Los Angeles metallers FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH have issued the following update:

“Unfortunately, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH will not be performing tonight, November 19 in Gothenburg [Sweden]. Zoltan [Bathory, guitar] has been violently ill all day with nausea and vertigo. Due to his condition, he was unable to travel last night.

“We apologize to all our amazing Swedish fans, and we hope to be back next year to make it up to you. He is just now starting to feel better, so we plan on traveling to Copenhagen and playing tomorrow night at The Rock.

“SHADOWS FALL will perform as scheduled.”

More here: FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH Cancels Gothenburg Concert - Nov. 19, 2009

Wohoo, finally I have managed to see the movie which i heard of a good while ago. I really wouldn’t have expected it to be as good as it was. These kind of movies tend to actually be more or less of just comic value, but Julie Delpy delivers!

Good costumes, nicely put together story and even nice actors. This story of Bathory really is much better then the movie i saw long ago on Swedish television. How much truth is in it? Well there are some weird angles overall but i think Julie Delpy has really tried to paint a picture of the monstrous Countess as a person instead of the usual “cruel” story told by documentaries and various book’s.

Even people that have never heard of Bathory will most likely still be able to enjoy this drama, instead of watching a horror movie with loads and loads of blood.

Only 6.7 on www.imdb.com … Well it’s all in the eye of the beholder, i would have at least gave it 8.5, compared to the other movies about Elizabeth Báthory.

The Bible was the first global bestseller, so it’s fitting that Bram Stoker’s unholy Dracula would become the second. The 19th century novel held particular appeal in its time because of its roots in real life. Vampirism was more than a myth in Europe and there really was a true-life, bloodthirsty Dracula in Transylvania during the 15th century. With Halloween upon us, I set my sights on Romania to learn more about the lore and legend that is Vlad Dracula.

All Aboard the Undead Express

First stop on the Undead Express is the Bran Castle (as seen in the photo above), the palace commonly referred to as Dracula’s Castle, located on the border of Transylvania and Wallachia. No one knows if Stoker knew about this castle (he probably didn’t), but local legend says it was his inspiration for the Count’s fictional home. Interestingly, the actual Vlad Dracula never owned the one-time royal residence, though he did stay there for a short time. Nevertheless, the spooky palace — originally built as a wooden castle by the Teutonic Knights — certainly fits the bill as the structure with the most similarities to the residence Stoker describes in the book.

Will the Real Count Dracula Please Stand Up

In the end, there are any number of gothic palaces and chateaus that Stoker could have had in mind when he described the literary castle, but as far as places Dracula actually stayed, Bran probably fits the bill best. Still, the larger question remains, “Who is Vlad Dracula?”

Vlad III is the second child of Vlad Dracul, who received his name after joining the Order of the Dragon. The son was thus called Dracula, meaning “Son of the Dragon.” Ironically, the Latin word means something entirely different in Romanian: devil. It’s not surprising, then, that is how many outsiders came to view the future Prince of Wallachia.

The years that followed were even more chaotic. In 1447, the Hungarian-backed boyars killed Dracul and then blinded his eldest son with a hot iron before burying him alive. The Ottomans didn’t want the territory falling into Hungarian hands, so they sent Vlad Dracula to take control. That rule was short-lived, forcing Dracula to flee and eventually land in Hungary. Though the Hungarians were ultimately responsible for driving him out, they soon realized the young prince disliked the Ottomans as well, and with Constantinople ready to fall and the Ottoman Empire set to expand, it made sense to let Dracula reconquer Wallachia. After taking over the region, the prince killed many of the boyars and nobles and surprisingly filled several government offices with regular people, including free peasants.

The Legend Lives On

Dracula remains such an engaging character because he’s taken on such different images in our minds. Many people, mostly the Turks and wealthy Germans he tormented, see him as a monster that nailed hats to heads, burned people alive and impaled by the tens of thousands, often leaving the corpses to hang for months. Dracula turned the rich into peasants, making them rebuild the Poienari Castle and working many of them to death. There’s even talk at the time that he tortured small animals and, naturally, ate his enemies’ flesh and drank their blood.

