Diario de Ibiza, 29.11.09: “Organizan visitas teatralizadas a la necrópolis del Puig des Molins“

Actualització 30.11.09: Muertes milenarias.

Well here we are, three lines in to the offering formula and about to start on the fourth and last.  And here it is:

en ka en imakhy Senwosret, maa-kheru: for the ka of the revered one Senwosret, true of voice.

Sound like anyone you know?  Do you revere the colleague whose card or whiteboard you are embellishing?  Are they known for their honesty, the accuracy of their pronouncements or their karaoke prowess?  Never mind, it’s only a formula.  Let’s look at the first bit of it.

en ka en:  for the ka of.  Let’s do the easy bit first.   The Sherlock Holmeses among you will instantly have deduced that the squiggly lines top and bottom correspond to the en. 

Elementary.   And speaking of elements, the squiggly line in hieroglyphs represents the watery one.  It’s a ripple of water:

See the resemblance?  We’ve already seen wavy lines representing water, in the post on wabet.  But we haven’t had them as the actual letter n.  Here’s an original:

It’s a zigzag line.  What else is there to say?  The ka, on the other hand…

The Egyptians didn’t have souls.  Or rather, they didn’t just have single souls.  The deceased Egyptian exploded into a whole menagerie of afterlife entities:  the body, the shadow, the akh (a heron-like bird with a lamp who circled the skies with the stars), the ba (a human-headed bird that hung around the necropolis and twittered mournfully – they’ve made a comeback on the Internet lately) and the ka, or life force.

The ka had its advantages and disadvantages.  A disadvantage was that it was confined to the tomb, unlike the ba and the akh.  Maybe it kicked the ba and the akh out, so it could get some elbow room, with the body and the shadow.  Maybe that was why the ba twittered mournfully.  The advantage was that the ka got to ascend the burial shaft, come out through the false door into the offering chapel and feast upon the food and drink brought by the family or magically invoked by the passer-by.  The ka was the life force, and it fed upon the life force of the food.  But we’ve been through all this before.

The hieroglyph for ka is a pair of upraised arms, as found on the head of this royal ka statue:

What a beautiful, slender yet well moulded pair of arms and  shoulders, and delicate, detailed hands.  They didn’t always put so much work into the hieroglyphs,

although they have taken care to paint this ka the dark red colour they used for male skin (men being more likely to be outdoors than women, and therefore more tanned).  I draw my kas very simply:  three straight lines plus a little crescent at each end for the hands.

NB:  this ka is not to be confused with the ka meaning bull of a few posts ago.  Katie Hughes tweeted a good idea about that some time ago:  kh1369  @SusanLlewellyn Egyptians would be sustaining the ka (“spirit”) with ka (meat)? What a multi-purpose word! Also, is “kau” like “cow”? Easy!  She’s great at making these connections.

“La Necrópolis de Giza se encuentra en la meseta de Giza, al oeste de la población homónima, a unos veinte kilómetros de El Cairo, Egipto. Comenzó a utilizarse durante la segunda dinastía, habiéndose encontrado cerámica fechada en el reinado de Nynecher. En ella se encuentran las famosas pirámides construidas por los faraones de la cuarta dinastía, Jufu, Jafra y Menkaura (conocidos como Keops, Kefrén y Micerinos).” (Fuente del texto y más información en Wikipedia)

Desde el siguiente enlace podéis acceder a las fotos que realicé en el 2004 de la Necrópolis de Giza – Egipto:

Álbum de fotos de la Necrópolis de Giza – Egipto. (panoramio)

Otras fotos de Egipto en este blog.

Como introducción la siguiente foto:

Foto de las pirámides de Keops, Kefrén y Micerinos – Necrópolis de Giza  – Egipto.

CC martin_javier #2004

Santiago Gamboa pertenece a esa cada vez más prolongada serie de escritores latinoamericanos que se han tornado universales, no sólo porque sus obras se situen fuera de nuestras geografías físicas, ni porque vivan fuera de ella, sino también porque en sus obras, los temas universales se hacen patentes, palpables y le hablan por igual a cualquiera que se aproxime a ellas sin importar de dónde vengan o a dónde vayan. Necrópolis, no es la excepción, sino la consagración de este aspecto, una historia llena de historias que se desarrolla en la mítica Jesúsalen, pero a la que asisten personajes de distintos sitios del mundo y cada uno aporta su cuota, adelantándonos a sus propias palabras: en esa suerte de homenaje/referencia al Decamerón de Boccaccio, entre otros referentes literarios presentes en su obra. Necrópolis ha sido galardonada por el cada vez más prestigioso Premio de Novela La Otra Orilla 2009 y tras su lectura queda muy claro cuales son las cualidades para ello, pero nada como haber tenido la oportunidad de conversar con el autor en su reciente visita a Venezuela y que sea, con sus propias palabras, quien les presente su novela por cortesía de Editorial Norma y Kandela Films.

