Three Videos, Three Bands

It's the thirteenth of the third month of the year and in three days starts the third week of this month. So why shouldn't I post three videos? Well, I'll just do that. Maybe I also wanted to post something, but didn't have enough time to write a full article. Who knows.

1. Alessia Cara - I'm Yours
This video is a low-budget production, but don't be fooled: Alessia is a great and popular singer.

2. Gin Ga - 1ON1
If it comes to fun videos, these guys know how to do it right. We can watch people celebrating and working out, so this is also really motivating.

3. BOY - Into The Wild (Acoustic)

Oh, there are three people in this third video and many trees. What a coincidence. Truly a beautiful voice and a beautiful location for an acoustic session. 

Good Instant Pictures

Let's start this year with something good. Oh, something good. Oh, something good. Oh, something good tonight. This was an Alt-J reference. But at first the bad news: There won't be a song of the month for December. Simply because it's 1) too late, 2) I don't have one and 3) I just don't want to write so much. Now look at some pictures to cheer you up.

These are some instant pictures I consider as good ones. The cameras I used were the Instax Mini 90 and the Instax 210. I love instant cameras. And notebooks.

Cats ♥ Soooo cute! Now you're happy again. For sure.

Me, my cat and I, my cat.

I own a lighthouse and owned a treehouse.

Double exposure in the middle. Oh, and again the lighthouse. Oops.

Brighton. I don't know how this thing in the middle happened, but it looks cool.

Awww yeah. Modern art and street art. Salamanca is in Spain, btw.

Yeah, sometimes my camera doesn't work properly. Triple exposure in the middle.

To Be Continued

Song Of The Month - November '14

Hello again my friends, stalkers and everybody else. I'll always find some excuses for my low posting activity. Right now there are exams going on. Later there will be Christmas, New Year and for January I'll find some excuses, too. But I promise to write about at least two concerts this month. But not in English. Sorry.

The current song of the month is so fresh, it could as well be called "Song of The Week". This time it is Sizarr's  "Scooter Accident". If you watch the video it might remind you of the movie "The Place Beyond The Pines" (with Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper and Eva Mendes). That's because it is in fact a reference to it. I don't want to spoil anything, but in the music video you will see a guy walking around a funfair, but he doesn't seem to have any fun at all. Then he gets out, on his motorcycle, drives through a forest and then...

The song and the video are made for each other. At the beginning it's calm, the velvety and soulful voice of Fabian Altstötter is asking some questions and as the singing stops, the rhythm speeds up. It gets slower, again singing, again speeding up and THEN there is both - exciting rhythm and the voice. At the same time something dramatic happens in the video. The end is more dramatic, though. There are squeaky sounds and an abrupt ending, not only of the music.

All in all the song consists of many changes between slow and fast parts, which makes it interesting and exciting. But Sizarr always make interesting music that seems to have many different influences. Maybe they are the German version of Alt-J. Maybe not. Who cares. You don't. You just want the song. Here you go.

P.S. Their next album will be released in February 2015.

Song Of The Month - September '14

Yo. This time I managed to publish an article on time. I see that I've written a lot during the last four weeks. Not. Maybe I should post some pictures instead of texts. So, this was the intro-duck-tion, let's take a look at the topic.

September began with the Berlin Music Week. It's like The New York Fashion Week, but in Berlin and more about music than fashion. There were some Festivals, like the First We Take Berlin Festival (FWTB) and the Berlin Festival. The band and their song I want to present to you played at the FWTB. And they were great. I'm talking about As Animals and their song "I See Ghost (Ghost Gunfighters)". 

The song sounds a little dramatic, but cool. Zara, the singer, has a beautiful and strong voice and in "I See Ghost" she exhausts almost all possibilities of it. Every time I listen to this song I'm tempted to sing along. And I do. But at the refrain it's getting difficult for me and I sound like hamster that gets squeezed.

It's not easy to categorize As Animals' music. There's soul, there's pop and probably even more. Also the singer has a slight french accent which sounds pretty nice.

Here's your chance to sing along:

Song Of The Month - August '14

Writing a blog without an internet connection is not easy. Really, I tried, but then I got tired because it didn’t work. Anyway, now everything is back to normal. Or at least what I consider this way.

