Guest
WARNING: “Monarch of Monsters“ contains blood/gore, murder, self-harm, suicide, nudity, sexual content, sexual assault, sexual violence, cannibalism, f-slur, and existential/cosmic horror. This pertains to its lyrics, themes, story, and artwork, and may be especially triggering to survivors of grooming and sexual assault. Parental guidance is advised for those under the age of 18, as “Monarch of Monsters“ is intended for a mature audience. — Buy/Stream: — All music, instruments, writing, vocals, production, mixing, & mastering by Vylet Pony (Zelda Trixie Lulamoon) Cover art by GlacierClear (18 Content for Adults Only) Additional artwork by StereoFlier — It is 1679 in a kind of equestrian world, somewhere. Townsfolk in the central countryside are bemused with the abrupt disappearance of the local tavern bard, a pegasus named Vylet Cypress. Her puzzling absence is soon followed by a string of murders, which strike terror across the lands. Cypress is swiftly identified as the perpetrator, and while many come to fear her, equally many come to worship her as a false god, invoking her only by the name, “Wolf“... To continue the abridged story summary, visit this page: The full story is available to read for free here: The full story is also available as a booklet in the Bandcamp version of the album here: ††† Monarch of Monsters is an allegory for how trauma, loneliness, and selfishness can turn you into a horrible person; it's about endeavouring to stay alive even within a terminal state of regret; how — in this regret — experiencing any happiness at all feels insincere and undeserved; about perpetuating a cycle of toxicity and wickedness because it's all you've known, and you've been afraid of being wrong; and ultimately, learning to find purpose and self-love in that chaos. I exist in that regret. And in the past, I have been that horrible person. I live with the knowledge that I've been someone who has perpetuated cycles of toxicity, jealousy, oppression, sexualization, bigotry, queerphobia, and overall personal insecurity. In my past, I have hurt so many people and have been the very villain that I have sworn my life against, having been compensating for so many things in one way or another. To grow up lonely on the internet, to be taken advantage of by strangers, to be accepted into a space where these behaviours dominate the collective mindset, and to find fellowship in all the wrong places ruined me for a very long time. I became a part of the MLP community when I was 13, but I don't know at what point I should have known better and just grown up to become the person I should have been the whole time. “Monarch of Monsters“ is an album and story I've wanted to write for a very long time because I want to talk about these things and have this conversation and have the opportunity to show others a better way to live. It started as exploring the most profound punishment I could wish upon myself and yet finding purpose in this regret. I'm not interested in pretending my past doesn't exist. We should learn from it together. To kill a monster is to be gentle and to be kind. And it is to not lose yourself completely in doing so. — 0:00:00 00 Content Warning 0:00:31 01 Pest 0:06:35 02 PLAY DEAD! PLAY DEAD! 0:10:47 03 The Heretic (Woe is Me) 0:15:28 04 Survivor’s Guilt 0:21:14 05 Vitality Glitch 0:26:00 06 The Wallflower Equation 0:38:05 07 Princess Cuckoo 0:42:32 08 Sludge - I. A Recitation of Final Rites, Last Wishes, and Observations - II. The Rivers Run Red - III. Sludge - IV. As Wolf Sliced Her Body Open... - V. ...Then Came a Supper Worse Than Death (Love and Tolerate This Mess) - VI. Sinner, Be Damned! - VII. Entrance Into The Locus - VIII. Lamb Cried Out: “Darling, Wolf...“ - IX. How to Kill a Monster (Reprise) - X. The Fatal Flaw, or, How to Save a Monster - XI. “Live again, in service, eternal“, Lamb Whispered, as Wolf's Soul Was Granted a Body Once More... - XII. ...And As Her Old Body Was Defiled, Tortured, and Annihilated (Revisited) - XIII. For the First Time, She Was Held Gently 1:04:46 09 Revenge Fantasy 1:11:38 10 Huntress 1:16:24 11 ...and, as her howl echoed unto eventide, she became the far seer's hunting dog... 1:19:33 12 Rest Now, Little Wolf (A Vigil For Aria, or, How the Lamb Stood in an Empty Room Filled with Empty Friends) — Lyrics available here:
