The Carnival will be released on July 11th. Unless i just suddenly decide to release it early. Like Thurs the 6th. But definitely by July 11th. Advance copies are going out this evening.
Obviously i have no way of knowing whether or not you’ll like the album, but if you DO like the album, there ARE 2 things i know: That if i say The Floozy totally needs her own song you’d say “Oh hell yeah.” And if i said, a song should be made about… uhm… without spoilers…. uh… you know, a song about “back in the day”… you’ll understand after you hear the album… you’d probably scream and try to grab my through the computer screen and demand that i make it right this second.
This sort of thing is why, when i’m done with the Lost Hallow albums (one more to go after this) i will be making an album of stand alone stories/songs from various points in the New Albion lore. Which is a pretty big time span and lot of potential side characters and events. My question then, what would you like to see? As a stand alone song/story.
I would prefer not to do things that have been covered. SO for instance, i wouldn’t do a song about the gambler and the monk, i’ve done it as well as i’m ever going to. BUT, i would do a song about some three time loser who showed up to watch the game and bet on it in hoped that he can make enough money to… who knows, pay to have his daughter sent to him from back east, but he’s totally fucking up all his bets and the more he loses the more he spends on alcohol and so he ends up praying to god to please help the gambler win more hands the next day even though the gambler’s whole point is to try and disprove the existence of god… that would be worth something.
Although if i ever get that Balkan Rock Opera made it’s actually about the monk when the monk was younger. But that’s irrelevant.
Sooooo…. yeah. What stories would you like to see? What points of characters in the canon would like to be on that album?
A Steampunk Opera (The Dolls Of New Albion) 
Dudley
July 4, 2017 at 12:55 pm
So excited, can’t wait to hear it.
As for what stand alone songs… Maybe something from the people who headed towards the mountains in the west from the New Albion radio hour as that would be interesting. Or something from the point of view of Sillof when Edgar sends people to ruin him to get Fay back during Dolls.
Anyway just some ideas, really can’t wait to hear the new songs.
Vadvivon
July 4, 2017 at 1:30 pm
OK SO I really loved every one of the stories you’ve made from these https://steampunkopera.wordpress.com/stories-from-new-albion/
And some of these I would be so happy is you made song versions of them (especially “the fae beneath new Albion”))
All of the stories in this I enjoy, and you’re fairy tale albums are my favorite honestly.
Jay
July 4, 2017 at 5:43 pm
Some assorted thoughts based on known plot points, though I’m sure there’s plenty of other stories which could be created which don’t directly connect to things mentioned in the other albums:
I really think that Amber could use a song. She seems to me like the most important character who we know hardly anything about.
Aside from that, I’d love to hear more of the Tinker (with the shop on Tin Pan Row) and perhaps some random member of the Blood Red Dogs (or perhaps Yasser if it was tied to the AO dogs rather than the DO dogs).
The entry requirements for the alchemist’s guild also seem like they could make for an amazing song, and one which could perhaps lightly tie in “A Melancholy Tale from the Icy Lands” as possibly being a part of the New Albion setting due to the shared themes of dreams being stored in a physical vessel.
I don’t think we ever hear how exactly Rachel wound up in the asylum. Perhaps seeing her parents could be interesting?
For that matter, Act 1 of the AO is probably my favorite span of time in New Albion history, but it gets rather little coverage since we so quickly get to the flashback in act 2 and then leave New Albion in acts 3 and 4. To me, “The Shopogopolis” shows this sort of “twisted paradise” society, where everyone’s happy through docility more than through actual rewarding happiness, and it’s a theme I’d love to see more of.
The lyrics “Come feel the spirit, the baron he calls” seem to hint at some character or creature who otherwise isn’t explored in the album (unless I’m missing something). It could be an interesting way to expand the lore of the VPs without directly interacting with the main characters of the SO.
The mountains in the West! What are the ringing bells? The DO leaves off on this rather mysterious note which has otherwise not been touched upon.
It might be cool to see the Albino Tribe before New Albion showed up, without any sort of interference from the “Angels” like there was in the first track of “The Room Beneath New Albion”.
Perhaps we could get a song that more closely establishes the relationship between New Albion and Victoria? As it is, I can only guess at whether they’re even close together or on opposite sides of the world.
Anyways, there’s my pile of ideas. 🙂 I explored a number of these when I ran my Pathfinder RPG campaign set in the New Albion world, but I’d certainly be interested in hearing your take on some of them. But I’m sure that whatever ideas you end up writing songs about, they’ll be interesting ones which expand the lore of the setting. Looking forward to this new project as well, of course, to the Carnival. I am *so* excited to see Raven again.
Abigail Maus
July 4, 2017 at 8:45 pm
What The Fuck Is The Deal With Lloyd: The Musical
Abigail Maus
July 4, 2017 at 8:56 pm
Also some of the stories of new albion like the Fae and whatnot I think totally deserve to be explored in song form.
