Kimi Yuki

I gave up.

2010-05-14T14:44:00.000-07:00

This blog's taking yet another turn.
This time, the turn is heading south. In a metaphorical sense. (Hell).

The Kimbots blogspot is officially on hiatus.

In the meantime, I regularly/frequently/obsessively post at http://kimiyuki.tumblr.com

xoxo.
me.

Project 6 Mauk Design. Kimi Yamamoto.

2010-02-24T18:38:00.000-08:00

Listening to Mitchell Mauk talk about all of the intricacies of what goes into exhibit design was not only interesting and informative, but inspiring as well. Something I really took to heart was that understanding the benefits of minimalism as a concept is quite important; I refer to minimalism in respect to using what resources are available and making the most of them, such as the exhibit they did for Italian marble. Also, hearing what he had to say about meeting his clients’ needs made me realize how much creative freedom we have in the class as designers to make the DAI exhibit, taking into consideration that our main clients are ourselves and others in our department.

2009-08-25T23:20:00.000-07:00

Coeur de Pirate || Comme des enfants from Dare To Care Records on Vimeo.

I LOVE augmented reality.

2009-07-31T19:41:00.000-07:00

Makoto Yabuki

2009-07-31T18:41:00.000-07:00

Abstract and visually insane, with a sense of peace. Great tracks, too... a couple of them remind me of múm.

Out shout.

2009-05-14T00:50:00.000-07:00

We all have friends that are photographers, or painters, or singers, or dancers, or all of those things.

Anyone can call themselves an artist. I'm tempted to say that good artists are few and far between, however we all know that what is "good" is arguably very subjective.

I think my friends are great artists. If you disagree, I don't care.

I'm proud of the people I have come to know and love, and I respect their talents greatly, so I'm going to showcase a few.

Ethan is someone I have grown increasingly fond of, and he's a great photographer to boot.

If you check out Ethan's blog, you may stumble across yours truly, as my super-hero-alter-ego Flash Moonshine.

Pakayla Rae Biehn has been living in Amsterdam since last year, and I'm excited to say she's returning today! She's not only a great person to go on bike rides with, but also a multi-faceted artist. She paints, draws, and has also built a table and constructed a wall of fake moustaches, in addition to many other things.

A pixelated portrait made up of tons of tiny 1"x1" canvas squares.

Up close.

Wall of moustaches.

This is not a photo.

This is not a photo.

This is not a photo.

This is a photo! Here's the lady herself.

More Pakayla stuffs.

The last for tonight is Jessie [Jesse][ZBoy] Partridge. Her and I have been friends for almost 18 years (I always feel I should say that, because I'm proud of the longevity of the relationship). For people's birthdays, she makes short films. My favorite remains the first one she made. It was actually for Pakayla. And Pakayla's painting of the girl is actually Jessie.

rAgin since '86

I'll post some music next time, but for now, keep that creativity alive!

On with the show.

2009-05-09T19:40:00.000-07:00

I'm glad to finally have my internet back after a couple weeks of having it off, and I'm celebrating with a new blog.

A co-worker of mine put on a mix made by her friend, and there was one song in particular that really caught my attention, so much that, as soon as I got off work, I made a beeline for Tunng's 2007 album Good Arrows. As much as I want to get to know the full album, I still can't get past that one song I heard at work. I think what I like most is that it reminds me of Tom Waits.

It maintains the style of Tom Waits, but less abrasive-Bukowski-esque.
I'm really excited about this track, so without further ado, I present "Bullets" by Tunng.

[edit: I just realized... I remember seeing this video when the album was released in 2007!]

Last night I went to the Trade Elements art show at the San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery and saw some great photos from the lovely people at Hamburger Eyes, as well as the talented, and quite charmingly goofy Ferris Plock. I wish I had my camera on me at the time, because he had some really neat pieces.

Here's a piece he did for a show with Fecal Face:

And one he did for a series of card royalty, the King of Hearts:

Marty Anderson is a gifted guy. I discovered him earlier last year through his band, Okay. I was addicted to his two albums, High Road and Low Road which were released simultaneously. I won't go into details, but he certainly has an interesting story; SF Weekly did an insightful interview with Marty in 2005. He is in several other bands, most notably Dilute.

