Listening To: Daydreaming Part 2

Way back in April I posted a Daydreaming playlist which received a really wonderful response from listeners. The original Daydreaming was just a small compilation from a much larger (142 tracks) playlist I have on my iTunes. Because you all loved the first installment so much I decided to work on a second, which is meant to pick up where the last playlist left off. Unfortunately three of the integral tracks aren't on Grooveshark and cannot be uploaded so it's not exactly how I wanted it. Regardless, it continues the in the same dreamy and mellow vein as the last playlist did. I started with some quiet pieces that highlighted guitar accompaniment, and then transitioned into songs backed by piano. While Daydreaming 1 was dominated by male vocalists I decided to use Daydreaming 2 to explore some of my favourite songstresses. Fear not: you'll still find some excellent Bon Iver, The National, and Beach House, but you'll also get a taste of Bat for Lashes, Florence and the Machine, Cat Power, Dido, and Neko Case.

I don't always get to give my playlists the individual attention they deserve, but for Daydreaming I go the extra mile. I challenge you not to fall in love.

Listening To: Rory Charles

Yesterday after spending a good four hours at the hair salon (I'll get to that later) I was wandering about downtown Hamburg when I passed a large crowd around a street performer.  I paused to listen, and as it turned out I really liked what I heard.  The performer is a guy named Rory Charles, who is from Manchester, England.  His sound is a little like Bon Iver and a lot like Fleet Foxes.  It's folksy with liberal use of falsetto.  They were selling CDs so I bought one, and have listened to it a good ten times since yesterday.  It's nice chill music, perfect for the cold autumn weather we've been having here in Germany.  I definitely recommend you check out his website and support his music.  Enjoy!

http://rorycharles.com/

Listening To: Around the World Playlist

Alright, so this (small) project has been on the back-burner for many weeks now... or months, I suppose, since I started it before I left for Europe.  Ideally I would have been able to collect more songs and give it better flow, but I've been so short on time lately that it just wasn't happening.

Basically I wanted to gather a collection of music relating to travel, distance, or European cities.  I kicked things off with an upbeat Euro-club vibe, but after a few tracks things mellow out into a more relaxed vacation feel before taking a slight rise in tempo so as to bring things full circle (the first and last tracks are both called Around the World).

Hopefully one day I'll be able to come back and streamline this, but for the time being, enjoy!

Listening To:

Much like my manicure posts and fashion posts I've been neglecting music as well (though not as badly as the others).  Anyway, in a gesture of reparation I thought I'd pass along a decently-hefty collection of everything I've been listening to for the past little while.

Big Jet Plane (Stern* Disco Edit) - Angus and Julia Stone.  This one was sitting at the top of HypeM's most popular list, which was how I found it.  Sometimes the masses are wrong, but this isn't one of those times.  It's chill and funky, something you won't be able to resist nodding your head to.
http://hypem.com/item/1ensa/Angus+and+Julia+Stone+-+Big+Jet+Plane+%28Stern*+disco+edit%29

Don't Lick the Rainbow (Mike Posner/Daft Punk/Mord Fustang) - Basic Physics.  Mike Posner can be reasonably be depended on for catchy stuff, but what I really loved was how Daft Punk was worked into this - I only wish there were more of the Harder Better Faster Stronger sample.  This is another good one to have on hand for your Friday nights.
http://hypem.com/item/1c5sm/Basic+Physics+-+Don%27t+Lick+the+Rainbow+%28Mike+Posner+%2F%2F+Mord+Fustang+%2F%2F+Daft+Punk%29


Flying Overseas (Soul Clap Efunk Mix) - Theophilus London.  Loved the original, love the remix.  This manages to retain the tropical bliss of its parent track while adding an intriguing beat to keep your attention.
http://hypem.com/item/1cfsx/Theophilus+London+-+Flying+Overseas+%28Soul+Clap+Efunk+Mix%29

I Stand Alone (Ocelot Remix) - Theophilus London.  While the original was pretty good I think I prefer this remix.  Usually I'm not a dubstep fan but this is a definite exception - while it adds the trademark beat it doesn't sacrifice melody like most dubstep does.
http://hypem.com/artist/I%20Stand%20Alone%20%28Ocelot%20Remix%29

After Party - The Lonely Island feat. Santigold.  Okay, so I won't lie, I love pretty much everything The Lonely Island comes out with.  Motherlover? Yep.  3 Way (The Golden Rule)? It was practically on repeat.  Jack Sparrow? It's on my iPod.  After Party, much like the others, is ridiculous and humorous but also super catchy, which is a pretty rad combination (pardon the '90s slang).  Enjoy!
http://hypem.com/artist/The%20Lonely%20Island%20ft.%20Santigold


