#Lyric Cards Central

[imflyingfish]

working in an art gallery and talking to a lot of full time artists has given me CRAZY imposter syndrome btw lmao

[todays-xkcd]

Hint: If you ever encounter this puzzle in a crossword app, just [term for someone with a competitive and high-achieving personality].

A Crossword Puzzle [Explained]

Transcript

[A square 15x15 crossword puzzle is shown. Only 21 of the 225 squares are black. The black squares are in a pattern that are 180 degree rotationally symmetrical. Three black squares down from the 11th column and similarly three black squares up from the 5th column. Three black squares out from the right in row 7 and then two more black squares diagonally up from the end. Similarly three black squares out from the left in row 9 with two more black squares diagonally down from the end. A single black square is three above the first black square on the diagonal going down to the right and similarly there is a black square three under the first of the diagonal squares going down to the left. (Row 6 column 12 and Row 10 column 4). Finally there are three black squares on a diagonal crossing over the central point by going up from the left through the central point (Row 8 column 8). There are numbers at the top of every column (except the one that is a black square) and similarly at the left edge of all rows (except the one that is a black square). There are also numbers at the bottom of every black segment (except the one that reaches the bottom) and all rows after black segments except the one that reaches the right edge. In total all numbers from 1 to 51 is written. They are written in reading order from 1 to 51.]

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51

[Below the square there are two rows of clues for each number that belongs to across (rows) and to the right there are one row of clues for each number that belongs to down (columns). Both segments have an underlined and bold title above the clues. ]

'''Across'''

1. Famous Pvt. Wilhelm quote

11. IPv6 address record

15. "CIPHERTEXT" decrypted with Vigenère key "CIPHERTEXT"

16. 8mm diameter battery

17. "Warthog" attack aircraft

18. Every third letter in the word for "inability to visualize"

19. An acrostic hidden on the first page of the dictionary

21. Default paper size in Europe

22. First four unary strings

23. Lysine codon

24. 40 CFR Part 63 subpart concerning asphalt pollution

25. Top bond credit rating

26. Audi coupe

27. A pair of small remote batteries, when inserted

29. Unofficial Howard Dean slogan

32. A 4.0 report card

33. The "Harlem Globetrotters of baseball" (vowels only)

34. 2018 Kiefer song

35. Top Minor League tier

36. Reply elicited by a dentist

38. ANAA's airport

41. Macaulay Culkin's review of aftershave

43. Marketing agency trade grp.

44. Soaring climax of Linda Eder's ''Man of La Mancha''

46. Military flight community org.

47. Iconic line from ''Tarzan''

48. Every other letter of Jimmy Wales's birth state

49. Warthog's postscript after "They call me ''mister'' pig!"

50. Message to Elsa in ''Frozen 2''

51. Lola, when betting it all on Black 20 in ''Run Lola Run''

“Down

1. Game featuring "a reckless disregard for gravity"

2. 101010101010101010101010 [sub]2→16

3. Google phone released July '22

4. It's five times better than that ''other'' steak sauce

5. ToHex(43690)

6. Freddie Mercury lyric from ''Under Pressure''

7. Full-size Audi luxury sedan

8. Fast path through a multiple choice marketing survey

9. 12356631 in base 26

10. Viral Jimmy Barnes chorus

11. Ruby Rhod catchphrase

12. badbeef + 9efcebbb

13. In Wet Let's ''Ur Mum'', what the singer has been practicing

14. Refrain from Nora Reed bot

20. Mario button presses to ascend Minas Tirith's walls

24. Vermont historic route north from Bennington

26. High-budget video game

28. Unorthodox Tic-Tac-Toe win

29. String whose SHA-256 hash ends "...689510285e212385"

30. Arnold's remark to the Predator

31. The vowels in the fire salamander's binomial name

32. Janet Leigh ''Psycho'' line

34. Seven 440Hz pulses

37. Audi luxury sports sedan

38. A half-dozen eggs with reasonably firm yolks

39. 2-2-2-2-2-2 on a multitap phone keypad

40. .- .- .- .- .- .-

42. Rating for China's best tourist attractions

43. Standard drumstick size

45. "The rain/in Spain/falls main-/ly on the plain" rhyme scheme

[i-care-4u]

more central cee pls !

FACE TO FACE | CENTRAL CEE

PAIR: CENTRAL CEE X READER

REQUESTS ARE CLOSED | MASTERLIST

TAGGED: @playboykenz

A/N: to the two anons that asked for more central cee, i hope you enjoy this little fic i wrote!

FACE TO FACE SERIES: jack harlow | central cee

-

as the cameras were getting ready, oakley couldn’t help but to giggle about the fact that his girlfriend was going to interview him.

this was something you loved doing with oakley at home. coming from work, you and oakley would be having long nights together, answering and giggling about each other’s answers. this time, the public was going to watch this, and oakley felt comfortable sharing his answers to them.

you introduced yourself to everyone, “hello gq, i’m y/n l/n, and today i’ll be asking a set of questions to central cee.”

in front of you, there was a laptop, with oakley being in front of your screen. you start the call, “hi cench.”

oakley blushed, “hi y/n.”

“today we get to share to everyone what we do at home,” you show the cameras the set of cards filled with questions, “the couple’s quiz!”

-

☆ FIRST QUESTION - “HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN THREE WORDS?”

“three words,” oakley starts saying words that came in mind, “focused, candid….”

you nod, using this as a sign to keep going. “come on, one more, one more!”

oakley immediately went back to thinking mode. you lay your head down, trying not to burst into laughter. you raised your head afterwards, “you want me to help you out?”

“of course,” oakley said, with a charming smile at you.

“cee.”

“yes?”

with a straight face, you admit, “i think you’re very cute.”

“focused, candid, and cute it is.”

☆ SECOND QUESTION - “FIVE ESSENTIALS?”

for this question, the staff brought in the items, and oakley removes his chain in order to showcase it to everyone. “obviously, we have to go with this one first.”

you tried not to brag, but you let it slide since you’re his girlfriend, “picked by the best.”

oakley nods in agreement, “mhm.”

he then showcased the watch on his wrist, “another one picked by y/n, and it’s this watch.”

he then explains three other objects: headphones, crackers, and a book.

“i have two headphones - one i use for the gym and the other during my spare time,” oakley pulled a bag of crackers close to the camera, “these crackers were gifted by my mum in christmas, they’re so delicious.”

he smiled as he showed everyone a book. the book was very special to him, as it was another gift - this time it was from you to him. “this book is gifted by y/n, and i love to carry it on the road. i still remember those words, telling me it’s a reminder of love.”

“it’s like you’re carrying a piece of me, you know?”

☆ THIRD QUESTION - “WHAT’S THE MOST ROMANTIC THING YOU’VE EVER DONE?”

sarcastically, oakley answered, “i’m a hopeless romantic…”

you jokingly glared at him, “really?”

“i don’t know man, i’m transitioning, i’m changing. this is all hard for me like i’m trying to think-”

“boo hoo,” you mocked, “it was so hard for you. why don’t you just grow up?”

oakley admits, “it’s easier said than done.”

☆ FOURTH QUESTION - “WHAT’S YOUR SELF CARE ROUTINE?”

oakley repeated the question, “my self care routine?”

you looked down at the card, “yes.”

