#mayan band | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

eterut · 1 year

Text

I wanna talk about the prehispanic and mesoamerican representation of music in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.

The music was my main motivation to go see the film (alongside with the introducing of Tenoch, one of my favorite people inthe world).

The day of the Mexican premiere, my facebook feed was full of photos of musicians (whom I follow for their prehispanic instrumental and amazing work thru the years in the band TRIBU and colabs with musicians Arturo Meza, Jorge Reyes and Rastrillos) attending the premiere and revealing that they participated in the making of the music for the film!

The news clearly moved me to inexplicable levels because those musicians: Ramiro Ramirez Duarte and Alejandro Mendez Rojas, have spent decades working and promoting research, practice and recognition of prehispanic instruments and how mesoamerican music might have sounded.

In addition, these musicians (one with degree in ethnomusicology and anthropological research and the other as a member of the Otomi indigenous community in the north of the territory where I was born and live), have been and are part of projects and musical groups that have given original music and prehispanic instruments the place they deserve in the broad definition of Mexican music.

In an interview with La Silla Rota Guanajuato They explain that "Prehispanic music no longer exists, from that past only the instruments remain, their melodies".

Alejandro Méndez Rojas commented that is unknown how the music of that time was; everything was destroyed in the 16th century because the Spanish prohibited prehispanic musicians and everything that had to do with ancient culture, they stopped making the instruments, there were no longer any manufacturers.

Did you get chills when the Talokani first came out and hypnotized the ship's crew with their voices? This is what you hear:

Did you feel the love and pain through Namor's origin story? This was what accompanied that feeling:

The pieces Namor, Lost in the depths, Yucatán, Namor's Throne, Imperius Rex and Sink the ship also have remarkable elements from prehispanic instruments and voices.

Hearing the distinctive sounds of snails, flutes, rattles, drums, and canes at epic and emotional moments in the film made my heart race and pride prickle my skin.

About "Árboles bajo el mar", Alejandro Mendez Rojas explain in their social media:

"In this piece I composed all the sounds made with prehispanic instruments. I used a Tepehuano bow, tortoise shells percussed by Huave deer antlers, Mayan double-diaphragm whistle, Mayan trumpets, Tezcatlipoca flute, Mayan tunkul among other instruments made by me.

Thank you for allowing me to promote Mesoamerican musical instruments through their sounds in this film and thanks to all the people who collaborated on this piece."

With their work and passion for the music, they become heroes too:

“One way to ensure that instruments are not lost is to build them again, to execute them, to carry out work so that they last, so that they remain alive.

I think that the instruments of prehispanic Mexico deserve that boost, that promotion to enter a world where there is musical diffusion, the instruments deserve that stage to be better know, we have worked with them for many years, have cost us diffusion"

Because it is another form of representation, it is another way of saying "we are here", but on a large scale, it is an opportunity to continue preserving our culture, our roots and to allow it not to go out.

"Mexico has a wonderful ancestral legacy, worthy of being recovered and put into circulation again, the instruments will come to life in every human being who listens to them"

Gracias señores Ramiro y Alejandro por ser tan chingones y seguir trabajando por darle a nuestra herencia y a nuestras raíces la dignidad que merecen. Felicidades por este trabajo tan hermoso y emotivo. Y muchas gracias por ser parte de mi formación y herencia musical. Me siento orgullosa y feliz por todo eso 🫀

Please, listen all the music from the original soundtrack and give them a lot of love. Thank you Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Goransson for let it be this wonderful dignity manifesto that is Wakanda Forever.

🖤🤎

#wakanda forever #black panther #black panther wakanda forever #namor #tenoch huerta #representation is important #te amamos tenoch #prehispanic music #mesoamerica #prehispanico #ando bien pinche emocionada que ni yo me soporto #Spotify

2K notes · View notes

bullet-prooflove · 3 months

Text

Stockton!Series Part Four: Sierra - Nestor Oceteva x Reader (feat: Marcus Alvarez)

Tagging: @anime-weeb-4-life @expir3dl0v3 @danzer8705 @drabbles-mc @alwaysachorusgirl @witches-unruly-heart @mysoulisasunflower @im-just-a-mississippi-girl @multifandomloversworld @est1887 @mortal--soul @buddinglinguist @spookyboogyuniverse @thanossexual @lexondeck @weiwei0210 @trublu2u @justreblogginfics @oklahomapeach @keyweegirlie @crazy4chickennuggets @kmc1989 @withakindheartx @wnbweasley @skyesthebomb @msjava1972 @trublu2u @fleureeee @jp1019 @thiashazzywriting @jeybae

Part One: El Cuchillo - An incident in the clubhouse causes ramifcations for the entire club.

Part Two: Always - Nestor learns about what happened.

Part Three: In the Dark - You and Nestor wake up to find armed men in your house.

Bishop is livid, fucking livid. He can feel the fury chasing through his veins as he stands on the patch of land outside the clubhouse at two in the morning, his eyes fixed on the three men kneeling in front of him, their hands bound behind their backs.

Sanchez, the man who had planned to burn down your house.

Flaco, the man who’d tried to murder you in your sleep.

Ramos, the fucking orchestrator of all this chaos.

Hank and Taza stand on either side of their prisoners, making sure no one gets a stupid fucking idea in their head and tries to run.

It’s fitting in a way that it comes down to the old guard. These were the men who swore to protect you once upon a time. When your father was at his wits end, staring down the bottom of bottle because he didn’t know how to help you. What you don’t know, what you will never know is that they had plans for the list your father made all those years ago. If you hadn’t sought your vengeance first, they would have done it for you.

He hears the roar of the motorcycle in the distance, it tears through the air like a banshee screaming into the night. Noone speaks as the rider pulls up, they simply wait as he climbs off the bike, his snakeskin cowboy boots clicking against the concrete. He’s wearing his kutte tonight, his El Padrino patch showing predominantly in the overhead lights on he strides towards Bishop.

That rage, it seems to simmer. Bishop can feel it radiating from the other man as he draws closer, his eyes glowing like coals from the deepest depths of hell. El Padrino’s out for blood tonight, Bishop can taste it.

“Just these three?” He asks Bishop, indicating towards their captives.

Bishop removes Ramos’s phone from his pocket before handing it to Marcus. The other man studies the messages intently, his thumb scrolling through them as he takes in the details of the hit.

Raze it the ground, he’d written. I want her to burn.

“Smokey wasn’t involved?” Marcus questions, handing the phone back to Bishop.

Bishop shakes his head as he returns it to his pocket.

“I have Riz keeping him company in the clubhouse, figured you’d want to talk to him once you were finished with them.” He says, inclining his head towards the three Stockton men.

“You were right.” Marcus says, withdrawing the Berretta from the waist band of his trousers.

He points the weapon at Sanchez.

“The one that wanted to burn down their home.” Marcus says before pulling the trigger.

