Although I’m sure he’ll never see this, and even if he did, he wouldn’t nearly pass out in starstruck bliss–if only!–I still felt the need to gush. He’s my idol, my muse, my favorite voice of all time. So few vocalists can sing like an angel one minute and roar like a demon the next. Even fewer can rip my heart to pieces and put it back together again all within the course of one song. I’m listening to him at this very moment, in fact, and basking in his sheer awesomeness.

I’ve been lucky enough to meet him twice, and while I couldn’t do much but gape either time, the collective thirty seconds of my life I’ve spent standing in his presence are thirty seconds I will never, ever forget. I hope I get to add a few more to them once Korn’s U.S. tour begins this year. (Yes, I’m a stalker, but I’m the fun kind. Promise.) ;)

So, Happy Birthday, Mr. Davis, and I hope it finds you happy, healthy… and of course, unrelentingly naughty!

I guess that’s one surefire way of getting a piece of Jonathan Davis. :P

I had a lot of fun writing Brian’s story because he likes my kind of music. So I thought I’d run down a list of tunes that either appear in his book, or inspired his character.

“Deep” by Nine Inch Nails — The video is playing when Candace goes to Brian for her first tattoo. The lyrics, along with the toxic dyes in the video… hotness.
“My Curse” by Killswitch Engage — One particular line in this song inspired a whole scene.
“This Love” by Pantera — Dark, ominous, angry, kind of scary. If you’re a metal fan in Texas, you have to love Pantera. It’s required.
“Freak on a Leash” by Korn — Song is about how Jonathan Davis feels in the music industry, but it’s also how Brian feels when he’s dealing with family issues. There’s also a scene at a Korn concert. Since they’re my favorite band, and inspire me on a whole other level, I had to give them a shout-out.
“Dead Memories” by Slipknot — I meant to include this in a scene in which Brian is reminiscing about a past girlfriend (Candace’s cousin), because it sums up his feelings about it quite well. I never put it in, but it still makes the cut here. Maybe I’ll edit it in later.
“Two Weeks” by All That Remains — Mainly because I really, really like it. And because the story happens over a course of roughly two weeks, and it’s a rollercoaster. This is the song that’s actually playing in the reminiscing scene mentioned above.
“Bliss” by Syntax — Because Candace likes it. She thinks it’s sexy. ;)
“Cuts You Up” by Static-X — He’s pretty cut up and pissed off about it when this is playing…
“Oblivion” by Mastodon — Because sometimes I would hear a song and simply think, “He would love this.”
“Twilight Zone” by Golden Earring — Mainly for a fun, blowing-off steam scene I eventually deleted. It’s still a guilty pleasure!
“You’re Going Down” by Sick Puppies — Another I never mentioned in the book, but makes me think of a certain face-off that occurs…

So, there’s a general idea of what my soundtrack was like for this book. I must say, I’m really having withdrawals after finishing it! I miss seeing it open on my desktop. I have no plans to write Brian and Evan’s sister’s story at the moment, but I might have to someday, just to revisit these characters.

It’s really scary how fast it flies by. My kids are 11 years apart, the youngest 7 months, and I find it hard to believe that by the time she’s her brother’s age, he’ll be grown and out of the house. Hopefully, anyway.

I went to YouTube the other day to hunt for this video. If you know me, whether personally or from Twitter or any forums I post on, then most likely you know I’m a Korn fanatic. I would talk about how much I love this band, but I wouldn’t be able to adequately express my devotion, and it would probably just come off as weird, anyway.

So I was watching this, and it slapped me right across the face that it was ten years ago. I remember that weekend of Woodstock ’99…no, I didn’t go, unfortunately (or fortunately, because I might have been brutalized in that crush). I taped Korn’s entire set. That tape is long gone, but bits and pieces can be found at YouTube. I’d give anything to have that tape. It was their most amazing performance ever. I’m pretty sure even the guys in the band say that. The crowd was insane and they fed off that energy. It was the height of their career. When Jonathan Davis screams “Arrrre you rrrready?” and the crowd goes freaking insane, I still get chills. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen them live (it’s in the mid-teens), how many times I’ve heard him bellow those words while I was out in the crowd, but I don’t think any of those times was quite as powerful as during that Woodstock set, which I watched from the safety of my living room.

They’ve lost two of the original members since then. I still love those guys dearly, but damn, how I miss what they used to be. Oh, well. There’s no going back, so here’s to the next decade, guys, and hoping it’ll be just as awesome as the last