friday

Dan! :D It's been too long man, it would be great to see you both :) Wednesday night is potentially a "big" one for us, not so much because of the size of the venue (which is small but from what I hear it's a very good one to play/attend) or the amount of people there but because we know there's going to be a fair bit of press coverage and definately some influential London promoters in the house assessing the whole "live streaming" showcase thing...we know for a fact that the main guys from Dingwalls and the Camden Barfly are going to be there and probably a few more to boot...! We're playing it as a 4 piece on the night as sadly our bassist couldn't make it but luckily all the guys are multi-instrumentalists so we've just swapped around (though it's been a while since I've played certain songs live on guitar so today's rehearsal was needed! ;)). If you're in on Wednesday night stop by http://www.gotseen.com and watch me do the metaphorical "performing monkey act" onstage Dan! :D

We're looking to get some work done on our new Land Rover Defender and are in need of suggestions for companies to carry it out: soundproofing, a full retrim and fitting a much better alarm (it's more than a wee bit frustrating as stuff like laying soundproofing is something I would've taken on myself a couple of years back but now my Crohns has got worse it's a bit too much for me to take on unfortunately :( ). After searching through the Landrover forums it seems that a lot of 4x4 companies who make Defender products do also sell "sound proofing" however, in a lot of cases, it's not much better than glorified carpet. Like a lot of people in the Jap car community we tend to have at the very least a fair to good idea of the lengths that you can go to with sound proofing a car as quite often we mix with the car audio scene and sticking down bits of material just isn't going to cut it: we're talking rolls of Dynamat and various other more specialist tricks to do the job. Which is why I think we might be best looking for a car audio installation company to take on the sound proofing as they'd know more what's needed? Could anyone recommend someone? For the retrim we'd be looking at recovering pretty much everything: front driver, middle and passenger seats (we will be swapping out the original seats for some that are more comfortable, possibly even electric Z seats if we can get them fitted with heaters!), door cards, dash, headliner and the interior sides of the truck in the back. A leather retrim would be great but whether we can afford it is another matter! If we have to go for the fake stuff it's not the end of the world as long as it's done right with contrast stitching and panelling. Again if anyone can recommend a good retrimmer that would be great. Although we're based in the Midlands we're happy to travel pretty much anywhere for the right job :) Finally we need to upgrade the existing factory alarm system. I'm way out of touch as to what makes are good these days. I've had both Clifford and Toad Cat 1 systems in the past...I seem to remember the Clifford was a bit fiddly and overly complex but it was a while ago now! Any recommendations for alarm makes and fitters would be much appreciated. Cheers, Leigh.

My band "This Burning Age" have been trying to crack the London scene and it looks like we may have got a foot in the door so to speak! We've been invited to play a showcase gig for a company called GotSeeN.com who specialise in filming gigs and streaming the event live over the net. They themselves are trying to get interest going from some of the bigger London venues so they've invited a load of press and club promoters to this showcase gig to essentially show off what they can do...which in turn means means a big opportunity for us to impress. We met the guys from GotSeeN at a previous show we played in Stratford-Upon-Avon, we got on really well, they really liked what we do and subsequently they asked us to appear on the bill! So..the low-down: the gig is being held at The Fiddlers Elbow in Camden: http://thefiddlerselbow.co.uk/ on Wednesday July 21st. It all starts at 8pm and we'll be taking the stage at 9pm for a 30-35min slot: If there are any Londoners around on that Wednesday come along! It's shaping up to be a great night and it would be good to see you there...plus it's FREE entry! :D The guys at GotSeeN really seem to be liking us a lot at the moment...we're currently on the front of their homepage here: http://www.gotseen.com/ and from Monday they're running a feature on us which is pretty cool :) If you have time, sign up to the site and friend us...all the tracks from our debut album "A Muzzle For The Masses" are up there for the listening (and there's always http://thisburningage.bigcartel.com/ if you fancy buying either the standard or Limited Edition version of the album...). There are also some more acoustic tracks and the odd new demo up on Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/thisburningage however it seems Facebook is now the place we spend most of our time so if you fancy just joining one thing, it probably should be that :) Here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/This-Burning-Age/314496161404 Speaking of the album, we've just received a fantastic review from Midlands Rocks Magazine here: http://www.midlandsrocks.co.uk/reviews/album-reviews/this-burning-age---a-muzzle-for-the-masses Left me pretty speechless to be honest...in a good way! Anyway, if you can't make it to Camden we should be streaming away in glorious technicolour from 9pm this coming Wednesday on http://www.gotseen.com so drop by if you can! :)

