Feliz Navidad con Los Granadians

Here's a little Christmas present...the little mini-Christmas album that Los Granadians did...another good Christmas album.

http://www.sendspace.com/file/6c4h8i

Los Granadians are a band hailing from Spain, playing early reggae and some rocksteady...they're quite good (well, I don't like the rocksteady much, but i guess that's because it's the vocals that don't do it for me), so check them out!

http://www.granadians.com/
http://www.myspace.com/granadians

Podcast update!

My latest episode in the Podcast is a Christmas themed episode:

Los Granadians - Adeste Fideles
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - Christmas Ska
The Granville Williams Orchestra - Santa Claus is Ska-ing Town
Brian Setzer Orchestra - Angels We Have Heard on High
Mu330 - Everyday Christmas
Chuck Berry - Run Run Rudolph
Blue Beat Players - A Little Christmas Gift
King Stitt - Christmas Tree
Los Granadians - Noche de Paz
Roy Richards - Jingle Bells
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - Holiday
The Aggrolites - The Destroyer
Strange Manor - Sleigh Ride
Toots & The Maytals - Christmas Feeling Ska
The Slackers - Santa Claus is Coming Town
Strange Manor - I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
Los Granadians - Ya Vienen Los Reyes Magos
Bob Marley & the Wailers - White Christmas

http://daoster.podomatic.com

Right now, I'm coming up with the play list for my "Favorites of the year" episode...it's coming out pretty good, I think...

A Strange Manor Christmas

Strange Manor is the name of the house that some members of local BaY Area (and a Hawaiian) bands live...these bands include: The Soul Captives, The Phenomenauts, The Struts, and Go Jimmy Go.

They recorded and produced a Christmas album that reflects their musical backgrounds...rock, soul, ska, reggae, and even a little gypsy jazz in the mix. It's a great little album, so check it out.

http://www.thesoulcaptives.com/strangemanor/

AGGROLICIOUS!

I wish they had played this when I saw them last month.

Actually, the last two shows I saw them (two on the same day), their sets were quite different than what I was used to. They started out with "Don't Let Me Down," instead of ending with it.

Everybody's doing it..

So I'll do it too! I'll post some videos! First off...attack of the JAPANESE MODS!



A little quick tidbit of info that connects this to my favorite band, TSPO...

On vocals for the final band (The Hair), is Rui Sugimura, younger brother of Cleanhead Gimura, the flamboyant "toaster" for TSPO (who unfortunately died around 1995). Rui would join TSPO later for a year, between 1998-1999.

Also, the original guitarist for Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, Masayuki Hayashi, was also originally in The Hair...

That's it for now.

U.S. Soccer...

Words cannot describe how disappointed I am that the USSF (United States Soccer Federation) failed to get Juergen Klinsmann, former German national coach, as the next U.S. Men's national coach. I don't know whether the U.S. price offer wasn't high enough, or Klinsmann just honestly isn't ready to take up another coaching position yet, but I'm just really disappointed. Instead, we get Bradley, the current coach of Chivas USA.

I guess, I wouldn't be as disappointed and frustrated if the president of the USSF didn't keep talking big, and delaying the announcement till tomorrow, and all the news hinting that Klinsmann practically got the job. I think that if U.S. soccer really wants to improve, we need to have somebody with international experience...Klinsmann would have been the perfect choice...he had experience in playing for his national team (Germany), a successful result on his first coaching job (taking Germany to THIRD PLACE in this past World Cup), as well as being based RIGHT HERE IN HUNTINGTON BEACH and having a fairly intricate knowledge of the U.S. soccer system (he's been known to train with the L.A. Galaxy from time to time). He was perfect.

But oh well, US Soccer will have to put up with Bob Bradley for the next 6 months...don't get me wrong, he'll probably be a great coach (he has had more wins than any other MLS coach), and probably won't be as much of an ASS as Bruce Arena, but he's no Pekerman or Klinsmann...

EDIT: and the rumours of the reason Klinsmann didn't get the job simply being that U.S. soccer is sponsered by Nike while Klinsmann has a contract with Adidas...That juts fuckign PISSES ME OFF JHDASKJSDHJKASDHKJSDHJKHJKSDHJKHjk

Update on life...

School has been tough...I hope I don't fuck up too much...in fact, I hope I don't fuck up at all! Other than that, school has been a lot of fun though.

I just won the TSPO single "Senjyoni Sasageru Melody," which was the first single that TSPO's current drummer, Kin-ichi Motegi, recorded w/ TSPO. The single is also suppose to be dedicated to the memory of TSPO's original drummer, Tatsuyuki Aoki. The first track is suppose to be pretty haunting.

I'm currently playing FFXII...it's been too long since the last offline FF came out (FFX which was released pretty early in the PS2's lifespan, IIRC), and right now, it's pretty addictive.

Check out this podcast episode!

Dao''s podcast


Ska, rocksteady, reggae, and anything else I damn choose!


Episode 19: Something New Under the Sun!






Enjoy! -- Brian Dao

Westbound Train - Transitions

When people are talking about ska...and they're talking about Boston, one of two bands come to mind...first, are of course, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, forefathers of the ska-punk generation. The second band is Big D & The Kids Table. But hey, the Bosstones are unfortunately not around anymore and Big D are a perfect example of a "punk band with horns." The band that people should rightly be thinking of when it comes to Boston and Ska...is Westbound Train.

The band started in 2001, and since then, they have worked relentlessly, doing constant touring with all kinds of bands, and somehow found the time to record two albums. Finally, HellCat Records noticed them, and they were able join the HellCat crew and release their third album..."Transitions"

And the title of their album is a perfect one...what a transition they've made since their first album "Searching for a Melody"!

Perhaps it is because they've recorded and produced the album in the area with arguably the best scene in the U.S. (the L.A./Southern California scene), but once you pop in the album you can definately hear how the Westbound Train sound has evolved...tight ska, groovy reggae, and bouncy rocksteady all heavily laced with soul define this album. And the fact this album sounds a lot more raw and "dirty" than their previous efforts certainly also helps make this album their best one yet.

My favorite song? I guess it'd have to be the scorching tune, "Soul Revival," or their first track, "Please Forgive Me."

Definately a contender for on my favorite albums this year!

Check out their myspace for a download of the first song off their album, "Please Forgive Me."

http://myspace.com/westboundtrain

Times like these...

I think it's times like these that really test your faith doesn't it? Not in the, "Is there really a God or not?" way, but more in practicing your faith, and being tolerant.

