: )

It may seem incongruous, my asking for a smile, a goofy-ass emoticon smile no less, but, as evidenced by last night's comments board, some folks just want to keep their dukes up, even when you're essentially agreeing with them. When I play black metal artists from the Middle East, especially those countries with essentially theocratic governments, remind me NOT to point to it, as either a badge of honor or dedication, single it out for compliments etc., as I did with this post on Halla back in 2009, because some people will just sit there and tell me that I'm a victim of a well-heeled, worldwide propaganda machine no mater what I type. ...a great many Middle Eastern underground bands have graced our airwaves on My Castle of Quiet, from Iran, Iraq, Israel etc., and that's what it's about, the music, and I never ever seem to know enough, or cachet my global political knowledge well enough, to please some perpetually on the defensive and looking to dissect my comments for a reason to take offense.

The sole assumption I make, is that in a climate where anti-religious, and therefore anti-state, music is made, one takes an even greater risk to express oneself. Am I dead wrong? Is it open season to craft anti-Islam, Anti-Christian, anti-religion music ever, anywhere? Especially in a country like Iran, under their current, essentially theocratic government? If so, please draft that memo globally, because a lot of people (myself included) didn't get it. Some folks just will not take a compliment, no good deed goes unpunished, etc. etc. Sometimes it seems like the only solution is to bind my hands and sew my lips shut—my mouth fully salted to prevent return as a night-walker. Haha!

Enough—I've given THAT discourse enough time already.

You liked:

Ekove Efrits | T.O.M.B  | Kuxan Suum | Draugar | Black Cilice (many free downloads at that link!) | Raw Nerve | Shaved Women (Apop Records) | Dragged Into Sunlight

Please remember that the WFMU 2013 Marathon starts this coming Monday, with Liz Berg's show @ 9 a.m. ...And you can pledge to My Castle of Quiet at any time, either by clicking "PLEDGE" on the white, rectangular widget at the top of this page, or the same at the top of my playlist page, or simply by clicking here. Your Web pledge will automatically register within the first 10 minutes of MCoQ's next marathon shift (they are - 3/8, with co-host/MC Clay Pigeon; and 3/15 with co-host/MC Diane Kamikaze.) I'm deeply honored to have two great co-hosts this year, looking forward to the rapport and bold banter, and to giving away some great, Castle-appropriate prizes (please note: Web-pledging to the show at any time during the marathon, just $15 or over, will place you in the standard-fashion running for prize drawings, just as though you'd pledged during the three-hour shift while the Castle phones were ringing. Remember: to pledge to WFMU in general, there is a white pledge widget atop every page at wfmu.org.

A pledge of $75 or more to the show automatically earns you a copy of My Castle of Quiet companion #4, My Metal Singles, this year's premium, discussed in detail in our previous post.

Until then, you can enjoy last night's horrorcast™by linking to the archive page; simply click on Bok-nam (from 2010's Bedeviled) to get there.

I'll be making my first on-air marathon appearance this coming Tuesday night / Wednesday morning, MC'ing for Sue P.'s Sold Gold Hell @ midnight; See you then!