Month: September 2007

Categories
Action & Thriller Movie Reviews

Shoot ‘Em Up – A Dark, Brainless Piece of Entertainment

Is “Shoot ‘Em Up” a hollow piece of crap like some reviewers say? Probably yes. Is it like a movie straight out of a comic book or a computer first person shooting game? Probably yes too. But why does it have a mixed review rather than a bad review? The key word is “entertainment”. One scene got some of the audience – I included – clapping and cheering inside the theater. The last I saw that was the ending scene of “Death Proof” – and that scene got more girls cheering than guys.

Yesterday morning, Cynthia left the newspaper opened, pointing at the movie advertisements and in a semi-sleepy-semi-demur way, she said she wanted to watch a show. Got it. So what do you want to watch, I asked. “Shoot ‘Em Up” or “Underdog”, she replied. I called up the rest of the squad (just TK really) and had no answer. Usually TK answers the “call for movie” almost instantaneously. What happened to him? Turned out that I woke him up from a 24-shift and his reply was: Underdog, are you joking? “Shoot ‘Em Up” it was then.

Though the story is downright straightforward (very implausible) with minimal opportunity for character development, the movie does keep the audience in suspense as the story unfolds slowly – at least for the first three quarter of the movie when there are still lots of questions in the audience’s head. The shooting scenes though … my God … have more “bullets per frame” than most of the other movies I have watched. And some of the ways of how a gun is shot are so creative that left me in awe. The mood is mostly dark with dirt and sweat, rats and blood. However, the scenes can be so entertainment that got the audience laughing … at times in a morbid way.

Cynthia finds “Shoot ‘Em Up” entertaining. TK calls it “an entertaining piece of rubbish”. As for me, if Clive Owen was to replace his guns with swords, that would have been made into a typical Chinese ancient story with heroes in special power (you will see what I mean in one of the ending scenes). If you want some dark and brainless entertainment and laugh your brain off after a long hard week of work, perhaps “Shoot ‘Em Up” is an option.

Categories
Jamming Session

Life Of A Rock Star Wannabe As Such (Extended Version)

(Note: What a long week! I actually fell asleep halfway typing this blog and accidentally hit the publish button. Oops. Hence the extended version.)

Last Wednesday while I was having my nice cold beer with the company of Cynthia – our bassist – the owner of the studio called me. He asked if we could postpone our jamming session for 1 hour 45 minutes. No way! By then we would not be home before one in the morning. I asked for the reason and he told me that he had a power outage and the bands just refused to leave. Now, that is new to me. If the cinema you visit has a power outage, most likely you will go for the refund and book another time slot instead. Yes?

In the end, the owner of the studio referred us to another studio that is a quarter size of what we used to have and it is entirely rundown …

(This was when I felt asleep while typing lots of junks)

… It took us a while to find it. We ventured into a part of Chinatown I have not been to. SATA? Somehow everyone excepts me know what SATA is (Singapore Anti-tuberculosis Association). And somehow, no one excepts me associates the word SATA with computer hard disks (Serial ATA – Advanced Technology Attachment that is). When we were shown where the studio room was, we could barely fit in with our guitar cases. There was a bucket underneath the air-con fan and it was one quarter filled. I wonder if Chip our drummer actually followed the rhythm of the dripping water as our beats. Kidding.

But the good thing though was that our amplifiers were really close to one another. In a way, we could somewhat hear what everybody was playing. In another way, it hurt our ear drums big time. Hobby hazard eh?

Fun time we had and we are getting tighter with our 5 songs set. Photos taken by courtesy of our guitarist’s wife-to-be … thanks Selrol! Great photos.

Categories
Music Reviews Pop Rock & Alternative

Bjork’s Volta – Chaotic Beauty For Those Who Dare To Submerge

The year was 1992 when one day my college friend came back with Bjork’s debut “Debut” borrowed from her classmate from the Mathematics faculty. I was shocked that Bjork’s debut album can be called music. To my ears, it was just incoherent pieces of tracks of … sound … with some very weird melody. What was she thinking?! Strangely, “Army Of Me” from her second album “Post” has changed my mind. Since then, I have slowly become a convert, religiously buying each of her release from “Greatest Hits” onwards.

