I'm cool. I swear. @astaliterally - Tumblr Blog

Just Some Gay Sh*t & Plenty of Coincidences

art by @kurtbrec on instagram

I love when things align randomly, but is somehow, perfect. Before the pandemic i was coming up to New Brunswick to listen to bands play in somebody’s basement of a house they were leasing and had been sad that they werent happening anymore. For confidentiality reasons they wouldn’t ever put the address out on fliers for the upcoming shows, either you knew where it always was, knew someone who knew, or they decided you werent a narc after vetting your instagram so cops couldnt bust it. They called it “The Preserve” and im pretty sure it isnt around anymore but i used to hang around and chill with the bands between and after sets and i guess i was memorable enough that he remembered me two years later and randomly hit me up saying that his new band was playing at a cafe and to come through. I thought this was cool but wasnt in the mood for it initially since I like to chill on the weekends. I park far off campus to avoid tickets and after my Words About Music Class I was making the long hike back to my car where suddenly some guy on a porch looked at me and said he liked my flowing long hair with beautiful curls and beard to which it was obvious that he was saying this because he as well had the same features. He looked familiar though. Somehow I came up with his name out of thin air after remembering he was the guy who hit me up for the show a few days before, which surprised him that I knew his name.

Anyway he told me about the show again and I told him i’d try and make it. So i hit up a friend and made plans for the weekend and to add on to a long list of coincidences this same friend said he had actually been eyeing that cafe and wanted to go but never went. The day of the set i picked him up from Busch so i could be the designated driver and drove back to college ave to find a place to park nearby. As i pulled up to the curb at the only space that was available on the street and stepped out to feel the cold air i recognized the telltale signs of a house show, a long line out front, a mixture of cigarette, weed smoke, and the permeable smell of alcohol and some band playing in the backyard. I’d probably have never found out about this place if i didnt park there. They didnt really try and hide it since we’re not doing basement shows anymore. This would end up being the “Milky Mansion” but ill find out about that later since i had a different show to go to.

After sliding through the liquor store nearby and buying a four loko for my friend we were chilling at what seemed like the end of set at the cafe and still wanted to do more. We doubled back to the place i had heard the music from but they told us it was “at capacity” so after walking away and failing to convince him to jump the fence in the backyard with me we went back to the cafe where the band had rallied and played some more. I was feeling a bit sad for him because while we were listening to the set he confided in that me sometimes hes uncomfortable hitting on men at parties because he isnt sure if theyd react well to it or violently, and i confided in him id fuck someone up if they tried something like that. Initially he didnt want to crash the concert but after playing a game of chess in the cafe and bumping into his fellow RA and her friend who was also at the same cafe as us waiting for the bathroom and coincidentally was also thinking about swinging through that same concert we got turned away from earlier, he was down. Coincidences are crazy. And this time we got in without a problem, i think the door guy fucked off for the night.

The Milky Mansion brands itself on instagram and the fliers as a “🧚🏻queer show house in nb🧚🏻“ with a hard emphasis on “🖤no phobes or jerks 🖤“ and after i enjoyed the music scene that first time I had to go to whatever the next show they were throwing. But this time i had to have a little fun myself too. After picking up the same friend and ditching my car for the night i bought four lokos for the both of us which i promptly slammed and after it started hitting i joined in on the mosh pit going on in front of the stage. I bummed a cig of some guy, promptly threw up, found some coors stashed in a bush, drank some more, and stabbed my hand on some flipped up rusty screws while triyng to brace myself after breaking a cellar door by laying on it. My tetanus shot was working overtime. The mansion even had a haloween costume party where they ranked who came dressed the best. I think Grindr masc for masc ended up winning. Also as im typing this im realizing that one of the people that i talked to that night was a college friend of a someone I knew in highschool. We ended up taking the buses back to his place and crashing on his couch.

Also that friend that i brought again got hit on while we were there! A guy came up and shared a joint with him and they added each other on instagram. Very cute! Im really happy i found a place like this and i hope he’ll continue to feel comfortable enough around the scene there to be himself.

Heres the flyer for the next show, its on you to find out what the address it. Dont come thru if your not cool w/ that gay sh*t.

@milkymansion on instagram

the-riley-review

a real blog post for once

writing this frm the notes app but ard first of all i get this assignment frm my professor nd he wanted us to review a live performance, like actually go to one. like i’ve been there b4 at performances in a nice little outfit and my feet hurt nd my knees hurt. i’ve crossed state and country lines to get to a show and i’ve been lost on trains with friends for it before. i’ve danced and flirted with strangers i’ll never meet again and smoked cigs nd oui’d with the band members after shows.

i miss all of tht, it makes me feel alive. but rn i wanna keep on sitting this one out. so i was thinking abt doing someone classic like the late Whitney Houston bc they have recordings of her concerts on youtube and she’s a New Jersey native. i’m writing this a little ahead of the review but i’ll probably put off and change subject matter later.

alright so it’s later in the same day nd i think i’m gonna do something easier; Whitney is an incredible vocalist with a beautiful range and an incredible catalogue that really leaves you clinging onto every perfect note that’s recorded.

