Saturday, May 7, 2011
Time, where did it go?
One again, something like 15 months since I wrote. My wife and I have had another child and I've just begun my senior year in school. I'm going to try to write more later: it's late now though.
Friday, February 19, 2010
man enough to rock?
I don't know why I thought about this recently. I think it came up when talking to my friend Becky from elementary school, talking about the old days when I started thinking about music I liked when I was younger. Then this theme came to mind.
Remember back in the 1980's, when all the kids where into hair metal and Michael Jackson? Remember that one kid who liked Duran Duran and the New Romantics bands and wasn't afraid of synthesizers or MIDI who seemed odd? That was me. I loved Duran Duran. I've tried to analyze why I had such love for their music, I think it was the hooks. And early to mid 80's Duran Duran was filled with it. They were one of those few bands who, if they had a greatest hits collection, I'd love every song and more than likely, the deep cuts. I remember when I got 2nd place on DB's Delight and got a $10 gift certificate for a local music store, I went and bought "Seven and the Ragged Tiger" an album that was released four years before. Rather unhip consider most of the cool kids were listening to Beastie Boys' "License to Ill", an album to this day I still don't like.
So, this passed without any real thought until around the time I graduated from high school. I think I may have seen a video for "Metal Mickey" or "The Drowners", but when I first heard Suede, I absolutely loved them. A band with a lead singer that played with androgyny not only in his looks but his lyrics ("The Drowners") or sexual deviance ("Pantomime Horse", "Animal Nitrate"). I found it to be a brilliant album and I couldn't tell any of my friends that I loved it. Considering I was living on a military base with oppressive conservative values, saying I liked a British band with such values was a no-no. Also my friends, who were pretty opened minded, would've found the band not as interesting as, say, Rage Against the Machine or Beck.
I can't really think of any bands that I like now that really play on androgyny, although Marilyn Manson has been known to do it from time time. However, Suede and Duran Duran didn't go into full androgyny, but both messed around with the concept, although Suede seemed to do it with much less makeup and more of the way Brett Anderson presented himself.
I just felt the need to get this off my chest. Also, I haven't posted on here since last August. Hopefully this amused you.
Remember back in the 1980's, when all the kids where into hair metal and Michael Jackson? Remember that one kid who liked Duran Duran and the New Romantics bands and wasn't afraid of synthesizers or MIDI who seemed odd? That was me. I loved Duran Duran. I've tried to analyze why I had such love for their music, I think it was the hooks. And early to mid 80's Duran Duran was filled with it. They were one of those few bands who, if they had a greatest hits collection, I'd love every song and more than likely, the deep cuts. I remember when I got 2nd place on DB's Delight and got a $10 gift certificate for a local music store, I went and bought "Seven and the Ragged Tiger" an album that was released four years before. Rather unhip consider most of the cool kids were listening to Beastie Boys' "License to Ill", an album to this day I still don't like.
So, this passed without any real thought until around the time I graduated from high school. I think I may have seen a video for "Metal Mickey" or "The Drowners", but when I first heard Suede, I absolutely loved them. A band with a lead singer that played with androgyny not only in his looks but his lyrics ("The Drowners") or sexual deviance ("Pantomime Horse", "Animal Nitrate"). I found it to be a brilliant album and I couldn't tell any of my friends that I loved it. Considering I was living on a military base with oppressive conservative values, saying I liked a British band with such values was a no-no. Also my friends, who were pretty opened minded, would've found the band not as interesting as, say, Rage Against the Machine or Beck.
I can't really think of any bands that I like now that really play on androgyny, although Marilyn Manson has been known to do it from time time. However, Suede and Duran Duran didn't go into full androgyny, but both messed around with the concept, although Suede seemed to do it with much less makeup and more of the way Brett Anderson presented himself.
I just felt the need to get this off my chest. Also, I haven't posted on here since last August. Hopefully this amused you.
Monday, August 31, 2009
So there was an article on August 9th of this year in the Wall Street Journal titled and asking “Can Jazz Be Saved?” (http://bit.ly/15bU1k). Jazz, like classical, has been bleeding fans for years and the audience amongst the youth are disappearing. The question remains, will the art form go extinct? Will it change into something not as recognizable?
In my opinion, I certainly hope it does.
Jazz and classical, while innovative in their beginnings and I do thank them for their influences in music, also have a dark side: they are both afraid to evolve. There is plenty of evidence to prove both of these cases, but let’s look at classical first. From its birth in European sacred music up until Romanticism, there have been shifts that came along but in no way broke the music. Everything was hunky dory…until the Post-Impressionists came along. I’m referring to Debussy, Satie, and their lot. How dare they start to question the function of classical (this is sarcasm). If Post-Impressionism was a child running away from home but never leaving the driveway and coming back, Stravinsky was that same child running away from home to become a circus sideshow performer. I always loved the story of the first performance breaking down into complete chaos due to Stravinsky’s use of dissonance. Thank God that happened. After Stravinsky, what was known as classical became a completely different beast, thanks to the 12-tone school and other experimental schools that popped up to continue eviscerating the corpse of classical music that was. Sure, you still got Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings” (maybe my favorite piece of all time) in 1937, but that was no longer the norm. Even with the experimentation, you also got the new catchphrase for modern classical: contemporary. However, contemporary also gave way to minimalism, which uses orchestration like classical music, but is not classical music in the slightest. I seriously doubt Glass, Reich, or Part would be considered anything close to classical (Part would be closer to sacred).
