Friday, August 23, 2013

The Fears and Phobias of Famous People; Birds Abide By Speed Limits Of Roads; How Much Musicians Earn Online; Artist Crosses Babies with Puppies; Orbits of Every Possibly Hazardous Asteroid to Earth; Pictures of Titanic In Colour; Cheetah vs Greyhound in Slow Motion; If I Fits, I Sits - Animals in Objects Video


The Fears and Phobias of Famous People

It seems celebrities are just like you and I, who would have known right? I just wanted to share my favourites from a list of some of the weirdest and surprising phobias that some celebrities and famous people in time have. Before that though, comment and tell me what phobias you have. I for one have coulrophobia, arachnophobia, and necrophobia.

The designer of the famed Eiffel Tower, Gustave Eiffel has acrophobia, a fear of heights.

Megan Fox has papyrophobia, meaning she hates paper. She says it is more of like a person’s dislike from the sound of scratching fingernails on a blackboard and that it is not a full phobia. Megan also explains that while reading a script or book, she has to have a paper cup so she can wet her fingers when she needs to turn the page because she hates dry paper.

Matthew McConaughey has two phobias, as he has orbitagoraphobia and a variation of claustrophobia. Orbitagoraphobia means he is afraid of revolving doors, as he will not get near one. The variation of claustrophobia comes from his fear of tunnels. He is not afraid of being in a tunnel, but more so a fear of entering them.

Johnny Depp, surprisingly in my opinion, shares a similar phobia as me since he has coulrophobia and is afraid of clowns. He explains: “There's something about the painted face, the fake smile. There always seems to be a darkness lurking under the surface, a potential for real evil.”

Christina Ricci is afraid of houseplants, so I guess you could call that house botanophobia. Ricci is also reasonably afraid of swimming alone in pools, but her reasoning is quite hilarious as she imagines “a magic door is going to open and a shark is going to come out.” Who knows, it may be a shark but it could be an alligator or maybe even a killer whale.

James Bond, Agent 007, or more commonly known as Roger Moore blinks uncontrollably when he picks up a gun.

Both Fredric Chopin, the composer, and Hans Christian Anderson, the storyteller, have taphophobia, the fear of being buried alive. In a unique way to make sure his fear didn’t happen to him, Andersen left a sign near him wherever he fell asleep. It read that he was not dead, but that he just looked as if he was and he was sleeping.

Woody Allen is afraid of many things and this list includes: spiders (arachnophobia), showering in a shower where the drain is in the middle of the tub, stage fright (topophobia), sunshine (phengophobia), children (pedophobia), hotel bathrooms, cancer (carcinophobia) and other diseases, heights (hypsiphobia), crowds, and small rooms.
Last but certainly not least, I’m not entirely sure how anyone could hate cats but many leaders and conquerors did as Julius Caesar, Napolean Bonaparte, Alexander the Great, and Benito Mussolini all had ailurophobia.

Birds Abide By Speed Limits Of Roads

Apparently, in a new study found in the latest issue of Biology Letters, scientists have discovered that birds might in fact pay attention to the speed limits of roads. The scientists have found that some birds of Europe determine when they should take off by factoring in the average speed of the traffic. It was tested by seeing whether the birds changed their escape distances based on the approaching car’s speed or the speed limits of that road. Pierre Legagneux, the study co-author and biologist of the Rimouski based Canada’s University of Quebec, said that he thought of the idea for this experiment while driving to his France based lab. He stated: “I found [the commute] very boring so I had to do something while driving, so I started to record birds flying away.”

The way he conducted the experiment only used a stopwatch and a note, as he started measured the time it took for the birds to react on the edge of the road. He did this in regions where the speed limit of that road was between 20 to 110 kilometers per hour or 12 to 70 miles per hour for ‘Muricans. Legagneux goes on to explain: “When the birds flew away, I started my timer and I fixed the point where the birds [were standing]. And when I passed over this point, I stopped my timer. So I had the time elapsed, and because I also recorded our vehicle speed, I also had the distance.”

Along with his colleague from McGill University, Simon Ducatez, they found that birds took flight earlier if they saw that the car approaching them was in an area where there was a higher speed limit. This was most common in carrion crows, house sparrows, and blackbirds. The birds actually did not pay attention to the individual car, but as Legagneux says “they reacted the same way no matter the speed of the car.”

