CARMELO SUMMARY

The New World in the 31st Century

Carmelo: Chronicle of Events So Far

A chronological summary of the current 3026 A.D. storyline, from Carmelo’s arrival through his summons to Strawberry Records.

Part I. The arrival of Carmelo

1. The Between Lives Assessment

Carmelo, formerly known in his previous life as Steve Martin Caro, was a natural human who died at age 71 from heart failure.

Following his death, he underwent the Between Lives Assessment and was repurposed for life in The New World.

• His body has been restored to perfect health, youthful appearance, and energy.

• He looks to be in his twenties.

• He retains his memories of 20th- and 21st-century history, music, and culture.

• Unlike New World Citizens, he remains a natural human and must sleep.

• He does not remember dying. As far as his conscious mind is concerned, he was living in the 21st century only a few days ago.

His purpose in The New World is to continue unfinished work, eventually bringing Baroque rock into a musical culture in which the genre has yet to develop.

2. The Dandelion Mile

Carmelo finds himself at the foot of The Dandelion Mile, the delicate trail leading to the six Gates of Neon Row.

The trail is lined with dandelions, and he must traverse it without disturbing a single seed.

Other natural humans have faced this passage:

• Fingaz walked it effortlessly after his assessment.

• Rew Starr traversed it to see whether she could, after arriving in The New World through a time-travel experiment.

• The Rev arrived at the border of Neon Row and Deadend Street.

• Lonesome Dick's experience remains uncertain.

Carmelo makes his way along the Mile and reaches the Gate, where he encounters the Kind Lady.

3. The Kind Lady gives him his name

The Kind Lady welcomes Carmelo and gives him the name Carmelo, his former-life surname.

He likes the name and wears it proudly. From this point forward, he is Carmelo.

The Kind Lady has been entrusted by the Assessors with his successful transition into The New World. She guides him toward his new life, eventually helping him navigate the unfamiliar environment.

4. His first taste of New World enlightenment

The Kind Lady provides Carmelo with a small NEP-infused Wacky Snack candy, enough for a single sparkle.

Carmelo is already familiar with psychedelic experiences dating back to the 1960s, so this is not his first encounter with altered consciousness.

The experience introduces him to the clean, cumulative effects of New World enlightenment products.

The distinction between the two worlds matters:

• Natural Enlightenment Products and Wacky Snacks are freely available throughout The New World. They are not sold.

• Owsley Farms cultivates and supplies quality harvests to Wacky Snacks manufacturers.

• Deadender bootlegs are made from salvaged, discarded, spoiled, or rejected plant material. Deadender children recover these materials and sell the resulting products in alleys and dives on Deadend Street.

The Kind Lady is concerned that Carmelo might fall back into destructive habits associated with his previous life. She wants him to discover The New World without losing sight of his purpose.

Part II. Carmelo reunites with The Rev

5. The encounter in Sonata Heights

Carmelo eventually encounters The Rev, Ralph Ferrera, in the Piano District's Sonata Heights.

The Rev has been in The New World for nine years. He is a natural human who has become thoroughly familiar with its geography and culture.

Although he lives in the Deadender sector, he regularly visits Neon Row's musical venues, studios, and rehearsal spaces. He also frequents Sonata Heights to learn from its master keyboardists.

Carmelo and Rev recognize each other from their previous lives and share memories of their old friendship.

When Rev calls out, "Carmelo!", Carmelo reflexively responds, "Salami!"

The nickname has a history from their earlier life, but it is not how Carmelo will address him going forward. He calls him Rev.

6. A detour to Deadend Street

Carmelo asks Rev for a joint. The Kind Lady overhears and intervenes, taking Carmelo to a nearby Wacky Snacks stand before he heads down to Deadend Street.

She gives him a little more guidance, encouraging him to focus on his music, growth, enlightenment, and enjoyment of life rather than fame, money, popularity, or commercial success.

Carmelo and Rev eventually proceed to Deadend Street, where Carmelo smokes a bootleg joint.

The contrast is significant. He has tasted the clean sparkle of a Wacky Snack, and now he experiences the rougher, lower-quality products associated with the Deadender environment.

7. The Rusty Knutz and the old songs

Carmelo and Rev spend time at The Rusty Knutz, singing old songs they both knew in their previous lives.

Rev is delighted. The songs are familiar, he performs them well, and he feels completely at home. He sees an opportunity for the two friends to conquer their new world with their old musical magic.

He imagines a future filled with favorite old songs, weed, and women.

Carmelo feels differently.

He has already sung those songs countless times during his 71-year lifetime. They feel like yesterday's news. He senses that he has been brought to The New World for a higher purpose, and repeating his past does not satisfy that calling.

