My secret santa has really given me a nostalgic trip! I received "Lord of the Logos" - a book that collects Christophe Szpajdel's logo artwork. This really made me stroll down memory lane instantly… If you grew up with black metal, there's no way you haven't heard of Szpajdel; or at the very least you're very familiar with his work. He designed the logos for approximately 100% of the second wave of black metal. :)

I remember him as a very energetic and somewhat weird guy who was always - and I mean always - present at the black metal shows near my home town.

Don't know how the hell he did it. It's like a black metal show somehow summoned him. He was just there, together with his tapes and zines for trade.

Ah… Good times.

I left the scene when I entered my twenties, and kinda lost track of Szpajdel. Still listen to that music even today, but I no longer visit every show in my area. So his work, and what he meant for the scene, got pushed to the background.

Until now! The mailman just delivered this great gift, and as I turned pages, I was transported back to the days. Quite a Proustian moment there… Not only do I have a great book to flip through, the book also grants me access to memories I forgot I had in the first place.

So this is a gift that keeps on giving… Thank you so much, Secret Santa! You opened the flood gates! I'm going to submerge myself for a while "a la recherche du temps perdu"…