I was able to catch him on his most recent tour before his health issues forced him to cancel most of the dates. If you ever get a chance to see him live, jump at the opportunity: besides his shows becoming less and less frequent, it's a trip to match the voice to the man.

This track is from Low Road. Okay - "Hoot"

Plus, he sells his art at shows, too! This is one of my favorites of his:

I'm always looking for creative inspiration. A friend of mine sent this picture to me the other day and it went straight to my inspiration board.

Since I'm on the subject now, here are some lady treats.

Babe on bike:

Elisabeth Moch's naked Chan Marshall [Cat Power]:

I noticed the Broadcast song I posted last time hasn't been downloaded, so I'm posting it again as a reminder: listen to it!

Here's to brevity:

My buddy Jeremy Forson is a painter and illustrator!

Yelena Yemchuck's photography reminds me of Sally Mann's!

Facebook has a pirate language setting!

Cocorosie did a cover of Kevin Lyttle's "Turn Me On"!

Here it is!

Cheers, readers.

[P.S. I'd love to hear feedback from you! What you liked, disliked, want more of, etc.]

A few of my favorite things.

2009-04-22T01:36:00.000-07:00

The past few days have been quite balmy in San Francisco, and I've been lucky enough to have been able to take advantage of the lovely weather-- bike rides, the beach, bonfires, and bar-be-ques galore.

On one of our beach bike rides, we had a music set-up with my iPod and speakers in a friend's basket. A band called Broadcast came up on the playlist; I haven't listened to Broadcast in awhile, and maybe it was the bike-riding-through-the-sunshine environment, but I fell in love all over again.

Broadcast - "Come On Lets Go"

I love having access to the beach, I really do, however since I can remember, there has always been the desire to live life like these two:

The sunset, the still water, the hiked-up pants, the river birds, the crickets, the BANJO and FLUTE... I'm in love. It's possible to be in love with a setting, right?

Well, instead right now I'm hearing this from outside my window:
"AYAYAYAYAYAY. Wanna smoke a joint? Hit that shit."

But that's neither here nor there. Well, it's here but... I digress.

Here's another picture I have saved on my computer with no reference of where this picture was taken, or who took it. I'm sorry. I'm going to work on that.

Back to the grind.

2009-04-18T00:09:00.001-07:00

It's been a few weeks, maybe a month, but worry not... My plans are to still keep this blog alive.

Since I have been absent for so long, I will be making today's post especially hearty. Be sure to have a thorough look-through, for I will be (kind of) hiding song downloads throughout the post. (Yes, I am aware of the strand of similar-sounding words.)

Here's an aural jump start: I am gifting you the song "Daniel" by Bat For Lashes off the new album Two Suns, which dropped a little over a week ago.

For those of you who may have not heard of Bat For Lashes, you may (or may not) recognize this brilliant music video from her last album.

So, remember that REBEL8 discount I promoted? What I forgot to mention was that it was a contest between the Rebel8ers. Here's a quick screen cap of the madness.

There was no winner announced, but I'm just going to assume the company owner was the prize-holder.
(Also! For those of you who participated, it is greatly appreciated. Thank you!)

Music treat #2! This band reminds me of a more contemporary version of The Smiths. Brother by The Organ

A lot of times when I find an image I like, I'll just save it to a folder on my computer without saving the information of where I got the picture. I want to say these images were from FFFFOUND.

Urban camo:

I have always been a fan of unnecessary accessories, which I have dubbed "fakecessories." This is only to preface this picture:

This is my [older] sister. People used to think we were twins when we were younger, but I feel like we've changed a lot. I don't see how people think we even look alike.

I'm going to end this post with a semi-note-to-self type of inspiration piece. I love reading The Sartorialist mostly to admire the styles of others, and partially for wardrobe inspiration. While I love being feminine, there are times I wish I were a boy (just for style-sake); especially when I see men like this:

I will be back sooner than later, however, before I depart, I leave you with one last little gem.

