United States ☂️ WV192 ☔ Father John Misty - Screamland

[RainyWoods]

​

 

[RainyWoods]

3rd in Semi 1 with 79 Points / 17th in REJU with 15 Points
19th in the Grand Final with 101 Points​

It was great seeing twenty three of you with something for Charley's song. I understood that this final was an extremely strong one for some people so I appreciated how you still were able to squeeze in a little something for Run Horse Run. I have plans to hold a followup to my Americana national final one day, and so this might not be the last time you see Mr. Crockett.















For next edition I'm sharing what I wanted to send to the previous one but ended up chickening out. Considering the bad luck streak I was on, it would have been extremely disheartening for me if this artist who by default is kind of risky, potentially strong but his success always very much draw dependent (something I was having no luck with lately) continued my flop era. This is perhaps my favourite song released so far this year though so I just have to share it! The song is the epic comeback from this man I'd been waiting so long for. Also, this won't be his first time at WorldVision. Get yourself ready for something gargantuan.

​

 

[BernadetteCydonia]

Re: United States WV137 Charley Crockett - Run Horse Run

yeeeeehaaaaw mothertruckers. so proud you did so well

 

[RainyWoods]

yeeeeehaaaaw mothertruckers. so proud you did so well

Yeehaaaawww giddy up! Thank you Orore I'm really glad you enjoyed Mr. Crockett's Spaghetti Western fantasy.

 

[RainyWoods]

​

The loveable and huggable, often snuggable Andrew W.K. returns to WorldVision with his comeback single. It's been three years since everyone's favourite motivational speaker and party connoisseur released his feel good album, You're Not Alone, and the rousing Babalon is a suitably dark offering to mark Andrew's Napalm Records debut. He released this baby last month and I've been obsessed ever since. I love those menacing guitar riffs, the sexy synths and just the general power of the whole thing. I'm also crazy for the intense music video with its many cryptic messages. It's a wild ride for sure.

This is the third time I'm sending Andrew W.K. to WorldVision, following on from Music Is Worth Living For in 2018, and You're Not Alone which I gave you about a year ago, making Andrew one of the rare few artists I've shared with you on at least three occasions: Weyes Blood, Nicole Atkins, Kurt Vile (three times each) and Mikal Cronin (four) being the others. I hope you rock out to Andrew's latest. Enjoy!

⬤⬤ BABALON ⬤⬤

Annihilate
Annihilate
Annihilate
Turn me to dust

Regenerate
Regenerate
Regenerate
Harness my lust

The sanctified whore
The goddess of war
Creation unfurled
Gave birth to the world
The lover of chaos and strife

The crystallized tomb
The infinite womb
The blood of her veins
The cup and the reins
Spilling the elixir of life

Babalon

Persephone
Persephone
Persephone
To err is divine

Bring peace to me
Bring ecstasy
Sing unto thee
Woman enshrined

O Babalon
O Babalon
O Babalon
Feed me your wine

Destroyer of form
Unleashing the storm
With eternity's kiss
She guards the abyss
Slicing the self like a knife

The slayer of mind
The queen of mankind
The daughter adored
The feminine lord
The virgin, the mother, the wife

Babalon
Babalon
O Babalon
Ahhhhhhhhhhhh

 

[BernadetteCydonia]

has got you covered with something epic for this next edition

AHHHHHHHH THE FORESHADOW

 

[BernadetteCydonia]

Andrew's Napalm Records debut.

Oh well it does kinda sound like it has come from a somewhat hard-sounding place for him to do this xD back then he was just giving party rock before LMFAO made it popular, now he's going for a stronger sound and typically along-that-theme lyrics. Nothing wrong with change, it's just something I didn't expect from him. Good luck Rainy xx

 

[RainyWoods]

AHHHHHHHH THE FORESHADOW

Haha yeah I was throwing those hints. I think the word "epic" followed by a mini Andrew W.K. gif was perhaps too much of a giveaway.

 

[RainyWoods]

Wooooo thank you again for supporting Babalon. It's made me really happy. I've got this incredibly strong feeling I'll be bowing to REJU voters at the end of this edition but we'll see (I'm super grateful either way). For now though in celebration of Andrew reaching the final, I gift to you the man himself singing a super hit by beloved fracking extraordinaire, RuPaul Andrew Charles. Now sissy that oil.

