Disgaea killed my childhood

Okay, not really.

Generally, the idea that something new in anyway devalues how awesome the original was doesn't hold water. This is no different. And I love Disgaea. It's great. In a lot of ways, Disgaea saved Strategy Role Playing Games (sRPGs). NIS, the publisher, has been churning out mediocre to great sRPGs on PS2/3 and is pretty much the only reason the genre is relevant in anyway, shape or form. But in being the almost sole torchbearer, they have forced new genre conventions that people just don't want to break. And it kills me.

A little history on the sRPG. It is, unlike many other video game genres, an invention of console gaming. Nintendo put the ball in motion, as they did with almost everything for consoles, with a series called Fire Emblem. Fire Emblem begot Langrisser which begot Shining Force. This is when the genre began its golden age, at least in my opinion.

Shining Force, if you've ever heard me talk about video games you should know this, is unquestionably my favorite video game of all time. It took Fire Emblem and Final Fantasy, threw them into a blender and popped out one of the most creative games of all time. It is loaded with secret characters, hidden items and easter eggs. What's more, every character was given personality and it had a story that had legs.

SF, along with FE, pushed the genre forward. They pretty much established every convention along with every innovation. They opened the door for Front Mission, Vandal Hearts, Tactic Ogre. While I never got into FE (mostly because it was a Japan only title until the 00s), I did love me some Shining Force. I have beaten the first game close to a hundred times. That's a lot for someone who hates replaying games. The second one I've probably beaten 10-20 times. The third only 3 times and only the first chapter.

Shining Force III might be the pinnacle of sRPG, but it was dead in the water. It was on the Saturn (a dead platform) and only one part was released in the US. You can now get the other two chapters translated and play them on a Saturn emulator, but it was an epic game. It told a story of war from three different perspectives and you would lead your army against armies would control later in the story. It was truly epic.

Then Camelot, the team that developed the game, jumped ship to Nintendo. They developed the well recieved Golden Sun series and (again, along with Fire Emblem) are largely responsible for sRPGs being handheld dominated development.

The final nail in the coffin for the original console sRPG was Final Fantasy Tactics. It was a game that aped every other sRPG on the market and ripped its story straight from other superior games. It also became the standard for sRPGs and (much like its big brother) ruined the genre. This was the ET for sRPGs. After Tactics, the genre just stagnated. It was a good game, sold well, and somehow managed to keep the genre from ever reaching lofty heights again.

The next wave of consoles (PS2, Xbox, Dreamcast) brought developers that did not see the value in games that weren't pushing graphical boundaries. The sRPG was ignored as a relic of the past. Except for one little Japanese publisher. Nippon Icchi. They created Disgaea, the game that changed all the rules.

NIS and Atlus had had some minor success with sRPGs which had been pushed off to the niche market with dating sims and shoot-em-ups. But NIS developed Disgaea and it changed all the rules. It was about as big an underground hit as the PS2 had. Super rare, super fun and super popular. It created a whole new rule set for a genre that had been big on change. It scrapped a lot of the standard conventions and started from scratch. And it was glorious.

NIS went on to churn out lots of fun, goofy games with solid mechanics. Always low budget, mediocre graphics and worse voice acting, but sRPGs that made you work to beat them. And, always the same. NIS games are great. But they aren't original. Atlus games are even worse, knock offs of the same Disgaea model over and over again. While sure, Grownlanser was still lurking in the shadows and there was a bevy of games on the DS and PSP, console games were stuck with the same NIS games year after year.

So, now we're on the next level of consoles and the next level of sRPGs. I just picked up Record of Agarest War for Xbox 360. And it sure does channel that new Disgaea model of sRPGs, but...BUT there is hope. It is a game that actually has a story (not a great one, mind you, but it is a step in the right direction. It is a game that gives you a reason to play the story mode beyond seeing how super duper you can make a character. It is a game that takes the gameplay outside of the standard grid.

But it isn't enough. A game like Valkyria Chronicles shows that someone understands that sRPGs can be an amazing thing if given enough attention. But VC had its sequel thrust onto the PSP. RoAW gives me hope. A hope that someone can take the Disgaea model and throw it in a blender with Shining Force and create the greatest sRPG of all time.

Kicked Mine

I saw Kick Ass opening weekend. On Sunday. Theater was not even half full. Let me just say that this is a travesty. A great injustice. This is a movie that should be seen. On a big screen. With popcorn and a soda. It was, in every sense of the term, a summer blockbuster. Comedy, Drama, Action, Romance all rolled into a neat, well-paced package. And it got beat out by How to Train Your Dragon.

