here's yet another reason to why i love 4AD so much. (as if throwing muses, belly, pixies, the amps, red house painters, birthday party, lush, lisa germano, breeders, kristin hersh, mountain goats, that dog and tanya donnelly weren't enough!) emma pollock - of the delgados for the ones who remember. the song is acid test, and i just ordered her album, she's awesome!
man, i love the 90s.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
the france post
ok, so france was nice. and by nice i mean warm, still, relaxing and a whole lot of non-s; non-home, non-stress, non-.. well, you get the picture.
i've uploaded a bunch of the photos i took onto my flickr page if you want graphics.
we didn't really do much. we were mostly just hanging out. we did visit the city of narbonne one day and had a look at their 700 year old cathedral, which was no match for st peter's in rome, but still pretty awesome, and older. for that matter, there isn't much on this planet that IS a match for st peter's - it's fucking huge! that would be the pyramids in egypt or something in their league. i'm so not religious, but there's something really awesome about cathedrals that i can't help but be pulled into totally. i saw st peter's 3 years ago and i still haven't quite grasped its awesomeness - and by awesome i mean the original meaning of the word, not the hot dog.
i read a lot, since i wasn't interrupted by the gizmos of the modern world. i especially loved two of the novels i read, this book will save your life by a.m. homes, and garnethill by denise mina. two very different novels but oh so good. read them!
the former takes you to the world of richard novac, a retired stock market person (what the fuck do i know about that?), who finds himself being cut off of the world in his fancy los angeles house only seeing his housekeeper, his personal trainer and dietist, and he's in pain, excruciating pain. was it there before and he didn't notice or did it just come? he can't tell, he doesn't know, but he feels an enormous urge to connect. so he does, in his own way. the novel is full of odd characters and a lot of warmth, but also harsh reality, though seen through richard's eyes. homes' use of language is captivating in a simple way and her characters, though odd, feels very real. i really loved this one.
the latter is actually a crime novel, oddly enough, cos generally i don't care for crime novels, but garnethill i found extraordinary. for once the protagonist isn't a middle aged alcoholic divorcee ex-cop man, but a young woman with a strike of bad luck. and it is gender aware!
maureen's an incest "surviver" with a fucked-up family; dad gone, mom alcoholic and in denial about the abuse, brother a drug-dealer, one sister pretending they're a happy family and one sister escaped to london. she's also been a patient at a psychiatric hospital a couple of years back. taking place in glasgow, scotland (which, i guess, is part of its appeal to me since i've been there) it starts with maureen, one morning after coming home late drunk and passing out the night before, finding her married therapist boyfriend dead in her livingroom with his throat cut. the police seems interested in pinning it on her and.. damn, i'm really bad at making whodunnit-stories sound interesting. here's what someone else has written;
ok, so you really have to read these ones. promise!
ok, so i really have to sleep now.
i've uploaded a bunch of the photos i took onto my flickr page if you want graphics.
we didn't really do much. we were mostly just hanging out. we did visit the city of narbonne one day and had a look at their 700 year old cathedral, which was no match for st peter's in rome, but still pretty awesome, and older. for that matter, there isn't much on this planet that IS a match for st peter's - it's fucking huge! that would be the pyramids in egypt or something in their league. i'm so not religious, but there's something really awesome about cathedrals that i can't help but be pulled into totally. i saw st peter's 3 years ago and i still haven't quite grasped its awesomeness - and by awesome i mean the original meaning of the word, not the hot dog.
i read a lot, since i wasn't interrupted by the gizmos of the modern world. i especially loved two of the novels i read, this book will save your life by a.m. homes, and garnethill by denise mina. two very different novels but oh so good. read them!
the former takes you to the world of richard novac, a retired stock market person (what the fuck do i know about that?), who finds himself being cut off of the world in his fancy los angeles house only seeing his housekeeper, his personal trainer and dietist, and he's in pain, excruciating pain. was it there before and he didn't notice or did it just come? he can't tell, he doesn't know, but he feels an enormous urge to connect. so he does, in his own way. the novel is full of odd characters and a lot of warmth, but also harsh reality, though seen through richard's eyes. homes' use of language is captivating in a simple way and her characters, though odd, feels very real. i really loved this one.
the latter is actually a crime novel, oddly enough, cos generally i don't care for crime novels, but garnethill i found extraordinary. for once the protagonist isn't a middle aged alcoholic divorcee ex-cop man, but a young woman with a strike of bad luck. and it is gender aware!