Review of Pama International's "Trojan Sessions"

You know, I own two Pama Internationa CDs...one is an EP called, "Too Many Freaks, Not Enough Stages," and the other one was their last album, "Float Like a Butterfly." I'll be honest, I only mildly enjoyed their EP, and didn't like "Float" at all.

Their latest album, "Trojan Sessions" is something of a peculiarity...because Trojan Records is releasing contemporary artist....so that must count for something right? I don't think I've actually seen a Trojan record that hasn't been a collection of older Jamaican music.

"Trojan Sessions" also boasts a slew of legends in the world of Jamaican music...Rico, Dennis Alcapone, Dawn Penn, Dave & Ansel Collins (of which, this is suppose to be their first recording together in awhile), Derrick Morgan, Winston Francis, and AJ Franklin. That also has to count for something.

The album starts off on a very strong note, with the first three tracks being my favorite...there's something that feels very mysterious about the first track, "Disobedient Child" (which features Rico Rodriguez), the second track, "Neither High Nor Dry" is a very very catchy track, with Dennis Alcapone chatting/toasting whatever you call it on the track. The third track, "Betterment Blues" features Dawn Penn on vocals, and is a sort of sad sounding song, especially when compared to the previous track.

After the first three however, the songs start sounding more like same old Pama songs...though with better production values. Not bad, by any means, but not that great either.

Also, I was sort of disappointed with the Dave & Ansel track...not that it was a bad track, but I think it was my own fault for expecting something like "Double Barrel" or "Monkey Spanner..." I know those days for them are long past, but still...

My final word on this album? All the tracks which has guest artists on it are great, and I wouldn't skip them. The non-guest tracks are the same old Pama International stuff, but with better production values. Still, I'd have to say this is probably their best album to date.

Hi Ho Again

What up! As you can see, I've changed one big thing about the site...before, I had a banner for my podcast, now I have an embedded player...so if you're interested in hearing what my podcast sounds like, you don't even have to visit my website, ya lazy bastards.

I'll be reviewing three albums soon...first will be OutKast's Idlewild album. I don't know how the movie is, but the new album is fucking tight. The second album will probably be, Westbound Train's Transitions, probably their best album to date...probably becaused they recorded the whole thing in the BEST coast. Final album will be the very anticipated Pama International's, Trojan Sessions....which comes out in the UK on Sept 4, but unfortunately doesn't come out till next year for the U.S....which is kinda LAME!

Chuck Wren offered me TSPO's "Just a Little Bit..." LP for 50 bucks...now to some, that might seem like an outrageous price, but given that the ebay auction was very expensive (200 dollars for the last one I saw), and that TSPO even acknowledges this as the rarest record they've ever released...I think 50 is a good deal!

Woo, I haven't update in awhile have I?

Not much up, just that school starts soon.

Lame.

You know, there's something about later Skatalites recordings (ever since their album "Return of the Big Guns"), there's been something with the way their horns sound...I mean, it sounds REALLY clean, which to me is a kinda weird sound. I can't think of any other band that uses horns that has that particular sound.

I am super excited for that new Pama International album that's coming out...not only will it be released on the legendary Trojan Records (does this mean I'll be able to find it at major retail stores that carry Trojan's stuff?), but it features a slew of famous Jamaican musicians..including the first new Dave and Ansel collobaration since the 1970s!

Speaking of Dave Barker, I need to find a way to import music from Europe, more specifically, Liquidator Music. They have a couple of stuff that I want to get my grubby hands on. Also, I need to find someplace that imports stuff by France's "The Moon Hop." They describe themselves as a "Ska, Rocksteady, Soul and SURF band" and the few stuff I've heard from them have been pretty awesome. Searching for them on Soulseek is a little tough, since Moon Hop usually gives you Derrick Morgan's song and his boxset.

Review of The Drastics - Chicago Massive

In 2005, I was blown away by a group from Chicago called the Drastics, with their release of the album, Premonition. I'll be frank, I'm not a big fan of dub at all. In fact, I tend to enjoy dub from bands that USUALLY don't do Dub (a good example of this would be the Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra dub versions). But Premonition was different...it was dub, but it wasn't exactly BORING. When I first heard their track, "Wild Bunch" (featuring the ever awesome, DR. RING DING), I couldn't really stop listening to it...in fact, I probably listened to NOTHING but just that one song for at least a month...it was that good. The album went on to become one of my favorite albums of 2005.

Fast forward one year later, and here we have their second album released on Jump Up Records...titled, "Chicago Massive." It's a massive 2 CD album, with the first CD being instrumentals, and the 2nd one featuring vocals. I have to say though, I am severely disappointed.

Well, if you really love Dub, then chances are, you'll love this. This album took the more traditional rootsy dub route with a more emphasized jazz influence, as well. While the first album also followed the traditional dub "formula", there was just some magic in it that didn't make it boring. The same simply can't be said for this album, at least from my view.

The vocal tracks also disappoint greatly, mostly dancehall tracks, which is a good thing if you're into dancehall, and not so good if you're not (like me). I was disappointed that there wasn't an awesome hip hop track like that last album...10K featuring Vandell Harris (local Chicago Rapper) was one of my favorite tracks from the last album...it was just so sleek, so...hip hop, this album doesn't have much of that. Instead, there is a strong dancehall influence in the vocal tracks this time, which, again, is great, if you're into dancehall.

So to make a long story short? This is a fantastic dub album, if you're a big dub fan. The vocal tracks will also be great for dancehall fans. But me, I'm neither a major fan of dub or Dancehall, and as such, this album really disappointed me, especially when compared with "Premonition"

Review of Japa Rico - Rico Rodriguez Meets Japan

So I got this album the yesterday from YesAsia...how appropriate that it arrives the day after I saw Rico himself perform live at the Glasshouse. So here's my track by track review:

Man from Wareika - Japa-Rico Super Session. Lots and LOTS of horns...it's like a super group featuring memebrs of Miceteeth, TSPO, etc., with Rico at the helm of course. Good song.

L-O-V-E - Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra. Probably my FAVORITE track of the album...Rico is providing the vocals (as well as playing the instrument he's most known for), and TSPO just makes such a great backing band. Great cover of a Nat King Cole song.

Monkey Man - ??????? (I think the English equivalent of this katakana is Oreska Band or something of that nature). Might be the second worst song on the album...it's a poppy third wave ska rendition of the Maytals classic..the singer from the band is the one singing, not Rico, so its an Engrish version of the song...they remind me a lot of Yum!Yum! Orange, though I'd have to say slightly better, since RICO is playing with them, and they're covering a song I know.