I like dragons as much as the next dude. They have been in mythos as long as mythos has existed. They breathe fire. They fly. They horde gold. And they are freaking dragons. So, movies about dragons should, by default, be awesome. Dragon movies should be this:


If that was a scene from a dragon movie, it would probably be an instant top 10 movie. It would double the gross of Titanic on its opening weekend. It would easily win every Academy Award, including best adapted and best original screenplay. The Dragon would win best actor, actress and best kiss.


But no, HtTYD is just some Dreamworks flick trying to ride those Pixar coattails with a story about Dragons and Vikings (another group that gets the raw end of the stick. Seriously, how do these Hollywood types mess up Vikings and Dragons?) that is probably charming, predictable and fun. That's great. I'm sure I'll love it when it is on HBO and I see it 15 times because I'm too lazy to change the channel. Or, maybe I'll be too busy watching superior Pixar flicks on Starz. Who knows?


But Kick Ass is a movie that caught me off guard. Even if I knew where it was going, I was surprised when it got there. It is insanely violent. It made Ninja Assassin look like Bambi. It made Saw look like Gremlins. It made me laugh, squirm and it even was touching. It reinforced the Nic Cage rule (one film out of 10 is going to be amazing if he's in it). It is garnering pretty good reviews, especially considering the graphic nature. And it is already being considered an industry failure.


This set two separate thoughts into motion. One, how ridiculous is it that a movie can be considered a success or failure off one weekend? This is definitely a word of mouth hit waiting to happen. Everything about it screams potential breakthrough, but I think industry experts were expecting that from the first weekend. Industry experts suck and are stupid. Two, word of mouth needs to get out about this movie. Everyone I know who has seen it (which is pretty much just the people I saw it with), walked out slack jawed. No one else is talking about it. I would be very upset if this movie fails.


I think the biggest problem is the marketing. I saw the trailers and thought comedy. I do not envy the team that had to put together a trailer for this movie. And I think they did a fantastic job. It creates an expectation for a movie and this movie is not what I expected. It had aspects of that movie (satirical superhero flick), but I wasn't expecting the greatest action scenes in comic book movie history. That's right, I said it. I never thought anything would ever top my excitement in seeing Nightcrawler's attack on the White House. Then I met Hit Girl. Her first action scene reshaped what I expected from comic book movies and the rest of the movie continued to raise the bar.


This is easily one of the best comic book movies of all time. It is like Tarantino directed Watchmen. That is a lot coming from me. Comic book flicks are probably my favorite genre. X-2 ranks in my top 5 films of all time. It is rare that a film manages to be truly immersive and I imagine that enjoyment depends on how well you are immersed. There were scenes that truly clinched my stomach (the microwave scene was difficult to watch) and it was a stark contrast from the over the top action when the heroes attacked. Watching the film in theaters was like riding a rollercoaster. And it was a wild ride.

The Teenage Riot Before

I just downloaded the new The Riot Before album and it is good but it reminded me of my biggest peeve with the digital era, disconnection. Media formats are notorious for short shelf lives because there is always something newer and better. Phonograph to record to 8-track to cassette to CD to MP3. Reel to VHS to DVD to Blu-ray (and streaming). Mono to Stereo to Dolby Digital 5.1 to god knows what. Black and White to color to progressive to high definition. You get the picture.


Almost always the advances are to the betterment of the format. Sure, there is the argument that vinyl has a warmth that can't be replicated, but who really wants to watch a movie on a VCR hooked up to a black and white TV? You don't. I loved CDs. They were great audio quality, convenient and customizable. I didn't even have to cover the hole with tape! But they still maintained one of the greatest advances in music, the album. Sure, you could rip songs and make your own mix CDs and they didn't quite have the charm of the mixtape, but you still went to the record store and bought a new album the day it came out. You popped it into your CD player and listened from start to finish. It didn't force you to listen to every song (here's looking at you vinyl), but it allowed songs to flow from one to the next as the artist intended.


But then the big, bad internet reared its ugly head. I am well known as a technology hater even though I am a junkie. But I really, really, really hate the internet. It's a wonderful tool and has lead me to so many incredible bands it's hard to fathom how I found music without it (the radio actually used to be a quality source for new bands, shocking I know), but boy has it put a dent in how I enjoy music. The internet is one progression on music that has also encompassed a regression.


