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putschki1969 · 1 year

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December 25: Wakana Activities & 「Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～」

Note: Okay, I know this is long overdue but I have simply not found the time and motivation to write up a detailed report ever since coming back from Japan. The trip itself was quite exhausting due to a busy schedule and being sick for almost the entire duration of my stay T_T. Then I made the huge mistake of going straight back to work on the 27th so I have just felt utterly drained for the past few weeks. It’s a huge shame because I really didn’t want to wait this long to write down my impressions. I mean, it’s hardly a “first impression” anymore if my thoughts have been marinating in my brain for nearly a month. But hey, better late than never, right? If anyone is interested, here’s a link to my December 17 report. I am definitely planning to write reports of some of my other activities but who knows how long that’s gonna take. Please don’t hold your breath. Without further ado, let’s get to it 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

Before the Live

In the morning I went to visit Koishikawa Korakuen with a fellow Kalafina fan (Akuma from Taiwan in case some of you know her). I had already spent all of Saturday doing various Wakana activities with her so it only seemed fitting that we would dedicate the morning of the 25th to a lovely Wakana activity as well. Wakana visited this gorgeous landscape garden back in April 2022 (Source:Wakana Instagram). Koishikawa Korakuen (小石川後楽園) is actually one of Tokyo's oldest and best Japanese gardens so I was excited to check it out. While the late winter scenery is probably the least spectacular, I can still recommend going there if you are ever in Tokyo and want an escape from the hectic city life. It was a gorgeous, sunny day so I got to take some lovely pictures and thankfully, some of the autumn colours still remained. After spending a couple of hours there and basking in the winter sun, I got a little antsy so we decided to head to the venue. In the past, most fans would try to arrive as early as possible to line up for the merch sale. However, lots of things have changed since the pandemic so venues actually discourage people from lining up early in advance. Despite knowing that we wouldn’t be allowed to line up yet, I still wanted to know the venue’s exact location and check whether anyone had arrived yet. When we finally got there, no one was there except us and the door staff told us to come back in two hours XD It was super hard to find a café or restaurant near Kioi Hall so we had to walk all the way back to Yotsuya Station. I felt really sorry for Akuma because I dragged her back and forth, she must have been so exhausted. Guess I can’t help but be one of those annoying people who are low-key control freaks and who won’t leave anything to chance. I’d rather be 2 hours early than even 1 second too late. Anyways, at a tiny shopping mall, we found a small café and had some cake and coffee. We went back to the venue once we saw the first few tweets of other fans starting to line up. Most people got there around the same time so it quickly became quite crowded in front of the venue about 45 minutes before the live. I am glad we ended up being pretty far ahead in the line because I don’t think the people in the back had enough time left to buy anything. It took quite a while for staff members to check our tickets and temperature. Everyone was also taking their sweet time deciding on what merch to get so there were literally only a few minutes left till the live once I had bought everything (I got the shirt/pamphlet set with the postcard, the pink gloves, the little drawstring bag and the keyholder). All items are still available in Wakana’s Official Online Shop so be sure to get them.

General Impressions

Venue: This was my first time at Kioi Hall. It’s located in a nice area near Yotsuya Station. Venue, You have to walk around 10 minutes on Sophia Dori which is a lovely thoroughfare. I hear it’s super pretty during cherry blossom season. After Opera City, this was only my second time in a classical hall in Japan. Not as big as Opera City Hall but equally impressive in terms of acoustics and grandeur. But oh boy, they really could have lowered the temperatures, it was boiling hot inside. I don’t know how people managed to sit there with their winter coats fom beginning to end. I was literally melting and I didn’t even wear a warm winter jacket. Kioi Hall is a rather intimate venue with a capacity of about 800 seats. None of the balcony seats were occupied iirc but we managed to fill out pretty much the entire central ground floor. So yeah, definitely not a sold-out concert but very well attended nonetheless (which obviously made me happy because I still recall her Voice tour where they had picked venues that were way too big for Wakana’s fanbase). Outfit: Her dress didn’t impress me all that much to be honest. The bold red looked lovely on her but the basic A-line was a little too plain for my taste. No lace, no embroidery, no frills, no layers, no sparkles... I am also not a big fan of straps when it comes to evening dresses. Wakana has the most beautiful shoulders, it’s a crime to not show them off. In my opinion, she should always wear something that is off-shoulder, preferably a majestic ball gown. The highlight of the dress was definitely the back (as seen on the image above). Whenever she turned around to have a little sip of her water we were blessed with the most gorgeous sight.*drools* Wakana truly has a beautiful back and it’s rare that we get to see so much of it XD. Ticket System: As you may know, I’ve had a few issues with SKIYAKI but at the end of the day I have to admit that it is an extremely convenient service. All steps were foreigner friendly and I didn’t run into any issues with the app. Still, I can’t recommend it with a clear conscience because of what happened with my credit card T_T As you know, I got a Christmas Special Fan Club ticket and I was pretty lucky with my assigned seat. Row 4, smack in the middle with a perfect view at Wakana. Thankfully no tall people in front of me.Fun fact, right in front of me there was a woman who wore one of Wakana’s dresses, the EXACT same one I had brought to Japan with the intention of wearing it at the concert. However, a few days earlier I had found Wakana’s red checkered pants and ended up buying them so of course I couldn’t help but wear them to the live. Still, I found it funny that someone had the same idea. She also wore Kalafina’s pinky ring so she was clearly a super obsessed fan.I am still wondering what her username is on Twitter. I guess she must be following me if she knows about all this fashion stuff. Arghhh, I wish I had approached her after the live but as always, I was way too socially inept... Cameras: I am pretty sure I mentioned it already but there were a lot of cameras all across the hall. Not just the tiny ones which are used for news reports and such. They had a whole-ass camera crew on-site. No idea what they are planning to do. Either we will be getting a broadcast sponsored by BS Fuji or they will use the footage for a home video release. They might also add the footage (or at least parts of it) as bonus content for Wakana’s 3rd album. Let’s keep our fingers crossed. There’s no way they hired all those cameramen and equipment for nothing. Vocals: For the most part, Wakana was in great shape. It’s such a pleasure to hear her in a classical hall accompanied by strings and piano. And honestly, a couple of these acoustic arrangements were out of this world. So freaking good! I feel like her microphone was maybe a bit too loud at times or the instruments were simply too quiet but it didn’t really take away from my enjoyment. Plus, they can always fix that with a bit of studio magic if they really end up releasing the concert. Nevertheless, I’d really like to have more strings in future concerts, just to add a little more oomph. Maybe I am the only one but I feel like I need at least a string quartet XD Setlist: Overall, I was quite happy with the setlist since it contained all three of her new songs and some of my faves but I probably would have made some changes if the choice had been up to me. Can’t lie but I was hoping and praying for “breathing” as intro. Instead we got “Yakusoku no Yoake” which is always nice, don’t get me wrong, but meh, we already have a performance of it on DVD/BD and let’s be real here, “breathing” is the superior song, at least in my opinion. Am I the only one who is kinda growing tired of “Ai ni Dekiru Koto wa mada aru kai“? I feel like the song doesn’t have a standard ballad structure so it’s quite hard for me to get into it, especially considering its crazy length. Personally, I would have much preferred her to sing “Inochi no Namae” or “Kimi wo Nosete” from her Cover Album. Also had my issues with “Nagareboshi”. I don’t outright dislike this song but it has always been a bit of a snoozer so naturally. I wasn’t overly excited when she announced she would be singing it as her final song. I mean, it kinda works as a wrap-up for the evening but I would have honestly killed to hear an acoustic version of “Ai no Hana”, it’s literally the perfect winter song!! Such a missed opportunity, I feel robbed.T_T Last but not least. let’s talk about her Kalafina song choice. Wakana often manages to pick my least favourite Kala-songs but I realise that I am pretty much alone with that opinion, especially regarding “Kimi no Gin no Niwa” which is obviously a fan-favourite. To her credit, she pulled it off well but ughhh, I cannot stand that song. I am still salivating when I think about her 2018 Symphony Orchestra Concert where she performed “Kimi ga Hikari ni Kaete Iku”. Who do I have to bribe to get something like this on DVD/BD??!!

Song-specific thoughts

M01 約束の夜明け(Yakusoku no Yoake): As mentioned earlier, I was low-key hoping for “breathing” but I really like “Yakusoku no Yoake“ so it’s not like I was disappointed or anything. It might even be one of my favourite tracks from her 1st album. The beginning always blows me away, it’s by far the best part of the song and Wakana knocks it out of the park every single time. However, I think that some sections of the song aren’t particularly flattering to Wakana’s vocals. I know for a fact that she can handle much higher parts but I guess it’s the singing style she keeps using for this song hat makes it sound like she is out of her comfort zone. Oh well, she still does a decent job of powering through those sections. Overall, I quite enjoyed the performance and thought it was a fitting intro.

M02 442: Absolutely blown away by the acoustic arrangement and Wakana’s powerful performance. They better release the video footage soon because I am dying to hear this again. I am telling you, she SLAYED! “442″ is undoubtedly one of her best songs that highlights all of her strengths as a singer so it’s always a joy to listen to it.

M03 オレンジ (Orange): Yet another lovely arrangement. Much better than the studio version if you ask me. I can’t remember any details but I definitely liked it.

M04 夕焼け (Yuuyake): Initially I did not care much for this song but every time I hear it live, I fall more and more in love with it. It’s just so precious.

M05 myself: Oh yes!! Jackpot! This was utterly beautiful. It’s the type of ballad Wakana excels in, when all that tragedy is laid on thick and you are being hit right in the feels. Hearing it in a classical setting makes it even more heart-wrenching.

M06 時には昔の話を（Toki ni ha Mukashi no Hanashi wo): This will never get old. There’s a reason they chose this song to promote Wakana’s cover album and it’s because it’s such a perfect fit for her.

M07 愛にできることはまだあるかい（Ai ni Dekiru Koto wa mada aru kai): I guess I already shared my thoughts about this. I think Wakana really likes the song so I feel kinda bad for not being into it. Maybe it’s because I never watched the film? The lyrics are lovely but the song just doesn’t resonate with me. Or rather, I have to be in the right mood for it to resonate with me. Isolated, I believe it can be quite powerful. Despite its understated nature there is a bit of a build-up after all. But it falls a little flat for me if you place the song right after a bunch of other ballads.

M08 君の銀の庭（Kimi no Gin no Niwa): Well, it was unfortunately the wrong Kalafina-“Kimi~” song for me but hey, what can you do about it? Whatever my thoughts might be about this particular song, I truly appreciate the fact that Wakana still makes a conscious effort to include Kalafina pieces in her setlists because on the one hand, she wants to honour that legacy and on the other hand, she knows that it will make her audience happy. During the MC leading up to the performance she actually explained how picking a Kalafina song is always the most difficult part of putting her setlists together. Overall, it was a solid performance. She did quite well covering the other parts.

M09 Winter Wonderland: I definitely did not think that Wakana would sing this. Maybe it’s because I didn’t grow up with them but I have a bit of an aversion to most Anglo-American Christmas songs (including this one) so when she announced the title of the upcoming song, I felt more than a little disappointed. Especially since I had no idea how it would fit her singing style. However, I am happy to report that I was proven wrong. This far exceeded my expectations and it actually turned out to be a very enjoyable performance. I would say this was only the second song of the night (after “442″) where we got to hear a more fierce and daring approach by Wakana. Still not a fan of the song but damn, Wakana’s version sounds good!

M10 Silent Night: Now we are talking. A Christmas song I actually like. And as expected, Wakana nailed it. I mean, she was literally born to sing songs like this. With everyone always comparing Wakana’s singing to an angel’s voice falling down from the heavens it’s only natural to think that she would do an amazing job with Christmas carols and hymns. A little nitpicking though, I wasn’t fully invested in the arrangement which may or may not have been a bit too pop-ish, I don’t know.

M11 標 (Shirushi): I was really hoping that we would get to hear this brand-new song and I am so glad that my wish came true. Knowing the entire backstory to this and having Wakana share a few bits and pieces again during the concert really made it very hard for me not to cry like a little baby. For those who don’t know yet, this is basically a daughter’s declaration of love to her father (Wakana’s father passed away not too long ago). This song was more or less custom-made for this occasion so it hits a little closer to home than others. While I cannot relate at all to a strong father-daughter relationship, this still hit me right in the feels. I did expect something woeful with heavy strings but it was actually quite understated. Filled with a lot of gratitude and pride. I wish I could say more about it but it’s so hard for me to recall details of a song that I have only listened to once. If I had to compare it, I would probably say it comes closest to “Ato Hitotsu” as far as the overall sound is concerned. It is longer though.

M12 明日を夢見て歌う (Asu wo Yume Mite Utau): I was of course super excited to also finally listen to Wakana’s other new song. This however was a bit of a letdown if I am being honest. It was written by Satoshi Takebe whose collabs with Wakana are always a bit of a hit-and-miss for me. It’s like “Kimi dake no Stage” 2.0. If you enjoy that song you will also like “Asu wo Yume Mite Utau“ I think. The emotion is all there in the lyrics and I can feel what kind of message Wakana is trying to convey to us but meh, the song doesn’t quite hit the mark for me. Fun fact: For the longest time I thought it was “Ashita” in the title but it’s actually “Asu”.

M13 Flag: Another absolutely gorgeous acoustic arrangement that really blew me away. Right up there with “442″ and “Winter Wonderland” in terms of fierceness.

M14 Happy Hello Day: Can’t believe this was the first time hearing the song live at a venue. Experiencing it right there while breathing the same air is so much different than just watching it on a live stream. As much as I appreciate the influx of online broadcasts, nothing beats the euphoria of actually being there at the venue and enjoying a song that makes you feel so incredibly connected with your favourite artist. I truly had a blast during this performance.

EC01 記憶の人 (Kioku no Hito): What a pleasant surprise. I am very much in love with this song and it’s definitely among my favourite Wakana solo songs so I can never get enough of it. Beautiful performance.

EC02 magic moment: A bit on the fence about it. We all know that I am not the biggest fan of the song’s structure, it starts really melodious with its symphonic grandeur but then it somehow become quite messy to my ears. I can’t explain it very well but there is just a lack of flow. However, that doesn’t mean that I cannot appreciate Wakana’s vocal prowess in it. Just thinking back to her performance during the “magic moment” live tour gives me goosebumps (although I obviously only ever experienced it on blu-ray). I would say that performance still remains her best one yet. This one wasn’t quite as epic but maybe that’s just because of the added studio magic in the blu-ray.

Fan Club Exclusive Part

Very happy to see that almost everyone had bought a special Christmas ticket. At the end of the main part of the concert, audience members were asked to leave the hall if they didn’t have a fan club ticket and only a handful of people actually left. Still surprised that they just trusted us to be honest about this. Typical Japanese mindset I guess. I mean, people could have just remained at their seats, no one would have checked their tickets again. However, I think they had most people with regular tickets seated in the back area so it was easier for staff members to figure out who was required to leave. At this point none of us knew what to expect but I had a feeling we would get a special encore. When Wakana and her musicians returned to the stage in their cute Christmas getup I was pleasantly surprised to realise that we would be getting a little talk corner. Mind you, it wasn’t anything super special, just some random small talk among them, they all basically just shared some Christmas anecdotes but hey, it was fun. I vaguely remember Wakana talking about trying to find the perfect colour for a new winter coat but she ended up with a boring grey one XD I had almost given up hope that they would perform another song when their talk just kept going on and on. It was already way past the scheduled time for the live to end so I thought we would run out of time. But then Wakana surprised us all by announcing that they still had a short performance in store for us. Until the very last moment I had hoped that I would get to hear “Ai no Hana” but alas, it wasn’t meant to be. As mentioned earlier, I wasn’t too thrilled about “Nagareboshi” but it was a fitting send-off. I believe everyone thought that this would be it but when we left the hall, we were all given a paper bag containing even more awesome goodies. Our Christmas present from Wakana was made up of a postcard with a handwritten message and signature as well as a pretty glass fitting perfectly into her series of previously released glasses. *weeee* All of this was definitely worth the extra money. If you ever wonder if it’s worth going for pricier tickets, here’s your answer: It absolutely is! You typically get a lot of bang for your buck so always go for the expensive option if you have the means. And I am actually so glad that the Christmas present didn’t turn out to be a fugly t-shirt, I am just not a t-shirt person.

