Kakurenbo

It's not everyday I mention this song. Truth be told, I only remembered it yesterday as I was in the car. I then decided that the solo seems easy enough. It's the only fastish solo I was able to learn. It may be fast although its kinda easy haha. Why don't I talk about this song much? I don't even know. I used to listen to it all the time then I think I started listening to other songs to try to get into them. This song feels truly modern Japanese to me. Kinda like an anime I suppose lol. Either way, I learned almost all the song as I can.

My Top Five Lyrics By Yuuka

I've just now gotten around to writing this post. I'm lazy hehe. Anyways, I just opened every lyrics she wrote and did a process of elimination. My list is a bit predictable though...

1. 儚い幻 (That one song she wrote for my birthday! Thanks again hehe.)
2. 華言 Sending... ~To isshi~ (Her first released song, for Oni-Isshi!)
3. 風上 (The windy song, I love Irodori and this reminds me of Genwaku No Joukei!)
4. 恋心 (This was inspired by a Kagrra, song which makes it that much better.)
5. 永々 Everlasting (I liked this one because it was well written.)

My Top Ten PV List

My Friend blogged about her favorite songs with PV's. That seemed a bit complicated for me so I'll just do my favorite PV's. Hehe.

1. Shi Mi Me Yu Ki Sa A - The naughty PV where Naoki gets beat down because people can't tell the difference between the pink yoohoo bunny and a brown bear.
2. Tsuki Ni Murakumo Hana Ni Ame - The longest PV being 9 minutes. I feel like Oni-Isshi was holding his breath during the silent parts as to not let the camera pick up his breathing hehe.
3. Irodori No Sanka - Sooo. A doll picks up a key to go into the real world, to pick up a key and go into the fake world. Cool story.
4. Genei No Katachi - Man, this was my top favorite a couple years ago. Might move it higher one day. The PV so red the Kool-Aid man said damn.
5. Sarasouju No Komoriuta - I just love how each member is portrayed in this PV. Although, I still wanna know Oni-Isshi's dirty little secret he says in the silence. Hehe
6. Ouka Ranman - Oh boy, this song gets me so pumped up I feel like I could punch out Mike Tyson! Akiya looks better in the red-pink I think.
7. Gekka Sousou - Probably the shortest we've seen Oni-Isshi's hair, still longer than the longest my hair ever was...
8. Shiroi Uso - I don't understand this PV. It's basically a terminally ill woman getting proposed to. If she will die anyway then I commend the guy for still proposing. Side note, I've never seen someone cry so many times within 4 minutes.
9. Sakura Zukiyo - This one is the saddest PV there is. The dad seemed like such a good guy. I feel bad for the girl. I assume she lost both her parents at this point. It hit me in the feels when he walks up to her and disappears. :')
10. Shiki - Ah, the PV where Oni-Isshi totally rejects the ghost girl. Sorry honey, he's too pro for you.

The list was so hard to put together, sorta like my other lists. Ha.

Shin's hair was always so fantastic, well except that one time...

What Just Happened...

I can't believe this is actually happening... It's just... How??? I just found out that I'm going to have another sibling. They'll be a half-brother/sister. Can you believe my 50 year old dad is having another child? I'm already my mom's age when she had two kids, that's how big our age gap is. Twenty damn years... Am I happy? I don't know what I am. That must mean I'll also have a step-brother and two step-sisters. I'm not particularly close to them as we don't talk. Although when one of those boy's friend comes by we play guitar together. Well, I suppose I'm glad, just very shocked. My dad did talk about wanting another child, but the poor kid won't have a dad that long, as he's reaching that age, plus he drinks so much he could die soon.

I need a break...

Subarashiki Kana? Jinsei

It's wonderful, the gift of life. The idea that this wonderful universe can be inhabited by creatures of free will. The idea that we can experience and make experiences of our own. This world however, must've missed the point. Ever since the beginning, it's been consumption. From snakes eating rats to birds eating fish. You'd think it wouldn't get much worse. Then we came along. The filthy detestable human. We're a clear example of consumption, greed, and all that is negative. It all comes down to money, usually. It causes deception and murder. The fight for resources (oil, land) has caused entire countries to wage war, and cities to be destroyed. Religion has been the most controversial thing, and those defending it have either died or killed. It's funny, according to one such religion, we were made in a God's image, a spiritual being with free will. When you give something free will, how do you expect to bind it? In my case, certain people want me to be a certain way, but why? To feed their disgusting ego. "Spiritual" my ass. I thought I had it all figured out less than a year ago. That I could finally achieve my enlightenment. What a joke. When I read that Oni-Isshi found humans bad in general, I sort of took it personally a bit. I eventually had to agree with him. Even if there's just one good person in the world, there's no saving us. Actually, I can't believe I'd say this, but he's the only human I look up to, not the people I'm supposed to look up to like my dad and granddad. In fact, I look down on them, they only support dominance. I've been called a pussy by them, overheard conversations about me. It must be because my mom raised me. Trust me, it was for the best. She values knowledge. When I lived with my dad for a short few year, my grades went to failing. With my mom, straight A's all the way. It wasn't because I was stupid. I just got frustrated and became lazy. My dad didn't do anything to help, he just grounded me for a couple hours. I shouldn't be surprised. My dad was born a savage and still has that thinking, my granddad is from the older days and still has that mentality. Get this, my dad congratulated my sister because she's aggressive. As in, she gets in people faces when they talk shit to her. Wow, just wow. But let's not mention she had shit grades in school and dropped out of college. She's the only one who chose to live with him. Now you can truly understand what's going on here. I initially thought that my dad forcing me to join the military was to afford college. It was actually as I said earlier, to feed his little ego... So, that's how wonderful life is on this big brown earth. I really hope there's a better life out there somewhere...

I'm calling it here. This world can officially bite my ass.
The Oni would be doing the world a favor by destroying us.

