Metalcatto
Please indulge me in a little experimental writing here!
The people asked me to take a trip down memory lane and explain how MER came to be — and why.
Like any story worth telling, it looks like a comedy from the outside, and a tragedy from the inside.
I’ve reviewed for several other websites in the past.
I’ve been, for better or worse, an academic writer for more than a decade.
Despite shy efforts in the tech world and the arts, I knew no other life but books and the lab.
Then one day, it just sort of happened — I was tired.
Bored.
Restless.
Bored of academic writing, bored of data crunching.
Ever since I was a little kid, I had one dream: to become a professional nerd.
Against all odds, and with the support of the best people life could put in my path, that dream came true.
But then what?
I wasn’t meant to make it this far.
I missed having something creative to hold onto. And yes, I get how privileged it all sounds.
Training MMA helped a little, but watching my buddies destroy their bodies and minds taught me a hard truth:
that’s not a viable therapy.
One day, a few promos accidentally landed in my inbox, sent directly by a label.
And I started thinking — what if I did things my way?
I needed a new impossible goal to chase, because life is nothing if you can simply get what you want.
Metal had always been there for me.
Good times.
Bad times.
In crowds.
In loneliness.
It had given me everything.
And maybe now that I had the tools and the skills, I could finally give something back.
So I compulsively mailed every promo I could find, pulled every writer contact I still had, learned whatever I could about setting up a blog — and within a few days (yes, it was super impulsive!), MER was alive.
You might be wondering about the name.
Honestly? I just thought about how so many bands throw three or more random words together and call that an album title.
So, to honor and laugh along with them, I did the same.
Little did I know that not only would people read what I’d write — but that people would want to write for the blog too.
The MER crew is the real MVP: Stargazer, Pegah, SonikGoat, Elyna, Elased, and even the newer ones — Milo, Vicky, Ixone.
You’re or were all part of a team of talented writers I don’t know how to thank enough.
Despite the breakneck pace we keep at MER — the endless reviews, the social media storms — it’s always been a blast for me.
But there have been challenges.
At the beginning of the year, my father suddenly passed away.
He was never a Metalhead — but he was my first supporter.
He bought me my first records.
He stood by me in music classes.
He filled my shelves with books.
He tried to understand my world.
During those days of grief, I thought I’d step away from writing.
But then I realized: writing about bands, doing something for them — and for you — had meaning.
It helped me find purpose.
It gave my grieve a place to go.
It helped me understand my role in this strange, beautiful community we’ve built together.
I had never really fit in.
Too Metal for the normies.
Too normal for the Metalheads.
Too academic for the working class.
Too working class for the academics.
Too refined for the fight game.
Too aggressive for society.
But here — here — I could carve my own place in the world.
I want to thank everyone who has helped along the way.
You, dear reader, and you, bands, who have faced adversities.
You who might be hurting.
You who found meaning in this strange world of extreme music.
You who get up every day and fight insurmountable odds.
I want you to know: MER is here for you.
A few minutes a day to learn, to laugh, to rage, to feel — to hold onto the passion for maybe the strangest form of art out there.
See you on the other side of the eclipse.
Metal Eclipse Reviews 