#horns up festival 2025

[randgugotur-6]

~ Horns Up Festival 10 - Trikala, Greece - 2025 ~

Part: "Heavy"

28 February (Friday) -> Warm Up Show (Venue: Rock N Rolla)

1 March (Saturday) -> Main Show (Venue: Andromeda)

2 March (Sunday) -> Main Show (Venue: Andromeda)

Part: "Metal"

1 May (Thursday) -> Warm Up Show (Venue: Andromeda)

2 May (Friday) -> Main Show (Venue: Andromeda)

3 May (Saturday) -> Main Show (Venue: Andromeda)

==============================

Bands (a-z):

----------

Part: "Heavy" -> March 2025

Friday 28 February:

- Angelo Perlepes' Mystery (Acoustic)

Saturday 1 March:

- Dead Congregation (Greece)

- Exordium Mors (New Zealand)

- Kolac (Serbia)

- Move The Sun (Greece)

- Sear Bliss (Hungary)

- Sense Of Fear (Greece)

Sunday 2 March:

- Adamantis (USA)

- Dark Vision (Greece)

- Deus Culpa (Greece)

- Melinoë (Greece)

- Raven Black Night (Australia)

- Titan Force (USA)

----------

Part: "Metal" -> May 2025

Thursday 1 May:

- Adrenalin (Metallica Tribute Band)

Friday 2 May:

- Blacken (Greece)

- Heir Apparent (USA)

- Leatherhead (Greece)

- Soulskinner (Greece)

- Valiant Sentinel (Greece)

- Xenos A.D. (Italy)

Saturday 3 May:

- Alien Force (Denmark)

- Convicted (Greece)

- Melan Selas (Greece)

- Nightfall (Greece)

- Show Your Face (Greece)

- Threat (Bulgaria / Guatemala)

==============================

Extras:

- Andreas Marschall: Art Exhibition (May)

- BBQ Party (All Days)

- Metal Market (All Days)

Guest DJ:

- Savvas Kofidis (Sunday, 2 March)

==============================

Merch:

- Hoodie "Horns": 35e / 38e

[Pre-order until 27 February = 35e]

[After 27 February = 38e]

Size S : (Available)

Size M : (Available)

Size L : (Available)

Size XL : (Available)

Size XXL : (Available)

Size XXXL : (Available)

==============================

Tickets:

Early Bird Tickets: [No More Available]

General Admission Tickets:

- 1-Day Ticket (1 March 2025) = 28e

- 1-Day Ticket (2 March 2025) = 28e

- 1-Day Ticket (2 May 2025) = 28e

- 1-Day Ticket (3 May 2025) = 28e

- Weekend Ticket (Part: "Heavy" - March) = 48e

- Weekend Ticket (Part: "Metal" - May) = 48e

- Combo Ticket (Parts: "Heavy" & "Metal") = 80e

*Warm Up Show (28 February) = Free

*Warm Up Show (1 May) = Free

----------

Presale spots:

[For Weekend and Combo Tickets only]

[1-Day Tickets available through our page]

Athens:

- No Remorse Records (Akadimias 81)

- Sirens Records (Nikitara 14)

Thessaloniki:

- Nephilim Store (Patriarchou Ioakim 17)

Trikala:

- Cardinal Bar (Patriarchou Grigoriou 12)

==============================

Contact:

Fb: Horns Up Festival

Instagram: horns.up.festival

Email: Horns.up.festival@hotmail.com

==============================

Contributors:

- Rising Metal Bar

- Maquina Sagrada (Giannis Fallas)

- Alma Music Productions

- Alex Hair Design (Alexandros Doutsias)

- Cardinal Music Bar

- xophus (Branding & Digital Services)

- Ζωγράφος Παραδοσιακό Καφενείο

- Car Audio Xtreme

- Το Παραγάδι

- Υπηρεσίες Μηχανικών Γεώργιος Ζάχος

- Τηγανιές & Σχάρες

==============================

More information coming soon.

🤘

[doujindungeon]

part one of three summary: with the f1 launch event set to kick off the next day in singapore, fernando thought it would be best to get some rest in preparation. up until a text from his popstar ex has him speeding over with nothing but jealousy in his veins and vengeance in his mind. rating: pg-13 (rating will increasingly go up across the next two chapters) pairing: f!reader/fernando [next chapter]

Fernando was going to be banned from Singapore at this rate.

In a country notoriously strict for so much as spitting a wad of chewed bubblegum to the floor, he was certainly pushing at any leniency for speeding through the streets of the Asian metropolis.

Especially since it would be quite some time before the local roads would be repurposed into the Marina Bay Street Circuit. Rather, he and the rest of the F1 drivers were in town for the next season’s launch. With the showcase tomorrow, he went to rest at the hotel while the likes of Lance and a few others went out to party in celebration.

But rather than taking in the sights of shining skyscrapers that mingled seamlessly with the lush tropical flora, all Fernando could see was red. 

Blinded by anger, of course–however, the reason why his blood was even boiling in the first place was due to the picture that was sent to his phone not too long ago.

Crimson lips, crimson dress.

Ample skin, a winking eye. 

The backdrop was the festive, dazzling chaos of a sleek, ritzy nightclub.

He almost dropped both his phone and his glass of water in his hotel room upon checking his messages.

It had been so long since he received a text from this particular number.

From you.

One of the biggest pop stars in the world, renowned for a stunning string of hits, devotion to your artistry, and charming personality to your fans, industry and the like. From what he recalled, you recently wrapped up the Asian leg of your world tour in Kuala Lumpur a few nights ago.

Just because you were his ex didn’t mean he had to stop keeping an eye on what you were up to.

Even while the circumstances surrounding your break-up were matters that he had been doing his best to forget about ever since the two of you split nearly a year ago by his terms.

Reluctantly at that.

However, the photo you just sent only resuscitated those bitter feelings of regret, causing them to start clawing their way out of the shallow grave he thought to have successfully buried them away in.

When he was about to type up his puzzled response, you were quick to send a few more messages–three in fact.

oops ignore that lol

heard you were resting up tonight so sweet dreams fernando :)

i’ll make sure lance doesn’t stay up too late tonight 👍

In that moment, the look in Fernando’s eyes went from wide with confusion to narrowed in ire.

This was by no means an accident.

This was a provocation.

Much like seasoned matadora goading a mighty bull with a red cape, you knew exactly what you were doing in that damn red dress of yours.

He hated how effective just a few texts were, given that he soon stormed out of his hotel room without a second thought.

His response would be delivered to you in person.

If you were to be his matadora tonight, it was only right that he came charging at you with both horns.

------------------

me listening to "vroom vroom" by charli xcx for the first time in 2016: lol who's alonso is he like a nascar driver or sumn haha anyway damn this sophie production go crazy

me in 2025: free me from this burden of knowledge father CHRIST

anyway stay tuned for how spanish ossan's gonna rock your ass across this 3-parter :~)

[cathy-gabby]

Happy Jinmas

December 24, 2024

I know Christmas is similar to Valentine's Day in Korea - it's a couple's holiday. But since Jin decorated his house for Christmas and even shared a photo of his holiday-festive entryway on weverse, I think he celebrates Christmas like the rest of the world.

He is now resting, music-wise - Happy promo may have already been over - but I am glad that he enjoyed his solo time and that he is now spending deserved vacation with family and friends.

The past 6 months since his discharge had been non-stop work for him and we are so blessed and well-fed. 2024 truly more than makes up for the heartbreak of 2022 and the emptiness of 2023. Someone I followed on X (@Mirrordanceworx) shared this graphic of Jin's work in the last 6 months:

I am excited to see what he will come up with next, OST and Netflix reality show aside. On that note, I might also come up with new posts in the next couple of days now that the holidays have set in (if I get inspired 😏). I know the last few posts showed my angry side - I realized I grow horns and tail when protecting Jin - that is why I stopped posting when the album was released and followed only like-minded seokjinnies on social media. My resentment for ot6 and "army" took away the happiness in happy. Plus November was a busy month for work I hardly had enough time to catch up with his contents and watch them in real time 😞

But I was able to watch his live with Hobi and smiled like an idiot all throughout even though I could not understand a thing (weverse translation suck 🙄).

