Feng's Distorted World : 鋒言鋒語

來到今天 ~ 李克勤, 黃伊汶

曲:謝杰 詞:陳少琪 編:劉祖德

(李): 我路過 行李藏著太多的傷痛
那會為誰逗留盛放我笑容

*(黃): 我也路過 既能被你感動　
你都失重 為何將言詞
都鎖進在眼中

(黃): 年紀小 不等於我是錯　
盡情活著 為何代表闖禍
(李): 請別來愛我 我沒法親手　
又再寫多一首昨日悲歌

# (李): 來到今天 就當做記念趁著我們能避免
(黃): 我會勇敢跳進你的空白點
(李): 為何像隔開一光年
(李): 今天我又再失眠
(黃): 今天以後更驚險 都一起脫險
(李): 來到今天 別了別掛念趁著結局能預見
(黃): 我不怕雨天 預備共你的愛＃
用血與淚提煉
(李):如若肚餓了願你細心點 找到合適餐店 *

Repeat *

(李): 只貪溫暖 終於只有更加混亂
如沒有缺陷誰會堅決絕緣
(黃): 明明是愛著要扮到隔開很遠
若愛燒光耗損
(李): 世上都繼續轉 (黃):世上不必轉圈

Repeat #

(黃): 用血與淚提煉 (李):不可並肩
(李): 如若雨未過
(黃): 就算濕透身
(黃): 亦要再遇見
(李): 請等晴天

好多年前嘅一首歌但係都係咁好聽...《來到今天》曾經予2002年獲得「十大勁歌金曲第一季季選」 最受歡迎合唱歌曲之一 。每次聽呢首歌嘅時候都有一份冬天嘅感覺..

Flashcraft TD is a tower defence game. Gameplay is similar to the likes of Element TD I've presented sometime ago.

Interface closely mimics the one from Warcraft, right down to the initial game screen! In this game, you can build and upgrade towers for more attack. Wave after wave of "creeps" pour out the spawning point, each level in increasing difficulty. Place your towers in strategic places to stop the creeps from reaching your base!





Flashcraft Tower Defence Flash Game:

Play it now (Takes awhile to load, pls be patient)

If you liked this game, you might also want to try Element TD which is also another Tower Defence Flash.

Just went browsing Flickr for some of 2007 new year celebrations and I've come up with a collection of New Year celebrations of most major cities around the world. Encircling the globe, beginning from Auckland and ending up in San Francisco! Enjoy!

Auckland

by francoisNZ

Sydney

by malvino.juwono

Tokyo

by wilhelmja

Taipei

by Lin1000.tw

Hong Kong

by vitafluida

Shanghai

by onion83

Singapore

by st0caL

Kuala Lumpur

by Tall Justin

Bangkok

by humarkus

Dubai

by NikAt

Moscow

by mpechyonkin

Berlin

by Timothy Fellsrow aka Robert Henke

Rome

by Landersz

Madrid

by lucholarry

Paris

by le méchant garçon

London

by Orhan*

Rio de Janeiro

by Notre album souvenir.

New York

by PostMan1107

Toronto

by jumphawk

San Francisco

by *christopher*

Once again, thanks to the stunning photos by the above individuals for making this possible - a very special moment in time.

Last.tv is a music video player which matches your music taste from last.fm to videos on YouTube. Data from your Last.fm music profile is retrieved to create a continuous playlist of videos from artists you listen to. Last.tv then matches videos based on artist names and turns up live performances, bootlegs, interviews and fan interpretations. This is unique content which would never be aired on regular music video channels. Last.tv automates selection and provides effortless continuous play and you don't even need to slect your own videos. Simply put, its like watching MTV, except this time its all your favourite clips!



The concept is really novel and cool but sometimes there's a mismatch between the video results from youtube and your stats in last.fm. Needs a little more work IMO.

Just fill in a last.fm username to get a stream of that person's music:

Last.tv

note: Not an official release by last.fm!

Sometime ago I was doing some animation and tried out some Japanese animation software. Most of the software featured here are freeware but some of them are highly functional shareware. Do download and try them out!


1. Metasequoia

This is the main piece of software I use for modeling. The software is a polygon modeler for 3DCG and was developed by Osamu Mizno, subsequently releasing MetasequioaLE as freeware. It's interface is very straightforward and this makes it easy for beginners. But do not be fooled by its simplicity, this software is so good that Japanese designers who are producing FINAL FANTASY are also using it. Third party plugins also add functionality to this software. The software supports a wide range of file formats and this is one of the reasons that makes it really popular.



