Fireside Chat for WWW ep14 "There is an Ocean Vaster Than This One""

Please post The Rain Road somewhere. I don't care how short it is, I need it dripped through an IV into my veins.

Oh god thank you for acknowledging Taylor sounds like Brennan doing a bit. It took a while for me to accept that wasn’t true, and I didn’t want to look it up.

When Steele admonishes Ursalon about his actions, plus all the talks about honor and justice changing as life evolves, it reminds me of one my favorite MCR lyrics: For what you did to me, For what I'll do to you, You get what everyone else gets, You get a lifetime!

Ethan is a remarkable voice actor

“Taylor sounds like Brennan with a cold.” - Kara (my beloved wife of 10 magical years)

Ahhhhhhhhhh! He used my last name 😃😃😃

Thanks so much for recommending Rick Roderick! I've fallen in love with his lecture series, despite their eerie prescience for the current moment.

I was just listening to this episode and hearing Taylor discuss how he made The Rain Road, it reminded me a lot of the quarantine fan made version of The Long Song from Doctor Who!

The song, content-wise, reminds me of the catalonian song l’Emporda, which is about the romance between a shepherd in the Pyrenees and a mermaid in the Mediterranean

i wonder if they read new comments on old posts

Taylor’s work is absolutely incredible. Especially knowing that he went from not knowing the craft to mastering it for this show…but there are times (and I say this with nothing but adoration and admiration), there are times where he sounds like Brennan doing a Casey Kasem impersonation.

Yo I’m not Mormon but I have been to that birthplace of Joseph smith and been cornered by the tour guide!!

Did anyone else ugly cry when everyone started singing in the ep? It was truly the 3rd song iv ever heard that has moved me to tears, absolutely stunning ❤️

Brennan, I am 100% with you on your observation and analysis of the musical break after the bridge. Some times I go back to that part of the episode just to listen to the song in situ, and you describing the vexation of the Empire (via Galani) at the power of this thing that common people are creating. Literally cry every time. Taylor, amazing break down of the emotional resonance of that moment, so well put.

I'm so glad I'm not the only person that thought Taylor was Brennan doing a bit for at least the first 3 outros he did.

This ep making the exmormon in me happy. Shout out to the cult of Joseph Smith

I cannot stress how glad i am that y'all addressed that Taylor does in fact sound similar to Brennan lmao

God I love how much of a music nerd Taylor is. Hearing all the little details about his approach that the audience probably won't know (unless they're also a music nerd) but how integral those details are to the emotional response. I just AHH 😍😍

Ahoohoo I know is from an episode, came up around Gallows? I just can't remember who came up with it and the situation. PLEASE let me know if you can because I just finished arc 1 and too addicted to go back and and make a feeble attempt at finding it.

Sorry Brennan, but I've watched and heard hundreds of hours of you, and Taylor does so like Brennan is doing a bit. Erika nailed it. I get confused sometimes.

The talk of how a song isn’t always a political statement but the act of singing it makes it one reminds me of “Tomorrow Belongs to Me” when it’s sung in the show Cabaret. Without context, it’s a beautiful song. It’s only when one understands the context in which it is being sung and the party it’s associated with that the song truly becomes a political statement.

As someone with a southern accent like Taylor's, I am OFFENDED on his behalf for the description of "Taylor's voice sounds like Brennan doing a bit" THE AUDACITY lmaooooo (That said I am also unfortunately one of the people who thinks Brennan and Taylor have similar sounding voices I am So Sorry)

[music nerd rant] Listening to Taylor talk about the weight of meaning the brass brought put me very much in mind of the 2nd movement of Brahms' German Requiem where the orchestra is kinda building for a bit, but then the choir comes in and a wave of sound punches you in the face while the text of "Denn alles Fleisch es ist wie Gras" (For all flesh is as grass) punches you in the feels.

also the SONG was AMAZING

it’s the similarities btw the cadence of Brennan and Taylor for me which made me so confused! plus, my understanding of Brennan’s public persona is that this is a bit he would commit too. but i figured out that it wasn’t a bit somewhere between episode 1 and now. just took me a while.. 😅😅

taylor is so brilliant and i can not believe the expertise and huge amount of knowledge and wisdom he has in telling story through sound 🤯

Tbh I’ve always thought that Taylor kinda sounded like Brennan’s voice for Biz Glitterdo from Fantasy High

I absolutely love Rain Road! The first thing it reminded me of was Far Side of the World by Tide Lines, definitely there with the Gaelic/nature/love song vibes

I’ve listened to the song a few times over. I love it!!!

