Saturday Slate: Skulls and Metal
Angel City citizens! Are you staring at your walls, absentmindedly chewing pen caps and wondering what ever shall be done this Saturday night? In addition to a trusty Cemetery Screening, I have two evening suggestions for the restless.
For those with a keen interest in criminal psychology, history, grave-robbing or phrenology, The Machine Project hosts a free [yes, free] lecture by Colin Dickey titled Cranioklepty: A History of Phrenological Graverobbing.
With the rise of phrenology, the early 19th century saw a host of bizarre grave robberies, in which the graves of famous men were plundered for their owners’ skulls. Both scientific curiosities and morbid fetishes, the skulls became subject to extended legal battles between religious and secular authorities over who owns these remains, while phrenologists continued to study them for visible proof of genius.
I would be attending tonight, hammer and pick in eager hand, if it weren’t for a previous engagement. Which brings us to the other event sure to rock you right out of your knickers. If you share my secret penchant for melodic death metal, tonight is yours. Sonata Arctica will open for Nightwish at the wonderfully deco Wiltern theatre and tickets are still available, somehow. I’ll be there in my blackest black, summoning my inner darque viking. Finnish metal forevuhh!
Watch:
September 13th, 2008 at 10:21 am
“Finnish metal forevuhh!”
If memory serves, there’s actually a Black Metal karaoke bar in Helsinki.
September 13th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
“Finnish metal forevuhh!”
I can’t be the only one wishing I had that as my ringtone.
Sounds like quite a bit of fun…I do love me some graverobbing but I’ll be @ the Kommunity FK show. Though somehow I think the subject of graverobbing will come up nonetheless…
However if anyone gets a pic of Zo summoning her inner darque viking…it is your DUTY to post it on the interwebs. With a funny caption. :D
September 13th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
@Warren You’ve been to Helsinki and I’m jealous. By Thor, if i ever go there, I’ll find this bar and drink its beers.
@Tequila Damn, I hope someone goes to the graverobbing thing, because I really, really want to be in two places at once, and simply cannot. I’ll try to capture my darqueness before I go out, however!
September 13th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
Aww. I’m on the east coast, but I did have the opportunity to see nightwish. After Once and firing Tarja, the band really went downhill IMO.
September 13th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
Oh, hell no.
Finnish metal shall never get better than Turmion Katilot. Barring that, Finntroll. I have it on good, Finnish authority that Nightwish are actually Swedes in disguise, and as such considered slightly less unpleasant than Lordi.
September 13th, 2008 at 7:14 pm
Shit, missed the grave robbing lecture…we lost angels appreciate the notice though. If you ever want to add to your skull pile there might be some skilled shovelers around. Speaking of concerts, My Bloody Valentine plays on Oct 1 and 2nd!
September 13th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Damn. Saw Nightwish and Sonata Arctica in Philly. They put on a great show.
@Jon: Agreed.
September 14th, 2008 at 12:28 am
Oh man… Finnish metal thing came up here too. Memory serves Mr. Ellis bit wrong, it’s not black metal karaoke, but more general heavy karaoke, but I guess there is black metal songs too. Now they have even band karaoke so you can actually go on stage as a band!
I don’t know if they have that kind of karaoke in my hometown, but they have two metal-bars, which cage-dancers and all things dark and sinister. ;)
Both of those bands were something I listened intensively when I was younger, but I kind of grew out of it. Memories and records dusting on a shelf.
Zo, if you are ever wanting come to Finland, I guess I can arrange you places to stay etc. At least at Tampere, where you can fly cheap from Stansted London, but I guess I can use my tentacles of power to arrange places in Helsinki too.
Jon, I also had records from those bands. Especially Turmion Kätilöt is hilarious, I saw this guy who puts rockets in his ass and does all this sideshow thing on their gigs (Spellgoth was his name I guess) all the time because he lives somewhere near.
September 14th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
And to think that FINALLY, later this VERY MONTH, Nightwish is finally coming back to my area.
And my car is broken. So only wistful concert picture-gazing for me. Buuuuuu.