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Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} To Save a Shining Soul by S.A. Garcia Shining Souls. Started nearly ten years ago Alex Soto aka MC Liazon and Franco Habre aka Bronze Candidate met at Phoenix College and soon after formed a band. Over the years members moved on and the two were left and began to focus on hip-hop. In their current formation, they’ve completed many projects including their latest album Sonic Smash . Soto jokes, “We read an article at some point and it said it takes ten years to be an overnight success – so we’re almost there.” Taking time out before a week-long tour, the hip-hop duo Shining Soul took time to talk about their journey so far. We met at Arizona Falls, a water installation set along a main canal running through Phoenix. Style and fashion are topics not usual explored by Soto and Habre. Hailing from central city south or South Phoenix Habre, Chicano, shares “style, it’s personal, physical communication, something non-verbal.” Distinguishing from fashion which is more “popular”. Noting in hip-hop how important it can be to personalize your style to make you stand out on and off the stage.” Soto adds “style can be music and fashion for me it even includes my choice to grow my hair out a few years ago something important to me as a Native.” Originally from Sells, Arizona on the Tohono O’odham Nation, Soto grew up in Valley too. Their work focuses on their experiences wanting listeners to understand “hip-hop is resistance”. Incorporating issues into their work like the Arizonan immigration law SB-1070 to other issues facing the Tohono O’odham and Chicano people. “It’s important for us to share our story all while keeping it funky,” says Soto. Both note how their style isn’t necessarily a “this ain’t out sh*t” variety, a reference to an attitude present on the hip-hop scene to have the exclusive shoes, shirt, etc. Their style aims to be more original and related to causes they support. Each make an effort to share the efforts of friends who advocate for current issues and design shirts to bring awareness to an issue. Soto wears a bright green tee printed by a friend with a message protesting the expansion of the Loop 202 freeway across O’otham land on the southern perimeter of city limits. Soto also wears a medallion with the Man in the Maze symbol on it, a significant image for his people. Habre’s shares he aims to keep his style “funky but functional” wearing a marble gray tee with a personalized hat which reads “Valley”. Their music is something that will make you think about issues while “vibing out” in the words of the team. Shining Soul has had an incredible year, opening for Grammy nominated artists including Ana Tijoux. While they are thankful for all that has brought them to this point they are looking ahead to more including Germany and Europe in 2015. As they close out this year the pair is also plotting another album looking at ways to blend influences and think about what story they want to share next. Habre notes “pulling together beats is an arduous process” but soon they will know what to extract and just what they want their message to be next. “We want people to experience our music and to be critical of what issues we share as it’s unique,” adds Habre. Soto remarks, “You think you knew Shining Soul before…” we’ll just have to see what is next. Presence 4.0 will take part in the event No Rezervations in Tucson on Saturday 15, 2014 from 7-10:30pm at Mr. Heads Art Gallery and Bar. A fundraiser for the Pascua Yaqui Festival for the Arts the event will featuring a great selection of Creative Indigenous talent. Featured in the line-up is Shining Soul a hip-hop duo based out of Phoenix, Arizona. More on the event HERE. To Save a Shining Soul by S.A. Garcia. Shining Soul II may seem excessively difficult, but that's because today's RPGs arm enemies with pillowy swords, and heroes with one-hit-kill spells. Review Platform: Genre: Developer(s) Publisher(s) Atlus SEGA THQ Nordic. Long before saving princesses, slaying archdemons, and stealing from gold-hoarding dragons were way too played out stereotypes of the RPG genre, the Shining Force series helped carry the torch from 8-bit to 16-bit. After enjoying spectacular success on the Genesis, the series branched off onto the Game Gear and Sega CD, which eventually spawned spin-off series such as Shining Soul. By the time Shining Soul II came around on the Game Boy Advance, rescuing royalty and ceasing impending doom was only kind of annoying. Mix this with sound gameplay, and you’ve got yourself a cult hit. Shining Force fanboys and neurotic grinders will rejoice, because Shining Soul II is just what the vicar ordered; I should know, I’m both. Behold! The ever-changing plot device! Fans of Shining Force don’t love the series for its unique style of writing or depth of plot. No, we’re in it for the traditional fantasy atmosphere and world–which never seems to be the same, aside from a robust centaur population. However, where Shining Soul II falls short on centaurs, it makes up for with its reoccurring monsters. While not every monster seems familiar, enough debuts are made so that fans feel at home. What of the princess, though? Worry not, Shining Soul II unabashedly pokes fun at the Shining series, appearing quite self-aware of its overuse of archetypical heroes and runaway results of in-breeding. Other than the light, subtle humor, Shining Soul II provides nothing but weak excuses to venture into the fray. In fact, the king’s orders can be easily summarized thusly: “You’re young, and I don’t want to see you die out there, but do it, anyway.” The dialogue really isn’t much different from that, either. Whether saving a princess or chasing after a hero ominously named Deatharte , you can be sure that a resurrecting evil is orchestrating everything. Hug walls and spam the A button. That’s really all there is to the game, but that wouldn’t make for an entertaining read. In truth, Shining Soul II’s gameplay may be ostensibly simplistic, but satisfactory game design incorporates a level of challenge that requires a bit more strategy from the player. No matter what class a player picks, the game offers accessibility to unique playstyles–all adequately challenging. For the modern gamer, Shining Soul II may seem excessively difficult, but that’s because today’s RPGs arm enemies with pillowy swords, and heroes with one-hit-kill spells. Yes, one could grind easier dungeons to level up and crush the competition into submission, but that diminishes the experience. The strategy lies in leveling up appropriate skills and stats, and finding hidden goodies. Without careful planning and analysis, players will find themselves in impossible situations right from the beginning. The only options after this are revisiting old locales or starting over. Unlike most Diablo imitators, Shining Soul II doesn’t hold your hand; no, instead, it drives a twelve inch dagger through your hand thereby trapping you against a tree, spits in your eye, turns you around, and then kicks you in the ass until you figure out what to do on your own . A lot can be said about a design team that forces the player to engage the game their way … none of it pleasant. However, even more can be said about someone who stupidly puts all of their stat points into dexterity, and none into vitality. No matter how one allocates the skill and stat points, though, Shining Soul II will challenge everyone, and not just in combat but in collection as well. For the packrats out there, SSII certainly doesn’t skimp on collectibles and oftentimes leaves their utility to the player to figure out. Find a G? Yeah, good luck figuring that out. How about a text bubble that has a “4” inside? Yeah, sure. A baby slime? Why not. Fans of the Shining series won’t be surprised, though; after all, promotion items in Shining Force II weren’t the easiest tools to decipher, and the Domingo Egg in Shining Force I could have garnered more explanation. Oh, and did I mention there’s a monster book with over 200 slots for every monster in the game? Have fun! Although the aforementioned tasks may sound painful to some, having a friend tag along on the adventure lightens the load and livens up the experience. In fact, having played the game solo and with a friend, I can say with certainty that the game is multiplicatively more fun with others. Plus, with such a large roster of unique classes to choose from, finding three other people to play with won’t get too crowded. Rough on the hands, ears, and eyes. For many, the Game Boy Advance isn’t the kindest system on the eyes and not much aural majesty can be gained from playing it, either. This parallels SSII, which serves its purposes adequately on all fronts, but doesn’t boast the luster its predecessors did. The unforgettable themes and sound effects of the dynasty born on the Genesis got lost along the way, leaving SSII with unimaginative, dull sounds that don’t always suit the situation. Graphics lag behind as well, which are strangely blocky, mostly due to thick black borders.

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