It was difficult to make a decision: Alt-J vs. Trailerpark, “Evey Other Freckle” vs. “Bleib in der Schule” (=Stay at School), peculiar lyrics vs. provoking lyrics. Finally Trailerpark made it, because school just started. "Every other Freckle" sounds really cool, though.

As with their other songs, “Bleib in der Schule” contains some explicit content, but besides all these drug references and descriptions of a superstar’s lifestyle (money & um... beautiful women), there is also irony and satire. Aside from that the hook fits perfectly to the young audience. Just one request: don’t take this song literally.

The beat is not really spectacular, the song rather focuses on the lyrics. But there’s a guitar solo at the end, which is nice. Watch or listen, even if you don’t understand everything. Oh, and by the way, the video might be nsfw.

15 Shark Drawings

I don't think that there's any further explanation necessary. I like sharks but they're not my favourite animals. Enjoy.

chillin' shark

with cute eyes

It's German and means... 'shark'. Yeah. Surprise.

this one is not so cool

hidden shark

Killer.

serious business

easy

colorful and happy

not colorful and not happy

psychedelic shark

funny shark #1

funny shark #2

Shark in the dark. Not really, but sounds cool.

jumping shark

Song Of The Month - June '14

June is over, Alt-J released a single with a Miley Cyrus-Sample, Lana Del Rey released a new album, the FIFA World Cup started - but I don’t care. Now there’s only one thing, only one thing on my mind.

Felt Tip’s song “Simple Things”. I probably wouldn’t have discovered it on my own, but thanks to some almost-hipster-guy this cool little gem became a part of my life.
When I first googled the band's name, all I got were pictures of felt tips. Pretty soon I realized that this were not the band members and so I added some more catchwords to my research. And then I found what I was looking for.

The intro/outro are pretty much the same – James Tyler sings with a slightly melancholic voice and there is a guitar softly playing in the background. Then – bam – the guitar wakes up, percussion and bass join the party, the rhythm accelerates and the song gets even cooler. Or hotter. I can’t decide.

Every now and then everything slows a little bit down, but only to create a tension and once again you find yourself jerking to the music. Or twerking. Or however you move to a song.

The videos all have a gloomy atmosphere. In “Simple Things” the singer reminds me of a zombie-vampire, but a stylish and cool one.

All en masse (ouh, j'écris en francais) this song doesn’t get boring, it does even compete with Glass Animals’ “Exxus” on my personal “most-played-in-a-row-song” –list. And I really want to hear this song live, in real life, not just on YouTube.

Glass Animals on a roof terrace two weeks ago in Berlin and this is a long title but that's your problem

Once upon a time, one of my favourite bands played a gig on a roof. It was a sweat-inducing show. Only because the sun shone relentlessly, of course. Everybody else was cool.

Glass Animals are one of those bands I always wanted to see live, but there were always some unexpected obstructions preventing it to happen. Until now. Or then. It’s been two weeks already.

We have this radio station called FluxFM here in Berlin that sometimes organises concerts on the roof terrace of its quarter. When they announced Glass Animals as one of their acts, it was clear to me: I will go there, even if I have to climb up the wall. Fortunately I didn't have to climb. My arms are pretty weak.

So it was a nice summer evening, cool people with sunglasses were chilling and we had a nice view of the city. Oh, and wonderful music as well.

The first song was “Gooey”, probably Glass Animals' best known. Then they played “Pools”, a catchy, tropical song but not as cool as “Walla Walla”. I just realised that “Walla” reminds me of “Walla, isch schör, Digga!” – something that some people say here in Berlin. Back to the song - that percussion! You just have to move and release your inner belly dancer.

The show took 40 minutes and Glass Animals also played some of their old stuff, like “Psylla”. I hope to see/hear them perform “Exxus” one day. I fucking love this song. And the video, though it’s a little special.

Maybe it comes unexpected, but I really enjoyed the show. And in a dark club with some colourful lights and a lot of smoke (from a smoke machine) the atmosphere of the songs would be even more emphasised.

The guys themselves seem to be pretty nice. I even got them to draw something into my idea book. So in case they read this: Thanks for the pictures & keep on making music for at least 20 years! Otherwise…

During the show Dave Bayley (I used to confuse it with “Baileys”) made compliments to the audience, like: “You all look very cool with your sunglasses. We've never played in front of such a cool crowd before.” And no, it wasn’t irony. He also recommended to us to get some ice cream. But I didn't.

