my little thoughts

I'm really at a loss when I read or watch all those makeup advice articles or vids.
hey guys (I'm sorry - hey girls) - who do you think I am?
they tell me what to do and how to do this - to look exactly like they look. that's the first thing they're mistaken in. I don't want to look like them. I want to get experienced in drawing makeup on my own face which is quite different. the shape of the eyes and nose and lips and everything. you try to make your eyes look bigger, my dear specialist? I'm glad you managed to do this. but what should I do if any liner on my lower lid makes my big eyes even bigger to the extent it looks really overlined?
they use so much of concealers and puffs etc. I use them too. so why is that the result differs so much? unfortunately the skin is so different that I have no chance to reach the shimmering face of those experst just for the reason I can't. no matter how much time and money you spend on covering your face, it's not the face of those cuties who can be rather cute even without applying any concealers. and that's the second thing they're mistaken in. they think all the girls have the same skin as they have.
and the third thing is close to second, just replace the words like 'concealer' and 'puff' with 'eyeshadow' etc. I'm glad for them that their shadow looks like that of shadow and is easily shaded. I'm happy that their liner makes a real line. mine doesn't, as well as eyeshadow of mine are not that apt to collaborate with me. unfortunately I can try to make those accurate lines for 15 minutes or apply white liner 3 times, or I could curl my lashes as much as I want - even then my lashes will subside back in 5 minutes, and the white lines will be swept away leaving no trace of their presence, and the black lines will look like they're afraid of smth and therefore shivering with fear 'cause my lids are a little bit of another shape which wouldn't let me draw the line as close to the eyeball as they do.
they're telling me I should pick up yellow and apply it to the right corner and brown to the left and blue to the inner and then white again and liner after that... and when I proceed to the next vid I see everything is quite vice versa and the liner goes first so that... oh, how interesting. you discovered America for me, twice I should say - I mean the first case and the second. oh yeah, the more cases - the more variants of order of applying we know. yeah I know 'cause it does matter what you apply first but isn't it up to me to decide what's really more convenient to apply and when?
they tell me I should'n apply the liner if I want a fresh look. thanx Cap! I knew it when I was some 13 years old, I think 'cause it's hard for a girl to never try applying both shadows with liners and without, or liners with shadows and liners without shadows. we ARE girls and we DO know the variants of how our faces look with this and that, so you clever women needn't have told us this simple truth.
the same goes with colours. am I a fool to be unaware that autumn's colours are mostly brown and gold etc.? if not for you, honourable experts in makeup, I would have never guessed 'bout this fact and having decided to look autumn-ish I would certainly choose blue shadows and pink lipstick.
what's really essential - to know where and how I can get those wonderful liners and eyeshadows and creams and brushes and all the stuff so that it would stick to my face without being easily getting smeared. tell me the names, the brands, the qualities and shapes - and leave the rest to me 'cause I'm no stupid little girl to know nothing of how I should decorate my face
until that time I will go on 'makeuping' the way I did before - by trial and error 'cause that's the only way to understand what suits me and what doesn't