Midnight Life - The White Panda.  I won't shy away from saying that The White Panda's most recent album disappointed me.  I reminisce about the days when they released infectious hits like Golden Encore, What Lonely Girls Do, and Hold On to My Momma.  However, Midnight Life hearkens back to the days of their more brilliant combos, when they somehow made awesome music even more awesome by mixing it with other awesome music.  Excuse the over-sell.
http://hypem.com/item/1ea7n/The+White+Panda+-+Midnight+Life

Club Paradise - Drake.  Ahhhh Canadian Pride!  Good ol' Wheelchair Jimmy has done it again and come out with an intelligent piece of work that you'll want to keep close.  The background melody is chill, the harmonies are slightly intoxicating, and his singing in the chorus is the perfect way to tie it all together.  Drake, you rep Canada well!
http://hypem.com/item/1e9e8/Drake+-+Club+Paradise

Slow John (Lil Wayne & Com Truise) - The Hood Internet.  Quite frankly 99% of Lil John's lyrics offend me, but occasionally I'll overlook that.  The Hood Internet put out a few new tracks a few weeks back, all of which I enjoyed.
http://hypem.com/item/1br61/The+Hood+Internet+-+Slow+John+%28Lil+Wayne+x+Com+Truise%29

Bass Like TV (Dev & The So So Glos) - The Hood Internet.  This one's a bit of an unapologetic party-girl anthem.  The more power to ya.
http://hypem.com/item/1dz4s/The+Hood+Internet+-+Bass+Like+TV+%28Dev+x+The+So+So+Glos%29


World of Swimsuits (The Cool Kids & Ford & Lopatin) - The Hood Internet.  Maybe it's because of the oh-so-subtle '80s vibe this track has going, but of the three from The Hood Internet it's my favourite.  Try not to dance along, I challenge you.
http://hypem.com/item/1dz4v/The+Hood+Internet+-+World+Of+Swimsuits+%28The+Cool+Kids+x+Ford+&+Lopatin%29

Australia (Peter Bjorn and John Remix) - The Shins.  So I gather that The Shins were real big back in '07 around when I was graduating from high school, but apparently I totally missed that boat.  Regardless, this remix is a major improvement on the original.  It is catchier than herpes, and waaaay more fun.
http://hypem.com/item/1140v/The+Shins+-+Australia+%28Peter+Bjorn+&+John+Remix%29

Party Rock Anthem - LMFAO.  Okay, so this is yet another track that I'm waaaay behind the bandwagon on, but on the off chance you haven't jammed to this already I hope you enjoy it now:
http://hypem.com/item/1cs5h/LMFAO+-+Party+Rock+Anthem

Drive Motion Picture Soundtrack - Cliff Martinez.  I haven't had a chance to see Drive yet as it won't even be released here until early 2012, but I've heard very positive things.  I have, however, checked out its soundtrack, which is a work of brilliance.  I've already posted on Kavinsky & Lovefoxxx's Nightcall, which kicks off Drive's soundtrack in excellent style.  The sampled music is expertly selected, and followed by a score which leaves absolutely nothing to be desired.  If you're at all a fan of film scores this is a keeper.  You can buy it off Amazon or iTunes, or if you're cheap you can find the tracks on Grooveshark.

Fast track to Type 2

... Diabetes, that is!

Hey kids, long time no posts - I know.  The reason I'm finally getting around to it now is because today's diet consisted mostly of coffee, diet coke, and chocolate, so I am super hyper.  Hence the diabetes remark.  Anyway, since it's been so long since I updated I'm going to have to attack this by topic rather than chronologically.  I guess if you don't give a shit about my career then it'll make it that much easier to skip the boring part and get to the gossip, but otherwise you're just going to have to put up with some minor jumps in the narrative.

Work:  Okay, so nearly a month ago I moved from the Advertising department to the Design department called Ligalux.  As it turns out Ligalux is waaaaaay more like what I've done before, so my transition has been really smooth.  We mostly deal with logos, brochures, and, well, design.  I wish I could explain better what "design" is, but you kind of have to do it to know it.  A further improvement is that while in Creative we worked predominantly with Photoshop but in Ligalux we are more reliant upon InDesign and Illustrator, which are old friends of mine.  Yessssssss.  Work continues to be impressively fun as most of my days are spent enjoying my favourite music while doing some glorified doodles.  Doing layouts is less familiar to me, but creating logos is a really enjoyable challenge so they balance out nicely.  This week I've been working on creating gift cards, and I have an idea I'm pretty excited about - let's hope it gets picked up by the client!