Bjork, is an acquired taste.

Last month, I had the same feeling when I first listened to her latest album “Volta”, the same feeling as I first listened to “Debut”. What was she thinking?! Is that music? After a few tries, I gave up listening to it just like some of her recent works. Then one day, I picked up her “Greatest Hits” again – an album that I enjoy and strongly recommend to those open minded ones – and got myself … “Bjork-ized”. “Volta” does not deviate from her previous works in as much as I thought it was. Though, the full bodied to-your-face kind of bass is out. The tracks are a lot cleaner. Lots of layers of electric sound – from ship horns to seagull to sound of water and wind to Chinese instruments to orchestral sound to down right unique drum beats. In fact, the more I listen to “Volta”, the more I get to appreciate the genius of music composition. Bjork has turned her voice from merely human voice into a musical instrument, truly blended into the song with many layers of her voice all combined as one. Her voice is so full of emotion.

The opening track of “Volta” – “Earth Intruders” – starts off with powerful beats and ends with the different sound and pitch of the ship’s horns that only becomes apparent with the more powerful track “Declare Independence” towards the end. The duet track “The Dull Flame Of Desire” is a good example of how Bjork can turn something so simple and short into a full song. Below is the full lyrics of “The Dull Flame Of Desire”.

I love your eyes, my dear. Their splendid, sparkling fire. When suddenly you raise them so to cast a swift embracing glance. Like lightning flashing in the sky. But there’s a charm that is greater still. When my love’s eyes are lowered. When all is fired by passion’s kiss. And through the downcast lashes, I see the dull flame of desire – The Dull Flame of Desire by Bjork.

From the content point of view, “Volta” focuses much on internal emotion in an abstract manner. She writes about someone suffering from Pneumonia, suicide bomber, and my favorite, the powerful “Declare Independence” with lyrics as follows.

Justice. Start your own currency. Make your own stamp. Protect your language. Declare independence … Damn colonists. Ignore their patronizing. Tear off their blindfold. Open their eyes. Declare independence. Don’t let them do that to you.

Each release has earned Bjork – Icelander – an award of one sort or another. Her works often strikes me as an outcome of improvisation. It is chaotic to say the least. But to make something as chaotic as Bjork’s music into something so beautiful to listen to, there is only one person in the world who can do that.

Below is the opening track “Earth Intruders”. If you like it, try out “Innocence” as made by one of her fans.

Again, Bjork is an acquired taste. You either love it, or you don’t.

Categories
Book Reviews Non-Fiction

The Strategy Paradox By Michael Raynor – Quite Possibly The Best Business Book I’ve Read In These Recent Months

One day, Cynthia brought home a new book sponsored by her company written by one of her Partners and in this book, her client Johnson & Johnson is featured as one of the case studies. As always, I read the book and she gets to hear the summary. A win-win situation for the both of us.

I love reading strategy books but to finish one is a daunting task. “The Strategy Paradox” turns out to be the exact opposite of what I perceive a consulting book to be. It is full of interesting case studies, not too much into the methodology, and it is written with such a pose. Read the following excerpt and you will see what I mean.

Bowing to the limits of our station need not imply that we aim lower: a Macbeth or an Oedipus who accedes to the vagaries of fate can still be king, but he rules the kingdom very differently. Similarly, a strategy built on humility can still succeed; it just looks very different from a strategy built on hubris. This book has explored those differences and argued that a strategy of humility is a better and nobler way to think about the future of your company – Chapter 11 Reinventing Strategy.

In the beginning of “The Strategy Paradox”, Raynor brought out an excellent analogy. Tell me, what is the opposite of love? Some may say hatred. But the answer is indifference. Hatred and love has the same intensity of feeling towards a person but indifference has none. So, what is the opposite of success?

