s and such)
farhan: he’s still very new so i haven’t really found a song for him yet. but i know he absolutely loves peppy and energetic pop music and also sappy gay love songs
carter: (slaps my hand away when i try to type another will wood song) “fantasy island” by the shins always launches me into daydreams about him. which kinda roughly aligns with his music taste, he listens to a lot of those “mainstream indie” artists. he’d also listen to will wood because he’s gay and mentally ill <3
calira: one of my favorite songs on her playlist is “maximillian von spee” by dirt poor robins. but the music she listens to is basically all invigorating church-loving stuff with medieval-era instruments lmao
sam: “sometimes” by nick lutsko is an absolute bop and very much a sam song. sam actually doesn’t go out of their way to listen to music though, but when they do they listen to either the most soothing and relaxing stuff or to the angriest metal emo music. no in between
jizoriel: i’ll go the less emo angle here and say a song that reminds me of him is “upside down” by jack johnson. jizoriel’s music taste is like. old choir music and shit plus incomprehensible magical music that doesn’t even sound like music. if he was from earth he’d like my chemical romance
victoria and rowan: i’m grouping these two together here because a song that reminds me very strongly of both of them/their relationship is “human” by dodie. which actually fits very well into both of their music tastes!
ace: again, going the less edgy angle here, “auntie earth” by walter mitty and his makeshift orchestra. but ace mostly listens to uh, classical flute music and flute covers
charity: absolutely “dance and cry” by mother mother, that’s pretty much her theme song. it’s among her favorite songs in canon too
jamal: “tire swing” by los elk, since his arc is about letting go of childhood and all that jazz. he’s more inclined to listen to fun. and other pop artists and rappers and such. he likes janelle monae
kimberly: “best tears” by the happy fits for sure. in terms of her music taste though, her taste is pretty similar to jamal’s. they bond over being janelle monae fans
fabián: by god does “heal” by so much light fit him. his taste is that he rotates through three (3) specific obscure indie artists lmao, so theoretically i guess that specific song is included in there
18. How does your oc see themself? How does this compare to the way other ocs see them?
i am gonna do my best to keep these short cause this is a loaded question for all of them hoo boy
avani: how she sees herself: honestly the worst person alive. unless she spends every moment of her time trying to make up for what she’s done, she’s worthless, and she doesn’t deserve to love herself in any capacity how others see her: her brother (farhan) really looks up to her! most of the time. the superhero team she’s on (other people’s ocs) all think she’s generally smart and capable enough, and her boyfriend in particular thinks she’s incredible
farhan: how he sees himself: as of right now? a misunderstood emo middle schooler who’s still kind of cool i guess how others see him: his sister (avani) thinks he’s quite an impressive and charismatic young man
carter:  how he sees himself: 1/10 awkward and annoying how others see him: carter reminds calira too much of her old self, so she love-hates him. sam thinks he’s weak and cowardly but admires his kindness. and jizoriel clings to him as a caring father figure and loves carter’s passion for natural studies
calira: how she sees herself: it goes back and forth between “i’m the greatest chosen one ever im such a strong warrior” and “wow i’m literal trash why did the gods pick me for this” how others see her: carter is a bit intimidated by her but appreciates her attempts to vibe with him, sam thinks she’s an annoying pretentious self-important bitch (but their opinion softens over time), and jizoriel sees right through her facade and feels comfortable around her because of it
sam:  how they see themself: evil and in need of redemption, kind of similar to avani ig but with 10x more confidence in their skills and also much more violent how others see them: carter knows theyre doing their best even if theyre kind of an asshole, calira is a fan of their strength and determination, and jizoriel Hates Their Guts (at first) because they baby him too much
jizoriel: how he sees himself: a fucking fraud of a prince. all he has going for him is his abilities as a mage, but even then those are shaky how others see him: carter knows he’s very insecure and wants to comfort him, calira admires his magical prowess and noble air, and sam thinks he’s a snarky little pretentious douchebag but also he reminds them of their late brother and they want to protect him at all costs
victoria: how she sees herself: basically dead. only good for interacting with ghosts. not worthy of the human world or of friendship how others see her: she reminds rowan of her old self. rowan sees a glimmer of love and hope in her and wants to bring it out
rowan: how she sees herself: a fucking mess but she’s trying her best and that’s what counts! how others see her: victoria very much appreciates her cheerful air even if she doesn’t act like it
ace: how they see themself: way too weird to be human, way too weak not to be. their self-image changes constantly. theyre very confused about everything please help how others see them: charity is literally dating them lol she thinks theyre the cutest person alive, jamal appreciates how hard they try as a friend, kimberly thinks theyre an alien invader whom she can study and use to get further in life, and fabián knows more about ace than anyone else and loves them for it
charity: how she sees herself: a Teenager who’s struggling. she desperately wants to be young without the burden of her trauma but whether she thinks of herself as emo and sad and angry or not depends a lot on her mood how others see her: ace adores everything about her, jamal loves how cool and fun and sociable she can be, kimberly is annoyed with her rebelliousness, and fabián worries very much for her well-being and can’t shake the image of her as helpless (oops that’s gonna cause some drama)
jamal: how he sees himself: just a chill guy trying to get by. unremarkable. how others see him: ace is grateful for how forgiving he can be but is still terrified of him being angry over [spoilers], charity loves how sociable and fun he is and how protective he can be of his friends, kimberly secretly envies his carefree nature, and fabián sees him as a solid acquaintance to whom he did not give a good first impression
kimberly: how she sees herself: not good! if she can’t grow up fast and do science well then she’s useless how others see her: ace wants to be friends with her but doesn’t know how to do that, charity is annoyed by her rule-bound-ness, jamal thinks she’s cool but should unwind a little, and fabián resents her at first but would still like to play chess with her sometime
fabián: how he sees himself: he has a moral responsibility to help people Or Else. way too anxious and stuck up but he doesn’t know how to change that how others see him: ace fuckin Loves this guy, charity loves him too but she gets pissed when he tries to help her with anything, jamal genuinely thinks he’s a great guy and wants to get to know him better, and kimberly is actually impressed by him and envies his apparent confidence and charisma
ok ok that’s it i promise. sorry this is so long and tysm for reading if you made it this far!! feel free to ask more oc questions literally whenever, that goes for anyone reading this <3
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vitosscaletta · 4 years
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🍓 🍓 🍓🍓🍓🍓 for ALL your vampire kids! 🦇
AIRIKA..TY FOR MY LIFE! ok this is gonna be long 
CHRISTIAN
🍓 — he’s over 300 years old (that technically makes him an elder according to the lore book… overpowered king) & was embraced in the 1600s, he was the son of a french marquis back in the day 😳 He lived in Versailles for a long time & considered it his home even though people would literally shit in the corners there -_-
🍓 — has NO idea how technology works… he has one of those ugly early 2000s flip phones because he saw other people having those but has absolutely no idea how to use them, much less a computer. Most people just think he’s ~romantic or something for writing letters but he really has no idea how to write an email :(
🍓 — He’s the baron of Bel Air.. has a nice mansion there bc living for over 300 years gives you time to hoard that much money ig. 
