Hiatus

What's my lovely Cult followers!

Sorry things have been dead around here lately. Finals are coming up and I need to really focus on succeeding this semester as I'm planning on it being my last. So, I will be taking a couple weeks hiatus from blogging, then resume playing catch up when the semester is over and settled back at home.

Just because I'm on hiatus doesn't mean you can't leave me questions, requests, suggestions, comments, or anything else you want to send me.

Thank you all for your support and patience! Good luck to everyone else dealing with finals as well and I'll see you guys soon.



Your Cult Leader,
Miko

Rant: What is a "True Fan"?

There are many types of fan labels out there. Some describe the dedication level put into a fandom and some may describe the enjoyment of the artist, group, or whatever. In this little rant, I'm mainly going to focus on music fans, but some of these instances can apply to fans outside of music as well.

When looking deeply into two of my favorite bands, Linkin Park and Dir en grey, and even glancing over kpop fan comments, I tend to see pretentious claims of true fanaticism. Usually people base true fan status on CD ownership, the amount of merchandise collected, artist/band knowledge, years of support or involvement, shows attended, and perhaps other various attributes. To me, I think a true fan has certain attributes of all these things, but the main point is that there is no measurement. Once numbers are incorporated with these traits, elitism is formed and new fans may be discouraged to join the fanbase or even label themselves as a "true fan". So, what do I believe makes a true fan?

Historical Acknowledgement
You don't necessarily need to know what age Taeyang and G-Dragon were when they were trainees or that Kai was not the original drummer of the GazettE, but I believe that a true fan should at least acknowledge a band's past. Don't start an argument about Dir en grey not being a visual kei band, because they were and it will forever be part of their history despite their musical and visual transformation. Don't claim you know everything about a band when all you know is what America puts out or your knowledge is based on recent material, like the last 2 years recent. I've seen a lot of fans like this.

Financial & Emotional Support
Not everyone has a disposable income to splurge on discographies, rare items, and attending nearly every show, but everyone is capable of giving emotional support. So, you want to buy the new limited edition Alice Nine album, but you don't have the money for it right now. Don't worry, your heart is in the right place and maybe that album will still be available when you do have the funds for it. Another way to support the band is to tell other people about them. Show them where they can buy their CDs and DVDs. Imports are expensive, but as long as you're trying your best with emotional support then it's okay. Musicians are usually overjoyed when overseas fans know their lyrics, names, and costumes. This encourages them to continue forward. Even your attendance at shows and fan events is great emotional support. If you own something of theirs, that's great, but don't be all high and mighty because you own all of these obscure cassettes or vinyls and you've attended more than 30 shows.

Music Appreciation
Musicians' styles change and evolve (and sometimes devolve), this can't be helped. Not everyone is going to like these changes and that's perfectly fine. Just because you disagree with an artist/groups' direction or you dislike some songs that does not make you a bad fan. Musicians are not perfect and some experiments don't go as planned sometimes. If you look back at my post about Miyavi, I mentioned how much I love him, but I openly admitted that I wasn't particularly fond of the direction he was going with his Kabuki Boiz and even some of his current style [pre-Miyavi era]. Honestly, I think it's good to be critical of the music you love, especially when the musician sets a certain expectation with each release.

Level of Seriousness
It's okay to make fun of an artist in a positive, loving way. Musicians say and do silly things all the time. Kyo and Ruki's English isn't the best, so there have been parody videos made with fake subtitles of what the words might sound like to native English speakers to laugh at . KPop artists do silly things on variety shows and even poke fun at each other like Big Bang's Seungri imitating his bandmates. There's even performances of trot versions of popular kpop songs and parody subtitles of new kpop music videos. If artists can laugh at themselves, why can't fans? You can make fun of musicians you enjoy in a non-malicious manner. I do it all the time. Just remember there's a difference between bashing and making a joke.

