sidenoted

Die.

2007-01-15T14:20:00.000-05:00

This, to me, is proof that this new, but soon to be obsolete (I wish), government is the worst we've had in ages.

Well, fellow iPod lovers, our time has come.

untitled. (yes yes, untitled.)

2006-12-29T21:57:00.000-05:00

Well, Christmas has come and gone. Got a sweet watch. Actually scared to wear... I don't want to break it or something. I mean, working in a music store can be very dangerous. haha. Although, my watch did survive last night, which means it could probably go through any situation without getting scrathed. haha.

You see, last night was the bday party for one of my friend's boyfriend. Funny thing is, I really wasn't supposed to go. At all. Took the bus to get back home, and guess who I see? Some friends that were actually going. haha. Fate. So, ended up going, getting lost, finding the place and discovering the biggest white trash bar around. Wait, just imagine a bar called... Astral 2000. No, it's not a vaccum. It's a bar. Wait, a karaoke bar. Get the picture?

First thing you pick up is the smell: Bathroom. Damp bathroom. Then comes beer fumes and well, a lot of... spirit. After comes the voice of the skinniest and probably the most frightning thing I've seen in a long time hosting the karaoke night. She (probably a "she"...) had the most annoying voice, if you can call it a voice. Sounded more like a duck trying to imitate Alvin the Chipmunk. Imagine her sing. Nasty.

Fun times.

Well, atleast I fell upon a really good band to clear out my head after hearing all this... Ever heard of CocoRosie? Well, one the girls has decided to start a soft metal band. Yes, soft metal. haha. It might sound scary, but it's actually quite good. If you like Cocorosie. Or if you like odd stuff. Odd good stuff that is. So, the project is called Metallic Falcons and their first album, Desert Doughnuts (I know... give it a chance okay?), is a good mix between folk, rock, some shoegazing and even some ... metal? I could almost swear Antony, from him and the Johnsons, sings on the 3rd song "Nighttime and Morning". Or, is it him?

MP3 • Metallic Falcons - Airships
WEB • Metallic Falcons
WEB • CocoRosie
WEB • Antony and the Johnsons

university sucks.

2006-12-18T23:01:00.000-05:00

Just got this letter in the mail telling me that my program has been cancelled. Yes yes, cancelled. Deleted. Nada. Kaput.

One word: Ridiculous. Or wait, pathetic.

I haven't even started and they already don't want me. haha. One thing is for sure, they better let me keep my classes or atleast give me back the 110$ I gave them in random fees, 'cause they'll regret this whole story ever happened.

Now, onto the music portion of this blog. haha. Bought this delightful EP today: Seoul by Amiina. This Icenlandic act has partipated with noneother then Sigur Rós, being their string section and all, and has also toured with them. Yes, that's where you heard this weird atmosphere before. It's light, sometimes close to a children's soundtrack, sometimes closer to what Bell Orchestre would release if they had the chance to play along side Sigur Rós.

Also, I'm happy to see that The Fountain's O.S.T is a nominee for the Golden Globes. Now, let's see if they win...

MP3 • Amiina - Seoul
WEB • Sigur Rós
WEB • Bell Orchestre

another day, another drama

2006-12-15T00:25:00.000-05:00

I swear, Christmas is becoming more and more a chore for people. Have we all forgotten what the Christmas spirit is about? Family, love, friendship, generosity, fun and all those other nice "ships". You can tell when someone has become holiday-immuned. Notice these 3 elements:

- A vein mysteriously pops on the side of the subject's forehead when approching a CD rack filled with Christmas albums.
- The subject starts sweating and rubbing his or her tiny bloodshot eyes while reading through a giftlist.
- Last, the subject cries in dispair when discovering that one item on the list isn't available.

Okay, I might be slightly overreacting, but still, you get the picture. Most of the clients I've helped today were like that. Filled with obligation, not with joy. I mean, personnally, I don't feel obliged to buy anything to anyone. Not even my girlfriend. You see, we've agreed to wait 'til after the crazy shopping season to give ours to eachother. Anyhow, I'm getting sick of this tense ambiance. Crabbiness will not ruine my Holidays.

Aside from working through a day of bitching and moaning (and for once, I'm not the one doing it), I've bought some pretty good CDs. Well, bought them mostly yesterday, but meh. Found myself liking yet another classical album. The Symphony #7, composed by Krzysztof Penderecki, is a grandiose and lord-o-ze-ring typed vocal work. Oddly enough, it's named "Seven Gates of Jerusalem", which is exactly what it reminds me of. Imagine a movie about the whole biblical saga. That's the soundtrack. It's imposing, dramatic and epic. But, thing is, it lasts around 60 minutes. A movie based on the Bible would take up more than one hour. Possibly. Also bought Cadence Weapon's Breaking Kayfabe, which is a really good canadian rap album. Ever heard of Clipse? Well, listen to them. Also received two albums, which I gladly bought. When I Live by the Garden and the Sea by the ambient master Matthew Cooper, aka Eluvium. He's actually opening for Explosions in the Sky for their Montreal date, which is March 23rd if you've been asleep for the last 2 weeks. (And yes, I've got tickets! But, don't get me started on the Arcade Fire show...). It kinda reminds me of what Tim Hecker does. Which is a good sign! Have you heard his new albums? It's awesome. The second album was At the Soundless Dawn by the post-rock act Red Sparowes. To what I've heard, it's a lot more intense than their later work. More deep and a lot more intense. Maybe I should listen to the other one I have... anyhow, if you're a fan of Pelican or 65daysofstatic, look them up.

