An excerpt from G9’s interview that I’d like to share here is something that we definitely relate to: the slow process of releasing an album when doing it 100% independently! Also, the article features links to free Celldweller music downloads and amazing art resources, so head on over to FEARnet for the whole thing… oh, and in the end, “sweet fear” awaits!

[ FEARnet Meets Cinema's Secret Weapon: Celldweller ]

Enjoy! -N.

INTERVIEW EXCERPT:
[G9] So how is the Celldweller album progressing? Can you share any details, or hint at a possible release date?

[Klayton] I can share only a few details [because] I may be castrated if I say too much and don’t deliver. Like I said earlier, the process for this album is totally different than any other I’ve done. So, that being said, I’ve recorded all the final vocals first. That has usually been the last step for me, but I wanted to put more of an emphasis on vocals on this album, so [co-producer] Grant Mohrman and I agreed that I would cut vocals first and build everything else around them.

I do actually have one song completely done ["So Long Sentiment"] and I’m working away on a few others simultaneously. I would love to just tell everyone “The album will be done by this date,” but I’ve learned my lesson on that one. It’s hard to predict when it will actually wrap up. I can tell you that I am thinking about alternative methods of releasing this album altogether, but I won’t say anything until I’m ready to commit… that always gets me in trouble.

I’ve also had an album title for a while, but haven’t officially announced that either. I’d love to say it’s because I’m “dark and mysterious,” but it’s more like “I get distracted by other things and forget.” Not quite as cool, huh? [ More @ FEARnet Meets Cinema's Secret Weapon: Celldweller ]

If you’ve read/seen/heard any of the items I’ve blurbed here, I’d love to hear read your thoughts in the comments… but you can write more than 13 words if y’want! -NiNi

RATINGS SCALE:
5 Slashes = Best. Thing. EVER. Will you marry me?
4 Slashes = Will probably become 5-slash material after a few more tries.
3 Slashes = Totally fun, and worth the time and money.
2 Slashes = Only deserves this much because it had some entertainment value.
1 Slash = Why did I waste my time?

TWILIGHT (The TWILIGHT Saga, Book 1) [ Stephenie Meyer ]

Brooding, swooning teens not your style? Keep reading! Vampire-life after high school rocks.

[ 3/5 SLASHES ]

NEW MOON (The TWILIGHT Saga, Book 2)

Worst. Birthday. Ever. Vegetarian vamps get human-hungry. There’s hope! Werewolves have more fun.

[ 4/5 SLASHES ]

ECLIPSE Special Edition (The TWILIGHT Saga, Book 3)

The series page-turner. Bizarre love triangles, werewolf and Cullen family histories slayed me.

[ 5/5 SLASHES ]

BREAKING DAWN (The TWILIGHT Saga, Book 4)

Vampire revolution becomes species evolution. Read between the lines for thought-provoking social depth.

[ 4/5 SLASHES ]

UROBOROS [CD] [ Dir en Grey ]

A jaw-dropping work of art. Brutally experimental, but plenty of J-Rock hooks linger.

[ 5/5 SLASHES ]

HEAVY METAL PARKING LOT [DVD]

Aqua Net, spandex and booze? ‘80s metal “represent!” A real-life head bangers’ ball.

[ 4/5 SLASHES ]

THE ACCIDENTAL DEMON SLAYER [ Angie Fox ]

Buffy with Willow’s personality. Once you’ve loved a griffin, you can’t go vamp!

*Bonus: NiNi’s Biker Witch Name is Lusty Lucinda Fast Pants [Boo-Ya]!
What’s your biker name? [ Take the quiz ] and let me know!

[ 4/5 SLASHES ]

SERVANT: THE AWAKENING (SERVANT The Series, Book 1) [ L.L. Foster ]

Urban Gothic powerhouse with delicious sexual tension, and a riveting anti-heroine with heart.

[ 5/5 SLASHES ]

G9: Speaking of gear… I keep lots of weird toys in my recording studio for inspiration, monsters and robots and stuff. Do you guys do that too, or am I just a big dork?

