tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14508281026188144012024-03-12T23:19:04.046-07:00Heavy GhettoA journey through the life of an underground musicianKabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.comBlogger421125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-73256684448996255692022-06-03T12:37:00.004-07:002022-06-03T13:14:44.317-07:00Jason Dove<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXU5Gf4gVYDjqdL_FE7KJPK-XibbfLUZWDfso7K1gH0guTb3OuFuS2uIiR7fQXu9xYWIT8pZiO7LVgqMSpCiVRXZ7EiJpjTjL-KTuupIJ9Fs9EM_8lC1fykpcrBzX-GY9YWSv4l4R_3s6W6QBX5EdG3QC2LlgZ5GsKKf1esrZk4VBzrticJO08wiwT5Q/s2048/C23B9A20-626A-4EEF-9A0D-ABD23CE514E4.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXU5Gf4gVYDjqdL_FE7KJPK-XibbfLUZWDfso7K1gH0guTb3OuFuS2uIiR7fQXu9xYWIT8pZiO7LVgqMSpCiVRXZ7EiJpjTjL-KTuupIJ9Fs9EM_8lC1fykpcrBzX-GY9YWSv4l4R_3s6W6QBX5EdG3QC2LlgZ5GsKKf1esrZk4VBzrticJO08wiwT5Q/w300-h400/C23B9A20-626A-4EEF-9A0D-ABD23CE514E4.jpeg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">Tomorrow marks one month since the sudden and tragic passing of Jason Dove, AKA Jay Dove AKA J.D. AKA Jolly Lolly AKA Jay Bird AKA Doves in Love, though simply known to most of us as Jay. He was a husband, a father, a son, a brother, and a great friend to many. Jay was loved, respected, and appreciated by numerous people, all of whom have been effected by this tragedy. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">Every morning I woke up I kept hoping this was all just a bad dream, but alas such is not the case. Now 30 days later I am still in shock, and find myself searching for the words to express my sorrow. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">I met Jay back in high school around 1987/88’ and have many great memories of him gracing my life over the years. As fate would have it, we all grow up, start families, face responsibilities, which in turn limits the time we get to spend with our old friends. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">With that said, the true bonds of friendship never die, as years can pass by yet when we get to see our true friends it’s like a day has never passed since we last saw them. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Such was the case with Jay, who will forever be in my heart and be apart of my life despite him no longer being here. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">I’ve lost many loved ones over the last 15 years, but losing Jay really hit me hard, more so than my own family members I’ve lost. It’s one thing to lose a loved one, but what makes this even harder is my friendship with his widow Julie aka Jules, whom I met back in 1984 when we started grade 6 at Williams Parkway. We became best friends, and she was really my only close female friend growing up. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">Who would of ever known that years later 2 of my great friends would end up dating, marrying, having kids, and living a happy life together. So as I said, it’s one thing to lose a loved one, but it’s a whole other world when said loved one is attached to another loved one. My heart truly goes out to her, as well as his children Randy, Kennedy & Campbell, not to mention his family, co-workers, and friends from all walks of life. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">Jay was a hard working man who was always on the go, doing whatever it took to provide for his family, although he still found the time to get his little naps in when feasible. He lived his life the way he wanted to, and never compromised his integrity or his beliefs for anyone or anything, a special trait that unfortunately a lot of people on this planet cannot proclaim. In short he was a real one and true till’ death. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">Tomorrow not only marks one month since we lost him, but it will also marks the date for Jay’s celebration of life, where we will leave our sadness and mourning at home as we remember the great times and great memories of him, and what a great human being he was. I hope to see you there as we share our fond remembrance of him and celebrate the life of an amazing individual who touched the lives of many. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVSZU1ECCktFs49E45Wi-SQIiXawBcXv7_N2nM4-JHT3ugk7kc8urC_yCXjdIj4raJvUmdpCzSc7Y-62axThQumi1X7cTF32wYGQjPGT8ahdk1AZv5Wuj-Fxso49h4TkvaAoG_qgdcPKQ9nTiqr1ySiuIYlNc0sihiBlOqVNJLB0d-Pj8jLX0c39SDKQ/s6382/16A05122-0B36-4BAA-BCA1-F1EE588F6262.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6382" data-original-width="5098" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVSZU1ECCktFs49E45Wi-SQIiXawBcXv7_N2nM4-JHT3ugk7kc8urC_yCXjdIj4raJvUmdpCzSc7Y-62axThQumi1X7cTF32wYGQjPGT8ahdk1AZv5Wuj-Fxso49h4TkvaAoG_qgdcPKQ9nTiqr1ySiuIYlNc0sihiBlOqVNJLB0d-Pj8jLX0c39SDKQ/w320-h400/16A05122-0B36-4BAA-BCA1-F1EE588F6262.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">As I struggle to find the words to express myself, I would like to add some links from previous blog posts of mine that include memories and stories of Jay that we can reflect on, and for my readers who didn’t know him, this will give you a window into the life of the man that was taken from this world much too soon. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">In closing I would like to say take action in your life now. By that I mean don’t think about doing something, don’t ponder an idea, rather act out your thoughts with gusto and swiftness. Reach out to your loved ones, hug the people close to you, tell them how important they are to you and how much you love them, contact that dear old friend you’ve been thinking about, and live for the moment every day of your life, as none of us know when it will be our last day. Life is short and it moves by in the blink of an eye. We can’t go back in time, we can’t change the past, but we can take charge of the present and the future every morning that we wake up breathing. </span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">I miss you and love you Jay, until we meet on the other side…</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;">*SIDE NOTE* Some of these older blog posts may just have a blurb or mention of Jay, while others will be stories involving him. These are laid out in chronological order from when I first met him. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/02/heavy-metal-party-pt-2.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/02/heavy-metal-party-pt-2.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/03/mike-c.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/03/mike-c.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/04/shut-up-be-happy.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/04/shut-up-be-happy.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/06/herbie.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/06/herbie.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/12/roll-call.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/12/roll-call.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/12/woodstock-91-pt1.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/12/woodstock-91-pt1.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/12/woodstock-91-pt2.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2013/12/woodstock-91-pt2.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/08/big-fuckin-bender.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/08/big-fuckin-bender.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/03/party-animals-from-hell-pt1.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/03/party-animals-from-hell-pt1.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/03/party-animals-from-hell-pt2.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/03/party-animals-from-hell-pt2.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/04/party-animals-from-hell-pt4.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/04/party-animals-from-hell-pt4.html</a> (pt.3)</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/04/party-animals-from-hell-pt4_8.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/04/party-animals-from-hell-pt4_8.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2017/01/welcome-to-malton.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2017/01/welcome-to-malton.html</a></span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 22.5px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-death-of-96.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2018/06/the-death-of-96.html</a></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;">These are excerpts from a blog which is essentially the story of my life in a nutshell, I am only in 1997 as far as the timeline goes, so there will be future posts as time goes on, some of which will include stories of Jay, thanks for reading. </p>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-15429839530014974622022-05-18T08:33:00.001-07:002022-05-18T08:33:42.703-07:00R.I.P. J.D.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBOD0QcIF-lWKPveQkbTdVzq9nVcTF2DXgNQ8MMwwWyVtCD22idqXATjdk7RQS5W3Z2mx2kHFhsSqKjFhywzd8yEybzTiERKHWdl4DJFuQotflwAIPi9XA5touiJsAVH9v6YnqfpQLZMDKHGTvJJwt7FhXJ9qqsEE5f0eo1W_WXdrpJhITkxSFez2DiQ/s6382/A02E8DAA-22AD-4DC6-9651-E084085645CC.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6382" data-original-width="5098" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBOD0QcIF-lWKPveQkbTdVzq9nVcTF2DXgNQ8MMwwWyVtCD22idqXATjdk7RQS5W3Z2mx2kHFhsSqKjFhywzd8yEybzTiERKHWdl4DJFuQotflwAIPi9XA5touiJsAVH9v6YnqfpQLZMDKHGTvJJwt7FhXJ9qqsEE5f0eo1W_WXdrpJhITkxSFez2DiQ/w512-h640/A02E8DAA-22AD-4DC6-9651-E084085645CC.jpeg" width="512" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-25328060515475607762022-05-14T12:06:00.055-07:002023-02-17T11:17:41.779-08:00Dallas Good<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxDJ-JsBx-SMTYDLkNKrADWmslO5JPhE-HuzGXOjxNd9J4nVvG6V28bRIevHDMOiLhBzoxI8hVBwSTjwXMhQp8gJa6xBoXWH8HG1Q0d9Rr9krV6SnKqdDJpNHT3QLcaIq5IgjSS4nqWHqh8U4ok669WrOD75wVfJ9ScKe2nME4qt1Rd7Ly-ad8glAfQ/s1613/9ECBE7DE-0A7D-4814-932A-C247C7DEE5D3.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1613" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxDJ-JsBx-SMTYDLkNKrADWmslO5JPhE-HuzGXOjxNd9J4nVvG6V28bRIevHDMOiLhBzoxI8hVBwSTjwXMhQp8gJa6xBoXWH8HG1Q0d9Rr9krV6SnKqdDJpNHT3QLcaIq5IgjSS4nqWHqh8U4ok669WrOD75wVfJ9ScKe2nME4qt1Rd7Ly-ad8glAfQ/s400/9ECBE7DE-0A7D-4814-932A-C247C7DEE5D3.jpeg" /></a></div>
On February 17th, 2022 many of peoples worlds were rocked by the sudden death of Canadian musician Dallas Good, a member of The Sadies, one of Canada’s most prolific bands of the last 20 years. With minimal digging you can find and learn what a great friend, brother, band mate, husband, and person Dallas was, if you weren’t already aware of that.