Finally, I have some pictures for you. If you want to see some more hipsteresque ones, go to the German article. Enjoy the view!

the band without the drummer

the drummer (Joe) without the band

talking 'bout ice

multitasking Drew: synthesizer, guitar & backing vocals

Ed Singer is not the singer (haha), but multitasking, too

cool shirt (and more multitasking)

that's it
♥

Song Of The Month - May '14

Omg, I know it's already June. Omg, I know I've been lazy. Omg, I know all you fans have been waiting desperately for this. Omg, I know... well... no, that's it. I didn't forget it, procrastination is just a good friend of mine.

Honestly, I'm often bored by these slow, all-acoustic songs sung by some guy who has a soft voice and serious brown eyes. Nick Mulvey is an exception. His eyes aren't brown. So it's ok.
The song "Cucurucu" starts slowly, with Nick telling a story and a subtle guitar in the background. If I wouldn't have been interested in listening to the story I would have just ignored the radio, but fortunately I gave it a chance. When the drums began, the song won over me and I looked it up on he internet.
It's a warm, nostalgic song, not one of those deadly serious ones, mainly because of the "cucurucu"-part and the beautiful melody. I really love it, this song makes me calm down and feel hopeful. Also a good song to listen to before you go to sleep. Sweet dreams. This time no soundcloud:

Write about... What?

Sometimes it's difficult to find an interesting topic to write about, so you don't write. The problem is just that a blog needs content. But what? You can write about anything: life, love, music, trees. Here are three inspirations for people who have no idea how to find a topic. 

The Dictionary-Oracle

If you ever have a question, just ask a dictionary. 

''What should I do this evening?'' ''Extract.'' ''A present for my brother?'' ''Foot.'' ''What is the most beautiful thing on earth?'' ''Human.'' (These are the actual answers of my dictionary. Strange?)

All you need to do is 

1.Take out a dictionary

2.Ask your question 

3.Close your eyes 

4.Open the book on a random page 

5.Put your finger anywhere on the book 

6.Open your eyes again 

7.Voilà - you have your answer

This way you can find a topic for an article. Of course I'm aware of the fact that books are soooooo last century - that's why I already developed a modern version of it: The Wikipedia-Oracle. You can use any other page with a random-word/article-option as well. For example the Urban Dictionary.

Just ask your question, click on ''random'' and there you go. 

Quote

Sometimes you already have a topic or at least an idea, but no introduction. Music will help you here (at least if it's not pure instrumental music).

Choose any song, keep the first sentence(s) or words in mind and use them for your awesome article. Maybe you have to translate the lyrics into the language you're writing in, but on the other hand it may be more interesting that way. You can also adopt the song title.

Keep Up With The Times
Try to be up to date. What is happening around the world? What is everybody talking about? And in particular: How can you profit from it?
You are a lion, you have to hunt. Find a victim and tear it up. 
Take an actual (and controversial) topic. Write about it. You can either be reputable and neutral or - better - you provoke by telling your (pretended) opinion and adducing meaningless reasons. The advantage is, that people will face up emotionally with your article, want to give their point of view and hence comment it. Then they will show it to their friends by sharing it on Facebook or whatever. Anyway, you have a topic and get free advertising. Do you really need more?

Well, that's it. I have realized that I have a lot of ideas, I'm just too lazy. That's bad. Next time I will probably write an article about how to overcome laziness.

I Like To Move It, Move It

Dancing is a good way to set yourself free, to forget everything and just feel your body, your emotions. It doesn't matter whether you're a good dancer or not - music and movement are healthy for your mind and body. As long as you don't overdo it. Knees and backs can be quite sensitive, especially when you're old. Trust me.

I'm going to show you a few music videos with interesting dance moves. Maybe they will encourage you to dance or inspire you. Maybe they will make you smile. Maybe they will make you feel like you're more of a spider walking on a trampoline in roller-skates than a dancer. In that case - sorry. But honestly, it shouldn't matter what you look like when you're dancing, just enjoy yourself.

Gin Ga - Dancer

These four guys from Austria (not Australia) don't take themselves too seriously.Their other videos are interesting as well, but this one is probably the most popular.
"Dancer" is a funny video and a lot of people dance just like that, so it got a lot of approval.

