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readablenoise · 4 years

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The Pounding Drums and Lightning Rain: Readable Noise reviews Riptide Music Festival Day 2

Amidst weather chaos, the Fort Lauderdale music festival creates a rumble of their own with a Glastonbury worthy closer to the year

(photo: Stephanie Vento)

Fort Lauderdale- The cold weather is peeking through the smalls of the rolling waves.

On any other given Sunday, the sleepy seaside would rouse it’s head with a small herd of tourists, local at their already warmed stools along the smattering of bar staples, and lemonade in the hands of the beachgoers.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

Today however, there’s a woman in medical garb telling incoming patrons of Riptide that they will be there later to administer intravenous fluids for those wanting to rid themselves of a hangover before going in to work tomorrow.

It’s a peek behind the metaphorical curtain of the city itself, but all taken in stride as Riptide Music Festival winds down another year, with great succession.

While the next day of any festival always brings slightly drowsy eyes and ready ears, today rivals in the previous day’s excitement, and to a deserved gesture.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

Today brings the finale in the form of idkhow, Barns Courtney, Switchfoot, Reel Big Fish and headliners Jimmy Eat World; the legendary alternative legends that have never taken their foot off the pedal in terms of their songwriting craftsmanship.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

But before we get to there, the clouds roll with the waves, flashing back and forth between expected Florida warmth, and English rain, as Alex DiLeo played an impromptu acoustic set opening the Main Stage, filling in for New Politics who were unfortunately unable to attend the fest at the last minute. And it must be said that it’s a tremendous responsibility he handled well, singing to a modest crowd with an acoustic.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

And just a little ways down the sandbar, past the tempting smells of the food alley, Meg Myers is doing the same but with a dizzying power; readying to perform in intense sparklemotion with an already growing audience swaying as a DJ plays pre-show tunes in the form of reggae remixes of classic Alternative tracks such as Red Hot Chili Peppers. Myers deserves the attention; the unique mixture of ironically Kate Bush and Alanis Morrisette angst, as well as a pinch of Fiona Apple-esque honesty, her music is hypnotic as it is raw in the most beautiful of ways.

When the pounding rain finally slowed enough for the tarps draped over the instruments to be unsheathed (though it didn’t hinder the crowd, who were swaying in the drops proudly) the excitement did not abate, opening with “Jealous Sea” before cresting into the powerful “Motel”.

And as the waves crash just beyond, it’s no stretch to say the musician rivals the power of the sea itself. While Myers came onto the scene with her booming cover of the aforementioned Bush’s “Running Up That Hill”, a track that not only is a classic, but is a sort of unspoken rite of passage for all those who dare attempt to cover it, the discovery shouldn’t stop there. Dive into any track of her catalogue, and you’ll find sounds ranging anywhere from Pixies reminiscent rock with Placebo hues.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

Live, Myers is nothing short of stunning, displaying a quiet and ferocious power, with the only unfortunate portion being the in and out sound issues that would hinder some of the performances on the UndergroundLauderdale Stage this day. In this case, the bass drum being turned up to such a volume that it nearly overpowered all other elements of the otherwise tight act.Nevertheless, Myers special blend of songwriting and power makes her a definite act we not only want to see again live, but will remain on our radar; as should it yours.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

It’s that same vein of discovery that makes Riptide such a vital festival; not only opening ears to new sounds but even more importantly, new experiences.

Some of the best examples being idkhow (I Don’t Know How But They Found Me), who are continuing to pave the path, taking up the torches that We Are Scientists, Hot Hot Heat and Prince lit, and making it into one of the strangest, and funkiest flames we have ever heard. Interjecting humor in between their tracks, they too, are a branch we are intrigued to see grow even further.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

And from here, we jump into an ambition that is scarcely seen, and even less so stateside: the international festival experience.Away from the normal musical local stylings, and bordering on the wonderfully dangerous, it’s a feeling most notably seen overseas and over the pond, where geography not only shapes but maps your musical stylings. Where the South’s southern most tips relishes in ska and punk, Riptide dared to bring this cultural experience in technicolor, perhaps one of the most incredible being Barns Courtney.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

The UK based singer is unlike anything we have seen outside of bootleg footage of Mick Jagger in his prime, proudly flaunting an almost primal energy that had everyone rising to their feet. The 9-song set felt easily like 2 EP’s worth, with a terrific electricity that felt worthy of an area, with tracks such as “Hands” quite literally driving the rainclouds away and bringing in a scorching sun that had long since been hiding; quite literally.

Courtney is the type of artist every person must see once; a human firecracker, lighting up the stage with not only the perfect catalogue of guitars and blues like soul to back a showmanship so large, but bearing a contagious smile that seems to arrive so easily. Proof of this being that there was not a single soul in attendance who didn’t raise off of their beach towels and just start dancing, swaying or flat out jumping to “99” or “Glitter and Gold”.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

It’s a brand of rock you cannot bottle, cannot brand and cannot beat. It’s safe to say that while Barns could make anywhere feel a venue bigger than it is, he deserved a headline set later in the day, when the heat of the day set into a cool.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

And as the sun began to set, an odd situation began to occur in the midst of all the discovery: a sort of towel laying apocalypse.

Again, with good intentions, the festival handed out free beach towels to all who entered the festival. However, with the entirety of the space being a beach, including that of the Main Stage, created a sort of miniaturized chaotic labyrinth arranged within the boundaries of where the pit might be; prompting cold looks when trying to walk inbetween the small cracks and quite literally try not to kick up sand.

It’s an idea we are by no means against, but hope to say an area strictly for towels and those who wish to lounge, to make the experience easier for those who simply want to absorb all the sounds around, including that of 90’s staples, Switchfoot.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

One of the acts whose tracks speak for themselves, in terms of their legacy. They have crafted a bridge across a generation that still remains sturdy, and quite full. with frontman Jon Foreman going straight off the stage and into the the crowd, leaning on supported hands and all with a smile as they began “The Sound”, a track that lives up to it’s name, and perhaps even doubly live.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

Truly one of the more underrated live acts, their set was on grand on all levels. And while smooth sailers like iconic “Stars” may have you momentarily swaying, don’t hesitate as the San Diego act covered Beastie Boys legendary “Sabotage” with their own brand of power.

And with this night slowly, and steadily coming to an end on a fluorescent tempo left by all the bands before them; a sun conducting it’s usual Once Upon A Time In The West sunset, one of the best full doses of the aforementioned international festival experience occurs, perhaps most notably by Catfish & The Bottlemen.

(Photo: Stephanie Vento)

The English act are regular arena and festival darlings performing on the over the seas circuit but still have yet to fully crack the US fully. Due to not only the unfortunate decline of alternative stations to gain airplay from, but moreover the lack of aforementioned festival experiences to truly experience them in, and which the act thrive on.

Opening to a full house on the shore with “Longshot”, it is goosebump inciting. There is a type of inexplicable boom, where the pounding red lights sync in time alongside their Arctic Monkeys-esque riffs. A quiet explosion occurring during “Conversation”, where the rain once again answers from the sky, that you are watching something you may not see again.

You can feel the Earth shake softly with this type of epic energy and leaving one happily breathless, as this happens so scarcely.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

While US arenas are plenty in number, with a regular line-up of stunners occupying them, the rounds often feel a test of business grit at times; with the question always being always the seats themselves, and not those occupying them.

Near everyelsewhere, the chance is one of mettle. To reach that mantle is a feeling that is chased but only if you have the love to deliver it. The arena gig is not so much numeral based, but a near religious experience of dancing with a thousand other people whose ears are in love with the sound just as much as your own.

(Photo: Jenelle DeGuzman)

It’s an experience, and risk, that Riptide nailed beautifully, with Catfish concluding “Cocoon” alongside the rain and the sound dutifully ringing out after they exited.

It’s acts like these that prove just how vast the power of great live performances can be, and we’re grateful that the festival included this.

And as the rain finally, seemingly subsides, Jimmy Eat World enter in, and the band are one of the few that do not need introductions.

(Photos: Stephanie Vento)

Narrating a great part of the 90’s and 00’s rock, they were able to do so in the best of fashions. Much like their compatriots in Deftones and Foo Fighters, they have remained as they took their origins and evolved to something more than one genre could pen in. So too have the Arizonian act grown into something amazing, with every track is just as big in ambition as the next, each bearing their key insignia of chiming guitar riffs and Jim Adkins’ signature vocals.

(Photo: Stephanie Vento)

Opening with a steady set of their hits, including “Bleed American”, which we can say without shame we were dancing with reckless abandon to, they demonstrate that while the climates may have changed, their power in what they do has most certainly not, weaving together a structured and incredible set in the shape of “Pain” and showing the extent of their creativity in “555”, narrated in a blue wash with relatable lyrics and a digital swirl.

They, like all the acts featured in this year’s line-up, are still alight with the passion they started with. Perhaps one of the best moments expressing this being “23”; a Cure reminiscent slow burn that while delivered with that signature Jimmy Eat World bedroom intimacy, is built-up with intensity. Like watching a skyscraper being built in fast motion before your eyes, this is the breadth of what the act can do. Still craft, write and most importantly, perform these songs with the same beautiful level of delivery; even as a curtain of rain comes falling down.

(Photos: Stephanie Vento)

It’s a set of the ages, and one that, even alongside the weather, was magical in every sense of the word.

In a world that seems keen on twisting around the wheel, set on trying just how hard gravity can work, it’s these experiences that are so important. Not in just the terms of disappearing inbetween the notes, as the act close their impressive near 20 song set with infamous “The Middle”, but the necessity to keep the sparkle in your eyes and heart alive.

Recharging in the form of these allowances to remind you: you are not alone in the sound, or your fight, but that the crowd is full of people; all dancing to the same tune, dancing through the chaos.

(Photo: Stephanie Vento)

Whether that is with music, art, or should you really prefer, the intravenous fluid providers who true to their word, were there following the festival with eerie needles in the dark, Riptide reminds you; get caught in the waves every now and again. Some of the best things are found in it’s lit depths. Or, enough to get you through the ride, anyhow.

-Jenelle DeGuzman

See our exclusive live capture of Barns Courtney here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdqR8eLp6-g

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bunny-banana · 4 years

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I'd love to hear a director's commentary on La leggenda di Niccolo please :D Have a star as well ⭐

HA! Okay well, I’ll talk about the sections that I actually wrote so here it comes:

Chap 1

Engulfed in the never ending masses of water, he reckoned one should feel intimidated. No ground under his feet, only limited amounts of air to his disposal, and the uncertainty of what lies within the darker corners of the ocean should normally frighten you. And yet, he never felt more at peace than when he was floating so freely in the sea, almost as if gravity and the world outside didn’t exist

the fucking IRONY of me writing this while being deadly afraid of deep water. its honestly like “yeah,,,,, lemme list all the things i personally hate about deep sea…. and lets add ‘well, but theres something good too about that for sure,,,i guess,,,, ”

But what was more important for me was this contrast to what Ermal dreams about, his lowkey fantasy - and where he is irl, the icy south pole. I’m rather fond of opposing things/contrasts.

The soldier breathed heavily in and out, but there was no time to rest as the next blaze of fire was aimed at him.He countered and evaded but his opponent was more forceful, his flames harsher, faster until the soldier’s back hit the cold railing. He was caught, and when his opponent mercilessly stroke once more, he knew he had to save himself by escaping into the cold water.The man remaining on the top deck smirked. Ah yes, he’d almost assume those new soldiers were just too easy to take on even if only for practice reasons, but it pleased him more to say that he still got it.

i really hope this introduction just tells you everything you need to know about Renga’s character.

How much sooner the war could have been won had it not been for the Poles!

While actually reflecting on the universe, i realised, it must be incredibly difficult for firebenders on the poles. like, I just assume they really, really arent fit for the cold which would make invading incredibly difficult for them. also lol, renga hates it at the poles obviously.

Shaking so hard that kids ran towards their mothers and the watchtower fell over and when the fog cleared up, Ermal felt his stomach drop. ”No.”

Nothing, absolutely, nothing in that universe is more frightening than seeing the Fire Nation military pull up to your doorstep.

Also, lmao, love to imagine Rinald quietly going “oh nooo my watchtower D:”

Ermal pushed himself through the crowd until he was right in front of everyone, until he was the last barrier between the Fire Nation soldiers and the village.

Ermal has Strong Opinions™ about the Fire Nation, with reasons of course, and seeing them here is the absolute nightmare to him.

“You mean the Avatar that disappeared off the face of the Earth? The one that nobody has ever seen and that was probably never even reborn? That Avatar?”And if his cockiness gave off a certain invitation to smash his face in, then this was perhaps a little bit Ermal’s fault.

to quote the Smiths: Bigmouth Strikes Again!

“B-but he’s- he’s so young? I swear to the Fire Lord, if this is yet another trick then-”

Chap 2

Niccolò had always been in awe of the Fire Nation’s advanced industrial sector. The machinery that originated from the Nation had always had cutting edge quality which no one in the world could quite imitate nor match. This ship however was beyond anything Niccolò had ever seen. This ship was fully steam-driven with the powerful motors roaring under his feet. And those weren’t the only novelties.Steel processed so professionally that it makes impenetrable walls and doors which opened and closed only through quite sophisticated lock mechanisms. It all looked so modern, it all looked so futuristic.

so the idea was, since Nic had missed an entire century, the ship looked super modern to him. while its a canon fact that the FN is quite advanced with machinery, the ship itself is just to an up-to-date standard. But to Niccolo personally it seemed futuristic. i like the idea of him being amazed at things he has never seen in his life just to find out they’re pretty common in the current timeline.