There is speculation, by the scientists, that a combination of two things that happen during their experiment. It begins with the face that this might just be natural selection where birds that can’t take off with enough haste then they are killed. This way, birds that make their flight and manoeuvre away from the oncoming traffic must has traits strong enough to reproduce. Legagneux says the other possibility is that from trial and error, if they’re lucky, the birds will learn to adapt to the speeds of traffic.

At the Los Angeles based University of California, a biologist and bird behaviourist by the name of Daniel Blumstein explained that he can plainly see that the birds are learning from the experiences with traffic. If there was a scenario where a bird was gathering supplies for living and a truck drives by, Blumstein said: “If the truck is moving fast, the bird is going to get knocked around by the vortices coming off that truck. So the bird, if it survives, is going to learn very quickly that the truck produced a very adverse experience ... One or a few trials of getting knocked around may be sufficient for the bird to learn that cars are approaching faster on certain roads than other roads.”

Legagneux believes that his findings may be able to implicate safer roads for wildlife to live around and he states: “If you have different speed limits for similar roads in similar landscapes, it could be dangerous for birds because they hardly have any cues of those changes.”


Now for some interesting and weird things I thought you should know about as well. Here is an interesting infographic for musicians. It shows how much you have to sell to make monthly minimum wage.


Let's get the weird out of the way. Enjoy these pictures of dogs crossed with babies. Would you own a petchild?


This next picture is of orbits of every possibly hazardous asteroid to Earth, all 1400 of them. Luckily, they shouldn't be a threat in our lifetime (next 100 years) and NASA is working towards tracking them to find a more precise prediction of when they will be.


Enjoy these beautiful pictures of the Titanic in colour. If you want to view the rest, go here.




Here is a video comparing the speed of a cheetah against that of a greyhound in slow motion.


Here is another video of animals fitting themselves in small objects.


Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Review of "Conceived In Sewage" by Devourment

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1. Legalize Homicide
2. Fifty Ton War Machine
3. Conceived In Sewage
4. Fucked With Rats
5. March to Megiddo
6. Today We Die, Tomorrow We Kill
7. Heaving Acid
8. Carved Into Ecstasy
9. Parasitic Eruption

Dallas, Texas’s DEVOURMENT are without question extreme metal’s most brutal purveyor’s of filth.  With a rabid following throughout the world, DEVOURMENT’s return to the scene with their Relapse debut ‘Conceived In Sewage’ is bar none the most punishing record of 2013.  Every aspect of this record is thoroughly and awesomely depraved—from it’s monstrously slamming and catchy riffs to the disgusting lyrics burped out of lead growler Mike Majewski’s throat to the absolutely abhorrent album art to the over the top production by Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal).  ‘Conceived In Sewage’ is pure, hateful, muscle bound death-metal---exactly what you’ve been waiting for.  This is the kind of record your mother warned you about. 

Sludgy greatness starts this album off with face punching grooves and powerful drumming with the track “Legalize Homicide,” and bringing dirty slams on this as well.  I never really liked or gave Devourment a chance, but this track alone made me a fan. Sick blast beats and fast gnarly riffs make the next track, “Fifty Ton War Machine,” incredible. The gut wrenching vocals and awesome slammy grooves also make your ears bleed on this. “Conceived In Sewage,” title track, might be one of my favourites. It is very catchy the way it flows and the riffs are fantastic. Also, it has a great combination of slow slam and in your face shreds. The track title of this next one is just as brutal as the music, as “Fucked With Rats” gives you dirty melodies and slow chugs. It is definitely another favourite of mine off this album.

An epic instrumental, “March to Megiddo,” comes next with sirens in the background as the drums do a snare march beat and the guitars melt your ears with chugs. “Today We Die, Tomorrow We Kill” makes me want to mosh until my apartment is reduced to rubble. It is such a sick track, with speed, precision, and slam, bringing you the best Devourment has to offer. With grim riffage and gruelling vocals, “Heaving Acid,” brings you an excellent listen. It’s mostly about the slam but that makes this track so good. Another track to tear your ears apart with the sick riffs and dirty vocals is “Carved Into Ecstasy.” When the snare and guitar share rhythm, I thought it sounded really badass. Definitely an eruption of many sorts is “Parasitic Eruption,” as this album ending track explodes as it gives you everything you know and love from Devourment. It smacks you in the face while you throw down to their slams and mosh to their shreds.