Failure?

The opposite of success is mediocrity. Being average is what many companies are contented with. Raynor pointed out that the ones that aim for greatest, the ones who aim for success has the same attributes as the ones who fail. It is due to the uncertainty that these companies fail. Traditionally, in order to succeed, companies formulate a strategy and commit to it. It is this commitment that forbidden them to adapt to the changes experienced. To resolve this, the author proposed Requisite Uncertainty. Simply put, the corporate office should focus on managing uncertainty while the operating managers must focus on delivering on commitments.

In chapter 2, the author has brought forth an interesting case study of Sony through its electronic formats of Betamax in video, MiniDisc in audio and illustrated how focusing too much on strategic success and not enough on strategic uncertainty can be disastrous due to bad luck.

The book has made clear that we simply cannot forecast the future. There are just too many variables. And some changes are too fast for us to react while some changes are just too slow (as illustrated by the example of the Viking) for us to adapt.

But there is a way out.

All we need is to create options. In chapter 7, the author brought in the excellent case studies of BCE and Microsoft. The former one consists of a portfolio of partial equity stakes that creates a strategically flexible corporation but lacks the formalized processes required to implement the approach versus the latter one that is able to pursue an options-based strategy far more consistently and so manage strategy uncertainty far more effectively.

The key to success is to acquire options that are related to the way a business is shaped. Take J&J as an example. There is a corporate venture capital arm, Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation (JJDC) that its primary focus is to acquire business that may benefit J&J in future. To achieve strategic flexibility, one must acquire enough stake – and not too much – in order to sell off or further invest on the options as the future unfolds. There is a price to this of course. And the 4 phases of managing a portfolio of real options are create, preserve, exercise, and abandon. In the end, it boils down to how one should exercise the option (i.e. purchase the subsidiary that will benefit the overall group) or sell off the option (i.e. abandon what is not beneficiary to the future of the company).

I personally believe that “The Strategy Paradox” is crucial to those who are into M&A business (Merger and Acquisition) as well as those who are into corporate strategy. It would have been nice if Michael Raynor elaborates on the future of Sony with the Blu-ray format war against HD DVD as that would have been a true testimony to what he preaches about.

Categories
Action & Thriller Movie Reviews

Robert Rodriguez’s Planet Terror – Part Two Of Grindhouse

3 months ago we have watched part 1 of Grindhouse directed by Quentin Tarantino (Death Proof). I actually wanted to watch that polar bear documentary film. But TK counter-suggested to watch the “one legged hottie” instead. Cynthia leapt in joy. Guess my love for the polar bear will have to be postponed to another day.

Despite the positive critic reviews for Grindhouse, the box office result was below expectation in the US. Grindhouse was shown in a full length of 191 minutes with Planet Terror and Death Proof played back-to-back with one another. Personally, I think there is only that much blood and gore an audience can take in one sitting. Internationally, Grindhouse was split into two movies beefed up with extra scenes. Death Proof has covered the topics of forbidden sex, wanton violence, drug use, and nudity. As expected – true to the genre of grindhouse – Planet Terror covers the remaining aspects of freaks, monsters, destruction, rebellion, and mayhem. There is a trade-off between watching Grindhouse in one go and watching it in a split version. The former one is true to grindhouse style while the latter one we get to see each movie featured in full.

Let me warn you, Planet Terror is gross. This morning I woke up and when I tried to recall what the first scene was, I thought of that jar of preserved human testicles and the dude who got his balls cut. In fact, the first scene was the beautiful Rose McGowan (famous in the TV series “Charmed”) dancing sexily around the pole in skimpy outfit as a go-go dancer named Cherry Darling. Cherry Darling? What a nice name.