Flaco cries out as the blood splashes across his face, the stench of cordite fills the air as Marcus points the gun at him.

“The one who fired an assault rifle into their bed.” Marcus pulls the trigger again and Flaco falls face first onto the concrete.

“And you,” Marcus says turning his attention to Ramos. “The man who can’t let the past just die, who has to come back and rake it up because he can’t stand the fact a dead man was a better Mayan that he will ever be.”

Ramos laughs, it’s a haunting rasp that echoes through the yard as he stares up at Marcus.

“She grew up pretty didn’t she? Javi’s daughter.” Ramos says, a cruel smile spreading across his features. “Just like her mother.”

There’s a flash of steel behind Marcus’s eyes, his hand threads through Ramo’s hair, gripping it tightly before he tugs it back and jams the Berretta right under his chin.

“A bullet is too good for you.” Marcus snarls as he locks gazes with Ramos.

“She was my girl.” Ramos hisses, his tongue running over his lower lip. “Sierra was mine until he rolled up and took her!”

“She didn’t belong to you.” Marcus snaps, driving the gun even harder into the other man’s jaw. “That is something you have never been able to understand. She had a choice, and she didn’t choose you.”

“I had her anyway.” Ramos reminds him and, in that moment, he looks every inch the animal he is. “I took what was his and I ruined it.”

“I should have let him kill you that night.” Marcus seethes as he wrenches the other man’s head back even further. “I should have let him beat you to death, instead of pulling him off you.”

“But you didn’t and now we’re here.” Ramos grins, blood staining his teeth. “I bet her daughter would have tasted just as sweet as she did…”

The words are barely out of his mouth before the gunshot explodes through the scrapyard, his brains spattering across the concrete.

“Take their kuttes.” Marcus says as he stares down at Ramos’s corpse. “We’re heading up to Stockton.”

Love Nestor? Get added to his tag list!

Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

#nestor oceteva #nestor oceteva x you #nestor oceteva x reader #mayans mc

55 notes · View notes

anangelwhodidntfall · 2 years

Text

Celebrity Crush: Austin Butler

Austin Butler Masterlist

word count: 11.5k

description: The three times you talked about your crush on Austin Butler and the one time you actually meet him.

You and your best friend and co-star Richard Cabral were in the middle of doing an interview to promote the new season of Mayans MC when the interviewer asked you both who your celebrity crush was. You smiled as you already knew who your celebrity crush was watching as Richard thought about his answer before throwing out a random name.

"Natalie Portman? Fuck I don't really have a celebrity crush." He said making you and the interviewer laugh at his answer.

"What about you?" The interviewer asked.

"Oh lord, I can't wait to hear who it is this month. Her celebrity crush changes every few months." Richard said as you rolled your eyes at him.

"It does not!" You said.

"Does too. One month it was Jamie Campbell Bower and then the next it was Sebastian Stan." He said as you realize that he did kinda have a point.

"I mean I can't blame her both men are pretty cute. So who is your celebrity crush right now?" The interviewer asked you.

"Austin Butler. I'm in the middle of watching The Sharnna Chronicles right now and he's just so fine in that show." You said looking at the camera with a laugh.

The second time you would mention your crush on Austin would be during an Instagram live to promote your band's new album with your best friend Honey unaware that Austin was in there the whole time.

"Are you in a relationship?" you read out aloud making you and Honey laugh.

"I don't know Honey, am I in a relationship?" You asked her.

"Yeah she's been in one with Austin Butler in her head for the past three months, but in reality, she's not." Your friend said making you look at her shocked.

"Honey! I can't believe you exposed me like that." You said throwing your head in your hands embarrassed that she said that.

"What it's true! He's all you talk about anymore, I don't think no man or woman will be able to live up to him." She said.

"What do you want me from me? I can't help he's the literal definition of prince charming." You said.

"Then make a move! DM him or something, because I haven't seen you this hung up on someone in a long time." She said.

"I don't think so, he's got a girlfriend! I'm a lot of things but a homewrecker is not one of them." You said making her throw her hands in the air in frustration at the news.

"What do you mean girlfriend?" She asked you making you laugh as you shook your head at her as you went back to the live.

The third time your crush on Austin was brought up was during the VMA's where your band was up for an award and you guys were on the red carpet doing an interview before the show started.

"So this final question is more for Y/n than anyone else." The interviewer said making you laugh as you could only imagine what it was.

"Okay, what is it?" You asked her.

"Your celebrity crush Austin Butler was here earlier walking the carpet, do you plan on talking with him tonight?" She asked you making you laugh.

"If the opportunity presents itself then I will definitely." You said as your manager came to let you know that you guys needed to continue down the carpet.

Your friend couldn't believe her eyes when Austin showed up, she had sent him an invite to come to one of your shows but didn't think that he would actually show up. Austin on the other hand was more than happy to show up, he had heard about your crush on him and had been wanting to talk to you or message you before now but always got too shy and ended up not doing it so when your friend messages him, he took it as a sign.

"Alright guys, this is the last song of the night and as many of you know I always close my shows out with a cover, so tonight in honor of his birthday today we are gonna cover Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana, enjoy!" You said.

You were exhausted by the time you got off stage, you were ready to shower and relax for the rest of the night. You and your band were talking with some fans and signing a few things when you felt a tap on your shoulder making you turn and see none other than your celebrity crush Austin Butler standing in front of you.

"Umm, you see him too?" You asked your band mate making Austin and your friend laugh.

"You're welcome." Honey said patting your shoulder as she and your bandmates disappeared leaving you and Austin to talk.

"You are even better in person like don't get me wrong your music is good but live is just something else." He said making her smile.

"Thank you for saying that and I have to agree with that, live performances are just better in my opinion." You said.

"So I saw your live the other week." He said nearly making you spit out your water as your cheeks turned red with embarrassment.

"You did? Huh?" You asked.

"Yeah, I did as well as the other stuff you said about me." He said as your eyes widen in shock as you started spitting out the quickest apology you could.

"I'm...I'm so sorry I promise it's just a harmless crush but I will stop if I've made you uncomfortable." You started to say but he cut you off.

"No no please don't apologize, I promise I'm not uncomfortable or anything...in fact, I should be the one apologizing because I wanted to reach out to you the first time I heard you had a crush on me but ended up backing out because I was nervous that you didn't really like me." He said making you look at him in shock.

"Are you kidding me? I've been crushing on you for almost two years now, that's a new record for me." You said making him laugh.

"I know which is why when Honey reached out to me I took it as a sign that we were meant to meet." He said smiling at you, nearly making you melt right there.

"Wow, I made you nervous?" You asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, you did. Would you have any interest in maybe grabbing something to eat with me?" He asked you.

"I would love to. Can you give me a few minutes to shower and change and then I can be all yours?" You asked him.

"I'll be waiting sweetheart." He said smiling at you as you walked on to bus still trying to process what happened in the past twenty minutes.