🍓 — His grand-sire (??) is Helen of Troy 😳 overpowered af bloodline
🍓 — He doesn’t care about vampire politics in the slightest and is sort of aligned with the camarilla bc he has power within them but there’s no loyalty or conviction.. the main reason he’s in it is to start drama and watch it unfold 💅 He and La🥐 can’t stand each other but also can’t do anything about it… Strauss is okay with him but they’d also sell each other out for one corn chip.. He’s sort of frenemies with Gary, they hate each other because… yknow toreador and nosferatu but they’re equally shady so there’s mutual respect… in an odd way 
🍓 — He doesn’t have any other childe..r… whatever the term is except miss Helena.. he hangs around humans a lot but has no real attachment to them (except being kind of a hoe and.. yknow.). She’s the first mortal in a long time he felt anything for which was mostly just good old toreador obsession but he thought it was love.. she vaguely resembled a lost love of his. and had potential I guess so he actually got permission for embracing her babey… just not from her bc he didn’t even consider someone wouldn’t want to be a vampire.. 🙄
HELENA
🍓 — Having OP Christian as her sire did have its perks even though she hates his guts for embracing her… She automatically had a pretty good position within the camarilla through connection alone :^) she works as sort of an informant/spy for the prince directly.. which puts her at odds with a bunch of people - they either think she’s an inexperienced little girl who doesn’t know what she’s doing and works for an incompetent prince OR hate her for being in his sort of inner circle without having to work for it (like Victoria. she thinks that)
🍓 — CRINGE but it be like that sometimes… she’s descended from a looong line of vampire/witch hunters on her dad’s side - he’s from a catholic german family who was largely involved with the society of Leopold. Michael himself wasn’t overly religious (still studied theology but didn’t actually care) and left all of this behind when he moved to america & got married but after he and Jenny divorced he was like “know what… time to become a zealot again”. His ex-wife and daughters are completely unaware of that of course 😳 dunno if Helena sees him again after becoming a vampire 🙄 but yknow.
🍓 — Doesn’t have any of the “vampires are better than mortals” superiority complex that a lot of the others seem to have.. does think thin-bloods are losers though kjdkjdfnms
🍓 — Only video game she plays is the sims!! she bought ts1 when it came out for fun and got hooked.. ts2 is even better!!!!! first thing she did was make a sim that resembles her and marries a business tycoon 💅💸
🍓 — owned one (1) YSL dress she bought from her savings (which was USED)  but she couldn’t afford anything else so she just wears it with something she found at hot topic every time she goes out with her rich fake friends pre embrace. When she works for La🤡 and actually makes some money she can afford a SECOND dress babey! with shoes!!!
🍓 — She’s actually really into some standard 2004 radio pop songs but also emo songs at the same time.. except the genre didn’t have anything good in 2004 except three cheers for sweet revenge (she’s also really into evanescence, green day and blink 182 which isn’t really emo but it was still part of the experience™ nfdkjdf) - which is also her entire aesthetic summed up, emo meets theatre kid prep.. Helena: *googles “how to look like Gerard Way and Britney Spears at the same time makeup tutorial”*
ERIN
🍓 — sdjhsdh cringe but she’s always been kind of a weirdo but was pretty good at hiding it/acting normal & was part if the prep gang in her high school days (not the leader, more the kind of the replaceable third wheel), she always preferred hanging out with the weirdos though. Post-embrace everyone just thinks “lol crazy malkavian” so she’s just like 🤷‍♀️.. 
🍓 — Her sire, Ray, was suuuch a freak but she liked him because he was something.. different in her sheltered, dull life and made her feel excitement she hasn’t felt in a long time. He bails on her after embracing her bc he sired her without permission & fears execution (even though literally no one cares or even knows he sired someone) but has letters delivered to her from time to time instructing her what to do lol
🍓 — Actually enjoys the freedom vampirism gives her? She’s officially dead so she has the option to start again and be whoever she wants to be… it’s scary at first bc she has no idea what’s going on and where these voices come from but she gets used to it, also the voice of her late grandmother in her head is a comforting presence for her… I imagine she’s actually in there kinda like the heart in dishonored, afterlife isn’t her granddaughter’s mind but it’s sort of an echo of her? IDK she tinkered with magic in life so supernatural schizophrenia added that to Erin’s mind.
🍓 — She loves early 2000′s radio pop (yknow.. Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson… etc) but also classical music, stuff from the 20′s, alternative rock, the early 2000s goth music that’s playing in L.A.’s nightclubs …. she’s gonna thrive in 2006 when a fever you can’t sweat out drops!!!
🍓 — She’s part of the anarchs but mostly hangs out in hollywood or downtown (only goes to santa monica to visit the asylum (BEST nightclub ever in her onion. isolated SLAPS)
🍓 — yknow in the 2000s when people had invader zim merch from hot topic.. she owns this backpack 🤦‍♀️ it clashes with the rest of her style which is already a horrendous mix of victorian/early 20th century gothic and 2004 prep style 
VICTORIA  
🍓 — her background is still a BIG wip but she was born at some point in the late twenties/early thirties and embraced in 1954 :^) she was a bit of a workaholic and had an intense work ethic but never made it far within the company she was working for because it’s the fifties (thinking maybe it was her father’s company bc she was RICH.. there was a feud between her & a few male relatives on who’s gonna lead or something)… She was eventually noticed by a ventrue businessman who thought her ambition and no-nonsense attitude would be a great addition to the clan - She was promised a opportunity to rise within a different society without le sexism. Go white feminist queen!
🍓 — her embrace wasn’t really what she thought it would be.. drinking other’s blood REPULSES her and she has a hard time adjusting to it, plus kindred society isn’t really what she imagined - by the time she’s embraced L.A. has no camarilla presence so there’s really nothing for her to do so she moves to New York to join them there.. except she’s stuck with a shitty job and no one taking her seriously because of her age 😒 When they establish a presence in Los Angeles she’s the first to suck up to the prince & be assigned a somewhat high position (I guess adviser to the ventrue primogen and also being tight with the prince is good!!)
