Brush pen and graphite with vector cleanup and refinement.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

1859 Concentrates. CO2 OG Kush sap and oils. Made with wax pulled from an Apeks Supercritical 1500-20L.

Alex had a unique approach to the production of his design folio work. Alex was constantly drawing. He spent most of his classtime just drawing, even when he was supposed to be doing something else. He needed to draw to think. So what you see here isn't necessarily pretty but this folio is stuffed with ideas. Alex's approach demonstrates precisely and accurately the method of idea generation and refinement promoted by the department. Note the large number of drawings on eachpage. this allows the student to easily cross reference and tag from one idea to the next. Extensive annotation also helps to reveal design thinking and comments should always be relevant and refer back to the specification. It is clear that Alex has a thorough understanding of the more technical aspects of the course and he repeatedly suggests ways in which his concepts might be made.

Alex went on to do very well at Higher Product Design. Some of his work also features on this site. He's now studying maths at Warwick University.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

French artist Lauren-ce Savary gives childr-en the space to redefi-ne beauty-

By Minerwa Tahir

Published: October 20, 2014

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Laurence Savary’s photographs of South African flowers displayed in the garden of Gulmit Secondary High School in Hunza. PHOTOS COURTESY: LAURENCE SAVARY

An average crayon drawing by a child might not be particularly engaging — it lacks the depth and refinement that many seek in a modern work of art. But as any well-informed artist would tell you, it is not always wise to judge a painting at first glance. Similarly, a closer look at these drawings will reveal how vocal a child’s art can be.

A drawing by Gulmit students Shaila Hossina and Bibi dedicated to their country, Pakistan. Photos courtesy: Laurence Savary

Since most children these days are conditioned to think in a certain way at school and at home — for instance, a predefined perception of beauty — it has become difficult to nurture their inherent creativity. It often remains dormant and, over time, fades away. Being well-aware of the downside of disciplining children into thinking within boundaries, Cape Town-based French artist Laurence Savary gives the younger lot a free hand to redefine beauty.

After showcasing her work at the ‘Colour Walk to South Africa’ exhibition held at the VM Art gallery, Karachi, in August, Laurence travelled to Hunza valley to meet her adoptive family. There, she taught photography to the children of the state-run Gulmit Secondary High School and encouraged them to explore their creative side. To get the creative juices flowing, Laurence displayed her photographs in the school’s garden — a basic juxtaposition of a natural image with a human one. She encouraged the young girls to look at the photographs and draw them in light of their own experiences.

Various depictions of the Namaqualand ice plant captured by the artist in one of her photographs. Photos courtesy: Laurence Savary

The results were striking. Taking cue from the picture of two daisy seeds, two Gulmit girls drew a flower and butterfly. The drawing, however, also had a literal dimension of expression to it in which the two girls added a caption allowing the butterfly to describe its feelings to the flower. Similarly, in a display of four pictures, one of which is of the Namaqualand ice plant taken by Savary, her pupils reflect her philosophy of art and beauty. One of the pictures recreates the flower in a cubist style, diminishing the three-dimensional quality of the picture in a remarkable way. In contrast, two other artists build on the 3D effect of the photostat picture. One used lighter shades of primary colours and a moderated background to focus on the plant, while another attempts to sharpen the background to focus on the flower, using bold blue and orange to inject colour and highlight the flower further. The work of the students at Gulmit and those assembled from similar projects in Cape Town, is currently on display at the Athlone Library, Cape Town.

Students of the Design Academy of Fashion in Cape Town take inspiration from flowers for their dress designs. Photos courtesy: Laurence Savary

The effect of colours and perspective in each picture shows how any object can be represented in multiple ways, depending on the individual’s interpretation. A student from the Design Academy of Fashion, Cape Town, even drew a girl wearing a skirt that imitated the orange petals of a Namaqualand flower, showing just how inspiring nature can be in everyday designs.

Students of Gulmit proudly displaying their work of art. Photos courtesy: Laurence Savary

Artist Laurence Savary talking to a student at the art exhibit in Cape Town. Photos courtesy: Laurence Savary

Pictures of student art and their journey to creativity displayed at the Athlone Library, Cape Town. Photos courtesy: Laurence Savary

Savary’s approach to art brings to mind John Keats’ opening lines in Ode to Endymion, “A thing of beauty is a joy forever; its loveliness increases.” She believes that people should define and depict beauty in a way that is not only unique but is also an extension of who they are.

Minerwa Tahir is a trainee subeditor at the Karachi desk.

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, October 19th, 2014.

U.S. Marines assigned to Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron One (MAWTS-1) conduct pre-flight checks before an aerial gunnery refinement exercise during Weapons and Tactics Instructor course 2-25 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, March 31, 2025. WTI is a seven-week event hosted by MAWTS-1 which emphasizes operational integration of the six functions of Marine aviation in support of the Marine Air Ground Task Force, Joint and Coalition Forces. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Fabian Ortiz)

Two-storey beach huts - an unusual refinement.

Formed only in 2007, Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the vanguard of Italy’s extreme metal movement. No other band in the country’s history has taken ownership of and innovated on death metal quite like the Italians. Inspired by greats Morbid Angel, Deicide, and Cannibal Corpse as well as renowned composers Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig Van Beethoven, Fleshgod Apocalypse have fused disparate genres and crafted a sound that’s powerful, impressive, and unique across three full-lengths, the latest of which was 2013’s critically-acclaimed Labyrinth effort. However, the group are only getting stronger. Add in film score composers such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Howard Shore and melodic death metal—Carcass and At the Gates—and there’s clearly no stopping Fleshgod Apocalypse’s creative ambitions.

“Fleshgod Apocalypse’s music is orchestral music,” says frontman/guitarist Tommaso Riccardi, blurring the lines between classical refinement and metallic bombast. “This means that drums, bass, guitars, and vocals are elements of the orchestra, together with all the other sections, [such as] strings, brass, etc. This means that in the process of composing new songs we always consider all these elements together. Of course, sometimes a guitar riff could be the starting point, while sometimes the song could come to life with the idea of a main orchestral theme or a drum rhythm, but it’s going to be a very organic process in which all these elements are written and arranged together during the evolution of the songwriting.”

What Riccardi is saying is that when it comes to writing music for Fleshgod Apocalypse, the spark of inspiration can come from anywhere on any instrument. For new album, King, a song like “Gravity” started with a riff, while a song like “In Aeternum” kicked off with an orchestral motif. Then again, “The Fool” was informed by both Classical and death metal. As with Labyrinth so too with King, the Italians focused first on melding their influences and second on writing songs that would be immediately recognizable yet have a wider and deeper cinematic scope.

“[The songwriting was] very stressful as usual,” the frontman laughs. “We are extremely meticulous about everything, especially the songwriting, and I think this is what made us grow up so fast and gave us the chance to play so many great stages over the years. We are hard workers and we never settle on anything. King’s songwriting and arrangements took almost nine full months—plus all the recordings—so it was actually very challenging. But we are so happy with the results.”

To date, every Fleshgod Apocalypse album is built on the album before it. They’re a synthesis of the music and mentality of what came before. Labyrinth took from and expanded upon 2011’s Agony. The Mafia EP was an extension of debut album, Oracles (2009). King is, therefore, cut from the same cloth as Labyrinth, but in the three years between albums, Fleshgod Apocalypse have matured greatly.

“[King] is much more than the sum of its parts,” says Riccardi. “I think we reached the perfect balance between all the aspects of our music. Besides that, I really believe that we simply wrote our best songs so far. Every riff is mind-blowing and the way we managed the arrangements and song structures is great; I really feel that everything is in the right place, when I listen to it.”

Fleshgod Apocalypse are no strangers to concept albums. Agony was about all the ways our painful feelings can lead us to be violent and hurt others; Mafia was about the way the Italian mafia uses fear to control the weak and perpetrate their dominion on the populace; while Labyrinth centered on the labyrinth of Knossos, the legendary maze made by Daedalus. King, however, moves the band forward lyrically. There’s real commentary behind the stories of a collapsing world.

“King is about an old world that is slowly coming to an end,” Riccardi informs. “The king himself is, in a way, the only positive character of the whole story. He represents justice, integrity, and wisdom that are slowly being corroded by ignorance and mediocrity spreading everywhere. We thought this could be a perfect way to describe our indignation about the unrestrainable downfall of our own society in an era that looks more like the Middle Ages rather than the 21st Century. Obviously, in this story there is a positive message: that the king could be inside every one of us. It’s up to us to recognize the King and find the courage to stand for what we believe in. We should all hail the king we have inside!”

Recorded across two studios—Kick Recording Studios and 16th Cellar Studios—King is easily Fleshgod Apocalypse’s most forceful yet. Pre-production was handled by Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studios—a session Riccardi called “really comfortable”—whereas the full production was completed at Kick Recording Studios with Marco Mastrobuono (Hour of Penance). The sessions for King were, as the frontman tells it, an “amazing time.” The ultimate goal was to give Fleshgod Apocalypse a firm foundation from which to build their complex yet savage music.