#austin butler #austin butler fanfiction #austin butler imagine #austin butler x reader #austin butler x yn #austin butler x you

726 notes · View notes

cryptic-symbols · 1 month

Text

John Darnielle is a complicated man and sometimes, I don’t know how, but sometimes I forget just how much he’s been through. I think many people’s perceptions of him, including my own, don’t make enough room for how complex he is. His love for the goth scene, his wholehearted and deeply personal support of queer art.

I was going through the old shit on Spotify and I came across Shadow Song.

If you get there before me, will you save me a seat?

If you get there before me, would you save me a seat?

And if I never get there at all

Would you leave the seat empty?

If you get there before me, will you light us a fire?

And if I never show, will you watch the embers glow?

You can keep the fire burning.

This is a song for you

In case I never make it through to where you are.

This is a song for you

In case I never make it through to where you are.

I was curious if he’d ever said anything about it, because it really resonated with me. It reminded me a lot of the Passover tradition of leaving a seat and a place at the seder for Elijah. I looked it up on the fandom wiki:

“This song is for a friend of mine with whom I had a short and turbulent friendship, who is presently down the road at a place called Hollywood Forever [Cemetery].” - John Darnielle, 2014-06-17, Mayan Theatre, Los Angeles, CA

John Darnielle has said several times that the person addressed in this song is Rozz Williams, a musician and friend of Darnielle's who died by suicide in 1998.

This is a song dedicated to an LGBTQ+ alt musician who was deeply influential in the goth scene, who regularly performed in drag as a rebellion against the jock presence in the punk scene. His first band, formed in 1978, was named the A-Sexuals: “Why can’t the asexuals be in the gay parade too?” he said. One of his bands was called the Shadow Project.

According to Wikipedia, The Coroner’s Gambit is dedicated to Williams, and several songs are about John Darnielle’s reaction to his death.

John Darnielle has played this song many, many times over the years, but one performance stood out to me.

#alt text #cw suicide #tmg #the mountain goats #the coroner's gambit #john darnielle #jd #cryptic writings #Spotify

25 notes · View notes

apod · 1 year

Photo

2023 March 19

Equinox at the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent Image Credit & Copyright: Robert Fedez

Explanation: To see the feathered serpent descend the Mayan pyramid requires exquisite timing. You must visit El Castillo -- in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula -- near an equinox. Then, during the late afternoon if the sky is clear, the pyramid's own shadows create triangles that merge into the famous illusion of a slithering viper. Also known as the Temple of Kukulkan, the impressive step-pyramid stands 30 meters tall and 55 meters wide at the base. Built up as a series of square terraces by the pre-Columbian civilization between the 9th and 12th century, the structure can be used as a calendar and is noted for astronomical alignments. The featured composite image was captured in 2019 with Jupiter and Saturn straddling the diagonal central band of our Milky Way galaxy. Tomorrow marks another equinox -- not only at Temple of Kukulcán, but all over planet Earth.

∞ Source: apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230319.html

149 notes · View notes

sunburnacoustic · 1 year

Text

Muse full gigs

Some full shows that are available, for anyone who wants to partially relive the Muse live experience.

I figured no one's made lists in a while.

La Cigale, Paris By-Request gig 2018

youtube

rarities + I guarantee I'm gonna fuck up Space Dementia + water spitting + Matt and Dom playing Grammy hosts in the way they announced the winners of the by-request polls

Some cool and noteworthy gigs:

Live Lounge 2012

The Mayan 2015 (performance wise this gig was stunning)

Royal Albert Hall 2008 (Teenage Cancer Trust charity gig - Megalomania on the pipe organ!)

Reading Festival 2011 (10 years of Origin of Symmetry - played the album start to finish)

AOL Sessions 2006

Reading 2006 (Muse's first time headlining if I remember right. Plus, Matt's moves!)

Glastonbury 2004 (first Glasto headline and a must-watch! Of the iconic mad-scientist, white lab coat era. Muse had called it the best gig of their life so far, at the time) (*Ruled By Secrecy was played live but wasn't included in the concert footage DVD and isn't in this video upload either)

Montreaux Jazz 2002 (height of piano maniac-ery days. Would also recommend Pinkpop 2002 but they don't. have. the footage anymore :( Space Dementia at Pinkpop 2002 was phenomenal. 2004 is also good, but I never found 2002 again. Speaking of which,)

Pinkpop 2004 (most songs are in, a few performances missing unfortunately)

MCM Café 1999 (marvel at what a good live act this young band aged 21 already was—with about 4 years of gigging experience under their belts. Insane how good they are.)

Wembley 2007 (H.A.A.R.P. The first band to sell out the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium. 90,000 people. You need to understand, seeing Chris lift up and point his bass at the crowd at the end of the slightly modified Jimmy Jam riff before Time Is Running Out was a religious experience that changed me and we're lucky enough to live in an age where you and I can witness it over and over and over again and I'd suggest that you do)

Rock Am Ring 2018, uploaded to the Internet Archive by the Muse Historical Society!

Austin City Limits 2013 Philipshalle 1999 Philipshalle 2001 (all suggested in notes, check out the crystal clear gifs from @hotbellamy! :O )

A few additions I remembered after publishing: Eurockeennes 2000 (opened with a then-unreleased New Born. Matt playing a full gig in red sunglasses. Treat to watch. Link's stretched up to fit modern screens but if you want a bit of clarity and don't mind the late 90s ratio stretch, here's a different link) 2002 (quality's a bit shit but that is literally what telly used to look like)

Shepherd's Bush Empire 2006 (Early gigs are always interesting because over time Muse develop different ways of playing songs that are fresh off new albums. The way they work through Take A Bow live is a bit different here, Dom's the one controlling the opening verse synths! During the Abso tour, Matt would play that bit on the piano as an intro to Space Dementia and if I'm remembering right, he does now on the pianos (correct me—this was on the ST tour as well). Also, Starlight in Bm at this gig)

Rock Werchter 2023 (Muse play Rock Werchter in Belgium almost every year, except for the pandemic and 2012 I think, but this year's was a bit special. Best performance of Madness I've seen in a while, I love what he does in the outro! MOTP returns to the set. Muse had tech troubles at the end that caused them to restart Knights of Cydonia twice, to no avail. They finally cut it back for a guitar-bass-drum-vocals-only performance of Showbiz, and Matt's voice sounds exceptional on it— the best in recent years)

Bizarre Fest 2000 (BLESS SOMEONE HAS RESTORED THIS FROM VHS TAPE IN HD, this is so much better than back in the day!! If the falsetto at 1:13 doesn't do it for you, you're into the wrong band, nothing else will help. What an electric performance this was!)

Gigs from WOTP 2022/23 festivals tour last summer:

Nova Rock Rock In Rio Ejekt Fest Isle of Wight Hurricane Festival 2023 (a festival at which Matt once complained that Muse's set was cut short by... hurricanes. But the audio mixing at this gig was really good!)

