#and like. it COULD mean marc’s history as a champion… it could ALSO mean martin’s history with ducati as a company….

[moonshynecybin]

marc's plan was as always to cause a show! if he's there the show is there! how boring to win a race from pole or the front row! no of course he had to qualify badly so that all of the attention was on him when he inevitably overtook half of the grid and still managed a podium in both the sprint and the race!

it is like. if i’m gigi and i’m looking at this weekend. what’s more impressive: getting pole winning the sprint and then winning the race proper on a factory bike when he’s been on a ducati practically his entire career. very clean very dominant. also very boring. ORRRRR the guy who is on a year OLD bike with only five races to adapt from the honda, flopped into q2 for myriad reasons and then said fuck it and passed eleven people (INCLUDING DADDY’S NUMBER ONE CANDY BABY PECCO BAGNAIA) at a track that is notoriously hard to overtake on and holds the record for dry crashes in motogp. TWICE ! like both are impressive but only ONE ! is entertaining

[sbknews]

Binder pulls off an all-time great on KTM home turf

The South African gambles big and takes the house with a stunning wet win on slicks in Spielberg. Fortune favours the brave! That certainly rings true this Sunday but it takes more than bravery to wrestle a MotoGP™ bike around a wet track on slicks, with a race win on the line, in your factory's home race. It also takes some serious skill and talent. But Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) had the perfect mixture of each to take victory in the Bitci Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich, the South African disappearing down the start finish straight alone to hold his nerve as those around him peeled into pitlane in an all-time classic flag-to-flag. He somehow pulled it off for a second premier class win and the first for the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team on home turf: Sunday rider, on many occasions, is the highest of compliments. Behind the sheer daring of the man in the lead, the fight for second was instead an electrifying charge from those who made the opposite gamble. In the end, it was won by Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) as the Italian put on a show that, on nearly any other Sunday, would have likely delivered him a maiden MotoGP™ win. And behind him, Styrian GP winner and rookie Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) found some more magic, another who switched to wets and charged through to make it work. It started well for the Spaniard too and it was Martin took the holeshot, the rookie once again solid under the added pressure of pole, with Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) getting a little too close for comfort and heading wide - allowing Bagnaia through into second. And as the White Flag came out to show some spots of rain, meaning riders were allowed to change bikes, Bagnaia took over at the front and Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) found himself the sole Honda in a Ducati armada at the front. Quartararo dropped down to sixth behind Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team), although he did hit back as Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) watched on behind that duel. Bagnaia pounded on at the front, with Martin trying to attack but losing out from the move. So Bagnaia it remained, with Quartararo charging back through into second and even taking the lead as the rain flags came out... again. But Bagnaia muscled back through at Turn 1, and Marc Marquez homed in on El Diablo to boot. Bagnaia, Quartararo, Marquez, Martin and Zarco marched on, with Mir then battling past Miller to become the man on the chase. And soon enough the top three started to pull away, Mir reeled in the Pramac riders, and the Brad Binder Sunday charge was well underway as the South African homed in on Miller. From tenth on the grid, the number 33 was on the way. Suddenly, drama then hit for a frontrunner as Zarco crashed out. Sliding off at Turn 9, the Frenchman's Championship charge took a dent as he couldn't get back on either. And not long after, Quartararo headed a little wide... allowing Marquez to get back on the chase after Bagnaia. And with 7 to go, the eight-time World Champion struck for the first time. Bagnaia hit back, but a few cards were on the table. With five to go, and the rain flags still out, the first gamble: Miller and Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) pitted, rolling their dice earlier than the rest as Bagnaia continued on at the front. But what had started to seem a clear trio was fast becoming a six-man freight train as Martin and Mir homed in, and the Jaws music could start to fade in: Binder was coming. The South African didn't win on on one gamble. With 4 to go, Binder was on the scene, Martin was already past Quartararo for third, and Bagnaia headed wide at Turn 1, giving Marc Marquez the lead. In the braking zone for Turn 3, Martin screeched up the inside of Bagnaia, and then Quartararo pulled off the perfect dance between madness and excellence to shoot past both, back into second. The shuffle continued, and the rain got heavier and heavier. By the time the six-rider train reached the pit entry, there was a clear decision for five of them: it was time to change. So Marquez, Bagnaia, Martin, Quartararo and Mir headed in to swap... and a lone KTM swept round the final corner and tucked in down the main straight. Binder was going all in. Out of pitlane, the five were Marc Marquez leading Bagnaia - and both immediately hammering it - with Martin next up, Mir in fourth of the group and Quartararo losing out slightly at the rear of the train. But Bagnaia headed in hot at Turn 3 and lost out to Martin... and then Marc Marquez slid out. A lowside at Turn 1 saw the number 93 lose a shot at the podium, with Bagnaia leading Martin and both taking over in the fight back through. Mir and Quartararo also headed well wide, with the clock ticking and just under 2 laps to go. When he made the decision to stay out, Binder had been a few of seconds ahead of Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini), who also gambled on slicks and was in second. By the time the number 33 crossed the line to start the penultimate lap, the South African was 7 clear. Starting the final lap, the gap was over 11. Bagnaia and Martin, meanwhile, started that final lap in eighth and ninth. And by halfway round, the two were cutting through Binder's fellow gamblers like there were two categories on track. Second and third were locked down well before the final corner, with the two pushing to perfection to cut the gap. Ahead of them, though, arguably the wrong decision was turned into the perfect hand in the right hands. Binder's final lap saw him suffer a couple of moments, but he had somehow pulled it off. In the rain, in KTM's backyard, with the brakes suffering in the conditions and the tyres the opposite of the weather, the South African made a little more history. And this time around, it wasn't a statistical milestone, it was pure, instant legend: add bravery and stir. Behind Binder's miracle ballet and Bagnaia and Martin's charge to the podium, there was plenty to sort out. Mir made it home in a solid fourth place to make some good gains in the standings, with Luca Marini (Sky VR46 Avintia) making some magic for fifth place on slicks. Iker Lecuona (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing) had been ahead of both and in podium contention but dropped to sixth, the Spaniard getting a little less reward for his earlier bravery than he likely hoped for, but he did hold off Quartararo as the Championship leader came home seventh. Nine-time World Champion Valentino Rossi (Petronas Yamaha SRT) was in podium contention too before the final lap and he finished eighth, but some good points for the Doctor, who was also highly entertained by the shuffle and the challenge. Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) took ninth, with Aleix Espargaro ultimately completing the top ten. Miller's early gamble didn't pay off and he finished in P11, ahead of Danilo Petrucci (Tech3 KTM Factory Racing) by almost nothing. Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) was next up, with Rins a little further out of touch behind. The final point went to Marc Marquez, who may have gambled and lost, but still very much didn't give up. And so a new legend is written into the history books, with another win on home turf for KTM and a second premier class victory for Binder. How they did it, and how the South African forced fortune to favour the brave, will be a long time in the memory of MotoGP™ fans, and likely a few of the number 33's rivals. Quartararo remains the points leader, Bagnaia gains ground and Zarco loses some... as Mir moves onto equal points with Pecco in second. What will Silverstone bring? We'll find out in two weeks.... MotoGP™ podium 1 Brad Binder - Red Bull KTM Factory Racing - KTM - 40:43.928 2 Francesco Bagnaia - Ducati Lenovo Team - Ducati - +12.991 3 Jorge Martin* - Pramac Racing - Ducati - +14.570 *Independent Team rider Brad Binder: "When I saw everyone tipping into the pits, I saw an opportunity and I decided I'd rather risk it and crash rather than maybe get top five. It's a big Grand Prix for us, for KTM, for Red Bull. I've won here in Moto2 and I know what it's like to win here at their home GP. To do it in MotoGP is an unbelievable feeling. Huge gamble, but I'm really glad it paid off. "I knew when there were 3 laps to go, if I didn't come in when they did I wasn't going to come in at all. And yeah, I made it to the end somehow! The biggest problem was no brakes, the carbon brakes were cold and as soon as the rear tyre cooled off I couldn't open the throttle either. Somehow I made it round the track, and a couple of times I thought it was over but I kept it up straight. So happy, so happy this gamble paid off." For more MotoGP info checkout our dedicated MotoGP News page Or visit the official MotoGP website www.motogp.com Follow us on social media: Instagram: @superbikenews Twitter: @sbknews Facebook: @superbikenews SBN Directory - add your motorcycle related business here