No sleep 'til Brooklyn

2009-03-20T03:20:00.001-07:00

I'm extending my apologies right now for this not being a real blog entry.

Also, I'm pulling an all-nighter packing and cleaning, so I'm being honest with my title.

I'm New York-bound in 1.5 hours, but I wanted to extend this offer before I depart.

I've been working at Rebel8 for almost 7 months now, and I am offering to anyone and everyone who wishes to participate, 25% off your entire purchase! Just type in "KIMI" in the discount code area at checkout, and you're all set. My little hookup expires March 31st, so hop on it.

Kisses, kisses, kisses.

I'll do a real blog when I return.

Maybe New York will want to sing this song for me when I leave.

I hope so.

Fake ham and murder.

2009-03-07T21:17:00.000-08:00

I work in a coffee shop where a majority of the customer base are regulars, so I'm used to knowing people's orders and having their drinks and such ready for them by the time they get to the register. Well, there is one sandwich shop in the city I frequent, more or less, once a week. Today is marks the first day they finished my sentence while ordering on the phone. Initially I was concerned about my predictability, but as I sit here with my favorite fake ham sandwich (or any sandwich) in the world with a bag of chips and some water, I don't give a crap about predictability.

I have another song for you trusty readers.

I had heard about Fleet Foxes from a classmate earlier last year and brushed it off as just another up-and-coming band, but when I heard a song from their latest album on a Fecal Face Dot Com Podcast, it won me over. Their self-titled album lacks a song to disappoint... the whole thing's real damned good, and the harmonies are killer. Here's one of my favorites from the album.

Ragged Wood by Fleet Foxes

I'm following Lance Armstrong on Twitter, and he is flooding my page. I like knowing what you're doing, champ, but take it easy...

But I promise, if you follow me, I won't be all flood-y and such.

I promised not to be flood-y, but I am going to be getting bloody here.

VBS.TV has a series of videos documenting a day-in-the-life and then some, of a photographer for a Mexican magazine called Alarma!, which focuses on murders and deaths. All I'm going to say is, if you think you can stomach it, watch it (there are 9 segments).

WARNING: This video is not for the faint of heart, stomach, intestines, eyeballs, etc.

For those of you who watched the video(s), here's a picture of a kitten.

And for those of you who couldn't handle it, here's a picture of my friend Rob.

Girls in pants

2009-03-03T11:54:00.000-08:00

First things first.

I can't stop listening to France Gall. Specifically a song titled "Nous ne sommes pas des anges." Even more specifically this verse:

"Les garçons on dirait des filles
Avec leurs cheveux longs
Quant à nous les filles
On dirait des garçons
Les filles en pantalons"

While I am no French major by any means, I understand the gist of the verse, speaking of boys looking like girls with their long hair, and girls like boys with their pants.
Genius!

[Take it! Listen to it! This is my gift to any of you who actually read this.]

Second things second.

I met a fellow the other night at my new home bar and ended up playing pool with him. He sent me some pictures of his work, and turns out, he's a pretty good artist (and a nice guy, to boot). Plus, now I have hook-ups at Arinell's Pizza. Heyo.

Third things third.

While I'm not necessarily a fan of Victoria Beckham or anything having to do with her, I have to admit, this commercial for her new dress line is pretty tops.

[Song.]

Last things last.

From an old McCall's catalog.

Goodbye lovers.

Fuck Flash.

2009-03-01T17:54:00.000-08:00

I'm taking a break from thinking about starting my work on Flash.
Which reminds of the Arrested Development pilot in which Michael asks Tobias how his job hunt is going.

Tobias' response: "It's going good. It's going to be good."

I am Tobias.

Well I've been watching the show Square Pegs and have found a few gems.
For example: Season 1, episode 9 ("Muffy's Batmitzvah"), DEVO plays. (Are they not men?)

And this:

As terribly cheesy as it is, I can't stop watching it. It's right before that breaking point of being unbearable. So it's a vortex.

Besides that, Obama is interested in what I'm doing in my everyday life.

And Pakayla made a keen observation about our new president.

Firefox assumes filthy things about my querying.

(To be honest, I was trying to see if Jack McBrayer, that precious NBC page from 30 Rock, is gay. That might be worse than Firefox assumptions.)

