Frozen corpses

[1355]

On the way to work yesterday morning, I saw 7 dead animals on the road.  This may be a new record.  It contrasted strangely with the winter wonderland feeling that the overnight frost had given the fields I was driving past.

I'm yet to hit an animal on the road, and am thankful for this.

I was driving home late a couple of months ago, and the car in front of me on the road ran over what looked like a rabbit.  The car was maybe 20 meters ahead of me and I could see the animal thrashing around in my headlights.

The driver, who was a young woman, had pulled over ahead of me and turned on her hazard warning lights.  As I drove past I could see her leaning forward in the seat with her head in her hands, covering her eyes.

I told this story to someone recently, and I didn't really think about how much it affected me until then.  

My focus is fucked right now.

[1406]

Rise From Your Grave

[1958]

This morning I had to bring my sisters car, which is also the car I've been using for the past two months, down to the garage because the water pump is on the way out in it and needs to be replaced.  The mechanic is going to do the timing belt on it at the same time, because it's due to be sorted out.  The whole job is quoted at €330, which is alright I supposed, but a bit of a kick in the teeth.

The earliest that the car'll be ready will be Monday, so I was looking forward to having no car again this weekend.  That's a total lie, by the way. There's no fucking way that I was looking forward to getting buses and trains and shit. If you live far enough away from your job that commuting there via public transport takes upwards of 2 hours in the morning, and the same again going home, then a car is pretty much a must.

I've been walking past my own car every morning and evening for the past 3 months, feeling bad that it's still not back on the road, and so I was going to be working on getting stuff finished this weekend. I took some time earlier this evening and worked with my dad to get some of the preliminary work done.  As it turned out, we were still working in the freezing cold, when the sun had long set, but everything is pretty much finished.

I took her out for a drive earlier, for the first time in over three months.  I forgot what it was like to drive a car that doesn't have to be in 5^th gear when going 60^km/_h.

I'm going to organise a service for her tomorrow, and bring her to get the wheel alignment checked in the afternoon. After that, I'll be good to go. I can't wait.

Ceremony on Sunday.  Yeayeuh.

[2030]

Getting dressed in the dark.

[1204]

This morning I got up early to bring my brother in law to the airport on my way to work to save my sister and parents having to get up.  I got him there just about in time, and headed off to work.

A couple of hours later I'm sitting in a meeting about network architecture, and I look down and think to myself "Where are the buttons on my shirt gone?"

A cursory inspection revealed them to be on the inside of my shirt.  I started laughing out loud, and everyone in the meeting looked at me, so I had to explain that somehow I'd managed to put my shirt on inside out 5 hours before and only just noticed.

It's going to be a long day.

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Shower gels that I used this morning that you should also be the one that is using them:

Original Source Lemon & Tea Tree

[1214]

Chasing safety

[1412]

Last night was Ruthie's birthday.  We stalled it out to Doran's and had ourselves a decent time.  It was a bit too packed for me, so I actually spent most of my night outside.  I had me a delicious subway.

Subway is not the same as takeaway.

Paul, Ruthie, Olivia and I left about 1.30 and headed out to Dun Laoghaire to go for a walk along the pier, cos it's one of our favourite things to do.  It was pretty nice out there although it was a bit chilly.  

There was a fox on the pier.  He kept running and hiding in the shadows between the lights and having sneaky glances at us.  I love urban foxes.

I dropped everyone home and started making my way back to Skerries.

Because the car I'm using, while my own is out of action, isn't exactly a mean machine, I'm not using the M1 to get home as of late.  Because of this, it was about 4.45 by the time I was on the final stretch from Lusk to Skerries.

As I was turning at Blake's Cross I noticed an unmarked Garda car with his lights flashing behind some van.  There's plenty of subtle patrols that go along that stretch of road late at night to try to catch people driving stupidly or dangerously.  

When I was about 5 or 6 kilometres from Skerries, a car pulls up behind me and follows me pretty closely.  I've already had a run in with the law on this particular stretch of road, and I'm in no mood for another, so I'm driving on the conscientious side of safety, going about 70 or 75 in an 80^km/_h zone.

In order to get into Skerries from this road, you have to drive under a railway bridge and then immediately around a roundabout.

I slowed to about 40 going under the bridge, and as soon as I get through, some idiot came driving up my lane onto the roundabout driving the wrong direction.  I had to jam on to avoid hitting him.  

The guy just continues on his merry way as if there's nothing wrong and goes under the bridge.  It's at this point that the car behind me turned on it's blue lights and sped around the roundabout after him.

Just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean they're not after you.

[1436]

I found my way out...

