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Red's Best of 2015: The YECA (Top 10 Singles up! No, really)
Member Since: 8/20/2011
Posts: 18,654
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Alabama Shakes 
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Member Since: 3/22/2011
Posts: 26,525
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What kind of foreshadowing Lemmy's death. 
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Member Since: 10/11/2004
Posts: 28,320
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Love anything by Foals. Alabama Shakes and KONGOS are cool too.
Hated anything from Muse this era, sorry.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 5/9/2003
Posts: 3,779
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Working backwards this time
Mercy is the most adjac version of Starlight imagineable. 
I've never heard "Toes", and it sounds like thats a good thinf, but ZBB was one of the biggest surprises of the year for me too.
And you nailed the write up for Dont Wanna Fight. Well sAid.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 5/9/2003
Posts: 3,779
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I'm listening to your Agent Fresco right now. I like the music alot but this singer will be an acquired taste. Another song is needed before judgement. Kinda reminds me of HIM? I know you liked them alot so that makes sense lol.
Hey more ZBB!
What Kind of Man is pretty good, though I prefer Ship to Wreck.
BFlow! Glad you got around to that one!
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 5/9/2003
Posts: 3,779
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Youre definitely not the first one to say that about Weezers new song and I still havent listened because of it lol. I do agree that Da Vinci is great though!
Demi needed to let her freak out and its not like her other albums were any different in the hit/nothit department lol.
Silversun's new album was fine but quite unremarkable as you mention or don't mention more accurately. Didn't help that it was released on the same day as Dead Weather and Chvrches.
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Member Since: 1/6/2014
Posts: 21,185
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Let It Happen is still overrated in comparasion to the other tracks of Tame's album even though it's still good. 'Cause I'm A Man" <3
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Member Since: 4/16/2007
Posts: 30,963
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not a fan of this set 
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 8/11/2007
Posts: 63,796
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Disturbed and Muse 
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 27,248
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But I like to believe it's because of how it's building toward an unbelievable climax at the end from the first second.
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That's right 
I'm confused as to what you're trying to say for Mercy.  The song feels like it's going for something more but it falls short.
Let It Happen is phenomenal but Cause I'm a Man is still really really good
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ATRL Moderator
Member Since: 11/16/2004
Posts: 28,450
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Mountain At My Gates & Heavy Is The Head 
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Member Since: 2/17/2012
Posts: 33,611
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Cause I'm a Man is GOOD but I just don't really like that cliche type stuff so no matter how good the song is I kinda roll my eyes.
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Member Since: 5/9/2009
Posts: 6,397
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Schedule or skedule they say in the British way you say? I see that you’re at least a day behind. Still, I’m hopeful to see the day when Red finish his Best of on time. It’s something I’ll be telling my grandchildren. Not really. At least you better prepared this time. The same can’t be said about me.
100-91: Angels Fall speaks to me and tells me to remember and to live on forever. I feel the feeling I get from this fine song. But hey, interesting thoughts on who’s the real Breaking Benjamin. Speed of Light is epic. Iron Maiden lives on. I forgot about One and All. Red, you certainly let it happen. For shame! Love the write-up on The Hills. Still can’t decide if I like The Hills Have Eyes more or the other 50SOG song more or the Wannabe MJ song more.
90-81: I guess the slow tempo of sound doesn’t work for you. I admit I have mixed feeling about it, but still like it. But, yeah they kick ass when they RAWR! Ehh, I’m more A Light That Never Comes than Darker than Blood, but still good. What I can from DTB is suns and a darker electronic rock and EDM sound. I forgot about Love Me since I heard at least once. Boo new Ellie! I think I heard about Jenny Lewis and her songs from another Best of last year-I think it was one of the Godfathers’ Best ofs. Nothing Without Love barely made my On Deck. Empire is good, too bad it missed my top 200 since I got into it late.
80-71: Your write-up explains it well on why I get down with my bad self Downtown. I slept on Future Island no. I haven’t listen to Alt radio at all this year so I was unaware of Cold War Kids becoming a thing now. I didn’t care for The Mephistophales of Los Angeles that much. Pop Coldplay is a good Coldplay you will all love! Speaking of M5, they didn’t impressive at all this year.
