Well, I got the covers for Anniversary last Friday but due to a bout of flu I haven't gotten around to adding a paypal button for it on the music page. I'll probably have that up tonight. I only got 150 copies and at least 30 of those are going to various reviewers/labels/radio stations so order fast.

Just a few more days til Anniversary will be available for purchase...

Ohio State made me very happy today...

If you haven't already discovered wikipedia you're missing out on the best site on the web. It's essentially an open-source encyclopedia that anyone and everyone is free to contribute to. You'd think that the resulting entries would lack a certain grace and style, but in fact they're extremely erudite. The best part is that every cross-reference, even every tiny mention of another topic has a link associated with it - so you can effectively get lost on the site, clicking from subject to subject, getting deeper and deeper into detail and then resurfacing in a new subject... and all the while you're learning about fascinating things.

A long time ago I had heard that Shell (the petroleum company) was exploiting the African people and environment in its search for new oil deposits. For a brief while I attempted to boycott Shell, but I never heard anything else on the subject and pretty much forgot about it. Then today I found some information on wikipedia about a Nigerian named Saro-Wiwa who was one of the most vocal opponents of Shell's destructive tendencies and of the Nigerian military government's repression. He was executed by the government 10 years ago to the day - here is a statement made by him just before his execution:

"I repeat that we all stand before history. I and my colleagues are not the only ones on trial. Shell is on trial here, and it is as well that it is represented by counsel said to be holding a watching brief. The company has, indeed, ducked this particular trial, but its day will surely come and the lessons learned here may prove useful to it, for there is no doubt in my mind that the ecological war the company has waged in the delta will be called to question sooner than later and the crimes of that war be duly punished. The crime of the company's dirty wars against the Ogoni people will also be punished.

On trial also is the Nigerian nation, its present rulers and all those who assist them. I am not one of those who shy away from protesting injustice and oppression, arguing that they are expected of a military regime. The military do not act alone. They are supported by a gaggle of politicians, lawyers, judges, academics and businessmen, all of them hiding under the claim that they are only doing their duty, men and women too afraid to wash their pants of their urine.

We all stand on trial, my lord, for by our actions we have denigrated our country and jeopardised the future of our children. As we subscribe to the subnormal and accept double standards, as we lie and cheat openly, as we protect injustice and oppression, we empty our classrooms, degrade our hospitals, and make ourselves the slaves of those who subscribe to higher standards, who pursue the truth, and honour justice, freedom and hard work."

The Anniversary EP will be out in a week.

Good news - Anniversary has at last been released on Sundays in Spring. They're slightly higher quality mp3s than the ones I have on this site, so if you've been dying for a little extra fidelity - well, die no longer.

Happy Halloween to those of you celebrating it... this is the first year in my life, I believe, that I am not dressing up as anything. I actually find that unfortunate. Today also happens to be the 3 year anniversary of my arrival in LA. I'm not too sure how I feel about that; in some ways it feels like I've accomplished a lot in three years (I've certainly learned a lot). But in other ways it seems like I haven't really done anything. Ah well.

I've decided to add the song 'Ophelia' to the Anniversary EP at the last minute - cross your fingers and it might be available for purchase within a couple weeks.

Hey everyone, just wanted to let you all know that I'm working on getting the Anniversary EP ready for purchase. The design is all but finished and the printing will soon commence. Head on over to the great www.little-jacket.com design group who also did The UV Effect for me as well - they've got posters and other cool stuff you can check out.

Rumors of a physics-related concept album abound... geeks of the world unite!

Made some changes to the music page. Now there's a whole "shopping cart" deal, plus a combined UV Effect + 1st/Rising Wildfires package for $11.99. I'm still working on getting copies of the Anniversary EP printed up; I should have something by November.

I also put a new version of Ophelia at the very bottom of the page. Let me know what you think if you have any comments...

Other than that, just working on new material/getting the band ready for shows/looking for shows to play/working my ass off.

Suggesting that the new ep would get done at some point last week was a ridiculous statement. My Dad came in to town and I spent the weekend on Catalina Island. This week it could potentially get done though.

Good news: there will be a physical copy of the Anniversary EP to purchase/own/touch. Development is in progress.

Sundays in Spring should be releasing the EP on their netlabel sometime this week - everything is finally in order for that to happen. There is literally nothing holding it back.

Well, I didn't finish the EP I promised. I had planned on writing, recording, mixind and mastering a 3-song EP today. I was going to work on it all day long, but I had to schedule a band rehearsal for the early evening. I really didn't have a choice, and the rehearsal was very, very worth it. But I have two demos of the songs I worked on over on the music page, and I should be able to finish the songs in the next few days. So check them out.

I want to announce that this Sunday, August 28, I will write, record, mix and master three songs completely from scratch and post them on my website. Yes, it will be a concept EP, but more importantly it will be something to keep me from playing World Soccer Winning Eleven 8 for PS2 - my god that game is great.

In other news, there appears to be another Wil Holland running about. He has proposed a solution to the Turing Test, the test by which Universal Artificial Intelligence will be proven (or something like that). I haven't finished reading his theory (since I'm at work and, therefore, should be working) but it's fascinating thus far. Check it out.