navybsn

Brisbane from the 4th to 11th of Feb. As for debt I must be the only one of my brothers not to have any, not to say living within one’s means is easy but it shouldn’t be that hard.

When I bought my ute just under 10 years ago the dealership price for a major service was $1400. I told them at the first free service that they'd never see me again.
Since covid though cars have become a huge joke. 18 months wait times for delivery, $50K average price, 10 year old second hand cars rising price by up to 30%. It's a shit time to buy a new car but a great time to sell a good used car.
It blows me away how much debt some people must have. All these people with their million dollar houses, two cars worth 60K each, a caravan worth more than $100K. Then there is the people who are putting their kids through schools that charge upwards of $10K per year per kid. I'm old enough to have said goodbye to debt, and needing debt, but it's just as well because owing the kind of money some people must owe would scare the shit out of me.

The best Incantation album. Corchado is a fucking monster on this. Then again, when is he not a monster...

The cost of vehicle ownership is indeed rising. I can remember getting a battery for my first car 30 years ago for $30. The last one I bought was almost $300 a couple years ago. It's more than that though. I do all of my own oil changes on my Toyota but my wife takes her Nissan to the dealership. My cost - $60. Her cost - $125. Surely the cost would be closer if I took mine in vs. DIY. New tires - $1200. Regular routine maintenance of any kind is expensive. Stuff that no matter how you care for your vehicle still have to be done. But compared to the cost of major repairs if you don't, they're still relatively cheap. For instance, my daughter continually ignored my insistence that she pay closer attention to her aging vehicle and sure enough the engine went out (I'm simplifying that but you get the point). The proposed repair bill was $10k, well exceeding the value of the car. Now, she has no car and has to share the one vehicle her husband has creating an unnecessary burden. And I would argue that your $400 battery is a sight better than no vehicle or replacing a vehicle. Still sucks.
The price of new vehicles is even worse. I remember my dad buying a new Toyota pickup in the early 80's for an exorbitant $3k. Mine cost 10x that 5 years ago. Pricing an exact replacement from a current year model is roughly $48k. 10x increase over 30 years is understandable. $18k over 5 is unreasonable. I recently have been pricing 1/4 ton options for potential trailer hauling purposes (wife wants an RV) and the least I can find would run me $75k. That would put a monthly payment in the same neighborhood of my mortgage payment should I decide to finance. That's seriously fucked. Sure I don't have to spend that kind of coin on a depreciating asset for a trivial luxury like an RV, but there are tons of people who depend on vehicles like those for real work. The fact that home ownership costs and vehicle ownership costs are essentially same over the average financing term of the vehicle is disturbing. Give it a few more years and vehicle cost will completely overtake housing costs and we will see a worse problem than we currently are in North America where people are being priced out of housing options. Without affordable and reliable transportation options, you can't get to work and earn money, spiraling the current situation out of control. With no effective options for Mass transit on the majority of the continent, it's a crisis no one really talks about or shifts resources to address.
Ok, rant over.

The cost of vehicle ownership is indeed rising. I can remember getting a battery for my first car 30 years ago for $30. The last one I bought was almost $300 a couple years ago. It's more than that though. I do all of my own oil changes on my Toyota but my wife takes her Nissan to the dealership. My cost - $60. Her cost - $125. Surely the cost would be closer if I took mine in vs. DIY. New tires - $1200. Regular routine maintenance of any kind is expensive. Stuff that no matter how you care for your vehicle still have to be done. But compared to the cost of major repairs if you don't, they're still relatively cheap. For instance, my daughter continually ignored my insistence that she pay closer attention to her aging vehicle and sure enough the engine went out (I'm simplifying that but you get the point). The proposed repair bill was $10k, well exceeding the value of the car. Now, she has no car and has to share the one vehicle her husband has creating an unnecessary burden. And I would argue that your $400 battery is a sight better than no vehicle or replacing a vehicle. Still sucks.
The price of new vehicles is even worse. I remember my dad buying a new Toyota pickup in the early 80's for an exorbitant $3k. Mine cost 10x that 5 years ago. Pricing an exact replacement from a current year model is roughly $48k. 10x increase over 30 years is understandable. $18k over 5 is unreasonable. I recently have been pricing 1/4 ton options for potential trailer hauling purposes (wife wants an RV) and the least I can find would run me $75k. That would put a monthly payment in the same neighborhood of my mortgage payment should I decide to finance. That's seriously fucked. Sure I don't have to spend that kind of coin on a depreciating asset for a trivial luxury like an RV, but there are tons of people who depend on vehicles like those for real work. The fact that home ownership costs and vehicle ownership costs are essentially same over the average financing term of the vehicle is disturbing. Give it a few more years and vehicle cost will completely overtake housing costs and we will see a worse problem than we currently are in North America where people are being priced out of housing options. Without affordable and reliable transportation options, you can't get to work and earn money, spiraling the current situation out of control. With no effective options for Mass transit on the majority of the continent, it's a crisis no one really talks about or shifts resources to address.
Ok, rant over.

Yuuup.

