Current members:
Paul Masvidal - guitar/vocals (1987-1994, 2006-present) (ex-Death, Gordian Knot, ex-Portal, Master, Æon Spoke)
Sean Reinert - drums (1987-1994, 2006-present) (Aghora, ex-Death, Gordian Knot, ex-Portal, Æon Spoke)
Sean Malone - bass, Chapman Stick (1993-1994, 2008-present) (ex-Aghora, Gordian Knot, Office of Strategic Influence)
Tymon Kruidenier - guitar, death growls (2008-present) (Exivious)
Track Listing:
01 - Nunc Fluens 2:55
02 - The Space For This 5:46
03 - Evolutionary Sleeper 3:34
04 - Integral Birth 3:52
05 - The Unknown Guest 4:12
06 - Adam's Murmur 3:28
07 - King Of Those Who Know 6:08
08 - Nunc Stans 4:12
Favourite songs : "The Space For This", "The Unknown Guest" and "King Of Those Who Know".
Now, this is my favorite album of the year 2008, a highly anticipated work of art from the highly talented group known as Cynic. It is a diverse album that bears many meanings and I find that Cynic has a very unique sound. The definite word I would describe the sound as is; celestial. They mainly use clean vocals and robotic vocals with vocoder shifting in their music but also death metal like growls from the back-up vocalist to spice up some words or parts of the lyrics. They play kind of fusion jazz / proggressive metal mix on this album and it's a very interesting combination that won't leave you cold.
The songwriting is excellent and the short length of the album doesn't take anything out of the experience for me. I always get chills running down my spine from listening to this album and I've listened to it dozens of times and it feels like it will never get old.
The album seems to have a very deep meaning that slowly unfolds over the time. There are many strong themes like; religions, purity and love. The message as I find it is culminated in the outro song of the album, Nunc Stans, I think it means eternity. The message is basically that we are all unique and capable of loving one another, yet something greater, be it "God", "Universe" or anything - gave us our being. It is basically a take on the question: "What is the meaning of life?" and a strong one at that.
It incorporates various religious or otherworldly themes in the lyrics, like; sanskrit mantras, sanskrit alphabet, doves, unholy apple tree, the list goes on. Even the song names have deep meanings and "Adam's Murmur" is one thing that can be put on the previous list. The songs are not just takes on christianity but anything "alien", be it different religions, cultures or other things compared to our own, a take on anything unknown. It's definitely a trip full of marvels and questions, a mysterious journey through unknown seas.
I'll give this album an outstanding rating of 10/10
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Electric Red
Ever woken up just to notice you have a numb limb? I bet you have. Blood is our body's electricity, cut it off and your cells will shut down gradually - worst case scenarios : heart attack / necrosis.
It's not dangerous to cut off blood circulation for a little while as long as you're in control of it (don't take my word for it though, I might be silly). You can try it easiest on the arteries near your feet or hands. Over time you'll feel that it's hard to move your fingers or toes and after a while you can touch them and they don't feel like your own. When you let the blood flow again you regain the life power of your cells quite fast, but one side-effect occurs; annoying tingling electric grasp. Are the cells and nerves so depraved that they have to give a warning signal to the body after blood circulation is up and running again or is it something else?
It's kind of pathetic how weak our bodies are, cells stop working in couple of minutes without blood stream bringing oxygen and nutrients to them. Now imagine how it would feel if your heart was doing it's job normally but everything outside its chamber would be disallowed of blood for 5 minutes and then reverting back to normal - you'd probably be in for a shock in more ways than one.
While I claim our bodies are weak they are also magnificent and complex works of art. Thinking just about the blood part of it; the bone marrow creates the red blood cells, they start their trip in the arteries and veins, they hog oxygen while passing the lungs, they keep the heart pumping and heart keeps them on the move, they deliver the oxygen and also nutrients to cells and round we go.
Blood, our electric red.
