music_enforcer

James Cameron's Avatar Review

2009-12-19T22:18:48Z

Avatar the Last Air-- wait, nope, sorry, wrong movie. James Cameron's AVATAR is quite a different story.

Its full of a strange alien world, a different and well examined culture, the evil militaristic and corporate humans, and ya know, the normal gist of kicking natives out of their homelands... with missiles.
But this is not a new story and its been examined time and time again through different allegories, commentaries, documentaries, and more of the like. So how does Avatar hold up as a movie and as a commentary? Ya know, actually pretty damn well.

So first, I'll take care of some of the first impressions dislikes I had with the trailers of this movie.

1.) This will be another action flick like District 9. Big robots, explosions, wars, blood blood blood, etc.

- Well well, this film surprised me. As District 9's trailers made it seem as a political and cultural examination film, but it turned out to be a straight-up action flick, Avarar is the exact opposite! The trailers make it out to be a pure action flick, and while it has GREAT action, its actually very cultural and mind-turning. I was pleasantly surprised.

2.) That native chick is HOT and the females are gonna be awesomely sexualized!

- So to give the trailer some credit, it does show the males of the natives, which shows that although there is definitely sexuality infused into the character designs of both male and female, that their physique was based off of their environment. As a bit of a stretch, I'd say the only reason everyone has clothes on is to keep their PG-13 rating. Elsewise, the Nav-vi (as they're called by humans) show they have little attention to clothing as they live off the land and are athletic to the point that clothes would totally get in the way of their rapid navigation.

- But, of course, there were problems I saw in the film. So yes, I should explore the sexualization more, all females in the film were amazingly curvy, and males were very fit and well toned, or (in the case of the main male) looked very muscled and classic space-marine, even in the toned physique. The clothing, instead of looking sparse because of practicality and simplicity instead accentuated the sexuality and also fell into the trap of "why do THOSE leaves never move on her?" James Cameron, in interviews, has also stated the acknowledgment that he wanted the females in the film to be attractive to the audience. Go CG... woo... *defeated sigh*.

3.) Furries! - Uh. Well, they have ears and tails. The ears a cute. But elsewise, they look like humans with really good make-up jobs - more on this later. Okay, so now that those assumptions are dealt with this review is split into 3 sections:

-STORYLINE (no spoilers)
-THE COMMENTARY
-VISUALS
-AUDIO
-OVERALL

STORYLINE:
This movie surprised me. I was expecting an action flick with lots of explosions and bullets and tons of gore, but they were very sparse on their use of violence, until the movie called for it. Elsewise, the story revolved around culture exploration and character development of the main protagonist. Then it moved on to its culture conflict with humans an Nav'vi clashing over land and... stuff.

What I must really applaud the movie for doing, is setting up their world well. There's many facts given about the world, and it seems that almost every detail comes into play somehow during the film, and events that occur seem believable because they have been setup. I can't give too many details on this as spoilers are abundant - but you actually have to pay attention during the film to get it all in.

The only problems I had with the storyline was that it was amazingly predictable, the storyline didn't really offer anything new at a high level. Yet this is one of those things I can overlook pretty easily because their execution was top notch, and still brought me in for a great time.

THE COMMENTARY:
This is where the commentary kicks in because the argument can easily be made "couldn't they of just made this story with an actual race of people?" and the answer most definitely is 'yes'.

And in most cases, I feel that a message like this overwhelms a film. Like they can make the 'aliens' as alien as they would like but it seems like a charade as its obviously just a mask to comment on events and the nature of conquering nations. But! Avatar doesn't try too hard to make the charade of 'aliens' or a 'totally different species - hey look they're being oppressed feel bad even though they're different!'

The Nav-vi are obviously based on humans, the feelings are obviously based on human feelings, the situations are obviously based on reality. What makes Avatar stand out, once again, is the world building. You empathize with the world you've been given, the culture that has grown in it, and people that have grown from it. So instead of the message feeling like 'This is happening! OMGZ! TO PEOPLE!' it felt more like 'The destruction of something beautiful can happen anywhere, to anyone.' the fact that the characters are very human in nature, just makes it easier to digest for a wider audience.

So because of its translucent nature the film didn't feel as heavy handed, as most other similar films seem to be.

THE VISUALS:
So the CG Nav-vi were really well done to me. Not so much because they looked different, but because they looked like humans in really really good costumes. So it looked like CG-aided costumes!

The facial expressions were VERY well translated to the CG characters and the body movements were 1:1 with their acting counterparts. The tails and ears on the characters just accentuated the people. The ears twitch naturally and accordingly to the situation, the tails move in counter-balance to the character movements when they're climbing or trying to hold their balance.

The CG for the environments is AMAZING. The environments they create are augments of reality that could only exist within the processing power of a computer. Or an alien world we haven't found yet ^_^.

Military CG is what you would expect from a high budget CG film. Uh... I don't know what else to say because its pretty straight forward.

