The art of being freaky

Sometimes I get so disappointed with myself when I see something cool, think of documenting it with the camera but still just walk passed it an spend a week after regretting it. I've been better, I went out to document the foggy morning and then the very white morning in Sandviken. But there are SO MANY MORE OCCASIONS I should have done the same.

Last Saturday for example. There was this Gipsy Jazz Swing Orchestra playing some hysteric Django Reiherdt alike music. No guitars though but accordian, some stringinstrument I don't know the name on and a contrabass. Three tiny unwashed boggers but damn they could play...

The reason we were down town was to get some input to a future demo/record cover, checking out the cenmetary here to find some cool statues or figures. Nothing really cool though more than a really scary statue of a praying kid. We'll see what we can do about that one.

Then it was time for a Cult Of The Fox rehearsal in Malmö. We drove down and Peter stayed. I took the train back home and arrived just before midnight. Jumping off the bus I met an amazing sight, it was a little misty but the moon was almost full and with the mist, street lights and everything it was a really fascinating act in the sky. Of course I should have used a camera support but I brought that to Malmö adn wasn't really up for carrying it on the train... So the focus could have been better but I think they turned out pretty cool anyway... I don't think the rest of the people getting of at the same bus stop saw the beauty in it all though. All went straight over to the other side of the road walking significantly faster than before I decided I jsut HAD to take some pictures of the moon.

Cheers

E

NP: While Heaven Wept - Vast Oceans Lachrymose

Dark, sleek & Sexy

So, the parts for my Jackson guitar is ordered, shipment goes out every Thursday & Friday it said on the confirmation mail so I guess I need to wait a little to receive them. Co-ordinated with my guitar Guru Jögge who also needed the stringhooks for his guitars. It's good that I can help him for once and not the other way around as it is all the time.

But then he linked to this one on his Facebook page... sayin he had one in the store but he also that he's not a Floyed player... I am... And it sure as hell is a beauty!


Mockingbird Pro XDark, sleek and sexy, this Mockingbird will drop jaws wherever you take it. A Shadow complexion contrasts with a gold Floyd Rose Original Series tremolo and Grover Super Rotomatic tuners. EMG 81 (bridge) and 60 (neck) pickups provide the voice while a 24 5/8 inch scale and 24 jumbo frets on any ebony fingerboard provide the touch.
Construction: Neck Through
Body Wood: Mahogany
Top Style: Deep Arched
Body Binding: Aged Cream
Headstock Style: 3-to-a-Side Traditional
Headstock Color: Black
Headstock Binding: Aged Cream
Tuners: Grover Super Rotomatics
Neck Wood: Mahogany
Neck Binding: Aged Cream
Fretboard: Ebony
Frets: 24 jumbo Scale: 24 5/8
Bridge Type: Floyd Rose ® Original Series Tremolo
Pickups: EMG 81 Bridge / 60 Neck
Controls: 2 volume, 2 tone, 1 three way toggle
Hardware: Gold

My very first Guitar was a BC Rich Mockingbird, a 1984 Japanese NJ Series, creamy white. I've always loved the Mockingbird model but it's a little too big for me, keep falling off my shoulders on stage... The first one I still have and it's really ok still! Perhaps it should need a pickup that gives a little less feedback though.
The only thing I hasitate a little about with this Black Beauty is the Active EMG's... Not really used to active picups... But it might work fine with the Marshall, the Folkesson modified Marshall!

The hardest thing is that it actually available to a very decent price too! ARRGH! There's always need for another guitar, right?

Cheers
E

NP: Meliah Rage - Kill To Survive

Nonsensible ravings

It felt like the week would never end. Really early mornings all week, extreme Friday since I was going to Kista for work. The Taxi picked me up at 05:15 already and as the lady at the taxi said "no lie in for you on Friday then"... No Shit! But in one way it has been a creative week, the downside with that is that find even more things to do.

