#a real live alex

[jenna-louise-jamie]

real talk, yassen is insane for only sleeping 4 hours every 24 hours. baby that is not enough sleep. i know you're like peak health or whatever but that's only enough sleep to live, not thrive. how are you awake and alert everyday. whats wrong with you.

#i want to put him in a jar and shake him #i want to study him under a microscope #but for real adult humans need like a minimum of 7-9 hours of sleep to function properly #im not saying its not possible to live on 4 hours of sleep a day #but i am saying that i dont think the benefits outweigh the cons #maybe im just very defensive about getting a good amount of sleep everyday bc if i only slept 4 hours a day i would start biting people #and ripping doors off their hinges and punching holes into walls #i wanted to scream every time yassen mentioned he only sleeps 4 hours every night #russian roulette #yassen gregorovich #alex rider

[hkthatgffan]

Well, it's been 7 years!! Exactly 7 years ago today, during one of the lowest points in my life, I gave this little cartoon a watch to get through it.

That show not only helped me overcome those hardships, but changed my life in so many ways for the better! I'm not kidding when I say IDK where I would be today had I not watched Gravity Falls that day in 2017. It mentally saved me from a dark place and helped me love the medium of animation all over again. This show means so much more to me because of that than just another cartoon!

I was still in high school then with no idea what the future held & now, I still don't know. But what I took from GF was not the codes, mysteries or theories...but that lesson that while growing up is scary, it's okay. We'll all be okay even if we don't know where we'll end up. Through all the good & bad that I've been through since discovering GF, my love for the show itself remains rock solid.

No matter what happens, no matter what new shows come & go...it will always hold a special place to me...always!

My heart is forever, in Gravity Falls!❤️

With that said...Thank you, Gravity Falls...for everything!🌲🌠

#gravity falls #That GF FAN #ThatGFFAN #2017 #7 years of being a Gravity Falls fan #gravity falls fandom #thank you gravity falls #dipper and mabel #alex hirsch #dipper pines #mabel pines #Gravity Falls is real and it will never die #Forever Gravity Falls #dipper #mabel #12 years of Gravity Falls #long live gravity falls #thank you alex hirsch #grunkle stan #grunkle ford #soos ramirez #wendy corduroy #Always Gravity Falls

[thedeafprophet]

Mr Fires seemed all too pleased with itself, once the path to the doorway was cleared. It shook off its sleeves as it grabbed for the shovel once more. The 'work' it put in, however, had not been enough to sway the good will of The Vitriolic Thief. "If your aim was to clear the doorway" he said with the raise of an eyebrow, "couldn't you have just melted it?"

I come from within the terrors of final exams ( which are certainly stocking me up on tales of terror....) to share my take on a 'typical neathy christmas'....perhaps inspired by an actual scene that can be aquired around this time of year ;P.....

Here's to the soon coming end of exam season, and a good holiday season, and to a soon coming new year which i'm sure will be another delight to spend with this fandom!

#fallen london #fallen london festive fanart competition #my art #oc: alex #mr fires #...was anyone expecting anything else from me? lets be real #finishin this so i can focus on my exams because the drawin Lives In My Brain XD <3

[actual-changeling]

They're both bad with words, bad with verbal apologies and expressing their feelings, although sometimes there are no other options and they're forced to talk it out. More often than not, they resort to a way simpler method of communication: gifts, paying attention, acts they didn't have to do but did anyway.

There's the little acts here and there, like a cup of coffee Ellie leaves on Joel's nightstand as a thank you for helping her calm down after a nightmare (he always does and she still feels grateful every single time) or a new comic Joel slides across the table when he's had a rough week and she has been patient with him (of course she is, she has never even considered anything else).

There's letting the other choose the film for movie night even though it's not their turn, unspoken agreements to sleep in and take it slow that day, afternoons spent curled up together and sleeping when neither of them could the night before.

There's peeled oranges, half for him, half for her, slices shared and both aware of the love that went into preparing it, Ellie coming up behind him in the kitchen and wrapping herself around him so she can rest her cheek on his back, Joel pulling her closer and taking her hand in a crowd so he can enforce her personal space when she can't.

