Our Satanic Majesty’s Request

There are few people in geeky music that I admire more than Schaffer the Darklord. When nerdcore zigs, Schaff always zags. Not just to be fickle, mind you, but because, as an artist, STD is coming from a place that is inherently different from that of his fellows.

It could be because of his roots as a metal percussionist. It could be due to his strong thematic ties to the always irreverent (and regularly blasphemous) comedy of luminaries like Hicks and Carlin. Or it could simply be that Schaffer takes the quality of his craft seriously without ever taking himself too seriously.

The whys, however, are fairly unimportant. The essential information of this missive concerns two new tracks from STD.

The first, “Battlefont,” is a fresh demo that is currently being rerecorded for inclusion of Schaff’s forthcoming album. (Tentative release date: the future!) It’s a whimsical piece in which “the most well-known fonts duke it out Thunderdome-style for the title of ‘the greatest font of our time.’” You can check it out at STD’s official MySpace.

Also available on MySpace, as well as on Schaffer’s YouTube channel, is the 3rd installment of the recently resurrected Killing Time with STD web series. This includes a demo for a second new track, this one called “The Bender.” In video form, no less. I’ve embedded it below. Because the Black Box commanded that I do so.