and now the red ones make me fly, and the blue ones help me fall

My Chemical Romance debuted their new single "Welcome To The Black Parade" during the MTV Video Music Awards pre-show tonight. I thought the song was great and the performance was pretty incredible. Their new album, The Black Parade is coming out on October 24... I can’t wait!!! I am sure there will be a video up at YouTube or something, so for those of you who missed the pre-show performance, watch out for that.

totally lame!

Alright, below is a video of the leader singer of Panic! At The Disco getting KO by a bottle... I am not a big Panic fan, but that is not cool! Why would you go see a band you don’t like... there were those there that actually wanted to see the band play and the person who threw the bottle totally ruined the show for them.

i am sooooooooooooooooo excited!!!!

One more day till Fullbleed season 4!
The launch of Fullbleed season 4 has been delayed for two weeks... I am soooooooo sad!

i can see it in your eyes, i can see right through you

So by now, many of you have probably heard of Cobra Starship... aka that band that sings "Snakes on a Plane" featured on the movie Snakes on a Plane (which I still have to go see). Well, since I have been away at the other side of the world for about a month, I actually just heard the song (and the band) for the first time the other day. Oh, and to my surprise, Cobra Starship is fronted by Gabe Saporta. Who? Well kids, Gabe Saporta was (is?) the singer for the notorious pop punk band, Midtown. Their disc, Save the World, Lose the Girl, released six long years ago, is probably one of the best pop punk albums of our time. Anyways, here are some of my favorite songs from that record, enjoy.

Just Rock And Roll
Direction
Recluse
Let Go [wicked-cool song]
Such a Person [wicked-cool song]
Frayed Ends [wicked-cool song]
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buy Save the World, Lose the Girl here

songs from tales of the earthsea

Woooooo!!! I found the song that from the Tales of the Earthsea trailer. There are two versions: one is acapella and the other is orchestra. I personally like the acapella one more... I don't know why, but I am soooooooooo in love with this song right now!!!!!!! By the way, I have no idea what the singer is singing about, but I think she has an amazingly beautiful voice!


Aoi Teshima - Sounyuka "Teruu no Uta" Eiga Baajon (Acapella) [super-wicked-cool song]
Aoi Teshima - Sounyuka "Teruu no Uta" Eiga Baajon (Orchestra)
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classic song of the moment

This was the very first song I downloaded when I got my laptop about three years ago.

LL Cool J - Mama Said Knock You Out
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random format track from dog problems: the compromise

Seriously, I hope by now, all of you own, or at least heard The Format’s new record, Dog Problems. It is by far the best album of the year so far! Anyways, here’s their new video for the song "The Compromise". You can also download the song below.



The Compromise
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buy Dog Problems here

exclusive: amputechture

I got The Mars Volta's Amputechture while I was in Japan, only played it once, and didn't think it was good at all. However, I have sat down and listen to the entire album a few more times now and it is actually pretty good, but still very disappointing... De-Loused in the Comatorium was very good and Frances the Mute was a masterpiece!

And oh, surprise surprise, Sparta is coming out with a new album too...

1. A Vicarious Atonement
2. Tetragrammaton
3. Vermicide
4. Meccamputechture
5. Asilos Magdalena
6. Viscera Eyes
7. Day Of The Baphomets
8. El Ciervo Vulnerado
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Amputechture comes out on September 12, you can preorder it here.

help!

In the beginning, there’s cable TV at my new place... which my roommate and I didn’t pay for. Yesterday, Rogers came and hooked up the cable internet. Now, there’s internet, but no TV. My roommate, Millie, is really depressed and upset as she needs her Big Brother and Rock Star... and I want to watch the repeats of So You Think You Can Dance. Does anyone know how to get the TV cable back??? I tried unhooking the internet and putting the TV cable back, but that didn’t work. Will a splitter work? I want TV but don’t want to pay for it!

what should i go see?