Darwin Deez - DNA

Darwin Deez has a lot of funny and creative videos. This one is focused on a couple dancing through their relationship. Good times and bad times. Here you go.

Citizens! - True Romance
Oh, another dancing couple. But this time with background dancers and modern outfits. Cool. 

Stromae - Papaoutai

Though it's a sad story, the dancing is just awesome. I couldn't dance like that when I was a child. And I still can't.

Devendra Banhart - Carmensita
Now we have a Spanish Song. This video doesn't contain as much dancing as the others, but it's entertaining, colorful and cheerful.

That's enough for today. I hope you liked it. And now get up and dance!

Failed Polaroids

These pictures are not really Polaroids, they are made with an Instax (Fujifilm), but everybody knows what I am talking about when I say "Polaroids". Instax is not that famous yet.

This article is especially for those who have an instant camera themself and sometimes get desperate because a picture just does not look good. Everybody affected by this - You are not alone!
Sure, it is disappointing and probably a waste of (expensive) film, but hey, the pictures are still unique. As long as they are not totally underexposed or
overexposed. In this case - draw on them.

Ok, here you go.

These were made with the Instax Mini 90, a retro-looking camera with  cool settings (e.g. double exposure). But you have  to  experiment a little. The kebab looks a bit scary  because there is also a face on it. Not a failure but a bad idea.

This time with the instax 210. It was too dark. Remember, kids: just because the light looks good in real life, it does not mean that it will look the same on the picture. And a flash is not always useful.

Overexposed and underexposed with drawings. Better than nothing.

You might wonder why I did not draw on these. I do not know. Actually, on the right one you can see a rainbow. Like I said, it is hard to catch beautiful light.

Ok, I have no idea what happened to the first one, but that is definitely not the Klaxons show. The second one is a simple, unintended double exposure. The last one looks like a negative to me, but I have no idea how I did this.

So that's it. I just want to mention that it is mostly my fault that they look bad. For example, I took out the film, but not in the dark. I wanted to check if there is still one in the camera while sitting in a bright room. This is for sure the stupidest thing you can do. Learn from my mistakes.

Song Of The Month - February '14

In this category, I'm going to write about a song at the end of every month. Not just any song, but a new one that drew my attention somehow.

Even though I wrote about Glass Animals' "Gooey" in the German counterpart of "Song Of The Month", this version will be about Klaxons' "Children Of The Sun" and "There Is No Other Time". I know, that's not just one song, but does it really matter?

When "There Is No Other Time" (TINOT) was released at the beginning of February, it received a lot of negative feedback. People were disappointed, because it just didn't sound like any of the old tracks and is more of a disco track than a new rave track.
Sure, it's a strange thing when Klaxons sound like that, but many bands experiment with their style and that's always a risk. TINOT is not really a success, nevertheless it could be worse. At least you can dance to it and sing along. Plus, it is pretty radio-friendly.
I think it's ok, but nothing special.
You can make your own decision here:




A few days later, "Children Of The Sun" was released. This song settled the minds of the fans who were not satisfied with TINOT. Even if just a little. 
Other people, including me, were convinced by this song and are looking forward again to the next album.

"Children Of The Sun" (COTS) has a distinctly stronger beat and more tension than TINOT. But they also have some similarities: you can dance and sing along to both of them, to COTS just with more... fire in your heart.
In my opinion, COTS is a cool song and a very good one for a live show.They've played it along with some other new songs at the Berlin Festival in 2013.
Here you can listen to it:



BTW, the new logo looks simple but nice. I guess it shows how they've changed.

Hello Again

Every year I start a blog and 2 weeks later I give it up again. But not this time.

This time I will work hard and write every day and post a lot of pictures and... 

Well, that's was a lie, but I think you got my idea. I will try to keep this at least 3 weeks. Haha.

So, what can you expect?

I don't recommend any high expectations, as they often tend to be disappointed. I will write in German and in English, but never the exact translation and I'm not sure what else I will write about except for music and photography. 

Oh, and sorry for any grammar/spelling mistakes. As long as thei dont effect yuur understending negativly, dont corect tham. Of course I can't tell you what to do, but it would be pretty annoying.

See you soon.

♥