“I think working with Marco has been the very first step towards the realization of a very high quality product,” says Riccardi. “We are extremely satisfied about the work we did on the album sound, both during the recordings with Marco Mastrobuono at Kick Recording Studio and of course during mixing and mastering with the almighty Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios.”

Speaking of Bogren, the Italians felt it was absolutely necessary to take King out of the norms of their homeland. They opted to hire Jens Bogren (Soilwork, Symphony X, Enslaved) for his sonic expertise. Their reasoning was this: if Fleshgod Apocalypse had a gem in King on their hands they weren’t going to tarnish it. The group’s hopes were answered when they heard the first Bogren mix, actually. Fleshgod Apocalypse had something massive on their hands.

“We were looking for people who could really interpret our music and put it in a way in, which with all the things going on, where it could be intelligible and still extremely heavy and powerful,” the frontman says. “And we definitely succeeded. We finally obtained what we had in mind since the beginning: a great sounding album.”

If Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the pinnacle of classically-inspired death metal—King is a pivotal album—then where will the Italians take the genre next. For certain, they own it. More orchestration. More death metal. Superlative bluster from all angles. Thankfully, they can first put their efforts into King before deciding where they’ll take the genre in the future.

“This is a very hard question to answer,” Riccardi admits. “It is never easy to predict something like that. What I can say is that on our side, we are trying to push ourselves more and more into something that is grandiose, but at the same time heavy and sharp; something violent, obscure and dramatic!”

We can certainly live with that. Hail to Fleshgod Apocalypse! Hail to the King!

I will probably make some refinements to the head in the long run but this is a test fold of 1.0

Photo taken by Ifigenia Dou-Yian (my daughter) - refinement by me.

peppered spaetzel/caramelized shallots/forest mushrooms/crème fraîche

Another ge classic - a playful take on bringing comfort food brought to the next level. This was chef's take on deconstruction and refinement.

Instead of the brown/grey mess typically associated with the stewed dish, spicy rough spaetzel-like dough lumps were topped with a medium rare filet of waygu lion. Fresh green peppercorns and well seasoned (to the point of salty) wild trumpet mushrooms decorated one side of the buttery cut; the other sides of the thin-crusted-but-juicy-moist-centered steak were flanked by a frothy creme fraiche foam and an earthy porcini puree.

I enjoyed the lightening of the typically hearty, stick-to-your ribs dish: the way I could dissociate any heaviness from the course but still able to envelope my morsels of tender beef in the creaminess of the "stroganoff" by dragging them through the liquidy components. I very much appreciated the lighter touches: the fresh dill spring which could be likened to a breath of fresh air, and the threads of soft, sweet pickled shallots which cut through the rich flavours.

This course was bold. Each element might have competed for the spotlight, but when smashed together, a cacophony of flavours. There was no wonder in its pairing with the very spicy 2005 Chateau la Nerthe Chateauneuf du Pape Grenache/Syrah - which alone did not please the palate, but together with this dish spoke volumes.

A good dish to end on (savoury that is) because it really did blast the palate, with the taste buds seeking for the denouement.

Original early Series 2.

Series 2, 2A and 3 have a devoted following all over the world as anyone who has ever used one will confirm.

Legendary capabilities off road and superior refinements all round compared to Series 1. Perfectly engineered longer and wider relative to S1. Iconic period styling by David Bache.

Owned and operated by Border Rovers.

Border Rovers can be contacted on:

07515899390

Series II 88-inch utilities (1958-1961)

The Series II Land Rover was introduced in April 1958, exactly 10 years after the original was shown in Amsterdam. Both “Regular” and “Long” models had the same wheelbases as the Series Is they replaced, but there were many important differences. Most obvious was the styling (by Rover’s David Bache), which was impressive enough to survive with only minor changes into the 21st century. It provided barrel-sides to cover axles with wider tracks, plus a sill panel to conceal the underpinnings, and a particularly neat truck cab option. Mechanical changes focussed on a new and much more powerful petrol engine, this time an OHV four-cylinder of 2286cc. However, the 88-inch models retained the old 2-litre engine until summer 1958. The existing 2052cc diesel, a close cousin of the new petrol engine, remained available. The usual range of body styles was on offer – soft top, truck cab, and Station Wagon (see below). Overseas buyers could also have a Window Hardtop model. Bronze Green was still the most popular colour, but there were six others: Beige, Dark Grey, Light Green, Light Grey, Marine Blue and Poppy Red, the latter for fire engines. There were 60,456 88-inch Series II models, of which just 9,539 were diesel-powered. The last five 1500-series chassis (from 1960) appear to have had Perkins diesel engines from new.

Built in 1895-1896, this Chicago School-style thirteen-story skyscraper was designed by Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler for the Guaranty Construction Company. It was initially commissioned by Hascal L. Taylor, whom approached Dankmar Adler to build "the largest and best office building in the city,” but Taylor, whom wanted to name the building after himself, died in 1894, just before the building was announced. Having already had the building designed and ready for construction, the Guaranty Construction Company of Chicago, which already had resources lined up to build the project, bought the property and had the building constructed, with the building instead being named after them. In 1898, the building was renamed after the Prudential Insurance Company, which had refinanced the project and became a major tenant in the building after it was completed. Prudential had the terra cotta panels above the main entrances to the building modified to display the company’s name in 1898, upon their acquisition of a partial share in the ownership of the tower. The building became the tallest building in Buffalo upon its completion, and was a further refinement of the ideas that Sullivan had developed with the Wainwright Building in St. Louis, which was built in 1890-92, and featured a design with more Classical overtones, which were dropped with the design of the Guaranty Building in favor of a more purified Art Nouveau and Chicago School aesthetic, and with more intricate visual detail, with the ornate terra cotta panels cladding the entire structure, leaving very few areas with sparse detail. The building is an early skyscraper with a steel frame supporting the terra cotta panel facade, a departure from earlier load bearing masonry structures that had previously been predominant in many of the same applications, and expresses this through large window openings at the base and a consistent wall thickness, as there was no need to make the exterior walls thicker at the base to support the load from the structure above. The building also contrasts with the more rigid historically-influenced Classical revivalism that was growing in popularity at the time, and follows Sullivan’s mantra of “form ever follows function” despite having a lot of unnecessary detail on the exterior cladding and interior elements. The building’s facade also emphasizes its verticality through continual vertical bands of windows separated by pilasters that are wider on the first two floors, with narrower pilasters above, with the entire composition of the building following the tripartite form influenced by classical columns, with distinct sections comprising the base, shaft, and capital, though being a radical and bold abstraction of the form compared to the historical literalism expressed by most of its contemporaries, more directly displaying the underlying steel structure of the building.

The building is clad in rusty terra cotta panels which feature extensive Sullivanesque ornament inspired by the Art Nouveau movement, which clad the entirety of the building’s facades along Church Street and Pearl Street, with simpler red brick and painted brick cladding on the facades that do not front public right-of-ways, which are visible when the building is viewed from the south and west. The white painted brick cladding on the south elevation marks the former location of the building’s light well, which was about 30 feet wide and 68 feet deep, and was infilled during a 1980s rehabilitation project, adding an additional 1,400 square feet of office space, and necessitating an artificial light source to be installed above the stained glass ceiling of the building’s lobby. The building’s windows are mostly one-over-one double-hung windows in vertical columns, with one window per bay, though this pattern is broken at the painted portions of the non-principal facades, which feature paired one-over-one windows, on the second floor of the principal facades, which features Chicago-style tripartite windows and arched transoms over the building’s two main entry doors, on the thirteenth floor of the principal facades, which features circular oxeye windows, and at the base, which features large storefront windows that include cantilevered sections with shed glass roofs that wrap around the columns at the base of the building. The building’s terra cotta panels feature many natural and geometric motifs based on plants and crystalline structures, the most common being a “seed pod” motif that symbolizes growth, with a wide variation of patterns, giving the facade a dynamic appearance, which is almost overwhelming, but helps to further grant the building a dignified and monumental appearance, and is a signature element of many of the significant works of Adler and Sullivan, as well as Sullivan’s later independent work. The building’s pilasters halve in number but double in thickness towards the base, with wide window openings underneath pairs of window bays above on the first and second floors, with the pilasters terminating at circular columns with large, decorative, ornate terra cotta capitals in the central bays, and thick rectilinear pilasters at the corners and flanking the entry door openings. The circular columns penetrate the extruded storefront windows and shed glass roofs below, which formed display cases for shops in the ground floor of the building when it first opened, and feature decorative copper trim and mullions framing the large expanses of plate glass. The base of the building is clad in medina sandstone panels, as well as medina sandstone bases on the circular columns. The major entry doors feature decorative copper trim surrounds, a spandrel panel with ornate cast copper detailing above and the name “Guaranty” emblazoned on the face of each of the two panels at the two entrances, decorative transoms above with decorative copper panels as headers, and arched transoms on the second floor with decorative terra cotta trim surrounds. Each of the two major entrance doors is flanked by two ornate Art Nouveau-style wall-mounted sconces mounted on the large pilasters, with smaller, partially recessed pilasters on either side. The building features two cornices with arched recesses, with the smaller cornice running as a belt around the transition between the base and the shaft portions of the building, with lightbulbs in each archway, and the larger cornice, which extends further out from the face of the building, running around the top of the building’s Swan Street and Pearl Street facades, with a circular oxeye window in each archway. The lower corner recessed into the facade at the ends, while the upper cornice runs around the entire top of the facade above, with geometric motifs in the central portions and a large cluster of leaves in a pattern that is often repeated in Sullivan’s other work at the corners. The spandrel panels between the windows on the shaft portion of the building feature a cluster of leaves at the base and geometric patterns above, with a repeat of the same recessed arch detail as the cornice at the sill line of each window. The pilasters feature almost strictly geometric motifs, with a few floral motifs thrown in at key points to balance the composition of the facade with the windows. A small and often overlooked feature of the ground floor is a set of stone steps up to an entrance at the northwest corner of the building, which features a decorative copper railing with Sullivanesque and Art Nouveau-inspired ornament, which sits next to a staircase to the building’s basement, which features a more utilitarian modern safety railing in the middle.

