Thursday, June 21, 2012

Maroon 5 to hold concert in Philippines on September

Maroon 5’s newest album “Overexposed” is now available on iTunes and I’m pretty delighted and excited to read that they will be returning to Philippines for another round of concert on September! The concert will be held at SMART Araneta Coliseum on September 18, 2012.

Check out this section for more information:

Maroon 5 returns to Manila in September

Overexposed? That may be the title of Maroon 5’s fourth album, due out on June 26th, but for fans raring to move like Jagger, Maroon 5’s upcoming concert on September 18 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, that overexposure may be welcome.

After all, it will be the band’s third visit to Manila , following shows in 2008 and again, last year in May.

Frontman Adam Levine’s turn as a mentor in the TV reality show “The Voice” was a ratings bonanza and his equally high-profile romances with models of the Victoria ’s Secret variety are gossip site fodder.

Churning out the hits

And, when it comes to slick pop-soul tunes that stick like LSS (Last Song Syndrome), Maroon 5 are masters.

In the 12 years they’ve been together, the band has churned ‘em out with pretty decent regularity. It began in 2005 with “She Will Be Loved” then in 2008 with “Makes Me Wonder,” and in 2009 by “Won't Go Home without You" and “If I Never See Your Face Again,” a collaboration with Rihanna.  Last year, “Misery” and “Moves Like Jagger” with Christina Aguilera took to the stratosphere.

Along the way, the band picked up nine Grammy awards, including Best New Artist in 2005. Maroon 5 also seemed to have broken the curse of the said award. Unlike some of the one-hit wonders who received the award and then sank without a trace after, Maroon 5 has gone from hit to hit.

Most paid downloaded song

In fact, “Moves Like Jagger” went down in history as one the most paid downloaded song, prompting the band to explore the idea of co-writing, which they do in the new album.

“It’s like, ‘We get it—we’re overexposed,’” Levine said, laughing. “We’re just trying to preemptively go where the conversation is headed anyway. We figured we’d get there first.”

While everyone and his grandma know Maroon 5 as a pop hit machine, Levine has been less than forthcoming about it.

Embracing their pop stardom

“I feel like we’ve been standing on the edge of a cliff for a long time. We’re a band that’s always been close to being full-on pop, but that’s rooted in a lot of other things: rock, soul, funk, the list goes on,” he said.

“‘Overexposed’ is the first time we’ve ever completely embraced the idea of making pop music—of making songs for the radio. We just said, ‘Let’s not be afraid to do what we basically are.’”

The singer said that the new album is “both most and least like Maroon 5.”  It’s got the sound people expect from them but it also contains ideas that are “a step beyond whatever feels comfortable,” the singer said.

Not another effing love song

Their single off their new album, “Payphone,” features rapper Wiz Khalifa for the guest verse.

“I love how ‘Payphone’ seems like a such sweet song until the chorus comes in,” Levine said, referring to the part of that tune where he declares, “All those fairy tales are full of s**t / One more f***ing love song, I’ll be sick.”

“It’s totally subverting the song in this way that makes you lean in and listen,” he added.

While that sounds like Levine unwilling to let pop engulf his loftier musical aspirations, he might as well give up. Four-letter words notwithstanding,  Levine and Maroon 5 are pop stars.  And what’s so bad about that?

Maroon 5 performs live in Manila with special guest, The Cab, on September 18, 2012 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. This event is presented by Midas Promotions in cooperation with Dayly Entertainment. Tickets are available online at www.ticketnet.com.ph or call 911-5555 for inquiries.

I love “Payphone” to boot and will definitely would save up to see this concert! We also found out from this site (http://www.etix.com/ticket/online/performanceSearch.jsp?performance_id=1638740) that tickets might have these amounts:

  • PATRON VIP (PT101 & PT103 ROW A-J) - Php 10,600
  • PATRON REGULAR (PT101&103 ROW K-T/ PT104-PT115) - Php 7,420
  • LOWER BOX VIP (LB200-201) - Php 6,360
  • LOWER BOX SIDES (LB202-215) - Php 5,830
  • UPPER BOX A (UA) - Php 3,710
  • UPPER BOX B (UB) - Php 2,650
  • GENERAL ADMISSION (GA) - Php 850