The plot of Planet Terror started with some military units being exposed to biochemical weapons that transformed human beings into … zombies. Soon, more people were infected and it was the destiny of the survivors to fight together and find the last safe spot in the world. What I enjoy most is the amount of humor being put into such a genre of grossness and suspense. We laughed almost throughout the show and for the record, I was not the loudest. There were some others who laughed harder than me! And the way how scenes are cut onto one another is clever. Some of the sequence are so original that make me wonder, how did Robert Rodriguez come out with that idea (like how the “one legged hottie” Cherry Darling fights with a gun attached to her missing leg)?

I think Rose McGowan is a good fit for the show. While her air time in Death Proof was limited – which is understandable given how the plot was written – she is the main actress in Planet Terror. In the TV series “Charmed”, she has gone through the journey of gaining her witch power and used it against the demons. In Planet Terror, she has also gone through the journey of losing a leg and gaining a gun and this time, she fights zombies. I can’t think of a better person to play that role.

But how does Planet Terror compares against Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof? Both movies are made with the 1970’s effect. Death Proof has a very structured storyline (2 parts involving 4 different women each) and a series of long conversations while Planet Terror focuses more on the visual effects with short, sharp dialogues. Both TK and Cynthia find Planet Terror having a higher entertainment value as compares to Death Proof. I naturally enjoy the long and deep conversations so I find Death Proof having a higher artistic value instead.

Again, if you have watched Death Proof, don’t miss Planet Terror. And if you haven’t, the two movies are unrelated though the theme is (grindhouse style and women emerge as the heroines). Not a movie for the weak stomach for sure. Lots of bodies being torn apart and plenty of blood everywhere. I can almost picture my buddy Mark faints in the theatre upon watching Planet Terror. So Mark, please stay away from this. Or you could use Planet Terror to train your tolerance of the sight of blood … at home!

Categories
Experience Sharing

Large Group Activity With Straws And Masking Tape … And A Twist

My friends from my last job, I am sure, can readily relate to what I am going to write here. Head to part 2 if you wish. For the benefit of the rest of the avid readers, let me elaborate just a little bit. In the past, some of our projects involved having a full day workshop with a large group of clients (anywhere from 20 to 80). You see, giving lecture on strategy can be boring to the participants, even if it is half an hour per topic. Having break-out sessions brainstorming on how to articulate and measure strategy can be both tiring and dry. So what we consultants did was to make their days fun and memorable. The intangible value as you may say. These are the people who have stepped out of their daily operation and have a chance to finally socialize. To us, we have a piece of deliverable to complete and we need to tap onto their brains. To them, they just want to have a good time and finally get to chat with the girl in the next cubicle near to them or near the other door far far away.

It is not until I have made a switch out of my last career do I realize what it is like viewing from the other side. Recently I have attended a team building event organized by an external party hosted at Sentosa. I must say, the event triggered a walk down the memory lane and some of the ideas that this organizer has is refreshing.

PART ONE – SELLING THE FUN FACTOR

There are many ways to get work done. Nothing beats the fun way. In the past, I was used to have a group of capable and creative consultants who took part in spicing up the events. If I am going to sell you a piece of work that involves X number of people Y number of hours in a duration of Z number of weeks and you will have this wonderful piece of deliverable that propels your organization to a higher level, you may bite onto it, you may not. If I am going to sell you a series of events and working sessions that not only will you have the same piece of deliverable, but also your team (apparently large) will have a chance to bond with one another, new ideas will be harvested from the ground (read: buy in … further read: change management) … and you can even throw in a BBQ session in the end of the day so as to boost morale. Now, that sales pitch flies, I am telling you.

To make the day fun, it is not that hard. First, split the boring stuffs (read: real work) into pieces. Make sure they are well spaced out with a 10.30am tea break (cannot be too close to breakfast nor lunch) and a 4pm tea break. If the group is new, throw in an “Icebreaker” activity. At appropriate timing, throw in an “Energizer” activity to break the monotonous of the facilitated session. Or just to re-focus the audience back onto the day’s activities. Did you know that when you gather a group of people after the lunch hours, their minds are still somewhere out there? An “Energizer” activity helps them to forget what occupies their minds and to bring them back to Planet Earth.