Santiago Gamboa nos habla de su novela Necrópolis, Premio de Novela La Otra Orilla 2009

I took this a couple of years ago at the Necropolis at night – I’m not sure if it’s always lit up like this, as we went there as part of Glasgow’s festival of light (which is every two years, so I wonder if it’s happening again soon?). I should have posted this picture at Halloween.

Not sure how effective these guy’s will be. At the very least they’ll screen more useful troops till they can get into combat.

An attempt at a purplish/grey skin tone, still need to work on it.

The beginnings of a nightmare…

Avui, primer de Novembre, es celebra el dia de Tot Sants una adaptació cristiana del culte romà a les ànimes, instaurada el s.VIII per el Papa Bonifaci IV, on la tradició ens convida a visitar un dels racons més amagats de les nostres ciutats, però alhora més misteriosos i culturalment interessants: els cementiris.

Aprofito doncs per fer una crida a la revalorització del patrimoni arquitectònic i escultòric del que gaudeixen les necròpolis catalanes, centrant-ho amb el millor exemple que tinc a mà: el Cementiri de Montjuïc.

Construït el 1889, es una veritable joia del art català, on es donen cita cisells dels millors escultors modernistes i neoclàssics del s.XIX-XX, abordant la creació d’impossibles catedrals en miniatura, criptes neo-egípcies o ultra barroques i espectaculars conjunts monumentals d’àngels i verges que han emparat l’etern descans de la rica burgesia catalana de les darreres centúries.

Ja sé que la mort és un pensament incòmode, que ens recorda l’efimeritat de la nostre fugaç existència material, però si ens atrevim a superar aquest absurd complex hipocondríac podrem ser testimonis d’un petit tresor que el nostre patrimoni reserva, encara, ocult al massiu turisme japonès.

I que fer al cementiri, un cop ja hem posat flors? Aquí unes idees:

-> Fer una Gimcana buscant les diferents tombes de personatges famosos que s’escampen arreu. A veure si sou capaços de localitzar a Àngel Guimerà, Santiago Rossinyol, Jacint Verdaguer, Francesc Cambó, Lluís Companys o Buenaventura Durruti, entre d’altres.

-> Seguir les diferents rutes artístiques que ens proposen uns cartellets. Que preferiu avui? Modernisme, neo-gòtic o potser quelcom més clàssic?

-> Anar a contemplar la fossa comuna de la guerra civil i la immensa quantitat de plaques commemoratives als republicans que en aquell conflicte i la seva respectiva repressió feixista varen perdre la vida.

-> Fer com jo i realitzar centenars de fotografies a cada cripta o làpida remarcable per tal de practicar els diverses opcions de la càmera i el photoshop!

DADES DE CONTACTE AMB EL CEMENTIRI AQUÍ

Fossar de la pedrera, on descansen els afusellats de la Guerra Civil

This one is actually a couple of years old. I posted it in a forum and everyone seemed to like it enough that I think it deserves to be resurrected. 

Donald Conrad

Acrostical Halloween

  H is for the house at the end of Maple Street which has long stood vacant. And even if it were for sale, no one but a distant outsider would buy it. The locals all have seen the occasional lighted window and avoid talking about the noises that emanate from it without warning or provocation. The screams are said to come from the original family who disappeared on the eve of the harvest moon, supposedly sacrificed in some sort of blood rite. All the known rooms and false walls were searched, but the family members were never found. Neither was the boy who, years later, entered the house on a dare while his friends stood and watched from the safety of the street. His screams were added to the rest.

  A is for the abomination that lurks along the service road leading to the power station at the edge of town. It has been variously described as pale or ghostly, hairless, hunched but quick, and sometimes as a ‘skin shrouded skeleton’ ever since Charlie Paisley coined the phrase. Whatever it is has scared numerous drivers off the road; but none has ever gotten out of their vehicles, electing instead to get back on the straight and narrow and move along. Lucky for them because this thing has yet to acquire a taste for human flesh and nobody wants to be that kind of instigator. Terry Gillenhall was brought in once with his dogs, but they never found anything because according to Terry, “My dogs need a scent to start off with”.

  L is for the labyrinth that little Johnny walks into when he leaves his bedroom for a late night pee. The whole thing has the familiar appearance of the hallway he has grown up with, but he has taken too many rights and lefts to remember how to get back. So he plods along in hopes that he may find his way eventually. He did take a wiz in one corner, but now he can’t even find that. And the troubling sounds he hears on the other side of every wall keep him in a constant state of fear. Mechanized sounds of poorly meshed gears and clanking metal and rattling chains were once barely audible, but have grown to an intensity that threatens to devour him.

