Quoting Kei-chan

"From tomorrow onwards, I will start blogging as a contributing member of the society!" 

Years ago, Koyama Keiichirou of NEWS -aka Kei-chan- said that in his blog. That was when he had just graduated from Meiji University and was about to become full-time entertainer/singer/idol. At that time, I was in my first year in university, and I was already counting the days when I could finally graduate.

And his words somehow sounded really awesome in my ears. It was just so, very, very cool!

It was like a declaration of independence, a statement that marks the transition into adulthood, a voice of a responsible grown up.

Of course, prior to that Kei-chan had been working and earning money while studying too. But the jump from a being a student to a full-time employee was quite a memorable one, wasn't it?

I always told myself that one day I would do that too, post those words in my blog and announce to the whole world that, yes, finally I -too- am going to start working! But I kept missing the mark. I forgot to do it when I started my internship. I completely missed it when I began my first job some weeks ago (albeit it was a very, very short-lived job).

So, now I'm going to say it:

From tomorrow onwards, I will start blogging as a contributing member of the society! Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!! ^__^

Labels: announcement, kei-chan, milestone

12:37 am

Jaejoong's "Mine" and the merit of self-made idol - Comment

So, someone wrote an article about Kpop idols who happen to be singer-composers, how she thinks they "get off easier" because of the adulation of fans who would praise them for anything they do.

Jaejoong's "Mine" and the Merit of the Self-Made Idol - by Patricia on January 16, 2013

I agree to some of her points. It's true that fans are generally full of praise towards their idols who happen to be composing/writing their own songs. It's also true that if there's any song/costume/concept/whatever that the idols sang/wore that didn't sit well with the fans, usually it's the management company who would get the blame.

I even agreed when she said that In Heaven sounding "repetitive" and has "stylistic limitation". Compared to 2VXQ, indeed, JYJ's self-composed album sounded somewhat...amateurish. Which, if you consider the size of production team involved behind respective albums, made perfect sense.

What I want to address is her claims that despite all these things that JYJ did -writing, composing, producing, even SURVIVING while being in exile- it doesn't mean that "JYJ is any better than your typical KPop idol."

I'm sorry, but, are you even reading what you're writing?

Let's break that part down, shall we?

"The reason why K-pop works so well is because producers, composers, concept designers, choreographers and performers work closely together to ensure a quality product, and they do so by allowing each member of the process to play up his/her biggest strengths."

So, according to this statement, if we assume that this is the typical production team behind a KPop music, it would mean that idols just have to be good in doing what their "biggest strengths" are, which, if you negate all the elements involved above, would be: singing. And dancing. So, that would mean that the definition of "typical KPop idols" would mean someone who simply are very good in singing and dancing.

If you see the number of KPop groups right now and scrutinise the members of each group, I'm not even sure if that statement even holds. 

Clearly, according to the "typical KPop idols" definition that she's referring to, for sure a group of singer-songwriter-producer are NOT included in the definition? Because if so, then JYJ would very well be a "typical KPop idols" group, and the article would be very redundant indeed.

The reason why this article could be written in the first place was because JYJ, as exiled idols, had managed to survive and continue their career despite being blocked by mainstream media. Considering that they are the first one, and remained the only one, group who had ever done this, it would be futile to raise an argument about how those "typical KPop idols" would fare if they're thrown in similar situation.

However, she also claimed that JYJ was in this position -being involved in the production of their own songs- because of "product of circumstance above all else". Which, if you add to the earlier claims that JYJ was not "any better than the typical KPop idols", really raised the issue: if your "typical KPop idols" were to be thrown into JYJ shoes, can they survive? At all?

Let's break it down, again, shall we?

According to her claims, the "typical KPop idols" are usually just playing to their "biggest strengths" (inferred singing and dancing), because the typical KPop music production are really "effective business model" that assumed "assembly-line style system" that "just makes sense". So, this inferred that the "typical KPop idols" do not usually take part in composing/writing/producing/choreographing/designing concept, because they're just supposed to sing and dance.

So, these "typical KPop idols" are inferred to have never taken part in the production of their own music, because there are people who are in better position to take care of that.

Then, she claimed that JYJ being forced to produce their own songs as the byproduct of circumstances, which would mean that she acknowledged a situation whereby JYJ did not have any song to sing (thus, forced to write/compose their own songs), did not have a producer to produce their songs (thus, they're forced to do it on their own), and did not have a director to direct their concept (thus, they're forced to define their own concept).

So, now bring those two things together.

If you take in your "typical KPop idols" who are really just just part of an "assembly line" whereby each "member of the process" just have to "play up his/her biggest strengths" (in other words they only have to sing and dance), if you put these people in a situation whereby they DO NOT have any song to sing, DO NOT have any producer to produce the songs (which they don't have in the first place), and DO NOT have any director to direct their concept, can they -these "typical KPop idols"- survive? At all?

I don't think so. If not, entertainment agencies would cease to exist because they wouldn't be bringing any values anymore and all idols would start doing their own music production.

While I agree with her statement that idols should not be complacent in the mediocrity of their self-composed works, I would like to interject and suggest that idols who are writing and composing their own songs are most likely trying to be more than what they currently are. Their compositions and writings are most likely an expressions of their desire to develop their artistic abilities and to be acknowledged, one day, as more than just mere "typical KPop idols".

After all, at the end of the day the definition of a "typical KPop idol" is one that only sings and dances. For people who believe that there are more to them than just their singing voice or their handsome faces, it can be understood that they would want to grow, they would want to be acknowledged as artists who have their own artistic direction and identities.

In the movie "Three Idiots", there was this quote: don't pursue after success; instead, pursue after excellence, then success will come running after you.

At the end of the day, what matters, I guess, is one's resolution and talent. If your "typical KPop idols" wish to venture into production, but there is no talent, then it would be difficult to sustain the fanbase. On the other hand, if your "typical KPop idol" does not even wish to get involved in the production of their own songs, they would never know whether or not they have any talent beyond their recognisable singing and dancing abilities, and thus they will never be considered beyond a "typical KPop idol".

