AEW - FEB 2022

[Craig H]

Man. RIP Lee Moriarty.

[Curt McGirt]

In what world am I looking forward to Trent? vs. Knife Pervert more than a Danielson match? One of the two probably starts the level for STIFF and the next one tries to top it. Red and purple chests all around! 

[The Natural]

 

[Leonidas]

11 hours ago, Craig H said:

Man. RIP Lee Moriarty.

I will watch his death with a gleeful look on my face, much like the one Bryan Danielson himself will be sporting I imagine.

[NoFistsJustFlips]

14 hours ago, JLowe said:

Takes two to tango and Jade had two left feet as well.

That's true. But that's also a constant. Jade always has two left feet. But that generally doesn't stop her from having serviceable to borderline very good matches depending on who she's in there with. This was a pretty bad outting where they clearly got lost and the ref was calling the match for them. That's never happened in a Jade match before. So hard to place much of the blame on Jade, no?

[The Natural]

1 hour ago, Leonidas said:

I will watch his death with a gleeful look on my face, much like the one Bryan Danielson himself will be sporting I imagine.

You're gonna get your fucking head kicked in!

[Jenalysis]

13 hours ago, Curt McGirt said:

In what world am I looking forward to Trent? vs. Knife Pervert more than a Danielson match? One of the two probably starts the level for STIFF and the next one tries to top it. Red and purple chests all around! 

 

Trent is one of the most underrated guys in the world, and Switch is the real best in the world.  I am expecting greatness.

[Shartnado]

1 hour ago, The Natural said:

You're gonna get your fucking head kicked in!

But you know he will go down fucking fighting!

[Shartnado]

21 hours ago, alstein said:

 

Trent is one of the most underrated guys in the world, and Switch is the real best in the world.  I am expecting greatness.

I have not been exposed to Trent aside from his short stint as a teacher's pet, but more I see him in AEW the more impressed I am. Looking forward to finally seeing what the Jay White hype is all about!

...I think Trent used to be a Dudebuster, not a Teacher's Pet, but it's not like that hardly matters, at this point.

Edited February 13, 2022 by Shartnado
wrong tag team

[Jiji]

It'll be a Rampage match, so the crowd will mostly be burned out by then. Don't set expectations too high. I really wish they'd do Rampage live and go to 90 minutes. Do the Elevation taping there too.

The show has good matches but it's rare to see a great match, imo, on the show because crowd isn't as into it by that point and it's just overall low energy compared to Dynamite. 

Edited February 12, 2022 by Jiji

[ExcellenceofAirPollution]

42 minutes ago, Jiji said:

It'll be a Rampage match, so the crowd will mostly be burned out by then. Don't set expectations too high. I really wish they'd do Rampage live and go to 90 minutes. Do the Elevation taping there too.

The show has good matches but it's rare to see a great match, imo, on the show because crowd isn't as into it by that point and it's just overall low energy compared to Dynamite. 

Rampage has had a lot of really good matches, but yeah, the crowd is a bit of an issue.

I'm also of the opinion that in this day and age wrestling needs to be live.  I know Meltzer has banged the drum forever on it not mattering and the ratings averaging out the same live v. taped, but as a wrestling fan I 100% care more when the shows are live and it adds to the general interest level and heat of the product being up.  It absolutely was a huge part of the 90's boom.

That said, AEW isn't hot enough where they can fill two big arenas every week, so we're probably stuck with mostly taped shows on Fridays.  Could be worse

[Jenalysis]

1 hour ago, Shartnado said:

I have not been exposed to Trent aside from his short stint as a teacher's pet, but more I see him in AEW the more impressed I am. Looking forward to finally seeing what the Jay White hype is all about!

 

I got to see Trent's highest profile NJPW singles match live vs Juice back in 2018  Absolute banger for IWGP US belt.

 

Edited February 12, 2022 by alstein

[JLowe]

Was there crowd noise added to the show last night because they were pretty loud for most of the matches, especially Hook.

[HarryArchieGus]

Producing Rampage as a taped show seems clearly to be a production budget issue.  I trust in this decision.

