Haris Alexiou makes
such beautiful music. I only have one album of hers – Di Efchon – but I will most certainly buy
more. This Greek singer has such a beautiful voice that transports me to a
far more wondrous plane of existence than the awful world which surrounds me. I have listened to her music on road trips,
at work, while falling asleep, stuck in traffic, while writing or reading and
each time it has the same transcendental effect. Her voice inspires such feverish happiness,
it is an ethereal instrument. If all the
Alexiou fans in my readership would so kind as to make some hearty
recommendations I will immediately make the appropriate purchases.
Today, I listened to the
album Heathen by David Bowie 21 times
in a row. It is a fantastic album and one of my favorites of the
neo-classicist era. I personally love latter day Bowie. There are so many gems, so many songs which
make me break down and sob like an infant.
“Everyone Says Hi” is the song from Heathen which never fails to turn on
the wetworks. When I am at my lowest I listen
to this tune and wrap it around me like a blanket. Bowie has alleviated me so much pain in
life.
I know I was somewhere
doing something when I heard the song “24 Hours” by Sky Ferreira. It was my first time hearing this song and I
fell in love with it. It reminds me of
something but I haven’t figured out what yet.
Maybe the song “I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man” by Prince
(massive compliment coming from me as that is one of my all-time favorites),
maybe there are some sonic similarities there.
Maybe I’m hopelessly lost in the dark cesspool that is my life. Either way I really dig the song but I’m too
afraid to check out any other songs by this bold new talent for fear they may
be trash. I just don’t know what to do
about it. God, I don’t know what to do.
I feel bad for anyone
who does not enjoy live albums. If one
is not able to feel the immediacy and the passion and vital beauty that are
most clear in a live performance then I would question whether they truly have
a heart and would conclude their life to be dull and filled with binge eating
and unsatisfying sexual encounters. And
if one’s favorite artist(s) are not engaging live then one should questions the
artistic integrity and validity of that/those artist(s). Just my pompous opinion.
Audiences are much
more willing to accept insecurities or fears in relation to sexuality if coming
from a female perspective than from a male perspective. It is very
difficult to write a male who has strong and deep seated sexual issues without
him appearing off-putting in some way to an audience. This is rather
strange and warrants further thought slash investigation.
I’ve recently embarked on a journey of rock
rediscovery. This has taken
me down paths as varied as Buddy Holly to A Perfect Circle to Elvis Costello to
Sebastian Bach to OFF! I
will say right now that whatever band Maynard James Keenan is in at any given moment
would do better to stop trying to show off with a thousand little fills and
time changes and instead try writing some interesting and memorable melodies
and vocal arrangements. Fuck!
However going along with this journey I have gregariously
stumbled upon Mr. Ted Nugent. I
consorted with a few of my most beloved comrades in the wee hours of the
morning on this matter and was shocked to find precious little love for the
Motor-City Madman. I have
personally always found him to be highly engaging in interviews and he seems to
put on a cracker of a live show. After
watching him being interviewed by the deplorable Piers Morgan this morning I
happened to visit a site where I saw yet another clip about Mr. Nugent, this time
with him discussing his utter discontent with a recent performance of Jack
White on some show. White
happens to be one of the few recording artists whose music I absolutely cannot
stand what with its ultra-derivative hipster pandering distilled blues boredom
shitty shitness (the man himself seems like a jerkface as well otherwise I
would not have employed such trenchant criticism) and I must say Nugent’s
frankness on the matter, coupled with the subsequent props he gave to the Red
Hot Chili Peppers and the Motown groove further ingratiated the man with yours
truly. Dear readers, do not
be afraid! I am acutely
aware that this increased media presence is intrinsically linked to the man’s
new album (playfully titled Shutup&Jam!) which sees release today and its accompanying
tour and is nothing more or less than a canny form of publicity and
promotion. Yet I found it
working. I believe part of
me wanted it to work. There
is a populist side of me that enjoys the idea of being influenced by
commercialism. I cry out for increased
controls – government or otherwise – all the time (which is an oddly liberal
perspective and quite contrarian to Mr. Nugent’s beliefs) and the prospect of
purchasing something of which I’d had no prior interest solely as a result of
slick corporate marketing makes me giddy with delight.
Yet there is also a part of me which yearns to fall for a
new rocker (more new to me I should specify in this particular case). How I adore really delving deep into
an artist and slowly amassing every album, every live recording, every rare
b-side, it fills me with me white light. And the great thing is that I never
know what to expect and am frequently wrong in my preconceptions. When I first began my Iggy Pop phase I
had no idea whatsoever of the musical and lyrical depth and variety which I
would discover in his catalogue – one of the most diverse in ages. The one consistent was his eminently
pleasing personality which made even his lesser discs enjoyable. Will the same thing happen with Ted
Nugent? I don’t have any
fucking idea but I’m open to the possibility, all right? I’m open to the motherfucking
possibility and that’s all that fucking matters. Also, his anti-hippie sentiments
are right on the money in my book. Does
anyone remember that ridiculous “Occupy…” movement from a couple years
back? All those entitled
fucksticks sitting on their ever fattening asses, ordering pizzas and watching
tasteful European pornographic films on their iPhones. I am truly stunned that such an
ignorant and worthless “social movement” could have transpired during my
lifetime. Anyway, I know
Ted would never be involved in something that asinine and for that reason alone
he earns my respect above many others.
Plus there is a song on his new album about BBQ! I just can’t fucking resist shit like
that! I just can’t fucking resist
it! And so my Journey of the Nuge
begins. I will keep you all informed of
my progress.
The reason I don’t like giving money to poor people
is because I know they’re just going to spend it on drugs.
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