3 months later I’m still shocked and saddened by this, and still don’t really know what to say. <div><br /></div><div>I had been wanting to get out and see The Sadies perform live for my first time a few years prior to this, which was difficult with the whole Covid mess. Now as things were finally starting to calm down I couldn’t help but notice The Sadies were starting to play live shows again. I had planned on going to see them whenever they played in Toronto next, so I could surprise Dallas and hopefully catch up with him. Sadly I never got to do that and see my old friend. </div><div><br /></div><div> Although I haven’t had contact with him since the mid to late 90s, I’ve always felt connected with him and he certainly left an impression on me as a young man to say the least. When the Internet age came upon us he was one of the first people I tried to track down, although it was somewhat unsuccessful, as he didn’t seem to have any social media accounts…which in all honesty really didn’t surprise me knowing the type of guy he was. </div><div><br /></div><div> My search however did lead me to discovering The Sadies and I was thrilled to see Dallas was still out there and making music. I followed them (Sadies) on social media and definitely professed my brotherly love I have for him on a few posts, in hopes that the message just might be relayed to him. I’m not sure it ever was but I like to think and hope it was, and hopefully put a smile on his face.</div><div><br /></div><div> Seeing as I’m at a loss for words I thought it would make more sense to re-visit some older blog posts of mine that Dallas was included in, and celebrate his life through my great memories and stories of him. Some of these posts just have small blurbs mentioned in passing, while others center around Dallas, but I will provide links to all of them regardless. </div><div><br /></div><div> My deepest heartfelt condolences go out to his wife, his family, his band mates, his friends, his fans, and all the people he touched in this world through his kindness, his friendships, and his musical genius. You will be missed by so many people who loved you, and although it saddens me that I never got to catch up with you as I had planned, it fills me with great happiness that you will forever be in my memories and in my heart as one of the greatest people I’ve ever met in my life and had the honour of calling a friend. 🖤
-K </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCT5Hi-YZ9GJuN2B-hj-XgUhza3ybynoNTc85nlOtLcPaP6SfHKGBm8WcICQb-4AIJkhKW0PWAxbXYEvXG3dv_-Xd7AL_8atYMtF58L7JVeuw9kRAXfOVJ3fqoZ7BZ0evzr7uHCQWRTp0qXnYjeFsTX1rjpdeRHAmKEayeMfDtlqj2gK7Kg2EigCSYVA/s2048/8CEB88D0-6773-4C68-AFFA-F56230FB880B.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCT5Hi-YZ9GJuN2B-hj-XgUhza3ybynoNTc85nlOtLcPaP6SfHKGBm8WcICQb-4AIJkhKW0PWAxbXYEvXG3dv_-Xd7AL_8atYMtF58L7JVeuw9kRAXfOVJ3fqoZ7BZ0evzr7uHCQWRTp0qXnYjeFsTX1rjpdeRHAmKEayeMfDtlqj2gK7Kg2EigCSYVA/s320/8CEB88D0-6773-4C68-AFFA-F56230FB880B.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div> [It was at Songbird that we first met the best repairman Jeff, and his band mates Dallas, Bernie, and Ruston. They had a new up and coming band called "The Satanatras"] </div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-songbird-connection.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-songbird-connection.html</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-songbird-connection.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a>
[While down in the city one day, Derek and I went to watch The Satanatras jam one evening. It was pretty mind blowing to witness such great musicianship up close and personal like that.]</div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-combination-is-born.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-combination-is-born.html</a> </div><div><br /></div><div> [SIDE NOTE: After hours of skimming through old posts I realized there never was a “Looking for Mr.Good pt.2” that completed this story, so I will be writing and posting that in the weeks to come in memory of Dallas.] </div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/06/looking-for-mrgood-pt1.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/06/looking-for-mrgood-pt1.html</a> </div><div><br /></div><div> [Our Satanatra friends ended up getting us backstage at the show, so we got to meet, party, and hang out with Unsane.] </div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/07/unsane-unsung.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2014/07/unsane-unsung.html</a> </div><div><br /></div><div> [Of all the friends I had downtown, the one I cherished the most was Dallas from The Satanatras. I was still going out of my way to hang out at his place for a couple of days whenever I had the chance.]</div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/02/serial-business.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/02/serial-business.html</a> </div><div><br /></div><div> [I was contacted by my good friend Dallas of The Satanatras. They wanted to know if we'd be interested in opening for them and "The Hacksaw Jim Duggans" at a booze can on Halloween.]</div><div><a href="http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/05/hoolie-ween-93.html">http://kabal73.blogspot.com/2015/05/hoolie-ween-93.html</a></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-35606095834066486562021-10-18T11:37:00.004-07:002021-10-18T11:49:20.498-07:00Altered Native<p> <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.41px;">1997 was shaping up to be a monumental year. I was creating art, making music, reuniting with friends, & working my “dream job” at HMV records. In my spare time when I was alone you could find me playing WCW vs. The World on playstation, as that was the newest and hottest wrestling video game to come out at the time.</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.41px;"> </span> <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.41px;">Wu-Tang Clan had also released their second full length album that year entitled “Wu-Tang Forever” and that was pretty much the soundtrack of 1997 for me.</span><span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.41px;"> </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Shayne and his family had moved up to Orangeville so I took a trip up there with a friend one day to visit them and catch up. Turns out Shayne was making plans to open a small head shop in the town of Orangeville, and he already had the wheels in motion. It was very cool and exciting to see my friend going out on a limb and taking a leap of faith on what could possibly be a major career for him.</span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Before I knew it Shayne already had a location and had already started painting the place, acquiring stock, and getting things set up. I spent a day there with him and his mother Amber, and we painted some incense burners that he would be selling. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Being a stranger in a strange town Shayne did not want to gamble on locals he didn’t know and couldn’t trust to work for him, so I offered to work weekends for him devoid of pay to help him out and give him a bit of a break. Being the stand up guy that he is, he offered to pay me in product as he felt bad about me working for free, and that agreement was absolutely fine with me. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">The shop officially opened in October of 1997, and although I was still working weekdays at HMV in Toronto, my weekends would now be spent in Orangeville. Thankfully my girlfriend Jenny was gracious enough to drive me there and pick me up each weekend, but that soon came to an end as we decided to mutually part ways, as our lives were going in separate directions and we weren’t getting to spend much time together anymore. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Shayne ended up naming the shop “The Altered Native” which was a nod to our circle of friends, as we always used to pronounce the word “alternative” in two parts, Alter-native. It was merely a simple and funny play on the word that amused us, but he was now taking it to the next level. I helped out and designed a logo for him, which he put on business card sized stickers with the shop’s information, and proceeded to commence “operation guerrilla marketing tactics” which consisted of sticking these things everywhere and anywhere, with fast food drive-throughs <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>being the main target as they saw so much traffic on a daily basis. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">The shop was small and quaint, and he started off mainly selling incense, burners, smoking accessories, and t-shirts. We had a lot of friends in bands at the time too, so Shayne was gracious enough to let them sell their CDs on consignment there as well. Over time he started to branch out and acquire new products from different companies, thus the store was slowly growing into something bigger and better every passing day. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Eventually he convinced his cousin Jason to join the crew. Jason lived in Kitchener and had recently started tattooing, so he also took a leap of blind faith, sold most of belongings, and moved to Orangeville. It was a very exciting time and I was more than happy to start getting tattoos from Jason. </span></p><p class="p2" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; min-height: 20.8px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"></span><br /></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">As the months passed by the shop was really starting to pick up momentum. Shayne planted the seed in me that it would only be a matter of time before he would need me there to work full time, and I was totally game for that…</span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"><br /></span></p><p class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zFggqcROQikryyScxBtEFMcbwldargeVZ8e9gU5jB1euhqCN5VAd3pDAsQCco1FXKM46ervqoR6jQgRa0w7KNdAkDHnxdYa16x2V94nTTfSeUJeMxRBw0N_ZoPrIi8G5uAq0qNRxuxLJ/s694/B4899FAA-9FDF-4190-A5BB-9E3C9C4F7DEC.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="694" data-original-width="604" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6zFggqcROQikryyScxBtEFMcbwldargeVZ8e9gU5jB1euhqCN5VAd3pDAsQCco1FXKM46ervqoR6jQgRa0w7KNdAkDHnxdYa16x2V94nTTfSeUJeMxRBw0N_ZoPrIi8G5uAq0qNRxuxLJ/s320/B4899FAA-9FDF-4190-A5BB-9E3C9C4F7DEC.jpeg" width="279" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The original location at 85 Broadway as it stands today.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"><br /></span></p>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-46405042600871090282021-04-06T13:54:00.000-07:002021-04-06T13:54:53.129-07:00Post Secondary Education<p> It felt like it wasn't very long after the "one night only Wiggaz show" when my telephone rang one day and I was surprised to hear Gerg on the other end. Despite my former grudge I was holding it was a pleasant conversation and I can remember being happy to hear from him. Our circle of friends was somewhat divided the last year, and deep down I wanted nothing more than for all of us to be one big happy family again. </p><p>Greg and I caught up on the phone for awhile then he brought up a new musical project he was working on with former Wiggaz drummer Frank, and a fellow named Carlo who was the bass player for the band Fraktured. The trio dubbed themselves "GRIFT" (after the movie "The Grifters") & cooked up a batch of fresh songs that they were looking for various people to sing on. I told him I was definitely interested, and not long after I was in possession of a cassette recording of a few of the songs he thought I might like to work with.</p><p>I can still vividly remember listening through the handful of songs a few times and decided on two of which I thought I could do something with. I put the word in to Gerg and it was decided. I can also vividly remember having a puff, then excitingly sitting down on the couch in my apartment on a nice sunny day with pen and paper ready to write some lyrics.</p><p>I honestly can't remember the window of time from when I finished writing until I was in a car with Greg on my way back to Rumblefish studios, our old Wiggaz rehearsal space. The owner Dave Caravaggio had since built a recording studio in what was once his oversized office and it was legit! Although I had been playing in bands on and off for 10 years at this point, today was actually my second time ever in a professional facility, the first being the Grasshopper demo 4-5 years prior.</p><p>From what I recall we were in and out of there like the wind, myself killing everything in one takes for the most part, and there was an overall buzz of excitement in the air amongst all parties involved. It was nice seeing Dave again, hanging out with Greg again, and re-uniting with Frank who I hadn't seen in some time. I'm pretty sure Carlo was there as well although we weren't close friends by any means at that point in life. </p><p>I was feeling great about how things went and I couldn't wait to hear the final product. I was extra excited to learn that Gerg and the boys were putting this out on CD which was mind blowing to me at the time as it would be my first musical endeavor that was to be captured on compact disc. Recording was said and done then it was back to regular life. </p><p>Eventually our lease was up and myself, Jay & Julie decided to part our separate ways despite still being great friends. I can't remember if I ended up back at my parent's house again or not for a brief window of time, but I did eventually end up living with Jenny and her family. Her oldest sister had gotten married and flew the coop, so her folks decided to sell their house and get an apartment on Lisa street, which was literally a 1 or 2 minute walk from Silver Maple where I had just moved out of.</p><p>I wasn't working with Jay at Beak Industries in Woodbridge anymore by this point, but I was still working at HMV in the Eaton's Centre, so it was nice still living across the street from the Bramalea City Centre where I caught my bus to Toronto for work.</p><p>At some point during this year my dream came true and our circle of friends were once again re-united and in full force. All my former room mates from "The Slayer House" were back in the picture, and it was great hanging out with Mike C. again as well as rekindling my friendship with Shayne, whom I considered my best friend. Him and Jay were talking, and after time we were all "one big happy family" yet again! </p><p>I also did eventually end up back in my Mom & Dad's basement and my mom was now dropping me off to get my Go bus to Toronto in the mornings. When I moved into the Lisa apartment with Jenny and her family, her parents allowed my faithful cat Fritz to come along for the ride even though they weren't thrilled about the idea. When I moved back home they asked me if they could keep Fritz as they had grown so fond of him, I instantly said "YES" as it was the least I could do considering how hospitable they had been to me over the last 2 years.