Pachelbel, I'll see your @$$ in hell

Oh LOL. Mum, dad, and all cellists out there, you should really watch this. Pachelbel rant, spot on.

Anime Music: Frontline in the Background

did not draw that

I tend to think that it's the music that makes or break the anime, rather than seiyuu or animation, although the other two are fairly important. I've compiled a few of the people that makes the anime work, based on my own personal preference.

Rie Fu

Rie Fu lived in the US when she was a kid, and I’ve read somewhere that she’s half British. That should explain the large amounts of English used in he songs, and the (thankfully) lack of an engrish accent. Like most aspiring musicians, when she was younger Rie learnt guitar, came up with her own songs, and sent demos to record companies. Her first single, Life is like a Boat, was used as the first Bleach ED and would be the song to shoot her to fame.

A year later, she sang I want to go the a Place, a Gundam Seed Destiny ED. Her latest would be the beautiful, beautiful Tsuki Akari, the ED for Darker than Black. What I especially like about Rie’s songs are the adoption acoustic guitars, strings and occasionally piano, as well as the sharp drum set beats. Yes, I’m a sucker for acoustic guitars, next to dominant bass lines. Rie’s voice itself is soothing more than anything else. Not to airy or fluffy, not too heavy or draggy, it’s the perfect pitch and style to relax the brain after hours of distortion and crash.

Yuki Kajiura

Yuki, oh Yuki. I first heard your voice on Anna ni Issho Datta no ni for the Gundam Seed OP1, and it took a while but I gradually warmed to you (and Chiaki Ishikawa’s) fantasy-like opera style. You first captured my heart with the .hack//SIGN ED, Yasashii Yoake. The strong vocals on that one inspired me like never before, to thirst for all things fantasy. I went on an uncovered more about your discography, and discovered that you also did of my favourite songs, especially the entire soundtrack of Tsubasa Chronicles, Future Soundscape.

I like the fact that you have a concrete style and approach to your singing and music composition. The songs you did when you were still a duo with Chiaki Ishikawa, were simply awesomlistic, I loved every note of it.

Shivers would race down my spine everytime I heard Kimi wa Boku ni Niteiru and Anna ni Issho. I applaud your usage of violins, the violin solo on Anna ni Issho actually encouraged me to work on my own vibrato. I haven’t heard many songs from your FictionJuntion project, but I do know Akatsuki no Kuruma, sung by Yuuka Nanri, who would be later known as FictionJunction YUUKA. That is yet another song that propels my brain to heights of fantasy highs. The mellow cello and soft guitar plucking…my heart simply melts. Oh Yuki, I do not do you justice in this crappy so-called ‘overview’, gomen nasai!!!!! *bows apologetically* >_<

Yoko Kanno

Possible one of the biggest names in the anime music industry, veteran composer/vocalist Yoko Kanno has certainly earned her fame with her overflowing repertoire of successful anime OST tracks. Kanno-sensei composes OP and ED compositions- the job that gains more recognition. The list starts from soundtrack music for Please Save my Earth, Macross and Escaflowne, some of her earlier works. But to me, Kanno-sensei is best known for the jazzy beats of The Real Folk Blues (Cowboy Bebop ED), the haunting melodies for both Wolf’s Rain’s OP and ED, the addictive tune of Litium Flower (GitS:SAC OP1), and of course Platinum, the Cardcaptor Sakura OP3, amongst others.

In her songs, the bass often gets a big share of melodies and solos, that’s already a bit plus for me. Yoko Kanno was big time enough to collab with several English singers, including Australian vocalist Scott Matthews, and US guitarist Steve Conte. Kanno-sensei also teamed up with Maaya Sakamoto- another renowned seiyuu and anime singer- for Platinum (CCS) and Gravity (Wolf’s Rain). I enjoyed both songs immensely. I may love Yuki best, but when it comes to experience, variety and just plain talent, no one beats Kanno-sensei.

YUI

Who hasn’t heard of YUI? Even some non-anime fans I know have come to love YUI’s delicious guitar sound, paired with a sound voice that is powerful enough to grab you and sturdy enough not to be girly.

YUI started getting famous in Japan at around 2005 with singles Life and Feel My Soul. But it was not only until she sang two OPs for Bleach, -Rolling Star and Life- when she became truly internationally known. Since then, YUI has released two albums, lots of singles and starred in a movie. And she’s only two years older than me!! She has a band of course but plays some of the guitar parts in her songs- and she writes most of them.

