As previously mentioned on this blog, I have a post-Apocalyptic universe. Despite using asteroids for mine, I grew up in the ’80s when nukes were a big deal. Like many a child of the Cold War, I dealt with the constant discussion that eventually the United States and Soviet Union were going to stumble into war and blow us all to kingdom come. (At around the 3:24 mark, I thought of Alannis Morrissette’s “Ironic.” ‘It’s like, nu-ukes on your wedding day…like an X-ray blast taking your bridesmaid away. Like a blast wave making the beautician a waste…who would’ve thought, it figures…”)
Anyway, a lot of dark music came from that era. Some of it I didn’t discover until much later in life, like this particular Slayer song:
Today we have a double feature. I present to you, Dethklok…(cartoon violence in spades…don’t say you weren’t warned):
“Wait…wait…DID I JUST WATCH BATMAN MURDER THE LITTLE MERMAID?!” Yes, yes you did (or saw this and decided not to click on the YouTube).
Unbeknownst to me, there’s a sequel song. Which is perhaps even harsher than the first one. Lyrics after the imbed:
“Murmaider II: The Water God”
The gods watch over you
And they consider what you’ve doneBut now you’ve hidden away
To gain your strength
Deep in a cave
Your power is regained
And your legacy has spread
To the deepest of the sea
The one that brought them vengeance
That fights for his belief
He can swim through matter
He has poisoned teeth
His tentacles have murdered
His scream can kill the weak
He’s got
Explosives
Check
Corrosives
Check
A master of the art of murder
Mermaids weep the blackened tears
So you swim to a sunken ship
Invited by a soul who bleeds from the lips
This prophet who beckons you wades in the dark
Speaks an ancient language this language is of
Sharks
He says your the one that I decree
The one that can save us and set us free
You’ve gained the power of a deity
You have the strength to wake us from this
Sleep
And so you swim on
Swim on
And so you swim on
Swim on
Keep swimming now
And the prophet gives to you this warning
If this path is chosen you’ll be met with strife
For you’ll be seen as an enemy of the sacred
And the gods will curse you
For the rest of your life
And you say
I get by just fine
Check
I’ve known much worse life
Check
I’ve conquered dark times
Check
They should fear my mind
Check
So now you know then go then
Swim on through the cold then
Harness your strength
Because one day you may be called
To meet the mighty gods
Deep within the ocean
And if you’re not prepared
Your soul will not be spared
Your eyes have gone black
You’ll never look back
You’ll never stop swimming
You’ll always be tracked
Your life has transformed
Your power has grown
Your minions stretch for leagues
For a bloodied coral throne
A crown of murdered foes
Will sit upon your head
Those that wish to challenge you
Will wish that they were dead
The beasts of the sea will collect and submit
Prey for your forgiveness and live as you
Permit
And you say:
I am the water god
You will bow to the water god
You will live for the water god
And you will die for the water god
There definitely seems to be no shortage of metal songs about Armageddon, the end of the world, etc. This week’s Metal Monday selection is Primal Fear’s take on the subject. Oh the video production values…
We all know a good band that, to use the euphemism, “Went in different creative directions…” Fans of Evanescence may remember just such an event splintered the group when Ben Moody punched out mid-tour. Without picking a side in that fight, I’ll simply point out that today’s Metal Monday group was the offshoot of that particular disintegration. We Are the Fallen wrote one album, got dismissed as “Evanescence Lite,” and basically dropped off the music map. Tear the World Down is a pretty solid hard rock / metal album, with “St. John” one of the better songs off it.
Today’s “Metal Monday” group hails from Milan, Italy. Lacuna Coil’s a pretty big deal in Europe, not so much here in the States. Which is a shame, as they’re a really good group with a long back catalog.
The better half (whose “bare bones” blog is now here) and I have a long-standing debate on whether this song is dealing with a murder or suicide. You be the judge, but in either case go check out the rest of Lacuna Coil’s songs if you like metal at all.
I’ve mentioned it in interviews, but I’m a huge fan of When Worlds Collide and After Worlds Collide. Apparently, judging from the lyrics, so is Iron Maiden.
