#so many lines that hit hard for this particular dynamic.......

[standbowed]

"you go first" by g.arfunkel and oates kind of goes crazy as a hachi pov song abt the hachi-emi dynamic (if u ignore the usage of the word partner and interpret it abt a sibling dynamic where one is put on the backburner in favour of the other's success rather than a relationship obv.)

[zosanbrainrot]

PART 4!!

01 02 03 04 05 06

I stg I'm kicking yall in the shins one last time, we're ALMOST done with the angst!

Let me tell you I had this finished(!) twice(!), but no, I had to go back and change it lmao

In my first go the fight scene was much more rough, it was hard for me to draw from the beginning, I'm not really good at this sort of thing. So I took a little break from the comic and when I got back to drawing the last two panels (static ch close ups) they turned out so GOOD and CRISP! I just had to go back and redraw the previous ones. Didn't change the composition back then, just made the drawings less sketchy and fixed minor mistakes. This panel in particular went through bigger fixes, I couldn't get the pose right:

I emphasized the arch in Zoro's back so it's more clear he's hunched over, the head is lower, and the hand on his stomach wasn't looking good, so I switched its direction and I feel it looks more natural now. The whole pose is shifted to the side now, whereas in the previous ones it was more straight up, but I wasn't conveying perspective well.

So after that I had it all exported, loaded into drafts and as I scroll it on my phone I'm like... There should be one more panel where Zoro's getting kicked : | Imma need to change it AGAIN.......

It just didn't flow well. I work on the comic in chunks so I haven't put these panels together before, I always saw them side by side in my main file.

I just didn't like how you go from Zoro getting kicked to him being thrown, it just felt disjointed to me.

So first I looked through the three sole volumes of BNHA that I have at home to maybe understand drawing fight scenes just a little bit better. That's how I got to the new version of Zoro getting kicked so there's more lines showing movement etc. but most importantly you have the kick and Zoro's reaction separate. So now Zoro's face has a bigger closeup, you can see his open eye.

In the previous version it was more distant, the closeup wasn't as big and you couldn't see his expression well. With just the side view you could only see he's in pain but nothing more than that,whereas when you have a full view of his face you can get much more from that. You see where he's looking, you know he's looking at Sanji when he kicks him in the guts.

I guess that's why, in the first version, I was trying to still show his face where he's being thrown off of Sanji bcs I felt the side profile wasn't doing it's job, but at the same time it felt off, like there was less force in the kick bcs his head wasn't following the movement idk. Also he was def too big in the frame. So now Zoro's smaller to emphasize the perspective more, the head is down, the right arm is more to the side and there's more lines, the flame is more aggressive now and bursts into the sides when it comes in contact with Zoro's body to show the impact. I know they could be better still, but this is the best I can do right now and I'm happy with the result!! I'm glad I kept pushing it! These poses were VERY confusing to draw lol

Alsooo, it would make more sense if Sanji threw Zoro in the other direction, over his head like in karate/judo, but I wanted to keep my directions consistent. I had to have Sanji standing back to the carriage, so he doesn't notice the spear being thrown and Zoro facing the carriage so he can get hit from the front, right after he gets up. It's like..... did he not see it? Did he get hit on purpose? You decide lmao

Though I'm probably too rigid with my 'camera', in BNHA you see the action from any and every direction, i guess it adds to the dynamism of it all, also there's just many MANY more panels in manga lmao

Judge giving me major "isn't there somebody you forgot to ask" vibes at the end there lmao I hope you forgot he's even there and this comes as a surprise!

[heytherecentaurs]

Burrow's End is an absolute masterpiece.

In the span of ten episodes Aabria and Co. weave an exciting and emotional adventure story about a family of sentient stoats. It delivers huge laughs, interesting societal criticism, remarkably emotional and well-acted scenes and concludes with a series of epilogue scenes that feel appropriate for each character, some heartfelt and subdued and others bigger than life and all the funnier for it.

Siobhan and Izzy play the perfect pair of siblings. They fight and argue but they also love each other. Jaysohn (Siobhan) looks up to Lila (Izzy) and believes she's the smartest stoat in the world (and by the end she probably is) and Lila hypes up her little brother's athletic skills. They both fully embodied these kids and I could watch them do fun stuff for more episodes. Give me a version of Saved by the Bell with them. Stoat by the Bell.

Brennan and Rashawn, playing sisters, also knock it outta the park, showing a more mature sibling dynamic. Brennan portrays Tula as the quintessential overtired single mother of excitable kids, and Rashawn as younger sister Viola straddles a very interesting line of being intimidating to outsiders but very much more naive and looking to her older sister when she starts a family.

Jasper as Thorn, a guy everyone just lets be a cult leader because he really wanted to, is fantastic. His is a difficult role as the only non-blood relative. Jasper plays Thorn with such real humanity of a guy in over his head and letting his ambition wife call the shots, but also one who agrees with her goal, really loves her and has moments of real menace. He has some very funny scenes, his big speech is perfect, and I just enjoy him.

Erika is wonderful. They play the epitome of generational trauma as many have said but as much trauma as Ava has, she is also loving and willing to learn. The fact Erika took this adversarial role is incredible. The tense dramatic scene primarily between Ava, Tula and Viola is amazing. They act their asses off and make hard choices that I imagine are difficult even for such an experienced player.

Aabria's DMing always feels fun. She doesn't get bogged down in the rules. She knows them. She plays by them. But as a master, she knows how and when to break them too. Her seasons on Dimension 20 have all had a tenseness, a particular edge to them that can give me anxiety during dramatic scenes between two characters. It always feel like one of her NPCs may say something devastating and the tension between characters reaches really thrilling heights. This is present in other seasons, but I don't think anyone does it as well as she does. The first season of hers to have battle maps, Aabria really swung for the fences and gave us some of the wildest maps to date.

Shout out to Carlos Luna's voice acting. He did an incredible job. And shout out to the whole crew who have put together one of the best seasons of D20. They keep finding ways to build on what's come before and they should be commended for it.

Dimension 20 is most successful when the concept is very streamlined. They don't do huge 100 episode campaigns capable of handling huge winding complex narrative, but short focused D&D stories, which is why many of the Side Quests have been so fantastic. They embody this philosophy most clearly, but it's apparent in the most beloved Intrepid Heroes seasons as well—John Hughes/High Fantasy, Game of Thrones/Candyland, Retrofuturism, Film Noir but in a Brain... Burrow's End fits this perfectly. It's streamlined concept paired with great storytellers and great chemistry sets it up to be a smash hit before it begins. And goddamn does it deliver.

Thanks Stupendous Stoats!

[owlespresso]

do u have any fic/author recs at the moment? for any of ur fandoms!

TONS, but here's a short list of authors and fics that I adore. All of the following authors are absolute inspirations to me and I thank them for putting their creations into the world, for us to read.

Just a heads up, I adore dark content so a lot of the writers and fics I will recommend will contain said content.

@seoafin writes for Jujutsu Kaisen, but they also have some writings for Trigun. Their characterizations are incredibly on point and I adore their takes on Geto and Gojo, including the dynamics between them + the protagonist of their AU ripverse.

@strawberrygodzilla has a fic about Zenos that BEATS ASS and their character voice for Zenos (and every other character including the WOL) is so clear and accurate like every time they write Zenos's dialogue I'm like... "wow, he really WOULD say that". I've teared up several times reading their fic here, at the end of all things.

@chickenparm, whose profile I religiously check on ao3 and just discovered has a blog on tumblr, writes BANGER Genshin fanfics with to die for smut. Their fics about Childe are among my favorite. Give of Yourself has stuck with me in particular.