Nice looking truck. I have to say my preference is for the 90 rather than the 110 unless it's for an expedition vehicle in which case it's 110 all the way :) In fact I was half tempted to go for a 110 after Chris at Liveridge showed me round a lovely example as I was half considering kitting it out and taking a few months travelling round Europe but for normal road use it's just a bit too cumbersome for us :)

Lol! Definately seems to be a trait! I think we might do a spot of green-laning and some off road courses just because we've never tried it before and it looks like fun! :D South Birmingham area, not too far from J5 of the M42 :)

Evenin' all. Just thought I'd pop my head round and introduce you to our new motor...for once, it's not a 300zx (we already own 3 so one more and I may of had to get myself committed...;))...it's a Defender! This was our old 90 which we loved to bits: Unfortunately we had to sell as, at the time, I was put on a brand new drug treatment for my Crohn's which looked like it was going to cost an arm and a leg and there was a major worry that the NHS wouldn't help us out with it, so we ended up having to part ways ready to put the money aside for the meds. Luckily that eventually all sorted itself out and recently, after a few sh1tty years with one thing and another, we decided life was too darn short not to enjoy ourselves a little bit so we set our sights on getting a new Defender (which has always been one of my "dream" vehicles...bizarre but true), and this time trying to get one that was as close to our "ideal" as funds would allow...in otherwords a TD5 engined, van sided, 90 with excellent, rust-free bodywork, sound expensive oily bits....and in black (and I do mean "our ideal" as well...strangely my better half is as enamoured with Defenders as I am!) And bVgger me, after only 2 weeks of hunting we managed to find one! And here she is: Our last NA engined Land Rover was more than a bit of a boneshaker so the newer TD5 engine has been something of a revelation for us as she's an absolute pleasure to drive. To be honest, the level of comfort and drive quality was a massive issue: she's being used as a daily driver and we needed something big enough to cope with our two large Dalmatians and with carrying lots of amps, instruments and stage equipment backwards and forwards to gigs BUT again we had to take my Crohns into consideration as unfortunately it's got a lot worse over the last few years and brought jolly old Osteoporosis along for the ride with it so the car had to be comfortable to drive on those days when I'm not on enough Morphine to knock down a bull elephant! I think we've got as close as we can to achieving that with the purchase itself so now the plan is to set about her to really make her not only a comfortable ride but also bring her even closer to our ideal (I know, I know...they were never mean't to be comfortable barges...or quiet...or quick...but I'm going to give it a damn good go nonetheless! ) In no particular order, we're hoping to sort out the following: 1. Soundproofing everything that can possibly be soundproofed. Going down the Dynamat and sound absorbing foam route I think. 2. Replace OEM seats. Preferably with something adjustable, electric and heated! Not sure what at the moment, although I do have two Z32 cloth seats to hand... 3. Interior retrim. Possibly in faux leather from an accomodating plastic cow. The real deal would be great but I'm not sure we could stretch to it to be honest! Mind you, the fake stuff is hard wearing, easy to clean and it can still be made to look great if in the hands of the right retrimmer using the right stitching and interesting panelling...Christ, I sound like Gok Kwan... 4. Lose some of the ruddy stickers! Previous owner went a bit bonkers with them so most of them are going to be culled...will be keeping fingers crossed the paint underneath is ok and the same colour on removal... 5. Raise the suspension. Maybe something like a 2" lift. 6. Change the wheels and tyres. Something that is hard as nails but also looks great to boot. Also look at getting a set of bigger and wider all terrain tyres. Again, in case of off-roading but also to give it a more aggressive stance...also something that strikes a good compromise with the increased road noise. The only problem is that all the really nice alloys are available in the U.S. and not over here! U.K. Defender owners get a very limited choice. Luckily I'm quite used to importing car parts and engines from the U.S. and Japan so I'll probably take the plunge and do the same on a set of alloys...these are the current contenders: http://www.quadratec.com/products/92613_06XX_C_PG.htm 7. Get her re-mapped. Depending on funds we might uprate the intercooler, change the exhaust and do a few other bits of light fettling. It's a bit of a list but fingers crossed if we take our time and tackle things one by one we'll get there eventually! It's so good to be driving a Land Rover again! Leigh.