Long Live the Vampire

You know what’s funny? It’s said that Stoker found the name “Dracula” in a book of Romanian rulers, and while he knew some of the man’s reputation, he may not have realized exactly how similar the two Counts actually were.

Another interesting link between the book and real life has to do with vampirism. In centuries past, when a hunter killed an animal, they saw the rudimentary connection between loss of life and loss of blood. Many thought blood must be a life force and some thought they could capture that force by drinking it. The most famous “vampire” of all was the 16th century Hungarian countess Elizabeth Bathory who murdered hundreds of young girls to drink and bathe in their blood believing it might keep her young. By the late 17th century, vampirism was supposedly an epidemic in parts of Europe.

Елизабет Батори останала в паметта на хората като истински, реално съществувал вампир.В народните приказки тя е злата кралица живееща в самотна кула в гората, която отвлича девойките от селата за да си осигури вечна младост, преразказана от братята Грим.

Как започва всичко…

Елизабет Батори (на унгарски Báthory Erzsébet, родена 156o г., починала 1614 г.) е унгарска графиня, произхождаща от една от най-старите и заможни аристократични фамилии в Трансилвания. Нейни роднини по това време са кралят на Полша и главният министър на Унгария, както и множество други важни личности в Европа.

Елизабет има трудно детство. Често има пристъпи на необуздан гняв и истерия, съпътствани от необяснима агресия. Има предположения че е страдала от епилепсия, но това не е доказано. Когато е на 11 г. баща и Георге Батори умира и майка  й – Ана Батори, я праща за възпитание при семейството на годеника й. На 14 г. забременява от едно момче от близко село и е изпратена да роди тайно. През 1575 г., на 15 г. е омъжена за граф Ференц Надашд, с който се оттеглят в замъка Шейде изолиран в полите на Карпатите. Графът прибавя нейното име към своето тъй като фамилията Батори е много могъща и да бъдеш в нейните редици означава да имаш голяма политическа мощ. (батор — смел, унгарски).

Съпругът на графиня Батори е военен и по това време се водят дълги войни с Османската империя, която все още настъпва към Централна Европа. Елизабет е оставена сама в далечния си замък.

Дали поради скуката и отегчението, или от лошото генетично наследство резултат от дълги години на кръвосмешение в семейството, контеса Батори се оказва садистична до безумие личност, чиято жажда за кръв се проявява още в младежките и години. Известно е, че леля й Клара Батори също е имала садистични наклонности, както се знае и за наследствена лудост при други членове на семейството. По времето в което графът е на бойното поле, младата и доста красива Ержебет запълва дългите периоди на самота със садо-мазохистични оргии, често завършващи със сериозни наранявания на някои от участниците. По стечение на обстоятелствата, един от нейните прислужници е поклонник на Сатаната и контесата бързо проявява интерес към неговите занимания. Когато войната е прекратена и граф Надашд се завръща в замъка Шейде, откривайки заниманията на съпругата си, той се оказва добър компаньон. Той има богат опит от годините на бойното поле, през които е измъчвал турски войници и офицери. Двамата заживяват в семейна идилия, споделяйки вкуса си към измъчване на човешки същества.

Родили им се четири деца – три момичета и едно момче. Графът починал, когато Елизабет била на 44 години и точно тогава започва историята, която наистина прави графинята невероятна личност.

Известна с красотата си, тя вижда че възрастта взема връх над плътта и този факт е най – голямата й тревога. Според легендата докато една млада прислужничка разресвала косите и я оскубала, на което Ержебет отвърнала със силен удар. Потекла кръв и графинята забелязала че на мястото на което се е стичала кръвта, кожата й е станала по – гладка и бяла. Веднага се консултирала със съветника си по демоничните въпроси и той потвърдил че ако се къпе в кръвта на красиви девственици ще остане вечно млада. Прислужницата била провесена с краката надолу, прободена на множество места и оставена над едно корито, докато цялата й кръв се оттече вътре. От този момент Елизабет започва да взема редовно кървави бани. Девойките от местността започнали постепенно да изчезват. Подземието на замъка било пригодено за източването на кръвта на младите момичета. Според легендата, на тавана винаги имало провесени трупове от които капело кръв. Когато се появявало някое изключително красиво момиче Елизабет пиела кръвта му, понякога директно от източника, докато била още топла.