70-61: Why don’t I have a chance to listen to LIGHTS again? I Bet My Life was good on par from their last album. Your write-up on Killpop didn’t kill my love for this sort of pop song. Yeah, ok. Praise Max Martin responsible for all of the pop hits ATRL loves so much and Can’t Feel My Face is no exception. The Weeknd does MJ justice. Abel comes from a long way. Ship are to wreck. Recovery slay me back in 13’. Too bad that I haven’t heard of Frank Turner again until now in this Best of. Yeah. I first heard Bros from Beats 1 and yes, it’s a nice song to wash your problems away. Are you tired of not being able to finish what you started? Failure.
60-51: I slept on Weezer this year for some reason. I remember that I like Da Vinci and was sad that it couldn’t make the on deck last year. Not this year since I haven’t the song for a long time. It was Cool for the Summerslam. Nightlight I really enjoy. Cannibal who? I didn’t know Motorhead had new music out before the inevitable happen. This write-up is eerie to read now. I forgot about Crystallized. Hollow Moon (Bad Wolf) is one of my top favorites of the year. Tragic that it’s not in the top 20. TRAGIC! Congregation is some of that good Foos.
50-41: Top 50! Foxes, gimme some of that Body Talk oh oh oh. It’s a mystery why no love for Foxes in the states. Well, We Are Young got its fame from that car commercial from the Superbowl so you didn’t have to listen to radio. Anyway, Uptown Funk 2015 Up! Well, 2015 was kinda of Funked up. What Kind of Woman Florence is? So glad that all the great hard rock band. Disturbed has been missed since I was a High School student. Now, I’m 21 in community college. The Vengeful One is just epic in more ways than one. I can’t deny Brandon and his music. I love it. You are not denying on what you said on your write-up. Oh, I started my Best of after X-Mas.
40-31: Mountain at the Gates is so infectious. I love it for sure. I hear the Starlight in Mercy. Have Mercy. Lemmy…..stay heavy! RIP! Heavy Is the Head is epic. Is that why Cause I’m a Man is so damn infectious? Cause it’s a pop song? Not that complaining. Why am I ignoring Alabama Shakes? Still, I’m so mesmerized. Great to know that KONGOS is this high.
Impeccable write-up and impressive Best of so damn far. Will you make it towards the end?
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Member Since: 10/8/2009
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/26/2001
Posts: 22,475
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Replies...and Lots of Them
Error 522 can kiss my ass. This is getting finished, dammit.
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Originally posted by ColdKeane
WOW! RIP Lemmy  |
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Originally posted by Topmaster 2
Motörhead  I can't beliebe what happened with Lemmy yet  |
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Originally posted by Changes
What kind of foreshadowing Lemmy's death. |
I'm sure it surprises no one that this news absolutely floored me when I first saw it. I want to pretend that I didn't update yesterday for any other reason than simply because I didn't get everything finished on time, but that wouldn't be true...but geez, I would have struggled to update anyway after this. Birthday on December 24th...cancer diagnosis on December 26th...dead on December 28th. Wow. Rocked until the very end, though. Lemmy forever. We are Motörhead, and we play rock and roll.
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Originally posted by prezli
NBT better show up somewhere.
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Still have to wait for a little bit. 
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Originally posted by Staryu
omg I actually know the Kongos song  its good |
I'm surprised that so many people even REMEMBER that song, especially compared to the other two singles. CWMN still rules.
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Originally posted by Mr.Link
In fact it is the song that made me listen to their entire discography this year, it's just that good.
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"Starlight" converts another. Praise be to Muse. 
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Originally posted by Bloomers
I love the Thieves but *Brittany Howard voice: I don't wanna fight  I'll be rooting for the thieves to steal next year  |
They technically stole some part of this year still.
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Originally posted by potent
I like Don't Wanna Fight, I think I prefer Hold On though.
