Liam Michael Arthur Briggs x Mr. Screaming Eye Interview 專訪
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs 來自加拿大，已經在台灣定居了十幾年。 Liam 除了以 DJ Anti Hero 的身份活躍於台灣各大夜店以外，也是個hardcore skater，一有空就會帶著他的滑板到處尋覓新據點!
Liam 在我眼中是個異類，除了總是留著個有型的光頭以外，常常在他的Facebook版上看到他探討一些台灣的所見所聞與感想。除了有趣的人事物以後，也非常關注台灣的環境與政治議題，有時我甚至覺得他對台灣大環境的關注更勝許多台灣本地人。他曾經說他覺得台灣在許多層面比加拿大更像他的家，不管原因是因為這裡有許多他喜愛的朋友、居住環境或是台灣眾所皆知的便利，確實他對台北的許多角落比我更熟悉! 例如跟他約在西門電影公園，我迷路了他卻溜著滑板一路十分悠哉的飄過來碰面! 對音樂的喜愛與偏執也是我跟Liam之所以能成為朋友的重要連結之一，跟他討論音樂總是能聊到欲罷不能，每次碰面也都是在有音樂的場合或是Live表演。
Liam 以 DJ Anti Hero 的藝名穿梭在台灣的各大音樂Party，自少年時期就成長於充滿龐克，搖滾與嘻哈音樂的環境當中，不僅如此，更在充斥著8-bit電玩，恐怖電影與科幻小說的背景之中長大。這些事物對Anti Hero在音樂上的影響甚大，不僅造就了他獨特暴力的選曲風格，也使得他的Mix能夠鋪陳的有如科幻恐怖片一般神秘。現場表演時的Anti Hero，更擅長用精湛的混音技巧與多變的曲風轟炸全場，操控全場眾人的情緒，為舞客們的身心靈帶來前所未有的強大震撼！
當初第一次見到Liam的時候就對他的友善與發自內心的真誠印象深刻，這也是孤僻如我能跟Liam成為朋友的主因! 以下是 Liam 幫服裝設計師 JENN LEE 拍形象照的同時搭配當季概念所寫下關於他對於朋友 & 友誼的感想!
“對我來說朋友就像家人一樣，真正的朋友確實就是家人，有時候甚至比血親更親密，因為他們是你在生命中所選擇珍惜的人。朋友就是那些不管發生什麼事都會在你身邊的人，以及大多時候也是最了解你的人生的人。他們給你的陪伴不是出自責任，而是出自真心，朋友就是家人。”
Skating Black & White Photo Credit: Triangle Yang
Liam Briggs & Screaming Eye 先生的特別專訪
Screaming Eye 先生
Hey Liam, 在這個專訪的一開始，請原諒我，我一定要問一個很老套的問題，因為就我個人來說對於這個問題的答案十分好奇。 我在美國長大住了大約 20 幾年， 假如換成你問我這個同樣的問題，所得到的答案一定跟在一輩子在美國長大的人所回答的不一樣。 所以我的笨問題是 ” 你最喜歡與最討厭台灣的哪一點? 請盡量詳細回答! 還有你對台灣反核以及太陽花學運的感想是什麼? ” 對我來說， 雖然我不一定 100% 支持部份左傾或是右傾思想以及行動背後的動機， 但我一向支持革命、我反體制、反權威， 我似乎也隱約感覺你也是一樣!
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
Yeah– 你說的大致上沒錯。 我是這樣沒錯。 但是並不反對那些對大部份的人來說有正面幫助的組織，但是我希望他們是以和平的方式運作… 希望他們的運作方式是為了幫助他們所代表的人們，但是我覺得大部分的組織卻都是為區隔已分裂人們，以及造成種種的不公平，他們所做的並不是讓人們更團結– 我相樣這些現象都是一開始就設定好的，或是一開始的理想被扭曲了。 我不介意更努力的人擁有更多 – 我在意的是到底這些人所擁有的比大部份人多了多少以及這些多出的部份的取得是否來自於消費其他人的權益與福利。 就我個人來說，我已非常不一樣的理由支持反核以及太陽花學運。 我認為核能在人類還沒有穩定的替代能源的時期確實幫助了世界的成長，但是我們也許是太過自大與無知而忽略了它的危險性…. 但是現在我們已經了解更多特別是我們見證了核能在日本福島、烏克蘭切爾諾貝利兩事件中的危險性與破壞力。綠色的解決方案已經是屬於全世界的先鋒趨勢。 台灣有許多地熱的能源可以發展 – 就像冰島他們所做的一樣，更別提海浪的發電以及太陽能的成本降低….. 所以我認為台灣確實可以有許多值得期待的替代能源方案。
關於太陽花學運，我十分認同它一開始的初衷，據我所了解是來自政府簽訂服貿協議時的不透明化。 更別提它看起來更像什麼，至少對我來說是這樣。 我認為這個協議看起來只會對台灣的大企業以及中國的權貴或是運送至中國的貨品有利，所以對台灣的普通公民是沒有好處的。但是不管他們如何強調服貿會對台灣的經濟造成影響，它還是應該公開給人民知道並讓人民決定。 關於台灣我最討厭的東西就是官僚制度，一件很簡單的東西被複雜化，或是根本沒有前例的規則可循或是發生過同樣的情況 – 也根本沒有讓人們可以重新詮釋這些規則的空間， 人們必須嚴格的遵循這些刻板的規則。 這跟台灣的人民無關，我認為是制度上的問題，這來自我自己的經驗以及我從人們口中所聽到的….. 這些受到影響的事情包括最簡單的外幣兌換、取得外籍工作證以及外籍人士幫他們在台灣出生的孩子申請健保。 有幾件關於台灣的事情是我真的非常喜歡的， 其中最大的一件事就是在台灣你可以擁有如此多的個人自由。 例如很簡單的小事情像是你可以輕易在半夜在街上買到食物，或是在巷口買啤酒然後在公園喝警察也不會來煩你，或是可以不用戴安全帽騎腳踏車。 類似像這樣簡單的小事情。 另外一樣就是大部份的台灣人都非常友善且樂於助人。 我剛來台灣的時候很多人都非常有耐心的刻意放下手邊的事情來幫我。 直到現在我還可以看到台灣人對外國人這樣做。 我覺得真的很棒。 很多次我的朋友摩托車的鑰匙還插在車上隔夜竟然還在， 我覺得真是太神奇了!!! 沒被偷還在那裏 – 更神奇的是有人竟然把鑰匙拔下來然後幫忙放在不顯眼的地方所以車不會被偷。 老實說台灣是我全世界個大城市在大半夜走在路上感覺最安全的城市之一。
Screaming Eye 先生
一直以來你的生活都環繞著音樂，我猜你以前一定花很多很多的時間在唱片行無數的12″ 還有 7″ 的黑膠，總是為了尋找那片 perfect 唱片！在加拿大還有很棒且值得去的唱片行嗎？ 你是否會懷念人們還用黑膠 DJ 的時光？ 我個人很想念黑膠唱片行，我小時候常去的唱片行大概有90% 都倒閉了，取而代之的是 Beatport 類型的網站。我也很想念DJ 必須100% 專注於放歌的日子，因為不夠專心一定會跑拍！
