Wherever I may Roam

So, staycation has been very good. It's been nice to be home taking care of things pending for too long. The cats thought I was very annoying though running around the house like crazy cleaning up. And of course playing music all day long. Sleepy cats in the middle of the day and me messing around with laundry, dishes and all stuff like that.

I could easily have taken another week though, not done with the laundry (damn we have many Metal-Shirts) nor the cleaning since the week at home was interrupted with concerts.
Saxon with Phil and Mikkey in Ljungbyhed at the Lemmy 500 race. Very cool event.

Then I was on and off about seeing Kip Winger in Copenhagen Tuesday. Mainly since we were seeing Joe Lynn Turner the day after. Bur we ended up going to both and I'm really happy we did. Kip was fantastic, both me and Peter was completely floored by his performance. Joe Lynn Turner was really good too but the setlist left more to wish for. But from a performance perspective it was great too.

I also decided I was going to take a walk in the mornings, so atleast the days it wasn't raining I was out for about an hour. (yes, 3 of 5 days I could get out + today) It felt good to get out and even better afterwards. It builds energy which is needed to motivate the cleaning activities.

And, I finally got time to do the apple-sauce. Home-apples and the old house-assistant from Electrolux I got from my parents. Mid 70's it should be from if remember right. It worked fine and it all turned out great. Also, the apples were so sweet by themselves I almost didn't have to add sugar. Recommended was 2-4hg per liter sauce but after less than 1hg it was enough.

Well, back to Discogs now and dig for more Winger and Joe Lynn Turner records. Was about to order from Cleopatra Record directly but $70 postage for a $35 order is crazy! I'll check with my personal shopper first. Patrik will most likely sort it out the best way possible.

Cheers
E

Bastards with a Masterplan

Well... There was no brilliant Masterplan, just a paint-job on one of the walls in the livingroom. We talked about it a while ago and it gavel me a break in the photo-editing.
To paint wasn't a big deal, took an hour or so but to cover up the things that shouldn't be painted was no piece of cake with two curious cats "helping" with tape and paper.

But it turned out really well and it looks good with the furnitures back in place. The dumb thing is that the cats won't leave the display shelves alone, the flash Motörhead statue has been pushed to the floor once already. Need to glue it to the shelf I guess...

And yes, while editing photos I've been listening to the new VICIOUS RUMORS album. Got it for review and what a Monster of a record it is! Can't wait to get to hear the songs live! November come soon...

Cheers
E

Operation Mindcrime

Even if it's nice to visit mom it's still really good to get back home to Peter and the Cats after a few days up north. Ok, Peter's actually away rehearsing with Goatess this weekend so me and the cats are having a party by ourselves in the Void Mansion. I miss him of course but it's good to get some time at home and not having to be social and just to clear out the Metal Kaoz stuff so I won't build another back-log. I still have a few things to complete but the progress is good.

It's always fun to do it also, and with the batch of records I have for review right now it's all just fun. And I actually didn't think so but I must say I really enjoyed the Soulfly, King Parrot & Incite gig in the beginning of the week. Picture editing for that tonight.

Right now I have Mightiest, Salem, Savage Master, The Temple, Anthrax, Ereb Altor and Mob Rules to dig into. It's quite many but the hardest is actually to sort out which one to listen to next. All really appeal to me so it's a pleasurable problem I have... I think Salem is the one that struck the hardest though.

But, it seems like it will be a very good record year this year too. Sarasin and Sleepy Hollow struck very hard when I got them, and now Salem. Then Metal Church, Martyr...
I've pre-ordered both in some nice bundles and hopefully they'll show up the coming weeks. I didn't take the pack from Rat Pak Records where Mike Howe is calling but the second biggest with an additional T-shirt for Peter and one Mike Howe shirt for me.

I'm also checking if it will be possible to see them at one or so of the dates in May. Z7 in Switzerland is very tempting since Riot V is on the bill there as well. Not the best day though since it's a mid-week show.

Then the Martyr pack. I really wish I could have gone to the release party but I guess I need to realize I can't do everything I want. There's just not enough time for it.

I also ordered the deluxe version of the Baltimoore collection. I have far to few of the releases but I do like the ones I have and on the rare occasion I've actually seen them or Björn Solo live it's been absolutely amazing. What a voice, what a feeling.

