Ranmadou - Ranmadou

Ranmadou was a rock/sort of blues band from Japan that was active in the 70s. It's one of those bands that are good but they just didn't have any luck and they never made it big.

The whole album is pretty much lighthearted rocking with the occasional blues that pops in from song to song. The 70s vibe is very apparent here so those of you who like rock from this age I'm pretty much sure you'll enjoy this. So get your Ray Ban glasses on, grow some beard and long hair and start rocking.

Highly underrated.

Tracklist:

01. Che!
02. Hitasura
03. Shuppatsu
04. Koi no Akadenwa
05. Kaze ga Pyu Pyu
06. Shasei
07. Okashina Sekai
08. Hitonigiri no Blues
09. Nan no Tame ni

Bitrate: 192kbps
Download.

Mono 20.02.2010

Oh wow, the end of the month is around the corner and I made just 4 posts. Things are sure going slowly this year. :/

Anyway I just thought I should share some photos that I took on the Mono show I attended. They played in Menza Pri Koritu in Slovenia. The hall isn't really big but it was filled with people. Filled with little people that is; I think I was the tallest slav there. :S

The concert was amazing and they played pretty much everything I hoped to hear live. It was fucking loud as well.

The set list was:

1. Ashes In The Snow
2. Burial At Sea
3. Kidnapper Bell
4. Pure As Snow
5. Sabbath
6. Yearning
7. Follow The Map
8. Halcyon (Beautiful Days)
9. Everlasting Light

Here are some photos:

I also spent all my money on albums. I bought (fucking finally) Mono/Worlds End Girlfriend collaboration which is perhaps my all time favorite post rock-classical album and Hymn To The Immortal Wind (that has some pretty nice 11 inch paintings that come with it). Both are 2xLP and the total cost of the vinyls was 35 euros (ticket was 13). So yeah, I saved money for this event for about 3 months and now I'm a happy little child with ~50 euros less in my pocket. :D

Shintaro Kago - Holy Night

I sooo wanted to post this on Christmas but I forgot haha.

Anyway, it's Shintaro Kago so most of you know what this is all about. This time the theme is presents and our obsession with them (especially during Christmas). Hilarious stuff. His art technique also improved.

Download.

Hisae Iwaoka - Hoppies Bear

Well since a lot of people enjoyed the last one I posted by this guy I decided to post another one of his one short.

I can't really say it's as good as the last one was but it still delivers that warm feeling of small joy. The story is about a man who walks around the city and notices a small girl with a bear costume. They meet by chance and their friendship develops. It's about love and appreciating the things that you have.

Download.

Asakawa Maki (浅川マキ)

So I hurd rumors on the internets that Asakawa Maki died. Apparently from a stroke which is not really a surprise because she did smoke a lot. I would tell you this more seriously but I don't take death very seriously (or life for that matter).

So in honor of her passing (read: rip off companies that are now taking all the profits from album sales) I decided to post all of her albums that I have. I previously only posted her Cat Nap but I will include that one here as well for the sake of completion.

Asakawa started her career in the 70s and she was releasing albums all through the 70s, 80s and 90s. During the 00s she took a break and didn't record all that much so in later life like many other musicians she only did live gigs and lived off that. Through all of her career she was mostly active in the jazz genre. All of her albums have this noir and melancholic feeling that makes me love her so much. Her incredibly different vocal ability from the rest of the Japanese singers gives her a sort of unique feel. Rarely you can hear a Japanese sing so low and torn up from cigarette smoke, especially from a female. Musically she varies from decade to decade. I only have one of her albums from the 70s but during the 80s she sounded far more happy and energetic than in the 90s. So yeah, you have a bit of everything in her career.

Where to start? Well I personally started with Cat Nap but I fell in love with her music when I heard Hitomoshigoro. I guess you can go along that route or start from the beginning of her career. Darkness albums have the most tracks and also a lot of improvisation songs, the usual jazz wankery.

1972 - Blue Spirit Blues
1980 - One (EP)
1982 - Cat Nap
1988 - Darkness
1991 - Black
1993 - Hitomoshigoro
1995 - Darkness I
1996 - Darkness II
1997 - Darkness III
1998 - Yami No Naka Ni Okizari Ni Shite-Black Ni Good Luck
2007 - Darkness IV

Jun Abe - Portus

Portus is one of those Japanese horror stories. You know, the ones with cursed things and vengeful ghosts.

The story of Portus is about a video game called, well, Portus. There's a rumor that if you play it enough you can encounter a secret level in the game. In that level there is some mysterious boy and if you loose you will commit suicide (in seven daaaaays). And there comes our protagonist whose friend committed suicide because of that game. She finds the video game in her room and the investigation begins.

While the story does rip off elements from The Ring and similar popular horror movies it certainly has its own merits. Actually the story does drift off in a lot different way from the movie Ring. While this is supposed to be a horror story and on the back cover it states so boldly that this story "might put you off video games for the rest of your life" it's not that scary as it presents itself. Unlike for example stories by Junji Ito where tension and horror slowly but steady climbs up to a two page climax of ultimate horror this one relies more on the GOTCHA factor that we see in American horrors. Despite that flaw the story did immerse me and I did feel the tension of the whole situation and the claustrophobic feel of the game itself.

The art actually reminds me a lot on what Naoki Yamamoto (Believers etc.) does and clearly Jun Abe has a lot of talent for drawing. My only complaint in the art department of things would be that sometimes facial expressions are not what they are supposed to be. They aren't quite well made sometimes. I don't know how to explain it, they just feel stiff sometimes. Except those moments the overall art is quite good so if you think the story is generic at least you'll enjoy the art.

Overall it's an ok horror story. You won't die if don't read it but it's a fun ride so why the hell not read it? :D

Get.