BMA News Update: New videos from Cancer Bats, Dance Club Massacre; Animosity riff-roaring contest; and much more

You're probably sick of the news by now, with all the incessant ramblings of TV news anchors about the election. Seriously. There hasn't been so much talk of one man since OJ Simpson and the white Bronco "incident." At least there's some humor in all of this (note the CNN hologram, Anderson Cooper must have been trippin').

Anyway, and more importantly, there is some new and not-yet-repetitive ramblings we need to share with you folks.

- BMA Staff

Black Market Activities now has an official fan mailing list. By joining the list, BMA addicts -- and even those who wont admit to their addiction via the Bradley Effect -- can get first hand news, updates, tour dates, etc., sent directly to their inbox. To join the BMA fan mailing list, shoot an e-mail over to: michelle@blackmarketactivities.com, with "BMA fan mailing list" as the subject. There's no telling the other possible future benefits from being a member of this list, so git on it!

Romans, From a Second Story Window, Paria, and Animosity sounded off on Barack Obama becoming the 44th president of the United States on MTV2's "Headbanger's Blog." Check out the entries from the BMA family here.

CANCER BATS' video for "Lucifer’s Rocking Chair" is now premiering exclusively on MySpace Metal! Head over to MySpace Metal to check out the exclusive premier of CANCER BATS new video for the track "Lucifer’s Rocking Chair" off their latest release "Hail Destroyer."

Dance Club Massacre posted a video for the song "Shenanigans" from 11/11 release, "Circle of Death." The video is a culmination of live footage and studio clips. The video can be viewed here.

Animosity is hosting a "riff contest." Contestants interested in entering the contest must accurately sing three consecutive Animosity riffs. Prizes include free merchandise and concert tickets. Animosity vocalist Leo Miller: "It's a pretty ridiculous notion that animosity fans wouldn't be able to sing any three consecutive riffs, but it's way harder than it seems. Good luck to anyone who enters." More information about the contest can be found on the band's MySpace page, as well as on YouTube.

BMA News Update: Current album release dates, FASSW breaks the top 300 and 'How to survive Dudefest as a dudette'

From a Second Story Window is being featured on the JSI Top 21 list, issue #325 for the release “Conversations.”

The video for Animosity’s “Toothgrinder” is now available on Music Choice on Demand

Jess Blumensheid wrote an article for Venus Scene called “How to survive Dudefest as a Dudette.” Joining the story are some photos – can you guess which of these ladies are on the BMA staff? Check it out here: http://venuszine.com/articles/music/features/3752/How_to_survive_Dude_Fest_as_a_dudette_

Cancer Bats vocalist Liam Cormier is featured on the Deciblog, brought to you by those cool cats at Decibel Magazine. Peep Liam on the Deciblog here:
http://www.thedeciblog.com/index.php/2008/07/25/the-rockin-pneumonia/

Whats happening in the world of BMA release dates?

Romans - "All Those Wrists" OUT NOW
FASSW - "Conversations" OUT NOW
Sweet Cobra - "Forever" OUT NOW
Cancer Bats - "Hail Destroyer" OUT NOW

Upcoming releases:
Lords - "Fuck All Y'all Motherfuckers" 10/14
Dance Club Massacre - "Circle of Death" - TBA
Architect - "Ghost of the Saltwater Machines" - TBA

Artist Entry: From a Second Story Window vocalist Will Jackson's bachelor party adventure

The night started off in the day time. The sun beat down on us as if we were all afflicted with fiery crimson locks and happened to be a large group of step-children. Sweat poured from under arms causing visible cries of cotton shirts, "Help, I'm fucking drowning here mate!" they would have yelled had they been able -- and perhaps been British. I pulled mine off to save myself the hours of verbal abuse flying from my muddled pits and continued to load the car.

The trip was planned for Charlotte, NC, and the pals were pulling in well equipped with beers of various brands, liquors from across the continent and farther (the Absinthe will top things off nicely), and an assortment of other explicables that Hunter S. himself would fully give a nod of encouragement and an "hrmmm, good good boys!" Needless to say everyone was excited and ready to dive right into the debauchery that is the time honored tradition of Bachelor Partying.

Mine was a crew of rather rough and wiley young gents that I have acquired sinful friendships with since the days of my becoming a man, the meetings include my first endeavor into the sloshy and short, first time I did it club, all the way to my very first indulgences into the visual side of mind expansion, i.e., you should know what I'm talking about. These were some boys with whom I had shared life and limb with at any and all cost. Homeboys one might say, and one of ours was getting hitched.