3D! OMGZ its in 3D only! Its either in 3D Digital or 3D IMAX formats right now, and for once, its not gimmicky! They don't hold things in front of your face for no reason at all to say 'HEY LOOK 3D! 3D! DURRR!' They do it sparingly and only when its to emphasize the situation. An example is when the main character is out in the jungle for the first time with a rifle. He looks very anxious and nervous aiming at everything even at the audience. Amusingly his lead pushes the gun away telling him to "Relax." I had a great time with the 3D and felt like it only augmented the film.

AUDIO:
Uh, James Horner. Same guy that did Titanic! What does that mean?

Well in Titanic, during the crazy ya know... sinking scenes, you could hear the clattering of the floating china in the dinning hall when they made their way through that room even though it wasn't picture on screen. Its that attention to detail you can expect for this film. You can audibly track every splinter, twig crunch, and bullet. Fun times!

OVERALL:
So if there's a single word I could apply to this film and all its technological and storyline achievements it would be "Augmented".

Nothing is particularly new in this movie, but everything is augmented by this film. The storyline is better than the basic action film, cultural film or commentary. All the video and audio is augmented by CG, 3D, and well done sound productions. It has its faults, it can definitely be dissed on for things, but overall, I really enjoyed this movie.

It did a great job of bringing me to a different world, and not breaking my suspension of disbelief.

Holy Crap!

2009-12-05T17:08:40Z

Myself and lunapome just got married yesterday! (YAY!)

WHOOOOOOO!

So about the statistic "About 50% (or some crazy number) of marriages don't last more than a year" zinjadu was so good to point out "so that means the other 50% last FOREEEEEEEEEEEVER"

Since me and lunapome have been dating for almost *cough* nine *cough* years... I'm pretty sure we'll be in the latter category there. Thanks for putting things into perspective zinjadu! :p

PS - we're resetting the odometer! We only go by Marriage Time now for our relationship. We've only been together for...16 hours! HA!

What I want to be when I grow up:

2009-09-08T19:24:33Z

So, this is a crazy sappy entry. I don't know what exactly brought this to mind, maybe it was listening to some music with lunapome and having some fun conversations about music as well. But either way, I just felt like this was something I should write down more for myself than anyone else. But I also don't mind people know these kind of things about me either. So here it is for any of my friends to read if they'd like to, but you're not in the mood for a sappy dose of heart gushing you're advised to skip it XD.

Anywayz here's a new entry: What I want to be when I grow up!

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What I want to be when I grow up:

A great pianist. I think I’m good, but not great yet. How do I get there?

4 people can show me how to get there:

The mindset of Prof. Marc Seales (Jazz Artists/Professor)–
Marc is one of the most influential jazz pianists in Washington State as not only is he a remarkable player, but spends a good amount of time teach students how to be professional. His respect for the piano, his fellow musicians and the work of music is a inspiring view. His playing is heartfelt, but filled with hardwork, and purpose. It is also backed by academic thinking and research, but executed with such control that it is unbelievable. To have such a melding of mind and emotion is a foundation I seek in my playing.

The technique of Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater) –
One of the most celebrated musicians of the metal world is keyboardist Jordan Rudess. His technique and command of the piano is second to none. His grasp, intellect and constant pushing of technology is a very close second as well as he has helped revive the premise of live Synth, the Compendium, and the Keytar. His ability to separate his hands into an orchestra of instruments and make each sound he plays come out soundingn like he has several live people at his disposal, makes him one of the most ‘symphonic’ sounding musicians I have ever heard. His technique is cemented in the tempo of time, and his ability to change his groove, time signature and any sounds on the turn of a dime is close to magic. Being able to explore music freely crossing the boundaries of time, key and music theory, while still adhering to all three, is what I wish to take from Rudess.

The simplicity of Nobuo Uematsu (Smile Studios/Final Fantasy I thru XII)–
Nobuo Uematsu, one of the most recognized and beloved composers of the videogame industry. First made popular with Squaresoft’s (now Squre-Enix) Final Fantasy series he started by composing music for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). Because of the restrictions of technology at the time, a composer only really got three or four simultaneous tracks at any given time. To bridge this technological gap Nobuo, and other’s of that era and occupation, had to come up with very simple yet amazing melodies that would burn themselves in the minds of people for generations to come. Nobuo continued his simplistic melodies into the Super NES, Playstation, Playstation 2, and now Smile Studio days. Nobuo shows that without complexity melodies can make music live. Its with this simplicity yet surge of passion that I wish to construct my melodies in compositions.

The clarity of Hiromi Uehara (Jazz Artist) –
Hiromi Uehara from Japan is one of the most worldwide celebrated jazz artists of the current day. Performing live with her idol Chic Corea at age 12, she has since then created a playing style not only based in academia centered playing, but overflowing with personal drive and crystal clear clarity. Every note rings like a bell, every soft note is heard, every loud note is felt. Her outrageously fast yet skilled playing technique leave spectators breathless, all the while she smiles with honest childish glee. Her high spirits for music but complete mastery of the piano and music to push a melody and sound to the audience is a goal wish to achieve one day. Whenever I hear Hiromi I can hear everything she wants to say in her work.

