My town is crazy.

Murfreesboro has had a few strange events over the last five years I’ve lived here. We’ve had our radical preacher’s getting pushed around by butch lesbians, 20 feet tall displays of aborted fetuses, students setting themselves on fire in a dumpster, uber-conservative tea parties, anti-Obama rallies, and all sorts of other things.

Today there was a group of people marching to the courthouse to sign a petition to stop a Mosque from being built. As I understand it (poorly), there was a counter-protest to this as these people marched from a nearby school into the courthouse.

I got quite a bit of Rutherford county’s ignorance recorded, as well as the typical uninspiring chanting from the liberal college kids of the town. I know quite a few of the pro-Mosque individuals, and they are good people. This isn’t meant to question their methods. Nay, this is merely to allow you a glimpse into the twisted, Islam-hating town that I live.

There’s rednecks. There’s people holding signs. There’s people screaming out things about Afghanistan and how the Muslim people are going to take over America and kill us all.

There’s even a dude wearing a shirt that says ‘infidel’ on it that does the Nazi salute.

The other day, I picked up some shooting games called Deathsmiles and Sin and Punishment 2: Star Successor.

I was under the impression that these were arcade shooters. I was prepared for it to not be like Modern Warfare 2, but I figured it would be like Ikaruga or something. The same people made that awesome arcade puzzle-shooter, so the chances should have been high right?

Nothing could prepare me for how wrong I was.

I turned on my Nintendo Wii Entertainment System and popped out the disc for Wii Sports (I am an ultimate tennis champion, and am practicing to be in the olympics one day). After I put Sin and Punishment 2 in the system, I felt a chill run down my spine.

So I start playing this so-called “arcade shooter” expecting it to be kind of like Area 51, and it was slightly similar. You start out and you can pick from a slightly masculine girl, or a more obvious girl. (Then again, most characters in Japanese games look like girls except in Fist of the North Star). I picked the one that looked more like a dude. According to the manual, Kachi had auto-aim. I think auto-aim makes you look less manly, so I picked the one where I got to actually play the game. I guess Nintendo forced that option into the game, since they know there are so many casuals playing silly games like Metroid and MadWorld who whine and complain if you don’t give them an easy way out.

Me on the other hand, I prefer to do things the 80s way. You know, kick ass and take names without the help of some poorly-written AI.

Proceeding my character selection, I had begun to play the game. It was kinda nice, I got to shoot and kill things. It was a little awkward at first because you had to juggle between flying around and walking around. Treasure (the developer) should make up its mind. There are two kinds of gamer. Those who want to fly around in sci-fi jetpacks, and those who want to walk around while killing hordes of enemies. Treasure should know that everyone who wants to walk around is playing Modern Warfare 2 or Bad Company 2. It’s just common sense. Perhaps there was something lost in translation. In case you couldn’t tell, this is a Japanese game. Japanese people aren’t always the most adept when it comes to making games American gamers want to play.

There were a few cool parts in the training level where I had to jump over different things and dodge lasers. I didn’t like it, but thankfully walking is optional for most of the game.

Sin and Punishment 2 isn’t a bad game. It’s just full of itself. I suppose this is what happens when arcades are a dying breed. No developer can seem to emulate that feeling at home. I also feel let down that the game said it utilized Nintendo’s Wi-fi connection, but only used it for leaderboards. I was hoping for some online co-op so I could totally frag some alien ass with my mates over in Melbourne. No dice.

The next game I got this summer that was supposed to be an ‘arcade shooter’ is called Deathsmiles. I saw some screenshots and it looked cool. It was like R-Type or Ikaruga (my favorite) sort of game with bullets and aliens and such.

I got the package in the mail, and I immediately regretted the purchase. The back of the box said “Deathsmiles at us all. Lolis smile back.” I thought that the lolis were going to be the ones getting death rained down upon them glorious fury in this Xbox 360 exclusive! Like usual, I was wrong. Dead wrong.