All Around Respect
This might be the most important factor of being a true fan. If you claim that a musician holds a high place in your heart, then you can show them that by respecting their craft and personal wishes. Let's say that you've obtained some leaked music and you want to share it with the fandom. It's best to wait until the release date and don't outwardly expose the news to the musician. Or even better, don't share it at all! During lives, don't grope the musicians or damage their costumes or instruments. During softer songs or acapella moments, show some self control and don't yell out your love confessions or disapprovals. Have some common sense! If you see your bias offstage somewhere, don't harass or stalk them. It's fine to approach them, but there's a time and a place. They are human just like you and me and you wouldn't want some random girl peeking through your windows, harassing your family, or interrupting your dinner with a long time friend. Along with the musicians, show respect for each other. We all share one common love and that is the band/artist/group. Everyone has to start somewhere, so don't make fun of new fans who are just getting into them. As a fandom, we should support each other and together show our love and appreciation for music. Also, show respect for other fanbases even if you dislike what they like.

Horror Movie Annoyances: Jump Scares

I wish I could pinpoint a specific time when jump scares became the prevalent source of fear in horror movies, but my mind is overwhelmed with various information and tidbits that I can't think. Sure, jump scares have been around for decades, otherwise we wouldn't have my favorite cliche: the bathroom mirror. The bathroom mirror jump scare is when, usually, the main character goes into the bathroom for whatever reason, opens their medicine cabinet, and closes it, revealing someone is behind them or inside the mirror that's either a friend of foe. This cliche has been modified in some instances such as building suspense for the cliche and nothing happens until the character moves elsewhere for the scare, the rule of threes where the character experiences the same action 3 times and nothing happens until the third time, or nothing happens at all.

While I don't dislike jump scares as a whole, my annoyance with them is how movies have relied on them for majority, if not all, of their scary parts. Because of this, they lose their initial effect on the viewer and simply become that annoying person who jumps out from around the corner and yells "Boo" to get a cheap thrill.

Aside from cutting down the usage, jump scares lack build up to be legitimately scary. Like I said, they're just irritating. Good build up requires a certain tone and atmosphere. It also helps if the viewer and characters have a close relationship to experience the tension together and it does not have to rely on a musical sting to make it scary. A simple scene of a character wandering in the dark with a tiny source of light for a long moment ends up being scared by the antagonist is usually an effective jump scare. Running away from a cult into an amusement park and looking at a bloody bunny mascot that eventually moves, then suddenly have the character waking up to realize it's a nightmare and the scene fades to black then opens to a PopTart coming out of a toaster is an annoying jump scare.

Good sources for effective ways to build proper suspense is to check out The Strangers and Sinister. Movies like Silent Hill: Revelation, which is described above, and Jeepers Creepers 2 are littered with ineffective jump scares.

Live: TOUR13 GHOUL

TOUR2013 GHOUL
[2013.11.04] Scout Bar in Houston, TX
featuring: Dagoba & Dir en grey

Dagoba

I didn’t know much about this band, except that they’re a metal band from France. I looked up their stuff beforehand, but it didn’t leave much of an impression on me. It just seemed like typical metal. Of course, I went into listening to them with an open mind. I did read lots of comments that their singer Franky was a good looking guy and...he is. Most of you know that I’m picky about metal, especially non-Japanese metal, and I must say I really enjoyed this band a lot more live. I have a feeling that Franky tried to bring the same energy they had in Dallas, but Scout Bar is smaller than Trees, so you can’t get too crazy without breaking something or someone. Franky talked to the crowd a lot and even tried to initiate the Wall of Death. The look on the guys’ faces was priceless. They just had this look of “Is this guy serious?”, so a handful of them started moshing a little, but they were aware of everything around them. I was very happy this wasn’t a repeat of the Human Abstract with their asshole, inconsiderate fans recklessly moshing all over the place. The crowd seemed pretty receptive, even though they seemed hesitant at times, but they did respond to Franky and the other members when they gave us attention. I wouldn’t mind seeing them again. I believe they played majority of their latest album, Post Mortem Nihil Est. In short, Dagoba had a ton of energy and they were a really great opener for Dir en grey. I enjoyed the interaction between the band and the crowd and I felt they tried to encourage us to get a little more crazy for them. I wish there was more hype like I picture Dallas was, but for the intimate [a.k.a cozy] setting, I think we did the best that we could.


