I'm a judgemental guy. I think most people are. Judgemental, I mean. I don't mean that most people are guys. That's ridiculous. I've gotten very side-tracked. I'm gonna start over.
I'm a judgemental guy. Certainly more so in my teen years than I am now. It's probably part of human nature. The smaller your world, the smaller your tolerance. So, when I was a kid in high school, I had very confined ideas about what kind of music was Good and what kind of music was Crap. Most of the music in the world fell into the Crap category while Progressive Rock was in the Good category (ridiculous, I know).
After high school, I've traveled a lot and I've met all kinds of people and I've listened to their music and the thing I've learned is that almost everything is actually in the Good category. For me to have dismissed entire genres in the past - frequently based upon nothing more than not liking someone who I knew was a fan of the band in question - is a conceit that I'm embarrassed to admit I once had.
And so it is that a week ago, my brother burns for me a compilation CD (he called it a mix tape. I ask if that meant we were now dating) of stuff by the band NOFX.
And god damn, it's good.
Tight harmonies, great chord changes, moving and inspiring lyrics. One of my main concerns with punk has been a general disappointment with the vocals. And I fully realize that being disappointed with the level of musicianship in a punk band means that I don't really get punk on a fundamental level. But, nevertheless, I've found the vocals of many punk bands I've heard to be the thing stopping me from being able to really enjoy the material. The Bouncing Souls, for example. I really dig the melodies. I just wish that Greg could sing them. And the Violent Femmes. ::shudder::
NOFX is not in that same category, though. Their vocals are great. Their drumming is great. Guitar and bass work is great. They're just really good musicians, despite whatever self-effacing quips to the contrary that they might make during their live shows.
Favorite lyrics so far are from the song "Idiots Are Taking Over":
darwin's rollin over in his coffin
the fittest are surviving much less often
now everything seems to be reversing, and it's worsening
someone flopped a steamer in the gene pool
now angry mob mentality's no longer the exception, it's the rule
and im startin to feel a lot like charlton heston
I guess this is just a really long-winded way of saying "Hey, Ry. Thanks for the CD." and that NOFX is totally worth checking out if you've never heard them before. It's good stuff. Find some of their stuff on iTunes. Or, you know, feel free to stop by my car if you want to hear my mix tape.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
bridging the Ry gap
I saw video this week of a new game called Fez that is still in development. You can see the video here.
Watch only the first 40 seconds or so, and you'd be forgiven for thinking that there was absolutely nothing new or interesting about Fez. You'd be sorely wrong, though, but you'd be forgiven.
You see, Fez is a 2D vertical paltformer game much like the class NES games Kid Icarus or Metroid, but with bright colors and simple character design that makes it look like a cheap Mario clone from 1988. However, the truth is that the game isn't 2D at all. It's a 3D game wherein changing the camera's perspective shifts the gameworld into new combinations of 2D elements.
Make any sense? Doubtful. But if you watch the video, you'll see what I mean. It's pretty freakin' sweet. As soon as I saw it, I thought that it might be the kind of game that could get my brother to dust off his thumbs and pick up a game again for the first time since the SNES. Once games went 3D, he lost interest. Maybe experiments like this can get him back into the fold.
Watch only the first 40 seconds or so, and you'd be forgiven for thinking that there was absolutely nothing new or interesting about Fez. You'd be sorely wrong, though, but you'd be forgiven.
You see, Fez is a 2D vertical paltformer game much like the class NES games Kid Icarus or Metroid, but with bright colors and simple character design that makes it look like a cheap Mario clone from 1988. However, the truth is that the game isn't 2D at all. It's a 3D game wherein changing the camera's perspective shifts the gameworld into new combinations of 2D elements.
Make any sense? Doubtful. But if you watch the video, you'll see what I mean. It's pretty freakin' sweet. As soon as I saw it, I thought that it might be the kind of game that could get my brother to dust off his thumbs and pick up a game again for the first time since the SNES. Once games went 3D, he lost interest. Maybe experiments like this can get him back into the fold.
oh, idiocy...
You create a very special brand of entertainment.
Today I'm driving into work when I spot another thing that I wish I could simply take a picture of with my eyes and upload to Flickr. At a stoplight, I realize that I'm sitting next to a graffitied bus stop ad.
The ad for New York Life Insurance, in its unaltered form, read:
"PIECE OF
MIND
FOR YOUR
FAMILY
NEW YORK
LIFE"
Not exactly the catchiest ad I've ever seen, but whatever. What made it so special was the bigotted, xenophobic graffiti someone had scribbled between the real copy with a black felt marker that read:
"PIECE OF
MIND
in eglish
FOR YOUR
FAMILY
speak english
NEW YORK
LIFE"
And no, that's not a typo. The bigot who wanted everyone to speak English had written "eglish." I wonder if anyone has statistics on graffiti literacy? I wonder where the US would place in the world rankings?
