Tuesday, May 31, 2005: System of a Dork

I’ll be sort of glad when May is over. Not because I dislike May, but because then I won’t have to look at those guys from “System of a Down” every time I log on to my Yahoo email. They are the “artist of the month” and they’ve awaited me like Queen Street pan-handlers or squeegee kids for the last 31 days.

Why do I dislike them so much? I can’t say I’ve ever actually listened to them. They look like they crawled into their parent’s liquor cabinet when they were 12 and never managed to get out again though. Each time I’m confronted by their image it makes me angry. I don’t really have to listen to them to know what they are about though. Where as 15 years ago they would have been pseudo-Satanists in order to impress their fan base now they are riding the Chomsky train to social relevance-ville where they and their trench-coat mafia malcontent fans can mosh-pit and protest “the unfairness of like, life man.”

Yes I think I’ll listen to some of that. I’ll listen right along with all those disaffected teens. You know the ones with the highest standard of living in the world who are angry about the unfairness of the system. The ones showing their solidarity with the oppressed by busting up McDonalds restaurants and listening to crappy half-baked rock that can’t decide if it’s heavy metal or rap or what. Even this band’s name conjures images of some awful anarchist book-festival full posturing cry-babies who would have been taken out and shot under the Soviet system they purport to believe in.

Please understand I like and have listened to my share of heavy music. Tool being a good example of that. But these clowns bug me. They bug me the same way Bono’s stupid sunglasses bug me. They bug me like those unwashed back-packing eco-weenies bug me. All that pitter patter about “traditional lifestyles” being destroyed by corporate whatever… Their idea of “traditional lifestyles” being smoking dope and listening to Bob Marley when it is in fact back-breaking labor from dawn until dusk, then dying when you’re 40.

Posturing idiots.

So let me get this straight, you lug amps and drums around for 15 years and now you are an expert in global politics and all that.

No, I haven’t seen your bong.

I did notice they are # 1 on Billboards’ charts. This doesn’t bother me that much since in 5 years something else will make these clowns as sadly dated as mullets, pentagrams and back-masking.

Monday, May 30, 2005: Big Rain

Tonight I was almost caught in a major downpour that had been brewing all day long. When I say “brewing” I mean it literally looked like it had been brewing. Big crazy clouds with odd shapes and dark tones had been threatening since I had got up. Finally as I was heading towards the BTS on the back of a motorcycle taxi I got hit with the first grape sized rain drop and knew it was a matter of moments before it all came down. I hoped off, paid the moto driver and headed up the steps to the platform and just as I got there it came in full. I am always amazed at this time of year when I see the Thais walking around without raincoats or umbrellas. This certainly sent them scrambling for cover down below. It was such a heavy rain the train actually stopped.

Sunday, May 29, 2005: Rainy Sunday

I picked up both the new Moby and the new Gorillaz CDs yesterday before meeting up with Sandy at the Vietnamese Restaurant. I bought the import version of the Moby which has two discs, one being the standard release and the second disc being all instrumental or ambient tracks. I must say on just one listening to both I prefer the ambient disc. As much as I like Moby there is something missing with this release. It all seems rather … I want to say over produced but that implies too much reverb or something. Too sterile? Too sanitized? Too safe?

I have the exact same problem with the new Gorillaz. It sounds like a Gorillaz CD, but it lacks whatever the first CD had that made me actually go out and find it. If this were the first Gorillaz CD I doubt very much there would be a second one. It isn’t that it is bad. It’s not bad. But it’s not GREAT, and that is what I expected. Again with the Gorillaz CD it is lacking. Too much Protools or something. Too clean. Too contrived. Not wonky or oddball enough. Further listening is required but …

Sandy went out with Pooky and the gang which allowed me to try out my new toys. The delay is superb. In “reverse” setting it echoes back everything sent in stereo and in reverse with a maximum time of 8 seconds delay. Switch the feedback up to 90% and some nice soundscaping is possible. The Octave Multiplier Toaster Oven is also capable of some great Adrian Belew style foolishness. It is a battery gobbler though. I noticed (after 3 hours of tinkering) that as the battery started to die it began to get very wonky and started pumping out all sorts of ghost notes and sub tones, which was actually quite cool. I recorded a bunch of things that may or may not ever be anything primarily using my Ebow and guitar into the Toaster Oven and then into the Shermanator which I fed into the delay stomper. Sandy got back at around 1:30 am and I was still warbling away where she’d left me.