Jazz I feel is the same way. The jazz I enjoy, the music I listen to repeatedly, is not Basie, Ellington or any of those other guys that have some sort of mainstream appeal. Nor is it that crap you hear on light stations. Dear sweet Jesus no. The jazz I liked I considered much more exciting: Davis, Coltrane, Adderly, Monk and Mingus. These men didn’t just alter jazz, they permanently changed it. And for the better as well. Even though the forefathers I mentioned will always be remembered as long as jazz exists in history books, there are old school people who bitch and moan about it, much like people in “classical” (whatever that is anymore). They also consider themselves the last true audience of their genres. Thanks to their stuffy attitudes, they probably will be. If you want an excellent example of this, check out any jazz or classical radio station for about 20 minutes.
So, will jazz go the way of the dodo, killed off by rich, white European carrying guns? No. Sure, there’s guys like Herbie Hancock who are being innovative, but my vision for what holds for the future of jazz is a bit different, thanks to three sets of musicians who, not being trained jazz musicians, may hold the future of jazz in their works. I also forget to add: they are all create music that has more in relations to electronica than jazz.
The first, and closest, to jazz is Tom Jenkinson, known more popularly as Squarepusher. Mr. Jenkinson started out mainly doing electronica, but his output changed in 1998 when he released Music is Rotten One Note. MIRON sounds more like an outtake of Miles Davis from the late 60’s or early 70’s than an electronica album…and it’s brilliant because of that. Myself, along with most other fans were shocked when this and the accompanying EP’s Budakan Mindphone and Maximum Priest revealed a much different beast. Every album since then has taken a more jazz-like approach to the music, leading up to the recently released “Solo Electric Bass 1”, which is just him with the bass guitar.
The second is Amon Tobin. While his more recent albums Foley Room and Out From Out Where have less jazz influence to them the previous three albums, Bricolage, Permutation, and Supermodified. These albums tend to be influenced by jazz in the samples chosen by Tobin, which then creates the mood that you’d be more likely to find in a smoky jazz club rather than a DJ set. What makes this choice of sample more interesting is that Tobin himself is Brazilian, influenced by many more genres than jazz and belonging to a culture where music styles are more likely to be assimilated that isolated.
My final choice would have to be The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble. A relatively new combo starting out around 2000 and an actual band, they were originally doing live soundtracks to Fritz Lang movies while claiming an influence of The Brothers Quay. They only have an album and an EP out, but I highly recommend both, they are brilliant.
All of these artists are assimilating their jazz influence into electronica, which is producing music much fresher than jazz much more likely for repeated listenings.
In my opinion, I certainly hope it does.
Jazz and classical, while innovative in their beginnings and I do thank them for their influences in music, also have a dark side: they are both afraid to evolve. There is plenty of evidence to prove both of these cases, but let’s look at classical first. From its birth in European sacred music up until Romanticism, there have been shifts that came along but in no way broke the music. Everything was hunky dory…until the Post-Impressionists came along. I’m referring to Debussy, Satie, and their lot. How dare they start to question the function of classical (this is sarcasm). If Post-Impressionism was a child running away from home but never leaving the driveway and coming back, Stravinsky was that same child running away from home to become a circus sideshow performer. I always loved the story of the first performance breaking down into complete chaos due to Stravinsky’s use of dissonance. Thank God that happened. After Stravinsky, what was known as classical became a completely different beast, thanks to the 12-tone school and other experimental schools that popped up to continue eviscerating the corpse of classical music that was. Sure, you still got Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings” (maybe my favorite piece of all time) in 1937, but that was no longer the norm. Even with the experimentation, you also got the new catchphrase for modern classical: contemporary. However, contemporary also gave way to minimalism, which uses orchestration like classical music, but is not classical music in the slightest. I seriously doubt Glass, Reich, or Part would be considered anything close to classical (Part would be closer to sacred).
Jazz I feel is the same way. The jazz I enjoy, the music I listen to repeatedly, is not Basie, Ellington or any of those other guys that have some sort of mainstream appeal. Nor is it that crap you hear on light stations. Dear sweet Jesus no. The jazz I liked I considered much more exciting: Davis, Coltrane, Adderly, Monk and Mingus. These men didn’t just alter jazz, they permanently changed it. And for the better as well. Even though the forefathers I mentioned will always be remembered as long as jazz exists in history books, there are old school people who bitch and moan about it, much like people in “classical” (whatever that is anymore). They also consider themselves the last true audience of their genres. Thanks to their stuffy attitudes, they probably will be. If you want an excellent example of this, check out any jazz or classical radio station for about 20 minutes.
So, will jazz go the way of the dodo, killed off by rich, white European carrying guns? No. Sure, there’s guys like Herbie Hancock who are being innovative, but my vision for what holds for the future of jazz is a bit different, thanks to three sets of musicians who, not being trained jazz musicians, may hold the future of jazz in their works. I also forget to add: they are all create music that has more in relations to electronica than jazz.
The first, and closest, to jazz is Tom Jenkinson, known more popularly as Squarepusher. Mr. Jenkinson started out mainly doing electronica, but his output changed in 1998 when he released Music is Rotten One Note. MIRON sounds more like an outtake of Miles Davis from the late 60’s or early 70’s than an electronica album…and it’s brilliant because of that. Myself, along with most other fans were shocked when this and the accompanying EP’s Budakan Mindphone and Maximum Priest revealed a much different beast. Every album since then has taken a more jazz-like approach to the music, leading up to the recently released “Solo Electric Bass 1”, which is just him with the bass guitar.
The second is Amon Tobin. While his more recent albums Foley Room and Out From Out Where have less jazz influence to them the previous three albums, Bricolage, Permutation, and Supermodified. These albums tend to be influenced by jazz in the samples chosen by Tobin, which then creates the mood that you’d be more likely to find in a smoky jazz club rather than a DJ set. What makes this choice of sample more interesting is that Tobin himself is Brazilian, influenced by many more genres than jazz and belonging to a culture where music styles are more likely to be assimilated that isolated.
