Tag: linkin park

Goodbye 2025, It’s Been a Year

2025 has been a year. That’s the best way to describe it. Not all bad, not all good. A lot of fun times, a lot of not so fun times. While most of the year was good, I feel like I need to mention the bad as well. Every year has things we love and things we wish didn’t happen. That’s just how life is.

It’s been such a long year it’s hard to remember what exactly happened. One of the first things I remember doing was going to Colorado to ski. I went in early January. It was supposed to be a fun time, but everyone got norovirus and that kind of ruined the trip. We made the best of it, but it was definitely not easy.

What was supposed to be a fun week only got worse upon coming home. My mom informed us that my grandma had passed away. It happened the weekend after we got back. She was my last living grandparent. Thanksgiving and Christmas this year felt so different. I visited her grave not long after with two of my brothers and my sister after we played some pond hockey.

In May, I finally graduated from college. I got a degree in TV and movie production. It took me 15 years, but I finally did it. People like to make fun of me all the time for taking so long. It honestly doesn’t bother me. It took me a long time to figure out what I wanted to do, and if I could go back in time, I wouldn’t change a thing. The path I was given was exactly the path I needed to take.

Every concert I went to this year was amazing. Most notably was Linkin Park. I have waited so long to see them play. Chester’s death still hurts to this day. Seeing them play his songs and some new stuff healed my inner child a bit. Emily fits very well into the Linkin Park. While she struggled to sing Chester’s parts, she absolutely killed her parts. I’d go see them again in a heartbeat.

Towards the end of the year, in November, I strained a tendon in my arm playing hockey. That put me on the sidelines for about a month. It’s still not fully healed, but I can at least play hockey again. I’m just not taking any slap-shots until after I go to physical therapy in January. Not playing hockey for a month was awful. I missed playing it so much.

After years of wondering, I was also diagnosed with OCD and ADHD this year. I’ve suspected for a long time that I had them and it was finally confirmed. Does this change who I am? No. But now that I know, I can start getting help to manage it, and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing for the past few months. Progress has been slow, but there is progress. That’s all anyone can ask for.

With the year coming to a close, the only thing left is to talk about goals for next year. Next year I’m putting me first. I’m tired of doing things for everyone else just to be trash talked later or called lazy. I’m just going to do my thing and that’ll be that. I’ve also been looking for a new job. No luck so far, but something will hit eventually.

I also want to spend more time learning a foreign language. I do my daily Duolingo lesson, but I feel like I could do so much more to help myself learn. I grew up with English and I always thought it was so cool when people could switch between two languages. I want to be that person.

Finally, I want to read 15 books by the end of 2026. As of this post, I’ve read 11 for 2025. My goal was 12. I’m halfway done with a book and if I really get on it I could finish it before the new year. If I don’t finish it, that’s OK too. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I could ever read 11 books in a year. I was never much of a reader, but as time has gone on, I’ve developed the desire to read. It’s calming and just a good way to wind down. It also keeps me off my phone which I also want to do more of.

I Swear It’s Not Angry Music

What is your favorite genre of music?

My favorite genre of music is “heavy” metal. I say that because the bands I listen to fall into many sub-genres of metal. Some of the bands I listen to are so much heavier than the others. I wasn’t always into metal music. I only started getting into it when I was in my teens. Before that, I mainly listened to classic rock and country. And, as a surprise to many people, the Backstreet Boys.

The band that got me into metal was Metallica. They’re one of the first heavy bands I remember listening to. Aside from Metallica, I also remember listening to Linkin Park (Hybrid Theory and Meteora), as well as System of a Down. I remember feeling like listening to System of a Down made me a rebellious teenager. I just saw System of a Down live for a second time this summer and they put on an amazing show!

As I got older, my tastes expanded. By the time I reached high school, I was listening to Deathstars, Cradle of Filth, and Marilyn Manson. I remember making a mix CD to play in my CD player on the way to school (yes I’m old). Deathstars and Cradle of Filth were also my introduction to screaming vocals. Cradle of Filth is still active, but it’s been some time since Deathstars has put out an album. I’ll occasionally listen to both, but not as much as I once used to.

From there everything is a blur. I got into more bands. Some heavy others not. My first ever concert was Volbeat, Lacuna Coil, Motorhead, and Megadeth. I don’t remember what year that was, but it was an awesome show. I saw them at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago, IL. I’ve since seen Nightwish there as well as Epica and Sabaton.

For a long time, Iron Maiden had been my favorite band. I’ve seen them live 3 times so far. As time went on, Sabaton took the number 1 spot. I’ve also seen Sabaton 3 times. Currently, I think the number 1 spot belongs to Lorna Shore. I’ve seen them twice, once as a headliner, but they are all such talented individuals.

Funny thing with Lorna Shore, I could never listen to deathcore. I felt like my head would explode. My actual introduction to Lorna Shore was on TikTok. I had come across the final breakdown in “To the Hellfire” and thought it was from a Call of Duty zombies video. I was so completely wrong. Even after hearing that, I didn’t listen to them.

It wasn’t until Pain Remains that I gave them a legitimate chance. Pain Remains changed everything for me. I thought Pain Remains was as good as it would get for Lorna Shore and deathcore. Then they released a new album this year called I Feel The Everblack Festering Within Me. It’s just as good, if not better than Pain Remains. Lorna Shore has written several songs that just hit you right in the feels. They’re relatable and that’s why I love them so much. Their music speaks directly to me in a way no band has ever been able to do before.

I often say silly things like “I listen to angry music because it makes me happy.” Or my other favorite thing to say at work is “They scream in my ear so I don’t scream out loud.” It’s dumb, but it’s also true. Some things can’t be sung. They have to be screamed. And when I hear that screaming in my ear, everything feels OK. It’s the calm I need in a sea of chaos. The heavy music and screaming keeps me calm in stressful situations. And that’s something I’ll forever be grateful for.