I was sitting here thinking about Rush this morning thanks to Sky from DNBS reminding me of a bunch of songs.  When I was in high school, a couple friends and I played near to every song from the first 8 albums of Rush so I had a pretty decent appreciation for their talent.  They were the kind of band that spoke to me as a musician more than anything else. 

So today, as part of thinking about the band, I went and refreshed my memory of their past.  When we were playing those Rush songs 18 years ago (yikes!) I had read one of their biographies.  They weren't like Dream Theater heading out to Burkley to learn their trade.  They were just musicians who, at first, were playing much like every band does: playing to their influences.

That said, I think back to all manner of artistic endeavors, from literature to painting to music to decoupage.  What would it have been like to be amidst a period where these things were being defined?  I noticed that there are academic research papers on Rush's influence in Progressive Music and so I find myself longing for a period where everything wasn't so precisely defined.  At this point in time, you could play five chords and someone would tell you what genre of music you just created.

It's the same for everything really.  A set of standards exist that must be adhered to.  It's not that you can't stretch in one way or another but formatting, structure and expectation are all in place.  People call anything 'odd' that doesn't fit the predefined paths.  While that was likely true back when things were first finding these niches, I think that it had be an exciting and fun process building those concepts.

So I guess my point isn't to sound like I'm complaining about it all or lamenting my year of birth.  I just think that, nostalgia aside, pioneering a field had to be one of the greatest gifts that any person can ever be granted.
 

Hello!


I am selling a couple of things to make way for something brand new!  Check them out here.  These aren't pictures of the actual units but they are in excellent condition.  The Variax has only really been used for recording (they can be heard on the DNBS site).  It comes with a gig bag, the special Variax cable and a bag for the Line 6 XT Live. 

http://www.strumzilla.com/wp-content/uploads/L6-Body-Axis.jpg

http://www.www.musicstoreinc.com/products/images/990600605_01.jpg

So the Variax 700 is going for between 500 and 700 bucks on ebay.  The Line 6 XT Live runs from 100 to 400 (though the latter is new).  The bag is 65 bucks online.  I'm selling BOTH units for 650 bucks with all the mentioned accessories.

Anyone interested, contact me offline.  If we have to ship the stuff, that will probably cost a bit but it's worth it.  These were used for some Abney Park songs, DNBS songs and a few other bands so they've got a little history.

Thanks!

I've opened a store!

Sort of.

It's not as exciting as some brick & mortar place in a part of town that has character.  It's probably located in the Internet Ghetto.  However, this place is up and works great. 

Hop over to my site: www.darkrepast.com or www.darkrepast.com/glassmoonlight.  There's a link at the top of the page (the prominent one that says 'Shop').

It's a bit of a work in progress but what isn't?  I'll fix it up and make it prettier as time goes by.

I finished this book today and I found myself at a loss for words.  I've been reading Alexander the Great history and fiction for years and this is the first time that I couldn't get behind his cause.  I've read about the battles in Afghanistan several times but this book was a lot more personal and it really brings to light the tribal nature of the 'enemy'.  More importantly though, as I read this book, I began to question the righteousness of Alexander's conquests.

I've always been an advocate for some of the concepts that Alexander supposedly espoused.  I felt that he offered an enlightened perspective to those places that he passed through but the more that I think about it now, the less I can abide the motivation.  Afghanistan was a tribal culture of violence before the Macedonian army entered their domain.  They fought for several years and came to a sort of truce before Alexander moved on to India.  They were still a tribal culture and have maintained that paradigm to the modern day.

What came of the violence in Afghanistan?  What came of the violence in Persia for that matter?  I suppose that one could argue that by crushing the Persians, Alexander prevented the West from ever being menaced by another Eastern invasion force (such as Xerxes).  But outside of that (which was absolutely not the primary reason for attacking Persia), I have begun to think that Alexander's campaigns were little more than selfish and brutal.  The attacks on what they deemed to be the rest of the world amounted to very little when one thinks of how shortly after the mainstay conquest, Alexander died.