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Man, that's such a tough call. "Don't Wanna Fight" is basically the band itself at their best, but Brittany just carries "Hold On" to another plane. Hmm...may have to get back to you on that one.
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Originally posted by Ivan
I used to like kongos, but now it not so good :-\
tame Impala is my favorite here  |
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Originally posted by Sunderland 4ever
Sorry! I meant Sunderland winning a BPL soccer game, but I think that's highly unlikely too.  |
Indeed. I'm rooting for them, though!...as long as they're not playing Arsenal.
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Originally posted by Luis
Hated anything from Muse this era, sorry.
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B-but..."Reapers" and "The Handler" are better than anything since Black Holes, though. 
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Originally posted by Calvin McHobbes
I'm listening to your Agent Fresco right now. I like the music alot but this singer will be an acquired taste. Another song is needed before judgement. Kinda reminds me of HIM? I know you liked them alot so that makes sense lol.
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O, as always, I love your responses. Wanted to respond to this one in particular because, even though I actually sense a bit of similarity between Agent Fresco's vocalist and Ville Valo, I don't like HIM NEARLY as much as I like Agent Fresco as a whole. Just...get ready for the top ten, that's all I'll say.
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Originally posted by Flame Beat Z000
Schedule or skedule they say in the British way you say? I see that you’re at least a day behind. Still, I’m hopeful to see the day when Red finish his Best of on time. It’s something I’ll be telling my grandchildren. Not really. At least you better prepared this time. The same can’t be said about me.
Impeccable write-up and impressive Best of so damn far. Will you make it towards the end?
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Flame! Nice to see you again. And, even though my schedule keeps changing, I'm going to make it to the end. You may be able to tell your grandchildren yet.
How am I so confident? Because everything for the Singles list is DONE. It's done. I'm not gonna post everything at once, because that would be a bit anticlimactic, but an update a day (or perhaps two, for the top 10) is definitely in play. We may not get done before the beginning of the new year, but on New Year's Day? Oh, that's DEFINITELY looking likely. And it all starts soon with 30-21. Stick around, because the end may actually happen.
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/26/2001
Posts: 22,475
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The YECA: Top 100 Singles of 2015 (30-21)
Rest in power, Lemmy. This one's for you.
This did not have nearly the impact that I thought it would this time last year. Did it have an impact? Of course. Wouldn't have made the top 30 otherwise, right? But I was thinking, at the very worst, "Motherf***er" would be top 20. As it turns out, I was spent by sometime either in April or May. This is directly related to another Faith No More single that you will be seeing shortly. It's not like I totally fell out of love with the song, though. If anything, by the end of the year, I fell back in love with the song. What I love about "Motherf***er" hasn't changed since last year: It's exactly what I expect to hear out of a band as unique as Faith No More. It does not bow down to popular convention, nor does it try to appeal to a broader audience. It appeals to exactly the audience you'd expect. And it still rules, one year later.
I don't think a single Beck song has made me hungrier for a new Beck album than "Dreams". Why? Because it sounds like, with "Dreams", we're basically repeating what happened from Sea Change to Guero. Morning Phase was the critical darling, the "companion piece" to Sea Change. It's a fantastic album, but it's also not the type of album you want to repeat with the upcoming album. That's why "Dreams" excited me so much. It reminds me of the Guero days, which was when my fandom of Beck was at an all-time high. It's full of life, extremely fun, and dangerously catchy...all accolades you can use to describe "Dreams", actually. If we do, indeed, get a new Beck album in 2016, and it resembles Guero, I will be over the moon. If we either don't get a new Beck album or it doesn't QUITE sound like Guero, well...we'll always have "Dreams".
Speaking of songs that made me hungry for new albums...well, Incubus didn't QUITE release an album. Instead, they released an EP, Trust Fall, that is meant to serve as an appetizer for the next Incubus album. And my goodness, what a song to choose as the song to whet the most appetites. "Absolution Calling" immediately became one of my favorite Incubus songs, a supremely produced and performed tune that takes the best aspects from their (admittedly) disappointing album If Not Now, When? and amplifies them to infinity. In a way, the song reminds me of a more peppy "Adolescents", and, instead of falling off somewhat like "Adolescents" does at the bridge, "Absolution Calling" stays on course with no drop off points. The last chorus, in particular, is the kind of soaring and world-beating chorus that I just have not heard enough of from Incubus in recent years. THIS is what I want from Incubus. More of this, guys. Please.