</p><p>After some anticipation, the day finally came and I had the Grift CD in my possession. As per usual I instantly headed to the stereo, threw on the headphones & listened through from front to back as I followed along with the lyrics. It was really cool hearing some familiar old voices again including Pat from Fence, Jim from Fraktured, Scott from Viciousphere, Fudd from Dirge, Kenny from Perfectly Normal, and my old BBJ brother Mike Myers. It was also very interesting to hear what had been done with the songs Gerg gave me on the tape way back when.</p><p>I can remember being so proud to show my parents I was on a real CD, as they somewhat frowned upon my musical ventures. I think it was out of spite to a degree like "HA! LOOK WHAT I DID! I MADE IT!" but the reality of the fact was I wasn't anywhere even close to making a living off of a musical career. </p><p>In the Grasshopper days I had delusions of becoming a rock star, but at this point of my life I didn't think like that anymore. I just loved making music, being creative, and hopefully giving something to people that they could get something positive out of. My whole philosophy at this point was that even if I can change one person's life that is all the payment I needed.</p><p>I was extremely satisfied with how my two songs with Grift turned out and it was a trip to see a photo of myself in a CD. That could of been the end of the chapter and I would have been more than happy, but unbeknownst to myself this was just the beginning of a much bigger chapter...</p><p><a href="https://theobwc.bandcamp.com/album/post-secondary-education" target="_blank">GRIFT - Post Secondary Education</a><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3fc752Lf9r6b2vgYqeBy2eNnJvPnrUjeT8fouG4GzAWl1yHFpiUBVJ2c4MorgRO8bNtVId72ueaeZ-5wOkObCbovY_4om9jh8zQb7gNBXZqFJ3QZtxqor2_d4AiaSqXXmKSj0ryLU1JOU/s1200/a1700262228_10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3fc752Lf9r6b2vgYqeBy2eNnJvPnrUjeT8fouG4GzAWl1yHFpiUBVJ2c4MorgRO8bNtVId72ueaeZ-5wOkObCbovY_4om9jh8zQb7gNBXZqFJ3QZtxqor2_d4AiaSqXXmKSj0ryLU1JOU/s320/a1700262228_10.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-54774910544276224712021-02-22T10:33:00.002-08:002021-02-22T10:37:49.300-08:00Dumpster Fire<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj2qSTDTrfHRXe7WUsGYmiO8MrL7Ekak_dbcc0zlx9l0umg5sc2x2CKpIUURbBstTRG215Qo31euMcSNvpeEHsRFl8jYYGsmIpdYc6MQGdgIAqzm6aDiOG9mD21GcuqSeU8vbY_mE4qRHD/s720/92763fdc-2eaf-46f1-ae42-294f0a09491c.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="720" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgj2qSTDTrfHRXe7WUsGYmiO8MrL7Ekak_dbcc0zlx9l0umg5sc2x2CKpIUURbBstTRG215Qo31euMcSNvpeEHsRFl8jYYGsmIpdYc6MQGdgIAqzm6aDiOG9mD21GcuqSeU8vbY_mE4qRHD/s320/92763fdc-2eaf-46f1-ae42-294f0a09491c.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Well once again I've failed in my promise to bring this blog back to life with some form of legs again.</p><p>I attempted to continue the story once again in early 2020 with the free time I'd been granted due to covid, yet I only managed to post twice the entire year. I remember being very excited and motivated at the time as well to get back at it with consistency, but it ended up being a very un-motivating and somewhat depressing year for myself and many others I'm sure. </p><p>It was nice to see tons of other people however reveling in all the free time and having creative explosions in bountiful abundance. For what some might call one of the worst years ever I feel like many people created what they would consider their "best works" to date, and that always kept a light of hope in me to get out of my creative slump.</p><p>I did still create some art through drawing, I did still write some lyrics here and there, and I did still create music which has yet to be released, I just let myself down a bit in how little I did of all 3 of those and the above mentioned creative writing slump. </p><p>The most positive and inspiring aspect I personally received from 2020 was all the time I got to spend with my son, and watching him grow in his own musical adventures through his guitar playing (something I could never do) it's just been a drag that him and I can't get out and do the things we enjoy outside of home, but I still cherish every second I have with him regardless of where we are or what we do.</p><p>So I guess you could consider this another empty promise to get the story going again? I certainly hope so, but one that finally plays out. 2 months have already passed by in 2021 and I've been struggling to break the chain of 2020 but I'm happy to report I have made some chinks in it. Pushing through with motivation, inspiration, & positive changes moving forward from here. </p><p>If you are reading this, I hope you and yours are well, and I hope the last 12 months haven't been hard on your families and loved ones. </p><p>On that note I'd like to share a posting of mine from Facebook dated January 1,2021:</p><div class="kvgmc6g5 cxmmr5t8 oygrvhab hcukyx3x c1et5uql ii04i59q" style="animation-name: none; background-color: #242526; color: #e4e6eb; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; transition-property: none; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">To the ones we’ve lost in 2020...</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Thank you all for the inspiration, </div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">motivation and memories...</div></div><div class="o9v6fnle cxmmr5t8 oygrvhab hcukyx3x c1et5uql ii04i59q" style="animation-name: none; background-color: #242526; color: #e4e6eb; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; transition-property: none; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Neil Peart (Rush)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Juan ‘Pampero Firpo’ Kachmanian (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Jesús “La Parka” Escoboza (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Kazuo “Kendo Nagasaki” Sakurada (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Wayde “Rocky Johnson” Bowles (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Ruben “Hercules Ayala” Cruz (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Sean Reinert (Death, Cynic)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Christoper “Justice Pain” Wilson (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Reed Mullin (Corrosion of Conformity)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Thomas “Tommy Mac” MacDonald (friend)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Josh Pappe (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Max Von Sydow (Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Jason Rainey (Sacred Reich)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Jeff Grosso (Pro Skateboarder)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Howard Finkel (Ring Announcer)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Lester “Supreme” Perfors (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Steve “Thee Slayer Hippy” Hanford (Poison Idea)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Kenneth Osmond (Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Fred Willard (Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Shad Gaspard (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Hana Kimura (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Kendall “Chi Pig” Chinn (SNFU)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">John Saxon (Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Gabriel Theodoropolus (Grandfather)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Annie Theodoropolus (Grandmother)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">William Dent (Uncle)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">James “Kamala” Harris (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Malik Basit (The Roots)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Joseph “Animal” Laurinatis (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Eddie Van Halen (Van Halen)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Tracy Smothers (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">David Prowse (Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Gangsta Ridd (Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E.)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Richard Corben (Artist)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Tiny Lister Jr.(Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Jeremy Bulloch (Actor)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">John “Ecstasy” Fletcher (Whodini)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Jon “Brodie Lee” Huber (Pro Wrestler)</div><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">Daniel “Zev Love X/MF Doom” Dumile (Rapper/Producer)</div></div><div class="o9v6fnle cxmmr5t8 oygrvhab hcukyx3x c1et5uql ii04i59q" style="animation-name: none; background-color: #242526; color: #e4e6eb; font-family: "Segoe UI Historic", "Segoe UI", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; margin: 0.5em 0px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word; transition-property: none; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="auto" style="animation-name: none; font-family: inherit; transition-property: none;">I know there were numerous other losses in 2020 such as Sean Connery, Kenny Rogers, Pat Patterson and many more, but these are the ones that affected me personally, so please don’t take offense in any names I have omitted. Here’s hoping for much less loss and heart break in 2021!</div></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-51724522525306075612020-05-22T09:12:00.003-07:002020-05-22T12:41:13.623-07:00One Night Only?<div class="p1" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Although I was loving my new job at HMV it was really my only connection to music at the time as I wasn't playing in any bands, however that would all change with one phone call.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">I was relaxing on the couch in our appartment on the 19th floor of Silver Maple Towers one day when the telephone rang, and obviously I answered it. I was surprised to hear Gerg's voice on the other end of the line, as we hadn't spoke since the demise of Wiggaz. I was still somewhat bitter over the whole situation and was harboring feelings of resentment towards Greg.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">He was very humble as he apologized for the way things had transpired but I was not sure if I was ready to forgive him. We caught up with each other over some small talk and eventually Gerg got to the purpose of his phone call.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Rob, the former bass player of Wiggaz had moved to Vancouver awhile back and he was coming down east to visit. Greg expressed interest in playing a Wiggaz reunion show at our old stomping grounds of The Ivy Bridge where we first cut our teeth. I mulled it over in my head as he proposed the idea and in a matter of minutes I made my decision.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">I agreed to play the gig but my heart was telling me I was making this decision for Rob and not for Greg. I don't think I was ready to forgive him at the time, but I liked the idea of our band getting back together even if it was for one night only.</span><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">The buzz of this show circulated quickly and the year was flying by rapidly which I had no problem with. Before I knew it the magical day of August 9th 1997 had arrived and it was time for the gig.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">I had thrown out my old suit I wore religiously in Wiggaz so I had to figure out something to wear, but thankfully I still had my trusted Satan mask. My girlfriend Jenny took me to her parents house to rummage through their Halloween costumes and I happily stumbled upon a priest robe. I thought to myself "this is perfect" and snatched it up along with a cross on a rope that I somehow managed to invert.</span><br />
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">I also planned on wearing a bloodied white shirt underneath which signified I was still wearing the shirt I had on when I was "assassinated" at the final Wiggaz show prior to this. Furthermore I made the concious decision that I would finally unmask myself for the first time ever.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">I arrived at the Ivy Bridge early that day and there was already a small crew of friends hanging out. I was surprised to learn that we were performing on the main floor, as we had always played in the basement. I was even more surprised to see my old pal and EBS frontman Steve Waller was down from BC and in attendance. This really made my day and it was awesome catching up with him.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">After a few hours of schmoozing and drinking the place was packed and it was time to rock. I stealthily slipped away into the bathroom or kitchen (I can't quite remember) and transformed myself back into "Satin" once again.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBlzeX5aDAMUcqBpGwcytw0btovkAjyBejWWMEBDuClNEy11Uf5ixA-ewHqQIs0_uXfpW90Fa6qJl19X7cXLInVY4g47t-YgAvH5MNq0M5cT9B0Zm3RtMvhOp68Ngvznf4ZsAkcKnRCX4m/s1600/C14BDD80-3EEC-4151-94B8-C4D09A5ECF40.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="839" data-original-width="1119" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBlzeX5aDAMUcqBpGwcytw0btovkAjyBejWWMEBDuClNEy11Uf5ixA-ewHqQIs0_uXfpW90Fa6qJl19X7cXLInVY4g47t-YgAvH5MNq0M5cT9B0Zm3RtMvhOp68Ngvznf4ZsAkcKnRCX4m/s320/C14BDD80-3EEC-4151-94B8-C4D09A5ECF40.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">I heard the boys instruments as they warmed up and that was my cue. As I entered the room I got a huge pop from the crowd and it was time to fuck shit up. I was overwhelmed by the amount of people packed in like sardines and they went absolutely bonkers for us. Quite possibly one of the greatest receptions we had ever received during our time together as a band.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">The rest of the night is really all a blur to me but I still remember that it was an incredibly magical evening. It was like we had never missed a beat.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">Later on down the road a friend of ours Bob Kareer, who worked at musicplex with Greg, had given us a copy of the show he shot with his camcorder. It was amazing to relive the memories and see how crazy the audience went. Thankfully I was able to get a copy of it recently and I added it to my YouTube channel for all to enjoy via the links provided.</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;">It seemed like the perfect reunion and farewell of the Wiggaz all rolled into one, but was it really our last performance?</span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="https://youtu.be/yVl25GWmVD8" target="_blank">Wiggaz AD live @ Ivy Bridge pt.1</a></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-size: 17.41px;"><a href="https://youtu.be/O6NeZxJBPSI" target="_blank">Wiggaz AD live @ Ivy Bridge pt.2</a></span></div>
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<a href="https://youtu.be/QyOTFbZDCVw" target="_blank">Wiggaz AD live @ Ivy Bridge pt.3</a></div>