I foresee a great future in the music industry, anime or otherwise, for YUI. She’s gone a long way from the mere aspiring guitarist-vocalist who carried her guitar around and sang in seashores and rice fields. I call her the Michelle Branch of Jpop as both are made of WIN.

Crystal Kay

Kuri, as she is known by fans, has an interesting bloodline. Her father was an African American bassist from New Jersey, and her mother was a Korean professional singer. Kuri herself grew up in Japan, and thus is also known as a Zainichi, a person of Korean descent born in Japan. Like Rei Fu, she is fluent in both English and Japanese, and has no problem with english lyrics.

I have heard several of her songs, but Konna ni Chikaku de..., the ED for the Nodame Cantabile anime is still the best. Some have pointed that Konna ni is not classical music, hence unsuitable for an anime about classical music, but I do think it does suit the mood pretty well. In the music vid, the string players from the original Nodame orchestra are seen playing.

I will admit that Konna ni leans dangerously close to the bubblegum pop genre, thank goodness the R&B-like beat saves it. It’s still very much one of my favourites songs for the sugar-sweet melodies and R&B beat. Kuri has also sung for Fullmetal Alchemist and several Japanese Live Action movies.

Home Made Kazoku

This R&B band consisting of 3 members was first formed in 1996, playing in various nightclubs before their big break. Not sure when that was or how that happened, but some notable anime hits would be Nagareboshi (Shooting Star) for the Naruto Shippuuden ED1, and Shounen Heart, Eureka Seven OP2.

Their music is mostly upbeat rap, with synthesized instruments or strings, a crisp drum beat and strong bass parts that makes me want to nod my head in unison. Anything with good bass gains +100 points from me. I really like their style of rap, to say it comes close to my love for Orange Range rap is a huge compliment. I'm hoping to hear more of them in the future.

ALI PROJECT

There’s not much known about the background of ALI PROJECT, so I’ll go straight into their style of music. And all I can say is this: whoa. It’s totally unlike anything I’ve ever heard. Daring clashing melodies, high, strong vocals, and the violins…oh the violins. Simply delightfully powerful with many slides. ALI PROJECT songs tend to switch between major and minor keys every two bars, other times it’s atonal. Still, it’s kinda fun trying to figure out the ever-changing keys and time signatures.

If you’re looking for a new sound, ALI PORJECT is…probably not the safest bet- there’s fair chance you won’t like it- but no one can deny it IS definitely something new. Ah I forgot, ALI PROJECT did ED1 for Code Geass (Yuukyou Seishunka), and some songs for Rozen Maiden, Mai-Hime and Kaibutsu Oujo. Not a bad haul, really. Oh yeah, they’re goth too.

I know there's lots more others- this is all I can do for now. I honestly think that music is the deciding factor that concludes a show's attractive force- not just anime, but also TV shows, movies etc.
On top of my head, I can list out a dozen more or so anime songs and singers, ranging from the constants to the one hit wonders. Still, music is very much a personal thing, people's tastes differ vastly. I'm just glad to share a few of my favourites, albeit a little incoherently, my apologies ^^U

Moetteke!!!!!

What do should you expect when you hole up a hikikomori sort-of otaku on her room the night after her exams, with exams still running through her head? Create a dumb, super-easy anime quiz, that's what!!! (I'm a bit on a spree right now XD)


(highlight at the end of the question mark for answer; for noobs, just hit ctrl+A)

