Join The Party!!

The CDs for "Dark Ritual" have arrived!! This weekend we'll take inventory on them, send pre-release CDs to out of town cast and then they will be available to purchase on Monday, November 3rd! (The digital download version will be available at that time as well.)

This Sunday we are having a small CD release party with local cast members, friends and family. Instead of a guestbook, I'm setting out a phone for guests to use if they'd like to leave a message for our audio message center. And you're invited to leave one, too!

Dial- 712-432-8829.

When prompted, Enter Code: 8613216#

Record Me A Message!

Express your support of "Dark Ritual", say "Hi" to me or other cast members, tell your favorite joke, or just make strange random noises! No one will know it was you (unless you leave your name), so have at it!

The messages will then be uploaded to the player on this site so everyone can cycle through and hear from all the fans and people involved with Spirit Blade Productions!

Don't be shy! Grab your phone and be a part of this milestone event for Spirit Blade Productions!

Lastly, don't miss our special "Dark Ritual" release podcast episode, which will be posted early next week and will include audio messages from our "guestbook"!

Have a great weekend!

-Paeter Frandsen

In Search Of Truth, 2 Thessalonians 2:1-10

 

Well, I was finally able to finish this and post it. Sorry again for the delay. And now on to our quest for the truth:

Paul spends some time clarifying a few details regarding the return of Christ. It sounds like the Thessalonians were in danger of being influenced by bogus ideas that came in a supposedly supernatural package or ordinary teaching. ("Supernatural is indicated by the word used for "prophecy" or "spirit" in verse 2, and ordinary teaching by the word for "message".)

This points out something interesting. Just because something is truly spiritual, does not make it truly true. Miracles and other supernatural events can be flags that get our attention, but because two different sources both produce miracles does not make them equally valid. The Bible tells us to test everything, using our rational minds by implication, to see what is true and what is not. (1 John 4:1, 1 Thess. 5:21) If we want to know what's really real, we can't check our brains at the door. The Bible commands us to keep our minds fully engaged in our search for the truth.

Back to some details about the future. First off, Paul affirms in verse 1 that Christians will be "gathered together" with Christ when he returns. (1 Thess. 4:17) He also makes it clear that Jesus has not returned yet. He hasn't returned "spiritually" or "symbolically", either. In fact, Paul says that a few things will happen first that we can "check off" our list so that we don't think that he has come when he really hasn't.

First, there will be an "apostasy"(verse 3, NASB). This English word means "abandonment of a former loyalty", but the Greek word used here doesn't mean the exact same thing. Instead it means "to place oneself away from or to stand away from someone." This could easily refer to someone who associates themselves with Christianity, but then separates themselves from the movement and its followers. They wouldn't have to have been a genuine follower of Christ in order to do this. So this "Apostasy" will likely be a strong rejection or separation from Christianity by those who were considered, and may have considered themselves, Christians. It's also likely that many others who were never Christians will more strongly express their separation from Christianity at this time.

Then, a "man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction." Since there is no indication that this is a symbolic reference, we should assume that this will be a real individual. (This same person is mentioned elsewhere in the Bible, if you'd like to explore him some more: 1 John 2:18, 4:3, 2 John 7, Daniel 7:7, 8, 21, Matthew 24:15, Revelation 13.) He will put himself above not just Jesus, but all religious systems and spiritual philosophies (v. 4).

Verses 6 and 7 imply that the wheels are already in motion for this figure to appear on the scene. The "lawless one" does not necessarily exist yet, but human nature makes his appearance inevitable. One day, our race will produce this horrific human being. For now, "the restrainer" has kept this prophecy from taking place. Although there is some debate about who the "restrainer" is (government/political rulers/the church), everything is subject to God, and so we can ultimately say that God, the Holy Spirit, is the restrainer of the "man of lawlessness."

And we can thank God that the Lawless One is being restrained. When he comes on the scene, he will be part of Satan's plan and will be given power by Satan to do incredible supernatural things that will mislead a huge number of people. However, the responsibility will still be in their hands. No one needs to be misled by this person. Those who are misled will be misled because they haven't developed a love for pursuing truth. (verse 10)

That's why truth is so important to everything and everyone. Truth leads us to Jesus, because he is the very definition and source of all truth in existence! And the good news is, even though the Lawless One will do some ugly things, he will be wiped out just because Jesus shows up! Look at verse 8. You can almost imagine Jesus appearing over this maniacal tyrant's shoulder and saying, "Hi, I'm Jesus.", and watching as the Lawless One melts into goo just from being in the same room with God!