Curtis: [Laughs] if you’re a dork, then I guess we are too. I’m a huge collector of ‘things,’ especially vintage film posters, so we have some of those framed around our studio, along with some action figures, toy dinosaurs, Halloween decorations, all the amazing fan art we get on tour, and a few actual move props I’ve collected over the years. I also have an extensive collection of movies on Beta, VHS, Laserdisc and DVD, so we also take frequent breaks to watch horror movies. Some people call that “putting off work’, but we like to call it ‘research’. I think having the stuff that inspires you around you at all times when you’re working creatively is a must… it just seems to open up those pathways so strange creations can creep in.

More Here: [ FEARnet Talks Touring, Toys and Monster Kung Fu with Creature Feature's Curtis RX ]

I can barely keep up with the guy, so you really should just save the FEARnet music page to your blogroll or in your RSS news reader for all the latest and greatest in the world of dark music. You may notice that unlike many large-scale music blogs out there, G9 likes to devote a lot of time and space to indie musicians.

[ G9 on MySpace ]

[ Filterbank Abusers Unite! ]

SOULSNATCHER MIX Comments…

KEYVO says: I think my brain just exploded, i love it.

MADDSKEELZ says: I really don’t care that this has limited vocal samples. This is completely amazing. It reminds me of one of the Closer remixes. Singlehandedly the best industrial mix on here. Absolutely gut wrenchingly scary. Well freakin done.

GHOSTLIGHT MIX Comments…

PD17 says: so beautiful it sends chills down my spine

MALOK THE MULE says: I love this sound…the name pretty much directly describes it too, ghostly as it is. Its beauty all over. Great stuff.

JANUX says: Now THIS is what im talking about. Something unique! I love it. It doesn’t sound like everyone else. -Travis of Janux

We did not “win” the Celldweller SWITCHBACK remix contest as far as prizes or placement in the top three. We also did not make it onto the remix CD, at least not yet… I’m not even sure that a remix CD will be made, honestly… it seems that Klayton prefers widgets these days [as do most indie musicians, ourselves included!], so maybe at some point, we could wind up being featured on the Celldweller widget. That would be a dream come true, but if it doesn’t happen, that’s fine by us, because the contest benefited us above and beyond widget-stardom or CD placement in ways we could not have predicted when we first created the remixes.

It’s an honor that we were welcomed as a featured remix artist, which thrilled us about as much as [if not, more than] getting on a CD. We also received some great compliments from the Celldweller community, a few favorites are posted in this entry. But most importantly, the one outcome we could not have predicted was that it showed us what we’re really, truly capable of as musicians. We took a few risks, mixed together some genres that typically aren’t “supposed” to work together [what did we have to lose?] and made them work… I mean, really, really work. In essence, dissecting SWITCHBACK helped us further evolve our signature sound: beauty and beast [GHOSTLIGHT=Beauty, SOULSNATCHER=Beast], a mix of symphonies, choirs, crunchy guitars, fucked-up drum kits and frightening electronics… and we continue to explore that crazy Corvo concoction with each track as our debut full-length TELLTALE unfolds.

So thank you, Klayton, for letting us dive into a song you’ve written that we’ve always loved… you continue to inspire us as indie musicians, and through your work and embrace of independent musicians, we… well… know it sounds hokey, but… we sort of found ourselves. -NiNi + G9

Listen to Song and Add Comments at Celldweller.com

Listen to Song and Add Comments at Celldweller.com

“White spotlights appeared one at a time to highlight each player as he launched into the enigmatic opening strains of the title track from Worlds Collide. The cheers built to a deafening crescendo as Mikko’s thunderous toms launched the song’s first explosive synchronized cello riffs. I felt a physical blast of compressed air from the amp stacks as the low-end vibrations kicked in, hammered home by a machine-gun double kick.”
-From G9’s FEARnet Review

I have never in my life experienced a concert more perfectly than at Apocalyptica’s very first show in Dallas, TX [at the House of Blues]. At first, I was just going to string together a few videos and a bunch of photos my new-found front-row friend Shelby had captured on her camera, but then… this video just took me on an artistic journey of its own, and I couldn’t stop it [nor did I want to]! Enjoy this fan documentary, and let me know what you think of the video. Finally, if you ever get the opportunity to see these guys in concert, don’t let it pass you by… it’ll be one of the best shows of your life, I promise.

Have you seen Apocalyptica live? What do you think of the band? What are some of your favorite Apo songs? Who is your favorite band member? Register -free- to share your thoughts with me here!