Songs I Like So Far

Amafurase Tanmaina
Ano Saka Wo Noboreba
Ao No Souretsu
Arishihi No Bishou
Awaki Honou Ni Tsutsumarete
Ayashi No Hikari
Bikuni
Boufura
Boukyaku No Hate No Kogoeta Kodoku
Chigiri
Chikai No Tsuki
Fuusetsu
Gekka Sousou
Genei No Katachi
Genoku
Genpei Tousentan
Genwaku No Joukei
Gikyoku Hanaichimonme
Gikyoku Kagome Utai
Gikyoku Touryanse
Gion
Guilty
Haha E...
Hakai
Hana
Haru Urara
Hifumi
Himawari
Himitsu
Hinomoto
Hirenkidan
Hizou
Hoozuki
Hyakki Choryo
Hyakkiyakou
Ibitsu
Ihoukyou
Irodori No Sanka
Irohanihoheto
Ishin
Izanai No Jukai
Jajauma Hime Den
Jusou
Kairai No Souutsu
Kakashi
Kakurenbo
Kami Uta
Kamikaze
Kasunda Fuyu No Mukou Ni...
Kaze
Kaze No Kioku
Kihou
Kikan
Kikoku Shuushuu
Kisai
Kisen
Kiyuu No Uta
Koi
Kokyou
Konton
Kotodama
Kuwaidan
Majinai
Manatsu No Yo No Yume
Mateki
Matsuri
Meguru
Memai
Metsu
Mikoto
Miyako
Mukuro No Toride
Murakumo
Musoukyo
Nageki No Uta
Nanagatsu Nanoka
Nehankyou
Nue No Naku Koro
Omou
Oni Wo Awaremu Uta
Ouka Ranman
Oumaga Toki
Paraiso
Ran
Rasen
Ren
Rin
Rinne Mokishiroku
Sadame No Ito
Sai
Saishuu Tensei
Saiyuki
Sakebi
Sakura ~Saikai No Hana~
Sakura Maichiru Ano Oka De
Sakura Zukiyo
Sarasouju No Komoriuta
Satsuki
Sayounara
Setsunara Kotoba
Shi Mi Me Yu Ki Sa A
Shigatsu Tsuitachi
Shiki
Shin Hyakkiyakou
Shiroi Mashu
Shiroi Uso
Shizuku
Shuuen No Kisetsu
Sou
Subarashiki Kana? Jinsei
Tanbinaru Shi He No Shoukei
Togenkyou
Towa Ni...
Tsuki Ni Murakumo Hana Ni Ame
Tsumi To Batsu
Tsurezure Naru Mama Ni...
Tsurezure Uta
Ujou
Urei
Uta
Utakata
Uzu
Yami Ni Chirikeri
Yousai
Yugen No Hito
Yume Izuru Chi

Warning!

Ai Santan
Dokuhaku
Jinju
Kanashi Urameshi Ana Itoshi...
Kiran
Kousa Uta
Kyouen Ranbu
Matsuri
Mourou
Rasyazakura
Ribetsu~Miyabi Na Sora No Shita De~
Sakurasou
Setsuna
Shi No Kuni
Shirakuen
Shiro No Kuro No Kuro No Shiro
Toki
Utsushiyo
Zanki

Miyako
Sara
Usanmusyo

Things I Miss

Within my life, there are some things that have gone away. One such thing is definitely movie stores. My favorite thing ever was when I would go to Hollywood and find a movie or video game I wanted to rent for the week. With the rise of online streaming, like Netflix and Amazon, that came to an end real fast. It feels like they all shut down in one day. I remember the last video store I went to was a small business. Showbiz. I think they closed down while I was still in middle school. Another thing I miss are VHS tapes. I just love the smell of opening up those plastic cartriges. I also love the vintage look of the movie on the TV. I don't know, it's nostalgic for me. I'm glad I can always experience that, since all I need is a working VHS. I still have some Season 1 Pokémon tapes hehe. One thing I wish I could have done longer was being a couple years old. It may seem awkward, but those were the best few years of my life, when I actually had an imagination. All that is thanks so Toy Story and Pokémon for the most part. Ah, the days where you could go have an adventure and all you needed to do was go under the fucking blanket. About 5 years after that, I would go outside and climb trees. These days, I just play Bethesda games because let's face it, it doesn't get much better than that. Now I can't say I miss being limited to certain things from back in the day, like VHS and 32-bit consoles. While those were all cool, I still enjoy my iPhone and 3.5 GHz computer haha. Maybe I could still climb trees. I'm just worried people will look at me weird...

Enjoy the things you have now before they come to a sudden painful end.

Annoying Things I've Been Called

I'm sure everyone has experienced being called something they don't like. I have my fair share of names. First of all, I really despise being called something based on my size. it gets worse when they add it to another condescending word. Here's an example, Little Kid. I was called this a couple years ago by someone younger than me. I always got made fun of for being short, but in the end I'm glad I was the smartest of the fools attended school with. my problem with the word kid is that it sounds like you're trying to make yourself feel better than someone because your bigger/older. I get called this by someone ALL THE TIME and they only know me online. I've only seen them call me this and no one else, so I hope it's not because of the age thing. Although, they don't know my age, just what I look like. I also hate being called a liar. One thing, no one can tell if you're lying. I made a  deal with myself to never lie again. Of course, it happens, and I punish myself for it. If you're gonna ask me a question, don't only believe one question and waste my time. I have a certain nickname I won't post publicly, but it is honestly the most annoying thing ever! Well, not as annoying as being called a kid, but still. The nickname is actually my first and middle initial. It's a shame I couldn't name myself lol. Another thing, people don't think I'm Asian, it's usually Puerto Rican and Mexican. Can't say I blame them, I do look it lol. I'm actually from Southeastern Asia, like my buddy Yuuka. Not only that, I'm mixed so I look different to other Asians. I've once been called racist names, such as Chink and Gook. Surprisingly, those didn't bother me as much. The guy was a white supremacist redneck so why let him put me down. I just ignored him as he kept crying about his rebel flag or something. I used to get called some tease names by a friend like squirt or pipsqueak but we usually made fun of each other so it was okay lol.

