The Reverend

Went and saw Killswitch Engage & Rise Against in Richmond last night. The National is a great venue... nice rising slope of the floor toward the back so that everyone can have a pretty good view. This was my fourth time seeing KSE and I still think they pretty much begin and end the conversation on American metalcore. (there are plenty of other good bands... but for a casual fan of the genre who just needs a few albums? I'd recommend KSE all day) The goofy guitarist was as fun as ever on stage... these guys definitely know how to put on an engaging show (lots of running around, playful power metal stances/poses, interacting with the audience). The former and current vocalist doesn't have the singing power that Howard did, but he pulls off the songs they do from that era admirably. A couple photos I took on my phone: And of course this is the tshirt I bought (someones foot is blocking the symmetry between the robot on the shirt and the guitarist above, heh):

On the non-VK side of things; I'll check out anything released on Virgin Babylon these days... home to experimental weirdos like Vampillia, World's End Girlfriend, Mutyumu...

Basically. I also had a soft spot for Donut Records West. In addition to just liking Phobia and Lamiel a lot, they often had no rear CD case insert but rather full color band photos on the disc itself, which was neat.

This is one of the reasons I love VK; the vocalists who are willing to do four different weird things with their voices in a song (even when the *singing* is pretty bad). I still don't like Aicle. (even after revisiting them throughout reading this), but this kind of article is a great addition to the reviews. Well done!

Unhhhh that Emmuree song is so good. I'm glad my boys are back. (well done with the write-up @emmny) I also checked out NETWORKS based on @CAT5's recommendation and was digging it. Nice change of pace for when I want something instrumental but also want a slightly higher BPM than most post rock.

"Hello Ansia fans, we'd like to thank you for supporting us while we sucked... but now we're good, tell your friends!"

Tried a VKish (Robert Smith?) thing for Halloween. I see now why there aren't many fat 30-year-old white dudes in Nurse-Kei bands. (bonus point cause I wore it to work though right?)

[3] It's not like anyone seems to be doing anything that important... Cardia I guess.

Welcome, welcome! Good mix of old and new among your favorites (you'd be surprised how many heathens here don't listen to Luna Sea )

Maybe he should have heeded the warning on their own website.... Feel better soon Karma!

Spending this lazy Sunday morning working my way through this new book: Which, in addition to being a fun, interesting read, has had me bumpin' some Afrika Bambaataa all morning. (for the first time in about a decade...) Who, in addition to being a hiphop pioneer, had some pretty VK looks back in the day:

To! Ki! Me! Ki! Good song, amazing intro. Maybe my favorite in VK? Here's my last 10 songs that came up on shuffle this morning: 1. The 3rd Birthday - 性的サブリミナル 2. Intestine Baalism - Memory 3. Bjork - Come to me 4. CoЯe The Child - Lust 5. Fall Out Boy - Wish You Were Here 6. Metis Gretel - ...last scene, continued... 7. Syndrome - Usagi to Hitsuji 8. 「Story of Hope」 - Your Colors, Your Feelings 9. Deathgaze - Rip My Lips 10. Glassjaw - Daytona White Probably recency bias speaking, but I've been digging the hell out of that Story of Hope mini this year so it beats out some way more established bands today.

Awesome news! (Securitas Private Security is not a rock'n'roll patch for your jacket...)

As for the actual service... I'm in 'wait and see' mode. Gotta read/see what other people see before I take the plunge. I would definitely like the 'play videos in the background' feature on my phone as I constantly forget I can't do that and the music stops when I try to surf the 'net. If it's true they're charging $13 to buy it through the App store because Apple charges 30% commission I think that's pretty hilarious...

Avelcain's doll just released music and 'meow the jewels' got crowdfunded recently... I'd say look out for Kotetsu's debut single around March.

I like this PV. VK is so self-serious a lot of the time I enjoy when a band is willing to act goofy and, y'know, smile.

Seconding the recommendation of (the original!) Wicker Man so hard. I'd like to call myself a horror fan, but am not so enthused by 'blood and guts' so I hold this movie up as a prototypical *kind of scary movie I like*.

Boooo. I liked liv'ert despite the vocalists obvious limitations.

I can't decide if I think a Ruiza x MiA dueling guitar solo would be amazing or just devolve into 10 minutes of boring 'shredding'. (let Hide-zou sing!!)

I just assume this will be a concept album from the cat's POV. Gotta strike while the iron is hot.