The Crash Reviews

2 AM.

2010-12-09T05:13:00.000-08:00

It is two in the morning. I dismissed my trainees to have lunch. I feel exhausted. I dont know why. Have you ever felt like that too? A new review is up. Please visit www.celticmusicfan.wordpress.com

The end is here.

2010-12-06T16:39:00.000-08:00

It's the end-of another year. So many things happend. I lost a friend. I gained new ones. Life is a series of uncertainties. There will always be people you will love and those you want to murder. In the end it is just you. So the best advice I can give you? Be kind to yourself.

Trying to surf in my mobile.

2010-11-29T21:05:00.000-08:00

And trying to blog to...how are you people? Sorry it took a while. But as you remember... I met a guy by the name of Hexrex months and months ago. He was charming and kind. But there was another person vying for his attention..a lady. So I decided to go. But now I am here...

Wow Oh So Quiet

2010-07-31T06:35:00.001-07:00

Sorry I have been away. My computer is still in the repair shop. I am supposed to have an interview with Pierre but that has to wait a bit. Stay tuned.

Pierre XI the Next Generation in The Vein of Daft Punk

2010-06-16T22:06:00.000-07:00

Pierre xi is a project of a young talent who has a lot of stuff going on in his mind. It was interesting conducting a interview with him but before that let us take a lose look at the music. Personally I love electronic music especially when it that espouses amazing sounds scapes and not just doing music for the sake of dancing. You will hear a lot about our prodigy in different incarnations so just watch out.

Pierre xi is a project that is already displaying depth and texture . There are track that sound as if they’re taken out from Martian landscape. And then there are those that are at home in clubs. There is youthful vigor and palpable optimism in most of the tracks while in others there is sense of melancholy-the perfect chill out companion after retiring drunk and tired at thee in the morning.

I can sense that whatever musical project this young man will undertook , it will be a smash because you feel that passion in his every track. More at www.virb.com/pierrexi and www.myspace.com/pierrexi

You are a man of many musical tastes. It seems that when I read your profile on this one, this has really nothing to do with your other musical inclination. Do you love being exclusively in either musical worlds?(referring to electronic versus the acoustic and rock band in your other monickers).

No, I'm never exclusively in either project. It's really weird - when I'm in my electronic world, I bring in influences (melodies, harmonies, chord progressions) from my acoustic and rock projects, and when I'm in my rock and acoustic projects I like to dabble and play around with things I've learnt making electronic music. Actually, the bass player from The Final Year and I are going to the same university next year, and, facing the prospect of making music without a drummer, we've decided to try mixing alternative rock with house and electronic music. Should be interesting. Anyways, I really enjoy mixing all these worlds and projects, because if you close your mind and put yourself exclusively in one project, you end up losing a large part of your creativity, and that's never a good thing for artists of any kind!

Do you consider this as a long term persuasion, or just a fancy diversion?

This is definitely a long term thing. I'm going to university next year, studying Chemistry, but I'm never going to give up my music. Although it will be a (very) serious hobby for some time, I plan on returning to it quite seriously once I have saved enough money. My dream is to build my own studio on some of my family's property.

Can you expound on the gadgets you use to create these electronic stuff and the people involved with you in this project?

Well for my electronic project I use Ableton Live, which is an amazing Digital Audio Workstation for both Mac and PC (I use it on a MacBook Pro) especially geared towards DJs and electronic music producers (although I also use it to record my other projects). Within this software I have a huge list of free plugins that I use and combine to create what I can - I'm still learning, but every time I produce a new piece I feel like a have learnt something and accomplished something more. These plugins are everything from virtual synthesizers and instruments to digital effects. One day (again, when I have saved enough money) I plan of buying some synthesizers and analog effects. But for now this virtual stuff is serving me quite well.

You site Daft Punk as one of the primary influences which I think is interesting. But there are ambient elements in your sound that resemble what Bjork does, as well as Sigur Ros. This is heavy stuff we are talking about. Is it intentional for you to sound that way?

Well Daft Punk were the first for me - through their stuff I really discovered electronic music and what it could be, especially with Discovery, my favorite album of theirs. They were soon followed by Justice (who I was lucky to see live a couple times) and other electro in the same vein. Recently I started exploring true house and deep house music through Laurent Garnier and Deadmau5 and the like, but throughout my musical upbringing my father kept playing these ambient house and soul artists, including Bjork, and I guess their influence left a mark on my music. The sounds that come out are the closest I can get to my vision of the pieces I create, and every time I make a new piece I get closer to my vision of what my electronic sound should be. One day I feel I will produce that track that says "Yes! This is what I want to create!" and I will know I will have found my sound.

Do you plan to take this music in a way…say…releasing an EP ?

Until I make that track that I can say truly represents what I want my sound to be, I don't want to rush into producing an EP. And I haven't been producing electronic music for some time, as I've been focusing on my acoustic stuff as well as the band, but I have learnt a lot this past year, so during the summer and throughout the next few years I will be exploring my electronic side, and hopefully I will find what I want and create an EP at some point!

What’s your opinion about kids these days shooting drugs and getting the booze?

I think it's sad. There are some great examples of guys who were clean their whole lives and have made amazing music - think of Peter Gabriel and the guys from King Crimson. I really don't feel I need that influence to get me to my creative state of mind - music makes me high enough. In the end, though, I feel like there's nothing I can really do but sit here and tell them it's sad, because they have control over their own lives, and they are the ones screwing themselves up. All I can do is tell them that it's not good for them and that they don't need it, but that's about it. Drinking is even worse, in a way, because I go to parties these days and you see people drinking to get drunk - rich kids drinking 40 or 50 dollar bottles of hard liquor and not even appreciating it. As a European, that hurts. We were always brought up to appreciate and enjoy alcohol and food. I go to a party, and I'll drink, but I'll really try to appreciate it, and if I get drunk it won't be until very late (think 3 or 4 in the morning). Meanwhile, you're with a bunch of kids who are smashed at 10 or 11 o'clock. It's lame.

When not creating music what do you do to chill out?

I chill with my awesome friends, the guys in the band, and of course my wonderful girlfriend. We watch movies and listen to music. A lot of music. We go outside and do some pretty ridiculous things, and think we're invincible. I think eventually one of us is going to get hurt but we're probably going to keep going until someone actually does. Otherwise there's the necessary studying and working in order to keep all my dreams alive!

Any musical gadget you own that you are really proud of?

My father's (now mine) 30-year-old Yamaha FG-335 acoustic guitar. In relation to the electronic stuff specifically, not yet. But hopefully soon!

Are you into buying pricey music stuff?

I'm into buying quality music stuff, and usually that means pricey (unfortunately). Whenever I'm going to buy something music related I do some extensive research as to which is the best for its price. I never over-spend because I know how much I want to spend and so I get the best I can for that price. However, I usually give myself a good amount to spend so I'm sure that I will be getting something that is high quality.

Message to your listeners?

Whoever listens to any of my stuff - first and foremost: enjoy it! This is my gift to you, to the world, and I want everyone who listens to it to enjoy the experience it provides. If it's not your cup of tea, that's alright too, just don't yell at me for making it. Also, don't be shy to contact me and give me some constructive criticism - there's nothing more useful that a fan or a listener or a fellow musician giving me pointers as to what to try and what to avoid. I'm still learning so I want everyone to give me feedback so I can get better. So don't be shy to get it contact with me! If you have the financial capacities, I also wouldn't mind a little donation to the cause by paying a little something for my album over at pierrotechnique.bandcamp.com! But that's not the main focus. Above all, I want you all to enjoy everything I make!

Hope that answers everything!

Pierre.

Pierre XI the Next Generation in The Vein of Daft Punk

2010-06-16T22:02:00.001-07:00

Do you consider this as a long term persuasion, or just a fancy diversion?

Can you expound on the gadgets you use to create these electronic stuff and the people involved with you in this project?

Do you plan to take this music in a way…say…releasing an EP ?

What’s your opinion about kids these days shooting drugs and getting the booze?

When not creating music what do you do to chill out?

Any musical gadget you own that you are really proud of?

My father's (now mine) 30-year-old Yamaha FG-335 acoustic guitar. In relation to the electronic stuff specifically, not yet. But hopefully soon!

Are you into buying pricey music stuff?

Message to your listeners?

Pierre Masse's Situations

2010-06-07T18:38:00.000-07:00

I recently discovered a talented young man by the name of Pierre Masse http://www.myspace.com/pierrotechnique. He’s originally from Canada but moved to France- the native land of his father. There he listened to his dad’s records and fell in love with French music. He has a band-The Final Year and also dabbles with electronic music under Pierre XI. He is now living in Canada for six years .
Pierre’s soul comes pouring in his solo project called Situations, his debut record sold independently, which you can also download at bandcamp. It’s stripped off acoustic based approach allows listener to get to the lyrics as well as his fresh voice as he sing about life, relationships, modern technology and how these things tend to alienate people instead of bringing them together. The simplicity of the tracks allows listener to remove the barriers that can distract them and really get into the core of each songs. It’s like having a friend who just dropped by sing you his songs. And yes, it’s like you know the person who sings these songs because there are no pretentions present in his recordings.
In the spirit of indie, his talent shines because he does everything himself. And he is passionate to get his message across. At an age when everyone likes to bum around, have an awful good time and just talk about mundane stuff, Pierre is beyond that all that. He looks at the bigger picture. His guitar playing is pristine and he has this humour that is infectious.

Why I love Lifehouse

2010-03-28T23:20:00.000-07:00

Lifehouse is a kind of band that appeals mostly to girls. The songs are sensitive and the members have the kind of looks that any mom would not fear of losing their girl's virginity to. Well not literally . I remember one time during the early part of the decade. I was playing their first album. My friend Kenneth pointed out to me that they're like boy bands. I said no. But then he made me realize that a lot of grls were compairing Jason Wade to Alex Band of The Calling. And He's got a point.