Dir en grey
We weren’t waiting for too long for the roadies to have everything prepared for the band. Of course, the crowd was excited and you could subtly feel the tension surrounding the room. The crowd didn’t appear as big as before in the House of Blues, but I think it was the location. Yeah, I’m gonna blame location for a lot of things that kinda made Diru’s set go a bit downhill. Majority of the crowd seemed younger than usual. Either that or I just haven’t been observant enough at their previous shows, but it definitely felt different compared to other visits. The opening music was something new, at least I didn’t recognize it nor did anyone else. Still kinda miss the amped up “G.D.S”, but I understand they want a more ominous tone to their tours. According to a friend, Kaoru wasn’t very happy backstage. Apparently they messed up the intro music and he was complaining about it. I kinda wish I could’ve witnessed that in person. Learning about it after the fact explained a few things though. The first half of the set, something felt off with the band. They didn’t seem...happy. Kaoru suppressed whatever was pissing him off, Toshiya was on half bouncing energy, Shinya was pretty neutral, you can’t really tell with him, Kyo seemed annoyed every now and then, and Die didn’t seemed too please either. I don’t know about other fans, but when the band isn’t happy, I’m not happy either. I end up having this need to rush in and help fix the situation, whatever it may be. They still carried on, trying to give every emotion to us despite their sour moods, but there was a tiny disconnect here and there.

So, I’m gonna take a little detour and add my complaints to why the disconnect was happening...and part of the reason I blame the venue for this new set of people. First complaint was the odd security procedures. I know in this day in age that concerts have evolved to people holding up their cameras and phones to take pictures and video of the show. I have no problem with that as long as you’re not being an asshole about it or having your arms raised up the whole show blocking people’s view. I try to be quick and considerate and enjoy the show. I don’t use my camera the whole time. But security was very confusing. One of them called me out for something. I guess not to take pictures even though there was a bunch of other people doing it before me. I believe one of my friends mentioned something about them not wanting the fans to take pictures until the professionals were done or something, but the way they went about it was rude and confusing. Second complaint was that young crowd I mentioned. I know pushing is inevitable and you just have to accept it, but sometimes there’s no need for it when nothing is happening and you’re just being a prick because you want to be in the front. Just don’t do it! But the thing that bothered me and I want to believe Kyo is that they wouldn’t shut up! In the setlist and even looking back at the previous tours, “Inward Scream” is part of the transition. There was none this time. Kyo attempted it, but with the constant yelling and noise, he decided to leave it out if no one would listen, which is sad. One thing I like about the Houston crowd is that they know when to be quiet, but since this was a different venue with a different crowd, we didn’t get that. There was also some technical issues on Kyo’s end that he ended up throwing the mic down on the floor and talking to one of the roadies while the rest of the band finished up the song. I’ve never seen him so mad before. It was a little scary. Die seemed to have some minor issues as well. I can understand their feelings though. Diru are perfectionists! I know a couple members of the Human Abstract could attest to that.

During the second half, after the guys went off stage for a little break, it seemed like the members were a little happier or at least less upset. Even though the crowd was still lame, I could feel more positive, relaxed energy from the stage compared to the beginning. There weren’t many songs left in the set, but it was nice to enjoy the moment as much as the band was. I know I didn’t mention much about the performance with explicit detail, but the band’s mood does factor into the enjoyment of the whole show. Whether they were pissed off or not, there was still a lot of pure passion given to the audience, whether they accepted it or not, and I expected nothing less from them. It’s what keeps me coming back for more. Kyo has his ghoul make up, revealed it to us, and he really became that character. Watching him on stage is still like a performance art. Once he gets in the zone, the whole set and song goes into a whole new universe. Hopefully, next time he gets to fully engulf himself in his ghoulish character or whatever the next concept he wants to take on. I just wish the immaturity of the crowd and technical difficulties, but mostly the crowd, didn’t ruin the harmonious atmosphere I’m used to.

Setlist

Intro
REIKETSU NARISEBA
Unknown.Despair.Lost
KARMA (2013 Ver.)
RED SOIL
DOZING GREEN
Bottom of the death valley (2013 Ver.)
INWARD SCREAM
THE BLOSSOMING BEELZEBUB
dead tree
VINUSHKA
RINKAKU
-karasu- (2013 Ver.)
DIFFERENT SENSE
KASUMI (2013 Ver.)

