#thanks for the lovely vamp lad :D

[syntheticmortal]

I got tagged by the lovely @crownedinmarigolds! Thank you so much mate!! I'm absolutely charmed 🥰

Now my rat bastard spouse stole most of my tagging options on their post so to not double-tag I will add:

@skaerdir, @klaciate, @tzimizce and @vamp-orwave!!

If anyone who sees this wants to be an honourary tagee, then go for it XD

For those who don't know - Hi I am Alex! (He/They) and I'm a writer and an English immigrant to the USA!

3 ships: oh mate all of these are OCxOC with @c-n-i-d-a-r-i-a-n

Victor and Gloria – A Nos and his unbound Ghoulfriend. Making your touchstone one of your mission Ghouls is dangerous af but live fast love hard, lads.

Jeff and Lamb – Another of Vic's unbound Ghouls and the Thin Blood Nos that joined the Warren. Disgustingly fucking cute injected into the den of the rejected and disgruntled.

Ventan/Taakur Rig and Rozanin Rig – My and Daz's SWTOR PCs respectively. A Chiss Cipher Agent that ends up having to go hide with his Mandalorian hireling with her Clan and Roz's unrequited love becomes hella requited and suddenly Ventan/Cipher Five-now-Taakur has step kids??

I love it so much.

first ship: Oh god this takes me back to being little. Probably a Sonic one??

Shadow and Rouge if I had to take a guess??

last song: Temptation by Sean Paul! A proper bop

But honestly massive shout out to the second Nostalgia Synthwave mix by Odysseus on youtube

This thing keeps me sane, and has all the songs marked! – that opening one, Realign by Cerulean, can usually just melt my brain into peace whenever I hear it

last film: Snatch – Like VTMB it's a problematic fave that oozes style and characterisation throughout. Watched it as prep for a Setite I'm going to play in a V5 game >:D

currently reading: Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan as part of genre research. Finished The Vampyre recently too! Really I should pick AC up today, I've been working hard on my editing and outlining of my own pieces and neglecting the reading part of the craft for a few weeks >.>;

currently craving: So I'm drinking far less booze to save money whilst I'm out of work trying to get some Proper Writing done. So when I hit a good worthy milestone I'm getting a bottle of whiskey and I am ready.

fav color: Green! Sometimes purple!

relationship status: Maaarriiied to @c-n-i-d-a-r-i-a-n

last google search: I had to double check the spelling of Taakur for the ship section, so it was 'mandoa' :')

and before that I'm pretty use I searched Scryfall last night to go look at MTG cards even though I have no one to play with right now :'D (at least it's saving me money >.>)

current obsessions: Was tempted to add my own work here but I'll tag that on the very end XD

There's a lot of fandoms I don't leave – World of Darkness and Warhammer 40k predominantly as settings I always have another angle I want to see explored in!

I do however have the Magic the Gathering bug, even though I haven't really played in years and years now – but card interaction as a generation for narrative has always kind of captivated me? Like there's a couple big mean Ogre cards that make Rats more dangerous, but due to the way the systems work they also empower the Ratfolk of Kamigawa, the Nezumi, as they count as 'Rat' cards still. So big Ogre spellcasters improving Rat people as part of a contained bit of narrative kind of fascinates me as a concept.

Plus each deck presupposes a Planeswalker character who's casting those spells – and I was always intrigued by that notion and so most of my OCs are representative of decks I played (or wanted to :P) and then in turn each Planeswalker needs a Plane to come from, probably from a still existing culture on that Plane too, and so it can kind of wonderfully reverberate inspiration.

Like how every VTM Kindred OC presupposes a Sire!

BONUS ALEX SECTION

So if you want to get to know me, let me tell you about what writing I'm working on/have made recently.

Out now!

The Mutilation of Finley Reid

A short story of masculine horror, about a young man by the name of Finley who suffers in the pursuit of having his place as a man affirmed by his peers.

The world of Torranham Nights is an anachronistic reflection of England set in the coastal city state of Torranham, drawing from contemporary culture and folklore as well as the legends and reality of the cultures that came before – without being fetishistic about it like a lot of stories will.

Handle It

A short retail horror, about working the cash register of a butcher's counter, and the customer who orders increasing amounts of ground beef...

Inspired by my own work in a same spot, anyone who's done service work should get a kick out of this – plus it's free and only takes 20 minutes to read! XD

On the way!

Defector – name subject to change

A short story of grief, shame, suicidal ideation, alcoholism, and community. On the moon.

A Special Recon mech pilot, “Crash”, from Earth has defected to the Moon rebels, and now lives in Magnolia City, rotting away in her tiny apartment. Then the Provisional Government sends one of its elite commanders, a former enemy of Crash's, to pull her out.

Elhart: Arrival

The first of a short story fantasy anthology about a city of refugees at the edge of time and space, hiding from the end of the multi-planar universe. A super soldier has washed up with a near-fatal headwound and no memory, and she must learn to live in a far more peaceful world than the one her instincts suggest she came from. But who was she? And can she earn the trust of people who fear her potential to kill?

Neon Sun

A novel! Cyberpunk Vampires! If we're mutuals you can come ask about this but I'm not ready to share things too publicly for this one yet, but the outlining has gone beautifully in my opinion, and the worldbuilding is singing.