After the Live

One of my Twitter followers had arranged a dinner/after-party with a bunch of fellow Kala-fans. While I am most definitely not very fond of large gatherings like this, it wasn’t too bad. We had some tables reserved at a Chinese restaurant nearby. In celebration of Wakana’s live, we wanted to eat a ton of gyoza and xiao long bao. It was delicious! Sadly I didn’t get to eat all that much because I left quite early (I mean, it felt late to me but who knows how long the others stayed). I was flying back to Vienna the following day so I wanted to get at least a few decent hours of sleep.

#kalafina #wakana #report #Wakana Classics 2022 ～Christmas Special～#wakana christmas special #long text post #I just cannot shut up #this took me a whole month #hope I didn't bore anyone to death

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fionamk1001 · 2 years

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Time to pitch in my two cents and say this, especially since I just bought some merch from his store.

Techno was one of the greatest people I ever had the pleasure of watching on YouTube. He had never truly demeaned another for their gaming skills, but instead did it in a way that allowed others to laugh and see the silliness of it all. He never, not once, treated himself like he was above everyone else, and he was always incredibly patient with his fanbase. He always followed in step with our chaotic energy and played it off like a pro, especially in terms of his character.

When chat was revealed to be voices in his head, it was like we were brought into the loop of his character. He was experiencing everything and we were along for the ride, and those times, lurking in his chat and joining in and being a chaotic shit, will always be one of the best times of my life, times I will continue to look back on no matter how much I end up crying my eyes out:

I know people like myself have followed this icon of a man for a long, long time and many are at a ultimatum of what to do now.

I say: if you want to continue making fan-pieces for his character, weather it be art, music, or fanfiction, then go right ahead! There is no shame in continuing to write or draw for him, because he would want his fanbase to keep being happy. Even now with some of my stuff, I’m starting to write it again because it’s what makes me happy. I can finally feel settled knowing that this legacy of his has grown to such a degree that I know his fans will never stop loving him and that he’ll never stop loving us.

So if you have stories for this man, write them. You want do a piece of fanart, draw it. You want to compose of piece of music centered around him (like Syndicate or Voices, or Injustice), put it out there. All because doing all of those things, are what fans do and it makes them feel happy. Never listen to those who tell you to stop doing what you love doing, even if the person it’s centered one is gone, because here’s the reality:

Technoblade is not truly dead.

He will remain alive as long as his legacy lives and that legacy lives through so many people (12 million, in fact). It lives through his friends, his family, his colleagues, and his most of all, his fans. His memory will continue to live, through the fan content we make and the streams and videos that we’re still able to watch to this day. It’s ok to be a fan, especially to him, because you wouldn’t be the only one. You, the one reading this right now, along with so many other people, are helping keep his memory alive, helping keep his legacy alive.

Alright, rant and sentimental speech over. All of what I said rings true and don’t let anyone think that you’re not able to do what makes you happy. Hopefully soon, I get my PasserinexDSMP fic done soon so I can post it. There is going to be an OC of mine making an appearance, but I hope it turns out to be a good read regardless.

Thank you guys and have a stellar day! ❤️❤️❤️

#technoblade

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iliketrainmen · 1 year

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Hey fellas, story time! So, I went to a concert I bought tickets for many months ago tonight! It was spectacular, of course, but I wouldn't be making a post if everything went right.

So, apparently, concerts have opening acts. I myself would not know this because, well, I don't go out much. This was my first concert. I ended up missing the first act of the openers because I had forgotten to get pre-paid parking and had to drive around for 30 or so minutes looking for a spot. Didn't think that would be a problem, but here's where things get difficult.

I have vision impairment. Bad eyesight, terrible even. My glasses broke a while back and I haven't had the money to fix them so I've been rawdogging it. It's not terrible enough to effect travel, Google maps has been a fucking lovely companion on many outings, but you know what it does effect? My ability to see people. I've never seen actual pictures of the band I was going to see either, so this was my first time "seeing" them. I have to rely on things that stand out about people in order to recognize them; since I was so far away in terms of seating, I could only recognize the main singers hairstyle and black splotch of whatever tattoo he had. Only recognize one of the girl singers for her frame and long, black hair.

Cut to after the show, I'm standing in line for merch because, well, already spent way too much money on tickets, I can only be pushed so far into the grave when at the bottom. Find out they're doing pictures! My heart races, they look like the people on stage!!!

After getting my merchandise which was a sick looking t-shirt, I immediately get in line for pictures. Feel my excitement overcome my social anxiety for once and cause me to babble to these people I've listened to all of my life; talk about my first song I've ever heard from them and when I started listening (2014-2015ish). Get pictures, get a signed postcard, in and out. I end up uploading pictures to a discord server I'm in with friends because I'm absolutely brimming with joy at meeting the artists behind so many of my favorite songs.

And then my good friend, let's call her Cam, steps in. The next words she says haunts me.

You know how I missed one of the bands in the opening act? Turns out that was actually them. I just couldn't tell because 1) I hadn't seen them preform so I didn't have an idea of what they looked like and 2) they looked similar to the people I saw in the main performance. Mind cuts to me babbling to them about being such a big fan of their work. Embarrassment. Humiliation. Shame.

What's the main moral of this story? No fucking clue, but I'm keeping myself holed up in my room until I get new glasses because holy fuck that's embarrassing. I'm just glad they were so chill about it. Their band name is Transviolet by the way. Music is very good. Unlike my vision. Check them out.

#life update #feel free to laugh at me in replies/reblogs #im genuinely horrified at this and i feel so terrible #transviolet

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creativeashproductions · 3 years

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Healed by the Music // Luke Patterson

Summary: After the fallout of reckless behaviour and forced to return back home the reader had rediscovered her love for music. Close with her family once more her band Graveyard Petals receives an offer that could turn around the band’s tarnished reputation. The only issue is not wanting to hurt those close by leaving.

Warnings: Swearing, talk of death, angst, and fluff

Words: 3.3k

A/N: The second and final part to a lovely little series I had grown to love, the first part is Drowning From the Past. I came up with the band name so if you want to use it send an ask and we talk about it. This is set after the first season and Ray can now see them after the whole Golden glow thing.

Part One - Drowning in the Past

Masterlist

In the months you retreated back to Los Feliz the band had grown exponentially bringing in more revenue with merch. The social media followers grew as well with the hope of a new photo posted of you and the band. The most recent teased new music coming.

Speaking of music, it seemed to pour out of your body into two notebooks unknown to both your sister and her band—the band of ghosts that become massive fans of Graveyard Petals when Julie played full-length debut album Dahlia. Luke had even collaborated on a song for your band; his name the first of writing credits.

Now, seven months after the shameful return the band had gotten the offer of a lifetime to open for 5 Seconds of Summer on a world tour. The issue came with talking with Julie, and the guys gave you had shown your father you had healed.

"Hey, what's been up with you lately?" Julie asked, seating herself in the swing right beside you. Her hair pulled away from her youthful face.

Whenever you looked at Julie, you saw Mom with the gorgeous hair and gleeful smile that brightened a room. Even on your mom's death bed, the room flared with that same smile in every picture in albums and on the walls. Sometimes you swore the piano in the studio bath in the warm light brought by the one person that taught you and Julie to play.

"I've been thinking." You simply spoke eyes focused on the park that had been a massive part of your life.

Every year Rose and Ray Molina had brought their three children to the very park the two had met years before. Rose would bring flowers to a specific bench, and every time you asked why she had the same answer.

Little Y/N was a precocious child inquisitive of the world around her held at an arms life by her parents. Skilled at singing and natural affinity for music it worried Rose, in her eldest child she recognized something. The intense passion and talent that a particular guitarist had once displayed on a stage that would have changed everything.

"It a place of absolute joy and acceptance. Four legends came together in front of that very bench."

Rose would never know about the place had Bobby not subconsciously led her there for the first time mere hours after the devastating loss. He had collapsed to his knees, pleading for his best friends, his brothers to return. In broken sobs, he had told Rose that this park, this bench was the first place Sunset Curve played. Band fresh and still unnamed they had gotten confident enough to set up near the bench to start building a following.

Now it was eight years after the first visit with Bobby who started going by Trevor a year after the loss. The fresh-faced boy that had flirted with Rose had changed, and at that time, Rose wasn't sure it was a good or bad thing.

"It was the guys Mom left the flowers for." Julie started following your eyesight to the bench that had a fresh bouquet. A single dahlia in the middle of the flowers for your mother.

"Yeah." You softly spoke, turning to focus on the girl that had healed through music. Seeing how grownup Julie had become hurt your heart. Julie wasn't a child anymore, and you wished she never went through what you did for months.

The two Molina girls sat in comfortable silence with minds thinking the most opposite things possible.

"5 Seconds of Summer is going on tour. We should try and score some tickets when they come to LA." Julie spoke, raising one leg to rest her arm on it. The high waisted light washed jeans with paintings on them.

Your heart clenched at her excitement for a band you both adored for years.

"I know. 5SOS gave Lucy an offer for Graveyard Petals to open for them worldwide. The others are down to join, but if I'm not ready, we won't." You avoided the brown eyes burning your cheek for a second.

Julie's warm hand clasped yours in hers to jog to your car you had bought with your first paycheque. Unable to figure out her state on the possible tour, you quietly drove back home with no sound other than breathing.

"Hey!" Luke beamed as his two favourite girls, came wandering into the studio with pensive expressions and stooped shoulders.

Alex picked up on their moods almost instantly, "Are you okay?"

Your mouth opened before the loud yell of Flynn cut off your opportunity to respond and a slap smack to the back of your head. The sharp cry of pain stumbled from your chapped lips and Flynn's frustration rolling off her form.

"Flynn!" You sharply called rubbing the stinging spot with a glare outmatched by Flynn's fire. The look unlike you had ever seen on the girl with a sharp sense of fashion and unapologetic personality.

"You got asked by 5 Seconds of Summer to tour the world as an opening act!" Flynn elaborated at your confused expression, "Jules texted me. You need to do this! The amount of questions of if GP will return is outrageous! In the last two days, the band's Instagram got five thousand new followers."

The ghostly trio stayed silent as Flynn reprimanded her best friend's older sister with crazy talent. Flynn was your self appointed biggest fan with buying the first album at the store to demanding to wear newly designed merch before the drop.

"I'm enjoying being at home. I'm on good terms with Julie and Carlos, Dad doesn't look like he's gonna drop dead in disappointment when he sees me." You shrugged focusing on the discoloured mark on the ground.

"It's okay to be scared." Alex supplied smiling as Flynn nodded her thanks as the tall drummer stepped in.

After escaping the Hollywood Ghost Club (HGC), a handful of people gained the ability to see them, including Flynn. It was rather refreshing for the girl to finally interact with the guys with Julie being the middle man.

"I'm not-"You cut yourself off at the disbelief on Julie's face with her arms crossed just as your mother had done, "I nearly lost myself in the bottom of a bottle. I fucked up my relationships and tarnished both mine and the band's reputation."

Luke's warm hand came down on your shoulder in the act of support, the touch a new factor to the ghost. Your hand came to rest on his with a smile of gratitude cast to the dead boy.

"You have healthy coping mechanisms to fall back on. You'll have us to visit with the poofing ability. If you stumble, we will be here for you." Reggie informed you with his toothy grin and kind eyes.

The last piece of the puzzle clicked into place, feeling the wound close up, leaving a scar that had blistered and reopened since last year. The cheers enveloped you like their arms as you texted Lucy and the band your decision.

Dublin, Ireland 2021

"Hello, Dublin!" Your voice amplified in the large stadium of fans cheering for your band—the thud of Iris on her drum kit.

James idly stroking the strings on his dark green teal guitar your band had pitched in as a gift to him. On the opposite side of the stage was Sawyer with their custom-made gorgeous marble green and white colour.

"I hope you are enjoying yourself so far! It is our last song before the real act comes out!" You exclaimed to the boisterous crowd.

Just barely in the wing of the stage waited the band that had quickly become older brothers to you. A band that had given you a chance after the madness of your downward spiral.

"This song came out in 2018 and quickly became one of my favourites. It wouldn't be right to sing it without some friends." You continued as the guys walked onto the stage, "Without further adieu, this is Lie to Me by 5 Seconds of Summer!"

Luke Hemmings along with Calum, Ashton, and Michael ran to join your band as Iris started a sick beat. Calum and Michael already joining Sawyer and James in absolute perfect sync leaving Ashton to rock out by Iris. Hemmings, to not confuse him with Luke Patterson, came to stand next to you with a guitar.

[Verse 1: Hemmings]

I saw you looking brand new overnight

And I caught you looking too, but you didn't look twice

You look happy, oh, mmm

You look happy, oh

Hemmings angled his body to face you but not cut off the fans behind him, creating the vivid story you had done each rehearsal. The blue clashing your own eye colour holding your personalized sparkly emerald green mic.

[Pre Chorus: Hemmings & Calum]

Flashing back to New York City

Change your flight so you stay with me

Remember thinking that I got this right

Only adding backing vocals as Hemmings retreated to jam out with Calum leaving you to jump around the stage. Landing next to Sawyer they beamed with the loud stadium heard even through the in-ear monitors.

[Chorus: Hemmings & Calum]

And now I wish we never met

'Cause you're too hard to forget

While I'm cleaning up your mess

I know he's taking off your dress

And I know that you don't, but if I ask you if you love me

I hope you lie, lie, lie, lie, lie to me

Raising the mic to your lips, you came into your cue returning to the middle of the stage with Hemmings.

"Give it up for Y/N!" Ashton yelled into Iris' personal microphone.

[Verse 2: You]

It's 3 AM and the moonlight's testing me (Ah)

I know that you've been holding on to someone else

And now I can't sleep (Ah)

I ain't happy, oh

I ain't too happy, oh

[Pre Chorus: You]

Flashing back to New York City

I was done, but you undid me

Classic me to run when it feels right

The stage was charged with the chemistry the two lead singers of their respective bands all sharing grins. The cheers growing as Hemmings came closer to share the green microphone, the tech guys skillfully turning Hemmings off; no feedback sounding.

[Chorus: Hemmings & You]

Now I wish we never met

'Cause you're too hard to forget

While he's taking off my dress

I know she's laying on your chest

I know that you don't, but if I ask you if you love me

I hope you lie, lie, lie, lie, lie to me

Singing, lie, lie, lie, lie, lie

Li-li-lie, lie, lie, lie, lie

Lie, lie, lie, lie, lie

Li-li-lie, lie, lie, lie, lie (Yeah yeah)

I know that you don't, but if I ask you if you love me

I hope you lie, lie, lie, lie, lie to me

The Australian singer stepped closer to hug you quickly before finding his way to your bandmates too. The crowd all having their phones out in which the hugs would be made into edits, and the shipping would intensify.

"Dublin! You have been incredible to play for. Enjoy the rest of the concert and rock out because I will be doing so backstage." Your voice echoed over the fans with a beaming grin feeling comfortable on stage again.

"This is Easier!" Hemmings shouted as the rest of his band commenced their part of the concert just as they had the last few months.

Watching the guys perform with your own band with you was incredibly bittersweet after touring worldwide for months. The media had eaten up the sudden reappearance of the band with positive publicity increasing the popularity.

"I love this song," Sawyer spoke with a twinkle in their eyes tapping their foot to the beat. James was just barely moving his head to beat while Iris was jumping around uncaring of the people around.

"You love it because we got to collaborate on the song!" James exclaimed, tapping his hip on her thigh. Iris' 5'11 form towered over James' 5'7 height but that never caused issues with them.