Encore:
OBSCURE (2011 Ver.)
THE FINAL (2013 Ver.)
HAGESHISA TO, KONO MUNE NO NAKA DE KARAMITSUITA SHAKUNETSU NO YAMI

Horror Movie Annoyances: Excessive Profanity

Aside from unnecessary nudity and sex, nothing kills a movie more than excessive profanities. If every other word is a curse, then the screenwriter is truly lacking in vocabulary to express whatever the character is feeling or the ability to create a character based on cliches and stereotypes.

One movie that stands out in my mind as an offender is The Blair Witch Project. I remember cringing along with my poor mother every time a character opened their mouth. Every curse uttered felt uncomfortable and out of place. I'll even admit that the Saw franchise suffers from this from time to time, mostly when characters are angry or try to appear threatening to their enemy. While the actions and story pull you in, hearing Eric Matthews yell at Jigsaw or Amanda never fails to kill the mood for example. Forgive me for the expletives, but I want to give a clearer example of what I mean. The scene pops into my head with Eric in Saw II is when he gets trapped by Amanda and he yells at her with a line that kinda goes like, "I'll fxxkin' kill you, you stupid bitch!" repeated over and over until the credits roll. I know Eric has high temper gauge, but there are other ways to portray this without silly or easy go to lines like that.

Yes, people tend to curse when they're angry or trying to sound tough, but it usually comes off awkwardly and disrupts the flow of the story and sometimes the character who delivered it. Writers shouldn't depend so heavily on profanity to create a prevalent character personality or express emotion, especially anger or intimidation.

Quick Movie Review

R.I.P.D (2013, USA) | Rating: 2/5
I'm probably one of the few people that wanted to see this movie in theaters. Although, I didn't make it there and I didn't regret it. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't a movie that I had to see right away. Anyway, I recently picked it up from work and I expected it to be a fun little comedy that seemed similar to Men in Black. My predictions were indeed correct. Even though the movie brought nothing new to the table, it was entertaining and had a couple laughs here and there. It's no Men in Black, but it wasn't boring.



The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug (2013, USA) | Rating: 3.5/5
Love it or hate it, I enjoyed this second installment of The Hobbit. I think I enjoyed it a little more than the beginning. There was plenty of action and build up for the conclusion. I also had an easier time following the story. Although the love triangle was completely unnecessary, the other bits of character development was intriguing and I'm curious what is going to happen in the last installment. Lastly, similar to Catching Fire, the ending of the movie stopped at the perfect point for suspense.



The Lords of Salem (2012, USA) | Rating: 1.5/5
Ever since Rob Zombie jumped into the horror movie seen, I've been curious to see what he does in the director's chair. Unfortunately, every time House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects always happened to come on around 3 or 4 am when I had to go to work the next day or even class. So, aside from the remake of Halloween, this is the first original work I've seen from Zombie. The concept had promise and there were some great visual moments, but overall the structure was the movie's downfall. Well, there's also the weak factorial elements about witchcraft or at least the illusion to me. Lastly, even though I haven't seen the other movies, I'm going to join the bandwagon and agree that putting your wife in movies is a bad idea.



The Lego Movie (2014, USA) | Rating: 5/5
The beginning of the new year has consistently been a slow one, since things have changed in cinema. The only thing I was looking forward to was this movie. I had some high expectations and I avoided reviews until I saw the movie for myself. I went on opening weekend as planned and I can honestly say that this movie...completely exceed my expectations. This movie was pretty awesome! This is a great movie for both adults and children with a mix bag of humor, great action, a simple story, mindblowing animation, and nostalgic feels. I really, really enjoyed it. I'm considering seeing it again in theaters and then waiting for the home release. I highly, highly recommend anyone to see this movie, because it is simply awesome.



Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014, USA) | Rating: 4/5
Similar to Thor, I wasn't completely invested in the first movie, but this second installment definitely amped it up. I enjoyed the character development, expansion on the backstory, and interactions among each other. After watching this movie, I desperately wanted Man of Steel to have this same style and tone. I also wanted more Falcon and Winter Soldier, but I really enjoyed this movie. It didn't feel 2 hours long either, although there might've been a couple scenes that could've been shorter, but I'm just being a little nitpicky about it. In the end, I feel really pumped about the next Marvel installment.


If there's something you want me to review (or want a more in depth review of the movies above or previous ones), check out this post on how you can submit requests.

