Cesar B. De Guzman (Tar) is a man of many talents and tastes. He’s an avid collector. Over the years, he has assembled an impressive collection of vintage toys, video games, vinyl records and musical instruments. S Weekly recently caught up with Tar, who was kind enough to show us his amazing toy collection.
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Toy boy
Tatat Bunnag
Cesar B. De Guzman (Tar) has been a respected figure in the Thai indie music scene for over a decade. He is probably best known for the electro-pop he has produced under his stage name Cyndi Seui. But Tar has also gained acclaim for his work as a producer with the Smallroom Music label. And he still finds time to run his own pop music label, Kitsch Cat.
Tar is a man of many talents and tastes. So it’s not surprising that he’s a lover of everything vintage. When he’s not busy making music, he’s an avid collector. Over the years, he has assembled an impressive collection of vintage toys, video games, vinyl records and musical instruments.
S Weekly recently caught up with Tar, who was kind enough to show us his amazing toy collection.
Safari Games Console
“I grew up in the era of games consoles. But I was never able to buy one because they were too expensive. I started saving money when I began working in the music industry, and this was the first console I ever bought. The games are awesome, but I also love the design, the colour and the nostalgic feeling it gives me. Toys like this inspire my music a lot too.”
Tron Action Figures
“I bought these many years ago when I was in Hong Kong with my best friend Jerry from Gramophone Children. They are some of the first action figures that were made for the movie Tron, which came out in 1982. They remind me of the wonderful time I had in Hong Kong.”
Perman Figure
“My Perman figure gives me a lot of warm memories. When I was a kid, I used to wake up early in the morning at weekends to watch the cartoon. I keep this on the wall beside my main work table in my studio.”
Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker Video Game.
“Michael Jackson is one of my top three favourite artists. He’s had a huge influence on my music. When I first played this game as a kid, it totally blew my mind. But I didn’t own my own copy because, as I said, the games were too expensive. When I finally had the money, I decided that I had to get it. I managed to hunt down this copy just a few years ago. But it wasn’t cheap. [Laughs.]”
Puzzles
“These were custom-made by a Thai designer. He runs a second-hand music shop at Pantip Plaza. I’ve known him for more than 10 years, but I only found out recently that he collects Rubik’s cubes and makes some puzzles of his own. These are two of his designs. Whenever I feel tired or uninspired, I play with them and they remind me never to give up on the music.”
Atari Game Console
“The Atari game machine is a true classic. I found this one for sale on a Thailand-based second-hand website. When I called the seller, he told me there were two other people interested in buying it and that he’d sell it to whoever got there first with 800 baht. I jumped on a motorbike and raced over there and to get it. I’m such a nerd! [Laughs.]”
Astro Boy
“This came with a happy meal set at McDonald’s. That might not seem very impressive, but it’s a rare item now. Astro Boy is one of the most popular Japanese manga series ever. It was created in the ‘50s by Osamu Tezuka and it’s still going strong. Astro Boy is kind of like a sci-fi Pinocchio. He’s got the same type of naive character. He’d rather be an ordinary human being than a robot.”
Japanese B-Movie Monster Figures
“One of my favourite hobbies is collecting figures of monsters from Japanese B-movies. It’s incredible how they came up with the designs. They don’t look scary at all, I just think they’re unique and cool. A lot of people don’t appreciate these old movie monsters, but I do. I always buy them whenever I see them. They’re all over my room.”