My team has lots of creative ideas. We seldom recycled the same activity too many times. And we always found ways to add a twist to the old games. There are many ways to carry out “Icebreaker” activity. The key is to let people get to know one another better. One of my favorites is to ask each person to draw a symbol that represent themselves on a piece of paper and within each group, go round the circle and present what this symbol means to them. In turn, we consultants got to pick people in random to present their pictures on stage. It is really not that tough to find some funny ones. Usually you can judge the reaction from the audience to see which one to pick. And don’t forget to pick up the ones from the bosses. People usually have a good laugh out of it. Of course, you can ask everyone to stick their pictures onto the walls so that people get to see what others are like during breaks.

“Energizer” usually ties back to the theme of the topic the consultants want to talk about next. Some can be as simple as a quiz with simple scoring system. Some can be as straightforward as a puzzle solving competition amongst teams. Perhaps I am an engineer in training, I love the ones that involve people building things.

Straws and masking tape are wonderful materials when it comes to building activities. Off the head, we used to have “build a bridge” or “build a tower”. The specifications are flashed out via the projectors and each team is given 20 mins or half an hour to complete the task.

PART TWO – MORE STRAWS AND MASKING TAPE

What a role reversal. Now I get to play the games that the external organizers put together! Hooray! I was excited because for the past two years or so, I only got to see people play the “Energizer” games, scratching my head and the heads of my team to think of the next better and more fulfilling game.

For one of the indoor games that we played in Sentosa, the objective was simple: build a track to keep a ping pong ball in motion. Whichever team that clocks in the longest time wins. Each team was given 1 hour to complete the task.

1 hour?! Isn’t it a bit … too long.

I was amazed at how time flew.

The twist I was talking about is not keeping a ping pong ball in motion for the longest time (though I must say it is refreshing on its own). 15 minutes into the activity, we were instructed to send 2 of our members into another team for 5 minutes and in return, we received 2 new members from a different team (hence, not a swap of team members between two teams but rather a rotation of team members). It was interesting because suddenly there was new idea injecting into the our team and those who got send away would bring back new idea from a totally different team.

30 minutes into the activity, we were asked to abandon our own track and to take over our next team’s work. That was actually quite interesting. Some of our initial reaction was … to sabotage another team’s work. But that quickly dissolved I am sure. Others worked on the half baked track in fear that we have to take over the work from then on. Of course, some of us genuinely wanted to help.

I still remember how much shock we had when we looked at the track that hardly worked. One side of the support was collapsing and we were at lost as in what to do next. I started working on the support and some others started working on the track. And within 10 minutes, we actually got a working prototype! We loved it so much that we did not want to move back to our old track – but we did have to, as announced by the organizer.

You would have thought that we all more or less built the same thing right? Well, while we all have the concept of oscillation in order to keep the ball in motion for as long as possible (according to the organizer, not many actually thought of that) and we all finished on time (our department is responsible in delivering projects … duh … job hazard), our designs varied. My team has come up with a very neat and simple design rested on table with moderate height. One team has the height of twice of ours rested on the floor. Another team went for the length. One created a very long track (about 4 meters) with a few humps. Another one made a small circular track that spiralled towards the center. I noticed that those teams that built the structure on the floor, the structure itself tended to be a lot bigger.

Another interesting piece of fact is that the result did not vary much despite such a variation in design. The timing was in the region of 40 seconds for all of us. I wonder if I can create a mathematical model based on that one day. It is a pretty fun game. Give it a try when you have a large group next time.

Categories
Diary

Finding Erbasol … Travel Through The Time Gate of Singapore In The 70’s

From the story of Living With Cynthia Chapter Mission Impossible comes the next installment as a follow-up to What The PUK?!. One morning, Cynthia had an outbreak of desperation: Do you know how frustrated it is?! And she repeated that three times.

PART ONE – FINDING ERBASOL

I certainly know how frustrated she is. Cynthia has sensitive skin and it is her lifelong mission to find the right set of products for her head, her face, and her body. I am used to taking over products that do not suit her. Like the Dove Firming Body Wash a while back. Do I need firming body wash? Seriously?

