Saturday, October 22, 2011

Online radio

It's just brilliant! I just stumbled upon a site called Pandora and so far I love it! It's a product of the Music Genome Project. I don't really get the science, but it's neat.
For anyone that knows me, they know i'm pretty much over american music. There are a few songs by a few artists that are fine, but for the most part I find it vulgar and brash and it just makes my ears want to bleed. You also know that i've pretty much turned to asia to get my musical kicks. What you most likely don't know is that I absolutely adore old music. As in black and white or technicolour musicals.

Yep. I love Gene Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Kay Kyser, Danny Kaye, Fred Astair...and so on.
I don't really know why i'm so in love with that era, but there you have it.
There's just something so magical and charming about the movies back then.
Maybe it's the pure simple and yet sometimes complex nature of those songs. Or maybe it's just the fact that they just don't make them like that anymore. Nobody even sings that way anymore. No. Today we have......rap and hip hop and country crossovers. Pardon me while I barf in the corner.

Now, the thing is...i'm only 38. From my point of view, the people I see really being into this kind of music are, well, baby boomers and older. From anyone else's perspective, say the 16-29 somethings, they might think this is par for the course and that i'm now officially an old lady. Hell, the music I grew up on, in the 80's is practically considered oldies. But I don't care. When I hear those old tunes from movies where they break into song out of nowhere, it's like i'm back home after a long, tiring journey.

Anyway, this online radio station is FREE and incredibly awesome, because it has the one thing that I can't get on the regular radio.
A Kay Kyser station! When Harry Babbitt croons out a tune, i'm just in heaven.
Of course the station plays other artists from the same time and likeness, so it's a really well rounded station.

I'm just really happy I found it.

Upon further investigation, I also found a Super Junior station! I'm like a newly diabetes free girl in a godiva store.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Bunraku!!



This movie is awesome!

Okay, getting ahead of myself. I was kinda bummed that the theatrical release was limited to only 10 theatres but delighted to find that the movie was available OnDemand, and for only $6.99!
So, I made my dinner and sat myself down  and ordered up the movie.
I just loved it! Lots of action, lots of blood, lots of...Gackt.
I was very impressed with his role and his english. Yes there was some japanese, with cute comic book style subtitles. There was even a narrator, which was amusing at times through the movie. I'm not going to give everything away with a full-on review, but I will say I highly suggest this movie. It's awesome in so many ways! If you're lucky enough to live in one of the 10 places where the film is going to be on the big screen, go see it. For everyone else, watch it OnDemand!

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Things Change

My entire life i've been what you'd call a night owl.
I always hated going to bed early and as an adult, I always worked the second shift.
But recently, things have taken a turn around a surprising corner.
I've made a life changing decision to work the dreaded First shift.
That's right. Mornings.
I'd worked mornings before and I hated it, but this time around everything seems different. Life at work has become far less stressful. You can't even imagine.
It's like i'm floating on retail clouds!
Oh sure I miss staying up late but I find that it's kinda worth it.
To work stress free?
That, my friends, is priceless.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

Asian Music

So, okay, let me begin by saying im not asian. I'm white. Like, almost Vampire Pale white. And I live in Michigan, which also makes me American. Actually, I have no idea what that has to do with the title of this blog. Anyway, let's go back a bit. I grew up pretty much knowing all the top 40 songs, lyrics and all, and I loved them. I grew up with stuff like michael jackson and thriller when I was 10-11 and then onto big hair metal when I was a teenager. Yeah, you do the math. as I came into adulthood, those bands became a thing of the past as all things do, when then the music of the 90's and very early 2000's was more pop-driven. American music back then was just really awesome.

But now, for me anyway, its just lost all its flavour. I'm not a huge fan of rap, hip hop or R&B. Nor am I a fan of country crossover. But sadly, this is the kind of music that has taken over the media/radio in a big way in the last decade.
Yes, rap and R&B have been around since the 80's but not the way it is today. It seems as though when I turn on the radio, thats ALL there is to sample.
So, I dont listen to the radio much anymore. Pretty much the only american music I like anymore is Adam Lambert and Michael Buble'. And he's Canadian!
Of course I still love my classic music. The stuff that was influenced by my parents, like The Beatles and The Guess Who, some Elvis and lots of Motown Oldies, and especially Frank Sinatra. But that's pretty much where my love of american music ends.

Now lets go back 5 years ago. My entire world was up-ended when my mother died. I moved into zombie-dom for the better part of a year. Everything on the radio felt like it was just there to make me suffer. I'm sure many people can relate to this after a loss of great magnitude.
So fast forward a year to 2007.
A friend of mine I was chatting with, sent me a link to this Japanese singer as a guest on some weird japanese talk show. It was the strangest thing I ever saw. The show, not the singer. The singer was just really amazing. And yeah, really hot. I went looking on youtube for his music videos and was just blown away. His name is Gackt. I became a bigger fan than my friend was. I know, crazy, right? Some time after that I discovered Miyavi. Creative genius! This was the year I became addicted to youtube viewing and the same year I discovered asian Idol Dramas, purely by accident. The first 2 pages of the Most Viewed section were just filled with episodes for a couple weeks, when I broke down and decided to see exactly what it was. Turned out to be a show from Taiwan. I instantly fell in love. It was like nothing else i'd ever seen, and so funny and just, addictive. I started watching show after show and yeah, it was all in chinese, but it was all subtitled, so it was all good. This was how I discovered Taiwanese music. One boyband in particular called Fahrenheit.
There's that word again that we all havent seen since NSYNC and Backstreet Boys. BoyBand.
Now, I know what you're thinking. "Boyband? Really, Karen? Really?"
Yes, Really.
There are other groups and solo artists of course, but Fahrenheit is my favourite.
And i've been watching these shows on the internets since 2007 now and I just love them. Also, somehow along the way i've come across Korean Boybands. One in particular, Super Junior, is really amazing.
Now that we're all up to speed here, i'll explain the boyband thing.
In asia, this is the predominant type of music. Boy band and Girl group Pop music.
Oh i'm sure there are still band bands over there, with instruments and things, but you'd be hard pressed to find them in the main stream media.

