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greymattermaelstrom · 4 years

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Ozlander Fan Gathering 2020 - The Rik and Sophie Show

I attended Ozlander in Melbourne. What an incredible weekend so would like to share my Ozlander experience with you. Of course, it was during the very early days of covid-19 which I’ll address shortly. I’d never met any of the cast before, nor any group of like minded fans. Of course, you are usually lucky to know anyone who watch the TV show (not counting a partner) in your circle of friends let alone personally know a group of fans to chat with. It’s funny though, I’m not sure what I expected, but I thought people would have in depth discussions about OL characters/plots during coffee breaks or in line ups for autographs/photos. I didn’t experience that. I think it was a given that we were all deep into OL. Instead, I found we just chatted and got to know each other, ‘Where are you from?’ etc. As this was the first formal Outlander convention held in Australia, this was big news. I bought my ticket the day they were available (Nov 2019). It was a long way off but I knew the gathering would occur a short time after the first few episodes of Outlander S5 were broadcast, so when S5 started airing, my anticipation grew. Prices were steep admittedly, but a number of us felt it may be the first and last opportunity to meet a cast member, so we did what we could to get there (i.e. sell the healthiest child, blackmail the rich, etc).

Article from “The Scottish Banner” Feb 2020.

Unfortunately, 4 weeks out, Ed Speleers withdrew due to work commitments but local, David Berry, was announced as his replacement on the same day. Then 10 days out, Graham McTavish withdrew due to work commitments in Slovakia. No news of a replacement was announced (I learnt at the event that organising a visa etc with Covid-19 developing had made it nigh on impossible to organise a replacement in time). Ozlander organisers revisited the program and added extra value features to the various tiers. The gathering weekend was so close, yet seemed so far away in these uncertain times. Every day, I anticipated receiving an email stating it had been cancelled. I knew the organisers must have been pulling their hair out. Selfishly and as long as it was safe to do so, I was hoping it would still go ahead. The virus was not as advanced in Australia. Most of our relatively low number of cases were brought in by travellers (residents returning or tourists) from Europe/Asia before flying was cancelled. The Federal Government had restricted public gatherings to less than 500 at the time. Attendance was actually under 200. FYI, below are the global covid-19 stats as of 19 April 2020, a month later. Australia’s population is 25 million.

A few days after the Ozlander event, only crowds of less than 100 were permitted by the govt. We were so, so lucky!! Of course, that reduced further as precautions were implemented over time. We have self-isolation and a lot of business closures, cancellation of sports/entertainment etc. It is dreadful, but not a total lock down in Australia. We could walk dogs and make necessary trips to the supermarket, pharmacy, doctor or special court appearances. Anyway, just wanted to address this concern. ~ Tickets sold well (premium tickets sold out). I saw fans on sm stating the date of the event clashed or it was a bit expensive so I know more wanted to come. Yes, the cost was relatively high. Return airfares for cast, accommodation, plus I assume their appearance fee was always going to be an expensive venture, especially as our AUD had been declining sharply against the USD for some time. Australia can miss out on some things because of distance and a relatively small population, but overall, I think we have done well over the years. ~ Rik (Richard) and Sophie posted IG photos from Melbourne a couple of days before the event. Yay!! They were in the country at least, enjoying the sunsets, cuddling koalas and hypnotising wallabies lol. Sophie posted a selfie from a public toilet (bathroom) - as you do. See Sam’s comment below. Toilet paper was becoming a precious commodity....🤔

So the odds looked good and finally, Ozlander arrived.🥳 Before we took our seats, a lone piper slowly walked into the throng playing Waltzing Matilda (iconic Australian bush ballad) which segued into Outlander's theme song. Goosebumps! Applause all 'round. The piper was a big fan too.

What a thrilling start to proceedings. We took our seats and Meagan Taylor (the one who dared dream the dream), welcomed everyone. The age range of fans was predominately 40-65. We were excited and expectant. Housekeeping announcements focused on coronavirus precautions of course. Wash hands, use hand sanitiser when you can't, no handshaking and no touching the cast. This last request was a little disappointing after seeing photos from other OL cons, but it was quite understandable. I think we were just over the moon Ozlander went ahead so we were more than happy to comply and consider the health and safety of others. Then Meagan had the unenviable task of informing us David Berry had unfortunately cancelled his appearance due to health reasons. Yikes! What a shame. (David released a press statement 15 March(?) outlining his difficult decision. Sydney is Australia's Covid-19 hot spot, so David being a Sydneysider, had to consider this I guess). There are IG photos of David, Rik and Sophie together in Australia, just not sure where. So of course, it surprised everyone that David wasn't attending. Refunds of his meet and great and the re-jigging of tiers was to be announced on the fly. Then there were two, Rik and Sophie (and no pressure whatsoever!)🤪. Meagan then advised that the five panels across the weekend would be all audience Q & A which got a loud cheer. On with the show! The Rik and Sophie show! 🎉 They came on stage ready for a good time. Rik opened with 'G'day'. Great start I thought and continued his half decent Australian accent. It's a hard accent to imitate as we know. Rik's was a bit exaggerated but that was part of the fun.

‘G’day. ‘How are ya’?’

Sophie in an outfit she bought here. Same brand as Saturday’s dress that she brought with her.

Roger Mac is in da house.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. I have seen Rik and Sophie in a lot of interviews, OL promos (talking to camera) and taking part on OL panels on YouTube. I can find their rapport a little strained and snarky at times. Luckily, I was very pleasantly surprised that their 2020 version was very endearing and entertaining. I think they’ve worked on this. I also think, that the spectre of Sam and Cait, through no fault of their own, does loom large at cast events. Therefore, it was great to see Rik and Sophie rise to the challenge of working the room in the absence of their cast mates. And I think they really relished this (albeit exhausting) opportunity and the small theatre made it a casual and intimate affair. They answered questions in an engaging manner and often expanded on it, citing on set examples, many I’ve never heard before, and I’ve seen a lot of OL interviews. Almost as soon as they came on stage, Rik was asked if he would play his guitar and sing for us. While flattered, I think it was too early in the piece and he said maybe he would do so during the weekend sometime. Alas, time wasn’t on our side so it didn’t eventuate. ~ Rik was asked if his hair ticks were under control (ep 501)😂. Combing his fingers through his hair, he replied in his strong Scottish brogue that most of them were gone now. Good sport. ~ He was told the OL bts photos he posts on sm (taken on set) were great and much appreciated and to keep them coming to which the audience applauded. I think he quietly enjoyed that moment. All creatives will take that, knowing their skills and hard work meant something to someone, much like our appreciation for OL and these sorts of events!

Then on to costumes, wigs and make up. It was thought that it must be nice to have your scalp/hair attended to in the makeup. ‘No, it’s not’ R&S said in unison.😂 Verra uncomfortable process apparently. The hair is flattened and held down with clips. The hairline edge of the wig is ‘glued’ to the top of your forehead and then alcohol is used to get the glue off after shooting, which dries the skin. Some hair falls out over time with this process also. We know this has happened to Sam to an extent.😬 Rik is hoping to grow his hair long enough so he doesn’t need a wig, which accounts for his current hirsute glory. ~ Sophie said they both share a make up trailer and added that Rik has a magic make up chair. Being early morning, he often goes to sleep in it and upon waking up, hey presto, it’s Roger Mac. At make up time, they do know if the other is a bit touchy, so they try not to annoy each other. Too much.😂 ~ At one stage, we were a bit shy in asking questions. Meagan said if this was in the US, there’d be a line up for the mic.😂

Ozlander Fan Gathering 2020 selfie.

~ Sophie responded to a geeky question about wearing wireless mics secreted in their costumes or hair as well using the usual overhead boom mics you see on bts videos. She was asked about her experience with ADR which she’s not a great fan of it. The audience asked, ‘What’s ADR?’ There are a few accepted terms in the industry, Additional Dialogue Replacement is one. It’s when some dialogue needs to be re-recorded late in post production if the original dialogue audio recording at the time is less than optimal for a variety of reasons (thanks Google). Sophie gave an instance when in S4, Bree told Claire she had been raped. The stream in the background got into the dialogue mics too much in this particular outdoor location, so Sophie had to re-record her dialogue (like lip syncing) saying exactly what she said at the time, whilst watching the scene on a screen in a recording studio. It’s hard to get the context and emotion of the scene back into your voice and that’s why some actors hate doing it and plead to have the original dialogue kept as much as possible. But ADR happens more than you realise and for various reasons (see Google). It is impossible to tell when you watch the show, what scenes have had ADR done, it’s blended so well. They would record the stream/ ambient sounds separately at some point and then mix it in lower against the dialogue after ADR is done. 😅

~ Sophie talked about her audition process and was sat down in an exec’s office and was told OL fans are very passionate! (we are?🤔😁). They have an idea of how book Brianna should look and Sophie confirmed she wasn’t tall enough, eyes the wrong colour, etc and that yeah, as expected, she received some not so nice things on sm. But she tried not to read too much of it and pressed on with the role of Bree. Her tone wasn’t sarcastic or indignant at all, but humble. I was impressed.