We'll see the value of truth emphasized some more in the rest of this chapter, but that will have to wait until next time!

Coffee House Question

Why do you think people are so interested in "The End Of The World?"

No "Search" Today

 

You may be wondering where "In Search Of Truth" is today, and I'm wondering the same thing! I got bombarded by a day I didn't expect (not a bad day, just overtaken by unavoidable "stuff") and haven't been able to get it done, for which I'm so sorry. I always look forward to sharing something every week, even if it's something off of our normal look at the Bible. But try as I did to put something down, there just wasn't anything there.

Since I don't want to share words just to fill space, I'm gonna take this as a cue to not say anything. With the podcast being different this coming weekend, I probably won't do our normal look at 2 Thessalonians. I may have something on Wednesday in the "Truth" category, but I'm not sure yet.

All this to say that I'm really sorry to drop the ball and I'll be taking a look at my schedule to see how I can best avoid this happening in the future. 

Thanks for your patience with me, everybody.

-Paeter Frandsen

Printing and Shipping!

 

I approved the final stage of printing for the "Dark Ritual" CD sets today and they will finish printing and ship out sometime in the middle of this coming week! With a 2-3 day shipping time, this means the CDs will probably arrive either Friday or Saturday of next week!

As soon as we've counted up the CDs and tested one from the shipment, the new online store features will go live and you'll be able to get your own CD set or digital download of "Dark Ritual"!

For this week's new special feature, you'll find a link on the "Media" page that connects to the "Dark Ritual" Character Files, which give stats and other information on the characters of "Dark Ritual", including updated information for the characters you already know!

To check them out, visit the "Media" page at www.spiritblade.net!

Enjoy our final week of countdown to "Dark Ritual"!

-Paeter Frandsen

Thank Goodness For Celebrities

     

I'm so grateful that we have celebrities. Without them, I'm not sure I'd ever know what it means to be cool. I would have no idea what it means to be successful in life, or what beautiful is. I would be completely adrift without their spiritual guidance.

It's so good to know that if I think how they think and do what they do, I can have a life as wonderful as theirs obviously is.

I remember thinking, just before graduating from High School, that I might never know how to be cool again. I would probably never see the cool, popular kids from my high school for the rest of my life. How will I know how to dress? How will I know the latest slang? How will I know what to believe?

Luckily, with talk shows and Hollywood celebrities to help us, we can all behave just like we did in High School and pursue being cool and trendy at the small expense of individual thought.

"Remember my Spirit?" Oh, what a great idea! "Follow my heart?" Oh, thank you, Oprah...thank you.

-Paeter Frandsen

In Search Of Truth, 2 Thessalonians 1:6-12

 

Why doesn't God do something when terrorists are bombing, murderers are killing and child molesters are raping? There's isn't a quick, easy answer to this question. But we can at least say that God WILL do something. The scales will be balanced and there will be accountability and appropriate punishment. Every sin, every thought or action that falls short of perfection, will be accounted for.

You might be thinking this is bad news for the human race, and you're right. In our natural state, none of us are fit for heaven. Heaven is a perfect place, and it lasts forever, so it SHOULD be perfect! If it was anything less than perfect, it would only be a matter of time before we hurt each other and bring pain and selfishness back into our lives. For heaven to be "heaven", it has to be nothing less than perfect, filled with perfect people, ruled by a perfect God. And we simply aren't qualified to live there. (Romans 3:10,12, 23)

But if we choose to know God, we become qualified. Not because we earned it by our faith, but because God changes us in response to our faith. Because he loves us. (Romans 10:9-13) It's a gift. (Romans 6:23, boy we probably ought to look at Romans, sometime, huh?)

But is it really our choice to know God or not? What about the guy in the deep jungles of Africa? Will God condemn him for his ignorance? Is that was verse 8 of this chapter means? According to the Bible, everyone has knowledge of God on some level at some time in their lives. However, we can make the choice to ignore that knowledge and replace it with lies, believeing what's comfortable or whatever we want to believe instead of pursuing truth. (Romans 1:18-25) So everyone knows "enough" to either pursue knowing God or ignore him. Because of this fact of the universe, all who choose not to know God will have their choice respected even by God. But the consequences are more severe than we can imagine.