Today I'm driving into work when I spot another thing that I wish I could simply take a picture of with my eyes and upload to Flickr. At a stoplight, I realize that I'm sitting next to a graffitied bus stop ad.
The ad for New York Life Insurance, in its unaltered form, read:
"PIECE OF
MIND
FOR YOUR
FAMILY
NEW YORK
LIFE"
Not exactly the catchiest ad I've ever seen, but whatever. What made it so special was the bigotted, xenophobic graffiti someone had scribbled between the real copy with a black felt marker that read:
"PIECE OF
MIND
in eglish
FOR YOUR
FAMILY
speak english
NEW YORK
LIFE"
And no, that's not a typo. The bigot who wanted everyone to speak English had written "eglish." I wonder if anyone has statistics on graffiti literacy? I wonder where the US would place in the world rankings?
Thursday, February 21, 2008
maybe in the future
Of all of the things I wish for from the future - be it flying cars, chocolate cake vitamens, or shiny jumpsuits that blind us to our dystopian surroundings - perhaps the one that I think about the most is the ability to take snapshots merely with our own eyesight (or memories) and then download them to external media. I would do this all the freakin' time if I could.
Just yesterday I was driving into work while it was raining. Something about the angle of the sun, the position of the car in from of me, and my position to the two of them made it so that as it drove on the rain-slicked exit ramp in front of me, it was kicking up a chain of rainbows off of the mist from it's rear tires.
It was beautiful. And nothing I'd ever seen before. And nothing I ever expect to see again.
That is until Sony manages to install USB 4.0 into my brain and I can just download my brain directly to Flickr.
Just yesterday I was driving into work while it was raining. Something about the angle of the sun, the position of the car in from of me, and my position to the two of them made it so that as it drove on the rain-slicked exit ramp in front of me, it was kicking up a chain of rainbows off of the mist from it's rear tires.
It was beautiful. And nothing I'd ever seen before. And nothing I ever expect to see again.
That is until Sony manages to install USB 4.0 into my brain and I can just download my brain directly to Flickr.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
who knew gardening was so badass?
A million years ago, when I was still regularly updating my blog, Amanda and I happened to stop by a hardware store. We were there to pick up some kind of fertilizer for roses, a gift for her mom who is really into horticulture. The questionable nature of giving someone a bag of crap as a gift aside, I found myself standing in the fertilizer aisle and completely amazed by how badass fertilizer actually is.
I tend to think of flowers in two ways. Either like this:
or like this:
Snooze. Not my thing. Apparently, though, I was dead wrong about how wild and crazy flowers can be. There I was in the fertilizer aisle when I realized I was staring down a shelf full of this stuff:
Bone meal? As in, plants are eating bones? I figured it had to be some kind of horticulture thing I didn't understand where "bone" actually means "cow poop." That was, until I saw the next shelf.
That's some badass cow-poop-in-a-bag, right there. I was feeling like I'd found the pinnacle of fertilizer here with these bags of vampiric demonweed food. Lucky for me, there was another shelf.
Dolomite lime? That shit will eff up your weeds. I don't know what "prilled" means, but it's probably a synonym for no-business, born-insecure muthafucka.
I tend to think of flowers in two ways. Either like this:
or like this:
Snooze. Not my thing. Apparently, though, I was dead wrong about how wild and crazy flowers can be. There I was in the fertilizer aisle when I realized I was staring down a shelf full of this stuff:
Bone meal? As in, plants are eating bones? I figured it had to be some kind of horticulture thing I didn't understand where "bone" actually means "cow poop." That was, until I saw the next shelf.
That's some badass cow-poop-in-a-bag, right there. I was feeling like I'd found the pinnacle of fertilizer here with these bags of vampiric demonweed food. Lucky for me, there was another shelf.
Dolomite lime? That shit will eff up your weeds. I don't know what "prilled" means, but it's probably a synonym for no-business, born-insecure muthafucka.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
reason number two billion why Amanda rules
Story time: I got a friend request on Facebook about three weeks ago that really freaked me out. It was from someone I went to high school with - but not just any old person from high school, mind you. Someone who had ruthlessly bullied me for about a year solid. I didn't know this guy before hand and then, just one day out of nowhere, he started to bully me. We had study hall together and he used to sit there and spend the entire study hall making fun of me - mostly calling me gay and running through every derrogetory slur under the sun that falls into that vein. This is someone that I have always regretted not telling off and sticking up for myself against. Someone that really got under my skin and has stuck with me for 15 years.
So, when I got a friend request from him, I found myself instantly furious about it all again. What kind of an idiot sends a friend request to someone they bullied? Is he looking to bully me again? Is he a complete fucktard and just doesn't remember that we weren't "friends" in high school? What the hell is this guy's problem?
