15.5.7 - E'Day

Ok ... so its settled ... 15.5.7 is my End day!!!!!

So I had myself a little bit of retail therapy. Went to DJs and got a black cotton V-neck Jumper ... there was a Paul Smith woolen one that was severelt marked down ... but its was in an off diarrhoea colour .... so we said NO to that one. Tried a grey Calibre one on .. but the fabric was thin and clingy .... and mama has stacked on a few kilos ... so it was not a pretty sight in the fitting room mirror.

 

Also bought my very firts pair of Nudie's. I'm thinking of going black .. i.e. black shirt and jeans .. this could very well be my new work look ... but knowing me I'll be sick of it after about 2 mins ... but seriously ... how many more years do I have before I start looking like one of those ... you know ... recapturing my youth types!!!! Bring on the collared shirts and chino's ... YAY!!! (Its too depressing for words)

 

Also got me some CDs (please don't call me moneybags ... I haven't been shopping in muthafuckin ages!!!)

I bought:

 

OMD - John Peel Sessions (a steal at $9.95 - bet this was a cancelled customer order - believe me I know about these ... they didn't call me pink bits at HMV for nothing)

 

Rufus Wainwright - Release the Stars

 

Battles - Mirrored

 

Cinematic Orchestra - Ma Fleur

 

And nearly not - Bjork's Volta (ltd edition)

 

I was in the alternative section and this curly haired guy who was stocking CDs was there. He noticed me pick up the Battles CD and he goes "Awesome CD Man!!" and I go "Yeah I know" but I thought "don't talk to me about music Maan!!! I know what I like and what I don't like" Anyways .. I casually asked him whether he had the Bjork Ltd Ed CD (knowing full well that I've already been bugging D about this) and he says they have copies round the corner ... meaning at the other JB store in the city. And I go 'Oh Cool" and walked off to find the other things I wanted to buy.

 

I was then literally 3 persons away from the Checkout when he comes out and hands me a copy. They had literally just unpacked it in the storeroom and he was already on it. Now THAT's customer service!!!! I wish I had grabbed his name so that I could pass my commendations on.

 

Anyways, I'm only 3/4s of the way through but so far I can say its beautiful!!! .... I wouldn't say Stunning because there are no surprises here ... but damn I was excited to finally get my copy. The first thing I thought was "How the fuck do I open this damn thing without ruining the sticker!!" Thankfully, I was able to pull out one of the flaps on the box and access the CD from there. Me and M had a bit of a chuckle over the photos inside ... but at least she keeps trying different things ... you can hear maturity creeping into her tone now ... you get glimpses at what she would potentially sound like when she's older ... hopefully she goes down the Scott Walker track ... rather than (dare I say it) the Kate Bush ("my bff is Eric Clapton") one.  I know ... SACRILEGE ... birdcalls notwithstanding!!

 

PS ... VALE JP!!!

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Comments:

Danise wrote:

 

Hey there,
HOW awsomely amazing is my Rufus. Have you listened to all yet? Please tell me what you think.
AH, I wish you were here so we could discuss this over and over and over again. With of course sushi, red wine and prehaps more sushi.
I MISS YOU!!
I heart RW
xxooxx
oh btw have to download the song I must be emo. Frigging hillarious.
Painting my fingers nail black as we speak.

28 May

 

alfredo strazza wrote:

 

Hi, we are IL RUMORE DEI PASSI. Listen our music in our space!!!

25 May

Word is Out!!!

Ok ... everyone ... sing along with me:

Because the word is out
I can't go on believing in your innocence
Now the word is out (the word is out)
The word is out
You can't go on pretending
It's all over town
Now the word is out (the word is out)

(those in the know will get this)

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Comments:

Temasek wrote:

 

I've got Hungry like a Wolf in my head ... lets meet up and have a baby!!!

COME BACK!!!!!!

21 May 

Danise wrote:

 

WOW awsome, now i have that in my head for the next week!!!
Stop it.. ahahahahahah :P
xxx

21 May

What is my Body Telling Me Part 2

Ok, so I went to the Dr's for a checkup, theoretically to get another referral to the dermatologist so I don't have to sacrifice my first born child for a duck-beaked, botoxed fur wearing toorak type to prod my face a couple of times. But as you may not know, although being glib about it, my yoga episode has really freaked me out ... and I have engaged in certain nefarious activities which means that the usual run of blood tests are in order. Ok so I thought needle in the arm, maybe BP and thats it!!! So how did I end up with all of that plus a urine sample, and throat and anal swabs!!! I feel Violated!!!! No just kidding peops. I love it that they are thorough, but I must admit that I am now nervous about the results, especially since my BP is a little high. Whats funny is that I always see Dr J for all the "secret" stuff. Unfortunately he must live near where I work, and he goes to the same bagelry where I get my coffee, so I'm forever ducking behind corners or trying to blend into the crowd to avoid him. I just feel funny that he knows stuff about me that even M doesn't know ... intimate details!!! Yeucchh! How could you look someone in the eye out of context after that??? Its just wrong.