A big "F*** You" to all that called me these things! :D

My Fallout 4 Experience Aftermath (SPOILERS)

I've done a lot of playing since my last post. Hehe, maybe that's why I haven't posted in my blog for so long. I managed to beat the game yesterday. The story is pretty sad. You find out your son isn't actually an infant anymore, but a ten year old, then it turns out he's 60! The main character looks to be about 30. You have to choose between helping your son die happy by helping him blow of the Commonwealth or save the Commonwealth and make him die sad. Of course, why wouldn't I help my son, the world's been destroyed once before. If it takes another wipe out to clean it, what's another explosion? Besides that, I completed my power armor set last night. I just love walking around in my X-01 suit and blowing everything up with my MIRV Launcher! My favorite thing is sprint bashing enemies and seeing them ragdoll haha! I never figured out how to craft a good sanctuary but I didn't power up all of my equipment, which is nice. Given that I completed the game and was lv 42, I realized that all I could really do now is go exploring and go inside every location and clear it. I made the decision to toggle god mode and leveled myself to about 280. so I could max out my character's perks. Here's the thing, I'm gonna clear out every location LONG before I reach lv 280, and the point of reaching that level is to go around enjoying being a high level and explore all the places. If I already explored all the locations, that defeats the purpose of going through the trouble of maxing out my character. The max level is 10000 but the max amount of perk points you can have before it resets the perk point counter is 255. It takes 269 perk points to max out your character from what I understand. so it's best not to go straight past 255 if you just start a new game, otherwise you won't max out your perks. Well since I did all that, my only option is to make a new character and do something different. There are 4 endings and then the DLC are coming out in a few months! Can't wait to see the. :)

Kagrra, - Izumi, Nao, Isshi, Shin, Akiya

My friend wanted me to do a blog post doing a rating such as this. Seeing as I'm a straight guy, I can't do that since I don't find them attractive in that kind of way. I can, however give you my outlook on each member, as well as my friend Yuuka. So here goes:

Izumi: Kagrra's leader, I have to say he doesn't strike me as the leader type as he's always minding his own business. Well that's the impression I get when I watch Kagrra, No Su. I find him like a brother to Naoki, in which he's always getting picked on haha. I admire that about him, maybe it reminds me of my youth? Although I was eldest so I was doing the teasing. One thing we have in common is that we can both cook. I learned my first dinner when I was 12/ Ever since then, I've learned many things to make that I can provide for myself for the rest of my life. His nickname is Totoro, which I have never seen but the character is really recognizable! I saw someone with a Totoro phone case which made me want it badly. Lol.

Nao: Currently the only active member of Kagrra,. I'm happy he still makes music, and he's really good at it! Even though it's not the same style of Kagrra, it doesn't matter to me. Everyone has their own independent style and he's shared his with us, which is very special. He's the funniest of the group, I bet he was a class clown in school. I'm not a fan of the bass guitar but he plays it really well, it made me want to play too!

Isshi: Anyone can say Oni-Isshi is their favorite member of the group. He is the only person in this world I can say I truly admire. He says there is no hope for human nature, as it is filthy. I mean, it's true. There are good people in this world, really. Although we have really destroyed this world. I had too much time to think about how my life should be lived and I accept that I control myself and no one else. And that is to be said about everyone else. People like to control others in even the smallest ways. Oni-Isshi reminds me of myself in some very minor ways. He's a fan of Freddie Mercury, specifically, his song Killer Queen. Which is coincidental as that's my favorite song by them since Guitar Hero! One word that can describe him, could be Oni. I prefer Voice to describe him, as he was extremely gifted with such. I'm glad he dedicated his life to providing us with such a voice that it will live on forever.

Shin: My main man! I saw that because Shin is just like a mirror me. We have the same height, weight, and personality. You can see in a lot of videos that he does some editing of the songs, which I truly admire about him. It takes a lot of hard work and time to carefully put each little detail into the songs, granted he's not the only one to do that. I can only hope to be as talented as him. With a lot of hard work, maybe one day! Until then, have a good life Shin and maybe one day we can hear from you again!

Akiya: Personally, another favorite of mine. Akiya is the backbone of Kagrra,. He composed most of the songs himself and his guitar solos alone are eargasmic. You can't deny, the man's got style. (Harry Potter reference, lol) I will never understand how all of this comes to him so easily, but perhaps it wasn't meant for it to be known by me. I'm glad he joined Kagrra, otherwise it would just be totally different. He's a big fan of Marilyn Manson. I won't judge him as we all have our own tastes, I just don't find his music to my enjoyment. Well maybe that's who inspired him? If so, thank you Marilyn! You helped a band be what they are!

Yuuka: My soulmate. I'm glad I met you! Together we'll make a great team, I'm sure of it. You do your best to write the lyrics, so I'll do my best to put the lyrics to great music I will only accept once I made it sound as good as Kagrra,. I want to exceed my potential in creativity and only think of the best sounds I can make. You deserve it. Especially that lyric you wrote for Genwaku No Joukei! It's amazing I can even hear it as the lyrics are similar. Did you do the "ah's" because of that song? Hehe. You remind me so much of Isshi in his creative words.

I'll always remember your voice and I won't let you down!