There was not much time left, Niccolò had to think quickly. Extremely convenient how his nose started tickling right in that moment.The powerful sneeze that followed had two consequences: One, the guard in front of him was catapulted straight into the metal door of the cell, rendering him unconscious.Two, Niccolò and the guard behind him were also forcefully pushed back to the other end of the corridor, crashing into the hard wall.Well, at least the guard did. The young airbender was spared that fate, by that nice pillow the guard turned out to be, so he quickly got onto his feet and ran as fast as he could with his hands tied behind his back.

so yeah ngl, this was just copied from the OG ep

Now that his hands were freed, he opened the first door that presented itself to him, but in front of him, he simply saw the quarters of General Renga who stared at his now roaming prisoner in shock. Okay, time to turn around, it seems.

listen, i just love the thought of overconfident General Renga being so shellshocked to see his prisoner escaping that he just gapes at him. And ofc Nic slamming the door shut immediately jsfkld

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Niccolò cursed as he evaded a burst of fire that was aimed at him before taking the next corner “Where’s the exit?! Where’s the goddamn exi- AH!! A DOOR!!” He pulled it open to reveal a startled guy sitting there just minding his own business. An unexpected sight, with an even more unexpected odor following. “Oh? uhm- Sorry man! Just- just take your time! Also, perhaps light a candle when you’re done. Bye!” The young Avatar swiftly apologised as he closed the door of what was most definitely not an exit.

Fav OC so far! That simple FN dude was just trying to take a dump in peace but who would have known that all hell would break lose and the goddamn Avatar of all people would walk into him smh. Also, I really enjoyed the thought of while this is all hectic and dangerous, Nic still being human enough to go like “oh, my bad! sorry dude!” at this random soldier. Who knows, maybe we should bring that one back some time later. And i kinda wanted the whole escape to be funny, since its Nic’s POV, and it just wouldnt suit his carefree spirit to make this super serious (yet).

“I’ll give you that, hiding for so long was sort of impressive.” Niccolò heard Renga’s voice behind him as the General had caught up with him.

almost wrote “century” there but then remembered nah omg he can’t know yet

A piece of ice may or may not have also hit Renga straight into the face but nobody would complain about that anyway.

yeah i just love the thought of this super dramatic scene of Nic entering the Avatar State and then theres a chunk of ice knocking Renga unconscious lmao get fucked, dude

“Nic!” Ermal ran towards the slowly decreasing water pillar to catch the unconscious airbender in the last second, dropping to his knees in the process. That was beyond anything anybody of that age should normally be capable of. That was beyond what any waterbender could ever be capable of. And yet, lying in his arms, Niccolò looked so exhausted, so weak. Just like any other kid. Not a trace from the sheer force that was unleashed moments earlier.

I think this was really the moment Ermal started feeling real responsibility over Niccolo. Just seeing him do all these crazy things and yet being reminded that this huge burden of being the Avatar is literally thrusted upon a simple kid. Also, this is the first time he called him “Nic”

Various noises and sounds buzzed through the air that afternoon: The loud shoveling of snow from the bow, the quieter crackling emerging from the hands of the firebenders who were melting their frozen compatriots, the fast steps rushing left and right over the ship. All these different sounds were heard, but none of them were chattering. Nobody dared to chat. Not after this disastrous defeat. What a disgrace that had been, General Renga thought grinding his teeth.

Everybody on this goddman ship is just scared shitless that Renga will roast them if they so much like whisper. they know he moody, they know he’ll blame them for the avatar’s escape. so lets all just work and repair shit and keep quite.

When he found consciousness again, he was left with not only one horrendous purple bruise on his face, but also with a half destroyed ship.

jdsfksajfklf OK SO YEAH, my first intention was “lmao let a piece of ice hit him” but then i realised “oh wait he’d have a bruise afterwards” and then “LMAOOOO he’d be like Zuko, how perfect is that” ok so granted, unlike our dear fire prince, Renga’s bruise is only temporary, but i really hoped someone would pick up the connection to Zuko

Whatever had happened to the Avatar earlier, it left a colossal mark on the ship, and secretly, on Renga personally too. He might have gotten fooled once, but he wouldn’t get fooled again.

basically, he feels personally insulted about being beaten by a kid. what a loser lmao

“Martino!”

“Y-yes, General?” stuttered the lanky assistant with the askew glasses, clenching his hands around his writing board. One would think you’d get used to Renga’s harsh tone over time, but that was simply not the case..

rip martino but renga absolutely needed a poor anxious assistant whom he could terrorise

“We need the best of the best to defeat him. And I just know the right choice for that job…”

heeeeheeee ….. no comment ..for now. but im curious to what you guys think about that

Thank you so much! this was a lot of fun to do ! :)

#ALLDN #my fics

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yllucsanad · 6 years

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14 and 15 from the x files asks 😊

14. Favorite episode(s)? Why?

ok you didnt ask for nearly this much but ive always wanted to make this list anyways so here ya go!!

1x01 Pilot: I mean,,,, does this even need an explanation?

1x03 Squeeze: amazing MOTW, “do you think i’m spooky?”, “it seems you were acting very territorial” “of course i was” this is episode thREE PEOPLE, the gray/green alien conversation lmaoooo

1x24 The Erlenmeyer Flask: rip deep throat, iconic “trust no one”, the alien plot seriously begins the thicken here

2x01 Little Green Men: they have a secret meeting how cute, Mulder recording everything for Scully um hello someone is in love

2x08 One Breath: Mulder TEARING apart the hospital and screaming at people for Scully, coma hand holding and crying in his apartment, the return of her necklace, “mulder? i had the strengths of your beliefs”

2x13 Irresistible: like obviously donnie pfaster makes me uncomf but the way mulder tips up scully’s chin and makes her look at him and then she breaks down and FINALLY lets mulder see her as something besides hard as a rock

2x17 End Game: Scully taking charge and saving Mulder’s life, Mulder trading “Samantha” for Scully

3x04 Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose: this episode is very funny and i appreciate that in this dark x files universe, QUEEQUEG, “how do i die?” “you don’t”, “autoerotic asphyxiation”

3x13 Syzygy: “sure fine whatever”, jealous scully, cigarette smoking scully, “shut up mulder”

3x17 Pusher: this ep is simply amazing in every way and we all know it

3x22 Quagmire: mulder hating the dog for no reason, RIP queequeg, the conversation on the rock

4x03 Home: this episode is gory and cool, the conversation on the bench, scully making noises to try to get the sheep to move lmao, mulder playing with the baseball and the tv and being sad that elvis died, and im a sucker for kevlar

4x13 Never Again: Iconic is all i need to say

4x14 Memento Mori: yeah the cancer arc sucks and all but the msr is soo good in this like i can never get over it, the flowers

4x20 Small Potatoes: a great light hearted episode in which scully and “mulder” almost KISS

4x22 Elegy: this episode makes my list because it is so raw and emotional, because mulder gives scully no personal space ever, the bowling scene. scully’s session with the therapist

5x01/02 Redux & Redux II: “keep going fbi woman”, mulder never ceasing to cry about scully, “one sorry son of a bitch speaking”, all the kisses, the hand holding, mulder coming back “from the dead” because he had to see scully, the smile when he tells skinner her cancer is in remission

5x04 Detour: “kill me now”, the wine and cheese (poor scully she really tried), “i dont wanna wrestle”, “maybe if i rains sleeping bags you’ll get lucky”

5x05 The Post-Modern Prometheus: a happy motw ep is always great, b&w, the humor in this one is just golden, the dancing scene of course

5x10 Chinga: mulder without scully lmaooo, “marry me”, the pencils lmao

5x12 Bad Blood: do i even need to explain my love for this one?

5x19 Folie a Deux: a lot of people dont like this ep for some reason but i do, mulders split lip is Hawt, “one in five billion”, “folie a deux. a madness shared by two”

5x20 The End: fuck diana BUT uh, pic of mulder and scully hanging in the office, gibson impressing the fuck outta everyone, gibson exposing mulder about diana and scully, mulder fuckin up spender, the way scully holds mulder after the office fire

6x03 Triangle: the filming is so beautifully done, i love a good irl AU, the KISS i could write ESSAYS about this kiss, “i love you”

6x06 How the Ghosts Stole Christmas: mulder literally steals scully’s keys so she cant leave, they LITERALLY kill each other and then go exchange gifts after they said they wouldnt get each other anything i mean CMON

6x08 The Rain King: everyone assuming mulder and scully are a couple, “i do not gaze at scully”, scully’s speech to sheils

6x14 Monday: i just really really like this episode for some odd reason i cant put my finger on

6x15 Arcadia: again, another episode that i don’t feel the need to explain why i love it lol

6x18 Milagro: scully being fascinated by this guy, mulder being possessive jealous and worrisome, the hug when scully doesnt die, scully grabbing mulders arm, “in my book I’ve written that agent scully falls in love. but that’s obviously impossible. agent scully is already in love.”

6x19 The Unnatural: the ice cream thing, the ripping of the document, i do enjoy the story, fuckin mulder and his baseball obsession, the Scene (you know the one) hips before hands OO baby

6x21 Field Trip: a very cool episode, mulder telling scully that he ends up being right like 98.9% of the time and shes like o fuck, she thinks mulder is dead :’(, they literally trip together, the hand hold at the end

7x06 The Goldberg Variation: lots of good ol flirting, i enjoy the case, the sink lmaoooo, “i like baseball too”

7x14 Theef: “i’ll always keep you guessing”, mulder saving scully by pulling the pins out of the eyes,

7x16 Chimera: “do you have a significant other?” “not in the widely understand definition of that term”, “mulder when you find me dead, my desiccated corpse propped up, staring lifelessly through the telescope at drunken frat boys peeing and vomiting in the gutter, just know that my last thoughts were of you, and how i’d like to kill you” “i’m sorry who is this”, and also mulder just being really great at his job seriously turns me on

7x17 all things: must i explain?

7x19 Hollywood A.D.: a Classic, scully showing tea leoni how to run i heels, mulder packs it to the left, skinman, bubble baths, the laughing and the hand holding at the end i am DECEASED

7x21 Je Souhaite: i def like the case in this one, scully’s entrance to the office in the beginning (hmm someones suspiciously happy), scully and her invisible body lol, mulders wish was fantastic, the whole last scene as well as “well i’m fairly happy. that’s something” atths ya know

7x22 Requiem: ok like even though its depressing as fuck in end i love this ep, scully visibly turned on by the fact that mulder assaulted someone, “let’s go waste some money”, “we could start sharing rooms”, mulder holding scully when she faints in the woods, mulder watching scully with the baby, the whole bed scene, the HUG cause mulder couldnt live without her if something happened, PERGNANt

and as far as season 8 goes….. every episode besides the ones with mulder are meh and lets pretend 9 didnt happen except i guess The Truth was good considering the circumstances

and i aint gon get into the revival ho boy

15. Favorite MSR moments?

most of them are listed above but other than those:

in firewalker when mulder holds scully’s face

when scully puts herself in contempt of court for mulder and then the HUG

BBQ SAUCE

in die hand when mulder rolls himself over scully when shots are firing

all the comfort and care in end game

they way scully cares for mulder when his father and mother die

haha mulders reaction when scully identifies the plane at the bottom of the water

the lace thing, the china pattern thing

scullys concern for mulder in paper hearts and the hug

mulders memoization of scully’s senior thesis

mulder showing off athletically for scully, scully enjoying it

in pine bluff variant when scully recognizes mulder by his bandaged fingers

in dreamland when scully says she would kiss mulder if he wasnt so ugly and the exchange of the sunflower seeds, also mulder knows her breakfast

jealous scully in alpha

the touchstone conversation

the millennium kiss

everytime mulder calls scully dana (beyond the sea, lazarus, the field where i died, trust no 1)

in tooms the first and only time scully calls mulder fox (i know he doesnt really like it but i still wish they did it again because it carries a big weight)

the decontamination shower

when scully cares for mulder when he is in shock

when scully shoots mulder and tends to his wound later

and we musnt forget fight the future and i want to believe

#asks #the-fbimostunwanted

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cococrazies · 6 years

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Lovestruck Series Review: Starship Promise (Season 1)

Personal playing order: Orion - Jaxon - Antares - Nova - Atlas

Warning! Minor spoilers ahead for Antares’s/Nova’s/Atlas’s routes, as well as CGs under the cut.

Orion: I’m torn on this one. I really enjoyed the story -- a lot more than I thought I would, given my lack of enthusiasm for the series concept -- and Orion himself. (If anyone ever wanted Shang from Mulan but in outer space, this is it.) The writing also had a very natural cadence and flow; it pulled me in easily, never getting too heavy-handed with sudden plot twists and cliffhangers... except for one instance, but more on that below.

And the MC! She was a pleasant surprise. I hadn’t been too impressed by her in the first-ep sneak peeks we get in each route, but she’s really cute -- she can be a bit of a space cadet at times (sorry, bad pun intended), but she isn’t dumb. Furthermore, she really develops over the course of the route, which is impressive given everything else stuffed into these mere 12 episodes.

So now to the things I didn’t like about this route: for one, the romantic development. It seemed really sudden and almost shoehorned-in as a result of the route length, which was jarring given how well-paced everything else had been up to that point.