In this game you have to play as the lolis! You see, I have much disdain for Gothic Lolita culture. Nearly every lolita I’ve encountered is an ice queen. I figured I’d get to bloody them up or something.

Cave, the developer, doesn’t understand what Americans want. At least Treasure understood the object of our desire, just not the proper location.

Not only does it force you to play as the bane of American society, the game is also pretty short. This should’ve been  1200 points on Xbox Live Arcade. I mean, if a game like Ikaruga can be up there, I don’t see why Deathsmiles can’t be. It’s not like Microsoft charges per bullet. Granted, the limited edition of the game was pretty nice. Soundtracks and a faceplate are always appreciated.

I suppose that was Aksys’ (the publisher) way of trying to calm you down after realizing how short the game is. RPG fans will also be pleased to know that there is a decent amount of choice-making. It’s surprising to see more choice-making in this game than in other popular jRPGs such as Final Fantasy XIII.

The one cool part about Deathsmiles is that you get to defeat a final boss called Tyrannosatan. As a devout Christian and a purveyor of justice, I find the concept of destroying a Satanic dinosaur to be very gratifying. It’s like I’m the one telling Satan not to tempt me while I’m trying to fast in the desert!

I’m not going to tell you to avoid either of these games. Different strokes for different folks, I suppose. I wanted to have a summer filled with arcade-style shooting action and was left unsatisfied.

For those of you familiar with Black Flower Music’s rich history, you know that we used to have a torrent tracker.

If I recall correctly, it ceased operations in 2007 or 2008. I’m not entirely certain anymore. We had built a decent-sized community, and I made a lot of friends. However, for reasons beyond my control, I had to get rid of it. It was mostly security reasons, and the fact that most software didn’t get along with my php configuration.

Moving on to present day, BFM has a blog, a solid podcasting platform, social media integration, and a growing netlabel. We are lacking what I consider to be the most integral part of what made BFM what it used to be. Sharing.

Remember kids, sharing is caring.

The point of this site was to introduce people to things you normally wouldn’t find elsewhere. Things that were a bit different, but not necessarily ‘weird.’ I wanted things to be interesting again.

BFM XX Tracker

Last time, the software was a bit danky. This time around, I’ve included IRC, shoutbox, games, bonus points, and a whole lot of cool modern features. And yeah, this time the block that says “forums” actually goes somewhere.

One bit of advice though, it has a problem with redirecting people to places. Be sure to bookmark that link in case you ever end up on a blank page. You’ll still be logged in, and you’ll still be able to do what you were doing. Also, please be sure to read the FAQs after signing up.

In addition to installing a new torrent tracker, I have also set up a brand new forum.

BFM phpBB3 Forum

We used to have a phpbb2 forum, but now we’ve upgraded to phpbb3. It also has a new look and feel. You’ll have to register for the two sites separately, and I suggest using the same username so nobody gets confused.

Hope you enjoy! Good luck, and happy sharing.

A few months ago, my friend posted a video from this band on his facebook and I was mesmerized by the unique sound of Transistor Kirac ever since.

Transistor Kirac is a Japanese duo making self-branded techno music.

But it’s not techno music, it’s much more than that. As the title says, it’s spacey, chiptune, and noise pop. Add a little bit of operatic singing in the mix and you have Transistor Kirac.

I had a very hard time finding a place to purchase their music, so I asked the band themselves where I could purchase some. They ended up sending me a copy of Kukeihae KISS which was the album they sent to all press.

I was familiar with a few of their live songs from youtube such as Rainy Comet and a few of their Yapoos covers. Nothing prepared me for what was on that CD.

From discordance to perfectly balanced sounds, this album is just kinda weird. I generally adore weird music, but there was something about the way the synthesizers sounded along the vocals that lit up my brain. To be frank, it sounded somewhat amateur at first.

Each song is based around a certain melody, and there’s discordant riffs coming from a synthesizer. The singing doesn’t exactly match the way the song goes, but it somehow works.

Nothing matches! But then you listen more, and then it all matches!

