#production quality is fantastic too like damn

[timethehobo]

Some incredibly talented artists and writers gifted me an amazing goodie bag full of Zevlor fanworks! It’s so gorgeous, I’m speechless. 😭

[beautifulpersonpeach]

BPP, sorry if you've answered this question before but what is your best song from Face?

***

Hi @tabbypuppykitty

I’ve had a rethink. I think Face-off is now my favourite song on the album.

Set Me Free Pt 2 is still top 3, but Jimin’s enunciation on Face-off brings a smile to my face every time I hear it because that man is too damn sassy for his own good lool.

In the latest Suchwita episode, Hobi revealed that Jimin practiced live singing six hours everyday before and during FACE promotions.

Six hours. Every day.

That made me pause. I started thinking about everything that happened during FACE. I don't talk about this at all here because I won't ever share personal pictures and I know I was incredibly lucky and many other people here likely deserved to see him before I did, but I saw Jimin live during his very first shows for FACE.

He was so happy. The joy on his face and the way he worked the crowd... like a fish in water. He gave some of the best performances of the year during FACE promotions. The whole project and the thoughtful way he went about promoting the album, is noteworthy.

(You should watch this if you haven't already)

*

But then I remembered the BS, the way k-pop stans reacted to the album, to the MVs, to the encore stage, the way BTS akgaes indulged in their sociopathy on his account, how BigHit failed (the anger Jimin biases feel is justified but some of y'all are wallowing in it). I remembered a few of Jimin's Wlives, how so much has been going on for him this year, and then tried to fit 6 hours daily practicing into it...

I have to stop myself when I think about Jimin. He has such latent intensity, like a glamour, a force field around him... it's like a black hole that sucks everything, including you, into him and his world. It scares me.

I know I whine about Jimin biases but y'all amaze me ngl. It takes a special fortitude of heart to bias Jimin. This post already sounds incredibly effusive, but I don't believe I'm exaggerating when I say he's a truly beautiful person. It's almost as though the world does not deserve him. It's impossible to not love him, desire him, care for him... want more sooner for him. I see all that, but I also see that man is stubborn as fuck.

He took his time to start work on his solo album. The middle of the Vegas concerts is when he said he suddenly came to his senses, shook himself out of that trance, and earnestly started putting together the FACE project. He'd written songs before, but FACE was its own thing. The personal stories he chose to communicate, the care in lyricism and production, the quality... Jimin created art in FACE and trusted that those who care for nothing but the best, will love it.

That's sexy, but the way he went about it also betrays a conservatism in him. It's a shadow of the edge in him, that thing about him that causes a tinge of anxiety when you watch him too closely.

I'm not sure if I'm making sense, but what I mean to say is you need a special kind of courage to bias and love Jimin. I recognize that. When I write what I do here, I always remember that. I also have very little respect for solos. And those two sentiments aren't mutually exclusive.

But taking it back to Face-off, my favourite thing about it is Jimin's sense of humour and skill coming through in the song, as well as how he enunciates his words. To really hear the switch in his tone, you need to stream in this order:

Like Crazy > Alone > Set Me Free Pt 2 > Face-off

By the time you get to Face-off, Jimin's voice has already gone through every variation possible, but then he brings out a tone I've heard only one other artist do well (Rihanna), and that tone is disgust.

Pure, refined sass. And he's already got the sauciest voice in k-pop.

The melodic and tonal choices Jimin makes at these timestamps fucks with my head:

1:53 - 2:08;

2:16 - 2:25;

2:41 - 2:56....

(lol, at this rate you might as well just listen to the whole song again.) Jimin is fantastic in the whole thing.

Europe is where Jimin belongs, but America would eat Jimin up too. The country already does if we're being real, America already loves Jimin. But given the right concept, Jimin would devour because he always does, and the world should get to see it. I hope I get to see more of it. As I've said before, if you feel inclined to communicate that to BigHit, I strongly suggest you do.

During Suchwita, Hobi showed how he's planned content for fans almost years in advance. It's possible Jimin does this too, planning music and content for fans to see months later... (So we might not learn why he went to London, for months...)

Yeah... I don't have the strength of heart to bias Jimin. Good luck to y'all.

*

...that was kind of a lot lool. So to calm down, Jimin:

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

Anyway, sorry I rambled. Face-off is a really good song and Jimin did an excellent job on it. The whole project is very good so I can't wait for the next songs we get from him. Shit can't get worse than BB deleting D2C sales so on the bright side, we can only go up from here, and for Jimin who already owns the record as the first soloist in history to debut #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, up will be a good spot to be.

Stream Like Crazy, Seven, All Day, and HUH?!

[thealogie]

so here's a little rant & i wanna gauge your opinion on the matter. i just finished watching civil war (it's finally available digitally) and... it doesn't look like ass. not that i expected it to but you know how everything looks overly HD right now and it's just awful? well it wasn't like that. and that got me wondering what's really happening with camera/lenses quality right now because i was beginning to think the move to everything looking overly crisp and awful was kinda forced by the way they make camera equipment/technology now, but there are many things that still look fine, not 80s-mid00s amazing, still a bit too HD for my taste, but fine. meanwhile there are things like good omens that look so bad it's legitimately triggering some kind of ocd for me and physically hurts my soul. like apart from lighting/director decisions it's just so damn sharp, it makes MS and DT look grotesque (even though they are objectively good looking, or at least on the nice side of normal looking, guys). do you have an opinion / some technical knowledge on the matter? why is this happening?????? if select movies can still get their cinematography looking nice then what's the deal with all these other productions being offensively ugly looking? i don't get itttttt. like obviously one assumption would be budget differences but you'd think then they would get older equipment that's not ultra HD shit. or is ultra HD shit cheaper. help me out here because i honestly can't watch most things made post-covid they are so terrible looking. iwtv is another example of something that looks too HD to me btw, just so you don't think my issue is like with bad direction (but rather image quality? idk how to put into words my hate of ultra HD in technical terms)

I had the same reaction when I watched challengers yesterday!

It’s film v. digital. I haven’t watched civil war but even to be untrained eye I could guess that challengers was shot on 35mm film, not digital. That’s why it has that beautiful warm grainy quality. I would say 95% of movies and tv shows are now shot digitally - it is much cheaper overall. No risk of the film being damaged or worrying about the literal cost of physical film you’re burning through. and in digital you can choose a lot of your setting when you’re shooting.

Now within digital, you have 2k and 4k (ultra high def) as you call it. And this is where we reach the limits of my technical knowledge because like…better call saul was mastered in 4k and it still looks fucking fantastic!! This is why I will still blame light design/directing because we have proof that 4k can look good. It’s just the way everyone else is color correcting/lighting the scenes that’s the problem

[assenavlp]

AI Sucks.

AI is not punk. AI is a tool of The Man. Of billionaire Tech Bro sociopaths and accelerationists. AI is not subversive. Edgelords and petty contrarians utilizing AI does not make it so. AI is not revolutionary. Sentimental schlock will not save the suffering. AI is lazy. AI is a cheat. AI is plagiarism. AI is slick and facile. AI produces Pablum for the masses, shat out as easily as it's digested, no different than any banal meme of the week.

AI is not art. It can't even be called Digital Art. It isn't art, period. Digital art still has a human component. AI isn't even in the same league as any of the long traditions of collage, assemblage, or found art, or even of electronic music, musique concrète, or music sampling, or of, in writing, the cut-up technique.

If one is going to steal shit, as all artists, musicians, and writers do - "there is nothing new under the sun" - one should at least have the decency to put in one's own work. The blood, the sweat, and the tears, and fucking make it one's own, rather than simply letting a computer algorithm regurgitate vapid, plasticky-looking, fumble-fingered, dilettante-pleasing, scam and hoax-facilitating, uncanny-valley kitsch.

AI does not democratize art. It is designed to take ownership of it. To render it even further into a mere commodity. NFT's anyone? To appeal and pander to the masses, unschooled in the arts. To render true artists, photographers, writers, musicians, and actors, irrelevant, unworthy of making a living, as they cannot compete with the speed and high turnover that, among other things, social media affords this AI kitsch. Anything real, anything tactile, will soon pale in comparison to any of these fantastical images that seem to fool far too many people; undiscerning audiences raised on decades of ridiculously "airbrushed" magazine covers and multi-million dollar CGI popcorn movies that look like video games. And as education becomes less and less of a priority, the quality of the written word will matter less and less, as well.