It's not dangerous to cut off blood circulation for a little while as long as you're in control of it (don't take my word for it though, I might be silly). You can try it easiest on the arteries near your feet or hands. Over time you'll feel that it's hard to move your fingers or toes and after a while you can touch them and they don't feel like your own. When you let the blood flow again you regain the life power of your cells quite fast, but one side-effect occurs; annoying tingling electric grasp. Are the cells and nerves so depraved that they have to give a warning signal to the body after blood circulation is up and running again or is it something else?
It's kind of pathetic how weak our bodies are, cells stop working in couple of minutes without blood stream bringing oxygen and nutrients to them. Now imagine how it would feel if your heart was doing it's job normally but everything outside its chamber would be disallowed of blood for 5 minutes and then reverting back to normal - you'd probably be in for a shock in more ways than one.
While I claim our bodies are weak they are also magnificent and complex works of art. Thinking just about the blood part of it; the bone marrow creates the red blood cells, they start their trip in the arteries and veins, they hog oxygen while passing the lungs, they keep the heart pumping and heart keeps them on the move, they deliver the oxygen and also nutrients to cells and round we go.
Blood, our electric red.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Feeling Small
Have you ever heard of VY Canis Majoris? It is something between 1800-2100 times the diameter of the Sun. If it's closer to the higher value it would take approximately 8 hours to go around it with the speed of light. In the Sun's current place it would surround Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. This hypermassive red overgiant makes me feel extremely small.
On the scale of the Universe we are not even a speck of sand - we are nothing. Our planet is worth calling the size of an atom at best in the grand space. What baffles me is that there is a possibility that even larger things than VY Canis Majoris exist, not to mention that we can't "see" everything, like the "dark matter component" of our Universe. Black holes are another thing residing in the space, it's believed that most galaxies have a hypermassive black hole residing in the center of them. There are so many things unknown to us in space, yet we try to understand them despite our worthless size compared to them.
I'm not going to claim to know anything but the Universe is supposed to be evergrowing, still at every given moment there would be an edge of the Universe existing. We are supposedly living within an endlessly expanding place.
When the Universe is as huge as it is, there is no way that other forms of life wouldn't exist somewhere in the deep space. We are ignorant and happy bunch, minding our own lives - for a normal person the Universe is too vast to care about in whole, for it can take millions of lifetimes even with the speed of light to reach some places, if not billions. No matter what questions we answer in the coming years, if any, I still enjoy life very much in my special way...
...but I do feel small as hell.
On the scale of the Universe we are not even a speck of sand - we are nothing. Our planet is worth calling the size of an atom at best in the grand space. What baffles me is that there is a possibility that even larger things than VY Canis Majoris exist, not to mention that we can't "see" everything, like the "dark matter component" of our Universe. Black holes are another thing residing in the space, it's believed that most galaxies have a hypermassive black hole residing in the center of them. There are so many things unknown to us in space, yet we try to understand them despite our worthless size compared to them.
I'm not going to claim to know anything but the Universe is supposed to be evergrowing, still at every given moment there would be an edge of the Universe existing. We are supposedly living within an endlessly expanding place.
When the Universe is as huge as it is, there is no way that other forms of life wouldn't exist somewhere in the deep space. We are ignorant and happy bunch, minding our own lives - for a normal person the Universe is too vast to care about in whole, for it can take millions of lifetimes even with the speed of light to reach some places, if not billions. No matter what questions we answer in the coming years, if any, I still enjoy life very much in my special way...
...but I do feel small as hell.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
[Movie Review] Mum & Dad (2008)
Hailing from UK. A disturbing suspense movie mixed with black comedy not for the weak of stomach.
