Daily Archives: October 13, 2023

Royal Caribbean International

MJM Marine will build several public areas onboard Royal Caribbeans Utopia of the Seas, including a new poolside food truck concept

Utopia of the Seas is set to be the worlds second largest cruise ship and Royal Caribbean Internationals sixth Oasis-class vessel when it debuts in summer 2024. According to Northern Ireland-based outfitter MJM Marine, which is currently building multiple onboard public spaces, the ship will take cruising to a new level of accessibility and adventure.

Were excited to work with Royal Caribbean again to bring Utopia of Seas to life, says Fiona Nevin, head of global business development at MJM Marine, which has carried out major work on each of the six Oasis-class ships and served as lead outfitter on dry docks for Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. Each of the five areas on the ship that well be creating will bring something fresh to the fleet, which all members of the family can enjoy.

MJM Marine will work on the Playscape area; a new poolside food truck concept; a Caribbean-style bar called Pesky Parrot, which will be located on the Royal Promenade; a Starbucks; and an immersive dining experience designed to transport travellers on a multi-course, locomotive culinary journey.

The playscape incorporates a feature lighthouse for access between decks 15 and 16 and will have curved slides and arches for activity sections such as climbing, says Nevin. It will also feature floor-mounted starfish and crab elements to match the beach theme and shaded seating areas. Were also very excited to work on the dining experience area that will make guests feel like they are touring the golden age of rail travel with a variety of sights, sounds and flavours.

Utopia of the Seas is currently being built by Chantiers de lAtlantique in Saint-Nazaire, France, and MJM Marine will work closely with Royal Caribbean International and the shipyard to ensure the project is completed ahead of time.

Collaboration is at the heart of MJM operations, says Nevin. We will liaise with the shipyard to ensure the project is structured and organised proactively for optimum efficiency. Manufacturing efficiency always starts before the production stage, planning prepares the cruise line and shipyard for the job that lies ahead, outlines tasks involved and the order in which they should occur. We have partnered with Royal Caribbean International on many projects and will schedule regular touchpoints to monitor progress and implement any outstanding actions so that our work on Utopia of the Seas is a success.

This article was first published in theAutumn/Winter 2023 issue of Cruise & Ferry Review. All information was correct at the time of printing, but may since have changed.Subscribeto Cruise & Ferry Review for FREE to get the next issue delivered directly to your inbox or your door.

See the original post here:

How MJM Marine is helping to create a cruise utopia - Cruise and Ferry

On Saturday, Oct. 14 around 11:41 a.m., the Texas Hill Country will experience the much-hyped annular solar eclipse. While the Austin area will only see roughly 80 percent coverage by the moon over the sun, San Antonio and other Central Texas towns will have around 90 percent coverage during the astronomical spectacle. Heres the inside scoop on the upcoming eclipse.

Unlike a lunar eclipse, which happens when the shadow of the Earth lines up on the moon, a solar eclipse is the rarer time when the moon blocks the sun when viewed from a specific area on Earth.

Partially: While the path of the eclipse wont be directly over Austin, it will be more than 80 percent covered above our skies, so attendees can get a glimpse of it. (Plus, solar eclipse glasses could complete your festival look and stand out from the usual suspects at the festival.)

If you want to see more coverage, yes! The best bets for seeing the eclipse near Austin will be in Kerrville, San Antonio, New Braunfels, or Utopia. Here are some parties worth checking out:

Hop on a tube at Rockin R Solar Eclipse on the River and float down the Guadalupe as you watch the moon cover the sun to create a ring of fire. Floaters will meander down the river for the duration of the eclipse. For a drier but still dynamic viewing experience, the meadows at Natural Bridge Caverns is an ideal spot to see the eclipse. Book some loungers and enjoy a brunch before visiting the caves below.

At the Solar Eclipse at the Alamo, buy commemorative solar eclipse glasses that feature the iconic roofline of the Alamo as you watch this spectacular event from the historic site.Other stellar parties in SA include the Brackenridge Park Conservancy Eclipse & Sips Viewing Party and the Rosarios Eclipse Viewing Party.