MotoGP™ podium L-R: Bagnaia, Binder and Martin

If you would like to receive our headlines daily to your email inbox then sign up to our newsletter: Here Subscribe to our news channels: Here

Read the full article

[aion-rsa]

Shazam: Who is Black Adam?

http://bit.ly/2G55VjE

Black Adam doesn't appear in the Shazam movie, but he's headed to the DCEU soon. We have a history of one of DC's best villains here.

facebook

twitter

google+

tumblr

Feature

Movies

Marc Buxton

Shazam

Apr 7, 2019

DC Entertainment

Dwayne Johnson

As we all know, Shazam is really Bally Batson, the young orphan boy who is pure of heart and worthy of the power of six mythological champions. But Billy isn’t the only mortal who was able to tap into the power of Shazam. There were a number of other Shazam family members, but today we are going to focus our attention on the most badass recipient of the ol' Shazam magic, Black Adam. Black Adam is truly the most complex and violent character to spring from the Shazam mythos and has been the center of some of DC’s best tales of the past 20 years. Black Adam has become one of DC’s greatest anti-heroes, a godlike being of profound honor and with an immense capacity for violence.

The strange thing about Black Adam is that until recently, he had only a handful of appearances to his name. He was an afterthought until the 1990s, but he has developed into one of DC’s greatest. Dwayne Johnson has been attached to play Black Adam in an upcoming DCEU movie for several years now, and with Shazam! now in theaters, it's only a matter of time before we finally see him on the big screen.

The Early Days

Black Adam first appeared in 1945 and was created by Otto Binder and the creator of all things Shazam C. C. Beck. In his first story, Adam was established as an ancient pharaoh and the first mortal to be granted the powers of Shazam. Although, with Adam, the acronym stands for something a little different, with a more Egyptian theme: Shu (stamina), Hershef (strength), Amon (power), Zehuti (wisdom), Anpu (speed), and Menthu (courage). Teth-Adam (which means Mighty Human) is corrupted by the Shazam powers, and after cutting a swath of destruction across Ancient Egypt, Adam is exiled into space by the Wizard.

Adam returns in the modern age to find that the Shazam powers had been gifted to Billy, Freddy, and Mary, and a true epic of the Golden Age follows as Black Adam is finally tricked into saying the Shazam magic word and reverts back to Teth-Adam. Sadly for ol' Teth, he is now five thousand years old and instantly turns to dust. Yikes.

Oddly, for such an important villain, this was Black Adam’s only Golden Age appearance. I guess none of the Fawcett writers could think of a way to un-dust Adam so he was a true one hit wonder. When DC Comics revived Shazam in the 1970s, Black Adam returned thanks to Dr. Sivana’s Reincarnation Machine (why not) and became part of the DC Universe proper. He'd return again in the late 1980s as part of the short lived Shazam: A New Beginning era of the characters, but it wasn't until 1994 that Black Adam would realize his true poential.

Power

The modern Black Adam made his debut in Jerry Ordway's The Power of Shazam which establishes that Teth-Adam was one of the greatest warriors serving Pharaoh Rameses II, catching the eye of the Wizard who grants him powers. Adam serves as Egypt’s guardian for centuries until he is corrupted by a demonic entity known as Blaze. Blaze is kinda like Marvel’s Hela and Marvel’s Mephisto combined. The Wizard strips Adam of his power after the whole "seduced by a demonic succubus" thing and places the Black Adam power in a scarab (as one does). 

