KOTOR 2

Darth Cow Skull

Some time back, I remember getting all Star Wars mad all of a sudden and going out to get Knights Of The Old Republic, an RPG game where you control a Jedi. That game was made by Bioware, famous for its line of previous products and much to my delight, I found the game thoroughly enjoyable. Not to mention the fact that it had a better storyline than Episodes 1 and 2. (I'm holding out for #3 to come out before I slam it.)

So here comes KOTOR 2, which isn't made by Bioware but by Obsidian and using the same interface, rules and game format. Its much the same really, you discover more and more about yourself, pick up characters along the way, plot twists abound and lots of saber wielding. I actually prefer the first installment, because the combat seemed more engaging. This time round, even the bosses fell swiftly to my immense powers. Last time out, I had trouble dispatching Sith Apprentices. Whilst the first installment had romances and interesting characters, KOTOR 2 has a system in which you influence your comrades, who can be turned on or off by your actions and everything you do can have different consequences. Also notable is that you can actually have your very own Jedi Apprentices amongst your various allies.

Overall, I did enjoy KOTOR 2 immensely, and particularly fell in love with blasting the crap out of enemies with my lightning, a la The Emperor. Plus, this time round, its easier to get the color of saber you want. I settled for silver and viridian, since they were like the new colors. I went with a light side good guy since its always easier to play the good side first, get a hang of the game and then try being evil. Two sabers up.

iPod Shuffle

I've been doin' the iPod shuffle recently, deleting lotsa old albums that I either grew tired of, felt that they were a waste of space, didn't like etc. So away with a lot of stuff including some Japanese electronica that was just a bit... boring after a while. Also I dumped Belle & Sebastian's newer albums cos I was kinda getting irritated by them. Long ago, I used to lurve Kruder & Dorfmeister, but even they have been thrown out as well. Disk space is precious and 7 year old chill just sounds bland now...

So out with the old, in with the new. I brought in a few new signings, all on free transfers. Hehe.

Rachael Yamagata - Happenstance
Having just reheard more of the album, I begin to discover why people are saying this is good. Review in the Life! section puts it as one of the top albums in recent times. She's huskier than Norah, edgier. A little bit like a poppier Karen O gone jazzy perhaps, beatles-esque in bits, driving rock/pop. Its pretty nice songwriting overall with a good, full bodied sound.

The Postal Service - Give Up
Comprising members from Death Cab For Cutie AND Dntel. This has to be good. But its not amazingly fantastically great. It doesn't pack the same melodies that Dntel and Death Cab had down pat. Its still ok but I think I'd prefer either Death Cab or Dntel alone. This kinda feels like they went the way of Belle & Sebastian with an even more off the beaten path route. Still some decentish melodies. A little overindulgent on the electone perhaps.

Idlewild - Warnings/Promises
Their debut 100 Broken Windows was rather terrific because there was this raw edginess and sharpness in the sound. Remote Places was more accomplished and had this grander, bigger sound, fuelled by their newfound success in bits but it was fuller and more refined from before. Warnings/Promises doesn't seem to follow quite as much. Instead, it seems nicer, more gentle, softer. A good listen but perhaps its hard to match up to the fantastic Remote Places.

New Order - Waiting For The Sirens Call
New Order's best remains what they've already put out. WFTSC continues on the keyboard aided sound that the Order have been associated with for so long. Heard Krafty on MTV and I liked the colors in the video. Its a lovely little single thats somewhat contemporary but somehow manages to sneak a lot of the old Order into this track, courtesy of a signature bassline. It feels like a modern retro sound, like the 80s were updated with tighter production, still the same synth and bass.

Thievery Corporation - The Cosmic Game
Features a lot of featured artistes, including The Flaming Lips and David Bryne to mention a few. They've had collabos before, with Ben Folds in particular, so in that respect it feels like they took that sound and made a guest album concept. It sounded great from the off and for the most part retains the vintage Thievery sound. This time round, they run the gamut of indie to reggae to hip-hop to Indian inspired sounds to bossa. Bryne sounded like Arto Lindsay. Still Smooth.

Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
There's a bit of fuss on this one. I can see why. They sound pretty unique. The beats bang down fast and furious. New Order following the Trail Of Dead via The Killers. A punkier Rapture. A pacy Idlewild. On a whole, they've got an interesting sound somewhere along punk, rock and the new electro. Blue Light is actually a pretty nice little ballad track. Love the rollicking drums.

Bright Eyes - I'm Wide Awake, Its Morning
A long little story starts this album off before launching proper into the first song. Obviously this isn't going to be a typical ride in the American countryside. I suppose Ryan Adams obviously comes to mind and perhaps Bright Eyes is somewhat in the same vein although Adams would be the more palatable of the two. Perhaps, it was just too country for a non-American.

Bright Eyes - Digital Ash In A Digital Urn
Its interesting that he's got a country/folky album on the one hand and goes to make an excess in the digital medium on the other. Unfortunately, I don't particularly find this foray any more interesting than Wide Awake. I felt tired listening to this. Didn't offer anything new either way. A lengthy spiel on countrified electronica.

Feeder - Pushing A Moment
Feeder never seems to disappoint. Every album they've put has got great songs and a particular sound, with enough additions and alterations to keep things interesting, which was exactly what I was craving for, after sampling loads of new stuff. Something familiar, something that you know you can't go wrong with. Good stuff. Great sound. I used to think they were some American indie band with no hope. Then I put on the headphones at HMV. A good follow up with great melodies and driving pop/rock.

Kaiser Chiefs - Employment
Another one of the next great things. (There seem to be a lot this time round) I can't say I'm a big fan. Blur comparisons abound on reviews that I've read. Listening to the album, I can understand why some might say they'd link it with Britpop and Damon Albarn's 4 piece. At some points, you think they're of the new wave yet, they seem to stick out like sore thumbs. In parts, they're Franz Ferdinand-ish but campier and more ridiculous. (Not that that was an insult) A unique compilation of English noise.

Natasha Bedingfield - Unwritten
I'd heard her singles forever everywhere I went. Then I heard I Bruise Easily on MTV, which I thought was a pretty cool little Mandalay-like track. Soulful singing and girlier than Pink. Which is a great thing, because I always found Pink rather undelectable. Miss Bedingfield has a lovely, husky voice that certainly goes a lot easier on the ears. A decent mix of electronica, hip-hop and rock on a quintessentially pop album. Half good really.

Razorlight - Up All Night
Deceptive piano opening leads into a Strokes-esque sound. They might be oft-compared to any of the new wave, but on some tracks they do deliver something that gives a spark of a difference. The title track's actually rather lovely as well. It started like it was going to be rather lost amidst the mass of next great things but it's got some hooks that need some time to open up and break into. Pretty good.

The Bravery - The Bravery
Another tirade of trendy dance/rock. The Bravery at least sound good, if commonplace amongst the variety of new wave bands. Some pretty good tunes and somewhere between Franz Ferdinand and The Killers. Nice little drum bits and kinda fun overall.

Mike Bassett: England Manager

Mike Bassett: England Manager

I was flipping stations when I accidentally went to the Hallmark channel, which is usually filled with shows about women in period dress. But I chanced upon a grainy documentary with a fat bloke. He was in a hotel room and the moment I saw it, I flipped to the next channel, as per my surfing habit to skip the Hallmark. But something about it made me want to flip back. Somewhere, somehow, it just happened that the frame I saw had some football moment ensconced within it.

The fat bloke turns out to be just that, a fat bloke. Not a fat guy but a fat bloke. What I mean is like how the English would say it rather than an American or whatever. Anyway, he was on the phone in a hotel room speaking in an English accent.

I was intrigued. I find out that he is Mike Bassett: England Manager. Yea that's the bloody title. So I watch it from middle to finish, as the poor, fat bloke undergoes a torrid time with the press, has his wife leave him, then romantically bring his team to the world cup semis and return a hero.