Now ... lets talk about Michel Gondry. Isn't he just too precious for words?? You know how people sometimes go "oh if you could go back in time blah blah blah who would you like to meet?" ... I know, falling asleep already ... BUT ... if I was a futureperson ... I would answer that question most definitevely with Michel Gondry!!

Anyways, here is Michel Gondry's ad for HP - I thought these visually creative types all use Macs??? Is this simply an advertising ploy? Is it simply all about the benjamins? Or does he really use the product? Either way, its typical Gondry, so enjoy!!!



And More Gondry Madness with the Rubik's Cube (thanks DB for the tip) ... LOVES IT!!! Make sure you watch in order!!



PS - can't stop listening to The Blow's Parentheses ... only because of the song title and how its worked into the chorus ... look there's still hope with music!!! AND I HOPE UR ALL LOVING BATTLES NOW ... 9.1 on Pitchfork (wankery aside!!)

Pinch me I'm Dreaming!!

JP I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU GONE AND DONE IT GIRRLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

DANG MISSY .... WASSUP WIT DAT!!!

YO HOMIE ... I BE KICKIN THE CURB WICH'U 'FOUR LONG

U CHECK MY FLOW HO ... COZ I GOT UR BACK BABY!!!!

 

(sorry I've well and truly flipped out ... work is craaazzzyyy!!! They're dropping like flies ... and I'm losing JP!!!)

(oh and apologies for the blakspeak .... too much beyonce and jay-z in my diet at the mo!)

 

'Memories ........  "

 

You know what?? Right now, instead of this:

 

 

I'd rather be doing this: 

 

AND how much do I love the new Battles CD - Mirrored - definite recommendation from me ... and I bet these guys grew up watching sesame street - its like Mogwai with Hip Hop sensibilities.

 

 

AND I reckon the new Groove Armada is going to be a Massive Hit!!! Have these guys morphed into Basement Jaxx by any chance??

Black Celebration

Ok ... as my readership is virtually nil, I guess it doesn't matter if I haven't done an entry for such a long time. Firstly, work is driving me mental and making me depressed, so is the fact that I have put on weight and can't fit into my favourite pair of cords (oh mama!!) and that I seem to have had a mini pimple outbreak on my forehead, and that I don't have comprehensive insurance so damage to my car is not covered, and I seem to be getting dizzy spells every now and then ... RIGHT! We've cued the bloody violins, they've played some scratchy mantovani riffs, we've paid them and they have left the building .. SO now we can get back to some kind of sanity.

Firstly, me and M went to the Brisbane Ranges recently and took some photos of the Anarki Gorge. Please see below. Pretty happy with the results, considering I'm not even close to being a novice at this whole photography shit, and that I'm using just an old Olympus digi camera ... no bells or whistles whatsover ... just point and shoot:

 

You can actually walk along the stream bed thanks to Victoria's current drought conditions, and most of the bush has been desecrated by fire ... still its quintessential victorian bush ... harsh but beautiful at the same time.


Secondly, I am re-aquainting myself with Depeche Mode's Black Celebration. I remember that at the time it came out I found it tinny and uninspiring and the artwork to me was derivative and lazy. But really could you blame me, the preview to this release was "Its called a Heart" ... enough said!!! Ah but for the privilege of hindsight ... I love it to bits now ... and you should too!!

Now I was tempted to grab Bjork from Polyester (non-ltd edition) but I gritted teeth and abstained ... I want the full Limited Edition Experience ... and from the tracks I've heard so far ... this could potentially be album of the year for me ... until the Radiohead release of course.



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Comments:

Temasek wrote:

 

Merci Monsieur Le President ... I will most certainly be referring to your blog on a regular basis ... I love deluxe editions!!!

12 July

Stewart Hardy wrote:

 

Hi

Saw your interest in the Bjork CD...

I run Deluxe Edition Central, a blog with the latest news on rare and limited deluxe edition CDs. Check it out!

http://stewarthardy.spaces.live.com

cya

12 July

Temasek wrote:

 

Oh wow .. ok readership of ONE then .. hehe

I'm too scared to ask ... but who r u?

11 May

Random Fandom wrote:

 

I totally am part of the readership! bring forth the updates! Love em.. love the tori review.

can't wait for your Bjork fabulousness limited edition experience review.

keep on truckin

10 May

Yo Tori - the review

Ok .... just as well no one reads this much as I'm about to write the unforgiveable and trash the new Tori Amos album against all odds.

Musically it is uninspiring ... considering that this is the woman who gave us Boys from Pele. Is there anything wrong with wanting something a little left of centre??? Seems to be a bit of a crime these days.