“my self care routine consists of sleeping, waking up to do my skin care, going to the studio,” oakley gets into detail, “people don’t tend add that, but music is a form of self care. it’s enjoyable and arguably, a form of therapy.”

“i can see where you’re coming from, and i agree,” you comment, “music is universal.”

☆ FIFTH QUESTION - “FAVORITE LYRIC?”

oakley shrugs, “god knows.”

“i don’t know that one.”

“do you swear on the shore?” oakley asked you.

“yeah,” you nod, “shit.”

he laughs, and you added, “crumbs.”

oakley continued laughing at your nonsense, “what?”

you lied, “i swear all the time, okay?”

oakley knew it wasn’t true at all, leaving it with a simple response. “okay,” he shook his head, “it’s not that attractive though is it?”

as a joke, you tried to impress your boyfriend, slamming your hands on the table. “okay, i don’t swear!”

☆ SIXTH QUESTION - “WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE RED CARPET LOOK FROM ME?”

oakley leaned on the chair. “ooh, this is a tough one. am i allowed to say my favorite runway look?”

“nope.”

“just red carpet.”

“yes.” you got close to the webcam, and the only thing that showed up on oakley’s screen was your eyes and forehead. “…say it!”

he picked his top five looks of yours, “as of right now, i would have to go with your mtv video music awards from 2022, the met gala look from 2022, and last year and this year’s grammys look.

“and you got to thank law roach for the styling.” you start giving him a round of applause.

☆ SEVENTH QUESTION - “WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE CELEBRITY ENCOUNTER?”

oakley recounts, “apologies y/n, but i got to tell the funny one.”

you blankly stare at him, “the one where we met drake?”

“yes,” oakley smirked. he starts telling the story behind it, “so we went to this festival, and drake decided to invite us to the after party. during the party, he was on his phone scrolling on instagram, and that’s when he showed me a picture of y/n. he was like, who is this, she’s so pretty? that’s when i answered him, saying that it was y/n, who was right there. she didn’t say anything, but rather laughed about the whole situation.”

you add, “he was definitely drunk there, and he was surprised by my appearance at the party afterwards.”

☆ EIGTH QUESTION - “WHAT’S SOMETHING ABOUT ME THAT PEOPLE DON’T KNOW?”

“i think people should pay attention to what i’m about to say,” oakley exposes your hobby, “but y/n loves gardening.”

you playfully rolled your eyes at him, believing that it’s not that big of deal as he makes. “why are you making it such a big deal? leave me and my plants out of this!”

“i find it very cute though,” oakley visualizes, “walking outside to see you watering your plants. i can name some from the top of my head.”

you crossed your arms, having a smug look. “oh really?” you scoffed.

“yeah.”

oakley starts listing names of your plants, causing you to be left with a speechless face that was soon filled with laughter.

reflecting at this question, you also found it cute that oakley remembered your not-so-secret hobby of gardening. the way he remembered the names of your plants indicated his love language.

☆ NINTH QUESTION - “WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU WERE ME FOR A DAY?”

“what would y/n do?” oakley asked himself as you listened.

as soon as he came up with the idea, he shared it in front of everyone, “if i were you for a day, i think i would head down to the studio and try to make music.”

“smart,” you recall, “i’ve always wanted to make music for a long time, but i think we’re good as a model for now.”

“new date idea,” oakley states, “make music with y/n.”

“that sounds lovely.”

☆ TENTH QUESTION - “WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO EVERYONE RIGHT NOW?”

“this one’s a bit cliche but my thing is live yours,” oakley said, “that’s what’s inspiring innit.”

you agree to his piece of advice, “so basically express yourself?”

“correct.”

-

the tenth questioned marked the end of the interview and was left with one more scene to record.

the cameras starts recording oakley, “if you want to see me ask y/n these questions face to face, go to vogue.com.”

“thank you to gq for being involved in this conversation between central cee and i. thank you for watching!” you waved to the camera. the video cues to a white screen, placing the names of the people involved.

after the interview, oakley waited for you to exit the studio. when you saw him, you gave him a tight hug. “you were amazing!”

“thank you!” oakley smiled, “you know what sounds more amazing? bringing you to the studio right now.”

“you and your bad flirting skills,” you sarcastically rolled your eyes at him, “but a studio date sounds nice right now.”

[actualbird]

this is a lukerosa headcanon that I've had for a while: during movie nights luke was really into high school musical. If either of them start singing even one line it acts like a sleeper agent and now we have to finish singing the rest of the song part of the reason he likes singing hsm in particular is totally NOT because then he could duet with mc. he does not think about having the Disney duet Moment™️ with her no sir. Luke on the day he leaves for National Central University: I'll miss you :') MC: I'll miss you too :) Luke: omg wait wait we're literally Troy and Gabriella in hsm 2 and then they sing Gotta Go My Own Way while mc is laughing at how stupid he is (affectionate) the 1st birthday card where lukerosa and their high school classmates go to karaoke? I firmly believe that before luke and mc left they were goaded into dueting one song and they chose Start of Something New and it totally wasn't because they like each other nope no way but why is this song hitting so close to home right now why are we locking eyes IMAGINE being one of those classmates in that karaoke room that shipped them from day 1 and having to experience that. witness that.

jhvjhKJVKSJHDFVS PLEASE OMG this is such a perfect mix of dorky and endearing, it is PERFECT for luke ;w;

i support him and his HSM fixation, and HSM songs are so perfect for karaoke (source: ive picked HSM songs for karaoke several times and it always rocks)

luke and rosa: //perfectly dueting Start of Something New in the bday1 SSR without even looking at the lyrics flashing on the KTV screen

the former classmates just sitting there: do u guys want ur own room, do u guys want us to like leave or something

maybe thats another reason why those former classmates were so passive aggressive about luke's detective occupation in that card, both because they were being dumb and also because some of them felt the need to knock luke down a peg because come on man, making the rest of us feel single :/ KJHVKJSHFVKJSDHVGS

btw Get'cha Head In The Game is now also DEFINITELY in luke's workout playlist

luke, softly mumble-singing to himself while doing crunches: get'cha, get'cha, get'cha, get'cha head in the game

aaron whos there i guess for the purposes of this joke: were you even BORN when that movie came out?

(sidenote: ....oh wait, luke actually WAS born when it came out, like, THE EXACT SAME YEAR. luke is the same age as HSM 1 omg. this hc was written in the stars, it was destiny)

(sidenote 2: the lyrics of Bet On It

How will I know if there's a path worth taking? Should I question every move I make? With all I've lost, my heart is breakin' I don't wanna make the same mistake

are unironically a great image of luke's NSB days and his internal conflict of whether or not he should reunite with mc. this hc really WAS written in the stars omfg)

fantastic headcanon all around, thank u for my life

[ddagent]

“ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU” [3/3]

Aziraphale/Crowley | Musicians AU | FR12 | 3,420 words     When the friendship between rock star Crowley and crooner Aziraphale is made public, the two decide to leave their labels and work together. Alongside writing the next Christmas number one, the pair also explore thirty years of repressed feelings. Thank you so much for all the positive comments; I'm absolutely delighted about the response to my first Good Omens multi-chapter! We do get to hear Aziraphale and Crowley's Christmas song in this; I am not a songwriter (or really a poet), however, so please view their song with that in mind!