The difference between the two friends becomes clear:

• Rev is content with his established position and the familiar pleasures of his musical kingdom.

• Carmelo wants to move forward, discover something new, and create music that he has never made before.

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8. Carmelo leaves Rev behind

Carmelo tells Rev:

"Salami, I am so glad to have run into you. We had fun, but I'm a little tired. Everything here is so new to me. I don't know how I got here. I don't really know where I am yet. I'm going back to the heights to get some rest. I hope I can find the Kind Lady. Maybe she can help me find a piano player."

Carmelo returns to Sonata Heights alone.

Rev remains excited about their possible future together, but Carmelo is already looking beyond their shared past.

Their friendship remains intact. They simply have different ideas about what comes next.

9. The history of the jukebox

The Rusty Knutz contains a jukebox more than a thousand years old.

It was discovered during the archaeological expeditions known as The Discoveries, conducted in the late 29th century. Its origins were traced to The Boones, who owned a little place called The Slide Inn.

In the 20th century, Ray Galindo and Ralph Ferrera used to visit The Slide Inn for fifty-cent cans of Ham's beer and dollar-twenty-five hamburgers.

When Rev encountered the jukebox at The Rusty Knutz, he recognized it and confirmed its origins.

Remarkably, it still contained all its original records.

The jukebox therefore connects Rev's present life in The New World to a tangible piece of his previous life.

Part III. Carmelo meets Bambi

10. The pianist beneath the tree

Some time passes. Carmelo finds himself in Sonata Heights, where he hears a small console piano being played beneath a tree.

The pianist is Bambi, the most well-known and respected pianist in the district.

She is improvising music reminiscent of the Chopinic Age. Carmelo listens from several feet away, captivated by the sound.

He notices her blonde hair, large doe-like green eyes, and small hands. He wonders how such small hands can produce such a massive sound.

Something about her face seems extraordinarily familiar.

11. The doppelgänger

Carmelo approaches her and asks:

"I think I know you from somewhere. You seem so familiar. Did you ever live in the twentieth or twenty-first centuries?"

Bambi smiles and giggles, assuming he is flirting. She doesn't understand the question.

Carmelo recognizes her resemblance to Jennifer MacDuffee, Ray Galindo's girlfriend and collaborator in the 1980s. Steve's nickname for Jennifer was Bambi.

But this pianist is not Jennifer. She is a first-generation New World Citizen, no more than 26 years old.

Carmelo asks her name.

In her soft, angelic voice, she replies:

"Bambi."

The resemblance is an emotionally charged mystery. Its cause has not been established.

12. The birth of a musical collaboration

Carmelo does not allow his surprise to distract him from the musical opportunity before him.

He recognizes Bambi's extraordinary abilities and explains that he has melodies in his head combining heavy classical structures with raw, natural energy.

He tells her that her playing may be precisely what those melodies need.

Bambi shifts on the piano bench, leaving room for him beside her.

Carmelo sits down, and she resumes her Chopin-esque improvisation. He begins singing a new vocal melody, one that weaves between her complex classical chord structures.

Her AI-enhanced musical processing encounters a natural human voice with a depth and emotional character unlike anything she has previously experienced.

This is the beginning of their collaboration and the foundation of Carmelo's effort to develop Baroque rock.

Bambi brings her extraordinary classical technique. Carmelo brings his lifetime of musical experience, natural-human expression, and memories of an earlier era.

Their work is still at an early stage. The completed songs and the eventual scope of their collaboration remain to be developed.

Part IV. The wider New World

13. Dr. Vale and the Space Devils glitch

Elsewhere, Dr. Vale is working to fix a persistent glitch affecting Space Devils.

The problem is that Space Devils disappear from The New World. Dr. Vale's career is devoted to finding a way to let them remain for longer visits.

One part of the problem is that mentioning Ray Galindo can trigger their disappearance.

Space Devils fans sometimes gather outside Dr. Vale's research facility, holding signs and chanting:

"Fix the glitch!"

This is an established part of the wider cultural landscape, distinct from Carmelo's developing musical storyline.

14. The New World is not all hyperspeed

The New World has a generally peaceful, slow-paced way of life. The frenetic activity is concentrated on Neon Row, especially in its recording studios, where musicians are continually excited about new projects.

Elsewhere, ordinary citizens live as musicians and artisans while working at places such as:

• Strawberry Records and its affiliates

• The GarbAge Magazine Headquarters

• The Psychedelic Pepper Tree Boutique

• The Light Brigade, whose members work as engineers and electricians

• The Smedley Butlers, whose members serve as stewards

Thousands of bands exist among the populace, while a smaller number stand out and are featured on Bandcamp.

