Desert Island Disks - BotRH Style!

[Corki]

For those that have access to BBC Radio 4, you will probably know of the programme called Desert Island Disks. During an interview session, the guest talks about their life, while also picking their favourite 8 songs. At the end, they have to pick one record from their list, a book and a luxury item to take to a desert island.

 

I plan to run a similar idea here (please pick between 4 and 6 songs and hopefully find the music on YouTube or anywhere that will allow us to listen) so we can get to know the person being interviewed better and have some quality music as well. The person who has just been interviewed becomes the host for the next interview, and the cycle continues. Anyone can be interviewed, so please feel free to pick non-Banders as well.

 

You are more than welcome to read the thread to listen to the music and get to know the person being interviewed, but I will ask you to refrain from posting in it. If I see any posts not from the 'host' and 'guest', I will not hesitate to delete them. Thank you.

 

Banders and DMers who have so far been interviewed

 

--> Started by Corki (BotRH - Marshal-General/ORG Leader)

1. North Star (BotRH - Archer) - 2nd March 2008 Starts here

2. BridMorgan (BotRH - ex-Under-Commander/Cavalry) - 4th March 2008 Starts here

3. Myndrunner (BotRH - Cavalry) - 14th May 2008 Starts here

4. Taymist (ex-BotRH - Infantry) - 4th September 2008 Starts here

5. Samuraiflip05 (BotRH - Archer) - 17th July 2009 Starts here

6. Jeannaisais (BotRH - Under-Commander/Archer) - 20th January 2010 Starts here

 

If you have any comments to make (except for speed! ), please post them here.

[Corki]

Firstly, welcome to the first ever Desert Island Disks - Band of the Red Hand Style. I am extremely pleased to welcome one of the Band's older members to be first up. So, please give a warm welcome to North Star, an Archer of the Band.

 

Now, a couple of easy questions before we move onto your first piece of music. How did you find the Wheel of Time series, and what drew you to Dragonmount?

[North Star]

Hmmmm....well actually I didn't really find WoT or was drawn to DM....basically one of my best friends (Nia, Head of Blue Ajah) came bouncing down the english corridor at school when we were 15 and was SO excited because she had found this amazing website called dragonmount and she was Niamh Sedai (i only actually gathered this information after i persuaded her to speak slower). Then she proceeded to badger me into starting to read WoT and join dragonmount on the 15th April 2004 (happens to be one of my other best friends birthdays)

 

I've only read up to book 9 in WoT...basically because nia wouldnt lend me book 10 as it had taken me about 6 months to read book 9...and she thought (correctly) that she would never get it back!! lol!!

[Corki]

Interesting. I wonder if one would consider such action as a use of Compulsion.  Are you sure Nia isn't linked with the Dark One somehow after such an act?

 

Now, onto your first piece of music. What is it (please provide a link), and why have you chosen it?

[North Star]

ok, the song is Dont Stop Me Now by Queen http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58CJih1iYC0

 

One of my dads ex-girlfriends, Jules, introduced me to the wonders of Queen during a holiday in France, and this song has always stuck out. Its just such a great song which always makes me smile and laugh as its the song Jules wanted played at her funeral. its a great message :)

[Corki]

A good first choice, I must say! Only because I like Queen as well. It definitely is a nice, feel good track. It was just what I wanted to get myself going this morning!

 

So, once you joined DM, what did you do? Did you join any ORGs or the RP side? And as we know, you're a Bander, but what drew you to join the Band? And in particular, the Archers?

[North Star]

well when i first joined i bumbled around a bit! lol!! i knew nia was a member of the WT so i joined that and she made me a welcome thread on the general board so that was fun! i got to meet alot of people that way. the WT was wonderful then. Basically we only had two boards: the white tower board and the great hall board which was members only. All the ajah boards were hidden from non members of that ajah which i think was a brilliant system as it got the sedai out into the wt board and each ajah had its own thread to recruit with. so we used to have beach parties with the warders, and nia and i had enormous fun running them ragged...one memorable event was filling the moat with sand then burying several warders in it then erecting the welsh and english flags over them!! On one occassion of filling in the moat, we got punished (yes those were the glorious days where novices and accepted showed respect to sedai and got penance if they didnt...good times) by having to dig the moat out with a spoon. and a young algai called Corki also got the same punishment (thanks Kyn!!!) and then corki sent me a pm on the 19th may (nias birthday) wanting to chat....and things went from there and we ended up dating 6 months ish later on my last best friends birthday (7th december 2004)

 

the rp side never really interested me...threads were too long winded and it didnt seem as fun as the tower was then. then once nia and i became sedai the tower got boring and stagnant...the ajah boards were made public and the ajahs became more insular....it just wasnt as fun anymore.