Metasequoia Ver2.4.0 (Shareware)
MetasequoiaLE R2.3b-2 (Freeware)

from the official site at metaseq.net


2. Cyberdelia

Cyberdelia is a 3D animation tool with w3d, x and wrl file exporter. 'w3d' file can be used on Macromedia Director for Shockwave3D. 'x' file is for DirectX. 'wrl' file is for VRML97. The animation process is pretty cool and can be edited frame by frame. Models can also be imported from Metasequoia.



Cyberdelia Version 6.4 (Freeware)

from the official site at cyberdelia.net


3. DoGA CGA

DoGA project started in 1985 by university students in Japan, to support the newly born culture of CG animation. This is a series of applications that starts with a very basic tool kit and sequels later with added functionality. DOGA-L1 is the first lesson (L1) of the L series and is designed to teach beginners the very basic of animation. The L3 version of this software can be very powerful although it does seems to be more of a hobbyist tool instead of professional software. Again, models can be created and imported from Metasequoia.



DoGA L-1 (Freeware)
DoGA L-2 (Shareware)
DoGA L-3 (Shareware)

from the official site at doga.co.jp


4. Parthenon

This is a GPU accelerated global illumination renderer. It allows for Direct illumination using shadow mapping and High quality rendering equivalent of Monte Carlo path tracing. Parthenon is really powerful and rivals other professional rendering software. Supports Metasequoia .mqo files as well.




Parthenon.zip (Freeware?)

from the official site by Himatsubushi


5. RedQueen

RedQueen is a command line Global Illumination renderer. Features include Path Tracing (unbiased), Photon mapping, final gathering and Panorama Rendering support. As with all rendering software, system requirements are pretty much on the high side. As you can see with the image below, the results are stunning for this rendering software.



RedQueen (up to VGA size for unregistered users)

from the official site teamredqueen.com


6. MarbleCLAY

MarbleCLAY is a 3D polygon modeler formerly known Etude/3D before. Now it is released as freeware. Spline patch modeling by triangle and square polygons is supported. The software is similar to the likes of Metasequoia except that it has more functionality and has compatible rendering with RedQueen.



MarbleCLAY beta 5.7 (Freeware)

from the official site Escargot Visualwares


7. Kashmir3D

Kashmir3D is a software for making landscape CG or amazing 3D maps. Support for Full-Raytracing rendering and Z-Buffer rendering, rendering clouds, fog, snow and mist, and depth of focus. 3D navigation by GPS Receiver is also included. If you need landscapes or maps for your 3D movie/game, this is the software you can use.



Kashmir 3D Ver8.0.9 beta1 (Freeware)

from the official site at kashmir3d.com


8. Rios

Seems like this is another Japanese animation suite. Haven't had time to try this out myself. Looks pretty good and promising at first glance.



Rios0.1.11 (Freeware)

from the official site at junkshed


9. Block Designer

This is a software that makes it easy to draw 3D images. Block Designer functions like assembling Lego blocks together. Interface is downright straightforward and the program can either save files BD format or in Autocad's dxf format. The dxf can then imported into Metasequoia for further editing or a third party renderer. Pretty cool IMO.



Block Designer Version 3.00 (Freeware)

from the official site at kogarashi.jp

Again, this is another great track by Sandy Lam from her 2006 Mandarin album entitled "Breath Me". Here's the music video for the track 面對面 (Face to Face).



And here's the lyrics to the track!

面對面
4’32
曲 : 孟楠 詞 : 李焯雄 編：雷頌德 監：雷頌德/PR Wang/Gil Hwang
Bass Solo: PAL
Background Vocal Arrangement: 雷頌德
Background Vocal: Sandy Lam
Recorded by 陳西敏 & Naruse Tatsuhito
Mixing Engineer: Naruse Tatsuhito
Recording & Mixing Studio: Moon Studio (HK)

