Posts Tagged ‘Music’

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I’m a person who quite easily gets stuck with the same old music she has always listened to.

I find something I like and then just keep on listening to it. Throughout the years I’ve collected quite a few bands and albums that I like and I’ve noticed that lately I’ve been totally stuck listening to them only. It’s usually not a bad thing but sometimes it’s nice to get an update and to refresh the playlist. That’s exactly what I’m doing now.

I actually found a new great band through This is Now. I read a tweet by one of the This is Now Twitter followers about Melody Clubs new video and retweeted it. I decided to check out the profile to see who “Choochootheband” was. I found a link to the MySpace of the band, and after that there was no turning back.

Choo Choo is a Swiss band that’s influenced by 60-ies Teenage Beat, Soul, Pop and Garage Rock. You can read on their MySpace that they sound like something in between Sonics and Caesars and that one of their favorite artists is Moneybrother. The fact that both Moneybrother and Caesars are Swedish (and awesome) makes me give a little bit of extra love to Choo Choo. And not only does Choo Choo play great music inspired by great artists but they also have the greatest look ever, they are all gorgeous!

I’m now impatiently waiting for them to have a gig in London so that I can enjoy music, looks and the magic of being at a gig all at the same time.

tagged Choo Choo Music this is now

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Oh, how I wish it was me standing in the crowd in this amazing picture, forgetting about everything else and just be in the moment.

I don’t even now who’s playing in the picture and that doesn’t really matter because what I do know is that you’re never anywhere else than in the ‘now’ when you’re at a gig. Violette explains it very well in this post.

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I’ve been living in London for the past 3 months, so my ‘now’ is intimately related to this city, its bustling atmosphere. Music is really important in my life, I would even say omnipresent. I like the way music can arouse emotions and ease pain. I listen to a wide array of music, ranging from folk songs to cutting edge electronica. I enjoy experiencing the power of live music and listening to peaceful songs in my bedroom on a sunday afternoon. I set up my own blog one year ago because none of the existing blogs were talking about pop songs I like. I tried the best I can to liven it up with colourful graphics and beautiful pictures to illustrate the songs.

As I was wandering in the lively streets of Shoreditch, I grabbed an issue of The Fly magazine and one of the reviews caught my attention. It was about an up-and-coming singer called Laura Groves so I decided to give it a try and go straight to her myspace page. One of the song moved me deeply : Doubtful Conforts. It’s a relaxing song with a discreet glockenspiel background, a wistful melody, beautiful choirs and a haunting, angelic voice which reminds me of Joanna Newsom. As the song is playing, time seems to freeze and all our everyday problems are left behind. If you enjoyed this fleeting moment, you should as well take a look at this video I came across, in which she’s singing in front of a church with the same grace and enchantment.

Bertrand Masson
http://www.sunday-mornings.fr

tagged blue roses feeling folk London Music

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As many of the other bloggers on This is now I’m having a hard time pinning down what ‘now’ means. I’m realising that ‘now’ can be so many things: in a weird way it’s both in the past and in the future.

Even though he is from my past, Swedish singer Thåström takes me to the ‘moment of now’. It has been almost 10 years since someone first played Thåström to me but I still remember the exact feeling: the feeling of nothing else existing but the music. It was his song “Hjärter dam” that filled the room that day and caught me in the moment. This song is still one of my favourite songs.

I find Thåström’s music brilliantly beautiful even though I don’t listen to it as much as I used to. However I do listen to it every time I want to feel like there’s only ‘now’.

Thåström recently released a new album. I haven’t had the chance to listen to it yet but I assume it’s great. He’s been doing music for ages and he’s one of the few artists that I find to be improving throughout the years instead of getting worse. An example of that is one of my absolute favourite songs “Fan Fan Fan” from his album Skebokvarnsv. 209 released in 2005.

With that said I’m going to get his new album as soon as possible and enjoy ‘now’.

tagged Music Swedish Thåström this is now

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For me ‘This is now’ is that unexpected song playing in the background while you are doing other things, or while you’re stuck in a jam and for a few minutes everything stops and the music takes you to a world where only the music and you are.

That moment, unknown to someone else, occured with ‘Hoppipolla‘. The title comes from an Icelandic word invented by the band which means “jumping into puddles » in the way a toddler would pronounce ‘Hoppa í polla’. They also wanted to convey the optimistic spirit of the song in the official video and in the fragment of the documentary Heima that you can see below.