Cleopatra - The Zoot 16. I don't know how I feel about this cover of the Don Drummond song...it's really weird...seems like it'd fit in a dance club...very drums and bass-ish

More - Kodama And The Dub Station Band. Rootsy reggae track. I like it, but I can't listen to it too much...though I think it's the song where Rico does the most solos.

Quando Quando - The Miceteeth. Great song, and without Miceteeth's nasal voice to lessen my enjoyment, it's up there as one of my favorite tracks off this album. This is actually a contender as far as tracks with the most Rico solos go.

Ghost Town - Tucker + Afra & Incredible Beatbox Band. This is surprise n0 1 from the album. It's like Rahzel beatboxing to the Specials' Ghost Town. I like it, it's like a hip-hop version of the song....really sick...

Rico's Mood - Tsuyoshi Kawakami & His Moodmakers. My second favorite track! It's a great song...why is it called Rico's Mood instead of Soul of Africa? I don't know, but I do know this track is a winner.

Far East - Skaymate's. My second surprise...of this album. Song was written by Rico, with lyrics written by the band, so it's basically an original...I really like it...I guess it's because the singer's voice really goes well with the song...it's a really upbeat song, I'm going to look more into this band.

First Convention - Cool Wise Men. I expected more from this group...it's not bad, it just doesn't impress me much. It's also an original, written by Cool Wise Men themselves.

Enjoy Yourself - Scoobie Do. Without a doubt, the worst track on this album...it's like a bad funk version of the song sang in crappy Engrish...I really hate this song.

Moonlight Serenade - DUBSENSEMANIA. The most boring song on this album? Yeah, probably...i guess some would like it...not me, too slow, too boring, too...I don't know, I'd say Dub, but it doesn't have the usual echos and strong focus on drums and bass, but the BORINGNESS of dub has definately carried over into this song.

Danny Boy - Jungle Roots Band. You know, this song is slow, but for some reason, it doesn't bore me like the last song. Acoustic song, with Rico singing more than playing the trombone...it's a great song, actually, kinda relaxes you.

Update on life...

he weather has been kinda weird...really hot, but not sunny....pretty humid too.

It's actually amazing how well I'm doing with summer school...I just got a 90 on my business calc test today, and I was pretty surprised about that...I have an accounting test tomorrw, so I don't know what I'm going to do about that...otherwise, I was going to go see the Aggrolites tonite @ Blue Beat lounge, but since my Accounting prof moved the test from today, of which I am equally grateful, and ungrateful for, no go !

I kinda miss home....dicking around with the homies...there's talks about a camping trip, so I might head up for that (or if it's the case of beach camping, I guess I'll meat them half way).

Haha, I'm going to see Bubba's band for the first time this Sunday...he says that their last practice was really good, but I shall be the judge of that! I'm also excited to see Rico again....The Skeletones, I'll be mildly interested in...the Untouchables, I heard that only one original member is left, and that they kinda suck now, so.......

And apparently, the Pedal Tones are playing again on the 19th...at the Chain Reaction, so that'll be interesting. Supposedly, a "super rad" special guest will be playing at that show also.

I think after I'm done with Summer School (which is only a little more than a week from today), I'm going to take music lessons...probably guitar...I'll have just have to figure a way to steal my sister's guitar down here...or I might buy one...though guitars are really expensive, I was reading up on a Rouge acoustic, that's less than 100, and is apparently, the best gutiar for beginners. It would be great to take up trumpet again, but with mr. dickwad living above me, I don't imagine I could practice trumpet so easily.

I also want to save up for a proper turntable...I want one that won't look like a freaking, "MY FIRST RECORD PLAYER" or something like that...but jeez, they're kinda pricey.

Also, after summer school has ended, I'll have to start working out...I know I've said this a million times, but fuck it, I'm keeping my word. I'm not the usual guy to worry about my weight or being fat much, but there comes a point, when enough is enough! I'll have to check out my school to see if the pool will be open for lap swimming, not just open for the public, and I wonder if the rest of the facilities operate normally...other wise, I guess I'll be looking into YMCA of 24 Hour Fitness.

My mom is coming down on Thursday, and my Uncle (from Texas) is coming on Friday...I was going to meet up with this guy (2Tone Ted) who would hook me up with this video of TSPO playing at a concert with Ska Flames, Prince Buster, and the Selecter and all that shit...and he has a lot of rare ska and reggae shit too, that I would love to check out/burn/steal. But it doesn't look like it'll be this Friday.

Oh yeah, I'm meeting up with a Study Abroad counselor for advising this Thursday also. Once I replace the big fat D- that I had in my Geology class (hopefully with a B or higher), my GPA should shoot up from a 2.9 to anywhere between 3.0 and 3.4, and that means I'll be eligble for the CSU study abroad program. I really hope I can go study in Japan, at least for one semester, perferable a whole academic year. The university that does the program with the CSU schools in general is a place called Waseda University, apparently a good school, from what I've heard. I might be able to get a double benefit going my 4th year (looks like I won't be graduating in 4 years...4.5 or 5 years is the soonest)...I might be able to find an internship in Japan, and that would help knock out the internship requierments for my International Business major.

World Cup Soccer.

goddamn, that game was close. I think the U.S. held off pretty well, considering they were reduced to 9 men...

thank you Ghana!

That was me at the Hollywood Ska and Reggae Festival last Sunday...as I said in my last post, I can die happily now...it was an amazing show!

The line up was as follows, from first to last:
- The Kingston Ska Collective (GREAT Skatalites cover band...Korey Horn, former drummer of the Aggrolites was drumming for them!)

- Owen Gray (backed by Kingston Ska Collective)...he sounded as great as ever, and he looked really healthy! It was a shame his set was so short...

- Dennis Alcapone (backed by the L.A. Allstar Revue). He was the most classy dressed person that night, and he was damn amazing as well! My first time seeing an artist like him (a toaster), and the fact that the L.A. Allstar Revue were so damn good certainly helped...at the end of his set, he had the band play Guns of Navarone

- Derrick Morgan (backed by L.A. Allstar Revue)...out of all the artists that night, he was the most frail...he was also blind...but HOT DAMN HE WAS AWESOME. He was excited when he heard the size of the crowd...he played all the classics....Blazing Fire, Tougher than Tough, Housewives' Choice (Persephone of Ocean 11 is such an awesome singer), and at the end of his set...he did a boogie woogie version of Fat Man! That was awesome. He came out for an encore and did...the song all the skinheads were waiting for...the MOON HOP!