🍓 — She dresses very business-y BUT always designer bc she got money 😳 her wardrobe is chic but also minimalist, also with a hint of fifties design because fashion peaked then in her opinion.. mostly in dark colors, reds, browns and mostly black combined with minimal jewelry and high heels… very very elegant
🍓 — genuinely loves romcoms from the 50s and 60s (doris day & rock hudson movies b*tch!!) but also “newer” one from the 90s and 2000′s.. notting hill, pretty woman and 13 going on 30 are her favorites that she watches when she’s off duty, cozy in her downtown apartment.. but don’t tell anyone 😤
🍓 — She’s THE queen bee within the L.A. camarilla… doesn’t have any friends in her workplace but she’s respected by everyone and that’s what matters to her (it does get lonely sometimes but it be like that. She’s not gonna give up her status for shallow friendships 😒)
🍓 — loves those ugly small 90s/2000s glasses but they clash with every outfit she has so she doesn’t wear them
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ltjlily17 · 4 years
Text
The truth about vampires
Let’s start off with some basics. What’s your name? Rachel How old are you? 35 What’s your hair and eye color? Green eyes, brown to teal hair. How tall are you? 5′6″
What’s your relationship status? Married Alright, enough of that. Let’s move on to the random shit. What’s your favorite song? Mayonaise by the Smashing Pumpkins, Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton and In Your Atmosphere by John Mayer. What does that song mean? What is the message behind it? They are all pretty different theme wise, but all three really evoke a feeling. Is it your favorite because you relate to it, or do you just like the beat? They’re all more guitar heavy than having a beat, the lyrics and overall feeling the songs provide are what really get m, though. Have any pets? If so, what are they and what’s their names? I have a dog named Finn, and a cat named Mateo. Have you ever met your idol? If so, were they nice or were they kind of an ass? I don’t have an idol. What’s your favorite method of gaming? (PC, Xbox, Playstation, etc) Either the Switch or my laptop. Xbox is fine, but I guess I prefer a handheld type device.  If you’re in college, what’s your major and why did you pick it? I am not in college. My major when I attended varied between visual communications, education and IT. I didn’t choose nor graduate. How’re you doing today? Meh, theres a lot going on around me with people I care about. I was talking to a friend earlier about how most people are stressed or unhapy this time of year, which is really not my experience. I love buying gifts for others, decorating and baking, so this is generally a good time for me. What color are your bedroom walls? Ugh, like a pastel yellow. I really dislike the color. I have painted some grey paint splotches on one wall to see which one I liked most, but I’ve never gotten around to actually painting. Describe your favorite shirt. I don’t know that I have a favorite. I typically wear a shirt I got from John Mayer’s last tour the most- its got a cool fish and cat graphic on it. Use this space to tell someone off. I’ve no one to tell off. What’s your view on smart watches? Cool or a waste of money? I have one. I like it. I really like watches in general, though and I feel a little sad I don’t wear the analog ones anymore, but I’d miss the functionality of the smartwatch. What is one poster that you have hanging on your bedroom wall of? I don’t have anything hanging on the walls in my room. We have slanted ceilings, so there isn’t even enough space for a poster. My room was covered in band posters as a teenager, though. How many times have you moved in your life? I lived at home til 20, lived with my first roommate til 25, a townhouse with a friend and my now husband for a year, an apt with my now husband for 4 years and now our house for 5 years. If you moved, do you like where you are now better than where you were? I’ve stayed in pretty much the same area, but living in our house is definitely better than the one bedroom apartment we were in. What’s your favorite color and why? Grey. Darker earthy tones. Do you have a calendar? If so, what’s the theme? Nope. Just use my watch/phone. Have any famous person’s autographs? I do on some concert tickets from when I was younger. Do you draw well? Depends on your perspective, to my non-artistic friends, they think I’m amazing. The artistic friends, probably just roll their eyes lol. What type of cell phone do you have? iPhone X. Should you be doing anything else right now or are you just bored? I finally finished the wedding I had been editing and the only other project I have right now is the paint by number of our dog I got for my husband as a gift, but he’s here, so it has to wait. Finishing that wedding was a huge weight off my shoulders.
If you’re in school/college, what’s your favorite subject and why? Not in school. Maybe now that I’m done with the wedding I’ll start exploring some learning opportunities. Are you a cat or a dog person? Why? I would’ve always said cat until I got a dog. There are a lot of things about dogs I was really not into, but I love my dog so much. Personality wise, I’m more of a cat person, but in practice I like dogs. Tell me about the plot of your favorite book. I have several. One has a ghost that rings a bell around a mounted moose’s head. Do you wear glasses or contacts? Glasses. What do you think about horror movies? I like them. I’ve seen a lot of old ones. Back in the day, my mom and I would go to Blockbuster and I’d get a different horror movie every week. If you love them (I do), what’s your favorite? Nightmare on Elm Stree is a classic for me. It Follows is probably the one that fucked me up the most. Got any cool Christmas presents picked out for family or friends yet? I’ve got all my gifts purchsed except for the hub. He sent me a ridiculous wish list that included a suit of armor and a castle and then decided he didn’t want any gifts this year. I’m running out of time to figure something out. Do you do Black Friday shopping or wait for Cyber Monday? Neither. I’m definitely not going to go out on Black Friday and deal with all those people for junk I don’t need. As for Cyber Monday, I don’t really pay much attention to any of the deals and don’t really buy more on that day than I would on any other. Have any mental illnesses? Not encompassing enough to get any kinda of diagnosis. What’s your favorite word and why? No idea.  What is the most expensive thing you own, and what is it? My car? I mean, I don’t outright own it yet. Singular item, my MacBook or iMac, I guess.  Did you buy that item yourself? Yes, I bought the macbook and iMac after I left my job at Cassano’s and needed a new laptop since my previous one was owned by the company. Where do you work and what is your position? *I am currently unemployed. How often do you cuss? A fair amount. Maybe just a little bit more than whomever I’m talking to. What type of car do you drive, if any? I have a 2012 Volvo s60. Are you happy with it? If no, what’s your dream car? I prefer to drive my car than my husbands, but I’m like 50/50 on liking it. Right now, my dream vehicles are the new Land Rover Defender or an Audi Q8. Do you have a lot of social media accounts? Which ones? I have Instagram, Facebook LinkedIn and Tumblr. I very rarely post on any of them. I use snapchat a lot, though, if that counts. What is your favorite genre of music? My Spotify year end review said I listen to Pop, Rock, Indie, Folk and Emo the most. In that order. Does your family have holiday traditions? If so, what are they? Nope. My fmaily just barely cobbles themselves together for major holidays. If you’re in a relationship, are you happy with it? Sure. People are breaking up around us, and it really makes me appreciate the relationship my husband and I have, even if it doesn’t always feel like its going as well as it is. How long have you been with your significant other? Just hit the 10 year mark. Do you like psychology? (It’s my college major). Nah. Never really been something I’m too interested in. What is something your state is popularly known for? College football I guess.  