#my whole set is just gonna be a video game stream now

[peacheeeliz]

023. hey pretty (wc: 904)

blue = twitch chat

heartzfrombora: is the smp really coming to an end?

“As much as I'd love to say no, I honestly think it might,” Yuyu admits, frowning. “I think all of us have gotten really good progress on our empires, and with this whole beholder thing going on in the other empires, I think the end is inevitable.”

milfhos: BOOO 🍅🍅

strwchaos: NOOO 😭😭

“But this isn't the last you'll see of all of us together,” you continue for him. “We've talked to Yeonjun, and we all agree that another smp would be a lot of fun!”

You had ended your stream about an hour prior and instantly hopped on call with Yuyu to join him on his stream. It started off with the both of you playing various Roblox games, but now you had his stream pulled up, and you two were answering questions that chat has. They had all these questions about the Minecraft server: is it really ending soon, what's going to happen now that the ‘war’ is over, what the fuck even is a beholder, etc.

“Yeah, and we've still got a handful of sessions left for empires,” Yuyu beams. “So we're not done yet, don't worry.”

faepurity: what is going on between you two btw

Yuyu laughs nervously at that question, leaving a soft smile on your face. “I don't know what you're talking about,” he answers, and you hear the shuffle of him shaking his head. “There's nothing going on.”

“Sure, baby,” you tease, and he chokes on his words. You let out a light laugh, “whatever is going on between us is none of your guys’ business.”

heartzfrombora: borrrrriiiing

faepurity: just say you're dating and move on 😒😒

milfhos: no bcs what if they've been dating this whole time and went to war so we wouldn't know 🫢🫢

“Milf,” you pause, shaking your head. “Go to bed.”

milfhos: WHAT I COULD'VE BEEN RIGHT

Yuyu softly laughs at the interaction, continuing to watch you as you talk to his chat. Since the two of you weren't playing anything, he had just pulled up Discord for you to be on video for his stream. And although he says it's for chat, he knows it's just because he just wants to see you.

Your phone buzzes from its spot on your desk, indicating the food that you had ordered had been delivered. “Oh wait, my food just got here. I'll be right back, alright? Then you guys can get a once in a lifetime special mukbang,” you tease before leaving your chair. As soon as you leave your room, Yuyu’s chat blows up.

milfhos: ok be fr what's going on between you two

heartzfrombora: we won't tell her anything trust

gigigibaby: yea come on friends don't call each other “baby” and “pretty” what's going on

strwchaos: you two would be so cute together

Yuyu rolls his eyes, yet he lets out a soft chuckle. “I'm just going to tell you the same thing as Y/N; it's none of yours guys’ business. Sorry, not sorry.”

milfhos: awww 🥲🥲

“But, she does make me really happy,” he starts, staring at the outline of your door with a bashful smile. “I like talking to her, like a lot. It's crazy what six weeks can bring you, man.”

strwchaos: AWWWW

“Okay, okay, that's all you guys are getting,” he says, shaking his head again. “You guys are gonna clip that, and it'll be everywhere in an hour.”

gigigibaby: omg thanks for the idea 🩷

Before Yuyu can say anything else, your door opens back up. You walk back to your desk, dinner in hand, and a familiar roommate right behind you. Sungchan sends Yuyu a bright smile and an excited wave, pulling up a small chair to sit next to you.

“Sungie wanted to eat dinner with me, I hope that's alright,” you tell the boy behind the screen.

“Yeah, of course, don't worry,” he responds, saying ‘hi’ back to Sungchan. “You're always welcome to join us, so just come in whenever you want, man.”

“This is why I love you,” Sungchan says, hand over his heart. “And why Y/N lov-”

You smack the younger boy's thigh, a strained smile set on your lips. “Keep your mouth shut and you'll be able to stay.”

Yuyu smiles at the blush that rises to your ears, but his phone buzzes before he can tease her. “Great timing, looks like my dinner's here too.”

“Ooh, you go get it, and we can all eat together,” you suggest, stopping Sungchan from digging into his dinner. “We can wait.”

Yuyu smiles at this, “ok, sweet, I'll be right back then.” He stands up from his desk, placing his hand near his keyboard pad as leverage; which somehow turns his camera. Too focused on each other, Sungchan and you don't even notice it before it's too late.

Yuyu backs up from his desk, the movement on their screen catching the roommates’ attention. Unaware of the situation, the man's full body comes into the frame. “Fuck, Yuyu, your camera,” Sungchan exclaims, eyes widening.

Finally, he draws his eyes back to his computer, cursing before he rushes to turn everything off. Before you or Sungchan can say anything else, his stream is shut off, and the call goes dead. You sit there silently with the younger boy, too shocked to say anything.

“Was that fucking Yunho?” Sungchan questions, sending a concerned look your way.

synopsis ⤏ you're trying to peacefully build your starter house on the empires server when your neighbor so rudely (accidentally) kills you, starting the biggest war on the server just one day in.

prev / masterlist / next

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ taglist is closed!

@davinashifts333 @potatos-on-clouds @s0shroe @staytinyluv @teenyfinds @weasleys-wizard-weasleys @borahae-reads @starryunho @dalsuwaha @oddin4ry @aerivrs @rosescarlettx @deptheuphoria

[elliesmainhoe]

Procrastination

Streamer!Ellie X Reader

Summary: While Ellie leaves her office for a moment, leaving her stream unattended, you sneak in.

Contents: nothing really, pure fluff, kisses, pet names.

This is a part 2 of Player Two.

My Masterlist

You'd been watching Ellie's steam from your shared bedroom, using it as a distraction from your assignment you had meant to be completing. But as a chronic-procrastinator any excuse is a good excuse.

So here you are, laying in bed, your original word document being abandoned for Ellie's stream. She was doing a pretty chill stream, playing various video games and chatting on and off with her chat.

Ever since you had officially been introduced to her stream, they had been talking about you non-stop. Her subs seeming finding teasing Ellie and making her go bright red fairy amusing.

"Yo guys." Ellie spoke, breaking the steady pace if the conversation she was having with her viewers "I need to go, I'm gonna be back in five minutes okay? Please don't start a cult while I'm gone? Okay thanks." She joked, taking off the head set and leaving it on her set.

A smirk on your face as you spotted the perfect opportunity. You got out of bed, quickly fixing your hair and throwing on a sweater before you creeped stealthily across the hallway to Ellie's now abandoned office. You creaked the door open, the harsh blue light making you squint.

You walked into the room, hiding off screen until the last second were you clapped into the mic, grinning as the spam typing of

"Oh Fuck!!"

"That was unnecessary"

Fled through the chat.

"Oh look it's my favourite people in the whole wide world" you giggled, sitting in Ellie's blue gaming chair.

User2: OMG😭

User3: Yay!!!!

User4: Hi Y/N 💙💙💙

"Hiya guys" you waved at the camera, a small ginger flurry of fur jumped into your lap "oh Garf, you gonna join me?"

"meow".

"yeah, yeah alright"

User5: I love Garfield so much

"I know I love Garfield aswell, don't I baby?" You laughed scratching the cat underneath his chin.

"How are you all doing?"

User6: Really good actually!

User7: epic

"Good, good. I'm glad to hear that." You hummed. "Oh-!" You exclaimed a thought coming to your head.

"The other day I was laying in bed ,scrolling through TikTok while I was waiting for Ells to wake up and I saw an edit. OF US!"

User8: I know all my favorite twitch editors edited you. It was so cute 😭

"Hold on let me pull it up," you say tapping the screen if your phone, clicking on TikTok and then favourites. "Right, okay, so it was this one" you said, you turned your phone around showing an out of focus video of you and Ellie edited to the song 'Glue Song' by Beabadoobee.

"When I tell you that when I saw this I cried. I am not kidding. Ended up waking Ellie up cause I was sobbing" you laughed once you finished, shaking your head at the ridiculous memory.

User9 donated $30 'Buy Garfield a new toy'

"aww thank you~" you smile scratching the purring cat between it's ears "You hear that baby, your gonna get a new toy'".

"meow"

"He says thank you and says he appreciates you and thinks your amazing".

You began talking about everything and nothing, talking about different goings on in your lives and thanking donations, all while swiveling around on Ellie's chair, stroking your cat like a bond villain.

"You look... Threatening" a voice you could tell was trying to stifle a laugh came from behind you.

"Ellie baby~ Hi~" you giggle turning around a stupid smile painting onto your face.

"Yeah, hi babe" she laughed in reply, be ding down and pressing a brief kiss to your lips. "What are you guys doing?" She asks looking into the webcam suspiciously.

"Oh we were just chatting"

"and why are you, my gorgeous beautiful smart girlfriend, talking to my chat instead of finishing the assignment you've been procrastinating about for a whole week, hmm?"

"uhhh I plead the fifth" you said, smiling sheepishly at the woman.

Ellie rolled her eyes. "Right guys I'm gonna have to end this stream here. If I don't babysit my girlfriend she will wonder off, forget about her work and end up being upset when she hasn't done it. So, girlfriend duties call, bye"

She clicked a few buttons, the screen changing and then switching off, "c'mon baby, let's get to bed" she hummed her arms wrapping around your torso and lifting you out of the seat.

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

Just a quick one before I go to bed 💙.

Taglist: @aunslie @lonelyfooryouonly

Join my taglist here

Part 3

[italiansteebie]

Love On Screen

Episode Two, Episode One, Also on ao3 (preferred format)

Steve started his next live with a giddy smile. 

“Guys. I’ve got a new muse, and he’s given me some positively grand idea’s. I’m literally so excited.” His eyes scanned over the chat, looking for the responses. “Ooo, okay ‘dustybun04’ asks ‘who’s the muse.’” Steve tried to hide his blush but he was unsuccessful according to the chat. “Okay, okay. He’s a twitch streamer, I watched his compilations like, all day yesterday and oh my god,” he gushed, feeling like a downright middle school girl at a sleepover. “His name is Eddie. Corrodededdie to be specific, I’m pretty sure his twitch name is the same thing. Guys. I’ve got a whole ass crush on this guy. I think it’s the chaotic energy. That’s why I keep Robin around, y'know?” And Steve knows that clip is going to be sent to Robin but he can’t even begin to care. 