Today we're going on a shopping spree. I need to buy a Lap Top to be able to work properly with the music. The recording for the Cult Of The Fox record will start soon and I have to learn the rest of the songs and set my touch on them! Also, we will start to record the second Void Moon demo soon too! Also, I need a portable computer for the summer for all Festivals to be able to load the pics from the camera and start working on the reports on the way home already.
I think it will be this one;



When the commercial about a new sports channel appeared during the fall I couldn't care less actually. But then I realized they show Wrestling on that one. That's really nice! So together with the Friday dinner (Feta cheese, air dried ham and spinache pie) we watched Wrestling! Extreme overviolence after a hard week is the SHIT!



I thought the year started off a bit dry when it comes to concerts. Looking through the schedule it will be busy weeks ahead! That's cool!

First up is Hands Of Orlac and Abrakadrabra in Växjö. Hands Of Orlac plaied at the Malta Doom and they were really cool, will be great to see them again!

Then Metal Merchants Festival in Olso! First we found a VERY nice deal at SAS Radison hotel... It was just 100NOK more expensive / person than the hostle we had last time and now including breakfast too! NICE! Then, the most important. Metal Merchants is one of the nicest Festivals, absolutely in class with KIT, HOA and so on.

And then we've planned to go to Bullet's "Highway Pirates" releaseparty. That can be a blast!

And the Concerts and Festivals keep popping in. That's good because if I should manage the workload during the spring I need a lot of fun things to look forward too!

Cheers
E

NP: Overdrive - Angelmaker

Hell Or High Water

So, 2011 started off really sad as this site appeared on Y&T's homepage on January 7th

And then a message from Dave;

It is with profound sadness and disbelief that I tell you that my best buddy for 37 years passed away this morning, January 7, 2011 at 1am at Stanford Hospital. Bravely and steadfastly battling the horrible spectacle of lung cancer, at the end he was surrounded by his family members, and the Y&T family up until his final breath.

All the beautiful things that I could say about my buddy Phil could never be summed up in a short sentence or two, and I promise that I will be back to say so much more about how I feel about him and his talents in due time. But for now, at 3am, after just having returned home from his passing, let me at least put this out there.

Phil Kennemore was not only a sweet and passionate man with his life, friends and family, but as an artist, he also had that rare ability to say what was on his mind with the most eloquent, clever, and to-the-point lyrics, yet could turn it on it's head in a second with some other viewpoint on reality and nail the point dead center. He was able to do what very few can - say the things that others have been thinking, but could never quite seem to put into words. He has always had a keen knack for doing that.

As a musician, with those huge fingers, his bass playing was always loud, strong, and deep, filling the largest or smallest of stages equally.

He had an amazingly strong life force that has influenced everyone who ever had the opportunity to be called a friend of his. I am forever grateful for our lifelong friendship, that was always in place throughout the worst and best of times. I will miss his sense of humor, his amazing wit, but most of all I will always miss not seeing him to my left on the stages I will play from this moment forward.

Yes, he was one of the class guys on this planet, and in this business, and I will always do what I can to spread the legacy of Phil Kennemore across the globe on every stage that I land on.

You know how much I love you Phil, and you knew how much your fans and fellow musicians loved and respected you. There was nothing left unsaid. You had a rich and wonderful life and I can only tell you that I was happy to have been alongside you every step of the glorious way.

Cheers to you, Phil.

Your friend forever,
-Dave

Black Tiger was one of the first LP's I ever bought, I remember being on vacation with my parents and I found a record store on some odd street in Halmstad in 1986 or maybe -87. I've seen the Y&T albums a couple time prior to this but never actually bought one, until now. Since then they've been one of my favorite bands. The times I've gotten to see them, at SwedenRock Festival, Bang Your Head, Rock Hard and so on has always been SUPER. But the best memories are the truly amazing ones at Rockland in Sala... 2 days, 3 hours/day and not boring for a second.