There was a time in popular music history that artists recorded one shots and that was that. No one went to a studio and knocked out 15 classics. There was no thought of how one song would feed into another. Every song had to be a hit because it was going straight to the radio. B-sides were not always radio ready, but they had better have some measure of accessibility because they were going to get radio play also. Deep tracks just did not exist.


That era was a double edged sword and one I am glad came to a close. While it did force song writers to be at the top of their game, it also encouraged familiarity. You get a lot of great songs that share a lot in common and they end up sounding almost exactly the same. Originality was rewarded, but only as long as it sold records. So while you could get Buddy Holly mixing up the rockabilly formula (and I love Buddy Holly), his collection rarely strays out of the box he established. Elvis covered a lot of bases, and covered them well, but there were a lot more "Jailhouse Rocks" than "In the Ghettos." For such a revolutionary scene, it sure didn't stray from the SOP.


The impending death of rock and roll is well documented and everyone loves to laud the British Invasion as the savior of R&R, but I'd say the true saving grace was the emergence of the rock album (jazz, always the innovator, started the trend in the 50s, but it did not catch on until the 60s for American music's slow little brother). Yes, those mop haired mods did catch the airwaves on fire (people carried fire extinguishers just in case it got a little too hot), but there was something magical going on in the studio also.


Band stopped recording collections of singles and started recording cohesive experiences. Songs didn't have to be 2 1/2 minutes long. The Beatles, Beach Boys, The Who and the Rolling Stones all had landmark albums that begot Led Zeppelin and Velvet Underground. There are a lot of fantastic journeys to be had in that era.


The 70s took album love to a whole new level. Many would argue that it was to the detriment of music, especially in light of the biggest band ever forgoing touring for the studio (Beatles' Abbey Road), but it also gave way for tons of great punk albums. Punk rock very much returned to the rockabilly era of music, even on record. Quick bursts of radio ready rock highlighted by the Ramones and their many imitators. Punk records were, very frequently, a collection of singles.


But the album was not forsaken by punk rockers and one band in particular pioneered the punk album. That band, The Clash, kept alive one of the greatest traditions in rock music. They reminded everyone that you could put a record on and be lost in the music. London Calling in particular set the stage for another magical era of records.


While many will remember the 80s as New Wave and hair metal (Slippery When Wet is a fantastic album, by the way), there were a ton of bands operating under the radar turning out some of the most influential rock records of all time. The Replacements, Husker Du, the Minutemen, Meat Puppets, Sonic Youth, the DC hardcore scene, the Bay Area hardcore scene, the pretty much everywhere in American scene...well, you get the picture. They all were churning out amazing albums. And those albums in turn lead to the Alternative explosion of the 90s.


As has happened at the end of every rock era (save the 60s), there was stagnation near the end of the 90s and into the 00s. Lounge Singers to Disco to Hair Metal to nu-Metal. However, this era was also "blessed" with the internet. Disgruntled fans stopped complaining to their DJs because they didn't have to listen anymore. They could hop on Napster and rip off their new favorite band. Myspace became the new radio. Youtube is the new MTV. And music fans started cherry picking songs.


Why buy a whole album when you can hop on iTunes and download the three songs you liked at first blush? Why bother recording 15 songs as a collective whole when you have to make every song accessible? And, when the bands do take the time and energy to make a complete experience, what does it matter? Fans will download the album, pop it in their ipod and let it get mixed in with the rest of their collection.


No more peeling the plastic off. No more reading the liner notes while you listen. No more hitting repeat all or flipping the vinyl or tape. No more experience. Just a song in a sea of music. No matter how much work a band puts into an album, it is just going to be distilled into individual songs. Would Daydream Nation be a landmark album today? Some of those songs don't have the same impact when they are disconnected from the previous track.


I am as guilty as anyone, heck probably worse. There is a current punk rock subculture that is keeping the vinyl market alive and well. They are people that still appreciate the intrinsic value of an album. And, they are a subculture of a subculture of a subculture. So, when I started listening to Fists Buried in Pockets by The Riot Before you can probably guess how I enjoyed it.

If you didn't guess disjointedly (or a similar word choice), then you probably haven't gotten much out of this. But those craft gents from VA got me. I noticed how the opening track lead into the second track. "Capillaries," the closing track, brings the whole thing to an epic conclusion and brings the experience full circle. Intrigued, I put the album into its own playlist and went from start to finish. It was like reading a great novel. Songs I had previously disregarded were given new life. I got it.