He said bye to the stream, ending the live right as Robin texted him. 

‘stevo - u, me, collab.’

‘yes, when?’

‘now’

Steve sighed and packed his stuff. He knew how insufferable Robin could be when she got a new idea, and he knew that if he didn’t show up to hers in 15 minutes she’d be royally pissed. So he grabbed his stuff and headed out. Once he got there he knocked on the door with a fond sigh, this Eddie guy really got under his skin. “Get in Dingus, we’ve got much to discuss,” Robin said, shoving the camera in his face. “Are you already filming?” Robin nodded excitedly. She ran over to the couch, flopping down, ever so gracefully, and patted the seat next to her as she set up her camera on the coffee table. 

“We're going to play a game! What’s the last text you sent?”

“Oh so we’re jumping right in?”

“No time for games, Stephano, let's go,” she said, snapping her fingers impatiently. Steve eyed the camera and pulled out his phone, tapping the ‘messages’ app and sighing. “Okay… The last text I sent was… To you. Oh god, Rob. Do I have to read this out loud?” Robin cackled maniacally, “Yes, absolutely, yes.” Steve squinted at her before his mouth dropped open in realization, “Did you plan this?” Robin mimed ‘who me?’ while looking around. Steve sighed, she wasn’t going to let this go. “Okay. So, it was a few days ago and I said, ‘Rob, I think I am going to pass away if I don't find this guy's instagram. Please help.” Steve placed a hand over his face, hopefully hiding his blush. 

“Now show them who it is!”

Steve blanched, “No way!” 

Robin immediately went to grab his phone, eventually wrestling it out of his hand, showing the screen to the camera the screenshot of none other than corrodededdie in all its glory. “Stevie has a crush!” She sang, before smiling at him. “Okay, bye, Steve.” Steve’s jaw dropped once more, “Is that why you invited me over? Rob? I hate you so bad,” He groaned, and Robin just laughed, pushing him to the door. “Okay, I’m gonna go have sex with my girlfriend now, bye Stevvvee!” She sang as she pushed him out, slamming the door behind her. 

Steve faced the now closed door. “Okay then,” he muttered to himself. He knew if he talked about it, it was only a matter of time before Robin caught wind and spread it around like a disease. (It being his totally shameless crush on a chaotic gaming streamer). 

     He contemplated life during his journey back to his parked car, and just as he was about to call the whole thing off, his phone chimed with a notification. ‘Corrodededdie has uploaded a new video’ and it was almost embarrassing the way his breath got caught in his throat. He made the courageous decision to tap the notification while he was still in his car, parked in the parking garage of Robin’s apartment building. 

And he almost shit his pants when he saw the title of the video.

“Compilation of me freaking out over Steve goes to hell.”

That was him. He was Steve goes to hell. Oh my god, Eddie, the Eddie freaked out over him? Oh shit. He was really in for it now.     

—

Eddie was pretty much hyperventilating at this point. 

He knew the ramifications of mentioning someone by name in a title like that, but honestly. That was probably the most interesting part of his whole 12 hour stream. He should know, he lived through it, and then sat through it again to edit it. 

His job wasn’t the most glamorous, okay?

He only hoped Steve took it as a compliment and not that Eddie was a huge creep or something. If something were to happen, and this Steve guy really hated his video, then well. He was in deep shit. 

And that got him panicking. Should he take the video down? Change the title? No way, it’s already been up for like thirty minutes. And taking the video down won’t do anything, because he knows his viewers probably screen recorded at least part of his stream and those clips would be floating around before he knew it. Hell, they were probably already floating around. Oh shit, shit, shit.

And just as his finger hovered over the ‘edit’ option on the video, the almighty notification appeared on his screen. Someone had tagged him in something, this was not uncommon at all, but for some reason, he was inclined to see what this one was. Maybe it was a morbid curiosity? Either way, when he tapped the notification, it almost put him in the ground. 

It was a screen recording from one of ‘Steve goes to hell’s’ lives.

“His name is Eddie. Corrodededdie to be specific, I’m pretty sure his twitch name is the same thing. Guys. I’ve got a whole ass crush on this guy.”

He wasn’t proud to admit that that caused him to squeal like a teenage girl being asked to prom. He was outright giddy at this point and he only hoped his next move wasn’t too presumptuous. 

He found Steve’s instagram relatively quickly, and tapped on the messages option. ‘Hey, Stevie. I saw your live, and by now you’ve probably seen my comp… would u wanna like… meet up? Or something?” And before he could second guess himself and back out, he hit send. He was practically shaking in his boots awaiting the response, and luckily for him, he didn’t have to wait too long because the longest 30 seconds later, Steve had replied, rather enthusiastically. 

‘Omg yeah. Whtever you wanna do i am 100% down.’

‘sorry that was probably intense. I’d love to meet up. <3’

And oh god, he was even cuter over text. Eddie couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. He typed furiously, planning their… date? Oh god, it was a date wasn’t it? And that just made him more nervous. 

—

The date had gone well. Really well. 

They had met up at some hipster restaurant that Steve had suggested and it was actually pretty good in Eddie’s opinion. And they hit it off. It was like an instant connection. You know when you see a friend you haven’t in a while and it just picks up right where you left off? That’s what it was like. 

They instantly became best friends, much to the dismay of Robin and Nancy, who they found out over dinner were their mutual friends, Steve having gone to school with Robin and Eddie having met Nancy when he was first starting out at a streamer convention. It was kind of crazy how small the world is, and how some cosmic force seemed to bring these two together so well. And it was an extra benefit that the pair of them seemed to really piss off their best friends respectively. Both Eddie and Steve found their dislike of the pair together hilarious. 

And so with the date having gone as well as it did, they planned for a collab in the near future. And Eddie was sure it was bound to create an awful lot of chaos that honestly, he was looking forward to.

[usedpidemo]

so i went to my first ever concert and...(storytime!)

Generally speaking, I don't like the concept of concerts. For the longest time, I've never had any interest in attending one. I've been disillusioned by the idea of them as a whole, with no disrespect to people who attend them. Even before the global pandemic that shut down live events, ironically, despite being on my headphones/speakers 90% of the time, I don't like crowds and extremely loud audiences. It also doesn't help that many live artists nowadays are just not good stage performers or lipsync or in some cases, aren't as pleasing to hear as the studio mix that I could easily play on Spotify. My mantra, which has always been my mother's as well, was "Just listen to the CD." This also explains why I don't really buy CDs anymore and stick to streaming instead.

It's now 2023, and as the old adage goes, things change. I've become a K-pop fan, live events are back, and there's this push to have me leave my house a lot more than I should. I'm no recluse like Bruce Wayne, but I certainly don't like going out when I could be relaxing and playing video games in my spare time even as an adult. Growing up made me realize that there's plenty of things that I should do, even at least once. I'm nowhere close to dying—I think so at least—but I definitely felt the need add some spice into my life and have some fresh memories to keep now that the pandemic's over.

Anyway—I've never been to a concert, and my older sister's only concert experience was seeing Fall Out Boy when she was in her teens that she desperately begged mom to see, and she was all the way up into the nosebleeds. Now obviously I can't go and see IZ*ONE anymore (sadblob) and every big act carries extremely large demand for them. My sister failed to secure Blackpink tickets for their tour even with the membership presale, and the experience was so frustrating and damning that she stopped listening to the group for a while. There's so many things that can go wrong even as early as ticket sales, so I understood that any concert I wanted to go to should be absolutely worth it.

It was during our vacation back in February when IVE announced that they would be bringing their fan concert around Asia, with June as the set date. I can remember seeing it trend on Twitter while waiting in the car; the hype was fucking real. I knew I had to be there by any means necessary. The campaign began as soon as we got back to our hotel. They said yes.

One thing I want to say is: fuck online ticketing. It sucks, big time. Anything that can go wrong, can and will go wrong. Yet some part of me was so uncertain and wanted to test the murky waters again. I got in touch with a third party way before they announced the ticket selling date, and I was so fixated on the success rate of the seller, against the advice of my family. It wasn't until two days before ticket selling that I was given a proper talk, saying that it could be a potential scam and that I should camp out the night before to get the best chances. Ultimately, I gave in and settled at a hotel close to a hotel without many fans. They ended up being right. I ended up first in line and got the best package for a little over $200. It was so difficult to keep my composure the moment I got the tickets all the way till I got home.

Fast forward to a little over a month. The family also booked me a nice hotel close to the venue days before the show so we wouldn't have to face insufferable traffic. I couldn't sleep the night before the show—not because I was excited and all, but I was genuinely feeling restless. It ultimately didn't matter as my mood and overall energy never diminished once I woke up 2.5 hours after finally sleeping.

You just know it's gonna be a good day when the first sign is making new friends out of nowhere. At breakfast, I befriended two Japanese tourists for some reason. My smile was wider than it normally was. It's so weird greeting people with amped up optimism that at times, it felt like main character energy, which was typically uncharacteristic of me. Mind you, I only had 2.5 hours of sleep.

An hour later, venue time—at least close to it. The concert organizers and local fanclubs held a fanhub that was already filling up the floor with a line that stretched around in a loop. So I bailed and went to the cafe across the street from where the actual concert would happen to get free shit. Saved myself almost $25 dollars from buying the I'VE IVE album because of a cupsleeve event being organized by a remnant of WIZ*ONEs. A big W if you ask me.

I even met up with some of my readers too! Cray and Nomad, if you're reading this, it was great finally meeting you. It was awesome to fanboy and connect with guys I've been talking to online for the past two years in person.

Afterward, we went inside an hour before show start, and people were already screaming like they showed up and it was just staff bringing out towels and water bottles. Then the lights went out and holy shit, everyone lost their shit. It wasn't a sold-out show but the audience's energy made it feel otherwise. They were singing instead of following fan-chants.

