Yes, I’ve not posted here in over a year. It’s… unlikely to change.

I have got to see this film. Not only does it have one of my favourite action movie stars in it, it looks pretty cool and funny too. Well, funny between all the shooting, car chases and blowing things up and such.

Jason Statham seems to have been pigeonholed into the action star kind of role, but I think he’s been in some other less modern-day action hero type roles, which I guess I’ll have to track down and watch. It’d be cool to see him given the oppotunity to do something a little different though.

I first got introduced to the Tegan and Sara song “Walking with a Ghost” through a mashup by PartyBen that mixed it with a song by Mylo. It’s a really great song that I love (well, right now I do) and it’s also been covered by The White Stripes.

I don’t know what it is about this song, but it’s just so catchy and singalongable no matter what version I’m listening to.

–
PartyBen – Walking in Paris (Tegan and Sara vs Mylo)
~ official site ~

The White Stripes – Walking With A Ghost
~ official site ~ buy “Walking with a Ghost” on Amazon ~

Tegan and Sara – Walking With A Ghost
~ official site ~ buy the album “So Jealous” on Amazon ~

I first got introduced to the Tegan and Sara song “Walking with a Ghost” through a mashup by PartyBen that mixed it with a song by Mylo. It’s a really great song that I love (well, right now I do) and it’s also been covered by The White Stripes.

I don’t know what it is about this song, but it’s just so catchy and singalongable no matter what version I’m listening to.

–
PartyBen – Walking in Paris (Tegan and Sara vs Mylo)
~ official site ~

The White Stripes – Walking With A Ghost
~ official site ~ buy “Walking with a Ghost” on Amazon ~

Tegan and Sara – Walking With A Ghost
~ official site ~ buy the album “So Jealous” on Amazon ~

AFI are my favourite band and have been for about 6 years now and I’m always struck by how dedicated their fans are and how much AFI seem to do for their fans. It may be because I am far more involved with the AFI fan community than I have been for any other band or musician that I have liked in the past, but thinking about the big music stars that I remember, none of them seem to do so much personally for their fans. Sure they might tour and stuff – but all musicians tour. Otherwise it’s just CDs and radio and while the music may be good, it’s not enough just to hear recordings. AFI actually concoct crazy mysteries to go with their albums for the fans to try and solve and investigate. They communicate with the fans using their messageboard, myspace and various other internet outlets. They take the time to meet members of their fan club before shows and often spend some time with the fans who stick around waiting after shows.

And I think it pays off. All the extra effort that AFI put into doing a little extra for their fans has resulted in a largely uber-dedicated fanbase who stick with them, even if some aren’t sure about the new direction their music is going in. A fanbase so dedicated that they frequently declare their love for AFI in a permanent fashion by tattooing it on their bodies.

AFI are my favourite band and have been for about 6 years now and I’m always struck by how dedicated their fans are and how much AFI seem to do for their fans. It may be because I am far more involved with the AFI fan community than I have been for any other band or musician that I have liked in the past, but thinking about the big music stars that I remember, none of them seem to do so much personally for their fans. Sure they might tour and stuff – but all musicians tour. Otherwise it’s just CDs and radio and while the music may be good, it’s not enough just to hear recordings. AFI actually concoct crazy mysteries to go with their albums for the fans to try and solve and investigate. They communicate with the fans using their messageboard, myspace and various other internet outlets. They take the time to meet members of their fan club before shows and often spend some time with the fans who stick around waiting after shows.

And I think it pays off. All the extra effort that AFI put into doing a little extra for their fans has resulted in a largely uber-dedicated fanbase who stick with them, even if some aren’t sure about the new direction their music is going in. A fanbase so dedicated that they frequently declare their love for AFI in a permanent fashion by tattooing it on their bodies.

This is a video directed by Karen Lum, adapted from the poem “Slip of the Tongue” written and performed by Adriel Luis.

And it’s great.

I can only really speak from the experience of creepy old men saying to me “You’re mixed race, yes?” as if they’ll get some kind of prize for correctly guessing that I’m both caucasian and chinese with perhaps a bonus thrown in for being incredibly skeevy. Then there’s the wondering whether you got into a university because of your ethnicity and gender and not because of your talent – perhaps they had some kind of quota to fill.

It’s something to think about.

I think there’s also a video on the same topic by Alanis Morrissette somewhere, but videos like this make me think about the things that celebrities choose to draw attention to. I mean, celebrities are ordinary people who also happen to be well known by a lot of other ordinary people for one reason or another.

So should they feel obligated to draw attention to various issues that they feel are important or that other people feel are important and have asked them to pimp out?
Maybe. Celebrities are people like you and me and in a way, we should all be doing things to solve problems with the world that we feel strongly about and to help right various wrongs about the place – so they shouldn’t be singled out as someone to hold up as an example to the world. Being some kind of role-model or hero-figure has responsibility and can mean always being on your best behaviour in public and not having the freedom to just chill out and be naughty occassionally.

However, at the same time, they are famous. People have heard of them. People pay to see their films, hear their music or buy their books. Their jobs are based on being known by at least a few other people and using that power to get people to buy whatever product they are promoting – be it a film, cd or carpet cleaner. From the obligation that everyone has to do their bit for issues they care about, you could also say that because celebrities are in a position of a certain power, they can use this power to draw attention to things that the common folk might not think about too often.

I guess it could be annoying though, to have people wanting you to champion various causes all the time, so there has to be a balance between private and public and making time both for yourself and also for this kind of charitable action.

So, I actually bought Alkaline Trio‘s Agony & Irony like…ages ago. And it’s sat on my desk since I bought it, because my laptop is crap for playing cds, my cd player is dead and…I tend to put the tv or internet radio on rather than sticking cds in the dvd player to listen to.

Anyway, after going to see them on Monday and actually hearing some of the songs from the album live before hearing them anywhere else I was like… BUT WHAT ARE THOSE, THEY ARE AWESOMESAUCE.

And then I remembered today that the album was on my desk, because while I don’t listen to cds that much anymore, I am still kind of a completeist for a handful of not-too-prolific bands.

AND IT IS STILL AWESOMESAUCE. 😀

I think there’s also a video on the same topic by Alanis Morrissette somewhere, but videos like this make me think about the things that celebrities choose to draw attention to. I mean, celebrities are ordinary people who also happen to be well known by a lot of other ordinary people for one reason or another.

So should they feel obligated to draw attention to various issues that they feel are important or that other people feel are important and have asked them to pimp out?
Maybe. Celebrities are people like you and me and in a way, we should all be doing things to solve problems with the world that we feel strongly about and to help right various wrongs about the place – so they shouldn’t be singled out as someone to hold up as an example to the world. Being some kind of role-model or hero-figure has responsibility and can mean always being on your best behaviour in public and not having the freedom to just chill out and be naughty occassionally.

However, at the same time, they are famous. People have heard of them. People pay to see their films, hear their music or buy their books. Their jobs are based on being known by at least a few other people and using that power to get people to buy whatever product they are promoting – be it a film, cd or carpet cleaner. From the obligation that everyone has to do their bit for issues they care about, you could also say that because celebrities are in a position of a certain power, they can use this power to draw attention to things that the common folk might not think about too often.

I guess it could be annoying though, to have people wanting you to champion various causes all the time, so there has to be a balance between private and public and making time both for yourself and also for this kind of charitable action.