A young woman, Lena, has just started her work at an UK airport, she gets noticed immediately by one of her co-employees. In the thick of things this encounter builds up to be quite something else than a friendly experience for Lena. The plot isn't superb but the movie's gritty realism has a good grip on the watcher since the first steps. You are constantly wondering what will happen next to the movie's protagonist. Acting ranges from sub-par to excellent but mostly the actors play their characters spot on. There is no musical score, just what you can hear through a radio in a given scene. The setting and cinematography stay true to the movie, you can really sympathize with Lena's endeavor, which is often painted by hopelessness. The build-up towards the climax is also rather strong and the climax itself will leave you gasping for air. A great low budget movie about survival and insanity that dwells beneath the human skin, spiced up with black comedy and disturbing imagery. It will keep you entertained and shocked at the same time and isn't spoiled with length.
I'll give this movie a shiny rating of 8+/10.
A young woman, Lena, has just started her work at an UK airport, she gets noticed immediately by one of her co-employees. In the thick of things this encounter builds up to be quite something else than a friendly experience for Lena. The plot isn't superb but the movie's gritty realism has a good grip on the watcher since the first steps. You are constantly wondering what will happen next to the movie's protagonist. Acting ranges from sub-par to excellent but mostly the actors play their characters spot on. There is no musical score, just what you can hear through a radio in a given scene. The setting and cinematography stay true to the movie, you can really sympathize with Lena's endeavor, which is often painted by hopelessness. The build-up towards the climax is also rather strong and the climax itself will leave you gasping for air. A great low budget movie about survival and insanity that dwells beneath the human skin, spiced up with black comedy and disturbing imagery. It will keep you entertained and shocked at the same time and isn't spoiled with length.
I'll give this movie a shiny rating of 8+/10.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Surreal Surroundings pt.1
(Disclaimer: this is a work of fiction)
I'm standing in a field. Thousands of black flakes of ash and white flakes of snow are descenting from the sky. It's like standing within infinite grey mist that envelopes your sole being, wishing that you could see farther than your arm's reach - soon you accept it's impossible.
What is this place? It's giving me the chills, but surprisingly the temperature of this place is neither cold nor warm. Like something was neutralizing the feel, I feel like a ghost floating above the hazy ground. I shake off that feeling and start walking around, hoping for an explanation to all of this. It's hard to breathe with all the excess in the air but I'm set to search the infinite.
(couple of hours pass by)
I finally take a break, I haven't found anything, I'm rendered nearly blind in this mess. It's as if I had been abandoned by all the living beings and been cast into a crazy dream. I hear whispers gliding past, they are in an unknown language, it's like a chant inviting me to search harder. I finally bend to their will and gather myself. The (what seems to be endless) walk continues.
(fleeting moments pass by)
I trip and fall. My head collides with the ground and I lose my consciousness.
(undefined amount of time passes by)
I regain my consciousness, I raise my bloodied head and hold the back of it with my right hand and notice that the mist has dissolved. I wittness something unfathomable. It's like hundreds of black statues of arms of differing heights emerging from the ground and trying to reach the zenith. The tallest of them all rises from the center. It has a white eye painted on the palm of its hand and it's enormous in size; it tickles the clouds. My neck hurts from having to tilt it so much to see the eye in the skies. This is something I wasn't meant to comprehend, I just keep staring at it in unbelief. Like a work of God if I believed in such entity. I look behind me and notice that what I tripped on was one of the smallest of those hands. I close my eyes now - the big white eye is staring through, it tries to communicate with my soul. I accept its offer and I'm sent to the otherworld, only leaving my clothes behind.
Flake covered earth and a pile of clothes.
I'm standing in a field. Thousands of black flakes of ash and white flakes of snow are descenting from the sky. It's like standing within infinite grey mist that envelopes your sole being, wishing that you could see farther than your arm's reach - soon you accept it's impossible.
What is this place? It's giving me the chills, but surprisingly the temperature of this place is neither cold nor warm. Like something was neutralizing the feel, I feel like a ghost floating above the hazy ground. I shake off that feeling and start walking around, hoping for an explanation to all of this. It's hard to breathe with all the excess in the air but I'm set to search the infinite.
