Paleface Swiss has rapidly become one of the most talked-about names in modern metal, known for blending ferocious energy with uncompromising emotion. Hailing from Winterthur, Switzerland, the band was formed in 2017 by vocalist and frontman Marc “Zelli” Zellweger. What began as a small project quickly evolved into a powerful force in the deathcore and hardcore scenes, recognized for their raw intensity, technical precision, and emotionally charged performances. From the start, Paleface Swiss made it clear that they were not content to follow trends, carving their own path through heavy music with an unfiltered mix of aggression and honesty. The The post Complete List Of Paleface Swiss Songs From A to Z appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

A pair of European mathematicians have proven a 300-year-old inference on shapes wrong, and won a bet on behalf of a long-dead Englishmen who got into a famous argument with his prince. The story begins with an experiment: take two gaming dice, put one on top of the other, now think if you could position […] The post After More Than Three Centuries, a Geometry Problem That Originated with a Royal Bet Is Solved appeared first on Good News Network.

Books publishing news Revealing The First Stop by Tao Wong The second book in Wong’s A Thousand Li series arrives July 2026! By Reactor | Published on November 5, 2025 Photo credit: Adam Coish photography Comment 0 Share New Share Photo credit: Adam Coish photography We’re thrilled to share the cover of Tao Wong’s The First Stop, the second book in the A Thousand Li epic progression fantasy series will be available on July 14, 2026 from Ace Books, an imprint of Penguin Random House. A young man searches for his own path to immortality while grappling with the looming threat of war…Long Wu Ying’s studies at the Verdant Green Waters Sect, an exclusive school of cultivation, are at a turning point. It’s time for him to choose what secondary occupation to pursue—alchemist or blacksmith, physician or martial specialist. Yet Wu Ying struggles to decide which focus will best define and contribute to his dao, his personal path of cultivation. And what happens if he chooses wrong?But beyond the walls of Verdant Green Waters, the drums of war beat as the sect is pulled deeper into the battle for supremacy between states. The Sect Elders thrust Wu Ying and his friends into a desperate gamble to prepare for the upcoming war—a risky assignment that will put to the test everything Wu Ying has learned.As pressure builds from within and without, Wu Ying must find his place in this new martial world, or he may not survive the trials to come. Cover art by Jeff Langevin; Design by Adam Auerbach Buy the Book The First Stop Tao Wong Buy Book The First Stop Tao Wong Buy this book from: AmazonBarnes and NobleIndieBoundTarget Tao Wong is the author of the A Thousand Li progression fantasy series and the System Apocalypse LitRPG series, among others. When he’s not writing and working, he’s practicing martial arts, reading, and dreaming up new worlds. He lives in Toronto, Canada. The post Revealing <i>The First Stop</i> by Tao Wong appeared first on Reactor.