Now, needless to say, plans had been set and motions had been qued to make this one hell of a weekend. The room was booked down in Charlotte at the Courtyard Marriot, Suite 202 on the M2 level of the north tower, this was an upper level with a lower numeral in description, something I went over with the nice young woman who booked us the room. We had been told that it was a room where were could conduct our bachelordom in peace and quiet, at least to the outside world. I, having already removed my shirt and cracked a beer, greeted my fellow goers of fun with a friendly wave and a few lofty tosses of beers in their immediate direction. They plucked their beers from mid air as the descended upon them with great ease and began, as did I, to toast the young man whose life was about to be joined to another in a mere matter of days.

"To Billy boy, may you enjoy fucking only one woman for the rest of your life!" said a friend by the name of Brandon, a muscular gent of whom we all also knew by the alias Hambone, who followed it up was some hardy har har's or which we all followed suit.

After the toast and the laughs and a few more beers we all blinked a bit and looked at one another. Small bags that could be easily carried on any size airplanes surrounded the two cars that had been chosen to carry this gang of misbegotten souls.

"Who's driving, and where is everyone riding?" A tall lanky fellow by the name of Colby hooted, his eyes swayed behind thick corrective lenses framed in soft gold.

"Toby's driving my car, and I'm drinking. Who's with us you bunch of dogs!" I yelled striding behind Colby and smacking him firmly on his hind end with one hand while pointing at my mates with the other.

I must admit, I was getting rather excited thinking of our lavish room and mini bar just sitting there high in the air, empty and waiting to be ravaged; like those young girls who stroll down Marion drive walking home from high school not quite ready to be taken, but wanting it all the same. I could envision it floating, take the rest of the building away, just our box of sin waiting to be taken over.

The route was simple, 77 South, straight. It is best to plan a trip like this around as man simple directions as possible, especially when people are drinking and otherwise. The cars faired well. A 2007 Toyota Prius, economical, sporty, roomy, and wild as hell with our own Billy the bachelor nestled deep in the back seat smoking away his nerves. He was nervous I tell you. He had no idea what was in store from his foolish friends, God only knows what his mind was cooking up in there; what kind of devilish acts were about to take place down here in the deep southern city of Charlotte, NC...

Artist Entry: From a Second Story Window voclaist Will Jackson is surrounded by "Charlie"

WHOOOOOO THE WEEKEND!

Welp. It is here and I am stoked, the weekend. We have been planning a lake trip for a few weeks now and it has finally arrived. The Jet Ski's are gassed, as well as the boat, and the wake boards are geared up for some much needed slick water gliding and fun. I have been working like a dog lately so this trip is actually very much needed for my personal psyche.

What have you been doing while on your break Will? You may ask.

The answer. Working with a crew putting up vinyl siding on an insanely huge house with rather odd angles and lofty heights that have tested my endurance for such things, in a rather richly neighborhood sitting among other houses of similar tastes and sizes all the while adorning the sidelines of a top notch golfing establishment. Boy have I seen some good shots off of the 16th green these past few weeks.

It has really been a fun job, working with competent folks full of experience, who do not mind sweating in the sun, letting a newbie get his licks in, and telling stories of days past and memories earned to pass the time. I've heard so many old Vietnam stories I am beginning to feel like ol' Oliver Stone himself. I swear, I must laugh at least a thousand times a day hearing the guys speak of trips to the "Californi-YES-YOU-CAN", a wild whore house located deep inside a Vietnam township just outside of a fellow workers barracks, word is they used to do their best to, after receiving well earned (and payed for) felatio by a young woman, convince the new guys on base to go in for a kiss.

I also heard that the proper place to dispose of young G.I. goo is under the mattress, just a simple lift and spit and no one would ever know you were there. Ugh. Now the tears and side stitches come on while hearing of bear hunting stories where another fellow worker, who is quite hard of hearing, especially amidst extreme external noise, i.e. harsh winds, traffic, public gathering spots, etc., was hunting and due to the harsh, loud winds, walked right up on a bear and proceeded to, "...drop my gun, shit my pants, stand like a stunned monkey for what felt like thirty minutes, then come to and grab my gun and shoot the fuck out of that mother fucker!"

It don't get no better than that folks. Well, that is until you are spread eagle wearing nothing but shorts and your chest hair getting a tan from our own glorious sun, while awaiting you next ride on some sort of aquatic fun having vehicle or device. Yes, the lake, the water, the music, the women, the beers, the pot, the smiles, the laughs, and the good times HERE I COME!

Yaw have a good weekend!

One love.

Wheel Jackson

Artist Entry: From a Second Story Window vocalist Will Jackson is surrounded by word vomit

Photo by: Enrique Parrilla from C.S.I.

Sounding Pissed and Stuff...