Complete Guide to DC Easter Eggs in the Shazam! Movie

The big takeaway here, other than the fact Ordway’s Shazam was beyond awesome, is that the writer/artist established Black Adam as a once noble soul. Black Adam was Egypt’s greatest champion (sorry, Hawkman), and until he was corrupted by Blaze, Adam was the model of heroism in the early days of the DCU. The tale of Black Adam is almost biblical in scope as he rises a champion and falls a corrupted soul that murders the family of a boy destined to be a hero.

A True Anti-Hero

The time of Black Adam as dark protector, homicidal king, and complex anti-hero would truly begin under writers Geoff Johns and David S. Goyer and artist Marcos Martin in the pages of JSA. Adam joins with the JSA villain Johnny Sorrow (if Sorrow looks at you, you die, it’s intense) and almost defeats the JSA until Black Adam's original, Teth-Adam nature reasserts itself. He helps the JSA defeat Sorrow and a repentant Adam asks to join the world’s first super team.

read more: Shazam Ending Explained

With Black Adam aboard in the JSA, this is where things get truly awesome. As leader of his own nation, Black Adam shows that he is all about the harsh biblical justice of old. This story retcons a few elements from The Power of Shazam, moving the place of Adam's origin from Egypt to the fictional North African nation of Kahndaq. In addition, the writers tie the character to Hawkman as Adam served side by side with Prince Khufu, the first incarnation of Hawkman.

They also tweak Adam’s origin, losing the "corrupted by Blaze" elements and replacing it with conquering of Kahndaq by Ahk-ton and the immortal Vandal Savage. During the sacking of Kahndaq, Adam’s family is murdered. Driven by vengeance and the good of his people, Black Adam returns to Kahndaq and gets all sorts of Old Testament on the invaders. This level of violence shocks the Wizard, who strips Black Adam of his powers and murders him. That’s some dark stuff. This change of origin stripped Black Adam of his true villainous roots and made him more akin to Magneto or Namor: a leader who will go to any lengths to protect his people.

Billy tries to befriend Black Adam during this period, sympathizing with his longtime enemy. It doesn't go well. Things get tense between Adam and the JSA due to Adam’s great weakness: his ego. When Kahndaq is under attack, the JSA comes to the nation’s aid, but Black Adam tells his people that it is the JSA who is the threat because he cannot admit he needs the help of other heroes to protect his homeland. Adam and the Justice Society also come into conflict because Adam believes the heroes should simply kill the villains they face and be done with it to prevent future threats. Yes kids, Black Adam is basically Frank Castle with the powers of six gods. Adam does forge enduring friendships within the JSA particularly with JSA member Atom Smasher. Atom Smasher lost his mother to supervillain violence and agrees with Adam’s views on killing. 

War

While Billy Batson has long had his own family, in the classic series 52 (2006) by Grant Morrison, Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid, and Keith Giffen, Black Adam gains a family of his own. But like many parts of the Black Adam story, boy, does it end tragically.

read more: Shazam Post Credits Scenes Explained

52 introduces Adrianna Tomaz, a beautiful slave who is offered to Black Adam, the ruler of Kahndaq, by a group of criminals known as Intergang. Black Adam doesn't take kindly to slavery and violently murders the gang. He falls in love with Tomaz and even shares his powers, transforming her into the hero known as Isis (a nod to Saturday mornings of yore as the character Isis used to share a live action programming block with Shazam back in the 1970s). Eventually, the lovers find Tomaz’s brother Amon dying from injuries suffered from a horrific beating. Black Adam shares his powers with the young boy who becomes Kid Osiris. This all sounds great until Kid Osiris is eaten by a talking, bipedal crocodile. Later, Isis is also killed, telling Adam in her dying breath that she was wrong for trying to soften him and that he should avenge her. And, God help us all, he does just that, going on a rampage around the world, killing a number of international heroes, until the mystic heroes of the DCU drain Adam of his powers as Billy changes the magic word that grants Black Adam his mystic might. No more Shazam for Teth-Adam.

Of course, that has all changed since then, with Adam back in charge in Kahndaq in the pages of Doomsday Clock. But when Black Adam does hit the big screen, fans will witness the arrival of a one of a kind villain, a hard hitting take no prisoners hero, and a champion to those he deems his subjects. 

from Books http://bit.ly/2D2XPG6

[ultrasfcb-blog]

La Liga: Why Real Madrid and Barca changes could pave way for Atletico Madrid

La Liga: Why Real Madrid and Barca changes could pave way for Atletico Madrid

La Liga: Why Real Madrid and Barca changes could pave way for Atletico Madrid

Gareth Bale is likely to be a more central figure at Real Madrid this season, Antoine Griezmann committed his future to Atletico and Lionel Messi has been named Barcelona captain

The new La Liga season gets under way this weekend amid plenty of intrigue, especially for Real Madrid – as the three-in-a-row European champions begin life without iconic duo Cristiano Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane.

Real are by no means the only team going through a period of change, however, with similar – although less dramatic – transitions being experienced by their biggest rivals, Atletico Madrid and domestic champions Barcelona.

The level of uncertainty surrounding the big three has raised excitement levels about the new campaign, and the least heralded club of the trio are now most strongly positioned as the season dawns.

And Atletico struck an early-season blow against one of their major rivals with a 4-2 win over Real in Wednesday’s Uefa Super Cup.

What next for Real without Ronaldo and Zidane?

Overseeing the new era at Real is coach Julen Lopetegui, who was controversially fired by Spain two days before the World Cup after agreeing to move to the Bernabeu without – according to the Spanish Football Federation – notifying his then-employers of his intentions.