My Fallout 4 Experience

I kind of figured I wouldn't get this game until much later, so I decided to spoil it for myself... Oops. Well I was able to play the game today, right before official release. I'll just point out that I've been a bit of a fan of Bethesda since Morrowind. Well, actually those are the only video games I ever play these days. I owe it to them to keep supporting their games! I was so hyped up that it wasn't as exciting as I imagined. Of course, I watched streams before playing and found the game to be almost perfect. It's going to be tough to improve upon this game, I think. Fallout 4 initially didn't have the alt-tab issue Skyrim did, but a later incident proved otherwise. To be more specific. At two separate occasions, the screen resolution changed and the mouse wouldn't highlight options, so I had to resort to using keyboard only. Other than that, I haven't gotten deep enough into the game to properly review it. I've just dipped my toes into what the game offers, such as the power armor, crafting, fighting. The combat is a lot different than in previous installments. Apparently it's inspired by Destiny, which I know a bit about but haven't played it for myself. I'd say this is a big improvement since shooting guns didn't feel satisfying unless you were using a Fat Man or something of the like. Graphics? Not as thoroughly detailed as modded textures in the last two games. That's good though, who needs all those mega textures to load anyways. From far away it gets the job done and looks great. The lighting is as good as it's ever been, probably my favorite part about this game. Power armor is complicated until you get used to it, but it's been done in a way it always should have been done, Power armor is meant to make you stronger but make you a tad bit slower. Bethesda also decided to not make it an armor your can just equip, but climb into. One thing I got annoying with was running out of power. You can still use the armor with the exception of power bashing/sprinting, and VATS if my memory serves me right. I haven't gotten too far into crafting since I'm no good at it, but it seems pretty hard to make what I want. It's probably best I scrap everything and start anew... lol. The armor layering system is fantastic! Brings me back to the good old Morrowind days. That was it for my first few hours playing. I managed to do it all without a single spoiler! Hehe. I can see myself playing this for a while, at the cost of sleep. >.>

Codsworth says my name!

My Top Ten Favourite Shiki∞Project Songs

1. Toki
2. Ribetsu~Miyabi Na Sora No Shita De~
3. Zanki
4.  Shirakuen
5.  Sakurasou
6.  Ai Santan
7. Mourou
8.  Rasyazakura
9. Jinju
10. Kousa Uta

My Top Ten Favorite Kagrra, Songs

1. Irodori No Sanka
2. Yuki Koi Uta
3. Boukyaku No Hate No Kogoeta Kodoku
4. Tsuki Ni Murakumo Hana Ni Ame
5.  Genwaku No Joukei
6. Shi Mi Me Yu Ki Sa A
7. Satsuki
8.  Shiroi Mashu
9. Sarasouju No Komoriuta
10. Tsurezure Naru Mama Ni...

My Favorite Miniseries - Rose Red

I need to see a psychiatrist. This film is my addiction! I'm not sure why, but I've always had a thing for haunted mansions. It all started with The Haunting (1999), the movie where Owen Wilson gets decapitated. What interested me most about that movie was the ghost children and the moving children heads on the bed. Hill House and Rose Red are my dream homes! Fun Fact: I live next to Thornewood Castle from Rose Red.

I never had the privilege of visiting it, though... :(
My story with Rose Red dates back to nine years ago. I was visiting my moms house and one day she popped that movie in. Let me tell you, that was the longest sucker I've ever seen in my life! No lie, it is four hours long. Fantastic! If only it were longer. What brought this miniseries to a special place in my heart is obviously the house itself. It is just so atmospheric and reminds me of exploring a cave in Oblivion. I mean, this house is pretty darn big. That picture above is only a small part of it.

That's more like it.
The first picture was what the house looked like upon completion in 1909, until Ellen Rimbauer decided to keep building. After she disappeared, the house built on its own. Thank you, Stephen King! This is my idea of heaven. The movie itself takes place in 2001, the present time when it came out. Many deaths and disappearances occurred at this house, three just from construction. I've seen this movie so many times I could list all the deaths, not including the ones that happen in the course of the movie. With that said, this miniseries is a must see. My love for this movie can hardly be described by being told, but understood by watching. There is also a movie called The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer, which takes place during Ellen's time period. Although, they only use one of the same actresses.

Why can't I live here?

My Favorite Movie Monster - Pennywise

Well, technically "It" is the monster, but I really enjoy It's form of Pennywise.
I first saw this movie when I was 5. I never scared easy. In fact, I loved these kind of movies. I always found the monsters interesting if anything. My strongest memory was when I first saw Pennywise, I rewinded that VHS a few times to get a better look. Haha.

This is our first look at him. He's happily greeting a little girl.
Suddenly, the smile on her face fades to the look of terror. We see why in a couple of seconds.

 It's at this moment that we know Pennywise is definitely not a regular clown. He's anything but.
We don't actually see her die, but we see her last moments through the eyes of It. Another of my favorite scenes is Georgie's death. Georgie is the little brother of our protagonist, and he loses his paper boat through a sewer drain.

Georgie looks down into the drain but that boat is long gone.
As he gets back up, Pennywise says, "Hiya Georgie". Well, we know what happens next. He convinces Georgie to reach his hand to grab the boat but Pennywise tears his arm off the socket. Georgie bleeds out.

I love the look on his face when he's talking about floating. He seems to get off on that kind of stuff.
What is "floating" anyway? Is it some kind of secret sex position? Naughty clown. I recently watched a funny review of this miniseries by the Nostalgia Critic. I had many laughs because he brings up all the weird things in the movie, such as people being scared of balloons. Well, that's my favorite movie monster. Coincidentally, my favorite miniseries is also by Stephen King, and it's not It.

"I'll show you how to "float" down here. They all "float" down here..." That's definitely some kind of freaky sex.

He thrusts his fists against the post and still insists he sees the ghosts.

Return Of The Deadites

I never really talked about it, but I am a BIG Evil Dead fan. If you have no clue what I am talking about, I suggest you drop everything and watch the trilogy. They recently came out with a TV series called Ash vs The Evil Dead. I was really hoping this lived up to the movies. The reviews were really high! I watched the first episode (that's all there is for now) and I thought it was pretty nice! It definitely still has the humor as it did the the second and third movies. I will say I don't find it horror at all, but it's Bruce Campbell so it's understandable. It takes place in an entire town instead of the woods. Maybe it'll have many different settings throughout the series. Sam Raimi directs only the first episode, though. There are other directors that I hope will do this right. Sam also directed the Hercules series, by the way. Another favorite of mine. About three minutes in there is a sex scene between Ash and some bar girl, a cougar, if you will.  One thing I'm not a fan of are sex/nudity scenes. If I wanted to watch porn I'd go to xvideos... Although there was no nudity, the scene gave me a couple laughs!