As for the people they're all pretty nice, but I haven't gotten to know them as well as I got to know the Advertising guys.  I think part of it is because I actually know what I'm doing now and so I rarely have to ask for help.  Also, while we get together for lunch fairly often we don't do it every day so I have had fewer opportunities to get to know them.  On top of that Ligalux has a wider age range and the employees are more into doing their own thing, and finally I'll be with Ligalux for several weeks less than I spent in Advertising.  Ohhhh well.  I've stayed in touch well with the Advertising crew though, who as per usual are a pretty hilarious bunch.

Having said that, let's move on to my social life....

Adventures:  Alright, so I suppose it's time to think waaaayyyyy back.  Last time I updated was after Düsseldorf, so we'll start with the following weekend.

For many years now I've nurtured a love of Classical music and opera.  I'm familiar with Puccini (who doesn't love La Boheme?), but it actually wasn't until I saw 2009's Quantum of Solace that I looked into Tosca.  Though the music played for only a short scene I was instantly hooked, and swore that if I ever got to Europe I would see Tosca live in Germany.  I am happy to say that after checking out the Hamburg Opera's Autumn lineup Tosca was set to start September 4, so I bought a ticket and waited impatiently for the day to roll around.

Things got off to a bit of an imperfect start.  I wasn't thrilled to be going solo, so waiting for the performance to start and during the intermission I was a little bored, lonely, and depressed.  Also, the theatre itself is a relic of the '80s, possibly my least favourite era of architecture.  The libretto (a translation of what performers are singing that appears at the top of the curtain during the show) was in German, so I couldn't understand it.  Luckily the program included a short English plot-summary so I wasn't completely lost.  Finally, apparently not even Europeans know how to dress properly for the opera.  To add some context, this was a Sunday show and the first showing of Tosca this season.  And yet, there were still waaaaaaaaaaaaay too many people in casual clothes and even jeans.  If you are into opera enough to be attending Tosca on a Sunday then you should know better than to show up wearing that.  And no, I don't care how elitist that sounds, it's just proper etiquette!

However, all these things ceased to matter as soon as the show started.  Opera in any setting is moving, but opera performed live is totally overwhelming.  You get swallowed up my music, and I found again and again I would get goosebumps and chills during my favourite sequences (notably "Tre sbirri... Una carrozza", "Vissi D'arte", and the piece before/after the murder [I don't recall the title of that part just now]).  It feels as though all of a sudden you have muscles in your ears you never noticed and they're all flexed at once.  That description sounds uncomfortable but I assure you it's completely exhilarating.  I didn't cry, but it took a decent amount of effort not to, which I consider a good measure of how good the performance was.

The following weekend wound up being a busier one.  On Friday night some of the ladies from work (the secretary and one of the girls from Accounts) invited me out to Terrace Hill again for a Rockstar themed club night.  After work I wound up having drinks and playing darts with the Advertising guys.  It seems my darts skills have improved drastically since arriving - after two months here I finally won my first game!  We had a really good time but eventually I had to home so I could get ready for the night.  Unfortunately the rest of the evening wasn't as totally awesome as the start.  It wound up being one of those nights where you spend all your time waiting in lineups: waiting to get into the club; waiting to check your coat; waiting to get a drink; waiting to get your coat again.  The crowd at the club were a little on the obnoxious side, and unfortunately none of my group seemed very into the scene.  I spent most of my time on the outdoor terrace enjoying the view of Hamburg and the fresh air.  I won't lie, it was a little depressing though, and I was missing home a lot and mostly brooding about the language for the millionth time.  For all the complaining I do you'd think I'd get around to doing something about it but German is NOT an easy language.

Anyway, the next day was pretty fun.  I went boots hunting for the eighth (?) week in a row.  I only brought ballet flats, sandals, and high heels to Europe because boots are bulky to pack and I thought I'd find something I liked here easily enough.  Not so.  I'm pretty picky, and everything here was all wrong: the toe was the wrong shape; they didn't hit at the right place on the leg; the sole was awkwardly cut; the fit in the calf was wrong; they had weird buckles or accessories.  The list goes on... At the start of September I had found ONE pair that I liked, the perfect pair.... but they also happened to be wildly expensive.  I decided to keep looking, but after checking high-end, low-end, and mid-range stores I still found nothing I remotely liked except for the one amazing pair.  Anyway, I concluded that after having searched all of Hamburg and a good part of Düsseldorf I wasn't going to find anything so I caved and got the pricey ones.  Sigh.  Anyway, in case you're wondering they're exceptionally simple: black, just below the knee, with a loose fit to the calf and no tapering at the ankle (ew).  They have an almond toe and no adornments whatsoever.  You'd think that these would be easy to find anywhere but apparently not.  But enough about shoes.