So, to answer whether "idol composers deserve all that love just for writing their own material", I must say, it's up to you. For sure these people have already scored on the effort and courage to produce their own materials, because -at the very least- these people are the ones with the desire to attain more than just the title of a mere "typical KPop idols".

And, finally, with regards to JYJ being the dark horse in the entertainment industry, for composing, writing, producing and even PROMOTING their own music, and STILL survive, it should worth all the merits there could ever be.

Labels: comment, comment: article, comment: singer musician artist, opinion

1:17 am

Kim Jaejoong - MINE - review

So, the MV for title track of Jaejoong's solo album MINE had just been released 3 hours ago. So far, YouTube had registered 19 thousands likes and 308 views (eh), and personally I think I've replayed this song like 30 times, I can't really remember.


When I watched the teaser, I had doubts. Sure the teaser looked awesome; too awesome, in fact, until I feared that it had set up a bar too high for the real MV to climb up to.


But, my fear was groundless. The MV was everything I had hope for and MORE, oh f***, so much MORE.
 

 Kim Jaejoong - MINE

Bear in mind that I'm doing this review withOUT knowing what the heck he was singing. I have no problem with that, because I'm not a lyric kind of person. But, from what I gained from my twitter list, I think I'm gonna get my mind blown away once more when I finally knew the lyrics. I might do another review THEN.


I've said it in Twitter and I'll say it again, MINE's awesomeness are embedded in so many layers that I need to focus my mind at one thing at a time to stay coherent. So, I'm gonna talk about the MV from the visual aspect first before tackling the song.


First, let's address the fact that Jaejoong is, indeed, very good looking and very, very, VERY photogenic. He's the perfect blend of good features, confidence and narcissism, all of which enabled him to become a really compelling figure on stage if he wanted to.


Secondly, Jaejoong had never been a bad actor. Sure, he started off as an okay-actor (like most people), but not BAD. Then, with Sunanare and Protect The Boss and everything, he started to gain more and more acting sense and he's getting much better in acting in front of camera.


The thing is that acting is the one thing that not many rockers can do. If there's anything that I can complain about rock MVs that I've watched, is that many musicians were not really good actors, and their gestures in front of the camera were very stiff -UNLESS when they're playing their instruments- OR too flamboyantly overdone. For example, Versailles are notoriously stiff actors, and Yoshiki and his piano and drum banging are way too overdone.


Between all the flamboyant gestures, cool postures and emotional expressions that Jaejoong showed, MINE turned out to be a work of art instead of being cheesy. Except for a 2-second part near the end when he was unfurling his wings and the movement of the wings looked rather stiff, the whole MV was beautifully mesmerising.

 
All these attributes of Jaejoong, supported by AMAZING props, elaborate setting and appropriate CG, created a fast-paced, super cool, spellbinding MV. I couldn't tear my eyes off the screen at all. In contrast, when I'm watching Versailles/other band's MV, I ended up telling myself, "Well, rock songs are better when played LIVE anyway."


On top of the balanced combination of Jaejoong's frustration, desperation, and fierceness, what truly commendable from this MV was, really, the flawless execution of the director of photography in capturing each and every freaking scene perfectly to create this masterpiece of an MV.


Each shooting angle, each jerk of the camera, each turn of that focus button was perfected to capture all of our attention and draw us into the specific details they want to us to see.


The falling snow, the dying branches, and Jaejoong's pale face and his prominent heavily-lined eyes.

The shining cap-mask on his face and his fingers.

The flashing lights as he struggled against the chains,

The flying DUST, the desperate struggle and the violent yanks to free himself from the binding chains. The fierce scowls in his eyes that was prominent even when half of his face was covered in steel mask.

The shiny spikes on his wrists.

The glint in his flashing orange eyes.

His desperately gritted teeth as he ran among the flying crows.

His beautiful fingers and shiny nails, delicately playing the invisible piano and then his serenely hooded diamond-encrusted face, half covered by his other hand.

That specific tattoo in his back and then his whole tattoo-lined back.

The snake slithering on his body, and then that indescribable expression behind his diamond-encrusted face as he caressed the snake.

The fisting of his hand and the numerous rings and bracelets on his fingers and wrist.

That specific moment his eyes were closed and his scowls prominent despite his face being covered by glittering diamonds.

That final snarl and jerk of his face and the trailing blue blaze that emanated from his flashing eyes that were scowling at us so fiercely...


EVERY detail that he wanted us to SEE was so carefully crafted and so meticulously arranged, making our eyes wandered all over the screen drinking in all these orchestrated details and seeing nothing else but the story that he wanted us to see.


Jaejoong and CJes must have spent A BOMB creating this MV. This is not just an MV, it's a work of art!




And once we're done talking about the visuals, which was usually NEVER an important point when I'm talking about rock song, really, we've come to the most important part: the song itself.


This is not a pop-rock song that I expected him to sing. This is a full fledged HARD ROCK song that I, fortunately, happen to be a fan of.


Did the song disappoint?

Not. At. All.


I admit that I'm listening to it numerous of times through YouTube, but I believe that CJes had actually uploaded a very good version of the song up in YouTube. The song is clear and crisp and I can catch each riff of the bass, each tinkle of the piano, which is awesome.


The song started off with lightly with thunder sounds and soft picking of guitar, followed by some drumming. Then, Jaejoong came in singing in his (fortunately) clear voice accompanied lightly by electric guitar, and soon followed closely with deliciously heavy bass that suddenly filled the entire of my earphones.


It built up with some awesome drumming and by the time he reached the reff, and it had easily developed into a nice, light headbanging tempo. By this time Jaejoong was screaming at the top of his voice, his voice rough, which somehow just added to the allure of the song.


The song broke suddenly with a heavy thud (if you're watching the MV) of the broken chain falling down onto the ground. Then came the theatrical entrance of the piano, and Jaejoong whispering darkly, eerily. The piano continued through, followed soon by that delicious bass, and brought us back into the earlier tempo.


Shortly after the short chorus-like background voice and trailing guitar echoes, it stopped again. Wheezing winds filled the air, and Jaejoong entered again, alone, with another desperate "yoge nojima!!" followed by the full music and Jaejoong resumed his heartfelt screaming, I mean singing.


