Aaron Kwok has lost his mind! No, not really. But his character kind of did in "Murderer," a movie I had the pleasure of viewing the other night. The first half of "Murderer" is all dark and edgy and unsettling, you know, the way Tran Anh Hung's "I Come With the Rain" should have been. Kwok is detective Ling, embroiled in a serial killing investigation without the benefit of his memory. He believed he was a good person before he forgot everything, but with the bodies piling up closer and closer to his home he starts to wonder. So does everyone else. With all the clues pointing directly at him, the truth is revealed in a most surreal and outrageous moment. The whole movie, as well as Ling, comes completely unhinged and I couldn't help howling and screaming "They did NOT go there!" But they did. And I loved it. I thought "Murderer" was a bloody good time, but I fear I am alone in this opinion.

If the early bird gets the worm, may jenbowie get all the goodies XD Thank you <333

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 1992, the band released its highly-anticipated, and long-revered "Climax Together" concert on home video. VHS, to be precise. How eager were fans to get ahold of this? Well, this ad was printed in Rockin' On Japan in July, two months before the blessed event!

( I think it was worth the wait )

I am beginning to question whether I should even own a car. On Friday as I was pulling out of my garage, I managed to scrape the entire right side on the garage door, leaving white paint and scuffs and scratches all over. I hadn't even had it for a month! Feeling like an idiot, I brought it back to the dealer to see what they could do. The body shop guy miraculously made almost all the damage disappear in seconds. I still have one scratch, now painted over and it looks a million times better. I sighed a huge sigh of relief. Until Sunday afternoon. I picked up my mail and found a letter from Toyota financing. The letter said Toyota would not accept the requested terms of my financing agreement. Something broke inside me. I went crazy. Crazier than crazy. I can't even describe what I felt. I was awake all night with anger and terror. Next morning I called the company as soon as they opened for business. Long story short, it wasn't true. My loan is fine. I sighed an even bigger sigh of relief. And then got sick. I still don't feel well.

Thanksgiving has come and gone pleasantly. One holiday down, two to go. My Dad and I began the day with "Ninja Assassin," a movie I couldn't wait to see for my own girlish reasons. Even under all that blood and scarring, Rain was lovely to behold, although I thought watching "Ninja Assassin" was a bit like watching a frog in a blender; a non-stop tornado of knives, blood and body parts. My dad thought it was the best movie he'd seen in months. He thought it was exciting. Go figure. We feasted on a yummy all-you-can-eat buffet of turkey, prime rib, and roast pork at Victoria Station in Salem, overlooking the pretty harbor. We both ate more food than I thought either of us was capable of *burp*

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 1991, the band played the first of three Club Quattro shows at Shibuya Club Quattro in Tokyo. A few scans today from what I think might be the February issue of Pati-Pati's sister publication, "Rock It!"

( Rockin' in Shibuya )

May all your wishes come true <333

A great meeting, years in the making, finally came to pass on Friday! _maldorora and her friend Liz joined the BT3 (that's countlibras, brainwhisper, and me) at Noir for an evening of lightning-fast chatter, drinks and camaraderie. Some evenings pass much too quickly. Mal, I will forever be enchanted by the sound of your voice, so you must talk to me again XD Liz, I feel like I've known you for years. Please come back soon! In the meantime I will treasure my favorite memory of us :D

My enabler, fact-check source and friend. I wish you all the best!


I finally got my day free of responsibility on Saturday and caught up with some classic Korean cinema as I listened to the rain pouring down outside. It was nice. Work has been crazycrazy. I answer so many requests and licensing questions I can't remember what I've done or who I've talked to from one to the next. It makes the time pass very quickly, but I can't focus on any of the long-term projects we want to do. Even with all this activity, we aren't out of the woods yet. Layoffs and restructuring still loom.

On this day in Buck-Tick history, in 1993, the band played the final show of the Darker than Darkness tour in a two-day finale at Gunma Ongaku Center. I totally cleaned out my 1993-94 folder for today's post. I have a scan of a short article of the event itself, plus the whole darker-than-dark-o-rama; a look back at the release of "Dress," the album, and a 1994 DTD redux:





( fear no darkness )

I really, really want a responsibility-free day off.

I'm being stalked by RCN cable guys. When you visit the RCN website, you have to enter your address to find out what services are available in your area. And they will capture and use this information faster than a hungry cheetah. Tuesday night I shooed one RCN guy away from my door. Last night, there were two.

I'm less than enthralled by the latest crop of K-dramas. Maybe its because I just finished a really good one (Inside the White Tower), or maybe they're just not very good. "You're Beautiful" is harmless, silly fun, with more than a few reminders of that wretched "Coffee Prince." I'm just not feeling the love. I had high expectations for "I.R.I.S.," with everyone wanting to kill handsome Lee Byung-hun. This big budget spy thriller has yet to thrill me. Lee seems to be acting in a void, constantly on the run from people with guns, knives, and short-range missiles, and surrounded by bad acting. Is it the pacing? The casting? The ridiculous situations? I wanted to love this drama, and yet I don't.