Tonight Sandy and I went to see what was on at the movies but found nothing inspiring so we went for dinner instead. We walked over to the expensive sukiyaki place in Siam and had a meal there then took the BTS over to the Victory Monument and rented a few movies. (How much X-Files can we watch?) It was raining and storming pretty hard when we’d left the Siam Center but by the time we got back to the Redoubt it had stopped.

Saturday, May 28, 2005: Lucky Music

All the crazy sleep this week caught up with me yesterday at around 3:30 pm and I started to go into this strange dreamy headspace that rendered me unable to focus for more than several minutes on any one thing. A motorcycle taxi ride to meet Bonhomme for dinner snapped me out of it though. Suddenly I was making Anakin Skywalker Pod-Racing faces and VERY awake.

I got back to the Redoubt at around 9:30 pm. Sandy was to have gone out with a friend but apparently had fallen asleep and missed the call. We watched some more of the X-Files session four, which certainly is the weakest one we’ve watched. The episode where Fox meets some former life lover at a Waco/Jonestown type ranch is was possibly the worst X-Files of all time, or at least so far. Last night though we watched the Smoking Man’s life story one which despite it being soaked in all that JFK conspiracy nonsense was the best episode of the fourth session so far.

I went and changed some cash this afternoon. I was shocked to see the Baht USD exchange at 40.15. It’s been a really long time since the rate has been that good. I wandered over to Petchaburi Road and hit the Roland Music store and bought a new pair of headphones (“ear lugs” as my Dad would have said) then walked over to Lucky Music and was overwhelmed by the need to buy equipment and got a much needed digital delay stomp-box and a not much needed but greatly desired Electro-Harmonix Octave multiplier “toaster-oven” (as Chris always called those pedals).

The delay is a Digitech and it has some nice features like reverse and 4 seconds. Not really enough time to soundscape with but still nice. I don’t like the delay in my Zoom stomp-box very much. It’s sort of wimpy. The Octave Multiplier should go together well with the Ebow and Sherman Filter bank.

Greeeearrrroowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww……

Now it’s time to meet Sandy for dinner. First some Vietnamese food then to buy the new Moby CD

Thursday, May 26, 2005: Arielle Flies to Samui

Since Arielle's flight was at 6:00 a.m. Kaboom thought it best that we leave for the Airport at 4:00 a.m., which of course meant getting up at oh... 3:00 a.m.
I was first up, followed by Arielle then Sandy. Kaboom arrived at 4:00 a.m. and we threw Arielle's MEC stuff in the Zero and headed out. There wasn't much traffic to speak of and we took the toll-way out to the domestic terminal at the Airport with The Flaming Lips on the stereo. Once we were there said "bye" to Arielle and she headed into the terminal with her big backpack. Then we headed back into the City and Kaboom dropped us off at the Redoubt.

Sleep!!!

Wednesday, May 25, 2005: Arielle's First Day in Thailand

I got up at around 9:30 am today. Sandy was up next but I let Arielle sleep for a while longer. Once everyone was up Kaboom picked us up and we headed out for some coffee at Starbucks. Arielle was surprised that for a country with so much soy there was no soy-milk at Starbucks. I'm sure this will be the first of many surprises.

After coffee we went to MK at MBK. I could eat MK daily of course. Arielle seemed to agree with me on that point. She was also amazed that we feed four people and had food left over for about 500 baht and that the calorie count for the meal in total was less than 400 calories.

I left Arielle in Sandy's hands and they went off to find Arielle a digital camera before she goes to Samui. Kaboom and I headed off into the brutal traffic. We met up with them again at around 7:45 pm at a restaurant on Soi 12 called "Cabbages & Condoms". That rather stupid name doesn't do credit to the place which has amazing food and is partly open air, set back amongst these big willowy trees that have little white Christmas lights strung from them. It's all very elven and magical. They showed up (with Sandy's sister Pooh having joined them at some point) after taking Arielle on her first Tuk Tuk ride. Arielle showed me the nice Canon digital camera she picked up. I would be jealous if my camera wasn't so great too.

We had a big feed and headed out at around 9:30 pm. Arielle leaves for Samui tomorrow in the early a.m.

Wednesday, May 25, 2005: Arielle Arrives

Last night Kaboom took Sandy and me to the Airport to meet Arielle. She flew in from Toronto via Tokyo and landed at around 11:00 pm. It was really weird to be the one waiting opposed to the one leaving or arriving. We parked in the parking zone and stationed Kaboom at one of the possible exit routes with a sign and then Sandy and I walked around to the other possible exit zone. There are lots of Soldiers for security at the Airport now. They are by all the entrances and exits and some are armed with Uzi’s.