Voicemail message from Aziraphale Fell (recorded 1st November 2023 2.23 am)

Crowley, I was just wondering whether we had room for a third chorus. Sort of a ‘Baby Its Cold Outside’ rapport – just without the implications, obviously. Although did you read that news article I sent you on the historical background of the song? Anyhoo, I had some thoughts. Here are the lyrics; we’d go back and forth: I don’t need a shining star to point me to you, my dear. It wouldn’t take a wise man to see how much I love you, Angel. Your eyes are gold. Your tone is frank. Now stop murmuring and come over here! Let me know what you think!

Message sent 1st November 2023 (2.35 am)

Crowley: I would rather sing ‘O Come all Ye Faithful’ in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Eve, duetting with the Archbishop himself. You are such a talented song-writer – how? HOW?

By the start of November, Christmas had begun to invade. Decorations had sprung up in shops and supermarkets; cards and wrapping and festive food lined the shelves. Crowley had been dragged through an excruciating three hours in central London finding gifts for all their friends. One of the good things about now being in a relationship (other than the utter joy he felt being with Aziraphale, touching Aziraphale, loving Aziraphale) was that he got to put his name on their gifts. No more single gifts for him. They now came as a pair.

Of course, alongside the downturn into Christmas was the race for Christmas number one.

Continue Reading at AO3

[womaninwinter]

For the rosary fic (my beloved): 11, 16, 20

For The Intruder: 7, 12

And 8 and the wild card question for whatever fic(s) you desperately want to talk about

aaaayyy bestie, you're predictable (we love that for you)

11. Was there a scene that you hadn't originally planned to include? Why did you decide to fit it in?

Bold of you to assume I planned this. Lol, okay, I do have a plan for the rosary fic, but I did not really have one when I started. I didn't intend for it to be so damn long for one thing. It was supposed to be like 4 chapters, one for each set of decades. So the decision to write one chapter per decade for the sorrowful mysteries (and maybe also the mysteries of light??) was totally unplanned. But I decided to do it because the Hollow Boy arc just couldn't be compressed into one chapter, there's too much of Lockwood's perspective there that needs to be unpacked. And also, as I was writing, I realised I wanted to explore Lockwood's journey to the Faith, so that definitely required more space. Another unplanned scene was Lucy's visit to St James' church. I added that in because I really felt that she grasped the idea of the rosary too quickly and more context was needed.

16. What was the easiest scene to write?

It's been so long that I don't remember, but I think the opening chapter was something I knocked out in an hour. The idea came and it flowed. The rest has taken more work, as the themes I'm weaving in have become more and more complicated.

20. What is something you wish more people noticed about this fic?

I think people are actually pretty good at noticing the stuff I'm proud of in this fic. Catholicism is overthinker central after all. I can't think of anything that's gone under the radar.

For The Intruder, I've answered 7 here.

12. Was there a scene you wished you could have included? Why didn't it fit in?

I think so far I've managed to fit in everything that I wanted to do, although it remains to be seen if that will continue to be the case. I did have a scene where Holly checks Altwood's injuries, but I cut it because I didn't like it and it wasn't really conveying anything new about the characters. So no is the answer to this one I'm afraid. In general I don't cut a whole lot because I tend to draft in my head.

For a fic I'd like to talk about, I'm going to pick Gutted, because I haven't been asked anything about that yet.

8. What inspired the title for this fic? Is that usually how you choose titles?

I like my fics to have punchy, memorable titles as a general rule (this is why I try to avoid song-lyric titles, and also because I'm a snob). I also love a good double meaning, so Gutted ticked all these boxes. It reflects the physical event (Lockwood getting impaled on a metal spike) and the emotional ramifications — "Gutted" being slang for "bitterly disappointed or upset" in UK English. As for inspiration, it just kind of came to me in a flash: I was turning over possible titles in my head and this occurred to me and I was like, yep, that's it.

26. Wild Card! I'll tell you a fun fact about this fic!

Fun fact: as soon as I'm asked for a fact, I forget all the knowledge I've ever contained. Anyway, here is a sort of fun fact about Gutted? I was in a very rough place mentally when I wrote the first chapter (as is probably obvious to anyone who's read it lol), and I was feeling very bad about writing fic in general actually (something I have since gotten over, again obviously), and I deleted it, and my whole AO3 account, shortly after posting. Then I calmed down a bit, and retrieved the deleted version, remade the account and posted it again, along with chapter two. So, for anyone that remembers back that far, that's why my fic vanished for a while and then came back.

🎬 Behind-the-Scenes Fic Asks 🎬

[isitthemoon]

Musical Tarot Thoughts: the Death card through a lens of Self-Change, Cycles and Individuation – a small reflection taken from Ending Credits by Taeyeon

Words: 905.

A Few Basic Concepts Of Analytical Psychology:

The Self – the totality of a person’s being, the central force guiding our development, the sum of our conscious and unconscious parts, what gives us meaning

Persona – social mask, social face, the process of acting differently in different occasions, a tool for adaptation

Individuation – the process of getting rid of the persona’s unnecessary parts; to build your own identity; to become an individual, to find out what makes you, you; to become yourself, to change as yourself.

A Bit About The Death Card

When we talk about the XIII Arcana, many people that are unfamiliar with tarot think that it talks about the literal aspect of death, which is not the case: This card talks about ending cycles, encountering your limits and fearing the unknown. It displays the need to let things go as well as the beauty of moving on. In a reading, it often represents the desire for something new and the “cleaning” of old things.

Ending Credits

Disclaimer: for the purpose of this argument, the interpretation of the lyrics will be from a self-development point of view instead of a breakup perspective.

 “In this lone lingering, I blankly let the time pass by

In this empty theater, I sat down and kept my seat

In the movie that has been repeated countless times, I laughed and cried for so long

But now, looking at the calm me, it feels like it’s all over now”

On the journey of finding ourselves, we experience numerous things: we cry, we laugh, we learn, we forget, we fight, and we love. At the end of the day, we reminisce of times past, all that happened and what could’ve been. Like a movie in our heads, we replay scenes of our lives: memories come and go as our brains try to process everything that happened.  Finally, when the curtains fall down and the session ends, it’s time for something new.

“After the curtains are closed I can’t say any greetings to you

Leaving behind the faded still cuts, now I’ll let you go forever”

There comes a point in the individuation process when we hit a kind of “roof”: similar to how a child outgrows their clothes, we cyclically outgrow our own minds in a way. Since life is made of multiple journeys, eventually we reach the end of each individual path we ventured on. At that point, when you’ve come the farthest you could on one track, the mind yearns for change, a bigger horizon to explore. The individuation process itself urges us to part ways with our current way of life.

“In this perfect ending, it feels empty and hazy

So I empty my heart in the turned off lights

I believed we would be together on the Ending Credits

At last, my name is left without yours on the Ending Credits”

The Death Card invites us to clean our space. It asks us to take out the baskets in our lives and empty them: we look at what’s inside them and set aside what we’ll keep and what we’ll throw away. As a result of change, we have to make space for the new discoveries that are to come. When we can’t or don’t want to create this space, a crisis begins. The only way to resolve this tension is to learn how to say goodbye to a phase in our lives: what we want is not always what we need. It’s necessary, but it doesn’t make it any easier. However, as time goes by, we can grow used to the process and become calmer when the time comes again.