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
我認為加拿大還有很多值得一逛的唱片行，但是可惜我離開太久了我已經不知道有哪幾家了。 我認為一家好的唱片行是很美妙的東西， 我記得我家附近有幾間我很想念的唱片行 – 但是現在全部關門了。 很可惜的是自從我搬到台灣以後我就很少買黑膠了。 我特別想念兩家我住的城市的唱片行: Spinables 還有 Organized Sound。 對我來說去唱片行是一個跟上網買歌很不一樣的體驗，不管是 CD 或是黑膠，跟上網買歌比起來， 它都是一個更私人更個人的體驗，另外如果你特別常去特定一家唱片行，如果你很幸運的話可以遇到樂意幫你留意你會喜歡的新黑膠，然後會幫你在被別人買走前先保留下來。 一段小插曲，其實讀大學的時候我其實都在一家獨立唱片行工作，那真是一個最棒的工作。 我喜歡發掘新音樂以及讓音樂環繞著我大部份的生活。 我喜歡有機會幫來唱片行的客人訂購我覺得他們會喜歡的音樂。 然後老實說 – 唱片行員工價也非常的吸引人阿！ 以 DJ 來說， 我並不特別想念黑膠，其實我幾乎沒有用黑膠 DJ 過 – 我是從 CDJ 與 DVS 開始的，然後搭配使用 Turntable，因為我比較喜歡這樣的感覺。 關於黑膠我很想念的一點就是音樂感覺比較珍貴不會像現在淘汰的那麼快速。 我覺得部份原因是你買到一張唱片，很可能不是每個人有辦法得到這張唱片– 更別說那時的音樂廠牌的發行量比現在少得多….. 我想那時廠牌發行音樂的時候更著重於品質 – 但也許那只是單純對過往時光的浪漫懷念? 還有我的天，我好想念黑膠專輯，我想念專輯方面的藝術，專輯裡面的導覽文，以及所有一切音樂數位化後已失去的東西與元素。 還有，感覺現在的唱片都是一、兩首好歌然後剩下的都是填鴨歌。 更別說少有真正可稱為經典的唱片– 總之對我來說沒有並不多。 現在發行的唱片大部份感覺少了創意、原創性與藝術性，而變得像是金曲賺錢機器。 但是我想這是由於唱片業界的改變，而不是因為創作與錄製音樂的器材與媒介。
對於 DJing，我不認為對拍是最重要的地方。 它是很重要的技巧但是並不適DJ 的藝術 – 如果是的話那機器人來DJ 就好了。 我認為最重要的的地方是了解你的音樂並且知道那首歌接下一首最適合以及如何在當下創造出最佳的氣氛。 這就是我眼中DJing 的藝術。 如果科技可以幫助你那就善用科技來幫助你做的更好。 DJ 不管怎麼樣還是應該專注在DJing 上面，就算機器會幫他對拍。 除了對拍還有很多可以做的也有許多不同的方法去做 – 如果你有科技以及自動對拍來幫助你，那麼就讓 DJing 變得更有趣一點 – 切割你的歌曲，多用一些取樣 – 在背景多放幾首歌堆疊在一起 – 類似這樣的概念。 但是總歸來說你選的音樂以及如何 mix 在一起才是真正的 DJing 藝術。
Screaming Eye 先生
今年初我看了 DMC Championship 還有 2013 的 DJ FLY 用 MP3 的冠軍演出。 從 Invisible Scratch Pickle 演出那時開始我就一直有在追蹤 DMC， 我發覺數位音樂已經徹底攻佔了 DMC，老實說我不介意DJ 用 MP3 DJ，我覺得很酷 ( 除了像 Kxxxxxx or Steve xxxx or David xxxxx 這些 97% 時間都只用 100% 預先錄製好的 set 來表演的 DJ 以外 )，但是對我來說DMC 的評分標準應該要囊括流暢的換唱片， 那些上使用著破爛的膠帶來作為 cue mark ( 接歌點記號 ) 的黑膠唱片，那不就是 DMC Champion 最吸引人的地方嗎? 你的看法是什麼?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
我認為那確實是很美麗的藝術 – 我也非常同意以及尊重，以前我會確實追蹤所有比賽，收集聆聽所有 DJ Routine ( 表演 Set )。 但是不管如何，我不確定我有沒有資格來評論因為我並不是 DMC 這類型的 DJ，但是我是這麼認為的: 我認為 DMC 起源於一個將 DJ 技術推廣到另一個層次的平台，同時也透過當時的科技創造出了許多新的技巧，對我來說DMC 的精神在於利用現有的科技持續提升 DJing 的層次與技巧，而現在的音樂規格– 使用 DVS 系統則是向前邁進了一大步…. 至少以創意來說。 我知道有人完全支持 100% 黑膠，我同意他們認為黑膠才是真正的藝術的觀點，但是有的參賽者使用客製的特殊黑膠卻給了他們不公平的優勢。 不論如何我認為新科技與經典技巧融合在一起可以創造出令人興奮的 new sounds。 但是像是 Qbert 以及 Kid Koala 這些元老級 DJ 卻也透過數位以外的器材創造出了美麗的作品，但是同時我也喜歡看到像是 DJ Shiftee 透過使用舊有科技與最新科技交叉使用…. 透過控制器以及黑膠的操控創造出嶄新的 DJ 技術與技巧。 ( 題外話: Kid Koala 是我一直以來最喜愛的 DJ 之一 !!! )
Screaming Eye 先生
對你來說誰是你一直以來的 DJ 英雄，還有為什麼?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
我想對我來說是 Z-Trip。 他改變了我對於 DJing 的可能性與發展性的看法， 在年輕的時候引響我非常深遠。他會在現場表演的時候用黑膠取樣，混合那些我本來以為不可能可以混在一起， 完全不同風格的音樂，而且還超級好聽 ! 我覺得一方面來說，他的風格改變了許多DJ 表演的方式。 他是將不同曲風融合在一起的開路先鋒，mash 完全不同曲的音樂，他確實做的超棒且超徹底。 高超的技術 ! 更別提我還十分幸運的碰過他本人還跟他坐下來小聊了一下– 他人非常真誠也很謙虛，所以我必須對他致敬。 他不是所謂的 Rock Star DJ ( 明星 DJ )，他只是一個非常愛音樂的人… 但是他就是硬是比你我厲害哈哈。
Screaming Eye 先生
哪個 DJ 是你認為擁有最高超技巧的? 我還記得在第一年的 Coachella 我看到了 Techno 之神 Derrick May 放歌，他同時操控 4台 Turntable， 邊喝酒邊抽菸，還邊跟幾個看起來像是模特兒的金髮美女調情，竟然還完全沒跑拍，我的下八都差點掉下來了因為他竟然記得每個接歌點還有 breakdown 的精準秒數，我並沒有特別喜歡他的音樂但是他真的很厲害， 離題…. 所以你呢?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
