The nature of the beast and its intentions are two completely different things. Think about it. Today is a BIG day for Stigmata ‘cos later this day we will embark on our very first tour of Malaysia, and head out brandishing the flag of Pure Sri Lankan Metal from our bittersweet shores to Johor, Malaysia. We are told that Johor; Rock City as it’s popularly known is a long drive from Kuala Lampur where we will reach ideally sometime tomorrow morning. The best part of this trip is that some of our dear friends will travel with us to catch the tour; for many of them it’s their first Stigz tour so it should be interesting. Charlie is making it for the gig from Aussie so really excited to meet him as well.

Gonna have ourselves a mighty good time I reckon.

And all things considered almost every lady I know from around the world keeps insisting that the entire Band should take Durex contraceptives from here… whatever that’s meant to insinuate.

Truth is we already know there is a greater scene in terms of age and credibility in Malaysia. We know that Malaysia is the home to some amazing musicians and artistes. We understand that although we’ve been asked to headline on both days of the event that it’s not going to be a walk in the park. 12 Bands in total; giants from Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia sharing one stage with us, and we being the only Sri Lankan Metal Band to perform at the Southern Ultimate Explosion 2009 have a lot to live up to. Public perception narrows down to sex, drugs and Rock ‘n Roll but in truth the ONLY thing on our minds is the Rock ‘n Roll part ‘cos we've gotta make sure everything from the sounds, to the health and focus of the Band is in tact, and a two hour set on two nights straight is going to be a challenge… And challenges are what we live for in Stigz so it should all be fine. We are not foolish or shortsighted into believing everything will work out smoothly. It’s not being pessimistic just being realistic because tragedy and tribulation lurk almost always wherever Stigmata are. It’s one of those things. So let’s just say we are prepared for fate’s most sinister cruelties… anticipating trouble is an important aspect for artistic types it reminds us that we too are vulnerable and gullible at times when our will should be unshakable. But even we scar and bleed from mortal wounds so...

This is real life in real time so things don’t fall into place like the movies and soaps the way we expect, and if it doesn’t we should be geared as performers to deliver a musical tempest without compromise. I have no doubt or qualms about that. If there is anything that Stigmata does better than most is live up to the essence of our reputation under severe pressure & stress.

I’ve received many mails; prominently from the fairer sex with complaints that my blog should be updated more frequently. As flattered as I am, the thing is I’ve honestly been caught between the good old hammer and the anvil as they say.

The past month has consisted of work, more work, a big ass event our agency successfully coordinated and handled for the Chartered Institute of Marketing; it was our first beach party we organized, from the conceptualizing to the promotions etc., and boy did we kick ass… it is spoken about in hallowed tones that it was one of the finest parties ever organized B), we were busy with recording album number 3 – that’s going steady but slow, then rehearsals for our Splitting the Paradigm gig in SL which was on the 4th of July and the Malaysian Tour, I had my second stage Marketing exams, my aunt and uncle were pretty sick, we have a new skinsman so we had to get him ready with tracks off our debut ‘Hollow Dreams’, our second record ‘Silent Chaos Serpentine’ and the new album.

I’ll attempt to go into intricacies when time permits… I’ve been itching to give you guys an update on all my naughty endeavors in the past few weeks, good kinky sex, how I played acoustic guitar after 9 years on one of our old tunes called ‘Falling Away’ which we haven’t performed in over 6 years and then there’s more… the part that’ll make your juices ebb and flow. Now, I am just teasin’ you that’s all.

I promise to give you a full update on our Malaysian Tour, we will attempt to update our Official Myspace and FB Groups out and just in case you’ve no idea what I am on about check out these awesome links:

The Official Myspace with the latest news, international tour updates, reviews, interviews, videos, live performances, studio sessions, stream some kick ass tunes and more - http://www.myspace.com/stigmatasrilanka

The Official Stigmata Facebook Group – http://www.facebook.com/sureshdesilva?ref=profile#/group.php?gid=2279763077&ref=ts

The Official Stigmata Fan Page on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/sureshdesilva?ref=profile#/pages/stigmata/9534444922?ref=ts

The gig on the 4th was absoFUCKINGlutely kick ass! You can see the thousands of pics on FB… some pretty hectic shots this time. And “Splitting the Paradigm” on the 4th helped us to set the tone and get ready for Malaysia. Amazing performances by FuzMechanX and Paranoid Earthling ass well. And a big shout out to everyone who attended and helped organize the gig!

So we leave tonight… we return on the 15th.

We’ve got some kick ass tunes lined up, some awesome covers and enough fury and fire to leave a trail of rapture and wake in Malaysia. We ain’t taking no prisoners this time. No apologies. No lamentations.

It’s going to be 2 nights of Pure fucking Sri Lankan Metal and mayhem.

Let the chaos ensue as the lion roars in triumphant thunder…

And we the children of the lion shall carry its flag high and proud.

Love you all… Thanks for the undying support and motivation.

Be safe my subs, doms, “Suite” fans and peers…

Till next I blog…

S