Just really busy, hopefully putting some ranting and similar stuff on soon!

Well, the house is full again. Filling the spot for housemate #3 is your friend and mine, Matt Grover. It's cool having a familiar face in Cambs around and Chloe gets along with him, so thumbs up all around. Joseph is filling the role of housemate #4, and despite having only been around for less than 48hours, as already pissed both Chloe and I off with his (well, I suspect him anyway) near-flooding of the bathroom floor, which then dripped down into the kitchen. Having just left both, he then decides to turn the kitchen light on, having not deduced it may be covered in water. I could go on, but well, I don't see a fun-filled, joyous relationship developing.

Other news is that I've been told I'm not going to Newbury anymore. This is good on one hand as it means no more 4 hour journeys and stays in businessman filled hotels, but bad as I have to call them rather than talk directly (which I prefer) and I don't get to go to Yo! Sushi on the way home. Still, it probably is for the best given how much I complain going there is a waste of time.

Onto the purchase list!

1) Shuriken Cadaveric Entwinement - As the Shroud of Suffering Suffocates the Land cd.

2) Wormed - Planisphaerium cd.

3) Deaden - Displaying the Art of Carnage cd.

4) Splattered Mermaids - Stench of Flesh cd.

5) Embalmer - There Was Blood Everywhere cd.

6) Gorevent - Abnormal Exaggeration cd.

7) Vomitous/Inhuman Dissilency - split cd.

8) Human Mastication/Flesh Disgorged - split cd.

9) Queensryche - Operation: Mindcrime II cd.

10) Queensryche - Rage for Order cd.

11) Queensryche - The Warning cd.

12) Queensryche - Operation: Mindcrime (Deluxe 3disc version) cd.

13) Putrid Pile - Majewski design shirt.

14) Digested Flesh - Majewski design shirt.

15) Inhuman Dissilency - Majewski design shirt.

16) Vomitous - Majewski design shirt.

17) Sevared Records - Brutality Reigns shirt.

18) Splattered Mermaids - Logo shirt.

19) Infected Malignity - The Malignity Born From Despair shirt.

It appears that I'm still on my massive Queensryche worship trip, especially Operation: Mindcrime. I've got 2 versions of it on cd, 1 dvd and 2 vhs videos dedicated to this album, and I'm almost tempted to say it tops Dickinsons' Chemical Wedding as my favourite album. I'm getting worried as to how much my life rotates around music/ordering music, but hey, if I'm worried about that, it means I'm living an easy and problem-free life :).

I'll open this up by saying how great it was to see Nic again and spend time with her, for what was a great couple of days. I've realised I don't see her often enough and I really do miss her, so I'm hoping to go up and see her soon, especially since I now have a spare half day to take off from work.

Whilst that was happening, my sister Jenny has also come to stay for a few days. She goes back home tomorrow, but it's been great having her around, and with her and Nic staying, the house has been nice and full.

But alas, my machine has given it up and died. Mind you, it had a good innings and I got it for a great price so I'm not overly pissed off, just peeved as it means using a slower machine from either my work mate Bennett, or my Grandma's old machine.

Saying that though, I'll list what I did with the machine, and you yourselves can decide if I need a new monster machine, or a slower hand-me-down (1ghz - 1.8ghz).

* Internet.
* Viewing videos of the flesh.
* ipod stuff.
* Playing the Bards Tale (a 1985 RPG with a massively disappointing ending as I found out).
* Playing dvd.
* Atari ST emulation.

That's it. I play games on the PS2 so the PC isn't used for that apart from the excellent Overlord. My verdict is: slower machine rather than forking out for a monster.

Now, onto the purchase list!

* Queensryche - Hear in the Now Frontier cd.
* Queensryche - Promised Land cd.
* Queensryche - Video: Mindcrime vhs.
* Heart - If Looks Could Kill vhs.
* Within Temptation - The Silent Force cd.
* Stan Bush - In This Life cd.

Not a huge amount compared to how much I normally buy, but every little counts. I also get the feeling I like listing things.