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Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-42319316401189972882020-04-19T13:11:00.002-07:002020-04-19T13:11:53.150-07:00Welcome to 1997<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px;">
Welcome back to Heavy Ghetto and welcome to 1997. With the wake of the current pandemic I figured what better time than now to give life to my monster again.</div>
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I pondered starting this post off with a recap of 1996, but upon further investigation of my previous posts (which I hadn't read in ages) I discovered one of the last chapters of the story I left off on was entitled "1996: Year In Review" so naturally there is no need for a recap. </div>
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If you feel the desire to bring yourself up to speed since it's been awhile, feel free to read that entry before continuing on with this one. Now let us move forward.</div>
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As I stated in one of my last update posts, I am now striving to post on somewhat of a more frequent basis, but these entries with have more substance than those prior in hope's of getting back up to speed and giving this blog some legs again. It may only be one post a month or so but it's better than nothing I suppose...NOW let’s move forward...</div>
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Despite 1996 being somewhat of a dismal year, 1997 had started off with a bang. I had finally landed what I considered my "dream job" working in a record store. Seeing as how important music is to me I assumed it couldnt get any better than this.</div>
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My good friend and former band mate Paully had actually tipped me off that his girlfriend Jen could possibly hook me up with a job at HMV records.</div>
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I had applied to HMV in the Bramalea City Centre annually since it had opened almost a decade prior, yet heartbreakingly I never received a call back. Now I had an interview lined up at the HMV store inside The Eaton Centre in downtown Toronto.</div>
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It was a bit of a jaunt but I was excited none the less. I was still living with Jay and Julie in an appartment across from the Bramalea City Centre, so I eagerly headed to its infamous bus stop and hopped on the Go bus to Yorkdale.</div>
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From Yorkdale it was a quick commute on the subway, which I eventually exited at the Queen street stop that attached to Eaton Centre. I was excited and nervous for my interview.</div>
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I headed into HMV and met Jim the store manager. Jim took me into his office in the back of the store and proceeded to "interview" me. I use the term loosely as the "interview" was mere minutes if that, with Jim proclaiming "Jen says you want to work here. The job is yours if you want it" Obviously I accepted the gracious offer and before I knew it I was already on my way back home to Brampton.</div>
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I couldn't believe how easy the whole process was! As I stated earlier I had applied at HMV numerous times in the past and never received so much as a call back, but now my eyes were finally opened to the way things worked in this company.</div>
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Prior experience and work history made absolutely no difference, it really came down to who you know, something that would stick with me as I grew as a man in the years to come. I had learned a valuable life lesson and more importantly I had finally landed my "dream job".</div>
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Before I knew it I was officially working for HMV. My first day consisted of learning how to operate the cash register, redeeming gift certificates, and being instructed as to exactly what music we were permitted to play. Unfortunately we could only play CDs that were in the "top 10" chart, which meant mostly pop drivel.</div>
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We were however allowed to play any CD that was on the sale rack, and thankfully there was some decent stuff on sale at the time including the newest Faith No More album "King for a day fool for a lifetime", Primus' "Sailing the seas of cheese" and the first release of a new band called "Porno for Pyros". Needless to say I always had these 3 in the rotation on shuffle in our 5 disc CD player.</div>
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We also had a VCR under the registers that broadcasted on all the televisions simultaneously in the store. Although there was no volume it was nice to be able to watch movies in my downtime.</div>
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Located behind our registers as well was another multi disc CD player that controlled the listening stations, where people could put headphones on and preview music before deciding if they wanted to purchase it or not.</div>
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I quickly learned from a fellow co-worker named Lennox, that it was fun to fuck with people who were loitering at the listening stations or watching TV for extended periods of time by shutting the power off on them. It was hilariously amusing to see them stand there in confusion trying to figure out what had happened. </div>
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I caught on to the job very quickly and my boss Jim considered me one of his fastest and most efficient cashiers. It got to the point where I could tell a customer their total before I'd even punched it into the till. Most CDs were generally the same few price points, all of which I had memorized after tax.</div>
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One of the most exciting aspects of the job for me personally was learning the fact that we as employees were entitled to make purchases at store cost, meaning whatever the store paid for a CD was the same price we would pay should we choose to make a purchase. </div>
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Needless to say my eyes gleamed at this opportunity as I love music more than anything, but my plans were stymied when I learned there wasn't much mark up on alot of CDs. Most new releases were $11.99 cost price and would generally sell for 14.99 retail price. Older CDs ranged anywhere between 14.94 to well past the $20 mark.</div>
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I was a bit defeated to learn I would not really save THAT much money buying CDs at cost price. It was still very cool to be able to go into the computer system and see cost price on any item in the store, which led to my next discovery.</div>
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I had always been a fan of films and collecting them, although most VHS tapes at the time were $20 and up, so I opted to dub tapes quite often as I've mentioned previously in the story. One day at work I decided to peruse the movie section and was surprised to find the Troma film "Redneck Zombies" I eagerly ran to the computer with it and was blown away to see how low the cost price was in comparison to the marked up ticket price. I stashed it aside to buy after my shift had ended.</div>
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Naturally I started checking costs of other films, the most expensive cost price I came across was 11.99 for the movie Scarface which was actually 2 tapes. It was regularly priced around $30-$35 so once again I stashed it to buy after work.</div>
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Over the next few months my VHS collection had grown vastly and rapidly at little cost to myself, and it was a good feeling to actually own legit copies as opposed to dubs. We seemed to get Troma films in quite often and I always snatched them up as well as countless other goodies.</div>
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I ended up befriending our floor walker who's job was to pretend he was shopping while attempting to catch shoplifters. We hit it off quite well, and being the master thief that I was in a past life, I was consistently assisting him with busting people. The only clause was I had to be 100% sure someone had stolen or else would be in hot water for any false arrests. Needless to say our losses went down in numbers dramatically.</div>
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Another scam people used to try and pull was finding a receipt that wasn't theirs and attempt to "return" said CDs on receipt that they never actually purchased. Alot of times they would try the scam first at our superstore on <a dir="ltr" href="x-apple-data-detectors://3" style="text-decoration-color: rgba(127, 127, 127, 0.380392);" x-apple-data-detectors-result="3" x-apple-data-detectors-type="address" x-apple-data-detectors="true">333 Yonge st.</a> After being denied they would try it again at our store. Little did they know the employees at the superstore would call our store and pre-warn us, so it was always a satisfying feeling having the jump on them and denying any returns to which they would become very heated.</div>
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All in all I was loving my new job and I looked forward to hopefully learning about more fringe benefits in the weeks and months to come...</div>
Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-74355230365828480592019-06-26T18:01:00.000-07:002019-06-26T18:01:12.461-07:00N0R7H 0F H3LLThe time has come once again for me to release a plethora of cornball alterna rap songs that I've been working on for the past 2 years that is affectionately known as "NORTH OF HELL" and as always I've put my heart and soul into the project despite it taking so long.<br />
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I'd like to thank everyone that was involved with this one way or another, most noteably:<br />
Dubble D, Daddio, DJ Moves, Tank Diggs, Mach Spitz, & Alex P. Keaton. I pondered if this would be the final Kabal release but alas I'm already committed to future collaborative engagements so who knows where those will lead me.<br />
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The past year of my life has been something else to say the least, but I will get into that in the near future as I am planning on re-booting the blog from where I left off on a weekly basis which would include lengthier posts. I've neglected this project on and off for the past few years now,so once again we shall see if it gets legs. In the meantime feel free to listen to an hour of music from yours truly (& friends) always free to stream or $5.00 digital download which comes with extra goodies.<br />
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Cheers! Love you all!<br />
-K<br />
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<a href="https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/north-of-hell" target="_blank">Listen to "NORTH OF HELL"</a><br />
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Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-85617745863975949172018-10-06T11:06:00.000-07:002018-10-06T11:23:37.974-07:00UPDATE 06-10-2018<span style="color: #cccccc;">Greetings! Just a quick update as once again I've fallen off the blog wagon....or is it fell on? Regardless I've been striving to post on a bit more regular basis and I did make slight progress with that resolution but not as much as I'd of liked.... Now with summer being over and my seed back in school I'll be attempting to get some legs under this story again. </span><br />
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<span style="color: #cccccc;">In the meantime i wanted to quickly announce that I've been given the opportunity to open up for Everlast from House of Pain/Rhyme Syndicate fame and needless to say I'm pretty stoked. At this point in my life I merely create music as an expressive means as it is in my blood, it's not like I'm trying to land a deal or anything of that sort, but it's quite an honour to get to perform on a show of this level. I generally only perform once or twice a year and this year it's definitely going to be a memorable one!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #cccccc;">I'm really looking forward to this and I'd like to thank my pal Noel & Inertia Entertainment for making this possible. I'd also like to thank my boys Mach Spitz and DJ Kevindicator for backing me up on this performance. I hope to see some familiar faces there and have a killer time! I was also a HUGE House of Pain mark back in the day, having seen both of their first two performances in Toronto, and Ev absolutely influenced me in the early 90's so this is going to be quite amazing for me, once again coming full circle to perform with one of my influences!</span><br />
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<span style="color: #cccccc;">Post show stories and whatnot to follow for sure! Cheers!</span><br />
<span style="color: #cccccc;">-K</span><br />
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/events/976880505829161/" target="_blank">EVERLAST wsg. KABAL & Too Nice</a></div>
<br />Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-35014816592989660602018-08-31T06:01:00.002-07:002018-08-31T06:01:56.035-07:00Born In Darkness<div style="font-family: ".SF UI Text"; font-size: 17.4px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: ".SFUIText"; font-size: 17.41pt;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">Happy Friday and happy Labor Day weekend. It seems summer is getting ready to shut things down for another year, and I must admit it passed by way too soon. As the old saying goes “time flies when you’re having fun” and that certainly held true this year. I did have my son with me quite a lot which is primarily why this season flashed by in the blink of an eye. I hope you all had a great summer and got to spend quality time with your loved ones. We will be finishing off strong with FanExpo this weekend in Toronto, hopefully I’ll see some familiar faces there. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".SFUIText"; font-size: 17.41pt;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">Today is also the official release of the independent short film “Born In Darkness” that I was fortunate enough to become a part of. I’m quite excited to have some of my music in a film as I’m a huge movie buff and I hope to continue down that path in the future if at all possible. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".SFUIText"; font-size: 17.41pt;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;">I just wanted to take a moment to thank my good friend Mike Myre for opening the door to this opportunity for me. I’d also like to thank the creator of the film Daniel Groom for taking an interest in my music and feeling compelled enough to use it in his film. It is a great honour for me and I hope we get to work together again in the near future. Daniel is a talented young man and I can see him doing big things for himself as his career progresses. I strongly urge everyone and anyone to check the film out and to support indie artists from all walks of media. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".SFUIText"; font-size: 17.41pt;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/v/paefilms">www.amazon.com/v/paefilms</a></span></div>