It almost has that improvisational feel that jazz does, but adapted to a metallic chiptune noisepop setting.

You can buy this album from amazon.co.jp

Transistor Kirac OHP

This month, I went around taking advantage of what Nashville’s music scene has to offer.

Generally speaking, Nashville can be a pretty boring place as far as actually seeing bands you’d like to see. The majority of bands I’d like to see skip Nashville altogether. They will usually go to Memphis, Chicago, or Atlanta instead. That’s perfectly understandable, Nashville probably isn’t the Holy Grail of ticket sales.

Our town probably also leaves a bad impression on many artists given the fact that nobody ever dances. At least, very rarely does the audience become engaged.

I had liked Mono for quite a while already. This show was utterly amazing and it was everything I thought it was going to be. I really wish there was more to say, but everything about this show was spot on. The venue even had a nice balcony for recording, something the other two shows did not.

I considered the next concert to be more of a chiptune show; however, it was a mixture of chiptunes, metal, and a bit in between.

The Collapsed Desires Tour 2010 featured Smiletron, rainbowdragoneyes, Nullsleep, Destroy Destroy Destroy, and Magic Hammer. I had already seen Magic Hammer, but I was most interested in seeing Nullsleep.

His music isn’t exactly something I listen to on a daily basis, but it has its place. When I listen to chiptunes, it has to be much more aggressive. Nullsleep wasn’t like that. The other bands were.

Smiletron was sort of a chiptunes version of Dot Dot Curve with less perverted lyrics. Rainbowdragoneyes was chiptunes mixed with death metal screaming. I accidentally deleted the video of his performance, but I did get a few seconds worth of audio before a very hilarious snafu occurs. Destroy Destroy Destroy used to be a local band that I never got around to seeing. This group was very energetic, and played a variation of symphonic metal.

I didn’t stick around for Magic Hammer. I had seen enough metal/eurobeat fusions for one year.

Then there was the Ke$ha concert.

Not exactly sure why I went. I like her music to the extent that a normal person can like mainstream pop music. The music isn’t the deepest trench in the sea, nor were most people in the audience. Let’s just say that amid the heat and the inane amounts of bratty high school girls trying to dress as slutty as possible (Hey girls let’s dress ASAP!) one could say that I amounted a great deal of stress.

Burning up, and three people were already sent to the hospital for heat stroke, I struggled maintaining good angles. There was a frat boy in front of me making out with his sweetheart the entire time, and kept switching hats with her. And apparently, there where little girls poking me and snickering until my wife gave them an evil glare.

The concert was fairly flashy. I was led to believe there would be a condom machine shooting condoms and glitter. There was only glitter.

Her set was relatively short, and it felt like only five or six songs. Then again, it’s an all-ages flood benefit concert. I’d expect either Nashville’s curfew to blame, or the extreme heat. Granted, she doesn’t have an armada of songs to pick from.

I don’t think I was necessarily ‘let down’ by the Ke$ha concert, but as it was the final show of the month perhaps I had misjudged what sort of expectations I should rationally maintain.

So what’s in store for July? The agenda dictates that I am going to go see Ear Pwr, Future Islands, Sleigh Bells, Everything Is Terrible, and maybe The Liars.

This is the final music podcast of our weeklong podcast series. This time, Tony plays a bunch of awesome punk songs and ends the episode, and our week of shows with an incredibly epic song. I know that word gets tossed around a lot these days, but I really mean it. Also bonus points if you get what the title is referencing. The banner should help you.

itunes | RSS | MP3 | podcast@blackflowermusic.com | twitter | Facebook | Blackplanet

 

 38.5 - I'm Punk Rock... [54:21m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (466)

Playlist:

Avenue D – Punk Rock Song
Intro [2:20]
Black Flag – Rise Above [2:54]
Dead Kennedys – California Über Alles [5:18]
Bad Brains – Attitude [8:17]
Agent Orange – Everything Turns Grey [9:37]
Subhuman – Mickey Mouse Is Dead [11:36]
Hüsker Dü – Don’t Want To Know If You Are Lonely [14:20]
Midtro [17:42]
Bad Religion – Skyscraper [18:38]
The Clash – White Riot [21:13]
Descendents – I’m Not A Loser [23:11]
Minor Threat – I Don’t Wanna Hear It [24:36]
Big Black – Bad Penny [25:48]
Refused – Refused Are Fuckin’ Dead [28:19]
Outro [33:25]
NOFX – The Decline [36:02]

This is the last episode in our week-long series of podcasts. We discuss the social impact of Shonen Jump. Its ups and downs, but mostly we talk about why think it’s the scourge of anime culture and must be obliterated. We are joined by Blake from The Social Engine podcast as a guest.

itunes | RSS | MP3 | podcast@blackflowermusic.com | twitter | Facebook | Blackplanet

 

 38 - Shonen Jump Off a Cliff [65:04m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (164)

show notes:

Intro
Week: Blake talks about his week
Segment: We sorta chat about shonen jump, but then we end up talking about rule 34. Go figure, naruto makes us horny.
Agenda: Anime
Outgoing

In this music podcast, Tony and Andrew chose to play only one song! The song is from Alvin Lucier and it is called “I Am Sitting in a Room”.

We suggest setting aside 40 minutes in a dimly lit environment to play this show. This is not really a “song”, it’s more of a musical ‘installation’ of sorts. You’ll want to be in a quiet environment so you can listen to the changes and eventual decay. It really is quite beautiful.

For those who might be against the thought of listening to the same thing over and over again, please be reminded that it doesn’t sound the same each time. (Besides, people listen to rap and techno amirite? hurr durr)

Perhaps a quote from John Cage will be of some inspiration:

If something is boring after two minutes, try it for four. If still boring, then eight. Then sixteen. Then thirty-two. Eventually one discovers that it is not boring at all.

itunes | RSS | MP3 | podcast@blackflowermusic.com | twitter | Facebook | Blackplanet

 

 37.5 - I Am Sitting in a Room [48:53m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (148)

According to wikipedia:

I am sitting in a room (1969) is one of composer Alvin Lucier’s best known works, featuring Lucier recording himself narrating a text, and then playing the recording back into the room, re-recording it. The new recording is then played back and re-recorded, and this process is repeated. Since all rooms have characteristic resonance or formant frequencies (e.g. different between a large hall and a small room), the effect is that certain frequencies are emphasized as they resonate in the room, until eventually the words become unintelligible, replaced by the pure resonant harmonies and tones of the room itself. The recited text describes this process in action—it begins “I am sitting in a room, different from the one you are in now. I am recording the sound of my speaking voice,” and the rationale, concluding, “I regard this activity not so much as a demonstration of a physical fact, but more as a way to smooth out any irregularities my speech might have,” referring to his own stuttering.

Lucier had also specified that a performance need not use his text and the performance may be recorded in any room. The composer himself has recorded the piece in at least one room he did not find aesthetically acceptable.

Also, here’s a video version of the same concept:

Tony and I have always wondered why people hate pop music so much. In this episode, we attempt to untangle the pop web of watered-down lies and share our experiences on the subject.

itunes | RSS | MP3 | podcast@blackflowermusic.com | twitter | Facebook | Blackplanet

 

 37 - Pop's Cool Bro! [51:00m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (124)

We cover not only the American pop scene! We also mention Australian and European pop artists and contrast & compare the various sorts of styles. Andrew also covers the 9 different live bands he’s seen since the last time BFM discussed music.

Also, check out this episode’s featured artist youtube playlist. Lots of interesting music you might enjoy!

show notes:

Intro
Week? Nah. Well maybe a little.
Segment: Pop music. We discuss its evolutions, its bad moments, its definitions, and why some people are so vehemently against it.
Agenda -- Music: Tony’s listened to MGMT and Drake, Andrew went to concerts.
Outgoing: wrapup