- Pat Kelly (backed by the Expanders)...oh man, I'm not too familiar with all his stuff, but hot damn, he was awesome, such a great voice...at the end of his set, Owen Gray and Dennis Alcapone came out and they all did a song together.

- Alton Ellis (backed by the Expanders)...DUDE!! He was AWESOME, he sounded just like he does in 1968, and he was so awesome...the band did a medley of his songs first, and he started singing Willow Tree from the backstage...the crowd went nuts! He even brought his son, Chris Ellis, out, and they sang some songs together. The only sucky part of his set was when he started talking about peace and how we needed to love each other...some skinheads suddenly got into a fight...that was kinda lame! But anyways, definately the HIGHLIGHT of my night was when Owen Gray and Dennis Alcapone came out (Derrick Morgan was too frail to come out, otherwise, I bet he would have came out too), and sang SHANTYTOWN/007!!!!!! Oh man.....

Next up, the Man from Wareika...

What a FUNKY version of Guns of Navarone....I like it!

The show on Sunday was amazing...I can die happily now...

I was going to make a more "complete" entry, but suddenly didn't feel like it.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - Wild Peace

So I received my copy of Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's album. Their 12th, to be exact. Twelve albums is a lot of albums. Many, many, many bands don't even release 4 albums, much less, 12, so that's a major feat. I can't even think of ska band that's released nearly as many albums...

Anyway, on to the review of the album. It's a great album...not a super spectacular album, but it is definately a strong album. This time around, there seems to be less, "rocking" songs, and more songs of a tradtional flavor...

Was this meant to be a "sequel" album to "Stompin' on DOWN BEAT ALLEY" ? That album was released during the 2002 S. Korea/Japan World Cup...it had 3 vocal songs, featuring 3 popular (I guess?) vocalist, and "Down Beat Stomp" was considered to be the unofficial song of that year's World Cup. Come 2006, we have Wild Peace...which also features 3 vocal songs featuring 3 popular vocalists...the first track, "Come On!" is essentially a song cheering on the Japanese soccer game, and the last track, "Better Days Are Gonna Come" remind me of Stompin on Down Beat Alley stuff.

Anyways, from bouncy opening track, "Come On!" to the super energetic, "Wish Upon the Sun," to the authentic sounds with "The Pretender," Wild Peace is definately a solid album. Not their strongest album, I think, but definately not their weakest either. If I were to score this between 1 and 5, with 1 being the lowest, and 5 being the highest, this would probably get a 3.5.

Summertime has come and gone...

And for me...Summer time is OVER! :( :( :( Summer school will be the death of me, though thank GOD, thank GOD that I got a 3.0 average this semester. I thought I was going to go much lower, especially in regards to my ISDS class. Let's hope I survive the summer session.

Rest in Peace, Desmond

Desmond Dekker - the man who rose to fame on Jamaica's airwaves with popular songs such as "The Israelites", "Intensified" and 007 - is dead.
The man who was christened Desmond Adolphus Dacres was born in July 16, 1941 died Thursday morning.

With his backing group, The Aces, Desmond Decker had the first international hit with The Israelites".

There are very few artistes left today who truly represented the best moments of the first decade of popular Jamaican music.

As a young man Desmond worked in a Jamaican welding shop. And his singing while working there served notice that he had quite a voice.

He had one thing in common with other Jamaican artistes such as Jimmy Cliff and Derrick Morgan, Desmond Dekker was produced by Leslie Kong of Beverly records.

He formed his group the Aces, which at times included Wilson James and various siblings from the Howard family, including Barry, Carl, Clive, and Patrick.

After changing his professional name to Dekker, in 1967 he and the group recorded 007 (Shanty Town), which made it to ..14 on the UK chart.

In 1963 his first break came with the single "Honour your father.

In 1968 the group won the festival song competition with the single - Intensified. His second album was also titled Intensified.

Another hit followed with the Israelites, this reached number one on the English pop charts in 1969.

The death of his guide and mentor Leslie Kong in 1971 was a tragic blow.

Desmond eventually migrated to England where he later modified his music for the English market.

His many hits and concerts made him a star among the English youths, who were then discovering the rhythmic patterns of reggae and who would ultimately imitate his Jamaican "rude boy" style.

Desmond became one of the leading lights of the music scene in Jamaica until the end of the 1960s and was particularly inspired and productive between 1966 and 1970.

He continued to perform and record into the 90's. With his death - he has gone down in history as one of those who paved the way around the world with the infectious beat - serving notice that reggae music had arrived.

Truly, the world has lost a legend today.


This is a pretty depressing thing to come home to...I remember last year, coming home from my European trip, and I found out that Laurel Aitken died :(

So I started reading this manga, Violinist of Hamelin. Basically, it's a story that takes place in a fantasy world, not too different from mideval Europe. The human world is at war with monsters, and the monsters are trying to revive their great king, Kestra.

Our main hero, Hamelin, is a half human, half monster travelling to the North to destroy the Monster army, and stop the rebirth of the Monster King. He wields a giant Violin, and by playing certain tunes, he can influence the people around him (and this is how he fights). Of course, in typical adventure story fashion, he encounters various allies and enemies along the way.

The story could be serious, but actually, it's more funny than serious, with jokes, usually potty humour jokes, dominating. Even at "serious" parts where a city is under attack, the characters still find the time to make fun of how a character looks.

Well, I really didn't mean to really write a review for this series, what I wanted to say was that I've been looking for a series like this for awhile. It reminds me a LOT of my favorite anime series, Slayers, both in its characters and the humour, and the whole fantasy adventure feeling.

This series actually has an anime version out too, but supposedly, it's massively different from it's manga counterpart. Whereas the manga is all about humour (but don't get me wrong, there are some dramatic and serious parts in the manga), the anime is all about the drama, and is suppose to be one of the sadder series. I think I'll stay away from the anime.

Dance, Cleopatra, DANCE!

Rock a Shacka Vol 5 - Dance Cleopatra is a compilation of Prince Buster tunes. Rock a Shocka vol 2 was a Prince Buster compilation, but it had stuff that he produced only, not sing in or something like that. Actually, this Rock a Shacka is pretty good. I usually don't really enjoy Prince Buster's off key singing, but this is a great compilation.