After a supremely self-indulgent day (much of which I spent hanging out at the canal next to the Alsterarkaden, a very beautiful area) I was just stopping for coffee when something caught my eye.  There's an open area in a place called the Gänsemarkt where vendors often set up on weekends or brands hold promotions.  Just as I was sitting down I noticed a group of 15 or so people all dressed in white shirts and black trousers.  One woman was dressed as Marilyn Monroe in a white dress with blond curls and red lipstick, and two gentlemen were wearing no shirts but little white collars, bow-ties and fedoras.  I was very curious so I went over and asked what they were selling.  As it turned out it was white-dress-woman's bachelorette party and they were all out celebrating.  They were a very friendly bunch (unusual in Germany) and so I wound up getting pictures with the two guys and a couple of the whole group.  In retrospect I wish I had chatted them up more - opportunities for meeting people here are so few and these guys were very receptive (haha) and friendly to boot.  But I didn't want to bother them and had plans to get to anyway, so off I went.  That evening I had plans to meet up with my Advertising crew in an area near where I live called the Shanze.

At the appointed hour I headed out, but everyone seemed to be on their own timeline as it took a while for us to all get together.  The evening was a little more on the mellow side, which I didn't mind.  We were at the same bar we went to waaaaay back when I first arrived, the one we like to call Sofa Bar but has some other name.  Anyway, it was a crowded night so we wound up sitting with two strangers, one of whom was exceptionally handsome and who made eye contact right away.  He was typically German looking, with good bone structure, blonde hair, blue eyes and an athletic build.  I was just plotting how I was going to strike up a conversation with this conveniently close hottie when our group swelled, and to my great dismay the two who we had joined wound up leaving.  Just my luck.  I spent the rest of the evening having forced conversation with a friend of my coworker, brooding about how I would much rather be chatting up a different guy and could have been had I not been such a coward.  I left earlyish (around 1am) and spent the rest of the weekend beating myself up for missing two great opportunities to meet people.

Which brings us to this weekend.  A friend of mine from University is spending a semester in Mannheim, and to my surprise he got himself together and visited this weekend.  When he arrived on Friday we spent the evening catching up and then getting to bed early in preparation for a loaded day on Saturday.

On Saturday we started things off by taking a free walking tour (Sandeman's New Europe tour, in case you're wondering).  One thing I found totally bizarre was that one gentleman on the tour (a German) wore no shoes.  At all.  For the whole time.  I began to think of him as the "shoeless wonder", as he would walk down the cobbled streets (broken glass everywhere) without batting an eyelash.  I wondered if he was allowed in stores like that - "no shoes, no shirt, no service".... right?  Anyway, I never did find out what his deal was, but it wasn't high on my agenda.

We went around to at least four or five different churches, each of which was interesting in its own way.  One was set at the highest point in all of Hamburg (a tiny hill to my Western Canadian eyes), another held what was once the world's largest organ.  Johann Sebastian Bach had wanted to work there, but they had rejected his request as this was prior to his major successes.  Later Napoleon used the same church as a munitions storehouse when he occupied Hamburg.  We then moved on to see several of Germany's famous "contour houses" (it might be "kontur haus", I'm not sure).  These are basically just interestingly designed old buildings.  We saw Chilehaus, Afrikahaus, and we saw the building where Zyklon B gas was manufactured during the second World War.  We went to St. Nikolai church, of which only burnt bricks and a single tall tower remain.  We went right up to the top, which had a great view of the city.  It felt like at any moment Nosferatu could walk out behind a pillar, which was pretty fun.  After a coffee break the group headed on over to Hafen City, which is down by the docks of the Elbe.  It's Hamburg's major industrial/storehouse area and quite the sight.  We saw the new building for the Hamburg Philharmonic, which will have cost close to half a billion dollars by the time it's complete.  We also visited the Dutch portion of Hamburg - the oldest part of the city - and also where the great fire of the 19th century started, which destroyed much of the city.  We walked along cobblestones that had been there for nearly a thousand years, which was pretty damn cool.

Once the tour was over my friend and I went to the Hamburg Dungeon, which is a really elaborate haunted house type thing.  Basically you move through something very similar to a haunted house, but you'll be stopped in various rooms by people in costume who will tell you the darker parts of the city's history.  Unfortunately it was all in German, so I didn't understand any of it but it was still really cool.  Toward the end you go on a boat ride and then to a ride where you're raised up and then dropped without warning - you'll be familiar with these rides from any amusement park.

By the time we left the Dungeon it was closing in on evening, so we trekked back to my apartment to eat, rest, and get ready for a night on the town.  The same group that organized the walking tour also does a pub crawl in the Reeperbahn, Europe's largest red light district.  After such a long day I wasn't sure I was all that ready for a night out as well, but I didn't want to pass up a good opportunity so off we went.