It was pretty obvious after the first 30 secs that this show was a football farce that could only be appreciated by an elite few. Bassett is a fat, bespectacled man you'd assume would never be England manager. Filmed in psuedo mockumentary style, its one big football joke charting the progress of Bassett's rise from the lower leagues to becoming England manager. Actually, the old manager had a heart attack and the FA couldn't find anyone else. I found that out by checking out a few reviews online. Most of them were scathing, giving the show typically 2 out of 5 stars. Like I suggested before, you'd have to be a football nut and an English football nut to be able to like this show.

*Cue confetti filled entrance* Yes that'd be me.

I start watching when they only managed a draw against Egypt and up next are Mexico. Bassett starts with a wimpy motivational training, where they don't even have footballs available. He starts on the 3-1-2-1-2-1 formation. They lose 4-0 with Bassett delivering a cliched halftime team talk, full of Ferguson-esque object throwing, fist waving and shouting/swearing. They get blasted by the press, no one thinks they'll beat the old enemy in the last group game.

Scenes of various flashbacks between England and Argentina are played. Owen's '98 spectacle! Beckham's reaction and red card! Batty's penalty miss, Maradona's '86 spectacle, Maradona's '86 "Hand of God" goal in the same match... This was setting the stage for the titanic struggle England had on their hands.

In dramatic fashion, the England team's talisman goes on in the last 5 mins, waltzing past a coupla Argentines, then drilling a shot onto the woodwork, before punching the ball into the back of the net for the winner. This was just pure English football nut comedy. Its like the reason why I play Football Manager. So I can make up my own Roy of the Rovers style stories. 3 cheers for niche films!

"We will beat the Mexico!" - Mike Bassett

Ja-Pan

Even though the country I live in was once subjugated by the Japanese using military might, I remain enamoured towards the land of the rising sun. I really don't know what it is that attracts me so. Maybe its the cartoons, the films, the music! Yes, the media has brainwashed me! Or maybe its the clothing, fashion, shoes! Or maybe its the design, the cars, the electronics! Or the food! Or the Samurais and Ninjas!

Well, I suppose when you boil it all down, its really the spirit behind it all. That never say die attitude, the quest for perfection, the attention to details, the cleverness in appropiating ideas, the cuteness, the adoption of foreign cultural icons, the friendlyness, the quest to go forward. Its so different from Singapore.

So anyway, I love all things Japanese, like anime. I've just downloaded some "classics" like Wolf's Rain and Cowboy Bebop, as well as newer ones like Yakitate!! Japan. The latter is about a boy who wants to bake a Ja-Pan or Japanese national bread, kinda like a croissant is to France. It makes use of a lot of Japanese words puns, which the fansubbers have dutifully included. Ja-Pan is a pun in itself. Pan, means bread. The show itself is rather nationalistic, I mean, baking a Ja-Pan, disregarding the fact that bread is a European thing. Their reasoning is that bread is so ubiquitous so it no longer belongs to just one country. Every country has a bread that represents it. But the Japanese don't. I lurve An-Pan, or red bean cakes, but they're not like a bread bread, but more of a pastry. So the protagonist, Azuma is off to make the Ja-Pan. I'm intrigued to see what it turns out to be.

Like other cooking shows, the humor is injected through the reactions, which are outrageous. The protagonist's grandfather ended up surfing a miso wave before launching into several kicks and chops, proclaiming the wonderful taste. Hilarious! Azuma goes on to make several other Ja-Pans, with absolutely zero knowledge of existing breads, and ends up making his own versions of naan, croissant etc. I love how they explain the baking, prep processes etc and the various wonderful ways of making things work.

Having to read all the puns loses some of the fun for me, plus I hate the protagonist's hair. He's got two feelers sticking out, like a cockroach. His good friend and rival has a really squeaky voice as well. But these minor things aside, its a rather entertaining show.