James's black hair gleamed blue in the strobe lights tinting his pale complexion as well. Sawyer's hair dyed bright red pairing well with their tawny skin colour with their mocha brown irises. Iris had changed over the break abandoning her past style for a more laidback skater style.

"I'm gonna head to the bus. Grab a shower and change." You informed the band as you started retreating to where the bus was parked.

"See you soon!" Sawyer yelled with their attention halfway back on the band of guys that had given you all a second chance.

Walking down the hall with employees milling around, you barely acknowledged them other than a smile. The performing had taken a lot out of you after a fitful sleep. Carl, your band's security detail and current bouncer to the backdoor, nodded at you.

Carl's colleague would be stationed at the bus as per usual with your routine of catching one song and then leaving. Bea's hardened gaze relentless on scouring the area with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Hey, Bea." You spoke earning a grunt in response from the jaded security detail hired after adjusting back to civilian life.

You didn't have the entire story other than Bea had been in the military, but due to an injury had been medically discharged. Your manager Lucy had been the one to hire her as per the new policy of having two people of different genders on detail.

The bus was quiet as you entered flinching at the sight of your father sitting on the couch with Julie and Carlos beside him. Your mouth gaped at seeing your family after months of only FaceTime and calls.

"Oh my gosh!" You yelled lunging to hug your siblings with wide eyes matching.

Carlos had definitely grown at least two inches since you last saw him, and Julie's hair was pulled back in an intricate style. Her outfit screaming Flynn's advice but her ring was on show that matched your own.

"Surprise!" Ray exclaimed to his eldest child with pride written clear on his face, "I missed you, Mija."

"So, did I!" The cheerful voice of Luke interjected as the three boys of Julie and the Phantoms made their appearance.

Standing further back in a band shirt with Graveyard Petals was Alex's boyfriend Willie with a shy expression. He still felt incredibly guilty of delivering the boys straight into Caleb's hand and often voiced his feelings of not feeling he deserved to be friends.

"Hey, Willie. I like your shirt!" You told the tall skater who sent a shy smile.

"Still weird," Ray muttered having walked in on Reggie towel drying his hair the month before you left for tour.

It had been a very confusing and emotional time for Ray and Carlos to adapt to the new information. After Julie saved the boys and that weird golden glow happened, they had been able to make themselves visible; just no poofing in the vicinity of Ray after he nearly fainted that one time. The details hadn't been worked out yet, but Caleb was out of the picture.

"Did you catch the concert?" You questioned the group tugging on the damp t-shirt you had worn on stage. The fabric was drying after being drenched in the sweat after spending an hour under hot lights and continuous movement on stage.

"We stayed for the one last night. We stayed for your set tonight before we got Bea-"

"-she's terrified by the way," Alex interjected with a grimace on his face at the stoic young woman. The glare at focusing on her scars had truly scared the anxious drummer.

"-to let us on the bus. We wanted to surprise you and congratulate your success." Luke informed the group, "You're insanely talented by the way."

His left hand coming to intertwine with your right hand just as it had before you departed for the world tour. You had grown incredibly close to the guitarist firstly as best friends before developing into a relationship.

"We did explore Dublin for the morning. I'll forever be in Lucy's debt for sending the tickets for us." Ray happily sighed, thinking of the lovely woman that had helped Ray guide his daughter back to herself.

"I'll just hit the shower quick." You swiftly jogged to the back of the tour bus where the shower was situated near the five came rooms. The entire band each had one room and a spare for the driver.

Los Angeles, 2021

Your hair pulled away from your face you sat beside a willow tree in contemplative silence with only your guitar and notebook. You knew that in a few seconds Luke would appear for another writing session.

"I love you." Luke breathlessly spoke as he ran up to you with a great big smile.

The awe at his words blinding your thoughts from the hope you had been feeling for the last week. Luke's hazel eyes glittering in the sun and the smile bubbled onto his face.

"I love you too." The words slipped quickly off the tip of your tongue as the guitarist tugged your form into his body. Supple lips quivering on the skin of warm neck all Luke felt was gratitude.

Luke leant back to brush his calloused fingers on your cheek, "Julie got a call. Someone little birdie sent in a demo to a label."

"I wonder who that happened to be." Your smirk revealing just precisely who had sneakily grabbed the freshly recorded demo.

Lucy had always had an interest in Julie's talent in music but tabled in during the period that Rose died. The grief stealing Julie's voice and leaving behind stage fright hadn't been something Lucy would chance. The manager had always hoped Julie's voice would return.

"You gave Lucy the demo, and she passed in on to the Red Bedroom Records!" Luke was quick to tug you into his arms with a huge grin, "Julie and the Phantoms are getting signed! The owner is personally flying over on Monday to go over the contract and sign it!"

Your words muffled by his chest, "Lucy informed me about that, and she offered to manage you as well."

"Lucy is the best. She gonna mentor and give Flynn an internship to still work with the band. Thank you so much, baby." Luke whispered against the warm skin of your forehead.

"I just decided to speed up the process. Can I tell you something?" At Luke's nod, you continued, "I'm thinking in a few years to open a label of my own. I was hoping you guys and Julie would be interested in doing that with me?"

"I am so down to do that. We're gonna hire an investigator to make sure what Trevor did isn't able to happen at our label." Luke was already passionately thinking of what the hypothetical future label.

"That's perfect!" You beamed, "We could give a workshop to aid songwriting too! I thought that we could name it A Rosie Sunset. My dad called my mom Rosie most of my life and Sunset for your first band."

"I didn't think I could love you more than I did a minute ago. You proved me wrong." Luke breathless laughed before humming when your lips made contact with your own.

The warmth that had been missing the year after you mom passed away had returned, and sometimes you swore the sun shone down on you. You had no doubts it was your mom's way in heaven to hug her children. You and Julie had come to the conclusion that your mom had sent the boys into your lives.

Rose Molina, even in death, did her best to make her children happy. The three remaining members of Sunset Curve the absolute best part of her two daughters lives.

Tag List (PLEASE SEND AN INBOX TO BE ADDED! I CANNOT GUARANTEE YOU WILL BE ON THE LIST VIA POST COMMENTS!)

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#luke patterson imagines #luke patterson x reader #julie and the phantoms imagines #luke patterson x y/n #julie and the phantoms #luke patterson #jatp luke #jatp fanfic #charlie gillespie imagines #caitsy and ash productions

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rebelcourtesan · 3 years

Text

Supporting Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss

I’ve seen a lot of people demanding when the next episodes of Hazbin Hotel is going to start. Sad to say it’s going to be a while. Hazbin Hotel has been picked up by A24 over the summer which is a HUGE accomplishment! This is the first big step towards more episodes, but animation, especially with the skill we’ve see in the pilot is going to take time.

Which leads me to my first point.

1. Do not harass creators or VAs.

Please, don’t litter their DMs or Twitter accounts with demands of when the next episode is coming. Especially, the VAs who have no part in production other than providing voices to characters. VAs are important actors, but the heavy lifting is done by the animators themselves.

Also, since Hazbin has been picked up, Vivziepop has to keep mum with details about the show. We won’t be getting anymore crumbs about Hazbin Hotel itself for a while so please, don’t think her silence is her lack of interest. Hazbin is her baby! In order to protect the show, she may have signed contracts with A24 of not sharing information until the show is released. Which is a GOOD SIGN!!!!

Also, follow Viziepop, Hazbin Hotel, and Helluva Boss on Twitter for the latest of any announcements or releases! Why ask when an episode is going to be released when they’re going to announce it on Twitter in the first place? Trust me, as soon as Vivziepop is certain of a release date, she’ll tell everyone via Twitter.

2. Rewatch anything and everything from SpindleHorse.

Another method of support is to give views and likes to Vivziepop’s shorts, Hazbin Pilot, and Helluva Boss episodes. Even if its playing in the background while you do chores or work on a project, the number of views help show people are still watching and enjoying the animation. The views are in the millions which is a great sign to potential networks that HH/HB already have a large fanbase waiting to subscribe and buy merchandise.

3. Purchase the Merchandise

All profits from the merch sales goes into paying animators and everyone involved with Helluva Boss eps, comics, and etc. More animators and artists, means Vivziepop has more people working on episodes which will speed things up. If we want more stuff, then we have to buy more stuff to support the show. I’ve bought two sketchbooks and a pair of socks to help support Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss. Thankfully, this doesn’t seem to be a problem as they often have items announced as sold out shortly after sales.

4. Vivziepop has a Patreon

If the merch is too expensive or not selling anything you’re interested in, subscribe to Viziepop’s Patreon. The money goes directly into production of shorts, animation, and other cool stuff. For 5 bucks a month you get sneak peeks at upcoming projects. We were even allowed to see the first half of the Alastor comic before it went live a few days later! If five bucks is too much, there’s a 1 dollar tier. Everything counts towards supporting the series.

5. Support Fan Creators

Between episodes of Helluva Boss and until Hazbin Hotel is released, fan creators are what keeps the fandom afloat. There are AMAZING artists creating art and comics across Twitter and Instagram. And there are quite a few popular fanfiction on AO3. Follow them, complement their art, and best of all, pay for commissions! With money! Exposure doesn’t pay bills or rent. With things as they are with Covid-19, there are lots of artists in need of money to help make ends meet or provide for their families. If you can’t afford their art, support them on patreon or Ko-Fi. Also, do NOT STEAL ART OR REPOST WITHOUT PERMISSION!!! And even if it’s commissioned art, ALWAYS, ALWAYS give credit!

6. NO TOXICITY OR SHIPPING WARS

This is a big one for me. Being toxic, shipping wars, or ship shaming has chased people off from fandoms. I’ve seen it happen in Voltron Legendary Defender, She-Ra, and now I’m seeing it in Hazbin Hotel. I’ve seen VAs for Voltron being harassed and receive death threats from supposed fans and towards the end of She-ra there was some backlash towards the creator over Entrapdak pairing.

As much as I love Hazbin Hotel, bottom line is these are FICTIONAL characters. It is not worth making someone feel bad, threaten, or insulted over which character kissing another character. And using a petition to push a ship onto a creator is very poor taste.

Let me be clear, Viviziepop already has a story planned for these characters. She likely already has the first season of Hazbin Hotel written up and only she (and possibly a handful of people), already know who is going to end up with whom based on how she wants the story to go. Just trust her and let her tell her story. Even if Angel Dust doesn’t end up with Husk or Alastor, or Charlie stays with Vaggie instead of hooking up with Alastor, or they all fall for characters we haven’t met yet, you can STILL SHIP WHO YOU WANT!!!!

People are still shipping Katara and Zuko from Avatar and that show ended a long time ago. Even in Voltron, people still ship Lance/Keith and Shiro/Allura. It doesn’t matter if your ship isn’t canon! You can still ship it!!!!

We all love the show! Agree to disagree and just be fans together for Hazbin Hotel and support the creators!

#fan toxicity #supporting shows #Hazbin Hotel #Helluva Boss

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lesbiancarat · 3 years

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PREACH IT!! SAY IT LOUDER FOR TH3 PEOPLE IN THE BACK!! *stands up and claps*

Just your comment, please I want to tattoo that entire response on my forehead so people could understand some stuff fjshdhsh. I very much agree with everything you have said, like I do think the bighit deal was more so with the help of say with western connections (which again does NOT mean pledis could have done this without bighit. They clearly could but I saw a theory on a YouTube comment where someone said they focused on the core fanbase aka in Korea which is their main market and it paid off imo) from helping with buisness side of things like we do have merch to buy directly (which I have my opinion on some merch ideas like why the fudge is bighit selling us water!? Bro you thought that worked with bts doesn't mean it will with seventeen) which wasn't common in the past or being able to film concerts with ease during the pandemic. Bighit clearly acknowledges that seventeen is a monster group in their own right I mean as you said, they break records and are 2nd behind bighits own group. They are EXTEMELY big in Japan. They are their own song makers, bang pd confirmed this when pleids was first announced in a press video so the fact people brush all of their achievements and statements because why, their streaming numbers are low?

And oohh such an interesting point as well! Very much i think the current mindset of kpop fans (or at least some) is that streaming is what equals success which to some degree, yes but as you said, many ignore the casual side of listening. People that find the song due to it being viral for whatever reason, a fancam getting popular like in the cass of hani from exid or whatever reason. Dwc is a great example and I saw those comments under their recent performance of that song and it makes me proud that the boys have a song like that. That it has its own "fanbase" quote on quote with how well loved that song simply is and well known. You don't have to have fans doing crazy streaming to be considered "popular", I mean I could give more examples but I don't wanna make this too long nor cause unwanted fandrama lol. Those casual listeners are extremely important and powerful I mean brave girls is a great recent example of that I think! It very much does seem like that when looking at the views, its mainly the core fanbase which isn't bad nor should we feel bad for not having crazy numbers. They seem more organic if that makes sense? Plus I agree, we can stream and can explain how it works, clearing up confusion about it like no emojis don't take down views and yes youtube does take away views but that is due to it making sure it isn't bots only viewing the video. Explaining that streaming should be done with a chill mindset and its ok if you don't stream. But hey, maybe we're too weird of fans to think like this fjajdjajs.

But some few updates! Seventeen is back on Instagram, fully everyone is posting away. Makes me happy hehe m, a bit funny it took so long for them to comeback but am happy nonetheless. The interactions that seungkwan does makes me super soft. Seventeen are also back with doing proper promotions so yay (also pledis is S Wording people over the mingyu issue finally so bless). As for me on the personal side of things. I have OFFICIALLY finished that video game ^_^ it took me a while but I have finished it, my last goodbye was completed and am at ease so to speak? Lowkey am planning on beating all the trophies in the game cx also may I ask about your thoughts on the album? Favorite songs, have you bought the physical cd?

ok finally getting around to this lol!!

and yeah that's absolutely true, pledis focused on kr promotions/fanbase first and foremost (and then expanded to Japan and is now looking toward the US/western promos in general). which i agree was a good thing. i think some companies get too greedy with wanting a group to be ~internationally famous~ that they ignore their Korean fanbase a bit too much and I've seen groups that have failed bc of it, so I'm glad that didn't happen w SVT

and yeah in terms of merch I'm genuinely grateful as an american that for this cb at least there was a US distributor which made things super convenient but wtf is going on w hybes merch those water bottles are not it TT it just sucks to see bc it's clear that at least as far as merch goes hybe doesn't have an interest in like. doing market research to figure out what carats want. which is funny bc they don't even have to start from scratch they could literally just ask pledis?? and tbh what's sad is i don't think hybe is like. purposefully trying to sabotage SVTs merch from my limited perspective i get the feeling they treat all their groups merch like that :( but since us carats have seen in the past what kind of merch we're capable of getting it's disappointing to see such a downgrade. and like tbf pledis's merch decisions were never perfect like that time they tried to sell replicas of the SVT rings and carats were rightfully pissed bc those are something the members earned, not something to be bought. and i also don't think hybe never has or never will make good merch, I'm sure they're fully capable of it. but it just seems obvious that they've put WAY less if any effort into understanding both the market (ie carats) and seventeens brand compared to pledis so like of course most carats aren't gonna like it :/ i really hope they step up their game and do better research or bring ppl onto the team who better understand svt's brand

and yeah i very much agree with everything u said about streaming! tbh i think this mindset isn't as uncommon as you might think, I've actually met a fair number of kpop fans who are critical of streaming culture but as u know there also are a lot of ppl who are really into it and those ppl tend to have the loudest voices. and unfortunately part of streaming culture is that if you question the methods or don't participate you must be a bad fan or secretly an anti or something ridiculous like that. so ppl who aren't into streaming culture end up learning to not be too vocal about it bc of how bad the backlash can be

yes! I'm glad to see insta line (+ now dk!!) active again. i still wonder why pledis made them stop using their ind instas, like I know all the theories people have as to why but honestly none that I've seen seem to fully make sense. it will probably be one of those things where we'll just never know the full story. but i digress!! regardless of the reason I'm just glad to have them back after all this time ^^

congrats on finishing the game! I'm glad it was able to help you work through your grief a bit and that you feel more at ease now ;-; and good luck with the rest of the trophies if you end up trying to get them!

as always I'm answering this a bit late so you may have seen already but i did get the physical album! it was a birthday gift so i only got it the other day, but according to my mom it arrived almost immediately after the album was released so as i said before, I'm very grateful for the US shop this time around ;-; as for the songs usually it's easy for me to pick one or two favorites but this time around it's genuinely a 4-way tie between heavens cloud and all the unit songs TT (i also love anyone and RTL, they're just slightly lower on the list in terms of preference if u get what i mean). i really hope some time in the future we get some kind of performance or special video or something for heavens cloud, since so many carats and the members themselves seem to really love it. i also think it's a song that brings up such beautiful imagery that it would be a shame if it never got any type of visual representation, you know? I'm also really curious to see a performance of wave, since iirc the members said the choreo is a lot more laid back/different from other perf unit choreos?? + that song also evokes such great imagery for me that like... makes feel like it needs some kind of movement so I'm just itching to see a performance. kind of like... even if i didn't know it was a perf unit song i would think it would be great to choreograph to if that makes any sense dhfkf. but yeah overall i think it's just a really solid album, as expected from summerteen ^^

#melia.ask #📖 anon #long post

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hilli98215 · 3 years

Text

I am confused. I am hurt. I don’t know what to think. This is a long post. A very long post that is personal but I’ve had it in my head for a while to write. You don’t have to read this. This post has no real meaning. It’s more of a rant of how I feel in the world of fandom, my experiences, and why this posts exists.