Friday, June 15, 2012

Eiga Sai 2012: Movie Details

VILLAIN (Akunin)
悪人
Trailer & Info: http://asianwiki.com/Villain_(Akunin)
Cast: Satoshi Tsumabuki (Yuichi Shimizu), Eri Fukatsu (Mitsuyo Magome), Masaki Okada (Keigo Masuo), Hikari Mitsushima (Yoshino Ishibashi), Sansei Shiomi (Keiji Sano), Mansaku Ikeuchi (Norio Kubo), Ken Mitsuishi (Norio Yajima), Kimiko Yo (Yoriko Shimizu), Hisashi Igawa (Katsuji Shimizu), Suzuki Matsuo (Tsutsumishita), Kinuo Yamada (Tamayo Magome), Hanae Kan (Kiri Tanimoto), Ayaka Nakamura (Masako Adachi), Yoshiko Miyazaki (Satoko Ishibashi), Kento Nagayama (Koki Tsuruta), Kirin Kiki (Fusae Shimizu), Akira Emoto (Yoshio Ishibashi), Shingo Ippongi, Sabu Kawahara

Synopsis:
Yuichi Shimizu (Satoshi Tsumabuki) is a young man who takes care of his grandparents in a decaying fishing village in Nagasaki. His grandparents raised Yuichi instead of his mother. Yuichi now works as a civil employee. He is a lonely man. One day, Yuichi meets Yoshino Ishibashi (Hikari Mitsushima) an insurance sales woman from Fukuoka. They first met through an online dating site. Their meeting ends in tragedy with Yuichi murdering Yoshino. Unexpectedly, a rich young university student from Fukuoka, named Keigo Masuo (Masaki Okada) endss up as the prime suspect. Hiding in fear & agony, Yuichi goes on with his daily life. Then one day, Yuichi receives an email. The email is from Mitsuyo Magome (Eri Fukatsu), a woman from Saga. Yuichi and Mitsuyo exchanged emails in the past after meeting through an online dating site. Mitsuyo currently lives a mundane life, working at a men's clothing store and living with her younger sister. Looking for companionship, Mitsuyo decided to reach out to Yuichi after a lengthy time without correspondence. The two lonely souls then meet for the first time and throw themselves into a moment of love. By this time, Yuichi is now a wanted criminal and his face appears on the news. Nevertheless, Mitsuyo persuades Yuichi to run away with her and not turn himself in. Running away places heavy burdens on their families as well as the victim's family.

Awards & Nominations:
[Aug. 26-Sept. 6] 2010 (34th) Montreal World Film Festival - World Competition
[October 7-15] 2010 (15th) Pusan International Film Festival - A Window on Asian Cinema
[October 22-November 8] 2010 (7th) Hong Kong Asian Film Festival - Cineaste Delights
[March 5-13, 2011] 2011 (6th) Osaka Asian Film Festival - Osaka Cinema Festival 2011
[April 29-May 7, 2011] 2011 (13th) Udine Far East Film *European Premiere
[June 11-19, 2011] 2011 (14th) Shanghai International Film Festival - Panorama - Global Village: Japanese Film Week Awards
[Aug. 26-Sept. 6, 2010] 2010 (34th) Montreal World Film Festival "Best Actress" (Eri Fukatsu)
[December 28, 2010] 2010 (23rd) Nikkan Sports Film Awards "Best Picture", "Best Actor" (Satoshi Tsumabuki), "Best Actress" (Eri Fukatsu)
[January 17, 2011] 2010 (65th) Mainichi Film Awards "Grand Prize"
[February 15, 2011] 2010 (53rd) Blue Ribbon Awards "Best Actor" (Satoshi Tsumabuki)
[February 18, 2011] 2011 (34th) Japan Academy Prize "Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role" (Satoshi Tsumabuki), "Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role" (Eri Fukatsu), "Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role" (Akira Emoto), "Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role" (Kirin Kiki)

More details under the cut…

Japanese Film Fest: Eiga Sai 2012

It’s here! Japanese Culture fans have been waiting for this movie fest every year and this time, I’m thoroughly excited with the line-up. Not only the plot sounds promising but most of the actors and actresses in the line-ups are from “this generation”. We have Nakama Yukie, Ayase Haruka, Miyazaki Aoi, Yamashita Tomohisa, Sakurai Sho (I can actually hear fangirls screaming), Oguri Shun, Kaname Jun, etc.

Just some info:
In His Chart: Kami-sama no Karute
Tomorrow’s Joe: Ashita no Joe

I think you guys know where I’m heading with these two infos… Lolz!

RESOURCES:
JFMO Eiga Sai 2012 Info
JFMO Eiga Sai 2012 Flyers/PDF


SCREENING SCHEDULES

July 05-15, 2012 - Shang Cineplex Cinema 4, EDSA Mandaluyong
July 20-22, 2012 - Gaisano Grand Citi Mall, Davao City
August 07-12, 2012 - Ayala Center Cinema 4, Cebu City
August 15-21, 2012 - UP Film Institute, UP Diliman Q.C.
 
Movie Details HERE
 
Shang Cineplex and UP Film Institute Schedules under the cut….