It's funny and sad because today, I feel like I lost a hero and all because this historical fiction seemed to provide some missing puzzle piece in all that I have read before.  I guess that it goes without saying that this novel is moving and exquisitely written if it could make me think at all let alone stir up some emotions.  Anyone who cares about this point in history should definitely consider reading it.  You might be disappointed but it won't be in the work.  Rather, you might find yourself in my position thinking about the futility of any of these conquering folk.

Maybe Alexander should not be considered the hero that has been so spoken of but rather just another invader who managed to be glorified by adoring followers that survived the chaos of his death.  I don't know but what a chance to speculate.

The show went off without a noticable hitch.  I think that we all had a great time and it was the best first show that I could have imagined.  Everyone was extremely nice and the crowd was receptive to the music.  All around, a great experience.

We have video that we're going to post soon of the event, not just of DNBS but of my songs with Abney Park as well.  There are already photos floating around (both on our my space and on flickr).  This was a great start and I hope that we can look forward to shows that are even half as successful in the future.

Thanks to everyone who bought CDs, offered comments and heck, for even showing up!  You made it a night to remember!

This is a dual post!  First off, Glass Moonlight is available for sale at my web site as well as through Amazon.com!

Furthermore, the May 22nd show is on!  The Deadly Nightshade Botanical Society will be playing with Abney Park and Legion Within.  Check out the flyer here http://www.flickr.com/photos/vonclaret/3528682369/

The Cover for Glass Moonlight can be seen here: http://www.darkrepast.com/images/GMThumb.jpg.

The proof came and it was excellent.  I have approved it and now the book is available as Print on Demand.  I am planning on picking up a good 15 or 20 of them in the next couple of weeks to have on hand for sales but for now, they will be sent out via the POD model.

I've posted the book for sale both at www.darkrepast.com and at www.darkrepast.com/glassmoonlight.  It's available as an ebook (in PDF format right now) and as a physical copy (6x9 book, 253 pages).  An ecommerce store is almost ready as well and that will carry all the books under my Dark Repast banner.

There will be excerpts up of the book and more blog entries by Ophelia this week.  Check back for more info!

Hello!

I have published my book 'Glass Moonlight'.  It's a supernatural mystery in the style of Anita Blake (without the smut) or even the Kim Harrison books.  More information can be found over at http://www.darkrepast.com/glassmoonlight and if you'd like to see the cover, hop over to this link: http://www.darkrepast.com/images/GMSmall.jpg.

Hey there!

So we've got a sale going on over at the DNBS site.  The CD price has dropped to 10 bucks and the Digital CD is only 5.99.  This is a short time offer for the next couple weeks so head over and check it out.

Here's the URL: http://www.deadlynightshadebotanicalsociety.com/sale.html

The Clockwork Man will be available to play in TWO DAYS (March 18th).  That means there's a little time left to get in on the pre-order.  Hop over and snag it for only 10 dollars!  Half the normal price!

Participants have a chance to get a poster of Sprocket for only the cost of shipping!

A trailer for the Clockwork Man has been revealed!  What is the Clockwork Man?  It's only one of the most original and exciting hidden object adventure games of its time!  I'm a little biased though since... well... I wrote it. 

But seriously, the game is steampunk infused and inspired.  Every character has a voice and all the objects are hand painted.  This is a meticulous work and I think that you'll agree that it's absolutely gorgeous.  Please take a minute to hop over and check out the Clockwork Man trailer at the clockwork man trailer address.

I wanted to offer up a sample chapter of the casebook.  This is the Short Story for Legacy.

 

Legacy

October 17th, 1885

Dark cases lost in the mists of time have surfaced many times in the unusual archives of the Society. Journals never inventoried occasionally appear inexplicably on a shelf to be found by the latest librarian or agent. Often times this leads to an investigation or study and the results are at once terrifying and enlightening. 

The story of ‘Legacy’ has long been one of mystery and speculation. Dr. Victor Frankenstein was considered a reclusive genius before a series of family tragedies sent him far from his home in Geneva never to be heard from again. A fire in the residence was thought to destroy all evidence of his fantastic studies of medicine.
 

We have released a DNBS Casebook which contains short stories inspired by the songs as well as the lyrics to all the songs.  It's a really cool little presentation and available in both ebook and paper back edition.  Hop over to the DNBS-Music.com web site and take a look.  The prices are 9.99 (for a limited time) and 4.99 for the ebook.  You get the ebook thrown in for free if you buy the physical copy.