Lyrically, its your standard Tori fair ... inscrutably obtuse with sudden flashes of literary brilliance .... but trying to stretch words uncomfortably over phrasing gets a bit annoying ... when u need to add another syllable to a one syllable word ... thats an indication of lazy writing in my books ... but then again ... who am I to comment readers?

It was a momentary lapse of reason when I was in JB Hifi on the weekend picking up the next 2 Depeche Mode remasters installments, and I heard Tori playing over the PA ... I just had to get it. And I am a sucka for limited editions!

I haven't quite trawled through to the end. I've got 2 more tracks to go. But so far:

Songs I can manage:

Bouncing off Clouds

Digital Ghost

Almost Rosey

Girl Dissappearing

Songs I simply can't handle:

Mr Badman

You can Bring Your Dog

And now for something more exciting:

MIA - Bird Flu (oh why do we have to wait until fucking Aug before the full-length drops!!!!)

PS .... You have to check out Aqualung's new CD Memory Man ... beautiful

 

What is my body telling me?

Ok ... well last night was a rude awakening for me. I did Yoga for the first time EVAH!!!

 

But I only lasted 15 mins before I started getting the sweats and feeling dizzy. If I hadn't stopped, I would have either passed out ... or thrown up and then passed out.

I think I gave the teacher Jo a bit of a scare, but she was terrific about the whole thing. She let me hang out in the kitchen area as she knew I had to wait for D, she brought me reading material, apologised for the spartaness of it all, and came and had a quiet chat with me towards the end of the session.

D was excellent about it all too!!!

I never realised that Yoga could be that intense. An hour and a half session for $15 is a steal I reckon. Especially when you pay more for 45 mins of some cardio/aerobic jumpey somethingorother!! But don't let them tell you yoga is all about relaxation and breathing ... and incense and dolphin sounds ... you may not be jumpey-pumpey, but its a pretty solid work out, with lots of abdominal crunching and musculature work!! I didn't expect that to be honest, especially for a Beginners class. Some of the positions they were getting into looked nigh impossible for me.

I'm eager to get back there again next week, but with some trepidation. I think the whole problem with yesterday was that I ate less than I normally would on days where I'm not doing any physical activity. I will need to make sure I have an afternoon snack in future .. something high in carbs like an LCM.

Mind you I'm still feeling mildly queasy now even as I type this. I'm not sure what my body is trying to tell me?? Is it something else completely separate to Yoga? Is this an early onset of something more sinister healthwise that I should be concerned about?? It was touch and go when I drove home last night. I had a couple of bites of an LCM bar enroute ... but I was still feeling nauseas even after a hot shower ... only managed to eat something at about 9.30pm.

But anyways, I'd still recommend the place because inspite of my adverse reaction to it all, I got a really good vibe from the place and the people. So click on link below for more info. (I'm doing Iyengar based Introductory btw) One thing I know from all this is I'm never going to do Vikram yoga ... even if there's a room full of hot guys I still wouldn't do it!!! 

http://www.yogadanceoflife.com/yoga-schools-index.htm

For something a bit more cheery ... here is my new song - J*Davey with Mr Mister. These guys recently opened for Prince at one of his gigs ... have a listen .. you'll understand why:

(if this doesn't work, then go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=536v6jOZrmo. If it does then YAY ... I know how to embed a video now .. and I worked it out by looking at the source code of another blog page ... and fiddling with the script ... how proud am I?!!??) 

It was only a matter of time

OK ... FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!

I crashed my new pony (Little Pony Mark II) into the Garden Fence!!

Well it ain't a brand nu car .... but it was damage free ... UNTIL NOW!!! Jeez I'm hopeless behind the wheel. I really don't know how it happened .. well I do know ... but its embarassing ... it was like I was another person watching it happen ... an out of body experience just before the nose ploughed into our lovely sturdy fence ... and it made the loudest bang ... and then I was on the phone to M doing the chest heaving sobs ... and I had all these things planned for the arvo ... and all I did was lay on the couch and sob myself to sleep watching Dawn of the Dead ... like that really helped my mood ...

But I have to say that M was and is a GODSEND!!! He was ready to turn round and come home, and he also rang D and asked her to ring me to give me some TLC .... Oh BLESS!!!! There's a reason why we've been together for sooooo long ... where do you find lovin like that these days!!

Anyhoo ... enough self pity .... its off to the panel beaters to get her back looking like this again (hopefully better):

Now onto less distressing matters ...

2 of pop's more idosyncratic female singers are about to release new material.

I've already mentioned Tori Amos' American Doll Posse ... surf the web and you'll find shitloads of live promotional performances, interviews and advanced listens ... true to Tori form .... she's still trying to come across as the tortured eccentric and sometimes that stream of consciousness lyric form does seem tired and uninspiring .... and really who knows what she's talking about anyways ... but when she sits at those keys ... some kinda voodoo takes over ... and you just have to watch.