@softagenda has been providing the Touchstarved fandom with easily some of its best fanfictions, expanding on concepts introduced in the demo and adding some of their own world building. My favorite fic of theirs is silver linings.

@ddarker-dreams just has a way of writing and worldbuilding that really takes my breath away. The amount of depth and forethought put into her Blade fic, Nexus, still stuns and awes me a month after its completion. She's written heaps for Genshin Impact and is now starting on a JJK series. She also writes a lot about Chrollo Lucifer, from HxH. I haven't watched a single episode of the show, but she has somehow made me invested in this character. Whenever I see mention of him elsewhere, I go "ah, the man ddarker-dreams writes about".

@lorelune writes for Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail and JJK. I love their work but their little blurbs they post every now and then also completely have my whole heart. their hybrid AU Blade fic hell is a hound without a chain has been living in my head ever since they dropped it. I adore their characterization of Blade and Jing Yuan in particular! Their Gojo fic dawn instinct hits me so hard.

@agent-cupcake writes for FFXIV AND JJK but I found them through Fire Emblem Three Houses. I've been following their work for awhile and I adore each and every piece. Their prose is beautiful and their dark content is to die for. I'm biased so my favorite piece is Asteria, but I also am continuously obsessed with Raison D'etre, Vae Victis (FFXIV), Femme Fatale and living idly and dying as if dreaming.

@hawnks is a fantastic writer who I discovered through her soulmate AU fics. coincide and the first law of motion are absolute classics, but she's been writing a soulmate series for Gojo which has been utterly fascinating for far. I would also like to thank her for introducing me and many others to Guideverse which I would love to write something on in the future!

[aesolerin]

song that reminds me of DD1/2 cast. for some it'd be sarcastic or bitter, for others (read: baldwin) it'd be sincere in how gentle it is.

But, particularly, the last verse, the "I might've been a good man" one - that verse makes me imagine all the shit DD1 Dismas went through in the name of redemption (up to potentially the final battle and maybe even being a sacrifice to Come Unto Your Maker), and how in the end, after all of that, DD2 Dismas is the only one who has a vague recollection of any of it. (not that it turned out we were doing any sort of good in the end, but you get my jist)

now (only slightly related to the above): we both know who our faves are, but I'd love to know all your thoughts/headcanons on our fave Mr. Highwayman yourself, since it seems like you might have some! DD1 or DD2, your choice (if that has an impact).

....but also, if you do have any thoughts on how his dynamics would be with either or both Sarmenti/Baldwin, I would of course not be averse to that either. >>;

the link didn't stick, but we thank lyrics.com bcs i was able to reverse search that one line and you confirmed it was this song:

oh my goodness it has such a sweet bitterness that can perfectly embody what it means to be send unto the breach over and over until you and everyone else around you is dead. lives they could have led, the stories they can tell, the good and bad moments they share. in the Tavern, at camp during an expedition, i can clearly see any and every hero singing along with any and every emotion.

it definitely hits Dismas the hardest. if the well-traveled Sarmenti didn't bring the song to the Hamlet, he's the next likeliest candidate to me. perhaps he's in the Living City of DD2, quietly it singing to himself because nobody else knows it...

i do love Dismas! i especially love the works that contrast him and Reynauld, the penitent thief and the thieving repentant. the Crusader is a good guy, but i don't think he's a nice guy all the time, and in DnD terms i see the Highwayman as the 'face' between them. silver-tongued rogue, ya know?

other miscellaneous Dismas headcanons:

-jokey and witty and such, but still puts up a bit of a wall. old instincts as a former brigand, you don't get close to the new recruits. he softens up a bit as the heroes build camaraderie.

-very protective over his food, but i think this is a pretty common headcanon. if he goes out of his way to share a meal with someone, he is willing to die for them.

-a little bit superstitious. lucky coins and red skies at dawn and such.

-we all know this. man loves poetry. has a secret stash of poems and thankfully Reynauld hasn't found it yet. they're getting really good!

-could give the Antiquarian a run for her money when it comes to counting money. one glance in a pouch and there's a very good chance he can estimate how many coins there are.

-seems to take the eldritch bullshit in stride, but really there are nights where he just. lays face down on his bed. and internally screams about the fuckery of the Farmstead and/or the DD2!Cultists. he's fine after though.

-did in fact try his hand as a candlemaker. loved the work, but the pay wasn't quite enough.

-kinda low alcohol tolerance, but also so on-edge all the time that he feels like he needs to get buzzed to relax.

-loves rats and other vermin creatures. big reason why it bothers him so much in DD2, reliving the times he had to resort to eating rats. how'd you feel eating your cat or dog to survive?

as for his relationship with Sarmenti and Baldwin in particular...

Sarmenti: even with all the verbal jabs and physical semi-violence (headlocks, shoulder punches, etc), Dismas and Sarmenti are best friends. they 'get' each other. with one non-verbal cue they know when to tone it down for the other. partners in (mostly metaphorical) crime, in good times and bad.

Baldwin: Dismas really looks up to him and sees him as one of the very few genuinely good people in the world. trying so hard not to say 'daddy issues'. (which is very funny because i headcannon that Baldwin is actually the youngest of the DD men. man just has that regal bearing.) they'll occasionally read together, and he's the only one Dismas shares his poems with!

thank you for sharing the song and your thoughts! i hope these were enough thoughts for you! sorry it got so long!

[kyndaris]

Adrenaline Rush

After slogging through Diablo IV, all the while listening to video essays about terrible authors (thank you ReadswithRachel), there were still a mountain of games that I needed to tackle in order to bring some semblance of order to my ever-growing backlog. But rather than play through yet another hundred-hour adventure, I opted for something far shorter. Enter: Hi-Fi Rush.

While I have very mixed feelings about Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda and now, it seems, Activision Blizzard, there is no denying that Hi-Fi Rush is a masterpiece of a game that serves as a breath of fresh air for anyone tired of the dull doldrums that come from staring at dirt or uninspired graphic design.

In fact, there is definitely something to be said for choosing a colourful, high contrast and bombastic art style to go with one's game. It certainly livens up the screen and makes everything pop. Something that could not be said of the recent triple-A games that I recently played through.

Beyond that, it just brings a smile to my face to see a game that doesn't take itself too seriously when it comes to world-building. And it's all the better for it.

Too many games these days have gone the realistic grimdark route and it has honestly sapped some of the fun out of what would have been interesting worlds. As a random aside, you can still be grimdark and still have a colourful world filled with a mixture of fun and funny characters.

But back to the game at hand!

Releasing at the start of the year with no fanfare to describe of, Hi-Fi Rush was a sleeper hit for many gamers although it has tracked well with critics. So, when it was on sale on Steam, I went ahead and bought it. And instead of sitting there for years and years, the delay between purchase and me playing it was only a few months, give or take!

What struck me immediately was the art. I loved seeing the bold lines that defined the characters and the environment. Instead of the dreary atmosphere that came from Diablo IV or Forspoken, I was met with a highly saturated world that wasn't afraid of splashing around a little colour.

True, it might not be a colour scheme or graphic choice for every game but it certainly stood out from the stuffy triple-A crowd.

The second thing that I fell in love with were the host of allies, from Peppermint to Macaron, CNMN and finally Korsica. Though the game was fairly short and the time that I spent with them didn't extend to hundreds of hours, I enjoyed what few conversations that Chai had with them and the immediate dynamic that naturally sprung up between them through in-game banter.

This was a game that didn't waste one's time with endless backstory. It was a burst of game that could be replayed if one wanted and did not overstay its welcome.

