#because of all the sex and screaming about burning Christians it's just a vibe | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

v-t-holmes · 4 years

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MCR songs rated by how many of the Bandori bands could and/or should cover them

romance: no lyrics, but it has roselia vibes 1/5

honey: afterglow vibes, but also popipa (and also I want Rimi for the screaming parts), they might be kira kira doki doki but they also covered a song entirely about sex and god knows ... is pretty dark too, 2/5

vampires: roselia and afterglow both seem like the type to cover this, 3/5 for the third possibility of yukina and ran covering it together

drowning lessons: once again, afterglow and roselia or a yukina and ran cover vibe, but also RAS, 3/5 + 1

sorrows: afterglow, and RAS and glitter*green vibes and also ran, layer and yuri deserve to say fuck 1/5 + 2

halos: lets just go ahead and say that most of the bullets album has afterglow vibes, but this one also has hello happy world! vibes, harohapi is the kind of band to cover stuff you wouldn't expect them to 2/5

turnstiles: it does have afterglow vibes but should any of them really be covering this song 0/5 + 1 bc I trust yukina's dad with it (also i googled him after writing this, why is he so pretty excuse me)

monroeville: afterglow/5, ran has the range

best day ever: clearly, afterglow, 1/5

cubicles: just like approximately 100 times previously, this has clear afterglow vibes, but also roselia, maybe glitter*green too, 2/5 + 1

demolition lovers: everything but screaming in this song says roselia bc screaming is very un-yukina-esque, 1/5 + ran would totaly scream

helena: fits roselia the best, but it also has afterglow or glitter*green vibes, maybe even RAS, but at the moment they don't have the emotional depth for that yet, 2/5 + 1.5

give ‘em hell kid: realized that bullets and three cheers have afterglow and roselia vibes respectively, but their imagery is exactly the opposite. that being said, both roselia and afterglow could do a great cover of this song, 2/5

to the end: just like a bunch of times before, roselia and afterglow, 3/5 for a possibility of yukina and ran cover

prison: Hello!!!! Happy!!!! World!!!!! I do not take constructive criticism on this one, 1/5 let kokoro tsurumaki say motherfucker

i’m not okay: guess the band it starts with a and ends with fterglow (also can somebody put this song over the tied to the skies mv i have a theory they fit together), also roselia, but only for the 'i'm okay (trust me)' part bc i want ako to have the 'trust me' line, 3/5, popipa, harohapi and pasupare together give the song another point

ghost of you: it could very easily be a roselia song, 1/5

jetset life: una otra cancion para roselia to cover por favor 1/5

interlude: it may be a short song but yukina's vocals and roselia's sound would fit it way too well 1/5

venom: realistically, afterglow and roselia would be most likely to cover it, but someting about it says 'cutesy idols should get away with singing it', so I'd want pasupare to cover it, but also popipa or harohapi, 5/5, *please*

hang ‘em high: oh yeah afterglow totaly, but more importantly, harohapi, 2/5

deathwish: nobody will be surprised if I say Roselia and Afterglow would cover this, right? also I just noticed there's lots of christian motives in the three cheers songs, 2/5 + Jesus

cemetery drive: why are most of the songs so fitting for Roselia and/or Afterglow (i mean it's fitting but please give me more to work with mcr), 3/5

never told you: it has strangely popipa and harohapi vibes, and I'd fear for my thumbs if it was a harohapi song and was added to the game, also afterglow 3/5

desert song: this song is too sad. -9293838382/5, or I'll cry

the end.: I mean yeah, afterglow and roselia, but it has Poppin'Party vibes but Dark 3/5

dead!: well since the end. transitions to this one, afterglow, roselia and popipa already have this song rights, but this one also has pasupare and harohapi vibes, and maybe even glitter*green, 5/5 + 1

how i disappear: the intro alone says roselia and the rest of the song keeps and keeps saying roselia. roselia. did i mention roselia? 1/5

sharpest lives: afterglow for this one, and maybe harohapi, 2/5

wttbp: hello happy world is legally required to cover this song, 1/5

i don’t love you: idk this song made me think of pasupare, but more realistically, afterglow or popipa, 3/5

house of wolves: the vibes say pasupare and popipa, the song says afterglow, 3/5 + i spent about 5 minutes trying to roll that R in 'i said ashes to ashes'

cancer: pasupare or roselia but please no. -2/5 I would cry and miss all my notes on the easy difficulty

mama: god. please. hello happy world. 3/5 bc pasupare and popipa also seem like they'd make a great cover

