Abrasive, Japanese Rock Trio Guitar Wolf Returns With Erratic Vibration

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(CBS Seattle) - If you've ever spent time at a recording studio - or simply tried home recordings on your own - you may be familiar with the term, "The Guitar Wolf Technique." When applying this style to your recording, you will have done a couple of things: You will have turned all the amplifiers to their maximum volume and you will have cranked the gain knob on the recording device to its max as well.

No one can pull off this technique better than its originator, though, Guitar Wolf.

The feedback-projecting power trio from Nagasaki has been obliterating ear drums since 1987. The band's 50s rockabilly look paired with its thrash-garage roar quickly got the attention of the caveman rock 'n'roll circuit in the early 90s. Guitar Wolf's ferocious sound also comes with a live show that is a high-octane, non-stop blitz of two-to-three-minute songs - usually consisting of no more than four chords total.

After countless tours, dozens of releases and a loss of a band member (original bassist Billy "Bass Wolf" suffered an untimely, fatal heart attack at the age of 38 in 2002), Guitar Wolf returns to the record shelves with Beast Vibrator, the follow-up album to 2010′s Uchusenkan Love. Frontman Seiji (also known as Guitar Wolf) confirmed the infamous recording technique is applied to the material on Beast Vibrator.

"We just play live for records," Seiji said by phone through a translator. "There isn't really a technical side."

The title track from the album (a title that made the poor translator very uncomfortable every time she had to repeat it) hit Seiji while he was walking down a street in Italy during a tour. "Be wild! Find Your wild instinct!" Seiji writes in the liner notes for the new disc.

Seiji credits Eric Friedl of Goner Records for giving Guitar Wolf its start in the U.S. The band's first full-length album, Wolf Rock, was the first LP on the label too. However, it was the now defunct Seattle label Bag of Hammers that kept the Wolf rolling with a few singles to follow the LP.

"I sent cassette tapes over to friends and labels I had heard of," Seiji said in reference to his first endeavors with trying to put something out in the U.S. "Jimmy [Stapleton] from Bag of Hammers was one of the few who loved us."

Much like AC/DC or Seattle's own Zeke, Guitar Wolf hasn't diverted from its original formula of ground-shaking noise whatsoever. As a seemingly cute way of trying to solidify this statement, I asked Seiji what would come first: A zombie apocalypse or a Guitar Wolf acoustic album. However, I failed to factor in that small talk like this isn't ever really that funny - especially through a translator.

"Don't be afraid of zombies," Seiji said after a long, long pause. "Be afraid of Guitar Wolf."

-Chris Coyle, CBS Seattle

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Guitar Wolf plays Tuesday, October 8 at Chop Suey. Tickets are $13 and can be purchased here.

The Cothangers, Coward and Trash Fire open.

Check out Siju's TV US Special below:

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

Source: CBS Seattle

Bombay Natural History Society's zoological collection set to go online

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PUNE: With the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) planning to digitise its zoological collection, accredited as a national heritage collection by the Union government, it will soon be available online for researchers and nature lovers across the world.

There are about 1.2 lakh specimens - most of them collected in the pre-Independence era - of mammals, birds, amphibians, insects and reptiles from across the Indian sub-continent. By digitising the collection, the Society hopes that it will be able to provide easy access to all those interested in viewing them, said Rahul Khot, in charge of BNHS's natural history collection department.

"The project is still in the planning stage but the technical details have been worked out. At present we are tapping various funding resources for the project," Khot said, adding that the estimated cost for the project is Rs. 1.5 crore.

The Society's collections include rare species like the Jerdon's Courser, which was rediscovered and collected in 1986 (the earlier record was from 1900). The Pink-headed Duck, now extinct, is a prized possession in the collections of the Society. There are also many specimens of rare mammals, reptiles, amphibians, butterflies, beetles and other insects of the sub-continent. Of the 1,500 species of butterflies found in India, 730 specimens are preserved in the collection.

The collection also includes over 500 type-specimens - the particular specimen to which the scientific name of the species is attached.

"While mammals and birds are no longer added to the collection since there are prohibitions on hunting, the society has sought special permissions to continue to collect insects, reptiles and amphibians," Khot said.

And the importance of continuing the collection is evident in the feat that researchers have identified 22 new species of insects from the BNHS collections over the last five years, he added.

Apart from the wider access to the collection, the authorities also hope that the digitisation will improve the management of these specimens.

Some of the specimens were collected more than a hundred years ago. The specimens are in good condition and are frequently handled for research and education purposes, but it affects their cabinet-life. Digitisation would make images and related data easily available and reduce their frequent handling, Khot said.

