Apocalyptica does Metallica

So Kurt’s flicking through the guide on the tv, and he sees that “Rescue Me” is coming on.  Kurt loves this show.  It’s pretty much the one show he tries really hard not to miss each week, and I used to tape it for him and send him the tapes when he was out to sea.

He didn’t look too closely at the information in the guide; he just saw the word “NEW” in the description.

As the opening credits are rolling, Kurt notices that it’s a “minisode.”  He asks me, “What the hell is a minisode??”  I explain that it’s a miniature episode, which he had already surmised.  He wanted to know what it meant for the show.

We found out.

It is indeed a miniature episode.  “Rescue Me” is normally a one-hour show.  This so-called “minisode” lasted all of four minutes.  And the description, when we went back to the guide, stated that “The guys light up after a job well-done.”  That pretty much summed up the entire minisode.  The firemen saved some children from a burning building, and have a cigarette once they’re done.  Four minutes.  No dialogue, no sound save for the music, just the bare bones of what’s going on.

I don’t think we’re going to be watching any more “minisodes.”

And what the hell is up with all of these cutesy little nicknames for things?  “Minisode” instead of “miniature episode,” “webisode” for a “web-exclusive episode,” and even a “webinar” instead of a web-based seminar that my friend had to participate in last week.  I mean, really.  As a purist of the English language, I hate these new words.  I don’t mind creating a new word for a new object or a new thought, but we have words that describe these things sufficiently already.  We don’t need to shorten everything, for crying out loud.

Gahh.  It makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

Hello, my name is Karyl, and I am a grumpy old grammarian.

Kurt decided to watch one of Lewis Black’s specials on Comedy Central tonight, and since I am not a fan, I decided to plug my earphones in.  But I didn’t have a CD handy that I wanted to listen to.  So I had to go find one.

Ha, listen to me!!  I am still listening to CDs!!!  And yes, there is a physical CD inserted into my laptop; I am not using iTunes or an iPod to listen to my music.  Just call me “old-skool.”

Tonight Apocalyptica won out.  What, pray tell, is Apocalyptica?  It is a quartet of classically-trained Finnish cellists that cover various heavy metal and death metal songs.  For someone who adores the cello (I really need to get mine out and start playing it again) and bands like Metallica, this is the absolute best of both worlds.  The cello is perfectly suited for heavy metal songs.  You can really dig into the strings to get that gritty sound, while the other cellist goes up on the A string to replicate the main guitar line.  On the album I am listening to, Inquisition Symphony, they don’t even have a drummer.  And they really don’t need one.  It’s amazing how awesome four cellists can sound in replicating these heavy metal songs.  On this album, the group covers not only Metallica, but also Faith No More, Sepultura, and Pantera.  My favorite songs are mostly the Metallica ones, mainly because they’re the ones I am most familiar with.

And I just adore the sound of a cello anyhow.  In my personal opinion, there is no lovelier instrument.  The cello can sound so differently depending on who’s playing it and for what purpose.  It can be sweet and soothing, it can be heavy and gritty.  It can be beautiful and full of harmony, or it can be growly and angry.  It just depends on how it’s played.

Personally I think it’s one of the most versatile instruments as well.  From my own experience, I was expected to be able to read and play in not only the bass clef, the most common clef for cellists, but also the treble clef as well as the tenor clef, which is used by only a few other instruments.  And I had to be able to switch from clef to clef within the same piece, and occasionally within the same measure!

And now I give you, for your edification, Apocalyptica’s cover of “Nothing Else Matters” by Metallica.  It’s a strange video, but after all, they’re Finnish.  That may explain the snow.

I chose a song that isn’t terribly heavy, so it shouldn’t frighten off those of you who may not be heavy metal fans.  But check it out — it is really lovely.  The harmonies are just beautiful… quite haunting, but in a good way.  And it cracks me up that the cellists are head-banging as they play.  Not exactly something you expect to see.

This wasn’t even close what I had planned on blogging about.  Strange how that works out sometimes, eh?