These are in no particular order, and obviously not complete, I just realised no one had put together a gig archive in a while so I thought I'd give it a stab!

Will edit and add others whenever, there are obviously glaring omissions still!

#gig archive #muse band #muse live #there was this ridiculous 360 cam footage of Reading 2011 and for some reason that was the only one I could find.#That was years and years ago of course so I'm thrilled to have a proper and full recording of this!#Youtube #for anyone that wants to get extra into the spirit before your gigs lol #muse #muse gigs #muse full gigs

102 notes · View notes

foremem · 1 year

Photo

Some design ideas I did for potential redesigns for several central sonic characters, gonna try and remember my mindset for each one: Team Heroes -knuckles removed to allow him to form his own team -Amy is given more focus on her tarot to tie together her various abilities over the series. -Sonics design is brought back to some SA2 sensibilities but done with more recent elements like the movie shoes and chips braclet. -Tails is given back alot of his distinctiveness that’s been slowly shaved off since his modern redesign (back hair, fang, snoot, blue bands on socks and gloves. Team dark +Eggman -No omega cause he’s already perfect -Rouge given a more team dark color scheme and given a more youthful hair style and outfit that emphasises her spy thematics -For shadow I wanted to do something that looks off at first but could grow on you over time. and gave him blue to contrast sonics red and black braclet -Eggman got some movie elements as well as integrating orbot and cubot into his outfit as more of an emergency minion protocol instead of them just kinda being around New team: Team Nova -Gemerl would be part of this team, but I wouldn’t change his design much apart from adding some star tipped screws to his wrists and ankles -Cream I wanted to look more action ready, while also being childish, so I gave her a bit of a onsie pajama or overalls look and added a star for the team logo. -Blaze I tried to go a little less regal and more casual, the idea being that since she’s not a princess in sonics world she can let her hair down and be a little more free spirited New Team: Team Guardian -Final member would be shadow or tikal but I wouldn’t know which would fit better (plus I was nearing burnout on the project) -Knuckles I mixed some elements of his movie and explorer designs, re-arranged the color palette and added black to it. Also made his shoe legos something more meaningful and easier to draw they’re now tiny mayan pyramids -Silver was mostly about bringing back some of his cool Esp traits that got lost along the way, as well as giving him an otherworldly cyborg feel without looking explicitly robotic. The overall design phylosophy was trying to find designs that would look nice in the cityscapes of the sonic riders games, since that always felt like the next step in evolving the sonic brand.

#redesign #sonic the hedgehog #team heroes #team dark #cream the rabbit #blaze the cat #eggman #knuckles the echidna #silver the hedgehog #amy rose #miles tails prower #shadow the hedgehog #rouge the bat

62 notes · View notes

quaranmine · 1 year

Text

55 notes · View notes

plentyoffandoms · 1 year

Text

I am going to finish up the requests I have which are about 13 or so, which is all for wrestling except for one which is Javier Peña.

My requests will remain closed as I will focus my writing on the stories I have already going on.

Which are:

Chris Evans x f/Reader

Wardlow x f/Reader

George Luz x f/Reader

Orange Cassidy x f/Reader

Kenny Omega x f/Reader

Angel Reyes x f/Reader

The Riddler x f/Reader

Finn Shelby x f/Reader

Michael Gray x f/Reader

Jack Nelson x f/Reader

Serial Killer! Eddie Kingston x f/Reader

Mob!wrestlers x f/Reader

Joaquín Torres x f/Reader

Lee Bodecker x f/Reader

18 notes · View notes

harveyb-wabbit92 · 8 days

Text

R/n, about her students ignoring her: I've tried everything. Models, slides. Mariachi band, once.

(She notices that Belial isn't listening.)

R/n: So this year, I'm gonna take a more radical approach and try a Mayan ritual with Riku as the blood sacrifice.

Riku: What?

Belial: That's a good idea.

Riku: What??

#S: mysterious ways #ultraman incorrect quotes #tokusatsu incorrect quotes #tokusatsu #ultraman #ultraman geed #riku asakura #ultraman belial #ultraman belial x reader #afab reader

7 notes · View notes

salty-lemon-shark-from-the-sea · 2 months

Text

Itotia: Her father is Acan God of Celebration and her mother is Teotihuacan Goddess of Spiders. She’s closer with her father helping him throw parties and eventually going on and hosting her own. Met her brothers cause of her mother who left them in her care. Became a mother to her brothers and her other demi-siblings, only there is so much she can do to protect them from other gods and goddesses. Has so many siblings they now have a small town full of them, which leads to other gods and goddess leaving their demi-children in her care at the village where they can visit their kids. Wears purple to show her status as the leader of the village, but still wears brackets and jewelry that villagers make.

Kukulkan Chan: Named after the serpent god Kukulkan with the last name Chan means “small”. He was named by his mother Teotihuacan Goddess of Spiders and his father Kukulkan the Serpent God. Knows he can't live up to his father so he made a casino to steal the mortals money and make his own fortune his way. Casinos weren’t really a thing back then so as time passes he does become more powerful, but still stays the weakest of the three. Uses his sister's party knowledge and his younger brother’s drugs to lure people in. Has a human disguise to go and gamble in the human world. When treated he will puff his hood up and use the face on the back to try and scare them off. Most of the time he needs Itotia to get involved. He’s their mother's favorite because she knows he doesn't have the power to over run her.

Xōchipilli: The Mayan god of sex, drugs, and music. He’s the more carefree one always somewhere getting high. The mushroom pours all over his body releasing a gas that can get anyone within the vicinity as high as a kite. He does find some fine music and forces his siblings to join him in a mini band that plays at his brother’s casino and some of his sister’s party. Loves his mother Teotihuacan Goddess of Spider, but not even Itotia knows who his father is. Once the drugs wear off he’s left in a drowsy hungover state that makes him look dead. (In my Au he also embodies withdrawal). He owns a sex club and has beautiful humans and creatures of all kinds, though his siblings do avoid the area as much as they can. Has colored flower and marijuana tattoos all along his arms with flowers and mushrooms growing out of his hair. Once he’s in his second state though the flowers and mushrooms fall off.

#my ocs #maya and the three #maya and the 3

10 notes · View notes

50shadesofrossi · 2 years

Text

Accusations and Apologies

Bishop Losa x Female Reader

Summary: You’re Miguel Galindo’s bookkeeper, who finds out that someone has been skimming. You know only one person that is stupid yet bold enough to try piss off the Cartel

Warnings: swearing, smut [m. receiving]

A/N: I haven’t written anything smutty for quite some time, so I do apologise if it seems rushed

Betrayal, that's all you feel in this moment, hurt and anger be damned. You can't believe you allowed yourself to lower your guard, to allow for this situation to happen. It makes you wonder if it's the only reason you met in the first place, like this was his only play; lure you in and push the possibility of him doing anything like this, to the back of your mind.