There's kisses on their cheeks and braided hair, hand-made guitars and paintings, a hug waiting at the end of the day, always, an open offer for Elie to sleep in his bed even when she doesn't need to, a bid to let her help when he wakes with the memory of blood on his hands.

There's Joel shifting to stand in front of her and Ellie moving to his right side even when the danger is nothing but a faint trace left in the air.

There's long summer evenings on the porch and dark winters filled with as much light as they can muster, Joel sharing his when Ellie's dims, sleepless nights in September when his watch finishes another year of standing still.

There are words here and there, mostly quiet, always sincere, and they carry a weight their soft touches can't, but the act of allowing them to exist is a gift to each other, too, and that alone conveys more than their voices ever could.

There's a hair tie on Joel's wrist and another one on Ellie's, and sometimes when other actions fail, when words aren't enough, one of them will gently pull it off and extend it as an olive branch, an offer, an ask to reconnect, an I'm sorry, I still trust you to have my back, an I always will, an I love you she feels in her hair, in the kiss he presses to her crown at the end, an I love you too in the hug she gives him afterward.

There's Joel and there's Ellie and there's a hand to hold, never wavering, steady, and it's more than enough.

#alex writes tlou #the last of us #tlou #joel and ellie #ellie and joel #joel miller #ellie williams #fanfic #tlou hbo #the last of us hbo #should i give the fucking hair ties their own tag at this point #maybe i should #alex and hair ties #there you go #had to write something fluffy to cheer myself up #god i wish mothers were real cause mine sure as hell isnt fuck childhood i live vicariously through those two idiots

[thesaintofnevergettingitright]

Joey Batey on Taskmaster when??? Send tweet.

#joey batey #taskmaster #the amazing devil #the witcher #mine #this is the crossover only I am asking for #fully cannot decide whether that man would hate every minute of it or THRIVE #is he a comedian? No. but we’re living in my delusion here so *it doesn’t matter* #the more I think about it the more I think there’s a real chance he’d ✨hate✨ it #but I personally would enjoy it and that’s what matters #while we’re at it throw Richard Ayoade in there too #they’ve had half the IT crowd already #might as well try to get the whole set #on the other hand Richard ayoade’s energy might be too close to Alex Horn’s lmao #they might overwhelm all other energies #we’ve gotten off topic #My point is put Joey Batey on taskmaster possibly against his will #for the culture

[maxybabyy]

I watched two episodes of the newest too hot to handle season and couldn’t stop thinking about a maxiel au. I imagine max stumbles through the casting for ‘love overboard’ and somehow ends up on the boat with no real interest in anyone on it. he tells the producer as much when they ask him which of the girls he would like to smash. Max: “I would of course not smash any of them” quickly followed by one of the british girls, Emily adding, “Max is hot, yeah? But the doesn’t have the bants to keep up with me.”

Daniel is the last person introduced before the boat shoves off, looking hot in his pastel shorts and a wide, fucking smile. Daniel is born for reality television too, jokes falling from his lips as he charms the rests of the cast. by the time they’re pulling into shore, he’s had three offers to share a cabin and helped Bennie, the law student from Bristol, put sunscreen on her bum. his tongue is halfway down Blaire the New Yorker’s throat, when someone from production has to come drag them back for the announcement that hey are in fact on too hot to handle.

cut to the next day: Daniel is getting a bit in his head about the entire. like, he has three weeks before he has to be back in LA, back to grinding for Instagram followers and shitty sponsorship deals, he’s not going to spend it fucking celibate. hes been floating the idea making a pact with one of the guys to make sure no one is really the first one to break the rules, but no one has taken the bait. Max though, Max keeps following him around. but it makes sense, yeah? they’re, like, the two best looking guys, so of course they should agree so they can divide and conquer without butting heads.