 

then corki had the mad idea of becoming the org leader of a resurrected org, the band of the red hand. i thought he was nuts as his A levels were coming up, but i supported him and he got it. so i got involved basically because he was there and posted around a bit before joining. we got discussion board status and began planning to get org status which involved the development of the divisions as they were then. each division needed a leader, and we needed a LO (liason officer, now executive officer) and an UC. cuma wanted to be the UC, my first mentee  Sitara became LO, canis became cav CG...i cant remember who was infantry cg...and i chose to be the archers cg. at that time the archers had 2 members: me and cuma. and we basically built it up from there.

[Corki]

Ah, fond memories! I can't actually remember what I had did to deserve that penance, but it did become a good move, wouldn't you say? ;) But I agree. Those were good days in the White Tower, as there was respect, and punishment for those that overstepped the line.

 

As for the Band, it did seem crazy then, and it still seems crazy now! But at least I've always had a great group of people to work with, and that makes it all the more enjoyable.

 

Now, after a nice trip down memory lane, what is your second piece of music? What makes this piece stand out to you?

[North Star]

I have been a fan of Lord of the Rings since I was old enough for my parents to read it to me and me to understand it (i.e. from age 4 or 5) I read both the Hobbit and LOTR about age 7, and I have always loved the magic of the books...and their relevence to modern life. there are some very powerful messages for me contained in those pages which no other book has done (apart from one which I will talk about later). I then used to go to sleep imagining what it would be like to watch a film of LOTR, and in 2001, my dreams came true. I went to see the movie by Peter Jackson, and i was amazed as the film was exactly like i had imagined it would be...and i cant describe that feeling. it was amazing, and even though it doesnt seem like a particularly meaningful event, it was for me. it showed me that dreams can come true.

 

so on that note, the bit of music i have chosen basically encompasses all of the movies and the books. It also makes me think of home and unfailingly makes me want to be in Corki's arms while i listen to it. Its Into the West by Howard Shore and Annie Lennox.

[Corki]

A very moving peace of music. It nearly brought tears to my eyes just listening to it. So, after your reasoning for that piece of music, I'm guessing you are a huge Lord of the Rings fan? How can persuade someone like me, who isn't a great fan, to enjoy it more? What attracts you to the books, and what made the films so special? And are there any other fantasy authors you have come to enjoy as much as Tolkien?

[North Star]

I am a huge fan..i used to be a walking encyclopedia but unfortunately my knowledge has slipped somewhat.

 

If your not a LOTR fan, im guessing thats because you dont like the style the books are written in, or the fact that they are long. I think what you have to do is take a step back and look at the sitution the books were written in: for the example Tolkien wrote the Hobbit for his son Christopher, whereas LOTR was commissioned by his publisher so the audience has changed. Also take a step back to look at what he created: an entire world with a complete history. He started writing his notes for Middle Earth in 1919, so people believe he was planning Middle Earth during his time in the trenches during WW1. When you read the books, there are some very personal chapters to Tolkien  which dont seem relevent to the story - the tom bombadil chapter in the Fellowship of the Ring is a prime example of this. But if you look at the story of the books, its about a group of friends facing everything that could possibly test their friendship and coming through on the other side. Its got so many moral and political messages in it, and i think the books probably give different messages to different people. For me, the main message is about friendship and sticking together no matter what the odds are...that there is always hope no matter how hopeless the situation looks. Tolkein was a genius and very few fantasy authors are his match.

 

Also, if you are one of those people who complain about the length of the books or the pace of the story i will say this: 1. if you are on this site, you will probably have read WoT - currently 12? books long. LOTR is 6 books, with 2 books per book (if you take my meaning) 2. WoT is one of the slowest series i have ever read. 3. WoT pales in comparison to Tolkien. 4. read LOTR twice. the fellowship can be a bit slow to start with...but the books become more and more fast paced and if a 7/8 year old can become entralled im sure any adult can.

 

the films are special simply because Jackson portrayed the messages behind the story so well...he attached such a degree of emotion to the films and brought them alive in an amazing way, and even though he modified the story, the modifications worked and gave long term fans something to be excited about without spoiling the story. I thought it was clever how he made the films more feminist than the books with those modifications.

