[you name it]

2 days ago we went to the usual to do the usual. It was pretty much the same and we were listening to the usual. Everything was just as usual, and there was a couple of other guys over there watching some Metal documentary. I placed my cellphone on top of the table in front of the tv, and then suddenly my cellphone alarm rang. Well, being an avid fan of Maximum The Hormone, I set my alarm ringtone to What's Up People?! and when it rang I quickly turned it off. There was one guy sitting right in front of my table and when I turned the alarm off, He looked at my cellphone, looked at me, and then looked at the phone again. And looked at me. Then he sprayed "Hey, your ringtone just now is Maximum the Hormone right?"

 

OH MY GOSH I THOUGHT THAT I WOULD BE THE ONLY PERSON IN NEGRI JIRAN WHO ACTUALLY LOVE MTH!!!!!!!

and he was like "yeah! I thought so too!" Then we went on about their new singles, and new PVs that he missed out. Oh that reminds me! I gotta post the link on his fb page *runs*

Aaand so we continued on about how epic their shows are but then he was pretty disappointed because Japanese crowds don't mosh. He also stated that he haven't been listening to them for quite a while and the last album that he listened to was Rokkinpo Goroshi, but surprisingly he is familiar with Buiikikaesu which came out afterwards. He likes Enter Shikari as well. Wah. I finally met another  MTH fan (do MTH actually have a name for their fans? Hmm.)!! It's so nice that when you talk to people with similar taste of music you can just ramble on without being stared at or simply ignored :P

Last night, we went there again but then too bad Earth couldn't make it. There were a bunch of guys watching G.I. Joe when we arrived, including the BLANC" voc guy. He said that Earth was pretty busy and they didn't get enough sleep so he said that Earth might be dead tired. So it SEEMS like we came in vain, so we headed out after gave the fellas some buh-byes. We were about to go down the stairs when voc guy came out and asked "Hey, who played the keyboard for your song?" then Tmg and Oxymoron pointed at me. Kinda awkward, so I just smiled. Then he mentioned that they will have a gig on july and kinda implied an invitation to play with them for that gig. When "JULY" came out from his mouth I knew I wouldn't be able to make it because I'll be at dog-eating place by then. So, I explained my situation to him. 

The expected expression from me should be "OWHHH MAAAAAYYYNNNN *bang head to the wall*" or "*kneel down to the ground and scream* WHHHHHYYYY?!?!" But then at that time, I didn't feel any disappointment/regret/emo or anything of that sort, but I was pretty happy. Even I find it strange. When he said "july" this came to mind "If it's not meant to be, then IT IS not meant to be. It's not for me."

Then inside the car Tmg said "we went there and the fella is not around. It's like we went there just for you to get the invitation and just to found out that you can't go. It's like in vain." I said "Means the gig is not for me. Just like me and -this other band- that asked me to play keyboard for them." If I agreed to join -that other band-, probably now I won't even know Tmg at all and I'll never be in the same band with Oxymoron hence nobody will call her 'Oxymoron' xD. The fact that i was invited already brought me to cloud 9 so let's just leave it at that :)

...No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him...--1 Corinthians 2:9

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future"--Jeremiah 29:11

an ok ok trip after the thunderstorm ;)

Hey hey! there's still some time to kill before office hour ends so lemme tell ya what happened last night :)

Last nite me, Oxymoron, Tmg, Wei2 and Jlt (a guitarist btw..) went to Earth's to check out stuff. Again. :) I was the last one who entered the door that leads to the stairs and when one of my feet was inside, I kinda catched a glimpse of a bunch of guys on my left. Of course la got bunch of ppl since the mamak stall is on the left but I felt like I know one of them.. So I put on my reverse gear to get a good look. And guess what, BLANC" BASSIST!!!!!!!! He smiled, I smiled then I continued walking towards the stairs that lead to Earth's hood silently hysterical xD 

FINALLY we meet again *dancedance*. So I was hoping that I'll meet the rest of them upstairs. I bet Oxymoron will be ecstatic to see their drummer :P

So we entered the hood and met a bunch of guys--apparently Earth's other band called 'V' a couple more guys, plus voc guy from BLANC". So without further ado we got down to beesknees and during that time V was jamming in the other room so Earth invited us in afterwards. YAY:D Oh! And guess what, the BLANC" bassist guy apparently plays for V too!! YESH!!

So we sat on a sofa and enjoyed the little "private" concert for free! I got a nice spot *again* which is right in front of the bassist (Oxymoron got a nice spot as well which is around Earth's 10 o'clock :P) hahah and here's some of my observations:

Last time Earth said "Let the stick bounce by itself". That theory is proven. It sounded amazing. I saw it with my own eyes. So far, there's only 2 drummers that I've ever seen play like this live. First one was the drummer in my first band (in this country), and second one was Earth. My frickin goodness. I was able to see his movements and seemed like he did minimal movements but yet the sound was complex and when I focused on his hands I can see shadows cuz the strokes were fast and he made it looked sooo easy. Oh. They played metal stuff btw. His facial expression was neither serious or excited. It was more like a blur. Y'know, the expression when somebody just woke up, sit on one side of the bed and just being idle until that person is fully loaded, he had the exact expression--only with the whole body moving xD. I didn't really pay attention to the tempo or styles or anything because the Guitars kinda stole the limelight.

