So we’re here. Finally.
Actually, we arrived about 48 hours ago, after what seemed like a week of travelling. Hellish. But, of course, with hindsight completely worth it. Shinjuku is everything all the cliches say it is - Akira, Bladerunner and Neuromancer all rolled into one, but somehow weirder for not actually feeling that futuristic. Or at least, it’s a kind of retro futuristic, a reminder of the that 80’s cyberpunk vision that it inspired but never quite happened anywhere else. Like all sci-fi, they got some things wrong. Example? Well, it seems damn near impossible to find any public Wi-Fi round here. But why would you need it when everyone’s had 3G capable phones for over ten years?
Anyway, there’s another cliche about pictures and word counts…
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This one slipped past me apparently. Ether that or Production IG have been keeping it very, very tightly under wraps.
Either way, apparently July 12 will see a Japanese theatrical release of Ghost in the Shell 2.0; a new special edition of the 1995 classic featuring some re-done CGI visual effects and a whole new, remastered 6.1 soundtrack. Anime News Network has all the precise details, and the one thing that worried me most is in that list of names there is no mention of the film’s original director Mamoru Oshii. Presumably he’s been far too busy with Sky Crawlers - which this release seems to be aimed at promoting - to have got involved himself.
Looking at the comparison images, it looks like most of the visual work has been done to bring some of the original’s scenes more in line with the aesthetic of the 2004 sequel, Innocence. And so far it looks like it’s been done quite subtly and effectively- that’s if you don’t mind things being a bit darker and, erm, more orangey.
I can’t say it doesn’t worry me though. GiTS is a film very close to my heart, for many reasons. Plus, and this may just be particularly bad timing, but less than a week ago I was sitting with a very good friend of mine, watching an HD encode of Star Wars: A New Hope that I had, ahem, obtained. We were quite happily sat there ohhing and ahhing over how amazing it still looked after all these years, and how Lucas obviously once had an amazing eye for colour and lighting, when the first fully CGI’d newly shoehorned in scene jarred us out of our nostalgia. I swear, the second I saw that Jawa hanging off that rope from that lizard thing, a little part of me died.
And don’t even get me started on that Greedo bullshit.
Another month, another Intrigue…
But a slightly special one this time, for me at least. Not only was it the launch party for the new D-Bridge album, but second on the bill was Belfast drum and bass deity Calibre. Anyone that knows me in person knows how my appreciation of the man’s production skills borders on the near obsessional, but surprisingly I’d never seen him DJ before, managing to miss his previous, fairly rare appearances in Bristol. Despite a heavy week and feeling pretty whacked out, there was no chance I was going to miss him doing a 2 hour set at my favourite night.
And getting in the club just after eleven, it was obvious I wasn’t the only one - with the place already close to rammed while guest DJ Tasha rolled out the warm-up set. By the time The Insiders themselves took control it was wall to wall in there, with Joe and Ben dropping their usual, precise selection of deep D&B, gulley b-lines and the occasional dubstep slo-mo breakdown. Anticipation for the headliners was visibly building though, with Calibre (featuring newly enhanced hair) and DRS stepping up at just after 1am. Even just a few minutes into their two hour set it was clear they weren’t going to disappoint; DRS chatting over Calibre’s signature mix of dubby FX, soundtrack samples and fresh jazzy breaks. Even with a perfect mix of previews from his new LP Overflow, unreleased dubs and old crowd pleasing classics, I was flagging by 3am, and am embarrassed to say I had to bail before D-Bridge hit the decks. Like I’ve said before, I must be getting old, but I’ll still be back next month…
Big thanks to The Insiders, the chilled as ever Dojo staff and everyone that made it such a buzzing night….as always…
I’m actually going to start using this damned thing. Need somewhere for daily rants, and my other blog over at the Vistas section of Asiascape is totally unsuitable….nope, this one is going to get personal.
Partly it’ll be to promote my writing (short stories at the moment - yeah, the title is a little presumptuous), but mainly it’ll be somewhere for me to vent my anger and opinions on art, culture, tech, politics, video games, TV, anime, music…you get the drift…
And if I get my shit together today, I’ll actually get one of my stories up here for people to read…
Enjoy.
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