Festival goers can soak in the energy of the eclipse at Welcome Home Fest during a sound bath performed by Brother Brothers on Chapel Hill before jamming out with artists like Sir Woman and Adrianne Lenker later that night.

During Eclipse UTOPiA, camp out or snag a yurt for the weekend as musical acts take over the ranch. The Octopus Project will play during the stunning celestial event.

Grab a pair of stylish Halo Eclipse Glasses, American Astronomical Societyapproved spectacles, for safely viewing the phenomenon. Made from bamboo, these spectacles protect your eyes without compromising your style. HEB also saves the day yet again with affordable solar glasses for sale at its grocery stores. Ballin on a budget? The Austin Public Library is offering two free pairs per person.

Correct: The Hill Country will experience totality (the moment of total obscuration of the sun)during the solar eclipse in April! Mark your calendar for April 8, 2024.

See the rest here:

Everything You Need to Know About the Solar Eclipse in Central ... - Austin Monthly

The inaugural SXSW Sydney is set to kick off in Australia this weekend, expanding Austins famed South by Southwest festival outside North America for the first time in its history.

This new expansion of our event family is specifically dedicated to innovation and creativity in the Asia-Pacific region and takes place October 15-22, 2023 in Sydney, Australia. Gathering the worlds most inspired thinkers and creatives, SXSW Sydney will be an exploration of the best in Music, Screen, Gaming, Technology, and Innovation. Like SXSW in Austin, SXSW Sydney is a must-attend event for creators and professionals ready to discover what's next while seeking career-enhancing connections.

SXSW Sydney will feature more than 1,000 future-forward experiences including 700+ thought-provoking speakers, 300+ cutting-edge performances, 170+ thrilling game demos, and 200+ captivating screen events with five exclusive gala premieres. Dive into the latest announcements and programming overview of this historic, inaugural event!

The SXSW Sydney Conference will feature over 700 inspiring speakers across keynotes, presentations, panels, workshops, and mentor sessions.

Joining AI expert and futurist Amy Webb on the Headline Speakers lineup are newly-announced Australian screen icon and Founder of Blossom Films Nicole Kidman; rapper, singer-songwriter, producer, and humanitarian Chance The Rapper; and Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker. Hear from innovators and creatives at the top of their industries including Founder & CEO of Make Love Not Porn Cindy Gallop; AFL icon, Indigenous Defence & Infrastructure Consortium CEO Adam Goodes; Co-Founder and CTO of Slack Cal Henderson; Womens Rights Activist Manal Al Sharif; Oscar-nominated actor Naomi Watts; and many more.

The SXSW Sydney Screen Festival includes feature films, shorts, TV premieres, music videos, and XR, embracing the democratization of screen storytelling. This future-focused celebration of film includes the World Premiere of Faraway Downs, Baz Luhrmanns reimagined work of his epic Australia; documentary World Premiere of Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles; Australian Premiere of Emerald Fennell's Saltburn; Gabriel Gasparinatos's music documentary ONEFOUR: Against All Odds; Tim Barretto's Australian-made nod to 90s nostalgia Bassendream; South Koreas 2024 Oscar entry for Best International Feature Film, Concrete Utopia; Austin Smith's groundbreaking interactive film Lab Rat; and more.

A breadth of global talent are set to make their SXSW Sydney Music Festival debut with over 300 performances across 25 venues. Acts include Indonesian experimental outfit Batavia Collective; NYC buzz electronic act Fcuckers; Brisbane band Girl and Girl; 13 year old First Nations rapper Inkabee; Japan's Otoboke Beaver, and many more. Plus Australian homegrown heroes Elle Shimada, dust, The Terrys, Vv Pete, Teenage Joans, Dulcie, Andrew Gurruwiwi Band, Rum Jungle, GO-JO, Mi-Kaisha, Death by Denim, These New South Whales, Cody Jon, and Aodhan.

Celebrate the future of the gaming industry at the SXSW Sydney Games Festival with access to over 170 local and international independent games that will be playable across venues. Get a further glimpse of the future at Tech + Innovation events and the Sydney Expo.

