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Laughing Man

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Blog Entries posted by Laughing Man

  4. Laughing Man
    of the year, that is
     
    and as such
     
    it's about time to start giving some consideration to what will be my top favorite albums of 2012
     
    and it's actually going to be pretty difficult given the number of great albums released this year
     
    so for now I think I'll hold off on naming any names until I have some solid rankings sorted out
     
    but
     
    what about you guys?
     
    for those of you who listen to a lot of music, what have been your favorite albums of the year?
  6. Laughing Man

    [UPDATED] In Flames

    By Laughing Man,

    I would've updated this over a month ago when I picked up the new album Siren Charms, but as it turns out, the entire first pressing of the deluxe edition was defective. after a few weeks of waiting, the record label finally offered people corrected replacement discs about a week ago. I received mine in the mail just yesterday.
     
    at one point in the past these guys were my favorite band, and this collection is quite possibly the most complete that I own, just slightly ahead of Katatonia - between bonus tracks and B-sides, I've got basically every finished, studio-recorded song the band has released.
     
    from top to bottom:
     
    - Lunar Strain (2005 Candlelight Records reissue)
    - Subterranean EP (2005 Candlelight Records reissue)
    - The Jester Race (2008 Reloaded edition + Black-Ash Inheritance EP)
    - Whoracle (2008 Reloaded edition)
    - Colony (2008 Reloaded edition)
    - Clayman (2008 Reloaded edition)
    - Reroute to Remain
    - Trigger EP
    - Soundtrack to Your Escape
    - Come Clarity
    - A Sense of Purpose
    - The Mirror's Truth EP (German pressing)
    - Sounds of a Playground Fading
    - Siren Charms (deluxe edition)
     
    also owned but not pictured:
     
    - Lunar Strain/Subterranean (single-disc compilation including both the full-length debut and its follow-up EP, sans the bonus tracks available on the individual reissues)
    - "Discover Me Like Emptiness" (bonus track for Soundtrack to Your Escape, bought separately from AmazonMP3)
    - "Self vs. Self" (collaboration with Pendulum from that artist's Immersion album, bought separately from AmazonMP3)
    - "The Chase" (iTunes-exclusive bonus track for Siren Charms)
    - first press edition of Reroute to Remain featuring variant artwork (black border around the usual image)
    - a nifty In Flames magnet included with the purchase of Siren Charms through FYE, features the Purpose/Playground-era logo
  8. Laughing Man

    Soilwork

    By Laughing Man,

    (originally published 7 October 2014, updated and re-published 30 August 2015, updated and re-published again 25 August 2016)
     

     
    picked up the new rarities compilation Death Resonance last week. kinda bummed that it makes owning the Beyond the Infinite EP redundant by including all of those tracks, considering I dropped $25 to have it imported from Japan and all, but whatever.
     
    from top to bottom:
     
    - Steelbath Suicide (Century Media 2000 reissue)
    - The Chainheart Machine
    - A Predator's Portrait (2003 German re-press)
    - Natural Born Chaos
    - Figure Number Five
    - Stabbing the Drama (US limited edition)
    - Sworn to a Great Divide (limited edition, if that wasn't obvious)
    - The Panic Broadcast
    - The Living Infinite
    - Beyond the Infinite (B-sides EP released exclusively in Asia)
    - The Ride Majestic (limited edition)
    - Death Resonance
     
    still missing the live album they released last year, but then I've never been one for live albums anyway. I'd also like to get the 2011 reissue of A Predator's Portrait at some point, if only for that sweet new artwork and owning the bonus track "Asylum Dance" physically (I bought the MP3 of it off Amazon a couple years back).
  14. Laughing Man
    the NECA Terminator Kyle Reese I ordered arrived today.
     
    pretty impressed with it overall, although the particular figure I got suffers from an unfortunate manufacturing error where his left foot slants upward and prevents him from standing without something wedged underneath it (such as a penny, as seen in the first terrible photo).
     
    but otherwise it's good, especially for the $9.99 price tag.
  16. Laughing Man
    so completely out of nowhere the BBC has announced that Matt Smith will not be returning for series eight and that the Doctor Who 2013 Christmas special will mark his final appearance as the eleventh Doctor.
     