老實說我不知道，因為有太多的不同因素，從他們表演的時候有多 effortless，到他們有多 focus 在他們當下的 DJ 表演上面。 我認為很難回答。就像我之前提過的 Kid Koala – 但是他的 set 並不 effortless – 但是他接歌的方式極為有創意…. 他的技術層次與精準度太令人驚訝了 ! 我也必須提到 Coldcut – well 他們是兩人團體… 他們 DJ 得很精采卻感覺非常輕鬆。他們DJ 的時候感覺很放鬆但是卻非常精準 ! 最近我去看了 Move D. 這是我第二次看他的表演，真的很棒 ! 音樂棒，選歌優，還有我必須稱讚他因為他只放黑膠。 再來就是 Adam Freeland 在 The Wall 的表演，完全無懈可擊 ! 他操控聽眾的技巧太棒了，看起來也極為輕鬆 ! 還有許多我看過的 DJ 然果我在認真想想一定可以想到更多，但是目前想到的是這些 DJ。
Screaming Eye 先生
我實在很想問問你對 Daft Punk Random Access 這張專輯的看法，因為這是張許多人非常期待的 Daft Punk 新專輯。 我在朋友之間做了個不正式迷你小統計，大部份人都不喜歡這張專輯 ! 我想大概是因為它不是一張大家所預期的 ” HOUSE ” 專輯，或是可能許多人認為 Disco 是過氣的音樂…. 但是我覺它很棒，Get Lucky 我非常喜歡，不管是歌詞或是它強烈的 groove， 更別提它的 bass 是由 CHIC 的 Nile Rogers 演奏的。 還有 Italian Disco 的巨頭 Giorgio Moroder 觸動人心的 Intro….. 我聽了他說的話真的差點爆淚….. 你的看法是?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
老實說… 我超愛的哈哈。 但是認真來說我有點偏見 – 因為我本來就超愛 boogie funk 還有 funk 音樂，我自己也收藏了非常多這兩種曲風的音樂還有一些很殺的 disco，所以就是這麼回事 ! 但是音樂種類還有音樂並不是我最喜歡這張專輯的原因…. 事實上是因為 Daft Punk 的這張專輯真的跟我原本期待的，以及想聽得很不一樣，讓我非常驚訝。 我覺得對我來說完全不是壞事。 我第一次聽是用 Stax 的耳機， WOW 我真的很喜歡。 它的後製真的超棒。 品質語音質都是一流，完完全全是非常美麗的音樂– 我認為這張專輯是超一流的…. groove 還有歌曲。 還有這張專輯的合作藝人….. 比這些更重要的是– 它是張完整的專輯 !!!! 從起頭到結束 – 完整呈現的專輯，精密的製作而不是把一些單曲堆疊在一起。 我真的超級愛。 我認為對許多人來說 – 同時也是我連續聽了兩次的原因，是因為我原本期待與希望 Daft Punk 會從死灰中復燃然後拯救 eletro， 拯救現今大部份單調乏味的 eletro。 我想這是很多人沒辦法調適過來的原因。 我想這是很多人不喜歡這張專輯的原因，因為跟他們期待的不一樣所以他們拒絕去體會這張專輯以音樂性來說有多麼的傑出。 ( 對了 – 其實這張專輯有個 moment 讓我的眼眶都濕了 – shhhhhh – 千萬別跟別人說…. 我夠 man 才敢承認的… )
Screaming Eye 先生
你常常在你的 Facebook 上面 po 你在看的書，我記得我曾經看到過幾本我個人非常喜愛的書，我想問一下最近幾年你最喜歡的書有哪幾本?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
TOP 5 本書….. WOW…. OK….. 讓我想想…… 我對選 TOP 5 很不在行…. 但是這是我的 TOP 5 …. 不按順序排
Kurt Vonnegut – Hocus Pocus – 我喜歡它用溫暖人心的筆觸討論與敘述一些很 serious 的議題 – 人類的狀況，政治…. 很多很多但是總是在痛苦與苦悶中參雜了許多溫暖，充滿對人類的愛….
Salman Rushdie – The Enchantness of Florence – 過去幾年我看了很多他的作品，他真的非常精通說故事的技巧與藝術。這本是他的作品中我最喜歡的。
Ernest Kline – Ready Player One – 這本書一點都不深奧但是有時候你就是必須輕鬆的享受，這本書就是非常有趣。裡面充滿了 80 年代特有的代碼還有復古電玩。 我真的忍不住愛上它。更別提他舉行了一個以書為主題的比賽，贏的人可以得到一台 Delorean ( 一台超經典的骨董跑車 ) !
Screaming Eye 先生
如果你可以看到 5 個 Band 或是 5 個 artist , 活的或是去世的，會有那些呢? 這些是我的:
Sly & Robbie
Jackson 5
Pink Floyd
Beatles
Fela Kuti
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
對我來說….. 這些是我還沒看過的 band 或是 artist –
Joy Division
LCD Soundsytem
Miles Davis
The Raconteurs
The Stooges
Screaming Eye 先生
很久以前我聽過一個故事， Chemical Brothers 剛開始出來表演的時候，有一次他們去 Ibiza 的 Pacha 表演，他們當時放的是一個 Balearic 風格的 set， 放到一半被當地的黑手黨威脅改放 ” 真正的跳舞音樂 ” 他們照做了不然可能無法活著離開 Ibiza。 所以我想問問你最莫名其妙跟罪遭或是最愛的被聽眾點歌經驗有哪些?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
歐我的天….. 還真不少 – 但是還沒有到生命收到威脅的地步，但是倒是有不少 ” 你給我放這個否則你再也不用來放了 ” 的情況。 應該是沒有太莫名其妙的啦，只是有一些點歌實在跟我在放的東西比起來太突兀太跳 tone 了完全不知道怎麼冒出來的。 最奇怪的經驗通常是一些每隔一段時間就會發生的情況但總是會有點讓我震驚。 那就是點歌的人通常不知道歌名然後會試著唱給我聽。 或是嘗試製造 ( 或是唱 ) 出一些他們覺得聽起來很像那首歌的音效。 在吵鬧的夜店通常我根本無法理解他們在幹嘛，特別是他們所製造出來的聲音 key 跟 tempo 都不對。 如果你能親眼看到或是聽到他們在幹嘛其實超級有趣 ! 我聽常會故意請他們再做一次哈哈 !