[ @ YouTube ] [ Right Click For MP4 ] [ Right Click For FLV ] [ Apocalyptica.com ]

The Cart
First off, Amazon now offers the special edition CD for the same price as the regular CD oh wait, I’m sorry. The special edition CD is a penny more than the regular. *shaking my fist* You bastards. Seriously, no-brainer, there. Night Eternal Special Edition: sold. *ka-ching!* View shopping cart: Night Eternal Special Edition + book that I’ve wanted for ages. Both items covered by prime membership = free 2-day shipping for me, *ka-ching!* But… I don’t want to wait two whole days… I don’t believe in bit-torrenting [it goes against my nature as a musician]. Hmm… computer speakers and flash streaming just isn’t cutting it anymore, and it’s Friday night, dammit, I want to listen to Night Eternal now-now-now-now-now! [That was my Herman Munster tantrum]. Update shopping cart: full album MP3 download + Special Edition CD + book I’ve wanted for ages. *ka-ching!* Sold to the crazy pig-tailed metal head.

Sidebar: I Believe in Music Karma Faeries
Yes, it’s true: I purchased Night Eternal twice. It’s just a fact: my music consumption habits straddle two worlds, that of the physical collector, and that of the instant gratification digital consumer. It’s probably a good thing that I never got deeply attached to vinyl [love the sound, hate the warping]. So I admit, I do sometimes buy MP3s first, and then buy the physical CDs later. I double-dip. Into my wallet. For my favorite bands. I figure, enough people probably steal their music anyway, so I’d like to think that maybe I’m helping set the scales back into balance in some small way. I also figure, it can’t hurt to spread some good musician mojo around, right? Call it karma, and call it a day? While I’m confessing, I’ve done this for two other bands, at least. Stream of Passion, Apocalyptica and Dimmu Borgir… okay, three… no, four, including Moonspell. /Sidebar

Try the NIGHT ETERNAL Diet and Be Instantly Transformed!
BEFORE:

AFTER:

The Perfect Drug
After a difficult day at the loathsome 9-5, and then another eight hours working on Corvo, the work I’d rather be immersed in all day, I’d mapped out a perfect 16-hour work day exhaustion escape plan. I loaded up the CD player with my burned MP3s, turned off all the lights [except for that white-light holiday strand that's never unplugged], poured a glass of red wine, and soaked in the sounds of Night Eternal from a *proper* stereo [and a pretty f^cking loud one, too]. All this at around 2:30 AM. SO perfect. A little delirious from fatigue, slightly numb, very comfortable in the dark, and greatly in need of going someplace far, far away in my mind for a while. Of course, purring cats involved themselves in this escape plan… my cats love metal, it actually calms them.

…what’s so cool about Moonspell as artists, is that they’re not following the latest “Goffik trends,” this is just… who they are… and they just may “turn” you if you don’t cover your necks.

School of Metal
G9 was there next to me, so at times throughout the CD, “musician nerd-speak” would ensue, with talk of things like lyrics, mood, gear estimates, melodies, orchestral elements… like our own musical “In Search Of…” complete with mystery, theory and conjecture. Even when huge fans of a band, we still can’t help but treat the experience of a new album or new concert as school… we can’t help but wander down the path of, “How did they do that? Can we be that effective, and how?” [We draw the line at pocket protectors]. But with Night Eternal, the album was so gripping, we mostly enjoyed the journey together in silence, saving every musician’s note for when the musical notes took us to our final destination.

I Never Drink…
While listening to Fernando’s opening words of “At Tragic Heights” [from the book of Revelation, of course], the same image that hits me often when I hear his voice, hit me again: Gary Oldman’s Dracula. And I can’t help but imagine him [Fernando, not Gary] saying to me, “Welcome… to my…. hhhhh…home.” In this inner-dialogue, I omit the part about “I never drink… wine,” because I know for a fact that Fernando does indeed drink wine. [Wouldn't it be cool if he drank Corvo wine]? At any rate, water, wine, blood, Snapple… it doesn’t really matter what he drinks, it will not change the fact that Fernando Ribeiro is the reincarnation of Vlad Tepes… at least, Vlad’s inner rock-god… and Lestat, you’ve got nothing on my visions of Fernando rocking the impaler. *cough*

Six Feet Under the Influence
As each track unfolded, I swear, every time I opened my eyes, I was another foot under ground. By the end of the album, I was literally in a coffin. I don’t know where it came from, but there I was, clad in funeral garb, laying in a coffin. Cobwebs everywhere, doors squeaking for no reason… in unison… mice running across the ceiling, succubi eating babies all around me. It was… out. of. control. What I’m trying to say is that Night Eternal is Gothic as f^ck, people! But… in a very authentic way. Everything I love about Gothic art, architecture, literature and film is present in this album, and what’s so cool about Moonspell as artists, is that they’re not following the latest “Goffik trends,” this is just… who they are… and they just may “turn” you if you don’t cover your necks.