Ten years later the band has a new album out called Smoke and Mirrors. Everything about it is beautiful. The songs are a combination of sad tunes and topics like falling in love and missing someone. This is something that any hard rock fan would not dig. These are sensitive stuff . And the guys are exuding positivity.
Yes they haven't been involved in any major controversy that hits any rock band. These guys are responsible and they just love writing and performing music. The same formula that made them stick around while their contemporares are all gone.

I am a sucker for sad atmospheric tunes. Songs driven by harmony and melody. Good songs that aren't really controversial. Just the kind of songs that will stick around fo a decade or two. So I dig Lifehouse too.

90s Flashback :Garbage

2010-03-23T05:23:00.000-07:00

Let's just say I am one of those who fell for the wickedly adorable Shirley Manson. She 's a Scot and her dad's a Genetic Scientist who is one of those responsible for the cloned sheep Dolly. Garbage provided a perfect mood for my danger baiting years and love for dark aural matter.
.
So aside from reading about serial killers and vampires, the lyrics of Shirley Manson provides a perfect backdrop for the decadent decade.She got into acting and started in The Terminator series (th Sarah Connor chronicles ..or something like that) but which I never got to watch because we have no cable TV.Tsk tsk tsk!

Mike Verde in ReverbNation

2010-03-23T05:14:00.000-07:00

I got to listen to all tracks of Mike Verde on ReverbNation and I like them. They have a bit of Sigur Ros feel on them and Aphex Twin. Mike creates tracks that are sonically clear and atmospheric. Makes one want to get back for more:
http://www.reverbnation.com/artist/artist_songs/112274#/mikeverde

Trippin' with Jack Kerouac

2010-03-20T06:53:00.000-07:00

I am in the middle of this insanely beautiful book On the Road by Jack Kerouac. I wish I was born way back when beatniks were the hip crowd. I love the fact that the passages are very familiar and his prose are really honest to a point that they are sometimes shocking. All those revelations. I will never look at any grand daddy the same way again hahahahaha.

On the Road is about a friendship created by these outcast characters. Jack speaks to Sal, the main character. He has a friend Dean(Neal Cassady in real life) who switches between two women in one night. Talk about sex , drugs and rock n' roll here. The novel also boasts of jazz music and the likes or Miles Davies and Charlie Parker. Man, I had to dig out old recordings just to hear that mourful jazz music from the 50s. Carlo Marx in the novel is actually Allen Ginsberg.

I can't wait to finish this one so I can post up a formal review. You can also find great info in this link:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/On_the_Road

Hmmmm..Mike Verde's Quirky Beats Color the Cyberspace

2010-03-19T22:04:00.000-07:00

I like chilled beats. I'm not much of a dancer but I love to dance on a chair ;) It's such a blessing when Chad pointed my attention to this electronic artist from Vancouver Canada.

Summer Nights is a quirky track which sounds like something you'd hear out of a computer game. The punishing drum parts in the middle makes it something like artist Beck would do minus the vocals. All pure fun with no strings attached.

Riding my Bike at night is trippy and as the title says, a perfect cruising track.

Acid Tapes Cabin Acid-Trance on acid. A perfect R2D2 companion. My folks were curious with the sound emanating from my laptop as I am writing this review and listening to the music. It is a kind of music I can relate too. Not dark or heavy. Just pure goodness fun.

Check out
http://www.myspace.com/mikeverde

Canadian Chad Paquet making a promising music

2010-03-19T06:55:00.000-07:00

Chad Paquet is from Canada and he makes amazing music. He laces his ballads with comedy. But wait a second. He is a serious musician. His style is a combination of easy alternative,folk ,jazz and funk. And this guy can cook a mean cuisine. So, will there be new tracks or maybe a full EP coming from Chad? Only time will tell. Please check out his songs on myspace:(on the pic Chad and sister Emily)

http://www.myspace.com/chadpaquet

Royal Wood

2010-03-16T12:35:00.000-07:00

Wow I haven't got such a treat since Ben Folds Five . Royal Wood makes a kind of music that is suited for heartbreaks or for simply lying down on the coach on a lazy afternoon. I love his piano playing and a voice that might have come from black and white films. If you are in the mood, you might want to check Royal Wood out.

http://www.myspace.com/royalwood

Sade is Back with Weapons of Mass Hypnosis

2010-03-02T10:31:00.000-08:00

I am looking forward to getting Sade's new album Soldier of Love. I am not much of a soul music fan because I was brought up to a different kind of musical culture. I personally ban all rap and hip hop music at home. But then again there is something about Sade's music that speaks to me. Perhaps it is her innate sense of elegance and propensity for writing about pain that really get to me. Her voice s not something that you would really call 'showcase vocals' because it is laid back . But after hearing too many Celine Dions and Mariah Carey, this is a breath of fresh air!

Sade is still in top form and to think this lady is already 51! She is still backed witht he same musicians since she launched her first highly successful album Diamond Life in 1984. After waiting for 10 years(Her last album was Lovers Rock) this is a great news .

ZADE, renowned Jordanian composer and pianist, presents "a message of peace to the world" with new CD‏

2010-02-05T02:11:00.000-08:00

I received an email from a reader regarding a unique musician. I think it would be marvelous to highlight such talent here:

Hi,

Renowned Jordanian composer and pianist, ZADE has joined with 100 musicians from 40 nations to present “a message of peace to the world” in ZADE – One Night In Jordan: A Concert for Peace out on CD February 9th and to be released on DVD on March 9th.

ZADE’S cinematic music blending East and West draws inspiration from the anthems of the great film composers, his homeland’s natural beauty and the efforts of His Majesty the late King Hussein of Jordan to make peace in the Middle East.

The epic music event features musicians from around the world including; London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Voices Choir, virtuoso violinists Karen Briggs (Soul II Soul, Wynton Marsalis) and Grammy winner Charlie Bisharat (Elton John, Black-Eyed Peas), Ramon Stagnaro on Spanish guitar (Josh Groban, Shakira) and world music woodwind maestro Pedro Eustache (Paul McCartney and Don Henley) all performing ZADE’S uplifting compositions at one of the world’s largest remaining Roman Amphitheatres, built nearly 2,000 years ago.

I have advance copies of One Night In Jordan: A Concert for Peace for review. Below is a link to additional assets. Please let me know if you are interested in featuring ZADE.

Download (cover art, photos, bio and press release):

http://www.specialopsmedia.com/assets/Zade/Assets.zip

One Night In Jordan: A Concert for Peace Preorder Link:

http://zade.shop.musictoday.com/Dept.aspx?cp=29054_29206

Zade’s official site:

http://www.zade.com

FaceBook:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/ZADE/189051320768?ref=ts

MySpace:

http://www.myspace.com/zade_zdrecords
iLike:

http://www.ilike.com/artist/Zade

ZADE - One Night in Jordan: A Concert for Peace

Epic Music Event featuring Musicians from Around the World Performing in The Name of Peace at Historic Roman Amphitheatre to air on PBS in 2010.

Concert CD from ZD Records, Distributedby EMI,

to be released in the US on February 9th, 2010, followed by the DVD release.

LOS ANGELES – Named by the Washington Post as a "gorgeous pianist/composer/hunk," and recognized by The Washington Times as "Jordan’s leading Cultural Ambassador (who) dedicates his music to building bridges of peace and tolerance," the young Jordanian composer and pianist ZADE makes his television performance debut joined by one hundred musicians from 40 nations to present “a message of peace to the world” in ZADE – One Night In Jordan: A Concert for Peace airing as a PBS special in 2010. The CD and the DVD of the concert will be released in the US on February 9th, 2010, followed by an international tour by ZADE in Spring, 2010.

The composer’s epic cinematic music blending East and West draws inspiration from the anthems of the great film composers, his homeland’s natural beauty and the efforts of His Majesty the late King Hussein of Jordan to make peace in the Middle East. Recently, ZADE and some of the world’s finest musicians – including London’s renowned Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Voices Choir, virtuoso violinists Karen Briggs (Soul II Soul, Wynton Marsalis) and Grammy winner Charlie Bisharat (Elton John, Black-Eyed Peas), Ramon Stagnaro on Spanish guitar (Josh Groban, Shakira) and world music woodwind maestro Pedro Eustache (Paul McCartney and Don Henley) traveled to Jordan to present an uplifting and majestic musical journey of ZADE’S compositions at one of the world’s largest remaining Roman Amphitheatres in the world, built nearly 2,000 years ago.

This monumental concert television event was filmed in HD, under the patronage of Her Royal Highness Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein and dedicated in loving memory of His Majesty the late King Hussein of Jordan. It was one of the biggest, if not the biggest, ever concert staged in Jordan.

Following the live concert, ZADE was flooded with emails from Jordanian fans urging him to “tell the world that we want peace,” while thanking him for “giving us back the hope we have sometimes lost.”

While The Los Angeles Times noted that for ZADE, “making music and advocating world peace go hand in hand,” People Magazine lauded ZADE as a piano prodigy. No stranger to U.S. audiences, ZADE’s previous albums have spent months on the U.S. Billboard charts – beginning in 2003 with his self-titled debut – and his wild popularity in Jordan helped his albums reach No. 1 on the Jordanian Album Charts.

Music featured on ZADE – One Night in Jordan: A Concert For Peace includes original compositions that ZADE composed and produced ranging from his signature epic “Kingdom of Peace,” to the Latin inspired “Tango,” the energetic “Amman,” and the reflective “Santiago’s Dream,” inspired by the book “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho.

