Change comes to America (and this blog)

The Year of the Ox is shaping up to be a year of change.  As I've discussed previously on this blog, I have recently formed a new musical partnership with the Mighty Mosart212, and as such, we've started a collaborative home for our collective mixes and ramblings.  Since cross-posting everything on that site, this site and the occasional Monkeys for Helping collabo just seems like way too much work for someone as lazy as me, I'm going to indefinitely shutter this site and start posting solely over at La MoDa, but I'm going to keep the Mantisounds blog archive (and corresponding Divshare links) active  so my legions of fans and groupies can continue to do the science.

If you want to check the Mantisounds mixes I've put up on this site to date, click here.

For new posts, more funky goodness, and more Black Metal Mondays, please join me at my new home:

La MoDa Mixtapes

If Movie Posters Told the Truth

(via Holy Taco)

Justice x the Simpsons?

(via asian dan)

Playmobil Security Checkpoint

(via the Washington Monthly)

The idea that children would want to "play" security checkpoint is strange enough to me, but you HAVE to click through to the Amazon.com link for this toy if for no other reason than the awesome customer reviews. Here's just a taste:

"I like the basic idea. I applaud Playmobile for attempting to provide us with the tools we need to teach our children to unquestioningly obey the commands of the State Security Apparatus, but unfortunately, this product falls short of doing that. There's no brown figure for little Josh to profile, taser, and detain? Where are all the frightened plastic Heartlanders pointing at the brown figure as they whisper "terrorist?" Where are the hippy couple figures being denied boarding passes? And shouldn't someone be forcing a mother figure to drink her own breast milk?"

Black Metal Monday (on Friday)

Sorry for the lack of substantive posts, I've been busy with other ventures. However, with a little time on my hands, I thought I'd drop in on my face-painted brethren at blackmetal.com to see what's new in the world of evil incarnate. Thankfully, Satan has been hard at work in the recording studio, as evidenced by the following holiday-themed releases:

War Hammer Command has released "Hellish Wrath," and not a moment too soon, as my mom has been harping on me about hooking her up with some new holiday tunes. Blackmetal.com describes this tour de force as "War, Nihilism, and Misanthropy! Impressive corpse-painted Brazilian Black Metal full of rage and aggression! Absolutely fuckin' great, highly-recommended high-calibre, yet still Underground attack-- believe it!" Oh, I believe it. Especially after enjoying such ditties as "Sodomize the Dead" and "Infernal Holocaust Dissemination." Normally I find that albums embodying War and Nihilism are just OK, but throw in a pinch of Misanthropy and you've got the makings of quite a party!


Next up is the long-awaited (at least for me, anyway) REISSUE of Carcass' classic "The Reek of Putrefaction" CD. I'm going to be honest here: while I understand that "putrefaction" has vaguely yucky connotations, I didn't know until just now that it's "the decomposition of animal proteins, especially by anaerobic microorganisms" (thanks wikipedia). While you might be asking, "Who cares, as long as it's evil?" it helps explain why this particular re-release comes in a limited edition MEDICAL WASTE BAG. Also sealed in this medical waste bag is a DVD entitled "The Pathologist's Report Part 1" which, I'm assured, will "satisfy even the most gore-obsessed diehard CARCASS fanatic out there!" Given the Oscar buzz surrounding "the Pathologist's Report Part 2," this re-release couldn't be more timely.

Finally, in the "Evil AND Clever" department comes this 2005 release by Misantropical Painforest, "Winds Saturate with Inhumane Longing." After trying to imagine the evil backslapping and demonic high fiving that must have followed that play-on-words, we are treated to this surprisingly effective description: "Misantropical Painforest play chaotic, yet epic Finnish Black Metal violence borne of solitary journeys into ancient forests, recorded in the midst of the very atmosphere that this mind-bending music evokes. It incorporates influences from Doom, Death, Thrash, and traditional Heavy Metal into its Underground BM core, melding thematic minimalism with progressive, torturous and innovative arrangements. This is a stunningly original, grandiose and uncompromising vision of an ancient world undefiled by the sickness that grips modern Man!" Reading that, and checking the song titles ("Besmeared the Tunic of Honour," "Demons Haunt this Forest") I imagine these dudes worship Sauron, not Satan, adding a dash of nerdery to their "Finnish black metal violence"...

Everything In Its Right Place

(good lookin' out Mo)

Ratatat Live

(via fried my little brain)

No Comment

Update:  Mrs. Mantis has reminded me that Recon posted this like two years ago on M4H, which figures, since he's generally funnier AND timelier than me.

Stay Tuned...

...For all three of you who continue to check this site periodically, thanks for sticking around. I've been a bit quiet here because I've been busy elsewhere: mainly in the real world, behind a laptop/turntables. I've made a new DJ connection ('sup Mo) and we've been forming like Voltron to rock dancefloors the world over, from Cambridge to Somerville and everywhere in between! ; )

We're going to make the partnership official at the dawn of 2009 by teaming up to throw down a series of mixtapes, and will probably also be creating a new online home for said mixtapes. Fear not, though, I'll still maintain this website (inasmuch as I've been "maintaining" it recently) and will strive to cross-post as much content as possible. This partnership should be yielding lots of musical content, as well as some opportunities to hear a Mantisound or two in person up and down the northeast corridor. So stay tuned...

...in the meantime, here's how I'll remember the worst president in history:

Merry Christmas from John Rambo!