I think the weverse live, aside from being a christmas live, is also an adieu to Jin's Happy era and a hello to Hobi's time. Jin can now focus on new music (maybe), new contents, new concepts, and new job as CEO. I am so looking forward to 2025.

[krispyweiss]

Song Review: Iggy Pop - “The Passenger” (Live)

Transformed into a ska number with a revved-up tempo, “The Passenger” tore through the audience at the 2023 Montreux Jazz Festival.

At the wheel was septuagenarian Iggy Pop, in peak form as he commanded the audience to sing la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la over the perky beat and they happily and lustily obliged.

With a horn section pushing the pedal, the “Five Foot One” followup captures Pop cruising in overdrive on a road that seems, based on this performance, like it really could go on forever.

The full concert will be released Jan. 24, 2025, as Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2023.

Grade card: Iggy Pop - “The Passenger” (Live) - A

12/17/24

[moochilatv]

Josh Phillips presents: Already Gone

For the lovers, and the lonely people

Josh Phillips is a name that has become synonymous with the music scene of Asheville, NC, the little sleepy mountain town in Western North Carolina that over the past decade, has become a hotbed of artistic talent as well as a destination for arts and culture in the southeastern United States, and has been far less sleepy of late as the town has exploded in population. To be a mainstay and a stalwart in a place like Asheville, an ever-changing city that is full of transplants, speaks volumes about Josh and his music and how much it has meant to the lucky ones who have collided with him and his various musical projects over the last couple decades. As a founding member of Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band, Phillips starting earning his reputation as a dynamic and compelling performer, and with the success of the Josh Phillips Folks Festival and their landmark release Wicker, he cemented his place as one of the most relevant songwriters to come out of North Carolina since the turn of the milenia. 

NEW SINGLE "ALREADY GONE" + EXPANDED EP (OUT NOW)

NEW ALBUM 'EVERYTHING'S GOOD' (OUT FRI. 2/7/25)

ALL PROCEEDS FROM SALE OF 'ALREADY GONE' SONG / EP GO TO BENEFIT ASHEVILLE. 

Stream the new single Already Gone:

BIO:

In 2022, Josh Phillips began releasing music under his own name for the first time and over the next eighteen months, released the singles 'Never Ready,' 'Bob and Weave,'Starts to Rain,' and 'How It Is,' to wide critical acclaim. While still containing elements of funk, reggae, and positive indie rock, the songs were, however, darker and more contemplative in nature than previous works, and especially, more personal.  The forthcoming album as a whole serves as both testament and documentation of Josh's navigation through surviving the loss of a soul mate, the end of a true-love relationship, and the struggle of transformation when enduring grief and the dispossession of a life once lived but not forgotten. This struggle is on full display on Everything's Good, a sincere and heartfelt effort at making good, being good, and living good while his world and the whole world turn upside down. There is an urgency in almost every song, heard in Phillips' nuanced vocal delivery of both a solemn and sullen lyricism, towards understanding this turn, and all its heart-wrenching truths, and ultimately, finding peace in pain. It is within this wide breadth of contrasts - the spaces in between - that Everything's Good truly shines.  

The album starts with the hopeful but melancholic 'Never Ready,' a backbeat-fueled and horn-driven romp rife with an indignance and incredulity that seeps through when Phillips asks "...are you addicted to the feeling of leaving? Maybe you're just ready to roll...who knows? Who ya think you're fooling?" ''Til We All Move Forward,' cuts right to the chase stating "I've been holding onto you way too long," which sets the tone for this stirring record. 

On 'Already Gone,' the final single being released before the full album drops, Phillips collaborated with the Asheville Symphony Orchestra. Perhaps the most devastating and certainly one of the most emotional pieces on the album, the orchestral treatment the song received via ASO, perfectly encapsulates the sadness and remorse swirling in Phillip's heart and mind. The agony is real. The affliction is complete. If ever a song could express the passion in anguish, this is it. This is as real as it gets, and the entire album resonates as such. Quite simply, Phillips and crew have created the best break up album in years. 

"This album is a collection of songs I've written over the last twenty years. Just before covid, I decided I had too many songs that I loved and felt had potential to be great and it was depressing me, having them be no more than files in a folder on a computer. I rented a studio space, got the vibe just how I liked it, and recorded this album on and off over three and half years. It is I think hands down the best music we’ve ever made together," explains Phillips when reflecting on the endeavour. 

The album was originally slated for release on October 18th, 2024, but with the Hurricane Helene disaster, the album release was delayed. Phillips, along with every resident of Asheville, NC, found themselves in an unprecedented situation. 

"We were going to put the album out during my favorite festival 'LEAF' on October 17th, but the Hurricane Helene Disaster ravaged through Western NC and changed our whole town's timeline, and quite frankly, our town forever. It thrusted us into an alternate reality, an extremely difficult situation, and was a humbling time for all of us. But, It was also a beautiful time of real community, connectedness, and helping each other. I think we all, collectively, relearned the value of giving your time and resources to others, and that in the end, it’s the only thing we have. It is in that spirit that we decided to partner with CommunityZ RecordZ to use this album that was created in and by our community, and then give back, directly, to the same community." 

With 'Already Gone,' the final single and expanded release EP via CommunityZ RecordZ, all royalties and proceeds from the sale of the EP will go directly to the Asheville disaster relief charity, BeLoved Asheville (BeLovedAsheville.com). CommunityZ RecordZ, a 501c3 charitable record label run by Will Bradford of SeepeopleS and theWorst, and Sparxsea, both friends of Phillips, and Bradford, along with SeepeopleS, former residents of Asheville, aim to save the world, one song, one artist, and one community at a time. The label was created in the same communal spirit as Phillips' record, and with the delayed release due to the disaster, the perfect opportunity arose to release the EP to benefit those affected by the Helene disaster.  

The expanded EP release includes an instrumental as well as the utterly riveting collaboration with the Asheville Symphony, is set for release on January 31st, 2025, with the full album being self-released on February 7th, 2025. The orchestral arrangement for 'Already Gone' was written by Franklin Keel and the accompanying music video was created by Fiasco Media and was directed by David Saich. 

"Working with the Asheville symphony was easily one of the most exciting milestones in my career.  I've patiently and successfully waited on this collaboration. The experience was one of the most exhilarating, nervous, unique, and beautiful memories of my life and I am forever grateful to Franklin Keel for taking his time to arrange it and the symphony for capturing this wonderful moment."

'Already Gone' also serves, in poetic fashion, as the perfect final teaser for Everything's Good, bravely announcing and accepting the challenge of loss, the shock of loneliness, and scrupulously illustrating the desperation felt, both inside and all around. The perfect last bite before you eat the whole cake. 

As a whole, Everything's Good is a deeply personal and intimate compilation of songs as well as a sublime portrait of the internal and external suffering Phillips underwent while navigating the ruins of his past while dealing with the encompassing catastrophe that he and his community, his band mates, closest friends and family, lived through. While Asheville and the surrounding area are months into recovering from Helene, both the town and its inhabitants will never be the same. Like Phillips, Asheville has been transformed, and the weight of grief and loss is only matched by the bright light of possibility and the reality of metamorphosis. With Everything's Good, Phillips is able to achieve the rarest of consummations, a timeless work of art that also, accurately, describes this moment, this time, and this place.  If these offerings serve as a harbinger of the future, it's more than evident that he is rolling out a compelling and persuasive argument, now, for his continued and celebrated relevance, establishing his place - truly - as one of the most dynamic and potent song crafters and performers that Asheville, NC has ever called as their own. With his first album released under his own name, we believe this is now an established fact. 