Max full of life as he laughs at all of his jokes, cracks his own dumb quips and watches him with this look – so open and exposed and more raw than anything else Daniel has seen on this fucking show – when Daniel laughs back at him. it’s such a stark contrast to how Max acts in around the girls, but Max is here for reason, Daniel reckons. maybe the silent type really works for him.

he isn’t – he doesn’t even think twice as he asks, “Are you trying to be good, Maxy? like, would you pick the sex over the money?” and Max. Max has been a little bit in love since Daniel stepped onto the boat, sun slick skin that Max feels sick with the need to taste. to lick, to bite into soft flesh and feel the muscle underneath his skin. always max would choose sex, any moment with Daniel is of course good. “I need a rule breaker, maxy. I need a partner in crime for this.”

Max just looks at him for a moment and then before Daniel has time to react, he leans in to kiss him. it's a good kiss, a great fucking kiss. one of the best Daniel has had sober and not fucked out of his mind when every touch feels good. Max clearly knows what he’s does, like – the hand on Daniel’s cheek holding him in place as he licks deep into his mouth. Daniel’s brain is barely catching up when Max pulls back. “There, now of course the girls will not the first to break the rules.”

and Dan’s like, “Yeah, for sure,” walking out in a daze to the pool where Geroge intercepts him and agrees to the pact as well. George who has seen all the previous seasons and knows you have to break the rules first before you can have a redemption story. so he makes out with Bennie by the pool while George and Emily kiss a few feet away. But somehow the kiss is kinda shitty? her lips are too small, and, like, the entire kiss is just a bit too dry? Bennie’s obviously having a good time, but Daniel just cannot get into it.

Daniel goes to sleep in Bennie’s bed, and they kiss – a shitty attempt to evoke some sort of spark inside him – and it’s still kinda ‘meh’. It’s definitely not worth the 3000$ it costs them the morning after. they’re charged 9000$, and that seems fair. Daniel had two kisses, and George kissed – until another couple confesses that they kissed on the beach. And Daniel’s not, he doesn’t really know how all of this works, but this means he gets one for free, right?

he kisses Blaire against the wall next to the fire pit because at least this has to be good, but that turns out shitty too. he doesn’t want to share a bed with Bennie, but he doesn’t want to get in with Blaire either, is just about to abandon ship and sleep on the couch for the night, when Max pulls back the duvet, “You can of course stay with me, Daniel.” so Daniel does.

the price for a kiss has been raised to 6000$ for disrespecting Lana, and Daniel has now cost the group 9000$ – should be 12000$ with all three kisses included – when his kiss with Blaire is revealed. Bennie angry as she taps her foot from where she’s perched next to him, obviously waiting for some kind of explanation that Daniel cannot give, too perplexed by the fact hat it should be hell a lot more than that actually.

cut to the tapes from the night before that some poor production assistant had to go through. Daniel waking up in the middle of the night to Max staring back at him. they don’t kiss, breathing the same air for another moment before Max turns around and presses his back against Daniel’s chest. Max’s ass against his dick until Daniel has no choice but to fuck into the hot, tight space between Max’s thighs, strong and warm and just a little bit sweaty from the hot summer heat. Max doesn’t touch him, squeezes his thighs around him until it’s almost as good as the real thing, until right at the end where he cups a hand around the head of his dick so the come doesn’t spill. Licks it off so there is of course no evidence.

(somewhere in the backroom the Netflix producers are having a meltdown. Daniel was supposed to be their golden goose with the funny accent and good looks, a charming lad who couldn’t stop himself from flirting with all the girls but ultimately settled down when faced with love)

to right the wrongs, Lana invites Daniel to go out on a date with Bennie so he can make up his mind. and it’s fine. Daniel’s a good date, and Bennie seems to make the most of life in Bristol, but he’s just not feeling it anymore, hasn’t been feeling much of it since Max kissed him. so Lana offers to switch her out for Blaire, and Daniel’s like, “sure, whatever.”, his mood only salvaged when Max turns up instead of Blaire (much to the surprise of the producers).

