Brave

Spoiler warning, but who really cares?

Drive

"Drive Dramatic Silence"

Maple Story

 Oh god here we go again.

Halo 3: ODST Original Soundtrack

Beautiful? Check.

Atmospheric? Check.

Fitting? Check.

 You listening to it? Check.

It's my sister's birthday

So I made her a mix CD of various bands I thought she'd like. Been so busy lately, figured I might as well give you guys something to listen to as well.

T-Pain's "Church"

No real post today, just wanted to share this song. I don't really like hip-hop and rap, but this fucking song is the shit. Incredible: enjoy.

Lyre le Temps

Unfortunately, the obscurity of great foreign bands is still something that the internet has trouble with. In a world where you can receive information on almost any subject imaginable (including those purely imaginary), it's often shocking to find out that much of the solid facts are completely absent. Save for those who speak the language, in this case French, and may be one with the web culture, knowledgeable of the extensive resources out there that are unbeknownst to singular linguists such as myself; we may never really know all there is to find out about them. What I do know, I have copied from their Last.fm page biography, surely written by a fan. 

"Lyre Le Temps, is first the dream of three music lovers: travel through the twentieth century. Although each actor wears a different color music, they share the same interest for the major genres that have influenced the twentieth century - especially jazz. And the singer pianist Ry’m, which highlights this aspect by his talent for improvisation: all voice and piano present on different tracks were recorded in one take, and nothing was written in advance. Then a first fusion takes place with Amorphous, DJ, rapper and hip hop instrumentalist, who plunges his collection of old vinyl records to create instrumental hues old. Finally, II contributes to the electronic mail to all, whether in the construction and evolution of different titles, in the effects and mastering general, or in electronic batteries."

What I can tell you, however, is that Lyre le Temps is very similar to another one of my favorite bands: Caravan Palace. Blending swing jazz and the modern electro scene, Lyre le Temps is a unique subsidiary of a growing library I like to call Electroswing.

Another favorite roundup

Because I have been AFK for like two days. Sorry guys! I'm probably suffering from my typical lack of motivation, that cold air that blows through the cracks of your window and keeps you in bed an extra hour; otherwise known as my never-ending love of starting a project and jumping off it. But here we go, let's do this.

Had Court and No Sleep

So, I didn't sleep last night because I had court at 9am and I would have overslept and missed it, so now I feel like crap and want to die/sleep all day, but have to force myself to stay awake until tonight so I can get real sleep. It was a stupid thing, "criminal mischief," aka I spray-painted "Feliz 1984" all over my town, then started spray-painting smiley faces, and got caught doing the latter, confessed to a few of them so I wouldn't get anal-raped by the penal system. Anyway, it's like a 500 dollar fine + 150 dollars for court, which are both bullshit: mandatory minimum fines need to disappear. We live in America, and hell, the things they saw me do? Gone because it's been a solid month of rain.

But anyway, enough of my whining. Since I won't be making a real post tonight, I thought I'd ask you guys a few questions!

If you have a favorite actor or actress, who are they? Are they also in your favorite movie, or any of your top films? Name any and all of the above as you see fit.

Guilty Gear

Click here for post mood music.

You may recognize this name from a previous post. Guilty Gear is a fighting game series designed by Daisuke Ishiwatari, who not only created the game itself, but designs the characters, storylines, and composes the music. The game itself features numerous references to musical culture (example: Axl Low is thought to be based on Axl Rose for their strikingly similar appearance and he even wears a union jack flag shirt), but most commonly features subtle allusions to Daisuke's favorite band: Queen. Not unlike most fighting games, much of Guilty Gear is based around the player's ability to execute a number of combos, often involving ways to knock opponents skyward to continue, and also feature devastatingly powerful techniques that require you to build up "Tension" to execute. The most powerful moves (each character has one) are called "Destroy," as they are one-hit KOs; however, the offside is that each character's techniques, including Destroys, are performed differently. Some are ridiculously easy to dodge, some are nigh impossible, some can be blocked and some can't. One of the most impressive things about the series is that Daisuke learns from each game and applies new ideas and maneuvers for players. For instance, Guilty Gear XX introduced False Roman Cancels, air throws, and Aerial Dust: I still don't know what most of the terms mean.