Also, the Antares plot twist; it felt cliché and gimmicky, especially since I could see it coming from a mile away. I think I would’ve preferred for it to be a Season 2 reveal, or at least presented to us right from the start -- as it was, it just seemed like it was there for the “shock factor” + to forcibly give us a reason to care about the antagonist if we didn’t already. But since this was a pilot season, I guess I can understand how they wanted to tease at an intriguing backstory as early as possible to get players invested.

Overall, they still did succeed with the latter, because now I’m pretty curious about where they’re going with this. And also because I need more Orion/MC in my life; rushed or not, those two are simply way too cute.

Jaxon: Whoa, this story was jam-packed with action scenes and chemistry between the OTP. The pace is hella fast, but you never get the sense that we’re skipping past important details; the writing makes the most of every episode it has got. Not a single scene is wasted or filler-like.

Jaxon himself is a bit of a harder sell. His gargantuan ego, jokester personality, and YOLO take on everything make him one of those characters that you either love or hate -- although for me, he fell somewhere near the middle of the spectrum. I like his concept and find him a refreshing addition to Lovestruck’s character lineup, but he’s not really my type as far as romance goes; and sometimes he toes the line for being near annoying.

(The fact that I constantly seemed to make the wrong choices -- at least judging by the sheer amount of weird looks or lukewarm responses he gave me after 90% of my choices -- didn’t help. Heads-up: don’t try to play it cool. This MC really, really can’t do cool. I had several near-death experiences from sheer secondhand embarrassment while playing this route.)

That aside, he makes a surprisingly good team with MC. Except from some cringey non-heart options (which were brutal this route, by the way), they naturally eased into working as a combo. I like how they both are able to pull each other out of their respective emotional ruts, as well as complement the other’s shortcomings. Jaxon’s character turnaround near the end felt a little sudden, but I like the teased insight on his past, and am looking forward to learn more about it.

Antares: Oh, MC. Trust me, I of all people totally understand crushing on the hot, mysterious, and possibly noble anti-hero holding you captive for unknown reasons, but even so. Being constantly unable to focus on anything but your attration to him -- and using it as a basis for your foundation to trust him almost straight away despite how he works for the Big Bad, and is literally using you as a tool(-fixer) for whatever evil purposes the Empire has in mind for the galaxy -- is like a whole new level of uncool.

(Also, how is a sheltered colony girl’s reaction to seeing a military leader telling his troops not to leave a single ship standing “swoon, he’s so charismatic” instead of “holy shit, he kills people”? Priorities, MC.)

Beyond that, Antares’s route was very intriguing to me. Out of Lovestruck’s villain routes so far this is the one that has done the least to paint the love interest as less of an antagonist, or the side he sympathizes with as more morally grey. I also appreciated seeing another side of Antares himself that actually knows the definition of the word chill isn’t perpetually dressed in bunny-ear mecha armor that’s not completely absorbed by his thirst for vengeance against his brother.

Similar to Orion’s route, the romantic development also dropped on us out of the blue here... but strangely, I didn’t mind. In a way, it seemed to make sense for Antares’s emotionally dysfunctional personality (to the point that it gave me Chance S1 in GiL flashbacks). I think I almost preferred this to him doing a sudden 180 and going all mushy on MC when any potential romantic build-up outside of premium choices has been minimal. I’m holding my thumbs now for a gradual turnaround -- much like Chance got -- in his future seasons.

Nova: I keep going back and forth re: how I feel about this route. To again start with the positive -- I’d been worried that Nova would be a Space Medusa 2.0, so I was pleasantly surprised to find that she wasn’t. For all the kuu in her kuudere demeanor, Nova still spends a fair amount of the route bonding with MC through actual conversation, and unlike Orion’s/Antares’s routes this season the romance didn’t even seem that rushed. Furthermore, I was intrigued by Nova’s backstory (not to mention that she’s hot as hell).

But to be entirely honest, this story is also the most formulaic, “typical otome”-esque route I’ve read so far in Lovestruck -- not so much in concept as in execution. It reminds me of one of those Voltage JP fantasy routes where we spend the first 1/3 of the route with semi-slice-of-life scenes interspersed with action, the middle 1/3 of this route discovering the LI’s angsty past and them distancing themselves to protect MC, and the final 1/3 with MC dissolving into hysterics/apocalyptic depression, stupidly running after LI alone, and declaring their undying love for them after having known them for a couple of days in the middle of a life-or-death situation.

Since I do play Voltage JP games I’m not saying it’s necessarily a terrible thing, just... jarring. I might seem like I’m awfully hard on Lovestruck’s writing a lot of the time, but that’s because I have high expectations of it. In a sea of near-identical mobile otome clones Lovestruck stands out with a more Westernized and creative take on standard otome tropes, hence often avoiding common pitfalls associated with the genre. The writing in general is a cut above what I expect from mobile games as well, hence all my criticisms; I don’t balk (as much) at LIs doing sudden 180s or MCs being stupid in a Solmare game, but I do with Lovestruck because I know -- and have seen firsthand -- that they can do better.

So this route was confusing to me. Because, if I were to go for my usual standard from what I would expect run-of-the-mill Voltage JP route, for example, or a Shall We Date? one -- then I’d think it’s fine. Or even good. But for Lovestruck? I don’t know. I wouldn’t say it’s bad, just not... good. (The GiL-esque Pokémon-battle narration for action scenes -- yes, this is my official pet peeve now -- didn’t help.)

With all that said though, I didn’t dislike Nova’s route. (Hence the confusion.) And definitely not Nova herself. I just don’t really know how I feel about its writing direction, and how it measures against my expectations of a Lovestruck route.

Atlas: I fell head over heels for this route. Seriously, this was Astraeus-in-season-3-of-AFK level instant love, except without the devastating angst and with a decent helping of fluffy feels on top. Not that it was all fluff -- we had our share of prospective angst here too, if less literally earth-shattering. And hell of a lot of action, character development, and tons of other goodies tightly stuffed in a 12-episode-package of awesome.

Similar to my review for Astraeus, I don’t even know where to begin talking about this route’s good points. The prose, for one -- there were just so many beautifully worded narrative transitions, and the dialogue didn’t lose out in that aspect, either. The sass, sarcasm, and the humor were well-timed, but didn’t go overboard/seem out of character for MC or the rest of the cast.

Then there’s Atlas himself. Breaking down tsunderes is one of my favorite otome pastimes, and doing exactly that to our resident grouchy pilot was no different. First of all, I love that he maintains a healthy balance between insults that are obviously all bark and no bite, and genuinely worded criticism that should logically be voiced. In fact, there’s so little unnecessary tsun here that he could almost pass for a kuudere.

Regardless of whatever mold he’d better fit into, finally crumbling down that cranky demeanor of his and seeing him dere was a sweet, sweet reward. (I actually caved and went premium twice despite my agonizing wallet because I couldn’t resist seeing more of it.)

Or heck, even the platonic moments building up to that were great. Because the romance with Atlas was really well-paced; I love how we went from almost-hate (my favorite trope!) to begrudging respect, then to friendly equals/teammates, and finally something more -- all the while there was obvious chemistry between him and MC interlacing every interaction. I was kind of worried whether we’d get some last-minute romantic confession slapped on near the end, but thankfully we got a development that, for all its unrealistic corniness, still had me squealing. Especially with that cliffhanger; dammit, how am I even supposed to emotionally last until I get to his second season?

The main plot was really interesting, too -- probably my favorite premise out of the ones we’ve been offered so far. Even though it starts out similarly with MC on the run, I like how 1) we see the Union as evil right from the bat, avoiding having another MC-gets-out-of-her-naïve-colony-girl-mindset mini-arc; 2) rather than being perpetrated for some valuable information/artifact that the Starship crew might benefit from, MC is in a situation where they actually have no reason to keep her around, adding more tension to the intro; and 3) how all of this tied into Atlas’s own personal character arc. (Not that I minded how the other premises played out, it just made for a fresh change of pace.)

To wrap this gigantic word-vomit ramble up, I’d just like to conclude by gushing one last time how fantastic this route is -- I’d warmly recommend it to anyone interested in giving Starship a chance, because after this, the series personally had me hook, line, and sinker.

Final character ranking: Atlas > Orion > Jaxon > Antares > Nova

....This got a little longer than I intended it to be, oops. Kudos to anyone who has made it to the end of this season review. (I’ll try to be a little more concise in my next one, i.e. GiL S7.) You can follow my tag #coco reviews lovestruck for more reviews of Lovestruck games, or check out the ones I’ve done so far on this list.

#coco reviews lovestruck #lovestruck #voltage usa #amemix #starship promise #orion akatsuki #jaxon silva #antares fairchild #nova #atlas molniya #oelvn #mobile otome #otome review

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independentartistbuzz · 5 years

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7 From The Women is a new segment here on Independent Artist Buzz where we ask some of the industries finest seven questions. During this time of accusations and the lack thereof, we think it’s important to give women a voice. We chose to ask seven questions to honor the seven Wiccan clans.

Lo Marie’s aesthetic encompasses jazz harmonic constructs, urban grooves, soulful guitar passages, and the expressivity of the jazz and neo-soul vocal traditions. Her debut EP, Beyond the Age of Reason(2012), produced by ace Nashville session man Jerry Kimbrough. We had the pleasure of asking her a couple questions this week.

What have you been working to promote lately?

I have been working to promote a series of 7 singles (what a coincidence that you are honoring 7!). Each song will come out approximately a month apart, and will eventually be bundled as the album Le Rêve, which means “The Dream.”

The whole album is a celebration of freedom of creativity and expression. “The Dream” is represented by the phrase “I wanna dance on the moon.” Obviously, that is something that will not happen for me - it is simply embracing the notion of limitless dreaming and having wandering, free-thinking ideas.

Another theme throughout the seven singles is bravery. This idea is best seen through the image of an African Daisy. Every night African Daisies close up, a gesture interpreted as being protective of their vulnerably beautiful pedal display. In the morning, these flowers burst open and share with the world their bold essence. The notion of having to re-open oneself every day seems like such a brave and admirable act.

Sea Monster, which comes out March 8th, is about embracing all aspects of yourself, even the “ugly” parts that you shove down to the bottom of a lake. In the song, those ugly parts grow into a sea monster that rises from the depths to meet you, but instead of being threatening or scary, simply wants to dance with the other half of you in the light of day. It’s a sigh of relief to finally find peace with yourself.

Please tell us about your favorite song written, recorded or produced by another woman and why it’s meaningful to you

Oh man. That’s a tough one. I’d have to say pretty much all of Carole King’s songbook. “You’ve Got a Friend” is such a great song. It’s pure and honest and compassionate. “You Make Me Feel (Like A Natural Woman)” is another great one. It really addresses relationships from both sides - how each person affects the other - and shows how that can be such a positive thing.

What does it mean to you to be a woman making music today and do you feel a responsibility to other women to create messages and themes in your music?

I love who I am, and being a woman is part of that. I also love what I do, which is make music. To me, those two things are very separate. Being able to differentiate yourself from your work is a very important part of living a full life. While I think it would be great to gain more equality in my field, I don’t feel compelled to use my work to promote that idea. Part of equality is freedom. I’d like to be free to write whatever I want to write about it. If that happens to be women’s rights, so be it. If it happens to be something else, that’s great too. I will continue to speak up for women’s rights in the field, but I’m most concerned about making great music.

A lot of what I’ve been writing about lately is about self-acceptance, unconditional love, and bravery. Those are beautiful things, and apply to everyone, not just women. However, I would also argue that those ideas, essentially boiling down to identity development, IS feminism, as well as humanism. So many women need to work on identity development - myself absolutely included. Just yesterday, a guy left a note for me with his number in a very creepy way. My sister and I were talking about how to handle it. We thought maybe I should lie and tell him that I’m seeing someone else. Then it hit us - why on earth do I need to make him feel better about rejection, when it comes at the cost of my own feelings? I hate lying; it makes me feel terrible. Plus, it doesn’t do anything to correct the underlying problem of how he approaches women. That’s just one small everyday example of how I could stand to re-evaluate how I view myself in comparison to a male acquaintance. In any case, I firmly believe that self-acceptance and identity development, the themes I often choose to write about, are a big part of feminism. But make no mistake - it is a choice to write about these things, not a responsibility. By the time I didn’t have a choice, then it would become a responsibility.

What is the most personal thing you have shared in your music or in your artist brand as it relates to being female?

Dirty Fools is about a college professor who crossed the line. I honestly thought it only happened in the movies. It was a clear abuse of power.

It started really innocently. He was my big band director and I was also in his Jazz Chord Extensions class, and I also played in his professional big band. He would take the college big band rhythm section out for pizza every Tuesday before our sectional rehearsal. One by one the other members got too busy for dinner AND rehearsal, and for a week or two, it was just the two of us. He was a southern gentleman, so he would kiss me on the cheek to say goodbye. He would also waive me into his office when I had free time and show me cool old jazz videos, which was awesome, but it established that it was ok to be alone together in a non-professional manner. After that, he invited me out to one of his gigs, brought me backstage to hang with the band and drink beer. While it was still harmless, it once again established that our relationship was not strictly professional. The following week, he called me up on Friday and asked if I had dinner plans because he knew a really cool spot. I knew that going to dinner alone on a Friday night was not something I was comfortable with, but I didn’t know how to say no. After all, he controlled my grades in 2 classes, and my scholarship depended upon a certain GPA. Additionally, he was well respected in the music community, and he really could be detrimental to my career in the long run if he wanted to be. So I went. It turns out that this “cool spot” was actually an hour away and quite fancy. Then the change was visible. Monday in the hallway at school, instead of kissing my cheek to say goodbye, it was on the lips. In public. It totally took me by surprise. The fact that it was in public meant that I really couldn’t react to it. Then it happened again. After talking to my roommate and crying for a week, I decided to talk to him about it. I went in to his office and immediately the tears came. He kept saying, “This can’t all be from me. What’s going on? You can talk to me.” Instead of hearing me, he used it as an opportunity to be my shoulder to cry on and try to get closer. I knew then that talking to him wasn’t going to change anything.