Modest Mouse released an album this year! It...did not live up to my expectations. But its two main singles 100% did, and the first of the two to make this list is the return single, "Lampshades on Fire", Keep in mind one important fact about "Lampshades': We had not heard any new material from Modest Mouse in almost a decade. Hell, I was beginning to wonder if we'd EVER heard new Modest Mouse music. With the many lineup changes and with how much more the band was focusing on their live shows, it was reasonable to believe that Modest Mouse were done as a recording artist. As if on cue, here comes the Mouse! "Lampshades on Fire" is such a Modest Mouse song that it might as well have screamed, "MODEST MOUSE! MODEST MOUSE! MODEST MOUSE!" But that's a big part of its charm. It's content with being as Modest Mouse as possible, and that's more than okay with me.
This time last year, there were three songs that really won me over from La Gárgola. Two have remained a big part of my playlist. "Hunter Eats Hunter" continues to win me over by being the most Chevelle song that ever Chevelled, while "An Island" rivals "Hunter Eats Hunter" by having the most beastly and catchiest chorus on the entire album. When Pete Loeffler shouts out, "DO WHAT YOU WANT!", it's hard for me to not shout along, because the music playing behind his shouts is so freaking badass. The rest of the song isn't too shabby, either, with grooves on top of grooves and Pete Loeffler's sneering, sarcastic vocals. If you're expecting Chevelle to lighten up any time soon, it doesn't sound like you're going to get your wish on "An Island". But if you're looking for more of the same awesome Chevelle, "An Island" is what you're looking for.
Civil Twilight, what are you guys doing?! You guys have to be one of the most bipolar bands I've ever seen. You guys have the capability to produce some truly superior tunes, but you focus way too much on trying to copy what the hot trends are. That's the story of their latest, Story of an Immigrant in a nutshell. They tend to focus a bit TOO often on "hot trends", instead of trying to be a more consistently awesome band. "Holy Dove" is the lone exception. This song is actually kind of a little late to the party. Muse's "Uprising" was six years ago, and even Metric's "Youth Without Youth" was a couple years ago. Maybe Civil Twilight just decided to wait a couple more years to release a glam stomp anthem of their own? If that was the strategy, it worked with "Holy Dove". The glam stomp fits Civil Twilight like a glove, which pisses me off even more. These guys are capable of SO much more than Story of an Immigrant indicates. Maybe the band is just doomed to be inconsistent.
Unlike "Motherf***er", THIS song...actually, this song kind of tailed off a bit like "Motherf***er" did, as well. But "Busy Earnin" simply fell off because other, newer songs entered my brain and impacted me just as much as "Busy Earnin". It's no fault of the song, believe me. The song is just as commanding and as much of a mission statement as it was last year. Something that I didn't mention last year was how little success the song itself had. Hell, "Time" was actually a bigger hit for Jungle than "Busy Earnin". I mean...HOW? This song feels like it's destined to be a big hit in SOME universe. Maybe "Busy Earnin" missed its scheduled flight to Universe E? I can't fathom this song not being a massive hit. Then again, it's probably going to be one of those songs that's around in one way, shape or form for at least the next decade, so what do we know?
As much as I enjoyed "Lampshades on Fire", though, I just enjoyed "The Ground Walks, with Time in a Box" THAT much more. Both songs are reminiscent of songs the band has made in the past, and in the case of "Ground Walks", there's some similarities to a couple of Modest Mouse songs in particular that are unavoidable. Whenever I listen to "Ground Walks", though, I tend to just forget about those similar songs and focus on the song at hand. It's just so incredibly difficult to not pay full attention to a song trying as hard to grab your attention as "Ground Walks". It almost sounds like you're delving into a particularly creepy haunted house, with Issac Brock not-so gently pulling you along to show you the sights. And speaking of Issac Brock, he is just a JOY to listen to on this song. Either when playing guitar or singing in the way that only Issac Brock can, it's so fun to listen to a master of his craft at (or, at the very least, near) the top of his game.
