Though the weather down here in LA is less than ideal, I feel like I'm finally warming up to the week. So, not quite upbeat, here's some "warm up" tracks for the week. Definitely got a few tracks here that can make you break a sweat. (If you wanna.)
By the way, I am loving the new Kelis! (I wished I had seen her at Pride!) Chopped up piano pieces, who produced this?! Apparently a DJ Ammo? His name doesn't ring any bells but, according to his website, he's based in LA so obvi I have to go see him live sometime. :) Of course, the signature Calvin Harris twist makes it even better during the verse, though honestly, I could do with a different drop than this dirty one that would be great for massive crowds but takes away from the orgasm in my ear while listening to it with my headphones.
This one is thanks to Sadaf. Who doesn't love Ok Go music videos? But, this song trumps all of their other songs (IMO). This song is the moodiest Ok Go track I've ever heard! "Here It Goes", great video, song, meh. (Ok Go MVs) But, truth be told, I'm a sucker for synth. (If you couldn't tell already.) Note to producers: where are the remixes at???
White Flight - Panther Thanks to Scott and Sadaf (again) for this über-psychedelic track. Such a jam and such a good time when I first heard it. You can definitely hear Ratatat in the track and the ever-changing mood in the song reminds me of Of Montreal. (Of Montreal sample. They are supposed to be coming out with a new EP in September!) White Flight, I'm going to keep a lookout for you.
If you're rolling granny (or grand-p) style like me, you need to just chill the eff out today. You had all the untz-untz-untz you've needed for a while and you just need to self-reflect and hydrate. Here's some chill music for the day.
This weekend LA is hosting the largest electronic music event (basically a rave) in North America. I feel like I'm getting too old to do this... Never before have I hesitated about going to a rave because "there would be too many people". (But, to be fair, I currently do have an injured knee.) After much ambivalence, I was persuaded into going to one day of EDC. I went to the LA Coliseum to pick up the ticket on Wednesday and saw how much labor was going into make this happen, and somehow that justified everything. It was seriously like a full-on construction site! Anyway, I was suddenly holding tickets to both days! So, that is where my EDC journey begins.
If EDC is as good as its trailer, then great things are in store. The teaser starts in the daytime with some lame Euro trash and then escalates to an amazing night. The transition literally sends shivers down my spine. Even my co-worker who was making fun of the video was suddenly entranced the moment nighttime came, and obvi, he's so not into the scene.
Step 1. Take THE anthem from 1994/1995. Step 2. Strain out acoustic guitar. Step 3. Add Nine Inch Nails' "F*** You Like An Animal" beats. Step 4. Stir in synths.
I was tipped off by mon Cinéphile about a new Sofia Coppola movie coming out in December and it looks am-am-am-am-AMAZING! Thanks Est, mon Cinéphile! Even with the few words uttered in the trailer, I was emotionally stirred. Check it out below:
Sofia has such a way of story-telling, that even if her scenes are so LA and/or so "out there", it'll be presented in a c'est la vie manner. The casting seems impeccable. I mean, how cute are Stephen Dorff and Elle Fanning together? (And how cute is Elle Fanning? Watch out Dakota!) I simply cannot wait.
If you saw the trailer until the end you saw that the movie is accompanied by mood-setters, Phoenix. JOY. Seeing the nature of the movie, I really do hope that it's old Phoenix rather than new, dance-pop Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. I have my hopes up! (You can check out our Phoneix post here.) Regardless, Sofia always has an eccentric yet beautiful way of picking out the right tunes. (I actually don't know how I feel about the Marie Antoinette soundtrack...) Even the B-side Strokes song "covered" by Julian Casablancas that's used in this trailer is perfect.
Thought I'd end it on a foul note. :) (But, the insertion of this song in that scene is quite perfect, you must admit.)
PS. TRON update! (Here is our original Tron post.)
