A kind of goodbye

This blog will be closed for some time. Thank you all for the support.

I'll be back one of these days...

Happy Birthday

Today you are a child again* At your 22, you are probably the most beautiful woman I have ever met... Lucky me!

Sorry I can't give you the birthday you wanted...*

Love you*

Shit happens...

3rd degree ankle sprain. There goes my holidays... How nice is that?

(I thought about posting a picture, but seriously, it is not a nice thing to see)

Merry Christmas

No text messages this year! Consider this my way of wishing you all a merry Christmas!

A white day to study...

Tomorrow I'll have my last exam before going home for Christmas!! I woke up today and had a very nice surprise - the first day of snow this winter in Maastricht! Here are some pictures.

This one is taken from the second floor of my apartment!

Once you go out of the building!

Me and my american buddy Trenton! Tomorrow my friend, tomorrow we'll party hard!! IRISH CAR BOMBS ahahaha!!

Our frozen lake in the terrace!

Trent and Virgil in the terrace enjoying the sight.

And now back to work! It's gonna be a looonnngg night...

Classes are finished...

... the exams week is here. After that, home sweet home for Christmas.

Persistence Tour - Eindhoven, November 2009

No Turning Back - Eindhoven, November 2009

Ahahah if you look carefully you can still see the "F" from the "For The Glory" logo on the grey shirt! Representin' tuga style!

I'll try to write a review from this crazy day and post it on my other blog as soon as possible. Eleven bands in one day is too much to handle!

Maastricht - October Breeze

It messes with my head...

... when you are studying at Master's level, and you have to take hours to correct the writing of your groupmates.

Everybody makes mistakes, but finishing a Bachelor, without being able to express what you're thinking in a (almost) clear way, is unacceptable.

The roots of the problem take us back to the Highschool education. Let's all send people to universities when they don't even know how to write.

It's 5am and I'm tired.

Tomorrow

No Turning Back, Gama Bomb, Agnostic Front, Biohazard - Worth going at least!

Tuesday, November 17

When you really miss something, you are willing to make an extra effort, and also pay some extra money, to have it. That’s how it was last week. Maastricht is not exactly the place where you can find good hardcore shows, and so if you want to attend one you have to catch the train and travel for some hours. In this case 3 hours were enough to get me to Rotterdam! Portuguese bands were playing in a European tour and as always all the support was welcome. Broken Distance, Pressure, Critical Point and two other dutch bands joined together at the Watt, which is a very nice venue by the way, to give us a very pleasant evening. Regarding the Portuguese bands, I gotta say that it is really amazing how 6 guys can so easily switch places and create a different band, most of the times with different feelings.

On contrary to what I’m used, the shows started on time, and so I only saw one song from Critical Point. What I heard sounded very good. To see Rafael taking over the microphone was something new for me, but guess what, it looks like he can do a pretty good job as vocals. Good luck with this new project guys.
It was time for Pressure to come up to the stage. I had only seen this band playing once in Lisbon, and I was quite curious to see them again. As expected, it was a quick set with all the feeling a straight edge band should have. Fast songs full of energy, and always with a message behind the lyrics. The venue wasn’t full, and the crowd was far from being warmed up, but still it was very nice to see this band again. It’s impossible not to like Diogo’s energy on stage, even though his voice was not in one of its best days. Plus, the t-shirt I ordered along with their tape got too short, and so it was a good excuse to buy a new one and support the band.

The guys from Algarve needed some rest, and so it was time to hear some new stuff from bands that I never heard of. The first band to play was Birds of a Feather. It seems like there was some kind of problem with the vocals of the band, and so the front man of the next band – State of Affairs – took over his place. Yes, it was a crappy situation, but it was a nice example of what Hardcore is all about, friendship, unity, and “kids” doing their best to make the most out of every moment. Not everyone would take over another vocals place, but the guy did it, and he did quite a good job. You could tell that he didn’t know all the lyrics by heart, so most of the times you would look at him and see the guy on his knees going through the lyrics. Apart from that, it was a fun show and the crowd also seemed to have liked it. By the way, Dutch guys, you should really move more when you are at a show. The whole situation changed when it came the time of State of Affairs. Once again, a very nice show that finally made the crowd move a little. The best moment was clearly a cover they played, which I didn’t recognize, but if I would have to guess, probably something from Carry On. The best show was still yet to come.