Japanese fashion and accessories rock. I love how everything is like a collaboration. Like iPod X Gas, with Gas getting some people to design iPod cases. Also there was Playstation X Porter. Porter made some bags and accessories using the PS Pictogram, LV style. Even though I've got lotsa bags now, I'd still want to splurge on a Porter Tote. Edwin is a denim company thats pretty damn cool. Brad Pitt features in every single ad they have. Graniph is a T-Shirt company that uses really big prints. Huge prints that spread all over the shirt, making it a literal canvas. COMME des GARÇONS is the ultimate in cool Japanese high fashion. They opened up a guerilla concept stores around the world, including freakin Singapore. They open for a whole year and then close and leave just as soon as they arrive, regardless of whether they make a huge profit or loss. It might be a testing the waters approach, a hyped up marketing strategy or just something to make them look aloof and different, hence upping the brand factor, but its intriguing nonetheless. I still haven't been there yet! Even though I said I would for a whole year! That's how procrastinotary I am for you. But I will go there at the end of school, just before it closes in late May.

Material World

Happy Camper

Karim Carry

Moooahhahahahahhaha! Yes I got new stuff! First of all, my new Camper shoes arrived from Italy! Spent $150 dollars on it, about half the price at the store in Taka. If you haven't already checked out Camper, you have to. They make the most delightful shoes. Buying from Europe is the thing to do. Its cheaper. I got mine shipped from an Italian online retailer. In fact, I could even buy from the Camper online store and it'd be cheaper than buying from the store in Taka. If I used vPostUSA, I can actually save on shipping. I worked out the costs to be around $250, still $50 less than going down to the physical store itself...

OK, so anyway, my other new item came from an actual physical store. Taka had a sale on for some products at the XTRA counter, where they sell Alessi and other designer stuff. So I bought the Karim Rashid KASE, a pretty handy and comparatively inexpensive briefcase. It just looks so funky and stylish. Nevermind that its got no compartments and its made of plastic, gets dirty easily etc etc etc. Some people are just too functional. Its just $38! Its form is just to die for. Everyone was staring at Wenhui, when she was walking round with it. I actually saw this like really long ago (last year I think) but never really wanted to buy it. Maybe the 15% discount was enough to convince me. On a side note, I'm now spying on the Bouroullec Brothers' Valise folder/briefcase. In green, so I can like switch around as and when I please. I didn't buy it cos it was 50 bucks after the discount. I figured one was enough. Oh regret! I'd hate to go back and find it sold out. Its also rather superflous really. Its fine as a folder carrying documents, but its useless as a bag really. Once you drop stuff in, you'd have to dig around to get it out. Also at $50, its just a tad too expensive. But then again, its not everyday you find really stylish carriers.

Next up? Clothes! A few pairs of jeans. G-Stars and Edwins. Faded black and distressed, pinstriped or patterned/detailed. Craploads of tops, from Paul Smith, Paul Frank, Topshop, Zara etc. I need clothes. I feel like shopping. I need money. I need a frickin job! My first paycheck is going to Mr. Smith's coffers.

Kustom Kicks

Authentic Mongolian BBQ

I've only ever been to one Mongolian BBQ and that was in Taka back in '97/'/98 with my JC classmates. It wasn't very Mongolian since there was like sushi and royal jelly and stuff. On my China trip last year, Wenhui really wanted to go to Inner Mongolia and live in a tent. Due to monetary concerns, that obviously didn't materialise. So that's how close I've ever been to an authentic Mongolian BBQ.

So anyway, Cool Hunting had this post on Puma's new Mongolian BBQ shoe concept. Basically its a super customizable shoe, with the consumer able to pick and choose all the fabrics and materials to go into the shoe. The pic above, showing how you can like pick and choose amongst the variety. I suppose some Puma guy was eating fake Mongolian BBQ at Taka and thought this up.

I don't know alot about Mongolian BBQ as I explained earlier. I do suppose it has to do with, choice, selection and variety and also, letting a chef cook it for you, unlike Korean BBQ, where you do it yourself. So in the same way, you choose your fabrics and stuff, whilst a poor kid from the third world/Puma exec stitches it up into a fresh new pair of kicks.

I don't imagine this would possibly come to Singapore, although if it did, I'm sure everything would be gone in seconds. I always wanted to customize my own shoes. Haha maybe if Camper had this kinda service, I'd be flying to Spain.