Jay
July 5, 2017 at 4:29 am
He’s whoever the story needs him to be.
Arisriva
July 6, 2017 at 12:16 am
Yes!!!! Like. The are questions. And then there’s Lloyd “Well that’s a new sentiment.” Allen.
Arisriva
July 6, 2017 at 12:18 am
I want so much to know what his deal was.
Ryan M
July 6, 2017 at 3:02 pm
Yes, I’m with you. This please.
Fishorse
July 5, 2017 at 1:35 pm
What about the ghost popstar from the monorail line A? Oh! Or the holographic superhero! (I know you already explained what was his deal but imagine how cool a superhero-themed song would be), or the cigarette girl! Aaaa I don’t know man, I just love your work so badly…
Arisriva
July 6, 2017 at 12:51 am
I was actually thinking about the whole superhero thing too?? Since superheroes were so much more of a thing in deiselpunk-era psuedo-history, and would be especially suitable to work as vigilantes with such weak governments after the battle of Cryer’s, I was thinking it would be awesome if a character we knew became a superhero (maybe even the one who inspired the students later on…or taught them…cough cough Katy cough), and possibly tied some of the minor characters mentioned in.
theindiegeek
July 5, 2017 at 2:35 pm
I want to say Lloyd, but I also want to leave him a mystery. I’m curious about the taxi driving mouse from AO. Like, is it Sam or related to Sam from DO? Getting a Men in Black vibe (small alien operating big body). Could be an interesting story.
Speaking of stories, in any era, you could follow a crazy journalist tracking down these rumors (like Hunter S Thompson, or Spider Jerusalem from Transmetropolitan). That could be a story of him/her investigating something, or it could be the overarcing story.
Maybe more of the Redhead gang/albino Tribe. I know it was pretty well covered in Room Beneath, but I just like that thread.
What happens when the AI get to the Room beneath and then get bored. Do they game? Find and create new types of porn?
What about one of Constance’s heists before Act 2 of DO?
More Blood Red Dogs, please!
AliceEddor
July 5, 2017 at 2:44 pm
The Cigarette Girl for sure! I love the idea of someone so inconspicuous running a secret agenda of “Work for the highest bidder” spies. Does she do any of that herself? Or Dorothy, before the lobotomy, I’m always a sucker for gay romance.
Arisriva
July 6, 2017 at 12:42 am
I’d love to know more about Dorothy as well, as we never get to hear her speak, or know too much about her. It would be awesome to see her earlier, but what if there was a song set in the future, even after Constance left new Albion? There are other characters, like Katy, Soilder 7285, and some of the minor characters from the narrations left in New Albion whose futures I want to know more about. Most of all, even though I adore Jackie, I would find it AMAZING if Dorthy were to be characterized through her own voice, at least for a song.
Arisriva
July 6, 2017 at 2:13 am
Aside from the characters I mentioned above, I’d also love to hear more from Adrian, Yasser Latef, someone who Constance helped, a band’s break room, the scientists who made the Mascot 3000, and the sentient plant.
Also, I’d LOVE for Han Mi to comment on the New Albion Radio Hour, an idea I have many Thoughts about.
As a sidenote, one of the dolls probably listens to Lee’s song at some point, right?
I also think that the songs might be good to address a few other plot points, which others may have gotten, but I missed: *also SLIGHT SPOLIERS WARNING below*
Who are exactly the blood red dogs?
How did the recording in Green Room Pale travel through time and space?
How many of the people in Elysium were reincarnated (thirty were said to go back as A.I.’s, but they seemed to have the choice between that and reincarnation)? Do we know who any of them became? Likewise, what was our main character’s progression of reincarnation? (They seem to leave the cycle multiple times…)
Why does Constance choose the codename she does?
Does the New Albion Radio Hour take place in New Albion?
Why does Lee have the technology to transmit music across time & space?
And last but not least, what does MCG stand for?
(I’m very excited for these new songs to come out!!!!!)
Jay
July 6, 2017 at 5:41 am
Paul has previously noted that MCG stands for “MacGuffin” (a term used for a plot device with no narrative explanation). I’d guess there’s not much more to see on that particular front.
Ryan M
July 6, 2017 at 3:00 pm
This is a great opportunity! What would I want to hear more about? Well, I guess I should say that as an entity, The Blood Red Dogs are my favourite character, so….anything more on them would be fantastic in any capacity.
I’d also suggest Lloyd Allen, but I have a feeling that’s not gonna happen until you really jump the shark, so to speak. Which I hope never happens!
What does this leave us with? I lack the imagination to even come up with creative suggestions! I’ll think on it more, though, and comment later. I’ll blame the early hour of the morning for now.
paulms
July 10, 2017 at 12:00 am
Soo…. have i jumped the shark?