I promised to do smth - but y'know how changeable my mind is ^.^

I told you I would write 'bout Rurutia, but I'm actually writing 'bout savage genius
the reason is - I don't want to forget a fact I just learned.
however, let us proceed from the beginning of the discography to the end.
first we hear some very electro-rock-something indescribable. that is 'red' and so on
and then Aa remembers she's a cute girl and starts singing cute songs with cute names. I'll not list them 'cause they're so alike.
the only thing which pleased me on the initial stages of savage genius's creativity was 'spider girl' which was like 'acid' and IDK how to describe it in other words. I mean, it has that viperous mood. and there's also a nice canon in the middle of the song when the voice of Aa is joined again with the voice of hers singing a separate melody
then we proceed again to cute songs. some of them are cute enough to make me wince. however I managed to find some songs which are a little better than their cute brothers (or sisters?) like 'itsu ka tokeru namida' or 'take a chance'. there's also some rockish thing called 'still I love you' which is not much of a real rock of course, but is nice to hear 'cause the discography would be so sad without any change in the style
I hoped too much that songs with nice names would save the discography, but even 'die for you' and 'mikazuki dake' gave nothing to add to my playlist...
then we hear some change again, which brought 'aizome' to us. this was really a relief 'cause it has a little of some ethnic mood and the lyrics (wow!) happen to get along with the melody rather well.
the song I heard first among the others of savage genius was 'hikari no yukue'. I thought like 'wow they sound so Kajiura-like but they aren't Kajiura' and I was mistaken. they were Kajiura - just once. how do I know? well 'hikari no yukue' is a theme song from El Casador and Kajiura was a composer there. it's obvious the song was NOT composed by Takumi, though it is exactly what is written on different web-sites.
then there's the collab with Chino which is rather contradictory. though it is nice and full of energy I can't get rid of the feeling it's somewhat obsolete for the year of grace 2007. the b-side sounds obsolete as well, however the difference is - 'hayaku koi koi rekkaasha' was composed to sound obsolete, and Chino does much to make it sound like a real Japanese chanson. that's why I like the b-side much more, but I added 'mighty body' to the playlist to make it less boring and alike
well then we come to one of the best albums where we can find good songs like 'mou nido to' and 'Prometheus' and esp 'koishikute' and 'niji o wataru...' which are still in frames of the savage genius's style but offer a good original mood enough to distinguish them from the previous songs. speaking of the latter two songs I'd like to state they're even more outstanding 'cause there was a lucky decision of adding some IDK country? rock'n'roll? some sound never typical of savage genius before
then there came the time for Aa to part with Takumi-san and as I feared, it didnt't bring any good to savage genius.
let me now come to the important fact I mentioned. though my friend assured me of presence of a great song after the turning of the duet to Aa'a solo project I'm really disappointed with the 'maze'. it is a one more obsolete song, however it wasn't obviously done on purpose, or may have been done, but not completely, which prevents us, listeners, to believe it's on the right place. it does sound like those 'cheap' songs from 90's which were not very elaborate and didn't require much of composer's efforts to be created. it has a rather simple melody, a guitar solo to save the song from a complete boredom, a girls' duo to introduce some interesting pieces in terms of two-voice polyphony. however none of them made the song interesting for me. if the song tries to imitate the style of those composed 10 years before, it should follow the style till the end and completely. we can't hear the style implemented fully here.
what's essential here? the composer of the song is... Okui Masami-sama. and she composed the song as if for herself and then she as if decided to give it away to smb else. why should I come to such a conslusion? well, imagine Okui-sama singing the song with her beautiful, low and strong voice. what's the difference? she's the real girl from 90's, that's the thing that explains it all. she can make the song sound realistic. though some changes are also necessary in the background as well.
my conclusion is - don't try to create a song with a clearly understandable style and then invite a singer completely unsuitable for it. let the 90's style rest in peace. well, there are good examples of exceptions like tiaraway, however, but they are really following the style to the extreme.
the rest of the late songs of savage genius are so boring that they made no impression on my mind so that I'd like to ask you to let me keep silent 'bout them.
in the whole I'm not very pleased with the discography, but I have no regret either. there are some interesting pieces of art in it, but the fact only makes me even more confident in the conclusion I made some time ago - one shouldn't be a prostitute in music, singing everything he/she is told to. the success and quality of the song depends on the composer and his mood very much, so I kindly request composers to try hard to create something more unique, and singers I pray to choose properly a song which deserves their attention really.