My final choice would have to be The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble. A relatively new combo starting out around 2000 and an actual band, they were originally doing live soundtracks to Fritz Lang movies while claiming an influence of The Brothers Quay. They only have an album and an EP out, but I highly recommend both, they are brilliant.
All of these artists are assimilating their jazz influence into electronica, which is producing music much fresher than jazz much more likely for repeated listenings.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Sometimes our loves zip up
I'd been meaning to write this post for a bit. Since the season is fading for them, I should just admit it: I love cardigan sweaters.
Mind you, it's been a long and difficult road. Like many young men growing up in the 1980's, my taste for sweaters of any type were tarnished by the "Cosby Sweater" phenomenon. I absolutely hated them. They were bulky, ugly, and I'd sweat like a whore in church wearing one. As many young boys, however, I was forced to wear them from time to time so I'd look "nice". Anyways, at the beginning of the 90's, my opinion of sweaters would change because of a past and present influence on my life: Mr. Rogers and Kurt Cobain.
I'd always loved Mr. Rogers growing up and even in my rebellious youth, I had respect for the man. My respect grew for him incredibly after seeing this: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2883185966575573317 and I can't wait to introduce to him to my son as well. He's what I consider to be a unique male role model: Not macho or overpowering masculinity, but powerful, well spoken eloquence. And the man did it wearing cardigans.
Kurt Cobain...well...had problems. However, beside the inner torture he had in his position of rock star/artist, he also was antithetical of the machismo of 1980's music. I can't say that he influenced the music I write, however, his songs were the first I learned on guitar. I respected his music, not his heroin use. However, he had this one green cardigan I was fond of. I myself a few years later had an almost lime green cardigan I would call my "Uncle Kurt".
So this past Christmas, my in laws bought me a cardigan I absolutely love: a chocolate brown with little white stripes on the neck. However, my wife had to sew up a huge hole in the armpit because I wore it so much. So, I feel I've set a trend for myself, wanting a cardigan for Christmas. Not to mention, they're cheaper than heroin.
Mind you, it's been a long and difficult road. Like many young men growing up in the 1980's, my taste for sweaters of any type were tarnished by the "Cosby Sweater" phenomenon. I absolutely hated them. They were bulky, ugly, and I'd sweat like a whore in church wearing one. As many young boys, however, I was forced to wear them from time to time so I'd look "nice". Anyways, at the beginning of the 90's, my opinion of sweaters would change because of a past and present influence on my life: Mr. Rogers and Kurt Cobain.
I'd always loved Mr. Rogers growing up and even in my rebellious youth, I had respect for the man. My respect grew for him incredibly after seeing this: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2883185966575573317 and I can't wait to introduce to him to my son as well. He's what I consider to be a unique male role model: Not macho or overpowering masculinity, but powerful, well spoken eloquence. And the man did it wearing cardigans.
Kurt Cobain...well...had problems. However, beside the inner torture he had in his position of rock star/artist, he also was antithetical of the machismo of 1980's music. I can't say that he influenced the music I write, however, his songs were the first I learned on guitar. I respected his music, not his heroin use. However, he had this one green cardigan I was fond of. I myself a few years later had an almost lime green cardigan I would call my "Uncle Kurt".
So this past Christmas, my in laws bought me a cardigan I absolutely love: a chocolate brown with little white stripes on the neck. However, my wife had to sew up a huge hole in the armpit because I wore it so much. So, I feel I've set a trend for myself, wanting a cardigan for Christmas. Not to mention, they're cheaper than heroin.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Out of the ashes of Fanboypocaylpse comes...
me. You may ask yourself “Eric doesn’t seem like a fanboy”, and if you do, you obviously don’t know me. However, let’s go back to the beginning of this story, back through the fogs of time to about…1985.
For those of you who skip in the same meadows of nerd/geekdom, this year brings something special to mind: the American release of the Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES. Surprisingly, I didn’t ask for one. You may wonder why I didn’t, and my honest reply was “I didn’t want to”. Really. I remember going over to a cousin’s house and watching them play Super Mario Bros. for hours at a time, or when I was living in Germany and helped a friend of mine earn enough money washing cars to buy Castlevania, but I wasn’t interested in playing. I was more interested in watching.
I was always like this with video games up until about 2000, when EverQuest came out. It was a sort of experience I enjoyed, watching people playing the video games and enjoying them. However, when I say “enjoying them”, I mean hunched over in front of a screen with the rare twitch of facial movement. If you can call that enjoyment.
In this manner, I’m glad I didn’t have a video game system around. With the lack of video game systems, my sister and I were forced to entertain ourselves in other manners…like going outside to play or, heaven forbid, read a book! However, this doesn’t mean there wasn’t any exposure to video games in my house. At Christmas in 1989, when I was living in Germany, my dad sent me a GameBoy. It only came with Tetris, but me, my sister, my mom, and my stepdad loved it so much we went through three sets of batteries in a week. Mind you, this was the four color version, so we were just enthralled with the gameplay. However, after the initial excitement, the GameBoy kinda went in the closet, and I sold in 1994 to buy a Nine Inch Nails single. I still somewhat kick myself for that.
My next exposure came in 1993, unintentionally. My stepdad, whom I despise, came home one day and gave me a Sega Genesis. Out of the blue. The conversation went something like this:
SD: Here you go!
Me: What’s this for?
SD: Well, all the kids talk about it. Thought you might like one.
Me: Um, thanks?