Screaming Eye 先生
我總是非常好奇你的 DJ 分身 Anti Hero 到底是不是看 Marvel 超人漫畫看太多而得來的靈感? 我常常看你 po 一些 geek , geekery ( 宅文化 ) 的東西， 還有一些關於科學的知識， 我非常非常喜愛， 所以…… 你跟我一樣是徹頭徹尾的宅男嗎?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
我內心是 100% 的宅男 ! 關於這個名字說來話長我來濃縮一下好了因為我看我已經幾乎快講出一本書了，你應該會翻譯到昏倒吧。 我其實還有其他 DJ 分身名字但是必須停止使用因為跟我之前的合作對象有關 – 他開始製造麻煩所以當時我必須停止再 club 表演一段時間。 那陣子過後我必須響個新的 DJ 名字。我想了一些名字然後我會 check Google 看看有沒有人已經在使用了。我找了很多名字很不幸地都有人用了。 我感到很沮喪然後開始盯著我家的牆壁看， 然後我不經意看到我放在角落的滑板， 這個版是一間叫做 Anti Hero 的廠牌做的。 然後我立刻上 Google 搜尋結果當然竟然沒有人使用 DJ Anti Hero， 所以我決定在我正式使用這個 DJ 名字之前先來查詢這個名字背後真正的意義。 一開始我就像許多人一樣以為他是代表著反派腳色。 但其實不是，他真正的意思是代表一個缺乏大家認知中英雄該有的特質的一個英雄。 Anti Hero 不是英雄的敵人，他只是一個平凡人，或是一個充滿缺點但是在當下站出來做出勇敢與英雄所會做出的行為的普通人。 類似像 John McClane 在電影 Die Hard 或是星際大戰中的 Han Solo。 一個很有名的 DJ 叫做 Rob Solo是我的朋友 – 而當時並沒有 DJ 會放我喜歡的音樂，我朋友對我說我該停止抱怨然後出來 DJ 並且幫我在一間小夜店的開幕夜安排了一個 gig。 他說我必須在一個月內學會 DJ 然後我最好要立刻開始。 後來我放的 set 雖然不會是最好的但是它確實很不一樣也幫我在一些當紅的夜店得到一些工作機會。 所以我想是因為當時我面對了這個情況，也因此當我看到 Anti Hero 這個名字我產生了共鳴因為其實當初成為 DJ 並不是我的本意但是我面對了他並做出了正確的決定分享我喜愛的好音樂而不是只是抱怨。 我對於我的決定從來沒有後悔過而我也非常感謝命運帶給我的轉變， 真的是一個 blessing !
Screaming Eye 先生
你最喜歡的雜誌有哪些? 我大膽猜測 Thrasher 一定是其中之一 ? 還有我很好奇為何 Thrasher 身為最經典的滑板雜誌的地位為什麼那麼不可撼動? 通常只要提到滑板文化就是 Thrasher 了， 是什麼原因讓它這麼獨特
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
我幾乎已經不再收集雜誌了，在台灣這些雜誌難以取得而我也不會特別去訂購。有很長的時間 我最喜歡的雜誌是 Adbusters雜誌還有 Colors 雜誌。 以探討滑板文化的雜誌來說 Thrasher 是我心目中的第一名。 永遠都會是 ! 我想 Thrasher 很獨特的地方就是不管現在的滑板文化有許多大企業的介入，但是 Thrasher 一直都保持著由玩滑板的人擁有與經營。 因此跟別的較大的滑板雜誌比起來總是有著更多家族的感覺， 另外 Thrasher 也是滑板文化裡最原創的一本雜誌之一。 本來 Thrasher 一開始只是一本給粉絲看的刊物。 我想它總是比較另類 – 也時候甚至有點幼稚， 但是對我來說 Thraher 一直保持了原始的風格與態度， 對我來說那就是滑板文化最原始的心與靈魂。 這就是我認為它一直都是許多人心目中的 Number 1 因為它總是很真誠的面對滑板文化。
Screaming Eye 先生
我有兩個關於加拿大的問題， 我背著背包在世界各地旅行的時候，我總是會聽到其他的背包克說加拿大人還有澳洲人喝醉後會變得令人難以忍受，有些加拿大人或是澳洲人甚至自己都拿這點來大開玩笑， 這是事實嗎? 還是只是道聽塗說 ?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
我不知道或許是因為你總是會去特別注意在一個團體中最吵鬧的混蛋。 所以我認為那些行為良好的澳洲人與加拿大人被忽略了就因為少數特別引人注意的老鼠屎。 我在旅行途中遇到的澳洲人是我遇過最 nice 的人， 然後我是加拿大人所以…. 也遇過許多好人。 然後我也必須不好意思的說我也看過一些喝醉胡鬧的加拿大人以及澳洲人。 有不少還打起架來。 另外英國人也是據我所聽過時常跟人打架的人之一。 我想謠言總是帶有一點真實但是對於大多數人或是情況來說絕對不是真實的。 就我個人來說， 我也還未聽過澳洲人、加拿大人互開對方玩笑…
Screaming Eye 先生
另外一個我一直想要知道的問題但是總是還未得到答案…. 美國跟加拿大之間是有什麼事嗎? 怎麼總是有互相競爭的感覺然後也常常聽到美國或是加拿大互開對方的玩笑， 就像美國總是會開一些加拿大人跟啤酒、Justin Bieber 的玩笑，而加拿人也很愛在美國發生令人傻眼的事件的時候會開 ” 全世界只有美國會有這檔事 ” 的玩笑?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
哈哈這個問題很難回答。 因為真的很奇怪，我總是在美國的電視節目中看到美國人開加拿大人玩笑然後我就會想 ” 到底是怎樣? 這玩笑哪裡冒出來的 ? ” ， 我想同樣情形一定也常發生在加拿大的節目裡面。我想是兩個國家緊鄰對方的原故。很多老美一定認為加拿大人想變得像美國人一樣，好像加拿大是一個粗糙的複製品，但事實上加拿大人認為自己的文化獨特的也根本不想跟美國自大無知的文化放在一起比較。 美國人通常會將所有加拿大人都視為有點落後、過度注重禮節的民族。 我想兩方的認知都不是真的但是這些刻板印象總是有它存在的原因。 加拿大人很常說對不起， 我不該這樣講但這是真的哈哈 : P 誰知道…. 大概是因為我們曲棍球總是把美國隊宰殺的很慘 ? ( 哈哈…. 我大概不該這麼說但是反過來說我們發明了籃球但是我們總是被美國隊痛宰 ! ) 但是說真的， 對於加拿大人的刻板印象以口音來說，我大部份的朋友都不是那樣。 我在台灣大部份來自美國的朋友也都非常有禮貌也一點都不自大。 不過大概也跟我選擇的朋友有關 ! 但是說真的我不認為這些刻板印象是真的。
Screaming Eye 先生
最後一個問題， 我有注意到你在 Soundcloud 上面的 Mix Tape 好像有一直延續的主題， 是怎麼一回事呢?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
哈哈…. 那是我個人的隱藏版宅男搞笑而已， 我也不認為大部份人會發覺到它的存在。 在 Soundcloud 上面的 Sets 都是一些我在表演的時候反應特別好的 Sets，我會把 playlist 保留下來然後回家再重新錄製一遍。 我只是想說單是錄成 Mix Tape 不夠好玩想來一些更好玩的東西。 一開始是我的一個叫做 Journey to CP 1919…. 這個 Set 的標題以及 Intro 都是為了向我最喜歡的 Joy Division 致敬。 CP 1919 是他們用來設計 Unknown Pleasure 專輯的時候的 Pulsar Star， 而在 Intro 中的航空公司名字叫做 Warsaw, 而 Warsaw 是 Joy Division 最採使用的團名。 一個當時在我錄製這個 Mix 的時候真心認為世界會毀滅的男子….. 而這個 Mix 以充滿罪惡感的氛圍起頭，我取樣了牧師聲明世界末日的到來。
我也使用了一個人們認為敘述著世界末日的老舊油畫來當我的 Mix 封面。 Heart of Darkness Mix Tape 則是我對於我小時候鍾愛的老舊 Film Noir ( 黑色電影 ) 的脫帽致敬…. Faraway Lands Mix 則是我對老舊 Sci Fi ( 科幻電影 ) 的致敬。 Synthetic Pleasure 也是關於 Joy Divison 的 Unknown Pleasure – 我愛 Joy Division 但是這個 Mix 的音樂非常的 Sci Fi 感因此造就了 Mix 封面上的機器人以及一段關於對於大自然的認知還有機械的靈魂的一段話。 很棒的一個系列以及很棒的一些電影。 Lo Rez Skyline 是在 William Gibson 的小說 Idoru 中的一個樂團， Mix 開頭是 William Gibson 的紀錄片中的一個小片段。 他的小說在我成長的過程有很大的引響， 也同樣引響了人們看待網路的方式， Willliam Gibson 同時也是發明了 Cyperspace ( 網路空間 ) 這個詞彙的人。 我最新的 Mix Vangelis 是我對於經典科幻電影 Blade Runner 的情書 。 就算在 27 年以後它還是同樣是一部經典的好電影 !!! 如果你有注意到電影中跟我 Mix 裡相互連結的小地方記得讓我知道 – 其實沒那麼困難。 其實不管 theme 如何…. 說真的， 我只是希望大家能享受音樂…. 其實就是那麼簡單， 這才是最重要的 !
Liam Briggs & Mr. Screaming Eye Exclusive Interview
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs was born and raised in Canada，he has resided in Taiwan for more than 13 years。 Besides performing as his alter-ego DJ Anti Hero in Taipei’s premier and trendy clubs，he is also a hardcore skater，whenever he has time he rides his board and searches for the perfect skateboard ramp! Liam is a rare-breed in my eyes, besides having an eye-catching and stylish bald head, you often see him making Facebook post discussing and dishing out personal opinions regarding Taiwan’s social political events and issues，not to mention some interesting, hilarious, and yet truthful observations about Taiwan’s people and just things about life in general。 Sometimes it makes me feel that, he cares more about Taiwan’s environment as a whole even more than some of the locals。
