Well in true ModBlog fashion, I’m posting a birthday announcement a day late. So help me out by wishing BME’s own Sean Phillips a very happy (and belated) birthday!
This handsome devil has been writing for ModBlog since last December, but his contributions to the community go well beyond his posts here. Recently Sean has taken his “What Would Sean Do?” act on the road and is taking questions from all comers. So if you’ve ever found yourself stuck in a situation that you just can’t figure out the answer to, there’s really only one thing to ask yourself: What would Sean do?
In fact, since Sean is in the spotlight today, why don’t we use the comments to not only wish Sean a happy 33rd birthday, but also ask him a question that needs answering. I’m sure he’ll be happy to help out.
The BME BBQ. A time honored event in which the greatest minds of our generation come together to chat about the ails of the world, the possible solutions to all of life’s problems, all while enjoying the finest foods and beverages known to man. Animals on the verge of extinction willingly give themselves up to be served to these individuals, while monks from an ancient sect pass out 200 year old wine to be sipped from glasses made of diamonds. These monks, being both deaf and blind, and having taken a vow of silence are the only ones permitted to near these individuals as their discussions can alter the fabric of reality as we know it.
Recently, at a secret gathering of these minds in Southern California, a small number of photographers managed to slip past the ring of security (a wall of 8 foot tall men, all the direct descendants of the vikings), and capture these images. I’d like to ask for a brief moment of silence for these brave men and women, as once the images were transmitted out, a small tactical warhead was launched, killing them all instantly.
Thanks to their sacrifice, we are able to now see what until this time was only a legend. For security purposes, I need to place the images behind a click through, as the contents of them may shatter your entire world view.
So there is a slight chance I may have embellished the story just a little. So while the vikings and the monks may not be there, there are a great bunch of people having a fun time in the park.
These pictures in particular come from the most recent SoCal BME BBQ. From what I understand the SoCal guys and gals get together pretty often for things like this, as you can see in their own gallery on BME.
Ever thought about hitting up a BBQ or other get together, but didn’t know where to find out when and where there might be one? Well look no further, the IAM.BMEzine.com event listing is the best place to look for events going on near you. Taking a quick look, it seems that on September 10th, the SoCal gang is getting together for another gathering, head on over to the listing to get all the details.
It seems like it was only yesterday that IAM: Efix had one of his scarification pieces featured here. Oh wait, it was. But it seems that Efix Roy wasn’t satisfied with uploading just one amazing piece this week.
This tiny heart and anchor scarification done on Efix’s friend Genevieve’s fingers recently really stood out, simply because of the challenge of the piece. While a lot of time we feature big bold scarification pieces, a lot of times the devil is in the details, and in a piece like this, all you have are the details. With a small design, and a small surface to work with, I can only imagine how tricky it was to perform.
As with pretty much every scar piece I feature, I really hope we get to see a healed version of this scar, as I would assume that finger scars are difficult to make stick. I’m also curious as to if these are just the first two scars in what will eventually be a set of full knuckle scars. Granted I was at a casino yesterday so when I saw the heart and anchor, I instantly thought of crowns, clubs, diamonds, and spades.
Ladies and Gentlemen and everyone in between, I’d like to present to you, hailing from Quebec City, in his twentieth appearance on ModBlog, IAM’s own Efix!
I’d say a round of applause is in order, not only for this being his 20th feature, but also for making such an incredible scar of the Ashtamangala, the 8 Auspicious Symbols of Buddhism. I could go on about the spiritual meanings of each of the symbols, but I think I’d rather just take a look at the scar, and congratulate Efix on reaching this milestone. You can see even more of his work over in his own scarification gallery. As for the owner of the scar, the only thing I know is that according to Efix, he is “one tuff motherfucker”.
Disclaimer: Efix may have been featured more than 20 times, I’m just going by his count on his IAM page.
When looking for a video to open this post with I came to understand exactly why I’ve always thought Prince Rogers Nelson is one of the greatest musicians of all time. There isn’t anything he can’t do. Although to be fair, I’ve never seen him cook an omelet. Think about it, this little dude from Minnesota has over the course of his life (so far) has put out 10 platinum albums and over 30 top40 singles, not to mention the hundreds of awards he’s got lining his walls.
