Digital Meltd0wn Turns 4 Years Old

Digital Meltd0wn is officially four years old. Looking back, I never would have guessed that DM would have evolved the way it has over the last four years. I have learned so much more about music during this time, collaborated with many individuals who share the same love and appreciation for music, corresponded with and promoted many different independent artists, been introduced to countless fellow music bloggers and blogs, and interacted with a plethora of readers from around the world. Digital Meltd0wn has expanded from being just a blog, to compromising an entire underground music network consisting of the Digital Meltd0wn Music Blog Aggregator/Blogroll, along with accounts on various different social networking sites. Since this is a special occasion, I hope you will excuse what I'm sure will be a lengthy post, as I would like to take the time to thank the people who have made it possible for DM to continue to exist over the years.

During the last four years I have considered calling it quits on many different occasions. In addition to everything I do with DM, this past year I have been attending school 40 hours a week, working 35 hours a week, trying to keep my girlfriend of four years happy, and maintaining a long distance relationship with my son. Life certainly hasn't been easy on me during this time. I recently found out that my girlfriend has a tear near her spinal column, which can't be operated on, and is only going to continue to get worse. This has been the latest in a long chain of problems I have faced. I suppose my love for music and the desire to share it with others has always managed to trump my inclination to call it quits due to these difficulties. My own ambition still wouldn't have been enough on it's own though. Most recently it has been NØ who has shouldered the load and made it possible for this blog to continue to exist. Despite running his own blog, Nothin' Sez Somethin', he was kind enough to agree to guest blog here during a difficult time for me, eventually deciding to stay onboard and contribute full time. Sab has also recently contributed in the recent past, and although her own personal projects are keeping her busy at the moment, she will continue to contribute here in the future as well. I also have Psyche Zenobia, AllyWonderland, Psycho Cat, Fillzy and JUnit1 to thank for their contributions here in the past.

I also want to take the time to thank my girlfriend, Rhiannon, for all the support she has provided me throughout the years. I started this blog shortly after we first got together. She has never been one to spend very much time on a computer, and she doesn't share my obsessive love for music, but she has always been supportive of me in all my endevours related to DM. Every time I have come to the conclusion that it would be best for me to call it quits, or take some time off due to some problem we face, she has always been quick to tell me not to give up on doing what I love. She has always encouraged me to keep doing this, even though it absorbs a great deal of my time, and despite the fact that we don't get to see each other as often as we did before I was attending school and working every day. You will probably never see her comment or appear in any form here, unless it was to announce that I was incapable of posting for some reason, but in my eyes she is a like a behind the scenes staff member who deserves just as much credit for the supportive role that she plays.

Last, but certainly not least, I would like to thank all you readers out there. I've had the pleasure of "meeting" many of you over the years, and your kind words always serve as encouragement to keep doing this also. Judging from the comments left here and elsewhere, I feel as if we have been doing a good job of delivering rare and unique music to you, and the good news is that we have even greater things in store for the future. I'm sure we will encounter some bumps in the rode along the way, but we will keep moving forward. I hope that the music we share here has brought as much pleasure to you as it has for us, and will continue to do so over the years.

Once again, thank you everyone for all the support you have provided over the years. Here's to four more years of Digital Meltd0wn... Cheers!