[brookston]

Holidays 1.6

Holidays

Armed Forces Day (Iraq)

Blessing of the Waters (Greece, Turkey)

Carnaval Blancos Negros, Day 3: The Day of the Whites (Colombia)

Carnival season begins (until Shrove Tuesday)

Children’s Day (Uruguay)

Cuddle Up Day

Daruma Ichi (Takasaki City, Japan)

Dezome-shiki (Tokyo, Japan)

Flying V Day

Four Freedoms Day

Greek Cross Day

Haxey Hood (Traditional Old English race, pushing a leather tub to a local pub)

Hornschlittenrennen (Horn Runners Race; Germany)

I Am A Mentor Day

International Day of Astrology

International Jewish and Proud Day

Insurrection USA Day (a.k.a. Jan. 6 Anniversary Day)

Kolmekuninga Päev (Belgium, Estonia)

Maroon Festival (Jamaica)

Missionary Childhood Day

National Davis Day

National Samantha Day

National Share a DAG Day

National Smith Day

National Standard Poodle Day

National Take a Poet to Lunch Day

National Take Down the Christmas Tree Day

National Technology Day

National Weigh-In Day

Nurse Day (Mexico)

Parents and Parents-in-Law Day (India)

Pathet Lao Day (Laos)

Phi Day

Ray Epps Awareness Day

Reionization Era Day (Early stars begin Ionizing Interstellar Gas; Universal Timeline)

Schoolhouse Rock Day

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Day (Abeldane Empire)

Sherlock Holmes Day [also 5.22]

Shorinzan Daruma-Ichi (Shorinzan, Japan)

Surb Tsnund (Armenian Christmas)

Swap Day

Take a Poet to Lunch Day

Wheel of Fortune Day

World Day of War Orphans

Food & Drink Celebrations

Bean Day (New Orleans)

Creole Cuisine Day

Dry Bean Day

King Cake Day

King of the Bean (a.k.a. National Bean Day)

Marzipan Day (Sweden)

National Shortbread Day

Walker’s Shortbread Day

Nature Celebrations

Apple Tree Day

Pepe Le Pew Day

Wassailing the Apple Trees (UK)

Independence, Flag & Related Days

New Mexico Statehood Day (#47; 1912)

New Year’s Days

Kayin New Year (Myanmar)

1st Monday in January

Divorce Monday [1st Monday]

Handsel Day (Scotland) [1st Monday]

Makeover Monday [1st Monday of Each Month]

Meatloaf Monday [1st Monday of Each Month]

Meditation Monday [Every Monday]

Monday Musings [Every Monday]

The Most Depressing Day of the Year (UK) [1st Monday]

Motivation Monday [Every Monday]

National Rondling Day [1st Monday]

National Thank God It’s Monday Day [1st Monday; also 1st Monday in June]

National Weigh-In Day [1st Monday]

Postum Day

Weekly Holidays beginning January 6 (1st Full Week of January)

Braille Literacy Week [1st Week]

Diet Resolution Week [1st Week]

Napa Valley Restaurant Month (Napa Valley, California) [thru 2.2]

National Folic Acid Awareness Week [1st Week]

National Law Enforcement Training Week [1st Week]

Silent Record Week [1st Week]

Festivals Beginning January 6, 2025

Carnival (Cayenne, French Guiana) [thru 3.5]

Carnival (Guadeloupe) [thru 3.5]

Feast Days

André Bessette (Roman Catholic Church)

British Comedy Quotes Day (Pastafarian)

Carnival Season begins (Christian) [thru Tuesday before Ash Wednesday]

Charles of Sezze (Christian; Saint)

Christmas (Original Date) (a.k.a. ...

Christmas (Armenian Apostolic Church, Amish)

Christmas Day (Ethiopia)

Coptic Christmas (Egypt)

Día De Reyes (Kings Day; Mexico)

Heilige Drei Könige (Liechtenstein)

Kolmekuninga Päev (Belgium, Estonia)

Little Christmas (Ireland)

Nalujuit (Inuit Communities in Labrador)

Old Christmas (England before 1752)

Reyes Magos (Spain)

Sure Tsnund (Armenia)

Sveta Tri Kralja (Croatia)

Christmas Eve (Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine)

Circle Sancuary of Mount Horeb Foundation Day (Wisconsin; Everyday Wicca)

Day of Kore Underground (Pagan)

Epiphany (a.k.a. ...

Adoration of the Magi

Baptism of the Lord (Romania)

Día de los Niños (Uruguay)

Dia de los Santo Reyes (Dominican Republic)

Dia de Reyes (Venezuela)

Heilige Drei Könige; Liechtenstein)

La Befana (Italy)

Nollaig na mBan (Ireland)

Þrettándinn (Iceland)

Race of the Three Kings (San Pablo, Peru)

Reyes Magos (Spain)

Theophany (Eastern Christian Church)

Three King's Day (Florida, US Virgin Islands)

Three Wise Men Day

Trettondagen (Sweden)

Uphaliday (a.k.a. Uphalimas; Scotland)

Epiphic (The Season of Bad Noise, Devoted to the Indefinable; Church of the SubGenius)

Erminold (Christian; Saint)

Extra Cuddles Day (Pastafarian)

Faery Lovers Day (Celtic Book of Days)

Guarinus (a.k.a. Guerrin; Christian; Saint)

Haley Hood (England)

Nalujuk Night (Inuit)

Orthodox Christmas Eve (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro)

Pinky (Muppetism)

Romulus (Positivist; Saint)

Taos Pueblo Deer or Buffalo Dance (Native American)

Triple Goddess Day (Paganism)

Tursi (Slavic pagan fertility rite of Jar-tur, the bull) 

Twelfth Day (a.k.a. Twelfthtide)

Twelfth Night Wassail (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Twelve Holy Days #12 (Pisces, the feet; Esoteric Christianity)

William McGonagall Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Wiltrudis (Christian; Saint & Widow)

Orthodox Christian Liturgical Calendar Holidays

Theophany  (a.k.a. ... 

Denho (Syriac Christian; Saint)

Epiphany (Eastern and Oriental Orthodox)

Great Blessing of the Waters (Eastern Orthodox)

Natlisgeba (Georgia)

Sure Tsnund (Armenian Apostolic Church)

Timket (a.k.a. Timkat, Coptic Epiphany; Eritrea, Ethiopia)

Secular Saints Days

Rowan Atkinson (Entertainment)

José Campeche (Artist)

E.L. Doctorow (Writer)

Gustave Doré (Artist)

Aleksandra Ekster (Artist)

Kahlil Gibran (Philosopher)

Jean-Robert Ipoustéguy (Sculptor)

Wright Morris (Writer, Photographer)

Charles E. Pont (Artist)

Carl Sandburg (Poet)

Alexander Scriabin (Music)

Earl Scruggs (Music)

Elizabeth Strout (Writer)

Baldassare Verazzi (Artist)

Alan Watts (Philosopher)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Shakku (赤口 Japan) [Bad luck all day, except at noon.]

Tycho Brahe Unlucky Day (Scandinavia) [4 of 37]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Day (because Christmas decorations come down this day. It's a sad day for all.)