We stood and waited until about 11:30 pm when Kaboom called me and told me he’d found her. Sandy and I walked back around and met up with them. Then we walked back to the parking and loaded up the Zero before heading back in to Bangkok. Kaboom dropped us off and we hung out for a while talking until the effects of the flight caught up with her and we called it a night.

Monday, May 23, 2005: Some Kind of Holiday

Yesterday was some sort of Buddhist holiday so Sandy took off to some temple/family related event. I was mildly under the weather so I slept most of the day. I woke up at around 6:00 pm and went to Fresh Milk for some grub, hit 7-11 for some supplies and then came back to the Redoubt.

I spent a few hours messing with Mr. Roboto. It has several banks of preset sounds that are in need of removal or tweakafication so modified and or replaced about six patches with new or improved ones. This gave me a chance to get used to the editing matrix as well as being able to mess with the virtual patching and routing set up.

Sandy got back at around 10:00 pm and we watched some Season 4 X-Files episodes. She observed that so far the episodes aren't as good as the previous seasons.

Today was the usual running around. It was a holiday though so the BTS and the roads were pretty clear.

Sunday, May 22, 2005: Darth Vapours

The good new is you only see Jar Jar once. But…

I can’t say that it sucked as bad as the Matrix sequels but I can say it was depressing. The only thing that made it not ever more depressing was the fact that we’ve all known that Anakin becomes Vader since 1980 or so. Still I feel sort of ripped off. Not just by this movie but by all three prequels. Ripped off that the last two movies set it up for THIS… This being a sugar-coated Belsan School Massacre all served up with M & M’s and Happy Meals. A Shakespearian tragedy without any poetry in it; instead dumb lines like that “I love you… No I love you… No I love you…” exchange.

Yoda says to Chewbacca at one point “Miss you I will”. Miss you??? Dear Mr. Lucas I’ve missed Chewbacca since the 80’s. I’ve miss THE FUN. The notion that the GOOD GUYS win. I suspected a problem when I was subjected to those dumb Ewoks but then came Jar Jar and so it goes. Now it’s over. The last chocolate in the box being the bitter hard to eat one that leaves a bad taste in your mouth. I don’t care about how spectacular the effects are. You know there is a problem when you go to see a Star Wars movie and the most inspiring part is the trailer for the movie version of C.S. Lewis’ Narnia book “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe”.

Saturday, May 21, 2005: Revenge of The Jar Jar Binks

I am just waiting for Sandy to show up so we can go over to Siam Discovery to see the new Star Wars movie. I splurged and got tickets for the showing at the more expensive 500 Baht Grand EGV. Sandy (who is a spent thrift on everything but shoes and purses) felt that 500 Baht each was too much. 15 bucks. Isn’t that the regular going rate now in Canada for some sticky floored crowded theatre? Since we rarely go to see movies now (a combination of there being nothing worth seeing and end of the day laziness) and the fact that it is a Star Wars movie I think it will be 1000 Baht well spent.

Unless of course Jar Jar Binks has a major roll in the movie. Then I will be upset.

And with that thought, how am I supposed to take any of George Lucas’ social, political commentary and or message seriously. He was the guy who thought putting Jar Jar Binks in a movie was a good idea. If there hadn’t been such an outcry over him Lucas would have probably given him a major roll in Episodes II and III.

“Well message in this movie is blah blah blah”

Yah, whatever Mr. Lucas. You thought up Jar Jar, what the what do you know about things?

Thursday, May 19, 2005: Sandy Back

Sandy got back to Bangkok at around 4:00 am. This was after a 12 hour drive from up towards Laos. I don’t like the idea of her traveling long hours on the highways here, primarily because of the bad driving that abounds in this country. Anyways she woke me up when she got back and I stumbled through the TV zone to let her in to the Redoubt, knocking over all that was in my path.

Rain rain rain. It is with out a doubt RAINY SEASON. That’s okay. I don’t think I could have taken another week of that heat we were having. Now the mornings are cool when I go out and it usually doesn’t start coming down hard until around lunch.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005: Road To No Where

Well rainy season has arrived. That isn't to suggest that all it does is rain though. But it did rain yesterday afternoon for a while and today there was a thunder storm at around noon. The benefit of this of course (besides not having to water the plants) is the drop in temperature.