By the time it neared the end, his "hajima" tone turned desperate. He repeated the reff once more and then finished it off with a final, savage, deliciously raw snarl of "HAJIMA!!" The music changed into fierce riffing and drumming and ended on an intense note.


And finally the piano came back to deliver the song to a beautiful, tragic ending. Jaejoong rose to the sky and the silverish outline of his wings were the last thing we saw.


And suddenly I felt empty, like the song had ended before its time, and I reached out to click that REPLAY button once more...

Labels: comment: MV, comment: song, jaejoong

2:43 am

Happy New Year 2013~!

2012 had passed, and 2013 is finally here. As always, this year, too, I’m going to do self-reflection and some new year resolutions.

What had happened in 2012? Let’s see…

I have, finally, graduated from my postgraduate studies, and it would be the last of my academic life, because I don’t suppose one can continue studying for the rest of one’s life without working. I have also left Beijing and came back home, for good.

Besides that, one major thing -or things- that had happened were: a lot of my friends are getting engaged and married. It started as something astonishing, like, “Hey, my friend is getting engaged! Oh wow, this person is getting married? Congratulations~! …Wow this one is getting engaged too, wow…” And on and on it went on facebook.

It started to dawn on me that, one by one, my friends are starting to settle down. And I started to realise that seeing those photos and updates didn’t make me want to settle down, they just made me baffled, like, why settle down so early?

This prompted a journey of self-reflection on my part, which I haven’t concluded yet. For one, I don’t think I’m ready, yet, to settle down because I’m still not financially independent. For another, well, some girls might claim that ‘all little girls dream of their own perfect wedding day’ which I can flat out deny. I’ve never thought of getting married, and I have absolutely no idea of my ‘perfect wedding’, much less dreaming about it.

Well, hopefully by the end of this year 2013, I would have come to a conclusion about this.

Another major thing that had happened in 2012 was that: I experienced -and still experiencing, in fact- the life of the unfortunately unemployed. In fact, as of now, I have been officially unemployed for 7 months, though I’ve only been in the job market for 6, but that hardly made any difference. I’m starting to grow really frustrated now at the lack of replies from prospective employers.

However, I’ve also learnt that I can NOT do a job that I don’t have interest in, because my body language cannot lie, and prospective employers would know, immediately during interview, that this wasn’t really what I wanted to do.

Having said that, hunting for a permanent job with cross-major postgraduate degrees was definitely NOT easy, and I can repeat that with vehemence for as many times as you want. Right at this moment, I’m planning to start hunting for internships -again- in selective companies.

I don’t want to do it, but I have no choice. It seemed like people were reluctant to hire someone with an advanced degree but with minimum experience; internship experience doesn’t even work anymore. It’s truly frustrating.

So, regarding past year resolution, here’s a quick recap on my 2012 resolution and short reflection on whether or not I had managed to do them:

1.       Be more diligent: fairly successful. I’m not exactly a very organised person now, but it had become a nature for me to clean up the house, at least moping the floor and cleaning the kitchen up immediately after we finished cooking.

2.       Learn a new language: failed. I did watch a youtube video tutorial from busyatom, which taught basic Korean language structure. But so far, I’ve only watched that ONE video, the first one…

3.       Pursue my dream of becoming a writer: started and on-going, but… Well, I made a wordpress blog, which I updated once a month. My entries varied from reflection of a journey, thoughts about technology, reflection about my family and past, and so on. It revolved, mainly, about my personal self-reflection on different matters. I’ve actually gained a couple of followers, still very little, of course, but it’s a start, right? I have also resumed my story-writing activities and picked up my story after abandoning it for almost a year.

4.       53 kg: failed, but on-going effort. But, considering that in the middle of the year my weight went back to school-days weight, and now I’ve somewhat stabilised in my early teenage weight, I’d say it’s working out, somewhat.

5.       Get rid of anaemia: failed. I haven’t been taking medicine regularly, and I’ve given up trying to keep track of my haemoglobin counts.

6.       Keep in touch with old friends: fairly successful. Not entirely successful because there are lots of friends I haven’t been catching up with, but I’m making progress. I’ve caught up with a couple of friends and managed to find a way to keep in touch with each other (through twitter and whatsapp), so, it’s still on-going.

7.       Keep a personal saving: failed and failed miserably. Reason: not job yet.

7 resolutions, out of which 2 were fairly successful, 2 were still on-going, and 3 completely failed. Well, not a bad result, I must say, though many improvements are still needed.

But, well, those were last year, and the Yang Dragon Year 2012 is going to pass really soon. Judging from my past ‘resolution’ post, I had expected the year to be one full of ups and downs because of the water element which somehow clashes with my fire. And I could vouch that it had, indeed, happened, those ups and downs.

This coming year 2013, however, is going to be slightly WORSE than that.

Not only we’re still in water element year, albeit this time it’s ‘Yin’ in nature, I’m also going to be somewhat clashing with the zodiac animal of the year: snake. So, I’m definitely not expecting a great year ahead, and that is not good news for me, a still-unemployed graduate looking for job. But, well, the show must go on, oughtn’t it?

So, for this New Year 2013, I would still be taking things slow and steady for myself but persistently so. This year, I’m going to try to:

1.       Be more open for criticism. I’m suspecting this new year to be a turbulent year and I really should learn to take criticism better. I’m going to try improving my attitude when it comes to criticism and be more open to changes. It’s going to be hard, but nothing easy is worth having, right?

2.       Get a good job that I can be satisfied and happy with. Seriously, this is a serious resolution. I must get a job, no matter what.

3.       Keep a personal saving. Didn’t manage to do it last year, HAVE TO DO IT this year. No escape from this one.

4.       Pursue my dream of becoming a novelist. I’ve recently started exploring the world of writing and I found several encouraging stories about the life of a novelist (thanks to NaNoWriMo and their amazing pep-talks). I’ll try exploring it even more and, with some luck, I’m aiming to publish at least a book this year.

5.       Language effort max! I need to make sure that my Japanese and Chinese languages aren’t getting rusty, and I still want to learn new languages (Korean and German).