Do you like to do craft projects? If so, what’s the coolest thing you made? I do. I recently drew a bunch of Dungeons and Dragons monsters to use as ornaments on a tree in my dining room where my husband and his friends play Dungeons and Dragons on Sundays. I’ve made some painting as house warming gifts or nursery art for friends children that they’ve hung up and thats nice to see. Do you watch sports or do you think they’re overrated? Nah. Not really a fan. What’s one occupation you think gets paid too much and doesn’t deserve to? Meh, I don’t know that I want to hate on any specific occupation. The extremely rich do bother me, however, with how much money they make, often at their employees detriment. Do you straigthen your hair? Not usually. I have more lately, since its getting long again. I’m more likely to do the loose waves thing, though. Ever dyed your hair a color that isn’t natural? (blue, pink, etc) Yes, it is currently teal. How’s your relationship with your parents? Relationship with my mom is okay, none with my dad. Do you still live with them or do you have your own house? I live in my own home. What’s something you are currently saving money for to buy? Hmm, nothing. The couple of items I want at the moment, I asked for on my Christmas list. Do you smoke/vape? If so, what brand do you smoke/what device do you use? Nope, I’ve never smoked. Ever done drugs? Nope. Tell me one of your worst habits. Picking at my cuticles? What’s a weird quirk you have that no one else you know does? No idea, I kind of doubt that theres something I do that no one else ever does. If you game, what type of headset do you use? I don’t ever need a headset. What type of computer do you own, and do you like it? I have a MacBook Pro. I used to have an Air and I loved it, but my husband talked me into getting the Pro instead and I regret it.  What’s the thing that annoys you the most? When my husband asks google to make his cellphone ring at max volume without even trying to look for it. Today, it was in his pocket. What brand of TV do you have? Samsung. Are you excited for Christmas? (It’s December 1st today when I made this) Kind of? I love how cozy my house feels with all the decorations.  Tell me about your favorite vacation you’ve taken. We went to New York for my birthday/anniversary/Halloween 2 years ago. Tell me something cool about yourself. I am not cool? Did/do you get good grades in school/college? Not in my middle school/high school years. What’s your ringtone on your phone? Vibrate. What’s your favorite store to shop in? The internet. If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would buy and why? I have no idea. I’d probably sit on the money for a long time and then once I finally broke the seal, buy a bunch of stuff. How long have you had a Bzoink account? Don’t have one. Ever been to Field of Screams? If so, what’s your favorite attraction? Nope. Do you own a Polaroid camera? I have an Instax camera. Do you have hardwood floor in your room or carpet? The two bedrooms upstairs have carpet, but the rest of the house is hardwood. It’s a Saturday night, what are you typically doing? Relaxing at home, most likely. Doing a crossword puzzle, probably. Do you have a lot of friends or do you not have any at all? I have a couple. What’s your all time favorite movie and why? I don’t know, really. I watch the Iron Man movies and Thor Ragnarok the most these days. How many blankets do you sleep with at night? A sheet and comforter. What’s the last TV show you watched? Did you enjoy it? The Mandalorian. I do enjoy it.  Do you prefer cable TV or do you use Netflix? We have cable, but never really watch it. Everything we want to watch is only Netflix or Disney+. What is your dream job and why? I have no idea. Need to get to thinking on that. Do you think you would be a good therapist? I do. I think I can listen to people and help them come to their own answers pretty well. What’s your favorite brand of clothing? I don’t know that I have a favorite. Anything that fits well and has a lot of sales lol.
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Bring Me The Horizon - amo album review
I’ve been a fan of BMTH since the late-There is a hell era and obviously they surprised me once again. I’m gonna go song by song on the album because each of the songs have something in them that differs from the one before.
i apologize if you feel something, the first track is already a lot more different than the previous BMTH albums. It begins as a typical intro with long silences between the melody. Then Oli starts to sing on a really high pitched poppy autotuned voice. You can hear no instruments whatsoever except the synth that plays the melody. Then it changes to this ambient style that somehow suits the band’s music but feels awkward without the guitar and drums. When I first heard this song I already realized it was nothing special, just a little intro that might hype up the crowd before they start performing.
MANTRA, the first single of the album is a little less heavy than the That’s The Spirit era songs. A lot less heavy if you think about how Oli’s vocal style changed since 2015. It finally has drums and heavily distorted low tuned guitar and even screams in the background but it still feels like an alternative rock song just because of the verses and the high pitched bridge. The guitar riff is banging, the chorus is catchy, not a bad song afterall but it will still disappoint the old fans of the band.
nihilist blues is definitely the weirdest song on the record. It’s basically a trance/europop song that divides the listeners to two types: the first one would say: what the fuck is this shit, i’m not listening to this album anymore, and the second one would be: wow they’re brave as hell for doing this, I’m looking forward for the rest. I’m not a big expert on europop or trance or whatever electronic music genres there are but it really reminded me of an Armin van Buuren beat and apparently they copied a little from a relatively new Evanescence song as well. Grimes is featured in the song and her vocal style fits it really well. It has a creepy feeling that makes the song feel like you’re in a club full of drug addicts and the only thing left for you to survive is becoming an addict (for the music). Personally I think probably something like this was on the band’s mind when they wrote this. You definitely won’t like this one unless you like electronic music. You can hear the drums and guitars in it (they’re playing the electronic distorted thing with a tremolo pedal probably) but it’s barely recognizable.
in the dark, the next song has a really strange feeling. It sounds like a pop song because of the samples it uses but it still has the guitar (both clean and distorted) that reminded me of Doomed from the previous album. Both the guitars and the vocals are catchy as hell and after the first few listens you can hear what was the point of writing this song, here that “gateway band” thing begins that Oli mentions in a lot of his recent interviews. They want to be a gateway band that shows people the grand spectrum of music from electronic to heavy metal (or metalcore if you’re a genre-nazi) and do the same thing that Linkin Park or Limp Bizkit did for popularizing the crossover of rap and hip-hop and screamy, heavy rock music. It has the same experiencing feeling that got me into Linkin Park and even tho the song and its lyrics are kinda forgettable, the intention is clear and I personally like it a lot.
wonderful life, the second single of the album is without a doubt one of the heaviest ones on it. The intro seems like a classic BMTH style guitar intro with a little less distortion and a really weird, progressive time signature (for my ear at least). The main riff is simple, heavy and you can definitely bang you head to it. The chorus is catchy, the lyrics are relatable for the emo kids, it has a squealing scream from Dani Filth, which makes it seem like the metalcore days are creeping on the band. The outro chorus reminded me of their song ‘Oh No” from the previous record just because it’s so monumental but maybe that’s just me.
ouch is a cheap interlude in my opinion. It’s not even 2 minutes, the samples get boring in the end. It has a drum and bass kind of feeling to it. It reminded me of Cure For The Itch by Linkin Park, just because of the placement and the “drum” beats on it. The nanana thing that goes on in the chorus also gets boring really quickly. The lyrics are about Oli’s ex-wife Hannah Snowdon and it has a nice throwback to their 2015 song, Follow You with the “under your spell” lines, and it’s clear that he left that time behind with this song.