I quickly came to see this as an opportunity to tell him off about all of the stupid shit he said back in the day, a second chance to stand up for myself, and bring closure to a painful memory from the past. I thought of exactly how I'd chew this guy out. Thought of all the most painful things I could say. And yet, that same "Ignore them and they'll go away" advice that my mom raised me with came back and stopped me from writing anything rash.
A day or two of internal debate went by before I told Amanda about it, told her how tormented I was by the guy back in high school and how tormented I was now that I desperately wanted to rip him a new one for sending me a friend request. She hugged me and then said "Don't write anything. You're an adult now. Don't create adult problems over a childhood issue."
This wasn't the answer I wanted. I was hoping more for "Eff yes! Tell that asshat where he can stick it!" And while I didn't particularly like the advice she gave me, I still took it and ended up not writing anything back to the guy.
That brings me to today when I was cleaning up the living room in anticipation of my brother's pending visit. I picked up some books, took them over to the book shelf, and saw my yearbook sitting there. I decided to open it up and look up this jerk's senior portrait just to refresh my memory of how much I can't stand his stupid face.
One problem. The guy who sent me the friend request isn't actually the guy who bullied me in high school. Somewhere over the intervening 15 years, I've swapped his name with the name of this other guy who I never really knew at all, and who sent me a friend request three weeks ago.
Oops. If not for Amanda, I would have written a scathing email to a guy who wouldn't have had any idea what the hell I was insanely ranting and raving about. So, I approved the friend request this morning and chalked this up as just another reason whyI'm lame Amanda rules.
So, when I got a friend request from him, I found myself instantly furious about it all again. What kind of an idiot sends a friend request to someone they bullied? Is he looking to bully me again? Is he a complete fucktard and just doesn't remember that we weren't "friends" in high school? What the hell is this guy's problem?
I quickly came to see this as an opportunity to tell him off about all of the stupid shit he said back in the day, a second chance to stand up for myself, and bring closure to a painful memory from the past. I thought of exactly how I'd chew this guy out. Thought of all the most painful things I could say. And yet, that same "Ignore them and they'll go away" advice that my mom raised me with came back and stopped me from writing anything rash.
A day or two of internal debate went by before I told Amanda about it, told her how tormented I was by the guy back in high school and how tormented I was now that I desperately wanted to rip him a new one for sending me a friend request. She hugged me and then said "Don't write anything. You're an adult now. Don't create adult problems over a childhood issue."
This wasn't the answer I wanted. I was hoping more for "Eff yes! Tell that asshat where he can stick it!" And while I didn't particularly like the advice she gave me, I still took it and ended up not writing anything back to the guy.
That brings me to today when I was cleaning up the living room in anticipation of my brother's pending visit. I picked up some books, took them over to the book shelf, and saw my yearbook sitting there. I decided to open it up and look up this jerk's senior portrait just to refresh my memory of how much I can't stand his stupid face.
One problem. The guy who sent me the friend request isn't actually the guy who bullied me in high school. Somewhere over the intervening 15 years, I've swapped his name with the name of this other guy who I never really knew at all, and who sent me a friend request three weeks ago.
Oops. If not for Amanda, I would have written a scathing email to a guy who wouldn't have had any idea what the hell I was insanely ranting and raving about. So, I approved the friend request this morning and chalked this up as just another reason why
Monday, February 11, 2008
Friday, November 23, 2007
creepy saint freaky
I like scary movies. Not gory movies, mind you. Scary movies. The kind that are psychologically terrifying instead of bloody and full of dismemberment. I don't do well with dismemberment. Part of why I liked the movie Se7en so much was that it's fairly goreless despite the subject matter. Instead, the horror in the film comes from pure fear - the fear of madness, the fragility of sanity, and the power a single person's destructive lunacy can have on random strangers.
Today I found a webpage that left me with the same feeling I had watching Se7en, that same feeling of watching someone soft shoe off the deep end in a dress made of people meat. There is a ... performance artist? ... apparently in Los Angeles named Shaye Saint John. Whether Shaye is a man or a woman, no one really knows as Shaye has obscured his/her entire appearance with broken doll parts and thrift store clothes. And Shaye likes to make movies. Creepy fucking movies. Go ahead, check them out. They're the kind of home movies that David Berkowitz or the Zodiac killer would have made if they'd had a camera.
Which of these was said by Shaye Saint John and which are from serial killers?
1. I needed a little time on the wires."Corretta could you get me the simon says game? Its under Jordan's bed!"
2. I shall have them play in a darkened dungen cell with crooked cues + Twisted Shoes.
3. I miss my pretty princess most of all. She's resting in our ladies house.
Unsettling weirdity, all of it. And all of it stemmed from a comment on Digg. Apparently, today is the 20th anniversary of another particularly odd piece of weirdity - the pirate television take-over of CBS television in Chicago. You can see that clip here.