We are now on iTunes.  Check it out when you can.  I think that makes all of the digital places that we sent music to.  We're now officially distributed.

Check out this dog

She has a short time to live as they're going to euthenize her.  If you're in the Pacific Northwest and you have the ability, you should definitely consider her for your new pet.  From the ad, she's a house broken dog who has been surrendered because her owner had to move.  Now, they're going to be putting her down due to her breed. 

Please have a look at her photo and consider it.  If I had the space or apartment for it, I would already have her.  She looks like a black version of the Mad Max dog. 

Rating: Who knows?  5.5 I guess

I liked the Spirit.  But I had to work at it.

The movie was stylized and crazy; taking over-the-top to a new level.  It's a cross between Sin City and a 50s Crime Noir with a hint of insanity.  I don't know how else to describe it without spoiling stuff but I think that if you're a fan of these comic movies then you'll really enjoy this one.  You might have to continually state remind yourself it's a comic and that it's going to be wild.  If you can do that, you'll probably have fun.

The characters here are all larger than life.  The world looks fifties but there are laptops and cell phones.  This cross wasn't nearly as jarring as one would think (especially with the other spectacles going on in the film).  There's a dark quality to everything from the way it was filmed to the look of the characters and I think it genuinely improved the immersion.  In a semi-packed theater, people were receptive to the humor and dialogue.  I would suggest that the majority of the movie went over well with the audience.

The bottom line about the Spirit is simple though: I don't know if I would recommend it or not.  I liked it.  I think that people who enjoy those hard bitten noir comics would like it.  I think that a lot of people wouldn't like it.  The niche this movie was aiming toward would not have been disappointed with an R rating.  The few more people they attracted with the PG 13 couldn't have really mattered that much in the grand scale of how specific the target audience was. 

I hope that enough people see it to warrant the film a success but based on the other reviews I would say it's going to have a rough time.  At the very least, I would suggest it for Gabriel Macht who did an outstanding job playing the Spirit.  Oh, and if you're way into crazy hot chicks in movies, this would also be for you. 

This Radio Station played DNBS on the 29th of November.  I didn't notice until today (hence the super late posting) but they broadcast over the internet.  Check them out here.  Looks like they played Clockwork Dream that day.  I couldn't find an archive of the broadcast but it would be neat to hear. 

I missed a couple weeks there and have a straight to DVD release to talk about as well. Here we go, combining them all in one post.

The Day the Earth Stood Still.
Rating: 7

Did you like the original? Did you like it a lot? This remake changes enough to definitely feel new but with just enough old to try and satisfy fans of the first go. Much of what I would say about it would probably spoil the experience so I'll try to skirt that a bit.

I think that the visuals were really nice. A lot of reviewers were saying the effects were terrible. I think they were watching Screamers 2. Overall, the effects and what they did with them were tasteful and entertaining. I don't think that it contributed or took away from the overall point of the story and movie but the effects were absolutely sufficient.

The acting was likewise good. I thought that Keanu Reeves was well suited to this role. He's dark and detached, looking genuinely alien. Sincerely, everyone who appeared in this movie did a great job at their role.

This is not to say that the movie is without flaw. There are a number of small things that annoyed me. I don't want to nitpick and even if I did, I would be spoiling the movie a bit. In any event, I would still recommend people see the movie. I had fun watching it for the most part. Fans of the original should be cautioned to not compare (as much as they can avoid it at least). My bottom line? I expected more yet I wasn't as disappointed as I could've been with those expectations having been missed.

Valkyrie
Rating: 8

This was a brilliantly executed movie. I gave it an 8 because it felt too short to me. There were too many parts that felt rushed. The story was complicated enough that I felt there could have been a lot more development of the different 'eras' of the operation. Despite that, I found the movie to be a harsh thriller despite knowing how it was going to end.

A lot of people exercise extreme prejudice about Tom Cruise. It's not fair anymore. Gone are the days of Top Gun, Risky Business or Days of Thunder. One simply needs to watch the Last Samurai or Valkyrie to know that he's not playing that same character. He's a dark and brooding figure in this movie and he carries the deformities of war with a strange dignity. His particular performance was chilling in this movie.

