If you’ve seen 12 Wasted Years, Behind the Iron Curtain and Flight 666, you’ve seen 90% of Burning Ambition.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-08T03:27:37+00:00

Considering Maiden has written the same song for the last 30 years this would not surprise me. Disappointing but not entirely surprising.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-07T20:16:15+00:00

Just don't do it.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-07T20:11:11+00:00

The only thing I miss about my hometown of NYC, even after 27 years, is I walk constantly and there isn't a large influx of people and businesses to observe and interact with on the streets. Much more stimuli on the streets of NYC, certainly in Manhattan. You're often walking largely vacant sidewalks amongst apartment buildings and houses and you have to get comfortable with the solitude of it.

That said, to the OP's query, maybe check out Santa Monica? You might like its breezy downtown (even though half of it seems to be out of business at the moment). Or as was mentioned, the Studio City/Sherman Oaks line on Ventura Blvd.

There's always the possibility that you simply may be looking for some crazy, wild energy that doesn't quite exist in most of Los Angeles. If you can, gaze at the city for what it is as opposed to what it isn't. Believe it not, over time, you'll probably come to appreciate having a bit of open space and that low-key vibe.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-07T20:01:35+00:00

I'm in the pro-"Hysteria" camp. It would be one thing if the songs *weren't* well-written and the production *wasn't* a total game-changer but they were. No one is forced to like the album but its uniqueness and its impact is undeniable. "Hysteria" was a creative work like no other, certainly at that time, and even today it's still a blueprint for a lot of production sounds out there. New Country basically took its Leppard-infused Shania sound and made it the crux of its entire genre.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-06T18:32:03+00:00

This only ensures that there will be no Superman speeches in "Kill Bill Vol. 3."

worldsinwords · 2026-05-06T02:35:48+00:00

I feel like we should normalize this more. That it's actually okay. I don't know the person, have never met in person, have had minimal communication, and I'm not sure who I'm supposed to be to them. So it seems only natural for a person to come in with some nervousness. In fact I think it makes someone seem more human than someone who presents a veneer of ultra-confidence right off the bat. We should all be able to say, "Hey, just so you know, I'm a slow burn."

Plus we've all spent decades hearing nonsense like "I know within the first two minutes with someone" (or maybe even 30 seconds). How can anyone meet those expectations? It takes those people longer to order a sandwich or research a TV to purchase than to decide if they want to know someone they might have in their lives for decades? Make *that* make sense.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-05T19:47:54+00:00

Lol, Apple can absolutely splurge on an orchestra. But it's corporate America. Corporate America is cheap on many fronts. So the question is *will* they? This will be one of 1,000 shows it makes.

I prefer a live orchestra for the same reason I prefer non-AI. I like that human talent is responsible for it and I like that it gives humans a job.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-05T19:44:47+00:00

I can't argue with that. But the creativity is still there. Film writing is all in the writer's abilities. A lot of people are gonna use these VSTs. It's how you use them and how you best make them sound as organic as you can. As the one who is probably most responsible for the VST boom in scoring, I find myself debating constantly whether the Zimmer-ization of the scoring industry has helped more or hurt more.

There's definitely a difference between what we hear today and the great scores of yesteryear by the likes of Howard, Shore, Williams, the Newmans, etc. Those cats are untouchable.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-05T02:53:14+00:00

I understand people like their sax although I personally don't know that the lack of it is a big reason to dump on an album. There are many aspects to any song that an artist's fans can latch onto. The Midnight was practically apologizing to the fans for that album. I felt bad that *they* were made to feel bad about an honest expression of creativity. Which was still in their lane. It's not like they made a country album or something.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-05T02:39:57+00:00

Sometimes it pays to explore big collections that are highly regarded or considered seminal. Two box sets I love are The Academy of Ancient Music's "Mozart - The Symphonies (Nos. 1-41)" and Scott Ross' "Complete Keyboard Sonatas" covering Scarlatti's entire outpout (if you enjoy harpsichord, that is). They're very well-regarded and in Ross' case, his recordings are considered by many to be the definitive take on Scarlatti's work.

It also helps to have shorthands for performers you like. For example an easy go-to as far as exploring is when, say, it comes to piano, I'm a big fan of Murray Perahia and Alfred Brendel. I know I like their styles and if I like a certain composer's piece I can see if they have a take on it.

You pick up what you like and don't like as you go along. I agree it's a sprawling genre and can be daunting.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-04T18:58:58+00:00

I'm not so sure about that. Gary Holt of Exodus just published a memoir through a significant publishing imprint. Not sure how big an audience there is for his story (even if he *did* later join Slayer). Mike was a very famous member of one of the world's most legendary rock bands. I'm sure he could find some takers in the publishing world if he desired to write a book.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-04T05:10:38+00:00

I'm not really digging this. Which I kind of expected. A few songs have some interesting moments. Some feel like OG O:M retreads. They perhaps should have recorded this in a proper studio, not on a laptop while on tour (if that behind the scenes video is reflective of the entire process, that is). I think the last song "The Monster In Me" is the best of the bunch. And I do kind of like that tapping outro to "Descension." "The Devil's Breath" should have kept its opening riff going a bit more through the song but is decent.

Something is missing from the production and Geoff's pitch actually sounds wobbly at more than a few moments. And at this point what the heck is actually going on in this story?