1. Which instrument did Nagato Yuki play for ENOZ? Lead guitar
2. What do Black Cat and Blood+ have in common? They both have a character named Saya.
3. In Samurai Champloo, Fuu is looking for whom? The samurai who smells of sumflowers
4. Talho Yuuki of Eureka Seven was formerly in which bureau? Bureau of Information
5. In the US, Beck is known as what? Mongolian Chop Squad
6. What is Revy from Black Lagoon also known as? Two hands.
7. Who is the Claymore that rescued Clare as a child? Teresa of the Faint Smile
8. What is the level before bankai called? Shikai
9. What is the name of the drug that turned Kudou Shinichi into pint-sized kid in Meitantei Conan? APTX 4869
10. What is the original Japanese title for Spirited Away? Sen to Chihiro to Kamikakushi
11. Lelouch is ______ in line for the throne of Britannia? Seventeenth
12. In Witch Hunter Robin, what is Robin Sena’s craft (if she has one)? Ability to manipulate fire
13. Rie Tanaka voices two girls in Gundam Seed and Air Gear. Who are the girls? Lacus Clyne and Simca the Swallow
14. Who is the first Ouran guy to realize F. Haruhi is female? Kyouya Ootori
15. In Nodame Cantabile, what is Chiaki Shinichi’s ambition? To be a conductor
16. When does Morita-senpai from Honey and Clover actually graduate? In his 8^th year
17. Who killed Maes Hughes? Envy, posing as Lt Maria Ross
18. What do Fate/Stay Night, Shuffle and School Days have in common? They are all based off Eroges (hentai stuff).
19. In the Death Note movie, why does Soichiro Yagami (Light’s dad) look so darn familiar? Because he is also Chairman Kaga in Iron Chef
20. What is the name of the song Koyuki composed? Slip Away
21. Red Fraction, the Black Lagoon OP, was sung in which language? Engrish, if you answered English that’s wrong
22. How are Ayanami Rei (Evangelion) and Faye Valentine (Cowboy Bebop) related? Voiced by same seiyuu, Megumi Hayashibara
23. In Bleach, what is the name of Hitsugaya Toushiro’s zanpakutou? Hyourinmaru
24. In Code Geass, what is the name of Ashford Academy’s cat? Arthur
25. Kishimoto Masashi, the mangaka for Naruto, has a twin brother who is also a mangaka. Who is this brother and what is his most popular manga to date? Kishimoto Seishi; 666 Satan
26. Which animation studio did Wolf’s Rain? BONES
27. What is the film that Morita-senpai won the Mochademy Award for? Space Titanic
28. What are the mechs used in Sakura Wars? Koubu
29. Who are the three sisters of the Black Siblings from Gurren Lagann? Kinon, Kiyal, and Kiyoh
30. Who is the meru meru girl from Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei? Otonashi Meru
    

OTL I can't believe how easy it is. I really have no basic knowledge at all....*rambles* I don't think I've even completed 50 titles to date...sigh. How did tjhan finish over 400 titles...I'm thinking he possesses a time-turner...


More proof that cats can't spell

Spot the Similiarities

Top:afk fansub
Bottom: Odex's subs that aired on Singapore TV

I smell a rat fink. Excuz me but WHY are Odex's subs looking curiously similiar to afk's?

Lemme get this straight. The distributor first goes all hell and kicks up a big fuss to make fansub supporters (read:downloaders) pay (literally) for their 'misdeeds', then proceeds to USE said fansubs in their 'official' releases. People are talking about getting afk to sue Odex for 'copyright infringements'.

Like Tsubaki, I lol'ed at the absurdity and irony of it all. It's like opening fire at the country that makes your weapons.

At the risk of sounding like my over-quoted onii-san, the world's gone mad all right.

Exams over BUT

Exams are over! Exams are over!!
The moon I should be over
But instead I feel no closure
Physics was so bad
to pass I should be glad
Should I not be sad
The knowledge that I thought I had
Had vanished like a fashion fad
When what I lacked was luck
Thus my brain was fucked
Now I wait in gloom
For the impending day of doom
While typing silly poems
That unfortunately solve no problems

Dotaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa noob

My first kill. ^______________________^


NO, it's just a random screen I got off google actually I am that dude there with 11 kills

Should I say w00t? Coz everything was a blur and I think I did it by mistake.

Oh well. Weirder things have happened.

Like this American dude trying to sue God. *facepalm*

Or Mourinho walking out on Chelsea leaving by mutual consent. It's like your band coach walking out on you a few days before some big competition. I dunno, but I'd be putting my money on Man U for this Sunday's match. Poor Chelsea.

Qiuck one

Full version of Moetteke! Seira Fuku~ (aka the Lucky Star dance).



Dedicated to the members of the Taylor's Anime Society yo :P

DON'T CLICK THIS

Oh noes

CLICK HERE


...to stare at Haruhi's eyes all day long.

(Why am I blogging so much Haruhi? I don't even like the anime that much...>.>)

Also, I am amazed by School Days. What I thought was your normal high-school harem eroge-adaption turned out to be some kind of brainfucking drama with Higurashi style deaths. They should sue. But seriously, at first I thought Makoto was like my niisan, shy, awkward, unable to get the girls etc. Who knew he would end up screwing so many chicks while being so so so...urgh!!!! *facepalm* Right after I read Malaysian Today's sex survey, where 50% of the 150 youths they interviewed said they were sexually active. 50%!!!!!!!!!!

I need School Days now. Senpaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii~ (but MSN is down, I suspect those darn viruses).

