It’s Voodoo, Man – 11th September 2024

Enthralled by perceived charisma, you will hear these words oft-repeated
We will provide you what you deserve of which you’ve been cheated
The masks will swap, convincing you that change means not the same
Scapegoating other players is just the way ahead in this game

There’s no escaping the treadmills that you yourself wished created
Signed on to the terms and conditions that we have dictated
Ignorance is a more terrible curse than anything we could invent
So the illusion must be maintained with your monies well spent

I tried some long-line rhyming! The initial inspiration for this was the 7th line, taken from the comic Shadowman – hence the title.


Today I’m feeling:

Super tired. I slept before 10 last night and was in a deep, deep sleep for most of the night and did not want to get up this morning but I did push myself and did a little exercise again.

I was sitting in my room, about to leave, when Amy called me and asked if the school was open because the river had burst its banks and Tessaban 6 school is closed and the bypass is closed too, forcing everyone onto the highway, which usually floods at points too.

I called Kru Tang and she suggested staying home until she got more details. So I could’ve slept even longer if I wanted!

I pushed myself out to Utopia, where I’m sitting now and will do some work.

At 10.30, a message came through that the school will be closed until Monday! Woohoo! One teacher commented that the river is up on the bridge now, which, if I had gone to school, may have meant that I couldn’t get home!

Health:

Physical: 6
Mental: 7

Today I’m grateful for:

No more rain today, at least in our area and we are not affected by any flooding here. It was actually worse here for us last week.

Someone shot a video from ThaTon showing the overflowing river rushing through just under the bottom of the bridge, and all that water was heading towards the city.

The best thing about today was:

Probably having Amy warn me about the flooding before leaving home this morning.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

Amy is closely following events just in case her parents and/or friends are likely to have any problems overnight. I know she’s very worried about it.

I feel more calm as there is really nothing I can do at the moment.

Something I learned today?

I came across a current documentary about kratom use in the USA. It seems that entrepreneurs there are extracting the active elements from it and boosting up the efficacy and it’s starting to cause health problems, including death.

I was just wondering today if my tiredness is from taking kratom. I hadn’t had any for about six weeks and noticed that I wasn’t sleeping as well as before. I’ve slept very well since taking it again this week, but then I also noticed that I feel exhausted at the end of the day.

However, I’m also wondering if my tiredness is due to the fact that I started exercising again this week, too. Maybe I need to test both of these possibilities out.

Review your acts, Good and bad.

I messaged Baipad at lunchtime, and she said that she was at Central, presumably going there after the school closed. I wished her luck to get home, as only one bridge was still open over the river.

After waking up again after an afternoon nap, Amy told me that all the bridges were closed now. I messaged Baipad again, and she told me that she had made it home.

I commiserated with Porpieng and Lin, though, as both their houses were starting to flood.

Gui took this picture of the highway from the top of his house. It soon got worse than this and though he said the cafe was ok at that time, I’m not so sure it stayed that way. Both my school and TLC were flooded by late afternoon.

Ozma – 27th November 2021

The hungry tiger had dead babies on his conscience
The more he wondered, the hungrier he got
Why was it so, that he should be born this way?
Which crazy god made this the hungry tiger’s lot?

21st Sep 2024 – Submitted to Ragtag Daily Prompt – ferocious


Leopold – The Wreck of Hope
CD on Total Annihilation Records
I’m always checking out new music, mostly through Bandcamp pages. This album was mentioned on the You Don’t Know Mojack podcast, which is going through the SST catalogue. At the beginning of each episode, the hosts (Brant and Ryan) talk about other items of interest that they’ve been listening to. Brant leans more on the metal side of things whilst Ryan is more in the noise rock direction so my ears prick up when he mentions something he likes and so it was with Leopold. I had a quick listen on their Bandcamp page and liked it enough to contact them about buying the CD.

Usually, I’m fine with just a digital copy but I think I was feeling comfortable with my bank account balance at the time that I shot off an email to find out how much it would cost to get a copy sent to Thailand. It was ridiculously expensive, the shipping costing one and a half times more than the actual CD. But having made the enquiry I felt obligated to buy it and in the end, glad that I did.