some discoveries

somehow I managed to find Rurutia, but I'll write 'bout her next time.
I wanna share my thoughts about Round Table (feat Nino as well)
first I searched everyone whose name starts with the letter R and so I found Round Table, who were performing a Chobits theme song, as well as Tanaka Rie whom I listened to last week. and then I tried to learn something 'bout them 'n I found a web-site I shared in my Google+ page, which told me some similar performers. I also read wikipedia pages a little to understand I'm a fan of Shibuya-kei.
well the Round Table itself is great. however I realized, their compositions for Aria were really the greatest. IDK, maybe I was overimpressed with Aria itself? I don't think so however... I was sober enough to distinguish. so I shall tell you those are really the best ones - Yokogao and the others.
to speak of the early tracks, they're mostly so alike, I can't recognize them very well. most are either those of 'Bossa Nova' or some smooth jazz, or not very smooth but jazz again - like 'battle cop' (I'm not good in the styles y'know ^^`) and also some kind of erm... IDK what... rock'n'roll? ambient? I mean those tracks like 'so many colors' and the others I can't remember the names of...
but there are some outstanding tracks like 'fly' or 'timeless' which offer some different mood.
on the whole i should name the 'cannon ball' album as the most unusual one 'cause then we hear the same light songs 'bout nothing particular with those names like 'world's end' (I wish world's end was really like that...) and 'picnic' and 'chocolate' and 'viva samba carnival' and 'baby' and all the sweet stuff...
then we gradually come to the 'let me be with you' single which sounds exactly like the previous light cute songs. except for the fact that Nino is already mentioned in the name of the band.
what distinguishes 'featuring Nino' songs from the previous ones? Katsutoshi-san is not singing in every song anymore. to be honest, among the Nino's songs I love those ones most where we hear that men's nice and pleasant voice along with Nino's. can't help it.
there are also ballad styled songs like 'where is love' which seem the most boring for me...

you may kill me or do whatever you like, but when I come to those songs from Aria like 'rainbow' I can't stop. they are SO different even though cute as always...
'just for you' seems one of those cute and cheerful songs. it reminds me of 'let me be' for example.
to be fair and to show you I'm not idolising Aria soundtrack, 'natsu machi' and 'shiosai' are not that great, I should admit.
'koi o shiteru' is also cheerful and lively, so I like it more than the others.
my only disappointment was 'symphony' which was really spoiled by the change in style, though it was really hard to imagine that one of the Aria performers can spoil the other's song. I love 'symphony' in Yui's version but I can't advise you to listen to the version of Nino
then we go on listening to the same songs - cute and light and jazz and blues and bossa and sometimes a liiiiiitle of j-pop-rock - so that in the end I got tired of Nino's vocals.
in the whole I'm happy, however, to have listened to this band. thay have their own style and they are unique. I think such music is also necessary for us when we read or when we are busy with somehing else, 'cause it doesn't distract us from what we try to focus on
my verdict is - please get acquainted with this band! it's wonderful and calm.

Google Plus INVITE

those of you who doesn't have an insider in Google+ and therefore can't get a Google+ account
you're welcome! I'm always glad to share Google with you ^.^
https://plus.google.com/i/crcjAhdIkeM:60zpS_eO6kA

it's time to write a review...