Granted The Artist hasn’t gone without his share of controversy. In the early 80s it was his song Darling Nikki that prompted Tipper Gore to push for explicit lyrics sticker that everyone who has owned a CD should be familiar with. Of course nobody can forget when he changed his name to which caused writers everywhere to go crazy trying to figure out how to spell his new name. His record label troubles made front pages everywhere, especially after he started appearing in public with the word “SLAVE” written on his face. There was also the rumors that always circulated about him. How he would change his clothes 20 times a day, how he has this vault of thousands of songs that are locked away, and of course his “awakening” (his words) which led him to become a Jehovah’s Witness, which Kevin Smith mocked mercilessly during one of his Q&A videos.
So is it any wonder that his fans are so passionate about him? The Purple Yoda has consistently produced incredible works of music, and in 2007 performed that Superbowl half-time show in the video that people describe as the best show ever. While some may only think of him for his pop songs from the 80s and 90s, others for his soul albums, some admire his films, and well, some just love The Bat Dance, many people tend to forget that he is consistently rated one of the top 10 guitarists ever to perform.
IAM: mook is one such fan of Prince, and recently got a tattoo that shows her love of His Purple Badness.
I’ll admit I did giggle a little when I saw it next to the bat symbol.
But mook here does show her passion for one of her favorite artists. Music is a powerful thing, it can bring about feelings of love, sadness, anger, and more, simply by listening to it. If tattoos are meant to be an external representation of our inner feelings, to identify with a particular artist is something that can seem natural to some people. I can’t count the number of Nine Inch Nails, Misfits, or Tool tattoos I’ve seen over the years, so the band tattoo is hardly a new thing. Just take a look at the music galleries on BME and you’ll see artists and musicians from all genres represented.
I suppose the question that could be asked it, what is it about a specific band or artist that can touch your soul to the point that you need to have them become one with your skin?
Sometimes the daily grind can be overwhelming. Work, family, friends, bills, kids, and more can all be a joy at times and a curse at others. While we’re all flying through space on this spinning top we call home, sometimes it can feel great just to stop everything and be still.
To everyone the act of being still can mean many things. To some it is a form of release, allowing the stresses of the world flow out of their bodies. For others stillness can evoke feelings of anxiety, the calm before the storm as it were, the moment where everything just seems too good to be true. Even in nature stillness can have many meanings. Those early moments at dawn when a lake is perfectly still, just existing waiting for the world to begin again and reflect itself in its surface, the stillness of the night before still echoing across the glassy surface in the form of the mists. Then there are the predator and prey. The predator stalks its prey until it finds the perfect position to mount its attack, holding everything in and becoming a rock, immovable yet capable of motion. The waiting, the thinking, becoming so still with focus that the rest of the world falls away. While the predator waits, the prey becomes still as well, not with calm or focus, but with fear. Knowing there is danger around and that the slightest movement will set in motion a cascade of events that could be the end of its existence.
The stillness of the world cannot exist without the movement. The time after the world has stopped. The first fish leaping from the water to eat an insect, causing the first waves to break the surface, waves that will continue to move until the next morning when the cycle begins again. The moment where the stillness has fulfilled its purpose and the time to act is present, releasing all the energy locked within in one swift and sudden movement. When the fear changes from the overwhelming power to be still, to the realization that by remaining still will be the end, and movement is what is necessary to survive.
Looking at this photo of IAM: Radical Kiba, you can see the stillness in her. Lost within herself she is looking out on the world. There’s no way to know how she is feeling, but you can feel the stillness.
What is stillness to you? Is it the calm of the water at dawn, the anticipation of the predator waiting to strike, or is it the fear of the prey? Or is it something else, something that only you can feel?
I know it seems I make a lot of modblog post wishing friends of mine happy birthday. However, this isn’t facebook, I don’t wish every friend of mine a happy birthday on modblog, only those whom have made a significant impact on this community.
I am blessed to be able to be friends with people who have made such significant impacts on the industry and/or the community. One of the greatest things about the body modification community for me, is people I once considered heros, I now consider friends.
Phish (no relation to the hippy band) is a perfect example of one of those people.
Phish has been a respected piercer for as long as I have been using the internet. When I first became aware of him he was working for HTC under Steve Haworth. During the old days of BME’s QOD (now askbme.com) he was the only person aside from Steve I would confidently recommend for subdermal implants, this was years before I even knew who Brian Decker was to put things in perspective. When surface bars first came into use, Phish quickly became one of the most experienced and knowledgeable piercings. In issue 25 of The APP’s publication, The Point, Phish wrote what was (at the time) the definitive guide to surface piercing techniques. His sharing of knowledge in this article as well as in other ways has helped many piercers get a grasp of advanced piercing techniques.
