Joel and the Tattoo Parlour

Now, before you reach for your Old Testaments in bewilderment, let me explain.

One of the great things about the LCBs is that we get to meet a fantastic variety of people from all walks of life.

One day a crowd of very cool (and a lot younger than us) metaller types came to see us at Killicomaine Baptist Church in Portadown, having travelled all the way from Larne. They're members of, and friends of, a Christian rock band called Crimson Fight (maybe the translation of that in Ulster-Scots is "Rid Fecht"?!). They've come to see us a few times since and have even posted mobile phone clips of us on Youtube! Really great people.

One of them, Colin Muir, created a Myspace page for us, and just the other day we got an email from Joel Neill. Here it is, totally unedited:

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Subject: Wee story for you boys...
Date: 30 May 2007

How's it going boys? Haven't seen you or spoken in a while. I just thought I'd e-mail and tell you a funny thing that happened to me last week.

Now, you'll have to enter my heavy-metal world for a moment here (apologies), but I was at my tattoo shop (Skullduggery on the Dublin Rd. in Belfast) getting a few bits and pieces coloured in. They were playing this american Hillbilly gospel music, and when I asked about it they told me that their friend had sent it over for them. They also said it's "a shame we've nothing to send back".

Says I: "...well...I know something."

So, off I go today to a tattoo shop with Gran Time Comin'. Quite a surreal experience for me I'm sure you can imagine!

Just thought I'd let you know, you never know where your music goes!

Joel CrimsonFight
Larne

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So it's great to know that our music is making it into all sorts of places, ears, heads and hearts. Graeme got a letter the other day from a (probably middle aged) woman who used to attend Killaughey Mission Hall here in the Low Country many, many years ago, and was delighted to hear the gospel in the language her grandmother used to speak. And I got one from Vancouver in Canada a while back saying more or less the same thing.

It goes to show that you can be used for mighty things, even if you're as amateurish as we are! (You can discover Crimson Fight for yourself here)

Night night