So when Rebellion came out, I was given a choice. Throw it in with the rest of mix for Rad Fest or give it a go on its own. Easy decision. I couldn't imagine seperating some of those songs. They were made for each other. "The Oregon Trail" is, right now, my favorite track on the album. It also is a great stand alone for anyone looking for a reason to buy (which you should, digital download, cd, whatever, it's worth the price of admission). You can check it out at their myspace page, www.myspace.com/theriotbefore.

Opening track,"The Middle Distance," throws a little noise into the mix. I love it. I really wish they had used it more in that song, but it makes the title all the more appropriate. This album might be the middle distance between where they started and where they are going. It still dips into the beardpunk that they are associated with, but it brings new layers to a sound that is starting to reach its breaking point across the board.

I know it's a sound that is on the verge of exploding (see Off With Their Heads on Epitaph and Banner Pilot on Fat Wreck coupled with D4 and Against Me! already in the limelight), but I am excited about a band that is willing to take chances with the formula and one who might help make the scene more than just another punk fad. They could easily ride the fest/beard punk sound to success, they have that sound down pat. Instead, they are challenging it and I hope it pays off.

The Riot Before is on Paper + Plastick and their album can also be downloaded from iTunes. They will be headlining 16 Taps at Rad Fest. Tickets are $25 for the two day event.

Getting Ready to Get Rad!!!!!!!!

It is very rare that you get Christmas in May. Usually it is June or July, no one has Christmas in May. Well, this year, Wilmington, NC is having Christmas early and Santa (as played by Chason) is bringing me this(click on the picture):


If you're still not sure what this is go to http://www.radfestnc.com/. Still confused? Do I have to spell everything out for you?

There is this awesome new trend in the punk rock community of college towns hosting multi-day festivals. Think Bonnaroo without the hippies and fleabag motels replacing mud drenched tents. The granddaddy of them all is Fest (http://www.thefestfl.com/). It is in Gainesville, gets bigger every year (there were like 300 bands there last year) and is pretty much amazing. Fest 7 was responsible for me seeing Leatherface for the first time. They have also hosted Seaweed, Samiam, Snuff and tons of other bands that I adore all in one place. But like most great things it is also overcrowded and you're as likely to stand in line 3 hours at Common Grounds as you are to see 20 of the hottest up and coming punk rock acts. It is also in Gainesville. I'm not.

Enter fest veteran and noble Seahawk Chason, a man of which I will never speak ill. He's taken a torch from Fest's fire and brought its warmth to his port town on the coast of North Carolina. And he brought the Boat with him (that's Leatherface for the uninitiated).

The best thing about these music festivals, at least for me, is that it gives me a chance to explore new music and then see it live. As noted above, Fest has hundreds of bands and Radfest is clocking in somewhere around 100 I believe. My one and only (to this date, at least) Fest was Fest 7. I didn't get a chance to check out too many of the smaller bands that I wanted to and the reasons are two fold. One, I had no idea the format (or how bad the lines were). Two, we missed Saturday because we drove to Charleston for my Aunt Judy's birthday. Family always comes first, mang!

But because there is such a huge variety, and it is varied, my girlfriend and I methodically go through every band and give them the A&R listen. If they don't grab either of our attention off the bat(usually give a band 2-3 songs and 30 seconds a song), we cross them off the list. Once we have a list of bands, we check out their myspace, download free songs or, if either of us really likes them, buy their stuff (and please, if you check out any of these bands and enjoy it, support them, they are not rich and they certainly aren't rock stars).

Fest 7 was certainly overwhelming, but it was also showcasing better known acts. It was easy to share Less than Jake and Bouncing Souls when I already had their albums. But, there were also the hidden gems. I'm sure there are kids out there who already know every song by every band playing punk rock these days, but I'm a working man and, to be frank, I'm not crazy about every band out there. These giant lists of bands and myspace pages is a treasure trove though.

From Fest 7 we found:

Measure (SA), a pop punk band with mostly female vocals that is super infectious

Towers of Hanoi, a punk rock band channeling Janis Joplin

Ringers, one of the better '77 punk bands channeling the "Jawbreaker" sound prevalent in punk rock these days

and the crown Jewel...