maureen's an incest "surviver" with a fucked-up family; dad gone, mom alcoholic and in denial about the abuse, brother a drug-dealer, one sister pretending they're a happy family and one sister escaped to london. she's also been a patient at a psychiatric hospital a couple of years back. taking place in glasgow, scotland (which, i guess, is part of its appeal to me since i've been there) it starts with maureen, one morning after coming home late drunk and passing out the night before, finding her married therapist boyfriend dead in her livingroom with his throat cut. the police seems interested in pinning it on her and.. damn, i'm really bad at making whodunnit-stories sound interesting. here's what someone else has written;
Viewed in turn by the police as a suspect and as an uncooperative, unstable witness, Maureen is even suspected by her alcoholic mother and self-serving sisters of being involved. Worse than that, the police won't tell her anything about Douglas's death.
Panic-stricken and feeling betrayed by friends and family, Maureen begins to doubt her own version of events. She retraces Douglas's desperate last days and picks up a horrifying trail of rape, deception...and suppressed scandal at a local psychiatric hospital where she had been an inmate. But the patients won't talk and the staff are afraid, and when a second brutalized corpse is discovered, Maureen realises that unless she gets to the killer first, her life is in danger.
ok, so you really have to read these ones. promise!
ok, so i really have to sleep now.
Friday, July 11, 2008
anniversary
i didn't realize, but thanks to sergio for pointing it out; today is the one year anniversary of this blog! yay! for the coming year i want more inspiration and more comments. there. you can all congratulate me now.
as for myself, i'm off to wrap the gifts for my sister who i'll be celebrating tomorrow on her 25th birthday.
as for myself, i'm off to wrap the gifts for my sister who i'll be celebrating tomorrow on her 25th birthday.
more non-france
i want the new issue of mojo. not because i'm a regular mojo-reader but because it's about nirvana and sub pop, two decades later, and that it comes with a sub pop compilation cd. why else?
Thursday, July 10, 2008
b&j
ben & jerry's chocolate fudge brownie ice cream is soo. damn. good! too bad it costs a fortune over here. half a liter is about 50 kr (that's roughly 17 oz. and $8) and that seriously sucks. why is everything so expensive here? is it because we're suckers and actually pay for it? (yes, yes, i know you can explain some prices with higher taxes and better paid personnel, but 100 kr/l ice cream is NOT one of them.)
i'm cranky cos i had to walk home in the rain earlier and it was still hot so i got all sticky everywhere. i hate sticky. wet i can deal with, but sticky, no. arg!
i'm cranky cos i had to walk home in the rain earlier and it was still hot so i got all sticky everywhere. i hate sticky. wet i can deal with, but sticky, no. arg!
foreign slippers
thanks to jocelyn over at pretending to be japanese, foreign slippers was brought to my attention; the song put on her myspace page, packed the car, is added to the collection indiecater volume 1 (jocelyn's review), and it's an awesome song! sort of a roadmovie song. a bit sad but a bit hopeful.
she's signed to izumi records and is to release her debut ep oh, death in the end of july. on the label's site there's another song you can listen to, i wish i was a fisherman, a bit of a piano ballad. she makes awfully pretty music and her voice is strong and sad.
i can't help thinking about the first time i heard ane brun (whose debut album spending time with morgan is so so good) when i listen to this, but i haven't listened to ane for a while so i'm not really sure if the comparison is fair or not. however, i really like what she seems to have going for her so i pre-ordered the ep, and we'll just have to see.
she's signed to izumi records and is to release her debut ep oh, death in the end of july. on the label's site there's another song you can listen to, i wish i was a fisherman, a bit of a piano ballad. she makes awfully pretty music and her voice is strong and sad.
i can't help thinking about the first time i heard ane brun (whose debut album spending time with morgan is so so good) when i listen to this, but i haven't listened to ane for a while so i'm not really sure if the comparison is fair or not. however, i really like what she seems to have going for her so i pre-ordered the ep, and we'll just have to see.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
hello rain
i'm back from beautiful france, rested and happier. also with a crappy stomach; seriously, how do they survive eating all that white bread and french cheese? i do love it, baguettes with brie or camembert, but when i got back my stomach was like, fibers! fibers! dark bread! oatmeal! i can't object.
it's amazing how much catch up one has to do after just two weeks. it takes forever too. possible cos i'm slower post-france than pre-france.