And AI is absolutely being used to fool people on a daily basis. To distort reality for the sake of a buck. Not only to devalue these various "creatives", of all stripes (painters, cartoonists, sign writers, stained glass artists, ceramicists, blacksmiths, furniture designers, yarn artists, cake artists, fashion designers, and so on), but as yet another way to scam the gullible with impossible products, and separate them from money they don't have to begin with.

To, in fact, devalue the individual, the consumer, the employee, the everyday Joe; losing jobs to AI-powered automation, forced to communicate with soulless chatbots and their frustratingly meaningless automated replies, and everyone's favourite, the indignity of the self-check-out. Of course the youth are so anxiety-ridden, now, by this mess we've all left them, they're welcoming the lack of human interaction. Great.

And, even more worryingly, to further sabotage the already broken political process, with fake images, spread through memes, that not only successfully fool fans and detractors of any leader or candidate, alike, but allow them to also deny reality. To claim that legitimately damning photos, authentic audio or videos have been, in fact, faked, whether they actually believe that to be so or not.

There's a difference between something that's clearly (or should be) satirical, and something that purports to be authentic, even if expressing something in a humorous way. And, unfortunately, that line is becoming hazier and hazier, as people seem to, somehow, be less and less informed, in this, supposedly, the information age. Not to mention the rationalisations: "well, 'they're' doing it". But as we move further into this age of disinformation, it is imperative that the left does not engage in this sort of chicanery. There are enough damning statements and real photographs of various political foes. Just because the (alt) right does it is not a good reason. Of course it was already an issue, to some extent, with Photoshopping, but AI is clearly compounding the problem. Some might say, purposefully. Indeed, all aspects of this malfeasance are being used by grifters, strategists, and propagandists, alike, to full effect.

In sum: Fuck AI.

[bestworstcase]

idk if you will want to answer this, and if not i totally understand lol, but what did you think of the bmblb confession scene? i havent really seen too many people talking about it through more critical lenses and it's been bugging me. i thought it happend in a really bad moment of the narrative, and also felt a bit forced and fabricated. though i guess it makes sense if they wanted to get it done in case the show wasnt renewed. but idk. i was a bit disappointed :(

i have to asterisk this upfront by saying i haven’t sat down to rewatch v9 straight through yet, and i’m planning to do a more thorough accounting of my thoughts on the pacing once i do, so this is just roughs

going into 9.6 i wasn’t expecting the kiss to happen because i did expect ruby to start erupting, but in hindsight i do think kiss then eruption served the narrative better; it seems pretty evident to me that the reason the kiss happens when it does is firstly about facilitating ruby’s break away from the group afterward, and secondly to—as others have pointed out—give the audience something hopeful to hold onto through the dramatic low point of 9.7-9.8, and thirdly to get it out of the way so as to avoid splitting focus away from ruby’s breakdown.

hence the use of the ponderstorm to literally force the issue, in tandem with ruby and weiss being prevented from navigating their issues in the same way because of jaune’s and the cat’s interference. it needed to happen then and it needed to happen that abruptly, because ruby had to be blindsided by it right when she needed support most.

i think this is also probably partly why blake and yang were so openly flirtatious in the front half of the volume—on a character level it’s because of the giddy relief of still being alive and forever, yes, but for the narrative i think it’s also meant to build up the sense that they’re a hair’s breadth away, that it could happen at any moment, specifically so that the plot device of the ponderstorm pushing them to close that gap won’t feel contrived, even though it sort of is (in the way that all plot devices are—contrivance isn’t a pejorative here.)

and in the broadest sense i think all of that hangs together pretty well and it’s a smart way to bring the blake/yang romantic arc to fruition without distracting from the a-plot of ruby’s character development—because it makes the romantic arc coming to fruition an engine of ruby’s character development—but in the more specific sense of whether it’s executed well, i do think it wasn’t calibrated as well as it could have been. it’s tricky because the basic structure is sound and i have a tough time pinpointing exactly where the clicky noise is coming from. and frankly a big part of it imo is that v8 had damn near flawless pacing and v9 sacrificed pacing for character and lore, so there’s this noticeable contrast in quality of pacing that makes v9’s struggle feel more pronounced.

and in a way too it’s kind of a return to the issues v1 had with pacing—the writing team is much more experienced and much more skilled than they were ten years ago, but v9 posed a similar challenge of having to introduce this entirely new and fantastical world and a lot of important worldbuilding whilst focusing very minutely on character interiority, and i think we saw some clear growing pains in the course of that. like there was a lot to juggle, narratively, that rwby hadn’t ever done before. which does incline me to be generous about the pacing, especially in light of how i don’t think there’s a lot they could have done, within the limitation of the runtime that they had to work with, to improve the pacing without sacrificing something else and trading pacing for character/lore was definitely the right call imo

but yeah in an ideal world where rwby had an unlimited budget and untroubled production and v9 had eleven or twelve episodes to work with, i think there would have been more momentum-building before the big kiss, because it IS one of the two key points (alongside 9.9) where you can feel the pacing struggle coming through in the writing. i think they did the best they could with the resources and time they had and overall i think it does a fair job of what it’s supposed to do for the wider narrative—which is alienate ruby and make her feel neglected and silenced because she can’t rain on their joy—even though it falls tangibly short of what it could have been under more ideal circumstances.

[crehador]

brother crab's spring 2024 parting thoughts (part 1)

doing this quickly and messily this season because it has been a very messy season for me (how... how did i get 50+ episodes behind at one point)

anyway LOADS OF PHENOMENAL STUFF THIS SEASON although i would not call it flawless sentai daishikkaku is still far and away the anime of the season for me (but more on this in parting thoughts part 2, since its season hasn't finished airing just yet)

THE GREATS

kaijuu 8-gou was so much fun. imo it's a very typical battle shounen (but with an adult lead! fantastic) in that it hits all the beats you would expect a battle shounen to hit, but it hits them well. characters are fun, fights are dynamic, worldbuilding is solid and compelling (not terribly revolutionary, but it doesn't need to be)

it's overall just such a good time. hoshina im lov u. s2 please come soon

boukyaku battery was also phenomenal. easily one of the sports anime of all time. hilarious and riveting. the characters are so good, both as individuals and a team, and their backstories all unfolded so wonderfully. the visuals just get better and better. mappa let your staff rest but also. damn. undeniably good work

and todochi!! todochi forever!!! terrible fucking boyfriends (affectionate)

wind breaker was super solid all around as well, i haven't seen toman myself but i keep hearing that it's like toman if toman were good (lmao i'm so sorry to hear this toman enjoyers, stay strong)

oddly enough i'm not possessed with like... and overabundance of super strong feelings towards the characters, though. they're all really fun to watch, and i definitely plan on continuing the series, but i'm not quite rotating them in my head all the time. still good stuff though

THE GOODS (THE VERY GOODS)

astro note should be in the greats honestly but i'm trying to do three per section in this post, but it was just a delight through and through. there was nothing i didn't enjoy about this. takumi you are such a shit (affectionate)

tadaima okaeri... honestly i'm really happy with this adaptation! not only for voice actor reasons (but yes mostly for voice actor reasons) but like put next to all bl adaptations, this one imo does a lot very, very right

i adore the series itself too, did a quick reread before the series started airing and it really is just so wholesome and sweet. but personally i find it a stronger family (and found family) story than a romance, like where it really shines is its exploration of community and generational trauma despite best intentions. which is i imagine not what many people expect from an omegaverse bl but there it is

yozakura-san chi no daisakusen is continuing on into next season (i forgor) but i think it's pretty solidly made its home in this tier for me. it's a lot of wacky, zany fun, and really a delight to watch every week, but it doesn't really stay on my mind afterwards. so just, good stuff!