Explore the latest programming announcements and event updates at sxswsydney.com.

2023 SXSW Sydney Schedule

Read the rest here:

Explore Programming for the Inaugural SXSW Sydney: Oct 15-22 - sxsw.com

After five millennia, the practice of writing still serves the enduring human need to communicate messages and information from place to place and time to time. Writing systems are encoded with cultural heritages and require preservation. Quasi: Experimental Writing Systems is an exhibition (opening November 16) about invented and imaginary writing systems. Klingon, Elvish and Kryptonian are popular contemporary examples, but they represent only a fraction of a much broader landscape, writes curator Lavinia Lascarsis about the exhibition she curated at Art Centers Hoffmitz Milken Center for Typography. Unlike writing systems that have evolved organically over generations of collective usage, the projects showcased in the exhibition present new configurations of signs and symbols, meticulously crafted at distinct points in time, each born with intention and purpose.

The urge to craft a writing system is inspired by a variety of personal, social and cultural factors. A few examples from an inexhaustible list of creative impulses are encoding messages through cryptography, preserving endangered languages, she continues, methods for faster writing, writing devoid of semantic content, investigating historical symbolism and its contemporary relevance, even channeling otherworldly entities through automatic writing.

This secret vice of inventing languagesas J.R.R. Tolkien refers to itexposes us all to linguistic operations outside of our everyday experience and reveals a fascination with otherness where mythology and utopia are recurring themes.

Lascarsis notes that Quasi has personal roots in her life. Around the age of 8, as a reaction to a loud and active home, she designed an encrypted cipher based on the Greek alphabet for writing private thoughts. A decade later, she developed a mild obsession with the stories set in Tolkiens Middle Earth and the fictional languages drawn from his vast backdrop of mythic narratives. Another 10 years on, amidst a career change, my journey into typography began, revealing its intricate connection to language. This evolved into a research project that addresses typography, linguistics and fiction.

Quasi views the invention of writing systems as a speculative process and an exercise of discovery to uncover new quasi-realities within our systems of communication, she explains. Playing with language and fostering linguistic diversity contributes to an ongoing dialog about imagination and re-worlding, and their potential as rebellious processes to disrupt existing power structures and reshape our collective narrative.

The works in the exhibition are rooted in this intersection. Delivered as font design projects, art books, scrolls, drawings, sculptures and other artifacts, some works are intentionally designed to be functional writing systems, allowing potential usage by others, while some exist in a realm where functionality becomes entirely irrelevant: Calder Ruhl Hansens D16 Syllabics is an abugida (syllabary writing system where consonants have built-in vowels) drawing from Canadian Aboriginal syllabics; Coline Bessons Arrakis, inspired by Frank Herberts science fiction novel Dune, is a sand plate inscribed with a rectilinear interpretation of the Arabic Kufic script; and Sound Clouds and Syllabaries by Ilka Helmig and Johannes Bergerhausen introduces a series of drawings capturing patterns of exhaled smoke generated during vocalization of syllables. Many of the projects in Quasi remain works-in-progress, mirroring the perpetual evolution of language itselfa fluid entity that lacks a definitive version and adapts in tandem with societal shifts.

Link:

The Daily Heller: The Art of Invented Scripts, Meaning Optional - PRINT Magazine

Andrea Branzi in 2008. Courtesy Wikimedia

Andrea Branzi, the Italian architect, designer, educator and thinker has died in Milan. Branzi trained as an architect at the Florence School of Architecture, receiving his degree in 1966. He then founded Archizoom Associati with Gilberto Corretti, Paolo Deganello, Massimo Morozzi, an experimental design group known for its groundbreaking projects including the visionary No-Stop-City, an unbuilt project presenting an urban utopia where the architectural form disappears and only the essential remains.

Branzi was also an educator who co-founded theDomus Academy post-graduate school of design in Milan in 1982. He was then the chairman of theSchool of Interior Design at thePolytechnic University of Milan until 2009. His ideas on theoretical architecture remain influential: Today, in order to create a new architecture and new urban spaces, it is necessary to begin further upstream: one has to plunge ones hands into that vast planktonic soup of products, technologies, pictures, signs, and data which make up the artificial universe in which man is completely immersed.