Combat, too, took on an interesting twist with attacks landing on beat. This provided some extra challenge to combat but never made pulling off combos difficult as I slashed and slammed my way through the Vandelay Technologies offices to bring down the man - or in this particular case, greedy CEO Kale Vandelay.

It also made sense from a narrative perspective with Chai having his music player being inserted into his chest when his broken arm was initially replaced with a robot arm at the start of the game.

And perhaps that's what makes Hi-Fi Rush such a great game. Almost all of the aspects of the game are interconnected - be it the gameplay, the narrative or even the logs that players can pick up. The fact that the game isn't afraid to also poke fun and get a little meta, which only adds to the game's charm.

While the villains were a little one-note, playing into stereotypes, there were also hidden depths to their characters that were often revealed in their boss battles. And what spectacles they were! Especially against Roquefort! That was truly wonderful - especially the homage to Scrooge McDuck's money bin.

Honestly, there were so many iconic moments, it's hard for me to nail down which one was my favourite.

If I had to say what my main gripe with the game was though, I'd say it had to be the lack of healing options during battle except for special abilities. It was also disappointing to see how little Chai recovered when he picked up the small health energy that was scattered around the environment.

Still, it did make the boss battles nailbiting knowing that I could only heal Chai only once I'd managed to fill up the energy bar to use my healing special ability.

As for gameplay that wasn't combat related, while it annoyed me that I couldn't explore every inch without first unlocking another character first, I enjoyed the challenges although I did find the platforming a little finicky on occasion.

Overall, though, Hi-Fi Rush was an excellent palate cleanser after the less than impressive Diablo IV. And while I would have liked to spend more time in the world of Hi-Fi Rush to understand the backstory for a few more of the characters, I enjoyed my time with it - from the zany plans to the humorous gags that are maintained through the entire game like the Vandelay robots rebelling by ensuring all the coffee machines only serving decaf.

Here's hoping that developers learn to break up their usual doom and gloom with something that brings back the joy of gaming. It almost feels like we're returning to the early 2000s when all games needed to have dark broody tortured protagonists except they're also now extending it to the game design and game world. Which, in all honestly, I'm not enjoying.

After all, you can still make gut-punching emotional games and still have a beautiful world to admire!

True, don't go the route of Thor: Love and Thunder but it doesn't need to be another cookie-cutter stale grey world.

[alovelyburn]

Is griffguts popular? Does Miura knew about the shippers? Was he shocked? You always have sources

It's kind of hard to gage what is and is not popular, especially when you're talking about a community of people that mostly stay away from the main body of Berserk fandom, but here's my general experience and understanding of things.

-In the Western fandom, the vast majority of active fans have what I'd call the western standard perspective: Griffith is a sociopath who may or may not have cared about Guts but if so he still didn't care about anyone else, Guts and Casca are soulmates and he lives for her and hates Griffith, the end.

Now I say active fans because my personal experience with running into people who like Berserk in the wild has been that many of them were fans of Griffith/Guts but unwilling to engage with the fandom at all because, well, of what I just described up there. But of course this is going to vary depending on where you go. In media fandom circles, like artists and writers and such, it's more popular than with say random people on a general anime discussion board.

In more recent years, since the OVAs I guess, there has been more movement around the relationship vs. say when I was in the fandom the first time when there were active efforts to drive fans of the relationship (or even just of Griffith as a character) out of the fandom entirely.

-In the Japanese fandom, there's a much wider variety of views on Berserk in general, and I notice a lot of I guess casual acceptance of Griffith and Guts as potentially a romantic connection. Even just in random threads on 2chan or whatever or replies to news posts you'll see references to it. And if you say go to pixiv or something, or look at doujinshi or whatever, the G/G fans are by far the most active of any pairing fandom, in any case.

And when I talk about things like the casual acceptance even by people who aren't really like pairing fans as such, I'm including things like... how the OVA scriptwriter directly referred to them as having romantic feelings for each other (among other feelings). The writer probably wasn't there pumping his fist and rooting for them to get together, but it was just a thing he knew and understood about the characters. This is kind of unsurprising because Guts and Griffith do have a particular kind of relationship dynamic, and honestly particular kinds of visual design, that are often used in manga or anime to evoke homoerotic relationships. And manga and anime in general has a lot more like subtle or casual homoeroticism than say random western stories anyway.

All of that said, the main takeaway I get from Japanese fandom is that they don't talk about romance nearly as much as English fandom does, and that applies to Griffith and Guts or Guts and Casca or anyone else. Couldn't tell you why.

As for Miura, that's an interesting question. That one 30 page article from the shojo studies book that was the source of the quotes that recently hit the fandom had been partially pseudo-translated before by a fan who said Miura had said he didn't like that interpretation, but they also said they had a hard time with that line, so I've never been sure whether that's actually what he said. At the time that I was told this I was surprised (for reasons I'm about to get into), but also not surprised (for reasons I will also get into).

But the matter became more muddled when Kojion@twitter began posting translations of the same article because there was nothing in there about not liking them to be interpreted romantically... but there was one line that seemed to correlate to what the fan had said that Miura said about Griiffith and Guts (that he didn't like it and liked relationships like rivals), but like, he was talking about his taste in movies at the time? Because he said he liked movies about men's relationships, and then clarified that he meant rivalries and such. So I kind of wondered if they misunderstood the context since they were having a hard time with the line anyway. Can't be sure though, since I don't have the book itself yet.

And now, the reason I was surprised when I first heard that:

-there's literally a line in an interview about how Griffith was designed after people he knew who can't love women and focus on men (romantically or platonically) instead.

-there's also this line where he refers to Griffith as not being one to "fall in personal relationships" with Guts being the exception which like, I understand that he's not saying anything directly, but you've gotta understand the word he used for "fall" is 落っこちる, which is commonly used to mean "fall in love" (actually it is the second dictionary definition, and the first means physically fall off a roof or fail an exam, so you know).

-he spoke openly many times about his interest in gender and sexuality, stated that he felt like androgynous characters should have both male and female love interests, that most androgynous characters in manga fall in love with men, and that he felt like he had to be ready to commit to that if he was going to write an androgynous character (he was discussing the lead of Duranki to be clear. But it's interesting, if you... look at Griffith at all).

-he also listed many lgbtq stories as major influences in his creation of Berserk, including Devilman (one of his biggest influences which is extremely obvious), Guin Saga (which helped create the BL genre and which he has stated was his single biggest influence), Rose of Versailles and Kaze to Ki No Uta (which is literally a classic boylove manga).

-but mostly just because he... wrote the manga. Which I'm bringing up because there are moments that are very difficult to read nonromantically, including a panel where the BoD heavily implies that Guts is in love with Griffith.

The reason I wasn't surprised:

Because it was a 20+ year old interview and he seemed a lot less comfortable with the topic than he eventually became.

One thing I noticed during my time tracking this manga and also obsessing over Miura interviews is that the early interviews are more conservative with his influences and intentions whereas as time went on he started saying yes Berserk is a shojo and then yes, I was influenced by "Go Nagai's style" and then "yes, I was influenced by Devilman specifically."

Basically by 2019 he was out there talking about reading BL manga and such. So even if he had said it, which I'm not sure he did because of the movie thing, I would probably attribute it to not having become comfortable with the topic yet.

Anyway, did he know about it, I'm sure he did.

Was he shocked, probably not given all of the above. He's the one who chose of his own free will to modify the meaning of 渇望 (thirsting/craving) with furigana that says こがれ (crave because you're in love with) in that BoD scene.

No one told him to do it. He knew what the words meant.