The two fellas on the guitar were AH MAY ZING. Well granted, they played typical metal style with lots of shreds but they both seem to blend especially during the parts where they need to harmonize. I liked it. I don't know which one is the lead guitar because in most of the songs they played both will share solos.. This fella with red flying V was epic. Not only his skill was MAD, but he played evil heavy and energetic metal songs with the facial expression sooooo peaceful and tranquil as if playing Enya's songs and reached enlightenment. Sometimes he looked at his fingers and had this little smile on his face as if watching his little daughters showing off their ballet skills. *even an image of Buddha with flying V on his lap came to mind* Both of them shredded a lot, and I could barely see their hands. I saw shadows. Too bad I forgot to charge my camera and I was too shy to take a pic with my phone >.<.. I'mma have to put a sticker over the flashlight.. 

Up next, the bassist. Hm.. Not much from him last night cuz he was playing metal. But it wasn't bad since I saw triplets and noticed his good fingering. One of the bass lines were pretty similar to Rolling1000toon's pre chorus (very fast double pedal+bass thingy) but then he used pick. Oh! I'm lovin that Hartke stack at Earth's :)

The vocalist has great voice! Very typical metal but still good. He had lack of expression as well. Even in high notes sometimes he closed his eyes. But many times seemed like he was just staring into the abyss xD

Oh. I got an i-don't-know-whether-this-is-really-important lesson. KEEP A SET OF ALLEN KEYS  WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES. During the jamming the drum pedal went loose and Earth didn't have one key with the right size so he felt uncomfortable while playing. Hmmm. Reminds me one time when we were practicing at church, the same thing happened hence Oxymoron was having a hard time. Thank goodness I had my bass with me and the keys were inside my bass' case that I could lend her one and fixed the problem. As a musician, you might not know that suddenly you might have an opportunity to jam and need to make some adjustments to the instruments. So, always keep a set in your pocket/wallet or maybe hang those together with your keys. Same goes to guitar picks. I've always keep some in my purse just in case me or my friend or anyone need it at that moment, and now I gotta put some allen keys to my purse :P

 

Greatest the Hits!!

yeah yeah it's been a while since the last time I posted a review :P

I was too busy. This sem has been HECTIC. Before this I thought that this sem will be a very laid back one since I'm only doing my internship but I was wrong. Hence, I have no time to listen to stuff. My list is getting longer =.=" I've been listening to the same song over and over and over and over again. Some of my peeps know why *nudge nudge wink wink*.

Recently I've been listening to local music as well, so reviews comin' up :) this time I'mma review my fave band of all time--Maximum The Hormone.
They released new single entitled Greatest The Hits around March if I'm not mistaken.. I've found out about it when I saw sakosakosakkon's update on youtube. He never cover any song other than MTH's, so I knew something was up!! They released an MV!! I was so very dang frickin really surprised. It was Chiisana Kimi No Te and Maximum the Hormone. A medley. 

 I was like  when I saw the video because it was so... pop... Moreover, what's with Nao's side curled ponytail?! Also, She has LIPGLOSS on and she's cheerfully taking a walk in the park??!!! WHERE IS MY HEADBANGING DOUBLE PEDAL-ING NAOOOOOO??!!

The other guys' attire weren't as usual (y'know black graphic tees and sneakers/sandals except for Ue-chan who is always shirtless) but instead they were wearing some kind of tracksuits! @#$%^& AND WHY THERE ARE KIDS IN THEIR MV?!?!?!? I mean, if rotten babies, then maybe. But cute baby?!?!? And since when Daisuke-han become scream-less?!?!?

WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THIS WORLLLLLDDDDD???????!!!!!!!

I was really sad because I thought when they finally make an appearance again after a pretty long hiatus they will knock my socks off but then.. this?!?!
And then I said to myself "well, even though they've become like this, I will still love you MTH! I'll never forget how awesome you guys were :'( This song is not bad anyway *sob* and then I continued watching.
In the middle of all the 'happy and hopeful' kind of mood, the camera zoomed out and it turned out that the song was being played on TV with Ryo on top of it

VOMITING!!!!

and then he came in with his riffs, a little fill in from Nao, a big jump and then GROOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWLLLLLLLLLL!!!

My MTH's back!!!!

And then the rest was mind blowing. Like always *roll eyes*.
The level of evilness was normal (nothing trumps Tsume Tsume Tsume), and the bass lines was different since Ue-chan tapped a lot and used some effects! The concept of the video also was quite 'religious' I would say, because of the chant-like verse and everybody's style of playing. You'll know what I mean when you see the video. It's quite visual. Hopefully those aren't really chants tho :p I have yet to find the lyrics and their meaning.
If on Tsume Tsume Tsume they used kind of a bdsm theme, they have pregnant ladies with gas masks and dolls this time. Pretty creepy I admit :P

Oh! Fyi, Chiisana Kimi No Te is not included in the single. The other 2 songs sounds like typical MTH stuff-- punkish and funkish yet heavy with a hint of pop and cuteness in it :P
 

now you see why I heart them? 