Today I found a webpage that left me with the same feeling I had watching Se7en, that same feeling of watching someone soft shoe off the deep end in a dress made of people meat. There is a ... performance artist? ... apparently in Los Angeles named Shaye Saint John. Whether Shaye is a man or a woman, no one really knows as Shaye has obscured his/her entire appearance with broken doll parts and thrift store clothes. And Shaye likes to make movies. Creepy fucking movies. Go ahead, check them out. They're the kind of home movies that David Berkowitz or the Zodiac killer would have made if they'd had a camera.
Which of these was said by Shaye Saint John and which are from serial killers?
1. I needed a little time on the wires."Corretta could you get me the simon says game? Its under Jordan's bed!"
2. I shall have them play in a darkened dungen cell with crooked cues + Twisted Shoes.
3. I miss my pretty princess most of all. She's resting in our ladies house.
Unsettling weirdity, all of it. And all of it stemmed from a comment on Digg. Apparently, today is the 20th anniversary of another particularly odd piece of weirdity - the pirate television take-over of CBS television in Chicago. You can see that clip here.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
uh .... how about "no?"
I just got stock advice spam from someone named VampireKing.
I think I'll pass on his input.
I think I'll pass on his input.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
busted
Yesterday I found myself aimlessly flipping through a copy of The Hollywood Reporter. As I thumbed through the pages, something odd caught my eye. Amidst the stories of "movers" and "shakers" that I don't recognize, interspersed among the ads, there was a full page apology from Warner Bros. Pictures. It read:
?! That was a surprise. It's rare these days that you hear about actual plagiarism cases and it surprised me that there wasn't more of a hub-bub about this. Someone has actually edited two of the music files in question side by side and you can listen to them here. Believe me, there's no getting around it. It's a complete rip off.
Bad times.
Warner Bros. Pictures
acknowledges and regrets
that a number of the music cues
for the score of
"300"
were derived from music
composed by
Academy Award-winning® composer
Elliot Goldenthal
for the motion picture
"Titus."
Warner Bros. Pictures
has great respect for Elliot,
our longtime collaborator,
and is pleased to have
amicably resolved this matter.
?! That was a surprise. It's rare these days that you hear about actual plagiarism cases and it surprised me that there wasn't more of a hub-bub about this. Someone has actually edited two of the music files in question side by side and you can listen to them here. Believe me, there's no getting around it. It's a complete rip off.
Bad times.
Thursday, November 08, 2007
flashbacks
I'm getting flashbacks of my late teens today. My sister is applying to college and, as everyone has to deal with during the process, she's in the midst of writing college admissions essays. I'm very appreciative that she trusts me enough to ask me to look her essay over and offer a critique.
But, man ... I had forgotten just how mind-numbing admission essays are. For those who don't remember, every college wants you to basically tell them how great their school is, how you've been dreaming of going there since before you could talk, and how - even though they're ridiculously close to Earthly perfection - the only thing that could possibly push them over the edge into actually being Heaven incarnate would be if they were to accept you.
"Since childhood, I have made it a personal goal to live each and every day by the three words that grow, shrink, and fade on the University of South Detroit's web page banner ad."
That kind of crap, a muddled diatribe about integrity, diversity, and about 4 different flavors of excellence. My sister is doing a great job jumping through the hoops so far, but the entire process just reeks of insincerity right now. In reality, it's very simple: they want her money and she wants a degree. I can see ass-kissing essays being an important part of admissions for places like Yale, Harvard, Stanford, etc. But University of Whereever, Iowa? Come on ...
But, man ... I had forgotten just how mind-numbing admission essays are. For those who don't remember, every college wants you to basically tell them how great their school is, how you've been dreaming of going there since before you could talk, and how - even though they're ridiculously close to Earthly perfection - the only thing that could possibly push them over the edge into actually being Heaven incarnate would be if they were to accept you.
"Since childhood, I have made it a personal goal to live each and every day by the three words that grow, shrink, and fade on the University of South Detroit's web page banner ad."
That kind of crap, a muddled diatribe about integrity, diversity, and about 4 different flavors of excellence. My sister is doing a great job jumping through the hoops so far, but the entire process just reeks of insincerity right now. In reality, it's very simple: they want her money and she wants a degree. I can see ass-kissing essays being an important part of admissions for places like Yale, Harvard, Stanford, etc. But University of Whereever, Iowa? Come on ...
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
what the holy freakin' fuck?!?
Ignorance is fuckin' bliss. Driving in to work today I was listening to NPR and they were talking about the burst housing bubble and its effects across the country. Specifically, they were talking about what the impact has been on house sellers.
