JonoBlade

Cheers bro. I can imagine it playing havoc with asthma. Hope you are on the mend. No, that is 40 Celsius (40 F would be like almost freezing). I think most of Europe is on fire, but I don't really watch the news.

So, I finally got my covid cherry popped. Must have had it most of last week but only tested on Saturday because my wife was positive. I suspect I got it at the Gatecreeper gig last Sunday - even though I tried to keep my distance and did not lick anyone that night. Was never more than a bit of a sore throat which is exactly the same symptom as when I get any cold. I did have a really bad nights' sleep last Tuesday which would have been down to my body wondering what the fuck was going on. But I never felt ill, just tired. Probably good timing to get it out of the way because they are predicting 40 degrees in the UK this week. A lot of people are going to die.

While they shouldn't have called it Pantera, with endorsements from the Abbott estates they obviously decided they could and as a result will sell more tickets. It makes perfect sense from a business standpoint. I really want to see the look on the face of a toothless hick who has decided to leave his trailer park for the first time in 20 years to see this gig wonder "man, Vinnie looks in much better shape than I remember....but what is with all those pinch harmonics Darryl is doing?" Yeehaw.

Yeah, that is kind of their thing: a band jamming live. But it is not like every song/riffs bleeds into the next. Each track has a distinct identity. But I would dare to say it is "easy listening"

What is more baffling is that there is a market for ex-PM speakers. Many years ago when my firm used to hold annual conferences we did have after dinner speakers. One was an ex-Tory MP who admittedly was quite funny and another was Sir Ranulph Fiennes who was a narcissistic adventurer. And they cost about £10k I think. You hear about Tony Blair and other cvnts making 10x that. Just sounds like a dumb waste of money. You could probably hire Metallica for less than that. True dat. With daughters as our only children you basically have no choice but to embrace equality with open arms. Every movie should have an Ellen Ripley strong female role-model. But, to your general issues...sounds like the gin is the problem.

Man, that is more research than I would have done. Still a possibility to go, but my wife works in London on Thursdays which makes it logistically difficult with childcare to get into the city at that time. If I could teleport I would. In an effort to prove I'm not shit and lazy though, I did go to Gatecreeper/Urne last night. Although, it had the advantage of being at a pub a 7 minute drive away. The gig ended at 10.30pm. I was in bed by 10.45. Both bands (I missed the opener) were cool. Gatecreeper has a solid HM-2 buzzsaw tone but is somewhat samey after a whole set. The grooves reminded me of Obituary a bit. But without blistering lead work and a vocalist who has actually escaped from the gates of hell. There was circle pit, which was funny. For the last track the singer said "I want everyone to push each other...no punching, no kicking, just pushing." I had never heard of that before as a thing. Walls of death, sure, kung-fu fighting emo knobs, yes, but "go and push each other" ? Nope. I am not sure what effect he was going for. Anyway, I enjoyed myself, and drank Guinness 0.0 for the first time. Blow me down if it isn't indistinguishable from regular Guinness.

You're exactly correct in the explanation, as it was opposite for me, i.e. I first heard HOATTC in 1992 when "Hosanna in Excelsis" blew my head off on a late night student radio metal show. I got a cassette tape, then CD and played it to death. But, while aware of Dreamweaver, I never managed to find it. I suspect it was a problem of distribution at the time. By the way, I also have the LP of Mourning Has Broken. It is listenable but the general consensus is correct that there is no viable Sabbat without Walkyier and his vocals/lyrics. I found the below gig photos from a 2008 reunion that I went to see. Scrolling through the pictures I had totally forgotten that Akercocke were opening! https://www.flickr.com/photos/47142214@N00/2564584977/in/photostream/ Anyhoo. I will did out Dreamweaver and lyric sheet for Monday lunchtime listening

I still have not been able to click with this album, whereas History of a Time to Come is one of my all time favourites. Not sure I even own any other European thrash albums - that's right - no Kreator, Onslaught, Sodom or anything else. Will continue to persevere with Dreamweaver since I paid more than I should for the LP about a year ago. In fact it might be the single most expensive vinyl off eBay I ever bought at about £50. Above that I have to stop and reassess priorities. In other news, there is no bandcamp Friday until September, and I realised I had not supported any band in a while: Orion by King Buffalo Still smitten with this band. Anything they release, even if its average by their standards is still great music. They are playing in London in a few weeks but its on a Thursday and in Hackney which is a faff to get to - not to mention has a reputation as a murderous hell hole. The Spider's Lullabye by King Diamond Never heard it before, but given my predisposition to obscure King Diamond I am guessing I'll like it. This Sceptred Veil by Sergeant Thunderhoof Seem like nice guys. At some stage they will probably play close by. Repeater by King Buffalo As above. Heavy Pendulum by Cave In Never been into Cave In, but Dead's endorsement and a few streaming listens was enough to win me over. Just seems to be catchy modern rock but on the right, heavy side.

