THE PAST - PART 2

So my good friend (the one with some degree of success in the entertainment industry) had some interesting things to say about his trip "home" to his high school class reunion...

Firstly, he did state that it was absolutely fantastic to see his childhood friends, for the most part, happy and healthy.
Most of which working in the medical field, or in education as it were.
He did say that a lot of them never left the immediate area after high school or college, maybe due to family, or possibly the great, nationally recognized school system for their children's educational needs.

Then came the onslaught...
He seemed to strap on his +3 helmet of bitterness, and let loose on his white picket-fenced classmates.
"How can somebody just settle for the easy road, where everything is laid out for you? Where all your answers are stuffed in your Wal-Mart indulging asses, while being programmed by Fox News every night?...
Go to college, knock-up, or be knocked-up by your sweetheart(makes puke face), squeeze out some puppies, have them destroy your life, spend all your money, and THEN YOU DIE!!!"
Though I saw his point, I thought he was maybe a little frustrated by his "less ambitious than thou" mentality that so many of his (fallen) comrades seemed to exhibit.

I told him he was EXTREMELY lucky to be so goddamm talented,and to have recognized his potential so early in life, and that VERY few people hear that call, or invest themselves into their "spirit mission".

"People don't think enough, with all their bullshit religion,popularity-chasing and materialism... they're crippled by fear and the possibility of FAILURE, if people just went for it, there would be a lot less regret in the world..."
I again saw his point, probably because of our similar occupations and how it dominates every aspect of our lives.
"If people just saw their path,made the right choices, they'd be so much happier!"

"Are you happy?" I asked. After two failed engagements, holding numerous shitty jobs, moving from one to another part of town, watching people getting burned all around him by his business associates, having his name dragged through the mud by some, maxed-out credit cards, drug and alcohol dependency issues, sex-addiction, insomnia, he said: "Yes, and they all treated me like I was famous, or other-worldly, very strange..." He went on; "Their kids wanted my autograph, and pictures taken with me, while I asked their parents if they thought that was appropriate."

Then I saw something in his face change. Had all of those high school classmates of his had finally accepted him, because of their children's approval? "NO!" was his reply. I told him that he symbolized something very important to all of them, even his detractors. He represented the ambition of the 4.0 gpa honor roll student. The tenacity and determination of the state champion wrestler. The social grace and magnetism of the upper echelons of high school society. The artistry, and creativity of the"creepiest", under-achieving genius in the corner, tinkering away... He became something far greater than he could imagine during those never-ending winters and two-a-day football practices in the summer: Himself: Artist, genius, champion, brainiac, warrior. "I guess that's why they were so happy to see me..." he said. His classmates were the ones who inspired him to dig deeper, work harder, get OUT quicker! A good example of not living in the past, but instead, recognizing the impact it has had on the present.

So,the next time you see some old,washed-up, never-has-been doing what they do, maybe they are at the peak of their career :) Contrary to what mainstream American culture tells us regarding everyone being exceptional, or talented, or pretty, or a good dancer, and that the camera awaits us all, Remember... Someone has to operate the camera, click that clicky-thing and yell;

"QUIET ON THE SET!!!"
"STUNTCOCK!?!"

Then the comes the money-shot ;]

Lucky bastard...

The E-Lab Sessions: MGMT's "Time to Pretend"

Check out the latest E-Lab session with The Bangkok Five covering MGMT's "Time to Pretend".

The Big Bang: Watch Nik Frost paint the studio wall live!

"I'm going to be painting the south wall of our new recording studio from 8PM to 11PM tomorrow night as the episode of our Fri night show, "The Big Bang!". Check out the live stream at..

www.livevideo.com/thebangkokfive

- Nik Frost / TB5

The E-Lab Sessions - Weezer's "Pork and Beans"!!

Check out the latest E-Lab Sessions with Weezer's "Pork and Beans"!!

"THE PAST" PART 1 - The Basstard Diaries

"You take a step back,you step in your own shit."
U.S. Marine Corps. Colonel Guillermo Rios

There are a lot of people who are stuck in their "glory days", whether it be a homecoming queen who has four children from four different fathers, or the '80's hair-metal jerk-off who still wears spandex ,even though their ass hangs down around the back of their knees, while hanging out on the porch at The 'bow...
When you cease to progress as a person, your life and the experiences therein tend to be somewhat limited,or stagnant. Do you still hang out with your high school or college friends? Or do you wear the same lame clothes you once thought were cool because everyone else had them, too? I hope most people can answer a resounding "NO!!!" to these rhetorical inquiries.

A friend of mine who's had a reasonable, maybe even exceptional amount of success in the entertainment world recently was invited to attend his high school reunion. I asked him why he would ever go back to a place he clearly didn't get much out of, other than OUT OF...

He told me that he once had an actual life before pursuing his "dream" of being an entertainer, and that maybe it would rekindle the flames of creativity to run through the town where he ditched cops, screwed cheerleaders(mostly grudge-fucks) did a TON of drugs, and learned about who he was on so many levels...
I thought that was a pretty good explanation, and told him to let me know how it went upon his return from his formative environment.

And so it continues...

Be in the new TB5 Music Video!!

Be in the new tB5 video!!!

Record yourself with your webcam, singing We Love What Kills Us and partying, flossing for the camera, etc. Have fun with it, take yer clothes off, mug for the camera. The more KOKettes in the frame, doing the coolest shit, the better.

Post to Livevideo.com so we can down load it to edit you in. After, post your performance to Youtube.com and send a link to tb5contest@gmail.com

We will select the hottest performances and edit them together as a finished video. Selected individuals will receive a special edition, signed tB5 CD and be featured on the band's websites.