I never figured out why he did this, I rarely played it. It did come with Sonic the Hedgehog, which was an OK game. The only time I was excited about it was when I figured out how to record myself playing it on the VCR. That was it. I just gave it to my brother. I didn’t care for it. The next time I had exposure to video games in this manner was when I first met my wife, who was deep into Final Fantasy VII. Yet again, I just remember watching her play and listening to Portishead’s self-titled album that just came out. My brother wanted a PlayStation, so I went halvsies on it with him, since he couldn’t afford it himself. Once again, I tried some games for it, but couldn’t get into it.
It would take Everquest to get me big into playing videogames, but I consider it a sidenote. It was a game that took full advantage of my addiction to things I really end up liking, but became a chore. However, any sort of love for a console or its games wouldn’t come until 2005. And some help from an old game, and a new one.
So which console was it that brought me to the dark side? The Nintendo DS. Why? Two games: Tetris and Brain Age. Tetris was a gimme: I love that game so much. Not to mention the DS version has 6 different ways to play. Brain Age, however, would draw me in and make me realize the proper marketable term for a gamer like me : “The Casual Gamer”. That’s right, I’m one of those gamers the hardcore gamers can’t stand. I don’t feel the need to constantly prove my virtual machismo with FPS games or “Insert sport here” 2009. I get no joy from blowing people or hookers up. I never have. Especially in real life.
So what other games do I enjoy? Animal Crossing:Wild World, Puzzle Quest, Mario Kart, Clubhouse Games, and Planet Puzzle League. That’s right, mainly puzzle games. Man, am I hardcore! What really drew me into the DS was the bit Generation games (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dotstream#Dotstream). With simple gameplay and 8-bit style graphics, these games grabbed me immediately. I still own Orbital, Coloris, and Dialhex (my favorite), but I sent my friend James my copy of Dotstream. The aesthetic of the games themselves really drew me in with their minimalism, but the ability to get these games were tough. At one point I spent $30 per game which was frustrating. Even more frustrating: Nintendo could’ve released all seven games on a DS pack, but didn’t because these games weren’t considered “commercially viable” outside of Japan.Here’s a link to the Japanese site for the games that has short videos each. Bow down to the awesome sauce: (http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n08/bit_g/movie/index.html)
So, I was heartbroken over this. I honestly thought I wouldn’t find these types of games again. Mind you, there are some interesting games like this for the PS3 (yes, they have some decent games. Stressing “some”), but what about the Nintendo? Well, the Wii came out about two years ago, which excited me and I still plan on purchasing one of these, preferably before our son Paul is born because after he arrives, we’re going to be at home a lot. What really got me attracted to the Wii was the games you could download via WiiWare or Virtual Console. When looking through the WiiWare games, I found a line of games called Art Style. They are pretty much the bitGenerations games but for the Wii, including some new titles (http://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/RiwQdeXXsY5Q88aGghMq654JqM-ljVnd). Maybe I’m just a simpleton, but I love their gameplay and design. I get excited about these games not just because I like them, but I also think my friends and family would get into them as well. It also shows some intelligence put into gaming, along with some minimalism, which I’m a complete sucker for. I don’t need to see the gritty detail of a Nazi getting blown apart in some WW2 shoot-‘em up game (honestly. You more intelligent types should be offended that companies make games reliving wars and selling it as entertainment) or killing aliens or catching touchdowns. Gimme my well designed linework, my puzzles, my imagination. Those simpler games are worth 10 of those blow ‘em up horrorfests and constant advertisements you call sports.
For those of you who skip in the same meadows of nerd/geekdom, this year brings something special to mind: the American release of the Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES. Surprisingly, I didn’t ask for one. You may wonder why I didn’t, and my honest reply was “I didn’t want to”. Really. I remember going over to a cousin’s house and watching them play Super Mario Bros. for hours at a time, or when I was living in Germany and helped a friend of mine earn enough money washing cars to buy Castlevania, but I wasn’t interested in playing. I was more interested in watching.
I was always like this with video games up until about 2000, when EverQuest came out. It was a sort of experience I enjoyed, watching people playing the video games and enjoying them. However, when I say “enjoying them”, I mean hunched over in front of a screen with the rare twitch of facial movement. If you can call that enjoyment.
In this manner, I’m glad I didn’t have a video game system around. With the lack of video game systems, my sister and I were forced to entertain ourselves in other manners…like going outside to play or, heaven forbid, read a book! However, this doesn’t mean there wasn’t any exposure to video games in my house. At Christmas in 1989, when I was living in Germany, my dad sent me a GameBoy. It only came with Tetris, but me, my sister, my mom, and my stepdad loved it so much we went through three sets of batteries in a week. Mind you, this was the four color version, so we were just enthralled with the gameplay. However, after the initial excitement, the GameBoy kinda went in the closet, and I sold in 1994 to buy a Nine Inch Nails single. I still somewhat kick myself for that.
My next exposure came in 1993, unintentionally. My stepdad, whom I despise, came home one day and gave me a Sega Genesis. Out of the blue. The conversation went something like this:
SD: Here you go!
Me: What’s this for?
SD: Well, all the kids talk about it. Thought you might like one.
Me: Um, thanks?
I never figured out why he did this, I rarely played it. It did come with Sonic the Hedgehog, which was an OK game. The only time I was excited about it was when I figured out how to record myself playing it on the VCR. That was it. I just gave it to my brother. I didn’t care for it. The next time I had exposure to video games in this manner was when I first met my wife, who was deep into Final Fantasy VII. Yet again, I just remember watching her play and listening to Portishead’s self-titled album that just came out. My brother wanted a PlayStation, so I went halvsies on it with him, since he couldn’t afford it himself. Once again, I tried some games for it, but couldn’t get into it.