However, you might ask yourself: why should I care about another fighting game? It's true the market is saturated with button mashing, rage inducing, controller hurling hybrid fighters, but the thing that sets Guilty Gear apart from the pack is what makes it so unique. Let me just say this, I've played...a lot of fighting games, I've played a lot of games in general, but I've played basically every mainstream fighting game: Tekkan, Soul Caliber, Marvel vs. Capcom, Naruto (the whole series), Dragonball (all of them), Clay Fighter, etc. etc. I'm not a fan of fighters, I feel like I'm horrible at them and I never put the dedication in to learn how to play effectively. Guilty Gear (and Dragonball Z: Budokai) are the only fighting game series I've ever really found myself enjoying.

Why You Should Play Guilty Gear
1) It's easy to pick up. You have four attacks: low punch, low kick, high punch, and high kick. You push one a few times, press another one: you've mastered combos in Guilty Gear. It doesn't take a highschool diploma to do damage in this game. The real difficulty lies in the execution of said combos, effective blocking techniques, air dodging, jump timing, etc. (a lot of the characters move at different speeds, so it gets really tricky depending on who you fight). And by the way, the game is legitimately difficult. You will have a hard time on Normal.

2) The characters are interesting, unique and have really cool designs. You might know Guilty Gear best because of this little fellow.

3) The music is above and beyond what you could expect to hear in a fighting game. Seriously, what is better to beat the crap out of somebody than blazing guitar riffs?

But in all seriousness. The best part of Guilty Gear is that it is fun. Plain and simple. So I'll leave you with a video of my favorite character (Chipp), demonstrating his combos:

Another day, another no post

Sorry guys, I have just been swamped with nothing the past few days. Such an overwhelming amount of nothing that I have been spending way too much time writing a d20-based RPG (from the ground up) for my friends (called The Horror) and the rest of the time I've been working on my drawing skills (been going at it for two months, finally starting to get better).

For now, here's a song I am really liking right now. It's definitely going to be the "climax" song in my Electrosexual mix I am also working on. DidyouseewhatIdidthere?

Whoops

A whole day went by and I forgot to make an update, so here's...my top three favorite things at the moment!

Daisuke Ishiwatari

Four Favorite Bands and Movies

There's no update today because I've spent, I don't know, the past two hours trying to clean out all the blogs I follow that don't update anymore. Also: sleeping schedules suck. I went to sleep earlier than usual last night and woke up even later than I normally do. How does that even work?

If you really need something to tide you over, here's four of my favorite bands and movies that I will not do full posts on because they're already popular / well-known enough:

Read as: I'm a big fat liar and I posted way more than I thought I was going to.
Deal w/it nrds.

Bands

Gorillaz: I wasn't a big fan of "The Fall", the most recently released album, but after listening to it a lot more, it's definitely grown on me. I like it more than Plastic Beach, but not more than Demon Days. Plastic Beach feels so melancholy, I can't listen to any of the songs, except "Stylo" and "Some Kind of Nature", with my regular shuffle music. "The Fall" is also an album that needs to be listened to on its on for the full effect, while this is also true for "Demon Days," it is not nearly as pronounced. Their first, self-titled, album I've always found to be great, but have a hard time ranking it, since the style varies wildly throughout. All are worth a listen though.

Daft Punk: With my discovery of "Alive 2007," Daft Punk soared into and took my top-listened to band spot from Gorillaz (though they have since lost the position, they continue fighting hard for it). I don't much care to listen to most of Daft Punk's music with my regular shuffle palette, but when I'm drawing or writing, I always have them on.

The Doors: Do I ever need to explain the cultural and musical impact this band had one the world? I might not obsess over Jim Morrison like most people, but I am a diehard Doors fan. I don't think I've ever heard a Doors song I did not like.