Arisriva
July 6, 2017 at 7:30 pm
Thanks! That makes so much sense. 🙂
Snow
July 9, 2017 at 11:44 pm
Can we get a song about the old man who goes “it was all willies and alcohol around here” in Henry’s song?
paulms
July 9, 2017 at 11:59 pm
That is brilliant. I actually put more thought into him than one might think.
trainerkris
July 10, 2017 at 10:32 am
If I were to pick three people I would seriously like to hear songs about I’d start with Jasper. I want to hear more about the time between when Anabelle left school and the time he died. I remember reading how he was forced into a job he didn’t like to help his family. Did he long for the girl he had a chance encounter with as much as she did him? He must have died young considering the timeline how did that happen?
My second choice would be Soldier 7285, he vowed to bring the Government down Lloyd says he enacted his plan in New Albion 5 and that’s the last we hear of him. I believe you mentioned something about multiple resistance groups and that it wasn’t exactly a united front. Were people wary about being lead by a former Government Soldier? Also, consider the turning point, the final battle in which he didn’t get to participate. He made a vow and was unable to complete it. Would he be bitter about that? Or would he just be relieved that the whole thing was over? How did he react to the Voodoopunks practically taking over in the aftermath?
The third would be Amber from the Atompunk Opera.She was the leader of the Voodoopunks and took them into Elysium herself. She sacrificed her child to get there and got to watch in horror as everything went to hell. She was clearly expecting something to go wrong, otherwise she wouldn’t have needed to get the Blood Red Dogs to watch their backs and to keep the peace. Did she have warning that things were going to go poorly and went ahead anyway because she had complete faith in the plan? Was there a group who she thought was going to try and overthrow her once they reached Elysium? How did she react to her followers when the Angels attacked? Was she thrown out and exiled? Or did she cling to leadership until she died?
If I were to pick characters for fun I’d like to hear a song about the Sentient Moving Room from The Albatross part 4 just because it sounds hilarious and a song about the Oracle that’s a radiated pile of ooze, just to confirm my ridiculous theory that it is in fact the plant that can think thoughts from the steampunk opera :p. Or more realistically, someone who would be desperate enough to seek that out because that sounds incredibly dangerous to your health what question would you need answered so badly that you’d risk that? How accurate is it? Do other Oracle feel threatened by it’s popularity? Bah, now I’m seriously contemplating the idea.
Allison
July 12, 2017 at 4:31 pm
A Mountains to the West song is a great idea, especially with its latest mention in the Cabaret. It’s got such a mythical name and presence, I’m sure a lot can be done with it.
Also, from The Room Beneath, who was the “songbird who sang” about Alice? Someone had to know about her doll-snatching. (If it’s any consideration, I always imagined it was some vagrant who took pity on this poor junkie and befriended her. Gave her food, shelter, a kind but disbelieving ear…and when she told him about stealing dolls, he laughed it off until the day the mafia snatched him up and demanded answers. He was forced to rat out the poor junkie with no other friends.)
And just for fun as a far-out idea, what about a song for Jasper’s wife, deep in the throes of grief while raising their daughter alone, who one day sees a mad woman prancing on the streets with a singing machine that somehow reminds her of her lost love…
Colin Harvie
July 13, 2017 at 8:38 pm
I’d love a song of Thomas’s backstory and how he wound up with the Police, or another detective-esque song featuring the mouse named Kevin.
Some about Agatha and the Thief Girls would be great as well. 😀
I’m wary of having too much revealed about Lloyd, as I love the mystery of him, but it’d be awesome to maybe get another story where he’s interfering with the narrative somewhere. 😀
Arisriva
July 14, 2017 at 1:19 am
You might already know this, but in “Waiting” (A3S1), there’s a little snippet about Thomas’ story.
Colin Harvie
July 17, 2017 at 9:13 pm
Yeah, I’ve listened to that track over and over again trying to figure out more of Thomas’s history. >_<
RG
July 13, 2017 at 8:49 pm
As far as already established New Albion lore goes, I would love to hear something about The Plant That Can Think Thoughts. I doubt there is much behind it, but for some weird reason, it was always my favorite background tidbit in Dolls.
The Talking Mice bloodline deserves a song, obviously. Since we heard about one in Steampunk and about one in Atompunk, it would be neat to learn what the family was up to during Dieselpunk.
The Irradiated Pile of Ooze Oracle also always had my interest.
Also, whatever you do, please, please let us have another moment like Byron making a “cameo” in “The Hunt”.
Annecy
November 14, 2017 at 12:54 am
CIGARETTE GIRL CIGARETTE GIRL PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE A SONG ABOUT THE CIGARETTE GIRL THAT’S WHAT WE NEED