It should surprise no one that everyone killed it. Yujin is the 4th gen ace and no one can tell me any different. Wonyoung was absolutely fantastic in crowd control and drawing the audience in and lived up to the center title. They added both title tracks from I'VE IVE and changed up two of the cover songs for the unit stages, otherwise the set remains mostly similar to the ones in Korea and Japan, the only difference being new outfits and alternate color ones.

I'm gonna dedicate this section specifically for Liz. Consider me bias wrecked. She was not only an elite vocalist but she performed like the rent was due, holy shit. Blue Blood (my favorite stage of the night) in particular really gripped me and never let go. I was genuinely shook at how terrific she showed out in the performances. If anything, she's the 2nd best performer of the group after watching the footage.

There was an emotional moment at the end as the show was winding down. The members were lined up for the group photo when a fan video played and half of the members cried. Leeseo, Rei, and Yujin all cried and it was a wholesome scene. Rei mentioned how this was one of their first performances as a full group following her health hiatus and she was moved by the overwhelming support of the fans. Wonyoung also promised they would return—hopefully later than sooner I'm not loaded at the moment—which invalidates the stupid argument international Dives were having on Twitter. The girls felt their support, cried their heart out, and that's all you need to know.

After the event, there was a hi-bye session for all VIP ticket holders. They sent everyone else out, so it started 20 minutes after the actual ending. They kept reminding us that we weren't allowed to record or take photos of the event, but apparently someone at Starship was filming the whole thing? So there's a possibility that I might end up on YouTube, heh. Since we were on the left side of the stage, we were among the last to go up and meet them.

Holy fuck dude. I wasn't nervous while watching everyone else go up and meet IVE, but once the staff told us to form a single line and we slowly made our way around the stage, my heart began to go buckwild. You just don't know what to say or do when that moment comes—like how do I make this memorable or at the very least, not cringe? One thing I do know was that we all agreed, as a section, to walk past them as slow as humanly possible; five seconds was not enough. I was so unsure of what to do as I slowly walked up the steps to the point I was practically mouthing 'Jesus take the wheel' or else I'd melt into a puddle, lose my shit, do something stupid, or maybe all of the above.

Jesus Christ. They looked so fucking flawless. You honestly couldn't tell they were sweaty and exhausted after performing for 2.5 hours.

From left to right, it was Rei, Gaeul, Wonyoung, Yujin, Leeseo, and Liz. Liz was the first member I met, and she completed my half-heart gesture. From there, my brain blanked for a good three seconds. My mouth was still uttering 'Kamsahamnida' but that scene seemed to stick long past that moment. I couldn't register Leeseo, Yujin, and Wonyoung's reactions—I knew they were smiling and waving—but then my brain suddenly went back up as I met Gaeul and Rei's eyes right as we made our way out. I went to the bathroom and uttered a relieved, awestruck 'Holy shit.'

God. I don't know if I will ever move on from such an experience. I'm still thinking about the interaction as I write this little thought diary, and my mind keeps replaying the interactions with Liz, Gaeul, and Rei. All of them had lovely smiles and were so happy even though they clearly were gassed out, and I was in utter shock trying to comprehend what had happened. Famous streamer IShowSpeed met his hero Ronaldo the same day as the concert and if you've seen his video, he practically plays out all the emotions I wanted to feel after meeting them. I've not played any K-pop after the concert aside from English versions of songs and most certainly I've avoided IVE songs aside from rewatching my concert fancams because I'll just melt into a giddy pile of goo watching it, telling myself 'I was there.'

My sister only listens to Blackpink. She agreed to take me to the venue provided I buy her tickets, so this was a consolation or redemption of sorts after failing to secure tickets for the Born Pink tour. She's a Dive now. She couldn't stop raving over Wonyoung's beauty but she eventually found all the members to be cute and beautiful. It feels great to finally share a sweet moment with my sister despite the turbulent relationship we have.

In an ideal world, I'll be watching Le sserafim and the other IZ*ONE members when they perform/arrive here. Of course, there's many obstacles in the way, and I'm not loaded with disposable income. Seriously, these tickets were more expensive than a veteran group and they're supposed to be rookies! But the entire experience—the energy, the performances, and the ending—made every coin I spent worth it. If this ends up becoming the only concert I attend in my entire life moving forward, I'm glad it was an unforgettable one.

Gaeul, Yujin, Rei, Wonyoung, Liz, and Leeseo, thank you for making my year and giving me a core memory I can fondly look back on. I fucking love you guys.

[black-arcana]

JINJER Completes Recording Fifth Studio Album

Ukrainian modern metal frontrunners JINJER have completed recording the follow-up to their 2021 album "Wallflowers".

Earlier today, JINJER shared a photo of the band from the recording studio and included the following message: "We are happy to announce that our fifth studio album is fully recorded".

During an appearance on a recent episode of Knotfest's "She's With The Band", JINJER vocalist Tatiana Shmailyuk spoke about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band's new LP. Tatiana said: "My purpose is just to write lyrics and sing them. I'm so behind right now with the writing lyrics. And I warned my guys. We were at least to get a really rough draft, rough sketch or a demo of one song, like maybe first single from the new album, at least get this, but nope. [Stress and creativity don't] work with me. Well, but when the deadline's coming, and everybody knows that — I've been talking, like, every single time we release a new album, I say that, I say this — deadlines push me. So I just have to write, so I get this stream of consciousness, basically. I write down whatever the bullshit is in my head. And then you build it. At least you have to have bricks to build a poem or whatever it is, just lyrics."

Regarding the musical direction of the new JINJER material, Tatiana said: "It's gonna be different, first of all, because I feel that the music differs a lot. And to my mind, the whole — I won't say how many songs are there; I guess 12 or even 15; let's say 13; I don't remember — but they all have… not all of them, but half of them, at least, they have a similarity in them. They're similar to each other or they remind me. They have this concept within — without any lyrics, they still sound like they belong to one box. They are a set of songs. And I already think about all the… I'm not even thinking about like the lyrics — I think about the topics and stuff, but I think about the booklet or the cover or even the music videos and what I'm gonna wear there. And it has a certain flavor to me that… I feel like it has this flavor of 19th century. It's very romanticism from the 19th century. If you listen to it, you will think, 'Oh.' You know, when you listen to MUSE, you feel he was inspired by a lot of classical composers — obviously. So our new music has this flavor. And I'm so excited."

JINJER will embark on a North American tour in the fall. Support on the trek will come from fast-rising Japanese metalcore unit HANABIE and progressive metalcore mainstays BORN OF OSIRIS.

JINJER released its first official live DVD/Blu-ray, "Live In Los Angeles", on May 17 via Napalm Records. Recorded and filmed on December 22, 2022 at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, this offering is intended to celebrate not only getting through the last few years in one piece, but also the band's 15-year career.

"Live In Los Angeles" was a spontaneous decision by the band, recorded as raw as possible, to emphasize the passion that can come from a live show. This release is an explosive mixture of JINJER's discography — featuring fan favorites like "Sit Stay Roll Over", "Home Back" and the game-changing "Pisces". The live album contains 16 songs in various audio formats, with some strictly limited: the deluxe digipack features not only a DVD, but also two more songs, "Wallflower" and "Disclosure!", recorded in Paris in 2023.

JINJER is:

Tatiana Shmayluk - Vocals Roman Ibramkhalilov - Guitars Eugene Abdukhanov - Bass Vlad Ulasevich - Drums

Photo credit: Lina Glasir

[thisaintascenereviews]

Our Favorites Of The Year (So Far), Part One: April 2024

By Bradley Christensen & @jakeh2987

At the end of every year, I’m always amazed when peoples’ yearend lists come out, because it takes me awhile to fathom that it’s really the end of another year. Aside from Christmas, which is what most people associate with that time of year, I love “list season.” Publications of all kinds put out their yearend lists, and I just love seeing what people have been into the entire year. It feels like yesterday I was talking about my favorite media from the entire year, so I thought I’d “check-in” in the beginning, middle, and (obviously) the end of the year. I’m not doing this alone, however, because I thought I’d bring along my buddy Jake. We worked together on a yearend piece last year, too, and I thought it would be fun to work on something like this again, at least checking in periodically with each other and seeing what we’ve been into throughout the year, as well as how the year’s been going when it comes to media of all kinds. With that said, it’s good to have you back, Jake! It feels like deja vu, because it feels like we just did this, but I digress, how’s this year been treating you so far, Jake? How do you think this year has been in comparison to last year?

First of all, thank you for having me back to do this! I had a blast working on our year-end wrap up last year, so I jumped at the chance to do something similar. To answer your question, though, I feel like this year has been really stacked in terms of new releases in not only music, but a lot of different forms of media. Last year was incredible, for sure, but I feel like a lot of it was backloaded in the second half of 2023. This year, on the other hand, I felt like there’s been at least one or two new things to be excited about every week really since the start of the year, but especially so in the last couple of months. I had a look at my top 10 albums, and I think almost all of them have come out after the first week of March, which has been great. But, we’ll get to that later. For now, though, I say we take a look back at the broader picture for a second! Last year, we talk about how we often found ourselves falling back into old comforts, whether that be favorite artists, that TV show you’ve binged far too many times before, and so on. For the first bit of this year, I kinda feel like I’ve been a lot more open to discovering new things and stepping outside of my comfort zone, so I’m curious, how does it feel for you?

Last year definitely had a theme of listening to what I call “ol’ reliable” types of media. A lot of my favorite pieces of media were from old favorites, whether I was revisiting them again for the first time in awhile, or old favorites releasing new albums, movies, or shows that I could easily get into and gave me a nice sense of nostalgia. I would say that this year, at least so far, is a mixture of both being adventurous and discovering some new things and still revisiting some of those same “comfort foods,” so to speak. Looking at the big picture of how media has gone this year, it’s certainly been steady since March with at least one album per week that I’m listening to (almost my whole top ten is from the last couple of months as well), and we’ve been getting a steady stream of movies and shows that are worth watching and talking about. Speaking of which, let’s start with movies and TV, what have you been watching this year?