Cheers to you Phil! R.I.P

//E

NP: Y&T - Black Tiger

The list of 2010

Well, it's a tradition to list the albums and events and so on that's been going on throughout the year. 2010 will forever be remembered as the year the Metal World lost its greatest vocalists of all time. I never thought Ronnie would be the first to go. Apart from Dio it's been a really black year with the loss of Peter Steele, Paul Grey, Steve Lee, Armando Acosta... R.I.P all of you!

But it sure has been a good record year! There has been a lot of good albums, perhaps not that many real surprises, I mean, you can always count on some bands to release a good album. So yes, there has been a lot of good ones but not as many SUPER albums as it normally is.

My list of 2010;

1. ACCEPT - Blood Of The Nations

The mighty Accept is back and damn they are BACK! A phenomenal album which sounds like the old Accept both when it comes to song structures, hit-melodies and the sound. Above that Andy has worked miracles and make it all sound modern. No fill-outs, just damn good metal.

Favorite track: Kill The Pain

2. OVERKILL - Ironbound

Overkill is always good but not THIS good. A real smack in the face, great songs and it still holds, it's still as good now as I thought it was when it was released. Just like Accept it sounds Old School with a modern touch, I like that!

Favorite track: Bring Me The Night

3. JON OLIVA'S PAIN - Festival

I think this is another great album from Jon and co. Straight through stronger than Global Warning and some new really cool elements and great songs. Even if the album is around an hour long it felt short and that's a good grade.

Favorite track: Death Rides A Black Horse

4. IRON MAIDEN - The Final Frontier

Iron Maiden always releases good albums but I admit I was a bit skeptic towards the Eldorado track on the first few spins but then, when I got the full album it all fell into place. It is perhaps a little different compared to what Maiden normally sounds like, some tracks sounds more like Bruce solo but I really love that dark sound.

Favorite track: Mother Of Mercy

5. TANK - War Machine

Not the real Tank, bla bla bla. No matter what, this is an amazing record. The songs sounds like Tank but of course there are miles and miles between Algy and Doogie. Sure, it can be questioned if they should continue as Tank but if this is the result they have my vote.

Favorite track: Phoenix Rising

6. GRAND MAGUS - Hammer Of The North

I really thought this should be the same smack in the face as Iron Will, especially when listening to I, The Jury as the first sample from the album. To start with I thought this felt laid back and even lazy compared to its predecessor but the more I listened the more it grew and of course it's a great album.

Favorite track: Ravens Guide Our Way

7. ROSS THE BOSS - Hailstorm

I had no hopes for this one what so ever. New Metal Leader is ok but not more. This is a Metal album everyone wish Manowar will release these days. Great Metal songs and absolutely more unique than the last one.

Favorite track: Among The Ruins

8. NEVERMORE - The Obsidian Conspiracy

After 5 years the waiting was finally over and boy was I disappointed. The production wasn't as good as it used to be and the riffs and structures felt re-used and copied from old albums. Still, even if this isn't the high point of Nevermore it's a great album, some really great melodies and I like Warrels lower voice.

Favorite track: Emptiness Unobstructed

9. PROCESSION - Destroyers Of The Faith

It came like a flash from a clear sky. Perhaps not that unique neither in sound or style but a damn good Doom album. Felipe is an extraordinary vocalist and that's needed in this genre.

Favorite track: Destroyers Of The Faith

10. MOTÖRHEAD - The Wörld Is Yours
After a small down period a few albums ago Motörhead came back and realsed great albums again. This is ordinary for Motörhead, maybe not their strongest songs but it feels more like the old Motörhead again.