It would take Everquest to get me big into playing videogames, but I consider it a sidenote. It was a game that took full advantage of my addiction to things I really end up liking, but became a chore. However, any sort of love for a console or its games wouldn’t come until 2005. And some help from an old game, and a new one.
So which console was it that brought me to the dark side? The Nintendo DS. Why? Two games: Tetris and Brain Age. Tetris was a gimme: I love that game so much. Not to mention the DS version has 6 different ways to play. Brain Age, however, would draw me in and make me realize the proper marketable term for a gamer like me : “The Casual Gamer”. That’s right, I’m one of those gamers the hardcore gamers can’t stand. I don’t feel the need to constantly prove my virtual machismo with FPS games or “Insert sport here” 2009. I get no joy from blowing people or hookers up. I never have. Especially in real life.
So what other games do I enjoy? Animal Crossing:Wild World, Puzzle Quest, Mario Kart, Clubhouse Games, and Planet Puzzle League. That’s right, mainly puzzle games. Man, am I hardcore! What really drew me into the DS was the bit Generation games (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dotstream#Dotstream). With simple gameplay and 8-bit style graphics, these games grabbed me immediately. I still own Orbital, Coloris, and Dialhex (my favorite), but I sent my friend James my copy of Dotstream. The aesthetic of the games themselves really drew me in with their minimalism, but the ability to get these games were tough. At one point I spent $30 per game which was frustrating. Even more frustrating: Nintendo could’ve released all seven games on a DS pack, but didn’t because these games weren’t considered “commercially viable” outside of Japan.Here’s a link to the Japanese site for the games that has short videos each. Bow down to the awesome sauce: (http://www.nintendo.co.jp/n08/bit_g/movie/index.html)
So, I was heartbroken over this. I honestly thought I wouldn’t find these types of games again. Mind you, there are some interesting games like this for the PS3 (yes, they have some decent games. Stressing “some”), but what about the Nintendo? Well, the Wii came out about two years ago, which excited me and I still plan on purchasing one of these, preferably before our son Paul is born because after he arrives, we’re going to be at home a lot. What really got me attracted to the Wii was the games you could download via WiiWare or Virtual Console. When looking through the WiiWare games, I found a line of games called Art Style. They are pretty much the bitGenerations games but for the Wii, including some new titles (http://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/RiwQdeXXsY5Q88aGghMq654JqM-ljVnd). Maybe I’m just a simpleton, but I love their gameplay and design. I get excited about these games not just because I like them, but I also think my friends and family would get into them as well. It also shows some intelligence put into gaming, along with some minimalism, which I’m a complete sucker for. I don’t need to see the gritty detail of a Nazi getting blown apart in some WW2 shoot-‘em up game (honestly. You more intelligent types should be offended that companies make games reliving wars and selling it as entertainment) or killing aliens or catching touchdowns. Gimme my well designed linework, my puzzles, my imagination. Those simpler games are worth 10 of those blow ‘em up horrorfests and constant advertisements you call sports.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Star Wars didn't rape my childhood, but it did ruin everything else for me.
I must first apologize for any typos. I'm writing this very tired.
Since I put Attack of the Clones in for background noise, I have to admit something: Star Wars slightly ruined my childhood.
No, not in a Ain't It Cool News "OMG!1!1! Lucas rapXXored my childhood" way. However, we must start from the beginning in a time now kinda far away...
My mother told me I was completely over the moon for the original Star Wars in 1977. The idea of a two year old sitting in a movie theater with his parents to see it sounds odd, but I wasn't saying I was normal (and I just dated myself there). However, since Darth Vader scared the hell out of me, it wouldn't be until 1983, when Return of the Jedi came out, that I would see another Star Wars movie in the theater. I remember seeing RotJ and being disappointed there wouldn't be anymore Star Wars movies. However, it's effect on me would be far reaching.
The year after RotJ came out, a new fad in children's toys and tie in TV show called Transformers came out. I'm sure a few of you have heard of it. I did end up with two Transformers for Xmas that year, but it wasn't the same. There was something...missing in my feelings for it. The same with He-Man and G.I. Joe. I just couldn't get into them. Why? Well, my love for Star Wars greatly outweighed any interest in those franchise.
Do you remember the first time you fell in love? You know, the relationship was going great, you know you're going to happily spend the rest of your life with this person/franchise. Then, over time, things just change. Neither person is unfaithful to each other, the situations just change. I remember up until I moved to Germany, any time there was a rescreening of any of the Star Wars movies, I would beg either of my parents to take me.
When I moved to Germany, I started to forget about the movies. I was really geeky up until then, and I figured the change in my life would allow me to be less geeky, to change who I was so I would be more popular and less beat-up on a regular basis. Well, I still was getting beat up the first year I was there, but my plan worked. Unfortunately, I also didn't do as well in school either, but I didn't care. I actually had friends and was socially happy for the first time in my life. I had some great friends there too, but at this point, the obsession that I had was transferred over to music, particularly punk and alternative. Then I started getting into literature and art. Star Wars would become all but lost...until my senior year.
When I started my senior year, I wasn't worried about friends. Since I did a month at the same high school in my junior year, I knew a bunch of people and found like minded comrades. Star Wars would come back into my life inadvertently by way of my friend Seth. I was over at his house and he was showing me around his room when I noticed on a shelf he had up in his room a bunch of Star Wars figures he had lined up. We're talking the original figures here. My eyes lit up and I had to ask "You like Star Wars too?" I was alleviated that someone loved Star Wars as much as I do. Star Wars had finally come back into my life.