  L is for the lycanthrope of Bray Road. This werewolf has been described as ranging from six to seven-and-a-half feet tall, with piercing yellow eyes, inch-long dark brown hair, and a short snout that can produce a menacing smile full of sharp teeth. He seems to make appearances during years ending in a seven as far back as written history will allow, scaring the bejeesus out of witnesses. It is said that the scent of road-kill precedes any sighting. So if you run into that ominous aroma while traversing the byways out near Bray Road, you should probably make like a prom dress, and take off.

  O is for October, the month that ends with Halloween; lest you forget. O could also be for the opaline gaze reflecting back out from the bushes at Isabella Mudge’s house. Isabella would never deny accusations of liking young boys. You see, she likes them in a stew pot for hours and hours with lots of potatoes and carrots, and a cabbage or two if she can get them. Isabella acquires her quarry by shape shifting into a cat with fur such a deep black that light seems unable to escape it. What attracts the young boys are the iridescent, prismatic, opaline orbs that are Isabella’s eyes. They are eyes that command attention; eyes full of seduction.

  W is for the Wyvern that has taken up residence in the bluffs overlooking the Atlantic Ocean in the Nameloc Heights section of town. This wyvern; which looks like parts of a dragon, an eagle and a bat, has been flying low over the water in search for food. But it has had greater success over land, eating smaller fare such as squirrel, rabbit, and turkey. It hasn’t yet grown enough to take out a deer. Young Brandon Rickenhauer is down on the beach, calling for his best friend, Ringo. Ringo is a mixed breed; half Golden Retriever and half Pit Bull. This is a dog that really sinks its teeth into being loveable and loyal. Brandon will never see Ringo again, for Ringo is no longer of this world. Brandon and the wyvern will have a chance meeting, but not for several years yet. Right now, the wyvern is cleaning the last traces of Ringo from its talons.

  E is for the eight-ball sitting on Jeffery Archer’s desk, at the offices of Liberty American Insurance. Mr. Archer has just opened this branch as a promotion within the company and the eight-ball was a gag gift from a friend. It is one of those fortune telling eight-balls and lately it has been making suggestions instead of telling fortunes. Most of the suggestions center on his loving family and various household items, like the electric carving knife they received as a gift from Uncle Rudy just last Christmas. Jeffery’s name will be splattered across the front pages of all the major tabloids for several weeks because of the heinous way in which he tries to hide the brutal murders. Cuisinart and Kitchenaid will spend hundreds of thousands on damage control.

  E is for the effigy sitting on the front steps of the Johnson house. Sarah and David had made the scarecrow by stuffing some old clothes from a box in the basement with leaves and straw. The clothes belonged to their recently deceased ‘Granpa’ who had been twice accused of child molestation among other charges. Granpa always said, “They never convicted me of nuthin.” There is something enchanting about the way young Sarah has drawn a face on the paper bag head that will soon allow this effigy of Granpa to snatch little Nancy Wilcox from the front step before she has a chance to ring the doorbell. Granpa and Nancy will never be seen again, despite the rally cry and three day search.

  N is for the necropolis on Lewiston Street with markers dating back to the eighteenth century. Located near the center of Arden’s Hill is a crypt bearing the name of Erdeuelu. The crypt door is locked, but we know that it can be locked from both sides. And we can see that the threshold is worn from two centuries of use. Jonny Rubino and Peter Smith do not understand what all that wear in the stone work at the entrance could mean when they pick the lock to gain entry. Jonny wants a skull as a keepsake and Peter has heard rumors of things like pocket watches being buried with the dead. Duke Erdeuelu will not be traveling far to quench his craving for blood. He will, in fact, be dining in. He’ll have to remove the drained bodies to another location in order to keep suspicion averted from his crypt. Nothing settles a meal quite like a good walk.

Necropolis By Anthony Horowitz

Click here to reserve this book at your Wake County Public Library!

It’s out. Book four of The Gatekeepers series has finally been released this year (and I finally got a hold of it). Yeah, reading in October is kind of late, considering that it was printed in April, but I’m still glad. And I had to start this review out with “it’s out”. It sounds cool.

Anyways, don’t read this book until you’ve read all the others. The first three books (in order) are Raven’s Gate, Evil Star, and Nightrise. And if you’ve read the Alex Rider series and liked it, you’re going to like this series even more.

Basic Overview (Again, No Ending)

Matt, Pedro, Jamie, and Scott have been looking for Scar, the last Gatekeeper. But they’re not the only ones who have been looking for her.

The news comes – a girl named Scarlett Adams is missing after a field trip to St. Meredith’s, a church that is one of the oldest churches in London. But she is found eighteen hours later, right in St. Meredith’s. Her story is that she went outside for fresh air, and then fainted. Of course, people are doubtful, but they leave her alone after that. Except Scarlett isn’t telling the truth. The truth doesn’t make any sense. And only a few people out there know the truth. Scarlett is one of the Five, and she has just gone through a Door.