6.       Maintain a quarterly update with close friends. If keeping in touch regularly is hard, I’m going to try to, at least, get in touch with them every quarter, and it can be around festival/holidays like Good Friday (March), Labour Day (May), Independence Days (Aug) and Christmas (Dec). Let’s see if this format would work out better.

7.       Be fit. I’ve somewhat come to terms with my body being what it is, but I definitely cannot allow my level of fitness to stay the same. Instead of thinking about weight, I’m going to pursue a more active lifestyle (since I’ve somewhat managed to maintain this habit of eating better food and be conscious of what I eat)

On entertainment side (because I do this segment every year, and it’d be sad to break a tradition), I’m hoping for great things for JYJ this coming 2013 year. 2012 had seen a total lack of group activities, which was disappointing, some dreaded incidents happened (Jaejoong falling down from great heights during Dr Jin filming, Yoochun getting in car accident, JYJ in scandal for sasaeng criminal incident, Yoochun left Twitter, and, soon after that, Jaejoong too, and so on), though something good happened too (SME-JYJ business is finally being officially acknowledged as OVER by SME).

However, on the personal frontier, JYJ was ablaze.

Junsu released his solo album, which sounded awesome (as expected from Xiah Junsu), and he did a world tour, even coming down as far as South East Asia, North and South America, and Europe. The greatest news must be the Best Musical Actor Award that he won for the role of Todd from musical Elizabeth. He looked genuinely shocked, pleased and grateful when he walked up to the stage and said his thank you speech. He got me teary-eyed, I was so freaking proud of him!

Jaejoong did a drama and, even though I didn’t watch it because I loved the original Japanese JIN too much, it sounded like he did pretty well for a newbie. He managed to earn a Best Newcomer Award from MBC. Jaejoong also conducted many fanmeets, the most notable of that was in Jakarta because he came while he was very sick and with his voice totally gone, but he persisted in conducting the fanmeet and touched many fans hearts. Jaejoong also released a movie(!!): Jackal is Coming, which I will be catching when it comes to Singapore this coming January!

Yoochun actually did TWO dramas this year. The Rooftop Prince, a romcom-time-travel drama, was kinda boring with regards to the character (because he, again, played a princely figure, this time a REAL prince), but the comedy genre was a fresh venture which I think he handled fairly well (not as funny as Jaejoong still, Yoochun-ah~). Missing You, on the other hand, was a more challenging drama. It’s a typical romance Korean drama laced with pain, sadness and lots of tragedy, and I think there had been an overuse of tears. But the emotions that he managed to show were outstanding. This, I believe, would be a great stepping stone for Yoochun’s career as an actor.

Yoochun managed to grab several awards from both MBC (Missing You) and SBS (Rooftop Prince) this year, and that was great news! In particular, during MBC Award, a little dream of mine was fulfilled of seeing Soulmates on the stage again, and in a totally amazing set: Jaejoong handing Yoochun his Best Excellence Award for Male in Mini Drama Series trophy ^^ It’s truly one of the highlight of the year! And, the very next day, right on 31^st December itself, Yoochun went on to SBS to receive no less than 4 trophies for Rooftop Prince.

A big applause and congratulations to JYJ for their individualistic achievements!! This coming year 2013, they had promised a group album and a Jaejoong solo album. I’ll be expecting a lot from them, too, this year.

Coming back to my own life, I hope for good health and safety for my whole family this year too. I hope my brother can start finding out what he wanted to do in life and started making progress towards it. I hope I can find my own path in this world. And I hope my sis will always be safe in flights and during her stays overseas.

Here’s a cheerful toast for a good 2013~!

Labels: resolution

3:07 am

Walkman and Discman

Beginning from last week, I had started cleaning my room. As expected, I found some treasures that I didn't expect to find.

For example, my old Sony Walkman. How many of you still remember a Walkman? You know that boxy squarish metal that only have 2 functions in it: radio and casette-player?

When I left home 14 years ago, I was so lonely in Penang. One day, one of my friend and distant relative lent me his walkman. I played with it until it was spoiled, and I felt so bad. But, I discovered the happiness of being accompanied by music, and there wasn't any turning back.

When I went back home for vacation, I asked my parents for a walkman, and they complied. This walkman was the second one I have, if I remember correctly. The first one spoiled quite soon after I got it. But this walkman went a long way with me. It even accompanied me to Singapore.

My beloved Sony Walkman from 13 years ago

I listened to radio with it, I recorded my favourite songs from the radio into blank cassette with it, I recorded my own voice (and others) singing with it (that was our first karaoke session!! at home!!), I loved it dearly. This Walkman and library books were the only things keeping me sane, because there was no other means of entertainment at that time. I didn't have laptop, we weren't allowed to watch TV, and basically no exposure to media other than the radio. I got so attached to this Walkman.

Then, with the progression of technology, came the Discman. Now, how many of you still remembered the discman?

I had cleanly forgotten about my discman until I found it just now.

Just now, I opened the cardboard box with the intention of throwing it away. When I saw that green discman bag, my heart leapt with joy. Could it be.... is it possible that my beloved discman is still inside? Oh gosh, yes, it's still inside! Oh my goodness... 

My discman bag, dirty because of years in storage

...still has my discman inside it!!

And, there was a CD inside, and when I checked, it was my beloved X Japan The Last Live CD, the second one CD.

My  Panasonic discman from 10(?) years ago!

...still with my X Japan The Last Live CD inside!

I brought it outside, I opened the battery compartment, it was empty (thank goodness I had the sense to take out the battery before storing it years ago!). I took a couple of fresh batteries, and with bated breath, pressed the play button.

When the small screen blinked and showed "hold" I almost cried out in joy. I fumbled at the side button, switched off the hold function, and pressed play again, and it started playing!! *flails happily*

MY OLD DISCMAN STILL WORKS!!!!!!!

Now, the Walkman marked the time when I first started listening to music. I listened to everything in it. The Discman, however, marked my first venture into bands, boybands, and fandom. And I held it even closer to my heart.

The time when I started having this Discman was the start of me becoming a consumer of the music industry, because that was when my CD obsession start. I started buying lots of CD, though because of constraint of pocket money I must be very careful of what I bought. My first few purchases were Westlife and a1 CDs, which I got my parents to buy for me, I was a huge fan of them at that time.