Max steals a kiss at the end of the date, and this time Daniel feels it. the curling of his toes, the lick of Max’s tongue into his mouth, the solid weight of Max’s hard dick as they’re pressed against each other. It makes him feel insane, hungry for anything Max will give him. and like, Max is all for blowing it all up, having sex in the showers, on the beach, in the middle of the night like they did before: wherever of course Daniel will have him.

but 200,000$ is a lot of money, and the distance between LA and London isn’t a joke. Flights are expensive, but Daniel already doesn’t know how he would go on without seeing Max after these three weeks? So he convinces to convince Max to be good, to win them the money so they can keep seeing each other, and it works. mostly.

now with a sequel.

#there's a galex subplot #of george trying to pull Maggie the lone canadian when alex is introduced #and george just - abandons ship and goes all in on that handsome lad #netflix is in shambles with no way to produce a heteronormative season #maxiel does win and becomes boyfriends for real #move to monaco together to live out their gay little content creator dreams #maxiel #my writing #too hot to handle au #sideship #galex #i am going to bed now #please excuse the rush :/ #ficlet

[pulledrounder]

I've lived a whole damn life I kept my mission tight Send my message to the chief, say

I did good, I stayed out of the heat I did good, I kept it on track, yeah I was trained to stick to the mission I was trained, I kept it on track, yeah

Hey, look in the mirror Ain't gonna right your wrong With a stupid love song

#alex g #god save the animals #mission #tunes #i think this is my fav so far! also aint it easy and miracles of course #so glad i caught this one live. a real gem #the whole albums slaps so hard it honestly surpassed my expectations #those crispy vocals make me want to practice singing more so i can sound better in a few years too lmao

[overbearingstruggles]

LA 10/11/23

#it’s my blog and I’ll post all the shittiest videos I want #This is the gayest thing I’ve seen Alex do in years I love his whimsical silhouette #I don’t even believe these polls are real because then I have to believe Canals stood a chance here 🤕 #just let me have it in Vegas gimme pleaseeeeee guyyyss #atl itysl #every reference to this show makes me the happiest I’ve ever been and I’m convinced I’m the only fan who cares ❄️ #all time low #live video

[menace-to-the-devil]

He’s so baby boy <3

#alex turner #Alex #arctic monkeys #Arctic Monkeys Alex #Arctic Monkeys Alex Turner #Alex David Turner #the obsession is real #it’s unhealthy #I love this man #AM #SIAS #fwn #he’s so baby i love him #look how cute #hot as hell #hot as fuck #I need help Lmaoo #the chokehold this picture has on me #the choke hole this man has on me is unreal #can’t believe I saw him live hehe

[nicoscheer]

I’m not crying you are crying yes I’m crying

How is he not freezing to death

His fucking eyes 🫠

Come on Barbie let’s go party

Love the leadmill for posting this story like half an hour before Miles went on 🤣 like for a millisecond I was like huh Alex what you doing

Love love that SETLIST (and the little commentary about the transition songs and especially “commentary”) (also damn sure it ain’t correct cause there are videos of cry on my guitar and never taking me alive so …)

Okay but like why he looking so pretty in that BeReal like he’s performing live and still it looks like he’s posing fucking model

I am living for all them Maxie pics

INTERSTELLAR DRESSED IN LEATHER DRINKING BITTER BOY

She has also uploaded a bunch of videos to her Miles Kane highlight

Miles slowly waking back up at around 1pm 🫶🏽🤣

#14/12/2023 #miles kane #Maxie #Sheffield #Christmas show #please let Alex show; I mean we know he’s in England/london soooo he’s probably at home (his parents) for Christmas #Instagram #also poppy TURNER sorry I can’t breathe #shoutout to whoever did that green room sign #Sheffield. yeah I mean Sheffield is like a second home to me: Miles Kane for Chris talks music podcast may 2022 #lol I can’t 🤣🤣 Amanda posted story with Louise and Matt in it and we know with near certainty that Amanda and Matt are currently/mostly #living in LA #so Louise posting her bye Paris and subsequent Eurostar story was a real joke cause she ain’t in England but Alex most likely still is #okay okay getting better so Louise is celebrating her birthday without Alex I’m guessing 😂 cause Amanda posted a dinner pic and there’s no #way Alex is just out of shot #yup confirmed Matt posted a pic from the other side there was certainly nobody but the three of them #max probably a lil overwhelmed with all the love and cuddles he was getting #he kept his promise and played killing the joke 🥹🥹🫠 #not Miles still up reposting stuff at 3am 🤣😭 #absolutely in love with that BeReal #absolutely in love with all the effort he put into this (and most likely every future) one man band show like with the intro songs ands al #he looks so so happy and god does he deserve it