Lopetegui’s first task is to figure out how to reshape Real’s attacking play without Ronaldo, and the most notable aspect of the summer has been the club’s failure to sign a direct replacement.

There is still time, with the Spanish transfer window open until the end of the month, and it is possible that Real will make a move for Mauro Icardi from Inter Milan, Rodrigo from Valencia or, although it currently seems unlikely, Neymar or Kylian Mbappe from Paris St-Germain. Or even Eden Hazard from Chelsea.

Who will be Real Madrid’s next galactico?

For now, though, it appears that Lopetegui is ready to persist with Karim Benzema at the head of his favoured 4-3-3 formation, with Marco Asensio and Gareth Bale benefiting from Ronaldo’s departure to become starters in the wide attacking positions.

One key player for Real this season will surely be Isco, whose personal history with Lopetegui dates back to winning the European Under-21 title together in 2013. The coach has remained a huge admirer of the midfield conjuror ever since, and this season should finally give Isco the opportunity to take centre stage under the guidance of a boss who trusts him completely.

Unless a new striker is signed, the main selection decision for Lopetegui is whether to stick with Keylor Navas in goal or replace him with newly signed Thibaut Courtois, although the option of job-sharing – one for La Liga, the other for cup competitions – has also been touted.

However, rather than personnel or playing systems, the biggest doubt hanging over Real is Lopetegui’s lack of top-level club management experience, aside from a disappointing stint in charge of Porto.

Predecessor Zidane’s only prior managerial experience was with Real’s B team. But Zidane was a Real legend and Lopetegui has no Ronaldo to bail him out, so it remains to be seen how he will cope – especially as many fans and members of the media appear ready to turn against him following his perceived “desertion” of the national team before the World Cup.

Whatever happens, his first season in charge won’t be dull.

Could reinforced Atletico take advantage of rivals’ changes?

Diego Godin was a reported target for Manchester United but is staying with Atletico Madrid this season

Real face a serious challenge from city rivals Atletico, a point emphasised by the Rojiblancos’ extra-time victory in Tallinn on Wednesday.

It has been an outstanding summer in the transfer market for Diego Simeone, who can now call upon arguably a far stronger squad than the side that won the title back in 2014.

Most significantly, Atletico have succeeded in keeping hold of three key players, with Antoine Griezmann turning down Barcelona, Diego Godin reportedly rejecting Manchester United and outstanding goalkeeper Jan Oblak dismissing interest from an array of suitors.

That has never really happened before to Atletico, who were accustomed to losing their biggest talents to more powerful rivals, and the fact that the Rojiblancos can turn away such major offers suggests a turning point has been reached in terms of their status within the elite.

They have also strengthened, with the addition of defensive midfielder Rodri looking a particularly good piece of business – the 22-year-old is on the fringes of the Spain squad after an outstanding season with Villarreal, and is widely regarded as the eventual heir to Sergio Busquets in the national team.

Atletico should also be more dangerous going forward following the acquisition of Thomas Lemar and Gelson Martins to provide more ammunition for Griezmann and Diego Costa, while Croatian striker Nikola Kalinic has been added for another muscular option.

With a reinforced attack, a versatile midfield, a rock-solid defence and Simeone’s know-how, it appears Atletico have everything in place to challenge for silverware – especially considering the enticing prospect of the Champions League final being staged in their own Wanda Metropolitano stadium.

A change of approach for Barca

Barcelona’s loss to Roma in the last 16 in 2017-18 means they have reached just one Champions League final in seven years

Mention of the Champions League final inevitably turns attention to reigning league champions Barcelona, who are focusing more of their efforts than ever on regaining European supremacy.

An embarrassing exit at Roma in April, when they squandered a 4-1 first leg lead, was the third successive quarter-final elimination for Lionel Messi and co, and for a club with such lofty aspirations that just isn’t good enough – especially with Real enjoying so much success on the continental stage.

Barca’s problem in the past couple of seasons has been a lack of squad depth, which has led to key players being selected week after week and becoming jaded by the time of the knockout rounds.

Stats prove the point: six Barca players made at least 30 league starts last season (Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Ivan Rakitic, Luis Suarez and Messi), whereas only one Real player did so (Casemiro). The conclusion at the Nou Camp is that to challenge more effectively in Europe, manager Ernesto Valverde needs to rotate his starting XI more often.

To achieve that aim, Barca have been busy in the transfer market. The midfield has been particularly refreshed, partly necessitated by the departures of Andres Iniesta and Paulinho, and Valverde will be expected to regularly use new signings Malcom, Arthur and Arturo Vidal rather than leaving them on the bench and constantly turning to Rakitic and Busquets.

And, of course, if the Catalan club succeed in their optimistic ambition of luring Paul Pogba away from Manchester United, yet another new dimension will be added to their midfield.

The attack will be powered by new captain Messi, his favourite ally Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho, but there is also a sense that Ousmane Dembele is ready to enjoy a breakout season after an injury-disrupted campaign in 2017-18.

Dembele’s electrifying talent is not in doubt, but last season he struggled within the team framework built by Valverde. The new campaign has shown promise, though, with the young Frenchman producing a superb strike to secure the Spanish Super Cup against Sevilla on Sunday.

If that is a sign of things to come, Barca should be tough to beat.

Forget Real and Barca – Betis are the great entertainers

Away from the title contenders, another team well worth watching this season are Real Betis. After a fallow few years, the Seville club are emerging as a force under coach Quique Setien, whose purist principles made his team a joy to watch during his first season in charge.

3-5, 5-3, 0-5, 3-2, 4-4, 3-6… they were just some of the scorelines in Betis games last season, but there was also plenty of substance to go with the entertainment as Setien took his team to a sixth-place finish – their highest since 2005.