The interior of the building was heavily renovated over the years before being partially restored in 1980, with the lobby being reverted back to its circa 1896 appearance. The Swan Street vestibule has been fully restored, featuring a marble ceiling, decorative mosaics around the top of the walls, a decorative antique brass light fixture with Art Nouveau detailing and a ring of lightbulbs in the center, the remnant bronze stringer of a now-removed staircase to the second floor in a circular glass wall at the north end of the space, and a terazzo floor. The main lobby, located immediately to the west, features a Tiffany-esque stained glass ceiling with ellipsoid and circular panels set into a bronze frame that once sat below a skylight at the base of the building’s filled-in light well, marble cladding on the walls, mosaics on the ceiling and around the top of the walls, a bronze staircase with ornate railing at the west end of the space, which features a semi-circular landing, a basement staircase with a brass railing, a terrazzo floor, and multiple historic three-bulb wall sconces, as well as brass ceiling fixtures matching those in the vestibule. The building’s elevators, located in an alcove near the base of the staircase, features a decorative richly detailed brass screen on the exterior, with additional decorative screens above, with the elevator since having been enclosed with glass to accommodate modern safety standards and equipment, while preserving the visibility of the original details. Originally, when the building was built, the elevators descended open shafts into a screen wall in the lobby, with the elevators originally being manufactured by the Sprague Electric Railway and Motor Company, with these being exchanged in 1903 for water hydraulic elevators that remained until a renovation in the 1960s. Sadly, most of the historic interior detailing of the upper floors was lost during a series of renovations in the 20th Century, which led to them being fully modernized during the renovation in the 1980s, with multiple tenant finish projects since then further modifying the interiors of the upper floors.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975, owing to its architectural significance, and to help save the building, which had suffered a major fire in 1974 that led to the city of Buffalo seeking to demolish it. A renovation in the early 1980s managed to modernize the building while restoring the lobby and the exterior, which was carried out under the direction of the firm CannonDesign, and partial funding from federal historic tax credits. The building was purchased in 2002 by Hodgson Russ, a law firm, which subsequently further renovated the building to suit their needs, converting the building into their headquarters in 2008. This renovation was carried out under the direction of Gensler Architects and the local firm Flynn Battaglia Architects. The building today houses offices on the upper floors, with a visitor center, known as the Guaranty Interpretative Center, on the first floor, with historic tours offered of some of the building’s exterior and interior spaces run by Preservation Buffalo Niagara. The building was one of the most significant early skyscrapers, and set a precedent for the modern skyscrapers that began to be built half a century later.

I've successfully grown salad sprouts before, but clearly my mung bean technique needs refinement. I shall persevere.

©2008 ilovecoffeeyesido

The plaque reads:

The Packard Twelve set the standard for refinement, class and distinction. This magnificent automobile is a 59,000 mile original classic that was only repainted in 1995 in it's original color of Chinese Red. It has had only four owners since new. The donors owned and maintained this automobile for more than thirty-five years. Note the outstanding original interior. Among the unusual features of this car are dash, bumper supports and hubcap trim stripes painted in body color. The Twelve was available in two wheelbases and fourteen body styles. This body style was the most expensive of the 1607 series at $5320. A total of 566 Packard Twelves were produced in 1938. This car is truly a masterpiece of the late Classic era.

Okemos, Michigan.

Damn, had I actually read the plaque, instead of just taking it's picture, I would have been more intrigued by the car than the hood ornament. Sorry... by this time, my headache had reached splitting levels.

I wish I could afford to buy and run one.

According to the sales literature:

The Aston Martin DB9 can only be described as a thoroughbred sports car that provides GT standards of refinement and comfort.

This sports car blends Aston Martin’s unique character with an uncompromising design philosophy.

The DB9 was born out of a synthesis of traditional craftsmanship, modern components, high-tech manufacturing and use of only the finest materials.

What more could I say.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

1859 Concentrates. An oily wax ball harvested from an Apeks Supercritical 1500-20L.

Incorporating pieces of TheLostVertex's advice - although this is a single shot as opposed to a stack. Reversed 28mm lens at minimum aperture (which is unlabeled, but presumably f/22 or somewhere thereabouts), in front of a 105mm macro lens wide open (nominally f/2.8 but effectively f/4.5), all mounted on 56mm of extension tubes. Lit by two slaved strobes, with exposure set manually.

As can be seen in the 100% crop, I'm off on the focus. I need to add a lever arm to my focus rail's distance knob so I can manipulate it more accurately. I also need to get some form of close-in lighting that I can see well enough to focus, since with the stopped down lens and extension tubes, it's quite dark in the viewfinder.

Built in 1895-1896, this Chicago School-style thirteen-story skyscraper was designed by Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler for the Guaranty Construction Company. It was initially commissioned by Hascal L. Taylor, whom approached Dankmar Adler to build "the largest and best office building in the city,” but Taylor, whom wanted to name the building after himself, died in 1894, just before the building was announced. Having already had the building designed and ready for construction, the Guaranty Construction Company of Chicago, which already had resources lined up to build the project, bought the property and had the building constructed, with the building instead being named after them. In 1898, the building was renamed after the Prudential Insurance Company, which had refinanced the project and became a major tenant in the building after it was completed. Prudential had the terra cotta panels above the main entrances to the building modified to display the company’s name in 1898, upon their acquisition of a partial share in the ownership of the tower. The building became the tallest building in Buffalo upon its completion, and was a further refinement of the ideas that Sullivan had developed with the Wainwright Building in St. Louis, which was built in 1890-92, and featured a design with more Classical overtones, which were dropped with the design of the Guaranty Building in favor of a more purified Art Nouveau and Chicago School aesthetic, and with more intricate visual detail, with the ornate terra cotta panels cladding the entire structure, leaving very few areas with sparse detail. The building is an early skyscraper with a steel frame supporting the terra cotta panel facade, a departure from earlier load bearing masonry structures that had previously been predominant in many of the same applications, and expresses this through large window openings at the base and a consistent wall thickness, as there was no need to make the exterior walls thicker at the base to support the load from the structure above. The building also contrasts with the more rigid historically-influenced Classical revivalism that was growing in popularity at the time, and follows Sullivan’s mantra of “form ever follows function” despite having a lot of unnecessary detail on the exterior cladding and interior elements. The building’s facade also emphasizes its verticality through continual vertical bands of windows separated by pilasters that are wider on the first two floors, with narrower pilasters above, with the entire composition of the building following the tripartite form influenced by classical columns, with distinct sections comprising the base, shaft, and capital, though being a radical and bold abstraction of the form compared to the historical literalism expressed by most of its contemporaries, more directly displaying the underlying steel structure of the building.