I totally agree with Erika here in the beginning: Taylor sounds like Brennan doing a bit. It took me listening to the backlog of fireside chats to realize that the voice at the end of each episode reading the credits is not Brennan talking in a softer, higher voice than usual, but Taylor.

The thing that absolutely KILLS me about the song is that when the horn for Galani comes in it's noticeable but quiet as she has her personal realization. But when the brass instrumentals burst in with the full weight of the Empire, they don't quite fit with the vocals and in fact completely overwhelm them. As long as the Empire is speaking, the people's voices are buried. It also feels significant that this happens for the final verse, when the song suddenly shifts to first person. From what we've seen so far via Steel, it seems like the Empire's predominant view of great spirits may be that their power makes them essentially ungovernable. To hear the people even nominally relating themselves to that would definitely feel like cause for alarm. MEANWHILE, however, the strings—the STRINGS!! The witches' instrumentals!! They slide under and behind and around the vocals; they enhance and connect without pulling focus. MUSICAL STORYTELLING!!! I'm fully blown away, y'all. Absolutely amazing work.

I don't know who needs to hear this but Mormons absolutely do not believe the Jesus was born in Pennsylvania. I assume it was a joke but just like... Don't walk away from here with that in your head 😂

....The song is perfect. However, I refuse to believe that BLeeM doesn't speak elvish.

The very last brennan taylor double fakeout blew up my brain

Brennan I’m sorry but nobody would believe Donegal is people’s favorite; sincerely, someone from Cork, everyone’s REAL favorite

I'm late to the show, but am finally here - the fireside chat for the Arc 1 finale. And I'm so glad to hear y'all acknowledge how much Taylor sounds like Brennan! It was my FIRST thought the first time I heard Taylor's voice, which I mistook for Brennan doing a character voice. LOL Love you guys, this material is freaking incredible.

Shoutout from Louisville KY!!!

Taylor sounds like Brennan doing Biz Glitterdew's voice.

1:01:00 caught me wayy off guard lol

petition to have taylor on every fireside

"It's easy for Suvi to kill because it's easy for Suvu to die" is the Blackest shit ever! Aabria on that elder vibe

I just want you to know I really appreciate this episode of the fireside, and Suvi’s growth., and the recognition of this. Thank you.

100

"Born with this thick corn syrup molasses" 🤣 going back to this still has me cracking up until I cry, my goodness

Don't sleep on the Rick Roderick videos, way ahead of his time.

Any idea when this ep will get a transcript?

I love the intention behind bringing together voices to match the energy of a community and also to sing that gorgeous beautiful tear inducing song!!!

Listening to the pod gives me the exact feeling of finding and devouring an incredible immersive fantasy novel as a teenager, so I absolutely can't wait to see what Chapter 2 has in store! Thank y'all

Incredible work on the song. I was surprised and blown away by the amount of detail and thought put into the music. It was such a powerful moment and musically really smart, which most importantly communicates very well to anyone, music background or not. That said, the musicology nerds are gonna rejoice for this one.

No transcript for this one? =(

As someone who just got into “Oh These Those Stars of Space”, it was great to hear Taylor unleash a little bit of Tuscaloosa Casketshowroom on the fireside :) Higly recommend his Star Trek love letter actual play podcast that uses Lasers and Feelings.

CHAPTER 2 IS ALREADY RECORDED?! OMG!!!

I suspect even the sound department got in on the penis levity. On account of when the curse was broken, it was accompanied by a giant DONG!!!