My favorite on this CD is still the instrumentals, but his vocals aren't bad. I particular enjoy the song, "Prophet" he did with Slim Smith. It's a shame the song is less than 2 minutes long, since it's such a nice tune. Islam is also another song that I really like. Some band should totally cover it.

Come on!

According to www.tokyoska.net, TokyoFM was going to be playing a new TSPO song today. Well, today, being 7:00 PM PST, which would be noon time in Japan the next day. Kin-ichi Motegi, current drummer for Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, hosts a show called, Justa Radio, and was going to play a new song today, called "Come On!" According to Babelfish, it was going to be a song to cheer the Japanese soccer team in the World Cup, so the song might be something like, "Downbeat Stomp"?

I thought I had found an internet stream when my friend showed me this link, but it turned out to be a dud.

Well, that kinda sucks!

Summertime...

Done with my classes today, summer time is almost upon me, I can almost TASTE IT.

TASTE THE VICTORY!

Just A Little Bit of Your Soul...

So a couple of posts ago, I did this whole entry about how TSPO has all these references to old ska bands and/or songs. Here's another one I found out recently...

On the song Bongo Tango (which is a cover of a Skatalites song anyways), when the trombonist does his solo, he does it to the tune of RINGO, another Skatalites song. They play Bongo Tango a lot, but the only time it's really been recorded on a CD is their, "LIVE" album which was released in 91, I think. TSPO fact of the day.

Now, here are the play lists for the last 2 podcast episodes i've posted. I should have Episode 4 up soon. It's a West Coast + Mexico episode, and I had one hell of a hard time thinking of the playlist. First of all, I couldn't think of much Mexican ska bands, since I don't know of many, and the few that I do know, have shitty production values. Second of all, I was focusing wayyy too much on California bands, and if you'd like to drill down even more, wayyy too much Southern California bands. As a result, I'm not entirely happy with the playlist I made for Episode 4....I'm missing some IMPORTANT bands like The Skeletones, The Uptones, and Untouchables, bands that have been around since the 80s, I'm also missing some semi-big names, like Debonaires, See Spot, Allentons. But it's not a bad playlist, but it's just so hard, especially for an hour show.


Episode 3:

Polysics - Buggie Technica (New Recording)
The Operators *780* - Indecision
The After Hours - Tropical Bliss
The Ethiopians - The World Goes Ska
Determinations - Easy Problem
Little Tempo - Dragon Twist
Anouman - Exactly Like You
Alton Ellis - Girl I've Gote a Date
The Gadjits - Sh'Bop
Tsuyoshi Kawakami & His Moodmakers - Summer Samba
Moon Monkeys - Journey to the Moon
Don Drummond & The Skatalites - Garden of Love
The Wild Bunch - The Wild Bunch Meets Wong Fei Hung
Phenomenauts - Mission
Dave & Ansel Collins - Monkey Spanner
Toots & the Maytals - Never You Change
The Zodiacs - Renegade
Derrick Morgan - Gimme Back
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - Let's Go Out
The Aquabats - The Wild Sea


Episode 2:

Chuck Berry - Back in the U.S.A.
Slackers - Mommy
The Skatalites - From Russia, with Love
The Hippy Boys - Dreams to Remember
The Nuckle Brothers - Hot Rod
The Aggrolites - The Stampede
GG All Stars - Champion
Orange Street - Oh Please! -LIVE-
The Surf Coasters - SURFING AND SPYING
Don Drummond - Sudden Attack
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - Zero Fighter
Prince Buster - Freezing Up Orange Street
The Pilfers - Hypnotized
Desmond Dekker & The Cherry Pies - King of Ska
Determinations - O Wave
Sound Dimension - Funky Joe
Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría - Suavito
Ska Cubano - Loca Rumba
The Upsetters - Man from MI5
The Skoidats - Last Night

Finals...

These upcoming two weeks will be really tough, since finals are coming up.

Part 1 of a 2 part final begins this Wednsday for my ISDS class, then it continues on Monday (along with another Final). Summer is so close, I can almost taste it, but I need to survive this first.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's, "Hoshi Furu Yoru Ni" (roughly translated, "On the Night of Falling Stars" is their last single before their 12th album, Wild Peace. It was released on May 10th (a day after The Aggrolites released their new album). Personally, I think it's the best of the three singles they've released so far. The main song, "Hoshi Furu Yoru Ni" is a catchy, bouncy ska song. The guest vocals (who apparently belonged to the High Lows, a Japanese punk band) really fit the song well. Personally, I like his voice more than the mellow-ness of the first vocal single, or the more baby, Jpop ness of the second single.

The other songs included in the single aren't bad either. "My Baby Rooster" is a funky ska tune with Gamo toasting about...a baby rooster?? I dunno, is their like a second meaning behind that? The third song, "Michi" is a fairly standard traditional ska song. The 4th song, is the instrumental version of the first song, though I don't think it's as good without vocals, but it's still catchy.

In less than a month, TSPO will be releasing their newest album, "Wild Peace" in Japan. Let's hope it's as strong as their last album, Answer!

http://www.tokyoska.net



The Aggrolites have just released their Hellcat debut album (which also happens to be their second album) which is self titled. It's fucking 19 tracks of scorching reggae, and it's over an hour long (which is great for those who thought Dirty Reggae was too short). If you're going into this album expecting "Dirty Reggae 2," then don't, because The Aggrolites take their sound to a whole new level with this album.

I can't really explain it, I guess the easiest way for me to say it is that this album is a lot less "dirty," and a lot more "traditional." A lot of the songs sound like they were recorded and produced right in Kingston, Jamaica, or the UK, during the years between 1969-1971. It's the authentic early reggae sound. Some of the songs sound like they're unreleased Crystalites or unreleased early Upsetters tunes. Some songs really also remind me of the Rhythm Doctors (that's a good thing), another early reggae band that consisted of members of the Aggrolites. There are a lot more vocal songs this time around, and for the most part, they're also a lot more socially concious lyrics. Jesse's voice is just very funky and soulful and just accompanies the music really well. NO "Fakin Jamaican" here.

But it's not like they threw away the dirty, or the funk. The first tune on the album, titled, "Funky Fire" is a funky reggae tune that would make fans of funk and soul like James Brown or the Meters happy, and tunes like "Mr. Misery" and "A.G.G.R.O." still have that "dirty" feeling to them.

This was just an amazing album. They could have sat around and played all these songs that sounded like Dirty Reggae, and I still would have eaten it up, but no, they took their song writing to a whole new level with this one. I hope these guys stay around for a LOONG time, since I can't wait to hear what they come up with in the future.

http://www.myspace.com/theaggrolites
http://hell-cat.com/artists/album/478/
http://www.aggroreggae.com

A little advertisement...