[0135]

I got called about my car just before I left work on Monday evening, and was told that it wouldn't be ready until tomorrow (which was today). Bad news. That meant that I had to get the bus from town to here again this morning. It wasn't quite as lame as yesterday, but the train from Skerries to the city was straight up terrible.

But I digress. I listened to Turn It Around on the way into town last night to try to get myself psyched for the Comeback Kid show, because I wasn't really feeling it. To my endless surprise, it totally worked. The show was unbelievable. Including the support bands, there was probably about 220 people there. The atmosphere was as good as Another Breath around this time last year, and that's saying a lot.

Ghundi from Galway opened the gig up. I picked up their CD when I was in Galway last, and thought it was pretty good, but I was (correctly) informed that it was a lot better live. The crows was still a little sparse at this time, so it wasn't too packed, but it left plenty of room for the singer to jump off the stage and run around the audience, singing.

Real Talk! were up next. I like these guys, and they get better and better with each show. They played a new song, that I was later told they fucked up (I didn't notice), as well as the songs off their demo. It's full of little anthemic gang vocals that get people pumped. Iano and I managed to shout 'Irish Gee' into the mic at the appropriate moment, which pleased me greatly. There was plenty of indian noises and a massive 'Milton!' shout out during the lead out from the last song. Good times.

The next band, Find A Way haven't played a gig in a good few months. Most of the members play in other hardworking Dublin bands, not least of all the frontman, Zach Golden, who's easily one of the most likable dudes there is. They're a pop punk band, and while this would normally put me off straight away, Zach's vocals aren't the usual american-aping nasal whine that makes me turn my ears off. The crowd got well behind them, and with good reason.

First Death very recently returned from a two week slew of shows in the UK and it's like they came back a different band. They sounded huge and showed an unbelievable amount of energy, especially from the vocalist Chris, who bounded about the place screaming wildly. I've seen First Death a whole bunch of times, and this was easily the best. My highlight was definitely Yo Drama!, from their new (currently MIA) EP 'Ausgang City', even though it was missing the Cowboys From Hell intro. The song started. The place went mental. Awesome.

Comeback Kid were nothing less than amazing. While I'm not the biggest fan, especially of their latest album, their earlier stuff has the potential to make me lose it completely. They played a decently long set, with songs from each of their records. My highlight was definitely Step Ahead, which was pretty much the only song that I wanted to hear, but wasn't sure they'd play, and it set me off. They finished up, unsurprisingly, with Wake The Dead and everyone went crazy. It was the biggest singalong I've ever seen, with what seemed like constant stage dives. Video here. A perfect end, pretty much.

This show was a testament to the state of Dublin hardcore, with great bands, massive crowd participation, everyone having a good time all without pointless fighting or jerks being the toughest guy in the pit.

Definitely one of the best nights of the whole year, only improved by Laura driving me home so I didn't have to sit on the bus.

If that didn't have me in enough of a good mood, I got a call about noon telling me that my car was ready to be collected and that is was only going to cost ²/₃ of what the full price quote was. I'm not stoked on having to pay money, but having to pay less money is always good.

* all pics taken by Jessebash

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Bands I'm listening to that you should also be the one that's listening to:

• Trapped Under Ice
  

[0225]

Shaved heads and bushy beards...

[1628]

I've had a reasonably eventful couple of weeks, but I'm only going to be updating on today.

Because my car is off the road, I had to suffer public transport from Skerries to my job, which is just outside Mulhuddart. Driving this would normally take between 40 and 50 minutes, but it took 2 hours and 8 minutes from when my train left the station in Skerries.

I was going to listen to Comeback Kid on the way, because they're playing tonight in Eamonn Doran's, but I thought better of it and listened to everything that I have by Blacklisted, which is quite a lot. It made the journey more bearable, but only just.

I'm expecting a call at any minute to tell me that my car is fixed.

Panic are still better than whatever band you're listening to.

[1639]

The recent past...

It's been a while since I've made any kind of post about what I've been up to. So here goes.

I finally got myself a new car to replace my poor dead 106. After a little looking, I picked up a 98 Nissan Pulsar, which is basically just the Japanese version of the Almera. After my last car, and the replacement that I had, the difference is dramatic. It has a beverage holder.

I've not got any pics of it here, but I'll update the blog when I eventually get home.

Last weekend, I spent some quality time with my homies from First Death, Forging Friendships and Another Day In Hell in the UK, playing a couple of shows. The guys in First Death and Forging Friendships went across on the Thursday night on the ferry in the Lee's car and in the FD van. Downtown Lee Brown and I had a flight booked for the next day.

I spent the night burning and printing up one hundred numbered ADiH 3 track sampler demos. I started about midnight, and it took about 9 full hours, so I go abolutely no sleep. My dad dropped me up to the airport and I met up with Lee. After a short flight, and two train rides, we arrived in Bury St. Edmunds for the first show.