America’s love affair with ZADE began in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Feeling that “terrorists have hijacked my religion,” ZADE began a humble grassroots effort to create a better understanding of his culture in the West by performing house concerts across America. Playing in people’s living rooms, churches, temples, schools, and hospitals, he toured non-stop from 2001 till 2005, performing an average of 200 nights a year and earning praise for his efforts to combat world polarization. These earnest community concerts for peace catapulted the artist onto the world stage, ZADE has performed before Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Nelson Mandela, the Dalai Lama, First Lady Laura Bush, and their Majesties Jordan’s King Abdullah and Queen Rania.

In 2005, ZADE established the ZADE Foundation for International Peace and Understanding, a U.S. non-profit organization helping musicians expand their role to become proactive peace builders and future community leaders. Under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan, and with support from Berklee College of Music and Seeds of Peace, ZADE toured with musicians from around the world. Not only did the concerts feature artists from war-torn regions working together through music, but each stop of the tour included different cultural workshops in which band members were able to talk about their experiences growing up in their respective countries. The performances and workshops had a positive affect: a performance at a Washington, DC area synagogue prompted a new dialogue between the Muslim and Jewish communities in the area, the tour helped launch The Boniuk Center for Religious Tolerance at Rice University, as well as the creation of The Peace Song Initiative in Detroit, MI.

ZADE studied Western and Middle Eastern music composition and piano

performance at Noor Al Hussein’s National Music Conservatory in Amman, Jordan and later continued his studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

ZADE – One Night in Jordan: A Concert for Peace features band members including John Robinson (Drums), Walter Rodriguez (Latin Percussion), Frank Crawford (Keyboards), Michael Thompson (Electric Guitar), John Peña (Bass Guitar), Gary Innes (Accordion), Lilit Khojayan (Qanoon), and Nasser Salameh (Middle Eastern percussion).

Executive Producers are Danny O’Donovan and Gustavo Sagastume; Producer: Danny O’Donovan; Associate Producer: Betsey Kamel; Director: Steve Purcell. A presentation of WLIW21 in association with WNET.ORG.

Cheers!

Becky

Well, I hope this one will bring our readers new musical discovery worth hearing and talking about .

The Killers Live in the Philippines

2009-12-12T07:29:00.001-08:00

Wow January is going to be huge. The band The Killers will be here live in Manila!

The Very Best of Enya

2009-12-10T02:00:00.001-08:00

I am so excited about the collector's edition. I read from amazon that there is even a 12- inch vinyl.

Whatever It Takes and Somewhere In Between by Lifehouse(Unplugged)

2009-11-12T20:26:00.000-08:00

Lifehouse may not be the band critics either love to bash or adore. But there is something in Jason Wade's songwriting that takes me deep. Here are two videos taken from VH-1 Unplugged from October 2007 .They don't label themselves as a Christian band because they feel it excludes people who are not Christians.

New single from Lifehouse off New Album Out!

2009-11-05T22:03:00.000-08:00

Yes folks. The band is back. And they are rocking more than ever. I heard the song "Halfway Gone" off the band's myspace page and what can I say? I like it. It has a bit of the old Lifehouse and the more experimental off the terrain of Snow Patrol there.

You can get more info here:http://www.myspace.com/lifehouse

Picture courtesy of the band's myspace page.

Masskara Festival 2009

2009-10-19T01:36:00.000-07:00

The biggest event in my hometown is here. Sorry to be too lazy to mak a coverage. I work at night so there is no WAY I can be there. But for those who are curious...I will let you in for details:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MassKara_Festival

Within Temptation: The Silent Force Tour

2009-09-25T03:33:00.000-07:00

Sharon den Adel shines in this wonderful album as a lead vocalist. The Silent Force was released in 2004 . The band's operatic and black metal influences earned them cult following from around the globe. The Silent Force is very much recommended if you want your black metal ethereal and a truly grand listening experience.

Labyrinthine Heart by Sleepthief Now Out

2009-09-21T02:22:00.000-07:00

Long wait is over. The much awaited follow up to Dawnseeker is up for grabs. You can purchase the wonderful album Labyrinthine Heart at amazon.com. Don't forget to read the Interview I did for Justin Elswick, the man behind Sleepthief.

Vienna Teng-Inland Territory

2009-09-20T18:04:00.000-07:00

Korean-American Vienna Teng still continues to weave wonderful tapestry of melodies in her latest offering Inland Territory under Zoe, Rounder records. The album is recorded over five months in four cities.

The Last Snow Fall opens with that sampled crackling sounds found in vinyl records. It is a gradual song embellish by oohs and ahhs amidst her sweet sounding voice.

White Light is an upbeat pop tune that comes to mind Vanessa Carlton's territory. The blues guitar works fine here along with the synthesizers. The lyrics deals with the push and pull of relationships.

Antebellum is opened by piano flourishes. Her legato is excellent. When she hits that high tender note, it is so exquisite that it makes you really want to open your heart and seize the day. This is the style she has been known for, starting with her previous albums and this is her strong point. The orchestral sweep is cinematic and she can really belt out a tune considering that she is a pianist.

Kansas has that waltzing tempo set about by the cymbals. There is a lounge bluesy feeling that predominates the entire song.

In Another Life Calls to mind that Mary Hopkins song in the 70s "Those Were the Days" with the snazzy brass ensemble and jaunty piano.

Grandmother Song is something totally new and different. Here she calls her live gang to perform the hand claps, the drums as well as the brass on the back up. You can hear people hooting throughout the entire song. You can tell that this has been recorded in a totally natural environment. The absence of her piano makes this song really different. But it works!

Stray Italian Greyhound is back to her territory of wonderful melodies and tinkling piano lines. Again, the introduction of the sweeping strings and walkabout tempo calls to mind those walks on the beach and lazy afternoons.

Augustine has that swirlling harmony of voices. The beat has that anticipation to it before hitting the beautiful climax of the song as she sings "ooohhh breaking down,". This is Vienna at her best.

No Gringo opens with a gentle tambourine. Solemn piano follows. Snare drums lead the verse into a breaking harmony . Again the presence of hand claps and orchestra makes the song a grand piece.

Watershed is a kind a gradual song that builds into an anthem.

Radio recaps Whitelight's upbeat spirit and the quirky atmosphere of Grandmother Song. Again the abundance of syncopated and poly rhythm makes it a slightly uneasy on the end.

St. Stephen's Cross closes this album.Again it's a nice slow tune . Something that you bring along when you walk in the park.

Vienna Teng has the versatility that can match Tori Amos' piano playing and a heavenly voice of Sarah Mclachlan. Fans and new ears will most like buy this album for it's overall chill out effect. But for those who appreciate beautiful music in terms of skill and artistry, this is also something for you. Though I'd say her previous efforts are those I gravitate more on, but hey nothing is wrong with an artist evolving and going on to new territories right?

Weird Products for Weird Buyers@ amazon.com

2009-09-19T11:34:00.000-07:00

Are you a strange buyer? Do you adhere to what's conventional or do you go further. Some people buy it for kicks some buy it because they REALLY need it. Check this out and you might find what you want :)

http://www.amazon.com/The-Weird-World-Of/lm/R3V6BQ2PE4RV7T

The Fizz Cup (weird)

2009-09-19T11:26:00.000-07:00

I thought this is a joke but if you check http://www.thefizzcup.com ten you know this is really selling well. It says The Fizz iz the ultimate ice cream party idea. Just fill the Fizz cup with ice cream, twist it onto your favorite soda, and slurp it up. Root beer, cola, orange soda — try them all with your reuseable Fizz cup!

Would you? Could you?

More strange product on this site: http://www.strangenewproducts.com/

KEXP 90.3 from Seattle Washington

2009-09-18T22:53:00.000-07:00

Here's the coolest radio station in Seattle Washington,KEXP 90.3. It plays a variety of never heard anywhere music from indie bands…ok tell me what you know about Black Mountain , Clearlake and Camera? KEXP also plays some British music like those from Radiohead and The Charlattans. New Music has always been a source of fascination to me…while on the other hand keeping a firm root to my Celticism.

It’s great to be able to listen to radio stations not from your own country because it gives one a wide perspective about the musical culture in other parts of the world. My musical taste has always been predominantly European but I am now going back to American music which was first spawned by the Grunge culture of the early nineties.Yes American music is cool…as long as it is indie.
(On the pic: DJ John Richards Variety Mix, The Morning Show Mon-Fri 6-10AM)

Two Suns by Bat for Lashes

2009-09-18T22:07:00.000-07:00

Original Release Date: April 7, 2009
Indie,Pop,Alternative,Rock

The first thing that came to mind when I saw her was: OMG she looks like Lily Allen. Natasha Khan who’s project is Bat for lashes creates amazing atmospheric music in the vein of Kate Bush and Clannad. I chanced upon her through you tube. She's wearing this 80's 'Footloose' getup haunted by men-shaped shadows. That video Daniel made me want to learn about the album more. The cover reminds me of Vegas for some reason.

Two Suns opens with Glass. A gradual sound that moves into a climax of tribal beats. This is where the Kate Bush reference comes up. Acoustic and synthesizers merge to create an ethnic and ethereal feel; highlighted by her heavenly wails.

Sleep Alone has that reggae meets early Goth feel. When she sings "Lonely, Lonely..." Occasional choral aaahhhs' embellish the tune with a suspense cinematic flavor.

Moon and Moon has that haunting resemblance to the intro to 10,000 Maniacs' Because the Night only that this is gradual and fluid. Again there's that backing vocals that sounds to me like Philip Glass meets the Beach Boys. There's also hints of operatic soprano doing a vocalise. But it's a brief song.