恍如前生的昨天
模糊愛過的臉
細節不可辨
說不出感覺的感覺

到底是感覺選擇事件
或事件選擇感覺
虛線的連結
預知的離別

劃過悶雷的閃電
心酸眼亮的瞬間
僅有的一切
還不夠了解的了解

也許是過於轟轟烈烈
才太快灰飛湮滅
燻紅了雙眼
看不見的才一一的浮現

我終於敢和自己來面對面
那是我用堅強武裝的膽怯
走錯了房間
退回原點
不見得會和你有關聯

聚和散原來是雙生的兩面
這次不要別人來抱我的肩
自己的房間
在我裡面
一直在尋找的 在身邊

往事像隔壁房間
電話響了沒人接
歷歷在眼前
卻碰不著邊 真抱歉

也許還在那邊
情感總是物質不滅
放開了
看不見的才一一的浮現

我終於敢和自己來面對面
那是我用堅強武裝的膽怯
走錯了房間
退回原點
不見得會和你有關聯

錯和對原來是雙生的兩面
這次我能擁抱我的不完全
自己的房間
在我裡面
一直在尋找的 在身邊

忘不忘 總是兩難
越簡單 越困難 不簡單
多一段 枝枝蔓蔓
卻讓 人成長

我終於敢和自己來面對面
那是我用完美掩飾的欠缺
走錯了房間
退回原點
不見得會和愛有關聯

得和失原來是硬幣的兩面
只是它剛好落在了這一邊
自己的房間
也有晴天
一直被忽略的 在還原


You can read more about Sandy in my posts about her here:
林憶蓮 - 呼吸 Breath Me - 2006國語大碟 (2006 Mandarin Album)
林憶蓮 - 爲何他會離開你 -2005廣東大碟 (2005 Cantonese Album)

Credits to 關於她… 林憶蓮 RE: SANDY LAM for providing the lyrics for the song.

1st post of 2007!!

新嘅一年當然係希望會做到更好.
2006年經已過去,一年之間都算發生o左好多事情..

展望將來,做到最好!

Kikujiro no Natsu (菊次郎の夏) is a 1999 film by Takeshi Kitano(北野武). The movie tells the story of a young boy searching for his mother during his summer vacation. The film is mostly divided into smaller chapters, listed as entries in the boy's summer vacation diary. It's really a great movie in every aspect but it presents a very different mood from other Kitano's movie due to the absence of the usual "gangster" or "Yakuza" theme in this one.

The score for the movie was composed by none other than Joe Hisaishi (久石譲), frequenter of the Japanese music scene. Joe has also been known for writing some of the best scores for movies such as HANA-BI (which is also another great movie by Kitano), Laputa and Nausicaa.

The track featured here is a piano solo of the main theme from the OST.



Kikujiro no Natsu Piano Score
[Page 1] [Page 2] [Page 3]

Check out Kikujiro no Natsu's page on internationally renowned Japanese director Takeshi Kitano's site here.

Japan's Mono are a peculiar group. They are another post-rock band which was recommended to me by my friend. They are one of the most passionately aggressive rock bands of the last decade, with their soaring crescendos, titanic sheets of distortion and dark melodies executed with the delicacy and precision of a paper crane.



I've taken a listen to their 3rd album released in 2004, entitled "Walking cloud and deep red sky, Flag fluttered and the sun shine" and I find that its pretty cool. The mood of the music can be calm and soothing and changes at the drop of a key. A track worth listening in this album is "Halcyon (beautiful days). The track can also be download from download.com.



Walking cloud and deep red sky, Flag fluttered and the sun shine

1. 16.12
2. mere your pathetique light
3. halcyon (beautiful days) (mp3)
4. 2 candles, 1 wish
5. ode
6. The sky remains the same as ever
7. lost snow (mp3)
8. a thousand paper cranes

Link to Mono's official site.

Here's a popular flash game inspired by the popular genre of Tower Defence, which is a custom game in Warcraft 3. Wave after wave of "creeps" pour out from various spawning points in increasingly more challanging forces and numbers. You have to build towers and upgrade them in order to keep the monsters at bay. If the monsters managed to get through your defences, you lose. The flash is pretty cool, but the map Element TD is much much better IMO.



Warcraft 3 (Element TD) based Flash Game:

Play it now

Inspired from the Warcraft 3 Tower Defence custom map Element TD.

If you enjoyed this game, you might also want to try out Flashcraft, which is also another tower defence game based on Warcraft 3.

This piece is a really delightful piece by Mozart and is part of his Piano Sonata No. 11 in A major, K. 331. This theme is really unique in style and mimics the style of Turkish Jannisary military music. The track was also used as the soundtrack for "My Life as Mcdull" but Cantonese lyrics were included for the movie. This track is another manifestation of that pure musical genius that many believe found its supreme embodiment in Woifgang Amadeus Mozart.