The building is clad in rusty terra cotta panels which feature extensive Sullivanesque ornament inspired by the Art Nouveau movement, which clad the entirety of the building’s facades along Church Street and Pearl Street, with simpler red brick and painted brick cladding on the facades that do not front public right-of-ways, which are visible when the building is viewed from the south and west. The white painted brick cladding on the south elevation marks the former location of the building’s light well, which was about 30 feet wide and 68 feet deep, and was infilled during a 1980s rehabilitation project, adding an additional 1,400 square feet of office space, and necessitating an artificial light source to be installed above the stained glass ceiling of the building’s lobby. The building’s windows are mostly one-over-one double-hung windows in vertical columns, with one window per bay, though this pattern is broken at the painted portions of the non-principal facades, which feature paired one-over-one windows, on the second floor of the principal facades, which features Chicago-style tripartite windows and arched transoms over the building’s two main entry doors, on the thirteenth floor of the principal facades, which features circular oxeye windows, and at the base, which features large storefront windows that include cantilevered sections with shed glass roofs that wrap around the columns at the base of the building. The building’s terra cotta panels feature many natural and geometric motifs based on plants and crystalline structures, the most common being a “seed pod” motif that symbolizes growth, with a wide variation of patterns, giving the facade a dynamic appearance, which is almost overwhelming, but helps to further grant the building a dignified and monumental appearance, and is a signature element of many of the significant works of Adler and Sullivan, as well as Sullivan’s later independent work. The building’s pilasters halve in number but double in thickness towards the base, with wide window openings underneath pairs of window bays above on the first and second floors, with the pilasters terminating at circular columns with large, decorative, ornate terra cotta capitals in the central bays, and thick rectilinear pilasters at the corners and flanking the entry door openings. The circular columns penetrate the extruded storefront windows and shed glass roofs below, which formed display cases for shops in the ground floor of the building when it first opened, and feature decorative copper trim and mullions framing the large expanses of plate glass. The base of the building is clad in medina sandstone panels, as well as medina sandstone bases on the circular columns. The major entry doors feature decorative copper trim surrounds, a spandrel panel with ornate cast copper detailing above and the name “Guaranty” emblazoned on the face of each of the two panels at the two entrances, decorative transoms above with decorative copper panels as headers, and arched transoms on the second floor with decorative terra cotta trim surrounds. Each of the two major entrance doors is flanked by two ornate Art Nouveau-style wall-mounted sconces mounted on the large pilasters, with smaller, partially recessed pilasters on either side. The building features two cornices with arched recesses, with the smaller cornice running as a belt around the transition between the base and the shaft portions of the building, with lightbulbs in each archway, and the larger cornice, which extends further out from the face of the building, running around the top of the building’s Swan Street and Pearl Street facades, with a circular oxeye window in each archway. The lower corner recessed into the facade at the ends, while the upper cornice runs around the entire top of the facade above, with geometric motifs in the central portions and a large cluster of leaves in a pattern that is often repeated in Sullivan’s other work at the corners. The spandrel panels between the windows on the shaft portion of the building feature a cluster of leaves at the base and geometric patterns above, with a repeat of the same recessed arch detail as the cornice at the sill line of each window. The pilasters feature almost strictly geometric motifs, with a few floral motifs thrown in at key points to balance the composition of the facade with the windows. A small and often overlooked feature of the ground floor is a set of stone steps up to an entrance at the northwest corner of the building, which features a decorative copper railing with Sullivanesque and Art Nouveau-inspired ornament, which sits next to a staircase to the building’s basement, which features a more utilitarian modern safety railing in the middle.

The interior of the building was heavily renovated over the years before being partially restored in 1980, with the lobby being reverted back to its circa 1896 appearance. The Swan Street vestibule has been fully restored, featuring a marble ceiling, decorative mosaics around the top of the walls, a decorative antique brass light fixture with Art Nouveau detailing and a ring of lightbulbs in the center, the remnant bronze stringer of a now-removed staircase to the second floor in a circular glass wall at the north end of the space, and a terazzo floor. The main lobby, located immediately to the west, features a Tiffany-esque stained glass ceiling with ellipsoid and circular panels set into a bronze frame that once sat below a skylight at the base of the building’s filled-in light well, marble cladding on the walls, mosaics on the ceiling and around the top of the walls, a bronze staircase with ornate railing at the west end of the space, which features a semi-circular landing, a basement staircase with a brass railing, a terrazzo floor, and multiple historic three-bulb wall sconces, as well as brass ceiling fixtures matching those in the vestibule. The building’s elevators, located in an alcove near the base of the staircase, features a decorative richly detailed brass screen on the exterior, with additional decorative screens above, with the elevator since having been enclosed with glass to accommodate modern safety standards and equipment, while preserving the visibility of the original details. Originally, when the building was built, the elevators descended open shafts into a screen wall in the lobby, with the elevators originally being manufactured by the Sprague Electric Railway and Motor Company, with these being exchanged in 1903 for water hydraulic elevators that remained until a renovation in the 1960s. Sadly, most of the historic interior detailing of the upper floors was lost during a series of renovations in the 20th Century, which led to them being fully modernized during the renovation in the 1980s, with multiple tenant finish projects since then further modifying the interiors of the upper floors.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1975, owing to its architectural significance, and to help save the building, which had suffered a major fire in 1974 that led to the city of Buffalo seeking to demolish it. A renovation in the early 1980s managed to modernize the building while restoring the lobby and the exterior, which was carried out under the direction of the firm CannonDesign, and partial funding from federal historic tax credits. The building was purchased in 2002 by Hodgson Russ, a law firm, which subsequently further renovated the building to suit their needs, converting the building into their headquarters in 2008. This renovation was carried out under the direction of Gensler Architects and the local firm Flynn Battaglia Architects. The building today houses offices on the upper floors, with a visitor center, known as the Guaranty Interpretative Center, on the first floor, with historic tours offered of some of the building’s exterior and interior spaces run by Preservation Buffalo Niagara. The building was one of the most significant early skyscrapers, and set a precedent for the modern skyscrapers that began to be built half a century later.

Refinement and elegance of manner; polished courtesy.

Courtesies; civilities.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The Lavochkin La-5 (Лавочкин Ла-5) was a Soviet fighter aircraft of World War II. It was a development and refinement of the LaGG-3 and was one of the Soviet Air Force's most capable types of warplane.

In the summer of 1943, a brand-new La-5 made a forced landing on a German airfield providing the Luftwaffe with an opportunity to test-fly the newest Soviet fighter. Test pilot Hans-Werner Lerche wrote a detailed report of his experience.[1] He particularly noted that the La-5FN excelled at altitudes below 3,000 m (9,843 ft) but suffered from short range and flight time of only 40 minutes at cruise engine power. All of the engine controls (throttle, mixture, propeller pitch, radiator and cowl flaps, and supercharger gearbox) had separate levers which served to distract the pilot during combat to make constant adjustments or risk suboptimal performance. For example, rapid acceleration required moving no less than six levers. In contrast, contemporary German aircraft, especially the BMW 801 radial-engined variants of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 front line fighter, had largely automatic engine controls with the pilot operating a single lever and electromechanical devices, like the Kommandogerät pioneering engine computer on the radial-engined Fw 190s, making the appropriate adjustments. Due to airflow limitations, the engine boost system (Forsazh) could not be used above 2,000 m (6,562 ft). Stability in all axes was generally good. The authority of the ailerons was deemed exceptional but the rudder was insufficiently powerful at lower speeds. At speeds in excess of 600 km/h (370 mph), the forces on control surfaces became excessive. Horizontal turn time at 1,000 m (3,281 ft) and maximum engine power was 25 seconds.

In comparison with Luftwaffe fighters, the La-5FN was found to have a comparable top speed and acceleration at low altitude. It possessed a higher roll rate and a smaller turn radius than the Bf 109 and a better climb rate than the Fw 190A-8. The Bf 109 utilizing MW 50 had superior performance at all altitudes, and the Fw 190A-8 had better dive performance. Lerche's recommendations were to attempt to draw the La-5FN to higher altitudes, to escape attacks in a dive followed by a high-speed shallow climb, and to avoid prolonged turning engagements.

The La-5 had its defects. Perhaps the most serious being the thermal isolation of the engine, lack of ventilation in the cockpit, and a canopy that was impossible to open at speeds over 350 km/h. To make things worse, exhaust gas often entered in the cockpit due to poor insulation of the engine compartment. Consequently, pilots ignored orders and frequently flew with their canopies open.[2]

In general, Soviet pilots appreciated the La-5 as an effective fighter. "That was an excellent fighter with two cannons and a powerful air-cooled engine", recalled pilot Viktor M. Sinaisky. "The first La-5s from the Tbilisi factory were slightly inferior, while the last ones from the Gorki plant, which came to us from Ivanovo, were perfect. At first we received regular La-5s, but then we got new ones containing the ASh-82FN engine with direct injection of fuel into the cylinders. It was perfect. Everyone was in love with the La-5. it was easy to maintain too."[3] Nevertheless La-5 losses were high, the highest of all fighters in service in USSR, not considering those of the Yak-1. In 1941-45, VVS KA lost 2,591 La-5s, 73 in 1942, 1,460 in 1943, 825 the following year and 233 in 1945.[4]

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

Formed only in 2007, Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the vanguard of Italy’s extreme metal movement. No other band in the country’s history has taken ownership of and innovated on death metal quite like the Italians. Inspired by greats Morbid Angel, Deicide, and Cannibal Corpse as well as renowned composers Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig Van Beethoven, Fleshgod Apocalypse have fused disparate genres and crafted a sound that’s powerful, impressive, and unique across three full-lengths, the latest of which was 2013’s critically-acclaimed Labyrinth effort. However, the group are only getting stronger. Add in film score composers such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Howard Shore and melodic death metal—Carcass and At the Gates—and there’s clearly no stopping Fleshgod Apocalypse’s creative ambitions.

