Website online at last

So I sticked to my own deadlines for once this time. My website is online and I invite all to have a look. The URL is http://www.gerritsite.com , it contains my CV and a lot of articles. More articles to be added the coming weeks so don't forget to check back often!

 

When it comes to my A Perfect Circle forum... Will be online in a couple of days. The domainname has been requested and the hosting space has been set up. Forum will be ready to take its first posts in a couple of days.

Football and more short updates

Shalom,

 

 

 

The sleeper must awaken (OK, quote stolen from one of my musical heroes, Maynard James Keenan)

 

Sorry for a lack of news lately, I have been quite busy. My personal website is progressing well and I expect to have it launched by the end of the weekend. It has been delayed very often due to several issues but I am planning to this time let nothing come in between it (and hopefully I won't change that plan this time ;)) and launch it very shortly now. Finally you could say...

 

Also, my fan forum for A Perfect Circle is upcoming, thanks to the help of an internet friend of mine who is technically more gifted than me and who is taking care of the technical side of launching the messageboard. It will be a new APC messageboard after the existing ones seem to have all gone online, leaving APC fans with no other resort than Tool forums where we however always experience the strange attitude that we are aliens in a place where we shouldn't be. Well, time for a change, and with this APC forum I hope to give A Perfect Circle fans a new hang-out spot on the web.

 

 

 

Lack of personal news yeah, but no lack of news in general. This week saw several football friendlies and although they were basically warm-ups for the upcoming tournaments and World Cup qualifiers, there were some really interesting fixtures for both fans of the top sides and the minnows.

 

First of all the top... Italy lost in Spain 1-0 while France beat rivals England with the same score. Franck Ribery scored the decisive goal in the Stade de France in Paris.

 

Holland struggled in Vienna where they faced a 3-0 score against one of the weakest teams at the upcoming Euro 2008. However, an incredible turnaround saw the Netherlands come back and win 3-4 in the end, leaving the Euro co-hosts with a very shocking loss, although scoring 3 goals against the Netherlands should give them some confidence. Neighbours Germany had less problems, winning in Switzerland 0-4, a big loss for the other Euro 2008 hosts.

 

My native Belgium lost 1-4 against Morocco and although 3 out of 4 Moroccan goals resulted from personal mistakes from the Belgians, this result can hardly be seen as uplifting and the bomb is about to explode with several players outing their unfulfillment about the national coach's tactical decisions.

 

My own favourites then: mixed feelings here. My one favourite Norway faced an embarrassing loss in Montenegro. 3-1 with Carew scoring the Norwegian goal when it was too late already however as Montenegro was leading 3-1. For the very new nation, preparing for their first World Cup campaign, this must be a huge victory although it also indicates how rapidly Norway have slipped to become a mid-table team in Europe.

 

My other favourites Israel did better. While not playing a great game, Israel won 1-0 against Chile in a sold out Ramat Gan stadium (10 shekels a ticket: that way you do fill the stadium even for a friendly!). Yossi Benayoun scored the goal, while reserve goalkeeper Nir Davidovitch made some crucial saves (he played the second half while first choice goalkeeper Dudu Awat had a relatively easy game in his first half). Maybe more important than the result itself: Barcelona's top talent Guy Asulin entered the game during the second half and earned his first Israeli A cap. Spain was trying to convince him to choose for Spain as he has dual citizenship, though Asulin followed his heart and chose for Israel. He is now having an A cap, meaning he can no longer change teams and is an Israeli international for the rest of his career now. I greatly encourage such an incredibly talented youngster chose to play for Israel instead of Spain, and I am sure within less than 3 years Asulin will be the leading man of the Israeli team. El el Israel!

 

My previous home countries... Turkey played in Belarus in difficult circumstances with freezingly cold weather. Despite that, a 2-2 draw was realised with Türkiye coming from behind twice.

Northern Ireland beat Georgia 4-1 with all-time top scorer Healy scoring... an own goal. I am sure Norn Iron fans will forgive him after having scored an all-time record nr of goals for any Northern Ireland player ever.

 

An interesting result was Malta versus Liechtenstein. Two minnows facing each other, with Malta winning 7-1. Not only the biggest victory ever for the tiny island nation, but also the 5 goals (including one pure hattrick) of star player Michael Misfud was remarkable. Congrats Malta!

 

Also interesting to me is Nepal beating Pakistan 2-1, a very rare victory for a Nepalese side that is considered one of the weaker sides in Asia. Pakistan did have its revenge as two days later they won the return game 0-2.

 

Some results I couldn't care less about, but maybe interesting for some of you: Brazil beat Sweden 1-0, Scotland drew against Croatia 1-1, Luxembourg lost to Wales 0-2, Congo got a 1-1 draw in Algeria, and a tropical derby between Jamaica and Trinidad-and-T. resulted in a 2-2. Probably you all think "who cares?" so I will quit here :)

 

 

 

 

Well, that is the football news for now.

 

But this is not all... I have been following Belgian football and KV Oostende in particular since childhood. I have emigrated Belgium and left my past behind almost 4 years ago, but with internet and tapes my family sent me, I still remained very up-to-date on the Belgian football. However, is this going to change and is my long-lasting love for KVO going to drop to a minumum soon?

