Music of Stereophonics

One of my favorite bands is Stereophonics. They hail from Wales and liking them came as naturally to me as the predilection for consuming vast amounts of apples. For those who know me, that means, I really took to them right away since I've had a love affair with apples since the time I could masticate.

Stereophonics is comprised of: Kelly Jones • Richard Jones • Javier Weyler • Tony Kirkham • Adam Zindani.

Since I'm constantly looking for new sounds and bands, discovering Stereophonics came to me around the same time, my rock specialist friend, Liam, introduced me to yet another solid band, Modest Mouse. But that is another blog.

This time it was another person with a penchant for Greek and Latin who also happened to work at a Virgin Mega Store location, who introduced me to Stereophonics' You've Got to Go There to Get Back.

"We both like Socrates and modern UK films. I reckon, you will like this band, too," he said. And, in true socratic form, he divined right.

Kelly Jones' pain and disillusion comes across unequivocally in this album and it proved to be a high-frequency album in my playlists. Jones' type of pain is somehow bearable and unbothersome. The relatability one feels when in the presence of his music is indeed uncanny.

I find this particular album to be conducive to writing and meditation. And of course, after I tasted this album, I had to have more. Since then, I have not looked back and have followed their musical journey pretty consistently.

This Welsh band of musical 'brothers' is characterized by sensitive poetry, a solid bass, a consistently good drum beat, and of course, Kelly Jones' unique vocals, and in true rock fashion, dashing looks.

His well-established artistic contribution to the world of music is coupled with aesthetic superiority and he delivers both form- and content-wise.

For some reasom, Stereophonics have yet to reach superstardom status in the States while other British bands like Muse and Keane tend to be a crowd favorite. However, unlike other better-known British band, Stereophonics are characterized by steady discipline and fecund productivity. They have been making music for a decade and will hopefully retain their cohesion for many years to come.

On thursday, the 18th of October, they are releasing their 6th studio album called Pull the Pin. Here is a list of their total albums.

Their albums in chronological order are:

1) Word Gets Around (1997)
2) Performance and Cocktails (1999)
3) Just Enough Education to Perform (2001)
4) You Gotta Go There to Come Back (2003)
5) Language. Sex. Violence. Other? (2005)
6) Pull the Pin (2007)

And here are some of their YouTube links:

This is one of my favorite Stereophonics songs, "Rainbows and Pots of Gold." And this version is live.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xi35IcToK1g

This one's called Dakota
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUHjDJxkcSE

And from thein new album, Pull the Pin, "It Means Nothing"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e27AJQ4FWfI&mode=related&search=


graphs per amazon, youtube

Wonder Boys (2000)

Michael Chabon's second novel, Wonder Boys, is one of the most eloquent literary pieces of our time. Chabon produced it when but 31 years old and Curtis Hanson managed to turn the beautifully poetic novel into a beautifully poetic film.

For those who delight in beautiful lexical choices and daring syntax, Michael Chabon is a must. He contextualizes like few novelists can.

And for those who enjoy compare and contrasting literary texts to their filmic representations, Curtis Hanson's 2000 film Wonder Boys is a must-read/must-see as well.

Favorite line: "Sarah is a junkie for the printed word and, lucky for me, I manufactured her drug of choice."


graph per amazon

Al Gore gets Nobel Prize

Just a few hours ago it was announcend that former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and a U.N. panel on climate change have been awarded the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts to educate the public on the threat of global warming.

The recognition comes to Gore, once also referred to as 'Ozone man', a year after his "Inconvenient Truth", an educational documenatry about global warming hit the screens.

Congrats to Gore and the U.N. Panel on Climate Change.

For more read:
http://voanews.com/english/2007-10-12-voa7.cfm



graph per foxnews

Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation

Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation (2003) is another good Fall title for me. It takes place in Tokyo and the most relatable bits in the film are Charlotte and Bob, the two main characters, exploring the busy, urban streets of Tokyo together, thus sharing their isolated togetherness and bonding in a place where the leading currency is utter linguistic unfamiliarity and unequivocal confusion.

Charlotte and Bob do not speak Japanese, ergo, they cannot decode the basic sign system which allows other Tokyo inhabitants to understand each-other. They have native friends who, when they choose to go out celebrating on the streets of Tokyo, do not party any differently than a New York or Berlin crowd. They dance to techno music, play dress-up, meet new people, and discuss art with strangers.

They also party in authentically Japanese urban apartments, sing and dance to English music. One of Charlotte’s friends, Charlie Brown, a Japanese man, karaokes quite animatedly Sex Pistols' “God save the Queen.” I love his version.

In a century where things move fast, people change locations swiftly and roots do not seem to be allowed to grow, Coppola seems to yearn for a chance for people to stop and relate to each other. And in Lost in Translation that very human connection is evidenced in a simple raw fish lunch Charlotte shares with Bob in a little Tokyo restaurant, or at the Emergency Room where Bob waits for Charlotte with a corpulent Teddy, or when Bob and Charlotte discuss (over Roxy Music's So Into You) their 2-day relationship which seems to have more substance than Bob's too-familiar, decade-long marriage to Lidia or Charlotte's own staccato relationship with her no-attention-span-having husband.

Solitude and silence are louder than even the very ‘happening’ streets of Tokyo and that is precisely what this beautifully shot, poetic film privileges. And I concur with Coppola's predilection.


graph per imdb

Films to watch during the Fall season: "Garden State"

"Garden State" - written, directed, et al., by Zach Braff.