We met up with the group at a 99 Cent bar, where - you guessed it - everything was 99 cents.  The others on the tour were two Australian guys, two Brazilian guys, an American man, a Bulgarian guy, two German girls, and I don't recall who else.  My friend and I immediately got along with the Australians, and throughout the night there were many toasts to "The Commonwealth!"  It wound up being a spectacularly fun time.  One of the earlier stops was to a bar with live music playing the likes of ACDC and typical American rock, so we got our dance on and had a glorious time.  I asked the Aussis about amusing local sayings, and my stand-out favourite is "we're not here to fuck spiders".  It basically means let's do what we've got to do.  On the whole it was pretty perfect, though my guest managed to (unknowingly) proposition a prostitute and then get on the wrong side of her pimp, which is the type of thing that would only happen to him.

In a disappointing conclusion both the Aussis were leaving Hamburg the next day to continue on a Contiki tour.  I begin to suspect that Europe is conspiring to ensure I have no lasting friendships... ever.  Anyway, we spent all of Sunday recovering, and yesterday it was back to work as usual.

Travels: Yesterday evening an old friend of my aunt's was in Hamburg, so we arranged to meet up for dinner.  Luckily we got along well, so this weekend I'll be visiting her family in Munich and attending Oktoberfest, drindl and all.  I'll be departing Saturday and returning Monday, and I'll be using the train for the first time since getting to Europe.

I've also just made plans to visit my extended family in Lyon (France) during the second weekend of October, which I'm very excited for, especially since I can actually speak functional French.

Perhaps what I'm most excited for though is Ireland.  I've finally thrown caution to the wind and will book flights tomorrow to go during my last weekend in Europe.  I've had a mysterious but nonetheless powerful attraction to Ireland since I was about 16, so I am beyond excited to fulfill a dream I've had for the last six years.  Hopefully I'll be seeing one of the Irish guys I met in Düsseldorf, providing he's not too busy with school.  But regardless I think it'll be pretty amazing.  Then, before I know it, it'll be back to Canada.

My initial plan had been to return straight to BC, but I'm now contemplating a stop off in Toronto.  There's a job opportunity I'm very interested in (more on that later), and I'm also dying to see my family, who I haven't visited in nearly five years.  Tooooo long.

Romance: Ugh.  I feel like that pretty much sums it up.

Things had briefly looked up with my Düsseldorf fling.  We connected via facebook (of course), and not long after my visit he and his girlfriend split up, which was wayyyyy more than I had expected out of that.  Unfortunately since then things have hit a serious lull, and I'm fairly certain the end of things has come and gone.  He returns to school soon, and I have no idea whether he'll be visiting Hamburg.  Even if he does my schedule is now so packed I doubt we'll be in the same place at the same time.  I guess it wasn't "meant to be", but that hardly makes me feel any better.

Apparently my life's narrative has turned into a broken record though.  I don't know how well you read between the lines but you may have inferred that I was leaving some details out of this past weekend's pub crawl.  I got along especially well with one of the Australian guys, who of course had the cute accent (I'm a terrible sucker for accents), the blonde hair, the tan, and - what do you know? - a girlfriend.  Not that that stopped a dance floor make-out session from taking place.  Seriously though, WHAT THE FUCK?! Why does EVERY guy I meet have a girlfriend?  And why hasn't that stopped me recently???  Before I got to Europe I had never cheated on a boyfriend and I had never been involved with a guy who had a girlfriend.  But all of a sudden I get here and manage to have this happen twice in what? three weeks time?  I mean on the one hand I'd like to think that I'm not the one in the relationship and therefore it's not my responsibility to ensure these guys are faithful (also, in both instances it was only kissing), but then again once upon a time I had a lot more compassion for these guys' girlfriends.  For some reason that has recently totally evaporated and been replaced with a complete lack of remorse.  'Bye moral compass, it was nice knowing you.

Once again I find myself irritated that I've met someone interesting and fun who I have great chemistry with but zero future.  I suppose it's ridiculous to expect any kind of future seeing as I'm leaving the continent in just over a month, but human beings are so irrational.

Alright, I've been writing for close to three hours now, and I think this update is officially long enough.  Bravo if you made it to the end all in one go.

Eargasmic

Okay, it's late and I have a packed day tomorrow, but I couldn't resist throwing this up.  I recently watched The Lincoln Lawyer, which was an alright film with a very well-chosen soundtrack.  Included on the list was this track, Nightcall, by Kavinsky featuring Lovefoxxx.  I haven't heard of either before, but you can believe I'll be doing some investigating promptly.  This just so happens to be the perfect track to make my Friday flash by and to pump me up for Friday night.  Too good.