Night Eternal Re-Animated
The special edition CD arrived the following Tuesday, and I jumped around the house yelling, “a penny, a penny, a penny, a penny!” This CD is a thing of beauty. It’s a high quality digipak, very thoughtfully designed with the Devil in the details. It includes a wicked-cool keepsake sticker of the album cover, as well as a lyric booklet dripping with dark art and gorgeous band photos. As if the collector quality of the packaging isn’t enough, the special edition CD also includes three bonus tracks, and a DVD, complete with three live performances from Wacken Open Air, including fan-favorite Finesterra, and one of my favorites, Memento Mori [both from another Moonspell masterpiece, Memorial]. Along with live performance clips, the DVD includes the official video for Finesterra, a behind-the-scenes short video, and… and… the reason why I’m so happy I sprung for that extra penny and bought the special edition: the video for “Luna.” I swear, the bittersweet beauty of the tragically whimsical visuals and melancholic melodies swept me up into a black magic carpet-ride. No pixels, no fuzzy mono-tracks or sub-standard stereo coming from crap computer speakers… this is why I’m not quite convinced that Internet video will ever be a replacement for “real” TV. As “Luna” completed the viewing experience of Night Eternal, G9 turned to me and said, “Did they jump into our heads and rip that video right out of us?” Well… holy head like a hole, G-Man, I do believe they did.

In short, this is one of the best albums of the year, and definitely, one of the best ever by Moonspell. Do with that what you will.

So tell me: What do you think of Moonspell? Do you like the music? How about the videos? If not, why not? Do your pets like metal? Have you seen my teeth? [ Register -Free- To Comment on Moonspell and Metalhead Pets! ]

Warning: the last video in this playlist, “I’ll See You in My Dreams” is NSFW… that is, unless your boss doesn’t mind seeing decapitations, gore and zombies running about… [hey, if your boss doesn't mind, may I apply to where you work]?

I can’t help but look at that shot of Asia Argento in The Filth, and think to myself, with a father like that, who needs enemies? What a fascinating father-daughter dynamic. Not quite like my artistic father-daughter dynamic, in which we performed a duet of “Rainbow Connection” for my first ever opera audition. In later years, I think the craziest we ever got was when dad learned Over the Hills and Far Away on the guitar, and I sang like Robert Plant. But you know… if dad asked me to practically drown in entrails thirteen-plus hours a day, I’d gladly do it, because that would mean I’m starring in a Dario Argento film! What? You need to literally drill a hole into my cranium to get just the right blood squirt for this scene, and then insert a metal plate into my skull not to cover the hole, but to use the metal as an electric conductor for shooting 227,849 volts through my nose, so that when the killer tries to lobotomize me, he’ll blow up, and I’ll run around the room with my head on fire? Yes father, I’ll do it… because you’re Dario Argento and I’m starring in your film!

VIDDY-EWWW: Seen La Terza Madre? Did you survive? What did you think? Do you dare? [Register -Free- To Comment on La Terza Madre + Dario Argento!]

The depth of Asia’s filth and pain-threshold is astounding, and in La Terza Madre, I started to think, wow, she’s kind of getting through this one like she’s in a Jerry Bruckheimer film, or something… until the scene from that photo up there ^. Wow… it’s… a force of nature to watch her trudge through it all. Even though La Terza Madre is, as Dethklok would declare, f^cking brutal, complete with blood, boobs, impaling, baby eating and more [for one very low price], this film made me laugh. Out loud. A lot. I know, it’s totally sick, but I giggled like crazy through the whole thing. So what if all of Italy and the world gets raped, pillaged, and possessed by ancient demons, this is opera at its finest. As I watched old Mater Lachrymarum’s witch-brigade trolling about, acting like The Pïnkk Läydeez, I was reminded of the years I’d spent in opera performing in the women’s choruses. Part of the reason why I love Argento’s work so much is that I recognize that it’s Italian horror opera… maybe that’s why I’m able to take the brutality in-stride. You could say that death in vivid colors takes me back to fond memories of watching people die when I was in grade school… characters in my operas, sillies, not real people!