Maximum The Hormone

[Well for starters, I would like to write about my favorite band… MAXIMUM THE HORMONE... I personally think that they are friggin wicked :D

I wrote this on my phone last year if I’m not mistaken :P Here it is…]

I downloaded and watched Maximum The Hormone’s live concert... With endless energy  shaked ZEPP Tokyo so badly that I am always hypnotized while watching it even tho I wasn’t physically in that hall!!!!

That's what I really expect from a concert!!

Call me exaggerating, but that's what I really feel. I barely blink hahah. I never get bored watching it [I watched it more than 5 times already. I’m serious.]!!! It really inspired me as a beginner bassist. I can't imagine how I will feel when I really am in their concert. fiuhhhh. I will lose my voice after that 2 hours of concert more or less. akh!

I’ve attended...erm..4 concerts, and those can't compare the energy that I’ve seen and feel indirectly from MTH's concert. It was a BOOM!
Huge thanks to my old band's bassist who introduced me to their song -- Buiikikaesu. I fell in love with the bassist's style of playing, and I fell in love with that song. I think that's the time I encounter the first mixed genre that I enjoyed soo much. I’ve heard a lot of those mixed or rather experimental music from a number of bands before, but I never really found one that makes my jaw drops for a long time but yet exciting and enjoyable at the same time. hmph.

My jaws used to drop while listening to those from Dream Theatre and some others but those are rather too technical or too complicated for me to enjoy. I’m amazed of their skill but I can't really enjoy it. 

So far, MTH was the only one who gave me 'eargasm' hahhahaks.

Looking at their journey, their first album wasn't really satisfying. erm. To be frank, it’s sucks so bad. Their band sounds waaay better when the new 2 guys came in. fiuuuhhh. Yokatta ne?! Their music keep improving 'till now. What a perfect combination they have now!

You see,

Daisuke (voc) has a strong metal and rap character. Can be heard so dang clear in every song.

Nawo (Dr.) is filling in the sweetness among the evil tones with her voice but not in terms of her appearance. Hahah! In TsumeTsumeTsume MV, she looks so cute with the twin-bun hairstyle and that kawaii voice during the bridge.It was a DOPE idea considering the EVILNESS of that song. In terms of the melody, her voice was like snow in the desert (say what?!). hahhah. Oh yeah, she sings and plays drums at the same time. She's using double pedal which is sick. Also her punk and metal fast drumlines makes her an amazing drummer with incredible stamina. She was even still playing drums during her pregnancy!!! But thank God her kid is ok.

Ryo (gui.) is the 'rock' one. The rough melodies and vocals is the authentic proof. He is also goood in playing with words as said in a website. I forgot which site hehheh.. Well, I think that's true because after looking at the lyrics translation, the lyrics are somewhat abstract but yet poetic at the same time. Some others are full of swear words, adult contents, complains, even anime character but he put it in a funny way, and you should totally check out their MVs. A number of them are quite funny. I don’t really care as long as they don’t insult my God.

Ue-chan, my favourite member of the bunch, and also one of my all time favorite bassist, he adds the funk juice to the songs through his slaps and pops. Well, as expected from someone who's a big fan of Flea, the sick bass-guy from RHCP. He is Ue-chan's inspiration. Even some of his tattoos are the same as Flea's! hahhahah. Oh! Ue-chan adds the screaming too, but in some songs he sings the soft part, like in Kyokatsu and some others. His basslines are wicked and enjoyable!! Makes me feel hopeless as a beginner bassist sometimes hahhaha.

Who the heck can think of such music as theirs which is the mixture of heavy metal,punk,funk,pop,and even disco????!!!!!! Well, I haven’t found any other until now. That's what I’ve found overwhelming. Believe it or not, you better listen carefully yourself.
I used to hate 'noisy' music such as heavy metal, screams, punk and all but now I love them so badly. Strange, eh?

Anyways, their music is full of surprises. For example, when I started to feel sick of their screams and all, suddenly they come up with some kind of verse which is totally pop, then the transition to the bridge is punk, then they tense it again with the rap and scream. In 'Mr. Boogie Tambourine Man' they started with a scream and metal intro then start the verse in reggae. When I listened to it, I was like WHATTHEHECK???!!!!" I was so surprised! It didn't sound awkward or off even in a slightest bit. It totally felt right and I think it was great. The rest of their songs are mostly like that. Some of the songs are totally punk but it's still has melodic parts in it. I just can't stand fixed genre. Some of them are in my playlist, but they usually don't last long. Depends on my mood heheh. Different with MTH's music, whatever mood I am in, I still can enjoy them. heheheh.

Well, whatever y'all say, readers. These are just my PERSONAL OPINION heheh. And the intended purpose was just to express my feeling about a particular band that I like.

Man! That was long, wasn't it? :P

Hats off to GOD who created music and equipped the people to play it :D

*peace*

credits to http://www.55mth.com/main.html for the images