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [3 of 57]

Unglückstage (Unlucky Day; Pennsylvania Dutch) [5 of 30]

Premieres

Ace of Spades (Fleischer Tarlkartoons Cartoon; 1931)

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (Animated Disney Film; 1950)

Agent Carter (TV Series; 2015)

The Bastard, by John Jakes (Novel; 1974) [Kent Family Chronicles #1]

The Body Machine (Science Rock Cartoon; 1979)

Casanova Cat (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1951)

Come Fly with Me, by Frank Sinatra (Album; 1958)

The Danny Kaye Show (Radio Series; 1945)

Don Quixote de la Mancha (Novel; 1605)

Frampton Comes Alive!, by Peter Frampton (Live Album; 1976)

Hallmark Hall of Fame (TV Series; 1952)

Hare We Go (WB MM Cartoon; 1951)

Hell’s Fire, a.k.a. Vulcan Entertains (Willie Whopper MGM Cartoon; 1934)

High School DXD (Anime TV Series; 2012)

Inspector Morse (UK TV Series; 1987)

County Fair (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1930)

Land of the Lost Jewels Noveltoons Cartoon; 1950)

Little Earthquakes, by Tori Amos (Album; 1992)

Luvcast U.S.A. (Animated TV Film; 1973)

My Hero, Zero (Schoolhouse Rock! Cartoon; 1973)

Mystic Pink (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1976)

Pill Peddlers (Heckle & Heckle Cartoon; 1953)

Pinknic (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1967)

Pluto’s Heart Throb (Disney Cartoon; 1950)

Polly Wants a Doctor (Phantasies Cartoon; 1944)

The Revenant (Film; 2015)

Schoolhouse Rock (Animated TV Series; 1973)

Shape of You, by Ed Sheehan (Song; 2017)

SWAT Kats: A Special Report (Hanna-Barbera TV Cartoon Special; 1995)

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Film; 2012)

Wheel of Fortune (TV Game Show; 1975)

Today’s Name Days

Erminold (Austria)

Bogdan, Bogdana, Bogomil, Bogomila, Iordan, Iordanka, Teodosii, Yordan, Yordanka (Bulgaria)

Baltazar, Gašpar, Melkior (Croatia)

Tri králové (Czech Republic)

Aabel, Aabi, Aabo, Aap, Aapo (Estonia)

Harri (Finland)

Balthazar, Gaspard, Mélaine, Melchior, Tiffany (France)

Raimund (Germany)

Fani, Fotika, Fotine, Fotini, Fotis, Jordan, Ourania, Peristera, Photini, Photis, Theofania, Theofanis, Theopoula (Greece)

Boldizsár (Hungary)

Baldassarre Gaspare, Melchiorre Raffaello, Rafaelo (Italy)

Arnita, Spulga (Latvia)

Arūnas, Arūnė, Baltazaras, Kasparas, Merkelis (Lithuania)

Åslaug, Aslaug (Norway)

Andrzej, Balcer, Baltazar, Bolemir, Epifania, Kacper, Kasper, Melchior (Poland)

Evgenia, Klavdia (Russia)

Antónia (Slovakia)

Baltasar, Epifanía, Gaspar, Melchor (Spain)

Baltsar, Kasper, Melker (Sweden)

Cheyanne, Cheyenne, Howell, Hoyle, Kahlil, Khalil, Melchior, Rowan, Talullah, Tiffani, Tiffanie, Tiffany (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 6 of 2025; 359 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of Week 2 of 2025

Celtic Tree Calendar: Ruis (Elder) [Day 16 of 28]

Chinese: Month 12 (Ding-Chou), Day 7 (Yi-Hai)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Coptic: 28 Kiyahk 1741

Hebrew: 6 Teveth 5785

Islamic: 6 Rajab 1446

J Cal: 6 White; Sixthday [6 of 30]

Julian: 24 December 2024

Moon: 50%: 1st Quarter

Positivist: 6 Moses (1st Month) [Romulus]

Runic Half Month: Eihwaz or Eoh (Yew Tree) [Day 15 of 15]

Season: Winter (Day 17 of 90)

Week: 1st Full Week of January

Zodiac: Capricorn (Day 16 of 30)

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 1.6

Holidays

Armed Forces Day (Iraq)

Blessing of the Waters (Greece, Turkey)

Carnaval Blancos Negros, Day 3: The Day of the Whites (Colombia)

Carnival season begins (until Shrove Tuesday)

Children’s Day (Uruguay)

Cuddle Up Day

Daruma Ichi (Takasaki City, Japan)

Dezome-shiki (Tokyo, Japan)

Flying V Day

Four Freedoms Day

Greek Cross Day

Haxey Hood (Traditional Old English race, pushing a leather tub to a local pub)

Hornschlittenrennen (Horn Runners Race; Germany)

I Am A Mentor Day

International Day of Astrology

International Jewish and Proud Day

Insurrection USA Day (a.k.a. Jan. 6 Anniversary Day)

Kolmekuninga Päev (Belgium, Estonia)

Maroon Festival (Jamaica)

Missionary Childhood Day

National Davis Day

National Samantha Day

National Share a DAG Day

National Smith Day

National Standard Poodle Day

National Take a Poet to Lunch Day

National Take Down the Christmas Tree Day

National Technology Day

National Weigh-In Day

Nurse Day (Mexico)

Parents and Parents-in-Law Day (India)

Pathet Lao Day (Laos)

Phi Day

Ray Epps Awareness Day

Reionization Era Day (Early stars begin Ionizing Interstellar Gas; Universal Timeline)

Schoolhouse Rock Day

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Day (Abeldane Empire)

Sherlock Holmes Day [also 5.22]

Shorinzan Daruma-Ichi (Shorinzan, Japan)

Surb Tsnund (Armenian Christmas)

Swap Day

Take a Poet to Lunch Day

Wheel of Fortune Day

World Day of War Orphans

Food & Drink Celebrations

Bean Day (New Orleans)

Creole Cuisine Day

Dry Bean Day

King Cake Day

King of the Bean (a.k.a. National Bean Day)

Marzipan Day (Sweden)

National Shortbread Day

Walker’s Shortbread Day

Nature Celebrations

Apple Tree Day

Pepe Le Pew Day

Wassailing the Apple Trees (UK)

Independence, Flag & Related Days

New Mexico Statehood Day (#47; 1912)

New Year’s Days

Kayin New Year (Myanmar)

1st Monday in January

Divorce Monday [1st Monday]

Handsel Day (Scotland) [1st Monday]

Makeover Monday [1st Monday of Each Month]

Meatloaf Monday [1st Monday of Each Month]

Meditation Monday [Every Monday]

Monday Musings [Every Monday]

The Most Depressing Day of the Year (UK) [1st Monday]

Motivation Monday [Every Monday]

National Rondling Day [1st Monday]

National Thank God It’s Monday Day [1st Monday; also 1st Monday in June]

National Weigh-In Day [1st Monday]

Postum Day

Weekly Holidays beginning January 6 (1st Full Week of January)

Braille Literacy Week [1st Week]

Diet Resolution Week [1st Week]

Napa Valley Restaurant Month (Napa Valley, California) [thru 2.2]

National Folic Acid Awareness Week [1st Week]

National Law Enforcement Training Week [1st Week]

Silent Record Week [1st Week]

Festivals Beginning January 6, 2025

Carnival (Cayenne, French Guiana) [thru 3.5]

Carnival (Guadeloupe) [thru 3.5]

Feast Days

André Bessette (Roman Catholic Church)

British Comedy Quotes Day (Pastafarian)

Carnival Season begins (Christian) [thru Tuesday before Ash Wednesday]

Charles of Sezze (Christian; Saint)

Christmas (Original Date) (a.k.a. ...

Christmas (Armenian Apostolic Church, Amish)

Christmas Day (Ethiopia)

Coptic Christmas (Egypt)

Día De Reyes (Kings Day; Mexico)

Heilige Drei Könige (Liechtenstein)

Kolmekuninga Päev (Belgium, Estonia)

Little Christmas (Ireland)

Nalujuit (Inuit Communities in Labrador)

Old Christmas (England before 1752)

Reyes Magos (Spain)

Sure Tsnund (Armenia)

Sveta Tri Kralja (Croatia)

Christmas Eve (Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine)

Circle Sancuary of Mount Horeb Foundation Day (Wisconsin; Everyday Wicca)

Day of Kore Underground (Pagan)

Epiphany (a.k.a. ...