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 1997, the band released its twelfth single, and first single for new label Mercury, "Heroin." It reached #11 on the singles chart. It was a re-birth of sorts, with an emerging modern sound that would dominate the forthcoming album, "Sexy Stream Liner." And if the sound of "Heroin" didn't make you think something different was afoot, perhaps the images from this UV, dated December 25, 1997, will make you believe we're not in "Cosmos" territory any more:

( shadows and hairdos  )

Halloween is just a memory now, but I enjoyed the season thoroughly, as I do. Saw a few fun, scary movies like "Drag Me to Hell" and "Chaw," plus "Paranormal Activity." I think the last one was simply not meant for me. I sat watching, admiring the practical creativity of the filmmaker, and waited for it to get scary. Then the credits rolled. The Halloween party, on the other hand, was not disappointing in the least. Just try to find me in this crowd of top-notch Halloween pageantry!

To hisashiatsitoll and kazekageshad I'm sorry I missed it!

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 2008, Lucy played a one-off gig in the good company of Yukihiro's Acid Android and Fujii Maki, and even managed to pull off a mini-Schaft reunion. Ongaku to Hito was there to capture the event. Someone else had something to say too, as Buck-Tick was preparing for some Fish Tank only shows and had just recorded a new album. Scans today from the January 2009 issue courtesy a thoughtful gift from my wonderful friend speedygz.



( Hmmmm... I wonder who the mystery guest might be )

I found these photos posted on a news site that I read every day, and I have not been able to stop smiling : ) So I shamelessly stole them all to share here. Just try to resist their charm!

Whirl, a two-year-old-Amur tiger, plays with a pumpkin at the Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield, Illinois October 28, 2009. Zookeepers fed pumpkins to the zoo's lions, tigers, bears and gorillas, in honor of the upcoming October 31 Halloween holiday.
REUTERS/John Gress (UNITED STATES ANIMALS)

( Everyone loves Halloween treats )

So I'm throwing an ElJay Halloween party and you're all invited! What on earth will you wear?
( cut for length and sheer absurdity )

And because I love Halloween (and candy) I just had to do this meme. Stolen from everyone:

My LiveJournal Trick-or-Treat Haul
tigerpal goes trick-or-treating, dressed up as witch.
arinsar gives you 5 yellow root beer-flavoured pieces of chewing gum.
brainwhisper tricks you! You get a wet rag.
countlibras tricks you! You get a used tissue.
darcenciel tricks you! You get a rock.
elvenlass gives you 10 green coffee-flavoured jawbreakers.
ff120 gives you 6 milky white watermelon-flavoured wafers.
ifotismeni tricks you! You lose 5 pieces of candy!
jenbowie gives you 15 dark green lemon-flavoured gummy bats.
ladymusashi gives you 19 mottled green watermelon-flavoured pieces of taffy.
speedygz tricks you! You lose 3 pieces of candy!
tigerpal ends up with 47 pieces of candy, a wet rag, a used tissue, and a rock.
Go trick-or-treating! Username:
Another fun meme brought to you by rfreebern.

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 1991, the band released their 5th single for Victor, the beloved "Jupiter." The song would only reach #8 on the singles chart, but became one of their most requested and most popular songs in their live performances, even 18 years later. Atsushi's lyric struck a chord in the hearts of everyone who has ever lost a loved one and remains one of the band's signature songs. Scans today from an unknown little magazine from November 1991 and B-Pass from January 1992.





( to Jupiter and beyond )

I've had quite a week. I've been a bundle of nerves and stress to the point of feeling sick. On Tuesday I went to the dentist for a quick, uneventful filling and when I got in my car to drive back to work it was dead. At least it was a warm, sunny day! I was visited by AAA three times over three hours. The first two each declared that my car was running okay and left before establishing that the car would actually move forward D: The third AAA visit was from the tow truck who brought us both back to "Uncle Andy's," my car's home away from home. On Wednesday, I went back to Andy's to pick up the poor old thing. He replaced my battery terminals so I could drive it again, but the man who always says 'never say never' told me it was time to start looking for a new car.
I took his advice. I found a couple of listings at the Toyota dealership near my home that looked promising; a 2006 Corolla and a 2006 Scion. I was always weirdly attracted to the utilitarian homeliness of the little Scion Xa, and my co-worker kept badgering me to go for a test drive. On Friday, I finally did it. I never do anything without thinking it over for three months, but on that day I managed to negotiate $1700 off the asking price, even with my sad, old trade-in, and signed the papers. I bought the car! Best of all, its Toyota-certified, which means I get all the advantages, warranties and perks that come with buying a brand-new car. My monthly payments will be modest and manageable and hopefully I'll never find myself broken down in the street for hours again. Now maybe I'll start feeling less anxious and depressed.

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 1988, the band released its very first single for Victor, "Just one More Kiss" b/w a re-recorded "To Search." It reached #6 on the Oricon singles chart. I wish I'd been aware of it at the time, but it's better to arrive at the party late, than never to have come at all.

Thankfully for me and other late-comers, there's a wealth of Buck-Tick photos, articles and videos that capture the event so we can experience it as if for the first time. It would be the last time we'd see Atsushi and Hide with the sky-high hair and we'd witness the band moving forward with the image-shifting "Taboo" in January. Scans today from my "I don't know" collection. If I were to make a wild guess, I'd say they were from a late-1988 issue of Pati-Pati.

( I lost my heart )

On this day in Buck-Tick history in 1965(Thank you blaquetopaz<3 I screwed up!), the musical genius with limitless creativity, cute knees and a flair for picking nice shoes was born. He is the number one reason I am cash poor and musically rich. With much respect and admiration, a most happy birthday to Imai Hisashi!




( A 44-Imai salute )