Okay, this is where I get to gush about the new Fallout show that just premiered on Amazon Prime Video a couple weeks ago. I’m not super familiar with the games, having only put a few hours into Fallout 4 way back in 2015, but when the first trailer for this show dropped, I knew I was gonna be in for this. I’m a sucker for a sci-fi/post apocalypse setting, and from what I do know from the games, there was gonna be a blend of dark humor/satire along with the high-stakes drama. I ended up watching the whole season in about a week, and I really loved it. The creative team behind the show did about the best thing you could do for a video game adaptation; it’s set within the universe and continuity of the games, but it’s a new story with new characters, so they were able to tell their own story while still nailing that Fallout vibe. Also, come on, Walton Goggins playing a post-apocalyptic cowboy bounty hunter, how can you not love that? But for real, this show was a blast, and I’m happy it’s already been renewed for a second season, because I can see this show being a great time for many years to come.

Aside from that, though, I did see the Mean Girls musical movie from earlier this year, and while I don’t think it was all that great (and I don’t necessarily love the original, either), it’s pretty clear why Renee Rapp is a rising star, she was great in it and can definitely sing. I’ve also been making my way through a super casual Criminal Minds rewatch, it’s been a long while since I’ve watched a lot of the early stuff, so I like having it on in the background while I do other things, but I still love this show a lot. How about you, though?

When it comes to TV and movies, I haven’t watched as much stuff as I’ve listened to music, but I’ve got a few things I’ve been watching. The second half of the second season of Invincible, also on Prime Video, premiered last month, and that was a lot of fun, especially after loving the first season a few years back. Animation has been on a roll this year, between that and X-Men ‘97, which has been a show that I’ve been eagerly watching every Wednesday. That show’s been an absolute blast, and despite being rooted in a show from the past, it doesn’t let the nostalgia overtake the show itself. I haven’t really been watching a lot of movies this year, surprisingly enough, but I need to catch up. I need to watch Fallout, though; I love dystopia and post-apocalyptic universes, so I need to sit down and watch that front to back. What about video games? I got a couple that I’ve played this year, not necessarily new but new to me; and that’s been a whole lot of fun.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth came out at the end of February (on the leap day, no less!), and I've been playing it basically non-stop since then. Rebirth is the second part of a trilogy of games that are remaking/reimagining the original Final Fantasy 7 from back in 1997, greatly expanding upon and making tweaks to various things that were in the original. This is also a game that adopts more of an open-ended structure, featuring several pretty big zones filled with a ton to do. As of writing this, I've put about 100 hours into it, and I'm just over 60% of the way through it. This is a game that''s so incredibly easy to get lost and immersed in for hours, and I think that comes down to three things. Firstly, your main party of characters is so enjoyable to be around; it really hammers home that feeling of being on a grand adventure with your friends, and even when you're doing a seemingly mundane open world activity, you still get little interactions with the characters that makes it worth it. Another factor for me is the combat. I said after the first part came out in 2020 that it had maybe my favorite combat in an RPG, I really loved the seamless blend of real time action and strategy with the ATB system. Rebirth's combat is essentially more of that, but the improvements and enhancements make this combat sing in a way that very few games ever have for me. Swapping between party members, using the new synergy abilities, and popping ATB abilities feels so seamless and flows super well. It's just a blast to play. Finally, I wanna give a shoutout to the minigames. I won't give all of them away, but there are so many different minigames to play, and this is where Rebirth gets to really lean into its silliness more often than not. Your main story can often be very dramatic and emotional, so I appreciate that these side activities are a way to provide a tonal balance and gameplay pacing. And aside from maybe one or two I admittedly wasn't a huge fan of, all of them were really fun to play (shoutout Queen's Blood in particular, I would buy a standalone version of that in a heartbeat). Oh, and I would be remiss if I didn't mention the music. It's incredible, and even when you're walking around in the open areas, you get hit with yet another really cool music piece, and that's before you even get to the big set pieces or boss fights, which also rule. I could just gush about this thing forever, really, but I'll top this off by saying it's been a really special experience and I'm so excited to see where it ends up. How about you, though? Have you been playing anything in particular?

Man, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth sounds great! I always love when a piece of media, whether it’s a game, movie, or album, can really suck you into its story or sound. I can’t say I’ve played any new games, but I got a couple things I’ve been playing so far this year. I spent the last few months playing Mafia III, especially after seeing it was on sale for the first time in awhile, and I absolutely love the first two games. Now those are games that you can get lost in, especially its story, world, and atmosphere, but I’d say the third in this trilogy is the best. Instead of taking place the 1930s or 1940s, like the first two games, the third one takes place in the 1960s, let alone in a New Orleans-type of city with different “districts” that are composed of different kinds of people. This game also tackles issues like racism and PTSD, especially where the main character is Black and a Vietnam veteran. It’s got some hard hitting and still relevant themes, despite coming out in 2016, but it’s still relevant today. The game does have a couple downsides, such as the combat and side missions between story missions being repetitive (despite still a lot of fun), but it’s the story, characters, and the world itself that really draws you in. The music is also a big part of this game, as it features a lot of 50s and 60s blues, rock, soul, pop, and lots of different songs that you can listen to on any car’s radio, and the songs really bring everything to life. It’s a wonderful game, and it’s the best of the three, hands down.

As for the other game, thanks to the new Fallout show coming out, I decided to download Fallout 4 on the PlayStation Store, because it was only $4.99, and I’ve been playing it for a few days now! It’s a lot of fun, despite how I’m still getting used to its world and mechanics. I’ve always been curious about Fallout’s story and lore, but never knew where to start. There’s so many games and lore to sink your teeth into, but that’s what makes the show so good — it’s its own story, like you said, so you don’t need to know everything about the games. The show eases you into it, but if you enjoy post-apocalyptic stories with retro futuristism aesthetics, along with a killer soundtrack (that I enjoy, thanks to my niche taste of 30s, 40s, and 50s music), you should get really into it. The game itself is cool, too, and it also eases you into the story, especially if this is your first go-around. I’m excited to play more, since I haven’t had anything I’ve really dedicated my time to after finishing Mafia III.

With all of that said, let’s get to our main event — 2024 in music. We discussed this a bit earlier, at least our overall first impressions, but this year has been off to the races when it comes to new music. I swear that almost every week since the start of the year, there’s been something new to listen to, but a lot of my favorite albums this year have been from March and April. Let’s not beat around the bush anymore, though. What are your favorites of the year so far? Hell, what are some albums that have been resonating with you this year? They don’t even need to be new, but stuff that you’ve found that you’ve just been into this year, regardless of when it came out.

Both Mafia III and Fallout 4 are games I wanna revisit sometimes, for a lot of the reasons you've said. I do remember Mafia III getting a bit of criticism for its repettitive open world structure and missions, but I loved what I played of it for the setting and characters and how it tackled heavier subject matters in a game like this. And I did redownload Fallout 4 as well, I played a few hours of it when it first released in 2015, but the show has made me wanna give it another go, though at this point I'll probably end up starting a new save.

Anyways, yes, let's get to the main event, our favorite music! I feel like since we both have the same number one, at least I think we do, let's save that for last, but for now, I'm gonna highlight a few from my top 10, in no real order (at least not for the purposes of this piece, I do have a proper list for myself). First, an interesting thing I noticed about my list is how a few of these are from bands/artists you recommended to it. Cory Wells' Harbouring the Hurt I Cause is a really good acoustic/emo album that I had never heard of before you suggested it, and that new Fluorescents album that just dropped, Scream It At Me! gives me such great mid/late 2000s neon pop-punk/pop-rock vibes but with a modern polish to it. You also turned me back on to Neck Deep; their self-titled album is just a really damn solid pop-punk album from a band I admittedly kinda wrote off in recent years.

Secondly, I wanna talk about two final releases from two of my favorite bands, but they're final releases for very different reasons. Sum 41 are pop-punk legends at this point, and sometime last year, they announced that after their new album and some extensive touring, they were calling it quits. It's always nice that when a band does break up, they do so on their own terms and while going out on top. I really had a lot of fun with their final (double) album Heaven x Hell, it felt like a love letter to the band and everything they do well, and I'm happy they were able to go out with that. On the other hand, though, we have Too Close to Touch's For Keeps, and this one is very bittersweet. Vocalist Keaton Pierce passed away unexpectedly in March 2022, and many fans like myself weren't sure we were ever gonna hear from the band again. So, it was a very welcome surprise when they announced a final collection of songs, but it was also a little bittersweet that they decided to call it quits, although it was for a very understandable reason. For Keeps, I think, turned out as well as it could have, and is a very solid sendoff for a vocalist and a band who were so close to taking that next step.

Outside of this year, I did wanna highlight Linkin Park's recently-released greatest hits album, called Papercuts. It's a very nice little collection of songs from their career, and it's been a lot of fun revisiting my first favorite band.

Okay, now I'm gonna throw it back to you, what's some music that you've really been resonating with so far this year?

Yeah, Mafia III got some criticism for the repetitive open world structure and the missions being pretty much copy and paste, such as killing certain enforcers, and interrogating informants, but it’s still a lot of fun every time you get to unleash carnage on an unsuspecting group of bad guys (or are they, because this game does tackle how the main character might not be as good as he thinks he is, and that’s a real interesting idea). I got through a bit of Fallout 4 already, though, and despite a rather annoying combat system that I still need to master, I enjoy it a lot. It’s pretty cool, especially with its story and the lore that the game has already built up for itself.