Another world away, Hong Kong has been taken over by the Old Ones. They control every aspect of the city, slowly killing off its people and replacing them with shape-changers. Now, Scarlett is walking right into the trap. Her father, for unknown reasons, has invited her to go to Hong Kong. The other four Gatekeeper try to stop her, but the Old Ones are always one step ahead of them. Now, they have to get her out before the Old Ones take over her…and everything is lost.

Thoughts

Anthony Horowitz is one of my favorite authors. He has a blunt writing style, but he still manages to get a vivid image in your head. Concise, that’s the word.

I love the action. It had me holding my breath every step of the way. Sometimes the detail was a little too much information, but I loved it, nevertheless. The way he portrayed Hong Kong was amazing…I could tell that the city was sick.

There was so much suspense in this story! This is probably my favorite one (so far) out of all of his books. The secret messages, the danger…since I would rather not experience all that in real life, a book is a good place to find it. This 389-page book only took me two hours to finish because I was hooked the moment I read the first sentence. It was this: “the girl didn’t look before crossing the road.” Isn’t that a great beginning? Luckily, this isn’t the last book of the series (I was devastated when the Percy Jackson series ended…). However, the ending was disappointing. They kind of go in circles – each time they meet a new Gatekeeper, and then the Old Ones almost have no choice, but then something happens to the Gatekeepers. And then the Old Ones still have a chance.

Another thing — I liked Scarlett’s power, but it was kind of cliché. At least none of them could fly.

Rating

Another five-star book. And no, despite all the five stars I’ve given, five stars is still a hard rating to get from me. It’s just that I’m lucky that I’ve chosen books that I like.

i walk the midnight dark and drunken road up the backside of Crown Hill to find the poet is not there, just an empty grave. There are no orphans, no children thin and terminal, just few wild turkeys milling about. His monument is strewn with the alms of the young and impoverished: dimes and quarters. i help myself to enough for a drink later and head down the winding  path toward the edge of the cemetery, passing a large tombstone engraved with my surname though it belongs to no one i know save for the dirt. The light of the living city is a fog over that of the dead.

Three deer hiding in the dark are betrayed by their glowing green eyes. They pause and watch me pass like a specter and i begin to doubt my own existence for a moment.  i pass the time smoothed limestone statue of a young girl, hands clasped and holding a bouquet of fresh lilacs and daffodils and wonder who she was and who places the fresh flowers in her cold stone  hands each night. i wonder why the markers around her have no flowers and are overgrown in weeds and why immortality is so randomly fickle.

From behind a willow i hear a voice as rough as sand speaking in a low and mellifluous tone. i draw nearer and can discern that the well dressed figure speaks in Spanish, with an odd accent to my ear. He stands and stares off toward the mausoleums and traffic lights at the graveyard’s edge. i understand very little of his words. At his feet is another man, heavy and bearded, sipping from a flask. He turns to me with bourbon breath and a southern lilt, offers me a drink.  He raises an eyebrow and his chin toward the poet.

–”We stand in the hand dug well of our past with the future rising quickly around us.”

–Is that what he said?

–Close enough.

i take a long draw from the flask. i am home

Hari ini lumayan menyebalkan. Sesuai rencana aku hunting di necropolis of devotion. Yah emang sih capek hunt sendiri, apalagi triple windows. Ampe di necro dengan penuh perjuangan, ternyata apa yang didapet gak sebanding. Seal yang biasanya berlimpah ruah disana, hari ini cuma dikit banget. penghasilan hunt berkurang 90%.

Arrghhh sial banget. Padahal udah rencana, kalo abis dapet duit dari hunt ini, bakal beli barang2. Tapi ternyata lagi sial. Akhirnya aku mutusin buat pindah tempat hunt. Tempatnya gak jauh2 amat sih, cuman pindah di Patriot Necropolis yang notabene cuma beda 200m (real) dari Nercopolis of Devotion.

Setelah perjuangan berat menyeret Bishop dan Prophet tersayang kesana, akhirnya hunt lah aku disana. Test dulu, musuhnya ganas apa gak. Setelah di test, ternyata hasilnya gak lebih bagus. Musuh di situ malah gak drop apa2.

Akhirnya karena udah sangat2 jengkel, acara hunt dialihkan jadi acara narsis. Mumpung 3 char lg online, aku mutusin buat foto 3 char ini bersamaan. sempet ribet gara2 bingung penempatan posisi yang asik. Akhirnya setelah perjuangan 15 menit yang tolol jadilah foto di atas. Uu~ uu~ Not bad… Cuman jengkel aja, jauh2 ke necropolis, malah cuma dapet foto…

Click here to view the ancient cemetery and see the tomb of St. Peter

Read the whole fascinating story here

Ancient peoples used burial chambers, cairns, for example.  Our far ancestors have used burial formalities that, like all else, evolved over the centuries.  For example, a grave marking could be simple, with some symbol, like a wooden cross, if it was a Christian burial.  This in itself, may not have been proof that the remains were that of a fellow Christian, just that a particular kind of burial was undertaken.  Some graves were marked with stones and in Scotland, there are many  stone piles to be found, especially on hills, built up as memorials to an event. They have become the smaller, modern version of the cairn.

