I know I’m super late of on this, but it recently came to my attention how incredibly stupid and ignorant and hateful people on twitter were in response to Miss New York Nina Davuluri winning Miss America. They had the gall to say that she should not have won because she wasn’t even American, comparing her to Al-Qaeda and calling her a Muslim (as if that’s supposed to be something offensive). Seriously? Do people not realize how stupid they sound when they make comments like this? Its like saying that a banana and a war tank are exactly the same things. I must be deluding myself but last time I checked being American is a frame of mind, not just being born in the country. I could understand and even tolerate some of their ignorance if they did not understand that concept, but she was born and bred in the USA! I’m more sad than angry about this. It really goes to show the lack of morality and common decency that is rampant in this country; going to church and reading the Bible does not constitute morality- it is just being a good human being, open and understanding.
Blindness falls on the children of the privileged. They come up and up and up and learn to replace themselves but not to better their surroundings. What care would they need put in anything that is not themselves? What effort should they really exude? How could they really make a difference? Their each only one person. Each only one. One made of each ignoring the problems around them. One made…
Formed on 1982, Outrage is one the most important exponents of Japanese thrash metal, going on with an incisive sound, allowing them to become more popular even oversea. Their fourteenth album sees an energetic and refreshing sound, with compelling guitar riffs, dynamic rhythms and powerful vocals, bringing up a high rate of adrenaline in each note. Outrage is reaffirming their status of veteran band, still having a style which is appreciated even nowadays.
A lot has been said about Matenrou Opera, between style changes and members departing, but their style never faded at all. The band evovled a lot, enclosing new shades without betraying their essence. In their latest EP there’s a major focus on dynamic themes and powerful rhythms, brought up by the presence of the talented guitarist JaY, and also on vocal performances, as Sono gives literally everything for each track, alternating raging and clear notes altogether. Despite everything, Matenrou Opera are still alive and kicking and we are here to taste each note of theirs.
Would you ever thought that a Shintoist priestess might have become a full-time singer? The answer is Suzue, born in Brazil but grown up in Japan, whose spiritual world went in touch with music, bringing all the themes of Shintoism into her songs. In her latest album there’s a concentration of folk melodies, having their roots in traditional Japanese music, accompained by Suzue’s crystalline voice, touching the heart in each performance. If you truly love Japan and his ancient culture, Suzue is definitely a must.
TRACKLIST
Mizu no melody (Water melody)
Rakuen
Hokutoshichisei (Great Bear)
Blessing
Utakata -Sign of Luna- (Foam -Sign of Luna-)
Tokowakano mori (Forest of eternal youth)
Toyoashiharano Mizuhonokuni (Japan)
Sakuramichi (Cherry road)
Prayer of the Flowers
En no kizuna (Bonds of edge)
Inaba/Salas - Maximum Huavo (15.04.2020) [★★★★]
On 2017 Hiroshi Inaba, singer of the famous Japanese band B’z, and the Native American musician Stevie Salas started a new-project, indeed named Inaba/Salas, leading to an unusual fusion between two distinctive styles. In their second album the style offered is groovy and refreshing, with good rhythms and living vocals, building up catchy tracks, really hard to forget and to not enjoy.
Scenarioart has seen a good popularity for having some song used in anime themes and also because of a good mixture between pop-rock and electronic sound. Their third full-album, released after three years, brings up a series of catchy and animated tracks, featuring even some indie shade, well developed by the two voices of the trio, Kumiko and Hayashi, who intertwine their different tones in a pretty nice way, also in the most complex works. Scenarioart is not definitely the typical J-pop act you could expect, but it is even better.
The first mention of the month is for one of the most promising acts of Japanese pop scene. Rina Sawayama, born in Japan and grown in England, is definitely a phenomenon, thanks to her image, against any stereotype, and an engaging and incredibly unpredictable sound. Her first full album mixes up several shades, featuring pop, R&B and rock influences, well driven by Rina’s charismatic voice, explaining the big success of the release, especially in West. Rina Sawayama’s music shouldn’t be missed and will give you a new perspective of Japanese pop.
The second mention is for Tamiw, a really peculiar alternative rock band. Active since 2018, the band released only an album, which showed their unique and experimental approach. Two years later, their second full work confirmed this style and evolved it a bit more, enclosing electronic shades and shoegaze touches, helped by Tami’s clear and enigmatic voice and a quite peculiar instrumental work. Tamiw is an act which should be followed more and their music can satisfy everybody, as shown in this album.
The final mention is for a young Japanese pop singer, named KanoeRana, who can seem a typical pop vocalist, since her works are aimed to anime themes. But in this release, an anime cover album, she brings out all her best shades, since she is quite known for being ready to include any kind of musical influence in her songs, and the final result is above any expectation, with catchy and various melodies, driven by her brilliant and charismatic vocals, showing her incredible ability, despite being so young. We will definitely hear more of KanoeRana, who brings a new breath of fresh air into Japanese pop music.