In the two years after that, I did a bit of traveling. I moved from Fort Campbell, to a little town called Cadiz, then moved to West Virginia. In that time, I read at least two of the Extended Universe trilogies (The Thrawn Trilogy, The Jedi Academy Trilogy), a number of single standing EU books and the Dark Empire graphic novel. When I moved to WV, my future brother-in-law let me borrow even more books. I watched the Special Editions in the theaters a number of time with my brother. Then the news came out that a new trilogy was being worked on. I think at that that point I realized I was a Star Wars fanboy. I let myself get swept up in all the hoopla of the publicity of the new movie. Who could blame me? My true love was back and in full form. I remember going to the premiere at the Keith Albee Theater in Huntington, WV with my girlfriend (now wife) and being completely enveloped by the excitement of the moment. Many of my friends were there, it was packed, everyone had a great time. I was so wrapped up in the moment, I didn't even care if The Phantom Menace was good. The high I got from it was so amazing that it wasn't until the third time I saw it I started questioning the integrity or the story.
Then the reality of the situation kicked in: the writing of the movie itself was crap. Anakin's character saying "Yippie!" often, Jar Jar Binks, and that podracing scene. How long was it, 2 hours? There were some good points (primarily the duel between Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon and Darth Maul, which IMHO was the best of either series), but we all know the rest of it was crap. I had been let down. It just took me some time to realize it.
Well, 2002 rolls along and lo and behold, another Star Wars movie. I'm sure George Lucas switched his "fanboy=bitch" beacon, because I went running to that one too. I wasn't as disappointed, but I did have to do some justification to claim to enjoy the movie. What was the deal with the Anakin/Padme relationship? Was a 7th grade boy brought in to "punch up" the romantic parts of the script? Why was Anakin made to be a really annoying whiny bitch? Why are the Jedi so frakking stupid? This is the point where I say "Well, the Dooku/Yoda duel was cool (that was a given) and Obi-Wan kicked ass.
It was also around this time when is topped read EU books, thanks to my friend Ginger point out that it was just "pro fanfiction". She was right. I also have a mixed point of view about fanfiction, so that hatchet was easy to bury.
By the time 2005 and "Revenge of the Sith" rolled around, I was to the point of wanting to get it over with. I rarely read any spoilers, unlike with "Attack of the Clones", and the only thing I looked forward too was the Obi/Ani duel. Like a good SW bitch, I went on opening day and afterwards we went to Aladdin Pita to eat and talk about the movie. I tried riding high on the fumes of post-Star Wars moviedom, but it really wasn't there. General Grievous (or as my wife likes to call him, Darth Moranis) was laughable. Then there was the dialouge blockier than Cubism. Heroin chic Padme. Full on whiny bitch Anakin. The entire movie was just dressing for two main plot points: 1) Anakin's turn to the dark side and 2) the duel between Ani and Obi-Wan. I will admit, I did find in this movie brief moments where Lucas got things right. Notice I said moments, not scenes. The scene after Anakin loses to Obi-Wan...was rough. In all honesty, that was well done. Anakin bursting into flames made that scene unforgettable. The scenes where Palpatine gets to be a badass were good because he wasn't corny, he was evil. Finally, the moment the mask goes on Anakin and seals up with a little bit of steam. That was literally (to me) the best scene in either trilogy. That was beautifully done. Not the "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" scene, not Anakin boo-hooing before he goes teh evil. and then the movie was over.
So what happened? Well, Star Wars didn't change, I did. Have you ever watched something from your youth to find out it sucked in all actuality? My wife demonstrated this point by showing me the G.I. Joe movie that came out in the 80's about ten years ago. It was harrowing. However, I should point out that this means doesn't mean I hate the OT Star Wars. Far from it. However, using the mentality that he did on the PT made it so much worse. I have to distance even the trilogies far from each other. OT is on my top shelf, PT is on the bottom. Bad PT!
So, now that the Star Wars are done for the most part, am I interested in the new Clone Wars stuff? Hell no. Haven't watched any of it, don't care to. Do I own the prequel trilogy on DVD? Of course. Since I'm George Lucas' bitch. Actually I use them to fall asleep sometimes. I fall asleep to the original trilogy because they are comfort films, a cocoon of sorts. I fall asleep to prequel films because the writing is garbage and they don't really hold my attention. I do plan on showing the original trilogy to my son when he gets old enough because I love the movies and I hope he does too. As for the prequel movies, well, I'd watch them if he wanted to, but just because I would love him.
Since I put Attack of the Clones in for background noise, I have to admit something: Star Wars slightly ruined my childhood.
No, not in a Ain't It Cool News "OMG!1!1! Lucas rapXXored my childhood" way. However, we must start from the beginning in a time now kinda far away...
My mother told me I was completely over the moon for the original Star Wars in 1977. The idea of a two year old sitting in a movie theater with his parents to see it sounds odd, but I wasn't saying I was normal (and I just dated myself there). However, since Darth Vader scared the hell out of me, it wouldn't be until 1983, when Return of the Jedi came out, that I would see another Star Wars movie in the theater. I remember seeing RotJ and being disappointed there wouldn't be anymore Star Wars movies. However, it's effect on me would be far reaching.
The year after RotJ came out, a new fad in children's toys and tie in TV show called Transformers came out. I'm sure a few of you have heard of it. I did end up with two Transformers for Xmas that year, but it wasn't the same. There was something...missing in my feelings for it. The same with He-Man and G.I. Joe. I just couldn't get into them. Why? Well, my love for Star Wars greatly outweighed any interest in those franchise.
Do you remember the first time you fell in love? You know, the relationship was going great, you know you're going to happily spend the rest of your life with this person/franchise. Then, over time, things just change. Neither person is unfaithful to each other, the situations just change. I remember up until I moved to Germany, any time there was a rescreening of any of the Star Wars movies, I would beg either of my parents to take me.