War graves are commonly marked with a religious symbol, or a stone with a symbol incised on it.  Today, in war torn areas where many inhabitants have been forced to become  desensitized to the constant violence and carnage around them, and where it has been possible, some kind of marker is placed on a grave, just so that, apart from the practicalities of burial, it feels like what is  ‘ decent ‘ has been done.

Some of the grandest monuments were saved for emperors, kings and princes, the obvious ones being the Egyptian Pyramids.  From this, it can be safely deduced, I believe, that there was a lot of preparation for death and perversely, a celebration of or for the dead. There are classical stories that relate to journeys into the afterlife which, perhaps, these celebrations were designed to ease.

Highly decoratively carved tombs, would be afforded by the wealthy. Or, the money raised for a grand memorial would have been  obtained from the immediate society that should have been grateful for the existence of the exalted personage.  One of the Dukes of Sutherland’s Memorial, high on a hill in Golspie,  Sutherland, Scotland, is such an example.

All this, leaves us to suppose, justifiably, that the poor could not rise to anything memorially noteworthy and had to keep their funeral arrangements low key.  The parish poor committee would often be called upon to arrange anonymous paupers’ graves, a practice that continued for centuries.  There are still similar practices in force, though not necessarily quite so stark. Also, today, religious organisations can be called upon to bury members of their community, unfortunate enough to be without means, and at the very least, with an identity marker on the grave and a record of where the individual lies.

However, it can be seen, over the centuries there have been some very ornate tombs and mausoleum designs, a great number for churchmen.  There are plenty neo-classical stone features to be found in many a necropolis, which are recent additions.  Observing the gravestones, the mausoleums, the ornamentation in the cemeteries we have today, we can see they tell us social stories,some are ones, where lives have been cut off too soon.  Others are surprising, that in times when  life expectancy was much lower, (you were lucky to get to the biblical three score years and ten) following amazing exploits, wars, social deprivation, and so on, they lived to ripe old ages that would be great even by today’s standards.

A recent visit to a cemetery left me pondering about the  incumbent of one tomb.  The table  top stone was weather worn, so difficult to identify who lay within.  However,  incised on one of the sides of the top stone,  therefore, much protected from the elements, was carved;

So far today, I’ve gone over to Glasgow Cathedral where I had a tour from a very nice guide who used to teach at Oregon State, and he played a piece of music on the harmonium next to St. Mungo’s grave that martyrs would sing as they were about to be hanged. Very nice tune. I then listened for a while to the organist practice in the balcony, and then attended their Wednesday afternoon service in a smaller chapel. After the service, I went to lunch with a woman named Dorothy who was kind enough to share the words of the Apostles Creed with me when I was supposed to be reciting it. She’s an older woman, who told me lots about her daughters who live in Singapore and Ghana, and proceeded to give me doughnuts and discuss the plight of the urban pigeon.

I then went to the St. Mungo museum where I learned about religious art from Shiva to Mary to Tlingits. All in all, a nice visit. They also have a contemporary exhibit on Famine — depressing. But good! Afterwards, I headed over to the Necropolis where I looked for some family names and found some Crooms, Mary and John.

I didn’t know it beforehand, but apparently there’s a Rangers/Celtics game today, as I saw a huge number of men and teenage boys dressed in kilts, some in orange and others in blue, and many having tied a lion rampant on their heads as scarves. I was glad to be headed in the other direction. It’s also an open day at the University, so a lot of school kids are on campus to visit.

At any rate, a beautiful sunny warm day here in Glasgow, the first in a while.

Death Metal, Bowling. Same shit, right? Deflorate comes out September 15th.

Nowy album Vadera to jedno z ważniejszych wydarzeń sceny metalowej 2009 roku. Małe znaczenie przy tym mają przetasowania w zespole czy to, że Vader  trafił pod skrzydła wielkiego Nuclear Blast. Na wydawnictwa Petera i ekipy czeka się po prostu, a nie mimo wszystko.

Nie inaczej było przy Necropolis.

Album ten w wersji podstawowej tworzy jedenaście utworów (plus dwa covery). Większość z nich to krótkie petardy, w rozpiętości od dwóch do czterech minut, a ze schematu nieznacznie wyłamuje się When The Sun Drowns in Dark. Czas zatem przejść do rzeczy.

Krótkie perkusyjne intro, trochę dłuższy gitarowy dryf, miks znanych patentów i jesteśmy w piekle. Tak oto zaczyna się nie tylko Devilizer, ale też w ogóle cały Necropolis. Fani rewolucji będą zawiedzeni, bo pierwsze nuty Necropolis to stara vaderowska szkoła. Nie będzie inaczej do końca albumu. Rise of the Undead nie zmienia torów Devilizera. Co prawda mniej tutaj wypchanych przed szereg bębnów Paula, ale za to więcej gitarowych wypuszczeń ku solówkom, jak i więcej samego Petera.