Verse 8 says that "those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus" will pay the penalty of "eternal destruction". To the casual reader, this may seem harsh. But I believe that's because we don't really understand the worth of God. To even begin to understand this, we have to run a self-diagnostic and repair our thinking a little bit.

If we execute a serial murderer, our reaction may not be very strong(debates over the death penalty aside). If someone kills a "Mother Teresa", however, we are outraged. It doesn't seem right for bad things to happen to "good" people. But God is perfect. Think about that. Perfect. To us, perfect is just an idea. Something to aspire to. But we really don't know what perfect is like, because we've never experienced anything that is truly perfect; that could not be any better by any stretch of our wildest imaginings. But God IS perfect. His worth is infinite. So when He is treated badly in any way, it is an evil beyond what we can comprehend. Choosing to ignore God, the maker and sustainer of every moment we can call good, is the ultimate evil.

That form of evil, along with all others that rank beneath it, will be punished and dealt with by God. And because this kind of evil is immeasurable, the punishment will be also, lasting forever.

I'll admit, this is not happy stuff to think about. It would be much more pleasant to ignore this part of the Bible. But if we did, it would misrepresent the perfection and justice of God. If we ignore this, we ultimately have to devalue his incredible, mind-boggling love. Because God knows we're broken and he knows we run from him at every opportunity. But if we choose to know him, he will fix us and ultimately make us perfect like him.

In verse 10, we see that Jesus will be glorified in his "saints"(and that word means EVERYONE who is being "set apart" for him, not just a list composed by organized religion) when he returns. The people that have chosen to know God will be examples to the universe of God's amazing forgiveness, love and ability to make broken things perfect like he is.

(As a side note, when you look at verse 11, be sure to look at the notes from last week relating to verse 5.)

When Jesus finally makes us perfect, we will be "glorified" along with him. The Greek word used here for "glorified" means that Jesus will be recognized for all that He is and we will be recognized by every living thing in the universe for the incredible beings that Christ recreates us to be. It will be the most spectacular thing anyone has ever experienced!

A lot of mind-mending stuff to think about, and we've really just scratched the surface. Unfortunately, if we want to keep going, we've gotta keep going!

Next time, we see what else we can learn about the future in Chapter 2!

Coffee House Question-

What do you imagine heaven might be like?

Max Payne (Movie Review)

This movie provides only a mediocre diversion to your afternoon or evening. Once again, a filmmaker fails to capture, in a movie adaptation, the elements that make the video game what it is.

I've played and enjoyed the first and second Max Payne video games for PS2. What fan could forget the hallmarks of a Max Payne game? That dark, film-noir voice-over that takes you through the plot, a grizzled hero popping painkillers to avoid succumbing to his multiple wounds, and gunfights with bullet-time. Lots of bullet-time.

This film failed to deliver on all three counts. The only narration we get from Payne is at the beginning and end of the film. Everything in between departs from this style of storytelling. Throughout the film, when Wahlberg speaks, you are reminded of how much he sounds like Mark Wahlberg and how little he brings to mind Max Payne. Don't get me wrong, Wahlberg did a fine job. They just cast the wrong guy in this part.

As for painkillers, we don't see a single pill popped. Max does make use of something else to keep him going near the end of the film, but it's not quite the same. And did I mention it's near the END of the film?

It almost seems like the writers said, "Let's see how long we can make our audience wait for the gunfights in this movie." The first half of this movie moves pretty slowly as it sets up the mystery. But with no memorable style in the storytelling method, the first 40 minutes tend to crawl.

There are brief moments of action and special effects, but not the kind that fans would expect. Instead of putting that special effects team to work on numerous slow-mo gunfight sequences, we see a ton of "hallucination sequences" as characters experience the effects of an illegal drug which acts as the centerpiece to the film.

People are tripping out seeing winged wraiths and it all looks very cool. It just doesn't feel like a Max Payne story.

The bullet-time moments are few and far between, and one or two seem to have been chosen from the script at random, not being used to heighten the action or increase intensity. Just suddenly going into bullet-time for no dramatic reason.

There are also no surprises in this film. Even though you sense that you're not supposed to know who the bad guys are, when they turn out to be evil, you've already been waiting 30 minutes for it.

As for Relevance, there's not much to talk about. If you and a buddy both like the flick, you could potentially talk about justice and vigilantism. (When, if ever, is it right for us to buck the authorities and take the law into our own hands?) However, the script doesn't spend time focusing on this theme, so you have to pull it out yourself.

