Album Review: Yoshu Fukushu

Hey guys. I've always wanted to do an album review in time with a recent release. I haven't really been listening to any new releases. 

Until now. 

And here I am, back with an album review. This time, it's about the long-time awaited full album release by the Japanese 4-men powerhouse (technically, 3-men-1-woman powerhouse), Maximum the Hormone: "Yoshu Fukushu".

They released the music video of the song of the same name on their official YouTube channel a few days ago, and in case you haven't heard it yet, give it a listen. It's kick-ass.

It might also help if you know some songs from them, as I'm going to use some as reference.

Gaming Principles and Tips

Let's spare the introduction and get on with it. Gaming principles and tips.


+ Explore the area as much as possible. 

"You don't want to miss anything, do you? You're playing the game, might as well see everything."




+ Look around for breakable/lootable stuff like vases, chests, etc.

"It's better to have an inventory full with crap you won't need than an inventory barely filled with anything needed. Who knows, you might get a key item that would save you from coming back there later in the game."





+ Don't leave loot lying around. 

"That old guy won't mind if you stole his $300 that was lying on the table, broke his expensive vases, threaten his wife with a flamethrower, and leave just like that. He's totally cool with it."





+ If you encounter a cut scene, you're going the right way.

"Blah, blah, blah, we've got company, blah, blah, blah, get to the roof...man, this is cut scene is taking forever. What is this, a short film? There we go. Now, fin--AW NO, A LOADING SCREEN! *waits* Is...it...finally--aaand it's another cut scene."

Skateboarding: I think that I shall never flip, a trick lovely as a kickflip

Whoever was those dudes who had the crazy idea of attaching roller skate wheels to wooden boards, you have my respect.

I am a skateboarder. I have been riding on a skateboard almost 11 years now. I have been ollie-ing down and up stuff, sliding on ledges, impressing people by doing some tricks, and trying to get my kickflips to look as clean as possible for 11 years.


How did I even choose this sport?


Tracing it back, the curiosity of the sport sprouted from another hobby of mine, which is common for kids: Video games. I was (and still am) an avid fan of the Tony Hawk skateboarding game series. I grew up on Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 & 4 and spent most of my play time on doing all the goals in every level, unlocking skaters and skating gears, and just working on combos. Even though it is a game that has so many impossibilities, like landing perfectly from jumping off the tip of a clock tower to flat ground, or grinding electrical lines, or landing kickflips perfectly every time, I saw the real, possible potential of the sport. Maybe doing darkslides all the way along a 20-meter power line isn't possible, but I do realized that sliding your board along a rail IS possible. Maybe doing a manual after jumping off that clock tower isn't possible, but I did know then that going into a manual after some tricks ARE possible. These ideas went through my head and that made my curiosity grow and grow.