☆TRACK X: PLAY ALONG

[interdimanagers]

Who: Everyone!
What: Vista City amps up for Pride and Virgo's WORLD TOUR with HYPE WEEK.
When: May 1st - May 5th 2055
Where: Various places in Vista City
Warnings: Could be anything.

“Try to make it look like it's all somehow getting better, 'Cause I know how to play it pretty good against the measure. Everyone started out a little insane, But we learn pretty quick how to fake it for the game.” ☆PLAY ALONG Hype Week is less an official label event, and more something that the media has created in response to a particularly odd situation. Pride and Virgo appear to be functioning in unison - launching separate world tours on practically the same date, launching vast quantities of new material and media events, and making a point of never mentioning or acknowledging the actions of the other. Could this be some kind of collaborative event? A viral marketing campaign? No one is really sure, but the local economy is happy to capitalize on it in order to make it as big of a city-wide ordeal as possible. For musicians, this means all kinds of event that they have to attend and cooperate with - everything from photo shoots, to signing, to music video premiers. For rescuers, this means one last opportunity to track down those still trapped before they are whisked away on a world spanning journey. Events that will be happening: ► NEW SINGLES: Hot new singles are getting released by bands all over the place. While actual concerts and performances are not actually happening much during the hype period, each band is probably releasing at least one new single and hyping it all to hell with one song performances here and there on TV and the like. You can have fun defining that single for your band, or leave it ambiguous! Up to you. ► PANELS AND INTERVIEWS: Musicians will get carted all over to various talk shows and public question panel events - a lot of questions will be asked about the World Tour and its specifics, of which the musicians themselves seem to know very little. This goes for the veterans as much as it does the fledglings. ► MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERS: In which a bunch of fancy music people go to fancy theaters and watch all the new music videos for the new singles, and then write articles about this. This is also something you are welcome to create specifics for. ► SIGNINGS AND PUBLIC APPEARANCES: While many of the veterans and doing things like autobiographical books signings and what not, the newer musicians are more likely to just be signing millions of World Tour specific posters and CD releases. Its quite likely that they are going to be totally run down after all these appearances and preparations - try to stay awake at the table! ► WORLD TOUR PREMIER: This will be covered in a second log a few days from now. For now, the musicians are just being prepped for a music festival to end all music festivals, that will start May 5th and cover the entire weekend. They've been practicing rigorously all month - they'll have to hope they have the stamina to make it to the actual performance. All the while, Gold and Silver have been mysteriously absent. Silver has been here and there, handing out supplies and necessary tech, but guidance for rescuers has been minimal. Gold hasn't been seen at all. Part way into the week, at least, Shep will return with a new batch of rescuers, just in time for the premier! New musicians and band combinations will slowly be announced over this week as well, with some of them being saved for the premier festival itself. That is, any OOC changes made to bands and last minute new members are going to get announced like they are big exciting unveilings, because spin doctoring is what the labels do! ☆SINGULARITY Everyone hearing the new singles will be able to tell that they seem especially ear wormy - extra hip, extra catchy, like the best examples of each bands radio popularity. Rescuers in particular, though, will notice something sort of strange about them. It's more than just song being catchy. People who are not musicians themselves will find themselves being unnaturally charmed by them, as if each time they hear these singles they are being slowly brainwashed into becoming more and more fixated on the artists performing. Of course, this can be stopped by just not listening to them for a few days, but it's hard to avoid when pretty much every public location has been playing these singles non stop. Along with this effect, there are some particulars: ► PREDATOR DREAMS: The Pride band Predator is the same as the others, in that it has a particularly intrusive single that's just been introduced. There is one difference. It may take a while to notice, but it can be noted that one starts to feel somewhat tired and dazed after listening to it repeatedly, like they are somehow drained. The single is called The Spaces In Between and it is somewhat unusual that Cass, the member who usually primarily focuses on instrumentals and back up singing, is now performing lead. If your character hears this song several times, they may suffer some weird DREAMS - especially if they received a dose of Gold's magic powder in the Better To Pretend event. If you'd like to receive a dream, please write "DREAM PLEASE" in your subject line, along with a written section describing an instance of your character having regular dreams that I can manipulate. Anywhere else and I might miss it. ► ESCAPED MUSICIANS: Musicians that have escaped and are now in hiding will find themselves particularly mentally manipulated by the singles released by their home label. They will find their minds unusually filled with thoughts of returning to their labels, as well as increased paranoia about being caught. Any remaining programming will be particularly triggered and brought to the surface. They'll be able to push it down with self control and assistance from other characters, but the thoughts will become more invasive the more they listen to it. “'Cause everybody's so scared, We don't wanna go there. We don't wanna make a move, We got all our lives to lose. Screaming in the dark while we just play our part out. I play along, Like I don't know what's going on.”