Daniel has a strong 80s feel. From what I've read it's a tribute to Ralph Macchio's Character in Karate Kid. Just watch the video and you will see the strong reference that I am talking about. Somehow it reminds me of "Running Up the Hill" by Kate Bush only that Natasha's vocals are gentler and more Moya Brennan. The synths are what you will expect in such eighties arrangements . There's also strong pizzicato that calls to mind Enya's style of composition.

Peace of Mind is something that never sticks with me. The odd scale makes it uneasy . The gospel type choral singing sounds off on this one. I don't know, it's just me I guess.

Siren Song gives back the moment taken by the previous song, with the beautiful floral flourishes of the piano . The 'easy' listening is however trampled by the disturbing chorus that sounds more Diamanda Galas ...

Pearl's Dream opens with a downbeat . "There's a place I must go, There's a place I must go" She sings in the opening track. This is the kind you would listen to on a late night run. Again it almost gets you to that pinnacle of listening experience but somehow it is off.

Good Love opens with a 'funebre' synth style that is more 60's horror film sounding . Again so far this does not topple the standard set by "Daniel'. But what she lacks for musical consistency she compliments through her hypnotic narrative. "The house set fire to my heart.." Awesome.

Two Suns opens with a poetry but I forgot by whom. Anyway, again there's that poly-rhythm and ethnic feel.

Travelling Woman has tempo akin to most songs present in Natalie Merchant's debut Tiger Lily. Again the melody is off. For some reason I suspect that Natasha Khan hates to sound sweet.

Big Sleep is perhaps intended to be a lullaby. But that male vocal sounds like a disturbing attempt to sound Broadway. You don't want to listen to this on you way to sleep.

Overall, I still think that two Suns is a rewarding experience if your expectations are met. Her voice is superb and I think I prefer her's than Kate Bush. But unlike Kate Bush, Enya and Liz Fraser who carved the road behind them, Ms Khan has to work hard to prove herself. Otherwise she's just a second rate copy cat.

Roquefort Blue Cheese

2009-09-18T14:15:00.000-07:00

Enough with all the Art and on with Food. Yummmm...Weekends are complete when one can make a simple snack out of crackers, salad and blue cheese. My fave brand is Roquefort Blue Cheese which I acquired while living in Manila along with eating the smelly Dorian fruit. I admit I grow restless after tasting the same ol' thing . Having something 'different ' can be a refreshing experience.

Here's one interesting video.

How to make a Cornucopia Video

2009-09-18T14:03:00.000-07:00

I haven't done this but seeing this guy's expertise just gave me the spirit.I can't wait for the season to make one of these babies.

From Wiki:

The cornucopia (Latin: Cornu Copiae) is a symbol of food and abundance dating back to the 5th century BC, also referred to as horn 'o' plenty, Horn of Amalthea, and harvest cone.

In Greek mythology, Amalthea was a goat who raised Zeus on her breast milk. When her horn was accidentally broken off by Zeus while playing together, the god in remorse gave her back her horn with the power to give to the person in possession of it whatever he or she wished for. This gave rise to the legend of the cornucopia. The original depictions were of the goat's horn filled with fruits and flowers: deities, especially Fortuna, would be depicted with the horn of plenty. The cornucopia was also a symbol for a woman's fertility.

In modern depiction, the cornucopia is typically a hollow, horn-shaped wicker basket typically filled with various kinds of festive fruit and vegetables. In North America, the cornucopia has come to be associated with Thanksgiving and the harvest.

Cornucopia is also the name of Whistler's annual Wine and Food celebration held in November.

Two cornucopias are seen in the flag and state seal of Idaho. There is also one seen in the state seal of North Carolina, as well in Peruvian Official Shield.

Jack Kerouac Reads from "On The Road"

2009-09-18T13:58:00.000-07:00

You can't love Jazz music without knowing Jack Kerouac, the literary icon of the Beat generation. He is one of the people I would like to party with on the other side. But who knows? I might meet his spirit this coming Halloween which is a few months ahead..

You can check out his books here.

Supernatural

2009-09-17T16:25:00.000-07:00

For anyone who has an affiliation with the scary and the strange, this is your ticket. Just make sure to turn the lights off on a rainy night and cover your legs with that comfy blanket.It works. I'm talking about this ongoing Warner Bros series, Supernatural. It's scary but aside from that it has a cool sense of humor. It stars Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki as brothers Sam and Dean Winchester.

When their mother died in 1983 following the demonic presence in their bedroom, their father turned into a bounty hunter tracking down the very demon responsible for the death of his wife. Unlike Dean who never planned of leaving the family, Sam got into law school only to encounter the same tragedy that happened 22 years earlier. Every episode shows the contrast between the two brothers(Dean's into 80's rock metal).

All types of beings from urban legends will be encountered as you watch along each episode. Sam discoveres a psychic ability that will become a turning point as this show progresses into a climax.The special effects are ok. This is the best things that happened to television since the X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Introduction to The Orchids of Asia written by: Mark L Isaac-Williams

2009-09-17T16:18:00.000-07:00

Australian botanist, illustrator and photographer Mark Isaac-Williams wrote this comprehensive guide to orchids.This wonderful hardcover(Angus and Robertson) is 261 pages with colour illustrations that would give the newbie a wonderful introduction to the more than 25,000 species of orchids existing in the world today. It was inspired by his travels to South East Asia ; from the famous Kadoorie Farm and Gardens of Hogkong , to the Orchid Society of Bagiou Philippines.This is a rare and wonderful book aimed for coffee tables as well as for academic research. It has this wonderful quote from Confucius :"The acquaintance of a good man was like entering a room full of [orchids]".

Landslide by Fleetwood Mac

2009-09-17T16:11:00.000-07:00

I heard this Fleetwood Mac song back when I was growing up but I never paid so much attention until Smashing Pumpkins did a remake and I started going through the lyrics. I felt the tremor as Stevie Nicks sang the lines:

oh, mirror in the sky -what is love?
-can the child within my heart rise above?
-can I sail thru the changin' ocean tides?
-can I handle the seasons of my life?

I don't know..... It's got to be one of those life-changing songs that make you think about Joni Mitchel's Both Sides Now and Sandy Denny's Who Knows Where the Time Goes

Resident Evil (Extinction)

2009-09-17T07:33:00.000-07:00

Milla Jovovitch kicks ass in the tradition of Segourney Weaver (Alien) and Linda Hamilton(Terminator). She has mystique whose closer rivals would have to be Greta Garbo and Ingrid Bergman. It was The Fifth Element that introduced Milla as the action heroine but other than giving kicks and punches she has that emotional depth we found in Joan of Arch.Yes Milla Milla Milla is the best.

1.Plot: The storyline follows her departure from her companions with the hope of bringing down the Umbrella Corporation lead by the murderous Robert Wesker.While travelling the Nevada wasteland she teams up with her long lost companions battling killer crows and genetically enhanced zombies.

2.What to see: The stunts are cool. We see Milla in her perfect form . I like that part when the killer Crows attack. That's riveting. I also like that part when she fights the zombies on the Las Vegas ruins.That's flawless!

Mary Fahl: From the Dark Side of the Moon

2009-09-17T07:26:00.000-07:00

I have never really gotten into Pink Floyd's music until the later part of the 90s when I met a musician from Prague by the name of Floydie. Although there were endless hours of chat about music (he's also a guitarist)it soon escalated into trading of recorded materials. He recorded me songs he composed and even dedicated one instrumental track for me :Man On The Road". I sent him my original materials which was received with favorable reaction.

  I lost contact with Floydie when he got married and also when I moved to Manila. But hearing Pink Floyd reminds me of him and our friendship at that time. That's why when the buzz in the internet about Mary Fahl doing a song by song interpretation of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon finally came I was so excited. I truly admire her work with October Project and as a solo artist. I wasn't disappointed when I got to hear the copy from a friend. unfortunately, it seems that V2 records folded up even before the album was released and a limited promotional copy is still out there somewhere but it looks like some online stores will sell it to you at $48.00.

  Mary Fahl has an exquisite voice. Gifted with a big contralto, and vocal abilities, she proved to be the only one on her field. As one critic noted, She has the nuance of Enya, the power of Celine Dion and the mystique of Lisa Gerrard. From the Dark Side of the Moon, is more electronic and ambient oriented .There are critics out there who said it's chaotic and goes nowhere. All I can say is that these critics who think so are musical idiots. They don't know what beautiful music is even if it is already kicking their foreheads.

  There are standout tracks here like” Great Gig in the Sky' where she swoons into aria-like onomatopoeia, and then wine meets cigarettes of "Money" which showcases her jazz influences when he spent time in Holland singing in a band composed of expatriate musicians. This is a special project worth hearing for years to come.

Rick Springfield's Working Class Dog on Vinyl

2009-09-17T06:47:00.000-07:00

I finally unearthed my Rick Springfield record Working Class Dog circa 1980.The sleeve looked dusty and I had to wipe the surface of the vinyl. I got the inspiration after seeing him appear twice in the Wonder Woman series from 1977-78 second and third season .The last time was on this episode called "Amazon Hotwax" where he played a band member backing Lynda Carter while she was doing her recording (since she posed as a detective trying to uncover a recording hoax.Well my my , I knew Lynda Carter was a singer too but to actually hear her is a different experience.She has a beautiful voice).That episode was perhaps a way to promote her solo album called "Portrait" released in 1978 and she actually wrote 3 songs in the album but I am yet to own the album.

Rick Springfield not only plays the guitar and keys on his recordings in his career , he is also a good lyricist."Jessie's Girl" is what I played again and again. Unlike most television actors out there, Rick can REALLY sing and compose as well. I think he has been blessed for years and years being able to work with different musicians and appearing on different TV shows as well as movies.

