Here we are again, on this familiar date of August 12. Which this year, coincidentally, marks our 12th anniversary. While many things have changed in this and many past years, CoC still stands as a staunch testimony to the founding principles we began with back in 1995. To this date, you are still receiving some of the highest quality and most in-depth coverage of all aspects of extreme music. To this date, you have still failed to spot even a modicum of advertising or commercial pursuit on our site. And finally, to this date, CoC is still fueled by the steadfast dedication and selfless contribution of everyone involved in this enterprise. Many things have changed around us and within us, but these core principles still hold true.

Over the past year, due to the hard work of our writers, the sheer volume of material spewing forth from the CoC lair has increased tremendously. The obvious side-effect of this increase in production has been a subsequent increase in the number of eyeballs perusing our pages and ever increasing attention from bands and labels alike.

This past year has also seen the magazine expanding its reach with different types of articles and coverage. Witness the number of articles released in our Rants section since this time last year. I believe some of our most interesting reading shows itself in the different types of articles that appear in the Rants section. From scene reports, to genre histories and dissections, to irreverent opinion pieces, Rants ranks as one of my favourite sections.

This past year has also seen the addition of more writers than any other year in our history. In total, since this time last year, five new writers have stormed our shores, and I'm sure you'll agree that Nikola, Andreas, Kostas, Yiannis and Jeremy have all been doing a bang up job.

Very recently, we've had a sixth neophyte join our ranks. Please join me in welcoming Chaim Drishner. Hailing from the Haifa seaport in Israel, Chaim doesn't let the sun, surf and sand of his idyllic Riviera-like location influence the gloomy disposition and Krav Maga-esque intensity needed to sufficiently cover the "dark arts".

Finally, as always, a humble acknowledgement of thanks goes out to all of you. Whether this is the first CoC article you've ever read, or you've been with us since CoC #1 was released; without our readers we would've fizzled out long ago. Please remember that your opinion has always mattered to us and we love getting feedback. You can contact us through our contact form on the website (in the "More CoC" section).

Here's to another great year; we'll gladly keep producing top notch material for your consumption. In return, we ask nothing other than your continued loyalty. Cheers to all of you.