Through high school, I wasn’t very big into the death side of the metal genre. Although I did dabble into Disgorge and Cryptopsy, I didn’t enjoy overly brutal bands back then. Opening up to all sorts of subgenres of metal, I have found a new liking for death metal and the speed and slams that come with it. Devourment gives you both of those things and do it with such elegance and perfection which sums up their talent on this album, “Conceived In Sewage.” If you haven’t checked this album out already, I don’t know what’s wrong with you.


Monday, August 19, 2013

Spotlight: Olympus Has Fallen (Gerard Butler, Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman)


An ex-Special Forces operative and former presidential bodyguard must fight to take back the White House from terrorists who have kidnapped the Commander in Chief in this high-stakes action thriller directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, Shooter) and starring Gerard Butler. In the aftermath of a tragic accident involving the president (Aaron Eckhart) and the first lady (Ashley Judd), Secret Service agent Mike Banning (Butler) is handed his walking papers. When a powerful terrorist group seizes command of the White House and takes the president hostage, the entire nation watches as the Speaker of the House (Morgan Freeman) becomes the acting president, and plans his response. Meanwhile, Banning finds himself trapped in the White House as it comes under siege from all sides. With no choice but to fight back against the heavily-armed invaders, Banning must rely on his extensive knowledge of the building to rescue the president, and prevent the situation from spiraling into all-out war.


Gerard Butler (Playing for keeps, Machine Gun Preacher, The Bounty Hunter) as Mike Banning
Aaron Eckhart (Battle: Los Angeles, Rabbit Hole, The Dark Knight) as President Benjamin Asher
Morgan Freeman (The Dark Knight, RED, Invictus) as Speaker Allan Trumbull
Angela Bassett (Jumping the Broom, ER, Akeelah and the Bee) as Lynne Jacobs, the Director of the Secret Service
Rick Yune (The Man with the Iron Fists, Ninja Assassin, Alone in the Dark II) as Kang Yeonsak
Dylan McDermott (Hostages, The Campaign, Dark Blue) as Dave Forbes
Finley Jacobsen (Marmaduke, Marley & Me) as Connor Asher
Melissa Leo (The Fighter, Frozen River, The Sea Is All I Know) as Secretary of Defense Ruth McMillan
Radha Mitchell (Sillent Hill, The Waiting City, Finding Nervland) as Leah Banning
Robert Forster (The Descendants, Diamond Men, Jackie Brown) as US Army General Edward Clegg,
Cole Hauser (The Hit List, Like Dandelion Dust, Tortured) as Agent Roma
Ashley Judd (Bug, Divine Stecrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Double Jeopardy) as Margaret Asher
Phil Austin (The Host, Final Destination, Chain Letter) as Vice President Charlie Rodriguez
James Ingersoll (Alligator, Back to School, Miday) as Admiral Nathan Hoenig
Freddy Bosche (Halo: Reach, The Iceman) as Agent Diaz
Lance Broadway (Undeliverable, Food Attack, Deadly Notes) as Agent O'Neil
Tory Kittles (Malibu’s Most Wanted, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, Miracle at St. Anna) as Agent Jones
Sean O'Bryan (Jump Rope Spirit, Playing for Keeps, Heaven) as Ray Monroe
Keong Sim (Monday Mornings, Glee, The Last Airbender) as South Korean Prime Minister Lee Tae-Woo


From the trailers of this movie and since I never paid any attention from them, I thought this was going to be another aliens in the United States again. Now although I am glad that it wasn’t, since I have seen enough of those, the idea of the White House being taken over wasn’t to appealing to me. I did like the plot but it just didn’t seem to keep me as interested as I was hoping for. Since the scene is pretty early on , I don’t think I am spoiling much, but the way they killed off the mother to progress the plot just seemed really dull and boring. Gerard Butler is a complete badass hero as he traversed through the White House trying to kill the baddies and save the president. Rick Yune was quite a thrilling villain and was always serious and did some intense scenes. I also want to say Morgan Freeman made a great Speaker and he always is incredible no matter what he plays. All the cast were great and I did enjoy what they did, but I just feel as though the plot and how the movie progressed was extremely boring.


Spotlight: The Place Beyond the Pines (Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes, Ray Liotta)


The highly anticipated new drama from director Derek Cianfrance ("Blue Valentine") powerfully explores the consequences of motorcycle rider Luke's (Academy Award nominee Ryan Gosling) fateful decision to commit a crime to support his child. The incident renders him targeted by policeman Avery (Golden Globe Award nominee Bradley Cooper), and the two men become locked on a tense collision course which will have a devastating impact on both of their families in the years following.