Wow, I haven’t seen a movie in the theatre for more than a month! (that is definitely a record for me) Two reasons for this absent in theatre going: First, I was in Japan for more than three weeks... a movie ticket cost close to $20 there, and all the English movies there did not interest me. But omg, guess what was/is out in Japan??? This movie called Tales of the Earthsea. It is a new anime created by Hayao Miyazaki’s son, Goro Miyazaki. I wanted to see it so badly, but I would not have understood anything as it was in Japanese. Second. I was just browsing Rotten Tomotoes earlier on, and I did’t see anything good out at all... except for The Descent, a great horror which I have already seen a while back. (you can read my review here) The only other films that I really want to see are Brothers of the Head and possibly Little Miss Sunshine.

By the way, can someone please get me the theme song to Tales of the Earthsea... it's called "Owari to Hajimari: Shudaika 'Toki no Uta'" with Aoi Teshima on vocals... I think that's the song on the trailer... it's really good!

paint me that river, and would you only use blues, brilliant big black mouth and lengths of pines that route the river through, through and through

Portugal. The Man has a new digital EP for sale online at E-Music and Downloadpunk.com. But why pay for downloads when you can get it for free here? Devil Say I, I Say Air features four tracks: one from Waiter: "You Vultures!", two from a limited pressing 7", and a remix of "How The Leopard Got Its Spots" by Blake "Beatz" Miller.

1. AKA M80 The Wolf (from Waiter: "You Vultures!") [wicked-cool song]
2. The Pines
3. The Devil
4. How The Leopard Got Its Spots (Blakebeatz Remix)
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buy Waiter: "You Vultures!" here

repost

Someone wanted me to re-upload the Cursive b-side, "No News Is Bad News"... so, here you go, enjoy!

No News Is Bad News
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buy Happy Hollow here

exclusive: patent pending

Here is the highly anticipated debut from Heavens. Is it worth the wait? ...You’ll be the judge of that.

1. Gardens
2. Counting
3. Heather
4. Patent Pending
5. Dead End Girl
6. Doves
7. Another Night
8. Annabelle
9. Watching You
10. True Hate
11. Leave
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Patent Pending comes out on September 12, you can preorder it here.

hey people with much music...

Much Music Canada is repeating the entire season of So You Think You Can Dance (the newest one) on Sundays at 6 pm. If you missed it the first time, make sure you catch the best show on TV this time!!!!!!!

through the clouds i fall

Here’s a mini-documentary on the making of The Album Leaf’s amazing new record, Into The Blue Again.



For those who prefer to watch the thing in QuickTime, click here.

Always for You [wicked-cool song]
Writings on the Wall [wicked-cool song]
RedEye [wicked-cool song]
Into the Sea [wicked-cool song]
Wherever I Go [wicked-cool song]
Wishful Thinking [wicked-cool song]
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Into The Blue Again comes out on September 12, you can preorder it here

ignore everything i wrote below and just download the mp3s... like seriously!

Ok, so it turns out I have pneumonia... my lower right lung is all diseased or something like that... I am feeling a little better though, that's why I am updating this blog. I discovered IAMX (pronounced I-Am-X, I think) while I was in Japan. IAMX's latest record, The Alternative, has an overall tone of dreaming the freedom for liberated love and sexual revolution. Really, what the hell am I talking about?!?!?!... I don’t know, just go along with it. The first track, "President", is a nice little epic-ish piano driven introduction. The lines "For all you lonely boys, I will be president, In all you sons of men, I can be accident" reinforce that dream and revolution quality I was talking about. (I guess) The title track, "The Alternative", takes on the characteristics of liberation: "so throw your guilt religion, to the liars and the weak, this is the politics and war, of ecstasy... the alternative to real world, is just time for me and a fantasy, be blind to myself, to idolize..." In my opinion, the track also imbeds this sexual overtone... but that's just me, I think everything’s about sex. "Nightlife" is an ecstasy dancy/clubbing track... very good... but just one question for IAMX though, how DOES one survive in the nightlife? Alright, let's skip to track seven, "Bring Me Back A Dog". This song is backed by some very heavy and anger background beats. IAMX's vocal starts out pretty soft, contrasting with the music; however, as the chorus sets in, IAMX's vocal becomes loud and distorted... a very intense song indeed. The closing track, "This Will Make You Love Again", is a slow, beautiful, emotional charged song... one of the best songs on the album, a great way to close an unbelievable record! So, there you go, this has been a really weird review, you should probably ignore what I wrote above and just listen to the music... but give me a break, I am still sick, my head hurts like hell and my mind is going insane!