Books Fairy Tales Folklore Meets Murder Ballad: Six Retellings of “The Cruel Sister” A tale that mixes music, murder, and some serious sibling rivalry… By Rachel Ayers | Published on November 5, 2025 Comment 0 Share New Share “The Cruel Sister” is a folkloric tale handed down through ballads, which pops up in various iterations and under titles including “The Singing Bone,” “Twa Sisters,” or “The Bonny Swans.” The tale is a sad story of sororicide, usually motivated by sibling rivalry, romantic rivalry, jealousy, or some toxic combination thereof. If you don’t know the story, here are the basics: Two sisters, daughters of a king (or a farmer… it doesn’t really matter) grow to young womanhood. In most versions, they are both attracted to the same young man, and have been competing for his attention. One day, they go for a walk together by the river and the elder sister pushes the younger in, drowning her. When the murdered sister’s body is found by a musician, he decides that her hair and bones will make a lovely harp (I assume his aesthetic sensibility is somewhat morbid, but hey, finders keepers, I guess). He creates the body of the harp from her bones and strings the harp with her golden hair. As soon as it’s completed, the harp begins to sing on its own, telling the tale of the younger sister’s murder. In most versions, the musician finds his way to the murdered sister’s family, usually just in time to perform at some big celebration—often the elder sister’s wedding—and then the harp reveals the terrible secret directly to the family. In some versions of the tale, the action centers around two brothers instead, and in that case, a single bone is usually made into a flute which then spills the secret of the murder. For whatever reason, the murder in this version is usually motivated by greed, rather than sexual jealousy—usually there’s treasure involved and one brother wants it all to himself, go figure! The basic story of the ballad is simple and timeless, leaving storytellers room to fill in the bare bones (if you will) in their own ways. There’s certainly plenty to unpack in these meaty modern retellings, which grapple with the complex relationships between sisters (especially those just coming of age into adulthood), exploring dysfunctional family dynamics, romantic obsession, and the petty, poisonous power of jealousy. “Cruel Sisters” by Marie Brennan (From Daily Science Fiction) This sharp little work of flash fiction explores how a magical harp comes to cast (apparently unquestioned) allegations against the royal family. The narrator sneaks into the chapel where the harp is stored, and the harp recognizes her as the murderer. Their conversation turns the story sideways, and given how short it is, I won’t say more for fear of spoiling it. Brennan said she wrote it to account for a discrepancy in singer-songwriter Loreena McKennitt’s version of the tale, and although Daily Science Fiction is no longer up and running, you can still dig up Brennan’s story on the Wayback Machine. “Cruel Sisters” by Patricia C. Wrede from Book of Enchantments Wrede explains that she came across one version of the story in which a king had three daughters, the middle of whom was not mentioned again after the first line of the story, but it sparked her imagination and thus Meg was created—a middle sister trying to be the peacemaker between her two impetuous and impulsive sisters. In Wrede’s skillful middle-grade version of the tale, the eldest and youngest have a falling out over William, a courtier who pledges himself to eldest sister Anne…until youngest sister Eleanor comes of age, at which point his affections prove fickle. Soon after, Eleanor drowns while on a walk with Anna, and Meg finds herself torn, wondering about the truth of the matter. Even after the harper comes to court with his macabre instrument which puts the blame on Anne, Meg remembers that Eleanor was always prone to lying, and doesn’t see how death would have changed that inclination. The magic harp isn’t the final arbiter of truth in Meg’s mind, although the song it plays wreaks its damage nonetheless. “The Harp that Sang” by Gregory Frost (From Swan Sister: Fairy Tales Retold, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling) This one is a fairly straightforward but lovely retelling; in his endnotes, Frost explains that he was inspired first by the ballad “Cruel Sister” as performed by Pentangle. Karla betrays her sister Beatrice, but puts off her father’s suspicions by making a show of mourning her sister. When harper Antonio finds Beatrice’s bones, tangled with her hair, he creates a harp from the bones and ties the golden hair around each string to make it glitter in the sunlight. Soon word of the (literally) hauntingly beautiful harp music catches the attention of the local lord, who invites the harper to play for his daughter’s wedding—as soon as Karla starts her walk down the aisle, the harp begins playing on its own, and Karla’s sister (and fate) finds her. “Listen” by Jen Williams (From Cursed, edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane) Williams offers a twist on the familiar story, but it clearly borrows from the, ahem, bones of the traditional tale. Erren Keeneye wanders the world, begging supper in return for the playing of her delicate pipes. She’s bound after being