Rise Against: I feel like Rise Against is the perfect spiritual successor to 80's punk rock. Their actual music may lean towards punk influenced alternative rock, but the roots are there. Almost all their music is about a cause, fighting for something: whether it be war, love, or purpose in general, there is a vested emotional attachment.

Movies

(As a note, don't be afraid to watch the linked trailers, I made sure to watch them first and they don't spoil anything, if I didn't link a trailer, it spoils way too much: avoid watching them)

28 Days Later: The movie that, as far as I am concerned, defines the quality we should expect from modern horror movies. The desolate, bleak atmosphere is almost too much to bear at some points. The horror protagonist Jim feels is real, the characters are all so well written that you can't help but feel for them, hope for them to survive.

The Machinist: This is my favorite Christian Bale movie and in my top ten movies of all time. Bale does an incredible job playing fucked up characters because of how much dedication he puts into it. The tale of a tormented auto-part plant worker, The Machinist follows Bale as Trevor, slowly piecing together missing fragments of his life. But does he really want to know what there is to find?

The Prestige: One of my favorite mindfuck movies. The tale of rival magicians, constantly attempting to outdo each other with crazier and crazier stunts. Well-written, clever and keeps you guessing until the very end. Oh, did I mention it stars Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, and was written by Christopher Nolan? Oh, and David Bowie is Nikola Tesla? Yeah, that's how awesome this movie is.

REC: If I was making a list of the best zombie movies ever made, REC would be in the top three. The story of a late-night news reporter and shot from the perspective of her cameraman, REC follows the news team on an ordinary firefighter distress call. Hoping for some breaking news, Angela gets far more than she expected. If you're not a fan of shaky cam, I'd still suggest giving it a chance, if only for the atmospheric tension and play-by-the-rules horror writing (i.e. you will not watch it in the dark at night). Was remade into an abortion called Quarantine for U.S. audiences, which almost completely destroyed the credible of the original as a film fr those who did not see it first. Followed by a sequel, aptly named REC 2, which takes place immediately after the first film. A good sequel, but not spectacular like the original.

Jurassic Park (Novel)

Sun O)))

Pronounced Sun and named after the Sunn amplifier (whose logo is the band's name) with only two core members, Sunn seeks to destroy all that you hold sacred through despair. Largely experimental, most of Sunn's work is drone with metal influence: played slow and heavy, in low tunings with resonant feedback to create desolate, apocalyptic soundscapes. Sunn often invites guests to collaborate on their albums, often resulting in strangely unique songs as they encourage their guest artists to experiment as they please.

There are no real words that can describe Sunn, a long list of adjectives perhaps, all synonymous with horror. If possible, listen to the following track with headphones in the dark. Let it play through, don't skip ahead: it's meant to be taken in together, Sunn doesn't feature verses and choruses like typical songs. Understandable, this music is not for everyone; most particularly those who find their nightmares to be, well, nightmarish.

Finntroll

Most elegantly described as "holy shit what was that," Finntroll combines elements of various subgenres of metal (most notably: black, death, extreme and folk) with a type of Finnish folk music called "humppa." Please finish giggling at the name before continuing. Humppa is a jazz-related, fast-paced traditional dance music that typically features a strong bass and is known to be similar to samba and waltz. With this unique sound, Finntroll is sure to be a new taste to all listener's ears.

The majority of the band's work revolves around a Finnish legend involving Troll-King Rivfader and his army of trolls fighting Christians who invade their lands, with a recurring theme of two priests named "Aamund" and "Kettil" who are constantly getting into trouble with the trolls and followers of Rivfader.

Curiously, despite being of Finnish origin, almost all of the bands songs are sung in Swedish. This was a tradition started by the band's first singer, Katla, who, being a part of the Swedish-speaking minority in Finland, thought the sound of the language better suited the trollish nature of the band's work. The tradition lives on, though there have been several changes in vocalist since Katla's departure.

Personally, I do not listen to much, if any at all, black metal. I find the singing harsh and often, the music indecipherable, with chaotic drum patterns and heavily distorted guitar. However, Finntroll, borrowing heavily from several other subgenres of metal, often breaks this stereotype. The singing, while very "troll" sounding, is not nearly as harsh as most extreme metal bands and they have a very clean sound, resonating the focal point of their folk label. Perhaps you will enjoy them too.

