Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Awesome Metal Bags!

I've always referred to the chalices in which I dump all my personal items as purses, but apparently it's more politically correct to refer to them as simply "bags" now (because of all the different types).  Whatever the term, I find it frustratingly difficult to find purses that fit my aesthetic.  Sure, there are black purses everywhere, but the increasingly dominant girly-girl in me wants something a bit more fancy nowadays.  Zippers, chains, buckles, maybe some bows!  Or pink accents!  Wait, did I just say pink?  To quote some Symphony X lyrics, I don't know what the Hell I've become.

Now isn't the time for an identity crisis, Leslie!  Show them the epic bags!


Metal Mulisha, though primarily a brand for assholes (ugh, just look at the homepage...), have some great purses for ladies.  These three are my favorites, but Metal Mulisha have many more to offer on their website.  I love the classic black leather looks of these purses combined with the added mixture of edgy and feminine touches.  At $46-50, they're a pretty good price, too!



I really like this purse by surfer-girl brand Roxy.  I don't like any of their other purses (or anything else at all, really), but this one is great.  Distressed black leather feel combined with silver studs, zippers, and buckles.  Very Metal :D  And it's a cross-body, which is ideal for shows and festivals because it keeps your hands free and puts less weight on your shoulder!  And it's super affordable at $44.


I looove tokidoki.  The designs are just so damned cute.  This design is a nice middle-ground between my love of cuteness and Metal.  The adorable characters are there, but in subtle, vintage-y grays instead of the rainbow color explosion found in most tokidoki products.  Unfortunately, these purses are crazy expensive (by my standards).  This purse is the smallest offered (though still a good size methinks), and it's $98.  Yowch!  D:


Here's a cute purse from Iron Fist.  Though Iron Fist's primary Metal fashion offering is shoes (which I'll be sure to write about later), they have some other great things to offer.  Like this purse!  At $45, it's very affordable!  Also, Iron Fist tend to lean more towards the Horror than Metal aesthetic, so if you find yourself also leaning more towards that, google Iron Fist!  Their website doesn't have all their items, so some googling/ebaying may be in order. 


If you're the type that needs to try on a purse before purchasing, here's a list of some purses that can be found in stores (click the picture to view):




Phew, that was a LOT of purses!  I focused on black because, well, it goes with everything!  Hopefully I at least gave you names of some designers that cater to the Metal aesthetic more than others.  Enjoy, and happy shopping!

<3

Monday, February 27, 2012

Makeup Monday - Urban Decay Heavy Metal Liner

I went to Sephora recently and spotted this "Heavy Metal Glitter Liner" at the Urban Decay kiosk.  It had "Heavy Metal" on it, so of course it piqued my interest!  But I had a moment of ignorance and failed to see what could be so awesome about putting glitter on my eyelids.  And the $18 price tag made me cringe a little.

Aww, there's even a cute guitar <3

Now, after watching videos on YouTube and reading rave reviews on Sephora's website, I desperately want to go back to Sephora and try it on for myself (why I didn't do that at the time, I have no idea).  I'm mostly interested in the silver (called "Glam Rock"--the names are quite cheesy) and opalescent pearl ("Distortion") colors, as they would probably look best layered over dark eye shadow. 

After going back to Sephora, I found that I love this stuff!  It was very sparkly and made quite a statement!  I still couldn't spend the $18, though, but luckily I found a nice dupe at Hot Topic that's only $1.99.  Yes, two dollars. 

But if you have the kind of money to spend $18 on glitter liner (because the Urban Decay stuff IS better), have a look at this video review!  She doesn't fit my aesthetic, of course, but she's very informative about the product and I liked listening to her talk.  I didn't even turn off the video when she started rambling at the end, which was weird. 