Quebradita Num. 4
This pummelling intro has me hooked already. Jesus Lizard-like, before a change of pace into a chugging bassline and some screeching guitars that have a wonderfully sharp tone. And here’s the riff, which has a nice Drive Like Jehu melody and timbre. The vocals are reminding me of my good friends from When Chimps Attack. I think this could have been what attracted me to buy this CD. I still wish the Chimps had made 10 more albums, so this is a nice addition to my album collection. Some nice high-neck guitar action breaks into the melodies and then there’s this funky Iron Maiden break. Er…perhaps funky isn’t the right word. It’s great!

Yes My Love
Oh, some skronking sax! Excellent. Great off-kilter rhythms that swell to a wicked bouncing chorus, if it could be called a chorus. Air punching, floor punching good stuff. Followed by a spacious guitar to let the bass and drums flow. Nice dynamics. Now chilling…is it going to stop? It feels like a wind-down. And that’s it.

Junior Perkins
Jesus – it’s the Ace of Spades warped into a noise rock blur with buried vocals trying to punch their way out of a sleeping bag. The guitar tone is sharp and piercing, just the way I like it. Doubled vocals make me want to sing along but all I can make out is ‘get me out of here.’ I think I would like these lyrics. And it’s over as quick as you like.

(Another Killer In) Texas
A nice switch of pace after the previous frenzy but the whole band soon gets busy again, pulling everything together into a ferocious pounding force. Sinister and foreboding the song lurches forward, stalking the listener down the darkened streets. Suddenly cornered and roaring, the killer pounces, your guts are twisting, head exploding. Here it comes again. You’re dead.

Bag
A galloping pace, this one jumps out of the gate and feels like it won’t let up. A break comes a couple of minutes in which allows some breathing space before the anticipated relaunch. A great drum-rolling finale puts the final full stop in the sentence. The bag is broken.

The Wreck of Hope
Is this the opus rock-epic title track? This reverbing intro could go anywhere. Thankfully it dives into a gripping riff-heavy verse and staccato chorus and post bridge these soaring guitars are taking my mind off to faraway places. I’m back now.

Kentucky Nurse
A no-wave guitar freak-out leads this off before we get back to the brutality with an epic guitar sliding riff, flying off a cliff into some dark air. This is bringing me back to the best Chimps’ work.

Lovingstick
Holy ripping intros of death, Batman! Some exceptional noise rocking noise rock, all too brief but nailing each idea to the wall and screaming ‘THIS IS IT’

When Cousins Marry
A creeping pace with some Yow-like whispers, from Jack Brewer no less, before a lovely sax (?) riff gets added to the mix. No chords in sight so far….oh wait – here they are and we’re off, rolling down the freeway, overtaking the Tar Babies on the inside lane, skronking off the turnpike, heading nowhere in particular and without a care. Damn, that drummer is tight, holding the falling bumpers together. Train coming!

Brick Full of Tables
The rhythm section is freaking exceptional I realise by now, having paid too much attention to the guitar tone at first. Ah, this one has a buried chorus I would like to scream into the faces of all the idiots who’ve wronged me. I’ve no idea what they are saying but I’m absorbing the passion. More freak-out guitar before coming together for the chorus again. Time is flying along and I want the songs to last forever. But now we’ve disintegrated together and I’m spent.

There’s lots of great noise rock out there and I can’t quite put my finger on what sets this apart from many of its contemporaries. But, apart it stands.

Favourite songs on this listen: Junior Perkins and Brick Full of Tables.


Gratitude Journal

I am so happy and grateful to go to Game’s new cafe, fulfil, and try new coffee and his wife’s cookies and talked a little to Didi who dropped in. More good coffee in Chiang Rai.


It’s been a good Saturday so far; exercise, coffee, reading more about Slash’s childhood, blogging more poems, a nice drive to a cafe/restaurant for lunch, listening and reviewing the Leopold CD.

The morning sun has disappeared and a grey doldrum has set in that wants me to get out of my room. I still feel content but my mood has deflated. I was going to call Hayden but I don’t have the feeling now. I must do it tomorrow morning.