Making a difference
As a kid like most I was listening to pop beats, yes even the bubble gum pop of the 90's but forever and always I always had a great deal of interest in the genres of rock and hip-hop. Growing up in Sri Lanka means you're kind of limited when it comes to music from the West, now the latest trend and most popular genre for teens/young adults look to be seen as out of the box is rock/metal music, the whole army of youth wear Metallica t-shirts and grunge fashions are the emo's/hipsters of Sri Lanka or at least among those in the middle and upper class, some just listen to it cause it's what their friends do and inside them they don't want to be looped into what they perceive as the mainstream culture of pop, rnb and pop-hop/gangster rap.
I myself got into rock music at around 10-11, it started off with the more mainstream hard rock and soft rock bands and as puberty hit so did the emotions and I got into music that had more angst and more loudness. I did still listen to a wide variety of bands from soft rockers Dave Matthews Band and Coldplay to 90's punk bands such as Weezer, grunge sounds of Pearl Jam and Nirvana to the nu metal sounds of Limp Bizkit and to the hardcore like Killswitch Engage (some will clasisify them differently). It was mostly that from 13-16, after that things changed as I lost my taste for angst and music became more politically, poetic and socially relevant, bands like Rage Against the Machine, Deftones and Smashing Pumpkins became bands whose material I could relate to and whose lyrics proved fascinating for a upper-middle class kid such as myself.
But as I grew my musical interests did so too and from about 19 my interest in hip-hop music greatly expanded, I mean I always liked hip-hop music and while rarely played and heard of in Sri Lanka my memory always echoed the sounds of The Pharcyde's classi Passing Me By and Pete Rock and CL Smooth's legendary cut T.R.O.Y. (They Reminisce Over You). In Sri Lanka the hip-hop/rap music (if you can even refer it to as that) on the radio is generally gangster rap, the local kids that try and become rappers are largely influenced by the whole West Coast scene and the likes of Tupac and Biggie (who kinda started the retardation of hip-hop, although I know opinions vary greatly on this), a few and a very few credit Rakim and as of now most associated hip-hop music with the crap that is G-Unit (and other clones) and the appalling Southern gangster crunk that while I have no issue with when it comes to being party music (since it's mostly profanity laced, with an over sexualisation of women and record company thug talk aka brainless) the unfortunate part is when it's rotated at home and people use it to pan hip-hop (and embed stereotypes of Africans/Blacks) when it shouldn't be associated with it in the first place.
I can't find fault with them at the same time, Eminem was the rapper I most listened to as a teen (he isn't all that bad) and while the echoes of those mentioned above went through my head I never had the chance to get that back as it would be impossible to find The Bizarre Ride or anything besides Tupac, Biggie etc etc records. I'm not sure what changed in me, I mean I still enjoy RATM, Deftones and the Pumpkins but I don't listen to them as often as I did, they aren't my primaries.
My journey into hip-hop music and learning more about it as mentioned started at about 19, mostly influenced thanks to The Fugees (who were played on Sri Lankan radio and thankfully generally known) and the collab track with ATCQ, John Forte and Busta Rhymes (Rumble in the Jungle). It just stuck in my ear and with my political interest ever increasing (as it does with most young adults) listening to the insights fascinated me, the wordplay and the lyrics were something I didn't associate with hip-hop that much besides a select few artists I listened to as a teen. Funny part was I heard The Fugees all the way back when I was 7 year's old, I couldn't stand Ready or Not when it came out then but now that track is something I cite as one of those tracks that influenced me to dig deeper into hip-hop.
Anyway, as time passed I got more and more into it, and to my luck I managed to hear Passing Me By and T.R.O.Y yet again (credit to Pandora for providing music), it brought a sense of euphoria and memories as those tracks were always embedded in my head since I first heard them. From there I went from one artist to another, and my fascination grew after seeing the amazing diversity of artists in hip-hop music and how unfortunate it was that in the general population the music has been taken to the gutter.
I couldn't get enough of the mix of jazz beats and lyrics that didn't just talk about the views of street life but were global in it's content, from humourous tracks such as The Pharcyde's Ya Mama, to the discussion of the word nigger on ATCQ's Sucka Nigga, to the chill back of The Digable Planets Rebirth of Slick to the more bizarre and metaphoric from the likes of Cannibal Ox. This was the kind of music I wish I had access to way earlier on in my life, but such was not to be.