Again, you do not have to read this.

You have been warned.

DO NOT REBLOG THIS POST!!!!

When I became an English major in college, I did so knowing several things. One of those is the fact I love literature and I love discovering why authors, creators, and artists wrote what became their most well known work.

Where am I going?

My first fandom was when I was in Junior High (about 13-14 years old) that I was a part of, meaning I read fan fiction and discovered fan art of, was either Naruto or Pokémon. To me these works were escapes of my real confusing life. Especially when I moved states and schools. I had no one. Through this, I discovered what I liked and didn’t like in the world of fiction and was introduced to fandom words/slang such as shipping, fan fiction, lemons (which I don’t think is used as often now), different types of writing, yaoi, yuri, and a few more I can’t remember. This also included the all important phrase Don’t like don’t read. This was when I was in my early teens.

But I was in a phase where I could find what I found interesting and that was that.

When I got to high school, I was still this awkward quiet kid with no friends. But I did have marching band so that was something.

At this point was was interested in Ouran Highschool Host Club, Death Note, a series called Beauty Pop, Fullmetal Alchemist, and a few others. This was also around the time where I began writing fanfiction for OHSC and even began buying manga. Anyway, this was my introduction to fandom as a teenager. And this is before Tumblr.

All I had were my friends, videos on YouTube, and my own interests. No one really understood why I loved all these things.

Then came the very first fandom I became fully obsessed in my sophomore year: a small series called Hetalia Axis Powers. I was completely invested in this fandom. So much so I wrote fan fiction, bought merch, and read a lot of fan fiction myself. I think it was because, at the time I thought it was because the art style was cute, the voice acting wasn’t half bad and it had to do with history. But this is where things got interesting for me and learning about fandom as a whole.

As a teen, I hadn’t known about AUs and this series had a lot of them. From the usual school AUs to odd ones. I usually stayed in my bubble and kept up the mantra Don’t like Don’t read.

But why talk about it?

Well, let’s just say a lot of the content later on became weird and new. I learned a lot about new terms like de-aging and ABO. But this leads to interest which once again let me know what genres of fan fiction I like.

I continued on with this fandom for about 3 years. And what broke it was the drama and how people were finding a sudden moral compass for personified countries. I mean there are other problems with that show that I recognize now as an adult and didn't see as a kid but that’s for another time. But I quietly left because I was beginning to understand that the drama wasn’t worth a tv show.

I would say the next fandom I was invested in and loved and I think had the least amount of drama was Fairy Tail. Now I fell in love with this series because of the story, characters, and the welcoming fandom. Overall there was rarely any drama because I think we all knew that we had to be civil with each other and respect our ships. While I’m not part of that fandom anymore a lot of people on Tumblr and FFN were very welcoming. The main series kinda fizzled out but that was one of the few positive fandom experiences I had.

I was at that point in my life where I was in college, created my Tumblr and posted regularly to escape life.

Coming off that fandom, I was part of the Yuri on Ice! fandom from beginning to the end. I mean it’s a sports anime that’s about men's figure skating and how it can affect athletes just to get a gist of it.

That’s when my experience with fandom became interesting because these characters were being paired in a way that made me feel like they can’t be paired with anyone else. Like, there was a pairing we were all cheering for to happen by the end.

This is the first series I was highly interested in as an adult where the ages of the characters were defined. There were a few in their teens, some in their early to mid 20s, and a couple in their 30s. Now this was a historic anime for several reasons. The main being there being a gay relationship being shown in a positive light and mental illness being shown in a way that wasn’t patronizing and negative. I loved this show for those reasons. But I also quickly learned how people would take these characters (especially those with huge age differences) and pair them up. That was my first introduction to criticism of how ‘gross’ it would be for a 15 year old to be paired up with an 18 year old. But I saw a problem that made me second guess my thinking. When I was in high school, I knew someone who was a sophomore at 15 and dated someone who was 18. Why was there a problem?

I knew if I voiced this that I would be shamed and told that I was disgusting. Eventually I had enough and left shortly after the series ended.

Then came the Voltron: Legendary Defender series. Oh boy.

Now that series came out while I was in college and I often viewed it in a critical perspective similar to one would a piece of literature because my major was in English and that was what I was taught. Like YOI I was part of this fandom day 1 because it was so different from the original Voltron series from the 80s. I loved how the fandom dissected everything in every episode. There were watch parties, analysis videos, and even skits at conventions. It was a fandom I knew I wanted to be a part of. But then there was fanfiction that I found odd and knew that I never wanted to read that. People were writing about topics that made me uncomfortable and I didn’t know how to deal with it. After a while, I questioned why I was forcing myself to read them in the first place. So, I stopped reading them. This was also around the time where I discovered AO3 and their amazing tagging system. Because if the tagging system was not there, I probably would have stopped reading fanfiction all together.

But then there was drama, shipping wars, morality wars, and I had enough. I was there until it ended and left quietly. Which is sad considering I loved the experience but it was ruined by what people thought was right for fictional characters.

Now you may be asking “What was the point of this post?”

To answer your question, I don’t know.

I have loved reading since I was a kid. And when I got to high school, I had this AP teacher who told us something that has stayed with me to this day.

‘As a reader we are detectives. We want to know why the author wrote this book. We want to know what influenced them.’

I took that saying to heart and approach everything through a critical lens. Which is difficult in a fandom. It’s hard to have a critical approach to a series that everyone takes for a grain of salt.

I have been exposed to a lot of books and pieces of literature that have been considered controversial because of their content. When I left high school, I began to realize what genres of books I like in the YA genre and in literature.

I experimented.

And when you think about it, that’s what you do with fan fiction and fandom. We are always experimenting. We are always finding what we like and don’t like.

But recently I’ve noticed a new fandom term that makes me wonder where I fall in all of this craziness we call fandom.

Pro-Fiction/Pro-Shipper

It wasn’t until last year I saw this word thrown around in a new fandom I am in. I tried to do some research but I couldn't find anything. Nothing. And then I learned it’s a new term in itself.

I won’t go into detail but it reminds of the ‘video games are violent so that makes so-and-so violent’ argument parents made when Mortal Kombat came out.

Well you still didn’t answer the question.

And you’d be right. I saw a post from a follower that saddened me and honestly freaked me out. Why announce that you hate a specific group? It felt like a call out post without saying any names. A warning that states: Block me or out yourself. Or rather: Block me or else.

Do I identify as this? To tell you the truth, I don’t know. I think critically and see things differently. In fact everyone does.

We are always going to be influenced by the media whether it be a movie, television, a book, or a video game. We will always love these storylines and characters. We will always take the messages to heart. We will always cheer for the hero and maybe the villain too.

I do want you guys to remember this, make your own fandom experience. Block those who make you feel uncomfortable and make you feel like you don’t matter. You do.

You are your own person. No one can tell you otherwise. If you feel uncomfortable, then maybe you need to leave the fandom. Or find a space in the fandom that you can be yourself. Or don’t care what people think and do what you always do.

It’s all up to you.

#rant #long post #sorry for those who decided to read this #i just cant stay silent anymore #fandom #fandom toxicity #fandom discourse #fan fiction #personal #i mean #this is getting out of hand #where do i fall in all of this

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sillypandalover91 · 4 years

Text

I adore Baxter and even though this guy is fan dubbing him, I absolutely LOVE this voice and am therefore HC him sounding like this.

https://youtu.be/eN0o2n7xDKc

youtube

And now for an extra HC that no one asked for but it goes with the one where Alastor likes buying Angel'a merch like the good boyfriend he is:

He is a HUGE fan of Angel's. It all started when he was looking around in a book shop, searching for something to inspire him when he stumbled upon a video tape set of something called The Lady Science Collection. The synopsis on the box claimed that it was some of Angel's best work and that it would be sure to leave any scientist more than satisfied with the contents within.

Curious, Baxter bought it and has been hooked and crushing on Angel ever since. He goes so far as to buy as many videos as possible, or at least he tries to.

Some asshole that goes by the username DeerGentleman34 keeps winning most of the items Baxter is after. What's worse is that it seems like he is being targeted personally.. that or this DeerGentleman is really some horny bastard who has perverted intent with his beautiful Angel.

With misplaced chivalrous feelings fueling him, Baxter creates a device that messes with the binary code on the website. This is outside of Vox's and Velvet's interest so they don't enforce his rule on that part of the web, leaving Bax to do what he wanted so long it didn't blow out the rest of the web.

The next time he bids on an item, he sees that DeerGentleman34 is there also trying to win a body pillow and poster set of Angel possed like a pinup girl and dressed in black lace lingerie and a doctor's coat coquettishly falling off his shoulder's.

What makes this something an absolute must have for any self respecting collector of Angel Dust memorabilia is the fact that this was the first and last time he posed without shoes. His bare feet and legs were only covered by sheer black thigh highs and you can see the heart shaped pads of one of his paws as the other had a red soled high heel clinging to his toes.

As for Angel himself, why, he looked like his best friend had told him the funniest joke he had ever heard because his high spirits could be seen clearly in his lucid eyes.

"I need this," breathed both Baxter and his rival from opposite ends of Pentigram City as they poised themselves for the bidding war.

It's a long one.

Emotions were high.

Bidders slowly backed off as soon as the price fell too far out of what their wallets allowed until it was only him and DeerGentleman34. They paused and allowed the timer to tick down until there were only seconds left.

"Yes, that's right, you imbecile," murmured Baxter as he saw DeerGentleman34 submit a seemingly final blow of 300k and 1 dollar that would have bested his own. "Angel's smile is mine!"

Baxter slammed his gloved claw down on the execute button to activate the program that created a lag for the Deer who thought he deserved this bounty more than him and submitted his own final bid of 300k and 2 dollars then promptly covered his eyes when the screen went black and a pixilized loading image of an imp couting money popped on.

He peaked between his claws and gasped when his username DrAngler44 was shown to be the winner of the lot.

Giggles escaped him as he stared at his spoils being carefully packaged for instant delivery. The chat exploded with both praise and disgruntled curses but Baxter paid it little to no mind. He was far too light with elation that his plan had worked. He found a way to beat DeerGentleman34.

The package was delivered via imp magic and in a puff of purple smoke, his carefully wrapped treasures were delivered right on his courier basket.

Almost reverently, Baxter unwrapped the package starting with the poster. He heard the chat in the background ping with demons begging him to see his treasure as he carefully placed the poster inside a glass frame.

It was even more beautiful in person. The print was obviously of the highest quality and Baxter drank every inch of the masterpiece once he hung it on the wall. He studied it carefully until his eyes landed on the signature at the bottom corner.

"Oh my Satan!" Baxter pushed up his glasses and stared at the neat script.

Anthony Ragno

His face burned. Angel's real name was a sign of authenticity. There were only three if these prints left in existance here he thought he was getting a collector's edition of a reprint! But then did that mean...

Baxter ran back to the box and pulled out the body pillow and stared at Angel's- Anthony's cheek.

There, preserved by magic, was the imprint of Angel's kiss in red lipstick.

He swallowed and hovered his finger tips over it. Angel had actually kissed this pillow. This was his lipstick. That was his handwriting.

He needed to sit down.

Burying his face in his pillow, he couldn't help but giggle again. The giggles turned to laughter. Laughter turned to cackles as he quickly took pictures of both items to show what they really were and uploaded it to the chat.

Baxter hugged his pillow and watched with all the self satisfaction of a demon who screwed someone into handing over their soul as the chat exploded once again. He saw DeerGentleman34's username show that they were typing something out but after a few minutes of the ellipses showing and disappearing, Baxter turned his attention to stare fondly at his pillow.

"I am going to treat you like the treasure you are," he told it. Shame long lost, Baxter leaned into Angel's face and rubbed their noses together.

Sighing happily, he turned to the chat one last time to turn it off when his blood suddenly went cold.

DeerGentleman34 had finally typed out his message.

It didn't bode well for Baxter at all.

DeerGentleman34: You are invited to the Radio Tower, my good fellow. Everyone, stay tuned.

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel angel dust #hazbin hotel alastor #hazbin hotel baxter #radiodust #is implied #alastor types with two fingers #but he gets his message across #baxter×angeldust #one sided #i call it angelfish

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thelastdragneel6417 · 4 years

Text

𝗗𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗧𝘂𝗯𝗲 𝗝𝗔𝗚𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘀 part 1

(Ok sooo here’s my first time trying to write something original and good god am I nervous soo I hope you all enjoy)

The sun has now just rose above beacon academy signaling the start of a new day, while many would view this day to train or study to improve themselves as huntsmen and huntresses. For the (SUPER AWESOME AMAZING AND SERIOUS) team called team RWBY their is only one word that they would call this day

...

𝗕𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗚

*At Team RWBY’s dorm room*

Yang: *laying on her bed looking throw her scroll before tossing it next to her* uggg I’m booored.

Weiss: * gruntingas she stops working on next weeks homework* normally I would scold you on your bluntness I agree it is quite boring today.

Blake: * siting on her bed reading her por - u mm I mean Um her “high class literature” yeah I agree but what do you ya think we should do?

Yang: *in a thinking pose* ummm how about we got the club?

Blake: *shaking her head* seriously is that all you can think of?

Yang: *in a hurt tone* HEY!!!

Weiss: besides we can’t the bullhead terminals are shut down for repairs after YOU AND NORA ALMOST DESTROYED IT BECAUSE OF YOUR IDIOTIC FIGHT *glaring at Yang*

Yang: *waving her hand defensively* hey in my defense Nora started it server her right for saying that pancakes are better that wallfls and besides I won it in the end.

Blake: no you didn’t Nora clobbered you into the ground.

Yang: *angry* hey whose side are you on anyway!?!?

Blake: *rolling her eyes* anyway how about we head to the library?

Weiss: that’s an excellent idea Blake. I think some time in the library would do us all some good.

Yang: ugggg no not the library I though we decided to kill our boredom not to kill me!!!

Weiss: you can stand to improve your book smart you barbaric bimbo *glareing at Yang knowing fill well that she probably a single second in the library during the new semester*

Yang: hey I’ll have you know that physical strength and training are more valuable than reading a few book right sis?

*silence*

Yang: *confused* umm sis???