I should also take a moment to say that he had cancer. It had come back for a third time, and things were not looking good. If I went to the Dean, would he lose his job and therefore his healthcare? There’s absolutely no way that I wanted to condemn this man to death. In so many ways he was an excellent mentor and there was a vast amount I could learn from him. People are very complex - not all good, and not all bad. But he shouldn’t die for making me feel uncomfortable.

I should also say that this behavior of being inappropriately close to female students had happened to at least 2 other girls that I knew of, and I could see it starting to happen with a new Freshman too. Nobody else wanted to say anything.

After a month of being really unhappy and seeing my grades start to slip, I decided to talk to the Dean. I told her that I didn’t want any repercussions for him - I simply wanted her to know what was going on so that she could keep and eye on it, and for me to withdraw from his classes. One of his classes was actually required for me to graduate, but he very kindly decided to give me an A in the course rather than have a W on my record (I had already audited the course the previous year and taken the exams, so he gave me the A retroactively).

Things went the absolute best they could have. It felt like a huge weight had been taken off my shoulders. I had successfully made myself happier without hurting another person and while keeping future students safe too. Dirty Fools is a complete celebration of speaking up! I couldn’t be happier that I did. I hope it inspires other women to speak up as well. Even more than that, I hope it encourages everyone to speak up about what they need. Communication is such an essential part of coexistence.

A year later, we were able to make up. When I first started playing guitar for him, he had given me his Fender Stratocaster from his high school rock band. I gave it back when everything went down. Instead of making up with words, he told me that the guitar was still mine, and that any time I wanted to come back to his professional big band, there was a spot for me. I’m so glad that I was able to forgive him. He passed away about two years after that.

What female artists have inspired you and influenced you?

Alicia Keys is such an inspiration to me. She is a promoter of both feminism and humanism. She delivers her message in a beautiful and uplifting way that seems like it comes from a place of honesty and purity. I fell in love with her as a musician right off the bat with Songs in A Minor, and she’s kept me as an avid fan by making me feel like a comrade on a shared journey. I love how she chooses to use her platform, and I love that she chooses to be more than a musician (even though I believe that being a musician should be enough - but that’s another story).

What was the most challenging thing you have had to face as a female artist?

Gaining base-line respect from others in the industry. Whenever I’m working with new musicians, I always have to be on the top of my game. Granted, I always want to be on the top of my game, and working hard is important to me; however, there is simply no room to slack. If I don’t show up to a rehearsal with everything ready to spoon feed the musicians, they won’t put in the effort to make great music with me. One small example was just a little comment in passing after we’d finished our first rehearsal together. He said, “You really have your stuff together for a chick singer.” He immediately backpedaled, but the fact of the matter is: that’s what he was actually thinking. He came into the rehearsal thinking that I would suck, be uneducated, or somehow less of a musician than he is. Once I’ve broken through the first impression barrier, things generally flow pretty smoothly. But extrapolate that to how many cold emails I send out weekly for booking, press, etc. If that is everyone’s first assumption, I’m constantly fighting a pretty steep uphill battle.

If you could collaborate with any other female artists who would you choose?

Nai Palm - she has such a gift for music making. Lyrics, chord progressions, meter changes - she’s just fantastic. One of my favorite lyrics of hers is “I could call your demons inside, soak them in Chamomile.” It’s simple, but it’s such a unique thought.

Susan Tedeschi - both as a singer and guitarist

Bonnie Raitt - I love her slide style

Joni Mitchell - what a beautiful songwriter. And I love her guitar playing too. She knew exactly what tone she wanted for each song.

Connect with Lo Marie online:

www.lomariemusic.com

https://open.spotify.com/artist/22CZx5oZBRtU7XFHpnlDeq?si=znekMmgRSrCC7O3nf5MzjA

https://www.instagram.com/lomariemusic/

https://www.facebook.com/LoMarieMusic/

https://twitter.com/LoMarieMusic

https://www.youtube.com/LoMarieMusic

#lo marie #7 from the women #international womens day #lomarie #indie music #indie artist #independent music #indie artist buzz #IAB #female empowerment #feminist #feminism

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ayanxmi · 7 years

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♚ ♢ ✎

The mun’s interpretation - ( accepting )

♚ - Do you agree with fandom interpretation of your character?

Well, there would have to be a character for me to agree with to begin with… and that’s typically the problem that I have seen with Rei in the Evangelion fandom over the decade. Rei is, without a doubt, the most popular character in the show since primarily I’ve dealt with people who cared little for Shinji and his problems, thinking him as a whiny shit, and also couldn’t put up with Asuka’s level of bitchiness, thinking her as completely ungrateful. I can argue against both since I’ve seen the series to death and, honestly, I can see the merits in every single character in this holy-mess-of-philosophical-fuckery. Rei, however, rarely gets talked against at all. In fact, very few people even talk about her at all when you get to the fandom about her. They either complement her ‘ beauty ’ and say she’s ‘ precious ’, or simply acknowledge her presence and don’t consider her greater role in the overarching story and just see her as a background character, and that portrayal isn’t typically much better when you looked over quite a few fan-fictions like I have over the years.

The same is true there as Rei either does nothing, or she’s there to provide a tragic element or do exposition and that’s it, and the few stories that have her do anything at all present her as the Rei from the dream world in the last episode / Angelic Days, which while not bad at all ( in fact, one of my favorite interpretations of her in this regard comes from the fanfic Nobody Dies, who’s a psycho-super genki stalker who loves to meme and has godlike powers, sneaking around and surprising people in ways that not even Batman can outclass ) it still fails to properly portray Rei Ayanami. And really, I think the problem comes down to a failure on Hideaki Anno’s part because, as it’s been said, Rei was actually intended to be creepy and unnatural, someone who’s supposed to look human but not quite to the point to allow for discomfort. Unfortunately, the idea was presented far too subtly I feel to properly convey what they wanted to tell the audience about her and instead, way too many people sympathized with her and wanted to hold her like she’s precious and really needed to be protected or dismiss her for being extremely shallow, something I have a problem with most, if not all, characters who are described as an ‘ Rei Ayanami-type ’, because they wind up doing the same thing repetitiously and don’t even bother to give a reason why, making a ‘ moe character ’ ( which makes sense since Rei was the character that, sadly, gave birth to moe ) that needs to be protected and, consequentially, has absolutely no depth whatsoever because they are repeating the same thing without understanding who Rei Ayanami actually is.

Rei Ayanami is, like they mentioned in their intention, is someone who tries to be human but clearly isn’t. Her emotional capacity & growth is heavily stunted. Her inability to truly die has left her without a concept of fear and, thus, without a concept of self because there’s nothing truly about her that she’s afraid of showing to people. She does what she does because she must, but she is also aware of the fact of who she is and that no matter what she does, it’ll never amount to anything for too long because she’s aware that everything’s going to end by her hands anyway, so she has an extreme lack of passion in anything that doesn’t have the name Ikari, as they are the only people who give meaning to her purpose. She lacks understanding of being a person, and yet, is simultaneously wise and knowledgeable enough to tell people at a glance and see their pain. The best way to describe Rei is that, while she lacks it’s depth, she’s still as far and wide as the ocean. What you see is exactly what you get, but to comprehend the sheer size of everything she is so mind-boggling it can’t be easily quantified in a few words.

So, the short answer is that while I can see why she’s rarely focused on by people compared to Shinji and Asuka, I also can’t agree to them because I understand there’s more to her character that can’t be ignored. It’s that simple.

♢ - What’s your opinion on different interpretations of your muse?

Honestly, I’ve always loved to see other people take a crack at a character I play ( or other interpretations of character in general ) because it’s always been fun to see what other people see and both complement and argue from a different perspective. It’s why when I play with my Ryuko, I always value other Ryuko’s and their interpretations, even if I’m slightly guarded and argumentative about things I see them do that I can’t see either the character nor my interpretation doing. It’s still fun to see it.

Rei is very much the same way. Even in spite of what I said is the common problem in the fandom above, I still appreciate any and all interpretations whether they themselves fall into the same conundrum or not, because they still focus on her specifically and they must see something in her that’s worth focusing on and developing in some way. So, really, they just ramify the fact of what I said about Rei being as far and wide as the ocean. They really are another view into that ocean that is Rei and it’s truly enlightening to see someone else talk about Rei and what they think or feel she is, even if I don’t necessarily agree with that viewpoint. I joke about how Rei is my baby and all ( I also joke about how much shit I am too ), but it’s honestly fun and it really helps both me and the other person to question what we see there and help us get a better grasp of her character.

✎ - What do you wish the author would reveal/had revealed about your muse?

Though a lot of my opinions of what Hideaki Anno should have revealed are far and wide ( namely, a real explanation on what the hell Adam & Lilith are beyond the small hint we got in NGE2, or why Kaworu is really confusing to follow with all of his timey-wimey talk ), I’m typically satisfied with a lot of the mystery we get with Rei because, well, she’s just that. A mystery. Someone you aren’t supposed to understand well, but know enough to want to ask questions and think on why she’s like that. So, specifically talking about what I think Hideaki Anno and Gainax should have revealed about her doesn’t really work because she’s already, in my mind, perfectly described in the series if the subtleties are paid attention to, and it’s fun to quiz in on who she really is because of those subtleties.

But, what I can say I would like to have been more elaborated is what in the hell those apparitions of Rei actually were. Like the image we see at the very beginning of the series of Rei in the middle of the street before vanishing despite being wounded and across town, or how she repeatedly appeared in Shinji’s dream-state in ep.16 & 20, conversing and interacting with him as an actual entity rather than a figment of his imagination ( something the manga hints even more towards, especially when Shinji’s trapped inside Unit-01 ), or in the two scenes in End of Evangelion where she’s standing over Misato while she died or at the very end where she’s floating in the red sea looking back at Shinji before vanishing. We get a hint at quantum mechanics and metaphysics being involved in ep.23, and I have my own opinion on it, but the lack of direct elaboration at all does have me pulling hair occasionally.

#thiirdboy #冷: ( a message from god. )#冷: ( is the expression on my face the right one? - meme. )#( finally responds to this akghk )

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stevenvenn · 6 years

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Steven's Nifty 50 of 2017 - #20 - #11

Here are my favourite albums 20 - 11 (of 50). You can listen to my favourite cuts from each of the albums on Spotify and watch them on YouTube (links below). You can also read my thoughts on the albums below the links broken into 5 posts counting down by 10s. Enjoy and feel free to comment.

Spotify playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/user/stevenvenn/playlist/7qSpcgdwXuoLtIStRQeRto?si=eeytJfj2QsiGQs0-423TaQ

YouTube playlist:

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqUMf7mP_mnMOmDl94VCPIJPFliPf62a5

NOTES

11. Day Wave – The Days We Had (Harvest Records)

The bright and buoyant pop/shoegaze of Oakland’s Jackson Phillips finally arrives in the form of a full-length debut in Days We Had. His eps hinted at how catchy and smooth Phillips’ compositions could be that and his full-length expresses a more confident richness in production and mood. At times there are reverb-y vocals and melodic synths that wouldn’t be out of place on an M83 record. Like that French artist there’s a definite nostalgia on Phillips’ part for the 80s movies of John Hughes it would seem (especially on tracks like “Ordinary”). You could easily see Day Wave’s tracks on this debut being the bright musical glue between scenes of teenage struggle and angst.

12. Real Estate – In Mind (Domino Recordings)

Album number 4 from New Jersey’s Real Estate shows the band really solidifying their smooth jangly pop sound and trying to regroup following the departure of Matt Mondinalle. Martin Courtney aptly demonstrates how his breezy, calm vocal style lends an easiness and laid-back quality to Real Estate’s melodic guitar pop. There’s a strengthening and depth this time round to the sunniness that they’ve managed to capitalize on their previous albums both in their layers of sonic brilliance and harmonized vocals.

13. Alvvays – Antisocialites (Polyvinyl Records)

Molly Rankin and her band are back with a great sophomore album that shows a growth in the depth of skill and performance. There’s some really great indie pop here that shows a darker, more melancholic view of the world from Rankin. The dream pop sounds are more varied and deep than on their self-titled debut giving the album a richness that demonstrates a band maturing. Here they are more cohesive as a musical unit. Rankin’s lyrics seem more self-assured and confident as well (as much as a late 20 something can be in a world that is fraught with indecision, relationship changes, and becoming an adult).

14. Big Thief – Capacity (Saddle Creek)

Capacity is a beautiful release of a follow-up to their debut Masterpiece. When I say "their" I really mean Adrianne Lenker who is the ringleader of the sad and beautiful work of Big Thief. Here we have reverby guitar freakouts (a la Neil Young) that morph into sensitive folk and feelings of road trips (if only being journeys in the mind, of recollections). At the centre of any Big Thief is the sad, wise-beyond her years voice of Lenker that’s “seen some stuff.” There are some really interesting arrangements this time around. There’s also a subtlety to their sadness that just creeps in over time and after repeated listens. After awhile you are grooving along with Lenker’s mysterious and solemn world like you’ve always known it.