Dusk and Summer Artist: Dashboard Confessional

2009-09-17T03:50:00.000-07:00

Tracks: 1. Don't Wait 2. Reason To Believe 3. Secret's In The Telling, 4. Stolen 5. Rooftops & Invitations 6. So Long, So Long 7. Currents 8. Slow Decay 9. Dusk & Summer 10. Heaven Here

Dashboard Confessional: Chris Carrabba (vocals, guitar, keyboards); John Lefler (guitar, keyboards); Scott Schoenbeck (bass guitar); Mike Marsh (drums, percussion). Additional personnel include: Adam Duritz (vocals). Recording information: Avatar Studios, New York, New York.

Emo God Chris Carrabba has once again weaved a tale and longing and rage in this 4th full length album . He sounds desperate, even frantic in tracks like Don't Wait and Reason to Believe but finds nuance in heartfelt songs like Slow Decay and Heaven Here. The predominantly jangly guitar that has been the signature of the band is till present, however this album could have been better if it has not been too 'clever'. I still see a little resemblance of that primal rage found in Swiss Army Romance and Places you've Come To Fear The Most. I just hope Mr Carrabba never loses his edge. I think this is a good album to listen to while driving home or when you are alone at home watching people in your neighborhood smootch and you feel weird because you don't have a partner so it's either A.You are ugly B.You are just a helpless son of a bitch C You look like you ate a lizard and D.You are gay and no one wants to date you . Either way, this is a good album to let the afternoon pass you by and hope that the next summer is more promising that the previous.

River by Joni Mitchell

2009-09-17T02:57:00.000-07:00

Joni Mitchell continues to write songs that are not only felt and understood by women but also cuts deep in any heart. Take for instance "River" Its coming on christmas Theyre cutting down trees ,Theyre putting up reindeer ,And singing songs of joy and peace, Oh I wish I had a river, I could skate away on, But it dont snow here, It stays pretty green, Im going to make a lot of money ,Then Im going to quit this crazy scene, I wish I had a river I could skate away on..... Not only they appear to be auto biographical but they are also an excursion into self...the conflict between the super ego and the id to quote from Freud.I think the one that stayed with me for so long would have to be the done- to- death "Both Sides Now'.

I admit I love the Judy Collins version because she has an amazing voice and she put harpsichord on it-one of my favorite keyboard instruments. The songs are not intrusive because of the arrangement . She doesn't over blow them with orchestra, saxophones or electric guitars. These are songs composed decades ago but they don't sound 'old'.I have been a slob today in front of my computer listening to her.If you are not into folk and jazz then it would be hard to get into her. You have to have a wide appreciation of music to know where her creative ideas come from. more Joni Mitchell resources can be found here:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joni_Mitchell

The Smiths - There is a Light That Never Goes Out

2009-09-16T22:47:00.000-07:00

I am paying tribute to one of my fave bands called The Smiths. I grew up somewhere along the late eighties and early nineties so pretty much of what I listened to at that time was New Wave but then I rediscovered them in the late 90's when when i heard most of Morissey's solo efforts I took heavy interests in bands like U2 and The Wild Swans.
In terms of wit and sarcasm, I don't think there is anybody who could match Morrissey's.For me, his works are pure genius.

There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

Take me out tonight
Where theres music and theres people
And theyre young and alive
Driving in your car
I never never want to go home
Because I havent got one
Anymore

Take me out tonight
Because I want to see people and i
Want to see life
Driving in your car
Oh, please dont drop me home
Because its not my home, its their
Home, and Im welcome no more

And if a double-decker bus
Crashes into us
To die by your side
Is such a heavenly way to die
And if a ten-ton truck
Kills the both of us
To die by your side
Well, the pleasure - the privilege is mine

Take me out tonight
Take me anywhere, I dont care
I dont care, I dont care
And in the darkened underpass
I thought oh god, my chance has come at last
(but then a strange fear gripped me and i
Just couldnt ask)

Take me out tonight
Oh, take me anywhere, I dont care
I dont care, I dont care
Driving in your car
I never never want to go home
Because I havent got one, da ...
Oh, I havent got one

And if a double-decker bus
Crashes into us
To die by your side
Is such a heavenly way to die
And if a ten-ton truck
Kills the both of us
To die by your side
Well, the pleasure - the privilege is mine

Oh, there is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out
There is a light and it never goes out

Bitterroot Landing by Sheri Reynolds

2009-09-16T22:41:00.000-07:00

  Last time I posted Sheri Reynolds' Firefly Cloak. This time I want to highlight her first novel BitterRoot Landing. My desire for reading started in grade school, when I saw my folks with books in their hands when they're not doing something.We had shelves of books in our old house in Hervias , Bacolod City and those were the years that really made a good impression on me. It was perhaps around 1980 up to 1983 before we moved to a new place and after that, I started 3rd grade.

  The first book I ever read was an Alfred Hitchcock novel called "The Case of a Stuttering Parrot" and I think I was in 4rth grade at that time. It was quite a personal triumph for me at that age to finish a novel of about more than 200 pages . There was also Shakespear's Hamlet around but I never really picket it up until much later.
Right now my TV is busted which is probably a good thing because at least I was able to finish one novel.This book is called(again) BitterRoot Landing by Sheri Reynolds.This haunting novel was written from a point of view of an incest survivor by the name of Jael. She grew up in a remote place called Bitter Root somewhere in the South.
She hear's voices in her head, and these voices are sometimes hopeful; sometimes they are scary.

I am going to put here the review from amazon.com in case you guys are interested to purchase this wonderful book. I got this hard cover copy (With a different design than the one in amazon) at the Metropolis in Alabang when Crissy and I had nothing to do but just walk around and do some window shopping.
http://www.amazon.com/Bitterroot-Landing-Sheri-Reynolds/dp/042516246X/ref=si3_rdr_bb_product/104-4737899-5813541?ie=UTF8
Here's the link to her website:http://sherireynolds.com/

  In the end we walked out with a handful of books. Right now I am in the middle of "My Dinner With Andre" a screen play which was made to a movie starring Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory. It is absorbing and I might write a review about it ,as soon as I finished the whole thing.

  In the past I was asked to do a book review but it never really got into print so I am posting that in my other site. Anyway, if you are interested on my take regarding Poppy Z Brite's "Drawing Blood," here is the link.
http://musingsandteardrops.blogspot.com/2006/09/love-horror-meets-gothic-angst-in-vein.html

The Devine Comedy by Milla Jovovitch

2009-09-16T22:31:00.000-07:00

  Scouting along the streets of Quiapo in Manila, I came across this tape from Singer/Actress Milla Jovovitch. The title of the album is 'The Devine Comedy" and it's simply by Milla-without her last name.Most people probably know that this wonderful Ukrainian-born actress can also sing and write her own songs.She can even play the guitar, mandolin and flute well.

  The album opens with the track titled The Alien Song, an ethreal allegory of our future as well as environmental crisis. Here Milla sings with a mournful voice .Beautiful effects and acoustic instruments are enmeshed with electronic ones creating a wonderful sonic collage.

  The Gentleman Who Fell follows and it's her big hit.The pizzicato strings remind me of Enya's Orinoco Flow.The melody however is very Slavic and anyone who digs ABBA would appreciate this (unlike ABBA though ,this is not a happy song).Consider these lines from that song:

A voice is speaking
He's the prophet
Blinded by the light
A heart is breaking
I can hear it
Dropped when gone beyond my sight

  The rest of the songs follow in a smooth transition from mellow to rocking types .The song Clocks is actually about Anne Frank,the little girl who was a victim of the Holocaust in the Nazi era;

I'm locked in a box
With a window and a clock
Sometimes I can't sleep
I watch the second hand feeding
Time is ticking, ticking

  Of all the tracks I think the standout is this arresting song called In A Glade which is a Ukranian traditional song.I think I can hear the balalaika there(the same instrument prominent in the film called Dr.Zhivago).She doesn't sing about gooey lovesongs that a lot of female artists are doing right now.At 17 she was tackling serious issues .

  She made wise musical choices which could have rivaled her screen picks if she was given a choice to sail between these two rivers (although she is also sailing the seas of modeling so dig that).Milla has a voice which is a cross between Anne Lennox and Kate Bush.A recording like this deserves a follow up which unfortunately never happened since other career choice took most of her time. In another lifetime perhaps.

Over all the record quality is excellent except for the much extended chanting on track like "Clocks" which should havebeen reduced to one minute .There is also too much synth effects on "The Alien" song which is unnecessary, since the melody has a strong sense of itself, really. However this is a brave debut album.

Track listing:
"The Alien Song" – 4:45

"Gentleman Who Fell" – 4:39
"It's Your Life" – 3:45
"Reaching From Nowhere" – 4:10
"Charlie" – 4:10
"Ruby Lane" – 4:36
"Bang Your Head" – 3:23
"Clock" – 4:15
"Don't Fade Away" – 5:43
"You Did It All Before" – 3:58
"In a Glade" – 2:27

Man of Colors by Icehouse (vinyl)

2009-09-16T22:23:00.000-07:00

This time it's an LP review from Austrialian New Wave band Icehouse. I got hold of their cool song "Electric Blue" when I bought this new wave compilation CD back in 2000. It was not until this year that while walking on the busy streets of Quiapo one rainy afternoon, I came upon a store that sells tapes and vinyl records. Electric Blue also reminds me of Boracay way back the lent of 2000. I was suffering from unrequieted love and then I hopped in this bar where most American guys hang out to play billiards. I got myself a glass of iced tea and then this song played. It was so perfect, the state I was in, the mood and what the song is saying .'If a boy had a chance, a change with someone like you,would you break his heart,make him cry for the moon..."