Thursday, February 23, 2012

Serenity at Progpower XIII

I love Austrian Power/Prog band Serenity.  I bought their new album, Death & Legacy, on a whim while at an F.Y.E. store in Chicago last summer (I had never seen so much good music in a physical store before.  It was glorious.) and immediately fell in love with it.  The singer's voice is fabulous (I have no idea why YouTube trolls say he sounds like Mickey Mouse), the music sounds akin to a mixture of old Kamelot/Sonata Arctica (both of which I miss very, very much), and I think I listened to the album exclusively for two weeks or more.  There are also lots of guest female vocalists, which is delicious icing on an already-awesome rainbow cake.

So it should be no surprise that I'm extremely excited that Serenity are coming to the States for ProgPower XIII!  And it was announced this morning that Serenity will be bringing a female vocalist, ClĂ©mentine Delauney, with them for the show.  I was hoping their guest vocalist would be Amanda Somerville, as I'm a huge fan of hers and I haven't heard much of "Clemi."  She sounds great on YouTube, though, and I look forward to seeing her perform with Serenity this September!

Here's a video of Serenity's "The Chevalier" featuring the lovely Ailyn from Sirenia!  I love this song, and it's the reason I bought the Serenity album in the first place.

    I really hope they play this song at ProgPower.  -crosses fingers-

New things ahead!

In addition to my makeup and album/show reviews (which unfortunately take a lot of time, but I promise there will be more!), I will post specific things every day according to the schedule below.  Besides these scheduled things, I will also share news as I find it (bands breaking up, new lineups, US tour announcements, etc.).

  • Monday:  Makeup finds (that I want to try but haven't gotten around to)
  • Tuesday:  Shopping day (Like this)
  • Wednesday:  Women of Metal mini bio (I'll pick a lady that I admire and write about why I like her, what she's done for women in Metal, stuff like that!)
  • Thursday:  Music Video day
  • Friday:  Hopefully an album or product review!  If not, another one of the aforementioned things!
Let me know how you feel about the list :)  Like it, hate it?  Is there something missing? 

Here, have an adorable marshmallow cat:

The cuteness kills me.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Metal Eye Makeup Tutorial!

Kat Von D fits my personal Metal aesthetic, and I especially love the way she does her eye makeup.  But, I'm a total noob when it comes to any kind of makeup stuff.  I needed help.  So, knowing that YouTube holds all the secrets, I found this wonderful tutorial that showed me how to achieve awesomely gorgeous eyes similar to Kat Von D's!  It turned out to be strangely simple given that I have never done more with eye shadow than, well, put it on my eyelids (because I am totally new at this makeup thing).

THE VIDEO!


                          

I used Kat's Sinner palette ($36 at Sephora) rather than the one used in the video, but came out with similar results.  For my eyeliner, I used Maybelline Line Stiletto ($6 at most drugstores and Wal-Marts), and I really like how easy it is to make lines with.  It will come off if I rub my eye, which kind of sucks, but I'm a noob and I don't know if they all do that.  I'm sure the total effect would have looked better on me had I used mascara, but I'm terrified of mascara getting into my eyes and bothering my contacts, so I didn't use any.  My contacts are very sensitive to foreign things. 

I first tried getting this look using the spongy brushes that come with eye shadows and was a bit disappointed (I looked a bit like a raccoon), so I took a chance and bought a rather expensive makeup brush at Sephora ($18, but it's double-sided!).  It made a HUGE difference and I love the way it blends the eye shadow like in the video!  I definitely recommend it.

The inspiration:  Kat Von D. 
Good luck, let me know if this tutorial worked out for you :D  I'll update with photos once I finally do it right, because watching this video again made me realize that I have in fact been doing it wrong!  So stay tuned for that.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Paganfest America III!

I'm a huge fan of Folk Metal and its many incarnations, but unfortunately I've never been able to attend a Paganfest.  This year is no different, which sucks because the lineup is AMAZING.  Seriously.  I definitely recommend you attend this show if you can, because I'm sure it'll blow your mind.  There's something for everyone here, be you a fan of Folk Metal, pirates, female singers, clean vocals, screaming vocals, accordions, war paint, crazy Scandinavians--it's all represented here. 