Speartip

I'm making a TTRPG!! It's a Powered by the Apocalypse engine game, about serving as the primary field agents of a faction of people who need your support and protection. Because if you're going to be a hero, who are you doing it for if not your kin?

Setting agnostic as hell, excluding some implicit need for magic in the class moves – I'm prepping to playtest this in sci-fi and fantasy settings to see how well my mechanics hold up in both swords and firearms based stories. Plus I'm going to explore a variety of perspectives of what the faction can be – from ethnic groups, to gangs, to guilds, to neighbourhoods.

I'm VERY excited about all this!!

[albatris]

Can you tell us about Nat 🥺 I’ve had him for like two minutes but I love him! Happy Blorbo Blursday!

Happy Blorbo Blursday! thank you so much for the ask.....!!

absolutely I can tell you about Nat :D I'm glad you like him!!

Nathaniel Felix Finch! he's a good boy, sweet boy! he's the deeply unfortunate protagonist of our deeply unfortunate horror story, A Rental Car Takes a Left Down Rake Street and Disappears! although the narration swaps pretty evenly between Nat and Quinn, Nat is definitely the main character of this silly little tale, much to his disdain :))

he's 25 years old and currently works night shifts at dodgy petrol station chain Stop 'N' Go, where he is prone to falling asleep on the register and randomly getting pizza delivered mid-shift! he lives in a tiny shitty apartment a few suburbs over with his cat Grub, ugliest cat in the known universe (affectionate) (he will cry if he hears anyone call her that). he's a bit of a hermit at the story's start, prone to intense social anxiety and paranoia...... he doesn't go out if he can avoid it and doesn't really have any friends, though he's on cheerful terms with his two elderly neighbours, Mr and Mrs Larson, who he helps out with errands and often cooks for :3

chapter one kicks off when he wakes up in his rental car on the side of the road covered in dirt with no memory of the past nine days. concerning! after spending the following week in agony and coughing up blood and almost passing out in public and being hungry all the time and having weird new allergic reactions to stuff and existing in constant sensory overload, Nat commits a brutal petrol station murder and eats a guy and is like Ah Fuck Apparently I'm A Vampire Somehow, Also I Just Ripped Someone's Throat Open And Drank Their Blood, I'm Going To Have A Panic Attack Now

he is scooped out of mortal peril by shifty fucking bastard with a mile long list of ulterior motives perfectly ordinary kind selfless human person Quinn Cooper, and a bonkers plot ensues <3

so ye, Nat is a brand new baby vamp trying to figure out the mystery of what happened to him during his nine-day black out that resulted in, uh..... All Of This. and quickly winds up in a plot that has him and a ragtag gang of unhinged bastards, human and vampire alike, plotting to murder the centre of the giant monstrous vampire hivemind all vampires are linked into, known as The Garble

Nat is........ yeah. like I said, good boy, sweet boy. despite the inevitably violent nature of vampirism, he does his best to be kind and fair, with varying degrees of success. though prone to bouts of paranoia and depression and a pessimist through and through, he does believe that people have the capacity to be good and he wants to do good in the world :3 he struggles with figuring out How to do good in the world, when he rarely feels like his actions have an impact and it's easy for him to slide into listlessness and apathy about life. with the added horror of "now you need to straight up eat people to live", he has a doozy of an existential crisis to work through

he's a bit of a doormat sometimes, and though he always pretended to be fine with his solitary lifestyle and loneliness, he desperately wants connection and friendship. he's prone to letting people take advantage of him or manipulate him purely because at least that way he feels "useful", and they're more likely to keep him around...... he improves a lot on this front, though, so don't fret! we get to see the lad's self esteem improve tenfold <3

he initially doesn't really like himself that much, but the story gets to see him come into his own and find his values and worth....! he's an extremely kindhearted, intelligent, loving person, it just takes him a while to realise :D

and hmmm

once he gets past his anxiety towards other people and his awkwardness, he's extremely affectionate! he adores his friends and loves to cuddle with them and compliment them and help them out wherever he can :D he's very loyal, peppy and cheerful towards his loved ones, and whenever anyone expresses that they consider him a friend he gets v excited and bouncy like a happy golden retriever hahaha

but yes, he's anxious and shy at first around people, not so great with social cues.... HOWEVER he's also an excellent cook and particularly likes cooking for other people and sharing meals as a form of connection and bonding :3 so, often the first thing he does when he decides someone is Friend Material is to find an opportunity to cook for them. it's his go-to method of showing affection!!