“I’ll forget the past times when I loved you with my whole heart

I’ll leave now to find my own story again

I hope you are happy in your place

Like the end we have finally come to”

When we manage to let go of the things in our past that don’t serves us anymore, when we realize that what we learn can’t be taken away, we grow. When the conflict is resolved, we are able to find peace within ourselves. Some memories will remain, but this time we see them through a new lens. Our thoughts and wants are always changing, so when we grow accordingly, we evolve. Recognizing the time to say goodbye to our old selves leads us to the realization that Change is also a way of staying faithful to our Selves. We become more like us, and less like others.

“The Ending Credits

Together for a long time, our Ending Credits”

An ending doesn’t have to be just an ending: it can be a new beginning. When the things end we have the opportunity to start over. As a part of evolving, our good essence will always remain the same – Individuation means growing from our core. It’s inevitable, and because of that, it’s bittersweet. Saying goodbye is not always easy, but most times it’s also relieving. When we release what we can’t control, we liberate ourselves. The endings in our lives become like graduations, a sadness of what has happened mixed with hope for what’s to come. Nothing lasts forever, and that is something in which we can find great comfort.

“Now, it begins anew, my own Ending Credits”

~ Gio 🌙

[jgroffdaily]

Merrily We Roll Along reviews (part 1)

New York Times (Critic's Pick)

Maria Friedman’s staging brings the intelligence of the songs fully alive and justifies the baroque construction. Her framing snaps the picture almost fully into focus. And with Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez as the show’s central trio of backward-tumbling friends, it is perhaps for the first time perfectly cast.

Happily, Groff has the glamour and fury to shoulder that interpretation. No Frank I’ve seen has been so unapologetic in his solipsism, so sure he deserves a get-out-of-jail-free card to life’s every complication. And when someone crosses him, as Charley does singing “Franklin Shepard, Inc.” on that TV show, Frank is so livid, staring straight ahead as if his friend no longer exists, that you wait in terror for what will happen next. What you get, even worse, is what happens before.

Justin 'Squigs' Robertson caricature and review

Squigs Salutes: Merrily We Roll Along

Oh Sondheim heaven! Maria Friedman’s production of Stephen Sondheim and Hal Prince’s troubled show has opened at New York Theatre Workshop with nary a trouble in sight. It’s truly one of the best productions I’ve seen in recent memory. Such a winning cast led by Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe, Lindsay Mendez, Krystal Joy Brown, Katie Rose Clarke, and Reg Rogers. Coincidently, I’ve witnessed Friedman’s productions of this in London and Boston over the past decade, and it just keeps getting better and better. “Dreams don’t die, so keep an eye on your dream.”

Washington Post

They said it couldn’t be done. But they’ve done it. And not only merrily. Magnificently.

Only now, it’s more powerfully the collateral damage — the unraveling of a complex, bittersweet friendship among three creative people — that plays out as the show’s touching essence.

And no small part of the success is due to the three central performances, by Jonathan Groff, Daniel Radcliffe and Lindsay Mendez.

The musical version, too, unfolds backward. But it will certainly propel forward the musical theater renown of Groff, Radcliffe and Mendez...

“Merrily We Roll Along” upends your perspective: you see first that all the relationships are ill-fated, and only as the years roll back do you get to understand what these people mean to one another. It’s a mistake to make of this musical a clinical autopsy on our grasping culture; you need a purely emotional dimension, too, which is what Friedman and company have grasped. And critical to that success is Groff, because he embodies so effortlessly someone whom others always want to be around.

“That Frank” was a song Sondheim later added near the top of the show that helps immeasurably in establishing Frank at its thematic core. He’s both a magnet and a centrifuge, drawing people together and forcing them apart, by dint of his appetites. Groff’s charm is a valuable commodity in “Merrily,” because Friedman and Groff’s evocation of Frank is of a man who loses touch with people, but not entirely with his youthful glow: At both the show’s start and ending, he clutches a token of lost innocence: a copy of the first script Charley ever gave him.

The close contact shows in Friedman’s revelatory incarnation. We’re all “catching at dreams,” proclaims a lyric in the title number. With this production, the dream of a great “Merrily” has been caught.

[witch-apologist]

uhm no the movies and books is prolly gothIC, goth is a music based subculture, thats literally the whole point, its the ideology and the music (same as punk and emo etc music based counter culture). Thats why the response to "I wanna be goth" is "listen to the music".

Funny that you mention punk, which while yes the subculture is heavily tied to punk music is a subculture whose primary focus on being counterculture in ways that stand up to unfair rules imposed by an opressive society. Punk is an umbrella term for a vast variety of subcultures who all center around the central theme of actively pushing against unfair and unjust supression. This is why we have subcultures and movements like cripplepunk and cyberpunk. The music you hear in cyberpunk is not always the same as what you hear in steampunk, they're vastly different genres yet both are punk. And you certainly dont need to listen to RATM to be cripplepunk if youre a disabled person dedicated to giving the middle finger to ableists.

Same thing with emo, its about radical acceptance of being an emotional human being.

Goth is similar. Goth music is SHORT FOR gothic. Goth is a subculture cebtered around the celebration of, and finding solace and even beauty in the sad, scary, and other darker things in life. There are so many different subgenres of goth that you can hear something in one subgenre that sounds completely different than what you hear in another. Theres cybergoth and romantic goth and even PASTEL goth. The thing that connects the music genres is the centralized theme of appreciation of the gloomy, macabre, etc etc. While yes there is a significant and important bond between gothic music and gothic subcultures participation in the music part of the subculture is not required and even if it was the music that fits into various subgenres of goth. The Cure and similar bands did not materialize from thin air and decide to invent goth subculture. The subculture existed before the music did. The subculture shaped the music and the music shaped the subculture. Take Lacrymosa by Evanescence, that song samples Lacrimosa by Mozart. Why? Because the original song Lacrimosa uses dark, haunting sounds to create something beautiful. Goth art is so vast and varied you cannot possibly act as if the music is the only thing that matters. To reduce "goth" to fanfanaticism of a few bands is to erase a vast and beautiful intersection of human creation that has evolved and expanded over hundreds of years to culminate in a sense of comraderie between people who find meaning in the same overall theme of finding beauty and comfort and fascination in the darker things life has to offer. Goth is music, goth is fashion, goth is literature, and dance and cinema and every other form of art becuase goth is an ART subculture. So yes the music is super important, but so are the paintings and the fashion and the movies and the books and the history of it all!

You are erasing entire swathes of goth culture to hold just one of its important aspects above all others! If these subcultures are only about listening to the music then Taylor Swift is emo. But I am willing to bet good money that you don't agree with that. Why? Fall Out Boy is one of her favorite bands of all time, she has cited them as inspiration from her lyricism, she even collabed with Brendan Urie. But I would bet that you would not consider her emo, because she does not fit the aesthetic you associate with emo. But if you saw someone on the street with pink neon fishnet gloves, super teased hair, thick eyeliner, and a gir backpack you would automatically see that person as emo, only revoking their emo card after hearing that they dont listen to the music you deem as the litmus test for being emo. But why would you think that person is emo in the first place? It's not because the person is a total poser who just copied emos who completely invented everything after hearing Panic, it's because that person is engaged in multiple forms of art that fall under the umbrella of "emo" the teased hair comes from a long line of art that uses such hair to symbolize distress, the thick eyeliner comes from makeup art that emulates negative emotions by accentuating aesthetics associated with emotiobal turmoil. The pink fishnet glove comes from fashion where the taboo is celebrated, fishnets often being associated with undesirable classes of people. Gir as a character became a part of emo culture BECAUSE he is from a show about children in a horrible environment dealing with a level of emotion that is considered by "polite society" to be ugly. Gir specifically, is incredibly unhindered in his emotional expression, shouting his joy so loud it echoes through a grim cityscape, and wailing terribly when upset. Zim too.