Taking over the shampoo or body wash that Cynthia cannot use is one thing. Taking over the cosmetic of hers is another. I cannot see myself applying that S$100+ moisturizer on my face on a daily basis. No way.

Having anticipated what is to come my way, I tried to understand why it is so frustrating for Cynthia to get the right moisturizer. Recently she has switched to Kiehl’s. The sample worked well but prolonged usage showed otherwise. It is frustrating of course because prior to Kiehl’s, she used Erbasol range of product and that worked well for her. Sadly, the beauty center she frequented has closed down. Hence, she has not been able to purchase Erbasol products since then.

Understanding the problem is the first step in solving any problem. That morning as though I saw the bat sign on the evening sky or Lois Lane’s scream at the ears of Superman, I was determined to step up, give it a try, to save another innocent’s life.

Figuratively.

Finding out where to buy the Erbasol product here in Singapore turns out to be quite a difficult task. At least to me. I did an extensive search in the Internet, got a lousy phone number that did not work. I tried eBay and sites alike and could not find that particular product. Really, what do I know about lady’s skin care products?

But I ain’t got to give in. No way. I sent an email to Erbasol headquarter asking for the contact information for the distributor in Singapore. Meanwhile, I was ready to call up each and every beauty center and even Erbasol headquarter in Italy if it is what it takes to find the product.

Gosh, I was determined.

We have a happy ending. The headquarter replied and they gave me an address (no phone number though). The rest is easy. Now … part two of the story.

PART TWO – TIME TRAVEL

The distributor Hairizon is located somewhere at Commonwealth drive. As I got out of the car park, I felt as though I was teleported back in time to Singapore in the 70’s. Slabs of stones underneath where my car rested were coming off. The buildings looked old and I even saw an old “bridge” unlike anything I have seen in Singapore (see picture above). Usually I see this sort of scenery in the neighborhood(s) of the oppositions. But no, I did see the sign of PAP (ruling party of Singapore) here and there.

Took me a while to find block 77 and when I found it, gosh, I looked at the shop and that looked old. Turns out that I was looking at the storeroom. The shop was at another outlet down the road.

I stepped in and this old lady looked at me, asked me in Chinese what I was looking for. We’ve talked on the phone, I replied. In this shop that was full of goods (mainly for hair salons), I saw wigs, different kinds of scissors that barbers use, and different kind of shampoo and gels and all sort of funky brands that I have not seen before. Besides the old lady, there was another middle age man shopping for some hair products for his hair salon.

I told the old lady what I needed (3 different kinds of Erbasol products in total) and she stepped out of her shop, left the office and shop opened, and headed to the store room for what seemed like ages. Meanwhile, this middle age man and I chatted on and on and I got to know the background of the shop, of the shop owners, of the shop owners’ children, and the various equipments that a hair salon uses. Not long afterwards, a middle age lady stepped in looking for a pair of scissors in order to give her son a haircut. She in turn chatted with the middle age man asking if he knew what sort of scissors are value for money.

After eternity, the old lady returned. I did some negotiations, have the GST waived, and the old lady chatted with me for God knows how long. You know, I really respect the patience of the rest of the customers. It is as though waiting is a norm in this small town. It must have taken me more than half an hour to get what I needed.

I felt as though I was in another world. But at least, mission accomplished … once again.

Categories
Music Reviews Pop Rock & Alternative

Prince’s 48th Album “Planet Earth” Sent A Middle Finger To “THE MAN”

The very first Prince fan I have come to know is my Dad. Amongst many things that my Dad and I have in common (oh gosh, my thinning hair), it is Prince’s “Purple Rain”. As I type this blog, my 72 years old dad is still hospitalized in Hong Kong hoping to return home tomorrow. Perhaps I shall pass him the last 3 studio albums of Prince to cheer him up since “Musicology”, “3121”, and “Planet Earth” have somewhat returned to Prince’s root.