KILL MAKOTO NOW

Geass artbook quickie

Time to post these up before it all gets outdated.


zOMG present!!!!!!! 8D


zOMG Code Geass!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111oneoneoneeeleven


Front


Back


Centre (well it's at the front) flap opening


The colours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!8D~~~


Glossy full cover double A4 pictures x 70 plus pages!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Gleaming in the beatiful light (of my crappy camera taking with one hand because I refused to 'break' the spine even tho it was hardcover OTL) XD


Link diagrams!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Chara profiles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(in Chinese!!!!!!!!!!!!)


Screencaps!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (the blur!!!!!!my eyes!!!!! gahhhh!!!!!!)


zOMG sketchies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111oneone


Mech details!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Location setting perspectives!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *drool till no more saliva*

Thank you soooooo much ShuNingIanWeiShanHuiYen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *lovelovelove* :DDDD Honto honto sukiiiiii desu yo~~~

Daisuki daisuki daisuki!!!!!!!!!! ^____________^


Oh shi-

Haruhi's telling me to get off my arse and do that 500-word essay on school uniforms!!!! *runs before she gets IT*

Zetsubou da!!!! >.<

Trials coming up.

You know what this means.

haruiharuhi

Try not to look at it like yuri, la

A little something for the anti-Suzumiya-pro-Fujioka-ists out there.

Fujioka>Suzumiya or Suzumiya>Fujioka? The debate starts now!!! :D

18th lol

Officially 18, feels the same though I'd just the most smashing birthday of my life.

If one thinks about it, birthdays could be like any other day. If you didn't know any better it could be an ordinary day and no one would be the wiser. But that's precisely why, what's loads more important than the day itself are the people who made it special for you.

Thanks to all for everything:

Class G2 for the birthday bash in the Genting trip last month and the Ryuk plushie+cake(s), Atif and gang for the wonderful card, Pcha for the M&Ms.

Matt, Cavan and Elaine for dinner at TGIs and cake, you guys rock.

Han Siean, Jeff, Leh Boon and Sie Lun for that lovely surprise at lunch today, thank you so so much. :)

Matt for the GS novels. <33333 style="color: rgb(204, 0, 0);">Shu Ning, Ian, Hui Yen and Wei Shan from the Anime Society for that awesome kickass present (gonna do a full account soon :D ).

Birthday regards from mum, dad, lil bro at home, who celebrated in my absence XD and cuzzie Cryst in the shoutout.

More SMS/testimonial/regards from old friends- Eichi, Hilary, Chris Chung, Wendy, Aaron, Hannah, Chris Chin, Mang Yik, Kucai; and new friends- Shu Ning, Elaine, Cavan, Suhaimi, Jian, Juliana, Colin, Jonathan, Kay, Pcha.

From the Anime Society guys- Shu Ning, Ian, Wei Shan, Hui Yen, Shin-senpai XD

And everyone else unintentionally left out. [YOU]

THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH EVERYONE :D


PS And that dude who got a Malay Radio Statian DJ to Gotcha prank call me. I still have no idea who's behind it. -_-

Merdeka @ The Curve

Merdeka.............................well.

Went to the curve on Thursday Night. More for the sake of going out, really. Check out the sights and sounds. The Curve is freaking huge. It's next to Ikano and Ikea and a bit further away from 1Utama. Went with friends who could drive, I hoped on at the last minute. Crammed 6 guys into a Wira.

XD

Went to Borders and parked myself there till closing time. Had half a glass of a 10-something% Magherita. Whoo boy that was good. Walking around the huge shopping district trying not to look like some sakai kia. Think I failed.


Some outdoor show/merdeka celebration thing...hordes of people.




I saw Reshmonu, Serena C and Junita Suwito live :)

*sakai*


Curve hotel.....nice.


Look at all the pwetty lights!!!!

Actually, I've been better fireworks during Chinese New Year. But it was still good nonetheless.


Short 30 sec clip of Reshmonu. Horrible sound lol. You have been warned.XD



Happy 44th, Malaysia. Or 50th independance, Malaya. Or whatever.

A Somewhat Detailed Analysis of Yaoi/Yuri in Anime Sub-culture

Atashi no internet ish baaaaacckkk!!!!!! *widesmile.jpeg*

Just thought of a few things here. Stuff like yaoi and yuri of the fandom and why people love/hate it so much.

*Disclaimer: Prepare some tissues in case your eyes/nose/brain starts bleeding*

Let's start with yaoi, which is basically boy x boy love in an anime or manga. Also known as BL (boys love/bishie love) or in extreme cases, gay porn. There are many yaoi titles out there, ranging from Desire to FAKE. Contrary to what first impressions may impose, yaoi/BL is actually targetted at female teenagers and not real life homosexual males. Having a 'yaoi' anime only means there's the homosexual element in it, eg the main (male) characters fall in love etc. There's nothing stopping a yaoi anime or manga from being 'good' or 'bad', like most things, at the end of the day it's up to one's personal preferences.