(couple of hours pass by)
I finally take a break, I haven't found anything, I'm rendered nearly blind in this mess. It's as if I had been abandoned by all the living beings and been cast into a crazy dream. I hear whispers gliding past, they are in an unknown language, it's like a chant inviting me to search harder. I finally bend to their will and gather myself. The (what seems to be endless) walk continues.
(fleeting moments pass by)
I trip and fall. My head collides with the ground and I lose my consciousness.
(undefined amount of time passes by)
I regain my consciousness, I raise my bloodied head and hold the back of it with my right hand and notice that the mist has dissolved. I wittness something unfathomable. It's like hundreds of black statues of arms of differing heights emerging from the ground and trying to reach the zenith. The tallest of them all rises from the center. It has a white eye painted on the palm of its hand and it's enormous in size; it tickles the clouds. My neck hurts from having to tilt it so much to see the eye in the skies. This is something I wasn't meant to comprehend, I just keep staring at it in unbelief. Like a work of God if I believed in such entity. I look behind me and notice that what I tripped on was one of the smallest of those hands. I close my eyes now - the big white eye is staring through, it tries to communicate with my soul. I accept its offer and I'm sent to the otherworld, only leaving my clothes behind.
Flake covered earth and a pile of clothes.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Addicted
There are many ways to addiction; getting hooked on your first try, getting hooked over time, you can be born with genes that long to be hooked or you might get hooked by the sheer curiousity towards it. The ways are endless but in the end you are hooked. Hooked to what? Anything - something.
Smoking, drinking and doing drugs might be the most common areas connected to addiction, however you can be addicted to anything; attention, music, love, pain, food - anything. It's obvious some things are natural needs but they become addictions if you blow them out of proportion. Food addiction can lead to obesity and love addiction can lead to a suicide if a relationship goes horribly wrong after many years spent together with someone. Most things are a double-edged sword, still many addictions remain relatively harmless, even in the true addict stage.
Someone needs their morning coffee or their day will be disaster, someone needs their adrenaline rush and someone just needs their silence. If you shun something to have it your way, you are addicted to your way, you could always go with the flow and do new things but you are stuck. You are an addict - addict to something.
Then there is fascination, I would call it mild form of addiction, something you like but can easily live without, after all, all addictions come in varying severities.
Some people won't even accept that they are addicted to something, usually if it's an unhealthy addiction. I would hate to live in such self-denial myself. Naturally some addictions are embarassing and you keep them secret, nothing wrong with that but it's important to open your eyes to yourself.
Very few can break their addictions - you are probably never without one. Breaking an addiction is breaking a habit, you will surely feel empty for a while and it is hard to resist going back, but it's possible to get rid off anything if you really want to.
Now what does this all lead to? It leads to me listing some of my addictions:
-Music
-Games
-Masturbation
-Soda
-Surreal/Abstract Art
I could stay away from these - but why would I?
I'm a happy addict.
Smoking, drinking and doing drugs might be the most common areas connected to addiction, however you can be addicted to anything; attention, music, love, pain, food - anything. It's obvious some things are natural needs but they become addictions if you blow them out of proportion. Food addiction can lead to obesity and love addiction can lead to a suicide if a relationship goes horribly wrong after many years spent together with someone. Most things are a double-edged sword, still many addictions remain relatively harmless, even in the true addict stage.
Someone needs their morning coffee or their day will be disaster, someone needs their adrenaline rush and someone just needs their silence. If you shun something to have it your way, you are addicted to your way, you could always go with the flow and do new things but you are stuck. You are an addict - addict to something.
Then there is fascination, I would call it mild form of addiction, something you like but can easily live without, after all, all addictions come in varying severities.
Some people won't even accept that they are addicted to something, usually if it's an unhealthy addiction. I would hate to live in such self-denial myself. Naturally some addictions are embarassing and you keep them secret, nothing wrong with that but it's important to open your eyes to yourself.