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Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-86648903918062496772018-07-03T07:39:00.001-07:002018-07-03T07:39:49.907-07:001996: Year in review<div style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">So let’s do a quick recap of 1996 shall we? One of my best friends dies, I find love, I move multiple times, Black Belt Jones breaks up, Wiggaz breaks up....that’s about it in a nutshell. Speaking of which, just as BBJ played our final gig at Ching Park in Brampton, one of the final Wiggaz shows I remember was also in Brampton. This gig in particular was at a shopping mall I used to frequent as a teenager because Chuck E. Cheese was located there and it was the only place in town I could play the tag team wrestling arcade machine. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now here I am 23 years old performing in said mall. It was quite surreal, and Brampton seemed to not want to cater to live music around this time, so there were all of these ridiculous stipulations included....like having to have two police officers present. So basically the promoters were losing money because they had to pay for the cops to stand there and do nothing, meanwhile the people doing all the work (bands included) weren’t making any money. It was truly a frustrating time for the scene, yet it was satisfying to be playing there for me personally, and even more satisfying to see the looks on the faces of the cops when the devil himself, in a Herb Tarlek suit, met them eye to eye whilst approaching the stage. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">There was also a new wave of younger punk bands emerging from the Brampton scene at the time, most notably Perfectly Normal and Dylan Dog. The bands Fence and Dirge were still doing their thing, yet I think Fractured had folded by this point. Viciousphere was still going strong, and Knuckles our faithful engineer had started a band called Xanax with a few friends. Some of the guys from Yet Another Posse had also started a new band called Bad Blood which was pretty exciting, as they were now incorporating live musicians into the fold.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Meanwhile on the international front a “nu-metal” band named Korn released their second album “Life is Peachy” and it seemed like a lot of local bands were now trying to emulate their look and sound. I personally found Korn to be very repetitive musically and they just didn’t appeal to me. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Here are a few other note able musical happenings that caught my attention that year:</span></div>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Kiss revealed that they had reunited with original members Ace Frehley and Peter Criss, with a surprise appearance on the American Music Awards. The band took to the podium in full makeup and costume for the first time since 1983. They eventually kicked off the Alive/Worldwide reunion tour at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. It was the first tour by the original lineup of the band since 1979.</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Snoop Dogg and his bodyguard were acquitted of first degree murder. The jury deadlocked on voluntary manslaughter charges and a mistrial was declared.</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">MCA Records bought half of Interscope Records. Time Warner had owned half of Interscope until September 1995 when it sold off its share due to political pressure for the explicit lyrics of the label's gangsta rap artists.</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">M.C. Hammer filed for bankruptcy.</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">The first Tibetan Freedom Concerts were held in San Francisco. (Yes the concert Black Belt Jones was asked to perform on)</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Phil Anselmo of Pantera overdosed on heroin after a Texas homecoming gig, and thankfully survived.</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Influential punk rock group The Ramones played their final show at The Palace in Hollywood.</span></li>
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<li style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Rapper Tupac Shakur was shot several times whilst being driven from the MGM Grand Hotel along Sunset Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, after seeing the allegedly fixed Mike Tyson versus Bruce Seldon boxing match, in what was apparently a drive-by shooting. Tupac dies as a result of injuries sustained six days later.</span></li>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">That’s all for now folks, join me next time as we jump into 1997, one of the most important years of my life...</span></div>
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Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-72628984043189248992018-06-26T11:34:00.001-07:002022-06-03T12:30:26.909-07:00The Death of 96’<div style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">1996 was winding down and so was my “musical career” considering Black Belt Jones was now no more, and a few months later Wiggaz dissolved as well. Mike started jamming with our friends Gary & Sue, as well as former EBS drummer John McCuish. Pauly would go on to start a band in the years to come called 3 Pounds, which was an early pre-cursor to emo punk rock. So what was I doing now???</span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Myself along with Jay Dove and his girlfriend/my best friend Julie (and my trusted cat Fritz), ended up moving into an apartment building in Brampton called Silver Maple, high up on the 19th floor. Jay ended up getting me a job where he worked in Woodbridge at a place called Beek Industries, or was it Beak? Regardless I had the most odd occupation I’ve ever acquired, taste testing fish for ph levels from wood pulp. It was only one or two days a week but the pay was great, and I was also still working part time midnights at Shayne’s mothers’ gas station in Woodbridge. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I wasn’t really doing anything music related with the exception of making mixtapes using Jay’s awesome setup which included a drum machine he had bought off Pauly. I’d program beats to use in my mixtapes but that was it. I wasn’t creating songs and I wasn’t writing lyrics. I was however working on comic strips again and I was spending a lot of evenings at the Crown & Anchor, a pub close by that a friend of mine had recently became owner of. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fritz and I in Silver Maple</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">I was playing a lot of video games, as a brand new system called PlayStation was released, and Paul hooked Jenny up through his job at K-Mart so she bought it for me as a Christmas/early birthday gift. It was a mind blowing leap in the evolution of video games, which were now on discs and longer in cartridge form. For the most part I was always playing Twisted Metal 2, Jet Moto, Power Move Pro Wrestling, and WCW vs. The World. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jay and Shayne weren’t talking, and I was no longer talking to the guys from Wiggaz, so our circle of friends had become quite awkward with all these strained relationships. I just stayed at home for the most part and spent time with Jenny, Jay, Julie, and a few close friends. New Years came and went quite uneventfully as we were all divided into small groups. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jay & I New Years Eve 96/97</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">1996 had definitely been a rough year with the passing of Jay Poole, the death of Black Belt Jones & Wiggaz, and the tension amongst our circle of friends. A new year was upon us with 1997 and I held my head and my hopes up high. I was ready for whatever life had to throw at me, yet I had no idea that I was in for a life changing year...</span></div>
Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-73227212079284016012018-04-23T08:12:00.002-07:002018-04-23T08:12:48.228-07:00CORRUPDATE 04-23-18<br />
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Wow I really, really suck. It’s been well past 5 months since I apologized for not posting enough and vowed to come back with a vengeance. I started off with a bang and then fizzled out. I really don’t know what my issue is. I was having some memory and continuity battles, but I managed to get past those so there really is no excuse for me not blogging. It is a bit of an undertaking and a bit overwhelming trying to recount the ways and days of my life in a fairly descriptive yet vague nutshell.<br />
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Truth be told I’ve just been slacking in general and have hit a proverbial funk if you will. I’m at a crossroads in my life where I don’t know what I really want to do. I feel like I’ve been soul searching the last year or so but haven’t come to a conclusion on that journey. I knew my life needed changes but I didn’t really know what changes it needed, and I’m still somewhat in the dark about it.<br />
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I felt like perhaps kicking myself in the ass to continue blogging again could be a good way to promote some change in my life. I’ve never been one to openly share my problems to others and I’ve never been overly verbal in general. Writing has always been my voice. I could most likely talk my way out of any jam in a heartbeat, but through written words I seem to be able to truly express myself tenfold. <br />
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So what’s been going on? For the most part not a whole lot. I cherish my time with my son and my girlfriend and that’s all that really seems to matter to me as of late. When I’m alone however I just can’t seem to bring myself to want to get anything done. I’m really trying to make a conscious effort to break this chain, wether it be through art, music, or other creative activities. In the words of the late, great Owen Hart “Enough is enough and it’s time for a change.” <br />
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I guess my biggest dilemma is really that I don’t know what I want to do with my life at this point. Having the freedom to live as an independent artist is very rewarding but it’s also easy to slip into lazy habits. I could literally spend each day of the week working in different mediums though as I love the variety of creativity.<br />
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On the creative front I am still working on my upcoming album “NORTH OF HELL” which is moving along at a decent rate considering my current situation. Musically it’s almost a wrap, lyrically I’ve still got some writing to do. It’s been an interesting process this time around as I think this is one of the first instances I’ve walked into a project blind with no general ideas or “big picture” in mind. It’s been fairly liberating to say the least, just making music solely based on how I’m feeling that particular day. That in turn sometimes spawns a lyrical idea for the song, but for the most part I’ve just been letting the music talk to me as I write blindly. <br />
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I did also complete a few tracks with my boy Pauly whom you should know of if you’ve even half heartedly followed my story. We’ve worked together on and off over the years and we’ve always had great chemistry when it comes to music. You can check out the brand new “CORRUPTED E.P.” courtesy of the link provided below. <br />
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<a href="https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/the-corrupted-e-p">https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/the-corrupted-e-p</a><br />
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Asides from music I’m really striving to bounce all over the map creatively speaking. I’ve started working on a comic book and a kids coloring book, and have also been digitally designing art for t-shirt and print designs. I took a break from tattooing for awhile so I’m slowly trying to transition back into inking again. My son and I have been customizing action figures for our ever growing collection and it’s been very inspiring to see his creative side flourish. <br />
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All in all I’ve really been enjoying life, I’m just uncertain what direction my life is heading. All I can do is take it step by step and one day at a time & see where the road takes me. I know I’ve promised this before, but I am truly going to make my best effort to get the story of “Heavy Ghetto” rolling again in a more consistent manner, even if it’s only one post a month, but I shall shoot for weekly entries.<br />
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Most importantly though I need to pick myself up out of this slump and keep on keeping on...</div>
Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-91604775691881955972017-11-15T10:08:00.002-08:002017-11-15T10:08:51.124-08:00The Grand BandshellWith the tension building between band mates, Pauly decided it was time to pull the plug on Black Belt Jones. As much as I disagreed with the decision I totally understood his position, as things between him and Mike were rocky so he wanted to salvage the relationship and dissolve the band instead of salvaging the band and in turn dissolving a friendship. We still had a few gigs lined up and we felt it was our obligation to honour those dates, which we did.<br />
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Our final gig was approaching, and even though it would be our last performance as a band I was highly excited due to the venue location. We would be playing an outdoor music festival in none other than our hometown of Brampton, which really wasn't anything new as we played Brampton frequently, but this time we would be gracing the stage of the infamous Chinguacousy Park bandshell.<br />
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The bandshell was quite legendary in my mind seeing as it had quite an impact on my life growing up in Brampton. It was set on a small man made pond and equipped with paddle boats. At a very young age I had attended the bandshell to see fireworks on numerous occasions, as well as musical performances by mainly Canadian acts. I also experienced my first "fishing trip" there with my Dad at age 5 and we caught sunfish & catfish. As I approached my teenage years I saw myself back there a few times with my Father to see live wrestling shows. When I became a teenager I was frequently at Ching Park skateboarding and yes we did used to skate the bandshell stage almost daily.<br />