And without further ado, here's the lineup:


 Turisas have got to be one of the most epic bands ever.



Here's a new video from Arkona.  It's quite sexy ;D

Alestorm look like they're funny guys.  <3

Here are the dates and locations: 
3/29 - Baltimore, MD @ Sonar
3/30 - Worcester, MA @ Palladium
3/31 - New York, NY @ Gramercy Theatre
4/01 - Montreal, QC @ Club Soda
4/02 - Toronto, ON @ The Opera House
4/03 - Cleveland, OH @ Peabody's
4/04 - Detroit, MI @ Blondie's
4/05 - Chicago, IL @ Reggie's Rock Club
4/06 - Saint Paul, MN @ Station 4
4/07 - Louisville, KY @ Vernon Club
4/08 - Charlotte, NC @ Tremont Music Hall
4/09 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
4/11 - Dallas, TX @ Trees
4/12 - Lubbock, TX @ Jake's
4/13 - Denver, CO @ Marquis Theater
4/15 - Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
4/16 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
4/17 - San Francisco, CA @ DNA Lounge
4/18 - West Hollywood, CA @ Key Club
4/19 - Tempe, AZ @ 910 Live**

**no Alestorm


Hopefully you can make it and tell me how it was!  Because I really wish I could be there.  Ugh. 

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Rock & Republic exclusively at Kohl's

A few months ago, I went on a quest to find a sufficiently Metal purse.  I wrote down brands and designers that seemed to cater to my specific aesthetic (feminine and cute, yet Metal), and one of the brands I noted was Rock & Republic.  They had edgy stuff that was still quite feminine, and I was excited to find out that their stuff would soon be sold in Kohl's stores (meaning that I'd actually be able to afford it). 

So, the day has arrived, and I'm quite disappointed.  Granted, I haven't ventured into an actual Kohl's store yet, and there's bound to be much more in stores than listed online.  But still, the online offerings are quite lackluster.

Of course, this is only the beginning.  Hopefully more will get released as time goes by (purses!), but I'm still disappointed by what I thought would be an epic new line of clothes.

Here's what I actually liked (links in the description):

These platforms are pretty cute.  I like silver, and the subtle snakeskin is pretty Metal.

These are pretty hawt.  I loves me some studs on shoes.



I actually think this is pretty cool (pun intended).  It would definitely be a good choice for winter concerts, as the ventilation will keep you cool while you're wedged between the mass of bodies.  Also, it's cute and edgy. 

This cardigan's pretty shimmery-looking, and I love the handkerchief-bottom and the cutout shoulder.  Very sexy ;D

I like the subtle embellishments on the sleeves, and everyone likes little black dresses, right?

I love dip-dyed/gradient/ombre things.  The cutout shoulder is very sexy, too!  A great option if you're not into form-fitting tops!  I like form-fitting stuff, though, so I'd have to try this one on.

Hmm, maybe I found more to like than I thought!  But for everything I did like, there were more things that I didn't.  But have a look yourself, or waltz into Kohl's and check it out!  The Rock & Republic collection is currently 30% off, and Kohl's usually has other sales and coupon codes you can find online at shady websites!



Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Kat Von D Nail Polish Review- Wonderchild

I'm a huge fan of Kat Von D's makeup line at Sephora; so, when I heard the news about the new High Voltage Lacquer for nails, I couldn't resist trying it out.  At $12.50 a pop, though, I could only allow myself to buy one, and I chose the purple one:  Wonderchild

Tell me this doesn't look badass.


Let me preface this review by saying that I'm not a nail polish connoisseur, and I'm quite casual about my makeup and nails.  If it looks great, I'm happy.  I'm not picky about how long it takes polish to start chipping, how nail polish smells, stuff like that.  This review will focus on the aesthetics of the polish.  So, if I haven't addressed concerns you have, feel free to ask me in the comments.  :D

 ON TO THE REVIEW!