President
The Alternative
Nightlife
Lulled By Numbers
Bring Me Back A Dog
This Will Make You Love Again
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buy The Alternative here

officially on hiatus

reason: sick... very sick.

huh????????????????

Go to Morphing Hookers' myspace page and listen to "Show Your Brown Eye".

..."yo i swear somebody farted"

springtime, you're gonna wished that we were friends

It was tough deciding on which album I should write about first after such a long time... Well, after thinking for about 10 seconds, I have decided to write about the Canadian boys from Hamilton, aka Junior Boys. I first heard Junior Boys at a record store in Toronto about a year or so ago and I thought they sounded a lot like Air. I wanted to listen to them more because I am a big fan of Air, but I never got around to it. That is until now, they have a new record, So This Is Goodbye, coming out on September 12 (11 in the UK) and I listened to that a lot while I was in Japan. I don’t think they sound like Air anymore... although they are both in the ambient/electronic genre. Their first single "In The Morning" is a great up-beat, dancy track. DJs need to start playing this in clubs! One thing I really like about So This Is Goodbye is that the vocal and music fit perfectly together. There is this undesirable balance between the two… just listen to tracks like "The Equalizer", "First Time", and "FM", then you might get what I am taking about. And then there is "Count Souvenirs", which sounds like an 80s song... to be more precise, a New Order song. So This Is Goodbye is a good chill-out/mellow record, not too hyperly dancy, but enough to make you move and have a good time! Oh, and I think all the songs below are all wicked-cool, so there is no need for me to put that beside every track.

The Equalizer
First Time
Count Souvenirs
In The Morning
So This Is Goodbye
When No One Cares
FM
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preorder So This Is Goodbye here

omg, i got even sicker when i saw this earlier today:

ps, someone needs to kill The Killers!!!!! Please!

since you've been on holiday, we don't know which god is which

So I came home from my dreadful plane ride last night and saw a package on my desk… what was it, you may ask… it’s the new Cursive LP!!! In my opinion, Happy Hollow is definitely a contender for best record of the year (amazing lyrics), and the thing sounds ever better on vinyl. Go get a record player just for Happy Hollow alone! Anyways, I am not going to upload any songs from the album because I have posted the entire thing twice already, but I will post an exclusive b-side entitled "No News Is Bad News", enjoy!

Cursive - No News Is Bad News
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pre-order Happy Hollow here

japan: the end of the something i did not want to end, beginning of hard times to come

The last place I visited in Japan was the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum in Takarazuka. The museum featured works by Tezuka, which diplayed a timeline of his works, bunch of original comic cells, and a short film. I thought the museum was pretty good, but not nearly as cool as the Ghibli Museum... but then again, I don’t think any museum will ever top the Ghibli Museum!!!

So, that was about 4/5 days ago... so what did I do for the rest of the time?? Hmmm... I was dreadfully sick and stayed in bed the entire time! I was planning to go see the Gozan Fire Festival in Kyoto and do some shopping on my last few days, but that did not happen. So yesterday was my flight back, still feeling like crap, but I wanted to come home soooo badly that I got on the plane anyway... well, that was a bad idea, I vomited non-stop, couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep, had absolutely no energy and felt like I was going to faint every time I stood up... I actually had to be wheel-chaired out both times from the Vancouver airport to the Toronto terminal and then again from the Toronto airport to the exit. That was like the worst flight ever!!!!!! The only good thing that came out was that I met some extremely kind and caring flight attendants and that I didn’t have to wait in line for anything, I basically went through the customs, etc in no time... that was sweet. I feel a little better now, but I have a feeling this sickness if far from over.