I'm really tired of trying to be intelligent and forward thinking around those folks out there who aren't, or have no desire to be so. It's fucking unbearable sometimes. You chill, talk, listen, and then BOOM!, you realize that what you have been paying attention to is complete filler and meaningless, no weight whatsoever. It's a travesty that no one cares about relevant topics anymore, or to be more direct, cares about the wrong things all together and then feels that sharing this misinformed nomenclature is actually important and valid, or worth talking about with other human beings. Far too many people are content being ignorant and useless in the social system that they are bringing it down day by day, word by word.

Please don't get me wrong by thinking that I feel this way about everyone out there, that's not the case. I just have had far too many conversations, aka wastes of time, with people who spout shit out of their mouths without an ounce of rhyme or reason behind it. These people are the ones out there who talk to you soulely to speak about themselves or to put down another race (this includes all forms of racial and social prejudice) or to try and connect with you just because they think they will gain something to benefit their own lives, or perhaps they just want to share with you just "how fucking wasted they were last night, man." UGHHH... Does this rip anyone else's soul apart or is it just me? I mean, come on!

I also often wonder if half the people out there are even interested in being themselves at all. Do they really give a shit that they come off as just another pawn lagging behind, ruining the game, while the world's opponents are screaming for them to move? And yes, perhaps I do harp on this idea too often, but FUCK man, it's totally valid in the world we are alive in. The drolling population as a whole is copacetic to the point of disaster and lately it seems that it is beyond human repair.

"Hey Will, did I tell you about what my cat did the other day, man. Oh, shit. He totally jumped over my coffee table, man. Whoa!"

PLEASE GOD MAY I NEVER HAVE TO HEAR THAT STATEMENT EVER AGAIN!

I'm sorry, I guess I am a little wound up today. But if you are out there and you can feel me on this, and are fed up with people who are compliant with the way things are, then please do yourself a favor and go to your refrigerator, open a beer, light a smoke, and kick your feet up, because you have earned it just for being someone who understands that meaningless bullshit does not equate to meaningful conversation, or life for that matter. WHEW!

Im done. Sorry.

Will

Artist Entry: From a Second Story Window vocalist Will Jackson dissects the 'Space'

Has anyone even been taking a look at the kids out there these days?

I mean, yes, I went through my "Hey, lets wear big jeans and hemp necklaces," phase. But really, it seems that the trends and fashions that these kids are all about are just becoming more and more unbearable to look at.

For example, a red handkerchief tied around your neck, too small jeans that barely pull up over your johnson, a white belt (studs or no studs), boxers that puff out like a chef's hat--due to the too small jeans--and a t-shirt that barely fits your 14-year-old body, baring the name of the coolest band out, doesn't scream that you're someone who knows what the hell is going on.

Now, I am not saying that this fashion fad, or err, horror, is anyone's fault. In fact, it is not any humans' fault at all. It is the fault of the worlds largest Web site, ever! That's right, MySpace.

The corporate giant that we are all slave to is not only forcing the human public to not care for privacy anymore, but is causing our youth to no longer take stock in their own sense of self.

After traveling this great country of ours, the expansive green north of Canada, and having gone over seas a few times, it just seems that via this instant fashion gallery available online has our children unable to simply venture into their closets and enjoy the idea of wearing what they want.

Now, I know that I sound like an old hag here, but really, there is just a sense of youthful sell-out going on here. We see more and more folks out there buying into the glitz and glamour of the mystical Internet personality.

Everyone wants to be the next Tila Tequila, and this is NOT a good thing. Have you seen her show, eeessshhhhh! A person should not want to embody a small bimbo who lurks both men and women on national television in order to find true love.

Let's face it, MySpace is not the place for love, it is a place to connect with friends, keep in touch, and perhaps throw up a bit of yourself for all to see. It is NOT a place to find women, men, or whatever you may wish to connect with.

Take my cousin Hank for example, who flew all the way to California to meet his MySpace fling and found himself not only out a grand in air fair, but came across a whale of a woman (be wary of those angled pictures) and her jealous ex-boyfriend, who kicked his ass from Santa Monica to Hollywood Boulevard -- it just doesn't seem like a good idea to me.

Okay, back to these kids and their lack of fashion/self-image. I know, I shouldn't be fixating on hair, or clothes, or whatever, but, there is an entire attitude that goes along with this conforming calamity that is going on in our world today.

At the tender age of eight children are accessing the net, pulling up MySpace, and formulating who they are based on who's page has the most friends, or views. The idea is simple, just lurk around the "Space" and pick out someone who is the epitome of what you want to be and POOF! you can become the next great MySpace star at your local grammar or high school.

All I can say is, whew, what is the world coming to?