cursed by a wood-spirit, having shot the spirit’s brother while he wore the form of a beautiful deer. The pipes are made from the deer’s bones, and when Erren plays them, they call the dead back from shadows to accuse their murderers and wrongdoers, at which point Erren generally slips away in the midst of the resulting chaos and bloodshed. Her years of wandering eventually lead her to somewhere more recognizably modern, and then beyond, and the story tips neatly into other mythology at its conclusion. The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar Thistleford sits on the edge of a faerie realm called Arcadia, where magic comes from grammar, and the River Liss flows past Thistleford as it leaves Arcadia. The Hawthorn family tends the willows that line the river; the young daughters of the family, Esther and Ysabel, tend to the Professors, two giant willow trees that mark the border of the realms, by singing ballads to them every day. Esther and Ysabel are not at odds, here, but a jilted lover tears them apart anyway. Rich with allusions to other ballads and fairy tales and accompanied by gorgeous illustrations, El-Mohtar coaxes this ancient tale through a new course. Sistersong by Lucy Holland Although there are hints that the turn in this tale involves our ballad, it’s not the whole story but rather a main thread in Holland’s novel, which braids the story of the sisters with Celtic and Arthurian legends leading up to a pivotal historical moment in ancient Britain. In alternating point-of-view chapters, siblings Riva, Keyne, and Sinne grapple with various changes to their world as well as their own dreams and desires. As the children of King Cador, all three are subject to the expectations of family and society, and all three chafe against the restrictions. If you already know the story of the Cruel Sister, it takes a long time to unfold, but Holland uses this tension to deliver a complex and delicate portrait of family love and betrayal. What other versions of this rather macabre tale have you come across? Share your favorites in the comments![end-mark] The post Folklore Meets Murder Ballad: Six Retellings of “The Cruel Sister” appeared first on Reactor.

The Associated Press has called the New Jersey governor’s election for U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill. On Wednesday, The Associated Press was reporting Sherrill with about 56% of the vote compared with Jack Ciattarelli’s approximately 43%. With 95% of the vote counted, Sherrill earned more than 1.7 million votes, and Ciattarelli garnered 1.3 million. The race pitted the four-term New Jersey Democrat congresswoman against Republican gubernatorial nominee and former New Jersey Assemblyman Ciattarelli. Polls had shown a close race leading into the election, with an AtlasIntel poll showing basically a tie from data collected from Oct. 25 to 30. In her victory speech, Sherrill promised to declare a state of emergency on her first day in office to lower utility costs. The governor-elect also appeared to allude to the Trump administration, stating, “No one in our great state is safe when our neighbors are targeted, ignoring the law and the Constitution.” Sherrill also emphasized the importance of the state executive. “Governors have never mattered more. And in this state, I am determined to build prosperity for all of our citizens,” she said. Terry Schilling, the president of the American Principles Project, a family policy think tank, had identified family policies as a key issue at stake in the race. He panned the Democrats’ strategy of avoiding talking about sociocultural issues in light of their 2024 presidential election loss.  “They are hoping that by remaining silent, they can avoid political consequences and maintain political power. This is a shortsighted strategy as the problems caused by pushing transgenderism will continue to grow as more men take over women’s sports and private spaces, and women lose more of their rights and safety,” he explained. Reacting to Ciattarelli’s loss, Erica Jedynak, a Republican strategist, told The Daily Signal, “Jack left it all on the field. His team ran a formidable campaign, bringing the affordability crisis to the forefront of the debate.”  Frank Pallotta, a former New Jersey Republican congressional candidate, attributed the loss to the differences between how the two political parties were operating in the Garden State. “The Republican Party in New Jersey loses, by and large, because they’re still figuring out how to play checkers, while the Democrat organizations scattered around the state are playing chess,” Pallotta told The Daily Signal. “Anyone who paid attention to the last two years of what the tea leaves and the vote-by-mail trending was telling us would’ve known that this was something that needed to be addressed. Until the state decides to embrace the math, the science, and the marketing of last six years, I don’t think much will change,” he added. In 2021, Ciattarelli lost to incumbent Democrat Gov. Phil Murphy by about 3 percentage points. Murphy had succeeded Republican Gov. Chris Christie, who held the office from 2010 to 2018 after succeeded Democrat Gov. Jon Corzine. This is a breaking news article and it may be updated. The post Sherrill Holds NJ Governorship for Democrats appeared first on The Daily Signal.

