film, music of all kinds from all places, playing violin, reading, beer, coffee, green tea, cooking, tai-chi, yoga, baking apple pie, chess, go (an ancient Asian strategy game), whistling, and recently I discovered Sudoku.
Music
Estradasphere, Secret Cheifs 3, Fishtank Ensemble, God of Shamisen, Carne Cruda, El Douje, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Jason Webley, Taraf de Haidouks, Jean-Luc Ponti, Stephane Grappelli, Tin Hat Trio, Dvorak, Carlo Gesualdo, Shostakovich, Bach, Beethoven, Saint-Saëns, Prokofiev, Rimski-Korsakov, Tchaikovski, Brahms, Stravinski, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Beach Boys, Davka, Mr. Bungle, Bill Monroe, Thelonious Monk, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Antonio Carlos Jobin, Bela Fleck, Farmers Market, Beck, Skerik's Syncopated Taint Septet, Bartok, Raymond Scott, Brian Wilson, Astor Piazzolla, Simon and Garfunkel, Frank Zappa, Johnny Cash, Sandor Lakatos, Willie Colon, Django Reinhard, Ivo Papazov, Edith Piaf, Omme Kolsoum, R.D. Burman, Ennio Morricone, Nino Rota, and of course, Tom Waits
Movies
Films by, Federico Fellini, Akira Kurosawa, Guy Maddin, Shohei Imamura, Yasujiro Ozu, Shuji Terayama, Bernardo Bertolucci, Michelangelo Antonioni, Ingmar Bergman, Jan Svankmajer, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, David Lynch, Jean-Luc Godard, Terry Gilliam, Fritz Lang, Krzysztof Kieslowski, Wong Kar Wai, Jim Jarmusch, Marx Brothers, Maya Deren, Alejandro Jodorowsky, Stan Brakhage, The Brothers Quay, Andrei Tarkovsky
Television
Twin Peaks was the best show ever produced. Don't watch TV much but I love TV on DVD and on the internet. South Park, Simpsons, Family Guy, The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and Lost.
Books
Last 10 Books:
Kurt vonnegut's "Galapagos", Novakov's "Pale Fire", Bukowski's "The Most Beautiful Woman in Town and Other Stories", Osamu Dazai's "Selected Short Stories", Katherine Dunn's "Geek Love", Steinbeck's "Tortilla Flat", Yukio Misima's "Confessions of a Mask", Douglas Adam's "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", Shuji Terayama's "Throw Away Your Books, Run into the Streets!", George Orwell's "1984"
About me: Born and raised in Nagano, Japan. Moved to CA at age of 19.
Current project: a feature length documentary film about an American musician Kevin Kmetz's journey to master a traditional Japanese instrument called Tsugaru Shamisen. You can read more about this film "Birth of California Shamisen" on my blog page or visit my website www.californiashamisenmovie.com
Also, I've been working on several experimental videos.
Side projects: working closely with talented musicians and bands. On stage video projection for Estradasphere, Fishtank Ensemble DVD, Carne Cruda promo video, etc. I've also worked with a group of dancers for collaborative performances at ODC and CounterPulse.
Music projects: Barbershop Qualtet, lean Klezmer tunes, practice violin more often
Life long project: undetermined
New Estradasphere DVD! I helped shooting that and that's my voice, sweet!
If you already have 2009 calendar, then mark the day January 1, 2009. If you don't have the calendar, then remember when you feel that hang over from the new year's eve party that you have another awesome party to go. Or if you had one of those mediocre new year's eve, then remember the celebration is not over.
We'll drink, dance and wear silly hats to the live music, hopefully by our favorite Carne Cruda. The donation to the band will be greatly appreciated.
The sweet rediculosity starts around the party time at 4001 San Leandro St. #22 Oakland. Bring your choice of party people (nice ones, please) and drinks you would like to share.
Speaking of drinks, you may have already heard, they are taking Sparks off the shelf. So somebody, like Luke Kirley of Carne Cruda was saying that at this party we should commemorate the Sparks for all the good times we had with this neon-colored sparkling wonder. "
Hope you don't mind a little shameless self-promotion... *wink* Kitten Koffin Zombies @ kittenkoffinzombies.com
KKZ PIN-UP CONTEST FINALLY BACK UP!!! VOTE FOR ME FOR JANUARY'S KITTEN KOFFIN ZOMBIE PINUP! Please go to www.kittenkoffinzombies.com to vote from Feb.18th - March 3rd - PLS VOTE ONCE EVERY 24HRS - DON'T STOP VOTING because the winning girls will have their total votes compared, and the one with the most gets the cover! Thank you luves! XOXOXOXOXOXOLeEvil Wishes!
awww... i can't believe I missed friendsgiving and dillon's raw pumpkin pie. I saw a dude in the subway playing a shamisan the other day and wondered how you and the film were doing...