*yang and the girls all turn to look at Ruby’s bunk to see that she’s laying on her stomach kicking her feet in the air in a childish manner headphones on her head humming along to a song not paying attention to the argument going on*

Yang: Ruby? *no answer* hey Ruby?? *still no answer frustrated Yang walks over to Ruby lifts one side of her headphones and screams in her ear* RUBY!?!?!

Ruby: *leaps I. The air in shock before landing on her butt in shock* owww *rubbing her butt to suve the pain before glaring at Yang* why would you do that?

Yang: sorry sis but I could get your attention what were you doing anyway?

Weiss: yes I would like to know too? *internaly* probably reading on of her childish comic books uggg what a dolt?

Ruby: ohh I was just listening to JAGames *ploping herself off the ground before jumping back on top of her bunk*

Weiss: *confused having never heard of what that dolt they called a leader was talking about* JA who???

Ruby: *gasping in shock before using her semblance to bolt over to Weiss getting right up to her face* YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF JAGAMES!?!?

Blake: *anoyingly picking rose petals out of her hair and book* let’s assume we haven’t who are you talking about?

Ruby: *wipping her head around to Blake before screeching* HE’S ONLY THE GREATEST DUSTTUBE SINGER OF ALL TIME!!!!

Weiss: DustTube??? You mean that stupid website where people post those idiotic videos of themselves???

Blake: I wouldn’t say that DustTube it that bad you can make some serious money if you’re committed to it.

Yang: yeah but a DustTube singer is not a good thing to hear cause most of them are absolutely horrible *cringing as she remembers that Oum awful rap named “It’s Just Today Mate” by Ten Team*

Ruby *scoffs like she’s offended* ugh JAGames is nothing like them he’s a thousand times better than them his singing, his rhythm, and his music makes it look like all those other wanna bees are just babies playing with a baby piano.

Blake: huh seems like you know this guy a lot?

Ruby: of course I do I’m his number one fan after all I’ve listened to all of his music and bought all of his merch and all his albums JAGames’ music have gotten me through some tough times so I will always love him even though he has never shown his face.

Yang: huh soo that’s where all that stuff came from I’ve always wondered about that also *grinning* aren’t you already dating a certain noodle boy right now for shame Ruby how could you break jaunes heart by having an affair?

Weiss: I still don’t know what you see in that dolt *rolling her eyes back not truly understanding why ruby would want to date that idiot but nether the less grateful that he has stop relentlessly trying to ask her out*

Ruby: *beet red embarrassed* Yannng stop that it’s not like that all *blushing* even though I really like him and his music I will always love my sweet knight more.

Ruby: anyway I’ve got an idea since I’ve talked about JAGames this long *an ear to ear smile creeps up on her lips before shouting* WOULD YOU LIKE TO LISTEN TO SOME OF HIS MUSIC WITH ME!?!?

Weiss: *appoled* are you crazy!?!? No why would we ever want to listen to your stupid music!?!?

Yang: I’m in sounds like fun

Weiss: *shocked* WHAT WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO DO THAT?

Yang: it sounds fun anything to beat this boredom and besides I’ve been trying to find some new music for a while now.

Weiss: fine then be that way but know that Blake and I won’t be bothered to listen to your childish music.

Blake: actually I’ll join in too.

Weiss: *absolutly shocked* WHYYYYYYYYY!?!?!?!

Blake: same as Yang seems like fun also I’ve just finished reading my book so I e got nothing else better to do.

Yang: see even kitty cat wants to watch with us *blake glares at Yang for saying that* so whatcha say I’ve queen care to join us?

Ruby: *giving Weiss the worlds most dangerous weapon known to man the dreaded puppy dog eyes* plweeessszzzzzzzzzz?????

Weiss: *unable to resist the deadly powers of the puppy dog eyes* I— umm I ohhh alright I’ll listen to your stupid music what kind of music does he make anyway?

Ruby: *jumping up and down excited* yay thank you bestie ohh he mostly makes rock -metal songs some time a little bit of pop and always follows a certain theme.

Weiss: *annoyed by knowing that she’s going to be listening to that barbaric type of music* and that I is???

Ruby: *embarrassed* umm video games?

Weiss: WHAT THOSE STUPID IDIOTIC CHILDISH GAMES THAT ARE A WASTE OF TIME WHY DID I EVER AGREE TO THIS *exclaimed loudly but secretly at the same happy because deep down she is a HUGE gamer a secret that she will take to the grave* AND YOU *pointing to Blake* ARE OK WITH IT!?!?!

Blake: why not? I don’t have a problem with video games sometimes they can tell a story better that a book.

Yang: welp too late to turn back know soo sis what song are we listening to today?

Ruby: *excitedly grabs her scroll unplugs her headphones and sets her scroll near her freinds* how about his newest one it’s a remake of one of my favorites I’m sure y’all will love it!!!

https://youtu.be/wNI0VCRmQ0c

youtube

(Here’s the song if you want to sing along)

🎶following total atomic anihilation🎶

🎶the rebuilding our this great nation our ours my fall to you🎶

🎶that’s why we at vault-tech have prepared these educational materials🎶

🎶for you to better understand the seven defining attributes that make you🎶

🎶special🎶

🎶the future fotells a tale of when the world goes🎶

🎶BOOM🎶

🎶BOOM🎶 (when the world goes BOOM BOOM)🎶

🎶nobody prepared🎶

🎶don’t think anybody cared about the🎶

🎶SOLE TRUTH (nobody cared about the SOLE TRUTH)🎶

🎶oh the bombs🎶

🎶they rose🎶

🎶 now everybody knows the🎶

🎶DOOMS DAY DEVICE(DOOMS DAY DEVICE)🎶

🎶claustrophobia🎶

🎶autotrophic🎶

🎶catostrophic hell🎶

🎶will be soo🎶

🎶and be up in the sky🎶

🎶even when the world feels🎶

🎶lonely and cold inside🎶

🎶even when the heart feels🎶

🎶BLISTERED FORM THE SCENES🎶

🎶for they will fall🎶

🎶For they will rise🎶

🎶for they would tear apart the view 🎶

🎶from your very eyes🎶

🎶take your hindsight and Change the world🎶

🎶FOR A NEW BEGINNING🎶

🎶for its now your chance🎶

🎶to use your hands🎶

🎶descend through the cracked in the dirt🎶

🎶WHERE YOU STAND🎶

🎶take on the vast open🎶

🎶MASQUERADE🎶

🎶THIS IS ATOMIC RENEGADE🎶

🎶following total atomic anihilation🎶

🎶the rebuilding our this great nation our ours my fall to you🎶

🎶that’s why we at vault-tech have prepared these educational materials🎶

🎶for you to better understand the seven defining attributes that make you🎶

🎶resources are scarce prepare yourself for homicidal🎶

🎶RAMPAGE (HOMICIDAL RAMPAGE)🎶

🎶 claim you’re rightful place🎶

🎶mark the writing on your face turn a🎶

🎶NEW PAGE (WRITING ON YPUR FACE TURN A NEW AGE)🎶

🎶well the bomb🎶

🎶they took🎶

🎶your land and now you’re🎶

🎶LEFT ALL ALONE (LEFT ALL ALONE)🎶

🎶Thers masses of🎶

🎶rebellious🎶

🎶proposterous, demonical🎶

🎶CARNAGE READY FOR YOUR BONES🎶

🎶use your senses and you’ll🎶

🎶PROVE YOU’RE WHOLE AGAIN🎶

🎶you’re the hero of this🎶

🎶LAND DEMISED WITH PAIN🎶

🎶for they will fall🎶

🎶For they will rise🎶

🎶for they would tear apart the view 🎶

🎶from your very eyes🎶

🎶take your hindsight and Change the world🎶

🎶FOR A NEW BEGINNING🎶

🎶for its now your chance🎶

🎶to use your hands🎶

🎶descend through the cracked in the dirt🎶

🎶WHERE YOU STAND🎶

🎶take on the vast open🎶

🎶MASQUERADE🎶

🎶THIS IS ATOMIC RENEGADE🎶

🎶now let’s begin with some simple instructions on what makes you a

SPECIAL 🎶

🎶strength🎶

🎶build your ability’s to carry more🎶

🎶persecution🎶

🎶will keep your aim right where you want it to be🎶

🎶endurance🎶

🎶bronze will tackle foes but how long for?🎶

🎶charisma🎶

🎶socialize enemies are closer than you think🎶

🎶intelligence🎶

🎶outsmart your foes with gadgets capable of removing harm🎶

🎶agilety 🎶

🎶build your reflexes to defend from approaching scum🎶

🎶luck🎶

🎶Tatic and strength is one thing🎶

🎶but some times all it takes is good luck🎶

🎶now take your world and throw it upside down🎶

🎶one man pushes through🎶

🎶ONE🎶

🎶MUTANT🎶

🎶AT🎶

🎶A🎶

🎶TIME🎶

*insert guttiar solo*

🎶for you will rise🎶

🎶through hell and back🎶

🎶you fortell of time when you were under attack🎶

🎶put your hindsight and change the world🎶

🎶for they will fall🎶

🎶For they will rise🎶

🎶for they would tear apart the view 🎶

🎶from your very eyes🎶

🎶take your hindsight and Change the world🎶

🎶FOR A NEW BEGINNING🎶

🎶for its now your chance🎶

🎶descend through the cracked in the dirt🎶

🎶WHERE YOU STAND🎶

🎶take on the vast open🎶

🎶MASQUERADE🎶

🎶THIS IS ATOMIC RENEGADE🎶

🎶TAKE THE WORLD AND BEGIN🎶

🎶THE CHARGE OF THE DAMNED🎶

🎶BE SURE TO DEFENS🎶

🎶YOUR BRETHREN FRIEND🎶

🎶YOUR ARMY DECENDS🎶

🎶YOU SAVE ANEW RACE 🎶

🎶UNTILL THE END🎶

Ruby: *nervous* sooo what do you girls think???

Yang:That. Was. Awesome Sis that has got to be one of the best songs I’ve ever heard it was soo action packed.

Blake: I have to agree that was a very good song not my cup of tea but still very good nonetheless.

Ruby: YAY that two for three sooo bestie did you like it???

Weiss: *quiet as a mouse and as stiff as a board before throwing her hands up in the air and screaming*HATED IT THAT WAS THE WORST SONG IVE EVER HEARD

RUBY: *almost as pale as a ghost and on the verge of tear* W-w WHAT!?!?!?

(That’s all I can type was it good or shit (sorry if it was) this is the longest thing I’ve ever typed here I hope you all enjoy) (don’t worry jaune comes in next part with a secret)

#rwby #rwby lancaster #dagames #dusttube jagames #jaune arc

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benevolent-dictator · 4 years

Text

Late Night Thoughts on Dan and Phil: Fond Memories and Little More

Before I get into the meat of this post, I want to include what I believe to be a critical preamble if one is to understand the bulk of this essay (and please understand, I use the term “essay” very loosely here. As you’ll quickly come to realize, it is more a haphazard collection of thoughts strung together in a more of less cohesive format). It’s important I lay out explicitly what this post is as opposed to what it is not: namely, the intent of this post is to act as a sort of analytical essay delineating my thoughts and opinions on the famous Youtubers Dan Howell’s and Amazingphil’s entertainment value rather than the merit of their characters themselves (and how I believe - for me personally - their entertainment value to have stagnated).

I feel this important to clarify because typically, when reading online analyses of internet personalities, critiques tend to fall into one of two camps: 1) value judgments placed upon a creator’s work/entertainment, or 2) value judgments placed upon a creator’s moral character. The perfect example of these two camps in action can be found in Lilly Singh and Jake Paul. Regardless of your own personal feelings surrounding the two online creators, I believe it fair to say the vast majority of criticism allotted to them illustrate the two camps rather nicely. For example, a not insignificant amount of people tend to dislike Lilly Singh for her lackluster entertainment value, i.e. the content she uploads to YouTube/broadcasts on her late night show. Although there does exist some backlash towards her standing as a moral actor (or lack thereof), when you enter her name into Youtube’s search feature, six out of the first ten recommended videos are all criticisms directed at how “unfunny” she is. Jake Paul, on the other hand, demonstrates the other school of thought: criticizing moral standing over entertainment value. Again, regardless of your personal views on Jake Paul’s character, it is undeniable that the vast majority of the backlash he receives centers around the immorality of his actions rather than how, “mundane” or “lackluster” his content. Therefore, I want to clarify that I am in no way attempting to use this post to discredit either Dan or Phil’s character. Instead, I wish to share my thoughts on their entertainment value as creators, and how - for me - I no longer find myself enchanted with their content.

Additionally, throughout the course of this post you’ll find that I often refer to Dan and Phil as a collective. I understand how this remains a point of contention throughout the fandom, for it remains a sad truth that oftentimes Phil (despite being his own autonomous individual/entertainer) gets lumped in with Dan who - in terms of subscriber count and sheer volume of fans - remains the more successful of the two. It is not my intent to relegate Phil to Dan’s shadow - rather, I find that many of the critiques I have for one cross-apply to the other, hence my frequent use of “Dan and Phil” instead of just Dan or just Phil.

Lastly, I would like to get ahead of the curve (should it ever arise) and placate the masses now while I have the opportunity. It is not my intent - and nor has it ever been my intent with any online criticisms - to disparage not only the creator, but their fans. I understand that there is still a thriving community of fans centered around the entertainment Dan and Phil put forth, and it is not my goal to shame anyone for their likes and preferences, or even to try to change your minds. This is not meant to be a persuasive essay: simply an analytical one (granted, one primarily propped up by my own biased opinions over statistical data, but I hope you are able to take the sum total of my assessments with a grain of salt and understand that just as you are welcome and encouraged to share your thoughts on the matter, I wish to be afforded that same generosity).

Now with that very important preamble out of the way (which, if you decided to skim, I would highly encourage you to go back and read it in full, for I believe it to have some rather crucial groundwork laid out) we can delve into the heart of the matter. In order to do so, I think it important to establish my background on this subject matter. Dan Howell was the first Youtuber I ever watched. I was still extremely new to YouTube as a platform at the time, and I remember scrolling through my homepage until I stumbled across a video titled, “Human Interaction.” From there, I was hooked. There really isn’t much to say from there; I immediately fell over myself watching video after video of his and, in the process, quickly discovered his flatmate Phil’s channel (or as we know him, Amazingphil). From the years 2013 to about late 2017 they were my all-time favorite Youtubers. As the years wore on I only subscribed to about ten other Youtubers because I felt so strongly that no other creator could capture the magic of what Dan and Phil uploaded. I watched all their videos, bought their merch, and, when the opportunity arose, even went to the Amazing Tour is Not on Fire. I still remember that night (seeing Dan and Phil burst on stage out of a giant prop microwave) as one of the happiest live-performance experiences of my life. My apathy towards both did not spring forth born out out of some heinous act either committed. Rather, it was a steady, almost innocuous decline. I feel as though I simply grew out of them. And here is where my first, and pretty much only real critique comes to light; both Dan and Phil’s content have remained stagnate.

Please do not misunderstand: I realize that Youtubers are real people, and to demand growth and change out of people who have arguably settled into who they want to be as adults would be rather unfair. Dan and Phil are not characters on a tv show - I don’t get to shake my fist at my laptop screen and gripe about “poor character arcs” or “slow seasons.” Dan and Phil are flesh and blood - they are not playing characters in a fictional universe. Sure, arguably all Youtubers (and any online persona) “put on a face” for the camera, but there’s a world of difference between, “forcing myself to be extra chipper for the next hour,” and acting out a character in a Hollywood writer’s script. On the one hand, there is a part of me that is happy Dan and Phil (after so many years of struggling with their identities) finally found happiness in themselves. However, if you’ll remember back to what I said in the preamble, that is not the point of this essay.