All three bands were playing in The Old Maltings with Almost Home, Think Again! and Storm And Stress. There weren't too many people at this show, but it was a whole lot of fun, and I think it was one of the better shows we've played. After the gig, we all bailed into our Travelodge. I was so tired from the night before that I just passed out (lying across the pillows) when we finally got into the room.

The Travelodge itself was halfway between Bury and Colchester, where our show was the next day. We only had three triple rooms booked, with thirteen people to get in, so we ended up sneaking in in shifts.

The Travelodge had a Little Chef attached to it, so the next morning, we all went for breakfast and I hooked myself up with some sweet Linda McCartney sausages, mushrooms and beans. Om nom nom.

On the Saturday, Another Day In Hell were playing on the first day of From The Heart. It was a pretty good set, but I managed to fuck up at least one bit of one of our songs, especially our newest one. The rest of the show was a lot of fun, with Special Move, Last Witness and Teenage Lust being the best of the bunch.

The next day of From The Heart was also pretty good, with Forging Friendships and First Death putting in class performances. First Death were one of the best bands of the whole weekend. Other highlights of the day were Get Fucking Dead and Jailbait.

Lee and I'd decided that we were going to get the ferry back with the other dudes, so we had to get up way early to get our stuff together to leave. After a sweet 9 hour drive, involving headpunches, ball games, water fights, Nintendo and van mosh, we arrived at Holyhead and got the ferry back to Dublin.

This post is coming from Sweden. The blog about this trip'll come pretty soon.

Old School

Last night, on the way home from Another Day In Hell practice, Chris and I listened to highlights from Beneath The Remains, Chaos A.D. and Roots (all by Sepultura, in case you didn't know). When I was at home the other day, I listened to Beneath The Remains and Arise from start to finish. This is something I have not done in quite some time.

Sepultura were such a good band until Max Cavalera left. I've not listened to any of the stuff they've released since then, but I don't really hold out much hope for it, although there's a new album coming in 2008 apparantly.

Anyways, while listening, it became apparent to me the impact that both this band and early Machine Head has had on the music that I've written over the last few years, and, as a direct consequence of this, on my life in general. There are others who'd probably disagree, but I definitely don't think this is a bad thing. As a result, I've decided that this weeks listening is going to heavily feature bands that I used to listen to all the time when I was 15 and 16.

In any case, practice last night was great. Zach was supposed to be in work til 8, but got off at about 7.30, so before he got there we worked on some bits and pieces that may or may not come to anything, but after he arrived we got down to business and hammered out a new song that I'm pretty sure is going to be my favourite once we get it all nailed down.

We're DIY. Ha ha ha.

Because it's not quite ready, we won't be playing it at our next show, which is this Thursday the 21^st of February, in Eamonn Dorans. It's supporting Los Mendozas and The Mingers with Only Fumes And Corpses and one of my boy Zach's other bands, Find A Way. It's going to be a good time. Doors are at 7.30pm and you can get in and kick people in the face for a measly €7.

Flier on the left.

Come and ruin the other people's lives.

I'm finished plugging now.

After practice, Chris, Zach and I hit up Tin-Tins on Baggot St. for some sweet eats and solid laughs. On the way home, I drove through some of the heaviest fog that I've ever seen. I could see maybe 2 feet up the road in front of me. 15 ^km/_h for about 8km. That's not to say that everyone else on the road was taking the same precautions, and there were cars going past us a LOT faster than we were going. It's no wonder there are so many road deaths in this country.

It was still foggy this morning when I was on the way to work, but it was much prettier out. I drive the back-roads to Blanchardstown from Skerries, and it was like a winter wonderland. I would have taken a photo if I wasn't too busy trying to survive.

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Bands I'm listening to that you should also be the one that's listening to:

• Machine Head - The More Things Change
• Sepultura - Chaos A.D.

Imagine the faces of strangers exploding...

Time for some more hate.

Valentine's day approaches fast. I want to choke every smiling couple I see on chocolate hearts, inexpertly wrapped in red foil. Sorry if you like me and this includes you. Having spent some time thinking on it, it strikes me that I'd probably rather die alone than put myself in the firing line again. Being non-specifically bitter is a lot easier than I thought it'd be.

It's hard for me to trust anyone,
and that's what hurts the most.
I've got a heart that I can't open,
and fist that I keep closed

Moving on.

We, Another Day In Hell, played a show last Saturday with Arcada, Heathers and Soldiers Take Half. It was some of the most fun I've had yet this year. We played a new song and busted out a cover that we're probably not going to play again, no matter how much we're asked. I'm sorry if you missed it.