As years pass by, I have met more and more Prince fans – very discreetly. After all, it is not like being a fan of Bon Jovi or Linkin Park that people proclaim in public. I often think that people who are fans of Prince are sort of weird in the unique genius way. For those who are fans of Prince, there seems to be a certain connection that transcends words. My Indonesia friend Andre – a Prince fan himself – got me the very-hard-to-get “Crystal Ball” album (3 CDs in one clear container) from US back in 1997. That added to … you may want to pay attention to this .. my twenty-two Prince album collection out of his 48 albums of studio, hits and compilations, and live recording. I don’t think there is another artist that comes close to Prince in terms of my shelf space occupancy.

Prince first made his number 1 US hit back in 1984 with “When Doves Cry” in his Purple Rain era. It was not until 1994 when his gained a UK number 1 with “The Most Beautiful Girl in the World”. The early nineties was the time when Prince turned himself into a Symbol that the journalists “pronounced” as The Artist Formerly Known As Prince. In his album “Come”, he basically pronounced himself dead with a cover art of “Prince: 1958-1993” in front of a cemetery. So, Prince was dead and here came the Symbol. His 10th studio album released using this symbol (titled “Love Symbol”) is coincidentally both Cynthia and my favorite. That was before we met.

After a long struggle with the music industry, poor distribution and airplay, Prince in recent years has “resurrected” himself and started to distribute some of his albums using his name via different record companies. It is good news to me because you have no clue how hard it is for me to trace all his work.

No one can tell what the next Prince album is like. I think that is the essence of why some of us are so into his music. He is a genius as a composer, producer, and musician, expert in different types of instruments. He started his music career with pop funk, got heavier with more rock element, then he finally gave in to rap only to head towards jazz and instrumental in the early 2000. In his recent releases, he has mellowed down the experimental nature of his work and created something that perhaps appeal to the general public. “Planet Earth” has a good mix of funk and R&B and pop rock. I always enjoy Prince’s guitar solo and I am glad that lately, he plays it more prominently in his albums. I like the opening track “Planet Earth” – very powerful with a strong rock base. I can understand why people enjoy the smooth R&B “Mr. Goodnight”. My favorite has to be the funk track “Chelsea Rodgers”. That one bass line is used throughout the entire track of close to 6 minutes. If you notice, there is only one set of chords that are being played (Bb C and F). The song doesn’t have noticeable chorus but it is such fun to listen to. The ending track “Resolution” closes the album nicely – musically and lyrically.

Now, what does “Planet Earth” has to do with the ongoing discussion between one of my friends who believes that illegal music download is the way to revolutionize the music industry and I who believe that no one works for free and we have to pay for what we get (see previous blog)? Prince released “Planet Earth” in UK for free with the newspaper “The Mail” reaching 3 millions readers or rather listeners in one day. He practically earned himself a bigger sum (8 times over what he gets from his previous album) to a much wider audience. That was in time for his UK tour. And he screwed the music record company and retailers big time. Something that my friend is glad to hear. For those are interested, here is the link to the news from Time.com.

Categories
Whacky Thoughts

Be HIP – What Does That Mean To You?

My new colleague once asked me if I know where the best sites to download music are. My immediate response was Apple.com (iTunes Store that is). It is rhetoric. I knew that was not what she has in mind and neither can we buy music from iTunes Store in Singapore.

Allow me to indulge myself in the politically incorrectness of generalization. There are two groups of people I observe in general when it comes to listening to music. One group cares less about music. They seldom purchase any album nor possess any music in any form. Music from the radio or TV is good enough for them. Another group in contrary loves music. And within this group of music lovers, it subdivides into three categories. One that buy music. One that downloads music feeling indifferent to whether or not it is the right thing to do. And one that downloads music believing that it is the right thing to do, believing that they play a part in revolutionize the music industry.