President Donald Trump suggested the record-long government shutdown is responsible for Republicans’ widespread losses in Tuesday’s off-year elections. “’TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT, AND SHUTDOWN, WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT,’ according to Pollsters,” Trump posted on Truth Social. Democrat Abigail Spanberger won the Virginia gubernatorial race. Democrat Jay Jones, who sent text messages fantasizing about a political opponent’s death, will be Virginia attorney general. Democrat Mikie Sherrill won the New Jersey gubernatorial race. Socialist Zohran Mamdani will be mayor of New York. “…AND SO IT BEGINS!” Trump said of Mamdani’s victory. Trump had breakfast with Senate Republicans Wednesday morning to discuss Republicans’ response to the losses. “I thought we’d have a discussion after the press leaves about what last night represented, and what we should do about it, and also about the shutdown, how that relates to last night …” he said. “The shutdown was a big factor negative for the Republicans.” Trump said Wednesday he’s “not sure [Tuesday night] was good for anybody.” “But we had an interesting evening,” he said, “and we learned a lot, and we’re going to talk about that.” The post ‘AND SO IT BEGINS’: Trump Reacts to Republican Losses in Off-Year Elections appeared first on The Daily Signal.

FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The pro-life movement has determined its newest priority: preventing Planned Parenthood from receiving full funding again, starting July 4. “Next year, our nation will mark its 250th anniversary. A celebration of human dignity and the God-given rights proclaimed in our founding,” Live Action founder and president Lila Rose told The Daily Signal. “But we cannot celebrate freedom while subsidizing the killing of American children.” President Donald Trump’s “One, Big Beautiful Bill” instructed the federal government to end Medicaid payments for one year to abortion providers, such as Planned Parenthood, that received more than $800,000 from Medicaid in 2023. But on July 4, America’s 250th birthday, Planned Parenthood is set to regain full taxpayer funding. A pro-life coalition led by Live Action has set its sights on working with Congress to prevent that from happening. Members of the movement who plan to prioritize this issue include Students for Life, CatholicVote, National Right to Life, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, Family Research Council, The Heritage Foundation, March for Life, Advancing American Freedom, and pro-life congressional staffers. The pro-life movement is calling for “a permanent taxpayer defund of all organizations that commit abortion, not another temporary restriction that can be undone from one year to the next,” Rose said. “As we prepare to honor our country, we must return to the truth declared at our beginning that all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with the right to life,” Rose said. “We cannot meaningfully celebrate that principle while simultaneously funding the destruction of our most vulnerable. It is time for Planned Parenthood to be permanently defunded and completely shut down.” Live Action is urging pro-lifers to call the House of Representatives and the Senate to take immediate action before July 4 to reinstate the full defund of Planned Parenthood in the federal budget. “We are a nation founded on the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness—not abortion on demand, not federally funded destruction of children,” the pro-life group says. “On July 4th, 1776, our founders declared independence from tyranny. On July 4th, 2026, let’s declare independence from Planned Parenthood.” The pro-life movement is preparing for a big push in January to coincide with the annual March for Life. Congress is likely to revisit the budget reconciliation process in January after squaring away the Affordable Care Act credits and appropriations bills through the end of 2025. “For too long, Planned Parenthood has deceived the American public while relying on nearly $800 million annually in taxpayer funding,” Live Action says, adding that abortions have surged to a record 402,230 per year and the abortion giant raked in $178 million in profit in a single year while holding billions in assets. An earlier version of the Big, Beautiful Bill blocked abortion providers from receiving federal taxpayer dollars for the next 10 years. But by the time the Senate version passed, that defunding period had been scaled back to just one year. The pro-life movement still hailed Congress voting to defund Planned Parenthood in July as a major victory, but the coalition is committed to preventing the victory from expiring on America’s birthday. Live Action has a countdown on its website to when the abortion giant will regain funding if Congress doesn’t act. “We are only 240 days away from Planned Parenthood being taxpayer funded once again if Congress does not act,” said Noah Brandt, vice president of communications and government relations at Live Action. “Every day that passes brings us closer to hundreds of millions of dollars being sent to the nation’s largest abortion business.” “Congress must act now to make the defund permanent,” Brandt continued. “The American people should never be forced to subsidize the killing of children.” Planned Parenthood does not represent the health care needs of American women and families, according to Live Action. Rather, it has been involved in Medicaid fraud and failure to report child sexual abuse; discriminatory practices against pregnant and pro-life employees; and performing “gender-affirming” procedures on minors, often without appropriate medical evaluation or parental safeguards, Live Action says. “Planned Parenthood’s record reveals an organization built on profit, deception, and exploitation—not healthcare or compassion,” the pro-life organization writes. The post SCOOP: Pro-Life Movement Sets Sights on Preventing Planned Parenthood From Regaining Funding appeared first on The Daily Signal.