[honeyhotteoks]

It’s the beginning of the comfort arc we’ve all been eagerly anticipating and it delivered more than I could have ever imagined fuck! I have so much to say BUT FIRST thank you for sharing your writing with the world it literally is amazing through and through - so carefully and beautifully crafted - and every update makes my day/night <3

Big thing for me in the last few chps is i appreciate so much how you tackle themes that mirror real life. It's in a way that’s nuanced and really makes me feel really :(( - but in a good way - in a way that makes me and i'm sure many others feel seen on so many levels. Like:

(1) Hwa in chp 10 mirroring the experience of not being accepted by family as a queer person - but also, tell me if im going too deep into this - but there’s an intersection of identities that you unpack - of class identity (i.e. Hwa’s need for career security which he was leaning on his family for) converging with his family’s expectation of heteronormativity - which meant that back then, Hwa’s relationship with San couldn’t coexist with him pursuing his passion. Like that’s a very real thing for so many people and a pretty complicated thing to explore but you expressed it in a natural way that feels very validating.

And then (2) in chp 12 Woo illuminating the experience of being a minority - when he says ‘fucking alphas’ when yunho is like ‘our girl’ - like as much as I love that possessive/intense caring vibe, woo is so fucking FAIR!!! Like that entitlement (altho obvs for yungi we know it's different) is such male behavior and I’ve KNOWN that rage woo feels, that ‘ugh alphas’ feeling is one I and I’m certain many others have felt in the context of living in an IRL patriarchy and idk… the fact that you can write that experience in a way that hits that hard, succinctly with subtlety AND clarity - damn you’re so good and I hope you know you’ve done these experiences so much justice in your writing.

But anyway on another less #deep note (lol): the ‘yeah baby?’, the ‘can I put you down sweetheart?’, the searching eyes, the cautious but caring touches, the tender kisses (p.s. I died when yunho started licking her neck omg why would you do this to us) - JESUS it’s too much for me to handle but I need it like I need air so THANK YOU. Now that yungi and mc are in the very same intimate space, that very same apartment, that very same bed that yungi/mc all began, I'm on my tippy toes patiently awaiting a new and ~soft~ dynamic.

So happy to hear you’re excited about writing again and once again, AMAZING JUICE!!

-Cloud ☁️ xxx

CLOUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! your comment literally just hit me straight in the heart as always, thank you so much.

to answer/comment on some of what you said.... yes absolutely to your comments on chapter 10. i obviously don't know too much about the member's actual upbringings or family finances.... but i certainly see a particular type of small town/working class energy from san. he projects a bit of life confidence and surety that personally informs a lot of how i write him. to me it felt natural to contrast that with seonghwa here and add an extra layer of tension to their relationship. i think for san, being rejected because of money was a hard line in the sand for him..... but that's also his own prejudices and life experience at play. i'm excited to work more with them in future chapters and expand on this.

also chap 12 like..... YESSSSS - the thing that i always love about a/b/o is that you get to play with that possessiveness to the nth degree and when you fold in elements around claims and bonds it gets even crazier. yunho and mingi have this very sure feeling that reader is theirs ....and yes, that's somewhat true just like they are hers......... but that doesn't mean that she (and omegas by extension) are just property. i really wanted to write the arc with minseok so that later on when all the happy endings happen, reader's autonomy is obvious, it's clear that it's her agency and her choice. so thank you as always for catching those moments.

on your last comment.......................there is SO much more comfort yungi coming i can't even tell you. i'm a serious sucker for hurt/comfort arcs as a reader and writer, and i just seriously believe that people who go through hard things like this deserve a person who can be there and hold them like they need to be held. it's truly my favorite thing to write as a romantic bitch 😭 so yeah get ready..... yunho and mingi are shifting into patient, loving, kind, and tender mode before things get back to hot and heavy

thank you as always, your comments bring me so much joy 💗

[frogs-in3-hills]

11, 12, 18, 21 for the turtle asks! :)

my answer to the voice acting one got really long, so. oops adding a readmore

11. Favorite turtle (iteration specific)?

maaan this is a tough question. i think i’ve said before that my Top Favorite Turtle of All Time switches between all the 03 kids, but it’s usually Mikey or Raph. right now I think Raph is my favorite. His 03 characterization is so compelling, he just tugs at my heartstrings in a lot of different ways. I love that he starts at his lowest point early in the show and then we get to see him gradually learn to navigate his feelings and connect with the people around him. He's doing his best to figure out his place in the world, he feels like a very real depiction of what it's like being a neurodivergent teen (okay I know I'm projecting now but also I'm right). The sibling angst can hit a little close to home sometimes but I also look at him and think "oh that kid is gonna be okay. he's just figuring it out." Yknow??

Other incarnations that are very dear to me: ‘87 Raphael, bmvtmnt Mikey, 90s movies/07 Leo, and Rise Raph

ask game

12. Favorite turtle across all iterations?

It’s Mikey is anyone surprised. Like. That’s my funny little guy!!

I think he brings something new to the table with every incarnation. Like, the rest of the boys feel like they mostly have the same core traits across iterations, but I get the sense that most Mikeys are different from each other on a more fundamental level. They all have different ways of thinking and flaws and I find them all to be very compelling and entertaining to watch :]

Raph is a close second though! Again, who is surprised qwq

18. Did any of their voice actors really stand out to you?

Ahh omg I'm actually so glad you asked this one anon. I pay a lot of attention to the voice acting so just going in loose chronological order:

Obviously Rob Paulsen is a fucking gem who brought Raphael to life and p much singlehandedly made '12 Donnie likeable (sorry the writers did all that to you buddy). But man I don't see enough love for Barry Gordon as Donatello! He brings such a particular vibe to the character that's so endlessly endearing I just think it's funny that he's kinda the meanest one but he sounds like the littlest fucking guy ever

Michael Sinterniklaas as Leo is so fucking charming I just. Holds him gently. I like how confused he sounds all the time. I like his little laugh he does in the scene where they're playing with the hose. I like his "it's okay!" line in The Ultimate Ninja. I like that he's going for grinditude. I like him so bad ToT And Sam Riegel as Donny is wild because I think he sometimes has the weirdest line reads--not in a bad way, just like, why did you say it like that. I'm forever obsessed with him.

Rewatching 2007 movie was so wild I could barely focus with how many voices I recognized in there. Sarah Michelle Gellar as April was really fun. With Mako as Splinter okay I may as well just cry myself to sleep

Greg Cipes and Ashley Johnson characters are literally their own ship dynamic like whatever that is I don't care they invented it

The entire Rise cast is sooo good I adore every one of them the comedy just legitimately would not work without them. Not a bad line read in that whole show tbh. I'm particularly fond of Josh Brener as Donnie for that autistic-ass delivery. Also cannot stress enough how great Ayo Edebiri and Zelda Williams are too like the entire cast just has such a good vibe

21. Give one character a hug?

I MEAN. It's hard to choose they all deserve a hug!! But I am not much of a hugger and neither are a lot of the characters who need the most hugs. So I think... Rise Mikey or Alopex maybe? I think that they would give very good hugs.

[x--daughters-of-darkness--x]

Nita Strauss Says Pop Fans Don’t Gatekeep Like Rock + Metal Fans Do

Let's talk about your new record, which is a mix of instrumentals and guest vocalists. What challenges you more as a composer in terms of dynamics and song structure — vocals or no vocals?

As far as what's challenging for me, the instrumental stuff comes really easily because instrumental music for a guitar player is almost like instrumental vomit — it comes out. You can write about anything that pops into your head.