Queuing for photos with Rik or Sophie on this occasion. We weren’t allowed to touch but we all had a squirt of hand sanitiser (just to be super safe?).🤔

There were a few photo opportunities over the weekend and a bonus or two thrown in make up for the cast that couldn’t make it. A refund was offered for people with meet and greet tickets for David. However, R & S kindly offered to do a meet and greet for David’s fans instead and they happily accepted. Legends! I don’t know where they found the energy to be constantly ’on’ with so many people over the weekend. Chocolate? Youth? ~ As it was a small event, there weren’t any extra security staff that I could see. I think it was only the Museum staff and the security cameras which were hardly noticeable. ~ When getting my autographs, Rik and Sophie didn’t ask for my name, but when I read their personal messages, they had used my name (which they’d seen on my Ozlander lanyard. How cool is that? Very slick!). There were assorted costumes, the de rigueur wedding dress of Claire’s which added to the ambience. Of course, most of the audience were women but good to see a handful of men there, some even in kilts! Saw some Aussie Peakers in their MPC tees too. Cool.

To settle a pronunciation question, Sophie asked the audience after lunch, ‘Is it scone (as in, phone) or scone (as in, shone)?

An emphatic SCONE (shone) came back. Rik said “Oh, wow, a shouting(?) majority?’

Just to be sure, someone asked who lost, Rik pointed at Sophie. He didn’t gloat too much. Poor Sophie!

Of course, what would an OL event be without the cast having a drink or two to lubricate the tonsils (as we say).

Here are a few more tidbits. All the info I’m sharing has been gleaned from the panels and time spent with Rik and Sophie over the weekend as my tier allowed (which was a lot). ~ Yes, they had tried Vegemite (similar to marmite/promite), courtesy of David Berry. Sophie has some in Scotland. Onya Davo! (good on you David). Incidentally, Sam tried some when he was here in 2016 on Studio 10 (morning talk show - March 2016, his interview is on You Tube). It’s a thing. ~ Rik didn’t know if Sam’s whisky would be his cup of tea, but said it was ‘good actually’. ~ Rik was sometimes surprised by the particular take post production used for the show, but was more surprised by what was edited out of a scene (to add dynamics or guide the narrative a certain way which would apply to all productions everywhere). ~ The pyre scene with the Jesuit Priest at the Mohawk Village Ep 412 was hard to watch on TV. He said it was hard to watch them shoot that scene on set as it was so dangerous!😬 ~ Sophie very occasionally discussed the historical accuracy of things in a scene with directors ie. birthing stool or not in Ep 413 and 1960′s The Mashed Potato moves in S5 are different to how we know them now. She convinced the director’s on those 2 occasions. To me, it shows her passion for the show! ~ When asked about Bree meeting Jamie for the first time in S4, Sophie was asked about the eww factor but didn’t think about Jamie’s hand touching her face after he had relieved himself as he had only used a fruit juice bottle.🤣 ~ R & S were asked to respond to: ‘Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!’ And with relish they replied: ‘Oi, Oi, Oi!’. Someone did their homework. Cool. It’s a parochial call and response thing some aussies do at sporting events etc. ~ R & S often went for an early morning run. Before Sunday’s program began, Meagan asked us all to be very quiet. ‘That sound’, she said, ‘is Rik having his hair blown dry backstage.’ Laughter at Rik’s expense all round. Sophie came on with her’s still damp.

Graham McTavish ‘popped’ in from Slovakia to say hi and sorry I can’t be there. Rik and Graham had a good rapport. After some banter, the audience was now supposed to ask a question and GM rolled his eyes as he heard Rik’s voice again, this time asking him what he conditioned his beard with? ‘Well”, said GM, ‘well Richard, um, I, ahh (chuckle), I condition it with...., obviously a little bit of your love ..’. Much laughter in the theatre.

Then GM commented further, (which I missed, sadly), to even more laughter.

Who knows what would have happened had GM been at the event in person?! There is so much more I could share, but you get the idea.

Sophie wasn’t feeling the best during the last panel just before the close of the event, but she pushed through like a trooper. Rik said she had eaten too much chocolate. A weakness of Sophie’s. I think fatigue was catching up with both of them. They did so much.

Meagan presented Rik and Sophie with an Akubra (pron. uh·koo·bruh) each (iconic Australian outback hat) as a memento of their time here at Ozlander. Rik had the Crocodile Dundee style whilst Sophie’s was more demure. In his best aussie lingo, Rik said: ‘I’m Richard Dundee and this is my partner, Skippy (Sophie).’ (Referencing Skippy the bush kangaroo ? - a much loved Australian TV show 1968-1970).

The Scottish Banner article promised an intimate relaxed chance to get to know stars from the Outlander TV series and I’m happy to say that this is exactly what we got. Whilst it’s a shame we didn’t get to know Ed, Graham or David better, we certainly got to know Rik and Sophie better than we had ever anticipated. As a result, I see Rik and Sophie in a new light, esp in S5, where they have more scenes together. In a small way, I’ve gotten to know a little of the person that inevitably informs their TV persona (ie facial expressions, mannerisms, speaking cadence and inflections). What a memorable time I had (can you tell?). Thanks to Rik and Sophie, the gathering organisers (who got a special mention on stage at the close) and the other fans I met there. Thanks for reading this far on a rather lengthy post.😊 I know it’s my take on the weekend, but I’ve tried not to editorialise it, but present it, as accurately as I can, hence, it may be a bit dry to read.😅 I think Ozlander is a great name and I look forward to Ozlander Fan Gathering 2021.

Ozlander graphics: Ozlander Fan Gathering (I tweaked the circle logo in the title)

Ozlander Fan Gathering 2020 selfie: Ozlander Fan Gathering

other photos: all permissions obtained

Ozlander Fan Gathering article: The Scottish Banner February 2020

Sophie Skelton post: Instagram

global covid-19 cases stats: Wikipedia

#Ozlander #Ozlander Fan Gathering 2020 #Ozlander Melbourne

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drunklander · 4 years

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Ep. 507 Recaps & Interviews

[Updating as new ones post.]

Outlander Exclusive: Star Sam Heughan on Jamie’s Redcoat Turn (Vanity Fair)

Outlander gets up-close and personal in its big battle episode (AV Club)

‘Outlander’ Star Sophie Skelton Teases Why Tonight’s Episode Is a Heartbreaker (Collider)

‘Outlander’: Sophie Skelton Goes Full Spoilers on Tonight’s “Brutal” Episode, Teases What’s Ahead (Collider)

Outlander Recap: The Godfather (Vulture)

Is 'Outlander' Season 5 Back to the Show We Fell in Love With? (Marie Claire)

The ‘Outlander’ Death That Brought ‘An Unexpected Wave of Emotion’ (Variety)

Sam Heughan On Outlander's Devastating Double Loss (Elle)

‘Outlander’: Duncan Lacroix on That Heartbreaking Murtagh Twist (Collider)

Outlander showrunner on Murtagh, the battle, and THAT surprise cameo (EW)

Outlander star Sam Heughan on that red coat and why he stood shirtless in the river (EW)

Outlander recap: It doesn’t hurt a bit to die (EW)

Outlander Season 5 Episode 7 Review: The Ballad of Roger Mac (Den of Geek)

Outlander Recap: Aye, This Is the Show We Know and Love — But Did [Spoiler] Absolutely Have to Die? (TVLine)

Outlander's [Spoiler] Breaks Down the Scene That Nearly Made His Corpse Cry (TVLine)

A Major Character Dies in Outlander Season 5 Episode 7 (Harper’s Bazaar)

Outlander Star Sam Heughan on Jamie’s Devastating Loss (Vanity Fair)

'Outlander': Jamie's Inner Battle & Roger's Task in 'The Ballad of Roger Mac' (TV Insider)

Author Diana Gabaldon Reveals Why The Death on Tonight's Outlander Is a 'Turning Point' for Jamie (Parade)

OUTLANDER'S 'THE BALLAD OF ROGER MAC' DEPICTS THE DEVASTATION OF WAR (Syfy Wire)