15. Beach Fossils – Somersault (Bayonet Records)

Somersault demonstrates a band that have finally reached a sound that is sunny, melodic, seemingly effortless and jangly. The brightness and consolidated sounds has seemed to emerged from their previous Clash of Truth. Songs like “Tangerine” show that the band have really become comfortable with a distinctive breezy but complex sound which bring to mind bands like Sea and Cake and The High Llamas. “May 1st” and “Sugar” have that simple, dreamy, and infectious jangle that feels so comforting as I write this looking out at a grey snowy day, reminding me of sunnier days and warmer temperatures. Vocally, in their harmonies, Beach Fossils have never been better.

16. Horsebeach – Beauty & Sadness (Alone Together)

Manchester’s Horsebeach have managed to make a lovely shoegazey masterpiece here that just feels like a lazy Sunday. You stick on the warm sweater, settle down with a tea and just daydream for hours. The shimmery guitars carry us along on waves of reminiscences and contemplation in a way that just feels comfortable and necessary as we think about our next steps. The title comes from a Japanese book that Ryan Kennedy read voraciously following a nasty breakup. The Japanese seem to understand this concept of the beauty within sadness.

17. Japanese Breakfast – Soft Sounds From Another Planet (Dead Oceans)

Michelle Zauner is back with a sophomore album that shows more musical maturity. This isn’t the bedroom pop of Psychopomp but a bigger production that layers a lot of soft rock and experimental guitar textures (and even songs that use autotune to great effect in the synthpop of “Machinist” that strikes at some 80s Roxy Music vibes as well). There has been a huge leap stylistically with Zauner experimenting with diverse and complex textures especially electronically that she hadn’t really worked with before. The sound is big thanks to producer Craig Hendrix but Zauner still retains that intimate charm that have always made her recordings so special and memorable.

18. Angel Olsen – Phases (Jagjaguwar)

Following up quickly on the momentum of her excellent My Woman, here Phases collects some rarities, b-sides, demo tracks and other work that Angel Olsen has finally made available to fans. Some of these songs are raw, intimate, and psychedelic, while others a full-blown arrangements that at their centre showcase Olsen’s solemn, timeless voice. I often refer to her as the “female Roy Orbison” because of her retro style sound but primarily because of the sadness that she captures vocally the same way Orbison did. So in spirit if not exactly in execution, there’s a certain kinship there to me. There are some real gems in this collection that demonstrate why Olsen can be just as effective and incredible (sometimes more) when her sound isn’t as big. In fact the intimacy of simply her voice and acoustic guitar have a lot of presence that can fill a room.

19. Phoebe Bridgers – Stranger in the Alps (Dead Oceans)

The debut from L.A.’s Phoebe Bridgers feels like an album that was made by an incredible singer-songwriter in the middle of their career, but this is her first one right out the gate. The sad and beautiful voice of Bridgers brings to mind other emotional indie rockers like Elliott Smith and Mark Kozelek (who she covers on “You Missed My Heart” and seems to channel on the very Red House Painters-y “Scott Street”). Her musical and songwriting talent have arrived here fully formed which belies her young 23 years. She can be incredibly strong on songs like “Emotional Motion Sickness” that conveys a bit of a Fleetwood Mac-y vibe or incredibly intimate and humble on songs like “Funeral.” Probably one of the few albums I’ve played a million times this year and still discover little production touches and lyrical tidbits that delight. A great storytelling talent that will only get better over time (and she’s already pretty incredible).

20. The Clientele – Music For the Age of Miracles (Merge Records)

Alasdair MacLean and band are back with their poetic, tender, and very English tunes that bring to mind the beauty of Al Stewart and other British folk popsters. There’s something of an English garden to these songs that in less skillful hands would seem foppish, but in MacLean’s there’s a graceful hushed intimacy and mood. Time apart has made it possible for The Clientele to do a sort of musical reset and they are once again creating splendid arrangements that seem fresh and bright. Still at the core are the relaxed and at times melancholic confessionals of MacLean that paint a picture of place as much as a document of thoughts and emotions.

#nifty50of2017 #stevenvenn #bestof2017 #music

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noiseartists · 6 years

Text

The Corrupting Sea- Therapy In Sound

"Libraries gave us power" the Manic Street Preachers used to sing. The internet has given us power too. Meet Jason Lamoreaux. Label owner, journalist, musician.

What is your music about?

In 2015, I was unethically dismissed from a job that I deeply loved and was invested in. As someone who deals on a daily basis with anxiety and depression and has no health insurance, I had to find a way to deal with the fallout that was healthy and not harmful. I had recorded some music around 2007 and had released a single on an Australian compilation, but the album I recorded was lost. So, at the end of 2016, I begin to record again as an outlet for my anxiety and depression. It was, in a way, therapeutic. The results of those first sessions was my third album Symphony Of A Radical. I had shown a few of the tracks to Frank Lenz (Starflyer 59) and he really encouraged me to put them out there.

I think another sort of “inspiration” for my work has been just world events, the insanity of what is happening in my country and the corresponding ignorance of so many in the U.S., and some personal narratives about trying to deal with all of it and find some peace. So, I hope to communicate sound stories that have some narrative freight to them but allow the listener to sort of plug in their own experiences throughout the music.

Musical Work

In 2017, I released a trilogy with the albums Samatta, Resist, and Symphony of a Radical. These were my first releases to go out into the world. I’m 45 years old and I just felt that I had finally found a voice with my music and was able to put myself out there. In my youth, I had too much self-doubt and hesitation, so I suppose my age helps with me not being so worried about what people think.

I think much of what I do is anti-ambient, if that makes sense. So many of my ambient artist friends or ambient artists I read talk about their work in terms of serenity or contemplation or meditation. My music isn’t that. There are tracks where I am struggling to find that but much of my music comes from rage, anxiety, depression, agitation, and conflict. I mean, if you met me, you wouldn’t get this impression from me. I’ve been told that my music is sort of an alter-ego. That’s true, I think. But it’s also my therapy. It’s where I dump the things that aren’t healthy in relationships. I guess I weep into my music in a way.

In terms of the albums, I guess I will leave that to the audiofiles in discussing each one individually. I will say this. The stuff I am producing now has really changed in tone and I think quality. I’m really excited about the release of Somnambulate in Jan/February on Katuktu Collective as well as the Aural Canyon album I’m working on that will hopefully be released later in the year. So two new full-lengths are forthcoming in 2018. I also have two other albums. One is called Reflections and it was mixed and mastered by Paul Saarnak of The Beremy Jets while the other is called System Shift and it was mixed and mastered by Toby Crate Art of The Emerald Down. Both did incredible jobs on the mixes and I can’t wait to find both a home. I also have an EP coming out on Silber Records any day now. It’s in the 5 in 5 series where the artist can only produce 5 minutes of material over the course of 5 tracks. I made 5 one-minute tracks and I think it turned out rather well. I’m happy with it at least.

The most recent development has been a collaboration with Jon Attwood (Yellow6) and Daniel Land (riverrun, Daniel Land and the Painters). We’ve started exchanging stems and things are moving forward. Really excited about how this project turns out. I’ve also started working with Josh Richardson (Flavor Crystals) on a potential ambient album. We will see where that goes.

Tell us about the artists you have worked with

All of the artwork on my albums so far have been my own photos. I really love taking pictures and working with imagery, so I’ve been excited to share my visual work with others in this medium. My dear friend Paul Lewis has designed all the covers using my images and has done an incredible job. I’m currently working with Garett Wood, another friend of mine, who will do the images for the Reflections album. His photography is amazing. I’m also hoping to work with Christy Romanik who has been a favorite photographer of mine for ages. I’m shocked I haven’t used her photos yet. Look up both photographers because their work is just so amazing.

I’m beginning to work with Jeff Ryan (Myopic) who is a Dallas based artist. He is the mind behind the project called Myopic and has been the drummer for St. Vincent, The War on Drugs, and others. He’s currently in The Baptist Generals and Motorcade. I’ll be recording a live video with him for Noise Artists. I’ve also done a remix for City of Dawn who is an ambient artist out of Texas. We are hoping to do some collaborative work. I’m also in the middle of a collaboration with Jon Attwood (Yellow6) and Daniel Land (riverrun, Daniel Land and the Painters). I’m super excited about how these will all turn out. The kind of creative challenges one encounters with others can really push limits and make one think outside one’s box. It’s really exciting.

Two of my newer albums that don’t have labels yet have recently been mixed and mastered by Paul Saarnak and Toby Crate Art. They did an incredible job and I can’t wait for the world to hear those. I’m also working in collaboration with Jon Attwood and Daniel Land. I’m also working with Josh Richardson of Flavor Crystals on something. We will see where that goes.

What are your goals as a band, artist, record label owner, artistically/commercially ?

I think my only goal with The Corrupting Sea has been to record my music and put it out there. Actually constructing the tracks and getting an album out were the beginning. I’m not sure I expected to end up recording more let alone put out 3 albums in one year. Now I’m hoping to play live soon and the live videos with Myopic are sort of the beginning of that process. I started Somewherecold Records for that purpose even though I’ve put out other artists. Then my goal was to put an album out on another label because I couldn’t afford to keep doing it myself, at least not the way I wanted. That will happen beginning next year as Katuktu Collective puts out Somnabulate. It’s been pretty amazing actually and beyond anything I expected in the long run. I guess now I just want to keep going and be able to make my own music. I do have an Aural Canyon album planned for next year as well.

With Somewherecold Records, I simply want to put great music out there for people to support. If only more people would, you know? Running a label is fraught with instability simply because of how people view art and music now. Either people have no disposable income, or they just refuse to buy music anymore. It’s really a sad situation. I’m always shocked when artists do art for a living because it’s so incredibly difficult to get people to support artists these days.

Who would you want as a dream producer and why?

John Fryer. He’s worked with so many bands I admire and I would love to see what he does with my darker stuff. He’s just a consummate musician and, having talked to him, I feel he would respect my sound and not try to take over.

What are you trying to avoid as a band, artist, label owner?

I guess being too repetitive as an artist. I don’t want to do that for sure.

As a label owner? I guess I’m going with the flow there. I really would love not to go into massive debt, which I can’t do. It would simply mean the end of the label if people don’t purchase music.

Explain your songwriting process, who starts? How does it evolve, is it organic? Is it discussed?

Well, since this is my project, it’s just me and my instruments. Basically, I hunt for sounds and textures that inspire me or lead me to a basis for a track and then I build from there. This can be the manipulation of standard midi tracks, found sounds that I use as samples, or guitar lines and melodies. I like when things just flow. Of course, they don’t always, but I mostly come up with very improvised free form work. I describe myself as a sound shaper rather than a musician.

In 2017 there is no new or old music to a 17 year old with internet access. Discuss.

I guess that, what you mean by this is, young people have everything at their fingertips. Well, I think there are pros and cons to this entire issue. I guess the best thing about this is that corporate radio can’t tell people what to listen to anymore. Radio stations that are broadcasting through FM or AM are kind of obsolete. There are, of course, a few exceptions like college radio stations that aren’t shackled by the likes of Clear Channel. There are also great online stations like DKFM (of which I am a part) that really allow DJ’s to shape their shows and play what they feel is the best new music out there. In this way, listeners can find programs and DJ’s that introduce them to music they seem to like on a consistent basis. Stations that play the same crap over and over again need to be phased out and, in my opinion, people should just stop listening to those stations. The cons are a product or consequence of the pros. Yes, we have access to everything but that is also a down side. There is just so much great music out there that finding artists can be like finding a needle in a haystack. Further, I think that young people have really lost touch with the wonderfulness of the album. Artists shape their tracks into a whole project, not simply singles, but streaming culture really has gotten young people away from listening to whole albums and really taking in the entire message of an artists in that period of time.

Lastly I would say that people have all but stopped buying music. Streaming services are killing music really. The one thing any fan can do that is good for a musician or band is buy their CDs, Cassettes, Vinyl, and Merch. It does WONDERS. This idea that music should be free is a horrible product of the degradation of art and artists and people can only fight that by buying the music directly from the artists or labels they are on, especially if the label is small.

Why do you make the music you make? Is it in you? Is it a choice?

Like I said above, my music has been my therapy. I think it was in me all along and I really didn’t know. It was strange once I actually let it out there. It was like a flood of music came out of me. I have this really strong memory of myself when I was about 17 years old. I was at my house alone and sitting at my parents’ upright piano. I would hold down the sustain pedal and just play chords and let the reverb tail just fade out. I would close my eyes and just soak in it. I had never heard of ambient music at the time. I’d never heard Eno or any of the jazz, ambient artists prior to this period. This would have been around 1989 or 1990. I’d been learning bass and guitar for some time now but no one ever told me that what made me feel most at home musically could be music. In hindsight, I really wish I would have recorded that stuff and went with it on my own but I had no conceptual framework or know how in terms of recording anything.

