Bah, humbug! Christmas has come and gone, and hopefully next year King Diamond’s wish will come true. No presents for Christmas…
It’s been a month since his open heart surgery, according to his wife Livia’s posting at the official King Diamond website (covenworldwide.org), and thankfully his recovery is coming along well. Listen to the King belt it out, and please send your well-wishes, prayers and thoughts to the man of metallic royalty.

Love,
Jay H. Gorania

Tomorrow’s big game is against the Alouettes once again, an opportunity for the ultimate revenge, and surely, the metal gods will lead the Riders to victory tomorrow. Real men listen to metal, and real men eat wheat. Go Riders!!!

“Late afternoon in Helena, members of several bands embarked on a hike toward some lush, mountainous terrain next to a lake. Granted, a sign did indicate the lake was technically closed, but we drove up the hill quite a distance before getting out to hike. When we finally arrived at the lake, it was beyond satisfying. It wasn’t the most breathtaking body of water by any means, not that it was bad, but compared to the daily atmosphere of a smoky bar with ear-exploding metal music, the serenity offered a welcomed change of pace.”

Jay H. Gorania returns with another installment of his tour diary with Cephalic Carnage. In today’s feature, he discusses Denver businessmen, the landscape (and womanscape) of Salt Lake City, vigilante justice and campfire stories. Enjoy!

“Indeed, while nonsense and debauchery had definitely gone hand-in-hand with the entire Summer Slaughter tour, it wasn’t all fun and games, as some might assume. With a ten-band package, shows were early. Very early. Load in times were normally around one, doors were normally 3-ish. This means that almost immediately after shows were over and odds and ends were sorted, it was time to embark upon the journey to the next town (and the tour’s routing had been far from perfect, to say the least).”

Hellbound’s Jay H. Gorania joined Relapse Records’ Cephalic Carnage for a leg of their North American tour, and gave us an inside scoop on vehicle breakdowns, public change rooms and inter-dimensional contact.

After battling the cancer that he was diagnosed with late last year, Ronald James Padavona (better known to his passionate fans as Ronnie James Dio) succumbed to his illness earlier today. He was 67 years old.

His self-deprecating nature, dark sarcastic/satirical humor, and brilliant wit lent to his lyrical genius and powerful onstage persona. He was fearlessly politically incorrect, and brutally honest. His bass playing and songwriting meshed the class of The Beatles with the bottom-heavy bombast of Black Sabbath. And of course his bass/baritone vocals were distinct, powerful and memorable. No one sounds like Type O Negative, and no one sounded like Peter Steele. And yet their influence upon heavy music is simply immeasurable.

The Endless Blockade took over with an electronic-noise enhanced set that was a bit more varied, and was arguably even more unrelenting. Their singer constantly confronted the crowd, moving as deep into the sweaty mass as he could. Keep in mind, there wasn’t much floor space to work with, and there was no stage. Just like a basement show, they were sandwiched next to the crowd who was standing on the same floor. Even this guy felt the need to constantly engage with me, running directly into me at least five times.

Why does everyone always pick on me?

Jay Gorania recaps his take on this year’s SXSW Music Festival. In this second entry, he reviews the Profound Lore Records/20 Buck Spin showcase as well as sets by The Atlas Moth, Rwake and Weedeater.

Austin’s 6th Street area is the performance location for much of the musical side of South by Southwest—a massive interactive, film and music conference and festival. Historically, unsigned bands came to get noticed by suit ’n tie record label reps; however as it has evolved, signed underground and mainstream bands have dominated showcases, and schmoozin’ and boozin’ is underway as backroom deals and negotiation unfolds. Hell, it’s gotten to the point that Metallica played last year.

Jay Gorania recaps his take on this year’s SXSW Music Festival. In this first entry, he reviews the Relapse Records showcase as well as sets by Torche, Goes Cube and Goatwhore.