Ryan Gosling (Gangster Squad, The Ides of March, Drive) as Luke Glanton
Bradley Cooper (The Hangover, Silver Linings Playbook, Limitless) as Avery Cross
Eva Mendes (Girl in Progress, Holy Motors, The Other Guys) as Romina
Ray Liotta (The  Devil’s in the Details, Killing Them Softly, The Details) as Peter Deluca
Ben Mendelsohn (The Dark Knight Rises, Trespass, Killer Elite) as Robin Van Der Zee
Rose Byrne (X-Men: First Class, Bridesmaids, Insidious) as Jennifer
Mahershala Ali (Predators, Crossing Over, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) as Kofi
Bruce Greenwood (The Summit, Star Trek, The Challenger) as Bill Killcullen
Dane DeHaan (The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Kill Your Darlings, Jack & Diane) as Jason
Emory Cohen (Four, The Hungry Ghosts, Afterschool) as AJ Cross
Harris Yulin (Nikita, My Soul to Take, The People Speak) as Al Cross
Robert Clohessy (Oz, Boardwalk Empire, Blue Bloods) as Chief Weirzbowski
Olga Merediz (Changing Lanes, K-Pax, Evita) as Malena


This is an astounding film; the way it sets itself up and progresses through its plot is just perfect. Save for the length, being nearly two and a half hours long, it hits everything the story wanted to tell. The fact that the movie is basically three stories sort of relieves this issue. For a Ryan Gosling fan, I wasn’t really into his character in this movie. I think this had to do with his voice, as the annoying voice cracking that happened during his bank robbing scenes just made them feel so hilarious and not serious in the slightest. In any movie that is more serious than his comedy films, Bradley Cooper, is always impressive. Eva Mendes was pretty good in this, but I felt she wasn’t in the movie as much as she could have been. It was either that or I wasn’t paying attention. Emory Cohen and Dane DeHaan are great at acting like teenaged gangsters but when they start getting into more serious scenes, they really know how to act. If you have two and a half hours to spare, you should watch this as it tells a great story. It is an incredible film and tells an epic story of family legacy and moral choices.


Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Spotlight: We're The Millers (Jason Sudeikis, Jennifer Aniston, Emma Roberts, Will Poulter, Ed Helms)


David Burke (Sudeikis) is a small-time pot dealer whose clientele includes chefs and soccer moms, but no kids—after all, he has his scruples. So what could go wrong? Plenty. Preferring to keep a low profile for obvious reasons, he learns the hard way that no good deed goes unpunished when he tries to help out some local teens and winds up getting jumped by a trio of gutter punks. Stealing his stash and his cash, they leave him in major debt to his supplier, Brad (Ed Helms).

In order to wipe the slate clean—and maintain a clean bill of health—David must now become a big-time drug smuggler by bringing Brad’s latest shipment in from Mexico. Twisting the arms of his neighbors, cynical stripper Rose (Aniston) and wannabe customer Kenny (Will Poulter), and the tatted-and-pierced streetwise teen Casey (Emma Roberts), he devises a foolproof plan. One fake wife, two pretend kids and a huge, shiny RV later, the “Millers” are headed south of the border for a Fourth of July weekend that is sure to end with a bang.


Jason Sudeikis (Saturday Night Live, Hall Pass, Horrible Bosses) as David Clark
Jennifer Aniston (Horrible Bosses, Just Go with It, The Bounty Hunter) as Sarah "Rose" O'Reilly
Emma Roberts (Empire State, The Art of Getting By, Scream 4) as Casey Mathis
Will Poulter (Wild Bill, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Son of Rambow) as Kenny Rossmore
Ed Helms (Hangover, The Office, The Daily Show) as Brad Gurdlinger
Nick Offerman (Casa de Mi Padrea, 21 Jump Street, Parks and Recreation) as Don Fitzgerald
Kathryn Hahn (Our Idiot Brother, How Do You Know, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy) as Edie Fitzgerald
Molly Quinn (Castle, Superman: Unbound, Hansel & Gretel Get Baked) as Melissa Fitzgerald
Ken Marino (The State, Party Down, Childrens Hospital) as Todd
Tomer Sisley (Sleepless Night, Largo Winch, Truands) as Pablo Chacon
Matthew Willig as One Eye
Mark L. Young (Movie 43, Heroes, The Secret Life of the American Teenager) as Scotty P.