THE NOT BADS (OR AT LEAST NOT TERRIBLES)

jii-san baa-san wakagaeru was actually overall really enjoyable to me! lots of really deep, poignant moments, an ending that... i shan't say, and loads of quality humor and sweet family moments

but it came out the gate real strong with a first episode that was rife with grandpafucker jokes so i feel like a lot of people might not have made it to the poignant stuff which, fair enough lol. wouldn't say this is something that can't be missed, but really wasn't bad all told

sasakoi... tragically... had i think a pretty strong start but alas. production issues have reared their head and the animation quality in particular got worse and worse throughout

personally i'm not that much a fan of the drama either. the main relationship is pretty cute, but the drama surrounding them... honestly i just couldn't get invested. but that's solely a personal taste thing

as for re:monster... the less said the better. never in my life have i seen a show that more obviously wanted to be a hentai but wasn't

THE SEQUELS/CONTINUATIONS

obviously dungeon meshi was excellent no one needs me to say anything about that

yuru camp s3... i can understand the criticisms, i can understand not vibing with the new art style. but tbh i personally still enjoyed it immensely, it's still cozy, it's still cute, i couldn't really ask for more

hashira training arc my beloved. i can't really give an unbiased review of this one because i love u genyaaaaaaaaa. and gentaaaaaan. god this was such a good arc for them. anyway

shockingly enough i think that is... all i watched this season? (besides yatagarasu and sentai daishikkaku, but more on those later)

i thought there were more than just these but i don't see anything else in my activity log

so basically EXTREMELY STRONG SEASON aots will be decided in like... 20 hours

[stormyoceans]

monica watches » sleep with me

summary: harry, an overnight radio DJ who is in a wheelchair, and luna, who suffers from a sleeping condition, navigate their respective disorders and issues from past relationships as they start their romance

details: GL, philippines, 6 episodes, ~20 min each

content warning: ableism

available on: GagaOOLala, iWantTFC

what i liked:

high quality production and amazing performances

great representation of disability

all the characters, even the side ones, are fully fledged and nuanced. this show is actually a great example of how effective visual language and good dialogues can help conveying informations about the characters without falling into exposition dumps that take away from the feeling of immersion in the story. luna’s character development, in particular, is fantastic and the use of colors, lighting and setting to show it is [chef’s kiss]

janine gutierrez (harry) and lovi poe (luna) have a very nice chemistry and the relationship between the two characters feels incredibly natural. instant attraction doesn’t always seem believable to me, but in this case it fully does, maybe because there’s also an initial awkwardness to it that makes it really charming and close to real life: the characters talk over each other, stumble over their words, hesitate over the right thing to say….. it’s a carefully crafted unpolished feeling that makes you forget you’re watching a show   

communication and consent are SO SEXY it’s honestly insane how sexy and hot those are

it features what has become one of my favorite female friendships of all time!!!!

the cinematography is very immersive and atmospheric, you really get to breathe in the night time and inhabit all the different spaces these characters live in, which is also helped by the editing and the framing of each scenes (some of them looks like paintings)

need me the entire soundtrack of this show tbh

what i disliked:

'disliked' is definitely too strong of a word, but this is one of those rare cases where i wish the show was just a little bit longer. around episodes 4 and 5 the pacing feels slightly rushed to me and i would have liked to linger more on the different stages of harry and luna's relationship. i also would have loved to see more of harry's job as a DJ and learn more about why she wanted to become one in the first place

as an italian, seeing spaghetti getting broken in half got kill bill sirens blasting in my head (JOKING IM JOKING) [but also please don't break your damn spaghetti]

notes: a huge thank you to lisa @stickymoonsoul for recommending this to me, i HIGHLY RECOMMEND it too!!!

[soronya]

For the small but comforting gestures:

6. for RuRu <3

Omg Anon I missed this, I am so, so sorry! Thank you for the ask for this little writing game! I know this was probably meant in a very innocent and soft way, but I couldn't help myself. This is loosely connected to the coconut 'verse.

6) exchanging smiles from across the room

Indian Wells truly is a tennis paradise. Everything you need, it's there. Everything you want, it's also there. So, so many tennis courts, fantastic routes for running, comfortable hotels and a gorgeous spa area for relaxing after tough training or match days.

Holger truly enjoys being here and using all the given possibilities to improve his fitness and his overall qualities as a tennis player. But even more, he enjoys being with all the other players. Some of them have even become good friends, people he loves to hang out with.

And, of course, one special player who's become so much more than that. Holger still can't believe how things with Casper evolved like this, but he wouldn't change a damn thing.

Well, maybe one. And that is Casper being busy talking to Grigor and Miomir on the other end of the room. He'd rather have him for himself now. As always.

Holger turns around, watching Taylor and Felix approaching, deep in a conversation.

"I don't know, man," Felix says. "I just use some cheap lotion after showering. It's fine for my skin."

"You're so lucky, you know that?" Taylor grumbles and sighs. "Morgan gives me her skin care products and I still get dry spots on my knees and elbows."

"You should try coconut oil," Holger chimes in, loud enough for Casper to hear. And of course, he immediately feels his gaze on him. "It works wonders for dry skin. And you can use it for multiple other things. Like, your hair."

He hopes the blush that's creeping onto his face isn't too obvious as he turns towards Casper. Casper is staring at him with wide eyes and Holger gives him the biggest shit-eating grin he can manage. For a long moment, their gazes lock and Holger watches in satisfaction how Casper begins to smile as he shakes his head. Before he can face Felix and Taylor again, Casper pushes his tongue against the inside of his cheek and raises an eyebrow.

Holger grins. He cannot wait for the evening to come.

[mliter]

Sonic Frontiers.

I stayed up the night this released. The marketing cycle for this game was so eventful, making me more and more excited with every twist and turn.

This was Sonic's newest flagship title after the tragedy that was Sonic Forces. This is an open zone world game, where Sonic can freely run around like in the Sonic CD intro. Upon starting the game, you'll find yourself in cyberspace, the first stage. It has as absolutely amazing track that introduces you to the tone for the rest of the game. Afterwards, you're in the game. After a quick tutorial, you're free to explore the game and do what you want. The game's structure is quite simple. Gather all the chaos emeralds, go fight the titans. You can approach that in any way or order you want. I look forwards to see how speedrunners will do this. Sonic controls buttery smooth, and if he doesn't, you can tweak how he handles to an intensive level. After years of debate as to what's the best Sonic control scheme, they just told us to do it our damn selves. I like that. Each island is sprinkled with little gimmicks from various sonic games. Springs, hoops, dash panels, you get the gist. There's plenty of mini Sonic levels just throughout the islands. The open zone format they were insisting on calling this really interesting to me. I don't know if we'll see it again, but damn was it good. My friends who usually laugh at me and write off sonic as dogshit picked this game up on a whim, and have already completed their 2nd playthroughs. It's fun to explore in this game.

The overworlds are fantastic. Kronos Island, Ares Island and Chaos Island are fantastic. Ares Island is my favorite to run around, and Chaos Island has my favorite theme. Each world has it's own gimmicks.

Combat's a thing in this game. Sonic realized that he's gonna need a lil more than a homing attack to take care of the enemies here (it would've been really cool to see him acknowledge this though...). It was really cool to see Sonic Team's take on how Sonic fights. And for me, they got it down to a tea. They represented the way he handles people perfectly. He's not strong like Knuckles, or a master of combat like Shadow. He's just fast. He uses his speed to confuse and overwhelm the opponent with intense aggression. Fighting as sonic isn't too complicated here. Many of his skills are mapped to easy 2 step button combinations that blend in with basic movement. This is the way to have Sonic fight. I think they did this flawlessly. I'm not sure if we'll see it again, but i hope we do. The Cyloop is also a welcome addition to Sonic's arsenal. It fits him perfectly.

The bosses also got an upgrade. The minibosses that will roam around the world are some of the best boss battles in the series. They dead put boss fights you'd see in a 2000's Sonic game as something you'd see on the street. And they're great. They all has specific themes, which escalates when Sonic lays hands on them. It makes the battles more intense and enjoyable. My favorites are the Fortress, Squid, and Ghost.

Now the boss BOSS battles? These are the best boss fights in all of Sonic the Hedgehog. Since the chaos emeralds play a big role in the story again, every world boss is a superpowered fight on grand scale. The production quality was UPPED. Giganto, Wyvern and the Knight are exceptional. My favorite is the Wyvern. I feel as if i'm flying around like in the Unleashed opening cinematic. Sonic fights like an absolute BEAST here as well. I can't remember the last time i've seen him fight like that in official media. It was amazing to witness for the first time. The way Super Sonic was moving, beating their asses had my jaw on the floor.