RU. I. LOVE. YOUR. MUSIC. - Andrew W.K.​

 

[Leydan]

Pentatonix version is better tbh

 

[RainyWoods]

18th in Semi 1 with 47 Points / 1st in REJU with 59 Points
2nd it the Grand Final with 147 Points​

What an insane result, almost as crazy as the man himself. Only 2 points less from REJU and this song that ended up doing the best of all the semi competitors would have missed the final. It's kind of sad in a way knowing you can enter a song capable of so much and yet miss out on the chance to prove it (justice for Hamburg!). But anyway, wow! Andrew over the years has become very dear to me, not just for his music but also for who he is as a person and the messages he constantly puts out there to never give up, how open he's been about his own struggles and the work he's done with mental health charities. He's such a top-notch guy. It warms my heart to see again such appreciation for his music. I just never expected THIS much love! So close to actually winning. Thank you so much This is a medal to cherish.















This fan made but ridiculously well done documentary about Andrew W.K. is a great watch that I can't recommend enough. It's ultimately uplifting but also touches on some of the absolutely bizarre conspiracy theories that surround his career, one of which being that the original Andrew W.K. was replaced. It's all ridiculous stuff that makes him even more fascinating and endearing, especially as he plays up on the rumours nowadays, teasing fans.

 

[RainyWoods]

WV139 Artist Clues

- Texas born

- Psych folk artist

- Incredibly obscure

- A deep interest in the occult

- Was at the heart of the Laurel Canyon scene

- Only released two albums before floating up to the clouds

- Brought cowboys, Jesus, enchanted sky machines and the astral plane together

- Might finally get the recognition they deserve as a movie is being made about their extraordinary life

- A whole new generation of WorldVision players will hear their music for the first time

- One of my all time favourite artists

- Uplifting cry jam time

- Sweet reunion

 

[RainyWoods]

A slightly different approach to our prequalified entry this edition. A wise person (I can't quite remember who) said that when you have a PQ to share a song that would leave you devastated if it were to be left behind in a WorldVision semi, and so here we are. After five long years I bring you the return of this lady whose painfully small discography is nestled in the deepest part of my heart. I've wanted to share her again for so long but the thought made my tummy hurt, and after what almost happened to Andrew last edition, probably with good reason.

Here's Judee Sill, a Texas born "country-cult-baroque" artist who despite being the first artist signed to the rather iconic Asylum Records (known for musicians such as Joni Mitchell, Tom Waits, Linda Ronstadt), received none of the success she deserved in her short lifetime. This year a film is being released about her life, Soldier of the Heart: The Judee Sill Story. Something I never could have dreamed about years back when her songs that were uploaded to Youtube would have a couple of thousand views each. Nobody knew who she was. She's still unknown but geez, what a story there is to be told here. A really sad one but touching in the way that this troubled soul found solace in music, and I feel that given the chance, this lady's music could touch a lot of people.

Judee endured an abusive upbringing which led to a rebellious phase where she was holding up stores at gunpoint (we're already in deep). She eventually found herself in reform school for forging checks. During this time she kicked her heroin habit and honed her piano skills, picking up some gospel licks she would later use in her songs. When she was free, Judee decided she wanted to become a musician. In 1971, she released her self-titled debut: a majestic psych-folk record full of complex, genre bending beauties, all drowning in generous dollops of reverb and overdubbed multiple times with Judee's soft, almost peculiar vocals that would sing of redemption, angels made of crayon and the astral plane. Despite some strong examples of folk, twangy country and gospel, all tied together with Judee's pop sensibilities, for me it's always been her classical side that was at the forefront. The Bach inspiration was strong on the majority of the pieces she composed. The first Judee Sill song I heard (if my memory hasn't failed me here) was Lady-O (what I'm sharing with you this edition of WorldVision), a charming, melodically complex little thing that Sill was payed to write for The Turtles before snatching it back for her own debut. So lush. So celestial. I had heard nothing like it before and was fixated immediately. I remember ordering her CDs along with a snazzy pair of Audio Technica AD700 headphones, so I could become the world's worst audiophile. That reverb and how it hits you as she enters that first chorus.... oh man *chef's kiss*.

Despite positive reviews, Judee's debut was a commercial failure. In a time when being openly bisexual was more than a bold move, she was swimming against the tide (unsure even if Christian bisexual former bandit hippie would be a good seller today). Regardless, Judee released her second album, Heart Food, in 1973. On this record was a song called The Kiss. If you haven't heard The Kiss, listen to The Kiss (do it for ol' me). In my world it's the most beautiful piece of music ever written and I struggle to describe how it makes me feel. It's the Judee song I shared with people in this community five years ago, and it still sticks with me strongly as my favourite moment I've been gifted from playing this game. The Kiss came 3rd that edition but it was like as if I'd won, seeing the reactions of those hearing Judee's music for the first time. It's why it's taken me so long to share her with you again, as I knew I'd be unable to ever match what that song brought some of the people here.

