About time I say.

[EphelDuath666]

We can take turns to shave Lars during the hiatus.

you tease!


that's good news indeed! I've been wondering if that guy ever sleeps anyways!

*laughs*

That's all I can do, I mean come on, we all know Devin is still going to do some writing, mixing, etc. on something. It's impossible for him to take full time off.

[Tracy]

Regarding the complaint about Devin's not posting here first, he didn't post it there, he's frankly not posting anywhere. The label arranges interviews and the content appears like magic, everywhere. Whether you want it to or not.

The replies to that "innocent" piece of Blabbermouth news are truly shocking. What is with that? The harder he works it seems the more cruel people get. Devin just wants to have a semblance of a "normal" life for a few months and people jump on it as an excuse to rip him apart? My skin is no longer thick enough to pay attention to the chatter. Why are people so judgmental without even knowing what they are talking about?

Try to put yourselves in our position. Imagine those things were said about you. Any references to me, our personal lives, especially to our child that could be even slightly derogatory is really not cool. I don't know why people are so eager to slag on Devin, especially for someone of his relative insignificance in the industry. Usually this kind of derision is reserved for people once they've become "big".

Devin has never called himself a "genius" yet people seem to think he is some arrogant jerk who touts himself as infallible. Most of the hype has been created by the press and breeds resentment from the public. He does what he does because he likes it and it is what comes naturally. The fact that he can share it with others and we can make a living is awesome but at what price?

My role in the future will be greatly reduced. I will fill the merchandise orders, write the newsletters, and do the necessary behind the scenes things that come with running things here. I will likely withdraw from the forum and any email not related to merchandise.

I know that they say if you put yourself out there in the public eye, you deserve what you get but Devin doesn't want to be a rock star or a celebrity. He just wants to make music - like it or leave it. There are lots of artists and "personalities" that I don't much care for but I don't feel the need to say so publicly and hatefully.

Some say that we should be thankful that at least he's got attention. That the love/hate response is a good thing. It's awesome, really, they should try it sometime.

You have to bear in mind Tracy that *most* people who post on Blabbermouth are insufferable shits.

Don't listen to them and certainly don't listen to us, we're just a bunch of overly obsessed fans here!

With such a close connection to the DTB and to the Townsend family, I guess we come to expect that Devin will give us "special treatment" and I guess it is time that that attitude is dispelled. I definitely feel proud to be part of this unique community as it feels as if it has some "consequence" to the band and that the people I admire are really reading it.

I stick by what I said; rest well Dev!

Tracy, I can't imagine dealing with people who say things about my spouse who don't what the hell they are talking about. You have been more than generous in keeping Devins fans up to date with whatever is going on. I hate to see what kind of awful things people(If i can call them that) write on sites like blabbermouth. And I'm just a fan. I would'nt think of telling you guys, "hey your in the public eye, so suck it up".
That's nonsense. I'm sure that 99 out of every 100 people who post on blabbermouth are stupid 13-year old kids who have nothing better to do.
But it still sucks. I hope everythings going well for you guys. I wish you and devin all the best for this fall. My wife and i (and even our oldest daughter!) adore devins music, and hope it continues. I don't know if my rambling post will make you feel any better tracy, but for what it's worth,
I, and i'm sure many others on this board, Love you guys
So, enjoy your well deserved time off this fall with devin and baby. You deserve it.

You have to bear in mind Tracy that *most* people who post on Blabbermouth are insufferable shits.

They're also racist, sexist, homophobic arseholes.

These Blabbermouth idiots obviously dont have anything better to do with their time.

My personal thought- Dev has made loads of great music over the past 10 years. I have purchased plenty merch from HDR, recieved a news letter (and smiley), signed Xmas card!

Then....you get people who dont even like Devins music but they feel the need to have a go at him and Tracy! If they dont like the music why the personal attacks? Because they are flange biscuits.



I hope that Tracy and Devin have some much needed time off and quality family time. The majority Im sure agree with this, the minority....fuck em.

The replies to that "innocent" piece of Blabbermouth news are truly shocking. What is with that? The harder he works it seems the more cruel people get. Devin just wants to have a semblance of a "normal" life for a few months and people jump on it as an excuse to rip him apart? My skin is no longer thick enough to pay attention to the chatter. Why are people so judgmental without even knowing what they are talking about?

Try to put yourselves in our position. Imagine those things were said about you. Any references to me, our personal lives, especially to our child that could be even slightly derogatory is really not cool. I don't know why people are so eager to slag on Devin, especially for someone of his relative insignificance in the industry. Usually this kind of derision is reserved for people once they've become "big".

