Kill Ritual Video Shoot update

This past Wednesday evening went very smooth. Kore picked me up at the airport and we met for the very first time and hit it off right away. He drove me over to Steven’s house in San Jose where again I was greeted as if by an old friend. The only person we were waiting for was Bobby who was driving up from LA.. When Bobby finally showed up, again, it wasn’t like we were all meeting for the first time, it was as if old friends were just getting together again. Music speaks louder than words they say, and they (whomever they are) are correct. There is an unspoken language between musicians. We’re a different breed, non-conformists, most of us growing up the same way. Most growing up, going to school, having really horrible grades, some dropping out of high school and some barely making it through. Why is this? Our minds think differently. We are artists and 99% of all artists have a hard time fitting into the society that demands the 9 to 5 day job, making a certain amount of money, etc. Those of us that do this become depressed or go into a beat up mode because we think something is wrong with us. We don’t think linear. So when musicians get together it is usually this way. Because we are with our tribe.

Kill Ritual

Thursday, the 15th of July, we headed up to San Francisco to Soundwave Studios to do the shoot with Mike Sloat and his crew. One thing that I loved about the whole process is that Mike never asked any of us what we wanted. It was his vision and he knew exactly the shots he needed to get what he wanted. There wasn’t any of the questions that you normally get with a video shoot like, ‘So guys, what do you want me to do?’ Nothing like that at all. His vision, his shoot… we just played along and enjoyed the process. NO more than five hours later we wrapped it all up. Super productive day, sweating our asses off from the lights, guy liner smeared, exhausted and exhilarated.

We can’t wait to see the final product no more than we can’t wait to present it to the world. We are proud of what we created and confident that you are going to love it as well. Make sure to check out the Kill Ritual page for updates.

Peace,
David

Video Shoot

This coming week I will be flying up to San Francisco to do a video shoot with Kill Ritual. I’m really excited for a number of reasons….

  1. This will be the first time that I’ve met my bandmates. Crazy, huh? Yeah. In this day and age of the internet I can do recordings all over the world. I remember meeting Ged Rylands for the first time maybe a year after we recorded Dreamworld together. Long gone are the days of sitting in warehouses jamming for hours on end. Is it something I miss? Definitely. You get a good sense of someone’s character by spending time with them. Eye contact, hanging out, etc. So in todays music world I do the best I can to communicate with everyone over the phone, skype, email. After a while you get a sense of who the person is. The flip side is that you can do a lot more in a lot less time and you aren’t limited to location. For instance, Kill Ritual has members in LA, San Francisco and Vegas. That never could have happened 10 years ago. As far as Kill Ritual goes, Steven and I hit it off pretty quickly during the writing process of this album which we started back in February. My hat goes off to him because he had actually done this album months prior with the previous singer so for him to be going through this with an new guy, new sound, new lyrics…. whew. Let’s just say it would have been very difficult for me to do that and I’m grateful that he never let me hear the other vocals. I naturally would have had that it my head and wouldn’t have been able to come at it with fresh ears. He didn’t have that option. It took him a few to get used to the new sound after listening to the old sound for so long. All I can say is this album is going to be epic.
  2. We’ll be in the famous Soundwave Studios in Oakland where so many bands have played that the list is daunting. Bands like; Testament, Metallica, Exodus, Primus, Tesla, Faith No More, etc…. etc…. to infinitum.
  3. The video will be shot by Mike Sloat who has shot video for Testament, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Staind, Tom Waits, etc. We’ll be up there for a couple of days for the shoot and hanging out together.

We’ve got labels behind us on this that we will announce shortly, with album release dates and tours in the works. So keep your calendars handy and I hope to stop by your hometown soon.

Peace,
David

Independence Day

Independence Day

Today is a day to reflect. I know that most of us will be partying, waving flags, eating hot dogs, etc. But there are a lot of people out there that don’t have any idea why today is such an important day.

I don’t want to turn this into a political platform but more of an individual platform. It seems today that people are lazy. They want everything for nothing. The land of Walmart, McDonalds, Monsanto. The land of the free is slowly turning into the land of the greed as our rights slowly get stripped away. While most Americans are shopping for that ‘deal’ today, remember what Independence Day is. Today is the day that we Adopted the Declaration of Independence back in 1776. We are still a young country. We aren’t even close to the Romans and that didn’t last. The Declaration of Independence is an ‘idea’ and so far has been the best idea that history has to offer. It’s not perfect, but it is fair, honest and provides plenty of room for growth. Our founding fathers made this so.

Why did they make this so?

Because they never again wanted oppression. They never again wanted to be ruled, taxed or governed as they had been by the British. We fought. Blood was spilled and we eventually won our independence. Now we are finding ourselves coming close to what the British had done to us. So how do we stop this and win back our power?