[glorious-blackout]

Now I’m wondering if all the videos from TLSP’s ‘Everything You’ve Come to Expect’ era were simply Alex and Miles’s attempts to remake the lost mafia classic ‘Goncharov (1973)’... 🤔

#the real question is which one of them is Andrey and which is Goncharov #judging by the Miracle Aligner video they decided to go with an alternate ending where they actually get married and live happily ever after #Alex Turner #Miles Kane #The Last Shadow Puppets #Goncharov

[raspberryjellybrains]

magnus is that genre of Teenage Boy that has the frame of a lumberjack but the build of a wet spaghetti noodle. given 5 more years and consistent nutrition he would've been a certified Hunk Of Meat™️ but instead he is stuck looking like a particularly poorly made scarecrow for the rest of eternity. tragic.

#MAGNUS doesnt know this but i am worldly and have a psychic link with this Very Real Person That Exists and do know #alex knows this btw and finds it very funny bc it is #see halfborn is the type of teenage boy who looks like hes 30 by the age of 15 canonically which i am obsessed with btw #that guy is usually a dick but is funny to think about and rotate in your brain #can you tell im in high school. #i am friends with someone of magnus' brand of Guy and he looks so scrunkly and scrawny but can squat an adult human #its a little off-putting tbh bc you look at him and go 'sweet little friend!' and he is but he could also break you in half like a saltine #this is the energy im trying to capture when i draw him btw #its very difficult but i have high hopes #im also friends with the girl version of that kind of guy. she eats croutons for fun and could break your bones #but definitely prefers playing anime character pokemon on discord :) #i love people....... #see my only cool physically traits are that i have almost 360° rotation in both legs and can dislocate my jaw hips and shoulders at will #which is cool and all but i want to pick people up which i cant really do bc im weak as shit :/ #thats really off topic but fun #i like rambling in the notes! #its where i live :-) #anyway #magnus chase #mcga #raspberry rambles

[holocene-sims]

next // previous

july 9, 2021 10:00 a.m. the fitzgerald hotel

#ts4 #the sims 4 #sims 4 #sims 4 story #sims 4 storytelling #simblr #hlcn: everything the stars promised #this requires a slight bit of memory about a prior conversation between them BUT don't worry the sort of wtf is this argument #will be continued again in the future #anyway ngl they're both being a little touchy lmao #also lilly is an interesting side figure in that she's the kind of person to always be nice but hide her real opinions of you #now WHY would she say that about grant?? #these three did all live together #and some people do not take well to people who try to detach themselves from partying and what not #holocene.png #holocene.docx #hlcn: grant #hlcn: alex

[iveneverbeenmorestressedinmylife]

Screaming crying throwing up.

#babygirl....please..... #i wanna hug his annoying ass so bad but lets be real. he would bite me and then he would start crying #ace attorney #miles edgeworth #i was organising my aa live blogging tag and realised that i never posted anything about turnabout goodbyes.. #in my defense i was texting my sibling the whole time so i kind of forgot about Tumblr. #still might post some of all the photos i took at some point. #Al's ramblings #alex plays the goddamn lawyer game #i never see anyone talk about how heart wrenching these lines are. you were a nine year old boy at the time....what could you do indeed.... #*slaps roof of Edgeworth* this bad boy can fit so much self hate and misplaced guilt in him

[sinceileftyoublog]

Say Anything Interview: Intentional Is My Default

Photo by Nicole Mago

BY JORDAN MAINZER

I'm waiting back stage at Riot Fest for Say Anything's Max Bemis to finish a photoshoot, one that sees him lie in the grass in various positions that make it look like he's stretching after a tough workout. Despite the fact that he hasn't yet gotten his real workout in yet--his newly reformed band would go on stage in a few hours--and that this photoshoot is full of capital-p Poses, I'm taken by how at ease Bemis seems with everything. When we speak, he reveals to me that, yes, while he did in fact feel awkward during the photoshoot--most of us do--he's learning to lean into his feelings much more naturally.