The story? I didn't expect it. Sonic team doesn't carry the shame of telling serious stories with Sonic and his friends. It's as if they've stopped listening to the reviewers and influencers that desperately want a blue hedgehog to shit on. Sonic, Amy, Knuckles, Tails and Eggman are almost unrecognizable here. From their mannerisms, to how they react to things, to even their voice acting, these faces feel like characters again. A running theme with all of them outside of Sonic is some sort of change or growth. By the end of things, they resolve to live their lives in ways that they've decided are better for them. It was amazing to witness. The lore of the series is back. And the story expands upon the sonic lore that's been stagnant for years, going as far as introducing a fantastic new character that's tied to one that's been around since the beginning. It was an absolute marvel to hear past events come up again as well.

Sonic Frontiers marks change. Like change, it wasn't perfect, and it got quite ugly at a few points. But it happens. The direction of Sonic is changing, the characters are changing. The management is changing. I think we're on a good path. There's confidence in this character again. I think we're heading back into the Sonic i fell in love with back then. This game made me happy. We're back.

[legion1227]

Black Thought and Danger Mouse: "Cheat Codes" Review

This album is such a treat. 

I've only ever been loosely familiar with Black Thought as an artist. I watched the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon back when it first came to TV. I lost interest in Jimmy Fallon and his brand of comedy after a year, but if there was one thing that remained consistent throughout the entire duration of viewing the show, it was how damn good the Roots are. Questlove on the drums is amazing, James Poyser was always a delight on the keyboard, and Tariq Trotter, also known as Black Thought, seemed to be a capable rapper, but I never heard enough of him. From what I can vaguely recall from watching the show, Tariq could rap, but he would give small doses during the show or rap something under a comedic gimmick because it's a comedy show, of course. So when I heard he dropped an album, I thought, "Oh! The guy from the Roots is doing something? Alright, I'll give a listen." My expectations were somewhat reasonable. I figured it would be good or decent, at least. 

But this album is amazing. Definitely, in the top ten albums, I listened to this year. 

On August 12th, 2022, Black Thought and producer Danger Mouse collaborated and dropped their first full-length album, Cheat Codes. The project is thirty-eight minutes long, with twelve songs. It's a perfect pace. Lately, I think the sweet spot for album lengths lies between 12 to 15 tracks. It doesn't overstay its welcome, nor is it too short. The first track does a superb job of setting the tone. "Sometimes" is an excellent opening song, as Black Thought just...spits! His cadence and flow are a delight to listen to. "Guess I'm gon' need a bandage if we plan to be companions/ Drum solos from the hammers be mimicking speaking Spanish/ They vanish like Atlantis, come to find out they've been banished." With a smooth sample of Gwen McCrae's "Love without Sex," Black Thought rides the track without issue. After the initial song, Black Thought continues on a tear that lasts nearly the entire project. The following song shares the same title as the project itself "Cheat Codes." Black thought dives into braggadocious rap and stuns the listener with bar after bar. A majority of the tracks consist of Black Thought impressing with his lyrical prowess. There are some exceptions that are thought-provoking and equally impressive, such as "Aquamarine" and "Identical Deaths." In-between the brain-bursting bops are pieces that reprieve from the jams. "Aquamrine" has Thought discussing the origin of man and his perspective in life as an artist, while "Identical Deaths" has the rapper addressing his struggles and misdeeds. 

The only slight misfire to me is the third track, "The Darkest Part." While not necessarily a bad song, I find it the weakest track of the twelve. Thought's verses don't hit as hard, Kid Sister on the chorus is weak, and Raekwon's verse is also lacking. The message pertains to the modern state of musicians and despair. Lyrically, it's fine, but perhaps my issue lies more with the beat or production. The beat is simplistic in a way that doesn't work for me. However, it's the one slight eyesore in a sea of fantastic tracks packed with top-tier features. Besides Raekwon and Kid Sister, "Cheat Codes" also features Joey Bada$$, MF DOOM, A$AP Rocky, Run The Jewels, and Conway the Machine, among others. All aforementioned artists bring their A-game to their tracks, solidifying legend status, like DOOM, or continuing to make a claim for the future, like Rocky. 

In conclusion, Black Thought knocked it out of the park with his first LP. The lyrics, production, and features are firing off on all cylinders. I can only hope for another album in the future by Tariq of the same quality. There's at least an argument to be made for this as the album of the year. Like I said though, it's in my top ten, at least. 4.5/5

[denimbex1986]

'Expectation... that damn expectation. As someone who reads and watches some reviews in advance, I was quite familiar with the frenetic critical acclaim for All of Us Strangers. 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, 4.0 on Letterboxd - sounds like a so-called "no brainer", i.e. a film that, even if it doesn't appeal to me thematically, at least has a certain basic quality, which means it can't be a flop. Even the premise is one that I was really looking forward to: a lonely screenwriter is working on a script about his parents, who died early. After an unexpected encounter with a potential romantic interest, he travels back in time to tell his parents everything they were unable to witness about his life.

But unfortunately, Andrew Haigh's mix of genres never really reached me emotionally over its 105 minute running time (pleasantly short for today's films). I really tried to empathize with the story and the characters, to pay close attention to the dialogue and to understand Haigh's unorthodox narrative structure. Unfortunately, I came out rather underwhelmed. “All of Us Strangers,” despite its leisurely pace, was surprisingly inaccessible. Despite the protagonist's tragic origin story, Haigh too rarely presses the tear duct and when he does, these moments are too brief. Even though it was probably intended that the viewer would get lost in jumping back and forth between a straightforward romance, surreal fantasy elements and science fiction period play, I don't think Haigh wanted to present a highly complex mystery. Especially towards the end, the film falls into the trap of meaninglessness, which was unnecessary. The idea and the fantastic actors would have provided enough for that.

Andrew Scott has always been an underrated actor. Not because he only takes part in smaller productions; after all, series like “Sherlock” and “Fleabag” also found a wide audience. But his name almost never comes up in discussions about current acting greats. Over the course of his career, Scott has proven how versatile he is. As the vicious and eccentric Professor Moriarty, he attracted all the hatred of the Sherlock audience; as the cynical “Sexy Priest,” he and Phoebe Waller-Bridge exchanged witty blows with Sam in the second season of “Fleabag.” With Mendes' "1917" he was able to establish himself as a real scene stealer with limited screen time. In All of Us Strangers, Scott plays more subdued than ever. His character Adam is an introvert marked by life, who prefers to write his scripts in his small, if quite pompous, London apartment and otherwise lives in seclusion. In his first encounter with his neighbor Harry, played by Paul Mescal, you also notice how overwhelmed he is with spontaneous social confrontations. Only when he realizes that Harry is interested in him beneath the surface and also has demons within him does he let him get to him.

Scott delivers a real tour de force in “All of Us Strangers.” It's not his fault that the emotional component didn't stick with me. He and Mescal, in his usual charismatic style, share electric chemistry. It's just a shame that I didn't buy them too often. The ongoing relationship plays too minor a role for that because the other storyline overshadows it. In the last third, the events drift into the outlandish and you no longer really know what is real and what the protagonist might be imagining. To better understand this, Haigh would have done well to give the character of Harry even more substance.

The film becomes gripping whenever Adam comes into contact with his parents. The fascination here is how it can be to talk to people close to you who have not been here for a long time about how your own life went on. Adam will never know how his parents feel about him and the person he has become. He plays through all possible scenarios of how they might react to certain stories or confessions. Especially in the interaction with his mother, the great Claire Foy as always, this creates real goosebumps that seem incredibly authentic despite all the uncertainty. Jamie Bell is also brilliant as the empathetic father because he doesn't use a stereotypical portrayal of the father figure of the time, but shows the potential for some fathers of this generation to have a better understanding with their sons.

Although there isn't much wrong with the cast, the technical implementation and the basic idea, "All of Us Strangers" never quite lived up to its potential for me. The film loses itself too much in the final act and certain dialogues and scenes are told too half-heartedly and without compromise. What I can imagine is that the book Strangers by Taichi Yamada reveals much more in this regard.'

[indiejones]

Indie Review - 'THE VACCINE WAR' (2023) ! ... (*4.9/5)

IndieReview:

'THE VACCINE WAR' (2023)!

Indies * - 4.9/5!

This is a movie, not just today's Bollywood, but Hollywood too will undeniably appreciate!

For a film of a quality, that the new legend block in Hollywood, comprising people like George Clooney, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, & many others down the line in 21st c., of a more overtly cinematically cerebral-intellectual bent & grain, have made fashionable in modern cinema!