Austin Lucas, an Americana singer with a solid gold voice and an amazing musician. He does a little bit of everything, country, bluegrass, gospel and folk. We've since seen him at Local 506, at a house show in Hillsborough, at the Pinhook in Durham and even in our own living room. He has become a friend and he is probably one of the most talented musicians around today. That's right, we went to a punk rock festival and found a country superstar in waiting. He's more Hank Williams Sr than Garth Brooks, but unfortunately you won't find him on the radio with either. Through Austin, I've also been introduced to Michael Claytor and Josh Small. Talented musicians and guys not on mainstream radio, but they should be.

But that was Fest, this is RAD FEST!!! and Rad Fest has opened our musical doors to so many new bands. Perhaps the coolest thing for me is that our friends Red Collar are playing. Red Collar is a rock and roll band from the Bull City itself. They are amazing live and Jason Kutchma is a heck of a song writer.

In prepping for Rad Fest, I have discovered some great bands I might not have ever found (some are even bands I overlooked in prepping for F7).

Dirty Tactics is probably my favorite new find. They are old school punk rock with dueling vocals and rough around the edges production. I am so stoked to see them live.

The Menzingers are a band I was really excited about but they have since pulled out. They are the lovechild of punk and 90s alt rock. Very anthemic, very fun, but they are opening for Against Me! so I guess I can't blame them for pulling out.

P.S. Eliot is a low-fi rock band with female vocals. They are channeling 1994 something fierce. Hypnotic and fuzzy with just enough pop hook to keep you coming back.

Two Hand Fools, out of Ohio. A rock band with male and female vocals. Very indie rockish, but not the pretentious stuff mass produced these days.

My girlfriend jumped right onto Greenland is Melting, Coffee Project (featuring a member of Rehasher) and Sharks Come Cruisin'. Greenland is Melting is a straight up bluesgrass band. Coffee Project is a two man group, acoustic guitar and a horn. Sharks Come Crusin' is a band churnin' out rocking shanties. If you like drinking and shouting responses, they are right up your alley. My girlfriend calls it happy music, because just listening to them gets you in a good mood.

My greatest disappointment with RF is that I have two conflicted shows. Red Collar is playing at the same time as Two Hand Fools and Sharks Come Cruisin' and P.S. Eliot are on at the same time. That's the one huge downside to all of these festival shows, there are always going to be bands playing at the same time. My schedule of events is posted below.

We're heading out to Carolina Beach on Thursday night and are coming back Sunday afternoon/evening. If you're going, let me know.

Friday:

http://www.keepandshare.com/doc/1857796/radfestschedule-pdf-april-14-2010-4-57-pm-941k?da=y

Friday:

Greenland Is Melting – 3:40 – 4:10 (CB) http://www.myspace.com/greenlandismelting
Gatorface – 5:40 – 6:10 (SD) http://www.myspace.com/gatorfacefl
Coffee Project – 6:10 - 6:40 (CB) http://www.myspace.com/coffeeproject
Dinner Break
The Measure (SA) – 7:30 – 8:10 (SU) http://www.myspace.com/themeasuresa
Rehasher – 8:30 – 9:15 (SU) http://www.myspace.com/rehasher
Toys That Kill – 9:35 - 10:20 (SU) http://www.myspace.com/toysthatkill
Spanish Gamble – 11: 20 - 11:50 (16T) http://www.myspace.com/spanishgamble
Dirty Tactics – 12:20 - 12:50 (SD) http://www.myspace.com/dirtytactics
The Riot Before – 1:00 – 1:40 (16T) http://www.myspace.com/theriotbefore

Saturday:

Senders – 1:50 - 2:20 (16T) http://www.myspace.com/senders
Two Hand Fools – 3:40 - 4:10 (CB) http://www.myspace.com/twohandfools
Red Collar – 4:00 - 4:40 (SU) http://www.myspace.com/redcollarmusic
Lemuria – 5:00 - 5:40 (SU) http://www.myspace.com/lemuria

Dinner Break
Annabel – 7:50 - 8:20 (CB) http://www.myspace.com/annabelrock
Museum Mouth – 8:40 - 9:10 (CB) http://www.myspace.com/ilovemuseummouth
Sharks Come Cruisin – 9:40 - 10:10 (SD) http://www.myspace.com/sharkscomecruisin P.S. Eliot – 10:20 - 10:50 (CB) http://www.myspace.com/pseliot
Leatherface – 11:40 - 1:00 (SU) http://www.myspace.com/leatherfacepunx
Ninja Gun – 1:00 - 1:40 (SD) http://www.myspace.com/ninjagun

Legend:
Soapbox Upstairs - SU
Soapbox Downstairs - SD
16 Taps - 16T
Whiskey - WSK
Charley Brownz - CB