You say its about the music but if you saw someone in the crowd at a cure concert wearing, idk, uggs and galaxy leggings and a sports hoodie, you probably would view and treat them as an outsider.

Goth is way bigger and way more diverse than you can even begin to gatekeep, and it feels cheap to ignore and erase all of the other artforms that all contribute to the subculture you supposedly love in the name of exalting just one of the important pieces above all.

[bowtiesnmusicals]

Here is my recap of the This Is Your Principal Speaking (Iqbal Theba) episode podcast.

Iqbal is a fan favorite. Achievement!

Kevin and Jenna said he is a sweet, wonderful human. It’s a warm cozy conversation.

Iqbal called Kevin and Jenna his children. It was really sweet. He asked them where they have been.

In 2023 Mr. Figgins is hot as ever. There are tons of videos on TikTok.

Principal Figgins is probably the most unproblematic character on the show.

Iqbal said he has a teenage daughter and all her friends are watching Glee. He is amazed that a new generation knows all of them.

He said he has gotten used to being recognized. It happens less frequently in LA and a lot more in other places like Oklahoma.

Iqbal has a degree in Engineering. He also has a degree in Theater. He went to the University of Oklahoma.

He didn’t enjoy majoring in engineering and it was during an internship in his senior year he realized it wasn’t for him. He decided he was going to do something else. A friend came to the restaurant where Iqbal was a waiter and told him to come see her in a play. It was a Noel Coward play. He thought it was interesting and was drawn to it. He went back to the theatre and made friends with the actors. He went back to school for drama.

If you have brains you don’t want to become an actor. While Iqbal was studying he was hit in the gut and knew that acting was for him.

After graduating he went to New York and waited tables. He then moved tot LA.

A commercial got Iqbal his SAG card. You can find the video on YouTube.

Iqbal has trouble understanding English language songs. He misunderstood lyrics during the audition for that commercial. He made the producers laugh. He mixed up caught in a draft for calling a cab.

Iqbal had worked with Ryan and Brad before Glee. He was on Nip/Tuck.

He doesn’t know if it was Ryan or Brad that suggested him for Principal Figgins.

Iqbal did the same thing he does all the time when he auditioned for Figgins.

He auditioned and the next day he found out he had gotten the role of Principal Figgins.

He knew this show was special very early on and told Matt M this is incredible and the best thing they will probably ever do.

After the premiere at the high school in Santa Monica Iqbal’s manager told him it was going to be a hit .

Iqbal said after seeing the pilot it just stayed with him. He felt energized, bright, and happy. It was an amazing ride.

The show changed all of their lives.

Fans are really comfortable with Iqbal. He noticed the difference in the way fans treat him versus someone like Max Adler during a convention in England.

Fox, the cast, and everyone was very confused by the huge demographic that was watching the show when it originally aired.

Figgins was a central point and safe character on the show.

The scenes in Principal Figgins with Jane and Matt are some of Jenna and Kevin’s favorites. They are a master class in acting and comedic timing.

Iqbal would laugh his ass off during camera rehearsal. Somehow when they began to shoot the scene by some miracle he was able to keep it together. He doesn’t think they blew that many takes. Matt and Iqbal were allowed to play when it came to reacting to Sue’s crazy lines.

Not the children was an ad lib. It is one of Jenna’s favorite lines.

According to Iqbal saying Ke $ ha was so hard to do with a straight face.

Kevin said it was so funny to watch the monotone speeches knowing how funny Iqbal is in real life. It is also funny watching Figgins reacting and completely loosing it to the Glee kids performing.

Jenna said it felt like an honor to enter Principal Figgins office. Jenna loved shooting the scene where Figgins is afraid of vampires. Ryan kept throwing lines at Iqbal to say. Iqbal liked the one where he said something like I’m afraid I’m not going to like it.

Iqbal thought he would never get commercials. He had trouble getting just a one line part in a tv show. He was surprised how open minded casting was for commercials. He said there weren’t a lot of opportunities for him in the 90s. A lot has changed since then.

Iqbal said it’s amazing seeing diversity in not just actors but creators for tv shows.

Iqbal says he runs into people of all ethnicities who still complain about how hard it is to get roles. He says things are so much better now then 30 years ago. You could get a one line part but it was so hard to get any significant roles. Iqbal kept going even when it meant having to wait tables on the side.

Iqbal is really hopeful about the future.

Show creators like Mindy Kaling are trying to lift up their communities.

Kevin said on the flip side he has some white acquaintances hat like to complain about how diverse Hollywood is now.

Iqbal said he had an acquaintance that told him something similar and said he would work more if he was Iqbal. Iqbal told him if he had you were me with this attitude you would be working in a 7/11. Iqbal has never blamed ethnicity. He said if he fails it’s his fault. He is going to own it.

You write what you know and things that are familiar to you.

Iqbal is writing something.

You write you own truth.

Iqbal believes that you do good work and things will change.

Ryan Murphy was acting underrepresented underdogs in his shows. Even the social issues Ryan talks about in his shows are things that aren’t being discussed by any one else.

Just because the people in a show might not look like you the stories are universal. Those specificities are what makes the characters even more special and unique.

You cannot over emphasize the impact glee had on our society and culture all over the world. It made a huge difference in our society. It did it in a way no other show had don before.

Iqbal’s favorite moment was winning the SAG award for Best Ensemble. He really appreciated it. That day was so special. Jenna said this award felt so inclusive of the whole cast. It takes a village to create a show like Glee. It felt really nice to be with everybody.

The feeling Glee leaves Iqbal with is glee. There is no other word that says it all.

He likes works that give you hope and Glee did that in spades.

Everyone really loves Principal Figgins and Iqbal.

Fingers crossed Iqbal’s new pilot gets picked up.

Jenna said Iqbal is a sweet gem. They both kept saying how much they love him.

Kevin feels privileged that they can show people how wonderful the cast of glee is as not just actors but people.

Kevin said it was a joy to get to sing, dance, and be silly with everyone on set. It was long hard work but it felt so good. It was so rewarding. To see something you work so hard and care about be received so well is amazing. It’s hard to find a job that you love and that changes lives. To have something that means so much to people still. It is so profound to be a part of something bigger then yourself.

If you didn’t know Jenna is a crier. That is why Tina cried so much in the later seasons. She cries when she feels big emotions whether that is sadness or happiness. (I get this because I am like this too).

Jenna said she doesn’t know what happened to all the fire and passion she had back then.

Alexandria House is doing a walk-a-then on March 18th! You can donate online. This is the organization they do Snixxmas for and it was one of Naya’s favorite charities.