 

The arrogant top teams are once against trying to capture the whole Belgian football in their power by once again wanting to reduce the number of teams in the premier division. Something I am very much against because the number of teams in the premier at least stops the sport from becoming elitist. Only the top teams benefit from reducing the nr of teams, for fans of any other club it would be desastrous. The top clubs thought giving some compensation cash to the smaller teams would help to get their stupid idea through. Also introducing play-offs was proposed, which even fans of top teams are very much against. Luckily the second division teams barred the proposal, the world is saved for at least a bit longer. But I fear now reforment plans will come up, and the moment the number of teams is reduced (making the league an elitist happening) I will officially stop following the Belgian league. I still love KVO, but if it plays in a league whose policies are against all I believe in, then it just makes no sense to keep paying attention and time into that league. Hopefully new reform plans will be barred as well, although I fear the top teams will do everything they can to push them through. I find it hard not to call this the murder of the Belgian football. At least I have my beloved Rosenborg to keep following in a passionate way but for KVO and the Belgian league it will never be like it was before if the league is reformed, I can only hope it won't happen.

 

If the reforms would happen, then I consider Belgian football officially dead and will stop following it. As much as I care about KV Oostende, if they are no longer in a league that I consider as honest, then I just don't see the point to loyally check all results weekly and have my family sending me tapes of highlights. In this case, I will stick to following Rosenborg who at least play in a league worth following with fair chances to all.

 

Meanwhile by the way, KVO is now struggling to stay in division 2. 18th out of 19 teams and the next month will be decisive if the team can stay in the second division. If not, a derby with city rivals VG Oostende awaits in division 3, as VGO solved its financial worries and is now close to promoting from 4th to 3rd division.

 

Some actually good football news (apart from Israel's win) is that my organisation CENF (I am their Secretary) is close to having a first game organised and already received over 10 membership requests from including Western Sahara, Southern Cameroons, Vatican City, Republic of Rijeka, Greenland, ... I am really excited about this and determined to make CENF a success.

 

 

 

Well, I close down with a song. "Bir", from Turkish metal pioneers Pentagram/Mezarkabul.

 

The Istanbul based band is known for its Turkish folk influences (while metal however dominates) and for its lyrics dealing with Middle Eastern issues, Turkish national pride and Islam. The song Bir could be seen as Islamic metal as, despite criticising some imams and priests, it is an ode to Allah. The song ("Bir" means one, referring to the One god Allah) tells never to fear anything or anyone because we are all coming from the same allmighty god Allah. The lyrics are in Turkish but the song rocks even if you cannot understand it. If you pay attention well you can hear Prophet Muhammed being praised in the song, while the chorus is an ode to God (Haktan comes from Hak, the Turkish word for God/Allah).

 

The chorus:

Korkma Ondan Bundan
Ne Ölümden ne hayattan
Bu Dünyada gördüklerinin
Hepsi Bir Hepsi Haktan

 

Translated:

Never fear of them, those

Neither death nor life

All that we see on earth

is one, coming from one God (Allah)

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYs2iHHDRZg

 

I saw these guys live at Kurucesme Theatre just next to the Bosphorus. They are really good and worth checking out. Songs such as Anatolia deal with Turkish pride, while songs like 1000s In The Eastlands deals with the unnecessary suffering of Middle Eastern people. Definitely a band worth checking out.

 

 

 

Well, hopefully my plans aren't ruined again now and hopefully my site and APC forum are both up and running really soon now. Anyways, I will let you know when it happens. 

 

For now, best regards to all of you.

Peace, and Allah Korusun.

An interview with... me

Apart from my beloved Echo & The Bunnymen, only one band's lyrics and musical creativity has been moving me as much. The Smiths. The brilliant guitar riffs of Johnny Marr, the warm voice of Morrissey, and especially those fantastic lyrics, cut like a knife through every heart.

 

What attracted me to The Smiths isn't that hard to see: the lyrics are very poetic and sometimes romantic, sometimes eerie and depressed, with also often a political undertone. Lyrics about alienation, loneliness and being misunderstood are cliche, but Morrissey brings them in such an honest and in-depth way that I was amazed by so much lyrical beauty. As an Aspie, the aspie element in some songs also stroke me of course. "How soon is now" (and especially the line about going to a club, hoping to meet someone you connect with, but leaving disillusioned on your own) could be an Aspie anthem, while also songs such as "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out" and the brilliant line "and then a strange fear gripped me and I just couldn't ask" are very recognisable to many Aspies, including me. The Smiths to me have always been a bit of an Aspie band, even though none of the members have any publically known diagnosis whatsoever, and of course the Smiths are much more.

 

Combining the eerieness and romance (such as There Is A Light... dealing with romance by wishing to die together and to never return home) but also sometimes deeply romantic ("No it's not like any other love, this one is different because it's us" from the song Hand In Glove) and sometimes just a bit satirical yet with a kick in the eye of politicians worldwide... The Smiths were diverse but never failed to amaze me with their musical and lyrical brilliance.