The opening screen has some funny viral videos from YouTube, which everyone has probably seen already. They always make people laugh regardless, but I do wonder how many people haven’t seen them before. That would have been interesting. We’re The Millers is an excellent comedy, which never gas a dull moment. There is always something to laugh at, which a movie of this genre should do. The last half an hour becomes more mushy emotion-filled but even that part was a nice addition. Nearing the end of the movie, I was getting curious as to what happened to the characters when everything was all said and done. I must say, I couldn’t think of a better way to conclude the film. Jason Sudeikis is always a great cast for a comedy and Jennifer Anistion, showing promise in Horrible Bosses, is a great choice for the female role. She also shows you can still be hot at her age, dancing in underwear in a few scenes. Everyone knows Ed Helms is funny, because of the Hangover trilogy, but you haven’t seen him as a villain, which he does well. Emma Roberts and Will Poulter are great teen casts for the film and are entertaining to watch.

Review of "The Eldritch Dark" by Blood Ceremony

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1. Witchwood
2. Goodbye Gemini
3. Lord Summerisle
4. Ballad of the Weird Sisters
5. The Eldritch Dark
6. Drawing Down the Moon
7. Faunus
8. The Magician

Since the release of their sophomore album, Living With The Ancients, Blood Ceremony has worked hard to solidify their reputation as a worthy live act. Beginning with a well-received showcase at the prestigious Roadburn Festival, the band capped-off a series of 2011 European dates with Sweden's GHOST, playing a sold-out, headline show in London, UK. In the fall of 2011, they completed their first headlining tour of Europe, which saw the band received enthusiastically by fans in Scandinavia and Central Europe. This tour culminated in a performance at the Hammer of Doom VI Festival in Wurzburg, Germany. In 2012 they were direct support for GHOST on the highly successful "13 Dates of Doom" North American tour. Later in 2012, Blood Ceremony performed at Calgary's celebrated NOCTIS V Metal Festival.

 "Only at a Blood Ceremony show are devil horns the correct response to a triumphantly raised flute." -- NOW MAGAZINE

After these live performances, Blood Ceremony enclosed themselves within a dank, tomb-like chamber to begin preparations for their third album. After a mind-numbing spell in the analogue womb of Toronto's ProGold Studios, the band is now ready to unveil their newest, and most accomplished, musical offering: The Eldritch Dark.

Recorded and mixed by producer Ian Blurton (Cauldron, Cursed) and mastered by Canadian recording legend Nick Blagona (Deep Purple, Rainbow, Crazy World of Arthur Brown), The Eldritch Dark is a full-length paean to the darker corners of folklore and legend. Containing eight tracks of black magic rock 'n' roll, the album crackles with the excitement of a nocturnal ritual.

Tales of witch-cult gatherings in wooded glens, pacts made in torch-lit abbeys and Victorian magic are accompanied by vintage-style hard rock riffs, snaking bass lines and stirring flute melodies. The Eldritch Dark also sees the band exploring a more folksier side of their sound; most evident in the hymn-like "Lord Summerisle" and the murderous folk-rock epic, "Ballad of the Weird Sisters". Nineteenth century sorcerer, Oliver Haddo, makes a return appearance in the riff-hypnotic album closer, "The Magician".

Great organ keys start the album off at the beginning of” Witchwood.” A really groovy heavy metal feel comes after, with great vocals. There is a cool keyboard solo half way through and I was wondering where the flute was and they throw a sweet solo at you near the end, that duals the guitar solo and even harmonizes which sounds so incredible. Blood Ceremony seems to have come a long way from their previous stuff. The flute and guitar was nice to start “Goodbye Gemini” and then the track picks up. I can definitely hear an improvement on Alia’s vocals, which sound exponentially better than the first album in my opinion. “Lord Summerisle” is a nice mellow folk sounding track with acoustic guitar and flute. There is male vocals on this one to accompany the female vocals, which seems like a nice fit for it. This track is amazing and is definitely one of my favourites.