Adoration of the Magi

Baptism of the Lord (Romania)

Día de los Niños (Uruguay)

Dia de los Santo Reyes (Dominican Republic)

Dia de Reyes (Venezuela)

Heilige Drei Könige; Liechtenstein)

La Befana (Italy)

Nollaig na mBan (Ireland)

Þrettándinn (Iceland)

Race of the Three Kings (San Pablo, Peru)

Reyes Magos (Spain)

Theophany (Eastern Christian Church)

Three King's Day (Florida, US Virgin Islands)

Three Wise Men Day

Trettondagen (Sweden)

Uphaliday (a.k.a. Uphalimas; Scotland)

Epiphic (The Season of Bad Noise, Devoted to the Indefinable; Church of the SubGenius)

Erminold (Christian; Saint)

Extra Cuddles Day (Pastafarian)

Faery Lovers Day (Celtic Book of Days)

Guarinus (a.k.a. Guerrin; Christian; Saint)

Haley Hood (England)

Nalujuk Night (Inuit)

Orthodox Christmas Eve (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro)

Pinky (Muppetism)

Romulus (Positivist; Saint)

Taos Pueblo Deer or Buffalo Dance (Native American)

Triple Goddess Day (Paganism)

Tursi (Slavic pagan fertility rite of Jar-tur, the bull) 

Twelfth Day (a.k.a. Twelfthtide)

Twelfth Night Wassail (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Twelve Holy Days #12 (Pisces, the feet; Esoteric Christianity)

William McGonagall Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Wiltrudis (Christian; Saint & Widow)

Orthodox Christian Liturgical Calendar Holidays

Theophany  (a.k.a. ... 

Denho (Syriac Christian; Saint)

Epiphany (Eastern and Oriental Orthodox)

Great Blessing of the Waters (Eastern Orthodox)

Natlisgeba (Georgia)

Sure Tsnund (Armenian Apostolic Church)

Timket (a.k.a. Timkat, Coptic Epiphany; Eritrea, Ethiopia)

Secular Saints Days

Rowan Atkinson (Entertainment)

José Campeche (Artist)

E.L. Doctorow (Writer)

Gustave Doré (Artist)

Aleksandra Ekster (Artist)

Kahlil Gibran (Philosopher)

Jean-Robert Ipoustéguy (Sculptor)

Wright Morris (Writer, Photographer)

Charles E. Pont (Artist)

Carl Sandburg (Poet)

Alexander Scriabin (Music)

Earl Scruggs (Music)

Elizabeth Strout (Writer)

Baldassare Verazzi (Artist)

Alan Watts (Philosopher)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Shakku (赤口 Japan) [Bad luck all day, except at noon.]

Tycho Brahe Unlucky Day (Scandinavia) [4 of 37]

Uncyclopedia Bad to Be Born Day (because Christmas decorations come down this day. It's a sad day for all.)

Unfortunate Day (Pagan) [3 of 57]

Unglückstage (Unlucky Day; Pennsylvania Dutch) [5 of 30]

Premieres

Ace of Spades (Fleischer Tarlkartoons Cartoon; 1931)

The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (Animated Disney Film; 1950)

Agent Carter (TV Series; 2015)

The Bastard, by John Jakes (Novel; 1974) [Kent Family Chronicles #1]

The Body Machine (Science Rock Cartoon; 1979)

Casanova Cat (Tom & Jerry Cartoon; 1951)

Come Fly with Me, by Frank Sinatra (Album; 1958)

The Danny Kaye Show (Radio Series; 1945)

Don Quixote de la Mancha (Novel; 1605)

Frampton Comes Alive!, by Peter Frampton (Live Album; 1976)

Hallmark Hall of Fame (TV Series; 1952)

Hare We Go (WB MM Cartoon; 1951)

Hell’s Fire, a.k.a. Vulcan Entertains (Willie Whopper MGM Cartoon; 1934)

High School DXD (Anime TV Series; 2012)

Inspector Morse (UK TV Series; 1987)

County Fair (Oswald the Lucky Rabbit Cartoon; 1930)

Land of the Lost Jewels Noveltoons Cartoon; 1950)

Little Earthquakes, by Tori Amos (Album; 1992)

Luvcast U.S.A. (Animated TV Film; 1973)

My Hero, Zero (Schoolhouse Rock! Cartoon; 1973)

Mystic Pink (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1976)

Pill Peddlers (Heckle & Heckle Cartoon; 1953)

Pinknic (Pink Panther Cartoon; 1967)

Pluto’s Heart Throb (Disney Cartoon; 1950)

Polly Wants a Doctor (Phantasies Cartoon; 1944)

The Revenant (Film; 2015)

Schoolhouse Rock (Animated TV Series; 1973)

Shape of You, by Ed Sheehan (Song; 2017)

SWAT Kats: A Special Report (Hanna-Barbera TV Cartoon Special; 1995)

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Film; 2012)

Wheel of Fortune (TV Game Show; 1975)

Today’s Name Days

Erminold (Austria)

Bogdan, Bogdana, Bogomil, Bogomila, Iordan, Iordanka, Teodosii, Yordan, Yordanka (Bulgaria)

Baltazar, Gašpar, Melkior (Croatia)

Tri králové (Czech Republic)

Aabel, Aabi, Aabo, Aap, Aapo (Estonia)

Harri (Finland)

Balthazar, Gaspard, Mélaine, Melchior, Tiffany (France)

Raimund (Germany)

Fani, Fotika, Fotine, Fotini, Fotis, Jordan, Ourania, Peristera, Photini, Photis, Theofania, Theofanis, Theopoula (Greece)

Boldizsár (Hungary)

Baldassarre Gaspare, Melchiorre Raffaello, Rafaelo (Italy)

Arnita, Spulga (Latvia)

Arūnas, Arūnė, Baltazaras, Kasparas, Merkelis (Lithuania)

Åslaug, Aslaug (Norway)

Andrzej, Balcer, Baltazar, Bolemir, Epifania, Kacper, Kasper, Melchior (Poland)

Evgenia, Klavdia (Russia)

Antónia (Slovakia)

Baltasar, Epifanía, Gaspar, Melchor (Spain)

Baltsar, Kasper, Melker (Sweden)

Cheyanne, Cheyenne, Howell, Hoyle, Kahlil, Khalil, Melchior, Rowan, Talullah, Tiffani, Tiffanie, Tiffany (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 6 of 2025; 359 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of Week 2 of 2025

Celtic Tree Calendar: Ruis (Elder) [Day 16 of 28]

Chinese: Month 12 (Ding-Chou), Day 7 (Yi-Hai)

Chinese Year of the: Dragon 4722 (until January 29, 2025) [Wu-Chen]

Coptic: 28 Kiyahk 1741

Hebrew: 6 Teveth 5785

Islamic: 6 Rajab 1446

J Cal: 6 White; Sixthday [6 of 30]

Julian: 24 December 2024

Moon: 50%: 1st Quarter

Positivist: 6 Moses (1st Month) [Romulus]

Runic Half Month: Eihwaz or Eoh (Yew Tree) [Day 15 of 15]

Season: Winter (Day 17 of 90)

Week: 1st Full Week of January

Zodiac: Capricorn (Day 16 of 30)

[magicalincorrectrobodokiquotes]

HAPPY JACK YEAR!!!

"Hey everyone! Avery here, WITH a very special guest. BOB!"

"Hey, hey, heh heh...happy new year, Tumblr..."

"So, Bob, the people wanna know how the party went."

"Well I am glad they asked! We started by decorating the entire studio for the festivities."

"We had so many decorations to carry, my arms almost fell off!"

*Avery dying of laughter (rip 2004-2025 /jk)*

"Boy did the three of us have the night BOOKED!"

"You three sure did!"

"Buuuuuuuuuuuuuut we forgot to plan in advance."

"Sleepiness. Been there, on NYE."

"Not to mention Mr. Party Planner Shapiro was in the house."

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand...well...in the end, I got-"

"Not yet, Bob. Get to the festivities, first."

"Yeah, Boo ate the SHIT out of the sushi. And the cheese fountain"

"You're a pretty big eater too, Avery!"

"That's my stomach, Bob!"

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaanyways..."

"Stuff was getting intense!"

"Yeah! Nate checked the footage and caught some gossip!"