sleep: something about it just say afterglow and nobody else, 1/5

teenagers: there's something about imagining kokoro singing the chorus ... but really any of the bands could do it Well so 5/5 + 2, please

disenchanted: yukina's voice. it's made for this song. please. bushiroad do something about this. roselia/5

famous last words: yes. feels like one for all the vocalists to get together and sing, all/5

blood: fun! hello happy world! 1/5

kill all your friends: it has the afterglow vibes, but I can also see harohapi and popipa cover it what else can I say, 3/5

heaven help us: saying roselia and afterglow gets boring, popipa and harohapi is in, 4/5

my way home is through you: Poppin' Party (also afterglow but really they already have enough songs on this list) 2/5

emily: i got so focused on the comment section on youtube that I almost forgot to think of which band this would fit. most likely pasupare or harohapi, 2/5

party at the end of the world: finally we're getting to the more popipa/pasupare/harohapi vibe songs, also afterglow 4/5

not that kind of girl: i spoke too soon, this clearly has ran vibes, 1/5, afteeglow type of song through and through

all the angels: uh tough one. it sounds nice but has Very Dark lyrics, so popipa and harohapi could both cover it, but like, also roselia vibes? and maybe even pasupare, 4/5

na na na: out of the main bands, harohapi, but really, it has more RAS vibes, 1/5 + 1, let layer say fuck

bulletproof heart: it even has roselia-esque song title, what else is there to say, 1/5 + 1 actually, i feel like it also has guriguri vibe

sing: this has very uplifting vibes actually, and popipa, pasupare and harohapi have very uplifting vibes, ran is made to sing songs like that too, and god knows yukina could sing this so well, another one for all the main bands 5/5 + 2 because also RAS and guriguri

planetary (go!): HELLO HAPPY WORLD/5 AND NOBODY ELSE

the only hope for me is you: definitely a roselia type of song, 1/5

party poison: oh this simply has afterglow + aya vibes, 1.2/5

save yourself, i’ll hold them back: same as the previous one, but yukina instead of aya, 1.2/5

scarecrow: pasupare seem like the band for this song. it also has popipa vibes. maybe collab with ran? ran could honestly sing all the mcr songs. 2.2/5

summertime: the only of the main bands i can't see singing this song is harohapi, 4/5

destroya: just saying afterglow would be boring. it's popipa and harohapi you should worry about. 3/5

kids from yesterday: i mean it would be a good song for roselia or pasupare to cover, but the emotional toll this song would take on me if it was chosen on multi live is not worth it, -2/5

vampire money: listen it has kira kira doki doki vibes of popipa, and cute idols should be allowed to say fuck, and afterglow would clearly do a cover, but really, the best one for this song would be harohapi, but even more really, a 5-way collab between the five bands would be the best, all/5

we don’t need another song about california: my first thought with it was popipa, but it also has pasupare and roselia vibes, 3/5

black dragon fighting society: this song is clearly a job for harohapi and nobody else/5

f.t.w.w.w.: roselia and afterglow and harohapi show up a lot huh, 4/5 for a possible collab between ran, yukina and kokoro

mastas of ravenkroft: well, considering what this song is about, the only band who should do it is popipa, 1/5, kira kira doki doki vibes didn't stop them from covering romeo&cinderella, it won't stop them from covering this song

boy division: another one with harohapi vibes, but also more afterglow vibes (i mean look at them, they're the most emo band in the game), 2/5

tomorrow’s money: afterglow and roselia would definitely cover it, but who i really want to cover it is pasupare, 3/5

ambulance: really any of the main bands could cover this, but especially pasupare or popipa, 5/5

gun.: it has the vibes of every band honestly, and all the bands could make it sound good, 5/5 + 2 for RAS and glitter*green

the world is ugly: i mean they all could, and the covers would be nice, but is crying and eventually dying while playing a live really worth it? -5/5

the light behind your eyes: what is this, songs that would make me die before the fever chance bar showed up from making me cry? -728282/5 I don't want to die in a multi live just bc of crying

kiss the ring: can't see roselia or pasupare cover it, but popipa, afterglow and harohapi definitely could, it has them vibe, 3/5

make room!!!: it doesn't have roselia vibes, but it does have RAS vibes, 4/5 + 1

surrender the night: clearly a roselia vibes song, although afterglow and popipa have a similar vibe too, 3/5

burn bright: can't decide if roselia or afterglow would make a better cover, 3/5, maybe they should do it together

fake your death: 6/5 bc the special band should be the one covering that, even if all the main bands could do it well separately