Branzis practice also included practical design objects, such as chairs and other furniture. His designs are part of the collections of important museums around the world, such as the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris; the V&A in London; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Houston; and MoMA, New York. He also had several exhibitions at Galerie Isabella Bortolozzi in Berlin. Branzi won the Italian Architecture Prizes lifetime achievement award in 2022.

View original post here:

Andrea Branzi, visionary architect and designer, 19382023 - ArtReview

A hotel manager on 90,000 a year was a victim of sex discrimination when her bosses enforced a 33 per cent salary cut during Covid while two male managers only lost 20-25 per cent, a tribunal has ruled.

The owners of the three Utopia Leisure hotels argued that the men lost less money then Ms S Mueller because they both had two separate jobs, as hotel and spa managers.

Mr Heath, operations director for Utopia Leisure, and owners Mr and Mrs Hinchcliffe, said Mueller lost 33 per cent because she earned more than 85,000 per year.

The three had agreed the cut at the start of Covid, amid fears of job losses, with those earning 30-84,999 losing 25 per cent and those below 30,000 taking a 20 per cent hit.

Mr Perry and Mr Jurca earned more than 85,000, but the respondents took away 25 per cent for their general manager role and 20 per cent for the spa manager role, counting them as individual jobs.

The tribunal said it was an accounting detail and that Heath and the Hinchcliffes had used it to disguise a bespoke arrangement that favoured the two men over Mueller.

It added that the respondent's position that the pay cut was imposed on the male managers on the basis of their having two separate jobs was not only lacking in any logic but is not the case".

The claim for direct sex discrimination against all respondents was successful, while Mueller also won her claim for equal pay against Utopia Leisure.

The tribunal heard that Mueller was employed as a general manager at Great Fosters Hotel in Egham, which is owned by Utopia Leisure, from 15 April 2019 until her resignation on 8 January 2021.

Utopia Leisure operates five hotels under the brand Alexander Hotels and employs approximately 550 people.

According to the tribunal, in March 2020 the hospitality industry felt the full brunt of the coronavirus pandemic, subsequent restrictions and lockdowns, and Heath and Mr and Mrs Hinchcliffe discussed ways to maintain their business and retain their staff.

A pay cut was agreed upon by the three. The tribunal heard the pay cut was imposed by Utopia Leisure with a view to retaining jobs.

The tribunal also heard that, while not explicitly stated, the circumstances at the time were such that, had the pay cuts not been "imposed", it was recognised by all that the only alternative would be "job losses".

Heath explained to the panel that individuals on lower salaries were possibly "disproportionately" affected by pay reduction in respect of fundamental living needs. Those with higher incomes could afford the cuts better and therefore they lost a higher percentage, he said.

Heath informed the tribunal that he and the Hinchcliffes had reached an agreement: a 20 per cent pay cut for individuals earning less than 30,000, a 25 per cent pay cut for those on 30-84,999 and a 33 per cent pay cut for those earning 85,000 and over.

The tribunal ruled that Mueller's salary was 90,000, giving her a 33 per cent pay cut.

At the same time, the managers of two other hotels owned by the same group, Perry and Jurca, took a 25 per cent cut.

Heath said: The hotels managed by both Perry and Jurca had spas attached to them. These spas were run as separate businesses with their own internal accounts, profits and loss and balance sheet.

He added that it had been determined that Perry and Jurca therefore had two jobs and that the pay cuts percentage was applied to earnings from each, not added together.

Jurca's total pay of 90,000 was reported as 67,500 for the general manager function and 22,500 for his spa manager role, according to the tribunal.

Perry's overall remuneration of 91,000 was reported as 68,250 for his general manager position and 22,750 for his spa manager position. It was also highlighted that the cuts were implemented automatically via payroll, with no management scrutiny.

Both men were handed a 25 per cent cut for their general manager role and a 20 per cent salary reduction for their spa manager position.

