Blogging away again. Yea it's one of those nights, where u are feeling down and out for no apparent reason. Maybe the reason is apparent, but i'm trying to run away from it i guess. Fortunately Ying Hong is nice enough to come accompany me for supper. Rare chance do u get someone doing this for u. Esp in hall.

Had the first band meetup today. Pretty boring. I have a talented but very showy drummer, a China man who only plays folk songs, a guitarist who's forced to become a bassist for the greater good, a keyboardist who can't save himself, and a singer who loves Corrinne May. Gosh. And it's supposed to be rockin'. The drummer Sean, can really play. He's good, way better than Xiang. Feeling, dynamics, just alittle less technical than Ben. But i'll take him anytime man. Seriously, tho he has to drop his showy attitude. Dude, we all know u can play. Chill.

Yi Ming the China Man, erhmm... can play too. Pretty good on the acoustic, but umm, it's not a polka folk band dude. Sorry that ur Chinese Min Yao songs can't work here. Xin Yao will be a better place for u anytime. Kelvin the keyboardist...classically trained. Means he need the notes or else he can't play. No idea how to help u either. Go figure. And Sue ann, sorry to say, I've never heard of Tori Amos. And Corinne May songs? We'll see abt tt.

Basically, i'm pretty upset abt the lineup. No idea y Dan chose to throw all the freshies into one band. And it's a weird lineup too. 2 guitars and 1 keys..alittle overkill? Shrug.

Sigh guess i can't rock it out with u anymore Robin. Have fun with the other band.

Stuck in a rut.

With everyone expecting this and that from me. Like i'm a god.

I'm human k, and i dun believe in god.

Sometimes i dun even believe in myself.

Got into the commitees tt i tried for, namely Band, PA and Xinyao. Surprisingly Xinyao wanted me tho i gave a super lacklustre rendition of Tears In Heaven. Or so i thought. Anyways, i'm in a mixed mood now, cos with them comes work, and i really have to find a super fine balance between music, basketball and my sch work. JC was fine cos i only had to balance ball and sch. Now comes music...heh.

Hope everything turns out fine and i dun have to give up studies to be a basketball star by day and rockstar by night.

My chick. Beat that.

I've realised there's only so much tt u can try to know abt other pple.

Ultimately it still boils down to whether they wanna let u know or not.

Friends? Yea good for a day. A borrowed pedal, borrowed notes, borrowed homework. Yea friends.

Been talking to her this afternoon and just now. Realised tt some cute guys are supposedly trying to get close to her. Weird, are the girls over there tt bad? Or is she really turning super hot in a mth? Hmm. Either case let's pray she'll stay true to me. I know she will, just wanna make sure.

I dun have hot chicks trying to hook up a conversation with me lor. It's so unfair.

IVP's started it's first training yesterday. Pretty tough shit. From what i know it's only half of what they are actually doing. Which means bad news, cos i was already dead tired halfway through. Fitness is still low, mind is still not strong. Lack of focus. I've never perspired so much in my life, not even NDU days seriously. NDU is nothing compared to IVP i swear. U guys shld see the giant puddle of sweat tt i wrung out from my jersey yesterday. Gross shit.

I dun see myself in the starting 12. There are at least 4 senior guards ahead of me. If i'm in, i'll be like 5th choice at least. Do they need 5 guards? Hardly. And Chengda says he'll help me to get in. Which i think, pls dun. Cos i wanna prove myself. Been feeling that all my life everywhere i go somehow it's because of some strings attached. Only when i was in NJ i felt really good. A place where no one knows who i am, and it's a fresh place.

Coming to TH is like going back to a comfort zone. The seniors know me cos of my brother. And becos of tt, they try to help as much as they can.

I say, stop helping. If i can't make it, just means i'm not up it. No big deal.

It's always better to live in the reality than in a fairytale. It least it seems more real. And when it really crashes down u dun feel the pain. Like in NJ, when we lost all our matches, I still felt good at the end of the day. Cos the team is my pride and joy. I gave my all to the team at least. And that's when u start earning respect from ur peers.

Respect means alot to me. It's earned through sheer hard work and dedication.

Shit to u if at any point of your life u got through not because of your own capabilities.

No idea what i'm rambling abt already.

Still waiting for u to come online.

So this is how we looked tt day. Pretty cool huh?