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thebloodlegion · 7 years

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Outburn Magazine: November-December 2017 Issue: Interview With Maria Brink

By Nick DeMarino | Photos by Jeremy Saffer

In This Moment has been on a hot streak. Garnering more and more attention for the band's infectious blend of alternative rock, metal and industrial, and with increasingly provocative, ostentatious live performances, frontwoman Maria Brink can apparently do no wrong. 2014's Black Widow featured two of In This Moment's biggest hits so far, "Sex Metal Barbie" and "Big Bad Wolf," both of which helped to propel the band to a new echelon. Then, in July of 2017, In This Moment unveiled its sixth full-length, Ritual. The suddenly serious tone of the album was a gambit, but one that is paying off in spades. Without relying on campy characters or amusing gimmicks, Brink's indomitable, sultry voice leads the listener across a broad variety of emotional and empowering vistas. The instrumental side of In This Moment has always been noteworthy, but now it is more pertinent than ever. And, rising to the occasion, Brink delivers her most earnest and nuanced performance to date. Founding vocalist and high priestess Maria Brink discusses the context, content and concept of Ritual.

What do you think of the reception of Ritual thus far?

It's fantastic. I'm really happy with some of the feedback. I think people are getting it and really understanding it. We intended this album to be different. What most people are saying is good. If they weren't grasping it, I imagine there would be a lot of horrible reviews. I wanted this album to be a bit more raw and stripped down. There's an honesty to it. I'm known for doing campy, funny things like "Sex Metal Barbie" and "Big Bad Wolf," with these characters and a fun theatrical show that's got a lot in common with Alice Cooper and Rob Zombie. But on this album, I wanted to strip away the fun stuff and have it be more serious. That's who I am and kind of album I want to do.

Why the shift in direction, considering how successful the band has become since 2012's Blood, when the theatrics really came to the forefront?

Oh, the theatrics are still in there and a big part of our live show. The changes are more in the tone on Ritual. I think you change, and you need to reflect that change in your art. I felt what I was feeling, and I wanted to express that. I didn't want to create campy characters. I wanted a more organic me. I wanted to sing about what I was feeling. It makes for a more honest album, and I really just went with it. For each album, I make a storyboard. It helps me and everyone else visualize what's going on. It's almost like a project when you're in school or something, with photos and visuals for different songs and where I wanted it to go. There were pictures of woods and swamps. So, I showed that to my lead guitar player, Chris [Howorth], and producer, Kevin [Churko], and then went from there.

Ritual is darker and more serious for In This Moment. There's also a lot less sexuality. Do you agree with that assessment, and was it intentional?

It was a conscious choice. I have so much in my heart and in my chest, this fire inside of me that I don't want to contain. I think you can hear that on Ritual. It's more organic and stripped down. There aren't as many electronics. I mean, we did use them, but not as much as before and not so much with those character songs. More and more, I wanted to sing as myself, I wanted to show my powerful side, that fire in my chest. I've always wanted to show that without having to use my sexuality. Don't get me wrong, I'm very connected with with my sexuality, but I didn't think I should use that this time. I have a lot of fans that are young girls, who come to our shows, and some of them dress like me. We encourage outfits. It's our whole fans becoming the show thing. Anyway, I noticed all these young teens wearing my crazy, very adult outfits that a 12 or 13-year-old should not be wearing, and that bothered me. There's a girl wearing my Whore hat, and she's smiling at me and she wants me to feel proud of her. She's trying to be herself, and, well, I wanted to show these young girls that there's a powerful side in me and in them, that they don't have to be half-naked to see that in each other and in themselves or to express themselves. It was also an organic choice for me. I'm barefoot on stage a lot now. I still put on high heels for the older songs, because I like to bring the music videos to life. But, for a lot of the newer songs, I'm wearing giant, long, flowing kimonos. That powerful side, it's more about the inside, and I wanted to express that externally.

It's interesting that change was catalyzed by the fans, especially because of how much flak you've gotten for your look in the past.

What people have said? I don't care about that, not at all. The more people that are talking, the more successful the art is getting. Everyone has their own point of view, and not everyone is going to understand what we do. And, hey, some people are going to hate it. You can't have everyone in the whole world loving what you do. We push a little, do controversial things, and some of our stuff is R-rated. But that's being an artist and being true to your art. That's true whether you're a painter, movie maker, writer or dancer. You have to do what's real to you. No great art comes from sitting and saying we have to do this or that because of these people. You have to be free.

