Hello there.
Months and months far from this site, and I even don’t know why.
I missed it soo much.
Anyway..
Thanks to irreplaceable Jenny, Pretendingtobejapanese has restarted. And I’m extremely happy to be here again to contribute.
That’s all, for now.
Since today’s my birthday, I can choose whatever video I like (it comes from the 90s, as you can assume by yourself).
Enjoy.
The second album of project The Record Collection Mixtapes is New York City’s The Affair’s Yes Yes To You from 2006.
I like the sound, a kind of 70s-early 80s punk new wave sound but with modern pop added to the mix. The synthesizer is a killer and singer Kali Holloway’s voice is great, sometimes very sweet and pop and sometimes edgy and punk. Here and there The Affair remind me of contemporaneous The Eames Era, and a few times I can hear Siouxsie Sioux lurking behind Holloway’s voice. The songs however tend to float into each other and become indistinguishable. It took me several listenings before a few tracks stood out enough to be identified.
Even if it’s the one track here that sets itself apart from the rest the most, I have to pick “Andy”. It’s a really sweet and catchy song with lots of the awesome synthesizer and it almost seems like it’s coming from decades lost.
Also, an honorary mention of the song “The Chase”, a lovely punk number at just under 2 minutes.
So, I guess I feel like I don’t have enough to do; between being a mother, writing my thesis, selling the apartment, moving to a house and all the rest of life’s lovely assignments; that I need a new project of some sorts. Well, here it is.
I’m going to go through my record collection, record by record, write a few lines about each one and, most importantly, pick one song off of every record to be collected in a sort of record collection mixtape.
What do you think of that?
My record collection is very dear to me but otherwise not particularly impressive; it’s just a bunch of records I like. There are no rarities (I think), very few singles even by artists I really like and no complete discographies (except maybe if Joy Division’s Heart and soul box counts). If you want to take a look it’s here on rateyourmusic.com. But impressive or not, it currently holds 625 titles (not counting the dvds, cos Madonna’s In bed with Madonna isn’t really a record now is it) so this project will take some time. If you’re somewhat familiar with math you’ll realize, as I just did, that even if I write about one record a day - which I, for the record, WON’T - it’ll take a bit shy of two years to complete, and it’s not like I won’t buy more records during the process. So, phew.
Though, I’ve decided, the few singles I DO have won’t be included unless they contain some really good song, cos seriously, what’s the point in choosing one song out of two, or worse, three remixes of the same song?
So there are the ground rules. Maybe if you’re nice, you can get a copy of the mixtapes (on cd) along the way. I’ll also probably start a playlist on Spotify called My Record Collection Mixtape and share with whoever wants it, but given the big gaps in Spotify’s selection, it will probably be far from complete.
Now, for part 1 of this, The Record Collection Mixtapes, the first title. Bigger, Better, Faster, More! by 4 Non Blondes.
I bought this record used for 15 Sek (that about $2 at the current rate), I know this cos it still has the price-tag left, and it’s dusty too! Mental note; need to clean or change plastic thing. So, I really didn’t consider it before buying, more than that I really like their early 90s hit single “What’s Up” (which is actually a clearly feminist song, something I didn’t realize until years after the fact, but is really cool considering what a big hit it was), which in itself was worth the 15 Sek. I really like Linda Perry too, the awesome singer who at the time wore ridiculously large hats. The 90’s was a strange place. (What an awesome timing, too, since Perry has co-written a lot of material to Hole’s coming album that I wrote about the other day.)
It’s an okay record, some good songs and some not so good ones. The sound, albeit very early 90s sounding (think metal-grunge, Red Hot Chili Peppers funk and radio music like the Spin Doctors), varies a bit. There’s the funky “No place like home”, the bluesy “Pleasantly blue”, the Soundgardeny/Alice in Chainsy “Calling all the people” and lots of Perry’s signature “What’s Up?” yells. I can’t help but pick the obvious song here, but I am sorry that I never really listened to the album until now. This is already turning out to be a great project. I think I’m gonna have to check out Perry’s solo albums soon.