medicine, the song with the weird-ass video is the next one on the album. If you haven’t heard a single BMTH song in your life and you’re into the more pop-ish side of alternative you’ll probably say: holy shit this is a banger. The first couple of lines in the chorus are really far-fetched in my opinion, it’s the “we’re edgy and cool kids” vibe that is either cringy or makes you feel like the band got old and they still want to appeal to teenagers and young adults. The message of the song is the same as the previous one. The melody of the chorus and the vocals overall are not that bad, they’re catchy, but just like the intro of the album, it still misses the guitars, although this one has some really quiet clean guitars in the background. It’s clear that the vocals are in the focus and it’s stressed by shoving autotuned Oli’s voice down our throat.
sugar, honey, ice and tea is one of my favorites off the album without a doubt. The riff is heavy, the song still feels like an alternative rock song but this time the guitar tone for me seemed like an old HIM song that’s mixed with a That’s the spirit era beat, lyrics and melody. It has the same feeling when I heard Happy Song for the first time but this one has a Throne-like chorus with the samples going instead of Oli’s voice. In the outro Oli goes crazy and lets out Count Your Blessings-era styled screams which definitely help the song appeal to older fans. It’s gonna be played at concerts for sure.
why you gotta kick me when i’m down, oh boy where do i begin. Imagine Post Malone writing a song for a no name alternative rock band. Add overdistorted guitars and a mumble rap beat and lyrics. You’re done, you get this song. It shifts genres so fast that it seems like Oli went from ‘Lil Sykes’ and back to himself a couple times in just 4 minutes. It’s not a terrible song but if you don’t like the style of modern soundcloud rappers and the whole mumble rap mixed with guitars thing you’re gonna hate this one. 
fresh bruises, after the mumble rap song the boys in the band were probably like: hmmm what’s the next popular thing in 2019 that has nothing to do with rock. That’s right:”lo-fi hiphop for sleeping and studying” radios. The lyrics are only 2 lines, the beat gets faster but it’s still boring, even for an interlude. Definitely the most forgettable song in the album.
mother tongue, is the last single before the album came out. It’s the most honest love song from Oli that he’s probably ever gonna write. For personal reasons right now I can relate to it but if you can’t, you’re gonna forget this song even after a couple of listens. It has a powerful chorus, a radio friendly pop beat, cute ass lyrics and the most important thing: it has the potential to infect the radio stations and get the band even more recognition. The chord progression is really popular, (has the same chords as Africa by Toto), the vocals (with the help of autotune) are great. It has the Follow You vibes all over again but here you get an impression of a happy Oli Sykes that is in a fulfilling relationship and has a stable mental state. This progression is really respectable even if you don’t like the song itself.
heavy metal is my most favorite track from the record. It’s basically a huge “fuck you” to the oldest fans who only play Medusa and Pray for Plagues on repeat to this day, 13 years after their release. It’s got that middle finger in the lyrics that makes you think: damn this band really wanted a change and nothing can stop them. The song made me feel like Meteora days Linkin Park once again because of its beatbox styled bridge and the dropped, heavy guitars. This song shows the new direction of the band once and for all: they wanna make all types of music for both new AND old fans (listen to the last couple of seconds for the Pray for Plagues style vocals from Oli) but still says that nope we’re not gonna change, we grew up, we still like our old songs but you’re not gonna hear them from us because we’re different people now. Big props to the band to be this brave and say: this shit ain’t heavy metal.
i don’t know what to say, the last song on the record for me seemed really off topic from the album until I read what it’s written about. It’s about a friend of Oli who passed away from cancer. Oli didn’t write a song posthomously but the lyrics make it seem like he did. The song itself would sound like an 80′s power ballad from a classic rock band for me if I wouldn’t notice Oli’s vocals and the modern drum beat at some places. It even has a damned guitar solo, an acoustic guitar throughout, and orchestra. (which again reminded me Oh No, the closing track of That’s The Spirit) The song is forgettable for me, even though the message is really touching and meaningful. For a closing track it’s good but since it’s really different from the rest of the album it seems that they only put this song on just to honor that friend that it’s written about.
The album is one of the weirdest concepts I’ve heard from any rock band since A Thousand Suns by Linkin Park. The band put their heart and soul in it, you can tell by the level of production. On some songs it’s really well executed, others seem cheap and boring. My summary is that old BMTH is dead, they’re still gonna play rock music as they did with their previous records but they’re gonna expand and experiment to other directions, making it as progressive as possible just to keep the music entertaining.
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nickeldreadful · 5 years
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In Defense of Pop Punk
I’ve often heard the phrase “defend pop punk” thrown around. I always thought, defend it from what? Your parents telling you to turn that shit down? The preps in your hometown who don’t understand you? But here’s what I realize now: the genre has never been taken seriously, even at its height of popularity. It was too weird to be pop music, not hardcore enough to be punk music, and it committed the most unforgivable sin of all: it was popular with teenage girls.
Maybe this is all old news. I’ll admit I was late to the game; I mostly started listening to the genre in 2011 and onward. The glory days of emo were at an end (although the second wave would be rising up shortly). I always joked that my relationship with the music was pretty. odd. In fact, I only just found out that the phrase “defend pop punk” was originally coined by Man Overboard when I googled it for writing research. Sure, I had seen the shirts, but I kind of thought it was just something all the emo kids said. So, credit where credit is due.
Before we go any further, let me just say, genres are meaningless. Yes, they exist to help people who say, “Hey, I like this sound! Where can I find more sounds that sound like this sound?” But it’s impossible to clearly draw lines between styles of music. Fall Out Boy is the first band that comes to mind when I think of pop punk. Wikipedia has six genres listed for them: pop punk, pop rock, pop, alternative rock, emo pop, and emo. Where is the overlap and where is the definitive break? Pop punk seems often synonymous with emo, but maybe it’s an issue of a square vs a rectangle. (In that all squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares.) Perhaps it’s more of a Venn diagram that is nearly a circle. I’ve heard it said that My Chemical Romance were not a pop punk band, but no one could argue that they were not emo.
Emo, if anything, was even more ridiculed than pop punk. Personally, I was made fun of in middle school for being an emo kid, and I was hardly emo. I’m probably more emo now than I was then, although I wear it better. Although it had widely been “reclaimed,” the word carried negative connotations for a long time. Bands often resisted the label as it felt like a way to write of the music without giving it any serious consideration.
Okay, so. Now this is a defense of pop punk and emo.
Both genres were born out of punk and alternative rock music. Both zeroed in on teen angst. Both were a reflection of the world post-9/11. While some genres like country turned overtly patriotic, casting out anyone who didn’t support the country and its government (see: The Dixie Chicks), others turned away. Some bands were vocal about their political dissent, such as Green Day with their release of American Idiot in 2004. Others were more subtle.
Emo, being shorthand for emotional, was just that. Fear, distrust, anger, and grief clung to both our society and the music being created in the early 2000s. But emo was sad, too. It was touchy-feely. It was open and honest. This was not the way men were supposed to be acting. They were supposed to be tough and invulnerable. They’re certainly not supposed to wear tight jeans and heavy eye makeup. Those things were all seen as weak, and girly, and gay. All three were discouraged traits, even more so then than now.  