As for the main event, we can save that specific album for later, but I have a feeling I know what it is, too, and it’s a doozy, that’s for sure. I figured we could highlight stuff from our top tens, really in no particular order, but that’s really neat! I always love recommending stuff, but if I hear something that I think you’d like, I always throw it your way, even if it’s not something I’m as into. Anyhow, my top ten is mainly from bands and artists I’ve already been a fan of, and with the exception of Fluorescents’ debut, Scream It At Me, it’s all stuff that I’ve both heard of but haven’t listened to in awhile. A few of my favorites, in no particular order as well, are Neck Deep’s self-titled and Fluorescents’ Scream It At Me, especially for really wanting some catchy pop-punk at this time of year. Neck Deep’s new one came out in the beginning of the year, but it just hits differently now, and it’s really grown on me. I’ve also been enjoying a handful of metalcore albums, including two that just came out last week. The new Ghost Inside and SeeYouSpaceCowboy albums, respectively titled Searching For Solace and Coup De Grace, are a couple of metalcore albums that really hit what I’ve been looking for, especially really catchy and hard hitting stuff. The new Justin Timberlake album, Everything I Thought It Was, is another album that I’ve been playing a lot this year, and it’s a solid little comeback album for him.

A couple of albums on my list, too, aren’t from bands who released their last albums, although those two albums you mentioned were pretty good, but they’re from artists I never expected to really love a new album from. Thrice frontman Dustin Kensrue dropped a country album, entitled Desert Dreaming, and it’s a wonderful throwback country album that sounds like it came out of the 1960s and 1970s. Augustana, and indie-pop / folk-pop band, also dropped their first album in a decade, called Something Beautiful, and it really hit me, especially for being so catchy. Lil Dicky also dropped a new album this year, his first in almost a decade and I wasn’t expecting to enjoy that as much as I did. I also binged his show, Dave, that has been on for the last few years and it’s a pretty funny show, and I forgot to mention that earlier, but the album, Penith, is supposed to be the “soundtrack” to the show.

Now when it comes to music this year that I’ve been that isn’t new, I got a couple of things, such as getting into the last Hot Mulligan albums after seeing them live with Fall Out Boy a couple months back. I also have spent some time with the last couple of James And The Shame records. That’s the brainchild of Rhett McLaughlin, most famously known from YouTube duo Rhett & Link, but it’s a retro-style country project that has a lot of themes about religion and his overall deconstruction from the church, and it’s very interesting stuff. I’d like to check out that Linkin Park greatest hits, though; they’re a band I feel like hits better with their greatest hits, although their first two albums are really cool still.

There is one album that we haven’t talked about yet that we’ve alluded to, because it’s both our current favorite album this year, so would you like to introduce it?

You know, this is actually kind of a funny full cirlce thing, because Bayside was another band you originally introduced me to, I wanna say about a decade ago, around the time Cult was coming out. I really enjoyed that album, but their next album, 2016''s Vacancy, was what really won me over and made me a huge fan of theirs. So, naturally, you could say that their new album, There Are Worse Things Than Being Alive, being my number one album of the year so far is a bit of a no-brainer, but I really do think this is one of Bayside's best albums, and it really showcases the band at their peak and what they do best, whether it be guitarist Jack O'Shea really letting it rip with some killer guitar parts and solos, Anthony Raneri's ability to paint a picture and tell a story with his lyrics, or the band's penchant for memorable hooks. It's all there in full force on this album, but what I will say, is that if you really think about it, it's not really all that different than what they've been doing. So, I wanna turn it back to you and ask, what was it about thsi album in particular that really clicked and led it to also being your favorite album so far this year?

Bayside is a band that I’ve got a lot of nostalgia for, because I found them on a 2007 Alternative Press compilation. It was an acoustic version of “Dear Your Holiness,” and I really loved it, I picked up 2007’s The Walking Wounded and immediately fell in love with it. It’s still one of my favorite albums today, especially for its great hooks, awesome guitarwork that was really heavy for a pop-punk album, and very poignant lyrics that still hold up today. I have enjoyed their subsequent records, but Bayside ended up becoming a band whose albums all sound the same to me.

Despite how good they are, especially 2016’s Vacancy, you know what you’re getting with an album from them, which can be a good or bad thing, depending on where you stand with them. Aside from The Walking Wounded, nothing else they’ve done since has really blown me away as much as that album. I was somewhat eagerly awaiting There Are Worse Things Than Being Alive, especially because it’s been five years since their last album came out, but what really surprised me was how this album feels oddly refreshing compared to their last couple. Not that they were bad, or even bland, but this album reminds me a lot of The Walking Wounded.

Like you said, this album is a classic Bayside album on the surface, but they prove that they can tweak their formula a bit and make it really interesting. This album is both the heaviest and catchiest I’ve heard Bayside in a long time; their hooks are sticky sweet this time around, but their guitar riffs are some of the thrashiest and most heavy metal-ish that I’ve heard from them. Raneri’s lyrics are also some of the best I’ve heard in awhile, too, and a lot of this album gets lodged in my head for the best reasons. I bet it was a shock to you, especially as someone that hasn’t been crazy about their last few albums, that I was over the moon for this album when it came out, huh?

I was definitely pleasantly surprised when you said you were loving this album as much as you do, but at the same time, especially after hearing you talk about it more, I do kinda get why this one maybe hooked you more than they have the past few albums. Sometimes all it takes is some tweaks/refreshes to the formula, and sometimes, something will just hit you in the right place at the right time, even if maybe it normally wouldn't as much otherwise. But, I love that we both have this at number one; thinking back on years past, I think this has only happened a handful of times, most likely with Fall Out Boy, since they're another band we both love.

It's really hard to believe we're already a quarter of the way through this year already, isn't it? I'm glad we got together to do this again, though, it's been a blast looking back on all of it so far, and I really can't wait for what's still to come.

I really was surprised to love this new album as much as I did, but you’re right, sometimes all it takes is a tweak to the formula to really hit you at the right time. I think by having a catchier and heavier sound, the album was able to hit me harder because it reminded me of when I first listened to them all those years ago. It just hits in the right way, but I truly love it. Not many albums this year have really hit me in that way, but this record is their best in a long time. It’s really hard to believe we’re almost a quarter done, though, so much good stuff has come out and so much is going to come out in the next eight months. It’s been an absolute blast doing this with you again, but before we close this out, what are some albums you’re looking forward to, whether they have a confirmed release date or not?

Just today, as we're writing this, The Home Team announced their third album, called The Crucible of Life, is coming out on July 12th, and I know that album is gonna be amazing. They're really about to be the next big thing, and I can't wiat. The other big one for me is The Early November, whose self-titled album is coming out June 14th. They're a band sorta like Bayside, in that they have a pretty storied legacy in the scene and have still been at it, putting out great music for over 20 years now.

Got anything on your radar coming up?

No way, they finally announced their new album? I hadn’t seen it yet, so that’s awesome. I can’t wait for that, so that’s easily a most anticipated. I’d say that off the top of my head, the upcoming Knocked Loose is my most anticipated, and that comes in a couple weeks on May 10th. Those guys are currently one of the biggest heavy bands in the scene, and their last album was easily my favorite of 2019, so I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time. It’s gonna be a good rest of the year, for sure, and I can’t wait to do this again with you. I hopefully plan on doing this again here in another three or four months, and then at the end of the year, but it’s been a lot of fun being able to work on another one of these pieces with you, so thanks for being able to indulge me on what we’ve been into this year so far!

Yeah, this has been so much fun, so thank you for having me! I'm looking forward to meeting up for this again, as I'm sure we'll have plenty more to talk about.

[blackorechan]

CHAPTER REVIEW: JULY 2023

i'm gonna try something new out: chapter reviews! mostly because oh my god i really wanna talk about this chapter. it's about poppy playtime legally distinct survival horror let's plays!

for your reading convenience, i have TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY edited in english dialogue and some misc text

let's fuckin GO.... !!!!!!! wait goddamnit this means i was too late to write that twitch streamer black au

so, before anything else, i really need to bring something up. like, it's not even relevant to the chapter i just kinda need to

black channel acknowledging and deliberately paying homage to garten of banban is going to fucking kill me. do you understand. this chapter's about poppy playtime but there are pages referencing banban too. the general theme for this issue BC-wise was "foreign horror games"

ok actual review time for this chapter

we start off seeing that satoshi is getting into horror game let's plays! he's too scared to play the games himself, so he just watches commentary channels play them.

now, why the fuck satoshi would still be scared of indie horror games right after he watched black grow twice the size of the earth and crush an alien military squadron with his bare hands and also get shot with a pistol, kinda like what happened literally the chapter before this, i don't know but, eh, hey, he's ten and i barely processed all that myself

black proposes they make a video so satoshi can learn to be just like the let's players he watches play those survival horror games! then he could be a famous youtuber, so he says

satoshi hesitates, but with some Encouragement from camera-chan, they set off

so, here we reach the part of the chapter where they are literally just playing poppy playtime basically.

this chapter's writing really shines through with a really fun detail though..

throughout this chapter, we can see the viewers on black's livestream send chat messages! they tend to be really rude about satoshi being scared shitless, making fun of him, generally behaving as a livestream chat does

i obviously am well versed in twitch, and though i think this is intended to be youtube livestreams for obvious reasons, it does feel a lot like watching an actual livestream to see the little comments heckling satoshi as he goes. it's just a fun detail!

it's pretty clear the complexity of the previous arc had an impact on the style kisaichi wants to pursue for this series. the shading especially stands out much more now, and there seems to be a better balance between comedic beats and the scary ones!

black's "asshole older brother and younger sibling he torments" dynamic with satoshi also has plenty of wiggle room this chapter! it's the reason they're doing it in the first place (and camera-chan's Encouragement), and black does not miss an opportunity to fuck with his stream co-host.

i'm having fun with the stream chat could you tell

but, we can only have so much for fun and games with our trio. there's something big, an elephant in the room...

or a cat, a cat works too.

this is "nyan-nyan", our not-huggy wuggy who is not so subtly also a nod towards banban. nyan-nyan does the exact same thing huggy wuggy and banban do in the game. it chases you!

it's at this point in the game, satoshi gets stuck. every time he tries to get past nyan-nyan, it kills him. but it's just a video game so he's fine, he respawns. it's fine. it's probably fine.

the story beats really resemble poppy playtime from this point forward, right down to "poor" huggy wuggy-sorry, nyan-nyan's fate, which by the way takes the cake for one of the most gruesome things i've seen in this series so far, but i'd rather just wrap up with this and give my final thoughts on this whole chapter!