ONE OF THE ONLY INTELLECTUAL WAR MOVIES TO EMERGE OUTTA INDIA!

Yet a genre not knew to the director, who infact is among the only Indian practitioners of this otherwise 'cool' western genre, since it's inception, & to consistently masterful effect!

A RARE, TRULY REAL, & IMMERSIVE BIRD'S EYE ENCAPSULATION, OF THE TRIALS & TRIBULATIONS FACED, BY THE MOST UNKNOWN, SEEMINGLY ORDINARY, YET PROFOUNDLY BLESSED & EXTRAORDINARILY CAPABLE SET OF SUPERHEROES, IN ONE OF THE MOST THANKLESS PROFESSIONS IN THIS WORLD ECOSYSTEM, THAT INDIA WILL PERHAPS NEVER KNOW OF, OR BE ABLE TO THANK ENOUGH FOR IN UTILIZING THEIR LIFE-SAVING SERVICES IN!

The group of Indian female scientists, that came together to give India, in many expert estimations, the safest & most effective Covid vaccine in history! And at record pace & time!

A creditably detailed look, especially involving getting panacea for a plight, every single human on this planet endured with pun-intended bated breath, for nearly a year since getting locked on their own ever-crumbling & oh so withering planet, in utter hopelessness & despair!

A CREDITABLE GROSS ACCOUNT OF THE SCIENTIFIC SUPERHEROES THAT SAVED US ALL, FROM NEAR CERTAIN PLANETARY DISASTER!

Beginning with the entire journey of these set of virologists, from first day of patient infection or Patient Zero, to 3 yrs down the line, involving trips to Iran to test & rescue stranded Indians abroad, followed by the arduous task of isolating the virus & trying to find it's vaccine! Also involving entertaining trips to deep forests of Nagpur in search of the most peculiar & conducive group/species of guinea-monkeys anywhere in the world, for ideal testing & med development.

All marshalled into machine precision, by the ever-engrossing & most projectable Nana Patekar, in clearly the most life-like role of his Hindi (if not Marathi) career, bringing unseen character graph & wholesomeness to his otherwise superbly histrionics-driven massy Bollywood career! Followed by Pallavi Joshi in easily the greatest role & performance of her entire career, in strong contention for even the Best Actress Award @ Indies this year (infact spoiler alert, a certainty to win it this year, take it from me now itself!), for her brilliantly real portrayal of the 2nd person in charge of all proceedings in this invisible war. Other highly praiseworthy acts include Nivedita Bhattacharya & Girija Oak, as 3rd in-charge! As also a highly noticeable villainous turn by the ever-reliable & impactful Raima Sen!

A film that will make each Indian re-live it's own personal Holocaust, at hands of a outta control near-invisible microcosm/virus, a near-artificial intelligence hell-bent on wiping all humanity outta it's sight for good!

INDIA DID IT! … AND THEY DAMN WELL MADE A FANTASTIC AWARD-WORTHY FOR REAL FEATURE FILM ON IT TOO, TO BOOT!

Sufficiently accurate light is thrown on India's hesitancy in acquiring foreign vaccines (for reasons, as laid out in end, of unacceptable & near-slavish terms of agreement, but also including their own internal battles of efficacy & authenticity, as also unbecoming & not investigatively unfounded, allegations of deep malintent sown in their very systemic roots).

If to nitpick, one could say, that a few more scenes depicting the mass vaccine-production by Bharat Biotech, as well as, one or two more completing the whole process till first vial in existence, & the record vaccination drive (with novel digital use) been nicer! But 2.5 hrs of infotaining fun, was pretty awesome as it is, & sufficient in itself, nonetheless!

Congratulations on a wonderful fun documentation, of one of India's greatest most glorious & certainly youngest freshest chapters, in the longest journey of any earthling nation through humanity!

BHARAT MATA KI JAI! .. BHARAT KI VAIGYANIK MATAON KI JAI! 🙏

[xmystophalesx]

Best New Heavy Metal Releases Week of March 17th, 2023

Another crazy week of insanely good albums. I usually try to pare down the “Best of the Week” section to only 10 albums or fewer, as I feel most people obviously don’t listen to as much music as I do and 15-20 albums in that section could be overwhelming. That being said, there are weeks that making cuts is incredibly difficult. This is one of those weeks. Saw an article this week where the lead singer of Avenged Sevenfold commented that the Metal genre is lacking in innovation and quality….certainly true in their music, but not from what I hear on a weekly basis. Somebody needs to send him a link to this site for educational purposes. That type of attitude prompted me to do this in the first place. Ill give him a break and assume he just doesn’t know any better as there are a ton of people out there that won’t listen to anything that isn’t promoted by radio. For a fan of this genre of music, that is a terrible existence that I couldn’t even comprehend. Going to keep the highlight section shorter as there are just too many incredible albums to limit only talking about 5 of them. With that segue out of the way…

Riffobia-Riffobia (Thrash)**

This has already been an exceptional year for Metal overall, but as far as Thrash goes, it has been a bit of a barren wasteland. Well, that issue is officially over. Riffobia is an old school riff heavy (guessing the point of the name?) Thrash Metal band out of Greece and DAMN do they ever lean into the almighty riff! This is old school Bay Area Thrash that will make ANYONE smile that remembers that era fondly.

Night Demon-Outsider (Traditional Heavy)**

Night Demon are hands down one of the very best Traditional Heavy Metal bands out there today. This is a genre that has gotten bigger and bigger over the last decade and the quality has ramped up exponentially. There is not a single weak album in this band’s discography and I swear they are just getting better and better. Fantastic album that will be stuck on the playlist of any fan of the genre for quite a long time.

Kamelot-The Awakening (Power/Progressive)**

There were more than a few people that were left disappointed by Kamelot’s last album (The Shadow Theory), me included. That being said, with the talent level in this band there was no way you could ever write them off and this album is absolute proof of that fact. This album is (In my opinion) the best thing they have done since “The Black Halo” back in 2005. I, for one, am absolutely thrilled to see/hear this.

Ethereal Sin-Time of Requiem Part 2 (Melodic Black/Power/Symphonic)**

This mixture of Black Metal and Power Metal has really been taking off lately. Brymir had one of my favorite albums of last year and Ethereal Sin is in that same vein with some added Symphonic flourishes. if you are into this genre, this is a easy decision recommendation. Catchy as hell Melodic Black Metal or aggressive as hell Power Metal, whatever you want to call it, its great.

Suotana-Ounas I (Melodic Black/Melodic Death)**

There have been quite a few bands melding different genres together with great results. Usually, however, there is a one genre that dominates the other to a certain extent. That is not the case here. This is probably the closest 50/50 split I have heard of Melodic Black and Melodic Death Metal. This really feels to me like what Dark Tranquillity would do if they made a Black Metal album.

Thunderspell-Thunderwarriors (Heavy Power)**

This almost didn’t make the highlight section as the production needs some work (It’s not terrible by any means) and it is straight up Legacy of Kings era HammerFall worship, but damn, this is just too damn catchy to deny it a spot.

Mystic Circle-Erzdamon (Melodic Black)**

I really liked Mystic Circle’s self-titled album from last year but more than a few were luke warm on it. I’m not sure if this will change minds but I feel this is a step up from last year’s album in every way. Leaning more heavily into the Melodic part of their brand of Melodic Black Metal with less emphasis on keyboards was a great way to go.

Foretoken-Triumphs (Melodic Death/Symphonic)**

Three songs into this album and I was online ordering the vinyl. You would think that made my “Pick of the Week” a straightforward choice. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as I have a couple of other albums from this week also on preorder and since Night Demon will play a show near me in less than two weeks and I’m hoping to pick up their vinyl there. This is definitely Melodic Death Metal but it is some damn HEAVY Melodic Death. All of this heaviness is perfectly countered with some absolutely superb solos. The overall guitar work on here is damn near flawless. I ended up making this my “Pick of the Week” as all things being equal, it was simply the album I came back to the most. I easily listened to this album close to a dozen times over the week and I can not wait to get this one on vinyl.

That will do it for this week. I will apologize for the length of the post this week but I couldn’t help it. I HAVE to highlight great albums when they are this deserving. Go out and support some of these bands when they are in your area. It will make your life infinitely better, guaranteed. Until next week, and as always,

BANG THY HEAD!!!