K shall blog alittle, tho it's pretty late now. Reason for staying up so late? DoTA. Sigh, kinda got enticed to play when i dropped by JJ's room and he's playing. With everyone else. Guess i feel the pressure not to be left out. But, right now i dun feel it anymore. It was good while it lasted, tho i doubt i'll touch it ever again. Yea too time consuming. Makes me feel guilty whenever i dun spend time studying or working on the fretboard.

It gets to me. Real bad sometimes.

Well half of term break is gone. Effectively it's Wednesday now. Time really flies when u are studying man. Before u know it, it's another week gone. Long gone are the clear leave days when i just slack and while the days away.

Sometimes i really feel like moving to the countryside. Away from it all. A simple life, with my wife and probably a pet or smthing. No kids, they are too troublesome if u wanna lead a quiet life. I guess we are all living proofs of problematic children. Everyday i'll just wake up, go to the back of my garden and grab some greens, and we'll have a simple meal.

No worries.

Probably u dun hear this alot from me, but i miss you alot. Really. I admit tt everyday's harder to pass, with each day i miss u more and more. Somehow i dread waking up every morning, cos i'll lose u in my dreams. I miss ur smiles. They brighten up my day so much. It's now dark and gloomy everyday.

Please come back soon.

*mini wave*

Just got back. Bathed. Unwinding now...chilling out in front of my comp.

Yea gig's over. Or shld i say audition's over? Heh, anyways it was a nice experience after all. Before u know it, u are needed on stage. All tt rush to set up everything was nerve-wracking seriously. Shld have brought less stuff. And then, after the mad rush, it's time to play.

I guess there's no time for stage fright. After all, the crowd pretty much dispersed by the time it came to our turn. Not too many pple, but not too little nonetheless. Kai kept telling me to crank up the amp, and sure i did. Couldn't hear anyone except a faint of Xiang's drums. Yea, it was really loud to me. But everyone said it's alright. Fine then.

We started off with our original "One More Time". It went pretty well in terms of the drums. Yea fortunately Xiang din screw up. But i did slip up alittle here and there for the licks. Yea, hope it ain't too glaring a thing. Song was tight, everyone did what they shld. And we finished it off with a little jump at the end. One song down.

Already, i felt the Tubescreamer was way way too loud. But Kai say keep it going. Alrighty. So we started our next song "I've Got A Feeling" by the Beatles. Yea it's written by them, but we were doing the Beck version. Catch the anime if u wanna find out. Episode 23-24. I'd say this song was much better compared to "One More Time" just cos everyone played what they are supposed to play. There's no rush, Guan's bass came in seamlessly, and my solos are just perfect, or so i thought. Robin came down when we're just starting the song, and he watched us. Said it was good, esp at the back when everything came together.

FYI, Robin's the lead guitarist of Rafe, the past yr winner of Power Jam. Yea, cool dude. And though he's younger than me, he's way past his yr in terms of thinking. Damn deep fella.

After all that noise-making, everyone went to grab a bite at BK. Yea it's tiring after a gig, even though it's just 2 songs. It just messes u up, at least for me. Super dehydrated. Fortunately a mushroom swiss double came along and saved the day. Good shit.

Rob and I then proceeded to WakeMeUpMusic to check out some gear. He's making me GAS yet again.. basket. Fortunately i dun really like the stuff WMUM carries, so yea the feelin ain't tt bad. Still prefer scouting Luthermusic for cheap deals. WMUM is just way too ex for me. Ended up chatting with the shop attendant for abt 2 hrs. Yea he plays in Set For Glory, some emo-punk band. (Heard of them, Joel?) They played in Baybeats, so i guess they are pretty big in the scene. Hanging out with rock stars man! And he's got a mean Gibson SG. I want a SG next. It's on my bday wishlist. Gather all ur friends and start saving!

Anyways yea it's fun. I lost my virgin gig to Power Jam. But i ain't regretting it. Would love to gig more next time definitely.

But with better songs.

Now i understand y u are still the person i run back to at the end of the day.

Tml's the audition. Not expecting much. Just dun disappoint myself.

Night.

Think i botched both of my auditions for TH Band and Xinyao.

Told you guys i'm not tt good..

Low morale now...

Let me slip away.

K shan't say much abt the DND, cos a picture tells a thousand words. It's really great imo, kinda like CosPlay. Funny to see pple in wierd costumes. Too bad i din get to take much of the Star Wars grp. Dang!