WSJ: Time for Wall Street to Work With Mamdani

All of the late night comedy shows taped their Tuesday episodes before the polls closed on Election Day, so that meant that CBS’s Stephen Colbert had plenty of time to talk with former First Lady Michelle Obama on The Late Show about her new book on fashion. While gushing over the fashion choices of a former first lady may seem like an odd choice for a comedy show, it was somehow worse than that, as the duo hyped the idea that Obama’s sense of fashion allowed her to get ahead of her allegedly racist critics. Colbert described the book thusly: “It is called The Look. It is about your style and the soft power of fashion. And, you know, American culture as a part of our soft power. And fashion is a part of our culture.”     He then asked, “How did you wield it?” At first, Obama replied, “Ooh, carefully, thoughtfully, strategically.” Colbert sought a more elaborate answer, “When did you realize that it was something to wield? That it actually was a power?” Obama never explicitly called her critics racist, but it was clearly implied as she answered: I think right away. I mean, the campaign was beautiful, but, you know, I felt the politics of it fast. I learned a lot of lessons about what I had to look out for. And how quickly people were willing to take my story and distort it. So, I knew very quickly that I had to control every aspect of how I showed up in the world. It was a race to let the country learn me for me before they learn this other crazy woman that they were talking about, the angry bitter black woman that was a terrorist and a danger to her country, and didn’t love her country. And how I showed up in the world played a huge role in just reminding people that we're normal people. Yes, we’re black. But we bleed red, and we love red, white, and blue. And a lot of that went into thinking strategically about how I showed up every day. If Obama tried to use her sense of fashion as a political asset, over the years she has had a willing partner in the country’s news media, which has constantly helped the Obamas perpetuate the fiction that their critics simply don’t like seeing black people in power. Here is a transcript for the November 4 show: CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert 11/4/2025 11:56 PM ET STEPHEN COLBERT: It is called The Look. It is about your style and the soft power of fashion. MICHELLE OBAMA: Yeah. COLBERT: And, you know, American culture as a part of our soft power. And fashion is a part of our culture. How did you wield it? OBAMA: Ooh, carefully, thoughtfully, strategically. COLBERT: When did you realize that it was something to wield? That it actually was a power? OBAMA: I think right away. I mean, the campaign was beautiful, but, you know, I felt the politics of it fast. I learned a lot of lessons about what I had to look out for. And how quickly people were willing to take my story and distort it. So, I knew very quickly that I had to control every aspect of how I showed up in the world. It was a race to let the country learn me for me before they learn this other crazy woman that they were talking about, the angry bitter black woman that was a terrorist and a danger to her country, and didn’t love her country. And how I showed up in the world played a huge role in just reminding people that we're normal people. Yes, we’re black. But we bleed red, and we love red, white, and blue. And a lot of that went into thinking strategically about how I showed up every day.