Well, it worked, for a short time at least. For the past couple of months, you never even suspected an issue with the books, not a single thing out of place. Until you were transferring the details over to the laptop, and the numbers suddenly didn't make sense.

Now here you sit, head resting in your palm and the other bringing the cigarette to your lips, the smoke billowing into the room as you patiently wait for the man in question. It made sense at the time to situate yourself in his El Presidente chair at the head of the table, a perfect view from the door.

When you first added up all the missing figures, Nestor had been with you, double-checking you weren't losing your mind. You weren't. Someone had managed to skim over half a million off of Miguel Galindo's heroin trade. Nestor was there when you pieced together who the only bold, yet stupid enough person to try to pull this shit off is.

Bishop Losa, and his little band of hoons.

Nestor agreed to keep quiet as you figure this out, giving you the time to gather enough intel before presenting it to Miguel. Oh, how he's going to have a field day, having been the first one to tell you not to get into bed with the Mayans, especially the President. More so, the fact that you allowed the man to pull one over you and ultimately fuck you up.

You're not sure what hurts more, the fact that he was doing so behind your back or the possibility of why you two got involved in the first place. You don't necessarily have a relationship, only using each other's bodies after a stressful day.

But it still doesn't change the fact that you feel used.

The door to Templo slides open, distant voices filtering in. For a moment no one notices you, too caught up in the previous events until one of them halts. "Who the fuck are you?" He reaches for his gun, alerting all the men of the sudden threat lounging in their President's seat.

You don't particularly remember any of them, having briefly come in contact with the Mayans at one of the exchanges for the books-detailing the weight of the keys, how many went out and how much was paid for-and the money. Usually, that is Devante's job, but sometimes he can't always make it.

The small gathering parts, the man you're waiting ever so patiently to see, steps down the last step. "The fuck are you doing here?" He sneers, dark eyes glaring holes through your figure. Suppose, you sitting in his chair is quite the insult.

You lick your lips, taking a moment to carefully choose your words. "What is it that you call me?" You click your fingers, feigning to remember the little nickname he has for you.

"Number's girl," he steps forward, playing into your hands.

"That's it, number's girl." You inhale another puff of smoke, blowing it in his general direction. "Is that because I can calculate so quickly in my head or because I remember almost every figure on a day to day basis?"

Bishop releases a breath of irritation, "why are you here?"

You flicker behind him, "call off your guard dogs and I'll tell you."

He glances at his Vice Presidente, signalling his boys to leave the room. You smirk at the hesitancy before they oblige and clear out, though you don't miss the glint in their eyes. Once the door slides shut, you sit up, putting the bud out.

"You know what I did today? I transferred all of last year's records into a computer, for our backup, and suddenly the figures weren't adding up." You see Bishop tilt his head with apprehension. "So I went back a few years and everything matched, but not last year. For the life of me, I couldn't understand, until Nestor connected the dots; someone has been taking a small piece out of every shipment, bit by bit. Do you know how much they've taken?"

Confusion swirls in his eyes at your meaning, his body now moving to lean against the table in front of you. "How much?"

"Nearly a quarter of a million."

He lets out a low whistle, shifting his position to fold his arms. "So why are you telling me?" He holds your gaze, searching you for answers.

You pause, your heart hammering against your chest and your nerves spiking in anticipation of the next few seconds. You know it's about to be a screaming fest, how hot-headed he is, especially when accused of something, whether it's true or not. It's the one thing you hate, getting into an argument.

You're more of a cruisey person, relaxed and generally getting along with almost everyone, and your arguments tend to get ugly.

Inhaling deeply, you lean forward, resting your elbows on the table and focusing on the gavel before you. "I need you to tell me right now, if you had anything to do with this-"

Bishop pushes off the table, anger written on his face as he paces. "Are you fucking serious right now?" You reluctantly turn to face him, your stomach twisting at the look he gives you. "Are you fucking accusing me? Is this what this is? You've come to find out if I stole from Mr Galindo,"

"You're a third party, Bishop, I have to ask." You stand slowly, not exactly wanting to get any closer to him but not wanting to have yourself exposed.

"Fuck you!" He shouts, the room falling silent.

His brothers grow weary, trying to figure out why their President is yelling. Not to mention, who you are.

You run your hands down your face, a sense of dread settling in as Bishop tries to gain control of his breathing. "I am his bookkeeper, Bishop, the only person who handles the books on this side of the world, I have to ask this question." You spare a glance at him. "You have to understand, I didn't catch this, I've fucked up and what's worse, is there's a possibility that the man I've been sleeping with is responsible."

"The fuck did you just say?" He seethes, stepping forward.

You hold your ground, refusing to look away. "You heard me." He stops right in front of you, his cologne wrapping around you. Normally you would bury your nose into his chest, inhaling the smell, but right now that's the furthest thing from your mind.

"A thousand dollars goes missing and suddenly a month later we're fucking around, and as each shipment goes, more goes missing, in bigger amounts-" Bishop grabs the back of your neck, his breath fanning your cheeks. Your skin flushes at the proximity and you curse at the way your body responds to him.

"Do you hear yourself?" He says lowly.

"Don't tell me you wouldn't ask the same thing if the roles were reversed." You catch yourself glancing down at his lips, a force of habit you would argue in this situation. You can almost feel his moustache against you, his stubble. "Bishop," you say pleadingly. "I need to know. I'm already fucked, don't put me in a grave."

"You aren't going anywhere," he grits. "He can't hurt you, I won't let him."

"You can't see the future Bishop, so don't try."

Somewhere, deep down, you knew it wasn't him. But it would make sense if it was, shit added up too easily. Bishop leans in slightly, giving you time to remove yourself if you wanted, but you don't. You haven't seen him in almost a week, and there's still some tension left within your muscles that needs out.

His lips crash against yours in a searing kiss, his fingers tightening along the sides of your neck. You grip onto his kutte, pulling yourself flush to his chest as you give in to his advances, your lungs constricting from the lack of oxygen.

His hands begin to wander down your sides, the gentleness stark in comparison to the bad they've done, coming to rest under your thighs for a heartbeat before he hoists you onto the table.

Your lips part, your chest heaving. This isn't how you thought this would end, maybe some more yelling and then you'd leave and everything would go haywire. But not this, fucking on his sacred club table.

Bishop steps between your legs, instantly grazing your jaw and down your neck in tender yet hungry kisses. Your fingers thread through his short curls, slightly tugging at the ends and earning yourself a low groan.

You smirk, yelping in shock at the hard nip on your shoulder.

The loud ringing echoes in the room, causing the both of you to pause. Instinctively you assume it's Bishop's, but he slides your phone out of your back pocket and hands it to you with a sigh. You don't want to answer it, to have to deal with the problem just yet.

"Nestor?" You answer.

"You're needed over here at the church pew, I'm sending someone to pick you up." Your body goes rigid, Bishop narrowing his eyes at your frozen behaviour.