And then of course the Saxon 9-LP box. That one will be awesome. I think it's the fattest LP box I have... Perhaps Iron Maiden "First 10 Years" with 10 2x12"'s is bigger. But it sure is cool! 

So I for sure have a lot of incoming goodies now the last two weeks of march or so. 

And there's more to come... I've already mentioned Salem and to stay in the same genre I have to say I'm looking forward to the new Cloven Hoof. 

 

 And then of course Assassins Blade (ok ok, yes I've had access to this one for some time for obvious reasons but it's still cool when it's done and it's an actual product)

So it looks like the goodies will keep coming. 
Also when we're talking about concerts it will be a good year. Upcoming is Exodus, Symphony X, one more Dirkschneider / Anvil show, Overkill, Spiritual Beggars and some more. 
I bought a ticket for the Queensryche Stockholm gig today. I'm quite sure that Klubben will be sold out so even if I don't know I can make it I would like to have the opportunity at least.

I was about to get tickets for the gig at Amager Bio in Copenhagen as well but then I got a hint from a friend another damn cool gig the same day so I really need to decide what to do... We'll see what happens. One thing's sure, it will be a good concert year. It has already started off very strong with Michael Schenker's Temple of Rock, Manowar, Dirkschneider and Up The Hammers.

Another train ride to come to an end very soon!

Cheers
E

NP: Salem - Dark Days

 
 

Capture the Magic

So, back home again after an amazing weekend in Fredericia and Metal Magic Festival. Peter though took the car and went to Uddevalla to pick up the Exciter Merch (yes, official T-shirts is on the way) and the cover artwork for the coming Void Moon album. I feel a little egoistic for going home instead of going with him but it has been great to stay in the house all alone this afternoon. Have had some time to dig into the vaults of photos as well as checking the ones from MMF...

The Festival started with Maltese Falcon for us, first band we saw. They were great, sounded awesome really but the set... Mainly Black Sabbath and Deep Purple covers. Why? They have enough material of their own, so why play covers? A bit disappointing I think even if I couldn't complain about the music... Still not what I wanted to hear. 
Candlemass kicked ass as always. I do miss Leif of course but they're still great to see and Pär is doing an awesome job with the bass.
Outrage was also very good, they're fun to watch and it was funny to see people walking around with a red dot on their foreheads after the show. The front row got the blessing (or the curse) with the red blood or whatever it was.
Grim Reaper followed and of course, they rocked too. They got a really nice crowd also which hasn't been the case for all Classic Heavy Metal bands at MMF. 
Sigh was the last band we saw of the Friday billing, damn cool and I regret a bit that I didn't listen to them prior to the festival, then it would have been even better.
Saturday was a tough day as we realized it would start early and end late. But it was defenitely worth it to drag out of bed and go and see Wasted who opened the last day. So much fun to watch, so great energy. 
Terminus sounded amazing as always! The best thing this time was that they rocked harder than last time I saw them. 
Atlantean Kodex is always good but it's strange to see them with a rather sparse crowd since the response they got at KIT and UTH was really crazy. But it was good anyway.
The festival ended with Girldschool. The atmosphere was great, people were charged to see them and for sure that helped. But these ladies know how to rock and they still perform with a lot of energy and dedication. So a really fantastic ending of a great weekend...

 

MALTESE FALCON

 

 

CANDLEMASS

 

GRIM REAPER

 

WASTED

 

TERMINUS

GIRLSCHOOL 

Then I've started to go through some of my B&W negatives, I can scan them but it don't turn out very good. Some pics look ok but in most cases they come out rather milky after the scan. Had some troubles finding software that could handle it since the regular windows scan didn't manage it at all. But I think I need more practice and learn the program a bit before I give up... I would like to set up a dark-room somewhere but I doubt I would use it very much. We'll see, perhaps a project for the future. 

Anyway, the first try was with the Vicious Rumors film from Dynamo Warm-up 1994... Never seen pictures since they only got to the negative album... Quality is not so good but at least it's a bit fun!

So I guess I have an hour or tow more to kill before Peter comes home after his extra roadtrip today! What to do, what to do?