I've been lazy since April
however I'm in no mood to start with AKFG or Art-School
so let me start with the latest playlists of mine
Makino Yui
'Amrita' - it is beautiful... and it was meant to be. though I'm not fond of it ^^` even a little
'you are my love' - I can say the same words adressing the song itself. I love it! so calm and soooo saaaad and the weak voice of Yui-chan suits the song and the lyrics soooo much
'Jasmin' was my favourite song when I just started listening to Makino. then, however, after some repeated listenings, it became something like 'one of the less liked among the liked ones'. well the lyrics are rather good and Makino-like ^.^
'undine' - ohhh... I'll always be 150% sure that Kubota Mina is a genius. I LOVE her songs composed for Aria. am I not mistaken? as far as I remember that is so.
'symphony' - well... the Opening Themes sound more ethereal and light, but the songs like 'symphony' are cute and suit Makino's voice as well. so, I'm not adding this one to my playlist but it's one of the calm and nice songs which are like a remedy for our tired souls
'euforia' - I love Mina's songs best, but I love 'euforia' best of the best ^.^ this one is just a masterpiece. maybe I have a bigger passion for it 'cause it was a theme song for the longer season of Aria so that this particular song is the one I've been listening to for a longer period, so it really MADE my August last year... I'm already kind of tired of this song for the reason mentioned, but... when I just hear the first light and tender sounds of the intro... I'm completely enchanted by them so that I can hardly stop listening further
'amefuribana' - this one is again an ending song in another but also cute mood. the chorus is emotional, but it's not a song I'd like to add to my constant playlist. well, to think of the song as a theme song as it is - it's also great! and the lyrics... so sweet... makes me remember of the perfect world of Aqua. and these songs suit the general impression by Aria so much I want to leave for Aqua now and here...
'modokashii sekai no ue de' - it's also a cute song and Makino's voice is as usual. BUT. it's a song by some other composer. BUT. it also touches my heart, especially the second phrase in the chorus. however the general impression is again 'a cute song' so it wasn't a part of my playlist.
'dark side ni tsuite...' - shall I say it's cute? I bet you understand it already. it's original in its style and it's rather entertaining to hear such things sometimes ^_^ though it's again not in my playlist, I should admit this is a good and pleasant song to listen
'omna magni' - this is an attempt to add some lolitism and orgel and unknown language....... for me, the attemt has failed ^^` it would be good but I don't like the 'doll' image of Yui-chan
'shiawase no tameiki' - there are some... ehm... I'm so sorry I can't perceive what musical instrument this is, but it is certainly a wind instrument ^^` and it's interesting. nothing more, though......
'natsuyasumi...' - I LOVE the guitar and the violin and the whole melody, which is super-cute and creates an image of some irresponsible and careless girl - something opposite to what we heard earlier. the song is again too cute but it was very close to being added to my playlist
'kami to hairpin...' - again an Aria song. again cute. however, to be honest, it's one of the less liked by me ^.^ to add some justice, it's very suitable to the everyday situation it describes
'eien no omoi' - this one seems to me the most plain and it's not interesting at all... T_T
'cestree' - an ethereal song... ehm... IDK what to say...... I added it to the playlist out of interest and to 'dilute' it. however I can't say I like it that much. it's just very different and it seems to be a good background piece for... just something...
'sketchbook...' - I was going to watch the anime of the same (almost the same...?) name. after listening to this song... I'm not quite sure
'tooku made ikou' - this one also seems too plain... though cute, as ever
'6tsu no Shouhin OP.118 Kansoukyoku A Chouchou' - IDK what this thing is doing on the Makino's single... but it's beautiful, however too calm to listen separately
'synchronicity' - I didn't like the song when I first heard it (after I asked my friend to share the song in order to compare it with the Keiko's version) but I changed my opinion after listening to the full discography of Makino. there aren't too many songs which are somewhat beyond simply cute, so this one is really outstanding. however, I feel Makino is not the one suitable to Kajiura-sensei's experiments... sorry
'amrita hikigatari' - it sounds even worse in the hikigatari version......
'yacchaou yo' - well... this was meant to be super-cute and it IS. too cute for my playlist however.....
'Amuri no teema' - I like it though it is too calm, mayhap...
'umidorika' - this is unexpected! so Japanese-ethnic-IDK-what... ohhh I simply like this one very much! and Makino should sing some sad songs in a while!
'spirale' - this sounds exactly as a SPIRALE, proving its name. we can hear something swirl, dance, spin round and round... I love the image very much. however it's again an Aria song so it's not in my playlist ^.^
'yokogao' - a gentle song, if I can say so. so cute it makes you MOEEEEE ^.^
'ame no hi...' - sorry to say this is not my favourite album and the songs in it seem too plain to me... including this one off-vocal piece, though it makes that really sping-like impression
'marmelade' - I was veeery close to adding this one to my playlist. at last, I thought in the noise of everyday life it would seem too calm and moodless. however, when I listen to it attentively in a complete silence, I become a fan of this song. I love the syncope rhythm and the very end of the song where Yui-chan repeats "sweeeeeet maaaarmelaaaade' so that I can really feel the taste of it, and this taste is much better that the taste of the real one
'sangatsu...' - again the spring theme... which is not impressing me at all... >__<
'solfege' is close to 'cestree', it's twin, I can state. I even added it to my playlist as a rather distinguished song among the others in Yui-chan's discography. however I'm not somewhat swept off my feet with it...
'tsuki no shijima' - a Kajiura thing. meant to be beautiful and all the stuff. as I said, I respect Kajiura-sensei and her works with the other girls, but Makino shouldn't be among Kajiura-sensei's wing... this song would be great enough if another girl would try to sing. Makino's unique voice is wasted.
'destiny' - ehm.... cute... and... and that's all
'watashi ni tsuite' - again a song meant to be an interesting one but it makes no sense to me as a song without any background
'tanpopo suisha' - the lovely and promising cover of the disc...... has nothing to do with the greatness of the song. it's a one more cute and plain song though there are some schticks or how should I call them T___T
'fuwafuwa' - and this one is simply my favourite, the song#1 in the whole discography...... I LOOOVE the background swift notes and the swift words accurately pronounced by Yui-chan and I love all the 2-voice parts between the verse and the chorus and the chorus itself is also great with its words that sound alike being very close to each other. the whole lyrics is good - so sweet.... I wish there were more song  like this for Yui-chaaaaan, I wish this badly >__<
'the never ending rainbows' - the intro was promising but the song itself is not that great, esp the chorus
'ao no kaori' - this is the opposite to most of the songs. it seemed too plain and nothing in particular, when I first heard it. however I made some efforts to listen to the lyrics closely and then I heard that pure emotion, that cry of a girl's cry emanated from the very heart of hers.... and I was close to crying...
'cluster' - and this one is like a rest for the composers so they didn't create much of a masterpiece...
'onegai jun bright' - I can't underdtand why Makino agreed to sing this song. and the PV is sooo much of an affectedness and false... I can't stand it!
'merry-go-round' is a merry-go-round, creating the necessary image. however... how many times can we listen to the same image if there's nothing else beside the merry-go-round itself?
'ufufufu' - what's with the name of the song? - you will ask. as fas as I understand it's laughing ^.^ so let us laugh and proceed to the last album
'haru machi kaze' - it seems to be a song passed to Yui-chan by somebody... who didn't/couldn't sing it...? I mean it doesn't suit Yui-chan's voice though she's a professional and she sings it good
'merry-go-round' in its album version adds even more of the 'merry-go-round' image and the retro mood. thus, it's rather good. for some time ^^`
'precious' is about precious. there is an interesting rhythm and the way Yui-chan ends every phrase is also unusual. however I'm not listening to the song any more, some 3 times are enough
'hologram' - this is the theme song of the album. again it reminds me of 'cestree' and 'solfege' and 'omna magni; of course. it's a tradition for Makino to have one ethereal song in an album, isn't it? I'm glad there is a more active and deep part in the song, otherwise it would be toooo plain
'crepuscular rays' - I was waiting for something unique... I was tricked by the name of the song. it's a draaaag
'nidome no hatsukoi' - well... plain and... and let's go further
'brand-new sky' - this is also very close to be interesting and there are some emotions so it would be good if not for the small parts which sound like a COMPLETE CLICHE
'mirai no...' - well-well... a song with some nice lyrics and the kind mood and lots of children who are the flowers of life as we know, singing in the end to make us shed some tears... it's not a trick that works on me
'sono saki e' - and the last song is not promising... at all... it's a pity. hope there'll be some more great pieces of art for Yui-chan to sing