Mozart - Turkish March (mp3)

Credits to Malek for providing the download for the track above.

And here's the piano score to Mozart's Turkish March by free-scores.com

Turkish March Piano Score [Download PDF]

Essential Listening List, stuff that I'll probably be listening for the next few weeks. Might write up a bit on them if I can find the time:

at17
The Pancakes
my little airport
Pixeltoy
King Lychee
Karlheinz Stockhausen
MONO
524
Joe Hisaishi
Takagi Masakatsu
Tsuji Ayano

Here's a track by Japanese ambient electronic artist Gutevolk. As always, she's incorporated various different sounds and melodies to produce that distinct sound that's clearly Gutevolk's. This track features interesting use of a simple electronic synth loop as the background while she sings over it.



Twinkle

1. twinkle star's cycling bolero
2. light parade (mp3)
3. little girl, little star
4. silo
5. moonlakers
6. wondering


light parade lyrics:

speed o agete dokomade yuku no daro
bokura no kotoba o kimama ni tsunaideku
sekai no hajimari o tsugeru yo ni
oh where is my bird?

mune ni hikaru diamond melody no parade
onpu ni michibikarete samayoi tsuzukete iru
hora imagoro boku nado wasurete
sekai no dokoka eto
oh where is my bird?


Do check out Gutevolk's official site for more mp3 and lyrics. Here's the link to another track by Gutevolk that I've listened to previously:

Gutevolk - Sora

Stick Soldiers is a really cool game that I've played for some years now. Version 1 and 2 of the game was developed by WhiteSpace Unlimited. Version 3 of the game is under construction as well, but this time under Andrew Rusell Studios. The game is truly unique in its concept and is highly customizable and comes with a level editor as well.



While the game lacks in graphics, it makes it up in terms of gameplay and interface. Gameplay is highly addictive and interface is downright simple. In Stick Soldiers, you control a pencil-drawn stick soldier with various weapons (uzi, grenade launcher, etc.) to destroy other stick soldiers in your attempt to reach the specified frag limit



Download Stick Soldiers 1
Download Stick Soldiers 2
from their official site.

Stick Soldiers 3 is currently a work-in-progress and will be shareware, rumored to cost roughly $20 USD for the full version. However, a definite price has yet to be announced; the only official price range up to now is between $15 USD and $20 USD. The free, shareware version will not have any time limits for playing, but those without the full version will lose out on some features.

Isao Sasaki is a Japanese pianist and singer. He is famous for his piano works which are both highly emotional and heart warming. He embarked on his musical career in 1972, and over the years, he has written numerous scores for various dramas, movies, and anime series. Most notably he composed the scores for movies and anime series such as Science Ninja Team Gatchaman, Shinzo Ningen Casshan, and Superman.

ささき いさお（佐々木功)は、日本の歌手・俳優・声優。1972年に声優として、タツノコプロ製作のアニメ『科学忍者隊ガッチャマン』にコンドルのジョー役で出演。ガッチャマンの打ち上げの宴席において、余興のカラオケで主題歌を唄いこなしたことが評判になり、翌年『新造人間キャシャーン』の主題歌担当に抜擢され、ささきいさおの芸名でアニソン歌手としてデビュー。以降、数々のアニメ・特撮作品の主題歌を歌い、1974年にはテレビアニメ『宇宙戦艦ヤマト』の主題歌が一世を風靡し、ミリオンセラーを記録する。別名アニメソング界の大王。水木一郎や子門真人、堀江美都子らと共に、アニメソングの黎明期を支えた歌手の一人である。



Featured here is one of Isao Sasaki's more recent albums entitled "Forever". Do feel free to download some of the tracks and have a listen at his works. The track "Water Color Heaven" is truly amazing and relaxing music.

It is essentially - heaven painted in water colors.



Forever

1. Water color heaven (mp3)
2. oh...you're beautiful lady
(From 'Bungee jumping of their own')
3. You only love it twice
4. Great fear
5. Manha de carnaval (mp3)
6. The letter of soldier (From "J.S.A")
7. Between love and fascination
8. Ophelia
9. I'm just dreaming (mp3)
10. peace of mind
11. The celestial river

Do remember to visit Isao Sasaki's official site for more news and mp3 downloads.