He said that the collection is accessed by various users - members of the scientific community, teachers and others who use the specimens as a teaching tool as well as general users. The database will have filters as there may be some who are only interested in the picture, the name of the specimen and the locality where it was found. But some researches may be interested in actual measurements of the specimens and the database is going to be made available to suit the diverse requirements. Details such as the date of collection, place of collection, name of collector and other necessary notes will be available, he added.BOX:

The collection began in 1883 with eight persons who exchanged notes on natural history and deposited specimens

Details of the collection

Section SpecimensType-specimen (used to describe a particular species)

Insects& invertebrates over 60,000245

Amphibians &reptiles over 15,000190

Birdsover 29,00065

Mammals over 18,5006

Source: Indiatimes

Boston Book Festival a treat

With fall, authors return from various rejuvenation activities — vacations, seminars, universities and summer writing retreats — and re-enter the broader book world fueled by experiences, cooler weather and new opportunities. So must we all. There are opportunities for book groups and other readers right around the corner these days.

Witness: Salmon Rushdie and Tomie dePaola are keynote speakers for the Oct. 17-19 Boston Book Festival. This is the fifth year for the mostly free Copley Square festival, and it has been expanded to three days, with new events added, including spontaneous outbreaks of dramatic scenes at various Boston hots pots in the week before the festival.

Rushdie will speak at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 18, with children's author/illustrator dePaola speaking on Oct. 19. Rushdie — famously targeted for assassination by Muslim extremists for his novel, "The Satanic Verses" — is a novelist and essayist. Tickets for this event are available on the website, www.bostonbookfest.org. This event does have a cost, $10, which helps support the weekend.

DePaola created a favorite character in children's literature, Strega Nona. In fact, "Grandmother halloween costumes witch adult" herself may make an appearance at this free daytime event.

Be spontaneous; get there, look around, sit in on a few events. The burgeoning festival can't be beat, really, among literary events in New England. It includes author presentations and panels, programming for all ages, music and a Copley Square booth fair, writing workshops and competitions, music and poetry performances. There's a crowd, so arrive early to find a seat at the sites — Boston Public Library, Trinity and Old South churches, and in other buildings surrounding the square.

Featured guests include award winners, best-selling authors, renowned scholars, children's writers, and writers of fiction, nonfiction and poetry. In other words, something for every kind of reader. You can attend, wander from one event to another and simply listen. It's a great deal of fun. An award-winning story is available at public sites around Boston for discussion at one of the day's events, One City One Story.

This is a chance to observe dozens of writers and speakers, to name just a few: Steve Almond, Tom Ashbrook, Mike Barnicle, Lisa Borders, Christopher Castellani, Wes Craven (sharing pointers on terror writing), Callie Crossley, Kevin Cullen, Alan Dershowitz, Andre Dubus III, Chuck Klosterman, Lois Lowry, Dennis McFarland, Claire Messud and Tom Perrotta.

The Concord Festival

Spread across October and ending Nov. 2 is the Concord Festival of Authors. It includes sessions with almost 40 authors, some newcomers and others well-known, well-published fiction, nonfiction and poetry writers. In panel sessions and talks, they discuss writing and their own works in venues such as Verrill Farm (books about healthy cooking), Fowler Library, the Concord Museum and the Thoreau Institute at Walden Woods.

Guests include Barbara Delinsky, Alice Hoffman, poet Charles Coe, Sue Halpern ("A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home"), B.B. Oak (the Thoreau mysteries), Kate Flora (the Thea Kozak mysteries) and Chris Castellani (Boston's Grub Street director and author of "All This Talk of Love" who is also participating in Worcester Public Library's "A Celebration of Authors" Oct. 10 in Worcester). That's a small sampling. Topics range from readings to book promotion, several book launches and new literary voices. Once upon a time, I hosted the "Breakfast with the Authors" segment, and it was a great deal of fun to share breakfast with readers and listen to authors. If you enjoy books, get a few club members together, and obtain the schedule at www.concordfestivalofauthors.com.

Area book groups

New Earth Book Club meets at Shrewsbury Public Library at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 30, to discuss "Aging Well: Surprising Guideposts to a Happier Life from the Landmark Harvard Study of Adult Development" by George E. Vaillant. Find more info at www.meetup.com/newearth.

The C.S. Lewis Society of Massachusetts has slated two meetings in October at the Auburn Public Library. From 9 to 10:30 a.m. Oct. 5, there will be a set of thematic readings. On Oct. 19 — finishing Nov. 2 at the same time — the group considers "Five Children and It" by Edith Nesbit. For details, see www.lewismass.org.