 

There are very few fantasy authors who compare to Tolkien. However, i do enjoy alot of authors works. Terry Pratchet as he always makes me laugh for example. David Gemmel i would have said was one of the best fantasy authors around, if not the best. But i have always had a love for Raymond E. Feist...mostly because he surprised me. Magician, his first book, clearly takes its inspiration from LOTR for the first few chapters...but then he comes into his own in a fantastic way. I absolutely love the concepts he explores about the nature of God(s) and the universe in the following series (of which there are 6 set in the same world in chronological order and a 7th set in the world of Kelewan which is introduced in Magician and is set around the same time)

 

 

[Corki]

You have a very valid point about the difference between The Hobbit and the rest of the Trilogy. I will say The Hobbit ranks as one of my favourite books of all time. It's a fantastic read. So maybe the fact that it was written for his son makes it different and easier to read. I didn't know that, so thank you for pointing that fact out. So maybe I will read the trilogy is a different light now. Sadly, I have only seen the first and second (I think) films, but I know you plan to rectify that at some stage.

 

I've only ever read Feist from that selection. A good author, I agree. There is something about Terry Pratchet that doesn't appeal to me - I just think it is the sheer amount of books he has written!

 

Now, we move onto music piece number 3. What is it, and why have you picked it?

[North Star]

Ever since the demise of popular music into something which i loath with a passion and is now all that seems to played on radio stations such as radio 1, i have developed a love of classical music - most of all piano music as i have played the piano since the age of 11. This bit of music is very famous and absolutely beautiful. My sister is also a pianist, and much better than i am so this reminds me a little of her. Its also the bit of music i want to walk down the aisle to at my wedding, whenever that may be.

 

its Pachebels Cannon in D Minor. I have found a lovely piano version which i hope you will enjoy. i believe its played by an improviser which my sister takes alot of inspiration from.

[Corki]

An extremely relaxing piece of music. Any reasons why you want it as the bit of music to walk down the aisle to?

 

So, what don't you like about modern music that drew you into classical music? Is there any modern day popular music you like? Or do you prefer stuff from the past? And if you were a pianist, what instrument would you have liked to have played?

[North Star]

I just think its a beautiful bit of music that touches something in me and makes me think of things i wouldnt otherwise think of...it always makes me smile.

 

i really dont like modern music as there is hardly anything which i enjoy listening to. all the rap stuff seems the same and gives off messages i dont like..and the men sing about love and all of the singers have synthesized voices which makes them sound all the same....and then you get train wrecks like amy winehouse singing awful music and putting totally the wrong message over to the younger generations. classical music is all different and it makes you think of different things...its relaxing and calms you in a way popular music doesnt. i guess the most modern music i like is things like rem, manic street prechers, red hot chilli peppers, stained, and some odd tracks. but mostly i prefer older music like queen etc the majority of stuff i listen to now is actually film soundtrack music.

 

if i werent a pianist i would have loved to have been able to play guitar properly...i did learn it a bit so i know a few chords but i could never move my fingers fast enough...they are much better suited to the piano!! lol!

[Corki]

You've made some interesting points there. I agree with you that some of the messages given off aren't correct. The way Amy Winehouse lives does give a bad impression, but I do think she has a good voice. This is obviously noted by people, especially with the number of awards she has picked up. I also think this explains why I've drifted away from mainstream music towards the metal genre and European music. There's just something different which appeals to me.

 

Now, onto your final piece of music. What is it, and why have you selected it?

[North Star]

This bit of music relates fairly heavily to my current life. I have always been facinated by the concept of religion, but i have never been religious - never been to church on a regular basis, or baptised/christened etc. I have never believed in God in the conventional sense, but i thought it was about time i rejected/accepted christianity on an informed basis rather than an uninformed one. I started off by going to some talks about the truth behind christianity at uni, and am currently studying Marks Gospel in some lunchtime sessions. Im also reading a book called "The Case for Christ" by Lee Strobel. Hes an american journalist who went to Yale law school, and is basically interviewing the formost christian scholars, classical historials and archaeologists in order to investigate the reliability of the bible. the amount of evidence he comes up with is staggering - for example, in greek text alone, there are over 8000 near complete new testiments or fragments of them from the first and second centuries. The next most commonly recorded text is Homer's Illiad of which there are only 650 surviving fragments from this time or before. The evidence for Jesus, his miracles and his resurrection is powerful and may be the most reliable evidence that we have for anything at that time or before - for example the biography of Alexander the Great is accepted as historical fact, however it was only written around 400 years after his death. the true biographies of Jesus - i.e. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were writen 30-60 years after Jesus's death, and there is other historical evidence from historians of that time which predates the gospels. and yet with all this evidence...its not that i dont want to believe, its not that i wont believe, its that i cant believe.