He makes a pun about his "wood", and he has a wooden hand. lol!
After that scene, the story picks up and Ash realises he did something so stupid that it caused evil to rise... again. That's why we love him though, so clumsy but likable! I won't go into the story as to not spoil it. I do want to say Ash is the same old Ash. He's no longer working at S-Mart, but instead ValueStop. This TV series has honored the movies so far, even if it is just one episode in. Let's hope it remains that way. There was one flashback scene where he referenced both the first and second movies, which the second was said to be rebooting the first. Wait, it was implied that he died at the end of the first movie. You mean to tell me Ash survived and left, then came back later with his girlfriend who died within 10 minutes? Also, he made the same mistake of reciting the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis! Although in the second movie, it was a tape recorder that recited it. Does he have a terrible memory? Hehe. There was no mention in the first film of the previous owners though... Maybe it's a different cabin in the woods? How did the Book end up there then if it was destroyed at the end of the first movie! I'm overthinking this... I'll pretend the first movie is still non-canon. All I know is that he references both films, but not Army of Darkness. So this could mean that movie is non-canon or it will be mentioned later in the series. Well, I'm just glad there's more Evil Dead to come (not a fan of the reboot movie). I would rate this episode about a 7 if comparing to the other films and a 9 if you approach it the way I did, as a separate thing.

Groovy

Back To The Past

The first tweet I got from my best friend.
Yuuka and I have known each other for well over two years now. We started off on YouTube although before I started uploading videos, I'd see her on other Kagrra, video comments. So when I uploaded Best of Kagrra, she commented about a month later.

Comments are from newest to oldest.
It was nice to see a familiar face! It was a few months later that we started following each other on Twitter. In fact, It was around the beginning of November of 2013.

I can't believe our first real tweets to each other was about my tattoo I wanted! Damn I've been thinking of it for so long! Hopefully the Army won't mind If I get these tattoos. If not, I can wait a couple years to get out. Two years later, we've had so many tweets that it's crazy.

I know for a fact we have more mentions than this. I don't think Twitter calculates every one, however. We've probably sent about 150 tweets today alone. So I figure the original tweet (conversation) counts as one mention. Since these two years, I've changed my name from Phantom to Shua Kagura, she went from kgr_beloved to ishin_koi. Anyways, for the rest of the story, refer to her blog as she answers interview questions!

Take it away, Yuuka! Oyasumi...

Halloween

Ah, the day of the year when people dress up and go trick or treating. It brings me back to all the Halloweens of my youth. I haven't had any extraordinary experiences personally. I remember one year I went as Darth Vader. Although I only used part of the costume and used the other Darth Vader stuff I had laying around. Like his helmet, which actually looks like his helmet and not that flat mask shit. That year was pretty nice, memorable. I once went as Jason Vorhees, I had to paint the hockey mask to dark grey and red. It wasn't perfect but it worked. I had no wardrobe so I used an old hoodie. My favorite Halloween was when I was about 4, probably because it was the first time I remembered. I had a skeleton mask with these eye holograms, very unique. It reminded me of Skeletor from He-Man, which I was into at the time. My love for the movie Halloweentown will never end. That was the true spirit of Halloween and I wish it was more like it here. Well, have a good end of the month and Halloween everyone!

Future In The Army

O.M.G. Today has been stressful. I decided to humor my dad and we went to a recruiter today. He's in the military and says he's the last in line for it. So like any logical person he chooses his first-born son to try to get into the military, even though he has two other sons which one is more likely to want to join anyway. So the recruiter had me take a test. My luck, I did extremely well. I caught the attention of another recruiter who had me fill out forms... Now, I'm stuck at a crossroads. I have no choice but to take the ASVAB and a physical test, which are no problem. The problem is that I'm not sure I even want to join the reserves. It sounds great, probably my best option at this stage in life. I even thought of myself as doing the military for a couple years. I just wasn't expecting all this to happen so quickly. Not to mention I have to go bald again for the time I'm serving. Holy hot damn I just grew my hair back out! I can't even get it close to what I want. Well, here's to life. Fuck me sideways.

Also, I ruined my blog-a-day streak by forgetting to post yesterday. Sorry. It's hard to come up with new topics.

Easiest Kagrra, Songs To Play

I've come across a few easy Kagrra, songs worth mentioning. I'd have to say the very easiest is Shizuku. Although the solo can seem a bit intimidating, it's really not that bad. Most of the song is doing the same notes over and over and over. Another one I'd say is Kaze No Kioku. Given, I haven't learned every part but I've had no trouble with it so far. The solo is straightforward, simple, but great. Utakata is another easy one, although it needs to be played with a capo. I didn't have one back then so I was able to play part of it without a capo, but it will help you out definitely. The solo in that song is a bit hard for me, I don't do well in the upper frets, honestly. Kotodama isn't too bad and so isn't Amafurase Tanmaina. Amafurase gives a break from the electric guitar with an acoustic solo. This one I find very fun to play, and it's not particularly hard but not as easy as others. Lastly, Sakebi and Boukyaku are other easy songs I've learned. Between you and me, I don't like playing Sakebi as much as the other songs. I probably play Boukyaku more than any other song. Haha.