There is one interesting phrase spoken by the title character, "I don't know about heaven. But I do believe in angels." If we feel like being philosophical and picking apart this idea, we could ask "why does Max believe in creatures called 'angels' and not heaven?" This phrase is subtle and not a focus of the film, but it is a small reminder of our tendency to pick and choose what we believe about the supernatural, as though reality will conform to our preferences.

The film leaves plenty of room for a franchise, but I don't see it happening. In fact, this movie may turn interest away from another game, too. It's not that it's bad, it just isn't much good. Wait for it to play on TV. But Tivo it to skip commercials. You don't want to spend too much time on this movie.

Rated PG-13 for violence including intense shooting sequences, drug content, some sexuality and brief strong language

Quality: 7.0/10.0

Relevance: 5.0/10.0

Dark Ritual Preview And Update!

 

Today I made a scene from "Dark Ritual" available for your listening pleasure! Well, maybe not so much pleasure. Given that Halloween is just around the corner, I chose to showcase one of the creepier scenes from "Dark RituaL" In general, I wouldn't describe "Dark Ritual" as a "horror story", but it's got its moments and this is one of them. You can listen using the player on the left side of the "Underground" weblog, or download it from the "Media" page at www.spiritblade.net.

The latest in release news is that I've approved the digital proofs that our manufacturer sent to us today. Early next week I'll be getting hard copies to approve. As soon as I call them with approval, we'll movie into production, followed by shipping. A pre-Halloween release date is still possible, but it will be close.

For now, enjoy the preview and stay tuned!

-Paeter Frandsen

Live On In Your Memories??

 

"When people die they just... go away. If there's any place a soul would go, it's in our memories."

This is the opening statement of "Lost Odyssey's" start screen movie. I've been playing the classic Japanese style RPGs for almost 20 years now. Because they often take place in magical worlds and as stories become more philosophical and sophisticated, they often present spiritual philosophies that mirror ideas in the real world. I sometimes wonder if they also CONTRIBUTE to the philosophies of our modern culture.

As an aside, here's an interesting question. Do you think this game would be accepted by the mainstream gaming community if instead the opening statement was: "There is no afterlife and no God." (The original opening statement pretty much makes this assumption based on what it says, although this sounds less "pretty", huh?) Or how about the same phrase based on an alternative philosophy: "When people die, they either go to heaven or hell for all eternity." (That one probably wouldn't sell as many games, either.)

Think about the phrase "live on in our memories" for a second. You know what it refers to. Someone has died and we use this phrase to give us some level of comfort. Where did you first hear this phrase? There's a good chance you don't remember. I know I've heard it from movies, tv shows and probably from a real person, too, but I can't pin it down. This phrase just found its way into my mind.

Is this how we're developing our views of reality? By osmosis? How often do we ask ourselves where our philosophical or spiritual views come from and why do we believe that they are true? Do they have any substance or are they just nice sounding ideas that temporarily help us avoid confronting the truth?

Let's pick apart "live on in our memories". Does that really mean that when I die, I'm going to continue living, but only when people remember me? And how many people's memories will I be divided up into? Will I only exist in the form people remember me to be? It sounds like my entire, eternal existence depends on other people's memory of me. Yikes. I guess I better make a strong impression now.

But wait, I guess it can't be eternal, can it? Because eventually the people that remember me will all die. So much for living on in the memory of others.

And for fun on your own, try picking apart this one. "Follow your heart."

You might think to yourself, "you're over-thinking this, Paeter", but that's actually my point. As soon as you pick these slogans apart, you can see how meaningless and powerless they are to solve the deep issues of life, death and eternity.

So why do we even say them? I believe we say them because in the short term, they give us comfort and help us avoid thinking about things that make us nervous: Purpose, morality, death, etc.

A little mental game I like to play that you may want to try out is this:

Whenever I watch a movie, play a video game, read a book or watch a tv show, in the back of my mind I keep a radar running, watching and listening for a philosphical viewpoint to be presented, either directly or, more often, indirectly through vague terminology and sentiments like the two we've just looked at. Then I ask myself, is this idea true? What part of it is true in some sense? What parts are false?

This little mind game has another name: Discernment. And it's a skill worth developing, according to the Bible:

1st Thessalonians 5:21-22 (any blog readers/podcast listeners remember this book?)