Not long back from our last rehearsal before the big gig on Tuesday...hot as hell in the studios but everything was sounding spot on so really fired up for the show now! :D If anyone's free and fancies a good evening of live music at a cracking music venue (with a genuinely excellent sound system) then I can guarantee that Tuesday night is going to be right up your street! We have three fantastic bands supporting us and Emma's called up all her old Kerrang mates, bands and industry peeps so it's going to be, er...lively to say the least, lol! I know there are a few Zedders coming along but all are welcome :)

I can't say for certain but I "think" I have that exact one or at least one virtually identical...and it's going up for sale! It came with the car when I imported it 6 years ago: very professionally made (I couldn't tell if it was shop bought or made by a very good amateur as there was no logo/brand on it) with space for 2 gauges and a boost controller (or whatever else you want to put in there...it had two mechanical gauges in it but they were pretty rubbish so I binned them!). I'm not using it in the V8 conversion project so I could have a rummage around the garage and take a photo or 2 for you if you like chap if you think you'd be interested? :)

Jeez...I know wipers are ugly...but evidently some are considerably more ugly than others. Those are eyesores Si! :(

lol, no worries chap! :biggrin: It's horses for courses at the end of the day. I'm a big fan of a clean 5 spoke alloy with a nice silver finish and these took my eye straight away. What really sold it to me was the look of depth on the 10" rears...aside from filling the arch nicely, the way the spokes curve right in looks gorgeous to me (and a bit reminiscent of one of the BMW alloy options from a couple of years ago I think?) which, although the angle isn't great, you can see in the second photo down in the first post on my for sale thread :)

B0g off you! lol! ;)

If anyone does fancy coming to the gig on the 25th I've just updated our Bigcartel online store so that tickets can be purchased via Paypal. http://thisburningage.bigcartel.com/ Cheers! :)

Nice one Derek, will get back in touch as soon as I possibly can chap and will definately have an answer by Saturday! :)

Thanks for the kind words guys, it's great to know you like it and it's getting played! :D We've currently got a pool of 16 tracks that are potentials for the next album...which seems to be shaping up to be a whole lot darker than the first! I really want to push the whole Phil Spectre/Steve Albini-esque wall-of-sound production to the max with the next one...lots of texture, lots of layers and even more contrast dynamically than before. The guitars will be getting more edgy, angular and machine-like, bringing in lots of fuzz tones and processing the hell out of some of them so the line between nasty synths and over-driven guitars begins to blur. It'll still be VERY riff-led though as I've been working on some hook lines that I genuinely can't wait for people to hear. And the fast tracks are now even faster...most of them weighing in at 170bpm. Really looking forward to getting my teeth stuck into things properly this summer :)

Derek I sent you an email earlier today! :)

Hey chap, great to hear from you and cheers for having a Limited Edition t'is much appreciated! I have to say I've been lucky on the old sales front, particularly at gigs, which is good news as aside from meaning I'm starting to recoup a little of the vast amount I spent on getting it made, more importantly the tracks are getting onto peoples CD players and iPods and a bit of a buzz is slowly starting to form! It's also a good time to get a Limited Edition as there were only 100 made and I'm down to the last 20-odd now! I'll PM my Paypal address over now :)