SUMMARY:

So in the end what do I want to be when I grow up? I want to be as disciplined and respectful, but also as willing to share music as Marc Seales. I want to know the keyboard, sounds, multi-playing technique, and technology like Jordan Rudess. I want to also be as simple to read and as heartfelt as Nobuo Uematsu to push messages. I finally want to be as clear in speaking through music as Hiromi, so I can relay my message a crowd who begs with their eyes and ears “please tell me more”.

When will I grow up? I don’t know, maybe I never will, but who says I have to? Its all about the journey and I like stopping to watch things happen on the side road. I may never reach my destination, but that won’t be any reason to regret, because I like where I’m standing and the road ahead.

A list... of sorts... for a day!... of sorts... O_o

2009-07-25T00:35:31Z

So... yeah, people have started asking me about my birthday and stuff.

Uh, I'm still one of those people who, when asked, "What do you want for your birthday?" am total Deer-In-The-Headlights.

So, to make things easier, I guess, I've been told to make a list.

INDIVIDUAL THINGIES (Stuff that you alone want to get for me.. for some reason)
-Adjustable vertical speaker mounts! Like these!
    My beautiful keyboard speakers sit on my keyboard right now, and sadly they fall over once in a while. Having some stands for them would be awesome.

-BlazBlue - Looks like a good game, although its really hard to find these days XD.

- LED adjustable book reading lights - I know this sounds kind of weird, but I like to attach these little suckers to my music stands when I play at night or at gigs. But they're easy to lose and they only last for so long.

- Headphones! I always love nice sets of headphones. Uh, no earbuds please, my ears are kinda funny shaped. ^.^

- Mahoromatic Slim Pack! Its my fave anime series and I have no idea why I don't have an R1 (or R2!) copy of it. Thing is that its not yet shipping as a collection... when is it avalible? Uh... check this link, its kinda scary.

- I don't really require anything, I just find it awesome that you guys think I'm special. All I ask is that you BOW TO ME! -ahem, did I say that outloud?

GROUP THINGIES (if you wanna team up on me... uh, in a good way...)
I have 2 funds currently going:
1.) "I love Keytar and Keytar loves me!" Fund
      -Yeah this is my keytar fund. The keytar is $1,200, and I've already paid for $600 for a preorder. So only $600 to go!

2.) "Apparently we need a PS3 to play a game that Lunapome's brother had a hand in developing so we can make fun of him mercilessly" Fund.
      - Yup a PS3. Lunapome's older brother works with the company making MAG (Massive Action Game! - no joke) for the PS3. We're planning to grab it when it comes out, look at all the stuff he worked on, and make fun of him via phone and play against him because we can. Sounds like hours of entertainment!So first we need a system, so we're work'n on that.

Uh, thanks for reading my list, I honestly feel a little embarassed having one of these but uh, yeah, there it is!

.

'Evangelion: You Are (Not) Alone 1.0' Review

2009-07-06T16:08:39Z

So, I made a random choice yesterday to go by myself to see Evangelion: You Are (Not) Alone 1.0 yesterday at the University of Washington's Grand Illusion Cinema. I say random because I was literally driving by and was like 'Ya know, I think I'll go see that today' and a few hours later I found myself out their door step with a bunch of other fellow geeks/nerds/guys on dates with their girlfriends/mother (I'll explain that after the review).

So my review is lengthy and full of opinions. If you'd like, please read on!

THE VENUE:
For those of you who haven't been to the Grand Illusion Cinema it really feels like a living historic building as there's really only one guy running the place at a time, maybe two. They only have one screen, and its a small room that could probably fit somewhere around 70-90 people. The woodwork and feel of the theater though is totally awesome as it all looks pretty authentic. Add in that most of their beverages are testemants to old times, and it all adds up to a pretty awesome old-fashioned experience. Its very informal and very "YEAH LETS WATCH MOVIES!" especially as the projectionist comes down to introduce the film and upcoming films. So, in all, for a good movie time, yeah, I'd recommend the Grand Illusion Cinema.

THE MOVIE FORMAT:
Now first I must point out that the version I watched was the English Dub. Yes, the projectionist came out and apologized profusely for this as they had specifically ordered the Subtitled version, and were a little miffed when the distributor's came back and basically said 'too bad, so sad' and gave them the Dub. The movie itself was on Blu-Ray which they projected up on the screen. Just to let everyone know, this is actually the best Dub of Evangelion I ever saw, I had watched the original series both in English and in Japanese, and this re-dub fixed anything awkward or strange sounding in the original English dub. Sounded like they got all the original voice actors and they were well experienced in these characters. (Will have to verify this thought)

THE MOVIE:
Okay, okay, finally we get to the movie part. First you must know that Evangelion: You Are (Not) Alone 1.0 is a retelling of the original Neon Gensis: Evangelion series in 4 movies. It follows the same numbering format as the original series giving a '1.0', '2.0', etc. tagged to the end of each movie. Each movie spans the encounter of several Angels and there have been tons of augmentations to the visuals, massive changes in pacing to make it fit right, and storyline differences to change focus and introduce characters earlier (Karou). I shall address five things (Visuals, Pacing, Storyline, Sound and Final Verdict) in this review.