Watch: Outlander Starts a Revolution in an Emotional Episode (Paste)

Outlander season 5 episode 7 review: Murtagh, my friend (Culturess)

Outlander's Duncan Lacroix On Saying Goodbye To Murtagh (Elle)

Outlander recap: The Ballad of Roger Mac (No, Seriously!) (Go Fug Yourself)

#*#outlander starz #outlander 5x07 #outlander recaps

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metaborderlines · 3 years

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Toni Graphia For Better AND for Worse

In S 1 ep 5, “Rent,” Toni Graphia is close to her best, with the exception of the twice-told tale of Claire’s realizing that the “extra” collection is not for Dougal’s personal cache but for the cause, for Scotland free of English oppression. Toni G shows the connection between Jamie and Claire kindling to burning temperature in three scenes. “Angus can kiss my English ass,” Claire bristles after Angus pushes her around. “Where I come from,” she steams, but Jamie interrupts her to say, kindly, “You’re here now,” while the way he looks at her indicates that kindness isn’t the half of it. In the second scene, Claire finds Jamie punching a tree trunk in frustration at his exploitation by Uncle Dougal. The scars on Jamie’s back make a handy fundraising exhibit for the Jacobite cause, in Dougal’s view. Claire sympathizes; sexual tension rises. In the third scene, Jamie curls up to sleep in the corridor of the tavern outside Claire’s room to protect her from the drunken townsmen downstairs whose “attentions you might not welcome.” Their hands touch when she gives him a blanket to sleep on, and the screen practically bursts into flame. That’s the Toni G. who has written some of the best lines showing nuances of intimacy. “I want to watch you” with its unspoken undercurrent, “…for the last time,” when Jamie means to send Claire back through the stones in “The Devil’s Mark.” “Move with me,” he whispers to Geneva the frightened virgin in “Of Lost Things,” even though she blackmailed him into taking her virginity in preference to giving it to her elderly bridegroom whose “greatest attraction,” she notes with waspish accuracy, “is his wealth.”

About the Toni of the commentaries, especially season 4, “Sigh.”

Ep 2 “Do No Harm” Toni Graphia and Luke Schelhaas chat. Let’s draw a veil. Toni recites the plot, i.e. repeats exactly what the viewer sees. Over and over she refers to “spoilers” then giggles when she remembers that anyone watching the commentary has already seen the episode. How can this be the same person who wrote those scenes in “The Devil’s Mark” and “Of Lost Things”? Toni writes sex scenes in a different persona? Luke barely squeaks out a few sentences, dutifully follows Toni’s mode of unimaginative plot recitation.

TK: a look at Better Toni, in “The Ballad of Roger Mac,” and “Never My Love.” Not entirely for better…

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afaimscorner · 4 years

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Outlander 5x07/5x08

Finally ! I wasn’t a big fan of Season 5 so far (which is no surprise given that I am not a big fan of “The Fiery Cross” and most of the things they changed from the books were executed rather clumsy until now), but those two episodes were really great. “Outlander” might finally be back. I didn’t even mind that they brought Young Ian back too early or that they - ehm - did think casting Buck with Graham McTavish was sneaky and smart (let’s just say as far as miscasting goes ....) - the wig did its work and the scenes worked well enough. Anyway I really liked the way the handeled the hanging and tied Rogers Arc with Ians and was very moved by the Murtagh stuff and the acting and writing overall in these two eps. Especially “The Ballad of Roger Mac” was a clear highlight of the season.

#Outlander #Outlander Season 5 #The Ballad of Roger Mac #Famous Last Words

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frasersridgebrasil · 4 years

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Lista de episódios da 5.T CORRIGIDA! Essa relação foi postada no The Litforum, fórum de literatura frequentado por Diana Gabaldon, com base em informações da WGA - Academia Americana de Escritores, onde os roteiros devem ser registrados. A própria Diana Gabaldon viu essa lista e foi ela mesma que informou o nome do ep 511, escrito por ela - e não fez nenhuma correção da ordem e nomes informados na lista de episódios. A relação anterior estava em ordem alfabética, foi postada por muitas páginas (inclusive nós também compartilhamos), mas essa corrigida tem uma ordem de exibição mais coerente com os fatos que já sabemos que ocorrem no livro. É bem provável que os primeiros episódios se desviem um pouco do livro, já que, pelo que percebemos, o encontro descrito no livro não vai ocorrer e alguns outros fatos devem ser inseridos ( Murtagh, a visita do Gov. Tryon a Fraser's Ridge, Lord John também presente, fato que sabemos, não ocorre no livro...). Mas tudo parece bem promissor! Que venha a 5.T! 501 "The Fiery Cross" (A Cruz De Fogo) - Matthew B. Roberts . 502 "Between Two Fires" (Entre a Cruz e a Espada) - Toni Graphia e Luke Schelhaas . 503 "Free Will" (Livre Arbítrio) - Luke Schelhaas . 504 "The Company We Keep" (A Companhia que Mantemos) - Barbara Stepansky . 505 "Perpetual Adoration" (Adoração Perpétua) - Alyson Evans e Steve Kornacki . 506 "Better To Marry Than Burn" (Melhor Casar do que Queimar) - Stephanie Shannon . 507 "The Ballad Of Roger Mac" (A Balada de Roger Mac) - Toni Graphia . 508 "Famous Last Words" (Famosas Últimas Palavras) - Danielle Berrow . 509 "Monsters And Heroes" (Monstros e Heróis) - Shaina Fewell . 510 "Mercy Shall Follow Me" (Que a Misericórdia me Acompanhe) - Megan Ferrell Burke . 511 "JourneyCake" (Bolos de Viagem) - Diana Gabaldon . 512 TBD Roteiro escrito por Matthew B. Roberts and Toni Graphia . *TDB = To be determinide (A ser determinado) Fonte: Litforum e Diana Gabaldon. 💜❤ #Frasersridgebrasil #outlandertemporada5 #outlanderseason5 #outlander #samheughan #caitrionabalfe #outlander_starz https://www.instagram.com/p/B7LxrRnh4dh/?igshid=tfagt6cf6dpr

#frasersridgebrasil #outlandertemporada5 #outlanderseason5 #outlander #samheughan #caitrionabalfe #outlander_starz

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tweefunk · 6 years

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2017 Local & EP Roundup

Title says it all. Here are my favorite local MN area releases and various other EPs of 2017. List is in alphabetical order. Sorry I can’t write an essay about everything, but all y’all’s stuff is sicc.

Blacc.KLagoon x w e s t k o r e a: Baby Boy EP This collab EP showcases one of the more interesting new projects to come from the MN DIY scene. This EP owes its influence rrespectively to the jazz-rap of the early 90′s, the vibed-out party jams of early Outkast, and the staunchly political lyricism of Kendrick Lamar. I’m very interested to see where this duo goes from here, especially as they continue to hone their sound and become true innovators upon the precedent of those who came before them. This is one to watch.

Boy Pablo: Roy Pablo EP This sub-20-minute indie pop masterpiece is one of the most slept-on of the year. Boy Pablo is an 18-year old from Norway with sense of melody and composition that would the envy of people half his age. Roy Pablo finds the sweet spot between Mac DeMarco and The War on Drugs, losing the affected apathy of the former, and the inescapable pretension of the latter. Don’t sleep.

Double Grave: New Year’s Daydream Formerly known as Ego Death, Double Grave put out an excellent mini-album this year which seamlessly meshes the amplifier worship of Starflyer 59 with the prettier moments of post-punk, resulting in a noisy, but nonetheless beautiful project.

Since learning of this band, Jeremy Warden has become one of my favorite guitarists in the scene, and his melodic lines steal the show here. In many cases, his warped, glide-stummed leads provide the real hooks. It’s easy to lose yourself in the sonic wormhole, but it’s a trip well-worth taking. Shoegaze meets immediacy.

Hippo Campus: Warm Glow EP Minnesota’s favorite exports followed up this year’s full-length Landmark with a far more progressive digital-only release. Their boyish pop charm remains intact, but this time they put their considerable instrumental chops to use and create something really special. If a twinkle band went pop, this is what you might get, and I’m all about it.

Inconsistent: Acting Cool EP This one has had a permanent place in my CD changer (shut up, I’m old) since its release. I probably jam it at least once a week in the morning when I’m getting dressed for work.