Now that some strength had been recovered, Broken Distance came to the stage. I’m a suspect here because I really like the band, but it was probably the best show of the night. It was time for the 5 Portuguese guys in the crowd to go wild ahah (big up to Nuno and the rest of the Step Back! crew who also helped to turn this night into an amazing one). It was already late, and since it was a Tuesday, some people left before the show began. Still, there were enough people in the room to bring the party on. Hourglass seems to be an album quite successful among European people, which doesn’t surprise me at all, and so everybody looked like they were having fun. The best moment of the show clearly goes to the Cro-Mags cover. “Don’t tread on me” was known by most of the audience, and so it was really cool to see people coming to the front to sing on the mic. I wish I could be in Portugal by the end of this tour, I’m sure the last show is going to be amazing.

At the end of the party, we wished good luck for the rest of the tour, we took some pictures with the bands, and we all went home with a big smile in our faces. Once again, thank you Nuno for giving me a place to stay during the night.
It really was a tasteful night. Most of all, it tasted like home…

Update

Been a while uh guys… I know, the insane amount of work I have is not a good excuse for not posting anything, but oh well I guess everybody has the right of being lazy.
In a brief update of the situation here in Maastricht, I can say that my first block is over and I passed both the courses. The exams were tough, but somehow I managed to pass both them, and even though the grades were not that great, I’m still on my way to good average in the end of this thing.

Once the exams were finished, my girl came to Maastricht and stayed here for almost one week. Damn I missed her, and against all the problems that the distance creates we were able to have a really good time. We walked around the city, we rode our bikes all over Maastricht, we went to the most expensive Cinema in the world (I guess Dutch people really value this thing), we watched some good movies as like when we are at home, we went shopping to the centre, and we had some fun with the people that live with me. No need to say how much I miss her already.

Then the second block started. Two good courses, being Retailing and Distribution a very nice surprise, as it is one of the most interesting topics I’ve studied here (if the course coordinator could take away all the fucking statistics from the course it would be better though).
Oh right I forgot, 2 weeks ago, we threw a huge house party in our place. Can u picture those parties in American Pie? It was something like that. Ok, maybe we didn’t have the best balance between boys and girls here, but still, it was huge. Picture a place where you can fit 50 to 60 people, and then more than double this number. The police came at 3 am to cut the sound and put everybody out, but I guess they were kinda cool with the whole situation, and they even took photos with. Ahaha we were completely shit-faced that night!

Yesterday I went to Rotterdam to finally satisfy my hunger for Hardcore shows. Portuguese bands were playing, and I couldn’t miss this one. Stay tuned, in few days I’ll post a review from the show and the whole experience of watching Portuguese friends playing abroad. By the way, big up to my friend Nuno and the rest of Step Back! crew who joined me yesterday. Best guys ever! Check their MYSPACE and support!

Reality Slap - Breaking Out

Very nice clip by one of the finest hardcore bands in Portugal. Check it HERE!!

Distance

Yes, long-distance relationships can be really hard to manage. It is said that 99% of the cases are doomed to a not-so-happy ending. I know that…
Still, I’m willing to work hard to be part of the remaining 1%.

11th of October 2009 – I haven’t been with my girl for more than 1 month now. It is strange though, I kinda feel that I never loved her more than I do in this exact moment.
I really miss the softness of her lips and that smile that drives me insanely crazy.

I’m surrounded by blonde tall girls with blue eyes everywhere, and guess what, I never missed the beauty of my brunette babe as I do now.

Amo-te.

Study companionship

Ludwig van Beethoven . Genious.

Your best friend

... is the kind of guy that spends around 200€ just to have a couple of beers with you.

"Friends, Family, Forever" (Clichet. I know, I know...)

Not for me.

Going to bed at 2.30am, falling asleep at around 4am and waking up at 7 am to finish preparing a presentation, is not for me.

In a fucking bad mood this morning.

RAP RAP RAP!!

Some of the finest Rap releases out there! Go check them out!

September 27th

Good, really good. Be there! Support!!

(This is when you start realizing how much you miss this shit...)

Mexican Tacos

Respect to my american buddy Trenton. He has been doing his magic around the house and I already started learning! Yesterday I did some nice spicy tacos! The perfect meal to go with a couple of beers.


No, but seriously, I do miss my mom's food ahaha!

