The Howling

So. A new layout. And some new people on my friends list. Hello! *waves* And welcome. :)

Since I haven't updated in more than a month I have so much to write about that it's probably best to divide it to several posts, otherwise it'd be the longest and most confusing post ever.

Anyways... shadow_wolfess  was here for the weekend, as she attended Ruisrock (for those who don't know, Ruisrock is the second oldest rock festival in Europe and one of the oldest in the world having been held in my hometown every year since 1970) and was in need of a place to crash. 
It seems that with a press pass and a right amount of luck you can have some amazing experiences, judging by the things she told me about Friday night. Though without some balls and initiative I suppose you don't get very far, even if you have the luck of the Irish. :p
Anyway, as her Russian journalist friends left on Saturday already, I could have the press and backstage passes from one of them for Sunday. It was an interesting experience, although not as glamorous as some people might imagine.

I mean, I did love watching Gogol Bordello perform from the stage (with Lauri Porra and Timo Kotipelto from Stratovarius standing right next to me :D) for example, but all those musicians buzzing around the backstage are just people, having lunch and going to the loo just like anyone else. Talented/eccentric/charismatic people maybe, but people nevertheless. (Okay, maybe I would have been a bit more starstruck had I been there on Friday to see... not Corey Taylor or anyone from Slipknot or Disturbed, but Jaska Raatikainen from Children of Bodom. That guy just has this weird thing about him that makes me go all gooey anytime I even see a picture of him. Strange.) I don't know if I would have reacted differently to the Faith No More members, but guess I'll never know because they wanted everyone "extra" out of their backstage, including us who only had Slipknot stage passes. Ah well.

(Side note: If you ever get a chance to catch Gogol Bordello live, don't miss it! They're phenomenal live, a mere CD doesn't do justice to their music, they're a lot like Flogging Molly in that sense. And even though you perhaps couldn't guess it judging by his looks Eugene Hütz is one hella charismatic frontman, and all that frantic bouncing around the stage has given him an incredibly ripped, yet wiry torso. Yowza. Also the new longer hairstyle becomes him. But anyway, like Flogging Molly, they also seem to genuinely enjoy performing, which is lovely to see. :) So, go!)

But it's so funny, in that ironic way, that now that I have given up my aspirations to become a music journalist and don't really follow what's going on in the scene anymore, I'm offered a chance to become one. Just as an unpaid amateur - at first anyway - but still. I did make a tentative promise to Tanja to do some translation work and maybe some gig reports for them, but I don't know if I could handle being a full-fledged journalist, I'd certainly have to work on my self-confidence and social anxiety. *chuckle*

But we'll see... Now I'll leave you with this:


(Not recorded by us, we were already waiting for the boat at that point.)