[dustedmagazine]

This Is the Kit — Careful of Your Keepers (Rough Trade)

Photo by Cedric Oberlin

Careful Of Your Keepers by This Is The Kit

This Is the Kit’s new album, Careful Of Your Keepers, has a wonderfully languid, rolling, fluid quality. This is partly down to the immediacy of Kate Stables’ song-writing and her crisply enunciated singing voice; partly down to her ongoing chemistry with fellow players Neil Smith (guitar), Rozi Leyden (bass), and Jamie Whitby-Coles (drums); and partly down to producer Gruff Rhys’s intimate yet expansive production. Though some of the song titles appear to allude to the trials and tribulations of the last few years (“Inside Outside,” “Doomed or More Doomed,” “Stuck in a Room”), there’s also a hopeful tone of resilience (“This Is When the Sky Gets Big,” “Careful of Your Keepers”) that runs through all of the songs.

The interplay between the musicians is central to the satisfying immersive instrumental backing, immediately apparent in the first two songs, “Goodbye Bite” and single “Inside Outside.” Guitars, drums and bass interlock in intricate yet flowing shapes, gently pushing and pulling in different directions, occasionally bolstered by piano, woodwinds, brass, and synths. A spidery banjo weaves through early standout “Take You to Sleep,” swelling synth underpinning a gorgeous chord change before the main groove carries the song through Stables’ mantra-like vocals. Rhys lends his reassuringly deep and gentle backing vocals to “More Change” and “This Is When the Sky Gets Big,” and the title track foregrounds drum, bass and piano parts that come across like Radiohead’s “House of Cards,” or Tortoise at their most beatific. 

Repetition plays a key role throughout the record, as if each musician is trying to wring as much out of their parts as possible. Stables returns to lyrical ideas at various points in the album — such as friendship, forgiveness, and seeking wisdom and solace in nature — as if reflecting on these themes from a different angle each time, getting a measure of them, and reiterating their importance. By the time plaintive closer “Dibs” rolls around, embellished with vibraphone and twanging guitar leads, Stables gently implores, “Rest your heart on my heart / Be OK, be OK” — it feels as though the band has done everything in their power to play a small part in helping things work out. 

Tim Clarke

[hanarchy]

I've always liked The River and I love Han Jisung, and your comment about trying to relate The River to Jisung intrigued me. I am also obsessed with patterns, etc. Here is my best attempt. This is probably not what you meant by that, but I hope you enjoy anyway! :)

The River:

I come from down in the valley

Where, mister, when you're young

They bring you up to do like your daddy done

Han: (Lee Mujin service interview segment)

To mention my dad again

He used to be in a rock band when he was young

He performed in different places

AND

The River:

And for my nineteenth birthday I got a union card and a wedding coat

Han:  (19 lyrics)

I just want to stop time

I'm still not ready

I'm waiting all the way over there

The 20 year old me is waiting

AND

The River:

At night on them banks I'd lie awake

And pull her close just to feel each breath she'd take

Han: (Volcano lyrics)

You were so warm when you hugged me tight

I guess I teared up for a moment, because it was the first time

AND

The River:

Now those memories come back to haunt me

They haunt me like a curse

Is a dream a lie if it don't come true

Or is it something worse

Han: (Wish You Back lyrics)

I've been travelin' around the world

Guess what, even though I purposely try

To fill my mind with other thoughts

I can't get rid of it, it gets caught

Han: (Slump lyrics)

All the foolish dreams I had inside of me are broken

AND LASTLY

The River:

That sends me down to the river

Though I know the river is dry

Han: (Miserable (You & Me) lyrics)

Ready, set, hold the remote control and rewind, go back

I don't wanna lose a part of me, you are my heart, you know?

Anon!!

When I say this made my day, my week, my year that‘s an understatement!!

I‘m gonna be rotating these parallels in my mind for ever and ever. Thank you so much for your scholarly work on this, it means so much to me!!

My personal perspective on the two of them is kind of like. They‘re both small guys with too many feelings for the circumstances they‘re in. And they‘ve both chosen to deal with it by becoming songwriters.

I‘ve been fantasizing about getting on a fancall with Jisung and recommending him this song, and also a live performance of it (which is HARD to do bc there‘s so many amazing ones and they‘re all different… how do you choose between masterpieces.) (Such a Bruce Springsteen problem to have lmao)

But yeah, I think the way Jisung describes unraveling relationships in his songs is already on such a lovely trajectory. I think he could truly learn from this song. (How to pick a central metaphor, how to make personal songs that also tell stories about bigger things, the emotion in how springsteen sings this song. How his voice breaks ever so slightly in certain places.)

Jisung also has such an interest in trying new instruments and incorporating new sounds. I think he would really enjoy the harmonica portions of this song, nobody really does that like bruce. And if we got him to watch the 2001 Live in New York version of the song, he would also get to hear the way the saxophone leads into it and sets the mood AND the accordion on it. All of which are instruments that jisung hasnt used much but has shown interest in (rmb that jazzy little intro to collision?)

but honestly i would love if, maybe later into their careers, 3racha got to do more with live music/live recordings. They‘re very much ‚find a beat and build from there‘ musicians and I just would like to see them develop more into instrumentation and live music. They‘ve MORE than proven that they can be great at it with thunderous and back door in my opinion.

dude well anyway. Idk where I was going with any of this but. yeah i think there are more parallels here than one might think..

[jesuis-melodrama]

This is my favourite segment of Overkill, and has remained, unchallenged, as my favourite piece of writing I have crafted. I have little doubt that it could be topped, and I do not mind it staying at its station.

There is one line in Rihanna’s Love On the Brain that really resonates with Adrien. He had been in the middle of a relationship when he first heard the song. He had been a little bit bored of the relationship and he wanted to break up the relationship, but for some reason, he couldn’t find himself with enough impetus to end things with Maximillian. Maybe he was just clinging on in hopes that things would get a bit better, a bit more interesting. Or maybe he was just scared.

Whatever it was, his feelings were a muddle. And Adrien was getting frustrated with the little black scribble looming at where his heart should be. So, he tried to centralize his emotions a little.

ANTI had just came out. Adrien has never been a fan of Rihanna, but the popularity of the album was unmistaken. La Rêvasserie called it: “A rollercoaster of radical vulnerability and nuclear passivity.” Whatever that meant. “A mess of a lyrical guide that throws down emotions like a poker champion throwing down cards at a table”. That caught his attention.

He already heard Work. It’s R&B tones blasted out of every single grocery store speaker, organizers have already used various remixes of it as the backing track for walks.

But it was after a particularly bland date that incurred Adrien to buy the album when he spotted it on the shelf of an electronics store. The plastic wrapping was a little torn, but the acrylic case was unscratched and the CD itself doesn’t appear to be damaged.

At home, he poured himself a glass of cabernet and worked his way down a pack of Marlboros while he listened.

It was pretty good. Adrien can’t remember the last Rihanna song he heard, but the genre was different enough that he didn’t expect this dark, sultry mix of low beats and smoky words. He liked Desperado and Same Ol’ Mistakes, but the tune of the songs always went through one ear and out the next. When the next track played, the memories of the previous song would vanish.

It wasn’t until Track 11, Love On The Brain, that Adrien had a visible reaction.

Her rough voice with the breathless back-up vocals. It mixed the electric arpeggio of guitar chords with swirling organs and orchestral strings. The soul of Rihanna’s pleading reminded him of Amy Winehouse. And so, Adrien’s interest was piqued.

But then:

It beats me black and blue, but it fucks me so good.

It was so unexpected, it made him laugh. The song is an ode to a dangerous lover. One that is cold and distant and abusive, but one that she still chases after.