There's no restrictions on song structure — it can be 15 minutes long, it can take 50 different turns. You're not going for radio, so you're not aiming for a certain time limit or thinking about a hook or a vocalist or what the key or cadence is or if their voice is going fit or what line is going to rhyme with the following line. There's so much you have to think about when you're writing a song with a vocalist.

So, for me, the instrumental stuff is infinitely easier, but I've gotten to the point where I enjoy them equally.

Let's talk about winner takes all your new single featuring Alice Cooper, the boss. How does that relationship change when your working roles are reversed? Alice was by far the easiest person to work with. Everybody we worked with on the artist side was a joy and incredible, but Alice in particular is so easy and he's such a pro. He treated me with total respect — the same way that I do when I'm playing his songs is how he approached my songs. It was amazing to get to work with him in this totally different capacity.

I wrote some music for his upcoming record and now he's on my upcoming record. It's this whole new dynamic to a relationship that's been going on successfully for so long, so it was great.

You're going be back on the road this year with Alice after touring with Demi Lovato. You've been in Alice's band for eight years and counting. When and how did you fully appropriate those classic Alice Cooper songs as your own? The key is to always maintain your own style as a guitar player, but to also always give reverence to the classic songs. There are plenty of songs in the Alice set that I can kind of go off, go nuts and Nita-fy it a little bit.

But when people are used to hearing "Billion Dollar Babies" the same way since it was released 50 years ago, you don't want to come in and reinvent the wheel. You don't want to disrespect the original songs and sort of disrespect the fans that are used to hearing it played a certain way. For those songs, I really do try to stick very close to the original and give the respect to the original recording. Nn the newer stuff or on the shred stuff, that's when I get to go a little more nuts.

So much has happened in the last year. Touring with Demi Lovato was an opportunity for heavy music and musicianship to cross-pollinate fan bases and genders. What have you noticed most in terms of changing outdated misperceptions? It was an amazing experience working with Demi. Obviously I come from the rock/hard rock/metal world and I am so used to fans being up in arms anytime something changes.

The cool thing that I found is that Demi changed her entire style. She changed her clothing, her musical style and she reworked all her huge hits. She has a song "Cool for the Summer" that has billions of Spotify plays and she did a full-on rock version with a little Metallica thrown in there for good measure. And the fans loved it. The fans supported her and absolutely screamed their faces off until the end of the show. There was no pushback. There was no, "This is not what you're supposed to sound like. This isn't what we signed up for. We want the old Demi back..." type gatekeeping that we see in the style of music that we're more used to.

It was beautiful to be a part of this evolution. Demi was so happy on the road. You can really tell this is where she wants to be as an artist and to get to be a part of that along with such a great band — an all female band, so many women on the crew (lighting director, production assistant, wardrobe, Demi's day-to-day manager) — there are so many women in high positions on that tour as well, which was so unique.

It being a largely sober tour was huge for me too. I've been sober a long time and being in that more healthy atmosphere and environment was really nice. It was a win all around.

I love the idea that these hard rock guitar players are associated with pop acts. Extreme's Nuno Bettencourt played with Rihanna and joined her at the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

It's safe to say that hard rock has some of the best guitar players out there and I just love having that representation out there. We always feel like the underdogs in hard rock and metal. A rock guy playing at the Super Bowl is probably the closest thing we're going get to a real hard rock band playing there anyway.

In the fall Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie are touring together, joined by Ministry who have Monte Pittman (ex-Prong) and he's been playing with Madonna for years. There's so much representation now. Nuno is crushing it, even if I wish he would've gotten a solo at the Super Bowl. They could have cut a second of the pregnancy vibe and given Nuno a minute to shine.

Justin Derrico playing with Pink, Lari Basolio playing with Doja Cat... it's happening more and more. It's becoming more common and it's cool. Everybody complains all the time that there's not enough guitar in pop music and then they complain when guitar players get gigs in a more mainstream realm. I think it's a win for guitar playing all around with more people crossing over and doing these different gigs.

Not only do you perform, write and produce music, but you also teach people how to play it. What makes the fulfillment of teaching someone how to play an instrument different from anything else? It's kind of our job to pass on what we know at a certain point. Maybe I feel like that because my mom is a teacher and my dad, while not a teacher by trade, is like an educator. He is super knowledgeable and he taught me how to play.

There's a lot of young women wanting to learn how to play guitar. There's not any different way that I would teach a girl how to play guitar than a dude, but it's just important to have somebody that is relatable and easy to understand.

In my guitar course, Rock Guitar Fundamentals, I think we really landed on that. It's very easy to understand and very simple. It literally starts from, "This is a guitar, these are called strings, these are called frets, this is called a pickup and this is where you plug your guitar in," and that kind of stuff.

It goes all the way from easy through intermediate and an advanced level. If you start at the beginning and go all the way through, you will go from picking up the guitar for the first time to actually playing some pretty technical stuff.

What can you tell us about your upcoming plans? You got a lot going on for the rest of 2023. My solo record will come out in the summer, so I'm very excited about that. It's been a long time in the making with a lot of hurdles and a lot of things to learn about this process.

Before and after that, I'm very excited to get back out on the road with Alice Cooper. The new set looks incredible. I've been texting with the boys in the group chats all morning, just ironing out some parts and little things like that. It's something different than you've seen the last few years with Alice.

[this-here-is-not-singing]

1, 9, 10 and 11 for the album game! :)

Finally got around to answering these! Let's re-fill my dash with some TAD positivity after all that drama x.x 1. What song from ruin did you first fall in love with?

Hmm that's difficult because listening to the entire album was such an experience that it's hard to separate my first impressions! But when I think about it, it must have been Secret Worlds. The second Joeys voice comes in with that shout and that "Come on!" I knew this album would change me. This was also the song that I listened to the most in the first days because it hits very close to home in a positive, nostalgic way. 9. What is your favorite performance by Madeleine?

The way she sings "I tried, I really fucking tried" and "Do you like my dress it's got pockets" in The Calling. The entire song shows how much of a vocal powerhouse she is but those lines in particular show one of the main things I love about TAD: The way they put so so many emotions in their singing. The way her voice cracks around "really" gives me chills and the way she sings "Do you like my dress, it's got pockets" adds a whole new level to the line, completely changes the meaning of it. It's just incredible.

10. What is your favorite performance by Joey?

The third act of The Old Witch Sleep and the Good Man Grace. The way he sings "pretty" in "don't I look pretty curled up on this bathroom floor", the way he almost growls many of the lines? It does things to me is all I'm saying. And the way he can sing both the quiet parts and the loud, belting parts with the same amount of emotion in his voice just blows me away.

11. What’s your favorite instrumentation in the album?

The entirety of the Calling. Of course Madeleine is fucking amazing and her range and emotional way of singing are what make this song possible but for me a big part of why this is one of my favorite TAD songs is the dynamic of it all. They do this in several of their songs (many of my favorites now that I think about it) but it's most pronounced in The Calling I feel. It starts out with just a little guitar and then that low baseline comes in and then just very faint crash & snare from the drums and more guitar and then something else I can't identify when the whispers set in and it just becomes this curtain of sounds that become more intense in unison with Madeleines voice culminating when the choir sets in but it always always leaves room and for Madeleine, she is the focus and is never overpowered no matter how powerful the instrumentals become and it just gives me chills every single time.

Thank you so much for asking <3

[thousand-winters]

Alright alright alright.