Oh, Lauren, I'm so glad to have you around for another year. Every Open Eye shows you and your bandmates continuing to grow as musicians, and "Leave a Trace" is basically your album's "The Mother We Share", the show-stopper that makes everyone take notice. Your performance on "Leave a Trace" is nothing short of phenomenal, both sounding confident and vulnerable, empowered and a little worried. I may like "Recover" and "The Mother We Share" as songs more, but in terms of your performances, "Leave a Trace" is your magnum opus. And your bandmates definitely hold up their end of the bargain here! It takes more than one incredible talent to make a song as precise and as catchy as "Leave a Trace", and that's why it's such a good thing that talented musicians like Martin and Iain are here to help. Your continued growth as musicians is something I cannot wait to watch and listen to over the years. Also, the gifs posted of you are just wonderful. 
I would say that "Somebody New" was the annual "surprise song that took over my top 100 by sheer force of will at the end of the year", but there were a LOT of those this year. So, let's get more specific. "Somebody New" is the "surprise song that I got into three months ago that wound up taking over my top 100 by sheer force of will at the end of the year". Bit of a mouthful, but it's definitely the truth. The fun thing is that, the more and more that I listen to "Somebody New", the more I grow to appreciate his collaboration with Big Data, "Dangerous". It's obvious now that Joywave was the driving force behind that particular song. But "Somebody New" is definitely better, complete with a soaring chorus seemingly ripped straight from the mid-90's Alternative radio scene. It's an absolute joy to listen to.
Again, the big key is that everything is now done for the Singles list. The top 20 should come fast and furious now. And by "fast and furious", I mean "on schedule".
Next up: The top 20! Songs 20-11 will feature not one, but TWO singles from another of my favorite discoveries of 2015, the second of two singles of a band that just appeared in the set above, the second of two singles from two different artists that appeared in sets much earlier, and the return of a YECA staple. See you tomorrow...or perhaps more accurately, goodbye from the other side.
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Member Since: 5/23/2007
Posts: 65,087
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Absolution Calling is amazing!
Lampshades On Fire is my favorite from this set! Love the song, actually their whole album is just incredible.
An Island  Busy Earnin'  love Jungle! Their album was one of my faves last year!
The Ground Walks, with Time in a Box loved this update!
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 6/9/2002
Posts: 6,789
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Here again! And to answer your Q, I do plan on starting my year-end soon, thanks for asking! Going to try to get it all done (albeit in a slightly scaled down version) in January. Talk about my own Crazy Ambition!
Enough of my dumb stuff: great past couple of sets! I really need to listen to that No Devotion album, you're right it's such an excellent story. Geoff Rickey is one of the Good Guys of rock, and obvi what the other lostprophets have gone through is horrible, so i'm glad they came together. I like what i've heard and your year-end will get me to sample more! As you note, that Motorhead write-up sure is weird to read now, though it also serves as a good obit in a sense, as you nail the core essence of what made them so lasting and great over the decades. I like Tame Impala and "I'm A Man" is really good! Alabama Shakes had an amazing year, they finally converted me! "Mother****er" is a great song, happy FNM are back. "Dreams"!! I'm a huge fan of all of Beck's phases (I swear I did not plan this as a Morning Phase joke), but I also am hungry for that kind of Guero-era Beck, as well. Gosh I keep forgetting Modest Mouse put out an album this year. I did like both "Lampshades on Fire" and "The Ground Walks" though.
Looking forward to the Top 20!
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ATRL Senior Member
Member Since: 9/24/2009
Posts: 70,975
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Incubus, Modest Mouse, CHVRCHES
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Member Since: 8/7/2015
Posts: 24,463
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 @ Joywave making it here.
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