To watch the video please visit the YouTube page

‘This is now Hoppipolla’ means breaking the rules imposed by routine, enjoying again those little details hidden in the city, having fun as a child splashing in puddles or going for a walk on the beach even if it rains, only because I feel like it.
You know, the next time you see an adult getting lost because he jumped upon a pond, be aware that he’s not crazy, he’s just enjoying his ‘now’ moment. so instead of looking, join !

All this is what I try to convey every time someone talk about a song or an interesting band. If something similar happened to any of you thanks to a recommendation that we made, our work would be worthwhile. What else can I say: ‘This is Mundo Música Now’.

David
http://www.mundomusica.es/

—

Para mí ‘This is now’ es esa canción inesperada que suena de fondo mientras estás liado haciendo otras cosas, o que escuchas en el coche metido en un atasco y que, por unos minutos, hace que todo se detenga y te transporta a un mundo donde sólo estáis la música y tú.

Ese momento, inexplicable para otra persona, me sucedió con ‘Hoppípolla‘. El título procede de una palabra islandesa inventada por el grupo y significa ’saltando en los charcos’, que es cómo pronunciaría un niño pequeño ‘hoppa í polla’. El espíritu optimista de la canción lo quisieron transmitir también al videoclip oficial y, de forma diferente, a un fragmento del documental Heima, que podéis ver a continuación.

Hoppipolla

‘This is Hoppipolla now’ significa romper con las reglas grises que impone el día a día, volver a apreciar esos pequeños detalles que esconde la ciudad, divertirme como un niño chapoteando en los charcos o ir a dar un paseo por la playa aunque llueva a mares, sólo porque me apetece.

Ya sabes, la próxima vez que veas a un adulto poniéndose perdido porque está dando brincos sobre una charca, no está loco, es que está disfrutando de su momento “ahora”, así que en lugar de mirar, únete.
Todo esto es lo que intento transmitir cada vez que os hablo de una canción o un grupo interesante. Si a alguno de vosotros le sucedió algo parecido gracias a una recomendación que pusimos, nuestro trabajo habrá valido la pena. Qué más puedo decir: This is Mundo Música now.

David
http://www.mundomusica.es/

tagged Music sigur ros this is now

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When asked to name a track that defined ‘now’ I did what most people would do, I started to think of tracks that meant something to me, in some shape or form. That was my biggest mistake because I then spent every waking moment considering literally thousands of songs but I couldn’t pick one and say it defined ‘now’.  But then again, what is ‘now’?

‘Now’ is a moment in time that is no sooner identified before it turns into ‘Then’.  This is when I realised that no matter what song I thought of, it would never really define ‘now’ or at least not the ‘now’ of this moment; what it would define is the ‘now’ of ‘then’.  I knew ‘now’ could not be defined by Bruce Springsteen’s Thunder Road, probably the first song that I heard where the lyrics spoke to me but that was the ‘now’ of 1984 which is where I return to whenever I hear it.

I also realised that Mano Negra’s Roget Cageot was not the track to define ‘now’ although it was certainly the ‘now’ of 1990 when I was backpacking through Europe, just the first few notes and I’m teleported back to Paris where I partied long and hard with Parisians who forgave me for butchering their language and didn’t mind speaking English, contrary to what everyone told me to expect.

As I considered and discarded song after song I thought I’d have to give up trying.  Yes, I could think of hundreds of songs that took me back to a time when they were the epitome of ‘now’ but none of them could really define ‘now’ at this moment in time.  Suddenly, from out of nowhere a song started in my head that not only transported me back, to 2002 to be exact, but it also seemed to scream, “This is NOW!” in my ear.  The song was If I had it all by the Dave Matthews Band.

It perfectly defines ‘now’ for me.  It is at once the ‘now’ of yesterday, the ‘now’ of tomorrow and more importantly the ‘now’ of the moment.  This song is no ordinary love song, sure it has the makings of your typical boy meets girl, boy and girl fall in love and boy and girl live happily ever after love song but there’s something more, something special, especially when you hit the chorus and Dave sings,

And if I were a king, If I had everything

If I had you and I could give you your dreams

If I were giant-sized, on top of it all

Tell me what in the world would I go on for

If I had it all

How would we cope if we had it all? If the one we loved reciprocated. If we could do everything we desired for ourselves and for others. If we really could make dreams come true. Would life be any better if we didn’t have to work at it? I don’t think so and I don’t think Dave does either.  This song reminds me never to stand still, it reminds me not to become Then; it reminds me not only to think of tomorrow but, like ‘now’, think of the moment.