How has your approach to vocals changed across the last few In This Moment albums? How do you feel when you listen back to your earliest work?

Nothing was particularly difficult this time around for Ritual. We wanted to try a few different things, and I wanted to show a few different sides to my voice. I think if you back across our body of work, you can see a girl who's just angry and screaming and doesn't know what she's doing, and she grows and matures into a woman. Of course, when I look back at things, I would do them differently now, but I wouldn't change anything that I've done. In another five years, I'll probably think the same thing about my performance on Ritual. You just have to push yourself every time.

Let's go through Ritual track by track. What's the idea behind the opener "Salvation"?

It's the introduction track, and it's really about setting a tone and all of us creating this vibe for the album. It's also important, for me, because I love and get very excited about these atmospheric things. It's not even necessarily a song. It's just this body of music, this intro to create emotions in people through sound. It's setting up the album to start.

The first actual song and single is next, "Oh Lord". How did you come up with it?

I started hearing a little bit of a melody and the stomps in a very delirious state. I'd just gotten back flying from Japan. I was in a layover at a hotel, and I still had one more flight to even get home. So, I was definitely delirious, and this kept popping into my head - these melodies over this stomping noise. The meaning behind that is kind of a surrendering. In one sense, it was this balance for me between Christianity and... I don't think I'm a very religious person in the sense that I don't follow any one specific religion. I believe in a higher light, I believe in God, I believe in science, I believe in Jesus, I believe in Mother Earth and quantum physics, so I have a very overall wide spectrum. I think it's all connected and it's all one. I used to always think that with this Lord that I couldn't believe in these other sides of myself because I was sinning or I was wrong or I was going to burn in hell. I had a mother who believed in Christ, and I felt that magic in me, but she also believed in other things. She would lay me in the woods on the ground and tell me I needed to ground myself when I feel stressed. She would do these little magical rituals, and she told me we were manifesting things. We've come to learn there's love and there's light in all kinds of different places that I didn't always know. We just believe that things, as long as they represent love, good energy and empowerment, that there are all kinds of ways to feel love and connected to the universe and to yourself. I don't think I'm going to burn for that, but that was my struggle. This song is going back and forth questioning myself, when I started to feel these different avenues of empowerment, love and strength within myself, and realizing that I was all different types of different magical parts that make myself up. It didn't have to just be this one avenue. For me, it was about letting go of fears of what I'm supposed to be or who I'm supposed to be in the eyes of a spiritual world, just surrendering to being who I am. That it's perfect on this path I take and in what I believe in, and that I don't have to be afraid.

What about the song "Black Wedding"?

I love "Black Wedding". It's one of the more fun, lighthearted, crazy songs on the album. The concept was me in a place of confliction, turning to this oracle to guide me, and where do I turn, what do I do from here? And that this higher power is putting me into a ceremony with myself to empower myself. "Black Wedding" is about taking these dark things I'd experienced and turning that experience into this empowering ceremony where the black wedding is this empowerment of this strong strength in me, this independence in myself. It's this beautiful black wedding. It's that strength in the face of loss or heartbreak, or thinking something isn't going to unfold the way you think. It's not this happy white wedding. There's a strength in not getting that happy ending, that fairy tale ending. Instead of letting it break me or me lose myself, to take that experience and grow from it and empower myself from it. We have Rob Halford in this song, which was an honor. We shot a music video for it, and it was really paying a lot of tribute to him. He's such an amazing guy. When he came to the shoot, he was just humble and sweet. We were so grateful to have him there with us. He had come to a show of ours, we met him, and we became acquaintances, we became friends and have grown a little relationship. So, when we're doing this album and this song, the lyrics weren't originally, "Priest, are you there?" but I kept being drawn to this "Priest, are you there?" and kept envisioning this visual. I wasn't going to have a guest singer on this album, but every time I kept thinking of "Priest" and kept thinking of Rob, it all matched up. I mentioned it to him, and he immediately responded with interest and seemed passionate about being a part of it.

And the Billy Idol reference?

We knew that was going to be in there pretty much off the bat. It's giving him a little tribute, as well - "It's a nice day for a white wedding." He gets publishing from it because it is referencing it and obviously there. We wanted it to be obvious and have that cool spin off of "White Wedding" and do the contrary of that. So, it's paying tribute to Billy Idol. When I was young, that song was the rebellion song, the rebellion attitude, and I think there's a little bit of a spin off in this song, as well, that makes you feel some of those feelings.

Next on Ritual is the Phil Collins song "In The Air Tonight". Why that cover?