he can be a bit of a drama queen, especially when it comes to Quinn, because he figures out Quinn has a weak spot called "if Nat looks as sad and pathetic and dejected as possible, Quinn will just melt and do whatever he wants". so yes, he's not above dramatically playing up being so so sad and devastated to guilt trip people lmao. Quinn is not immune to sad puppy dog eyes vampires

other Nat facts...... he loves animals! he regularly donates to wildlife charities despite not having that much money to begin with, and volunteers at various shelters looking after the cats :3 he's been a vegetarian since he was 17, and still considers himself one despite the fact that he's now an entire vampire who preys on humans. so yeah, you get like..... bits in the story where Nat drains some guy like a fuckin capri sun then the next day is like "no I can't come to check out the new Korean BBQ place with you Quinn I'm a vegetarian :((( you'll have to take someone else :((("

his moral compass can be described as like...... the vibe of someone robbing a bank at gunpoint and violently stealing a getaway vehicle..... then following all the road rules and speed limits perfectly and making sure to pay for parking and display the ticket properly when they ditch the car

it becomes clear as the story goes on that he's not exactly an ordinary vampire, and that however he got turned was NOT the usual method.... he's able to access a lot more of the Garble's life force than other vamps, which left unchecked can result in an overload of power affectionately referred to as Monster Mode Nat :P

a big ol' body horror vampire creecher, violent and aggressive and jumpy, out of control. usually it's state of intense fear for him, something that occurs when he's in very dire straits, when he or his friends are threatened, etc etc. a Nat too far in Protector Mode, basically, but that can easily become dangerous even for the people he's meant to be defending. he is still able to recognise Friends, though it takes him more effort, but struggles to make sense of unfamiliar humans or vampires as anything other than resources, food or threats

going Monster Mode and returning to a humanoid state from Monster Mode, both of these are intensely painful experiences as the body kind of snaps back into shapes and your bones readjust and your flesh melds back together. usually a lot of writhing and screaming involved

as far as regular vampire Nat in the day-to-day goes, he's prone to all the usual vampire instincts. so, yes, he's got extra anxiety and paranoia and jumpiness, he's got that usual insatiable insufferable vampire curiosity, he loves to bask and be cosy and snuggle with friends. he can purr and it's extremely cute. he has a moderate to severe allergic reaction to sunlight though it won't kill him immediately, he struggles with garlic much to his despair as a cook, n he has an extremely high prey drive that he has to work very hard to manage

the Garble in the bloodstream is something that tends to "kick in" and trigger vampiric traits like increased strength, heightened senses, fangs and claws When Needed, so there's often a lot of fluctuation between Nat being more visibly and Obviously vampiric, or leaning more towards appearing and acting human. it can depend on level of hunger, level of anxiety, presence of a threat, etc..... or sometimes it just Happens!

a more human Nat is a fairly placid, lazy Nat, a low-energy and easy-going Nat, whereas a more vampire Nat tends to have a lot of energy and excitability, though it may manifest as anxiety. under threat or if he's hunting, it makes him vicious and powerful and intensely alert. if he's just chillin, then it usually just puts him in high-energy silly mode, the vampire equivalent of a pet getting the zoomies lol

anyway. this was a lot of Words. I apologise for so many Words. thank you for coming to my ted talk, I hope you have a lovely day~ :D

[queen-peck-neck]

Sweetie, Lets Ride: Chapter 2: The Studio

Soo I finished chapter two today! :D

I hope you all enjoy!

Chap 1 / Chap 2 [You’re here] / ?

The fic is under read more!

Summary: Hat kid and Lady winter enter the studio. To see dj grooves and the conductor working hard on the film. Of course will the vampire lass get the role? 

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

The child and the vampire woman entered the studio. Immediately cool air from the ac hit them, the atmosphere was well it’s not really tense but everyone seemed to be quite busy. 

“Stay here!” hat kid said to lady winter as she walks over to the receptionist. Of course the vampire woman complied as she waited for hat kid to finish talking to the receptionist. The lass didn’t mind this gave her some time to look around. After all, it's been a while since the lass has actually been to the studio. Lady winter was quite busy at home taking care of the little ones and at work trying to tend the bar so she hasn’t really been able to stop by the studio. She glances up at the posters, impressed with how well made they are. Winter recognized a few of them such as “Murder on the Owl Express” and “Train Rush”. 

“He’s always works so hard on his movies, I wonder if he’s going to do the same for this collab film ...oh what am I saying of course he  will, he always does” lady winter thought to herself letting out a quiet little chuckle. She then looks over at the other side of the studio to which she assumes it’s dj groove’s side. The posters are also big and well made like the posters on her husband's side. She did recognize one of the films, “The Big Parade” is what the poster said. Like the other posters it has her little hat niece on there as well. The lady may not have seen the film herself but hat kid was telling her all about it and how much fun she was having. Talking about all the colorful confetti all around her, shiny disco balls, and the fun music. The only complaint the child told her was the whole fireworks ordeal and the fact the owl band would sometimes get in her way. 

Before the lass can form another thought she heard a loud bang throughout the studio. This made her jump and clutch her umbrella yet again then she turns her head in the direction of the noise.

“I TOLD YE, HE AIN’T A GOOD ACTORRR YE BAFOON!!” the owl shouted 

“You think I don't know that darling? Where can we find our lead actor at a time like this?! We don’t have a lot of options.” the flashy penguin sighed. 

The hatted child skips right over to the two directors, with a smile on her face she greeted them with a simple “Hiya!” 

This caught the directors attention. 

“Ah hello lassie” 

“Darling!! How are you? It’s been a while!” 

The child only giggled “I’m good! But I brought a friend with me today!” 

Conductor’s feathers on his head perked up while Dj Grooves raises an eyebrow. They were kinda curious on who this friend hat kid was talking about. It’s not often hat kid brings a friend along other then bow kid. 