The pretension is there in Bjork ... but I think its the accent and the wierd clothes and the potential to erupt into thai-bashing violence that we forgive her soooo much ... and this time round there's a lot to forgive as evidenced here:

WHAT THE ... !!!! Anyways Love her to bits so everyone singalong with me:

"We are the earth intruders, we are the sharpshooters ... woowoowoo"



Sample tracks here: (gee Timbaland gets around!!!)

Oh Bjork ... if only there was a little bit of crazy left in all of us .... (judging by fabric of dress .. are we already dredging up the 90s??)

PS ... have a look at this video for Softlightes:



Don't you just love stop motion photography .. its so sesame-streetish .. which is prolly why it always reminds me of childhood ... and the coloured paper too ...

PPS ... CrCh reckons the Junior Boys sound like Dead or Alive ... FUCK OFF!!! Hahaha

Quick One - Virginia Tech Shootings

Ok .... this is a quick one .... I know this is going to sound insensitive ... and that I am oversimplifying things a bit .. BUT SERIOUSLY IF YOU DIDN'T HAVE FIREARMS SO READILY AVAILABLE ... YOU WOULD PROBABLY NOT HAVE KILLINGS ON THIS SCALE!!! COME ON!!!! PLEASE!!!!

You Can Take The Girl Out Of The Sugababes But ...

Ok ... So you can take the girl out of the Sugababes ... but sometimes, ever so often, you can actually take the sugababes out of the girl.

 

To be fair, the Sugababes were never really that big here. But somehow they managed to straddle that tight but deep crevice between pop sensibility and indie credibility. Considering the number of "righteous" dj's that they've managed to snag into providing remixes for their tracks ... and the compiles that they've appeared on that are linked with the effortlessly "now and with-it" magazine publications that have the wannabe indie nazi as their target readership.

I should preface this by reminding my faithful readers of my proclivation for the odd guilty pop pleasure of which this is most certainly one ... and I should also encourage you to ignore all citations of Kate Bush as a defining influence .. as between you and me, we are meandering dangerously into Sarah Brightman territory here ... HOWEVER AND BUT Siobhan Donaghy's latest single "Don't Give it Up" is the poverbial Bomb!!

 

NEXT: Lets talk about Sofia Coppola!!!

Well lets do because I have just watched Marie Antoinette (I know, I am a bit behind)!!. Frankly, I'm baffled by some of the strong reactions to this movie. Its a Sofia Coppola film, so you should really know what you're getting into from the start ... she well and truly has a signature style which harks back to the gritty realism of 70s Hollywood Americana where music of the times was as much a character in films as the actors themselves, filtered through a distinctly European lense with its measured pace, stunning cinematography and muffled conversations overlapping each other ala Fellini. Ok ok let me just reign it in a little ... coz I was going to say Fellini meets Easy Rider ... but No that seriously is not the case. Its a contemporary look at the world we live in ... I hazard to guess that people of my generation will get it ... others will struggle ...!!

With Marie Antoinette ... considering the detailed attention given to food and fashion (which I absolutely adore ... especially the sugary colours in the pastries) ... it was always going to be classified as a puff piece of some description ... self indulgent and wallowing, indeed celebrating in style over substance ... but really who wants another heavy-lidded historical tome where every piece of dialogue is a soliloquy in itself ... this is a more naturalistic approach ... and certainly a more sympathetic view ... indulgence as a way of rorting the system ... my kind of life. Versailles would have been an extremely claustrophobic place on all levels I expect ... a sort of luxury cruise ship thats permanently moored to the sand ... you have no way of escaping the rigmarole and affectations of a society that feeds on its own sense of importance ... your only choice is to PARTICIPATE!!

And all that riot of colour and embellishment exerts a suffocating influence on the main protagonists, which is why the sunrise with its oddly muted tones is such a poignant moment and provides a metaphorical sigh of relief, a chance for them and us to breathe.

LOST IN TRANSLATION - don't get me started on this one ... I love love love love love the restraint of this movie ... and I found it incredibly funny ... and incredibly sad and beautiful ... who would have thought that we could be so sympathetic towards Bill Murray?? And Scarlett Johannson ... if I was that way inclined .... well ....

 

VIRGIN SUICIDES - great period detail ... excellent soundtrack ... virginal white dresses and blond hair ... look Pauline Hanson would be in heaven ... apart from the fact that they all pretty much end up dead ... Pauline would still need a "Please explain" at the end of all that.

I'm halfway through Babel ... and The Hills have eyes remake ... hehe ... you gotta mix the highs with the lows peops!! May blog about these later or may not ... but I'm sure I could manage a few lines on the tomato sauce I intend to make soon.

P.S. M loves this movie too ... bless ... there's still a bit of queer left in the motherfucker!!!