No, właśnie… ależ Peter ma formę! Jego wokal, pomimo przemijających lat, wciąż prezentuje się wybornie. Dokładnie tak jakby to były czasy De Profundis czy mojego ulubionego Black to the Blind.

Never Say My Name i Blast tylko utwierdzają w przekonaniu o wielkości Vadera. Numery to bez żadnego kombinowania, świetne w swej prostocie, napakowane ciężkimi riffami Petera i uderzeniami Paula. O ile Never Say My Name jest relatywnie spokojnym utworem, o tyle nie trwający dłużej niż dwie minuty Blast jest wściekły i rozpędzony jak austriacka lokomotywa.

Dopiero przy następnym, nazwijmy to przerywniku pt. The Seal, można nowemu Vaderowi coś zarzucić. Takich elektronicznych tąpnięć Necoropolis zawiera na szczęście tylko dwa (następny to Summoning The Futura), bo muszę przyznać, że nie doszukałem się sensu ich egzystencji.

Między tymi przerywnikami pojawiają się takie utwory jak Dark Heart i Impure. Ten pierwszy z szyderczym uśmiechem już na starcie rozpoczyna się agresywnie i z krótką przerwą trzyma się tej wciągającej jednostajności. Wytrącony z tak oczywistych torów jak poprzednik jest Impure.  To zresztą jeden z lepszych utworów na płycie. Słychać tutaj nagłe zmiany tempa, a za tym postrzępioną konstrukcję i wszystko to przy precyzji wykonawców Necropolis.

Rozpoczynający się po drugim przerywniku Anger to coś na kształt wcześniejszego utworu pt. Blast. Jest równie szybki (a może i szybszy?), też wybuchają w nim vaderowskie instrumenty, a i w pewnym momencie pojawia się krótkie solo. Z kolei znany jeszcze przed premierą krążka We Are The Horde z pewnością będzie dobrze wywiązać się z roli singla, wszak utwór ten stanowi dobrą kwintesencję tych wszystkich elementów jakie zawarte zostały na Necropolis. Poza tym to świetny numer na koncerty,  już teraz oczyma wyobraźni widzę rzesze fanów krzyczących za Peterem “we are the horde!!!”.

Właściwy materiał Necropolis kończy trwający nieco ponad cztery minuty (nie liczę dwóch minut ciszy) When The Sun Drowns in Dark. Na taki finał warto było czekać! Vader gra tutaj na kilku mocno przyswajalnych riffach, w miarę szybko, a po zatoczeniu kręgu prowadzących riffów następują odpowiednie zejścia wraz z finałowym monumentem. Nie wiem czy nie zaryzykuję jeśli napiszę, że ten utwór ma w sobie coś z klasycznego heavy metalu, co dodatkowo potwierdza solówka inna niż wszystkie, ale chyba najlepsza w przekroju płyty.

Album kończą dwa covery: Black Metal Venom i Fight Fire With Fire Metalliki. I choć nie są specjalnie odkrywcze to miło tego posłuchać w aranżacji Vader, a niespodzianką jest, że przy drugim utworze pojawił się wokal niezmordowanego Taffa z Rootwater.

Sumując powyższe można napisać, że Necropolis to krótki krążek. Nie włączając do treści materiału dwóch przerywników wychodzi z niego jakieś 35 minut muzyki (w tym dwa covery), a zdarzało się, że powstawały EP-ki liczące taki okres czasu. Cóż jednak z tego skoro nowy Vader miażdży?!

Zdecydowanie kandydat do metalowej płyty roku.

Werdykt: 9/10

Our last days in Italy were a combination of sight seeing and relaxation.  We decided to fit in one last day trip, this time close by in Tarquinia.  There is a wonderful small museum dedicated to the Etruscan civilization and then a necropolis with tombs to explore outside of the historical town.  We drove to Tarquinia with heavy hearts knowing it was our last real day of discovery.

The museum was right inside the city wall’s entrance and we thought we would do that first, before lunch, and then head over to the tombs.  Surrounding a courtyard, the small stone museum is full of ancient sarcophagus, often of entire families, and pottery and weapons from the Etruscan Era.  This was a great museum with the girls, full of interesting items they could relate to like the dolls and pottery, and also impressive and tactile with the carved sarcophagi all around.  Plus, we did the whole museum in about 35 minutes.  We went to a fabulous lunch right across the street and then headed out of the town to the necropolis.

