330, 0330, 3.30, IIIXXX, Three-Thirty

Happy 12th & 7th Birthday to the two most important people in my life. Everything and everyone in the world can disappear, but as long as I have you two - Life Is Good.

Thank you both for the daily lessons.

3.19.2011 Gone But Never Forgotten....

So last year I "promised" this 3.19 thing wouldn't be a yearly deal.  I lied.  Maybe I was talking about all the words I could use to mark this bummer of an anniversary?  Who knows, a lot can happen in a year and I'm glad to be here for another one.  If you're looking for past remembrances of this day, check HERE and HERE. 

Of course, 3.19 marks the passing of both guitar great Randy Rhoads and the destined-to-be-legendary Andrew Wood.  A lot of time has passed since both left Earth, but their music will last forever.  I'm running this Kerrang piece on Mother Love Bone, with Jeff Ament reminiscing about the MLB days via the "Stardog Champion" (as it came to be known) compilation release.   

Speaking of which, the release of the long, long awaited Malfunkshun documentary has been bumped from Winter 2011 to Spring 2011.  Like my beloved Cubs, I hope I'm alive to see certain things come to fruition.

Not much more to say.

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Old Metal Mag Moment: Old Metal Mags

Just some killing time stuff for the older generation. 

Metal Magazines are the reason I'm here.  I still thumb through my collection quite a bit for many different reasons, but there's never been a time in my life that these relics of my past have ever let me down.  

I can go to them for old interviews, research, facts, photos, opinions  all of which have come in handy doing this thing here.  I can also go to them for comfort.  Like someone who builds model airplanes as a hobby or stress reliever, I can go the the my Metal library.  One I'm glad to have seeing that the mass print medium hardly exists anymore.  The days of sharing all the different opinions and styles to a large audience seems to primarily exist on computer screens. 

Sorry, but that's lame.

I mean how many of the Revolver-Core would remember the mighty Metal Rendezvous, along side Stateside staples like Circus or (S)Hit Parader let alone Creem or Metallion?  

Metal Rendezvous was an absolute killer of a mag.  Back when it was being published I had a hard time finding it on a regular basis, but a more missed title may or may not exist. Though the mag is long gone it's awesome to see former MR Chief Photographer Bill Hale still sharing his work with the world through the essential 'Metallica: The Club Daze' book and his soon to be unleashed Megadeth book, 'Another Time, Different Place' via MTV Books. 

Kerrang! - it's importance from it's start (as an offshoot of Sounds) in 1981 until the late 90's was something else!  The 00's were really trying years for fans of the mag.  More often than not going overboard on more than just questionable bands. The Paul Brannigan years were also important the way he realized the importance of satisfying it's core audience with the (whether you liked em or not) artists that moved magazines.  The Creem guy here is complimentary as hell and should be in 87 Kerrang! was still "it."    

Creem was a Rock N Roll institution for many, many years.  If you're unfamiliar with it and worship at the art of Rock writing definitely look it up.  Better yet, check this out.   Creem Metal, as the reviewer describes wasn't the greatest idea or even executed that well, but back then I loved it and another title to buy in my youth wasn't a bad thing.

Metallion was a popular magazine from Canada that lasted only 11 issues in the mid 1980's, so their mention here was perfect timing as I'm sure they were about finished if not totally dead at the time of this review.  I've only got two issues of this mag, shame it went so quick.  

Circus and Hit Parader, I'll have to write about a different time.  Circus broke it wide open for me many, many years ago.  I'll always have a lot of respect for them.  Like the rest they changed gears many times over, but like I said, they got me going.  

Hit Parader was what it was. Always felt like they were the Burger King to Circus' McDonald's.  Not sure if it was the visual aspect or if it was down to the writing?  Probably a hefty percentage of both as Hit Parader always had a 2nd rate feel to their photos.  But respect to HP as well, because they were tried and true every fucking month at a very important time for me.    

I mean even the chameleon-like Revolver could never shuck and jive like the once mighty RIP.  RIP's ascent was at least a little more honest(?).  But the guy is harsh on RIP, but this was 87 and RIP was still somewhat aimlessly existing in the newsstands.  They didn't cover any one genre extensively, so they didn't have their niche, yet. 

Their true calling rang several issues later as RIP's "domination" and the phenomenon of Guns N Roses happened almost side by side with the two finding many opportunities to cross pollinate for many years to come.   But it's all business at the end of the day so we'll see what's left of the art in the years to come.

For now though, here's what the writer at Creem Metal thought of the "competition"  back in 1987.  

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March 3, 2011

From Mick Wall.Com 

02 March, 2011

By far the best - as in most accurate - review of the Metallica book so far. Not just because the guy likes it, just his whole vibe. You just know if it was a crap book he'd have stuck the knife in without a second thought. A real person saying how it really is, named Tom Trakas. Thanks, Tom.

I'm at a real loss for words here. The above means quite a bit to me and I don't know how to describe it.  Mick Wall to me is about as high as you can get when it comes to the art of Rock N Roll writing.  I've been reading and devouring his work for as long as I can remember. 

His first book, 'Diary of a Madman' was one of the first Rock books I ever read and his body of work over the past few decades has shaped, for better or worse, what you read today.  To have the above written about my own writing?  It doesn't get any better.

In addition to that, today is the 25th Anniversary of 'Master Of Puppets.'  I guess it's been a day of reflection.  Where I've been, where I'm at and where I'm going.  Crazy.  Thanks to my readers who are along for the ride.  

Tom