I'm again in admiration

not it seem starnge, but this time I admire the principles of Japanese business.
here's an extract from an article 'bout Japanese events
Каждый год в течение 26 лет SUNTORY финансирует грандиозное исполнение Оды хором в 10 000 человек в Осакском замке. Социально-культурная деятельность Сантори вызывает искреннее восхищение – все культурные проекты Сантори исполнены на высоком уровне. Социальная ответственность бизнеса, о которой в России заговорили сравнительно недавно, для Сантори вот уже много лет является естественной составляющей бизнеса. На сайте Сантори задолго до декабря появляется анонс об этом выступлении, не пропустите, если у вас будет возможность принять участие в таком концерте, нет сомнения, что он оставит неизгладимое впечатление. Возможно, вам удасться принять участие в самом хоре, туда набирают по конкурсу сильно желающих.
(from Ode to Joy)

it tells us 'bout Suntory and it's social responsibility. every year in December they organize auditions for amateurs and then the chorus of 10 000 people itself to sing the Ode to Joy in Oosakajou Hall
I've just remembered there used to be a Suntory Museum with... ehm... Monet? as far as I remember... too bad it's been terminally closed

I thought it's o'k for me to wait till the alpha-release...... but it's not.... or so it seems...
I WANNA GOOGLE PLUS
well. I'm patient. and polite. and lazy. that's why I'll not ask just any stranger to invite me.