Now I'm at a stage where I've lost interest in new music and anything that's played on radio, I know as a Sri Lankan I've segregated myself cause most of my friends from back there have no idea who Eyedea and Abilities are or even who De La Soul is (unless they happened to listen to the Gorillaz's). I was an odd ball even back in school although it wouldn't be as much a given now the growth of rock music, but if I were to start a talk about hip-hop music in Sri Lanka right about now people would be at a serious what the? situation. It's sad to see Sri Lankans try be gangsters and try emulate that, but such is the case everywhere these days.
I'm not sure what I'll be listening to in another 5 year's, I might just be chilling back to flat out Jazz, but with hiphop I kind of found a great blend of me as a person in that it has chill back, political and social content, bizarrerisms/humour and an overall open world that talks to me alot, again I still love the melancholy and metaphorisms of the Deftones and Pumpkins but the days where I could sit down and blast a headphone with hardcore is pretty much gone.
I've probably confused and tripped over myself many a time while writting my "summarised" history of music. I'll just end it by giving homage to 5 tracks that have inspired, influenced and motivated me in different ways and at different periods in my life.
Dave Matthews Band - Crash Into Me
It probably crosses pop/soft rock but to this day this is a song that I can keep on loop, as a teenager you're always going to have that one "romantic" track, this prolly mine although it's use of metaphors is what I do enjoy. This track is definitely not specific to any particular girl lol but I'd listen to this back then and get all sappy.
Deftones - Change (In The House of Flies)
It's not my fav Deftones track but it's the first one I heard, I saw it on MTV and from that day I was hooked. To this day I enjoy them, they don't have lengthy lyrical structures but what's great about them is Chino Moreno's lyrics are open to one's own decipher. In terms of this track it was a total change to the more grunge, punk and hardcore stuff I was listening to so it had an instant impact on me and I still have a listen to it.
Pete Rock and CL Smooth - T.R.O.Y (They Reminsce Over You)
When I first heard it as a kid the reason I remember this track was due to it's absolutely brilliant beat, the jazzy hooks were delightful even to my young brain. It's now a hip-hop classic and I'm so glad to have rediscovered it as late as I did, a track of reflection and dedication it's something so many can relate to if you dig yourself into the lyrics, it doesn't over complicated things and is the kind of quintessential hip-hop track where the combination of relaxation and social thoughts are mixed into one.
The Fugees feat ATCQ, Busta Rhymes and John Forte - Rumble in The Jungle
I don't listen to as often and it's not even a track I'd consider classic or a fav, but it was important in getting me into hip-hop. I already knew the Fugees but by digging into A Tribe Called Quest (ATCQ) it led from one thing to another and set up a major pathway so in that way it did influence me heaps.
People Under The Stairs - We'll Be There
It doesn't have amazing lyrics and is a relatively unknown track (PUTS didn't do music videos until their most recent album), but like PR and CL's TROY the beat on this gave me feelings of euphoria. PUTS was one of the first tracks I heard on my Pandora station (sadly stopped now in Australia), like Rumble in The Jungle it pushed me to dig deeper into the genre. It's also a good starting point as it's not something overtly political (this can throw most people off) and it's content is very chilled back and mostly dedication to the culture of hip-hop in its lyrical presence. I still play this, and the beat is perhaps my favourite beat of all time.
Sure I have plenty of other songs that influenced me, of late perhaps the artist I've connected with the most is Eyedea (and his collaboration with DJ Abilities), as an artist his lyrical content probably echoes closest to me among any and all musicians I've listened to but unlike those above he isn't a reason I got into a whole sub-culture/genre of music. I would also be lying if I didn't credit the likes of Michael Jackson, James Brown, Fatboy Slim and other artists who've also had a big impact on me musically and even as a person and developing my outlook on music cultures.
I end it there. I do apologise for typo's in advance but felt kinda inspired to write something today that was more about me than about design and development.
Red Dead Redemption
The much hyped RDD is out now, Rockstar's latest product. Here's what IGN had to say about it:
Review: Metal Gear Solid 4
Metal Gear Solid 4
5/5
While games have come to a new level in graphics and level of control, one thing that's been thrown out since the 90's have been the stories. A lot of the new games are based more on gun modding, big explosions and amazing backdrops/textures. Most of the best selling games of the day end up having shallow or repetitive storylines, take for example Call of Duty which is mostly a generic story but is an amazingly popular game.
Back in the 90's a lot of the games focused on bringing interesting stories, especially the Adventure Games (point and click) of that time. While gameplay and visual are important, the memorable games are the ones that also make you remember it for more than its sniper rifle.