The necropolis turned out to be quite a hike from the historical town.  By the time we reached it we were hot, sweaty and worn out.  We decided to descend into one tomb, climbed down the steps and turned on the little light in the cave.  The painted walls were illuminated and we admired the art and just the cool factor of being down in these ancient tombs from thousands of years ago.  After our tomb raiders experience we went back to the car and drove to Tuscania to swim at the pool for the last time and say goodbye to Ava, the lifeguard, and Lisa her sister who runs the bar/gelato stand.

On the 30^th we went to the lake for one last hurrah at Lake Bolsena.  We will miss this amazingly beautiful, shady and clean beach when we’re back with the hoards in New York.  On our way back into town we stopped at the Pasticceria to get our last desserts and say goodbye.   Obviously, the rest of the time was spent packing, trying to calm our daughters’ building anxiety about camp, and trying to take in the smells and feelings of just being there.

Usually by the end of a vacation you are so ready to come back.  I think it was Erma Bombeck who had that line, “when you look like your passport photo it’s time to come home.”  But we easily could have stayed another month.  Being there for the entire month of July made it feel normal and not transient or hectic.  But, of course this being real life we had to come back eventually, and I still can’t believe how lucky we were to travel and live in Italy for a whole month.  I think as a family it was an incredible (or masochistic) experience to spend 33 straight days together, but more than that it was an invaluable and priceless experience for my daughters to really know what it is to travel and be somewhere outside your comfort zone; to navigate strange places and open yourself up to being in the moment, in the food, in the art and in the language.  All of it.  Hopefully we’ve given them a love of travel that will stick with them forever.

This is an original beccarama.com post

Gdyby Vader grał power metal, to jego nowy album powinien nazywać się „Rise of the Phoenix”, bowiem po odejściu z zespołu wszystkich muzyków (w tym wieloletniego gitarzysty Mausera) wydawać się mogło, że z legendy polskiego metalu zostaną zgliszcza.

Tak się jednak nie stało. Peter szybko zabrał się do pracy i znalazł nowych muzyków o nieprzeciętnych umiejętnościach. Daraya zastąpił młody perkusista Paweł „Paul” Jaroszewicz, który wcześniej miał m.in. krótki romans z Rootwater. Miejsce Novego zajął weteran po przejściach, czyli Tomasz Rejek vel „Reyash” (wcześniej m.in. Witchmaster oraz Christ Agony). Najwięcej emocji wzbudziła jednak postać nowego gitarzysty. Został nim Vogg, czyli Wacław Kiełtyka – gitarzysta znany przede wszystkim z Decapitated i mniej znany ze współpracy z Lux Occulta i Renatą Przemyk.

I fora zawrzały…

Jak będzie brzmiał nowy Vader? Co nowego (i świeżego) wniesie do gry jeden z najlepszych gitarzystów polskiej sceny metalowej? Czy Vader zostanie Vaderem?

Najlepszej odpowiedzi udzielił Peter. Numero Uno olsztyńskiej formacji stwierdził, że nie chce rewolucji w brzmieniu zespołu i… zabrał do białostockiego studia Hertz tylko Paula, sam zajmując się nagraniem (a wcześniej skomponowaniem) wszystkich linii gitar, basu oraz solówek. I tak powstał „Necropolis”. Ten tytuł też pasuje  – stary Vader został pogrzebany. Niech żyje nowy. Podobny. Bardzo podobny. Właściwie niezmieniony. Ale bardzo mocny.

„Necropolis” jest brzmieniową i stylistyczną kontynuacją „Impressions In Blood”. Odniosłem wrażenie, że Vader zakończył poszukiwania. Odnalazł na nowo swój styl i jest z niego bardzo zadowolony. I słusznie. Ekstremiści nowoczesnych brzmień i rozwiązań i tak poszukują wśród innych kapel. Vader jest wierny swojej muzyce.

Teraz pora na recenzję. Można to zrobić na trzy sposoby. Oto one:

Recenzja krótka:

„Necropolis” to nowy album Vader. Brzmi jak Vader. Jest fajny. Wychodzi także w wersjach digipack (z DVD) i na vinylu.

Recenzja średnia:

Nowy Vader brzmi jak Vader. Fani Vadera mogą kupować „Necropolis” w ciemno. Młodzi fani metalu, którzy na Vader nie zdążyli się wychować też powinni tej płyty posłuchać. Wypada bowiem Vader znać i kropka. Poza tym młodzież, przyzwyczajona do idealnie wyprodukowanych albumów (o ile nie przeprodukowanych) łatwiej przyswoi sobie „Necropolis” niż, nieprzymierzając, „De Profundis”. Album wychodzi w trzech wersjach:

- CD (jedenaście utworów)

- CD+DVD w wersji digipack (jedenaście utworów plus covery Venom i Metallicy plus koncert na DVD)

- Winyl (jedenaście utworów – bez koncertu, ale za to z trzaskami)

Recenzja długa:

prawdziwą, merytoryczną i rzetelną recenzję przeczytacie TUTAJ.