I desperately need to know if Brennan or the gang has heard Hozier’s new album because it has Gaeilge on it and also a lot of political references and call backs to the colonization of Ireland and other places by the British empire

I was Unready for the song of the SEA.

As someone who grew up in Missouri and is now horrified by what's going on in Missourah, I feel for Mr. Trinidad.

My "correct" pronunciation of Ethan Trinidad's hometown is actually more like [ luh - uh - Vull ]. Swallow those vowels as you speak, like it's French. 😉

I know it’s a bit but LOUISVILLE KY REPRESENT WOO

"It takes two points to make a line" damn Taylor dropping lines just like the rest of them!

The little wobble that hit Erika at the end of the intro sounded like "There is an OSHA vaster than this one" and I love the mental image of that, like "I KNOW it's not strictly required, but wouldn't it be safer & nicer if we (did this & that)."

It sounded during the “uni” question like Brennan was about say he and Lou were coming to the UK but he got derailed?! Please clarify guvnor 🎩

It’s official it’s now crackle crackle ahoohoo fish!!! Add a new syllable per arc!!

So, I love everything about this show. After listening to the fireside, I went back and listened again to the entire ocean faster than this. And I just want to add one thing to the conversation about improv, talent, and earned mastery. 💯 this cast of creators are masters at the art. Even with mastery, the element that makes this work, is unconditional trust. When Aabria creates a raw memory of the magical minutiae that make up Suvi’s Mom to her she trusts that this creation will not just be accepted but made more fabulous by her partners. Then Brennan using the language of music and wonder puts words to this creation. Perfection. Brava.

I love that "Jesus was born in Pennsylvania" This episode was absolutely beautiful and the arc was amazing.

"It's easy for Suvi to kill because it's easy for Suvi to die" oof that line hurt!

Taylor's bit about how reactions sell a moment is solid screenwriting advice I give ALL the time. Because humans react to other humans rather than abstract information, a plot event isn't fully real, emotionally, until you see a reaction to it in another human being (albeit fictional) that tells your little mirror neurons what emotion you should be having. Finding the bloody knife in a detective story doesn't finish landing until you get the shot of the detective's face, reacting to it. A pretty song is just a pretty song until you see a wizard be afraid of it.

As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (a.k.a. Mormons) who has heard very few pop culture people talk about their experiences - besides the occasional, impersonal, not totally accurate joke - hearing Taylor talk about the tour, Erika talking about reading the Book of Mormon, etc. has been…wild. 😅😂 Followed by all the music answers which is what I have been DYING for!! 🥰

Just starting and as a KY native I had to power through the pronunciation of Louisville. Thank God they were talking about Looweyville which is on the opposite part of the state in the hollows.

I laughed so hard at the taylor/ Brennan voice jokes on this chat. Tears in my eyes, full belly laughs! I'm sorry I'm face and voice blind, there's no hope for me, save yourselves 🤣

Is it just voice similarity or have Taylor and Brennan both lived in the New York area? As a Norwegian it's hard for me to pinpoint exactly WHY their voices are so similar to me.

The song very much gave an elvish sea shanty vibe… loved it

I’m glad they acknowledged the similarity of Taylor and Brennans voice. When Taylor speaks, i just expect him to say things in a Brennan way (except slightly lower pitch) and it’s exactly what I expect. Maybe it’s because I’m not American and so Brennans verbal mannerisms aren’t something I’m familiar with IRL… and then this other dude who speaks exactly the same turns up lol. It’s surprising If, at the beginning of a show, Taylor didn’t announce himself and just picked up after Brennan stopped talking… I think it would take a bit before I realise it’s a different person There feels like a difference in how they approach an idea, but all the little bits and even voice changes are the same They’re the left brain right brain meme

Taylor you can't tease me like that. Very mean 11/10

Don't tell Brennan but I've been using streak freezes every day for like two months now, Duo is so disappointed in me already

Yes, what in the Calamity, Brennan! -.-

Wait wait wait!!! Guys! You know.....just 80 miles down the road from Nazareth, PA is the little township of Ephrata which, as everyone knows, is the Hebrew name for Bethlehem. So um, actually...Jesus WAS born in Pennsylvania?