-VISUALS:
So to start, they kind of ease you into this new format of the movie. Which I actually kind of appreciated. What this means is that for the first... I don't know, 10 minutes of the movie, you can't really tell you're watching a 'movie' of Evangelion. It almost looks exactly like the opening to the original series, although a little faster. Slowly you start realizing that some of the minor visuals (UN armed units) are now cell shaded CG and the animation is more fluid than before. Scenery is bit more defined and varies more, and anything hi-tech in the enviornment is now cell-shaded CG as well (Buildings, trams, etc.) As the movie progresses the changes become more and more apparent with the last encounter with the Crystal Angel being a visual spectecale that has been revamped completely from its original series counterpart.

A lot of the visuals were used to augment the movie, and not so much change it. Enviornments look bigger, objects move smoother, anything mechanical looks more complicated and larger. Since the viewer is kind of eased into this, I found I easily accepted this and by the end was thorougly enjoying this new movie quality format.

"What about the EVAS??? Are they CG?" The Evas are now (what I think) is a blend of high quality CG assisted animation and cellshaded CG. It was done so well, that I personally can't be sure of which technique they used when, or if both were actually present. I'll be looking up all this information later, but just wanted to give my intial reaction. Either way the Eva battles were still beautiful, and looked very close to the originals. They just are clearer, are smoothly animated, and all the battle sequences are just faster.

--UPDATE-- so I just went back and youtubed some original footage of the series and wow, yeah, the movie looks spectacular in comparison.

-PACING:
So speaking of faster, yeah Evangelion: You Are (Not) Alone 1.0 is a fast movie. Not fast in that it is short, fast in the sense that it covers all the episodes up to the introduction of Asuka and Evangelion Unit 02 (8 Episodes covered in the movie). This means that Shinji ends up fighting 3 angels. But this really does include all the important parts inbetween battles that have to do with Shinji's pychological trauma. The battles themselve are just fast and furious and end in minutes, most of the movie focus the personal interaction of Shinji and the people around him.

Luckily, it looks like the guys who put these movies together really know the series, and every memorable part that stuck out in my mind about the original series manifested itself in some form in the movie. It felt crazy fast, but it also felt complete.

Another thing to add is that Eva was one of those shows that made the long awkward moments more awkward by making them freak'n LONG. Those moments still show up in the movie, but are shortened... but still feel just as weird. They did a good job mixing up all the intense action, but left time for fun emo time, the pychadelic trains scenes, the spastic flashes of $%^&ed up Rei imagery here and there (though not nearly as much as the original).

One last thing to add to pacing, since the movie is so condenced and faster, you get to see the trauma of Shinji happen in a lot more compact timeline, and ya know, after seeing all the shit he goes through, I started to think 'damn, no wonder he's emo.' I'll talk about this more in Changes.

I enjoyed the pacing a lot and was very engaged the whole time, even during the slowest section they change things up to make everything interesting.

-CHANGES:
SPOILERS!!!!

What?!?!?! Karou appears at the end of 1.0?? Yup this and some other changes have come to Eva to really mix things up. But lets start small.

So what do a majority of the changes in Evangelion achieve? They focus the story on what the main focus of the series really was, Shinji.

In the original series it felt like a constant struggle to bring Shinji's story out when the battle scenes, Evas, and events were just so damn cool. So the ending of Eva felt like a jip to a lot of people since it focused on Shinji exclusively. My opinion was that the whole series had been about Shinji, and the ending was fine. But yes, I can see why people would feel angry about it as the series had really cool mechas and battle scenes that really stole, and actually made the show.

The movie changes this focus, by making the interactions with Shinji more appealing visually (better animations and full body shots with fluid animations) and made the mecha battles faster, more furious, but ending sooner taking up less time on the screen but really having an impact when they're there.

They also had a tendency to extend sequences of suffering. Not like sitting at home suffering, but actual in-combat suffering. When Eva Unit 1.0 is hit by the 2nd angels' beam, events change slighly to give more time to Shinji being boiled alive in the Eva. In the original series they simply pull the Eva back down, in the movie the lift mechanism actually melts and is unretractable, it takes a few more moments for Misato to get a grip on the situation and order them to drop the whole platform the Eva is standing on. This results in far more audio time of Shinji screaming his lungs out.Its stuff like this and other small things here an there that just make you think 'damn, I guess I might be messed up too after something like that.'