Hardest Kagrra, Songs To Play

If there are any hard songs I've learned from Kagrra,, it's Yuki Koi Uta and Ano Saka Wo Noboreba. For Yuki, the real pain is Akiya's part. Once you figure out the finger positions for his parts then all you really need is practice to figure it out. Oh yeah, the beginning of his guitar solo is insane (Hakai ending solo speed)! Not one for beginners. I'm sure with more practice I can do it, but for now I'm just glad I can play the entire song! Ano Saka Wo Noboreba... It's been a rather long time since I've looked at the tab, but I do remember never being able to figure out the finger positions for the very beginning!  The solo is really easy though, not as fast as most of their other songs. That one I would recommend for beginners. I'll give it another go one day, but my computer is away right now and I have no room for it here. By the way, I kept all my tabs on that computer. I'll also upload the rest of the tabs on Songsterr once I set the PC up. For now I'll just be uploading the guitar parts and then adding in the rest of the instruments as I find the time to. Anyways, have a good day!

How Kagrra, Came To Be (SHOXX Aug. 2002)

IZUMI: Our story begins with chewing gum.

NAO: Hmm, that was in Secondary 2 (age 13-14, '92-'93 school year) wasn't it? In the beginning I never knew anything about Izumi. I had this friend, with whom I was good friends with at that time. One thing I could never forget about him was the fact that he would bring different kinds of candies and gum to school every morning without fail. I probably wanted to taste some. *laugh*

NAO: I would ask him to let me try some but he would always reply  "Sorry, but these are not mine," Then I would ask him whose are they and he would simply say  "Izumi's".

IZUMI: It just so happens that on my way to school everyday I would pass by a really grand looking candy store. I would buy about YEN200 to YEN300 ($2-3) worth of candy before school every day.

So, what was it that "sparked" up your friendship?

NAO: I would say I was the one who was the persistent one in the start of our friendship. *laugh*

IZUMI: Seriously though, I've never heard of Nao's name before and when I actually realized of his existence it was also the time when he would constantly come to me asking for sweets. *laugh*

So your relationship back then was merely on a "candy-giver" "candy-snatcher" level...when did this change?

IZUMI: At that time we didn't have anything in common so we were never really friends. Anyway, I started to develop an interest in drumming but I never thought of forming a band. I was just starting to learn how to play the drums when I heard from some boys in school that there was a band that was short of a drummer. Somebody approached me about the matter and asked if I'd be interested in drumming for them. And guess who was there when I went to check them out...Nao.

So you were like "Hey, isn't that the guy who always comes to me for sweets!!?"

IZUMI: Exactly and I was shocked. I mean, he didn't look like he was a bandman and a bassist at that. I always thought he was more of an athlete than a musician.

NAO: Hey, I am a gifted guy you know *laugh* Before I started playing for the band I was actually active in soccer.

But isn't your school in Hokkaido (which is the coldest perfecture in northern Japan)? How do you play soccer in winter?

NAO: That wouldn't be an obstacle for us. Soccer practice will still go on as usual, even if it means that we would have to play in the snow. Plus for a Hokkaido boy like me I always thought that playing soccer in Tokyo during summer with the temperature at a high of 35 degrees celcius (95 degrees fahrenheit) would be far more unendurable than playing in the snow. That would just be too hot for me.


What about you Izumi? Did you do sports?

IZUMI: I played a bit of ping pong (table tennis). At one point I even had a dream of becoming Japan's best ping pong player but that all went down the drain after losing in my first game. I straight away gave up on that and concentrated on making music. *laugh*

Why did you chose to play the drums?

IZUMI: Actually I am the eighth drummer in my family. My uncles, cousins and even my father were drummers. I guess it was sort of unavoidable in my case. There had always been a drum set in my home so when I thought of starting up a band I just thought to myself that the drums won't be so bad...

What about you Nao?

NAO: Well, my older brother was a bassist and just out of the blue one day he come up to me and say "Hurry, play the bass". In the beginning I have to admit that I was actually forced into playing it. He drilled me like crazy until I would sometimes cry because I didn't want to play anymore. Then one day I realized that I had become better than my brother. *laugh*

Can you tell me more about your band back in high school?

IZUMI: At that time we had a copy band and we only played Yellow Monkey's songs. I personally felt like I was restricted in that band and I realized that I would go no where as a drummer. I started to think that I should enroll into a Technical College and study the basics of music and drums to grasp a good foundation. After I graduated high school I went to Tokyo and got into a college and that was the end of our copy band.

Then, what about Nao?

NAO: After I graduated high school I led a nomad life for a while *laugh* One day, while I was wandering about I received a phone call. It was from Izumi. Just thinking back about that phone call makes me want to laugh. He started off the conversation with "Hey, long time no see" and without any exchange of 'How are you?' he asked, "Naoran, what are you doing now?". Instead of replying him I actually choked on my own words *laugh* Then Izumi told me that he was in a band in Tokyo which happened to have just lost their bassist and was wondering if I would be interested. He said, "Of course I'll let you hear our demo tape first,". I was seriously baffled and asked him how. He replied," Well, over the phone of course..." and proceeded to let me listen to their songs via the phone *laugh*

IZUMI: Ah, that happened alright. No matter what, I had wanted to make him listen to the songs. Plus, I was in desperation at that time.

NAO: Although it was over the phone the reception was exceptionally good and I was able to hear the songs clearly. I thought the tape was really cool and told Izumi what I felt.

You're saying that you made your decision to travel to Tokyo on the spot after hearing the demo tape?

NAO: No, I thought about it overnight. I also discussed it with my family and friends but what made me make up my mind was what my elder brother said to me. He said "If it's you, you surely can succeed" and that was enough to make me go. I headed off for Tokyo two days after Izumi's phone call.

Wow, that was fast. I mean you must have had to prepare some things for the trip.

NAO: I wouldn't say that...I just pack up one bag and left. And my bass... ...eh? Did I already have a bass back then?

IZUMI: Yeah you had one but it was dismantled into pieces. It wasn't a through neck...it had lots of bolts on it I remembered. You took the bass apart and stuffed it into your bag but the head was sticking out.