anyway. this is not the france-post, i'm too tired, this is the i made it home safe-post. a few notes:
i almost broke my pinkie when i was doing post-vacation laundry yesterday (incidental; i tripped on the stairs and tried to brace myself and hit my finger), however it survived a bit swollen but intact.
there was a postcard from armenia for me when i got back, from my awesome american friend dave, who's totally enabling all my obsessions and always helps me further my collections. he's also awesome enough to send the symbiosis (that's me, my lover and my sister) shoes, since they cost a fortune in this country. we love dave, he is our favorite enabler in the whole world.
while i've been gone, there has been a sort of video competition going on over at pretending to be japanese. it's sad to only be here for the aftermaths.
i saw cat power live yesterday! yay! she was awesome, so totally different from the other two times i've been her. sober (that helps), happy - like she was actually enjoying being on stage. it's a good change.
cat power at folkets park malmö june 7.
i've also read two novels that i'm dying to tell you about!
but now i really need to sleep.
oh! i almost forgot. you can pre-order juliana hatfields new album (due mid-august) now on her website, and there's a limited edition demo cd and some posters too. all the cool kids are doing it.
it's amazing how much catch up one has to do after just two weeks. it takes forever too. possible cos i'm slower post-france than pre-france.
anyway. this is not the france-post, i'm too tired, this is the i made it home safe-post. a few notes:
i almost broke my pinkie when i was doing post-vacation laundry yesterday (incidental; i tripped on the stairs and tried to brace myself and hit my finger), however it survived a bit swollen but intact.
there was a postcard from armenia for me when i got back, from my awesome american friend dave, who's totally enabling all my obsessions and always helps me further my collections. he's also awesome enough to send the symbiosis (that's me, my lover and my sister) shoes, since they cost a fortune in this country. we love dave, he is our favorite enabler in the whole world.
while i've been gone, there has been a sort of video competition going on over at pretending to be japanese. it's sad to only be here for the aftermaths.
i saw cat power live yesterday! yay! she was awesome, so totally different from the other two times i've been her. sober (that helps), happy - like she was actually enjoying being on stage. it's a good change.
cat power at folkets park malmö june 7.i've also read two novels that i'm dying to tell you about!
but now i really need to sleep.
oh! i almost forgot. you can pre-order juliana hatfields new album (due mid-august) now on her website, and there's a limited edition demo cd and some posters too. all the cool kids are doing it.
Friday, June 20, 2008
bzz!
i think i had a mosquito in my room tonight. damn itching.
by this time tomorrow i'll be at the airport in copenhagen waiting for my plane to depart and by this time the day after tomorrow i'll probably be sitting at a restaurant, or on the porch, with a glass of wine in my hand, smelling the sweet smell of french summer and the mediterranean sea. how i long for thee.
i'm determined to do as little as possible except lay down, swim, eat, drink, read, take strolls on the beach, take pictures, write postcards, and relax. i may enjoy a little culture, if it comes my way and catches my interest. but no internet - no emails, no blog reading, no information overload. no tv. no must-dos.
this is where i'm going. i know, i don't speak french either. (arrogant, isn't it?) it's on the ocean a bit outside of narbonne, somewhere in-between montpellier and perpignan. wait. need map.
the white line near the bottom is, for those of you who doesn't love maps like i do - obsessively, the spanish border. this whole area of france is called languedoc-roussillon and it's beautiful with castles, mountains and vineyards. and beaches. the wine is tasty, the food is good and the people are, well, french.
so see you in two weeks! oh, and if you want postcards, mail me your address - and fast! need to have them before i leave.
by this time tomorrow i'll be at the airport in copenhagen waiting for my plane to depart and by this time the day after tomorrow i'll probably be sitting at a restaurant, or on the porch, with a glass of wine in my hand, smelling the sweet smell of french summer and the mediterranean sea. how i long for thee.
i'm determined to do as little as possible except lay down, swim, eat, drink, read, take strolls on the beach, take pictures, write postcards, and relax. i may enjoy a little culture, if it comes my way and catches my interest. but no internet - no emails, no blog reading, no information overload. no tv. no must-dos.
this is where i'm going. i know, i don't speak french either. (arrogant, isn't it?) it's on the ocean a bit outside of narbonne, somewhere in-between montpellier and perpignan. wait. need map.
the white line near the bottom is, for those of you who doesn't love maps like i do - obsessively, the spanish border. this whole area of france is called languedoc-roussillon and it's beautiful with castles, mountains and vineyards. and beaches. the wine is tasty, the food is good and the people are, well, french.