Comments

New Singles plz

[scalpedsociety]

[Aramat is now kind ofsure that Squalo isn't her student or her adoptive son. (It sort of hurts a bit.) But it doesn't stop certain things Aramat still checks up on him in the studio from time to time, goes to any small concert he ask for her to attend.

She wonders how good is whatever they did to her that make her do these things. She thinks that she honestly likes it and him. And Aramat is in the studio smiling at his work.]

Sublime. But that's to be expected.

[sharktrash]

[ Who knows. Maybe brainwashing isn't all that bad, right? It's much weirder to feel like they're close now, but it's... still pleasant. ]

[ He smirks back at her, resting his bow against his leg. ]

Naturally. I don't half-ass this shit.

[scalpedsociety]

I expect you not to.

[It's brain-washing bullshit but Squalo got her somewhat trusting men again. Even if this one is almost exactly the type she and her ladies abhor.

Having a clear mind makes her realize a lot of things.]

[sharktrash]

[ Of all men to achieve this. Smfh. ]

[ But! He's sort of eyeing her with a slight smirk, like a kid's that's about to drop the bomb about the puppy he brought home or something. ]

...actually, there's another piece you haven't heard.

[scalpedsociety]

[In all honesty, she's no better than Squalo. She's just more polite.]

Really? I want to hear it.

[sharktrash]

Early birthday gift, then.

[ He gets up to rest the cello in its case and picks up an acoustic guitar instead. The chords are pretty simple, but the song's much gentler than... anything she's ever heard him play, probably. ]

[scalpedsociety]

[Nearly every song Squalo has ever written has been dark and heavy, even when it isn't dark and heavy it's almost always been in Squalo's trademark 'all the fuck in' style. Even when he's mellow he's intense. It's never been gentle like this.]

It's beautiful... what do you call it?

[sharktrash]

[ Isn't that weird. He probably wanted to try something new. ]

Dunno. Thinking about "Mother". Simple. To the point.

[scalpedsociety]

Any lyrics for it right now?

[Such a gentle song for her, she does wonder what the lyrics are.]

[sharktrash]

[ WELL HE JUST SANG THEM. The player is just too lazy to rewrite them right now while believing they're "a little different from the original". Let's say it was like one verse or something. ]

There's gonna be more, but it's a work in progress.

[scalpedsociety]

[The lyrics are a bit strange yes, but she doesn't question Squalo's genius. (She thinks they are sweet for an asshole rockstar shark.)

That poor woman.]

Let me know if you need help with it.

[sharktrash]

Well. [ He pauses, as if not sure if it's fine to say this, but then throws the caution in the wind. ] I think it'd sound best as a duet, actually.

[scalpedsociety]

[If she could get stars in her eyes, she would have them right now.]

Really? I'd love to duet with you.

[sharktrash]

Then it's a deal.

[ He rests the instrument and goes to retrieve his notebook and pen. TIME TO WRITE the most uncomfortable parent song of all time. ]

Feel free to tweak your parts.

[scalpedsociety]

[In so many ways, both obvious and hidden. But given how LOUD Squalo is about saying most things, she should consider the soft tone as testament to how much he likes her.]

Of course!

[She's got no idea.]

[sharktrash]

[ Well, he's just gonna sit down and write stuff, humming to himself a bit from time to time. Eventually she'll get it and the pen shoved toward her. ]