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In the late 80s the bandshell wasn't seeing much action, and being that it was outdoors it had began to rot and wither away. As the 90's rolled in there still wasn't much action going on there musically, and when there was it didn't generally suit my musical tastes. Now here we were approaching the mid-way point of 1996 and I was standing on this stage with my band facing a fairly large audience.<br />
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I saw a few familiar faces in the crowd, even my girlfriend Jenny's father Bruce was right up at the front of the stage grooving out, but for the most part we were literally playing to a sea of strangers. Just regular everyday Brampton common folk who wanted to break the monotony and treat themselves to something different for a change. There were all walks of life, parents, grandparents, and children of all ages. We received a warm reception and it felt amazing to be up there giving back to the town that gave to me for years and years, even though inside I was still hurting knowing this would be our last gig. I didn't want this day to end.<br />
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Shortly after the big show (and the break up) I was shooting the breeze with Pauly one day and he informed me that he had been contacted by some bigwigs involved in the Tibetan Freedom Concert. Turns out we had made a noise after all and they were interested in us becoming a part of it. <br />
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(From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)<br />
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<b>Tibetan Freedom Concert</b> is the name given to a series of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_festival" title="Rock festival">rock festivals</a> held in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_America" title="North America">North America</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europe" title="Europe">Europe</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asia" title="Asia">Asia</a> from <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_in_music" title="1996 in music">1996</a> onwards to support the cause of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibetan_independence_movement" title="Tibetan independence movement">Tibetan independence</a>. The concerts were originally organized by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beastie_Boys" title="Beastie Boys">Beastie Boys</a> and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milarepa_Fund" title="Milarepa Fund">Milarepa Fund</a>. The idea for a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Aid" title="Live Aid">Live Aid</a>-style concert for Tibet was conceived by members of the group during the 1994 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lollapalooza" title="Lollapalooza">Lollapalooza</a> Tour.<br />
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Organized in 1996, the first concert was held in May in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco" title="San Francisco">San Francisco</a> and featured acts such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Hot_Chili_Peppers" title="Red Hot Chili Peppers">Red Hot Chili Peppers</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bj%C3%B6rk" title="Björk">Björk</a>, <a class="mw-redirect" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smashing_Pumpkins" title="Smashing Pumpkins">Smashing Pumpkins</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cibo_Matto" title="Cibo Matto">Cibo Matto</a>, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rage_Against_the_Machine" title="Rage Against the Machine">Rage Against the Machine</a> and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_La_Soul" title="De La Soul">De La Soul</a>. It drew 100,000 people and raised over $800,000 for Tibetan and social justice causes.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-rs96_1-0"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibetan_Freedom_Concert#cite_note-rs96-1">[1]</a></sup> Additional concerts were held until 2003, generating public awareness about the Tibetan plight, particularly amongst young people. The concerts helped spur the growth of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Students_for_a_Free_Tibet" title="Students for a Free Tibet">Students for a Free Tibet</a> worldwide.<br />
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Unfortunately unbeknownst to us, Pauly had turned down the offer. I realize we were no longer a band, but our demise was still fresh and I felt we easily could of regrouped to take part in this incredible offer. Again, I understood Pauly's position with him and Mike's strained friendship so I never pushed the issue that much. Looking back I still feel the same way I felt that day, having that crazy idea behind a door in my mind that just possibly, just MAYBE, that would of or could of been our big break...<br />
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Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-18293243735419215902017-09-28T09:19:00.003-07:002017-09-28T09:19:49.312-07:001996 Continues...1996 had been a roller coaster ride to say the least thus far. The passing of Jay Poole, the finding of new love, the growth of Black Belt Jones, the opening of new local clubs to play, moving to Malton with my friends, and the continuing explosion of Wiggaz A.D.<br />
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As fast as I had moved to Malton, after a whirlwind of fun it seemed as if I was moving out just as fast. Not wanting to rely on my parents again I decided to try and find somewhere new to live. My girlfriend Jenny suggested that I move into her place with her family. I wasn't wild about the idea, but it did mean I wouldn't have to burden my folks again. I was also out of work so I really didn't have many options.<br />
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Surprisingly her parents were fine with the idea, the only catch was that they had a family dog and they were not very fond of cats, so my kitty Fritz would have to stay confined in the bedroom. A small sacrifice to say the least in order to have a roof over my head.<br />
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I wasn't gainfully unemployed at that time so I spent most of my days perusing the shelves of Blockbuster video in search for classic kung-fu movies to rent and dub. I took a chance on a whim one day and rented a samurai movie entitled "Shogun Assassin" or "Lone Wolf & Cub" In the opening minutes I was thrilled to hear samples the GZA of Wu-Tang had used on his new debut solo LP. It went on to be one of my all time favourite films.<br />
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I built up a pretty good collection in my short stay there, and surprisingly grew close to her family despite my anti social personality. Her father had even became a fan of my band Wiggaz, after I inadvertently left our demo in the tape deck of his car one day. Jenny was in tears laughing explaining how her father was cruising around Brampton with his shades on, windows down, and Wiggaz blaring out the stereo. I thought it was the greatest thing ever.<br />
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Despite not working, her parents always supported me and I did whatever I could to pull my weight around the house. Their dog Wilson, who pretty much hated everyone, was now my best friend and we had an incredible bond. Her family embraced me and included me on outings such as spending time at their cottage in Bancroft. Jenny & I even got the place to ourselves a few times and had friends stay there with us. It was paradise.<br />
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Speaking of paradise, the old saying "trouble in paradise" was creeping back into my life and my friend's lives, specifically my brothers in Black Belt Jones. Tensions were rising between Pauly & Mike, and myself of course. Mike had voiced his displeasure at the fact that Paul & I were the ones who had our hands in the beat creating and song writing. Mike could play drums and he was one hell of a guitar and bass player, so he was resenting the fact that Paul was writing the stringed content of the music, in turn dictating what Mike had to play.<br />
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I totally understood where Mike was coming from and I didn't blame him for feeling how he felt by any means. Truth be told, Mike was a busy man. He was working multiple jobs and he had many circles of friends, which in reality meant he really wasn't around us much at all these days. Paul & I hung out a lot hence us being the creative force behind BBJ.<br />
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We were gigging regularly at the London Bridge in Brampton now, where we continued our tradition of the open mic segment at the end of our sets, we even went as far as to make a first place trophy/bong for the best freestyle rapper. Delving further into experimentation, the open mic segment had now transformed into an open stage concept - meaning anyone could come join us on stage with their own instrument of choice for some freestyle jamming. I was even jumping on the drum kit as was Mike, who was also switching between bass & guitar with Paul every other track for the most part during our sets now since voicing his opinions.<br />
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The club had a massive movie screen on stage so we also began editing our own VHS videotapes so we could have a video presentation to run along side our audio presentation. It was exhilarating having this new found creativity in the band, but with Mike already being bitter about Pauly writing all the guitar parts, and with all the freestyle jamming that was going on, Mike went rogue.<br />
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What I mean by that is Mike started playing what he wanted when he wanted instead of sticking to the structure of our songs that had been set in stone. At times it could work, at other times it completely threw us off. Needless to say Mike & Paul started bumping heads quite often. The whole vibe reminded me of the tension between Derek, Mike & I in the Grasshopper days, and deep down I knew it was the beginning of the end...<br />
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<br />Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-36341582381757220272017-09-07T10:03:00.004-07:002017-09-07T10:03:49.143-07:00 UPDATE 09/07/2017<br /><br />Well, what can I say? I haven't really written much this year after making resolution that I would. Truth be told I was having a bit of writers block, and memory block for that matter. I was a bit unclear of the order of events at that point in my life, but alas things are coming back now. My friend TJ aka Bob sent me a DVD of a Wiggaz reunion gig from August 1997 and watching that literally helped me fill the gap from where I was stuck in my story. It's amazing how one thing can open all these doors in my mind. I checked the blog stats for the first time in I don't even know how long, and I was surprised to see I was still getting hundreds to thousands of views a month. <br />Moving forward I am really trying to make a conscious effort to write more...<br /><br />I was also finishing up multiple musical projects which is all I mainly posted about this year, and I decided to just enjoy my summer and my time with my son...not too mention I have been playing quite a bit of Xbox with one of my top rap icons, Cage. If you are not familiar with him you should definitely check out his music. <div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="http://cagewm.com/">http://cagewm.com/</a><br />
<a href="http://chrispalko.com/">http://chrispalko.com/</a><br />
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As expected i haven't really taken much of a break from music. I've already started writing concepts and made a few new skeleton tracks for my next full length "North of Hell" which I was really planning on taking my time with, but the ball is already rolling more so than I expected.</div>
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I've started writing lyrics for some songs my old Black Belt Jones cohort Prince Pauly sent me so that has been quite fun on the creative front. Next month I will be performing with Street Trash live at a town near some of you, more details TBA soon.</div>
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I hope everyone had a great summer and I look forward to continuing on with the story...<br />
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K<br />
<br />Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-43200866224363422032017-06-20T08:41:00.001-07:002017-06-20T08:41:11.946-07:00Street Trash 2 - ELECTRIC BOOGALOOGreetings, salutations, and all that good shit! I just wanted to make a quick post to inform anyone (who already doesn't know) that this past Saturday was the release of the newest Street Trash album "Street Trash 2 - Electric Boogaloo" with my cohort and partner in rhyme crime Mach Spitz. <div><br></div><div>We released our first album a few years ago, and we felt it was time to do it again. We started production in late 2016 and we were both ecstatic to have this completed in such a timely manor. I'd like to thank Mach for bringing out the best in me once again in both my lyric writing and music creation. </div><div><br></div><div>Tons of rhymes here, a lot of dope beats, and some definite replay value. This is a non profit release and you can download the digital copy absolutely free. Just click "BUY NOW" and enter $0.00 as your price... Or a higher denomination if you are feeling generous. </div><div><br></div><div>Downloads available on both my site and the ST site. Cheers!</div><div><br></div><div>www.kabal.bandcamp.com</div><div><br></div><div>www.streettrash.bandcamp.com</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKVqEGXExC8vYWsYgGXo2rVJX7KaZw6BgAkq3noOggJ6AiRuNpv67yJlhito0MNTuKnxNO7u1vS9Kpeip-GxhC8Wccxd6AKwlPlDoDGeCcp0o5vHjsL2G5pWixRujbjnqHkmAEAGFo_ht/s640/blogger-image-966655834.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghKVqEGXExC8vYWsYgGXo2rVJX7KaZw6BgAkq3noOggJ6AiRuNpv67yJlhito0MNTuKnxNO7u1vS9Kpeip-GxhC8Wccxd6AKwlPlDoDGeCcp0o5vHjsL2G5pWixRujbjnqHkmAEAGFo_ht/s640/blogger-image-966655834.jpg"></a></div><br><div><br></div><div><br></div></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-12945357555982714022017-06-08T20:13:00.001-07:002017-06-09T04:57:32.699-07:00THEOKOLES DROPS!<div>After a long 3+ year journey, a crashed hard drive, lost data, lost ideas, only having mixes of certain songs backed up, starting new songs from scratch, collaborating with people, being left in limbo by people, then collaborating with new people to finally bring it all together as one, I am pleased to FINALLY announce the release of "THEOKOLES"</div><div><br></div><div>As always I have to tip my hat in respect to the folks that helped out with my vision, mad props & mad love for: Mach Spitz, DJ Moves, Stew Gunn, Tank Diggs, Upperkutt, my seed Lil' G, and of course my alter ego/evil twin KABAL. As always this release was composed to be listened to from start to finish, so crank it up and enjoy the next 45 minutes of your life!