"I'm sorry...WHAT?!"

"Moving on!"

"And it's NEVER NYE without shit hitting the fan."

"And where there's chaos, there's a potential liability waver."

"Since when?!"

"I'll admit, Buzz was pretty crafty there, but you were cuuuuuuuuuuursed."

"And you tried..."

"We sure did! And in the process, Rose revealed why Boo and I can never go on a sushi date."

"Wait, what?"

"I can't eat raw eggs, raw meat, raw fish OR seafood because of my immune system-I dunno the full scope, might ask Roxie. Raw veggies are good, though."

"Back to purifying me?"

"Oh, riiiiiiiiiiight."

"But we tried! Pika especially..."

"Maaaaaaaaaaaan, that was a rollercoaster of feels."

"Affirmative."

"Shoutout to Queenie! Hey!"

"The power of love wins again!"

"Preach it!"

"And then, you had a bright idea."

"Wouldn't call it 'bright', but it WAS an idea!"

"AND it was contagious as ever!"

"I love me a good party horn! They wake ANYONE! Mama, the dogs, a 95 year old grandmother."

"Pfffffffft, you're a riot, at parties!"

"Well, we purified your flat ass...then we had a lot of fun until the final hour!"

"Yep, party was in full swing! We were laughing, partying, drinking, smooching, boinking-"

"-sleeping."

"That too, sadly...but not for too long."

"The tensions were high and we were gonna ring in the year with hearty cheer and style-"

"-but don't forget the best part! At 11:59:59 PM, December 31, 2024..."

"IT WAS AMAZING! Guy woke up so confused until I got all toony and animated and excited!"

"I'll say...then reality hit."

"We're gaslighting and gatekeeping from Guy Towers."

"You're not saying it right...what you mean is that we're NEVER telling him you were cursed WHILE he was sound asleep."

"But the rest of the party was AWESOME!!!"

"And here's our New Years picture, to enjoy! We took it together and-"

"HEY!"

"You looked cute, Bob. HAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPY NEW YEAR, BITCHES!"

Author Note: Hey, it's Avery. Happy New Year. How was yours? Well, I chugged two water bottles, scarved half a Pizza Hut pizza, devoured two cookie slices, munched on popcorn (not in that order)- I do crazy shit on NYE that my body regrets later on. Have a safe New Year and if you're impaired, call a ride FOR FUCKS SAKES!

[magnus-sm-writes]

2024 Writing Year Wrapped

This is just a cute little version of my yearly wrap-up, presented in the typical Spotify format. I'm sure everyone is doing these; I just really love my Wrapped. Even if the cut-off point is before Halloween, and I found some bangers since then. Also, this was 100% written by a human (me, Magnus Singer-McLeod); something that Spotify itself cannot say about their half-baked Wrapped this year.

The cut-off point for this post is 12/7. The word count will be different in my yearly wrap-up, but this joke post won't be relevant then.

Total words written: 253,560

You have written 253,560 words this year; and counting! Your biggest month was November, at 41,397.

You started this year off big!

In February, you finished the month off with 27,748 words! You also began a bullet journal to track your writing journey all year long to keep you motivated.

There was one work that you've been returning to...

You've re-started your novel Lessons in Humanity from a Future Physicist, making this the tenth year you've been working on this project. It might be old, but it's still gold to you.

The world had brat summer, but instead, you had demoncore humanity-fantasy summer

You spent the months of June, July, and August focusing on (Demon) Hunting for Love, Lessons in Humanity from a Future Physicist, and Tsarevna of the Horned Crown.

The top genres of this year were: Fantasy, Romance, and Short Story

With works like Greenest in Fantasy, (Demon) Hunting for Love in Romance, and The Boy & the Hag Stone, My Lover Tastes of Ivy & Wine, and Certain Boundaries in Short Story, your year has been full of a mix of genres. Don't forget the Poetry, like Sage & Sausage Stuffing, and the Literary Fiction, like Body, Lessons in Humanity from a Future Physicist, and Hamish, either!

Speaking of Short Stories...

This year, you wrote 4 short stories. "Communion", "Plastic Fangs", "The Boy & the Hag Stone", and "My Lover Tastes of Ivy & Wine". That's an average of 1 short story per quarter!

Literary festivals attended: 1

This year, you went to BGSU's Winter Wheat festival. You took some good notes, and met a lot of new people. Writers tend to be solitary creatures; that day, you were not!

You finished reading 15 works this year

The first book you finished, The Terror by Dan Simmons, you rated 3 stars. (It was also your longest and least favorite read.)

Your favorite read was The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris, at 5 stars.

The shortest work you read was "The Faery Handbag" by Kelly Link, a short story. (Rated 5 stars.)

Your novelette Body got rejected... 2 times!

But you continued working on it despite the rejections. Good for you, you go-getter!

Times spent refreshing Submittable and getting depressed over the lack of updates: too many to count

Whoa! You really get torn apart by the uncertainty of the publishing industry, don't you? Don't worry; we all hate being left in the dark!

Thank you for being with me this year. I'll be seeing you in 2025!

[chorusfm]

Less Than Jake Announce New EP

Less Than Jake will release Uncharted on November 15th. Today they’ve shared “Sunny Side.” Set sail for uncharted waters with ska-punk legends Less Than Jake. The band has today announced their new EP, Uncharted, set to be releaed on November 15 via Pure Noise Records. Along with the news comes their latest single and music video “Sunny Side”, available now here.   Uncharted is a culmination of the band’s latest singles, including “Brand New Day”, “Not My Problem”, “Walking Pipebomb”, and “Broken Words”, with the artwork coming together to complete the treasure map. Pre-orders for Uncharted are available now at https://lnk.to/LessThanJake.   “Man, the main riff in drop D has been around forever. I wrote that back when we were demoing for the Anthem record,” recalls frontman/guitarist Chris DeMakes. “It just never felt right, and was shelved. I never forgot about the idea. This time, Roger wrote the choruses, and I came up with the U2 stadium rock guitar bridge. Matt found the drum feel and groove that I was searching for all those years earlier, and the brass added a horn hook over the big guitar riff - one that rivals any of their catchiest parts. I can’t wait to play this one live.” Adds bassist/vocalist Roger Lima: “LTJ has messed with the slow and heavy vibe on a few songs, but I feel like we finally got it right with ‘Sunny Side’. Between the grooves, the changes, the horns and the lyrics, we are pumping this one on all cylinders."   He continues, “’Sunny Side’ is like a reminder to actively make an effort to live in the present. Move past your old haunts and be the absolute best version of you that you can.”   Fans around the world can catch Less Than Jake on the road throughout the rest of 2024 and into 2025. The band wrapped up their European tour this past summer, and recently kicked off their fall US Final Visit To Rockview Tour. They’ll be traveling to Australia later this fall and recently announced that they will be headlining Slam Dunk Festival in the UK next spring. For a full list of upcoming shows, please see below or visit: https://lessthanjake.com/.   More than three decades into an already impressive career – which includes 8 studio albums, tours with Descendents, blink-182, Bon Jovi, Linkin Park, Snoop Dogg, Bad Religion, and more, and over 365 shows on the Vans Warped Tour – Less Than Jake has never been a band to rest on its laurels. They released their lastest studio album, Silver Linings in 2020 via Pure Noise Records, with a deluxe version following in 2022. Featuring singles “Lie To Me,” “Dear Me,” “Anytime and Anywhere,” and “Keep On Chasing,” Silver Linings captured the attention of Brooklyn Vegan, Loudwire, SPIN, and more Track Listing * Broken Words * Walking Pipebomb * Not My Problem * Brand New Day * Sunny Side * Dead Days (Over And Over) * Shake Loose The Truth --- Please consider becoming a member so we can keep bringing you stories like this one. ◎ https://chorus.fm/news/less-than-jake-announce-new-ep/

[the514life-blog]

Another year has come and gone, but this year was something different. Montreal was celebrating its 375th birthday, the economy has boomed the most since the 1970’s and changes continued to happen. We can say that the city had a very successful year and with many aspects. To conclude 2017, we’ll look back at big news, events that happened, record breakers and so on.