Floorpunch - Antwerp

Sounds like a nice plan :)

After 2 weeks studying in the Maastricht you realize that…

… Portuguese educational system still has a long way to go.

… Keeping the streets clean is not as hard as it looks.

… LIDL is the best supermarket ever.

… Germans are not the formal bastards you thought they were.

… The Dutch people live in their own world.

… Bikes definitely are a good means of transportation.

… To go to a hardcore show you’ll have to be sit in a train for 2 hours at least.

… Having a coffee shop right by your house can come in handy sometimes.

… Bob Marley was unquestionably a genius.

And last but not least

… Your family, your girlfriend, and your friends, are the most important things in your life.

Miss you all guys. Regarding my girl, I’ll just say that I’ll be counting the days up until October<3

New Journey

Sorry guys for being away from the blogging world for so long. The big change took place, and now here I am, in the second floor of a small apartment, right in the centre of Maastricht. Yeah that’s right, quite a big change in my life, but I don’t doubt that it is for the best.

I would like to have some photos to share with you, but I didn’t bring my camera with me, so you’ll have to wait until October when my girl will be visiting me (damn I miss her so much!) and taking some nice shots from the city.
It’s quite a small city, you quickly get to know it after some bike touring. It’s definitely a different culture, people take their time to do their things and stress looks like something that is far way from these lands (at least in what concerns the outside space of the university ahah).

The study journey has already started, and I can tell, this isn’t going to be easy, however, classes do get much more interesting when taken up to this level. I don’t get to sleep during the lectures as I was used to. Instead, you have few lectures, and you are the one in charge of conducting your own education. How are we supposed to do that? Well, they call it the Problem Based Learning (PBL). After small lectures you are given articles, papers, case studys, to work on while you are not in the University. Then you come back to the University and you have tutorial classes. These are a kind of discussion classes where you sit around with 10 more people and one tutor that will only intervene when the discussion among the students isn’t going to the desired way. You get to work in groups during this discussion classes, and every week you have to make 1 or 2 presentations to show the conclusions you came to. It implies some hard-work back at home, but it sure is more interesting and motivating this way.

Right now I'm going to cook (at least try) my dinner. This weekend I'll be back with some news.
Stay tuned for new posts also in my OTHER BLOG (ahahah a bit of shameless promotion doesn’t hurt anyone.)

Day Of The Dead - 2001/2009

Yesterday when I got home I came across this new. DOTD, one of the best bands the Portuguese Hardcore scene has ever had decided to break up. In the past 8 years these guys fought for their ideals offering us authentic music comin' straight from the heart. It's a shame I could only attend 4 shows from these guys, but it sure was enough to get some of their live feeling. It has always been a pleasure for me not only to hear their music, but also to hear all the wise words the band had to say. We should all thank DOTD for having set a great example for the Portuguese Hardcore scene in the past 8 years. I'll leave you with some words from the band.

"Hello, boys and girls!Unfortunately, this time around we don't have the best of news.Day of the Dead has been going strong for the past eight years. It's been an amazing ride and we've lived and seen more than we had ever imagined when we first started practicing in Luis' basement.Lately, we've been talking about the direction we should take as a band and we've come to the conclusion that there's nothing left we want to do as DOTD.Our first wish for the band was to release a vinyl seven inch. Looking back on that naïve first wish and seeing what the years brought us, we can do nothing else but be totally grateful for everything we experienced.So this is it, what we always knew would happen but never really thought about that much: Day of the Dead is breaking up…It's a sad occasion but also a happy one. It's sad that we won't play together anymore, that we won't play anymore for all the friends we made throughout the world, but we're also happy that we finish on what we feel is a high note. We think our last record is the best we've ever made and it just sums up what DOTD is.We want to thank the labels, first and foremost, because they supported us immensely and put their money where most people's mouths are. Without these guys, we'd be nothing. Our apologies go out to them for breaking up but also our most heartfelt thanks.We also want to thank our friends. Again, we'd be nothing without you. Thanks for calling us on our bullshit whenever we made mistakes, thanks for your friendship and support, thanks for booking shows, feeding us and giving us places to sleep. You're hardcore, you keep this going.

We will play one last show in October. There will be more information about that as soon as possible. It will be the last time DOTD will play together. If you want to see us one last time, get your act together and be there. It will be a time to remember. (...) To everyone, thank you for making our life much more interesting…

Feelings are bullet-proof, you cannot destroy them…"

U-God - Dopium

Been playing on my mp3 for a while now. Even though the album is miles away from the feeling of "Golden Arms Redemption", you should give it a try.