It's one of my all-time favorite songs. It's so special. It has this haunting feeling and undeniable, timeless beauty to it. It's a beautiful song, and I've always wanted to cover it. It's always intimidating to cover a song, and with the best songs in the world - and, to me, it's one of the best songs in the world - it's perfect, so you can't make it better. You have to try to do your own version, your own spin, your own take, and that's how we approached this. Like the drum fill, you can't make it better, so you do your own expression of it. When we looked at it with that type of attitude, it wasn't quite as intimidating, and we said, "Let's do this." There's something about that song that has this slither to it. I wanted this slithering energy to be across the entire album. If you actually listen closely, you'll hear slithering snakes and rattlesnakes throughout the album in different parts that bring it together. But this song had this slither to it that I just loved. We did our own approach, and it fit the energy of the album.

"Joan of Arc" draws on the story of the historical figure, correct?

She has always fascinated me, the story of this young girl who leads this army and was touched spiritually, and how everyone envied her, followed her, and then wound up turning on her and murdering her. The story really caught me and stuck with me. I just wanted to do a metaphorical spin off of her and what she means to me. She's strong and was a leader. Sometimes when you want to channel strong parts in yourself, there are certain things you can think of and certain people, and she's someone I would think of. We're all drawn to different stories for whatever reasons, but that's what that metaphor is and that's what that song comes from.

After that is "River of Fire". What's the story there?

We love this song. We're playing it live, and it's actually one of my favorite songs to play. It's about, you're walking outside into the woods by yourself and there's a storm coming in. It was just me going through this transition in my life where I was really learning how to face things for the first time and to be really happy and comfortable alone. I used to need people around me a lot more, and I always had to be with someone to feel a sense of safety or a sense of wholeness. This song was about facing the fears of why I had to feel that and learning the beauty of being alone, facing things, and going through that storm. It's liberating. So, that's where I'm referencing that I'm in the woods, the storm is coming, I walk outside, and I want the storm to strike me with its lightning, I want the hurricane to rush over me, and I want to become the storm and experience it and grow. It's about this journey that I went on and that baptized me in a river of fire. I'm a fiery woman. I always have been, and I think I will always be. I'm Cuban and Italian, and I'm from New York. I'm always about calming my fire.

The next song on Ritual is "Witching Hour".

I've always had a fascination since I was a little girl with witches, the Salem trials, and even cartoons with them. When I was a little girl, I had little witch dolls. I was obsessed. Then there was a fascinating thing in my life. I'll go to psychics - not a lot, I've only done it like five times in my whole life. I don't actually go to an oracle or psychic very often, but I had two different ones tell me that I was burned in a past life for witchcraft, and it was mind-boggling to me. It was on different sides of the country, it was before my career, so it wasn't like these people had anything to reference. It was bizarre. They said that's why I'm a fire sign and have fire in my eyes. That's my obsession with fire, so it was very peculiar. This song is talking about that experience and what I've come to learn, what I thought a witch was as a little girl and what I think now. I believe we do have this higher, more powerful thing in us that we really can manifest things with, and I believe we're powerful beings. Some people really choose to tap into it and some people don't. I think it's a beautiful thing, actually.

The eighth song has a fire reference, "Twin Flames".

"Twin Flames" is about losing a love. I'm definitely this woman who is always talking about empowerment and being strong, and I hold my head high and I turn all the pain into strength. That's how I choose to live my life, but I do feel pain and I do hurt. I've experienced heartbreak, and I think we all know what that is and what that feels like. Real heartbreak, it's close to mourning a death. It's very painful. That song I wrote when experiencing some heartbreak, and it's talking about how that relationship with these two flames, these twin flames. That's how I metaphorically reference it.

After that is "Half God Half Devil".

That's the balance we all have. I think we all have this light and this dark. We all have our beautiful sides, our compassionate sides, and our loving sides. And we all have that other darker side, that fighter, that thing when you have to protect your children and do what you have to do. People have to do all kinds of unspeakable things in life they don't want to do. I think we all have those two sides of us, and it's a matter of what side we feed and what side we choose to live our lives by. Also recognizing that sometimes the darkness can be quite beautiful. It's in the darkness that the beautiful moon glows, and it has to be dark in order for us to see the shine of the moon and the illumination. It's also where you can go into the shadows and reflect to find yourself in the silence. It's learning the beautiful that you are half, that you have different sides, and that's okay, that's beautiful. I'm strong, and I'm also angelic, kind and soft, but I also have fire and wrath.

What is "No Me Importa" about?