Heath told the tribunal that he and the Hinchcliffes discussed each individual and determined what they thought was a fair percentage salary decrease to impose based on bands they had established. However, the tribunal stated that Heath made no hint that the level of cuts imposed was related to the duties or the seriousness of those duties.

Mrs Hinchcliffe told the tribunal that the level of pay cut was enforced on the basis that those who could afford it paid more.

In response to the disparity between Mueller, Perry and Jurca, Mrs Hinchcliffe told the tribunal that they had bigger jobs than Mueller.

The tribunal heard that Mueller, as general manager of Great Fosters, "duly implemented" the wage reduction to hotel staff. She was notified of the 33 per cent wage cut imposed on her in an email dated 23 March 2020.

However, the tribunal found that there was no consultation with her or any other staff over the reduction.

Mueller told the tribunal that she was petrified about the job cuts and that she had no choice but to continue working. She also said that all staff were essentially in the same position, which the tribunal found to be consistent with evidence that Utopia Leisure, Mr and Mrs Hinchcliffe and Heath experienced no pushback in relation to the proposed cuts.

Mueller asked when her wages would be reinstated and was given no precise date because of the ongoing pandemic, according to the tribunal.

The tribunal did find, however, that Mueller never "objected" to the salary drop, "nor did she do anything to alert" her employer to the fact that she felt herself to be working under "protest".

It determined that Mueller had a positive relationship with Heath and the Hinchcliffes and worked "very hard" during the Covid period. She also established new business strategies such as fully utilising the gardens of Great Fosters by putting on art exhibitions.

According to the tribunal, Mueller was aware that voicing her complaint about the income reduction would "risk" her work being terminated and she wanted to keep her position while she looked for a new role.

The tribunal recognised that she was in a "difficult personal position" because she had recently relocated for this job and her spouse was "unwell" and not working at the time. It further stated that the job market in the hospitality business was "non-existent" at the time.

Mueller eventually found another job and resigned on 9 December 2020, with her last day of work on 8 January 2021, and stated in her resignation letter that she felt herself to be working "under protest.

The tribunal ruled that the respondents were unable to demonstrate a "non-discriminatory" rationale for Mueller's treatment and her claims for direct sex discrimination were successful.

Mueller's equal pay claim against Utopia Leisure was also successful.

A remedy hearing has been set for a later date.

The tribunal ruled that imposing a 33 per cent salary cut on Mueller was a "fundamental breach of the contract of employment, noting that the pay decrease was enforced as an alternative to the respondent implementing job cuts.

It noted that Mueller believed that, should she object, her employment was likely to be terminated and she actively hid that she was working under protest because of her fear of being sacked.

The tribunal stated that it was unable to discern the logic behind Utopia Leisure's choice to apply a 25 per cent cut to the salary of the two male managers since their decision under the circumstances did not correlate with Heath's explanation of imposing bigger pay cuts on those who could afford it more.

It went on to say that the respondent's position that the pay cut was imposed on the male managers on the basis of their having two separate jobs was not only lacking in any logic but is not the case".

Employment judge Skehan ruled that Mueller demonstrated that the declared rationale behind the percentage pay cuts, which was that those who earned more bore a heavier burden, was not applied equally to her and the comparators.

They added that the respondents repeated assertions that Mueller was on a higher pay grade than Perry or Jurca was obviously not the case, and that reliance on an internal accounting paper distinction, which was hidden from Mueller and only revealed after the case management hearing, was an attempt to obfuscate and disguise the fact that a bespoke arrangement applied to the comparators.

The panel said factors such as "affordability may be tainted by stereotypic assumptions as to a woman's earnings", which may be assumed to be a second family income or somehow "less important than a man's".

The panel also noted that they did not accept the submission that had Mueller been a man she would have been subject to the same deduction and concluded that the respondents were unable to show a non-discriminatory reason for Muellers treatment.

According to Dawn Dickson, employment partner at Anderson Strathern, the case serves as a valuable reminder of the importance of conducting frequent equal pay audits to determine whether men and women in equivalent or roughly similar occupations are given the same pay.