"Okay, I'll see you soon." You slowly put the phone down, "fuck."

"What is it?" Bishop asks, his hands rubbing along your thighs in concern.

You meet his eye, fear sprouting. "He wants me at the church pew."

You sit in the car for a minute later, still trying to come to terms with the past four hours. It wasn't Bishop and the Mayans who stole, it was Devante, trying to teach Miguel a lesson and frame it on Bishop.

It backfired, and it's given Miguel more of a reason to distrust the man.

As for you, Miguel never expected you to know the exact amounts of each shipment, wanting you more specifically to make everything look legal and in order should anyone other than him go snooping.

Going forward, you will know how much is paid for.

You can't yet move your body to exit the vehicle, stuck sitting in the driver's seat, hearing the loud music and obvious party sounds. You're half tempted to turn around and go home, to speak with Bishop another day, but you want to put this behind you, to forget everything it's put you through and apologise for accusing him of such a lucrative scheme.

Exhaling deeply, you slide out of the car, your shoes hitting the gravel and alerting your presence as you approach the gate. A few of the Mayans lounge outside by the fires, women laying on their laps or hanging close with drinks.

You don't miss the stares, as you stand completely out with your work clothes and slight anxious stance.

"You're not welcome here," a tattooed figure blocks your way up the stairs.

You halt, meeting his eyes. For a heartbeat, you almost turn tail, feeling nervous from the countless glares of the boys that have joined their brother's side. It's intimidating, but not as intimidating as working for a drug cartel.

"Too bad you don't get to make that decision." You climb the stairs, coming face to face with the man.

"Coco," his name is called, shifting everyone's attention to the burly man by the front door. "Let her through."

Coco reluctantly listens, stepping aside for you to move past, his eyes following your every move. You roll your shoulders back, releasing the tension. You weren't about to go head to head with the Mayan, but you don't back down easily.

"Sorry about him, they're a little tense at the moment." The man tries to change the mood, pushing the door further open for you. "Bishop told us, why you came earlier. In case we had to prepare ourselves,"

You nod in understanding, scanning the crowded room for the man in question. "That's why I'm here,"

"He's over there."

You follow the man toward a table in the back, your eyes darting everywhere to take in the scene; men playing a game of pool with women hanging off them, some making out in dark corners whilst others not caring and doing it surrounded by brothers.

You come to a stop, Bishop instantly stopping his conversation. Before either of you can say anything, Taza comes to a stand, pressing a gentle kiss to your cheek as he hugs you. "Hello sweetheart, are you alright?" He asks.

"Hi Taza, yeah I'm alright." You've met Taza during the many times you've spent at Bishop's, often making him a little late some mornings and resulting in his second having to come get him.

"So, should I be preparing my boys for war?" Bishop cuts in, nursing his beer.

"No," you shake your head. "It was Devante, turns out he was trying to set you guys up. He doesn't like the idea of a cartel and criminal outlaws mixing."

Everyone around the table laughs, relief falling from their bodies at the news. They can relax tonight. Bishop continues to look at you, tilting his head slightly. "Is that all you came for?"

Licking your lips, "yeah, you gentlemen enjoy your night." They hold up their beers in gratification before turning back to continue their conversation. As you turn to leave, Bishop stands, quickly rounding the table to press a hand along your backside.

"Let me walk you out."

You glance sideways at him, raising a brow. "I'm capable of walking myself to my car."

"You're not leaving just yet," he opens the door, waiting for you to pass before following you down the stairs and out the gate. You swallow, allowing him to guide you past your car and toward the front office. "You really think you can come here and leave without an apology?"

You open your mouth to scoff, knowing you did want to apologise but you didn't owe it to him. Bishop unlocks the office door, almost shoving you in. "I could have apologised at my car," you start, blinking furiously at the sudden light turning on.

"That's not the apology I want."

You knew what he meant, smirking at him. "Come get it then," you tease, a shiver rolling down your spine at the calculated steps he takes in your direction.

He stops, his chest brushing your own and his cigarette and whisky breath caressing your cheeks in close proximity, his dark eyes tracing patterns over your face. It's almost like he takes a moment to remember how angelic you look, before he intends to ruin you.

In a flash, his hand wraps around the top of your neck, his thumb digging under your jaw to pull you to him, his lips crashing down. You whimper under his harsh kiss, your body surrendering but your mind ready to take control.

You walk him back, a grunt escaping him as his back hits the wall. A sly grin spreads across your face, your hands coming to rest on his chest as you pull apart. Your palms slide down his kutte, stopping at his belt buckle to easily pop it open, not once breaking eye contact.

His hand leaves your neck, cupping the side of your jaw with his thumb brushing across your lips. You know what he wants, opening your mouth to take his thumb, flattening your tongue as he pulls it out.

You sink to your knees, internally cringing at the uncomfortableness of the hard floor. You make quick work of slipping his cock out

He sucks in a deep breath at the contact of you wrapping around him, his lips parting as he watches you. You tease him, licking the precum off the head. "Don't," he warns, his hand coming to rest on your head, a warning tug on the roots of your hair. "Be a brat."

Feeling snarky, you take as much of him as you can fit into your mouth, running your tongue along the underside as you release him. "This is an apology, you take what you're given."

A fiery rage ignited in his eyes, his jaw clenching together as he fights to control himself. You know you're about to pay for that later, but right now, he's at your mercy.

You take him again, relaxing your throat to allow the head to slip down just a bit, your gag reflex almost non-existent. Bishop's fingers flex, his head leaning on the wall in response to your ministrations, your tongue working around his cock.

He hasn't had a release in a week, the slightest touch being enough to finish him off; sadly. Suppose, it's what happens once his body grows accustomed to you almost every night. Your jobs are both stressful in their own right, often demanding a little relaxation at the end of the day.

"That's it, good girl," he praises once you settle into the rhythm you know he likes, slowly but surely pumping him.

One hand pays attention to the little bit you can't fit in your mouth, the other holding onto the back of his thighs as his hips reflexively jut out. Quiet groans escape him, feeding your ego and coaxing you to finish him off in due time. You quite enjoy watching him fall apart.

"Fuck," he mutters, revealing in the feel of your cheeks hollowing out and pushing more of him down your throat.

You feel his tip twitch, signalling the end of his composure. You drag your lips over his cock as you move off him, before quickly taking him back in. Bishop grabs the back of your head, his hips rutting out. He face fucks you, his body moving with need and pleasure.

Tears spring from the corners of your eyes at the slight roughness, your lungs beginning to burn from lack of sufficient oxygen. You glance up at him, a half attempted smirk forming at his dazed state. Swirling your tongue around his head, you watch him completely crumble.

He curses, his body shuddering and his cock pulsing as he cums. You swallow, wincing at the taste but getting it down nonetheless. Letting him fall out of your mouth, you wipe the corner of your lips as you stand, giving him a moment to readjust himself.