VERDICT: REALLY GOOD!

"aren't you an indie horror nut, like, especially for the bad ones-" yes and that's why i reviewed this chapter! thank you for noticing how biased i am in this chapter's favor (especially after whatever the FUCK happened last month)

i'll be honest. this chapter is better than both the games it's paying homage to, because i actually did get startled when i swiped to the next page a couple times, which is not something i can say either poppy playtime or garten of banban themselves got out of me

the previous arc was dragging on so long i'd almost forgotten the horror aspects of the series. almost. not quite, not quite.

so, that's my two cents on the poppy playtime / garten of banban parody chapter! little early for halloween, but appreciated nonetheless.

besides, who wouldn't love that face? the answer is my boyfriend who got jumpscared multiple times in our dms when i showed him this panel

[cherryc1nnam0n]

The Avenger who is a YouTuber? | Plus Size!Reader x Avenger!Loki

This is this request, sorry it took so long this is probably not so good but I'm not doing okay mentally, sorry again

Summary: You get too scared while streaming a horror game, Loki comes to the rescue!

Cw: Scary game, lots of cursing and yelling, fluff, comfort, sort Loki

You were an important member of The Avengers, skilled in combat and gifted with powers of aerokinesis, but also, skilled in video games

Growing up as a kid who was left alone most of the time you grew to be attached to games, specially combat or shooting games, opening a YouTube channel you grew big in fairly small time

Tonight you were at the common area, streaming on YouTube a challenge you were encouraged (by a big donation of money) to do

Yourmom has donated $10000

Play a horror game sissy

You were so flabbergasted at the donation, so much money, you had to do it

So, setting up everything to start, you chose to play a stupid game that picked up the sound of your microphone, why? Because you're an idiot-

"Okay guys we're gonna play this stupid game"

In the room were Peter, Steve, Bruce and Loki, keeping you company, totally not there in case you got too scared-

So far the game was being fair, you weren't making too much noise until Thor sneezed and almost made the windows explode

"THOR! WHAT THE FUCK?!" At that moment you got a huge jumpscare "FUCKING HELL"

The guys couldn't help but laugh, Thor was still confused as to what you were doing

"Can you guys please stay quiet? I need silence so I don't die"

"So you don't die?! Where's the danger?!" Thor said standing up wanting to summon Mjolnir

"THOR NO! Not real danger! It's just a game!" Another jumpscare "Fuck me..."

In that moment Loki walked in "With pleasure my lady"

The others looked at him

"Too soon?"

"Way too fucking soon Lokes" you continued playing "Godamnit where do I have to go?"

Loki sat down next to you, on another rolling chair "What are you doing my lady?"

You suddenly forgot you were live, to almost 10 thousand people, and acted like normal around your lover, Loki

The other Avengers knew about it, the only people that didn't know, were your followers and subscribers

"What is that?"

"It's a generator, I have to get them all on so I can get out, before the demon comes get me" you whispered

"Why are you whispering?" Loki asked you

"Because it picks up on the sound of the microphone" you heard a growl near you "Shit shit shit- Loki!" It was now a real death animation, the demon came up to you, grabbed your neck and snapped it, then a black screen followed "DAMNIT!"

Loki laughed at you, holding you down to him, now you were crying out of frustration, you almost had it

"Shhh it's okay my darling, I'm here" he soothed you, the camera was picking up everything and chat was going crazy

"But, but, I almost had it Loki!" You cried out and he kissed you, softly so you would calm down

"There, you better darling?"

You smiled at him like a fool in love "So much better"

You were so caught up on the moment until a donation made you realize you were live

Y/NILOVEYOU has donated $2

OMG YOU'RE DATING LOKI?!

"Shit"

"Shit"

"Shit" Peter said next to you, you screamed and jumped when you saw him "Hi!"

"Peter, you almost scared me to death!"

"Why? I was standing here the whole time"

"Ugh, you're so annoying"

Chat had been going crazy the whole time, but now it was confirmed that you were dating The Dark Prince...

[anditvanisheslikemist]

Literally everything you write with sick Ian is great so that’d be my preference!

Thank you for the prompt!!

(re: this post... and the offer still stands if anyone else wants to make a request!)

Set at some point after this angsty thing. Here's the link to all of the World Above stuff. :-)

You can read this fic below or on AO3.

. . . . .

"How was the show?" Josh leans his head back against the couch, and Finley takes the opportunity to shove his nose into Josh's face and start licking him enthusiastically.

"Finn! Hiii, puppy," Ian coos.

Josh laughs. "Yeah, he's always gonna win out, huh?"

"Mm, maybe." Ian turns away from the camera to cough.

Kate comes around the back of the couch to get in frame as well. "Hi, Ian."

"Kate!" Ian's eyes light up, but his voice wavers a little bit when he says, "Ah, I miss you guys."

"We miss you too." Kate tips her head against Josh's and frowns a little. "You okay? You look really tired."

"Yeah." Ian rolls his shoulders and grimaces. "I dunno. I used to be better at sleeping in motels. Or tour buses, god."

"Or that frickin' van?" Josh raises his eyebrows.

"I do not miss that," Ian agrees, and turns aside to cough again.

The stove timer beeps, and Kate sits back up. "Ah, I've got to get that. Take care of yourself, okay?"

Ian nods, still coughing, and waves as she heads for the kitchen.

"Ian," Josh says, in a way that's synonymous with oh, buddy.

"I'm okay." He's sounding kind of hoarse. "It was loud at the bar."

"Hmm."

Ian scrunches up his nose, then scrubs at it with his fist, but he can't stop it when his breath catches and builds into a strong h'ET-schiew! "Oh," he mutters, scrubbing at his nose some more. "Fuck."

"Bless you."

Ian groans and lets himself fall sideways onto the pillows of his motel bed.

"I have to play tomorrow." Now that he's started, he can't stop sniffling.

"Not if you're sick, you don't."

"Not sick," he says, but it's more of a pout than anything.

"It's not like before," Josh says gently, running a hand through Finley's fur. They'd played through all kinds of shit. Before. He wonders if it'll ever go back to being like that, or if this is just how it's going to be from now on.

"I know." Ian scrubs at his nose with the flat of his palm. "I just…" He shakes his head, not meeting Josh's eyes through the phone.

Josh gives him a minute. "Yeah?"

"I just thought we'd all be here together." His sniffle this time is emotion as much as illness. "I mean, not here in this motel playing at some random bar. But like." He bites his lip. "Here."

"I know." They'd been working on it, slowly and uncertainly. And then the whole world had shut down. He wants to tell Ian that it'll happen, that they can try again at trying again, even after all this time. There are just too many unknowns. The state of the world, for one. And the fact that they've all got stuff going again. Danny's producing out in Oakland. Lauren's started streaming online, sometimes music and sometimes video games and sometimes just talking about whatever's on her mind. Nate and Ellie are having another baby. Josh had moved his guitar lessons to Zoom and for the most part kept them there, and the idea of leaving the safety of his life with Kate and Finn to go back out on the road seems too overwhelming to even think about right now.

Ian, though. Ian's never been good at staying in one place. He'd gone back to touring as soon as it was reasonably safe. He's happier now, for sure, but sometimes just as lonely as when he'd been stuck in his apartment. More so, given how many roommates he'd been squeezed in with at the time.

"Hey," Josh says, gentle. "Tell me about the show."

That gets him a little bit of a smile. "It was good." He swipes at his nose with the back of his hand. "There were these girls who drove three hours to come."

"Wow."

"Yeah. And I wrote some new stuff." He shrugs, suddenly shy. "It went over pretty good."

"Send it to me, I want to hear it." For so long, Josh would've been there, in the hotel room and the tour bus, hearing the song come together bit by bit, rather than hearing about it after the fact.

"Okay." It's just a whisper. There are tears in Ian's eyes. Finn whines at the phone and tries to lick the screen.

"You're getting puppy kisses from Finley."

"Thanks, Finn." He sniffs, and coughs, and rubs at his forehead.

"How're you feeling? Seriously," he adds, when it looks like Ian's going to say he's fine.

Ian shrugs. "Like I'm getting sick." He coughs again. "I don't know. My head hurts. And my throat."

"Do you feel like you have a fever?" If he does, it's low. He's not glassy-eyed and rosy-cheeked, he's just exhausted and sniffly and sad. Past experience says he's hanging out somewhere right around the tipping point between warm and feverish.

Ian considers for a second, and then shivers. "I'm kinda cold. A little achy, maybe."

"Get under the covers."

"It's too early to go to…hhh…k'TCHHH! to go to sleep." He wriggles around anyway until the comforter's pulled up to his chin. He absentmindedly wipes his nose on it and Josh flinches.

"You're the reason I don't trust hotel sheets."

"Oh. Sohhh… h'NGT!choo…" Caught in the bedding again. He doesn't finish the apology, just sort of stares into the middle distance past the phone.

"Bless you." Josh sighs. "Okay, who's letting tomorrow's venue know you're out, you or me?"

"No," Ian says, voice wavering again.

"Yes." This move from Ian like he's pushing his forehead into his pillows, and Josh knows that if Ian were here he'd be doing that move against Josh's shoulder right now. "I can do it. The info's in your business email?" Josh has had access for years, but it's been a while since he needed to step in.

Ian nods miserably. "And we need to get you a test— yes, even if you're sure that's not what this is— and some groceries, and meds, some nice tissues. And extend your motel reservation."

Kate's been listening from the kitchen, and she comes to sit on the couch with Josh and Finley. "We've got it, Ian. Text me your grocery requests."

"I'll do the reservation at the same time I call the venue," Josh says. It's the sort of thing that would have sent him anxiety-spiraling five years ago. Now, here at home with Kate and Finn, it feels easy. An act of love.