Cheers
E

NP: WASTED - Halloween...The Night of

 

 

Raking the Lawn

Ok... This I'm going to feel tomorrow. Didn't think I would be that worn out by cleaning the winter away from the garden.  But it sure takes a lot of energy. Felt good though but my arms feels like spaghetti now.
It's just the big hedge left for tomorrow and the last part of the driveway. Hopefully the neigbours cat will hang around Tomorrow to watch also. It's nice to have her hanging around. And a good deal for a break also, to cuddle a little with the cat!

But it's great that there's nice weather and good to be outside, finally!
Tonight it's time for BBQ again so I stopped by Gunnaröds yesterday to pick up some eco Meat.

And next weekend it's time for Keep It True. Really looking forward to that!

Cheers
E

Reconstruction

Or it actually feels like deconstruction at the moment! The whole house is shaking as they tear the roof off the house! Not a very calm environment to be in during the days now I can say...
But the progress has been good. In 2,5 days they've taken the tiles down completely and changed the foundation and paper on halv the house! Hopefully the weather will remain as it is now for a few more days so they can complete the work within set time.
It's a good company we've hired but it still is scary to let people into the house. I never felt like this getting things fixed in my flat so it's a bit strange with the nerves now.

It's been nice to be home for a few days extra though. Have been catching up with METAL KAOZ things as well as VOID MOON stuff! Especially picture editing was rewarding since I found some very good features in Photoshop which made the pics look really good.  Of course ACCEPT are easy targets so that sure helgen the inspiration too!

Check the report out on METAL KAOZ!

Cheers
E

Recordshoppers Anonymous #19

This time it was the right bottle at least! Last weekend when I was going to pick up the Wolf Absinthe (with 66,6% alcohol of course) it didn't look right at all and when checked the shop had sent the wrong one. Today it was the right one...

I also got some Savatage and Vicious Rumors Japanese prints for the collection! New versions it is also so that is cool! But not as cool as the batch of cassettes, polish prints for Sava. VR's Cyberchrist I've never seen on cassett earlier so this is of course very cool! I really should document the collections since both are getting quite big now... We'll see when I find the time though!

Yesterday it was Accept in Copenhagen, today it is a lazy day! Maybe I can find some energy to record some also. Would have been great to finish "Out of the Well"... Tomorrow it's rehearsal time again and a second Accept concerts! Full on right now!

Cheers
E

Recordshoppers Anonymous #14

Hey, they promised some sun and heat for next week... Looking at the weather forecast for next week the temperature will just barely reach over 0 and THAT is not spring weather. I need some sun and heat now! Sure, it was sunny today but still a few degrees below 0.
My cold has been bugging me since I got back from Dallas, waking up in the mornings with a soar throat and now when that finally has given up an endelss flood of snot harasses me. Very annoying, I don't want to be ill. Or really, if I could get ill for real, then it might go away at least.

Going home Friday I met up with Peter in Hässleholm, he'd been to the postoffice to collect the new Void Moon shirts. They turne out really nice. They're also uploaded in the Void Moon web-shop if someone wants to spend their money!!! Or a mail can also be sent to contact@void-moon.com We still have some CD's for sale as well. Peter talked a little about bundling the Shirt with the CD in some way but we'll see how that turns out. The shirts are €10, the CD's €12 plus postage...

Then Saturday we started off with a Void Moon rehearsal in the Void Mansion Rehearseroom/Studio. The aim was to play a little and start go through some new material. The session turned out really nice and the rehearseroom is great! Still need some small fixes to numb the sound a bit since the walls are concrete but it still is better than any rehearseroom I've ever had. Also, it's great to know that noone touches my stuff. Even if you share with bands you trust there's always something borrowed and not put back. Still need to have the Peavey fixed though, it didn't survive Dock's Rock's this spring... Perhaps when the travel allowance arrives I can hand it in for repair. Meanwhile the Valvestate Combo works but the sound is always better with a Amp Head and Speaker Cabinet.

My Transplanted Marshall (check out Tommy Folkesson, website only in Swedish though it seems like) sounds AWESOME though. I was a bit hesitant at first since it was a lot of Money to spend to get it fixed. But what good is a non-working Marshall doing in the rehearseroom? 4-channel Mark V it is now!

Then, when arriving from USA, I had a package waiting for me with some really nice music in it. Sure, it was nice to come back to Peter, the Cat and the Void Mansion but not the Swedish winter. But at least this package made everything a little brighter.