Well, thanks to NPR, I come to find out that everywhere else in the country - except for the San Francisco Bay area - sellers are having such a hard time selling their houses that they're resorting to gimmicks and incentives to try and pull in buyers. What kind of incentives? Here's the list of things I heard them discussing:
- Rent/Lease-to-own agreements
- Money back from the sellers if you buy the house
- Buy the house and get a free Caribbean cruise
- Buy the house and get a free Jaguar
- Buy the house and get a free electric car
- Buy the house and get three free cars
- Buy the house and get a free boat
Meanwhile, here in San Francisco the deal seems to still be:
- Buy the house and get effed up the ass with a ridiculous mortgage for 1/3 of the house you can afford anywhere else in the country
Fuckers.
Well, thanks to NPR, I come to find out that everywhere else in the country - except for the San Francisco Bay area - sellers are having such a hard time selling their houses that they're resorting to gimmicks and incentives to try and pull in buyers. What kind of incentives? Here's the list of things I heard them discussing:
- Rent/Lease-to-own agreements
- Money back from the sellers if you buy the house
- Buy the house and get a free Caribbean cruise
- Buy the house and get a free Jaguar
- Buy the house and get a free electric car
- Buy the house and get three free cars
- Buy the house and get a free boat
Meanwhile, here in San Francisco the deal seems to still be:
- Buy the house and get effed up the ass with a ridiculous mortgage for 1/3 of the house you can afford anywhere else in the country
Fuckers.
Monday, October 29, 2007
music to vomit by
Someone on the Gamespot forums for Thrillville: Off The Rails mentioned that they've been searching online and can't find the playlist for all of the songs found within the game. I'd consider that to be interest; so in the interest of interest, here are all of the songs and artists found within the game:
"4ever" by The Veronicas
"Anysound" by The Vines
"Be Good To Me" by Ashley Tisdale
"Do What You Want" by OK Go
"East Northumberland High" by Miley Cyrus
"Everybody Wants" by The Moog
"Face The Facts" by The Little Ones
"Feelin' So Fly" by Tobymac
"Focus" by John Reuben
"Good and Broken" by Mylie Cyrus
"Good Evening" by John Reuben
"Heels Over Head" by Boys Like Girls
"Here It Goes Again" by OK Go
"I'm For You" by Tobymac
"I Want an Alien for Christmas" by Fountains of Wayne
"Maureen" by Fountains of Wayne
"My Baby" by Lil Romeo
"Nth Degree" by Morningwood
"Number One" by Alistair Lindsay
"Ocean Avenue" by Yellowcard
"One Original Thing" by Cheyenne Kimball
"Parklife" by Blur
"Potential Break-up Song" by Aly & AJ
"Ride" by The Vines
"Right Where You Want Me" by Jesse McCartney
"See The Day" by Alistair Lindsay
"Smile" by Lily Allen
"Sunshine Girl" by Britt Nicole
"Ten Seconds in the Saddle" by Chris Ledoux
"The Littlest Cowboy Rides Again" by Chris Ledoux
"Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield
"We Used to be Friends" by The Dandy Warhols
That's the list of everything that we licensed. The next batch of songs are the originals that we wrote for the game:
"Critic's Song" by Alistair Lindsay
"Dr. Kunkle's Funnkel Cake" by Father Torque
"Emo Skater Girl" by Mozingo
"Go For a Ride" by Mozingo
"Loop It" by 80-HD
"MyGurlz" by Spark Victoria
"Off The Rails" by Monkeynaught
"Perfect Day" by Rapscallion
"The Ballad of Bandito Chinchilla" by The Busted Bunk Band
"Usagiville" by Robotson and The Robots
"Whiplash" by Monkeynaught
Lastly, in addition to that, we featured a number of pieces of music from classic LucasArts games. My feeling was this: when you go to Disney World, you're surrounded by the music from classic Disney movies. When you go to a LucasArts theme park, you should be surrounded by the music of classic LucasArts games. So, I put music in the game from:
Peter McConnell's "Grim Fandango" score
Clint Bajakian's "Outlaws" score
Michael Giacchino's "Secret Weapons Over Normandy" score
Mark Griskey's "Gladius" score
Jack Wall's "Wrath Unleashed" score
Anna Karney's "Armed & Dangerous" score
Dave Levison's "RTX: Red Rock" score
and, of course, music from "Monkey Island" (I think Monkey 4, to be exact)
So, all of that, together with original instrumental music composed by Alistair Lindsay, consists of the entire score to Thrillville: Off The Rails.
