context

today

Sun, 06 Sep 2009 07:37:31 GMT

first i'd like to destroy everything that ever existed. and then i'd like to have some tea (cold). then i'd like to start painting all of the white space that must inevitably remain after everything is gone. i get to pick the colors this time, nothing boring and if there is anything paradoxical it will be paradoxical in an interesting way.

Fri, 23 Jan 2009 11:55:18 GMT

fuck. you.

Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:07:17 GMT

so apparently it's defective disc month. first i found out that the copy of sawdust and tinsel that i bought in november is cracked (i hadn't made time to watch it yet). luckily criterion are very nice and are giving me a whole new copy in exchange for just the cracked disc itself. then i discovered that my copy of en passion is defective. i've had that for 3 years and somehow overlooked it. i think i thought it was my old dvd player's fault. but it skips in the same place in every player. so now i have to replace that. and today i got my long-needed copy of MASCHERA's ca・tas・tro・phe Ⅱ, and it has a defect which causes a skip in the middle of the last song. so i'll have to replace that too, and that's a pain since the only place it can be found is yahoo japan auctions. ok, maybe that will be my excuse to buy parade while i'm replacing that. don't worry, as far as i know the copy i got of トロイメライ is fine. i've encoded lovely ALAC files of it. i've never really had any problem with defective CDs or DVDs before, i guess it's all catching up with me now.

i doubt it, but i'll ask anyway: does anyone happen to have mp3s of ca・tas・tro・phe Ⅱ, and if so, is there any sort of glitch at around the exact middle of the last song (生命の消失)? i just want to make sure it's not a pressing-wide defect before i bother replacing it. EAC did give me all kinds of read and sync errors with one drive when i tried to extract it, but the other drive did it with no problem. i get the same glitch in the same place listening to the actual CD and the mp3 file i made with the other drive.

unfortunately, it was cut off at the climax.

Sat, 17 Jan 2009 00:41:28 GMT

looklook

finally some...... nagisa oshima!

oh, it had to be that one first, didn't it? well, they do know how to make money :) but this is what really kills me... they're releasing it on BLU-RAY at the same time. i would not have guessed that, even though i'm sure plenty of people will find reasons to buy it :)

but seriously, it's a very good film. nagisa oshima is probably the only person to actually successfully do something like that with a film without it being stupid. fuck catherine breillat. they're also releasing this one at the same time, which is exciting, i haven't seen it. but i'm still waiting for merry christmas mr. lawrence, which has supposedly been on their schedule forever. i would have guessed that ryuichi sakamoto would have done a commentary track and possibly interviews about that at the same time he did the one for the last emperor. but i guess one that i haven't seen is better than one i've seen 100 times.

ZI:KILL and Plastic Tree

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 06:17:34 GMT

i've come to the conclusion that ryutarou's look/style was most likely influenced by TUSK (ZI:KILL's vocalist) (in addition to Robert Smith, etc). here is another example (go to 4:34). i don't know why i didn't notice that before. it wouldn't surpise me at all since nearly everyone in that scene was influenced by ZI:KILL in some way. an unrelated connection between Plastic Tree and ZI:KILL is the fact that one of ZI:KILL's former drummers, EBY, was the producer of Plastic Tree's first CD (Strange fruits-奇妙な果実-). there are some similarities to ZI:KILL's sound on that CD, but as for their work afterwards, i wouldn't compare them much.

anyway, probably everyone should listen to ZI:KILL if they haven't heard them :)

in 2009, i will be twice as arrogant.

Thu, 01 Jan 2009 00:23:32 GMT

2008 double bastard is my friend today. it's too bad i've never had the willpower (or money to buy enough to save some) to keep older bottles of stuff like this. maybe i'll force myself to keep at least one this year and then drink it in 4 years when the world ends.

(yes, that's a saw blade-shaped mouse pad with a dinosaur on it. i got it free when we went to a printing place when i was in high school. what, you don't expect me to actually buy a mouse pad, do you?)

tracklist for GOATBED's new album

Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:05:07 GMT

1 Jake
2 Young Vaning
3 Decoratibo
4 Your Grandpa Is The Most Abnormal
5 Buddy Beat
6 By Phero Monde
7 Vogue Man
8 Goodluck Delete

i can't wait to hear the lyrics for that one XD

only 2 really new songs (including that one with the revelation of a title). i'm guessing it's new recordings (and maybe first-time studio recordings for 1 and 8). also, if you preorder, you get a bonus CD with 10 MORE TRACKS. i'm guessing those will be remixes or something.