“Who is this err friend of yours darling?” the penguin asked. Hat kids eyes only light up when she points at lady winter. The two directors looks and much to their surprise it’s the bartender of shady hallow. 

“OH!! LASSIE!!” conductor exclaimed with a smile on his face. Dj grooves was quite shocked seeing her around. He is aware conductor has a wife but he never saw her around himself, mostly because she avoids him but grooves didn’t know that. 

“Soo this is the wife you ramble about darling?” he asked the conductor. Of course the owl lad fluffs up and blushes lightly. 

“O-of course it is peck neck!!” he stammered, looking away. 

Oh dj grooves is so going to enjoy teasing the conductor about this. While the two were talking Lady winter walks over to them, standing next to the conductor’s side. 

“Well hello to you to!” she cooed. Then she waves at the others with a warm smile. 

Conductor looks up at her, “So uhhh what are ye doin’ here lassie? Did the hat lass drag ye along again?” he asks.

Lady winter only giggles a bit “Well I guess you can say that, Though it was willingly. I am quite curious about this new collab film you’re working on!” 

Of course the collab film, the directors almost forgot, Hat kid was looking at everyone. 

Dj grooves sighed, “Yes the collab film...We aren’t even sure if we are going to be able to do it if we don’t find ourselves an actor…” 

“Aye yes...We can’t seem tae find ourselves and actor for tae lead role, I mean we are tryin’ but all tae actors we got tae work with are so darn useless” conductor added.

Lady winter was of course concerned, but of course the movie making business was never the easiest thing around. It always has some sort of challenge to deal with. 

“I’m guessin’ you’re all struggling trying to find someone for the lead role huh..” lady winter said softly. The directors nod not really sure what to say. It looks like they seem to be a little embarrassed. They never really had an issue like this before and they might get desperate if this keeps up. Meanwhile hat kid was listening in on the conversation, thinking about what she can do to help her friends. The child didn’t like seeing her friends upset even though one of them did try to kill her for the time piece. But she forgives them, The time pieces can mess up one's morals. Anyway the time pieces isn’t the child's concern right now. But that’s when an idea hit her. Conductor notices the expression on her face. 

“Aye wot is it lass?” he asks.

Oh hat kid was so delighted that he asked “Why don’t you have Miss winter play a role in your film! She acted in your films before so why can’t she help in this film!?” she said with excitement in her voice.

Lady winter’s ears perk up, as her eyes widen a bit. She was shocked that the child suggested that, her?! Play a role in the collab film? It’s not that she minds but she’s so used to working in some of the conductor’s movies, she isn’t quite sure what dj grooves would be like. 

“Me?” she asked with confusion in her voice, she knew conductor wanted her to play a part in this film but she assumed it was a smaller part not the lead role. 

The directors looked at each other for a moment. Silence was in the room for a few moments until conductor broke the silence by saying “I think it’ll be a grreat idea! Me dear rose has played some roles in me movies before! I can’t see why she ca-” he couldn’t finish his thought before dj grooves cut him off

“Darling, It’s a great idea and all but how do we know she’ll actually do well? No offense darling but I haven’t worked with her before.” 

Lady winter understood why he would think that. “Well, I don’t blame you for feelin’ that way mr. grooves but, I’ll make sure I won’t be difficult to work with. Honest!” the lass added. 

Conductor was trying his best to hold his tongue, he didn’t want to explode in anger in front of his wife. How dare grooves assume that she wouldn’t do well?! But he soon calmed down seeing lady winter is talking in the calm voice she has. 

Dj grooves felt a little bad for assuming such a thing but can you blame him? He’s never worked with her, maybe he’ll give her a chance after all everyone deserves a chance, don't they?

“Oh darling I didn’t mean to make you think like that...But hmm before I’ll consider having you the lead role, perhaps can you read a line from a script we have? Think of this as a test.”

A test? Well reading from a script shouldn’t be to hard right?

Lady winter only nodded in response. 

“Aye don’t be testin’ her! Ye peck neck” conductor snapped 

The vampire lass places her hand on his shoulder, “Dear it’s alright I promise, it’s not that big of a deal” she spoke softly. This made conductor calm down a little bit, of course, he still didn’t like the idea of dj peck neck testing her. While this was all going down a moon penguin handed dj grooves the script for the movie. 

“Well here it is darling” the penguin said while handing the vampire the movie script. “Just read a line from there and we should be good.” he added. 

Lady winter understood, If it gets him to trust her even a little bit then so be it. The vampire’s eyes glanced at the script, she spots the title of the movie. “Sweetie, Let's Ride” it was called. Well it sounded interesting and made her curious on what the movie was about. But the lass is sure she will figure that out later.

While reading over the lines she clears her throat “In all the world you'll never find a love as true as mine!~" she said, her voice filled with emotion as if she were saying that to her own lover. 

Dj grooves was shocked over how well she said, “Darling, darling that was spectacular!!!” he said enthusiastically. Conductor seemed a little smug and prideful, after all his lover did just prove dj grooves that she is able to act. 

Hat kid clapped and giggled with glee, Lady winter felt good knowing she did well. She doesn’t often feel confident in herself so she was quite happy over everyone who seemed to enjoy her short performance. 