 

As of yet, im only about half way through the book so i have more reading to do, but its lovely to be able to form an informed opinion about christianity.

 

So on that note, my final bit of music is by one of my favourite groups, REM and is called Loosing my Religion http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NQeSIkw3X0&feature=related

[Corki]

Interesting connection. ;) But still a good choice of a song.

 

Those lectures sound really interesting, especially for a bad Christian like me. Any chance you could smuggle a U.C.L. student into an Imperial lecture? I didn't realise there were so many texts relating to the New Testament in Greek, but most of the religious texts I have come into contact with are in Latin (and Latin from either the Dark Ages or Medieval times).

 

Now, before I ask you to pick one song from those you have chosen to take onto the desert island, along with one book and one luxury item, what do you do in your spare time to amuse yourself? What do you consider your hobbies? Does it include 'spot the rock'?

[North Star]

If you take all the languages that were recorded at that time; so greek, latin, etc etc etc there are over 24000 fragments of text or the text itself from the New Testiment.

 

I read alot in my spare time...go out with friends...watch tv on iplayer...talk to various people...and spend a small amount of time on the band/dm, but no where near as much time as i used to. My hobbies...i play backgammon quite a bit, i love walking and sailing...i think my life is going to start to include geology alot more as i learn more about it. i will never be able to look at a cliff in the same way ever again!! lol!!!!

 

and you realise we are the only two people on this site who know what you mean by "spot the rock"? :P

[Corki]

I think it is quite easy to work out what 'spot the rock' means without me going into too much detail. I see you have a wide variety of interests, which is good. And the ability to bore me about the rocks in a cliff! ;)

 

Now, we are drawing to an end here on the first ever Desert Island Disks - Band of the Red Hand Style. So, before we finish, out of the 4 songs you have picked, which one would you take to your desert island? Also, which book would you take and why? And which one luxury item and why?

[North Star]

i forgot to add in piano to my hobbies! lol!!

 

hmm...this is tricky

 

i think it would have to be pachelbels cannon because it reminds me of so many different things i.e. home, my sister, piano, school music lessons with my friends, the future, my hopes and dreams...the book would be Lord of the Rings because i dont think i could get tired of reading it...and the luxury item...i think this depends on what you mean by luxury item...but i would choose a piano because at the moment i really really miss playing! and because when you play its like talking...you can get everything out.

[Corki]

I'm sure all will make you very happy on your desert island. ;) So thank you for taking the time to be here on Desert Island Disks - Band of the Red Hand Style. It was very informative and extremely interesting discussion.

 

Feel free to pick the next person (Bander or non-Bander) to continue this thread.

[North Star]

*pokes all the listeners awake*

 

Welcome to the second episode of Desert Island Disks - Band of the Red Hand Style!! Today, we have our lovely XO, Bridmorgan to answer questions about life, the universe and of course the WoT.  :D

 

So, first question Brid, why the wheel of time and Robert Jordan and why dragonmount?

[BridMorgan]

Well thank your for inviting me m'dear Quartermaster.  ;)

 

First off, why Robert Jordan.  Well, I was out with my sister at a Barnes and Noble and I was looking for a new fantasy author.  I'm a definate book cover shopper.  If I don't know what I'm looking for, I'll pick up a book first off because of the cover art.  I'm sure a lot of people do.  Well Eye of the World's cover art intrigued me, so I bought it and you can say the rest is history.  ;)

 

As for Dragonmount, I found it purely by accident.  I had joned TV.net some years ago, but couldn't remember what it was called and DM kept popping up in my searches so I decided to take a look.  I got involved in some of the discussions and then went and took a peek at the Org side.  The Band was the first Org I joined back in July of '06.  I've loved every minute of it.  I've made some really great friends here at DM.

[North Star]

I guess alot of us have difficulty choosing a new book series! why did the Band appeal to you over the other orgs? (im sure our GORGEOUS MG had something to do with it :P)

 

and, please could you tell us about your first bit of music and why you have chosen it