Emo, and to a greater extent, pop punk, was more readily embraced by girls. And as is the great tradition of all things popular teenage girls, this further pushed the genres towards ridicule. Perhaps in time, men will claim these bands as their own. Of course, they will like these bands for real reasons, unlike the hysterical teenage girls who only cared about the attractiveness of the band members. It happened with Elvis, it happened with The Beatles, and maybe down the road it will happen with My Chemical Romance.
Pop punk, of course, incorporated pop hooks and melodies that made the songs catchy and radio-friendly. Though their melodic voices were still carried by screaming guitars, thrashing drums, and thumping bass. The lyrics were more tame than its oft-offensive punk predecessors. Rage was toned down to angst. There was less of the desire to escape society and more of the desire to escape your hometown. It was elements of punk, woven into pop. Or maybe the other was around. It was consumable, and successful.
Isn’t that just… selling out?
Taking punk and cleaning it up, making it presentable and acceptable to the masses? Doesn’t that go against the core values of punk?
Maybe it was all performative – calling yourself punk but turning around and selling radio-friendly hits. Maybe it was a Trojan horse – using pop sounds to spread the Good Word about punk music. Maybe these bands were full of sellouts who liked to talk tough but only cared about getting big and making money. Maybe these bands were full of kids who had dreams of being famous musicians and could only achieve that by making sure at least some of their music was commercial. Maybe they just liked both punk music and pop music and decided to put the two together. Whatever the motivation, the sound certainly worked.
People can like what they like. People can dislike what they dislike. It’s a matter of taste. We are all individuals with our own opinions.
But this is my defense of pop punk.
I once had a teacher who said that he didn’t like Blink-182 because they were adult men who wrote songs like they were teenagers. I could have brought up that they had actually written a song on that topic, but what I ended up saying was, “Well, they write songs for teenagers.”
I actually ran into him at a Jukebox the Ghost concert a few years after I graduated high school. I should have started an argument with him. Instead I was just like, “Hey, do you remember what grade you gave me on my final project? I was never able to access my report card after they switched to digital.”
He didn’t remember.
But I digress.
Someone has to write music for kids who don’t fit in. Kids who are angry, kids who are weird, kids who are lonely. Kids who don’t conform, won’t conform, can’t conform. They see the guys in the band put on makeup, go on stage, lament their feelings, and kiss the other guys in the band. They see the girls in the band full of confidence, full of righteous fury, taking charge and taking names. They can listen to the songs express exactly how they feel. Maybe, for the first time in a long time, they feel understood. They found somewhere they belong. It opens up a new world of music to explore.
If I never listened to pop punk, I never would have gotten into punk rock.
If you give a kid a cup of unsweetened black coffee, they’re not going to like it. If you give them a Starbucks caramel frappachino, that’s a different story. Over time you ease up on the sugar and start to enjoy the taste of the coffee. Blink-182 goes down a little easier than Dead Kennedys. Someone has to be there to open the door to punk music. You listen to the radio singles and you like them, so you check out the rest of their discography. You notice the b-sides are a bit harsher. There’s more yelling, more shredding, more thrashing. It’s faster, it’s louder, it’s angrier. You like it. You feel validated in your own anger, your own sense of loss, your own dissatisfaction. You want more music like that.
Maybe you end up dropping the pop altogether, maybe you don’t. It doesn’t matter, because either way, you’re into punk now. Next thing you know you’ll be cutting the sleeves off your jackets and sewing on handmade patches. You get knocked down in the mosh pit, and your new friends are there to pick you back up.
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hermitologist · 6 years
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My 17 Favorite Records of 2017
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Hello, Internet. Yet another year has passed, and because I’ve made a habit of making year-end lists, this old man has gone and done it again.
I listened to a veritable buttload of music this year on my morning runs, which I decided to post about on Instagram most days in a concerted effort to keep myself accountable bore every last one of my followers to death. I think it’s working.
What follows, is my list of favorites. Not “best”. “Favorite”. *My* favorite. So, spare me the “Your list sucks. WTF. I can’t believe “A Vest For Jerome” by Turd Circus isn’t on there!” comments. I’m sorry we don’t have the exact same taste in music. :)
As usual, I feel like the top 5 or 6 here are pretty carved in stone, but the last 12 and some of the honorable mentions could totally be flip-flopped depending on which side of the bed I woke up on. I actually fiddled with a few spots five minutes before posting this, which is either a testament to that or Exhibit 4,923 in my undiagnosed OCD case.
Anyways ... TL;DR. Here’s what I was into this year. I hope you find something you enjoy.
IMPORTANT: Please let me know what I might missed out on (as I’m sure there’s a ton of it), and share some of your favorites in the comments below. Thanks!
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17) Japandroids - Near To The Wild Heart Of Life
This didn’t quite grab me the way Celebration Rock did, but it’s got a good number of super infectious earworms that got stuck in my brain at the top of the year. 
Listen here.
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16) Sorority Noise - You’re Not As ____ You Think
Excellent “emo”with that feels like it could very easily fit into Brand New’s discography (and I mean that in a very complimentary way). Highly recommended if you’re looking for something to fill that void. 
Listen here. 
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15) Queens of the Stone Age - Villains
This took a little while for this record to sink its teeth into me, but once it did, it didn’t let go. The arrangements are so nuanced that I’ve found little bits of ear candy each time I’ve listened to it, and while the mix is not my favorite, the songs are so brilliantly catchy and drumming so monstrous, I’m hooked. And Jon Theodore is the best drummer on Earth. That’s not debatable either. It’s fact.
Listen here.
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14) David Bazan - Care
It’s no secret that I’m a sucker for anything and everything Bazan. His lyrics and the timbre of his voice cut to my core, and the songs on Care are no exception -- even when they’re delivered over minimalist electronica (which is not my favorite vehicle by any stretch). Another Bazan masterpiece.
Listen here.
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13) Glassjaw - Material Control
This record is perfect in that it is exactly what it needs to be. It’s Glassjaw doing what they do best -- intense, vibey, groovy, heavy post-hardcore that is a logical follow-up to Worship & Tribute, while flexing and pushing enough to make it feel fresh. A tremendous return to form, and a record that was well worth the wait.
Listen here.
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12) Julien Baker - Turn Out The Lights 
Sprained Ankle blew me away and knocked me on my ass, and somehow, some way, Baker has leveled up and topped that. The stripped-down “artist + guitar” intimacy is still there, but the heavy moments hit even harder because of the additional orchestration on this record. Such a promising future for her.
Listen here.
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11) The Life & Times - S/T
Another excellent record from some of one of Kansas City’s best bands. There are few who do airy, melancholic, spacey, dynamic rock better than these guys. And Chris Metcalf is one of the best drummers on the planet right now -- so pockety, tasteful, and effortless. Highly recommended if you dig Failure, Shiner, Hum, Antenna-era Cave In, et al. 