My apathy towards Dan and Phil lies not with their moral characters, but with their entertainment value, and for me personally, I find it hard to be entertained by what I find to be the same old content I was laughing at in 2013 repackaged into new scenarios and re-uploaded in 2020. Dan and Phil’s prize content was their ability to be so relatable. For Dan especially, I loved hearing him talk about how awkward he was around other people because that’s how I felt around the people in my own life. However, that did not last. I eventually grew out of my awkwardness and found a multitude of friends that I was able to be myself around, and in turn take that confidence I felt around them and project it onto others that came into my life, regardless of how well I knew them. Dan, as well as Phil, had lost the one thing that drew me to them in the first place: their ability to be relatable. Even so, during the latter half of the years during which I continued to watch their videos, there was something else that kept me around: their humor. I thought they were wonderfully funny, and even during my darkest hours I knew I could count on them to brighten my day. Yet, as the years I went by, I noticed that the subject matter of their humor remained pretty much the same as well. Most of their punchlines centered around the same handful of premises (for example, Dan joking about how black his soul is), and like I stated earlier, I had begun to grow tired of the stagnation.

One last time, I would like to recognize that what one person might call “stagnation” another would call “finding a niche,” and I respect that. Many people would argue that Dan and Phil simply stumbled across a specific niche years ago and have been fulfilling that hole glamorously nearly a decade later, and to that I say that’s wonderful! I think that’s a perfectly valid viewpoint to take! It just so happens that I do not share that same perspective.

One of the many indicators in which I feel you can physically see how unchanged their videos have become is in Phil’s (it’s hard to judge Dan’s progression since his last video was uploaded about a year ago as of this post’s uploading). As of mid-2020, Phil’s editing has remained largely unchanged. He still uses the same sound effects, the same visual cues, the same editing tools, and after nearly a decade of watching, I’ve just begun to find it all stale. Even his video concepts remain largely unchanged. I understand that if he’s uploading much of the same content over years that must mean he’s making the content he wants to make, and I am happy he’s reached that point, but it is not the content for me.

All in all, this was a terribly long post that I had considered writing for a while now, and regardless if anyone even reads it, I figure, “Hey - I’ve written it, it’s off my chest, and now I can finally rest in peace.” I no longer find Dan and Phil relatable for the person I have grown into. I in no way regret all the years I spent loving their content and laughing at their antics. But when you look at Dan’s Tweets from around 2014 to now and see that his jokes have remained fairly unvaried, as have Phil’s, I no longer feel a connection to the two as I once had. Lastly, I do want to say that these opinions of mine are not solidified. Yes, this is how I feel now, and it is how I’ve felt for quite some time, but please do not mistake my current stance for me digging my heels in the sand to declare, “No! I have sworn off Dan and Phil and I shall never partake in their content again!” No, of course not! I’m always open to change, and if Dan and Phil suddenly take an enjoyable creative turn, I’d be happy to take a look. And what’s more, I’m a sucker for nostalgia, so I can definitely see myself popping on YouTube to watch an old Dan video or two, or an old Phil video or two, or a gaming channel video or two, or whatever! They will always leave me with fond memories - memories I will take with me for years to come.

#Dan Howell #Phil Lester #Amazingphil #Dan and Phil #K's Long Essays

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folerdetdufoler · 5 years

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saturday morning was cloudy. the whole day was cloudy, but to start, i woke up to a sunrise that didn’t exist. so i ate breakfast and went back to sleep (if i had to define what a vacation was, it would have to include that activity: going back to sleep). then i went to meet nadège, jenn, and haidee at their flat.

i’ve always stayed in a hotel when i’ve visited, specifically the hotel. part of it is because i know how the hotel works, and i heavily weight the value of the familiar. it also was part of the rewards program with sas. it isn’t anymore, and i think they’re going to be doing construction next year, so i’m starting to consider different options for stays for my next trip. i’ll probably stick to a hotel because i heavily weight the existence of room service too, but now it doesn’t have to be the radisson blu. i’ve ridden that elevator enough times.

but uh, the point of this consideration is because they were staying in a really nice flat, which was like an extended stay suite but through airbnb. i was super anxious about using airbnb last summer because it was someone’s home, but this flat was not that, which was appealing to me. i would have to pack much less if i were to go the walk-up route though. um, so i met them there and we walked to get kabobs. jenn had to catch a flight that afternoon but she hadn’t gotten her kabob fix yet, so it was a necessary spot. we met jenni’s group there and then walked down to the river for a moment to eat and chat. nadège and i kept walking along the river since we weren’t eating, and we had a chance to talk through some of the stuff that was bothering me from the day before.

it was really helpful to have that chance, both to let me express myself as well as hear her perspective. most of the time, even though i’m constantly keeping up with people on my dashboard, i’m still very much in my own head about it all. i’m not using a soundboard, just letting my own opinion boil up until it causes problems, spilling negativity into other people’s lives. this has been happening more often, probably because i’m talking to fewer and fewer people as the fandom shrinks and i get more stubborn, so i really appreciated this chance to both be very much in the fandom (in oslo, with human beings) as well as take a step back from it. i still need to work on how i balance my sense of self that i get from the internet with how i express myself in person, and it seems like that just means i need to take a walk and talk to someone. like, every day.

anyway, that’s what we did, going down to the dick swan and back, visiting the barely-canon tree and syng. when we got back to the girls we figured out where we were going next, and we broke up for the afternoon.

a couple of days ago jasmine and silvia had mentioned the nrk studio tour as a thing to do, and i impulse bought (is there any other way?) a ticket for saturday. nadège and haidee were interested in going, so we decided to press our luck and head over to the office to see if we could squeeze two more people onto the tour (it was listed as sold out for saturday when they checked). taru gave us helpful tips for getting to the office but between my struggle with google maps and the front door, we were still too late. the guide was nice enough to come to the front and answer some questions though, so we just went back to the website and bought tickets for sunday instead.

by then the clouds were releasing a week’s worth of weather, and we were all the way out in marienlyst with a couple of hours to kill. so we went through our lists of things we wanted to see, if there were any sites left that hadn’t been toured even though we’ve all been to oslo a few times at this point. and there were! we were actually kind of close to the university campus where parts of “all stories are echoes” are set, so nadège wanted to find an important statue from the fic. she and haidee had read it, and while we walked to campus they did a recap for me, so i would understand the significance of the statue.

at that point it was raining heavily and we were lost but i didn’t really mind it because we were just walking and talking. there was a general goal that we were trying to achieve, but it felt very relaxed, and it was fun listening to all of the things that really excited them about the stories they read. after all this time i don’t think i ever did that, like really find out what attracted them to this fandom, so it was a fun and enlightening conversation. it also passed the time well, as we were walking through the campus and then trying to find a bus back to sentrum.

oh wait, not sentrum. next we looked up kjærlighetskarusellen, because that post about it from the header had recently circulated, and it was another canon detail that sort of defined these trips that we take. we come to oslo because we are fans of a show that is set here, and we love it so much that we seek out every little detail in appreciation. that love has grown to encompass the whole city, so we were looking for this show detail as well as monument to the city’s history and its relationship with homosexuality. we lingered outside of it for a bit, because there was a man actually using it as a urinal, and then we snapped our photos once the coast was clear. now i am no stranger to being creepy but that was probably a top five moment for me, taking a picture of a public urinal. i loudly talked about how it was a cultural heritage site as if that would convince random people passing by that i was truly interested in the city’s sanitation efforts instead of, like, men peeing. for the record i’m not particularly interested in either.

then we went back to the flat for a bathroom break, and on to eat waffles. oh boy! i was excited because i had never had one before. i was still shy in terms of trying one, and chose the nugatti topping instead of the jam & brown cheese classic (pictured is haidee’s waffle). mine was super sweet and...gummy? like the hazelnut paste and the soft waffle was just cement in my mouth, and i got a work out just trying to clean off my teeth with my tongue. but it was delicious. i’d probably eat one every day if i had daily access to haralds.

after our waffle we went to meet jasmine and silvia. we shared a pizza for a late lunch/early dinner, and then went back to the hotel so i could change out of my wet clothes. we recapped each other’s dramas and activities from earlier in the day, and talked about fandom and the internet and how people change, if they do. at this point we’ve known each other for at least a year, if not longer, and it’s interesting to see how we, and the rest of the fandom, have evolved as the show has faded into the distance.

some of the stuff we talked about got intense, or we got wrapped up in drama (what else is new), and we had to take a break by watching the bloopers. that was an instant mood lift, and fun to do with people in the same room. everything was a little bit funnier or cuter or sillier when i could hear everyone else laughing at the show too. someday i’d love to rent out a cinema theatre and project season three for a marathon viewing (with bathroom breaks) for a group of fans. maybe for a seven-year anniversary, when you could time it so it would play on a friday evening, and at exactly 21:21 in real time you’d watch isak walk across the courtyard at school to save the man of his dreams.

but back to saturday. it wasn’t raining, but we took the metro to the park next (baby’s first metro trip!). we were going to meet jenni, taru, and kati, and figure out a good place for jasmine and silvia to hang out outside to listen to karpe. we said our goodbyes at the gate and shifted to the other friend group. i think we were kind of early but there was already a decent crowd going in, and going right for the main stage. i don’t think we bothered with food or drink this time around, mostly because we’d just eaten and it was starting to drizzle, which meant everything would get wet anyway.

jenn mentioned a few times that it was a shame there wasn’t any festival merch to purchase while we were walking around, because we kept seeing all of the volunteers with their t-shirts and bags from previous years. it felt like a missed opportunity. i wondered if it was on purpose, to give more weight to the merch that the volunteers got, as a draw for them to sign up and return to work. limited merch would make that experience more special. but i was wrong, because after jenn had left we finally found out that there was a merch tent with apparel for sale; we just hadn’t found it. so before we joined the crowd for karpe we went up the hill and bought tote bags and socks. i’ll deliver jenn’s tote to her on friday, at the sigrid show. i’m mostly mentioning that here so i don’t forget. i was so excited to find socks because i’m getting used to wearing more funky options (mostly due to haidee’s lovely gifts!) but also because they were um, featured on the festival issue of natt & dag.

we moved closer to the stage, but it was actually the farthest we’d been from it the whole week, simply because the crowd was already packed in. while we waited ronny from nrk p3 walked past, and that was my only celebrity sighting at the whole festival. on thursday i thought i saw axel bøyum walk in front of me, but i’m not sure. it was fast, and i thought i noticed his sharply-angled face and deep eyes, but he was also wearing a hood so i didn’t have much else to compare. he was short though, which also made him stand out to me. anyway, that was the extent of my sightings: 1.5 people. there were others there, of course, because i saw their instagram posts, but i either wasn’t paying attention or wasn’t in the right places to see them. since i myself prefer not to be seen, i tend to treat everyone else the same (at least not on the internet), so i default to ignoring the people around me unless they acknowledge me first. i need your explicit consent before i let myself stare at you.

here’s a brief pause to note how sad i am about heimebane. aaaaaand moving on!

the karpe crowd was huge and...different. saturday had a different vibe in general because it was the weekend, and if someone was going to just pick one day to go to øya this would be that day. also it was raining, so there was this anticipatory buzz that was like, 80% for the show and 20% for getting dry again in a couple of hours. our group kind of slowly shifted and morphed as we were pushed closer to the stage and trying not to lose our footing on the sloped ground. but then the show started and the crowd exploded and you just had to fuckin’ roll with it.

i had to read up on the show afterward to understand some of what magdi and chirag were talking and singing about. despite talking about it with fryd months ago, i didn’t get into their new album like i’d wanted to. so i didn’t understand most of the message in the moment; i was just enjoying the beats and the intensity of everyone else. there was a group of younger guys in front of us who sang every damn word and it was just a really...fulfilling thing to witness? norway came out for norway, and the crowd was exactly what karpe deserved for the show they put on. the guys chatted with nadège and sang at me to get us hyped, and i still felt slightly removed from the crowd but that was okay. i enjoyed this outsider place. i didn’t have to understand or be part of it because it was big enough on its own. i could simply bask in the overflow and dance in the rain.

i knew one song from when i had it on repeat summer 2017, the result of following ashley’s obsession with karpe on tumblr. i also still connected it to skam, from when i was more passionately following the actors’ lives and seeing them go to their concert in oslo, which i think cengiz was also dancing for? these are very weak links but links nonetheless, and it still felt like i was ticking off boxes on my unwritten “experience skam” list. it’s also a testament to how far i’ll twist something to justify it, make it fit my personal narrative. i must still feel guilty about my trips to oslo.

(side note: i’ve been meaning to look this up but i am fascinated by their use of the sas brand in their album and shows, like...they are aggressively shaping the brand and i’m curious as to whether they have permission to do it or if they don’t need it or what level of control the brand has over its use. the relationship between a brand and an artist these days is fucking fascinating, and i’m sort of aware of the rules that we need in america but is it different in other countries? i’m already a fan of sas, in that it’s my airline for my trips to oslo, but would i have been influenced more toward or against it if i were approaching it from a karpe angle, if the duo were introducing me to it? anyway, just some mind wanderings there.)

at the end the crowd was lighting up their cups again. we were surrounded by different people than how we started and couldn’t find the ones we knew. we made the same walk away from the stage, bouncing along with the flow, until we got to the festival sign to catch up with everyone. we took a group pic and said goodnight, not entirely sure what the next day would bring but quite satisfied with the one that had just ended. it was funny how used to the exit walk i’d become, after just a few days, and i felt a little nostalgic about even that, as we did it for the last time. and even though we were all soaked and exhausted, i didn’t feel a particular rush to leave. but it was over. just like that. the volunteers were collecting cups from the crowd as we went, but i took mine home.

#this took way too long to write and now i’m so behind it doesn’t matter anymore #i’ve queued it for a random dag in october #who knows if i’ll be back or still on lockdown #kerryinoslo

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borealopelta · 5 years

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Powerwolf @ Barba Negra Track, Budapest, Hungary

So, the day I’ve been waiting for for the past five months finally came to pass. I got to attend my first Powerwolf show. I was already excited as it was, just getting to see them live, but then they announced the opening bands, Beast in Black and Dalriada. I knew Beast in Black was good and Dalriada has always been a favourite of mine, so it just made me even happier.

Yesterday, I arrived at the gates at around half past eleven. I was the second person there. My almost seven-hour-long wait was way too long and boring, but I got to meet a bunch of amazing people. Can’t say I’ve made lifelong friends, but there are definitely people I wouldn’t mind seeing again. The only downside of this little ‘adventure’ was that at some point I had decided that not eating would be wise – it wasn’t. Lesson learned.

While we were waiting, we managed to peek inside enough during the soundchecks to see Matthew, Charles, Attila, and some people even saw Falk, which, from that distance and angle is truly impressive. Later, Roel came over to the gates to take photos – this is where my ‘free him’ post came from. This one girl managed to give him the present she’d brought for the band: holy water and a bottle of holy wine. If you check out the official photos by Mr Ripkens (say thank you to Mr Ripkens) you can find Attila posing with it.

Eventually they let us in, and I – making use of my energy reserves – managed to sprint right up to the barrier. I ended up literally in front of Charles’ spot. Right where I wanted to be. It was awesome just knowing he would be there later. A guy I’ve talked to earlier was standing next to me, so at least I wasn’t too bored during downtime.

Dalriada was amazing as always, made me go deaf in one ear though. (I was standing right next to a literal wall of speakers. People stood on it.) They played a few of my favourites, a few I didn’t even know, and just generally got the crowd moving.

Beast in Black did a great show. I’ve never seen them live before and I’m not a big fan, although I enjoy the songs I do know. The crowd seemed hyped enough, with some people who actually only came for them. And of course, Máté’s presence made everything all the more intense. We do love to see a Hungarian brother up on the stage with a successful metal band. He’s also super nice.

And then……And then finally, Powerwolf happened. The second Lupus Daemonis started my stomach turned into a tight ball of nerves and I was just screaming so much, I can’t even put words to it. The whole crowd went wild. They opened with Fire & Forgive, which was fucking amazing, even though they didn’t have pyro or Attila’s flamethrowers.