See more pictures from the Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum in my Osaka gallery.

red hot chili peppers are bunch of rip-off artists

First, their song "Dani California" is a rip-off of Tom Petty’s 90’s hit "Mary Jane’s Last Dance". Listen to this mp3 produced by Dan Gaffney from WGMD in Delaware.

Second, I am sure you have all seen the amazing new Yeah Yeah Yeah's video for "Cheated Hearts", if not, here it is below.



Alright, now watch the new CHCP video for "Tell Me Baby"



Need I say more?

japan: shirahama

So here’s my crazy tale from Shirahama. On Saturday, Jesse and I planned a day trip to Shirahama mainly for the beach there – apparently, according to Jesse, the white sand on Shirahama beach was imported from Australia, crazy eh! Anyways, the beach was extremely beautiful, and I loved the feeling of the sand. Oh, and there were soooooooooo many people there, but I didn’t mind it. So we swam and laid under the sun for a while, sat on some men-made rocks/cliffs to watch the sunset; and as we were walking through the beach to the bus stop, we saw hundreds of candles lit all throughout the entire beach, it was no doubt a spectacular sight!

Alright, this is where all the craziness starts: so we took the bus back to the train station, expecting to get on a train back to Osaka. However, we have missed the last train, which was at 7:30 pm... like WTF, why so early!?!?!?! The guy who worked at the station gave us a schedule, which was all in Japanese except for one part that said something like "to Osaka... impossible". We had absolutely no idea what to do; we didn’t know where to sleep as we figured that all the hotels were probably beyond expensive since it was a resort town. We started walking back towards the beach (at that point, we were thinking of sleeping on the beach), we passed by a police station and I told Jesse that we should go in and see if the cops knew any cheap places (ie, youth hostels) where we could stay for the night. So we went in, found one cop that spoke some English, explain our situation to him... and to make this long story short, one of the cops called this place up, got us a room and the cop who spoke English drove us to the hotel. Seriously, the polices in Japan are sooooo nice and helpful... there’s no division between cops and ordinary folks like there is in North America... people in Japan respect them and vice-versa. So we got to the hotel, which ended being more like a youth hostel then anything... originally, they were going to charge us around $60 Canadian for a shared room with four beds in it. Of course, we thought that was expensive, so we told the cop that we didn’t really have enough money as we still needed to pay for the train ride back to Osaka the next day. (that was totally a lie... we had more than enough since I didn’t need to buy any train ticket because I had a JR pass) So, the cop bargained with the owner and we each ended up paying five bucks less. The room actually turned out to be pretty great, there were no other people sleeping there, it was big, we got our own bathroom, and we also got a TV. We checked out the next day at around 9:15 am and went to the beach again. It was extremely sunny that day and I got major sunburn. Jesse said that I look like Zoidberg from Futurama. We left the beach at around one and finally took the train back to Osaka. That was my unforgettable adventure at Shirahama, I hoped you enjoy this overly long post. On another note, I have been crazy sick these past few days... I still feel really sick... I am so not looking forward to the long-ass plane ride, but I will be home very soon, so I’ll see you all soon!!!