Oh yea, and my hall buddy JJ won the Hall King. Woo! Way to go! Destroy them all!

What i wore for DND. Yea theme is School Of Rock for my table. I think i look more like Angus Young tho. \m/


Tot i was quite late, but apparently i'm the earliest. Took the chance to check out the area, pretty cool.


My Hotel Room. Or shld i say our hotel room. *snigger*



Raffles Marina. Makes u wanna buy a boat and live the sailor life.


Can see the second link from here.


Me and my bunch of rockin' students.


The girls from left:Yunrou, Alison, Mel and Xinwei


The guys from left: Jun Hong, John Frusciante and George.


Jimi Hendrix & Deren


The previous Hall King & Queen: Clarice and Zhen Huan (from left)


How can i miss this shot...best deal lar.


Stevie Ray Vaughan and Gabriel posing as guy from Troy


Maxiao aka Max is also from Troy... here with John Petrucci


Alexis as "Miss China" and Yngwie Malmsteen


Lester and Ritchie Blackmore


Frolicking with one of my best buds in hall, Key Chua! Too bad u din win pageant. Wasted!


"Drunk Pirate of the Carribean" Robin and Dave Murray


Weixian aka "Squall" squaring off against Steve Vai. Think i won on this one.


Just when u tot u saw the biggest sword, Cheong Hua aka "Cloud" stuns us with his!


Stormtrooper Austen & Joe Satriani. Guess which bimbo is in the helmet.


Pageant finalist and Njcian Jonathan. Wonder y he so fierce. Din win?


Pageant finalist and Stats mate Jacinth with Eric Johnson


Finally the 05/06 Temasek Hall King & Queen! JJ and Yiwen!


Her face kena whacked.. haha.


Simi LJ? Lai ar!


Got alittle carried away when he won.


Caught Darth Maul and took off the mask.. to find Mel Chang inside! The horror!


The Final Fantasy gang.


Bumped into the Cyclops and Wolverine on the way out. Helpful mutants.


Just when u tot the saw them all... From left: The Hulk, Gambit, Cyclops, Nightcrawler, Silver Surfer and the Punisher.


"Hall King will u marry me?"


Jap Rocker: "I not gay lar. Visual rock lar"

After all tt crap, we decided to stay up. But apparently some pple just couldn't keep up. Nvm, here's some scandalous shots to spice up hall life...


Tsk....*snigger*


The survivors.. and of course me lar.. i take the shot leh.

Fun night. Real fun...esp when everyone wants to take photo with a rockstar. Whaha!!

Just got back from Rouge. Yea, it's my first time clubbing, if tt place is considered a club (shld be right?). Anyways, John Molina & band is playing there, so Kai jio-ed us to go take a look. No regrets man. He's the real deal seriously. It's the first time i saw a person sing so well, and can connect with the crowd so effortlessly. Yeap, not too bad for a first clubbing experience.

Chatted with the lead guitarist alittle, named "Boy". I think tt's his nickname. Pretty small Fillipino dude, but with a loud sound. Yea his fingers are magic, the way he plays the guitar is just mesmerizing. Good speed, good phrasing, and never too indulgent. Tt's how i like guitarists to be. Melody before everything else. Add in the fact tt he's got feel baby. FEEL. Something i'm still looking for within myself.

Like he said, "It's just like singing, u have to express urself. Through the guitar."

Lovely.

Looking at them, and then looking back at my band, i see a world of difference. Seems like maybe u guys shldn't come and watch us play next Sat, cos i feel tt we are still not ready up to this pt in time. Xiang is still not confident, and unsure as to what he's supposed to play and stuff. And he lacks practise, a hell lot of it to be precise. At least when i dun practise i can still smoke it thru, but for him, it shows his flaws clearly. And for drums, it's extremely obvious.

Personally i think it will sound like a mess during the audition, but it's ok. Most bands will sound like a mess. Hopefully i'll be able to play to standard, and enjoy the gig like "Boy" said. Yea pretty inspired by tt fella.

Think i'll keep working on shredding for the next few days. Fuck chords!