Must be love on the brain, yeah. And it keeps cursing my name (cursing my name). No matter what I do, I'm no good without you. And I can't get enough, Must be love on the brain.

When the song was over, Adrien was intrigued enough that he hit replay. And then replay again. On the third play, he sang softly along to the lyrics and giggled when they reached the: “It beats me black and blue, but it fucks me so good” part. He lost interest in listening to the rest of the album, because it would ruin the ambience that Love On The Brain created.

Adrien remembers feeling like that. Loving someone so much that everything else seemed meagre and mediocre. Nothing compared to the great sunning mass that his lovers would create. No one wants to go wandering into the empty, chilling blackness of space. They want to be warm.

Can we burn something, babe?

And when the relationship was over, Adrien would always ask himself: what had he been thinking? What had he been doing? Why did he allow himself to get carried away, why did he let them get away with the things that they did to him, why did he let himself act like that?

Just love me; All you need to do is love me, yeah. Got me like, ah-ha-ha-owww. I’m tired of being played like a violin. What do I gotta do to get in your motherfuckin’ heart?

But Rihanna helped him understand.

He was in love, he couldn’t get enough.

He had love on the brain.

Maximillian picked up on the second ring.

“Hello?” His voice was groggy and clogged. “Who is this?”

“Adrien.”

“Adrien? It’s three in the morning!”

“Yeah, I couldn’t wait any longer,” Adrien said. “We need to break up.”

“What?” Maximillian sounded a lot more awake now. There was the rustles of scrambling and the crinkles of blankets being pushed aside. “What – why?”

“Hmm.” Adrien considered it. His glass of wine has vanished. He wonders where it went. “I think this relationship is dead.”

“Wha – What does that mean?” Maximillian’s voice was despairing. “I – do you not love me anymore?”

“I do,” Adrien confessed.

“Then – why?”

“It’s not what I want.”

“What do you mean it’s not what you want? Just, listen, we don’t have to break up. If there’s issues, Bébé, we can work it out.”

“I don’t think we can,” said Adrien. “I think we need to break up.”

“…because you don’t love me anymore?”

“Because I don’t love you enough,” Adrien said softly. He was getting dizzy. He laughed. “I don’t think you’re making me feel what I’m supposed to feel.”

There was an incredulous silence. “Adrien, are you drunk?”

Oh? “Maybe,” he admitted. Maybe that was where all the wine went. Still doesn’t explain where the wine glass disappeared to.

“Gods.” There was a sigh. “Adrien, we’ll talk about this in the morning. You need to sleep.”

“No, we’re not talking about this in the morning,” Adrien said. “Delete my number, we’re breaking up.”

“Adrien, you’re not in your right mind!”

“Yes, I am,” Adrien said firmly. “I know what I want. We’re breaking up.”

A frustrated huff. “Bébé–”

“You don’t make me feel what I’m supposed to feel,” said Adrien. “I don’t want to be in a relationship where I can’t feel what I want to feel.”

“What am I supposed to make you feel?”

“Intoxicated,” Adrien answered. “Like I’m being sucked in. Like I got love on the brain.” Like what Ralf and Marissa and Lucie made him feel. A whirlwind of romance that robbed him of his breath and sight. Adrien wants to feel that again. He doesn’t want this never-ending cycle of dull pleasantries.

“What? What does that mean? I don’t understand.”

“Exactly,” said Adrien. He pressed a kiss to the phone’s microphone. “But I do love you. We had a great time together. Goodbye, Max.”

“Adrien–”

He hung up. He was in a surprisingly good mood. He reached over and played Love On The Brain for the fourth time.

[chrisbaronmusic]

PNW Troubadour Carves Out A Left Coast Life

This is an article by the freelance Jason Olcott, handsomely from Lake Chelan WA. All photos by Jason. This piece appeared in The Comet, Issue #70, August 2024…a print-only monthly focused on central Washington State. Editor in Chief: Ron Evans. Contact The Comet at thecometmagazine@gmail.com

Chris Baron is thinking about his friends today. 

He’s been on the road for a good long while now, kicking out his raucous, infectious acoustic-powered rock n’ roll to audiences all over this chunk of land. On tour again. Most recently, in his favorite part of the country: right around here.

A scant few minutes after meeting the man, you’re certain to hear the term ‘Great Pacific Northwest.’ He’ll talk about the landscape and the people and the sky and the water.  He loves this place he calls home. He’ll tell you that last night, he was around a fire up Icicle Creek near Leavenworth and that he’s heading back there after tonight’s gig. The forest beckons. As does the river.

But just now, tonight’s show at McGlinn’s is getting him excited. Revved up. He’s been here before, he knows these folks. He’s got a standing offer here that he’s linked up with gigs at Munchen Haus in Leavenworth for the past three years running. Both places “are very cultivated, and they really care about what they do,” he enthuses. He’s always stoked about these gigs.

This particular time through has a bit of a different flavor to it: “My friends have been on my mind a lot,” Baron muses, sitting in the warm Wenatchee sun next to the river, a few hours ahead of the show. 

He seems a touch wistful, but more so inspired, charged. Maybe a recent dormant streak has tweaked his “normally bombastic self” onto this thoughtful, electric tangent. “Before tonight’s gig I’ve had four days off!” The tone in his voice speaks alongside his words, suggesting “how ridiculous is that?!” 

His mind is humming, his eyes alive, his constant grin infectious: “What mood am I in? What do I feel like doing?” You can see the wheels turning. That’ll happen when you’re in this headspace and your friends happen to be some of your favorite musicians. “They write great songs!” He’s psyched. “They’re coming up with brilliant ideas! I’m listening all the time, seeing if maybe there’s an idea I can borrow or steal or use to pay tribute, help it reach an audience it otherwise wouldn’t get to.” And then, almost as if he’s revealing a secret (or maybe something that just dawned on him), he spouts “I’m gonna play songs by friends tonight!”

It speaks to his character that he would think to do this, as the man’s own songs are tremendous layered blasts of songwriter rock n’ roll, well strong enough to grab your attention and vastly overfill any set-list card. His decades-long songbook of original material is bursting at the seams with killer stuff, but today he wants to do both.

And tonight at McGlinn’s Public House in Wenatchee, Washington, he does just that. 

From an almost comically small stage, this man and his guitar (with that magical kick-drum!) absolutely fills the air with lyrical and musical thrust and boom and charm – creations from his own guts and those of his friends.

He rolls out his own songs, tightly-crafted interesting lyrical rock n’ roll, and those of his brothers “Ryan Ferris, Jake Riggs, Will Downing,” he’s rattling them off, “Ben C., Shane Brown,” making sure to remind me to find them online. The fact that he can easily command the stage with his own great stuff, and has the memory and skill to seamlessly play his friends’ music, that’s huge.

Despite his introspective nature earlier this afternoon, Chris Baron rocks the joint tonight at McGlinn’s. His aggressive, rousing guitar and soaring voice belies his earlier thoughtful mood. Highly spirited acoustic folk n’ rock n’ roll, an energizing treat to behold. 

Welcome back to Wenatchee indeed, Mr. Baron. Tell us, how did all this start? “I was a weekend warrior in Portland from ‘07 to 2015,” he recalls. “I was in five different bands at any given moment.” He squints “I was fronting three different bands with three different line-ups at one point.” Turns out, most of these bands didn’t pan out. The usual suspects, of course: “breaking up, falling apart, bickering, fighting, creative differences. More covers? Less covers? Who’s bored playing what, job offers, transfers…”

The bummer of repeated collapses rushes in on him:  “...all that work that we put in with all these bands, which meant the world to me, would just be…over with.”

