"I Want To Say Thank You To The Fans By Telling You A Secret!" -- ILX Pre-Covers The Tortured Poets Department

lol, love reworking the Going Straight theme tune as a dance-pop tune, Tom. awesome.

i want to live in Maresn3st and Alfred's version of "Florida!!"

YES to Ric Flair samples on "guilty as sin". love the loop in it as well.

gotta pause to take a lunch break but man y'all are some creative people. looking forward to the rest.

All kinds of awesomeness within.

I'm sitting in a dentist's office with my client downloading this to my phone.

You all knocked it out of the park. I feel my contribution is unworthy. Loving “the alchemy” atm.

I'm listening to this now.

Is it sampling TS vocals?

I'm sure (positive) mine is the lowest fi, but thanks to the new demixing software, it's now stereo-ish

Will be cued up for tomorrow's commute!

Which one is yours? I doubt it sounds more lo fi than mine as I recorded everything on my cellphone, even the samples were being played and recorded live as I had no idea how to properly import samples lol. Maresnest did a good job at making it less like crap lol.

I'll leave it up to youse to discover, but.

(I.e. upthread...)

Should have spent more time learning how to properly do stuff, already had several samples that I wanted to turn into a full song… wanted to do a bohemian jazz sort of thing with “taylor” reading a poem (some bongos from here, a bass from there, a saxophone, etc…) maybe next time I’ll be ready… it was fun either way.

Oh wait lol I think I know which one is it, I hadn’t gotten to the bonus tracks yet.

I think it’s cleaner sounding than mine! I ended up adding way too much reverb and low end on things and mine is very murky imho.

such a fun ride!

frankly stunned by what Tom D has pulled off here

I finally got to channel my inner Bernard Sumner and scribbled my lyrics on a napkin after a glass of wine.

A fine approach. (Mine, logically, arrived yesterday morning in the shower when I realized something had to happen for that last track.)

Pretty sure I read that Taylor Swift writes all her lyrics on napkins *in* the shower, then celebrates with a glass of wine after. Different strokes etc.

I'm loving everything on this. I wish more superstars of Swift's stature took risks collaborating with internet randos.

Why thank you for the compliment but don't sell yourself short by saying you're an internet rando.

Haha. Swift should call her next album "Internet Randos" and just release this.

I refuse to believe she could write a better "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived" than this "The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived".

frankly stunned by what Tom D has pulled off here

Oh stop it, it's not that difficult to do. Time consuming though.

I've got to say, the way my track follows kurt's track is so perfect it sounds like a deliberate piece of sequencing instead of a complete accident.

...and i'm proud to be internet rando, where at least no one knows me
i can make my noise and mock unknown boys where no one else can see

This is dope

Is it sampling TS vocals?

Thank you! Mangled, but yes.

This album is amazing. Congratulations to everyone involved.

three songs in this is great stuff

our song aims for the fall perhaps ends up early b52s haha (though i came to realize it's really hard to try to sound like the fall and maybe there's not that much distance between those two bands)

Is the song “the manuscript”? The Fall was 100% what it sounded like to me but I yeah B52s too now that I think of it.

I think you nailed it

Ha ha I first thought of the Fall but now I can't un-hear the B-52s!

UMS talked me out of doing my Fred Schneider impression, for better or worse

MES or Fred Schneider ... both would be impressed with the results. Well, I'm sure Fred, at least, would offer praise.

I should have kept my mouth shut, but glad it pinged as the Fall with everyone!

I currently don't have the ability to try to sound like anyone else, so I just made a track and sent it in.

yeah yeah that's what Taylor Swift sez too :)

This is amazing so far. I especially love the track La Lechera made, which also sounds like its title in the best way possible.

Thanks everyone, this has been so good.

finally finishing this. work took over today.

Chris, your track is haunting in a way that fits the title beautifully. <3

loving the mood on "I Can Fix Him", the drums, the guitar washes, the bass....

Aww, thank you. I'm listening to a radio show online right now, but I'll listen to this later on tonight.