Be back next Monday!

If my lungs and liver manage to survive.

Full Metal Jacket

Yesterday I went to bed around 4 am. The reason why? Well, RTP1 went heavy on their listing! While I was zapping for something nice, trying to avoid one of those shows to which you call to and then guess a word to win some money, Full Metal Jacket popped out. I almost had forgotten how good this movie is, but to be honest, after watching it for the second time, I do think that the movie promises a bit more than it can deliver.

Directed in 1987 by Stanley Kubrick, Full Metal Jacket is probably the best war movie about Vietnam up until today. The way I see it, we have two distinct parts in this movie. In the first half we are offered the chance to see the training of the Marines Corp. of the United States, being this part of movie the great responsible for the success of this title. Both R. Lee Ermey (the recruit’s instructor) and Vincent D’Onofrio (one of the recruits) give an awesome contribute to this movie, which eventually turns out to be a problem, as these two characters leave the screen at an early stage. The dehumanization brought by the training and the alienation of the human mind are brilliantly explored by Kubrick in this part of the movie, and so you can expect some of those close-up shots à la Kubrick recalling “The Clockwork Orange” and Jack Nicholson on “The Shinning” with the characters staring at the camera with that mad expression on their faces. By itself, this first half of Full Metal Jacket is the pure form of excellence.

In the second part of the movie the training ends and all the recruits achieve their goal of going to Vietnam. The previously mentioned characters leave the scene and the action is focused on another recruit – “Joker”, which is also well interpreted by Matthew Modine. It seems to me that this second half of the movie is the way Kubrick has found to give his own view on the way things were made in the Vietnam War. The message conveyed is that soldiers didn’t even know what they were fighting for, and there wasn’t the need of explaining the meaning of this war to anyone. We get insights on the way these marines lived back then in Vietnam, and also some good cinematic moments of the war itself. Not that this is a major threat to the quality of the movie, but I think that there are several moments that were not necessary to convey the message of anti-war that Kubrick probably had on his mind. Also, the terrific ways of portraying the dehumanization and the clever and horrific humor of the first half of the movie kind of cease to exist, decreasing the fun of watching it.

Don’t get deceived by this opinion on the second half of the movie. The overall result is really good, but not as good as the first half promises. Still, another must-see that I would recommend to everyone!

Resident Evil - Gamecube

The game was launched back in 2002, but only now, after buying a used Gamecube (big up to Miguel for the great deal!) to play some major classics, I got the chance to end this fantastic game. Without a doubt, this is the best game in the series. Expect nothing less than pure survival horror.
This Gamecube Resident Evil is a kind of a super remake of the good old first Resident Evil (1996) for Sega Saturn. Capcom improved the game in every single aspect and kept it as close as possible to the original storyline.

On contrary to the shitty versions (graphics are not all that matters) of Resident Evil for all those new generation consoles, here you still have that old-school gameplay. In this title you are not playing an action game as we were forced to from Resident Evil 4 onwards. Here you still have that feeling of not knowing what’s on the other side of each door, you still have to be smart when dealing with your items and you still have to take deep breaths along the game. Blasting zombies’ heads by itself just isn’t funny, and so Capcom invested a great deal of time on the traditional macabre puzzles. Seriously, there some mind-twisted enigmas to solve in this game, that really brought me to my knees!

The whole action takes place in a kind of a haunted mansion and its whereabouts. The scenarios are completely amazing with tons of details, and believe me, the screens I posted here do not make any kind of justice to the game as their quality is really low. The lighting and shadows effects look superb, and make you feel as if you were the one walking around the mansion. The soundtrack and all the sound effects are way better than those of 1996, and play a major part in setting the right feeling and environment throughout the entire game.

You will have to deal with several kinds of zombies (humans, snakes, sharks, plants, spiders, dogs, etc), which are now much more intelligent than the previous ones. The scaring tricks we are used to see in the movies are all here, from the oldest trick in the book of someone jumping out of a dark corner to grab your arm, to those complex camera angles that make you nervous when making a step forward. I must admit that I did jump out of my bed 2 or 3 times while playing at night!



A truly must have for everybody who’s into real good videogames. Pure Terror Cubed.