Heart Food was sadly another commercial failure for Judee and she was dropped from the Asylum Records label. In the next few years followed several family tragedies, multiple car crashes, failed back surgery that left Judee in crippling pain, along with a return to drug addiction. Judee was working on a third album but due to the lack of interest in her music, it was left unfinished, although later released as Dreams Come True in 2005. She was so eager to make music though that at one point her friends were carrying her into the recording studios when she couldn't walk. She was understandably frustrated by her lack of success, at shows begging fans to "please buy my records so that I don't have to open for these snotty rock bands anymore." In her lifetime she was the underdog, and yet stand her music side by side her peers and it's baffling why she was only one of two artists from Asylum Records to not make it big.

In 1979 Judee died from a drug overdose. It was ruled as suicide but those that knew her were convinced she had a will to live and was on her way to recovery. Judee didn't receive an obituary, such was her obscurity by that time. On the one hand I don't like putting emphasis on Judee's deeply tragic life, almost as if it were the main event. At the same time though, to know her story adds to the fascination and wonder of the music she made. It wasn't a delicate, easy ride at all which was a stark contrast to the celestial melodies she'd write. When Judee performed you could sense her pain was easing up somehow. The hurt and depression might have been back again the moment she stopped, but the few live performances from her that exist are other-worldly. I love the term "achingly beautiful" but I feel it's not enough to describe some of the songs Judee composed. I'd call them excruciatingly beautiful, at least in the case of The Kiss as I'm literally a wreck whenever I listen to it. I wish Judee had given us more but I treasure the two studio albums she released. I can't wait for the movie about her life (unsure if my little heart will be ready for it), and I hope that this will be Judee's year.

While you sit and seek
A crescent moon is layin’ at your feet
With hope that’s made of sand
You don’t think you can
But you would held it all in your hand
Lady-O

I’ve been tryin’ hard to keep from needin’ you
But from the start
My heart just rolled and flowed
I’ve seen where it goes
And still somehow my love for you grows
Lady-O

So on my heels I’ll grow wings
Gonna ride silver strings
But I’ll see you in my holiest dreams
Lady-O

So on my heels I’ll grow wings
Gonna ride silver strings
But I’ll see you in my holiest dreams
Lady-O

​

 

[RainyWoods]

10th in the Grand Final with 124 Points
Prequalified Entry​

Judee Sill being gifted another top 10 five years later feels great. Heck, just sharing her with you again felt amazing. I'm really glad that I did. Thank you for the support. I knew it was impossible to match what happened with The Kiss but seeing strong support again was beautiful. I babble on too much but she really is such a special, important artist to me. Tell you what, I might consider round three when the film about her life releases hopefully sometime this year. Could even do a Judee Sill NF. I've shared my favourite song from each of her two albums now, but there's still so much beautiful stuff left.















No real idea what I'm doing yet for next edition so it will be quite spontaneous wherever we end up. I've sent quite wildly different genres for each edition so far this year so it would be nice if I could try and keep that going. I've been doing it very much consciously. Sooner than later I'm bound to slip though.

 

[RainyWoods]

​

This is my 88th WorldVision entry. I'm sharing a very cool, sadly extremely short lived dream pop and darkwave band called Them Are Us Too. The group consisted of Kennedy Ashlyn and Cash Askew. Tragically in 2016 Cash lost her life in the Ghost Ship warehouse fire with 35 other people. I remember reading about this at the time on the music blog I follow. The duo had only released one album together in Askew's life time, but determined to honour her friend's memory, Kennedy put together a final record featuring songs the pair had planned to record together. The moody goth banger Floor is taken from that second album, Amends, released in 2018. I love the urgency of this song, how thick the atmosphere is and Kennedy's ethereal yet powerful vocals. And those two instrumental breaks are nuts! I'm obsessed with them. I hope you enjoy the song.

Slipping slowly backward
Across an open floor
I should have done much better
I should have done much more
There was no reason for it
No sacred alibi
No possibility of
Living a perfect lie

I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut oh-oh-out

Slipping quickly backward
Into a darkened cave
Ignore the standards by which
We are meant to behave
I wish you did not worry
I always knew you would
A permanent condition
To be misunderstood

I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut oh-oh-out

There is no cure in someone else, someone else
My only keeper is myself, is myself

I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I should have asked for more
I should have asked for more
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut out for this
I wasn't cut oh-oh-out

​

 

[RainyWoods]

19th in the Grand Final with 103 Points
8th in Semi 1 with 77 Points / 9th in REJU with 34 Points
​

Thanks for the support! Them Are Us Too managed to do a little better than I expected and there were some nice surprise points that were a delight to receive. I'll give you some more dream pop/darkwave stuff soon.

​

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Perhaps just maybe look out for a sneaky little two song NF here soon. I haven't decided what I'm doing next but the artist I'm leaning towards has a beautiful new album and I simply cannot pick between two of the songs on the record.