Comic Con is coming up with the filmmakers, cast, and special guests of Tron presenting. The question is... who are the special guests? Though, I missed out on my opportunity to buy Comic Con tickets ages ago, if you have them, good for you... if you don't, it's possible that Daft will do some Disney viral marketing gig outside the convention center... so, road trip to San Diego anyone? More details here. Thanks for the heads up Bri!
I know that the Katy Perry and Snoop Dogg song is super catchy and a decent West Coast attempt at trying to create a comeback to that timeless East Coast jam by Alicia Keys and Jay-Z. But please, don't let it settle as your summer jam. Here's a song that's been around for a bit now but I think could define the to-be-awesome summer of 2010! Let's go out big!
“I’m so proud of this video, not only because it’s our summer hit and because it’s a love song, it just made me cry, really. It took 4 months, it is composed of approx 2000 images watercolor painted one after another (we say Aquarelle in french). It was handmade by the lovely Irina Dakeva.” - Busy P
Hello world! I am back and what a glorious day to be back. (The day the Alejandro music video premiered!)
My dear friend was worried that Gaga had gotten to a point where she could create complete mush and people would still smother it with love and obsession. After Telephone, I too was fearful of this being the case. (I love Tarantino and Los Angeles, but Telephone just seemed cheap.) I DO believe that either I have regained faith or Gaga completely has me under her spell.
The music video for Alejandro is 8+ minutes long and there was not a single moment of boredom. The inexplicable strange darkness of Steven Klein infused with elements of NSFW, army-dancing, bowl cuts (who knew there were so many bowl cut variations!), and obscure sexuality. YESSSSS, just my cup of tea.
I love it when pop culture can make me think. (This isn’t another LOST plug, though it could be…) The video made me think of:
The subtlety of sexiness. Nazis, a person who looks like an albino gerbil, men with bowl cuts and black spanx, nude lingerie, AK47 boobies, and nuns being raped are not the usual recipe for selling sex. Yet, this video somehow achieves just that.
Gender roles. Gaga seems to have a moment of defiance against the physical (and maybe emotional) authority men have over women during the scene that the bowl cut guards are in heels in the beds. (She’s TOTs metaphorically wearing the pants in that scene.) But, she is ultimately overcome by their prowess in the end. (Nun being raped scene.)
Non-immaculate religion. As the church inadvertently facilitated the tragic ending of Romeo and Juliet, the church has a way of being dragged into these lives of the hedonistic and not-so-innocent. I also think the video hits upon how war and religion in history have gone hand-in-hand over history.
The importance of the theatrical/innovative. Sure, as an artist you have to become an alter ego to promote yourself, but let’s see… Ke$ha = trashy, drunk white girl, Katy Perry = seemingly innocent but naughty girl, MIA = terrorist, Lindsay Lohan = daddy issues, etc. etc. No one is willing to reinvent themselves each time to perform an art. I appreciate the fact that Gaga is still a mystery whose innovation excites me about her next project each time all while maintaining relevance in pop culture. (Is this how Madonna was back in the day?) Even the transition from the intro to the actual song is genius. This whole time, I thought Alejandro was a latino-inspired tropical song. Who would have ever thought that this melancholy, Russian-sounding tune would transition so well into Alejandro? Tell me, who else in pop can do this! The tragedy of the storyline.... the symbolisms... oh, I can go on forever...
Damn, totally false alarm on the oil spill being plugged last week. The toxic deluge continues to flow into the gulf, and I'll admit I haven't washed any baby seals recently. I'm just too depressed about the state of affairs the the world is in. We have impending war in Korea, leaders acting like ass-holes in the Middle East, financial turmoil in Europe. Crystal Bowersox even lost American Idol to some Daughtry wannabe, I couldn't even believe it.
What's the cure for our global malaise? Dancing, of course.
International pop star, Robyn just dropped a well reviewedalbum on Tuesday. Here a stellar single which compels us all to dance (albeit alone)...
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Though the weather down here in LA is less than ideal, I feel like I'm finally warming up to the week. So, not quite upbeat, here's some "warm up" tracks for the week. Definitely got a few tracks here that can make you break a sweat. (If you wanna.)
