On Evil Yogis and the Icy Silence of Yoga’s Post-Disintegration
David Gordon White's life-long research of South Asian religions reveals the dubious roots of the West's feel good contemporary yoga industry.
William Gibson
William L. Gibson is a writer, researcher, and sound artist based in Southeast Asia.. He holds a PhD from the University of Leeds. His current research interest is the life and work of Alfred Raquez. Laotian Pages, a scholarly translation with Paul Bruthiaux of Raquez's travels through Laos in 1900, is forthcoming from NIAS Press. William's trilogy of hard-boiled crime novels set in 1890s Malaya is published by Monsoon Books. Albums from his experimental sound project Third World Skull Candy are available on BitPulse Records. www.williamlgibson.com ...
Yellow Fever and Yum-Yum Girls
Multiple versions of the classic story The World of Suzie Wong offer different takes on a social phenomenon, but can any of them escape the biases of their authors?
Champagne and Knuckle-Dusters, or, Modern Life in Singapore
Novelist and poet Catherine Lim, the most persistent critic of Singapore's government, talks candidly about her new memoir, the half-century anniversary of the city-state, and the death of founder Lee Kuan Yew.
Death in the Land of Smiles
A recent biopic about the last executioner in Thailand explores the extremes between killing and redemption.
Clove Cigarettes and Indonesian Books: An Armchair Traveler’s Pleasure
The Modern Library of Indonesia series offers unparalleled access to the cultural landscape of the world's fourth most populous country.
The Noir Traveler Returns: The Evolving Sound of Alvarius B.
The Invisible Hands have given us a glimpse of Alvarius B.'s (Alan Bishop) view of the world from the center of Cairo. It's not a happy perspective, but there's a hint of hope.
‘Longing for the Past’: When the Voices of the Dead Finally Reach Us
While listening to "The Dance and Song of Laos" (1906) a haunting voice, both enticing and archaic, mingles with the crepitating noise of the antique shellac.
The Atom Bomb’s Blast Shadows
The atomic bombing of Hiroshima forever altered popular culture, and the earliest traces of that tectonic shift can be found in an obscure government report and newsreel about the event.
Invisible Factory Billionaire: The Minting of a New Post-Colonial Literary Darling Tash Aw
With the publication of his third novel, Tash Aw's celebrity status is now assured. But do the books equal the hype?
“Only God Forgives'” Weird Yet Coherent Oriental Psychedelic Noir
In Bangkok, the convulsions of violence on the street merge with scenes of surreal ritual that is possible in the West only in dreams… or drug reveries… or films.
The Blackened Eyes of the Movie Men With No Name
Akira Kurosawa’s samurai, Stuart Heisler’s gangster, Sergio Leone’s cowboy, and George Miller’s misfit suffer a similar black eye, but with dramatically different effect.