“Fleshgod Apocalypse’s music is orchestral music,” says frontman/guitarist Tommaso Riccardi, blurring the lines between classical refinement and metallic bombast. “This means that drums, bass, guitars, and vocals are elements of the orchestra, together with all the other sections, [such as] strings, brass, etc. This means that in the process of composing new songs we always consider all these elements together. Of course, sometimes a guitar riff could be the starting point, while sometimes the song could come to life with the idea of a main orchestral theme or a drum rhythm, but it’s going to be a very organic process in which all these elements are written and arranged together during the evolution of the songwriting.”

What Riccardi is saying is that when it comes to writing music for Fleshgod Apocalypse, the spark of inspiration can come from anywhere on any instrument. For new album, King, a song like “Gravity” started with a riff, while a song like “In Aeternum” kicked off with an orchestral motif. Then again, “The Fool” was informed by both Classical and death metal. As with Labyrinth so too with King, the Italians focused first on melding their influences and second on writing songs that would be immediately recognizable yet have a wider and deeper cinematic scope.

“[The songwriting was] very stressful as usual,” the frontman laughs. “We are extremely meticulous about everything, especially the songwriting, and I think this is what made us grow up so fast and gave us the chance to play so many great stages over the years. We are hard workers and we never settle on anything. King’s songwriting and arrangements took almost nine full months—plus all the recordings—so it was actually very challenging. But we are so happy with the results.”

To date, every Fleshgod Apocalypse album is built on the album before it. They’re a synthesis of the music and mentality of what came before. Labyrinth took from and expanded upon 2011’s Agony. The Mafia EP was an extension of debut album, Oracles (2009). King is, therefore, cut from the same cloth as Labyrinth, but in the three years between albums, Fleshgod Apocalypse have matured greatly.

“[King] is much more than the sum of its parts,” says Riccardi. “I think we reached the perfect balance between all the aspects of our music. Besides that, I really believe that we simply wrote our best songs so far. Every riff is mind-blowing and the way we managed the arrangements and song structures is great; I really feel that everything is in the right place, when I listen to it.”

Fleshgod Apocalypse are no strangers to concept albums. Agony was about all the ways our painful feelings can lead us to be violent and hurt others; Mafia was about the way the Italian mafia uses fear to control the weak and perpetrate their dominion on the populace; while Labyrinth centered on the labyrinth of Knossos, the legendary maze made by Daedalus. King, however, moves the band forward lyrically. There’s real commentary behind the stories of a collapsing world.

“King is about an old world that is slowly coming to an end,” Riccardi informs. “The king himself is, in a way, the only positive character of the whole story. He represents justice, integrity, and wisdom that are slowly being corroded by ignorance and mediocrity spreading everywhere. We thought this could be a perfect way to describe our indignation about the unrestrainable downfall of our own society in an era that looks more like the Middle Ages rather than the 21st Century. Obviously, in this story there is a positive message: that the king could be inside every one of us. It’s up to us to recognize the King and find the courage to stand for what we believe in. We should all hail the king we have inside!”

Recorded across two studios—Kick Recording Studios and 16th Cellar Studios—King is easily Fleshgod Apocalypse’s most forceful yet. Pre-production was handled by Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studios—a session Riccardi called “really comfortable”—whereas the full production was completed at Kick Recording Studios with Marco Mastrobuono (Hour of Penance). The sessions for King were, as the frontman tells it, an “amazing time.” The ultimate goal was to give Fleshgod Apocalypse a firm foundation from which to build their complex yet savage music.

“I think working with Marco has been the very first step towards the realization of a very high quality product,” says Riccardi. “We are extremely satisfied about the work we did on the album sound, both during the recordings with Marco Mastrobuono at Kick Recording Studio and of course during mixing and mastering with the almighty Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios.”

Speaking of Bogren, the Italians felt it was absolutely necessary to take King out of the norms of their homeland. They opted to hire Jens Bogren (Soilwork, Symphony X, Enslaved) for his sonic expertise. Their reasoning was this: if Fleshgod Apocalypse had a gem in King on their hands they weren’t going to tarnish it. The group’s hopes were answered when they heard the first Bogren mix, actually. Fleshgod Apocalypse had something massive on their hands.

“We were looking for people who could really interpret our music and put it in a way in, which with all the things going on, where it could be intelligible and still extremely heavy and powerful,” the frontman says. “And we definitely succeeded. We finally obtained what we had in mind since the beginning: a great sounding album.”

If Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the pinnacle of classically-inspired death metal—King is a pivotal album—then where will the Italians take the genre next. For certain, they own it. More orchestration. More death metal. Superlative bluster from all angles. Thankfully, they can first put their efforts into King before deciding where they’ll take the genre in the future.

“This is a very hard question to answer,” Riccardi admits. “It is never easy to predict something like that. What I can say is that on our side, we are trying to push ourselves more and more into something that is grandiose, but at the same time heavy and sharp; something violent, obscure and dramatic!”

We can certainly live with that. Hail to Fleshgod Apocalypse! Hail to the King!

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

...a oil refinery in Shreveport, Louisiana. It is right next to I-20 and looks so beautiful at night. The hard part is to find a good position to shoot it from. I had to choose between the shady neighborhood next to the refinery or the exposed road on one side (no where to stop besides the shoulder). Naturally it is important to look out for both cops and rent-a-cops as terrorism paranoia is alive and thriving. In the end I tired both. The shot from the neighborhood (above) was more successful and peaceful. The road had a better angle, but I got stressed (even at 2 am with very few cars).

Large version on black background

EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM | 10,0 sec | 45 mm | f/20 | ISO 250 | Aperture priority mode | 1 2/3 EV

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the model, the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

Some background:

The SAAB B31 was a Swedish jet-powered multirole aircraft, originally designed to serve as a tactical bomber, ground attack, reconnaissance and interceptor aircraft. In the aftermath of the Second World War, Sweden set about the rebuilding and modernization of its armed forces. Regarding aviation, jet propulsion had been identified as the powerplant of the future, and experience with the SAAB 21R, which had been converted from a propeller-pusher aircraft into a jet-powered fighter and attack aircraft in 1947, bolstered confidence in the home industry’s competence. The Saab 21R was only an interim solution, though. One hundred and twenty-four aircraft were planned but this number was reduced to only 64 and they were mainly used as fighter-bombers. The Flygvapnet’s standard post-war bomber, the Saab 18, a twin piston-engine design from 1944, was outdated, too, and its performance was regarded as inadequate for the Fifties. This led to a major development initiative for modern jet aircraft for the Flygvapnet in 1946, which spawned the Saab 29 ‘Tunnan’ fighter and the Saab B31 light bomber. Both aircraft were initially designed around the de Havilland Goblin turbojet of British origin, but when the more powerful de Havilland Ghost became available, this was chosen as the standard powerplant. Both aircraft incorporated such modern features as swept wings or ejection seats.

When the Saab 32’s fighter version, the J 32B, eventually became operational in 1958, it was clear that the heavy and highly limited twin-engine J31B would not remain in service for much longer. By 1963 all machines had been retired from frontline service, initially stored in reserve but scrapped by 1970. Two machines remained operational, though: as flying test beds for the Swedish Air Force’s Försökscentralen (FC) at Malmen AB, where they served until 1981 – primarily to test radar and missile guidance systems, and as radar targets for war games and anti-aircraft unit trainings.