I doubt anyone is even vaguely interested, but well, here it is anyway!

1) Rotten Sound - Murderlive dvd.

2) Dream Evil - Gold Medal in Metal dvd+cd.

3) Magnum - Live at Birmingham/Another Chapter, Another Verse dvd.

4) Foreigner - Agent  Provocateur: Remastered.

5) Heart - Jupiter's Darling.

6) Heart - If Looks Could Kill vhs.

7) Queensryche - Mindcrime at the Moore dvd.

8) Heart - Alive in Seattle dvd.

9) Malevolent Creation - Lost Commandments dvd.

10) Dimmu Borgir - The Invaluable Darkness dvd+cd.

11) Amon Amarth - With Oden On Our Side.

12) Within Temptation - The Silent Force.

13) Stan Bush - In This Life.

14) Europe - Europe In America vhs.

15) Europe - The Final Countdown vhs.

16) Def Leppard - Visualize vhs.

17) Def Leppard - 1993-1995 video archive vhs.

Amazingly enough, this list contains no shirts whatsoever. I'll have to change that soon.

Today marked the day where I finally obtained all the orginal studio albums (so that doesn't mean the covers album Yeah) of Def Leppard. Look out for an article on the BBC News site very soon.

Here I am down in Newbury again, learning the tricks and trades of the Tandata systems. For those that I haven't moaned to yet, Tandata supply the flight detail displays and other such things at airports, so yes, come the new year, if those don't work, you know who to blame.

Other than that, I made a few purchases last night that were not cd's! Amazing I know.

1) "Iron Maiden: A Photo History" by Ross Halfin. From the description, it's a collection of well-known to rare photos of Iron Maiden as taken by, obviously, Ross Halfin. Looks well presented and professional, and should be something good to skim through every now and again.

2) "Killustraitons" by Mark Riddick. For those that don't know, Mark Riddick is an amazing (to me at least) artist that has done some great illustrations for some great bands including Hirax, Hour of Penance and Devourment. Whilst not my favourite Metal artist of all time (that award goes to Mike Majewski or Dan Seagrave), I wanted to get some collection of his work, plus, like the Maiden book, it'll be good to skim through. An added bonus is that this will make me look 'cultured' in case a lady pops round, but who also happens to like vomiting corpses, skeletal clergymen and the like. If you're going to say one thing about me, say I'm a ladies man ;).

http://www.riddickart.com/

Oooohhh, whilst on the Mark Riddick myspace, I saw this...



I'm definitely buying that bad boy when it comes out.

Yes, one and all, this is going to be a real entry, not just some "just testing" malarky.

Well, what to put eh? Firstly, it's been two days since I've been out in Belfast and my neck is still killing me. It is now quite obvious that there has been a distinct lack of bouncing around and headbanging to dangerous levels as I didn't do as much as I normally do down at the Kambar, or even at gigs, which shows just how sparse a good chunk of my social life has been. Apart from that, 'twas a fun weekend and it will hopefully be repeated next year or so when I have some holiday to spare.

To keep track (and kinda boast/worry people) of what cd's/music-related stuff I buy and eventually get through the post, I'm going to put them up on here and then give some kinda review later, but without the self-made youtube video cheeseyness. Mainly because my recorded voice sounds terrible.

1) Evergrey - Torn

2) Magnum - On a Storytellers Night

3) Magnum - Vigilante

4) Magnum - Wings of Heaven

5) Shadowman - Different Angles

I'm guessing that most people who will read this have heard of Evergrey and Magnum, but how many have heard of Shadowman? Well, it features Steve Overland (ex-FM vocalist), I'm a fan of FM, it was only £1.04 or so, and I thought I'd take the risk so to speak. Haven't given it a spin yet due to the amazing new Evergrey disc, but hopefully will do tomorrow.

That's it. I have a few bits and bobs to moan about, but daren't as I don't know who will read this. Nobody is probably the answer.

...make a proper entry at some point.

This is just a test to see if this works.