Let me tell you a story…

Most of you know me in this virtual world as a Long Haired Rock n Roller. It is something I am proud to be. To me, getting on stage and singing to you is what I love most, knowing that I’ve touched you in some way and quite possibly made your life a little better. I am proud. I am also a proud Marine. I earned this title. I went to Parris Island when I was 17 and graduated from there out of the civilian world and into the world of the Corp. Those of you that haven’t experienced this will have no clue what I’m talking about or what it feels like. There was a time when I looked at civilians as weak, unaware and selfish. To a certain extent I still feel this way. Like most Marines we became part of the few and the proud, at first because we wanted to serve our Country but after going through bootcamp we learned to serve ourselves. We knew that we, individually and collectively as Marines that we were the change.

The Marine Corp changed my life.

When I write, and I sing, I do so with those Marine Corp values still in the back of my head. I write and I sing to change the world. Yes, to change the world. I want each and every person to look at themselves, as I look at myself, and I want them to see the power that they have, or can have, if they believed in themselves. I want them to see the change that they can be and how we can end all wars, all poverty, and all famine if we saw that we can each make this change. You see, we Marines know that we can do this. It might sound pompous but its the truth. We have been labeled ‘Jar Heads’ and we jokingly call each other this. The truth is we are not even close to this. The term was created because they said they could fill our heads with anything and we would follow. Not true. Some of the most brilliant minds out there are Marines. Some of the most disciplined and the most compassionate.

So what am I getting at?

Look around you? Do you like what you see? Do you complain about it to your friends or your politicians instead of doing something about it yourself? Become active in your community and learn what is going on in your own back yard. If there is crime in your neighborhood, fight back. If there are drugs, fight back. My Mother taught me this initially then the Marine Corp instilled it in me. We are not Victims unless we make ourselves so. Once we all become self sufficient instead of expecting someone else to take care of it the better off we’ll be. I knew a guy that was a street cop in NYC back in the 50’s. He carried a billy club. That was it. No gun. He didn’t need it. Today cops carry more than what I carried as a Marine. Why? Because they are scared. Why are they scared? Because we, the Sheeple don’t have any respect for anything, let alone ourselves.

Lets remember Independence Day. Read it. Know what it says and what it means for us today.

Declaration of Independence

Peace,
David

The Glass Half Empty

First I would like to say Rabbit! Rabbit! It’s the first day of the month and what a month this is going to be! We’ve got a full moon starting tomorrow and then another one on the 15th! That’s two full moons in one month. So keep your moodiness in check. Believe me, I’m feeling it already. Also, Venus goes retrograde on the 25th in Leo (my sign), then Uranus goes retrograde on the 26th at 20 degrees Aries. What is all of this saying? It’s going to be a weird, flakey month. So when you get down in the dumps know that these aspects are following you around, you and everybody else.

So, why have I called this episode The Glass Half Empty? Well, I’ve noticed myself as of late getting caught up in everything that is going on in the world. Possible war with Russia, Jade Helm, financial crisis in Greece, etc. I consider myself a dreamer, but I’m also a realist. I watch what goes on but I do my best to keep myself in check and not get caught up in it. That does not mean that I ignore it. Being aware of what is going on around the world allows us to change the world. Change ourselves. Change our immediate environment. I believe that when we get caught up in all of this negative energy it compounds and spreads like a virus. It means that you have to be even more positive and, as Monty Python says, Always look on the Bright Side of Life. So approach all of the crap going on around us with a Glass Half Full attitude. When you approach it this way you start noticing the beauty around you and when you start noticing the beauty around you the people around you start changing. It’s the Law of Attraction. What you focus on becomes your reality. So yes, there is a lot of shit going on right now, there is no ignoring it. So what can you do about it? Instead of saying, nothing, focus on the positive and change yourself and your immediate environment.

Have you ever heard about the Tipping Point? I read this book by Malcolm Gladwell back around when 9/11 happened. Malcolm explains in the book that once people believe something individually that at a certain point it will spread like wildfire and eventually everybody will believe this. The news media today believes this 100%. They know that if they feed you enough information that eventually everyone will believe it, even for those that don’t read the news. In other words, gossip. Every one of my friends know that I don’t watch TV or listen to the radio and I will research everything that I am told from several sources. Believe me, the chain mail that my family sends I will send them back a link to Snopes. I know that it’s easy to get caught up in gossip, rumors and just plain bullshit if you hear it enough. It happens to the best of us. I was talking with a few friends the other night about how we’ve lost the art of debate. Everybody wants to be right all of the time and not listen to another persons point of view. We are quick to judge and quick to say that somebody is wrong just because we don’t believe what they believe. Change is the only constant in this world and if you are unwilling to listen to another’s opinion, whether you believe it or not, then they are doing the same thing back at you.