The deputy is Dominic Raab (I didn't know till I looked it up). PM has to actively relinquish duties and doesn't cease being PM just because of resignation from party leadership. It is not automatic that deputy becomes PM in case of resignation (I guess it would be if hit by a bus), so someone else could be appointed, and likely not someone that will stand in the leadership contest. What is more dysfunctional is a party that allowed a buffoon to be in charge for so long. Or a country that voted for him in the first place. But, the rise of Boris was down to a few lucky coincidences.... He became mayor of London after a blinding turn as guest presenter on Have I Got News For You (and being up against an unpopular incumbent far left candidate); then he became figurehead of the Brexit movement (turning coat on the 70% of Londoners who wanted to remain), with no plan of what to do if they won; then after becoming party leader to succeed Theresa May - the PM with the poison chalice of having to negotiate a hopeless Brexit deal - went up against a deeply unpopular far left candidate in a general election. I thought Jeremy Corbyn was a decent bloke but have to admit he was unelectable. In all these cases Boris was never all that popular himself but had extremely weak opposition, except in Brexit which was hard fought but the lies about how great it was going to be (based on no evidence - all forecasts were for disaster) were enough to swing it - by two percent. I mean, your hat has to go off to the guy. He would have some great stories to tell down the pub because he is a master of making shit up. A great entertainer - just shouldn't be running a country. EDIT: Boris will probably be relieved because he's gonna make a killing on the speaking circuit. He can make yet more shit up and not have to be accountable to anyone.

Ding dong, the dickhead is finally gone! https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2022/jul/07/boris-johnson-latest-resignations-today-conservatives-uk-politics-live There have no doubt been a lot of shit prime ministers but Boris Johnson took the cake, and ate it. He was a barrel of shit full to the brim.

I don't think any single national leader stood up to neoliberal economics did they? US lead trade deals forced the whole world to bow before Uncle Sam's throbbing member. All in the name of blind consumerism, while the natural world burned.

I sold a couple of boxes of Regiments of Renown Citadel (Games Workshop) armies. These cost (I think) about £10 each in 1987 and sold for about £40 in 2022. I guess with inflation that is about even. And made in UK too. Can you imagine? I also had/have a bunch of Grenadier miniatures which was a US company but pretty much all of the ones I had were made under license in New Zealand. Again, can you imagine? Products used to be made under license in different countries (even backwaters like NZ) so it kept local industry going, rather than getting everything made in China. These things weren't super cheap but they were still affordable and had more inherent value because of it. Get. Off. My. Lawn.

This is how everyone should be. Excessive clutter is a source of stress most people can't recognise. It's funny, I say this sitting in my 2.1 x 2.5 m man cave that doubles as studio and home office, which is pretty cluttered (mainly because I just can't avoid cables and effects pedals all over the floor because they are in constant use) - but I am very mindful of not ever leaving my shit laying around the rest of the house. LPs live in the lounge but are always put away, except for what is playing on display. I have been on a eBay selling bender of late to clear stuff out. Sold almost all my lead miniatures (what nerds paint) and made some good coin. Will start on the Star Wars figures soon. Which reminds me. Obi-Wan Kenobi - what a pile of shit that was.

No, a wipe out is not necessary. Just AI ruling us and limiting consumption. All hail, Quorthon! Great clip. I'm not railing against Bill personally. He can dish it out and take it. It is true the best contribution anyone can make is to not have kids. Cannabis is indeed a miracle plant, which I guess makes me a fan. But, I don't even bother drinking anymore let alone smoking anything. Not for any high level idealist reason. I just figured "what's the point?"

I think I only watch Bill Maher when you post a clip, but he seems fairly sensible to me. The best truth comes from comedians. Thanks Mark. However, it also kind of illustrates that a stupid reaction can flare up, be ridiculed, justice done (I think he said the chick with no sense of humour got fired?) and settle down again. People like him and Ricky Gervais do fine in the world of over sensitive pussies. In fact what would they do for material? It would only be a problem if over sensitive pussies started killing people they were offended by. But they won't. Because they're oversensitive pussies. EDIT: I pondered something else over lunch.... namely that boomers like Bill Maher, when railing against the bleeding heart liberal youth, seem to conveniently forget that they were also bleeding heart liberal youth once, and then grew out of it to bring the human race to the brink of extinction (via rampant consumerism). Not only that, but the bleeding heart youth of today have been raised by Bill and his friends. So, they must not have been very good parents. Those who live in glass houses....

