10 Iron Maiden, Steam

MUSIC Yes, THE Iron Maiden. Yes, for the first time IN PERU. March 26th, 2009. Still hard to believe, even though the band has it posted on their official website as part of their 'Somewhere Back in Time' tour. I'm still speechless. Just one day after I was talking to a friend about how incredible it would be to have Maiden here, it appeared in the news and it started spreading like wildfire. I don't want to think this much ahead, but I know I'll make everything possible to be in the first row, waving a giant flag and screaming: Up the Irons!!!
EDIT - Almost forgot to mention, tomorrow (December 8th) marks the 4th anniversary of the death of one of the most respected metal guitarists, off all time, 'Dimebag' Darrell. Pay your respects by blasting 'Cemetery Gates' on your stereo or by going to a tribute concert if there's one near you!

MOVIES Man, Bee Movie was a total letdown. What? That's like a year-old movie? Shit, sorry, I'm so far behind my movie-watching it's not even funny. Next up: Eastern Promises! (That's 2007 too? Aw, nuts.)

GAMES Since I've put off the pimpin' of my ride computer until next year, even though I'm dying to try out Fallout 3 (check my friend's screenshots if you haven't seen the game), I have to keep playing Roms and older PC games (I will even go back and play the Monkey Island series! How exciting) for now. Which hasn't been that bad: I signed up to Steam, and a friend gave me Half-Life as a gift (it was on sale for its tenth anniversary), and since I jumped straight into Half-Life 2 without even knowing what happened in the first one (I know, shame on me...), I knew it was time to learn the origins of the greatest FPS. Well, that's my opinion anyway. Steam has also been great for trying out demos like Tomb Raider: Underworld (nice graphics, has some big flaws overall), Football Manager 2009 (great, no complaints with this one), and Penny Arcade Presents: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode Two (long title, short demo). Great fun.

By the way, this is my All-Time Top 5 First-Person Shooters:
- Half-Life 2
- Doom 3 (either this or the original Doom)
- Call of Duty 4
- Prey
- Return to Castle Wolfenstein

Happy Holidays. See ya next year!

03 Gamma Ray, Portal

MUSIC A little update on my last post: I got a hold of three of Gamma Ray's best albums and I was convinced to go to the concert by a friend. I'm not gonna bitch about the prices anymore :) I'm happy with general admission tickets (the farthest from the stage), I am still gonna enjoy the hell out of that concert.
A second update: The concert was better than I imagined it. Paid for general admission tickets but got to the VIP zone, thanks to Gamma Ray's Kai Hansen. A vid of the moment when he invited us to the front is goddamn unavailable as of yet, I'll just keep looking. Helloween was no less impressive. Both gave excellent performances.

I'll also attend Megadeth's gig, although most likely be paying for general tickets. Will I get to VIP this time...? Unlikely.


Great albums I've discovered recently: Lions Share - Emotional Coma, Brand New Sin - Brand New Sin, Gamma Ray - Heading for Tomorrow.

GAMES Even though it was way too short, I was awestruck during and after playing Valve's Portal. You can say I've seen the light after watching the ending; it was everything people had said. If you want me to spoil you the experience, click here.