You could drown your woes in hot chocolate(this could get you wired) or alcohol(this just gets you depressed)
You could cuddle(I'm finding my pillow to be a passable alternative to an actual person, though I'm thinking it will pass soon)
You could play board games(don't scoff they are fun)
or
You could wake up to find that Little Dragon has released their first single since their album Ritual Union last year. The song so aptly called Sunshine created in conjunction with Absolute for the absolute remix sessions confirms that the band hasn't lost their mojo. Beautifully layered with Yukimi Nagano's vocals bringing it all together make my day and a few days to come. Who says instant fixes aren't the answer?
You know sometimes for all the vast amount of cribbing I do
I feel like I don’t deserve to find a song like this.
On the way to work today while I cribbed about hair fall
haathi looked out of the window and said, “God I love Goa.”
Yes, the fields are now lakes, the sea is mucky brown but
Goa is awake, its clean, fresh and beautiful. I thought about it a little and realized
that I know no one that gets to ride through a forest and cross a river to get
to work.
M83 presents Raconte-Moi
Une Histoire. Ignore the video, close your eyes and listen to the lyrics.
The rain has finally stopped and for the first time in three days i got a glimpse of the sun. The last few days felt awful and somewhere along the line the universe heard me out and is giving us a well deserved break.
The people I love are all facing a rough time and its just so annoying to not be there physically. Yes, this is the digital age but you can't hug someone or stroke someones back through a crummy computer screen. Sometimes things dont work as planned and most times you put your own twist on it based on your surroundings; for example an office in a basement with no light and a plastic sheet to keep the rain out. But every so often the sun forces its way through the clouds and you suck it up, tell yourself to a grow a pair and trudge on.
I'm not a fan of Underground House but when someone like Maya Jane Coles comes along I can't resist. She keeps me going so here are two of my favourites. The first is a remix of a Lianne La Havas song lost and found. Mellow with a great build up its perfect to zone out to.
The second is a track called Humming Bird. Up beat, fun and somehow never actually boring. Her more musical approach to the world of underground house is what makes it more accessible to me I suppose.
This weekend was spent indoors. Two days of torrential downpour can lead to multiple cups of tea and hours spent watching Jane Eyre while feeling sorry for yourself; But it can also lead to Sanaa picking up my guitar and introducing me to one of the most beautiful Cat Power songs I've heard. With the rain lending its sound and the fairy lights it made for the perfect scene.
I'm going to be bold and say I liked her version of it better but it is a beautiful song so I'm posting it anyway. Days of non-stop rain can be harrowing but there are somethings that can only happen when the weather is at its worst.
My first response to the Goa monsoon conversation met with waves of laughter and pointing in my direction. Nothing could ever prepare me for it.
Its been only a week and my pillows are damp, every surface in my apartment is covered in wet clothes and tiny frogs have decided to make a home in my balcony/pond. Haathi very sweetly reminds me how it will only get worse and there will be weeks where it won't cease. So before my brain is waterlogged and I blend in to the swamp that will soon be my apartment I have decided to cram as much music into this blog as humanly possible.
Of course now that I've gotten the drama out of my system I have to admit that I have never seen Goa this beautiful. The forest road I take to work has been washed clean and I have never in all my life seen so many shades of green before. The misty drizzle is like wearing rose tinted glasses, everything looks alive, fresh and clean. The tourists have gone home and where I stay now finally feels like a regular town.
The vibe to life has changed, and with a change in vibe comes a shift in what I listen to. The latest discovery being Chet Faker (Nick Murphy). This 22 year old from Australia got famous doing a cover of the song No diggity by Blackstreet that went viral online but the song that I first stumbled upon was one of
his own.
He likes to call his genre Motown meets minimalist house and though I'm not too sure what it actually means though when I think about it, it seems like they appropriate way to describe it. If you are into Alexi Murdoch, smooth jazz and Jose Gonzales you will like him.
Isn't it just amazing when you stumble upon music when the mood is set and the time is right? Chet Faker presents terms and conditions, enjoy
Making grown up decisions are hard. It's almost as if taking that step towards that post paid connection or application for a credit card will take you that much further from the mud you would rather have your feet in. Once you do though things get comfortable, and comfortable needn't always be good.
I'm lying in bed listening to the rain trying to make one of the biggest and most unsettling decisions of my life and all I can think about is the raincoat I should have bought.
For every big decision one must have the right kind of music and since I am approaching this momentous paradigm shift in my life from every angle except head on I have resorted to Listening to Kimbra. Now before you scoff and pass her off as pop/Gotye sellout you have to give these tracks a chance.
I'm not quite sure how I stumbled upon her but this eclectic, skinny woman from New Zealand is a powerhouse. Her complicated rhythm and left of center harmonies make listening to her music so much fun. Every time I listen to her I always find that something slipped the last time its almost like a challenge now. Yes, she dresses a little like Katy Perry and yes, some of her music is upbeat and well "pop" but when you hear her live, really listen you know that she is a force to be reckoned with.
For risk of moving into total star wars mode I will stop now and let you decide for yourself. The first track is my favourite by far. Kimbra presents Settle Down live at SXSW 2012. Just her and an awfully fancy vocal loopy thing(at some point in my life I will find out what it's called I promise). It blows my mind every time!
p.s. note the striped pants, fabulous yes?
Second, another live version of her song Plain gold ring off her album vows. I'm not sure how I feel about the album version but this live track is just fantastic.