This stuff is admittedly super expensive for what you get ($12.50 for .25 oz, ouch), but the color is AMAZING.  The cute bottle is kind of deceiving, as there's clearly lots of different-colored sparkles in there, but what you get is pure purple.  Well, in the sunlight it's kind of a pinky-purple, but it's lovely (and Metal).  The glitter is very metallic.  That's my favorite part about it.  It also feels smooth and is certainly not bumpy like most glittery polishes.


So.  Awesome.
Despite the price, I'm quite in love with this polish.  I might just cave and get the blue one, Mad Max, and perhaps the pink one, too.  I'm normally not one for pink polishes (or pink anything), but I have a feeling I'd like this polish in pink.  I'm really surprised there isn't a red one, or a silvery one.  The choice of colors for these polishes is strangely upbeat and not what one would expect from Kat Von D. 

See how the shade of purple changes in different lighting?
 You can get these polishes at Sephora stores, but I'm not sure about Sephora outlets at JC Penney.  My local JCP didn't have any Kat Von D polish, and they weren't sure if they'd ever carry it, so I had to suck it up and buy online (Update:  My local JCPenney Sephora now carries these polishes for $12, and I got the pink.  And it's amazing, of course.)

Keep in mind that these polishes are Limited Edition, and Kat's Limited Edition stuff usually lasts one-two years.  Sometimes, if enough money is made, Limited Edition things will be made into part of the standard line.

Super close-up of the metallic glitter.
Bottom Line:  Yes, the stuff is expensive, but it's worth it.  If you'd rather try it on first, find a Sephora store near you and try it!  I'm definitely going to buy more.


Stay tuned for more reviews about Kat Von D's awesomely Metal makeup products!

Happy Valentines Day!


So, it's Valentines Day.  A wonderful occasion full of candy, candy, and more candy.  And, perhaps, flowers and jewelry.  But I'm mostly in it for the candy. 

And what better and more Metal way to spend Valentines Day than with this new video from Xandria?  They've been MIA for a while now, and their last album was less than stellar (very Pop-y).  I admit, however, it is one of my girly guilty pleasures when the mood strikes me.  But this new song sounds very Metal, with an early Nightwish sound to it, don't you think?

Enjoy!  And pay no mind to the creepy clown holding a heart.  I think it's a heart.  I don't want to think about it.  :S

Stay tuned later tonight for my review of Kat Von D's new nail polish!

Monday, February 13, 2012

The Hard Rock/Metal Grammy winners are...

...The Foo Fighters.  Really?  Wait, the Foo Fighters won ALL Rock Grammys?  Okay, well, it could have been worse. 

But let's see who the other nominees were for the ONLY Grammy that was for Metal (Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance):
  • Public Enemy No. 1, Megadeth
  • On the Backs Of Angels, Dream Theater
  • White Limo, Foo Fighters
  • Curl of the Burl, Mastodon
  • Blood In My Eyes, Sum 41  (Does this one even make sense?)
Wait, Dream Theater FINALLY got nominated for a Grammy?  Hell yes!  Oh, except that somehow the Academy thought White Limo was a better HARD ROCK/METAL performance.  Well, I haven't listened to the Foo Fighters since I was in High School, so let's listen to this song that won the Grammy.  Maybe it is better, but I seriously doubt it. 

. . .

Oh.

Okay, so let me get this straight.  The Foo Fighters, with this song, won a Grammy.  That's hard enough to wrap my mind around, but THAT song, which had its lyrics written in just two minutes, was considered a better Hard Rock/Metal performance than this:



 Of course, The Foo Fighters are a very marketable, mainstream band, no one watching the Grammys had even heard of Dream Theater, etc.etc.  I get it.  But there are so many more amazing American Metal bands!  Symphony X, Iced Earth, Kamelot!  And Sum 41 got nominated

The Grammys are a joke.  I realize that.  But when a deserving band finally gets nominated after 20+ years of churning out fantastic albums, only to lose to this garbage, shit gets serious. 