I think this was my second order from Underground Power. A quite small dealer but the service is awesome. Fast and smooth transactions and very reasonable prices, even for postage to Sweden. So apart from the vinyls I got Briar Rose, Icarus Witch and Gothing Knights. All of them really good but I think Icarus Witch has lost a bit of their uniqueness with the change of singer. It still sounds very good of course but it isn't anything really special anymore.

 

Of course, a few packages from other places had arrived as well so I sure have a lot of new things to listen to now.

But it didn't stop there, Peter picked up the package in the beginning of last week so I had a pile of records waiting for me at the kitchen table when I got home. Manilla Road, Helloween, Screamer, Persian Risk, Tyranex, Savage and Sentinel Beast. The Quartz CD was for Peter and the Attic CD... Well, still mine but I'm actually disappointed with it.  

In the same package the Blind Guardian box "A Travellers Guide to Space and Time" was stuffed in between the vinyls. Massive piece of work I must say. 15 CD's, Art Print, massive booklet and a guitar pick. Perhaps not all that necessary since I have most of it already but there are some really cool demos and such included as well. And it will look great together with the rest on the shelf.



 

So this weekend it has been a bit of war over the stereo! Peter is still in his Styx period but also has he been reading the Dee Snider biography so it has been a lot of Twisted Sister, Desperado, Widowmaker and such as well. And then me trying to get one of the new ones on in between the Dee Snider and Styx stuff! So it sure has been a weekend in the sign of music. Both playing, writing and listening a whole lot to new and old stuff. And all this to go with a few beers and great company, it really is awesome. Saturday was also Peter's birthday so after the rehearsal it all turned into a party. Or, some birthday dinner with Chicken Fajitas and Salsa from Hell. Habanero's are VERY spicy!!! But it tasted ok anyway and it was a very nice evening. Just unfortunate the weekend ended way to fast (as always).

 

Cheers

E

 

NP: GILLAN - Magic

Axe to Grind

Sure, it is a nice today. The sun even manages to show itself on occasion but of course, that mean it is freezing outside. They promised though it should be up until +10 C next week. I just hope this is true. My hair can't take this... Oh, well, I can't stand my hair this time of the year since it get so damn static, I get electric shocks as soon as I touch anything, especially the cat. Poor guy!

But spring is coming and there are a lot of things to look forward to. The Festivals of course but also a lot of good records, have Saxon, Circle II Circle, Attacker, Persian Risk, Savage, Air Raid, Screamer, Witchgrave coming in during the next few weeks. And the list seem endless from time to time.

One I especially look forward to though is this one;

Vicious Rumors "Electric Punishment" is released through SPV at the end of April. That will be really cool.
In the same link there were an extensive list of tourdates as well so I guess I need to start planning.

Then of course, this tour is also very tempting;

Savatage's "Edge of Thorns" is an amazing album and Zak Stevens is a fantastic singer so this would be awesome to see. On the other hand, I really want them to play a lot of Circle II Circle material too so I really hope this will be an extensive show.
Then of course, both Nightmare and Eternal Flight are really cool so the line-up is a killer for sure.

Looking at the list of dates, both tours seem to hit Budapest on May 20 which if course is a little annoying, 2 days in a row and that would have been a given trip! So I really hope these days are not 100% confirmed yet and it could work out with a weekend in Hungary at the end of May. I've never been there, not Peter either so it would be cool to go there for a long weekend and combine that with some cool gigs also.

This weekend we've planned a songwriting session with Void Moon. There are a lot of new ideas and it will be really cool to hang out in the Void Mansion Rehearseroom/Studio and just jam on new ideas and riffs!
Also, we will pick up the brand new Void Moon T-shirts today! They looked very cool when the design was checked at least so I think these ones will turn out great! Stay tuned, I suppose there will be pictures posted during the weekend. 

And then of course, it's Peter's birthday also so we'll have an after rehearsal birthday party/dinner. So now I get another chance to arrange a candlelight supper with the fine China! *s* Naah, I think we settled on Chicken/Veg Fajitas actually... Convenient and easy to make and a lot can be prepared in advance.

Cheers
E

NP: VICIOUS RUMORS - Razorback Killers