I've been on the net a long time. Probably too long. One thing I've learned is that anonymity + huge audience + immaturity = a$$hole. There is a whole subset of people who like to post inflammatory things ('flames') to get responses from people. We call them 'trolls'. Don't take them seriously, they are just trying to get a rise out of people because they can get away with it. Please don't retreat from the forums because of these kids.

Funny how long replies follow long replies!

Blabbermouth comments are to be ignored at all times. Just some kids who lack attention, the fight for the first post at every newsitem says it all.

I think I speak for the whole world when I say:
"Anyone who put out 20 albums in 10 years time deserves a break, whether you like the music is not an issue."
Anyone who claim differently deserves to be ignored.

My skin is no longer thick enough to pay attention to the chatter. Why are people so judgmental without even knowing what they are talking about?

My thoughts:

This shit is unavoidable and totally out of your control, because being a public person basically means that anyone who stumbles upon you is free to treat you anyway one likes. The way one likes to treat you comes from what that one is about, not what you are about.
The public is of two kinds: people with respect (like you said, who don't need to say what they think publicly and hatefully) and people with no respect. At all. They will say whatever they feel regardless of what they know and don't know and they are out there and always will be. My question is: do they matter? Why do those fucks matter? What is the damage they are doing? If someone is stupid enough to be influenced by those imbecile Blabb comments, should really be of no reference to you. Who takes that seriously? The only damage that is done is when you(!) take it personaly. No, it's not suddenly your problem, but there's the catch: if you take it personally, it effectively becomes your problem.

If I take your challenge and put myself in this position, I can imagine it would first piss me off, make me sad and feel powerless. But if there's nothing I could do about it, I would try to look at it this way:

Those type of comments are a joke. A joke on me, but the truth value of it is zero, making it a poor joke. But I know there are people who'll point at Devin and say "Henpecked!" and laugh and forget about it in next five seconds! (Wow, did I just imagine being married to Devin? )

My point is: those people don't count, they don't matter. Fuck them! I imagine it's hard to put it out of mind when it's that personal, but ... we here love you two and wish you very best. For some "ego boost" - just visit the Easter card thanx thread on this forum.

[JuZ]

Well, this is all very disappointing.

I normally have ZERO time for blabbermouth, for all the reasons stated above. But I thought I'd look at the comments before posting here.

Tracy, what you do is your own business, and if you want to pull back from posting here, then that's your decision. I mean, who the hell are *we* to tell you what to do?

So, anything else I have to say isn't directed at Tracy or Devin... it's just my own reaction to the situation, for what it's worth.

What I find so troubling aboutall this is the thought that the mindless actions of a handful of people could have the power to prevent someone from doing what they want to do.

I think that any community, big or small, is based on respect. I don't think there is ANYTHING more important in this world than respect. For yourself, for your environment and for others. As soon as you lose that, everything else ceases to function properly.

I don't think anyone is just an "idiot". My dumb-arse, half-baked theory is that a lack of respect for others almost inevitably stems from a lack of self-respect. Actually, I'm sure there are a thousand philosophers, prophets and crazy folk out there who have expressed it more eloquantly than I!

Hehe! My point, if I HAVE one, is that we only have control over our own lives and we can only treat others as we would like to be treated. If someone is in such a dark, lonely place in their own lives that they feel the need to strike out against people they don't even know... damn, that's a tough existence. It must be a self-perpetuating state, too. That sort of attitude would drive people away from you, leaving you either alone or in the company of others of a similar mindset. Ugh! No thank you.

Thing is, there will always be people in that situation. It seems to be a primal instinct at times to lash out at others to protect yourself when you're weak, sick or vulnerable. And some people seem more prone to it than others. Theoryman summed it up pretty well... the net is a haven for people like that, due to the anonymity it provides. People wrap themselves up in it like a blanket and take potshots at passers-by.

There doesn't seem to be any logic in their choice of targets either. Why vent your anger or frustration on a bloke that entertains people for a living? And his wife and child? I mean, come on. Again, I think it's because it's easy, it's safe and, for all the potential damage these people can cause, they probably don't give it a second thought.

I have a job where people sometimes get angry or upset with me, purely because I'm doing my job. The fact that there is a very good reason why I'm doing it, and that in actual fact my job is to protect THEM, seems irrelevant. They're thinking about themselves.

That's what people do when they're attacking others, they're thinking about themselves. All we can do is show people the respect we wished they'd show us.

we can only treat others as we would like to be treated

That sentence should be painted on a 5 x 100 mile billboard and placed in low-Earth orbit.
Take a bow.