The summer arrivals of powerhouse Portuguese midfielder William Carvalho and dynamic Japanese winger Takashi Inui have sparked expectations that Betis could reach even greater heights, especially if rising star Loren Moron can continue the progress that saw him light up the league after being introduced to the team’s attack in February.

Across the city, Sevilla face an intriguing campaign under new manager Pablo Machin, who forged his reputation by leading minnows Girona into the top flight with an exhilarating brand of football, while Villarreal will also hope to mount a top-four challenge after reinvigorating their attack with the re-signing of Gerard Moreno from Espanyol.

Also keep an eye on Valencia, who emerged from a dark period with a vibrant season under demanding coach Marcelino last time around, and will be looking to make further progress following several eye-catching summer signings, including a loan move for Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi.

With the changes at the top three and the potential for improvement of several teams below them, it all adds up to a fascinating season in La Liga – and perhaps the most open and competitive in many years.

BBC Sport – Football ultras_FC_Barcelona

ultras FC Barcelona - https://ultrasfcb.com/football/10562/

#Barcelona

[ricardosousalemos]

Fugazi: In on the Kill Taker

If 1991 was The Year Punk Broke, and 1993 was when the underground had fully bubbled to the surface, between that, the world got Cliff Poncier, the singer of the band Citizen Dick in Cameron Crowe's 1992 movie Singles. Cliff (played by Matt Dillon) is a musician in a band with Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, and Jeff Ament of Pearl Jam, and has an album out on an independent label. To a large swath of America that was still getting used to Kurt Cobain’s face and R.E.M. winning Grammys, Cliff was the fictional bridge into the world of indie artists. He’s “like a renaissance man” we’re told, but it’s obvious he wants to make it big. Everybody wanted that, right?

Alt was the new normal. Things had gone from “Our band could be your life” to stadium concerts opening up for rock legends and poisonous major label contracts. Nirvana followed up Nevermind with the Steve Albini-produced In Utero, former SST bands Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, and the Meat Puppets enjoyed radio and MTV airtime, countless kids got copies of the No Alternative compilation, and grunge was officially a runway style thanks to Marc Jacobs. Fugazi’s independent scene had become a global phenomenon, funded, largely, by corporate money.

Fugazi—reluctantly—turned into one of the last bands standing from the old guard of American punks. They became a band that mainstream kids and college radio stations wanted to check out at the perfect time in their career. Fugazi’s nonstop touring made their music more accessible to a wider audience than ever before. They had an organic buzz that led to better distribution deals, which allowed them to remain fiercely independent. To kids straddling the Generation X and Millennial borders, Fugazi were a touchstone, an introduction into the DIY mindset. Their ability to get people excited without a team of advertisers, big hit song, or anything besides word of mouth is, at this point, the stuff of legend.

And while their hardcore contemporaries were chasing big contracts and slots on the Lollapalooza tour, Fugazi teamed with groups like Positive Force—a Washington D.C. youth activist collective that took on poverty and George H.W. Bush’s war in the Middle East—to the band’s decision to only play all-ages shows with a low door price, Fugazi wanted to let you know they stood for things, and that maybe you should, too. Punk was more than just not knowing how to play an instrument but having something to say, it was about starting a zine, doing distribution, or going to a protest to fight inequality in all its forms. They were champions of the utopian freedom of the 1960’s filtered through the busted amps of punk. If there was any environment for Fugazi to put out the biggest record of their career, this was it.

Since the band considered live shows to be their most natural setting, Fugazi toured relentlessly between albums. One look at the band’s show archives finds them playing the Palladium in New York City to 3,000 people on a spring night in 1992, Father Hayes Gym Bar in Portland, ME to 750 people a few nights later, then wrapping up an East Coast tour at City Gardens in New Jersey to a hair under 1,000 before embarking on a tour of Europe two weeks later. At some point during 1992, even though none of the band’s 73 shows were played anywhere near the Midwest, they found time to go to Chicago to record with Steve Albini. Self-producing their second LP Steady Diet of Nothing left the band “pretty disappointed at the end of the day with that record,” as Ian MacKaye would later say. Bassist Joe Lally found the experience “weird,” and that going to Chicago to record new songs was less about getting a new album out of the sessions, “it was more about working with Steve.”

The resulting demos were not what the band or producer wanted. The song “Public Witness Program,” had the same buzzsaw guitar and sped-up tempo of what you’d expect from one of Albini’s own Shellac songs. “Great Cop,” sounded much more like a raging hardcore song than the band may have wanted. The sessions, which float around file sharing sites and YouTube, would end up being simply a footnote in American indie history; titans from the 1980s underground getting together to mess around. In the end, after they made it back home to D.C., the band received a fax from Albini saying, “I think we dropped the ball.”

The band just couldn’t beat the sound they created in their hometown, so they entered Inner Ear Studios with Don Zientara and Ted Niceley in the autumn of 1992. When they finally emerged playing their first show on February 4th, 1993, at the Peppermint Beach Club in Virginia Beach, the 1,200-person crowd got a set filled with almost all new material, peppered with older songs like “Suggestion” and “Repeater.” The band went on an American tour that stretched over 60 shows. In on the Kill Taker was released on June 30th, sold around 200,000 copies in its first week alone, and Fugazi cracked the Billboard Top 200. Later in August, they played a show in front of the Washington Monument to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s march on Washington. Five-thousand people crowded the outdoor Sylvan Theater and this time, when they played their new songs, the crowd knew every word.