It's about how it doesn't matter who is judging you, who is observing you, who is diagnosing you. It's just letting go of the strength that we give other people over us, and we chose to give that strength to other people, because other people can't control the way that we feel. It's up to us to either let other people's actions control us or not control us. This is just me surrendering to that. I'm letting go of the power I let other people have over me.I have to free myself from this. I think we make ourselves sick when we try to fulfill everyone's expectations. Because every different person has a different expectation, and everybody has an idea of who we should be and what's right and wrong in life and what's good and bad. We just have to live by our own experience.

Next is the heavy hitter "Roots".

It's the "Maria, thank you for your hate" that I've done in different forms in the past. I think that we all have to experience life in different ways. I'm just somebody who is bad things happen in my life or painful things or traumatic things that have hurt really deeply, I used to suffer from it and I used to just sit with it. I've learned how to take that and turn it into this way to liberate myself and to be really grateful for experiences even when they hurt, because I understand that I'm becoming a more experienced human being. I can empathize with different things because I've experienced them. I can relate to people who are going through stuff that I've had to experience, that I hurt, that I healed, and now I can share that with them, and they're hurting, then they heal, and then they share that. I get strength from other people. It's the things that have me, like my father leaving or abandonment issues that I had, or when people are trying to flush their hate toward me, learning to take that and say, "Thank you for this, thank you for making me a more rounded human being, a stronger person." It makes me have a stronger foundation for who I am and what I am. The people that I know are my real tight people, we're stuck together by our roots. We are unbreakable into the ground. The roots grow together. They're ever-changing and growing into each other, and you can't break that. That's what I'm referring to when I say, "My roots run deep into the hollow."

The final song on Ritual is Lay Your Gun Down. How literal is that?

It has multiple meanings to me. That happens, you write things and they invoke different things and emotions. The real message to it is trying to find a sense of peace between turmoil, finding love in the hate, finding peace in the anarchy, surrendering and choosing to say, "Let's stop killing each other. Let's stop killing ourselves. Let's stop, and let's try to find a loving, peaceful resolution." Love, to me, is the answer. I'm one of those hippies. There's a lot of hate, and there's a lot of war. There's a lot of fighting going on, and there's people who are killing themselves. Couples that are killing each other, and countries that are killing each other. It's me just wanting to look at each other as human beings and trying to find some sort of peace between each other, to find some sort of love. And not I blame you for what you did, and I blame myself because of what I did. That's what I'm referencing when I say, "I pulled the trigger," and what did I do to crate this situation and what did they do to create this situation, whether or not it's love. At the end of the day, stop with the fighting, the turmoil, the back and forth, and the fears, and find some sort of peace amongst the madness.

What does the album title Ritual refer to? Were there any ideas discussed?

We did have multiple names going back and forth. I don't want to give them away because I might use another name that almost was the name of the album in the future, but Ritual stuck for where we are right ow. I'm really going through this independence in my life and going alone, by myself, into this unknown place. I'm a very ritualistic person. I'm a very ceremonial person. I guess, you could say to a fault. It's very hard for me to do just normal everyday things that people do. I do things in a very ceremonial way because it keeps me centered, it keeps me focused, and it keeps me in control of my own life. I have a lot of madness and a lot of anxieties. If I don't live my life a certain way, I can get filled with anxieties, fears, and these emotions, and all these things take my life over. When I live my life in this peaceful ritualistic way, I have these little things that I burn, and I use crystals. I have these little ceremonies that I do. They keep me connected and they keep me peaceful. I can let my fire out in a controlled way when I choose, instead of it just come out whenever it feels like and I have no control. The whole way the album was feeling, it was just perfect.

How did you choose the artwork for Ritual?

I kept seeing these different visuals. I lay things out just like I do for the album, and I creatively come up with concepts for the covers and the videos. Chris, Kevin, and the boys in the band, they trust me to do the vision. They still give me insight and they have great ideas, but if I get these things in my head, they want me to show them so they can see what page I'm on. So, I lay it all out, and we all work together to come up with the best way. I just saw it in my head, and we planned it all out where I would be floating in the in-between. I wanted it to feel like I'm being lifted up into this light in the artwork, that I was floating in this beautiful place. It's crazy, because some people think it's scary, but to me it looks euphoric and beautiful. It's just a matter of perception and how you choose to view it.

The focus of In This Moment is always on you, and female fronted metal usually comes to mind. Does that term have a place in music in 2017?