The stars too, they tell of spring returning #7 & 11

I was lost for you to find #1, 2 & 4

We're all walking wounds #7, 2, 14, 15

Loving echoes (In loving memory of Emperor Belos) #1, 9, 12, 15

Yeah that’s a lot my bad. Do as many or as little as you’re comfortable with, I just really love all your stories and the dynamics between Darius, Hunter, and Eberwolf. Many characters in toh can carry their own show and these three are no exception and you did it very well. Looking forward to whatever else you put out!

Once again, I’m procrastinating enough that I might just answer everything 😂 But maybe I do need to chill a lot, so it’s probably fine. Here we go!

The stars too, they tell of spring returning

7: Where did the title come from?

Ohhhh, okay, so this one comes from the musical Spring Awakening, aka, my all time favorite. I only have this fic in the series, but this one and the sequel fic I have planned for it come from the song Those you’ve known (hence the name of the series). Give it a listen if you want! I actually have a very detailed animatic with it in my head, featuring Darius, his mentor, Hunter and a LOT of palismen. Unfortunately, I can’t draw, let alone animate, so you’re getting it in written form. 

Spring Awakening is a musical that... gets dark, ngl, but at the end of the day it’s hopeful, and that song in particular makes me think a lot about the regrets both Darius and Hunter keep, but also the knowledge that ultimately they can and will heal. 

This line hits hard: Those you’ve pained may carry that still with them. All the same, they whisper “all forgiven”.

11: What do you like best about this fic?

I’m really enjoying writing the little connections between Darius’s side of the narrative and Hunter’s! I also had been pretty hesitant about writing about the Boiling Isles because we truly don’t know at all what’s happening there, but I have ideas and I’m very happy letting them out. You are getting some theories in fanfiction form, haha. 

It’s a bit ambitious, considering I’m not used to this kind of... more action-oriented story telling, but that’s part of the fun!

.

I was lost for you to find

1: What inspired you to write the fic this way?

Truthfully? I was straight up like “I can’t write that many adoption stories without them starting to turn out repetitive”, haha. I wanted to try another angle, and I thought it would be a cute idea to do something in which Darius and Hunter could see themselves reflected in, kind of a “look how far we’ve come” thing. Plus, this way I got to feature a lot of Eber.

2: What scene did you first put down?

The visit to the jaguar! I almost never write the beginnings first, but shhhh. Specifically, the joke with the “hey, she looks like you” was one of the first things going there, and I knew that I wanted to repeat it later with Darius saying it this time, but I didn’t write that down until I actually got to that part.

4: What’s your favorite line of dialogue?

“It’s true, pup, they too are furless and need lots of nurturing.” because I think I’m really funny sometimes asjhgfhjdsg I’m a clown, but one that cheers for herself. 

.

We're all walking wounds

7: Where did the title come from?

Okay, so my titles are either straight to the point (”Home”, “Dress”) or from a song, and if it’s the latter, they’re either from a musical OR from my new favorite artist that I acquired earlier this year, haha. Lowkey, if you guess what artist is it, I would write you anything you wanted ajsgfjsdg it’s not that easy to guess especially because I messed up the line in one title 🤣

Anyway, whether I choose the title because the whole song fits or just the line fits varies. This one was a “the whole song fits” kind of deal. But I’ll give you the verse because it’s what I was thinking of specifically while writing it: 

“We’re all walking wounds

Brains and bodies are bruised

Let me take care of you.”

2: What scene did you first put down?

The scene where Hunter realizes Darius’s magic isn’t working. Because I was very excited to write that, mostly. I truly never start with the beginning, rip asjgfjdsg

14: Is there anything you wanted readers to learn from reading this fic?

As a sort of moral lesson kind of deal? I mean, not really, I’m just a humble fanfic writer 😆 But I do like spreading the “it’s okay to let others take care of you” agenda. I think it’s also nice to see that it’s not only one-sided care, Hunter cares about Darius as much as Darius cares about him. And they both need to learn to let people in. 

15: What did you learn from writing this fic?

Well, I do like to think I improve a little bit with each thing I write. That’s true for all writers, right? I feel like I have trouble with writing dialogues and with pacing, but hopefully each new thing helps to make it better!

.

Loving echoes (In loving memory of Emperor Belos)

1: What inspired you to write the fic this way?

I think something that’s not always considered is that you can still harbor affection for someone who hurt you if it was someone you loved, no matter how much you are aware that they treated you terribly and how much you want to not feel that way. The feelings don’t disappear just because you wish they weren’t there, and there’s a lot you have to come to terms with when there are “good parts” you can remember in between the mistreatment.  

Hunter genuinely cared for Belos, and with that beginning scene in Eclipse Lake, I got the impression that there were truly times in which Belos played the caring uncle role. Rare, not very long-lasting, but they were there. And that was enough to generate conflicting feelings. 

9: Were there any alternate versions of this fic?

Yes and no? I played around with the idea of making it about the previous Golden Guard, but I didn’t really have anything concrete with that idea before I settled on this one. 

One “alternative” thing I did consider was if Hunter was going to go alone to the castle or not, but it was also just an idea before I decided that no, he would be with his family. 

12: What do you like least about this fic?

*Insert principal Bump’s voice* Wow, I grossly misjudged the tone of this.

I’m just suffering a little because while the part about being able to feel affection for someone who hurt you is still true, I did not expect Belos to do something that would make Hunter start being angry at him instead of afraid. Thanks to them was... world changing ahsfghdsgfhjdgh

Aside from that, pacing. I feel like I didn’t give enough time to breath in between the reflections at the beginning and the actual scene at the castle. 

15: What did you learn from writing this fic?

I never learn anything *finger guns*. No, I don’t know... maybe that I can actually cry writing something? Because I did cry while writing some of it ajsgfjsdg

.

Thank you so much for the questions!!! It makes me really happy to know people like what I write 🥺💕 I’m currently working on the update for The stars too, they tell of spring returning and a one-shot, and I hope you’ll like them once they’re ready!!!

[audio-luddite]

Past due date.

I was doing a lap of the internoise and checked out the "Audiophiliac". He had a headline that caught my attention. It was an Item on the 1970s ARC SP3A which was restored by a shop and lent it to him. This is a model I have personal experience with. In 1975ish it was the best of the best. By today's standards not anymore. So here Mr. Guttenberg heaps praise on it.

He is proudly stating his preference for a particular sound. I assure you the SP3 is a collectable thing, like a Ford Model A. But we live in a world of actually far better cars.

His example is an SP3A. My experience is with an upgrade to that one an SP3A1. Apparently the upgrades went to SP3C. They all have soft Bass, and lets call it cloudy treble though some of the upgrades used schemes from the SP6 line. It was really good for the 1970s, no doubt. But it was surpassed.

The rest of the system he uses is a weird mix of new and retro. One power amp had a blistering 10 Watts per channel and he praises the dynamics? Nice shirt, but I think he was smoking something.

The comments below his video are interesting in that most seem to praise ARC but they are newer models like the SP6, SP9, SP11 etc. Hey I am a fan of ARC. Great build quality and all that. I have said that more than once.

His concluding remark that this proves "his idea" of buying old stuff when new and keeping it for 50 years is a justification for buying expensive gear is more than a bit off. That is his opinion. His show he can say what he wants.

Far better to shop for old stuff from a bit later, get it fixed and save lots of money. Getting them fixed or restored is key.

There are people who buy and "restore" 60 and 70 year old audio gear. I have a cousin with a 100 year old car. It is insane to think they are of the same performance as newer stuff.

And no I am not painting myself into a corner. There were significant gains in performance in audio between the 70s and the 90s. New parts and semiconductors appeared. More clever designers solved problems.