Like the albums that came before it, In on the Kill Taker begins small and grows into something larger. Maybe it’s a metaphor for how Fugazi sees the world, or at least the one they helped to build: “Facet Squared” opens with a few seconds of near-silence that builds into feedback, then some guitar mimicking a heartbeat checks in at the 15-second mark, joined in by the rest of the band who work together building up what sounds like it will be a slow jam with no real leader. The guitars, along with Joe Lally’s bass and Brendan Canty’s drums, all work together like a machine. MacKaye’s guitar takes over for a few seconds, signaling the next level the song is about to take. That buildup leads to one of MacKaye’s most furious deliveries as a singer, opening by claiming, “Pride no longer has definition,” with the kind of energy and anger he channeled in his younger days with Minor Threat. The song ends and cuts right into Canty pounding away to start the Guy Picciotto-fronted “Public Witness Program.” Complete with handclaps, a ringing chorus, and Picciotto yelling, “Can I get a witness” like a punk preacher; it showcases the band at their most driving. This is the closest you get to a polished Fugazi record, but by no means is it slick.

MacKaye, in an interview for Brandon Gentry’s book Capitol Contingency: Post-Punk, Indie Rock, and Noise Pop in Washington, D.C., 1991-1999, believed that little bit of shine was intentional, the result of producer Ted Niceley reacting to what he heard from the popular bands with the same DNA as Fugazi that were getting heavy airplay. “It’s that consciousness of radio,” MacKaye said, “that puts me off a little bit,” while also railing against the producer’s “total fixation on detail.” Yet it’s exactly that consciousness of radio and fixation to details that gives In on the Kill Taker its real edge. It’s hard to imagine a song like “Cassavetes,” with Picciotto conjuring up the ghost of the dead director, screaming, “Shut up! This is my last picture,” being sandwiched between the Smashing Pumpkins and Candlebox on a radio station’s playlist. The extra lacquer on top only makes it more scathing and visceral.

There’s no single on In on the Kill Taker. Besides “Waiting Room” somehow becoming one of the defining Gen. X anthems, Fugazi never set out to make any one song hold any more importance over the others to try and get radio program directors to pay attention. In fact, on their third album, they threw all curve balls, going from fast and hard to slow to mathy and instrumental. Of course, it didn’t hurt that Picciotto and MacKaye had helped lay the foundation for the hardcore and emo scenes in the ’80s with Rites of Spring and Minor Threat respectively. The roots of Fugazi were blooming out into hundreds of sub-genres and taking hold in regional scenes across the country. Fugazi appealed to such a vast swath of people, something a lot of punk, hardcore or indie bands couldn’t claim in 1993, and In on the Kill Taker had something for everyone.

Songs like “Smallpox Champion,” again with that slow start that builds, then blows up into Picciotto delivering a sermon, railing against America being a country founded on genocide, “The end of the future and all that you own.” While “23 Beats Off” sounds like a song from Wire’s early years literally stretched and pulled out to nearly seven minutes, MacKaye going from singing (as best he can) to screaming about a man who was once “at the center of some ticker tape parade,” who turns into “a household name with HIV.” You get a dose of the past, present, and future listening to these twelve tracks.

Lyrically, it’s also one of the more ambitious albums from the era. While burying any meaning beneath a pile of words like Cobain or bands like Pavement were so fond of doing was certainly du jour, Fugazi liked to mix things up. Picciotto flexed that English degree he got from Georgetown, while MacKaye’s muses were Marx and issues of The Nation. The band blends political with poetic, while sometimes erring on the side of the latter. If there’s any deeper meaning behind “Walken’s Syndrome,” besides being an ode to Christopher Walken’s character in Annie Hall, it’s difficult to tell what that is. “Facet Squared,” with MacKaye singing about how “flags are such ugly things,” could either be about nationalism or the facades people wear when they go out in public, you pick. Maybe that’s what they wanted the listener to do.

Fugazi were so unbelievably popular that it was more so the idea of Fugazi had caught on like it was just another adjective like goth or grunge. Even with their famous anti-merchandise stance, an entire small economy of bootleg shirts popped up, including the infamous “This Is Not A Fugazi T-Shirt” t-shirt. The press also took even more notice. Rolling Stone, in a positive review, said Fugazi had inherited the title of “The only band that matters” from the Clash, while Spin wasn’t so hot on it, calling the members “radical middle-class white boys” and the album “rigid, predictable.” The food critic Jonathan Gold, whose music writing tends to be overlooked when discussing his oeuvre, gave it three out of four stars in his LA Times review. In on the Kill Taker wasn’t hailed as a masterpiece or an album that was changing the game, but everybody needed to weigh in on Fugazi.

And as a profile that came out in the Washington Post a month after the album’s release showed, everybody wanted to be associated with them. The article mentions fans like Eddie Vedder, “rock’s couple of the moment,” Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, and Michael Stipe, who shows up to one of the band’s shows in Los Angeles: “He dances the hokey-pokey in the street in front of the Capitol Theatre with Fugazi drummer Brendan Canty,” in a very 1990s moment. In on the Kill Taker isn’t brought up until somewhere near the bottom of the piece. It was almost like saying that you liked or knew them was like a badge of honor, it absolved you of your own sins. The music was eclipsed by the message.

Mainstream interest in Fugazi was never as strong as it was during the period surrounding their third album. Two years later, when they released Red Medicine, the spotlight had shifted to pop-punk bands like Green Day and the Offspring. Fugazi continued to put out albums and pack shows that usually cost around five dollars, but the press was less interested in figuring out this crazy band with their wild set of ideals.

Many of the people who did pay attention to Fugazi, however, reacted. Like Brian Eno said of the initial 10,000 or so people who heard the Velvet Underground when their first album came out, the hundreds of thousands of people who bought In on the Kill Taker or saw the band as they trekked across America, Canada, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, that year and beyond, were impacted in some way. Maybe it was one kid out of 1,200 in attendance on September 27th, 1993 who saw them in Philly with the Spinanes and Rancid, or another of the 100 who saw them in Kyoto, Japan. Maybe a 15-year-old girl read about them in a magazine, this band that everybody was talking about, and decided to start her own band. Maybe it was a kid in El Paso, or a kid in Iowa City, or Greensboro. Maybe they inspired another kid to start a zine, which led them to realize they wanted to be a writer. Maybe 10,000 teens were so moved by Fugazi in 1993 that the ideas the band lived and worked by were ingrained into how those people have tried to go out and face the world.