As I got older, I encountered stuff like shoegaze music through my writing at Somewherecold. This would be like 2002 and after. I’m a late-comer to the scene. Anyway, there’s a track on The Prayer Chain’s Mercury album that really sparked my interest in ambient music in a way I hadn’t encountered before. Eric Campuzano from The Prayer Chain and The Lassie Foundation and so many other bands came out with his solo project Charity Empressa and I had found my musical home in a way. Experimental and ambient, Charity Empressa opened a musical world to me that I had not encountered before. I started buying all of Eno’s albums and so much more. For me, this is the awakening my 17-year-old self longed for. It wasn’t until 2006 or so that I started to explore my own creativity in this regard and now I’m going at it full force. I suppose it’s no longer a choice but an urge or a longing to express myself.

Describe your palette of sound.

Well, I work mainly with drones and guitar sounds. My palette runs the range of found sounds to flat, untextured drones. Whatever serves my expression at the time, I will use and attempt to shape into something a listener can experience. As I’ve moved forward, I’ve gained more tools to work with. For example, my earliest work was all guitar and bass. I owned no pedals. I only used VSTs with the guitars. In order to create drones, I would detune a guitar or mute strings and then blow fans on the guitar to make a long, droning rumble or ambient sound. I think it worked well and people can’t really tell that’s what I’m doing when it’s happening. Since then, I’ve had a really cheap midi-controller, which I used on my first three albums. Now I’ve upgraded that along with my DAW. I’ve also gained some guitar pedals along the way. More are forthcoming. It’s simply a matter of finding the funds and moving forward. The thing is, I know what I want and how much I want. I’m being very, very selective in the pedals I attain because it can become a financial black hole and I don’t want that to happen. I’m just not in a place financially for that to happen. So, as I’ve become more and more familiar and attune to my own sound, I have targeted particular pieces of equipment for my sound arsenal. We will see what 2018 brings in that regard.

Your music is instrumental, would you like guest vocalists? Who would be your dream guest vocalist?

I have always toyed with the idea of having someone come in and lay some kind of vocal, spoken or sung, over the top of my crazy compositions. Seeing what a vocal artist would do would be fascinating. Some dream vocalists would be Rachel Staggs, Krissy Vanderwoude, Justin Bowsher, Daniel Land, Rebecca Scott, Christie Simpson, Kristie Capua, Preston Maddox, and Adrienne Snow.

Which of your albums are you the most proud of? Why?

I think, of the ones currently out, Samatta is my favorite because it has tracks I like to return to more often. I think “I Love You Over the Moon” and “An Ode to Paul Saarnak on His 44th” are my favorite tracks of the trilogy. They both express a brightness that usually escapes me or I find ethereal as I try to grab it. I also think that my ability to record and use my tools had made a rather large advance with that album. Given that I’ve completed six albums, I think my favorite (which everyone else hasn’t heard yet) is the one I did for Katuktu Collective. It’s called Somnabulate and I can’t wait for everyone to hear it. All of the new albums have different flavors to them, so we will see what people think once they are out in the open.

Explain the story behind the trilogy?

The trilogy of albums I put out happened in a very organic way. I most certainly didn’t plan a trilogy from the get go. In fact, I thought Symphony of a Radical would be it. I never imagined I would set out on a journey that would span three albums. Part of that had to do with the fact that Symphony was in another person’s hands and that person was supposed to mix and master it. Well, it never happened for whatever reason. While I waited, the tracks for Samatta kind of coalesced and I decided to give that album life first while I waited. I taught myself the DIY version of mixing and mastering and put that out there. There was a good reception and while that was sort of getting into people’s hands, Resist came together. I call the albums a trilogy because they really do speak to a 2 year period in my life as one thing happened after another. Getting let go from a job I adored, seeing my country devolve into a racist mess, watching family members make horrifying decisions politically, coming to terms with massive financial instability, and so much more fueled all three of these albums. They are all kindred spirits in a way. Somnambulate, my next album, feels so different to me because it is, I don’t know, coming from a different place. I guess some people will say it sounds exactly like me. Most artists hear different things about their music than the fans. I think the sound files I sent about each individual album really complete the picture so I will stop here.

Thank you so much for taking the time to feature my project. It really means a lot to me.

Your presence on the web

Social media: I really only have a Facebook page for the recording project. That might be a bit odd and I need to remedy that as more people listen to my music.

https://www.facebook.com/TheCorruptingSea/

Video: Currently, The Corrupting Sea videos are housed at the Somewherecold Records Youtube Channel.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgxWQV9Ty9ZbqtxDK3zr5TA

Listening / buying your music: You can find the 2017 trilogy at the Somewherecold Records’ Bandcamp page.

https://somewherecoldrecords.bandcamp.com/

I did an interview with When the Sun Hits not long ago: http://whenthesunhitsblog.blogspot.com/2017/09/interview-jason-lamoreaux-of-corrupting.html

Where to find your work?

All of my current releases can be found at the Somewherecold Records’ Bandcamp page: https://somewherecoldrecords.bandcamp.com/

However, I have future releases coming out from Silber Records, Katuktu Collective, and Aural Canyons. All of these are amazing labels I think people should be paying attention to and, well, you can keep an eye out for my own releases soon. https://katuktucollective.bandcamp.com/

https://silbermedia.bandcamp.com/

https://auralcanyonmusic.bandcamp.com/

#Ambient #Shoegaze #USA

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megamanxfanfics · 7 years

Text

S.IV - Ep. 8: Let Sleeping Dogs Die

Written by Metal Man X

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. MAVERICK HUNTER BASE – Common Room - DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Caption: November 17th, 9:30 AM - NOW

-BOOM-

The Repliforce Marine Base explodes on screen as we zoom out into the room.

REPORTER: (o.s, filtered) …and here we are, witnessing this horrific scene from just moments ago…

The report turns to background noise as we pan out to see teams of Maverick Hunters buzzing about in the Common Room.

FRENZY FOXKIT: Whoooaaa!

FREEZE ALOPEX: Daaaaamn.

RHO: I can’t believe it.

JENNA: (smirking) I can…

The Common Area is a lot more crowded than usual with all of the computer networks down. It practically seems as if nearly every Maverick Hunter is on break.

The Shinobi Hunters attentively watch the footage as everyone mills around them.

BAHENA: Wow, he really did it…

TAU: Damn right, he did. And we'd have been there too, if our damn teleporters were working!

BAHENA: Hmph…

VENZO: We gotta get over there!!

DAISKE: (nervous) You guys really wanna go there?? I m-mean.. Zero must've finished the job. …right?

Tau gives him a stern look.

TAU: And now he's stuck there…

VENZO: There could be others on the way. We have to go grab him.

BAHENA: Hah! Good luck with that one. He made his bed.. As far as I'm concerned, he can go sleep in it.

Tau, Venzo and even Daiske give her a surprised look.

[Insert Title Card – Let Sleeping Dogs Die]

- Cut To –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Hiding Place – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zero eagerly grins as he raises his saber and dashes over to Jet Stingray.

ZERO: Lets GO!!

JET STINGRAY: Chyeeeah!!!

Jet Stingray turbine dashes right into a tackle underwater, causing Zero to sink within the ground sand.

ZERO: Agh!

He swings in protest, catching Jet Stingray at his ankle.

JET STINGRAY: Ah.

He flies up immediately and hovers above the surface as Zero rises from the sand.

- Cut to –

TAU: What the F-

STONE ROOK: Hey!

BAHENA: Excuse me?

TAU: That’s our Leader out there, and-

BAHENA: (interjecting, overlapping) -and what he's doing is wrong!!

TAU: Blowing up Sydney was wrong!! What he's doing is correcting a mistake!

BAHENA: Well two Wrongs don’t make a Right!!

REN: Heyy!

TAU: -We have to support him!!

BAHENA: No!!

TAU: No matter what!!!

BAHENA: NO!!! I won’t.

REN: GUYS!!!!

BAHENA & TAU: WHAT!!!???

- Cut to -

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Gateway – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

TAKUMA: Gaaaaar/agh! /Hagh!! /Yagh!!! /Auff.

Takuma swings his hammer ///three times at a seemingly endless wave of Poseidon clones that continuously attack him from all sides. After knocking some down from /ahead, /left and /right a swarm /knocks him down from the back.

TAKUMA: Oh man… This is getting tough!

- Pan to –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Hiding Place – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jet Stingray shoots ground hunters at Zero from above the water. He slices them all apart easily and waves him over with a taunt.

ZERO: Come on, Stingray. Is that the best you can do?

- Cut to -

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. MAVERICK HUNTER BASE – Common Room – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bahena and Tau look at Ren, belligerently.

REN: …I have a plane! Whoever wants to go, I can just.. Take you there.

VENZO: Thank God.

BAHENA: Nope, not going.

DAISKE: Me neither.

REN: I don’t care. One of your own is out there and you’re not even willing to help him.

TAU: (correcting) Two, in fact.

REN: That, to me is just really sad…

BAHENA: Ya know what happened the last time Hunters blindly followed their Leader into a War? They became known as full-on Mavericks. You want to know that Leader's name?? It was Sigma!

They all look stunned at the idea.

BAHENA: So no, I won’t be going… And you should all consider the bigger picture too…

TAU: Well here’s the current picture. Zero and Takuma are out there with no coms and presumably no way home. So yeah… You'd better believe that I'm going out to pick them up.

STONE ROOK: Then what're we waiting for? Lets go get 'em!

- Cut to -

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Hiding Place – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

JET STINGRAY: (muttering) Heheheh.. Is that the best I can do…?

Jet Stingray lowers himself to the water and sets a buster into his hand.

ZERO: Hm?

Suddenly, a whirlwind pulls him into Jet Stingray, like a vacuum.

ZERO: Who-oa.

JET STINGRAY: Hahahahha. /AH!

He /punches Zero hard in the chest.

ZERO: Awgh.. /Hughh. /Nyaah…

He /fires two ground hunters at close range and /kicks Zero across the wounded chest.

JET STINGRAY: Hahahaha! I dunno. You tell me..

- Cut to –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. REPLIFORCE HQ - Colonel's Office - DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Iris walks into Colonel's office and closes the door.

IRIS: You wanted to see me?

COLONEL: Yes. Please, have a seat.

She sits in the chair in front of his desk with a bit of a mug on her face.

COLONEL: So how long has this been going on?

IRIS: …What?

COLONEL: Don’t play DUMB with me, Sister. YOU AND ZERO!! How long has it been going on!??

IRIS: ..Nothing's going on.

COLONEL: DON'T LIE TO ME!! I know how you feel about him!!

She frowns and looks away.

IRIS: N-not.. Long…

COLONEL: Hmph… …Long enough I think. Enough for you to Help the Enemy get into our Marine Base and take us from the inside!!! What the Hell is wrong with you? Did you think I wouldn’t notice!!!?

IRIS: What Stingray did was wrong…

COLONEL: THAT’S not your call to make. It was bad enough that you were fraternizing with the Enemy. Now you’re helping them!!

IRIS: They’re not the Enemy. They’re our Friends! You used to know that…

COLONEL: Not any more they’re not! Especially now! …What am I supposed to tell General, huh?? …I could lose you over this.

They both share a look of fear.

- Cut To –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Hiding Place – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Zero sets his broken buster and unleashes Raijengeki on him.

ZERO: (groaning) Hhagh!

Jet Stingray stands defiantly with his hands at his hips as the attack has no effect on him. The attack is simply deflected off of his armor with a pathetic series of *pings*.

Zero grimaces and narrows his eyes as he pulls his saber back. His eyes glow light pink for a second as he tries something different. He dashes over to Jet Stingray and his saber glows pink, in a move reminiscent to that of Slash Beast. He instinctively slashes Jet Stingray in the gut mid-dash.

JET STINGRAY: Guuuaaaaaahhhhh.

Highly, effected Jet Stingray spurts out blood from the wounded gash in his stomach.

Zero stands right before him with a dark grin and cuts him with a 3-hit combo that he has become more skilled at. Down, across and then a much stronger slash down.

JET STINGRAY: (hurt) Aughh..ught.

Zero grins.

ZERO: Finally…

- Cut to –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. REPLIFORCE HQ - Colonel's Office – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Iris looks around the room as she mulls over some ideas.

IRIS: Tell him… Tell him.. He made me. That I had no other choice…!

Colonel's eyes become wide.

COLONEL: Now you’re lying? You are Astounding, Sister! You’re in so deep that you have no idea what to do.

IRIS: No, I don’t… I just want this all to end… Please help, brother.

COLONEL: I won’t.

IRIS: Please! I Love him.

COLONEL: Don’t say that!!

I do! I do!! Please don’t let this go on any more. Don’t let any one else get hurt because he's Not going to stop and you know that.

She starts to become misty eyed.

COLONEL: Well neither will I…

IRIS: Pleeeease…

She sniffles and lets out some pure tears as she mopes with a pitiable frown.

Colonel's heart melts at the sight of her.

COLONEL: (Softer) Do you know why we're not giving up, Sister? …Its because in our hearts, we know this is the right thing to do.

IRIS: (annoyed) What is!?

COLONEL: Gaining our own Independence. To disassociate ourselves with those Murderous Maverick Hunters, and the word 'Maverick' altogether. For we are the Repliforce. We have to prove that we're better!

Iris' eyes widen, astonished as she comes to a light epiphany

IRIS: Then lets be, better…!

COLONEL: I want to help build us a Utopia. Where only Reploids can exist in peace and harmony.

IRIS: We can all work towards this together. Just meet with him, pleeease. Just talk… And then we can figure all this out.

COLONEL: Hmph… There’s nothing I can do to stop you, is there..? You’re still going to hang around Zero.

IRIS: (stubborn, laughing) Ah-ha.. Yep.