But examine everything; hold fast to that which is good, abstain from every form of evil.

Discernment isn't about being grumpy or negative. I still really enjoy Japanese RPGs... alot. But if I play the "discernment mindgame" (much more fun than it sounds), I learn to think more clearly about what I do and don't believe, and I'm more prepared to make life choices that line up with what is really true of reality.

Anybody else catch a philosophy or worldview being presented in a game they've played recently? Let's hear it! Throw it on the table and let's see what else is out there!

-Paeter Frandsen

In Search Of Truth: 2 Thessalonians, 1:1-5

 

Not long after his first letter to the Thessalonians (possibly as little as six months), Paul writes a second letter to the same group of people.

In verse 2 we see an example of a "wish-prayer". (See the IVP Bible Background Commentary:New Testament) Although we may casually use phrases like "God bless you" today, in Judaism, these prayers were considered to be said and heard in the presence of God. They were nothing like the nice-sounding but somewhat empty well-wishes we often say today.

Although it was common at this time to start letters by wishing peace on the recipient, Paul adds "grace"(God's undeserved favor toward us) to the "wish-prayer" and also identifies the source of grace and peace: God the Father and Jesus Christ.

It would appear that the Thessalonians have been growing in their capacity for love toward each other. This would have been encouraging for Paul to hear about, since he had made an effort to motivate this growth in his last letter to them. (1 Thess. 3:12)

The Thessalonians continued to trust in God even though they were experiencing persecution from their surrounding community. Times were very tough for this small group of Christians. But Paul says that their continued commitment to God during this time demostrates their worthiness for God's kingdom. We should take a minute to pick this apart just a little.

Someone might look at verse 5 and conclude that we have to prove ourselves worthy of going to heaven, but that's not what this verse is talking about. First of all, the "kingdom of God" or "kingdom of heaven" does not refer only to eternity with God. Jesus used this phrase often and it refers to an invisible kingdom(invisible for now anyway), made up of those who put their trust in Jesus Christ. In a sense, the Kingdom of God is like an "underground" movement, led by God.

We might still ask, do we have to prove ourselves "worthy" to be a part of this movement? No. God makes us worthy. That process is called "sanctification". To be "sanctified" means "to be set apart for the purposes of God." And God does the sanctifying. (John 17:19, 1 Thess. 5:23) A phrase used by Michael E. Bryce (the voice of Isaiah in "Spirit Blade") that I like is, "God doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the called." All the strength or peace we have or demonstrate in times of pain or crisis, is a gift from God. It's grace: undeserved favor.

So when the Thessalonians are said to be "considered worthy of the kingdom of God", any worth or merit they display that makes them worthy to be a part of God's kingdom is a gift from God. By leading us through a time of suffering, God can demonstrate to his angels, to people and to Satan and his demons, that he can give people strength, peace and courage. He can build into people the perfect qualities of Jesus Christ. Those qualities won't be perfected until after this life, but the journey begins now, and God likes to call attention to those who are journeying well.

Even a guy like Paul, an amazing believer and a dedicated servant of God, clearly stated that the strong points in his character were not of his own creation, but came from God. (1 Cor. 15:10, 2 Cor. 1:12, 2 Cor. 12:9) And God can do the same thing in your life! (2 Cor. 9:8)

In God's cosmic plan, he uses those who trust in him to paint a picture and display an incredible message. God's message might read something like this: "I can take something broken and ruined, that no one else can fix, and transform it into something perfect and beautiful."

Ephesians 2:6-10

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God– not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

We were made to "show off" how awesome God is! God gives us opportunities for "good works" in this life, to demonstrate how God is changing us, gradually making us more and more like him.

So God uses suffering to demonstrate his goodness and fairness. We've just touched on how God can show his approval through his judgment. Next time, as we look at the rest of this chapter, we'll see the "condemning" side that inevitably comes with true justice.

Coffee House Question-

When was the last time you can think of that God must have given you some "grace" in a difficult situation? What did that look like?

Next Week-

Fire and Retribution!

Dark Ritual: Behind the Scenes with Paeter and Tully!

 

Tonight I'll be making a late night trip to the post office to send everything off to print for "Dark Ritual!" Woohoo! Things are looking very good for a pre-halloween release!

And, as promised, I've released another "Dark Ritual" special feature that you can download for free on the "Media" page of www.spiritblade.net !

