Skip to main content

1866 (Porch and Portal)

CHEETOS MIX-UPS FLAMIN' HOT & CHEEZY MIX. Now that that's out of the way, tonight I consumed said salty snack. What exactly is this mix you ask? Flamin' Hot (dense Cheetos), Cheddar Jalapeno (somewhat poofy circles), Cheddar and Double Cheddar (poofy Cheetos). When I opened the bag all that I saw was the poofy cheddar and double cheddar snacks, due to the more dense cheddar jalap and flamin' hots the bag was somewhat segregated which was odd but not unheard of. To fully experience this bag I broke out a bowl and dumped em in so that I'd be able to get a more even mix of the bags goodness. Upon close inspection I'd say that the ratio is a little off, I think the flamin' hots got shorted a little in the bag but it wasn't overly severe. Once I stepped into the snack I noticed that even the poofy double/cheddar snacks had residual hot that rubbed off from the other flavours in the bag, this was welcomed. It gave the bag a nice range of heat on top of the mixed density throughout. For those unfamiliar with flamin' hot cheetos, they are very similar if not very slightly hotter than your standard jalapeno seasoning found on various brands of chips. The cheddar jalapeno circles taste like your standard jalapeno cheddar seasoning, a bit of a bite but nowhere near brutal. The cheddar and double cheddar cheetos are the same flavour as far as I'm concerned, the only difference is stick length vs nub. If any of my flavour points of reference are foreign to you, step up your salty snack game. The singular snacks that make up this mix are fairly standard. Pretty good mix, pick em up if they still exist and you see them, I do however recommend turning the bag upside down and shaking it prior to opening unless you plan on bowling it to obtain proper mixture. [These have been sitting in the salty cellar for quite some time. The best before date on the bag lists Aug 11 (with no year)..there is however a contest on the back that closes on August 10, 2015, so..yeah. To my amazement these are not stale at all. I'm not sure if that is impressive or frightening for a corn based porous snack to remain fresh for that long. Thumbs up?]

To me Crusades is a mixed bag of a band. It's not that their sound isn't cohesive but they wear a lot of influences on their vinyl. There's sort of North American hardcore/post-hardcore mixed with pop/punk and NWOBHM thrown in there, then a dash of folk among whatever else I'm missing. As with previous albums, Crusades most recent This is a Sickness and Sickness will End is a concept album about death and despair (in general) with each of the songs being influenced by a poet from the date the song is titled (liner notes list the poets). Everything about Crusades is demanding from the music to the lyrics, which are poetry. You are able to enjoy This is a Sickness and Sickness will End on so many layers, whether you choose the surface or dig right in it's rewarding. Everyone contributes vocals with band members being recognizable from various bands within the Ottawa metal/punk scene. Crusades for me is a bit of a grower of a band but I like what they're doing.

Stay hydrated,
MARC

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Stairway to heaven 2

Dear Diary, I was in Dollarama last week picking up some last minute..well it doesn't really matter why I was there. Anyway, as I was in the line for the checkout and out of the corner of my eye I noticed a blue bag that I'd seen a million times before. For some reason this time, it's unassuming blue on blue top with stock photo potato chip bottom intrigued me (that in addition to it being 280g for $2). I thought, to myself, 'hey, they carry Covered Bridge..maybe these Made in Canada "D Gourmet" potato chips are some other high end chip that just happens to be carried in dollar stores.'. I proceeded to take the $2 leap and threw them in my basket. Within an hour of getting home I had cracked the bag and was happily consuming. These D Gourmet Salt & Vinegar potato chips were for lack of better term, pretty run-of-the-mill. The chips are somewhat sterile, no well done chips and no skins, and fairly lightweight. The seasoning is faint but fairly well di...

Antoinette

 At the end of 2023 I saw Quit It! play in Winnipeg at the Handsome Daughter. I typically try to catch the opening bands, because I like being introduced to new music. One of the opening bands was Leon's Getting Larger, LGL (not sure if they ever abbreviate their band name like that [it reminds me of LWL, the Jersey pop punk band from the late 90s early 2000s, I'll Always Remember the 6th is such a banger {LGL doesn't really sound much like LWL, other than a bit of off center pop sounding...where was I going with this}]) were really fun to watch and they produce a sound that I don't hear very often coming out of Manitoba (maybe I just typically run in a different musical circle?). Anyway, Leon's Getting Larger put out their first album late last year, You Be Good Now ...which saw a vinyl release earlier this month (February 2025). I ordered a copy and it came to my door late last week. This album's great. Leon's Getting Larger has a couple singin' voices...

And Nothing Is Forever

It happened. I started wondering if it ever would. It's been 16 years. People who were born after 4:13 Dream became teenagers and started driving between 4:13 and Songs Of A Lost World. Am I complaining that The Cure took 16 years to put out another album? No. They don't owe me anything. If Lost World never came out that would have been perfectly fine. Mr. Smith and his cohorts provided the world with hours and hours of fantastic music. In 2024 they added 49 minutes and 16 seconds into their absolutely amazing catalogue. A lot of the lead-up to Lost World spoke of the darkness of the album, the very few reviews that I've glanced at have mentioned the darkness as well. Like, I sort of see it, but to me, it's more of a heavy album (not like metal heavy, more so that there's some serious weight to this piece of art) and sonically epic soundscapes. There's a lot of brightness in the music and vocal melodies. Don't get me wrong, the lyrics are super bleak and if ...