Coil

Time for my second last post of the year, including updates on my projects, life, Christmas... You catch my drift. Firstly I want to thank everyone for the warm response I've gotten for my lists. I'm 100% sure I'll do it again next year, and I'm excited not only because of that but the fact that many great releases are about to come out in 2012, including new albums from P.O.D., Project 86, possibly Deftones, earthtone9 and HURT, one from Storm Corrosion (a collaboration between Mikael Åkerfeldt from Opeth and Steven Wilson) and much more. Until then, I will try to give the most complex of albums that I covered in my list the chance they deserve, as well as embrace the music I got for Christmas.

What did I get for Christmas, then? Well, most of them were albums I really love and just had to get a physical copy of with the help of my parents and friends. These include the first four Korn albums Korn, Life Is Peachy, Follow The Leader and Issues, as well as their 6th album, Take A Look In The Mirror. Since I already had Untouchables and See You On The Other Side, this is how my Korn collection now looks like. Too bad LIP, FTL and Issues don't have any booklets because of the Original Album Classics version that was basically a three-for-the-price-of-one deal. Not complaining though!

I was lucky enough to find a copy of Deftones by Deftones earlier this fall, and bought it without hesitation together with Mastodon's Crack The Skye. After Christmas, I'm only missing Diamond Eyes out of all official Deftones studio albums, thanks to finding Adrenaline and Around The Fur inside the wrapping papers. My hunt for the one and only CD by my favorite band that I do not own yet shall continue next year...

I also got The Open Door by Evanescence, which is an album I totally fell in love with just last night, finally, by the way. This album I paid for on my own, among with Watershed by Opeth. Having received the deluxe edition of their self-titled album as a birthday gift earlier, I now have all of Ev's studio albums on CD. The Fallen one is still technically rogue, since it's from Russia... But regardless, I'm proud!

Finally, my first Opeth albums. Blackwater Park I've had on my computer since 2009, but just this year I really got into it, and it gained the revelation-like status it has today. It is currently, and hopefully for a long time, one of my favorite albums of all-time. Watershed, on the other hand, is an album I barely knew anything of prior to getting it, but I really wanted to have an album like that in the midst of all the oh-so-familiar ones (even if I did have a fresh new look on some of them like TOD). Opeth is a band I knew I could trust in terms of a quality release even if I had only heard the tracks Porcelain Heart and Coil on YouTube previously. Needless to say, the album has not left my player since I gave the CD its first spin at 2 AM on Sunday morning, and I love it already.

Other than that: lots of chocolate. LOTS. And a PDF and a book, both of which I'm forever grateful for.

My physical health is not all that great at the moment despite everything else going well. My left leg has been hurting for days now, and we suspect that it's a form of sciatica. I really don't want to go to the doctor, though, so nothing is certain. The pain is, thankfully, getting easier to cope with - I'm just honestly really annoyed that I can't go on any walks. Not that there's any snow or cold around here, anyway... I hate global warming so much, and am comteplating to move my political home from the Social Democrats to the Green League more and more.

As for the projects, I only have good news. Reflections & Realizations is oh-so-close to being done writing-wise since I finished Wallow In Life earlier this month and have been reworking Sip Of October the past few days. Recording has not been very successful, however my fourth sixth of the school year is rather easy time-wise, so I should have plenty of chances to catch up on my schedule and plans. All in all I have not been as active creatively these past few weeks than I was still a month ago or so, but I'm not worried at all because the new stuff is still great. Actually I prefer not having a ton of riffs to weigh and work on, not to mention all the lines that pop into my head and disappear in a blink of an eye unless I write them down. I'm telling all of you out there who are dreaming of becoming an artist... It's a gift and a curse once you get into it.

Before the big news, I feel that it's also important to share that the Christmas song I made for school purposes was never used. Most likely in February I will be performing something I really love, at least, because our class is practicing Bring Me To Life by Evanescence. There's also a slight chance that the first-ever Wicked Breath appearance will happen then, but I'd rather not think or talk about that too much, seeing how it's gotten cancelled again and again and my band line-up is still shaky.

SO, anyone remember the project I was planning about half a year ago, with a female vocalist, and a nu metal-ish sound? The one that was forever untitled and never went anywhere? Well, the surprise is that I've re-activated the whole thing. I invited a friend of mine to play guitar a little over a month ago and he said yes, and we're searching for a vocalist as we speak - once again a girl, although we might end up going with a male one if no female is interested. The style is shaping up to be more Drudkh- and Agalloch-esque than anything else, with long track lengths, epic moods and atmospheric metal influences. Since I managed to find a way to record Guitar Pro files into MP3 (the quality is still not fantastic, but much better than MIDIs), here's the first demo I've written (on my own) so far. If you or someone you know thinks that they might fit the project as either a vocalist or perhaps a drummer, this song shall serve as an example of what we will most likely be going for. And, even if you know that you can't help me, do still check it out and tell me your thoughts on the material! (I might include demo versions of R&R songs in future posts, by the way, now that it has become possible.)

Before all of this becomes way too long to digest, I'll stop. Like I hinted in the beginning, this is not my last post of the year and another one will come in a few days before the year 2011 draws to a close. Until then, take care, and blessings for all. :) Christmas might be over but the peace should remain in our hearts!