So this month, be open to new ideas. Be open to another persons perspective. Whether you agree or not you might just learn something. And that alone will change your world.
Namaste,
David

Social Media. Friends and our role in this new paradigm

First, Happy Fathers Day!

I believe that we choose our parents before we incarnate into this vibration. So, no matter what you think of your parents, remind yourself that YOU chose them for whatever lesson you wanted to learn while you were here. You don’t believe this? Ask yourself if it would hurt or harm you to believe this?

Second, I would like to apologize for not writing for a couple of weeks. We went to an amazing wedding in San Diego and stayed a couple of extra days on the beach in Encinitas. We would get up every morning and walk over to the Pannikin Coffee and Tea House and for me having lived on the beach in California, it was like a home coming. The salt air, the cyclists zooming by, the farmers markets, and the temperature. Oh yeah, the temperature. It was between 65 – 75 degrees the whole time. This time of year its called ‘June Gloom’ where the haze comes over and blocks the sun. I LOVED it! When we got back home to Vegas it was pushing 113 degrees. Ugh!

But this is not what I’m here to talk about today.

What I would like to discuss is Social Media. One of my favorite YouTube personalities is a man named Ralph Smart. He runs the very successful site called Infinite Waters. I always look forward to hearing him say, “Can I get a Hello there! Peace! Infinite Waters diving deep once again.” Well, he was talking about social media and the effects on relationships. Ralph talked about a couple and the jealousy going on because of one of the partners liking scantily clad women. Take a listen to what he had to say about that. The link is above.

I’d like to talk about another aspect of Social Media. Friends, and our role in this new paradigm.

We all want friends. We all want a good friend to talk to when we want some advice but somewhere in Social Media we’ve acquired friends that we don’t even know and have told all of these friends our deepest darkest secrets, our opinions, our fears. We get to the point where we think we actually know these people, and in some ways we have gotten to know them. We’ve gotten to know the part that they want us to see. Their mask. Social media has taken the place of churches, bars, coffee houses… places where we could get into a conversation with someone and get their feedback. The internet is an amazing tool and has done wonders for me as a musician, so don’t think I’m bashing the idea of friends. Not at all.

My concern is this….

I want you to imagine, if you will… The next time you post something imagine the person you are posting to right there in front of you. Is this something you would say to someone standing right there? You see, if we post something mean to another person we don’t see their anger, their frustration or their hurt. We don’t see their eyes. We don’t really know why that person posted what they posted. For the most part, I believe, it’s for attention. Something we aren’t getting in our home life. But that is another blog. 

When I was a child we had 4 TV stations. ABC, NBC, CBC and PBS. We didn’t watch much TV unless it was a Sunday night Disney Special or maybe Happy Days. We used it for entertainment, for the Weather or the news in our immediate vicinity. We didn’t have celphones. We had a home phone, and depending on the size of your house or your economic stature, you only had one for the whole household. We didn’t have the internet. A computer was a pocket calculator that helped you solve equations quicker than writing them out on paper. We relied on nature, our friends in the neighborhood for our entertainment. To me, back then, meditation was very easy. If I wanted quiet I would walk down to the pond and sit underneath a tree. I’d listen to the birds or the squirrels scampering around. If I tried that today I would be jolted back to reality with my phone buzzing. Every generation talks about how much more difficult it was than these kids nowadays. Not anymore. I think it’s much more difficult because there is so much mental chatter going on around us that we can’t even think for ourselves. We can’t shut it off.

What is my point?

My point is this… we’ve come to a time where we have let the immediate gratification of everything around us get to the better part of us. The part that allows us to actually think before we speak. Instead of sitting with ourselves and asking our higher self for an answer we will post on Facebook what we are feeling right in that moment. What we need right at that moment. Who we hate right at that moment. Get where I’m going? There was an old adage that my Mother used to say to us… Stop. Look. Listen. You don’t have to like somebody’s post as soon as it has been posted. I’m betting most of you don’t even read this far in anybody’s posts. We’re liking for the sake of liking. Because if we don’t like it somebody will be mad at us. So what!! That’s their issue. Not yours. Stop second guessing your inner voice. Stop trying to be everybody’s friend or drawing attention to yourself just because you’re lonely, or angry or jealous. Get a grip on yourself first. Talk to yourself. I mentioned that its much harder nowadays to do that, but I didn’t say that it’s impossible. If you have a hard time meditating, find people that meditate. Find people out there that you aspire to be.

What is your role in all of this?

