Crucified in the Land of Thor

Fifteen years, schmifteen years!
In 2009, it is official: The Crucified has rocked the Land of the Wikings.
There were hair-windmills. There was sweat. There was stumbling. There was an odd odor in the dressing room. There was an unexpected encore that could only be met with a song not meant for encores. Whateve’s - that’s how we do it!
Seriously though: There was intensity and I think some of the people at the show actually had… fun. Imagine that.

“Apparuhnntly the best fing to do is”:
Break up, don’t play for a decade and a half, don’t practice, don’t sleep and don’t spend any time around your band-mates.
Go to Norway.
ROCK.
So easy.
Obvie.
Yes, we had a couple shows this year, one a bit more satisfying than the other, but this was essentially our first real gig under what I’d call “Normal Band Conditions” - panicked, stressful, slightly unorganized - in almost two decades. We had a blast - and those Scandinavians were all about it. Which is weird because, in case you didn’t know it: The Crucified is not cool. Let’s keep some perspective here.

And: There was Norway itself.
Cold? Yes. How Cold? Ever see this?:

If you answered yes, then you know what follows… and why this is awesome:

I’d like to express why I love going over there so much but in all honesty… I’ve already tried like, 28 times. If this weren’t digital, there’d be eraser guts all over the place and a hole in the paper. After all those tries, my conclusion: I’m making it too complex when it’s simple, really - musically, it’s a lot safer a place.
What do I mean? I mean no one there is gonna give you a hard time if you just wanna get down. Doesn’t really matter what music it is or who it’s supposed to impress - people over there just seem to enjoy the jams as opposed to what some snob “more enlightened person” might say they’re supposed to enjoy about the jams.
Hope that makes sense, I really do.
An important distinction to make: most of these folks are just into what they actually like or, more important, what they hope will happen next. There’s a lot less worrying about what is “cool” - big difference.
(Is there a more tired routine than being cool? Good gawd, what happened??? Did everyone stop aging at 9 and no one told me???)
Besides, like I said, The Crucified is not cool, lest anyone forget.
Anyway, it’s a lot easier to have fun. The contrast between that environment and the one currently prevailing here in the states is strong: for the most part, over there you have people focusing on passion and expectation, over here there’s a lot of focusing on one’s own reaction to what has already happened. Like I said, safer. More fun. Yeah, definitely.

An added bonus: being around such an atmosphere of free creativity just… gets on ya.
I had amazing conversations with amazing people about what amazes them. About what is… again, what is next. I mean, for some 15 years or so the Crucified has been all about the past for me but I have to say that this trip… something changed. I got to wondering about options and approaches and the ways that I might be able to just let go and do something without fear.
Wait. What?
Where did this come from?
There I was, with The UnCool Crucified - risen from the dead, roaming through the Norwegian night, and dare I say it… feeling creative.
(To David and Emil: 1000 thank yous. And to Ivar: You sweat a lot - but you’re welcome anytime. Please buy a proper stereo, soon.)

Now look, don’t translate this as some sort of declaration - the Crucified will do what it do when it do. We had a blast and I think it went a long way towards encouraging the four of us to consider… more. There were times when I thought, “This is pretty freakin’ cool.” But… no one’s making any plans.
We’re also not not making plans so, take that for what it’s worth.

Highlights…

…Bellew, Chaffin, Minier and our good friend Ken Sheahan trying to decompress in the room at the hostel whilst reading broad-sweeping indictments on the country of Poland, written by near-geniuses on the hostel bunk beds:

…Breakfast with some weird Mustard & Vinegar Fish Jelly whilst sitting next to an albino who elected not to utilize the community shower. Sorry, no photo or scratch n’ sniff. Trust me.

…Hanging backstage with the dudes I haven’t hung “backstage” with in ages, loosening up before the show whilst Ken (as The Crucified) and I did the Twitter thing.

…When Norwegian bikers called “The Holy Riders” say they all live in “The Cave”… they actually mean they live in a cave.

…And of course… the show itself.

Lowlights…

…Funny how the world can seem so small when, one day you’re chatting with a person 17 hours away, and the next you’re in a different country with no Sprint Cell service. (Yeah… that’s right. Hey Sprint! YOU SUCK!)

…US Airways really should look into seats for people who aren’t 4′ tall.

…Fuzzy lil’ ol’ ladies who try to lane jump you at 5:00am…

Oh! Almost forgot: If you find yourself traveling a lot, or even just a little, and you need a backpack, you really should check out Voltaic Systems‘ solar powered bags. That’s right, solar. Power. You know what works everywhere, despite the lack of an outlet or the right adaptor in some tiny little country?

THE SUN.

Look for this…

This bag is ridiculous! Holds my 17″ Powerbook and holds a charge in a little battery pack inside forever. (I’ve never drained mine completely - every time it’s in the sun, the cell charges) It comes with all the adaptors you’ll ever need… they even sent me one for my Palm Pré that didn’t exist when I first bought the bag. (The bag I use won’t charge a laptop, but it will charge my iPod and BlueTooth, which you’re not supposed to plug in anywhere in Europe, even with an adaptor… they have a bigger one that charges laptops, but I’d call it a “future purchase.”) Check it out… you won’t regret it.
(No… that wasn’t a paid commercial. I freakin’ love that thing.)

Okay, briefly:

Heavy Rotation:

Baroness is good for you.

And in the interest of keeping the Scando-ness of this post, formerly of Honey is Cool, Fever Ray:

Till next time, tak!

As always… you can leave comments here!