This brings me to another conversation about mainstream media. The American one.
You might recall recent movies like Ninja Assassin and The Green Hornet? Both movies had asian musicians in them. Ninja Assassin had Rain and Joon Lee, both korean singers and Green Hornet had Jay Chou of Taiwan.
L'il Kim collaborated with Se7en on a song of his called Girls, back in 2009.
And korean actor/singer Lee Byung-hun was in 2009's G.I.Joe: Rise of the cobra.
Slowly but surely, asian artists are making their way into american media. Even japanese rocker Miyavi does U.S. tours, albeit small ones.
Youtube is a huge source for music videos and all you really have to do is type in something like Korean Boybands and it'll bring up all manner of videos to choose from.
The business is booming and asian music agencies are jumping all over it with their own youtube channels for the world to just soak up. But here's the thing. Forget your idea of the term Boyband. Kick it to the curb and buckle up for something completely different than what you're used to. Oh sure there are teenage boybands and 18-22 year old boy bands that are a bit Nsync-ish but that really isnt the norm; it's the exception rather than the rule.
Then there is the small issue of "huh? I dont even speak korean or chinese. Why would I listen to that?" language barrier thing. Well, kick that to the curb too. There is such a thing as translated music videos, done mainly by fans of the groups, or websites that have many of the songs translated for your reading pleasure. I never let the fact that we speak different languages get in the way of enjoying good music. A great song is a great song, no matter what language you speak. Just sit back and enjoy the music and the way the song makes you feel.
Right now, Korean music is the big thing all over the net, and its close to boiling over into the rest of the world, to take it by storm. All we have to do is let it.

I think the world, and more importantly, the U.S., is ready for asian music.
All we have to do is open the door.


Artists to check out: Korea

Super Junior
Big Bang
SHINee
G-Dragon
Girls Generation
2ne1
Lee Jung Hyun
MBLAQ

Artists to check out:Taiwan

Fahrenheit
Super Junior M
S.H.E.
Vic Chou
Show Luo
Ming Dao
Jerry Yan
Danson Tang

These are all just a few of my personal favourites and does not represent ALL of the artists in Taiwan and Korea.
Who knows, maybe you'll stumble upon a group I haven't mentioned and fall madly in love.
So go on and open the door and let them in. Don't be afraid; it's only music.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Bunraku

So there's this movie that's coming out in september that i've been waiting for since 2008.
It has my favourite J Rocker in it. His name is Gackt. You should totally check him out.
Anyway, here's the trailer that was just released this week.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uDuReyaNZo&playnext=1&list=PL82887FB930599230

I am SO excited!
My only fear is that it'll be a limited release.

Earbud Etiquette

So, you're just sitting there minding your own business while on the bus, or you're walking around shopping, when all of a sudden, some jackass comes up to you and starts talking to you. Now, normally, this wouldn't be a problem. Except you're grooving to your favourite tunes on your Ipod, or some other mp3 player, and of course, you've got those neat little earbuds jammed in your ears and you can't hear a thing other than said music.

Now, sometimes, i'm polite and remove a single bud and look at them as if to say "What the fuck do you want, can't you see i'm busy?"
Then they proceed to ask me something, or even worse, try to strike up a conversation with me. So they ask a question or make a comment, I answer and then promptly put the bud back in its cozy little ear home, where it wants to be.
You'd think that would be the end of it. But no.
They repeat the process, forcing me to remove the buds, answer, and replace.
Are we done here?
NO!
At this point I get really irritated and just look at them without removing anything and just watch them flap their lips as if I can hear them, or that I even give a shit.
Also, I should note, most of these occurances, i'm reading a book, so they're interrupting that too. Sometimes i'm on lunch while at work.

So, here's where I ask you, dear reader, what part of me looks like i'm up for a fucking conversation? Is it the blank stare I give you, or the part where my face is implanted in a book and not even looking at you? Or wait, I know, it MUST be how i'm completely fucking IGNORING you!
There is NOTHING I love more than being interrupted by a complete stranger, when all I want is to be left alone.
Sure, if you have some important words to impart like, "Hey, you've got a booger on your face", or, "Sorry, but you've got a rip in your pants", by all means, interrupt.
If this isn't the case, leave me be.

So, if you're out and see someone with earbuds, or hell, even headphones of the large variety, leave them alone. This is not an open invitation to start talking to them.

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Waiting Sucks

So, it's summer. The season most people wait for. Can't wait to get to the beaches or the parks and barbeques. Then there are people like me. People who suffer while waiting for the season premiere of a little show called True Blood.
Okay, sure. You might think im a bit silly, but the show is so amazing.
But this years wait has been long and grueling.
A 9 month wait. It's like waiting for an HBO baby to get born already.
But the wait is finally over. Well, on sunday that is.
And I can't wait!

Monday, June 20, 2011

This thing is mental

Here I am, new to this site and all I want to do is post a comment to another blogger. Only it wont let me. I hit enter, and im repeatedly sent to the sign in to google page...when I was already signed in. What the crap man? What the crap?