The condition of the LP is still excellent.I never encountered needle skip or loud hissing -though I need them because that is what vinyl records are supposed to sound. I am a sucker for that little frying sound .
Nice poppy and sophisticated rock album.Very atmospheric too. It is true that Aussies make a different take on music.This is one record you would love to listen to on a sunset, while setting on a veranda, having cappochino and watching the waves roll. Something to remind you of old loves and better times.Too bad only few bands nowadays make music the way the 80's bands did. Makes me long for a time machine .
track list:

1. Crazy

2. Electric Blue

3. Nothing Too Serious

4. Man of Colours

5. Heartbreak Kid

6. Kingdom

7. My Obsession

8. Girl in the Moon

9. Anybody's War

10. Sunrise

Bela Lugosi is Dead

2009-09-16T22:16:00.000-07:00

I got my self a tape of Bauhaus (In The Flat Field) when I was discovering Goth for the first time in the 90's.I think I played them to death on a Halloween . I was mesmirized by the dark but sensual vocals of Peter Murphy.There were a lot of good bands in the 80's that made a crossover into the 90's because most of them found an audience known as Dark Wavers.
I did not classify my self as Goth though I did spent sometime visiting graveyards at night, and at that time I as already reading a lot of Baudelaire, Anne Rice, Clive Barker and Edgar Allan Poe. Apart from Bauhaus, there was Dead Can Dance of course (they are not really Goth but they play good gothic music) and The Crow soundtrack.
Bela Lugos is Dead is a cool song featured in the movie The Hunger. Iwas still a kid at that time to appreciate but it made a huge cult following here. Of course we all know that Bela Lugosi took the role of Dracula in the 1950's.
I think My fascination for vampires did not actually take off until I read Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice and shared a correspondence with writer Karen Kunawicz who was writing these wonderful articles.
Unlike most Goth track, this one does not really on synthesizers to create an atmosphere .Everything is done through guitars.

Bela Lugosi's Dead

White on white translucent black capes
Back on the rack
Bela Lugosi's dead
The bats have left the bell tower
The victims have been bled
Red velvet lines the black box
Bela Lugosi's dead
Undead undead undead
The virginal brides file past his tomb
Strewn with time's dead flowers
Bereft in deathly bloom
Alone in a darkened room
The count
Bela Logosi's dead
Undead undead undead

An Immense Journey written by: Loren Eiseley

2009-09-16T00:12:00.000-07:00

  I have been revisiting this book like a treasured graveyard (come on there IS such a thing). It seems that reading it again and again have sprung out seeds of thought in me that comes to life and I am not even aware of them until a certain time when I punder life and what keeps me going...I mean just living each day. Anthropologist,ecologist and poet Loren Eiseley added soul to the logical world of science.

  His essays compiled in this classic is a testament not only of his love for humanity but for the earth and the humility it bestowed upon him and everyone who shares his thoughts until this very day. I remember I was in high school when I read his essay called "The Bird and the Machine" . It's about an incident about the hawk he captured for the institute and which he set free: He lay there a long minute without hope, unmoving, his eyes still fixed on that blue vault above him. It must have been that he was already so far away in heart that he never felt the release from my hand. He never even stood. He just lay with his breast against the grass..... I didn't know what came over me but I remember weeping over the old book and the immense beauty of his story, his humanity.

   Loren Eiseley died in July 9,1977 but his contribution to science will always be remembered. Look for his other books and this one:The Immense Journey (1957), Darwin's Century (1958), The Unexpected Universe (1969), The Night Country (1971), and the memoir All the Strange Hours (1975).

Eyes Open Artist: Snow Patrol

2009-09-16T00:09:00.000-07:00

  Eyes Open (Interscope Records) is Snow Patrol's fourth studio album. I got my copy of the this UK indie band after I heard their Final Straw album almost two years ago. Snow Patrol could be ranked among those shoe gazer bands but they have more to them than soaring melodies-they rock.The album opens with the title track Eyes Open which is a big hit. The nice hohohoho hook that dominates the verse chorus verse part worked effectively along with the crunching guitars and somber vocals of Gary Lightbody.

   Hands Open is another good track that opens with guitar strummng and reaches into distorted climax. Chasing Cars could be their biggest hit to date heavily featured on MTV and gained popular radio airplay. It was also feature on Grey's Anatomy and One Tree Hill. It's a sort of ballad that starts with simple guitar pluckings and some glokenspeil every now and then, and builds up into resounding chorus that's so catchy it's a perfect pop song.The chorus goes: "If I lay here If I just lay here Would you lie with me And just forget the world".

  Shut Your Eyes is OK but it fails to capture the catchiness of the previous tracks. It's Beginning To Get To Me has a bit of similarity to You're All I Have, while You Could Be Happy is a slow track that's almost a lullaby. It has wonderful glokenspeil parts and for some reason this track reminds me of Bjork. Make This Go On Forever (a duet), Set The Fire To The Third Bar are both upbeat and just so so tracks.They're followed by Headlights On Dark Roads, another wonderful track, then Open your Eyes.The album closes with Finish Line. Another achievement that the band could add to their sleeves would be the fact that they have a song featured in the latest Spiderman movie. Too bad this song is not included in this album.

Chariots of Fire Soundtrack Artist: Vangelis Papathanassiou

2009-09-16T00:05:00.000-07:00

Greek composer Vangelis has made a lot of music for films including 1987's Blade Runner and The Conquest Of Paradise (1992).But this is the score that cemented his reputation in the world of synthesizer music. In 1981 was comissioned to write a score for the 1924 Olympics.Written by Colin Welland and directed by Hugh Hudson, the film was nominated for seven academy awards and won four ,one of them for Best Picture.The movie is based on real life British runners Harold Abrams(Ben Cross) and Eric Liddell (Ian Chaleson).

The album opens with the soaring Titles .Made into a single , it entered the american Billboard singles and spent many weeks at number 1 .Other tracks are as follows: Five Circles, Abraham's Theme, Eric's Theme,100 Meters, Jerusalem which is set for a William Blake poem, and Chariots of Fire. Vangelis has subtlety and has love for haunting often eerie melodies opposed to Yanni's penchance for saccharine melodies and major chords.Vangelis uses his favorite instrument, the Yamaha CS80 which gives the melodies their ethereal texture but also has a strong sound especially on lower registers.

This album can be best appreciate if you have the original 1981 vinyl edition (Polydor records). If you are an audiophile like me and appreciates the warmth of analog recordings then I suggest you go for it.. I got my audio cassette edition while walking on the streets of Quiapo and hanging out into this store that sells old records. It's still in good condition and made in the US. I got it for 80 bucks which is not bad for a collector's item.

The Beekeeper Artist: Tori Amos

2009-09-15T23:59:00.000-07:00

Tori Amos is a gifted singer-songwriter who actually made an impression by banging away Mozart on the piano at an early age of three. Later on she studied music but was kicked out because she was heard playing Led Zeppelin on piano by ear. A controversial figure in the 90's she charmed us with songs like "Cornflake Girl', Silent All these Years and my personal fave Pretty Good Year from Under the Pink(1994).

She's back with Beekeeper, a collection of 20 original compositions which would entice as well us confuse fanatic ears.The first half of the album begins with our typical Tori songs like, Jamaica Inn, Barons of Suburbia and the hit Sleeps with Butterflies.The second half is not what you typically hear from her especially with tracks like Witness, Hoochie Woman and Ireland. I still like this(my neice Jen is now a convert of her music), a follow up to the successful Scarlet's Walk, though if you were looking for typical Tori then grab Little Earthquakes, Under The Pink and Choirgirl Hotel instead.

Postcards From The East Oceanside(Greatest Hits) Artist: Paula Cole

2009-09-15T23:56:00.000-07:00

I''ve been a follower of her voice and music the first time 'Where Have All The Cowboys Gone" hit MTV. I really dig her voice. I'm one of those who really find little girl voices very annoying and big voices are really refreshing in a generation that caters to bublegum pop that sounds like a frog croaking (sorry Britney Spears)or someone running out of air and life (I know a lot and they could take up all the page). Realistically , this album is not a 'greatest hits' because some songs here have not even enjoyed great airply but still, they are good songs.There are times when the songs are kind of lengthy. Yes they are good but 5:30 minutes? Come on! Most songs loose their shine after 4 minutes...unless you are as good as Mozart then you can really keep an audience that way.

Almost all of the 16 songs in this compilation came from her three Warner Bros albums :Harbinger, This Fire and Amen.Tomorrow I Will be Yours, Postcards From the East Oceanside and Johnny Mercer's Autumn Leaves are getaways found only in this compilation. Her voice has all the control and power, gliding from Kate Bush soprano whisphers to big and powerful Ella Fitzgerald growls.This packaging will sum up her big days in the 90's when 'I Don't Want To Wait' became massive after becoming the theme to Dawson's Creek.These days, the cliches of pop could long for Paula's original approach to songwriting.What about another original album?

So far...The Best Of. Artist: Sinead O'Connor

2009-09-15T23:51:00.000-07:00

I heard the name Sinead O'Connor in 1990 with the #1 hit single "Nothing Compares 2 U".At that time I was discovering talents from Ireland because of U2's Jushua Tree album .Sinead has a voice of an angel that evokes the misty irish countryside.At times she adds a punch to it that reminds me of a Banshee's wailing despair.

My niece was keen on saying (after I let her listen to Never Get Old from The Lion and the Cobra), It's like Enya only bigger and louder.Surprisingly the track also features Enya narrating a passage from the Psalms in Gaelic. No, she did not do any musical contribution except her spoken voice.The sad thing is that the said track is not included in this compilation.Bummer!