She wipes away a tear as she lightly smiles.

COLONEL: You’re my sister. I won’t condemn you… But the Repliforce won’t stand for treason either… So here’s what we're going to do.

Her face brightens.

COLONEL: Get him on your com-link and we can have a conference call with him right now.

IRIS: Well that’s the thing. I kinda can't...

He cricks his neck, annoyed.

COLONEL: I know you feel strongly about this mission, but now is Not The Time to PROTECT H-

IRIS: Damn it, Cal! That isn’t it.

He widens his eyes, stunned by her anger.

- Cut To –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Gateway - DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Takuma deals with the swarm of Poseidons outside, but they keep coming. Panting and sweating, he continues to swing his hammer.

TAKUMA: AAAAAAGH! Haaaah!! Come Onnn.

He bashes another wave of Poseidon Clones as he looks out at the clearing of the sea at the end of the rigging.

A group of Hornet Riders have just arrived.

HORNET 1: Heheheh.. Well, well boys. Looks like it's pay back time.

HORNET(S): Yeah, yeah!

TAKUMA: Ohh nno…

He grips his T-Breaker tightly and holds the long handle of his hammer up to his face.

IRIS: (o.s, v.o) Their teleporters aren't working right now... They can't even com-link to each other!

-pan to-

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Hiding Place – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Beyond the gate, Zero and Jet Stingray remain engaged in their struggle.

COLONEL: (o.s, v.o) Hmph! So that’s why you’re here… You really did bring them in…

Jet Stingray grows irate as he launches himself out of the water again in a fury.

JET STINGRAY: Chyeeeaah!!!

Zero dashes back and carefully watches his opponent's movements.

Jet Stingray dives after Zero, who narrowly dodges with a dash and cuts him at the left leg.

JET STINGRAY: Aughh.

He rises above the water from the other side, favoring his bloody leg.

IRIS: (o.s, v.o) I'm sorry brother… I just want to end this. And Stingray needs to pay for his crimes.

Jet Stingray shoots out more blue and red ground hunters from his buster. The blue ones crawl down to the surface and travel to his feet, while the red ones attack from directly above his head.

COLONEL: (o.s, v.o) AGAIN! That was NOT the way to do it, and it was NOT your call!!!

Zero slices all of them and protects himself.

While he is distracted, Jet Stingray dives right into him and bashes him against the wall.

JET STINGRAY: Aaaagh!

ZERO: Kaaugh. AAAAAGH!!!!

He tilts his saber upside down, and stabs him in the back from both hands.

JET STINGRAY: (bleeding) KRRAAAAAGH!!!!

- Cut to –

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. REPLIFORCE HQ - Colonel's Office - DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

COLONEL: Aaaargh! I am so Aggravated by you, right now.

IRIS: (cowering, scared) I'm sorry, Brother!!

He takes a moment to collect himself as he continues to look at her with a gruff face.

COLONEL: …You are going to head back to Maverick Hunter Headquarters and deliver a message for me when he arrives. Is that clear?

IRIS: …If he arrives you mean…

She frowns.

He smiles.

COLONEL: You put yourself in this position, Sister. Not me.

IRIS: I wouldn’t have to, if you would just cooperate!

COLONEL: I AM Cooperating. But I can’t call off Stingray or tell any of his troops to cease their defense. YOU initiated this Attack, Sister. The Hunters will simply have to retreat and regroup. Then we can attempt a proper negotiation later.

IRIS: (annoyed) Mhm… And how am I supposed to get back to their Headquarters?

COLONEL: Well... If their communication satellites are indeed down until further notice, like you said they were… I suppose you are just going to have to wait until they’re back up.

He falsely smiles at her.

IRIS: …You won’t have the Air Force escort me?

COLONEL: (Bellowing) HAAHAHAHAHAH! Get out of my Office, Sis. I'll send you Zero’s message later.

IRIS: Hmph!!

She angrily looks at her brother, disappointed as she abruptly gets up. She walks out of the room and slams the door behind her.

- Cut to -

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Hiding Place - DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hunched over in pain, Jet Stingray glares at Zero, dead in the face as he turns around and faces his enemy.

ZERO: That's it. You're finished, dude...

They narrow their eyes.

JET STINGRAY: …Not yet…

He punches Zero right in the /gut, winding him.

ZERO: /Poouuugh. /Yaaaaagh!!!

He cups his hands around the back of his neck and /knees him in the head.

Jet Stingray punches Zero, but he catches it. Zero retaliates with a /slash to the gut and /another to the arm.

JET STINGRAY: /Eeyagh! /Ooohh..

Jet Stingray turns around and swiftly walks away, bleeding out underneath the water, making small crimson clouds from his open wounds.

Zero runs after him and capitalizes, while Stingray is turned around. He slashes him across the back twice in an X formation.

Then he dashes and performs his new move, as his Saber glows into a powerfully vibrant pink slash that cuts into Jet Stingray’s back.

JET STINGRAY: Grrraaaawwwwwuuughghhhh…

Jet Stingray's circuits overload as his armor cracks. Finally, his core combusts underwater into a fantastic, contained explosion.

The fire from within the water, immediately cools and turns to bubbles.

When the fried, shattered pieces of Jet Stingray float before Zero, he spots a weapon chip labeled, ‘Ground Hunter’ and grabs it. Then he hears his partner screaming from outside.

TAKUMA: (o.s) AAAAAAAAGH!!!!

Instinctively, Zero's eyes flash light blue as he remembers how to perform an Air-dash. This was a skill formerly acquired by an Erasure, but now Zero feels confident that his own body has actually learned how to properly execute this skill.

Zero lets out a light laugh, as he air-dashes over to the gate.

ZERO: Hh-yeeeeah!!

He kick- jumps up the rigging toward the gate.

ZERO: Now I see why Stingray said that so much. Flying this fast is fun!!!

He jumps back through the gate.

-pan to-

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORTS – Gang Fight – DAY ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Takuma has fallen to the ground as a gang of Poseidon Clones and Hornet Riders continue to pummel him.

ZERO: Nnnoooo!

He air-dashes over to his jonin and carves his way into the swarm.

ZERO: HURRICANE FANG!!!

He names his new move, learned from Slash Beast as his pink wave of the saber disintegrates six of the enemies. He stands by Takuma, fearlessly ready to protect his fellow Warrior.

ZERO: /C'mon, /c,mon!

He slashes and slices away at the oncoming reploids.

TAKUMA: (pained) ggh.. Sensei… You’re here!

Zero kicks a Posiedon away and slashes a Hornet Rider across the face. Then he puts out a hand.

ZERO: Get up Takuma. We're not done yet.

- Cut to –

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

EXT. MAVERICK HUNTER JET – DAY

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Caption: 10:00 AM

Ren's jet flies across the Ocean at mach speeds, carrying Tau and Venzo. Stone Rook, Rayven and Burn Bishop are not far behind them, nor are they as fast.

REN: (filtered) Just about there guys. We're due in about a half hour, now.

TAU: (filtered) Alriight.

VENZO: (filtered) Oh man! Talk about cutting it close.

- Cut to –

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

EXT. MAVERICK HUNTER BASE – Heliport Rooftop Landing – DAY

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Caption: 23 minutes later

The Legion Jet gently lands on the rooftop Helipad. The cockpit opens up as a ladder, rail juts out from the side, by the wing.

ZARRICK: We made great time. Lets go, gang!

He hops out of the cockpit, ignoring the ladder completely. Skid and Gear-Rig take the ladder down carefully, while X takes it down swiftly with urgency on his mind.

He sets up his X-Buster, just in case with concern on his face.

X: Be careful guys.. I don’t know what’s waiting for us in there.

ZARRICK: Lets find out. I've got your back.

They carefully walk into Central Command from the Rooftop entrance with their guard up.

-pan to-

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. MAVERICK HUNTER BASE – Central Command Hallways – DAY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dispatchers and Office workers are running around working twice as hard it seems. One of them stops and nearly trips upon the sight of X.

OFFICE WORKER 1: (gasping) Ohh thank Goodness you’re here!!! Captain's been looking everywhere for you.

X: What’s going on??

They continue to stroll through the halls.

OFFICE WORKER 1: Nothing is working!

OFFICE WORKER 2: We've been hacked!!

He drops his guard and retracts his Buster into his hand.

X: Damn it! I was afraid something like this would happen while I was out. Has anybody been monitoring the Mother Computer??

OFFICE WORKER 1: All of our techs have been looking at it non-stop. They can’t figure it out!

X: Damn… There’s no time. I have to get in there.

WORKER 2: Hm??

X: Don’t worry about it. Just tell Captain that I'm back, and I'm on it!!

WORKER 2: Right!

X runs out of the corridor towards an elevator. Zarrick, Skid and Gear-Rig follow him.

-pan to-

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. MAVERICK HUNTER BASE – Corridors - DAY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The elevator doors open on the main floor as the whole group run over to Dr. Cain's old lab.

ZARRICK: Man.. Never thought I'd roam these halls with you again.

X: (focused) Yeah. Its good to see you again.

ZARRICK: Sorry we weren’t around for Doppler's Attack after all…

X: Its okay. You went through a lot. We all did…

They reach the lab as X forgives him.

-pan to-

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. MAVERICK HUNTER BASE – R & D Lab - DAY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The moment X enters the room with Team Legion, Lucas and David stir at the sight of him.

LUCAS: Huh?

DAVID: Hey! It's X!!

The Hunter Techs all stop working and take a breath of relief.

The Elite Hunters turn around, surprised and excited to see their Leader.

ALECTO: Yes!!

XANTHE: Finally!

CASTOR: I knew he’d make it!!!

Double and the rest of the Elite Hunters run over to him.

DOUBLE: My Liege! My liege!! You’re back.

AESON: What happened, sir??

X slightly laughs.

X: I… Heheh.. Got stuck in traffic.. Zarrick had to give me a lift home.

Zarrick nods silently with a slight smirk on his face.

POLLUX: Where were you?

X: On Fiji taking care of a pesky Maverick, and now it looks like I have to take care of another one.

Double runs over to him and grovels on his knees.

DOUBLE: I'm so sorry, sir. One minute you and I were joking and laughing on the coms and the next- I don't know what happened!!

X: (annoyed, ready) Cyber Peacock happened. That's what. And now I've gotta go get him.

Double gasps.

From further towards the Mother Computer, Lucas /claps his hands once.

LUCAS: /Okay! That, I know how to do. David, help me set up X's Pod.

DAVID: Oh wow. This is just like Anomaly Day.

LUCAS: Exactly like Anomaly Day.

The two prepare X's Host Pod with the appropriate wires and connectors.

LUCAS: Or as X would call it… his Cyber Mission.

DAVID: Aw man.. Now I miss Middy…

They continue to set up his Host Pod in an attempt to connect it to Cyber Space.

LUCAS: Geez. That guy was a Super Genius. We could've used someone like that to monitor X, so we don’t lose him in Cyber Space.

From the back of the room Gear-Rig clears his throat. He slowly walks towards them.

GEAR-RIG: Ahem.. Uh, Hi Gentlemen. I know it’s been a while.. But if you need an advanced processing Navigator for this mission, I think I'm your guy.

David and Lucas instantly recognize Gear-Rig.

LUCAS: Whooa, Heeey. I remember you. You were that guy who helped is reroute Doppler's Satellite laser.

DAVID: Yeah!!! Genius move, man! That was brilliant.

X: Guys.

X begins to look impatient as he waits for the Hunter Techs to finish setting up his pod.

LUCAS: Oh. Sorry, X. We're all done.

X: Jeeeez.

He runs over to the pod with wide eyes and sort of an annoyed smile.

Lucas smiles sheepishly as David mans the Mother Computer. David hacks inside the screen's programming as everyone witnesses the data constantly changing.

Gear-Rig watches wide-eyed and astounded.

GEAR-RIG: My word!

X and the rest watch the Computer Data as they learn about the situation.

DAVID: We were able to get this far, before our window closes us out. But with X here, now we can zap him in there and it won’t matter how many times this Peacock closes the window.

GEAR-RIG: I see. How fortuitous!! So with a Genius-Level programmer like me, you'll be able to continuously hack into the Server, thus keeping the window open and X, safe from getting.. Lost in Cyber Space as it were.

Lucas makes wide eyes.

LUCAS: …Yes…

DAVID: ..I'm sorry, did you just say Server?

GEAR-RIG: Oh yeah! I can tell just by looking at that code that he's already eaten up your entire Mainframe and turned it into his own Server!!

X: WHAT!!?

GEAR-RIG: Its not as bad as it sounds. We just have to-

X: I've gotta get in there guys. Now!! This is the one who's been interrupting our coms and teleporters, right?

LUCAS: At the very least…

DAVID: He's also probably stolen a lot of data at this point…

X: Damn him!

X gets into his Host Pod without a further moment's hesitation. Lucas quickly closes the pod and sets up the final connection.

LUCAS: Don’t worry… We'll get this. Just like last time… Just close your eyes, and keep them shut. When we tell you to open them, you'll be in the Data World again.

GEAR-RIG: His new Server.. As it were…

X: Hmph. Alright… Here goes nothing.

X closes his eyes.

- Cut To –

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EXT. OCEAN PORT – Gang Fight – DAY

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Caption: 10:37 AM

A wounded Zero and Takuma stand back to back with their weapons out.

Bleeding across his forehead, down both sides of the nose, while his sweat stings his eyes, Zero attempts to shake it off as he watches a few more Hornet Riders dock at the port.