Night my groupies. Esp to the one in Canada. *pat*

Oops blogging again. Realised tt while waiting for other pple for supper i can use the time to blog! What a revelation! Wow! *middle finger for u*

Anyways, my band The Casters (it's a funny name meh?) will be playing for the very first time @ Wala Wala on the next saturday 16th of Sept. Yea auditioning for Power Jam 2005. We'll be playing only 2 songs sadly tho, one is our original "One More Time" and a spiced up version of the Beatles "I've Got A Feeling". Yep, odd choice to me, but since Kai wants it tt way then so be it lar. I have more fun playing "You Wanna Be A Star" tho.

Quite nervous thinking abt it right now, but i'm not really expect us to even make it past the auditions lar haha. It's just our first gig for goodness sake! Sure cock up one lar. Maybe gg there with the thought of just having fun will be less pressurising. But performing...sigh..not my cup of tea ar. Always fail to meet the expectations of others. But i'll try, and i tink it will be fun.

Yea, and if u are wondering, tt's the band photo at the top right corner. From left, Xiang, Me, Kai (Yea he's grown fatter *guffaws*) and on the right is Guan. Stupidly nice photo i'd say, cos it looks stupid, yet has the factor there. Hmm..maybe this can be our album cover. Haha.

And the slogan will go: Listen to it, One More Time~

What the hell...haha

Hope it turns out well, aka string dun break, pedals work fine, got power socket for my pedals.

K lost my thoughts already, cos i went supper with JJ. Nice guy to hang out with. At least he's true to himself. Hall King to be too..woo..

K night my groupies. It's 3am now. See ya all on Saturday!

It's been awhile ain't it? Did some adjustments to the sidebar just now. Looks alittle better i think, and the song links will definitely work this time. Just click anyone of them and a popup player will play the song for ya. Yea, some new feature from Soundclick. Pretty nifty shit.

I realised no one from TH knows abt my blog. Kinda got the revelation cos Jacinth asked me if i had one during lecture. Quite a weird qns too i feel, cos a blog seems to be kinda a little personal space for a person to rant or smthing write. Unless it's like XX's which's just plain journalism lar. Anyways yea, dun think i'll let anyone from TH know abt it lar, cos news spread very fast in TH. Super fast. It's like gossip.org.sg or smthing. And soon everyone will know i sing bad. *slaps forehead*

Louis mentioned something abt not having a true friend in hall, which i think it's pretty true lar. Up till now i still can't really find someone who's as true to me as i am to him/her. Yea it's quite a sad situation, cos everyone is hiding something here and there from u. Pple just refuse to open up sometimes.

And yea, think i'm getting some bad rep for being too frank and direct. But again, tt's just me. Alot of pple just like to live in their own ideal world, which i'd say wake up lar. Realised tt alot of pple in TH have alot of so-called "problems". I think pple just have to snap out of it lar. My gf is not ard with me for now, so do i sulk and cry in my room? Just live with it lar. Take the time to do something constructive, rather than self-destruct.

Sometimes i despise pple who are not strong. Sorry, i wish i can help u, but u refuse to help yourself, so i decide not to help u either.

On a happier note, haha realised simple chords songs are the way to go if u wanna impress pple, esp girls lar. Shred just doesnt cut it, esp if u can't shred on an acoustic. Tt's y i tell u pple, dun expect me to play anything if u give me an acoustic guitar lar. I've forgotten all my "cheat-girl" songs. Yup. And my neighbour is a I-have-loads-of-cheat-girl-songs-dude. Kinda jealous tt he's getting all the attention from all the girls. Snatch my groupies away....grrr. Haha.

Nvm, i still have my number 1 groupie. In Canada.

Stuff for ur to listen again. Finally manage to finish the song after keeping it in limbo for so long, tho i still feel tt the lyrics could be much much better. I'm just not a lyrical person.

Pardon the singing as usual - Standstill.mp3

Just in case u have no idea what the hell i'm singing, here goes the lyrics:

Verse 1
Late at night
I wonder why
Those words we meant to say never came through

Now it's over
You never gave me a chance
To prove how much i care for you

Pre-chorus
you know that we can go so far away from here
you know that we can go so far....away...

Chorus
But why are we
still in a standstill?
you know i think of you
and every thing that you do

Oh why are we
still in a standstill?
i still think of you
i wanna reach out to you

Verse 2
All alone
This emptiness
I'm living with the echoes in my room

If only I
can spend one more eternity
Just to make u stay with me

Prechorus
Chorus

Bridge
I still think of you every single day
i still think of you every step i take
i still think of you every possible way
i still think of youi still think of you

Chorus
Outro Solo