It is true, when Taylor started talking the first time I thought it was Brennan doing a bit

Brennan “The Bit Janitor” Lee Mulligan.

just here for the Morm content

Sorry Brennan, Taylor I thought Brennan introduced twice...

I may be showing my age and/or nationality, but during that outro all I could think of is this scene from Red Dwarf 🤣🐟https://youtu.be/dkjbMoj0JY4?si=4emW0gDvM4rOsJoC

Now I am trying to translate the song into Italian- but I understand exactly your issue because many concepts in song dont exactly translate well. It did remind me, besides it being sung by the young even if started by the Old in the pod, of older Italian folk songs especially those by the alps where people would sing into the mountains to have the nature echo back.

Look, the main reason I'm here is the amazing storytelling, but I'd be lying if I didn't say I am thrilled to hear brilliant creators talk philosophy. Especially loved the shout out to the classical pragmatists and William James. I did a lot of my grad work on John Dewey. So, thank you for all the great work and great conversations.

To preface this, I'm a percussionist more than I am a composer, but the podcast and the music inspired me to create a symphonic arrangement of The Rain Road. It's not a full-length interpretation, but it's a beautiful (in my humble opinion) arrangement nonetheless. :) https://soundcloud.com/rob-wiltbank/the-rain-road?si=6366abeb72da4b80a55f12953ca3a694 Thank you Brennan, Erika, Aabria, Lou, and Taylor for all that you do and all who you inspire.

Incredible work, no notes. Immediately wondering how we organize an Eric Whitacre-esque virtual choir of WBN fans singing the choral arrangement of The Rain Road.

This fireside chat is just dripping with the delight and joy you all have in talking about the work you do, as well as the respect and love you have for each other. Adore you all, can’t wait to see what chapter 2 has in store! 🥰

Me being demanding about titles part Ii: Eursolon had better be The Knight of the Gentle Sea AND the path Suvi took from the wall to the docks better be called the Rain Road.

Lou is in Panamá??? Damnit, I need to get to Limón stat to catch him as he climbs back up!!

Looweyville is where Lou gets all of his guest stars

Is there anywhere to share fan art? I want to see the galani art, but I also found this beautiful Naram art! https://www.tumblr.com/rebe-draws/727140898572517376/naram-the-wave-lord-wearing-his-glamour-forgot?source=share

I just realized I placed Steel's voice as "non-evil Kalina".

When I visited the Joseph Smith house in Vermont in like 2005, the brochures repeatedly referred to the obelisk as "a polished granite shaft." Which is the main reason I went.

MERCH NEEDED - bit janitor shirt

Come, some of the work gets kinda hard This ain't no place to be if you planned on bein' a star Let me tell you it's always cool And the boss don't mind sometimes if you act the fool At the HAM CART Bit-fixing at the HAM CART, YEAH

What I am most looking forward to is some kind of answer to the questions I've had, not for 14 episodes but for 22, since the first moment of the Children's Adventure, about Suvi's parents and [Yoren, which I will never be able to spell] and Steel and Grandma Wren. I'm sure we won't get neat, full answers in this upcoming conversation, or even in the whole arc, but we'll get something.

incredible finale, on top of an amazing first arc! i LOVE the discussion around The Rain Road. i had another interpretation of the 'musical story' that was being told, on top of the militant anti-imperial sentiment. which, obviously, is superseded by the creator's vision... buuuut such is art! 'by the road the rain rides to the sea' tells me that, whatever actions the empire at large has taken, there are SOME people in it that undertake projects to make life better. for the people, for nature, for whoever. roads have been built to make travel less taxing for the citizens, which also gives the rain an easier route to the sea. the work of the people in the empire CAN be that of connection, of harmony. similar to the points brennan makes a little later about suvi on the white horse, the role of wizards (and by proxy the empire) is to defend people from things from which they have no protection - overwhelming natural or supernatural forces. this is a rosy interpretation to be sure - goodness knows large scale public works projects often do more harm than good. but the instrumentation here isn't the marching horns of the empire, it's the voices of the people that call port talon home - descended from people who might have had dirt roads before the imperial ways, who built them along side streams, following the path of least resistance. the horns echo the notion of industry, of metals stolen from the earth and fashioned into tools. but from brass instruments we get some spicy jazz, so it can't be ALL bad! the low, quiet, minor notes of galani being immediately eclipsed by the bright major swell suggests, to me, that the people of the empire haven't lost their connection to nature and the spirit world, although the memory may be faded. if you got this far, thanks for reading my overanalysis and ahoohoo to you <3