Isaac Luedtke gives a lyrical masterclass in radical honesty in his graphic tales of depression and anxiety. As I said before, I’m old, but not so old that I don’t remember vividly what felt like to be 17 and have no idea where you belong or what you’re going to do with your life. It’s a specific type of suburban angst, but one that never really leaves. The causes of existential consternation may change, but the effects always linger. Acting Cool is frankly the most concentrated dose of whup-ass I’ve seen from a local band in a while. If this were a full-length effort, it would likely have made my AOTY list.

Look for these cats to blow up in 2018.

Less Than Jake: Sound The Alarm EP Ska rules and I’ll fight you on that. LTJ has always had strong EP releases and this one is no exception. You might not expect a third-wave ska band in its 25th year of existence to have any particularly profound thoughts on aging, but here we are.

“Welcome to my Life” seems like a direct response to their 2003 hit “The Science of Selling Yourself Short,” right down to its white-boy reggae lilt. Roger Lima’s decade-older narrator finds himself in far more apologetic mood. Years of binging, worrying too much about the future, and taking the people who love you for granted can leave you with a lifetime of missed memories, failed relationships, and self-inflicted loneliness. Instead of defiance and an acceptance of mediocrity, we’re trying to save whatever’s left.

Another song that seems unfortunately timely is “Bomb Drop.” While the band likely meant it as an allegory for the inevitability of age and irrelevance, in Trump’s America it seems all too literal. We’re just watching the clock, waiting for the bomb to drop.

Naive Sense: [Self-Titled] EP RIP. They were too good for this world. Hands down the best hardcore band I’ve ever seen in my life. Their shows will be the stuff of legend. I shit-talk hardcore as a genre quite a bit, but Naive Sense proved that the medium can still be powerfully sublime when combined with a timely, vital message and musicians with a desire to push sonic boundaries.

I have no words. Listen for yourself and weep if you never got to witness it. They were more than a band, they were the pure voice of light and hope in human form.

Oftener: Lavender EP The solo project of Nate Gurrola, vocalist of the now-defunct Ridgewood, Lavender marks a return after nearly two years of silence. What we have here is a collection acoustic ballads that feature some of his strongest vocal work and arrangements that refuse to be pigeonholed. Describing Lavender as acoustic shoegaze seems like a cop-out, and labeling it emo seems like an insult. There’s a lot more going on here than sad-boy whining.

Oftener has recently expanded to a full band, and will be releasing another EP as such next month. Having seen this configuration live, I’m confident that this will bring another layer to the sound and make them a band to watch moving forward.

Township: Impact Bliss Another band leaving us too soon, Township announced their impending breakup this spring, so make sure you catch a show if they make it to your area one more time.

Impact Bliss is a beautiful, textured homage to shoegaze. While Double Grave resides in the poppier, more accessible end of the spectrum, Township aren’t afraid to take their audience down long swirling rabbit holes with massive dynamic shifts to throw the listener off-balance.

This record is best enjoyed in a dark room, slightly high at 2am, and loud. Township have shot for the ethereal majesty of Souvlaki and Loveless, and come damn close to their mark. It’s that good.

VIN: S/T EP Debut release by a new band with former member of Infinite Me and Familiar Theme features some of the most deceptively straight forward rock you’ll find in the local DIY scene. But make no mistake, this is prog all the way.

Bassist Nicholas Culliton and drummer Jacob Scully are particular standouts here. Culliton creates arpeggiated, harmonized lines where a lesser musician would just be happy to drone a root note, or just mirror the bass drum. By playing like a third guitarist, he gives the band a far thicker sound without overpowering the primary melodic elements. Scully on the other hand is a rudimental monster with the musical sense to use his chops as a complement to the music, rather than an excuse to show off.

Weathered: Misnomer EP These guys have made massive improvements to both their production and compositions since their last time out. Arrangements are fussed over and far more intricate than the emo genre is usually blessed with. In particular, the rhythm section of Christian Rassmussen and Alec Panchyshyn are a two-man wrecking crew from the moment “Better For Me” kicks into second gear, and the latter subtle touch with the sticks and some lovely color to the proceedings.

The production is also a big star here in that it imbues the music with enough clarity to be a pleasant listen, but leaves the edges just rough enough to leave some nervous intensity around the band. This newfound clarity and crispness suits Weathered well.

With another album on the way in 2018, Weathered is poised to be the Minnesota DIY scene’s next big export. Misnomer isn’t just good for a local band, it’s good for anybody.

Wretch: BANGERZ It’s kinda like if DFA1979 weren’t edgelords and ripped way harder. This is another great local that we lost in their prime. RIP.

If you couldn’t infer from the quip above, Wretch is (was?) a drum and bass combo but with a wicked front-person whose lyrics manage to speak incisive truth to the scourge of modern beauty standards (among other subjects) while still being darkly hilarious. It doesn’t read like a sermon, but rather a brilliantly dance-able stand-up routine that would George Carlin proud.

No, none of that is intended as a backhanded compliment. Comedy is one of the most powerful tools we have for expression. BANGERZ is one the most fun releases of the year, and also one of the most thought-provoking.

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solo-bolo-trollo · 6 years

Text

A COMPLETE LIST OF ALBUMS I LISTENED TO IN 2017

1. Brian Eno—Reflection (2017)

2. Joe Jackson & Friends—Heaven & Hell (1997)

3. The KLF—Chill Out (1990)

4. Run the Jewels—Run the Jewels 3 (2016)

5. ESG—Come Away with ESG (1983)

6. Pink Guy—Pink Season (2017)

7. Madness—The Rise and Fall (1982)

8. The xx—I See You (2017)

9. The xx—xx (2009)

10. Foxygen—Hang (2017)

11. Shackleton and Vengeance Tenfold – Sferic Ghost Transmits (2017)

12. André Previn, et. al—Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)

13. Code Orange—Forever (2017)

14. Neil Cicierega—Mouth Moods (2017)

15. Migos—C U L T U R E (2017)

16. Buscabulla—EP II (2017)

17. Allison Crutchfield—Tourist in This Town (2017)

18. Delicate Steve—This is Steve (2017)

19. Daft Punk—Homework (1997)

20. Homeshake—Fresh Air (2017)

21. Sampha—Process (2017)

22. MF Doom—Operation: Doomsday (1999)

23. Tobin Sprout—The Universe and Me (2017)

24. Syd—Fin (2017)

25. Julie Byrne—Not Even Happiness (2017)

26. The Weeknd—Starboy (2016)

27. Sinkane—Life & Livin’ It (2017)

28. William Basinski—A Shadow in Time (2017)

29. Paul White and Danny Brown—Accelerator (EP) (2017)

30. Metallica—Kill ‘Em All (1983)

31. Nas—It Was Written (1996)

32. Priests—Nothing Feels Natural (2017)

33. Urochromes—Night Bully (EP) (2017)

34. Yung Bae—Skyscraper Anonymous (2016)

35. Ty Segall—Ty Segall (2017)

36. nobigdyl. —Canopy (2017)

37. Son Volt—Notes of Blue (2017)

38. Jansport J—p h a r a o h (2017)

39. Jens Lekman—Life Will See You Now (2017)

40. Maggie Rogers—Now That the Light is Fading (EP) (2017)

41. Erykah Badu—Baduizm (1997)

42. Dirty Projectors—Dirty Projectors (2017)

43. Future—FUTURE (2017)

44. Sun Kil Moon—Common as Light and Love Are Red Valleys of Blood (2017)

45. Future—HNDRXX (2017)

46. Visible Cloaks—Reassemblage (2017)

47. Barenaked Ladies—Born on a Pirate Ship (1996)

48. Thundercat—Drunk (2017)

49. Hand Habits—Wildly Idle (Humble Before the Void) (2017)

50. Vagabon—Infinite Worlds (2017)

51. Amnesia Scanner—AS Truth (2017)

52. Mega Bog—Happy Together (2017)

53. Lin Manuel-Miranda, et. al—In the Heights (2008)

54. Chicano Batman—Freedom is Free (2017)

55. The Mountain Goats—We Shall All Be Healed (2004)

56. King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard—Flying Microtonal Banana (2017)

57. Mark Scott—Death & All His Enemies (EP) (2017)

58. Strand of Oaks—Hard Love (2017)

59. The Magnetic Fields—50 Song Memoir (2017)

60. DMX—It’s Dark and Hell is Hot (1998)

61. Jay Som—Everybody Works (2017)

62. The Shins—Heartworms (2017)

63. Pauline Oliveros—Accordion & Voice (1982)

64. Steve Lacy—Steve Lacy’s Demo (EP) (2017)

65. Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever—The French Press (EP) (2017)