Then, my friend introduced me to X Japan. It was inside this discman that I first heard the song Forever Love, Longing, and every song recorded in the X Japan Ballad Collection.

And that marked my departure from western music scene into the Japanese music scene, and I never really got back into listening western songs.

Being quite a new piece of technology, I took great care in protecting my discman. I put it inside a special bag -green, not exacty my favourite colour but, eh, it worked- that provided some cushion and protected it from scratches. It also has a pocket for a couple of CD casings at its back. Quite practical for the standard of that time. I used to bring 2 CD cases, which contained 2 CDs each, so I was carrying 5 CDs around (1 obviously inside the discman itself).

After I got to know X Japan, I couldn't be parted from my discman. I carried this discman everyday to school, listening to the same CD over and over and over again. At that time, my journey to school would take about 40 minutes and I always dozed off in the bus, so I memorised at which song I should wake up so that I didn't miss my stop.

When I finally saved enough money to buy my very first X Japan official CD, it was this very CD: X Japan The Last Live. It was a live recording of their 31 Dec 1997 concert, broken down into 3 CDs and cost about SGD30 at that time (was a huge amount of money for someone whose pocket money was around SGD10 per week, who still had to buy food and other stuff).

When I finally bought the CD, I held it like I was holding gold, and I listened to it every single freaking day. I knew the whole concert like the back of my hand. I knew which song they're going to sing next, I knew what words Toshi would say (and I don't speak a word of Japanese!), I knew when the audience was going to scream, I knew the point when Yoshiki left the drums and let drumming recording took over as he went backstage to rest, I knew when they would resume playing live, I knew every sob, sniff, and gasp as Toshi sang his heart out while crying during Forever Love, I knew that exact moment when Yoshiki slipped and pressed the wrong note on the piano, I knew the exact moment when he lay his head down on the piano and it produced the dissonant chord, I knew I knew I knew.

I knew every single freaking thing in The Last Live CD, because I listened to it hundreds, thousands of times!
 
And, as I listened to the CD again, right now as I write this, those memories, the emotions came right back to me like they just happened yesterday.


Panasonic, thank you for making such a long-lasting, durable discman that had brought me so much joy and happiness.


I don't think I will continue using it, because I loved it too dearly, I'm really scared I'm gonna spoil it further. Even right now, the volume knob is a little bit wobbly and there is some noise every time I adjusted the volume. And now every time I carried it, it hiccuped with every small movement/bump, even though last time I carried it all the time in my bag, in whatever position, and it always played smoothly without hiccuping.


But otherwise it was still in awesome condition. I even tried playing Hizaki's Curse of Virgo there and it worked flawlessly, and it sounded even better than when I played it in my laptop *side-eyeing my Asus U46*...


Anyway, wondering what other treasures will I find while I clean my room?

Labels: life stories, nostalgic, technology, x japan, yoshiki

7:48 pm

I just want to point out Changmin's eagerness to grab Jaejoong's takoyaki. Oh, Changmin, your love for food is as funny as your snark xD

1:30 pm

Chu Chu Chu~!

I watched the video above with half a raised eyebrow. I mean, sure it's very Tegomass kind of song, but... What's with Massu wearing that big shirt with very short shorts? And what's with all the colourful feathers in Tego's head? xD And, what's with the dance moves???

I admit it's a very dangerous song/video to introduce people to Tegomass to.

But, yes, I'm still rooting for these 2 dorks.

Why?

Because despite the insistence of Johnny to slap a silly, kiddy, nonsensical image to these 2 poor souls, they are still the only duo in Johnny's whole family with enough vocal power and harmonising sense to produce song like this:

Don't worry TegoMasu, for as long as you keep on singing, people will continue to flood your concerts =) TegoMasu faito~!

Labels: performance, tegomass

6:06 pm

JYJ Independence Day.... or not?

So, this morning (afternoon) as I woke up and check on my timeline, everyone's tweeting #JYJIndependenceDay and talking about how it's finally over for JYJ.

Sceptical, I continued reading, and people were posting news mostly in Korean and Japanese and I don't understand a thing, but someone did post about SM's words in English.

"“The trio stated that they have no intention of performing as members of the group ‘TVXQ’, so SM has come to the decision that we no longer have a reason to be in charge of management for the trio. We have come to a mutual agreement to not interfere with the other party’s activities as our paths will not cross in the future, and the lawsuit has come to an end through this agreement. Also, we have come to the decision that the best course of action was to end this lawsuit to ensure that there will be no more additional damages or unnecessary issues that arise because of the lawsuit that may harm U-Know Yunho and Choikang Changmin, who are currently active as ‘TVXQ’.”"
(cr: dongbangdata.net )

My first reaction was: "...WHAT INTERFERENCE TO TVXQ SHIT THAT YOU'RE SPEWING ABOUT, SM???"

It has always been SMEnt who interfered with JYJ works. JYJ has NEVER, EVER, EVER!! interfered with SM activtities, much less TVXQ activities. So, that rubbish that the company DARED to mention when they're admitting their own loss is quite a strong evidence what kind of thick-skinned, arrogant and conscience-less company SMEnt is.

May god bless you in your future rotten endeavour, SMEnt. Don't go bankrupt before paying your artists their due salary! I couldn't care less what happens to you from now on, and I will rejoice when you go bankrupt (notice the word WHEN, and not IF), but it'll sadden me if your artists gets involved in your corrupt doing.

Second reaction: I can't really rejoice without hearing JYJ's side of statement. Since Yoochun and Jaejoong are now off-twitter, I'm now waiting for Junsu to say something.

Personally, I don't feel much triumph. Instead, I feel slightly at loss. Why? Because boths sides did NOT mention anything about settlement money.

Now, I don't care if SM wants continue prolonging the 'legal' battle (coz it's only in their delusional mind that there is still a legal battle when actually they've lost 3 freaking years ago), but I WISH TO HELL THAT THEY PAY UP TO WHATEVER DUE TO JYJ! AND THEIR LEGAL FEES FOR THE PAST 3 YEARS DAMMIT!!!!!