That's TSPO's new music video for their new single, which will be released next week actually...a day after the Aggrolites release their new album.

Anyways, if you're bored, check out my podcast...I play a lot of ska and the like, but I do play other music (well, I will, since I've only uploaded one episode, and I've recently finished doing episode 2.

Here's the playlist to my first show:
Giuliano Palma & His Bluebeaters - Skaravan [live] (ITALY)
Gerhana Ska Cinta - Legendary Sir "Clement" Coxone Dodd (MALAYSIA)
Put3ska - My Boy Lollipop (PHILIPPINES)
Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra - Shot in the Dark [live] (JAPAN)
Desorden Público - Tokyo Loco (VENEZUELA)
Firebug - Gimmie Your Love (BRAZIL)
Polemic - Yes You're Right [feat. Dr. Ring Ding] (SLOVAKIA)
Lord Tanamo w/ Dr. Ring Ding & The Senior Allstars - Iron Bar (GERMANY)
Laurel Aitken w/ Court Jester's Crew - Dance Wid' Me, Baby (GERMANY)
Los Granadians - Reggae Clam Clam (SPAIN)
Oi-SKALL Mates - Let's Bald Head (JAPAN)
Tsuyoshi Kawakami & His Moodmakers - Ice Ball (JAPAN)
Kingston Rudieska - Shooting Star (KOREA)
St. Petersburg Ska-Jazz Review - Too Good To Be True (RUSSIA)
Moon Invaders - Old Friend (BELGIUM)
Viking's Remedy - Step on My Dreams (FRANCE)
The Ratazanas - King Kong (PORTUGAL)
Ska Flames - Mighty Three (JAPAN)

Rock a SHACKA

Dude....!!! So i just ripped listened to CD that I forgot I had...it's Rock a Shacka Vol 2. IT's a bunch of Prince Buster tracks, or Buster produced tracks, previously unreleased, and it was chosen by somebody from the now defunct Japanese ska band, Determinations...(BTW Vol 1 was a live album of them backing up Prince Buster himself).

D00DE!!! this CD is fucking kick ass, especially the instrumental tunes. They're all played by a group called, Buster's All Stars, but we all know it's really the Skatalites under a different name. Some of the instrumentals on here are fucking tiight, and I love the drumming. I'm not even knowledgable enough in the music to even tell you who's drumming...but it certainly doesn't sound like Knibbs in most other Skatalites songs (except NON-STOP, the drumming sounds similar to THAT!!!). On the other hand, I don't even know how to tell Drumbago's drumming apart from Knibbs so...

But whatever, they're fucking SICK SONGS!! Like Seven Duppy, with a sick ass trombone solo!!

Not all the Rock a Shacka's are Jamaican music however...Rock a Shacka vol 3 is a lot of tight old school rock and roll (still in transition from rnB) as well as this smoking Latin track...sang in Spanish...by a Japanese band. And it has a Ventures cover of Duke Ellington's Caravan!! Some sick shit.

Yeah, I don't know why I used so many CAPITAL letters and !!!! today, but seriously, this CD kicks ass.

Isn't this just the coolest ad ever? I wish I had a Lambretta..or Vespa. Scooting around town would be mighty fun.

Review of the Ska Flames album

This is my review for Ska Flames newest album, "REALSTEP" on CDjapan.co.jp.

"The Ska Flames is Japan's oldest ska band, and my second favorite Japanese band, behind Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra. While TSPO likes to infuse many styles into their music, Ska Flames is content with playing the music closer to their Jamaican musical forefathers, the Skatalites. Perhaps that's why the Ska Flames hasn't gotten as much attention abroad as Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, which is a big shame.

The release of REALSTEP marks their 20th year of playing and recording, and is their best album yet. The moment you put that CD into your CD Player and the 1st track, "Good Morning" comes on, you know you've got a winner on your hands.

With good production values, tight horns, and a solid rhthym section, REALSTEP is a must have for Ska Flames fans and fans of early Jamaican music alike. "

In other news, I have gotten my grubby little hands on an advanced copy of the Aggrolites upcoming self titled album. It's fucking great! Buy the real copy when it comes out on May 28th, you won't regret it! It's a lot more traditional than Dirty Reggae, but that doesn't make it any less awesome. I'll write a real review for it later.

I know I said I'd do a real post about something relevant, but I don't really feel like it right now, so sorry :)

I say HEYYYYY

Yo, long time no update!

So a few weeks ago, my roommate and I catched a free Aggrolites show for some St. Patricks day celebration at Cal State Long Beach. The retarded thing was that the first band opened up very late, so the Aggrolites could only play fucking 5 songs...2 old songs, 2 new songs, 1 cover. Still, I heard one new song of their upcoming album, so I was happy. The "headlining" band so to speak, was some lame Smiths cover band, so me and my roommate left early.


Earlier this week, I finally received my Ska Flames album. It's their latest album, called "Realstep" and is probably up there with "Damn Good" as my favorite Ska Flames album. I really love Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, but Ska Flames is a very close second. While Skapara likes to mix things up, Ska Flames is pretty dedicated to playing ska like their Jamaican predecessor, and they're arguably one of the best bands in the world that has done so. My favorite songs might just be their first track, "Good Morning" and the song, "Stolen Beat"


Speaking of Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra, they're releasing a new single next month. I'll be looking forward to that. It's suppose to feature the vocals of a guy from an old Japanese punk band called, The Blue Hearts. I don't really know that band, but I have heard their song, "Linda Linda," since the Slackers covered part of it in their live album, "Slack in Japan."



Since next month is May, it also brings it back to the band I was talking about first. The Aggrolites are finally releasing their second album, after a long anticipation by yours truly. It's suppose to be 19 tracks of dirty reggae goodness, so look out for it. For the full track listing, check out the Epitaph webpage here.

WEll, that's all for now, next time, maybe I'll post something substantial, other than music.

I My Me Mine!

Today, Polysics from Tokyo, Japan played at my school (Cal State Fullerton), and for free to boot! They played an hour set, with a one song encore.

My school books two bands every week to play at our school for free on Wed. and Thurs. The person who books these bands is a bitch, and has no concept of diversity. Week after week after week, we are stuck with the same old generic indie crock bands or shitty pop punk bands that all sound the fucking same. However, my roommate, who works at the same office as the bitch who books bands, sometimes is able to have a say in who gets to play. That means, I can expect at least ONE good band a semester. Last semester, it was The Aggrolites, and this semester it was the Polysics!