Its strange, but I actually symathized more with Shinji after the movie, with the series being more drawn out, it was easy to forget all the crap the kid goes through. The added interactions mentioned above also add depth to other characters who are just sitt'n there going 'man, this is messed up, why are we using him?'

Oh don't get me wrong though, Shinji is still a whiny $%^&, but its just a little bit more validated this time around. Just a little.

-SOUND:
lolz. The sound was terrific but Gainax also took sounds that they've been using for their more recent series and thrown them into the movie. The horrifying squeal of the 3rd Angel is the same scream as the last Space Monster in Gunbuster 2 (AKA: Diebuster). So if you're a Gainax fan you'll recognize a lot of the 'new' sounds in the series as recycled audio.

All the sounds are very clear, the audio between dialog, sfx and music channels are all really well balanced out, as expected from movie quality. You can always hear everything they're saying, and there's nothing too obsure.

Dub dub dub dub de dub. So it was in English. But man, the English cast really stepped up for thsi one. Whoever did the translation was not only pretty spot on, but also there's none of the awkward 'huh, hey!' line fillers that are usually presentin dubs to try and insert sound into the extra mouth movements. They really took their time in looking at the mouth movement, and really though of smooth dialog that would really go over it. I'm not sure if its been modified to the extent that the original ADV translations were, but at least nothing sounded weird or out of place.

The voice acting was solid. I had originally watched Neon Gensis Evangelion dubbed, and this was much better in terms of quality, timing, and the ability to really give the film a serious feel.

Music! Wow, the music was pretty. Most of the music has been either remastered, rerecorded or replaced with other music that is VERY similar to the original soundtrack, but clearly something new. Nothing was obtrusive in the music and everything sounded good. I can't wait for 2.0 when Asuka comes in and the unison music battle takes place!

-FINAL VERDICT:
Okay, so finally the final final final verdict. I believe this film is a large step towards the original intent of the TV series, and displays it beautifully in movie format.

The original felt like "This is a mecha show that happens to have a messed up kid in it"
The movie now feels like "This is a story about a messed up kid who happens to pilot a mecha."

If someone is new to Evangelion, this is a possible place to start. Since its a retelling, there's not much to miss really, but it does cover things very rapidly.

Should EVERYONE see this because its the ESSENTIAL anime to watch? Pffft. No. I felt that Eva is really its own experience. Sure it definetly defined some things in the genre for years to come, and has tropes that still exist in today's modern anime, but Eva has a lot of credit in itself. I say nobody is obligated to see it, but if someone is interested, its not a let down.

ABOUT A GUY... AND HIS GIRLFRIEND... AND HIS MOTHER
So yeah, while waiting outside for the movie theater doors to open, I was surrounded by a bunch of nerds and geeks and what-have-you. Everyone was squealing about things like AT fields, the Human Instrumentality Project, and Rei. But then, out of the corner of my eye I see this guy step in line holding the hand of a girl of similar age (high school?) and she's dressed pretty with earrings and make-up.

Now this is weird enough because it looks like her boyfriend just dragged her to the Evangelion movie on the premise of "Hey wanna go on a movie date?" She looked very concious of her over dressing and kind of stood in the back. Poor girl.

Then, right behind her comes an older woman who stands near the guy, and both the guy and girl seem very silent. Oh, its a mother.

So, to sum this up, it looks like a guy asked his girlfriend to come see a movie with him, and doesn't yet have the money or transportation to make real dates happen and thus got mom to drive them to the theater.... I wonder if this story ends in tears?

Lament of a Mathematician

2009-06-19T21:07:31Z

So I came across this crazy article today about a Mathematician tweaking out and lamenting over what the public education system has done to math. I was interested enough to read a little bit of it, and just read the first few pages.

Ya know what... weirdly enough, I think I know what he means. The first part of the paper, obviously, caught my attention as he puts it in music terms, then proceeds to draw another analogy with painting.

But he gets on to the math and just what it means for it to be 'FUN'. And I thought to myself 'when has math ever been fun? Have I EVER had fun with math?" and the answer, weirdly enough is yeah, I had a lot of fun with math in music.

He explains math as the manipulation of patterns, and when I thought about it that's exactly what I do with my crazy music friends. We come up with crazy time signatures and try to mathematically make them work.

Like a 21/8 time could be played with 3/8 beat which would allow for 7 iterations of a 3 pattern, which could be multiplied by 4 to make 28 references to 3 which is not quite regular with the 4 time that most people hear, but since it is still follows a pattern of 4 in its roots with some time the human (European trained) mind would accept it. Furthermore you could group the 21 beats into more than just 3's maybe into 4s, 5s, or more as long as it equal 21! .

The possibilities are countless... and I like math when it has to do with music. What the hell???

Anywayz I guess I can understand that math can be fun. Here's a link:

Link to article

I... think I'm back?