Favorite track: Get Back In Line

And the ones that almost made it (alphabetically);
BLAZE - Promise And Terror

EXCITER - Death Machine

FLOTSAM AND JETSAM - The Cold

FORBIDDEN - Omega Wave

GHOST - Opus Eponymous

HELSTAR - Glory Of Chaos

SLOUGH FEG - The Animal Spirits

UNLEASHED - As Yggdrasil Trembles

WATAIN - Lawless Darkness

Y&T - Facemelter

And the ones I should have listened more to that could have made it into the list with a little more time;

ANNIHILATOR - Same

BLIND GUARDIAN - At The Edge Of Time

EREB ALTOR - The End

GRAVE DIGGER - The Clans Will Rise Again

HALFORD - Made Of Metal

KAMELOT - Poetry For The Poisoned

MASTERPLAN - Time To Be King

NOMAD SON - The Eternal Return

PHARAO - Road To Nowhere

RATT - Infestation

And the greatest disappointments of the year;

DARK TRANQUILLITY - We Are The Void (not really a bad album but far from the smack in the face Fiction was)

GAMMA RAY - To The Metal (now even I start to think he's been stealing too much)

THERION - Sitra Ahra (perhaps not so bad either but extremely far from the greatness of Gothic Kabbalah)

And then, Peter's list of 2010;

1. IRON MAIDEN - The Final Frontier

2. OVERKILL- Ironbound

3. JON OLIVA'S PAIN - Festival

4. ACCEPT - Blood Of The Nations

5. EXCITER - Death Machine

6. TANK- War Machine

7. VIRGIN STEELE - The Black Light Of Bacchanalia

8. GRAVE DIGGER - The Clans Will Rise Again

9. HALFORD - Made Of Metal

10. PROCESSION - Destroyers Of The Faith

Not really that far away from mine!

Of course there's been some really good concerts as well. It was hard to pick the best ones because these 5 were really amazing.

ACCEPT - Grammercy Theater, NYC, USA (picture from Debaser)

CANDLEMASS - 25th Anniversary Concert, Debaser Medis, Stockholm, Sweden

EXCITER - Metropole Ruhr Metal Fest, Oberhausen, Germany

IRON MAIDEN - Sonisphere Festival, Stockholm, Sweden

JON OLIVA'S PAIN - Bang Your Head Festival, Balingen, Germany

After the summary I realize I haven't had time to listen to as much music as I want to since I easily could list 10 records that I have that I need to listen more to. I also realized I've bought a lot of White Metal this year... Messiah, Veni Domine, Leviticus, Barren Cross... I'm actually a bit surprised over that too, but hey, as long as the music is good I don't care!

Cheers

E

NP: Messiah - Final Warning

DAMN!!!

I decided it was time to use Mr Jackson for the next Cult Of The Fox rehearsal but yesterday when Peter and me was going to look at some new stuff and go through songs I haven't learned yet I got problems with the guitar. The D-strings fine tuning was feeling very loose and didn't respond at all. The string was out of tune as well and that's not what it uses to be with this guitar. It's normally VERY steady.


I took a look at the bridge and tuning knob and one of the stops was pointing in a slight different direction than the others. A little touch and then with a "pioing" sound the string was loose and Peter got the rest of the string-lock on him on the other side of the room...

So now I guess I will learn exactly how a Kahler Tremolo is working. The next bad thing is that their's no Swedish retailer for this brand. So I guess I need to import from the US... Luckily I have my Guitar Guru Jögge (he's the guitarist/vocalist of Death Metal band Dead Awaken)who I can ask for anything when it comes to guitars. With some luck he do have spareparts at home for this already, else we'll work something out. Perhaps at least I can get the name of the part I need from him so I don't have to send these pictures to Kahler and ask what I'm supposed to get.

I even asked Jögge if he had some cool new guitar for me, even if I've said I DON'T NEED another guitar just before Christmas.... (who am I kidding? There's always room and need for one more guitar) but he was on vacation and not back in a few days and then the rehearsal won't be fixed anyway so I guess I can wait and use some of my other guitars.

The next bad thing is that I only have my Schecter Elite-007 in Malmö... It's a good guitar, no doubt about that but I haven't played it much lately and the 7th string is sort of in the way and it has an active EMG picup. It's ok with the Marshall but it's way too hard to control with the Peavey... So we'll see how the rehearsal tomorrow will go. It will sound A LOT that's for sure, good is another question.

Well, time to hit town and see if I'll get lucky!!! (find the part for Mr Jackson that is)

Cheers

E

NP: Procession - Destroyers Of The Faith