MGS4 maybe "old" but it still beats about 99% of games coming out today, due to great mix of gameplay and most of all perhaps one of the best uses of cut-scenes in modern games. It's more of an interactive movie than a game, and that doesn't mean it doesn't offer some seriously enjoyable gameplay but it's beauty is it's amazingly written story, and how well its executed through cut-scenes and its narratives.
I've obviously not played the Metal Gear series in detail prior to this, I've only played bits of this and that. Yet the story is well explained even for someone fairly new to the series, while you might be wondering whose who in terms of characters it's not like you need to have played the older games to get into the story, that's the great part about it.
In terms of the gameplay, well the Metal Gear series runs on it's stealth system. You have the choice of tip-toeing, crawling and well avoiding as many enemies as you can or if you aren't good at that you can always engage them via the more risky run and gun. The games switch between 3rd person and 1st person is seamless, some games while have this tend to get it wrong by not having the level of zoom right or well just having a bumpy transition from one view to another.
The camo suit is definitely a fun part, and well executed. You can blend into just about anything, and it is a very important part of the game and is far from just a visual thing, again it links to the steal vs engage choice you have. Movement is pretty good, you have many ways of positioning yourself, such as the ever useful laying face up, a feature plenty of FPS/3rdPS forget about. The only problem is you don't have a jump, while you do have a sort of rolling jump you'll find certain parts where you think you can probably climb it but can't, and just having no jump (vertical) is a bit of mystery.
The PMC's (basic units) aren't too difficult, it really depends on the level of difficult you go with. You don't get a huge variety of different units, but being a stealth focused game it obviously doesn't make sense to chuck in hundreds of different units. The boss levels are pretty good, each of them different to each other and in the latter bosses you'll also have to do more than just try and shoot at them directly. The storylines behind each of the bosses are quite brutal, and well Metal Gear overall is definitely not for the lighthearted, while it doesn't have the whole overdoing of virtual blood and guts it has some very intense and "disturbing" moments.
I've also jumped into the online side of it, and while it's nothing overly special it's pretty good. You still find plenty of servers, included noob servers so you can still get in on it. Most of the players seem to be European based, so you might want to synchronise yourself with that timezone if you want to catch the most amount of hosts and players.
I could go and on and on about this game, it's been awhile since I could probably make a statement like that about a game but Metal Gear is definitely a masterpiece. Now it's definitely not for all, the more impatient of us will probably get tired of seeing its 30 minute cut scenes almost one after the other (overall you'll feel like you're watching through the whole LOTR trilogy), but for anyone that wants to go back to games being more than just flash it's definitely worth a look at, if you amazingly haven't checked it already that is. It's no surprise it's constantly referred to as one of the if not the best game on the PS3, but it's definitely more than that as genre aside it's just a classic piece of gaming/entertainment.
With another Metal Gear in the works, I'm just wondering whether they'll be able to be what they did with MGS4 cause it's definitely going to be something else to top it.
Reviews: inFamous & Army of Two
So after finishing up inFamous I got Army of Two, the two games are quite a contrast in how good/memorable they are.
inFamous
4/5
This is one of those games that grows on you, simply cause that's how the game works. At the start you're chucked in out of nowhere to a disaster zone without any explaination, and the first thing you'll prolly notice is your character (Cole) is always running. Most would get annoyed with this but as you get accustomed to it you'll realise running is all you need and end up doing cause of the pace of the game.
Even after you pass up the initial part of the game you're likely to feel frustrated by your lack of powers, and in fact some players have given up/got bored of the game and it is prolly the games strongest criticism. But don't let up, this game is great fun as you progress and get use to the controls and most of all acquire new powers. You're powers depend on the side you take, the karma system isn't perfect and could use some tuning but it's a nice way of balancing things out.
I ended up finishing the game as a Guardian, unfortunately I lost hero status during the end stages of the game due to killing alot of civilians mostly as collateral damage. But I managed to acquire all powers, and some of the powers you acquire later are pretty awesome such as the lightning.
The cut scenes are pretty good, it's all done in comic book style drawings and they look very pro and add to the superhero theme of the game. The story is quite linear but it's well scripted and the end is definitely a memorable twist, and sets itself up for what is likely to be a fascinating follow up. Without going into more intricate detail my overall stance on this game is good to excellent, the initial stages are definitely the throw off but as mentioned as long as you keep playing you're likely going to end up loving this game. Fav part is the fact that you don't die from jumping off buildings unless for ex Price of Persia or Asassin's Creed, you're pretty much invincible that way which helps alot since the game involves plenty of jumping and roof-top action.