so see you in two weeks! oh, and if you want postcards, mail me your address - and fast! need to have them before i leave.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
made in china for the masses
more on juliana. after finding the links to my earlier post i stayed at allmusic reading the review for made in china and found myself surprised, happily so, that the reviewer actually liked the album and gave it a 4,5 of 5.
i love the album, really love it - it's raw and honest and exactly what i expected and hoped she would sound like when she didn't have record company-people breathing down her neck. however, when it came out it seemed like the reviewers hated it. (maybe not as severely as i remembered, but still.) pitchfork sure did, gave it 5 of 10 and a review that makes me wonder if said person ever really listened to juliana hatfield at all. i guess i stopped reading the reviews after the first load of we-hate-it.
so i was kind of surprised to read lines such as "[made in china] is terrifically rewarding", cos that's exactly how i feel! it's not very produced (as in not overly produced like so much other music), it doesn't apologize for being ragged and it balances the honest lyrics extremely well so it never becomes pathetic or embarrassing (which i guess some critics disagree with me about).
i wouldn't trust anyone other than juliana to make this kind of record. yet at the same time it feels as if your best friend made it, and it's the best thing you've ever heard and you're so proud of her you could burst!
(i know you're curious; you can listen to it on amazon.com.)
i love the album, really love it - it's raw and honest and exactly what i expected and hoped she would sound like when she didn't have record company-people breathing down her neck. however, when it came out it seemed like the reviewers hated it. (maybe not as severely as i remembered, but still.) pitchfork sure did, gave it 5 of 10 and a review that makes me wonder if said person ever really listened to juliana hatfield at all. i guess i stopped reading the reviews after the first load of we-hate-it.
so i was kind of surprised to read lines such as "[made in china] is terrifically rewarding", cos that's exactly how i feel! it's not very produced (as in not overly produced like so much other music), it doesn't apologize for being ragged and it balances the honest lyrics extremely well so it never becomes pathetic or embarrassing (which i guess some critics disagree with me about).
i wouldn't trust anyone other than juliana to make this kind of record. yet at the same time it feels as if your best friend made it, and it's the best thing you've ever heard and you're so proud of her you could burst!
(i know you're curious; you can listen to it on amazon.com.)
it's a mystery how i seem to be something less than myself
juliana's not been lazy with her posts on myspace about her songs.
12. daniel (off of beautiful creature)
13. little pieces (off of become what you are)
14. outsider (off of only everything)
if there's still any of you who has yet to discover the sheer greatness of juliana hatfield, rest assured that i will never give up trying to get you hooked. i'll just keep on nagging about her, so you might as well do it and get it over with right now. there are songs over at her myspace (those she's written about, or at least a few of them), or why not see some of the 90-licious videos?
12. daniel (off of beautiful creature)
13. little pieces (off of become what you are)
14. outsider (off of only everything)
if there's still any of you who has yet to discover the sheer greatness of juliana hatfield, rest assured that i will never give up trying to get you hooked. i'll just keep on nagging about her, so you might as well do it and get it over with right now. there are songs over at her myspace (those she's written about, or at least a few of them), or why not see some of the 90-licious videos?
poll results pt 2
so, all of my four really really cool readers voted the same as i would've on the high fidelity-type poll (post about it here), namely that it's a tie. both what you are like and what you like matters. some things are sacred. great minds think alike.
most importantly, no one thought i was a confused pop culture dork. that's a good thing. it means my readers are confused pop culture dorks as well. the very best kind might i add.
most importantly, no one thought i was a confused pop culture dork. that's a good thing. it means my readers are confused pop culture dorks as well. the very best kind might i add.
what a good day looks like
eventful day, today. and a good one too, mostly. started out by sleeping in, strangely only till about half past ten, at which i, mildly frustrated, got bored of trying to fall back asleep and got up, and felt non-tired. that's a feeling that i hardly ever have before i've had coffee and breakfast and been up and about for an hour or so. it makes for a good start of a day!
i took care of about half of the annoying bureaucracy that's a bit pressing right now. go me. after doing so i treated myself to a large vanilla latte at my favorite coffee shop. how i love reward systems.
decided on a whim to visit one of our bigger record stores, actually one of the more decent ones, but like record store are nowadays, expensive. haven't been in there for over a year, probably more. it turned out to be an excellent idea! they had a sale, and being as i am i just couldn't resist going through the cds on sale. even though they were placed on the floor underneath the ordinary racks. so there i was, crawling around on the floor looking for cheap good cds, for a good half hour, probably longer. usually i'm quite thorough, but to tell you the truth, my legs fucking hurt being bent like that for so long (i couldn't very well sit on my ass on the floor, now could i?!). thorough or not, i found 7 that was totally worth buying, for the total sweet sum of 207 kr (divide by 6 for dollars, 9,5 for euro).