General characteristics:

Crew: 2

Length: 15,76 m (51 ft 7 1/2 in)

Wingspan: 16.96 m (55 ft 2/3 in)

Height: 4,21 m (13 ft 9 1/2 in)

Wing area: 45 m2 (480 sq ft)

Empty weight: 9,000 kg (19,823 lb)

Gross weight: 17,500 kg (38,546 lb)

….Max takeoff weight: 19,000 kg (41,850 lb)

Fuel capacity: 5,100 L (1,350 US gal / 1,120 imp gal) maximum internal fuel

plus 2x 570 L (150 US gal, 120 imp gal) optional drop-tanks

Powerplant:

2× Svenska Flygmotor RM2F centrifugal-flow turbojet engine (Rolls Royce Ghost), each with

4,750 lbf (21.1 kN) dry thrust at 10,250 rpm and

5,400 lbf (24.02 kN) with temporary water-alcohol injection

Performance:

Maximum speed: 1,090 km/h (677 mph, 588 kn; Mach 0.9) at 10,000 ft (3,000 m)

Cruise speed: 732 km/h (455 mph, 395 kn)

Stall speed: 150 km/h (92.8 mph, 80.6 kn) with approach power

Combat range: 1.850 km (1,145 mi, 995 nmi) on internals

Ferry range: 2.200 km (1,375 mi, 1,195 nmi) with 2× 570 l drop-tanks

Service ceiling: 16,200 m (53,062 ft)

Rate of climb: 40 m/s (7.681 ft/min)

Wing loading: 87.1 lb/sq ft (388 kg/m²)

Thrust/weight: 0.32

Armament:

4× 20 mm (0.79 in) akan m/47C (license produced Hispano Mark V) autocannon with 220 RPG

48× 75 mm (3.0 in) srak m/55 (Bofors 75 mm (3.0 in) rocket "Frida") unguided air-to-air missiles

with contact fuze high-capacity warhead on retractable rack in ventral bay

(not used operationally, later completely deleted in favor of a second water-alcohol tank)

2× wet underwing hardpoints outside of the engine nacelles for 600 kg (1.321 lb) each;

alternatively a pair of Rb24 (AIM9-B Sidewinder) IR-guided air-to-air missiles

The model and its assembly:

While it does not look spectacular, the J31 (actually my second use of this designation for a Swedish Fifties all-weather fighter, the first was an A.W. Meteor NF.14, but the “31” was lent from the Spitfire PR.XIX in Swedish service as S31) was a major creation feat. It all started with a discussion with fellow Swedish board member Pellson at whatifmodellers.com about Saab prototypes, esp. the early designs. That made me wonder about a twin-jet engine aircraft, something that could replace the Saab 18 bombers much like the BAC Canberra with the RAF’s Mosquito – and looking at similar international projects of the time like the Soviet Il-29 and Yak-25 as well as the French S.O. 4050 Vautour I thought that something similar could work well for Sweden, too.

My concept started with a primary light bomber and attack role, much like the B18 and the Canberra, with the outlook to develop a radar-bearing all-weather fighter from it, which was direly needed in Sweden in the Mid-Fifties and led to the procurement of two interim types in real life, the J30 (Mosquito night fighter) and the J33 (Venom night fighter), while plans were made to equip the J29 with a radar and the Saab 32 already on the drawing boards, even though the latter’s fighter version would be delayed well into the Sixties.

The core of the build was a leftover fuselage from a Matchbox F3D Skyknight – from an incomplete kit that came OOB with one of its three sprue trees double (even though in different colours!). The canopy was also still there, and now I eventually found a good use for it. However, not much more would be taken over from the Skyknight, because the overall layout would be much different, dictated by the bulky centrifugal flow engines that were (only) available to Sweden in the late Forties and which also powered the successful J29 Tunnan. The engines could, due to their diameter and the need for ducts, not be buried in the fuselage, so that they would go under the wings, directly attached to them as in the Il-29 and Vautour. The wings would be slightly swept (around 20°), as a compromise between modernism (as on the J29) and good range/endurance, and shoulder-mounted for good ground clearance and to avoid FOP (an issue of the Yak-25).

Since the engine pods should not be too large and bulky I decided that the main wheels would not retract into them (à la Il-28) and rather follow the Vautour route: with a tandem arrangement retracting into the fuselage and with small outrigger wheels. This had, for the original bomber version, the benefit, that the internal bomb bay could become longer than with a more conventional tricycle landing gear arrangement that would full retract into the hull, much like the Douglas A3D/B.66, with a wider track. And it would look more exotic, too.

With this concept I started a donor parts safari and started work on the fuselage. First major feat was to clean the F3D’s flanks from its original engine fairings – thankfully the Matchbox kit provides them as separate parts, so omitting them was simple, but there were enough major recesses and areas beyond the F3D’s basically teardrop shape hull that had to be filled and PSRed, including the original wing attachment points in the hull’s middle.

Another issue was the cockpit, which was missing through the double sprues. I was lucky to find an original Matchbox F3D tub in the spare box, from my first Skyknight build ever in the late Eighties (then built as a Vietnam era EF-10). New seats were procured as well as two (ugly) pilot figures and a dashboard from an Italeri Tornado IDS. However, the cockpit would later cause some more trouble…

The nose was generously filled with steel balls to keep it down (you never know…), and once the hull was closed, I implanted a new rear landing gear well. In the meantime, I kept searching for engine nacelle and wing parts – both turned out to be challenging. Not that I had not enough material to choose from, but I wanted to make the parts to be as authentic as possible – the nacelles conveying a centrifugal engine inside (see the Gloster Meteor for reference), and the light wing sweep angle as well as the desire for a not-too-modern look made the wing choice really hard.

The nacelles were completed first. I remembered some leftover parts from a Matchbox Meteor night fighter, mainly the intakes, which would be perfect. But the rest of the nacelles took a while to materialize. Eventually I found engine pods from a Hobbycraft Su-25, which are separate pieces. They had a more or less square diameter shape, but their size was good and so I combined them with the round (and bigger!) Meteor NF.14 intakes, after having added trimmed-down intake cones from a Trumpeter Il-28 inside, and PSRing the different shapes into something …more natural. Even though outrigger wheels would later be added I omitted eventual wells at this point, because I had to define the stance through the tandem main wheels first, and this was still tbd.

The wing donors became a lengthy affair. At one point I became so desperate that I tried to use the wing tips from a VEB Plasticart 1:100 Tu-20/95 bomber, but that failed (thankfully!) because the parts turned out to be warped and simply too ugly for the build. I did not find any suitable material in The Stash™, tested wings from an A-6 and an F-14, nothing worked well. I eventually procured – in a forlorn move – a vintage Revell 1:113 B-47 kit. Horrible thing, but its outer wings were useful, even though they required massive modifications. Their roots were cut away to reduce span and their angle was set at about 20°; the slender tips were also cut off, resulting in an almost trapezoid shape with a slightly extended wing chord at the trailing edge of the roots. Lots of PSR was required to improve the surface and to fill some gaps from the OOB engine pod attachment points of the B-47. Ugh.

At that point I had also already found a good fin: from an Academy/Minicraft 1:144 B-1B bomber! This not only offered a very Fifties-esque round and swept shape, it also had suitable attachment points for the stabilizers for a cruciform tail, which appeared necessary due to the engines’ wing position. As a side benefit, I could use the B-47’s wing tips as stabilizers, even though they had to be PSRed a lot, too.

To attach the new wings to the F3D fuselage I made cutouts at shoulder height, but the engine pods were first mounted and PSRed under the wings. More putty and sanding mess, but it was worthwhile.

In the meantime I worked on the landing gear and used parts from the ugly VEB Plasticart Tu-20/95 to scratch a tandem layout with twin wheels and a significant nose-up stance (due to the rear wheels’ position beyond the aircraft’s centre of gravity). Once this was settled and the wings in place I could work on the outrigger wheels. These were procured from a Matchbox 1:72 Sea Harrier and mounted in scratched fairings under the engine pods, so that they could semi-retract. With the ground clearance defined by the main wheels a suitable position and length for the outriggers could be found, and in the end the J31 has a proper stance with all four legs on the ground.

Painting and markings:

I like to apply simple liveries to weird builds, and for the J31 I settled upon a NMF finish – which was typical for the contemporary J29 Tunnan fighters, too. Only the reconnaissance versions as well as the fighters of as single operational unit were ever camouflaged (in dark green and dark blue). The only other realistic cammo option would have been the standard Swedish uniform dark green over blue grey. But bare metal appeared IMHO much better suited.

As a non-standard measure the model received an overall thin coat of grey primer, primarily to identify dents and notches on its many PSRed surface areas – a good move, because a lot of small flaws could be identified and treated before a final overall coat with “White Aluminium” from a rattle can (Duplicolor, RAL 9006) was applied and details like the radome, antennae (both in black) and the landing gear and its wells (in a light bronze tone, seen on Saab 29s and 32s) were painted in detail. I think the silver underlines the J31’s clean lines well?

The model received a light black ink washing, less for true weathering but to emphasize engraved details and for a “cloudier” look of the NMF surfaces. This was further enhanced through a careful treatment with grinded graphite (which adds a truly metallic shine to the paint), and since a lot of surface details were lost through PSR I did some manual panel-shading with different silver tones and re-created panel lines all over the hull with a soft pencil, mostly free-handedly. Quite simple, but it improves the overall impression a lot.

Decals were puzzled together. The Swedish roundels came from a generic TL-Modellbau sheet, the “T” on the tail was scratched from generic white and blue stripes from the same manufacturer. The blue band around the nose was made with the same material, plus a white “T” – inspired by tactical markings from some J29s from the Fifties. Some stencils were collected from the scrap box, and black walkway borders added to the wings’ upper surfaces and the spine behind the cockpit. As a side benefit these hide some lingering inconsistencies on the wing surfaces well.

Finally, the model was sealed with semi-gloss acrylic varnish (Italeri) for a shiny finish, except for the radomes, which became matt.

