jukebox playin'
the best i ever had - vertical horizon
clocks - coldplay
epiphany - staind
i woke up around noon today. my head feels abit heavy though which i thought initially was due to my empty tummy but even after a considerably hearty lunch, there wasnt such a marked improvement.. well anyway, it had been raining since early afternoon but it's just a bit drizzly now.. the skies are looking abit grey today, casting evrything in melancholic & sombre colors. perfect weather to be chilling out sumwhere listening to depressing, angsty music... ;)
while on the topic of music, i've recently had a penchant fer genres that have never really been my cup of tea, so-to-speak. case in point, my interest in the nu metal band staind. Nu metal?? wat the hell is that??? anyway, where music is concerned, i'm not really a harsh critic (yah rite); as long as the melody is good, the lyrics have some kind of decipherable meaning, without being trite or maudlin, and the song does not give me a throbbing headache afterwards, i guess i'm pretty much open to ANY type of music. hence my recent foray in the alien lands of punk, nu metal, rock, etc etc. A long time ago (well, not that long ago actually.. hehe) i once denounced these genres as nuthing more than meaningless thrash but now, i retract those beliefs. (hey, gotta keep an open mind, ya'know~) however, the metallic guitar twanging and the noisy drumbeats DO get abit aggravating after awhile and that's when i fall back upon the familiar spectrum of mainstream pop. ;p
anyhow, while researching about nu metal, i came across this site which has some hilarious commentaries about this genre. and here's an excerpt from playlouder.com's review of linkin park's latest album, meteora;
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Hit songwriting is formulaic, and it's been that way since rock and roll first existed... And Linkin Park know what makes a good nu-metal song, because they've executed the same system on practically every track on 'Meteora'.
So here's the blueprint: start with a nice modern processed drumbeat for 8 bars (16 optional), then come in with big, fizzing, power chords. Take the guitars down a notch and allow your mate to rap in a fairly unimaginative fashion. This is all part of the plan. The slightly drab verse builds up and before you know it you're upping the stakes, pulling out the stops, and hitting the kids with the huge angsty chorus, instruments thrashing wildly, vocals wailing, and the tune with a hook as dangerous as Abu Hamza trying to make his way to the bathroom during a powercut. The lyrical content has to be about the pain you feel, about being misunderstood, about how you can't change, or about how you want that herpes-ridden bitch you used to go out with to just, like, totally fuck off, man. Maybe your mates can shout behind you a bit here, to give your anger more authenticity. This whole process should then be repeated, and followed by a bridge that's a bit shouty. Then repeat chorus until only the most stupid of fans won't be able to recite it back like it's 'Baa Baa Black Sheep'.
'Hit The Floor' is the most ferocious track on the album, but follows the same rules. "Easier to Run", the track that proceeds it is the most sissy, but follows the same rules. Many of the choruses are great, but by about track eight you begin to realise this isn't about songs, this is about mathematics, and if you've actually paid for the album with your own money, you've been well and truly had.
Linkin Park were one of the best selling bands in the world a few years back, and with the threat of Avril Lavigne looming large, there has to be a scientific way of squeezing every last penny out the disenfranchised teenager market. On the CD there's an enhanced package which includes a feature called "The Art of Meteora". Physics more like.
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hmm.. i hope i'm not the only one who, after reading this short review, is startled into thinkin, "hey! that's kinda true!" ;p
back to MY life's happenings~ had an extremely frustrating window shopping experience wif dopez & zoe last friday. they were such good company of course (especially little zoe cuz i havent seen her in quite awhile.. but boy, she cud talk the ass off anyone despite her diminutive size~!) but it was frustrating because i did NOT get a single thing fer myself though i tried on heaps of stuff! ahakz~ *sobsob* oh well, it's about time i kicked the habit of reckless spending & learnt to lead a more frugal lifestyle anyway. after making our last rounds at zara liat towers, zoe had to leave but dopez & i headed down to holland v where to my astonishment, was teeming wif activity. (saw cynthia koh of moulmein high fame at this very cheena seafood eatery; she definitely looked more hip & trendy than her dowdy school teacher character) my cuzzins najib & eddy joined us much later.. followed by tjay & chacha. Each of them had prior engagements and so our meeting was sortof impromtu.. nevertheless, had a delish time catching up wif my cousins.. ;)
my weekend was so much more laid back than what i'm used to. on saturday, watched a "concert" cobbled together by students frm all the ITEs of singapore wif chacha (we were there to support a fren of his) at the dbs arts center. i must say, the overall event was very amateurish and horribly put together. seems as if all the individual pieces were never rehearsed as a whole before.. and one of the emcees was just intolerable to watch! he kept tripping over his lines and his manjen accented english became comic relief fer the rowdy audience composed of mostly (yep, u guessed it) ite kids... nevertheless, some performers did stand out;
1) the jazz band wif their almost seamless renditions of "girl from ipenema" and "tequila" was a definite crowd favorite. 2) the malay dance piece at the end of the first half was really awesome. not only were the girls pretty, they had some pretty nifty dance moves which i thought cud rival their more professional counterparts at sriwarisan. 3) ite kid azhari or wadeverhisname performed an amazing karaoke version of "to love somebody"; amazing becuz his vocals were to die for BUt his distinguishably thick malay enunciations were hilarious... 4) kampong-looking girl nurul-or-sumthing and fren dueted on the classic "selasihku sayang". the former's voice was simply breathtaking~ wif a richness that was at once reminiscent of marvels like kartina dahari. her fren though, had a voice that cud slaughter chickens... *bleargh*
on a side note, i really miss attending performances at theaters and stuff. it's really such a shame that i missed "the wedding banquet" and "the forbidden city" musicals... *sigh*
on sunday, met up wif a couple of chums & damien fer supper at cck's rasa istimewa. its a nice place actually; the al fresco dining ambiance is very refreshing but i wonder what will happen to their business during the stormy monsoon season??? since i already had my dinner, i only ate satay but it was pretty good. (albeit not as good as the satay at west coast) i was so stuffed & bloated afterwards that i almost puked! but i didnt of course.. hehe. well anyway, am glad to see damien again. there's just sumthing about the faces of old friends that is so comforting.. ;)
Quoteworthy
"You have been my friend. That in itself is a tremendous thing. I wove my webs for you because I liked you. After all, what's a life, anyway? We're born, we live a little while, we die. A spider's life can't help being something of a mess, with all this trapping and eating flies. By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heaven knows anyone's life can stand a little of that..." - Charlotte to Wibur.
---- excerpt from Charlotte's Web, by Elwyn Brooks White.