I don't even look at the female fronted thing as meaning anything. I think being a female singer in a rock/metal band is empowering and strong, and I don't think it ever holds me back. I don't worry how other people perceive me or how I'm supposed to be. You just have to let go of all of that. To me, it's just fake. Just be you, whether you're a man or a woman, and express yourself in your art and how you choose to. I think there have been powerful women in rock bands all the way back to Janis Joplin and Tina Turner. It's been going on for a long time.

How has your relationship with the rest of the guys in the band changed over the years, especially with Chris Howorth, as he's been there since the beginning?

They're my brothers. We travel the world together, and we live our dreams together. I love them all. Obviously, I've been with Chris the longest. He's like my brother, literally, and he's one of my best friends in the whole world. He's been with me through thick and thin, but I've always been with my other guys, Randy [Weitzel, rhythm guitar] and Travis [Johnson, bass] for a while. Kent [Diimmel, drums] is on the newer side, but so professional, so great. Not only are they innovative guys, they're all the most amazing musicians. I'm lucky to have my crew, too, I've gotta say. We have this crew that works so hard, cares so much about our vision, and pays such attention to little details, because I'm very passionate about the live show.

What are your goals right now for In This Moment and yourself?

Just to keep evolving, to keep growing as an artist. I love doing the music, and eventually I'll do a side project to get out a lot more of the artistic, trippy side of myself that doesn't always fully fit into In This Moment. That's something I'll definitely be pursuing between In This Moment albums. Also, I'm thinking about acting, and maybe getting into film in some way, getting on the other side of the camera. I am passionate about certain directing things, and I'm also passionate about acting, too, so I just have to pick what my next goal in entertainment is if I want to add anything to the music. Personally,I just want to keep growing spiritually, love my family, and try live life happy and have new experiences as much as I can. And just grow and evolve as a being.

#text #in this moment #interview #outburn magazine #maria brink

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ryodan · 7 years

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Do all evens!