The guitars had a really southern folk feel on “Ballad of the Weird Sisters” and even the vocals had a twang on them that felt a little southern as well. The flute is badass and has a nice little solo and the part it had with the guitar at the end was awesome sounding too. Some great old school doom feeling riffs followed on the next track, “The Eldritch Dark.” They really reminded me of the first Blood Ceremony album, but with a new feel to them. The vocals on this track had a really evil ring to them and overall this was definitely a darker track. “Drawing Down the Moon” had organ, bass, and guitar on the track that sounded so perfect together. I for sure heard cowbell, which is an obvious plus on any recording ever. The organ and guitar has some good solos. This is a really catchy track and also my favourite on the album.

A short instrumental track entitled, “Faunus,” follows with some flute, guitar, and bass jams. The bass has a really fantastic groove, especially when the guitar joined in on it, while the flute had a solo. The guitar took over and did another solo, giving all instruments their spotlight. An eight minute epic, “The Magician,” concludes the album, with doom and heavy metal riffs. The guitar and bass have some really groovy parts and there are nice guitar and flute solos as well. A really gloomy organ piece to follow and the slow guitar and drum beat really adds to the gloom feel.

It’s been quite some time since I have listened to Blood Ceremony and this album gives you many reasons to do so. In my opinion this is a large improvement on their sound and the band as a whole sounds a lot tighter. Alia’s vocals have gotten extremely better and even a little eviler in the way she sings. The guitars also seem a little heavier as well, giving the band a little more oomph. You should definitely check this out if you haven’t already.

Monday, August 12, 2013

Review of "Beg Upon The Light" by Venomous Maximus

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1. Funeral Queen
2. Path of Doom
3. Give Up The Witch
4. Father Time
5. Dream Again
6. Moonchild
7. Battle For The Cross
8. Venomous Maximus
9. Mother Milk
10. Hell´s Heroes

The Texan Dark Occult Metal outfit VENOMOUS MAXIMUS has already risen to the status of a heavy hitter in the depths of the underground. Now, the band is ready to finally unleash the album debut "Beg Upon The Light". Heavy riffs, driving drums create the perfect foundation for the musical and lyrical direction of the songs, which bring the enthralled listener into the realm of the Occult! The Texans turn the mix of Stoner and Doom Metal into a deadly blend that goes right into your blood. Pounding and powerful songs filled with energy set the stage for the glorious vocals of frontman Gregg Higgins, the grand marshal who leads through these occult hymns  "Beg Upon The Light" combines occultism, heavy riffs and the perfect Stoner attitude to create a pitch-black and irresistible album.

A great atmospheric organ keyboard track, by the name of “Funeral Queen,” starts off this album of doom metal perfection. Right of the bat, with “Path of Doom,” Venomous Maximus reminds me of Black Sabbath paving the way for their era’s heavy metal scene. Except now Venomous Maximus is doing the same for our era. With groovy old school riffs and a vocal style that is even like Ozzy Osbourne, these guys are on the right path to reinvent doom metal, pun shameless intended. The riffs on “Give Up The Witch” are really catchy and melodic, the vocals are great as well. I liked the short black metal like growl that happened every once in a while, it really made their doom feel more demonic. “Father Time” is a nice short melodic track with soft but raspy vocals. The mix of clean and aggressive vocals on “Dream Again” was awesome and the lead guitar parts were well done too.

The vocals just get better and better with each track and the next track, “Moonchild,” is no different. The guitars had a bit of a blues feel to them which adds to the fun. The build up on drums at the beginning of “Battle For The Cross,” with the ride cymbal and bass kick really got me excited for the rest of the track. I especially liked the guitar chugs. The beginning of the next track, the self titled “Venomous Maximus,” made me think they made this track just to say their band name, but this track is actually the best. This brings faster riffs, as well as great melodic and lead riffs. It also has the best vocals on the album. “Mother Milk” is a really mellow violin and acoustic track. The vocals came in a little over half way through the track. A seven minute long track to conclude the album, with “Hell´s Heroes.” Being so long, they had plenty of time to pull out all their tricks with melodic riffs, stellar leads, incredible cleans vocals, and evil screams.

This album really puts a new age twist on old school doom, as they mix the nostalgic riffs you got from bands such as Black Sabbath with heavier melodic jams. The vocalist definitely reminds me Ozzy Osbourne, as I stated above, but they throw in a more aggressive feeling to it. Venomous Maximus are incredible and you should pick this album up.