Revolutionize the music industry?! I had much debate with one of my friends who download a couple of albums a day. No doubt he has difficulties in listening to all the albums in his vast collection. Till today, we have not come to a conclusion.

You see, I am a keen supporter of “honor IP (intellectual property)” – HIP. I pay for the music I appreciate, the PC games I enjoy, and the DVD I watch repeatedly. For those who are indifferent to the consequence of downloading music (arguably illegally), I think there is no right or wrong answer. Neither is there a question of moral stand. Hence, I am indifference to the indifference.

However, it is people like my friend who intrigue me. I hear what my friend says. Music industry is a rogue business. The musicians hardly get anything in the end. The record companies are the big winners. All the proceeds from the record sales have to cover the marketing expenses and to fund the new artists that come on board. What the musicians get in the end is peanut – unless you make it big. That much I can understand. But to portray the heroic act of playing a part to hurt the industry so that the wrong can be right and the big evil (aka record companies) can be punished? I have my doubt.

Are you willing to work for free? After all, it is your boss who take home bulk of the profit, it is your organization that has the double digit growth – not your pocket. If you expect the musicians to work for free, it is only fair that you too work for free. True or false? Think of the retail business. Isn’t it true that the landlords are the big winners, always?

There is no right or wrong answer. Governments deem illegal music download the same as stealing. Some home users deem downloading music is the right thing to do because it will revolutionize the music industry. That one day the musicians will benefit the most from the proceeds of the record sales. Or perhaps as my friend has pointed out, the way to earn a living by the musicians is not selling records but performing live concerts.

Self deception or not, you decide.

PS. This post is created as the prelude of an upcoming music review. You will see the connection I promise.

Categories
Drama Movie Reviews

Waitress – More Than Just Another Kitchen Related Movie

When a friend needs help, a friend gets help. And when a friend needs companionship just because he is having a tough time at work, friend gets companionship. Especially when he is one of our own – Movie Review Squad that is. This time, my turn to choose a movie. Think without thinking (blink!), I insisted on Keri Rusell’s “Waitress”. I LOVE the TV series “Felicity” where the character of Felicity Porter was acted (brilliantly) by Keri Rusell. Just how much I love “Felicity”? If you run out of ideas what to get for me as Christmas gift, I want this and this and this and this. Thank you. Beat the Christmas crowd. Do it today!

Now, back to business and no more beating around the bushes. When the movie first started, Cynthia screamed: oh no, not another movie in the kitchen. You really can’t compare “Waitress” with “Ratatouille” … because “Ratatouille” is an animated film meant to entertain. Between Catherine Zeta-Jones’s “No Reservations” and Keri Russell’s “Waitress”, the former one is a typical Hollywood production – entertaining with lots of feel good factors. Predictable romance drama with a happy ending like any typical Hollywood film. The latter one has lots of character development opportunities, sharp and memorable scripts, hint of depression with loads of humor that kept the audience entertained in a different way. A more personal feeling with a slice of life that may not be pretty to look at but is real enough to engage the audience at the emotional level. For those who may not enjoy dramas and witty conversation and rather have a Hollywood treatment, “Waitress” may not be your cup of tea.

From the plot perspective, we have Jenna (played by Keri Russell) – a waitress at a small restaurant off the highway who creates hundreds of different pies with somewhat bizarre themes – having an unwanted pregnancy with her obnoxious husband Earl, a man whom she dreams of getting away from day after day. At work, his boss Cal constantly barks at the waitresses and Jenna’s co-workers Becky and Dawn seems to share every secrets with one another – almost. Then comes Doctor Pomatter that suddenly reminds Jenna of what passion should be like. To me, it is as though “Waitress” is a condensed version of a TV series. Lots of drama and lots of emotions. It lifts up your spirit and yet make you want to cry at times.

For those who have watched the TV series “Felicity”, you must have heard of “Dear Sally” thousands of time. In “Waitress”, it is “Dear Baby” or “Dear Damn Baby” instead. Kind of cool if you were to ask me. Can’t think of another actress to better fit that role.