Major Highlights

1. Tourism

With the 375th anniversary, low Canadian dollar and more global recognition, Montreal has hit the highest number of tourists since Expo 67, with 11.2 million tourists visiting this beautiful city in 2017. This number is a projection and can possibly go up. Furthermore, tourist spending has increased to $3.6B in 2017, representing a 10% increase from 2016, and contributing more to our economy and tax revenue for the government.

Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-tourism-grow-1.4285584

2. YUL hits 18 million passengers 

With the new direct flights established at Montreal’s airport (YUL) tourist increases and more investments, it’s not surprising to see passenger traffic to increase. What is surprising is that YUL was supposed to hit 18 million by 2020-2022, and that was accomplished December 2017. If this trend continues, we can see YUL hit 20 million by next year! which would be an amazing accomplishment.

3. Highest GDP growth in decades

I always post regularly on new projects going on in downtown Montreal and have previously mentioned this as well, in 2017 the city saw its largest GDP growth in decades. Montreal is projected to grow economically by 3.2% for 2017. It’s not surprising, especially since the city is dotted with cranes and infrastructure investments as well. The momentum is expected to last until 2019, after that, we’ll see what happens.

Source: http://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/faster-growth-expected-for-montreal-and-quebec-city-economies-in-2017-651240773.html

4. Record low homicides for 2017

Montreal is often regarded as one of the safest major cities not only in North America but worldwide as well! and the low violent crime numbers can attest to this. In 2017 Montreal saw 22 homicides (although two open files from last year increased this to 24). With a projected population as of July 1st, 2016 being 2,014,221, this represents a homicide rate of 1.09/100,000 and in fact, is lower than that since the population continues to grow. If I had to guess, the rate is closer to 0.7-0.8/100,000 for this year and will continue to go down.

Source: http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/number-of-homicides-reported-in-montreal-in-2017-hits-new-low

5. Montreal becoming a worldwide A.I/Tech hub

Montreal continues to establish itself as a worldwide leader in A.I/Tech and has been called the Silicon Valley of the north. Investments from Thales, Facebook, Microsoft, DeepMind and so forth. In addition to A.I/Tech, Montreal also saw huge investments in the gaming industry, aerospace and sciences, which are strong cards Montreal is known for. Montreal is also a higher education city, which plays a key role in investments from companies and universities. The future is bright for Montreal, and we have and will become a world leader in tech, health, aerospace and green energies.

Source: http://www.montrealinternational.com/en/news/2017/12/look-back-on-an-outstanding-2017/

6. First Female mayor in Montreal’s history 

To end on a major and positive note, the people of Montreal have elected Projet Montreal and with this, elected the first female mayor in city history. Valarie Plante is a very hard working person who went from someone not known to the leader of North America’s 9th largest city. Her platform included suspending the pit bull ban (which happened), suspending Formula E (not coming back for 2018) and included a new pink line metro for the city. With the new REM line happening next year, the extension of the blue line by 2025, and possibly the extension of the Orange line in the near future, Montreal can be one of the most covered transit cities in N.A.

What transportation can look like in Montreal, with the pink line, blue line extension and the REM. Madame Plante and I may not see eye to eye on certain things, mainly economic aspects, nonetheless I am very confident and excited about her victory and what she’ll bring to Montreal. Congratulations to Mrs. Plante!

Source: http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/valerie-plantes-proposed-pink-line-is-it-realistic

Events in 2017/Other highlights

Montreal is a city of events and festivals, and since 2017 was a special year, we had an additional 175 events or so. Unfortunately, I couldn’t attend all of them to take pictures so I will use pictures of events from other people and ones I or my friends took for other events/highlights.

1. Montreal Avudo

Source: http://www.montreal.tv/2017/06/le-spectacle-montreal-avudo-annonce-des-supplementaires/

2. Summer fun on St. Denis

From flash mobs to giant characters to horned military drummers, this is what summer looks like in Montreal yearly.

3. Jacques Cartier bridge lights up 

$40 million investment over 10 years, from Federal, Provincial and Municipal governments.

4. Giants invade Montreal

An event I wish I attended, but unfortunately couldn’t.

Source: http://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/giants-take-over-downtown-old-montreal-starting-friday

5. Montreal the mural city

In addition to the murals, two were made in honour of Montreal legend Leonard Cohen. One in Le Plateau made for mural fest by Kevin Ledo (9 stories tall) and one made by El Mac &Gene Pendon in collaboration with MUMTL, located on Crescent street in downtown Montreal (20 stories tall). The Murals were made for Mural Festival, Under Pressure Festival and initiatives by the city of Montreal & respective boroughs.

6. Establishment of Parc Bonaventure

From my last visit in September, it’s a lovely urban park that’ll only get better as the vegetation continues to mature.

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7. Ferris Wheel in Old Montreal

A private investment of $25 million recently opened in the Old Port. Although I haven’t been on it, I’ve heard from friends that the view is spectacular and worth the price ($20 for students, $25 general). The Ferris wheel measures to be 60 metres in height (200ft)

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2017 was a successful year for Montreal, and here’s hoping that 2018 will be even better! plenty of highlights were shown, and possibly more will be shown in future updates since so many things happened this year.

I would like to thank all the people worldwide for viewing this blog. 2017 was a very successful year, as tens of thousands viewed the blog, the photos, and so forth. The purpose of this blog was to show people Montreal, and so far it has worked. I met people who’ve visited Montreal just because of this blog, and more people showing interests in visiting this beautiful city. Big things are in store for 2018 as the blog continues to expand and diversify, and I’m also hoping for more communication with people, supporters or non-supporters. On that note, I wish everyone a happy new year and a prosperous and easy going 2018.

  Montreal in retrospect: looking back at 2017 Another year has come and gone, but this year was something different. Montreal was celebrating its 375th birthday, the economy has boomed the most since the 1970's and changes continued to happen.

[krispyweiss]

Sound Bites Presents the Live Music Year in Review

Much about 2024 sucked rotten eggs. But Sound Bites’ live-music calendar did not.

In addition to attending San Francisco’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival - links to coverage here - for the second year running, the blog caught a few-dozen-plus gigs in his home state of backward Oiho.

What follows are capsule reviews of said performances in order from favorite to least favorite with hyperlinks to the full reviews and photos. May you have musical 2025.

Toubab Krewe (3) at Levitt Pavilion, Dayton, Aug. 16 - Listeners who closed their eyes and let the breeze with the slightest hints of autumn carry the music to them were transported to a lush, beachfront performance space miles - continents - away from downtown Dayton, Ohio. Review and photos here.

Sierra Hull (3) at Woodlands Tavern, Columbus, Sept. 15 - Hull is a solo artist but, like Billy Strings, is so in a band context characterized by shared solos and harmony vocals directed by the ebullient, ever-smiling bandleader. Review and photos here.

Old Crow Medicine Show (5) with Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway (1) at Rose Music Center at the Heights, Huber Heights, July 9 - Double bill. Doubly potent bluegrass. Review and photos here.

Todd Rundgren (44) at Andrew J. Brady Music Center, Cincinnati, April 24 - The Me/We tour is one for the faithful. Review and photos here.

Los Straitjackets (1) at Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, May 8 - Performing at the confluence of musical seriousness and playful showmanship, Los Straitjackets’ gig dealt in all-inclusive entertainment. Review and photos here.

Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives (2) at Columbus Anthenaeum, Nov. 21 - Stuart is the star attraction, and sang the majority of the nearly two dozen songs on the setlist while playing lead and rhythm acoustic and electric guitar, mandolin and electric sitar. But he also left no doubt the aptly named Fabulous Superlatives are a band. Review and photos here.

Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams (5) at Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, April 23 - Campbell and Williams should be playing arenas. Review and photos here.