Но годините показали, че кървавите бани не давали желания резултат. Графинята решила че това се дължи на факта, че девойките са от простолюдието и за да постигне лелеяната вечна младост ще й трябва подбрана кръв.

Тъй като произхождала от много влиятелен род, не било проблем да събере 25 красиви девойки от благороднически произход в замъка си, под претекст че ще ги обучава на поведение в обществото. Нито една от тях не оцеляла.

Но тук Елизабет Батори допуснала фатална грешка и нейните зверства станали публично достояние. Дълги години никой не се вслушвал в гласовете на хората от простолюдието, които знаели за случващото се в замъка, но след като и благородническите семейства се оплакали че нямат новини от дъщерите си, през 1610 г. в замъка са изпратени войници не от друг, а от братовчеда на графинята – първият министър на Унгария. Това, което заварват там ги ужасява.

Елизабет е арестувана и съдена. Тя отрича всички извършени зверства въпреки намерените доказателства. Смята се, че над 600 девойки са били измъчвани и зверски убити. Нейните слуги и съучастници са осъдени на смърт чрез изгаряне или обезглавяване, но благородническият произход не позволявал насилие срещу личността на графиня Батори. Осъдена е да прекара остатъка от живота си в замъка Шейде под стража и без право да излиза. Умира там, четири години по-късно. Според легендата, тя сама е пожелала това и е прекарала четири години на тъмно в стаята си. Замъкът запустял, и когато години по-късно авантюристи разбили стаята на графинята в търсене на богатства, не намират трупа й.

ИЗТОЧНИК

Now that the wind called my name
And my star had faded now hardly a glimpse up in the empty space
And the wise one-eyed great father in the sky stilled my flame

For the ones who stood me near
And you few who were me dear
I ask of thee to have no doubts and no fears

For when the great clouds fills the air
And the thunder roars from o, so far away up in the sky
Then for sure you will know that I have reached the joyous hall up high

With my bloodbrothers at side
All sons of father with one eye
We were all born in the land of the blood on ice

And now you all who might hear my song
Brought to you by the northern wind have no fear
Though the night may seem so everlasting and forever dark

There will come a golden dawn
At ends of nights for all yee on whom
Upon the northstar always shines

The vast gates to hall up high
Shall stand open wide and welcome you with all its within
And Oden shall hail us bearers of a pounding hammerheart

Da El país di oggi, la notizia di un sequel di Dracula. Un altro? Sì, ma questo ha il marchio DOC, portando la firma di Dacre Stoker, un bis-bis-nipote dell’autore del vampirone originale, “assistito” nell’impresa da Ian Holt, esperto del settore in quanto autore del soggetto dell’ennesimo film sul succhiasangue transilvano previsto nelle sale per l’anno prossimo.

Protagonista della storia Quincey, il figlio dei coniugi Harker, che appare per alcune righe nel finale del romanzo originale, e che mostra imbarazzanti caratteristiche tali da suggerire un test di paternità che coinvolga anche un nobile transilvano; la qual cosa, unita al fatto che Mina Harker, dopo i suoi incontri ravvicinati col conte, pare essere diventata (cito) “insaziabile nell’alcova” suggerisce che, come insegnano il film di Coppola e le parti meno indigeste dei tomi della regina Anne Rice, non siano solo i denti le armi più pericolose dei vampiri…

E pare che non sia finita qui: oltre a prevedere la presenza anche di Erzsébet Báthory, la famosa contessa sanguinaria ungherese che amava fare il bagno nel sangue, nella storia sono citati gli omicidi di Jack lo Squartatore e (spero di aver letto male) anche qualche scena sul Titanic.