    this is contrary to what had previously been stated by both the BBC and Smith himself - not too long ago, it had been stated that Smith, Coleman, and Moffat would all be returning for series eight.
     
    pretty disappointing.
  17. Laughing Man
    there will be only two sets the first year, Malibu Tahu and Game Dev Tahu
    Pohatu and Kopaka will finally get married and adopt Takua
    Onua will be a horse just because. it's popular these days
    Makuta's real name will be revealed and it's Geoff, with a G, not a J, get it right
    crossover with Lego Friends
    new animations but due to budget constraints all narration and voices will be replaced by stock sound effects of dolphins
    will be promoted with an original song composed and performed by Death Grips
    the villain will be a tennis ball that some kid threw through your window and it hit your shelf and knocked over all your sets...thanks Jeremy
    Geg Fartshey will write the story, but halfway in he'll retcon romance and make Pohatu and Kopaka roommates and Takua their dog
    will be a record-breaking smash hit in sales and wildly popular with fans, but will be cancelled after the first year because Lego craves child tears

  18. Laughing Man
    hi nobody here remembers me or cares but here's a life update entry cause it's been a hot minute and things have been pretty big
     
    a little over a month ago some stuff happened and I ended up alone and jobless and checking myself into a hotel with the intention of hanging myself from a doorknob
     
    then I started seeing a psychiatrist and got diagnosed with PTSD and borderline personality disorder and started therapy and took up meditation and got put on like three more mood stabilizers
     
    fast forward to now and I have friends who I'm hanging out with regularly, a new job that so far is the best I've ever had, and an awesome and gorgeous new girlfriend who is incredible
     
    I went from the lowest point in my life where I felt utterly hopeless and like my life was over to an absolute high where I'm optimistic about the future and feel legit happy for the first time in a long time
     
    I still have my moments and I still have some stuff to continue working on, but things have changed (for the better) in a way that I had become absolutely convinced was not possible.
  19. Laughing Man

    Opeth

    By Laughing Man,

    updated with the band's latest release Pale Communion.
     
    from the top to the bottom:
     
    - The Candlelight Years box set (Japanese version), includes:
    Orchid
    Morningrise
    My Arms, Your Hearse

    - Still Life (2009 remastered version)
    - Blackwater Park (2011 Legacy Edition)
    - Collector's Edition Slipcase box set, includes:
    Blackwater Park
    Dangnation *
    Deliverance
    Lamentations: Live at Shepherd's Bush Empire 2003

    - Ghost Reveries
    - Watershed
    - Heritage (special edition)
    - Pale Communion
     
    *censored for BZP, not actual title
  21. Laughing Man
    pretty great special but I think people have been waaay overselling it, seeing the Doctors together was honestly the best part of it for me
     
    the story wasn't anything amazing and I thought the ending was dumb
     
    buuut it was enjoyable and certainly not the worst thing Moffat has ever done.
     
    (also for god's sake, can everyone please stop assuming that everyone else has seen it and thus it's okay to thoughtlessly post untagged, warning-free spoilers everywhere? like, I knew several major plot points and most of the jokes because of gifs/quotes/whatever all over Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, and here. I've only seen one person, out of all the people I know who have been ranting and raving over this, actually bother to give a warning before posting spoilers. one person.)
  23. Laughing Man

    Spiritual Healing

    By Laughing Man,

    FYE finally got in the copy I reserved of the 2-disc remastered reissue of Death's third album Spiritual Healing <3
     
    I've gotta say, the Relapse Records Death reissue series is by far the best remaster/reissue series in recent memory.
     
    unlike a lot of remasters/reissues that are put out without the knowledge or approval of the band, the various former members as well as the family of the late Chuck Schuldiner himself are directly involved, and the remastering is generally not a radical departure from the original sound, just better quality mixing
     
    the liner notes are extensive as well, having stories contributed by members and friends of the band as well as artists that Death inspired
     
    for example, this Spiritual Healing reissue contains 2-page writeups by each surviving member of the band's lineup during the recording of the album, was well as Chuck's sister Beth and (interestingly) the vocalist of Danish hard rock band Volbeat
     
    even the packaging is pretty sweet, with the discs housed in a jewel case along with a slipcover featuring the artwork with a really nice raised, textured feel
     
    I'm generally not a fan of reissues at all but these are top-notch examples of what a worthy reissue should be.
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