Also, how rad is this album cover?

Secondly, the New Division has been on my radar for a while, but I just recently came across Saturday Night, an intoxicatingly mixed beat that will get you dancing no matter what.  With that, I'll leave you to the music and simply say have a great weekend!

Listening To: Material Girl Playlist

I know what you're thinking - "TWO in ONE day?!".  Yep, that's dedication.  Or boredom, you decide.  Anyway, it's no secret that we live in an exceptionally consumerist and narcissistic society.  This has resulted in quite the array of self-congratulatory songs all about money, buying things, and being materialistic to the max.  I perused my iTunes library and dug up everything that label-dropped, celebrated celebrity, or touted materialistic values and created this, my Ode to Commercialism.  Considering the subject matter it's decidedly upbeat, with lots of fun and dance-worthy material.  Gotta make spending fun, right?  Alright, that's enough from me: enjoy it!

Listening To: Waiting... Playlist

Time has a funny way of becoming infinitely slower when you're excited for something.  While my departure for Germany is approaching, it seems to be doing so at a rate comparable to the speed of a dead slug in midsummer.  So, in characteristic fashion I've put together a playlist that draws on the themes of waiting, time, tedium, and anticipation.  Oh, and I have good news!  I finally worked out my playlist difficulties, so you no longer have to follow the links.  Enjoy!

Listening To:

I know, I know.  I promised you playlists and have yet to follow through.  With my departure for Germany looming (flights are booked, July 17 I am OUT OF HERE!) things are exceptionally busy and distracting, and I'm afraid making playlists isn't too high on the priority list.  Be comforted though, soon I'll be updating with all the latest street style and great music news from the good old Fatherland.  Was that politically incorrect?  I don't even know anymore.  Anyway, here we go:

Bon Iver - Bon Iver.  I have been waiting semi-patiently for the latest album from Bon Iver to drop, and he did not disappoint.  Many of you will already have heard Calgary, which was released some weeks back and was totally awesome.  The album retains Bon Iver's signature sound: folksy, mellow, melodic, etcetera.  While I would venture to say he has tweaked his sound just a little, I can't go as far as to say how because I'm not an intensely-trained musician.  So, decide for yourself, but I challenge you not to love it regardless.

Kaputting It Up (Raekwon vs Destroyer) - The Hood Internet.  While I love Bon Iver as much as the next person, I've also been craving some good dance tunes for the summer.  So, while trolling around on HypeM I stumbled across this, which is Hood Internet gooooold.  They've thrown together some vaguely Euro-pop music that could've come straight out of the early '90s with some generic rapping on top: you can never go wrong with that combo.  Anyway, the product is a track you can't help but blast.
http://hypem.com/search/kaputting%20it%20up/1/


Blowin' Money At The Deli (Drake x Birdman x Delorean) - The Hood Internet.  I'll be the first to say it: Drake's Money To Blow has been remixed so many times it makes my head spin, and it's allllmost to the point where I'm sick of the track.  However, in this track it's been laid over some upbeat tunes that do an impressive job of re-vamping the whole sound.  Overall, you don't so much notice the familiarity of the lyrics, but BONUS, it's easier to rap to (yeah I do that).
http://hypem.com/search/blowin%27%20money%20at%20the%20deli/1/

Listening To: Beginners' Classical Playlist

As it turns out, creating my Summer playlists is taking forever, so in the meantime I thought I'd offer up something a little different.

While Western classical music has always been a part of my life, I didn't really take to it until my teens, when a well-put-together album sparked my interest and introduced me to some of the Masters of classical music.  Since then my interest has grown, and I now have a rather large collection (about 500-600 pieces) that encompasses musicians from the medieval era up until the 20th century (while I do love Stravinski I decided to leave him out - he takes some getting used to).  I wanted to offer those of you who are unfamiliar with classical music a selection of my personal favourites in the hopes that it might change your mind.  If, on the other hand, you are a long-time classical music lover, then hopefully I'll be able to introduce you to some new material.

I decided to kick things off with some good ol' church music, then cheated a little by including a piece I became familiar with via my favourite childhood film, Ever After.  I tried to break up the longer Mozart pieces with some arias (songs from operas), and then switched gears into some piano concertos.  If you are an avid film lover then you may recognize: Elgar's "Nimrod" and "Night of the Long Knives" as they appeared in Elizabeth (1998); Schubert's "Piano Trio in E Flat" from The Hunger (1983); "Vide Cor Meum" taken from Hannibal (2001) and Kingdom of Heaven (2005); Wandrers Nachtlied II from New Moon (2009); Richard Wagner's "Liebstod" from Romeo + Juliet (1996); "Figlio Perduto" from The Fall (2006); Puccini's "Tre Sbirri, Una Carozza... Te Deum" as it appeared in 2008's Quantum of Solace; (also) Puccini's La Bohème arias, "O Soave Fanciulla" and "Che Gelida Manina", both of which appeared in 2007's Atonement; and finally, Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No.2 was used in the Swan Lake scene of Center Stage (2001).  As for "Claire de Lune", it's from pretty much every film ever made (just off the top of my head: Atonement, Ocean's 11, Twilight).