 

 

 

For over two years I have been a very active member of Strangeways, an internet fan community about The Smiths. Unlike other forums, who generally focus more on Morrissey and all he's done since the Smiths, Strangeways is really a Smiths forum (without completely ignoring Mozzer's solo work). The community has not a large number of very active members, but the hardcore members are extremely interesting and nice people who are always up for good craic but also for some in-depth discussions.

 

The forum has a long-term tradition of "Member of the Week" elections where the member of the week has to be interviewed by the other members. Last week I was, for the second time, the victim having to answer the questions :)  My first time was 2 years ago when I was still based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Lot has changed for me ever since as I became even more into politics, experienced the beauty of two more home countries, and further expanded my artistic horizons by discovering a lot more bands, and fell in love deeply with the Middle East.

 

Those who want to read my views about issues such as romance, sexuality's role in society, capital punishment, the true meaning of gothness, life as a traveller, the politics of both my native country and the ones I have been living in ever since.... You can find the most recent interview here:

http://www.strangewaysherewecome.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=1504

 

For all records, you find the older one from 2 years ago here:

http://www.strangewaysherewecome.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=1180

 

Smiths fans in general are always welcome to join the Strangeways gang at www.strangewaysherewecome.co.uk

 

 

 

Peace to all, and Allah Korosun!

Victory, Not Vengeance

Most songs in my music collection have a rather sad or sombre undertone. It is not that I so much love to dwell in depressive feelings, but it seems that it is much more difficult to write optimistic or hopeful songs that feel honest and coming from the heart. While a lot of songs manage to express feelings of loss, sadness and despair with the most beautiful poetic words that you immediately recognise yourself in, it seems only a handful of artists manage to write songs about those moments of bliss and joy that you immediately recognise your own experiences in. Many songs trying to reflect the feelings of joy fall into clichés.

 

There are exceptions though. Such as this one: "Standing" by VNV Nation.

 

VNV Nation are an Irish-British band (though operating from Hamburg, Germany) that are usually classified in the "futurepop" or "EMB" style of music (but I am not a specialist when it comes to labels...). The VNV in the band name stands for Victory, Not Vengeance, resembling the band motto to look forward with hope and ambition rather than looking back in bitterness.

 

The song "Standing" is about those special moments of ultimate joy, when all good things seem to just come together. The sort of moment so intense that you remember it for years to come, remembering it as if it was yesterday. The sort of moment you want to remember for life to look back upon during troubled times. And this is the exact point of the song: treasure those special moments, remember them as intensely and clearly as you can, and use them as a piece of strength when you most need it.

 

One line in the song especially sums up the message of the song completely, it is one of the very few optimistic lines from a song that really moved me and that is written in a way beautiful enough to really express the feeling in an honest and true way:

 

"I let the wind run through my hands, before I turn to walk away

In distant days I long to sense it all so clear"

 

Also the message of the chorus pretty much sums up the feeling well: "fighting time so hard I pray that this moment lasts forever".

 

However, as optimistic the song may sound, there is some hidden gloom if you wish it to be there, because the song also clearly points at the fact that no such feeling lasts forever and that darker times will come. However, focus on the poetic beauty of these lyrics and maybe it can give you some hope or strength as well, as I believe this was the original message as it was intended by singer-lyricist Ronan Harris.

 

A fan tribute to VNV Nation featuring this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsFlzhzxTlA

 

The full lyrics:

"Eyes betray the soul
And bear its thinking.
Beyond words they say
So many things to me.

A stranger here reborn it seems
Awaking wonders deep in me.
If nothing's ventured nothing's gained,
So I must seize the day.

And fighting time so hard I pray
That this moment lasts forever.
And will the world stay standing still
At least for me.

Through my eyes stare into me.
I bear my heart for all to see.
With my face turned to the sun
There ever standing still.

It wasn't you it wasn't me
It wasn't anything.
It was a day so long awaited
And a chance to be as me.

I let the wind run through my hands
Before I turned to walk away.
In distant days I long to
Sense it all so clear.

And fighting time so much I ask.
I will this moment last forever.
Though seasons change and things come to pass
Remain inside of me.

I had no faith before that time
In any vow or deed.
Days followed days and
Years were meaningless.
Despite the wisdom of defeat
I bore my heart for all to see
The wonders I'd seen.
The wonders I'd seen."

 

 

 

 

Also, as much as those who know me are not used to me liking pop tunes, another hopeful and uplifting song you may wish to check out is "Run" by Northern Ireland's new musical pride Snow Patrol. The song was not intended as a lovesong though, as the lyricist wrote it to try to give himself courage when he had ended up in hospital with some bad injuries and a serious depression. However, no doubt the song has lifted up many people who used a slightly different interpretation to the lyrics.

 

The official video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Qen3Xovtfc

 

 

 

 

These few musical gems may keep you all busy while you really expected a football report from me probably. Well, I went to Tennis Borussia Berlin last Saturday, but upon arrival at the Mommsenstadion (one of Berlin's bigger and most famous arenas) I found the place desolate and the pitch water-soaked. The game was called off, while ironically the amateur team playing in the same street could have their game played due to their artificial grass pitch...