my findings included the may queens (oh, how i love that robin proper-sheppard and everything he touches), mudhoney, madder rose and nina gordon - you know, from veruca salt? and, guided by voices' last chapter half smiles of the decomposed, which i, so far, am not too impressed by. seems a bit bland. maybe it was a good idea to disband after all. since it's not like mr pollard's been putting his feet up on the table and leaned back much since. he must be one of the most prolific people out there. what is it with ohio anyway?
i also found one - a really good one - for my dear sister. she's turning 25 on 12 july and she already knows she'll get cds from me - she always does - i'm just writing it here to tease her. we have this really neat system going; she buys me books on my birthdays and christmas; and i buy her cds on hers. basically cos i'm a discophile and she's a bibliophile. nice to have a sense of understanding in one's family.
i also finally bought tickets to cat power's show here in july. i would scream that i can't wait and that it's the only thing i'm thinking about right now, if the circumstances were what they usually are, but since i'm leaving for a two week vacation in the south of france on saturday, THAT is what i can't wait for and the only thing i can really think about. cat power has priority no 2. if you know me you should now realize just how much i long for the mediterranean sea. last time cat power was in the vicinity i went to both the show in town and the one in copenhagen the day before. and it was totally worth it.
i took care of about half of the annoying bureaucracy that's a bit pressing right now. go me. after doing so i treated myself to a large vanilla latte at my favorite coffee shop. how i love reward systems.
decided on a whim to visit one of our bigger record stores, actually one of the more decent ones, but like record store are nowadays, expensive. haven't been in there for over a year, probably more. it turned out to be an excellent idea! they had a sale, and being as i am i just couldn't resist going through the cds on sale. even though they were placed on the floor underneath the ordinary racks. so there i was, crawling around on the floor looking for cheap good cds, for a good half hour, probably longer. usually i'm quite thorough, but to tell you the truth, my legs fucking hurt being bent like that for so long (i couldn't very well sit on my ass on the floor, now could i?!). thorough or not, i found 7 that was totally worth buying, for the total sweet sum of 207 kr (divide by 6 for dollars, 9,5 for euro).
my findings included the may queens (oh, how i love that robin proper-sheppard and everything he touches), mudhoney, madder rose and nina gordon - you know, from veruca salt? and, guided by voices' last chapter half smiles of the decomposed, which i, so far, am not too impressed by. seems a bit bland. maybe it was a good idea to disband after all. since it's not like mr pollard's been putting his feet up on the table and leaned back much since. he must be one of the most prolific people out there. what is it with ohio anyway?
i also found one - a really good one - for my dear sister. she's turning 25 on 12 july and she already knows she'll get cds from me - she always does - i'm just writing it here to tease her. we have this really neat system going; she buys me books on my birthdays and christmas; and i buy her cds on hers. basically cos i'm a discophile and she's a bibliophile. nice to have a sense of understanding in one's family.
i also finally bought tickets to cat power's show here in july. i would scream that i can't wait and that it's the only thing i'm thinking about right now, if the circumstances were what they usually are, but since i'm leaving for a two week vacation in the south of france on saturday, THAT is what i can't wait for and the only thing i can really think about. cat power has priority no 2. if you know me you should now realize just how much i long for the mediterranean sea. last time cat power was in the vicinity i went to both the show in town and the one in copenhagen the day before. and it was totally worth it.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Sunday, June 15, 2008
dinosaur jr
yesterday i got the delicious piece of news that dinosaur jr was playing a free, secret, concert at the local skate park in town today (thanks madde!). there's some sort of skate tournament going on that i wasn't aware of earlier. the gig was especially nice cos before i had decided not to go see them in copenhagen this evening, since i can't really afford it.
now i can check them off the list of bands i haven't seen live. awesome :)
it's also a nice feeling to have seen lou barlow live twice, with two different bands, in the last month and a half. how about that for 90s retro?
dinosaur jr earlier this afternoon in malmö
now i can check them off the list of bands i haven't seen live. awesome :)
it's also a nice feeling to have seen lou barlow live twice, with two different bands, in the last month and a half. how about that for 90s retro?
dinosaur jr earlier this afternoon in malmöMonday, June 9, 2008
newly found
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