Saturday, August 3, 2013

Man Opens Nazi Cafe, Baffled that It Pisses People Off; Texas students fake GPS signals take control of an $80 million yacht; UC Davis Pepper-Spraying Cop Wants Worker’s Comp Because He’s That Guy; NSA college recruiting ad, 1976; Storms from Space; The Price of Being a Superhero in Real Life: Then & Now; The Early Character Sketches of Famous Movies; Inspiring Entries in Red Bull's Epic Photo Contest



Man Opens Nazi Cafe, Baffled that It Pisses People Off



The Holocaust, it’s delicious!

An Indonesian business man, Henry Mulyana, seems to think that it is okay to have opened a Nazi café, full of memorabilia. Two years ago, he opened his restaurant SoldatenKaffee (or “Soldier’s Café”) but since the English-speaking media has found out about this eatery, Mulyana has been getting death threats that have ultimately moved him to temporarily close it. The plan is to open the café back up, but to also include Allied items. Mulyana’s lawyer has said: “So there won't only be photos of Hitler, but Winston Churchill and Indonesian heroes too. There will be Japanese soldiers, not only German soldiers, and no swastikas.”

Mulyana claims that the theme of the establishment is of “World War II pop culture.” He further went on to explain at a press conference that “It's war-themed art that is neither an ideology, extremism, nor racism.” Although the website states: “Hitler & the Nazis in Pop Culture... Every Day! This WEB is not pro NAZI. It is matter of fact, with the intention of exploring Hitler & the NAZIS as pop culture Kaffee. The authors of the WEB are not NAZIS or neo-NAZIS, We are Indonesian with no political affiliations. The WEB & Kaffee are concept of World War 2 German and Collection. We are Special Birthday Cake maker n Wedding Cake, We made by order who want a different thing from the other. Please dont be shy :) to contact US”

The café and the Indonesian internet users seem to not understand the meaning of the whole impact of World War II. As Zen Rachmat Sugito explained to Boreno Bulletin: “Indonesians didn’t have a traumatic experience with Nazism. Nazism is a European taboo. There’s no Nazi-taboo in Indonesia, but it doesn’t mean we deny that the Holocaust happened.”

This seems not to just be secluded to Indonesia but over time, Nazi memorabilia and images have been seen in several Asian countries. Many of these people do not understand what those symbols mean historically. Mulyana went on to say: “I've received countless calls and death threats from locals and foreigners. I feel traumatized and shocked.”

He also says that he never denied the Holocaust or denied proof about the war being committed.



Texas students fake GPS signals take control of an $80 million yacht



It seems a professor at University of Texas, Todd Humphreys, along with his students have found a way to be able to hack a GPS system. What they have done is created a device which sends false GPS signals to ships, which then takes over the GPS signals that already exist on the ship. Thus gaining navigational control of not just a small boat, but a $80 million yacht. Why? Because they can!

Scientists that conducted this experiments, with permission from the yacht owner because you need that, say “their ability to broadcast counterfeit GPS signals that triggered no alarms within the ship’s navigation system highlights a serious flaw in transportation networks on land and sea. Some 90 percent of the world’s freight moves by sea.”

This will also most likely work on other semi-autonomous like aircraft, which is a scary though. The false GPS signals are not hard to deal with, as a published 2011 technical paper have proven. With how many people carry around devices such as smartphones with their GPS enabled, it might cause for problems at some point.


UC Davis Pepper-Spraying Cop Wants Worker’s Comp Because He’s That Guy




Because viral people always deserve money from their circumstances, John Pike, the Occupy UC Davis cop who pepper-sprayed protesters three years ago, wants money. Davis Enterprise is saying that Pike is appealing for worker’s compensation as the poor man claims he has psychiatric injury because of the incident. The case will go forward to a trial or further hearing, if no settlement is reached.

A Davis attorney, Bernie Goldsmith, who supported the Occupy movement has said a protest will most likely happen outside of the hearings. He also wrote in an email: “In an ideal democracy, violent suppressors of political speech are jailed and not rewarded. This sends a message that acts of violent political repression can be both insulated from real criminal prosecution and rewarded,”

A panel was held after the incident at Occupy Davis, which deemed the use of force was “reasonable,” but that Pike’s “serious errors of judgment and deficiencies of leadership” was enough for demotion or a suspension. He was given paid leave for eight months, down from his annual salary of a large $121,680, but he later left his duty on the police force all together.




Down below are some picture I found interesting this week.