For a final bit of music trivia, you may find "When I am Laid In Earth" from Purcell's opera Dido & Aeneas somewhat familiar.  This is because Elton John used the particular sequence of notes for parts of "Sorry Seems to Be The Hardest Word".  Just in case you were curious.

A Little Something Special

Inspired by the glorious sun that came out on the West Coast today I had intended to put up a summer playlist.  However, after scouring through my iTunes library for good tracks I wound up with 350 songs... a little on the long side.  Anyway, I'm going to break it down a little further by tempo, but hopefully in the next few days you'll be able to get the whole deal, bit by bit.  I'm pretty excited, hopefully so are you.

Listening To: Holier Than Thou Playlist

You can say what you want about Lady Gaga - love her or hate her - but you can't deny she makes pretty catchy music.  I was recently inspired by her latest hit, "Judas", to make a biblical-themed playlist.  I did my best to create some flow, but I confess the genres of music vary widely.  I spent a good hour or two on hypem just searching things like "Mary Magdalene" and "Apostle", but it was pretty hit and miss so that's why the playlist is on the sparser side.  Anyway, let's kick things off Old Testament style.  Enjoy.

Listening To: stuck on repeat

No Health - The New Division.  My sister recently introduced me to electro-pop crooners The New Division, via their album "The Rookie".  I am now certifiably in love, and am combing the internet for their tracks.  They combine my adoration for a relaxed melodic vibe and my love for techno, house, and electronica.  They remind me a little of '80s sensations like Duran Duran, Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys.

http://hypem.com/#!/item/19fyy/The+New+Division+-+No+Health

Starfield - The New Division.

http://hypem.com/#!/item/15fwm/The+New+Division+-+Starfield

Walk in the Dark - The New Division.

http://hypem.com/#!/item/1ahte/The+New+Division+-+Walk+In+The+Dark

Armistice (The New Division Italo Mix) - Phoenix.  So while hunting around for stuff by New Division I stumbled across this remix and fell in LOVE.  I already adored Phoenix's album "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix", and this remix takes Armistice to great places.  If you give one track on today's Listening To a listen, make it this one.

http://hypem.com/#!/item/1a58g/Phoenix+-+Armistice+%28The+New+Division+Italo+Mix%29

Lisztomania (Feat Jane Hanley) - Edwin Van Cleef.  Continuing the theme of Phoenix tracks, this cover by Edwin Van Cleef is a winner.  Very upbeat and danceable.  I'll be filing it away for the summertime.  Enjoy!

http://hypem.com/#!/item/1aw3v/Edwin+Van+Cleef+-+Lisztomania+%28feat.+Jane+Hanley%29,+Phoenix+Cover

Black and Yellow (T-Pain Remix) - Dirty.  If you like the original, you'll like the remix.  I refuse to be embarrassed by my enduring appreciation of T-Pain.

http://hypem.com/#!/item/16ps2/Black+and+Yellow+%28T-Pain+Remix%29+-+Dirty

Helena Beat - Foster the People.  I actually caught this one on a television show and found it so catchy I had to hunt it down by googling the lyrics.  It's kind of an Indie-pop, very danceable, lots of fun.

http://hypem.com/#!/item/180pe/Foster+The+People+-+Helena+Beat

The Sun - The Naked and Famous.  Another track picked up off TV.  This one's less dance-like and more brooding, for lack of a better word.  Definitely a good one.  It's a lot like Blind by Mega Bass, if you're at all familiar with that one (it was on the Daydreaming Playlist).

http://hypem.com/#!/item/15270/The+Naked+And+Famous+-+The+Sun

Set Fire To the Rain - Adele.  I recently bought Adele's newest album, "21", which I'd heard good things about.  There are definitely songs that stand out more than others, and one of those was Set Fire to the Rain.  It's one of those power-ballad types that she just nails every time.

Listening To:

I Wanna Go - Britney Spears.  With her latest album, Femme Fatale, out just a few weeks ago, many of you will already be familiar with Hold it Against Me and Till The World Ends.  While both of these were fun enough, I'm more interested in I Wanna Go, which I challenge you to listen to without dancing.  I haven't bought her whole album (I want to make sure there are at least a few more good tracks first), but if the rest of it is like this then I probably will soon.  Rock on!