Normally you're all for whatever happens next, but the thought of being taken against a desk is the last thing on your mind. You want a shower, food and some sleep. He can come fuck you once you've rested.

"What happened today?" Bishop asks softly, reaching into his kutte for a cigarette.

You lean against the edge of the table, shrugging your shoulders. "That's for me to know, and you to not worry about." You dodge, biting the inside of your cheek at the knowledge of him being unravelled only a minute ago.

He frowns, knowing that clearly, something happened when you arrived at the church pew, but he knows not to push. The smoke wafts around the enclosed room, creating a slight barrier between the two of you.

Holding the cigarette between two fingers, Bishop closes the distance, cupping your chin in a possessive manner. Typical alpha males. "Well, I accept your apology," he muses, smoke exhaling through his nose. "Go get some sleep, I'll see you later."

You hum, exhaustion starting to seep into your body. He leans down, pressing a gentle kiss to your lips, stark in comparison to the rough, dominating ones that bruise you. Pulling away, you lick your lips, moving past him to open the door and enter the cooler Santo Padre air.

#bishop losa x reader #bishop losa #mayans mc #bishop losa imagine #michael irby #obispo losa

251 notes · View notes

an-darth-maiden · 5 months

Text

Introducing myself and giving an explanation.

Hi everyone! 🙋🏻‍♀️

My name is Ana, but you can call me An or Annie.

I'm Mexican.🇲🇽

I like many things like animals, read history, classic novels, esoteric stuff and magic, manga, watch anime, belly dance, music, tv shows and movies, videogames.

Some of my favorite things are:

Animals like felines and canines (ALL OF THEM!), bats, hummingbirds, crows, rabbits, bears.

History:Ancient Egypt (everything about that time), and other historical periods (Middle ages, Ilustration era, Victorian era).

About the cultures of my country I love the Aztec (Mexica) culture, Mayan culture, Toltec culture and others.

My favorite books are:

The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde and Dracula by Bram Stoker.

Other books I love that are on Spanish are "Cuentos de la selva" (Jungle tales) by Horacio Quiroga

"El Diosero" by Francisco Rojas González .

About the Esoteric stuff, I'm a Tarot and Oracle reader, I learn and practice Reiki, I love quartz, rocks and minerals for spiritual, magic and therapeutic uses, talismans and charms, candles, dowsing with pendulum, astrology.

Anime I like Yu-Gi-Oh, InuYasha, Saint Seiya, Sailor Moon, Card captor Sakura, Record of Ragnarok, Naruto, Dragon Ball Z (just to mention a few).

I'm not a belly dancer, but I really enjoy belly dance (oriental dance). I practice at home by the moment. I hope I could go to a dance academy someday.

I like the Egyptian style. Particularly, the Golden era period. Some of my favorite dancers are Souhair Zaki, Samia Gamal, Tahiya Carioca.

Music: I like the music of the past century, specially since the 70's till 90's. I like disco and funk, classic rock, hard rock, glam metal, heavy metal, but also the New Wave or Pop music.

My favorite singer is Michael Jackson.

And my favorite band is Guns N ' Roses.

Tv shows and Movies I watch a lot. I like animated shows and movies, action and superhero, some comedies, medical drama, police drama, supernatural shows.

My favorite films are Alice in wonderland (animated and Tim Burton's version), The Prince of Egypt, Beauty and the Beast, The Mummy and The Mummy returns, Hitch, School of Rock, The Nightmare before Christmas, Sam Raimi's Spiderman films, Star Wars franchises.

My favorite shows are Looney tunes, Powerpuff girls, Arrow , Friends, The Big Bang Theory, House M.D , E.R, Law and Order Special Victims Unit, White collar, Supernatural, Charmed.

This last year, I've been watching a lot of K-drama. I'm really enjoying it.

Videogames like Castlevania ( I like both, videogames and the Netflix TV shows), Halo, Mortal Kombat, Devil May Cry for example.

I had a Tumblr account with the same name before. It was fully dedicated as a fan blog of Castlevania. Many of the things that I had were some of my silly memes about Castlevania Netflix (most of them about Alucard).

I deleted the account because I was very inactive here and I felt a little bit limited by just post about Castlevania.

Sometimes I reblogged the nice drawings of friends that are here, sometimes I shared about ancient Egyptian history, but not so often.

After deleting the account, I didn't feel well about leave this place, so, I decided to create an account and start all over again.

I want to use this place to connect with people that enjoy the same things that I do.

So, I hope find again the cool friends who are still here, but at the same time, find new friends.

With the time, I'll be re-posting the material of Castlevania that I posted before, just in case there's someone interested.

For the last, I want to share some pictures of my favorite things.

Thanks for your attention.

🙏🏻✨

7 notes · View notes

timedontgiveashit · 4 months

Note

Public request you post the best and worst live dead weather videos ❤️

This is my favorite ask ever. I would like to make three posts for you. Let's call it: The Dead Weather video masterpost (part 1) I'm gonna take this as best = in video quality, the ones which I would show to anyone who never heard of this band before. (part 2 will be the worst= bad quality videos, but fun things happening on stage + some deep cuts, part 3 is my favortie interviews and stuff like that) 1. Treat Me Like Your Mother live @ Grand Journal I've never seen a band go this intense in a tv show and make everyone react to the music this fast. 2. The Dead Weather live @ Glastonbury 2010 (full show) Specifically Difference Between Us from 19:31. Bonus: Jamie shows up side-stage and gets a kiss, and Dean Fertita's solo after that is just the best thing ever! 3. The Dead Weather- No Horse Poland Opener 2010 Dean Fertita + Alison Mosshart. This is all I have to say.

4. Nur Khan Presents The Dead Weather at Don Hill’s You have to log in to be able to watch this on vimeo, but I promise it's worth it, the best version of 60 feet tall in really good quality. Alison is everything here. 5. The Dead Weather Live at The Mayan -full show If you want to watch a full show go for this, especially if you want to see Alison throw a glass towards Jack at some point.

6. SesioneS con Alejandro Franco: The Dead Weather The best versions of You just can't win , So far from your weapon, and Will there be enough water visually. They are so beautiful, the whole video is magic.

7. The Dead Weather - Live From The Basement (full show) If it wasn't enough from the full shows then this is the next one. 8. The Dead weather Live at La Cigale (full concert) An unhinged one full show. Still brilliant. 9. The Dead Weather - Gasoline Montreux Jazz Fest They rarely played this song live, it's the hardest thing as a singer from the whole Dead Weather discography, so I had to put this here. 10. The Dead Weather - Jawbreaker (Live) This is just such a killer song. No comment.

#the dead weather

5 notes · View notes

black-arcana · 1 year

Text

Epica's Simone Simons: "I've been called the metal Barbie, but I don't give a damn"

Simone Simons talks Disney covers, pastafarianism and how Epica worked out their collaborative EP The Alchemy Project.