To avoid a dead crowd, here's an idea... drop the hour plus Elevation tapings.  Then Rampage comes in at hour 3 rather than 4 and nobody is burnt out.  I can't see a good reason why they couldn't tape a portion of the show prior to Dynamite even.  1/2 hour before 1/2 hour after.  Regardless, a 3 hour live event as opposed to a 4 hour would make a significant difference.  All that said, I have little to no reason to complain about this consistently entertaining B show.   

As for Elevation, use the Orlando tapings.  Keep Dark and Elevation to 45min broadcast standard.  To further fill those blocks give us (what we or I want) more promo reps.  Dark is always a much better flowing show with promos inbetween the bouts.  And am I alone in thinking the smaller Orlando studio set-up is a ton more fun for lower card battles and squashes?

Edited February 12, 2022 by HarryArchieGus

[(BP)]

34 minutes ago, JLowe said:

Was there crowd noise added to the show last night because they were pretty loud for most of the matches, especially Hook.

No, he was that over in the building. The crowd was a lot better all night than it was at the Dynamite/Rampage I went to in Philly. TK was out three separate times on mic to keep the crowd hyped, and a couple of times he stuck his head out from the curtains and waved his arms like Kermit the Frog to pump up reactions. 

[NoFistsJustFlips]

31 minutes ago, HarryArchieGus said:

1/2 hour before 1/2 hour after.  Regardless, a 3 hour live event as opposed to a 4 hour would make a significant difference.

Not entirely impossible to do. But generally it is easier to film the product "live to tape". Meaning they like to tape it as if it's live. It helps with timing the show out and giving the talent the same vibe as a live show. Because for them it essentially is live. It's not like the Superstars tapings back in the day where if Taker botched something in a squash he'd look at the camera put up a two and repeat the spot. I've seen that happen live as a kid lol.

But they will have a much better idea of how much time needs to added or shaved if they tape the hour live to tape. Doing half before and half after gives them one extra step of piecing the two segments together to figure out if they're long or short. Again not entirely impossible to do. Just an easier production to do it all in one go "live".

I'm with you on them scrapping the Elevation taping. But I believe their POV on this is these are developmental matches. And giving reps in full arenas is more valuable than small sound stage matches. Not sure if I find that value to be more valuable than a lively crowd. But that seems to be the choice they made.

[Matt D]

Elevation is more of a combination of developmental reps in front of a live crowd and also giving the crowd a chance to see some of the over acts (John Silver, Ruby Soho, Thunder Rosa, Acclaimed, Santana/Ortiz, Kingston, considering that if you combine Dynamite and Rampage, you probably only get 10 matches tops. It's also a way to make sure that the local guys on the roster get to be there, like when they did Reynolds vs Nese in Long Island or used Skye Blue in Chicago.

Edited February 12, 2022 by Matt D

[Curt McGirt]

1 hour ago, (BP) said:

a couple of times he stuck his head out from the curtains and waved his arms like Kermit the Frog to pump up reactions.

[zendragon]

Quote

It’s hard to imagine what professional wrestling would be like without music. From the wrestlers’ introduction music, to the TV show theme songs, to the music used in video hype packages, the right music can convey emotion that can’t felt through the visual presentation alone. Nobody in the business is more attuned to this than Mikey Rukus, the in-house Music Producer for All Elite Wrestling. He talked with SlamWresting.net about his work in AEW, including a new album dropping soon in celebration of Black History Month.

A life-long lover and creator of music, Rukus has been composing theme songs for stars since 2010, starting off in the Mixed Martial Arts circuit.

“I was deep-rooted in MMA at the time – I had grown up as a wrestling fan, but actually got away from it when MMA became prevalent,” Rukus said. “I was looking for some supplemental income, and I just decided that I was going to make theme music for fighters. I started with local, regional amateur fighters in the Virginia area, and then just started networking, just creating theme music that they would want. I had to learn the process of listening to their stories and putting them to the style of music that they were interested in.”

“Within a year and a half,” he said proudly, “I had music being played in the UFC. So that was a big deal for me. And then it just kind of started to branch out. I started working with different organizations – I created the theme music for the launch of Invictus Fighting Championship. And in 2015, I (was part of the group) that created the theme song for the World Series of Fighting on NBC Sports.”