The supporting actors were all top notch. Kenneth Branaugh and Bill Nighy in particular really stepped it up. Anyone who knows the story understands what happened and the implications behind it yet I suspect that they'll still be entertained. It was beautifully shot, intelligently written and tense.

I would recommend this to anyone that likes Bryan Singer's work. He did a great job. Same with Tom Cruise and all the supporting actors. I wouldn't suggest going to see the movie for Kenneth Branaugh only because he's not in it very much (though the scenes he shows up in are full of incredible presence). I wouldn't recommend this to people who don't care about the second world war. Seriously, this movie is definitely worth seeing.

Resident Evil: Degeration
Rating: 7.5

A CG Resident Evil movie, this was spectacular and amazing. At 97 minutes long, it's a full length feature film with an incredible amount of action and excitement. The main characters from the original games, battling bio-terrorism and a new corporation that has been developing a vaccine for the dreaded T Virus.

The animation in this stunned me. You could watch for a good ten minutes and forget it was animated. The motions were fluid and realistic. The only thing that threw me was that the mouths didn't move with the speech all the time. Even with that minor criticism, this was the kind of movie I'd love to see for things like World of Warcraft or the Dragonlance series.

The story was fun and the characters worked well. Zombie action in this kind of movie really works. The violence isn't quite as jarring and it becomes more action movie than horror. I think that it was mostly accessible for people who haven't played the games (they give you a very brief reminder of who the main characters are) and that should help. As far as straight to DVD releases are concerned, this one was definitely worth every penny to pick up.

I would recommend this to anyone that loved the Final Fantasy CG movies. Further, it is definitely a good film for people who loved Resident Evil movies and games. I wouldn't recommend it to people who don't like animated films, aren't interested in zombies or are just individuals that are against video games. (Indeed, there were a couple camera pans that made me want to pick up the 360 controller and start the level... ahem).

I put together a banner today. Check it out:

I missed the opportunity to write about Transporter 3 last week so I figured I'd do both at the same time.

Transporter 3
Rating 6.5

The Transporter movies have always been about being crazy action fun.  Transporter 3 is no different.  I liked the first one better only because I appreciated the fact that they didn't descend into full scale silly.  Still, if you like Jason Statham, you'll like this movie.  He's the only reason that people see these I think (unless they have crazy car fetishes).  For the most part, this is so straight forward that to say much about it would be to ruin it.  See it if you like kung fu movies. 

Punisher: War Zone
Rating 7.5

Punisher: War Zone suffers from a bad release date.  This should've come out during the early spring or late summer.  The Thomas Jane Punisher movie came out in April and did well enough to warrant a sequel.  

I'll state that War Zone is a lot different from the Thomas Jane version.  It's incredibly violent and brutal to the point of being shocking if you try to compare.  I felt that this was how the Punisher was supposed to be: a bad ass who doesn't take shit from anyone.  He's out to take down criminals and he's only a little sneaky about it. 

I've noted that some people feel it's necessary to criticize the violence of this film.  I find that laughable considering movies like Saw, Hostel or the Hills Have Eyes.  There are films that literally show people being tortured, vivisected and otherwise molested with thin purposes like 'We're bored and want to tear up some victims'.  At least in this, the Punisher has a defined mission: he's killing criminals after having a horrible wrong done to him. 

While I can't say that this should excuse graphic violence this at least provides a level of justification that the modern 'horror' movie cannot claim.  I personally enjoyed the way that Ray Stevenson played the Punisher and I think it was awesome that the film makers decided to take the gloves off.  A PG 13 Punisher would be just as stupid as a Rated R Care Bears endeavor.  The content requires that the character do things which should not be seen by people under the age of 18 by the rating system.  He's an anti-hero, not a super hero.  Comic book doesn't mean happy.

I think that if you like action movies you'll enjoy this.  Further, if you want to see a movie that doesn't hold back, this is for you.  Are you tired of every action movie that comes out being a revisit to the A Team's school of aiming or people bleeding as much from a gunshot wound as they would from a hang nail?  This is also for you.  If on the other hand excessively gory violence offends you, this film is NOT for you.  At all.