Monday, March 27, 2006

In Flames & Sepultura @ Carling Academy Birmingham

Short review:

Dagoba was the band played the opening for the show. They are French. They are brutal. They are undergound... but they are very good, a promising band. IMHO, they were better than Sepultura and In Flames at that night. Heavy, simple guitar riffs with relentless double bass drum and astounding vocal... they blew everything away...

Sepultura was the next. They were legend but they music is not attractive enough nowadays... their new songs lack guitar solos - an important factor to distinguish a great band among loads of mediocre bands out there. But still there are Brazilian folk music elements so they can define themselves: We're Sepultura!

In Flames was the main character of the show. They played most of the song from Come Clarity 2006 album with hits like: Come through knives, Take this life, Come clarity. Some songs from "Reroute to Remain" like Trigger, Drifter and some from melodic death metal era like Moonshield, Only for the weak. I was quite disappointing with the vocal: it was almost lost! ... can't hardly hear it except in some semi-ballad songs...

Anyway, it was still a great show and it was a great pleasure to see they playing live in here - Birmingham.


Carpe diem

Friday, March 24, 2006

Black Country Museum - Dudley

Background info:
The Black Country is the industrial region to the west of, and separate from, Birmingham in the Midlands of England. It gained its name in the mid nineteenth century due to the smoke from the many thousands of ironworking foundries and forges and the nature of the countryside which had been covered by dark spoil from the working of shallow and relatively thick (30ft) coal seams.

The region was described as 'Black by day and red by night' by Elihu Burritt, the American Consul to Birmingham in 1862 and other authors, from Dickens to Shenstone, refer to the intensity of manufacturing in the Black Country and its effect on the landscape and its people.


Today the Black Country is made up of most of the four Metropolitan District Council areas of Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton and the collections and displays are derived from throughout these areas.

The industries included:

coal & coke
iron & steel
locks & keys
nails
chains
ships anchors
glassware
beer & stout


Black Country Museum (BCM) located in Dudley which is only 30 mins away by car from Birmingham University. The trip to BCM was organized by my School of Computer Science. Around 10 international students joined the trip, i was in too as usual ^^ . The weather was freezing that day :(

Photos:

Inside exhibition halls
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The Black Country was famous for the Staffordshire Thick Coal, which lay beneath much of the area. The coal occurred in seams of up to 10 metres thick, far bigger than anywhere else in Britain. I joined "Into the Thick" , an underground experience created by the Black Country Living Museum to show how miners worked the Thick Coal and other seams in the Black Country in about 1850. It is a drift mine, with a sloping tunnel down. No photographing allowed but I still managed to capture one shot on the way out of the tunnel ^^
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The 1920s cinema showing silent movies: we were watching Laurel & Hardy ^^
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19th century street setting

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The dock

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Cast iron house ^^

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Overview

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Misc

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Me ^^

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Carpe diem

Thursday, March 09, 2006

I did cry today....

To be told that I was never ever been loved before ... sad but true :(


Carpe diem

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Destination: Cardiff

Cardiff - the capital of Wales is the youngest capital in Europe. It is a small city with population of around 300,000. The trip to Cardiff from Birmingham took approximately 2.5 hours. "I am travelling from England to Wales". That sounds far away but the distance is not that much. About equal to distance between Birmingham and London. And now, here I am ... in Cardiff - Wales ...

Millenium Stadium - the place where FA Cup Final Match held every year!

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Cardiff Castle - a "must visit" tourist attraction in Wales!

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Norwegian Church - Originally built in 1868 for the Norwegian sailors visiting Cardiff when it was one of the busiest coal exporting docks in the world. The Church is also the place where the childrens’ author Roald Dahl, famous for writing "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", was christened in 1916.

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Wales Millennium Centre - is a huge, architecturally spectacular building in the heart of Cardiff Bay. The use of slate, wood, metal, and glass pays tribute to Wales and its industrial past. Words written: "In these stones horizons sing" in English and Welsh!

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Cardiff Bay - claimed as the most exciting waterfront development in Europe

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St John's Church - is Cardiff’s second oldest building after the castle and is one of the five Beacon Churches of South East Wales. The tower dates from the 15th Century after the original 11th century tower was destroyed by Owain Glyndwr’s troops.

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Cardiff City Hall - Built in the English Renaissance style, City Hall was opened in 1906, a year after Cardiff was granted its city status. Within the magnificent exterior carved from Portland Stone can be found elegant rooms perfect for wedding ceremonies. City Hall is licenced for marriage ceremonies with its unique atmosphere making it an outstanding choice for a wedding
I happened to see a wedding celebrated on that day too ^^

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National Assembly for Wales - consists of 60 Members elected throughout Wales. The Assembly has delegated many of its powers to the First Minister, who leads the Welsh Assembly Government

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Pierhead Building - Incorporating a French-Gothic Renaissance theme, the Pierhead boasts details such as hexagonal chimneys, carved friezes, gargoyles, and a highly ornamental and distinctive clock tower. Its exterior is finished in glazed terracotta blocks

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Cardiff downtown - I guess every cities in UK must possess this kind of walking street, for people to walk and shop around without interference of vehicles

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Buskers

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Misc:

The Kiss - a famous sculpture by Rodin. Found in National Museum of Wales ^^

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Sign post - in English and Welsh

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Dunno what they call this ^^

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The Dragon - symbol of Wales

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The so-called arts ^^

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Some ( rare ) photos of me ^^

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Carpe diem