NAO: I remembered that my family was pestering me to buy a casing for it *laugh* But I hated to have to carry bulky luggage. So I told them that Izumi's in Tokyo and he'll surely help me get something for the bass later on.

So you relied on Izumi a lot?

NAO: Yup. Even when I was thinking about a place to stay in Tokyo I assured myself by telling myself that I could always stay over at Izumi's *laugh*

IZUMI: I was lucky because I had an uncle in Tokyo who owned a ramen store and he told me that I could stay in the room on the second floor of his shop. No need for monthly rental fees. It was about 12 tatami (213.5 sq ft) wide so the two of us had a lot of space.

NAO: Plus I didn't even bring a lot of things over to Tokyo *laugh*

Anything interesting to tell about your life as roommates?

NAO: Both of us weren't very good at managing our lives, no future planning, nothing. So every time we receive our allowance from our families we'd be so excited and everything is forgotten. Without even thinking of things that we might need we would straight away go out for some yakiniku (roasted meat) *laugh*

IZUMI: Times would come when we would run out of cash totally and have nothing to eat. *laugh* We had on and off part time jobs but it was hard to juggle that with time for band practice.

NAO: Yup, we had our hard times.

IZUMI: We would go through our life one day at a time, thinking of what we need only one day before it *laugh*

I guess I can imagine how hard it must have been for the two of you.

NAO: This is a bit off topic but Izumi was really mean last time. He knows that I get scared easily so often at night after saying Good Night to me he would turn off the light and say "Naoran, do you hear that...it sounds like footsteps..." We split the room into half, six tatami each, but at night I would slither my way over to Izumi's half and sleep next to him *laugh*

How long before Kagrra was all of this?

NAO: About two years I think. (Around '98)

IZUMI: It all started out with me and Isshi. I actually met him in the college I went to in Tokyo. After Nao joined us we had some performances. After a while we disbanded and went our separate ways. Nao returned to Hokkaido. He was feeling rather homesick and decided to go back and he worked for a while to collect some money.

So you guys had to start all over from a blank piece of paper.

NAO: Well, first off I had worked in Hokkaido for half a year and managed to collect about 140,000 YEN ($1,400) but after buying my flight ticket to Tokyo I was left with 120,000 YEN ($1,200). I still had some extra cash so I decided to buy some clothes until, without realizing I had used up all of my savings. This time I thought I'd bunk in with Isshi instead *laugh*

Wasn't that a luxurious life! *laugh* Staying together with Isshi would mean that you were definitely going to continue with the band wouldn't it?

NAO: Of course.

IZUMI: Things weren't going very good for us since we were short of guitarists. So we had to start searching for prospective new members but unexpectedly our guitarists came almost instantly.

You are speaking of Akiya and Shin aren't you?

IZUMI: We made some flyers to be put up in some music stores in town saying that we were seeking for guitarists and the phone call we got was from Akiya and Shin. They told us that they were from the same band.

Wow...it seems to me like you guys were fated to be together.

IZUMI: Yeah...a lot of things happened but in the end we ended up together.

Now can you tell me what are the good points of each other.

IZUMI: Of course from my view I think Nao's a very excellent bassist. And then, although I am Kagrra's leader I feel that every member of Kagrra has the qualities that would make them fit to become band leaders and that includes Nao.

NAO: Izumi has matured a lot spiritually compared to before and I admire that as it is something I don't have. As a drummer he has improved a lot and has developed many new techniques, he is a very good friend of mine but in a positive way I see him as a rival.

Lastly, what is the one thing you want the other to change about himself.

IZUMI: Hmmm... Well, he likes to meddle in other people's affairs and sometimes he goes over the line. I guess that's the only thing that you know...he should...hmm *laugh*

NAO: Nah, Izumi doesn't have any bad points.

Ah, that's so sad for Nao. Just like a primary school boy tries to gain the attention of the girl he likes and then when she falls for for him he ignores her and starts to pick on Izumi instead...

NAO: Aa, yes yes. But then that would be so tiring to the heart... *laugh*




note : take a good look at what is on the blackboard behind the duo   ALL CREDIT TO KAGRRA, FANSITE. IT HASN'T BEEN UPDATED SINCE 2004!

My Future Tattoos

It may come as no surprise that I would want tattoos. Maybe just a couple. The design is going to be Kagrra's San.

The symbols will be on each side of my arm.
I expect a lot of backlash from people in my personal life. They judge me by my long hair for Christ's sake.

Oh let's not forget my "Devil" necklace and girly earrings. Ignorance at its finest.
To get away from that story, I'm looking for a new job and I found a pizza place next door. It's not a bad place to earn some extra cash. Given that I need to save up for a car, about $2,000, I can't buy my guitar equipment and tattoos just yet. Also, my friend says she'll try to get Naoki to notice my tats once I get them. That's pretty awesome! I can't imagine it'd be hard for him to notice a picture that's been tweeted to him. I have a feeling that he reads all his tweets but doesn't have time to reply to them all. It's understandable.

My Day Fishing

Today was the first time in over a year I went fishing. Now, I like fishing and all, but come on. Something is up. I must be cursed or something. For one thing, I only caught a couple fish within seven hours, and my fishing line was screwed up. By that, I mean I couldn't cast far or not at all. The fish I caught were six inches and ten inches. Oh, and let's not forget how cold it was. My hands and feet were freezing! I was hoping they wouldn't need to be amputated. <:O My dad told me he'd pick me up in 30 minutes. That turned into an hour and a half. Thanks, you never fail to disappoint me. Haha! To explain more about the curse, it's because something bad happens about every time we go fishing. I remember one year I got a hook stuck in my leg. It hurt. A lot.