“Outrage is like a lot of other things that feel good but over time devour us from the inside out. And it’s even more insidious than most vices because we don’t even consciously acknowledge that it’s a pleasure.”
- As political cartoonist Tim Kreider put it in a New York Times op-ed
When it comes to non-fiction books, there’s always some wiseacre who will come along and point out that your facts are wrong. And not only is that annoying, it can harm your sales. And you know me. I’m all about the sales.
Even if you write books clearly labelled as fiction there’s still a monstrous regiment of smartarses who take unseemly pleasure in pointing out that your research is flawed and that Rhodes Scholarships have got nothing to do with the Illuminati, or that Copernicus actually died of a stroke, or that the Aztecs didn’t invent Communion wafers.
But I’m not here to fix Dan Brown’s problems. I’m here to write my own bestsellers that make Angels & Demons look like Pippa Middleton’s Celebrate. Sales-wise.
Handily, there’s one kind of book where no-one can knock your research. No matter how sloppy it is. And that’s Theology.
Theology occupies a magical middle ground equidistant between fiction and non-fiction. The content of a theology title is based entirely on what the author reckons.
Now, books that reckon there is a God are pretty old news. What’s hot right now are books that reckon there isn’t.
As an example, let’s look at Dickie Dawkins’s recent smash hit The God Delusion.
It sold like gangbusters to atheists who wanted to be part of Dickie’s club, and it sold equally well to religion fans who were looking forward to being offended. And all it was, when it comes right down to it, was a bunch of stuff that Dickie reckoned.
If you’re ever reckless enough to be critical of religion, and ask how a loving God can permit disaster x or plague y, theologists will explain to you that we should never presume to know God’s plan. Then the following Sunday these same theologists will tell you that they know what God wants you to wear, and what kind of prayers God likes, and which days he likes to hear them on etc. And there’s nothing you can say against any of that, because that’s what they reckon.
And I can reckon as well as anyone else. The only hard part would be finding a new angle on theology. As discussed, there are people writing books saying that there is a God. And there are people writing books saying that there isn’t. But as far as I can tell, there aren’t a whole lot of books asserting that there used to be a God, but he’s now pretty much semi-retired.
And that’s precisely the premise of theological bombshell The God Declension. It’s just the kind of book that gets all the religious people in a bate and makes them talk to the newspapers and the radio about how awful it is and then everybody goes and buys it to see if they’re right and of course they are but not in the way they think, and anyway I don’t care because every one of those profoundly offended people has given me £18.99 in order to be insulted so ha ha.
As an example of how deeply upsetting and wrong The God Declension is, let’s take a look at Chapter 12: A List Of Miracles.
So, let’s start in 4004BC, when most ‘scientists’ agree the entire Universe was created in one very busy week by a young and exuberant God (Genesis 1-2.) Pretty sweet work I think you’ll agree.
And the thing is, even though just creating a Universe would be tiring enough for most people, God also took the time to bury fake dinosaur skeletons some time on that first Saturday afternoon just to troll Victorian scientists some five and a half centuries later.
There’s a God who’s totally on top of his game, planning wise.
A little later God decides he’s not happy with some aspects of humanity and so murders nearly everyone on Earth in a massive flood (Genesis 7-8). Pretty impressive miracle. Not quite on a par with creating the entire Universe but a solid effort.
But fast forward a few thousand years he’s disciplining some Pharoahs with the rather juvenile prank of letting frogs loose in their bedrooms (Ex. 8:2-14; Ps. 78:45; 105:30.) No flood? No creating the Earth all over again? Clearly a supernatural entity who is running out of puff.
So it continues through the Old Testament. Miracles steadily diminishing in magnitude and imaginativeness. Not withstanding the occasional Swine Suicide (Mark 5:1-20) the long slow declension goes on thorugh the New Testament as well.
Now, I’m not criticising this omnipotent and evidently short-tempered superbeing who is not above sending bears (2 Kings 2:24) to assassinate people who have bad mouthed him.
Not in the least. I’m just observing that perhaps that whole ‘creating the visible Cosmos in a week’ plan might have been a touch overambitious and that he needs to recharge his batteries before he does anything like that again.
There’s another twenty-odd chapters of that stuff. Just things I reckon. And all we need is an angry bishop to condemn it on Thought For The Day to get the marketing campaign off to a thunderous start.
Now. Advance-wise. What do we think might be appropriate? About 30 pieces of silver?
Outragebeen assumed to be an excessive form of rage. However, it’s etymologically not rage at all– it’s just excessive.
Rage (14c) comes via the French rage/raigefrom the Latin rabies– the same source of our modern cognate. Outrage (14c) also comes via French (outrage), but from a different Latin source: ultraticum/ultragium. This sense of outrage is still maintained somewhat in “outrageous” when it is used to mean extravagant, inordinate, and superfluous. However, this usage still often takes the connotation of “so excessive it makes me angry.” Due to folk etymology, outrage escalated from “excess” to “excess anger.”