If there’s ever an old sci-fi movie I want to see redone with modern technology, it’s this one. But only if they get someone competent to helm the thing. I don’t want a repeat of “The Luckiest Limo Driver In California,’ a.k.a. 2012.
When Worlds Collide will be referenced in a couple of Vergassy Universe short stories. I’m all about homage to the fiction of my youth, and I read the hell out of these two books.
So last Tuesday (18 October), Korn and Breaking Benjamin came to town. I took the better half to the concert for her birthday. Sound problems were all over the place at the Kansas Expocentre, to the point we couldn’t understand the first act (Silver Snakes) over their drums, could only understand the plethora of F-bombs dropped by the lead singer of Motionless In White, and really think the Breaking Benjamin fans got screwed out of what sounded like an awesome concert. Of course, it was partially made up for by Breaking Benjamin playing The Imperial March:
“But JY, you didn’t copy the whole…”
“Sorry man, had to headbang. Have this in apology…”
Anyway, as you can hear, not the best sound–and it was worst in person. So I was a little worried when Korn came out. Indeed, I even texted a friend, “Jon Davis is going to smite the sound man halfway through ‘Right Now.'”
*pause*
Well, I guessed the opening song right. However, there is no video of it. Why? Because about 30 seconds into the set, as Korn starts playing and I’m almost levitating in my seat, AY said, “Why don’t you just get up–you know you want to.” Yep, that’s right, I guessed the opening song AND they fixed the sound system (or Jonathan Davis knew how to deal with it). Ergo, you’re just going to have to deal with the vid from another concert, as thankfully my spouse is a goodie two shoes who didn’t record me headbanging like I was 25 again. (AY thought about it. Good and hard apparently.)
Yeah, if there’s ever a time when I’m “storming a castle,” “Right Now” is making the track list.
As part of “Deaf Week,” we also went to Shinedown / Five Finger Death Punch (with Sixx AM as one of the opening acts) in Wichita on the 22nd. Now, if you’d told me on Friday in a three-way concert rumble between Korn, Five Finger Death Punch, and Shinedown I’d be picking the them in reverse order, I’d have wondered if someone had brained you. For those of you who may not recall the third Metal Monday, this is Five Finger Death Punch:
This is Shinedown:
Well, friends, let me tell ya…Shinedown brought it. I mean, they BROUGHT. IT. Don’t get me wrong–Jon Davis was just as energetic as he looks in the above video. However, Brent Smith (Shinedown’s lead) opened up with telling everyone to get out of their chair…and no one sat down for the next hour. It wasn’t just the pyrotechnics…it was pretty much the back catalog gave Shinedown plenty of ammo to work with. Just an amazing show…that left Five Finger Death Punch with a tired crowd.
I can’t say it enough–if you like rock, go see Shinedown in concert. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
Gettysburg. The name alone brings forth historical visions of desperate fights in wheat fields, bodies heaped before stone walls, and that poor bastard Pickett writing an after action report so incendiary in its rhetoric that General Lee literally had it burned. Whether one thinks that the Union was saved on this day or that Northern numbers and industrial capacity would have made a Southern victory Pyrrhic, the sheer magnitude of this fight cannot be denied.
So hey, what better thing to do than make heavy metal songs about it?!
Today’s offering comes from Civil War (not to be confused with The Civil Wars). I found this song through an I-tunes recommendation, and it has grown on me the last couple of weeks:
Still, if I had to choose songs to commemorate the battle, I’m rolling with Iced Earth’s trilogy from their album The Glorious Burden.
Day 1
Day 2
Let the record show this begins with what I call “A Hancock Pledge.” Don’t make a pledge asking deities to strike you down if you have to attack your best friend’s position–it can have a bad outcome.
Out of the three, I play “Hold At All Cost” the most often. I have a couple playlists used for desperate scenes or times in my books. No bayonet charges (yet), but I’m sure fans can guess at least a couple of points where I had this blaring in the background. Feel free to put guesses in the comments section.
