Londone

Late on this; I spent the last day getting settled in here in Oslo. London was a long day but proved to be a good time. We got into town from Birmingham late Saturday night and then were out to Camden Town by noon. This wasn't really ideal as we ended up having to stash our gear and sit on it at the Camden Underworld for almost four hours. Sanguine and I took turns watching the pile of bags and guitars. When I ventured out I mostly saw endless stores piled high with vinyl trenchcoats, pre-fab punk gear, and New Rock boots. Anyone looking to pose out on short notice would be all set in this neighborhood. The street market was actually quite an experience with exotic cuisines served by every stripe of Asian mainlander imaginable. The gray and rain did much to reinforce the Blade Runner feeling of it all. Eventually we were met by Paul of Arcane Productions and trekked down to the Purple Turtle. It was a longer walk than we expected, and it meant having to set down our gear and rest periodically, which was sort of comical (in retrospect). The venue was a nice place and the opening bands of Niroth, Eastern Front, and Skaldic Curse were all agreeable. We ended up with 75 people in attendance, which was to our satisfaction considering Satyricon played two nights before and the Cradle of Filth/Gorgoroth show was the next evening. We played well and even ran into a couple of people we met at the Arnhem Metal Meeting exactly a year before. It was a fine way to close the tour. Sanguine and I stayed at a hostel down the street and were kept awake by another guest who moaned and talked in his sleep. Irritating to say the least. We parted ways at the tube station and I went to the airport to go to Oslo. The weird and funny part of that ride was that there were (predictably) many Norwegians on the flight. It was general seating and while I was in the 3^rd row by myself I was categorically avoided. They wouldn't even look at me. I can't know for certain but I was still dressed in tour mode and it seemed like they knew what I was about. Either way, I got the extra space.

Ravn and Seidemann of 1349 are graciously hosting me during my time in Norway and I then I will go to Stockholm for Watain's 10^th anniversary show at week's end. There may be no time for further entries but some additional photos will be forthcoming. Thanks to all who came to the shows and to Gorgoroth and their outstanding crew. We will return to finish the job on the mainland dates as soon as we can.