Roxane Anderson, a member says the 5-year-old group generally meets twice a month, with one meeting in May. "We have also started movie nights for the summer months and the book club break period December through January," she said. "In January, we plan to feature the works of three artists who have connected to the Society. The Society was founded to encourage Lewis fans in Central Massachusetts to meet together in informal settings to discuss Lewis' books and other literature of interest. We also strive to be a forum where Christians from a wide variety of denominations and non-Christians feel welcome and comfortable in discussing topics related to Christianity, science, the arts, and everyday life. C.S. Lewis and his works provide an interesting bond or glue for carrying out this enterprise."

In Dudley, the Pearl L. Crawford Memorial Library is off to a good start with its new book group. Karen Wall, library director, says the group will discuss "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand" by Helen Simonson at 6 p.m. Oct. 3. Coming up for Nov. 7 is Jenna Blum's "Those Who Save Us."

Books, Brews & Banter — another group encouraging both male and female members with books selected for appeal to both genders — will discuss Gillian Flynn's "Gone Girl" on Oct. 23 at 6:30 p.m. in O'Connor's Restaurant.

Reading, Sharing & Laughing, which meets at Chaibo coffeehouse in Fitchburg, is reading Neil Gaiman's "The Ocean at the End of the Lane," a choice in keeping with the supernatural Halloween season.

Joan Killough-Miller of the Worcester area NOW book group says the Oct. 14 discussion will consider the classic "Summer," by Edith Wharton. The group meets at Barnes & Noble on Lincoln Street at 7 p.m., second Monday of the month. All are welcome.

The group's August meeting was enriched by members bringing maps to trace the action of B. A. Shapiro's novel "The Art Forger." Says Joan Killough-Miller: "Having a street map of Boston and the floor plan of the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum, where much of the action takes place, brought the discussion to life. (One might also add MBTA maps to that discussion, since public transportation plays a role in the story.) The maps concept went over well, and we vowed to do it again. Some members were able to visit the museum with Shapiro's enticing description of the museum fresh in mind."

Ann Connery Frantz is a freelance writer and editor who blogs at www.readitandreeap.blogspot.com (reeap is correct) on books and book clubs.

Source: Telegram

Hawaii can't fit woman's last name on license

By AUDREY McAVOY
Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) - A Hawaii woman's last name is a real mouthful, containing 36 characters and 19 syllables in all. And it's so long that she couldn't get a driver's license with her correct name.

Janice "Lokelani" Keihanaikukauakahihuliheekahaunaele is in the midst of a fight with state and local officials to ensure that her full name gets listed on a license or ID card. Her name is pronounced: KAY'-ee-hah-nah-EE'-coo-COW'-ah-KAH'-hee-HOO'-lee-heh-eh-KAH'-how-NAH-eh-leh.

The documents only have room for 35 characters. Her name has 35 letters plus a mark used in the Hawaiian alphabet, called an okina.

So Hawaii County instead issued her driver's license and her state ID with the last letter of her name chopped off. And it omitted her first name.

The 54-year-old Big Island resident wrote her mayor and city councilwoman for help, but the county said the state of Hawaii computer system they used wouldn't allow names longer than 35 characters.

Keihanaikukauakahihuliheekahaunaele got the name when she married her Hawaiian husband in 1992.

He used only the one name, which his grandfather gave him. The name came to his grandfather in a dream that also told him he would have a grandson.

Her husband died in 2008, but he had similar problems when he was alive, she told The Associated Press.

The name has layers of meanings. One, she said, is "When there is chaos and confusion, you are one that will stand up and get people to focus in one direction and come out of the chaos." It also references the origins of her and her husband's family.

Keihanaikukauakahihuliheekahaunaele was compelled to bring attention to the issue after a policeman last month gave her a hard time about her driver's license when he pulled her over for a traffic stop. She wrote Honolulu television station KHON for help, and her story started getting more attention.

"I said wait a minute, this is not my fault. This is the county's fault that I don't have an ID that has my name correctly," she said.

The police officer suggested she could use her maiden name.

"I said, how disrespectful to the Hawaiian people because there's a lot of meaning behind this name. I've had this name for over 20 years. I had to grow into this name. It's very deep spiritual path," she said.

Caroline Sluyter, state Department of Transportation spokeswoman, said Thursday the state is working to increase space for names on driver's licenses and ID cards.

By the end of the year, the cards will allow 40 characters for first and last names and 35 characters for middle names, she said.

Keihanaikukauakahihuliheekahaunaele, who practices shoreline fishing in the Hawaiian tradition as a profession, said she's happy the publicity about her situation has prompted many people to have badly needed discussions.