All worthy of a listen if you like the genre

*= standout in that genre

**=best of the week regardless of genre

Best of the Week

Foretoken-Triumphs (Melodic Death/Symphonic)**

Riffobia-Riffobia (Thrash)**

Outlaw-Reaching Beyond Assiah (Black)**

Suotana-Ounas I (Melodic Black/Melodic Death)**

Mystic Circle-Erzdamon (Melodic Black)**

All Against-The Day of Reckoning (Thrash)**

Kamelot-The Awakening (Power/Progressive)**

Ethereal Sin-Time of Requiem Part 2 (Melodic Black/Power/Symphonic)**

Narnia-Ghost Town (Neoclassical Power)**

Night Demon-Outsider (Traditional Heavy)**

PLC-The Gates of Castle Black (Melodic Death/Thrash)**

Thunderspell-Thunderwarriors (Heavy Power)**

Standout in their Genre

The Answer-Sundowners (Hard Rock)*

Humanrise-You’re Never Alone (Heavy)*

Diglossia-A Wraith in Revue (Melodic Black/Gothic)*

Embryo-A Vivid Shade on Misery (Melodic Death)*

Chelsea Grin-Suffer In Heaven (Deathcore)*

Downfall of Gaia-Silhouettes of Disgust (Post Black/Atmospheric)*

4arm-Pathway to Oblivion (Thrash/Groove)*

Litost-Pathos (Black)*

Wilt-Into Nothingness (Death)*

Deadnation-Following the Path of Death (Death)*

Elysion-Bring Out Your Dead (Gothic)*

Arthrosis-Libri Septem (Thrash/Groove)*

Blind Oath-Blind Oath (Heavy)*

Death Reich-Disharmony (Death)*

Pressure Points-The Island (Progressive Death)*

Redemption-I Am the Storm (Progressive)*

Stormwarning-Stormwarning (Heavy/Hard Rock)*

Sostre-Sostre (Black n Roll, Psych, Stoner)*

Wardress-Metal Til the End (Heavy/Teaditional)*

No One Alive-Don’t Leave Your Child Alone (Heavy)*

Sulfure-Anthropocene (Death/Thrash)*

Worth a Listen

Turrigenous-Vesper, The Evening Star (Progressive/Rock/Thrash)

Entropia-Total (Black/Post)

Temtris-Khaos Divine (Heavy)

Kruelty-Untopia (Death/Hardcore/Doom)

Carbellion-Weapons of Choice (Post Grunge)

Eowa-The Year Without a Summer (Black)

Expunged-Visions of Agony (Death)

Foretoken takes the pick of the week on an insanely strong week. Even Isabella is shocked by all the quality this week..:)

[manifestations-of-mythology]

My Favorite Albums of the Year

This year was such an amazing year for music (for me, at least) that I am more or less compelled to share a list of my favorites. I want all of you to have the gift of listening to these amazing albums! I’ll spend a few words to make clear what I love about each album… but not everything I love, of course. I have to keep a few secrets.

To make the music more accessible, I’ll be including links to YouTube playlists and music videos. YouTube may not have the best sound quality or artist compensation arrangement (I prefer Tidal), but they do have an excellent catalog which is 100% accessible without a subscription, so it’s ideal for this purpose. As always, if you love an album then look up their Bandcamp and buy it from them directly! It makes a world of difference to the artists.

This is not a comprehensive list, and I am trying to include albums that stand as a whole. There were so many amazing albums and even more amazing songs, but I can only highlight so many. Please, share with me your favorites from this year, I’m sure I missed a few gems entirely!

Pop

Florence + the Machine ‘Dance Fever’

Perhaps the most accessible pop album of their discography, Dance Fever never abandons the core strengths of vocal performance and wildly ambitious production that has always characterized the band. The music videos themselves are masterpieces, mostly filmed just before the war in the Ukraine, and they extend the story of the songs with fantastic dance and subtle metaphor. It’s a surprising intro to a new listener and a capstone achievement for a longtime fan. I can’t recommend it enough, but I also don’t want to spoil it too much by talking at length. Just…go enjoy it!

Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxA687tYuMWjYmq5I0Hiudp-js_FPoxVm&feature=shares

Notable Videos:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L62LtChAwww

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ui8kUKuLBaU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4Ez9pitRJ0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9CNGPy11Jc

Rock

Halestorm ‘Back From the Dead’

Lzzy Hale brings her best siren wail to every song on this astonishingly versatile album, and it never ceases to be thrilling. I don’t know how they have time to produce such a nice studio mix with their relentless touring, but I respect it. As to what genre of rock this is, I can’t say because it’s all of them. It even has a wicked send up of a revival rock piece in ‘The Steeple’. And then there is ‘Raise Your Horns…’ I love that song.

There is a deluxe version with lots of extra songs that are basically A sides too, so look that up if you like.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWf29sMBi0ujpM-QjIHigvnG1vJj4Mf2O

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxuXh-U7vm8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srT0pgC_yto

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaV7WY3_6Hk

Honorable mention; Dorothy, ‘Gifts from the Holy Ghost’

This is another top quality, genre spanning rock opus with too many good songs to mention in an honorable mention. And yeah, there are some strong thematic similarities between all of these albums from women lead bands. What can I say that’s not a total spoiler? It was a big year for the sacred feminine.

Metal

Polyphia “Remember that You Will Die” 

If you haven’t yet, go listen to “Playing God” off of this album. First music video down below. Then listen to it again, and again. Then look up the live video because “They can’t possibly be actually playing that, it’s impossible!” But then laugh, because they are; even acoustic! Then find the video where they mess up playing the impossible miracle song in concert, and laugh again because they are, in fact, human. Even if they play at a heavenly level.

That one song is miraculous, and every other one is pretty damn cool too. It’s not hard to nominate a literal bloody miracle. I wonder if old scratch gave that stunning lead a boon before they went on their great vacation recently? I hear they were tossing out those things like candy. I can’t blame them for their excessive generosity; you can’t take it with you.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLN0q19AZLbSf-2Q4-2jKzmhs6whjnITud

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5NoQg8LdDk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JT4xW7zIAbQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-SkI9BwwOQ

Punk Rock

Cancer Bats ‘Psychic Jailbreak’

Punk rock is not my usual cup of tea, and yet I kept going back to this album for its cosmic, uplifting perspective and the excellent (and surprisingly clear) scream singing from the lead. Really, diction while screaming is something only non-English languages seem to be able to manage, usually, but here is a clear exception to that rule. ‘Shadow of Mercury’ and the title song are deeply meaningful songs of righteous rebellion and I can’t get enough of them. If there were more punk albums about embracing the power within and raising your fist to the storm this genre could even be a favorite!

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lYsCKV8Rh6wVZDt6om32Vdo9P69Ar9_Lw

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ArUe54_5wc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEM4aWlPd4E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UECc6BJAR4

BTW, H.O. to Rammstein for excellent diction while screaming, I love their latest album ‘Zeit’, which is also surprisingly uplifting, but it’s all in German and my audience is mostly English speaking, I think…

Alternative Rock

Pheonix ‘Alpha Zulu’

Of all of the albums on this list, I’m most sure y’all will be familiar with this one. If only for the irresistible and somewhat unavoidable title track and its ‘best use of deep faking ever’ music video. You know, with all the singing dancing history. But that’s not all this album brings; every song is worth returning to. It’s Phoenix’s best, and certainly most complete, album yet. The video singles are all great, but I have to call out ‘Artefact’ for having the best bridge in any song this year, it’s just delightful.

I won’t leave you skull and bones, worry not.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mp59Wm0FYz2hAa1LaH5vitt6oQqeSVb6w

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gqN9flclRio

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxTCTAnTP6Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkqA-X82P_4

Alternative Pop

Weyes Blood ‘In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow’

What an amazing album. Just one deeply heartfelt and wryly philosophical song after another. It’s true, it’s not just you, it’s everybody. The children of the empire know… Even the instrumental interludes like ‘And in the Darkness’ are such intensely emotional tone poems that they should never be skipped. On top of this is a relentlessly excellent production quality that holds out to the last beat. I honestly don’t have words for ‘Hearts Aglow’, I’ve been trying not to overplay it because it’s so special to me. One of my favorite albums ever, and this is not even my genre. Hats off to the music videos for this album, too. They are very entertaining.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lL5DnYfe-pwqkKq_0dIgpzkCoSP5GVskE

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3g7BSnavHH8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNDlMe4nuWw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DR1MqA0an8

Honorable Mention: Cuco ‘Fantasy Gateway’ A dreamy dance through perfectly produced Indy pop, this album has a few of my favorite songs of the year, including the irresistible Paraphonic and the surprisingly upbeat and catchy ‘Fin De Mundo’. https://youtu.be/kFMEHKyzPMs It would have been my genre favorite of the year without the sonic miracle that got that prize, but this album has some of that good ol’ divine inspiration going on too.