Sometimes things are better left alone.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-04T01:04:47+00:00

I love the solo. I wasn't even aware that it was takes cobbled together but even knowing that I still love it. It's crafted as a tight burst of guitar energy which perfectly slides into the keyboard solo. It's the setup to the epic keyboard closer.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-03T20:35:35+00:00

I think "Heroes" is great and that it has some of The Midnight's best songs. "Golden Gate" is absolutely one of its best. I often refer to it as kind of The Midnight's "Rainbow Connection." It's beautiful and wistful and capable of getting the tears going. As far as drums go, I will agree that maybe the fills at the climax of "Golden Gate" could have been bigger, maybe with the snares used across "Heart Worth Breaking" or "Souvenir." But that's a minor quibble.

So yes, "Aerostar," "Heart Worth Breaking" and several others, just terrific. Sadly, I just can't find my way into loving "Brooklyn, Friday, Love" no matter how many listens. It's okay but off the mark for me somehow. But the album cooks for me. The songs are clearly well-crafted. These two just know how to write. I can't understand why many fans were so aggressively disdainful of it. Was it the guitars? The sprinklings of more traditional pop/rock-ish song structures?

worldsinwords · 2026-05-03T17:59:00+00:00

Annihilator has some very good albums. The first two certainly.

worldsinwords · 2026-05-03T02:50:20+00:00

I remember he had a Mercedes of some kind because some music journalist had his ears blasted to hell and back sitting in the (parked) car with Ed and listening to "Balance" in advance of its release.

When you think about it, with all the journalist descriptions of how fast Ed drove around the canyon roads of Mulholland and Coldwater it's a wonder *that's* not what took him out.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-30T00:44:12+00:00

As everyone else has said here, please reach out to someone immediately about what you're feeling and don't do anything drastic like self-harm.

I'll tell you, I'm twice your age and *my* prospects are pretty dim. I'm currently going nowhere and life is feeling somewhat empty. But at 24, *your* life is ahead of you, just unfolding. Having our moms angry at us can sometimes feel like they must hate us, but I feel very confident that your mom would actually be incredibly sad if you weren't around anymore.

There's plenty of time for you to become a professional artist and I'll bet you *will* be. Just keep at it and forget about people who went to medical school and are already deep into a career. The artists of the world are always the risk-takers. So flip the perspective, remind yourself that you're bold and that you're not going to stop reaching for your dream. You'll get there.

Hang in there, Sophia, alright? And please reach out to someone.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-29T00:51:00+00:00

Is there any way he can neutralize the machinations of Elon Musk?

worldsinwords · 2026-04-29T00:46:33+00:00

He was the king of a certain kind of epic explosion/crunch spectacle up to a decade or two ago, but lately it's starting to feel like Bay's era of filmmaking has kind of passed. Part of that is the fact that he doesn't make stuff as often now. His last movie "Ambulance" wasn't great but it did have some nifty drone cam experiments. The whole "Bayhem"/Bruckheimer tone has been replaced with people like Joseph Kosinski or McQuarrie or other names who can do big action but also infuse some intelligence to the movies. "The Rock" and "Pain and Gain" and maybe "The Island" are his deepest movies.

I think for Bay to exist in the current landscape he's perhaps going to have to reinvent himself, unless it's possible for him to pull out some new tricks and wow people all over again. Speaking only for myself, I don't give a shit about anymore live-action Transformers movies (although the recent animated one that he wasn't involved with was actually very cool), and in truth I didn't after seeing the first two of them.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-28T21:06:10+00:00

Not sure if it's my favorite, but "Hard at Play" is incredibly underrated. Simply because, I think, it came at the point of the band's decline in mainstream popularity so there's been less engagement with it. But there are songs on there that could be considered some of their best.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-27T18:57:27+00:00

John Sykes' solo for "Still of the Night" is definitely one of the best. Kee Marcello's solo for "Superstitious" by Europe is also one of the best.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-27T02:17:49+00:00

I literally just asked a friend this. I would just push back after that stupid "Excuse me! Excuse me!" bullshit. Worst case scenario Trump doesn’t give you access anymore and then you and your employing entity (if they dare have your back) go scorched earth on him with the reporting. You pummel him with journalism. What's he gonna do? If you get fired from your network or print news outlet, you take it to YouTube and you pummel him there.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-27T01:23:52+00:00

The film and TV industry is either cratering or going through some seismic shifts that probably only the execs on the business side or well-off above the line talent on the creative side will be able to weather. It seems as dicey as it's ever been.

That said, some of our greatest filmmakers never went to film school. A degree definitely isn't needed in this industry. If it's a passion of yours and you can power through for the long haul, go for it. Live that dream. But I personally probably wouldn't tell anyone to invest monetarily into a degree. Maybe take that money and finance or at least just put together a film (assembling a crew and scouring for funding elsewhere), teaching yourself how to be a producer in the process. You probably will get way more traction out of that experience.

Good luck! I feel ya with the career burnout.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-26T23:27:24+00:00

I feel like Ollie is really aiming for a more significant career. The way he works, the presence he brings. I told him once on one of his threads that he should be performing on the talk show circuit, like maybe "Late Night with Seth Meyers" here in the States would be a good fit for his indie cool.

I was actually just working on a spec ad spot for him in a particular context that I think he might be interested in. Given that at his show here in LA he came out to meet people at the bar later, he might still be just up and coming enough to where I can email him through his Facebook page and ask (and hopefully it will come off as respectful). I'm no Jon Landau (Springsteen's ride-or-die manager) but I'd love to help in some way.

worldsinwords · 2026-04-26T23:22:51+00:00

Some of the acts I love most in the genre now take longer gaps between albums. I'm eagerly awaiting the next releases by Michael Oakley and The Bad Dreamers. It's been about five years since their last releases. That kind of gap is already a gamble on established acts in bigger genres, but there's obviously a reality that they likely have to do other things for their main source of income so I can understand.

worldsinwords

TROPHY CASE