 

[RainyWoods]

RAINYWOODS' MOST VOTED
CLICK ME​

I've often lamented over how I haven't kept track of the points I've given here over the years. I was greeted with a wonderful surprise the other day when @whiteshoes sent me a PM. Low and behold it contained a spreadsheet that featured my points given out for almost all of the editions I've been here. I have absolutely no idea why he took the time to compile it for me

But it was very kind of him. Three editions are missing (54, 58 and 59). Otherwise it's a lovely, at times surprising snapshot of who I've supported most in finals. I imagine it would be quite different if semis were included too as I haven't missed REJU voting once in the 88 editions I've been here. There are certain players that have a habit of missing finals on the editions when I really enjoy their songs. Anyway, thank you once again Flo. I'll try and keep it updated if I can work out how to use the spreadsheet.

 

[ShoeFlo]

I'll try and keep it updated if I can work out how to use the spreadsheet.​

if you like I can create a short video tutorial for you, if I find the time to do so

anyway, I also thank you to make it public as its a great acknowledgment for my work. I think about doing it for some others too, but only for those with an eclectic taste (it's boring doing it for the rather "predictable" voters). It should be fun for me too

 

[RainyWoods]

​

This pretty snazz little jam is the latest single from New York based alternative R&B Singer, Amber Mark. Those here that are dinosaurs with very good memories may recall I had Amber's song Monsoon in a WorldVision NF years ago (Sorority Noise eventually won that selection). This new one from Amber is my kind of groove. Love the feel good lyrics. It's vibey yet nice and bouncy and I live for that change that happens a couple of minutes in. Amber says of the song:

We are our own worst critics, and I feel at times we are the hardest on ourselves. I wrote this song as a mantra to myself in order to lift my spirits in situations where I feel worthless. Whether someone has put you down or you’ve done it to yourself this song is meant to help you pick yourself up again and remind you just how worthy you are of happiness.

I really hope you enjoy it cause you are so damn worth it, baby

MAKING OF MUSIC VIDEO

Easier said than done
Trying to be the one
It's so hard to not be hard on yourself
How do they all believe?
I cannot even see
The belief that I had way back when

I know that you get so used to it
Always living in regret
Your dreams never left your head
But when you talk to me
I can see the light shining
So bright that it is blinding
Just let it out

Oh, I know you feel it
That automatic shiver in your spine
(That automatic shiver in your spine)
Darkness, you have seen it (Seen it)
Heavy on the heart, look to the light

Oh, release the feeling
It'll send you out to space
Nothing like your happiness
(Nothing like it) Ohh
Open up the ceiling
You think you don't deserve it
But you are so damn worth it, baby

You think you don't deserve it
But you are so damn worth it, baby
You think you don't deserve it
But you are so damn worth it, baby

We've all got that feeling
I can see you hurting
You don't think you deserve it
But, baby, you are worth it
Just open up the ceiling
Come on, let the love in
'Cause, baby, you are worth it

We've all got that feeling
I can see you hurting
You don't think you deserve it
But, baby, you are worth it
Just open up the ceiling
Come on, let the love in
'Cause, baby, you are worth it

Oh, I know you feel it
That automatic shiver in your spine, uh
Darkness, you have seen it
Heavy on the heart, look to the light, yeah

Oh, release the feeling
It'll send you out to space
Nothing like your happiness, ohh
open up the ceiling
You think you don't deserve it
But you are so damn worth it, baby

We've all got that feeling
I can see you hurting
(You think you don't deserve it)
You don't think you deserve it
(But you are so damn worth it, baby)
But, baby, you are worth it
Just open up the ceiling (uh, right)
Come on, let the love in
(You think you don't deserve it)
'Cause, baby, you are worth it
(But you are so damn worth it, baby)

We've all got that feeling (ooh)
I can see you hurting (baby)
You don't think you deserve it
But, baby, you are worth it
Just open up the ceiling (come on, let it)
Come on, let the love in
'Cause, baby, you are worth it
(You are so damn worth it, baby)

 

[RainyWoods]

8th in the Grand Final with 126 Points
2nd in Semi 2 with 97 Points / 7th in REJU with 37 Points
​

Woah, 8th is amazing. I've never done this well before here with an R&B track. I'm guessing it would have done even better if three of the non voters who gave Amber a combined 30 points in the semi had well... voted in the final haha. Anyway, thank you for all the support. I didn't expect so much. I'm really pleased.

​

Stay tuned as I might finally put up a little three song single artist NF tonight. Leaving it a bit late I know but it's a quicky that would only take you 10 minutes if you're interested, and the songs are tremendously emotional. This thing is whether I'm in the right mind frame to enter with such a song at the moment as they tend to drain something from you. Whatever I decide, I must share this guy with you soon (again) one way or another as this album he's just released is easily my favourite of the year.

 

[RainyWoods]

I like crumpets.