What is the sound of two cultures clashing?

[Mulboyne]

Damon Albarn of Blur has collaborated again with Jamie Hewlett and written an "opera" based on the Chinese tale "Journey to the West". It has been very well-received and performed at prestigious venues like the Royal Opera House. A few hours ago, Albarn appeared with some of the cast to perform a short piece on a BBC music programme:

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I was trying to imagine how I'd react if the piece had been based on a Japanese work. I'd probably be wincing at the cultural clash but that's my problem. It has to be a good thing that people try these kinds of experiments. In that sense, it serves as a small reminder that you can show respect and appreciation for a culture in a variety of ways without having to try to produce an accurate facsimile of the original. Mind you, I still reserve the right to wince at "Domo Arigato, Mr Roboto".

[GomiGirl]

Mulby - your headline skills are sensational!!

[Behan]

There are some pretty funny places in the (English translation) book. For example, the main characters meet some Taoists, piss into a bottle, and give it to them telling them it's some kind of magic-like elixir.

[Samurai_Jerk]

Interesting but I could do without the furry in the panda suit and the contortionist.

[Mulboyne]

The BBC carried a live performance of that piece on the radio yesterday. You can catch it for another week via their iplayer. There's about three minutes of talking then the music starts.