Afternoon folks, thought I'd drop by, say hi and shamelessly plug a gig and our album for a bit! :D ;) Blimey, it's weird coming back on here and not recognizing half the members! But honestly it's great to see the club is doing well and bringing in new blood to the Z scene :) Speaking of Z's the VH45DE V8 project still isn't finished, lol! In fact, earlier this month I almost considered selling it all as the Crohns is getting progressively worse and more aggressive: car, engine, custom parts and all the other ridiculously expensive goodies I've amassed over the last 4 years...and tbh I can't say for certain I wouldn't accept a good offer...BUT the latest plan seems to be leave it for the Summer and try and get it sorted this Winter. We will see... But on a brighter note, I now have band stuff to focus on :) For those that don't know, I have a band called "This Burning Age" and we've just released our first 10 track album "A Muzzle For The Masses"...you can find/hear us here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/This-Burning-Age/314496161404 http://www.myspace.com/thisburningage http://www.thisburningage.com http://www.last.fm/music/This+Burning+Age ...and the album is available to buy in Standard and Limited Edition versions here: http://thisburningage.bigcartel.com/ Aaaaanyway...we've got a fairly big gig coming up and I'd like to cordially invite everyone to it! :D Emma Scott Presents: This Burning Age at the O2 Academy3 Birmingham, Tuesday, May 25th. The Academy group recently switched venues in Birmingham and the new Academy is phenomenal...3 great venues in one, fantastic sound-system, bigger capacity, better bars...the whole shebang. Emma is an ex Kerrang DJ who's very well known as a promoter and manager (along with her husband Jase who has been in the business for years involved with the likes of Muse, NIN, Killing Joke etc etc) and they've both been championing us a helluva lot recently and this headliner gig is hopefully the start of quite an interesting time for the band. There's also going to be a lot of Press and Industry bods, agents and bookers at the gig and, all being well (please God! :blink:), it's looking like it's going to be one helluva night so it would be great if anyone from here is free and would like to join us! :) Tickets are £5 and can be bought either direct from me by emailing me on in-formation@thisburningage.com or through Emma Scott's website (follow the link to her Bigcartel online store) here: http://www.emmascott.co.uk/ (if it's the latter if you could drop me a line letting me know that would be great as it'll count towards our sales!). Thanks for reading all that, hope I haven't rambled on, and fingers crossed I might see you on the 25th! :punk: Leigh. (and here's a poster wot I done)

Thanks guys :) Nope, it's not a battle of the bands but Radio play will definately be involved! Once the auditions have finished then hopefully things are going to start happening very quickly...fingers firmly crossed anyway. I've recently started driving again (the meds made it a bit difficult for a time there) and I have to say it's been great to get behind the wheel of a Z once more (albeit one that isn't mine...my other half's NA!).

I've been away for quite a while so I just thought I'd post a quick hello to everyone and also say a big thank you to all those who wished me well during what's been a pretty terrible couple of months. It's only been the last couple of weeks that I've started feeling vaguely human again after my health (my Crohns) took a major nosedive before Christmas. I ended up bouncing in and out of hospital and it all got pretty serious for a short while as operation No. 12 was looking likely, one that due to the frankly appalling state of my insides would have proved to be both dangerous and ultimately life-changing. Thankfully, it appears I've dodged that particular bullet at least for the moment and I'm starting to get back into "real life" and enjoying making music again. Weirdly, after our lead guitarist left and things were looking a wee bit bleak (no great loss as he turned out to be a lying, conniving waste of skin fame whore...and that's me being polite ;)), matters on the band front have suddenly taken a turn for the amazing. Wish I could say more but I'm genuinely not allowed to until contracts are finalised but, after all the blood, sweat and tears, things are finally going the right way. So, that me. It's nice to be back :)

Happy Birthday Dave! :D

This is turning into a Z owners mini-meet: hopefully John (Dixon), Diane and Dave (Carey) will also be there! :D Fantastic news that you and your other half are coming Phil! :D

I imagine Stu's already mentioned it but he's booked his hotel and he's coming to the gig! :D

The gig on the 28th is a bit of a weird one for us tbh! We're looking forward to it as it's just us on the bill doing an hour and a half split into two 45 min sets with a break in between, so it's giving us the opportunity to play every track on the album plus a few new ones that will be on the next one....however it's VERY different from the venues we usually play. We're normally in clubs or dedicated live music venues like the Academy, Barfly etc but this is essentially a pub (albeit a bloody big one! :D) where the landlord loves live music and is actively promoting new bands who write original material. He's either onto something and the pub is going to get a great reputation for hosting new live music, or it's going to be the most surreal night out you've ever had! :D ;) As far as ticket price goes....I'll find out! :)

Cheers guys! :D Just waiting on the cover artwork for the 3 track album samplers to be printed and the covers then assembled...once that's done the Press Packs are being sent of to those "in the know" (whatever the hell that means) so hopefully more reviews (preferably of the good variety) will follow in the next couple of months...fingers crossed! ;)