[footyplusau]

Please stay fit: Your club’s most crucial player

EVERY team has a host of star players who provide the cream on top of a fine group performance.

And then there’s that one player who holds the key to his club’s fortunes, whose absence when sides are picked makes fans tremble in trepidation.

AFL.com.au reporters have taken on the task of nominating each club’s most critical player. Do you agree with our assessment?

Rory Sloane is the heart and soul of the Crows. The reigning Malcolm Blight medallist is a contested-ball animal, able to extract the Sherrin from stoppages and get it moving forward. But it’s his pressure acts and defensive running that set him apart from the field. Sloane’s one-game suspension for the round 23 clash with West Coast proved costly. With a top-two spot on the line, the Crows couldn’t cover his absence, lost the game and eventually bowed out in the second week of the finals to Sydney at the SCG. With Sloane, the Crows can win the premiership. Without him, they would be lucky to make the top four. – Lee Gaskin

The horrors of last year compared with the early-season promise can be put down to a number of things, not least the health of new skipper Dayne Beams. The star midfielder played just two games in 2016 because of persistent knee problems, and after a slightly interrupted pre-season has started this year on fire. Not only is his inside grunt a huge help to Tom Rockliff and company, but his outside class is something the Lions have been begging for. They look a more polished and composed unit with Beams in the middle. With youthful key position players at both ends, they can cover injuries in most places and not lose much, but a full season from Beams would make a world of difference. – Michael Whiting

In the absence of Andrew Phillips, Matthew Kreuzer carries a huge responsibility in the ruck, and in the three games this year he has been most impressive. Finally his battles with injury are behind him and he is playing to the level that the Blues hoped for when they took him as the No.1 selection in the 2007 NAB AFL Draft. The ruckman, who is an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season, has averaged 30 hit-outs a game and is in the top five at Carlton for contested possessions, clearances, tackles and inside 50s. Importantly, he has booted three goals straight. – Howard Kotton

Matthew Kreuzer celebrates the Blues’ win over traditional rivals Essendon. Picture: AFL Photos

The Pies’ Achilles heel is their leaky defence, and in particular their shortage of quality key defenders, so the importance of premiership and All Australian centre half-back Ben Reid cannot be understated. If the ‘Woods lost the consistent, strong-marking left-footer, it’s likely the dam wall would be irreparably broken, and they’d be forced to call up former Demons veteran Lynden Dunn or perhaps Lachie Keeffe, or even make do with admirable undersized options Tyson Goldsack and Jeremy Howe. Brodie Grundy would also be difficult to replace given the Pies are light on for ruckmen, and they can ill afford to lose skipper Scott Pendlebury, whose absence would potentially leave a gaping leadership void. – Ben Collins

There are a few options here for the Bombers given some of their midfield stars and Joe Daniher’s importance in attack. But Michael Hurley would be very close to the top of John Worsfold’s list. Hurley is the Bombers’ most valuable defender, he takes on the opposition’s leading forward while also creating rebound, and his tough, uncompromising approach sets a standard for his team. The Bombers do have some depth in defence, but not of Hurley’s quality. The Bombers could always swing Cale Hooker back if Hurley went down with injury, but that would have repercussions for the forward-line structure too. – Callum Twomey

You could mount a strong argument for Aaron Sandilands, but it’s impossible to go past the 2015 Brownlow medallist and new skipper Nat Fyfe – especially after his heroics in dragging Fremantle over the line against the Western Bulldogs. Fyfe’s herculean final quarter – including 12 touches, eight of which were contested – was pivotal in the Dockers clawing their way back from a 14-point deficit and his teammates walk taller with him in the side. When Fyfe dominated the first half of 2015, the Dockers looked genuine premiership material. His absence after round five last season due to a broken leg was a hammer blow with Sandilands already sidelined by broken ribs, and it’s no coincidence Freo’s season slid into the abyss. – Travis King

The most prolific Cats aren’t necessarily the ones they can’t afford to lose. If one of Patrick Dangerfield or Joel Selwood went down, the other – plus the likes of Mitch Duncan, Cam Guthrie and Sam Menegola – are still there. But, they just don’t have another player like power forward Tom Hawkins. The 28-year-old leads their goalkicking with 12 from Daniel Menzel (10), and while the team is less reliant on Hawkins than in the past, the 198cm, 110kg forward takes the biggest defender each week and is a strong contested marking target for his midfielders to spot. ­– Jennifer Phelan

The Suns have some of the best key-position players in the competition, but it’s also the area in which they are most vulnerable. They could ill afford to lose either co-captain Steven May or Tom Lynch, but an absence from May would be particularly harmful. Last year he was suspended for five matches and the Suns spiralled to an average losing margin of 80 points (although they were also in the middle of a midfield injury crisis). Aside from trusty sidekick Rory Thompson, there is precious little depth in the key defensive posts, with youngster Jack Leslie and versatile Keegan Brooksby the only alternatives. An injury to All Australian Lynch would also be a huge blow, but coach Rodney Eade has previously shown he can conjure magic from small forward lines. – Michael Whiting

Tom Lynch and Steven May are crucial to the Suns’ leadership. Picture: AFL Photos

The Giants’ list is stacked with talent and depth but star ruckman Shane Mumford remains the one man they can’t afford to lose. The emerging Rory Lobb does a solid job giving the big man a chop-out during games but he’s still learning the craft, Dawson Simpson doesn’t have the mobility to play regularly at senior level, and Tom Downie is on the long-term injury list while he deals with some mental health issues. Mumford’s aggressive nature and physical presence sets the tone for the side and his importance goes well beyond the stats sheet. – Adam Curley