The place where the Polysics played today wasn't a big place, but it was big enough for them, and they had a lot of energy. The pub was pretty crowded actually. I couldn't understand a thing they said, but it was a very fun show. I was wearing my Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra tshirt, and the merch chick told me that she loved them (in broken English). The guitarist was pretty funny, there was one point where he said that we were going to his school now. "The school of rock, Polysics style!" I bought a Tshirt, and a poster, and had three of the 4 members sign my poster...(The bassist chick went into hiding). I'm contemplating whether I want to go see them again in two weeks in Hollywood!

Hmm

That my friend, is a picture of a rare vinyl that I just got the other day. The album is "Damn Good" from Ska Flames, and they feature Jamaican legends, Laurel Aitken, Roland Alphonso, and Lester Sterling on the record. It's damn good if I say so myself (okay, I'm sorry for the lame joke.)

So in the 90s, there was this boom of third wave ska bands in the U.S., with groups like No Doubt, Reel Big Fish, and Less Than Jake getting mainstream appeal, and it was the in thing. Side by side with this boom was also the pop-punk boom with bands like Blink 182 and Green Day gaining rising popularity. Now, many are claiming that "Third wave ska has died" and all the fans have gone on to emo. For now, I won't go into why I don't believe in the whole "waves" deal, but I'll have to say that it's wrong. They haven't all gone on to emo, I would garner a lot more of old ska "fans" have moved on to indie rock.

Now, there are many who claim indie music isn't an actual genre, it's a term for unsigned bands. I personally think they should stop bullshitting themselves. Like "Alternative Rock" in the 90s, the term "indie" has morphed into it's own genre. Nobody quite knows how to describe it, but when you hear it, you'll know. It's a whole subculture that's boomed into the U.S., and it's been fused into the "emo" (and I use this term sparsely) subculture. These hipsters populate a lot of the bigger cities...L.A., Hollywood, San Francisco, even San Jose.

A lot of these hipsters read a few books by philosophers, or intelligent people, and suddenly, they think they're shit and intellectual and can discuss issues like politics or religion. We all know they're not discussing though, but rather, repeating what they've read.

Don't worry, I'm going somewhere with this.

What I dislike most about these hipster kids is the musical elitism. These kids think they're the shit because they try to listen to the most ecletic and obscure of these indie groups. They look down on others who they feel aren't up to their hipster pussiness. I'd say a lot more, but right now, I can't really seem to put my thoughts together coherently.

REGGAE FROM THE GHETTO.

Ah, I love this song. I still remember my roommate and I putting on the John Holt version as loud as possible and singing the chorus on top of our lungs. Needless to say, security came, and we got in trouble (sorta, kinda).

Hmm, this issue with the abortion ban in South Dakota is quite troubling to me. I am a fierce opponent of abortion, but I don't believe that we're ready for legislation that out right bans the whole thing. I'd rather there be other ways of discouraging people from abortion, without banning it. To me, freedom of choice begins before sex, not after.

Speaking of women, the feminist club at my school kinda annoys me. It's like, they try too hard to show that they're equal to men. They were putting up posters around the campus about hwo they're challenging males to a feminist arm wrestle. Lame.

Kingston Rudieska

So from what I gather, the ska scene in Korea is young and new. In fact, I only really know one band, and that's the Witches, and even then they aren't trad ska, they're a ska punk.

While on Soulseek several months ago, a user downloaded a bit from me and messaged me about my collection. We had a conversation going, and then he mentioned that he was in a band called...Kingston Rudieska...apparently Korea's first traditional ska band. They've recently recorded a demo so check them out. Sound quality isn't the best, but they are sounding tight.

And to continue last entry's tangent...

...And that's just Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra. If you consider side bands like Tsuyoshi Kawakami and His Moodmakers, then you'd see even more "references" to Jamaican music. Here are a few examples for Tsuyoshi Kawakami and His Moodmakers:

- They cover Double Barrel by Dave and Ansel Collins...no toasting though! :(
- They cover Mojo Rocksteady by Prince Francis
- (These are probably covers of covers but...)they cover "Suavito" which the Calypso band, Undergrounds, also played. Also, they also cover "The Third Man Theme," which was also performed by Granville Williams Orchestra

Well, that's all I can think of at the moment.

So I got the Soul Captives' new EP, "Livin Easy." It's their second EP, and sounds much much better than their first self titled EP. Better produced and more sophisticated. It's been at least a year now (possibly even longer), since I last saw them, but it seems they've diversified their style a lot more. The majority of the tracks are rootsy reggae, which unfortunately I find a bore. It's all very good, just not my thing. The two ska tracks they had were really good though, and I hope they record an album soon.

But man...I seriously cannot wait...IT's almost May, and the new Aggrolites album is just around the corner...I still remember, 3 years ago, I didn't know much about this band, and just made a blind purchase, and I was totally blown away by them. To this day, I still listen to that album regularly

Their live show is even better, at the end of last year, I had seen them about 5 times in the course of 3 months. Despite playing a similar set those 5 times, I was still blown away from their performances. They're just so much fun, especially at a crowded show. The new tracks they've played are even more "Sing-along"-ish than their first album, so it's really fun when seeing them live. I kinda wish they'd record a studio version of "Don't Let Me Down," but they'd probably have to pay a lot of royalty fees.

There was more that I wanted to write, but I've lost the motivation, so that's all for tonite.

EDIT 2/28: And another discovery! In their VHS, "TOKYO SKA -EVERYTIME WE SAY GOOD BYE KAGIRIYUKU HIKARINO NAKADE" they play a song called, "After The Rain" which is anotehr Skatalites cover! And I also forgot about mentioning that they also did a version of One Step Beyond (Madness' version) on their "Speed King" project.

Yeah....... I have a little too much time sometimes.

Ska ME CRAZY!

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra is my favorite band, in any genre, in any country. They're just amazing, and it's really weird to think that in Japan, a ska band is an insanely popular, regular chart hitting band. And unlike most of the bands that got on the charts during the "ska boom" in the 90s in the U.S., TSPO know their roots...or at least when it comes to ska. It's just cool to see how they do all these little things that might not mean anything for the average listener, but is pretty nifty for a Jamaican music fan like me.