This is ‘now’, live for it!

Mr Omneo
http://www.mr-omneo.co.uk/
http://www.lastfm.fr/user/omneo

tagged dave matthews band Music this is now

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I am not a musician, just a fan, and it is hard to imagine ‘now’ without music. I wouldn’t be able to recall any relevant moments of my life without soundtrack, without background music. Neither i could disassociate the music from my routine as it’s around me in every moment, in every circumstance and in every situation. It’s part of me and has a huge influence on my lifestyle. Indeed, when you really like metal music, you know that it is part of your identity and a commitment for life.

Heavy metal has always been my ‘now’. When I discovered it during my teenage years, I couldn’t believe what effect it had on my body. During my first concert, I was overwhelmed by emotions and I couldn’t feel more comforted by all the people around me who were all united in the same love for music. At the darkest time of my life, when sadness and loneliness were omnipresent and when I was thinking that melancholy was a right way to lead life, it allowed me to explore feelings deeper and squeeze all the juice out of it. Thanks to heavy metal, I met the person I share my life with today, and from that time, everything has even more meaning.

These were the previous ‘now’. Now the heavy metal, and specifically its most extreme aspect, channel all my energy, my joy, my positivity, my anger and my fury. There is always a metal subgenre for every moment. Death metal with either ‘Cry My Name’ by Bloodbath or any classics by Morbid Angel, helps me to take strength to deal with my problems. Any doom metal songs or dark ambient music, like those of Ahab or Elffor, lead me beyond the boundaries of my imagination. Black metal reminds me that our society still has to bear the weight of belief and tradition which chain humankind to its lower nature. Grindcore is the best one to provoke and to make fun of the absurdity of conventions.

This is my life right now and it will never be part of a past I am ashamed of.

Pablo Suau,
http://pablosuau.blogspot.com/

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Yo no soy músico. Tan solo un aficionado. Pero para una persona como yo es difícil imaginar un “ahora” sin música. Sería incapaz de recordar algún momento relevante de mi vida sin banda sonora, sin música de fondo. Tampoco podría disociar la música de mi rutina, pues ésta me acompaña en cada momento, en cada circunstancia y en cada situación. Es parte de mi, y determina en gran medida mi estilo de vida. Efectivamente, cuando de verdad amas la música Metal, sabes que es un compromiso de por vida, que es parte de tu identidad, y que es algo que no vas a abandonar con la edad.

El Heavy Metal siempre ha sido mi “ahora”. Cuando lo descubrí de adolescente, no podía creerme lo que era capaz de hacerle sentir a mi cuerpo. En mi primer concierto la emoción me invadió, y no podía más que sentirme reconfortado por toda aquella gente que, junto a mí, estaba allí aquella noche para vivir conmigo su afición. En la época más oscura de mi vida, cuando la tristeza y la soledad hicieron acto de presencia, y cuando pensaba que la melancolía era una forma válida de ver la vida, me permitió explorar más a fondo dichos sentimientos y
sacarles todo el jugo que pude. Gracias al Heavy Metal conocí a aquella persona con la que hoy comparto mi vida, y desde entonces todo ha tenido incluso más sentido.

Esos fueron los anteriores “ahora”. Ahora el Heavy Metal, y en concreto su vertiente más extrema, canalizan toda mi energía, mi alegría, mi positividad, mi rabia y mi furia. Siempre hay un estilo de Metal para cada momento. El Death Metal, ya sea con Cry My Name de Bloodbath o cualquier clásico de Morbid Angel, me ayuda a coger fuerza para enfrentarme a mis problemas. Cualquier canción de Doom Metal o de música oscura ambiental, como la de los grupos Ahab o Elffor, me lleva más allá de donde mi imaginación es capaz de llegar. El Black Metal me recuerda que nuestra sociedad todavía tiene que cargar con el peso de tradiciones y creencias que limitan al ser humano. Y el Grindcore es lo mejor para provocar y reirte de lo absurdo de los convencionalismos.

Ahora esto es mi vida. Y nunca dejaré que forme parte de un pasado del que me avergüence.

Pablo Suau
http://pablosuau.blogspot.com/

tagged metal Music this is now

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As I begin to write, the walls of the room vibrate to the rhythm of “Hang Me Up To Dry” by Cold War Kids. “Set out to dry, my friend: now hang me up to dry for good because my bones were too wet in recent months. Christ it’s moist. Turn off the stereo because it is not easy. I need silence. It is not simple at all”. Speaking of ‘now’ is a little like speaking of never. A lot of meat to the fire. We need to skim through this issue well. Nothing comes now.