Not a lot is going right for the once-mighty Hawks, so it would be just their luck if ex-Sydney Swan Tom Mitchell was forced to miss time. Mitchell, one of the men brought in to reinvent a midfield sans Jordan Lewis and Sam Mitchell, has easily been Hawthorn’s best player through the first three rounds, averaging 34 disposals and more than six tackles per game. That impressive output has not saved the Hawks from an 0-3 start, but imagine how dire the situation would be if he wasn’t there to carry such a heavy on-ball load. – Marc McGowan

Melbourne’s worst fears have been realised with All Australian ruckman Max Gawn to be sidelined for up to three months because of a significant hamstring injury. Gawn had surgery on Tuesday after hurting his right hamstring in the Demons’ 29-point loss to Geelong. Starting this week against Fremantle and Aaron Sandilands (No.1 in the AFL for hit-outs), Melbourne will now have to start rolling out its contingency ruck plans. Back-up big man Jake Spencer is likely to get the call up in Gawn’s place, with the Demons now considering how best to set up their midfield in Gawn’s absence. Melbourne is equal-third in the competition in centre clearances, thanks largely to Gawn’s influence, and his ability to give midfielders Nathan Jones, Clayton Oliver and Jack Viney first use out of the centre is a crucial element of the Demons’ game plan. – Ben Guthrie

The Roos have already shown, to varying degrees, they can cope without Jarrad Waite (replaced by Ben Brown) and Todd Goldstein (Braydon Preuss). But could they do the same if key defender Robbie Tarrant went down for an extended length of time? Tarrant, the 2016 club champion, provides genuine height at 196cm, with the undersized-but-dogged Scott Thompson and kids beside and underneath him. He has repeatedly proven himself capable of manning the competition’s gorillas, and that would become a serious problem area if his history of injuries repeated. It might be worth Brad Scott persisting with last week’s first-gamer Sam Durdin just in case the scenario presents. – Marc McGowan

Key defender Robbie Tarrant is the Kangaroos’ 2016 best and fairest. Picture: AFL Photos

Ollie Wines has taken the mantle as the Power’s best player, but the emergence of Sam Powell-Pepper and Brad Ebert’s return to an inside midfield role means they have back-up in that department. You can’t say the same about the key forward position. Charlie Dixon is crucial to the Power’s attacking structure. Even if he’s not kicking goals himself, Dixon brings the ball to ground and presents a contest so his small forwards can pick up the scraps. If Dixon is unavailable, the Power will have to rely on 27-year-old rookie Brett Eddy, raw draftee Todd Marshall, utility Jackson Trengove or take Patrick Ryder out of the ruck. – Lee Gaskin

The Tigers may have increased their midfield depth and ability to cover injuries there if need be, but Dustin Martin is in a different class. Damien Hardwick’s willingness to send him forward for periods and isolate him 25m ahead of the ball has been a feature of the Tigers’ play and an element they can’t afford to lose. Martin has won 22 per cent of his possessions inside 50 this year, compared to eight per cent in 2016. He has also been involved in 35.4 per cent of Richmond’s scores this season (ranked No.1 at the club). He hasn’t lost a one-on-one contest, neutralising them at worst, and he is averaging a career-best 32.7 possessions (No.4 in the AFL), despite his increased time forward. The Tigers might be able to cover him in the midfield and get by, but they can’t forward of centre. – Nathan Schmook

This is a tough decision but the answer is probably Jack Steven, narrowly over Nick Riewoldt. There’s a reason Steven has won three of the last four Trevor Barker Awards. His work inside the contest is obvious to anyone who watches Saints games, but his burst out of stoppages is what makes him a star of the competition. Steven’s absence was felt against the Brisbane Lions last week, when St Kilda lacked star power in its midfield. While Riewoldt’s best-on-ground effort in that match underlined his importance, the club is well stocked for forward targets and is better equipped to handle the former skipper’s absence than Steven’s. – Dinny Navaratnam

The Swans have an elite midfield unit but there’s no doubt skipper Josh Kennedy is the main man in the middle. The three-time club champion and All Australian is the contested ball and clearance king in Sydney, and has played 23+ games in all six of his years at the Swans, showing how consistent he is as the linchpin of John Longmire’s onball division. Luke Parker, Dan Hannebery and Kieren Jack are also stars, and Isaac Heeney is coming of age, but without Kennedy, the team loses its most reliable ball winner and stoppage specialist. – Adam Curley

Many would have said the Eagles couldn’t afford to lose spring-heeled ruckman Nic Naitanui if they were to stay in the premiership hunt, but time will tell if that’s the case. The addition of Hawthorn champion Sam Mitchell has somewhat softened that midfield blow. However, if dual Coleman medallist Josh Kennedy went down the Eagles’ flag hopes would hang by a thread. The gun full-forward has booted 162 goals in the past two seasons and when he fires West Coast rarely loses. The Eagles have only been beaten once in 18 games since the start of 2015 when Kennedy has kicked at least four goals. – Travis King

The Eagles can’t afford to lose star forward Josh Kennedy. Picture: AFL Photos 

While he’s the Bulldogs’ best player, Marcus Bontempelli is also their most important. At 21, the midfielder is already an elite player in the competition, with his all-round game impossible to stop at times. He’s ranked third at the Dogs this season for disposals (76), equal second for goals (five) and fourth in tackles (17). A snapshot of the reigning best and fairest’s importance was when he more or less dragged his side across the line against Sydney in round two. Versatile big man Tom Boyd hasn’t recaptured the form this year that saw him one of the best in the Dogs’ premiership triumph, but he’s still critical to Luke Beveridge’s set up with No.1 ruckman Jordan Roughead sidelined through injury. – Ryan Davidson

The post Please stay fit: Your club’s most crucial player appeared first on Footy Plus.

from Footy Plus http://ift.tt/2oYY3Zz via http://footyplus.net