Listen here.
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10) METZ - Strange Peace
This beast is 36 minutes of noisy, nasty, heavy post-punk with stellar guitar and bass tones, and badass drumming that sounds like the best parts of Nirvana and Young Widows had a perfect lovechild. I dare you to listen to this record and not have an overwhelming urge to play it as loud as you possibly can and headbang until your eyes fall out of your skull.
Listen here.
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9) CHON - Homey
I really enjoyed this when it came out, but it wasn’t until we spent five weeks on tour with them and got to see them shred a handful of these songs on a nightly basis that it really grabbed ahold of me. This record is stellar. Sure there are a ton of notes, but they’re all tasteful, never bogged down in painfully long prog opuses, and there’s so much feel here ... which is so rare in the new world of insanely chopped, gridded and sampled prog. The splashes of hip-hop and glitchy Prefuse 73 style electronica are a killer addition to the mix as well. This is the feel good record of the year for me.
Listen here.
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8) Kendrick Lamar - DAMN.
There really isn’t another rapper who holds a candle to Kendrick at the moment, and this might be the best work of his career. I haven’t had a hip-hop record hit me like this in at least a decade. I was hooked from the second the beat dropped in DNA., got roped in even more by the slow jam LOVE., and HUMBLE. sealed the deal. What a beast.
Listen here.
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7) Cloud Nothings - Life Without Sound
This record rules, but I’m not sure I can put my finger on exactly why I like it so much. It’s got tiny elements of so many bands I love or used to love without being overly referential. It’s got a melancholic vibe but never lacks energy. And it is packed with really, really well written and catchy songs without full-blown pop circus. You know you’re listening to a great record when you’re playing a deep cut and uncontrollably blurt, “Fuck, this song is good.” 
Listen here.
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6) Converge - The Dusk In Us
Nobody does it better than these dudes, and it’s been that way for the better part of two decades. The Dusk In Us is yet another record a discography full of bar-setting hardcore/metal/noise records that elevate the ceiling of the genre and make everyone else sound/look bland in comparison. This one slides right into the #3 or #4 spot in that storied discography. So great.
Listen here.
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5) Manchester Orchestra - A Black Mile To The Surface
This is one of those rare records that blows you away on first listen, and gets better with each subsequent listen. The former happens when the songs --stripped to their bones -- are stellar, and the latter happens when the arrangements and mix are somehow even more stellar. ABMTTS checks the shit outta both of those boxes and then some. Aaaand it was made with multiple producers, but doesn’t sound disjointed in the slightest, which seems damn near impossible. It’s the perfect Manchester Orchestra record ... “The Gold” was stuck pleasantly in my head for a majority of the year.  
Listen here.
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4) Pile - A Hairshirt Of Purpose
Disclaimer: I am a late adopter of the majesty of Pile, but I am happy to announce that I am hopelessly hooked on their soulful, noisy, schizophrenic, (occasionally) dreamy, fusion of post-punk, blues, and all sorts of other good things. My entry point was Dripping, but A Hairshirt ... cemented my love for this band. It’s weird, it’s beautiful, it’s energetic, it’s heavy, it’s ethereal, and the musicianship is frustratingly good. If you know, you know ... if you don’t, just trust me. Spin it with an open mind and meet one of your new favorite bands.
Listen here.
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3) Propagandhi - Victory Lap
I grew up on Epitaph and Fat Wreck Chords punk rock in the 90s, and these guys (and gal) are legitimately the only band of that era that continue to excite and inspire me. I look forward to every release, and they manage to deliver every. single. time. It’s not a nostalgia thing with Propagandhi. Chris Hannah’s lyrics, melodies, and guitar playing continue to push the boundaries of what can be done in that genre. You might expect a group of 40-year-old punks to decline or at least plateau, but they’re still on an upward trajectory and it’s  inspiring as hell. Bonus points if you’re a parent and can listen to “Adventures In Zoochosis” without tearing up. Victory Lap is outstanding -- one of their three best records without question. 
Listen here.
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2) Cloakroom - Time Well
If you’ve been following me here, on Twitter, or Instagram, it’s no secret that I’ve got a massive soft spot in my heart for bummer jams -- especially bummer jams of the heavy variety. Time Well is a damn near perfect in those regards. It’s shoegazey without being tired or overly jangly, mildly doomy without being mind-numbingly boring, and fuzzy without sounding like it was recorded inside a sleeping bag. I’m pretty sure I listened to this record more than anything else this year, and after probably a hundred spins, it hasn’t lost any of its luster. It’s outstanding (and it’s got some damn tasty drumming on it too).
Listen here.  
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1) Elder - Reflections Of A Floating World
My buddy Scott Evans (Kowloon Walled City vocalist/guitarist, Antisleep recording engineer/producer, multi-talented human, generally outstanding dude, recommender of many amazing bands) turned me on to these guys earlier this year by sharing 2015′s Lore with me. That record f-ing floored me. Riffs for days. Heaviness. Prog vibes. Stoner rock goodness. Dynamics. Space. Sabbath-y vocals. It checked all of the boxes. Needless to say, I couldn’t wait to hear Reflections Of A Floating World. 
ROAFW dropped in June, and it’s even better than I could have imagined. I’d wager that there are more sick riffs on this record than your favorite band has in their entire discography. I dare you to listen to this and not get a twitch to start a play air guitar. Also: How the shit do you write 15-minute songs that don’t bore people into catatonia? This is how. Just like this. Parts never drag, parts never feel like they’re just filler, and there isn’t a wasted moment in 64 minutes of music. That’s a remarkable feat in and of itself. This is a goddamn timeless record, and there’s no doubt I’ll have it in heavy rotation for the rest of my life.
Listen here.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
The Effects - Eyes To The Light
Brutus - Burst
Nate Smith - KINFOLK: Postcards From The Edge
Employed To Serve - Warmth of A Dying Sun
God Mother - Vilseledd
Slowdive - Sugar For The Pill
Hundredth - RARE
Mutoid Man - War Moans
Grizzly Bear - Painted Ruins
Quicksand - Interiors
Death From Above - Outrage! Is Now
Power Trip - Nightmare Logic
Health - DISCO3
Vince Staples - Big Fish Theory
All Them Witches - Sleeping Through The War
Code Orange - Forever
Blis - No One Likes You
Bjork - Utopia
Less Art - Strangled Light ;)
MY FAVORITE RECORD OF 2015 THAT I DIDN’T HEAR UNTIL 2017
Town Portal - The Occident
MY FAVORITE RECORD OF 2004 THAT I DIDN’T HEAR UNTIL 2017
The Stella Link - Mystic Jaguar... Attack!!!