At some point in 2015, a straw broke a camel’s back. “I decided no more bands. I’m going solo.” He lit a fire under his own ass with his Two-Year Plan, focused and hit it hard. A full six months before that alarm bell rang, Baron found himself ‘all systems go’ “with a bunch of gigs lined up. So I just hit the road.”

He makes it sound so simple. “I recommend this to every pure-blood singer/songwriter out there: start with who you know. Pick a friend of yours who lives in another town,” he advises. Then you gotta work the phones, calling venues. “You get a gig in their town and then you kinda stair-step it.” This approach worked for Baron, a man who greased the skids by being willing to crash wherever he needed: “friends’ houses, guest rooms, couches, campgrounds, hotels…”

His touring was close to home at first, but with his enthusiasm and circle of friends, it grew quickly with him “just filling in the gaps.” He says he still does “stretches like that, where I kinda busk my way forward,” but now he likes to “sit down in advance, plan where I want to go and make those calls.”

Somewhere on that long American West road he’s been on for years now, he came upon a notion regarding what his future could look like; touring and playing and traveling. That notion grew into an idea, which he developed into a concept. It’s currently a loose plan, which Baron is fine-tuning into a reality. 

It goes, quite simply, like this: “From BC down to the Bay Area, west of the Rockies. Plus Texas. That’s the thing,” he states plainly. “It feels right to me.”

Alright then. There it is. A nice, tight, touring/life plan that keeps Baron where he thrives, where he feels most at home, kicking ass all over the Western states. Kind of a sweet little program. “It’s not so bad!” he laughs.

“All my formative years are in the Pacific Northwest, which is why I want to center here. I leave a lot, but I keep coming back.” He’ll be doing a whole lot of both into the foreseeable future, as 2025 is already booking up: “I’ve got confirmed dates in Texas, Tucson, across Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. And then I fill in the blanks!”

The image of slugging out a life on the road, town after town, with no guaranteed results, might make some folks queasy, but this guy says “it works for me,” noting that it didn’t play out for some of his original bandmates. “I felt that fear,” of an unpromised future he admits, “but it’s not so scary once you do it.”

And now, the man IS doing it. I asked him about success. What is it? He told me that he views success as “not begging for opportunities anymore; you start getting invited to be a part of something cool.”

When asked to travel to Alaska for a circuit of gigs, he jumped like a hungry trout, bringing along his whole band and winning over audiences all over the Last Frontier. Recently, an offer came back from that same contact to return and play the  Alaska State Fair. Kiiind of a big deal. 

He realizes my prompting: “It’s hard to see when you’re doing it, you always think you need to hustle harder, try harder. Am I trying 110% Or just 105%?”

Then, after a pause, the magic happens: this West Coast musician, this Pacific Northwest (and beyond) troubadour realizes “yeah! I AM getting those invites!” 

This thing might just be working. Do yourself a favor. Go see this man play music. 

[Chris Baron is playing live at McGlinn’s in Wenatchee on 8/28 and Munchen Haus in Leavenworth on 8/29. Www.ChrisBaronMusic.com]

by

Jason Olcott, July/August 2024

[weaversweek]

"American pie" - Don McLean

1971 Written by Don McLean

"I wanted to write a song about America, but I didn't want to write a song about America like anybody ever wrote before."

Number 6 in Let's Do It, my personal fifty favourite singles from 1954-76.

Don McLean's magnum opus is this 8 minute 42 second classic, by turn mournful and jubilant and celebratory and reflective. The lyric weaves reflections on Don's life with allegories about the American culture from the mid 50s to the early 70s.

The central motif is "the day the music died", that terrible plane crash in 1959 killing Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper in one moment. But then there are literate motifs - the devil, Jack be nimble, Lenin, kings, queens, jesters, an anonymous girl who sang the blues.

"American pie" sprawled over both sides of a 7-inch single, radio liked to cut it off just as it was getting good. Don could have recorded more - he'd written lots of verses, and just kept the best for the record. Some of the other bits came out in concert, just as Leonard Cohen would do with his "Hallelujah" opus. But it's not a complex song, the basic melody is simple, the chorus needs no second bidding to drill itself into one's brain; Paul Griffin's piano parts give the song an extra oomph and turn it into the classic.

"American pie" came out into a society still reeling from the psychic shock of the late 60s: race riots, burning cities, protests against an unpopular war. It's a study of a society in crisis, and set to a chorus anyone can join in with. Ed Freeman, the song's producer, suggested it was an eulogy for a dream that didn't take place, a requiem for the potential of the boomers' generation.

Nostalgia ain't what it used to be. A generation later, Billy Joel made "We didn't start the fire", a bingo card of scattered memories. A generation later, mother-of-one Madonna covered "American Pie" and demonstrated she didn't understand it at all. The millennial pop star Anne-Marie released "2002", remembering her childhood.

[astralmaenad]

Writing Patterns (tag game)

Rules: list the first line of your last 10 (posted) fics and see if there's a pattern

Tagged kindly by @virahaus *kisses u*

Let's see! I'm definitely not cognizant of any pattern, and these fics are mostly posted a long time away from each other, so it might be interesting to see...

Once the spring festival came upon them, every year without fail, central Nanjiang would flood with people of every tribe and corner. (The Great Shaman's Revered Wife, XiYuan)

Xie'er realized one morning that he had somehow completely missed his rain season approaching. (A palace within our dreams, WenZhouXie)

It began with Zhou Zishu tossing him the wooden bowl he was holding. It rolled, and came to clatter on the stone floor. (A hundred jewels between teeth, WenZhouXie)

Zhou Zishu propped his head on his hand and just, stared. A little. It was probably alright. (The hounds will stay in chains, WenZhouXie)

He had wanted to scream, the words catching and clawing at his throat. Run! Hanguang-jun! Take A-Yuan with you! (North Star, WangNingXian)

The moment they stepped into the dream, it was dark. (The desert skies will cry for us, WangNingXian)

Lan Xichen didn't make it a habit to roam the Cloud Recesses at night. (The hand you want to hold is a weapon, WangNingXian)

Seto irrately swiped his room card for the third time, finally hearing the shrill beep of the door unlocking. (A moment in the light, Seto/Mahaad, bg Jaspershipping ot5)

He did not allow his body to register the trembling, or the chills racking up and down his spine or the spinning in his head until in the safety of his own rooms. (We Are, Atem/Mahaad/Seth, bg Jaspershipping ot5)

Mahaad dragged his hands down Seth's back, following the dip of each tense muscle, felt Seth twitch as he pushed his thumbs against the base of his spine. (Too much (I'm falling), Seto/Mahaad-centric, entire Jaspershipping ot5)

Well! We can safely conclude that a.I like to set the scene and b.I do not tend to open with dialogue. But I think the even clearer patterns, although unintended by the game were the polyships and the song lyric titles. Lmao this was fun!

I'm going to tag @unknown-lifeform, @fictionalsadist and @cadriona BUT if you read this and you think, 'dang, I wish someone tagged me', please consider yourself tagged and use my @ on your post. I want to see!!