Yes, call me money-greedy bitch. But, with all the interference that SM had waged against JYJ for the past 3 years, the monetary damage to JYJ is huge! And I DO want them to pay it up! And go bankrupt in the process

Third reaction: I agree with Baek Changjoo. The legal case about JYJ-SM has been settled 3 years ago. It's only SMEnt who's thick enough to assume that they still have a case against JYJ. In reality? They do dirty illegal things to interfere with JYJ's activities.

So, now that SMEnt finally admit that they have lost (took you long enough, SMEnt!), we have to celebrate?

No way. It's too early to celebrate, people.

This is SMEnt we're talking about. You know what a rotten company they are. So, I won't celebrate, yet, until I see JYJ on the screen, performing without having the lights turned off!

Labels: angry, jaechunsu, lawsuit, sceptic

2:57 pm

Tegami no Koto

Okay, I wanna share an video that I found while clicking link after link that appear after the SKE48 vids that I watched. This one actually has no title of who's singing it, so I'm only barely assuming that it's SKE48. Do correct me if I'm wrong

I really like this video for a couple of reasons.

First, I love the song. Like, I'm in love with the song, truly. The song is simple, but the music is a-w-e-s-o-m-e. I love how the guitar is very visibly heard, and the bass too! It gave such body and good vibe to the song. And the song itself has such beautiful, nice melody. I LOVE this song, tegami no koto!

Second, this is just my own assumption, but I think this video is a compilation of fancams, simply because it went shaky at some points, and then zoomed in at different distance. I just want to note how good the quality of the fancams are! THIS kind of fancam-ing requires dedication, and -just as I was amazed at JYJ Empty fancam remix that fans produced out of numerous fancams of JYJ world tour- I'm, too, amazed at the quality of the fancams here!

If this is not fancam, oh god, why did you include the footage of the shaky part, dear producer? -_-

Third, the girls here are nothing short of inspiring. Sure, they're dressed in rather questionable outfits for such a sweet, beautiful song like this. But, if you take note, they were all visibly sweating. I believe this was in the middle of their theatrical performances.

The first thing that came to mind as I saw them, with their sweaty faces, all smiling and singing live to the best of their abilities, is: how admirable they were. So young, and yet there they were, on stage, pursuing their dreams. You can tell that they're happy, and that's what that matter. Each of these girl could be up there, on stage, performing to thousands of people, because they had taken that first step towards their dreams.

For me who's still looking for my place in this world, there's something important to be learnt here.

Or maybe because I just caught up in the melody of the song *shrugs* could be both ^_^

Labels: comment: performance, SKE48

1:36 am

More 48s??

So, today (I don't know how but) I stumbled upon a group called SKE48.

Now, quite some time ago (last year? or more?) I read a newspaper article about a group called something48 (official sister group of AKB48 too) that was being severely criticised for being too provocative in their MVs that labeled as bordering soft porn.

I can't remember the name of the group, but I thought it started with an "S". So, I was quite surprised to see them on youtube, that they were still around, because I remember quite vividly that they said they would be disbanded soon.

Intrigued, I click play the youtube link. Nothing nearing provocative at all. In fact, to my horro- erm amazement, I liked all the songs (the previews to their 'sg', which I assume as 'single') that I heard. I mean, so far I have some AKB48 songs that I don't like, quite a number of them in fact.

But SKE48 is surprisingly very easy on the ears. It's like I matched their songs genre very much.

Or maybe its the person who compiled the previews that's very good o.O

Will update again on this. *goes back surfing SKE48 youtube channel"

Labels: SKE48

12:59 am

Dear SBS, I really can't believe you did that. . .

Congratulations, you've reached a new record low for being the most *insert the harshest swear words that you know* amongst other South Korean broadcasting companies.

You announced Ze:A as the last act of the night, when you know full well that they were NOT. You actually REFUSED to acknowledge Junsu as the last act of the Paralympic event.

But the disturbing thing is: that's not even the most disgusting deed that you've done. You actually TOOK DOWN the cameras and LEFT before Junsu was introduced and could come up on stage.

You freaking PACKED your cameras and LEFT! Totally ignoring the OFFICIAL LAST ACT of the Paralympic event.

Have you no sense of respect at all? To the event's organising host? To Junsu? To the audience??

Have you sunk so deep into the mud of cowardice and fear towards SME that you blatantly denied the whole of South Korean audience their rights to see the event until it's finished?

Honestly, I didn't see that coming. Even in the 3 years of cowardly acts that you have done, this is a new low.

If previously I've lost all of my respect for you as a broadcasting company, now I'm just wishing god will be merciful to bless all of you with new balls, coz it seemed like the old ones had shrunk into minuscule size and disappeared altogether.

To Junsu: I'm sorry for the rant. Maybe one day I can learn to be more like you, to be a more gracious person and not swear so much. But, until you and JYJ receive the respect that is your due, it'll be hard to be as big-hearted and kind as you are v_v

Labels: angry, broadcasting company, junsu, pissed

3:23 am

Fan

One of my favourite authors has just recently updated her story, Sleeping With Ghost. This must be one of the greatest way to end a week.

The last time she updated was more than a year and a half ago, and the story had been brewing since 2009. After 3 years of unfinished story and tens of months of empty, non-existing updates, you would be forgiven to assume that her readers have all gone away.

Not the case. For her story was one of the best of angst I've ever read until now. And judging by the amount of people commenting and the emotions they conveyed, I'm not alone in this perspective.

I hope I can be such a writer, whose work is waited upon by many no matter how much time had passed.

Labels: fic, heartfelt

11:45 am

This morning, while I was still facebooking on bed, my cousin facebook message me. He asked about how to make blog, in particular in blogspot. Slightly surprised, rather intrigued, and with a very free time to spare, I asked him about the problem. After about an hour of talking, we managed to solve his problem.

I've been blogging for almost 9 years now, purely for fun. I always believed that my knowledge had been minimal, though enough for me to fully enjoy the activities, and that my knowledge had been so specifically sought for and targeted that it was purely catered for my own needs, not anyone else's. I never imagined someone might ask my help for it.