After several years of piercing, Phis suffered from the inevitable piercer burn out. He took some time off to pursue a career as a bail bondsman, like Dog the Bounty Hunter but with better tattoos and less ridiculous hair. However, his passion for piercing never died and he has now found a happy balance between piercing the good guys and catching the bad guys.
So happy birthday Phish, here’s to many more years of doing quality piercings and whooping a little criminal ass.
Simple. Propose to her when you’ve got a hold of the rope connected to the big metal hook in her chest.
When IAM: Trinket‘s boyfriend proposed to her, that’s exactly what he did.
As the story goes, Trinket decided it would be a fun afternoon to take her boyfriend to Hangman Suspension‘s 3rd annual Twisted Cedars event. Little did she know that when she was in the middle of a pull, her boyfriend had planned some fun of his own. As you can see by the picture, he made sure that there was no way for her to run away when he dropped to his knees to propose.
Luckily for him, Trinket said yes, and they now have a moment they can “hang” on to for all time. The image below shows the exact moment he proposed, “suspended” in time for everyone to see. (I apologize for my horrible use of puns. I don’t know what’s with me today.)
I’m sure this isn’t the first time this happened. How did you propose/get proposed to? Or even better, how would you propose to your significant other? And I don’t subscribe to the school of thought that says the guy HAS to be the one to propose, so ladies, how would you do the deed?
Tami sent me these pictures of a nice scarification piece done by JesseV at Thrive Studios in Cambridge.
I immediately noticed the scars behind her new scarification piece, and assumed you guys would too. Rather than let myself or the commenters make assumptions, I went on and asked her about them.
They are clearly self harm scars, self injury was something that I struggled with for the better part of the last 10 years. It has now been a year since I have hurt myself, and since I first learned about scarification (about 5 years ago) I had decided that someday I want something done to cover up the scars. Not that the scars were embarrasing, but it was just uncomfortable to me to have perfect strangers asking about them, and when I would reply that was just the way my skin was people seemed to be offended.
I have always liked the look of scars and decided that I wanted one that actually looked nice and wanted to show to people. It seemed to make more sense to me to cover up or disguise the existing scars with another scar instead of a tattoo.
To me, this is a perfect example of what body modification can be, an opportunity to reclaim one’s body. This piece turned something negative into something positive and beautiful and that, to me, is a big part of why I love body mods so much.
It’s always great to see the folks in our community getting some recognition in the news for one reason or another when that news happens to be positive. Such is the case with the two stories I have to share with you today.
The first is about Al Overdrive. The Quietus has an article up featuring a playlist from Al and a discussion about his book, No Commercial Value. Books can be purchased directly from Al, here.
There’s a particular kind of magic that happens at your first big suspension gathering when you arrive with nerves, an open heart, and the quiet hope of flight. Guided by the encouragement of mentor Lynn Loheide and driven by the quiet confidence of belonging, Alex… Read more: Twelve Points to the Sky
In March 2025, BME attended the Ontario Suspension Convention in Hamilton, hosted by the Kevin Donaghy and the Ontario Suspension Collective. We had the pleasure to take part and help document the event, but also run a booth to sell a bunch of old (but… Read more: Ontario SusCon 2025
Dear BME Community, We’ve been gone far too long, but BME is back to give people a voice, a space, a community. With time everything evolves, and BME may be different than you remember. Our goal is to stay true to Shannon and Rachel’s values… Read more: Welcome Back to Body Modification Ezine
Word of mouth has been our method of reuniting the community, and it has brought a substantial amount of us together. I am inspired by your loyalty and I want to remind more people of BME’s existence. In 2020 we gained control over @bmezine on… Read more: BME Social Media
Despite the hurricanes in 2015 which destroyed almost all of what Rachel owned, she managed to save the original inventory from BME. We have relisted some of the stock on BMEShop.com with the hopes you may be interested. Our first drop includes a selection of… Read more: BMEShop
Unfortunately, when we lost some of the ModBlog content, it included the post about Rachel’s passing. (Original Post) Rachel passed away on June 22, 2022. She died in her sleep. Even now, it’s extremely difficult to write this post. Rachel meant so much to so… Read more: Rachel Larratt 1980-2022
which caused writers everywhere to go crazy trying to figure out how to spell his new name. His record label troubles made front pages everywhere, especially after he started appearing in public with the word “SLAVE” written on his face. There was also the rumors that always circulated about him. How he would change his clothes 20 times a day, how he has this vault of thousands of songs that are locked away, and of course his “awakening” (his words) which led him to become a Jehovah’s Witness, which Kevin Smith mocked mercilessly during one of his Q&A videos.
Phish with his 200th capture.