1. selfie2. what would you name your future kids? Undecided??? I like the name Rayaan (not Ryan,, Rayaan which is the name of a river in the Islamic depiction of paradise) for boys? But undecided. 3. do you miss anyone?4. what are you looking forward to? Going home.5. is there anyone who can always make you smile?6. is it hard for you to get over someone? Surprisingly? Not really. 7. what was your life like last year?8. have you ever cried because you were so annoyed? Yes, always when I’m on my period 9. who did you last see in person?10. are you good at hiding your feelings? Not really but it depends on who I’m with.11. are you listening to music right now?12. what is something you want right now? Not to fail my exams. Sushi.13. how do you feel right now?14. when was the last time someone of the opposite sex hugged you? Yesterday. 15. personality description16. have you ever wanted to tell someone something but you didn’t? Yes, many times. 17. opinion on insecurities.18. do you miss how things were a year ago? Not really. 2 years ago tho? Yes.19. have you ever been to New York?20. what is your favourite song at the moment? Yes I’m changing by tame impala21. age and birthday?22. description of crush. He’s very attractive all my friends are like damn girl good taste?? Curly dark hair and blue eyes. Pretty tall. Very artistic, he’s a photographer who’s well traveled because he wins in competitions that have travel ticket prizes. Likes physics god bless. Is Algerian and I love Algerian men. I have 0 chances with him though because he happens to be my brothers friend and his brother happens to be my brothers room mate and best friend. He probably has too much dignity to ever romance me lmao. 23. fear(s)24. height: 5'5925. role model26. idol(s) Harry styles is just very kind and takes such pride in being unique and just being himself? The rest of one direction too except maybe Liam and zayn no shade no tea I love them but they are dumb. Malala yousef is a girl who payed the ultimate price for peace without being a pacifist. Fatima bint Muhammed (the daughter of the final prophet in Islam and a woman nicknamed the most beautiful one with the most generous of hearts for how charitable she was). Fatima Al fihri (the woman who opened the first ever university) Asia imraat phiraon (the wife of the Pharoah in the Islamic telling of the story who was tortured endlessly but refused to give up what she believed in..her last words as she smiled in the face of death were ‘God build for me a house in your paradise’ and he gave her a castle instead). Mary mother of Jesus (in the Islamic telling of the story, of course the mother of Jesus who endured endless slander but stood firm and confident in the face of adversity. The only woman who served in the temple of Solomon despite the sexist views back in the day, a woman so highly revered that the Quran says she is favoured by God above all women). Rufaida Al Aslamia (the first nurse to ever perform surgery). Angelina Jolie. Galileo. Abraham. (In the Islamic telling of the story, I just greatly appreciate how when his dad shunned him he said 'may peace be upon you ill ask my lord to forgive you’. Also that man is iconic and basically created the 3 most major ideologies of today??). Jesus (in the Islamic and Christian telling of the story, this man is just a hipster who wants peace and love and hates hate. I love him) Muhammed Ibn Abdullah (aka?? The most iconic man to have ever lived?? My prophet??? I converted to Islam and I’m just really glad that we have this beautiful generous man as our final prophet)27. things i hate28. i’ll love you if… you’re easy to talk to and we vibe. Plus if you have gud food resources.29. favourite film(s)30. favourite tv show(s) The Simpsons. The office. Futurama. Seinfeld. Friends. Rick and morty. GOT. Monk. Dexter. Scream queens. AHS.31. 3 random facts32. are your friends mainly girls or guys? Girls tbh. although I have guy friends too, girls just get me and I love us.33. something you want to learn34. most embarrassing moment my literal entire existence but my uncle caught me scratching my ass once at age 7. During my phallic stage I was caught by my brother being a weird kid in front of the mirror?? I leaned back from my school principal trying to kiss me on the cheek and she looked so offended. In a debate competition (which I won first place in muahaha) I accidentally said we should give bullies drugs in front of like a100 people. I laughed in a play and caused a domino effect. I’ve crashed into multiple glass doors with too many confidence. I’ve eaten chips laced with sewage water. I pretended i knew the lyrics to Hannah Montanas theme song so I could fit in with the Kool kidzz and got put on the spot only to sing 'you get the best of both worlds hottest nannaaananan’. I yelled at a bunch of Saudis a very racist slur (listen i was 11) and got a slap to the face in the middle of the supermarket. Got caught giving my friend a back massage in a shady place at school,, she was moaning,,,I was on top of her,,,you can guess what they assumed. Got caught pretending to be a worm with my best friend in the audio visual room?? We were acting out the worm kink fic. lucky me though, I have about 0 shame??? Like wow I have a pee problem that my teachers say I’m way too open about. When I went to the doctor and he expected me to be shy but I was like yeah man I piss a lot and nah it doesn’t burn my urethra,, he was very surprised at my lack of shame. So there’s that.35. favourite subject36. 3 dreams you want to fulfill? Live independently. Get a successful career. Do some research in my field 37. favourite actor/actress38. favourite comedian(s) fuck I do stand up so this is hard to narrow down. Louis Ck is a classic. Bo Burnham. Daniel Sloss. Russell Peters. David Chappell. Russell Howard. 39. favourite sport(s)40. favourite memory don’t really have one? Either playing in the snow in France? Visiting Disney for the first time? Playing with my brothers when our parents travelled? My first farawell party? Not sure tbh. 41. relationship status42. favourite book(s) A brief history of time. Energy the subtle concept. Astrophysics for people in a hurry. Everyday. Wonder. The complete works of Oscar Wilde. The Harry Potter series.43. favourite song ever44. age you get mistaken for: 22 lolol45. how you found out about your idol46. what my last text message says: my friend sent this 'My cousin’s aunts and grandma sent me a video where all of them talked to me personally in it and they reminded me of the memories we had and now im crying’47. turn ons48. turn offs: Loud eating. Loud breathing. Loud talking (even though it’s what I do). Talking over me. Being pompous. Being overly serious or stern. 49. where i want to be right now50. favourite picture of your idol. Can’t add that on phone.51. starsign52. something i’m talented at: I can sing (I’ve won a talent show!). I can draw although I’m not that great and it’s limited to Manga style drawings. I can write, specially targeted writing like articles and speeches. I can memorise things really fast bc eidetic memory so I’m always that fact bank my friends come to. Most importantly my number one talent is speaking. Sounds silly but talking is what I do best. Public speaking, stand up that makes people laugh and debates are always things I get first place in and it’s where I feel most confident in myself.53. 5 things that make me happy54. something thats worrying me at the moment: Exams. Exams. Exams. Exams. Exams. My future. Exams.55. tumblr friends56. favourite food(s) sushi and burgers 57. favourite animal(s)58. description of my best friend: she is 5'3. Has chestnut coloured hair and brown eyes. She’s pretty. Very Palestinian. Very funny. Very hard working. Like insanely hard working. Like teachers tell her to chill hardworking. Weird. A great listener. Secretive but I appreciate that about her since I’m secretive too. 59. why i joined tumblr60. ask me anything you want: go for it. Thanks anon! Hope my embarrassing feats don’t make you unfollow me.

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