"4ever" by The Veronicas
"Anysound" by The Vines
"Be Good To Me" by Ashley Tisdale
"Do What You Want" by OK Go
"East Northumberland High" by Miley Cyrus
"Everybody Wants" by The Moog
"Face The Facts" by The Little Ones
"Feelin' So Fly" by Tobymac
"Focus" by John Reuben
"Good and Broken" by Mylie Cyrus
"Good Evening" by John Reuben
"Heels Over Head" by Boys Like Girls
"Here It Goes Again" by OK Go
"I'm For You" by Tobymac
"I Want an Alien for Christmas" by Fountains of Wayne
"Maureen" by Fountains of Wayne
"My Baby" by Lil Romeo
"Nth Degree" by Morningwood
"Number One" by Alistair Lindsay
"Ocean Avenue" by Yellowcard
"One Original Thing" by Cheyenne Kimball
"Parklife" by Blur
"Potential Break-up Song" by Aly & AJ
"Ride" by The Vines
"Right Where You Want Me" by Jesse McCartney
"See The Day" by Alistair Lindsay
"Smile" by Lily Allen
"Sunshine Girl" by Britt Nicole
"Ten Seconds in the Saddle" by Chris Ledoux
"The Littlest Cowboy Rides Again" by Chris Ledoux
"Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield
"We Used to be Friends" by The Dandy Warhols
That's the list of everything that we licensed. The next batch of songs are the originals that we wrote for the game:
"Critic's Song" by Alistair Lindsay
"Dr. Kunkle's Funnkel Cake" by Father Torque
"Emo Skater Girl" by Mozingo
"Go For a Ride" by Mozingo
"Loop It" by 80-HD
"MyGurlz" by Spark Victoria
"Off The Rails" by Monkeynaught
"Perfect Day" by Rapscallion
"The Ballad of Bandito Chinchilla" by The Busted Bunk Band
"Usagiville" by Robotson and The Robots
"Whiplash" by Monkeynaught
Lastly, in addition to that, we featured a number of pieces of music from classic LucasArts games. My feeling was this: when you go to Disney World, you're surrounded by the music from classic Disney movies. When you go to a LucasArts theme park, you should be surrounded by the music of classic LucasArts games. So, I put music in the game from:
Peter McConnell's "Grim Fandango" score
Clint Bajakian's "Outlaws" score
Michael Giacchino's "Secret Weapons Over Normandy" score
Mark Griskey's "Gladius" score
Jack Wall's "Wrath Unleashed" score
Anna Karney's "Armed & Dangerous" score
Dave Levison's "RTX: Red Rock" score
and, of course, music from "Monkey Island" (I think Monkey 4, to be exact)
So, all of that, together with original instrumental music composed by Alistair Lindsay, consists of the entire score to Thrillville: Off The Rails.
Monday, October 22, 2007
time for a career change
Every day at 3 minutes after 4, I get an automated email from our company's automated SPAM filter. For a long time, it used to simply say "Junk Emails Blocked: XX" Well, not "XX." It had a different number each day, but you get the point.
Anyway, that was all it said until about two weeks ago. Now, every time I get the automated message, it has a little graph on it that looks like this.
I'm flabbergasted by this. A software and technology company like Lucasfilm seems to get an average of about 15,000 decent, non-SPAM emails a day. And every day, we get slammed with about 4 million pieces of SPAM, most of which (but not all) get caught by our SPAM filter.
4 million unique messages about Viagra, "high quality" Rolex replicas, and mortgage offers that I wouldn't touch with an herbally-enlarged stick. How do those people make money? Is it truly just a numbers game? If you send out billions of messages a day and get a fraction of a fraction of a percent to respond, does that make you a viable business?
If it is a viable business, why aren't we all just sending email to each other for a living? Why would anyone want to be anything other than a SPAMmer when they grew up?
Anyway, that was all it said until about two weeks ago. Now, every time I get the automated message, it has a little graph on it that looks like this.
I'm flabbergasted by this. A software and technology company like Lucasfilm seems to get an average of about 15,000 decent, non-SPAM emails a day. And every day, we get slammed with about 4 million pieces of SPAM, most of which (but not all) get caught by our SPAM filter.
4 million unique messages about Viagra, "high quality" Rolex replicas, and mortgage offers that I wouldn't touch with an herbally-enlarged stick. How do those people make money? Is it truly just a numbers game? If you send out billions of messages a day and get a fraction of a fraction of a percent to respond, does that make you a viable business?
If it is a viable business, why aren't we all just sending email to each other for a living? Why would anyone want to be anything other than a SPAMmer when they grew up?
Friday, October 19, 2007
eff you, brain
muh .... vivid nightmares all last night. I'm stressed and feeling messed up this morning. And tired. That too.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
off the rails
I'm a little late with this, but the latest game that I've worked on hit shelves this past Tuesday. "Thrillville: Off The Rails" is the sequel to the No. 1 new Kids' IP of 2006 and is how I've spent the last few months of my life. From about March to September, this was my life - writing songs, licensing music, transcribing lyrics, and ultimately, becoming the game's Audio Lead in order to bring this thing in without it crashing and burning.