Saturday, February 11, 2012

Floor is BACK!

I'm a huge Floor Jansen fan.  She's been my favorite female singer (Metal or otherwise) ever since I first listened to After Forever's album, Decipher.  Her voice can go from operatic soprano to Power Metal belting, and I love her either way.  

For the last year or so she's been going through a "burnout," which means exactly what you'd expect it to mean, but she's on tour with ReVamp again!  Here's a video of Floor singing Sancta Terra onstage with Epica.  If you don't have time to watch the whole video, start at 3:44.  You won't regret it.  They make such beautiful harmonies together at the very end, too.  <3

Maybe we'll see ReVamp at ProgPower this year? ;D  I certainly hope so. 





Friday, February 10, 2012

Eluveitie - A Rose for Epona

While I'm at it, here's a new video by Eluveitie.  They're using Anna Murphy's lovely clean vocals more often, which makes me very happy.  :3

Enjoy!


Eluveitie and Children of Bodom at Pop’s, Feb 4, 2012


I generally prefer clean vocals in my Metal, but I make exceptions for most Folk Metal, bands that have clean AND harsh vocals (Epica, After Forever, MaYaN, Trail of Tears, etc.), and Children of Bodom.  Why?  Because most harsh vocals in these bands have passion.  And there’s something about these kinds of screaming vocals that sets them apart from, say, most American Metalcore bands.  Most American Metalcore bands sound like, well, garbage.  There’s a distinct difference in what the screams sound like. 

If you don’t see what I’m getting at, listen to Eluveitie or Children of Bodom and then try to listen to All That Remains and tell me that they’re even remotely similar in terms of vocals (Forget the even bigger difference in music).

Children of Bodom.  There's all kinds of hotness up in here.

But, I digress.  ON TO THE REVIEW!

Recently, Eluveitie and Children of Bodom came to my very non-Metal home base of St. Louis, Missouri.   Before the show, I was a huge fan of Swiss folk metal band Eluveitie, and a casual fan of Children of Bodom, who hail from Finland (aka the country that has Metal in its water).  I just liked COB’s earlier melodic stuff, and vaguely remembered seeing pictures of Alexi Laiho on the internet and thinking he was attractive.  All good reasons to go.

My fiancĂ© told me that Eluveitie would blow my mind live, since he had the pleasure of seeing them years ago at a Paganfest in Chicago.  And, oh, was he right.  The energy, the passion!  The talent!  Meri rocked her violin like it was her bitch (I’m sure it is), Chrigel screamed with the same feeling and passion heard on the albums, and Patrick was magnificent on whistles and bagpipes.  I couldn’t see Anna or the other band members at all (because I’m short), so I can’t vouch for them very much except that they sounded spectacular.  I haven’t seen this much energy on a stage since I saw DragonForce years ago.  It was very, very fun.  I had an amazing time.  And I loved the setlist.

Eluveitie. They need to headline shows.
Their setlist consisted generally of songs from their newest album, All That Remains (As It Never Was) (I wonder if they’re being funny with the title here? :P), a tasting of two songs from their upcoming album Helvetios, which sounded amazing, and they finished it off with Inis Mona.  I think Inis Mona has become Eluveitie’s “encore song,” and that makes me happy.

After Eluveitie and the two rather poor opening bands, my feet were pretty much dead.  I’d also heard tales of how rowdy American Children of Bodom fans can get, so my friends and I escaped to the bar area.  We don’t like moshing.  Tiny people break easily.  

Because girls are awesome.  (c) Tony Norkus

 So, unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately ;D), all I saw of Children of Bodom was Alexi Laiho.  And, damn, is that man gorgeous.  I’m not one to get all fangirly about things, but DAMN.  When he’d really get into a solo I’d have to fan myself.  It was that hot.  