Not long ago I wrote elsewhere that life is a journey. Add yourself to it or it will leave you alone. It’s up to you all where and how you deal with the journey. Every single aspect that makes even an insignificant part of life is essential to add details to the trip. If you want to focus some more on smaller pieces of this giant puzzle, you’ll find that each piece is a journey in itself.

Thus the music, important, sacred and burning fire, mean of communication par excellence, should be seen in this light. Things have not changed much for all these years: the skins of the drums beating in the caves, the opera, going boppin’ and rocking, disco rhythms, electro music (the list could go on forever…), and still, there has been a constant evolution. In the end what counts is that they are talking about the feelings and those have remained unchanged. Cry, reflect, don’t think about anything, and feel that little shiver down your spine when you hear the first notes of a song.

Things like that.

Normal things.

Beautiful things.

The notes are always there, they form a huge ball which burns and go against the barriers of conventions, though much can been lost in the process. It’s a very revolutionary power. It is not the fault of anyone. Simply a change similar to the speed of the journey. Sitting comfortably in first? Well, now how good is it really in the wagon because there are another two hundred people who want the same spot near the window and I know that you don’t travel by foot. The speed is now insane, desperate, sometimes incomprehensible.

This is the era of “all at once”.

Millions of groups, trends, statements, new labels are to be pasted on everyone (though there are still only 7 notes) and the sacred fire continues to burn, but maybe now it’s not able to knock down all the barriers of a real world which is taking too much from the frenetic pace of life.

For each separated bands, there are already ready another five that now call themselves saviours of our souls, take on their shoulders a cross and immersed in the blinding light come on stage, surrounded by a deafening noise. You can’t follow? Then adapt or you get off this train. We have our iPods full of bands that we often do not even know the name very well. The pace is high. Even for myself it is often frustrating: excited by a new American band, I write, review, pass the song on the radio and announce it as something sensational. The following week that little band remains on the air, but there is now a sweet after-taste that’s vanishing. And it’s soon replaced with ten other covers ready to scream the truth.

You are still with us, aren’t you? Coming down? Are you off permanently or are you trying to stand up as much as you can? Personally I often put a lower gear and slow down. I prefer the speed of the last decade. In the Nineties there were 3 or 4 “cornerstones” bands for each generation and each artist/band was known to do almost everything: from the texts of each song, the credits on the last page of the booklet, and so on.

With detachment I often do not look at the most promising new MySpace, and I put on a record with a date of publication that starts with 19…

But that’s me.

You are more. But also you are surrounded with pessimists like me and you have to decide where to stay.

Self-esteem must form its own opinion and believe in it. Do not give too much weight to journals, sites and music recommendations or the music of your uncle which “was his all time favourite”… or like now to these damn “see these here”. I know, I have an indie music site so I can talk… But it is true. Everyone has to go wherever they want and believe what they want. MySpace is full of good bands: people who do not want to save the world, guys who do not take you by the hand in the front row to the revolution, and yet something is good and is really enjoyable. Just know when it’s time to no longer believe in fairy tales. Take everything in the right amount. The truth, once again, is in the middle.

Now more than ever.

www.myspace.com/giov_indieforbunnies

Mentre comincio a scrivere, le pareti della stanza vibrano al ritmo di “Hang Me Up To Dry” dei Cold War Kids. Mettimi fuori ad asciugare, amico mio: appendimi per bene perché le mie ossa si sono bagnate non poco negli ultimi mesi. Cristo che umidità. Spengo lo stereo perché la cosa non è semplice. Ho bisogno di silenzio. Non è semplice per niente. Parlare dell’”adesso” è un po’ come parlare del “mai”. Molta carne al fuoco. Bisogna scremare a dovere. Il nulla è arrivato: ora sono cazzi.

Poco tempo fa, scrissi da un’altra parte che la vita è un viaggio. Arrivi da solo e te ne vai da solo. In mezzo sta a te decidere tutto: dove e in che modo affrontare il viaggio. Ogni singolo aspetto che compone anche un’apparentemente insignificante parte di vita, va ad aggiungere particolari fondamentali al tuo viaggio. Se proprio si vuole restringere ancora di più lo zoom sui piccoli pezzi di questo gigantesco puzzle ci si accorge che ogni singolo pezzo è un piccolo viaggio in sé.