See all my pictures from Shirahama here.

japan: i want to know how to survive in the nightlife

Below is a quote taken straight from the Get Hiroshima map/info guide I got at the tourist info centre at Hiroshima:

Warning!!!
Dancing in a club after 11pm is technically an illegal act in Japan, and while there are any number of places where you can dance till dawn local police have been enforcing this archaic law. In a recent raid, involving over 50 police officers, Japanese and non-Japanese were separated and all foreigners’ IDs were checked. While such raids are rare, we advise visitors to carry their passports, or risk being escorted back to their hotels to have their belongings searched.

japan: hiroshima day II

I toured around the city during my second day in Hiroshima. I checked out of the hotel at around 9:45 a.m. and started walking towards the Hiroshima Museum of Art. The museum featured art works by European artists as well as modern Japanese artists. I think I was one of the first visitors that morning... no security guards were on duty yet, so I was able to take a few pictures inside, including a few by Picasso! I hit up Hiroshima Castle after, the place was alright... not as impressive as the castle in Osaka though. I walked through Hon dori, which is another huge shopping arcade... I think there are like a thousand shopping arcades in Japan! My last stop in Hiroshima was the Prefectural Art Museum. The museum was full of paintings and crafts by Japanese and Asian, I particularly liked a piece called Holocaust In Hiroshima. The highlight of the Prefectural Art Museum had to be Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali. Seeing that painting in real life was amazing! So that was my second day in Hiroshima… stay tuned for my post about my crazy adventures in Shirahama that involved a beach, being stranded, and the police.

i read more maps than books

Did you guys know that Brand New (one of my favorite bands of all time) has a forum?? Well, I didn’t... and there’s even a discussion page for Ontario! Oh, and did I mention that I am the moderator for that section. So join the board, discuss and rant all things Brand New.

a letter to disappointed readers

Dear people,

I realized that for the past couple of weeks, this blog has taken a completely personal approach. For those of you who visit this blog for music updates, I am very sorry that there have not been many music-related posts and instead, all you have been seeing is my trip in Japan lately. I have realized that I should have made a new blog for my trip, but it is too late now as I only have about one more week in the foreign land. I promise that as soon as I am back in Toronto, I will whore this blog with wicked and free music. Until then, download the new Jeremy Enigk album and have fun interwebbing.

peace,
Jackman

japan: hiroshima/miyajima

The first place I visited in Hiroshima was the A-Bomb Dome. As soon as I came close to the structure, tears covered my eyes. I walked around the dome a couple of times, and then proceeded toward the Peace Park. Throughout the park, there were numerous memorials dedicated to those who died during nuclear devastations. At the end of my walk was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. For the longest time, I did not want to visit this place due to the fact that it is way too saddening. However, a number of people that I spoke to told me that the Peace Museum is the one museum that I have to visit during my stay in Japan. As I expected, the Peace Museum made me extremely sad... and very angry towards Americas. Well, by that, I mean angry towards actions taken by Americas during WWII. I don’t really want to describe what I saw and read at the museum, so I’ll just move on to my next destination.

I checked in to my hotel, emptied out my backpack, and headed toward Miyajima. Miyajima is this beautiful town near the city of Hiroshima... you have to take a ferry to get there. Of course, as soon as I arrived at Miyajima, I went straight to the famous O-Torii, the grand gate to the Itsukushima Shrine, the symbol of Miyajima. The tide was lo, so I could walk through and around the O-Torii. Afterward, I strolled through the Itsukushima Shrine. The passages throughout the shrine were so beautiful… I realized that by the end that I was supposed to pay a fee to enter the Shrine, but I entered it through the exit and I guessed that people working there thought I have already paid. Haha, I can’t believed I rip-off a shrine!! Anyways, I wandered through the quiet town, visited a couple temples and pagodas and headed back to the O-Torii as the sun was setting. By then, the tide was beginning to come in and you no longer can get out near the gate without getting yourself wet. I sat on the rocks for an hour or two, just watching the O-Torii from a distance, seeing the sunset, and hearing the water coming closer and closer to the shore... it was such a peaceful experience, a definite contrast from the horrifying images I saw at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum earlier that day.

I left Miyajima at around eight and headed back to Hiroshima. I don’t know why, but I decided to see the A-Bomb Dome again. The thing was even more haunting at night! I crossed the bridge to the other side of the Peace Park and saw a gathering of mostly young hippies, I mean people, playing music and chanting while candles were lit to form a peace sign. I stayed and watched the hippieness for while, got hungry and left.