Five years ago, the legendary emo band disbanded, with their 2019 album Oliver Appropriate billed as their final LP for the moment. A purported sequel to their beloved sophomore record ...Is A Real Boy, the album was publicized in conjunction with a nine-page letter from Bemis, in which came out as bisexual and admitted to struggles with drug use. (The frontman has long been open about his diagnosed bipolar disorder, previous self-medication through drugs, and manic episodes.) During the pandemic, Bemis stayed busy, performing livestreams of older material, but there was always lingering doubt the band's hiatus would become permanent.

It wasn't until late last year that Bemis dropped that the band would be reuniting for festivals in 2023. In typical nonchalant fashion, he shared that the reunion would include past members drummer Coby Linder and bassist Alex Kent by replying to someone's comment on a Facebook post. In April, the band released their first new material since Oliver Appropriate, the maximally stream-of-consciousness rant "Psyche!". The song sees Bemis laying out those same struggles for everyone to bear witness to, blaming himself for his personal, marital, and familial problems atop a bevy of references to the band's older material, Titanic, and Riot Fest itself. "By Riot Fest '24, I'll be coughing up corks if you supply the Malörk," he sings, a line that's instantly iconic and bound to be infamous for its satiric misspelling of Chicago's shot of choice. In August, the band followed it up with "Are You (In) There?", which also establishes itself within our emo universe, with mentions of Sunny Day Real Estate and mewithoutYou, but a more personal ode to Bemis' wife and the love they have for each other despite his past actions and shortcomings. And just this morning, Say Anything annouced ...Is Committed (Dine Alone), their new record, along with a single entitled "Carrie & Lowell & Cody (Pendent)", Bemis placing his "mommy issues" in conversation with those of indie folk luminary Sufjan Stevens. The song is musically heavier and more complex and full-throated, while also containing gorgeous choral harmonies from Bemis' wife, Sherri Dupree-Bemis.

At one point, the future of the band was a mystery to everyone, Bemis included. But with some newfound perspectives, the musical and personal influence of new band member Brian Warren of Weatherbox, and therapy, it seemed from just the short conversation I had with Bemis and Kent that they're in a good place, ready to embrace their new chapter. Read my interview below, conducted last month before I knew about their new album, edited for length and clarity. Catch the band three nights next week at The Regent Theater in LA and at When We Were Young in Las Vegas next weekend.

Photo courtesy of Say Anything

Since I Left You: How does it feel to be back?

Max Bemis: It feels great. I don't think I would have decided to write the songs again if I didn't aspire to how this feels now, which is very different than our experience as little kids being in a punk band, which was very intense and an experience I wouldn't trade for anything. But this is comfortable, and it feels like having the best job ever, in the words of Piebald. It could have been a stress fest, anxious, or bad, but the only reason I wanted to write again was to reach for this thing that we never got to settle into, being dads approaching 40. The bands we looked up to were doing it at that age and still making inventive music but still seeming to chill and not base their entire personas and aspirations around being in a band. I think I appreciate it more now that I'm not trying to be "a guy in a band" as hard as I was.

Alex Kent: Something we've been talking about since getting back up and running was the transition from utilizing it as an escape versus a form of healing. Because we've been through so much traumatic shit in our lives, most of the time Max and I talk, we talk about therapy. It's fucking weird going from 18 years old on a tour bus to having that self-awareness and reflection.

MB: I didn't need it like that for many years because our entire life cycle was keyed in to being on tour. I wasn't living a normal person life. I'm not saying I ever have really or ever will--I wrote comic books for five years. That's still weird. We're still weirdo guys. Having a family, coming out of that kind of circus, I feel more like my 14-year-old self who needed this music for that reason.

