BOOTLEG (ˈbuːtˌlɛɡ)

Recently,i read a comment online that basically said,Greeks sell bootleg music releases.
The outcome I have  from what I read is that there are many people  who believe that all unofficial releases out there in the market comes from Greece
In an effort to understand why there is this belief around, the conclusion was as i was told by some collectors,that because Greeks sell them so they made them,implying that there is a mafia like organisation and the mastermind of this mafia is some Greek.
Recently Ebay flooded with copies of two expensive records very sought after, Cross purposes and Forbidden by BLACK SABBATH(in my opinion the content does not justify the price of the original)all the first copies  were listed by Portugese sellers and then by English sellers,some HEAVY LOAD expensive albums released as bootleg and sold by Italian sellers and so on.
 
Kidding aside,there are Greek sellers selling bootleg (cd's mostly)ocassionally some of them i purchased  too,none has the quality standards of original releases.
Having said that,and without any attempt to defend bad sellers i think that it is mostly buyer's who must be very careful with who they are dealing with,when you think that you hit the jack pot with this long out of press cd (with the price range usually only a few dollars lower than the real thing) that no one has bid yet...be careful,when the seller lists many times the same old rare release claiming that he was clever enough to stock this obscure bands first and last release ever...be careful




                                                                        BOOTLEG

Normally, "bootleg" refers to goods illegally sold and distributed, without proper taxation, and at a loss to the original manufacturer of the goods. This can apply to anything, from booze to cigarettes to designer jeans, etc, as long as it is sold and distributed by other than legal means. Today the term is primarily used to describe stolen audio/video recordings that are illegally sold and distributed on the Internet.

Bootlegs can consist of recordings of live performances or material created in private or professional recording sessions. Changing technologies have had a great impact on the recording, distribution, and varying profitability of the underground industry. The copyrights for the song and the right to authorize recordings often reside with the artist, according to several international copyright treaties. The recording, trading and sale of bootlegs continues to thrive, however, even as artists and record companies attempt to provide "authorized" alternatives to satisfy the demand
                                          THE BOOTLEG BEATLES (rooftop perfomance)

Cretan Music and a great song

Today I woke up by listening the amazing traditional music of Crete (once again!). I just want to share the following video which comes from an old (1930s) recording of a cretan lyra player (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cretan_lyra). The person is called "Rodinos" and has still a great influence to many players in Crete. Even though he died really young he managed to record one album. I don't know how someone can describe the feelings that he/she gets from these melodies. The combination of scales from the east/ the fretless instrument (lyra) in combination with the repeatance of specific melodies "demands" you to just listen to the music and do nothing else.

By the way I regard that this song and generally cretan music can be translated to a metal/rock version (as it includes scales like the Phrygian mode which creates a sinister sound) and a combination of these two genres would be unique.

Enjoy!


By: samarant


The original song from Rodinos:

A beautiful version from Ross Daly:

Guitar drifting (Written by:Samarant)

The last years a new teqnique called 'guitar drifting' became quite famous. This method of playing guitar includes several techniques like fingerstyle guitar, tapping, etc.
As a guitarist I admire the players that master this technique and drift their guitar to its maximum. In this way they evolve not only the way to play an instrument (which in this case it becomes more than one!) but also the music itself and this is to my personal opinion one of the finest goals of music players. The following video depicts a guitarist playing with this teqnique.

Written by:Samarant




                                      Mike Dawes - Somebody That I Used To Know

W h a t c h o i c e s d o i h a v e ?

On 25th of january the elections in Greece ''revealed'' to Europe one thing that even the rival parties were able to misinterpret.
The one thing that won the elections is the need of people to breath,it is the same people that in these 5 years of austerity and 2 years before that struggles with unemployment,govermental corruption,violation of meritocraty,violation of labour rights,low wages,delays in payments(the usual is 4 month delays)taxed from the first euro earned,taxation for small and medium businesses is cruel and made numerous to go bankrupt...
The right wing goverment then,didn't do anything to soothe those problems in middle and lower classes,after all these are the classes that pay all these years the bill!
Some time now there is an article on valid blogs that says what we all knew, in 2012 Greek shipowners paid as individuals for taxes  15 mil.Euro while the Greek sailors have paid for taxes 55 mil. EUR.
There are extensive referances all over the internet about members of the Greek parliament voting for measures that trampled pensioners,and middle/lower class individuals,cut in pensions,cut in wages,they even cut the wages in the private sector making the ability to work even harder.
These ''lighted'' people(some of whom are not even elected) was revealed recently that they were the first that pulled their money out of Greece's banks,while they reassure the markets and people through media that a bank run is not going to happen...they did the opposite.
A party that played huge role in implementation of the memorandum  caught with money(some millions)in the bank after they made questions in parliament in favor of a weapon systems company...Then the two of them became ministers in the goverment they criticized before!

Someone would ask ''why German media has this vicious delirium about Greece?''
Well,of course because the game is the same as in Greece so in Germany.
Media is an extension of the goverments secret thoughts,look what is going on in Spain with evictions,ask a Greek to translate for you an article from a big media in Greece and so on..

The truth is that Germany makes a lot of money while whole countries are on their knees...with a gun in the head and the rope already tightened to the neck,Greece is in the moment where the bullet left the gun and is about to hit the head,while the gallows hatch has  opened  under the feet...
Imagine now this,to be a Greek thinking all this and so many more everyday and every time of the day!what choices you have?i wonder
Even though does not interest directly the rest of Europe,it is the young people mostly who must realize that what is knocking on Greece's or Spain's or Italy's door was not for good,and it is about to knock on their door,we had the bad curiosity and opened the door,don't make that mistake,
In fact you have to come and help us to close back the door.
Don't let anyone to plant the seed of hate(all the planet paid this before and still pays),things are not as they appear in the front page of fancy newspapers or in expensive empty suits in TV.
Make the rage that builts up useful and force your minds to think what is happening

Now imagine that you are Greek and you are thinking all of  this...what choices do you have?