Or is it just me?
As for the music, I was very surprised to hear only songs from their older, more melodic era.  They opened up with Sixpounder and ended with Downfall, with maybe one or two of the newer songs thrown in somewhere.  The rest were all melodic goodies with earth-shattering guitar and keyboard solos.  I’d also heard things about Alexi being drunk on stage, but he was flawless.  If he was drunk, I couldn't tell, and neither could those in my group who were Children of Bodom aficionados.  But, hey, I’m clearly a bit biased.

All in all, it was a very good show, and I had a great time!  My respect and love for both bands happily rose after witnessing their performances that night!  Definitely worth the $20 ticket. 

I won't be seeing another show until
ProgPower XIII in September (OMG I HAVE THE TICKETS YESSS), because nobody comes here.  And ProgPower is certainly worth the pilgrimage. 



(I do not own any of the images used in this post, and couldn't find proper photographer credits!  If you're the photographer of these photos, drop me a message and I'll give you due credit!)

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Sexy, Metal Platform Shoes!


I couldn’t resist researching platform shoes (comfortable ones) after my post about the dilemma of being a short Metal fan.  I’ve just recently gotten into, well, pretty things, but I haven’t yet ventured into the realm of fancy shoes.  I have my cute Vans, some old Converse from high school, gladiator sandals (which are AWESOME), and some generic flip flops.  That’s where I stand on shoes.  

For the record, heels scare me.  They look terrifying, but they’re PRETTY.  I finally couldn’t resist anymore and I purchased these Vera Wang wedges, thinking that wedges aren’t heels, so they’re not scary!  Unfortunately, they hurt pretty badly.  There’s no platform in the front, so I basically walk around on the tips of my toes when I wear them, which KILLS the balls of my feet.  Gel insoles can’t fix that.  Siiigh.

Gaawwd, I love them D:
But what about platforms that raise the front of the feet, too?  I’ve done some research, and found some cool and (generally) reasonably-priced shoes that, according to the commenters, are very comfortable.  But, with the torture that some women put their feet through nowadays, one woman’s comfortable could be my bed of nails. 

If you have any platform shoes you’d like to recommend, leave a comment!  I’d love for some insight, as I’m really a high-heel/platform shoes virgin.


BRING ON THE STUFF:


I've always liked Mary Janes.  These shoes have a nice platform to them, and the foot won't have that terrible ball-of-foot-destroying arch.  It looks like a natural position for the foot to be in.  Commenters say the shoes are surprisingly comfy for being "Halloween shoes", and have lots of padding in the soles.  Also found in GLITTER!  Can be bought on Amazon.  This company seems to have MANY platform shoes to choose from, so look around!



These are SO. AWESOME.  I think I'll have to dedicate an entire post to Iron Fist later, because their stuff is AMAZING.  These wedges are on sale for $33, and look pretty comfortable compared to Iron Fist's other shoe offerings.  Ugghhh I may buy these out of weakness.  Ugh.  Iron Fist's website listing.



Harajuku Lovers is a brand that I often like.  It mixes edgy with anime (so to speak), and I'm a fan of both aesthetics.  These are cute, seem to be well-cushioned, and place the foot in a more natural position than most platforms.  They're also pretty cheap as far as fancy shoes go.  Again, I found these lovelies on Amazon.



These Seychelles are pretty cute!  They have a whopping four-inch heel!  The reviews are also good.  However, I tend to stay away from suede, as it get pretty ugly if you get it wet.  If someone spills beer on your shoe, it's all over.  Unless you're a suede-fixing wizard or the gods are on your side.  Found on Endless.



These platform heels by Betsey Johnson have a huge, five-inch heel!  The arch doesn't seem too steep, either, and I'm loving how thick the heel is.  Those spindly, stick-thin heels most pumps have are what scare me most about them.  They just look like they'll break at any moment, and definitely would be a cause for concern while flipping out at a Metal show.  But I'd like to see these babies break off.  They're suede, though, so again you'd have to worry about beer-spilling.  Endless.    

And, finally, we have the dream shoe:



Excuse me while I change my pants. 