It might not look spectacular or exciting, but I am quite proud of this “second” J31, because it not only was a major kitbashing project, it also conveys the Fifties “look and feel” I wanted to catch, like its contemporaries S.O. 4050 Vautour, Yak-25, or even the stillborn Baade Ba-152 airliner. From that point it turned out very well, and going for a simple NMF livery was IMHO also a good move – the J31 has a certain “space age” look? At least, this is what you can get when you combine major parts from F3D, B-47. B1, Il-28, Su-25, Tu-95 and a Gloster Meteor… 😉

In Northern Ireland, with 'cheese-cutter' and other refinements. (c. 1970)

: Influence of color, toggling between LC 102 & 101 will reveal the effect of color separation, also the depth of tonal influence that makes the color version stand out, related to camera Black and white balance, Photo shop allows the touch up of the basic B/W details can be altered then by returning to the color version now the refinement shows more clearly. many things can be modified to improve a marginal image, this and the previous image, have been improved, in much the same way as was used in the Darkroom development days, 45 years ago. although I have several photographic books and manuals, none as yet have brought to attention. Enjoy ! The relearning curve. also on this example notice the additional size change, near 1MP.

The Civic hatch has a lot going for it - styling, refinement, above average dynamics and economy for starters. Honda's "magic" rear seat provides added versatility if you need to carry larger objects and the auto VTi-L pricing of just under $27,000 makes it an attractive proposition in terms of value for money. It's a nicely balanced package.

www.mynrma.com.au/motoring-services/reviews/car-reviews/h...

... but this talc will guard your refinement and make him long to marry you instead of allowing him to smell your natural scent and assume you are a hussy.

"It guards your refinement. When a man takes you in his arms, you're sweet as a flower ... and he knows you are refined. There may be madness in his heart but there'll be worship in his soul. His love for you is sacred ... and he longs to make you his wife to protect and adore forever."

Ad for Lander's blended flower talcs in the August 1938 issue of Radio Stars Magazine. Found in Liberty, NY

See the whole issue scanned here: docplayer.net/58906237-Tuning-in-at-the-insane-asylums-ri...

Lots of deodorant ads in there.

A Corliss steam engine (or Corliss engine) is a steam engine, fitted with rotary valves and with variable valve timing patented in 1849, invented by and named after the American engineer George Henry Corliss in Providence, Rhode Island. Engines fitted with Corliss valve gear offered the best thermal efficiency of any type of stationary steam engine until the refinement of the uniflow steam engine and steam turbine in the 20th century. Corliss engines were generally about 30 percent more fuel efficient than conventional steam engines with fixed cutoff. This increased efficiency made steam power more economical than water power, allowing industrial development away from millponds. Corliss engines were typically used as stationary engines to provide mechanical power to line shafting in factories and mills and to drive dynamos to generate electricity. Many were quite large, standing several stories tall, and developing several hundred horsepower, albeit at low speed, turning massive flywheels weighing several tons at about 100 revolutions per minute. Some of these engines had unique roles as mechanical legacy systems and because of their relatively high efficiency and low maintenance requirements, some remain in service in early 21st century. Corliss engines have four valves for each cylinder, with steam and exhaust valves located at each end. Corliss engines incorporate distinct refinements in both the valves themselves and in the valve gear, that is, the system of linkages that operate the valves. The use of separate valves for admission and exhaust means that neither the valves nor the steam passages between cylinders and valves need to change temperature during the power and exhaust cycle, and it means that the timing of the admission and exhaust valves can be independently controlled. In contrast, conventional steam engines have a slide valve or piston valve that alternately feeds and exhausts through passages to each end of the cylinder. These passages are exposed to wide temperature swings during engine operation, and there are high temperature gradients within the valve mechanism itself. Clark (1891) commented that the Corliss gear 'is essentially a combination of elements previously known and used separately, affecting the cylinder and the valve-gear' The origins of the Corliss gear with regard to previous steam valve gear was traced by Inglis (1868)... The Corliss Steam Engine Company was originally known as Fairbanks, Clark & Co. in the 1830s. In 1843 it was renamed Fairbanks, Bancroft & Co. when Edward Bancroft joined the company. In 1846 it was renamed Bancroft, Nightingale & Co. when George H. Corliss joined the company, and in 1847 it was renamed Corliss, Nightingale and Co. In 1848 the company moved to the Charles Street Railroad Crossing in Providence, Rhode Island. In 1857 the company was renamed for the last time to Corliss Steam Engine Company. By 1864 Corliss bought out his partners and was the sole owner of the company. In 1900 the Corliss Steam Engine Company was purchased by the International Power Company. In 1905 it was purchased by the American and British Manufacturing Company. In 1925 the company merged into Franklin Machine Company. By then Franklin Machine Company was already owned by the William A. Harris Steam Engine Company Valve gear typical of engines developed by Corliss competitors. The horizontal arrangement of the dashpots and the lack of a wrist plate avoided key claims in the Corliss patents. By 1859, all of the key features of what we now know as the Corliss engine were in place. Patents granted to Corliss and others incorporated rotary valves and crank shafts in-line with the cylinders. See, for example, Corliss' U.S. Patent 24,618, granted July 5, 1859. Competing inventors worked hard to invent alternatives to Corliss' mechanisms; they generally avoided Corlis's use of a wrist plate and adopted alternative releasing mechanisms for the steam valves, as in Jamieson's U.S. Patent 19,640, granted March 16, 1858. Corliss' 1849 patent expired in 1870; the term of this patent had been extended by U.S. Patent reissue 200 on May 13, 1851 and U.S. Patent reissues 758 and 763 on July 12, 1859. After 1870, numerous other companies began to manufacture Corliss engines. Among them, the William A. Harris Steam Engine Company,[17] the Worthington Pump and Machinery Company 2, and Allis-Chalmers 3. In general, these machines were referred to as Corliss engines regardless of who made them... This one is on display at the National Museum of Scotland

The all-new Jaguar F-PACE is a performance crossover designed and engineered to offer the agility, responsiveness and refinement that all Jaguars are renowned for, together with unrivalled dynamics and everyday versatility.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

The department has been building up a library of design related reference books over the last few years. Pupils are encouraged to make use of these books on a regular basis. The photographs here demonstrate the tremendous wealth of content contained therein.

The sequence has been shot in such a way that the cover of the book is shown first and a few sample pages are included to give the student an idea of the content the book contains. Pupils may then approach staff and request a short term loan.

Last night we pushed out some refinements to one of our products at work, Marketplace. Search UI improvements are above.

Newness is on top :)

Formed only in 2007, Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the vanguard of Italy’s extreme metal movement. No other band in the country’s history has taken ownership of and innovated on death metal quite like the Italians. Inspired by greats Morbid Angel, Deicide, and Cannibal Corpse as well as renowned composers Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig Van Beethoven, Fleshgod Apocalypse have fused disparate genres and crafted a sound that’s powerful, impressive, and unique across three full-lengths, the latest of which was 2013’s critically-acclaimed Labyrinth effort. However, the group are only getting stronger. Add in film score composers such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Howard Shore and melodic death metal—Carcass and At the Gates—and there’s clearly no stopping Fleshgod Apocalypse’s creative ambitions.

“Fleshgod Apocalypse’s music is orchestral music,” says frontman/guitarist Tommaso Riccardi, blurring the lines between classical refinement and metallic bombast. “This means that drums, bass, guitars, and vocals are elements of the orchestra, together with all the other sections, [such as] strings, brass, etc. This means that in the process of composing new songs we always consider all these elements together. Of course, sometimes a guitar riff could be the starting point, while sometimes the song could come to life with the idea of a main orchestral theme or a drum rhythm, but it’s going to be a very organic process in which all these elements are written and arranged together during the evolution of the songwriting.”

What Riccardi is saying is that when it comes to writing music for Fleshgod Apocalypse, the spark of inspiration can come from anywhere on any instrument. For new album, King, a song like “Gravity” started with a riff, while a song like “In Aeternum” kicked off with an orchestral motif. Then again, “The Fool” was informed by both Classical and death metal. As with Labyrinth so too with King, the Italians focused first on melding their influences and second on writing songs that would be immediately recognizable yet have a wider and deeper cinematic scope.

“[The songwriting was] very stressful as usual,” the frontman laughs. “We are extremely meticulous about everything, especially the songwriting, and I think this is what made us grow up so fast and gave us the chance to play so many great stages over the years. We are hard workers and we never settle on anything. King’s songwriting and arrangements took almost nine full months—plus all the recordings—so it was actually very challenging. But we are so happy with the results.”

To date, every Fleshgod Apocalypse album is built on the album before it. They’re a synthesis of the music and mentality of what came before. Labyrinth took from and expanded upon 2011’s Agony. The Mafia EP was an extension of debut album, Oracles (2009). King is, therefore, cut from the same cloth as Labyrinth, but in the three years between albums, Fleshgod Apocalypse have matured greatly.

“[King] is much more than the sum of its parts,” says Riccardi. “I think we reached the perfect balance between all the aspects of our music. Besides that, I really believe that we simply wrote our best songs so far. Every riff is mind-blowing and the way we managed the arrangements and song structures is great; I really feel that everything is in the right place, when I listen to it.”