"If you're going to require people to have picture IDs to identify them, they have to be correct," she said.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: Ksla

Underground silos for missile defense could bring jobs to Portage County

PARIS TWP.: Where some see controversy or even fear, Jim Thompson sees prosperity and opportunity with each missile.

Sitting outside his Rootstown home, Thompson, didn't hesitate to lend his support to a domestic ground-based interceptor missile site proposed for the nearby Camp Ravenna Joint Training Center.

His reasoning is simple.

"We need jobs here," the 67-year-old retiree said.

Earlier this month, military officials said the Camp Ravenna Joint Military Training Center is among five locations being considered for an anti-ballistic missile launch site. Formerly known as the Ravenna Arsenal, the 21,000-acre site in eastern Portage County is under control of the Ohio Army National Guard.

The prospects of a defense missile site rising up inside the military base are far off. First, military officials and Congress need to agree that such a project is needed and worthy of multi-billion dollar investment.

For now, there is no timetable for a decision, let alone construction.

But what would happen if, as Thompson and others wish, this "Star Wars" defense system comes to life down the road? What would we see? Who will build it? Who will work there?

And finally, what will be housed there inside those silos?

For answers, one need only look at the nation's two existing ballistic missile defense system sites at Fort Greely, Alaska, and Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

These missile facilities, under the auspices of the Military Defense Agency, a branch of the U.S. Department of Defense, were built, expanded and armed at a cost of billions of dollars, all to fend off attack from countries such as Iraq, Iran and North Korea.

'Star Wars'

The idea of defending against a missile attack dates back to the 1940s. But it wasn't until President Ronald Reagan in 1983 unveiled his so-called "Star Wars" strategic defense initiative that space-based missile defense systems became part of the American lexicon.

Americans watched from their living room years later as American Patriot missiles, designed to intercept medium-range ballistic missiles, were used - without much success - during the Gulf War. Afterward, the missile defense system only grew.

In July 2004, the first ground-based missile interceptor was installed at Fort Greely, Alaska. Five months later, the first underground silo became operational in Vandenberg.

If a third missile site is built, MDA is likely to follow the design of their two existing sites.

The infrastructure is hardly classified military secrets.

Essentially, the new site would have a yet-untold number of underground silos armed with missiles that can be launched in the event of a foreign attack.

The missiles are supposed to target, track and intercept enemy projectiles above the Earth's atmosphere, well before reaching U.S. soil.

"Supposed to," is the operative phrase in the defense system debate. Opponents of the system say it's costly and the missiles are largely unreliable. Supporters say the defense missiles can be an effective tool against attacks.

Rick Lehner, a spokesman for the MDA, said any future missile sites would likely imitate the designs already in service and include underground silos and missiles to defend the East Coast.

"You have to assume for sure it's going to consist of underground silos," Lehner said.

The interceptor missiles are about 54 feet long, about 4 feet in diameter and weigh about 25 tons a piece. Each costs about $50 million.

The missiles are stored and launched from the steel and concrete silos. Fort Greely holds 34 silos in two missile fields contained over 800 acres. Plans call for six more to bring the total to 40. Vandenberg has four.

The missiles do not contain any explosives or nuclear war heads. They are fuel powered, but the silos are equipped to be a shield or container in the event of a fire.

Environmental impact

Before any silos are dug, environmental impact studies would be conducted. Construction plans would include security fencing and several buildings. Fort Greely, for example, has a visitor control area, radar facilities, a power plant and, naturally, a launch control center.

"That's basically it. It's pretty austere," Lehner said.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the MDA has spent about $90 billion on missile defense systems since 2002. Plans call for another $8 billion to be spent per year through 2017.

Lehner said the missile defense sites employ military, government and civilian workers. Construction, he said, would likely be performed by local and out-of-town contract workers.

He cautioned, however, that any decision to build, if it even comes, is a ways off.

"No one's even done an artist concept," he said.

That's OK with Thompson. His family came to Northeast Ohio in the late '50s and early '60s, when manufacturing jobs were plentiful. He worked one of those jobs for 35 years before retiring.

Too many people he knows have lost their jobs in recent years, he said. Any boost, especially one that goes toward defending America, can only help the area's economy.

"I think it's great that it might come here," he said. "It will help Ravenna and the rest of the area. Some people are afraid of the unknown. But I know the United States has the best defense system in the world. Some people don't seem to know that."

Phil Trexler can be reached at 330-996-3717 or ptrexler@thebeaconjournal.com. He can be followed on Twitter at www.twitter.com/PhilTrexler.