</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOJfJnN1QwQZIZ8EZh6L5pbO6FFHjR8J2_Z2JfojzOa4aws_BNUbpa_CxNRtMBGfS8Pvs8QIPTALVKBffq5meg3zI5n4GW0T__vzbJC53Iv-I0nBq_6bc-EZTPcaEHOsqz0bZUmYQp0vZC/s640/blogger-image-620791657.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOJfJnN1QwQZIZ8EZh6L5pbO6FFHjR8J2_Z2JfojzOa4aws_BNUbpa_CxNRtMBGfS8Pvs8QIPTALVKBffq5meg3zI5n4GW0T__vzbJC53Iv-I0nBq_6bc-EZTPcaEHOsqz0bZUmYQp0vZC/s640/blogger-image-620791657.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/theokoles">https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/theokoles</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">HEAVY GHETTO FINALLY RETURNS NEXT WEEK!!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><br></div><div><br></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-80225227903151825452017-03-28T17:40:00.001-07:002017-03-28T17:41:36.331-07:00UPDATE 03/28/2017<span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Greetings and salutations faithful readers, and welcome to a quick general update. Spring is here and it couldn't have come sooner as I'm quite fed up with this -20 degree weather on the daily. Here's hoping Old Man Winter is finally down for the count.</span><br><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Two weeks ago today I was pleased to finally release a new E.P. I'd been working on for the past 7 months or so. It is a collaborative effort with DJ Moves, a name you might recognize from this blog. Moves was apart of a rap group called Hip Club Groove, whom which my old band Black Belt Jones performed with a few times in the mid 90s. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">It's been an absolute pleasure to get in touch with Moves 20 years after the fact and I was glad to see he is still doing his thing. Moves has worked with a lot of artists over the years and has established a name for himself in the hip hop scene. The guy is an absolute pro, which is why I had absolutely no qualms about paying him for his production work. 5 dope tracks and a few pages of writing later equaled the completion of this latest release "East Coast Alumni" which you can purchase for digital download or stream for free via the link below.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><a href="https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/east-coast-alumni-e-p">https://kabal.bandcamp.com/album/east-coast-alumni-e-p</a></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9WcQnoyPpDE6CGsCVQfrP5Um3oBqiK-sGDYf7xN1zovoWBF1-YAi8Mcylh1P2-GEyyUg6PdSMdBChnOi1SLnS91sxuUXaPOD88nq3_9SYMGBfoeuuPm_qCbgRcY0EWFzs3TyauWzhTyc/s640/blogger-image-1147026453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh9WcQnoyPpDE6CGsCVQfrP5Um3oBqiK-sGDYf7xN1zovoWBF1-YAi8Mcylh1P2-GEyyUg6PdSMdBChnOi1SLnS91sxuUXaPOD88nq3_9SYMGBfoeuuPm_qCbgRcY0EWFzs3TyauWzhTyc/s640/blogger-image-1147026453.jpg"></a></div></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">In other news I've still got two pending releases for this year. "Theokoles" which I was gearing up to release last April, suffered some setbacks and had to be shelved for awhile, but it is finally nearing completion. The LP will feature a few guests and I had a real blast producing this album. Keep your eyes peeled for that in the coming months. I've also been working in cahoots once again with "Burt" AKA Mach Spitz, to bring forth a second Street Trash release entitled "Street Trash 2: Electric Boogaloo" which is nearing its final stages of production, and that too will be hitting the streets in the next few months.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">On top of all that I've been helping a few friends with guest spots on rap songs as well as hardcore songs, and as always it's a damned pleasure to work with my buddies. Needless to say anything I release or appear on will be made public through this blog first and foremost, so make sure to check in from time to time.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">I thank you all once again for your continuing support and loyalty, both as readers of my blog and listeners of my music. Until next time, get out there and enjoy the weather and more importantly enjoy your life. Cheers! </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">- K</div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-82170172302116889512017-02-23T10:07:00.001-08:002017-02-23T10:07:45.920-08:00The Generator<span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Our new place in Malton had become the new party headquarters. Friends were constantly coming by from Brampton and the surrounding areas to hang out and spend some quality time. It was nice having the crew back together again and I hoped there would be no more squabbles in the future amongst us.</span><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Meanwhile on the music scene, our good friend Noel who was now the manager of Wiggaz and Dirge respectively, was attempting to make his own power moves in the Toronto scene. He had lined us up a few gigs in the past, but he had now affiliated himself with Donny Blaze, the owner of a new club that had opened up called "The Generator".</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The club was located at the corner of Queen and Ossington, directly across the street from the metal health centre. Yes, the same mental health centre where Dallas and I had both seen the elusive albino squirrel that nobody believed us about. On an interesting side note, the street that branches off the mental health centre has since been named "White Squirrel Way" or something along those lines. See! We weren't crazy after all!</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The Generator was a smaller club that had a feel very reminiscent to Sneaky Dees and the Apocalypse club. It was small, dark, grimy, and roach infested, but it was the new hot spot for aggressive music in the city. I quickly learned that the owner Donny was the same fellow I had thrown my snair drum at back at Hot Rocks battle of the bands during the Grasshopper days, when he informed us we couldn't play because we skipped soundcheck. I decided to put that past me and give him a second chance, after all he was handing us a new platform to perform on.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Noel also managed to land Steve Donohoe a job there as the sound man, which was very beneficial to us as he knew our music inside out and he could engineer our sound like no other. Steve even knew my vocal range perfectly and he would tweak the mic level accordingly throughout every song. Noel was booking us steady gigs on a weekly basis by this point, and The Generator quickly became our new home.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">After a short while of gigging, the owner Donny and Steve became quite close, close to the point where Donny would leave the shows early and let Steve lock up. I'd usually hang behind with Steve and help him clean the place up while we helped ourselves to whatever was behind the bar. We generally wouldn't get out of there until 3-4 am and Steve was always nice enough to bring me home despite the levels of intoxication. Looking back I count my lucky stars that we always made it home safe. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">When Wiggaz weren't gigging, I was spending most of my time playing the new Doom 64 red cartridge on the Nintendo 64. I honestly can't even remember who's Nintendo it was as I didn't buy mine until a few years later. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Black Belt Jones was also pressing forward as we continued to play the odd rave here and there and we too were also making ourselves comfortable on the stage of The Generator. We were usually lumped in with metal bands, so our reception wasn't the greatest, yet we still managed to win audiences over despite the fact we were barely jamming anymore. On an interesting side note, the location of the Generator is now a Starbucks coffee shop of all things. It saddens me every time I pass by that intersection now.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQPQjH69XZ5m87BPRE5-k3RE_rBv4KaUEGRFebmkpBixPuZyYz47EyCYVc2D27IjmkSIRAh6kR0-lSXrpyk-VfILNeH9Wusi0B9m4ZsaDNprU1vRSrtBV3uzDwwi_GshMxYriVNDy9WnY5/s640/blogger-image-428699703.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQPQjH69XZ5m87BPRE5-k3RE_rBv4KaUEGRFebmkpBixPuZyYz47EyCYVc2D27IjmkSIRAh6kR0-lSXrpyk-VfILNeH9Wusi0B9m4ZsaDNprU1vRSrtBV3uzDwwi_GshMxYriVNDy9WnY5/s640/blogger-image-428699703.jpg"></a></div></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Rebirth was running rampant in the fresh spring air. A new girlfriend, a new house, a new club, and new opportunities. 1996 was definitely shaping up for the better...</div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-11805020630481093642017-01-27T07:23:00.001-08:002022-06-03T12:32:45.510-07:00Welcome To Malton<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Pcwq0bG1YsaiGgH5svjcV-v48twozWACDQf-mPpHqXuQ472N3xASsteThNjmjcCcBHgHraOwrE3VLt5O51i57NiiFKibRzE-aDCHRZX66zoP-V0tjyzmyI1Nae-5j9ABOdSad2NRD98l/s640/blogger-image-47381251.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Pcwq0bG1YsaiGgH5svjcV-v48twozWACDQf-mPpHqXuQ472N3xASsteThNjmjcCcBHgHraOwrE3VLt5O51i57NiiFKibRzE-aDCHRZX66zoP-V0tjyzmyI1Nae-5j9ABOdSad2NRD98l/s640/blogger-image-47381251.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">EDITOR'S NOTE: A few posts back I had mentioned the disbanding of Wiggaz, in late 95/early 96'. Upon writing more I unlocked memories as I often do, and realized this was incorrect. So as it stands it is now the spring of 1996 and Wiggaz are STILL a band. Let us move forward in the story now.</span><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">In the spring of 96' the guitar player for Wiggaz known as One Gerg Noswad (Greg Dawson) asked me if I'd help him move a few things as he was relocating from Malton back to Brampton. I obviously agreed to help my friend so off to Malton we went. When we arrived at Greg's place of residence I was surprised to learn he was living with my old buddy Jay Dove and my former roommate Shayne who I had not seen or talked to in about 7-8 months. Greg didn't have too much stuff to pack, so I had a chance to catch up with my pals. One thing lead to another and somehow it was agreed I would be moving in to take over Greg's former room.</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">It was a bit of a bold move for me to jump from Brampton to Malton, but it had been a rough year of ups and downs with a lot of change, so I decided to run with the ball. Before I knew it I was living with Jay & Shayne and starting another new chapter in my life. My first order of business was to get myself a pet.</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">I had heard from a fellow named Mike Chesterman, the savior who adopted my cat Sapphire after we moved out of Slayer House. Mike informed me Sapphire had a litter of kittens, so naturally I wanted to give back. My girlfriend Jenny brought me by Mike's to pick up the only male kitten of the litter. We ended up being there for close to an hour but we couldn't get the tiny critter out of hiding. We returned a day or two later and I was now the new owner of a baby kitten. I decided to name him Fritz in ode to Fritz the cat, a character created by one of my favorite comic book artists Robert Crumb.</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">Shayne now had a pitbull named Mac, and needless to say I was a bit nervous having this tiny kitten around him. Surprisingly Fritz held his own and he was very cunning, constantly escaping from Mac into small areas that only he could fit. Mac would try cramming his face into said small areas only for Fritz to sneak out another route, scratch Mac's ass, and run off to a new hiding spot. It was highly entertaining and I could watch them play their games for hours. The two quickly became great friends and I had no worries.</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">Speaking of friends, somewhere along the way our pal Shane AKA Foxy Bano caught wind of our living situation, and he ended up moving into one of the empty rooms in the house. Shayne was living in the basement, and another friend named Wes ended up moving into another small room that was in the basement. It was starting to feel like old times again having the boys back together under one roof. </span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">One night Jenny and I decided to head to Hooterville station in Brampton for some drinks, and I ran into my best gal pal from school Julie. We were chatting away and reminiscing, as she'd just gotten out of a relationship with a man who basically kept her locked away. Throughout our conversation we were name dropping people when she mentioned she'd always had "the hots" for Jay Dove. I burst out laughing and when she questioned my actions I informed her Jay was now a roommate of mine. Somehow I convinced her to come back to Malton with us. </span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;">When we stumbled in drunk at 2 or 3 in the morning we inadvertently woke everyone up. Jay strolled out, eyes barely open with a sour look on his face. Before he could administer any type of dissatisfaction I presented him with his gift, Julie. His frown was quickly turned upside down and everything was cool. They ended up hitting it off, and like Jenny, Julie was now a part time resident of our home. Little did I know I had made a love connection, as Julie & Jay went on to get married a few years later and they are still together to this present day, now with two amazing children in their lives as well.</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="background-color: white;"> Shayne also started dating a girl named Rosina, who was the singer of Dr.Liquid, a band Wiggaz had played with a few times. The next thing I knew Rose was living with us and we were all one big happy family. Jerry was coming over quite often, as was Greg and many other friends of ours. Inside I was the happiest I had ever been. After almost a year of dysfunction our family of friends was unified again. It was going to be a great year...I hoped...</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br /></div></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-7349007069058945712017-01-05T07:38:00.001-08:002017-01-05T07:38:25.349-08:00RAVE ON! <div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrFkCNBx1ARamgwSFghvJ5FY6YxTh9NH9xF0STxyW3XTrhFX9BRPbA2XIrO3BnPeE7VVP4ln2yhCwMsoUqQjt6SqSj5cbq5s2am-gXLAg63q3w-iNsv4jkbxLZ67vkyClAJj_fnAONBPkd/s640/blogger-image-1001350875.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrFkCNBx1ARamgwSFghvJ5FY6YxTh9NH9xF0STxyW3XTrhFX9BRPbA2XIrO3BnPeE7VVP4ln2yhCwMsoUqQjt6SqSj5cbq5s2am-gXLAg63q3w-iNsv4jkbxLZ67vkyClAJj_fnAONBPkd/s640/blogger-image-1001350875.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Happy new year and a happy 2017 to you all. I hope this year is great for you and yours. My resolution? Post blog entries MORE than once a month. With that being said let us move forward in the story...