ZERO: Screw this man. We've gotta get out of here…

TAKUMA: I know! /Hey!! Wait!!

Suddenly a Maverick Hunter Jet flies overhead and fires at the soldiers around them before landing.

ZERO: (smiling, relieved) Hahah! There we go!!

The cockpit opens. Tau and Venzo jump out.

TAU: Sensei, are you okay!?

ZERO: (smiling) Heh. I will be…

-cut to-

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. REPLIFORCE AIR SHIPS – Air Space – DAY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Storm Owl's Air Ship, the Commander of the Air Force is alerted to an attack from his home screen. He widens his eyes, lets out a hoot and com-links over to his second in command.

STORM OWL: Skiver! The Maverick Hunters have initiated an Air Strike on the remnants of our Navy! Get down there with a few Raidens and make them regret it.

SPIRAL PEGASUS: (o.s, filtered) Yes sir!

- Cut to -

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- EXT. OCEAN PORT – Gang Fight – DAY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TAU: Come on, Sir. Lets get out of here.

ZERO: (smiling) Don’t have to tell me twice.

Suddenly the Maverick Hunter Jet bends and twists under heavy winds until it suddenly explodes.

SPIRAL PEGASUS: (o.s) I think not.

Zero looks up at the shiny Repliforce Pegasus in anger.

ZERO: Wh-aaat!??

Venzo turns around with a shock.

VENZO: Reeeeeen!

When the smoke fades, we find a burnt and bleeding Ren, floating in mid-air by his back thrusters while an arm favors his right shoulder.

REN: Gaaaaahd Damn it…

STONE ROOK: Noooooo!

Stone Rook, Burn Bishop and Rayven catch up just in time to bear witness to their Leader's injury.

SPIRAL PEGASUS: You pesky Hunters have made an unsanctioned attack on our Forces for the last time.

BURN BISHOP: Oh Great! Now we're all stuck here!!!

TAKUMA: (hurt, sad) At least… We have company…

Spiral Pegasus, a group of four Raiden Armor Soldiers, a small group of Hornet Riders and one King Poseidon all look on at the stranded Maverick Hunters.

ZERO: Fuck that. We have to go.. NOW! Come HELL OR HIGH WATER!!!

Without thinking, Zero rushes over to the Raidens with his Saber out. Tau and Venzo quickly follow him with their blade and boomerangs ready. Takuma carefully remains behind.

ZERO: (shouting, resilient) NEW PLAN!!! Cut them down and Bail!!!!

The Shinobi Hunters collectively run after the Air Force and Naval Forces.

A few feet higher in the air, Burn Bishop sets an aura of flame around his body, Rayven puts her hands together in a triangular fashion to form a charging beam, while Stone Rook creates an exterior of Solid Rock around his body. They all join the fray and follow Zero’s lead.

ZERO: Just.. gotta.. Make it to their Ride Chasers! And pray that somehow our teleporters get fixed in the meantime.

Both armies run and fly after each other as they inch closer.

ALL: (battle cry) HAAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!!

- Fade to White –

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INT. CYBER SPACE – Peacock's Server – DAY -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

- Fade in -

Amidst a white screen, X's consciousness forms a Data Body, which teleports into Cyberspace. Quickly, the white space loads into a mechanized room.

DAVID: (o.s, far, hollow) Okay, X. Open them!

X barely makes out the words, knowing that they came from the real world. Despite doing this before, it is hard for him to imagine that he is truly resting in his Host Pod, while his mind is connected to Cyber Space. He lets out a quick breath and opens his eyes.

X: (gasping) I'm in!

-Freeze Frame. Grainy Effect.-

NARRATOR: (o.s, v.o) After being stuck in a strange Laboratory over night, X has finally come home to face a new challenge. While Zero is now the one, stuck in 'Enemy Territory'. But are the Repliforce really enemies?? Or will this Feud with between the Maverick Hunters and Repliforce blow over after a discussion? Iris seems to think so. In the meantime, I can only hope that X will be able to solve his Network problems soon. His best friend's life may depend on it…

-Fade to Black-

#MMX Fan Fics #Season IV #Episode 8 #Let Sleeping Dogs Die #Zero vs. Jet Stingray #X comes home #New Cyber Mission #Start!

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mariellemichelle-blog · 7 years

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Mighty Mighty And The Ten Best Twee Songs Ever!

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Mighty Mighty And The Ten Best Twee Songs Ever!

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Those of us who spent our adolescent years poring over coffee stained copies of The Catcher In The Rye or Tess of the d’Ubervilles whilst bitterly rueing the fact that not a single girl in our school, college or workplace had the good sense to notice the painfully shy bookworm sitting tongue tied beside them, often took refuge in a particular form of popular music. Spurned and tormented, we squandered our teenage years in the self-imposed exile of our back bedrooms, consoling ourselves there by listening to a flutter of indie bands that had somehow cornered the market in self-pitying heartbreak and juvenile angst. We took a perverse pleasure in the confessions of these kindred spirits, as they meekly extolled the trials and tribulations of loveless lives that mirrored our own lachrymose existence.

The Smiths, in this respect, were beyond comparison, and in Morrissey they possessed a songwriter without equal in the miserablist pop pantheon. There were other bands, though, that had plenty to say on the subject of unrequited love. A whole genre of indie-pop, whether you call it twee, shambling or C-86, after the NME’s legendary mix-tape, was absolutely mired in it. Whilst bands like The Wedding Present (and for me David Gedge was the unofficial spokesman for the legion of shy-hearted boys who couldn’t summon the courage to front-up at the Friday night disco) enjoyed a lengthy spell in the limelight, many of their C-86 compatriots simply faded into obscurity. In some cases, no doubt, this was a blessing in disguise. However, bands like The Servants and Birmingham’s Mighty Mighty surely deserved to be more than a footnote in indie-pop history.

Pop Can: The Definitive Collection 1986-1988, on Cherry Red, attempts to set the record straight. Comprising all of Mighty Mighty’s excellent singles, B-sides and EPs alongside a few choice cuts from their debut album, the otherwise underwhelming Sharks, with a handful of tracks from the ‘lost’ second album The Betamax Tapes (finally released in 2013), Pop Can certainly does what it says on the tin, gathering together the best moments of this short-lived combo.

The album, whilst not arranged in chronological order, does kick off with debut single “Everybody Knows the Monkey” a jittery affair that sets the tone (Orange Juice and a dash of vox organ), for the frothy content of Pop Can. Other highlights of side one include the souped up single “Built Like a Car”, which reached no. 6 in the Independent Chart, their highest ranking effort, and the supremely catchy follow up, “Law”. Thankfully it’s the C-86 version that appears here, rather than the inferior “dance remix” that Chapter released on 12inch in late 1987

Side two commences with “Is There Anyone Out There for Me”, which probably remains the band’s best known song, reaching no. 44 in John Peel’s hallowed festive fifty of 1986. This is also the Mighty Mighty song that unsurprisingly appears on Cherry Red’s definitive compilation, Scared To Get Happy, The Story of Indie Music 1980-1989. The song boasts a terrifically effervescent chorus that also captures the brutality of adolescent loneliness, with Hugh McGuinness haplessly pleading for true love to come his way-

‘Is there anyone out there for me, is anyone else lonely / I can’t stand another summer of if only’.

Other stand-outs on side two are “Let’s Call It Love”, and a pair of tracks from The Betamax Tapes; “Touch of the Sun” and particularly “Unsteady” which brings to mind the literate/sophisticated pop of Lloyd Cole or Prefab Sprout. Whilst lyricist Mick Geoghegan may not quite rank alongside Cole or Paddy McAloon, “Unsteady” does signpost the more mature direction the band would surely have travelled in, had they continued –

‘Do you remember that letter of mine / When I changed my mind every other line / Now that I’m sure, will you condescend / to be introduced, as my unsteady girlfriend’.

Rather strangely, Mighty Mighty went on to noticeable posthumous success in Japan, whilst remaining prophets without honour in their own land.

Well, we’re all big boys now! Decades separate us from our former, self-pitying selves. Long gone are the days when David Gedge’s plaintive ‘aaaaaargh’ of despair reverberated through Leeds city centre streets at closing time. Even when taken out of its original context, though, the music still stands the test of time. Pop Can is full to brimming with sweet-toothed vignettes, fizzing over with tales of lost love that you can sing along to. Ultimately, this is a truly worthwhile trip down memory lane and a fitting tribute to one of the genre’s lesser known practitioners.

While we’re on the subject of the genre that dare not speak its name, here are my top ten twee related songs.

1. The Sun a Small Star: The Servants

The distrait, dreamy vocal, the sepia-tinted harmonies, the golden splashes of guitar that rained down on verse and chorus alike should all have ensured that “The Sun a Small Star” became a staple of mainstream radio for decades to come much in the manner of The La’s “There She Goes”. However, the track, which was taken from the sublime E.P of the same name, flatlined on release, managing just a solitary week on the Indie Charts reaching no. 47 in November 1986.

2. Is There Anyone Out There for Me: Mighty Mighty

The song that sound-tracked a succession of lovesick summers in rain-swept South Wales as Thatcher battered the valleys into submission. The dry humour, the self-pitying sixth-form poetry, and a star-spangled tune that still manages to send shivers scuttling down the spine, as well as bringing a tear to the weary eye!

3. Almost Prayed: The Weather Prophets

The sun-dappled guitar licks, alone, were enough to give many of the fair-skinned wallflowers who bought this, The Weather Prophets’ debut single, a serious case of sunburn and the passing decades have done little to diminish its luminescent beauty.

The group, formed by Peter Astor and Dave Morgan, after The Loft had raised the roof for the last time, went on to achieve minor chart success when “She Comes from the Rain” peaked at no. 62 in March ’87. Their second album, Mayflower, from which this track is lifted, is arguably the best album of a sub-genre that (Wedding Present aside) can’t be said to have produced anything approaching a classic 33rpm record.

4. The Word around Town: Westlake*

Having dismissed his Servants, David Westlake released one eponymous Mini-LP, through Creation records, before decamping for a career in academia. “The Word around Town” is the record which reserves Westlake’s place on the shortlist of best British lyricists of the decade, alongside the likes of David Gedge, Robert Lloyd, Elvis Costello and Morrissey. A masterpiece of literate pop which includes this wry piece of self-analysis:

“The word around town among those for whom nothing is sacred / Is that the Emperor’s clothes don’t exist but he’s beautiful naked”.

* Be careful to avoid the demo version which is currently doing the rounds on the Small Time compilation.

5. My Favourite Dress: The Wedding Present

“Some rare delight in Manchester town / It took six hours before you let me down / to see it all in a drunken kiss / A strangers hand on my favourite dress”.

David Gedge, the George Clooney of Indie pop, may baulk at the company he is asked to keep here. There was always something fundamentally more muscular and unwholesome about this angry young man’s amatory musings, allied to the bellicose guitar bursts that characterised songs like “Brassneck”, that put their C-86 compatriots to shame. For a start, there was the sense that Gedge’s dysfunctional relationships were actually with real women, rather than the imaginary girlfriends his fey counterparts and more often than not, his devoted followers were unhealthily fantasising over.

The band released two classic albums, George Best and Bizarro, before the law of diminishing returns took over. Nevertheless, they enjoyed spectacular chart success, racking up a half-century of hit singles between 1988 and 2005.

6. Pristine Christine: The Sea Urchins

This jubilantly jaunty single was the debut release on Sarah records (unofficial home of twee) and spent six weeks on the Indie charts. Their love affair with Sarah was short lived, though, and they sought solace in the enticing arms of Cheree records in the fleshpots of London, before splitting up for good in the summer of 1991.

7. She’s Always Hiding: The Servants

A passively beautiful pop song, posited somewhere between Galaxie 500 and Real Estate, with a closing guitar solo that drifts along languorously, like an Indian Summer, before dissolving in the shimmering haze of our subconscious. Why David Westlake traded in the sublimely graceful sound of these early Servants singles for the more claustrophobic tones of their dowdy albums will forever remain one of pops most puzzling career moves.

8. Untidy Towns: The Lucksmiths

Although latecomers to the “anorak” scene (the Melbourne based combo were only formed in 1993), the group can lay claim to having produced the most consistent body of work the genre yielded on either side of the world. These bashful boys chalked up eleven, mostly fine, albums before parting company in 2009. Influenced by all the usual suspects (The Smiths, Orange Juice and The Go-Betweens) they also acknowledged a debt to the bittersweet love songs of Britain’s most underrated wordsmith, Billy Bragg. “Untidy Towns” is a random selection, there are over a hundred genteel vignettes as heart-warming as this one tucked away in their backpack.

9. Fabulous Friend: The Field Mice

If New Order hadn’t discovered Arthur Baker and the New York club scene, as they struggled to come to terms with the death of Ian Curtis and Joy Division, they would have been forever frozen in time as The Field Mice! Dinky little tunes like “Sensitive” and “Emma’s House” couldn’t knock the froth off a pint of bitter, but that’s all part of the band’s frangible charm.

10. I’m In Love with a Girl Who Doesn’t Know I Exist: Another Sunny Day

The title alone merits its inclusion on this list, managing as it does to sum up the whole raison d’etre of the genre in one indisputably sorrowful sentence. Harvey Williams, the young Werther of twee, deserves recognition, though, for his work as ASD and as a guitarist with their Sarah records’ stable mates The Field Mice.

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