66. Real Estate—In Mind (2017)

67. Jansport J—Pharaohmatic Immunity (2017)

68. Drake—More Life (2017)

69. Temples—Volcano (2017)

70. Anohni—Paradise (EP) (2017)

71. Diamanda Galás—All the Way (2017)

72. Kelly Lee Owens—Kelly Lee Owens (2017)

73. Paul F. Tompkins—Laboring Under Delusions: Live in Brooklyn (2012)

74. Tinariwen—Elwan (2017)

75. Gorillaz—Gorillaz (2001)

76. Hippo Campus—Landmark (2017)

77. Black Sabbath—Master of Reality (1971)

78. Liquid Liquid—Optimo (EP) (1983)

79. Hurray for the Riff Raff—The Navigator (2017)

80. Blanck Mass—World Eater (2017)

81. Beastie Boys—Hello Nasty (1998)

82. Diet Cig—Swear I’m Good at This (2017)

83. Ibibio Sound Machine—Uyai (2017)

84. Mount Eerie—A Crow Looked at Me (2017)

85. Future Islands—The Far Field (2017)

86. Boards of Canada—Music Has the Right to Children (1998)

87. Father John Misty—Pure Comedy (2017)

88. Glenn Gould—Bach: The Goldberg Variations (1956)

89. Arca—Arca (2017)

90. Sorority Noise—You’re Not As _____ As You Think (2017)

91. Gas—Pop (2000)

92. Kendrick Lamar—DAMN. (2017)

93. Passion Pit—Tremendous Sea of Love (2017)

94. Shamir—Hope (2017)

95. Portishead—Dummy (1994)

96. Tonstartssbandht—Sorcerer (2017)

97. Dr. Dre—The Chronic (1992)

98. Wiley—Godfather (2017)

99. Parliament—Mothership Connection (1975)

100. Sade—Diamond Life (1984)

101. Charly Bliss—Guppy (2017)

102. Iggy Pop—Lust for Life (1977)

103. Kasey Zoned—Isolation (EP) (2017)

104. Gorillaz—Humanz (2017)

105. Mac DeMarco—This Old Dog (2017)

106. Slowdive—Slowdive (2017)

107. The Record Company—Give It Back to You (2016)

108. Garth Brooks—No Fences (1990)

109. Gas—Narkopop (2017)

110. Girlpool—Powerplant (2017)

111. Perfume Genius—No Shape (2017)

112. Marty Robbins—Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs (1959)

113. The Mavericks—Brand New Day (2017)

114. Dave Malloy, et. al—Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (2013)

115. The Mountain Goats—Goths (2017)

116. Temple of the Dog—Temple of the Dog (1991)

117. Soundgarden—Badmotorfinger (1991)

118. Burial—Subtemple (EP) (2017)

119. Angelo Badalamenti—Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992)

120. Death Grips—Steroids (Crouching Tiger Hidden Gabber) (EP) (2017)

121. Various artists—Lost Highway (1997)

122. Throbbing Gristle—20 Jazz Funk Greats (1979)

123. Lil Yachty—Teenage Emotions (2017)

124. Phish—Junta (1989)

125. Talaboman—The Night Land (2017)

126. (Sandy) Alex G—Rocket (2017)

127. Burzum—Filosofem (1996)

128. Sleater-Kinney—Live in Paris (2017)

129. Power Trip—Nightmare Logic (2017)

130. Sam Gellaitry—Escapism III (EP) (2017)

131. The Cranberries—Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? (1993)

132. Bing & Ruth—No Home of the Mind (2017)

133. Luxoddo Menatti—Climbing Through Clockwork (EP) (2017)

134. Fleet Foxes—Crack-Up (2017)

135. Cashmere Cat—9 (2017)

136. Johnny Jewel—Windswept (2017)

137. Ice Cube—Death Certificate (1991)

138. Why?—Moh Llean (2017)

139. Goldie—The Journey Man (2017)

140. Lorde—Melodrama (2017)

141. Sufjan Stevens, Nico Muhly, Bryce Dessner and James McAlister—Planetarium (2017)

142. SZA—Ctrl (2017)

143. Calvin Harris—Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 (2017)

144. Washed Out—Mister Mellow (2017)

145. Vince Staples—Big Fish Theory (2017)

146. JAY-Z—4:44 (2017)

147. Haim—Something to Tell You (2017)

148. Moon Diagrams—Lifetime of Love (2017)

149. Various artists—Baby Driver (Music from the Motion Picture) (2017)

150. Offa Rex—The Queen of Hearts (2017)

151. Tyler, the Creator—Flower Boy (2017)

152. Timecop—You Can’t Go Back From Where You Are Right Now (EP) (2017)

153. Waxahatchee—Out in the Storm (2017)

154. DJ Sports—Modern Species (2017)

155. Ryan Adams—Prisoner (2017)

156. Guided by Voices—August by Cake (2017)

157. Paramore—After Laughter (2017)

158. Cigarettes After Sex—Cigarettes After Sex (2017)

159. Randy Newman—Dark Matter (2017)

160. Kesha—Rainbow (2017)

161. The War on Drugs—A Deeper Understanding (2017)

162. Rezz—Mass Manipulation (2017)

163. Liza Minnelli—Results (1989)

164. Various artists—Twin Peaks (Music from the Limited Event Series) (2017)

165. Various artists—Twin Peaks (Limited Event Series Original Soundtrack) (2017)

166. Iron and Wine—Beast Epic (2017)

167. Com Truise—Iteration (2017)

168. Godspeed You! Black Emperor—Luciferian Towers (2017)

169. BROCKHAMPTON—Saturation (2017)

170. LCD Soundsystem—american dream (2017)

171. Arcade Fire—Everything Now (2017)

172. Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives—Way Out West (2017)

173. Clark—Death Peak (2017)

174. Bill Murray, Jan Vogler and Friends—New Worlds (2017)

175. Aimee Mann—Mental Illness (2017)

176. The Mountain Goats—Marsh Witch Visions (EP) (2017)

177. Moses Sumney—Aromanticism (2017)

178. St. Vincent—MASSEDUCTION (2017)

179. Nina Simone—I Put a Spell on You (1965)

180. Kamasi Washington—Harmony of Difference (EP) (2017)

181. Extreme—Extreme II: Pornograffitti (1990)

182. Timecop—Diocesan Howler (EP) (2017)

183. Courtney Barnett and Kurt Vile—Lotta Sea Lice (2017)

184. Vangelis—Blade Runner (1982)

185. Julien Baker—Turn Out the Lights (2017)

186. Sam Smith—The Thrill of It All (2017)

187. Alvvays—Antisocialites (2017)

188. Björk—Utopia (2017)

189. Charlotte Gainsbourg—Rest (2017)

190. King Krule—The OOZ (2017)

191. R.E.M.—Live at the 40 Watt Club 11/19/92 (1992)

192. Kelela—Take Me Apart (2017)

193. 10,000 Maniacs—MTV Unplugged (1993)

194. Sylvan Esso—What Now (2017)

195. Beck—Colors (2017)

196. Amber Coffman—City of No Reply (2017)

197. Guided by Voices—How Do You Spell Heaven (2017)

198. Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings—Soul of a Woman (2017)

199. 10,000 Maniacs—Our Time in Eden (1992)

#music #albums #records #2017 #rock #pop #soul #rap #jazz #experimental #electronic #alternative #r&b #comedy #ambient #folk #country #classical #punk #metal

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thebgo · 5 years

Text

BGO Staff Picks 2018

The fine folks who put in the work behind the counters at Beat Goes On stores all over the world have humbly submitted for you their lists of their most favourite albums, movies, TV shows, games, concerts and other miscellany for your approval. Enjoy responsibly.