The experience was almost surreal.

Then, it made me think: I may STILL have some potentially useful information/knowledge/skill that might be of use to others.

If I can find that information/knowledge/skill to help others, and maybe to make a living out of it, it would be so awesome.

It won't be that easy to find that sweet spot, but, hey, I'll keep on looking.

2:58 am

Sung Si Kyung, killing me softly with his voice

Not sure if I ever talked about Sung Si Kyung before, but judging from the lack of labels, probably I haven't.  I initially want to embed a lot of youtube vid with this post, but Blogger is behaving weirdly this afternoon and refused to embed anymore video after my first one. So, I'll just have restrain myself and post the videos some other time.

To describe Sung Si Kyung in a short sentence would be that he's the owner of the most beautiful, delicate, crystal clear and effortless-yet-amazing voice in the world. And that's just according to fact.

I've said it once in twitter that Sung Si Kyung is the only guy whose voice can buoy me into a tranquil, peaceful state of mind when I listen to him, and at the same time can reduce me into a blushing idiot when I see him perform. Now I want to add another: he also can ignite massive giggling when he's put in a gag show. Like in the video below.

The problem with Sung Si Kyung is that he doesn't have the look of a comedian at all. His towering frame of 186cm (not sure if this is according to Korean height 'standard' or real measurement) combined his sweet and sincere expression, he can easily be put under the category of drop-dead gorgeous male actor/celebrity list. Add the factor of his crystal clear beautiful voice to the mix and you'll get the perfect formula for a top class ladies' heart-breaker.

But, a comedian? No way.

Which is why it made him so much more amusing to watch!

Unfortunately I have to end this post on a much grave note, for I just found out that Sung Si Kyung smokes T_T

If sometimes I despair because my favourite singers seemed like going down the irreversible path of voice destruction due to tobacco (Jaejoong, gackt, so on), it seemed like my heart will really break and bleed uncontrollably if Sung Si Kyung, too, loses his amazing voice due to smoking T___T Because his voice is THAT precious!

I'm already mourning for Jaejoong's voice, don't make me mourn for your voice too, Si Kyung oppa TT_TT Please stop smoking...

Labels: comment: singer musician artist, sung si kyung

5:29 pm

Do you know about AKB48 and JKT48?

The first time I took notice of JKT48, I thought "What a rip-off of AKB48!" Yet, their song caught my attention. There was a feeling of deja-vu as I watched them twirl around in their black and yellow-checkered uniform while singing "I love you~~ I need you~~ I want you~~". I thought I knew this song, I knew this, but how could that be, for that was the first time I knew of the existence of JKT48. I brushed it aside, thinking it was just a mere coincidence.

Weeks later, during a karaoke session, I was cornered into singing their song "Heavy Rotation". I took up the challenge half-jokingly, not believing I could sing along to something that I've only heard once before.

It shocked me that I could sing along unexpectedly well. To be fair, it might be because of the easy tune and easy pronunciation, not to mention the song being totally, totally catchy. At that time, I started to get interested in this group. By then, I knew that they were the official sister-group of the massively popular AKB48 in Japan. I wasn't interested in AKB48, but JKT48 did catch my attention with Heavy Rotation.

It was only this afternoon that, after sharing a link of video to JKT48's Heavy Rotation in youtube, I decided to look up AKB48 songs.

To my horror, oh horror. AKB48 has exactly the SAME song as JKT48: that hellishly-catchy song Heavy Rotation. At that time, something clicked in my head: I was right in thinking that I knew the song, because I DID know the song! Now that I've seen them performing it, I remember having seen AKB48's MV for Heavy Rotation before, I remember those mock-military uniform with colourful uneven skirt! But I've seen it only once, and at that time I didn't think the song was that catchy.

Currently JKT48 may not have as much repertoire as AKB48 yet, but I believe that as long as the producer continued to pay attention to them, they will flourish. Why? Because their producer is the same; as a result: a completely cohesive look, image and sound with the original AKB48.

If the producer for JKT48 had been a different person, I don't think they will sound this alike with AKB48. Even their look, their act on and off stage, as well as their sound, is of comparable calibre with AKB48. Of course there are differences, particularly the difference in facial structures of Japanese and Indonesians. And, more fundamentally, because Indonesia is a Muslim country which places high virtue on modesty, it would be wise for idol groups not to be too sexy or provocative, even if it's in a cutesy style. In this manner, JKT48 can NOT afford to adopt AKB48's sometimes too-revealing costumes.

Yet, on the core, I can feel that the high energy, cheerful spirit and cutesy aura of these 2 groups are essentially similar. I am convinced that they are related  and I think to be able to achieve such a cohesion is an accomplishment. Well done, Akimoto Yasushi-san!

Now, before I browsed for more catchy AKB48 songs, please watch: JKT48 "Heavy Rotation"

And also, here's a video if you're interested in - or already knew about - its oneechan group: AKB48. Personally, I feel that the theme for the original MV of Heavy Rotation varied greatly with JKT48's version. Because this is a pioneer post regarding the 2 groups, I'll post the video which has the more similar feel with JKT48. Here's the live performance of AKB48's "Heavy Rotation":

Labels: AKB48, comment: MV, comment: singer musician artist, comment: song, JKT48

6:29 pm

New app!

I've had this blog long enough to remember what features I've tried out. Years ago when I was still using my Sony Ericsson K810i, I accessed the internet to log in to my email to send blog entries to this blog. It was long and tedious process, typing on non-QWERTY keypad. I soon ditched it, reverting back on updating on computer.

Now, however, I'm a proud owner of Android-based Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc, and it's just a matter of time before I tried one of the numerous blogging app out there.

People's review on the official Blogger app aren't very good, so I've been scouring the Play Store, reading reviews after reviews to find a good blogger app.

The app that I'm using now is called BlogIt. Let's see if we find each other agreeable, BlogIt!

12:19 am

I just helped my sis wrote something.

She was very happy with it, and I think she's starting to appreciate my writing.

It's a nice feeling =) Especially because it's from her.

I'm going to continue practicing my writing no matter what I'll do in the future.