E tanto per non farsi mancare nulla, nel romanzo compare anche il nonno Bram Stoker, l’autore del primo romanzo di Dracula, con un faccia a faccia col non-morto che il quotidiano spagnolo definisce “una scena molto succosa“…

Mah. Onestamente, non so che pensare. Potrebbe essere tanto un piccolo capolavoro quanto una schifezza galattica. Ma chissà perché mi torna in mente Quèlo…

]]> http://vxga.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/bathory-under-the-sign-of-the-black-mark-1987/ Thu, 15 Oct 2009 06:44:03 +0000 vxga http://vxga.wordpress.com/2009/10/15/bathory-under-the-sign-of-the-black-mark-1987/ http://vxga.wordpress.com/2009/10/14/bathory-the-return-1985/ Wed, 14 Oct 2009 12:24:18 +0000 vxga http://vxga.wordpress.com/2009/10/14/bathory-the-return-1985/ http://vxga.wordpress.com/2009/10/12/bathory-bathory-1984/ Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:43:37 +0000 vxga http://vxga.wordpress.com/2009/10/12/bathory-bathory-1984/ http://vampirony.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/case-13-skovajsa-one-vampire-at-a-time/ Thu, 08 Oct 2009 03:20:23 +0000 vampirony http://vampirony.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/case-13-skovajsa-one-vampire-at-a-time/ http://metalethard.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/one-rode-to-asa-bay/ Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:59:17 +0000 nono68 http://metalethard.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/one-rode-to-asa-bay/ http://metalethard.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/bio-de-bathory/ Wed, 07 Oct 2009 02:58:18 +0000 nono68 http://metalethard.wordpress.com/2009/10/07/bio-de-bathory/ http://andra13.wordpress.com/2009/09/28/parabeni-si-alte-dracii/ Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:10:36 +0000 Andra http://andra13.wordpress.com/2009/09/28/parabeni-si-alte-dracii/

In ultima vreme, ma pasioneaza filmele, documentarele si cartile care trateaza subiecte gen Holocaust, dinastii d’astea celebre precum cea a Tudorilor, Bathory, Borgia, dar si articolele despre.. parabenii din sampon..daca ar fi sa preiau sistemul lui Picasso (bineinteles, cu modificarile de rigoare), as zice ca sunt in perioada bloody red

Din pagina in pagina, am ajuns pe un site unde am citit cate ceva despre cat de periculoase sunt toate chestiile astea cremoase pe care noi le folosim pentru infrumusetare, intretinere, etc. Ati zice ca este o treaba ce priveste strict partea feminina sau, sa zicem, cu ceva exceptii si de pe celalat taram, dar nu..si baietii/ barbatii folosesc sampon, gel de dus si mai stiu eu cate altele.

Revenind, mai toate gamele de sampon si gel de dus contin sulfati, conservanti si alte prostii care dauneaza parului/pielii. Am facut un research si am gasit cateva informatii despre ingredientele minune  pe cosmeticsdatabase si pe goodguide, dupa care am dat fuguta in baie sa ma uit pe etichete. Elseve contine multi detergenti binefacatori , dar lista incepe cu apa – ceea ce e bine . Arunc un ochi si pe ingredientele Dove, Head&Shoulders, ba chiar si pe gelurile de dus si ce sa vezi..the same shit, doar mici diferente..

Asadar, avem Sodium Laureth Sulfate , Methylparaben si alti derivati, Fragrance, Oxybenzone, Limonene, DMDM Hydantoin, etc., care, cica, ar provoca iritatii, alergii, chiar si cancer. Presupun ca in timp si depinde si de organism, dar si de cantitate.

Acum, sa nu mai folosesti aceste produse nu ai cum, pentru ca toate contin substante de genul. Chiar si gloss-urile. So, cred ca solutia ar fi sa te feresti de cele in continutul carora intra mult prea multe din aceste ingrediente.

“Ba tu esti fan Bon Jovi” – mi-a reprosat amicul Baraka dupa primele editii ale videoclipului saptamanii. Pentru el, si nu numai, am ales acest clip marca Bathory.

One Rode To Asa Bay prezinta sosirea primilor pelerini in Suedia pagana. Venirea lor a insemnat un nou mod de viata si abandonarea vechilor zei, toate acestea fiind sugerate de drakkarele din final.

De altfel ceea ce puteti urmari mai jos este ceva mai mult decat un clip video, este un scurt metraj de arta. Un scurt metraj care isi arata varsta pe alocuri dar chiar si asa ocupa un loc extrem de important in istoria muzicii rock.