Psychedelic

Panda Bear & Sonic Boom ‘Reset’

A shockingly listenable album in a genre dominated by albums with a few good songs at best, it also had several wonderful music videos associated with it. Panda Bear is from the Animal Collective, and Sonic Boom was doing their own thing, but the collab is wonderful. Here is to them sticking together for more music! Every track is worth revisiting, and they just released an expanded edition that lets you do that again with a fresh instrumental twist on each song and a few remixes besides. Like everything on this list, this is a real sonic mood elevator. I’m not sure how you could make it through the bubbly tones of ‘Living in the After’ or the sarcastic loving joy of ‘Danger’ without cracking a smile. And there are ‘Songbook Instrumental’ versions of a lot of the songs, because why not?

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLtjFIBAjGE17hQuuHnmfqCKTCMWHbGZZE

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9_zoL7Jkr4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMNZuZe2OCY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHS4cFFuQ6Y

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-JFUXBazjg

Honorable Mention: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard for everything. I can’t give the nod to a brilliant album with three songs even if you release five of them in a year… along with two not bad full length albums! Or maybe, especially if you do? I mean, the level of constant creativity coming out of these guys is astonishing, only Louie Zong puts them to shame.

Soul

Seratones ‘Love & Algorhythms’

Many of my very favorites this year bridge genres, and I feel like this one did so brilliantly without abandoning the deep soul roots that keeps this band grounded. The upbeat and hopeful rhythm catches you from the first electronic backed moments of ‘Two of a Kind’ and never lets up a beat. Some of the songs have sumptuous layers of productions, and others, like Love & Algorhythm, let the vocal performance take center stage. Some tracks are more acoustic, some more electric. Some of them are even very prog rock like, like the final track ‘High.’ There is even a spoken word beat poem in the middle. And yet the persistence of a few leitmotifs and philosophical ideas make every song flow into the next naturally. I highly recommend listening to this one in a single sitting… also, get ready to get up and dance, I can’t stop my feet from moving when I listen to this.

And yes, I’m splitting up the rhythm and the blues, what’s it to ya? They deserve two slots, and I have no one to tell me no.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lirIJdJpFIvd5Jj1mMWev9-2X0Eku_guM

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2CtzDSjfS4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWx4m4S-t0E

Blues

St. Paul & The Broken Bones ‘The Alien Coast’

This gorgeous journey through the darkness and into the light hardly got enough attention. I almost made up for it by single handedly playing it out on Tidal. It’s very nearly a psychedelic album, and if there was such a thing as the Cosmic Blues, this album would be it. It’ll rock you from the Aerolite above to the soles of your feet, if you understand the plot. As for the plot, well…  I feel like I have to note that I had nothing to do with the content of any of these albums. An old friend may have had his nose in a few of these, but he seems to have his nose up in everything at the moment. If you enjoy Lord Huron I think you will find a lot of cross-over joy here; this is like the blues cousin to their cosmic country thing.

As is true of many of the vocal albums on my list of favs this year, ‘Alien Coast’ has a few brilliant instrumental pieces along for the ride. Atlas is amazing, it gives me frisson every time. Also there is a lot of clever use of spatial audio on this one, so wear headphones if you dig that. Or don’t, if spatial audio jump scares you.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kCUvEt6bavma4fkkB_pkvkGSkmeEpwhTI

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knRbqdSnrd8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNTsZk5Sblk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkJCnEs-sVk

Afro & Funk

Ibibio Sound Machine ‘Electricity’

Oh man, this is a great sound, it has even more energy in every bar than the name would suggest. It starts off with this magic spell of a song, Protection from Evil, which will guarantee to give you some spiritual armor. Then it just keeps getting more interesting from there. Not every song is in English, but don’t let that dissuade you from a good time! The balance between the hot electric beats and the precise and yet, somehow, howling vocals of the lead is just perfectly suited to any sort of high energy activity, and even the softer songs like Afo Ken Doko Mien keep the beat up. I like to draw to this one, it keeps my energy up.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mpJT2chV_6xDszttRquZKVsoATyWXFuYk

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfMh0zfIO3A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHIbQSWW0zA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IieqdBsPQJ0

Electric & Dance

Kasabian ‘The Alchemists Euphoria’

Another new album that has been on repeat since it came out. I’m serious, I love well aged music, all music really. But this year my speakers were only playing fresh stuff, due to the endless flood of all time great albums, often times coming from bands that hadn’t released in years. This amazing dance album has such wonders and joys within it; there are moments it transcends genre entirely and lofts about with greats like, and I’m not shitting you, the ‘Darkside of the Moon’! The Ultraview Effect, in particular, is an amazing achievement, but every song is worthwhile, like the shout out and dance primal energy of the Allygator. I love this album and I’ll be spinning it for a long time.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nf-3FYSWZCYPk_9SPB4XAqkQgBafv_P1A

Notable Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2BmQZPrTgk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dn4csZoWh60

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLQPznUd7gE

Opera

Dirt Poor Robins ‘The Queen of the Night’

There was a fresh new opera this year! And it’s just wonderful; a steampunk silent film masterpiece. It was actually half-released last year but it came back with new songs and a better production of the opera itself, and so I think it works for this year end list. No playlist this time, just the opera itself! It’s weird to nom a best in a field of one, but… Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y_1fVFNUOfs

Drums & Bass

Torozebu 'Clap! Clap!'

This debut collaboration between two old hands in the drum & bass scene might have resulted in another album to listen to once and pass on by, but add in the analog mastery of Domenico Candellori and a huge splash of inspiration and you have this absolute treasure of an album, which has had my toes tapping all year long. Every track is will get your blood pumping, and I usually listen to it right through, but I especially like Ox and the Earth Loop. I highly recommend this album for cleaning house, it will make your labors light as a feather.

Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nKG1VV9GxklAIxj6EaMLLU2Bf_85w7lQ0

Honourable mention: MEUTE, ‘Taumel’ It's so rare to have a year where there might be two whole drum and bass records in my all time great list, but… Taumel is well worth a long listen too. Trippy and weird but never harsh, it isn’t the transcendent high that their Puls or Live in Paris albums are, but individual songs shine forth like rays of light in the dark. Peace, Slow Loris, Solar Detroit are delightful.

Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_kPYFERXYG2Brz1XiXi33ETbSTNuFpfQg0

Space & Electric Instrumental

Greg Foat ‘Psychosynthesis’

Psychosynthesis is a twisting maze of an album, that will take you on a journey through a fantastical landscape of sound. The first track, ‘Baby Boy,’ seems to be just getting its legs, but after that it’s a walking pace race that doesn’t rest until you’ve seen from the depths of the ocean to the top of the clouds. The pace picks up a bit with the title track, which is split in two with an ice cave in between, before riding into the battle of fatherhood and coming to rest in a crystal cavern. It’s a lot of fun.

It’s a perfect album for enjoying a legal joint… if you are lucky enough to live in such a place. Or, if you’re not, I’m no narc. Several of the tracks build to amazing heights that give me chills even without herbal enhancement.