G9′S ARGENTO TOP 5:
Suspiria
Tenebre
Inferno
La Terza Madre
Deep Red

NiNi’S ARGENTO TOP 5:
Suspiria
La Terza Madre
Do You Like Hitchcock?
Pelts
Opera

Another reason Argento’s films resonate with me as opera, is the importance placed on the music. In La Terza Madre, Claudio Simonetti’s score delivers a powerful “character” to the film in what I would consider one of the best film scores ever made, and definitely up-to-snuff with his Suspiria score. The final [closing credits] track “Mater Lacrimarum,” performed by Daemonia, with guest vocalist Dani Filth, is a horror music masterpiece. When I first heard it, I just wanted to loop it over and over again for days… seriously… and I did!

On that [literal] note, I’ve enclosed Mater Lacrimarum herein for your listening pleasure.

If “Mater Lacrimarum” resonates with you, please show your support by visiting Daemonia on mySpace, adding them to your fiends list, listening to more [as G9 would say], melodies of horror, and downloading some free tracks! It’s Italian horror metal with progressive rock sophistication, and they’re truly one of our hugest inspirations.

Finally, for we who’ve been following these Argento witches for so many years, La Terza Madre goes out with a bang, providing perfect closure for The Three Mothers Trilogy, all the way down to casting Udo Kier and Daria Nicolodi [and of course, our beloved Asia]. Still, this film [much like Dario Argento] isn’t for everyone… how about you? [Register -Free- To Comment on La Terza Madre and Dario Argento!]

[ G9's Review of La Terza Madre Soundtrack ] [ G9's Exclusive Interview With Daemonia ]

Magic, mystery, love. It’s a book and now it’s a music video. Hear the original song for the summer’s blockbuster novel TURBULENT SEA by Christine Feehan. Find out more at
christinefeehan.com.
~COS Productions

I knew from the very beginning as we wrote Turbulent Sea that my voice would be synced up to a different person, and I’ll admit, at first, I felt a little apprehensive about it. However, it really didn’t take long for me to say, “NiNi get over it, this is done constantly in movies and on TV… Hello, Jonathan Davis and Lestat?!” When the video came out, I loved it immediately. After watching everything come together so perfectly for the book and the character “Joley,” I wouldn’t have wanted to marry the song and the video together in any other way.

I really love the unique look to this video, and am very proud to share it here as a follow-up to the posting of the song. It’s so amazing to say that we wrote the music to the video to the new novel by Christine Feehan. It’s never been done before, and truly, the most satisfying art for myself and for G9 is the work that we take on because it’s never been done before… that’s really what Corvo is all about. -NiNi

[TURBULENT SEA Video - Podcast Link]

Can I steal your mind for a while?
Can I stop your heart for a while?
Can I freeze your soul and your time?
Scorpion flower, Token of death
Ignite the skies with your eyes
And keep me away from your light

Surrender tears to your mortal act
Flower cursed be thy fruit
Of your courage last
Of your grand finale
Flower crushed in the ground
In your empty heart
In the breast that feeds
Flower worn in the dark
~From SCORPION FLOWER, Moonspell Featuring Anneke van Giersbergen

If you only have time to listen to one track on this widget, I highly recommend Scorpion Flower [track #4] featuring the amazing voice of Anneke van Giersbergen. To stream the album, just click on the middle “slot” when you mouse over the widget image. You can click on individual songs… the player doesn’t confine you to listening to the whole album, although… if listening to the whole album is “confinement,” throw away the key, because in my opinion, this is a perfect album… at least, perfect for me!