SILY: The new songs have a self-aware quality.

MB: More than ever.

SILY: How do you include the self-awareness in a set at a festival or concert, where you're literally referring to other songs you're playing in the setlist?

MB: We refer to Riot Fest itself!

SILY: And Malörk [sic]

MB: And Malörk. It's incredibly self-referential and ironic, but because the band started that way, it's come full circle and is no longer ironic at the same time. There's still a lot of exaggeration and bullshit, but it's closer to me saying actual things that are happening. As you age, everyone's life becomes a circus, more surreal. The world has been very surreal, with COVID and Trump. You kind of have to say your inner experience now. It's an emotional, crazy, surreal thing anyway. It's not like before, when I said, "I have to think about my ex-girlfriend, but I'm thinking about my wife, and what the fuck is this about?" Now, this is about being at Riot Fest. And I am at Riot Fest.

SILY: There is a song about your wife, though.

MB: Yes. Also quite literal. So many emotions are certainly exaggerated, but the sincerity isn't. The love for my wife is very real. But even there, if you're in any successful relationship, it goes through the most intense rebirths and reformations, and you're adjusting to each other, especially after having kids. It's more potent to me to say what's happening or what my emotions are than do what we did on In Defense of the Genre, where I was literally forcing drama into my life on a regular basis. Now, I have no room. I'm tired. I have children to look after. The drama just happens from kids, life, everything. It's real and heartfelt, but a seasoned emotion and not so adolescent. I still love those songs, and I relate to them, but they all speak to a certain side of me I can't live out anymore.

SILY: Do the new songs more than ever exemplify the idea that the more personal you are, the more universal the songs can be?

MB: Yeah. But probably by being a little too hyper-specific. That's why I fell in love with this kind of music. Saves The Day got me into wanting to be in a band. What wowed me was when he was talking about the names of the other band members in song, like, "Ted's drooling on his sleeve." He's just saying he's in this New Jersey bar and he misses his girlfriend. He's not cloaking anything. Our thing has been a kind of parody of that, but now I don't have to stretch anything for it to be a parody.

Photo by Ben Trivett

SILY: What do you think Brian Warren brings to the table on the new songs?

AK: I've known Brian since we were 9 years old. Our very first band, we were in together.

MB: I wouldn't know about Weatherbox if it wasn't for Alex.

AK: He brings this calming energy. Humble is a weird word to describe him.

MB: It's accurate.

AK: Weatherbox is fucking amazing.

MB: He has more impostor syndrome than even me.

AK: He can play everything, and he writes cool shit.

MB: He's a virtuoso. The cool thing about Brian is that there's always been a connection between our bands. It's similar to me playing music with [Chris] Conley [in Two Tongues] back in the day. It's surreal, but it makes so much sense that you don't have to think about where he fits into the sonic picture or personality picture because we're friends.

AK: It's very cool how much sense it makes.

SILY: Has your relationship changed to your old songs?

MB: I like them more. Over the break from the band, I would listen to Say Anything, with my kids or in my car, alone. The way I severed it was so intentional. I wasn't saying, "The band was over." I was saying, "We're probably going to get back together, but I have to sever this incarnation." I was listening to [old Say Anything songs] and thinking, "I like Alex's bass part. I like the production. I even like my voice." It was like listening to another band, because of the space. I've grown to like them. I definitely know people in bands that are not what they listen to, but Say Anything has always been a conglomeration of the type of thing we listen to. If I'm going to listen to The Get Up Kids, I might as well listen to Say Anything.

SILY: Moving forward, are you trying to continue to be more intentional, or do what feels best?

MB: Both. I know that's cliché to say, and it does and doesn't make sense. I find that intentional is my default, and before, I would second-guess myself constantly. Now, I allow myself to make mistakes, and I let other people give me advice that before were such cerebral trips. There was a lot that weighed on me. If the lyrics are super intentional and literal, I'm just going to do it. If I feel awkward in a photo shoot like right now, I'm just going to be awkward in the photo shoot. That is, of course, my safe and happy place in life.

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