Who let's a three year old handle those contraptions in the first place?
A lot of times we'd sit there and nothing happens. It's mainly because we go to the wrong spots. The scariest thing that ever happened was two years ago when my grandfather hooked my brother. I heard a scream and I looked straight at my brother. It looked like there was a hook in his eyeball! NO! I ran like Forrest Gump away from the area. Well I hoped to God Almighty my grandfather wouldn't yank it out. Thanks goodness he didn't cast but instead looked at my brother. They pulled the hook out but it actually wasn't in his eye, just near it. Oh by the way, that spot was perfect for fishing. As soon as you put the pole in, you'd get a fish. Makes me wonder if it was legal to fish there. My dad is known for little stunts like that. All those incident's don't mean I won't ever go fishing again. In fact, I love it because it brings me away from the outside world. If it were up to me, I would throw the fish back after taking pictures, but my dad likes to cook them. It kills me to see them die because of a hobby of mine. Sorry fishies, if my dad wants you, he's getting you

P.S. Don't forget to feed my fishies!

I know Oni-Isshi listened. It went from rainy to a clear sky!

Gurrako Friend

Throughout my time uploading Kagrra, videos on YouTube I've come across many Gurakko who leave comments and enjoy the content I upload. One of which I talk to all the time. She seems to be the only person I really talk to nowadays, but that's fine. Yesterday morning we must've sent hundreds of tweets to each other.

This is the kind of random stuff we talk about... lol!
It's been about 2 year's that we've known each other, and nothings really changed honestly. For my last birthday she gave me the best gift I've ever received from someone, a lyric! She was inspired by Shi Mi Me Yu Ki Sa A, which the special version is one of my favorites to listen to. The lyric she wrote is called Fleeting Illusion in English.

I even named a custom sword after it in a video game!
It makes sense to name it that because I'm also known as Phantom, which I've used for 11 years now.

I'm so gonna beat you at that competition! Hehe, I am a bit too confident in my cooking, aren't I?
Speaking of birthdays, it's my sister's birthday today!

Wish you all the best, Yuuka.
 "Don't say things like 'I'm alone', believe in yourself. Even if the rain isn't stopping, tomorrow will surely be clear. It will surely be clear." -Oni-Isshi

My Years In Music And How I Discovered Kagrra,

Throughout my entire life, I've been through phases of each genre in music. For example, I was a huge NSYNC fan in 2000. Yes, I admit it. I even tried to dress up like them by wearing a vest without a shirt and my hair spiked. That part of my life lasted a couple of years, though I do enjoy hearing "Bye Bye Bye" every now and then. After Pop, I got into Rap and R&B. The first songs I heard include "Too Close" by Next and "Thong Song" by Sisqo. I didn't understand the lyrics back then but they have a nice beat to it, lol! My favorite artists were T-Pain and Twista during my school years and I also picked up tastes for different genres, but it mostly depended on the songs. One summer night, I was looking up J-Pop music because I liked the slow paced songs I heard in the asian market, O-Mart. That's when I came across a video that compiled a bunch of Japanese music. I basically skimmed through the entire video because I didn't find any Pop songs that caught my attention. After the video, I read the comments (habit) and read stuff about "R.I.P. Isshi" and "I wish Kagrra, were still together! :(" I took a look back at the video to find Kagrra, and watched a video clip of Utakata. I must say that was the hardest thing I ever learned to spell back then. I had absolutely no experience with Japanese. It was that same night that I went on a website and downloaded all the songs I could find. These songs were Uzu, Sai, Kasunda Fuyu No Mukou Ni... (was actually named Sakebi on the site), and Haru Urara. "Sakebi" was my love at first sight in that I had it on repeat all night. It was the perfect song! The next day I went on YouTube to watch a music video for it. I found it! Sakebi! Wait a minute, it sounds like a completely different song! Maybe YouTube is wrong? Well I found out a long time later the real name. I started watching as many PV's as I could and also loved Sakura Zukiyo. Fun Fact: I had a real hard time figuring out the sexes of the other members. That's where my addiction began. About 1 year later is when I would start uploading all their stuff on my Youtube channel, to possibly archive these treasures before they become lost. Ever since then I've stuck with them and only them.

I tried to guess the sexes based on this picture! You can see I had a real troubling time figuring out Akiya and Shin...

Gurakko MIA

I met another fan on Instagram about 2 years ago. What's interesting is she has a son named Hitoshi! It seems she was always depressed and, having known many people who suffer from depression, I worried. Well, one day she stopped coming online.

Her last post was about getting meds from the pharmacy and feeling worse every time. That was 90 weeks ago. I really hope nothing bad happened and she just forgot Instagram. I doubt it.

Akki's Amp Settings

Many days have gone where I would change my amp settings to sound like Akki's. Little did I know they were in the series "Kagrra, no Su" which I uploaded. Then again, I did skim through many episodes...

Ah! Taken at such an angle makes it difficult to see the settings clearly.

 And I never noticed someone I lived with had Akki's distortion pedal!

 This is just the beginning. It doesn't end by me just buying a Hughes and Kettner Triamp and Bogner cabinet. It's a good thing I did research and know all of his other equipment. Hehe, maybe I'm a bit obsessed with having everything like his. <:D Well, here's the settings I came up with after watching the video.

Presence-4
Master-3
FX Mix-0
-----AMP 3-----
CHANNEL B-Distortion
CHANNEL A-Overdrive
Master-4
Treble-1
Mid-1 1/3
Bass-1
Gain B-6
Gain A-1 2/3
-----AMP 2-----
CHANNEL B-Crunch
CHANNEL A-Acoustic
Master-7 2/3
Treble-2
Mid-5
Bass-5
Gain B-1 2/3
Gain A-1 2/3
-----AMP 1-----
CHANNEL B-Clean
CHANNEL A-
Master-6
Treble-6
Mid-6
Bass-6.5
Gain B-2
Gain A-4

Unfortunately I don't have his amp so the list may or may not be 100% accurate. I really have no clue what the AMP 2 and AMP 1 settings are for. I would think they'd be crunch and overdrive but they don't sound like it. Hopefully, it's just my amp that's the error. Although, the Distortion and Clean sound spot-on!