When I moved to Germany, I started to forget about the movies. I was really geeky up until then, and I figured the change in my life would allow me to be less geeky, to change who I was so I would be more popular and less beat-up on a regular basis. Well, I still was getting beat up the first year I was there, but my plan worked. Unfortunately, I also didn't do as well in school either, but I didn't care. I actually had friends and was socially happy for the first time in my life. I had some great friends there too, but at this point, the obsession that I had was transferred over to music, particularly punk and alternative. Then I started getting into literature and art. Star Wars would become all but lost...until my senior year.
When I started my senior year, I wasn't worried about friends. Since I did a month at the same high school in my junior year, I knew a bunch of people and found like minded comrades. Star Wars would come back into my life inadvertently by way of my friend Seth. I was over at his house and he was showing me around his room when I noticed on a shelf he had up in his room a bunch of Star Wars figures he had lined up. We're talking the original figures here. My eyes lit up and I had to ask "You like Star Wars too?" I was alleviated that someone loved Star Wars as much as I do. Star Wars had finally come back into my life.
In the two years after that, I did a bit of traveling. I moved from Fort Campbell, to a little town called Cadiz, then moved to West Virginia. In that time, I read at least two of the Extended Universe trilogies (The Thrawn Trilogy, The Jedi Academy Trilogy), a number of single standing EU books and the Dark Empire graphic novel. When I moved to WV, my future brother-in-law let me borrow even more books. I watched the Special Editions in the theaters a number of time with my brother. Then the news came out that a new trilogy was being worked on. I think at that that point I realized I was a Star Wars fanboy. I let myself get swept up in all the hoopla of the publicity of the new movie. Who could blame me? My true love was back and in full form. I remember going to the premiere at the Keith Albee Theater in Huntington, WV with my girlfriend (now wife) and being completely enveloped by the excitement of the moment. Many of my friends were there, it was packed, everyone had a great time. I was so wrapped up in the moment, I didn't even care if The Phantom Menace was good. The high I got from it was so amazing that it wasn't until the third time I saw it I started questioning the integrity or the story.
Then the reality of the situation kicked in: the writing of the movie itself was crap. Anakin's character saying "Yippie!" often, Jar Jar Binks, and that podracing scene. How long was it, 2 hours? There were some good points (primarily the duel between Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon and Darth Maul, which IMHO was the best of either series), but we all know the rest of it was crap. I had been let down. It just took me some time to realize it.
Well, 2002 rolls along and lo and behold, another Star Wars movie. I'm sure George Lucas switched his "fanboy=bitch" beacon, because I went running to that one too. I wasn't as disappointed, but I did have to do some justification to claim to enjoy the movie. What was the deal with the Anakin/Padme relationship? Was a 7th grade boy brought in to "punch up" the romantic parts of the script? Why was Anakin made to be a really annoying whiny bitch? Why are the Jedi so frakking stupid? This is the point where I say "Well, the Dooku/Yoda duel was cool (that was a given) and Obi-Wan kicked ass.
It was also around this time when is topped read EU books, thanks to my friend Ginger point out that it was just "pro fanfiction". She was right. I also have a mixed point of view about fanfiction, so that hatchet was easy to bury.
By the time 2005 and "Revenge of the Sith" rolled around, I was to the point of wanting to get it over with. I rarely read any spoilers, unlike with "Attack of the Clones", and the only thing I looked forward too was the Obi/Ani duel. Like a good SW bitch, I went on opening day and afterwards we went to Aladdin Pita to eat and talk about the movie. I tried riding high on the fumes of post-Star Wars moviedom, but it really wasn't there. General Grievous (or as my wife likes to call him, Darth Moranis) was laughable. Then there was the dialouge blockier than Cubism. Heroin chic Padme. Full on whiny bitch Anakin. The entire movie was just dressing for two main plot points: 1) Anakin's turn to the dark side and 2) the duel between Ani and Obi-Wan. I will admit, I did find in this movie brief moments where Lucas got things right. Notice I said moments, not scenes. The scene after Anakin loses to Obi-Wan...was rough. In all honesty, that was well done. Anakin bursting into flames made that scene unforgettable. The scenes where Palpatine gets to be a badass were good because he wasn't corny, he was evil. Finally, the moment the mask goes on Anakin and seals up with a little bit of steam. That was literally (to me) the best scene in either trilogy. That was beautifully done. Not the "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" scene, not Anakin boo-hooing before he goes teh evil. and then the movie was over.
So what happened? Well, Star Wars didn't change, I did. Have you ever watched something from your youth to find out it sucked in all actuality? My wife demonstrated this point by showing me the G.I. Joe movie that came out in the 80's about ten years ago. It was harrowing. However, I should point out that this means doesn't mean I hate the OT Star Wars. Far from it. However, using the mentality that he did on the PT made it so much worse. I have to distance even the trilogies far from each other. OT is on my top shelf, PT is on the bottom. Bad PT!
So, now that the Star Wars are done for the most part, am I interested in the new Clone Wars stuff? Hell no. Haven't watched any of it, don't care to. Do I own the prequel trilogy on DVD? Of course. Since I'm George Lucas' bitch. Actually I use them to fall asleep sometimes. I fall asleep to the original trilogy because they are comfort films, a cocoon of sorts. I fall asleep to prequel films because the writing is garbage and they don't really hold my attention. I do plan on showing the original trilogy to my son when he gets old enough because I love the movies and I hope he does too. As for the prequel movies, well, I'd watch them if he wanted to, but just because I would love him.