At the end of it all, I'm really proud of the work I did and proud of the results. Once again, David Collins and I have produced a slew of new original songs for the game. You can check out 4 of the 5 here at my MySpace page:
"Off The Rails" - Hard rock title track for the game. If "Whiplash" was a love song from a guy to a rollercoaster, this is the flipside response from the rollercoaster to all those who ride it.
"MyGurlz" - My second foray into Hip Hop. I'm really proud of the lyrics on this one. To quote our company president, this is a "grrl power" track.
"Go For A Ride" - Another rock track, kinda' like Journey meets Boston meets Def Leppard.
"The Ballad of Bandito Chinchilla" - The theme song for one of the new mini-games in Thrillvile: Off The Rails. This one was a lot of fun to do. As soon as I saw the artwork for Bandito, I knew I needed to write him a song. I think the end result does him justice.
"Perfect Day" - 80s-styled goodness. Interestingly, David Collins was watching the "Some Kind of Monster" Metallica documentary right before he wrote this track. Apparently something about watching Metallica get in touch with their sensitive side inspires 80s drum machines. (By the way, since MySpace only lets me add 4 songs, you can find "Perfect Day" posted over on David's MySpace page.)
Anyway, just wanted to share the new work as I'm proud of it.
At the end of it all, I'm really proud of the work I did and proud of the results. Once again, David Collins and I have produced a slew of new original songs for the game. You can check out 4 of the 5 here at my MySpace page:
"Off The Rails" - Hard rock title track for the game. If "Whiplash" was a love song from a guy to a rollercoaster, this is the flipside response from the rollercoaster to all those who ride it.
"MyGurlz" - My second foray into Hip Hop. I'm really proud of the lyrics on this one. To quote our company president, this is a "grrl power" track.
"Go For A Ride" - Another rock track, kinda' like Journey meets Boston meets Def Leppard.
"The Ballad of Bandito Chinchilla" - The theme song for one of the new mini-games in Thrillvile: Off The Rails. This one was a lot of fun to do. As soon as I saw the artwork for Bandito, I knew I needed to write him a song. I think the end result does him justice.
"Perfect Day" - 80s-styled goodness. Interestingly, David Collins was watching the "Some Kind of Monster" Metallica documentary right before he wrote this track. Apparently something about watching Metallica get in touch with their sensitive side inspires 80s drum machines. (By the way, since MySpace only lets me add 4 songs, you can find "Perfect Day" posted over on David's MySpace page.)
Anyway, just wanted to share the new work as I'm proud of it.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
when the zombie wars begin...
Everyone is going to want to own a couple of these things. In fact, when zombies are taking over the Midwest, I bet you this commercial loses its disclaimer at the end.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
what could bring me back
from the my hiatus away from blogging?
Bionic Commando for the PS3. That's what.
For those who don't know, Bionic Commando was a game for the original NES that had you playing as a bionic super soldier who couldn't jump. Instead, you had to navigate via your bionic arm through a ton of (mostly) vertical levels until you ultimately end up killing Hitler as he sits in his helicopter. Classic story? No. Classic game? Totally.
I still can remember the day that my dad drove me to KB Toy store to buy our original Nintendo. On the way there, I was trying to tell him that we'd need to buy a game, too. I think he started to get upset about the price. Anyway, when we got there, I tried to find a cheap game so that he wouldn't be upset. Whether it was suggested by the clerk or I picked it out based on it's cover art, I can't remember. All I know is that this was the first game we owned for the Nintendo and I loved every second of it.
When I finally bought my first Gameboy, the first game I got for it was Bionic Commando. Apparently better tastes had prevailed and they'd cut Hitler out of it in the Gameboy version.
But, finally, after 20 some odd years, Bionic Commando gets a proper sequel for the next gen consoles. I couldn't be happier. Something tells me Hitler and his helicopter won't be making a return this time around. Still, along with Megaman 2 and Crystalis, Bionic Commando is at the top of my list when it comes to classic gaming memories.
Bionic Commando for the PS3. That's what.
For those who don't know, Bionic Commando was a game for the original NES that had you playing as a bionic super soldier who couldn't jump. Instead, you had to navigate via your bionic arm through a ton of (mostly) vertical levels until you ultimately end up killing Hitler as he sits in his helicopter. Classic story? No. Classic game? Totally.
I still can remember the day that my dad drove me to KB Toy store to buy our original Nintendo. On the way there, I was trying to tell him that we'd need to buy a game, too. I think he started to get upset about the price. Anyway, when we got there, I tried to find a cheap game so that he wouldn't be upset. Whether it was suggested by the clerk or I picked it out based on it's cover art, I can't remember. All I know is that this was the first game we owned for the Nintendo and I loved every second of it.