"I can't." Ian's shaking a little bit, now; exhaustion and frustration and that little bit of fever.

"It's okay." Kate's voice is reassuring. "Having to cancel for being even just a little sick is just part of the deal now. Everyone will understand."

The kitchen timer goes off again and Kate gets up to turn off the stove and put the finishing touches on dinner.

"We'll work on all that," Josh says. "Call me back in an hour or two if you want."

"Okay." Now that he's under the covers, his eyes are starting to close.

"I think Lauren's streaming tonight, so if you can't get her on the phone you can always show up in the chat."

Ian laughs at that. It turns into a cough. "Everyone always freaks out when I do that."

"The best medicine." For Ian, it really is. He needs attention the way a plant needs water and sunlight. It's not an insult, it's just the truth: he wilts and fades without it, and when he gets it again, he straightens up. Fills out. Comes back to life.

"Hmm." Ian's already perking up a little bit at the thought. "I guess I could do that."

"Good." More screen kisses from Finn. "Finley says he loves you. Talk to you soon."

"Okay." A small but genuine smile. "Thanks, Josh."

He smiles back. "Any time."

[squiiids]

It's ya boigurl, this time without bad news. We're coming up to my three-year anniversary streaming at the end of this month, and things are running real smoothly on the channel, so I wanna change some stuff up to keep it all running smoothly.

It's a lot so I'll put the bulk of it under a read more and just give ya a bulleted list

We're gonna start doing monthly donation/follower goals and when we clear em, we're gonna have a viewer-suggested reward stream. You can suggest what to do over on the Squidcord, or just hit me up in DMS or whatever

BC you guys are awesome i have TOO MANY gifted games, and I want to play them all on stream, so from now on, the first Sunday of every month is gonna be dedicated to playing a handful of submitted games

We're gonna also do more streams than just our regularly schedules programming. I might bring back an old co-op project that went cold, but more on that as things are set in stone

I'm only one person and I can only do so much, so I'm opening the doors on this operation. If you're an artist, or an editor, or another streamer even, and wanna help me out by collaborating with me, lemme know~!

First and foremost, We're gonna start doing monthly donation goals and follower goals, which will of course help me keep the lights on and start branching out to more people. When a goal is reached, next stream I do will be a reward stream that'll be selected by one of you guys. We'll do a vote when the time comes, but you can submit your ideas over at ⁠stream-n-game-reccs. It's a good chance to make me do things that I would otherwise never touch, like iunno, fortnite? Yeah.

Secondly, I'm going to start expanding the catalog of streams I'm doing outside the usual weekly seriesssesses. For one, I am starting to get a MASSIVE backlog of games that you guys have been gifting me, so I'm gonna dedicate the first Sunday of every month to trying out a handful of those game. Another one that may or may not happen, but there's been some chatter about is a revival of an old co-op series that died out a bit, but with the new regularly scheduled formula, should go a lot better. Not gonna say what exactly until it's all set in stone, but look forward to more streams yall.

Lastly, as always I'm trying to expand my empire, and at this point I'm more than willing to accept that there's only so much I can do alone. I've got tons of wonderful, talented people helping me get further, but I aint no video editor. I don't know any video editors. I need help. If this whole Kid Squids branding thing is gonna keep growing to the point that it really can just be a full-time job for me, I'm gonna need a few more members on the team. So if you're an artist, or editor, or streamer, or know someone like that who would be interested in collaborating to make something great, now's the time to hit me up.

[mav-the-artist]

EXCITING NEWS!!!!!! (IMPORTANT PLEASE READ)

Hey everyone! Sorry for not posting art for a bit.

Last Monday (Jan 30th) I finally purchased A GAMING DESKTOP!!!

Now I can draw better, ACTUALLY animate with an animation program (once I find a good one to use), get back into pc gaming, and STREAM (eventually)

ALL this time I was drawing and animating with this hunk of crap:

This is a TOSHIBA Satellite 17 inch Windows 7 Laptop.

Windows 7.

That I've been using since 2012.

As a whole, this computer is an absolute piece of shit.

It's on life support (plugged in charger when running at all times). It cannot multitask. You can't even play music in the background while drawing. AND I couldn't even use discord. Any program idling in the background would slow it down and heat it up. Video card would crash when watching youtube. Flash games would load 1 frame every 3 seconds. That is not an exaggeration. I'm lucky that my Wacom tablet worked on it, but that probably was gonna go next. There's a lot more wrong with this laptop, but you get the gist.

NOW:

I've been doing really REALLY well lately in my life (you can read this post for context). And I've been eagerly wanting to upgrade. So my tax refund came in a couple weeks ago and I had found a desktop that was within my budget.

This...is my new rig:

(these are just still photos; the tower, mouse and keyboard are actually cycling through all colors of the rainbow)

This is an iBUYPOWER Trace MR258i . Now don't be fooled like I was with the company's Aliexpress-sounding name, lol; this is a reputable gaming pc company. I picked it up for $1080, including tax (it includes the mouse and keyboard, not the monitor). Originally it retails at $1500 before taxes, but it was on sale for $1000. Now this is definitely not a high-end rig, but it is a fucking amazing computer nonetheless.

Under the hood:

Mobo: ASRock B550M-c microATX form factor Video card: Gigabyte Nvidia Geforce RTX 3060 12GB Drive: 1TB Western Digital NvMe M.2 SSD (Solid State Drive) RAM: 16GB (2x8GB sticks) DDR4 3000 Power supply: 650 watt CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700 3700Mhz

Operating System: Windows 11 Home

One side of the case is made with a tempered glass panel, so I can see all the cool compy parts with RGB; it's lookin like a rave in there :D

When playing GTAV at High settings I get around 160fps.

I'm not terribly picky, plus I'm still learning about pc parts 'n stuff, but this computer is definitely beyond my expectations and can handle everything I throw at it. It's perfect for what I need to use it for.

WHAT THIS MEANS NOW:

I can draw much easier, on larger canvases, and they can get done somewhat faster now that I have a properly working pc. I can also draw better art with backgrounds and all that.

I PLAN ON ANIMATING WITH A LEGITIMATE ANIMATION PROGRAM. MAYBE EVEN AN ACTUAL MADCOM FAN EPISODE.

STREAMING (SOON)

GAMING (of course)

I've never seen my art program run so smooth. My drawing tablet works with the new PC, and lines are really fucking smooth and there's zero lag nor jittering.

The past week since I've gotten it, I've had to transfer all my stuff from my old laptop to this new one, setting the new pc up, downloading games, etc etc. AKA I've been busy af the past week, not including my retail job that's been kicking my ass.

I just wanted to make this post so you all can be updated on what the hiatus was all about.

ANYWAY I'M SO FUCKING HYPED Y'ALL LETS FUCKING GOOOOOO-

[yukihime242]

The school assignments has really absorbed years of my life... But I am glad to say that I am free from that burden (temporarily), and I can get back to my games (temporarily).

There’s a lot for me to catch up on. I have drawings, crocheting, downloading new game patches, editing and uploading videos... Wow, I really do have a lot.

(GIF Source: Giphy thru’ Google Image Search)

1️⃣ Genshin Impact’s new patch generates a whole new meme

(Picture Source: Genshin Impact thru’ Google Image Search)

Genshin Impact’s new patch, V3.6, was released on 12 April 2023. I am a little over a week behind on the updates. I am quite stoked for this new patch because I will get to see Scaramouche... sorry, Wanderer in the new event of the game. I am very very VERY curious to know why Cyno and Wanderer were fighting in the trailer.

I am probably gonna spend my weekend catching up on the game, from building my characters, pulling the new characters, to catching up with Nahida’s story quest just to unlock the new map area.

But what is really funny about this new patch came with a fan-made video of Kaveh, the roommate of Alhaitham. Go to YouTube, search for “Genshin Impact The Diagnosis”, and click on the video seen in the screenshot below.

2️⃣ Sky Children of the Light - An inactive experience for me

(Picture Source: That Sky Game thru’ Google Image Search)

I am actually on break from the game due to lack of people to play with. But the new season, Season of Passage, seems very enticing for me to come back. I have already missed a few days of the season but most likely will start my journey after reset today.

The one thing that enticed me was one of the cosmetics from one of the spirits. It is very similar to the Season of Enchantment’s Ultimate Gift which is immensely popular with the Ikeman troupe. Given that I usually don on an Ikeman style, I think I should have that Passage cosmetic.

Another reason for me to return to the game is the Days of Nature which features new ocean cape. 

(Picture Source: ThatGameCompany on YouTube thru’ Google Image Search)

Just look at that cape! It is unique and has beautiful colour hues resembling the ocean. Moreover, a new light creature, the dolphin is also being presented in the Days of Nature. 

3️⃣ Skeptical of Honkai Star Rail

(Picture Source: Epic Games thru’ Google Image Search)

Honkai Star Rail is set to release on this coming Wednesday, 26 April 2023. I am both excited and skeptic of the game. 

I have seen the gameplay from a stream (beta version) and I am excited to download and try the game. The battle mechanics is also different from the usual seen in both Honkai and Genshin. Of course, given that it is made by Hoyoverse/Mihoyo, there is a high chance that battling is not gonna be as easy as it sounds.

On the other hand, given my experience with Honkai Impact, I am worried that I may not enjoy Honkai Star Rail. I did try playing Honkai Impact in the past but despite the raving reviews of how good and enjoyable it is, I could not join in the same sentiments. Given how Honkai Star Rail is a spin-off game from the Honkai Impact game, I just hope that it would provide a better experience.

4️⃣ Grind, grind, grinding in Animal Crossing 

(Picture Source: GamesRadar thru’ Google Image Search)

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a post on my progress in Animal Crossing. And the game progress is still pretty much the same. Grinding to get K.K. Slider to come to the island.

I managed to source for the ninth villager, who is a wolf, and my island rating went up to 2 stars. Right now, I have to decorate the hell out of my island just to increase the island rating to 3 stars. 

