Friday, November 06, 2009

Zatsudan: taikutsu

This picture is a few weeks old but I like it:



I had an unexpected mandatory day off today thanks to lots of people catching flus and other horrible plagues. Me, just some minor cold symptoms and a cough. There's an apothecary (I just wanted to say apothecary) a block away but the old guy running it keeps wanting to sell me, um, love potions, so I just decline politely and ask for the Stona.

Mostly I wrote stuff, but also I got distracted watched a lot of fora.tv, ted.com, and 'How It's Made', and it just made me realize that even though I think we have this pop culture image of our nation and youth as unintelligent and fame-chasing for fame's sake, I think it's so amazing that in this day and age we have so many avenues, so many interesting avenues, to discover a lot of really interesting things, to engage our minds, and to have a community of others similarly committed to the tried-and-true pastime of just plain learning.

And then, because we all need to cool down with a bit of the mindless, I found out that the one season of Stella is available for free.


And I like that idea of the pleasant paradox; the chameleonic modern Renaissance Joe, who can, at various, temporally close moments, occupy both the high- and low- end of the brow, so to speak. And I think that more and more people are embracing this dichotomy wholeheartedly.


This has nothing to do with anything.


Yesterday, me, Joe, Tenten, and our drummer _ _ _ _ _ went to Liquid Room (again) to see Dolly's last show with Yuina. All of Hi:BRiD was there, as was Yura, formerly of Ghost and Gakido, Haru from Dog in the Parallel World Orchestra, who is a nice guy but it's a band whose name makes me kinda wanna scoff and smack someone on the arm, and the awesomely and proudly bald Misa, as well as others.

We're under the same management as Dolly and Hi:BRiD but we don't really see much of them, so going in to say hello to Dolly was more a formal matter than anything, and in fact the first time I'd even met Yuina. And last, probably.

Anyway, it was neat and all. Their MCs are quite long, but funny enough for me to let it slide a bit especially if I don't have to wake up particularly early the next morning. It's sort of like if a Japanese Mitch Hedberg and Stephen Wright picked up some guitars and just shot the breeze.

Still looking for a 2nd guitarist, but I'm enjoying the new dynamic of our current setup and the creative blitz we seem to be experiencing. I would like to talk about songwriting processes more in another post, actually.


Also I got this fanart, which is so, so cool:
Man I love you guys.

5 comments:

liath said...

I loved this post Jimi - I'm all for the 'pleasant paradox' you describe. Become that renaissance man and others will follow you.....

You do, after all, have a dashed good brain occupying that space between your shapely ears, and so you might as well use it to it's fullest potential. Personally I get a kick out of 'just plain learning' - incurable curiosity is a curse but it's also a blessing. Even if it does occasionally lead to sleeplessness and discombobulation.Totally worth it.

P.S I'm glad the new band dynamic is a fun and happy one:)

torimari said...

Har, love potions?


That fanart is great--I love fanart but I've never received anything that wicked.

Dolly said...

Oh dear, 'How It's Made' is like smartcrack I can't get over. The music often amuses me. I'm thrilled you have somehow found a way to get your eyes/ears on it.

SkyHype said...

I second that. I loved this post as well. "The Modern Renaissance Joe", I think as our boundaries fade, we become more comfortable with the complex and the inane, often not only temporally close, but at the same time.

Beautifully written.

Man. I wish there was an apothecary by my house as well.

An ani mouse said...

that fanart is really adorable