However, yaoi cannot be mistaken for shounen-ai, which is actually quite different. Shounen-ai is a much milder take on boys love as an element in a manga. Shounen-ai genres can range from light gay romance as a central theme of the story to just sprinkles of it to appease fans. Big shounen-ai names would be like Loveless or Gravitation, while a whole other bunch have bits of it; such as Kyou Kara Maoh, DNAngel, Legal Drug (and CLAMP works in general). And to clear up a muddle, Ouran High is not shounen-ai but in fact a parody of it, as it is a parody of many things.



Shounen-ai/yaoi anime would usually feature a predominantly male cast, more often than not it would be all bishie-candy. In logic we learn that if A is B and B is C, C may not necessarily be A. Unfortunately this is not the case, as many non-shounen-ai anime have been 'BL-ized' by overzealous (and scary) fangirls, especially if that non-shounen-ai anime has a lot of good-looking males as its main cast. Examples include Slam Dunk and Gundam Wing.

A: Anime X is yaoi anime.
B: Anime X has many bishies as main cast.
------------------------------------------------
C: Many bishies as main cast (has potential to be) yaoi anime (as the fans see it).



But then again the main cast does not have to be predominantly male for there to be a BL fandom. There's plenty of (boy) love fandom going on in the likes of Naruto, Evangelion, Gundam Seed, Beyblade and heck even Harry Potter (Harry x Draco anyone). It's all pretty hard to group as it all depends on how one sees it, but like how there's always sex appeal in Hollywood churn-outs, there's always a bit of less mainstream fancandy in anime.



Although I have a few female friends who like shounen-ai, I would think most of my circle would rather shun it. It's alright. There's nothing wrong with disliking yaoi, as long as you don't go the other extreme and start condemning all those who follow it. No one likes a preacher (or an asshole). The friends of mine who like BL elements are all very normal, straight, nice and talented people who are sure as hell NOT forcing yaoi down others' throats. I respect that, and I respect their preference for shounen-ai. No harm done. Many of the best female artists I know on deviantART are avid shounen-ai fans and proud of it. I guess this is how I gradually came to accept it. This is my thinking: unless until you can draw better than kidchan or lasaro, stfu about them drawing gheyz all the time.

Ok. So on with yuri.



Yuri, or girl x girl love is esentially the opposite of yaoi. It is about girls love (duh) and is mainly targetted at adolescent male otaku (read:fanboys). Won't elaborate much as it's mostly the same, just a mirror oposite. I've noticed an increase in yuri elements in current anime, especially the ones that turn up on animeblogs. Shoujo-ai, the milder presence of yuri, is usually more subtle, and not very well known either. Popular yuri titles include Kashimashi~Girl meets Girl~, Simoun and Revolutionary Girl Utena. Many others have shoujo ai in varying degrees- from Blood+ to Cardcaptor Sakura to Vandred to Kiddy Grade to Code Geass.



In the case of 'logic' (as above), anime with many girls as main characters are only subject to yuri fandom is the girls are hot or loli enough. This applies strongly to the Mahou Shoujo (Magical Girl) genre, eg Sailormoon, Nanoha and Mai-Hime. For the loli factor, see Higurashi and Lucky Star.



The yuri element is intertwined with many other similair attachments like loli, moe and ecchi. It's not limited to shoujo anime/manga either. Though yuri is often overshadowed by the more popular attractions of fanboyism- the moe-ness, the lolicon desireness etc. Yuri usually comes second.



Eto...so that's yaoi/yuri/shounen-ai/shoujo-ai for you. Probably not one of the brightest sides of the fandom, but then again it's all a matter of personal opinions, respect and open-mindedness. If you don't like it, no one's forcing you to. If you like it, that's cool. Love it hate it, it's here to stay.

Though why must anime have all this stuff? Geez.
Anime fans are here because we survived the relatively unpopular subcultures and overcome the cliches. If we cared about all this we would be watching Heroes and Greys Anatomy instead of Haruhi.

But whatever happened to the days where couples consisted of different genders?
It's called slice of life and harem, m'dear. Do check it up.

Gotta run before I get hounded by 'friends' who are hell-bent me making me admit I like shounen-ai...

*walks off*
*gets hounded*


For anyone still interested, there's a hugely amazing, interesting and more 'serious' sort of debate on yaoi, fans and stereotypes. It also made me very very certain that I never ever EVER wanted to get caught up in a flame war with tj.