CURRENT PODCAST QUEUE
Chapo Trap House (Grey Wolf Feed)
The Trap Set
Song Exploder
Slate’s The Gist
Slate’s Hang Up & Listen
INTERCEPTED
The FilmDrunk Frotcast
Deadcast
How I Built This
Freakonomics Radio
Radiolab
This American Life
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dumpsterfireblog · 7 years
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#nowplaying e’s Top 10: Week of 7/31
This week’s top 10 is a collection of songs that have me feeling every type of way. The Spotify gods blessed me with an incredible mix of new releases, plus there are a couple of gems that have resurfaced this week as well. SO EXCITED TO SHARE THIS LIST OKAY HERE WE GO:
1. dumbfoundead, g.soul - 물 water
I’m having trouble emulating the importance of Dumbfoundead’s music on the Korean-American Asian-American community. He started up as a well-known rap battler in the underground rap scene in LA, and accumulated a fan base through his ridiculously savage and clever freestyle raps. Originally from LA’s K-Town, Dumbfoundead decided to cross the Pacific and begin collaborating with artists in the motherland. I love everything about “Water”: the beat, the witty-ass lyrics (”She want a wedding dress, but I ain't 태양 (Taeyang)"), the type beat, etc. It is the ultimate song about thirst and thirst alone. DRINK UP. 
2. dean - 21
I wonder who Dean’s muse is because I would LOVE to sign up. Dean is a gift from the gods that we mere mortals do not deserve. He’s got it all going for him: the production skill set, sweet honey vocals, jaw-dropping looks, and just enough subtle hip movement to make girls swooooon. “21″ comes off his album “130:mood) released in 2016, and will have your hips swaying back and forth the entire time. Dean croons about “really wanting to know” and pursue the girl of his interests. Regardless of her flaws and habits, he doesn’t give a fuck and wants to get know this girl.  I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE PICK ME CHOOSE ME LOVE ME. 
3. groovy room, suran, pH-1 - somewhere
I have officially jumped onto the Groovy Room bandwagon. Groovy Room is a production duo signed under the  global music label set up by AOMG’s Jay Park and Cha Cha Malone called H1GHR MUSIC RECORDS. Groovy Room has produced some of my favorite songs, like the legendary EUNG FREESTYLE (응프리스타일) that you always hear on the YouTube Red ads. But yeah, aside from being really good-looking, Groovy Room has produced a pretty legendary debut album EVERYWHERE, which includes a roster of artists such as Jay Park, Heize, Dok2, Sik-K, nafla, and etc. My favorite song off of EVERYWHERE is “Somewhere” (어디쯤에) with Suran and pH-1, a breakup song about calling quits on a relationship before shit really hits the fan. Suran’s unique, ethereal voice coupled with the light tropical house backdrop and pH-1′s verse creates such an awesome, summery tune by Groovy Room. But EVERYWHERE in general is such a good album. 
4. millic, club eskimo - igloo
I featured millic briefly on my Thursday post regarding his new album Vida. The song “Igloo” features his crew Club Eskimo, which comprises  Dean, Crush, Millic, Camper, OFFONOFF (Colde & 0channel), Punchnello, Chek Paren, 2xxx!, Jusén, and Miso. One word to describe this song: viiiiiibey. Millic has a distinct production sound and he really makes his mark with this tune featuring this star-studded crew. I am fucking obsessed with the jazzy bridge and Dean and Crush LITERALLY crooning during it. Fucking swoooooooon. 
5. zico, fanxy child - fanxy child 
I fell in love with this song watching Zico and Dean’s producer performance on Show Me The Money 6. Dean’s killer part “different r&b r&b” part literally has me melting and had every producer watching his performance go insane. Fanxy Child is a crew comprised of Zico, Dean, Penomeco, Millic and Crush, adn their anthem “Fanxy Child” is the typical “here we is. here to stay. fuck what u heard. we fucking out here” statement song. Such an incredible group of artists getting together and creating awesome music. I cannot wait for Fanxy Child to release more beats.  
6. day 6 - lean on me (오늘은 내게)
“Lean On Me” brings back some heavy, middle school alternative/emo vibes. Day 6 in this song is reminiscent of Cartel, The Rocket Summer, We the Kings, you know, the real deal. This song with “Dance Dance” has been on repeat pretty frequently this past week, hurling me back into the past of emotional, middle-school tunes. It’s interesting and awesome that Day 6 takes Korean rock and twirls an American circa mid 2000s vibe to it. The product is a sweet and pop-punky tune about always having someone to lean on. 
7. aminé - slide
IT’S HERE. Holy shit, I have been waiting for this album for MONTHS. I knew Aminé was something really special after his triple-platinum single “Caroline” dropped. There was something so refreshing and bouncy about this Portland-rapper. Good For You as a whole is a good listen, my favorites including “Wedding Crashers”, “Yellow”, and “Blinds”, but “Slide” reigns as the number one favorite. Aminé raps about how he wants this girl to “slide through” but tries to remove the concept of it being a mere hook up, claiming “no, this ain’t a booty call/ It’s a late night snack”. Honestly, this shit is so good and is just so refreshing and wavy. It’s bouncy, vibey, young, and fun. 
8. snakehips, anne-marie, joey bada$$ - either way
Snakehips is one of my favorite electronic duos ever. Some of my favorite songs ever they have produced, like “Don’t Leave” with MØ, and “All My Friends” with Tinashe and Chance. And they do it again with “Either Way”, with British singer-songwriter Anne-Marie and Joey Bada$$. Not my favorite Snakehips song, but good enough to warrant an addition to this list. With a summery silky tone, Anne-Marie and Joey Bada$$’s verses glide right over the subtle and smooth beats. 
9. billie eilish - my boy
BILLIE EILISH IS THE NEXT BIG FUCKING THING IN FEMALE POP. Jesus, this girl is 15 fucking years old (born in 2001 what the actual fuck) and THIS SONG IS FUCKING AMAZING. Billie Eilish croons about a lying ass amidst a failing relationship, but instead of playing the part of the sappy, sad broken-hearted girl, Billie Eilish creates the ultimate yet subtle “HAHA FUCK YOU” anthem: “ My boy's being sus and he don't know how to cuss, he just sounds like he's tryna be his father / My boy's an ugly crier but he's such a pretty liar and by that I mean he said he'd "change”. You can literally feel her rolling her eyes and being so blase about the fact that her boy sucks and she knows it. I’m pretty sure at 15, I was still unable to speak to boys properly and they made me cry SO. 
10. dev - all i wanna do
I have been a Dev fan since the start of her career when she featured on Far East Movement’s “Like a G6″. Yeah for sure she is the stereotypical pop star, but she’s honestly never failed me. “All I Wanna Do” is blunt to say the least: “ Don't care if ya know me / Taste my lips and blow me / Touch you body, you know it's all I wanna do”. This song is SUPER trashy but SUPER catchy and typical of Dev. It’s a great song to dance to and listen to on repeat. “All I Wanna Do” is off her upcoming September 8 album release I Only See You When I’m Dreaming.
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