BRANTFORD

Aiden

Albums

1. Foxing - Nearer My God

2. mewithoutYou - Untitled

3. boygenius - boygenius ep

4. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

5. Thrice - Palms

Concerts

1. The XX

2. Foxing

3. Toe

4. mewithoutYou

5. Tokyo Police Club

Chris

Albums

1. Jim James - Unified Distortion

2. Voidz - Virtue

3. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

4. Johnny Marr - Call The Comet

5. Gorillaz - Not Now

6. Greta Van Fleet - Album Of The Peaceful Army

7. Roger Daltrey - As Long As I Have You

8. Iggy Pop & Underworld - Tea Time Dub Encounters

9. Mudhoney - Digital Garbage

10. Neil Young - Songs For Judy

Television

1. GLOW

2. Dark Tourist

3. Kominsky Method

4. Final Space

5. Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee

Films

1. Sherlock Gnomes

2. Incredibles 2

3. Peter Rabbit

4. The Grinch

5. Hotel Transylvania 3

Justin

Albums

1. Neil Young - Songs For Judy

2. Alice In Chains - Rainer Fog

3. Johnny Marr - Call The Comet

4. Jack White - Boarding House Reach

Films

1. Avengers: Infinity War

2. Black Panther

3. Mission Impossible: Fallout

Concerts

1. Dinosaur Jr. at Danforth Music Hall, Toronto

2. Jack White at Budweiser Gardens, London

Karen

Albums

1. A Perfect Circle - Eat The Elephant

2. Johnny Marr - Call The Comet

3. Leon Bridges - Good Thing

4. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

5. MGMT - Little Dark Age

Rob

Albums

1. Janelle Monae - Dirty Computer

2. Young Fathers - Cocoa Sugar

3. Dan Mangan - Love Is Magic

4. MGMT - Little Dark Age

Films

1. A Quiet Place

2. Upgrade

3. Annihilation

4. Mario

5. Black Panther

Games

1. Spider-Man

2. Starlink: Battle For Atlas

3. Hitman 2

4. A Way Out

5. Donut Country

Concerts

1. Broken Social Scene at Supercrawl, Hamilton

BURLINGTON

Julie

Albums

1. Gorillaz - The Now Now

2. Beach House - 7

3. Mitski - Be The Cowboy

4. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

5. Cat Power - Wanderer

Films

1. The Meg

2. Black Panther

3. Coco

4. Avengers: Infinity War

5. Bohemian Rhapsody

Katelyn

Albums

1. Mother Mother - Dance & Cry

2. A Perfect Circle - Eat The Elephant

3. Gorillaz - The Now Now

4. Metric - Art Of Doubt

5. Florence + The Machine - High As Hope

Films

1. Deadpool 2

2. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse

3. Black Panther

4. Coco

5. Incredibles 2

Games

1. Life Is Strange: Before The Storm

2. Shadow Of The Tomb Raider

3. Detroit: Become Human

4. Spider-Man

5. The Walking Dead: The Final Season

Lana

Albums

1. Metric - Art Of Doubt

2. Mother Mother - Dance & Cry

3. Muse - Simulation Theory

4. Gorillaz - The Now Now

5. Florence + The Machine - High As Hope

Films

1. Black Panther

2. Deadpool 2

3. Ocean’s 8

4. Annihilation

5. The Spy Who Dumped Me

Mike

Albums

1. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

2. Jack White - Boarding House Reach

3. Mitski - Be The Cowboy

4. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

5. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

Games

1. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

2. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

3. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

4. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

5. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Sean

Albums

1. Mitski - Be The Cowboy

2. Parquet Courts - Wide Awake

3. Kero Kero Bonito - Time ‘n’ Place

4. Brockhampton - Iridescence

5. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

Films

1. Hereditary

2. Annihilation

3. Suspiria

4. Mandy

5. Eighth Grade

Games

1. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

2. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

3. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

4. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

5. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Steph

Albums

1. Dear Rouge - Phases

2. Metric - Art Of Doubt

3. Now Now - Saved

4. Frank Turner - Be More Kind

5. Chvrches - Love Is Dead

Films

1. Crazy Rich Asians

2. Black Panther

3. Love, Simon

4. A Simple Favor

5. Widows

Games

1. Shadow Of The Tomb Raider

2. Life Is Strange: Before The Storm

3. Detroit: Become Human

4. Spider-Man

5. The Walking Dead: The Final Season

CAMBRIDGE

Alex

Albums

1. Tesseract - Sonder

2. A Perfect Circle - Eat The Elephant

3. The Ocean - Phanerozoic I: Palaezoic

4. Judas Priest - Firepower

5. Between The Buried & Me - Automata II

Films

1. Solo: A Star Wars Story

2. Ready Player One

3. Avengers: Infinity War

4. Annihilation

5. Bohemian Rhapsody

Games

1. Red Dead Redemption II

2. Sea Of Thieves

3. God Of War

4. Detroit: Become Human

5. A Way Out

Angela

Albums

1. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

2. Muse - Simulation Theory

3. Twenty-One Pilots - Trench

4. Sleep - The Science

Films

1. Bohemian Rhapsody

2. Venom

3. Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes Of Grindelwald

4. Deadpool 2

5. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse

Josh

Albums

1. Kurt Vile - Bottle It Up

2. A Perfect Circle - Eat The Elephant

3. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

4. Harm’s Way - Post Human

5. Judas Priest - Firepower

Films

1. Avengers: Infinity War

2. Venom

3. Halloween

4. Deadpool 2

5. Ready Player One

Kayla

Albums

1. Moby - Everything Was Beautiful & Nothing Hurt

2. The Decemberists - I’ll Be Your Girl

3. Sleep - The Sciences

4. Jonathan Davis - Labyrinth

5. 30STM - America

Films

1. Black Panther

2. Avengers: Infinity War

3. Bohemian Rhapsody

4. Venom

5. Ant-Man & The Wasp

Games

1. World Of Warcraft: Batle for Azeroth

Shane

Albums

1. Sleep - The Sciences

2. Brian Fallon - Sleepwalkers

3. Oh Sees - Smote Reverser

4. Kamasi Washington - Heaven & Earth

5. Chvrches - Love Is Dead

Hon. Mentions: Nine Inch Nails - Bad Witch, Black Panther OST

Television

1. Disenchantment

2. Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina

3. Final Space

4. Haunting Of Hill House

5. Hilda

Films

1. Black Panther

2. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse

3. A Quiet Place

4. Avengers: Infinity War

5. Isle Of Dogs

Hon. Mentions: Aquaman, Bumblebee, Happytime Murders

Vinyl

1. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles OST (1990)(Orange & Green Vinyl)

2. Fritz The Cat (Picture Disc)

3. Chris Cornell - When Bad Does Good (7″ w/Mother Love Bone Cover B-Side)

4. Primus reissues

5. Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit - Live At The Twist & Shout

GUELPH

Jake

Albums

1. Sleep - The Sciences

2. Sumac - Love In Shadow

3. High On Fire - Electric Messiah

4. YOB - Our Raw Heart

5. Baptists - Beacon Of Faith

Joel

Albums

1. mewithoutYou - Untitled LP & Untitled EP

2. Ben Howard - Noonday Dream

3. Slow Machete - Ola Mala

4. Mark Kozelek - Mark Kozelek

5. My Epic - Ultraviolet

Albums Discovered While Reading Year End Lists

1. Typhoon - Offerings

2. The Magic Lantern - To The Islands

3. Barbarossa - Lier

4. Valley Maker - Rhodedendron

5. Bas Jan - Yes I Jan

Films

1. Transit

2. Annihilation

3. An Elephant Sitting Still

4. State Kitchen

5. Our Time

Steve

Albums

1. Efrim Manuel Menuck - Pissing Stars

2. (Ph)authers - (Ph)authers

3. Smallertide - All Among The Northern Lights

4. Tim Hecker - Konoyo

5. Hifiklub & Lee Ranaldo - In Doubt Shadow Him

6. Nadia Struiwigh - WHRRu

7. Hibernis - Middle Of The Meds

8. Felicia Atkinson & Jefre Cantu Ledesma - Limpid As The Solitudes

9. Low - Double Negative

10. Foudre! - Kami

KITCHENER

Brady

Albums

1. Neko Case - Hell-On

2. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

3. Kamasi Washington - Heaven & Earth

4. John Coltrane - Both Directions At Once: The Lost Album

5. Esperanza Spalding - 12 Little Spells

Films

1. A Quiet Place

2. The Mule

3. Welcome To Marwen

4. Ballad Of Buster Scruggs

5. BlacKkKlansman

Used Vinyl Finds

1. Starchild - Children Of The Stars

2. The Ramones - The Ramones

3. The Clash - Combat Rock

4. Tom Waits - Franks Wild Years

5. Paul Horn - Inside The Great Pyramid

6. The The - Infected

7. Herbie Hancock - Headhunters

8. Freddie Hubbard - First Light

9. Straight To Hell OST

10. Elvis Presley - Elvis Presley

BGO Used CD/DVD/Blu-ray Finds

1. The Hidden Fortress (1958)

2. Seven Samurai (1954)

3. Paper Moon (1973)

4. Metropolis (1927)

5. Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio - Midnight Sugar (1974)