Very few can break their addictions - you are probably never without one. Breaking an addiction is breaking a habit, you will surely feel empty for a while and it is hard to resist going back, but it's possible to get rid off anything if you really want to.
Now what does this all lead to? It leads to me listing some of my addictions:
-Music
-Games
-Masturbation
-Soda
-Surreal/Abstract Art
I could stay away from these - but why would I?
I'm a happy addict.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Sleep Paralysis
Today I woke up. That's what I wanted to believe but the reality was different. I was experiencing a state known as sleep paralysis.
Quote from "Sleep paralysis" wikipedia article:
"Physiologically, it is closely related to the paralysis that occurs as a natural part of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, which is known as REM atonia. Sleep paralysis occurs when the brain awakes from a REM state, but the body paralysis persists. This leaves the person fully conscious, but unable to move. In addition, the state may be accompanied by terrifying hallucinations (hypnopompic or hypnagogic) and an acute sense of danger. Sleep paralysis is particularly frightening to the individual due to the vividness of such hallucinations."
I had such a hallucination here; next to my head near the pillow sat an elephant fetus, two times the size of a normal adult head, vivid purplish pink color and it was smiling, as if it was a statue mocking me. I could hardly breathe and I could hardly move my limbs. I had only been able to tilt my head to the side and wittness the creepy thing. I thought to myself: "Am I dreaming?" but the feeling was that of being awake, awake while being choked by terror.
Moments passed and my heart raced, I got hold of my sheet with my right hand and pulled - the smiling fetus was gone. The moment it happened I was still trying to shrug off the panic but I was definitely back to normal.
When experiencing sleep paralysis you are perceiving the world like normal but the dream world can sometimes follow through. You are half awake; awake mentally and waiting to be awake physically, it is a horrifying feeling.
I have experienced sleep paralysis a few times in my life but never accompanied with a hallucination. I spoke to my friend about it and he told me what the phenomenon was called. So if you ever experience sleep paralysis, you can just try to stay calm with the knowledge that it isn't anything alarming, the things you might see aren't real no matter how real they feel, you probably just woke up suddenly and your brain didn't adjust perfectly just yet, leaving you with these unpleasant side effects.
A real taste of the surreal.
Quote from "Sleep paralysis" wikipedia article:
"Physiologically, it is closely related to the paralysis that occurs as a natural part of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, which is known as REM atonia. Sleep paralysis occurs when the brain awakes from a REM state, but the body paralysis persists. This leaves the person fully conscious, but unable to move. In addition, the state may be accompanied by terrifying hallucinations (hypnopompic or hypnagogic) and an acute sense of danger. Sleep paralysis is particularly frightening to the individual due to the vividness of such hallucinations."
I had such a hallucination here; next to my head near the pillow sat an elephant fetus, two times the size of a normal adult head, vivid purplish pink color and it was smiling, as if it was a statue mocking me. I could hardly breathe and I could hardly move my limbs. I had only been able to tilt my head to the side and wittness the creepy thing. I thought to myself: "Am I dreaming?" but the feeling was that of being awake, awake while being choked by terror.
Moments passed and my heart raced, I got hold of my sheet with my right hand and pulled - the smiling fetus was gone. The moment it happened I was still trying to shrug off the panic but I was definitely back to normal.
When experiencing sleep paralysis you are perceiving the world like normal but the dream world can sometimes follow through. You are half awake; awake mentally and waiting to be awake physically, it is a horrifying feeling.
I have experienced sleep paralysis a few times in my life but never accompanied with a hallucination. I spoke to my friend about it and he told me what the phenomenon was called. So if you ever experience sleep paralysis, you can just try to stay calm with the knowledge that it isn't anything alarming, the things you might see aren't real no matter how real they feel, you probably just woke up suddenly and your brain didn't adjust perfectly just yet, leaving you with these unpleasant side effects.
A real taste of the surreal.
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