i rlly dnt have anything to add that hasn’t been said before and i don’t have anything critical to say abt her. i don’t believe i could do it justice so i’m gonna think of something else. i was looking into the npr tiny desk concerts bc those are shorter and saw they rebranded into “NPR: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert”. it seems like they’re the same length as the old ones idk why they added “(home)” bc i’ve always been at home watching these. maybe they’re making the artist stay home.

lately i’ve been feeling a shift in my music taste. music that makes you feel free has been reaching me more recently. not free as in the american indoctrination of freedom that’s parroted in pop country now but free like the gay black techno, house, and grunge that inspired the radical freedom of movement on the dance floors of their time.

really deep down i want to rage again.

this is gonna be taking a look at Rico Nasty, an artist that refuses to be constrained by one sound. However if there’s one thing that’s consistent, it’s that whatever she’s making that’s splitting your ears is gonna make you want to mosh.

any performance that can start a chaotic pit right off the bat will eventually just evolve into a riot later that night. this is a web performance though so it starts off having to set the mood for the viewer. there’s no smell of spilled alcohol that sticks to your feet as you push your way through the crowd, no opening acts that tour w/ the performer so it has to begin building energy from somewhere. To start off the with song “magic” is a loose, smooth song yet it makes you want to be swaying around after drinking a bit. something that’s appealing to start easing an audience into the performance.

Rico adds an all female band to back her for this performance and while it’s a new move lends a organic chemistry that bolsters the act. This is lends to a really bold experience because the energy hits you in the face with the song “Rage” immediately and stays there for the rest of the set. “Rage” backed by a live band is simply amazing. all the songs that are played can be moshed too despite some taking a slower, deeper approach and lending more to a grinding ambiance of rock like on “OHFR” or “Trust Issues”. before finally being capped off in an explosive fashion with Rico Nastys most popular song “Smack a Bitch”. I really enjoyed this but I think I would have enjoyed it more being there if covid wasnt a concern. I need to feel this performance in my bones

the-riley-review

The Asymptotical World EP

Music for when I’m up to no good and want to feel alive. Yves Tumor crafts soundscapes for a listener wanting to escape into a twisted downward spiral of youthful rebellion that’s yearning to break free from a regular mundane life. Abrasive instrumentals at ear splitting volumes give way to a tortured lover on “Jackie”. Complicated but real feelings of affection towards a significant other whose relationship with the singer has languished and died. Selfishly calling out wondering or almost hoping that they still think of them in moments of peace; almost as if the artist is holding on to the fact that they should exist somewhere in their life despite being torn from it. So full of pain and anguish over the fact that this old flame was torn away from them the artist has neglected to take care of themselves and refuses to eat or sleep.

These days have been tragic I ain’t sleeping Refuse to eat a thing I can’t tell you what happened I ain’t sleeping I ain’t eating

The next track “Crushed Velvet” rides in on a body high of euphoria, calmer than the last but still maintaining an energetic tempo. Somehow reminiscent of a light psychedelic trip that makes you feel like you are floating along with the warm spring/summer breeze that is sweeping through a field of wildflowers while you lay soaking up the sun. This track is impeccable in its use of sensory details that makes me feel like I’m experiencing synesthesia. The purpose of this although subtle is to tie together feelings to abstract ideas for the listener.

Crushed velvet I’m in heaven Feel myself when I’m in crushed velvet

Here in the intro the artist croons about the feeling of crushed velvet itself, incredibly soft, smooth, and pleasant to the touch. This feeling of crushed velvet is directly tied into what heaven is imagined to feel like by the artist.

Grew up selfless So I could make it to heaven I feel my best when I’m dressed in all crushed velvet

A departure from the road they were taking earlier in life Yves Tumor indicates that they have thrown away their selflessness in favor of more earthly material objects that replace the feeling of a promised afterlife. Music had been an outlet to escape the “dull, conservative surroundings” of Yves Tumors hometown, possibly this is a message indicating that whatever was promised through unending selflessness and conformity for the next life doesn’t compare to the feeling of embracing what feels best in the moment.

“Secrecy Is Incredibly Important To The Both of Them”

Immediately as the first few seconds being playing I get reminded of a side project from a band called “deathgrips” that lead to the creation of “the i.l.y’s - I’ve always been good at true love” that another album I enjoyed.

Moving on from that call back the song itself is about the turbulent feelings that come bubbling up when reconnecting with someone you were meant to move on from. The conflicted feelings of being on guard with someone you were once vulnerable with that is now replaced with suspicion and mistrust. It almost makes life around you seem like its moving on fast forward while you’re still caught in the same place hung up on the same person as always.

Suddenly there’s a stark transition and then next track “Tuck” takes a turn with the introduction of a guest female vocalist, the only guest vocalist featured on the album. NAKED sounds like a demonic or satanic preacher lulling a sedated populace to mass. While enchanting and mystifying, it’s clearly a transition song that was put into the album to break up the tempo, there almost seems like there are points in the song were it reaches out and could go farther but ultimately returns to its lulling and entrancing pace.

The ultimate groundswell of a soundscape that expands, peaks and pushes itself over the edge is ultimately reserved for the next song “…And Loyalty Is a Problem Child”. Before flowing into “Katrina” a somber melancholy of indifference of a lover who has moved on all while still maintaining more energy than its predecessor song “Tuck”.

Sources:

https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/32976/1/yves-tumor-serpent-music-album-stream-interview