Perhaps one day I can become a full-fledged writer and have my books listed in the Best-Seller list? ^_^

Labels: dream, happy

12:56 am

poolside conversation

This flooble chatterbox is temporarily unavailable. It will be back up shortly.

THE SUPER IMPORTANT WISHLIST :
Yoshiki - Eternal Melody 1

CD Wishlist

JaeChunSu - The... (preordered)
Versailles Philharmonic Quintet - Jubilee (major debut album)
Jejung & Yuchun from Tohoshinki - COLOR~ Melody & Harmony/Shelter Double A single
Tohoshinki - Stand By U single
Dong Bang Shin Gi - Rising Sun album
Tohoshinki - Five in the Black album
Tohoshinki - Heart, Mind, Soul album
Dong Bang Shin Gi - Tri-Angle album
Tegomassu - Tegomassu no Uta album
Tegomassu - Tanabata Matsuri
NEWS - Touch
Tegomass - Miso Soup
Yamashita Tomohisa - Daite Senorita

Hizaki GRACE Project - Ruined Kingdom
Hizaki Grace Project - Dignity of Crest
Within Temptation - Mother Earth or Silent Force
Saint Preux - Concerto Pour Deux Voix
Lord of the Rings Complete Recordings
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Complete Recordings
Raphael (Kazuki) - Forever and Ever
Raphael - Raphael Singles
X - Vanishing Vision Album
X Japan - Dahlia Album
X Japan - Art of Life ~mini album
X Japan - Art of Life ~live
L'Arc en Ciel - Smile
Hyde - 666


DVD Wishlist

JYJ - Thanksgiving Live in Dome DVD (preordered)
Tohoshinki - The Secret Code live in Tokyo Dome
TVXQ - All About TVXQ Season III DVD <--- !

Versailles Philharmonic Quintet - Chateau De Versailles DVD
Versailles Philharmonic Quintet - History Of The Other Side DVD
X Japan Returns Complete DVD 30th/31st December 1993
Versailles - Aesthetics HIZAKI version, with perfume Princess Stairs
Versailles - Aesthetics Kamijo version, with perfume Louise
Hizaki Grace Project - Monsho
Raphael - First
Raphael - Last
Raphael - Raphael Clips
Raphael - Pictorial Poem 2
X Japan - Art Of Life - 1993.12.31 Tokyo Dome
X Japan - Dahlia Tour / Dahlia Tour Final
X Japan - Complete Collection II (which, upon acquiring, will cancel the earlier 2 DVDs mentioned)
hide - Film The Psychommunity Reel.1
hide - Film The Psychommunity Reel.2
hide - Seventeen Clips - Perfect Clips Presented By Hide Museum
hide - Ugly Pink Machine File 2
hide - Alivest Perfect Stage 10000 Cuts Hide Hide Hide


CD In Possession

Tegomasu - Tegomasu no Ai minialbum
Versailles Philharmonic Quintet - Jubilee (major debut album)
Tohoshinki - Bolero/Kiss The Baby Sky/Wasurenaide Triple A single <--- !the perfect single!
Tohoshinki - Stand By U single
Dong Bang Shin Gi - Mirotic album (Platinum edition)
Tohoshinki - T album
Tohoshinki - The Secret Code album
Versailles - Ascendead Master (Reg + Ltd Ed. DVD Type I, II, III)
NEWS - Koi no ABO single (Reg and Ltd Ed.) <-- i'm selling the regular edition, contact me if you're interested (only for beijing, singapore and jakarta buyers only)
Versailles - Prince & Princess single
NEWS - Color album
Versailles - Noble album
Tegomass - Ai Ai Gasa single
Tegomass - Kiss ~Kaerimichi no Love Song single
NEWS - Summer Time single
NEWS - pacific album
My Chemical Romance - I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love
HIM - And Love Said No, The Greatest Hits 1997 - 2004
HIZAKI Grace Project - Curse of Virgo single
Hyde - Faith
Yui - Can't Buy My Love
Versailles - Lyrical Sympathy mini album
Yoshiki - Catacombs Soundtrack
HIZAKI - Maiden Ritual ~experimental edition
HIZAKI - Dance with grace
Raphael - Fumetsuka
Within Temptation - Heart of Everything
X Japan - Blue Blood & Blue Blood Special Edition
X Japan - Jealousy & Jealousy Special Edition
X Japan - The Last Live
X Japan - X Japan on Piano
X Japan - B.O.X (Best of X)
X Japan - X Japan Perfect Best
X Japan - Best Fans Collection
Yoshiki - Eternal Melody II
hide - hide BEST Psychommunity
Malice Mizer - La Meilleur Selection de Malice Mizer "best selection"
Moi dix Mois - Dix Infernal
Gackt - Mars
Dir en grey - Macabre
L'Arc en Ciel - Awake
L'Arc en Ciel - The Best of L'Arc en Ciel 1998-2000
Luna Sea - Never Sold Out
Glay - Speed POP
Glay - Rare Collection vol.1
Glay - Rare Collection vol.2
Glay - Love is Beautiful
Glay - Drive, Complete Best
GLOBE - Level 4
Aikawa Nanase - ID, Best Album
Hamasaki Ayumi - Duty
Every Little Thing - Every Best Single + 3
V6 - seVen
V6 - Very Best I
V6 - Very Best II
My Chemical Romance - Threee Cheers For Sweet Revenge
My Chemical Romance - The Black Parade


DVD/VCD in possession

Versailles - Ascendead Master (mini movies in Limited Ed singles type I,II,III)
X Japan - X VISUAL SHOCK DVD BOX 1989-1992
TVXQ - All About TVXQ Season II DVD Set <--- ♥&hearts♥
NEWS - Pacific Concert 2007-2008 and First Tokyo Dome Concert
NEWS - Never Ending Wonderful Story
Happy Feet Japanese version - Tegoshi Yuya as Mumble
X Japan - Aoi Yoru Shiroi Yoru Complete Box
Yoshiki - Yoshiki Symphonic 2002 featuring Violet UK
hide - Ugly Pink Machine File 1
X - Hamettsu ni Mukatte 'On The Verge of Destruction' Concert
X Japan - The Last Live
X - X Clip 1