I pretty much agree with the sentiment of everything you said. And Surge provided plenty of examples of public opinion being manipulated and going off the rails. Top points to your junior debating team on this topic. I don't think I ever said that it didn't exist, or certainly didn't mean to. I merely assert that the whole internet court of public opinion thing probably isn't the Orwellian threat to free expression and will lead to a fabled "thought police." A couple of comments: 1. I don't think WN/GG is branded as the "cancel culture boogeyman" guy, anymore than I hope I'm not the "cancel culture is absolutely not an issue" guy. Besides, you all know better than to take anything I say seriously. Obviously, I don't get enough protein so my brain doesn't function properly. 2. "It's better to let 100 guilty men walk free than to see one innocent man be wrongly convicted." That sounds very noble, but is it really practical or even desirable? One must consider the common good. It's like the old thought experiment about the rail trolley heading towards 10 people, but you have the chance to divert it to a side track and only kill two people, i.e. you have to make the ethical call to intentionally sacrifice "the few" to save "the many." I still don't know where I stand on that one and so can't say if I agree 100 guilty men should walk free than just in case one of them is innocent. 3. I think I did see "Minority Report" before the Cruise Moratorium was enacted. It's the same idea as the "shall I go back in time to kill baby Hitler" scenario. Again, I don't know where I stand on that one. Although I think the point of the movie was that the future is not set and/or that such a power can be manipulated/abused. I don't know why it matters to Tom Cruise when Xenu will arrive to save us any day now. 4. I can partially agree that my "capacity to support life" comment is an overstatement. In truth, the planet will still continue to turn and life finds a way. But, in the meantime, a lot of people are in for a rough ride. I believe (backed by evidence) biodiversity loss is the single greatest threat we face. Not if you are a homo. Not if you can legally vacuum a baby out of your twat. Not Putin. Actually, maybe Putin but that's why keeping a functioning nuclear arsenal is essential. Mutually assured destruction. Ho hum. It is what it is. 5. It is weird that in days gone by it was much more obvious who the enemy was: your Reagan era - the Christian right, the corporations, the man. Now the far left are being just as dickish. 6. Pink Floyd said a lot of things right. Which is ironic in this conversation because Roger Waters has been in danger of being cancelled a few times. 7. The Judas Priest trial was way before the internet. It was very public and it didn't stop me listening to them. Perhaps all this illustrates is that there have always been abuses of the system..... although was it an "abuse?" The family believed that the band had intentionally influenced their son to kill himself. The evidence was assessed and it was found not to be the case - and set a good precedent. Luckily, precedents are never overturned (a topical badoomtch!). 8. No idea where this leaves us. I am a little enlightened and love getting others' perspectives. Job done. 9. Out of interest, what would your and Surge's solution be to this problem of cancel culture? It seems to me that the remedy could only be censorship, a reduction in access to information. A "thought police" if you will. 10. Badoomtch.

And that is my point. This crucifixion without evidence thing just does not seem to actually happen, even if in theory it could. It's like the obsession with thinking a welfare state/universal healthcare is somehow evil and "un-American" because, in theory, it can be abused. Sure, it can be abused but the proportion of abuse (compared to the benefits) is tiny - same as voter fraud. It's pretty unlikely that something you said twenty years ago is actually gonna come back and bite you. Mainly because no one cares since you are not a celebrity. If, on the off chance, you run for office in a few years and someone digs up your anti-Christian messages and love of vile and blackened music then you'll just shrug it off. "Yeah so what!" Not that they know who you are, because you post anonymously. The justice system may be riddled with injustice, but every person in prison went through a trial where evidence was presented. If the evidence was cooked up, that is an entirely different issue. No one is ever crucified without any evidence. That is my point. The internet is self-regulating in the sense that it is so full of shit that it is not reliable as a source of information anymore. I think most people with half a brain understand that and that is enough to keep the wolf from the door. So, you still have not cited a single case of someone having their livelihood destroyed that didn't deserve it - because there was evidence. I get that you can't be expected to research this to find an example.....so then don't worry about it. It is not an actual problem. I am a massive sceptic too and so my scepticism dictates that the bogeyman of cancel culture isn't an existential threat to humanity. The only things that matter in a universal sense (and hence the only major issues you should worry about or spend emotional energy on) are: 1. impending collapse of the Earth's ecosystems and its capacity to support life; and 2. metal. No more, no less. NP: Ocean Machine - Biomech (my CD is from before it got re-branded as a Devin Townsend solo album)