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 10:08:02 GMT

every time i listen to this song, i yawn at 0:41. i think it has a subliminal suggestion.

that said, it's important that i express that it's a great song.

生体電脳システム「セフィロート」

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 04:06:16 GMT

i've had this since the beginning of december. i must say i'm very impressed. i've wanted a mac for quite some time. after just a short period of use, i can't imagine going back to windows. the creative flow should go much easier since the system should work with me and not against me. the mac os environment and the hardware itself is something i've found very conducive to creativity. it also doesn't hurt that it's pretty powerful on the components side. this also means i'll have something to take with me when i travel, and when i stay with someone in finland or elsewhere i won't need to use their computer. it's been my goal since i returned to have a laptop before i go back. i may not take it if i only go for a very short time and won't need a computer, but i expect it will do a lot of traveling with me in the future. oh, and, its name is sephirot, after the "path of sephirot" concept in xenogears, and this, which that concept was based on.

alex cox on surrealist film

Sat, 29 Nov 2008 16:00:55 GMT

another good article:

The Exterminating Angel: My Life As An Entomologist, Or Bugs Are My Business

“People always want an explanation of everything. It is the consequence of centuries of bourgeois education. And for everything for which they cannot find an explanation, they resort in the last instance to God. But what is the use of that? Eventually they have to explain God!” (Buñuel)

mishima

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 18:16:54 GMT

one of the few authors to make his own film adaptation of one of his stories...

this is really interesting:
http://production.criterion.com/current/posts/517

Hara-kiri is a very positive, very proud way of death. I think it’s very different from the Western concept of suicide. The Western concept of suicide is always defeat itself. Mostly. But hara-kiri sometimes makes you win.

i have a strange headache

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:12:39 GMT

i just used the internet to find out that there was something at my front door instead of opening it and looking.

ps: my plane leaves today but i won't be on it. i'll see you next year.

hi PSA

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 07:59:36 GMT

if you want to understand why school shootings happen, at least some of them, i would recommend seeing the american film elephant (2004) (gus van sant) and the estonian film klass (2007) (ilmar raag). they're actually quite good films aside from their subject matter. elephant in particular takes a unique artistic approach. klass might be familiar to you if you're in finland since i think it was discussed by the media after the shootings there.

if we consider ourselves advanced societies, we can't continue to allow barbaric treatment and militaristic attitudes to perpetuate in our schools. of course, it starts at home, but some schools seem to do little or nothing to stop it.

奪われた刻印

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:35:14 GMT

http://www.konami.jp/gs/game/dracula_ds3/
http://www.konamistyle.jp/sp/dracula_ds3/index.html?off

konamistyle limited set is preordered, before it sold out! now it had better be good for all that money.

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 08:14:03 GMT

i remember a point in 1999 when the USD/JPY exchange rate was ¥137 to $1. today it's ¥100 to $1. i've never seen that.

アホー、アホ。

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 06:40:00 GMT

i noticed this:

(the top 8 is for the last 7 days)

and that i happen to be listening to an album right now called "Death 13". it must be my lucky day!

ROUAGE

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 06:40:03 GMT

if you have last.fm, you could help ease my frustration if you'd like by voting for this image and against this one. the reason being that the latter image is FAR too small, and the proportions are not right for a good display image on last.fm. the first image i just uploaded, it's a good picture of them from the last year they were together (2000). i don't know how the other one got so many votes being such crap. i'm pretty sick of it.

if you're not familiar with ROUAGE and would like to be, then:

is as good a place to start as any. (or maybe not since their sound changed significantly over the years). interestingly shot pv.

Közi what.