Maciej Maląg

NAJSŁYNNIEJSZY CMENTARZ ŚWIATA

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Jedna z alejek cmentarza Père-Lachaise

Świątynia Dumania - grobowiec jako pomysł architektoniczny

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Kiedy ponad dwieście lat temu władze miasta Paryża postanowiły przeznaczyć byłe posiadłości spowiednika Ludwika XIV Jezuity La Chaise’a na cmentarz, nie cieszył się on zbytnią popularnością wśród grzebiących swoich bliskich obywateli. Postanowiono więc odwołać się do ich próżności, sprowadzając na nowy cmenatrz kostki Moliera, La Fontaine’a oraz słynnych a nieszczęśliwych kochanków Aberlarda i Heloizy (Abelard, jako kastrat, był nieszczęśliwy na dwójnasób).

Przez kilka lat grób Morrisona nawet nie był oznaczony, jednak po jakimś czasie stał się celem pielgrzymek równie co on skonfudowanych życiem fanów, dziwaków, nawiedzonych okultystów, hippisów i narkomanów. Zaczęto urządzać na nim libacje, tudzież seksualne orgie – grób zawalony został stertami butelek, petów, strzykawek i kondomów (to śmieciarstwo przetrwało w tradycji do dzisiaj, choć później grób ogrodzono metalowymi barierkami, a nawet postawiono obok niego strażnika).

Jim Morrison - grób jako obiekt (pop)kultu

Tutaj leży Oscar Wilde - grobowiec jako turystyczna atrakcja

Gerorges Rodenbach - grobowiec jako mataforyczna ciekawostka

Fryderyk Chopin - grób jako przedmiot narodowej dumy

 

 

A oto garść obrazów z cmentarza Père-Lachaise w Paryżu:

Cmentarne aleje, groby wśród drzew

 

 

 

 

Wygląda na to, że nawet cmentarz może być malowniczy

 

 

 

 

Jedna z wielu ulic miasta zmarłych

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nagrobkowy ścisk

Sentyment, romantyzm, czułość... a wszystko w kamieniu

Nie tylko posągowa żałość - również takie scenki jak ta

Matka Boska z Dzieciątkiem w niezwykłej pozie

Rozpacz i smutek na straży rodzinnego grobowca

Smugi cienia i rozjaśnienia

Niektóre gróbki są jak ogródki...

Wdzięczna postać artysty

Nie brak wszak nagrobków dziwnych

Dziewczęcy wdzięk - cóż, że kamienny

Urna przy urnie - na wieki wieków

Retro... bardziej uwodzicielsko, czy też upiornie?

Nagromadzenie epitafiów (wątpliwej urody)

Skromny nagrobek genialnego pisarza

Polscy rodzice przypominają o stracie córki

Rodak rewolucjonista - Walery Wróblewski

Ekspresyjne rzeźby - ku pamięci ofiar rozlicznych zbrodni XX wieku

Realizm i makabra

Na Per Lachaise pamięta się również o Auschwitz

Na cmentarzu nie brak też groteski - utrącone przyrodzenie statuy z grobu Oscara Wilde'a i szminkowe ślady kobiecych ust (!?)

Płaskorzeźba nagrobna Fryderyka Chopina

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Jeśli najbardziej oczekiwaną płytą z kategorii rock/metal, polskiego zespołu w pierwszej połowie roku była Anno Domini High Definition Riverside (recenzja tutaj), to najważniejszym albumem drugiej połowy 2009 wydaje się Necropolis olsztyńskiego Vader.

Krążek nakładem Nuclear Blast opłynie świat 21-ego sierpnia 2009 roku. Necropolis ma ukazać się w trzech wersjach: CD , CD + DVD i na winylu. W skład podstawowej wersji płyty wejdą takie utwory jak:

01. Devilizer
02. Rise Of The Undead
03. Never Say My Name
04. Blast
05. The Seal
06. Dark Heart
07. Impure
08. Summoning The Futura
09. Anger
10. We Are Horde
11. When The Sun Drowns In Dark

A dodatkowo w wersji rozszerzonej usłyszymy covery:

12. Black Metal (Venom, przy udziale Barta Krysiuka z Hermh)
13. Fight Fire With Fire (Metallica, z wokalami Taffa z Rootwater)

Ponadto w limitowanej edycji znajdzie się zapis koncertu Vader zagranego w kwietniu dla Covana z Decapitated.

Dla wszystkich, którzy nie mogą doczekać się nowego Vader polecam:

1) Kanał youtube zawierający materiały ze studia.
http://www.youtube.com/user/panzervader

2) Oficjalny myspace  zespołu gdzie dostępny jest utwór z nowej płyty pt. We Are Horde:
http://www.myspace.com/vader

Zniszczenie nadchodzi!

The Night was impenetrable,
and two forms conquered all in solemn dance.

Imperative Love