Sandy has gone up country with her Sister Pooh to their friend Pookey's wedding. She is due back Friday so it will just be me and the machines this week.

I have been listening to the second disc from The Talking Heads compilation CD "Sand in the Vaseline" while driving to and fro in the Zero and I have come to decide that most of what they did after Eno stopped producing them really sucks. I would say that Remain in Light is one of the best LPs ever made but unfortunately it was a downhill slide from there. The later stuff is so awful I have to grab the remote and skip over much of it. There are a few gems like "Road to No Where", "Flowers", and "Sax & Violins" but the rest is a annoying. They became a cliché of themselves.

Thursday, May 12, 2005: Sniffles & Grumpy

I am Sniffles man. Actually more hack-hack than sniffles. I am also grumpy and unwilling to move from this spot. I will move from this spot but I will be grumpy about it.

It rained last night. Not for long but for quite abit. That really isn't a sentence but when Bill Gate's Grammar Robots want to take me to task about it I will simply press "IGNORE RULE".

I semi-finished an idea yesterday. It started as some odd little percussives in Acid Pro and then I added some loops that I've had sitting around for a few months. Later I added some Ebow and Bass Station.

I had sort of wondered if Mr. Roboto would replace The Bass Station but now that seems unlikely. Roboto's patch matrix isn't something you can mess with in the dark while half watching FTV Midnight Hot. The Bass Station's controls are set up for that sort of thing though. And the sound. As much as I like the polyphony and SIZE of Mr. Roboto's sounds the Bass Station has this particular thickness to it. Even in mono it can sit there as crisp and fat as a track would need. Why on earth did Novation stop making these machines?

The Ebow track I did probably could have used The Shermanator to up the Nash The Slash thickness but it was late and I wasn't in the mood for setting that rig up. I did cut and paste in a bit from another Ebow track from another idea that WAS Shermanated and set it under the new one. I am going to have fun trying to mouse this one but I'll wait until I've added some vocals before I think about that part.

Tuesday, May 10, 2005: Sniffles & Star Wars

Sandy has been Ms Sniffles since the weekend. Her sister Julian has been staying at the Redoubt for the last few days. Not much is new. It rained for about two minutes on the weekend. Which was nice but certainly not long enough. The heat has backed off a bit. Or perhaps it just seems like it since I'm inside in the safety of an air con bubble.

I should be excited about the new Star Wars movie I suppose but I'm not so much. It's the unhappy ending element that takes away the enthusiam. Or maybe it's the lack of fun in those movies. The first movie was a fun adventure with a background story but now the background story is the only story and the fun has been sucked out to a large degree. I would much rather see what happens after the fall of the Empire than all this prequel nonsense.

Friday, May 6, 2005: Sean at the Dubliner

I was heading along Sukumvit towards the Emporium today and decided to pop into the Dubliner to escape the heat as well as grab a bit to eat. I went up to the second floor and behold, there was Sean formerly of Larry's Dive who I haven't seen since last summer or so. I joined him at his table and ordered the mini-fry up (which I later regretted) and got caught up on what he's been doing since he left Larry's Dive.

Thursday, May 5, 2005: HOT HOT HOT

Hot season seems to have come late. It has been hot for a while, but there is hot, then there is HOT, then there is THIS. Too hot to go outside for extended periods of time. Even in the air con I seem to have a headache from it. I want it to RAIN. A nice big heavy thunderstorm would do nicely thank you. Any time now. Please.

Sandy's friend from Japan came in this morning at 6:00 am. She went to the airport to meet her. I did not. I feel back to sleep and had weird dreams about soundscaping. Something I haven't done in years.

Today is some kind of holiday. No traffic at all.

Sunday, May 1, 2005: The Usual Sunday

Today was the first "regular" Sunday in a few weeks, which was nice. Sandy and I did the long walk over to World Trade Center. It was a holiday of sorts so there were a lot of people about. I was almost run over by some idiot on a motorcycle near Pantip (I was on the sidewalk when this happened). It was REALLY hot out and not a cloud in the sky so we were glad to get to the World Trade.

We had our usual Sunday MK lunch then wandered about the mall for a bit. Quite a few of the stores were closed due to the holiday tomorrow. We made our way over to Big C and did some shopping in some extremely crowded conditions. I am always amazed at how many groceries one can buy here without spending the kind of money you would in North America.

We took a taxi back to the Redoubt. The skies had turned cloudy and grey in the time we were in Big C but amazingly it didn't rain at all. We sort of wished it would.