Despondent Souls

Louisville was a good show but the circumstances surrounding it definitely could have been better. We nearly died of exposure in the van during our meager four hours of sleep and when I pulled the van up to parallel park in front of the club I failed to see the tiny Ford Focus parked on our right and sideswiped it. Fortunately the owner was a nice college girl in a neighboring coffee shop who was ambivalent about the damage but I was mad at myself all the same. This is why you always purchase the insurance coverage on rental vehicles. The coffee shop itself was a comfortable place to relax and recharge, and the management even allowed us to use their bathroom to change into our gear. Bob and Steve from Immolation broke into uproarious laughter when they saw us emerging from the shop in full regalia. It is an understatement to say that we would have a much easier time if we decided to stop wearing the corpse paint, but that will never happen so we have no choice but to take advantage of any mirrors and lockable doors that are offered to us.

The show itself was well-attended and we were greeted with another fervent crowd. For some reason my wireless unit died during “Battle's Clarion”, I had no vocals in the mix, and the stage levels were horrendous, but we were still given horns and hails throughout. Sanguine gave a monstrous performance despite the fact that he is now (almost like clockwork) sick and losing his voice. The entire tour bus is a hive of road-AIDS now, with members of all the bands coughing, snorting, and generally laying around and looking haggard. I am doing my best to stay well, but it may be a losing battle in the end. The climate is not helping in the least, but mercifully Nashville is about twenty degrees warmer than our last stop. We have been mining for reviews for “Advent Parallax” and they range from glowing to hilariously muddled. We have no problem with legitimate criticism but it seems like the naysayers are too busy complaining about how they don't understand the album to offer a proper review. As far as I am concerned this proves we have succeeded in our mission once again. We are not seeking approval in every corner, as this demands compromises we do not wish to make.