Need Help Getting Through Exams?

The final exam of my undergraduate degree is tomorrow night from 7-10pm. I've never written an exam that late before so I don't know how my body will react. In order to ensure that I won't fall asleep I've developed a contingency plan should I start to nod off. That plan involves the new Steven Seagal energy drink "Asian Experience." I'm not going to drink it - I'm just going to look at it, laugh my ass off and get back to writing:

Top 3 Girl Talk Remixes

I've never been a fan of the whole mashup genre at least not since everyone with a laptop began to think that they were Danger Mouse. However, the highly touted Girl Talk (nee Greg Gillis) lives up to the hype. His 2006 masterpiece "Night Ripper" is just an amazing work of art executed with mathematical precision. I encourage anyone who thinks the prospect of hearing Biggie rhyme over Elton John's "Tiny Dancer" is appealing to pick it up and dance their confused heart away. The biomedical engineer by day and charismatic DJ by night is also a sought after remix artist. So, I present to you the top three Girl Talk remixes:

Grizzly Bear - The Knife (Girl Talk Remix).mp3

Peter Bjorn and John Lets Call It Off (Girl Talk Remix).mp3

Tokyo Police Club - Cheer It On (Girl Talk Remix).mp3

Don't underestimate the power of the laptop!

GaGaGooGoo

2007 is really shaping up to be a great year for music with a lot of my favourite bands releasing hotly anticipated new records like The Shins, Arcade Fire, Feist, Modest Mouse, The White Stripes, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and now Spoon. However, Britt Daniel and the boys seem to trying to compete with The White Stripes for the most bizarre album title prize of 2007. Spoon's latest album "GaGaGaGaGa" (yeah... I know) is coming out July 10th and here's a preview of the cover art: How 'bout some old school Spoon:



I Turn My Camera On - Spoon

In Praise of the Unsexy Candidate

I'm just an insignificant Canadian but I don't think it would be an exaggeration to say that the upcoming 2008 U.S. presidential election is going to have global ramifications and determine the direction of virtually every country's foreign policy for years to come. That in mind, the Samurai Buddha is now officially endorsing New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson for the Democratic nomination. The first debate was yesterday and Bill mopped the floor with the media darling candidates; Clinton, Obama, and Edwards. He may not be a sexy candidate but he is the most qualified diplomat in the race. He's low in the polls but now that he's going to enjoy the Samurai Buddha bump. Here are some of his resume highlights:

- Nominated 4 times for the Nobel Peace Prize
- Negotiated the succesful release of U.S. soldiers captured in Iraq (Saddam era), North Korea, and Sudan
- Served as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations
- Served as Secretary of Energy during the Clinton administration
- Current Governor of New Mexico

Impressive, no? Check out his campaign videos:

Hard Boiled Gaming

I've been playing Hotel Dusk: Room 215 for the Nintendo DS for the past couple days and its a great little crime story reminiscent of a James Ellroy or Elmore Leonard novel. The visuals are stunning giving the gamer a real film noir quality to the game. In a cool twist, Hotel Dusk requires you to flip the DS on its side and read it like a book which only enhances its pulp fiction quality. You are Kyle Hyde, an ex-cop in the late 1970's, who has switched careers and become a traveling salesman but hasn't given up hope on finding his supposedly dead partner, Bradley. Following his boss' orders, Hyde checks into the seedy Hotel Dusk which is full of mysterious characters all of which seem to have a dark secret from their past. Could this Hotel have something to do with his ex-partner? Answer: Yes. This interactive mystery can get tedious at times while you search the hotel for things to do and some of the tasks that you are supposed to complete are, at times, laughably easy. Ultimately, however, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 is a lengthy but stylish neo-noir mystery that makes excellent use of the touch screen. Also, the main character kind of looks like a badass version of me. Here's the trailer:

You can read a more complete review at Gamespot.

Portrait of the New Century

An African tribeswoman with her Ipod and AK-47.

What an amazing image.

"Globalization was a deep trend pushed by technology and right ideas, as much as anything else"

~Jeffrey Sachs

Born in the 80's

One of my favourite bands out of the 1980's, The Wedding Present, is getting the "Peel Session" treatment in a compilation to be released this week. John Peel, Britain's most legendary radio DJ, was one of the bands most ardent supporters. Since his death in 2004, many of his favourite bands are being anthologized in Box Sets. Although I find it somewhat macabre to provide an extended mixtape to capitalize on someone's death but I'll support anything that gets The Wedding Present out there. However, I suggest you forego the box set and instead pick up a couple of their LPs George Best (1987) and Bizarro (1989). I posted a video to turn you on to the indie heroes of 80's. Of course, I didn't listen to it in the 80's. I was not quite so hip when I was four. Actually, I was probably more hip.