More Magic From Wardruna
Wardruna released their new single "Kvitravn" earlier this month, and I think that as a work of music and -- I hope I don't leave too many people behind here…
Blue on Black: Musing on the Songwriting Process
I have a confession that I suspect will offend a sizeable portion of my audience: I never really liked Five Finger Death Punch. I should be clear: I love the…
Layered Meanings in Folk Songs
This past week, I was introduced to the work of Luke Combs. There's a lot that could be said about this new artist, but I'd like to focus on one…
Album Review: Fear Inoculum
I'll try to keep this short. I have written before about music as magic before, and I think that this Tool album, as a whole, fits within that framework (and…
The Ecumenical Slope
I think it is critical -- in beginning an essay criticizing ecumenicalism -- that I begin by saying that I understand the attraction. By "ecumenicalism," I am referring to the…
TOOL and Religion
Before everything shut down, I got a chance to see Tool live in concert. One of the things that surprised me was that Maynard really wasn't the star of the…
On Homer (Part 2): What is the Iliad About?
In most stories, "what is it about?" refers to a question of the plot: what happened? In higher literature, there is -- in addition to the plot -- themes and…
Movie Review: The Phantom of the Opera
I have recently been relatively busy, and have had difficulty making the time to write new posts. To save on time, I decided to elucidate in video-format what I otherwise…
Helvegen: An Analysis
Kalandra recently covered Wardruna's song "Helvegen," and damn near surpassed the original in quality. I had been planning on writing about this song for a while, but the discovery of…
Mongolian Nazis?
Mongolian folk-metal band "The HU" has been rising in popularity, topping American rock charts before even releasing an album, and continuing to grow. Their unique throat singing and traditional instruments…