Odd things from my trip to Singapore/Bali

Here's a link to some photos I took on a recent trip to Bali. They are photos of commercial products or things I found amusing.

BaliTripCommercialThings

Make sure to pick "slide show" so you can see all my clever captions.

Dedicated to Charles Nelson Riley who passed away last week.

Taigan No Kaji

is a Japanese saying that translates roughly into "the fire across the river". It's a nice phrase basically meaning that there is a problem out there but it is far away enough from you that you don't worry about it. I don't think there is an similar phrase in English.

In a work context, I was thinking that there are a lot of people who do their job with this feeling.

Sean Lennon back with new album finally

www.myspace.com/seanonolennon

Sean Lennon is back with a new album finally. Coming out in September of 2006 on Capitol Records. On his Mysapce page, you can here one final track (Dead Meat) and two demos. All are very nice and mellow. Looking forward to hearing the whole thing. The artwork that MySpace shows while playing Dead Meat is the artwork from Stanley Kubrick's Barry Lyndon.

I was thinking about him today after reading about the Beatles /Cirque De Soleil premiere in which an online article mention him as mysteriously absent.

A year or two before he was arrested for murder, it was rumored that Phil Spector was producing his album. Wonder if there was any truth to that rumor...

Thomas Dolby & George Clinton - the real story

Thomas Dolby’s Blog » Blog Archive » George Clinton

Interesting story on how Thomas Dolby and George Clinton ended up working together. Great story about George in the Bermuda Triangle too!

Yeah, your Ipod is cool, but is it Bible Stylish?

cowon - bible stylish mp3 player screenshot detail

A description that is (as of 6/3/2006 21:15 PST) on the Cowon website for their G3 MP3 player.

What innovation will Cowon come up with next!??!

Human Audio Sponge DVD!

Saw that Human Audio Sponge (aka YMO aka Takahashi, Hosono & Sakamoto) will be releasing a DVD Feb 8, 2006 called "HAS". Preorder at Tower.jp here: http://www.towerrecords.co.jp/sitemap/CSfCardMain.jsp?GOODS_NO=926020&GOODS_SORT_CD=103

Don't know if there are any more details, but I'm assuming this is the show they did in Spain @ Sonar 2004. Heard some of the audio from that and it was good. Looking forward to this.

Bob Moog has passed away

Decent article at MTV
Bob was the one who started the whole synthesizer craze really. He was 71.

THanks!

After a co-worker accidentally types HTanks instead of Thanks in an email, I came to the reliazation that when we are all typing Thanks, we are really typing in the user ID of Tom Hanks in a typical networked computer (first initial + last name). So, next time you write an email, remember Tom. THanks!

Thanks is also one of those words if you repeat it enough times, it sort of loses its meaning. Try it! (make sure you aren't at work or saying outloud).

New Stereolab & new (lost) Esquivel

Billboard is reporting some new Stereolab tracks coming out on 7" only, plus a lost Equivel album he recorded live in the studio for the La Margerita mexican restaurant chain in Chicago (circa 1975). Esquivel due Sept. 6.

New Morricone compilation coming Sept 6

http://www.billboard.com/bb/daily/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000999533

double disc, 30 track obscure 70s stuff, so you know it will be good!

New Goldfrapp in September

Billboard is reporting a new Goldfrapp album, "Supernature" on Sept. 20 with a new single "Ooh La La" on Aug. 23.

New Kraftwerk

Saw this on the Japanese HMV site, but it is a forthcoming (June 6th release)
http://www.hmv.co.jp/product/detail.asp?sku=1068500

It's a 2 CD set of live Kraftwerk called Minimum-Maximum

Their early live stuff that I've heard was pretty amazing.

Tired: Podcasting

I'm sick of the word Podcasting. The radio station KCRW uses it like in every other sentence. "Can't listen to the radio? Go to the website and get the podcast!" I can't take it anymore. Can't you just "download" like the good old days of 2000? Now you have to "podcast"? Come on!

A dog called chappie..

http://www.wesserworks.co.uk/wesserworks/Images/Pet_Portrait_Gallery/chappie_1.jpg

If they made doggie romance novels, this dude would certainly be on the cover. Nice flowing mane, Lion King!

Robbie Dupree = Michael McDonald?

How come Michael McDonald never covered Robbie Dupree's 1980 classic "Steal Away"? It totally sounds like a Michael McDonald song.

Rip Taylor sighting!

Saw Rip Taylor today in the food court at Century City Westfield Shopingtown thingy (whatever they call it).

http://www.riptaylor.com/index2.html

Have you been to his website? It is amazing!
Apparently, his image has appeared on a green bell peper.

Strange, but true!

Americans are crazy #32

I'm going to France next month, so my wife and I picked up a French conversation CD. To show you how cheap or crazy Americans can be, check out these bizarre conversations that would probably never be in a regular conversation CD.

Lesson 12:

[mad tone of voice]
"Does anyone here speak English??"
[continues...]
"I NEED AN ENGLISH SPEAKING LAWYER!!"

Yes, so often I go to a foreign country and I just need to talk to an English lawyer. It happens more than you'd think!


Lesson 14
"Do you have a senior discount?"


Yeah, senior discount... in France. Okay... I'm sure French McDonalds has one.

ZTT paper plates? 

Uncanny! 

t.A.T.u. is back??

Yes, t.A.T.u. is back, not with music (although they are rumored to be working with Trevor Horn again), but as an animated movie. Found it by accidentally while looking for information about the new Wong Kar Wai film 2046.

So, there's not much info out yet (comes out November in Japan and UK).
Here's t.A.T.u. Paragate
Part of this film (only the opening credits as rumored on the net) will be directed by the guy who did Cowboy Bebop which is one of the few anime shows worth watching from a few years ago.