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:35:39 GMT

on a lighter note, narasa just told me that Közi has a new band and the vocalist is satoshi from SITHA (he was also a member of the original lineup of goatbed). i would never have expected a connection like that!! that's so strange. so this band should sound really interesting. satoshi is influenced heavily by new wave and post-punk (i believe his favorite band is wire, and also bauhaus). this band should be cool. atsushi from lloy is also going to be in this band. this is just too weird, but very interesting. but i hope this doesn't mean SITHA will break up or something.

guess what

Sun, 14 Sep 2008 06:48:18 GMT

i've noticed (wow finally! no, this is a delayed reaction) that i'm actually a really unkind and thoughtless person sometimes. especially when it comes to my closer friends, oddly enough. i'm actually rather selfish and cruel, i think. didn't i just write something like that a few days ago? well, i suppose it's cathartic.

but i do want my friends to know that i like them regardless of all of that. most people are probably more important to me than they think. or maybe not, who knows. oh, there i go again. i'm just not nice. but really, i am. or maybe not.

i feel bad for not writing back to some people or not doing things i'm supposed to. but eventually i'll do it and do a good job of it, most likely. i just have to be in the right mood, otherwise it won't be sincere. i'd rather be sincere than obligated. i think it would be best for most people to operate in such a way.

i get sick of myself sometimes. i read my old livejournal entries and think "what a bitch you are. shut up". i really sound american today, don't i? yes, i need to be out of here again soon.

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 20:24:49 GMT

if i'm supposed to write to you or send you something and i haven't, i'm sorry. i'm getting to it but being lazy, a bastard, and probably cruel, among other things, as usual :) if it's something easy i might have already done it, if it's something more difficult... i've been such a lazy bastard lately i haven't done anything that requires any effort, so i apologize.

does anyone know anything about actually renting a room for an extended period in helsinki? not a hotel or any of that. something affordable, you know. and something that is a possibility for non-citizens (normal renting usually isn't!)

are you an also-ran?

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 02:56:11 GMT

cheap video

which looks just like a githead video... not surprising. but hey, it's fun.

have been absent since natalie visited this week. will report later.

listen!!

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 03:47:57 GMT

ok, the guitar part in Guniw Tools' 'GREEN CARNIVAL' is THE SAME as the guitar part in A Certain Ratio's 'Shack Up'. hear it for yourself:

http://www.myspace.com/acertainratio

second song. no, i don't think you have to be registered at myspace to hear it. but seriously, it's exactly the same! that song even has a very similar horn/brass sound to the one used in GC. see if you don't think it's going to go into that brass lead from GC when you start listening.

so, i'm sure either asaki or full (or both) were familiar with ACR. and i'm not surprised.

anyway, i need kyo's later solo albums (especially SUPER CREEPS).

i'm thinking of posting some of his later PVs on youtube because they're great and i doubt anyone else would do it. if i do, i'll make another account to post them because i don't want any trouble with my main account if avex decides they want them deleted. i have the DVD on my hard drive because i'm getting BUG's 'NEW WORLD' PV from it for fragilesilencer, so i might as well encode them too.

Sat, 02 Aug 2008 14:37:26 GMT

this song totally sounds like fad gadget.

yeah, no content here.

stab.

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 20:29:35 GMT

someone please go back in time and kill me for selling my (lovely first-pressing) copy of トロイメライ. thank you in advance.

and dear people i owe messages or emails to: you'll get them tomorrow since tonight i'm going to adam's house.

超時空愛書メルヘンディヴァイダー。ゴー。

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:36:25 GMT

i never thought i'd be regularly recognized for my good taste in music in THIS town. today i went into edward mckay's (used bookstore, they also have used CDs, DVDs, videogames, etc.) and there was this british guy working there. i was wearing my bauhaus shirt, and he said to me something like "you really know how to make me feel old don't you" and then he said "i saw them twice when i was young" he said "you know that record press the eject and give me the tape? you know the part where he says 'mind your cameras, my feet eat them for dinner'? i was at that concert. liverpool 1981." and he was wearing an OMD shirt! i don't expect such things in this town. well, obviously he wasn't from here. but still! i need to get a job at that place.

this journal is getting boring, all i talk about is music. oh, and speaking of that.... i noticed recently some new visual band (wow, a new one??) called DI3SIRAE ..........uh, i wonder where they got such a name? hm... i really didn't expect anyone to steal anything from DIE-ZW3E nowadays. but for the past couple of years (or more) pretty much every new visual band has had a name that was in some way stolen from an older band, not to mention the music and everything else. but hey, at least ASS'n'ARRow......

ok, phone, i'll stop here.