Dickson said that, if they were not, any audit must evaluate both the broad and more precise reasons for pay inequalities and where necessary employers must address such differences or ensure that the reasons for pay differentials have a sound basis for existing.

Seeking to explain a difference in pay before the employment tribunal after the event as it appears occurred in this case will almost always result in no logical or credible explanation being advanced, with the result that the employers defence fails, she added.

Rob Smedley, employment director at Freeths, said that on first blush this appeared to be a harsh decision for the employer as it seemed they were facing dire consequences as a result of Covid and imposing pay cuts may have appeared the only way out.

However, he stressed that there was no advance notice or consultation with the employees, which will leave an employer on the back foot when it comes to defending such claims.

Smedley also noted that the case illustrated the importance of management taking a step back to carefully test the rationale behind proposed decisions before they are made, especially where issues like pay are impacted and there is a clear difference in treatment between employees.

Continue reading here:

Female hotel manager handed a 33 per cent pay cut during Covid ... - People Management Magazine

By David E. Gehlke

Bassist Shane Embury joined the already influential U.K. grindcore act NAPALM DEATH in 1987. He missed playing on the band's "Scum" debut but has been a mainstay ever since, appearing on every NAPALM studio effort and subsequently plotting its creative direction, which, now at 16 long-players, has covered virtually every bit of ground extreme metal has to offer. A career this lengthy entails the usual peaks and valleys, and NAPALM certainly took it on the chin from the mid-1990s up until the early 2000s, thanks to their well-documented rifts with Earache Records and the declining fortunes of grindcore. Embury (and his bandmates) survived barely and can now live to tell the tales, something he has done in his biography, "Life...? And Napalm Death".

Embury's self-deprecating writing style and ability to recollect some of the more obscure details in NAPALM's career make for a fascinating read, particularly when he discusses his relationship with vocalist Mark "Barney" Greenway and the routine frustrations of trying to make a living while playing vastly uncommercial music. All that, and more, was on the docket when BLABBERMOUTH.NET got Embury on the horn.

Blabbermouth: You've been open about why you wanted to write a book. But how did you feel when it was finished?

Shane: "I was satisfied, for sure. Of course, then you think of the things you forgot. Primarily, it's up to this point in my life, I'd say it does what it needs to do, but I'm satisfied. It's also a strange feeling of, 'Will people like it? How are they going to feel?' I called my close friends and they liked it. The response has been pretty good. That's nice, of course. That was it, I suppose. It's intriguing to see where it goes from here because it's different than an album, which is what I'm used to being involved in. It seems to be a thing that, because it depends on what people think, it keeps rolling on. It's a small reason I wanted to do it. I wanted to be able to chat about it with younger generations. It's a journey of what I did and the industry's ups and downs. I came from a quite small village. I was a homebody before I joined NAPALM. The guys became my family. I can't believe the world and the adventures I've had. Then you get older and a family man and it becomes a balancing technique. You have to make the two lives co-exist without disrupting them."

Blabbermouth: Did you keep a journal, or were these all events you recollected?

Shane: "It's all in my memory. God knows my memory, considering the party lifestyle when we all lived together. In the early '90s in Birmingham, a different band played every day and we were all out drinking, but I seem to remember a lot. Of course, I found old videos from our shows. Our fanbase and die-hard fans were able to plug in some holes, like, 'What happened on this particular day?' 'Oh, you played this show.' Sometimes, I wonder if I was always preparing to do a book."

Blabbermouth: How much inspiration for the book was derived from the number of times people told you NAPALM was nothing but "noise"?

Shane: "People say we sound like that onstage and sometimes I can roll with that, but there are a lot of deeper undercurrents. And that's why I loved NAPALM before I joined. I was a fan. There wasn't much of that style around. I'm not trying to sound pompous, but when you bring in grindcore, indie, alternative, and noise, bring them together, there are multitudes of things going on to make the music. Sometimes, it's a symphony of chaos. I want to promote that more with the next record and try different things. We've returned to [founding NAPALM member] Nick Bullen's original vision in some ways. When you're younger, you don't possess the words to reinforce that it's not noise. It's something else. People get such a reaction from it."