The World is Big and Salvation Lurks Around the Corner

Based on a true story (and book), this is a movie about family, self-discovery and…backgammon. The backbone of the story is a trip where the main characters recreate bounds and revisit their past in order to overcome a tragedy.
This film won the Audience Award and the Best Director Award at the 25th Festroia, but I can only agree with the second prize, cause it didn’t do for me what it probably did to other people, mainly because of 2 factors:
First, the trip goes through 4 countries, but you don’t really understand it and notice the transitions besides the obvious ones (Italy and Germany), and secondly, the whole movie lacks rythm. I was expecting something more dynamic, with the trip playing a big role in the story, but instead it keeps creating this past-present parallelisms that stall the flow.

Still, it was one of the few “happy ending” movies of the festival. Stefan Kitanov, the producer, has this theory about bringing happiness to people’s life through cinema, and I think that’s a very honourable idea. He was nice enough to buy me a drink and elogiate my work, while we discussed some aspects of his film, and I really understood the passion he has for the 7th Art (he’s also a theatre owner and a film festival organizer back in Bulgaria). Great guy.

TRAILER

Baba

Maybe the nicest short film I had the opportunity to see in the whole festival (excluding animation).

It’s just an old lady and her granddaughter taking care of her…at least that’s the premise. But the directing gives it a nice edge…camera angles make you feel claustrophobic, and the girl playing the granddaughter does a terrific job, transmitting the frustrations and repressed anger against the situation…makes you think ’bout something that is very common among Portuguese families.

Bathory

A different perspective on the epic story of the Countess Elizabeth Báthory, portraying her not as a bloody serial killer, but as a gentle woman with a psychological disturb that fell victim to the circumstances but never murdered anyone just to extract their blood. It’s a typic historical epic film, showing the lies and political games in the noble courts and the influence of the church in the whole deal.

It’s a decent production, but becomes a bit boring due to the long playtime and the mistake of creating a narrator to the story and unnecessarily distributing it into 3 parts…cuts the flow of the film and takes you out of the “based on a true story” mood (although the movie doesn’t mention that). Watch it only if you’re into the whole historical film thing…although it’s an interesting perspective on the events, specially if you read the wikipedia link I left on the first paragraph.

TRAILER

ladies & gentlemen i give you:  METALLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!

2 subgenres in particular, power metal & viking metal.  viking metal is self-explanatory, and power metal is basically the child of thrash and speed metal, infused with lyrical obsession of all things that got you beat up in high school:  dungeons & dragons, lord of the rings (before it was cool), fantasy novels, and the like, sung typically very highly (i.e. “ahhhhhhhhAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”).  power metal has been around for a while, but got a little bit of mainstream attention with the success (relatively speaking, they’re far from platinum!) of dragonforce, based highly on their being featured in guitar hero.  dragonforce get some flack from the hardcore fanbase of the scene, they’ve been called “nintendo metal” based on the video game sound of their guitars & keyboards, but i think they pwn.  then again, metal is not my passion, so perhaps that’s why  either way, here’s a hilarious yet awesome (3 words that go together very well when talking about power metal videos & lyrics) video, “operation ground & pound”.

now for some more.  from germany…

blind guardian!!!  here’s “war of wrath/into the storm”.

from tampa, florida…

iced earth!!!  here’s “travel in stygian”.

from finland…

sonata arctica!!!  here’s “wolf & raven”.

from italy…

rhapsody of fire!!!  here’s “unholy warcry” (featuring saruman!).

from sweden…

ikea.  oh, and hammerfall!  here’s “any means necessary”.

onto the viking metal!  this subgenre has its roots in the same place as black metal, not only in that both come from the same regional area (scandinavia) but both are credited with having their beginning with the band bathory.  the band’s 1990 album hammerheart was the first viking metal record.  viking metal ranges in sound much more, as the common basis for the bands isn’t the sound or style but lyrical topics that focus on norse mythology & the viking age.  and now we get to celebrate with 5 videos that do thor proud.  beginning with, from the faroe islands…

tyr!  here’s “hail to the hammer!”.

from norway…

enslaved!  (i’m actually not a fan of dude’s voice, but they’re pretty crucial).  here’s “path to vanir”.

from sweden…

amon amarth!  here’s “guardians of asgaard”.

from finland…

turisas!  this band is crazy fun.  here’s “in the court of jarisleif”.

and to end it off, from denmark…

svartsot!  here’s “jotunheimsfaerden”.