Steep Canyon Rangers (10) at Fairborn Bluegrass & Brew, Fairborn, Aug. 2 - Perched on a makeshift bandstand near the corner of Grand Avenue and Main Street, the Rangers did what they do - and were in top form - in front of a hometown audience of a few hundred on an unseasonably comfortable Ohio night that dodged the threat of torrential storms. Review and photos here.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (6) at Nationwide Arena, Columbus, April 21 - Though the band could’ve phoned it in, the expanded 18-piece - augmented with four-voice choir and five-piece horn section - instead brought a loud hailer. Review and photos here.

The Wood Brothers (8) at Southern Theatre, Columbus, April 3 - Having been scheduled to play Columbus before COVID-19 got in the way - Sound Bites still has his ticket to the canceled gig - the Woods’ trip to town was a long time comin’. Review and photos here.

Pete Best Band (1) with the Cyrkle (1) at Valley Dale Ballroom, Columbus, July 28 - Sound Bites still isn’t sure what he expected from Best. But it surely wasn’t an exceptional gig such as this. Review and photos here.

Hot Tuna (12) Acoustic at Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, July 11 - Having played together nearly 60 years, it might be reasonable to assume Hot Tuna see their work as a grind; the opposite is true. Review and photos here.

Dom Flemons (2) at Happy Hollow Hootenanny, Snow Fork Event Center, Nelsonville, June 1 - Birdsong accompanied the early portions of Flemons’ Happy Hollow Hootenanny headlining appearance and fireflies lighted up the encores. Review and photos here.

John Craigie (3) with Tré Burt (1) at A & R Music Bar, Columbus, Oct. 11 - “I’m telling the agents - we gotta go back to Columbus,” Craigie said. And Burt likely felt the same as the audience went bonkers for two solo-acoustic folk singers who are also quite hilarious. Review and photos here.

The Travelin’ McCourys (4) at Woodlands Tavern, Columbus, Aug. 1 - There were times during this gig it seemed as if Woodlands Tavern might lift off the ground. Review and photos here.

Bobby Weir & Wolf Bros (3) featuring the Wolfpack with Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, at Music Hall, Cincinnati, Nov. 13 - The psychedelic-symphonic integration was complete by the time “Playing in the Band” launched with CPO handling the melody before dropping out and allowing the 10 members of the Bros and the ’Pack to take the number for a little walk in the woods. Review and photos here.

Robert Cray Band (10) at Lincoln Theatre, Columbus, Aug. 23 - The Robert Cray of 2024 is very much like the Robert Cray of 1989. Review and photos here.

Carsie Blanton (1) at Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, Sept. 17 - This was much more than a traditional music concert; call it a non-traditional concert wrapped in tragedy and comedy. Review and photos here.

Nickel Creek (1) at Mershon Auditorium, Columbus, Feb. 15 - After playing together since they were children, the now-40-something members of Nickel Creek often sound like one player rather than the three who are on stage. Review and photos here.

moe. (10) with Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country (1) at Rose Music Center at the Heights, Huber Heights, July 19 - Twenty-seven years after playing the opening slot on the Furthur Festival, moe. are now the veterans lending their stage to such newcomers as Donato’s Cosmic Country. Review and photos here.

Rodrigo y Gabriela (1) at Columbus Athenaeum, May 15 - From hard rock to flamenco to classical, RyG spanned the world of music and spoke volumes while saying virtually nothing. Which is what the universal language of live performance does. Review and photos here.

Old Crow Medicine Show (4) at KEMBA Live!, Columbus, Jan. 25 - Old Crow Medicine Show ain’t sellin’ no snake oil. No, Sir and Ma’am. Their music is a proven elixir for all that ails at the end of a long day. Review and photos here.

Jorma Kaukonen (6) with Special Guest John Hurlbut at Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, Feb. 25 - Despite the seamless, single-set presentation with no encore, Kaukonen and Hurlbut presented a gig that felt like two gigs owing to its diversity of style and substance in an all-too-rare live-music innovation. Review and photos here.

Ruthie Foster (2) at Levitt Pavilion, Dayton, Aug. 8 - The set consisted mostly of covers. But they sounded like Ruthie Foster songs. Review and photos here.

Norah Jones (2) with Mavis Staples (3) at Rose Music Center at the Heights, Huber Heights, July 10 - Celebrating her 85th birthday with 4,000 friends and fans, the opener outshone the headliner, which was no small feat. Review and photos here.

Little Feat (4) with Los Lobos (24) at PNC Pavilion, Cincinnati, June 18 - When writing about a two-band gig, journalistic norms dictate leading with the headliner. But where Little Feat and Los Lobos are concerned, such guidelines are bunk. Review and photos here.

Violent Femmes (2) with Columbus Symphony Orchestra, Columbus Commons, June 22 - A twitchy brand of acoustic punkabilly music goes well with orchestral accompaniment. Review and photos here.

Yarn (1) at Woodlands Tavern, Columbus, Nov. 16, 2024 - Celebrating the power of music. Building community. Focusing on the good things in life. This is what Yarn’s performance was all about. Review and photos here.

Amythyst Kiah (1) at Natalie’s Grandview, Columbus, Nov. 23 - Accompanying herself on acoustic guitar and banjo, introducing and explaining the songs’ origins and looking like the world’s-coolest bespectacled professor in checkered Vans, black pants, a muted-yellow jacket and top and a bolo tie, Kiah proved genres artificial. Review and photos here.

The Steel Wheels (3) at Woodlands Tavern, Columbus, Jan. 17 - From head-banging electric guitar and drum solos to a cappella spirituals around a single mic to vaguely psychedelic esoterica, the Steel Wheels roll to and from every location on the musical map. Review and photos here.

Richard Thompson (3) at Stuart’s Opera House, Nelsonville, July 23 - Though Thompson’s good British humour was intact, his respiratory ailment limited his song choice to numbers in lower keys, likely caused the guitarist to forget the words to “Walking the Long Miles Home” and “Singapore Sadie” and to abandon “She Twists the Knife” altogether after one line. Review and photos here.

LA LOM (1) at A&R Music Bar, Columbus, Dec. 14 - If there’s a knock on LA LOM, it’s that the trio tends to have a sameness in tone and style, leading to flatlines among the huge peaks. Yet the young trio is clearly at work at blazing a path that, when realized, is going to leave sonic scars in the ground it treads. Review and photos here.

Jennifer Hartswick (1) at Levitt Pavilion, Dayton, Aug. 30 - The music flowed like a long, winding river of sound, alternately cascading and riffling across American rock ‘n’ roll, blues, funk, jazz and soul music on a hot-and-humid night that Tennessee resident Jennifer Hartswick said “is like winter” for someone living in the South. Review and photos here.

Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit (1) at Rose Music Center at the Heights, Huber Heights, Sept. 7 - Jason Isbell cleans up the sound of his formative experience with Drive-By Truckers, adds elements of Neil Young and Crazy Horse and the Allman Brothers Band and - with key support from “my rock ‘n’ roll band, the 400 Unit” - creates something smooth and contemporary. Review and photos here.

Cat Power (1) at Columbus Athenaeum, Sept. 18 - Cat Power took the Columbus Athenaeum stage and a faux Bob Dylan concert broke out. Review and photos here.

Sarah Jarosz (1) at Memoriał Hall OTR, Cincinnati, April 26 - Jarosz plays pop music well. But this was pop, not Americana, music. Review and photos here.

Circles around the Sun (2) and Mikaela Davis & Southern Star (1) at Skully’s Music-Diner, Columbus, March 20 - Mikaela Davis wasn’t the headliner, but she was the star of the show. Review and photos here.

The Avett Brothers (5) at KEMBA Live!, Columbus, Aug. 20 - The Avett Brothers of 2024 are a band in flux. While the seven-piece touring lineup remains the same, the group is supporting a pop-leaning LP and talks from the stage about working, more than playing, for its audience. Review and photos here.

12/26/24