The Harmony of Religion

I just got the new album by Epica (Epica: Design Your Universe).

So what? You say, what has that got to do with Scientology? Let me explain:

When I first listened to this album I was wondering if these guys were Scientologists. The lyrics I could hear and some of the song titles sounded very Scientological to me.

For example: From the song "Unleashed":

"I'll exist again
No more lost endeavors
Nothing to contend
When I'm free"

So I hunted down the lyrics and read them. (Great lyrics by the way). Once I found the lyrics, I discovered why I thought they sounded Scientological: they are from Buddhist and Hindu philosophy, so no wonder they speak to a Scientologist. (In case you didn't know, the Buddhist and Hindu religions are ancestors of Scientology.)

Anyway, the album is great. The genre is gothic metal (that's metal with a classical vibe, this album includes orchestra and operatic chorus). I highly recommend it.

I like complex, fast and loud music and this is certainly that. But it is tempered with quiet pieces such as "Tides of Time" and "White Waters", but even when the album is loud it never drowns out the music or the vocals. And, the lead vocalist, Simone Simons, has one of the most beautiful voices I've ever heard, the album is worth it just to hear her sing.

Anyway, it just showed me how much people of different religions can end up in harmony.

I'll leave you with this from the song "Design Your Universe":

"Don't forget you're able to
Design your own universe"

-

The Man Who Defined "Cool"

Isaac Hayes was the epitome of cool. It wasn't just his deep sexy baritone, his brilliant musical compositions, the magnificent "Shaft", the fact that he was the first African American Composer to win an Oscar for Best Musical Score or even the fact that he was a King in Ghana. It was more than all that.

Some people are tall, some are small, some are happy, some sad, but Isaac was cool. I saw him perform a few years ago with a large band. There were guitarists, drummers, horn players, saxophonists and more. They were all great musicians. They had played several numbers with other performers and the audience had enjoyed the performances, but when Isaac stepped onto the stage they all became cool.

The horn players stood differently, more relaxed, more laid-back, more ... cool. It was the same with all the rest: the way the guitarist strummed, the rythm that suddenly began to come out of the drums, the way the backing vocalists swayed as they sang into their microphones - they were all just so darn cool.

And when they played "Shaft" and Isaac conducted, we in the audience began to feel cool too. It was infectious!

So, to summarize, Isaac Hayes was cool incarnate.

He left his body yesterday and to those of us who believe in the existence of the human spirit, we know that although his body has stopped funtioning, Isaac is not gone. So we wait in eager anticipation for the cool to return.