Hey I like the sounds of tubes. How many times have I said that? The preamp, however, is a very critical stage in the chain. Once done it cannot be undone. There are many "classic" preamps I will not buy or advise people to buy. Dynaco Pas 2,3 are barely functional and only match adequately to Dynaco tube amps. Add to that any tube preamp from the 60s. They were noisy and too much fuzz to forgive. And of course the SP3s. Much better out there.

My preference is to have as neutral and accurate a preamp as you can afford and get the "tube sound" in the power amplifier. That is where the biggest benefit will be found. Yes that is my opinion so there.

My ARC Cl60 is a classic high end power amplifier. It was a darling and a reference for a number of golden ears. I got mine as they are coming available as the generation who could afford them new 30 and 40 years ago are dying and they are filtering through estate sales. I got mine as I recognized its value. I am a happy customer.

My Franken-Amp is a 50 ish year old design transistor amp. But my tweaks to it are basically removing the compromises that were made to commercial production. I effectively built the lab prototype version that was too expensive to hit the company price point. It sounds really very similar to the ARC but without the fuzz. Oh yes I have a sentimental attachment as I built the mother.

My HK Citation 12 is lets call it high fidelity. It is a notch down and about 10 or 15 years older in technology. Actually I think a lot of people would have a hard time telling the differences between them.

Oh I listened to Willie Nelson's Stardust last night. That is the first time not with the ARC. Very clear and detailed. Fuzzless.

[ru5t]

repost and rate your muse's traits out of 10 in each category !

COMPASSION: 5/10. She does have sympathy -and even a lot of empathy- for others, and will help when she has enough resources of her own. She also, however, isn't always looking to see others, because it's difficult to manage all of that flooding her all the time, and will typically prioritize herself unless it is a very close, established dynamic.

BITTERNESS: 7/10. Sharply bitter little thing. Prone to sarcasm and biting remarks — and not even always because she's unhappy. She just communicates this way. (Sorry s;dfkjg;dlkfj)

HAPPINESS: 5/10. You know she really manages a shockingly upbeat outlook, a solid amount of the time? Her 'up' days are sooo up, and even her middle days tend to lean for... at least hopeful, if not so directly "happy". If things stopped happening to her to prompt negative spirals and responses, she'd be a lot steadier at it, I think. It's a little verse dependent (her canon might be more like a 4, while modern's more of a 6?) but she's found a lot worth having and is working very hard to build this up even stronger.

POLITENESS: ...0/10? I think this is just zero. Or like, 1. She does not care in the slightest for manners or the silent rules of a conversation (assuming she even remembers they're supposed to be there) and her base level isn't exactly prim and proper. She will Not pretend to like you, if she doesn't. And she is frequently intentionally disrespectful and disobedient to authority figures. Fuck you and fuck your order.

MORALITY: ?/10. Swings wildly between staunchly moral (all life has value, all people can learn, we should be working together) and shockingly ammoral (those who would hurt me are expendable, some people never learn and must be forced, I will look after only myself by any means) at uneven intervals. She is, at her core, someone who wants to be good and brave and upstanding, but she's been pushed and twisted and beaten to the brink of breaking entirely, and the lines in the sand are blurry to her. She'll compromise if she can find a convincing enough reason (e.g. something that will keep herself or a person she's prioritizing 'safer') one day, and stand firm and take the hit on another. Case by case by case: round and round and round she goes, who she'll bite, no one knows. [Chaotic Neutral. she wavers.]

PRIDE: 2/10. Does not consider herself of any particular station of importance, and has no specific image to defend. Bites, spits, cries, screams, fights dirty, sand in the eyes and all. She's got one (1) name she won't stand to be called, no matter how everyone else in the desert –even the infamous Party Poison himself– regards it, but even that is more of a trigger thing than a pride thing. She can get a little boastful about her hacking skills sometimes but almost every time she brags about something like that it immediately bites her in the ass, so. That keeps her humble.

HONESTY: 6/10. Broadly honest (...after a fashion) and typically trustworthy. She doesn't break her word lightly, or for frivolous reasons. She will absolutely start slinging around things she doesn't necessarily believe to front with someone if she gets scared, though, and her disorganized attachment will lead her to sabotage relationships with false accusations and such when she panics. She also will usually own up to having panicked if approached/confronted about it later, though, and is likely to (eventually) make amends for it in established relationships.

BRAVERY: 10/10. She's built different I would have given up a long time ago.

RECKLESSNESS: ...maybe 5/10? She's pretty impulsive, in a lot of regards, but at the same time is very aware of her surroundings and other people's capability of harm and various dangers etc. a lot of the time so it's like. There's a lot (a lot) of caution for a great many things, and at the same time she'll do these things where it's like. So so reckless and stupid. A risk taker. A flight risk.

AMBITION: ?/10. No idea what she's doing or where she's going. Generally follows her brother, or another cause/purpose that seems right to her.

LOYALTY: 8/10. She can, in really really extreme circumstance, under intense duress, be broken down into "turning" on someone (e.g. revealing information, pretending to change sides), or turning away from them because they've gone too far. But for the most part, once you're in her close circle you've got her for life. She will follow you down. She can and will commit crimes for you. (Sometimes even if you don't ask, and even if you don't want her to...)

LOVE: 9/10. What a big big terrifying thing. So full of it, somehow. So so so scared of it, deny deny deny. And then get scared of doing/having it wrong, when she finally admits its there.

SENSE OF FAMILY: 4/10. Many conflicted feelings about the concept of family. Her mother manipulated her and she didn't even realize it. Her father proved people can be dear and still hurt you. And yet her brother is the only completely reliable thing in her life. She would not describe the few people she's grown really close to as family, they are just hers. Something, which the word 'family' doesn't seem to fit or do justice.

ATTRACTIVENESS: 5/10. Smacks her in the middle of this category. It was never my intention to make an "attractive" character with her but it wasn't my intention to make her unattractive, either. She was actually really young when I initially made her up so it was really like. just not even a factor I was thinking about at all. She tends to illicit more "cute" and/or sisterly responses than anything I think, both ic and ooc.

AGILITY: 10/10. Zippiest girl alive, she's stupid fast both reaction time wise and like, sprinting, climbing, etc. It catches a lot of people off guard, even with her being built as slight as she is. Like we're talking startlingly fast. She's only ever met one (1) person who can outrun her in a direct comparison situation (where everything's fairly balanced). Much much faster than she is strong, she's really kind of lacking in in the strength department. She's also a quick problem solver, unless she's too overwhelmed to think.

SEX DRIVE: 2/10? 1 even? She's ace-spectrum, she doesn't experience sexual attraction, and her history makes her skittish. It's definitely not driving any life decisions, but she's not completely sex-repulsed and it's not entirely off the table, either. It always takes some amount of figuring out, which can be really complicated, especially if she and the other person are coming from different perspectives. Sometimes it all falls together and is almost easy. Most of the time it's very difficult and takes time and effort on both peoples' side.

[l0ve-is-an-ech0]

Most moving lines in each Enneagram Song:

One: "Ive spent my whole life searching desperately to find out grace requires nothing of me" is of course a tearjerker but "as if I could earn God's favor given time or at least congratulations" gets me too. I guess I too am desperate for approval and I'd do anything to get it, so mood.

Two: "And maybe I'll get around fixing myself too" and that AFTER the fact that "You know I'll take my heart clean apart if it helps yours beat". Is in the same song?! HOW IS THAT ALLOWED???

Three: "leave my greatest failures on display with an asterisk 'worthy of love anyway'" CRIES. The whole song is so damn sad and honest but dammit three ATE the conclusion line up out of all the songs.