He once told me that in some aspects，he felt that Taiwan is more like his home than Canada， never minding the actual reasons, may it be because of his beloved friends in Taiwan, Taipei being a city that never sleeps, or the infamous convenient lifestyle in Taiwan? He is definitely more familiar with Taipei than I am, who is a local native。 There was one time we were supposed to meet in Ximen’s movie theme park。 I got lost and finally found the meeting point and was fashionably late, and this guy on the other hand, was just chilling and cruising on his skateboard and arrived gracefully right on time。
Being obsessed and crazy about music of all genres is another thing we have in common and it is what truly connects us as friends. I always lose track of time when we talk or debate about music, and every time we meet it is almost always somewhere with a live DJ or music performing in the background! Liam goes by the name DJ Anti Hero when he performs at live events, club or parties。And grew up on a steady diet of punk, rock and hip hop music blaring in the background… and far more than a few hours dedicated to 8 Bit video games, horror movies and sci-fi movies.
Anti Hero’s love for these things have highly influenced his music selections as well as his sets and will take you into a world where the one thing you can count on is that the beats will come at you with hard glitchy goodness and make you bounce! When I met Liam for the first time, I was impressed about his friendly attitude and genuine and down to earth personal. This is mainly why someone strange like me can naturally become friends with Liam! Below is a piece of writing by Liam, it is about how he truly feels about friends and friendship。 He wrote it for Taiwan based up and coming fashion designer JENN LEE for its cross-over campaign with Tattoo artist Peter from Ibiza INK, and he also posed as one of the selected models in the campaign display for the project.
“To me… friendship – true friendship means family – and I believe your true friends are your family – maybe even more so than your blood relatives because they are the family you chose to have in your life. They’re the ones that have always been there for you – and chances are know what’s going on with you more than most because they’ve probably lived with you – they are there for you not out of duty – not because they had to… but because they truly chose to be there. Friends are family.”
Liam Briggs & Mr. Screaming Eye Exclusive Interview
Mr. Screaming Eye
Hey Liam, to kick start this interview, please forgive me, I need to ask a cliché question, because I am very curious about it myself, because for me personally, I have spent 20 years in the US growing up, but if you ask me the exact same question as opposed to asking an American who was totally born and raised inside the U.S. You would probably get a different answer. So my dumb question is what you like and hate most about Taiwan and Taipei? Please feel free to do elaborate! And what is your take on the NO NUKE and the Sun Flower Revolution? For me personally, I am pro-revolution、anti-system and anti-authority, I kinda smell and have a keen feeling that you are the same?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
Yeah – you’d be right. I am pretty much the same. That’s not to say I’m against structures and ones that work positively for the benefit of all but ideally I’d want them to work in a more egalitarian way… that works as was intended to help the people they represent, but I feel a lot of the structures that are in place are more about a separation of people and creating and reinforcing inequality than bringing people together – I believe that is either intentional from the start in some systems or by a twisting of original principles that some societies were based on. I don’t mind some people having more if they work hard – it’s more a question of how much more is enough and how much that greater amount is gained at the expense of your fellow man. Personally I am for both the NO NUKE and the Sun Flower Revolution for very different reasons. I think nuclear power has served mankind well during a period of growth when we didn’t have more sustainable alternatives and at the time we were perhaps a little cocky and naïve about how dangerous it could possibly be… but now we know better – especially since we have the evidence of the danger that sort of power holds from what happened in Fukushima, Japan and Chernobyl, Ukraine. Green solutions are coming to the forefront worldwide. Taiwan has a lot of geothermal energy it could tap into – much like they’ve done in Iceland, not to mention there’s a lot of tidal power that could be harnessed and now solar power is becoming cheaper… so I think Taiwan definitely has alternatives it can look toward.
