Dashcam Gold

#1181: Ice Storm April! [with Dashcam Video]

RECORD STORE TALES #1181: Ice Storm April!

I think one of the greatest reasons that my seasonal affective disorder (S.A.D.) has been non-existent this year is the revelation that I can work from home, and when I do it’s not as bad as I feared it would be.  This means if I can avoid driving due to weather, I don’t have to drive.  My work has a good policy on working from home that would give me this flexibility.  After all, when it comes down to brass tacks, the worst part of winter isn’t the weather.  It’s driving in it.  Looking at it from inside is actually kind of fun.

Our spring has been warm/cold off and on, but spring is definitely here.  That means that a few drivers have prematurely taken off their snow tires.  Canadians seem to forget that April can get angry, just when you think it’s all over.  I don’t know why they forget this, year after year.  Perhaps it’s wishful thinking.  Regardless, when that last angry storm hit us on April 3 2025, the lack of snow tires on cars that should know better by now, created an actual perfect storm of traffic chaos.

I was at work that morning, and watched as a wet mix of snow and rain suddenly pelted my car from outside.  Although I should have gone home immediately, I ate my lunch and emailed my bosses that I’d be working from home that afternoon.  I wish I had left 30 minutes earlier, but if wishes were horses…I’d probably still got stuck in traffic.

I watched as a pickup truck in front of me, on only the slightest incline, began to skid backwards.  He veered off to the left, and made a U-turn, unable to go up the slightest hill.  Once I crested the hill, I was met with three transport trucks that were completely stuck in the snow and ice.  I had to carefully navigate the space between them in order to proceed.  The hill got steeper, but I had no problem with my snow tires.

It was nerve wracking and I had my dad on the phone the whole time, keeping him up to date with my progress home; he was so worried.

I saw cars pull over to the side of the road just to brush the accumulating snow off their rear and side windows.  I was luckier.  With my dad’s help the day before, we just finished installing new windshield wipers on my car.  They were more than up to the task.

Lessons learned in the winter of 2025:

  1. Working from home alleviates the anxiety aspect of Seasonal Affective Disorder.
  2. Don’t take your winter tires off until mid-April!

Songs:

Buffalo Crows – “Starlord” from Bovonic Empire

Sword – “Unleashing Hell” from Sword III

Stir of Echoes – “Wild Eye” from Stir of Echoes

Blotto – “Secret Agent Man” / “Metalhead” live at Toad’s Place

Full Drive: 1 hour and 45 minutes from Tiverton to Kitchener

I’m not posting this with the expectation that anyone will spend an hour and 45 minutes watching me drive home from the cottage.  This is for me.

However, if you want to hear a live bootleg of Max the Axe playing their first gig with the current lineup…it’s here.  I actually didn’t intend to use it, but I clicked the wrong music folder and it will take hours to re-save.  So here you go!  The track list for this video is:

MAX THE AXE

Live on the Farm Aug 4 2017

“The Other Side” (Instrumental)
“I Don’t Advocate Drugs”
“River Grand”
“Next Plane to Vegas”
“Uptite Friday Night”
“Randy”
“Scales of Justice”
“Sick of Living”
“Thirsty and Miserable”
“Gods on the Radio”

Trillion Dollar Threats

“Overload”
“Guns To Iran”
“Daddy Was a Murderin’ Man”
“Labyrinth”
“I Don’t Advocate Drugs”
“Belljar Party”
“Blood Runs Red”
“River Grand”
“Uptite Friday Night”
“Immortal”
“Space Marine”
“Mutant Mind”
“More”
“Letter To Yourself”
“Livin’ the Country”
“Mexican Standoff”

Bonus track

“Scales of Justice” (Remix)

Points of interest:

  • Lots of passing
  • Weird castle at 9:50
  • Weird single-lane bridge at 12:15

Morning Dashcam

Nothing major, but watch where you’re going bud.

Music: “Pygmy Blowdart” by Max the Axe from the new Oktoberfest Cheer EP.

Sunday Screening: A Drive to Kincardine / Max the Axe – “Scales of Justice”

From the infuriating city rat race to the open roads of the country, a beautiful drive is to be viewed here, all to the tune of the classic “Scales of Justice” by Max the Axe.

VIDEO: Max the Axe – “Hard Drive” / Traffic jam on Highway 401

It was a drizzly drive home, with an accident right in the “Sweet Spot” of Highway 401 heading into Kitchener.  Perfect for another Max the Axe video.  The track is called “Hard Drive” (see what I did there?) and it’s from his 1995 debut cassette Bodies of Water.  It’s a killer epic featuring flute, saxophone, and the works.

In this video you’ll notice I’m a patient driver; I don’t change lanes to go faster.  I get in the lane I’m supposed to be in and I stay there.  I only change lanes a couple times in the whole video.

Pay attention and you’ll see the anti-abortion protesters across from Freeport hospital.  You’ll also notice landmarks such as Tim Horton’s (see how many you can spot) and the striking Grand River bridge.  Mostly you’ll be annoyed at the tail lights and other drivers.  Get a coffee.  (This video has been sped up 2.5 times to match the length of the song.)  Enjoy the drive!

 

VIDEO: A Drive Around Kitchener / Max the Axe – “Scales of Justice”

Just looking for ways to get some local bands heard.  Seems a drive around Kitchener-Waterloo is a good video background for a band from Kitchener-Waterloo called Max the Axe.

From their sixth record Status Electric comes “Scales of Justice” written by Mike Koutis and Eric Litwiller.  The lyrics tell a truthful tale of why only a fool owns a deadly snake let alone two.

This video is sped up 10x and was filmed on Saturday 9/5/2020 in the afternoon.

VIDEO: Rain Drive

Too exhausted to write after that white-knuckle drive home. I am disappointed that the camera footage doesn’t convey the sheer terror of 5-6 feet of visibility in near non-stop rain.

So this is what you get, no metal reviews today, just a video of the drive home set to music. After editing (I slowed the video down in some of the small towns so you could get a better look at rural Ontario) it came to be the exact length of a song that I can use called “A Beautiful Day” by Tempted Fate, a Raw M.E.A.T band. Contrary to the lyrics though, it was thankfully not a beautiful day to die and we made it home in one piece although exhaused from the effort.

Enjoy the tune!