The line between the new ‘chill’ genres and space jazz is getting to be so thin that if this album had more stolen sounds, it could be in the other category, and ‘Empty Hiding World’ could easily be in this one. But I’m going to sort people by the way their work is usually sorted, here. Besides, l like this type of electric music too much to condense the genres into one, yet.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mWXsScib9rI0pn004cnhPwvBo1W5eKa3o

Chill Hop & Barber Beats

Windows 96 ‘Empty Hiding World’

After the dam broke in 2020, we have enjoyed a constant flood of great music in this hazy genre of stolen sounds and hot beats. Picking one was almost impossible this year, but I did return to this album several times for how fresh it is. Most albums in this genre have a few simple things to say. Chill &/or get down, and that’s about it. This album has some other thing going on, and it is instead deeply evocative in an orchestral way. The band uses the same leitmotif and sound structure throughout, and this propels the underlying message, which in my heart is about the way astonishing things can hide just beneath the surface. The album is also brief (~30 minutes) in a refreshing way, like a short story that does the job of a full novel. The final track, ‘The Fool’ is a masterpiece of furious electronic sounds that somehow maintains beautiful harmony throughout. If you like space and jazz but wonder what this genre has to offer, start with this album, and you will understand.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mU2BFI_2FKjllkaxS5jpop70CANwj7eGU

Sleepy Music

Liquid Mind “Simplicity” I don’t remember much about this album after the first few minutes… this is excellent in this category of music alone. Even better, this album does not have a ramp of intensity at the beginning, so it is suitable for looping. Chuck Wild has been making very functional and pleasant meditation and relaxation music for years, and really has it down at this point.

Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lqLNxZhaBCcrsD3g71wM0kuWIqtV14DhA

[absolutebl]

Cutie Pie Review - It’s All About the Chemistry

quick pitch 

Cutie Pie 

(Thailand, Feb-May on YouTube) 

8/10

Main Tropes: arranged marriage, age gap, secret identity, cohabitation, rich kid problems, he’s in engineering

It was a real pleasure to see Zee again (Why R U?) and his new love interest is very well cast. MaxNat turned in their usual consummate side dish action, (origin Why R U? also Y-Destiny & Close Friend) and it’s always fun to see Perth (My Engineer) and the other guest cameos. 

With very high production values at at first I thought they were gunning for Korea, but I’m got a real Japanese feel from this one, Thai style of course but there is definitely a lot of visual referencing live action yaoi. Also the music and sound were pretty darn good.

It took me a few episodes to accept the absurd conceit of this show and its quirky characters and motivation as ALSO EXTREMELY traditionally yaoi and very lifestyle D/s. After that I just rolled with it. I realized that if this had come from Japan I would have given it a pass immediately. Why be tough on it just because it comes from Thailand?  So, about half way through I liked it A LOT more. 

The chronic miscommunication: 

Really tested my patience at the end tho. 

THAI LANGUAGE CORNER

Why Ai'Hia was so funny in Cutie Pie 

A Mini Essay on My Love of LianKuea in Cutie Pie (and ZeeNunew's performances)

Honestly I just love LianKuea's dynamic, it's so D/s but also so classic yaoi seme/uke. The way Lian smiles when his Nu does something cute is so damn sweet. He’s practically the definition of a caring Dom. Killing Kuea (and us) with stern softness. Zee did a fantastic job with this character. That said NuNew also managed to give us an appealing uke with gumption and a crush and a failure to understand self actualization who we liked.

But let's be honest here, the actors chemistry is REALLY good.

(After Semantic Error, I'm beginning to develop theories about same-sex actor age gaps and the chemistry development quality that results. But I need to gather more data first.)

Look, there is something about the way Zee looks as his acting partners. His eyes are very doting, no mater the line delivery or any other aspects of the scene. He's been given these fierce stern roles to play in Fighter and Lian but he always seems to manage to temper his characters with fondness.

I like doting affection on screen.

I also like to see a seme actually sexually intersted in his uke, otherwise the archetype comes off as more inclined to ownership and less about desire. To be frank, Zee is also good at transmitting the "I want to bone" thing.

Since a seme character is aggressive and obsessive and intrusive he has to be tempered by some sort of softness to appeal to a modern audience. Add in authentic feeling sexual interest and the seme character MUST be gentled by the actor's performance, or we end up with a H4 situation. And Zee manages to transmit all that with just eye work. It's great to watch.

But NuNew did a wonderful job too. Kuea was clearly interested and willing and game. There’s no sign of the Blushing Maiden with this uke. Thank fuck, could we PLEASE kill that archetype?

As much as I love a Daddy who wants his boy, a boy who needs his Daddy is about a billion times better. And genuine sexual interest from the uke character is still far too rare in BL.

In this regard, Cutie Pie was a breath of fresh air.

What can I say?

They love each other, they just idiots

is a favorite of mine.

But...

They WANT each other, they just idiots?

Yeah. That one is gonna get me EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

The other pairs were good too! 

MaxNat serve us high heat while smiling the whole time. Which was kinda charming and basically their signature. These two just seem to have fun together. It’s nice. 

Language note on Yi’s confession: Diao’s nickname khondiao means “only” or a”lone” in Thai? So when Yi confesses, he’s using world play when he says “I love you only”. More here.  

However, I gotta say my favorite kiss of this show (and it was VERY kissy), was actually Syn and Nuea. Adorable. I wish we had gotten more of these two. 

Cutie Pie ended very navel gaze maudlin and sappy for my taste. The absurd proposal back-and-forth thing was kinda par for the course with Lian and Kuea  and their miscommunication antics, but I was bored by it. 

This show went from absurd to appealing to annoying and then back to absurd again - but always sappy and nicely high heat for what ultimate seemed to be an equal marriage propaganda piece. Which I’m fine with, but Taiwan’s Faded did it better in 20 minutes back in 2017. 

Nevertheless, on the strength of the chemistry of all three couples, the odd but very old fashioned romance tropes, and clear high rewatchability this one is getting a 8/10. Watch this one for the pretty, give it a pass on depth.

(source)

[aziraphales-library]

Hi, I’m looking for fic where Aziraphale and anathema strike up a friendship or are already friends in an AU. I included one in mine because it seemed to me they would have a shared background in breaking away from what is expected of them. But in reading fic, it appears most people write Crowley as the one becoming friends with her and leave Aziraphale with Madame tracy. Are there any more stories with an Aziraphale-anathema friendship rather than crowley-anathema? Thank you so much!

Hello. There are some great fics which include an Aziraphale & Anathema friendship! Here is a selection for you...

Good Influence by AppleSeeds (T)

After a horrible week at work, Aziraphale is encouraged by his friend and colleague Anathema to attend a hypnotism show to take his mind off it, after all, what could be more distracting than watching a performance by the stunningly handsome hypnotist Crowley?

After finding out a little bit about Aziraphale's work situation, Crowley is eager to give him a pleasant experience and for him to leave the show feeling better about himself, but he later grapples with the ethics of what he's done, and whether he might have inadvertently influenced Aziraphale more than he intended.

A Chance Encounter by MagnetoTheMagnificent (NR)

Ezra Fell is the owner of a bookshop, Anthony Crowley is a florist. They would never have met, until one day Ezra makes a terrible mistake.

Across the Line by hope_in_the_dark (T)

Ezra is a student in his final year at University College London, and he’s in love with a man he’s never spoken to. For months, Ezra has been tipping (and pining after) a musician named Crowley every time he sees him. He thinks that Crowley hasn’t noticed him, but Crowley has.

A love story that begins with, of all things, the saving and handing over of a book.

Thespian Omens by georgina_bulsara (T)

Aziraphale is an overzealous community theatre director, and Crowley is a landscape gardener who has somehow been convinced to audition for the lead role in a production at the Tadfield Playhouse.

The Devil’s in the Flowers by jibber_jabber (M)

For the last eleven years, A.Z. Fell’s Fantastic Flowers has provided quality bouquets and services to the people of London. Whether it’s weddings or funerals, lovesickness or heartbreak, Aziraphale can find the perfect flower for you. But when Crowley’s Flowers, Houseplants, and Other Assorted Leafy Green Things opens up across the street, everything starts to change—and Aziraphale will be damned if he’s going to let this no-good, profit-hungry Crowley steal all his business.

(Or, the one where Aziraphale and Crowley are rival florists working in the same neighborhood).

District of (un-)Certainty by jamgrl (M)

Aziraphale is a PhD student who needs a roommate so he can continue to afford his house in the U.S. capital of Washington D.C. Luckily, the family he tutors for on the side just happened to find him one! He doesn’t think he will like him much since he is in the states to work on Mr. Dowling’s senate campaign, so he’s probably a terrible person (even if he is good looking).

Crowley is pretty independent and doesn’t really have a lot of what you would call “friends”. But he doesn’t mind his new roommate. He would much rather hang out with him than his coworkers, anyways. His roommate’s best friends Anathema and Newt aren’t too bad, either. It’s nice to have some friends. Maybe he likes it in D.C.

---

They are millenials! But still British and still old fashioned- just a little twist on our favorite husbands.

- Mod D