Ecco quindi che anche la musica, elemento importante, fuoco sacro e bruciante dell’arte, mezzo di comunicazione per eccellenza, va visto in quest’ottica. Dall’alba dei tempi le cose non sono cambiate poi molto: dalle pelli dei tamburi percosse nelle caverne, dalla la musica lirica, passando per il bop e il rock, fino ai ritmi da discoteca, l’elettronica e chi più ne ha più ne metta, c’è stata una continua evoluzione. Alla fine quello che conta è che a parlare siano le sensazioni e quelle sono rimaste immutate. Piangere, riflettere, non pensare a niente, sentire quel piccolo brivido lungo la schiena non appena si ascoltano le prime note di un determinato brano.

Cose così.

Cose normali.

Cose bellissime.

Le note sono sempre quelle, i generi si sono mescolati fino a formare un’enorme palla infuocata che cerca di andare contro le barriere delle convenzioni come al solito, ma molto è andato perso. Molto potere rivoluzionario. Non è colpa di nessuno. Semplicemente a cambiare è stata la velocità di questo viaggio. Prima viaggiavi comodamente in prima? Beh, cazzo adesso adeguati perché nel vagone ci sono altre duecento persone che vogliono lo stesso posto vicino al finestrino e mi sa che ti toccherà viaggiare in piedi. Una velocità che adesso è folle, disperata, a volte incomprensibile.

Questa è l’epoca del “tutto e subito”.

Milioni di gruppi (ma le note continuano ad essere sempre sette), tendenze, dichiarazioni, nuove etichette da incollare addosso a qualcuno e quel sacro fuoco che continua a bruciare, ma che forse adesso non riuscirebbe più ad abbattere tutte le barriere di un mondo davvero troppo preso dal ritmo frenetico della vita.

Per una band che si scioglie ce ne sono già pronte da subito altre cinque che si proclamano salvatrici delle nostre anime: prendono sulle loro spalle una croce e immerse nella luce più accecante entrano in scena, contornate da un rumore assordante. Tu nel frattempo che fai? Ti adegui o scendi da questo treno? Abbiamo gli iPod pieni di gruppi di cui spesso non conosciamo neanche bene il nome. Il ritmo è alto. Anche per il sottoscritto la cosa spesso diventa frustrante: esaltato dalla nuova band americana, scrivo, recensisco, passo il brano in radio annunciandolo come una cosa sensazionale. La settimana seguente di quel gruppo ben poco è rimasto nell’aria, se non un retrogusto dolce che tende a svanire. Rimpiazzato da altre dieci copertine pronte ad urlare la loro verità.

Sei ancora in tempo: che fai? Scendi al volo? Stacchi definitivamente o cerchi di reggere il passo più che puoi? Io personalmente spesso metto una marcia in meno e rallento. La velocità che preferisco è quella della scorsa decade. Negli anni novanta c’erano 3 o 4 band “capisaldi” per ogni genere e di ogni artista-disco si conosceva pressappoco tutto: dai testi di ogni singola canzone, ai credits sull’ultima pagina del booklet e via dicendo. Spesso stacco, non guardo più la nuova promessa MySpace e metto su un disco la cui data di pubblicazione inizia con “millenovecentonovant…”.

Ma questo sono io.

Voi siete altro. Però anche voi siete immersi “nell’adesso” come me e dovete decidere da che parte stare.

Dichiarazione di auto stima: bisogna farsi una propria opinione e credere a quella. Non dare troppo peso alle riviste specializzate, ai siti di musica e ai consigli musicali di vostro zio che “ai miei tempi era tutto meglio…non come ora e guarda che cazzo di capelli  hanno ‘sti qui”. Lo so, non sto tirando l’acqua al mio mulino, che nello specifico è un sito di musica indie. Ma è giusto che sia anche così. Ognuno deve farsi un giro dove vuole e credere a ciò che vuole. MySpace è pieno di buone band: gente che non salverà il mondo, ragazzi che non vi condurranno per mano in prima fila all’ultima rivoluzione, eppure qualcosa di buono si trova ed è veramente godibile. Basta sapere quando è ora di non credere più alle favole. Prendere tutto nelle giuste dosi. La verità, ancora una volta, sta nel mezzo.

Adesso più che mai.

www.myspace.com/giov_indieforbunnies

tagged Cold War Kids Music this is now

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