Four: Four is really so galaxy brained and stuffed with metaphors and I haven't even dissected all of them yet but "Maybe I'm hiding behind metaphors maybe my heart needs to break to be sure" is very interesting, because I think it means a 4 hides behind their own artistic mask as protection and maybe they need to drop this mask for once to find out what they've been looking for even if it means getting hurt in the process. This whole song needs a 10 page poetry analysis. The word "Glorious" by itself is also sung so softly in this song in makes me cry.

Five: The songs lyrics aren't deeply vulnerable and I feel that's just the style of a five expressing their feelings. But "My Armour falls apart, as if I could let myself be seen, even deeply known. As if I was already brave enough to let go." Is still a favorite of mine. The music is also so pretty and stunning and that makes me tear up sometimes.

Six: "Is it courage or faith to show up everyday?" Hits me so hard in particular because each day always has me so worried about what could go wrong that I'd rather curl up in a blanket but I still get the energy to go through with it. "What would it feel like to put this baggage down? If I'm being honest I'm not sure I'd know how" also speaks to my soul.

Seven: Gosh the song is so vulnerable and sincere yet so optimistic about it. It's the heartfelt melody and soundesign (like the cheers and claps) that make me tear up the most but lines like "a secret handshake between me and my own life" or "I want to be here. Truly be here. To watch the ones I love bloom." also really wreck me. Sevens think in a way I could never think and they do it so easily and naturally and that's what gets me.

Eight: It's no secret by now that eight is my favorite. There's so many lines that really break my heart: "When I see fragile things. Helpless things. Broken things. I see the familiar." Or "I CANT afford to let myself be blindsided." Or "I'm just a kid who grew up scared enough to hold the door shut and bury my innocence." DUDE. The instrumentation of this song also really gets me. It's so dynamic, raw and emotional.

Nine: "wake up, fall in love AGAIN" or "wage war on gravity theres so much worth fighting for youll see" or "How do I forgive myself for losing so much time?". It's like the experience of wanting to stop existing and start living. This song, after having listened to the album in full has be sobbing into my pillow sometimes.

[thebandcampdiaries]

Mou5EmO is back with a one-of-a-kind  piece of music titled "Lonely Drive" (Featuring Mou5ZyZZ)

May 2023 - Mou5EmO is an artist with a focus on creating music that sets the bar higher in terms of genre variety and compositional creativity. The pulsating beats and hypnotic rhythms will undoubtedly transport the audience to another world, where people can lose themselves in the music and dance the night away. This song has a distinctive psychedelic quality, with trippy sound effects and swirling synths that add to the otherworldly atmosphere, perfectly resembling the mood of driving alone, perhaps at night, with nothing but the road, the faraway lights of the city, and the music blasting out of the speakers.

"Lonely Drive" is energetic and uplifting, but there is still a very immersive, very ethereal side to the arrangement. The sound of this track is characterized by its fast tempo and driving bass line. In addition to the driving beat, the song offers soaring melodies and ethereal pads that add so much texture and atmosphere to contrast the speed and intensity of the groove. The pulsing bassline and intricate percussion create a very strong yet surprisingly mesmerizing groove.

The big sawtooth-style synth leads, in particular, soar through the instruments beautifully, establishing themselves as the leading component in the mix bit without overpowering the rest of the song. At the same time, the instrumental is also very balanced, showcasing some incredibly dynamic parts and a melodic backdrop that really adds more ambiance and personality to this track overall. The composition consists of many layers of electronic sounds and captivating melodies that are strikingly cinematic. This makes for a very rich and dynamic sonic landscape. 

There's something undeniably liberating about taking a solo drive. The open road spreads out ahead of you, offering a sense of freedom and possibility that's hard to find anywhere else. As you leave your worries behind and hit the gas, it's like shedding the weight of the world and embracing the present moment. Of course, driving alone isn't just a physical act - it's also a powerful metaphor for leaving behind the things that hold us back. Whether it's a toxic relationship, a dead-end job, or just the weight of our own anxieties, sometimes we need to step away from it all and just breathe. This powerful song actually captures the feeling of absolute perfection! "Lonely Drive" will hopefully leave the audience feeling inspired and invigorated because it packs so much punch and a lot of fantastic energy.

To add to that, the collaboration with Mou5ZyZZ is also really spot-on, as it actually feels like a perfect match with the overall mood of this track. In addition, there is something mysterious at play here, as Mou5ZyZZ might or might not be Mou5EmO's trance alter-ego! Maintaining two different musical identities can be overwhelming: When you have a musical alter ego, it means that you have two different musical identities to uphold, so the idea of creating a collaboration with the alter-ego project is nothing short of genius! It really shows all the hard work, dedication, and talent that drives the artist's endeavors. "Lonely Drive" is indeed an amazing example of everything will fall into place when artists like Mou5EmO (and his Mou5ZyZZ) alter-ego put complete trust in the creative process of the production and simply let the music flow out of the soul tap in a very spontaneous and creative way.

In conclusion, "Lonely Drive" is a truly outstanding piece of music that should definitely be right up your alley if you do enjoy the work of artists such as Ghost Rider, Ranjii, and Astrix, only to mention a few. This track is really all about creating a high-energy and immersive experience for the listener. Whether you're dancing at a music festival or just listening at home, this "Lonely Drive" is going to take you on a journey you'll never forget!

Find out more about Mou5EmO, and do not miss out on "Lonely Drive." This release is now available on Spotify and many of the best digital music streaming services.

https://open.spotify.com/track/6VJ5DA0sXotKWn7Ea1uCqw?si=842ffac0a7434c66

https://instagram.com/mou5emomusic

https://instagram.com/mou5zyzz

We also had the chance to catch up with the artist for a full-on interview! Keep reading to learn more!

I love how you manage to render your tracks so personal and organic. Does the melody come first? Answer: YES! THE MELODY USUALLY COMES FIRST WHEN I START TO CREATE A NEW SOUND. I HEAR THE SOUNDS IN MY MIND FIRST. THEN I START TO LAY OUT INSTRUMENTS AND BUILD MY TRACKS IN MY STUDIOS. Do you perform live? If so, do you feel more comfortable on a stage or within the walls of the recording studio? Answer: I PERFORM LIVE WHENEVER A CLUB OR FESTIVAL HIRES ME. I LOVE PLAYING LIVE HONESTLY. ITS ONE OF THE BEST NATURAL HIGHS BEING ON STAGE PERFORMING FOR FANS. If you could only pick one song to make a “first impression,” which would it be and why? Answer: I LOVE "🎵 Mou5EmO & Mou5ZyZZ - DOCTOR" BECAUSE OF ITS MELODIC SOUND AND VIBE. "WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE HAPPY". What does it take to be “innovative” in music? Answer: HAVING AN OPEN MIND TO FORSURE. I HAVE "ADHD" SO MY MIND IS ALWAYS CREATING VERY INTRICATE SOUNDS AND IDEAS, WITH MULTIPLE LAYERS. Do you have any upcoming release or tour coming up? Answer: I AM NOT CURRENTLY TOURING, BUT I GET SMALL GIGS EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, LIKE "UNGROUNDED SHOWS". ALSO NEW MUSIC ALWAYS COMING AND MY NEXT TRACK WILL BE "🎵 Mou5EmO & Mou5ZyZZ- TAKE ME OR LEAVE ME". What is the best way for fans to connect with you online? Answer: FANS SEND ME EMAILS ALL THE TIME TO MY EMAIL @ mou5zyzz@gmail.com YOU CAN ALSO REACH MY ON MY INSTAGRAM OR LINKTR.EE