Yes! I can now sample a curated black metal list that is mostly off of my radar but always top notch. I stumbled across the majority of GGs death and thrash but I just don't catch these black metal releases. Maybe because they aren't all on BC, but no matter its easier to let you do the searching. These are the most evil, searing and nasty kind of no-bullshit black metal.
To anyone not familiar and at the point where you are sick of overly symphonic/folksy or melodic black metal just start here, or search out some Finnish black. 

The best Incantation album. Corchado is a fucking monster on this. Then again, when is he not a monster...

Incantation - Diabolical Conquest (1998)
Incubus - Beyond the Unknown (1990)
Le Chant Noir - La Société Satanique des Poètes Morts (2021)
(The Black Sing - The Satanic Society of Dead Poets)
Ritual Carnage - Every Nerve Alive (2000)
 

Killing Joke - Outside The Gate 
Deine Lakaien - Dark Star 
Deine Lakaien - s/t

Do folks consider WITTR post-black? Never thought of them that way, but if so then they would be my favorite. I liked an Alcest album once upon a time, but not sure which one. Agalloch had some good stuff early on (The Mantle?). 

I would agree.
NP: Minor Threat - Out of Step
Metallica - AJFA
Also agree

I buy stuff every year that I really like at the moment, but then they get lost along the way when something newer comes along. Thing is, I like buying music just as much as I like listening to it. With Spotify, Bandcamp, Youtube, and the rest of the streaming services available, there's really no reason for me to purchase anything before listening to it thoroughly. I still do occasionally, but that's usually a record store find that I've heard just not in many years. I did recently purchase a Poison Idea record I'd never heard before, but I like all of their other stuff so it was a fair bet. So, I don't really have a backlog as much as a large unruly collection that makes it impossible to listening to everything frequently. I recently finished rebuilding my music server, and even after booting out a bunch of lower quality/questionable rips and miscellanea, it still clocks in a touch over 6000 albums+eps.
I've tried and failed multiple times to cut down on the amount of stuff I purchase every year. Unlike @MacabreEternal, I have shifted to more physical media and that strategy is working better. Buying digital is too easy. Hunting down the physical copy kinda forces me to be sure I actually want to spend the money and find the space for it. I added about 50 physical releases this year (CD & vinyl) and around 100 digital. My 2022 short list has 40 albums on it. That's about 25% of everything I buy ending up on the shortlist. Not bad, and if I filtered it down to only 2022 releases it would be closer to 60-65%. Would still like to be closer to 75-80% though.

This juxtaposition made me smile -  steel wool underdaks!
Old Thatguy says  'because they suck'. New age Thatguy says they used to be hated because they sounded like BM but didn't look the part. Now they are hated because their most recent album was just bad and not metal at all.

I tried this album again on your repeated recommendation. My conclusion? I agree it sounds great and is well played, but those vocals...In all, just not my thing is my conclusion.

@Arioch and @markm.....
I had Lore on my wishlist but liked the album cover of the new one better so picked that one up. The only Elder I had previously was Reflections which I listened to a fair bit a few years ago. When comparing to new one I'd say all Elder is a bit interchangeable. Like really good atmosphere but if you are a fairweather fan needing a recommendation, you probably only need one album. Similar to how I really like King Buffalo but am forced to admit someone only casually interested could get a fix from any of their albums and not really have missed anything by not hearing the others. 
N.P. Black Harvest | GREEN LUNG (bandcamp.com)
Probably my favourite discovery of the last year. I have managed to miss seeing these guys live both opportunities I had - once at the local pub when I went down but it was sold out and then opening for Clutch a month ago when I had a ticket but accidentally double-booked with a weekend away. Shameful. 
Ominous they've signed to Nuclear Blast, apparently. They have a great organic sound, but I think it is in the NB contract you have to use Andy Sneap to make all their bands sound the same.
 

SkyThala - Boreal Despair 
Circle Of Ouroborus - Autuala 
Circle Of Ouroborus - Viimeinen Juoksu

This makes me even more sorry I missed them! 
NP: Deathspell Omega - Paracletus

Amazing is an understatement. Saw them 4 times and it was better each time. Live albums are great but don't do them justice. Perfect sound, never kept you waiting, different setlist on each tour, and very respectful of the audience. Just sorry it's done.

One of my favorite Rush tunes. One of Lerxst's heaviest riffs combined with a dark foreboding atmosphere. A real outlier for them. Lucky to see it played live twice.

One of my favorite Rush tunes. One of Lerxst's heaviest riffs combined with a dark foreboding atmosphere. A real outlier for them. Lucky to see it played live twice.

@GoatmasterGeneral you saying you didn't completely hate Red Barchetta made me think you also might not hate this tune (Witch Hunt):
 

Tardigrada - Emotionale Ödnis - did not last with the kiddos and chores and shit
Killing Joke - Night Time 
Killing Joke - Outside The Gate

Nadja don't generally seem weird to me - more warm and fuzzy, especially my favourite 'The Stone Is Not Hit By The Sun...'. This one seems weird because of the vocals, I think.
NP - TARDIGRADA - Vom Bruch bis zur Freiheit. Excellent album by an excellent band. Also warm and fuzzy.
I think they just keep getting better.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed a once through as I generally think Lore was their high water mark.