I think I will have to temporarily just go with the flow and in order to get the island rating up so that K.K. Slider will come to the island and I can finally get my hands on that terra-forming kit!

I am okay.

[just-emerald-star]

On The Subject of Short Vs. Long Seasons

Look, I've been against short seasons for a long while now but let's stop acting like every show having a short season is a bad thing. Short seasons of television have always existed. But cuz I'm a TV nerd, I'll play the game & speak on it in more detail.

Both long & short seasons have their pros & cons.

Long Seasons, the traditional 22 eps, are fine cuz we get to spend time with everyone and slow things down. Hell, there's even side quests and more opportunities to develop characters.

Downside: Imagine having to write 22 eps PER SEASON over the span of several months, every year. and god forbid you're a popular show that's gonna get the green light for several seasons. Sure, plenty of shows out there can handle that cuz there's a ton of writers and enough story to keep a series going. But not every show can do that. And we've seen that in play with ample shows that definitely should've called it quits sooner rather than later.

Glee, for example, should've most definitely ended at S3. It felt like a perfect stopping point and we could've done without A LOT of the mess that came after via S4-6. Cuz in some cases, you can tell when folks behind a show just stop caring. And seasonal rot can quickly set in.

2. Short Seasons are cool cuz they can get to the story you're telling and puts your storytelling skills to the test cuz you've only got a short amount of time to do everything.

Downside is that sometimes plots and many ideas may be left on the table cuz of the lack of time. You can only do so much in 6, 8, 10 & even 13 eps. But for many, writing these short seasons is a lot more manageable. Not only that, you gotta factor in that most of these short seasons are written ahead of time.

With the recent surge in more shows being released on streaming, it's become the norm to write the shorter seasons. And I personally think shorter seasons wouldn't be so bad IF THEY WEREN'T DROPPED ALL AT ONCE ON A SERVICE AND THEN WE'RE EXPECTED TO WATCH THEM ALL & THEN WAIT A WHOLE FUCKING YEAR FOR A NEW SEASON.

That's the biggest issue. Even short seasons deserve the weekly format. Cuz even 10 episodes airing over 3 months can still have impact on a show's longevity. My Adventures With Superman, House of The Dragon, Hazbin Hotel & X-Men '97 ALL proved that point in this year alone!

Hell, Abbott Elementary proved this with their shortened 14 ep third season earlier this year as well.

Longer seasons are typically preferred cuz THEY AIRED WEEKLY. You knew that every fall, your fave show was gonna get 22 episodes on a weekly schedule, including breaks. They just...don't do that anymore.

Network TV still does it but streaming barely does it. Some exceptions obviously (Prime Video does it last time I checked & HBO Max does it too, I believe) but still the exception to the rule.

TL;DR The issue isn't just the length of a season. The REAL issue is how said show is distributed & aired. Short seasons have always existed. Dropping shows in bulk isn't. Bulk releases shouldn't be the norm but sadly it is.

[videostak]

played thru sonic 1 tonight hooked up the old mega drive n played it was soooo nice idk mushy heart being employed nice relationship w/ my coworkers where i look forward to seeing them all but ya i havent played thru a game like that in so long i havent even played a game in like weeks but listening to lots of jazz n fusion made me start getting in a sega mood n now im using my laptop listening to jerma mario sunshine in the bg while i type (jerma mario sunshine n pikmin 2 are my comfort streams of his lol like it def evokes the same feelign of playing w/ a friend like i played thur mario sunshine w/ a friend a lil less than a year ago n its v much that vibe honestly i laugh my ass off so hard anytime im playing games like that w/ friends just anytime anything happens with the physics we burst out laughing so ya N E WAYS sonic 1 was so much fun its v chill like mario 1 well its harder than mario 1 for sure but more like dkc1 where ya it gets hard but never too hard like i havent rly seriously played a video gamee like that in forever so my chops are p weak but i could still beat it. i was sooo close to getting all the chaos emeralds but missed the last one T-T ive done it b4 but like i said my chops arent too strong but im gonna try againsomeday. anyways my laptop SUCKS so much i dont feel too guilty abt getting a new one cause like it is a necessity n i did get this one in like 2018 or smthn so its like a necessity im just gonna save up n set aside 300 dollars next few paychecks specifically for it n ease up on the CDs n food n stuff cause i love using laptop more than phone its just that this is soooo slow well once its on its p bearable to have two tabs open but like wheen i start it up it takes litrally forever for fireefox to connect to the intenet it just buffers for like 20 mins. or maybe ill set aside 400 a month idk ill seee i def gotta deeep deep clean my room and get a nice lil table to sit in my room n use the laptop n watch shows n movies on it on the regular ^_^ i srsly miss desktop n can understand why id stay up so late its a whole different n almost healthier world than the phone feels.

[sailorspica]

8, 26 and 43 for the gif-maker ask game 🤗

ooooh hell yea [this guy]

8. What gif trend do you hate

i'm gonna go with not just current trends but trends in the long history of tumblr, so: subtitles. firstly, they triple editing time if you don't have some kind of automation. secondly, the convention was black-outlined white text, then for multiple speakers, black-outlined CMYK, which hurts the eyes and gets messy in scenes with cross-talk

more philosophically, the gifs i made and reblogged a decade ago were from english media, and more than that, theater! where i could read and copy lines from a score or script, which can certainly vary due to ad-libs, but i'm biased toward authorial intent over actors' egos (some dead playwrights' estates will sue your ass for skipping a word). compare that to this latest tumblr homecoming of mine, prompted by the second male lead in a period k-drama. i also just don't watch/read english anymore, so while i'll transcribe my favorite subtitle track i have as a caption, i don't assume that's the same english translation everyone else has seen or that people watched it with either english subs or english audio

26. How many un posted sets are in your drafts right now

between both here and my k-pop blog, only three, and they're probably not seeing the light of day because i tend to upload whole sets, realize i hate something about them, then post the final version and forget to delete the draft. but i do have a gif queue! and i save the vanilla resized gif locally sometimes weeks in advance because i'm aggressive about deleting screenshots. relatedly,

43. Do you keep videos forever or delete them once you’re done giffing

if it's a movie or TV show, i have certainly t*rrented it and so will keep it forever on my 2tb external hard drive since i have dreams of divesting from streaming services/banking/generally being known and retreating to a cave. but i delete any shorter videos ripped from youtube like fancams and interviews once i'm done.

[black-arcana]

JINJER Releases New Song 'Someone's Daughter'

Ukrainian modern progressive metal icons JINJER have released a brand-new, blistering single, "Someone's Daughter". The song arrives with a thrilling music video, and is now available on all streaming services worldwide.

JINJER singer Tatiana Shmayluk comments: "'Someone's Daughter' is an artistic attempt to cast the light on the inner world of women, who in various scenarios and circumstances have had to choose a path that was historically made by men.

"In a world where women are often underestimated and overlooked, they are still powerful heroes who navigate hardship with strength and resilience, unapologetically becoming themselves and breaking barriers in the face of the challenges that face them.

"'Someone's Daughter' celebrates transition from naivety into wisdom, weakness into force, unwavering determination and fearlessness as our mothers, sisters, daughters and wives walk through adversity and fight for better change. These women are often forgotten but they have earned respect. They've earned mine, that's for sure!"

JINJER recently completed recording the follow-up to the 2021 album "Wallflowers".

During an appearance on a recent episode of Knotfest's "She's With The Band", Shmailyuk spoke about the progress of the songwriting sessions for JINJER's new LP. Tatiana said: "My purpose is just to write lyrics and sing them. I'm so behind right now with the writing lyrics. And I warned my guys. We were at least to get a really rough draft, rough sketch or a demo of one song, like maybe first single from the new album, at least get this, but nope. [Stress and creativity don't] work with me. Well, but when the deadline's coming, and everybody knows that — I've been talking, like, every single time we release a new album, I say that, I say this — deadlines push me. So I just have to write, so I get this stream of consciousness, basically. I write down whatever the bullshit is in my head. And then you build it. At least you have to have bricks to build a poem or whatever it is, just lyrics."

Regarding the musical direction of the new JINJER material, Tatiana said: "It's gonna be different, first of all, because I feel that the music differs a lot. And to my mind, the whole — I won't say how many songs are there; I guess 12 or even 15; let's say 13; I don't remember — but they all have… not all of them, but half of them, at least, they have a similarity in them. They're similar to each other or they remind me. They have this concept within — without any lyrics, they still sound like they belong to one box. They are a set of songs. And I already think about all the… I'm not even thinking about like the lyrics — I think about the topics and stuff, but I think about the booklet or the cover or even the music videos and what I'm gonna wear there. And it has a certain flavor to me that… I feel like it has this flavor of 19th century. It's very romanticism from the 19th century. If you listen to it, you will think, 'Oh.' You know, when you listen to MUSE, you feel he was inspired by a lot of classical composers — obviously. So our new music has this flavor. And I'm so excited."

JINJER will embark on a North American tour in the fall. Support on the trek will come from fast-rising Japanese metalcore unit HANABIE and progressive metalcore mainstays BORN OF OSIRIS.

JINJER released its first official live DVD/Blu-ray, "Live In Los Angeles", on May 17 via Napalm Records. Recorded and filmed on December 22, 2022 at The Wiltern in Los Angeles, this offering is intended to celebrate not only getting through the last few years in one piece, but also the band's 15-year career.

"Live In Los Angeles" was a spontaneous decision by the band, recorded as raw as possible, to emphasize the passion that can come from a live show. This release is an explosive mixture of JINJER's discography — featuring fan favorites like "Sit Stay Roll Over", "Home Back" and the game-changing "Pisces". The live album contains 16 songs in various audio formats, with some strictly limited: the deluxe digipack features not only a DVD, but also two more songs, "Wallflower" and "Disclosure!", recorded in Paris in 2023.

JINJER is:

Tatiana Shmayluk - Vocals Roman Ibramkhalilov - Guitars Eugene Abdukhanov - Bass Vlad Ulasevich - Drums

Photo credit: Lina Glasir