Zombies!

Hey, Kids!

Click click for a little treat: Zombies!

In this mad-evil age where subliminal videoke shampoo commercials, the Pussycat Dolls, and ultra-consumerism are confused for teenage mentality, Tiny Masters of Today reminds us that there's still hope for today's generation of me-me-me's. I refuse to believe that the kids today aren't mindless sheep or zombies.



Hologram world was directed by the fantastic, fantastic Karen O. See if you can spot her in the vid. :)

I miss the Yeah Yeah Yeah's. 'Good news though, they're recording a new album! Yay! Fever to Tell is still making my head spin. Hee.

Tokyo and Friends

Viva La Vida

After announcing semi-retirement, Coldplay is coming out with a new album this June. They’ve dubbed it, Viva La Vida. I know, I know. Excuse the Shake-your-bon-bon Martin references. Oi! In his Rolling Stone Interview Chris Martin defends it by saying that he took it out from Frida Kahlo’s painting.

This piece of news brings in a pleasant wave of memories.

I loved, no --scratch that--- worshiped them when their first album graced my unknown planet. Parachutes was the soundtrack to my burgeoning appetite for the black mood. I was 19, in my junior year of undergrad, and terrified at peeling away the drama of my untold future. Despite being told how creatively beneath they were to Travis’s melancholy or Radiohead’s genius, I embraced them even more. I dismissed every criticism as an unsympathetic slur to my person and defended them with teeth and smiles. I took in every bit of Chris Martin’s protest on people’s wasteful talk on music. I agreed with him and took it to truth-- without realizing then that it would later on shape my approach to music and my indifference to its politics. I still abide with the same rule; I have never threshed out the joy of pure sound and beautiful lyrics. You really cannot. You really just have to feel. I sang “Everything’s not lost…” under my breath and believed the promise of those words. I imagined requited love to bleed for you in Yellow’s ridiculous but magical lyrics. And I still do. An understatement, but that album made my life.

When A Rush Of Blood To The Head came out in 2002, I was starting anew with an adventure and non-fictional demons -- argumentative and non-relenting executioners as professors (he.he. I kid) and vengeful reading lists. It filled in the void. And kept me sane, however weird that might sound. It was also at this time that I suffered major crushing on Chris Martin. His whining was his charm. I had that silly grin on my face after beating out the cd player to play Warning Sign for the umpteenth time. All this, despite learning the tragedy that is Paltrow-Martin. He. He. Although, call me morose, but I’ve always said this, that marriage was Coldplay’s weak link. Chris just spun to an uncharacteristic whiner whose falsetto almost grated my nerves throughout X & Y. That album almost took out the rabid fan in me. I hope Viva La Vida rescues my delirium. I wont judge it until I hear it. I hope it offers something in the spirit of See You Soon, a really short tune that spins enchanted gibberish, and return to how I discovered them --- raw, pure and fun.

Random Thoughts Part I

Getting through a slower internet connection is like watching Gretchen Baretto's ultra-cheesefest permeate through my TV screen. It is slow and painful. Have you seen her phonetically mouthing the words to Please Dont Ask Me in her new music video? I sat through the whole clip shown at the Da Bash today, feeling something slowly dying inside in me. That debauchery reeks of violent desparation. Someone give that woman a show already. She qualifies for that, at least. You've got to give her a little credit though. She has singlehandedly hoisted herself back on Pinoy TV --- through sheer belief in her own smut, er, PR, complete with the usual hysterics a starlet could only deliver. If she's taking lessons from Gloria, I want to know.

But I digress.

It took me an hour to check my email today and 15 minutes just to sign in to Multiply. Ack. the scourge of Dial-up. This absolute decision of coming home to hibernate has its limits. However, I'd give up anything for my dear mother's delirium-inducing humba--- including buffer-free viewing at Crunchyroll. Sigh. Just as I was harboring the white man's fantasy of turning Japanese...

****

Besides the humba, my trip to CDO two days ago was the highlight of the week. CDO is the city of my golden friendships. Chessy liner, I know. I couldn't resist. I am blessed to have the best people as friends. I love, love you guys!

It thrills me that everyone is up and running with their new adventures and are putting a brave front for the challenge each one is inevitable bound to take.

God bless you on your journey. Keep fighting the good fight.

***

Kudos to Manny Pacquiao. We shamelessly pumped our fists for you. He.he.

I have issues with his fame-whoring antics but I give mad props to his jabbing skills.

***

I've exactly two weeks left to relish in this long over-due vacation. I hope I have something to account for at the end of all of this.

Stop And Go

Seeing mass mobilisation in the news today puts me in nostalgic mode.

I don't really know how I've become so disillusioned with the movement and how I've succumbed to this philistine apathy I put on these days. Perhaps, I've grown numb? At times like these, when your life is somewhat on a standstill, you pause and assess whatever it is that compels you to live -- your personal truths and the youthful ideologies you swore a long time ago to keep with you to your grave -- and consider how you're going to live through when life decides to change gears.

Maybe I've taken on that silly nickname my friends used to tease me -- "Tin-Tin Burgis" to heart. It was always made in jest whenever I snubbed every guitar session of learning the chords to Rosas ng Digma and opted for poring through OLP's Naveed, or when I pulled out a tirade of English-Bisaya dribble. Somehow, I've always felt they were never far from the truth. After a few short years, I've come to this. But I've seen friends come and go, and at those moments I always feel that I've somewhat made the right choice. Maybe I was meant to trudge on a different road.

Soul-searching is a funny business. It never lets up.

Countdown To Boon Or Bust

Forgive me for being cryptic, but I'm feeling the anxiety creeping in. At the risk of sounding schizo, I have to say ---my Golden Girl and Rrriot Girl are staging a strike. They want an early vacation. They see major turbulence for at least three weeks ahead and they want a saner way to get out of the crisis. Cha, are you feeling the excitement? Hehehe... Tell the powers-that-be, we are in no condition to participate in psywar games! Oh well. Might as well join em?

I'm going to Simala tomorrow. Hope that helps out a bit to calm this madness down.

Happy Days People!

State Of the Union

I must confess, I haven't seen the news. Someone asked me a day ago what the lastest political scandal was -- the crude and petulant political mongering on the defunct ZTE deal. I had nothing substantial to say, only that, I'm sick and tired of how vile the system is.

Before you do quit on reading this, I assure you, I'm not going to go about proletyzing. I dont have that in me. Plus, its a waste of space.

I'm halfway through the second season of HBO series, Rome. And it dawned on me --- the Philippines is still stuck in the same sh*th*le as the Roman Republic. We could be living at a parallel time. It's highly disturbing. It never occured to me that honor can be found in murder and betrayal, that the common good can be brought about by corruption and the prostitution of values, and that political greed, if really peristent, is a running virtue...for the good of the Republic. When you think about it, is there really any difference with the way our so-called leaders run the country with that of Ancient Rome?

Ho-hum. Moving on...

Pansit Dreams

Drumroll please.. Presenting to you my first ever Pancit. He. he. I'm all for dramatics today.

I'm feeling especially creative. I'm writing the first pages of my screenplay. He. He. This Saturday is ripe of possibilities.