Stop looking outside of yourself for the answers. You are the answer. As Gandhi said, “Be the change that you wish to see in this world”. It doesn’t mean that you can’t get tips and hints from other people on how to be a better person. We all do this. But once we rely on others completely we are losing our self. Today is Father’s Day. I mentioned above that we choose our parents so that we can incarnate into this life to contribute to this game of life. So contribute! Quit posting what you ate for breakfast unless you think it will help somebody with nutritional information. Be the change. Why? Because you are here for a reason. You are not a mistake. There are no mistakes. Everything happens for a reason.

So Stop The Mental Chatter!!!! 🙂

Ok… being that it is Father’s Day…. CALL your father. Yes, on the phone.

Namaste,
David

New Kill Ritual album ‘Karma Machine’ finished

Kill Ritual Press ReleaseI’m happy to announce that Kill Ritual and I have finished our new album Karma Machine. We’ve completed 10 Tracks that are from heavy to melodic while retaining the Thrash roots that Kill Ritual have always been known for and I am very proud to have been a part of this process. It’s been a different approach than most of you have heard from me in a long time. For starters, all of the vocals were recorded at my Kundalini Sound Studios here in Las Vegas, where in the past most of my vocals have been done in major studios with the band or sent to the band. You’ve got to love technology. 🙂

Steven played a big part in getting my studio up to par where we, basically, duplicated each others studios to make the process easier and more fluid for when we would send everything to Andy over in Sweden.

The CD was once again produced by guitarist Steven D. Rice and mixed/mastered by King Diamond guitarist Andy LaRocque. Artwork was completed by longtime Kill Ritual artist Jobert Mello who has done album covers for such greats as; Sabaton, Primal Fear and Benedictum, to name a few. The CD also marks my debut with these guys as well as for drummer Koryun Bobikyan.  Koryun replaces Gee Anzalone who moved on to DragonForce. Koryun has some big shoes to fill but when you hear this new album you will know that he is more than capable. Our best to Gee and DragonForce. We hope to share the stage with you in the future.

Here is a preview of the album. We will announce shortly when it will be released. Until then, enjoy.

Kill Ritual ‘Karma Machine’ album Preview
https://youtu.be/BgeJhMzJ34A

  1. Just A Cut
  2. Rise
  3. The Enemy Inside
  4. The Key
  5. Karma Machine
  6. My Green Room
  7. Kundalini
  8. Land Of The Dead
  9. The Camera’s Eye

We expect a summer/fall 2015 release by a yet to be determined label.

KILL RITUAL
killritual.com
facebook.com/killritual
reverbnation.com/killritual
youtube.com/killritual
soundcloud.com/killritualmetal

Peace,
David

Healing and Reiki

A few years ago I was hit while on my motorcycle. I wasn’t going that fast, but when I went down I landed directly on my knee. OUCH! I was super bummed out that I had to be on crutches for awhile but at the same time I found the perfect opportunity to use myself as a guinea pig. I decided that I was going to heal myself. The only thing I would do at the doctor was get an initial x-ray and then when I felt the need I would go get another x-ray. Fortunately I am a veteran, so I would head over to the VA in Los Angeles, where I lived at the time, and have them do these procedures at minimal cost.

So what did I do to heal myself?

Every 10152565045550137morning before I started my day I would use Reiki over the wounded area. I knew where the area was because of the x-ray from the hospital. I would see it as healed. I could feel the soothing heat of my hands over the wound and then as my hands cooled I knew the session was over. Some days it was half an hour, other days it was 10 minutes. The next thing I would do was to tell others what I was doing. Why? This made me more determined when people would tell me it was impossible, or people who believed I could do it would encourage me more. I would do two sessions a day on myself. One in the morning and one at night before I slept. Each time, again, I saw it as healed. One of my friends had given me a bag of Shark Cartilage to chew on while I was healing and other friends would come by with food for me. I am extremely blessed to have all of these awesome souls around me, especially then.

After 3 weeks I went back to the VA to get another batch of x-rays. The doctor was a bit baffled because he couldn’t find the fractures. There were two little fractures on top of my tibia right behind the knee cap. Look at the photo. It’s not at the exact same angle so I’m sure there are skeptics out there. That’s ok. The proof is in the pudding, as they say. After about 6 months I could run and cycle again with minimal pain and after 9 months there was zero pain. Today I forget which leg it was. 🙂

We all have the capability to heal ourselves. Reiki only helps the process along. The biggest part of the process is to believe that you can do it. If you can envision the results in your mind then you are well on your way. If you can’t, I understand. It’s not that easy. We have been taught that pills or operations are the only way to heal ourselves. This is an old paradigm. By no means am I saying that there isn’t a use for doctors. Sometimes they can be a placebo for health because we have a tendency to look outside of ourselves for the answers. I’m encouraging you to believe in yourself. If you don’t, nobody else will. Remember my little message about the mirror? We can only see what we reflect. 🙂

Namaste,
David