There is a sweet webapp called vulgarlang that can make constructed languages, so I second Aabriya in wanting the song in a constructed fantasy language

The Donegal welcome plaque is hilariously accurate

Suvi's journey is kinda similar to Christina Yang from Grey's Anatomy. Incredibly capable and competent, but needs to learn to play well with others. Very good.

For someone who had never done musical arrangements, Taylor is SO good at it!

Last thing, I swear. If there's the possibility of Merch being dropped in future for WNN... can we have 'Quest Fever' and sassy Fox quotes, please? :3

I legit thought that WAS Brennan doing a bit LOL, thank goodness it wasn't just me thinking it 😆☠️

As a former Mormon, the story about the Joseph Smith museum and the fact Erika has read the Book of Mormon is blowing my mind

Is Erika even real? Or has it been Ethan the whole time?!?!?!?!

You know what they're doing to Brennan in this? Character Assassination!

That Galani art!!! <3

Just starting the episode, but are you ever going to talk about how y'all do milestone and what the expectations are for the other characters as well? Y'all take so long to level up, which is insanely cool and different, but it makes me worried because it's never been done before.

Are we going to talk about how perfectly placed the PCs were in the last two episodes? Eursulon in the sea on the side of the spirit world, Suvi on a white horse fleeing the furious Green in an effort to protect her fellow humanity, and Ame on the shore trying to strike a balance between the two... Just AGGHHHHHHH! Can't be normal about it. It was so good.

Not Donegal calling itself the forgotten county when Fermanagh, a county no Irish people remember, exists! It also could be in reference to Donegal being the only county up north to not be Northern Ireland but part of the Republic

Love all the diegetic discussion of the instrumental themes and notes covered in 'The Rain Road', 10/10 and hype deserved. Brennan is so right that in-narrative-world art is so important to making it feel tangible. ...Also, damn it Brennan, now I need to re-read 'The Little Prince' again....

I'm too autistic for this bit but i'll take it

The song and Galani going "I hope they don't turn this on me" makes me thing of the song "The Hanging Tree" from Hunger Games and how the miners and district workers sing the song while attacking the dam/power station. That scene always gives me chills and I can only imagine how much the empire would fear the same happening to them.

Haven’t listened and that Ashley Schaefer picture is worrying me…

Is a coma arc called a “comarc” or an “arcoma”?

a very bold strategy to have 3 PCs and then write one out, glad ethan is so very good at voices

i didnt even need last fireside’s explanation to know ame’s choice was the right one, i knew as soon as she made it, and i have not changed my mind. the purpose of a soldier is to do three things; follow orders, kill, and die. these soldiers who died have fulfilled their purposes. of course there is tragedy there, but the blame only ever falls on those who have done wrong. ame didn’t, and neither did naram, except perhaps for leaving morrow alive. although that is far more complex and nuanced a decision than allowing for the deaths of the empire’s soldiers, especially considering the citizens of port talon and those villages destroyed by the kudzu were left out of the decision, but ultimately as the one most completely and directly wronged by his actions, my instinct is to let him decide what his retribution should look like.

"It's easy for Suvi to kill because it's easy for Suvi to die." - Damn! Aabria taking no prisoners (including herself)

I just want Lou to come home

I never wrote/translated a song in my life but i feel i will try **

'Oh did you not have time to whip up a little conlang just for this, you fucking coward?'

Solid timing for AU friends thank you 🦘

Ahoohoo!

the links are most helpful <333

Crackle crackle!