barber

The Audiophiliac's Top 13 music Blu-ray discs

I wrote a Top 10 music Blu-ray list late last year, so it's time for an update.

Patricia Barber, "Modern Cool"

Sultry jazz singer Patricia Barber's "Modern Cool" album was a hit with the audiophile crowd soon after its release in 1998, so I was surprised to see it come out on Blu-ray with a new 5.1-channel DTS Master Audio mix. Even more surprised that the surround mix totally works. You're in the middle of the band, which I usually don't care for, but it clicks here. Barber wrote a lot … Read more

Relaxation has never been more stressful

Sally's Spa is a time- and resource-management arcade game that builds on the success (and similar gameplay) of Sally's Salon. In this follow-up, you once again play as Sally, this time around managing a spa--complete with stations for saunas, manicures, massages, and more--as you try to please a steady stream of customers with quick service and a soothing environment. The interface gives you a top-down view of the spa (as you progress through 10 different spas around the world, with five levels each), and you touch and drag to direct Sally and interact with customers, moving them from … Read more

WiiWare and Virtual Console releases for this week

This week brings us every hair stylist's fantasy on WiiWare along with a boxing classic from the Super Nintendo era. WiiWare Bonsai Barber (Nintendo, 1,000 Wii points): The first barber game we can recall, Bonsai Barber has you designing hair cuts for a variety of different customers. Use countless salon tools at your disposal to keep the clients happy. Virtual Console Super Punch-Out!! (1994, Super Nintendo, 800 Wii points): The sequel to the NES classic, Super Punch-Out!! has you reentering the ring to battle familiar foes such as Bear Hugger, Bald Bull, and Super Macho Man.

What games … Read more

iLike? No, I don't

The other day, I got an email from my former assistant, the effervescent Brandy Barber.

Brandy is a rising New York comedienne who has a serious distaste for any woman who talks like Woody Woodpecker. Well, actually, for one woman in particular.

Her email was simple, but not very informative. She wanted to share her iLike playlist with me. (That was it. No 'how are you?' No 'I miss you.') Until now, I have not had an intimate involvement with iLike. If I want to know what other people like I tend to ask them.

Sad, I know.

However, because … Read more