“Oh gosh thank you” lady winter said. “Well you’re perfect for the lead role darling! How about you come back next week to start working on the film, in the meantime you can read your lines and memorize them.” DJ grooves said to the vamp. She only nodded in acknowledgement. I mean it would make sense for her to practice those lines. The lass is going to need all the practice in the world. Hat kid wasn’t sure what to say, she was really happy for her auntie to get the part of the film. So she walks right over next to her. 

“Congrats on getting the part, i’m sure you’re going to do great!!” hat kid spoke cheerfully. Lady winter chuckled and smiled again gently patting the top of her hat.

Conductor realized something, he cleared his throat to get lady winter’s attention.

The vampire lass looks at him “yes dear?” 

“Sorry tae ruin tae moment lassie but err do ye know how to play the violin? It’s wot tae hero uses as a sorta weapon...it’s a musical western heh.” he said nervously 

Lady winter shook her head “No but uhh...I know someone who can teach me, perhaps I can have him help me while I practice my lines.” the lass responded.

Conductor’s face lit up and was relieved that she knew someone who can help her. “Oh that would be wonderful lassie!!”

“Uhh we should probably check on the owls and penguins darling...and inform them on the news” dj grooves looked at conductor. The old owl only nodded then he got up on his tiptoes just to smooch his wife on the cheek. 

“Aye lass sorry to cut this short but I must get goin’” 

Lady winter giggled then returned the smooch right onto his beak “no you’re fine dear, just take care of yourself for me alright?” he nodded with a smile on his face, the blush is back on his cheeks after she gave him a smooch. Dj grooves already started walking back to the other room and when conductor noticed he was leaving without him. He ran to catch up to the flashy penguin. 

“HEY WAIT UP WILL YE?!” he shouted. 

Hat kid only shook her head and headed over to the studio doors to leave, Lady winter following closely behind her.

“Sooo who is this person who is going to teach you the violin?” the child asked out of curiosity. 

“Hm? Oh none other than my dear twin seth.” the vamp responded.

The two left the studio, although the child isn’t too sure on who seth is seeing she only heard about him, she is excited to see this twin her auntie mentions from time to time. Hopefully he can help them out with the new film, they only have a few weeks to prepare while the studio sets up the scenes and make the props.

They can just hope right? It’s never an easy thing to learn an instrument in such a short amount of time.

[thevampsupdate]

The Vamps for 1883 Magazine

Are you aware of chart-topping sensations, The Vamps? With two albums already under their belts and multiple singles soaring through the top 40 charts worldwide, it’s safe to say these boys have earned their success.

Two years on from their last album release, the band have returned with a number one album Night and Day, smoothly dethroning Mr Sheeran to snatch pole position in the process.

I know what many of you oblivious to the band must be thinking, (unless you are one of the many enthusiastic Vampettes’ out there). These guys look like a knock off “One D”, or maybe even The Wanted. Yet, these lads aren’t just another cliché pop group following the boy band road to stardom. They, unlike many, write and co-write their own music. In my eyes this proves their musical ability is beyond just hitting the right notes. James, aged just seventeen at the time, approached other members, finding one another through their respected YouTube channels.

Ahead of dashing off to Camden for an MTV interview, we managed to nab some time with the fresh-faced group amidst their world tour, for which Brazil beckons next in the schedule, just a few days away.

Their now daily routine of performing to thousands around the world — with female teens being a familiar sight amongst the crowds — was completely out of their minds as the boys joked around, relaxing into the shoot at the Chapel of St Barnabas House in Soho; an unlikely location for the group, however the stained-glass windows make a damn good back drop.

You guys are in the middle of your world tour. How’s it been so far?

James: This venues’ been a bit dead … (the boys snigger in agreement) Actually, a week today we fly to Brazil. We did the UK and Europe in April, May and June. We’ve been in some summer shows but The Vamps tour has mostly been put on hold for a couple of months, but we start again on Monday. I think we’ve probably forgotten all the songs so we might need to have a little recap before we go… but yeah, it’s been going really well thanks.

You said you’re off to Brazil next, which country is your all round favourite to perform in?

Bradley: Australia’s really nice, our days off are really great in Australia. Tristan: Canada’s good, really fun. Connor: Norway? James: I think everywhere’s really good!

Is there a country that stands out as having the best crowd?

Bradley: The Philippines and Brazil, those are the two ones that are crazy. 

James: India was quite good as well.

Congratulations on your new album Night and Day reaching Number 1! You pushed Ed Sheeran off the top spot too, that’s a pretty good way to get in there…

James: Thanks! Bradley: Yeah, well he was back there the week after!

The album is released in 2 parts: Night Edition and Day edition, what’s the story behind the 2-part release?

Bradley: Usually we write a big batch of songs before each album. We’ll have like forty, fifty songs and you’ve got to cut that down to a fifteen-song album. So, this way we get to release more music. There’s a concept to the night and day: “the night” is a bit more sultry and moody whereas “the day” is a more upbeat and sunny. We were originally going to release the day" part in December before realising that would be a bit weird, so we’re releasing that next summer. It will be a summer album.

This album is your first to reach Number I why do you think this?