When I finally bought my first Gameboy, the first game I got for it was Bionic Commando. Apparently better tastes had prevailed and they'd cut Hitler out of it in the Gameboy version.
But, finally, after 20 some odd years, Bionic Commando gets a proper sequel for the next gen consoles. I couldn't be happier. Something tells me Hitler and his helicopter won't be making a return this time around. Still, along with Megaman 2 and Crystalis, Bionic Commando is at the top of my list when it comes to classic gaming memories.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
not like riding a bike
I haven't written in a long time. Longer than I think I've ever really taken a break from this thing, whatever it really is. It's been a big roller coaster these past few months. Stressful, busy days at work. Depressing, difficult stuff in my personal life (family stuff, not Amanda). Life's been hard. One or the other is okay. At least you can deal with personal stuff if work isn't demanding 100 hour work weeks from you - or at least you can deal with work if you personal life isn't constantly nagging at you for attention and clouding your focus.
Things have been hard. Work has been a bit of a safety net, to be honest. Work is emotionless. Work is predicated upon professionalism and financial decisions, not shaky concepts such as loyalty, respect, and love. And the more I work, the more I can not focus on the depressing personal stuff that I don't have any control over, input into, or even real-time interaction with.
The problem is, the more I work, the worse things get for other elements of my personal life. I hate how much my work effects my ability to spend time with Amanda. There are times when I feel like a workaholic. And yet, I know that I would be totally fine handing this work off to someone else, if only there was someone else to hand it off to. I want to have a normal life back. I want to do things like go to the grocery store, or iron, or eat dinner with my wife. Normal stuff. But after working so hard for so long, I find it very difficult to go back to "normal."
I feel like I'm slacking off if I leave work at 6. It feels like I've only worked a half day. And then I go home and part of me is always thinking about work - what do I have to do tomorrow, what do I have to manage, what needs to be delegated/reassigned/put off until some other aspect of something is cleared up. I go to bed thinking about work. I dream about work. I wake up thinking about work.
I just want separation from it. I want to get back to a point where I'm able to leave the office at the office, leave the office at a normal hour and not feel guilty about it, and then go home and enjoy my time with Amanda.
Right now, I don't have that. And more depressingly for me, she doesn't have that either.
Things have been hard. Work has been a bit of a safety net, to be honest. Work is emotionless. Work is predicated upon professionalism and financial decisions, not shaky concepts such as loyalty, respect, and love. And the more I work, the more I can not focus on the depressing personal stuff that I don't have any control over, input into, or even real-time interaction with.
The problem is, the more I work, the worse things get for other elements of my personal life. I hate how much my work effects my ability to spend time with Amanda. There are times when I feel like a workaholic. And yet, I know that I would be totally fine handing this work off to someone else, if only there was someone else to hand it off to. I want to have a normal life back. I want to do things like go to the grocery store, or iron, or eat dinner with my wife. Normal stuff. But after working so hard for so long, I find it very difficult to go back to "normal."
I feel like I'm slacking off if I leave work at 6. It feels like I've only worked a half day. And then I go home and part of me is always thinking about work - what do I have to do tomorrow, what do I have to manage, what needs to be delegated/reassigned/put off until some other aspect of something is cleared up. I go to bed thinking about work. I dream about work. I wake up thinking about work.
I just want separation from it. I want to get back to a point where I'm able to leave the office at the office, leave the office at a normal hour and not feel guilty about it, and then go home and enjoy my time with Amanda.
Right now, I don't have that. And more depressingly for me, she doesn't have that either.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
christ ...
It's been one fucking difficult week, and it's not even over yet. I haven't written at all because I honestly don't know how to put down what's been going on. Suffice it to say, there's some bad stuff going on in my family right now. Really bad stuff. Problem is, I'm not even sure I know how deep the bad actually goes. Unfortunately for me, that means that my imagination is running wild.
I'm not sleeping. I'm distracted at work. I spent Monday and Tuesday feeling like a zombie, got better by Wednesday, and then found out that things were worse than I originally thought and now I feel like a zombie again.
Amanda's been very helpful and has been trying to talk me through the jumbled mix of emotions I'm going through right now. Ry gets back from his whirlwind tour of the world today. I'm actually going to meet him at the airport between flights in order to just sit down and talk him through everything, since he's just getting back home to the situation now.
This sucks so bad.
I'm not sleeping. I'm distracted at work. I spent Monday and Tuesday feeling like a zombie, got better by Wednesday, and then found out that things were worse than I originally thought and now I feel like a zombie again.
Amanda's been very helpful and has been trying to talk me through the jumbled mix of emotions I'm going through right now. Ry gets back from his whirlwind tour of the world today. I'm actually going to meet him at the airport between flights in order to just sit down and talk him through everything, since he's just getting back home to the situation now.
This sucks so bad.
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