"lo - m - l" is my new "Fitter Happier"

Roffle. I'll take that compliment!

My deathless lyrics (description may not be accurate):

--

Lo ML! Why dost thou speak now?
Do you crave thine audience so?
Why do you take this strangest bow?
For your dreams are yet very low.

Lo ML! Wherefore this style?
Why then choose these, vividly red?
Observe this calendar vile
In the season of the dam-ned

Lo ML! Is it all too much?
Will you not brave the day, fearless?
The eras call to all, we touch!
Eat and drink, but with one beer less!

Lo ML! Evermore the birds cry
As they follow trails narrow
Do you not see them greatly fly
In the shape of a great arrow?

Lo ML! Thy reputation
Precedes thee in destructive flood
Must you cause all in this nation
To assume you carry bad blood?

Lo ML! Midnight’s call is nigh
Carry out many plans, o thou must
Let the scribes all hear your great cry
I will next see you in August

Im gonna have Fresh Out The Slammer stuck in my head for weeks. It’s beautiful. I’m going straight back to criiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime. It’s like The Luckiest Guy On The Lower East Side, but with porridge.

"I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" is some catchy fuzzy pop goodness....plus love the lyrics!

xpost otm. one of my favs as well

"The Alchemy" is entrancing as hell.

I am three tracks into this and I absolutely love it

Emily did you notice the line the “I could live off penis”?

― Comfortably numbnuts (Heez)

Ha, no! I was listening with the volume pretty quiet and I kept having to lean into the speakers trying to work out if you were singing "my neck" or "my dick" - genuinely couldn't tell if it was just my dirty mind.

i just wanna say that heez's track is not only my favorite song on this thing, it is my favorite of any pre-covers song ever made

Neanderthal, when are we going to do a duet

Xpost seriously like Heez's song blew me the fuck away

DJP anytime! I feel like you and I could be the most amazing studio choir!

yeah bet, would be massively fun

I would type more but I just got to "The Manuscript" and I'm luxuriating in the B-52ishness

Also want to jump on the Heez love. Probably my favorite song of the whole project.

You all did some great work in here. Consider voting for these instead of the actual TS songs when the eoy poll comes.

Gosh thanks y’all. Nice to wake up to. I do not sing I live off penis but it sure sounds like it!

It's so great Heez

Yes, it's a standout among standouts.

Just like Swift to slot one of the best songs as a bonus track.

on my phone but finished up, really great stuff from everyone, definitely the most front to back consistent of all the pre-covers albums, I enjoyed every song

the manuscript just puts a smile on my face for the entirety of the ride

I can confidently say I like this more than any TS album I've heard (and I've heard a bunch). Good work!

Man, everything on here is legitimately great & inspiring, I am tempted to say something about how this kind of burst of creativity is a testament to the human spirit or some shit, but I'll just say "good show everybody"

Properly dug into this over the weekend, great stuff all, totally agree about the consistency and goodness within.

One of things I really like about these (apart from taking part) is each tune is like a curious little window into the psyche of familiar ILX names.

*gulp*

I know what you mean, it's like putting a face to a name.

The matthew mathieu track is a favourite so far. Aside from "Down Bad" and "Manuscript", which I had praised before elsewhere, La Lechera's track is also a standout for me.

hey is 'the manuscript' part of the main album?

xp to sund4r, that is very kind and gracious of you to say! i was nervous about following your track because you always do such cool guitar work (and your track is no exception!) but im glad you liked it

Enormous thanks to Ned for getting this all organised and great job all.

Copy maresn3st on the illuminating peek into the minds of usernames. And conversely allowing ppl to peek inside mine.

Xp to sund4r — thank you!! It feels so good to be heard!!

https://i.imgur.com/L38p5cX.jpeg

What's a scrobble? More importantly, where is my money!?

ain't been scrobbled since the Great War

oh there will be no money

but on your deathbed you will receive admin privileges

but not sitewide

Just the one board?

so are we doing a post-covers album of the bonus disc