The first official review of "A Muzzle for the Masses" courtesy of uber-cool German webzine "Reflections of Darkness" has been published. We're going global baby. lol ;) The review can be viewed in situ here: http://www.reflectionsofdarkness.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6266&Itemid=44 and I've also reproduced it below. Luckily, it's REALLY good! :) Written by Sebastian Huhn Wednesday, 11 November 2009 Title: A Muzzle for the Masses Artist: This Burning Age Genre: Alternative / Electronic / Rock Release Date: 28th August 2009 Label: 5th Day Records Album Review THIS BURNING AGE was founded as solo project in summer 2007 by creative head Friday after deciding to start something new with own material, rather than getting involved in another collaborative project. In winter 2007, he set about recording10 tracks for an album we know now as ‘A Muzzle for the Masses’ that would still undergo changes until being released on CD eventually. The album was close to being completed recording, when the wish came up to turn THIS BURNING AGE into more than a mere solo ride and to present the material live. By the end of 2008, following meticulous auditioning and several changes, the final line-up was set and THIS BURNING AGE had grown to a group of experienced musicians turning it into a creative force. The mentioned debut ‘A Muzzle for the Masses’ has been finally made available at the end of August 2009. It’s the way these kind of maimed electronic signals break against clear-cut drum cascades and eventually, a wide key texture that has one think of a mind in agony, fighting against its own decay. All is steering upwards to a rocking outcry, maybe a last rebel that in the end seems pointless. All this musical imagery is thoughtfully illustrated with lyrics ranging in tone from brittle over encouraging up to pugnacious on the album opener ‘Human Condition’. ‘Repeat to Fade’ starts by weaving a web of a seemingly Americana-inspired style of guitar plucking around an emerging cluster of rockier tones and pounding drumming. Going into the track a few seconds more reveals a thunderstorm of blistering drums and cutting riffs, while Friday’s voice sometimes seems to be close to breaking over the lyrical content he’s delivering. As driving and energizing as the beginnings of ‘End Game’ might be, as hopeless and deeply plaintive the track becomes later on. It’s spiralling downwards into a void, stripping down to acoustic strokes already bearing the tears you feel you soon will have to cry, allusions to a sun about to set in forlorn melodies and a breath of electronic drums. They’re all going to build up again to a strengthened arrangement to accompany the affecting tale told by Friday in a timbre, no barriers can hold up against. The character study of a scarred soul expects the listener on ‘Stronger, Faster, Fitter’. But where others scrape the surface at best, things being described here are painfully detailed and you can’t do any evasive manoeuvre and you can’t stop those pictures stop popping up in your mind anymore once the song’s started. It’s one of these songs leaving indelible marks in emotional souls. “A storm is looming overhead” The realization that everything’s fleeting is permeating part of the lyrics of ‘Everlasting’ and kind of contradicts its title, but it’s not utter hopelessness driving this song. Just because something’s ending doesn’t mean it couldn’t last. Maybe not forever but for a lifetime, which is what you may read out of other lines! ‘Everlasting’ only makes scarce use of electronics relying instead on a more traditional rock orchestration, accentuating the variety and dynamics in the compositions once more. A whole lot of passion, work, thoughts and emotions have been put into ‘A Muzzle for the Masses’. It’s audible in every note that’s being played and word that’s being sung. The record’s going to send you on a rollercoaster ride through various emotional states and by all means should be checked out by any fan of ambitious, electronic/rock music. I think this band’s got a bright future ahead of them. Tracklist 01. Human Condition - 4:26 02. No Surrender - 3:36 03. Repeat To Fade - 3:16 04. End Game - 4:42 05. The Last Day - 5:17 06. Stronger, Faster, Fitter - 6:01 07. Panic (Bring on the Bomb) - 3:52 08. Stay Forgotten - 5:33 09. Everlasting - 4:26 10. Honey - 6:49 Line-up Friday - Vocals, Guitar, Samples Anth - Guitar, Keys, Backing Vocals, Samples Russ Harris - Bass Guitar Jack “Penko” Josypenko - Drums, Percussion Website http://www.thisburningage.com http://www.myspace.com/thisburningage Rating Music: 9 Sound: 9 Extras: - Total: 9 / 10