Ghost Hound

Ghost Hound is the story of a highschooler named Taro Komori who suffers a recurring nightmare of a traumatic event that occurred when he was very young. Kidnapped by a mysterious man with his sister, Komori is forced to watch his older sister starve to death. The show then deals with Komori's day to day life and how the event has impacted him, thought it would seem as if his past is starting to catch up to him again. If I had to describe this story by comparison, if you've ever seen Serial Experiments Lain, imagine that story if it were told in a more straight-forward manner and replace the internet/computers with sake. Seriously.

Ghost Hound is animated beautifully, with fluid character motions and well-drawn scenery. It does feature some stereotypes: the silent badass who never comes to school, the somewhat dopey but lovable and smarter-than-he-acts protagonist, and the faithful, mischievous sidekick. It does, however, make little use of traditional anime techniques: there's very little panning and zoom, many of the scenes being drawn and shown from multiple angles (a sign of good quality in anime). Another thing I noticed is that Ghost Hound incorporates varying stylistic ideas and also has many things I have never seen drawn in an anime: a good example of this being a transistor radio in Komori's room (and a sneaky Star Wars reference if you can catch it), for the latter and Komori's dream sequences as the former.

The show itself is very psychological, delving into some deep issues that many shows don't dare to venture. Oh and the theme is incredible. You can watch all the episodes on Hulu too, ain't that grand?

The Kidcrash

What people have to say about The Kidcrash:

"They're pretty obscure." -Guy in a plaid shirt

"Who?" - My mom

"Wow, it's big." - Your mom

(Disclaimer: Only two of these are facts. You can still call me Sean though.)

Largely experimental, The Kidcrash spans multiple genres, including: indie rock, math rock, post-hardcore, screamo, and emo with influences from punk, thrash, and alternative rock. Combined together, The Kidcrash is sure to be something you've never heard before, and for the better; their unique soundscape blends passionate vocals and heavy driven guitar riffs with complex drum patterns and figuratively raw emotion.

A huge controversy surrounds the band and their record label, Lujo Records, as the company has claimed 100% royalty rights to the sales of their mp3s and continuously attempts to drain more money from the band for "fees" and other miscellaneous bullcrap. The band has asked, like so many before them, that you do NOT buy their albums unless you are at their shows and to instead download their music. Feel free to skip the album "New Ruins," if you enjoy The Kidcrash sound: it was creatively forced, an album made from the pressure of Lujo Records and does not represent who the band is, musically or emotionally.

The following is my favorite song by The Kidcrash, but it wasn't on YouTube, so I made a "video" for it myself. I can't video link it yet for some reason, but you can still listen to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9OiGMQY5mU

This post is dedicate to my good buddy Jake. Keep rockin'.

Gogol Bordello

Boasting an incredible nine members, gathered from all corners of the former Soviet Union, plus one American and two Israelis, Gogol Bordello represents itself as a legitimate spiritual successor to the gypsy music of old. With elements of punk, cabaret and dub, the majority of Gogol is fast-paced, high-energy music that makes you want to get up and dance like nobody is watching. Well-known for their theatrical concert performances and never-ending touring, Gogol is a band that must be seen to be believed.

Frontman Eugene Hütz may be the most inspiring portion of Gogol, however. Following the disaster at Chernobyl, he was evacuated to the Western Ukraine where he fell in love with the mystical quality of gypsy music. Experiencing life as an outsider himself while living as a refugee in Poland, Hungary, Austria, and Italy, Hütz took to heart the quality of the gypsy lifestyle: emotions that can easily be felt in his singing and playing.

Gogol's music has appeared in quite a few films, but most prominently in Wristcutters: A Love Story, where the main character is partly based on Hütz, who has appeared in two other films: Everything Is Illuminated (with Elijah Wood) and Filth and Wisdom (a film directed by Madonna).

(As a sidenote, I highly recommend all three movies.)