Blabbermouth: The one time NAPALM did something at least somewhat targeted was when you came to Tampa to record "Harmony Corruption" with Scott Burns. There are a lot of opinions of that record. Where does it sit with you?

Shane: "When we were younger, me, Mitch [Harris, guitar] and Jesse [Pintado, guitar], we'd go out and drink and debate albums. As you get older, you brush that off. People are entitled to their opinions, but it's interesting that 'Unfit Earth' is a song that Barney cringes about. Micky [Harris, drums] wrote that on his famous two-stringer, which I always talk about. He wrote that during the period of 'Mentally Murdered'. Nobody would have noticed if 'Harmony' had been recorded in the sound of 'Mentally'. There were changes. Barney came in. We were in Florida. It's what we wanted to do. A lot of it was because we loved Florida death metal. Digby [Pearson, Earache Records owner] wanted us to go; Micky wanted to go. I was like, 'Well, yeah. I want to go. I want to see OBITUARY. I want to hang out with DEICIDE. I want to record a record.' I don't look at 'Harmony' for what it sounds like. I look at it for the memory and the great fun I had. The old school didn't like it so much, but we attracted a bunch of new fans. What's fortunate is that you can go to album 16 and go, 'There have been steps that have been made, rightly or wrongly, and we've survived. Now we can look back on it.' To me, it's fine."

Blabbermouth: You talk about it being an experience. I always think of the band pictures you took in the Florida sun and how Mick had some real issues tracking drums.

Shane: "It's hard not to remember. That was a different time because 'Altars Of Madness' [MORBID ANGEL] came blasting forth. At the time, I didn't think much about it. I thought, 'Altars Of Madness' rules. That's it. I had the advance tape that I blasted in the back of the van. Micky always said, 'You're listening to that album again?' I would respond, 'Of course I am!' I recognized there were different styles of music. You could see why John Zorn was Micky's hero. Micky was a free-style tornado guy. [MORBID ANGEL drummer Pete] Sandoval was very precise. It was the beginning of a different age. There was that. Then, there was general nervousness in the studio, which still happens. On the last album, Danny [Herrera, drums] and I tried to keep things spontaneous because of nerves. You remember things like that. Me, Mitch and Jesse were hanging out and watching MORBID ANGEL rehearse more than we spent in the studio when making 'Harmony'. But I remember all of that. Overall, it's probably one of NAPALM's most important albums. Simple as that."

Blabbermouth: Some of the most interesting portions of the book are when you talk about the strife within the band during the mid-'90s. Did you think NAPALM would survive?

Shane: "There were definitely times when we all thought we wouldn't get through it. This house where I'm at now is where we all four lived at one point. Now it's me and Danny. That got us through, that camaraderie, I suppose. Barn was always moving around. He was in London for a while. Different things were going on. We did 'Utopia Banished' because Jesse, Mitch and I were getting into different stuff, different bands and beats, and the nu-metal thing came in and we were slightly unaware. I remember returning from the first South American tour, where we played to six thousand people in Chile, then went to Hamburg and played the smaller clubs. The scenes were changing. Fast-forward 20 years, it's different. It's tilted back the other way. Somehow, we managed to ride the storm. It was very tough. We were younger and immature; it was hard to communicate. 'Fear, Emptiness, Despair' was difficult to make. Barney was trying to process how he perceived us changing. I think me and Mitch would go, 'We have this crushingly heavy riff and it's for four seconds and that's it. Why don't we use more of it?' We were listening to HELMET, which had more to do with the beats than anything else. We tend to openly go, 'We like the SMASHING PUMPKINS.' The natural reaction was, 'What's happening with NAPALM?' I won't say I love the SMASHING PUMPKINS, but I love the drummer [Jimmy Chamberlin]. He's fucking awesome. Why don't we throw some of those beats in there? It was a confusing time. Danny was nervous. Barn was nervous. Then the Columbia [Records] thing happened, but everyone else was supportive. It was a difficult time. The only way I can make sense of it is that it would have been easy to make another 'Utopia', but we weren't in that mind frame. That was the deal."