Under "Documentaries> Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual", you'll find "Paeter and Tully, Behind The Scenes(Part 1)". This first part of a two-part documentary showcases material that won't spoil any "Dark Ritual" plot points, although you may find it interesting to listen to again after hearing "Dark Ritual". Mostly, it's a "fly on the wall" look at some funny and insightful moments during the rehearsal/recording process with me and my buddy, Mike Tully.

Enjoy!

-Paeter Frandsen

Will "House" Open A Door?

This November, the supernatural thriller by Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker, "House", will be coming to theatres. I've seen a couple different trailers and haven't been blown away, but I am pretty curious.

The acting and filming skills demonstrated in the trailer feel a little "student filmy" at times, but the budget looks decent for an independent film.

I have a few different hopes for this movie, for a few different reasons.

I hope it's a good story, told well. Just a quality movie, y'know? We've seen so much crap in the cinema made by Christians, I'd love for this to swerve away from that pattern and be a film that mainstream or secular thinkers can enjoy.

Second, and this is a bit selfish, I hope that it is a film embraced by the mainstream Christian community. It's sad that some Christians will boycott Harry Potter but rave about Lord Of The Rings simply because Tolkien was a professing Christian. It shows a lack of discernment, I think, for Christians to support something simply because it was birthed by a Christian creator, assuming it is safe for their consumption.

However, if "House" does well, it may provide an open door for Christian creators like myself (who don't sterilize their work) to reach an audience of Christians that normally think of all Christian entertainment as "family friendly."

So I'm not holding my breath, but put me down for a hopeful "we'll see."

-Paeter Frandsen

Blue Letter Bible

 

So that we don't get off track with the podcast, I thought I'd hold off "In Search Of Truth" this week. However, I've been wanting to tell you all about this website for a long time now.

"Blue Letter Bible" http://www.blueletterbible.org/

Although "E-Sword" is a great downloadable resource, and thus good for customizing and using without an internet connection, if you want a great resource for understanding the Bible that doesn't require any room on your hard drive, check out Blue Letter Bible.

The first tool you'll notice upon reaching the site is a search engine that allows you to look for any word in the entire Bible, in 14 different translations. Typically, I use it to help me quickly locate a verse that I can remeber part of, but maybe not the whole thing. Or if I want to look for Bible verses connected to a specific word.

For example, let's say I want to see what the Bible has to say about love. I just put "love" in the search field, choose my translation on a scroll bar and hit enter. There are quite a few verses!

After clicking on a specific verse with the word "love", I'm taken to the chapter containing that verse. The entire chapter is broken down, verse by verse, with some new icons appearing to the left.

Highlighting these icons will display their purpose. You'll find historical maps with a connection to your verse, dictionary aids, a list of commentaries by Biblical scholars and a Hebrew/Greek concordance to help you get a better sense of what the word meant to the original readers of these books of the Bible.

For those who are already geeks for this sort of thing, you may prefer "Strongs" concordance, as I do, but for anyone else interested in better understanding what they read in the Bible, this page is a feature-filled and FREE place to start!

Ever wonder what the name "Jesus" means? How about the word "Christ"? Jump over to Blue Letter Bible, fiddle around, explore a bit, and see what YOU can find!

-Paeter Frandsen

No Podcast This Week, but...

 

Hey Everybody,

The bad news is, there's no podcast this week. But the GOOD news is that unless I discover something in the final test listens early next week, I'm sitting on the FINAL MIX of "Spirit Blade: Dark Ritual!"

Also, as promised, there's some new free content to sink your teeth into this weekend. Although not in the usual place. I've uploaded an updated mix of the song "Necromancy" from "Dark Ritual" onto the Spirit Blade Productions Myspace page: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=233040224

Enjoy, and have a great weekend!

-Paeter Frandsen

Final Mix Begins!

 

Hey Folks,

This post will serve as the weekly update this time, since I'll be out on Friday.

Today is the last day that I am accepting feedback notes from test listeners and I've already begun the final mix based on the notes I've received.  I should be able to finish the final audio product before the end of the day tomorrow If I don't have a subbing gig to go to. Then, once our graphic stuff and manufacturers are ready to go, we'll send everything off to print!

It's looking very likely that will happen in less than two weeks, so we're still very much on track for a release before Halloween!

As for the podcast, I'm still not sure if I will be able to fit one in before I leave town this weekend, but at the very least, there will be a new audio feature to download at www.spiritblade.net. More on that soon!

-Paeter Frandsen