I couldn’t recall the complete setlist, not if I was held at gunpoint, but I know that while they didn’t play Coleus Sanctus – they only had 1.5 hours after all – it felt complete and perfect. When Matthew came over to my side – or Charles’ side, you know what I mean – he immediately noticed me, and we kept smiling at each other. He’s really cute when he smiles, which kind of fucks up his scary demonsona. But whatever. We also screamed Demons Are A Girl’s Best Friend at each other, which, seriously, if you get the chance, you gotta try. He’s so happy when he’s singing along, it should be illegal.

I was telling my friends that I would cry so much, but until about halfway through the show that didn’t happen. But the second the piano got set up and Falk came down from his pedestal I could feel the “uh oh” of an incoming crying session. And fuck, I broke down during the first chorus of Where The Wild Wolves Have Gone, almost couldn’t keep my hand up with the flashlight. I was sobbing like a baby, all the while singing the lyrics like my life depended on it. I’m pretty sure that was when Charles took pity on me, but more on that later.

Charles threw away multiple picks, at least three or four. First one landed really far from me, it was aimed at someone else. The second one I almost caught, but this guy next to me was faster. The third one fell between the barrier and the stage, and the security guy who stood there – a close eyewitness to me losing my mind during the show – went and picked it up and brought it back for me, me specifically, and smiled at me and Mr security guy, I hope you’ll have a nice life because you certainly deserve it. There might have been more picks from Charles. I stopped paying attention.

They seemed to have enjoyed the show just as much as we had. There were beautiful moments, ones I can’t recall specifically, just this vibe of something divine and perfect. We were a great crowd, Attila told us; we did amazing at Armata Strigoi, we were told. Falk won the screaming contest. Also, Falk has a moustache now. Don’t ask me, I don’t know why. It’s horrible. There was not enough space for us to kneel during Lupus Dei, which was a shame, but it was still a great song to witness live. Especially since the Latin part always has and always will make me cry. Especially live.

They closed the show with We Drink Your Blood and Sanctified With Dynamite, two great classics. I couldn’t enjoy the former to the fullest, because I’ve promised my friend that I would record it for her. But the latter…..Gods, I started crying from how perfect it was. One of my favourite songs, live or not. And y’all know what else? Charles threw his wristbands into the crowd. Or at least one of them. The other, he threw to me. Into my hands. It was intentional. And he also smiled at me, a lot, though maybe not as much as Matthew. His smile is infectious and adorable and pure. A perfect demon man. So yeah, I was crying a lot.

It was weird that Roel didn’t throw sticks (lol we’re not dogs playing fetch….are we?) and there was no big group photo, but I’ll live. They only got 90 minutes, and they made the most of it. I am so in love with them for putting on a show like that.

I bought merch too: A sleeveless tee for my summer PW needs, a tour t-shirt because I gotta rep this show, and a third one because it was neat. And two pins.

I went home grinning like a damn idiot, breaking down three times in the – thankfully almost empty – tram. I’m probably still in shock about this all. Finally, I posted two photos on Instagram and tagged the guys in them, just for the hell of it. And Charles freaking Greywolf liked my post. Can I please die.

So yeah, this was it, in a nutshell. Here’s the Google Drive folder I’ve made of my more decent photos (and one blurry which is just really cute, thanks Charles) and the recording of We Drink Your Blood. I hope I’ll get to see more shows like this one, and that all members of this tiny little fandom we have here will get to experience similar, or even better Metal Masses.

#powerwolf #falk maria schlegel #matthew greywolf #attila dorn #charles greywolf #roel van helden #show recap #summer sacraments 2019 #hungary #metal #heavy metal #power metal #long post #links #photos #mine #writing

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putschki1969 · 6 years

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Japan ~ Summer 2018 #1 🎌🗻

Quick introduction: Hello my lovlies!! As most of you might already know, I went to Japan this summer. It was a rather spontaneous decision based on the fact that both Hikaru and Wakana had announced their solo lives. At that point I was suffering from a serious case of Kalafina withdrawal so I felt like I had no choice but to go. I just needed to see them. Also, it was my 30th birthday so I thought I would treat myself. You only turn 30 once, right? On a side note, the timing finally gave me the opportunity to do something I had wanted to do for a few years now. Climb Mount Fuji. o(〃＾▽＾〃)o So yeah, that’s the backstory of my trip. I stayed in Japan from July 30 till August 14 and pretty much my entire trip was dedicated to Kalafina Pilgrimage. Let me tell you this, it was by far the best summer vacation of my life, worth each and every penny! And believe me, there were a LOT of pennies involved XD

Notes: Once again this is coming pretty late but not as late as my previous travel report so that’s a good thing. It took some time to gather my thoughts and put them all into words. This report will be a bit different from the last one since I thought it would be nice to include some travel tips here and there. I guess you could see this as some sort of travel/Kala-guide. Many of my followers have never been to Japan so I guess some general info would be useful to make things easier for you if you ever decide to travel to Japan.

Please note that this is Part 1 of my report. The other parts will follow in the near future (hopefully).

Without further ado, let’s get to it 〈(•ˇ‿ˇ•)-→

July 29 (Sun) ~ July 30 (Mon)

My flight to Japan was scheduled for Sunday July 29. Finally a direct flight again. I HATE layovers with a passion. As always I couldn’t sleep on the plane so I watched all kinds of movies (Blade Runner 2049, The Greatest Showman, Love Simon, Red Sparrow and La La Land - I really don’t get the love for La La Land o.O). 11 hours later I landed at Narita Airport (8 am the next day JST). The second I stepped out of the plane and walked through that tube thingy that connects planes to the airport I thought I was gonna die, it felt like I had just opened an oven and a blast of heat and steam washed over me. To say it felt like a sauna is an understatement. Thank God the tube was rather short and I was soon insiden the airconditioned Narita Airport. I took my time there since I knew I wouldn’t be able to check into my hotel before 14:00. Got my luggage, got my wi-fi sim card, got my JR Pass, charged my Suica, got some instant Chai from Starbucks (the one that Hikaru had just recommended in a blog post XD), bought some fancy looking writing paper (for my letters to Hikaru and Wakana). So yeah, I basically chilled and caught up on all the stuff that I had missed while I didn’t have internet. Around noon I took the Narita Express to Tokyo. I always take the N’EX because it’s super convenient and fast. The fare is high but it’s covered by the JR Pass. From there it’s just one station on the Yamanote Line to my hotel. When I am in Tokyo I always stay at a business hotel in Kanda. Cheap and convenient. Ugh, the short walk to my hotel was hell. Carrying a backpack, shoving my luggage ahead of me, all of that in the middle of the day with the sun blasting down on me. Thankfully two locals took pity on me (I must have looked like I was about to die XD). They helped me with my luggage and brought me to my hotel. All the way I kept apologising because I honestly didn’t expect them to carry my stuff. I was like, “no, no, don’t do it, I will carry it myself!!” But nope, they were pretty stubborn about it. Ahhhh, everyone is so kind, it always makes me happy to be back in Japan. I guess those are the perks of looking like a small girl, everyone feels the need to help you XD Anyways, I checked in, freshened up and then I did a bit of shopping in Akihabara. Nothing extraordinary, mostly I just looked for second hand Kalafina stuff XD (as I always do) During this trip I didn’t buy a lot though. A couple of singles (One Light and Blaze), the LEs for “After Eden” and “far on the water”, that’s about it. I came across re/oblivious but meh, it was too expensive for my taste, that CD isn’t too high on my priority list at the moment if I am being honest. Anyways, I didn’t do much else that day since I was pretty exhausted from my flight and I definitely needed to rest considering all the things that were lying ahead of me. Before I headed to bed I wrote my letter for Hikaru (thank God I bought a bunch of stationary because I screwed up so often and had to start on a new paper XD) and that’s a wrap for my first day in Tokyo.

❗ Some tips ❗

Try not to travel to Japan in the summer time! Flights are crazy expensive, there are lots of typhoons, most places are brimming over with people (Japanese and tourists alike) and the awful humidity makes you want to kill yourself.

Get a JR Pass if you plan to travel a lot by train/shinkansen (long distance trips). Believe me, it pays off to have one even though the price might seem a bit scary. I like to get to places fast, don’t wanna waste my time by using slow trains or buses. That’s why for me the JR Pass is perfect but it might be different for some of you.

Get a Suica. While the JR Pass is quite convenient, it doesn’t cover any of the metros and other stuff. In most cases you will be able to get around using just JR lines but sometimes it will be much easier to just take the metro or a bus and in these cases a Suica comes in quite handy. You simply charge your card and off you can go.

Get a rental sim card or a portable pocket wi-fi. The first time I went to Japan back in 2014 I didn’t have either of the two and man, I still don’t know how I survived, having no internet sucks. Wi-fi is super important, you can use google maps for orientation, you can always stay in contact with other people. You really shouldn’t travel without it. I recommend sim cards (if your device is unlocked) because the coverage is just much better. Some pocket wi-fis don’t work well in rural areas or underground. Definitely pre-order and don’t get it at the airport (so over-priced there!). I always have my rental delivered to the airport post office. In the past I have used the CDJapan service because it’s super reliable but there are other (cheaper) options I think.

I’d recommend you stay in the Kanda area or close to it: This only goes for people who want to stay in a hotel, if you are wiling to stay in hostels/shared housing the Asakusa area is probably better suited for you. Anyways, this area has a lot of so called business hotels. The rooms are small and basic but really, it’s all you need. And it’s not too expensive. While there are business hotels in other areas, Kanda is just a super convenient location in my opinion. Just one JR station away from Tokyo (down)/Akihabara (up). There’s a direct JR express connection to Shinjuku. Last but not least you have the Metro Ginza Line which connects you to the fancy-schmancy area of Tokyo.

July 31 (Tue) ~ Hikaru Birthday Event

I already posted a pretty extensive report about this day (☞^o^) ☞ HERE! Be sure to check it out if you haven’t already (I have edited it a lot ever since I first posted it). However, there are still a couple of things I didn’t mention there. That day I got my package from Fril with the Keiko Lily Brown blouse and Wakana Candy Stripper sweater I had wanted for a super long time. Too bad it was too hot to wear either of those. Aside from the two clothing items, I also finally got my Harmony magazine and my Hyakka Ryouran key pendants. And of course all the Hikaru merch. Ahhhh! It was a truly glorious Kala-day and I felt like I was being showered with all kinds of Kala-stuff. This was also the start of my Kalafina Pilgrimage (as I like to call it XD). As I have mentioned in my report, my friend Sai and I went to La Maison Kioi. I had already been there during my January trip but it’s such a lovely place that I didn’t mind going again. Still haven’t been to the private room though T_T Such a shame. But it’s on my to-do list. One day I will be in that private room!!! Then we went to Afternoon Tea - Tearoom. It’s the place where Hikaru bought her calpis lassi. We went to the shop in Shibuya Mark City in case any of you wanna go there too. The lassi was okay, nothing spectacular but not too bad. I guess you need to like the taste of calpis. After the live when I got home I immediately had to look for Hi-chan’s blouse. And YAY, I managed to find it super quickly. The price shocked me to be honest. It was almost 100 bucks even though it was already 50% off. At that time I didn’t really wanna buy it because I thought it was too expensive but oh well, I changed my mind XD (but more on that in a later post...)

❗ Some tips ❗

Try using pages like Fril or Zozoused to find old Kalafina fashion items. On my twitter account you can find all my detective discoveries (there’s pretty much nothing else there). You can make awesome deals on those sites. Kala-clothes are super expensive as we all know but when you buy them used, they are MUCH cheaper. The Japanese take a lot of care of their clothes so even their used items will be in great condition.

Try to get to the venue of a Kalafina live as early as possible if you want to buy all the merch. Yes, I know it’s rough and it feels like a waste of time to stand in line for hours on end but believe me, it’s worth it. I have seen many people underestimate the whole lining-up thing. As a reference, we were there at 10 am, the sale started at around 1 pm iirc. It was a small event on a weekday but still, by the time we arrived at the venue there were already around 25 people lining up and afterwards there came a ton more.

Try to bring little souvenirs from your country when you plan to meet up with fellow Kala-fans. Doesn’t have to be much, maybe some small chocolates or something. Everyone will appreciate the gesture and you won’t feel so bad when you receive a ton of stuff from the people around you.

Aug 1 (Wed) ~ Aug 2 (Thu) a.k.a. Mount Fuji Climb

The toughest two days of my trip (my entire life if I am being honest). Ever since 2016 (when Keiko first voiced her wish to climb Mount Fuji) I have had this idea stuck in my head. You know me, I am a crazy-Keiko-fan, she is my idol, my inspiration, literally the love of my life (♥ω♥ ) ~♪ When she said that she wanted to do it I KNEW I had to give it a try too. However, for the longest time I didn’t know if I would ever be able to do it. For one I am basically the least active person on this planet and two, summer is the official climbing season and I had never actually planned to travel to Japan in the summer time. But then all of a sudden the stars aligned and everything fell into place. When I decided to travel to Japan this summer I also decided that I would use the opportunity to climb Mount Fuji. There was no way around it. Plus, I thought it would be a great challenge for my 30th birthday (which was on Aug 2). In preparation I did a lot of cardio and leg strengthening, I also tried to walk AT LEAST 5 km every day for about two months. I met up with Sai at 11 am on Aug 1 (I am so glad I convinced her to come with me - she is a fellow crazy-Keiko-fan XD). We had some lunch at Shinjuku Station (I went for pizza because I thought I could use a lot of energy - and yup, I was right!). Then we took a direct bus to the 5th Station on Mount Fuji where we ate even more food (some overpriced curry). After acclimating for a while we started our hike at around 6 pm. We tried to be all inconspicuous and pretended to be part of a group led by two tour guides. These tours usually cost a lot of money and you can’t just take part in them but I think the tour guides took pity on us because we were all by ourselves (and we are both small so we probably looked like little girls). Or I don’t know, maybe they thought we were annoying gaijins but at any rate, they didn’t tell us to get lost so I guess that’s a good thing. The pace of the group was SUPER slow (which was good because it helped save a lot of energy). I had my issues walking in the group because I can’t stand crowds but it was probably for the best. After about an hour it started to get dark (thank God we all had our head lights because the darkness up there is unbelievably black, you don’t see anything). Soon after it also became freezing. You didn’t notice it when you were walking but whenever we took a break, you could feel the coldness creeping up on you (especially with all the sweat on your body). The entire climb took about 10 hours I would say (much longer than most reports had suggested). Obviously we took some breaks in between but for the most part all we did was climb (at a very slow pace though). Half of the hike we walked together with the group but then they stopped at a hut to rest there. We hadn’t booked a hut so we continued by ourselves but at that point there were so many people on the mountain that you were never alone.