Good cinematic pace. To me, it's the perfect Fall film, perhaps because it's a text about transitions, change, and movement.

"Garden State" features too much of Braff, but it also features much else of significance.

An anthropomorphized New Jersey serves as actively as any other character in this film. It is, quite possibly, the making of the film.

"Garden State" was first realeased in select cities in the summer of 2004 and since it was not playing in my city of residence at that point, I went on a trip to Minneapolis (yes, "Garden State" is that good), where it and other indie titles were playing. That trip, was not a waste of time. I had just come back from my beloved Seattle and I seriously doubted I would have as good a time anywhere else, but I did. Largely due to the indie films I managed to see in one short visit.

True, I also saw my Minneapolis-residing person at that point, but I embarked on the trip primarily to view new, Sundance-type films. "We Don't Live Here Anymore" was the other film I intended to view [and did] while in MN.

One of the things time affords us is the ability to access older films with a measure of ease. This existentialism-informed film will not disappoint and Braff's ubiquitous presence is rendered tolerable thanks to a superior Natalie Portman and a talented supporting cast. And then there's the Garden State itself, Jersey....



graph per imdb

Take your music on the road.

The Subaru iPod Interface allows extensive control of your iPod through the Impreza’s factory head unit and steering wheel controls (if equipped). While connected, the iPod’s battery will be charged and scrolling text information can display playlist, artist, album, or song titles on the head unit. Choose from all the familiar play modes: repeat one song, repeat all songs, shuffle songs, and shuffle albums. You can even fast forward and rewind individual songs, Podcasts, or Audiobooks.

Never skip a beat.
Your iPod will be turned off when the vehicle’s ignition is turned off, and will resume playback when the ignition is turned back on. If the head unit is switched to AM/FM/CD or Aux modes, the iPod will pause and resume playback once the “SAT” button is pressed.

Out of sight.
The dock connector is located in the center console, freeing the interior of unsightly cables and keeping the iPod hidden from view.

As per subaru.com

speech

I have thought a lot about Back Formation lately.
Back Formation is a linguistic term which refers to the formation/creation of a new word by removing affixes, i.e., certain parts of the word. The resulting neologism is called a back-formation.

An example would be the verb 'opine' born out 'opinion.' And 'opine' is a bona fide verb. The following, however, are NOT.

"commentate" - commentary
"orientate" - orientation
"conversate" - conversation

And something from syntax:

"must have 'went' - must have gone

They annoy one. In an appetite-suppressing sort-of-way.

Free Samples are also Larry David's Petpeeve

HBO will be airing the 6th season of Curb Your Enthusiam starting this month and, as far as I'm concerned, it's the only truly intelligent text on cable TV.

Every episode is a beautifully woven carpet of humor, self-deprecation, and yes, human sensitivity. Larry David [also the master mind behind the uber-funny Seinfeld] comments on things with such linguistic facility that any literarily inclined individual is bound to react to.

Last night episode's tackled the notion of sampling.

Free samples are as ubiquitous as blonde people in LA. The only problem is knowing when to know that enough sampling is, indeed, enough.

Anyway, how often have we had to wait in line longer or be inconvenienced in some way because of free samplers?

This is the question that Larry David raised in his last episode and I share his basic annoyance.

I reckon one way of feeling understood and 'gotten' is recognizing things that annoy others the same way they annoy you.

Granted, free samples are out there for the taking but let's all be responsible when we partake. We don't have to try all the samples at the same time, after all there is only that much the stomach can process before one gets heartburn.

Eat responsibly, partake reasonably, and keep the line flowing, folks.



graph per HBO

Canadian Dollar reaches parity with the US $

This week the Canadian dollar reached parity with the U.S. dollar for the first time in almost 31 years, capping a spectacular run that has seen it rise 62 per cent since 2002.

So, when going to Starbucks in Canada, a Macchiato should in theory only cost 4 bucks (because that's a reasonable price, of course!).

Marriage

Gabriele Pauli, a controversial politician has shocked Germany by suggesting the so-called "seven-year itch" could be dealt with by limiting marriage contracts to that period.

Twice-divorced Gabriele Pauli, who is attempting to become leader of the ultra-conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), believes anyone wanting to stay married beyond seven years should have to apply for an extension. The partnership would otherwise be automatically dissolved.

The 50-year-old maverick last year rattled the all-white and male-dominated hierarchy of her party, which rules the Catholic southern state of Bavaria, by posing for magazine photographs dressed as a dominatrix in latex and leather.

Speaking at the launch of her manifesto, she said: "I firmly believe marriages of the future should be locked in to a time period.

"The basic approach is wrong ...many marriages last just because people believe they are safe. My suggestion is that marriages expire after seven years. I know that after this period many marriages reach a crisis point.

"It is false to go around with a notion that marriages are always super and intact."

The CSU has dominated Bavarian politics since the Second World War. It is the sister party of the conservative Christian Democratic Union - which is led by Angela Merkel, the German chancellor.

Ms Pauli's first marriage lasted 11 years and the second six years - before ending in divorce in February.

She said: "A contract for seven years means you will have to commit for a fixed period and you will have to renew your vows should you want to carry on." (as per scotsman.com)

Well, I take this as quite a notion especially since it's coming from the CDU center of Germany, i.e., Munich itself.

But, come on, Pauli, 7 years?! You are suggesting too specific a 'solution' to what you seem to regard as a fundamentally fluid notion. An itch does not have to be 7 years old, does it?



graph per Spiegel.de