I'll leave you with this space-age-cycling-mega babe.

White flag + blue flag = 2 flags of different colors.

2009-02-25T21:22:00.000-08:00

So, I'm giving up on my initial endeavor to make this some sort of cohesive blog about film and music and such.

That is the white flag.

The blue flag is, I suppose, to represent something new and fresh.

Whatever. Here we go.

I'VE FIGURED IT OUT.

I'm just going to post interesting and cool shit I find.

I think I'll start it off with the most amazing baby picture I have seen in my life.

From caneparidoesitbetter.

Un. Fucking. Real.

I can't feel my appendages; Or how I learned to truly be a machine.

2007-12-21T11:27:00.000-08:00

So, this blog, after a lengthy 3 blogs, came to a stand-still.

I know all you faithful readers were so very disappointed in my disappearance, but fear not, I [think I am] back!
To be honest, I forgot about you, you little cutie... But that's neither here nor there.

I feel my music/film/media reviews are lackluster, so instead I'm just going to list what I dig at the time being, followed by ramblings and meandering thoughts. Who knows, maybe an insightful topic or discussion will arise. Inspiration is left to be sparked.

Recent aural pleasure: Uffie, Addiquit, Kimya Dawson, Simian Mobile Disco, White Magic, Smog/Bill Callahan, Adrian Orange, Daniel Johnston, Serge Gainsbourg, Toshio Iwai, Sam Prekop, The Radio Dept., Geoff Farina, Rita Pavone.

Recent visual pleasure: Hard Candy, Olafur Eliasson, Ellen Page, Jeff Wall, Gustav Klimt, Toshio Iwai, Joseph Cornell, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, L' Avventura.

Also, for those interested in fashion at all, whatsoever, ifyoumay, keepintouch, staycooloversummer... keep your orifices (eyes and ears, mostly) open for a miss Amy Lou, a good friend of mine, whose clothes and other accoutrement you may see in the future seasons. She's a talented lass with an excellent taste in clothes and wine.

As a student studying studies, I find myself caught in the mechanics of the school's systematic system of scholarly systemics. That means it's finals time. In opposition to fulfilling scholarly pursuits currently, I find myself reviving a skeleton of a blog, and questioning my purposes for choosing such an inopportune time.
Oh wellz.

I gave away my super8 camera in exchange for the sweetest grapefruit with which I have ever graced my taste buds. Reasons being: instant gratification and no money- and time-consuming film processing.

What a great note to end on.

----------------
Now playing: Low - Time is the Diamond
via FoxyTunes

Let's trade this tired home for all it's worth in paper.

2006-07-22T16:40:00.000-07:00

I love where I live, but I hate to have to work 6 days a week to live here; I have been doing some evaluating about my living orifice and came to one question:

Is it worth it?

Let's count the pros:
-Nice neighborhood
-Central location
-Close to public transportation
-Young neighborhood
-Nice parks within walking distance
-Landlord allows pets
-Excellent weather
-Clean, newly-refurnished flat

Give it up for the cons:
-Expensive
-Far from school
-Terrible parking

Pros, it seems you win again. You always do.

I suppose out of anywhere in the city, this would be my favorite district to live in.
Which is most likely why the price is so horrendous.

Long live the Panhandle.

NPR time.

(Too much) Coffee & (not enough) Cigarettes

2006-07-01T16:31:00.000-07:00

Before I start on the aforementioned topics, I would like to reflect on personality (or lack, thereof) in a repetitive workplace:
I've only worked at this coffee shop downtown for about two months, but I find myself droning on about the same issues of having to wake up at 3:30 to go to work, of burning myself repeatedly, of ignorant customers-- the list goes on. I start turning into the people I work with, as well. One fellow greets the customers with "I can acquiesce the order of the next fortunate patron" followed by, "how about considering one of our scrumtralescent bakery items today?" (then giving a forced smile that turns into an expression of one cringing before receiving a punch) certainly gets tired after 6-8 hours of it a day (I'm not sure if it really beats "next" and "want something to eat?").
I realized how ridiculous the word "scrumptious" sounded after a customer gave my coworker a look of disdain, today.
Maybe I was meant to be a road warrior... charlatan, of sorts? Taking it to the streets. A nomad, if you will. Not working for The Man.