Here are a couple of things I've found:
- Skatalites covers. They've covered a lot of Skatalites' songs (and I know some songs, like Skaravan, are covers that the Skatalites did themselves, but to simplify things, we'll say it's Skatalites songs). Skaravan, Shot in the Dark, Bongo Tango, You're So Delightful (You Can Depend on Me), Lucky 7, and who knows what other Skatalites tunes they've covered? If you watch their DVD, Ska Evangelist on the Run, they also show a clip of them covering Black Sunday.
- Specials Cover. In their DVD, Down Beat Arena, they cover Nite Klub in one of their encores.
- If you watch their music video for "A Quick Drunkard," in the beginning when Gamo puts on that record, the record has the Justa Records label on it...but the Justa Records label has a striking similarity to the Studio 1 label!
- If you listen to some of the live versions of "Ska Me Crazy," you hear the guy saying, "Don't call me Scarface," which is a phrase made popular by Prince Buster in his song, "Al Capone"
- On that side album they did that was all techno and electronica-ish, "Speed King," if you listen to the third track closely, "Speed King on the Run" you hear them using a sample of the intro of the song "Skinhead Moonstomp" (originally a Derrick Morgan tune) by Symarip. "I want all you skinheads...put your braces together and your boots on your feet..."
- This might be a stretch, this might be because it fits their "big band" image, or it might be another tribute to the Skatalites! In their live shows, sometimes they use musical stands...which, lo and behold, the Skatalites used to do back in the day!

There are probably more, and I probably have too much time on my hand to recognize all this, but it's just interesting to me.

EDIT: See? I just discovered something new today! I was listening to their "Live" album, and they're playing Lucky Seven. At the end of Lucky Seven, they go straight into Prince Buster's "Mr. Prince"! That's tight.

World War III is started by cartoons...?

Opinions...are such a touchy subject.


I'm kinda torn on the whole issue with the Danish newspaper printing those cartoons which caused so much offense to Muslims around the world. I've seen those cartoons and they really can be offensive to Muslims.

At the same time, I'm a big proponent of free speech, and unforunately, the freedom of speech also includes the freedom to hate (thru means such as these cartoons, or message boards, or speech related things...not thru action). That does not mean I'm criticizing the protestors around the world protesting the cartoon...because protesting is a form of free speech. Who I'm criticizing, is those who are calling for a "holy" war against the "infidels". It really is vexing to see a lot of people actually wanting to kill others just for some silly cartoons. Is God so insecure that he'd want his followers to kill those who might disrespect him? I don't think so.

Now, switch to the other side. If the newspaper had posted offensive cartoons about something else...maybe something about homosexuals, or minorities, I really wonder if the newspapers would be as stubborn as they are now, constantly saying, "FREEDOM OF SPEECH, FREEDOM OF THE PRESS!"? Well, I'm not sure how Europe treats homosexuals and minorities (and if France was any indication, than minorities are treated like shit), so I can't answer that question, but that's some food for thought.

I know that over here, if anything slightly offensive towards anything (especially religion...and more specifically, Christianity), then there'd be a huge uproar, and the pussy newspapers would immediately apologize and probably fire whoever made the offensive content. I mean, people have been fired for less.

Don't mind me, I'm just thinking randomly.

Sometimes, I wonder how R.A.C. (Rock Against Communism) became a white power movement. How can an event that is suppose to oppose a (what I consder) flawed political and ecomonic ideaology suddenly become an event that is wayyyy far right and strongly strongly racist? It doesn't make sense.

I know that Ian Stuart the guy who fronted Skrewdriver, started the whole thing as a response to Rock Against Racism.

Wait a minute, did being against racism have anything to do with being pro-communist? Because I'm certainly not a fan or racism, but I'm not communism's biggest fan either.

Ah, the actions of idiots, it boggles the mind at times.

Some things off my chest...

Hmm, I look totally different from the picture I have up on my blog. That was a pic of me earlier last summer in France, looking like a dirt bag...Well, at least I've cut my hair since then (though some might say I still look like a dirt bag).

So this blog is almost unheard of, till tonite, I didn't even remember it's existence...I guess this might be a blessing in a disguise, but we'll see.

Right now, I'm (suppose to be) studying for a Japanese quiz tomorrow...after 6 months of not taking Japanese, I'm a little screwed, since I forgot the majority of the words, and more importantly, the grammar, so I'm slowly relearning it.

2nd Semester began this week...so far, classes seem to go quicker than last semester's classes, but this week has seemed to go slower than usual...funny how that works.

There are pressures other than the academic portion of college though...my roommate is pushing me to join his fraternity, and while I had thought about joining it last semester, during my long winter break, I thought long and hard about it, and decided that being a frat just isn't my thing, and I seriously do not want to join it. I'm afraid of telling my roommate this, because I don't want to hurt his feelings. But seriously, he's been annoying me, parading around announcing to his fellow frat brothers that I'd be rushing this semester. He tells me that it'll be the most fun I'll ever have in my life, but I seriously doubt that. Just because it was great for him does not mean that it'll be great for me. In fact, based on our personalities, I would definately bet that our experiences would be vastly different. Rushing begins next week, and I'll give it a chance by attending some of the Rush events (mainly for the free food), but honestly I don't think I'll be joining the frat anytime soon.

Also, there is a feud going on between some of my friends that seriously makes me think I'm in highschool, rather than college. It's between a girl and a guy, and these two are not a couple. However, the girl has tendencies to play around with a lot of guys, and this is making her gain a rather infamous reputation. The guy does not want to see her be thought of as a whore, so he has talked to her several times, but she seems to be very dense, and not really get the point. Now the guy has completely cut her off, saying she isn't is girlfriend, nor is she a best friend, so he doesn't want to waste his time trying to tell her how destructive his actions are. Now he's urging me to cut her off as well.

See, I have a couple of problems with this...first of all, I strongly believe in friendship...and I don't really like to see it when friends cut each other off, especially when I feel the girl needs friends the most now. Second of all, just because he cut her off doesn't mean I want to cut her off...but it would be awkward between me and him, or me and her...I really don't want to see her be thought of as a whore, and like I have said, I strongly believe in friendship, and now is the time she needs friends the most.

On the other hand, her and him were closer friends than me and her, and if he couldn't get to her, then how can I expect to get to her?

It seems that I've written quite a bit, so I'll stop for now. Next blog should probably not be so personal.

Whoa whoa whoa...I don't even remember creating this blog, and I am kinda surprised to see this blog is still even active. I have a couple of things to say, so I'll probably post more later, but for now...this is it!