2009-05-29T14:22:20Z

So, after some day of moving, setting up things here and there, and my speakers blowing out, I think I've finally fixed everything in my music studio. And ya know what? For the first time... ever... everything works. Like, not just a little, but really really well.

Although I have to admit its been a while since I really composed anything more than piano pieces, so getting back into the groove of it is proving to be rather difficult. But I shouldn't give up i've been putting this freak'n recording studio together for over 10 years!

I will make stuff out of it!

I have a good list of projects to finish up at the moment, so there's no problem in finding work to do. I just gotta sit down and learn how to handle my new awesome recording studio. Its rather daunting, but I did it before... a lot... I don't know how this would really be any different.

Anywayz, if I complete my work, be on the look out for a lot more original work. 'Cause I believe that if I finish everything I'm supposed to, it'll kick me off to a crazy composition streak.

Just wanted to share ^_^

Woot I'm young!

2009-02-26T15:52:44Z

Created by Train Horns

HAPPY NEW YEAR AND LEGOS!

2009-01-01T11:16:56Z

Happy New Year Everyone!

And also, THE CRAZIEST LARGE AWESOME LEGO EVER MADE!

(Complete with Electrical Lights and Working Elevators)

http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=126969&n=0

Lyson goes to hell... who woulda thought?

2008-12-10T03:30:45Z

The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Seventh Level of Hell!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:

Level	Score
Purgatory (Repenting Believers)	High
Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers)	Moderate
Level 2 (Lustful)	Very Low
Level 3 (Gluttonous)	Moderate
Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious)	Very Low
Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy)	Low
Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics)	Very Low
Level 7 (Violent)	High
Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers)	High
Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous)	Very Low

Take the Dante's Inferno Hell Test

A New Hero Has Arrived!

2008-12-03T17:49:15Z

So... yeah, I don't know why... this guy isn't particularly amazing at any individual part... but he's become one of my heroes.

Europe - The Final Countdown

Its just so crazy that I like it... alot.

Rommel's Random Report v3.3

2008-10-08T21:38:00Z

Cows can fail:

And apparently, this restaurant can fail as well:

Romie Rant 1.0

2008-09-29T18:02:30Z

So yeah, this is just a little thing I'll be starting that will be my ranting about music stuff. If you're a music fan or like composition or are interested in music tech, this might be something you'll want to read. If not, go ahead a skip out, its just me being a nerd! XD

So on of the biggest problems that I've encountered over the years of composition with computers is the ability to control any given instrument in a way that instrument should be controlled. In particular this is for wind instruments. The ability to make crecendos and decrecendos to an instrument while its playing is ridiculiously hard.

Breath control, and volume control are second nature to anyone playing a wind instrument, but cannot be mimiced by a piano very well at all. I can't press the button harder to get more sound (This is also an effect that actually exists called 'Aftertouch' but has not been implemented to the point where this is actually a viable solution).

So what have I done to overcome this? Simply put I've hooked a mixer to my computer that controls any given instrument volume with a slider so with a movement of my finger the instrument gets louder or softer at a rate that I want.

At first I was like 'EUREKA!' about it and did something called 'post-production control' on the sounds. Meaning I record the music, then afterwards go in and tweak each sound individually so that the sound increases or decreases accordingly on long notes or whenever is appropriate.

The problem with this goes back to the usual problem of 'start/stop' production where you lose the natural sound of the instrument because this volume control is not being added at the time of playing, but as an after thought. The lack of spontanous volume adjustment is a small mater that the user can be tricked into hearing, but overall the quality of the piece suffers slightly.

The reason it suffers is because as you are playing the piece, you have to imagine the volume increase or decrease, making you sound more mechanical in your playing. Because of this, even when the effect is added later, it is still being added to a more-or-less artificial sound of the original recording, which transmits to the final product.

So, the only way to really comphensate for this? Have a hand on the slider as I play and record both the MIDI input from the keyboard and from the mixer at the same time. There is a large problem with this though.

The MIDI controller and the Keyboard are being used on two different programs which are synched together. These programs are called Sonar (Formerly known as Cakewalk Pro) and Reason 3.0.3.6. There is a primary/slave relationship between these two programs. Sonar controls Reason. Reason is a sound production program capable of synthsizing or playing multiple syntehsized sounds at once. The only downfall of this is the quality and number of sounds you can create is limited by the computer you are using.

I've currently upgraded my computer to handle a full orchestra... more or less. I'll still have to route sound through my keyboard to get the 'real' piano sound, because piano samples are REALLY large. The computer can handle a full orchestra no problem, but the minute I add in a piano, everything goes awry. The reason for this is the awesome piano samples I use XD.

Anywayz, getting back to the topic at hand, Cakewalk, the primary program, is the sequencer of the devices and controls Reason. This means that it records all the notes I play on the keyboard, how I play them, and everything else, then sends the signals to Reason to render into sound.

This is where the main problem lies. Reason is the program that records the signal from the mixer. This means that it CAN NOT record that signal if it is a slave of Sonar (It literally has no control when it is slaved)

So what are my options?