Enough, now. Let's get on with it, shall we?

A bit of personal information:
I came to the city of San Francisco from seventeen years in San Diego seeking a new name, a new life, a new school, etc. I gained a sense of loathing for San Diego, it (in my eyes) lacking luster in comparison. Well, I actually don't want to delve in it too deeply, so all I have to say for now is that San Francisco is an amazingly diverse city full of things to do and places to see. Give it a go.

In one month I'm heading off to Vancouver, Canada with family. I must say I'm quite enthralled for this journey, since I have never been to the ever-glowing Canada. I'll say something more once I've experienced the magic of it.

Music?!

Hot Chip will break your legs, guys. The Warning. Let me just say, it blew me away. It's previous album, Coming on Strong, captivated me with "Crap Kraft Dinner" and the funk-tastic "Down With Prince" which maintained my interest, but not fully. The album-titled track, "The Warning" has a bit of (I'm going to say it) a soft Postal Service touch to it, however it shines above with its own uniqueness. It's quiet verses heed quite "the warning", indeed. Another one of the tracks that not only has an an amazing beat to it, but also an amazing video for it is the song "Over and Over". Honestly, just take a look and I expect you will be nothing less than impressed (save for the bad quality the internet presents).

Now, I'm sure I need not to convince any of you of Thom Yorke's musical genius, however, I have been lucky enough to have had a preview of his new solo album the eraser. Thom's haunting voice differs not at all from his Radiohead tracks, making the album partially indistinguishable between the band and it's frontman's solo performance (not including Radiohead's early albums). Considering some of the pieces of Radiohead, not including Thom, helped him with the album, makes it understandable.
I'm going to leave it at that and let you form your own opinion of this new project when the album comes out later this month.

Films?!

Netflix, my trusty film savior, has done me quite well since my roommate and I made the best decision we have ever made by subscribing.
Our last rental was history's first film about vampires, that being F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu. Let me tell you, I wasn't expecting anything too spine-chilling, considering it was a silent film made in the 1920's, but I certainly underestimated it.

[insert here: Save all that's been typed already as a a draft, and start 1.5 week blogging hiatus. Return on 7.16.06 to finish blog.]

Hm, only 1.5 blogs and I already started to lose steam.
Well, carry on then.

Bjork and Matthew Barney?!

When Matthew Barney's film, Drawing Restraint 9, was released at the SF MoMA, Matthew Barney was scheduled to talk about his film. The day previous to it, a friend came up to me and told me he had just ridden the elevator 30 stories at the W Hotel with not just Barney, but Bjork, as well. Thom Yorke was also spotted at Levi's the following day.

Am I allowed to do a "missed connections" on Craigslist for these?

Well, for now, my kittens, I retire to my ghost-ridden bedroom.

It's the blood and sweat. Or marinara and Pocari Sweat.

2006-06-30T00:17:00.000-07:00

Like a supple, young fawn emerging from her mother's womb, this blog emerges from the womb of a Kimbot's motherboard.

It's new, it's fresh, and it's something to do--right? Right.
So this is where one must decide to either start out on a new palette with clean grammar, spelling, and capitalization, or leave it all to the apes and have a keyboard frenzy. The latter seems most unappealing and chaotic, so I feel inclined to choose the first option.

The idea of a new blog seems simply pure (conundrum?) and I fear the weariness may grow as time passes, however, my hope for enthusiasm remains afloat for now, and I can only wish for it to be fulfilled.

Now, where this account is leading to, I am not quite certain, however, ideas of a sort of travel/music/film log are just in the mix, as of now. (I feel uncomfortable with the amount of "of"s in the previous sentence.)

Well, to all those who may, or may not, be reading this, stay tuned. I might write something interesting soon.

Next episode topics: San Francisco, Vancouver, Hot Chip's The Warning, Thom Yorke's the eraser, F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu, and a friend's elevator adventure with Matthew Barney and Bjork.