Sonata Heights is serene and studious. Silk Falls is devoted to meditation and contemplation. Owsley Farms is busy with loving cultivation. The Dandelion Mile is its own delicate passage.

The fast-moving creative excitement belongs primarily to Neon Row, not to everyday life across the entire world.

15. The Twisties and the pace of creation

In the September 2026 discussion, The Twisties had met while practicing yoga at Silk Falls less than 48 hours earlier and already had the top single in The New World.

Their release, You Won't Make Me Cry / Sometimes Less Is More, demonstrated how quickly a new musical act can emerge in a civilization whose citizens do not need sleep.

This is part of the contemporary setting in which Carmelo and Bambi begin working together. Carmelo, as a natural human, must rest. Bambi does not.

The difference may affect their working rhythm, but their future working arrangements have not yet been fully established.

Part V. Carmelo is summoned to Strawberry Records

16. The Kind Lady returns

A couple of days after Carmelo begins his acquaintance with Bambi, the Kind Lady appears briefly to deliver a message.

Carmelo is being summoned to Strawberry Records by The New Worlders (Architects).

He wonders who they are.

Despite enjoying the peace and beauty of Sonata Heights, Carmelo still does not understand why he is in The New World. He has no memory of dying or of the Between Lives Assessment. His arrival still feels to him like an inexplicable leap from the 21st century into a strange and beautiful future.

The summons promises answers.

17. The Council of Nine

At Strawberry Records, Carmelo meets the New Worlders, who are revealed to be a Council of Nine.

They have distinctive physical and ceremonial characteristics:

• All nine are bald.

• Their baldness results from a genetic alteration that occurred during The Long Dusk, following biological warfare associated with The Great Devastation of 2099.

• They wear long, unadorned dark green robes.

One of them greets Carmelo joyfully:

"Welcome, Carmelo. Please be seated. We have waited a very long time for your arrival. We have much to discuss with you."

The Council moves directly into explaining his Between Lives Assessment and his mission.

18. Carmelo learns the truth

The Council explains that Carmelo's physical form ceased functioning at age 71 due to heart failure. He died, underwent the Between Lives Assessment, and was repurposed.

His restored body and youth are deliberate. The Council believes that his unfinished work has a place in The New World.

They explain that the first generation of New World Citizens is bio-engineered and AI-enhanced. These Citizens are brilliant and peaceful, and they were designed for immortality. Yet their experience differs fundamentally from that of natural humans who have lived through conventional mortality and accumulated decades of memories, culture, and emotion.

Carmelo carries a musical and historical experience that the Council believes is needed.

Baroque rock, which remains undeveloped in The New World, is central to that mission. His musical sensibilities and Bambi's classical mastery may together produce something new.

Carmelo begins to understand why repeating old songs at The Rusty Knutz felt empty. His purpose is not simply to revive his previous success. He has been given an opportunity to create something new.

The Council's message is essentially: the tools are his, and the universe is waiting for the music

19. The latest event: Carmelo returns to The Rusty Knutz

After receiving the Council's explanation, Carmelo returns to The Rusty Knutz to talk to Rev about his experience.

That is the current endpoint of the story. The conversation between Carmelo and Rev following the summons has not yet been developed in the material provided.

Part VI. Events still ahead

These developments have been identified, but their outcomes are not yet known.

Carmelo and Bambi's developing work

Their collaboration has begun, but their subsequent writing sessions, finished songs, and creative process remain open.

Carmelo and Rev after the summons

Carmelo has returned to discuss his experience with Rev. What he tells Rev and how Rev responds remain to be written.

The Starman's Appearance Day Celebration

The celebration takes place on David Bowie's birthday, January 8. At some later date, after Carmelo and Bambi have become better acquainted, Carmelo will introduce Bambi to Rev there. The immediate reaction between them is not yet known.

Dr. Vale's continuing research

The effort to fix the Space Devils glitch continues independently of Carmelo's musical development. The ultimate solution has not yet been established.

The central threads of the story

Three major threads are now converging, though they remain distinct.

1. Carmelo's personal journey: A natural human who does not remember dying discovers why he has been restored to youth and brought into The New World.

2. The birth of Baroque rock: Carmelo and Bambi begin combining his natural-human musical history and expression with her extraordinary classical piano abilities.

3. Carmelo and Rev's divergent paths: Two old friends reunite, but Rev's satisfaction with his established life contrasts with Carmelo's desire to pursue something entirely new. Their relationship may evolve as Carmelo's mission unfolds.

Meanwhile, Dr. Vale's work and the wider musical culture continue in the background.

The story's current dramatic hinge is Carmelo's return to The Rusty Knutz after meeting the Council of Nine. He now knows something he did not know before: his presence in The New World has a purpose. What he chooses to tell Rev, and what happens next, is yet  be to determined