1.) Contrinue the post production method
2.) Figure out a way to thru put the signal of the mixer into Sonar and into Reason.

Option 2 is an interesting option because I do know that Sonar has the option of using the mixer for some purpose or another. I'm actually going to have to research how the two can be connected and if the mixer can either control Sonar, or control Reason through Sonar.

If this is possible I meet my next challenge!

The next challenge that awaits me, if I somehow get to use my mixer dynamically, is to learn how to play instruments with one hand and use the mixer with the other hand. I'm going to have to find some cute little cart to put my mixer on so I can roll it around to follow me on the keyboard or something. Or at least get it into a position that is easy for me to use.

SO to recap, here are the challenges that await me to get full control over full instruments.

1.) Figure out how to get signals to either Sonar or Reason (Through Sonar) from the mixer.
2.) Learn how to play an instrument with the mixer simultaniously.

Step 2 seems scarier to me than step 1 >.<

Anywayz that's my crazy rant on composition today. I'll update this once in a while as I run into more problems.

AMENDMENT 1:

Oh yeah. I also forgot that to get that FULL sound, I also have to manipulate the vibrato of an instrument as well. This is done with a foot pedal. So I have to play the note with one hand, increase/decrease its value on the mixer with my other hand, and then add or release vibrator with my foot.... this is just starting to get a tad insane... XD

Technically speaking everything would be easier if I just got one of these:
www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/BC3A/

I used to play Sax and Clarinet anywayz ^_^

PS: I did not run spellcheck because I don't actually expect anyone to read this. If you are reading this... hahaha you read my thoughts.

PPS: I'm working on special christmas presents. That's your reward for reading this ALL the way through.

PPPS: Wish me luck on this stuff... I have a little less than 3 months.... ack.

PPPPS: I had a bagel today, it was yummy.

Colbert + Spider Man

2008-09-25T16:28:35Z

A picture is worth a thousand words:

Colbert and Spider Man will be joining forces to combat evil in Amazing Spider-Man issue No. 573

Its like a million voices crying out in terror...

2008-09-23T16:14:12Z

Did anyone know that the Spaceballs Animated Series came out last weekend?

I totally didn't until I saw this review

and this review

Too bad it got totally cut down, I guess we'll just stick with the original.

ARRRR!

2008-09-19T15:44:06Z

Happy Talk Like A Pirate Day!

http://www.google.com/webhp?hl=xx-pirate

Mission Sushi Complete!

2008-09-19T15:23:43Z

Hey everyone, I just wanted to say thanks to all of you for helping me make my Sushi week a great success! In the last 7 days I have visited a different Sushi 'place' every day. Next week I'll put up my reviews of every place I went to, and also my top picks from the little adventure.

Thanks for all the company and advice of where to go! ^__^

The awesome work day

2008-09-18T17:29:31Z

So I'm sitting here sipping on this crazy little syrup Irish Creme, hot, thingy, drink (that I've been assured has no caffine) and a little mini loaf for Banana Bread my father got me from Kansas. All this while I'm happily hacking away a Unix shell script on the screen and all my meetings for the day have canceled.

Today, work is awesome.

The best test EVER

2008-09-16T16:03:35Z

So I think this test applies to daily life in every way possible. Try it out! ^__^

47 seconds Created by Bunk Beds Pedia

Give it to me RAW and Wriggling!

2008-09-15T16:05:29Z

So yeah, I don't like fish. But for some reason, I love sashimi (raw fish and rice). At least, I've just found out that I love Sashimi. In particular I found that I like Salmon sashimi... a lot. I don't know why, but I'm going on a hunt these days for the best Salmon sashimi. In the area this is how things stack up, in order from best to worst:

1.) Aoi Sushi - U-District - 9/12/08
2.) Village Sushi - U-District - 9/13/08
3.) Susumu Sushi - Lynnwood - 9/15/08 - the chef there is REALLY nice. He recommended cool stuff.
3.) Mizu Sushi - Southcenter - 9/15/08
4.) Midna Sushi - Lynnwood - 9/14/08

Untested:
Blue C Sushi - U-Village
Mori - Northgate
I Love Sushi - Eastlake
Saitou - Downtown
Wasabi Bistro - Belltown
Shiro's - Belltown
Ototo - Queen Anne
Sushiland - Downtown Seattle

Any other places I should look?

Well, I did it!

2008-09-14T10:23:23Z

Uh, hmm... remember a long time ago I talked about making forward steps in my music and doing all this stuff with getting myself out there and all that?

Well, I guess I finally followed through.

I give you the creation of Keyboard Konan.

Keyboard Konan presents: The Theme from Chrono Trigger (AKA: Chrono's Theme)

This is a test on Youtube, but it works fine, I'll have a website and other things up soon.