My thoughts in “real time” as I listened to the stream:

Holy Jeebus, I’m only on track one ["At Tragic Heights"] of Moonspell’s new album, Night Eternal, and I’ve already decided to buy it the moment I get paid Friday. See? Label streams entire album online, consumer is willing to buy said album. It’s called “the new era of music sales,” and it’s really not that difficult to let people listen for free as part of the whole purchasing experience. Of course, it’s gotta be a great album if the label’s confident enough to let people “try before they buy,” so that alone is a no-brainer for we who devour music… free online album streams and embeddable widgets are the new “perceived value” of music pricing. But enough with my “industry research” observations and onto the album…

Oh wow, [ex-The Gathering's] Anneke van Giersbergen [one of my vocal heroes] contributes to the song “Scorpion Flower?” Right on! I’m really digging the female vocal seasonings throughout the album… I’m going to spring for the special edition if it hasn’t already sold out. I’ll definitely do a follow-up on the actual [physical] CD soon…

Make no mistake about it, we plan to “try before buy” Telltale… wonder where we could score a nifty l’il widget like this one? I bet SPV had to pay a pretty penny to MySpace for it… but what a worthwhile investment.

On Track #3 now, and wetting my pants… I looooove this album!

The flash player is of exceptional audio quality, too.

Uh oh… now on Anneke’s song, “Scorpion Flower”. It’s breathtaking! I would buy the album just for this song alone. [Loved it so much, had to post the lyrics].

Finished the album stream: fantastic, fantastic, fantastic!

… what would be really interesting for people to see is how beautiful things grow out of shit. ~Brian Eno

From Daniel Lanois’ film, Here is What it Is, this musing from Brian Eno is so… real and so inspiring, I had to share it here. -NiNi
—————
Daniel: I’m trying to make a film that’s… beautiful in itself, about beauty, about the source of the art, rather than… everything that surrounds the art… and… I was hoping you might say a couple of words about that subject matter, because you’ve always operated in a relatively quiet way, and yet, you’re like a world artist…

Brian: Well, I tell you, one thing I would say about your film is that… what would be really interesting for people to see is how beautiful things grow out of shit.

Daniel *Laugh*

Brian: Because… nobody ever believes that. You know… everybody thinks that Beethoven had his string quartets completely in his head, that it somehow appeared there and formed in his head, and all he had to do was write them down, and they would kind of be manifest to the world. But… I think what’s so interesting… and what would really be a lesson that everybody should learn is that… things come out of nothing. Things evolve out of nothing. You know? The tiniest seed in the right situation turns into the most beautiful forest, and then, the most promising seed in the wrong situation turns into nothing. And… I think this would be important for people to understand because it gives people confidence in their own lives to know that that’s how things work. If you walk around with the idea that there are some people who are so gifted, that they have these wonderful things in their head, but you’re not one of them, you’re just sort of… a “normal” person, that you could never do anything like that, then… you live a different kind of life, you know? You could have another kind of life where you can say, “Well, I know that things come from nothing very much and start from unpromising beginnings, and… I’m an unpromising beginning and I could start something.

Special thanks to all of you that have downloaded the song and sent us such lovely compliments on mySpace! To the wonderful Christine Feehan fans that have found your way to us:

A WARM WELCOME TO YOU ALL!

*Update: Here’s one of my favorite photos of Eicca, snapped at the concert. My “front-and-center head banging buddy” Shelby took a bunch of photos and some great videos and shared them with me for this… well, it’s turned into a short film about the show, really.

I had read in several places that House of Blues was really bad about not letting cameras enter the premises, so I didn’t bring one… well, wouldn’t you know it? They didn’t seem to be enforcing that on this night. Well, it turns out, I met a new Apocalyptica friend, and thanks to her, I’ve got some great stuff to work with as I continue my “Apocalyptica Fan Documentary.”

Also, read G9’s review of the Apocalyptica House of Blues Dallas [05.12.08] show at FEARnet. He captured the night so beautifully. I think I’ll be finished with the video by the weekend at the very latest. *squeee!*

[By the way, you can click the photo to enlarge it a bit.]

1985 Presents…
The Debut EP by SNATCH:
If The Party is in Your Mouth…We’re Coming!

Now… why only one debut EP in the Snatch discography? I know why: they were actually way ahead of their time. Had mySpace existed in 1985, these guys would have exploded [ew] onto the scene… I don’t even need to hear their music to know this.

Special thanks to [ Metal Mark ] for helping me set such a high precedent in this very first edition of *drum stick twirl* Bad Hair [Band] Day.

Click the image to enlarge… if you dare.