Sinead can be on extreme sides both politically and musically. All these facets are reflected in this Best Of compilation ,all 15 tracks of the most beautifully haunting songs in pop/rock world. Personal faves include Mandinka,The Emperor's New Clothes, Fire on Babylon,Troy, and You Made me the Thief of Your Heart which became the theme for the movie In The Name of the Father starring Daniel Day-Lewis. Nothing Compaires 2 U, has been a so-so in my book of list because I am never a Prince fan (he composed the song)and it was too popular at that time . Not until now , after exploring the track that I am able to really appreciate it. The 7th track "I Am Stretched On Your Grave" is a traditional irish track covered by so many artists already including Dead Can Dance. Sinead added her own Gregorian meets-Trent Reznor touch to the song giving it an upbeat and eerie quality which would be highlighted if you listen to it through your ipod while trekking a graveyard at 12 o'clock midnight-I miss this stuff!

The Voyage of the Frog by Gary Paulsen

2009-09-15T23:48:00.000-07:00

From the first lines.."David Alspeth stopped at the locked gate, felt in his hands the weight of the small box which he could not stand to see yet, looked down on the sailboat, and tried not to cry." Up to the last, the story is very moving. It's about the main character named David, who is 14 years old is dealing with his uncle's recent death.The Frog is actually the name of a sailboat that his uncle left to him as a legacy. Want to find out how this boy survived the storm and got blown off 350 miles from his home in Ventura California, met danger along the seas, met wales and other things? You've got to get the book. Mr Paulsen has already won my adoration not only for his great stories but also for his beautiful prose .

Flesh and the Devil

2009-09-15T23:45:00.000-07:00

Flesh and the Devil(1926) highlights the turning point in the film career of Greta Garbo. The film is a melodrama which revolves around the friendship of Leo Von Harden(John Gilbert) and Lars(Ulrich von Eltz). Leo finds himself falling inlove with Felicitas(Garbo) who is a wife of a count. The count challenges them to a duel and Leo kills him. As a military officer, Leo is sent to South Africa as a punishment and is released after five years. When he arrives, he finds Felicitas married to Ulrich. He is turn between his friendship and his lust for Felicitas who seduces him again. In one scene, he strangles Felicitas . Ulrich walks in and challenges him to a duel.

This is a remarkable film because it is said that Gilbert and Garbo fell inlove in the set during the filming of this movie.Yes it is in the silent movie era and it reminds me of Charlie Chaplin movies I saw as a kid. Very good story based on a novel by Hermann Sudermann called "The Undying Past.There are scenes however that if you're gay can prove to be homo erotic. The two friends look at each other affectionately and you can sense that they'd almost kiss at a heartbeat. But maybe it is the attitude of the times.

Ghandi

2009-09-15T23:38:00.000-07:00

My long lost friend Arnold dropped by yesterday and and we watched Ghandi. It's a kind of film that made me regret I only watched it now. I starts with an ordinary lawyer travelling by train in Southern Africa and ends up being thrown off simply because no colored man travels first class. I have read about great minds like Einstein praising him but I have never go to know the manuntil now.Ghandi was a lover of peace and he devoted tosuch cause until he got shot.. Movies like this make you set back and think about life.

It makes our daily pains ad struggles more worthwhile. It makes us think that there is still something good about humanity. It stars Ben Kingsly as Ghandi, Candice Bergen (as Margaret Bourke-White, the photographer of LIFE magazine) and other motley crew of actors . If you haven't seen this movie yet, I suggest you to go out and rent the DVD. You will start to see the world with different eyes.

Betty Blue

2009-09-15T23:36:00.000-07:00

Betty blue is about two idealistic characters trapped in an imperfect world-if perfection means living your dreams .This is a highly charged erotic drama with unpredictable twists and turns. It involves a repairman named Zorg ( Jean-Hugues Anglade) with literary aspirations whom he actually tucked away until a beautiful but mentaly unstable woman by the name of Betty ( Beatrice Dalle) turns his life around.

Some of the scenes are hilarious especially when Betty torches their bongalow and Zorg's workmate comments "your place will look very Zen now." That one really cracked me up. They soon move to the city and live with her cousin. Most of the time they make passionate love and wear almost nothing all thoughout the film.

Betty's mental illness progresses but Zorg tries to comfort her. Finally they decide to retreat into the rural side of France hoping to live a normal life,but her fantasy world envelopes her real one ; escalating into a shocking catharsis. Betty blue is a film filled with raw eroticism and childlike humor bordering on the absurd and it is based on a novel by Phillipe Djian. I would suggest you bring a lot of popcorn because the film is quite long-around two hours and a half . The subtitles in English can be a distraction too.

Drawing Blood: Poppy Z Brite

2009-09-15T23:32:00.000-07:00

Drawing Blood, Dell publishing, 403 pages, genre: Horror.

Trevor is a comic book artist who is haunted by the demon of his past, the grizzly murder that took place in his house twenty years ago perpetrated by his father, a tortured cartoonist. Now he's back to that old house; at Violin Road ,Missing Mile to confront the madness that plagued him through the years.. Enters Zach, a computer hacker he meets along the way. Haunted down by Law and Order from New Orleans, Zach winds up at Missing Mile. They met and the roller coaster ride of horror begins.

The thing with Poppy's writing is that her characters go on even after you put the book down. They resonate with that longing within you, your darkest secrets and dreams. But then again some readers might be put off by the blatant homoeroticism of her stories. But then the strength of her stories relies on her prose which is like a fine elegant wine that glides on the throat so smoothly, or that smell of rose littered damp earth after the rain-anything that fires up your imagination with sensuality. And she concentrates more on the characters' issue rather than on the gore.

Consider this: And this map of pain he had to carve out of his skin, this had been no half assed attempt at suicide, anyway. Trevor knew that to kill yourself you had to cut along the length of your arm, had to lay it open from wrist to elbow like some fruit with a rich red pulp and a hard white core. Had to cut all the way to the bone, had to severe every major artery and vein. He had never tried it.

Strange as it may seem, for all its gore and violence, Drawing Blood ends up as a wonderful love story between Zach and Trevor. A must read for Goth lovers. I still like Anne Rice but I think Poppy has an edge when it comes to the concerns of today's youth. She is the chronicler of her generation. She is dark (however you define the term) and humorous at the same time. offcial site:http://www.poppyzbrite.com/

Exotic Street Food from the Philippines.

2009-09-15T18:54:00.001-07:00

If you haven't been in the Philippines yet this is an advisory. Don't trust strangers asking you if you want to buy a 'helmet'. Why? Check this out. Again this is not for the weak of stomach. Since I am from this country I could attest that...they don't taste bad. Really!

Exotic Street Food from the Philippines.

From the 80s : Tinderbox by Siouxsie and the Banshees

2009-09-15T08:43:00.000-07:00

Tinderbox:Siouxsie and the Banshees. Any goth kid from the 80's have this album. It's a must for genre collector. Siouxsie Sioux fueled a lot of controversies during her time because of her fashion sense. According to my friend Karen, she taught goth girls and boys how to wear their make up properly. Cities in Dust is one of the tracks in this nice album.

tracklisting:

"Candyman"
"The Sweetest Chill"
"This Unrest"
"Cities in Dust"
"Cannons"
"Party's Fall"
"92°"
"Land's End"

You can get a copy of Tinderbox here.

Book Review: Walking On Water by Gemma O'Connor

2009-09-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love this book from the first page up to the end. Gemma O'Connor is today's Jessica Fletcher when it comes to crime novels and she works it well considering that this is the fifth book from the Irish novelist.
Walking On water takes us to the Irish countryside and about the murder of Evangeline Walter, an American who settled in Ireland. The story develops when a fisherman found her body poised on a tree one early morning..."As I rounded the point I saw her,rising out of the swirling mist.At first I couldn't believe my eyes for ,God forgive me, I thought she was walking on water"
What's the motive of the murder?
Why was her body placed that way?
Who actually was Evangeline Walter and what was she running away from, and what brought her to the south-west coast of Ireland?
The story -telling is superb,the prose is lush and the pages are rich in details ,lovable characters and what a good way to let the midnight end to dawn.
Get you own copy here.

The Pungent but Sweet Durian Fruit

2009-09-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

Ok , imagine this combination:gasoline, amonia, over ripened mangoes - thus the smell of Dorian, a fruit mostly found in the southern part of the Philippines. It resembles a jack fruit though not bigger than a coconut shell.
Durian is classified in the division Magnoliophyta Magnoliophyta (mag'noleof`?t?), division of the plant kingdom consisting of those organisms commonly called the flowering plants, or angiosperms .
, class Magnoliopsida, order Malvales, family Bombacaceae(thefreedictionary.com)...Whatever that means.....
My virgin tongue has been initiated to this exotic thing two years ago when Clarissa and I was walking by fruit stands after work work. Clarissa was my workmate who is an expert in a lot of stuff including the different types of tea, salad and even signature accessories since she has been to so many places.
There was this ripe one that is cracked (they crack when ripe and give off that distinctive foul odor). I have never tasted this thing before because of its reputation as a secret weapon to drive out people at a hotel or any places that has accidentally serve this. She asked the vendor to slice it open so I can have a taste.The aroma was all over. It's like a bomb hahahahah.
Detestable?This party pooper happens to costs somewhere around a hundred pesos per kilo ( a dollar is equal to 50 pesos) . People were looking at us as I took a bite from the fleshy seed , the flesh is composed by a light yellow mushy meat and I tell you, if you have such an active imagination, better close your eyes.
To my surprise it is delicious. It's like a combination of banana, caramel, and vanilla, with a slight onion tang.Tasty and well...you have to rinse your lips with alcohol or brush your teeth afterwards to avoid driving people away when you start to speak.
It was interesting and I might start buying the durian regularly.But I have to be careful where I dispose it or I will cause a havoc in the neighborhood.

