May 22, 2015 - You Would Think Randy Would Learn...

  • Published in 2015

Bloody RandyWe kicked the show off with a few classic tracks from the legendary Ronnie James Dio. Hard to believe that five years have already passed since his death, but what's not so hard to believe is the musical legacy he left behind. He'll never be forgotten!

Sadly, Joe and I weren't able to share our memories of that Septic Flesh/Moonspell show in Rochester, as our interview didn't pan out. Instead, he and I went out to Donselaar's for the first night of Finger Lakes Metal Fest. Honestly, probably the right choice, considering the awesome performances we were able to check out that night!

Yep, Finger Lakes Metal Fest 2015 has come and gone, and what a great time it was! I mean, there were certainly no doubts, because Metal Fest is always a blast, but I will now go on record to say that the 10th anniversary was among the best of them!

Randy (or RJ as he likes to be called) from Thirteen South even came out to share some of his memories of the day. As a matter of fact, we dubbed him Mr. Metal Fest, due mostly for his involvement not only with his band, but also because he joined Blood Snot on stage to provide vocal support. For the record, Blood Snot doesn't actually have a regular vocalist, and RJ was improvising lyrics off the top of his head. Pretty fucking impressive, when ya think about it... He also paid a visit to the stage during Ire Clad's set to provide some backing vocals to "Force It Down", which is always a blast to watch! So, yes, many fond memories of Finger Lakes Metal Fest 2015 were shared, and we all agree that we're looking forward to seeing it continue another ten years and beyond!

That was the happy portion of the show...

Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse when I was once again thrown under the bus for smoking. Now, I've actually been pretty good about keeping the habit under control, but as I've said before, I tend to crave tobacco strongly when I'm in social settings. Don't know why this is, really, but in the interest of not being a mooch, I will usually purchase a pack to float me by, especially when I know there are a number of shows coming up in a short period. And, I get the fact that the guys are really just looking out for my well-being, I really do! But, come on... I mean, I've heard of tough love, but these guys take it to a whole new level, as was already proven when Joe clotheslined me through a table last November. (Yes, the video is on our website...) This time was perhaps a bit less brutal... or not... hard to say. It certainly wasn't pleasant. First off, Azkath bloodied me up with a rusty chain, and I would have said that was punishment aplenty... but, these guys LOVE to go to extremes, so in the interest of "cleaning the wound", he liberally poured peroxide into the wound... and followed it up with rubbing alcohol... and, because that must not have seemed like it was good enough, he poured on some lighter fluid next. He then struck a match, and turned me into Ghost Rider for about 30 seconds...

I hate to sound like a broken record, but I sure am glad that clones heal quickly.

- Randy Metalwulf

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April 24, 2015 - RJ frames Randy

  • Published in 2015

RJ Visits

Recap by Randy "MetalWulf" Smith
 
An early topic of discussion centered around some recent shows that were attended by us.
First case in point was the Nightwish show in Buffalo that Josh and I attended at the Town Ballroom that also featured Sabaton and Delain. Can't describe how awesome that show was, although we only really got to hear Delain as they wrapped up the last few songs of their set. They sounded pretty tight from where we were, though! Sabaton were incredible, and got an amazing response from the Buffalo crowd. Honestly, the guys seemed very humbled by the fans reaction. Nightwish were just flat-out amazing. Probably one of the best live bands on the planet, and I highly recommend seeing them if they ever roll through your town! 
Of course, Joe had to get a bit of ball-busting in by suggesting we'd actually gone to see Nightwish On Ice, a joking reference to the band's reputation for performing "Disney Metal". He'd even gone so far to refer to me as a "Pretty Disney Princess", but I just take it with a grain of salt, mostly. I know Nightwish isn't everybody's cup of tea, and that's okay!
While Josh and I were in Buffalo, Rick was at the Rapids Theater in Niagara Falls with my brother Bill and his awesome girlfriend, Annie, where they took in Testament and Exodus, along with Shattered Sun. Testament's been performing both The Legacy and New World Order in their entirety on this tour, and I have it on good faith that that, also, was a solid show from all bands involved!
A couple nights later, Joe, Rick, Josh, and myself were all in Rochester to catch Death Angel and Corrosion Of Conformity Blind at the Montage Music Hall. Great sets from both bands, and we were fortunate enough to get interviews with both Ted Aguilar from Death Angel, and Karl Agell from CoC Blind, both of which you can currently view on my YouTube page (Randy MetalWulf).
 
For months we'd been anticipating the evening when Azkath fired up the old Intellivision that's set up in our new digs, and this was the night we got to get our game on! Yep, we delved into some old-school 4-bit awesomeness with Kool-Aid Man, Masters Of The Universe, and Astrosmash...none of which I seemed to be able to excel at, but it was still damned fun!
 
RJ from Thirteen South had dropped in for a visit, which had Jeffie in a bit of a panic. As a matter of fact, Azkath had been hanging with us for a bit, and had mentioned that Jeffie was hesitant about coming out, knowing that RJ was possibly making an appearance. But, when it seemed like RJ may have been a no-show, Jeffie showed up and was enjoying some Intellivision time of his own.
But, RJ showed up, making Jeffie a little uncomfortable. Some may remember that Jeffie had the crap beaten out of him by RJ awhile back while we were still at WEOS. This happened because Jeffie had touched RJ's chin, not a good idea as it turned out. Well, RJ has since grown a beard, and Jeffie just couldn't keep his hands to himself, which is often the case. He touched the beard, and RJ started throwing Jeffie around the room like a ragdoll. 
Gotta say, the evening ended on a bit of a mixed blessing. On the plus side, RJ pulled a knife and dragged Jeffie outside, screaming at us on the way out the door, "YOU GUYS DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING!!!"
A few moments later, RJ came back in alone, wiping blood from the knife...before putting it into my hand, making sure my fingerprints were all over it...
And, to make matters worse, Joe, Rick, and Josh all left the building in a hurry, as I was left holding the knife, with the sound of the Hamster Dance (the music that usually accompanies a Jeffie death) playing, followed soon thereafter by the sound of sirens.
Yep, I got out of Dodge damned quick, and have been layin' low, hoping this all blows over... 
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