I love Moon Troupe. why shouldn't I?

it IS funny. and it WAS funny back then in... every performance I see. OMG I LOVE IT
I love their irony and bantering. I love their style. I love the appearance of most of the siennas. I love all the other things as well.
I'm a complete fan of Tsukigumi...... *_____*
just look!
a pic from the 2004's anniversary. THEY WON BTW ^___^

and this is A-Rex. YES it's about Alexander of Macedonia ^o^
brutal military Alex ho-ho-ho
and left on the pic - my beloved Masaki as Hephaestion ^.^
 nnyahahaaa, Hephaestion with her lovely feminine catwalk

OMG I LOVE THE LOOK when she turns her head *_____*
*fangirl-fangirl*

and this one

and many others ^.^

review of a revue

it's a words play. it's funny isn't it? ^___^

well 'La Esperanza' didn't impress me even a little. I didn't like the plot itself and the morals were good but didn't touch my heart. the only thing I liked was.... dancing! of course I couldn't stay patient when they all were soooo coooool
however I'm disappointed with Kiriyan. it was too small of a part for her T___T
however my sorrowful experience says - the more boring the story is, the more wonderful the revue would be. so 'Takarazuka's Dancing Dreams' is really splendid. and also..... funny!
I mean the things like Aphrodita's behaviour after drinking (drinking what BTW? ^.^) and Hera's song about men when her maid fell down and Hera said 'shikkari shite' in the middle of singing... and so on.
let me cite what we see in the description.
when Zeus is seduced we read like
1st woman
2nd woman
so on...
and then...
SUDDENLY
The Seventh Cute Boy Ganymede
OH. MY. GOD.
it's really brave of Takarazuka to show this. BTW who thought of that concept? applause to that person.....

a quest

I've listened to many girls collaborating with Kajiura. so, it's time to make some conclusions.

to me Saeko Chiba proved to be perhaps the most successful project of Kajiura. yeah Kalafina is great, but it IS bombast, even though there are songs I love in their discography.
also Yuuka is great. no surprise they were together with Saeko for some time. and tiaraway was the greatest period!
I started with Makino, who's not a child of Kajiura but she was singing some songs composed by Kajiura-sensei, and I can't keep silent about this.
on the other hand, what can I say? I'm not in a great disappointment but I'm neither a fan of those songs. in other words, Makino was not necessary for the performance of those songs. I'm especially angry with the fact she was involved in TRC, and I truly believe she's much better that a simple pop-singer with a cute voice. I wish she always stayed on the level of OSTs for ARIA.
like, I thought 'yume no tsubasa' was a song composed specially for the 'everlasting songs' but it wasn't. I wish it was! >____<
on the other hand, the Keiko's version of 'synchronicity' isn't pleasing me either ^.^ it's somewhat affected and we hear it was meant to be that of a strong woman.... o_O but the lyrics were unchanged - and... like... WTF?
oh and I shouldn't forget about my constant sorrow - Kaida-san! she never released a solo album. that would be a dream-like thing! I looooove her voice
on the whole, it's really controversial. there are plenty of things I like in Kajiura-sama's products and there are those I DO dislike. there's somewhat a general tendency that the earlier songs seem better to me - that doubles the controversy 'cause I usually like the late compositions, but not the first and 'green' ones.
the only thing I can say for sure is that I've listened to almost all of the projects of Kajiura, except for See-Saw which is like a sweet desert so I'm leaving it for a while to return for it somewhen. taking into account the fact I almost dislike the late songs of Kajiura and the opinion of my friend who already listened to the last single of FJ - there'll be no more pleasant surprises.
what a pity