Fleshgod Apocalypse are no strangers to concept albums. Agony was about all the ways our painful feelings can lead us to be violent and hurt others; Mafia was about the way the Italian mafia uses fear to control the weak and perpetrate their dominion on the populace; while Labyrinth centered on the labyrinth of Knossos, the legendary maze made by Daedalus. King, however, moves the band forward lyrically. There’s real commentary behind the stories of a collapsing world.

“King is about an old world that is slowly coming to an end,” Riccardi informs. “The king himself is, in a way, the only positive character of the whole story. He represents justice, integrity, and wisdom that are slowly being corroded by ignorance and mediocrity spreading everywhere. We thought this could be a perfect way to describe our indignation about the unrestrainable downfall of our own society in an era that looks more like the Middle Ages rather than the 21st Century. Obviously, in this story there is a positive message: that the king could be inside every one of us. It’s up to us to recognize the King and find the courage to stand for what we believe in. We should all hail the king we have inside!”

Recorded across two studios—Kick Recording Studios and 16th Cellar Studios—King is easily Fleshgod Apocalypse’s most forceful yet. Pre-production was handled by Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studios—a session Riccardi called “really comfortable”—whereas the full production was completed at Kick Recording Studios with Marco Mastrobuono (Hour of Penance). The sessions for King were, as the frontman tells it, an “amazing time.” The ultimate goal was to give Fleshgod Apocalypse a firm foundation from which to build their complex yet savage music.

“I think working with Marco has been the very first step towards the realization of a very high quality product,” says Riccardi. “We are extremely satisfied about the work we did on the album sound, both during the recordings with Marco Mastrobuono at Kick Recording Studio and of course during mixing and mastering with the almighty Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios.”

Speaking of Bogren, the Italians felt it was absolutely necessary to take King out of the norms of their homeland. They opted to hire Jens Bogren (Soilwork, Symphony X, Enslaved) for his sonic expertise. Their reasoning was this: if Fleshgod Apocalypse had a gem in King on their hands they weren’t going to tarnish it. The group’s hopes were answered when they heard the first Bogren mix, actually. Fleshgod Apocalypse had something massive on their hands.

“We were looking for people who could really interpret our music and put it in a way in, which with all the things going on, where it could be intelligible and still extremely heavy and powerful,” the frontman says. “And we definitely succeeded. We finally obtained what we had in mind since the beginning: a great sounding album.”

If Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the pinnacle of classically-inspired death metal—King is a pivotal album—then where will the Italians take the genre next. For certain, they own it. More orchestration. More death metal. Superlative bluster from all angles. Thankfully, they can first put their efforts into King before deciding where they’ll take the genre in the future.

“This is a very hard question to answer,” Riccardi admits. “It is never easy to predict something like that. What I can say is that on our side, we are trying to push ourselves more and more into something that is grandiose, but at the same time heavy and sharp; something violent, obscure and dramatic!”

We can certainly live with that. Hail to Fleshgod Apocalypse! Hail to the King!

Formed only in 2007, Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the vanguard of Italy’s extreme metal movement. No other band in the country’s history has taken ownership of and innovated on death metal quite like the Italians. Inspired by greats Morbid Angel, Deicide, and Cannibal Corpse as well as renowned composers Franz Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig Van Beethoven, Fleshgod Apocalypse have fused disparate genres and crafted a sound that’s powerful, impressive, and unique across three full-lengths, the latest of which was 2013’s critically-acclaimed Labyrinth effort. However, the group are only getting stronger. Add in film score composers such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, and Howard Shore and melodic death metal—Carcass and At the Gates—and there’s clearly no stopping Fleshgod Apocalypse’s creative ambitions.

“Fleshgod Apocalypse’s music is orchestral music,” says frontman/guitarist Tommaso Riccardi, blurring the lines between classical refinement and metallic bombast. “This means that drums, bass, guitars, and vocals are elements of the orchestra, together with all the other sections, [such as] strings, brass, etc. This means that in the process of composing new songs we always consider all these elements together. Of course, sometimes a guitar riff could be the starting point, while sometimes the song could come to life with the idea of a main orchestral theme or a drum rhythm, but it’s going to be a very organic process in which all these elements are written and arranged together during the evolution of the songwriting.”

What Riccardi is saying is that when it comes to writing music for Fleshgod Apocalypse, the spark of inspiration can come from anywhere on any instrument. For new album, King, a song like “Gravity” started with a riff, while a song like “In Aeternum” kicked off with an orchestral motif. Then again, “The Fool” was informed by both Classical and death metal. As with Labyrinth so too with King, the Italians focused first on melding their influences and second on writing songs that would be immediately recognizable yet have a wider and deeper cinematic scope.

“[The songwriting was] very stressful as usual,” the frontman laughs. “We are extremely meticulous about everything, especially the songwriting, and I think this is what made us grow up so fast and gave us the chance to play so many great stages over the years. We are hard workers and we never settle on anything. King’s songwriting and arrangements took almost nine full months—plus all the recordings—so it was actually very challenging. But we are so happy with the results.”

To date, every Fleshgod Apocalypse album is built on the album before it. They’re a synthesis of the music and mentality of what came before. Labyrinth took from and expanded upon 2011’s Agony. The Mafia EP was an extension of debut album, Oracles (2009). King is, therefore, cut from the same cloth as Labyrinth, but in the three years between albums, Fleshgod Apocalypse have matured greatly.

“[King] is much more than the sum of its parts,” says Riccardi. “I think we reached the perfect balance between all the aspects of our music. Besides that, I really believe that we simply wrote our best songs so far. Every riff is mind-blowing and the way we managed the arrangements and song structures is great; I really feel that everything is in the right place, when I listen to it.”

Fleshgod Apocalypse are no strangers to concept albums. Agony was about all the ways our painful feelings can lead us to be violent and hurt others; Mafia was about the way the Italian mafia uses fear to control the weak and perpetrate their dominion on the populace; while Labyrinth centered on the labyrinth of Knossos, the legendary maze made by Daedalus. King, however, moves the band forward lyrically. There’s real commentary behind the stories of a collapsing world.

“King is about an old world that is slowly coming to an end,” Riccardi informs. “The king himself is, in a way, the only positive character of the whole story. He represents justice, integrity, and wisdom that are slowly being corroded by ignorance and mediocrity spreading everywhere. We thought this could be a perfect way to describe our indignation about the unrestrainable downfall of our own society in an era that looks more like the Middle Ages rather than the 21st Century. Obviously, in this story there is a positive message: that the king could be inside every one of us. It’s up to us to recognize the King and find the courage to stand for what we believe in. We should all hail the king we have inside!”

Recorded across two studios—Kick Recording Studios and 16th Cellar Studios—King is easily Fleshgod Apocalypse’s most forceful yet. Pre-production was handled by Stefano Morabito at 16th Cellar Studios—a session Riccardi called “really comfortable”—whereas the full production was completed at Kick Recording Studios with Marco Mastrobuono (Hour of Penance). The sessions for King were, as the frontman tells it, an “amazing time.” The ultimate goal was to give Fleshgod Apocalypse a firm foundation from which to build their complex yet savage music.

“I think working with Marco has been the very first step towards the realization of a very high quality product,” says Riccardi. “We are extremely satisfied about the work we did on the album sound, both during the recordings with Marco Mastrobuono at Kick Recording Studio and of course during mixing and mastering with the almighty Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios.”

Speaking of Bogren, the Italians felt it was absolutely necessary to take King out of the norms of their homeland. They opted to hire Jens Bogren (Soilwork, Symphony X, Enslaved) for his sonic expertise. Their reasoning was this: if Fleshgod Apocalypse had a gem in King on their hands they weren’t going to tarnish it. The group’s hopes were answered when they heard the first Bogren mix, actually. Fleshgod Apocalypse had something massive on their hands.

“We were looking for people who could really interpret our music and put it in a way in, which with all the things going on, where it could be intelligible and still extremely heavy and powerful,” the frontman says. “And we definitely succeeded. We finally obtained what we had in mind since the beginning: a great sounding album.”

If Fleshgod Apocalypse are at the pinnacle of classically-inspired death metal—King is a pivotal album—then where will the Italians take the genre next. For certain, they own it. More orchestration. More death metal. Superlative bluster from all angles. Thankfully, they can first put their efforts into King before deciding where they’ll take the genre in the future.

“This is a very hard question to answer,” Riccardi admits. “It is never easy to predict something like that. What I can say is that on our side, we are trying to push ourselves more and more into something that is grandiose, but at the same time heavy and sharp; something violent, obscure and dramatic!”

We can certainly live with that. Hail to Fleshgod Apocalypse! Hail to the King!

Working on a spoon order as well as practicing design replication/refinement. Truly Good Work as E.F. Schumacher would say.