As for the Sun Flower Revolution, I totally agree with the initial principal of it, which from my understanding was the lack of transparency of the government in regards to the Cross Strait Service Trade Agreement. Not to mention from what it looked like, well at least to me. I think the deal itself looked like it would be good for only big business with more wealth being concentrated in the upper class or shipped off to China, so it would be a bad deal for the average Taiwanese citizen. But regardless of what you say about how that trade agreement would impact Taiwan economically, it should have been something the people were aware of and had a say in. As for the thing I hate most in Taiwan, it is the amount of bureaucracy involved. Some relatively simple things become really complicated, or if there’s no previous rule made and a novel situation comes up – there’s not a lot of room left for people to interpret the rules, people to going by them in a strict sense and the rules seem very rigid.
I don’t think it’s about the people in Taiwan, I think it’s more of a systemic thing that I’ve come across in my own experience and from what I’ve heard from others… and affects things ranging from things as simple as exchanging money at the bank to getting a work permit or registering your child for health insurance if you are a foreigner with work permit here whose child was born in Taiwan. There are a few things I do indeed love about Taiwan and I think for me, one of the biggest things would be how much personal freedom you can have here. Just simple little things like being able to food on the street late at night, or buying a beer late at night at the corner store, enjoy a drink in the park without being disturbed by police or being able to ride a bicycle without a helmet. Simple little things like that. Another thing that I really love about Taiwan is how friendly and helpful the people generally are. When I first arrived a lot of really patient people helped me out and went out of their way to help me. I still see that being done with other foreigners here. I think that’s great. And what I think is amazing is that in some cases my friends have forgotten their keys in their scooters – and the next day their scooter was still there!!! Not stolen, still there – or better yet some kind person took the key out of the ignition for them and put it in a less obvious place in their scooter so it would not get stolen. To be honest I feel safer walking the streets late at night in Taipei than I have in most cities or countries.
Mr. Screaming Eye
You had been immersed in music for ages, and I bet you had spent numerous hours in record shops digging through stacks of vinyl of 7” and 12”, in search of that perfect record. Is there still some nice record shops in Canada worth visiting? And do you miss the days that people still spins mainly with vinyl? I missed record shops, nearly 90% of the record shop I used to hang around all the time back in the days are vanished and replaced by the likes of Beatports, and I truly missed the days that DJ would stay 100% focused and work on the wheels of steel, because if he doesn’t, the beat is not going to match!
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I would say there are plenty of record shops in Canada worth visiting but sadly I’ve been gone for so long I wouldn’t know which. All I know is a good record shop was a beautiful thing, I remember several back home that I miss – but all the ones I miss are closed. And sadly, since I’ve moved to Taiwan I rarely buy vinyl. I particularly miss two record shops from my hometown Ottawa in Canada: Spinables and Organized Sound. For me, going to a record shop was a far different experience than browsing online, whether it was for CDs or vinyl. It was a far more personal experience than browsing around online and if you went enough to a particular shop and you were lucky enough – the staff would be kind enough to look out for you and point out new releases you may be interested in or even keep them to the side for you. As a side note, I actually worked at an indie record store for most of the years I was in university and it was one of the best jobs I ever had. I loved coming across new music and having a large part of my life revolve around that.
I loved having the chance to order music I believed in and share that music with customers I thought would be interested in it. And to be honest – the staff discount didn’t hurt either. I don’t really miss vinyl as far as DJing goes, then again I never really played on vinyl to be honest – I got my start on CDJs and shortly after just when DVS started up and I went that route using turntables because I liked the feel better. One thing I do miss about vinyl though is that the songs seemed less disposable then. I think part of that was if you got a hold of a copy of something, it was very possible not everyone would have access to it – not to mention the fact the labels were less likely just to put out anything… I guess I think there was more a focus on quality – but maybe that’s just me romanticizing the past? And wow, do I miss “albums”… I miss the art, the liner notes and all those tactile things that are pretty much lost with digital copies of music. Also, it seems like most albums now are just a couple of hits and the rest is filler. That’s not to say there aren’t epic albums being produced – just not as many in my opinion. An album seems less like a creative endeavor, a work of art than it is a hit selling machine. But I guess that’s more the record industry and how it has changed than the medium the music is being recorded on.
As for DJing, for me I don’t think beat matching is the most important thing. I think it’s an important skill but it’s not the art of DJing – if it was – then robots would already be doing all the work for DJs. I think the most important skill is knowing your music and knowing what will go well together and how to create the right atmosphere and mood for that moment in time. That’s where I think the art comes into DJing. And if you have technology helping you out… then do more with it. DJs still should stay focused regardless, even if a machine is matching the beats for them. There’s plenty to do and different ways to do it – if you have the technology and you have sync matching the beats for you… then keep it interesting – chop up the track a bit, put some samples in – put some extra tracks going in the background – things like that. But really when it comes down to it, I think it’s about the music and how you bring it all together – and that’s the true art to DJing.
Mr. Screaming Eye
Earlier this year, I watched the DMC Championship and watched the 2013 winning set by DJ Fly, and he scratched with MP3s. I’ve followed DMC ever since the Invisible Scratch Pickle days, and I now realized the digital format has finally taken over DMC, frankly speaking, I don’t mind if DJs spin with MP3s, it is cool and everything ( except people like Kxxxxxx or Steve xxxx or David xxxxx who perform with 100% pre-recorded sets and clap their hands 97% of time ), but to me, DMC’s judgment score shall including the smooth maneuvers when changing records with ghetto tape as cue marks on them, isn’t that the beauty of it? What’s your take?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I think there is a beauty to that – I totally agree and it gets my utmost respect, and back in the day I fully followed the competitions and collected and listened to DJs’ routines. Despite that, I’m not sure if I’m fully qualified to make a statement on this since I’ve never been a DMC type DJ but here’s my take: I think the DMC started as a way to push skills forward as a DJ and brought in many new techniques with that pushed the technology that was at hand in the day. But it always seemed to me to be about constantly pushing things forward and doing more with what you had, and I think this current format – using DVS systems is a step forward in many ways… at least creatively. I know there are some purists that totally support vinyl only and I think their point is totally valid as most of the time they are saying it’s an artform, but there was a point made that some guys were creating custom dubplates for their DMC sets and things like that or creating other tools like that which gave them an unfair edge in a way. Regardless I think the addition of having more technology and blending that with those older skills brings in a new exciting horizon and amazing new sounds. That’s not to say guys like QBert and Kid Koala and a host of others aren’t doing insane otherworldly beautiful things with a traditional format but I’m quite happy to see guys like DJ Shiftee, combine everything together… controllers and vinyl manipulation and bringing in a new skillset. (By the way – Kid Koala is one of my favourite DJs ever!!!)
Mr. Screaming Eye
Who is your current or all-time favorite DJ hero and why?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I think for me it would have to be Z-Trip. He just changed what I thought was possible as a DJ, and it deeply affected me as I was younger. He’d sample things live on vinyl, mix genres and songs together that I thought had no reason being together and it was GOOD! And I think in a way, it really changed the way a lot of DJs have play since then. He was one of the pioneers in terms of blending diverse genres together live, mashing them up and he really laid it all out there. Pure skill! Not to mention I was lucky enough to meet him in person once and sat down and had a talk with him – and he was so down to earth and humble that I just have to give him my utmost respect. He wasn’t a “rock star DJ”, he just was another guy that loved music… he could just put it together better than you could hahah.
