Tuesday, March 25, 2008

"Today was gonna be the day…"

Happy 30th Birthday MDK! Misses and kisses!

"Wonderwall"—Oasis


xoxo,
Stefania

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Who killed the video star?

I recently discovered the video for The New Pornographers song “Myriad Harbour”…one of my favorite songs of last year. Sadly, it is not what I expected or would hope for this song:



I love music videos. It combines two things I love: music and TV. How could it ever go wrong? But sadly it does. However, it can also go very right. Now, I know people point out the fact that MTV no longer shows videos, well except for that 1 hour from 4-5am on every third Thursday of the month. And MTV2 rarely shows videos, even though they were created just to show them 24/7. VH1 is also not focusing on videos anymore. I will say thought that at 3am on Sunday mornings they show some new stuff like Radiohead videos from In Rainbows.

So where does someone go to see new videos? MTV2 has a program called Subterranean that replaced my beloved 120 Minutes. It’s pretty good and you can see an archive of the videos they aired on their website. The Subterranean blog is also a pretty good place, and it is updated daily. Other blogs like Stereogum, Paper Thin Walls, and Pitchfork will post videos from time to time. You could always go to a site like YouTube and do a search of the songs/artists you like and see what is new, or go to the artists’ sites to see if they have posted anything new.

If you are really frustrated you can just take matters into your own hands and create your own videos for songs you like…in fact another music blog, Said the Gramophone, hosts a contest in which you create a video for a song you love:
http://saidthegramophone.com/contest_winners.php Pretty clever.

I have come to the conclusion though if you want to see cool, new videos (or any videos for that matter) you have to be proactive.

xoxo,
Stefania

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Take Away Shows

I have fallen in love with these Take Away Shows from French blog La Blogothèque. The live sessions are shot in a spontaneous and improvised way, creating intimate and beautiful moments of pure emotion and unplanned surprises. They are mainly shot in Paris, but they also have some that were done in NYC and other US Cities. The artists perform as they are walking down the street, in a stranger’s apartment, or even in places like playgrounds and elevators. Such a fun, creative idea. Love it. See for yourself: http://www.blogotheque.net/spip.php?page=cae_all&lang=en

Some of my faves:

“Holy Chord”—Dappled Cities



“Jesus Saves, I Spend”—St. Vincent



“Nantes”—Beirut



“Walcott”/”One (Blake’s Got A New Face)”—Vampire Weekend



“God, Make Up Your Mind”—Cold War Kids



“Cowbell”—Tapes ‘N Tapes



“The Knife”—Grizzly Bear



xoxo,
Stefania


Friday, March 21, 2008

So not fair!

Today my office closed early due to the unending snow that is falling from the sky and it also being Easter weekend. So I didn’t complain and am now sitting cozily in my bed wearing my fleecy PJ pants…ahhhh…oh and of course watching TV!

Earlier this month I was flipping channels and ended up watch a movie called Inside I’m Dancing or Rory O'Shea Was Here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_i%27m_dancing


So again I am flipping channels and have landed on one of the many HBOs. The movie is on again. It’s a pretty decent flick, has some good moments, and James McAvoy is in it. However, during the end credits they play an Elbow song I had never heard of. After the first listen I immediately tried to find out where I could get it.

After doing some Wikipedia research I found out it is called "Beats For Two" and sadly it is unreleased. So not fair! If you get a chance to hear this song 1) be prepared to be wowed and 2) let me know where you found it. I would love to have a copy of it. Hopefully they will release it someday. Of course it is also 4 or 5 years old now.

Good news is I do get to see Elbow at the end of April. I cannot wait! I also cannot wait for the new album, The Seldom Seen Kid, to be released here in the States. I’m loving the single:

“Grounds For Divorce”


http://www.elbow.co.uk/

xoxo,
Stefania

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

“This is where I…”

It is no surprise that after spending 5 minutes with me that one will discover I watch a lot of TV. I mean a lot. Thank goodness for the invention of the DVR/Tivo. One of the best ideas ever. I watch pretty much everything from reality trash to insightful documentaries/educational programs. I watch Italian soccer and your standard cable sitcoms and dramas. I pretty much watch it all regardless of the channel it is on. Hey good TV is good TV! One show that has really gotten me excited is WE tv’s High School Confidential:



http://highschool.wetv.com/

Even though this show is about to start it’s third week, I think it is one of the best shows on TV today hands down. Maybe it’s because the sociologist side of me dorks out on stuff like this. I have always had an interest in teenage girl culture, well since I was one. From books that describe the behavior of teenagers (Slut!: Growing Up Female with a Bad Reputation, Queen Bees & Wannabes…, etc.) to films like Mean Girls or even one of my all time faves, Heathers, we as a society have an interest in this stage of development.

The show also reminds me of my high school days and how much I grew as a person during those four years. It’s interesting to see that change and growth in the women featured on the show. I did enjoy my high school experience. I would never want to go back, but I look at that time fondly…even though I probably won’t go to my 10 year reunion this year. I am still close to the people I was friends with, and I’d much rather we all take a vacation someplace together. It'd be more fun.

I know this entry isn’t really music related, but I thought I’d share with you all this awesome show. It comes on Monday nights at 9pm CST.

xoxo,
Stefania

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