It has just dawned on me as I sit to write this editorial that it has been just over a year since my last. At first I thought there was surely something wrong with the dates in our database, but who am I to second guess the absolutely bullet-proof piece of software Pedro's written to manage CoC? Yes, it has been that long since I last wrote, and there has been more than enough going on to talk about.

First of all, a welcome is long overdue for our cadre of new writers (some of whom just aren't all the new anymore!). Since early October of last year, both Kostas Sarampalis and Yiannis Stefanis have been writing for Chronicles of Chaos and adding their distinct voices to the chorus of our staff.

Kostas is an expatriate Grecian warlord now wreaking software fueled havoc in the financial markets of London's unsuspecting elites. Yiannis is another expatriate from the Greek islands and comes to us by way of royal decree from his Highness and most Literate Jackibald R. Smit, who discovered him on the mean streets of London town.

As you've been witnessing over the past four months, both Kostas and Yiannis have made substantial contribution to the site and have long been promoted to full writer status. Their literary excellence and dedication to the magazine made it a simple decision.

Also joining the fold is Jeremy Ulrey; our first North American recruit since Todd joined us in mid-2004. Jeremy joins us having previously written for some metal publications but long bored with the fact that they paled in CoC's long shadow. As a ten year reader of CoC, the Austin, Texas native's literary prowess made him an easy pick to join the staff. In the short time he's been here, Jeremy has already made a substantial impact and has hit the ground running.

The infusion of this new blood has been evident on our homepage, as I'm sure many of you can attest to. The sheer number of interviews, reviews, rants, etc. have made a significant up-tick over the past year. Look for this trend to continue and intensify in the coming months.

One particular success story I'd like to point out is our recent exclusive first interview with Brutal Truth on their decision to resurrect the band. Jackie's interview with Dan Lilker is (in my opinion at least) one of our crown jewel marquee stories over this past year. We were able to set up the interview directly with both Dan and Rich Hoak (who spoke to Todd) and break the story of their reunion first. This of course is only one example of the heroic efforts that have gone into Chronicles of Chaos over the past year.

Speaking of Todd, it's worth mentioning the contribution that he's made towards our Rants section. The year 2006 saw the most rants published in the pages of CoC than any other year by far. The resurgence of this creative writing outlet is a great thing for the magazine, in my opinion. It is something that sets Chronicles of Chaos apart from the fold, and if the three rants published in January 2007 are any indication, this trend is accelerating exponentially.

As can be expected every new year, on January 25th we released our annual Best Albums of the Year article. And this year we also have two other articles that look back over the past year at cover art and classic re-issues. All three are informative and well worth your time in checking out.

Hopefully it won't take another year for me to shake off the cobwebs and get some writing done; but who are we kidding, lazy is as lazy does. Until next time...