As the MMA market scaled back in late 2015, Rukus started to pay more attention to the boom in the independent wrestling scene. “I decided to fully transition into pro wrestling, working in the independent scene. I saw that the indie talents were taking their brand and their name into their own hands, and really creating personas to carry from territory to territory and promotion to promotion. I wanted to be a part of that, and between 2016 and 2018, I created over 200 different theme songs for independent workers. And then heading into 2019, I saw the announcement for AEW.”

Mikey Rukus – AEW Music Producer.  Photo courtesy of AEW

By the time AEW came along, Rukus had a good portfolio and had the workflow down, knowing how to manage the various steps along the way efficiently. It was time to make a decision. “I was really close to burning out from my retail job – I was working 60 hours a week as a retail manager – so I reached out [to AEW],” he recalled. “We had an initial conversation in February 2019, and they asked me do something for the first Double or Nothing show. The first thing I did was the music for Nyla Rose – it was almost like an audition. After that, they started asking me to do more and more – ‘Can you do five songs, 15 songs?’ I finally said, ‘How about I just work for you guys forever?’ And I signed on in May 2019.”

A truly successful audition, then.

“Nyla is still using that same music today,” he laughed.

In terms of coming up with the music, Rukus is given a lot of freedom, but he works very closely with the talent involved and with AEW owner Tony Khan. The ultimate goal is to create a sound that suits the persona. Fortunately, the diverse range of characters in wrestling gives him a lot of opportunity to experiment.

“With MMA, it’s a little bit more linear than we are in pro wrestling,” he explained. “Because in MMA you have some very personal stories that caused people to become fighters. In pro wrestling, you get a chance to expand a little more on the characters and story arcs.”

That includes, in some cases, celebrating their past career history and adding elements of their past themes into their new one.

“If somebody comes into AEW but they had a legendary career (before that), it’s always nice to connect the dots,” he said. Sting is a great example: “Everybody knew him from his entire career – it’s not like anyone was seeing him for the first time. So it was important to tap into the past, to honor the past character and stories, (in addition to) creating a new chapter.”

“But some people will want a completely clean slate. Miro was a good example of that. When they did the ‘Best Man’ theme for him, they really wanted to give it an epic feel, and separate it from who he was in WWE. And when he went to the Redeemer character, they took it to another level.”

Rukus makes a book comparison. “These are like pages that turn in telling their stories. Sometimes they’re a completely fresh coat of paint, and sometimes it’s a continuation, like turning the page in the same story. With Paul Wight’s theme music, we wanted to do something that really connected his storied career. What better way to do that than to get the same guy who sang his WWE theme to sing his new one? So that worked out really well.”

 

 

Of course, there are times where an existing song perfectly represents a character, and in those cases, Rukus is often called on to assist Khan in selecting or procuring licensed music instead of creating something original. In other cases, it’s getting the license to use a song for a one-off situation, such as for a special video or a single show.

“It’s a very open collaborative process – usually, it’s a think tank between me, the talent, and Tony. But the buck stops with Tony. (When selecting licensed music) it’s a team effort, and I assist, whether it’s helping the legal team put together deal (terms) or helping to research the publisher and get in touch with them. I think it’s a good balance to have. A mix of original and licensed music helps bring a balance to create variety,” Rukus said.

They are always thinking bigger than the event. “When you go to a hockey game or a football game, there are certain songs that are played in the stadiums to get the people hyped. We incorporate that as well. I really try to give almost a party vibe to the show.”

But the power of music means that it can be both festive and deliver an important message, and that’s exactly what Rukus had in mind when he came up with the idea for the company’s first official CD release, Who We Are: A Celebration of Excellence.

The album, which will drop on February 18^th – and is available for pre-order now – tells the stories of more than 20 of AEW’s Black wrestlers through hip-hop and R&B collaborations between the wrestlers and established music artists. Proceeds from the sales will be donated to the Bootsy Collins Foundation, the charity established by the funk legend.

Rukus was (pardon the pun) instrumental in getting the album made, and is incredibly proud that he was able to use his position to showcase Black History Month.