Holy crap! A year ago I wrote a post about Courtney Love and Hole here, about longing for her upcoming Nobody’s Daughter that was scheduled to come out that spring - but surprise, surprise didn’t - and fondly remembering the past. Well, folks, the new album is now finally here! But trust Courtney to do it with a twist.
She’s reformed Hole! Without Eric! And she’s releasing the album as Hole instead of as herself. AND NOBODY TOLD ME! And according to someone on rateyourmusic.com, and oh of course this on Spin, he’s not too happy about it. Drama aside, this is weird. Is it a marketing thing? That she didn’t sell as many records with her own name as she did with Hole? Given, she is the VOICE of Hole, but isn’t a band more than that? Also, Hole was always girls and Eric, now it’s Courtney and three guys. I’m not against change per se, but this is weird for me, it really is.
The album is going to be released at the end of April and this time it really is, right? Yeah, well, we’ve heard it before. The website says April 26th and 27th.
Music wise, I’m not sure yet. I mean, I’m gonna buy it, and listen to it, when it comes out, cos I’m a sucker for Courtney, but I’m not sure yet what I think of what I’ve heard from it. There’s a single up on their MySpace, “Skinny Little Bitch”, that doesn’t really speak to me. I don’t dislike it, but it doesn’t do anything for me, yet. I’ll have to listen to it 20 more times. However, it wouldn’t be the first time for something of Courtney’s to take a while before sinking in. There’s also a video of “Samantha” up on their youTube Channel and on the website. It’s supposedly a second coming single, and on the album (or so says Wikipedia).
As an old fan of Hole I guess I should be thrilled, and I guess in a way I am. Finally an album after such a long time. An album that, judging from the two songs I’ve hear so far, does sound like a natural next step from Celebrity Skin and America’s Sweetheart. Again, more mature than the one before. Following the pattern. Though at the same time I watch her perform “Samantha” and I’m not feeling it. What I definitely felt watching the singles from Live Through This. What I still felt watching her live in ‘99 on Hultsfred Festival. What I sometimes still feel listening to her solo album. I don’t know. Maybe I just need time to reconnect to the aged Courtney. Hell. I’m fucking aged as well.
I just came back from Paris.
As usual, I brought a size-of-a-playing-card copy of PTBJ logo with me and took a lot of useless pictures out and about in Paris.
While waiting to finish choosing the most ridiculous ones to put in the next post.. here’s something parisien, just to get in the mood.
Before losing my “teenage status” in the mid 90’s, I had the chance to live a few years in probably the worst ranked decade of the XX century, at least in music reviews. Before becoming a shoegazer, before wishing to be Kim Deal’s husband (and PJ Harvey’s lover), before playing air guitar on Pumpkins’ “Cherub rock” and headbanging to NIN’s “March of the pigs”, my favourites were Read More..
I often talk about electronic music with Dino (London-based sardinian friend of mine). I know so little about it; Dino (aka Home Alone), on the other hand, loves it and produces it. A few months ago I asked him: “Who do you think is gonna be the next electronic/dance/disco/techno big thing?”. I “just” wanted a name that would have gone through the barriers of the genre and became “popular”.
The answer was “The Bloody Beetroots, definitely. They’re don’t belong to mainstream, but people will talk about them”.
He was right.
And now that it’s about time to write a post about them, I thought it could have been a good idea to ask Dino for some help. Here’s what he says about The Bloody Beetroots:
Last year Friendly Fires’ “Jump in the pool” gained a post here on PTBJ, and I decided it also deserved a place among my own personal best singles of 2008 (here’s the unmissable and marvellous post about it. Still wonder why they didn’t give me the Pulitzer for it).
Last Christmas I bought myself Read More..
On the last night in Bruxelles (see post), we had a few rounds of local beer in a charming pub in the Grand Place (Grote Markt): warm and relaxed atmosphere, dim lights, and.. I’m not a beer fan (I’m far way more the wine type), but the unexpected flavours of those home brewed neptars made the brass fixtures, the dark wood furniture, the aluminium pipes and the.. er.. fermentation cylinder look sooo Read More..