The enemies are hard to begin with due to lack of power but destroying the standard level enemies become easy, but that said it isn't a walk in the park mostly cause enemies are always in bunches. The bosses aren't too hard which is prolly one gripe, its usually easy to understand the routine of the enemy. The AI could definitely have been better as it seems the boss levels seem canned, its a bit confusing but they're pretty easy to take down once you learn how and what they do. The game has plenty of different enemies who are generally individualist, having different gangs and levels of enemy so you don't feel like you're killing the same enemy in a different texture. You also have various side mission/achievements, it depends on your style of gaming but I didn't quite feel like doing them but some of them are pretty fun and offer some good chill time especially if you feel like you need to lay back from the usual more intense mission modes.
inFamous is definitely a must by for PS3 fans, the game is pretty old now but if you haven't played it then don't pass up on it.
Army of Two
2.5/5
Whilst inFamous got a lot of things right Army of Two really flopped. The games cover system is probably the most annoying part, the game is old so it can be forgiven on that end but it's definitely one of the most annoying cover system I've come across purely cause you're stuck to shooting in one direction.
The game goes on the theme of terrorism and the usual of Americans going in and taking them out, now the game is not a Patriotic game by any means as it includes a decent storyline. But the missions are repetitive, it's like you're hunting the same people over and over again and the bosses are so easy to kill that they might as well have 2-3 regular enemies in their place. Maybe it's to emphasise the human factor of game but it's a game after all and you don't want a boss to be a regular guy with a machine gun.
The big positive for me was the character design, the masks are pretty cool and whilst they have/do nothing in terms of gameplay they're enjoyable to browse and stare at. Gun customisation isnt deep but it's not bad either, it's just a shame some of the guns are really expensive and your earnings are relatively meager but maybe that's a good thing too as it means you're not handed things on a platter, especially since the game overall is pretty easy.
It was pretty unfortunate that the enemies had a mixed AI, whilst the way they try to find cover and flank you etc is pretty good it's also pretty ridiculous the way in some areas of the game they all just for example run down a staircase and make for easy fodder. Some areas have too many enemies, and the game could have featured more interesting tasks instead of mashing you into a shootout cause just about every level has a shootout where you have to end up killing anywhere between 40-80 regular enemies.
Things like step jumping, back-to-back and co-op sniping is alright but really it offers very little. Due to the games pretty poor cover system sniping is a bit tricky, but then again I've never been good at sniping or even liked it. Thankfully your partners AI is pretty good, this makes the single player campaign easy cause you can control your computer team-mate pretty easily and unlike some games where you end up having to do everything or see your team-mate get killed cause of stupidity, in Army of Two you have good authority on how he moves about etc. In terms of co-op the game isnt bad but it's nothing unique.
Army of Two has several problems like AI, poor covering system, easy (meaningless) boss levels, button press reaction issues and just lacks depth in what you end up doing. The game is no doubt fun and the grungy theme helps but there are so many better 3rd person shooters out there. The games ease also meant for a quick finish, but the gun modding, easy control of your team-mate (the AI) and decent storyline at least help make the game playable.
High Res Desktop Wallpaper
A collection of links to some fantastic desktop wallpapers that I came across while googling for a new desktop wallpaper. Some amazing graphic work!
Email Marketing
Came across YMLP recently which is a great online tool/application that makes email marketing that much easier, it provides you with its own editor and also allows you to import your own HTML. Its also got ease of use in handling your contact list and is a worthwhile investment if you're looking to help your email marketing campaign as it provides you with a unsubscribe feature among heaps of other things.
Check it out YMLP
48 Hours Logo
Just came across this while searching for the latest web trends, 48hourslogo is a great idea. It basically allows companies to go in and get a bunch of logos, all of which are created by logo designers. It works on both ends as it helps the company get a great variety in what they desire and for designers a great chance to boost their portfolio and earn some cash if they end up being the winning design.
15+ Tips to Speed Up Your Site by Jeffrey Way
Here's an extremely useful site, had a lot of great tips some of which I've implemented and some of which I'm definitely targetting on implementing.
15 Tips to speed up your website and optimize your code
Out of that the most valuable are Smush.it, Javascript Compressor and Onlne CSS Optimizer all of which help hugely in compression. Smush.it is fantastic, it manages to keep the quality of your images whilst shrinking at least by 40% minimum, in some cases it can do alot more and it's definitely a must. The Javascript Compressor was also useful in compressing big Javascript files, it reduced one of my files from around 50KB to a mere 300 odd bytes, and finally the CSS Optimizer can also save you a KB or two although the end of the day the fluidity of the CSS is in your hands.
I definitely saw a big difference in the load up of my site by just using those tools, props to Jeffrey Way for that article.