James: This album has been the most honest and the one we’ve taken the longest time on, eighteen months as opposed to just under a year. So yeah, I think this album has had the most effort put upon it and I think that can be heard and appreciated. We did some album promotion, we did a fan rally tour, an acoustic thing where we played the whole album before it was released in its entirety. I think hopefully fans are just really excited to hear what is our favourite album. Well, hopefully it’s our best album!

You guys all write and co-write all of your music, do you guys think that this is something that makes you stand out against other boy bands?

Bradley: Maybe. I think there’s a lot of songwriters in the industry and a lot of them go unnoticed. The ability to write a good song is the important thing. We try to pride ourselves on songwriting and that’s what we’ve done from day one. Hopefully we’ll just continue to get better and better.

Did you write your own music when you were younger?

James: Yeah, we were all in bands before The Vamps. I think Tristan was the youngest starting, but we were all in bands sort of from ages eleven, twelve. I think throughout that time we developed the song writing side of things, We started off playing a few chords and then we got more into watching bands on TV and seeing bands live and realised that song writing was really important for us. It’s what we’ve done for the last ten to fifteen years. 

The Vamps were formed through YouTube. How did this happen?

Bradley: We were all kind of doing own thing and then James found me on YouTube and we met up and went to my house for the weekend. We started writing some songs and it was the first thing we kind of bonded over. I’d never co-wrote with anyone before and James was the first person I connected with on a songwriting level. So that’s when we knew we’d found something quite cool, quite special. Then we found Tristan on YouTube and saw him when he was doing a drumming competition, we formed the band, got signed and then we found Connor a couple of months later again through YouTube. It all just kind came together from there.

How has your music changed from the beginning?

Bradley: As a band we have always wanted to challenge ourselves. It’s interesting to see popular music, popular culture and how we can approach it, put our stamp on it and make it sound ‘Vampsie’. So there are always challenges, taking new, exciting things and putting our twist on them. That’s what we’ve tried to do with each album. Hopefully that’s why this album is the best because it feels so authentic but also very current.

What’s part of ‘band life’ do you enjoy the most? Being in the studio, touring, stage life…?

James: Studio Bradley: We’re all a bit different James: We go through cycles, well not so much anymore. Certainly, at the start we spent a lot more time making the first album rather than touring, but now it all kind of happens all at once. There is a feeling now that after we’ve finished the tour and we’ve been writing for four months we want to get back out on the road again. The nice thing about the industry and the technology now is that we can make music whilst we’re touring, so we never get bored of doing one thing, it’s nice to do it all at the same time. Yet there’s something nice about being in the studio and seeing how a song develops, through to it becoming a single.

How do you guys stay entertained whilst on tour?

Bradley: We’re building up to the shows on show days and then days off we make sure we’ve got cool stuff planned. Sometimes we’ll hire a boat. James: Like when we went fishing and didn’t catch a single fish … Bradley: Little things like that keeps things interesting.

I hear you guys also have your tapping ritual before stage - where you tap your chins.

Bradley: Yeah, it’s a bit weird. Who came up with that? Tristan: Well we couldn’t do the hands in (eeeh lets go’ sort of thing, so not sure how but we somehow came up with that instead.

You recently presented the 47 show for Radio 1 at V fest, how was Presenting for a change?

James: It was really good but we actually had a lot of technical issues so we had to hold our mic packs in the air as we spoke throughout the whole thing, but it was really cool! It was also chucking it down with rain It was nice to see it from that point of view because we always see people go around festivals with mics interviewing people. We interviewed James Arthur and Ella Eyre and just had fun for three hours basically!

Do you hang around at festivals after you’ve played? Who have you enjoyed the most?

Tristan: I saw Pink the other day she was cool. Usually artists get access to go on stage whenever they want to so in India we went up to see Jay Z and then Coldplay were playing after. We were playing before those two acts so we just stayed on after which was pretty cool.

What are your favourite festivals to play at?

Bradley: V was a first for us this, that was really really cool. Isle of Wight we’ve played at a couple of times that we loved.

Do you have any particular artists you want to collaborate with?

Connor: We have loads of different ones. I’m really into James Blunts’ new album. Weirdly he was part of the writing process for one of our old songs, but we never got to meet him. His music’s sick so I personally would love to work with him. He’s done some stuff with Ed Sheeran, so it would be good to get something going like that.

So, as we come to the end of this interview we’ll finish off with your favourite sock?

All: Sock? (in unison)

Yeah

Tristan: I’m rocking the Nike’s at the moment, they’re like ankle socks cause you don’t want them too long and showing above your trainer but then you don’t want any rubbing or for them come off. What about you?

I’m just wearing some black ankle socks. I don’t want them rubbing either, but they do fall down a bit which is annoying.

Bradley: I’ve got like some peppered grey, woollen ones. They go quite high, down below it’s a seventy-year-old man look and then above is more a twelve-year-old boy. Connor: I usually just go for black but today me and James are copying each other.

The Vamps new single Personal is out now.