(Image credit: Tim Tronckoe)

For 20 years, Epica have been flying the flag for bombastic, extravagant symphonic metal, with the visuals and ambition to match. Their new collaborative EP, The Alchemy Project – featuring the likes of Myrkur, Fleshgod Apocalypse and members of Soilwork and Kamelot – is possibly their most ambitious work to date.

We put your questions to singer Simone Simons on what it was like working with Uriah Heep, playing shows in Mayan ruins and that time she (almost) joined a black metal band.

Wikipedia says you joined a black metal band for a cup of coffee before you became a member of Epica. If true, what was that band like? How was your corpsepaint game? Matt Mills, Twitter

“Wikipedia is wrong! I never joined a black metal band. I was just there during a rehearsal, but never actually sang in the band. I went there to have a look, so it’s a half-truth, I guess. They were in my hometown and my friend’s boyfriend was playing in that band, so that’s why we went, but I was way too shy to sing along. Epica was my true first band.”

How did the band initially meet? Scott Thrower, Facebook

“I knew Mark [Jansen, guitars/vocals] because I was in a relationship with him back in the day. He started a new band [after leaving After Forever] pretty quickly, but because I was his girlfriend, at first I didn’t want to join. I helped them search for a singer. I thought I should do it by the book – finish high school and then go explore the world with a metal band. But when they asked me if I wanted to [sing for them], I thought, ‘OK, let’s just give it a go.’ And here we are, 20 years later!”

Was there ever an aesthetic pressure to fit into the more gothic side of symphonic metal? Jazmin L’Amy, email “Not really, I’ve always done my own thing. I’ve enjoyed the visual aspect of being in the band, getting ready for the show, designing the clothes and everything like that. I’ve been called the metal Barbie, but I don’t give a damn. It’s more like a compliment than people realise! The aesthetics are a big part of our shows, photoshoots and videoshoots that people don’t really think of, and it’s a lot of fun to do it.”

Consign To Oblivion is one of my alltime favourite records. Have you ever visited a Mayan ruin, and would you do a 20th-anniversary gig from one? Jo Cristobal, email

“I think Mark did, I didn’t. Playing a show from one is probably going to be a little bit tricky with electricity and everything, so… ha ha! Maybe just an acoustic song or something like that! But Mark’s visited some ancient Mayan sites in Mexico – he was also the one who was interested in ancient Mayan culture and wrote lyrics about it.”

What topics would you like to explore in the future when writing new music Arley Rosales, Facebook

“I don’t think too much about it. I just go with the spur of the moment: what’s happening in my life, what’s happening around the world… [2021’s] Omega was a very spiritual album, which was also a reflection of what was happening at that time. So I guess [our new music] is just going to be a continuation of that.”

Epica albums often have a central concept or overarching narrative, like [2007’s] The Divine Conspiracy. What’s the most innocuous conspiracy theory you think might actually be true? Dan Hillier, Facebook

“I’ve no idea! I’ve been off the religion train for a long time and unfortunately only had unpleasant experiences. I’m in no way anti-religion, though. The Divine Conspiracy was more about extremities within religion – the dangerous parts where they really indoctrinate people and put really weird ideas in their head.

Religion can be a beautiful thing, but a lot of bloodshed has been in its name. With that album, we picked different extremities within different religions to highlight what’s been going on and what’s still going on. But yeah, it can be very dangerous, as we’ve seen lately.”

Hammer: is there one outside of religion you like?

“The church of the spaghetti monster… what’s that called?”

Hammer: The Church Of The Flying Spaghetti Monster.

“Yeah, I love spaghetti. So I guess I’m not allowed to enter that church. Maybe I’m the spaghetti monster! Ha ha ha!"

The Skeleton Key encapsulated all that defines Epica as EPIC! What was the idea behind the song? Inn Ayyur, Twitter

“Skeleton Key was written by Rob [van der Loo, bass], and the working title of it was ‘Inception’. Rob is a huge movie soundtrack fan; I am too. He showed me the song during our writing sessions for Omega and the lyrics written by myself are basically that everybody holds the key or the answers to the questions that you have within yourself and that you can unlock different rooms and hallways within yourself. On the one hand, that can be a good thing, but it can also be bad because you also have the power to let your demons free.”

What songs from recent movie soundtracks would you play live? Mark Sayce, email

“We’ve done that in the past with [2009 live album] The Classical Conspiracy and, funnily enough, today I was singing some Disney songs. I’ve done a cover of a Disney song from The Little Mermaid [Part Of Your World, released in 2021]. Maybe something else is gonna come up, you never know!”

Where did the idea to do The Alchemy Project come from? Jac Holloway, Facebook

“The idea was from Isaac [Delahaye, guitar/backing vocals]. At the beginning of the pandemic, he had the idea of writing songs with our friends in the metal scene. We reached out to all our friends who’d be interested, and that’s literally how the ball started rolling. It’s cool when you have this idea and you don’t know if it’s gonna work, because this is a little bit outside of our comfort zone. I think a lot of people will be very surprised with some of the songs that are on this EP.”

How did you get Uriah Heep on the EP? Elliot Grimmie, email

“Epica always like to add a couple of elements of surprise. That was also part of the idea behind this EP – that we could experiment! Rob has connections to a lot of musicians that are not necessarily in the symphonic metal scene, and Wake The World was one of the songs we started working on when we first had the idea, but didn’t really push the project through.

So that song was one of the first we started with. I rewrote it to fit the vocal lines, but had the idea of what Phil [Lanzon, Uriah Heep keyboardist/co-vocalist] wanted to say in the back of my mind. It’s a really cool addition having him there.”

What was your favourite bit about working on The Alchemy Project? Paul Baptist, email

“I wrote a song with Charlotte [Wessels, ex-Delain vocalist] and I had a lot more input in the composition compared to what I normally do when writing for Epica. This time, I got to direct the song and it was really nice to work with Charlotte. She’s been putting out some great work recently since she started her Patreon and I really love her solo songs.

We started going through ideas that she’d accumulated and I picked the melodies that she had lying around for Sirens - Of Blood And Water. We worked on that for almost a year, but working together was great. I was in her studio, she was in my studio, so it was a really intense writing session for this song and I really love how it turned out.”

Who is on your bucket list to collaborate with? Lisa Aliss, Facebook

“There are a lot of artists! I really like Aurora. She’s a Norwegian singer/ songwriter who writes beautiful songs and has a really beautiful voice – I think we could be a good match. I would also like to work with Rammstein one day – that’s on the bucket list.”

Could you ever see Epica doing an arena headline tour? Emmy Willets, email

“Maybe. I went to see Iron Maiden with Within Temptation and it was amazing. I prefer doing smaller shows because the interaction with the audience is just different and it just feels more cosy and intimate than an arena. Who knows, though. Maybe someday!”

#simone simons #epica #interview

19 notes · View notes