Here comes the embarrassing part. Half-way up I had a full on panic attack. Like literally, I was hyperventilating, I was crying, believe me when I tell you, it wasn’t pretty, I was a mess. Some of the people around us thought I had seriously hurt myself or something but really, it was just me having a meltdown. Quick backstory: I suffer from a serious case of vertigo, I mean sometimes I can’t even walk stairs without getting dizzy. Now for the most part the climb wasn’t too bad. At least until we reached the 7th Station. It was exhausting of course but we had chosen the easiest trail (Yoshida), I was trying my best to always face the mountainside, I never looked down and I had my friend walk between myself and the hillside. But between the 7th and 8th Station the terrain was HORRIBLE: There are lots of steep, jagged-edged rocks. It’s very dangerous (or at least it FELT very dangerous to me). I was frightened to death. I had to use my hands and because I am so small I often had to hoist myself up the HUGE rocks. I was pretty much on my hands and knees for who knows how long. I tried to find the small rocks but sometimes there just wasn’t a way around a big one. The path got narrower as we continued along and there were sections where the ledge of the mountain was barely half a metre away from us! Can you imagine??! HALF A FREAKING METRE! That’s nothing. (*/ω＼*) Sometimes there wasn’t even a rope! Not that a tiny rope would have saved me from falling down (but you get my point!). You couldn’t really see anything, you just saw the blackness next to you. I tried to focus on myself and the person in front of me. And I held onto the mountain as best as I could. This is where being in a group came in handy. Because I was surrounded by people, I was literally FORCED to continue, I couldn’t just stop. This was honestly the scariest and most physically demanding thing I’ve ever done in my entire life. And then when we were taking a short break at one of the huts, I was having my crazy breakdown. I don’t know why it happened at that point, maybe because I couldn’t believe what had just happened. Or maybe I was scared of what would still happen. No idea, but I was close to giving up. I am so grateful to Sai for being by my side, she provided so much support and comforted me. I tried to think of Keiko and how I was doing this because of HER. Somehow, it helped a lot, keeping her in mind provided me with lots of strength. I am not a religious person but I guess this comes close to what people feel when they ask for a little aid from God...(sorry, this might sound blasphemous to religious people but I think it really was like that. It was like having a comforting presence around me that guided me ahead). Oh well, slowly but surely I managed to calm down and then the tour guide said that these had been the scariest parts and the rest of the hike wouldn’t be as bad. What a relief!! Soon after the group took shelter in a hut while we continued onwards. I really wanted to see the sunrise. The final parts were tough, I am not gonna lie. There were so many people that the trail got congested, the terrain was steep again and the summit felt like an eternity away. Then FINALLY at around 3 or 4 am (I don’t reallly know anymore) we reached the top. Sai and I fell into each other’s arms. We cried, we celebrated. We had done it!! ( •̀ᄇ• ́)ﻭ✧ All thanks to Keiko!!! BANZAI!! We found ourselves a nice place and waited for the sun to rise. At this point we were freezing and exhausted so the sunrise didn’t feel as epic as I had expected (or maybe my expectations were too high). It also started to get a bit cloudy so the clouds obstructed the view. But still, mind-blowing experience.

We warmed ourselves up a bit in one of the huts, had some breakfast (or at least Sai did, I just had a coffee - was still feeling a bit off due to my panic attack) and checked out the crater. Then it was time to make our way down. Thankfully you are taking a different trail than the one up. The way down is basically the trail the bulldozers use to transport stuff up and down the mountain. The road is slightly steep but nowhere near as steep as the way up. It’s also not as narrow so you don’t feel like you are falling off the mountain any second. What makes it difficult though is the slippery gravel. You have to be really careful not to slip. Walking downhill is also really hard on the knees and feet so we were in quite some pain. Once again it took longer than expected. I think we walked for about five hours in total until we reached the 5th Station. We took a lot of breaks though and listened to Kalafina. It felt amazing and eased our pain. The further we went down the hotter it got. [I am really surprised I didn’t get sick after the whole thing, so many temperature changes, so much freezing, so much sweating, so much physical exertion and sleep deprivation...I am really proud my body made it through all of that XD] Unfortunately we missed the bus we had reserved for 11 am but thankfully that wasn’t a huge issue because we managed to get seats on a later bus at around 1 pm I think. At around 3 pm we arrived at Shinjuku Bus Terminal and were hit by the Tokyo humidity. The air was so nice and crisp up on the mountain (even on the 5th Station)!! It was a huge shock to be back in the oven that is Tokyo. The plan was to go back to my hotel to freshen up a little and then have some celebratory dinner together. That’s when I had my second breakdown. The hotel staff wouldn’t let Sai come up to my room. I mean, I know the rules, single bedrooms don’t allow visitors but hell, we looked like shit and we hadn’t slept and we were dirty and sweaty and we really just wanted to freshen up a little. I thought they would understand...but they didn’t ...I felt horrible about that because things weren’t going according to plan. I didn’t know what to do, I certainly wasn’t going to leave Sai waiting in the lobby while I freshened up. So yeah, I was just sad and frustrated and exhausted which led to a ton of crying. Once again Sai was the one to provide comfort. We eventually decided to just go have dinner in our current attire. To hell with dirt and sweat. We went to Akihabara, found ourselves a nice Shabushabu place and stuffed ourselves with a ton of meat XD Too bad I forgot to take pictures, it truly was a wonderful meal! We really needed all that meat to recharge our batteries. Then we parted ways and I went back to my hotel. After getting all the dirt and sweat off me I called my family because everyone wanted to talk to me, it was my birthday after all. Then I fell into bed and had a nice refreshing sleep. All in all it was an “interesting” and eye-opening experience, probably the most scary yet exciting thing I ever did. I feel proud of what we achieved during these two days and I will forever treasure the memories. Kalafina has influenced my life like nothing else. They have made me become a better person, a stronger person. This experience has made that very apparent. Without my love for Keiko I wouldn’t have been able to do this. She really inspires me every day and I felt so incredibly close to her while I was up on that mountain. Combined with my nail appointment the next day, this was probably the closest I ever felt to her. It was like a soothing balm after not having heard anything from Keiko in such a long time. Last but not least, I gained an amazing friend. Sharing this experience with Sai felt special, it’s almost like there is a bond between us now.

❗ Some tips ❗

Take Mount Fuji seriously! I think I really did, I prepared myself thoroughly but still, I wasn’t 100% prepared for the experience. So yeah, do not underestimate the climb! People often say it’s an easy climb but that’s not true. It’s certainly not the Everest but it IS a challenge. At some point or another the altitude WILL get to you and the temperature changes are not to be taken lightly. Plus, you have to be in good physical shape.

Good shoes are key.

Bring lots of clothes. It gets VERY cold at night (the temperatures can drop below 0°C). Ski wear is often recommened. Definitely some layers. A hat, a scarf, some gloves and of course a head light. Also, some oxygen in case you suffer from altitude sickness (it’s sold on the huts).

Hydration is actually overrated. If you walk at a slow place (like we did) you won’t need a lot of water. At least we didn’t. So it’s best not to burden yourself with unnecessary weight. I would say a small bottle is enough, no need to bring 3 litres or whatever. It might be different if you walk during the day since you are constantly under the sun.

Even on the easiest trail (Yoshida) there are very dangerous parts so be careful and take things slowly. And be mindful of people behind you!

Decide whether you want to climb at night or during daytime (or both). We decided on a night climb without staying at a hut. This is physically demanding and not many people recommend it but you save a lot of money and time. Hiking during the day and taking shelter at a hut during the night might sound like a good idea but there are downsides to it. First of all, you are constantly under the sun. Secondly, the night at the hut will cost you A LOT and it will make your entire trip a lot longer. Plus, it is most likely not as re-energising as you might think because you will not get proper rest due to all the people around you. Lastly, there are still a couple of hours of night climbing left if you want to see the sunrise. So yeah, that’s why I decided against a day climb.

Expect to pay around 10 bucks to be able to hike up Mount Fuji. It’s some sort of mandatory donation. Also bring lots of 100 yen coins with you because you will need those to use the various bathrooms (which are quite horrible and have no running water so you better mentally prepare yourself for that).

Reserve your bus seats in advance but give yourself PLENTY of time. A one-way bus ticket costs around 20 bucks.

Aug 3 (Fri) ~ Nail appointment at ROI Salon

I didn’t do anything that day except go to my nail appointment (I was still exhausted but surprisingly not in a lot of pain. YAY!). (☞^o^) ☞ HERE’s my thorough report of my experience. Be sure to check it out. I fangirl a lot and I have since edited it quite a bit XD As I have mentioned above, my climb and this appointment have made me feel super close to Keiko. I don’t know how to explain it but I felt a connection. Plus, hearing that Keiko is doing fine, that she is finally getting some well deserved rest, it made me happy. I never had my doubts that Keiko was doing fine but to actually hear it felt nice. So yeah, the first few days of my trip were filled with Kalafina Love. During the Birthday Event I felt like an intimate connection was formed between Hikaru and myself and even though I didn’t actually get to meet or see Keiko, I DID feel close to her. （´・｀）♡ So many wonderful experiences in such a short little time! Absolute PERFECTION.

❗ Some tips ❗

A reservation HAS to be made in advance! You can do it online!

In your reservation you should mention that you are a Kalafina fan (just so both Keiko and Megumi get the option to change their appointments if they want to - in case Keiko’s appointment aligns with yours)

Be reserved and respectful, DO NOT PRY for information! If information is shared willingly with you that’s totally fine but don’t be the one to initiate anything. Don’t be that creepy stalker fan

All right, that’s it for Part 1...Thanks to everyone who made it to the very end of this post!! (*＾▽＾)／ I know it was a lot. In Part 2 I will talk about my Hikaru Pilgrimage in Toyama.

#kalafina #personal #travel guide #japan summer 2018 #mount fuji #japan #tokyo #wakana #keiko #hikaru #hikaru birthday event #long post #long text post #picture heavy #keiko nails #part 1

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ai-da-ice · 6 years

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[Fan Account] The Da-iCE a-i Contact Fan Meet Experience!

On 6/8 I went to my very first Da-iCE fan meet, ai-contact 5 ~Fight Back~. Unlike with concerts where I had a good idea of what to expect due to watching all of Da-iCE's concert DVDs, I really had no idea what the fan meet would be like or what the group would do during the event. I was bit worried that it would be 100% talk and I wouldn't be able to follow well, but to my pleasant surprise, a lot of different things happened during the fan meet outside of just talking, and I was able to understand quite a bit of it!

The venue this time was Toyosu PIT, which is somewhat on the small side. There are no higher levels, only the ground floor. I was in the 20th row, which put me closer to the back than the front, but my view was still decent. They also had a few monitors set up, but I didn't really need to rely on those too much throughout the night.

I arrived a bit early to buy merchandise. Da-iCE's fan meets usually have some unique merch options that differ from their tour merch. This year's merch line up included a new lightstick for the group's anniversary year, which I really wanted so I could complete my lightstick collection. I also bought 3 pins for the group-- these are given randomly and you can't choose which member or design you receive. I got I LOVE TAIKI and I LOVE YUDAI pins and one Hayate design as well. Since I love all the members, I don't want to sell or trade, but I may possibly buy some Sota versions from a fan if I can find them at a good price!

For the fan meets, if you buy a copy of the new single, you can also receive a ticket for an event after talk. At the after talk, you can write a question for the members on a slip of paper which they may select to answer. You also receive a random new seating ticket for re-entering the building. I got ticket number #405, which put me around the 10th row, much closer to the stage than my original ticket!

The main event started at 7 PM with a video of the members playing rock-paper-scissors to determine who would be the event MC. Naturally, Sota lost, which meant he would not be participating in any of the games, but would be in charge of directing the members in all their challenges. The very first thing on the agenda would be to choose an event keyword. The staff would keep track of how many times each member used the word and tally it into their final score to determine the event's "winner." The keyword of the event this time was "yabai," a word used in Japanese for many different things. It usually means something like "incredible" or "cool," but it can also mean "dangerous" or even “scary” depending on how you use it. Toru-Yudai-Hayate-Taiki weren't told the key word, but us audience members were shown on a screen.

Right after the key word was selected, my question about whether or not there would be performances was answered as the music to Hayate's solo song "Sunadokei" began to play! I've never seen Hayate perform solo in person before, and let me just say: HE WAS INCREDIBLE! Hayate has said in the past that he doesn't have a lot of confidence in his voice and didn't intend to join the entertainment industry as a singer, but his level of control and stability was quite good for someone who isn't a lead singer! I was so impressed by his delivery!

Next, Sota also got to perform his solo song from Kake Hayabusa, "Owari Aru Tabi". As expected of Sota, the performance was absolutely gorgeous, and he conveyed the emotions of the song powerfully and beautifully.

With these two performances wrapped up, the group started playing games. In the first challenge, the members had to collect fans from the audience using different categories. Hayate had to collect people whose birthday was June 8th. Yudai had to collect people who still used old fashioned flip phones. Toru collected people with a specialized professional license. Taiki collected people who had dice-shaped fashion accessories. Unfortunately, I didn't fill any of the requirements, but the fans who did were taken up onstage and could talk to the members a little bit about their birthday or special items. I couldn't get an exact count, but it looked like Taiki collected the most people, and Hayate the least for this category.

After that, the group played a gesture game. The audience members were shown a word or phrase on the big screen and we would have to mime it for the members to guess. Some were song titles like "You&I" or "Tokyo Merry Go Round," but others were more complicated like the members' radio programs or special events. Toru ended up winning this game, with Yudai coming in last.

After the first two games, we were back to performances! Toru performed his solo song "hitofuyu". Even though it didn't match the summer weather since it's a winter song, he still delivered a great performance. He seemed a little nervous to be performing on his own, but I think he did a good ob overall! The group then got together to perform the 5 vocal, bossa nova version of "HELLO." They've gotten really strong at performing as 5 vocally, so I hope they continue the trend of doing 5 vocal songs in the future!

The next performance was chosen by a fan vote. We had three options: Stay, what you say, and Did You Know? Yudai had a sound level meter, and we were supposed scream "Haaaaaaaaiiiiii!" for the song we wanted them to perform. I originally voted for "what you say", but it tied with "Stay" and we had to revote, so I changed my mind to "Stay" so I could hear Sota's epic high note. "Stay" wound up winning and we received a great performance of the Fight Back era masterpiece. Unfortunately, Yudai made a little mistake in the choreography right when he was at the front of the formation, and we teased him a little for it ^^ When the performance was over, he jokingly hung his head in shame for a bit.

After, the event went live for about twenty or so minutes on SNS-- Da-iCE's Youtube, Twitter, Instagram, etc. We were also allowed to film this portion with our cell phones if we wanted. Da-iCE played a video announcing the release of their upcoming 4th album BET (out August 8!) as well as their upcoming tour beginning in September at Makuhari Messe and ending in January was two days in Osakajo Hall. I was so excited to hear about the album release, but a little upset that I'd miss out on the tour. It's about one month after I'll have moved back to America, and I would have really loved to see it T^T While the live broadcast was still recording, the group also did a performance of new single FAKESHOW.

When the live broadcast shut off, Sota announced the event keyword to the remaining four members and the staff showed the tally of how many times each member had said it. It was a surprisingly small count: Taiki, Toru, and Hayate had each said “yabai” 3 times, while Yudai had only said it twice.

With that final game over, they tallied up the total score. Toru won by a huge margin (his score was 26 and the next highest score was Hayate with 14), and Yudai and Taiki tied for last. Toru's prize for winning was a box of specialty food, while Yudai and Taiki had to do a punishment game of spelling the word "Osakajo" with their butts. It may have been a punishment for them, but it definitely wasn't for us! While Sota was decided what word they would have to spell, they did a little bit of twerking and model posing for us >_< I wish I could have taken a video to share the visual delight, but rules are rules!

The group wrapped up with a relaxed and light hearted performance of TOKYO MERRY GO ROUND where they spent as much time laughing and trolling each other as they did performing. They also threw out signed balls to the fans, but I didn't come close to catching any. Since I was closer to the back, whenever a member threw a ball to our area, it would hit the rafters of the building and fall to the ground.

When the event was over at close to 9 PM, we had to go outside again to re-enter for the after talk. Like I mentioned, I was in row 10, about in the center. For each fan event, different members would be answering the questions, and for our event we had Yudai, Hayate, and Taiki. The after talk was very brief and the boys dug through the questions and pulled out the questions they thought were the most interesting to answer. Unfortunately I was suffering from a bit of a stomachache this point (having taken a two hour walk on a full stomach before the event, bad idea T^T) and my concentration wasn't so good. My brain wasn't very much on what they were saying, since I was just kind of staring dazedly at their faces. Forgive me! The one question I caught was about where they wanted to visit in America-- they said LA and New York, the obvious choices! The after talk went by quite quickly, but it was good to have the chance to see them again, especially since my view was much closer than the original event.

Overall, it was a fantastic experience, and I'm so glad I got to go! I really feel like there are no walls between Da-iCE and their fans. They talk to us comfortably, like friends, and aren't afraid to show off all their silly sides. Even though their popularity is increasing, they still feel like the companionable, humble guys they were back when they got started. Every chance I have to see them really makes me so happy inside :D

#da-ice #fan account

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