Interview by Miranda Bunn  Photographer: Joupin Ghamsari Grooming: Chantelle Philips Video: Logan Irvine-Macdougall Location: House of St Barnabas, Soho

[happymetalgeek]

STAGE 2

The Idol Dead

There’s nothing I admire more than seeing a upcoming group like event openers The Idol Dead tearing through a set like its Wembley stadium. Judging by the amount of people in attendance on this the smaller of the 2 stages this 5 piece have already gathered a healthy fan base with their energetic stage moves. “Clear lines” is a fine example of their punky attitude and is a major head rip roarer of a track and its over way too soon. With plenty of banter between artist and audience its the perfect curtain raiser to the weekend. With touches of The Cult, Motley Crue even the New York Dolls you couldn’t fail to raise a smile or be entertained.

Psychobabylon

The sleazemeter goes up a notch or two with the arrival of Psychobabylon with vocals reminiscent of Vince Neil. Pounding drums and some very tasty guitar work thrown in for good measure all add up to a promising prospect. Man mountain vocalist “Rusty D” is where the eyes and ears are at with a set of pipes finer than a church organ. He’s not afraid to peel off a couple of death growls when the group down tune their playing especially on the rampaging “Angels” which the group announce they may never have played this track live before, seriously this begs the question why? Because to my ears this is far and away the stand out moment from the set. “Love and War” sways, growls and grunts with a typical LA Guns vibe a moment when fists were firmly in the air Transmission Vamps “Baby I Don’t Care” is covered brilliantly and with a bit of spicing up it went down well and the crowd reaction proved this to be a good choice of cover.

Speed Stroke

Staying on the 2nd stage next up was Speed Stroke decked out in tight jeans, bandanas all topped up with masses of swirling hair and stage moves a plenty with dirty filthy sleazy riffs sums up why so many people have gathered around the stage. Sometimes frantic sometimes less frantic nothing was going to stop “Speed Stroke” not even a broken bass drum pedal 3 songs in. When the group really hit top gear is when they find their AC/DC groove. With heavy heart I had to cut the set short as I had to dash over to the main stage but with barely 3 minutes left to achieve this I had to say goodbye to a bunch of guys who are a breath of fresh air and although the weekend has just started with 19 acts to follow I may well have witnessed the band of the weekend.

  Coyote Mad Seeds

While many bands from all over the UK and further afield had rolled up to Sheffield to fill the air with rock and roll, Sheffield was not going to take this lying down, and to prove that point were three local lads taking the stage as Coyote Mad Seeds. And, boy did these guys show that Sheffield had what it takes to prove that Rock Ain’t Dead.  Even with an overlap with the Main stage, they held their own as quite a few punters thoroughly enjoyed a good, solid rock show as Joe, Chris and Rik fully earned the title of “Full Force Balls Out Rock ‘n’ Roll from Sheffield”. Pumping out good solid rock anthems like “Luck is For Losers” they energised a very receptive audience, endeared themselves as they ribbed each other and audience members before Joe came out onto the floor, ripping some solid riffs as he was provided some amber liquid refreshments. This was an entertaining fully engaged performance that left everyone feeling they had seen a rock show very worthy of being on the HRH stage.

  Honourable Mention – Senton Bombs

Four unabashed rockers took the stage to let everyone know what the Senton Bombs were about and produced a great set that brought more punk energy to rock and roll. While it would have been great to see the full set, there is no physical way to be in two places at the one time. Only a few brief moments allowed me to get a glimpse into what these guys were about. It was loud and it was good! More than enough to give this reviewer a stabbing pang of guilt more time could not be given to hear the full set.

MAIN STAGE

Midnite City

Over on the main stage was Midnite City and they have amassed enough interest to pack out the floor before them with a healthy sprinkle of support on the balcony. Not just a fine sleaze band but also respected for their melodic rock leanings. New single “Give Me Love” from their yet unreleased 2nd album goes down well and vocalist “Rob Wyldes” enthusiasm is evident as he dances and swings his arse all over the stage on this Bon Jovi sounding track. Personally watching “Midnite City” is the closest thing to heaven for me with Def Leppard licks, Danger Danger looks and Trixter moves, it sounds good and believe me it works perfectly. “Summer Of Our Lives” has always been a fan favourite and it comes over twice as good live than the studio version. The hour passes in a flash leaving a very contented hall behind them.

Last Great Dreamers

Standing centre stage with guitar slung low and a tasty look bowler hat on his head is the one and only Mark Valentine singer guitarist and all round entertainer, the band in question is The Last Great Dreamers a band with a chequered if long career who are receiving high praise indeed from wherever they perform. With a range of styles from 70s glam to green day infused riffs and The Wildhearts choruses the end result is lots of Dad dancing from the audience and people being grateful that miserable grunge has died a death. HRH have a radio station and “Sunshine” got to number 1 in the charts so lots of ‘thank you’ from Mr Valentine for the DJs that promoted the song. The track itself comes blasting out the speakers like a sonic boom and a small but friendly mosh pit coalesces in front of the stage. Special mention must go to Tigertailz bassist Berty Burton who was doing double shift this weekend but his duck walking antics on the stage even caught the attention of the miserable looking security guy and shock horror!! he smiled.