We also got the prospective artwork back for our CD from the amazing Simon Edge. It's looking good. It'll be getting released on Half Shell as soon as we have Blacklisted out of the way. I'm looking forward to finally having it done, considering how long it's been since we recorded the songs.

The show we were going to be playing on February 14^th has been canceled, but the all ages in Greystones on the 9^th is still going ahead. We might have another gig on the 7^th, and possibly some stuff at the start of March, before we head to the UK for the shows in Bury St. Edmonds and Colchester.

Other news. I found out today that it's going to cost me a lot more than €1,000 to get my car fixed. I don't know if it's worth it to keep it alive, when something else might go wrong. It's distressing. I love my little car. Apparantly I need something black, with racing stripes. I'm not so sure I agree.

Anyways. Blacklisted in two days. I'm trying to remain excited, but I'm just getting worried about it at this point. If this one doesn't go well, we'll have to evaluate how viable it is for us to put on these bigger shows.

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Bands I'm listening to that you should also be the one that's listening to:

• Panic

Slipped gears

Well, shit. I got into my car to drive it down the road to the garage, got to the turn coming out of my estate and the clutch went.

It's at the side of the road now, not going anywhere, waiting for the dudes from the garage to come and tow it off. I'm stuck here until they arrive, and it's been nearly an hour now, and then I have to leave to go to work. It's a good job I'm not incredibly busy right now. *sigh*

I'm definitely not looking forward to the bill for this one.

How very frustrating.

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Bands I'm listening to that you should also be the one that's listening to:

• Outbreak
  

Initial D

So yesterday, I drove to work in the car I have for the next week or so, a Subaru Vivio. Here it is...



This mean machine is fully loaded with a 658cc engine and can go 0-60 in ∞ seconds. Driving in yesterday I managed to coax it up to a bone shattering 75^km/_h, or just under 50^mp/_h. While this means no driving on the motorway for me, I'm not terribly bothered. It's very light on the clutch, and either has power steering or is so light that the wheel can be turned with no effort.

While it's definitely a step down the automotive ladder from my own car, which I love and love to drive, I'm still glad to have it available to me.

There's nothing I'd rather do less in the morning than share my air with people I don't know, for more than 2 hours, probably while being forced to stand, just so I can go to work.

On that note, I'm bringing my car down to the garage to get repaired now. I wonder how much it'll cost me...

Deathproof

So my car has been acting funny for the last month or so. My fan belt was slipping a little, and could probably have done with replacing. The oil light started flashing on the other week, but I checked the oil level, and it was fine. Last Wednesday, I started finding it hard to put the car into gear, or if I applied the clutch when braking the car would sometimes slip out of gear. This worries me, so I'm not driving it for a while, until I get it into a garage to get it serviced. This'll be this coming Wednesday.

In the interim, I've had no car.

Laura and Derry drove out to get me on Friday, for which I'm hugely grateful, even though I wasn't ready when they got here. Not being in the driving seat is very, very weird, by the way. I kept looking for mirrors that weren't there to see what was behind me.

After that, I spent hours and hours and hours on buses for the rest of the weekend. I stayed in the party house on Friday night (for which I'm also very grateful) so I had to make the trip back to Skerries from Glasnevin on Saturday afternoon. It took 2 ¹/₂ hours. I was heading out for Dee's birthday on Saturday night (happy birthday again), and the bus back in took another 90 minutes. The nitelink home was just over another hour.

On Sunday, I spent 3 ¹/₂ hours on buses in order to go watch a movie, which was well worth it.

Today was the worst, cos I had to go to work. I was up for work about 5, which sucked on its own, and got a train just before 7. Even though I went straight from train to bus to office, with very little waiting around, I still didn't get there til 9.30am. It was marginally better getting home, but I was still surrounded by people with no regard for anyone else's personal space, and I eventually got home about 9pm.

So yeah. Fuck public transport.

With this in mind, I'm more than appreciative of the lend of the car, a '95 Subaru Vivio, I got from my sister's boyfriend for the next week, while mine is getting repaired or what have you. Driving makes my life so much simpler.

Hopefully my own car will be back on the road for the trip up to Belfast for Blacklisted, Soul Control, Shipwreck and Crowd Control next Thursday. Next Thursday being the day after next Wednesday. Next Wednesday being the show that we're putting on in Eamonn Doran's. You should go to it.

• Blacklisted (US)
• Shipwreck (US)
• Soul Control (US)
• First Death
• Crowd Control

I sound like a scratched record. Back and forth, back and forth.

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Bands I'm listening to that you should also be the one that's listening to:

• Vanguard
• Guns Up! (MySpace)