Mr. Screaming Eye
Who is the one DJ that you think have a mad skill? To me, I can still remember how Derrick May played his set, I saw him at the first-ever Coachella back in the late 90’s, and he was spinning on 4 decks, drinking, smoking and talking to model looking blonds, and he didn’t miss a beat, my jaw almost dropped to the ground coz it was like he remember each bar and breakdown by seconds, however, I am not that into his stuff, but back to the subject, who do you say?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I dunno – to be honest I think there are many and for different reasons, from how effortlessly they played to how focused and relentless they were on decks sweating it out every moment. I really find it hard to say. I mean as I mentioned earlier, there’s Kid Koala – but what he does isn’t effortless – but just so creative in how he chooses to put everything together… and his level of skill and how technical he is – is just amazing! I would have to put Coldcut up there too – well that’s two guys, but hey… they just played so well but were so chill about it. They just seemed like they were relaxing the whole time but they were on point! Recently I just saw Move D for the second time and that guy is just ON. Amazing music, track selection and well I guess I give him props as well since he was playing strictly vinyl. And finally, Adam Freeland… the last show he played at the wall – he killed it! He worked the room so well, was fully relaxed and just killed it! There’s many others I’ve had the chance to see and I’m sure if I thought more about it – I’d bring up some more great examples but that’s what I’ve got for now.
Mr. Screaming Eye
I’d like to ask you about your opinion on Daft Punk’s Random Access album, because it was a long-awaited and highly anticipated released from the legendary French duo. And I did my own mini survey among friends and most people hated it! Maybe because it was not a “house” album like they wanted or could it be because they thought disco is out of style and lame….. But I think it was brilliant, Get Lucky was brilliant, the lyrics, the groove was under-lying and strong, not to mention the killer bassline from hell was contributed by CHIC’s Nile Rogers. And also man, that heart-felt intro from Italian Disco God Giorgio Moroder almost broke me down in tears… What’s your take?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
To be honest… I freakin’ loved it. Hahaha. Seriously! But I’m a bit biased – as it is I already fully love boogie funk and funk in general and have a fine collection of each so there’s that… and there’s some sick, sick disco in my collection as well. But the genre and music isn’t what made me turn my head… it was the fact that it was the new Daft Punk album that surprised me and how far it was from what I expected and thought I wanted. And I don’t think for me that was a bad thing at all. My first listen was on a set of nice Stax electrostatic headphones I inherited and wow was I pleased. The production was incredible. The sounds, the quality… it was stunning, absolutely beautiful! Musically – I think it was absolutely epic… the grooves and songs. The collection of artists that worked with them… and more than that – it was an album!!!! From start to finish – it was an album, beautifully crafted and not just a collection of singles. I absolutely loved it. I think for a lot of people – and what initially made me do a double take was the fact that it was Daft Punk and like many others I thought and hoped they’d rise from the ashes and save electro from the monotony most of electro has now become. And I think it was that expectation that was hard for people to get their head around. That sense of disappointment was possibly what made a lot of people listen to the album in a more closed minded way and not enjoy it as much as they could have because they were focusing on how the album wasn’t what they had expected and how different it was from what they wanted to hear from Daft Punk as opposed to how good musically it really is. (And yeah – the album brought a few watery moments to my eyes too – shhhh – don’t tell anyone… or uhmmm… do – I’m man enough to admit it … )
Mr. Screaming Eye
You usually post your current reads in your Facebook feeds, I remember I saw a few of my personal favorites, what’s your TOP 5 in the last few years?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
Top 5 Books… wow… ok… lemme think… I’m bad with top five lists… but here goes… in no order…
Kurt Vonnegut – Hocus Pocus. I love how it’s so light hearted but takles some serious topics throughout – the human condition, politics… so much but there’s still such warmth in the bitterness, such love for human kind…
Salman Rushdie – the Enchantress of Florence. Over the past few years I’ve read several of his books and he really understands what the art of storytelling is all about. That is my personal favorite of his.
Ernest Kline – Ready Player One. This book is far from deep but sometimes you need to read for fun, and this book is just fun. It’s full of 80s references and old school video games. I couldn’t help but love it! Not to mention he made a competition based on the book where you could win a real life DeLorean!
William Gibson – Idoru. I actually read this book a long time ago, but reread it again just last year. It’s from one of the godfathers of the cyberpunk genre… what’s not to love?
Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaimen – Good Omens. This is another fun book and it’s a quirky take on good and evil and Armageddon.
Mr. Screaming Eye
If you could see any 5 bands, or 5 artists, dead or alive, who would it be? Here is mine:
Sly & Robbie
Jackson 5
Pink Floyd
Beatles
Fela Kuti
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
For me… well from bands or artists I haven’t seen yet… it would be –
Joy Division
LCD Soundsytem
Miles Davis
The Raconteurs
The Stooges
Mr. Screaming Eye
A story I have read long long time ago about Chemical Brothers, when they just started, there was one time they were asked to play in Pacha Ibiza, they played a Balearic set, and during they set they were confronted a mob guy who made song requests to play some “ real dance music “ So they did or they might not be able to leave the island. So what were some of your worst but favorite, or even bizarre song request moments?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
Oh god… there’s quite a few – but luckily none were a play this or your life type situations, but some were play this or you’re never working here again. I don’t know though – nothing too bizarre, just things that are so out of place from what’s being played that I’m just confused at where the request is coming from. The most bizarre for me tends to be kind of a more general thing that happens from time to time but really weirds me out. It’s when a person doesn’t know the name of the song, or the words they try to hum it for me. Or make sounds they think sounds like the song. In a loud club there’s usually no way I’m going to hear the person or even understand what they’re doing, especially if they’re making weird noises off key and off tempo. It’s fun to watch though and pretty damn funny if you can hear what they’re actually doing. I usually ask them to do it again at least once ha!
Mr. Screaming Eye
I always wonder did you get your alter-ego DJ name Anti Hero from Marvel’s comic or inspired by it? And I always see you posting some geek, geekery stuff, and some scientific facts, which I really enjoyed and love them myself, but are you a geek at heart? Because I am!
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I’m fully a geek at heart! And as for the name, there’s a long story to that actually, but I’ll try to condense it because I think I already wrote almost a book for you and wow, translating this can’t be fun. But I had a different alias/alter-ego before but had to stop using it. It involved a past relationship with someone that was two timing – the other dude was a cop and yeah – he basically started making trouble for me and I had to stop DJing in clubs for a bit. After some time had passed I had to think of a new name to use. I started thinking of names and I would do a Google search to see if another DJ had taken that name.