Ryan

Albums

1. Franz Ferdinand - Always Ascending

2. Riva Starr - Curveballs

3. The Sheepdogs - Changing Colours

4. Paul McCartney - Egypt Station

5. The Good, The Bad & The Queen - Merrie Land

Vinyl Reissues

1. Katamari Damacy OST

2. The Rutles - All You Need Is Cash

3. XTC - Apple Venue Vol. 1

4. U2 - Achtung Baby

5. Liz Phair - Whitechocolatespaceegg

Games

1. Yakuza 6: The Song Of Life

2. Fire Pro Wrestling

3. Burnout Paradise Remastered

4. Soul Calibur VI

5. Far Cry 5

LONDON

Jay

Albums

1. Joe Bonamassa - Redemption

2. Joe Bonamassa & Beth Hart - Black Coffee

3. Joe Bonamassa - British Blues Explosion

4. Buddy Guy - Blues Is Alive And Well

5. Billy Gibbons - Big Bad Blues

Rob

Films

1. Heredity

2. A Quiet Place

3. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse

4. Mandy

5. Upgrade

OAKVILLE

Antonio

Albums

1. Janelle Monae - Dirty Computer

2. Eyedress - Sensitive G

3. Florence + The Machine - High As Hope

4. Various - The Grinch OST

5. Metric - Art Of Doubt

Films

1. Roma

2. The Death And Life Of John F. Donovan

3. Museo

4. Burning

5. Gloria Bell

Cory

Albums

Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

Idles - Joy As An Act Of Resistance

JPEGMafia - Veteran

Mac Miller - Swimming

Saba - Care For Me

Dan

Albums

1. Jeff Rosenstock - Post

2. Tribulation - Down Below

3. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

4. Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats - Wasteland

5. Andrew W.K. - You’re Not Alone

Films

1. First Reformed

2. The Favourite

3. Mandy

4. Roma

5. Hereditary

Drake

Albums

Car Seat Headrest - Twin Fantasy

Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

Kids See Ghosts - Kids See Ghosts

MGMT - Little Dark Age

Ty Segall - Freedom’s Goblin

Jack

Films

1. Hereditary

2. Eighth Grade

3. Boy Erased

4. Bohemian Rhapsody

5. Green Book

WATERLOO

Derek

Albums

1. Ty Segall - Freedom’s Goblin

2. Kurt Vile - Bottle It In

3. Low - Double Negative

4. Sleep - The Sciences

5. Kanye West - Ye

6. U.S. Girls - In A Poem Unlimited

7. Kacey Musgraves - Golden Hour

8. Sons Of Kemet - Your Queen Is A Reptile

9. Beach House - 7

10. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

Films

1. Avengers: Infinity War

2. Bandersnatch

3. Annihilation

4. Eighth Grade

5. A Quiet Place

Concerts

1. The Flaming Lips at Riverfest, Elora

2. Phil Collins at Scotiabank Place, Toronto

3. B.A. Johnson at Jane Bond, Waterloo

4. Father John Misty at Fort York, Toronto

5. BadBadNotGood at Maxwells, Waterloo

Favourite Things About New Waterloo Store

1. There’s room for a microwave

2. There’s an actual backroom

3. Used vinyl isn’t on the floor

4. Not fighting for space in a tiny triangle

5. The garage door

Kirk

Albums

1.Idles - Joy As An Act Of Release

2. Pusha T - Daytona // Kids See Ghosts - Kids See Ghosts // Kanye West - Ye

3. Anna von Hausswolff - Dead Magic

4. Against All Logic - 2012-2017

5. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

6. Noname - Room 25

7. Parquet Courts - Wide Awake!

8. JPEGMafia - Veteran

9. U.S. Girls - In A Poem Limited

10. Kero Kero Bonito - Time ‘n’ Place

Films

1. Burning

2. Ballad Of Buster Scruggs

3. Sorry To Bother You

4. BlacKkKlansman

5. Suspiria

6. Avengers: Infinity War

7. The Favourite

8. Mandy

9. You Were Never Really Here

10. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse

Best Concert

Idles at Lee’s Palace, Toronto

Best Performance

Tom Waits in Ballad Of Buster Scruggs

Best Criterion Release

Ingmar Bergman’s Cinema

Best Single

Pusha T - The Story of Adidon (Shoutout to Drake from BGO Oakville)

Kristen

Albums

1. A Perfect Circle - Eat The Elephant

2. VNV Nation - Noire

3. Ty Segall - Freedom’s Goblin

4. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

5. Nine Inch Nails - Bad Witch

6. Chvrches - Love Is Dead

Television

1. Final Space

2. Disenchantment

3. Killjoys

4. The Tick

5. Legion

6. Letterkenny

Films

1. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse

2. Black Panther

3. Isle Of Dogs

4. A Quiet Place

5. Bumblebee

6. Teen Titans Go To The Movies

Kyle

Albums

1. Mark Lanegan - With Animals

2. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

3. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

4. Neko Case - Hell-On

5. Arctic Monkeys - Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

6. Ryan Bassett & The Bassett Hounds - Bitches Be Hustlin’ Da Dancin’ Shoes

Films

1. Hereditary

2. BlacKkKlansman

3. Annihilation

4. Isle Of Dogs

5. Dumpsty Scott Brings The Sausages

Ryan

Albums

1. Chvrches - Love Is Dead

2. Shad - A Short Story About War

3. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

4. Deafheaven - Ordinary Corrupt Human Love

5. Same Fears - Glitching

6. Lissie - Castles

7. Jeff Rosenstock - Post

8. The 1975 - A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships

9. Thom Yorke - Suspiria

10. Antarctigo Vespucci - Love In The Time Of Email

Television

1. Final Space

Films

1. Mandy

2. Annihilation

3. You Were Never Really Here

4. Incredibles 2

5. Hereditary

6. Sorry To Bother You

7. Suspiria

8. Disobediance

9. Black Panther

10. Eighth Grade

Podcasts

1. “De-Louse Your House: How I Learned To Live The (Mostly) Itch-Free Live” by Kyle Robb

2. “Ditch The Itch! The Wonders Of Talcum Powder” by Kyle Robb

3. “Drywall & Me: How I Crafted A Personality” by K.R. Obb

4. “Growing Up In The 3rd Century” by Robert Kylington

5. “To Have & Have Not: A Chicken Pox Tale” by Kale Robe

Scott

Albums

1. Kurt Vile - Bottle It In

2. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

3. Sleep - The Sciences

4. Ty Segall - Freedom’s Goblin

5. Jack White - Boarding House Reach

6. Kanye West - Ye

7. Kyle Robb & The Robb Kyles - It’s Itchin’ My Tickley! (EP)

8. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

9. Neko Case - Hell-On

Tom

Albums

1. Courtney Barnett - Tell Me How You Really Feel

2. Beach House - 7

3. Father John Misty - God’s Favorite Customer

4. Ty Segall - Freedom’s Goblin

5. David Byrne - American Utopia

DISTRIBUTION CENTRE

Laura

Television

1. Pose

2. The Crown

3. Legion

4. BoJack Horseman

5. The Good Place

6. Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina

Films

1. Hereditary

2. A Quiet Place

3. Crazy Rich Asians

4. Sorry To Bother You

5. BlacKkKlansman

6. Eighth Grade

HEAD OFFICE

David

Television

1. The Americans

2. The Handmaid’s Tale

3. BoJack Horseman

4. Maniac

5. The Good Place

Podcasts

1. Slow Burn

2. Reply All

3. Serial

4. Stay Tuned With Preet

5. The Wilderness

Meredith

Albums

1. Clutch - Book Of Bad Decisions

2. Neko Case - Hell-On

3. Brian Fallon - Sleepwalkers

4. Great Lake Swimmers - The Waves, The Wake

5. Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats - Tearing At The Seams

Will

Albums

1. The Arkells - Rally Cry

2. John Butler Trio - Home

3. Buddy Guy - The Blues Is Alive & Well

Television

1. The Last Ship

2. Letterkenny

3. Ballers

1 note · View note

umusicians · 3 years

Text

UM Interview: Michaela Slinger

Michaela Slinger is a “legendary songbird in the making” who combines youthful, energetic, harmony-rich melodies.

While working a full-time job at a non-profit job, she felt underwhelmed and trapped which led to writing sessions in her apartment. Slinger took a leap of faith to pursue her music career full time, working for several non-profits on a part time basis. In 2019, Slinger independently released her debut single and music video “Flux”. To date, the single has amassed over 500,000 streams on digital platforms to date.

Amandah Opoku sat down with Michaela to talk about her new single “Make You Sad”, upcoming debut EP, the success of her single “Flux” and more!