</span><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">1996 had been a roller coaster ride thus far. One of my good friends had passed away, i hadn't been in contact with some of my closest friends for months, I had spiraled down into one of my darkest moments of depression and alcoholism, I had met a new love interest, my band Black Belt Jones released our second demo tape, we were gigging frequently at the newest Brampton bar, and my OTHER band Wiggaz had disbanded. It was definitely a journey of ups and downs. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">BBJ was going strong, but as I mentioned in a previous post it had become a thankless job. Something had to give and something did give...the rave scene. Mike & Derek, who were the only two band mates into techno music and the rave scene, brought to our attention the type of money DJs were being paid to perform at these events. We had been paying our dues for a couple of years now and it was time to make some cash. We got in touch with the proper sources and before long we had booked our first gig at a rave.</div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">It was most certainly a different scene than what we were used to, but people were open minded enough to give us a chance and embrace us. The first rave we performed at seemed to be going well until we blew the power just a few songs into our set. It was somewhat a downer yet at the same time I felt like the people weren't ready for nor could they handle the awesome power of Black Belt Jones. It was a great little teaser that generated some buzz for us in the scene. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">The second rave we played at had multiple rooms, one of which had a stage, which was a step up from the floor we last performed on. Unfortunately there was a DJ in the same room who's setup was slightly drownings us out. We upped the volume and continued to do our thing, a crowd slowly gathering in front of us. Once said DJ caught wind of such, he killed his music and joined the growing crowd. We received a warming ovation that night, and a short while later I was stoked to see we had made it into "TRIBE" a local zine/paper that covered the underground rave scene. It felt good to finally get some of the recognition I believed we truly deserved. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">We went on to play a few more raves, and the reception was always love AND we were seeing some decent money. There was never a shortage of free drinks and other assortments of party favors offered for our disposal. We were somewhat getting "the rockstar treatment". </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">At one of the last raves we ever performed at, we were on stage at about 3am just killing it. We had everyone's undivided attention and the vibes were through the roof. Mid way through the set I noticed some flashlights moving through the crowd. At first I thought it was ravers until I realized one light had a badge beside it. I assumed it was a police officer holding his badge, but as the light emerged from the crowd I was surprised and somewhat taken back to see an Indian Sikh officer wearing a turban with the badge attached to it. It was such a surreal sight that we just kept on playing. They eventually shut the party down yet I cherish this memory greatly as I've never seen another Sikh officer in the 20 years that have since passed. </div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br></div><div style="color: rgb(69, 69, 69); font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">What started out as the darkest and most depressing year of my life was slowly illuminating more and more with positive light. It was a year of change and I was ready to embrace whatever new path appeared beneath my feet...</div></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-71969576237188889122016-12-02T08:54:00.001-08:002016-12-02T08:57:11.212-08:00UPDATE 12/02/2016<span style="color: rgb(69 , 69 , 69); font-family: "uictfonttextstylebody";">Greetings everyone! It's time once again for a general update. As another year approaches its end I couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty that I hadn't released any new material this year. Looking back now in retrospect I did release 4 albums in 2015 so I'm not feeling as bad about it now, plus I've managed to release an album before the year ended. </span><br />
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I spent the better part of 2016 working on two albums, and recently I started working on two more projects. I am happy to announce that on November 28th 2016 I finally released "If You want C.H.U.D... YOU GOT IT" a vision I started in early 2014 after a friend and customer of mine mentioned he really missed me working with metal and hardcore bands. I decided to incorporate my two musical loves of rap and metal and infuse them into somethings special for my friends and fans alike.</div>
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I ended up working with a variety of people and that definitely shines through in the songs, as each one is different from the next. There's some rap metal, thrash, hardcore, electronica, industrial, and even 3 cover songs, all embracing the heavy music that inspired me growing up as a teenager. This was a super fun project and it was so worth the time it took to get out. </div>
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I'd like to give a major thanks to Greg Dawson of BWC Studios for helping out with the mastering once again, and big props to Steve "Knuckles" Donohoe for passing more production wisdom onto me. You can stream or download the album for free via the link provided below. This is a free LP so simply click the "buy now" tab and enter $0.00 as your price. </div>
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<a href="http://www.kabal.bandcamp.com/album/if-you-want-c-h-u-d-you-got-it">www.kabal.bandcamp.com/album/if-you-want-c-h-u-d-you-got-it</a></div>
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In some not so happy news, I lost a friend yesterday. I'd like to give my condolences to the family of Dave Wroblewski. In 2007 I became a father and I wanted security for my family so I took on a second job in the spring of 2008. I met Dave through work and we hit it off famously as we were close in age and shared a lot of common interests. I can count on both hands how many friends I made after 5 years at that job and Dave is right up there at the top of the list. </div>
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I looked forward to conversing with him every day, as we always had great conversations and lots of laughs. He was one of the few co-workers I actually wanted to hang out with away from work, and we had some fun times. He was such a genuine person, and he was an amazing father, raising his son Teddy all on his own. Our kids became friends despite the age gap, and Dave would offer to babysit for me anytime I was in a jam. On top of that he was my goto computer repair guy and he helped me out a lot in that sense. </div>
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Dave was a great generous person who would put his own neck on the line just to do a kind deed for his friends and family. After I left the job he was one of the only people I kept close contact with and we saw each other on a weekly basis. He ended up leaving his job and moved onto bigger and better things, earning employee of the year at his new occupation which in turn won him a trip to Vancouver. </div>
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Just when it seemed like everything was getting better for Dave he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer precisely one year ago. Things started going down hill rapidly, and unfortunately he was unable to take his trip last April. He was loosing weight at an alarming rate and chemotherapy wasn't helping, yet amongst all the madness he was still always positive, strong, and optimistic. This past year he spent most of his free time at his family's cottage, connecting with nature and his kin, which brought him great happiness. </div>
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I was devastated yesterday when I heard the news even though I knew it was only a matter of time, yet still nothing can prepare you for the loss of a friend. He's left behind a 14 year old son and I want to do anything I can for that child as nobody deserves to lose their father at such a tender age. </div>
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Once again I'm left baffled why the good ones are taken from us when there is so much human trash infesting this planet. You will be missed dearly by many people Dave, and even though we've only been friends for 8 years I feel like I've known you all my life. In reality I wish I had known you longer as you were an incredible soul. Dave was also an avid fan of this blog, and I'm honoured he is now apart of it despite the unfortunate circumstances. I'd like to think you are sitting on a cloud somewhere reading this.</div>
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Rest in paradise my friend...</div>
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Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1450828102618814401.post-54040238097167992812016-11-15T05:09:00.001-08:002021-04-06T12:38:56.338-07:00Eat Yer Words<span style="color: white; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;">Life was getting peachy again. I had a new love interest in my life, and Black Belt Jones was moving forward once again. We had come up with quite a bit of new material, and after several jams we were ready to hit the stage once again. As if the timing couldn't be better, a new bar had opened in Brampton called "London Bridge" and it was ran by a fellow named Billy, the same man who was responsible for Tremors & BackTrax, the two former Brampton bars that embraced live music. As much as it was great playing at The Ivy Bridge, it was greater to have another local place to gig. </span><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">We were also ready to hit the studio once again and create our second demo tape. This time we wouldn't be doing it ourselves, as we enlisted the help of Pooh's brother Steve, AKA Knuckles, the same man who recorded the Wiggaz demo. I was quite stoked to be working with Steve again, this time however we would be recording at "The Geon" which was the nickname for "the dungeon". The dungeon was the basement of the Donohoe residence which Steve occupied, while Mama D, Pooh, and youngest brother "Erk" inhabited the other two floors of the house. What was even more exciting to me was the fact that our second demo would be recorded on an 8 track recorder, as opposed to a 4 track like we used on our first demo. It was a great time recording with Knuckles, it was a very laid back environment and we really had no time restraints. </span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br /></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-f-OtEQ8HTRAfdL8CjuTz8n9kvRoG8IUZhC7W9DAmc9LRIxz4zhk29SDwc2MWo7tm1jNDtpkvc-pmpj4R46EVG_QCHA1znDx7cE2gtzlzZSmHdv0yY39A3azTscfdOU19kVG7uTvgWFVA/s640/blogger-image--1294446949.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-f-OtEQ8HTRAfdL8CjuTz8n9kvRoG8IUZhC7W9DAmc9LRIxz4zhk29SDwc2MWo7tm1jNDtpkvc-pmpj4R46EVG_QCHA1znDx7cE2gtzlzZSmHdv0yY39A3azTscfdOU19kVG7uTvgWFVA/s640/blogger-image--1294446949.jpg" /></a></div></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br /></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">Before long we were ready to release our second demo tape entitled "Eat Yer Words". Once again yours truly took care of the cover art, liner notes, and inserts. Each one was lovingly hand cut and folded by us and we took care of the dubbing as well once again. We had a new tape to sell, but we decided we needed free merchandise for our fans as well, which led to a plethora of sticker designs, Black Belt Jones matches and rolling papers, as well as our very own BBJ "pogs" a new game for kids that was sweeping the nation.</span></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><br /></div><div style="color: #454545; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtEcfvy0P2x8HvvXi_HIpYgSNiNOO4PqePSMKviRf8grB8af4cc4hj6c67OhQDxR-bBCYZ6vx0HuiFDCl6phGlgbYwvrALHCLwsEJm3-cLaEelFFMFuCYw4ultipzd3MkHalW0yj7BBI8e/s640/blogger-image--106802130.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtEcfvy0P2x8HvvXi_HIpYgSNiNOO4PqePSMKviRf8grB8af4cc4hj6c67OhQDxR-bBCYZ6vx0HuiFDCl6phGlgbYwvrALHCLwsEJm3-cLaEelFFMFuCYw4ultipzd3MkHalW0yj7BBI8e/s640/blogger-image--106802130.jpg" /></a></div></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">We also added some new blood to the band. On bongos and percussion we now had "Jus-Tone" who's real name was Justin. I had met him through Paul's circle of friends and took a shining to him instantly. He was a very peaceful and happy person, somewhat hippy-ish with funk and soul to him. He was a perfect fit. </span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">Our second edition was Derek Begley, who I lovingly deemed as "D-Rek" as he was a big muscular jock... minus the dumb jock mentality which I loathed. I had met Derek through Scott & Pino, although Pauly knew him from back in the high school days. Derek had recently returned from an Australian vacation, and he brought back with him an instrument from the Aussie natives known as a didjeridoo. Between the bass, guitars, drum machines and samplers, we now had two more dynamics added to our sound, which also gave us a bit more of a visual on stage for the audience.</span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">It wasn't long before opportunity knocked and we were offered a spot at CMW, Canadian Music Week, an annual event that catered to any music lovers taste, with various bands playing at various venues for a 7 day stretch. BBJ ended up getting put on a bill with Choclair, who was a local rapper that was blowing up and receiving somewhat of a mainstream push. </span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">When CMW arrived I was pretty stoked that we'd get exposure to his fanbase, but was more so stoked at the fact he would now know the name and sounds of Black Belt Jones. Needless to say I was quite disappointed when he left the venue after his performance without even sticking around to check out our set. I found it highly disrespectful and distasteful of him, and from that point forward decided I would never support him or his art.</span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;">We had been gigging quite frequently, and once again it was becoming a thankless job. As much as I loved bringing music and happiness to people, it got rather taxing with all the traveling, lugging of gear, extra late nights and not really seeing any money for our hard work. Something had to give...</span></div><div style="font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody;"><span style="color: white;"><br /></span></div><div><a href="https://theobwc.bandcamp.com/album/black-belt-jones-demography" target="_blank">Black Belt- Jones - demography</a><br /></div>Kabalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10580954177162639158noreply@blogger.com0