We're all part of the problem. I'm careful not to get too high up on that high horse, because it's a long way to fall. Every day is a compromise. I try to think about ethical/consumer issues just enough, but be on the right side of not being miserable. If you buy less (shit you don't need) in general then it makes for a lot less problems, if that is any help. While the whole "cancel culture" thing is a minefield, how many cases of "cancelled but innocent" have there actually been? Like in the #metoo movement, did not pretty much every guy accused of something terrible actually do it? How slippery is the slope really? Just wondering and not defending modern celebrity obsessed/social media driven culture - because I hate it and ridicule anyone who does. I'm just not so sure it is the threat you think it is. As you say, there are a vast number of profoundly stupid people out there, but so there have always been. These days you tend to get polar opposite courts of public opinion anyway, so you get cancelled in one court and will be a hero in another. So, can anyone think of one instance of a lynching in the court of public opinion based on an accusation with no evidence? Again, I am generally interested. A return to McCarthyism seems unlikely because for that the governing body has to control the narrative, and that does not really happen very easily now. I am sure a certain segment of your country considers the January 6 probe already a complete return to McCarthyism. But, what you do, just not investigate anything? Ultimately, ideally, you collect evidence and see where it lands. Hmm. Mankind sucks. But, so it has always been. No better, no worse.

Taking the time to "weed out the shitbags" would be a full time job and completely pointless in terms of the perpetual quest for happiness that we are all on*. That is in the same ballpark as a conspiracy nut that seeks out as many conspiracies as possible in order to make themselves irate and miserable. But, if you're minding your own business and come across a shitbag, it seems perfectly natural to want to avoid listening to it (music) or watching it (movie/TV) from that point on, or supporting that shitbag in any way. It might still be objectively good "art" but there is so much content out there you are unlikely to be missing out on anything life changing. Its just fucking music, or its just fucking TV. It is a poor analogy to consider whether you would investigate the views of a factory worker to decide if you want to use that company's products - but entirely logical to want to avoid using a company's products if that company as a whole turned out to be massively unethical (or some other standard you disagreed with). Like, they cut down half the Amazon to make toilet paper or something. If you respond "I don't care, if I like the product I will buy it no matter what; it is so soft on my ass" well, that is your choice. I think it is sad to care so little, but it is basically how the vast majority of consumers act. *to completely contradict myself, trying to be an ethical consumer is really fucking painful and not at all helpful in the quest for happiness. For example, researching where/how your prospective shoes are made will make you irate and miserable for a number of reasons, but I do it because I think people should know where the products they use come from. Righteousness trumps temporary misery. Just. Although, that ignorance is bliss, is not in doubt.

I am a bit the same, although I do *like* Starspawn and wouldn't have checked out Hidden History if I didn't, but it was a bit murky by comparison. I like the ebb and flow of Hidden History. It tells a good story. If that is "prog" fair enough. I just see it as a well constructed death metal album. Even Obituary (the grandaddies of meat and potatoes death metal) did sort of soundscape intros/interludes and that is why Cause of Death is by far their best album. Anyway you slice it, seeing Blood Incantation after two years of no gigs was very welcome. So far I don't even seem to have got covid from the excursion. My understanding is that the new EP is all wacky synths and stuff (haven't heard it as Century Media released it and they don't do bandcamp - which is why that label sucks). The buddy that I went to the BI gig with loves that shit, but it would be a shame if the next proper album leans more on ambience than death metal. That is when bands lose their way.

I don't put too much effort into my blanket prejudices. And luckily I saw pulp fiction and the awesome Passion of the Christ before I developed my ban. Anyhow I just saw Blood Incantation live and they ripped.

I imagine these things are decided by execs/managers who run some kind of algorithm as to optimum first single. Continuity or logic be damned. Kind of all academic anyway as I won't be listening to a 55 minute Megadeth album (that is without bonus tracks). I have certain unbendable rules: do not watch Tom Cruise or John Travolta movies (both Scientologists = retards) do not watch Mel Gibson movies (outspoken Catholic/douche = retard) do not listen to Megadeth albums longer than 40:44. do not listen to Type O Negative albums less than 58:31 Although, if the new Megadeth was on everyone's year end list as the best of their career (or even 4th best), I would bend the unbendable.

I've still never heard Dystopia, but have to say I listened to this new track twice. It was decent, although main vocal melody seemed ripped off Black Friday. Dave has such a distinctive guitar tone though. If you notice that "We'll Be Back" is the last track on the album, which means it should be the best/most epic. Yet, it is no Mechanix, My Last Words, Hook in Mouth, or Rust in Peace...Polaris. Holy shit, I just gave myself goose bumps even thinking about My Last Words.

It never rains, but it bleeding pours. Just got a ticket to sold out Blood Incantation show at London Underworld this Friday. You can put yo'self on the waiting list through the app where you buy tickets and, though I'd forgotten about it, I got a notification. It keeps the touts out of the loop which was a real problem in London and the UK generally. I remember trying to get a ticket to a Black Sabbath gig a few years ago and the main site showed sold out within a few minutes of going on sale and all the third party sites, including those owned by Ticketmaster, had them on sale immediately for double the price. It was a total scam.

Got tickets to: Gatecreeper + URNE 10 July Clutch + Green Lung 17 December I just wanted to get a gig in the diary. Something, anything. Even my wife has been to more gigs than me lately.