If you watch the video, you can see Scott Ian of Anthrax trying to play one of his own songs on Guitar Hero. Now, while I don’t consider Scott Ian one of the all-time great guitarists, you’ve got to be at least pretty good in order to play rhythm in a thrash band. And while the guitar part he has to play focuses more on the lead guitar, which isn’t what Ian plays, it’s still amusing to watch him utterly and completely fail at it.

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This is the front of a woman’s clothing store near Blaha Lujza tér. Every time I pass by it, I see the sign “Scorpions fashion,” and just shake my head. That’s not Scorpions fashion…

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It’s been a long time coming, and it’s about time I admitted it – metal doesn’t move me like it used to.

I, always upping the volume and frequency when it comes to the things that I think make me look unique, maintained through my college years a public identity consisting solely of radical politics, metal, vegetarianism, and later Japanophilia – every one, in the paraphrased words of Ian Gillan, trying to be louder than everything else. Now that I have no clueless mainstream to set myself against which I’m not already categorically excluded from, I find playing up each of those parts of me less psychologically rewarding. I still enjoy a few metal bands, probably the only ones I should ever have been listening to, but the days of my impulsively buying Gamma Ray’s back catalog are long gone. There are just a handful I’d still buy new releases from out of anything other than loyalty.

If I could chalk this change up to simple maturity, I’d do it – but I don’t think marathon House, MD sessions are indicative of much emotional growth. Who knows though, it could be Lupus.

Dio is the best metal lyricist of all time. His “cool sounding” to “makes sense” ratio is the highest on record.

Sing me a song, you're a singer
Do me a wrong, you're a bringer of evil
The devil is never a maker
The less that you give, you're a taker
So it's on and on and on, it's heaven and hell
Oh well

The lover of life's not a sinner
The ending is just a beginner
The closer you get to the meaning
The sooner you'll know that you're dreaming
So it's on and on and on, oh it's on and on and on
It goes on and on and on, Heaven and Hell
I can tell
Fool, fool

Oh uh
Yeah, yeah, yeah

Well if it seems to be real, it's illusion
For every moment of truth, there's confusion in life
Love can be seen as the answer, but nobody bleeds for the dancer
And it's on and on, on and on and on and on and on and on and on

They say that life's a carousel
Spinning fast, you've got to ride it well
The world is full of kings and queens
Who blind your eyes and steal your dreams
It's heaven and hell, oh well

And they'll tell you black is really white
The moon is just the sun at night
And when you walk in golden halls
You get to keep the gold that falls
It's heaven and hell, oh no

Fool, fool
You've got to bleed for the dancer
Fool, fool
Look for the answer
Fool, fool, fool