Source: Ohio

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Sep 15, 2013

Kenya Airways announced the appointment of Willem Alexander Hondius as the Chief Executive of Jambo Jet, the low-cost addition to the Kenya Airways Group, which is thought to take off within months now to take over a number of domestic, and perhaps even regional, routes from parent company Kenya Airways.

At the same time Kenya Airways confirmed that Mr. Ayisi Makatiani will be chairing the board of directors of the subsidiary company.

Dr. Titus Naikuni, CEO and Group Managing Director of Kenya Airways, had this to say when making the announcement: "I am pleased to announce the appointment of Willem Hondius as Chief Executive Officer of Jambo Jet Ltd., reporting into the Jambo Jet Board which is chaired by Mr. Ayisi Makatiani. Willem brings to the airline a wealth of experience in the aviation industry especially in the low-cost airline area and will be instrumental in steering the operations of the new carrier. There is still a lot of work to be done before operations start and this appointment is a major milestone in that process."

Before his appointment, William was the General Manager of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for Eastern Africa based in Nairobi since 2012 but also served as project manager for Jambo Jet Limited. Between 2005 and 2012, he was executive vice-president and chief commercial officer of Transavia Airlines a wholly-owned subsidiary of KLM. Welcome to William and best of success in handling the final run up to the long awaited launch of Jambo Jet.

Five minutes of post-game Jim Harbaugh, answering questions for the first time after his 49ers team had lost back-to-back games, and discussing the decision to let Aldon Smith play today...

--JIM HARBAUGH partial presser transcript/

-Q: Did you sense your team was distracted at all after the events of the last few days?

-HARBAUGH: I think our team was ready to play. I thought our team was ready to play 100%.

-Q: The struggles on offense, was it similar to what happened in Seattle? Can you say what you think happened today?

-HARBAUGH: Yeah, we didn't make the plays. There wasn't enough opportunities to make plays. It was a combination of that.

Players not having the opportunity to make 'em and then not making them.

-Q: You ran the ball very well on the first drive. Did you get away from it consciously? Should you have stayed with the run more?

-HARBAUGH: I thought we tried to continue to stay balanced after that drive. And did not have the success moving the ball today. On third down... didn't make plays. Didn't find enough plays.

-Q: Is part of that just not having open receivers?

-HARBAUGH: I'm just saying that, as coaches, what we give them, the opportunity to make the play... and then make the play when it is there.

That's what I was referring to.

-Q: This team hadn't lost two in a row in your tenure. Are you disappointed by the inability to bounce back from a loss like you'd shown in the past?

-HARBAUGH: This game, not winning this game, not being in position to make plays, make it competitive, that's disappointing to all of us. We've got to look at how...

We've got to be real-how we can improve.

-Q: Last week you mentioned coaching. Do you think the coaching was poor this week? Was your coaching poor?

-HARBAUGH: I put us all in the same group. We all look at ourselves to find out where we can get better.

-Q: Why did Aldon Smith play?

-HARBAUGH: It's a decision we made.

-Q: Is he playing Thursday?

-HARBAUGH: We'll address that in time. Rather not address that right now.

-Q: Is there something technically wrong with Colin Kaepernick right now? What's going on?

-HARBAUGH: I don't think that there is something technically wrong that I see.

-Q: Why is he struggling?

-HARBAUGH: I put it really on all of us.

-Q: How serious is Patrick Willis' groin injury?

-HARBAUGH: Don't know how serious right now.

-Q: Do you think the team's energy level was there today?

-HARBAUGH: You can question just about everything right now. We didn't play well enough to win in enough areas, on enough downs, did not win the down enough. Not even close to enough.

They did and they made the plays, offensively, defensively, and we did not.

-Q: What'd you think of the way Andrew Luck played?

-HARBAUGH: Very good, very efficient. They did make the plays. They did make the plays when they had to.

-Q: No excuses, but you're missing Vernon Davis and other guys. Is that an issue?

-HARBAUGH: No excuses means no excuses of any kind.

-Q: How did you think Aldon played?

-HARBAUGH: From what I could see, seemed solid.

-Q: Are you confident your team can re-find it's way?

-HARBAUGH: Yes. We've got no choice, no choice but to find our way.

-Q: There are reports that the 49ers will send Aldon to a rehab facility. Can you confirm that?

-HARBAUGH: There's a process there that we'll apprise you at the appropriate time.

-Q: Did Aldon play because he made practice on Friday?

-HARBAUGH: It was a decision we made as an organization, as a team, that we felt was in the best interests of our team and for Aldon long-term.

Source: Mercurynews