So that was my very long and memorable first day in Hiroshima/Miyajima, I will post about my second day in Hiroshima very soon, stay tuned!

Go see more Hiroshima and Miyajima pictures here... there are only like fifty more pictures of the O-Torii!

i can't wait

I just got back from Hiroshima and I am beyond exhausted... but I told myself I would post this as soon as I’m back in Osaka. Below, you will find link to one of my most anticipated albums of this year: Jeremy fucking Enigk's new record, World Waits! Put this album on you pod, or whatever portable music player you have, and listen to it while you take a walk through the brightest city nights... enjoy!!

1. A New Beginning
2. Been Here Before
3. River To Sea
4. City Tonight
5. Cannons
6. Damien Dreams
7. Wayward Love
8. Dare A Smile
9. World Waits
10. Burn
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World Waits comes out on October 17, go buy it!

japan: the tide is in, it's time we all learn to swim, these rooftops won't save our lives

The day I came back from Tokyo, there was this huge fireworks festival thing at the river right near Jesse’s place. The train was freaking crazy... it usually takes about 10, 15 minutes at the most to get to Jesse’s place from Umeda station; but that day, it took me about 40 minutes, I was so irritated and sick of Japanese people by the end of my ride. Jesse’s friend Berry right near the river, so we went to watch festivities at his rooftop… the view was amazing! ...check the pictures out and see for yourself.
x
Yesterday, I went to the Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan. I actually walked around the place twice because I finished it so fast the first time that I thought I better walk around again so I could get my money’s worth. The place was pretty neat... the penguins were sooooo cute and the jellyfish were stunning!

I walked around the bay area, and then decided to check out the Suntory Museum, which was right next to the aquarium. There was this art exhibition there called Snoopy Life Design. I was hesitant to go at first as I am neither a fan of Snoopy nor the Peanuts comic/cartoon. But I am so glad that I went... the exhibit was really cool. A bunch of different artists took the Snoopy character and re-designed and interpreted it into their own visions. There were huge Snoopy statues painted and decorated in very weird and creative styles. Also, there was this space where you get to draw on a computer and your drawings are then projected onto a Snoopy stature... that was sooooooo cool!!!!!! In case you are wondering why I only took like four photos, it was because I wasn’t allowed to take any picture at all, but I managed to snap those ones.

By the time I was finished with the Snoopy Life Design exhibit, the sun was setting and I had a gorgeous view at the bay area. Again, check the pictures out and see for yourself. That is all for now, I am going to Hiroshima for a couple of days, so I’ll update this blog when I get back.

See the rest of the pictures here.

Peace.

japan: tokyo pt. ii

On my last day, I went to see the Metropolitan Government Offices in Shinjuku, which is where my hotel was. Oh, I forgot to mention, the station at Shinjuku is HUGE!!!! There are like five subway/train lines at Shinjuku, as a result, the combination of them make an enormous underground passage. Seriously, the station extends to over a hundred blocks! That was awesome because I could walk through the nice air-condition underground instead of the boiling heat outside. Anyways, I did not get a chance to go in the Metropolitan Government Offices because it was close... I was kind of disappointed about that.

x
But my day totally went through the roof when I went to Fewmany - the best damn store in Japan. Fewmany is this little toy shop slash mini gallery. I spent soooooooo long in that there. They have a huge section of wicked-cool action figures and a few awesome shirts. I wanted to buy everything from Fewmany, but I settled for an Uglydoll 7" vinyl in the end.

Before heading back to Osaka, I went to check out the Takashimaya Times Square, this gigantic shopping mall. I spent a very short time there because it really sucked. There you go, that was the end of my Tokyo trip… I am actually thinking of doing a day-trip back as I missed two things I really wanted to see: the National Museum of Modern Art and the John Lennon Museum.

Next update: awesome fireworks, aquarium, and the Snoopy art exhibition in Osaka.