MP3 • Krzysztof Penderecki - Symphony No. 7, "Seven Gates Of Jerusalem": Magnus Dominus Et Laudabilis Nimis
WEB • Cadence Weapon
WEB • Eluvium
WEB • Explosions in the Sky
WEB • Tim Hecker
WEB • Red Sparowes
WEB • Pelican
WEB • 65daysofstatic

let's try this once more

2006-12-10T13:54:00.000-05:00

Well, as usual, I can't keep a site updated longer than a week. Even if it's music oriented. I think I need to make this spot more personal, more a blog type space. So, here goes a ranting and music collision. Lets hope it lasts more than a week. Hey, if I update more than 4 times, consider it a Holiday miracle.

Worked pretty much all day yesterday. Considering that it's Christmas and that I work in a music store, and that cds are actually a great gift idea, imagine how I love the Joyous Season. I did think that it would be worse though, but still. Priced tons of cds, stuff that was waiting for the little tag for over 2 weeks. It was litteraly pilling up to amounts that could of been dangerous for little children, height wise. So, being the responsible employee I am, I took it upon myself to save the kiddies and price those cds like if there was no tomorrow. I'm actually proud of my heroic action. haha.

The highlight of my day was my first client, this little old venom spitting lady. She comes up to me, without a hello or a good morning (I mean, I am a human being, greetings are nice once and a while) and asks to find her a cd she heard on the radio. Now, normally, this is a quite easy task. All the client needs to do is tell you when and around what time she heard the song. After, you just go onto the radio station's website and look it up. That's when everything goes well.

In this case, the client only has the song's title, doesn't know more than the show she heard it on. Plus, she wants a compilation. I mean, is there something more hard to find than one specific compilation, with one popular song? Anyhow, I look it up for about 15 minutes, obviously doing the best I can to help her out (and the best I can to ignore her bickering), and finally give up and suggest that she calls the show and ask them for more info, obviously sorry that I couldn't help her out and that I couldn't find the cd. And, what to I get as a token of her recognition? "Trust me, I'm the sorry one", with a bitter smile and a condescending glare. Ha. Made my day. Good thing I'm patient, 'cause she would of had an easier time with those constipation problems.

Still, I did enjoy my day. I spent my whole shift in the classical section, putting on cds that aren't Christmas themed. One cd was particularly popular: The Fountain O.S.T. The deep and gloomy soundtrack to the equally dark movie The Fountain is a colaboration between the Kronos Quartet, known for their contemporary take on chamber music, and Mogwai, who are post-rock demi-gods (yes, it's my favorite band, so?). The result is surprisingly moving. It has a certain ressemblance to the Mono/World's End Girlfriend release. The sensitive and spleen driven strings mixed with the loud post-rock approach blends quite well, almost as if they were naturally ment for eachother. This really should win best original soundtrack of the year. Yes, Marie-Antoinette's Soundtrack is awesome, but anyone can do a playlist.

MP3 • The Fountain O.S.T. - Stay With Me
MP3 • Mono/World's End Girlfriend - Trailer 4

FMC

2006-10-04T16:58:00.000-04:00

Spent the day looking around for info on the Future of Music Policy Summit. I'll probably head there Friday to check out 3-4 conferences before work. It's not too bad, 34$ for the day when you're a student, so, that's like 8,50$ for 4 conferences. I'll be there from 9:00 to 3:45...

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 6

9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Pollack Hall
Special Conversation: Consumer Electronics Association

10:00 AM - 11:15 AM
Pollack Hall
Format Wars: Digital Rights Management and Interoperability

11:30 AM - 12:45 PM
Pollack Hall
The New Deciders: Metafilters, Blogs, Podcasts

2:30 PM - 3:45 PM
Pollack Hall
Young Musicians Panel

I can't wait! It's going to be quite interesting and hey, maybe even some fun involved! And, like always, I had to choose between 2 awesome conferences, and well, the The New Deciders: Metafilters, Blogs, Podcasts won. It was either that or Avatars with Guitars: Music for Games which looked like a great subject too, but the quarter fell on heads, so that's that.

The last one is surely going to interesting, I mean, there'll be band members of Arcade Fire, Stars, Malajube and other panelists, so hum, can you say highlight of the day?

I'm currently listening to DJ Shadow - Endtroducing..... and well, if this isn't a classis, well, what is it? I mean, with all the sampling, beats and moods, this is one of the best Hip-Hop CD in my collection. It's definetly a must have album and well, just go buy it. It's usually not that expensive too, so, well, Go!

First note

2006-10-04T02:17:00.000-04:00

Well,

Here I am, blogging, again. Well, it's a new blog and a new view on things. Hope this one will last and that it'll be more active. Heh. Never. Anyway, I'd like to center this journal around CDs I bought and shows I saw. I know, how cool and original eh? Oh well, it's my blog and I'll do what I want to!

Well, let's start with the recent purchase:

Neil Young - Greatest Hits.

Yes, this is a classic. Rather good album for an icon of the folk-rock America. Being a best-of, it can't really be marked as a new and original record, but still, the choice of songs are, in my opinion, very smart and respect the singer-songwriter's best, including some collaborations with artists such as Pearl Jam.