Amandah Opoku: Michaela, thank you for doing this interview today! Before we kick off please tell our readers about yourself and one random fact people do not know about you. Michaela Slinger: Thanks for chatting with me! I’m a 24-year-old indie-pop artist with 604 Records based out of Vancouver. The short version of my artist story is that I grew up performing and singing constantly (mostly in musical theatre), started songwriting beginning at age 10, and then put music mostly on pause to attend university and begin my working life from 17-21. It felt pretty soul-crushing to not have music as the focal point of my life, so I released “Flux,” my first single, independently after quitting my full-time job in 2019.

From there, connections and opportunities happened, and I was working with two producers and collaborators at 604 the following year. A random fact about me is that I’m left-handed, left-footed in soccer, and pretty much left-dominant in everything. I had to learn right-handed guitar at school because that was all they had, but I’m convinced I’d be a better player if I had learned left-handed.

Amandah Opoku: If you could describe your music in three words, what words would you choose and why? Michaela Slinger: The first word is ageless. I write to express emotional landscapes that everyone from age 15 to 95 can identify with, whether it’s navigating a hard conversation with a loved one, questioning who you are, or coming to terms with the end of a relationship.

The second is dynamic. I’m big on synthesizing musical influences from across many decades—in any song, you might hear nods to 70s folk and big 80s drums alongside current pop sensibility. I like having unpredictable moments in my songs.

The third is ethereal, in part because that’s often a word I hear listeners use to describe my music, and also because I strive for vocal delivery and melody that transports you into my musical world.

Amandah Opoku: Before pursuing your music career, you were working at a non-profit organization. What was the moment you realized that you wanted to create and pursue music as a career? Michaela Slinger: There were many moments that informed my decision to leave my full-time non-profit job. To clarify, I still currently work for a few non-profits, but in a part-time and flexible capacity that allows me to prioritize and grow my music career!

In my full-time role, there would be days where I’d sit at my desk in my office, alone, obsessively reading blogs and analyzing new artists on Spotify playlists and tearing up because it felt like I was watching other people live out my life. I took a day off work to record “Flux” with producer Nygel Asselin, and I biked home from that session around 2am with the demo blaring on a loop, almost in disbelief that an idea from my head had become this amazing, full track. I was hooked, and from there knew I needed to switch my life up.

Amandah Opoku: What artists would you say have influenced you musically both through your sound and lyrically (songwriting)? Michaela Slinger: This question always stresses me out because I’m afraid to leave influences out! I listened to a ton of 80s music with my parents growing up, so I have a real love for pretty much any artist you’ll find on a “Best of 80s” playlist.

John Mayer and Taylor Swift were two songwriters I obsessed over from the time I was in middle school. They’re both true craftspeople with lyrics and story-telling. At my high school, country was popular, so I listened to artists like Zac Brown Band, too. But I remember also listening to artists like Rihanna and Sia around that time, captivated by the energy and power their pop songs could convey.

Other important past and current musical inspirations for me are Maggie Rogers, Joni Mitchell, Etta James, Fleetwood Mac, ABBA, Haim, Jacob Collier, The Weeknd, SZA, Lorde, Harry Styles, Miley Cyrus, Arlo Parks—I’ll stop my stream of consciousness there.

Amandah Opoku: 2020 has been quite a year for all of us. How has the pandemic affected you as a musician? What have you learned about yourself? Michaela Slinger: I had started performing live and gigging around Vancouver in October 2020, and I’d only just started to get into a rhythm of rehearsing and playing my songs with a band. When live performance stopped, I felt like I’d just started to find my groove. I’m definitely an extrovert, and I get my energy from being with other people, so I found the situation quite deflating. I also typically have little song or lyric ideas coming to me all the time, but during the first few months of the pandemic I wasn’t really writing at all.

However, as someone who’s always identified as Type A and productive, I’ve found a lot of joy in slowing down and doing more things for pleasure rather than output. I go for walks and bike rides constantly, I’ve learned how to knit, I read so many amazing books, watched incredible new TV shows, and my partner and I cooked new recipes from scratch—it made me realize how intense and unsustainable much of our constant high-achieving, results-driven culture is.

Amandah Opoku: In July 2019 you released your debut single “Flux” which achieved half a million streams on Spotify on Apple Music. Congrats!! And how does it feel to achieve this after you took a risk leaving your non-profit job to pursue a music career? Michaela Slinger: Thank you! It feels incredibly validating. I think “Flux” is a great song and music video, but it was also a symbol of this big vulnerable leap I was taking in my life and a shifting of values. To know that it resonates with so many other people gets me excited for all the music I have left to share across my lifetime.

Amandah Opoku: With the success of “Flux”, are any of the negative thoughts you may have had something of the past? Michaela Slinger: I think our brains are lifelong experts at churning out negative thoughts! We’re so quick to normalize big achievements or proud moments in our lives and get back to the business of being hard on ourselves. The success of Flux sets me up for comparison and self-doubt when I release other tracks that don’t “perform” in the same way, but it’s also a strong and confident foundation for me to build off of. Learning to manage negative thoughts and self-talk, however, is more in the realm of growing older, meditation, reading, journaling and unlearning.

Amandah Opoku: You recently released your new single “Make You Sad”. What inspired the song? Michaela Slinger: I was inspired by a challenging conversation I had. You know how sometimes two people bring years’ worth of baggage and insecurities and past hurts into a discussion about something specific, and it turns into a referendum on the entire relationship? It was that.

Amandah Opoku: What was the writing and recording process like for “Make You Sad”? Michaela Slinger: It was a dream! This song is unique in that it was a three-way co-write with my two producers and collaborators, Kevvy and Louise Burns. We met up at 604 Studios and I shared a few voice notes with them off my phone. We started riffing right away on what would become “Make You Sad,” and each person was on their A-game. We left that day with a demo that was quite developed, and I think we even used some of the vocals from our first session on the final track.

Amandah Opoku: Did the writing and record process for “Make You Sad” differ from the process you undertook for your debut single “Flux” which you released in July 2019? If so, how? Michaela Slinger: Completely. I wrote “Flux” totally alone in my living room, and it was just guitar and vocals. I brought it to my producer, and he built the track up. I’d never recorded my own material before, so I was just getting a sense of the studio and production for the first time.

With “Make You Sad,” the lyrics and melody and production and sonic landscape all came together at the same time in that session with Louise and Kevvy. It still felt as personal to me as “Flux” did, but my own writing was impacted and elevated because the three of us were all jamming and creating in a shared moment.

Amandah Opoku: You are also currently working on your debut album with Kevvy and Louise Burns which is set for release later this year. What can fans expect to hear on your album? Michaela Slinger: The album is finalized! That feels wild to say. I’m so excited to release it. Since it’s the first body of work I’ve released, it’s a pretty wide snapshot of my head and heart. Some songs are several years old at this point, while others were written in late 2019 or early 2020. Obviously, there’s the common thread of my lyricism and vocals, and the subjects I’m exploring, but I infuse different sounds: there are big pop tracks, sweeping string ballads, folk-country inspired songs, and tracks that share roots with R&B.

Amandah Opoku: As you continue to pursue your career as a solo artist, what goals have you set for yourself? And what do you hope to achieve within the next 5 years? Michaela Slinger: I like to keep my big and wild goals close to my chest, and also to try my best not to set goals solely on things like metrics or streams or audience numbers—the pandemic taught me that we often place so much emphasis on things outside of our control.

That said, I’m driven to get to a place where I’m a full-time artist, whether it’s solely on my own project or writing for other people. I want to continue building my production chops—I just got Logic, but demoed most of my first record on Garageband. And I want to continue meeting and collaborating with new people who can expand my sound and push me as a creative!

Amandah Opoku: For new fans who come across your music, what would you like them to take away from your music? Michaela Slinger: That pop or pop-adjacent music can have real depth to it, and that so often we feel alone living our complex inner lives, not realizing that there’s overlap and common ground with countless others in the world.

Amandah Opoku: With “Make You Sad” out now, what can fans expect from you next? Michaela Slinger: An incredible music video for the track, directed and filmed by my incredible team of dear friends: Miranda MacDougall, Callum Gunn, and Harry Hill. This one is different from my other videos thus far, as I play a supporting role to the lead character.

Amandah Opoku: Michaela, thank you for sitting down with me! Before we close this interview, is there anything you want to say to your fans and our readers? Michaela Slinger: I’m so grateful to people who continue to seek out and support new and emerging artists! Your sharing and comments and streams have a very real impact on me and my career. Thank you!

Connect with Michaela on the following websites: https://www.michaelaslinger.com https://twitter.com/michaelaslinger https://facebook.com/michaelaslingermusic https://instagram.com/michaelaslinger

#Interviews #Amandah Opoku #Michaela Slinger

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