Top 5 Recommended Music Videos

"Spellbound" by DBSK
Compared to the overproduced "Something", I enjoy this song and video way more. It still has that fun jazzy sound and keeps the theme of that gangster era. Sorry, I can't think of the proper label for it. Sure, this is more choreography focused, but it's still amazing in its simplicity. The choreography is sleek and synchronized. The box set is simple and fits the tone of the song. Although, it is too illuminated in places. It was nice that they borrowed their one-shot techniques from EXO's "Growl" for this video, but the awkward zooms are a little distracting at times. Fortunately, it doesn't take away too much from the overall entertainment factor of this video.



"2 On (Explicit)" by Tinashe feat. SchoolBoy Q
I first heard about this video (and Tinashe) through a post on Arcadey. I queued it up on my YouTube watch list and when I got around to watching the video, I surprisingly really enjoyed it. The music is very minimalistic and doesn't really offer anything new to the genre, especially since a lot of artists are using the same elements in their crappy songs. What makes it enjoyable is Tinashe's voice. It's confident and smooth as silk. She's like a combination of Mya and Ciara. I really enjoyed watching her dance. Unfortunately, SchoolBoy Q's "contribution" is unbearable. It ruins the mood with dumb sexual lines, but Tinashe's Sean Paul reference made things happier for me. Looking forward to listening to more of her music in the near future.



"Turn Down for What" by DJ Snake & Lil' Jon
Oh. My. God! This is the most ridiculously awesome thing I have ever seen and heard. I never thought I missed Lil' Jon so much, but I forgot how much energy he brings to such a simplistic, bass driven beat. The video is crazy. Literally. Nothing makes sense at all. Yet I can't help but grin like a crazy person and revive all the crunk from the early 2000s in my living room. I'm surprised I haven't heard this everywhere. This is the greatest thing ever, people! Make it happen. #MikosGraduationAnthem



"The Worst (Explicit)" by Jhene Aiko
I'm glad I checked out this video, because I've ignored for years after debuting with her cousin, I believe, on a B2K album. Whoa. Her voice is absolutely beautiful. Without watching the video, you can feel the conflict, pain, and desperation through her voice. The video has a simple story that vaguely tells you what happened. It matches the subtle dark tone of the music with the horror-like camera angles, unstable effects, and darkened color tones. Forgive me, Jhene, for ignoring you for all these years. I'm gonna listen to your new album real soon.



"Mr.Mr." by SNSD
It pains me to admit that...I actually genuinely like this song and the video is surprisingly good. It's a different look or at least concept I've seen from them. Please don't try to argue that with me either. The song is subtly earwormy and has an easy electro-pop beat. It might sound a little droney, but the high vocals lighten it enough that the song doesn't end up in the gutter. It has a deceively sweet tone to the vocals and even in the imagery, but it also has a tiny dark undertone. Something that makes it feel that this song isn't as sweet and cute as it seems. Despite my praise and repeat abuse for this song, I still don't see myself falling for SNSD's "charm".

Promo: BNR

[from left to right] Heo In Chang and Master Key
Here's a little secret about these promo posts. I have a list of artists and bands that I feel should receive more attention and, obviously, BNR made it on my list after listening to their second mini-album, Irreversible. While trying to gather information about the group for this post, I ran into a few dead ends, which means that there isn't much information on this group. Brand New Radio, or BNR, debuted in October 2010. They released their first mini-album, Purple Sunset, the following year and a promotional video with labelmates Lyn and Verbal Jint. In March 2012, BNR released a single called Gone Crazy After Crying and Laughing and the following year, their second mini-album, Irreversible, was released. Of course, there have been miscellaneous collaborations with labelmates here and there as well.


Unfortunately, I can't really comment on Purple Sunset and "Gone Crazy After Crying and Laughing" due to the fact that I couldn't find it anywhere. Although, watching their first music video was quite lovely and comparing it to the video I first saw from them, "Did not say anything", was a nice step in the right direction in the duo's sound and visuals. Irreversible is an amazing mini-album and I highly highly recommend you guys check it out. I'm assuming their first release was just as good. BNR combines R&B and hip-hop together like their labelmates Verbal Jint and Phantom, but maintain their own unique sound. So, obviously I want you, my lovely followers, to check out BNR and I hope they continue creating more amazing music.