It seems that Trent Reznor has given a “shout-out” via the Year Zero alternate reality game to people on TheSpiral (NIN fan club) and the EchoingTheSound forums.
From http://www.exhibit24.net/net2.htm:
24.24.2.343 billbradford
(“billbradford” is my username on ETS)
Nifty!
NIN’s new album is called “Year Zero”.
I’ve been following the Year Zero Alternate Reality Game since I first heard of it in late February. In early April the album leaked to the Internet, and yesterday I finally purchased a copy of my own on the release date.
This is the only physical CD that I’ve purchased in the past 3-4 years, and it’s well worth the $14.95 (@Borders) price. Not only is the “backstory” of this concept album well done, the ARG that ties in with it is simply AMAZING.
As for the music, it will sit alongside SoM’s A Slight Case of Overbombing as one of my favorite albums. I’ve been listening to it for over a week now, and haven’t gotten tired of it yet.
I’ve been listening to way too much Led Zeppelin lately. I keep having this itch to go buy another Les Paul…
Spent the evening (after dinner) quieting my Athlon64-based Windows game machine. Installed three silicone fan gaskets, one power supply gasket, organized and cable-tied all inside wires, and for the biggest effect, installed a variable-voltage fan control for the big 120mm fan in the front of the case. A knob protrudes out through a slot cover on the back of the machine that I can use to adjust the voltage (and therefore the speed) of the fan. Turning the knob down 3/4ths of the way gets rid of the harmonic that was responsible for most of the noise I had been hearing yet maintains adequate cooling.
I also just got through installing an InvisibleSHIELD screen shield for my 30G Video iPod. If I like the end result, I’ll pick up their version for the Motorola SLVR phone too, as my phone gets a lot more “pocket abuse” than the iPod does.
We just got back from the Sisters of Mercy concert in Austin. I’m wiped out – it’s been a busy day. I’ll write more later, but until then, here are the pictures I took.
If I’d known photos were going to be allowed, I would have taken my 7-megapixel Canon digital camera instead of the 640×480 camera built into my phone.
The tickets arrived today. We’re stoked.
As it turns out, my boss is a SoM fan as well.
The Sisters of Mercy are playing in Austin at La Zona Rosa on the 21st of February.
My one chance to see the Sisters (er, basically, Andrew E. and whoever he drags along with him this time) play live might just be worth $30/person and a trip back to Austin.
update: Amy got home, I told her about it, and she said “Order tickets RIGHT NOW!”. We should have them in our hands by Tuesday evening (I opted for FedEx Overnight delivery).