Things currently ready to be uploaded:

Theme from Vision of Escaflowne
Into a Dream - Kare Kano
Still Alive - Johnathan Coulton
That one song from Honey & Clover -- I'll figure out its name before I post it. XD

Jedi School!

2008-09-12T16:13:03Z

Hey hey hey, wanna be a Jedi? Apparently you can take steps towards the midichlorian based enlightenment at Queen's University Belfast for approx $40 (per day). The course is supposed to teach you the mentality behind the Jedi Mindtrick, the social and political lessons from the Star Wars world, and other real world learnings to make you one with your lightsaber-- err, self.

Go ahead check out the link, ya know you wanna wanna!

JEDI SCHOOL IS OPEN !

Spore Web 2.0?

2008-09-08T20:02:46Z

User made content to the EXTREME!

So as some of you may know the new game Spore has come out which is a game that stresses:
Play!
Create!
Share!

It does all three of these pretty dang well because its a fun game, the creators in the game are immense, and the sharing is out of this world! (literally). For this post I'd just like to go geek blab on how awesome the Sharing properties of Spore are.

So what's so awesome about the Spore sharing? Its fast, easy, and seamless! Here's what I'll go over:

Sharing Ease
What if there's a bad creature?
Looking up creatures -- Web 2.0
Conclusion

Share Ease

While you are playing Spore, if you're logged into your 'Spore Account' the game will constantly be downloading new creatures for you to interact with. Now, how many creatures can you download and how much bandwidth does it take up?

Answer: You can download a lot! And the bandnwidth (And hard drive consumption) isn't that much at all.

Why? Because Spore creations are stored in a custom format which is basically a PNG (Portable Network Graphic) with the creation's information embedded inside of it. This makes the average size of a creature file 25kb. That is REALLY REALLY small.

Because of Spore's procedural creation abilities, the game calculates how a creature should function based on part variables its given. The PNG file does not contain any data involving animation, or specific behaviors. Just what parts to use, where the parts should go, and what color they are. The game makes the rest come alive all by itself.

What if there's a bad creature?

Now that's great, the game can store thousands of creatures in minutes, and what-not but what if you get a huge inappropriate looking creature in your game! Oh noes! Young'ns cover your eyes!

The game has a feature that instantly lets you select creatures, delete them on the fly, and this process also reports the creature to EA Quality Control so it is permanently banned from your computer. Since the creation and loading of creatures is so dynamic, the creature is deleted from your computer and replaced by a stock creature without any downtime of the game.

Looking up creatures -- Web 2.0

So Web 2.0 is all about sharing content and making it easy to get, lookup and use. Well Spore does that remarkably well. Like a Blog, all your creations can be given Tags. The design choices you make for your design is also tagged automatically as well. So the next Starcraft Siege Tank you create may have these tags:

Starcraft. Starcraft 2, Terran, Tank, Blue, Metal, Siege Tank, etc. etc.

If someone on "Sporepedia" looks up any of these terms, your Siege Tank will show up! The person can then instantly put it in his/her game and/or use it as a playable creation as well!

You can also turn on 'Friends' lists to only download from people you trust. The game will also recognize trends you make, like if you download 20 creations from a single person the game will say "Oh! I should probably download from them!" and do so without you needing to download them manually (This can be turned off of course)

So with everyone playing spore, hundreds of thousands of little spore creatures are just flying all over the internet! And they can be singled out or looked up individually, on purpose, by accident, or in curiosity, but the game still gives you control over what you want to see.

Conclusion

So, I'm really enjoying Spore, and some of the things I've encountered in the game are just plain awesome. I recommend this game to anyone, and its has such style that its hard to not like. Thanks for reading!

For more information visit this Video

(Spore Specific details are about 1/3 through the video. Before that is about the DS counterpart.)

Rommel's Random Report v3.2: English Burning Passion... in Japan!

2008-09-04T16:11:57Z

Umm, so a few of you may remember a game called Blue Dragon that came out for the XBox 360 last year trying to be one of the first RPG hits for the Xbox. Needless to say... it basically failed. But this isn't about that! This is about the music!

The composer for Blue Dragon was none other than now freelance working Nobuo Uematsu (popular for the music in the Final Fantasy series) and for some of the songs in this game he employed the talent of Ian Gillan, lead singer of Deep Purple and Black Sabbath (for 1 year).

So what happens when you get a Celtic/Jpop/Techno Rock/Fantasy composer with one of the largest English Heavy Metal vocalists of all time?

......something very interesting: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8YVNSXyH6c

Its so cute--- Ahh! It ate Timmy!

2008-08-27T14:35:58Z

This is the Space Cube PC. Measuring 2" x 2" its one of the smallest PCs in the world.

300Mhz CPU (technically a 200Mhz that can be OC'd)
64MB Flash Ram
1 USB Port
1 D-SUB port
1 VGA port
1 Audio/1 Mic port
1 Compact Flash slot
1 Ethernet CAT5 port

Just thought everyone should see this sick little PC before it grows up and tries to take over the world or something.