INXS:Story to story (an official autobiography)

2009-09-15T08:15:00.000-07:00

Author:INXS and Anthony Bozza
Anthony Bozza has worked as writer and editor at Rolling Stones,and has made bestselling bios of notable figures like Eminem and Tommy Lee.This time mr Bozza worked with the Farris brothers of the band known as Inxs.
This is a must have for fans and for lovers of rock music in general. It is a detailed story of this Aussie band's roots and their rise to fame in the decadent era of New Wave.
This is said to be witten in their own point of view which tackles a lot of isues from fame, sex, and drugs which are associated with any popular rock band.

The pages uncover bittersweet snapshots of life as it is on the road, the other bands and their little trouble with Adam Ant on his world tour ; and up to the demise of former frontman Michael Hutchence in 1997.
Since then , the band started the whole INXS Rockstar search thing on MTV to find a new lead singer.
Personally I have been an Inxs convert way back in 1990 when their song 'Disappear"hit the Philippine shores.This is a good book to read but somehow it lacks the sophistication of any rock bio I have read in the past. Nevertheless it is an intertaining and enlightening piece of material that will shed light to the biggest band from down under.
INXS story to story
copyright 2006
304 pages
hard cover edition
Atria Books
Oder this book here.

Alfred Hitchcock's Lifeboat (1944)

2009-09-15T08:10:00.000-07:00

Wow.That's the very work that escaped my mouth after seeing this film. I could not believe that this was made in 1944 and that the lead actress( according to rumors) was not wearing underwear that kept everyone in 'attention ' all throughout the set. I found out that this was made in one set: on a lifeboat and Hitchcock was so amazing in making the whole film very interesting and sometimes funny all through 96 minutes .
The story is about six people with different personalities who found themselves in a single boat after a German u-boat sunk the passenger-carrying freighter down in the Mid-Atlantic. Tallulah Bunkhead played the fabulous bitchy photo-journalist Connie , who can think only of her Cartier bracelet and the state of her stockings while everyone fights for their life.I really Luuuvvvvv her smoky voice which reminds me of Bette Davis.
I grew up in Hitcock's movies , among them the now classic Psycho as well as others on the same genre.Yes the film is in black and white and it adds to the appeal(for me) and it is long but not THAT long .The audio is in good state but I had to make sure to leave the subtitle box open in case I miss some words-I admit I am a freak for dialogue details.
Lifeboat has been nominated for 3 Oscars(1944) for best Cinematography,black and white(Glen MacWilliams),best Director(Alfred Hitchcock) and best Writing,Original Story(John Steinbeck ) while it won lead actress Tallulah Bankhead best actress in the New York Film Critics Circle Awards.

My Left Foot

2009-09-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

My Left Foot ranks among the Irish literary greats .The closest kin would have to be 'The Portrait Of An Artist As A Young Man' by James Joyce.
The book is a biographical sketch written when Christy was growing up in Dublin. He was born with a condition known as cerebral palsy and it's through the palpable hope and affection of his mother that an artist emerged from inside a shy young man.
This classic was eventually made into a movie in 1989 starring Daniel Day-Lewis who made a stunning portrayal of the author.Throughout his lifetime, Mr Brown wrote poems and books, he also painted but this one stands out from the rest.
You can order the book here.

Wuthering Heights

2009-09-15T07:47:00.000-07:00

Bewitching, cruel,passionately demonic-these are the only words I could find to describe the intensity of this wonderful classic novel. Emily Bronte was the genius of the three Bronte sisters(including Ann and Charlotte)but alas! She was only able to finish one novel and died of tuberculosis at the ripe old age of 32.
Here is the story of the gypsy foundling Heathcliff and his love for Catherine .She has a brother named Hindley. One day, their father brings home a dark gypsy boy ,and he is christened Heathcliff. From an early age, Edgar is already consumed with jealousy for his step brother.
Through all the household turmoils , Heathcliff and Catherine become close allies and in their early teens they develop strong feelings toward each other.Edgar tries to break them apart by treating his stepbrother like a slave then one day, after overhearing Catherine's confession to the maid Ellen Dean, and having the whole thing misunderstood, Heathcliff disappears. Catherine becomes depressed but seeks solace by marrying Edgar.
Three years later Heathcliff returns and Catherine sinks into depression and then insanity.Thus, is the escalation of tempestuous and sadistic plot that fills out the next half of the novel. Yes it would be hard to read if not for the author's exquisite vision and beautiful prose.
This story could be classified as a love story but it is also a journey into the dark recesses of the human heart. How love and hate are inseparable and the human neurosis that speaks not only of the author's time but of all ages.
*******

There is this movie version starring Ralph Fiennes and Juliet Benoche which came out in 1992.But there is an older version. I might try to find that movie .
ou can order Wuthering Heights here.

Book Review: Firefly Cloak by Sheri Reynolds

2009-09-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

Sheila runs off with a man she thought she loves,leaving her two children Tessa Lee (who was eight at that time) and Travis(four) on a campsite with only their grandma's phone number written in magic marker at Travis' back and a firefly cloak (which later became symbolic in Tessa's life). Eight years later with Travis dead, Sheila has been spotted working as a mermaid on a seaside boardwalk.Tessa takes on a journey and confronts he mother only to loose her the second time . Lil,Tessa's grandma comes into terms with her strict religious beliefs. She admits that it is her own fault why her daughter ran away.There are interesting characters we meet along the way, the boy with green hair and body piercings named Rash - who collects sandspurs as his craft, the two lesbians Freida and Tabitha at the fair, the one-eyed dog named Baby Cakes among others.

*******

After reading her first book Bitterroot Landing, I am convinced of Ms Reynold's brave vision and her knack for a southern prose that runs like red wine . One of her works made it into Oprah's book club . I picked up this one at National Bookstore while looking for other things .
I love her stories. She creates flawed and oftentimes amusing characters . Firefly Cloak focuses on the lives of these three wonderful women and the myths of fireflies.
Because, there are moments when we seem ordinary but then there are times when we shine and triumph from all that's been handed to us. Sheri Reynolds did a great work with this book.The magic that I have glimpsed in her first book still shines on this one. I can't wait for her next work

You can purchase this book from Amazon.

Mists of Avalon

2009-09-15T07:31:00.000-07:00

Been watching the three part miniseries my Marion Zimmer- Bradley(the same one who wrote The Catch Trap) on VCD. I just love the whole Arthrurian myth and what it embodies. Yes it was the last part of the Old Ways and the start of the new belief.
It's a sad story full of longing for the past with its grace and beauty. I like how Angelica Houston portrays the Lady of the Lake Viviane.She's beautiful,regal and headstrong. This is somehow a retelling of the story in the point of view of Morgaine-whom we previously believe as evil and ugly but my gosh! She's a sight to behold. Of course, she is King Arthur's sister after all.
Here Morgaine is fighting to save her matriarchal Celtic culture in a time and place when patriarchal Christianity threatens to destroy their pagan way of life. Oftentimes in the Arthurian retelling, women were marginalized(as the case of most literature) and this is an alternative to it. It's like saying: now this is our version of the story. And yes, there are always two sides in a story, like what Morgaine as a little girl said to her brother Arthur..."It's just like having a Mother and a Father."

Christian Rock

2009-09-15T07:26:00.000-07:00

There are Christian bands out there that don't sound preachy while spreading the positive message. This is the kind that I like. I can count a handful from the top of my head: Jars of Clay(Which I saw live when they visited Manila) ,Switchfoot, Plumb, DC Talk, MXPX and even Lifehouse.
I listen to music based on my current mood. The thing about Christian music in general is that it is a processed music. The dissonant chords or sound structures that create that disturbing vibe found in secular music is removed, and what you have is smooth flowing music-louder but you know where you stand.
I am open about any kind of music but there are times when I tired and I just want a good vibe while sipping my Earl Grey.

It Just Keep Getting Louder These Days!

2009-09-15T07:17:00.000-07:00

I noticed that records coming out these days tend to be louder and crispier. I compare recordings to the past(90s) and the newer ones have deeper bass range and very clear upper registers.The only problem I have with the new recordings(I am old school I still collect vinyl , tapes and compact discs) Is that you got to have a really good pair of speakers to withstand the intensity of the sound.
Old speakers create distortion when you play the music above the mid range of the volume. I read that this is the way record companies sell -the louder they think it is, the more kids would buy it. In this manner, nuance and true meaning of the sound suffer to give way to the intensity of the pulse. Sure it works with recordings from dance and rock genre. But there are musicians that simply need that ’softer’ production or you end up with a recording that is too ’close’ .It is not enough that an artist develops a specific sound.What happens on the eingineering or production side is very important.Technolgy has changed the way people listen to music.We just hope that the future generations would appreciate the real musical value that an artist contributes to the world and not how record executives manipulate the buying public.

Tribute to the Boesendorfer Piano

2009-09-15T07:06:00.000-07:00

We learned that Austrian piano manufacturer Ignaz Bösendorfer established the Bosendorfer series in 1828.The standard piano has 88 keys but this one has up to 92 or even up to 97! The extra keys placed on the very left end is usually hid under a lid that a player can just open up. This is to prevent 'confusion' on the part of the player during fast pieces.
The addition of extra keys is said to add to the body of sound when all the keys vibrate during the performance. Bosendorfers are also created not in the usual way as ordinary pianos .There is this one place in Austria where manufacturers harvest and plant the trees that are made for the body of the instrument. I first became familiar with this upon collecting the albums of Tori Amos. I heard they now made her into a spokes person for the brand. Hmmm..very interesting.
The thing about the sound is that it is so ethereal and distinctive. I read that that it is how they made the partitions inside with all the mechanisms being placed together. The piano is made to project the sound especially in higher registers instead of absorbing it. That's why we get these light tinkling notes that are close to a sound made by strings instead of percussions.Chopin recordings are also done in Bosendorfer .