Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Interconnected nature of all things













Edward W. Said   (b. 1 nov 1935 -- d. 25 September 2003)


"... He was one of those rare people who sought and recognized the connections between different and seemingly disparate disciplines. His unusual understanding of...the human being was perhaps a revelatory construct that parallels between ideas, topics, and cultures can be of a paradoxical nature, not contradicting but enriching each other.

"...Edward Said's understanding of the world made it impossible for him to see only the obvious, the literal, the readily graspable; in his writing and in his life he continually discovered and brought forth evidence of the interconnected nature of all things."



Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Gymboree

That last post got me thinking about another video, also (coincidentally) inspired by gym equipment. It's of the song 'Here it goes again' by the super Chicago quartet OK Go.

It was all over YouTube in 2007, which probably contributed to it eventually winning a Grammy.

No scary falsies, exercise balls, or spandex in this one. Don't worry, I'm no longer in the throes of deadline delirium (for now). I just love this band. They sound a little like The Strokes, but a much cooler, less stylized version. I've even tried to copy them using my sister's home treadmill (but don't tell her).
 


Monday, May 12, 2008

I Sing the Body Electronica

It's been a frenzied past few days, spent in partial solitary confinement 'preparing' for an out-of-town conference that finally took place this weekend (more on that later). I probably would have succumb to a nervous breakdown by Friday evening had I not relied on my usual upper. It not only kept me awake, but also riddled me with adrenalin whenever I started to flag. 

And I'm not referring to Red Bull, or positive self-affirmation, or to a plethora of other, more colorful uppers. No, no. I'm talking about Mason & Princess Superstar's single Perfect (Exceeder). It's loud, it's brash, it's in-your-face; what more could one want? Although it's been around for a very long time, it still works for me. Pure adrenalin, I tell you.

The video is fun too, though the song is edited a great deal and sounds more like the club/dance version (eww) than the more streamlined and richly textured electronic version available on iTunes. 



The problem with the video is that it leaves one with last image syndrome. Surely if there's last song syndrome, there's an image equivalent? So as I read my presentation to a room full of bead-wearing, feminist, middle aged women (and one man, the supportive hubby), I kept imagining myself bouncing on an exercise ball, wearing long fake lashes, a visor, and a plunging V neck spandex suit. 
Speaking of exercise ball, I would have been even more inclined to live out my video fantasy had I been sitting on one of these babies: a Gaiam 'balance ball chair,' which claims to 'combine exercise and fitness with comfort and ergonomic back support at an affordable price.' I guess those are important considerations when making a music video.

Now that I have made my love for (and dependence on) this song public, I'm expecting friends to stop returning phone calls, family to disown me, and to be uninvited from polite dinner parties that I haven't been invited to in the first place.

 That's okay. I am prepared to suffer for my Art (sniff).