GIFT GUIDE: Ghost Cult’s Holiday 2020 Gift Guide


Alcohol

The best Christmas gifts are the most useful ones. Slapping a bow on a bottle of Jack is the easiest gift you can give a metalhead. The great thing about it? Even if they have a preference, they aren’t going to turn down free alcohol. Type any brand and the words “gift set” into Google and you’ll find something. However, premade gift sets have a tendency to be overpriced and generic. You’re better off grabbing an empty box and filling it up with a variety of airplane bottles. It’s kind of like a box of chocolates—But booze. 

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BOOK REVIEW: Jessie May – Money Hacks for Metalheads and Old Millennials


One of the few regrets of my life so far is I never really learned how to handle and invest money. While I squarely blame myself for my misspent youth and years when I made higher salaries and still failed to save, I have to wonder why they don’t teach personal finance in High School, as opposed to say, calculus most of us will never use after that semester is over. Even in my long-run at undergrad and graduate school to earn multiple degrees, no one explained to me how much my student loans would dwarf my expenses and even salary in some years. All the while during this time, I played in middling successful bands with a regional following or ran a series of heavy metal websites for the last 15 years. Do we abandon all hope, ye who goes to the ATM to see a negative balance? Or is there a hero coming out of the dark to demystify the seemingly impossible Mount Doom-style odds against working-class musicians? 

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EP REVIEW: Turkey Vulture – Time To Pay 


Time To Pay (Self-Released)  is the new EP from Connecticut’s Turkey Vulture, a duo consisting of Jessie May (guitar, vocals, bass, cello) and Jim Clegg (drums, artwork). The EP is a force of incredible energy that nods to a deceptively diverse set of influences. This is punk; this is doom metal; this is stoner rock. Above all, it emanates a refreshingly raw and gloriously unpolished power.Continue reading


Dumb and Dumbest Episode #348: Jessie Of Alternative Control Returns!


Time Management is one of those things that one tends to overlook but can be a huge workflow suck if you are not mindful of it. Jessie May (Alternative Control blog, Owlmaker, Turkey Vulture) joins Keefy and Curtis to discuss her take on getting organized and getting stuff done! Check out Dumb and Dumbest Episode #348: Jessie Of Alternative Control Returns! Dumb and Dumbest is hosted by Matt Bacon (Dropout Media, Ripple Music, Prophecy Productions), Publicist Curtis Dewar (Dewar PR) and Keith Chachkes (Ghost Cult/BDWE Media). In addition to the podcast, Matt, Curtis, and Keith all host The Music Marketing Challenges: low-cost, super high-value private training to bands and artists.  And we just launched a Get hands-on practical experience to market your band like a pro today! DM Matt or Curtis at the links below for detailsContinue reading


Dumb And Dumbest 101: Interview With Jessie May from Alternative Control and Owl Maker on Feminism



For Alternative Control boss and Owl Maker member Jessie May, her passion about feminism and #metoo is not a movement, it’s part of her life, and has shaped her experience in music. Dumb and Dumbest Podcast #101 is streaming right now, and it’s an Interview With Jessie May from Alternative Control and Owl Maker on FeminismDumb and Dumbest is a music industry podcast hosted by music executive Matt Bacon (Dropout Media, Ripple Music, Prophecy Productions) and Publicist Curtis Dewar (Dewar PR).  Continue reading


Owl Maker – Sky Road EP


Since the release of debut EP Paths of the Slain earlier this year, Connecticut trio Owl Maker – named after a Lakotan crone goddess, no less – have been gaining praise for their hard-hitting Blues Rock, and latest EP Sky Road (self-released) further whets the appetite for a full-length attempt.Continue reading