Monday, January 5, 2009
The Sundays
So I was listening to XRT Saturday morning (because I forgot my iPod) when "Here's Where the Story Ends" by The Sundays came on. I've never heard them on XRT before, but then I realized it was their "Flashback Saturday" which airs between 9am-noon on Saturdays, and the year they were reviewing was 1990. So, I was put in the mindset of The Sundays after that.
I'm not so much interested in going over their history (obligatory history here) as how I feel about them. I was introduced to them rather randomly. We had an open campus for lunch at our high school in Germany, so once in a while I'd walk down to the PX and buy a CD, just to run back in time so I wouldn't be late for Pre-Algebra. One time, I went down there and saw Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. This was also "back in the day" when CDs still came in those tall "anti-theft" boxes, you remember, the ones that made the CD a foot long and used half a tree of pulp. Something about the fossil artwork intrigued me, so I bought it and ran back to school.
Later on that night, I put it in with some headphones and I loved it. This was amusing since I was very big into punk at the time, but the formula of interesting music/morbid lyrics is one I could never resist (it should be noted this is also around the time I first got into The Cure and The Smiths). The music was simple, the vocals were stunning, it was rather to the point. I also was responsible for introducing many friends and the post to them, which I would do the next year with Nine Inch Nails. About a year later, a friend of mine really wanted my CD, so I stupidly traded it for a crappy 10,000 Maniacs CD. Yeah, that was stupid.
I did tape it, but I didn't get it on CD for another four years. A friend of my sister's, Miriam, was getting ready to sell some CDs, so I got to pick any that I wanted. Luckily, one of them was Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. I grabbed it and haven't let it go, even to this day. When my wife and I started dating back in 1997, I got her into The Sundays as well (it wasn't a hard sell) and she picked up Blind shortly afterwards. She picked up Static and Silence a year later, which she liked but I have only heard two songs off the album. I was disappointed that they became one of the bands that never broke up but just faded out of existance. I just prefer finality with bands that stop making music.
I have to admit that I do normally feel a sense of nostalgia when listening to them, but if the music wasn't good, I wouldn't listen to them as often. The band's basic formula holds up well, although it's well known that Harriet Wheeler (vocals) and David Gavurin (guitars) are basically the band and the bassist and drummer are faded into the background. I'm always surprised that The Sundays didn't have a more successful career. They are one of those bands (like Belly and Grandaddy) that could've been marketing to wider audience without changing the music and made serious money from it. At the same time, I really don't buy into the idea of forcing a band to put out music in a certain vein. Their music's nature is melancholy, with gorgeous acoustic and electric guitars and Harriet's sweet voice singing of sad things, creating an atmosphere not normally though possible with such sparseness. Their songs seem to come over like a haze but never seem to leave. I know "Skin & Bones", the first song off of Reading, Writing, and Arthimetic, always reminds me of when I lived in Germany and the first time I heard the album. I can saw that of very few songs in my CD collection.
I'm sure most of my friends have heard of them, but if you haven't, go get their stuff. I'm sure you can find them if you search well enough.
I'm not so much interested in going over their history (obligatory history here) as how I feel about them. I was introduced to them rather randomly. We had an open campus for lunch at our high school in Germany, so once in a while I'd walk down to the PX and buy a CD, just to run back in time so I wouldn't be late for Pre-Algebra. One time, I went down there and saw Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. This was also "back in the day" when CDs still came in those tall "anti-theft" boxes, you remember, the ones that made the CD a foot long and used half a tree of pulp. Something about the fossil artwork intrigued me, so I bought it and ran back to school.
Later on that night, I put it in with some headphones and I loved it. This was amusing since I was very big into punk at the time, but the formula of interesting music/morbid lyrics is one I could never resist (it should be noted this is also around the time I first got into The Cure and The Smiths). The music was simple, the vocals were stunning, it was rather to the point. I also was responsible for introducing many friends and the post to them, which I would do the next year with Nine Inch Nails. About a year later, a friend of mine really wanted my CD, so I stupidly traded it for a crappy 10,000 Maniacs CD. Yeah, that was stupid.
I did tape it, but I didn't get it on CD for another four years. A friend of my sister's, Miriam, was getting ready to sell some CDs, so I got to pick any that I wanted. Luckily, one of them was Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic. I grabbed it and haven't let it go, even to this day. When my wife and I started dating back in 1997, I got her into The Sundays as well (it wasn't a hard sell) and she picked up Blind shortly afterwards. She picked up Static and Silence a year later, which she liked but I have only heard two songs off the album. I was disappointed that they became one of the bands that never broke up but just faded out of existance. I just prefer finality with bands that stop making music.
I have to admit that I do normally feel a sense of nostalgia when listening to them, but if the music wasn't good, I wouldn't listen to them as often. The band's basic formula holds up well, although it's well known that Harriet Wheeler (vocals) and David Gavurin (guitars) are basically the band and the bassist and drummer are faded into the background. I'm always surprised that The Sundays didn't have a more successful career. They are one of those bands (like Belly and Grandaddy) that could've been marketing to wider audience without changing the music and made serious money from it. At the same time, I really don't buy into the idea of forcing a band to put out music in a certain vein. Their music's nature is melancholy, with gorgeous acoustic and electric guitars and Harriet's sweet voice singing of sad things, creating an atmosphere not normally though possible with such sparseness. Their songs seem to come over like a haze but never seem to leave. I know "Skin & Bones", the first song off of Reading, Writing, and Arthimetic, always reminds me of when I lived in Germany and the first time I heard the album. I can saw that of very few songs in my CD collection.
I'm sure most of my friends have heard of them, but if you haven't, go get their stuff. I'm sure you can find them if you search well enough.
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