The reviews aren't the best for these, I'll admit.  Women complain about comfort, about stones falling off (but, really, the rhinestones can fall off.  I'm here for the studs), and these suckers are stupid expensive.  These shoes are almost the price of a ProgPower ticket.  But I will fantasize.  and so can you.  Yes.  Endless.

EDIT:  Vera Wang made a dupe of this shoe for Kohl's!!  These are much more affordable (around $50 before your inevitable 20-30% off coupon), but they unfortunately don't come in black.  The snake skin is cute, but these may just bee too pinky for me!   



And there you have my short catalog of (hopefully) comfortable platform shoes!  You don't have to shop at Amazon and Endless; I'm sure there are other websites and actual stores that also have comfy platforms.  I foresee a visit to Bakers in my future. 

Also, I will make a later post about shoes that look badass, but are walking death traps.  And non-heeled shoes of badassery. 




 

Being Short at Metal Shows


I don’t know what it is about Metal shows, but tall people just love to stand in front of short people.  Perhaps they just don’t SEE little 5’2” me when they start walking.  They find an open spot and travel through the raging crowd just to find out that, oh, there’s a tiny person there.  Well, too late to turn back, let’s just stand in front of her.  She won’t do anything. 

And I DON’T do anything!  I get super angry and passive aggressive about it, but I usually just sigh and try to find a window around their shoulders.  But often that’s impossible, as these Viking men are as wide as they are tall, and I literally have to move myself to see anything but the tour dates on the backs of their shirts.  What am I to do?

So many tall people -_-  But Hansiiiii <3

Things that often don’t work:
  • Yell (they can pretend not to hear you, and it’s very possible that they really can’t hear you, anyway)
  • Try to get their attention through poking/tapping/nudging the shoulder (they can easily ignore that, too)
  • Move to a different spot (the same thing will happen again when everyone’s taller than you)

Things that I may try:
  • Say “fuck it” and just push through to the front of the stage and use above ignoring tactics on naysayers
  • Invest in platform shoes and Dr. Scholl’s gel insoles (has anyone else tried this?)
  • Bring a box to stand on and dare people to tell me I can’t

Now, there's a girl who must know my pain.
Seriously, though, what have you done about this?  Or, tall guys, what would get you to move aside for a tiny person?  If a tiny person stood in front of you without asking, how would you react?  I remember I was able to stand front row at a DragonForce concert because a kind, tall person took pity on me and MADE me stand in front of him.  So, tall men, keep in mind that it might get you points with us tiny ladies if you let us stand in front of you at shows.  ;D

Expect to see a post about platform shoes in the near future.


(Photos taken at Blind Guardian/Seven Kingdoms show at the Masquerade in Atlanta in 2010.  If you've never listened to either of these bands, you need to go do so immediately.  YouTube.)

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

It begins!

Hello lovely readers, and welcome to Metal Marshmallow. 

What is Metal Marshmallow?  Well, Metal Marshmallow (MM from here on out!)  is a blog by yours truly, Leslie Neal.  I like cute things and Metal, and what's cuter than a fluffy marshmallow?  I got the inspiration for the title from my favorite stuffed animal, which I have lovingly given the appropriate Metal name of "marshmallow kitty."  (From these lovely people:  http://www.chara-hiroba.com/original_nemu.php).* 

I will make posts about--you guessed it--Metal.  I'll write album reviews, give out links to new music videos, post fashion and makeup inspiration photos and links on where to buy Metal stuff in the United States (which is way harder than it should be!), and talk about Metal in general.  This is mainly targeted towards females (because I am one--write what you know ;D), but there should be plenty here for men to also enjoy.

I'm still tinkering with the layout currently, but I'll be sure to start making posts soon.  Feel free to shoot me a comment with questions, what you'd personally like to see, say hi, whatever!


*The photo of marshmallow kitty found on the home page is also by these wonderful Japanese people, and I hereby claim no ownership of the image!