Listening To: Rainy Days Playlist

Today it rained... much like every other day ten months out of the year.  After twenty-two years of mostly rain, I've compiled a good list of songs that are perfect for these days.  The playlist is quite similar to Daydreaming, but with a slightly different tempo and a less-Indie feel to it.  If you liked Daydreaming you'll probably like this one too.  If you happen to be lucky enough to be living somewhere it didn't pour today, you can always pretend it did by playing Rainy Mood in the background.  Hope this makes the weather a little more endurable!

Listening To: Danse Macabre Playlist

After getting such positive feedback on the last playlist I posted I decided I may as well throw up another one.  "Danse Macabre" is perhaps a little exaggerated, but the tone is decidedly darker than Daydreaming was: it's kind of a love it or hate it type of collection.  Some of the material is fairly well known (Smashing Pumpkins, Interpol, Bat for Lashes) and some may be less familiar (She Wants Revenge, Blonde Redhead, Tomandandy, Bauhaus).  Anyway, if you're in the right mood then give it a shot, this one's much shorter topping out at only sixteen tracks.  I'm sorry to say Grooveshark didn't have the version of The Beginning is the End is the Beginning (you may recognize it from 2007's Watchmen trailer) so I've had to post that as a YouTube video.  Fun fact about Bela Lugosi is Dead: I picked that one up from the incredibly cheesy '80s vampire flick The Hunger (with David Bowie, Susan Sarandon and Catherine Deneuve), which you should definitely watch.

I wish Daft Punk was playing at my house

If you've been paying attention by now you will know that I am a dedicated Daft Punk fan.  So, I just wanted to share the news that while working on Tron: Legacy they also had a new as-yet-unheard-of album in the works.  It's going to be coming out toward the end of this year, and I'm sure I'm not alone in being supremely excited for it.  I'm hoping they're going to revisit their sound circa Discovery, but we'll have to wait and see.  This blog covers their return and includes a sample of what's to come.  Until then relive the glory with this awesome remix of Something About Us.

Listening To: Daydreaming Playlist

Hey everyone! So the very cool blogger Grayshades recently caught me up on how to post playlists. On that note, you really absolutely must check out his latest Mixtape Monday, which is totally prime. Anyway, seeing as I do a fair bit of music posting anyway, I figured this was probably a good idea. My Daydreaming playlist is probably what I listen to most often. The one on my iTunes is actually significantly longer than this (lots more Bon Iver and Beach House), but I figured I'd keep it short...ish. Plus, it took an unbelievably long time to organize the music so that it had good flow - something I've never bothered to do before. With that in mind I'll just add that it's way better if you listen to it start to finish, but as there are 50+ songs I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't. Anyway, hope you love this stuff as much as I do!

Listening To:

Drones - Jed Whedon and the Willing.  I actually picked this song up from Dollhouse, which if you're on the ball you'll know I just posted a review on.  Jed Whedon is actually Joss Whedon's brother, which probably helped him get his song into the series soundtrack.  Regardless, it's a great track.  It appeals to my love of all things melodic and mellow, and so I've basically had it on repeat for the last day or two.  This one isn't so easy to find anywhere free, so I wound up buying it off iTunes.  In case you'd like a point of reference when I first heard it I thought it was Death Cab for Cutie.  Unfortunately the only full version of the song I can find on youtube has a rather creepy screen shot from the tv series and the sound quality is poor, but try to ignore that and appreciate the song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN61p0SdWZQ&feature=related

Listening To:

So every once in a while I'll do a peruse of HypeM's most popular tracks.  Today was one such day, and I came up with some winners.

Money To Divide - The White Panda.  If you're looking for a pump-up track for the gym or something to rock out to before going out, I would recommend this.  It's a great blend of rap and some melodic techno, which if you ask me make the best mash-ups.
http://hypem.com/#!/search/money%20to%20divide/1/

Rolling in the Deep - Mike Posner.  This track is a cover of one of Adele's latest releases, and if you at all liked the original definitely check it out.  It's mellow and has beat and great shower singability.  The combination of Posner and Adele is totally intoxicating.
http://hypem.com/#!/search/rolling%20in%20the%20deep%20mike%20posner/1/

Rooftops - Wiz Khalifa feat. Curren$y.  This one comes from Wiz Khalifa's latest album, Rolling Papers.  As far as I'm concerned he proved his worth in Burn Before Rolling and Black and Yellow, but Rooftops brings to the table something a little more melodic.  If I were to compare it to something else I'd say it's a lot like Lupe Fiasco, another very talented musician.  Give it a listen.
http://hypem.com/#!/search/rooftops%20wiz%20khalifa/1/