I went through a lot of names, no luck. So feeling frustrated and just staring at my wall, I happened to see my skateboard in the corner, which was made by the skateboard company Anti Hero. So I typed it in and at that time there was no other DJ Anti Hero, so I decided to look up the exact meaning of the word before taking it. At first, as many people do, I thought it was sort of like a villain. It’s not. In a literary sense, the anti hero is a hero lacks the perfection of a traditional hero. An anti hero is not against the hero, just sort of more an ordinary person, or deeply flawed person that rises above their current situation and in a sense performs heroic deeds, sort of like John McClane in Die Hard or Han Solo from Star Wars. Why did I think that was a good name? Because I actually never intended to be a DJ at first, I just liked dancing. Anyways I got into DJing because quite a few years ago I complained quite a bit to a friend of mine – a pretty well known DJ at the time named Rob Solo – that no one was playing the kind of music I liked. Little did I know a short while later, that same friend would tell me it’s time for me to step up or stop complaining and told me he got me a spot to try out DJing at in a small club that was opening. He told me I had less than a month to learn how and I needed to practice and I better get on it. It was far from the best set anyone had ever heard but it was different and good enough to get me a spot on some not so busy night. So I guess stepped up to the situation, and when I read that definition of what an anti hero is, I sort of identified with that idea of the anti hero because despite the fact it was not my intention nor what I wanted to do initially – I took it upon myself to do the right thing and not just be a taker, but someone who shared good music with people. I’ve never regretted that decision and am always thankful that one twist of fate turned out to be such a blessing!
Mr. Screaming Eye
What are some of your favorite magazines? I took a wild guess that Thrasher is one of them? By the way, I always wondered why Thrasher’s number 1 skater magazine spot is unshakable? Because when you mention skating, we think of Thrasher, what makes the magazine so unique?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I haven’t really collected magazines for a bit. I just find them a bit difficult to track down over here and I’m not really into special ordering things. But my favourites were Adbusters and Colors for a very long time. But as far as skateboard magazines go, Thrasher would be my number one. Always has and always will be! I think what makes Thrasher so unique is as corporate as skateboarding has become, Thrasher is still skater owned and operated and always has been. It has always seemed like much more of a family than many of the other big skate magazines, not to mention it’s also one of the originals. It really just started out as a fanzine. I think it’s always been a bit more edgy – sometimes to its detriment as it could be a bit childish at times, but the thing is, to me it has always captured a rawness that to me is a part of the original heart and soul of skateboarding. And I think that’s why it’s always been number one in many people’s minds and hearts is because it’s sincerely just about skateboarding!
Mr. Screaming Eye
I have 2 questions about Canada, when I was backpacking around the world, I always ran into and chatted with other backpackers, and I have heard a myth that Canadians and Australians are nasty drunks, even some Canadians and Australians make fun of each other with such jokes, is this true or a myth?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
I don’t know. It seems the loudest always stands out and you tend to notice the loud jerks of any group more than all the others. So I think all the well-behaved people from an area, such as Canada or Australia are overlooked in light of a few really nasty standouts. And those standouts really stand out. I’ve met a few Australians on some trips that were the nicest guys ever, and well I’m a Canadian so… met some good ones too. Then again much to my shame, I’ve seen some really bad instances of Canadians behaving really poorly as well as some rowdy as hell Australians. And more than a few starting fights. I’d also put people from England in that rumoured group that starts fights as well from the stories I’ve heard. I think there’s some truth to the myth in some circumstances but it far from true to all. And I’ve never really heard of Australians/Canadians joking about each other… that could just be me tho…
Mr. Screaming Eye
And here is another one that has bothered me for quite a while, and I have never had an answer…. What is the thing between U.S. and Canada, the sense of rivalry and the way that both always make fun of each other, like U.S. would make up some beer and Justin Bieber jokes with Canada, and when some shit happened in the U.S. Canadians would say something like “ Only in America! “ What’s with the thing”
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
Haha, that’s a tough one. It’s sort of weird because I watch some comedy shows from America and they make fun of Canadians a lot in them and I’m like… what the hell? Where’d that come from? I’m sure it happens in Canadian comedy shows the other way. I think a lot of that rivalry is they are so close to each other. A lot of Americans possibly think Canadians just want to be like them, like Canada is some weak copy and conversely Canadians feel they are totally distinct culturally and don’t want to be compared to the “loud ignorant American” stereotype. Americans tend to stereotype Canadians as being a bit backward and being far too polite for their own good. I don’t think either holds true but some stereotypes are there for a reason. Canadians do tend to say sorry a lot, sorry for saying that but it’s true haha ;p Who knows… it might just be because we keep kicking their ass at hockey? (Hahaha… it was probably bad for me to say that hahaha – give it to us guys – we invented basketball and you destroy us!) But really, the stereotypical Canadian accent and all that stuff, most of my friends aren’t like that at all. And most of my friends from America over here in Taiwan are far from ignorant or loud. Then again that might have to do with my choice in friends! But really, I don’t think so.
Mr. Screaming Eye
And one final question, I’ve noticed on your soundcloud some of your mix tapes have some sort of theme going on. What’s going on with them?
Liam Michael Arthur Briggs
Haha… that’s sort of my geeky hidden joke as I don’t think anyone really notices half the time. Most of my mixes are sets that I played at places I thought really worked well and kept the play lists and so I could record them again back home. But I thought just recording a mix wasn’t enough so I started just having some fun with them. It started doing the themes with a mix called Journey to CP 1919… and the title and the intro are sort of a tribute to a band I love – Joy Division. CP 1919 was the name of the pulsar star they used as the design for their cover “Unknown Pleasures” and the airline company that’s in the intro is named Warsaw, which is was the original name of the band. At the time I made Rapture, a guy literally thought the end of the world would happen within a few days of when I recorded the mix and posted it… and since the mix started off very sinister sounding I sampled that preacher talking about the coming of the end of the world at the start. I also used an old painting of what someone thought the Rapture, the end of days would look like as the cover. Heart of Darkness is just a tip of the hat to old film noir movies that I loved growing up… Faraway Lands similarly was a nod to old sci fi movies.
Synthetic Pleasures is a play on the Unknown Pleasures name – again – I love Joy Division but that mix was very sci fi sounding hence the android for the art and got a really nice quote from Ghost In the Shell at the start talking about the nature of consciousness and the soul in an android – amazing series and great movies! Lo Rez Skyline was the name of a band in William Gibson’s novel Idoru and that starts off with a snippet from a documentary with him. His novels were a big thing for me growing up and hugely affected how people conceived of the Internet and he’s the guy that coined the term “cyberspace”. My most recent mix Vangelis as a theme for the cover and intro was just to show my love to the movie Blade Runner. I find even now 27 years later, it’s still a great movie!!! If you get all the references in that one be sure to let me know – it’s not that hard. Regardless of the themes… really, I just hope people enjoy the music… that’s what it really comes down to and what it’s all about!
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