“I was looking for different ways to be innovative, and wanted to give as much of an expansive experience and audio experience to the fans as possible. This wasn’t just about writing theme music and sending it up and then waiting for the next call about writing theme music. I wanted to do something that impacted culture and had a deeper meaning than just making music. I pitched the idea last November. And rather than me writing all the music, I assembled a team of producers and artists that are familiar to the wrestling music space. And we just went to work.”

In addition to known artists like Applejaxx and Mega Ran, the AEW stars also performed on the songs, the title of each reflecting that the song represents that talent’s personal story.

“We wanted to tell their personal stories,” he explained, “as much as they were comfortable sharing. Each song is like a 30 for 30 special wrapped up into song form for each of the talents.”

As for the wrestlers, having the opportunity to perform on the album was a new experience for some of them. But the importance of the project motivated them – with Rukus’ support – to go out there and put it on the line as much as they do in the ring.

“Some of them had been waiting to opportunity for something like this for a long time,” Rukus remarked. “So when they got the call, you know, they were ready to go.”

The album is titled as Volume 1, so it stands to reason that this will not be a one-time thing. Indeed, even beyond this possible series, Rukus says that he has a lot of other projects on the go with AEW, to supplement the existing offerings that are available on Spotify.

“I want to continue working, continue exploring. We have (a number of things available) like ‘God’s Favorite Champion’ EP, where we took Miro’s character and explored it over five different songs – different variations of his entrance them and then some other material that we put in.”

“Currently,” he shared, “I’m working on an AEW symphony album, where we’re doing symphonic arrangements of some of the more popular theme songs. We have some great surprises coming up in 2022,” he teased.

In addition to his AEW projects, Rukus is also continuing with his own recording projects, including an album he released in January 2021 called Bring the Rukus. But he is clear that his first priority will be AEW.

“That will always be my main focus,” he confirmed. “This is the place where creativity abounds. And it’s non-stop. It’s lightning speed, it’s ever, ever evolving. And that’s my kind of thing. I really want to do my best to continue creating new music that excites the fans and tells great stories.”

https://slamwrestling.net/index.php/2022/02/07/aew-music-producer-creates-the-beats-that-are-all-elite/

[JLowe]

2 hours ago, Matt D said:

Elevation is more of a combination of developmental reps in front of a live crowd and also giving the crowd a chance to see some of the over acts (John Silver, Ruby Soho, Thunder Rosa, Acclaimed, Santana/Ortiz, Kingston, considering that if you combine Dynamite and Rampage, you probably only get 10 matches tops. It's also a way to make sure that the local guys on the roster get to be there, like when they did Reynolds vs Nese in Long Island or used Skye Blue in Chicago.

I’m excited for some Dark/Elevation matches next month at the Austin show. Only local talent I can think of is Dustin Rhodes (and hell yeah I want to see him wrestle!) but being a regular watcher of the YouTube shows I have my D/E favorites I will root for if they’re there.

I do like when they have the Dark tapings at Daley’s just because the crowd is into it.

[John E. Dynamite]

2 hours ago, zendragon said:

https://slamwrestling.net/index.php/2022/02/07/aew-music-producer-creates-the-beats-that-are-all-elite/

I appriciate the work Mikey Rukus does but I'll never really accept him until he does a Razzle Dazzle while puffin on a Swish.

[Casey]

Darby Allin offered Nick Wayne a full time AEW contract last night at DEFY.

[Gordi the former AEW fan]

28 minutes ago, Casey said:

Darby Allin offered Nick Wayne a full time AEW contract last night at DEFY.

That's amazing.

And, it makes me feel very very old indeed. I used to work with his dad, Buddy Wayne, at Vancouver's All Star Wrestling. IIRC, the kid is only 16. Apple didn't fall to far from the tree, I guess. 

Looking forward to marking out when he makes his debut.

Edit: Just remembered that Darby was trained by Buddy, so it makes sense that they sent him to offer the contract.

Edited February 13, 2022 by Gordlow

[Krone]

Love that signing. I'm gonna guess they will let him keep working GCW, Defy, ect. until he's 18 - and that's when we will get him full time.

In the meantime, I could see him working Dark/Elevation with some of those vets they signed (Lethal, Nese) until that time comes. Good future investment by AEW, like they aren't loaded as is with world class talent under the age of 25.

[The Natural]