Wildheart

Imagine being placed in a time machine and transported back to 1984 (wouldn’t that be nice?) well Wildheart offer that opportunity for just the price of a concert ticket. Hailing from Belgium with a singer called Farty you would be fooled into thinking this is a million miles from the crazy Sunset Strip but be fooled no longer because this band is seriously the real deal. Talk about well thought out crafted songs with spine tingling riffs and elements of Dokken, Van Halen and Ratt you will get the picture. The confidence of these guys and the set is as tight as a drum. With the clock ticking down we get treated to Whitesnake’s Still Of The Night and a victorious full stop to a cracking live performance’

  Jetboy

The moment for me has arrived after waiting for 35 years to witness Jetboy another band on my ever shrinking bucket list is now well and truly ticked off. The group have never played these shores before and main man “Mickey Finn” is just buzzing in his Union Jack Rolling Stones T shirt and is visibly stunned to be in the UK. “Rock n Roller” gives the opportunity for the harmonica to appear and in comes the boogie woogie with enough electricity to supply a City the size of Sheffield. Not content with resting up its head first into the slide guitar of “Bullfrog Pond” and its insane grooves. With Jet Boy they have been given the opportunity to record a new album and we are treated to a preview of first single “Born To Fly” and if this is anything to go on then this album could be a monster. This is as good as a comeback track your likely to hear for a very long time. The bass heavy thunderous riff of “Heavy Chevy” offers a slight departure in the Jetboy style and just proves they aren’t a one trick pony. With Mickey Finn falling to his knees and shaking his head like he’s possessed. New track “Beating The Odds” produces a deafening roar from the speakers and serious riffage of the highest order. This isn’t sleaze this is pure unashamed METAL. No Jetboy gig can be wrapped up without “Feel The Shake” a mish mash of grinding hips and Angus Young inspired guitar work made this historic “I was there” moment all the better. Mickey Finn has won 2 awards this weekend one for best Mohican and the other award is the happiest man in Sheffield.

L.A. Guns

Attendance was roughly 3400 and most seemed to be here for L.A. Guns so with no further hanging around “Diary Of A Madman” acted as the intro music before “Devil Made Me Do It” hits us straight between the eyes, from the very start guitarist Tracii Guns is on fire ripping the living daylights out of his 6 strings this man is admired around the world for his ability and you can understand why. Drummer “Shane Fitzgibbon” is a powerhouse and this is evident on “Electric Gypsy” anything less than accomplished musicians would never be backing Phil Lewis. Fourth song in, and out comes the Jimmy Page inspired bow and under a lone spotlight Tracii Guns cuts a Zeppelin flavoured solo before merging with the moody “Over The Edge” If ever a title of a song reflects the speed of the song then its the ball crunching “Speed” which has to be most filthiest song played on this the first day. With the set progressing before my very eyes I am well aware that I’m just watching Tracii and paying no attention to anything else, the man is from another universe!! The song that has stood the test of time better than most is “Ballad Of Jayne” this is LA Guns career highlight whether they like it or not. Watching Phil Lewis is spine tingling as he just croons his way through to the end and it’s a pleasure to be a witness.

“Rip And Tear” draws day One to a fitting conclusion with the punters spilling out on the street and with those with any stamina left to enjoy the rock disco while the curtain falls on a manic but highly enjoyable day.

Review by Steve Bruty

Originally posted on Metal Planet Music

GIG REVIEW: @HRHSleaze Day 1 Delivers The Rock With @laguns, @jetboyrocks In Sheffield with @TheIdolDead ‏@Psychobabylon1 @thesentonbombs @LGDreamers @CoyoteMadSeeds #wildheart @SpeedStroke @centralpresspr @bluhorshu STAGE 2 The Idol Dead There’s nothing I admire more than seeing a upcoming group like event openers…

[albatris]

In light of your tags about the ethels having more traditional vampire traits I need u to give them the counting thing (I do not actually Need this u can do what u want I just think it would be fun) not because it's that significant to the lore but bc I want to see representation for my favorite vampire, the count from sesame street. Also ik you've talked at length about rental car vamps wrt garlic but I immediately forgot all that lore upon reading that tag and went "oh so they're like that bc no garlic bread. That's fair tbh"

This is such a long ask to ramble vaguely about ur vamps but hi :D I hope ur having a great day ♡

!!!!!

I would LOVE to give the ethels the counting thing and absolutely will find some way to weave it into the lore :3 there are. traditional vampiric traits that are proving, uh, interesting to work into the garble worldbuilding but I'm a stubborn motherfucker and once my sights r set on something I'll find a way

the count from sesame street is. easily one of the vampires of all time. I do also love the count from sesame street. good lad. it would be an honour to do The Counting Thing in the count's honour

dhsksjds..... "they're like that bc no garlic bread" is a fair assessment actually. I have gone back and forth on The Garlic Situation

bc on one hand nat deserves to cook delicious meals with garlic (his favourite ingredient) and also to sometimes eat those meals and enjoy them. n I'm terribly cruel to him at times so I feel like I should at least give him that...... on the other hand the idea of nat becoming increasingly intolerant to garlic as the story goes on and this being basically the last fucking straw that tips him over the edge and steels his resolve to murder the garble is extremely funny

so I think ur regular garden variety vamps are definitely more prone to issues with garlic, n anything a regular vampire experiences, the ethels experience tenfold

the ethels truly are Like That because no garlic bread :(

no garlic bread for several hundred years does things to a man

thank you for the long ramble! we love a long ramble over here! and hi!!! :D

I hope ur having a nice day and lookin after yourself 💛