Blabbermouth: You mentioned in the book that you sympathized with Digby on how hard it is to run a record label, given your experience. Has your view toward him softened?

Shane: "It has, for sure. I had a small experience running a record label. It was difficult dealing with a band that I perceived to be punk rock and down to earth who turned on me because of a simple mistake. I forgot one small thing on the cover. It was like, 'You must destroy these CDs.' It is difficult. It is tough. I think whatever people think of Dig, he was there. He did help and did push NAPALM. I was part of his help in the early days I remember doing mailers for him and all kinds of stuff. It can be difficult. In any relationship, it's how you perceive stuff. It's very easy to go, 'Blah blah this.' We had a manager come in with his perspective, but I don't think he had the band's best interest in the end. I'm forever terribly in the middle of it, going, 'What's going on here? Can't we get on?' I've seen Dig a few times recently and we get on fine. Our Glastonbury appearance [in 2017] came through Earache. They got us that. A few more interesting festivals have come through Earache because they keep promoting the early stuff. My memory is reasonably intact on most of that stuff. When I think back on the early days, it's going back to Dig's flat and mailing MORBID ANGEL test pressers. I can't imagine the stress of it on that scale. I was more scared when I did it, like, 'I can't do this.' The bands can be a total pain in the ass. I know I'm a pain in the ass. You have to work out a compromise."

Blabbermouth: You talk a lot about your relationship with Barney. Are you so different to the point that it's why you've been able to co-exist for so long?

Shane: "People say we're different, and it works that way. I think Barney is ultra-cautious. I tend to jump into the fire, like, 'Come on, mate.' Whether it's good or bad it's mostly good. I don't think we're totally different, but some people say we're closer than we know. We're evolving. Sometimes, I yearn for the Barn of the past. He's there. I have to edge it out of him sometimes, but he has the responsibility of being NAPALM's frontman. It is a responsibility, but I come from a slightly different angle. Of course, our message is clear. I'm single-mindedly into the music. That's where the yin and the yang come in. We do things in a strange way. I compose and he goes and does his thing. I barely know what's going on until the album is final. I'll go, 'That's a little strange.' But as time goes on, I usually get it. When you get older, you have to bring yourself back down to earth and let these things happen."

Blabbermouth: While on the subject, do you have any demos of Phil Vane singing on "Inside The Torn Apart" when he replaced Barney in 1997?

Shane: "Strangely enough, I've been uncovering all kinds of cassettes. I may have something."

Blabbermouth: Phil was a great vocalist in his own right coming from EXTREME NOISE TERROR, but as you mentioned in the book, his downfall may have stemmed from you trying to shoehorn him into NAPALM.

Shane: "It was immaturity and lack of communication on my part. Depending on the perspective, he'd say he left, but I think a simple sit-down would have changed things [with Barney]. That's where we were at that point. Feelings got amplified because of that. Phil and Barney traded places. [Laughs] The record would have turned out the way it did anyway, but we could have auditioned more people. Barney probably would have been on the album anyway. When I broke the news to Phil, it was hard. Then, it was equally hard to ask Barn back into the band! Barney came in and said, 'The album is heavy.' I said, 'Of course. What else are we going to do?' That was that. There was a fallout from all those things. Trust is battered a little bit. It's like when I'm in the dugout with my wife sometimes."

Blabbermouth: What's next for you, particularly with NAPALM?

Shane: "We have a London show with CULT OF LUNA next month. There are some shows in Spain and France. We go to Japan in December, which will be fun. I'm going to hit the road in England with VENOMOUS CONCEPT. Dave Witte [MUNICIPAL WASTE] will be playing with us. That will be a lot of fun. I'm hoping around April to get some studio time to start working on the next NAPALM. I have multitudes of ideas. It's going to be fast, but there will be some whacko stuff."

See the original post here:

NAPALM DEATH's SHANE EMBURY Talks New Book And Life In ... - BLABBERMOUTH.NET